Do You Give To The Homeless?

[Luna the Great of all the Russias 2,986]

I was taught by some very smart people that you should never give money to the homeless; you never know if they'll spend it on drugs or something. Give them food instead.

I'm reminded of some events told to me by other people in terms of interacting with homeless people.

 

One of which was that this individual refused to give money but offered to pay for lunch. Homeless man refused this offer.

 

Another one was this family was grocery shopping and homeless asked for help. Sometime after, family bought some extra food for this homeless individual to which he/she complained about food that was given. The mother became so furious that she grabbed the food she just gave to him and threw it on the ground due his/her lack of gratitude.

 

I have given money to these people before, but my desire to give them my money certainly decreased.

Edited August 4, 2015 by Luna the Great

[Sir Hugsalot 9,350]

I do, but I never give money to them. Instead I offer to buy food. In Poland beggars are common sight on train stations etc and not all of them are trying to get money for food, some will shamelessly walk right in front of You to store to buy alcohol. 

 

Of course some of food ends up in a trash can, but at least I tried to help and I did not give them opportunity to buy alcohol after all. I am all for supporting the poor, but I am at the same time against supporting them with money. That way our desire to help them can actually bring a tragedy, because it is bottle bought by our money that might end their life or put it in a big danger. 

[Arylett Charnoa 4,919]

I don't carry cash. Only cards. So there's my excuse not to give them money. Not that I see a lot of them here. Most of this place is just cars and roads and there's no room for people to be walking around on the streets.

 

Also, any stranger who approaches me makes me uncomfortable. So I'll say whatever has to be said to get out of that situation. And if that's "no, sorry," then that's what has to be done. I have no bias against the homeless. I just dislike and distrust all strangers on principle, and would rather avoid them all as much as possible. Not a people person here.

[SquipyCheetah 449]

I would if I could but in my town, there are hardly any homeless people to begin with. So the chances of me and my normally insane friends coming across one is very unlikely. 

[The Diver 760]

I only give money to homeless people after talking to them a bit to get to know them. I once hung out and talked to a homeless man in Seattle who was a one-armed Gulf War vet for like an hour. I gave him $25, went to the bar, and bought him a pint of Guiness. He was a cool dude.

[Pone 141]

I was on a school excursion earlier this year to Melbourne and we were at eureka tower and there was a homeless guy sitting down withhis dog close by some and my cousin decided we would give him $20 each. You know the saying "All it takes is one person to break the ice"? Well after me and my cousin gave him money, almost everyone on the excursion (like 50 of us) gave him money too. It was a pretty amazing sign to see. He had a pretty amazing story to tell too which was nice to hear.

Edited August 26, 2015 by Pone

[Snow Frostflame 3,568]

No... I don't like beggars... I know its mean but from where I'm from there are people everywhere claiming to be in hard times... even saw one lady begging then a few moments later drive off in a Mercedes... plus even if they're real they tend to spend the money on booze or something just as worthless wasting your hard earned money completely...

Edited September 2, 2015 by Snowflake Frostflame

[Streiben Bones 228]

Here i germany, it's not so easy to find homeless people.

 

But 1-2 someone asks for some money, and i usually just give as much as i can afford.

 

5-10 Bucks at least.

 

No one should have to fear to starve, this is just so horrible, i can't even think about it without getting teary.

I mean, how cruel is that... inmidden of so many of our kind, and receiving no help...

I wouldn't deserve to live anymore, if i wouldn't share what i have, with one who has nothing.

[Moony the Cat 3,702]

Well if i see homeless people on the streets, i usually dont give them money...because i have none.

 

I got my money from my parents and they dont really trust the people. They say you can never say for sure if someone is really homeless or just faking it because of some news reports.

 

So i cant really ask them to give me money for them.

And nowadays i still dont have money and if i do, i buy things on the internet, so i dont even met homeless people anymore.

 

But there was someone once on our door and it seemed that he couldnt really talk and give me a paper. On the paper it said he needs money for him and his son since they have life problems.

 

So i gave him all the money i had, 5 dollars which was my pocket money.

[Gernia 691]

I've given food and clothing before, but not money. I do not do that on a consistent basis, and its been awhile since I have actually done it.

[An Unknown Pony. 370]

Probably,but there are no homeless people/beggars in my neighbour hood to begin with it,so my money pretty much goes to charities/buskers

[GuyNamedEarl 1,332]

There's a lot where I live, and it's best not to give to them.

[-Octavia- 1,176]

Having spent some of my childhood growing up in a homeless shelter...

 

I cannot say that I do. Though I do experience a sharp pang of guilt when I deny the monetary request of a seemingly homeless person by which I am passing, I steel myself to remember what many in this thread have come to realize: the "homeless" are not always what they seem. I have seen and known people pretending to be homeless for the money when they have a perfectly good house to which they return upon completing their begging for the day. That is not to say that all of the people that seem to be living on the street have nefarious intentions, but unfortunately the greedy ruin it for the needy.

 

I do commend those that attempt to give food and shelter, and recommend others to do the same, rather than giving money directly (unless of course it is an established charity).

[ARagY 1,152]

I try to give when I can, but I'm not going to screw myself out of the next month. I don't know if they're going to buy drugs, no, but I also don't know if they're a veteran who lost everything. I do what I can, I don't really ask that question

[Fallingwolfstar 64]

I don't give often too people on the street, I did on my vacation too an old woman. If I wanna give money for people I do it with organization or some of my mother her friends ( they buy stuff and give it too the people who need it)

[PROJECT: Simon 3,954]

Not money. I can give them.. a bit of food or supplies but.. it's their fault for not using money wisely, and earning them. 

[Lucky Bolt 35,065]

I do every once in a while. It always feels good giving to those in need. 

[Here No Longer 5,276]

I have nothing to give that I don't need anyways, but if I did it would be something they can use and not just money to spend on booze or whatever.

[ChikaChan 7,324]

I give them 5 or 10 dollars to a couple of random homeless sometimes o-o

[Rainbow Cloud 18,232]

I don't give money to people in the street because it's hard to tell if they're actually homeless as there are a lot of professional beggars who pretend to be homeless to get people to give them money but do have a home and also because they're not likely to spend money given to them on the right things and are most likely to spend it on booze and drugs. Most towns and cities also have shelters for the homeless but the ones on the street refuse to use the shelters because they can make money begging.

I will spend money in charity shops or give some money to a charity collection on a one off though.

[Treeglow Flicker 13,723]

Yep. If I have the change to spare. What they do with it is up to them.

[The Historian 516]

It depends really. I've bought things for people like food and gas because then I know what they're doing with it, and I'm not getting swindled. I refuse to give people money however. I really don't have a problem getting someone a burger or filling up their tank, but money is right out. If they refuse anything but money, they're trying to cheat you. Just walk away.

[Troblems 5,617]

I keep water/non-perishable food in my car for myself, and tend to give it out more often than I consume it. Additionally, for women, I always offer feminine hygiene supplies, as apparently those are hard to come by, and toxic shock can kill.

[Ganondox 899]

Yeah, if I got anything on me. 

[Thuja 3,659]

I give to organizations that help the homeless when I can though there aren’t very many homeless people out here so there aren’t many organizations besides soup kitchens.