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It seems a tragic paradox that there are more empty houses in the United States than there are homeless people, yet 1,75,000 individuals still remain on the street, and almost 1/3 of them go hungry every day. Overlooked by those with modern conveniences, it seems a common occurrence for struggling souls on the street to be ignored in the midst of crisis.
There is mixed reception on the issue. Some cities detest homeless people lingering about in parks or around busy, metropolitan areas during the day:
Earlier this month, Hawaii State Representative, Tom Bower, began walking the streets of Waikiki district with a sledgehammer, smashing shopping carts owned by homeless people. “Disgusted” by the city’s chronic homelessness problem, he literally took matters into his own hands. But the reception to his over-the-top actions gained him no popularity, therefore he shortly thereafter declared, “mission accomplished”, and retired his sledgehammer.
Refusing to acknowledge the homelessness crisis will not resolve the issue, however. That’s why Utah’s actions are so commendable.
Read more here.
Most important part:
There is mixed reception on the issue. Some cities detest homeless people lingering about in parks or around busy, metropolitan areas during the day:
- City council members in Colombia, South Carolina, were concerned that the city was becoming a “magnet” for homeless people, therefore they passed an ordinance giving the homeless an option to either relocate or get arrested. After backlash from police offers, city workers, and advocates, however, the council later rescinded the ordinance.
- Philadelphia passed a law that banned the feeding of homeless people on city parkland. Religious groups objected to the ban, and announced they would not obey it.
- In 2013, the city of Tampa, Florida – which had the most homeless people for a mid-sized city – passed an ordinance allowing police officers to arrest anyone they saw sleeping in public, or “storing personal property in public.” The city later followed up with a ban on panhandling downtown, and other locations around the city.
- In Raleigh, North Carolina, the city asked religious groups to stop their longstanding practice of feeding the homeless on city parkland. Not surprisingly, religious leaders announced that they would risk arrest rather than stop.
Earlier this month, Hawaii State Representative, Tom Bower, began walking the streets of Waikiki district with a sledgehammer, smashing shopping carts owned by homeless people. “Disgusted” by the city’s chronic homelessness problem, he literally took matters into his own hands. But the reception to his over-the-top actions gained him no popularity, therefore he shortly thereafter declared, “mission accomplished”, and retired his sledgehammer.
Refusing to acknowledge the homelessness crisis will not resolve the issue, however. That’s why Utah’s actions are so commendable.
Read more here.
Most important part:
