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.
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
