Thursday, October 24 at 5:00 p.m.
Kiggins Theatre in downtown Vancouver
Hear from three panelists about the implication of the Johnson v. Grants Pass ruling for Clark County.
Tickets are $15 and include appetizers and a slice of pizza. Drinks and concessions will be available for purchase.
Doors open at 5:00 p.m., panelists take the stage at 5:30 p.m. and will be followed by a Q&A session with the audience.
-
Ed Johnson, Director of Litigation for Oregon Law Center
-
Any Silver, CEO of VHA
-
Assistant Chief Nilsen, Vancouver Police Department
Are you a We Share member? You will receive a free drink token with your ticket.
Johnson v. Grants Pass (Oregon)
On June 28, 2024, the Supreme Court ruled on their finding of the Johnson v. Grants Pass (Oregon) case determining that people experiencing homelessness can be arrested and fined for sleeping outside when there are no safe alternatives.
The Supreme Court has given cities and states across the U.S. permission to punish people who are forced to sleep outside, even when they have no other safe option. A ruling like this does nothing to end homelessness and punished people for existing in public simply because they have nowhere else to go.
Stephen Berg from the National Alliance to End Homelessness put it perfectly when he said, “Allowing unsheltered homelessness to be a crime, even when there is no shelter, would mean more people with criminal records: making it harder to get a job, harder to rent an apartment and harder to have time to address barriers when life is filled with court appearances and jail time.”
What criminalization won’t do is end unsheltered homelessness.
