by Marcel F. Williams
State governments need to set up state licensed areas that are secured and continuously cleaned and maintained-- outside of towns and cities. These would be rural areas where transient populations can get free food, free shelter, free health care at local free clinics, free mental care, and also have immediate access to free drug and alcohol rehabilitation facilities. Such licensed areas would also be excellent locations for state mental hospitals for individuals who are a danger to the community or to themselves.
A variety of housing and campsite options can be built and located in such areas where people in nearby towns or cities would be hired to provide services for transient populations and to protect and maintain facilities within transient areas. So such state licensed transient facilities would also create jobs.
But trying to integrate transient populations into urban environments-- are doomed to failure. People who are drug or alcohol addicted or severely mentally ill usually feel no need to obey the laws within a town or a city.
As American citizens, transients obviously have the right to visit towns and cities at their leisure-- but such individuals should not be-- above the law-- and be allowed to camp out or sleep on city streets or to commit minor crimes or any other crimes. Transients who disobey urban laws should be immediately transported by state law enforcement to licensed transient facilities where they could face up to 48 hours of jail time or up to ten days of mental health observation or drug or alcohol rehab-- before being released back into the transient community at state licensed transient facilities.
Churches and homeless advocates could also provide additional services for transients in such state licensed rural areas.
Links and References
Deinstitutionalization: A Psychiatric Titanic
Is it time to bring back asylums?
