Please don’t be surprised when a homeless person doesn’t want to leave their encampment or spot for a cooling center; this is the type of opportunity cops will take to clear out encampments while the owners of the stuff they’re throwing away are in centers trying to survive.
If you really want to give them some peace of mind, offer to rent them a storage locker for a few days so they can rest easy in cooler, less oppressive temps without losing everything they have left.
Source: I was homeless many times.
I see this is making rounds again, I just want to update this to say that this goes for any sort of weather event. It’s really not that hard to make life easier for our unhoused neighbours, and frankly, we shouldn’t wait until an emergency to do so.
Thank you for those who have spread this message and understand the circumstances.
ok, i go to a liberal as hell art school, so my opinion on this is probably skewed. but i feel like. the “don’t say crazy/insane” thing has like. taken place of actual respect and action to help psychotic people. like. you obviously shouldn’t call someone a schizo, or a psycho, or say they’re psychotic. that’s too far. correcting people when they say that is good. and the language we use to describe mental health is important! but it feels like. people remove “crazy” from their vocabulary. and feel like. that’s it. they’re done.
like if i say crazy at my school, people will correct me and say “you shouldn’t say that” but if my speech gets disorganized, something that is caused by my schizophrenia, people get frustrated. like. i couldn’t give less of a shit if people say crazy. i’m not that big a fan if someone calls me (or anyone else) crazy for exhibiting like. psychotic symptoms. but we’ve got bigger shit. i guess you can have both but.
it feels very performative, is what i’m saying, i guess. like my family has problems with insurance and affording my meds, because they’re fucking expensive. i have trouble making doctors listen to me. therapy is hard, and finding treatment that works is worse. i’ve been forcibly hospitalized. and don’t even get me started on my education. and there’s so much other shit. and i get that everyday people can’t really do anything about that. but it feels like. people just remove “crazy” from their vocabulary, don’t even think about the actual systemic issues psychoitc people face, and call it a day.
like. in an ideal world, would people say crazy? probably not! and i get that it’s like. the most some people can do. but i kinda don’t give a shit if anyone says crazy if i can get actually good medical treatment and not feel my heart rate pick up everytime i step foot in a hospital.
also. i feel like there’s this. distinction that goes on in a lot of peoples minds, with this whole- don’t say crazy thing. and people don’t want to talk about it, because it makes them look bad. and more than that- it s a subconscious thing. that like. will take a while to work on.
you’re not supposed to say crazy when you’re talking about your friends car crash, or a test score you got. but you’re allowed to think it when you see a homeless person on the street. or you hear about another violent crime on the news. or your schizophrenic uncle stops taking his meds.
which is absolutely the fucking opposite of what needs to happen. you can call your job crazy, i don’t give a shit. but when you look at me, and think “crazy” then we’ve actually got a fucking problem.
@the-fishtank-chronicles good question! people without psychosis people are 100% allowed to reblog this. i’m just. happy it’s something people think is worth talking about.
