One way to get city council’s attention? Threaten to kill, cook, and eat a baby goose. In 1988, more than 100 unhoused locals organized to form the Street People’s Association of Austin (SPAA), which pushed for better treatment and a formal day-labor program for the city’s homeless community. When their pleas went unheard, they hatched a plan—specifically a baby goose named Homer, which they bought for $16.87. At a public meeting in Zilker Park, one of the organization’s members emerged from Town Lake with a knife in his teeth and a rotisserie chicken in his hands. Pointing to Homer, who they had on display, he then ripped the cooked meat to shreds and swore he’d do the same to the little gosling unless the city addressed their demands.
Homer never became dinner. Instead, he emerged as a beloved mascot. Wearing a bowtie and diaper, he was a regular at town hall meetings, where his disruptive squawking often meant the SPAA’s agendas were addressed first. Homer led parades and garnered national attention, including airtime on Good Morning America, and when asked to attend the 1988 Democratic Convention, the goose happily left his home (a floating raft on Town Lake called the S.S. Homer) and flew first class to Atlanta. Even Willie Nelson honored the bird’s raison d’être; at one of his shows, he released a caged goose on stage to symbolize his solidarity.
Later that year, Homer sadly suffered a case of heat exhaustion. That’s when community activist Lori Renteria became his self-proclaimed godmother, housing him for his remaining days. The average lifespan of a goose is 10 to 20 years, but Homer lived to be 27—and his impact continued even past his extended expiration. Shortly after his funeral in 2015 (which was attended by then-mayor Steve Adler), Renteria had him taxidermized and put in a glass display case. Still wearing his iconic bowtie, the stuffed Homer was wheeled around Austin for several more years, visiting schools and libraries to increase awareness around homelessness. “He was the best ambassador the homeless had,” said Renteria on Fox 7 Austin. “He really did change hearts and minds.”