It’s Freezing Outside — Let’s Bring Warmth to Our Community

Hi everyone,

I write this on a night where it’s 9º outside, thinking about our unhoused neighbors. While there are not as many people experiencing unsheltered homelessness in Minnesota as in other parts of the country, the issue is more pressing here because of our extreme winter weather conditions. Quite simply, simply sleeping outside here some nights is a matter of life and death. I’d like to give you some facts and references about the issue, as well as to let you know where I stand on approaches to unsheltered homelessness in Minneapolis. While the county is responsible for much of the homeless response teams, the city can create ordinances and advocate for policies and resources at the county and state levels.

Lead with compassion.

How we approach an issue matters. Let’s recognize the humanity of our unhoused neighbors. The Invisible People initiative has great content helping to understand what leads people to experience homelessness and unsheltered homelessness. Here in Minneapolis, we are lucky to have zAmya Theater Project, a theater company devoted to the topic of homelessness. I saw one of their plays and attended the Q & A afterward – it was eye-opening. Art helps us take the perspectives of others in ways that we might not imagine we can do otherwise. zAmya has free workshops on Tuesdays from January 14 – April 29 at the downtown Minneapolis Public Library, 8:30 – 10:30 am. They also have a play about the North Loop neighborhood debuting in March – I’m sure it will be thought-provoking!

Harm reduction is necessary, but not sufficient.

Harm reduction is an approach to homelessness that seeks to mitigate worse outcomes and keep people alive, while not addressing the root issues. These are helpful stopgap measures which align with both my values of valuing human life and the pragmatic aspect of cost-effectiveness. Here in Minneapolis, the Aliveness Project recently handed out clean needles to encampment sites to slow an outbreak of HIV. While helpful, I do not believe harm reduction should be our only approach.

In Los Angeles, 67% of the unhoused population either experiences a severe mental health issue such as schizophrenia or substance-use disorder; we might infer similar statistics for Minneapolis. These issues are complex, and living unhoused complicates the matter significantly. In one estimate, the government spends $35,578 per person per year who experiences chronic homelessness. That money would be better spent preventing homelessness in the first place by building affordable housing, having more mental-health crisis stabilization centers, and experimenting with Universal Basic Income.

Housing first.

In a housing first approach, unhoused people are given shelter before requirements of sobriety or medication. It has been shown to be the most effective method for reducing long-term chronic homelessness time and time again. This approach is values-driven and pragmatic – it costs less than requirements of sobriety, and it works. We must step up our efforts to get people into housing.

Ideally, folks will go to supportive housing: housing that offers social and medical services in addition to shelter. Supportive housing was shown to have much better outcomes in Denver than housing alone.

Better treatment, and mandated treatment in rare cases.

While housing-first is crucial, we must also address serious mental health issues for those who can’t or won’t voluntarily seek treatment. Research at the University of Minnesota found that homeless people do seek help with treatment for substance use disorder, but that they are less likely to get treatments leading to the best outcomes. In Minneapolis, we should ensure that medication-assisted treatments for substance use disorders are readily available.

In cases where someone is either a grave danger to themselves or others, mandatory treatment via civil commitment is worth exploring.  This approach must be humane, equitable, and rare. I invite you to read this heart-wrenching story about Andrey and see what you think the solution should be. As this profile mentions, the people most often asking for civil commitment of unsheltered homeless people with severe issues are their relatives. I work in mental health and have seen firsthand that mandatory treatment can be an effective tool. Civil commitment isn’t guaranteed to change things – but not doing anything is guaranteed not to change anything.

In other cases, unsheltered homelessness must be either be regulated and safe, as in Duluth, or strongly disincentivized. In 2024, a significant portion of crime and gun violence in Minneapolis occurred close to encampments. Over 90% of homeless women have experienced severe abuse at some point in their lives – I don’t believe this fact is talked about often enough. And a recent propane tank explosion at an encampment rendered nearby neighbors homeless. The current do-nothing approach to encampments is not safe, and the situation must change.

I promise to tell you clearly where I stand on issues. I promise that my positions will be informed by research and data. I promise that I will take all perspectives into account when making decisions. And I promise that if we don’t agree, I will respect your opinion.