The
homeless challenge started off right away at the National Coalition for The
Homeless. After watching a video of previous college students who conducted the
challenge, we were separated into groups of two and given a map along with
information on shelters, soups kitchens, and other resources that the coalition
normally gives to homeless individuals. At the start, my partner and I began
planning our day which included attending a service and making sure we knew how
to get to the soup kitchen by one o’clock that same day. At any rate, we ended
up getting lost in Georgetown, but we did manage to attend an Anglican service.
The
biggest thing I noticed after the service and throughout our day was the fact
that the individuals we encountered were ready to ignore or otherwise deny that
we were homeless. Though the priest and other members of the church were nice
to us, it was also clear that several of them did not want us there especially
since one of them told us to make sure our clothes did not touch the food.
Based on the few people there, it was clear that many of them were from privileged
backgrounds, and many of them assumed that we were “looking” for jobs and that
we would be able to get back on our feet. But homelessness is not a thing that
occurs over-night nor is it temporary.
This
was apparent when we slept outside that very night with a guide. His name was
Steve Thomas, and he told a remarkable story about growing up unloved by his
mother and facing negative influences through drugs and alcohol. His story
deviated immensely from the typical stereotypes of homelessness that these
individuals face such as addiction problems, being lazy, or having mental
disorders. Though some of these stereotypes may be true for some, they are typically
the direct result of a lack of a supportive community. The greatest lesson I
gained from Steve’s story is that he ultimately became homeless because his
mother did not care about him and his support system failed to help him get
back on his feet. Steve’s story and my experience panhandling has really
contributed to the belief that we need to be able to meet people where they are
at and support one another especially through hard times.
The
next day involved a lot of panhandling, and there were remarkable acts of
kindness where a woman bought us breakfast and gave us her gloves to another
woman offering to house us in her three-bedroom apartment. Despite these acts
of kindness, there were also difficult moments where people would mumble that
they did not have spare change or they would walk straight past us without even
looking at us. There were also moments where people were adamant and treated us
differently. At a Hilton hotel, the woman there refused to give us access to
showers and basic toiletries, and at a Potbelly restaurant the employee lied
about having only applications online. If anything, this experience has really
showed me the spectrum of human interaction from kindness to outright discrimination
and ignorance.
It is also important to note that we did not gain
insight into what it is like to be homeless. To be homeless means to experience
it, and it is usually a chain of events that causes an individual becoming
homeless. That being said, building community by acknowledging homeless
individuals and offering help ranging from a dollar to a meal is an important
way of ending homelessness. Like any problem, homelessness is not the fault of
an individual, but it is the result of a lack of affordable housing and
societal stigmatization. Moreover, homelessness results and remains a problem through
the lack of individuals to acknowledge it as a problem of society and a failure
of building community. This is why I plan on bringing this information back to
Minnesota because I strongly believe that everyone should be an advocate for
homeless individuals. We all have the potential to give and to feel the
warmness from giving, and I know that it means the world to the receiver.
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