Imagine this:
It’s after midnight in Poughkeepsie. It’s December. The temperature reads 20 degrees on the bank display, but you know wind chill has it feeling closer to 9 degrees. The streets are hollow and carry the echoes of faraway voices. The wind is cold and strict, whipping shreds of yesterday’s newspaper around the sidewalk. The shopkeepers have long since gone home, their storefronts gated and protected from the weather. Occasionally, a lonely car ambles down a frigid street, its windows icy, its passengers warm inside as they head to destinations unknown. The lampposts are adorned with wreaths and other festive decorations, proclaiming the imminence of the season. The moon is high and looks almost frozen as the black sky surrounds its glow with stagnant resolve. As you ascend the staircase of your home toward an early winter’s sleep, you have every confidence that the covers that await will provide you the warmth, comfort and security you need for the night ahead.
Now imagine that same night; those same elements – but you’re homeless.
Homelessness is one of those sticky little problems that refuses to go away, no matter how many temporary solutions we invoke in the name of a clear social conscience. There are shelters, like the one at Hudson River Housing, which are certainly a godsend to many who would have no other recourse on a night like the one described above. There are programs like The Living Room at The Family Partnership Center, which offers a variety of support services for the homeless. There are even inspirational stories, like that of the enterprising Rev. Alfred R. Twyman, who spent a short time of his young life homeless before rising to become an important community figure in Poughkeepsie and an unabashed champion of the downtrodden. And yet, perhaps no solution can be considered as potentially effective as the second annual Poughkeepsie Sleep-Out for the Homeless this Friday, Sept. 30 at 6 p.m. at St. Paul’s Church on Mansion Street. The second-annual event will feature several homeless people relating their tales of life on the streets. The sleep-out is being organized by the Dutchess Green Party and the Dutchess Greens Action Group.
Last year’s sleep-out, held in October, attracted more than 30 people. Organizers hope an earlier start date will bring in a larger crowd. Those attending are encouraged to bring donations of non-perishable food for Dutchess Outreach, as well as children’s clothing, pillows, blankets and sheet sets.
Why do we believe the Sleep-Out is such an effective way of addressing the crisis of homelessness? Because it creates empathy. In many ways, empathy is the solution to many of our social ills. Think about it. How much more likely are you to contribute to the American Cancer Society if you or one of your loved ones has suffered the ravages of cancer?
It’s an elementary principle, really. If one were placed in a figurative vacuum at infancy and then was reintroduced to society at twenty or thirty or forty years old, you could not expect that person to understand the plight of the less fortunate, because he or she would have no grasp of the concept. It is our interaction with each other that fosters compassion, and that compassion will necessarily grow when one is exposed further to the circumstances of misfortune. Empathy is a powerful weapon, but one that must be nurtured. We can not expect people to simply have it just because it is socially acceptable to be empathetic. True empathy comes from deep reflection and lifelong learning. The more someone understands about a situation, the more likely he or she will be able to consider the ramifications of a given moment.
Therefore, we support the sleep-out and encourage as many people as possible to get out and find out what it’s like to spend a night on the streets. Most of us can always go home again. Let’s harbor some empathy for those who can’t.
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