Daily Wisdom 09-15-2004 The Homeless Will Always Be With You?

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The Homeless Will Always Be With You?

The stench of stale urine assaulted my nose as a group of us entered a subway car in Chicago on a cold February evening.狢 finally found a seatin the crowded car behind a youngish-looking guy of maybe 18 or 19, who washunched over, arms wrapped tightly around himself. The subway car was a little warmer than the streets, but he was still obviously trying to keep warm. He wore a stocking cap pulled down almost totally over his face, alight blue jean jacket, and filthy, baggy pants. He was not only cold, but by his behavior he either appeared to be mentally ill or on drugs. In the subway station, we had passed police officers telling another man he had to move outof the warm station. He was pleading loudly for mercy. Of course the officers were just doing their job.

It is common to feel guilty but confused in these situations. How could I help the guy on the train? Any assistance I could give- my coat, or $10, would not even have been a bandaid in his much larger struggle, a struggle that possibly included drugs, mental illness, or a disease.

I was telling someone about this experience and she asked, "Why don't we hear about the homeless anymore? You hear all the politicians talking, but we don't hear that much about the homeless." Yet if you walk any city street- even lovely cities like Toronto or Denver- you walk around persons lying on the street. In smaller towns like mine, they stand by the entrances to malls or shopping centers, holding up signs pleading, "Will work for food." I saw a couple doing that just this past weekend. We know that some aren't really looking for work- if so, why not be standing in line at an employment office instead of out on the street corner?

Sure, there are some who have become accustomed to handouts and don't have motivation to work. Too many have a "victim" mentality. But here are some facts: about 20 percent of homeless adults are employed; about 20 percent of the single adult homeless population are mentally ill; 20-30percent are women fleeing abuse/domestic violence; overall, 25 percent of the homeless are children under the age of 18. Gambling and chemical addictions probably account for another 30-60 percent of the reasons people are homeless. These figures come from the U.S. National Coalition for the Homeless, but statistics in Canada aren't far off. Activists work for middle ground on some of the "clean up the streets" policies in cities like Ottawa and Toronto where police spend a lot of time/money getting homeless people out of trendy tourist areas. One telling statistic comes from the fact that clearing our cities of "urban blight" from 1973-1993 eliminated 2.2 million low rent units from the market. Our city skylines look better, until you look at down on the street.

Whether we try to avoid them, chase them off the streets, or forget about them, the image of a homeless person huddled over a steam grate or in a subway should propel us to compassion and action. Support local efforts tohelp the homeless at shelters, food pantries and the like. Perhaps get involved in a mentoring program that assists those with addictions, mental illness and domestic violence- which can help prevent future homelessness. What if someone took the huge, abandoned discount store buildings sitting empty in almost every suburb and converted them into low-rent housing?

Jesus once said, "The poor you will always have with you" (John 12:8). Sometimes we forget to add that He said that in the context of reminding persons that they wouldn't always have Him with them. The causes of homelessness are so vast and systemic that it does seem like we will always have this problem. But don't forget about it. It hasn't gone away.

Submitted by Melodie Davis from her weekly column ANOTHER WAY: www.thirdway.com