Letters: Louisiana should not make homelessness a crime | Letters

In Louisiana we are about to issue laws that criminalize the strongest endangered among us – and call them a solution. House Bill 196, a draft law that creates a so -called “homeless court court”, is on the way to the Senate. Proponents claim that it offers an alternative way to rehabilitation. In truth, it adds another bureaucratic layer to an already overwhelmed system that transforms social failures into criminal liability.

As someone who heads a youth agency in Baton Rouge, I see the daily effects of the apartment of uncertainty on young people, especially in nursing, in adolescence or at a young age. These young people are already overexposed systems that punish them more than they protect them. What HB196 suggests is not support or security. It is institutional fatigue that camouflages itself as a policy.

Let us be clear: HB196 does not solve any homelessness. It shifts the costs morally and financially from social services to the punitive justice system. And who pays the highest price? Children.

In 2022-2023, over 6,100 infants and toddlers experienced homelessness in Louisiana. Nevertheless, more than 90% of them were not enrolled in any early childhood program. They grow up without access to development support that could change their trajectory – and we will discuss whether they should send their parents to court instead of sending resources to their communities.

We don't need any further courtroom. We need coordinated, well-financed support services. This calculation is a distraction from this reality.

So we don't build a better Louisiana. HB196 increases pressure to an already overwhelmed judicial system and does nothing to tackle the lack of affordable living, early care or psychiatric services.

Let us reject this punishment. Homelessness is not a crime. It is a directive failure. And we owe our children better than that.

Tekoah Boatner

Baton Rouge