Towel Before Taser
A Jesus-Shaped Response to Today’s DC Crackdown
“Towel Before Taser: A Jesus-Shaped Response to Today’s DC Crackdown”
This morning’s headlines landed heavy: the White House says unhoused neighbors in Washington, DC who refuse shelter or treatment may face fines or jail, while the National Guard supports a broader law-and-order surge on city streets. Reuters reports 800 Guard troops alongside 500 federal officers and a federal takeover of DC’s police; advocates warn the plan is murky and could cause harm.
I share the worry many of you voiced: there is not enough shelter or mental-health capacity to do this humanely—there or here in my local context. DC’s own count shows thousands experiencing homelessness on a given night, with hundreds unsheltered; bed availability is limited and fluctuates with season and funding. And although the Guard is deployed, local reporting notes they won’t have arrest powers and will mostly support with security and communications—important clarity as rhetoric runs hot.
What’s at stake (and why Christians should care)
Last summer the U.S. Supreme Court’s Grants Pass v. Johnson ruling made it easier for cities to enforce camping bans. But “can” is not “must.” Criminalization is a policy choice, not a governmental mandate. National homelessness leaders warn that arrest-and-sweep approaches worsen the crisis—separating people from support systems and making stability harder. The Urban Institute summarizes the “homelessness–jail cycle,” and the National Alliance to End Homelessness details how criminalization deepens poverty and recidivism.
Christians don’t need a court case to know our lane. Henri Nouwen calls hospitality “creating free space where the stranger can become friend,” not coercing change. Stanley Hauerwas reminds us, “the first task of the church…is to be the church”—a living social ethic. That’s towel before taser; basin before baton, gospel before government.
What this means ethically and theologically
Human dignity > expediency. Every person bears God’s image. Policies that displace, detain, or institutionalize people without voluntary consent and real alternatives risk reducing persons to problems. DC advocates are already flagging limited shelter capacity and the harms of forced moves.
Truth in the public square. Crime in DC has been falling from recent spikes even as crackdowns escalate; that matters when fear becomes policy.
Love is local. We may not shape DC’s decisions, but we can shape our valley’s posture—Harrisonburg, Weyers Cave, Verona, Staunton—so our neighbors experience Christ’s welcome, not whiplash.
I learned this twice: first in Italy in the ’90s, where church often looked like espresso, scripture, and a spare seat at the table. Then on our farm hosting weddings—how setting a table can heal shame. Hospitality does not fix every wound, but it does tell the truth about God.
Our local reality (capacity and gaps)
Harrisonburg’s Navigation Center (Open Doors) runs a year-round, low-barrier overnight shelter with up to 80 beds and basic services. That’s a gift—and not enough by itself. (City of Harrisonburg)
Daytime hospitality and meals: Our Community Place builds community and serves thousands of meals each year. (ourcommunityplace.org)
Family shelter & prevention: Mercy House (centralized intake 540-271-1701).
Augusta/Staunton/Waynesboro: Valley Mission (24/7 multi-population shelter) and WARM (cold-weather & transitional housing). (Valley Mission Inc., WARM - Waynesboro Area Refuge Ministry)
Food assistance (Augusta County): Verona Community Food Pantry—an independent, all-volunteer 501(c)(3) serving neighbors across Augusta County, Staunton, and Waynesboro; open Mon/Wed/Thu 9–11am and Tue 4:30–5:45pm. Pleasant Valley regularly volunteers on the 4th Tuesday each month. (veronafoodpantry.org)
Behavioral health crisis: HRCSB (Harrisonburg/Rockingham) and Valley CSB (Staunton/Waynesboro/Augusta) provide 24/7 crisis lines; statewide psychiatric capacity remains tight.
If a DC-style sweep ever landed here, our shelters would fill instantly, our day centers would overflow, and our crisis clinicians—already stretched—would face impossible triage. That’s not hand-wringing; that’s math.
Where I find aligned commentary
National Homelessness Law Center and National Coalition for the Homeless both argue that forced treatment/jail neither lowers housing costs nor addresses root causes; they call the current federal posture unethical and ineffective.
Urban Institute research shows criminalization loops people back into homelessness and jail.
Sojourners has long warned that sweeping encampments does spiritual and social violence to the poor and to the rest of us.
So…what can we do here? (A local “towel + table” plan)
1) Build a ready team (90 days).
Create a Pleasant Valley Hospitality & Outreach Team trained in trauma-informed care and de-escalation; coordinate with Open Doors and Our Community Place on volunteer shifts, hot meal nights, and intake support. (Commit now; don’t wait for winter.)
2) Fund the frontline.
Choose one monthly partner: Open Doors (beds), Our Community Place (daytime community), Mercy House (families), Valley Mission/WARM (Augusta), Verona Community Food Pantry (food assistance—Pleasant Valley serves here on the 4th Tuesday). (veronafoodpantry.org)
3) Become a response site.
With city fire-code guidance, prepare our building for overflow hospitality during cold snaps or heat advisories (mats, lockers, charging stations, laundry vouchers, hygiene kits). Coordinate via Harrisonburg’s Navigation Center. (City of Harrisonburg)
4) Strengthen the safety net.
Stock and serve through Blue Ridge Area Food Bank and Verona Community Food Pantry partners (food insecurity and homelessness are intertwined).
5) Keep families housed.
Support Mercy House prevention (rental help, utility arrears) and learn the Centralized Housing Intake process so we can walk with families before eviction.
6) Learn the crisis lines.
Post and practice these numbers in every small group:
HRCSB (24/7 Harrisonburg/Rockingham): 540-434-1766; Valley CSB (Staunton/Augusta/Waynesboro): 540-885-0866. These teams assess, stabilize, and connect; our role is to accompany.
7) Advocate with data, not heat.
Use the PIT findings to ask councils for more supportive housing and low-barrier shelter capacity; back our CSBs’ efforts to expand crisis stabilization. (Virginia’s system is over capacity; local voices matter.)
8) Practice Matthew 25 at street level.
Simple standards from my hospitality years: anticipate and fulfill. Carry water/snacks cards. Learn names. Offer rides to intake. Follow through tomorrow. (Because love is logistics.)
9) Worship like we mean it.
Schedule a Love Feast that focuses on “the least of these.” Take the basin seriously. Let the table reconcile us across class and circumstance. Then go wash the city’s feet.
A gentle word to policymakers and friends in law enforcement
Thank you for the burden you carry. Evidence-based approaches—housing first + treatment, co-responder models, outreach with storage, sanitation, and case management—produce better outcomes than citations and jail. When we make compassion the first move, we reduce calls, repeat crises, and human suffering. (That’s not just theology; it’s the research.)
Benediction for the Valley
Church, the Lord is near. Let your gentleness be known to all. May our towels be damp, our tables wide, and our eyes open for Jesus in the faces of our unhoused neighbors. May we choose mercy over spectacle, presence over panic, and hope over headlines—today, right here, together.
Local Quick Links
Overnight shelter (Open Doors / Navigation Center, Harrisonburg) — info & ways to help. (City of Harrisonburg)
Day hospitality & meals (Our Community Place) — volunteer & give. (ourcommunityplace.org)
Family shelter & prevention (Mercy House) — intake 540-271-1701.
Staunton/Augusta (Valley Mission) and Waynesboro/Augusta (WARM) — shelter & programs. (Valley Mission Inc., WARM - Waynesboro Area Refuge Ministry)
Food assistance (Augusta County): Verona Community Food Pantry — hours, contact, and volunteer info (PVCOB serves the 4th Tuesday each month). (veronafoodpantry.org)
Behavioral Health Crisis — HRCSB 540-434-1766; Valley CSB 540-885-0866.