Where’s the Compassion?: The Homeless Epidemic in America

I recently came across a video on Facebook (this is the link) that showed police officers confiscating blankets from homeless people this past winter in Denver, Colorado, where temperatures got down to 1 degree Fahrenheit. The officers did so in light of new anti-camping laws that forbid the homeless from sleeping/living on the streets when shelters are available. Cities all across America—even our beloved Portland–have passed these anti-camping laws, in hopes of ultimately deterring homelessness.

Here is Portland’s anti-camping ordinance:

Several cities across the country have taken it a step further by implementing new methods to enforce said bans, like installing "bum-less" contraptions, which make it incredibly difficult for homeless people to temporarily reside, or adding dividers onto public benches, making it impossible to lie on them (as pictured below).

Not only are these methods demeaning, but the anti-camping bans themselves are unconstitutional, as they violate the Eighth Amendment, which protects against cruel and unusual punishment. "When adequate shelter space exists, individuals have a choice about whether or not to sleep in public. However, when adequate shelter space does not exist, there is no meaningful distinction between the status of being homeless and the conduct of sleeping in public. Sleeping is a life-sustaining activity — i.e., it must occur at some time in some place. If a person literally has nowhere else to go, then enforcement of the anti-camping ordinance against that person criminalizes her for being homeless" (Badger). A problem arises because many homeless individuals do not feel safe in shelters, or do not believe that it is feasible to travel to one. 

In January of 2015, it was recorded that 564,708 people in the United States were “experiencing homelessness,” meaning they were sleeping outside or in an emergency shelter or transitional housing program (Fitzgerald). Instead of focusing on solving the actual problem of homelessness, by, perhaps, reallocating federal funding, cities are putting money towards these degrading methods of deterrence. As was suggested in the documentary 13th, if there was money to be made in ending the homeless epidemic, as there is from mass incarceration, this country wouldn't have such a big problem.

There is often times negative stigma surrounding the homeless, as members of the homeless community are sometimes accused of being lazy and addicted to drugs. Our society seems to suggest that it is solely the responsibility of the individual to make good life choices, thereby putting the blame directly onto the individual when he/she/they find themselves on the streets. However, as we have discussed, people's situations are much more complicated than that. Conflict theory suggests that those in power will behave a certain way, often times adding to their personal gain while jeopardizing the well-being of others, as is exemplified through the widening of the wealth gap. In addition, while looking at the issue from a structural functionalist perspective, homelessness benefits the system. The homeless population can be used as an example for other citizens, showing them that they should abide by the laws or they too could end up sleeping on the streets. Those with no money or power are also much easier to control.

Just like with this country's prison system, we need more access to rehabilitation and psychiatric treatment. About 38% of the homeless abuse alcohol while 26% abuse drugs other than alcohol (Homelessness and Addiction). In addition, about, “20 to 25% of the homeless population in the United States suffers from some form of severe mental illness” (Mental Illness and Homelessness).

The homeless problem in America hasn’t always been this bad. In fact, in 1970, there was “a surplus of 300,000 affordable housing units in the US” (Covert). However, problems began to arise during the Reagan administration when affordable housing began to disappear following large cuts in funding. “Federal spending on housing assistance fell by 50% between 1976 and 2002” (Covert). Alongside this, cities began seeing more gentrification, so cheap housing was often replaced with more expensive homes that were meant to be purchased and owned as opposed to rented. In addition, “federal incentives to build affordable housing dried up. Add to that the AIDs crisis, the deinstitutionalization of the mentally ill, cutbacks to the social safety net, and the rise in incarceration and subsequent hurdles for reentry, and you have today’s crisis” (Covert).

Works Cited

"A Study on Homelessness and Addiction." Michael's House Treatment Centers. Michael's House, n.d. Web. 03 Apr. 2017.

Badger, Emily. "It’s Unconstitutional to Ban the Homeless from Sleeping Outside, the Federal Government Says." The Washington Post. WP Company, 13 Aug. 2015. Web. 03 Apr. 2017.

Covert, Bryce. "It Would Actually Be Very Simple To End Homelessness Forever." ThinkProgress. ThinkProgress, 09 Oct. 2014. Web. 01 Apr. 2017.

Fitzgerald, Erin. "The State of Homelessness in America 2016." National Alliance to End Homelessness. N.p., 6 Apr. 2016. Web. 01 Apr. 2017.

Hohenadel, Kristin. "Are Anti-Homeless Sidewalk Spikes Immoral?" Slate Magazine. N.p., 12 June 2014. Web. 03 Apr. 2017.

Mental Illness and Homelessness (n.d.): n. pag. National Homelessness. National Coalition for the Homeless, 2009. Web. 2 Apr. 2017.

"Repelling The Homeless." Studio L. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Apr. 2017.

"The City of Portland, Oregon." Chapter 14A50 Conduct Prohibited on Public Property RSS. N.p., 17 Feb. 2016. Web. 04 Apr. 2017.