Batteredandspaton..I’m butI’mstillahumanbeing
STUDY REVEALS PUBLIC’S FEAR OF HOMELESS
ended up getting into fights and doing drugs. I went to prison and when I got out I turned up to find my flat boarded up. I’d been evicted and had nowhere else to go.
“That was the first night I spent on the street. It was terrifying.”
Davie found shelter at Glasgow’s Hamish Allen Centre but said it was not the right place for anyone trying to get their life back on track.
He added: “Being homeless is not something I’d wish on anyone, not even my worst enemy.
“What some folk don’t realise is the sense of shame homeless people feel, having to sleep rough in plain sight of everyone. It’s not what anyone imagines their life will be like. It’s lonely.
“I’ve been kicked and spat on. It got so bad that I tried to kill myself. I’m not perfect. I’ve made mistakes that I’ll always be sorry for but I’m still a human being.
“When I was sleeping rough, the highlight of my day was sometimes a stranger stopping and taking two minutes to say hello. It made me feel like someone cared.”
The Street Soccer Scotland research also revealed a third of people believe the homeless have only themselves to blame, which David said is another indicator of the ignorance surrounding the issue.
He added: “That just tells me that there’s more we can do to fight the stigma of homelessness.”
Each year, it’s estimated that about 5000 people sleep rough on Scotland’s streets. Last year, 34,100 homeless applications were made in Scotland.
Steven Kelly, 37, from Glasgow, remembers the first time he slept on the streets.
He said: “I was 23 and I was kicked out of my home. I went up and down the street and collected the doormats to make a bed for the night.”
Steven became homeless again four years ago after his parents died. He inherited the council house they lived in but says he couldn’t cope though his grief.
After going to rehab, he was advised not to return to the house and lost his tenancy.
Steven said: “After my mum and dad died, things started going downhill. I got addicted to drugs and started stealing to fund my drug habit. I got sent to prison for theft and that’s when I decided to sort my life out. I’ve been clean for more than four years.
“I’d really like to speak to kids and tell them about the reality of being homeless. We’re not all angels. But we’re not monsters either.”
David – whose motto is: “You can always turn things around in the second half ” – sits on the Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Action Group set up by the Scottish Government.
He said: “What I’d like everyone to understand is that homeless people are just that – people. If you pass someone who is homeless, stop and have a chat, or just say hello.
“It won’t change their housing situation but it may just let them know someone cares.”
I’d like people to understand homeless people are still people