Faith leaders urge Gov. Lee to put an end to criminalizing homelessness
Instead of trying to address the problem with handcuffs, we must bolster our statewide homeless outreach services
A letter to Gov. Bill Lee:
This is a request from over 300 Tennessean faith leaders and organizations urging you to veto Senate Bill 1610/ House Bill 0978 – also known as the bill that will criminalize homelessness.
As faith leaders and faith-based organizations from across Tennessee, we strongly urge you to veto SB1610/HB978 – which would greatly harm our neighbors who are experiencing homelessness. We are called by God to “love our neighbors,” Mark 12:31; to “defend the rights of the poor,” Proverbs 31:9; and to “do justice and love mercy,” Micah 6:8.
However, this bill tramples on the rights of the poor and further entrenches people in unjust cycles of criminalization and poverty.
We know that you are not only committed to your faith, but that you’re also committed to criminal justice reform. Instead of preventing crime, this bill is creating crimes by charging people with a felony offense for simply existing on public land – even when no other shelter options are available.
It does this by expanding the Equal Access to Public Property Act of 2012 (TN Code § 39-14-414) to make camping on all public property across the state a class E felony. As you know, charges like this make it incredibly difficult for people to obtain employment and housing so they can get off the streets.
There aren't enough shelters for those who need them
Isaiah 58:7 calls us to “provide the poor wanderer with shelter,” but currently no district in Tennessee has sufficient and accessible housing and shelter beds for all those in need. Even when shelters do exist, many people cannot meet the criteria for entry.
So they are left with no other option but to sleep on public property while they work toward housing. Those with limited or no shelter options include single fathers with minor children, married couples and partners, intergenerational families (like a mother and adult son), people with high medical needs (like those on oxygen) and people with pets.
These are some of the most vulnerable people, yet they could face up to six years in prison, a $3,000 fine and the loss of voting rights for involuntary poverty if this bill is signed into law.
Not only is SB1610/HB978 immoral, it is also unconstitutional. In 2019, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in Martin v. Boise that the 8th Amendment prohibits cruel and unusual punishment and that governments cannot prosecute people for sleeping outside on public property when those people have no home or shelter space available.
Every human being is created in the image of God and deserves to be treated with dignity and compassion. If this bill is signed into law, it not only threatens the dignity of our most vulnerable residents, but it threatens the humanity of us all.
Matthew 25 reminds us that the way we treat the most marginalized members of our society is the way we treat Christ. We cannot love God while turning away from our neighbors in need 1 John 3:17.
Governor Lee, we are asking you to not turn away from our neighbors in need. We are asking for your leadership on this issue because the leadership of too many of our elected officials has failed.
Poverty is not a criminal issue, it’s an economic one. Instead of trying to address homelessness with handcuffs, we must bolster our state-wide homeless outreach services and ensure that everyone has adequate pathways into housing.
We are praying that in your discernment process, you’ll find some compassion, conviction and courage. We’re urging you to veto this harmful and misguided bill and follow the sacred imperative we’ve all been given to love our neighbors, to defend the rights of the poor and to care for the most vulnerable among us.
Written by 300-plus faith leaders in Tennessee. Specific Tennessee counties they represent include, but are not limited to, Anderson, Blount, Bradley, Cheatham, Coffee, Dickson, Davidson, Giles, Grainger, Hamblen, Hamilton, Hickman, Humphreys, Jefferson, Knox, Lewis, Loudon, Marshall, Maury, Mcminn, Monroe, Putnam, Robertson, Rutherford, Sevier, Shelby, Sullivan, Sumner, Union, Williamson, and Wilson counties. Numerous faith leaders and organizations also participate in statewide, regional, national, and international ministry and work.