Homeless?

Wow. Today is Wednesday of our Spring Break trip. I can't believe it's already Wednesday. This has been an awesome, eye-opening, and educational experience so far. I don't know where to start.

On Monday we left Jwade's house and caught the bus downtown. We couldn't check into our hostel until 3:00, so we spent from 9ish until about 3:30 wandering around downtown Portland. JOIN, an organization that does urban plunges and homeless simulations, gave us a copy of the scavenger hunt they use. It had about twenty activities on it, including questions on where to get food, shelter, socks, and TB cards. The purpose was basically to show us that if we were homeless, this is what we would need for survival. We had to walk around downtown Portland, stop at quite a few of the homeless resource organizations, and talk to people - both affiliated with the organizations and the homeless themselves. At the beginning of the day, it was nerve-wracking to go up to a random person standing in line with a ton of bags and often a shopping cart and strike up a conversation. After a couple of conversations, it got way easier - in fact, I loved it. It was awesome to talk to people, to hear their stories - and to realize that they are people and we actually have a lot in common with them.

Our group has been talking a lot about breaking down stereotypes. In talking with the different members of the homeless population we have learned that these people are a big community, and they have welcomed us into it with open arms. We've been to three of the most popular meal service places, as well as talked to people on the street. In doing this, we've realized that everyone on the street knows each other and is kind of like a big family. We have begun to recognize people from different locations and we greet them and talk to them. Kady said that usually when she walks down the streets of a city, she walks past the people sitting in the doorways and ignores them, but notices the "regular people". This week, though, she hasn't even noticed the other people, and it is the homeless that she smiles at, greets, and talks to. Everyone agrees. Walking around the city on Monday, standing in line with the homeless with our big bags, it was us that were getting the looks from the cars and people. To the outsiders, we were homeless.

This frustrates me a lot because I don't know where to go from here. I can't give money to everyone I pass on the street. After this week I will be returning to my privileged college to get a good education so I don't end up like these people. What am I going to do when I come down to Portland and see people I've worked with all week, people I've come to know and care about? Will they recognize me? View me differently? I can't come down to Blanchet House every week, I can't help out at the Downtown Chapel every morning. I want to be able to fix these peoples problems, to give them a roof over their heads and a job, to cure them of their addictions and mental handicaps and family problems - I don't want to have to walk by them on the street and not be able to help them. Valerie, who gave us a tour yesterday, talked about this. She works everyday with the homeless in Portland, but recently she went to Atlanta. In Atlanta, she's not known at all by the people who live on the streets. She was walking around downtown and came across several homeless wandering around and panhandling. They asked for money, but she couldn't help them - she just had to walk past. She said that some days we're going to have to walk past, we wont be able to help every person on every street we walk down. The important thing, though, is to not walk past in life. This week, we are getting the education and awareness to know what is going on, to know what is happening to try to fix these problems. We now just need to take this and share it with people, so as an individual, as a city, and as a society we do not just walk past.