First Day: Post 9

Stereotyping is simply a part of human nature. Although some may attempt to avoid stereotyping others or may take offense to stereotypes about certain groups of people, stereotyping is a way in which people attempt to find their way around. It is a way to try to separate the good people from the bad, the selfless and the selfish, friends and acquaintances.

When I met with Ted Knoll, the executive director of the Whittier First Day Coalition, we discussed the issue of homelessness. In our discussion he brought up the stereotypical assumptions made by the public. He mentioned that the goal was not to eliminate the stereotypes of what it means to be homeless, instead we had to expand on the stereotypes or alter them.

At first I questioned this tactic, but when I thought about it more thoroughly it made sense. Why? Well to be honest if you think about it the stereotypical idea of someone who is homeless is someone who is either mentally ill, an addict, or a veteran. These are the types of people who make up the homeless population, however, there is more to the story.

You see many people assume that approaching someone who is homeless is something scary. They fear that they may be attacked or be mugged. Others do not give the homeless spare change with the fear that they may waste the money given to them on drugs or alcohol.

What people need to understand is that not all homeless people are a threat and not all of them wish to waste the money they come across on drugs. Some of them want an opportunity to turn their lives around and leave the isolation of the streets to reconnect to society.

When people think of homelessness they should not think of people who have hit rock bottom and have  not way of getting back up. Instead they should think of homelessness as something that can be overcome given the opportunity.