Project Compassion
Project Compassion is a privately-led initiative to deliver safer sleeping arrangements for persons experiencing homelessness.
In early April 2022 Birmingham City Council member Crystal Smitherman asked Mayor Randall Woodfin what the city planned to do about homeless persons impacted by the World Games. Woodfin encouraged her to bring the matter up with the event's vice president for community engagement, Kathy Boswell. They both wished to avoid repeating the cruelty carried out by Atlanta, Georgia in advance of the 1996 Olympic Games, when it "evicted" homeless persons by putting them on buses to other cities and threatening them with arrest if they returned.
Smitherman and Boswell contacted the Auburn University College of Architecture, Design and Construction as they began looking at the potential of constructing temporary housing for those displaced. The prototypes that were under development have been referred to as "micro-shelters" or "tiny homes" by proponents.
References
- Hedgepeth, Lee (June 10, 2022) "During the World Games, Birmingham will displace some residents facing homelessness. Where will they go?" CBS42.com
- Garrison, Greg (June 23, 2022) "Shelter plan not ready as World Games displaces Birmingham homeless in security zone" The Birmingham News
- Michaels, Ryan (June 24, 2022) "After Public Outcry, Homeless Providers Clarify Use of Controversial Micro-Shelters" The Birmingham Times