AFP and AP
The newspaper La Jornada
Friday, July 26, 2024, p. 26
Los Angeles, California Governor Gavin Newsom yesterday ordered the dismantling of homeless encampments in public spaces, a month after the U.S. Supreme Court removed protections for this population in the country.
The state has worked hard to address this crisis on our public roads.Newsom said in a statement. There are simply no more excuses. It’s time for everyone to do their part..
The Democratic governor issued an executive order for state departments to address dangerous camps while providing support and assistance to the people living in them.
The Golden State has been facing this crisis for some time. Nearly a third of the homeless population in the United States lives in California, on the west coast of the country.
The move comes in an election year, when issues like this, along with other social issues such as reproductive rights, violence and irregular migration, polarize American opinion.
Municipal entities are not required to follow the order, which could fuel debate among state Democrats, who are divided over how to confront the issue.
San Francisco Mayor London Breed shares Newsom’s perspective. Breed said last week that the city will be very aggressive and determined to move the homeless camps starting in August.
At the head of the city, famously liberal, Breed is demanding that homeless people be given legal protections even before justice is delivered, tying the city’s hands in managing public spaces.
The Supreme Court addressed the issue based on a lawsuit filed in a town in the neighboring state of Oregon, which sought to validate two legal actions to prohibit homeless people from sleeping on the streets.
A local court ruled in 2022 that such state actions were unconstitutional; however, in June the conservative-majority Supreme Court reversed this decision, giving Republicans cause for celebration.
In Los Angeles, Southern California, Mayor Karen Bass criticized the ruling, saying it allowed the criminalization of people who had nowhere to sleep.
Los Angeles has the largest concentration of homeless people in California.
Bass works on policies that offer housing alternatives for these individuals.
This year, the homeless population decreased by 10.4 percent in the city.
