Sunday night I watched CBC presentation called “Devil Plays Hardball”, a mentoring program on the homeless in Vancouver. A must see documentary of middle class mentors surprised at the bureaucracy surrounding help for the homeless. Mainly drug addicted, mentally ill and abused. Most affected by the program were the mentors themselves, who relentlessly struggled to find conventional resolve for these desperate neglected souls. Mainstream society often assumes there’s a quick fix for the homeless, when in fact it can take years for these forlorn souls to get to such an insidious point.
Every single day heroin addicted Michael desired a resolution to his menacing habit, but wrestled with the fear of withdrawal. The very endearing abused first nation’s fellow, had a mouth full of rotten teeth , still he refused welfare. He disappeared three months to the chagrin of his mentor. Picked up on the streets of Seattle on an out standing warrant Danse was thrown in jail. Soon he returned to the rainy streets of Vancouver. An update on Danse says that he was run over by a double dump truck and suffered two broken feet, he was released to the streets after one day.
Although undiagnosed I’m pretty sure the peculiar homeless woman Erika was a paranoid schizophrenic, eventually she disappeared completely. There was also a young couple who glommed to each other for comfort and support. What a sad show. Seems like the authorities just aren't' approaching the plight of the homeless properly. Many are unable to function in society without constant supervision, possibly medication, rehabilitation, and hospitalization. I can only imagine what's going to happen during our 2010 Olympics.
To read the update on the participants in the award winning documentary go here.
I could feel my social conscience rising as I was enlightened by the ongoing plight of these heartbreaking homeless victims.
2 comments:
I too have often been surprised by the amount of bureaucracy in homelessness charities. Good post andsounds like a good documentary
I missed the documentary but frequently worry about the direction we, as a nation, seem headed in an effort to avoid the undercurrents. I think many of us are but a step away from the open crack that can pull us into the homeless situation. Incredible. Nice reminder!
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