There have been a number of articles and letters to the editor recently on the topic of homeless people in Prince George. This information is interesting and informative, and I am pleased to see a range of perspectives about it. It also prompts me to want to have a deeper understanding of the situation. It would be great if The Citizen would research and publish answers to the following questions:
· What are the stories behind each of them with respect to how they ended up homeless?
· What is the typical profile of socio-economic and educational backgrounds of homeless people?
· What are the most common causes of their homelessness?
· Do all of these people carry personal identification? If not, how are they identified by the health and legal system authorities?
· How are the health authorities identifying and encouraging homeless people to get COVID vaccinations? What about second shots?
· Are some or all of these people on social welfare or have they fallen through the cracks?
· If they are on welfare, where do they pick up their cheques? Where do they cash them?
· What is their status with the Canada Revenue Agency?
· Aside from social welfare, what are the sources of their income? Are some of them being subsidized by family members? Do some of them have savings and investments? Is it possible that some of them derive income from illegal activities?
· How do they pay for their clothing, food, cigarettes, alcohol, drugs, and cell phones if they have them?
· How safe are tent cities for the residents? Do the tent cities have leaders? If so, what influence and control do the leaders have over those living there?
· The city is proposing a bylaw to control tent cities and fines for those who do not comply. What will happen to homeless people who fail to pay their fines?
· What are the personal hygiene practices of a typical homeless person? What are their options for showering, using toilets, brushing teeth, laundering their clothes, and getting haircuts?
· What do they do when they need dental work or medical treatment?
· What percentage of these people have mental health issues?
· What do they do all day? What would a day in the life of a typical homeless person be like?
· Are there people from government agencies or other organizations who proactively advise them of the various services available to them, or do they just find out by word of mouth from other homeless people?
· What are their realistic options for getting off the street and integrated back into mainstream society? What would the process be?
· Years ago, there was a vagrancy law in British Columbia, which was enforced to some extent by the police to keep people from loitering and from sleeping in public places. What is the history of the devolution of that law?
· Years ago, there was an institute in the Lower Mainland named Essendale and later renamed Riverview. It was my understanding that it was a safe place for persons with mental health issues to reside. It would be interesting to understand why this institution is no longer functioning, and the history that followed the decision to discontinue it.
· Is there a protocol in place to keep track of who these homeless people are and account for them if they go missing? How do we actually know how many homeless people there are in Prince George?
Martin Meyer
Prince George
