Come on now - move along!

 

 

"The homeless have become the soft underbelly of our society..."

 

Marty knew it was coming. He had hitched a ride to the Twin Cities last May. Marty had it with life in Seattle. Too much rain, too little sun, too many druggies and not enough help. He had heard on the streets that the Twin Cities was a cool place to live - that is until winter. Marty had spent his entire life on the West Coast, living on the streets all the way from San Diego to Seattle. Sometimes it was cold, but never really that cold. This would be his first winter, real winter, and he was scared. He had heard that some people actually freeze to death on the streets if they cannot find shelter.

 

He had panhandled some change and went into a McDonald's to get a cup of coffee. The workers in McDonald's were trained to look for homeless people who just wanted to sit and get warm. If they suspected someone was loitering, they would call the police. It was bad for business. It would give the wrong impression of the restaurant if a bunch of hobos used it as a warming station.

 

As Marty sat and looked out the window at McDonald's, he sipped the hot coffee and thought back on his life. He had been off his meds since he moved here and his thinking was not as clear as it once was. However, he did know this - the life of a vagrant, a "hobo" so to speak, is not one he had ever imagined for himself. Depression, drugs, alcohol, more untreated mental illnesses, had left him unemployed and unemployable. He was rejected by his family and shunned by society. Sure there were shelters available, but never enough. And the ones they did have, seemed to have far more rules than beds.

 

As Marty looked up at the TV which was on in McDonald's, the weather guy was talking about the approaching snow storm. Something about 4" to 6" inches followed by a Canadian blast of cold air. By tomorrow night, it was going to be below zero, and he had no place to stay, except if he could find an empty bench in the park. Marty had no idea how he was going to make it through the next few days, much less the rest of the winter.

 

As Marty was contemplating the weather as well as his lack of shelter, two police officers came in the restaurant. Marty looked up as they approached him. "Good day sir, do you need any assistance?" Marty looked down at his coffee and responded, "No, I am good". One of the officers then said, "Not to hassle you sir, but do you have any identification?" "No, I do not officer." Suddenly the tone of the conversation seemed to change. "Well you can't be in here, loitering. It is against our city ordinance. You are going to have to move along. Now that we have warned you, if we catch you loitering in here again, you will be given a citation."

 

Marty took his coffee and left the restaurant. It had already started to snow. McDonald's was not the first place he had been asked to leave, nor will it be the last. What really hurt was when he was asked to leave the church down the street - by some members of the congregation. Something about his odor. "Come on now, move along" is the thing that Marty  heard the most from society. When he was a boy, he learned the story of how we are to be our Brother's keeper. As the years passed, Marty found out that was only a story. Nobody cared for him, nor about him. Marty then began the search for a cold bench, one that was not already being used by someone else. It was going to be a rough night for many like him.

 

There are many, many people like Marty, Mary, Judy, or whomever that have joined the growing ranks of the homeless. Many people who are not currently homeless, are only one missed paycheck, one illness, one financial catastrophe away from life on the streets. County jails have become a dumping ground for many homeless people who need medication for many different mental illnesses. The problem is that most jails are ill equipped to handle this growing population.

 

This Christmas, as well as the entire winter season, let us remember one vital fact. We all of us, are still are our Brother's (and Sister's) keepers. We need to ensure that we have adequate shelter for all who need it. Not only in the coldest of months, but year round. As people of compassion, let us be compassionate to those who need it the most in our communities.