Transcription
Have you ever walked around a city and wondered why there were such oddly shaped benches lying around along the streets? Maybe these benches have spikes underneath them. Maybe they have awkwardly placed armrests along the seat. Maybe they are sloped at strange angles. Well, this is an example of what we would call hostile architecture.
And hostile architecture essentially is an urban design strategy that targets mainly homeless people and discourages them from resting and sleeping in public spaces. The reason why this is such an important topic and why it matters that we address it is because hostile architecture essentially exacerbates the problems of homelessness instead of curing them. And by addressing them, we will be able to craft more productive solutions to the problems of homelessness.
Today, I will persuade you that hostile architecture is an inhumane response to homelessness and also hurts the general public. I will do so by first talking about the problems that come along with hostile architecture, the causes behind its existence and enforcement, as well as the solutions that we can use to solve the problem of homelessness and hostile architecture altogether. So first, I will introduce you to the problems of hostile architecture.
Again, first, hostile architecture targets homeless people, mainly homeless people. According to News Day on January 24th, 2021, hostile architecture was intentionally designed to make it difficult for homeless people to sleep on benches or in any spaces thereof. So, for example, the spikes underneath the benches make it hard for them to sleep soundly under the benches, and brightly lit spaces make it hard for them to sleep in alleyways and corners as well. According to the Washington Post, on April 24th, 2021, a 16-year-old girl discusses her family's homeless situation and expresses that it was very difficult for them to find a place to rest because of this problem of hostile architecture, given the fact that many places don't have the same access to homeless shelters as others do.
Secondly, hostile architecture also targets and harms the general public. This includes the elderly and the disabled. Benches that are unconventionally shaped or are difficult to stay on if not able-bodied hurt those that have to use canes, walkers, or are disabled altogether, according to the LMP on April 3rd, 2022.
Lastly, this is a problem. Hostile architecture defeats the purpose of public spaces. Public spaces are designed to serve the public. So why are we using it—so why are we using hostile architecture—to make it difficult for us to use resources and access these spaces openly? The Observer questions this on January 21st, 2024.
I will now list the causes behind the existence of this problem. So first, cities enforce hostile architecture because they prioritize image over humanity. They care more about a facade of cleanliness, a facade of sanitation, over the well-being and rest of their own people. Again, homeless people still have the same rights as housed people. They are still people. So why aren't we considering the urban design of our cities to include them more? According to the Crit on January 22nd (day not provided).
Additionally, budgeting issues come into play when it comes to these solutions to homelessness. So instead of funding—instead of properly funding—homeless shelters or other solutions, cities turn to hostile architecture because hostile architecture is a lot cheaper to tackle, according to ABC Premium News on March 29th, 2024.
Lastly, another cause behind this problem is gentrification. When cities and neighborhoods become renovated and are better funded, the cities don't want homeless people to be laying around these newly remodeled infrastructures, and therefore they will—they will enforce hostile architecture and other anti-homeless designs within their cities, according to City and State New York on August 8th, 2022.
Now that we've talked about the problems and the causes, let's talk about some solutions we can use to tackle this situation. So, first, it's pretty simple. Let's remove hostile architecture altogether and replace them with more inclusive features. We must prioritize empathy and humanity over the aesthetic and cleanliness of the city.
Additionally, another solution is funding social work and homeless shelters. Again, most cities are concerned with budgeting and money issues and don't have the amount of money needed to fund their shelters and other housing-first initiatives. But if we think about it, a lot of our budget is going into other programs in our society. For example, with Trump's big, beautiful bill coming out recently and being passed recently, a lot of money is being funded towards ICE, an anti-immigration service that is essentially ripping families apart and kicking people out of their own homes, even those that have come to the country legally. Instead of funding these organizations, we must prioritize our people by funding shelters and places for them to stay at if they're not being housed properly.
Finally, we must consider the homeless when doing things like urban planning. Urban planning should—should include the people who are unhoused because they are the most affected by the design of the cities and the features such as the benches and other places where they can—where they can rest.
We've talked about the problems and the causes, as well as the solutions. So I will now conclude this and discuss—and now I will now discuss or summarize what we talked about in our speech today. So first, again, I persuaded you that hostile architecture is an inhumane response to homelessness and it also hurts the general public. I did this by talking about the problems, the causes, and the solutions behind this big, overarching issue. The next time that you walk past a bench that has spikes underneath it or maybe is designed in a very inhumane fashion, I hope you consider the fact that we should prioritize humanity over aesthetic. Thank you.