On September 16, 2025, the McKinney City Council debated ordinances that would make it illegal to sit, sleep, or camp in downtown public spaces — even inside a car. While the most extreme measures were tabled, the council will revisit the issue in October, with some members still pushing for bans that would punish the very act of surviving without a home.

This plan is not just misguided — it’s cruel. McKinney has no year-round shelter system to offer people a safe alternative. That means criminalizing sleep and rest would effectively criminalize existence itself. As Paul Ballesteros of Emmanuel Labor, a local nonprofit serving unhoused residents, said: “If you’re going to tell people they can’t be in a certain place, being able to give them a place that they can go to would be a helpful solution.” Right now, no such place exists.

Across Texas, city leaders are responding to visible homelessness by turning to police and fines rather than investing in housing and services. But homelessness does not end with handcuffs — it only deepens when people are forced further into the shadows, cut off from outreach, and burdened with criminal records that make stability impossible.

McKinney can choose differently. Instead of pushing vulnerable people out of sight, the city can expand emergency shelters, invest in transitional housing, and partner with nonprofits, faith communities, and advocates who already provide vital services. This approach not only restores dignity but also strengthens the community as a whole.

We call on Mayor George Fuller, the McKinney City Council, and City Manager Paul Grimes to reject any ordinance that criminalizes sitting, sleeping, or camping in downtown McKinney. Public safety is not served by punishing people with nowhere to go. True safety comes from compassion, investment, and commitment to real solutions.

McKinney is better than this. Criminalizing homelessness is cruel, costly, and counterproductive. Protect our neighbors and demand solutions that honor dignity instead of destroying it.

Add your name to stop McKinney from turning survival into a crime.