Let’s Get Real:

What does this mean?

If the city of Grants Pass wins their appeal, it sets a precedent that cities can criminally charge people for sleeping outside, even if they don’t have any other safe option. Furthermore, they can be charged for posessing items meant for surviving outside, including blankets, pillows, or tents. For the roughly 250,000 Americans who sleep outside on any given night, this decision will be devastating.

We’ve heard testimonies from people who have already suffered as a result of this anti-homeless legislation in Grants Pass, Oregon.

Imagine finding yourself in a situation where you have no option but to live outside. Imagine trying to hold a steady job when you don’t have the means to wash yourself or your clothes. Imagine being woken up one morning to police dismantling the shelter you managed to use to protect yourself from the cold, and being issued citations for each item you posess. Imagine having those items taken from you, and being left outside to survive in the elements without any protection, and still without the job you need to replace your items, let alone pay the citation fees that you’ve been left with. Now imagine that happening three times in one month.

If the Supreme Court votes in favor of Grants Pass on this case, we anticipate cities across the country passing similar legislation with no clear plans for supporting the people who will be displaced and criminalized.

It’s already happening in Florida.

The Johnson v. Grants Pass case will be heard before the Supreme Court on April 22nd, and our team will be there to rally against the harmful anti-homeless leislation that Grants Pass is seeking to affirm.