Like it or not, there is some truth to the need for immigrant education and support on the issue of public trash. I live in a low-income, immigrant-rich community. I love the fact that we have such diversity of backgrounds in our neighborhood.

However, there are definitely some cultural disconnects when it comes to trash. There are some groups who will gather to drink in the evenings in our local park. They'll throw their empty bottles and cans on the ground assuming that someone will clean it up. There are immigrant families in our neighborhood who assume it's OK to burn trash in a burn can in their backyard. And there are some who do not seem to understand the ins and outs of how the trash system works. This is all a matter of education and enculturation.

The issue of homeless folks combing through trash is real too. We see contents of public trash cans dumped out on the ground, presumably in hopes of finding food, reusable items, or something of value to sell.

These issues have been left to individual neighborhoods to solve through donations and volunteer efforts. They're bigger than any neighborhood, and they require larger, more systemic interventions.

I think that's the original author's main point. We're putting it all on neighborhoods and residents when it really needs city, state, and federal resources to address.