Appleseed Humanity

In a move clearly tailored to do more for their image than for the intended recipients, several elected officials LAPD representatives, social services officials and other community leaders all pledged their undying support on Wednesday for a plan designed to give homeless veterans and those who have lived on the streets of LA for some time a new source of housing.

But they plan to take five years to do it.

Released on November 9, this vastly inadequate and long-overdue plan – which is still inexplicably described by its supporters as ‘ambitious’ – aims to allocate around $230-million of the city council’s budget to fund long-term homes for some of the 48,000+ people these self-satisfied leaders so blithely allowed to suffer the unwarranted misery of street life until the cameras turned up.

The money will come from savings achieved by freeing those people from the indignities of emergency shelters, hospitals and frequent spells in jail for vagrancy that is the fault of these leaders, not theirs.

“It’s over 40% cheaper to house them this way and support them than to leave them on the streets,” Jerry Neuman, who co-chaired the ‘LA Business Leaders Task Force on Homelessness,’ a joint program by the local Chamber of Commerce and the United Way.

And why, may we ask, did it take them so long to see that? Was it really necessary to get cameras there first?

LA’s Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and the Mayor of  Long Beach, Bob Foster have are also part of the plan, together with LA Police Chief Charlie Beck, LA’s County Sheriff Lee Baca, Los Angeles and Santa Monica city councils, federal officials, religious leaders and nonprofits.

The project was inspired by a growing belief among those who work with the homeless that putting a permanent roof over their client’s heads must be the priority. This also matches President Obama’s declared aim to end homelessness among veterans and those who have been displaced for more than a year.

Naturally, a plan to help those Americans whose lives have been blighted by homelessness, usually by no fault of theirs, has hit fierce resistance – from their fellow Americans;

LA County Supervisor Michael Antonovich has complained about the program’s intent to use taxpayer funds to provide housing for people who abuse drugs and refuse treatment. He calls it “Warehousing without healing.”

Previous programs were also short-lived, thanks to a vocal minority who were perfectly willing for homeless people to get a new start – as long as it was not in their zip code.

”We think every city in the county has to recognize they have homeless people in their community, and they have to help  take care of them,” Neuman told the LA Times.

The task force now plans to engage other county and city officials in order to expand the program and its benefits.

And with such selfish, bigoted, knee-jerk resistance ranged against it we can only hope this plan’s leaders are thick-skinned.

At the last official count the city of Baltimore, MD had 3,419 homeless people – an increase of 417 since the last census in 2007. Now a voucher program that gave some the priceless gift of a roof has been closed to new applicants because the funding has dried up.

Having been on the streets for more than a year roughly 30% of the city’s homeless are defined as ‘Chronically homeless.’ Some also have drug and mental health problems, And these are the very people the plan was created to reach.

But federal funds for the plan, which already gave almost 400 people a new chance in life have ended. All those on the waiting list, as well as new applicants must therefore be refused.

So now they have nothing.

The brain-child of former Mayor, Sheila Dixon the p1an was meant to provide at least 500 homes over ten years and also called for legislation that made it illegal for landlords to refuse any tenant who received a government subsidy.

Ms. Dixon called it “A blueprint for a society where homelessness no longer exists.”

But the new laws died in committee and Housing Commissioner Paul T. Graziano says he has no idea where new funds will come from. Or when.

“We’re assisting more households than we ever have. We’re maxed out,” he tells the Baltimore Sun.

The housing authority failed to secure a $10-million grant, but did get extra money to help 75 homeless veterans and two hundred families that have one member with some form of disability. And while laudable and helpful, this is not even close to enough.

But the most telling review of this latest shame comes from James McKay, an outreach advocate with ‘Baltimore Healthcare Homeless Access.’ which helps – or at least helped – people get vouchers.

“Everyone deserves affordable housing,” he told the Sun. “Everyone deserves to be treated like a human being.”

I couldn’t agree more if I tried. News like this is intensely annoying – especially when we could finance this whole program for under $1-million. But no-one will help.

Studies prove the chronically homeless face a far higher risk of dying and suffering health problems, so what do we need to do to make people care enough to actually stop this – Stack all the bodies on Capitol Hill?…