Key Points
- A council in Western Australia has stopped playing a song by the Wiggles that aimed to deter homeless people.
- Some say music is not the only way councils attempt to drive away the homeless.
- Homelessness is on the rise, with many Australians struggling with housing affordability and the cost of living.
This week, a council in Western Australia was criticised for playing the Wiggles' song Hot Potato on repeat to drive homeless people away from a community space.
The Wiggles objected to their music being used for this purpose and requested for it to be switched off.
It's not the first time councils or authorities have attempted to make public areas less appealing to homeless people and those sleeping rough.
Why did Bunbury play the Wiggles on repeat?
The City of Bunbury had been attempting to drive homeless people away from the Graham Bricknell Music Shell in the centre of the town, south of Perth.
On Thursday, the Wiggles requested for their music to be stopped.
The band reportedly said its music was created to bring joy to children and it was disappointed to hear it was being used for another purpose.
On Friday, the City of Bunbury confirmed the music had been turned off after "careful consideration."
"A common method used across the state, music is a passive way of discouraging people from congregating permanently in an area and to deter antisocial behaviour," the council said in a statement.
"The Shell is a popular community space used for local events and where people should feel safe to visit and meet up.
"Unfortunately, the City continues to receive reports of antisocial behaviour at this site. There is also continuous damage to property which comes at a cost to ratepayers and the City."
The statement said the city was working with police and relevant agencies regarding homelessness, describing it as a "sensitive and complex issue".
How are councils deterring homeless people?
Professor Cameron Parcell, an industry fellow at the Australian Research Council specialising in poverty and homelessness, said playing music was a "deeply problematic" way to dissuade homeless people from using public spaces.
But he said music is just one of the ways councils attempt to deter rough sleepers.
"We hear instances of this now and again, but what we know is far more common is hostile architecture," he said.
"Some councils may put sprinklers on in parks throughout evenings, putting armrests in the middle of benches, and sometimes it can be progressed through coercive council governance or police."
Joseph Ireland, team leader at the Bondi branch of the Wayside Chapel Charity, described the tactics as "dehumanising".
"I think it probably displays lack of understanding of homelessness and the experiences, and what leads people to experiencing homelessness," he said.
"We have a lot of rough sleepers in the area, we do understand the tension between local councils and the homeless population and we often advocate both ways, but it can be done in a humanising way."
According to the 2021 Census, on any given night there are 122,494 people experiencing homelessness in Australia.
This marked an increase of 5.2 per cent from 116,427 in 2016.
Parcell said as homelessness has become more prevalent, resources and prevention have struggled to keep up despite increased awareness around the issue.
He pointed out that councils are not funded through the same support mechanisms as state governments, and often lack funding to provide adequate services for homeless people.
"Councils can sometimes be in a vexed position to try and respond to a problem that they don't have the resources to meaningfully address," he said.
"Of course, that doesn't in any way excuse or normalise the punitive or coercive messages that we see reported."
How can homelessness be improved in Australia?
Sharon Callister, CEO of homelessness charity Mission Australia, said the combination of the rising cost of living and shortage of affordable housing have contributed to rising numbers of homelessness.
"The tough economic times people face with rising living and rental costs, as well as challenges like domestic and family violence, mental health concerns and natural disasters simply won’t be solved without significant investment to fix the serious shortage of social and affordable housing," she said.
"We always do our best to provide support and care to people, but increasingly, we're finding that when someone comes to us for help, there simply isn't enough affordable and appropriate homes to connect them to."
Parcell said available affordable housing is a key factor in determining homelessness, and believes this needs to be addressed at a policy level to reduce homelessness rates in Australia.
"We need to think about ending and preventing homelessness rather than just managing or addressing it," he said.
"In order to achieve the prevention and ending of homelessness, we need a radical transformation in society ... we need to transform how we think about affordable housing in society."
- With additional reporting by the Australian Associated Press.
