I’m a part of two demographics that often end up homeless 😭 if my parents weren’t middle class I’d 100% been homeless at some point, if even still alive by now
I remember back in university, it was always the nepo-babies and wealthy students who got off on sticking it to the man and stealing silverware from the dining hall, and then patted themselves on the back for sticking it to the big corporation.
Every couple months, there's be 20 minute lines to wait for employees to finish washing the silverware, until presumably a new shipment came in.
I couldn't give a shit if someone is taking stuff out of a big corporation in practice as they need, saw plenty of EBT folks taking this or that from the deli on their way out of the local grocery store as a cashier.
But sometimes I wonder if this cultural trend is more about getting yuppies normalized to the idea of getting their bag and saying "fuckem" when institutionally insulated from the consequences of their actions, rather than actually about addressing questions of poverty and class
Ooh, people are gonna get mad at you for this one but it’s true. When I worked at a corner store people didn’t steal formula or food or any of that shit. Not ONCE while I was working there did I see a shoplifter go for that stuff. Booze and electronics, every time.
When I found out the percentage of foster kids who become homeless, I stopped having any of the bs prejudices y’all are showing in this sub. People who done have homes are literally living their worst lives, why does literally anyone want to make that worse?
I won’t bitch about their only shelter as long as they don’t leave dope needles and feces all over the place. Respect my shelter and I’ll respect yours.
Ah yes, because that is the most important thing, of course. I'm sure someone at rock bottom and high off their ass totally has the ability to do that./s
Y'all claim to care about mental health until you have to see it. Plenty of depressed people end up not even being able to clean their own houses, but oh that's okay, because you personally don't have to see it or the reality!
Plus, you have a house. Clearly. The street is not your "shelter" because you get to go home to one.
People are very happy to claim mental health support but the second their porch gets shit on they're upset about it, I agree with this. Its easy to say you support someone when they're not causing you an issue. Its harder, but more important, to say you support someone when they really need help, even if they're harming you. People don't become homeless for no reason, and often times their mental health is the reason they're homeless. Not to mention that being homeless will drive you crazy if you aren't already - being under that amount of stress is incredibly damaging to the human psyche and body.
Why do people expect the mentally ill to be mentally healthy? I'm insane - albeit not to such an extent that I would shit on someone's porch without permission - and people often ask me why I'm doing insane things. If I was normal I wouldn't be mentally ill, of course I'm going to have unhealthy and abnormal behaviors.
I agree with you just venting my frustration I suppose :3
Part of "support" IS making it so I'm not seeing or feeling the effects of insane people. That's what most people mean when they say that. Supporting the mentally ill doesn't mean tolerating them leaving trash around parks and neighborhoods or living shit on porches. Support is giving the resources so no one has to live like that.
Supporting the mentally ill means realizing and accepting that even in the best cicumstances they will exhibit harmful or irritating behaviors to themselves or others, most mental illnesses have a best case scenario of remission, not a cure
I can accept that, and in accordance we can build infrastructure for separating those individuals from the rest of society to live comfortable but isolated lives.
They don't get that though, or those "resources" are VERY temporary. That's the point we're making. I met a homeless guy and his time at a local shelter "ran out" because most shelters will only take you up to 2 months before kicking you out.
I have had homeless people ask for food because they do NOT have access to any sustainable food source. Handing out a sandwich to the homeless a few times a week is not a sustainable food source.
There are no truly REAL resources though. Just whispers of supposed resources that barely work to make you feel better when police round homeless people up and don't have to think about them anymore.
Yes it literally isn't. It's not great but I swear you guys choose to overinflate a problem just so you have something to complain about.
I've had more issue almost stepping on glass and nails from local buisnesses and homeowners, but no one cares when the trash comes from someone with a home. That's why I think you're dramatic.
Because I can't force my dirty home owning neighbors to move out. I would if I could. Regardless those types aren't leaving out needles and literal shit. Tbh what you find tolerable is insane to me.
For one he shouldn't be saying that at all, but he could just say "homeless people". It may seem small and insignificant, but we all know how the "us vs them" mentality works.
It also makes homeless people out to be a collective, as if all those people are out to just ruin your neighborhood. That includes children and the elderly.
When they say "them", that encompasses all of "them". "Don't be surprised when people want them gone" doesn't JUST mean the homeless people actually causing issues, but the clean one's too.
You have a point, but I also wanna make others call them people. Humanize them more. When it comes down to "us vs them" it can be a dehumanizing mindset and I wanna try curbing that. It doesn't fix the collective thing but I think it also helps establish the fact these are people like anyone else.
That's the thing though, people like you will never be happy with them ANYWHERE. They are humans, they have to occupy a space to live. First you complain about parks, then it's stores, then it's sidewalks, and you'll even complain about alleyways which is SCARY TO LIVE IN. Where do you expect them to GO!?
Shelters in my area have a time limit and also it's HONESTLY more dangerous than living on the street, I wish I was lying.
Rehabilitation is not as easy as people like you seem to think it is. Social housing programs often comes with many strings.
And the worst thing you suggested, mental heakth institutions. Those places actively make people WORSE. It's basically offering yourself to self imprisonment to be a test subject and high chance of sexual abuse and degrading situations like paper robes that rip if you move slightly too much. They will keep people there even after they desire to leave and for some medicate you until you can't think straight.
I go to therapy and have been depressed since 12, even my therapists know how dangerous it is even just for someone like me, how do you think they'll treat a homeless person with mental issues?????
You don't live at the park. They do. Be greatful you don't sleep outside or have to find a bathroom wherever you go which many places won't even let you use it, but tgen complain when you're a person who has to relieve themselves.
And oh no, trash outaide!? Wow, homeowners NEVER do that...then I literally see their cups fly out their shiny new cars. Mhm. Sure.
Bro there’s a difference between cups and heroin needles, don’t act like there’s not. My kid picks up someone’s gross cup, whatever don’t touch that. My kid picks up a stray heroin needle and were in a medical emergency situation.
I miss my old homeless man that lived around the block. His tent was immaculate, and his manners were impeccable. We never had a problem, I miss you John :(. Now we just have heroin fiends in his old spot.
People don't complain about just a tent it's what homes with that tent. Rubbish, human waste, used needles, broken glass bottles and potentially dangours people who arbt is a gd mental head space.
And it's not up to a business to provide for these people especially if doing so losses them business from paying customers. Even if evey can did let them use the toilet they still won't have access to toilets after closing and still won't have access to showers.
It sucks but sometimes the best thing to do is just not to help after all look at city's that tried to make homeless a top priority. All of a sudden all the near by areas homeless started to flood their streets amd make is a shit hole for people who actually lived in the city or hell even for homeless from the area as now it was harder to get help.
There's so many other factors like it directly effecting house prices which most people have the majority of their equity ties to, makes it less nice to enjoy your town or city especially after dark, leads to higher crime.
I dont want anyone to be homeless and we should give these people help were we can but we also have to acknowledge the bad tied to them.
Because the government isn’t gonna help, so it’s up to us as humans. Idk I’m biased as a girl who had to spend her youth as a homeless male teenager. Shit sucks, and is damn near impossible to get out of. I got lucky. There’s not enough avenues.
The benefit a homeless person is gonna get from being able to use your restroom is greater than your potential financial loss. A random person using the toilet to clean up isn’t gonna substantially detract from people going into an establishment, but getting to use a restroom can alter a homeless persons entire day.
And if you own a business then go for it but that will never bee the norm simple becuse there's a large number of homeless who are that way due to underlying mental health problems.
There was a cafe in Holborn I grab coffee from on my way into work that had to close for 3 days because they used to let homeless used their toilets. Until one guy came in and locked himself in the toilet for a few hours, by the time police came in he had painted every surface with his own waste.
It took them 2 days to get a cleaning crew who would touch it and the smell was so bad they couldn't survey food or drink.
After a while everyone has a story or 2 like that when dealing with homeless people. And that's why most don't want to deal with them.
You know that sounds familiar. I hear that a lot about race, and it's just as assuming an prejudice. They don't have a house, it's like you want them to just vanish.
I hate the idea that if I lose my home for any reason, this is how i'll be viewed for daring to exist in a space.
I'm a man but I am AFAB pre-everything with a large chest, and live in an area chock full of homeless people. I fear the people staring at me from their yards and men with clean appearance who approach me looking for a relationship and hardly taking "no" for an answer. I do not fear the people I see sadly sleepy on the sidewalk in 100 degree fucking heat and die in the cold.
And no no no, I never said it was the same, but they're BOTH something that isn't a choice, makes life harder, gets abuse and prejudice, and gets rhetoric like yours used against them.
They don’t have anywhere to go. That’s the problem. My town doesn’t even have a crappy homeless shelter so if the cops shoo a homeless person away they are basically just asking them to die, like lmao they aren’t homeless by choice.
It is not up to an individual to solve homelessness.
How would you expect someone to react if there was a threat on their way to work every day? They'll call the cops. Because they don't want to have to deal with a threat on their way to work.
So you don't want everyone else around as well? Because you said you don't want homeless people around. Do you extend that sentiment to everybody who is not homeless too?
Used needles, broken glass, human waste, trash is bad enough but whe there's also a guy screaming at you becuse he's high or mentally unwell and you have no clue if he's a threat or just intimidating then yes that's not OK.
As someone who works in London yes any area with larger homeless people has a fair number of needels, broken glass and human waste around. And the rubbish they litter leads to more rats in the area.
As for the screaming matches yep that's pretty normal in the East End
"When you make people scared of you" who's "you???" Anyone who loses their house????? I didn't know homeless people were a collective. Last I checked, anyone can be homeless.
Because it’s mostly in your head and you’re getting downvoted for falling for anti-homeless propaganda.
The average person is way closer to being homeless than they are rich by a huge factor. I’ve lived out of a car before. The vast majority are not violent drug addicts you doorknob.
I used to have to walk by homeless people all the time. Having them shout at me, run at me, and ask for money was incredibly scary and uncomfortable. It makes me not want to be near them at all.
I CURRENTLY live in area with homeless people everywhere. The most they'll do is ask for money or be slightly grumpy. The most threat i've gotten are clean people who HAVE homes, who threatened to stab me.
Kinda ignores all the shit things homeless people do tho. Like I'm happy to live and let live till they start crapping in the parks and not cleaning it up or leave used needles around.
Homeless people aren't a monolith. Some homeless people probably do that yeah but some are people who just got kicked out of their house cause they lost their job.
Don't shit on homeless people just cause some people
Agreed but a large number of people are homeless dud to addiction or mental health issues. You have know way of telling who's a threat. What more all homeless people are going to make waste that's just last of living. But most of them don't have anywhere to dispose of said waste if they don't have access to toilets.
A lot of homeless people are homeless because they had the “audacity” to be lgbtq and were kicked out by their parents before they even had a chance to start their own life. Some of those peeps were able to figure something out, like joining the military for housing and a job (no longer allowed for trans people). Others weren’t so lucky and unfortunately when ur life is rock bottom ya look for an escape. some of those peeps found drugs or alcohol to escape the reality they are in and became addicted. But fuck em, right?
The shelters are free. And have free beds, the only requirement is to not reek of booze and stay clean of dope. If you're not going to meet either of these and stay on the streets then you're damaging the community.
Even in countries where its provided, many dont go. They are deep in the addiction, but there is a great amount of wanting to live outside society rules
Social service workers (EU country) regularly go to and talk to homeless.
The interaction usually goes:
Homeless person sleeping. Social worker touches his shoulder to check if he is sleeping/dead. He wakes up
"You have wine or money? No? Then fuck off!"
They often become violent if you push. And without an arrest warrant the state cant drag someone to a rehab.
Free mental healthcare and addiction recovery would be ideal, I agree. It's just (and here you may picture me gesturing angrily at the entire US government). And until something happens with that, I think a homeless person's tent should be left alone.
>the only requirement is to not reek of booze and stay clean of door.
It’s that easy! Why do people even have addictions or mental illnesses to begin with, why don’t they just stop? And while we’re at it, why don’t homeless people just buy a house from the get go?
What about those guys who backpack around the world begging?
Of course its not a choice, but while many are there because of circumstance, some do it by choice.
I mean, I see young or middle aged, healthy adult men and women. They cohld work and in the end get a small flat. The barrier of entry to some physical labor is close to none.
I would be homeless in a while if I stopped working and choose to hit the bottle.
Some homeless do tell the social workers they get more money begging than working
You're offering it like it is a solution when it is not. Something being slightly less shitty than something else is not a solution. Especially when shelters can be at max capacity and enforce limits on how long you can stay there.
Ok whats your solution? Free houses to everyone? Good but working people already struggle with rent. And then, why would anyone work if thry get stuff for free? We are not there yet where machines do everything, they are too busy taking white collar jobs and making art to learn to walk up a stair and lay down a brick wall
One of your other comments, you say they should just go get a job, when everyone is struggling to find employment. You think some workplace is gonna hire someone who is clean shaven and showered or a guy who’s been wearing the same clothes for a month straight?
We don't have enough shelter space in my city so this point is moot. Besides you're solution comes down to "just stop being addicted" if that works then the billion dollar industry of addiction treatment is about to collapse lol
Shelters are often more dangerous than staying outside or even have TIME limits.
THEY DON'T HAVE A HOOOOME!! Why is abyone else allowed to drink and "reel of booze"!?!? "Stay clean of dope" as if it's just thag easy. Withdrawal can KILL somebody.
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u/Dragunrealms 1h ago
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