The night before, Russ and his wife were ticketed in Santa Monica for sleeping on the sidewalk. Criminalization of people experiencing homelessness is growing. It’s the fastest way to get homeless people out of sight, but the cost of criminalization is the most expensive and it does nothing to help people get off the streets. Giving tickets to people who have little or no income makes zero sense.
Russ and his wife are disabled. They both receive Supplemental Security Income, but their landlord raised their rent from and that caused them to be out on the streets. Russ says they are not alone and that many people receiving disability income are having a hard time keeping a roof over their head.
Russ is a veteran. They were placed into a supportive housing through the Supportive Services for Veteran Families (SSVF) Program, but Russ says the housing situations they were placed in were not healthy for them to live.
Russ’s three wishes: a job, a normal house, and no Trump for president.
