Happy New Year! Let’s
talk about the homeless, more specifically, panhandlers. What! It’s New Years Day – Rose Bowl Parade,
football, resolutions. Shouldn’t I be
writing about that? Probably, but let’s
talk about the homeless anyway. Not to
be a downer over a joyous holiday but no better time than the present, while we’re
all still in the giving mood with the holidays and all.
No, this isn’t one of those “let’s solve homelessness" or
"please give to my new found cause” essays.
I just want to pass on my
observations. I’m in the unique position
to see how different communities cope with the issue. In my work I might be surveying a gated
community one day and downtown the next.
In a depressed neighborhood the day after that then behind Macy’s at the
end of the week. I go everywhere the gas
lines go and frequently they intersect with panhandlers.
It didn’t used to be that way. I worked from home in Ocala, Florida
and drove places in my air conditioned car with the doors locked. The panhandlers would all congregate at the major
intersections or Walmart exits. They
all had homemade cardboard signs asking for money or work. If you caught the red light and had to stop
right next to one it was awkward. You
would either roll down the window and hand over some change or sit there and
try not to make eye contact.
The Ocala
county commissioners fixed all that though.
Back in March of 2013 they passed an ordinance forbidding pedestrians
from standing by or entering the road to physically exchange anything with a
motorist. That fixed ‘em. The day the law took effect the panhandlers miraculously
disappeared. High-fives all around at the commission
chambers on that one I’m sure. In
reality all the homeless packed up what belongings they had and moved to the
next county.
Enter the reason for this post. Here’s how Nashville copes with it. I say copes because the problem isn’t going
away. If anything it could get
worse. In Nashville the homeless still stand by the intersections
and Walmarts but they have something to sell.
Newspapers. Not the news of the
day kind, that one is still in newspaper stands and thrown into front yard
birdbaths each morning. No, this is a
street newspaper called “The Contributor”.
It’s printed twice monthly by the
nonprofit organization of the same name and has a circulation of 120,000, all
sold by the homeless (or formerly homeless).
They are all micro-businessmen and women.
Here’s how it works.
They purchase the paper for 25 cents per copy and sell it for a
dollar. They keep all profits and
tips. In order to do this they must
apply to become vendors and attend training sessions. They all wear a bright yellow badge which tells
the public they are legitimate vendors. They have to obey the rules and code of conduct– no high pressure
selling or other shenanigans. It gives
them self-worth. It gets them off the
street and into an apartment and the public has a means to help the community
and “their” homeless population. They
have regular customers who buy from them whenever a new issue is published. I bought a copy from a gentleman standing in
front of a McDonalds. It was 33 degrees
out. We were both all bundled up but I
was on the move surveying the gas main and warm. He was stomping his feet to generate heat. He thanked me with a broad smile that warmed us
both even more.
So what’s in the paper?
Articles about homelessness and poverty, poetry, interviews, community
news – all contributed by local journalists and (this is the best part) the
vendors themselves. It informs and
entertains, just like any newspaper but with a totally different perspective.
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| Photo courtesy of "Nashville Scene" |
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| Photo courtesy of "The Tennessean" |
Other communities are doing this. Obviously not the one I call home base but
hopefully they’ll start thinking as progressively as Nashville which is totally on-board. The mayor spoke at the paper’s recent
anniversary party. He knows his city is
no different from any other but here the “problem” is being addressed, not sent
packing.
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