Here are some additional facts: Hartford is the poorest state capitol in America; Governors are seated under the dome surrounded by abject poverty knowing many state buildings are vacant yet turning a blind eye to ground conditions; the CGA led for many years by Hartford’s own Ritter family has also ignored poverty. Finally we just learned the inept political hacks leading some agencies like OPM just “found $340 MILLION”! Money is NOT the issue, political will is! What would MLK say and do?!?
I’m certain you get the nature of my comment as the irony of your post today on MLK day is more than ironic, it is symbolic of the last of substantial progress since his murder. Personally, I take some comfort in the work done by members of my church located in the the epicenter of Hartford’s misery.
Oh, I do. And it hurts my heart that these two events coincide, but I'm choosing to focus on the light and love of Rev. Dr. King. And your church is doing amazing work.
It’s always struck me that in a blue state like Connecticut that regionalization remains an anathema. I live in a relatively small city/town, you can walk from one end to the other in 15-20 minutes. And yet like bigger cities in the state we are the hole in a white flight donut. None of this is news but if you’re homeless, poor, addicted or otherwise in need of help, you’re much more likely to find help here and frequently encouraged to do so by the town you live in. We don’t produce the numbers of needy people we serve by ourselves. At the end of the workday, the people who work for the various service programs get in their cars and drive to their homes in the surrounding towns where they spend their paychecks and enroll their kids in better schools. The same is true of far too many business owners and landlords. This isn’t true of everybody of course but the size of the challenge to help these folks AND help town prosper is far greater than the number of people willing to own it.
Why is "regionalization" such a dirty word in CT? When I moved here 100 years ago, I was confounded that there were no counties, and few mutual aid agreements between towns (that I could see). Now I realize this was codified racism/classism. Those poor people in your town? They're not in MY town, so they're not my problem. In colonial times, CT towns would take a census to make sure poor people weren't hanging around, and thus running the risk of becoming wards of those particular towns. This started early and it continues today. I once wrote about an organization that was giving people without homes bus tickets to Danielson. Out of sight, out of mind. JFC.
Wow, this is like Adam Smith's description of the parish system of poor relief in 18th century England, where parishes vied to be unattractive to poor people.
Something similar went on in Connecticut colony. There was a big emphasis on the notion that the world stopped at your town's boundary and the poor were moved around like footballs. In a few cases, smaller towns (Danielson is a small town) would give bus tickets to people who were homeless and send them to the cities, which were thought to have sufficient services to deal with the influx. They didn't and they don't.
This is a little redundant but in the course of doing campaign work in a number of Connecticut towns, I’ve heard that story several times, sometimes from folks darkly joking, calling it “bus ticket therapy”. People being released from incarceration, treatment, even coming from bigger cities where demand and competition for resources is greater have been showing up (or sometimes been dropped off) in town for as long as I can remember, whether they have supports in place or not. People in other places prop up their denial of their own responsibility by “joking” that all these issues are endemic to town and those of us who were born here. So much for welcoming the stranger.
How can it be that we can’t solve this important social issue. Just read that homelessness rose 27% since the count started in 2007. Thanks for putting a spotlight on this. We need to do better and the incoming pres and his cronies will make it worse.
I have my nephew who suffers from schizoaffective disorder living with me for the last 16 months because otherwise he would be on the street. I won't go into why he's not with either of his parents. Suffice it to say, he can be violent off his medication and has spent time in jail because of it. It is not an optimal situation for my family or for him. He should be in some kind of group environment with younger people and supervisors who can help monitor his meds and help him with everyday tasks. There is absolutely nothing like that available in our area. If there is, it's full. He can drive and he works minimally. We are working on getting him disability. But, there's no good solution. There is not enough housing for people who have mental health issues, much less people who are homeless or low income. I live in a town that has a high percentage of low income housing, but because of his record and lack of rental experience, we can't even find an apartment, at any price. I always said, "Why don't people take care of their family members so they don't have to live on the street?" So, I thought I should take care of my family member when he was threatened with living on the street. I also thought it would be a short term issue. I know better now. I'm afraid things will only get worse under the new administration. It's very disheartening.
Here are some additional facts: Hartford is the poorest state capitol in America; Governors are seated under the dome surrounded by abject poverty knowing many state buildings are vacant yet turning a blind eye to ground conditions; the CGA led for many years by Hartford’s own Ritter family has also ignored poverty. Finally we just learned the inept political hacks leading some agencies like OPM just “found $340 MILLION”! Money is NOT the issue, political will is! What would MLK say and do?!?
I know your last question is rhetorical. What will WE do?
I’m certain you get the nature of my comment as the irony of your post today on MLK day is more than ironic, it is symbolic of the last of substantial progress since his murder. Personally, I take some comfort in the work done by members of my church located in the the epicenter of Hartford’s misery.
Oh, I do. And it hurts my heart that these two events coincide, but I'm choosing to focus on the light and love of Rev. Dr. King. And your church is doing amazing work.
It’s always struck me that in a blue state like Connecticut that regionalization remains an anathema. I live in a relatively small city/town, you can walk from one end to the other in 15-20 minutes. And yet like bigger cities in the state we are the hole in a white flight donut. None of this is news but if you’re homeless, poor, addicted or otherwise in need of help, you’re much more likely to find help here and frequently encouraged to do so by the town you live in. We don’t produce the numbers of needy people we serve by ourselves. At the end of the workday, the people who work for the various service programs get in their cars and drive to their homes in the surrounding towns where they spend their paychecks and enroll their kids in better schools. The same is true of far too many business owners and landlords. This isn’t true of everybody of course but the size of the challenge to help these folks AND help town prosper is far greater than the number of people willing to own it.
Why is "regionalization" such a dirty word in CT? When I moved here 100 years ago, I was confounded that there were no counties, and few mutual aid agreements between towns (that I could see). Now I realize this was codified racism/classism. Those poor people in your town? They're not in MY town, so they're not my problem. In colonial times, CT towns would take a census to make sure poor people weren't hanging around, and thus running the risk of becoming wards of those particular towns. This started early and it continues today. I once wrote about an organization that was giving people without homes bus tickets to Danielson. Out of sight, out of mind. JFC.
Wow, this is like Adam Smith's description of the parish system of poor relief in 18th century England, where parishes vied to be unattractive to poor people.
Something similar went on in Connecticut colony. There was a big emphasis on the notion that the world stopped at your town's boundary and the poor were moved around like footballs. In a few cases, smaller towns (Danielson is a small town) would give bus tickets to people who were homeless and send them to the cities, which were thought to have sufficient services to deal with the influx. They didn't and they don't.
This is a little redundant but in the course of doing campaign work in a number of Connecticut towns, I’ve heard that story several times, sometimes from folks darkly joking, calling it “bus ticket therapy”. People being released from incarceration, treatment, even coming from bigger cities where demand and competition for resources is greater have been showing up (or sometimes been dropped off) in town for as long as I can remember, whether they have supports in place or not. People in other places prop up their denial of their own responsibility by “joking” that all these issues are endemic to town and those of us who were born here. So much for welcoming the stranger.
How can it be that we can’t solve this important social issue. Just read that homelessness rose 27% since the count started in 2007. Thanks for putting a spotlight on this. We need to do better and the incoming pres and his cronies will make it worse.
Here's to homes for all, to comfort for all, to food and water and washing and clothing for all, and education and opportunity and fun for all.
And for no one: Sitting in Judgment in any way that's not part of a greatly reformed legal system.
Thanks for your work.
My work is minimal but thank you We need to bend the arc of justice toward the vulnerable.
Amen.
I have my nephew who suffers from schizoaffective disorder living with me for the last 16 months because otherwise he would be on the street. I won't go into why he's not with either of his parents. Suffice it to say, he can be violent off his medication and has spent time in jail because of it. It is not an optimal situation for my family or for him. He should be in some kind of group environment with younger people and supervisors who can help monitor his meds and help him with everyday tasks. There is absolutely nothing like that available in our area. If there is, it's full. He can drive and he works minimally. We are working on getting him disability. But, there's no good solution. There is not enough housing for people who have mental health issues, much less people who are homeless or low income. I live in a town that has a high percentage of low income housing, but because of his record and lack of rental experience, we can't even find an apartment, at any price. I always said, "Why don't people take care of their family members so they don't have to live on the street?" So, I thought I should take care of my family member when he was threatened with living on the street. I also thought it would be a short term issue. I know better now. I'm afraid things will only get worse under the new administration. It's very disheartening.