Views of Homelessness: The Community

This content was originally published by the Longmont Observer and is licensed under a Creative Commons license.

This article is the second in a series about homelessness and is based on interviews and comments from the community of Longmont. A post was made on NextDoor asking for people to volunteer to be interviewed. This article is based on 12 interviews conducted by the Longmont Observer, who recognizes that not all viewpoints may be represented in this article because of the limited number of interviews conducted.

Many people in Longmont encounter the homeless on a weekly basis, particularly downtown. At the very least, the homeless can be observed when driving around town. Some have reported that campers are sometimes parked in front of their house. Others walk in the parks everyday but don’t really interact with the homeless, while some, who walk in the same parks, encounter the homeless on a daily basis.

Most of the people interviewed feel that their interactions with the homeless are positive. However, there are some that have had negative interactions, such as encountering excrement on their lawns. In addition, some have encountered used needles in the parks they frequent. Because of these types of interactions, at least one person is considering moving out of Longmont.

It should be noted that many of the people who have had negative encounters with the homeless did not want to be interviewed for this article, however, they did leave comments on social media.

To many citizens, the homeless population appears to be increasing. However, as pointed out by several citizens, this can be misleading. The population is increasing in Colorado and in Longmont, so the increase in homelessness may simply be a function of the increased population overall. Longmont is not unique in seeing an increase in the homeless population. Some citizens feel there are too many homeless in Longmont overall for the size of the community.

Nia Wassink feels that flushing the homeless from the downtown areas is causing the homeless to move into neighborhoods, making them more visible to people there. While Idania Mentana commented that one homeless person is too many.

People are beginning to see homeless families and young people in addition to the single homeless person on the corner. Seth Rogers feels that the people sitting on the corner are the “ambassadors” of the homeless community, but they don’t really represent the homeless population as a whole.

Many believe that a lack of affordable housing is a leading cause of homelessness since Longmont does not have specific emergency housing for the homeless. Another belief is a lack of entry-level jobs for the homeless. Some have become homeless because they have lost their jobs.

There is some disagreement on the services provided for the homeless. Some feel that there aren’t enough services for the homeless in Longmont, while others feel the services provided in Longmont are drawing more homeless here.

In terms of homeless veterans, Roger Potts points out that the Veteran’s Administration Services Housing does provide housing, but applicants have to have lived in Boulder County as a homeless person for one year before they are eligible.

There are several reasons that those interviewed feel that Longmont has a high population of homeless. A few citizens reported hearing rumors that other cities are sending their homeless to Longmont but can’t prove it. Mental illness and the use of drugs were also cited as reasons for homelessness in Longmont.

Citizens generally believe that Longmont should be helping the homeless because they believe that everybody deserves dignity and respect. Although there are those that say we should be discouraging the homeless from coming here, this ignores the homeless that have lived here for a long time. For some, there is a fine line between helping and trying to discourage more homeless from coming here.

One of the key considerations for these people is whether the homeless want to help themselves. For others, helping the homeless is the Christian thing to do. As Douglas Wray states, “How can we call ourselves a Christian nation if we don’t help the homeless?” Others, like Roger Potts, think religious help does more harm than good. Seth Rogers says there is a right and a wrong way to help. We need to be careful not to attract disruptive elements.

As for whether Longmont is doing enough to help the homeless, it is a mixed bag. Some citizens were unsure what Longmont is doing to help the homeless because they don’t hear much about services. Others feel like Longmont is already doing enough to help and is doing an admirable job with the resources they have. Annie Larner says that people expect too much of public safety officers and that there needs to be a concerted effort that includes citizens. Still, other citizens feel that too much is being left to private organizations to help the homeless.

Many citizens agree that more needs to be done to help, particularly providing housing. They feel we need to be proactive in the approach to homelessness, which includes addressing those that use drugs in public.

Some citizens feel that arresting those breaking the law benefits the homeless because they will get more services in jail than they otherwise would.

In terms of providing housing, citizens point to the success other municipalities have have had in providing housing. They suggest ideas such as finding space for a tent city or allowing the homeless to use foreclosed homes.

Others see a greater need for law enforcement to patrol parks proactively rather than reactively.

When asked what they would like the homeless to know, most responded that they would like the homeless to know that they are valued. There are people that want to help them and there are services available to them if they want them. The homeless need to let citizens know what they need.

Others want the homeless to know that they are welcome as long as they behave themselves. They feel that everyone should work together to keep the city a nice place to live. Citizens want to help the homeless, not enable them. Most of all, citizens want the homeless to know that there is a path back.

Citizens generally want the police and city to know that they are doing a good job with the resources they have. However, they emphasize that it is not a crime to be homeless and that homelessness and criminality should be decoupled. They also encourage leaders to use better statistics to make good decisions about helping the homeless. Police should maintain an attitude of respect toward the homeless when dealing with them. Tony Kiser emphasizes that homelessness is not the place for politics. Finally, citizens felt the police and city should do more to let people know what they are doing for the homeless.

As for what the interviewees wanted other citizens of Longmont to know about homelessness, most stressed that we are all just one disaster away from being homeless. There is no single issue that is causing homelessness and it impacts people from all walks of life.

Some citizens feel the public needs more education on homelessness because there is a lack of compassion from some people. Many interviewed voiced opinions that align with the following thoughts: Not all homeless are causing problems. Most just want to get out of their situation. The homeless are real people that deserve respect. Driving the homeless away without helping them will not reduce the problem. The ones that cause problems are not the usual face of homelessness. Citizens need to ask themselves whether homelessness is a true safety issue or if they are just uncomfortable. If they are uncomfortable, there are things that can be done.

Hopefully, this gives some perspective from the viewpoint of some of the citizens of Longmont. Again, the Longmont Observer recognizes that we were only able to interview a small segment of the population. There may be some viewpoints that were not expressed in this article. In addition, the viewpoints in this article represent the opinions of the people interviewed and are not necessarily representative of reality from other viewpoints. The next installment will focus on homelessness from the viewpoint of the police.