I've lived on the streets amongst the homeless for many a year now, observing and witnessing the interactions between society and the homeless. Not that such should necessarily qualify me to report on the situation, but, combined with my experience, education and training, I'd say there is certainly merit to what I have to report.
And what I have to report starts off by taking the form of a question, to wit: "Why.......does society reject, disabuse, neglect and otherwise disavow - the homeless? Why are the homeless the Great Outcasts of our society, and the creation, as creatures thereof and thereby, which any normal societal citizen will nominally have nothing to do with?" And then, in pre-realization of the apparent answer(s) to such questions, we finally ask, "Why......are the homeless the products of our 'Great Society', and what might we do about such a situation?"
By way of importuning the finer points of this essay, let me tell you of a recent experience of this writer. In fact, it was so recent that it did occur but just prior to my starting to write these words. I had stopped by Samaritan House for the weekend lunch, however I was quite early for the lunch giveaway. But, as I arrived, a delivery/donation had just been received, and the boxes of foodstuffs were yet piled on the receiving/loading dock outside the kitchen. Anyway, I ignored such and moved to a quiet spot on a bench in front of the office where I did intend to start writing this essay. However, just as I was settling in and getting organized to write (pen, paper, etc.), I heard a whistle from the back of the kitchen area. Looking that way, I saw the duty-officer, a personable Hispanic gentleman, beckoning me to come hither and holding up something in his hands. I went back to discover that he had two plastic-boxed deli-sandwiches for me, which I gratefully accepted and promptly imbibed,
figuring I would then save the actual lunch, when it arrived, for later in the day.
Anyway the sandwiches were a ham and cheese and a vegetarian and they were of a not immodest size, so I both enjoyed the fare and filled myself up. In doing so, I then also noted, with reference to my intended writing, further salient facts, both apparant and non-apparent, with regard to those sandwiches and their situation. First of all, they were both quite fresh and tasty, having, according to the labels, just been made at about 8:20 AM of the day before, and secondly, they were priced at $5 each.
Now, the large downtown grocery-deli which had just donated these sandwiches does normally pride itself on the great variety and quality of its foodstuffs, thusly especially catering to the upper-crust of the local society. As such, "day-old" sandwiches, having not been sold on the day made, are immediately disposed of. Now, disposed-of means "written-off-the-books", in a manner consistent with good and profitable accounting practices - in other words, "sold" but disposed-of, as best befits the bottom line of the accounting ledger (or, more likely, computer program/database). What this means is that, by "donating" these day-old goods to a charitable organization such as Sam House, the store is not only "writing-off" the unsold-goods - zeroing out the account - but also gaining a tax advantage, the goods becoming a "credit" against unpaid taxes such as may become due on other actual income of the store. In other words, a standard tax-writeoff, under the U.S. tax system.
But let's also take a look at the sociological side of this accounting ploy. First of all, from a purely humanitarian perspective (non-existent, in this case), the store could have made these foodstuffs directly available to the homeless and lo-income persons-in-need by having them (the foodstuffs) available to such people directly off the store's own loading docks. However, for many and sundry reasons such a policy is just not feasible (as to management) and thusly, by my own personal experience, when I once stopped by at the loading docks of this great store, to inquire, as a hungry homeless person, whether they might have any left-over day-old sandwiches, I was most abruptly told, "We don't have such things!"
In other words, the reality is that such stores and other donors, whether corporate or private individuals, just do not want to "deal-with" the homeless or disadvantaged peoples of society. Thusly we have the proverbial "middle-man" - in this case, Samaritan House. As a 501(c)3 tax-free charitable-donation organization, Sam House exists purely for two reasons, as far as most of society is concerned: Donors can donate their goods and wares (and even their services - you don't think a tax-writeoff could escape "volunteer" services, now did you, when the reason for "volunteering" is anything other than from the "heart"!), and then get a goodly tax-deduction, or write-off, for the nominal market value of the goods donated. And the other great reason for donation to a charitable-organization is that the donor can thereby "distance" oneself from the recipients of the largesse. In other words, instead of direct contact with the homeless, such a trying, stress-ful, educational and potentially responsible
"experience" is avoided and, instead, turned over to the third-party-agent-of-responsibility - or "representative" - in this case, Samaritan House.
And so it goes for most of the homeless - the only people nominally willing to "know" the homeless being charitable and public agencies specifically organized to "deal-with" the homeless. Sometimes it seems, even the "behind-the-scenes" bureaucrats of these agencies do not want to deal-with or encounter the homeless, feeling "comfortable" when certain office areas and other such of these agencies are nominally "off-limits" to the homeless client, so that the office-workers do not have to chance "running-into" a homeless client in the hallway or somewhere else in the building except in the allowed-access areas.
Anyway, most of American society does not want to see or acknowledge the existence and/or plight of the homeless. As I have noted elsewhere on these webpages, encounters in the Park are to be avoided, as we do not want to be having to "explain" to our children as to why "that man over there" is carrying all that stuff (sleeping bags, etc.) around with him - "Why doesn't he just leave it at home?" Or, while sitting in the Park, we don't want to see the homeless person, when we are enjoying sitting there and thinking about how we are going to make our next million dollars! And we do not want to run into the homeless on the street or anywhere else, because they mihjt probably be "panhandling" for change or a hand-out, and such a confrontation does surely make us uncomfortable, feeling that we are being accosted by a highwayman and robbed of our last change for bus-fare or coffee at the office snack-bar or whatever. They are an inconvenience! They remind us that there are the "rich" and that there are
the "poor" and, deep down inside ourselves, in our human and humane conscientiousness (which I have called one's natural, innate KNOWING of the TRUTH!), we do have this uncomfortable "feeling" that there must be some fundamental wrong, or problem, with the system, when there does exist a human society that cannot "take-care" of all of its disparate peoples thereof.
Anyway, here in America, most Americans will just walk past a homeless person on the street and act as though he/she does not exist. "The Great Unseen People of America!" And yet, for some strange reason, many foreigners, tourists, visitors, and resident aliens WILL approach and acknowledge the homeless. The reason being, probably, that they have known such peoples in their own homelands and have more humanely accepted them into their society, something America, with its consumer and money-spending economy and society, is loath to do, for those who cannot participate in the overall societal largesse.
And yet part of the problem of the "unseen", here in America, is also cultural and religious, and thusly attitudinal. "I made my way, my fortune, and they can do so too!", however, as a sentiment, ignores the facts and realities of life that may be the extant situation with that homeless person, as opposed to all of the "breaks", opportunities, familial funds and inheritances and other societal "good-will" (such as fraternal order, sports and other membership "club" grants and fellowships) which that privileged individual has probably been the beneficiary of, in the multi-faceted cultural m‹lieu that is this great land. And, unfortunately, as to culturisms and such affiliated groups, the "Old Boy" cliche - "You rub my back, and I'll rub your back!" - does surely yet operate, insuring that one's cultural and group "buddies" are always granted "one-step-up" on anyone else. (A means of not equalizing the American "melting pot", by insuring that "us Irish" will always be better than "dem damn Chinks"!)
And the attitude-problem may also be religious (in line with any culturally religious ethnicities, such as Irish Catholic), as the great Princeton University theologian Harvey Cox did so explain, in his popular book, "The Secular City". He pointed out that America has been the Great Melting Pot of the human race that it has been, or has become, for the very reason that the disparate peoples, of all kinds of cultures and economic means, from all over the world, can "fit into" our Great American society, participating (or not!) in our great economic m‹lieu, and deriving whatever benefits thay may so acclaim, WITHOUT ANYONE really "knowing" anyone else OTHER THAN as a "passing acquaintance" from work, or down the street or however, the fact of life being that one's family, relatives, group, culture, etc. ARE ALWAYS given "priority considerations", over all others, here in our American society.
In other words, on the streets - in the societal venue that is America - everyone just goes their own independent "merry-way", dealing with each other SUPERFICIALLY, and not "knowing" another UNLESS a relationship should become more personal, intimate or involved. Such things, of course, always do happen, in this Great Melting Pot, and it is a joy when they do (usually!) But, the religion-cultural aspect, here in America - separation of Church and State - strongly implies that one's personal and familial "responsibilities" be largely kept separated from one's economic "responsibilities" - a duality encouraged BY that very separation of Church and State. (As well as leaving our "personal responsibilities" in the hands of multitudes of "third-party-agents-of-responsibility" - or representatives - whoever and whatever they may be, from your congressman, your lawyer, your doctor, your priest, and so on, all the way up to that greatest third-party-agent-of-responsibility - the DOLLAR BILL! In other words,
as such "representatives" exist, in all facets of American life, WE ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE - we have no DIRECT, personal responsibility - for our very words, actions and deeds - to exercise, as long as our "representatives" are exercising our responsibilities for us!)
Thusly, the homeless - and all of the "disadvantaged" - are a State "problem", NOT a Church problem. We can then go to, and attend, our "clubhouses-of-worship", secure in the knowledge that ONLY like-situation-people such as ourselves - i.e., having a home, a family, an income, a job, and everything else that defines the "American Dream" - WILL BE THERE, to worship and join with us, in those exclusive "clubhouses", and that any "State-problem" homeless will, accordingly, not be seen!
BUT, lo and behold, Christ apparently told His followers and adherents, to "do something about the poor", and thusly the American Churches "feel an obligation" to do something. And yet they do have to contend with that great "existential" situation under which they are so convened - to do, and to be, a "venue of worship", succinctly known in the vernacular as a "private clubhouse", which, of course, just as a fraternal order, is congregated to serve and benefit its members!
So, what is the usual "reaction", of any Church or Churches to "getting involved" in the homeless "problem"? Well, to put it bluntly - MINIMAL! (Or whatever is minimally required to PROTECT "our Church-rights" - land, property, rights, legalities, etc. - against incursion by the State!) The Interfaith Hospitality Network (IHN), a national coalition of all kinds of churches and synagogues, has just recently, here locally in San Mateo County, California, after almost a year and a half of churchly bureaucratic "bickering" and back-sliding, now put into operation a local shelter network operation for homeless FAMILIES ONLY, to be "sheltered", and looked-after by the 15 San Mateo County Churches, that will be "housing"......15 homeless people or families a month! Talk about INaction! Talk about "Outreach Programs", of the Churches, that "reach-out" a stupendous distance - of 1 inch!
But, such is what Harvey Cox did also talk about in his wonderful book, "The Secular City". Americans - and the Churches they congregate in - go their own separate ways, and "pretend" that they are "communing" with God......when they actually do NOT HAVE the slightest clue as to where to find God! Professor Cox has thusly said, "WHERE does one find God nowadays? NOT in the ancient tribal hogans (of our Native American heritage) NOR in the pews or at the altars of our great houses of worship......such is NOT where one does find God! GO INTO THE STREETS! Go where the LEAST of my brethren are to be found - THERE, in their "need", WILL ONE FIND GOD! THERE......will one find ALL one needs, in being of SERVICE, to those who are in need themselves!" AMERICA - WAKE UP! As a Christian nation and polity, we HAVE ABANDONED GOD! But, lo and behold, HE WANTS US BACK! And we need Him too! Because we can ONLY be a polis, a community, as "one nation, under GOD"! Let it BE!
AND, to get back to our homeless "problem" (which the State cannot, apparently, do anything about!), those homeless DO ALSO NEED US! They need us, to RE-INTEGRATE THEM into our Great Society! They need us to help them "find their way" - their OWN WAY, AS determined exclusively BY THE INDIVIDUAL - NOT some "way", or path (job, career, etc.), that WE, or others of society, "think" is the solution, to any and all problems of the homeless. And they won't go away - the "problem" won't go away - because the problem is a result of our system - of our attitudes, of our discrimination, of our economics and of our trepidation......TO DO ANYTHING!
HOWEVER, with GOD......on the streets, we can find, and nurture, and send on their way, the homeless of America - IF we are willing to dedicate ourselves TO eliminating homelessness! To find, and to KNOW, another person, is, and surely can be, always a joy! And especially, if that other person is a homeless person, one can almost say that one has "found" another member of one's longlost "family". Because we ARE - all of us - the "famility" of MAN! Let us BRING US ALL TOGETHER......in Peace, Harmony, Love, Brotherhood, Just Work (labor) for all, and FAMILY......each and every one of us! Martin Luther King, Jr. said, "I have a Dream!" Well, I (Jerome) also have a Dream......A BROTHERHOOD OF MAN! A REALITY, which, with the WILL and COOPERATION of ALL, can BE!
Aum, Peace, Amen!
Jerome.
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