Good Service: More Than the Service of Goods
California’s notorious 50 block, roughly 4 square mile, section in the heart of central Los Angeles, most commonly referred to as Skid Row, has served as one of the nation’s largest stable populations of homeless individuals since the late 1800’s, housing nearly 5,000 individuals. The area’s significant condensation of unhoused individuals, though often spilling into the surrounding areas, has allowed for aid and resource projects to effectively help much of this deficient population. Projects like Water Drop LA, with whom I had the privilege of serving with, focus on distributing clean water and other necessities to the thousands of individuals experiencing water, sanitation, and hygiene insecurity across Southern California, specifically Skid Row (Water Drop Los Angeles). Every Sunday for almost 4 years, Water Drop has successfully provided over 2,000 gallons of clean water to the destitute community, certainly aiding in their access to basic necessities. However, many argue that this traditional, merely transactional, model of service is all that is necessary, when in reality, good service constitutes building authentic relationships with the communities in which are being served, as the building of genuine connections often allow for and encourage the empowerment needed for these individuals to become motivated enough to strive to help themselves as well.
Though the provision of necessary resources to unhoused communities and others in need remains extremely crucial, as there is “only roughly 1 drinking fountain for every 520 unhoused residents living on Skid Row, all of which are clogged or broken (LA2050)”, the loneliness and isolation that comes with being an unhoused individual is not nearly as emphasized as it should be. Social relationships, on any individual, are both extremely vital and large parts of the human life, and the importance of these relationships only becomes magnified when an individual goes through something as debilitating and tumultuous as being or becoming homeless. Lack of these genuine support systems often worsen unhoused individuals situations, as a National Library of Medicine journal concluded that, “Lack of supportive social relationships sometimes contributes to the ‘institutional circuit,’ with some people experiencing homelessness cycling among shelters, correctional facilities, and healthcare institutions (Jurewicz, et al.).” Finding the balance of offering both physical, tangible resources like food and water, without forgetting to address the equally as important, though intangible, resources like true relationships and support systems is when many of these unhoused individuals feel as though they are cared for and begin to see the light at the tunnel. In Spectrum News’ 2021 article about Rick Stoker’s efforts to build said relationships with the homeless community around him, we are able to see an example of this balance firsthand, stating,“[Stoker’s] entire goal is to help them on their terms and earn their trust. [Stoker’s] says there’s nothing wrong with handing them food and water, but when you sit with them and listen, that’s when they share with you the serious problems in their lives. (Boyd).”
After working and volunteering with Water Drop LA over the past few weeks, I too, have become a testament to the fact that this good service model relies on the forging of true relationships with the individuals you seek to serve. For almost the entirety of the month of February, I was able to aid Skid Row residents, but it wasn’t until I actually sat and talked with a Ms. Samiyah as my volunteer group provided food and water to the streets surrounding the intersection of South Central Avenue and 7th Street, that I felt like I was able to truly see the longing for social relationships that plagued many Skid Row residents. Every Sunday I’d spent volunteering I was met with incredibly grateful individuals, but still with very minimal actual interactions, only transactions. It wasn’t until Ms. Samiyah talked with me and my route partners for almost 15 minutes about the time she’d spent on Skid Row for the last two years, that she was able to open up about the fact that, aside from the rainy nights and inconsistent food supply, the true worst part about her situation was the loneliness that came with it all, and the how simply talking with people like us gives her the strength to keep pushing forward. Through this interaction I was able to see just how much the isolation of homeless individuals has a negative effect on them, and wholeheartedly agree with Stoker’s claim that “[He’d] rather get the opportunity to be their friend and love them and help them with some of the stuff that they need to get through, but that’s just hard to do without a relationship (Boyd).”, emphasizing how important building a relationship with these communities truly is.
However, to truly begin building meaningful connections and relationships with unhoused individuals, a total relinquish of the stigmas and stereotypes that plague these communities is needed. So many often blame and individuals homelessness on a preconceived notion that they are a drug addict, alcoholic, lazy, or things of that nature, when in reality a study conducted by the Downtown Streets Team proved that only 20% of unhoused individuals reported drugs and alcohol as the reason for their homelessness, and that the abuse of substances like drugs and alcohol are most often the result of homelessness, not the cause (Downtown Streets Team). The true reason for homelessness, in California specifically, is a much more multifaceted issue than many care to consider, in that it is the result of increasing inflation coupled with the lack of affordable housing. The Downtown Streets Team study even concluded that the biggest barrier to housing is affordable rent, with 68% of homeless individuals stating that a major contributing factor to their homelessness was that they couldn’t afford rent (Downtown Streets Team). A Washington Post article even tells of Josanne English, a woman currently living in her car, who stated that, “[She] made good money — last year [she] made almost $100,000 — and [she] can’t believe this happened to [her],” she said. “But with prices the way they are, it can literally happen to anybody (Bhattarai and Siegel).” A sudden and drastic shift in your life as you’d previously known it, like that of English, aside from the financial strife, inevitably also worsens the isolation and lack of support one may already feel in this situation.
The issue of homelessness within California, in its entirety, is one that cannot simply be solved by the transactional nature that the typical model of service often perpetuates. Though the bigger issue is that of the rising rate of inflation is the true root of homelessness, good service, from an interpersonal perspective, consists of truly striving to make genuine connections with homeless individuals and unhoused communities so that they become more empowered and can therefore help pull themselves out of the situation at hand. On a local level, this can even look like the simple action of genuinely sitting and talking with an individual that may be receiving goods as a result of their homelessness. The act of sincerely caring for unhoused individuals has proved to have tremendous positive effects on both the mental health and wellbeing of these individuals. However, the building of such interpersonal relationships can only be done through humanizing these individuals and their situations, and in turn relinquishing the stigmas and stereotypes that so often plague the unhoused community today.
