r/NoStupidQuestions 9d ago

Where are the homeless supposed to go?

Cities have been cracking down on homeless people so they can’t have encampments or stay on sidewalks. At the same time usually the shelters are full. So those who are unable to get into a shelter, where are they supposed to go?

8.2k Upvotes

4.0k comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

168

u/doubledoc5212 9d ago

Colorado has similar laws - it's unlawful to sleep in public places. The cops will literally wake people up at 2am because they're sleeping in a park and force them to hike elsewhere. Where: who knows? And god knows you're going to have a hard time actually getting your life back together when you never get to finish a REM cycle.

45

u/whitedolphinn 9d ago

That's fucked.

48

u/Slightly-Adrift 9d ago

Colorado is in an extra sucky position because people will freeze to death outside, so we really don’t want people on the streets at night during the winter, but we’ve provided next to no resources to actually address that as an issue

1

u/Stunning_Scheme_6418 8d ago

Yep here in the springs we lose three or four every year to freezing. The warming shelters don't turn on until it's like under 20° or something ridiculous like that and there's no real public transportation to get you there. You can call a cop but then it's a toss up whether they're going to take you to jail just harass you or take you to a warming shelter.