Angelo

"Hey man," Angelo said, as I walked past him on the street this morning.  "You're the dude that tells our story with your camera!" he smiled.  I turned to look behind me, convinced Angelo must be talking about someone else.  We talked and Angelo proceeded to tell me his story. He currently works for a traveling carnival company and makes decent money nine months out of the year, but not enough to rent an apartment or own a house.  "That's a big expense.  I'd rather live on the street with my friends three months each year," he told me.  Angelo told me he views himself as a guardian of those who are less fortunate than him.  

He also very candidly told me he would get a better job if he didn't have a criminal record.  He spent years in the Oregon State Penitentiary for armed robbery, and then a few more years for trafficking meth.  "I'm a chemist," he said, with a wry grin.  Angelo said the meth was for him initially - to ease the chronic pain he suffers from years of hard labor.  Then he started dealing because the money was so easy.  "I paid my time and I don't do it anymore." he quickly told me.  Toward the end of our conversation, Angelo's eyes filled with tears.  Fear and sadness overcame his otherwise confident demeanor.  "I'm 58 years old," he sighed.  "I gotta keep pushing on.  My family doesn't want me, but I got a new family right here. Keep pushing, you know?  That's what I gotta do."

So many people I meet have a wistful sense of the life they thought they would be living.  Few want a life on the streets. Our society has contributed to the crisis we face.  Lack of appropriate early childhood education, lack of support and healthcare for families, unequal educational opportunities.  Meanwhile there are tax breaks for millionaires while marginalized populations face severe criminal penalties for very minor offenses. As a result, many are pushed deeper into the poverty that breaks their souls.  It truly is a vicious cycle that sensible policies and compassionate lawmakers could help to break.  Most are too afraid, however, to do anything at all that serves to address the issues we face as a nation.