Let’s be honest… We are capitalists. We are swimming in a giant lake of capitalism. We have never swum in any other lake. This lake provides for us. And we all love to talk about how absolutely incredible this lake is (even though ALL of us know this lake has some real problems).
So it only stands to reason that in Lake Capitalism there are some deeply held beliefs. Not only are these unquestionable beliefs, they are so deep they don’t even need to be spoken. When you have never so much as dipped a toe into another lake OF COURSE you are going to swear up and down your lake is the best lake.
The main belief is that if you can’t survive in Lake Capitalism there is only one reason why: you aren’t trying hard enough.
You are lazy. You are weak minded (how most of us truly feel about mental health issues). You are a waste of space.
Just as a walleye can’t survive in the Pacific Ocean, some people can’t survive in Lake Capitalism.
We have to make room for them.
By no means am I suggesting that the government has to shell out a single dime for them, I am just saying we have to let them have a place of peace and happiness.
We must have a space for poor people to live and be loved. Some people will just be down on their luck temporarily. And some people will live their entire lives there. They aren’t bad. They aren’t weak. They are just people who are drowning in Lake Capitalism and need a life raft.
As diehard believers in Lake Capitalism are sure to do, some will call these places: slums, dirty, a safety issue, a health hazzard. They will vehemently petition to close these areas down. But they only do this because they are vehement disciples of Lake Capitalism. They will yell and stomp their feet that Lake Capitalism has everything ALL of us need. We just have to work for it.
We must tune out these hateful rhetorics. They are just angry because they are afraid of anything that is not them.
21st century slums (feel free to call them slums if you want. As long as the people living in them are free to live they won’t care what you call them. They’ll probably make t-shirts exclaiming their Slum pride) need to look different than slums before them. Primarily, we need innovative and cheap fire safety in these places. I’m not talking these ridiculously expensive fire systems. I’m talking reliable battery powered smoke detectors, emergency ladders, etc. But that’s about it. Everything else will take care of itself. Maybe some community bathhouses would be nice.
When you give people space and respect amazing things can happen. I have no ulterior motive here. I’m not creating some trap that is ultimately designed to suck people back into the main Lake Capitalism swimming area. I honestly can no longer say with any kind of truth that the way we live in mainstream America is better than living in a hut made out of found objects sitting on the bank of a lovely winding river.
When we give people space and respect it allows us to find our own space and respect. Loving and respecting others is the fastest way to loving and respecting ourselves.