Homelessness kills. That was the message you could have taken away from the ceremony at the Homeless Services Center on Tuesday night. There were 30 new flags, each with a name, to remember the 30 homeless people who died on the street in Santa Cruz in 2010. They were added to the flags for the victims of previous years, for a total of 463 flags—463 people—since 1999. And that’s only the people we know about.
Homelessness kills. That was the message you could have taken away from the ceremony at the Homeless Services Center on Tuesday night. There were 30 new flags, each with a name, to remember the 30 homeless people who died on the street in Santa Cruz in 2010. They were added to the flags for the victims of previous years, for a total of 463 flags—463 people—since 1999. And that’s only the people we know about.
True, the numbers were down this year. In 2009 there were 47 deaths, and the average is about 34. But winter is just beginning in California, and there will inevitably be many more before spring. And, as the participants pointed out, the average age of the homeless dead is just 49 years old, three decades less than the national average. And they pointed out that this is happening in the richest state in the richest nation in the history of the world.
The memorial for the homeless takes place annually around the country to coincide with the winter solstice, the longest night of the year and the official start of winter. Seventy people attended last night’s event, including many people who are homeless themselves. Perhaps they came to remember. Perhaps they came for a little bit of warmth before they hit the streets again. Read more at the <a href=" http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/ci_16917069″ title=”Santa Cruz Sentinel”>Santa Cruz Sentinel.
