…lots of new faces. At one point in February 2006 the dining room at the Salvation Army was only half full at lunch. In fact they started leaving the lights off in the back half of the room so no one would sit there and they would have less of a cleanup to perform every day. This drop in lunch attendance was a reflection of how many of the homeless the police had harassed into moving out of the downtown area and into the residential neighbourhoods. Unfortunately this lack of a lunch crowd did not last long. More unfortunate was that it was not the homeless returning from the residential neighbourhoods (where courtesy of the City of Abbotsford and the Downtown Businesses they are causing headaches for the residents of those neighbourhoods) but an influx of new people, thanks to the policies of the provincial Liberal government. These policies continue to add to the ranks of the homeless and those living in poverty while failing to reduce these numbers by providing the assistance needed for people to find employment and get back on their feet.

I have been searching for employment in accounting/finance/business, which is where my experience lies, but I think I will have to change this focus. Based on observation, thanks to the policies of out Liberal provincial government, the real job growth is going to be in servicing the demands placed on society by this growing population of homeless and those living in poverty. Personally I do not know why the Liberals would choose to pursue a course or courses of action that increases the ranks of the working poor, the homeless and those living in poverty but they are. One can only conjecture that someone with ties to the Liberal’s is position to benefit from the business opportunities opened by these increased numbers.

Compounding the problems that arise from this policy of increasing the numbers living homeless on the streets or those with shelter who are depending on some form of aid to manage to (barely) survive is that the City of Abbotsford is currently just reacting to this situation. In failing to think through all the problems that flow from the increasing population of homeless and poor the city has been worsenning the problems. Obviously the local governments of the cities of British Columbia need to get together to pressure the Liberal provincial government to change policies so that they stop adding to the problems and population of working poor, homeless and those living in poverty. They also need to begin to pressure the Liberal government to design and adopt policies that will actually aid in reducing this population. I stress that it is necessary that rather than letting the Liberals claim to be or that their policies are meant to help people on to their feet – people must look at the actual effects the policies have and demand that those that do not work or (as is the case currently) make the problems worse be changed.

The fact that this is, at least in theory, a matter for the provincial (Liberal) government to address does not absolve the cities from taking action. There are both philosophical and self-interest reasons for local governments and the citizens they represent to act and become engaged with the problems.

Philosophically, it is as Martin Luther King Jr. said “He who passively accepts evil is as much involved in it as he who helps to perpetrate it.” Meaning that you cannot just sit there and point at some other party as being responsible for the actions (or inactions). In just accepting the actions (or inactions) we become as guilty and responsible for the evil as if we had done the evil. Sitting there and saying ‘Oh, that is a provincial matter or responsibility’ does not absolve the city and its citizens of their responsibility for addressing the wrongs, to relieve the misery and suffering.

If not for philosophical, moral or spiritual reasons, why then should the city or its citizens act? I am sure that the materialistic inhabitants of the city (as they have amply demonstrated) can relate to self-interest. There are many ‘costs’ associated with just accepting the situation and reacting thoughtlessly to it and these cost just continue to add up. As the numbers of homeless and poor continue to grow the costs are not likely going to climb in a straight line, with the rate of increase more likely resembling an exponential pattern for each new person added to the roles.

So what do I mean by costs? To do more that touch upon a few highlights (at least to me) would require a pages long list, which I have no interest in preparing and the reader is unlikely to have an interest in reading. I expect that if I suggest a few highlights the readers can add to the list themselves.

There are the direct costs such as the salaries paid to police and city workers who need to, time after time, deal with the same homeless. Since these persons are homeless they have nowhere to so the cycle just keeps repeating, while the costs of this cycle just continue to add up. Consider that if instead you invest in getting the person or people employed and on their feet they are not only no longer costing money but are contributing to the pool of $$$ available to be invested in further reducing the numbers of homeless on the streets and in the community.

There are a wide range of crime issues and cost associated with this that should be considered. First forget any questions of right or wrong. Focus just on the $$$ cost to deal with a homeless person through the legal system (police, lawyers, judges, trials, cost to house them in prison, etc.). It would appear to be a no-brainer that, unless we spend money on the level the Liberals are on their ideology and their friends at Partnerships BC ($160,000 average salary), it would represent a considerable cost savings to avoid the legal system by investing extra $$$ in getting these people back onto their feet. As an aside let me suggest that any extra $$$ spent on a person would be well spent if it keeps that individual out of the highly expensive legal system – even if the individual lack any pride or self-esteem and just sits on their fat ass. This because you still reap significant $$$ savings by avoiding the legal system’s very high per person costs.

Part of the costs of crime one wants to avoid fall directly onto the citizens themselves. I am not only speaking of the insurance $$$ costs but also the hassles of dealing with the fallout and paperwork of the crime, no longer having the peace of mind to feel safe, loss of memories and/or treasured family items and the nagging little worries that being the victim of crime puts into one’s mind. What price does one put onto these intangible costs?

Remember the screams of the tourist industry in Vancouver about the present and future $$$ they felt they were losing due to the presence of the homeless and poor on the streets? What effect does it have on business people or developers thinking of investing in the community? Here is a good one: What is the effect on real estate values, not just from the presence of the homeless and poor on the residential streets, but especially of any associated crime? Young G. Saini’s letter to the News reminds us that the situation has an effect on the youth of the city. Of principle concern, at least to me, is what lessons we are teaching here. Remember that the lessons adults think they are teaching may bear little relation to the lessons the young are in fact learning. Bigotry, prejudice, being judgmental, indifference to others, an uncaring attitude and ‘ME first’ selfishness are all things likely to be taught and learned here.

There are many other ‘costs’ here that I leave up to the reader to think of and consider. Let me just raise one last major ‘Cost’. What does it do to the Spirit or Spirituality of our City, Province and Country, indeed to the very ‘soul’ or fabric of our society that we have made human life the cheapest commodity on the planet? Yes, we have allowed the problem to develop into a monstrous size, some will claim that we have owe no ‘duty of care’ to our fellow citizens, others will claim it is not a matter of our own spirituality to help those among us who desperately need that help and we may find we have to be prepared to reallocate or invest some money to accomplish what needs doing. WE can do it and in fact it is the only moral course of action. Do I have all the answers – no, we need to seek out and experiment to find answers. It will take time and effort. Understand I am not calling for us to undertake massive new programs and spending, rather that we need to think and apply our resources intelligently so that we actually accomplish what we want and at a reasonable dollar investment.

May I finish with something I try to keep in mind and think we all need to remember if we are to do what our spirituality demands:

“Great opportunities to help others seldom come, but small ones come daily.”

The View from the Homeless Streets
byJames W Breckenridge
Abbotsord
www.homelessinabbotsford.com