Criminalization of Homelessness

Repeating the same mistakes: Why encampment evictions do more harm than good

Remora House, a mutual aid collective that started in March 2020, says more and more people are being evicted from federal properties without being offered appropriate support and it needs to stop.

A sign taped to a pole notifies residents of a no-camping regulation.

NPS clears Scott Circle encampment in freezing weather

The National Park Service recently cleared an encampment at Scott Circle during a hypothermia alert. The agency plans to remove all encampments on federal land in D.C. by the end of 2023.

DMHHS employees conducting a clean up at an encampment.

USICH encampment engagement guidance critiqued for promoting site closures

USICH created seven principles of encampment engagement to assist communities that are hoping to address encampments. USICH’s guidance operates under a flawed rehousing system and promotes encampment closures.

Two people in white protective suits look at a trash truck filled with tents.

Tossed in the trash: Residents at Union Station stripped of their belongings

The National Park Service cleared the 35-resident Union Station encampment on June 1, throwing away belongings and involuntarily committing one resident.

Despite rule change, DCHA is not allowing identity self-certification

After passing a resolution to allow people applying for vouchers to self-certify their identity, DCHA released regulatory guidance that banned that practice.

What role should police have in protecting people living in encampments?

Due to concerns for their immediate safety, some encampment residents have expressed a desire for greater police presence around encampments. However, homeless rights advocates advise that the police force is fundamentally unsuited for meeting the safety, resource and housing access needs of unsheltered residents.

Human or animal?

Donté Turner shares a personal story about the way his community is being oppressed and disregarded.

Homeless Truxton Circle residents brace for early December eviction amid pleas to halt encampment clearings

Meet some of the people living at Allen Park in Truxton Circle who will either be displaced by the upcoming Dec. 2 clearing or placed into housing accommodations through the city’s new encampment pilot program.

David, a homeless resident sits on a bench in the encampment while staring at the fencing around the park

NPS closes second park on Capitol Hill, once again pushing out encampment residents

The National Park Service closed a second triangle park near Union Station on Oct. 15. Ten people who had been living in the park at Massachusetts Avenue and 3rd Street NE had only 14 days to find a new place to live.

A housed resident speaks with Chandra Brown, a homeless woman that interrupted Mayor Bowser's Franklin Park press conference.

“Black lives are going to hell,” says resident flipping off DC’s Mayor

D.C. opened a renovated Franklin Park in September. An unhoused resident pushed out of a nearby encampment interrupted the ceremony & was quickly whisked away.

A homeless man holds a sign asking for help

Panhandling permits are a bad idea

Vendor Jeffrey McNeil offers his opinion on why Montgomery County’s consideration of requiring permits to panhandle is extreme and only furthers stigma.

A photo of a discarded sign written on a piece of cardboard asking for help.

Montgomery County weighs panhandling permits for ‘safety’

Montgomery County Councilmember Craig Rice is reintroducing efforts to require permits for soliciting money or donations near roadways for “pedestrian safety.”

Housing activism turns confrontational in face of deepening housing crisis

Tenants and housing advocates are using more confrontational tactics to fight eviction and displacement as the national affordable housing shortage intensifies.

Illustration showing the letters "LGBTQ+" being held up by a net in the foregrownd. The T is sliding through a hole in the net. The background is a modern pride flag.

When trans and non-binary people age out of homeless services, there’s nowhere to turn

Transgender people in the United States face barriers in many aspects of their lives, from job discrimination to family rejection. While LGBTQ-focused youth programs and housing assistance is growing nationally and in the District, transgender adults are being left behind after aging out of the system in their mid-twenties.