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Montgomery, Ala.鈥斅燗labama鈥檚 panhandling laws violate the First Amendment鈥檚 protection of freedom of speech, according to a 聽yesterday seeking to the city of Montgomery and Alabama from enforcing two state statutes prohibiting panhandling. The current laws make it unlawful for anyone to 鈥渂eg鈥� or 鈥渟olicit鈥� and subjects those who do to fines or jail. 聽The lawsuit was filed by the Southern Poverty Law Center, ACLU of Alabama, and the National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty.

聽鈥淎labama鈥檚 laws criminalizing homelessness are inhumane and unconstitutional,鈥� said Micah West, senior staff attorney with the Southern Poverty Law Center. 鈥淗ousing, not handcuffs, is the way to end homelessness.聽 Alabama should dedicate more resources to housing, shelter, and healthcare that would meet those needs rather than jailing or ticketing people that ask for help.鈥�

Jonathan Singleton, 44, a resident of Montgomery experiencing homelessness, was cited or arrested eight times for holding a sign that said: 鈥淗OMELESS.聽 Today it is me, tomorrow it could be you.鈥澛�

Jonathan struggles with chronic illness鈥攊ncluding kidney failure and diabetes鈥攚hich makes it difficult to maintain stable employment, housing, and healthcare. As a result, he relies on the assistance of others for survival. The lawsuit was filed on behalf of Jonathan and others who panhandle.

鈥淓nforcement of state statutes and local ordinances criminalizing panhandling by homeless people violates the First Amendment,鈥� said Randall Marshall, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Alabama. 鈥淲e hope that governmental officials will take heed and come up with better ways to address homelessness in Montgomery.鈥�

鈥淧unishing people who ask for help is not only illegal and inhumane, it is also a waste of limited public resources that would be far better invested in housing and supportive services to people in need,鈥� said Tristia Bauman, senior attorney at the National Law Center on Homelessness & Poverty. 鈥淚n the midst of a national homelessness crisis, governments should be investing in proven solutions to homelessness - not wasting time and money on punitive approaches that only worsen the problem.鈥澛�

Since July 2018, the city of Montgomery has issued over 400 citations to enforce the state鈥檚 laws banning panhandling.聽 Each night, at least 3,200 Alabama residents, including over 230 families and 290 veterans, experienced homelessness, according to data from 2019.聽 In Montgomery County, over 350 people are homeless on any given night. During the 2016鈥�2017 school year, at least 14,000 public school students experienced homelessness.

In 2019, the city of Montgomery passed an ordinance imposing additional penalties on panhandling, including mandatory jail time. This ordinance was later repealed by Montgomery鈥檚 City Council.聽聽聽

Panhandling laws, including Alabama鈥檚 law criminalizing begging, have their origins in vagrancy laws that were designed to criminalize African Americans after the Civil War.* The discriminatory impact continues today, with people of color disproportionately harmed by laws that target individuals who panhandle because of a lack of stable housing or access to resources.

厂笔尝颁鈥檚 sent in July 2019, to Montgomery鈥檚 Mayor Strange urging a veto.

狈尝颁贬笔鈥檚 sent in July 2019 urging a veto of the ordinance.

厂笔尝颁鈥檚 when Montgomery repealed part of the panhandling law with new Mayor Steven Reed.聽

*See U.S. Supreme Court case 527 U.S. 41, 54 n.20 (1999).

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