The Rally for the Right to Exist was created to address the repercussions the new law has for the homeless community. The Rally featured a potluck dinner, “teach-ins,” a documentary screening and culminated with an overnight “sleep-in” on the Legislative Plaza.
Some policy makers in Nashville have said that the law was only intended to target Occupy Nashville Protestors, not the homeless. However, many Lipscomb students feel that the new law is detrimental because it “socially profiles” the homeless.
“Certain things that are just a part of daily living can be criminalized for the homeless,” said Grant Winter, a senior American Studies major. “Sitting down on a sidewalk can be considered ‘obstructing a passageway.’ A homeless person who cuts through a private driveway might be charged with trespassing where someone who doesn’t ‘look homeless’ would never be charged with that offense.”
Tom McIntyre, a senior nursing major, said he found the teach-in about the history of homelessness in Nashville very helpful in determining how this new law will affect those who are currently making their beds on the streets.
“I think this law is just a continuation of the battle against homelessness that was postponed when the flood destroyed Tent City in 2010,” McIntyre said. “If you look at the statistics, it’s obvious that the city is on a campaign against homelessness.”
McIntyre continued by saying if someone was to look at statistics from 2004 to 2009 they would see a “huge increase” in the number of homeless people arrested.
The event was highly attended and organized by both homeless advocates in Nashville and participants of the Occupy Nashville movement. However, attendees said the event did not strictly support either cause and was rather intended to “simply protest the new law and all who suffer under it.”
Senior theology major Sawyer Wallace said he saw the event as a great opportunity to bond with people from different backgrounds who could unite around a common cause.
“I think we were all tired the next day, but I really grew close to a lot of the participants,” Wallace said. “The way that we eat, sleep and spend our leisure time says a lot about what we really believe. We got a lot of people from very different socio-economic and racial backgrounds together, and we had a sleepover. We were able to say what we believe, not with our words but with our actions.”
Brett Flener, a senior Law, Justice, and Society major, has been instrumental in advocating for the homeless in Nashville for more than 3 years. He believes that the law is irrational because Nashville currently doesn’t have enough low cost housing and shelters to support the homeless community here. Flener works for the non-profit Open Table Nashville, which seeks to disrupt cycles of poverty and inform the Nashville community on issues surrounding homelessness. He attended the rally and was pleased with community support and turnout.
“We had an amazing crowd of nearly 150 people for the potluck, rally and teach-ins,” Flener said. “About 45 people stayed overnight for the sleep-in. People are attacking this law with a tenacity that we have not seen in anti-criminalization activism in recent years, and we are ready to channel that energy into something positive.”
A “Next Step Action Meeting” will be held Monday, April 9 for people interested in learning more about the new law and homelessness in Nashville. The meeting begins at 3 p.m. If you cannot make it to the meeting, but are still interested in learning more, contact Brett Flener at flenerbn@gmail.com.