FLORIDA — The Florida National Organization for Women (NOW) strongly condemns members of the House and Senate who voted in favor of HB 1365 / SB 1530, legislation that aims to outlaw people currently experiencing homelessness from sleeping in public spaces. The bill threatens local governments to designate a specific property for “public camping and sleeping” for people experiencing homelessness, an idea reminiscent of the internment camps of World War II. The legislation appears to incentivize residents and business owners to sue local governments if they do not comply with the legislation, providing for all legal fees for the litigant are awarded if the resident or business owner prevails in a civil action.
This legislation may disproportionately affect people of color, LGBTQ+ youth, veterans, and disabled people, who experience higher rates of homelessness. Furthermore, the bill would create a database to track homeless individuals and their needs, which may violate a constitutional right to privacy.
Debbie Deland, President of the Florida National Organization for Women (NOW), stated, “The Republican supermajority in Tallahassee, in lockstep with Governor DeSantis, is attempting to disappear another very vulnerable population. We strongly condemn all members of the Florida legislature who voted in favor of this inhuman and ineffective method to reduce the visibility of our most vulnerable citizens. Preventing people experiencing homelessness from life-saving activities such as camping and sleeping in public places is atrocious and unconstitutional.”
“Instead of ameliorating the conditions that are creating such hardships and trauma, the legislature has proposed a measure that makes it significantly worse. They avoid addressing the real problems – a lack of affordable housing and public resources, and soaring insurance rates. Many people without access to housing end up incarcerated where they are further traumatized and treated like criminals, simply for the “crime” of being poor. Criminalization is not only an cruel and inhuman method of addressing homelessness, it is also the most expensive and ineffective. Housing First programs are the only solution proven to reduce homelessness, while also being the most cost-effective and compassionate.”
URGENT CALL TO ACTION: Please inform yourselves and others as to which political platform supports your concerns and shares your values. Please make the effort to make sure everyone who can vote, does so. Our democracy depends on it more than ever!
