4 Ways That You Can Help Jacksonville’s Homeless Population

For many in Jacksonville, the city’s homeless population is a sore subject.

Homelessness has been on the decline in Jax for a decade, but there are still over 1,600 homeless Jaxsons out there. And while Jax has far less homeless residents than most cities of its size, the strong concentration of resources in one area of the city – the urban core, specifically – brings most of those residents to that area and creates the impression of a downtown homelessness epidemic. Some feel sympathy for those affected, some feel frustration or fear in relation to them, but everyone can agree that ending homeless in Jacksonville is a strong priority.

If you’re feeling compelled to do something about the city’s homeless population – whatever your motivation may be – we’ve put together a few tips for how we can all do something to help our neighbors in need.

VOLUNTEER YOUR TIME

A few different local organizations devoted to helping the city’s homeless population offer volunteer opportunities.

At Sulzbacher Center, you can assist with tutoring, vocational services, medical services, meal prep, toddler care, and more. Changing Homelessness takes volunteers for its annual surveys of the homeless population. And Clara White Mission has a calendar of volunteering events with descriptions of what the job entails.

Volunteering your time and effort with any of these organizations is a great way to start helping people directly.

BECOME AN ADVOCATE

Another way you can help the city’s homeless population is by advocating for laws and policies that help the homeless – or that, at the very least, don’t actively hurt them.

Sometimes short-sighted actions by the city can cause major issues for homeless Jaxsons. For example, chasing them out of Hemming Park and Main Street Park with frequent renovation and maintenance projects may seem like a good way to clear key public squares of vagrancy, but all it does in reality is force them to set up camp in other, arguably more dangerous or inconvenient spaces.

The best ways to help as an advocate are to push for affordable housing projects and funding for homeless organizations and programs, while also pushing back against cynical half-measures proposed by local politicians.

DONATE FUNDS OR ITEMS

Maybe you don’t have time to volunteer or jump into the front lines of advocacy, but you’re still eager to contribute. For you, donating may be the best option.

All of the aforementioned organizations – Changing Homelessness, Clara White Mission, and Sulzbacher Center – accept donations through their respective websites. By donating, you’ll likely be helping to either pay for necessary supplies or for more manpower to address community needs.

Funds aren’t easy to come across for these organizations, so sometimes even the smallest contribution can make a world of difference.

TREAT THEM LIKE HUMAN BEINGS

If all else fails, here’s a great place to start: treat them like the human beings that they are.

So often, people draw an impenetrable line between the issue of homelessness and homeless people themselves, to the point that they take out their frustration over the existence of homelessness on those who are actually suffering from it. Likewise, some people simply lack perspective and see them as dirty or subhuman, without realizing that most of us are a few bad turns away from being in the same position.

Homeless individuals are one of society’s most vulnerable groups. They’re one of the most common victims of violent crime in urban areas, and many of them suffer from physical and mental health issues that go untreated due to their situation.

A little sympathy can go a long way, especially when dealing with those who so rarely get to experience it.