Feeding the homeless


Activists and cities can't agree where
Rachel Anderson at Utne.com provides a decent round up of the homeless feeding controversy.

More and more, activists trying to provide decent meals to the homeless find themselves relocated to cities' fringes, which are proving less accessible than downtown areas. Opponents of the bans declare that constitutional rights such as freedom of speech and assembly are being violated. For their part, city officials claim feeding programs "lure the homeless away from the public-health providers and shelters that can provide long-term solutions." Donna Friedman, director of the Center for Social Policy at the University of Massachusetts in Boston, doubts such claims, telling Jonsson that the bans "speak more to cities trying to hide the problem of homelessness rather than effectively deal with it."

This is one of those cases where I think good intentions have made the problems worse. Based on some of the behaviors I've seen, I have to question if there would be as many homeless if cities weren't bending over backwards to accommodate them.

One of the charities I used to give to was a local food bank, and I volunteered there sometimes. Some people would be dependent on aid no matter what happened. I am not sure anymore that it is a good thing to perpetuate that month after month.

It's one thing to help someone out for a while, to help get them established so that they can be self-sufficient. It's something else entirely to reinforce their victimhood.

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— NeoWayland

Posted: Tue - August 15, 2006 at 04:38 AM  Tag


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