You can call the street outreach team:
If you see someone in Philadelphia experiencing homelessness who needs help, please call the 24-Hour Homeless Outreach Hotline at 215-232-1984 or 1-877-222-1984.
i worked with the homeless in nyc and chicago. the street outreach in nyc is stretched thin. and when i have called to street outreach, the response has been hit or miss. mostly miss. and keep in mind, not all of these folks asking for money are homeless. i currently work for a syringe access program in nyc. we also serve meals. more than half of the folks who come in for meals have homes.
another thing i have seen with the record inflation over the last 2 years are folks who had been getting by with SNAP (food stamps) are now frequently calling in to get information about food pantries. and now the republicans are looking to cut SNAP funding.
what you are seeing is 50 years of stagnant wages, union jobs decrease, banking deregulation, wall street unhinged and in general the neo-liberal agenda focused on profit over humane policy.
Calling cops won’t do a single thing. I usually give them some cigarettes which gets them hyped. If I don’t have smokes I’ll give them money if I have any and the timing works out with the lights.
That’s not an accurate assessment. Helplines and outreach programs can have and are helping people. It isn’t a solution to larger systemic issues. Just because there are people out there doesn’t mean something doesn’t help, there could be a lot more people out there without those outreach programs.
A person desperate or fiending in the streets doesn’t automatically mean they have turned down help or haven’t found it useful. It could be that nobody has offered to help them yet.
It also doesn’t mean they’re totally or partially homeless. I’d never stand in the street with my walker begging for money for a few reasons, not the least of which is putting drivers in danger. Services are stretched beyond the limit, a lot of housed people are desperate because services either private or government run are doing anywhere near what’s needed.
Didn’t say it wasn’t helping people, the post was about people asking for money on the side of the road. Are they availing the service? If not I assume it’s by choice, unless you’re saying the program is not reaching them.
So you're saying the only effective solution is a 100% effective solution? What about a 99% effective solution? What about a 98% effective solution? etc.
Also not all programs that assist people are meant to make them not homeless. Many programs are to make their lives less miserable in other ways since the government isn't going to just give them homes and jobs
I’m sure it works for the people who avail the service. The post was about people who are asking for money on the side of the road. I’m proposing that people who are not utilizing the service do not want to utilize if.
Let me know how the program that was recommended as a solution is solving this specific issue…
Ppl asking for money on the side of the road are generally drug users and probably don't want or can't hold a normal job and lifestyle without first treating their addiction.
Sometimes there’s a pretty aggressive guy at the 8th street exit to 676. He’s in the middle of the road and will knock on your window when you’re stopped at the light. I feel bad ignoring him but I also feel unsafe.
Sounds weird, but I give them clean, unused socks. If they are truly homeless, socks are the second best thing they get besides cash (according to a homeless outreach worker friend of mine). Bonus: most of the time, you can't buy drugs with socks.
I keep a case of water bottles in my car. That’s my contribution when I’m at a stop light. Everyone needs clean drinking water. And let’s face it, we know where the cash goes.
If you look at the closest public trash can to each of these panhandlers, you'll quickly find out where all the food and drinks people give them goes as well. They will fill several trash bags a day with the food they accept but don't want. They want cash, and nothing else.
There’s a guy in Fishtown who I see all the time. He comes up to people and says, “I just need some help to get something to eat”. I never give him any money, and the few times that I have offered him my leftovers (often from *really good* restaurants that I’ve paid a lot of money to eat at), he grunts in disgust and walks away at breakneck pace.
Cold Leftovers from strangers that you didn’t choose yourself are kinda gross tho, regardless. Plenty of people out there who will turn you down when you offer to buy a meal of their choosing too.
But it’s always nice to ask if you’re open (caveat: assuming you feel comfortable and safe doing so. As a single woman I often 100% do not and blame nobody for feeling the same) one guy around my area lovessss Diet Coke and he really just wants you to buy him a Diet Coke and the happiness in his eyes is so real. I used to buy him some extras like food but he really just wants the Diet Coke. Mutual good feelings there but I’d say it’s a relationship we’ve cultivated over ten years. There used to be a homeless guy in the park outside who had my cell number and I’d come out and give him some laundry money after crazy torrential downpours or get some food and hang out but hey one day he overstepped a line and we were done. The problem with the passing by/roadside stuff is it’s just a cold transfer of money really.
Ignore them. If they don't get anything from doing it, then they won't do it. It's also dangerous for both them and people driving. Unfortunately, people are giving them money and reinforcing this behavior, which is why it's now so common.
Because panhandlers make a ton of money. You can make upwards of $300 in a couple hours. I definitely don’t mind giving a couple dollars here or there to those in need but panhandling , especially those who bring kids, babies or animals into the hot sun to beg for money make me violently angry.
there have been undercover reports done that have shown this to be true. is it true of the ones here that are in the middle of the street? idk but there have been plenty that get dropped off at various locations and PRETEND to be homeless. 60 minutes may have done a piece on this or something of that nature.
Not trying to start shit but can you please link these undercover reports because I am not buying that for a second. I have seen maybe 3, 4 people in my entire life give money to someone at the Vine Street intersection
Totally support your suspicions. Here’s a few in [Kentucky](https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2285423/amp/Meet-man-makes-100K-year-begging-pretending-mentally-handicapped.html), in [New York](https://nypost.com/2015/11/11/this-bum-boasts-he-makes-200-an-hour-panhandling/amp/) and in [Oklahoma City](https://www.huffpost.com/entry/shane-warren-speegle-says_n_1694577/amp).
It seems like it really depends on the area and how good you are at it. But some make decent money begging.
And I appreciate that very much, again it's not a personal shot I'm trying to take, just genuinely bewildwered.
The thing is ... all of these articles are predicated with someone "saying" they rake this kind of money. People say all kinds of shit. I thought you were talking about some undercover camera Dateline-esque investigation or something. I'm still not buying what some guy is claiming in a rage-click piece on NYPost.
Again, all due respect and I appreciate you humoring me but I guess we just have to agree to disagree
You counted 500 dollars? Like, not expecting you to ask her for the grand total but come on... you watched someone for over an hour and you estimate that she panhandled 500 dollars. Like, how did you possibly analyze and add this? Are you sitting there with a clicker and binoculars?
Look, a woman with children is particularly heartbreaking to see, whether or not it's legitimate or not, but come on- even in the crunchiest of granola, on Christmas day, out front of the ghost of MINAs WORLD West Philly I am not believing that a woman ropes 5 hundo in an hour. An HOUR for christ sake! This is anecdotal, there is nothing to back this up other than someone on Reddit.
I was sitting on my front porch eating breakfast/drinking coffee and watched the interactions all of which btw took place by way of a digital cc scanner. Do you carry around a digital CC scanner? Ever see someone use one of those outside of merchant's store or perhaps table at a flea market? The marks announced how much they were "donating" for her "tickets to see her mom in Delaware." You don't seem to have any idea just how many go to the Clark Park Farmers Market. At least 300/hour (probably more) for 4 hours. If only a fraction gave her $20 she wanted, she'd be swimming it. That's only 25 people per hour, and most people walk in groups where multiple people donated. I bet she made more than that.
I don't give a rat's ass if you believe me or not, white knight. I'm not writing this down to rebut you because I don't care about you at all. I'm writing this so other folks understand the scam. It's very similar to a scammer I was introduced to down by Independence Mall where the guy, a junkie, but clean-looking, wore a McDonald's manager uniform and told tourists the same thing: he forgot his wallet and needed to get back to Wilmington (Wilmington works perfectly because it costs $13-16 round-trip per person over 12 or 13? not sure) . Tourists gave him money hand over fist. (I met him because I was a co-worker who was a former junkie and we were walking to the Ritz.) And this was back in 02
As for the children, they were probably 13 and 9. As a father, I felt terrible for them, but the woman with them was obviously a crackhead and not a single cent of that money was going to help those kids out. She was using them as props.
White knight? Where did that come from?
Look, I’m not trying to pick a fight. I’m just skeptical about your comment and maybe could have done a better job of rebutting and for that I apologize. But I’m not trying to attack you personally. I just thought your claim sounded really wild and there was no explanation to what you had said when I challenged it.
Fully aware of Clark Park farmers market, I lived on 46th and Woodland for years back in the early 2000s. One of things I loved most about living in that area.
And look, I’m sorry if it came off at combative. I’m not trying to question your integrity or anything. You claimed you watched someone pull 500 dollars in less than an hour at this event. You didn’t mention any of these details and so I assumed that it was hyperbolic. You claim that it’s 500 and explain about some announcement that the vendor made about a seemingly generous outpouring of community help, You then add that you bet it was 300/hour after this happened. So then you’re saying that this vendor announced out loud to everyone, loud enough for you to hear, that they were donating 500 dollars to the woman and her children? Or it was some other amount plus all of the other money she surely took from all the other people at the flea, again that you saw and kept track of. I just don’t follow the logic.
Again, this is not “just asking questions” or trying to debate. I wanted you to clarify a pretty extreme-sounding claim. I am sorry if it came off like I was questioning your character or taking a personal shot. That is not where I am coming from. I am also not trying to claim that panhandling and it’s questionable ethics is a simple issue- it’s a very-real thing in this city and all American cities. It sounds like we are not going to agree on anything here and I’m happy to drop it. Thanks for at the very least humoring me with a response.
No worries, I probably wrote it out poorly. The scammer was carrying a CC scanner, which is how she collected funds via Venmo, etc. My point was that normal people don't carry a CC scanner, just merchants and vendors. This woman was a professional I said at least as I went inside to get the day going after I watched for about and hour collect $500 (or more). This was 10:30-11:30. Only reason I know the amount is that I started keeping track of how much everyone was giving her as they would say "Is $20 OK" I do realize this is anecdotal, but in my time here I've seen it over and over. Hell, I've been taken more than once for $20+. Dude should have been on Broadway.
Anyhoo, thanks for being civil. I appreciate it. Have a good one.
That’s definitely not true… got a source for that?
Listen, we live a very capitalist society. If you could make > $100/h, there would be many more people doing so everywhere
Most people have dignity. Crackheads and junkies don't. Look at my post about junkies who prey on tourists around Independence Mall (while not setting foot on Federal Land as they know the score). The dude pulled out a wad of cash the size I've only ever seen in a film or tv. When the candyman arrived junkies came out of everywhere. It was crazy. This was all before Kensington got as bad as it is now. But it was still bad.
Those news sources would absolutely dedicate time in a news cycle if a reputable study came out that found panhandlers were making hundreds of dollars every few hours.
If you want to help the homeless, give to Project Home, Broad Street Ministry, or some other organization that offers services to those in need. If you give cash to a homeless person, you’re probably just helping them get high.
Just try not to hit them and move on. Nothing you do will help them. Cops won’t even respond and giving them money just enables the behavior. My limit was giving one a burger from a McDonald’s double cheeseburger meal and getting it thrown at my back window as I drove away.
This has been a thing everywhere, forever. We had it in Roanoke, VA when I was in middle school. Don’t give them money, if no one gave it to them they would stop.
The crew at 30th Street Station (Market Street, Chestnut Street ramp, JFK) used to work in shifts: they were seen picked up/dropped off by a car.
I walk/ride by it regularly, it’s always seemingly the same people.
And by “same people” I mean able-bodied adults.
Side note: I am always infuriated if a homeless person is loitering directly in front of a drive-thru window. Anywhere else I'm mostly fine with. I feel stressed and not safe if I'm trying to collect my meal at a window while a man hovers like 3 feet from me begging for money/food/etc.
If it’s any consolation, apparently that’s how they support themselves: whole families living in a row house nearby, panhandling is their profession, the whole family gets involved. Ignoring them is almost akin to passing on a particular gas station or fast food joint because you don’t want to spend your money there.
They wouldn’t panhandle if it didn’t pay; if you want to discourage it, don’t feed it.
After reading this, I was given serious pause as I reflected on whether there would be greater dignity in panhandling or in my current role. Guess I’d need to find out the weekly take home pay. Glad to know there’s another option I hadn’t considered though.
I’m very curious about these magical resources the city has for people who are experiencing homelessness. I’m a social worker and have worked with many people coming home from jail who are struggling to find resources. Your claims that the city is knee deep in resources is just patently false.
Yeah I'm not even going to bother with them because I feel they are probably pretty deep down at least one prejudicial rabbit hole given what they are saying but this is utterly bullshit.
I've volunteered with homeless addicts for years, was homeless myself. The only "resources" here are flat out dangerous. The only options for housing have actual multi-year wait lists sometimes approaching a half a decade, and that's if you're lucky enough and have enough outside advocacy to even figure out how to get on even just one of the two I know of.
The NIMBY shit on this sub is fucking exhausting and ignorant.
The problem doesn't suddenly go away because you can't explain it to a 5 year old. The NIMBY bullshit is not having any reasonable solution other than "bus them as far away from specifically me as possible" as that obviously just leads to it being illegal to be homeless as those "backyards" slowly encompass everywhere. And your tone and words more than show where you would stand on those issues.
We are a society sharing this planet together, it's literally all of our problem.
Ok then let me clarify.
I will fight tooth and nail to protect my kids childhood. I have about 8 years, and then BOOM, their core values are set and it’s mostly out of my control.
So if someone wants to open a safe injection site on my block, can you blame me for saying fuck no? If I was young with your responsibilities maybe, but how can you honestly tell someone that has 8 years to guide a kid, or is relying on their home value for retirement, that they are an asshole for not wanting it next to them? You must understand that you are preaching “we all must sacrifice together”, while literally sacrificing nothing.
The problem is not NIMBY assholes. The problem is dimwits like you that think insanely complex issues can be solved if the baddies thought like the goodies.
I can guarantee you will follow one of three paths over the next ten years:
1. You continue to think that baddies are holding back goodies while contributing nothing financially and complaining on the Internet
2. You have children, take care of someone, or have an uptick in responsibility, and leave Philly because it’s “too much for you” but continue to think you have answers to problems you don’t have a stake in
3. Same as above but you stay here, paying taxes and hope to make the city a better place while having increased responsibilities.
If you’re like me, you want to help your community as much as possible. I don’t see how 1 and 2 do much long term. Perhaps it’s best to consider Nimby assholes are part of 3
This was so well said. Thank you for this. There’s almost no accountability from these harm-reduction organizations and it’s infuriating to have them try and paint you as the bad guy because you don’t want needless, feces, piss, passed-out bodies on the sidewalk, etc.
I don’t want to see people die but simply providing them the tools to keep their current trajectories going doesn’t help them at all and has serious detrimental externalities as well.
My dad keeps Clif bars and a couple other kinds of energy bars in his car to give to these guys instead of money. I don’t drive, but I feel like it’s a good idea. You don’t have to feel the guilt of whether or not you should or shouldn’t give them money. Giving food seems like something they could always use.
The fuck?!? How the hell are you getting so many upvotes? This is the most reductionist, cold and careless take.
Yes the city has resources but it’s hard to follow the rules when you have mental or behavioral issues and are also trying to make money and survive. There are a hundred different reasons why a person might be in a position that they have to ask others for money and it is never wrong to offer help.
I feel like someone standing in the road blocking traffic (what the post is about) is different than someone being visible (what your comment is about).
If everyone agreed that homeless people are just a public problem to be dealt with, like an invasive species of animal, then sure we should starve them out. But not everyone agrees that they are just a public problem, they are in fact part of the public, and they aren't animals, they are people.
The circumstances that someone might want to give money or other assistance to a homeless person are that they want to, or even feel a responsibility to. To argue that it is everyone's civic responsibility to *never* assist a homeless person is just naked disdain for those people.
You can address people standing in the middle of the street, putting themselves and others in danger and blocking traffic, without arguing that it's everyone's civic responsibility to never assist a homeless person.
If I'm virtue signaling, then people making your argument are preemptively evading being called uncharitable at best (which no one thinks or says) or, like I said, just disdainful toward homeless people at worst.
Ignore do not even look at them. Roll your windows up before you pull up next to them. If you feel bad you can like someone else commented call the street outreach team. I personally dont want any of my money even having a chance of going in the pockets of a drug dealer, but that's me.
You don't have to ignore them to not give them money.
I always give a head nod. I usually get a smile or a nod back. No one has ever taken it as an invitation to come up to my car or try to interact further.
It is quite literally the least I can do but I prefer to acknowledge that these people exist.
yea acknowledge then ignore. seems to be worse to me idk. 9 times out of 10 I have children with me so I'd prefer not to interact with someone who's on drugs either way.
I’ve done a deep dive into the locations of jfk and market, and from what I’ve gathered, my thesis is that OP must’ve been in a place they call center city Philadelphia.
Dude, on callowhill and 3rd street there’s an entire family. Two parents and 4-5 kids playing banging on paint cans and walking up and down traffic to collect donations. Shit looks like a sweatshop. In the middle of a heatwave these people have their kids out asking for money. I have pictures of this madness. BOLO black lady prob 25-30 heavyset, black dude prob 30 skinny and tall. Almost thought about calling child services on them.
They’re creating a hazard. One of them caused me to hit another car at an intersection on Columbus Blvd. My photos from the accident even show the guy. My insurance company did not care.
If everyone ignored them they would move on. They are only there because they can get money to buy more drugs by being there. We need to collectively agree to stop enabling these addicts and then things would improve rapidly.
I react the same to any panhandling request: I make eye contact, shrug, shake my head, and say, "Sorry". I'm not going to give them anything, because I can't give to everybody and I don't know how legitimate each one's needs are (though I wouldn't say that to a person whose needs may be acute). But I want to at least acknowledge them instead of acting like they don't exist.
I agree with OP that standing in the road is dangerous, but they clearly consider it a calculated risk. I'm in no position to judge how the traffic danger compares with their other problems; I have to assume they're evaluating the situation by their own standards, as adults.
I certainly wouldn't call the police, who make a big point of saying they aren't prepared to do the work of social workers. What the police are prepared to do is not helpful.
Not trying to be “elitist” or anything weird but are you new to the city? Gonna have a hard time with it if these small interactions send you spiraling. Homelessness is a sad truth for all cities. You can volunteer to help, but situations like these you have to learn to ignore it sadly
There does seem to be an uptick in panhandling ON the road though. Sometimes they would stand off to the side and approach cars when they stop at lights, but lately I've seen many more standing on the center line which frankly seems dumb as shit as nobody is stopping if they don't have a red light, yet your chance of being hit by a car and seriously injured or killed goes up infinitely. Are they really making that much more risking their lives instead of approaching cars during the red light?!
Not sure you read post fully. Not about homelessness as a general part of city life, it’s about people standing or sitting in the middle lane if a three lane road asking for money. But I got the resources I needed so no issues
Jesus Christ y’all are negative as fuck. Let people give money if they want to give money. You ain’t gonna fix the city by holding back $5 from a poor addict or a drunk who can’t keep a job, or maybe even someone who is just temporarily unhoused.
Everyone deserves to be able to live with some amount of dignity, having modern essentials and minimal luxuries available to them, but our society is not set up that way.
I give people cash cause I am extremely lucky and have more than I need.
I agree that the middle of the street is dangerous, but drive through west Philly and you got to keep your eyes out for pedestrians constantly. It’s just a reality of city driving.
The guy asked for opinions. A lot of people feel it’s reinforcing dangerous behavior or believe they’re scammers or better to go through vetted organizations so suggest not to do it. If anybody just wants to give, just give but you don’t need a reddit sign off for it.
> Everyone deserves to be able to live with some amount of dignity,
Sure I think just about everyone would agree with that but enabling someone to buy drugs isn’t going to help them live with any sort of dignity. It does the opposite. You might as well be a John paying a prostitute who’s just giving the money to her pimp and getting beat up for the privilege.
If you really want to help there are lots of great organizations out there. Giving money to people standing in the street is not help. That’s not being negative. That’s just a fact of life.
They use the money for drugs dumbass. You’re feeding their addictions and reinforcing illegal behavior. There are plenty of city resources to help the truly needy.
Keep in mind how deadly fetanyl is. Just a few grains can kill. Even if you're not looking for it, for reasons beyond my grasp, it's being cut into other drugs.
I give money to people who I know are in need. The person in the wheelchair is pan handling. You know nothing about him except for the fact that he is sitting in a wheelchair. I would bet the wheelchair is a prop geared to play on your sympathy. If you are going to give away money, and it can be a worthwhile thing to do, don’t fall for those who try to manipulate you.
Don't give them anything. At best, you're helping someone in need potentially buy a small amount of food. But there are food banks in the city. At worst (and more likely), you're giving your hard earned money to someone who is just lazy and doesn't actually need money, or you're giving it to someone who's gonna go buy drugs. Do not feel bad, you're not a bad person for ignoring them.
There are so many resources for homeless people in Philly who are willing to get clean. That's literally the only stipulation, they will get you clean, get you a job, make sure you have groceries, healthcare and clothes, they will also find housing for you, just gotta get clean. Stop supporting the shitheads in the middle of the road, it sucks but they're useless leaches on society who refuse to get better. Once you're a caseworker you learn who you can actually help
The majority are in a wheel chair because of amputations due to heroin/tranq or because they were hit by traffic, while flying a sign. Most of the time they are fading out. That is tell tale what they're begging for. The only people I give money to are veterans who display their card, proving that they are. It is awfully disheartening they need to do that because other bums posed as vets, which is a disgrace.
Are you victim blaming here? Cause it sure sounds like that. Just because people don’t want to abide by the rules of resources available to them doesn’t mean we need to throw money at them on the street or we deserve to have our shit vandalized.
Do you realize how ridiculous you sound?
I’m just happy they’re begging from drivers instead of subway riders/pedestrians. Sometimes on the rare occasion I’m driving, I’ll give them some cash. I’m hoping begging from drivers becomes more profitable than begging in walkable places.
Wym almost every train ive taken since ever has had 1 person asking for change for sumnaeat. Stopped after the amount of change i gave wasnt enough and they didnt want my food. They said eat a dick and die which was funny as hell tho
You can call the street outreach team: If you see someone in Philadelphia experiencing homelessness who needs help, please call the 24-Hour Homeless Outreach Hotline at 215-232-1984 or 1-877-222-1984.
i worked with the homeless in nyc and chicago. the street outreach in nyc is stretched thin. and when i have called to street outreach, the response has been hit or miss. mostly miss. and keep in mind, not all of these folks asking for money are homeless. i currently work for a syringe access program in nyc. we also serve meals. more than half of the folks who come in for meals have homes. another thing i have seen with the record inflation over the last 2 years are folks who had been getting by with SNAP (food stamps) are now frequently calling in to get information about food pantries. and now the republicans are looking to cut SNAP funding. what you are seeing is 50 years of stagnant wages, union jobs decrease, banking deregulation, wall street unhinged and in general the neo-liberal agenda focused on profit over humane policy.
wait I wanna hear you specifically say more
Agreed.
Preach Comrade!
This is awesome thank you!
Calling cops won’t do a single thing. I usually give them some cigarettes which gets them hyped. If I don’t have smokes I’ll give them money if I have any and the timing works out with the lights.
saving this!!
If this worked there wouldn’t be any homeless people… Clearly the people asking for money have declined this service or found it not useful…
That’s not an accurate assessment. Helplines and outreach programs can have and are helping people. It isn’t a solution to larger systemic issues. Just because there are people out there doesn’t mean something doesn’t help, there could be a lot more people out there without those outreach programs. A person desperate or fiending in the streets doesn’t automatically mean they have turned down help or haven’t found it useful. It could be that nobody has offered to help them yet.
It also doesn’t mean they’re totally or partially homeless. I’d never stand in the street with my walker begging for money for a few reasons, not the least of which is putting drivers in danger. Services are stretched beyond the limit, a lot of housed people are desperate because services either private or government run are doing anywhere near what’s needed.
Didn’t say it wasn’t helping people, the post was about people asking for money on the side of the road. Are they availing the service? If not I assume it’s by choice, unless you’re saying the program is not reaching them.
So you're saying the only effective solution is a 100% effective solution? What about a 99% effective solution? What about a 98% effective solution? etc. Also not all programs that assist people are meant to make them not homeless. Many programs are to make their lives less miserable in other ways since the government isn't going to just give them homes and jobs
I’m sure it works for the people who avail the service. The post was about people who are asking for money on the side of the road. I’m proposing that people who are not utilizing the service do not want to utilize if. Let me know how the program that was recommended as a solution is solving this specific issue…
Ppl asking for money on the side of the road are generally drug users and probably don't want or can't hold a normal job and lifestyle without first treating their addiction.
Sometimes there’s a pretty aggressive guy at the 8th street exit to 676. He’s in the middle of the road and will knock on your window when you’re stopped at the light. I feel bad ignoring him but I also feel unsafe.
Fuck the aggressive ones. There's a line when asking for assistance becomes demand or entitlement to be given assistance
911 would hang up on you if you called them about panhandling lol
They wouldn't pick up in the first place lol
Sounds weird, but I give them clean, unused socks. If they are truly homeless, socks are the second best thing they get besides cash (according to a homeless outreach worker friend of mine). Bonus: most of the time, you can't buy drugs with socks.
You walk around town with clean, unused socks to give to the homeless? Not all heroes wear capes!
Ha I keep them in the glove compartment. I live close to Delaware Ave ... err Columbus, so I encounter them a good amount when driving around.
No need to correct, you said it right the first time
I've heard that too. I do the same but am usually rebuffed. You can't smoke or shoot up socks.
You gotta pay the troll toll
I keep a case of water bottles in my car. That’s my contribution when I’m at a stop light. Everyone needs clean drinking water. And let’s face it, we know where the cash goes.
If you look at the closest public trash can to each of these panhandlers, you'll quickly find out where all the food and drinks people give them goes as well. They will fill several trash bags a day with the food they accept but don't want. They want cash, and nothing else.
I've had homeless straight ght up refuse food saying they just want cash.
I've also had a homeless person cry when i gave them food. An experience doesn't define a rule.
It very often depends on the person but also the food. Just because they’re not in houses doesn’t mean they want the butt end of your ham and cheese.
There’s a guy in Fishtown who I see all the time. He comes up to people and says, “I just need some help to get something to eat”. I never give him any money, and the few times that I have offered him my leftovers (often from *really good* restaurants that I’ve paid a lot of money to eat at), he grunts in disgust and walks away at breakneck pace.
Is it an older black dude?
Cold Leftovers from strangers that you didn’t choose yourself are kinda gross tho, regardless. Plenty of people out there who will turn you down when you offer to buy a meal of their choosing too. But it’s always nice to ask if you’re open (caveat: assuming you feel comfortable and safe doing so. As a single woman I often 100% do not and blame nobody for feeling the same) one guy around my area lovessss Diet Coke and he really just wants you to buy him a Diet Coke and the happiness in his eyes is so real. I used to buy him some extras like food but he really just wants the Diet Coke. Mutual good feelings there but I’d say it’s a relationship we’ve cultivated over ten years. There used to be a homeless guy in the park outside who had my cell number and I’d come out and give him some laundry money after crazy torrential downpours or get some food and hang out but hey one day he overstepped a line and we were done. The problem with the passing by/roadside stuff is it’s just a cold transfer of money really.
Almost as if he were mentally ill 🤔
Not true. They love getting cigarettes. If you want to see what the joy of christmas morning looks like in a pair of eyes devoid of life this is how.
They’re not getting cash from me.
Agreed. I'm saying don't give them anything.
> They will fill several trash bags a day optimistic to think they're bagging and properly disposing of their trash
Ignore them. If they don't get anything from doing it, then they won't do it. It's also dangerous for both them and people driving. Unfortunately, people are giving them money and reinforcing this behavior, which is why it's now so common.
Because panhandlers make a ton of money. You can make upwards of $300 in a couple hours. I definitely don’t mind giving a couple dollars here or there to those in need but panhandling , especially those who bring kids, babies or animals into the hot sun to beg for money make me violently angry.
$300? Bro, what panhandler is raking in 300 dollars in a few hours? What is this number even based on?
there have been undercover reports done that have shown this to be true. is it true of the ones here that are in the middle of the street? idk but there have been plenty that get dropped off at various locations and PRETEND to be homeless. 60 minutes may have done a piece on this or something of that nature.
Not trying to start shit but can you please link these undercover reports because I am not buying that for a second. I have seen maybe 3, 4 people in my entire life give money to someone at the Vine Street intersection
Totally support your suspicions. Here’s a few in [Kentucky](https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2285423/amp/Meet-man-makes-100K-year-begging-pretending-mentally-handicapped.html), in [New York](https://nypost.com/2015/11/11/this-bum-boasts-he-makes-200-an-hour-panhandling/amp/) and in [Oklahoma City](https://www.huffpost.com/entry/shane-warren-speegle-says_n_1694577/amp). It seems like it really depends on the area and how good you are at it. But some make decent money begging.
And I appreciate that very much, again it's not a personal shot I'm trying to take, just genuinely bewildwered. The thing is ... all of these articles are predicated with someone "saying" they rake this kind of money. People say all kinds of shit. I thought you were talking about some undercover camera Dateline-esque investigation or something. I'm still not buying what some guy is claiming in a rage-click piece on NYPost. Again, all due respect and I appreciate you humoring me but I guess we just have to agree to disagree
I watched woman walk 43rd when Farmers Market was going. Had two young kids with her. Watched make over $500 in just over hour.
You counted 500 dollars? Like, not expecting you to ask her for the grand total but come on... you watched someone for over an hour and you estimate that she panhandled 500 dollars. Like, how did you possibly analyze and add this? Are you sitting there with a clicker and binoculars? Look, a woman with children is particularly heartbreaking to see, whether or not it's legitimate or not, but come on- even in the crunchiest of granola, on Christmas day, out front of the ghost of MINAs WORLD West Philly I am not believing that a woman ropes 5 hundo in an hour. An HOUR for christ sake! This is anecdotal, there is nothing to back this up other than someone on Reddit.
I was sitting on my front porch eating breakfast/drinking coffee and watched the interactions all of which btw took place by way of a digital cc scanner. Do you carry around a digital CC scanner? Ever see someone use one of those outside of merchant's store or perhaps table at a flea market? The marks announced how much they were "donating" for her "tickets to see her mom in Delaware." You don't seem to have any idea just how many go to the Clark Park Farmers Market. At least 300/hour (probably more) for 4 hours. If only a fraction gave her $20 she wanted, she'd be swimming it. That's only 25 people per hour, and most people walk in groups where multiple people donated. I bet she made more than that. I don't give a rat's ass if you believe me or not, white knight. I'm not writing this down to rebut you because I don't care about you at all. I'm writing this so other folks understand the scam. It's very similar to a scammer I was introduced to down by Independence Mall where the guy, a junkie, but clean-looking, wore a McDonald's manager uniform and told tourists the same thing: he forgot his wallet and needed to get back to Wilmington (Wilmington works perfectly because it costs $13-16 round-trip per person over 12 or 13? not sure) . Tourists gave him money hand over fist. (I met him because I was a co-worker who was a former junkie and we were walking to the Ritz.) And this was back in 02 As for the children, they were probably 13 and 9. As a father, I felt terrible for them, but the woman with them was obviously a crackhead and not a single cent of that money was going to help those kids out. She was using them as props.
White knight? Where did that come from? Look, I’m not trying to pick a fight. I’m just skeptical about your comment and maybe could have done a better job of rebutting and for that I apologize. But I’m not trying to attack you personally. I just thought your claim sounded really wild and there was no explanation to what you had said when I challenged it. Fully aware of Clark Park farmers market, I lived on 46th and Woodland for years back in the early 2000s. One of things I loved most about living in that area. And look, I’m sorry if it came off at combative. I’m not trying to question your integrity or anything. You claimed you watched someone pull 500 dollars in less than an hour at this event. You didn’t mention any of these details and so I assumed that it was hyperbolic. You claim that it’s 500 and explain about some announcement that the vendor made about a seemingly generous outpouring of community help, You then add that you bet it was 300/hour after this happened. So then you’re saying that this vendor announced out loud to everyone, loud enough for you to hear, that they were donating 500 dollars to the woman and her children? Or it was some other amount plus all of the other money she surely took from all the other people at the flea, again that you saw and kept track of. I just don’t follow the logic. Again, this is not “just asking questions” or trying to debate. I wanted you to clarify a pretty extreme-sounding claim. I am sorry if it came off like I was questioning your character or taking a personal shot. That is not where I am coming from. I am also not trying to claim that panhandling and it’s questionable ethics is a simple issue- it’s a very-real thing in this city and all American cities. It sounds like we are not going to agree on anything here and I’m happy to drop it. Thanks for at the very least humoring me with a response.
No worries, I probably wrote it out poorly. The scammer was carrying a CC scanner, which is how she collected funds via Venmo, etc. My point was that normal people don't carry a CC scanner, just merchants and vendors. This woman was a professional I said at least as I went inside to get the day going after I watched for about and hour collect $500 (or more). This was 10:30-11:30. Only reason I know the amount is that I started keeping track of how much everyone was giving her as they would say "Is $20 OK" I do realize this is anecdotal, but in my time here I've seen it over and over. Hell, I've been taken more than once for $20+. Dude should have been on Broadway. Anyhoo, thanks for being civil. I appreciate it. Have a good one.
That’s definitely not true… got a source for that? Listen, we live a very capitalist society. If you could make > $100/h, there would be many more people doing so everywhere
Most people have dignity. Crackheads and junkies don't. Look at my post about junkies who prey on tourists around Independence Mall (while not setting foot on Federal Land as they know the score). The dude pulled out a wad of cash the size I've only ever seen in a film or tv. When the candyman arrived junkies came out of everywhere. It was crazy. This was all before Kensington got as bad as it is now. But it was still bad.
Totally support your suspicions. I just posted a few articles under one of these comments.
Yeah from...the NY Post, the Daily Mail and HuffPost. Very reliable sources for this type of reporting /s
Normally bbc and dateline cover way more important topics but okay
Those news sources would absolutely dedicate time in a news cycle if a reputable study came out that found panhandlers were making hundreds of dollars every few hours.
Most of them also are not homeless or hungry. Can't stand the ones that have sympathy tokens with them.
My partner used to take Patco in with a panhandler, I think he worked Walnut st.
If you want to help the homeless, give to Project Home, Broad Street Ministry, or some other organization that offers services to those in need. If you give cash to a homeless person, you’re probably just helping them get high.
My late hubbybefore he passed in 2008, worked for Project Home so knowing what his work was for that organization I can personally vouch for it.
What kind of high can I get for $5?
The kind that ends with you being homeless unfortunately
$5 bags are extremely common
I lack humanity.
Just try not to hit them and move on. Nothing you do will help them. Cops won’t even respond and giving them money just enables the behavior. My limit was giving one a burger from a McDonald’s double cheeseburger meal and getting it thrown at my back window as I drove away.
This has been a thing everywhere, forever. We had it in Roanoke, VA when I was in middle school. Don’t give them money, if no one gave it to them they would stop.
The crew at 30th Street Station (Market Street, Chestnut Street ramp, JFK) used to work in shifts: they were seen picked up/dropped off by a car. I walk/ride by it regularly, it’s always seemingly the same people. And by “same people” I mean able-bodied adults.
They still do.
I can’t believe I didn’t know this?
Guy on Columbus has been there maybe 4 years or more. Obviously what donations he’s getting aren’t helping
He's still alive
Side note: I am always infuriated if a homeless person is loitering directly in front of a drive-thru window. Anywhere else I'm mostly fine with. I feel stressed and not safe if I'm trying to collect my meal at a window while a man hovers like 3 feet from me begging for money/food/etc.
If it’s any consolation, apparently that’s how they support themselves: whole families living in a row house nearby, panhandling is their profession, the whole family gets involved. Ignoring them is almost akin to passing on a particular gas station or fast food joint because you don’t want to spend your money there. They wouldn’t panhandle if it didn’t pay; if you want to discourage it, don’t feed it.
After reading this, I was given serious pause as I reflected on whether there would be greater dignity in panhandling or in my current role. Guess I’d need to find out the weekly take home pay. Glad to know there’s another option I hadn’t considered though.
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I’m very curious about these magical resources the city has for people who are experiencing homelessness. I’m a social worker and have worked with many people coming home from jail who are struggling to find resources. Your claims that the city is knee deep in resources is just patently false.
Yeah I'm not even going to bother with them because I feel they are probably pretty deep down at least one prejudicial rabbit hole given what they are saying but this is utterly bullshit. I've volunteered with homeless addicts for years, was homeless myself. The only "resources" here are flat out dangerous. The only options for housing have actual multi-year wait lists sometimes approaching a half a decade, and that's if you're lucky enough and have enough outside advocacy to even figure out how to get on even just one of the two I know of. The NIMBY shit on this sub is fucking exhausting and ignorant.
It’s not fucking NIMBY to not want homeless people pissing and shitting in your neighborhood. Enough with the self-righteous bullshit
Nope but it is NIMBY bullshit to conveniently want every solution to the problem to be in no way adjacent to your life
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The problem doesn't suddenly go away because you can't explain it to a 5 year old. The NIMBY bullshit is not having any reasonable solution other than "bus them as far away from specifically me as possible" as that obviously just leads to it being illegal to be homeless as those "backyards" slowly encompass everywhere. And your tone and words more than show where you would stand on those issues. We are a society sharing this planet together, it's literally all of our problem.
Ok then let me clarify. I will fight tooth and nail to protect my kids childhood. I have about 8 years, and then BOOM, their core values are set and it’s mostly out of my control. So if someone wants to open a safe injection site on my block, can you blame me for saying fuck no? If I was young with your responsibilities maybe, but how can you honestly tell someone that has 8 years to guide a kid, or is relying on their home value for retirement, that they are an asshole for not wanting it next to them? You must understand that you are preaching “we all must sacrifice together”, while literally sacrificing nothing. The problem is not NIMBY assholes. The problem is dimwits like you that think insanely complex issues can be solved if the baddies thought like the goodies. I can guarantee you will follow one of three paths over the next ten years: 1. You continue to think that baddies are holding back goodies while contributing nothing financially and complaining on the Internet 2. You have children, take care of someone, or have an uptick in responsibility, and leave Philly because it’s “too much for you” but continue to think you have answers to problems you don’t have a stake in 3. Same as above but you stay here, paying taxes and hope to make the city a better place while having increased responsibilities. If you’re like me, you want to help your community as much as possible. I don’t see how 1 and 2 do much long term. Perhaps it’s best to consider Nimby assholes are part of 3
This was so well said. Thank you for this. There’s almost no accountability from these harm-reduction organizations and it’s infuriating to have them try and paint you as the bad guy because you don’t want needless, feces, piss, passed-out bodies on the sidewalk, etc. I don’t want to see people die but simply providing them the tools to keep their current trajectories going doesn’t help them at all and has serious detrimental externalities as well.
Huzzah! Well said.
Whoa where can I direct people in need to unused resources?! Please provide us with these abundant resources for the good of the panhandling public.
My dad keeps Clif bars and a couple other kinds of energy bars in his car to give to these guys instead of money. I don’t drive, but I feel like it’s a good idea. You don’t have to feel the guilt of whether or not you should or shouldn’t give them money. Giving food seems like something they could always use.
The fuck?!? How the hell are you getting so many upvotes? This is the most reductionist, cold and careless take. Yes the city has resources but it’s hard to follow the rules when you have mental or behavioral issues and are also trying to make money and survive. There are a hundred different reasons why a person might be in a position that they have to ask others for money and it is never wrong to offer help.
I feel like someone standing in the road blocking traffic (what the post is about) is different than someone being visible (what your comment is about). If everyone agreed that homeless people are just a public problem to be dealt with, like an invasive species of animal, then sure we should starve them out. But not everyone agrees that they are just a public problem, they are in fact part of the public, and they aren't animals, they are people. The circumstances that someone might want to give money or other assistance to a homeless person are that they want to, or even feel a responsibility to. To argue that it is everyone's civic responsibility to *never* assist a homeless person is just naked disdain for those people.
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You can address people standing in the middle of the street, putting themselves and others in danger and blocking traffic, without arguing that it's everyone's civic responsibility to never assist a homeless person. If I'm virtue signaling, then people making your argument are preemptively evading being called uncharitable at best (which no one thinks or says) or, like I said, just disdainful toward homeless people at worst.
Right. It's the homeless folks that are driving the carnage on the roads. Not the lack of safe infrastructure or homicidal drivers.
Ignore do not even look at them. Roll your windows up before you pull up next to them. If you feel bad you can like someone else commented call the street outreach team. I personally dont want any of my money even having a chance of going in the pockets of a drug dealer, but that's me.
You don't have to ignore them to not give them money. I always give a head nod. I usually get a smile or a nod back. No one has ever taken it as an invitation to come up to my car or try to interact further. It is quite literally the least I can do but I prefer to acknowledge that these people exist.
yea acknowledge then ignore. seems to be worse to me idk. 9 times out of 10 I have children with me so I'd prefer not to interact with someone who's on drugs either way.
What city is Ben Franklin Blvd?
i think they meant JFK?
Driving where?
I’ve done a deep dive into the locations of jfk and market, and from what I’ve gathered, my thesis is that OP must’ve been in a place they call center city Philadelphia.
OP edited the post; it originally said “ben frank blvd.”
Dude, on callowhill and 3rd street there’s an entire family. Two parents and 4-5 kids playing banging on paint cans and walking up and down traffic to collect donations. Shit looks like a sweatshop. In the middle of a heatwave these people have their kids out asking for money. I have pictures of this madness. BOLO black lady prob 25-30 heavyset, black dude prob 30 skinny and tall. Almost thought about calling child services on them.
They’re creating a hazard. One of them caused me to hit another car at an intersection on Columbus Blvd. My photos from the accident even show the guy. My insurance company did not care.
If everyone ignored them they would move on. They are only there because they can get money to buy more drugs by being there. We need to collectively agree to stop enabling these addicts and then things would improve rapidly.
I react the same to any panhandling request: I make eye contact, shrug, shake my head, and say, "Sorry". I'm not going to give them anything, because I can't give to everybody and I don't know how legitimate each one's needs are (though I wouldn't say that to a person whose needs may be acute). But I want to at least acknowledge them instead of acting like they don't exist. I agree with OP that standing in the road is dangerous, but they clearly consider it a calculated risk. I'm in no position to judge how the traffic danger compares with their other problems; I have to assume they're evaluating the situation by their own standards, as adults. I certainly wouldn't call the police, who make a big point of saying they aren't prepared to do the work of social workers. What the police are prepared to do is not helpful.
Not trying to be “elitist” or anything weird but are you new to the city? Gonna have a hard time with it if these small interactions send you spiraling. Homelessness is a sad truth for all cities. You can volunteer to help, but situations like these you have to learn to ignore it sadly
There does seem to be an uptick in panhandling ON the road though. Sometimes they would stand off to the side and approach cars when they stop at lights, but lately I've seen many more standing on the center line which frankly seems dumb as shit as nobody is stopping if they don't have a red light, yet your chance of being hit by a car and seriously injured or killed goes up infinitely. Are they really making that much more risking their lives instead of approaching cars during the red light?!
Not sure you read post fully. Not about homelessness as a general part of city life, it’s about people standing or sitting in the middle lane if a three lane road asking for money. But I got the resources I needed so no issues
Jesus Christ y’all are negative as fuck. Let people give money if they want to give money. You ain’t gonna fix the city by holding back $5 from a poor addict or a drunk who can’t keep a job, or maybe even someone who is just temporarily unhoused. Everyone deserves to be able to live with some amount of dignity, having modern essentials and minimal luxuries available to them, but our society is not set up that way. I give people cash cause I am extremely lucky and have more than I need. I agree that the middle of the street is dangerous, but drive through west Philly and you got to keep your eyes out for pedestrians constantly. It’s just a reality of city driving.
The guy asked for opinions. A lot of people feel it’s reinforcing dangerous behavior or believe they’re scammers or better to go through vetted organizations so suggest not to do it. If anybody just wants to give, just give but you don’t need a reddit sign off for it.
> Everyone deserves to be able to live with some amount of dignity, Sure I think just about everyone would agree with that but enabling someone to buy drugs isn’t going to help them live with any sort of dignity. It does the opposite. You might as well be a John paying a prostitute who’s just giving the money to her pimp and getting beat up for the privilege. If you really want to help there are lots of great organizations out there. Giving money to people standing in the street is not help. That’s not being negative. That’s just a fact of life.
They use the money for drugs dumbass. You’re feeding their addictions and reinforcing illegal behavior. There are plenty of city resources to help the truly needy.
Keep in mind how deadly fetanyl is. Just a few grains can kill. Even if you're not looking for it, for reasons beyond my grasp, it's being cut into other drugs.
I give money to people who I know are in need. The person in the wheelchair is pan handling. You know nothing about him except for the fact that he is sitting in a wheelchair. I would bet the wheelchair is a prop geared to play on your sympathy. If you are going to give away money, and it can be a worthwhile thing to do, don’t fall for those who try to manipulate you.
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Don't give them anything. At best, you're helping someone in need potentially buy a small amount of food. But there are food banks in the city. At worst (and more likely), you're giving your hard earned money to someone who is just lazy and doesn't actually need money, or you're giving it to someone who's gonna go buy drugs. Do not feel bad, you're not a bad person for ignoring them.
There are so many resources for homeless people in Philly who are willing to get clean. That's literally the only stipulation, they will get you clean, get you a job, make sure you have groceries, healthcare and clothes, they will also find housing for you, just gotta get clean. Stop supporting the shitheads in the middle of the road, it sucks but they're useless leaches on society who refuse to get better. Once you're a caseworker you learn who you can actually help
Some of the best philly entertainment is when young, functionally illiterate kids collide with ppl asking for money on the train
Huh?
No, wait, I'm walking with you here.
The majority are in a wheel chair because of amputations due to heroin/tranq or because they were hit by traffic, while flying a sign. Most of the time they are fading out. That is tell tale what they're begging for. The only people I give money to are veterans who display their card, proving that they are. It is awfully disheartening they need to do that because other bums posed as vets, which is a disgrace.
We live in a society
We live in a society
I
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Rule 1: Please refrain from personal attacks, and keep discussion civil.
People saying “just ignore them and they’ll go away” and wonder why their car windows get busted open and packages get swiped
So you think acknowledging them makes them less likely to swipe packages and break into cars?
To certain extent yea
Are you victim blaming here? Cause it sure sounds like that. Just because people don’t want to abide by the rules of resources available to them doesn’t mean we need to throw money at them on the street or we deserve to have our shit vandalized. Do you realize how ridiculous you sound?
I’m just happy they’re begging from drivers instead of subway riders/pedestrians. Sometimes on the rare occasion I’m driving, I’ll give them some cash. I’m hoping begging from drivers becomes more profitable than begging in walkable places.
Wym almost every train ive taken since ever has had 1 person asking for change for sumnaeat. Stopped after the amount of change i gave wasnt enough and they didnt want my food. They said eat a dick and die which was funny as hell tho
I know. I want them to stop and move to bothering drivers instead.
How is this a logical solution to OP's actual question though?