Anchorage wants to send its homeless to warmer climates. What could possibly go wrong? (Metlakatla: 2015, to live in)

[Metlakatla]

Originally Posted by GotHereQuickAsICould

For those who are wondering how this works, the homeless person talks of a relative or friend who would take them in if they could only get to wherever they are.

Or the homeless person needs services that are available in another state.

For example, during the time I worked in Minnesota, the state provided a small monthly check and Medicaid to disabled people who were disabled but not been yet been approved for SS disability benefits. It wasn't much, under a $1,000 as I recall. But with subsidized housing, food stamps, and Medicaid, they could survive.

Wisconsin did not have such a program. If you lived in Wisconsin and were too disabled to work, you were SOL. So they were "guided" to Minnesota.

This may be "how this works" in other cities and states, but if you'll read the thread and the article I posted, the mayor's plan does not include requiring a contact/relative/services in the other location. The lack of any sort of contact on the other side of the airplane ride is the entire point of this post. Bronson just wants to stick them on a plane and let walk into the city of their choice cold without so much as a crumpled piece of paper with something scribbled on it.

[Metlakatla]

Originally Posted by GotHereQuickAsICould

Arranging travel for homeless people to somewhere else has been practiced for decades by all sorts of cities.
.

We know that. Read the thread.

[GotHereQuickAsICould]

Originally Posted by Metlakatla

This may be "how this works" in other cities and states, but if you'll read the thread and the article I posted, the mayor's plan does not include requiring a contact/relative/services in the other location. The lack of any sort of contact on the other side of the airplane ride is the entire point of this post. Bronson just wants to stick them on a plane and let walk into the city of their choice cold.

As far as I'm aware, it has never required contact with a relative or services.

The person who is homeless states that if they could only get to Anchorage, they could live with their brother. Now the occasional social worker might call and confirm that the brother actually exists and is up for company, but totally not necessary in order to get the ticket.

Or the person lives in Florida and desperately needs dental care that Minnesota provides, but Florida does not.

The people who arrived with the Crisis Team's phone number in hand certainly didn't have anyone calling ahead and arranging for their care.

"Nevada has agreed to pay $400,000 to San Francisco for the costs of caring for 24 homeless, indigent former mental patients who were sent to the city with one-way bus tickets from a Nevada state psychiatric hospital."

https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/artic...n-6552026.php#

This was a number of years ago. At the time this happened, a patient on a psych unit at San Francisco General hospital stated she wanted to be discharged to Portland. As she was too delusional to fly by herself, a nurse from San Francisco General flew with her to the Portland airport and left her there.

I'm not kidding. The nurse did not even contact the authorities at the airport, let along any sort of mental health services.

She left a person with serious and persistent mental health issues at the Portland airport, and flew back to San Francisco.

The Anchorage mayor simply stated what has been going on for decades in all sorts of cities.

[GotHereQuickAsICould]

BTW, I assessed countless people with mental health issues who were also homeless in both Alaska and Minnesota.

Many traveled to those states seeking services and/or opportunities.

Anchorage has Bean's Cafe, the Brother Francis shelter, Clare House, Rescue Mission, ... that serve the homeless, but apparently they can't keep up the pace.

[Metlakatla]

Originally Posted by GotHereQuickAsICould

As far as I'm aware, it has never required contact with a relative or services.

The person who is homeless states that if they could only get to Anchorage, they could live with their brother. Now the occasional social worker might call and confirm that the brother actually exists and is up for company, but totally not necessary in order to get the ticket.

Or the person lives in Florida and desperately needs dental care that Minnesota provides, but Florida does not.

The people who arrived with the Crisis Team's phone number in hand certainly didn't have anyone calling ahead and arranging for their care.

"Nevada has agreed to pay $400,000 to San Francisco for the costs of caring for 24 homeless, indigent former mental patients who were sent to the city with one-way bus tickets from a Nevada state psychiatric hospital."

https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/artic...n-6552026.php#

This was a number of years ago. At the time this happened, a patient on a psych unit at San Francisco General hospital stated she wanted to be discharged to Portland. As she was too delusional to fly by herself, a nurse from San Francisco General flew with her to the Portland airport and left her there.

I'm not kidding. The nurse did not even contact the authorities at the airport, let along any sort of mental health services.

She left a person with serious and persistent mental health issues at the Portland airport, and flew back to San Francisco.

The Anchorage mayor simply stated what has been going on for decades in all sorts of cities.

Bronson's plan isn't about brothers in other states or dental care in another state or any of that. It's about putting the homeless on a plane out of Anchorage knowing they'll be living outside at their destinations. After all, his predominant talking point is to get them somewhere warmer so they won't freeze when sleeping outside. Many of them have never even been out of Alaska, so they aren't sending them back to a community where they may have supports. Although I absolutely believe that Alaska should give one-way plane tickets to those who've moved up and ended up homeless, I don't think anything good can come of sending Native youth two years out of the village to a large city that they likely won't survive.

And contact actually is necessary in some jurisdictions; some even require some form of followup. Here's just one example:

Susan Salisbury, a spokesperson for Portland's 211 program, which is handling the pilot, said the agency staff members need to call the homeless person's family or friends in that other city, to verify that there is in fact a plan for housing. Without that verification, they will not buy the bus ticket.

https://www.kiro7.com/news/local/por...tle/296353382/



Again, we know that versions of this have been around for decades; I did not post this thinking I'd discovered some brand new travesty. What makes this different is that it wouldn't even involve the pretense of sending the homeless to family/friends or to medical/dental services that aren't available in Anchorage.

[GotHereQuickAsICould]

Originally Posted by Metlakatla

We know that. Read the thread.

I did read the article, and I did read the thread. I'm telling you, this is not new.

Communities that provide services for the less fortunate are overwhelmed with the less fortunate who come from all over. Many travel from other states in hopes that life will work out better for them in this new place.

A person who is homeless may dream of a good-paying job in Alaska, and fishing by a river. So, he tells a county worker that a friend/relative in Anchorage has a job lined up for him at a lodge, but he has to get to Anchorage.

Now this may be true, or it may be a fantasy. Most county workers are way too busy to check out every story, but they may make a phone call, or leave a message before submitting the paperwork for the plane ticket.

I'm not sure a person could score a ticket to San Diego based on wanting to spend the winter in a warmer place, but I wouldn't bet against it.

"Bronson said. "And if that means giving them a few hundred dollars for an airline ticket to go where they want to go, I'm going to do that."

"If the program moves forward, people can choose to relocate to the Lower 48 or somewhere else in Alaska where it might be warmer or where they have relatives."

https://abc7news.com/anchorage-alask...eles/13577879/

His plan is to provide airline tickets to those who are homeless and want to go somewhere else.

This has been going on for decades.

[SkyLark2019]

The average North American is two paychecks away from total disaster.

Don't judge the homeless so harshly.

[GotHereQuickAsICould]

Originally Posted by Metlakatla

Bronson's plan isn't about brothers in other states or dental care in another state or any of that. It's about putting the homeless on a plane out of Anchorage knowing they'll be living outside at their destinations. After all, his predominant talking point is to get them somewhere warmer so they won't freeze when sleeping outside. Many of them have never even been out of Alaska, so they aren't sending them back to a community where they may have supports. Although I absolutely believe that Alaska should give one-way plane tickets to those who've moved up and ended up homeless, I don't think anything good can come of sending Native youth two years out of the village to a large city that they likely won't survive.

And contact actually is necessary in some jurisdictions; some even require some form of followup. Here's just one example:



https://www.kiro7.com/news/local/por...tle/296353382/



Again, we know that versions of this have been around for decades; I did not post this thinking I'd discovered some brand new travesty. What makes this different is that it wouldn't even involve the pretense of sending the homeless to family/friends or to medical/dental services that aren't available in Anchorage.

No, the plan is to provide airline tickets to those who don’t want to freeze to death this winter.

[Metlakatla]

Originally Posted by GotHereQuickAsICould

I did read the article, and I did read the thread. I'm telling you, this is not new.

This is as far as I got. One last time, I did not claim that shuffling the homeless around is new, so kindly stop putting words in my mouth.


What is NEW, however, is the specific approach that Bronson wants to take. AGAIN, these transportation programs traditionally were about reuniting homeless with family/community supports in the places from where they came. The difference is that this program doesn't make any such pretenses. I've only explained that who knows how many times.


Sorry you can't understand that and seem hellbent on arguing about stuff I didn't even say. That's all.

[Metlakatla]

Originally Posted by SkyLark2019

The average North American is two paychecks away from total disaster.

Don't judge the homeless so harshly.

I'm not sure anyone in this thread was "judging the homeless", so how is your post relevant? Just another case of putting words in others' mouths for the sake of argument?