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  • AADD Moderators: swilow | Vagabond696

A social experiment...

F

friskk

Bluelighter
Joined
Aug 20, 2000
Messages
939
Holidays are fast approaching and this year i'm planning on doing something a bit different. While most people are planning on what holiday to take or what presents to buy i'm trying to psyche myself up for what I think will be the two hardest weeks of my life...

I've always wondered what it would be like to be homeless. I mean really homeless. Have no money, no food, no shelter, minimal clothing - what would it be like.

So I have decided during these Christmas holidays while everyone is gathered around the pub having a few drinks with their friends i'm going to either travel interstate or stay in Melbourne and become homeless...

I will buy minimum clothing, give myself 2 dollars and will try and survive on the street for 2 weeks. This means - no free food, shelter, no showers, clothing or anything which I can't get for free or through charity organisations.

I will wait one week before I even try and get myself a job (hopefully that one week will make me desperate enough) and I will see how an employer looks at me.

Why am I doing this? I want to try and understand what it would like to be homeless. I have read on forum boards, including this one, and have discussed with so many people the homeless situation within Melbourne. Often people tell me, 'If I was homeless, hell, i'd get a job and I wouldn't put myself through that crap!' so I guess i'm going to test it.

I also think that until you have been there - been really desperate - you will never understand the plight of these individuals.

So what do I hope to achieve - I guess some awareness within bluelight and within my circle of friends what it is like to be homeless. Hell, I might find that it really isn't that bad and it's smooth sailing or I may get mugged and beaten up.. I don't know.

Will I be able to make it? I don't know.. Am I scared? Yes.
Can I give up? Yes, if it is too hard I will give up. If my life is threatened hell i'll give up. I'm already making contingency plans like getting a reverse charges number to my parents and friend's houses so if i'm in big trouble I can call for help.

I hope to keep some sort of diary which I will then provide on bluelight in the coming weeks..

I'm still trying to get leave from work and while i'm stuck on a project i'm not sure how likely this will be.. I'll keep everyone informed.

I would like to hear people's thoughts on this? Am I being stupid? What have your experiences been?


F
 
Good on ya mate, I hope the experiment is enlightening & you don't find yourself in trouble. I'll be interested to read your diary.

If you're tempted to try and earn money during the experiment, I suggest you take some juggling balls, poi, a harmonica or something. You may call me a bastard for it, but I find I tend to give money more often to people if they're busking rather than just begging. I'd check out the laws re busking first though - you don't want to cop a massive fine for not having a permit when you've only got $2 to your name...
 
I think your idea is excellent............apart from having to find a place to sleep, I have had toi do this before......ie live off nothing for long poeriods of time..........that part is not hard.........its the boredom that will be hard for you.

Also remember that at the moment it is summer........winter would be much harder.

I think your best bet would be to buy a return ticket to Sydney say..........get off the train and your on ur own..........all u have is the get out of jail card which is a ticket back home on the train...........dont lose it.

While I think the experiement will give u a touch of what it i9s like........I would times the experience by about 10 or more to fully appreciate what its like.

Would also be keen to read your report.

Cheers.
 
Hi,

yeah.. that's why I'm planning on doing it in the summer. It will be a lot warmer.. more people around.. may be more chance to get money for food from strangers.

I am in no way trying to kid myself that my time will be anything like a winter..

Like I said.. i'm pretty scared.. and I need to start off in more favourable conditions and then may be potentially work downwards...

I was thinking of going to Sydney.. as less people will know me there.

I have to becareful of the my working life relationships if one my colleagues or management saw me.

F
 
wow! totally interesting concept. Very keen to hear how you go, good luck.
 
Homeless people acturally get money from the dole or from a disability pension or from some sort of pension.
 
as of recent times in Sydney, homeless people have been bashed to death or severely injured for no apparant reasons. so be safe if you're thinking of doing something like this.

have someone know your where abouts at least, or bum enough money to get to an internet cafe and we'll all come and drink cask wine and metho with you in the park.
 
^^Most of them cant collect that money because they dont have a home address. The government will only pay money into a bank account and you cant get a bank account if you dont have an address.

The only thing I would be concerned about is your being there taking away charity from those who really need it, however you are only one person and the good that could come out of this almost certainly outstrips any minor negitives that I can think of. I say go for it! And make sure you keep a really good diary of exactly what happens.

:)
 
smart-e said:
Homeless people acturally get money from the dole or from a disability pension or from some sort of pension.
Click to expand...

Actually no, they don't necessarily. They may be entitled to it certainly, but whether or not they access it or have any knowledge of their entitlements, is a different story entirely.

A lot, if not most, homeless people are mentally ill and are a largely neglected group of people.
 
yeah I was gonna mention that you need proof of address (telstra bill or otherwise) to get any government support I'd guess... so they can't prove who they are or where they live....


it's just another nice way the Australian Government fucks over the already extremely hard done by people.
 
acturally all they need is a bank account and everyone can ge one of those but im not an expert and I wont argue with you guys.
 
yeah but to open a bank account I thought you'd need proof of address and an ID.... but *shrugs* I dunno

I've never gotten centrelink and I can't remember the last time I opened a bank account, I still have my dollarmite account with money in it somewhere..
 
nice concept, but the thing you wont be really homeless in melbourne, there is so much to see in the holiday period. you will most probably be like a bakcpacker with no cash.
 
When I used to do social work (10-12 years ago), most (if not all) of the homeless people I worked with were not on the dole/getting government support simply because you needed an address to be able to receive any support. I heard this might have been changing but I am not sure what it is like today. Namely that Centrelink need an address simply so they can send them forms/mail/whatever correspondance and without an address this can't be done.
 
All Australian Banks require a postal address and at least one form of primary ID or 3 forms of secondary ID. I dont know the figures but I would imagion there arent to many homeless people with PO Boxes and current Drvers Licences and Passports. Esspecially concidering you cant get either form of primary ID (Drvers Licence or Passpor) without a home address. So its a vicious cycle I suppose.
 
yeah, I'd dare say that our government doesn't care either....


the homeless epidemic in Australia is rediculous considering the amount of money we waste each year on useless shit....
 
Couldn't they just open up a PO BOX and then all the centrelink forms and stuff could be sent there? I guess they would need the money to open up the PO Box in the first place.
 
They would also need ID that they cant get without a home address.

Bit of a Catch-22 there.
 
keystroke said:
yeah but to open a bank account I thought you'd need proof of address and an ID.... but *shrugs* I dunno

I've never gotten centrelink and I can't remember the last time I opened a bank account, I still have my dollarmite account with money in it somewhere..
Click to expand...

Re: ID
You do need these things but they can be easily obtained by a homeless person. A lot of the welfare services allow homeless people to use their address for these purposes!

Also just a tip before you start your mission (I think it's a great idea, more people should try it before they so ignorantly poke their noses down at homeless people), find out where all the food vans etc. (free food) are and the times they are available.

I know it's a bit against the rules but carry a mobile phone in your pocket (keep it switched off) just incase of an emergency. Your safety is more important than your experiment.
 
there's a few soup kitchens in and around central station in sydney, i doint know whether or not they are open but I walk past them often
 
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