So, to get this out of the way, I’m a cisgender white man from a well-off family in a fairly affluent town. I’m making this post because I want to hear perspectives from those who are different from and likely significantly more knowledgeable than me. (Literally as I was writing this post, I came to the epiphany that I should probably more properly educate myself on socialism.)

TL;DR: What is your opinion on giving money to houseless people you see IRL?

I like to consider myself socialist/progressive in thought—in favor of wealth redistribution via various methods, live and let live, freedom for everyone as long as you’re not materially harming anyone, etc.—but I grew up in a fairly conservative household (more socially than fiscally, but even then). Being in a rich area, I never really saw houseless people around unless I went to one of the nearby cities, and the general policy was keep walking and don’t look. My parents definitely raised me to be kind and generous, but more in a detached “give to charity” way.

Rather recently, I’ve really embraced this idea of being socialist, and I’ve become very free with giving my money in particular (though I’m aware I could do more, like join a DSA branch or somethin’). I love giving to non-profit organizations when I can, I support creators I like on Patreon. I’ve even started giving to people on Fedi who I’ve seen need money for whatever reason. Spread the wealth, right?

Now, things have changed where I live, and even in my rich lil burb, you can usually find at least one refugee or houseless person when you go out to a grocery store or something. I just saw a guy who was standing outside a grocery store asking for spare change, and it was a rare occasion that I actually had cash in my wallet. On my way out, I gave it to him. Simple.

But I feel weird about it. I have all these ideas in my head from White America saying that they’ll just buy alcohol or drugs with it or that they’re scamming me or anything else like that. Then on the other hand, I think that it’s just as likely (if not more) that they’re going to spend it on things they actually need to live and how it’s not my job to police how they use their money. And then on the third hand, I think that maybe it would be better to donate money to organizations that help out houseless people than just giving money to random people. Then on the fourth hand—you get the idea.

For those of you who actually read the whole post and didn’t stop at the TL;DR, I have a few questions:

  1. Why in God’s name did you actually read this whole thing?
  2. Are these feelings normal or am I just a self-centered prick?
  3. What are your opinions on giving money to houseless people you just randomly meet?
  4. As a bonus question for the socialists out there: Any recs on socialism learning resources for someone who likes reading, but doesn’t like reading books?

For those of you who made it all the way to the end, thank you for reading my neurotic ramblings.

EDIT: I didn’t really expect this to blow up… but thank you all so much for your perspectives on everything. It was exactly what I was hoping for and exactly what I didn’t think I was going to get. I tried to read everything and I feel simultaneously less conflicted, but definitely more… not confused, but maybe full of ideas?

  • Snugglebug@beehaw.org
    3·
    1 year ago

    I feel like any response I provide would already be covered by the reply from @[email protected] so I will just suggest that if you have free time you might want to consider volunteering for a local organization that does outreach to houseless people (preferably one that aligns with principles such as Housing First). I do have some recommendations for alternatives to reading books though:

    (All YouTube links proxies through a common Invidious instance)

    Wikipedia articles. While this is often ridiculed, they often provide a great starting point for knowledge. Then, if there’s a claim you’re skeptical of or that is especially interesting to you, follow the citation provided. If it’s a paywalled article, sci-hub (not a legal endorsement, for educational purposes only) should get around it, and for books that you might want to read a section on that get paywalled the same applies to libgen (same disclaimer too).

    Podcasts. This is one you have to be careful with. A lot of podcasts can sound authoritative on a subject while completely misrepresenting it (see Joe Rogan, any IDW-adjacent podcast, etc.) So check sources vigilantly. I personally recommend The Iron Dice: a history podcast currently going over the fall of Weimar Germany. [Also check out the creator’s YouTube channel Three Arrows.

    YouTube Channels. The same warning given to podcasts applies to these as well. Some personal endorsements:

    • Jonas Čeika - CCK Philosophy. Heavy emphasis on philosophy and applying it to history and politics.
    • Anark. Communicates anarchist theory providing historical examples and practical applications.
    • Not Just Bikes. Brief explorations into urban planning and the importance of diversifying our available modes of transportation.
    • Eco Gecko. Another channel largely focused on urban planning, but from a more theoretical and heavily research-backed standpoint.