The Straight Up Word From the Lowdown Curb
It’s been two weeks since the relapse and Vinny trudges blankly down the avenue pushing his shopping cart. A police cruiser crawls up alongside the sidewalk and rolls down the window. “Hey Vinny, c’mere for a second.” Vinny drops the can of Colt 45 into his pile of earthly possessions and prepares to receive his third pink violation slip of the week. Three more lands him another expense paid trip to Riker’s Island. As he reaches into his pocket to pull out his ID he hears, “Yeah Vinny, how much you want for one a them books? Oh yeah, and could you sign it for me?”
Motivated by a desire to shed light on the enigma of street life in the world’s richest city, in 2001 I began tape recording and editing the life stories of people living on the streets around Tompkins Square Park in Manhattan’s Lower East Side. Two years later, what had begun as a casual experiment had evolved into a 300 page book, Stranger to the System: Life Portraits of a New York City Homeless Community. Since publication last July, homeless vendors have sold over 6,000 copies on the streets of New York.
The storytellers I befriended come from all walks of life—sixty year old former Hollywood actors, teenage runaways, self proclaimed prophets, alienated intellectuals. None of them posed a danger to anyone but themselves, and just about all of them were relatively sane and articulate. The more time I spent in the park, the more I realized that there’s no typical profile of a homeless person. Each interview brought forth a unique individual hungry to speak out to the community.
The majority of the people who I talked to have been living on the street for an extended period of time, and many lack the identification required to receive services from programs. Their reasons for being on the street vary greatly. Some have had traumatic experiences that have damaged their ability to trust authority. Take Jerome, a promising athlete who at age sixteen was incarcerated for ten years for shooting a man who raped his sister, or Nancy, who in addition to being an excellent salsa dancer was born with fetal alcohol syndrome and ran away from a foster home after being raped. Others remain on the street due to economic hardship. Vinny was no longer able to work after breaking his neck and says he sleeps on the street because the rent’s cheap and he feels safer there than in a shelter. Philip spent twenty years working for minimum wage to support his two children, and after they had grown, he just couldn’t deal with mopping any more floors.
I also interviewed many transient youths passing through New York during the warmer months. Many openly refer to themselves as crusty punks, while others claim that no label can adequately reflect their Dionysian insurgence. Some are refugees from the sterile monotony of middle class America, while others have fled apathetic and abusive homes. At the heart of their quest is a desire to live life on their own terms with muddled visions of anarchistic idealism. All too often they find that the burdens of street life are heavier than those they’ve left behind.
Not every person is on the street because they’re an alcoholic or a dope fiend. The majority do use alcohol or drugs on a regular basis to ease the pains of their predicament. Most have acknowledged their dependency and have made attempts to kick. The problem is that after emerging from detox they usually find themselves unable to cope with the dreaded anonymity of institutional living. Homelessness is not caused solely by a lack of tangible resources but also by the psychological devastation of alienation from the community.
The primary goal of Stranger to the System was to demonstrate to the people living in Tompkins Square Park that the community does in fact care about their well being. It may seem a bit touchy feely, but sharing is a release. Sharing with the media is validation—undercover psychotherapy.
Seven of the twenty people who participated in the project are still living in Tompkins Square. Four are unaccounted for, and three have lost their lives to the streets. The remaining six are now living indoors with varying degrees of success. Nelson Hall, the illustrator, has been off the street for two years and is now living in his own apartment and exhibiting his art. Two other story tellers are actively selling the book to supplement their income. While I realize my own role in facilitating these transformations is small, I am forever grateful for having the opportunity to share their victories with those who continue to struggle on the streets.
Jim
