The Chicken Man

But Ernest Lee isn’t technically overlooked. At least his artwork isn’t.

If you drive down Huger Street just past Gervais, you have probably seen his mobile trailer parked on the side of the road. “All my exes live in Texas. Now I live in SC” is fancifully painted on the side. He avoids questions surrounding the meaning behind that quote, possibly because he’s too busy laughing to himself about it.

Has he been to Texas? No. But he has been to Chicago, Florida and other southern states and is proud to tell you so. Although born in Edgefield, Lee takes his curbside art show on the road. He has two subjects: a Palmetto tree and a Gamecock. Except the Gamecock has breasts and long legs, and sometimes carries a purse and wears a dress. For this reason, Ernest says he is widely known as the “Chicken Man” and has local celebrity status.

“You haven’t heard of the Chicken Man? Everybody’s heard of the Chicken Man. You’ve seen me before ain’t you?!”

It was a surprise to him that I hadn’t. Lee has had his artwork shown in the Columbia Visitors Center, featured at the South Carolina Book Festival, and displayed at the House of Ahhs in Beaufort. If you wander around the offices of some USC faculty, you will likely find a painting of his chicken hanging colorfully on the wall.

The Chicken Man will willingly allow you to mosey around the inside of his mobile cart, though you’ll have little room to take more than a few steps in. On the right hangs a faded poster of him and his 12-year old son, the kind of picture you take in the booths at the mall that print your photo on the spot. He speaks little of his past but is forthright in mentioning the number of girlfriends he’s had. He is currently single, however.

And quite the businessman. Lee appeals to Clemson Tiger fans: in the far end of his gallery is a painting of a tiger choking a gamecock. He was hesitant to allow me to take a picture of his orange-spirited paintings, but I told him it wouldn’t get him into any trouble.

If you’re doubtful that anyone selling art painted on used, unsanded plywood would be recognizable in the city of Columbia, you’re not the only one. A roll of toilet paper is the only cloth he needs to wipe his brushes and clean his hands. But art was something the Chicken Man knew he wanted to dedicate the rest of his life to, a passion that developed since before he can remember. He paints more than just feminine chickens and palm trees, however. Lee has a series of paintings dedicated to Martin Luther King, Jr., a “Before 1968” and “After 1968”, depicting the assassination of the civil rights leader. Though the chicken and palm tree are his most popular subjects, he also paints scenes of city life. These are shown—“For Display Only”—next to his mobile gallery, along with a photograph of Elvis Presley.

Why Elvis?

“The ladies love him. They like to see him there.”

“In that case, you might want to move the pro-Clemson Tiger painting somewhere else. That might not catch on with some ladies, ” I responded.

1753

In January of 2005, volunteers scoured the streets of Columbia and found 1,753 people living in conditions not intended for humans. This number is considered to be largely underestimated.
Natalie Graham from the Columbia Family Shelter has a solution for this: pay everybody a living wage. In the Midlands, a person would have to earn $12.02 an hour to afford an apartment. Many working people simply cannot afford housing.[1] And the working poor who can? They are placed on a waiting list of 4,000 people, meaning it could be two to three years before they even hear from the Columbia Housing Authority. With odds like that, it should not come as a shock to see a homeless man with a paper-bagged bottle living behind a dumpster.
“The only thing I throw away behind the dumpsters are King Cobras,” said Josh Vaughan, a Columbia resident who does maintenance at Whaley's Mill. He is speaking of the 40 ounce bottle of beer that you can get for $1.29. “When I give one man money, that's usually what's in his paper bag. So I try to keep change in my pocket. He asks for nickels and dimes. He told me his name is Daryl."
Substance abuse, addiction, and mental illness are oftentimes at the root of their homelessness. Mary Laughead, Development Coordinator at the Oliver Gospel Mission Center, explained that many of the men they serve have grown up in loving families, but there was a catalyst that turned them to their addiction.
“You don’t know what it is in their past, it’s oftentimes one thing or another. But they can turn to alcohol. People don’t understand that often the homeless are homeless due to addictions.”
For this reason, the Center seeks to address addiction recovery issues first. Approximately 22% of homeless people are mentally ill and about 30% have a substance abuse problem.[2] Finding low-income housing is already difficult and competitive for a homeless person, adding a mental illness or addiction to that guarantees a lack of options.

Leroy walks leisurely through the park across the street from the Salvation Army. He is waiting for the doors to open, hoping he’ll find a place in line to get a free meal. His eyes convey a feeling of hopelessness and his breath smells faintly of alcohol. He joins a group of men standing by the fence near a “No Loitering” sign.
Leroy is one of the hundreds of people that are commonly referred to as eyesores of the downtown community. Not only that, but downtown Main Street is avoided because of the common misconception that most homeless are criminals. In fact, homeless individuals are more likely to be victims of crime, according to a study of the criminalization of homeless[3]. Homeless people actually commit less crime than those who can afford housing. But contact with law enforcement for loitering and panhandling can give the wrong impression to passersby.
It bothers Leroy that he scares some people into crossing the other side of the street. He has been living on the streets for the past 15 years of his life, migrating from shelter to shelter.
“I carry everything I have in my bag,” Leroy said, pointing to his red drawstring bag. If you look closely, you can see it is barely filled.

[1] Blueprint to Address Homelessness in the Midlands
[2] U.S. Conference of Mayors’ “A Status Report on Hunger and Homelessness in America’s Cities: 2005”.
[3] The Criminalization of Homelessness

In the Midlands, a person would have to earn $12.02 an hour to afford an apartment. Many working people simply cannot afford housing.

"The demand for housing assistance is so high in the metro area that the Columbia Housing Authority only opens the waiting list every two or three years. There are currently over 4000 people on the Section 8 waiting list in this region. The high cost of establishing housing (security deposits, first and last months’ rent and furnishings), inadequate public transportation, and for some a history of poverty or personal problems (poor credit, poor housing histories, arrest records) can make it impossible to emerge from homelessness." (Midlands Commission on Homeless)

Josh Vaughan, a Columbia resident who does maintenance at Whaley's Mill, explained that King Cobra seems to be the drink of choice for many homeless who are also alcoholics.

"The only thing i throw away behind the dumpsters are King Cobras. When I give one regular money, that's usually what's in his paper bag. So I try to keep change in my pocket; he asks for nickels and dimes. He told me his name is Daryl."

Leroy

Leroy, born and raised in Columbia, prefers the Salvation Army to missionary centers: "Too much paperwork. And they shove religion at you."

70% of homeless in Columbia were born in the Midlands and 75% were living here when they first became homeless (“A Status Report on Hunger and Homelessness in America’s Cities: 2005”).