NH Facts

1130 children and youth were reported as homeless in 2007. (NHNH) There are 2,248 homeless people on any given day in New Hampshire. (New Horizons) From July 2007 - July 2008 approximately 4,800 jobs were lost in New Hampshire. (Analysis of NH Industry)

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Awareness?

Back in November, I read a small article on The Back Page section of the NH Union Leader titled, "Body found in paper bale." It described the discovery of a man's body inside at 1,500-pound bale of paper at a recycling plant in Twin Falls, Idaho. The story made it into the Union Leader through the Associated Press news service.

The details of the death were shocking, of course, which is why it was located on the Union Leader's Back Page section. That's where we read so-called "light" news - celebrity hijinks, entertainment news and other stories too strange to include within the other "hard news" sections of the paper. Sometimes I feel the news on this page is being served with a wink and a smirk. That this article about a body in a paper bale appears on this page is what first made me uncomfortable.

But there is a phrase in the contents of the article that really bothered me: the man was, according to police, "wearing clothing consistent with a homeless person."

Why did this bother me so much?

This article appeared on a day in the middle of our clothing drive in November, Warmth From the Millyard. We had been doing research into the need for such a drive in our community, as well as some of the statistics and reasons behind the need. We had talked with people who help those in need. So I suppose I was sensitive to the mention of homelessness.

But why did this story make me angry, even? I asked myself, "What does homeless clothing look like? How could they tell?" I had been working with my classmates and other volunteers to gather and sort coats and warm clothes, trying to cull the ones that we thought were too dirty, or had an odd odor, or had ripped places or broken zippers. We asked ourselves, "Would we wear this?"

And I realized my reaction to that story had to do with dignity. And with what has been mentioned by my classmates, stereotypes. This story tears down the first and builds up the other. But more than anything, it made me very sad that by saying this person was wearing "clothing consistent with a homeless person," it immediately conjured an image in my mind. I was ready with a stereotype, and that made me very uncomfortable.

Through this drive, I have seen some wonderful things done to help those less fortunate. I have learned a lot about poverty and its causes. But most importantly, I have faced some things within myself that aren't too wonderful.

I have continued to research online this story of the man in the paper bale, maybe hoping I can, in a small way, offer my respect. The police were able to identify him - Terrance Fitzpatrick. He was homeless at the time of his death. Autopsy reports show he had a blood alcohol content of 0.28, according to news reports I've found. And the theory is that, in an effort to stay warm on a cold night, he was sleeping in a recycling bin.

But I also found evidence of caring. His high school classmates eulogize him on one site. Another site has posted online some nice comments after a followup story appeared in an Idaho newspaper. And a memorial service was held for him in which he was remembered as someone who "moved right into people's hearts" and was "getting back on his feet."

There is always more to the stories than the stereotypes.

Part of the mission of Warmth From the Millyard, which you can read at the top, right part of this blog, is to "raise awareness of poverty." When we, as a group, wrote this mission, we probably intended our audience to be all those folks "out there." But I didn't expect that I would have my own awareness so raised, and found so lacking.

I continue to learn.

-Laura Arvin