Homelessness in Raleigh is a tough issue that deserves attention. But this sad display is the wrong attitude. Vagrancy should be addressed through compassion, not hate.
Flyer previously displayed along West Morgan St.
Links:
Ending Homelessness: The 10 Year Action Plan
Raleigh Rescue Mission
I wonder if they got a model release from that gentleman in the photo. I seriously doubt it.
I usually offer them a sandwich or a buck. Two cents is far too little.
I wish North Raleigh had more homeless, maybe we could get McMansion host families- it might give the area some flavor.
This sign is especially disturbing because it makes no attempt to delineate the difference between the homeless and panhandlers.
There are a very few certain individual panhandlers downtown that are aggressive and downright rude or threatening when trying to get change.
It can be an intimidating encounter, however—homelessness is not a disease, it’s a cultural byproduct of a free market society. Several of these folks once lived lives similar to you or I, but made a series of bad decisions. To castigate every person who lives on the street in this manner is both reprehensible and repugnant.
I’ll be the first to admit that I can be rude to aggressive panhandlers, but the not all homeless are panhandlers (and vice versa). Signs like this need to go.
The appearance of a homeless person is worthy of calling 911 over? Aren’t they always saying that 911 should only be used in “real emergencies”?
This is just asinine.
And who is this person to put up Meeker and Crowder’s person numbers and email addresses on a public flyer? Is that legal?
Any idea who’s putting those up?
I can only speculate that it’s the owner of West Morgan Street center (as indicated on the flyer). But it’s hard to tell.
John has a very good point. Panhandling is a HUGE problem, although I am sure there are cities where it is far worse.
AND
Jed,
I am sure it is legal. They are published on the city’s website, the numbers are sure to be public domain.
WOW this really makes me angry! what are they supposed to do—-call up meeker at 1am next weekend and say, “Charles, theres a homeless man in your city” this is a dis-service to the groups in town like the raleigh rescue mission that are there to help those in need.
Okay, maybe it’s legal to put their phone numbers/email addresses on the flyer but that doesn’t make it socially moral.
They are phone/email provided by the city. That phone calls the City Council office.
My guess is someone had one-too-many run-ins with some aggressive panhandlers one day, and lost their cool and made a bunch of these out of frustration. Not a surprise really….given the prevalence of this problem in the city. Taste, tact, and decency aren’t usually factors at the moment of a passionate diatribe.
The location of 825 W. Morgan needs to be remembered in this discussion. That center is very near to the Cornerstone Homeless shelter. Throughout the day (including late at night) there are many homeless walking to/from Cornerstone in both directions of W. Hargett Street. This places many at the 825 W. Morgan center, and for anyone who drives by that location, will notice that there is often a lot of activity there. I’d bet that the owner of 825 W. Morgan is simply tired of the loitering.
John is right that there is a difference between panhandlers and homeless. That doesn’t necessarily make the non-panhandlers any less intimidating, however. There could be drug/alcohol issues, mental problems, or other issues that can make these individuals threatning. When it is late at night, and people are walking in this area, sometimes screaming, sometimes fighting, it is unsettling, as the intention of these individuals is unknown.
Again, I don’t know what sparked the flyer, I’m only guessing based on the homeless issue in that immediate area. I don’t think the flyer is appropriate, but I can understand the concern of that business owner.
I lived two blocks away from The Morgan Center and never had a problem with Panhandlers or Homeless. Ride my bike or car by this every day now and have had zero problems with either. I aree that it was more frustration than anything.
Some people around here don’t embrace a downtown lifestyle like we do. I used to work next door to a house where the resident sat on the porch but never spoke to us, and didn’t even like us petting his dog. He would call the police if I left my car in front of his house over night, even though I never took the space that he claimed was his exclusively (and he knew whose car it was). If you think you own the street and sidewalk in front of your house, you shouldn’t live in Mordecai. If strangers make you uncomfortable, downtown is not your place.
hahaha. id rather have the bum on our city council than mab.
You know…
I do find it interesting that the distributor of the flyer wants you to call the mayor, call the city council, but don’t call him…
No phone number given.
I am sure it was an oversight…
I would give them my two cents, but they would ask for 48 more.
Anyone else notice that $50 cents is the running panhandle rate these days?
This is a serious issue though.
i just don’t understand why people find the homeless and panhandlers so intimidating. it’s not their fault you feel guilty for wearing nice clothing and sleeping on 400+ count sheets. just say “no, sorry i can’t help you” and stroll on. I spend a lot of time around Moore Square and the bus station. I haven’t seen any violent activity, but I do get hit up for money on the regular. I think it’s all just a part of urban living.
Seriously, this flier and the attitude it represents is what will eventually homogenize our fair city into a sterile simulation of a city(Main Street USA?)with ample parking and nothing to make you feel aroused, subdued or anything!
i’m sorry but i just gotta say it:
a sterile simulation of a city with ample parking and nothing to make you feel aroused, subdued or anything = new, improved fayetteville st
Sam, here’s an example that I witnessed personally several months ago. This is the type of thing that makes people intimidated. Keep in mind that I live very close to the 825 W. Morgan Center.
A very intoxicated, homeless male trespassed, at night, into a private area and urinated on a resident’s car. A woman, who was walking her dog at the time, immediately turned and went into her residence. The male saw her, followed her, and stood outside her residence yelling until another resident called the police.
Don’t you think this woman felt intimidated?
You are right that the homeless and panhandlers are a part of downtown living. I, and many others, accept that. I live with it every day, and it does not deter me from living where I live. It does not, however, make it unreasonable to feel intimidated. It is unreasonable to assume that this has anything to do with guilt, 400-count thread sheets, or anything like that.
Again, I don’t think the flyer at 825 W. Morgan is handling things the right way, but there is an issue here.
I am talking more about the general attitude towards the homeless. I was being sarcastic about the guilt because I know I feel that way when I don’t give.
They aren’t all intimidating. The events you witnessed were obviously violent and intimidating. One could insert “college student” for “homeless male” and that would still be a violent and intimidating situation, but it wouldn’t perpetuate the myth that every college student on the street is going to mug you.
The broader discussion here refers to discrimination against the homeless and stereotypical generalizations about their behavior. I totally agree that there is an issue here and people need to be safe in their homes and neighborhoods. I don’t have a solution but I think homeless people, like any other enclave in our society possess a range of personalities and social practices which are not exclusively violent and intimidating.
Good response, Sam. I thought you were trivializing the feeling of intimidation that can exist, and that it is unreasonable.
I agree with you that the attitude that all homeless are problems is a problem in itself.
I don’t have any answers either, but whatever solution comes along should balance respect for the homeless with the safety of everyone. It’s a tricky situation, because not all homeless are safe either, and I can see where someone would just get fed up and post a flyer like the 825 W. Morgan one. It’s just unfortunate that this is their idea for improvement.
The streets belong to the homeless as much anyone else. They are generally there not because they’re out looking for someone to attack, but because they have no where else to go. So, shouldn’t we be more concerned for their safety than that of people who have doors to lock?
I don’t mean to juxtapose homeless and non-homeless people here, but bring up our similar need for safety and comfort in public spaces. It is simply a more pressing need for them.
Another note: Commuting by foot each day, I see some of the same homeless and poor people often. I don’t get to know them like the employed characters in my neighborhood because I always expect them to ask me for change or a cigarette. It’s like a language barrier that keeps us from getting to know each other.
Robin, I think we should be concerned for homeless and non-homeless equally, but frankly, I’m concerned with my safety first and foremost.
As I said previously, there is a major unknown factor with the homeless. Are there drug issues? Are there mental issues? For me personally, that is one of the barriers. I do not treat the homeless quite the same as a neighbor, because of these unknowns. The unknown is my language barrier.
I don’t mean to lump all homeless into a category where they have problems. Look at what services Cornerstone provides, however. Alcohol programs are one example. It shows that this is an issue, not just some irrational prejudice by people who have doors to lock.
I lived in London for two years and there was a certain respect for the homeless as humans rather than poor or worthless as it seems the majority of Americans see them as. Proof of this is The Big Issue which, if you read through their site, you will see is a culture based magazine that the homeless can purchase from the company at a low price, then sell it for more, making a 100% profit for themselves. I passed countless folks selling this on the street daily and purchased it as much as possible (it was only 50p 2 years ago…seems to have gone up). It created an aspect of work for those who had to be on the street all day. It also created community and lessoned the “language barrier” that Robin mentioned.
Also, it is very common in London to invite a homeless person into a bar for a snack and/or beer on your tab. There was a couple of local guys who used to hang with us at the pub during the day and again community was created. It wasn’t about alcohol as much as it was companionship for these guys.
Another example was a guy on the corner of Oxford Street who I saw every day for 2 years. He owned two dogs and sat on a blanket with the two dogs. On the blanket was change hat, with no sign or no demand. He never spoke to me but did see him chatting with random folks occasionally. This wasn’t a “give me money” chat but a real human to human chat.
He is probably still on that corner hanging out, watching the vast amount of tourist walk up and down the largest shopping street in the world spending money on various “necessities”.
This would never happen in an American city. Any of these examples. There is a divide, socially, between those with money and those without. Those with transportation, those without. This exists less in older countries. When will we learn. Maybe Raleigh should start this discussion. I know LA has a handful of amenities for the homeless (considering they have the largest homeless pop. in the US) and Charlotte has recently stepped up the bar on homeless toleration with various Homeless Art Projects and even sending a team to the Homeless World Cup, which if you haven’t read much about is worth a look: http://www.homelessworldcup.org/
My company has given yard work to a couple of local homeless for the past (at least) 3 years. It works.
Where are we in our toleration and willingness to help Raleigh?
Sure not up to par with a flyer like this in downtown. We as Raleighites and HUMANS are bigger than this.
Despite the negative attitude of many in our community, Raleigh is home to the Healing Place of Wake Co, an innovative recovery program geared especially for the chemically dependent. The program boasts a 70 percent success rate in helping the homeless break addictions to become sober and productive members in our community.
I’ve been very pleased with the day laborers I have used from the program and was pleasantly surprised to find Thomas Sayer (creator of the earthen rings at the Art Museum) pieces adorning the courtyard. The Healing Place for Men has been open since Jan. 2001 and the Healing Place for women opened in Jan. 2006.
How ironic Thomas Sayer was the person I mentioned above who has given yard work to a couple of homeless for the past 3 years.
Copyright 2007-2008 New Raleigh News Blog All Rights Reserved
New Raleigh 323 W. Martin Street, Raleigh NC 27601
Welcome to New Raleigh. We welcome your participation in the ongoing discussion. Before posting we ask that you read our Comment Policy and we invite you to register with our site. If you want to keep up with the news on our blog, subscribe to the RSS feed or get emailed every time we post.