Guest guest Posted April 13, 2006 Report Share Posted April 13, 2006 I wrote a commentary to the Honolulu Advertiser and it got published. I want to share it with you all even though it is not directly MCS/Building related because MCS/Building Mold/Mildew is often a reason for homelessness. There has been much 'attention' given to the homeless in Hawaii lately and recently the harbor where they had camps set up was plowed with bulldozers along with all their possessions. An article written by a woman from Catholic Charities spurred my commentary. They edited it a bit but it holds the same meaning. Posted on: Tuesday, April 11, 2006 'BAD TENANCY' IS NO HOMELESSNESS REASON The comments in the March 31 Advertiser article entitled " Lingle asks for homeless solutions " by Treena Shapiro show exactly why well-meaning folks perpetuate the homeless problem. Ms. Carol Ignacio talked about " efforts by the Catholic Church's Office of Social Ministry to teach the homeless to be good tenants. " This is plain and simple ignorance. Being homeless does not mean someone is a bad tenant, and becoming homeless is not the result of being a bad tenant. Homelessness knows no race, no gender, no socioeconomic status and no age. I worked at a shelter doing intake case management and was surprised to find many of the homeless worked harder than I did when I had two full-time jobs. Many were very reliable and would not miss an appointment or a day of work. People become homeless for many reasons, including but not limited to ill health, disability, loss of a job in a specialty field, economic recession, increasing rents and home prices without equivalent increases in wages, inability to find a job, domestic violence and, in some cases, drug addiction. Any one of us could become homeless. It's high time we lend a hand so people can step up and stop the victim-blaming. Being homeless is not a character defect. The last thing the homeless need is to be taught how to be good tenants. Let's wake up and deal with the real issues like lack of affordable housing and insufficient welfare grants and disability benefits. Lourdes " Sal " Salvador Wailuku, Maui http://the.honoluluadvertiser.com/article/2006/Apr/11/op/FP604110316.html Lourdes " Sal " Salvador, salvadorlourdes@... www.mcs-awareness.org, www.mcs-awareness.org/19670.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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