Stop Criminalizing Poverty

On November 16, the San Leandro City Council is set to vote on changes to our municipal code “relating to standing or sitting on traffic medians or near curbs.” While the city has tried to present this as a change to increase traffic safety and relieve road congestin, the reality is that it is merely another attempt at anti-panhandling laws that criminalize poverty and infringe free speech.

In fact, some members of the City Council said exactly as much at their September 8 meeting, specifically the mayor and vice mayor! You can look up the relevant information on their website at https://sanleandro.legistar.com/MeetingDetail.aspx?ID=754137&GUID=35FDF636-2AE8-48FE-8AF2-E18471022DD3&Options=info|&Search=, beginning at Item 10.C. The older meeting records are available at https://sanleandro.legistar.com/MeetingDetail.aspx?ID=754132&GUID=7A8CE643-C818-4D9B-AECE-55D23C7C71CC&Options=info|&Search=, beginning at Item 8.M.

Notably, the Supreme Court ruled in Norton v. Springfield (2015) that nearly all anti-panhandling legislation was unconstitutional after legal challenges by organizations such as the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and National Homeless Law Center (NHLC). Indeed, these organizations have repeatedly provided evidence showing that anti-panhandling laws are unfair as well as fail to address the underlying causes of homelessness and poverty in communities. In fact, they make it worse by putting arrest records, fines, and fees in the way of those trying to exit homelessness.

Meanwhile, studies show providing housing and services costs 2 to 3 times less than cycling homeless individuals through the criminal justice system. Indeed, panhandlers predominantly spend any money they receive on food and other necessities, make less than $300 per month on average, and that people panhandling will work if given the opportunity and means to do so.

However, repealing or reversing anti-panhandling ordinances does not mean promoting rampant or aggressive panhandling. What it means is freeing up those resources that can then be redirected to critical services that will actually end the need for people to require this kind of help in the first place.

More importantly, if churches can solicit donations at our doorsteps, if Westboro Baptists can picket hateful images at military funerals, and if the Girl Scouts can sell cookies right outside BART – then why can’t people who are at one of the lowest points in their life and desperate for a little help be allowed to ask for it?

Please contact our City Councilmembers and tell them to vote no on this item! We need to stop this blatant attempt to violate free speech and criminalize poverty immediately, particularly given the ongoing issues with violence and misconduct within the San Leandro Police Department. (As you’ve probably read in my other posts.)

If not, we could expect significant costs related to litigation, the expenditure of unnecessary law enforcement resources, as well as furthering dehumanizing oppression of our low-income and homeless populations. Just see what’s happening right now with Sacramento at https://www.aclunc.org/news/lawsuit-charges-sacramento-s-anti-panhandling-ordinance-unconstitutional.

You can contact our elected officials via the below emails and phone numbers, as well as our city manager and city attorney:

Mayor Pauline Cutter
Phone: (510) 577-3355
Email: pcutter@sanleandro.org

Vice Mayor Peter Ballew
Phone: (510) 577-3357
Email: pballew@sanleandro.org

Councilwoman Deborah Cox
Phone: (510) 577-3357
Email: dcox@sanleandro.org

Councilman Ed Hernandez
Phone: (510) 577-3357
Email: ehernandez@sanleandro.org

Councilman Victor Aguilar
Phone: (510) 577-3357
Email: vaguilar@sanleandro.org

Councilman Benny Lee
Phone: (510) 577-3357
Email: blee@sanleandro.org

Councilwoman Corina Lopez
Phone: (510) 577-3357
Email: clopez@sanleandro.org

City Manager Jeff Kay
Phone: (510) 577-3351
Email: JKay@sanleandro.org

City Attorney Richard Rio Poda
Phone: (510) 577-6098
Email: rpioroda@meyersnave.com

For more information about this topic and explanations dispelling myths about panhandling, I encourage people to visit the NHLC’s website at https://nlchp.org/panhandling/. There are also some great articles available at https://theconversation.com/most-panhandling-laws-are-unconstitutional-since-theres-no-freedom-from-speech-92498, https://law.yale.edu/sites/default/files/area/center/schell/criminalization_of_homelessness_report_for_web_full_report.pdf, and https://www.pewtrusts.org/en/research-and-analysis/blogs/stateline/2015/11/12/anti-panhandling-laws-spread-face-legal-challenges.

Take note and take care.