By: Jasmine Tang

Los Angeles residents were optimistic when their mayor, Mayor Karen Bass, decided to move homeless people to motel rooms in 2022, after she took office. Sidewalks were unblocked from the tents, and random belongings.

Ms. Bass even made her signature program to move homeless residents off the streets, but she still warned that more and more people might become homeless before her efforts can change anything.
According to the New York Times, Ms. Bass learned that for the first time in 6 years, the number of homeless people decreased.

In Los Angeles, the second largest city in the nation, the overall number of people in homelessness decreased by 2.2 percent according to a point-in-time count that took place in January. Homeless people who weren’t in hospitals or on the streets decreased by 10.4 percent.

Homeless people are a top concern for Americans on the West Coast, where many people can’t afford homes. California has a major housing shortage, and the pandemic created an influx of homelessness in the state.

“We know for a fact it will not work,” Ms. Bass said of arresting people who are homeless. “It will not get people housed. It will not get people off our streets.”

The results of January’s point-in-time count showed that the Los Angeles leaders have made progress on the homeless economy by moving individuals indoors, but less progress on locating permanent housing. There was an increase in homeless people living in shelters, motels, and temporary homes.

“It shows some signs of progress, or at least, bending the curve,” said director of the Benioff Homelessness and Housing Initiative at the University of California, San Francisco, Dr. Margot Kushel. “We’re beginning to do the right things, but we’re not doing them at scale.”

Jill Cowan. “Los Angeles Homeless Count Drops for the First Time in 6 Years” New York Times, 28 June. 2024, https://www.nytimes.com/2024/06/28/us/los-angeles-homeless-count.html