Do Yourself a Favor; Don't Search "Homeless" on Twitter

I wanted to cover my bases, know what was up at all times. So I started following real-time search results on Twitter for the word "homeless." How naive I was.

The filth and vile that that column brings me everyday, when it doesn't defeat me, cuts my work out for me. It's unbelievable how callous we are as a society when our ills are shown so continuously in our faces. We steel ourselves — out of necessity — just to get through the day. It kills our compassion, slowly but surely.

I remember once being down and out in Paris, as it were, and having to beg for money. I was in Paris backpacking, trying to "find myself," or something. My being broke was the result of bad planning and the beer halls of Germany. I needed to get money for food and an internet connection to find out where my friends were and maybe get some money wired from my parents.

So there I sat, on top of my backpack, outside the entrance to the Gare de Norde train station on the north side of Paris, hat in my hand, upturned and offered empty to passersby. And that was honestly one of the most humiliating, uncomfortable experiences of my adult life. For 30 minutes I held the hat timidly and refused to look up at anyone who might give me change. After a while I began to glance up, with a look somewhere between puppy-dog and feigned-dignity. After some time, head again bowed in humility, some man of the cloth breezed by quickly and dropped a ten or twenty, some ungodly amount at the time, into my hat.

And so it is with this anecdote that I would like to publicly call out a tweet I just read:

When did homeless ppl get so lazy? I just had a homeless man ask for a dollar, no eye contact or nothin... i mean make me believe u want it

The humiliation of being forced to beg aside, what is it that was lazy, that was making his suffering incredulous? The implicit attitude is that this man needs to act, to play tactfully on your sympathies. Which approach is more believable?

To members of our community, please do not reply to this person with hate or vitriol; let us call this a learning moment.

To that Twitter user, I don't imagine you are a bad person. In fact, I imagine you are a very good person, sensitivities dulled by everyday realities. All I'm saying is take a minute to think about what you are saying, or tweeting.

For more positive coverage of the homeless, try reading what Twitter powerhouses @invisiblepeople, @ntl_homeless and @naehomelessness have to say. Please also add your favorites in the comments.

Photo credit: playerx