Homeless Discrimination: Breaking Laws, Human Rights Violation?

Discrimination against homeless people is treating those without housing in a prejudiced or negative manner. This can take the form of social ostracization, institutional prejudice, and punitive legislation. In the US, homelessness is not a protected status, so it is legal to discriminate against homeless people. However, this breaks the principle of human dignity enshrined in articles 1 and 22 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Homelessness also violates a number of other human rights, including non-discrimination, health, water and sanitation, security of the person, and freedom from cruel, degrading, and inhuman treatment.

Criminalization of homelessness

The criminalization of homelessness refers to measures that prohibit life-sustaining activities such as sleeping, camping, eating, sitting, and asking for money or resources in public spaces. These ordinances include criminal penalties for violations of these acts.

Criminalization Measures

Some examples of criminalization measures include:

• Carrying out sweeps: Confiscating personal property, including tents, bedding, papers, clothing, and medications.
• Making panhandling illegal.
• Outlawing groups from sharing food with homeless people in public spaces.
• Enforcing a "quality of life" ordinance relating to public activity and hygiene.

Effects of Criminalization

A criminal record and fines create barriers to becoming rehoused, finding employment, and accessing services. Criminalization also fails to address the underlying causes of homelessness and further stigmatizes and punishes people who are already suffering.

Human Rights Violations

Homelessness violates the principle of human dignity and is a profound assault on the right to life, health, water, sanitation, security, freedom from cruel and degrading treatment, and more. Criminalization of homelessness perpetuates these violations and fails to address the root causes of the issue.

International Efforts to Address Criminalization

International efforts to address the criminalization of homelessness include:

• The United Nations' Human Rights Council resolution 43/14 called on States to eliminate legislation that criminalizes homelessness and to adopt positive measures to prevent and eliminate it.
• The UN's 2020/7 resolution on affordable housing and social protection systems to address homelessness.
• The UN's Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development, which includes a commitment to eliminate homelessness by ensuring access to adequate, safe, and affordable housing.

Voting restrictions

Homelessness is a violation of human rights, including the right to life, non-discrimination, health, water, sanitation, security, and freedom from cruel, degrading, and inhuman treatment. Despite this, homelessness is often addressed with criminalization, violence, and aggressive policies that further violate the rights of the people involved. This criminalization of homelessness refers to measures that prohibit life-sustaining activities such as sleeping, eating, sitting, and asking for money or resources in public spaces. These ordinances include criminal penalties for violations.

People experiencing homelessness face challenges when registering to vote due to a lack of permanent addresses. However, homeless people can register and vote in all 50 states in the US. They can list a shelter address, a street corner, or a park as their residence on the federal voter registration form and many state forms. Most states have residency requirements, such as having resided for 30 days or more before Election Day in the state or county.

While the US Supreme Court's ruling in the case of City of Grants Pass, OR, v Johnson has made it easier for communities to enforce criminal punishments against homeless people for camping outside, it is important to note that this case does not force communities to actively engage in criminal punishment. Elected officials should recognize that criminal penalties worsen homelessness and that investments in housing and supportive services are necessary to address this issue.

Healthcare discrimination

Homeless people face many barriers to obtaining healthcare, and their attitudes toward seeking healthcare services may be shaped by previous encounters with healthcare providers. Homeless people are more likely to suffer from illnesses such as tuberculosis, hypertension, asthma, diabetes, and HIV/AIDS. They also die, on average, 12 years sooner than the general population. However, they often experience difficulty in accessing treatment and preventive care due to a lack of insurance, transportation, and financial means. These barriers lead to greater utilization of emergency services and higher rates of medical hospitalizations for serious conditions.

Homeless individuals often feel discriminated against when seeking healthcare. They may worry that disclosing their housing status will result in stigmatization from care providers. They may experience unwelcoming healthcare encounters as being dehumanized and rushed or subjected to rude treatment. They may also feel judged and stigmatized by healthcare providers, particularly when seeking treatment for chronic pain, mental illness, and/or addiction-related issues.

Homeless people's perceptions of welcomeness and unwelcomeness are an important aspect of their encounters with healthcare providers. Buber's "I-It" and "I-You" concepts can be useful tools for healthcare providers to understand how welcoming and unwelcoming interactions are fostered. "I-It" encounters involve a closed way of knowing the other, an unwillingness to know the other, and a closed way of relating to the other. On the other hand, "I-You" encounters involve an open way of knowing and relating to the other, a willingness and ability to empathize, and a balance of power between individuals.

The criminalization of homelessness further exacerbates the challenges faced by homeless individuals. This refers to measures that prohibit life-sustaining activities such as sleeping, camping, eating, sitting, and panhandling in public spaces, often resulting in criminal records and fines that create barriers to becoming re-housed and employed.

To address healthcare discrimination against the homeless, it is essential to provide unlimited and unconditional affordable housing. The Housing First initiative, which prioritizes providing homeless people with permanent housing without prerequisites, has been shown to improve health outcomes and reduce healthcare costs.

Hate crimes and violence

Homelessness is a human rights issue, and discrimination against the homeless is a violation of their rights to dignity, social inclusion, and life. Criminalising homelessness and targeting those without homes with violence are both forms of discrimination.

Violence against the homeless is a growing problem. In 2009, 43 homeless people were killed in vicious attacks, and in 2011, 32 people lost their lives in 105 attacks, making it one of the deadliest years for attacks on homeless people. The National Coalition for the Homeless (NCH) has found startling data on the number and severity of attacks, but the true number is likely to be even higher, as many more attacks go unreported.

The NCH has documented 1,289 acts of violence against homeless individuals by housed perpetrators between 1999 and 2011. These crimes are believed to be motivated by the perpetrators' bias against the homeless and the relative ease of targeting them. The documented violence includes everything from murder to beatings, rapes, and setting people on fire. In 2011, 72% of the attacks were committed by people under thirty years of age, and 97% of perpetrators were men.

Hate crimes against the homeless are often brutal and motivated by bias. From being beaten to death with a baseball bat to being doused with gasoline and set ablaze, the number of violent attacks on the homeless is frightening and growing. In Los Angeles in 2021, 85 people experiencing homelessness were murdered, the highest number ever recorded.

The criminalisation of homelessness further contributes to the problem of hate crimes and violence against the homeless. Measures that prohibit life-sustaining activities such as sleeping, camping, eating, sitting, and asking for money or resources in public spaces criminalise the homeless and make them more vulnerable to violence. A criminal record also adds to the already difficult situation of finding employment and housing, creating further barriers to becoming rehoused.

Housing discrimination

Homelessness is a violation of human rights, specifically the right to housing, and the right to life. It also infringes on other human rights, such as the right to non-discrimination, health, water and sanitation, security, and freedom from cruel, degrading, and inhuman treatment.

Redlining, a systemic form of housing discrimination, involves discouraging economic investment in certain neighbourhoods, typically those with a high proportion of racial or ethnic minorities. This results in a lack of mortgage and business loan opportunities for residents, perpetuating racial and economic inequality. This form of discrimination disproportionately affects African Americans and Indigenous people, who are more likely to experience homelessness due to historical and structural racism.

In addition to racial discrimination, people experiencing homelessness also face discrimination due to their housing status or lack of an official address. This form of discrimination affects their political, economic, and social rights, including their right to participate in elections, their right to work, and their right to access social benefits.

The criminalization of homelessness further exacerbates the problem. Measures that prohibit life-sustaining activities such as sleeping, eating, or sitting in public spaces, often result in criminal penalties that create barriers to rehousing and employment. For example, a criminal record can make it more difficult to pass background checks for housing or employment.

Furthermore, negative stereotypes and beliefs about homeless people contribute to harmful policies and public discourse. Portraying homeless individuals as dangerous or broken leads to under-resourced housing policies and a lack of investment in subsidized affordable housing.

To address housing discrimination, it is essential to recognize housing status as a protected category under the law, similar to race, sex, age, and disability. This would provide legal tools for homeless individuals to challenge discriminatory policies and promote their inclusion in public debates and policy-making processes.

By addressing housing discrimination and recognizing the human rights of homeless individuals, societies can move towards providing safe, permanent, and affordable housing for all.

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