Luckily, I became homeless in very late '99, where at least the area I was in, didn’t have anti-sleeping measures installed on public benches, yet. Until I secured a shitty car to live out of, on the days I wasn’t lucky to have a friend offer a spot to crash, parks were the only hope. I was removed by the police from them a bunch of times, told I cannot be sleeping there. When asked if they know any place I could spend the night, they spent zero time trying to help me. Told me to get out of there already.
It was really tempting to commit a crime, serious enough to get booked for few days, where I could catch up on sleep without freezing.
Fact those benches didn’t have anti-sleeping measures, made for a few great nights where I could get some decent rest, which wouldn’t have happened nowadays. So yeah, hard to say it’s not an attack on homeless people, specially when the public servants have zero fucks to help you out.
Comment on I'm gonna mute this one
Tedesche@lemmy.world 9 hours agoNo. But since you have experience, let me ask you: did you spend time sleeping on public benches and do you think features that attempt to prevent this are an attack on homeless people? And just to be clear, since this is a text-only format, I’m not being sarcastic or trying to make light of your experience; I’m genuinely curious.
BeardedBlaze@lemmy.world 7 hours ago
Jiggle_Physics@sh.itjust.works 2 hours ago
When I was homeless all the shelters were full, and housing was a year plus wait for anything. I often slept in a concrete tube under a bridge. Then the government came in, removed the tubes, and puts spikes all over the concrete under the bridge. Yes I felt it was an attack. I was forced to move further out from where I could attain help, and do something to sustain myself, only making it harder for me to exist. Dealing with the government to maintain my place of residence, and medical treatment, is a part time job, where I spend, literally, 4-6 hours on hold with places like Jobs and Family Services, and the local housing authority. I can absolutely understand how easy it would be for me to stay homeless if I were say, schizophrenic. Luckily I am not, and I can maintain things like schedules, keep dozens of appointments per month, etc.
This is one of the worst possible ways to encourage people to seek help. it shows a deep lack of understanding what day-to-day life is for the homeless, especially ones who are very mentally ill.