Back in August 2015, advocates held a rally in front of City Hall protesting the treatment of those experiencing homelessness in the city. They had found that with increasing frequency, people experiencing homelessness were being subjected to judicial and extrajudicial arrest, harassment, and discrimination. Additionally, they contended that individuals who were homeless were being treated as criminals for engaging in activities necessary to survival, foremost among them resting and sleeping.
Soon after the rally, in September, Mayor Jorge Elorza met with the advocates and declared that the harassment and discrimination happening was not in line with his Administration’s policy. At that time advocates asked him to make a public statement expressing that and to focus on solutions to homelessness rather than criminalizing the homeless. Fast-forward to now, four months later, and nothing has come out of the Mayor’s office.
To make matters worse for the Mayor’s office, advocates released results of a public spaces survey which show a clear and disturbing pattern of discrimination against those experiencing homelessness in downtown Providence.
“As an outreach worker I have both heard, and personally witnessed this kind of conduct, and it disgusts and enrages me,” said Megan Smith of House of Hope CDC.
“Essentially, only homeless people and formerly homeless people are being arrested for these activities,” said Dr. Eric Hirsch. The activities include, sitting, panhandling, standing, sleeping and talking, all of which are perfectly legal.
Eileen Boarman was homeless in Providence on and off for over two years. She has personally witnessed and been the victim of police harassment and abuse. She talks of being beaten, spray with water hoses, and having her arm twisted. She was treated as having no value and no rights. Her experiences are impossible to justify.
Several years ago, Providence City Councillor Mary Kay Harris and others spearheaded the creation of the Providence External Review Authority (PERA), a civilian lead police oversight board. In light of Dr. Hirsch’s findings, the re-establishment of this board in a must.
We need, says House of Hope CDC outreach worker Kate Miechkowski, “to address the cause of people having nowhere to go and nowhere to sleep, rather than arresting and harassing those who suffer from the effects of our failed economic policies.”
In November, Providence College students conducted a public spaces survey of random pedestrians in the Kennedy Plaza/Burnside Park areas of downtown Providence. The results were striking. Just over half (52%) of those surveyed were homeless or formerly homeless, but 95% of the citations and 94% of the arrests were experienced by homeless and formerly homeless persons.
Answers to other questions on the survey such as whether law enforcement had asked them to “move on” or to leave a particular area, how often they were asked for identification; and how often law enforcement searched their belongings without their permission show the same pattern of disproportionate harassment of homeless and formerly homeless persons by police. Other potential reasons for such targeting such as race, ethnicity, or age were not found to be relevant.
“It was stunning to see the degree to which homeless Rhode Islanders are subject to harassment by the Providence Police Department,” stated Dr. Eric Hirsch, Professor of Sociology and author of the Public Spaces Survey. “It was the only factor relevant to why someone was ticketed or arrested for everyday activities such as sitting, lying down, etc.”
Kate Miechkowski, Outreach Worker for the House of Hope CDC confirmed the findings of the survey stating, “This past summer and fall I had the opportunity to interview dozens of people experiencing homelessness about their interactions with Providence police officers. I was horrified by their experiences of degradation, humiliation, and blatant profiling. There was almost no one I spoke to who had amiable experiences with police officers. I personally witnessed multiple incidents in which people were told that they had to move for doing nothing except occupying a public sidewalk.”
Advocates point to the fact that Rhode Island was the first state in the country to enact a “Homeless Bill of Rights” formally banning discrimination against Rhode Islanders experiencing homelessness and affirming their equal access to housing, employment and public services and believe the police’s targeting of people based on their housing status is illegal.
The Rhode Island law asserts that Rhode Islanders experiencing homelessness have the right to use public parks, public transportation and public buildings, “in the same manner as any other person and without discrimination on the basis of his or her housing status.”
In the original letter to the Mayor, advocates stated:
Criminalization is not a solution to homelessness. It is incredibly cruel to those experiencing homelessness, dehumanizing the individuals and making it harder to connect to advocates and services. It also costs the system more by spending taxpayer dollars on court costs and incarcerations rather than on housing, medical care, and other long-term solutions.
The group asked the Mayor to implement the following action steps to address the current situation:
1. Instruct the Providence Police Department that they may not order people to move from public property, nor threaten arrest for the failure to move, absent reasonable suspicion that they are committing a crime.
2. Ensure that this order is followed by:
a. Re-establishing the Providence External Review Authority (PERA);
b. Establishing a designated hotline to report harassment or illegal arrest and regularly reporting on calls received;
c. Adding content on Rhode Island’s Homeless Bill of Rights to the training police cadets receive at the Academy and incorporating this material into re-training of current officers.
3. Provide an appropriate location and budget for a day center in the City.
4. Publicly support the hundred million-dollar bond ask and ensure that the City’s programs to rehabilitate vacant homes (such as Every Home) results in apartments that are affordable to very low income renters.
Nationally, there is increasing recognition of the need for cities to shift away from criminalization and toward a right to housing. In its report No Safe Place, the National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty details the ways in which criminalizing ordinances are damaging both to individuals experiencing homelessness and to the cities that enact them. It also found that, despite a lack of affordable housing and shelter space, cities across the country are essentially making it illegal to be homeless with laws that outlaw life-sustaining acts, such as eating and sleeping, in public spaces.
Key findings/conclusions from the report are:
The Seattle University School of Law recently published a series of briefs exploring the monetary costs of criminalization and placing these laws squarely within the shameful tradition of Jim Crow, Anti-Okie, and Ugly laws. Earlier this summer, the U.S. Department of Justice filed a Statement of Interest arguing that it unconstitutionally punishes homelessness to make it a crime for people to sleep in public when there is insufficient shelter.
Rhode Island’s Homeless Bill of Rights stands in complete contrast to this trend causing advocates to be dismayed by the growing complaints from those experiencing homelessness that the police are not respecting their rights.
The Homeless Bill of Rights sets an important foundation for Opening Doors Rhode Island, the state’s plan to end homelessness, which states as a core value that “there are no ‘homeless people,’ but rather people who have lost their homes who deserve to be treated with dignity and respect.”
Opening Doors Rhode Island outlines a plan that significantly transforms the provision of services to Rhode Islanders experiencing homelessness. Consistent with the new federal plan to end homelessness, the plan seeks to sharply decrease the numbers of people experiencing homelessness and the length of time people spend homeless.
“Rhode Island has the potential to be a model for how to end homelessness,” concluded Megan Smith, Outreach Worker for House of Hope CDC. “We can do this by collaborating to provide safe, affordable, permanent housing and engaging with and educating our community. It is not done by harassing and further marginalizing our city’s most vulnerable neighbors.”
Mayor Elorza was invited to speak at the rally, but declined. His office issued the following statement:
“The Mayor is committed to working with our service providers, advocates and community partners to address the social and economic challenges these resident face. We have spoken previously with the Chief of Police and he has directed his officers not to target those who are struggling with homelessness.”
[Portions of this are from a joint RICH and RIHAP press release]
]]>According to the Rhode Island Coalition for the Homeless (RICH), “On Thursday, August 13th, Shannah Kurland, a community lawyer and activist, was arrested in front of the CVS located at 70 Kennedy Plaza. Witnesses state that Kurland was simply standing on the sidewalk near the CVS and clearly not blocking the entrance.”
The police officers told Kurland that she was in violation of “failure to move,” a non-existent offense with “no legal basis in city ordinance or state statute,” that is often used to threaten and harass homeless people, according to RICH. When Kurland explained that there was no such law, she was arrested
Protesters carried signs and defiantly committed the same “crime” as Kurland, standing in front of CVS, and refusing to move. “Advocates contend that with increasing frequency, people experiencing homelessness are being subjected to judicial and extrajudicial arrest, harassment, and discrimination,” said RICH in a press release, “Individuals who are homeless have been treated as criminals for engaging in activities necessary to survival, foremost among them resting and sleeping.”
One sign simply read, “Legalize Sleep.”
“We are sick of the harassment,” exclaimed Barbara Kalil, Co-Director of the RI Homeless Advocacy Project (RIHAP). “People are being targeted simply because of their housing status. Not only is that unacceptable, it is illegal!”
Kalil lead a delegation into City Hall to present a letter to Mayor Jorge Elorza demanding a meeting to discuss the issues by September 4th and that the Providence Police be immediately instructed “to stop their practice of criminalizing homelessness and harassing homeless individuals” both downtown and in other city neighborhoods.
In addition, RICH and RIHAP demanded a “commitment on behalf of the city to provide resources for a permanent, accessible day center” and a “promise from the city to advocate for more permanent housing vouchers and identified units.”
Earlier in the day, a homeless constituent encountered two police officers “who told him that they know about the rally this afternoon and there will be many police officers there ready to arrest anybody who obstructs the sidewalk,” said Karen Jeffries of RICH in an email. According to the constituent, the police officers said, “We have Paddy wagons and many handcuffs ready to go.”
The police were in fact ready with plastic handcuffs hanging from their belts and two “paddy wagons” parked on the opposite side of Kennedy Plaza. During the protest the police made a large show of force that included at least one officer videotaping the crowd, for reasons that are unclear. The Providence Police are often videotaping crowds at such events, but do not seem to have any policies in place regarding the use of such video.
Shannah Kurland is the lawyer for Manny Pombo, a street musician suing the city of Providence for harassment, and John Prince, who was attacked by police in his own home for videotaping them from his yard. Kurland is also involved in her own lawsuit against the city of Providence for violating her free speech rights last year at a fundraiser in Roger Williams Park for then-Gubernatorial candidate, and now Governor, Gina Raimondo. Kurland is also legal counsel to five local Ferguson activists charged with trespassing for shutting down Interstate 95.
RICH drew attention to a report from the National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty, which “details the ways in which criminalizing ordinances are damaging both to individuals experiencing homelessness and to the cities that enact them. It also found that, despite a lack of affordable housing and shelter space, cities across the country are essentially making it illegal to be homeless with laws that outlaw life-sustaining acts, such as eating and sleeping, in public spaces.”
Key findings/conclusions from the report are:
-Homeless people are criminally punished for being in public even when they have no other alternatives;
-The criminalization of homelessness is increasing across the country;
-Criminalization laws violate the civil and human rights of homeless people;
-Criminalization laws are costly to taxpayers;
-Criminalization laws are ineffective;
-Criminalization laws should be replaced with constructive solutions to ending homelessness.
RI famously passed a “Homeless Bill of Rights” in 2012 with the intent of preventing, according to Sam Howard, in a piece written for RI Future at the time, “harassment or discrimination towards homeless people. This means kicking people off of park benches or out of libraries when they’re not doing anything wrong. It means that when someone applies for a job, the fact that their mailing address is listed as a shelter can’t be used as a reason to reject them. It means that a homeless person can’t have their stuff seized or searched if they’re not causing trouble. Basically, if the Governor signs this, it’s now a little bit easier for the homeless to enjoy all the little niceties of public life.”
The Homeless Bill of Rights set an important foundation for Opening Doors Rhode Island, the state’s plan to end homelessness, which states as a core value that “there are no ‘homeless people,’ but rather people who have lost their homes who deserve to be treated with dignity and respect.”
According to RICH, “Opening Doors Rhode Island outlines a plan that significantly transforms the provision of services to Rhode Islanders experiencing homelessness. Consistent with the new federal plan to end homelessness, the plan seeks to sharply decrease the numbers of people experiencing homelessness and the length of time people spend homeless.”
“The path to ending homelessness starts with treating those experiencing homelessness with basic dignity and respect, plain and simple,” added Kalil.
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Spearheaded by Community Solutions, Zero: 2016 is a rigorous follow-up to the organization’s 100,000 Homes campaign that housed over 105,000 homeless Americans in under four years. Rhode Island is one of five states (Connecticut, New Mexico, Utah and West Virginia are the other four) that were were selected to participate as full states. Also selected were 67 communities in 30 states and the District of Columbia. Combined, the group includes more than 234 housing authorities, local government entities, nonprofit organizations and community agencies; all are committed to ending homelessness among their veterans and chronically homelessness in their communities.
“All the work we have done for the past five years was to get us to this exact moment in time, to the place where we stand today – at the point of our state becoming the first state in the country to end veteran and chronic homelessness,” stated Jim Ryczek, executive director of the Rhode Island Coalition for the Homeless. “Thanks to the General Assembly that has begun to fund Opening Doors Rhode Island, our State’s place to end homelessness, our service providers and constituents who have wholeheartedly embraced the re-tooling of our homeless system, and our community partners in philanthropy, business and in the faith communities; we are ready to do this!”
The first step for the local campaign is Registry Week, the most extensive collection of data on the homeless ever conducted in Rhode Island. Over 450 volunteers will blanked the state in three nights; from Monday, November 10th through Wednesday, November 12th; from Westerly to Woonsocket, to collect data on every homelessness Rhode Islander. The homeless system will use the information collected during Registry Week to develop by-name files on every homeless person in the state. This will then enable quick and correct housing and service placement. Support for Rhode Island’s Registry Week and Zero: 2016 has come from the United Way of Rhode Island, the Rhode Island Foundation, and Rhode Island Housing as part of their commitments to tackling the issue of homelessness in Rhode Island.
Dr. Erich Hirsch, Professor at Providence College and the Chair of the Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) Committee, applauded the Registry Wekk stateing, “This is the first time ever, in the history of collecting data on homelessness in Rhode Island, that we will have such a complete picture of homeless Rhode Islanders. The data collected will enable to prioritize the most vulnerable Rhode Islanders and match them with the appropriate services and housing options.”
“Ending homelessness in our state is not a pipe dream,” added Ryczek. “It is a reality that is within our reach, within our lifetime. We must continue to summon the political and public will to make it so.”
]]>Surrounded by 88 bunk beds at Harrington Hall, the state’s largest congregate shelter, the Rhode Island Coalition for the Homeless (RICH) and other affordable housing and homeless prevention advocates released the most recent numbers of homelessness in the state and called upon Governor Chafee to act immediately to address a significant shortage of shelter beds and funds to operate shelters for the upcoming winter season. Additionally, they called upon the Governor to address the long-term solutions by including adequate funding in his upcoming budget for Opening Doors Rhode Island, the state’s plan to end homelessness.
A recent Winter Shelter Assessment Point in Time Count, taken on Wednesday, December 12th, reveals that there were 996 Rhode Islanders homeless on that day. This is 146 more Rhode Islanders experiencing homeless than last year’s September 2011 count of 850 found. The state’s shelter bed capacity is 577, which leaves the system at a deficit of 419 beds.
This year’s count also showed:
Dr. Eric Hirsch, Professor at Providence College and Chair of the Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) Committee, believes the shortfall number of 419 actually under estimates the problem as the Point in Time Count was an informal and incomplete count unable to capture all those who are unsheltered around the state. Hirsch also pointed out that the count does not include those who are couch surfing or living in doubled up situations.
“These increases in homelessness are being driven by economic forces: unemployment, foreclosures and evictions,” stated Hirsch. “It is morally wrong to allow people to die on our streets when it would cost very little to give them a warm, clean bed to sleep in. We need to provide emergency shelter now, but over the long run it will be most cost effective to provide permanent housing for those families and individuals who cannot access what is a very expensive rental housing market.”
With the cold weather approaching, a sluggish economy yet to recover and a continued high rate of unemployment and foreclosures in Rhode Island, advocates fear that the emergency shelter system is woefully inadequate to meet the continued growing need. The United Way’s 211 Helpline found in November a 38% increase of callers seeking housing and a 44% increase in those seeking assistance with a pending foreclosure situation.
Advocates called on the Governor to show his commitment to ending homelessness in Rhode Island by including in his upcoming budget funding to continue implementing Opening Doors Rhode Island, the state’s plan to end homelessness. Opening Doors Rhode Island outlines a plan that significantly transforms the provision of services to Rhode Islanders experiencing homelessness. Consistent with the new federal plan to end homelessness, the plan seeks to sharply decrease the numbers of people experiencing homelessness and the length of time people spend homeless.
The plan proposes to finish the job of ending chronic homelessness in five years and to prevent and end all homelessness among Veterans in the state in the same time period. It also outlines strategies to substantially decrease the numbers of homeless families and young people and to end this homelessness in ten years. Finally, the plan will reduce all other homelessness in the state and establish the framework for system transformation that will reduce the numbers of people who experience homelessness for the first time.
The state’s Emergency Winter Shelter Task Force has estimated that there still exists a current funding gap for this year’s emergency winter shelters. Once again, non-profits, philanthropic, business, faith and individual donors have responded to the call for help and donated monies to ensure that no Rhode Islander is forced to sleep outside this winter. Advocates contend that the system cannot continue to count on the generosity of the community and that the state of Rhode Island must stand up as a partner on the financial side too.
Reverend Don Anderson, Executive Director of the RI State Council of Churches summed up the moral outrage of those at the press conference when he stated, “The Hebrew prophet, Habakkuk, addresses the issue of extended neglect in addressing the needs of the most vulnerable among us. He says that the time will come when “the very stones will cry” on their behalf. The time has come for the stones to cry out.” The Reverend then called upon Rhode Islanders to call up their legislators and the Governor and demand that these crises end and that Rhode Island works to end homelessness.
]]>Mr. Tondra, who also is the Executive Director of the Housing Resources Commission which adopted the plan earlier this year, presented the origin of the Plan, how it was developed with the input of housing authorities; local, state and federal departments; and advocates and charities. Prof. Hirsch provided the factual basis for the Plan. He explained that the $130 million price tag associated with the Plan is one that takes into a variety of sources; including federal, state, local, nonprofit groups, and other institutions like universities and hospitals.
Prof. Hirsch said the cost of keeping families and the chronically homeless in homeless shelters was ultimately more expensive than paying for supportive housing, the “housing first” model. According to him, the costs of homelessness for 48 people currently total just over $1.5 million, working out to $31,617 per client served, whether it be in hospital or ER visits, staying in a shelter, or spending time in jail or prison.
“And that’s not including ambulance costs,” he said. “The city of Providence spends over $300,000 per month on ambulance runs.”
In the very first year after the Plan would be implemented, the total cost would drop to slightly more than $400,000 for 48 people; with most of the costs going towards housing subsidies and supportive services. The savings mostly come from less need for hospitals and shelters, as housing would provide less need for either. The savings work out to $7946 per person.
Worcester, MA, has already done this, Prof. Hirsch pointed out, saying that it wasn’t merely fanciful thinking. There, the city took all of the money it reserved for shelter and put it into vouchers for supportive housing, reducing chronic homelessness from a high of about 100 down to merely four individuals. Sen. John Tassoni (D — Smithfield), the briefing’s sponsor, concurred, “if Worcester can do it, Rhode Island can do it.”
Beyond all the facts and figures, the moral argument stood out. Said one homeless man, Vern, to the assembled legislators, “don’t make your children and grandchildren go through what I’ve gone through.” Said Prof. Hirsch, “does anyone here really believe that it’s morally acceptable to allow someone to spend eight years without a home?” When no one responded, he said, “that was a rhetorical question.”
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