The biggest takeaway I found was that the demographic of the homeless people we were studying was not as specific or concrete as we initially thought. There were various issues effecting the homeless people using the weather amnesty service and only certain services would be applicable to certain groups. Also, the biggest disconnect that Peter expressed to us was the cultural differences between the homeless at weather amnesty and the services provided .He found that many of the homeless population we were studying were from unique backgrounds of poverty and abuse, and the services that were targeted at them were trying to help assimilate and group them into a more middle class group. We also found that education was hugely important with finding employment.
Author: kmuya@nd.edu
Interview write-up
Profile of participant
Name: Peter
Age: 30
Homeless status: on and off since teenage years
Employment status: unemployed
Location: Kraz Weather Amnesty Building
Date of Interview: February 16, 2017
Key Takeaways
He had a relatively stable background, both this parents were in the military and he his grandfather was a successful screen writer.
Has been in South Bend since last November and before that was travelling throughout the US.
His military background allowed him to travel and live in many different locations.
His life experiences have a huge influence o his personality and character. The vast amount of tattoos he has tell many different stories about his life.
(In response to what does a typical day look like for you)
“Hanging with a couple buddies, just try and get a little money and do whatever”
“I like to travel; I don’t have a home base. Its tough but my life wouldn’t make sense to me if it was any other way.”
Interview write-up
Profile of participant
Name: Eric
Age: 37
Homeless status: on and off homeless since 2003
Employment status:
Hometown: South Bend
Location: Kraz Weather Amnesty Building
Date of Interview: February 16, 2017
Key Takeaways:
The main reasons for homelessness was environment, always being surrounded by drug addicts and lifestyle that was inconsistent and unstable. He has been in this environment since the age of 17, making him vulnerable and susceptible to friends negative influence.
He lacks a clear focus on recovery or progress and seems relatively comfortable with lifestyle and using the services south bend provides.
Evidence of pushing responsibility on to others and blaming environment.
He lacks self ownership of his problems
He lived at the center for the homeless for 2 years
Memorable quotes
“There are some people in here that are entitled and think their better than everyone else just because they have jobs”
“This is one of the few cities that have a homeless center and I can get everything I need”