Standard Democratic proposals for homelessness policy involve “compassionate” ways to alleviate their immediate afflictions by providing no-strings-attached housing, areas for tent cities, or promises to reform the system that drives homelessness. people to find themselves homeless.

The problem is that these solutions don’t help the homeless become self-sufficient. Free housing provides ease and privacy for drug use, tent living mocks standard human living conditions, and blaming the state ignores the reality of homeless people’s lives and choices. When prolonged non-offensiveness is mistaken for compassion, this kind of tension occurs.

The city of Berkeley, California is the most important progressive city with change approaches to homelessness. While the city has tolerated and, spurred by activists, even supported the overflow of places like public parks with pop-up tents, Berkeley is now restricting and removing homeless encampments. Add to this Phoenix, Denver, Washington, D.C., And San Francisco.

This is a shift towards a common sense approach that has become increasingly more acceptable since Trump won the presidency last November. Even so, the solution is not as simple as cracking down on the homeless and getting them to reform.

Public safety and worsening homelessness have taken the issue to a new level in addressing these issues. real concerns. But as protesters lash out against cities’ efforts (some in Berkeley even destroyed construction equipment), they neglect the deeper solution that policies such as encampment restrictions leave room for.

In the bubble of a homeless and otherwise avoided area, those living in the camp will have little contact with others, whether role models or relatives. People need others to recognize their own humanity, and it is this recognition that ultimately motivates them to want more for themselves. In this case, “more” is the simple search for help or a house.

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Some homeless organizations, such as Christ in the city in Denver, aim solely at this mission of providing the homeless with genuine compassion and friendship. And even if they don’t measure their work in numbers, the reality is that such a service is rare – certainly, it is thwarted by the progressive ideal that further ignores the homeless. Beyond that, research has shown the benefits of “inter-class exhibition” to economic success. Again, people need to meet others, and more often than not, establishing relationships with people who model good choices or who have more opportunities will propel a person otherwise doomed by their poverty.

Until the left learns to coexist with divergent ideas, these important relational efforts might not flourish as they should. And so all they have are seemingly insufficient and harsh policies.