Reply to Was this racist? I need a reality check.

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]OP, you comments were not racist, at all. There is a lot of abuse in the system, people who think there is no abuse are either naive or willfully acting ignorant. Something to share: The Starbucks I go to has nice young girl (AA) working as a Barista there, we chat a bit everyday and she is very nice and provides excellent customer service. One day in the matter of conversation she mentioned that her mom lives in the projects not too far from the Starbucks and has been living there for 27years. I still like her the same and respect her work ethic but for the life of me I can't understand why somebody would use temporary housing benefit for their entire life. I walk by that section of project housing everyday, every single one of them has cable and majority has young, able people living in there. I understand the concept of generational poverty but government needs to set a time limit for the good of these people, otherwise they have no reason the change a perfectly subsidized lifestyle and OP and me can work ourselves to our grave.[/quote]

This is the sort of underinformed opinion that I suspect OP was bestowing on her friends.  There is literally so much to unpack here that I'm not sure where to begin, but let's start with the word "projects."  Both the word and the concept of "projects" have fallen out of favor in the last 20 years, but they were conceived as subsidized housing for low-income individuals.  But, as I said, the concept has fallen out of favor and most low-income individuals now receive housing vouchers rather than subsidized apartments in a concentrated block.  So, when you use the word "projects," what do you mean?  An apartment complex that is primarily low-income people?  Or a large, centralized, block of residences that are all subsidized?

But, let's assume that your acquaintance's mom lives in a subsidized apartment.  I'm not sure you know this, but the "projects" aren't exactly Club Med.  That's why they are no longer the go-to model for low-income housing.  So what exactly is this woman getting that makes you so mad?  A small, run-down, apartment built in the 1960s and barely updated since then, and the chance to live in a community solely made up of low-income individuals?  Wow, sounds awesome.  Sign me up.

Finally, neither the "projects" nor rental vouchers provide free housing.  They help low-income individuals by making rent more affordable, but it isn't free.  There are also long waiting lists to receive the rental vouchers, and fairly stringent guidelines for keeping them.  You can read more here: http://portal.hud.gov/hudportal/HUD?src=/program_offices/public_indian_housing/programs/hcv/about/fact_sheet[/quote]

The vouchers are de facto free.  The landlords are willing to take the large portion paid by government and assume the small part will rarely be paid by he tenant.  There is a whole industry of slum housing supported by government vouchers.[/quote]

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