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"I, WELFARE BUM": RISK LABEL-FLIPPING

6/8/2014

5 Comments

 

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(PLACE LABELS ACCORDINGLY)

On my bike, riding down Broadway, near home. The tanned construction foreman, Arnie, had waved me on, but I stopped to ask him a question about the sidewalk they were laying. Hadn't they just redone this sidewalk in the fall? Why were they re-redoing it now? Were Cambridge tax dollars paying for this?

"No, the contractor's paying," Arnie replied. "But you know what Cambridge should be paying for? Running all the bums out of here. They're everywhere!" 

Just like that, this casual exchange took on a new dynamic. This happens to me a lot: someone speaks to me out of what seems like a desire to engage, but what they say feels like a slap in the face. 

What do you say when someone slaps you in the face by accident? 

A direct rebuttal ("You don't even know any of these 'bums'. Who are you to judge?") will slam down a wall between us, cutting off any possibility of a shift occurring on either side of the conversation. Pretending to agree with him or remaining silent will leave me humiliated, him reassured that I share his views. 

So many times I have not responded. This time, for the first time, I responded. 

"Well actually, I'm a bum myself. I'm on welfare." Arnie's crew continued moving equipment and shouting busily behind him, but he stopped still, a quizzical look crossing his face. 

"But...what? You seem like a nice enough guy. You...you seem educated!" 

"Yes, but I'm also on welfare." 

I continued: my life, the way I live, is possible due to welfare. I don't receive checks from the government, but my college degree, my lack of debt, my experiences traveling abroad, my home, my family, and my current unpaid employment are all possible thanks to money that was doled out to me by someone else. That's welfare. 

This could sound unappreciative of my family, so let me take this chance to say: I'm proud of the work ethic of my mother, my father, and my grandfather--the people who have allowed me the freedom to do what I'm doing. They have always been dedicated to achievement through hard work. That dedication has generated enough financial security to allow me to do things not everyone gets to do. Mom, Dad, Poppy--thank you.

Here's my point: the genuine hard work of my grandfather was also federally-fertilized. The tubing business that my he ran was subsidized, just like all American industry is in some way, by the government. Public investment in education helped to prepare his employees. Public investment in infrastructure provided his company with systems for transportation, water, sewage, and electricity. Public investment in the war effort opened up a vast market for tubing. Public investment in an intellectual copyright system and the judicial system to defend those rights ensured that his company's technology was safe.  

So when I hear someone talking with disgust about people who receive public assistance, well, that person is talking about me, too. And themselves. And everyone in this country who's been able to build themselves and their families a financially-prosperous life.   

I am trying to learn how to speak. Not to argue, or to convince, or to intimidate...but to speak a truth that dignifies myself, the person in front of me, and everyone else as humans worthy of consideration. It's only step one, but it is step one. 

This is something I can do with my privilege: publicly embracing what society would reassure me and itself that I am not--a welfare bum. Is it ridiculous to call myself that? Probably. Then I must ask myself: is it not then ridiculous to assign anyone that label? 

--Abe Lateiner
5 Comments
Marianne Gabel
6/8/2014 07:38:30 am

You make a good point for the "welfare" part but not for the "bum" part. Taking the "welfare" and then investing it in your own work is not being a bum...

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Lisa Marie Gaver
6/8/2014 11:01:21 am

Yes! I thought that I had read this before because you had told me about the first part of the story. But the second half is the real meat! Props to "Poppy" for making great use of everything he had available and props to you for learning how to recognize that financially stigmatized people in society are doing that exact same thing! Tragic that so many people won't be able to realize this and will avoid getting help because of shame and ego.

To Marianne: Thats the catch though, not every bum has the luxury to do such a thing. I would argue that most people that "make a good case" aren't getting enough help. If you get just enough help to go to bed in a room full of strangers with god knows what sort of problems, and you get up everyday only to chase the basic necessities--you just might turn that social drinking habit into a "bum's" tale too. I think that is Abe's point. Look at what happened to the guy who got a computer from someone and coding lessons when he was homeless..

http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2013/12/nyc_homeless_man_releases_app_after_learning_java_code.html

Or 10 K instead of 25 cents..

http://youtu.be/4Lki_IeM6bQ

later they raised money to get this guy and apartment, and guess what?? he got a job. (money rewards money ;)

"I don't know if I'm walking on solid ground. But everything around me, is falling down...."
http://youtu.be/nFZP8zQ5kzk

People talk about helping the homeless, dropping off shoes and blankets to random street people. It drives me bonkers. Get to know the person. Don't just assume that you have exactly what they need, or that you know how to solve their problems. Usually money is a sure bet to solve a LOT of problems. It can be scary not knowing what someone will do with it. Why? because deep down, we know that if we were given free money, that we would probably not spend it wisely. We assume the worst, because that is what we know and believe in people. We fear that assuming the best will make us victims.

But if you have it to give away, then will it really kill you that it wasn't spent in the best way that you see fit?

idk...

Reply
Lisa Marie Garver
6/8/2014 01:42:52 pm

p.s. I might not have made it clear that even though I think Abe has a luxury/set of resources that other "welfare bums" may or may not have (including mentally/financially stable parents) that I think what he is doing with his time is commendable. I feel really grateful that getting to know him has given me a place to voice my point of view on the subject. Thanks so much Abe!

marianne
6/10/2014 10:15:26 am

What I meant was: to me if you have the kind of socio-economic-governmental legacy that Abe has, but you use it for the greater good, you aren't a "bum". I was not addressing the situation of those who need assistance to meet the challenges of their daily lives. They aren't bums either.

Abraham Lateiner
6/9/2014 07:16:03 am

Marianne, I see what you mean...I was using the word "bum" to reclaim it, to take away the narrow definition that mainstream America assigns to it ("a person with no money living off the work/money of others") and expand that definition to include all sorts of people from all walks of life, even at the other end of the economic spectrum.

Lisa, you hit the nail on the head...in a culture which both worships and despises those with financial wealth, how can the idea of revealing wealth not be caught up in fear, guilt, shame, anger, etc?

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    Abe Lateiner

    If real change requires people to take risks, what would it mean for a straight, White, cisgender male, tall, thin, able-bodied, English-speaking US citizen with class privilege to take risks?

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