I’m accustomed to disappointing people. It’s part of the job of having an opinion and sharing it.
It’s also part of the job of being human and being part of a community, as John Lydgate observed: “You can please some of the people all of the time, you can please all of the people some of the time, but you can’t please all of the people all of the time.”
But occasionally the feeling is amplified when a discussion turns to homelessness. Specifically, when it turns to the homeless population in Chula Vista. Even more specifically, when it focuses on the homeless on Third Avenue who have seemingly adopted a corner of Memorial Park as their base camp. Sometimes a few of them even bed down in the entry way to The Star-News once the sun starts its final descent.
Every now and then I’ll receive an email or a message via social media. “Something has to be done about the growing homeless population in Chula Vista.” While there may be a tinge of acrimony — real or imagined — in what they are saying I agree with the sentiment. Some thing has to be done. But what?
Perhaps the easiest and most immediate action is seeing them.
Some time ago I was shown a photograph of an individual who had camped out beneath one of the display windows in front of The Star-News. The man or woman was asleep on top of a piece of cardboard, a grocery cart filled with random items of clothing stood a few feet away.
Presumably the image was supposed to fill me with outrage and prompt me to write a column about the growing homeless problem and the need for greater policing along Third Avenue, where local businesses are adversely affected by the presence of disheveled and malodorous vagabonds.
Instead the image filled me with sadness and, surprisingly, momentary happiness.
It was gratifying to know that the building where I work could provide refuge for someone, even if it was for just a few hours.
My observation was met with incredulity, perhaps even disdain and disappointment.
Of course that is not an invitation or even tacit approval of The Star-News, or any other business in any other part of the city, becoming a de facto shelter. There are too many risks — legally, socially and financially —associated with that sort of approach. Nor does it address or solve the issue.
There are myriad reasons why people live on the streets — from substance abuse to mental illness to poverty. Chasing someone away from a park or a doorway does nothing to change those circumstances or make someone’s life better.
People are right when they say something has to be done about the growing number of homeless in this city. Perhaps the first thing to do is see them.
See the people, not just the dirty clothes and the grocery carts. Maybe once we see them as who they are and who they could be we’ll start holding our leaders and ourselves more accountable for finding solutions.
