Good Afternoon;
The link below will take you to a story and video at the Invisiblepeople.tv blog:
Another example busting the homeless person stereotype and illustrating (to me at any rate based on my experience) in a way how the 'shelter model' that strips away hope and any sense of independence and here in Baltimore seethes with an underlying current of anger and violence is so much less appealing than a 'community' of homeless helping homeless.
In the past year I've seen articles in news reports from across the country telling of police and governments banning, evicting, and demolishing such encampments. In the majority of cases, places that existed for years with little or no problems have been suddenly rated undesirable by the actions of a small, but vocal or influential, segment of a particular community. Many times the land is soon after found to have been desired by developers with ties to 'city hall'. Other times a new resident of an area containing an established and winked at though technically illegal settlement is the instigator of a campaign to displace the homeless living there, (of course with no plans or contingencies for where they will go), through a personal NIMBY sentiment.
What if some local jurisdictions donated a dumpster and a spot-a-pot, and zoned some area with no commercial or residential desirability, (preferably near access to public transportation), to allow camping out.......predicated upon the restriction that the residents policed themselves based on a model of some of the other successful 'tent cities' regarding behavior, drugs and alcohol, and sanitation?
Pipe dreams?
"Dreams are today's answers to tomorrow's questions"
Edgar Cayce
Later....................................Dave
No comments:
Post a Comment