Over the past year, the French government has evicted thousands of people from their homes and bussed thousands of unhoused individuals out of the city with the promise of housing elsewhere. These people often end up in emergency shelters in other French cities, where many are evicted again after a few weeks, only to be unhoused and on the streets again in an unfamiliar place.
The Olympics’ Historical Treatment of Unhoused People
This practice continues an alarming tradition of host cities removing unhoused people from the nearby areas surrounding Olympic sites and sending them elsewhere with little support. However, Paris is hardly the first host city to do so.
This displacement does not take place overnight (although it may seem like it does). Olympic planning efforts begin months and even years before the events begin, and often require legislative changes and funding reallocation. Thus, the capacity and political will exist for cities to address homelessness through a longer-term vision.
The Far-Reaching Effects of Mega-Events on Homelessness
However, Olympic host cities are not the only ones perpetuating this dangerous and futile tactic. Almost every major city that hosts a high attention “mega-event” seems to do the same before the public eye shifts its gaze to their community.
Displacement and forced relocations of unhoused people produce immediate apparent challenges for those experiencing homelessness. They are severed from critical connections with resources and community. Providing direct services and outreach becomes dramatically more difficult, because these workers can no longer find their clients at the same location. Psychological and mental health challenges are expounded as people are removed from familiar spaces.
What Does This Tactic Tell Us About Political Will to End Homelessness?
Displacing people experiencing homelessness from a mega-event’s host city allows attendees to ignore that city’s housing and homelessness crises ahead of large global events and only serves to exacerbate social inequities.
Local and national leaders are obviously concerned about public perception of their municipalities ahead of the heightened attention: visible homelessness in public spaces can be a negative reflection on their governance and policy record.
These large-scale displacements are a symptom of a larger problem: resorting to a short term “fix” to put a much larger systemic issue out of sight. Instead of these short-term stopgaps, elected officials should use that desire to put forth affordable housing and other legislative priorities desperately needed to support the unhoused residents of their cities.
Despite displacing people experiencing homelessness around the Olympic games, Paris has also begun to lean into this long-term strategy: the buildings constructed for the Olympic Village will be converted into permanent housing, with more than one third of units allocated for low income renters. This is a good start – but cities should also consider how to implement these initiatives before the Olympics happen, so as not to displace people experiencing homelessness, but house them.
Planning for the Future
These best practices are embraced internationally. In accordance with Center of Housing Rights and Evictions and European Federation of National Organizations Working with the Homeless recommendations, ahead of mega events, local and federal officials can and should implement eviction moratoriums, provide shelter for unhoused individuals close to where they stay, involve local stakeholders who address homelessness into the decision-making process for these events, and improve access to assistance services for the unhoused communities.
Mass displacement of a community’s most vulnerable is not the solution to homelessness. Cities and their governments must use times of heightened attention to care for their unhoused neighbors, not ignore the problem, and provide assistance for their unhoused neighbors during these events. With these policies put in place, officials can move to long-term legislation to provide affordable housing with supportive services to all people.
When advocates and elected officials share a common desire to address visible homelessness, especially prior to mega-events, they can – and should – prioritize evidence-based solutions. Positive change is possible.