Guest Commentary: Homeless need a hand and a handout

Many of us are familiar with the paralyzing hesitation that strikes when a homeless person asks for money. We wonder: Is this the best way to improve this person’s life?

Churches and shelters often encourage people to donate money to homeless organizations instead of individuals, arguing that if panhandlers are not given cash directly, they will be more likely to seek out work. But how can we really know?

To many of us, the homeless population is strikingly anonymous. Their true stories are hard to know.

I experienced this confusion at a young age in Midtown Atlanta. Like Memphis, Atlanta struggles with homelessness. Even when my family moved to the suburbs, homelessness was everywhere around me. And I never quite knew how to respond.

When I bypassed a person asking for money, I felt like I was jumping to conclusions, believing the worst to explain away their circumstances: violence, a terrible battle with drugs and alcohol. Giving a homeless person money seemed nearly criminal to me then. I thought it would only feed their vices. It would allow them access to the destructive substances that made them lose everything in the first place.

In some cases, I’m sure that might be true. But it’s not that simple. Several members of my own extended family have struggled with drug addiction, hit bottom, lost their livelihood. Yet they were able to keep a roof over their heads. Why? They turned to their loved ones for support in their time of need.

In my junior year of high school, I visited Trinity House-Bethel in downtown Atlanta, a program designed to assist homeless men with issues related to drug dependency. My classmates and I sat down for dinner with several men who had battled addiction for years, even decades.

We listened to them as they reflected on the damage that substances had done to their lives. All of them realized their mistakes after losing their homes, jobs, relationships. Yet half of the men who go through the Trinity House program are able to re-enter permanent housing upon completing the program. Trinity House became their loved ones, gave them the extra push and support they needed.

Undergoing tremendous loss can serve as an incredible motivation to change. I’ve seen it in my family and in Trinity House. And in some cases, loss is the only thing that can inspire that change.

But how productive or driven can even a motivated person be with no financial support? Without help, how can anyone acquire transportation? Find food enough to fuel a human body? Find a place to sleep? The short answer is: They can’t.

For this reason, I believe that it’s time we start giving the homeless community the benefit of the doubt. Yes, we should also support charitable organizations and efforts like The Bridge. Yes, we can never be 100 percent sure exactly where and when our donations are spent.

But think about it: If a few dollars on the street could turn someone’s life around, isn’t it worth the risk?

Sophia Anderson is a junior English literature and business major from Atlanta. She is a staff writer for The Bridge.