Homelessness in the United States is becoming a huge social issue. This has been an ongoing problem as incomes for middle class families decline and many are left with nothing. In studies conducted in 2015, there were 564,708 homeless people in the United States.
In Portland Ore., alone, there are about 4,000 homeless and in the last year we have started to really take note of their presence. Before, you used to see the biggest concentration in Chinatown, and there were a few people on the sidewalks here and there. Most homeless people were around there because there are kitchens there who give them meals with the help of donations and volunteers.
However, the first time I went downtown after coming back home from college this summer, I was shocked to see the difference in their presence. Most of the time, I travel by bus. When I passed under a bridge that leads downtown, I saw massive homeless camps under he bridge. Tents under the trees to catch some shade, old couches, blankets tied to fences as if to make walls. One tent even had three little dirt steps to enter it. I was shocked and couldn’t believe that Portland’s mayor hasn’t done anything about it. After all, Portland is a growing and thriving city. Why?
As with everything, homelessness has supporters and opposers. There are those in Portland who think the homeless camps are a security risk, and there are others who sympathize with the homeless. They want to help them transition back into society. There is one specific camp in Portland that’s getting a lot of attention, and that’s the Springwater trail, a biking area and park. The situation there is just as I described earlier: numerous tents under the trees with homeless people living there. I was watching a news story about that trail and one homeless woman said she felt like she was on vacation every day, that she would never leave because of that. Um, excuse me? Most people’s ideas of vacation do not involve living it up at a homeless camp.
Turns out the mayor has tried to do something though. He tried to evacuate the camps only to face opposition. In the end, he had to extend the deadline of evacuation by 30 more days. I understand that we must show solidarity to those in that type of situation, but the people who oppose the evacuation don’t really have a plan B as to what to do with the homeless. Rather than opposing everything the mayor tries to do regarding the homeless, we should act with options. But I, like most, have no idea what to do either.
