We fundamentally reject the Supreme Court’s decision on Grants Pass today which effectively denies people the right to sleep and criminalizes homelessness. The fact that so many people are living outside in our country is a true societal failure, and now we are making it that much harder for those who are suffering on our streets to simply survive.
Every human being has a right to exist in our community, and we cannot exclude people, nor treat people differently, based on their housing status. Our public spaces should remain safe, healthy and welcoming environments for all members of our community – including people experiencing homelessness.
The carceral and punitive approaches that may come out of this ruling are not only inhumane, but they have already proven to be ineffective and only serve to perpetuate cycles of homelessness. Today, we are calling on our elected leaders to reject this decision and instead invest more deeply in the housing and prevention strategies that we know are the only true solution to the crisis on our streets.
