Photo by Phil Connelly

The Fresno Police Department’s Homeland Security force is going after some big fish – because we all know what a threat homeless advocates are.

Phil Connelly sparked the interest of anti-terrorism officials in April when he was monitoring city crews removing property from a known homeless area of Fresno, CA and photographed them dumping the materials in a city maintenance yard. City employees grew concerned over Connelly’s presence and contacted the Fresno Police Department’s Homeland Security Bureau, who tracked down Connelly via his license plate. However, rather than visiting the suspected “terrorist”, Connelly  only received an intimidating letter from Homeland Security saying his behavior “caused concern among several city employees.” 

Now, there’s more to this story that involves a $2 million dollar judgement against the city for destroying the homeless people’s belongings, and this could be an intimidation tactic (as Connelly believes it is).

But, as Sgt. Ronald Grimm, the Homeland Security Coordinator for the Fresno Police Department, told the local ABC news station:

“It was textbook casing. Similar to what a domestic terrorist, an international terrorist, or simply, what a citizen meaning to do harm to the government would do just prior to an event.”

Actually, I’m willing to bet it couldn’t be farther from “textbook casing.” Do terrorists follow city workers in broad daylight and photograph them from at most a few feet away? Sgt. Grimm can’t really expect people to believe that, but it’s just another ridiculous, lazy justification that government officials like to use these days to infringe on our rights.

Maybe we should all send Sgt. Grimm a letter because his justification for what was done to Connelly is causing me grave concern. 

Watch the news story at ABC 30’s web site.

Read more about Connelly’s incident here.

The debate has come up in San Francisco once again*. Let me summarize:

• Position one “Don’t support panhandlers”: Panhandlers are often not really homeless, and they use the money to buy alcohol, drugs, and support other vices.  The services they claim to need are provided by local agencies, but they don’t go to those agencies because they want the money for other things.  Further, panhandlers are bad for local business and tourism, as they make people uncomfortable.  Rather than give change to these people, you should support local agencies working to help the homeless.
• Position two “Follow your compassionate instincts”: Painting all panhandlers as addicts is a terrible stereotype.  Giving money to the poor is part of many religious traditions, and we should have compasion for our fellow human beings.  These efforts to curb panhandling are part of an unjust “war on the poor,” which is especially atrocious in light of the government’s contribution to creating poverty in the first place.

The San Francisco effort is to turn parking meters into “Homeless Meters” where the change is given to local agencies providing services.  When the same idea was launched in Denver in 2007, coverage was positive, but the San Francisco Chronicle reports that the meters have raised only $15,000 since then. 

But here’s my question: forget for a moment government policies that create or alleviate poverty.  For the moment, poverty exists and panhandlers are out there.  So what do you say to your children when passing panhandlers on the street?  Panhandlers holding signs that say “please help” or “Will work for food” or something else that tugs at your heartstrings?  I’m waiting for they day when my kids ask me “Mom, why is that man asking for money?”

This is one question I don’t have an answer for.  In all sincerity, I ask, what do you say? 

*I found this article when Stacey Monk referred me to alltop, which led me to the blog PhilanthroFlash.  I’m happy to say that The Philanthropic Family was recently added to the nonprofit page on alltop (scroll way at the bottom).  Great way to track all your favorite nonprofit sites in one place.