Criminalization of Homelessness

Lifting bans on sleeping outside won’t stop criminalization of homelessness, By Terrence McCoy, August 13, 2015, Washington Post: “The clearest sign of an oppressed population is when the law criminalizes its actions or defining characteristics. History is full of examples of Jim Crow justice and laws banning intermarriage. But even though those pillars of oppression have been dissolved — and as a new age of growing gender equality and same-sex marriage dawns — the law has settled its gaze on another enemy. The homeless. The criminalization of homeless behaviors, however, came under assault last week. In a statement of interest filed by the Justice Department in a case out of Boise, Idaho, the federal government said it was unconstitutional to ban people from sleeping or camping in public places. The argument also provided a thorough summation of the modern homeless crisis and what cities have done — or not done — about it…”