In addition to having one of the countries largest homeless populations, Los Angeles has now been ranked as the worst city to be homeless in a report by the National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty and the National Coalition for the Homeless.  A few months ago I discussed the ongoing debate over how the city is handling such a large and growing homeless population, and this report seems to confirm that Los Angeles criminalized homelessness, rather than finding more appropriate ways to combat the problem.   The survey, Homes Not Handcuffs, ranked 273 cities based on the number of laws that target the homeless by making it illegal to sleep, eat or sit in public places, with Los Angeles listed as the “Meanest” of the top ten worst offenders.

As the foreclosure crisis and flailing job market continue to find more people without shelter, these cities need to adopt better methods of helping people get back on their feet, rather than trying to sweep away the challenge with aggresive police tactics.  Homelessness is a difficult, multi-faceted problem that will require the earnest cooperation of government and non-profit organizations to develop a system that provides the support people need.  The solution will not be found by locking people up for petty crimes or shutting down tent cities.  Hopefully Los Angeles and the other “meanest” cities will look to the examples set by other cities working to provide constructive alternatives to criminilization, which are highlighted in the report, including increased funding for transitional and permanent housing, and other outreach programs.

Photo: joshuaandrachel’s flickr photostream (creative commons)