“Are we Abating the Humans or Abating the Hazard?”: Workers’ Emotional Pain from Homeless Encampment Displacement Events

Abstract

With unsheltered homelessness on the rise across U.S. urban landscapes, many municipalities with and without emergency shelter capacity implement periodic and/or targeted encampment displacements, where law enforcement, social services, health department officials, and environmental remediation specialists forcibly remove people experiencing unsheltered homelessness from encampments. Research demonstrates that abatements impact the health and wellbeing of encampment occupants; however, little is understood about the social, emotional, and community ramifications of displacements on folks who witness and/or participate in these events. To understand these broader impacts, interviews with professionals and community members (n=12) who are involved in various aspects of encampment displacement revealed participant emotional responses ranging from empathy to anger, demonstrating the complex and painful nature of displacement practices and policies. Participants justified their continuing abatement work and proposed alternative approaches to these incredibly complex issues. Displacements harm everyone involved, highlighting the trauma involved and underscoring the importance of honoring their experiences.