Angel McClain: "Right to Rest" Testimony April 7, 2015
I am grateful for the opportunity to speak to you in support of Senator Carol Lui’s SB608, the Right to
Right to Rest
California Vagrancy Laws Violate Human Rights
“Anti-homeless laws today and the vagrancy laws of prior eras — restrictions like anti-Okie laws, the Sundown Towns and Ugly Laws that explicitly discriminated against migrants, people of color and people with physical disabilities — have come back with a vengeance.”
A Right Delayed Is a Right Denied
“We are here to let San Francisco know that we will resist these laws. We will resist any law that criminalizes the bare necessities of life activities and the basic existence of our people!”
Struggling on the Streets Without the Right to Rest
Lucy is 76 years old, and she is way past tired. Years of living on the streets have taken an irreparable toll on her. She slowly walks down a busy downtown street in San Francisco.
WRAP Fights to Protect the Right to Rest—and Exist
Today, homeless people are being targeted by attempts to literally banish their presence. But they weren’t the first targets of intolerance, and they won’t be the last. That realization makes it all the more crucial that we prevent political officials from ever again banishing or criminalizing any other unprotected minority, anywhere.
Igniting the Fight for the Homeless Bill of Rights
“We are not fighting for special rights but for the same rights that everyone else has. People who don’t have homes do not want to be arrested for sleeping, resting, sitting, because they have no private place to sleep, rest or sit!” — Jessica Bartholow, Western Center on Law and Poverty.
Rhode Island’s Homeless Bill of Rights Offers New Hope
Rhode Island has become the first state in the country to pass a Homeless Bill of Rights. The law passed with the overwhelming support of both houses of the Rhode Island state legislature. It may offer new hope to homeless people who suffer unequal treatment from police and government officials.
The Legal Rights of Homeless People in Berkeley
by Karla James
Berkeley Copwatch, with the assistance of Osha Neumann
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