Last Updated on July 9, 2024 by BVN
Overview: The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that the nation’s former President, Donald J. Trump, is entitled to nearly unbridled immunity when he holds the title of president. The court has also ruled that the Eighth Amendment clause of the U.S. Constitution that prohibits “cruel and unusual punishment” does not prevent a municipality from enforcing criminal penalties against homeless people who are sleeping outdoors. This ruling is a green light for cities and counties to tear down homeless encampments at will. The ruling also makes it clear that states are free to bestow penalties such as fines and jail time on homeless individuals caught sleeping or camping in public.
S.E. Williams
Among the many ways the U.S. Supreme Court stretched its conservative wings last week was through a series of right wing rulings that set the internet and morally conscious citizens across the country on fire with an overwhelming sense of injustice and a powerful determination that the country must change course.
Besides ruling that the nation’s former President, Donald J. Trump was/is entitled to nearly unbridled immunity when he holds the title of president. In the Chevron ruling the court has fired a warning shot across the bough that what conservatives consider aggressive rules and regulations–particularly in relation to the changing climate and other regulations related to water, etc. may reverse course as the rules regarding who may authorize some of these regulations are now changed.
One of the most dispassionate rulings by the high court this session involves the nation’s growing homeless population which in turn impacts Blacks in particular. This is because according to a December 2023 report by the National Alliance to End Homelessness, although Blacks are only about 13% percent of the nation’s general population, they account for fully 37% of the people experiencing homelessness. When you consider homeless families with children, Blacks account for more than 50% of that population.
In its City of Grants Pass v. Johnson ruling last week, the high court determined that the Eighth Amendment clause of the U.S. Constitution that prohibits “cruel and unusual punishment” does not prevent a municipality from enforcing criminal penalties against homeless people who are sleeping outdoors. This ruling is a green light for cities and counties to tear down homeless encampments at-will provided such action aligns with the policies of each individual state. The ruling also makes it clear that states are free to bestow penalties such as fines and jail time on homeless individuals caught sleeping or camping in public.
I consider this nothing more than another conservative victory for state’s rights.
To learn more about the ruling and its potential impacts on homeless Black people in the Inland Empire and beyond, read Breanna Reeves’ report this week titled, Supreme Court Ruling Allows Cities to Enforce Bans on Homeless Camps.
Justice Sonya Sotomayer provided a brilliant dissenting opinion in relation to this case that stated in part how, “Criminalizing homelessness can cause a destabilizing cascade of harm.”
The criminalization of homelessness makes me wonder whether the nation’s reaction to the crime of being homeless will be handled similar to how this country handled its war against the scourge of crack cocaine. It wasn’t considered an illness like addictions to opioids are today. Instead it was used to criminalize an entire community of Black folks who continue to suffer the long term consequences of such criminalization on individuals who were personally impacted and the Black community at large.
In following the dictates of the Supreme Court in this particular case, the nation now appears poised to turn its ire to what some consider America’s latest scourge–homelessness.
We will hear officials say they are doing the hard work of addressing the issue of homelessness and are allocating necessary dollars to fix the problem. Yet, the numbers of homeless continue to climb. California alone, which has the nation’s highest percent of homeless individuals, has devoted millions upon millions of dollars to address the issue but the needed change is too slow. Not only is it too slow, according to a recent audit by the State of California noted the money being spent on this issue is not being tracked consistently. As such, who knows why some of the programs are not producing the quantitative and qualitative results warranted and what can be done to make the programs effective?
The idea of a person of color ending up with a criminal record because he/she hit a groundswell of bad luck and ended up on the street is unconscionable and yet it possibly happens almost everyday, somewhere in the state.
There are those who look at homeless people with a lack of compassion and an over abundance of disdain but I believe there are many more of us who care about our fellow travelers on this small earth we share.
Those of us who do care must remain vigilant and informed about how the issue of homelessness is being addressed in our local communities. Are people being arrested and charged for being homeless? Will sweeps of local encampments increase?
Let’s not wait until the jails are filled and babies and children are removed from their parents merely because they were homeless. If you have ideas about how to help mitigate the problem share them at your local city council or board of supervisors meetings, write the governor if you choose. Your voice matters.
In closing I must reiterate that being homeless is not a crime.
Of course, this is just my opinion. I’m keeping it real.