The People of Portland's Homeless Land
Portland, Oregon is home to many things, weird people and places, a vibrant culinary scene, but maybe most glaringly home to a large population of homeless people. In such a progressive and liberal city it is hard to contemplate how there are still growing numbers of people living and dying on the streets of Portland. This issue is nowhere close to being solved on a legislative level, but on a personal level there is always more help and more compassion to be given by the everyday man.
Meet John, a homeless man on the streets of Portland, Oregon. John was interviewed by Invisible People by the Portland State campus and told his story of how he became homeless in his 30's. Contrary to the assumption about homeless people, John never did drugs and is not an addict, he was simply in the midst of a mental health crisis when homelessness became a part of his life. In his interview John says that in Portland you will never go without a meal if you want one but there is still a lot of resentment towards the homeless. John describes the homeless people of Portland as the 'Walking Wounded' and wishes for more people to act out of kindness to help the people who are metaphorically on the floor, but he also wishes for more community.
The idea of community is something that has changed over the course of the covid-19 pandemic, for better or worse, but we see it the most in the homeless. These are the people who need their community the most. To check out other resources and John's full interview, check out the links below:
https://invisiblepeople.tv/videos/john-homeless-portland/
“John Is Very Candid about How He Ended up Homeless. at 9 Years-Old He Was Molested and Abused.” Invisible People, 23 Feb. 2019, invisiblepeople.tv/videos/john-homeless-portland/.
https://blanchethouse.org/get-involved/
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