Homeless people sheltering from the elements in the stables at Nowra Showground have been ordered out to make way for a big dairy cattle show. We wouldn’t have a problem with that if an alternative were made available immediately. But it hasn’t.
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That means homeless people are being pushed out of the meagre shelter they have found to make way for cattle. There’s something fundamentally wrong with that. Even more unsettling is that these poor people were informed of this on the eve of Homelessness Week.
They have to be out by August 15. The first meeting of the council-initiated homelessness task force is scheduled for August 17. The meeting will start the conversation about the need for emergency shelter for the most vulnerable in our community. However, when homeless people are reportedly being urged to move to the caves on Bens Walk, it’s clear we’ve passed the time for talk. We need to act now.
We’re not suggesting council do anything other than provide an alternative, temporary form of shelter. The space beneath the grandstand has been identified as one possibility.
Rather than rake over the issue from the Register’s perspective, we’re opening up this editorial to some of our readers who reacted to the story on Facebook. Hopefully, these opinions will carry some weight in the local corridors of power, where swift action could ease the suffering through these last weeks of winter.
“This made me so angry,” posted Jess Baird. “How about you find them permanent accommodation. I could not believe my eyes when I read this. The man said he wants a job but has no home - seems to be disregarded and move onto the next suggestion of camping grounds. If people choose to be homeless then okay but what about the ones that are in crisis. Move them along? This makes me sick. How honourable going out there and them telling them you have to move from here but you can still camp over there. Seriously?”
And this from Maureen O’Connell: “This has been a continuing issue for too many years, talk fests won't change things for long.The mayor is only at the end of winter showing concern,pathetic. Stop wringing your hands in apathy and sort it.”
“Homeless shelter?” posted Katrina Lewis. “In any of the abandoned buildings around town? It's not rocket science....it's humanity and compassion.” Precisely.
