On Wednesday, Providence community members rallied at Kennedy Plaza for the Housing Now National Day of Action, calling on Mayor Brett Smiley to increase housing accessibility and take action against alleged police misconduct that occurred at the plaza.
The rally was organized by the Rhode Island Homeless Advocacy Project, a group that advocates for housing policy reform. Protestors delivered a letter to Smiley’s office, outlining a number of demands, including that the Providence Police Department adopt a “disciplinary matrix” — a type of policy document outlining how law enforcement officers should handle different types of cases.
At the protest, RIHAP also outlined a ten-point “People’s Action Plan,” which includes demands for state construction of heavily-subsidized housing, a ban on “evictions, raids and destruction of tent encampments … until residents have viable housing alternatives,” and provide funding for walk-in shelters…