Proactive Help Wanted

Have you ever been driving in a city and hurriedly locked your car door as soon as you spotted a homeless person? Why are we so afraid? To my surprise, I discovered that if anything, it is the homeless who should be afraid.

There is an alarming trend of violent hate crimes occurring against the homeless. Just recently I was reminded of this by a story on the news: Two young men armed with bats attacked some homeless people outside a downtown Fort Lauderdale college building, even as a security camera watched. One of the homeless men was murdered.

Over the last several years, advocates and homeless shelter workers from around the country, have received news reports of men, women and even children being harassed, kicked, set on fire, beaten to death, and even decapitated. From 1999 through 2001, officials recorded 110 murders of people without housing by housed people and 140 victims of non-lethal violence in 82 cities from 32 states and Puerto Rico. These are only the ones that were reported.

An even more alarming statistic about these homeless hate crimes is they are most often committed by teens. These teens are classified as thrill seekers who take advantage of a vulnerable and disadvantaged group in order to satisfy their own pleasures.

Awareness is a necessity for change, especially in this situation. Currently, many people have false perceptions toward the homeless that generates attitudes of hatred. Furthermore, more awareness is needed because currently there isn't federal criminal prohibition against harming the homeless. There aren't hate crime laws for homeless people because the only included categories of bias motivation are religion, ethnicity, race, and in many cases sexual orientation.

So, what are we waiting for? We have no time to lose, and more importantly more hate crimes do not need to be committed. Let's begin right away by giving these hate crimes committed against the homeless more concern. Utilize your voice, talents, and gifts to help this crucial need. You can visit www.bringingamericahome.com to find out more information on how you can help.

Source: NCH staff. Hate. 18 Jan. 2005. 13 Jan. 2006, http://www.nationalhomeless.org/publications/facts/Hatecrimes.pdf