Dan was like any other person who wanted to find something more out of life by traveling. He knew he could fill the void inside of him by leaving his home of New York, and exploring the country. His first stop: Chicago.
He imagined the crowded CTA trains, much easier to navigate around than the large tunnels of the New York Subway, the warm smell of Garrett’s classic Chicago mix of Carmel and cheese popcorn, the paintings that told the hidden mysteries of the world hiding inside of the Art Institute.
He did not imagine the dirt ridden fingernails, palms open for the bag of popcorn someone was going to throw out, or sitting on the steps in his one pair of dirty clothes, next to the giant statue of a lion, wondering what art is alive behind those glass doors, and hoping he will get enough money to survive to the next day. Chicago was his first and last stop on his exploration, and four years later he isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.
Homelessness has been a problem for cities all over the world, especially Chicago, but has it gotten worse, especially in the Loop?
The City offers services to aid in ending homelessness, such as the Chicago Department of Family and Support Services. They have 13 locations in the Loop, offering services from shelter care to technical assistance and training. Even with the aid of those programs, some homeless people, like Dan, find themselves on the street.
“There are so many people there who are on parole and have that prison mentality,” Dan said, “ You can’t get no sleep and it is just so crowded.”
Click to load user-submitted video in a new window.Dan is not the only homeless person not sleeping in the shelters. In 2015, even through the average number of overnight beds in shelters is greater than the number of over night beds available in 2014 by, 2.2 percent, the amount of beds utilized over night have even decreased since 2014.
Many people have noticed this trend, especially DePaul Sophomore Brandon Meng, who was harassed on his way home to the University Center, by a homeless woman, near DePaul’s Loop Campus.
“A homeless woman was yelling at me for no reason and calling me a stupid white boy and stuff like that,” Meng said.
A DePaul security staff, Matthews, from the Loop campus shares the same concerns as students. Matthews lives in the suburbs and commutes everyday via CTA. “The homeless population is out of hand,” Matthews said. He does not even feel safe taking his two daughters downtown anymore.
The Chicago Loop Alliance is another program that recognizes the seriousness of homelessness and aims to improve it. Betsy Benito, director of the Illinois Program Corporation for Supportive Housing trained Loop Alliance ambassadors on specific techniques to approach the homeless in Chicago. The Loop Alliance’s goal is to move the “chronically homeless” into shelters, half-way houses and other programs.
According to Chicago Crain’s Business magazine, Benito discussed that the homeless population in the Loop is higher than in most Chicago communities because most social service agencies are located in residential neighborhoods rather than in the downtown business district.
“Homelessness is clearly a very complex and challenging problem, but efforts like this that are trying to be proactive and consistent improve the chance of success,” Benito said.
Even with the services available from the Chicago Department of Family and Support Services and the Chicago Loop Alliance, it is still hard for homeless people like Dan to get off the streets and get an actual job.
“Nobody really wants to hire you when you look kind of dirty, rough, you have been sleeping outside and maybe smell a little bit and don’t have a steady address,” Dan said, “It takes money to make money: buy new clothes, clean up, and get that seven-day train card until you can get your first paycheck.”
As winter approaches and the warmth of the holiday lights illuminate Michigan Avenue, Dan longs to return home. “I don’t know if I want to do another winter out here. I’ve been gone long enough and miss my family,” Dan said.
