Socialist position on the homeless

[El Rojo]

I have heard nothing about how the homeless, surely the worst off under capitalism, can be supported and shown solidarity. Surely if we can get them to realise that their best hope is a revolution, they would be die-hard supporters, n'est pas?

[scarletghoul]

Well homeless fit into the lumpenproletarian class, and a lot of marxists get kinda snobby about the lumpenproletariat and dont think they can be revolutionary. But yeah I agree with what you said. We need to organise the lumpens including the homeless. they are a huge untapped source of revolutionary energy in first world countries.

[NecroCommie]

I dunno about other organizations but our may day rallies always get some homeless people joining in. I dont know how active they are otherwise, but I believe they at least give their support when the need rises.

EDIT: I object to the scarletghouls post!
One cannot categorize all homeless to the lumpen. Sure some of them are, but not perhaps even the most of them. We should treat them as individual cases with the lumpen question, but I sure think that a home is a human right. That goes regardless ones position as a lumpen or not.

[CommunityBeliever]

I think we should go out to all those poor people who would otherwise be joining the capitalist military and convince them of revolutionary ends. The homeless are certainly a group of people that might be persuaded to join the capitalist military because the capitalists will promise them food, shelter, and money.

We must get out to all of them before the capitalists do. We can hopefully give them a place in one of the hotels and we can feed them ourselves we just need to convince them that revolution not capitalism is their best hope.

Speaking strictly as an anti-theist I think we need something that is not religious that will take care of them and provide them shelter, showers, and food because right now religions take credit for taking care of them and that can be a serious problem as religions will certainly side with capitalism.

[LOLseph Stalin]

It's a common argument used by supporters of Capitalism that some people actually choose to be homeless. Judging by some of my experiences I think they're right about this. Some people are indeed happier living on the streets. I guess they feel there's more freedom that way or something. I don't know. So anyway, I could kind of picture homeless people supporting and working with us, but what about these people who actually Choose to be homeless? I can't really label them as Lumpens, since they're not doing any wrong in society. Do we just let them be?

[NecroCommie]

I think we should go out to all those poor people who would otherwise be joining the capitalist military and convince them of revolutionary ends. The homeless are certainly a group of people that might be persuaded to join the capitalist military because the capitalists will promise them food, shelter, and money.

We must get out to all of them before the capitalists do. We can hopefully give them a place in one of the hotels and we can feed them ourselves we just need to convince them that revolution not capitalism is their best hope.

Speaking strictly as an anti-theist I think we need something that is not religious that will take care of them and provide them shelter, showers, and food because right now religions take credit for taking care of them and that can be a serious problem as religions will certainly side with capitalism.

I would have to agree with the last post whole heartedly.

But yay!
There lies but one fiendish rhyme
In the grand plot,
the greatest o' our time

How to get gold,
how to finance our plan
To free the repressed people,
and to shelter our clan

If there be no coin
No hard cash in our purse
It will stop our dear quest
'tis capitalists vile curse

But if one clear day,
A red castle we get
We fill it with our comrades,
They'll be happy. I bet!

[Cooler Reds Will Prevail]

Homeless people are not a monolithic group, so it's hard to say that they would necessarily be die-hard supporters of a revolution or not.

I generally agree with scarletghoul... Huey P. Newton said once that we have to organize the lumpen onto our side before the state organizes them against us, and I agree. However, with homeless people there is the case that a lot of them have mental illnesses, serious drug addictions, etc. and are not in a mental state to be doing that. Though I've always thought it would be worthwhile to consider the idea to run some kind of revolutionary detox program for the homeless, kind of like Narcotics Anonymous but with revolutionary ideas and not the "acknowledgment of a higher power" bullshit those organizations have in their programs. Sort of a "Get Clean to Serve the People" kinda thing, ya dig?

We need to find ways to reach out and connect with the homeless, not just expect them to come to us. I definitely don't think they are our most important base, but its something we should look into.

[Cooler Reds Will Prevail]

Speaking strictly as an anti-theist I think we need something that is not religious that will take care of them and provide them shelter, showers, and food because right now religions take credit for taking care of them and that can be a serious problem as religions will certainly side with capitalism.

Exactly.

[scarletghoul]

Yeah, Huey was totally right, and we can learn a lot from the Panthers. I also agree that there should be some revolutionary based organisation to help homeless people, and more involvement in the community in general, like what the Panthers did with their breakfast for black kids stuff.

[x359594]

Well homeless fit into the lumpenproletarian class...

The homeless are not one homogenized mass. Many are are wage earners working at "minimum plus two" jobs at fast food outlets, big box stores and as day laborers. In the US this is the largest segment of homeless, and it includes entire families.

The homeless population also includes a segment of the lumpenproletariat, including people with drug habits, alcohol abuse and mental problems. These people need medical and psychiatric help, so it seems to me that a socialist response to homelessness would have to address itself to the various layers of this population and formulate programs accordingly.

[Cooler Reds Will Prevail]

Yeah, Huey was totally right, and we can learn a lot from the Panthers. I also agree that there should be some revolutionary based organisation to help homeless people, and more involvement in the community in general, like what the Panthers did with their breakfast for black kids stuff.

Funny enough, my promotion of these ideas is where I really came to a clash with the RCP and why I eventually left. Programs to facilitate the development of revolutionary consciousness among people (anti-drug programs, providing care for children of potential cadre during events and meetings, etc.) help build trust and a positive reputation within that community. People in Oakland didn't start listening to Huey and Bobby because they had the correct "line", but because people saw what the Panthers were doing for their people. For a lot of groups, like homeless people, religious groups provide a sense of community and solidarity, albeit with all the delusion that goes along... Revolutionary movements need to develop a sense of community as well, and make people feel that they are really a part of something. The Panthers developed an entire community that supported them because they were relevant and listened to the people's struggles. Unfortunately this degenerated into reformism by the early 70s, but it did not need to.

[Soldat]

It's a common argument used by supporters of Capitalism that some people actually choose to be homeless. Judging by some of my experiences I think they're right about this. Some people are indeed happier living on the streets. I guess they feel there's more freedom that way or something. I don't know. So anyway, I could kind of picture homeless people supporting and working with us, but what about these people who actually Choose to be homeless? I can't really label them as Lumpens, since they're not doing any wrong in society. Do we just let them be?

You have a good point. I have met many homeless people in my life and while a good amount of them have been homeless because they have to be (drug problems, crime) I have met plenty who have made the choice to be homeless. At an abandoned appartment complex near me I met a group of a dozen homeless, all about 22-26, who decided to be homeless.

It is tough to know what do do with them, because as hey say, you cant help somebody who dosent want to be helped. If they truely are happier homeless, then maybe leaving them alone is the best thing to do.

[Dust Bunnies]

I'm not sure of the official Socialist statement but I'll say my personal opinion.

I feel many homeless (those who do not choose to be homeless) have been wronged or destroyed by the Capitalist system in some way. I also support the right to shelter for all sentients. To recruit these guys would be pretty good, and I'm sure quite a few would support us.

To reject the homeless, in my eyes is elitist. Perhaps it was something that had to do with work stress that lead them to drink or do excessive drugs. Perhaps they were injured badly, slipped through the cracks of society, and now has to beg for money.