Just give it to the homeless bum on the corner...

spiderlashes5000 · 08-02-2012, 02:14 PM

Ugh, cringing now. Two coworkers were playfighting over a $1 someone found and one said, "give it to the homeless bum on the corner, for all I care."

I'll call someone a bum in a heartbeat. But never someone just bc they're homeless.

A lot of homeless people are mentally ill, and that is a real sore spot w/ me (not for any particular reason, it just is bc I was a suicide hotline volunteer so I have some experience w MI. And some are MI and/or addicted...and i have less compassion for addiction but still enough to not want to call people who struggle w/ adiction "bums."

Do you guys ever call homeless people/vagrants/panhandlers "bums?"

(Even "vagrant" sounda kinda marginalizing.)

fefe912 · 08-02-2012, 02:36 PM

I'll playfully call one of my friends a bum, but not a homeless person because I tend to feel bad for them and often find myself wondering how they got in their situation. I try to help, but I'm not for giving them money I'd rather give them actual stuff that would be helpful, because if they're an alcoholic or drug addict I'm not trying to help support their habbit.

thelio · 08-02-2012, 03:01 PM

I would never call a homeless person a bum. I've been homeless and it sucks!!!

SpiralSpunk · 08-02-2012, 03:06 PM

No that's a rude thing to say especially with them within earshot. You never know how they wound up where they are.

Nej · 08-02-2012, 03:10 PM

Very insensitive and degrading comment

For me it's not the word 'bum' itself but the context in which it was used that I find offensive.

webjockey · 08-02-2012, 03:10 PM

no

In texas, many homeless are children.

journotraveler · 08-02-2012, 04:19 PM

No.

I remember, though, as a kid, before there was any consciousness about "homeless," that people living on the street were often called bums.

roseannadana · 08-02-2012, 04:27 PM

I call them homeless. My grandmother used to call them hobos. She lived in a rural area and they would sometimes knock for food or ask if they could work.

NetG · 08-02-2012, 04:48 PM

I think the only time I've used the term bum is when calling someone who is doing nothing for themselves a lazy bum.

I have known many homeless people for various reasons. Most were when I worked at Burger King and we had regulars who were homeless and lived in the area. Some were addicts of some type, but others simply chose the life. You could have called them mentally ill for not wanting to live the life society dictates, and I suspect there was some sort of PTSD as they were all veterans - but they sure seemed sane to me. They had fought wars, and simply didn't want to live a life in which bills and daily requirements at a job were part of their lives. They didn't beg for money or anything, had PO boxes where their war vet checks were sent and could therefore buy their own food, clothing, etc. They knew where to go to do laundry and bathe and tended to be cleaner than a lot of the folks who came in with jobs.
We had the occasional scary and clearly mentally ill individual, but the regulars tried to keep them away from us. They also chased away anyone who wanted to beg in front of the restaurant as they appreciated that the owner let them be around and didn't want to be banned. I remember one man who was homeless after losing a job and his wife and kids were living with family while he was attempting to find work. The guys who chose to be homeless helped him figure out how to manage it, and he wasn't around long before he had a job and new apartment.
My dad's office was in the downtown area and had a room which wasn't attached to the rest of the building. He allowed a homeless man to sleep outside under the back bushes regularly and when the police were trying to pick up homeless people would say he had permission to be there, and on cold nights let him in to the empty room. In return, my dad's office was the only one on the street with no graffiti. That man told my dad he simply liked alcohol better than being able to have a home and keep a job. Sad, but who are we to force a decision on someone? It's an illness, but is it our duty to fix?

To me the homeless are to be helped when they want it like the man who was out of work, and deserving of our compassion. But to be ridiculed? No. Just unnecessary and showing a lack of compassion to me.

claudine19 · 08-02-2012, 05:15 PM

That was interesting, NetG. Especially since becoming homeless and losing my dogs, or pushing them around in a shopping cart, is one of my fears.

I always tried to give money or food to homeless adults with pets. Or I tried to buy the pet from the teenagers begging for money outside of shops with "Help Wanted" signs in the window.

mrspoppers · 08-02-2012, 06:26 PM

Are there bums? IMO, yes. Does homeless = bum? No. Does bum = homeless? No. To me, they are two different sets of people. I actually think there would be a lot more support of human services if well-meaning people would stop lumping every single homeless person and panhandler in one huge group called "The Homeless."

I donate money, time, food, dog food, etc to people who are down on their luck and broke or without homes. But just because I'm a liberal/democrat in one of the most liberal cities in the country, doesn't mean I'm a pushover. I don't give any money to the people on the freeway onramp asking for money. I stopped giving money to panhandlers with dogs when I used to see the same dog with a different "owner" panhandling every day. I'm also wary of "Vietnam Vets" who are in their 30s and 40s.

I am jaded because Seattle gets the migratory, career-homeless people. They're like snowbirds, in that they winter in California and spend the rest of their time up here. They have no interest in working and they will always earn their living panhandling. And having been chased--yes chased--by aggressive panhandlers on more than one occasion, I'm not too sympathetic. Sorry.

diaspora · 08-02-2012, 07:00 PM

No way, I wouldn't call a homeless person a bum no matter the reason why they are homeless. I wouldn't actually call anyone a "bum." I think there are always deeper reasons when someone seems "lazy" and I just don't think it is a helpful label.

And when I can spare it, I'll give a person on the street a little cash. And I won't give it with strings attached. Might they spend it on alcohol or drugs instead of food? Maybe. Might I spend my money on alcohol (or a new lip gloss or something else I don't need) when I actually might end up short on rent or low on food? Sure, sometimes I do.

Giving money to people on the street isn't going to solve the problem of homelessness of course. Working to create an actual safety net in the US, like healthcare and housing as human rights, will help. Perhaps this is a "duh" thing to state, but a lack of affordable housing is actually the #1 cause of homelessness. (Disproportionately affected groups include the mentally ill, veterans, women, children, lgbtq teens, and growing in numbers is the elderly homeless population, ugh!)

HipsterSoul · 08-02-2012, 09:10 PM

No. You never know that person's situation. Some homeless people, especially where I am from, choose to be homeless and come from well to do families, particularly with college students who are cut off from thier parents.

Some homeless people just get sick of dealing with society and give up.

I think it's rude.

greenjumper · 08-02-2012, 09:30 PM

I don't think I've ever called a homeless person a bum but I also don't think the word is so derogatory that I never use it. (Unless it really is and I need to stop?)

I think a lot of people use it because it's an "American ideology" that if you are poor, it's because you are lazy/dumb and don't work hard enough. That's unfortunate because a lot of people are just in bad situations that they don't have complete control over.

My old roommate and I made a song about how much of a "lazy bum" I am. It was because for some reason, I was taking so many naps one semester. I would literally come back from class and take a nap every single day. Hence, the song was formed. We made it up together and even though it's been a while since then, sometimes we still refer to it as our inside joke.

People don't really refer to me as a lazy person in seriousness but everyone knows I love taking naps!

thelio · 08-03-2012, 06:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by diaspora

Giving money to people on the street isn't going to solve the problem of homelessness of course. Working to create an actual safety net in the US, like healthcare and housing as human rights, will help. Perhaps this is a "duh" thing to state, but a lack of affordable housing is actually the #1 cause of homelessness. (Disproportionately affected groups include the mentally ill, veterans, women, children, lgbtq teens, and growing in numbers is the elderly homeless population, ugh!)

Thanks for pointing this out diaspora. When you are living on minimum wage, there is no affordable housing. I live in dc adn make a little more the minimum wage and could never afford the rent on the cheapest apartment if I didnt have a roomate.

My family became squatters after the economy went to hell and my dad couldnt get work. Then for a few months my family was able to find a cheap hotel to stay in. My family is still struggling. My family was no bums. The reasons we got in to that situation had nothing to do with laziness. Both of my parents suffer form mental illness and drug addiction. But both parents busted their buts to make sure my sister and I had a roof over our heads. My dad who had great pride, even went to home depot and stood with the mexicans hoping for a days work. After 3 years of squatting, boucing between cheap motels, and where ever else my family could lay their heads, my dad was able to secure a job and rent a place. We were no bums, we were trying to survive. And its sad to think that we could had probably gotten more help form strangers then our own family.

Who Me? · 08-03-2012, 06:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mrspoppers

Are there bums? IMO, yes. Does homeless = bum? No. Does bum = homeless? No. To me, they are two different sets of people. I actually think there would be a lot more support of human services if well-meaning people would stop lumping every single homeless person and panhandler in one huge group called "The Homeless."

This sums up what I was going to say perfectly. Where live there are so many "career homeless" people, who mostly aren't even homeless! They just spend their time on the streets begging for money...and then mostly spend the money on drugs. There are of course others, who are mentally ill, or who are just down on their luck, but they are either much fewer, or a lot less visible, than the others. I NEVER give money to anyone one the streets because I don't want to support the "career homeless".

claudine19 · 08-03-2012, 07:56 AM

Thelio, I'm really sorry that happened to you and your family.

VTmom · 08-03-2012, 08:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by roseannadana

I call them homeless. My grandmother used to call them hobos. She lived in a rural area and they would sometimes knock for food or ask if they could work.

When I was growing up we also called them hobos. I vividly remember them knocking on our door and my mother always made them a sandwich. I never thought ill of them, just badly that they had no food or money.

thelio · 08-03-2012, 09:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by claudine19

Thelio, I'm really sorry that happened to you and your family.

Thanks claudine. It was tough but we got through.

Growing up we were not rich by any means, but we always tried to help others. My parents felt if we had an extra potatoe, we would give it to someone who didnt it. We never looked down on the unfortunate. We tried to help them if we could.

LAwoman · 08-03-2012, 10:20 AM

That was absolutely an insenstive thing for your coworker to say.

I'm not a deeply religious person, but I do believe "There but for the grace of God, go I" when it comes to situations like that.

((thelio)) You've been through a lot. I am impressed with your fortitude.