We just returned from 2 1/2 glorious weeks away (more on that to come) to find a tiny Hooverville just steps from our front gate. The homeless have snuck in behind the Quality Inn and set up camp. This is not a tiny camp, or a tired man sleeping on the ground. In two weeks there are mattresses, towels hanging down from branches, lots of supersize plastic Coke bottles, drying clothing, and lots and lots of trash. When we left there was a hedge. Now there is a well-beaten path leading into this secret outdoor room. Behind the gate of the fire escape from the hotel (it fronts on Highland, and the back gate over a little bridge is perpetually locked) someone had hung a sheet. Behind that was a perfect mattress, made up with clean white sheets, fresh pillows and a warm blanket -- (It looked so clean I wanted to climb in, Jonathan noted) -- all swiped from the laundry room of the hotel.
I feel the conflict of every over-educated, socially responsible-aspiring person in the city. I want to help. I do not believe in shunting homeless people onto the street, or arresting them so they can go off to hunt for another place to crash until they are kicked out there. On the other hand I do not want mentally unstable, or drug addicted people lighting fires and hanging out mere steps from my front door.
It is as if the recession has washed up on our doorstep.
Now what?
Worst of all, the homeless are technically on city property-camped out on a strip of land between our street and the hotel. But the hotel does care. They said earlier this year a homeless man was camping there who kept sneaking into the back door and breaking into guests' rooms, until the manager found him and tackled him to the ground. He was sent to prison for three months, but it looks like he is back.
What a difference three weeks can make. I walked down to get coffee this morning and there was a gang of dudes swaggering down a lower street of Whitley Heights, and some permanent encampments down by our preschool. The Starbucks stairs were even more crowded with homeless people begging for money--some of them reading library books! Our area is always the line where grit and glamour meet--but this feels different. It feels sadder, more desperate, and a little scarier.
This is Hollywood, 2009.
What is our role as socially conscious citizens?
I just don't know.
December 10
8 years ago
2 comments:
I had a homeless man sleeping in my vestibule on and off for five or so years. I could usually smell him and would know he was there and so would have to call the police to chase him away in order to get out my front door to go to work. They never arrested him and always asked me if he was an ex-boyfriend. He always said yes sir, no maam to them and the feeling was he was ex-military or from a good family. But, the vestibule was hidden from the street and on more than one occasion I opened the door and he fell into my apartment. I felt bad for him, but increasingly scared for me. Finally, my manager and landlord threatened to have me evicted unless I had the man arrested. They told me if anything happened to a tenant in the building it would be my fault. When the manager would find him he would berate and belittle him. It ended up being a long involved situation with restraining orders and court dates. But, worse of all was that I had to beg the police to arrest him after he broke the restraining order. My manager was standing right there threatening me. So, they sighed heavily, put on their gloves and complained their car would stink for a week. Worse of all the manager filmed him like one of those nazi films. Simply humiliating for him and heartsickening for me. And yet, he was definitely mentally ill, did drugs, and on more than one occasion urinated or left feces in the stairwell or at my front door. I lived alone in a secluded apartment. We are faced with these decisions sometimes. I tried always to treat him with dignity, but he still had to go....
wow! lisa that is an amazing story. and heartbreaking. jonathan spent all night after dinner last night trying to analyze WHY he felt so bad...and part of it is, all you can really do is treat someone with respect and push them on. they are mentally ill. they can be dangerous. and our society does not allow you to do anything but push people on. it makes me hate us, hate america, hate what we have become.
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