Donald Trump has a penchant for prisons and locking up people – former Presidents, First Ladies, an FBI Director, elected officials, immigrants. Now, his sights seem to be trained on locking up homeless persons, especially those who may exhibit mental health issues and/or substance addiction. A recent Executive Order would force them into institutional settings to “restore public order.” Never mind that the federal government has little or no authority for such involuntary moves. State and local laws govern the process for involuntary commitments. Trump’s executive order would usurp local authority and, as written, offers no funding for building or staffing additional hospitals. More tent cities, a la “Alligator Alcatraz” perhaps?

It is not a crime to be homeless. There are many reasons why someone may face losing that place we call home. High housing costs, domestic abuse, loss of employment, or an unexpected medical issue frequently are cited as homelessness triggers. The age-old question of which came first, the chicken or the egg, may have some implications here. Did homelessness lead to mental health and substance abuse, or did mental health and substance abuse lead to homelessness? The answers probably are as varied as the individual homeless persons. A high school student was living in a Fairfax County shelter after being thrown out by his family. Nonetheless, every day after school this young man was doing his homework diligently in the shelter’s dayroom, on his way to graduation. An elderly former professor who suffered from mental decline and lost his housing ended up at the same shelter. A mother and her young children escaped their domestic abuser and found help (and safety) at a family shelter operated by a non-profit in Annandale. They were the fortunate ones, able to access a shelter facility rather than living on the street, in the woods, or pitching a tent in a public park. 

In 1948, a Hollywood movie titled “The Snake Pit” described the terrors of a mental institution for the insane and led to some states changing the way their state hospitals were administered. When I was in high school, junior classes routinely took field trips to the Oregon State Hospital in Salem (the same location featured in Ken Kesey’s “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” novel and Academy Award-winning movie). My mother refused to sign a permission slip so, mercifully, I was spared that bizarre experience. Who thought it would be a good idea to expose patients and high school students to what amounted to a “human zoo” visit? 

State and local governments struggle to provide adequate care for those suffering from mental health issues and substance abuse. Many state hospitals closed because the buildings were old and inadequate, lacking appropriate staff, and too costly to operate. Modern best practices recommend that treatment be in the community closer to patients’ homes and families, but treatment still is extremely expensive. Health insurance often does not cover the cost and there are not enough psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, and other staff, either public or private, to address the lengthy waiting lists for inpatient or outpatient treatment. Forcing involuntary commitment, per the Trump executive order, exacerbates an already difficult issue but does nothing to help restore patients to healthy living. 

“Perfect” and “beautiful” appear to be two favorite Trump words, used to describe everything from letters from North Korea’s despot to fossil fuels and military equipment. Well, Mr. Trump, life is neither perfect nor beautiful. Excepting your billionaire friends and their luxury homes, airplanes, and yachts, many folks have struggled at some time in their lives, whether it’s affording the rent or paying for a sudden car repair. For most, that’s a very temporary situation, but for some it can be the beginning of a slide into anguish and despair. That’s when they need our compassion and assistance, not cruelty and spite.