Asphalt Anthropology: Finding Presence at the Wrong End of a Knife
<p>Some of the most frequently asked questions I get about personal safety here in Los Angeles are related to homeless people.</p>
<p>((( Whew ))) it is a tough and complicated situation.</p>
<p><strong>I’ve seen things I wish I could unsee: </strong>The young trans kid strung out and sitting for hours picking their face raw in the reflection of an empty store front. Soles of unprotected feet blackened from the city’s grime. A dead body and the stains from their bodily fluids where they seeped into the sidewalk.</p>
<p><strong>I’ve heard things I wish I could unhear: </strong>Screams at 6am from the camp around the corner as they come down from their overnight high, the verbal replay of a rape suffered by a woman as she rocks herself in at the Metro station, <a href="https://www.asphaltanthro.com/post/self-defense-when-compassion-and-vigilance-meet-los-angeles-dtla" rel="noopener ugc nofollow" target="_blank">the soft fragile thank you</a> from a girl I gave money to when I spotted her scrounging for food.</p>
<p><a href="https://medium.com/@Asphalt_Anthropology/asphalt-anthropology-finding-presence-at-the-wrong-of-a-knife-e21aa368a15d"><strong>Website</strong></a></p>