Blog Post #1
In 2024, the Supreme Court granted cities the right to ban or limit homelessness people from sleeping in public places nationwide. The Grant Pass decision was adopted as an attempt to reduce homelessness. However, this criminalizing people who are not housed is not the way to solve it. The decision was passed, which included prohibiting people from sleeping in (1) sleeping on public sidewalks, streets or alleyways, (2) camping in public property and (3) camping and overnight parking in city parks. Furthermore, if people violate this new ordinance, they would be fined or jailed up to 90 days.
This is very problematic and will negatively impact marginalized populations such as black and brown minorities, LGBTQ youth, and chronically mentally ill people. Homelessness being an issue in this country is more a public health and structural problem than anything. The cost of living has increased in major cities such as Los Angeles, New York, and Chicago. However, there has not been an increase in wages. This then contributes to increased homelessness, violence, and increased drug usage. For example, Chicago has about 75,000 people experiencing homelessness due to housing costs and low wages. The lack of resources in the cities’ black and brown neighborhoods has a direct effect on the violence in those communities. Furthermore, the homeless people in Chicago are mostly of black and Latino, LGBTQ youth, and people who have mental health issues. This creates a horrible cycle of keeping these individuals in systems of oppression. The cycle starts with arrest, then being charged with a crime, and placed in jail. After these individuals are released from jail, it’s impossible to find a job or housing, which then increases the likelihood they will start the cycle again. Laws being passed like this disproportionately always impact black and brown people more.
Major cities like New York, San Francisco, and Los Angeles have already begun fining and arresting unhoused people. This is ridiculous to criminalize homelessness instead of increasing wages and providing more affordable housing in these cities.
For years, I worked in Los Angeles at a non-profit organization providing services to unhoused people. I saw first-hand how the city official treated people who were not housed. I was in disbelief how the city of Los Angeles kept the unhoused people segregated in an area called Skid Row. Thousands of unhoused people have lived in this area since the 1980s. I could not believe it until I saw with my own eyes about 10-15 blocks of people living in tents. These people were mostly black and Latino populations heavily impacted by the criminal justice system, mental and substance use issues. I believed my job was to help people learn the skills to keep a job, treatment, and maintain housing. I learned quickly that the systems in place were deliberate and wanted the cycle to continue. This meant that most of the people I encountered remained unhoused because of various reasons. However, to me personally, I believe the main reason they remained unhoused was due to the systems in place impacting their ability for upward mobility.
By: Bryan Haggard
Image Below: Skid Row in Los Angeles
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