THINK Together Students, Homelessness, and You

On November 19th, I will be taking the students from my after school program to Exposition Park to participate in the United Way’s HomeWalk. We have been doing this for a few years, and the United Way is one of our community partners. The following information is lifted right off the HomeWalk LA website for your convenience. We will see you there.

What is HomeWalk?
HomeWalk is United Way of Greater Los Angeles’ annual 5K Run/Walk to End Homelessness. Each year thousands join together to do their part by fundraising and spreading the word that homelessness is a solvable problem.

Why HomeWalk?
In Los Angeles County 51,000 people are homeless. Wages have not kept up with housing costs. Over the past 20 years, only the top 1% of salaried workers have seen significant income growth. Our percentage of working poor is higher than the U.S. as a whole. We’re the homeless capital of the nation. The number one reason for homelessness is losing a job, and L.A. County unemployment is in double digits for the first time since May 1993. The HomeWalk funds focused on ending homelessness among 2 populations; the chronically homeless, who are the most costly segment, and families who represent the fastest growing segment.

How does the United Way help?
All money raised through HomeWalk is distributed back into the community to help quickly re‐house homeless families and provide permanent supportive housing to our most vulnerable, chronically homeless individuals and veterans. Over the past 4 years, HomeWalk has mobilized 18,000 walkers, raised $1.7 million and funded organizations that have moved 9,000 people into permanent housing.

The United Way believes that our community must focus on housing people first while giving them access to support services such as health and mental health treatment. This “emerging model” was designed to move people into housing quickly while giving them the supportive services necessary to stay there. In this model shelters are used as very short-term housing only. Housing homeless families and individuals will do more than manage the problem, it will solve it.


How Can We End Homelessness?
The number one reason for homelessness is loss of a job. With our region’s unemployment at the highest it’s been in a decade it’s not surprising that we are the homeless capital of the nation and that 40% of the homeless population are women and children.
We can end chronic, veteran and family homelessness by moving people into housing quickly while giving them the necessary services to remain there. This permanent supportive housing model has drastically reduced homelessness in cities like New York and Denver, and it’s 43% more cost effective with an 80% success rate of people staying off the streets for good. HomeWalk is an opportunity for our community to come together to raise funds and hope for a better future. Join us by participating, volunteering and/or recruiting others. Together we will end homelessness.

Register To Walk and Fundraise
Go to www.homewalkla.org to register online and start fundraising by asking ten people for $10.

Event Information
Saturday, November 19th
Exposition Park
700 Exposition Park Blvd
Los Angeles, CA 90037

Important Info
Registration Opens: 7:00am
Opening Program: 8:30am
Run/Walk Begins: 9:00am
Registration fee for walkers and runners is $25.
Minors (under 18) are free.

Eating My Own Words on Civil Disobedience as Sacramento's Homeless are Evicted

Here's where I eat my own words on the issue of civil disobedience. My last post, which I wrote earlier today condemned those who participated in civil disobedience so that their voices would be heard on the bailouts. I maintain my previously stated opinion. I think it is wrong for people to stage dramatic demonstrations against our political leaders over tax policy. I feel this way because as a Christian I am called to not behave that way. I think it is wrong for non-Christians as well because it is immature and selfish.

Here's where I eat my words... The "residents" of Sacramento's tent city are being evicted. To me this is an injustice. These people have nowhere to go. Those who have already been removed have simply relocated and formed another tent city. The Mayor of Sacramento is initiating plans to expand the homeless services and shelters, but not before having the people forcibly removed. Those who remain are planning to participate in their own form of civil disobedience. And who are they led by? A religious leader. Her name is Sister Frenandez and she runs an organization that helps the homeless called Loaves and Fishes. She is Jesus' representative in this mess and while I know it is presumptuous to suggest that she is doing what Jesus would do, she is certainly doing what I would do. My hometown is about an hour away from Sacramento. This is clearly not my fight, I am still recovering from surgery and Pasadena to Sacramento is a long drive with a three foot brace on my leg, but I think if circumstances were different I would be there too. Still, assuming of course that these people want her help, she is their advocate and she is willing to be arrested for their cause.

So am I a hypocrite? Do I say one thing and do another? I ask that people would submit to political leaders, then when faced with the plight of the poor, I would do anything but submit. Maybe I am a hypocrite, but I think this is different. First of all let me say that the media and blogging community needs to stop pointing out the celebrity status of our political leaders. It does not disqualify them for leadership any more than it qualifies them for leadership. Secondly, I must admit that I do not know which fight is "right." It is possible that those who oppose the President's tax policies are right. He could be ruining the country by not listening to them. I simply do not know anything about these sorts of things. His policies are aimed at fixing this problem on a larger scale, but then so are the ideas of the Republican protestors. Sister Frenandez is not trying to fix the country. She just wants these people to have a safe and legal option. He fight is simpler. I understand it, and maybe that is the cause for my bias. Still, I said a few hours ago that Christians must do their best to be above civil disobedience, remaining humble and submissive. Now as this story presents itself to me, I feel compelled to civil disobedience on behalf of those who God loves, the poor and oppressed.

I do not envy the homeless, this nun, political leaders, or the police who have to remove these people whether they want to or not. Watch the story with me as it unfolds over the next few days. I am dealing with this as it is happening and I would invite you to deal with it with me.

The Eviction of Sacramento's Homeless

This morning I am supposed to be working on my theology homework. It is about the doctrine of election. Yesterday I cared about this topic. Today I don’t. I want to. I know it is important, and I need to get my homework done, but there is something more important on my mind. This morning I read an article in the LA Times about Sacramento’s tent city. If you haven’t heard about this, read the article here. This is front page news and because of that the city has decided to shut the tent city down. It has been open for about a year and the living conditions are terrible. The article was striking to me because this tent city is reminiscent of the hoovervilles of the depression. The people here are not all the stereotypical homeless.



Many are recession victims, people who wouldn’t normally be homeless, but are now homeless because of the economic situation. The city has ignored this problem for a year as far as I know, and now they are set to close the tent city by the end of April. Some might say this is a feasible solution. I’m not sure. Won’t shutting down the area simply relocate the homeless? I don’t have all the answers, but I know that the recent rise in homelessness is a symptom of a much greater problem. I am at a loss as to what the right response is, but I realized today that relocation can’t be it.

I came to this realization because of a bus stop bench.

This morning I went to Starbucks to get my aforementioned homework done and I passed by the same bus stop bench that I always pass by. On most days this bench is occupied by a particular homeless man. I will admit that I do not know his name, and have not spoken to him much. We have only shared a passing hello, but he always seems to be there. This morning he was not there, but I still took particular notice of the bench. I noticed it because for a while it has had a clothing advertisement on the side that shows a woman who is barely clothed. Now this is a pet peeve of mine for reasons that are completely unrelated to this story, but come on it’s a clothing advertisement, she should probably be clothed. So I passed by the empty bench and found myself annoyed with the sign. I worked in Starbucks for several hours, but as I took a break I read the article in the LA Times about Sacramento’s tent city. My heart burned and I was completely distracted from my work.



On a side note, is God speaking to me supposed to feel like ADHD?

I don’t know, but I do think God has been speaking to me today. I walk out of Starbucks and the bench is GONE. It’s as if it were never there. I look around in disbelief and I see the usual homeless resident of the bench across the street at another bench. He has several friends with him who also look homeless. Everything suddenly falls into place for me. I don’t know this man’s name or why he is homeless. I don’t know if he needs help, because that is not an easy thing to ask a stranger. But I do know he is not going anywhere. I don’t know why the city of Pasadena would remove a bus stop bench, but I know that the result was the simple relocation of a man, and he didn’t go far. It’s almost impressive how quickly this bench was removed. It was there at nine, and was gone at eleven-thirty. If Sacramento removes this tent city, it must have an answer for how it will help these people. Otherwise upwards of two hundred people will simply relocate, and they won’t go far.



I doubt very many people will read this post as it is kind of long, but if you are reading this… yes I am aware of my failure to understand or handle this situation. I don’t have any answers for the homeless recession victims whom I am sure God loves. While I live the American dream, they live the American nightmare. I don’t know what the city of Sacramento should do with the people of the tent city anymore than I know what LA should do for the people in Skid Row, but something must be done. I know that I cannot say that someone else will do it. If God is speaking to me about this, it’s for a reason. I still probably need to be able to understand theological concepts like election if I ever want to graduate, but I would rather know people whom God loves. I also know that as I write this it is glaringly obvious that I do not know the name of the man that I see several times a week in the same place. I should probably remedy that. There are as many as 80,000 homeless people in LA County. What do I do with that? I don’t know, but I know where one of them will be.