It has become clear as a bell to me that San Diego isn’t as hell bent over ending its social problems as is being discussed with our current administration.
At a recent meeting with The mayor’s offices’ Department of Community Solutions, the issues of restraining orders against the homeless in Hillcrest, and providing bathrooms for our homeless as a public safety issue for all, were some of the topics the department was willing to discuss with our team of concerned residents.
The Hillcrest Business Association, putting its efforts and perhaps money, behind an attorney, submitted 10 cases of proposed restraining orders on the homeless, and a San Diego Superior court judge approved just one. It makes one wonder just which entity, the homeless themselves or the association, is more insane.
However, our relationship with HBA is developing into a good one, and I completely respect their inability to know what to do with the situation. It’s hard for everyone. It’s not their business and it’s out of control. Business is their business.
In a meeting at City Hall with both Robert Tice, board member of the Live and Let Live Alano Club, a comprehensive resource center and 12-step meeting hall, and myself were able to table some of the social issues facing our community.
We walked away with a feeling of having been heard, and, in fact, understood with our view of the missing component of the recovery aspect of the disease of drug addiction. The mental affliction is often times responsible for a large piece of the pie of homelessness in our community. Everybody knows that, and if they don’t, they surely do assume that is the base of much of the problem. They are right. Drug addiction is a mental illness and the entire country is in an epidemic with the issue. So why hold the victims morally responsible?
That having been said, it is safe to say that prescription drugs, as a means to solving everything, is winning the “air war” in our society. It permeates the airwaves of television and the Internet. This, of course, followed by ads by Father Joe’s Village to then save the same people we are drugging. The drugging and cleansing business is “winning”, at the cost of polluting our bodies and minds. Careless.
Historically, 12-step recovery programs and their respective clubs and locations, were to be kept confidential, thus the “anonymous” component. Certainly, when it comes to advertising rehabilitation centers and hospital programs for addictions, the industry is rather up-front. But not the once strictly secret societies attached to post treatment 12 step meetings.
To me, and many others, it adds to the stigma of shame, one of the very issues necessary to overcome the affliction and blocking progress to its solution. Time to think outside the box.
Most everyone in our society either knows of programs such as Alcoholics Anonymous, or, knows someone who has, at least approached AA as a means of a revolutionary approach to changing their circumstances resulting from the disease.
Historically, altruistically organic in nature and self-supporting with declining outside contributions, it has self-sustained itself since the 1930s. This 12 step approach has been duplicated many times for a number of afflictions and disorders following the “Mother Ship” of AA itself for one reason and one reason only, it works!
Some leaders of the recovery community are becoming proponents of coming out more, into the light, in the community. There is a solution and it’s been working for nearly a century.
Here’s my point. Approaching governments and business associations to do something to solve the problem of homelessness in our city, or, in fact, anywhere, is unfair and unsuccessful. Clearly. As soon as we put out one fire, there’s another building burning down, so to speak, and a constant flow of new homeless ready to fill the shoes of the rescued.
The LGBT epidemic of youth homelessness has been dominating the media for some time now. I, personally interviewed then mayoral candidate and San Diego DA Bonnie Dumanis on the impending epidemic and the continued unsafe environment to the LGBT community in local rescue missions and shelters. That was in 2012, four years ago. Since then, nothing has been done. Nothing to make it safer for LGBTs.
In fact, the community continues to shun the homeless and refuses to discuss domestic violence in same-sex relationships particularly a shelter for men. There are no options, which contribute to homelessness, or death.
Recently, Cynthia Nixon called LGBT youth homelessness “the AIDS of this generation”. And it’s true. With the rollout of national gay marriage, the epidemic grew to proportions not exactly expected in a changing and “more fair” society.
Locally, in Hillcrest, we have the business associations up in arms to say the least that our leaders do something to just make them go away. Many agree that when it comes to business, “sour eye candy” is not what motivates the buyer. Everybody knows that. Yet, some of our most effective business minds are stumped when it comes to clearing away the tossed aside society of the homeless. These people are far from “down on their luck” citizens. That attitude is problem number one.
How we see and perceive a person who is far less fortunate than ourselves has all to do with the problem, thus its solution. Much like the disease of drug addiction and alcoholism itself, it’s a perception problem for the human race itself. Ask any law enforcement professional, who resolves many community conflict issues; it is a matter of the individual’s perception, both that of the law equally as that of the individuals, based on a reasonable man’s standard.
The question remains what is reasonable?
To wit, if an individual desire is to, or a psychological need to, pollute themselves because they cannot compete or participate in our troubled society, in large part, that’s their business. If the people, all of us, want change, that’s our business.
The “Band Aid” truck as it is known on the street, aka, The Alpha Project (bless them) is just that, a Band Aid and an absolutely necessary one, and appreciated by all. That part is compassionate, and not a root cause solution.
There is no lack of compassion in your average San Diegan, we get it. To me, it remains a political and administration problem as to who, what, where, when and most importantly, why, “boots on the ground” in the war on homelessness is absolutely necessary. The war is not on the homeless. It’s on homelessness. The homeless are not the problem. The homeless are the end result of the problem.
At a recent mixer, I had a banker ask me why I think homelessness is such a problem in the U.S. Of course, I replied, “Wall Street and the banking industry” and remind me to close my accounts with you. Dead serious. When we left the affair, my dear friend Robert said to me, “and look at all the garbage they left behind…”
I say leave it to the people, who understand the problem, thus are equipped to respond to the solution, to handle it. We will need to re-approach in order to land this one. What exactly do I mean by that?
Here’s the first clue – don’t put the Portland loo smack in the middle of the business district and say we’ve tried. No think tank necessary on that one. It didn’t work and we’re dropping it. In fact, we were told that the City has put enough time and money into the issue and not going to budge on a re-approach. Really? Is that who we are?
We, the citizens of my team, have a proposal for the city, one that addresses the holes in the system, ones that we believe just might be the wrap around services necessary to hold up and support the abandoned. I personally participated in interviewing our homeless population for the Annual Regional Task force on the Homeless Jan. 30. While my personal findings are confidential in nature, I can say that the homeless I spoke to would have kept me there all day talking about the past and what brought them here to San Diego. It is my belief that the opposite of addiction is often times connection. I can think of a number of offerings the homeless have for us if we only showed interest. Is it safe to assume our city leaders and business associations don’t think it’s that big of a deal? Let’s see this election season. I think we need a “Homeless Czar” to co-ordinate existing services, including 211, and establish a central database for agencies working tirelessly to serve a complicated, disorganized, off the mark system, spinning its wheels and spending our money on chasing the dragon.
In this case, the minds working on this issue will only work very much like a parachute, when it remains open.
Hello Anthony, Your dedication to the homeless and addiction in Hillcrest is appreciated. I agree we need solutions, but we have needed solutions for 20 years. I have worked in Hillcrest for years and have seen homeless, drunks, addicts, come and go, sometimes die or recover and return. What have I done about it? Taken one at a time. Offer phone calls to services. Work with law enforcement to drive out drug dealers. Encourage recovery. In all those years, how many have I seen truly recover and get on with their lives? 2. It is a constant and tiring battle for business owners and their supporters. When I hear someone from north county say they do not want to come back to the neighborhood to eat because of the homeless or see a review on Yelp about how they liked the business, but not being harassed for money, it makes me wonder about location. Is it any wonder so many businesses turn over quickly? The main problems that need to be addressed are: stop lumping everyone on the street into the “homeless” category. Many of them have homes, but come out to beg for drug money. Most have criminal records and continue to steal, harass, purse snatch, and sexually assault people. Do we roll over and take that because they are called “homeless”? We would not from a criminal who has a roof over their head. You would be calling the police. I have gone toe to toe with many criminals over the years in Hillcrest. They have records as long as your arm, but nothing that will put them away or get them help for longer than six months, then they are back again. The health care system is another problem. Because Hillcrest is in a hospital zone, anytime a patient’s funding runs out, they are literally booted onto the street to wander in slippers and in a lithium daze with nowhere to go and no one to call. So before we blame the business association who is doing the bidding of the Hillcrest businesses, let’s remember that these are the people who have boots on the ground and are battling every day and put up with harassing, smashed windows, destroyed bathrooms, stolen merchandise, break ins, utility theft (water), trash in front of the shops, cleaning up vomit and shit, and the Alpha Project has been useless, btw, whenever I have tried to call for help for someone. It would be nice to have a homeless / addict patrol in Hillcrest every day, but keep in mind many of the addicts do not want to go into programs and no one can force them. They have chosen to stay on the street and chosen to feed their addiction. One thing that keeps them there is the money they make from begging. Maybe we need a law like Tijuana’s where the giver is prosecuted. It is illegal to give money to someone begging on the street.