Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry has signed one of the cruelest anti-homeless bills in the country into law. HB 211 will make it a crime to sleep outside in Louisiana, punishing homeless people with extreme fines and draconian jail sentences, while also setting the stage for forced treatment and even forced labor.
Last week, we turned up the heat on the Cicero Institute! Together, we confronted the billionaire-backed think tank at the center of the federal efforts to defund affordable housing and the nationwide increase in laws that make it a crime to be homeless.
Are the Cicero Institute’s backers profiting from the anti-homeless laws they advocate for? Findings raise questions about venture capitalist Joe Lonsdale’s profit motives behind his Trump-advising Cicero Institute.
Working class rights, labor rights, and homeless rights are all intertwined. Download these signs to demonstrate solidarity with homeless folks for May Day.
Two years ago today, hundreds of advocates, organizers, and individuals rallied in front of the Supreme Court to demand Housing Not Handcuffs. While we were taking action, SCOTUS heard the case of Johnson v. Grants Pass, the most impactful case about homelessness in decades.
This bill requires homeless people to pay for the very treatment they are forced into. And if the person cannot pay the cost of treatment, this bill requires them to perform unpaid labor for the government or a community organization to pay off their debt.
Right now, 22 states across the country are considering (or have recently considered) new anti-homeless laws. This isn’t a coincidence. This surge of bills we’re seeing in state after state is part of a coordinated national campaign driven by right-wing, billionaire-backed groups like the Cicero Institute, a think tank funded by Palantir’s billionaire co-founder.
Last night, police from the FBI, Secret Service, Department of Homeland Security and the Metropolitan Police Department roamed D.C., particularly in areas near the White House where homeless people live.
Advocates in D.C. expect the Trump administration to begin the illegal and inhumane jailing and institutionalization of homeless Washingtonians this morning at 10 A.M. The White House stated in public remarks that D.C. residents would be arrested for sleeping outside, refusing shelter, or declining social services.
Just hours ago, Trump federalized the national guard and D.C. police and reiterated his plan to remove homeless people living in D.C. Click here to read our statement on the anti-homeless order and watch this morning’s Save D.C. rally here. Trump has stated himself that this authoritarian takeover is starting in D.C. but will expand to the whole country.