Have you ever wondered about the sexual orientation of a homeless person?

[ZombieNixon]

Because I haven't either, it was just a random question one of my friends came up with yesterday that neither of us knew the answer to, I was just wondering if anyone had ever thought that...:silly:

(Yes, I know I really need to get laid a job). :P

[terrya]

1. Well, no...

I honestly haven't thought about that.

I'm sure that people who have been forced into homelessness aren't exculsively heterosexual.

I can't help you on the getting a job part though

[LaurenG]

2. Me neither

:shrug:

[ZombieNixon]

3. Isn't it interesting what we don't think about?

:P

[DS1]

4. Tip #72 of "Secrets to getting laid"

Never ever announce that you need to get laid. That's a 6 month delay per mention.

[Misunderestimator]

5. Yep... Like breaking a mirror.

At least it's not 7 years!

[ZombieNixon]

6. What are you talking about? Everything's perfect.

There was no mention getting laid in the OP. :P

[Lydia Leftcoast]

7. A large percentage of homeless youth are gay, and have been

thrown out by intolerant parents.

Note to all parents: NEVER throw your kids out onto the streets. If you're not there for them, the drug dealers and pimps are just waiting to get their hands on them. Two-thirds of all streets kids end up either dead or institutionalized before the age of 21.

[ZombieNixon]

8. Well, I learned something today!

:bounce:

I didn't know that, but now that I think of it, I should have guessed. How awful! :(

[supernova]

9. They also leave do to all forms of abuse too

sexual, physical, and psychological. :-)

It's really sad when you see a kid on the street and you realize, there's probably a VERY GOOD reason they are there. :cry:

edit: As for the OP, no I don't think about it. I mostly just see a person in extreme need.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

10. Right. When I went through training to work with street youth

they told us that they saw three types of runaways:

1) The kids who had a fight with their parents and ran away in a fit of anger.

2) The kids who thought it might be "cool" to live on the streets.

3) The kids who were fleeing abusive or neglectiful families

When the agency screened kids for services, their first question was, "Would you like us to help you go back home? We can make the first call to your family."

Kids in the first two categories invariably said they would, because a couple of nights of sleeping in doorways convinced them that home wasn't so bad.

The kids in the third category said "no," sometimes emphatically so, as in telling the case worker, "I'll kill myself if you make me go back" or "My parents will end up killing me if I stay there any longer" or "They told me never to come back, so fuck 'em."

The agencies in Portland were sometimes criticized for helping kids stay on the street, but if going back to their families was unthinkable, and there were no foster homes for teenagers, and the kids were too young to get legal jobs, they had few other alternatives.

[Midlodemocrat]

16. You would be AMAZED at the number of throw away kids

in this country. When I was practicing in CT, I held several 'off hours' counseling sessions for throw away kids. (read: food, drink, shower, clean clothes and then maybe a little therapy)

So tragic. I can't imagine ever doing that to my child. I get nervous if I haven't checked in with them in an hour or so.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

20. The worst case I encountered was of a woman who kicked her

son, who had cerebral palsy and mild retardation, out of the house when he was eleven.

He wandered into a strip club and ended up being informally "adopted" by the strippers. The agency I volunteered for eventually got him into a group home.

He died in a freak accident at the age of about 20, and when the cops called his mother to tell her, her only response was, "I hope you don't expect me to pay for the funeral."

:grr:

[brentspeak]

11. No, I'm more curious about how they ended up homeless

I was in Atlantic City last summer, and it's exactly like the Bruce Springsteen song -- lots of despair surrounded by middle class happiness. Anyway, I gave some money to homeless beggers on the Boardwalk, and I would always ask them, "What happened?" They knew exactly what I meant, and weren't shy about telling me.

One woman, who was missing a leg, told me she lost her leg and was badly burned in a house fire. She didn't have health insurance, and she lost her entire life savings. And now, here she was, homeless in Atlantic City, begging on the Boardwalk. But she was no "weirdo" or anything -- she clearly intelligent and coherent.

[kwassa]

12. People are homeless for a wide variety of reasons

though I no longer remember the percentages, this comes from working with the homeless community in Los Angeles in the early 90s, and reading RAND Corporation studies on the homeless in LA.

the groups:
There are those who have suffered economic hardship and are out on the street. These tend to be short-term homeless.

There are many with drug and/or alcohol problems, and can't hold a job or sustain a normal life.

There are many with mental illness problems, who can't get proper care and thereby get and hold jobs.

The housing market was part of the problem, because urban renewal in many cities wiped out the old hotels or flophouse that served as residences for the marginal.

Homeless people come from all races, ages, genders, and sexual orientations.

[Bullwinkle925]

13. Why would I?

:shrug:

[La Lioness Priyanka]

14. yes, especially when they are young and homeless

it makes me wonder about why people have kids. if your child is gay and you throw him out, you never deserved to be a parent in the first place.

[liontamer]

15. no

i don't spend much time worrying about anybody's sexual orientation (except for occasional office wide games of gay or european). If someone's homeless I'm usually more worried about their situation than whether I can get into their pants.

[ZombieNixon]

17. What is "gay or European"?

Sounds like...something...:shrug:

[liontamer]

19. it's a game

that plays with stereotypes. I work at at university in new york with a huge international population. Most stereotypes about what gay people are like apply equally to what foreigners are like. So we go through the directory identifiying people as gay, straight, bi or european. Of course when you have someone who is both european and gay the game would get stuck. but so far that hasn't happened. (although there was one close call. He turned out to be european and straight)

[khashka]

18. Yes.

It makes me realize that being feirce and proud and out is actually in many ways a luxury. One that some people can't afford.

Oh for Goddess' sake let's be honest! I've slept with homeless people.

I've also let them stay with me. I've hired them. Loaned them my clothing so they would look presentable and be able to get a job. (Ok, I am not tooting my own horn here. About what a wonderful man I am. That's not being wonderful, just human.)

Khash.