Nov 19 4:33 PM

Hawaii politician wields sledgehammer to address homeless problem

A homeless woman in Hawaii. (AP/Marco Garcia)
The Stream (Al Jazeera)

In an effort to address Hawaii's homeless problem, state representative Tom Brower has been taking a sledgehammer to destroy shopping carts used by the homeless in his district. By smashing the carts, he says he wants to prevent people who are homeless from transporting their belongings around the city and surrounding region he represents. Brower has destroyed about 20 unattended carts to date and says he has not yet confronted a homeless person who's actively using a shopping cart. 

Hawaii has one of the highest rates of homelessness in the country.

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Homelessness

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