Surface-Level Misconception

“Yes, we spoke with them, and they told us they were not interested in the services this morning. So as of this morning, they have been discharged from the program.” (A Program Director speaking to a R.O.C. member about a mutual client who is experiencing homelessness.)

“Pppssshhhh!! Trespassing? I have been trespassed almost everywhere in this city, so I’m not worried about it happening again here.” (Person currently surviving behind a dumpster.)

“If I were to get an apartment right now, it would take me two weeks to mentally prepare myself to be able to move into it because of how long I have been out here. My mind has changed in so many ways.” (Person currently surviving in a tent in the woods.)

“Yeah, we will take a bag for them and give it to them once they get back out from being locked up. We have been keeping and watching over all their stuff while they have been gone. We know if we didn’t do that, all of their stuff would be stolen and gone in no time.” (Person currently surviving in a tent in the woods speaking about another campmate.)

“I’m a paranoid schizophrenic. That’s why I can’t do crowds. That’s why I can’t ride the bus. When there are more than two people in a place, I start to freak out. It can get really bad really quickly.” (Person currently surviving in a tent in the woods.)

“We just need someone to help us get our stuff moved to our storage unit, and then we will be ready to get into rehab. We know if we don’t get it moved over there first that it will all be stolen and gone. That is truly the only thing keeping us from getting into rehab.” (Couple currently surviving in a handmade shelter in the woods.)

“I can barely walk. I had to beg people three different times last night to call the ambulance. When I did finally make it to the hospital, they told me it was just a bruise and discharged me with no way back to my camp.” (Person currently surviving in a tent in the woods.)

R.O.C. Member: “Hey, we wanted to let you know the good news that you should be getting referred to a housing program soon.”

Client: “That is good to hear! But I am not going to have to live in the projects, right? I won’t have to be moved to the other side of the county, right? Will I get to choose where I live at all? I don’t want to be too far away from where I’m at now. These other people out here, I can’t just completely leave them behind and not look out for them. These are my family!” (Person currently surviving in a tent in the woods.)

“Could we meet at the gas station? There are a few people I know there that could use your help. I’m so excited and happy to be getting another bike. My feet are killing me.” (Person currently surviving in the woods in a tent texting a R.O.C. member about where to meet them to get their new bike from White Oak Bike Co-Op.)

“Yeah, I am still staying at the sanctioned encampment, but I have been over this way for the past few days catching up with some people I know over here. I got to have some options lined up with some of them so I can have some place else to stay if the sanctioned encampment doesn’t stay open.” (Person who is currently a resident at the 12th & Peeples Camp.)

“My mom died 6 years ago. I tried to commit suicide shortly after that. That’s how I eventually ended up out here. I was recently in a rehab program, but I got upset one day and walked away. I shouldn’t have done that, and it was possibly one of the worst mistakes of my life.” (Person currently surviving in a tent in the woods.)

This week one of our R.O.C. members was speaking to one of their friends about doing the work of homeless outreach. Throughout that conversation the friend questioned multiple times the belief that those experiencing homelessness truly wanted to be helped. This friend had a firm belief that the reason why people remain homeless is because of their lack of wanting to see their situation changed.

Unfortunately this is a common misconception that is held about those experiencing homelessness. This leads to them being labeled as “service resistant.” It is tempting to fall into believing this misconception when you are looking at those experiencing homelessness only from a surface level. It is also the easiest explanation, and if true, it can absolve those who aren’t experiencing homelessness from feeling the pressure or burden to ever do anything to assist their neighbors. If we can shift the blame solely onto the individual, then there is no need to ever place blame on our society, our systems, our agencies and their services, our biased or unbiased opinions and beliefs, our culture, our spending habits, our voting habits, our values, or how we spend our time and energy.

At ROC we take the time and effort to dig deeper, to go from not being a boot on the surface of the ground to instead becoming a boot in the ground literally and figuratively (as evidenced by the picture below). What we discover each time we choose to dig deeper is that the soils of people experiencing homelessness’ lives are much more complex below the surface. And those complexities a lot of times can help to piece together and explain the foundational reasons why someone initially is resisting a resource, a service, or an opportunity that was originally designed with the intent to assist and help.

Instead of believing the myth and labeling individuals experiencing homelessness as “service resistant.” Could the truth instead be that the services aimed to assist those experiencing homelessness deserve the label of being “people resistant”? We at R.O.C. do not believe that truly “service resistant” people exist. We do meet people who do not want to talk to us. Who hide from us. Who curse us out and tell us to leave them alone. Who lie to us about who they are and what they have or haven’t done. Who disappear for long periods of time. Who gives us locations where they can be found and phone numbers that are valid one week but not the next? Who have told us they are not interested in beginning the housing process. Who have rejected transportation to Homeless Healthcare to see a doctor or case manager that can offer a service that a client has previously told us they need. Despite all of these scenarios, we choose to dig deeper and listen for what they are truly saying no to.

Sometimes they are saying no to the location or the environment of the service being offered. Maybe they are saying no to the rules that go along with the program being offered. Maybe they are saying no to you, the asker, because they don’t know you or trust you. Programs, and the people associated with them, let people experiencing homelessness down time and time again. Housing opportunities fall apart and are taken away over technicalities or funding running out at the last minute. Behind every no or resistance is a past story that we know very little about. What does it say about the services we are offering that people would rather remain on the streets than accept them?

If those experiencing homelessness were offered desirable services, in a preferable area, with no barriers, and no strings attached, by someone whom they have built rapport with and trust, even the most resistant would take the offer.

What this requires is long-term investment. We at R.O.C. have had community agencies look to partner with us in the past. After 3 or 4 efforts of doing outreach in the encampments, they communicate to us that they are not seeing a return on their investment. Or they will say it does not appear as though anyone is interested in the services or resources their agency has to offer. We respond to this by pleading with these agencies to understand that their efforts will require more of a long-term, instead of a short-term, investment. We urge them to invest the time, the money, the staff, and the energy. Come dig deeper. Go beyond the surface. Get your boots and your hands dirty. Come tend to the soil of people’s lives. Revisit consistently time after time. Pull some weeds. Remove some rocks. Level the surfaces where they are uneven. Sow some seeds. Water what has been planted, or what appears to be a lost cause, but deep down still contains potential and hope. Do the work so that those experiencing homelessness have the opportunities to invest in themselves once again.

#ROCAndRoll

#DigDeeper

#TheMessageInTheMud

#SurfaceLevelMisconceptions