What little they have

The following editorial first appeared in the Anchorage Daily News:

Let's keep this as simple as possible. Should Anchorage police be able to shut down homeless camps on public property?

Yes. Public health and public safety demand that police or other responsible authorized parties be able to give notice and then dismantle and clean up sites that become unhealthy, unsightly or dangerous either to the public at large or the people living in them.

Anchorage residents shouldn't have to put up with threats, aggressive panhandling, obnoxious behavior or unsanitary conditions in our parks or on our trails, nor should random concentrations of alcoholism and its attendant miseries be an accepted part of our city's landscape.

Should homeless people living in such camps still retain rights to their property and due process of law afforded to all citizens by the Constitution?

Yes. Homelessness takes much away from people, but does not take away people's fundamental rights. And Anchorage, like any other society, must judge itself in part by how it treats its least fortunate and most afflicted citizens, even those whose wounds are self-inflicted.

Respect for human dignity - everyone's - requires that you don't take from people who have little - what little they have.

Are these positions irreconcilable?

No.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Alaska has sued the city on behalf of Dale Engle, who said his military decorations and other possessions, including a spruce checkerboard made by his father, were taken and trashed as the result of a homeless camp "sweep" in 2009. An ordinance passed in July 2009 authorized police or their agents to dismantle the camps and dispose of property seized with as little as 12 hours' notice.

The ACLU wants to negotiate with the city to amend the ordinance to protect the personal property of people in such camps and to provide longer and wider notice of camp "sweeps" so that residents have time to stow their possessions elsewhere. In the meantime, the ACLU would like the city to either suspend the camp sweeps or change their procedures.

The city made some changes Thursday.

Municipal attorney Dennis Wheeler said the city has adopted a minimum notice of five business days before breaking up a camp, rather than the 12 hours allowed by the ordinance, and that they hope to have other amendments for the Assembly next month.

"We fully expect this issue will be resolved without a lawsuit," mayoral spokeswoman Sarah Erkmann said Thursday. Jeffrey Mittman of the ACLU said he understands the city is in a bind, trying to figure out what to do about chronic homelessness while it protects the public and public places and tries to do so with limited resources.

But, Mittman added, limited resources just isn't reason enough to argue that you haven't got space to hold seized personal property, and can't give shelters and social service agencies word of camp sweeps so they in turn can spread the word and give people time to gather up their belongings.

These camp sweeps aren't to be punitive, but to ensure public health and safety - including the health and safety of the camp residents themselves.

Protect the public. Respect the property of the homeless. Both are constitutional.

City, ACLU, social service agencies can and should work out a way to handle homeless camp sweeps.