• Dasus@lemmy.world
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    9 months ago

    How much of their homeless population dies waiting for that housing?

    None. Used to be that happened, back in the 60’s and whatnot. Puliukkos dying under bridges. But not anymore.

    https://yle.fi/aihe/artikkeli/2020/05/16/50-vuotta-sitten-helsingissa-kuoli-kymmenia-ihmisia-kadulle-pakkaseen-vasta-se (you’ll need to translate but it often works pretty well)

    Most people never even go homeless. Even if you’re a schizophrenic drunk, you’ll usually have your own apartment or if it’s really bad, perhaps live in assisted housing.

    While we do have a homeless population, we don’t have people living on the street. Period. Yes, it’s also to do with the fact that overwintering would be somewhat challenging. The small homeless population we have still have shelter, they just don’t have an address to call their own.

    The ones I knew were mostly basically hippies living in communes and some hc alcoholists who basically don’t want to leave the shelters, because their social life is there.

    I’ve perhaps once or twice seen a hobo sleeping on the street. And I’ve lived here over 30 years and driven a taxi at night for several of those years.

    Our shelters are never full, so if you actually got thrown out onto the street willy nilly, you could just ring up the closest shelter and go there. Or if you’re suffering from addiction, check yourself into rehab, where they might help with both issues.

    Don’t take me wrong, these systems have several significant issues, and often fuck up in practice, but mostly when it comes to the point of actually being under ghe threat of homelessness, the bureaucracy somehow magically does start working pretty well. (The bureaucrats realise how much more issues it causes.)

    I’ve got loads of complaints about Finnish bureaucracy in practice, horrible shit, but the systems are good on paper, and others should definitely try them.