Joe Rogan jokingly suggested shooting homeless people in Los Angeles after claiming the city woke up Prosecutors no longer care about violent crimes.
Rogan, 54, recounted an experience when he saw “four port-a-potties” under an underpass where a homeless encampment was being set up and how one person had their car “semi-blocked” in the street while a dresser and belongings were in were stacked nearby.
His guest Tom Segura claimed homeless camps are “protected property” in the state and are “protected by law.”
Following a 2019 federal court ruling, some California Jurisdictions will be prevented from prosecuting homeless people camping on public property. However, THE signed a new regulation in August 2021 prohibiting camps from being set up near parks, libraries and other public spaces.
Rogan found it “hilarious” that an ordinary person could be “arrested” for “trying to move a camp,” and suggested an even worse way to take care of California’s homeless problem.
“But they wouldn’t arrest you if you shoot someone. Maybe you should just shoot the homeless people,” Rogan said on the July 14 episode of the show.
Segura agreed, telling Rogan that he liked his “ideas.”
“I mean nobody’s doing anything about violent crime in LA anymore,” Rogan continued. “It’s a damn joke.”
Joe Rogan, 54, suggests “shooting the homeless” because “nobody is doing anything about violent crime in LA anymore,” he said on his podcast. “It’s a fucking joke”
Overall crime in Los Angeles has increased by 8.2 percent. Shootings, muggings and robberies are also up in the City of Angels by 3.1, 5.0 and 20.8 percent respectively.
LA District Attorney George Gascon has been widely criticized for his handling of crimes and has been accused of treating criminals softly as the city’s jails have become a revolving door.
He faces impeachment for his unpopular policies, and the campaign to impeach him bears striking similarities to the impeachment that successfully ousted San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin in June.
But LA’s homeless groups are shocked by Rogan’s direct comments.
We told Unhouse podcast host and homeless advocate Theo Henderson diversity that Rogan’s statements were “disgusting”.
“It’s annoying because not only is it out of touch, but the reality is that unhoused people are being attacked by housed people,” he told the outlet. “To advocate shooting at homeless people or just giving these dog whistles to people who don’t see homeless people as human beings – I can’t believe you would advocate for that.”
A homeless man sits next to a tent surrounded by toppled trash cans and folding tables. Rogan proposed the heinous solution after sharing a story about how he saw a camp under an LA underpass and his guest Tom Segura told him that people would be “arrested” if they messed with homeless camps
A man walks past a homeless camp on the beach. In August 2021, LA signed an ordinance banning homeless people from setting up camps near parks, libraries, and other public spaces
Henderson said Rogan should have advocated for more “bathroom access and shower depots” so they could take care of themselves instead of complaining about seeing it.
“It’s a very miserable response to a varied situation that we should all be really concerned and work aggressively to get people indoors now,” he told Variety.
Union Rescue Mission homeless man Andy Bales agreed with Henderson, saying he was “surprised and saddened” by the podcaster’s comments.
“Comments about the start of homeless killings are getting too close to reality given that last year’s killings of homeless people in Los Angeles increased 47 percent from the year before,” he told Variety.
The number of murders is currently down 2.1 percent compared to the same period last year.
“In Los Angeles there is already an unfortunate vigilance towards people who are devastated by homelessness and they don’t need encouragement,” Bales continued.
It’s not the only controversy Rogan found himself in. Last year he was criticized for spreading misinformation about COVID-19 about alternative treatments and vaccines.
His comments led to calls for his podcast to be removed from Spotify and prompted several musicians to have their music pulled from the platform.
Overall crime in the City of Angels rose 8.2 percent on July 2
