{"id":16434,"date":"2021-03-05T09:00:52","date_gmt":"2021-03-05T14:00:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/?p=16434"},"modified":"2022-10-09T06:31:45","modified_gmt":"2022-10-09T10:31:45","slug":"crimes-against-members-of-the-homeless-population-increase-again-in-2021","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wordpress-537697-2997182.cloudwaysapps.com\/crimes-against-members-of-the-homeless-population-increase-again-in-2021\/","title":{"rendered":"Crimes Against Homeless People Increase Again in 2021"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Homelessness takes on many forms. For one person, it could mean losing a stable job and being forced to live in the vehicle they once used to get to and from work. For someone else, it could mean falling ill and moving back in with mom and dad, squeezing young children into a crowded space, and trying to make ends meet without breaking from the inevitable strain posed by doubling up. Homelessness could be a street corner, a small spot in an abandoned school building, a room in a rundown motel, or a combination of all of the above for another individual.<\/p>\n

Homelessness is a unique type of marginalization because it is a condition, as opposed to an identity. As the pandemic rages on and federal aid falls short, it becomes more evident that the condition of homelessness can happen to anybody. If current trends continue, it is likely to happen to millions of recently unemployed or underemployed individuals. Yet even as so many Americans tiptoe along the tightrope between poverty and housing insecurity for the first time, crimes against the homeless population still continue to increase.<\/p>\n

Is this because old stigmas die hard, or could it be that unsheltered people die quietly and their perpetrators are never charged with hate crimes? In fact, their perpetrators all too often walk away scott free \u2026<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

In the City of LA, between 2019 and 2020, Homicides Against Unhoused Individuals Skyrocketed, Increasing by a Jaw-Dropping 58% Margin<\/h3>\n

Nobody knows for sure why this is happening,”<\/em> remarked Mayor Garcetti in an interview with NBC News<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Statistics reveal that in LA alone, one in five homicide victims is a person experiencing homelessness<\/a>. This disturbing trend is nothing new, nor is it restricted to a specific locale. It is happening all across the nation.<\/p>\n

What\u2019s remarkable about this stat (aside from the severity of the crime) is how well it mirrors the criminalization of homelessness. For example, in Seattle, homeless people account for precisely one out of every five prison bookings<\/a>. The overwhelming majority of such arrests are for non-violent crimes- namely laws and policies that have been drafted to prevent people enduring homelessness from engaging in life-sustaining activities.<\/p>\n

Over the course of the past two decades, this type of criminalization has advanced dramatically. This means that the nation over, we have witnessed inflated rates of anti-vagrancy legislation. In turn, this has created an environment where unhoused<\/a> individuals can go to prison for things like:<\/p>\n