Neighboring communities criticize Malibu's plan to deal with homelessness

Neighboring communities criticize Malibu's plan to deal with homelessness

Transcript¹

The California coastal² city of Malibu accounts for a tiny fraction of Los Angeles County's homeless population. The exclusive community plans to handle the issue by moving unhoused people elsewhere.

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

Every one of the 88 cities in Los Angeles County is affected³ by unhoused populations. But they don't all deal with the crisis in the same way. Anna Scott from member station KCRW reports on one plan in an exclusive southern California beach community that doesn't sit well with its neighbors.

(SOUNDBITE OF WAVES SPLASHING)

ANNA SCOTT, BYLINE⁴: Malibu is known as a beautiful getaway for locals and for tourists, like Zebedee Pedersen (ph).

ZEBEDEE PEDERSEN: We're having a picnic on the beach and a can of wine, which maybe isn't such a good idea. But why not?

SCOTT: Malibu is a long, skinny city stretched out along the coast and sandwiched between the Pacific Ocean and the Santa Monica Mountains.

PEDERSEN: We've been turning around and looking at the hills and trying to work out which houses we would want to live in.

SCOTT: This is one side of Malibu, dreamy landscapes, mansions⁵. There's another side. Malibu is a surprisingly rural place. And if you're experiencing homelessness, it's downright rugged⁶.

AARON MARSHALL: I don't got nowhere to lay my head and feel at ease. Yeah. It's really stressful - just keep walking around all day.

SCOTT: Aaron Marshall walked to Malibu a few days ago from the city of LA and is now one of more than 200 unhoused people estimated to camp out on the streets and in the canyons⁷ of Malibu on any given night. That's a tiny fraction of the more than 66,000 people unhoused throughout LA County. But it's nearly 50% more than Malibu saw just a few years ago, which City Councilmember Bruce Silverstein says has people worried about public safety, campfires getting out of control. And, he says, Malibu should remain exclusive.

BRUCE SILVERSTEIN: I am able to live here because I've worked hard all my life and I can afford to. If I couldn't afford a house in Malibu, I wouldn't have a house in Malibu. I'd live in another city that's less expensive to live in. And I think the unhoused population is in the same boat.

SCOTT: Malibu has laws against camping in public spaces. But they're tough to enforce because of a federal court ruling that says cities can't ticket or arrest people for sleeping outside unless there's shelter available. That's why city officials decided⁸ to pursue setting up shelter beds and voted to put them someplace outside city limits and transport people there. Silverstein, an attorney, says this fulfills⁹ the city's legal obligations. And beyond that, why should Malibu be responsible for people who have walked there from other parts of LA County?

SILVERSTEIN: The people living unhoused in Malibu are not really, quote, "Malibu's homeless," unquote. They didn't lose their home in Malibu.

SUE HIMMELRICH: If each of us took responsibility for the people in our jurisdiction¹⁰, I think it would be a lot easier for all of us to have a comprehensive approach.

SCOTT: Sue Himmelrich is the mayor of Santa Monica, a city just south of Malibu. She says treating a regional crisis city by city just won't work.

HIMMELRICH: Sixty thousand people cannot be solved by Santa Monica or by Malibu. My view is that we're all in LA County, and we are obligated to all pitch in with this crisis.

SCOTT: These types of disagreements aren't just between cities. Even the city of LA's 15 council districts have different approaches and are reluctant to shelter people from other districts.

MARSHALL: I guess there's a bad stigma¹¹ attached to homelessness, you know? A lot of us are fighting, like, drug problems. And so, yeah, I understand why they're trying to push us out.

SCOTT: Back in Malibu, Aaron Marshall empathizes with housed residents. And if he could go to a shelter right now, he would.

MARSHALL: If they could put anything - I don't know - close enough for us to get to on foot or - you know what I mean? That would be nice. I don't want to get a tent and just live in the woods, you know? That doesn't seem right, you know?

SCOTT: But to get a shelter bed, he'll first need a ride to a different city.

For NPR News, I'm Anna Scott in Malibu.

(SOUNDBITE OF SLOW DANCING SOCIETY'S "A SONG THAT WILL HELP YOU REMEMBER TO FORGET")

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 coastal   

adj.海岸的，沿海的，沿岸的

参考例句：

• The ocean waves are slowly eating away the coastal rocks.大海的波浪慢慢地侵蚀着岸边的岩石。
• This country will fortify the coastal areas.该国将加强沿海地区的防御。

3 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

4 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

5 mansions   

n.宅第，公馆，大厦( mansion的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Fifth Avenue was boarded up where the rich had deserted their mansions. 第五大道上的富翁们已经出去避暑，空出的宅第都已锁好了门窗，钉上了木板。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
• Oh, the mansions, the lights, the perfume, the loaded boudoirs and tables! 啊，那些高楼大厦、华灯、香水、藏金收银的闺房还有摆满山珍海味的餐桌！ 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹

6 rugged   

adj.高低不平的，粗糙的，粗壮的，强健的

参考例句：

• Football players must be rugged.足球运动员必须健壮。
• The Rocky Mountains have rugged mountains and roads.落基山脉有崇山峻岭和崎岖不平的道路。

7 canyons   

n.峡谷( canyon的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This mountain range has many high peaks and deep canyons. 这条山脉有许多高峰和深谷。 来自辞典例句
• Do you use canyons or do we preserve them all? 是使用峡谷呢还是全封闭保存？ 来自互联网

8 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

9 fulfills   

v.履行（诺言等）( fulfill的第三人称单数 )；执行（命令等）；达到（目的）；使结束

参考例句：

• He always fulfills his promises. 他总是履行自己的诺言。 来自辞典例句
• His own work amply fulfills this robust claim. 他自己的作品在很大程度上实现了这一正确主张。 来自辞典例句

10 jurisdiction   

n.司法权，审判权，管辖权，控制权

参考例句：

• It doesn't lie within my jurisdiction to set you free.我无权将你释放。
• Changzhou is under the jurisdiction of Jiangsu Province.常州隶属江苏省。

11 stigma   

n.耻辱，污名；(花的)柱头

参考例句：

• Being an unmarried mother used to carry a social stigma.做未婚母亲在社会上曾是不光彩的事。
• The stigma of losing weighed heavily on the team.失败的耻辱让整个队伍压力沉重。