This video is important because it's the story of a young man forced into homelessness because of a violent childhood who has now adapted to life on the streets. It also shows the demographic of homeless often nomadic people that are attracted to Venice Beach. While there are always bad people, think ENRON or Bernie Madoff for perspective, most are good people seeking a world of peace and love.
While I was walking Venice Beach, Rhamses came up to thank me for Invisible People, so I asked him if he wanted to share his story. Of course, Rhamses is not his real name. More homeless people use street names, and out of respect, I will always address people how they want to be called regardless of their housing status.
Rhamses is the demographic of free-spirited young adults that have been attracted to Venice Beach's bohemian lifestyle for decades. Still, it's also the demographic many locals want to keep out of Venice. Ever since Abbot Kinney opened the Venice recreation area in 1905, Venice Beach has been a party town. But what was once known as a hippie mecca filled with love and compassion has now turned into nasty hatred of people experiencing homelessness.
PEOPLE MOVE TO THE BEACH. HOMELESS PEOPLE MOVE TO THE BEACH! HOUSED PEOPLE MOVE TO THE BEACH! Not just Venice Beach. If there is sand near the water on any coastline, people move there.
Homeless people move to Venice because it's cool. Homeless people move to Venice because of community. Homeless people move to Venice to get out of Skid Row or because the police pushed them out of where they were. HOMELESS PEOPLE DO NOT MOVE TO VENICE FOR SERVICES!
In this interview, I wish everyone would hear a young man who left home at 14 because of troubled family life. When I asked Rhamses about his childhood, he responded, "violence." If you look at the roots of homelessness, more often than not, the person first experienced homelessness and childhood trauma in some way. To truly solve homelessness, we have to fix families.
When Rhamses talks about living without money, he says there is a thing called "sharing, and being human." He is the persona of Venice Beach, or at least the Venice Beach I once knew.
Homelessness was a growing crisis before the pandemic. Then the CDC guidelines of allowing tents to stay up all day to prevent the spread of COVID made homelessness in Los Angeles more visible. As a result, tent encampments grew around the city, and alone the Venice boardwalk, homelessness became a visible crisis.
But Venice Beach has another crisis. As tech startups flocked to Venice, many wealthy people started to move in. A few of them are filled with hatred towards homeless people. They do not want to extend the solidarity Rhamses wished for. If they had their way, Venice Beach would be fenced off only allowing people above a certain income level in. The Venice Beach of peace and love is being replaced with an agenda of hate.
More
House Calls to Homeless People in Venice Beach https://youtu.be/8N2Ry_g15KA
Homeless at 9. Abused at 11. Is this Venice Beach Man's homelessness by choice? https://youtu.be/Ho4AU4yo-jU
Venice Beach Homeless Woman Sleeps in Front of the Apartment She Rented for 17 Years https://youtu.be/NdS63o_TC_8
#homeless #losangeles #venicebeach
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About Invisible People
There is a direct correlation between what the general public perceives about homelessness and how it affects policy change. Most people blame homelessness on the person experiencing it instead of the increasing shortage of affordable housing, lack of employment, childhood trauma, lack of a living wage, or the countless reasons that put a person at risk. This lack of understanding creates a dangerous cycle of misperception that leads to the inability to effectively address the root causes of homelessness.
Invisible People is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to educating the public about homelessness through innovative storytelling, news, and advocacy. Since our launch in 2008, Invisible People has become a pioneer and trusted resource for inspiring action and raising awareness in support of advocacy, policy change and thoughtful dialogue around poverty in North America and the United Kingdom.
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