Mayor Smiley meets with unhoused community members at Mathewson St. Church

With no press in attendance, the meeting lasted over an hour and some advocates are cautiously optimistic that the Mayor is evolving his policies.

“I think it was good,” said Providence Mayor Brett Smiley after he met with advocates for and members of Providence’s unhoused community. “There were some people - I wouldn't even call it tough - there were some real conversations. People weren't shy to share very direct feedback with me, which I was happy to hear and hopefully helps us do better. It's a good first step. I didn't have a preexisting relationship with Kevin Simon, who now I do.”

Kevin Simon, the Director of Mathewson Street UMC and Ministry Team, also called the meeting a first step. He was hopeful that there could be productive conversations going forward.

The meeting was organized by the Rhode Island Homeless Advocacy Project (RIHAP) and was the product of months of work. RIHAP has staged protests outside the Mayor’s office at City Hall, [see here and here] but the Mayor has never directly interacted with the group until yesterday. The meeting was held at Mathewson Street Church as the daily crowd of people experiencing homelessness was eating the free lunch being offered. The room was packed with people. I stayed outside the room so that the conversation could happen without the pressure of performing for the press.

“I thought it went very well. It was a good discussion and the mayor was engaged with the important policy issues, so we're going to continue a dialogue with the mayor and his staff,” said Professor Eric Hirsch, interim RIHAP Director and a frequent critic of the Mayor and his cruel policies of raiding encampments and destroying private property. “We're encouraged by it.”

“Did anything solid come out of this meeting?” I asked. “Did the Mayor announce any policy changes?”

“They're giving people in encampments 30-days notice before they give the 48-hour notice,” said Professor Hirsch, but if this policy change is happening, it’s a very new policy change that isn’t being reflected in the day-to-day experiences of people living unsheltered. I spoke to many people who told me that the police continue to harass them whether they are sleeping outside or standing on the street.

A 30-day notice is something that outreach workers have been wanting for a long time. It allows time to start the process of clearing an encampment in a way that is less stressful and more respectful of people. That’s not to say this is a solution: Statewide, homelessness continues to rise, with hundreds of people in Rhode Island forced to sleep, unsheltered, in “places unfit for human habitation” every day.

“Some officers are okay, but many are threatening,” said a woman experiencing homelessness to me. “I try to stay away from them.” Indeed, there was a member of the Providence Police Department parked outside the entrance to the church while the Mayor was inside. His presence made some of the people coming from and going to the church nervous. But there were no incidents.

“The attitude was the key thing in this meeting,” said the Reverend Wendy von Orten after the meeting. “It was very constructive and open-minded. There was a sense of wanting to work together and of welcoming the new relationship with Kevin and the Matthewson Street Church to work hand in hand to approach the governor.”

“I needed the Mayor to be appreciative of what it's going take to get the city back on track and that's some tenant protection,” said activist Terri Wright. “Without that, we're going to still end up being priced out of housing. Displacement is happening at the speed of light. Providence has a housing problem.”

Despite this, the Mayor reiterated his promise to veto any rent control bill the Providence City Council might send to his desk, said Wright.