Some considerations ..... would you assist someone who has been displaced ???

So with the new year rolling on and some of the old displacement issues carrying over from previous years let us pause for a moment and take a look at what we can do or have been done in the meantime until some serious intervention or response is forthcoming or put together by who knows? maybe us, we may just have to begin to address these issues of homelessness ourselves, of course by those who are really concerned to deal with the continued displacement and the fallout coupled with other social problems arising from all that. Suffice it to say we can't solve ALL of them as capacity is a serious issue with the lack of expertise in certain areas such as the psychology of the whole situation and the persons involved.

Please also consider if a friend of yours or just a member of the community was displaced for genuine reasons of Homo, Lesbo, Trans or Bi (phobia) what would you do?

Squaring it down to the homeless MSM group since 2011 there are already reports of new persons joining the existing population of homeless MSM or temporarily displaced and basically "kotching" or jamming by friends. As late as December we saw where a young man was asked to leave his family home as pressure from neighbours and community members increased on them so to avoid any problems they were left with no other choice presently, the family fears any reprisals. He now is left to fend for himself on the streets and of course persons like myself can do so much and no more in as far as little assistance we can offer. Some of the men do have alot to offer and loaded with potential however their development is thwarted due to interruptions from homophobia, low self esteem and a felling of helplessness in some instances that are close to me.

The constant:

1) text messaging and please call me requests for phone credit,

2) complaints of abuse from other guys on the streets as turf war or personal differences mount,

3) complaints of police harassment on the rise again with renewed reports and allegations of beatings

4) requests for a night's stay at some friends' home or somewhere safe to catch a shower or just some food in the case of the really low ones.

5) requests for food money on a slow night from those in the population who engage in commercial sex work.

All the above are all too glaring and are regular features for those in direct contact with this group and frankly speaking this sponging business cannot continue, so how do we teach these persons to "fish" for a day or for life and not just "fish" for men and sex while asking for trouble?

One of the bones of contentions in assisting the group at a personal level separate from the nonchalance from the advocates is that many fear to offer direct assistance for several reasons.

1) The mistrust issues due to previous problems and issues (including robbery and physical attacks towards the good Samaritans) from some who were assisted through a temporary stay or financial help

2) The raucous behaviour and discipline issues that abound with the group bearing in mind they are used to a certain "freedoms" without restrictions, a structured environment or confinement.

3) The seemingly lack of interest in improving themselves when some assistance is given (here is where specialized expertise would be needed in my view for self empowerment)

4) The limited resources to follow-up or have long term empowerment drives for those who really want to put a dent in this problem in our community.

5) The negative impact of the homeless men on some GLBTQ entertainment events has been felt by some party promoters who are concerned that there are a number of them who turn up occasionally at venues very unkept and asking for complimentary passes or even create unnecessary drama hence chasing away potential patrons after all they are in it to make money and it costs to keep such events.

6) The identity issues and feeling of low self worth

7) The interpersonal conflicts resulting sometimes in very public brawls thus exposing the population to possible homophobic violence

8) The tabloids exposure of the group and sensationalist reports even coining a name for homeless gay men as "Homeless Sexual" as appearing in an article on a man who was arrested some time ago.

9) The reported life threatening attacks on members of the group see HERE for more on that entry on the WordPress Edition

Those are just some of the reasons we are at a stall for now, there are cases however of some persons getting involved to at least talk to the gentlemen about their conditions and not just have them as materials or references for study for conferences or statistics. Several of the men have been assisted by private citizens (some under questionable circumstances as allegations of a "trade" of sort have been leveled at the intervener) There are four of the men to my certain knowledge who have left that life and are working and two are in some sort of private after work study program or classes. There was the case of the lesbian couple who assisted a teen after he ran into some problems at home with his step father.

See: 17yo reunites with mother & siblings after homophobic displacement

There have been party promoters who have tried to host events in aid of raising some funds and awareness of the situation but given the very public exposure of the group coupled with the rude behaviour of some in the Kingston region there is a backlash of sorts to that idea for now thus persons are hesitant or just not interested. Maybe with the continued state of homelessness as hinted to above and the unrestricted way of existing even if a shelter, program response or drop in facility maybe difficult at first to get off the ground the hardened lifestyles are not easily curved or mobilized to be empowered that easily. One former advocate suggested empowerment as the main thrust behind any initiative for this population.

Hesitation is my answer to the entry's question above given the circumstances outlined above and the limited resources. The fund raising efforts can continue through the parties and continued awareness raised through blogs such as this one with discussions rapping our heads around how to deal with this, there are ideas floating for some new typed entity for the long term let us see how that plays out.

Some other group work was done in early 2009 just before the initial fallout where a meeting was convened to talk about the issues and to the men. However the ideas flowing from that never materialized.

however please consider these questions too:

How would you help if your could?

Are you prepared to offer repeat assistance and if so in what form(s)?

Would you encourage others to chip in and how?

Any other ideas as to how to go about this issue of homelessness?

Should empowerment be a critical factor in the response?

send answers preferably to: lgbtevent@gmail.com or glbtqjamaica@live.com

Some things to think about this year as we move forward, while we do that I strongly suggest we also bring pressure to bear on the persons and groups who already have direct responsibilities in this regard and have failed to deliver.

Peace and tolerance

H

also see Homeless Issues from GLBTQ Jamaica

Podcast from September 2011

click the "Homeless MSM in Jamaica" tab immediately below for previous entries on the subject