Portland observer., January 24, 2024, Page 9, Image 9

January 24, 2024
Page 9
Are Local Anti-Homeless Laws 'Cruel and Unusual'?
The Supreme
Court Set to
Decided Future
Anti- Homeless
Law
The Supreme Court agreed Friday to
review lower-court rulings that make it
harder for cities in the western United
States to prevent people from sleeping
on the streets when there aren’t enough
beds in homeless shelters.
The justices will hear an appeal from
the city of Grants Pass, in southwest Or-
egon, that has the backing of California
Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, as
well as other Democratic and Republican
elected officials who have struggled to
deal with homelessness brought on by ris-
ing housing costs and income inequality.
The court's action comes a day after
a panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of
Appeals affirmed a lower-court ruling
blocking anti-camping ordinances in San
Francisco, where Newsom once was the
mayor. A separate 9th circuit panel ruled
in the Oregon case that Grants Pass could
not enforce local ordinances that prohibit
homeless people “from using a blanket,
pillow, or cardboard box for protection
from the elements.” The decision applies
across nine western states, Alaska, Arizo-
na, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana,
Nevada, Oregon and Washington.
Los Angeles city employees clean up a homeless encampment to relocate homeless
individuals into temporary housing as part of Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass' Inside
Safe program in Los Angeles, Tuesday, Oct. 24, 2023. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Provided by The Associated Press
The two rulings, like a 2018 decision
from the 9th circuit in a case from Boise,
Idaho, found that punishing people for
sleeping on the streets when no alterna-
tive shelter is available amounts to “cruel
and unusual punishment” in violation of
the Constitution.
Elected officials urged the justices
to take up the case because they say
the rulings complicate their efforts to
clear tent encampments, which have
long existed in West Coast cities, but
have more recently become more com-
mon across the U.S. The federal count
of homeless people reached 580,000
last year, driven by a lack of afford-
able housing, a pandemic that eco-
nomically wrecked households, and
a lack of access to mental health and
addiction treatment.
“The Supreme Court can now correct
course and end the costly delays from
lawsuits that have plagued our efforts
to clear encampments and deliver ser-
vices to those in need,” Newsom said in
a statement.
Theane Evangelis, a lawyer for Grants
Pass, said in a statement that the appel-
late decisions "are actually harming the
very people they purport to protect.”
Homeless people and their advocates
say the sweeps are cruel and a waste of
taxpayer money. They say the answer is
more housing, not crackdowns.
“The issue before the Court is wheth-
er cities can punish homeless residents
simply for existing without access to
shelter," Ed Johnson, a lawyer for home-
less people who challenged the Grants
Pass ordinances, said in a statement.
“Nevertheless, some politicians and oth-
ers are cynically and falsely blaming the
judiciary for the homelessness crisis to
distract the public and deflect blame for
years of failed policies.”
Cities from Los Angeles to New York
have stepped up efforts to clear encamp-
ments, records reviewed by The Associ-
ated Press show, as public pressure grew
to address what some residents say are
dangerous and unsanitary living condi-
tions. But despite tens of millions of dol-
lars spent in recent years, there appears
to be little reduction in the number of
tents propped up on sidewalks, in parks
and by freeway off-ramps.
It's unclear whether the case will be
argued in the spring or the fall.
Instilling Hope, Courage,
Dedication Helped
Portland Weather a Storm and Healing...
Continued from Page 5
week of January 15 prevented in-per-
son building inspections, which are ex-
pected to resume this week.
During the peak of storm, call takers
at the Bureau of Emergency Communi-
cations answered nearly 300 calls per
hour to 911 and the police nonemergen-
cy line and more than 4,000 in a sin-
gle day. The highest number 911 calls
during this event was 2,923 on Jan. 13 –
a 70 percent increase from the previous
year. Call takers connected thousands of
community members with resources and
dispatched first responders.
Police officers and public safety sup-
port specialists navigated icy roads by
patrol car and foot to serve escalating
needs – from fallen trees and power lines
to welfare checks for vulnerable com-
munity members. Welfare check calls
were 27 percent higher than the daily av-
erage for 2023, with a peak of 135 calls
Jan. 13. Some police stations also expe-
rienced firsthand storm impacts, such as
broken pipes and power outages.
Throughout the storm, extra staffing
and specialized vehicles allowed Port-
land Fire & Rescue to address quadruple
the emergencies of a typical January day
– logging the busiest day in the history
of Multnomah County emergency med-
ical services. Portland Street Response
and Community Health Assess and Treat
teams assisted people outdoors and
transported them to warming shelters.
Neighborhood Emergency Team vol-
unteers worked with first responders to
serve the community’s biggest needs:
clearing storm drains, assessing damage,
staffing shelters, maintaining a perim-
eter around downed power lines, sub-
mitting damage reports about shattered
windshields, checking on neighbors, dis-
patching rides to warming centers and
supporting the City’s Emergency Oper-
ations Center.
Behind the scenes, CityFleet kept
the City moving – literally. Their team
worked around the clock during the
storm to field a record 300+ work or-
ders for emergency support. Thanks to
this dedicated crew, community service
continued when it was needed most from
snowplows, de-icing machines, vacuum
trucks that keep sewer pipes clean and
prevent flooding, aerial pickers to re-
move tree branches, police cars, fire
trucks and more.
Thanks to all the public servants, part-
ners and community heroes who helped
Portland weather the storm.
Continued from Page 3
vened community healing ceremonies
for other domestic violence survivors. To
help process her demoralizing encounter
with domestic violence, which led to the
brink of a nervous breakdown, she wrote
a play, published an album, a novel, and
a book of poetry that helped gave others
permission to speak up about their own
experiences with domestic violence. This
led to Dr. Mitchell co-founding Portland’s
first drop-in cultural resource center for
Black survivors of domestic violence to
create a space where they could find com-
munity, care, and comfort at a time when
they need it most.
In 2022, Multnomah County sought
out Dr. Mitchell to partner on a park-
based creative initiative that she called
"place keeping," an acknowledgment that
gentrification has led to racially biased
displacement. This summer-long effort,
wrapped up its second year end 2023 and
focused on ways to unite, inspire, affirm,
and contribute to healing in a commu-
nity suffering from decades of govern-
ment-endorsed racial trauma as a result of
being forced out of their neighborhoods
because of gentrification and racially bi-
ased practices.
Dr. Mitchell is also often called on
to read her empowering and heart-cen-
tered poetry at various events that honor
breast-cancer survivors, midwives, trau-
ma survivors and public figures, before
a variety of audiences. She is a uniquely
accomplished community servant who
demonstrates that her heart-centered,
and research-based work has resulted in
creating nurturing spaces and connect-
ing people hungry for intentional com-
munity building.
The Lowenstein Trust is part of the
legacy of Steve Lowenstein, a model of
public service. Steve’s sense of purpose,
integrity, and perseverance continues to
inspire many who work to uphold hu-
man rights and social justice today. As
a persuasive voice for positive change
throughout his life, Steve served as
founding director of Oregon Legal Ser-
vices, authored a groundbreaking history,
The Jews of Oregon 1850-1950, and at
the time of his death in 1990, had served
for six years as Chief of Staff to former
Portland City Commissioner Mike Lind-
berg. In his will, Steve established an
annual financial award to recognize and
assist those individuals who make signif-
icant ongoing personal sacrifice serving
the poor and underprivileged in Portland.
Please visit https://www.lowensteintrust.org/