SHOULD CITIES have the power to clear homeless encampments? The Supreme Court stays so.
Cities all across our West Orange County and – and probably – all across California are busy composing anti-camping ordinances aimed at clearing clusters of homeless people creating impromptu settlements on public land.
In the case of Grants Pass vs. Johnson, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned a lower court ruling that decided that bans on overnight camping in parks, etc. did not constitute “cruel and unusual punishment” as intended by the U.S. Constitition.
Grants’ Pass (a lovely small town in Oregon), seeking to clean up the problems posed by the unhoused, created an ordinance with increasing sanctions. First citations and fines, then bans from parks for 30 days, and then a month in jail for the consistently non-compliant.
Tender hearts (and there’s nothing wrong with that) have taken the position that many of those in that situation in life are abjectly poor, or addicted to substances or have severe mental and/or emotional problems and therefore are at their last resort in plunking down on the civic turf.
However, when offered services – as with the recently opened Central Cities Navigation Center, operated by the cities of Garden Grove, Fountain Valley and Westminster – the vast majority of those contacted by police and social service workers have refused help.
Why? Because, as you might imagine, moving into temporary transitioning housing means following the rules – no smoking, drinking alcohol, stealing, using drugs, fighting, etc. – which boil down to “staying clean and sober.”
A great number of those either can’t or don’t want to do that. As hard as their lives are, they evidently find it harder to develop the kind of self-control necessary to function.
The problem is not just with the homeless. Many – too many – property owners – neglect buildings and leave them derelict and a haven for criminal activity. They consider hiring security a waste of money that could otherwise be devoted to bigger profits. There’s one very large retailer I’m thinking of that allowed its parking lots to be practically overrun with vagrants before finally awakening to the necessity of protecting customers and employees.
I am hugely in favor of spending whatever it takes to provide for people who are rendered homeless through no fault of their own, especially where children are concerned.
But enough is enough. Reasonable restrictions with appropriate punishments are appropriate and necessary. Strict enforcement and tough sanctions have dramatically reduced deaths from drunk driving.
It’s time for “tough love” to take its place in society, even for those of us with tender hearts.
Categories: Opinion
You left out the part about homeless shelters being unsafe for individuals. For the past two decades I’ve listened to a homeless family member complain of the rampant theft inside homeless shelters. Why would someone want to be locked inside a building and have their possession stolen from them? Add paranoia derived from mental illness and it’s no wonder homeless do not want to be in these “shelters”.
Wasnt the first thing the national socialists did was clear homeless off the streets, then the developmentally challenged? If you weren’t actively contributing to the Nazi economy, than you were better off dead they thought.
I often wonder, how did the Germans allow themselves to become Nazis? It’s easy for us to say, “I would never!”, but that is a dangerous position to take. We are all human, and we are equally capable of anything another human is capable of; we can create great beauty in this world, or cause heinous violence… I’m sure there were plenty German citizens who were only trying to keep their heads above water… But I have learned that it is easier to accept indoctrination, than it is to fight it. So then, who among us will stop and fight our own worst nature? Will it be us, or will we leave it for a future generation to wrestle with?
The term “hardcore” was coined by an economist to describe the chronic homeless’ stance on contributing to the economy. It’s easy to throw labels and justifications, but one thing no one ever asks is, “why do they refuse to be like us?”. Maybe the reason we don’t ask is because we are afraid of an ugly truth. Maybe our some individuals in our community inherently understand what is going on. US weapons and bombs are being used all over the world to execute people without trial, US citizens included, and somehow we blame the homeless as the problem?
The canaries in the coal mine are dieing, and we should take notice.