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A Poor Way To Treat The Homeless

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: October 20, 2007

Lakeland had developed a reputation as a compassionate community that reached out to the homeless - at least until about a dozen police showed up one morning late last month and took what few belongings the people owned.

According to the St. Petersburg Times, blankets, clothes, mattresses and papers were removed from a sidewalk on Kentucky Avenue. One woman cried out for her dead baby's outfit, the paper reported, while a man begged to find his birth certificate and another some family photos.

Lakeland Police Capt. Harry Katt explained the city can't take on Florida's homeless population and said the camp on the block could not continue to grow.

One can understand why city residents might object to having a block turned into a camp for the homeless and sympathize with the police who are often called upon to deal with them.
Homelessness is a difficult social problem, and sometimes reaching out a helping hand only attracts more people.

But that doesn't mean police should have the power without warning to order the homeless to stay away from their property so a truck can scoop it up and carry it away. Isn't that called stealing?

It's one thing to attempt to free the community from the unwanted consequences of homelessness; it's quite another to free the homeless of their belongings.

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