April 30, 2013
Nightingale Collective joins Occupy Medical

Occupy Medical is a growing popularity. Equipped to care for 20 people, they’re now servicing upwards of 60 every Sunday at the downtown park blocks.

Nightingale Public Advocacy Collective is now joining Occupy Medical in providing services to the unhoused.

April 17th, 2013Portraits of Homeless If you go downtown in Eugene, OR, you will inevitably see the arrest of a have-not. It’s so easy to spot these folks for their differences that the police will never find themselves exerting effort to locate someone of this social class. It is of utmost importance that the conflict of homelessness in society be identified as a class issue, where the have’s are simply put off by the have-nots. There are rarely any offenses that would warrant such revoking of one’s civil liberties such as arrest, yet daily, unwaveringly, homeless are arrested constantly for simply being in the city. [[MORE]]If you bring up the topic of homelessness you will certainly encounter a cognitive bias prevalent in those who believe that people reap what they sew, and rationalize and categorize all homeless into one big pool of karma-deserving saps of whom should have had the same upbringing as those passing judgement. The Just World Hypothesis is a bias that assumes people get what they deserve. The ubiquity of this bias is reproachable, and nests itself in ignorance and self-entitlement. Try bringing up the topic of starving African children in conversation. You’ll find that few would argue against the notion that those children are at least somewhat victims of their circumstance, and at the very least people would agree to the idea that helping African children is a good and just idea. The extremity of this example forces anyone to acknowledge that not all of us received the same opportunity. And other than being in America, a person in the United States has by no means had the same opportunity as you, nor anyone else who isn’t unhoused. Simply because a person comes from within our society does not mean they have done anything to deserve being treated like the homeless are currently treated. Belief that we can actually understand something as complex as thousands of peoples’ individual stories is a ridiculous notion, indicative of a God Complex, and pure example of how privilege can poison a good person into believe they deserve happiness more than someone else. We all deserve happiness. We all deserve the right be in community with each other. The current trend of criminalizing the lowest class of US citizens is a prejudiced behavior that parallels current discrimination against gays and past (and current) discrimination of African Americans. Read racist remarks made by opposers of the Civil Rights movement from the ’50s and try replacing racially charged words with ‘homeless’, or ‘homosexuals’, and you will immediately find the exact prejudiced opposition in today’s rhetoric around the issues of homelessness and homosexuality reflected flawlessly. We might think we’ve collectively evolved a more robust ethical code as a nation but we would behoove ourselves to recognize our blatant shortcomings regarding basic human rights and civil equity. These are people living a life neither you nor I could possibly fully understand in the absence of direct experience. Try not to find yourself passing rash judgement. It’s too common to regard one’s self as better or more deserving of happiness and wellbeing than others, and that is the essence of vanity. View the full photo set ”Portraits of Homeless” at evokewellbeing.
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April 17th, 2013
Portraits of Homeless

If you go downtown in Eugene, OR, you will inevitably see the arrest of a have-not. It’s so easy to spot these folks for their differences that the police will never find themselves exerting effort to locate someone of this social class. It is of utmost importance that the conflict of homelessness in society be identified as a class issue, where the have’s are simply put off by the have-nots. There are rarely any offenses that would warrant such revoking of one’s civil liberties such as arrest, yet daily, unwaveringly, homeless are arrested constantly for simply being in the city.

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April 4, 2013Photograph - Hungry Street Kid I’ve come to know people on the street and I’ve been wondering what it is about them that deems them arrest-worthy on such a regular basis. Daily, street dwellers or the proverbial “homeless” are arrested or at least cited for a multitude of victimless crimes. If they are criminals, why haven’t I ever been mugged, assaulted, or even threatened by these people? I have only ever been bummed for cigarettes and asked for some spare change. There is a blatant misconception about street kids and homelessness. There are not criminals running amok but rather the oposite. People who have lived life and have their own stories to tell have found themselves in a place that perhaps does not appeal to the rest of us. This is not grounds for violating basic human rights. Criminalizing homelessness is quite possibly the most popular prejudice in america and not enough people are paying attention.
Pop-upView Separately

April 4, 2013
Photograph - Hungry Street Kid

I’ve come to know people on the street and I’ve been wondering what it is about them that deems them arrest-worthy on such a regular basis. Daily, street dwellers or the proverbial “homeless” are arrested or at least cited for a multitude of victimless crimes. If they are criminals, why haven’t I ever been mugged, assaulted, or even threatened by these people? I have only ever been bummed for cigarettes and asked for some spare change.

There is a blatant misconception about street kids and homelessness. There are not criminals running amok but rather the oposite. People who have lived life and have their own stories to tell have found themselves in a place that perhaps does not appeal to the rest of us. This is not grounds for violating basic human rights. Criminalizing homelessness is quite possibly the most popular prejudice in america and not enough people are paying attention.