It is no secret that Denver has a large unsheltered population. Over 4,000 people are living without housing within city limits. Despite the ongoing pandemic, the city of Denver carried out dozens of sweeps to clear, clean and disperse encampments.
The practice has been met with backlash, as it goes against CDC guidelines and has little to no impact on the size of this population in Denver. The encampments are dismantled only to migrate a few blocks away until the next sweep. Denver is not the only city to have conducted these types of sweeps. City officials in Boston, Mass. and Fort Lauderdale, Fla., among other places, have faced backlash after sweeps resulted in the seizure and destruction of unhoused peoples’ property.
The city spent over $400,000 on the sweeps in 2020. Many critics of the practice were quick to label this as a waste of money that could have been used to improve shelters or provide housing. Benjamin Dunning, an organizer of Denver Homeless Out Loud said that, “the money could be put to better uses, it’s as simple as that. How many people can we put up in an apartment complex for that?” Fencing to keep protestors and advocates from interrupting the sweeps cost the city a whopping $62,000 alone.
The sweeps are allowed to continue under Denver’s Municipal Code, which prohibits “unauthorized camping on public or private property.” Law enforcement personnel have been utilized in the sweeps, a move that Cathy Alderman of the Colorado Coalition for the Homeless criticized.
“Calling in the State Patrol to remove people from their temporary homes is not only disruptive, but it further deepens distrust between law enforcement and our unhoused neighbors at a time when we need to be bringing people together and strengthening communities,” she noted in a press release.
COVID-19 has greatly affected homeless populations, with lockdowns and closures further restricting their access to food and other services. Denver Councilwoman Candi CdeBaca called the sweeps “inhumane and a violation of poor people’s constitutional rights.”
The few legal protections offered to the occupants of Denver’s homeless encampments have come under attack by the city. A recent judicial order that requires city officials to provide seven days’ notice before entering and clearing any encampments is the latest target. The city appealed to federal court to overturn the previous ruling.
There is no end in sight for the sweeps. The city has not announced any plans to change the ways that it clears encampments, citing public health concerns.
As Denver’s questionable sweeps of unhoused encampments continue, residents of the city and beyond question its ethics and usefulness.
The United States Interagency Council on Homelessness advises that the best ways to meaningfully combat homelessness are through providing access to housing, education, job opportunities and healthcare. Last July, Denver took a step in the right direction by opening its first Safe Outdoor Space, a place where unhoused people can access food, bathrooms, and other resources as well as be connected with housing and employment services.
This move offers hope that the city will develop a more humane, compassionate and effective approach towards addressing and serving the needs of our unhoused neighbors than uprooting them and destroying their property.
