A new report on how cities criminalize the practices used by homeless people to get by on a daily basis names Los Angeles as the country's "meanest city" for its "Safer City Initiative."
"According to [a report by] the National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty and the National Coalition for the Homeless [that] examined laws and practices in 273 cities across the country...Los Angeles [topped] the list of the 10 "meanest cities" for what the study called inhumane treatment of homeless. L.A.'s so-called Safer City Initiative was singled out in the groups' report as the most egregious example of policies and practices nationwide that essentially punish people for failing to have a roof over their heads. [Such laws] include making it illegal to sleep, sit or store personal belongings on sidewalks and other public spaces; prohibitions against panhandling or begging; and selective enforcement of petty offenses like jaywalking and loitering."
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