Still Homeless in Santa Monica

It’s been almost 10 years since I made my solo Route 66 trip. Recently, my husband and I were in California, and I took him to Santa Monica Pier, which marks the end of Route 66. He took my picture by the sign there. I’m not sure if such a sign was there in 2008, but no one took my picture then, so now I have one.

When I was in Santa Monica in 2008, I was struck by how many homeless people were camped out in Palisades Park. I had never seen so many in one place before. Considering the amount I paid for one night in a hotel, I was dismayed by the contrast of wealth and poverty in the city. So, I wrote to the city council, and a rather lengthy dialogue with one of its members followed, which I posted to my blog.

On our recent visit to Santa Monica, we walked to the end of the pier, looked at the fishermen and the people waiting for the sunset, and then walked back and listened to a man playing the violin along the way. I had wanted to take a walk in Palisades Park to see what the homelessness situation is like these days, but it was almost dark, and we were tired, so we drove back to our hotel about 20 miles away.

The next day, in Palm Springs, we met a man and woman who live in Santa Monica, and the topic of the homeless there came up. I told them about my impressions ten years ago and asked them what the situation is like today. From what they told me, it seems that there has not been any improvement. In fact, just since 2015, the numbers have risen dramatically.

I’m certainly not an expert in this area, and I don’t have a solution. It just makes me sad that it isn’t any better all these years later. I wonder what ever happened to the people I photographed ten years ago in Santa Monica.