Three Days & Two Nights, Homeless.

Home. At times it's so incredibly easy to forget that we have a home and that many others do not. Homeless is a tough issue to deal with and an even harder for those who suffer from it. To get a better understanding of homelessness this trip we spent three days and two nights out and about on the streets homeless. It was a long and tiring ordeal being homeless, we would have to go digging through trash bins and panhandle for money if you didn't want to eat at a shelter and all we did was wander from place to place trying to stem one of the biggest problems homeless people deal with: Boredom. But for me at least it would be finding a suitable shelter at night but first I will have to tell my story.

Within the homelessness challenge we were put into groups of three so that we would be safer that way in a group. I got separated from the group in less than thirty minutes from our starting point so for the first day and a part of the night I was flying solo. During the day it wasn't so bad being homeless, it just entailed a lot of walking and a lot of "Oh what in the world do I do now?" moments. I had gotten two dollars and a mcdouble during the day and my water bottle was full to the brim so I was pretty much set for food and water. But there was a complete change when it changed from day to night. When the sun started setting people starting rushing to get home. Rather normal phenomenon right? Actually in this instance no, because I was a lost little boy in a big city which I didn't know about and had no where to go. Once the sun set and night came out it could be noted that every fifteen minutes that passed there seemed to be less people. The peak of their being no people was around say... 9 PM This was incidentally the time in which we're supposed to meet up with some guides to help us find shelter for the night in which everyone was helped with finding a place to sleep but me because I was STILL wandering around the city looking for the spot in which we were to meet. But from 9 PM on I noticed that while the streets seemed to be emptier that they started to get a little more populated, only these kinds of people weren't the working class or the high business people, they were the homeless. So I made note of this and went and talked with a few of them and their answers rather disturbed me. First they could obviously tell that if I really was homeless, this was probably my first night. Second that I had better have my back to a wall and sleep light if I still wanted my bag the next day and perhaps my life. And thirdly, beware of the crack heads. They said they all did weed, alcohol, tobacco, etc but they singled out that that whatever you do beware crack and the crackheads. After talking with a few of these guys I was starting to freak out a bit. Not only that but once I started to they said it was pretty apparent that I was scared shitless and that I shouldn't make it too obvious or that would mean I would present myself as an easy target. So it's about 11 PM now and, as I said, I was really freaking out on what to do, especially where to sleep. Eventually I decided that the best option would be to go back to the hostel as that was the only really secure location I knew. I finally got found by a group which was waiting in front of the hostel if I ever came back there. After many tears of me being found and frantic texting to everyone that I had been found the guide with the group found us a nice place to sleep in front of a Macy's and yeah. End of day one.

The main thing that I want say really from this is that I think the hardest thing that Homeless people have to deal with is really the Night. Everyone needs to sleep but as you don't have a home anymore you feel so acutely the dangers and your mind just keeps making up worst case scenarios. Not only with fear being a constant throbbing force throughout the night, but when your new to the city like I was there comes the issue of: "Am I taking someone's bed and am I gonna get beat to a pulp because I took someone's bench?". Things like these we don't take into the account simply because since we have a warm home waiting for us. But when put on the streets you just think of EVERYTHING and all at once, especially the worst case scenarios. The fear envelopes you, grips you, and never lets go.

There's an blessing which the Irish use which I find appropriate: May you always be blessed with walls for the wind. A roof for the rain. A warm cup of tea by the fire. Laughter to cheer you. Those you love near you. And all that your heart may desire.

~Khoua

TL:DR Read it, Please. Comment too! :3

Going Home

Generally, the title of a blog post would have little meaning. Maybe a couple of words that will tell the reader what I will be discussing. It is read, and then easily forgotten.

Home. A four-letter word that has a lot of meaning in our society.

Telling the general public about my experience has been the most surprising and eye-opening to me. While on the streets, the homeless population opened their arms and welcomed us in; telling us where we could find food, clothing, and shelter. The general public on the other hand...

We told our story to a lady from Shoreview at Senator Amy Klobuchar's office on Thursday morning. She seemed interested in who Katie and I were at the beginning of the conversation. Wanted to know where we were from, and why we were in DC. When we told her about the challenge, her attitude changed. As Katie says, "it was almost as if...we started smelling bad." Her attitude changed, she made rude remarks (i.e., "saves on the hotel bill") and we could tell she wanted out of the conversation as fast as humanly possible.

Just because an individual doesn't have a home, does not make them anyless of a person. In fact, all of the individuals that I met were stronger and more wise than most people I know. A house is not a personality characteristic nor is it something that we present to others in hopes of companionship. But as soon as someone says they do not have a home, we scoff and look the other way.

Why is that!? As soon as I figure it out, I will update you.

Nicole

Becoming Connected with the Homeless

Today we had two people come and tell us about their experiences being homeless. One of them had been homeless on and off for 10 years and was currently homeless now. He was in his 3rd year in college getting his degree in business managment. He also had just applied for grad school. Another guy had been homeless while he was dealing with mental illness, but was now off the streets. After they talked we brought supplies out to two parks to give out to homeless people. We had ponchos, socks, toothbrushes, toothpaste, deoderant, and socks that we handed out to people and then stopped to talk to them. Nicole and I only ended up talking to one person and we were both sad when the time was up. He had become homeless almost nine years ago when his son was murdered. He was a great guy, full of life with high spirits. He loved himself and his life than I do love mine sometimes, which really made me think. He was so happy to talk to us and even sang us two Christian songs. I tried to give him a few dollars for being so kind to us and he wouldnt take it. I will remember my interaction with Walter for the rest of my life. He really put a face to a problem that is considered a numbers problem or just statistics. He was nicer to me than most housed strangers, and he has a lot of reasons to be critical about the world. I can't imagine people beating him up, cops trying to frame him to arrest him, people spitting in his face, dumping bags of feces or other bodily fluids on him, dumping hot coffee on him, calling him the "N" word, as well as the many other things I can only imagine that he faces everyday. If people took time to smile and say hi to one another, and treat one another like humans, the world would be a much better place. :)

Dani

Feed My Starving Children: Volunteering and Bonding with Other Catalyst Trip Members

Amrit, Rachel, Nicole, Lauren, Katie, Faduma and Yvette

         Seven members of our group made it to FMSC on Monday, January 30th from 8:00-9:30pm. This was the first of many volunteer opportunities that we will be involved in as preparation for our week in D.C. It was several students' first time at FMSC and we all learned a lot. In our time spent at the center, we packed 113 cases worth of nutritious food (Chicken, Vegetables, Soy and Rice). This amount of food that was packed will feed 66 children for a year!!

Yvette and Faduma helping pack the nutritious meals

It is amazing what an hour of volunteering can produce. We are all very excited about our next opportunity and future community education and community building that will be initiated between the our members, organizations at Hamline, and local elementary and middle school classrooms.

Before going to D.C. our group will be collecting clothing, food and essential products that are needed by individuals who are homeless. The group will then be dividing up the donations received and giving them to individuals both in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area as well as in the D.C. area. If you would like to aid in our efforts, please contact Nicole at ncampbell03@hamlineuniversity.edu or Yvette at ydiaz05@hamlineuniversity.edu.

Katie and Amrit working their way to case number 3

Continue to read our blog and hear from students as their views on homelessness are challenged, modified and/or strengthened. The following weeks leading up to the trip will include education about homelessness, but we will not stop learning after the trip. We will continue to learn and experience homelessness. Just because the trip will be ending, does not mean that our learning stops. It is one of many opportunities and educational experiences that will guide these students to continue volunteering until the programs and/or views of the homeless are changed or homelessness in the United States is eradicated.

One Student's View on Homelessness

I have done a lot of volunteering in the homeless community and, thus, have very strong opinions involving the homeless. First, I want to kill the myth that all homeless people are homeless because they got addicted to drugs and alcohol. Yes, some homeless people did end up on the streets that way, and others become addicted due to being on the streets, but a majority of them are trying to get back on their feet. In one volunteer experience I did, called A Day in the Life, we did everything a homeless person did for a day. It was excruciating! The heat index was well into the nineties, and the humidity was disgustingly high, but we had to walk 6 miles anyways. I ended blacking out from heat stroke before we made it to the soup kitchen for lunch. Then we went with a teenage boy to HCMC because he was in unbearable pain in his abdomen. They said his wait would be at least 5 hours because he did not have insurance. This should not be the case, no matter if someone has insurance or not they should have the same urgency to get in as anyone else. Many homeless people have jobs making minimum wage and trying to save enough for a deposit on an apartment to get back on their feet. This is truly difficult due to the lack of showers, clean clothes, and presentable clothing available to the homeless. I applaud the non-profits that help those trying their best to get back on their feet. I know that one little thing can ruin a person's whole life. Something like getting cancer with poor insurance can send someone barreling into debt and before you know it they're homeless. It's not just the poor that end up homeless, especially in this economy, anyone can end up homeless. There needs to be more done to help the homeless try and get back on their feet. More people need to reach out to help, rather than turning up their noses because they're "dirty" or "got themselves into this situation" (things I have heard people say many times). More people need to see that a homeless person is still a person, a human being with feelings and basic needs, that needs to be cared for and given a chance to feel human again.


Dani Janecek

Transforming Lives at N Street Village

Transforming Lives at N Street Village

Returning Views on Homelessness: A Need for Clarity, Empathy, and Solidarity

While last year was not my first experience with homelessness, it was one of my first opportunities to learn about the experiences of homelessness while building relationships with people who were affected by homelessness. Since the trip last year, I have learned a lot about homelessness and oppression in general. I recently read an article by Kimberle Williams Crenshaw entitled “Mapping the Margins: Intersectionality, Identity Politics, and Violence Against Women of Color.” While this article was about Feminism, it did have some interesting points about homelessness. The article told a story about a Latina woman who was living on the streets with her son. She was rejected by a shelter because of a language barrier. While her small son was able to translate, the shelter did not accommodate the woman because they thought her lack of English was too significant to admit her. This made me think of the current social attitudes towards people who are affected by homelessness. We sometimes live in a very negative society; one in which people make excuses and focus on minute social imperfections that permit us to ignore the situation that many find themselves in; we focus on language barriers instead of recognizing that someone is affect by unfortunate circumstances. Furthermore, many people lack what might be essential in order to begin to tackle homelessness: we live in a world where unusual circumstances prompt curiosity of surface details: “Where do you get food? Where do you sleep?” and often fall short of the necessary questions such as “What is it like to be homeless? What is it like to spend a day as you?” Once we reach a point past surface curiosity and approach a sincere concern for the well-being of someone affect by homelessness—this is when we can finally begin to say that we are on the path of fighting homelessness. It is my hope that on this trip, we will all have a chance to interact with people affected by homelessness and hear about their experiences so we can begin this fight in solidarity. It is, after all, in solidarity that change can occur.