A group of 18 Democratic legislators filed an amicus brief with the Supreme Court arguing against subjecting unhoused individuals to criminal penalties. The brief opposes the case of Johnson v. City of Grants Pass, contending that arresting or fining people for sleeping outside when adequate shelter is unavailable is unconstitutional and perpetuates cycles of poverty. The lawmakers advocate for investment in solutions to end poverty and homelessness instead.
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Fran Buntman is an assistant professor of sociology at the George Washington University. Her primary teaching and research interests focus on prisons, punishment, law and other institutions of power, and resistance to power. These themes are core to her book, Robben Island and Prisoner Resistance to Apartheid (Cambridge, 2003) and two recent journal articles “Prison and law, repression and resistance: Colonialism and beyond” (2019) and “The Mental health consequences of parental incarceration” (2023).
Hilary Silver is a professor of Sociology, International Affairs, and Public Policy and Public Administration at the George Washington University. Silver’s expertise and research focuses on social/anti-poverty policies in the US and around the world, migrant integration and inequality in Europe, social exclusion, homelessness, and poverty. Silver has served as a consultant to major international organizations, including the World Bank, United Nations, IADB, and International Labor Organization, on issues of social exclusion and inclusion, and to the US Government and the State of Rhode Island on racial disparities.
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