For the past week or so I’ve been hearing fellow students and faculty talk about the casual subject of Southern California’s strange weather this winter and the fact that it doesn’t feel very wintery. Several people were talking about how they wished it would rain so they could wear their warmer clothes, or simply desired the presence of snow on the mountains for aesthetic or recreational value. At any other moment of my life, I would have viewed these desires as innocent and natural. However, given that we’ve been reading articles and pieces about homelessness and life on the streets, it dawned on me that those of us with a roof over our heads, the money to purchase warm clothes or hot foods, or a car to transport ourselves with, we have the privilege to want these things (however, the desire to have rain and colder weather does not exclude on the other hand cold weather for the sake of the environment and the prevention of drought).
This warmer weather is likely viewed as a blessing for those who have to wonder every day where they will find a place to sleep at night or a place to rest during the day. Unlike the rest of the US that is suffering from extreme cold weather, rain, flooding, hail, the West coast, while experiencing unusual warm weather, has been luckier for the homeless who may otherwise seek shelter by getting into prison for the winter.
As Kenan Heise explains in his book, The Book of the Poor, the combination of winter and poverty can be incredibly detrimental to the health of individuals living in poverty, if not potentially kill those who don’t have shelter or warmer clothing. These needs put pressure upon shelters and food banks that are already pressed for more supplies to give.
As someone who grew up in Los Angeles, I have thought that the weather in Redlands recently has been surprisingly cold. I cannot imagine being homeless in Redlands simply because of how much the temperature drops at night. Not having access to money for warm clothes, shelter from the wind, the correct kinds of nutrition and sleep to help prevent sickness, etc. are all things that fall into the category of “luxury” when you don’t have the proper financial resources. I went to New York when I was in high school. It was during the winter and a blizzard had happened the night before I got there. I remember that night being so cold and I remember seeing people huddled together under bridges and trying to hopelessly find a way to stay warm. It was heartbreaking and there were so many people who were being effected by it. I am glad that you brought up this point about the wether because I know that if I were homeless or living in poverty, temperature would be a huge factor in the reality of my quality of life.