Sounding the Alarm Part 1
Lock them all up!
Thank you to those who sent me wishes for a speedy recovery after my recent trip to the ER. I am slowly resuming my normal activities, which is really great, since being sick is incredibly boring.
This week I’m giving you something a little different: three posts in response to the President’s Executive Order "Ending Crime and Disorder on America's Streets" which offers a barbaric solution to homelessness: lock them all up.
To understand the implications of the order, it is helpful to know a few things about homelessness especially in regards to people with mental health and substance use disorders among the homeless. California Statewide Study of People Experiencing Homelessness, a landmark study of homeless people by UCSF’s Margot Kushel in 2021, conducted interviews with people living on the streets throughout California. The study found that “Even if the cause of homelessness was multifactorial, participants believed financial support could have prevented it. Seventy percent believed that a monthly rental subsidy of $300-$500 would have prevented their homelessness for a sustained period.” This points to the unsustainability of rents in California that are driving poor people into homelessness.
Also, according to the study, “The majority (82%) reported a period in their life where they experienced a serious mental health condition. More than one quarter (27%) had been hospitalized for a mental health condition; 56% of these hospitalizations occurred prior to the first instance of homelessness. Nearly two thirds (65%) reported having had a period in their life in which they regularly used illicit drugs. Almost two thirds (62%) reported having had a period in their life with heavy drinking.”
These figures show that, among the respondents, only roughly 15% had been hospitalized prior to becoming homeless. I have to wonder how many people developed serious mental illness as a consequence, at least in part, of becoming homeless? If I were homeless I know I would be combating anxiety; sleeplessness; depression; suicidal thoughts; and paranoia. So it begs the question, which came first for the vast majority of people who reported they had had a period of serious mental illness: the mental illness or the homelessness? And if the later, will they get better if you lock them up? Is that better than being homeless? Maybe.
The same could be said for the substance use questions. Which came first: the drugs or the homelessness? Relying on illegal drugs that keep you alert is apparently a standard solution among people who are homeless to the problem of safety, especially at night. Over half report a drinking problem, and alcohol is of course legal in America, but the President’s Order implies that substance users are all using illegal drugs.
Also, the Order requires abstinence in order to receive housing assistance, which flies in the face of overwhelming research that shows that harm reduction does work, and abstinence is a goal that may be out of reach for many, even with involuntary treatment, unless you plan to lock them up forever.
Now that I’ve framed the issue for you with information you won’t find mentioned in the President’s Executive Order, what do you think about the assumptions made when the Order was formulated? Is it true that the vast majority of homeless people would benefit from being locked up? Is the lack of an extra $300 a month a good enough reason to criminalize someone? To label a homeless family as criminals?
Was this information about homelessness new information to you? Does it fit your personal experiences of homelessness or your loved one’s experiences of homelessness? I invite you to read Part 2 for a critique of the President’s Executive Order and Part 3 for practical steps you can take as we face a future that promises to reshape our society for the worse.
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Well said!