Florida Becomes the Third State with Homeless Hate Crime Protections, 47 to Go

by Josie Raymond · 2010-05-20 11:27:00 UTC
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The Sunshine State is shining a spotlight on the violence inflicted on homeless individuals just because they're homeless. Starting October 1, attacks on the homeless will be rightly categorized as hate crimes in Florida.

Gov. Charlie Crist signed the bill into law last week, making Florida the fourth safe space in America, following similar laws in Maryland, Maine and Washington, D.C. A Republican sheriff in Broward was key to passage, proving that this isn't a political issue but a human rights issue.

According to data collected by the National Coalition for the Homeless, Florida has led the nation in violence against the homeless for the last four years. Thirty of 106 reported attacks in 2009 were in Florida.

Having hate crime legislation in place alone can't protect the homeless from heinous acts, of course. But the hope is that the laws, by allowing harsher sentencing for those who commit hate crimes, will serve as a deterrant. Data is not yet available on whether they work to deter attackers — and I wouldn't be surprised if those who maim and kill give little thought to what they're doing until they're sitting in a jail cell — but hate crime designation has a more symbolic purpose, too. It sends a message to homeless populations that they are valued. (Yes, housing would show this even better, but baby steps are better than steps backward.)

Next up: California, where the state House of Representatives voted earlier this month to recognize crimes against the homeless as hate crimes. The bill is now on its way to the state Senate. Tell California to follow Florida's example. The law proposed in California wouldn't impose stricter sentences, but it would allow victims to receive more money in damages. It would also, critically, recognize that when homeless people are lit on fire, shot with paintball guns and beaten to death, it is because of their perceived membership in the diverse group that is the homeless in America. We don't ignore the hatred of attacks on gays, Muslims or racial minorities — how long will we ignore it toward people who are unhoused?

Photo credit: TheAlieness GiselaGiardino²³

Josie Raymond is a Change.org editor who has reported from the streets of the South Bronx, written for several magazines that folded (not her fault) and fixed thousands of typos.

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