Oak Park has unfolded a formidable plan that will require the voluntary cooperation of residents [Make Real Change, Not Spare Change, oak-park.us/realchange]. They are being encouraged to stop giving cash to panhandlers, with the promise that Housing Forward will help panhandlers become independent.
Although principally an organization for housing the homeless, Housing Forward is staffed to support all dimensions of a sustainable life — medical, mental, legal, career, income, family and housing. They are building additional short-term housing, and their “street outreach specialists” visit panhandlers in downtown Oak Park to offer their services directly. Panhandlers will not be forgotten, but the support will be intentional and directional. The loose bills in your pocket could become a contribution to Housing Forward.
Will you sign up for this initiative? Despite the village’s well-laid plans, panhandling in Oak Park will be solved only when nearly all residents refuse to finance solicitors on the street. If any significant percentage of residents were to continue, the game will be lost. Housing Forward will not succeed if money is still being exchanged on the street.
If we don’t give our money to panhandlers, what will become of our reputation as people who care? Are you prepared to give up the appearance? In the future, when you walk Lake Street with a friend and encounter a panhandler, will you be too embarrassed to follow the village’s directive to keep the bills in your pocket?
What about the interests of the panhandlers, the people whose needs prompted our charity in the first place? A local leader has explained that the bills and coins given to panhandlers are like putting sand in the gears of their self-development. Housing Forward is working to help street people rebuild their lives from the ground up. For those who are willing, this is a life overhaul. Will the rest of us encourage it or stand in its way? Should you do what looks generous or that which is truly life-changing?
The decision is in the hands of residents. The village trustees cannot ban speech that is constitutionally protected. The police cannot arrest panhandlers. Business owners stay low out of fear of scaring off customers. The only person who can turn the tide is the one who gives away bills from their pockets.
Our hope of solving the problem rests in a community consensus in favor of doing what is best for the panhandlers rather than for ourselves. Declining to give money to panhandlers may seem heartless, but you have the chance to make a heartfelt contribution to Housing Forward on their behalf.
The village’s culture of caring need not be abandoned. It could become deeper and more consequential — with your help.
Dale Sorenson is a 45-year resident of Oak Park.