By: Lily Elliott
Imagine a homeless person wandering on the side of the road. How would you imagine them? What would they be like?
Many associate the homeless in various stereotypes. They are all addicts, lazy, and/or dumb are the leading stereotypes that cross people's minds. These beliefs severely affect the way the homeless are treated. People are less likely to want to help them and provide them shelter when they assume they are lazy addicts and brought this on themselves. But the truth is that just like the general population, only a certain percentage are addicts, and the challenges the homeless face everyday makes it really hard to be lazy and not constantly be on the move.
An article on a website called “The Homeless Hub '' speaks to each of these specific examples.
“ In order to survive, many people who experience homelessness are constantly in search of the necessities of life, such as food, shelter and a source of income. Therefore, due to the barriers that they face, many people experiencing homelessness do not have the option of being stagnant or lazy. For example, searching for a job becomes even more challenging when an individual does not have access to a phone, computer, or fixed address on a regular basis. Many people who experience homelessness do not struggle with substance abuse problems or addictions. Just like in the general population, only a percentage of those who are experiencing homelessness deal with addictions. People experiencing homelessness may deal with other issues related to their experiences of homelessness, including trauma and mental illness, for example.”
A lot of the homeless don't even look like they have lived on the streets. At the Trinity Center on Sundays, people can volunteer to serve food and socialize with neighbors(the term they use for homeless). They are all very friendly and grateful, and don't act any different than the general population. Sure, a few may be addicts or mentally unstable. But they get treated just like anyone would, regardless of their financial standings.
“I think there’s a prevalent assumption in our society that homelessness is caused by an individual’s inability to make the right choices in their life, after all, you’re friends and family have been able to survive just fine through hard work and perseverance right? But the reality is that there are so many factors that lead to homelessness such as running away from an abusive family, having a mental/physical disability that prevents the ability to work, being kicked out for being LGTBQ, financial crisis.'', says the National coalition for the Homeless in their article supporting the homeless.
All of them have their own story worth telling, and can speak on their experiences with the stereotyping that comes with being homeless.
Civil lawyer and litigator Chris Elliott once took on a pro bono lawsuit and represented a homeless man named Joe(not his real name) in a case against a used car lot and financing company shortly after he purchased a van from them. This case gives an amazing example of stereotyping and lack of respect some people have for the homeless.
Joe signed a contract, as well as an additional down payment when he made his purchase. He needed to pay a monthly fee, and if he missed any payments, they would take the van back. The company thrived off of targeting the homeless and poor, knowing they wouldn’t be able to pay the monthly fee, then they would keep the down payment, then resell the vehicle and repeat the process. Joe missed a payment, but instead of just taking his van, they came while he was at work, took the van, and threw away everything inside: which was everything he owed. All his food, supplies for work, and clothes were all gone. He was left no belongings other than what he had on him.
Joe rightfully was upset, and decided to pursue legal action. He made a wise decision and reached out to a place where he could get free legal help, and his case was given to Mr. Elliott, who made a case and sued the used vehicle company.
Joe found Mr. Elliott through a organization called Volunteer Legal Services of Central Texas
VLACT has a specific specialty: “Volunteer Legal Services was founded in 1981 by Austin attorneys concerned by inequity in the civil legal system. The high cost of legal services meant poor people could not get the help they needed, even for critical issues like divorce, child custody, consumer fraud and housing matters. First named “Austin Lawyers Care,” our founders envisioned an organization that mobilized volunteer attorneys to give back to their community through donations of time and legal expertise”
The company obviously assumed that because of his financial situation they could get away with their actions.They stereotyped him as a lazy homeless guy, because no company would knowingly put themselves right into a lawsuit. They expected that they could just take his belongings, and Joe would’t be able to do anything about it. “It's very much likely that they assumed he would not be smart enough or sober enough to pursue legal action”, says Mr. Elliott. “Joe is smart, and had had every intention of keeping a job, and doing all the things he needed to do to get his life back on track.”
Joe ended up winning the lawsuit, and got reimbursed for the lost items. “We got a settlement where they paid Joe enough money to cover the cost of the tools and the belongings that were destroyed, plus a little bit extra. With that money he was able to buy either a bus ticket or plane ticket, one of the two, back to Florida where he was from, and he felt like he had better connections that in Texas, and would be able to get a good paying job.”
Joe’s story shows how easily the homeless can be stereotyped, and demonstrates how people underestimate them and don't think of them as having the same rights as everybody else.
Comments