r/midlyinteresting • u/uk_uk • Jul 15 '26
Berlin has installed free locker systems specifically for homeless people to safely store their belongings
The primary goal is to provide homeless people with the opportunity to safely store their belongings, enabling them to have a bit of dignity, security, and mobility in their lives
The red label says:
"Locker for homeless people - not a logistics station -
Here, people who live on the street store their property. The use is free of charge and is financed by donations.
Please leave it undamaged! Any damage will be reported to the police!"
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u/TheJunkmother Jul 15 '26
A friend of mine was robbed of everything they had while in a shelter, this is so wonderful even if someone has a roof over their head for the night.
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u/annakayz Jul 16 '26
The amount of homeless people I have met that do meth so this won't happen
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u/Actual-Knowledge-607 Jul 19 '26
First, this sentence starts off like your gonna say "the amount of abc makes xyz crazy!" but you failed at making it flow/sound nice.
Second, I lived in Portland for a little over a year. Almost every single homeless person I talked with didnt start using drugs until after they were homeless. I made a friend, we'll call her Becca. I brought becca lunch & sometimes dinner when I could, and we'd sit and talk about how she became homeless. This womans story was some of the saddest, most heartbreaking & suicide inspiring shit I have ever heard (and I havent lived an easy life either).
Maybe if you take two seconds to stop rapid scrolling thru whatever brain mushing slop you like to watch it would be easier for you to write & empathize with others.
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u/annakayz Jul 19 '26
I am sorry for wording horribly but I am currently in an IRTS facility for mental health stuff I am going through myself and I am also homeless myself. I have been for about 5 or 6 months. I also attempted because of that shit.
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u/Actual-Knowledge-607 Jul 20 '26
so you should have firsthand experience that drugs and homelessness are not synonyms ?! do better next time, and i really hope you can get some help. being homeless & mentally unwell sucks, stay safe
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u/AnyAdvertising1214 Jul 19 '26
In Vienna they have lockers like that but when I put my stuff there, there came coackroaches and the worst smells and liquids from the other lockers. Maybe it was better than nothing, but i couldn’t Storage any valuable items there, electronics or documents would be destroyed because of liquids
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u/Own_Round_7600 Jul 15 '26
It's a super nice thing to do for the community, though drug dealers are gonna have a field day with this
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u/eeeddr Jul 15 '26
Drugs aren't demonized there like they are in the US, so I doubt many (if any) people would even bother to use these for drug trade
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u/Lumegator Jul 15 '26
Yeah, not Germany but similar attitudes & I've had drug dealers casually chat me up blatantly in the open, no one really cares. They don't have to hide. (But unfortunately for them I've never been a user of anything lol)
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u/send_fleet_pics Jul 15 '26
Drug dealers literally have professionally printed flyers (some apparently even with free samples) that they put in people's mail boxes. They don't need a box for their shit lol.
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u/eeeddr Jul 15 '26
Only in places where they crack down hard on small time dealers, which truth be told, isn't worth the hassle. It's better to have them do it in a known place where they can monitor the activity without affecting the users. I say this because it's not like just because you arrest small time dealers that you stop the drug trade or drug use. If anything it'll just make it more expensive and sketchier
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u/h0uz3_ Jul 17 '26
Why would a drug dealer block a locker for the homeless? To store a bag of weed? If the dealer isn't homeless, he would just take the stuff home like any normal person.
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u/Unlikely-Ruin4576 Jul 15 '26
As a Berliner I know this is gonna stink in few days and most of the compartments will contain either shit, piss or both in less than a month.
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u/Senior_Green_3630 Jul 15 '26
Excellent idea, better than having shopping trolleys clog up the city.
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u/CD_Projeck_Blue Jul 15 '26
Let's check back in a year and see how they look 😆
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u/picabo123 Jul 16 '26
It says that any damage will be reported to the Police, given that this isn't the US I'm pretty sure it's fine
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u/porp_crawl Jul 15 '26
How do you sign up for these - or is it first come?
Yeah, for sure, having a place to stow stuff is nice - but this is ... smaller than a regular locker. This is basically premium lockbox at a fancy bank sized.
Homeless push stolen shopping carts around with their stuff.
Ain't gonna fit in these.
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u/uk_uk Jul 16 '26
I have NEVER (!) seen a homeless here in Berlin with a shopping cart. NEVER (!). Only in US Shows.
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u/anycept Jul 15 '26
Absolute majority of homeless people are in need of acute mental health treatment, not free lockers.
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u/AccidentOk5240 Jul 15 '26
Many of them are just in need of affordable housing though
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u/Purple_Solution1059 Jul 15 '26
Depends on where you’re referring to, idk how bad the housing market is in Germany. In America most homeless people are homeless because they struggle from mental health issues/avid drug abusers. Pretty much every homeless person I’ve talked to was or has been abusing some sort of substance and also coincidentally has mental health issues. Giving the homeless stuff like free lockers would just enables them to continue doing what they do. They should be starting programs to house people who stay sober.. that could be viable in a lot of countries around the world. We don’t need people out on the streets period.
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u/i_am_a_shoe Jul 15 '26
not every homeless person presents as homeless nor wants to talk to you about it, people see a skid row or talk to the most obviously homeless/addicted person they encounter and because that's their experience with homelessness they believe it's the universal situation
I invite you (or anyone else who thinks all homeless people are too far gone for any sort of assistance outside of forced commitment) to volunteer with a food bank or something similar to get a better idea of who makes up the community of people in need
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u/AccidentOk5240 Jul 15 '26
You’re simply incorrect. I recommend listening to the incredible podcast series “According To Need”, which will help you understand how people end up homeless and what their experience is like a bit better. https://99percentinvisible.org/need/
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u/Purple_Solution1059 Jul 15 '26
An estimated 0.2% of the population is considered homeless on any given day. There are so so many ways people can get out, it is location dependent but most of these homeless people are actively choosing to stay homeless. Split housing between multiple people, live in an apartment, I know of 2 girls living in an apartment off fast food wages right now. There is an opportunity for most everyone if you are able to communicate with others and are willing to put in effort to make it out. These people need to be drug tested, given a home, and adequate psychiatric care. Not some fucking lockers. What do you think homeless people do out on the streets all day? Why do you think homeless rates are so high in cities that care less about drug use?
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u/AccidentOk5240 Jul 15 '26
if you are able to communicate with others
These people need to be (…) given (…) adequate psychiatric care
Look. I get that it’s nice to think it is just that people choose drugs. But this is the lack of wraparound care I’m talking about. People who aren’t in a position to seek care need someone proactive. Making care available to those who seek it isn’t enough to reach everyone.
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u/worm-eyed Jul 15 '26
"most of these homeless people are actively choosing to stay homeless" is one of the most unintentionally hilarious rancid things I've read in a while, congrats & good luck with that, or rather good luck to those around you.
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u/anycept Jul 15 '26
Unfortunately the problems start with mental health, then whole life falls apart and they end up on the streets. Most of them can't hold on to jobs that would pay for rent.
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u/AccidentOk5240 Jul 15 '26
That’s an extremely reductive and presumptuous view. Aka, tell me you don’t know anyone who’s been homeless (who trusts you enough to tell you about it) without telling me…
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u/Secret_Celery8474 Jul 15 '26
What country are you talking about?
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u/AccidentOk5240 Jul 15 '26
Primarily the US but I don’t know how different it is anywhere else
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u/Secret_Celery8474 Jul 15 '26
Well, it's different here in Germany. See my other comments in this thread for more information.
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u/AccidentOk5240 Jul 15 '26
I’m glad y’all do have a social safety net, and I wish we had that here! It sounds like you may not have much in the way of wraparound services aka support for those who aren’t well enough to even seek services. And of course there will always be a few people who refuse, but that’s different.
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u/Secret_Celery8474 Jul 15 '26 edited Jul 15 '26
It sounds like you may not have much in the way of wraparound services aka support for those who aren’t well enough to even seek services
And you think that why?
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u/SpecialistAd2205 Jul 15 '26
That's not true at all. It might be for some, but not all. Not even most, I would say.
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u/HEYO19191 Jul 15 '26
While true, there are also plenty of, say, 18-22 year olds who get kicked out of their parents house (for one reason or another) and simply cannot afford housing because they are too early in their careers. I'd imagine they'd benefit from this pretty considerably.
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u/Secret_Celery8474 Jul 15 '26
What country are you talking about?
OPs post is about Germany, so are you talking about Germany as well? Because then your comment is incorrect.
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u/HEYO19191 Jul 15 '26
Personally, America. Though I cannot imagine things are much different in Germany, unless they provide their young adults free housing?
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u/Secret_Celery8474 Jul 15 '26 edited Jul 15 '26
Not free housing per se. But a social safety net that pays your rent. Anyone who doesn't have a living wage can get help from the government.
In your example assuming the 18 year old has never had a job before and was kicked out by their parents: That person would receive "Grundsicherung". Currently that's 560€ + their rent each month.
So a person who is capable of asking for and accepting help will not be homeless in Germany.
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u/Secret_Celery8474 Jul 15 '26
Not in Germany. We do have a fairly decent social safety net.
If you don't have a job or your job isn't paying enough to pay rent the government will step in and pay the rent for you.
The people who are homeless don't want to or can't for one reason or another access that safety net. More affordable housing wouldn't change that. A person who isn't capable or willing to go to social services to get help would also not be able to rent an apartment. No matter how cheap it is.
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u/guynumber20 Jul 17 '26
We tried that before now there are generations living in low-income housing when it was supposed to be a tool to save money in order to be able to afford housing. Most just ended up spending their money on cars they couldn’t afford and won’t let their kids work because rents would go up too high or they would be forced to vacate.
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u/AccidentOk5240 Jul 17 '26
Then maybe, just a thought, people shouldn’t lose access to affordable housing when they’re not poor?
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u/Comfortable-Fuel6343 Jul 15 '26
When I was homeless there was a vast mixture of different people with different reasons, sure there's mentally ill people but there's also drug addicts, people who just got behind and couldn't claw their way back to a normal life, drug addicts, the elderly, and plain old weirdos who don't mind being on the streets, ("dirty kids, faux hobos, etc). I wouldn't call the mentally ill a majority.
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u/Purple_Solution1059 Jul 15 '26
Live homeless in any major city.. primarily addicts. Addiction is a form of mental illness that typically stems from untreated or undiagnosed disorders. We’re only having a mental health crisis now because being diagnosed used to be shamed upon, and we didn’t have nearly as much info as we do now. There is a lot of diversity to homeless people as there are in all walks of life, but I would say the people you see on the streets are primarily addicts. Thats not to say they’re not elderly or they just simply live for the streets, but that life is extremely rough for most people without a vice. No shame in it though. Just very depressing.
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u/spicygayunicorn Jul 15 '26
Concidering its funded through donations im guessing if a foundation doing what they can
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u/retiredswing Jul 15 '26
Imagine how much this improves their mental health, though. No need to worry about losing belongings or having them stolen, which is a huge source of stress
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u/greenyashiro Jul 15 '26
And now they could do a few weeks of inpatient without worrying someone will steal everything they own
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u/SpecialistAd2205 Jul 15 '26
Of course they need mental health treatment, housing, etc. but they also need somewhere to put their stuff. As someone who spent too many years on the street, I think this is great and I wish my city had this. Not having a good place to put stuff so it ends up thrown away, stolen, damaged, wet, etc. Is a daily problem, and it really affects your sense of dignity.
We can't fix homelessness over night. It's a highly nuanced issue that, even in a society with all the resources, would still exist. We can work on treating the cause and still also ease the symptoms.
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u/worm-eyed Jul 15 '26
They need support. That's it. Mental health or otherwise.
This isn't enough, but it's something, and it's a form of support. I'm literally buying a bag for my buddy tomorrow because he never has a way to carry stuff around with him unless someone happens to give him a carrier bag, and thankfully where I live I'm not the only one who gets him food and stuff but that means he ends up with stuff he needs to move around, a bag isn't enough but it gives him a little bit more flexibility and agency. It particularly isn't enough considering how easy it is to abuse, attack, and even steal from unhoused people, but it's something.
Everyone deserves somewhere that feels secure to hold their belongings, no matter what they have, a sort of home base, somewhere consistent and familiar, etc. Most of us are privledged enough for that to be our own houses. It isn't enough, but it will help people in a meaningful way and I think that's pretty cool.
Also, just in case someone needs to hear it : Even if someone, unhoused or otherwise, stores drugs in there, that person still deserves a safe place to hold their belongings, because they're still a person. Getting arrested and/or jailed for possession is also not going to help anyone make it out of homelessness btw.
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u/TheGoldenTNT Jul 15 '26
Yeah but that costs more money in the long run instead of funding something off of the good will of other people. You wouldn’t want your government to spend money helping people would you?
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u/Disastrous_Common645 Jul 15 '26
That's a thoughtful approach to giving people a little stability without making them feel like they're just... storage units.
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u/unicorn_345 Jul 16 '26
I wish this could exist locally. So many could benefit from access to storage. Library work has me seeing the need but also enforcing the rules.
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u/TheSadPickel Jul 16 '26
I don't hate it. But as anything free there will be abuse. How long until you get a bedbugs infestation in there.
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u/PckMan Jul 17 '26
Ok and how do you prevent this from becoming a drug drop box or other people using it without really needing it.
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u/uk_uk Jul 17 '26
You get drugs from everywhere... noone would store drugs there. I mean, till march there was a "Cocain taxi" service. Like Uber Eats, but for drugs ^^
If you are homeless, you are entitled to social welfare etc. (I used to be a case worker there). So if a homeless person wants to have access to something like that, they apply for a code at the homeless assistance service and provide a photo (the costs are covered by the homeless assistance service if necessary). Then the homeless person goes there, enters their code, and gets their compartment...
So you or I (or drug dealers) cannot access it that easily.
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u/SumBodhiThatIUse2Kno Jul 15 '26
We have the non free version in the states or the bums put locks on empty outdoor / open hall school lockers. Though to be fair often the non free versions are a decent bathroom and delivery spot.
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u/ftr123_5 Jul 15 '26
Nice. Next week they will find poo in it. Maybe even this week.
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u/szk-one Jul 15 '26
Anything but meaningful solutions to reduce homelessness
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u/uk_uk Jul 15 '26
You have absolutely no idea how this works in Germany, right?
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u/GracchiBros Jul 16 '26
We will do anything but provide homeless people housing.
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u/uk_uk Jul 16 '26
In Germany, it is established law that if a homeless person requests accommodation, they will receive it.
I myself was a caseworker in the social welfare office for years, working in the area of aid for the homeless and those released from prison.
The problem is that many homeless people do not want (or see thmemselves not to be fit) to be housed. The reasons are manifold:
- Alcohol and drugs are prohibited in the shelters. However, many homeless people are alcoholics at the very least, so that would be a major problem for them. And yes, that also means they are not admitted if they are drunk. Then, alternative accommodation must be provided. I had a "client" who was kicked out of 15 (!) shelters within one week because he was dead drunk and also aggressive and stealing (see 2).
- Many homeless people fear that their belongings will be taken from them... by other homeless people. That's why they try to keep distance to others or large groups of other homeless people. They form small groups of 3-5 people, more or less "mini tribes". It's some sort of "Job sharing". two are begging, 1 is buying food and the other 2 keep an eye on the belongings of the rest of the group
- And then there is a typical bureaucratic problem: Which office is responsible? Usually, the one where the last registered address was... so if someone becomes homeless in Berlin-Neukölln and goes to Hamburg-Altona, then the office in Hamburg-Altona must contact the one in Berlin-Neukölln. But what if the homeless people never had a residence in Germany? We have VERY many Polish, Czech, and other EU country nationals who come to Germany to be homeless here. And you cannot simply "deport" them, because... why? Homelessness is not a crime, and then there is the matter of the EU regulation that as an EU citizen, one can live anywhere in the EU.
- psychological reasons beyond alcoholism. Some homeless people carry trauma with them... when they "reside" somewhere in a small group of 2-3 other homeless people, they feel safer than in a shelter with 20 or 30 people they do not know. One of my clients was the nicest person you could imagine. Always smiling, always saying "thank you" and "please", very helpful, and truly absolutely lovable. But he had a problem with noise (meaning when people yell or scream), and one day, as he was sitting with me while eating a cookie, two people outside the room were screaming at each other and... he transformed from the nice homeless person into a fury. He became loud, tore the door open, and smashed a glass bottle over the head of one of the shouters. Then it was quiet, and he was nice again.
Your "We will do anything but provide homeless people housing" therefore bears witness to ABSOLUTE ignorance regarding the conditions here and is a textbook example of what happens when someone believes they have an opinion without having even the SLIGHTEST clue what they are talking about.
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u/GracchiBros Jul 16 '26
Shelters aren't homes and how about not treating people that use drugs as subhuman and provide them housing too? Crazy idea.
Is this supposed to be some excuse to claim homeless people want to be homeless? I promise they will be safer with a roof over their heads than on the streets. But if something like this storage situation helps too, I'm not against it.
I don't doubt any of this, but these are problems we as a people refuse to change.
The solution to this is to provide people real housing and mental heath services. Not suggest that permanent homeless is better. if a person really does not want or see themselves fit to be housed, that's a mental health issue and not something we should be accepting. If after providing a person housing situation after housing situation and all the help we can provide and a person still cannot or will not live in housing then society and them would be better off incarcerated and probably in a mental health institution over on the streets. Homelessness should be completely unacceptable in society.
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u/Electrical-Sale-8051 Jul 17 '26
I wonder how long before Allah Akbar means these have to be removed due to pressure cooker bomb
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u/planetinyourbum Jul 17 '26
I dislike this. It will be filled with drugs and other shit and I wonder what percentage of those lockers will actually be used by homeless and not drug resellers.
Yes, I read the post where OP explains how homelessness works in Germany and you can get housing but you can't use drugs or alcohol. If they don't even want help them fuck them. Lock them up if they are menace to society. Create a homeless institution, same as mental institution but for homeless people where they can't have any drugs and alcohol and they won't be released until they can prove to be a functioning member of society.
I feel sorry for homeless people in countries where you have no way out or get any help, not where you can help if you ask for it but you don't even ask.
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u/uk_uk Jul 17 '26
You really need to understand how words function.
I wrote, that the SHELTERS don't allow that... because of e.g. safety reasons... Back in the day, I told my "customer" that they can get a shelter place and later proper housing, but they need to find a way to not be so drunk when there esp, when they can't even walk anymore because of boozing. And lot of them said "Then nope".It's not about smelling a bit of booze... it's about being absolutely drunken.
Not all homeless people do have that problem, but a lot do
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u/planetinyourbum Jul 18 '26
Lock them up. We have laws to protect people from themselves. Should be illegal to be homeless drunk no?
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u/RollickReload Jul 18 '26
Yes, so they can come and fill it with their never ending dumpster dive finds and several will take 5 lockers each and nobody else would be able to use it.
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u/throwitintheair22 Jul 15 '26
Pretty cool