The worst part about volunteering at a homeless shelter for me was the fact that I knew some of these guys were leaving right after breakfast and doing drugs, and coming back to the a/c and being high until lunch and repeating the process. It baffles me that we are spending a lot of tax dollars to give druggies a safe place be. Granted some of these people are down and out. They have no other options, no family, and without the support services provided by Safe Haven, they would be living on the streets. But then there are those who choose to be homeless because they have a serious drug or alcohol problem. And for these individuals, I feel little remorse. They take advantage of the services provided by the county and they have no incentive to leave. Free food, shelter and clothing. All they have to do is show up and say they are homeless.
Now I might sound hypocritical because I worked with these individuals, but I felt like there needed to be more strict security policies. If the state and the county are to provide a free place for someone to live and give them a great meal three times a day, I think there should be mandatory drug testing. This might sound harsh, but there are a fair amount of individuals taking advantage of the system. Also, just to enter onto the campus, there should be a security guard that pats everyone down for drugs or weapons. I have seen drug deals happen on the Health and Human Services Campus more than once. And it bothers me to no end.
Florida is trying to pass a law that says in order to receive welfare monies one must pass a drug test. It follows the same lines; if you are receiving tax payer money, you better not be doing drugs. Bottom line.
I did not volunteer to help these people. The reason I am at Safe Haven is because there are people there with serious mental illnesses that need help. I am there for them so that one day the may be self-sufficient enough to live on their own and have a job.
I can imagine your frustration. Drug addiction is a terrible disease and social ill that is difficult to cure.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you 100% when it comes to drug testing recipients of public assistance. Unfortunately, the people that abuse the program take the majority of the assistance away from the people that really need it. When you are at work try to remember that you have the opportunity to change a person's life everyday. That's powerful. Continue to be a leader that makes a difference. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that it may seem like these individuals are taking advantage but I think it is important to remember that often people with mental illness use drugs and alcohol to self-medicate. Additionally, we are talking about mixing homelessness into all of this; which can lead to drug use as a coping mechanism. I am not excusing this behavior, I just think we have to look at the reasons for this behavior and provide supportive services to help people recover from their addictions. Substance abuse is a challenge to overcome. Add mental illness and homelessness and the barriers become even more difficult to conquer.
ReplyDeleteHey Clayton, sounds like you're doing some great work at Safe Haven. I would hesitate when thinking we should require drug tests. I understand where the idea comes from - it is super frustrating to see people abusing the system that way and taking tax payer money to get high. But drug testing won't help those people, unless its coupled with free treatment or something. The problem with Florida law is that it only drug tests poor people...why not everybody who receives public money like students, farmers with subsidies, and those who take disaster relief funds? Doesn't seem fair to target the poor. The law in Florida is currently stuck in court and will likely be found unconstitutional. I think there is probably some better policy we can take to address more systemic problems, instead of drug abuse, which is usually a symptom of something more seriously wrong in society
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