Jackblog - cox
The Gift That Keeps on Taking
Tonight, the City is hosting a dinner for Jackson's homeless. It's a gift to that population the city insulted and injured the rest of this year. It reminds me of the gifts the Wise Men took to Bethlehem. There they found a homeless, hungry, freezing child. Did they give the child and his family a home, food and clothes? No; they gave gold, frankincense and myrrh. All symbolic gifts--which made the Wise Men very proud, but did very little for the neediest in that manger that night.
What other gifts has the City given the homeless this year? In November, the City Council passed an ordinance criminalizing panhandling in downtown Jackson. If one of the homeless men at tonight's dinner walks outside afterwards and asks someone for a dollar, that man can now be arrested.
Over the summer, our mayor declared a curfew that specifically required homeless men and women be indoors by 10 p.m., overlooking the problem that homeless people, by definition, have no doors to go into,--not to mention the greater problem that the City had no compelling reason to pass such a curfew. When the curfew drew national attention (none of it good), the mayor declared that the curfew would be voluntary. A voluntary curfew? Under penalty of disapproval, I suppose.
The mayor will be at tonight's dinner. I hope he runs into the same homeless men he patronized over the summer. I heard him during the curfew debacle promise about two dozen homeless men and women that he would get them each apartments with, as he put it, doors with keys that lock. I hope they ask where those apartments are. I hope they ask him why the City feels that one warm meal eclipses a year of harassment and empty promises.
One ironic note about the City's new anti-panhandling ordinance (beyond the obvious): When the Council was discussing the merits of the ordinance, they mentioned in shocked tones that some homeless are actually going inside churches to ask for money. Imagine! The nerve of those homeless going into a House of God to ask for charity. Perhaps they'd heard Jesus' words that as we do unto the least of humanity, we do it unto Him.
Tonight, unto Him the City does something right and kind. Tomorrow they will put Him in jail.
posted by on 12/22/06 at 11:10 AM. [printer-friendly version]
COMMENTS
You didn't hold back at all, did you? :-) The Bible says that it is better not to make a vow than to make a vow and break it. An unfulfilled promise of homes for the homeless is the lowest of the low.
posted by L.W. on 12/22/06 at 01:43 PM
Perhaps Melton, instead of taking on young boys the he seems to end up further criminalizing instead of rehabilitating, should take up a new cause on shelter the homeless in his house.
posted by jeff lucas on 12/22/06 at 02:20 PM
posted by ladd on 12/26/06 at 01:05 PM
I heard him during the curfew debacle promise about two dozen homeless men and women that he would get them each apartments with, as he put it, doors with keys that lock. I hope they ask where those apartments are. Brent
Those apartments are at "The Carter" as Kim Wade called Frank's house on Carter Grove.... just like in New Jack City... you can't make this stuff up...
posted by pikersam on 12/26/06 at 01:25 PM
Donna, I'd say it was successful in that many hungry people were served food and given a place to sleep for the night. Praise for Councilman Tillman who attended the dinner.
posted by Brent Cox on 12/27/06 at 06:56 PM
posted by ladd on 12/27/06 at 07:50 PM
I saw a picture (in the C-L) of the mayor sitting, eating and chatting with some of the homeless people who attended (unless that was a file photo of when he fed them pizza this past summer).
posted by Kacy on 12/27/06 at 08:32 PM
[Kamikaze] The Media Fix Is In
J.T.: Amen to pushing a positive Jackson. And, yes, it is a movement. And, it is moving.
Aug 27, 2008 | 06:17 PM
Ban the Paddle?
ladd: A lot of kids in all our schools are "scary smart." Many just haven't had the chance to prove it, yet. On the not-know-how-to-ask-a-str anger-a-question point -- how many strangers are completely ...
Aug 27, 2008 | 05:33 PM
Ban the Paddle?
Tom Head: The kids I've met from the Jim Hill Civil Liberties Club are SCARY smart (they're not just the future; they're ready and able to get out and do stuff now), and the idea that anyone would consider ...
Aug 27, 2008 | 05:15 PM
Ban the Paddle?
ladd: you mentioned people should try to find out what is really going on with this generation. Damn right I did. And any given day, you will find up to 20 young people in their teens and 20s in my offices, ...
Aug 27, 2008 | 05:12 PM
Ban the Paddle?
ladd: Baquan, it's simple really: You generalized about all young people with statements like these: Discipline does not work any more on kids, whether it is beating them or putting them in time out. Young ...
Aug 27, 2008 | 04:49 PM
Ban the Paddle?
baquan2000: To Tom Head - lets just agree to disagree. You put yours in time out for stealing or cussing, while with mine, they will just have to meet their maker when they attempt to try it!? Sorry - I will ...
Aug 27, 2008 | 04:41 PM
Ban the Paddle?
baquan2000: Donna you did a good article a while back on this generation, where I think you mentioned people should try to find out what is really going on with this generation. Maybe what I said, was to ...
Aug 27, 2008 | 04:28 PM
Ban the Paddle?
Tom Head: Or for selling bad weed. Or for sleeping with your girlfriend. Or... Right. We teach the same pro-violence message with the Iraq War and the death penalty, too, not to mention when leaders go around ...
Aug 27, 2008 | 04:04 PM
Ban the Paddle?
ladd: That is a vast generalization about young people, baquan, and extremely offensive. I'm more impressed with young people today in their teens, and even tweens, than I ever have been. And the numbers bear ...
Aug 27, 2008 | 03:39 PM
Ban the Paddle?
baquan2000: after reading all the posts above; whatever it is we are doing; it is not working? Discipline does not work any more on kids, whether it is beating them or putting them in time out. Young men do ...
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