100 signatures reached
To: Mayors and Local Leaders Nationwide
Unhoused Americans deserve care, not punishment!
On the heels of a landmark Supreme Court decision this June, California Governor Gavin Newsom directed local governments across the state to begin aggressively dismantling homeless encampments. But leaders in Los Angeles County promptly refused, doubling down on their “care first, jails last” approach.
Now more than ever, we need local leaders everywhere to step up and protect unhoused communities. Sign the petition to urge mayors nationwide to treat those living in encampments humanely and refuse to use the threat of arrest or citations.
Now more than ever, we need local leaders everywhere to step up and protect unhoused communities. Sign the petition to urge mayors nationwide to treat those living in encampments humanely and refuse to use the threat of arrest or citations.
Why is this important?
Our mayors must lead with care and compassion—not by using ineffective interventions like punishing fines or jail time, proven to only exacerbate the issue of houselessness.
Being unhoused is not a crime, and many local leaders understand that we can’t arrest our way out of the homelessness crisis. Unhoused Americans need trauma-informed community outreach, mental health services, and job training as a pathway to permanent housing. Housing-first is the only strategy proven to break the current cycle between housing insecurity and jail. It's time we stop the cruel and dehumanizing criminalization of poverty and houselessness, and instead invest in compassionate solutions that actually work.
We've seen this in both Los Angeles and Denver where lawmakers have taken a slower, coordinated approach to tackling the homelessness crisis—one that starts with encouraging unhoused folks to accept supportive services, with the eventual goal of permanent housing.
And there is promising evidence that this care-first approach actually works: Despite pressure from Governor Newsom, Los Angeles has actually seen a decrease in the unhoused population between 2023 and 2024.
We need mayors and local leaders across the country to follow suit in putting care first and refuse to fine or arrest unhoused people just for existing.
Being unhoused is not a crime, and many local leaders understand that we can’t arrest our way out of the homelessness crisis. Unhoused Americans need trauma-informed community outreach, mental health services, and job training as a pathway to permanent housing. Housing-first is the only strategy proven to break the current cycle between housing insecurity and jail. It's time we stop the cruel and dehumanizing criminalization of poverty and houselessness, and instead invest in compassionate solutions that actually work.
We've seen this in both Los Angeles and Denver where lawmakers have taken a slower, coordinated approach to tackling the homelessness crisis—one that starts with encouraging unhoused folks to accept supportive services, with the eventual goal of permanent housing.
And there is promising evidence that this care-first approach actually works: Despite pressure from Governor Newsom, Los Angeles has actually seen a decrease in the unhoused population between 2023 and 2024.
We need mayors and local leaders across the country to follow suit in putting care first and refuse to fine or arrest unhoused people just for existing.