From PRI, Public Radio International and KCRW Santa Monica, this is To the Point.

America's newest crimes, poverty, and homelessness.

Hello again, I'm Armin Alney, and this is To the Poet from Public Radio International.

A daily look at the issues Americans care about most.

The recession is driving Americans out of their homes and into poverty,

increasing the need for shelters and free food.

But many cities are passing ordinances to punish what more and more people do to survive,

sleeping, eating, sitting, or begging in public.

A recent report called Homes, not Handcuffs, says it's now illegal in some places to share food in public places with groups of homeless people.

We'll look at two of America's meanest cities.

Do other places get different results with policies that are kinder and gentler?

On reporter's notebook later on, deadly weapons at presidential protest rallies.

First, here's the news.

Support for To the Point comes from subscribers of KCRW Santa Monica and from the Public Radio

International Program Fund, whose contributors include the Ford Foundation and the John

D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.

Hello again, Warren Alney, back with To the Point. At the same time, homelessness is on the increase. Some cities are passing laws that make it harder to survive on the streets. Is poverty being criminalized in the midst of a recession? On reporter's notebook, men with handguns and AR-15s outside President Obama's health care rallies raise questions about the right to bear arms.

First is news update.

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak is in Washington for meetings with President Obama and other U.S. officials.

Peter Greer is staff writer in Washington for the Christian Science Monitor.

And Peter, thanks a lot for joining us today.

Sure.

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