Lack of shelter, health care and sympathy are the biggest problems facing the homeless today in the Bay State, advocates said at an awards ceremony yesterday at the Statehouse.
The ceremony, which was opened and closed with prayer, was held by the Massachusetts Housing and Shelter Alliance to honor those who worked the hardest and contributed the most to the homeless cause. Approximately 100 people made up the diverse audience.
The main concern of the crowd was the current budget crunch, which will deprive programs that combat homelessness of necessary funding. Speakers also highlighted the need for politicians to attack homelessness with determination in order to eradicate it from the state.
Budget cuts have subtracted approximately $7 million from the funds for homeless issues. Hundreds of beds will be lost at a time when, for 48 consecutive months, the shelters have been overflowing with homeless people.
Rev. Jep Streit, of the St. Paul Cathedral Church, said the “the budget cuts will unloose the flood of suffering. Where is the arc?” he asked, adding a religious angle to the discussion. “The arc builders are in this room,” he said, referring to award recipients.
The awards were a “most somber time to gather” due to the recent cuts imposed by Acting Governor Jane Swift and the Massachusetts legislation, said Mary Ellen Hombs, of the MHSA. She also mentioned healthcare as an area that significantly affects the homeless and has been hit hard by the fiscal troubles of the state. This winter, large amounts of people will find themselves without healthcare, she said.
The ideas of justice and charity need to be combined in order to implement an effective campaign against homelessness, said Dr. David Hilfiker, a speaker at the event who has worked with homeless people in both rural and urban areas.
“Justice,” he said, “has to do with fairness — what people ought to have. Charity is benevolence or generosity. It is a gift and can be taken away whenever the donor chooses.”
When people see certain charities receiving a significant amount of donations, people believe a difference is being made and don’t think their help is necessary, he said.
Hilfiker said this creates the “illusion of effective action — a culture of charity that normalizes disparity.”
If no one in a certain community attempts to fix homeless issues, then the people suffering are left to survive without aid, he added. While one community may appear successful, another is receiving no help at all.
Homelessness is caused by the faulty structure of the government system, because state programs are not backing up charity donations and volunteer work with programs to aid the homeless, Hilfiker said. He suggested pressuring political figures to ensure homeless issues are addressed.
Gubernatorial candidates in Massachusetts have not cohesively addressed homelessness issues, the speakers said. Hombs said she is unaware of any candidate-proposed program designed to fight homelessness with the cooperation of the state government.