To the editor:

The stigma attached to the homeless in Lawrence will not change until the program for caring for the homeless changes from an enabling program to an empowering program.

You enable a homeless person by giving free services with no requirement for rehabilitation, and the results of this type program can be seen on the streets of Lawrence every day. You empower a homeless person by requiring mandatory involvement in rehabilitation programs in return for the services and support they need. Give a homeless alcoholic two meals a day and a place to sleep at night and what incentive does he/she have to get into AA/rehab?

I live across the street from Lawrence Community Services, and I can tell you that many of the homeless I saw yesterday are the same ones I saw five years ago and in some cases longer.

But the really sad part is that only about 5 percent of the homeless stigmatize the entire homeless population. The visible homeless like the drunk sleeping on the sidewalk or the aggressive panhandler give all homeless persons/families a bad rap.

Ms. Enoch, if you want to erase the stigma then the program has to change to an empowering program. I suggest you arrange a visit to the Topeka Rescue Mission and see an empowering program in action. Now that’s a program worth emulating.

Phil Hemphill,

Lawrence