History
This person was arrested for wandering the streets without a house in 1832.
Who is Maria Quin?
Due to vagrancy laws, Maria Quin was sent to Arch Street Prison, a prison designated for those who had been arrested for living in poverty, and she was sentenced to 10 days.
A country that has anti-homeless legislation written in its constitution
What is Hungary?
In order to get people off the street, in 2018 Hungary put in its constitution that "habitual residence in a public place is forbidden." They have the option to do community service, but if they refuse community service or ignore police requests 3 times within a 90-day period, they can be arrested and put in jail.
Source: https://www.dw.com/en/hungarys-homeless-ban-when-poverty-becomes-a-crime/a-45900111 )
By analyzing policies, proposing legislation, and conducting research, this field of social work can help to decriminalize homelessness.
What is policy and planning social work?
Policy and planning social workers collaborate with policymakers and lawmakers, and other coalitions to bring about social change, including homelessness. One example is the National Coalition for the Homeless, which actively works to end and prevent homelessness by addressing the root issues of homelessness like lack of affordable housing.
Sources: https://www.socialworkers.org/Portals/0/Images/_News/sw-month/2020-SWM/infographic-policy.jpg
https://nationalhomeless.org/about-nch/
This Missouri legislation makes it so that anyone sleeping or camping on state-owned land will be charged with a class C misdemeanor.
What is House Bill NO. 1606?
We know from the annual PIT count from 2022, it was estimated there were 520 individuals that were unsheltered on a single night in January, so it has the potential to impact a lot of individuals.
Sources: https://www.house.mo.gov/billtracking/bills221/hlrbillspdf/3703H.08T.pdf https://moboscoc.org/resources/data/point-in-time-count-reports/
An act that allowed for the arrest of anyone who appeared to be unemployed or homeless
What is the Vagrancy Act of 1866?
After emancipation, the Vagrancy Act of 1866 forced anyone that was homeless into employment, and if they attempted to run away they could be recaptured and forced to work for free. This disproportionately affected African Americans as many were homeless after being freed from slavery.
Country with the lowest rate of homelessness
What is Japan?
Japan has a homeless rate of 0.003%, making it the lowest in the world. It is illegal to beg for money on the streets of Japan, and many areas have hostile architecture to prevent the visibility of homelessness. There are many resources to help the homeless population which may keep the rate low, but the rate may be higher than the reported number due to low visibility as homelessness is considered very shameful and is blamed on the individual.
Sources: https://tomorrow.city/a/homelessness-in-japan
https://hanabi.asij.ac.jp/opinion/hostile-architecture-marginalization-by-design/
This type of social work may be involved in grassroots campaigns, grant writing, and garnering public support
What is community organization social work?
Community organization social workers help tackle social issues by counterbalancing powerful groups. An example of this is the National Homelessness Law Center which just helped to retain the Supreme Court's decision in Martin v. Boise that if there are no other options for places to sleep, homeless people cannot be punished for sleeping on the street.
https://nlihc.org/sites/default/files/AG-2021/06-08_Criminalization-of-Homelessness.pdf
This city ordinance in Austin, TX considers it a criminal offense for "Sitting or lying down on a public sidewalk or sleeping outdoors in and near the downtown area"
What is Proposition B?
Prop B has been in effect in Austin, Tx since 09/01/21, and also bans camping in public areas. The charge for this crime is a Class C Misdemeanor with a fine of up to $500. Within one year of implementation, 334 charges were filed under the camping ban.
Sources: https://data.austintexas.gov/City-Government/Proposition-B-Camping-Ban-Offenses/qc59-phn7
A 1972 Supreme Court case that deemed Jacksonville's vagrancy ordinance as "unconstitutionally vague"
What is Papachristou v. City of Jacksonville?
After 8 people were arrested for various reasons under Jacksonville's vagrancy ordinance, the Supreme Court ruled that the ordinance including "habitually living without visible means of support" was unconstitutional because it was too vague, could lead to arbitrary arrests, and was based on old English law.
Source: https://caselaw.findlaw.com/court/us-supreme-court/405/156.html
This country does not make homelessness a criminal offense and is attempting to eradicate homelessness by 2027
What is Finland?
Currently, there is no legislation prohibiting acts like begging or camping in public in Finland. Finland replaced shelters with hostels and permanent housing, and has a goal of ending homelessness by 2027 using a housing-first approach.
https://www.housingrightswatch.org/sites/default/files/2012-12-11_RPT_FINLAND_anti_soc_laws_en.pdf
Camping bans results in the loss of important documents and life-saving medication through this response to homeless camps
What are encampment sweeps?
When a city goes to "clean up" a homeless encampment because it is illegal to camp in most US cities, important personal belongings like IDs, birth certificates, and medication are destroyed if the person is not with their belongings at the time of the sweep.
Source: https://nhchc.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/NHCHC-encampment-sweeps-issue-brief-12-22.pdf
A factor in the large increase of homeless people in the 1980s
What is deinstitutionalization?
In 1984 mentally ill individuals were released from mental institutions without support in place, leading to a large increase in the number of homeless people. Cities began implementing anti-homeless legislation as a response to the growing visibility of homeless people.
https://nlihc.org/sites/default/files/AG-2021/06-08_Criminalization-of-Homelessness.pdf
A time period of rapid growth of anti-homeless legislation
What is 2006-2019?
When studying 187 cities during this time, bans on camping increased by 92%, bans on panhandling increased by 103%, and bans on living in vehicles increased by 213%.
Source: https://nlihc.org/sites/default/files/AG-2021/06-08_Criminalization-of-Homelessness.pdf