Our visit to Capitol Hall was wonderful. Meeting the residents and speaking with the employees of the Goddard Riverside Community Center did a lot to make the problem of homelessness more real for me. Though I’ve met quite a few homeless people in the past through my volunteer work, I never thought about the practical side of housing New York City’s homeless residents. This visit brought to light not only a possible solution to the problem, but emphasized the necessity for a change in current city policy.
The people I saw walking through Capitol Hall were just that: people. One of the speakers even shared my name. It’s hard to empathize with suffering if all you do is read about it on the news. It’s even harder when you politicize it and forget that there are actual humans behind the statistics and press releases. This visit and the people we met, however, made it easier for me to care.
One of the things that stood out to me was the social service aspect of Capitol Hall. I think that’s a great idea! It seems to me that Capitol Hall understands that dealing with homelessness has to happen, at least to some degree, on an individual level. Instead of expecting people to “pull themselves up”, as Mario said, the good people at Goddard realize that some folks just can’t manage the climb on their own. By providing them services like medical care, financial support, and free meals (to name a few), Capitol Hall makes the pulling up much easier.
Robert Mayo
