With the summer slowdown affecting the city council schedule and fewer meetings being held, the Castlegar News has made recent contact with city councillors, soliciting their points of view on topics of their choosing.
In this installment the subject is Councillor Deb McIntosh. The issue, homelessness, is one that is more prevalent in our community than some would suspect.
Rather than speaking off the cuff, Councillor McIntosh asked for some time to organize her thoughts.
“I wanted to think it over,” she said, “because sometimes I get pigeonholed into the social service thing. I wanted to be able to talk about how it affects the city in an economic/health care perspective.”
Whatever a person’s social standing, background or outlook, chances are they’ll have strong feelings on issues like homelessness.
“I think people have strong feelings about it because they feel helpless or hopeless,” McIntosh began. “A lot of people feel that homelessness has a certain face to it and that it’s not really affecting us here, because we don’t have the typical homelessness look. Although we do have homeless, in the minds of a lot of people it does not appear to be a crisis yet.”
It’s very likely true that many people would be troubled by the issue of homelessness, and feel empathy for those struggling to survive without the security and comfort a home provides. At the same time, solutions appear frustratingly elusive. Short-term, front line measures can definitely help but the long term remedies require clear vision, firm resolve and plenty of available funding.
“People have to be compassionate, yes, but they also have to realize that homelessness doesn’t always look like the downtown eastside of Vancouver,” said McIntosh. “There are people walking down the street who look like you and me, and some of them are homeless. Some of them are really hurting, whether it’s something in their life that went the wrong way, or mental health, or an addiction issue. Homelessness has a variety of faces and it can happen to any one of us.”
Citizens may wish they could help, but what can be done?
As pressing and rightfully prioritized as the direct human needs are, there are economic concerns that accompany homelessness, even if it may seem insensitive to focus on them. Business people and civic officials object to having homeless people on their property, for example; their presence repels customers and visitors.
Councillor McIntosh encourages grassroots action, the same formula as with many other public issues: ‘let government know, and be persistent.’
“Not only does the municipality have to advocate for housing and wrap-around services for people, but the community really has to advocate for that,” the councillor insisted. “We need to think about that when we vote provincially, and talk to our MLA about it and form a government mandate that says ‘We look after these people.’”
“People have stories,” she continued. “Talk to somebody, ask how they got where they are. Don’t always assume it’s their fault and they’re addicted, or just don’t want to work, or whatever it is that you think. Understand that they have a story, have a life and that they’re people, and sometimes life just throws you a curve ball.”
From time to time it may be suggested that helpful measures for the homeless could be taken on a local level, but the councillor, just as realistic as she is compassionate, advised in closing,
“It’s really hard for municipalities, because we talk about it. But you’re scared to put your foot in the water, because we know that the (provincial) government will then load it on us and not even look at it again. So it’s a touchy situation, a very costly one, and often one for heated debate.”