My name is Michael Hayes, and I am a Freshman student-athlete at Georgia State University in Atlanta, Georgia. The issue shown in my analysis is important to me because homelessness is a disturbing situation that I see every day in Downtown Atlanta. I am from a small, rural town in South Carolina called Florence. In Florence, homelessness is not an issue, and it is not talked about or brought to one’s attention. Immediately when I moved here, I noticed way too many people on the sidewalks and streets begging for money that were homeless and needed help. This societal issue is one that is swept under the rug many times and never gets a solution or answer. Getting homeless people off the streets and sidewalks and into permanent supportive housing is the answer to this city.
Outside of Student Center East on the sidewalk
The Student Center faces Gilmer street at the corner of Courtland Street Southeast. Something is always going on in a big city! Cars, buses, people, are all moving throughout the busy city on the shiny, black paved roads and sidewalks, along with the trees in the breeze. As the stoplights on intersecting streets turn from red to green, the panther express busses sluggishly go down Gilmer and Courtland Street. Green route, blue route, purple route all picking up and dropping students off. The students get off the shuttles talking loudly and all head in different directions away from the drop off location. Homeless folks roam the streets and sidewalks, in the heart of Downtown Atlanta at Georgia State University, outside of Student Center East. They are begging for money, food, and shelter.
Hundreds of tall buildings hover over Student Center East. Shiny, luxurious door frames gleam from the sunlight to enter these buildings. Electric red doormats await inside of these doors to wipe the dirty bottoms of city shoes off. Bright lights shine from the high ceilings to brighten the elegance of the wealthy building rooms. The homeless citizens of this city wander on the sidewalks, just feet away from these fancy building entrances. Some attempt to stay inside for a while to rest but are eventually kicked out. Hundreds of people are going in different directions. Hundreds of cars, buses, and shuttles are going in different directions as well. The dead autumn leaves blowing off of the trees are going in different directions, with the wind swirling around the enormous sky scrappers.
Homeless man begging for money
http://homelessadvice.com/why-do-homeless-people-say-god-bless-you-the-top-3-reasons/
On the other hand, the homeless people are going in the same direction. They walk down the streets and sidewalks together. The homeless people in this city do not blend in or go unnoticed. Most of them stick together as if they are a pack or a close-knit family. Wherever one goes, another one follows. There are tunnels throughout the city where they establish tiny communities inside of the underpasses where they stash all of their supplies and findings. Outside of Student Center East, a few linger around and beg for a dollar or extra pocket change from as many individuals as they can that give them any attention. Some take their hats off their heads and shake it back and forth, hoping to grab a generous soul’s heartstrings. A couple of coins or dollar bills add up inside of the hat as time passes by, and the sun gets lower and lower to the horizon line.
There is no roof over their heads, a bed to sleep in at nighttime, food to eat, clean water to drink, a bathroom to use, clean clothes, working air conditioning during the summers, and working heat during the winters. A bridge is the roof over their heads. The concrete is their bed, along with a blanket, towel, or piece of cardboard. Trash cans are dug through to find half-eaten food scraps for their meals. Their bathroom is outside anywhere that they can find a space. The clothes they wear have stains, smudges, and dirt on them. Do not judge these people when you see them because you do not know what they have been through, and you could end up like them.
What this analysis proved is that homelessness is a problem in downtown Atlanta. The fact that these homeless individuals have nowhere to go besides under a bridge and wrap up in a blanket is startling. It is alarming to see people living outside, under a bridge when it is cold outside and walking around begging for money for food. There is always more to their story than what they tell you or what you assume. You never know what a person has been through in his/her lifetime or what made them end up there. Homeless people need to get help and assistance for their health-related limitations and chronic diseases. They should not get overlooked because they are living on the streets and sidewalks. Help them off the streets and sidewalks and into permanent supportive housing units so they can get treated and live like an average person.