Helping the Poor; J. Shaw

323 Helping the Poor by Jane S. Shaw M any of us are old enough to re member when, back in the 1960s, author Michael Harrington intro duced the nation to the "invisible poor." After reading his book The Other America, we real ized that poor people were all around us. We just hadn't noticed them. One of the accomplishments of the 1960s war on poverty and the continued growth of government welfare programs is that now we do notice the poor. It's nearly impossible to go through a major city without seeing a person who is or appears to be homeless. While con troversy surrounds the actual number, clearly there are more homeless than there used to be. As of 1985, 14 per cent of the U.S. population had incomes below the poverty level; the per centage was 12. 1 in 1969. Our government funds, it seems, have bought more poverty. But government programs are only part of the problem. Being homeless and hungry has become something admirable. Each year, as winter approaches, and especially around the holidays, television and newspaper reporters seek out and interview the homeless. Advo cates for the homeless such as Mitch Snyder in Washington, D.C., begin campaigns to attract money and shelter.

The abject poor become objects not only of sympathy but even of respect. They are por trayed as having a "special significance," as Peter Marin wrote in Harper's, January 1987. He said that the homeless "are all we have left to remind us of the narrowness of the received truths we take for granted." Some months ago, celebrities and politicians slept overnight on Jane S. Shaw, a senior associate of the Political Economy Research Center in Bozeman, Mont., has helped provide free breakfasts and shelter at St. Bartholomew's Church in New York City. This article originally appeared in The Christian Science Monitor. grates in the streets of Washington to publicize the plight of the homeless and win support for a new Federal program. In effect, they lauded the homeless as stoic heroes who survive society's neglect night after night. This adulation is a cruel distortion. While certainly some of the "grate people" have overcome tremendous difficulties, by and large they have not overcome! At this point in their lives, they are losers.

Some are former mental patients who may never be self-sufficient. Others are not so dif ferent from the rest of us. But they have made serious mistakes that must be corrected if they are ever to lead normal lives. They have left school, run away from home, or quit jobs and ended up on the streets. They desperately need incentives to rebuild their lives. Unfortu nately, we are taking away their incentives. To let sympathy tum to acceptance of their state puts a stamp of approval on their self destructive behavior. There is a better way. Three years ago, I left New York City for a small town in south western Montana. Suddenly, I was back in the 1960s with Michael Harrington where the poor are almost invisible. Montana is a low-income state. Its mining industry is dying; its agriculture is usually mar ginal; growth industries are almost nonexistent. Attracted by the scenic beauty, people come to Bozeman and then try to figure out how to make a living. Many have a difficult time.

The minimum wage - or less-is often the market wage. Young people with master's de grees in architecture and journalism wait on tables or clean motel rooms. Literally hundreds of people apply for each teaching job. But poor people are not obvious the way they are in New York and Washington. Just about everyone has some place to live. If it is a 324 THE FREEMAN. AUGUST 1988 Jane McCommack checks pantry supplies at Chapel Rock Christian Church. Food is donated by members. trailer, well, many Montanans live in trailers. The same applies to old houses where the plumbing is poor. And when poor people shop at the Salvation Army Thrift Store, they mingle with their more affluent neighbors rummaging for a bargain. For those who truly need help, we have an abundance of charity, just as big cities do. Churches supply food, a help center provides counseling, and a senior citizens' center serves older people. Big Brothers and Big Sisters help troubled children. We have the Salvation Army.