Chantell has been homeless ever since she was discharged from the army. She then bounced between family and friends finally ending up on the streets of Gainesville, Florida sleeping outside of a homeless shelter.
Chantell says: “just because they don’t have a home doesn’t make them any less different.” We need to treat everyone with respect.
Chantell and her friend were headed to Grace Marketplace which is the largest homeless services in the area. Chantell said homeless people sleep outside in a courtyard and if they conform to obey stringent rules then they can possibly go inside.
The model sounds like Grace Marketplace is following Dr. Robert Marbut. The Marbut model is basically a prison with windows. The problem with this model is people are not treated with dignity. It’s a soft form of criminalization getting homeless people out of sight into huge shelters.
I was not able to spend a lot of time in Gainesville so I didn’t have a chance to connect with Grace Marketplace but I did drive by the place. There are several large buildings that could house hundreds of people that are not being used while hundreds of homeless people sleep outside in tents. It makes zero sense.
I just did a quick search and looks like the organization that operates Grace Marketplace is being questioned for mismanagement. The sad part is all the drama, and all the bureaucracy hurts the homeless people sleeping outside in Gainesville.
