Again, the Holidays
The holiday season is once again upon us. I wrote my first editorial for Street Sense at the holiday season. It is always a time that brings things into focus in so many ways. First comes Thanksgiving, a time when the nation gives thanks and people indulge in festive meals. Fortunately in the DC area, there is an abundance of charitable resources so that no person needs to go hungry for the holiday. I even went on record saying that a homeless person might need to go to Weight Watchers after the holiday from all the abundance of food that was available; the generosity of the organizations that give is truly impressive. As the holiday season progresses and the weather grows colder, the gift giving spirit remains, but the reality of homelessness also remains. There is no escaping the truth that the donated food and gifts that the homeless people receive, while somewhat comforting, are still not a substitute for the stability of a home.
To some extent, the holiday season offers a reprieve for some homeless people in the form of seasonal employment. Jobs that the increased business that the season generates become available and gives them some badly needed income for the interim period. For them, the holiday season truly is a happy time because it offers them an added measure of hope that they previously did not have. Even if the employment is to end shortly after the holiday season ends, it none the less can become a stepping stone to something perhaps more permanent in the future.
For most homeless people, however, the holidays are a time when they must face the reality that they have been forgotten or abandoned or both. Those homeless persons who have family members are reminded that their family members have, for some reason, seen fit to ignore their plight or have not extended any assistance to them, whether because they cannot or because they have no desire to do so. Those homeless persons who have no family members have to face the grim reality that they are alone in their struggle for survival. Regardless of the situation, the homeless are aware that without outside help, returning to mainstream society will be extremely difficult, if not impossible.
The question remains what can be done to end homelessness. That question does have an answer, as other nations have managed to eliminate homelessness. As Joel Blau documented in his book, The Visible Poor, the Netherlands, Denmark and Sweden managed to prevent homelessness through their social welfare programs, so a solution does exist.
That question spawns another question: is there a genuine desire to end homelessness? That question is the question that seems to be much more difficult to answer, as the answer does not seem to be clear. Were the answer clear and obvious, the solution would have materialized long ago. Yet homelessness is clearly still very much a part of the American scene, so quite obviously the desire to end homelessness is not very great. Like so many other things, homelessness has become a business that generates a profit for too many people. Too many people have an interest in keeping people on the streets and needy to end the needless suffering.
So if I have a difficult time echoing the seasonal sentiments of peace on earth, good will to men, realize that I am merely reading the writing on the wall, as it is very clear to me. Even today, turning people into the streets is very easy to do. There is still no room at the inn for those persons with nowhere to go.
To some extent, the holiday season offers a reprieve for some homeless people in the form of seasonal employment. Jobs that the increased business that the season generates become available and gives them some badly needed income for the interim period. For them, the holiday season truly is a happy time because it offers them an added measure of hope that they previously did not have. Even if the employment is to end shortly after the holiday season ends, it none the less can become a stepping stone to something perhaps more permanent in the future.
For most homeless people, however, the holidays are a time when they must face the reality that they have been forgotten or abandoned or both. Those homeless persons who have family members are reminded that their family members have, for some reason, seen fit to ignore their plight or have not extended any assistance to them, whether because they cannot or because they have no desire to do so. Those homeless persons who have no family members have to face the grim reality that they are alone in their struggle for survival. Regardless of the situation, the homeless are aware that without outside help, returning to mainstream society will be extremely difficult, if not impossible.
The question remains what can be done to end homelessness. That question does have an answer, as other nations have managed to eliminate homelessness. As Joel Blau documented in his book, The Visible Poor, the Netherlands, Denmark and Sweden managed to prevent homelessness through their social welfare programs, so a solution does exist.
That question spawns another question: is there a genuine desire to end homelessness? That question is the question that seems to be much more difficult to answer, as the answer does not seem to be clear. Were the answer clear and obvious, the solution would have materialized long ago. Yet homelessness is clearly still very much a part of the American scene, so quite obviously the desire to end homelessness is not very great. Like so many other things, homelessness has become a business that generates a profit for too many people. Too many people have an interest in keeping people on the streets and needy to end the needless suffering.
So if I have a difficult time echoing the seasonal sentiments of peace on earth, good will to men, realize that I am merely reading the writing on the wall, as it is very clear to me. Even today, turning people into the streets is very easy to do. There is still no room at the inn for those persons with nowhere to go.
posted by MasterWriter at 4:46 p.m.
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