These things aren t necessary for an adult to survive, but they are necessary for children. Children need continued support after they leave the shelter. Many suffer from Post-Traumatic Stress Syndrome. A lot of my homeless friends, adults and children, have told me in private and publicly that homelessness is the worst thing that has ever happened to them, Stoops said. And even after they re out of the shelters, they re always afraid of becoming homeless again.
Stoops calls that the mecca or magnet theory.
That borders on racism and classism, he said. That s thinking that urban blacks from Washington, D.C., are going to descend on Fredericksburg like medflies. There are no facts to back something like that up. The truth is, Stoops said, homelessness is homegrown and most people stay in the areas they best know. People need to realize that the shelter there helps people from your area and be thankful that it s there, he said.