Much has been written recently about Johnson v Grants Pass. The moral question raised by this case is an important one: should governments criminalize the act of sleeping in public when people have nowhere else to go? At Miriam’s Kitchen, where we have been working with individuals experiencing homelessness for 40 years, we know the answer to that question is “no”.
As all eyes turn to DC this Spring when court proceedings begin, we must also consider the state of homelessness in our nation’s capital where thousands of people are currently experiencing homelessness; and where we are experiencing the highest rate per capita of homelessness in the country. To many, it is unfathomable that housing instability is so rampant in such a powerful and wealthy city. The good news, however, is that we know what works to get – and keep – people housed. Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH), such as that offered through Miriam’s Kitchen to over 300 residents, is a proven long-term intervention for those who have chronic and compounding needs. Non-congregate shelters, like The Aston, expand emergency shelter options to accommodate individual care. Additionally, innovative pilot programs like Project Reconnect and DC Flex can prevent homelessness by providing flexible funds that can be spent on rent and other expenses.
These solutions are well-known, proven best practices that are touted by experts across the country. However, the knowledge of solutions is not enough. Both political will and robust resources are needed to meet housing needs and to scale up solutions that work.
The impact of a well-rounded and well-funded homelessness response system cannot be overstated, which is why The Way Home Campaign, a movement to end chronic homelessness in the District, is championing more investment in what works as DC’s mayor determines allocations for FY25.
Fiscal resources are critical – especially in a place like DC where we have underinvested in housing and social services for decades. However, we must also examine and address the root causes of the problem. People are forced into the streets, and subsequently moved into housing and social services, because of systems that have repeatedly failed them over time. One cause of homelessness, in DC and nationwide, is a severe lack of affordable housing. People simply can’t afford to pay rent. A recent report from Harvard’s Joint Center for Housing Studies suggests an unprecedented 50% of Americans are burdened by housing costs, and that more than 30% of their income goes to those expenses. The rent continues to rise as wages fail to keep up. Truly affordable housing will always be a crucial component of what it takes to actualize a reality where homelessness is rare, brief, and non-recurring.
Punitive policies and strategies such as fines, arrests, and encampment sweeps attempt to scapegoat our most vulnerable neighbors in crisis and absolve leaders of their responsibility to us all. There is an obvious cycle of incarceration and homelessness in D.C. that we must disrupt. Data from the DC Fiscal Policy Institute tell us that, in a 2019 assessment, three in five people experiencing homelessness in DC had been incarcerated, and that 55% named incarceration as a cause of their homelessness. We also can’t overlook the racial disparity of homelessness or the racial impact of a carceral response.
Debra Blake, the original plaintiff in Johnson v Grants Pass, incurred thousands of dollars in fines for being unsheltered. Until her death, she advocated for what all those with lived experience, and what those of us who are dedicated to housing justice nationwide, know without doubt: housing and supportive services – not policing or criminalization – resolves homelessness. With the right leadership, resources, and deep examination and challenging of systems at the root, DC can realize the vision Blake and community advocates across the country and here in DC know is possible – one where all our neighbors have access to a safe, stable, and affordable home.
