Vagrants’ lives on streets

Recent Commonwealth awardee Kemar Saffrey, who heads the non-profit Barbados Vagrants and Homeless Society, which aims to reintegrate the homeless into mainstream society, is concerned that some organisations may be enabling the homeless by constantly fulfilling certain needs. One of these is supplying meals so the homeless person does not feel the desire to reintegrate into society. “The more you feed them the more dependent they become. That poses a threat,” Saffrey said. On Wednesday night his team and the Chapel Gap Nazarene Church were feeding scores at Heroes Square. All were not homeless, some told tales of difficulty in finding work so the occasional meal helped. Saffrey explained that the feeding programme is an avenue to reach the homeless but too many players may keep the down-and-out in that position.

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