I feel connected enough to this that I almost want to make my own thread.
I've lived in Seattle PROPER for eleven years now.
I've lived in belltown, lower queen anne, near the space needle, and the central district. I've worked downtown for almost the entire time, I've worked right next to Westlake square and worked in pike place market.
Currently, I work at a group home for people with mental illnesses. Most of them have problems with either hard drugs or nicotine. Most of them have schizophrenia or are schizo-affective.
Bottom line is I've lived in the community, seen the homelessness downtown and in other districts, and work with the population on a daily basis.
I know a lot of you have decided that the issue is strictly political, but I think it's more multi-faceted than that. Still probably belongs on Jow Forums though.
The fact that the law cannot be enforced is serious problem. retail employees are also not able to protect their stores from thieves. My girlfriend just had a meeting where they were told that if they tried to physically stop shoplifters in any way, they would be fired.
The drug problem seems pretty huge here, and so is the cost of living.
Any sort of solution that is proposed is usually met with the attitude that homeless people are "human beings" that deserve dignity and respect. Of course they are, but that does not excuse illegal behavior.
There's no one-size-fits-all solution, and it will take time if the system is to be improved upon. Personally, i think actually enforcing the law and creating more manditory detention facilities that are equipped to provide rehabilitation treatment is a good first step.
The awareness that this video provides is very vindicating for people who live here, it's somewhat editorialized in its execution, but for people who know Seattle, the imagery and attitudes are spot on.
pic related is walking distance from where i live.
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