I am writing in response to C. Rode’s letter regarding the homeless in Abbotsford. Mr. Rode believes that taking the City of Abbotsford to court to change the bylaws in order to accommodate the homeless is a waste of taxpayers’ money.
One point that he based his conclusion on was that most of these people are not from Abbotsford, but from other regions.
Is it true that most of the homeless are not from Abbotsford?
Just as well, a person is a person and all people deserve consideration from others, regardless of where they are from.
He also pointed out that they have not paid any taxes for the upkeep and other things required to maintain the parks. This point should be reconsidered as it is a stereotype.
Just because he thinks homeless people don’t pay taxes doesn’t mean that all homeless people don’t pay taxes, or never have paid any taxes in the past. The truth is, you can’t pay tax on something you don’t have, and the homeless do not have much.
Another point Mr. Rode made was that parents would not be able to let their children play in the parks after the homeless have been there for fear of them getting hurt from the needles and garbage on the ground. This is a questionable cause, as there are other possibilities of where the needles and garbage come from. Eliminating the homeless from parks would not necessarily eliminate the needles and garbage from the ground.
The last point that he made was that we all try to obey the city’s bylaws, and the homeless should obey them also. The problem with this is that if the homeless people had somewhere else to go, they would be there. They wouldn’t choose to sleep outside in the cold.
If we want to find a solution other than changing the bylaws to allow the homeless to sleep outside, we should find or create another place for the homeless to stay instead of allowing them to suffer in the cold out on the street.
Paige Schievink