themorningstars:

Am I the only one who finds this business about how you shouldn’t give money to beggars on the street because “they’ll just spend it on alcohol, you aren’t really helping them” kind of…patronizing?

I just don’t understand why it’s okay to turn a person into a statistic, to reduce him to a generalization about a population that he is a part of. Could he spend the money on alcohol? Sure, he could. But I’m wary of refusing to trust him with my money because of the things he could do with it. I don’t know him. I don’t know his story. He isn’t just “homeless,” anymore than I am just “someone with a home.” He is many, many things, and the only thing I really know when I see him on the street is that he’s asking for help, and when someone asks me for help, I’m inclined to give it.

I’m all for handing out food and “blessing bags” and all that good stuff, but I’m wary of handing those things out specifically because you’ve made the snap judgment that this person cannot be trusted with money. Are you sure that you are really so much more trustworthy and responsible? I’m just saying.