The homeless in San Francisco

The impact of the homeless is most notably seen whenever I revisit San Francisco. Walking through downtown, it is easy to spot a huddled, sleeping body by a doorway coupled with the familiar stench of human waste. As an individual who has lived in the city for several years, getting solicited daily by aggressive panhandlers was a daily annoyance. In some areas, homeless drug users would openly inject heroin by bus stops and leave used needles on the sidewalk.

After a while, I began to notice distinct groups of homeless. There were the runaway street kids who mostly congregated on Haight Street. Secondly, the hardcore homeless with their belongings in shopping carts. Some obviously had mental disorders; others were just down on their luck. The least noticeable were the weekly hotel residents living from check to check (welfare or work); some were recently evicted families or ex-cons looking for a fresh start.

While I have sympathy for the homeless who genuinely need help; there are those who abuse the system and the generosity of others.