During my recent visit to Seattle, Washington, I had the opportunity to tour one of the “tent cities” that works with local churches to provide temporary shelter for the city’s homeless population. I say “temporary” because the tent city campgrounds move every three months to a new church property where the community of tents is reassembled.
The campground I visited was staged in the parking lot of a local Catholic Church. The migrant community had been there for almost three months and were beginning to think about the moving process.
In talking to the residents, I learned several of the fundamentals of why these living arrangements were so attractive to the homeless, even in a city like Seattle that remains cold at night well into the summer months.
The campgrounds are managed by the residents. The homeless who live in the tents establish and enforce the rules of the community. The living arrangement is all about being a helpful and supportive community of peers.
No one is allowed to loiter within 1,000 feet of the perimeter of the encampment, unless at a bus stop or walking through the surrounding neighborhood to a job or an interview.
People can basically come and go as they please like in any other normal housing situation. There are no enforced exit hours early in the morning, nor are there curfews at night.
People have a place to stow their belongings during the day without fear that someone will steal them or throw them in the trash. There are plenty of bathroom facilities.
The level of independent living possible here allows people to gain the “traction” needed to land jobs and save some money for a more permanent housing arrangement.
No one here prefers remaining outside--a common myth held by the non-homeless. What they do seek is the freedom and independence of the environment. No one here wants to be hemmed in by the rules of others who don’t really understand what they are facing. No one wants to be forced to receive religious instruction.
Respect abounds in this setting. Everyone is taken seriously, everyone pitches in and everyone is valued.
I was amazed at the entire process.
I was impressed with the church that extended simple hospitality to those who pitched their tents outside. I found hope in the place as I visited with the residents.
Returning to Dallas, I wondered if such a plan would work here. I have my doubts, and that is a shame. I can think of a dozen churches right off the top of my head that would be great candidates for this sort of shared living arrangement. It seems clear to me that the churches involved here have found a way to “preach the gospel” without using a word!
Frankly, I find that refreshing.
The campground I visited was staged in the parking lot of a local Catholic Church. The migrant community had been there for almost three months and were beginning to think about the moving process.
In talking to the residents, I learned several of the fundamentals of why these living arrangements were so attractive to the homeless, even in a city like Seattle that remains cold at night well into the summer months.
The campgrounds are managed by the residents. The homeless who live in the tents establish and enforce the rules of the community. The living arrangement is all about being a helpful and supportive community of peers.
No one is allowed to loiter within 1,000 feet of the perimeter of the encampment, unless at a bus stop or walking through the surrounding neighborhood to a job or an interview.
People can basically come and go as they please like in any other normal housing situation. There are no enforced exit hours early in the morning, nor are there curfews at night.
People have a place to stow their belongings during the day without fear that someone will steal them or throw them in the trash. There are plenty of bathroom facilities.
The level of independent living possible here allows people to gain the “traction” needed to land jobs and save some money for a more permanent housing arrangement.
No one here prefers remaining outside--a common myth held by the non-homeless. What they do seek is the freedom and independence of the environment. No one here wants to be hemmed in by the rules of others who don’t really understand what they are facing. No one wants to be forced to receive religious instruction.
Respect abounds in this setting. Everyone is taken seriously, everyone pitches in and everyone is valued.
I was amazed at the entire process.
I was impressed with the church that extended simple hospitality to those who pitched their tents outside. I found hope in the place as I visited with the residents.
Returning to Dallas, I wondered if such a plan would work here. I have my doubts, and that is a shame. I can think of a dozen churches right off the top of my head that would be great candidates for this sort of shared living arrangement. It seems clear to me that the churches involved here have found a way to “preach the gospel” without using a word!
Frankly, I find that refreshing.
I'm so impressed with what you've been sharing about the city of Seattle. Do you think that there is something culturally different about the people of Seattle that make them more willing or able to respect homeless people's rights and needs? Or do you think they (the people of Seattle) have just had more visionary leaders committed to the issues of homelessness? What is it about Seattle that is different than Dallas and what can we do here to better serve the homeless?
ReplyDeleteHearing about the way the homeless are helping out their own community, it reminds me of the Grameen Bank detailed in Yunus' book Banker to the Poor. I've been reading this book lately and am blown away at how Yunus and the other Grameen workers are empowering the extreme poor of the world. The bank forms community groups through which they loan the poor money without collateral. The poor don't have to deal with arrogant bankers in their big offices and business suits. Instead, the bank workers come to the communities and the community groups decide how the money is dispersed among their people, helping each lender remain accountable to how they use the money and when they will pay it back.
ReplyDeleteIt seems like the best way to combat poverty is to empower the poor to help one another. Who better understands how to overcome the plight of the poor than the poor themselves?
jocelyn, I have been asking myself the same questions. Seattle is quite different from Dallas in numberous ways. We have more churches, more emphasis on individual religion and individualism in general. They seem to be more engaged in the importance of community. They reflect a beautiful humanism, a respect for all things human. Somehow that is lost on us. The clearest evidence of this factor can be seen in the expectations they have for the homeless and how they force nothing--their is an emphasis on freedom of choice and opportunities for housing are not tied to performance standards, etc. They are getting the job done in much swifter and finer fashion than we are. They also combine robust public policy and funding with strong philanthorpic endeavors, but each is applied in the appropriate places. I intend to keep studying Seattle and other cities with more success in dealing with poverty than we are having here.
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My wife and I lost our home and we purchased a fifth wheel and found a campground in the mountains where we took up residence. There was a permanent community of about 70 people and a strong sense of community and helpfulness, nightly campfires and absolutely no criminality. The only drawback came from a greedy and pretentious landlord, a water district, whose lawyers were instructed to constantly nitpick and harass us. In one meeting with the district administrators we were called "one step away from homelessness". They presented their dream: "See if you squatters wouldn't take up the space here, we could have wealthy suntanned and elegant vacationers in modern expensive and shiny motor homes who have second and third homes elsewhere". There were also frequent rent increases and notes that an eviction could be imminent. The morale in the community was adversely affected by the manipulations of the campground owners. As long as a sense of inequality and the ideal of an isolated, slick "me first me only" attitude, promoted heavily by the media, exists, we will never be a worthy civilization. It's all about dignity.
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