Dec 1, 2014 3 min read

If you live in a neighborhood that’s been overrun by feral cats, the rule of thumb usually is to not feed them. If you do, the thinking goes, they’ll hang around and become dependent on the leftovers you toss out, and bring even more homeless felines with them.

Sadly, some cities in various parts of the United States have decided to take the same tack with homeless human beings, of which there are too many in a country of such wealth.

According to a report released in October by the National Coalition for the Homeless, increasing numbers of cities approved, or are considering, ordinances that would restrict homeless people from being fed in public places like parks. Though no such laws have been considered in our region, at least to the best of our knowledge, they have been pondered in Harrisburg and Philadelphia.

Michael Stoops, the director of community organizing for the National Coalition for the Homeless, pointed out that “cities have grown tired of the problem, so they think that by criminalizing homelessness, they’ll get rid of the visible homeless populations.”

This has placed shackles on both individuals and organizations who would like to deliver meals for homeless people outside of shelters. In one widely reported incident, a 90-year-old World War II veteran who operates a nonprofit group that provides food for homeless individuals was arrested one month ago in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. while engaged in the simple act of serving food. A policeman is said to have shouted, “Drop that plate right now!” as he was taking the elderly Good Samaritan into custody.

Some of the proponents of these laws suggest that, if a homeless population is lingering in parks or within downtown business districts, they are frightening away visitors and customers and bringing with them what one official described as “ancillary behaviors.” Some have also cited food safety, though there have been no reported incidents of the homeless becoming ill because of tainted food. Others started demanding permits that can discourage or bar some people from helping out.

More to the point, some lawmakers have come to believe feeding the homeless somehow encourages them to remain homeless, and if those without shelter were denied some bare sustenance, they would pull themselves up by their bootstraps, decide to become gainfully employed, and start paying rent and taxes.

But, as many advocates for the homeless have reiterated – and we reported in 2013 in an extensive series on homelessness – people with nowhere to call home are not typically freewheeling spirits who shun the restrictions and responsibilities that come with punching a clock or paying an electric bill. They are, more often than not, plagued by mental illness, locked in a battle with addiction, unable to find jobs or housing they can afford, or have a disability that makes employment unlikely or impossible.

Tackling these problems would be far more effective in getting these individuals off the sidewalks and out of our parks, not treating the kindhearted souls who want to offer temporary assistance as criminals.