FFWD Weekly
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City by Timothy Wild Despite the flurry of activity that accompanies the periodic rediscovery of poverty, little attempt is made to develop policies and programs that actually locate and attack the root causes of the problem. Instead we choose to rely on Band-Aid solutions and the vagaries of charity. Obviously, these responses don’t solve the problem, but they do allow us to feel good about ourselves while removing the issue from sight – and perhaps, more importantly, conscience. Ultimately, charitable responses perpetuate inequality within society and cannot provide long-lasting, sustainable responses to poverty. This is particularly evident when we look at the social problem of homelessness in Calgary. There are thousands of homeless people in the city, and this isn’t counting those who are living in patently inadequate housing or those who are trading sex simply for a place to stay. But rather than increasing funding to provide supports and services to keep people in their own homes, we donate sleeping bags to help out on extremely cold winter evenings. And rather than expanding the stock of affordable housing, enhancing rent supplement programs and imposing some type of rent control, we respond by increasing the number of homeless shelters. In fact, both the Calgary Drop-In Centre and the Salvation Army are developing larger buildings and programs to meet some of the needs of Calgary’s increasing homeless population. This is in addition to the federal government’s massive infusion of funds directed primarily at emergency and transitional housing, rather than long-term housing. Recently, the Drop-In Centre received over a million dollars from the federal government to assist with the expansion of the shelter. Another fund-raising tool is a book released earlier this year by writer Susan Scott with photographs by Mike Sturk. InNo Fixed Address: Tales from the Street, Scott provides insight into the lives of those living on the margins of our society by chronicling the stories of 19 men and women who have at one time or another used the services of the Drop-In Centre. Sturk’s photographs supplement the text and help make the plight of the homeless and the marginally housed seem a little less alien, a little closer to home. (Both Sturk and Scott donated their time and skills to the project.) There is no one common theme in these tales, and a variety of reasons – including sexual abuse, substance abuse and mental illness – are given as the cause of the subjects’ particular crisis. The stories are harsh and reflect the daily grind of poverty. "It’s their story, and it’s important that they get heard for once," says Scott. In the book, Ernst, one of the people profiled, suggests that "If a street person is not obviously hostile, get acquainted. Talk. Maybe they will tell you something." The volume makes an interesting addition to the slim literature on poverty in Calgary, and provides a startling contrast to boosterist notions of a booming economy for all. But although it is a very important book, this issue isn’t so cut and dried. Cases of individual crisis have to be linked to larger, structural issues. And a shortcoming in the book is that it does not link the 19 individual experiences of poverty to the collective oppression of post-industrial capitalism – after all, it’s not just a coincidence that close to 4,000 people are absolutely homeless in Calgary. True, in the jacket notes, Scott raises the issue of social justice. "I really hope that as a society we start to look at the root of the problem and tackle it before it gets more out of hand. It’s a terrible indictment that so many people don’t have homes," she says. But the book is also geared towards raising funds for the Drop-In, and it is not overly critical of larger systemic failures. Social justice and charity make uneasy bedfellows. Some people suggest that shelters are better than nothing, and welcome the expansion. "I think it’s (the expansion) OK because the government will not take responsibility for housing," says Tony, a person who recently spent time at a shelter. "Dermot (Dermot Baldwin, executive director of the Drop-In Centre) has taken a lot of responsibility. The extension will be a lot better than people sleeping on mats on stinky floors." However, an advocate for people with mental health issues who participated in the future search conferences on homelessness, points out that the broad consensus of the conferences was "no more warehousing." "If you want to solve the housing problem, provide houses for people to live in. We don’t need anymore warehouses," says Derek Wilken of the CHEERS project. And a social worker who works with marginally housed individuals suggests that homeless shelters make people more dependent, with less incentive and less choices. He contends that the popularity of shelters is that they are of less cost to the system. "Shelters take people out of the mainstream," he adds. "(It’s) hard to respect yourself when pretty much everyone else is looking down at you." Scott told me about meeting a man who recalled a story from when he was on the streets in Vancouver. "The man said that each year he was given a pair of shoes by well-meaning citizens, and he was expected to express his gratitude for receiving the shoes... whether they fit or not," she says. And while I accept that charity has a place, I think this sums up the shelter response to homelessness – it doesn’t really fit. Overall, Scott has modest aspirations for the volume, and says she wouldn’t claim it is any more that a starting point. "I hope the book gives some people insight into the lives of the less fortunate, and that the insight will be a springboard to action."

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