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No, that's absolutely got nothing to do with sparing the feelings of a stigmatized group or anyone else. It's entirely about helping people better understand th
by DoreenMichele 5y ago
No, that's absolutely got nothing to do with sparing the feelings of a stigmatized group or anyone else. It's entirely about helping people better understand that "the homeless" are not some separate, distinct group of people. They come from the general population.
Anyone can end up homeless. The more we make it hard on individuals to leave that situation and rejoin society, the more we cut our own throats.
- xanaxagoras 5y agoIf you talk to me about "the homeless" if you have something interesting to say I'll listen. If you talk to me about "people experiencing homelessness" my eyes glaze over and I stop listening.
- DoreenMichele 5y agoI'm not someone who uses that framing. I'm just telling you why it gets used. I typically talk about "the homeless population" or "homeless individuals." I spent years homeless. I have had a college class on Homelessness and Public Policy. I'm a blogger and freelance writer and I think language matters but I also generally agree that people sometimes get too hung up on language to the point where it's counterproductive. I try to not get too hung about it or be too nitpicky, personally.