Miami Beach, ‘Fed Up’ With Homeless ‘Campers,’ Passes Law Allowing Arrests of Those Who Refuse Shelter

As the U.S. grapples with how to address its more than half a million homeless people, a new law in Miami Beach will allow police to arrest homeless individuals who decline shelter. The law, which goes into effect in about a week, is the city’s attempt to address the area’s 150 homeless people, many of whom are camping out in public spaces visible from the city’s famous Ocean Drive, exclusive hotels, and multimillion-dollar condos. Supporters of the law say that Miami Beach’s homeless are disruptive, belligerent, and are threatening residents and tourists in the wealthy island city of about 80,000.The law has drawn international attention, with homeless advocates meeting with United Nations officials this week at Geneva, Switzerland, to argue that Miami Beach’s law violates the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, Axios reported. Miami Beach’s legislation, passed in a 4-3 vote of the Miami Beach city commission, is raising questions about whether homeless people who have the option to shelter should be allowed to stay on the streets, an issue of particular interest in Florida with its year-round warm weather. While Miami Beach already has a public camping ban, the new legislation will allow the police to make arrests without first issuing warnings.The law has received a positive response from city residents, one of the commissioners who voted for it, Kristen Rosen Gonzalez, tells the Sun. “Miami Beach residents are not complaining,” she says. “I have had more congratulatory responses than anything else.” People who live in the area are “fed up,” she adds. “The people who came to our commission to complain don’t reside on our island and don’t have to live with the public nudity, defecation, masturbation, and harassment while they walk in our parks with their kids.” “We want to help people,” Ms. Gonzalez told the New York Post. “But if people don’t want to help themselves, the state and federal government have given us no option except for this ordinance.”Another commissioner, Laura Dominguez, tells the Sun the legislation was unnecessary and that the city is already addressing homelessness. The number of homeless people in the city has decreased, she says. Ms. Dominguez did not vote for the legislation because Miami Beach “recently appointed a new police chief who is looking at all our issues, including homelessness, under a new lens,” she says. The police department “already has tools available to arrest people for criminal behavior,” she adds. Homeless advocates have called the measure “cruel, racist, and harmful” and say it doesn’t solve the root of the issue.“Shelters do not end homelessness. Only permanent, supportive housing will end homelessness,” a member of the Miami Coalition to Advance Racial Equity, Kat Duesterhaus, said. Mayor Dan Gelber supported the law, noting that Miami Beach spends $7.5 million a year on services for the homeless. The U.S. has an estimated 582,000 homeless people, and cities around the country have been struggling with how to address the crisis. The legal murkiness surrounding the issue has culminated in a bipartisan effort asking the Supreme Court to weigh in, as the Sun has reported.

Miami Beach, ‘Fed Up’ With Homeless ‘Campers,’ Passes Law Allowing Arrests of Those Who Refuse Shelter

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