Sydney-Siders Fall Into Homelessness With The Cost of Living Being Too High To Survive
By: Ashleigh Mclean
Tags: Sydney, Homelessness, Volunteering, Cost Of Living, Stereotypes

As I inch closer to the corner of Elizabeth and Martin Place Street, I see them all wrapping their arms around each other, their lips curling up into a smile as they see each person arrive. It’s hard to distinguish who the volunteers are and who the homeless are at the 24/7 Safe Space and Kitchen. Some are easily identifiable with their overly large tote bags with little packets of salvaged foods peeping out the top, however they mostly defy the homeless stereotype- no cigarette in mouth, scabby faced, perverted old men lining up here.

“According to our count, around 63% of homeless people in Sydney today work full time or are full time students,” Lanz says to me.

My eyelids press shut and I shake my head, “If only people knew.”

Homelessness is an entrenched problem in the City of Sydney. Between the years of 2011 and 2016, homelessness in the state of NSW rose by nine thousand five hundred and twenty-five people, with the City of Sydney seeing an overall rise of 70%. With the number of people falling into life on the street constantly rising, the need for the government to intervene is at an all-time high.

Several non-government and non-for-profit groups have been formed over the City of Sydney in attempt to help those in need. Groups have formed to provide the homeless with basic needs such as shelter, food, water and clothes, with one of these being Lanz Priestley’s 24/7 Safe Space and Kitchen. Both volunteers and members of the homeless community come together in Sydney’s Martin Place to provide food, water, clothes and even trivial things such as books, guitars and games, to whoever needs them.

“We crowd source everything,” Lanz humbly explains. “The organisation wouldn’t be what it is today without the kind volunteers such as yourself.”

24/7 Safe Space and Kitchen on the 1st June, 2019.

Since the infamous Sydney clash between the right-winged government and residents of Martin Place’s ‘tent city’, the 24/7 Safe Space and Kitchen only congregate fortnightly on Saturday’s. The decline in engagement between volunteers and the homeless community was not voluntary. In 2017, members of state and local government along with the local police, intervened on a group of homeless people who had set up tents in the centre of Martin Place.

Having claimed they would prioritise the safety of the homeless community, the government are still yet to find a permanent, or semi-permanent solution to the Sydney housing crisis. Without addressing the issue, it is unlikely to see a drop in homelessness rates in the near future.

“Trying to fix homelessness without looking at housing is ridiculous. If you accidently leave the tap running and your bathroom floods, you don’t try to mop up the water without turning off the tap. You need to look at the root of the problem”, Lanz says with his fingers gripping either side of his steaming ‘cap with three’.

I look at him supportively, giving him the opportunity to fill the silence.

He continues, “When you come to the shelter, you’ll be able to tell with some of the people… Some actually have homes, but the cost of living is so high that they just can’t afford to eat.”

As I manned the end of the food table dishing out the rice and vegie bake, I came to see that everything Lanz said was right. The people who I was serving were not who I expected them to be. As I fumbled around trying to serve the bake, which seemed to not want to stay on the server long enough for it to make it to their plate, they made me feel welcome with their friendly small talk and encouragement.

24/7 Safe Space and Kitchen on the 1st June, 2019.

As I continued serving plate after plate throughout the night, Lanz’s words ran through my mind. “People like to think that everyone in the homeless community are all on drugs and their habits have put them on the street,” Lanz says. “And of course there are some homeless people who are fucked up, but writing off the whole community based on that small percentage is like judging all Muslim’s based only on the fucked up extremists.” His refreshing perspective had opened my eyes to the sense of comradery in the homeless community.

Something that sticks in my mind from that night is a white-haired man who came up to the table. He flashed his enviously pearly whites with a smile at me. All I could think was, I wonder if he’s had braces?

After we got through the usual small talk, his eyes landed on the opal card in my phone-case, and then made their way back to my face. “Where did you travel here from,” he asked, raising his eyebrows enthusiastically.

“The Central Coast, Umina,” I responded. He was shocked that I came all the way here to volunteer and expressed his gratitude with a very Aussie, “good on you.”

As I glanced around the crowd who were gathered all together, I was shocked to see the turn-out of commuter types. They stood out in the line- the ones with their hair sculpted to one side with backpack straps pressed to their shoulders. These were the types that didn’t talk as much. The types who put their head down, mumbled a yes or a no to my offerings before moving off quietly.

The woman on tea and coffee stationed next to me noticed these encounters. “Some of these guys still feel so embarrassed, so we try to only ask questions to people who are friendly first.”

I took onboard what she said and their lack of eye-contact told me all I needed to know. These people didn’t want to be there, they didn’t want to belong to this community, they were filled with shame. It was my job to respect their wishes, serve their food, and let them get-in and get-out without exposing themselves.

As I continue to serve, I keep pressing Lanz for more information. He explains, “The government has a duty of care to Australian’s… and while people like to believe in the Liberal Governments ‘strong economy’, what they’re really doing is making the gap between the wealthy and the lower-class bigger.”

With barely a breath, Lanz continues, “People like to think that homelessness will never happen to them, but that’s what these people thought once too. The government need to stop thinking about growing our economy and instead they need to even the playing field to make it a better place to live.”

With people disappearing as fast as they arrive, the dinner session was ending. After a series of friendly hugs, goodbyes and thankyous, I left the volunteering session and headed back to Town Hall, shamefully stopping on the way for my Thai massage appointment.

In my time volunteering at the 24/7 Safe Space and Kitchen, I noticed that in a situation which would be lonely and confronting, hope and comradery still prevails in the homeless community. So much support and care were shown between the attendees, that even as an outsider I felt my body become warmed by their spirit in the midst of the winter chill.

Countless stereotypes exist about who makes up the homeless community. But I found that it only took a 2-hour interview and one volunteering session to understand that the main problem lies not within drug and alcohol abuse, but within the high cost of Australian living and subsequent affordable housing policies.

*If you’re homeless or at risk of becoming homeless, you can contact:

Youth Accommodation Line- 02 9698 5822

Way2Home- 1800 505 501