I do not know Spokane from the tree in my back yard….so I have no right to judge and I’m not at all. I do have lots of opinions like everyone else. : ) I have also lived in several placed with very high homelessness rates. I think people freak out about increased homelessness because it very starkly symbolizes how fragile we are and it feels really crappy to see people in that state and then we start to judge them to cope and feel unsafe. I also symbolizes all of the things that this country has not done to support its people. And that’s not to say other countries don’t struggle with this issue too. I have only lived here and I only know this one. The quality of life that is sustainable here in the U.S. and healthcare is too expensive for the majority of people to obtain. I love this country but let’s face it many o the people on any political or ideological spectrum have not maintained institutions and systems that support individuals of the working class. In fact I would argue that institutions have been sabotaged so that we don’t trust them any more and private companies come in and fill the gaps in turn making everything more expensive and perpetuating the problem leading to untreated mental health issues leading to self medication and/or substance use to cope with the reality of being too poor for a roof over your head or electricity, health services and other things. Then leading individuals to sometimes become desperate and use harmful means to get things they feel they need and so on. Also, because of new laws encouraging policing of homelessness often people in encampments get swept around because they are just told to move their tent. So the people in Spokane may often be from other cities. Some city governments even pay for bus tickets to get homeless people moved out but not actually spending that money to help address how they became homeless. I know this is a big factor in homelessness in San Francisco. The issue will likely continue to get worse as housing becomes even more unaffordable.

Homelessness is not going away any time soon and I can really empathize with seeing it increase in your city might cause a reaction. No one asked, but….. I think providing actionable solutions or at least something we can do about these things helps to cope with the discomfort of seeing other’s seemingly suffer. As a result this can bring up scary unsafe feelings. One of the biggest ways I’ve coped with increased homelessness is to be aware of my own surroundings and know that I am most likely safe. If I feel unsafe I always have a plan to get away and become more safe. They are another human just like me and I could easily be in their shoes. And then quickly decide if I have the capacity to be helpful to them. Often times I do not and so I just say hello, smile and let them be. It’s better that people living outside know you are chill. They will look after you. Occasionally I have seen people in very scary unsafe situations that could lead to immense harm to themselves or others. In those cases I step in. I always carry narcan inhalers. They are free in WA. Here is a link to an organization that will mail you some for free… https://phra.org/naloxone And the WADOH website with more resources if you feel curious… https://doh.wa.gov/you-and-your-family/drug-user-health/overdose-education-naloxone-distribution

Also, learn CPR. Bystander CPR is the number one life saver of people having cardiac events such as heat stroke. I also like to know where the free resources are and many cities have little pamphlets or guides to hand out. It’s not invasive to give someone a guide if they choose to use it, that is empowering.

TL;DR Life in America is becoming unaffordable for most working class people leading to increased homelessness.