PEORIA, Ill. – A group of about 20 people called for “Housing, Not Handcuffs,” Saturday as they voiced their concerns about a new city council ordinance affecting Peoria’s homeless population.
Last week, the city council voted to fine and possibly jail people camping on public property.
According to 25 News, for about an hour-and-a-half, protesters at University and St. James Streets held up signs opposing the ordinance as drivers passed by.
“What they’re doing is they are basically saying they’re cleaning up their room but pushing everything under their bed. They’re not really creating any solutions. You’re not getting to the root cause of why they ended up where they are,” said Estrella Diaz, a protester and city council candidate.
In speeches, protesters encouraged each other to be active in local politics and to vote. They told supporters to let their frustrations over the city council’s decision motivate them to help the homeless.
“When we see people saying that someone is choosing to be homeless, what we’re seeing is a missed opportunity to address barriers that are existing to get them into services and housing,” said Nicholis Hall, the protest organizer.
Protesters were also trying to raise awareness for a General Assembly bill that was referred to the rules committee Nov. 12. It would prevent municipalities and law enforcement agencies from enforcing bans on sleeping in public spaces if a city does not have enough shelter beds for the homeless.
“We’re trying to get state Democrats to take action to protect the investments that Illinois has put into addressing homelessness,” Hall said.
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