In yet another woke command issued by one of our “authorities,” the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA) has demanded that people cease using the word “homeless.”
Seriously.
What if the Department of Defense told us that the term “defense” is triggering. or if the Department of Homeland Security ordered us to avoid using the word “homeland” because its patriotic implications could be offensive to liberals who are, as we all know, not very patriotic..
The term “homeless” is literally in the name of the department, and it begs us to pose an obvious query: How do we define LAHSA whenever writing about or talking about LAHSA? I'ts so confusing. It's like the artist who was previously named Prince. His image was pretty cool, but what was his real name? Perhaps we should name the department “The LA ‘Word We Should No Longer Use' Services Authority.”
If we aren't able to call the crazy people who yell at us in the street the “h-word,” what word does the Authority prefer us to employ? They'll tell you:
Our unhoused neighbors are human, and the language we use should reflect that. Let’s abandon outdated, “othering”, and dehumanizing terminology- and instead, adopt people-centered language that emphasize personhood over housing status.
Yes, let's humanize those who don't have homes. Many have been victims of unfortunate luck. Yes, certain people are criminals or addicts. But they're all human beings and shouldn't be treated as animals. Most would agree. Ignoring them as they die from overdoses of drugs isn't a humane thing regardless of the name you give these tragic souls.
Do we really need to change the way we talk about them to actually help solve the dreadful “h-word” problem plaguing (mostly blue state) cities? In the end, we've changed the wording several times, and I'm not sure if it's lessened “h”-lessness. The words have gone from “hobo” to tramp, bum, transient, and now to the banned “h-word.” Use any of these terms now and you'll come across as the right-wing, hateful extremist you've always known yourself to be.
The preferred phrase is currently “people experiencing homelessness.”
The idiocy is mind boggling. It's in the same league as the LA Health using our taxpayer money to examine pets to see if they have COVID. Do we need to define individuals based on what they're experiencing at the moment? Travelers should be then referred to as “those experiencing airline flight,” and sexually promiscuous people as “those experiencing sex.”
It gets more absurd. It is also possible to call “h” people “those who live outside,” according to the LAHSA. This is also absurd since the majority of “h” people are perhaps living in shelters, structures made of wood, or campers. They're not always living “outside.”
Changes in the language have been one of the primary tools that the left has. A recent successful example was how they got the mainstream media to convince a large portion of the population that “ending the life of an unborn fetus” should be called “women's health.” It isn't often that any Democrat politician uses the term “abortion.” Instead the whole issue is focused on issues of women's rights. People who have violated our laws and strayed across our borders in contrast, are not “illegal aliens.” They are, in reality “undocumented people” or, perhaps, “Dreamers.” The use of this technique is brilliant.
Changes in the language doesn't solve the root issue, even though it's successful politically. Making us feel guilty about how we refer to the homeless will not do anything to solve the homeless issue.
