Should the homeless be arrested or rehabilitated?
Image by Ed Yourdon via Flickr
Why is it that we think we can jail our problems away? The Chicago Tribune obviously thinks so.
Their recent article, “CTA Panhandler arrested 178 times,” chronicled the daily begging of Clarence Ervin, a homeless man who traverses the Chicago El Green line, asking for money from its passengers. The article states that Ervin has been arrested 178 times.Among his 178 arrests are charges for panhandling, disorderly conduct, drug possession and assault and battery.
Obviously, something needs to be done in this situation. CTA riders expressed their fear of Ervin to Tribune reporters:
“Although I have been trained to ignore what happens on the Green Line after taking it for so many years, this guy … is getting more and more aggressive by the encounter,” said Christie, a CTA customer who asked not to be fully identified for safety reasons.
David, another regular Green Line rider, said: “I always ride in the front car of the train and in the back of my mind is the question: ‘Is today the day I have to fight?’ This guy doesn’t have a lot to lose, but I do.”
Their fears shouldn’t be overlooked. People with mental illness and drug abuse problems can be dangerous, and shouldn’t be allowed to roam free, hurting and intimidating citizens left and right.
But what is jail going to do for this guy?
The article quotes police officers, judges, riders and even a currency exchange employee, but not a single homelessness advocate or mental health expert.
At a time where our state can barely contain violent criminals in our prison systems, do we really have room for Clarence Ervin? And even if we did, is it really fair to say at this moment that this man deserves to be put away for life for panhandling?
Mental illness isn’t a crime. Drug abuse is, but it’s also an illness. Years of living on the streets can bring on both.
Not once does the article mention the possibility of rehab, of counseling, of interim housing or intervention. If mental health or homelessness experts were called to comment, no mention was made. The article has a clear solution – put this guy away – and puts the blame on cops and a legal system that doesn’t have enough teeth to crack down on criminals like Ervin.
Let’s say Ervin was put in jail, even for 10 years. What then? He’ll just be put back out there, having spent 10 years living on the taxpayer’s dime, no better off – perhaps worse.
This is the kind of article that makes me wonder what people are talking about when they say “objective journalism.” Clearly, the reporters and editors who put together this story have an idea of what should be done to this man. They interview the sources that back that up. It’s clearly an important local story, but there’s no objectivity to be found. It might as well be a 1,300 word opinion piece on criminalizing homelessness.
Should something be done? Yes. Should CTA passengers be safe from aggressive, perhaps even violent panhandlers? Yes.
But is jail the answer here? Probably not. Our nation’s complex social problems and journalism as a dying profession need more complex, thoughtful solutions than the ones offered.
Ervin may not be Chicago’s citizen of the year, but he’s still a human being. If the $55 a day he collects were put toward a mandatory comprehensive rehabilitation program, there’s a chance he could still be a productive member of society, instead of a nuisance to Green line riders or another guy in an orange jumpsuit.
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Hi Megan,
I too read the Tribune piece, and was troubled by the fact that even though this homeless man has a history of mental illness, no one mentioned contacting his family. Isn’t that standard operating procedure?
Meghan,
I tip my hat to you for calling out the Trib on this. There’s no excuse for this kind of reporting: “The article quotes police officers, judges, riders and even a currency exchange employee, but not a single homelessness advocate or mental health expert.”
As always, Megan, a bang-up job.
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[...] into 2010, the photo was published in a Feb 9, 2010 True/Slant blog titled “Should the homeless be arrested or rehabilitated?” And it was published in a Feb 10, 2010 blog titled “Doar à Deus é doar ao [...]
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