"Pesky Panhandlers" are People Who Need Homes

by Shannon Moriarty · 2009-10-13 09:44:00 UTC
Topics:

As cities scramble to address the growing numbers of panhandlers in city centers, many cities are turning to ordinances, hefty fines, and jail time to control aggressive panhandlers. Forget these tactics - they simply don't work. The issue of aggressive panhandling must be redefined as an issue of people without homes. In other words, the best response is compassion.

It seems every city has a plan to vamp up their economic development and downtown tourism. Yet, in many cities, the issue of aggressive panhandling stands in the way towards any real progress. How will we get people to come spend money in our businesses, they ask themselves, if those pesky panhandlers keep badgering them for money?

Atlanta has been struggling with panhandling issues since Mayor Shirley Franken took office eight years ago. It all started with an ordinance banning panhandling after dark and in an area known as the "tourist triangle." The city also added teeth - on the third offense, panhandlers face a fine of up to $1,000 and 30 days in jail. To top things off, several "donation meters" were installed throughout downtown.

Yet, anecdotal evidence published in this week's Atlanta Journal indicates that these tactics have not been successful. If anything, they've been expensive to implement. Despite over 500 panhandling arrests in the past year and nearly 2,000 panhandling interventions, nearly half of those recently surveyed in Atlanta still feel that panhandling is a major problem.

So why haven't Atlanta's anti-panhandling efforts been successful? Because city officials are framing this issue completely wrong.

Panhandlers are not nuisances. They are not money-sucking leeches. First and foremost they are people who do not have a place to live. People who are not making ends meet.

Panhandling should not be a question of regulating and controlling people. The question should be, Why are these people on the streets? and How can we get them into housing?

That's one "aggressive panhandling" strategy that's certain not to fail.

Image from Moriza's public Flickr stream.

Shannon Moriarty has worked in various homeless shelters and service organizations around the country. She is a graduate student studying housing and urban policy at Tufts University.
PREVIOUS STORY:
Parents Will Pay for Kids, Not Feds
NEXT STORY:
Sallie Mae Blinks!

COMMENTS (3)

    Comment Policy

    · All fields are required to comment.

    [X]

    Comments on Change.org are meant for further exploration and evaluation of the campaign on Change.org. To that end, we welcome constructive comments. However, we reserve the right to delete comments which, as determined solely in our discretion: (1) are offensive, abusive, or off-topic; (2) include content solely intended to personally attack the campaign creator, (3) are designed to subvert or hijack comment threads rather than contribute to them; and/or (4) violate our terms of service and/or privacy policy. Repeat offenders may be permanently removed from the site at our discretion. Please also be advised that: (A) we do not actively curate and/or monitor in any manner whatsoever the comments made on the Change.org platform, and (B) the creator of each campaign on Change.org may remove any comment at her/his/its discretion.