Homelessness in Manila
During the EYA program, somebody asked I and Julliane if there were homeless people in the Philippines.
"Yes, there were lots of homeless in the Philippines." Julliane said
"What?!? There is none! They squat in slum areas so technically they have a place to stay." I retorted, I was talking about the surrounding squatter areas in the Philippines.
"There is!" Julliane said
And then I reflected that there might be homeless people in the Philippines but it wasn't clear in my mind if there were.
And then I remembered that there were people in the streets, but the way my memory responded to it, it's like I remembered that there are some homeless people but not as much and it wasn't a posing problem.
Homeless people became more pronounced to me whenever I visit the Union Station in Washington DC. There were groups of people that stay close in Union Station who don't have shelter. They carry luggages wherever they go Some people are carrying their cigarrettes and vodka. Some people have gadgets. Some people are shouting in distress which freaked me out at first but I suddenly got used to it. Their clothes are rugged and dirty.
I have some experiences with homeless in America. One person grabbed my friend's Starbucks coffee for no reason and threatened us. Some screamed relentlessly while following a person who apparently stole his stuff. I walked fast away from the Union Station and it seemed like the voice was following me so I was nervous a little bit. One passed out in front of the National Postal Museum.
But I also saw a happy homeless person once which made my perspective about them being scary changed, he was also in the National Postal Museum.
It made me think that there were more people without shelter in America just because I only noticed them when I was staying in the Capital State of America.
But when I came home to the Philippines, I have never been so wrong. There was much homelessness in Manila. They are almost everywhere in Quezon City, that is the part of Manila where I live.
It made me wonder why I was so ignorant that there were homelessness around Manila? How come I never noticed it before or they didn't strike me as homeless before? Is this the hegemonic acceptance of poverty in the country?
That was utterly disappointing for a person who has been always working with urban poor, who takes a course in Community Development, and who joined several organizations regarding the systemic oppression in the Philippine country.
Is homelessness becoming a norm here? Isn't it a great problem to address?
As much as I want to make a point or a conclusion in this blog, all I have were more questions and more wondering. Why didn't I noticed their existence? Did my mind accepted their situation as a norm?
Jasna Nicolas - Manila, Philippines
Creation Justice Ministries Intern
"Yes, there were lots of homeless in the Philippines." Julliane said
"What?!? There is none! They squat in slum areas so technically they have a place to stay." I retorted, I was talking about the surrounding squatter areas in the Philippines.
"There is!" Julliane said
And then I reflected that there might be homeless people in the Philippines but it wasn't clear in my mind if there were.
And then I remembered that there were people in the streets, but the way my memory responded to it, it's like I remembered that there are some homeless people but not as much and it wasn't a posing problem.
Homeless people became more pronounced to me whenever I visit the Union Station in Washington DC. There were groups of people that stay close in Union Station who don't have shelter. They carry luggages wherever they go Some people are carrying their cigarrettes and vodka. Some people have gadgets. Some people are shouting in distress which freaked me out at first but I suddenly got used to it. Their clothes are rugged and dirty.
I have some experiences with homeless in America. One person grabbed my friend's Starbucks coffee for no reason and threatened us. Some screamed relentlessly while following a person who apparently stole his stuff. I walked fast away from the Union Station and it seemed like the voice was following me so I was nervous a little bit. One passed out in front of the National Postal Museum.
But I also saw a happy homeless person once which made my perspective about them being scary changed, he was also in the National Postal Museum.
It made me think that there were more people without shelter in America just because I only noticed them when I was staying in the Capital State of America.
But when I came home to the Philippines, I have never been so wrong. There was much homelessness in Manila. They are almost everywhere in Quezon City, that is the part of Manila where I live.
It made me wonder why I was so ignorant that there were homelessness around Manila? How come I never noticed it before or they didn't strike me as homeless before? Is this the hegemonic acceptance of poverty in the country?
That was utterly disappointing for a person who has been always working with urban poor, who takes a course in Community Development, and who joined several organizations regarding the systemic oppression in the Philippine country.
Is homelessness becoming a norm here? Isn't it a great problem to address?
As much as I want to make a point or a conclusion in this blog, all I have were more questions and more wondering. Why didn't I noticed their existence? Did my mind accepted their situation as a norm?
Jasna Nicolas - Manila, Philippines
Creation Justice Ministries Intern
Comments
Post a Comment