Letter: Panhandling problem

Editor:

Local residents have power over their purse. Simply stop enabling the panhandler by forking over your money to them. Urban architecture barriers surrounding planters or adding another arm rest to a park bench will not solve homelessness. Stashing the homeless in a park where they are not seen downtown during business time only hides the problem temporarily.

The Daily Courier in an article dated April 8 published a story titled, “What panhandlers are, aren’t allowed to do.” It boiled down to it was their First Amendment right to beg for money. You have the First Amendment right to deny the panhandler compensation for standing on the street begging for a donation. If panhandling is not a lucrative endeavor, then it’s safe to assume that the panhandler may choose another course for earning money.

In the same April 8 issue, an editorial informed us what actions Prescott City Council has up their sleeves to deal with the homeless problem in Prescott. This program I suggest will enable more homelessness.

I worked and lived in the San Francisco Bay Area for many decades. Some of the ideas the City Council are proposing have been tried there. The panhandling and homelessness has only worsened.

Practicing the role of an enabler will not change the behaviors of those whom you desire to help.

Patricia Gillenwater

Dewey