A think tank created by a Palantir co-founder is behind a slew of bills criminalizing homeless encampments

Wed, 03/15/2023 - 11:56

A Seattle Police officer wears a mask as he walks past a woman packing up her belongings as a homeless encampment is cleared Monday, May 4, 2020, at Ballard Commons Park in Seattle. — A Seattle Police officer walks past a woman packing up her belongings as a homeless encampment is cleared Monday, May 4, 2020, at Ballard Commons Park in Seattle.
AP Photo/Ted S. Warren

Legislation criminalizing homeless encampments is proliferating across the country.
A think tank created by a Palantir co-founder is behind model legislation banning "public camping."
So far, Texas and Missouri have passed laws making public camping a Class C misdemeanor.

Homelessness continues to be a crisis across America. Many states and cities have taken a punitive approach to the problem, making homeless encampments illegal.

A think tank created by Palantir co-founder Joe Lonsdale has been pushing those laws.