Warren v. Chico sets the floor for all

The city of Chico pushed to establish a constitutional floor on cruelty and criminalization of homelessness and that’s what we got. It wasn’t where they hoped, but they found it. Warren v. Chico will be a warning and an inspiration to the most despotic local governments in the nation.

In that gravel lot studded with retrofitted storage sheds is an incredible advancement over what the city council had in store for people. It’s painful to imagine what people would be suffering if some attorneys hadn’t empowered the poor to have a voice in the matter. Let’s hope the city council backs off from it now, because any influence they have is sure to augment the oppressiveness and brutality out there. Let’s hope the Jesus Center adapts their management in sympathy with the concerns of people who are unable to tolerate life there.

I’d also like to share my hope that we will one day eclipse the conversation of conditions of semi-internment for the houseless with a viable plan to actually produce the housing we need. This is what the Housing Element update currently underway is supposed to do, presenting another instance where our best hopes lie in the city council staying out of it.

For now, we have our two court-authenticated high-density last resort shelters concentrated between Costco and the Silver Dollar Speedway. I’d like to see some plants out there.

— Addison Winslow, Chico