Spokane business funds should aid homeless.

Addressing Homelessness: Critique and Solutions

By Edie Rice-Sauer

As someone who has always been interested in solutions to homelessness, the responses to Camp Hope have left me baffled. While the state of Washington and Department of Commerce deserve immense credit for releasing millions of dollars to address the emerging houseless population in Spokane, local responses have fallen short.

A Question of Priorities

It is concerning that the East Spokane Business Association has spent thousands of dollars on front-page ads criticizing the camp’s existence, when those funds could have been spent on essential solutions. For instance, they could have funded welcome home baskets, filled with housing essentials, such as toilet paper and toothpaste, or provided gloves and hats to keep people warm during the winter months. Additionally, the funds could have been used to help relocate people, such as contributing to their first month’s rent.

Empowering Shelter Solutions

One potential solution would be for high-barrier shelters to minimize their requirements, thus allowing people with special needs to leave the camp and enter a proper shelter. For instance, individuals struggling with substance abuse could benefit greatly from shelter programs that focus on treating addiction. This would require a change in mindset from shelters regarding what constitutes an acceptable level of sobriety.

Homelessness is a complex issue with multiple causes, such as economic challenges, mental health issues, substance use, past felony convictions that limit housing options, domestic violence, and aging out of foster care. A tight housing market exacerbates an already difficult situation, as the 2023 Point in Time Count showed that average housing sales and rent have nearly doubled over the last decade. In this situation, calls to “close Camp Hope” without offering concrete solutions are unhelpful and lack purpose.

Words Matter

Critique and condemnation without solutions are empty, as Eckhart Tolle explains in his book “A New Earth”: “The quicker you are in attaching verbal or mental labels to things, people, or situations, the more shallow and lifeless your reality becomes, and the more deadened you become to reality, the miracle of life that continuously unfolds within and around you.”

We must do better than making word noise. Instead, we should focus our efforts on finding solutions that empower service providers and campers alike. One way to start is to thank service providers for their commendable work supporting the houseless population. Alternatively, we could create a heated space for campers to get their IDs or provide legal support to prevent the unlawful removal of the camp. Together, we can build a more compassionate reality for all.

About the Author: Edie Rice-Sauer has served individuals negatively affected by violence and capitalism for the past 50 years.

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