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You can't walk through the shopping center at Miami and Holloway without getting hit up. I think I saw one of the news tabloids here trying to legitimize it as just another profession.
It has already happened to me twice in the last few months i was here. Someone in downtown asked me for a few dollars & then recently someone at the gym asked me for a dollar. I said sorry i dont have it & walked away. Wondering if this is a common problem around this area & how to properly deal with such shameless losers.
If you're done being insulted, you soulless creature you... /sarcasm
Yes my mother and I have both encountered it endlessly. And proclaiming the Wake county area as some haven for the grossly underserved mentally ill aside, this is a standard we haven't encountered living anywhere else either. My mother experiences it at work...DAILY. Daily from coworkers. Sorry it bears the caps, because it stuns me. And she has had her job 7 years. She is approached in parking lots (Fuquay walmart, Fuquay kangaroo gas station) and I myself have encountered it in the walmart shopping center parking lot (Fuquay & Raleigh) and at a different gas station where a dude pulls up and asks me to fill his tank because he just needs enough to 'get home.' So you're really asking me for $50 to fill your tank dude?
He's nuts - but not in the clinical textbook sense.
I have to tell my mother come out of her world in her head and walk with her head up because she doesn't see them coming. I do not like people essentially 'sneaking' up on my mother to panhandle her, it pisses me off.
Location: Chapel Hill, NC, formerly NoVA and Phila
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I see many more panhandlers here than in Northern Virginia! It's crazy I think overall the economy is just not as good here. I cannot stand driving around Durham or even Chapel Hill and having them stand at the intersections. I think it was in Wilmington where I saw a parking meter device where you can donate money and it went to the local homeless shelter or food bank. I have no problems contributing to that but don't give to panhandlers.
Thanks for your replies. Maybe i was a bit harsh in judging them & was venting out my frustrations here. Sorry if i offended anyone. Panhandling is something i have encountered in other cities as well but it seemed more frequent here. Sometimes i give money if its dark or an isolated street. It bugs me that no one makes an issue about this as it is a common & potentially dangerous problem everywhere, like bullying. Seems to me that people have accepted it & thats what really bothers me. Dont ignore it. I come from a third world country where panhandlers sometimes outnumber the people walking on street so i am used to it. The govt there is insensitive & corrupt to the core so these ppl are on their own for survival. Since this is a first world country where we pay out of our pockets for programs like welfare & homeless shelter, it concerns me why there is nothing being done for this kind of bullying. This is one of those things that falls through the cracks as they are not forcing or stealing but it is a form of intimidation. Like prohibiting loud noises after hours counts as a misdemeanor even this should be a mildly punishable offense. It shud be ok to hold a sign for money but dont approach strangers & harass them for money.
The guy who asked for money in the gym was my neighbor & this was an apartment gym. So i dont think he was needy as he could afford to live in same place as me & didnt need money to get home as he was using the gym right next to his home. People who have mental issues become kleptomaniacs or addicts, not panhandlers unless they are asking for money to support their addictions. Hope the law makers recognize this as a problem & make laws to protect us. This is a far better country compared to most other countries in the world because people feel safe & happy to be here. I wouldn't even bother to raise this issue in other countries.
I see many more panhandlers here than in Northern Virginia! It's crazy I think overall the economy is just not as good here. I cannot stand driving around Durham or even Chapel Hill and having them stand at the intersections. I think it was in Wilmington where I saw a parking meter device where you can donate money and it went to the local homeless shelter or food bank. I have no problems contributing to that but don't give to panhandlers.
You are hitting on something that I have observed here (and in NoVa) over the years. I see more panhandlers here than I ever saw in NoVa or in DC, for that matter.
The number of panhandlers has increased a good amount since the recession. I remember around 2008-2009, I started to see panhandlers at The Arboretum in Cary. Which is NOT where you'd expect to see panhandlers, mostly because there's not much parking there, it's a tight place to get in and out of, it's not exactly easy to walk TO, and there's not much there that's affordable if you're cash strapped and looking for food, except maybe Moe's or something.
Anyway... I think that the reality is that there are people in this area who had jobs that paid very little and then they became jobless during the recession and they resorted to panhandling. It's also not impossible that people moved here shortly before the recession due to the positive jobs outlook and the lower cost of living, so many who lost jobs and had no savings also have no family to rely upon in the area to keep them off the streets.
And, of course, Jk mentioned the mentally ill and there are some who are untreated, homeless, and simply cannot find money any other way but begging for it.
It's really sad.
And another reason I am so adamant about people not just moving here (especially with kids) on a whim because it's warmer and rent is cheaper. Because without a job, you cannot pay rent and when it's really hot out, being homeless must be truly miserable with us not being anywhere near a shoreline.
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I was scammed the other day in North Durham. I have wised up a lot over the years and generally refuse to give $ to anyone I don't know. Guy at a gas station told me their alternator was on the blink. He was $16 short of what he needed, Auto Zone a few miles away had one, etc. I gave him $20, followed them to make sure they got there OK and circled the block twice by 2nd pass, they were gone. He caught me at a weak moment.
What I should have done was offer to go with them and pay the difference at the store. I always do similar when anyone wants money for food, gas, etc. Only way I will help. I have a kind face (or stupid one) and bums have always sought me out of the crowd. It took me a long time to wise up but I still get stung once in awhile. About the mid 90's, I could not stop anywhere without being hustled, sometimes more than once.
I now plan to ask for ID's too and see where that goes. No ID, no help. If someone is driving a car and has no ID, I will call the police and report an unlicensed driver.
Yes, some of these folks are mentally ill. But a fair number have discovered that begging is easier than working. I have known a few people personally that made a living going around to churches and food banks to beg. Both rarely turn anyone away and are fair game.
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) and bums have always sought me out of the crowd. It took me a long time to wise up but I still get stung once in awhile. About the mid 90's, I could not stop anywhere without being hustled, sometimes more than once. 
