No matter how it happens, encampment sweeps (the forced removal of people and their belongings from a homeless encampment on public property, almost always without adequate notice) are harmful to homeless populations. The truth is that homeless encampments do very little to help the homeless; compared with staying at a shelter or in supportive housing is much better to give them a way to pull themselves out of homelessness.

Loss of clothing, medical supplies, and personal items; trauma and worsened mental health; and increased risk of exposure and illness are among the consequences of the often-violent sweeps carried out by police. I believe we must instead focus on providing housing rather than carrying out costly raids that help no one.

What do you think? Should we focus on housing before we attempt to ‘crack down’ on encampments?