It took me a while to decide whether or not to post this photo as Stephen is homeless and I felt a little uneasy about telling his story, as I don’t know whether posting a picture of someone homeless on my strangers project is appropriate / respectful. I did ask Stephen if it was OK to post the shot online and he had no hesitation about giving me permission.
So here’s Stephen’s story. I was walking through Arnold with my dog and saw Stephen outside the Cross Keys pub with a big rucksack on his back. We nodded hellos and I asked him if he’d been hiking (the rucksack was the type you might see hikers using).
“No, I’m homeless”
“Oh I’m sorry, I thought with the big backpack you had been hiking”
“That’s OK”
“Are you homeless in Arnold? Where do you sleep?”
“We have a shed on Mapperley Top, well we do at the moment , don’t know how much longer it will be there”
“Oh dear that’s awful, living in a shed”
“It’s better than sleeping rough in the city. The city homeless is full of druggies, it’s very dangerous too. If you stay in a hostel the druggies keep you awake all night, shouting and screaming”
“Have you tried Emmanuel House, down the bottom of Hockley”
“Yes that’s OK if you want a hot meal, but I won’t sleep there. We were close to getting a rented house, but it all fell through. I told the council ,it costs you £300 a week to put me in a hostel , that easily meets the cost of rent on a home”
“Can charities help you ?”
“It is all the same, the hostels are noisy and full of druggies”
“How long have you been homeless?”
“I’ve been on the streets for over four years”
I asked Stephen if I could take his picture, telling him about my project. He said it was fine to do so. At that point his partner arrived, I think she was called Ann, she had been in the pub to use the ladies room. I took a few shots of Stephen, Ann told him to look at the camera and relax.
I asked Stephen what he was going to do next
“We will go outside ASDA, see if we can get some supper”
I wished them well, feeling really sad about the encounter. Sad that I mistook Stephen for a hiker and sad that in 2020 we have people homeless. Mapperley and Arnold are suburbs of the city, it is unusual to see homeless people this far out of the city, a sad statement of our society. The new Tory government talk out “one nation”, it doesn’t feel like “one nation” with people like Stephen living in a shed and people on low incomes visiting foodbanks. I don’t think that was a rant or a political statement, just an observation.
My photo shows Stephen stood against the open gate to the pub car park. I thought it made a different backdrop. I have posted in mono as I think it gives the shot more of an urban , street feel.
Thank you for allowing me to photograph you Stephen.
Find out more about the project and see pictures taken by other photographers at the 100 Strangers Flickr Group page
https://www.flickr.com/groups/100strangers
My own strangers can be seen here:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/57144254@N08/albums/72157657822400168
A real human in a situation that many find themselves in
Quite thought provoking
@777margo margo, i hope he finds a solution to his homelessness
@tinley23 thank you lesley
@helenhall helen thanks for your lovely and thoughtful reply
@caterina thank you caterina for sharing your story too :)
@fbailey thanks felicity, it is a sad story :(
@brigette thanks brigette for your visit and kind words
The homeless situation is just out of control, all promises promises but it doesn’t seem to get better. Thank God for the caring people who do their best. Until Stephen gets a home base & address there is no hope of him getting work, a vicious circle. I wish them well.....let us know if you see him again & how he does please Phil.
I like your photo very much. Fave.
@lostphojo thanks david, i did find it difficult to post this shot