This yearlong project, a collaboration among seven journalism schools, did deep dives into the causes and potential solutions to homelessness. The investigation told the stories of people living on the streets and people facing eviction from apartments, trailer parks and public housing during the pandemic. It documented the consequences when cities criminalize homelessness and examined whether one alternative — community courts — is effective. The Howard Center developed a suite of web scrapers to gather tens of thousands of court records from online court record management systems, and partnered with Stanford University’s Big Local News project to extend the technology for use by a wider group of journalists. In addition to Stanford, the collaboration included the University of Oregon, Boston University, the University of Arkansas, the University of Florida and Arizona State University.
A First Amendment right to feed?
A constitutional clash between a religious belief in feeding the hungry and a city food-sharing ban.
In Ocala, strict policing pushes the homeless out of sight
A federal lawsuit alleges draconian measures in Ocala, Florida, to address homelessness are not only discriminatory but unconstitutional.
Arkansas jail releases inmates, dozens of them homeless, amid COVID-19
The Washington County Detention Center — one of the largest jails in Arkansas — released a third of its inmates, including some homeless detainees, over a 10-day span to reduce the risk of a COVID-19 outbreak behind bars.
Homeless bills of rights are a new iteration of anti-discrimination laws
Many states have passed, or are considering, laws protecting homeless people from discrimination.
Community courts and the homeless: Do these programs make a difference?
Community courts offer a choice for the homeless — but do they work?
Felons are struggling for housing and jobs in Northwest Arkansas
For some, getting released from incarceration means getting to go home to their families. For others, it means a new sentence to homelessness, unemployment and missed opportunities.
Drug evictions create obstacles to housing the homeless
Experts say trouble is brewing in Martinsburg, West Virginia, because of a city law called the “drug house ordinance.”
In many cities, it’s illegal to beg for food or money
It’s illegal to sleep on a park bench. It’s illegal to stand in one place for too long. In hundreds of American cities, it’s a crime to be homeless.