Do you give money to homeless people?

[PersonAndStuff]

When I first moved to a big city for college I got it stuck in my head that you should never give money to homeless people because "they'll just spend it on drugs" and "a lot of these beggers aren't really homeless." Lately though I've been thinking these are maybe just some convenient excuses.

 

[Bear]

Not directly, but I have given to charities that provide resources for homeless people.

 

[cwmartin]

Unfortunately I already have a hard enough time always making my own ends meet without giving my money away to strangers.

 

[Mendrox]

No because most of them here in my country are scammers that work for other people.

 

[Fulminator]

sometimes

 

[A Syrian Communist]

I gave a guy $20 once but considering he more or less harassed me for it in front of my friends and the only reason I did it was because that was the smallest bill the ATM I just don't make eye contact with them anymore

 

[WascallyWabbit]

Where I'm at, there's usually much better ways to help homeless people than to just hand them money. Now if you want to buy them a meal or a bus ticket or something, that's probably better than just cash.

Ideally, you should look into donating your time and/or money to a non-profit that specifically deals with poverty fighting. CitySquare does great work where I live

 

[Deleted member 32822]

When I can afford to spare a couple dollars, yes. Usually if I'm in my car.

 

[Rangerx]

Yeah of course. Why wouldn't I?

 

[OrangeNova]

Nope, there are enough services in my city to assist people who are homeless that they refuse to take. If they're not going to help themselves with what's available to them, I'm not going to give them change.

I also don't carry change/bus tickets.

 

[Deleted member 6949]

Yes, and I've always been broke myself so it hasn't been easy. The US isn't big on safety nets, so it's on all of us to chip in.

 

[Rotkehle]

No. Homeless people in this country chose to 99% their way of living.

 

[Deleted member 2595]

So I used to never do it, partly due to the drug angle but mainly due to many substantial rumours about a certain clique of homeless people in my hometown being trapped in organised crime, so any money you gave them would actually go straight to their 'pimp'

However I recently became friends with some people who work for homeless charities and they say always give these people fucking money

No matter their situation, it will be of immense use and importance to them

I never got to dig deep on the topic but they knew their shit about tons of housing stuff and were insistent about this

 

[Walter White Walker]

Absolutely not.

 

[tommyv2]

Definitely not, no. I would if they were homeless and not junkies, but I haven't seen one of those in ages. I will not be an enabler of someone's poor choices and additions.

 

[DryCreek]

.

 

[Amnixia]

Yes, unless they reek of alcohol/weed. Life is hard and people in the gutter need help to get out of it.

 

[Marvie]

Not directly, but I have given to charities that provide resources for homeless people.

Click to shrink...

This.

 

[C.Mongler]

When I have some money to give yeah. Ultimately, the homeless will use their money on what they need to survive. Sometimes that might unfortunately be drugs, however being homeless is a desperate, often hopeless situation. I can't begin to pass judgement on someone who's in a place where they feel stuck enough that doing some sort of hard drug is their only outlet or means of escape. If I don't pass them a buck, they'll get what they feel they need somehow anyway.

 

[Tedmilk]

When I can tell they're genuine for whatever reason and I'm drunk, yes. I'd rather give directly than give it to a charity I don't trust.

 

[Doctor Doggo]

No. I'll give them food, blankets and clothes though. And have worked in food shelters before.

 

[idlewild_]

Not directly, I just donate to some local charities that provide services to the homeless people in the area. I did give some money a couple times, one guy yelled at me because he wanted me to get him rum from the nearby liquor store instead, stopped for good after that incident.

 

[Microsoft]

I used to but they were dishonest with me, not anymore

 

[daveo42]

I've given food to those that have asked for it in the past. I tend to avoid giving out straight cash because we have a wealth of pan-handlers in our city and a severe heroin issue. I also give to charitable organizations during the year as opposed to handing out money to individuals.

 

[CastorKrieg]

When I first moved to a big city for college I got it stuck in my head that you should never give money to homeless people because "they'll just spend it on drugs" and "a lot of these beggers aren't really homeless." Lately though I've been thinking these are maybe just some convenient excuses.

Click to shrink...

By giving them money you are fueling the problems that resulted in them being on the streets in the first place. Also a lot of people beg because it makes economic sense for them - this is really bad for cities in Western Europe who see a massive influx of CEE beggars.

Donate to NGOs helping the homeless.

 

[Mikebison]

People quite often sleep in a little alley right by my shop, so I'll ask if they're hungry and go grab them a sandwich/coffee. Sometimes a sleeping bag or something if that's what they say they need.

My girlfriend will speak to literally any homeless person if they have a dog. Buy them dog food and stuff.

 

[BeforeU]

Not if they are smoking

 

[Torpedo Vegas]

No, some weeks I scrape by to my next check with literal pennies in my account. I can't afford to give any of this away.

 

[ArmsofSleep]

Yeah.

If they're homeless and actually suffering, they need it.

If they're gonna use it on drugs/booze, I don't blame them, I would probably do the same if I was homeless.

If they're not actually that poor and they're just asking for money because they can't get a job, eh they still need it.

 

[DarkTom]

I do, sometimes that's a good thing. Sometimes I regret it.

 

[Br3wnor]

I don't but my wife will so it evens out. Don't really run into homeless people on a regular basis though, when I worked in the city I did and just didn't engage.

 

[It’s Time To Go]

When I have it to spare. Easy to judge those who are in such a desperate situation badly.

 

[ParanormalFupa]

Nope. Signing is mostly a grift, and giving money incentives people away from our societal funnels where real help can be found. Also, there are multiple corners I pass by daily where somebody is asking for money every single day, I simply don't have that kind of capacity.

 

[Deleted member 2109]

I usually only have cards but when I have change or a few bucks in my car/pocket I will.

 

[Deleted member 37107]

I donate food and volunteer at places but I do not give money. I also hate gutter punks and hate how they use animals for cheap sentimentalism. I used to know a lot of punks who'd do that for cheap beer/drugs. Fuck those guys.

 

[Fallout 4 Master]

Nope, stopped that shit a long time ago.

Too many panhandlers out now, its madness.

 

[Woolley]

No, I'm asked all the time, everyday around the city and I can't afford to give to everyone and I'm not going to spend my day trying to decide who's worth giving a dollar to.

 

[Sybil]

Occasionally, though usually I don't carry cash. Most of the time I'll give them some food I'm carrying since I only really walk around the city for groceries or to a cafe. One less pastry isn't gonna kill me.

 

[UltimateHigh]

I don't see many around here but yeah, I do. I even drove some older dude around who was collecting bottles.

 

[Lynchian Anomaly]

I very rarely, if at all, carry cash or change on me these days so I don't often get the chance to.

 

[Relix]

Nah, never. I barely have cash on me though, just a standard 20 dollar bill for backups. The day homeless take credit cards I'll have one less excuse.

 

[foxdvd]

I volunteer at a food shelter, and I always keep packages of trail mix and other mixed nuts on me when I am in areas with a lot of homeless..

I don't give to anyone aggressively asking for money. You are not doing anyone a favor. The people that really need help are unable or unwilling to ask.

Also a tip, because I have been in a lot of situations...when approached by someone asking money..don't say you don't have any...look the person in the eye and politely say "I don't want to give you any money" This will stop all further issues.

 

[Deleted member 1086]

I do not, one guy a long time ago scammed me out of 100 bucks and he ruined it for everyone. It's not fair to the people who actually need it I know, but thanks to that dude I refuse to give anyone money.

 

[Sinfamy]

No I don't want to perpetuate their panhandling.
And charity organizations are corrupt as fuck.
Give food if you have it.

On my way to school in Portland I see at least 50, fuck that, put those tax dollars to better use.

 

[Vire]

I feel like if I gave a homeless person a dollar every time I saw one, I'd be homeless myself. It's really sad just driving around in Fort Lauderdale and Miami sometimes.

 

[ghostemoji]

Sometimes. I don't usually have cash on me.

I'll buy food for someone on occasion when it comes to it.

 

[wenis]

I give them food and if they're polite some conversation

 

[Deleted member 11985]

One guy gave me the run around real good when I was still an idealistic college student. He got like $200 of my student loans over the course of a few months before he made an outrageous request for like $200 in one go because he was facing emergency eviction. I told him I had to think about that, and then went and seriously started calling around homeless shelters to try to find this guy a place to stay, before one of the workers clued me in that I was getting scammed. I cut the guy off that day, and I still saw him almost daily for the remaining two years that I lived in his neighborhood.

You can call me cynical, but I stopped giving out cash after that. I still offer to buy food.

 

[Deleted member 3542]

No. It isn't helping them and homeless in my area are large in number and a lot aggressive if not violent. I'll put that money towards social services and charity (where it'll probably end up getting lost in beuracracy).

 

[BossAttack]

Nope.

I feel like the only people that do are people that don't live in cities or tourists.