What's Next, Los Angeles? with Mike Bonin
Los Angeles is at a turning point. We are living in a defining moment. What happens next is up to us. Over the past few years, problems and challenges have shaken this city -- and tremendous opportunities for change have presented themselves. How do we rise to this moment and emerge a better place to live? What will it take to create a more just and a more equitable community? Working together, how are we going to create a stronger, forward-thinking Los Angeles? Mike Bonin, writer, teacher, progressive activist and former City Councilmember, looks at the issues and problems facing Los Angeles, examines ideas, and talks with the people who will lead us to a brighter future.
Produced in partnership with LA Forward.
What's Next, Los Angeles? with Mike Bonin
Handcuffs, Not Housing: The Growing Push to Criminalize Homelessness
Since a critical U.S. Supreme Court ruling last summer, public officials have been rushing to drastically expand criminalization of homelessness. It's a cynical move, spending a fortune on making homelessness less visible while actually making the crisis much worse, and much harder to solve.
In this episode, Mike talks with Alex Visotsky of the National Alliance to End Homelessness about the growing push to criminalize homelessness in California, and with John Raphling, author of a blistering Human Rights Watch report on how bad criminalization was in Los Angeles, even prior to the court decision.
Important links and further reading:
National Alliance to End Homelessness: https://endhomelessness.org/
Human Rights Watch: https://www.hrw.org/
NAEH - The Supreme Court Rules on Homelessness: https://endhomelessness.org/blog/the-supreme-court-rules-on-homelessness-what-it-all-means/
"You Have to Move" - HRW report - https://www.hrw.org/report/2024/08/14/you-have-move/cruel-and-ineffective-criminalization-unhoused-people-los-angeles
Mike Bonin - Tough Talk, Bad Policy: https://mikebonin.substack.com/p/tough-talk-bad-policy
Planetizen: California Cities Intensify Criminalization of Unhoused Residents: https://www.planetizen.com/news/2024/09/131753-california-cities-intensify-criminalization-unhoused-residents
Alex Visotsky - @alexvisotzky on Twitter