On April 19, 2013, I published a post —

Both the Homeless and the Heartless in Bloomington?

— in which I featured a fb post from Charis Heisey who noted that a certain IU sorority had held a “homeless” theme for one of their parties in the very same week as the homeless here who suffer from addictions and/or mental illness lost their low-barrier shelter for the summer. The synchronicity between these contrasting situations galvanized me to write about it.

The local paper subsequently picked up the story about sorority’s “homeless theme,” and the IU chapter was roundly slapped by its parent organization. The actual homeless people then started to connect with the Occupy Bloomington folks and others, all of them upset by the failure of our local population to provide and/or allow places for people to lay down their heads and sleep without harassment or danger.

The next post I wrote on the subject focused on the enormous contrast of this shadow aspect of Bloomington to its generally blooming character.

Photo Essay: State of Our Town April 27, 2013

I’ve been riveted to this evolving local issue ever since. After all, in terms of survival needs, first food, then shelter! Of course exopermaculture looks at the food situation continuously. Now it appears that we need to focus on the need for shelter as well, since I have a feeling that beyond the newly developed preference for “tiny homes,” we’re all going to be faced with a series of choices that we never thought possible in the not so distant future. In other words, what’s happening in Bloomington may be a bellweather of what is to come all across this land. So let’s do it right, folks. Let’s show others how.

What does that mean? I have no idea. Only as we work together, will a way forward be found to acknowledge, honor, and address the survival needs of all sentient beings.

Here are the exopermaculture posts that relate to Homeless-in-Bloomington since April 27th, in chronological order.

April 29, 2013

From space, to Earth, to this place: Let’s connect with local action NOW

April 30, 2013

Occupy Homelessness in Bloomington: Action Continues

May 1, 2013

Hey folks — learn to share, or else!

May 1, 2013

Housing the Homeless — “I feel human again.”

May 2, 2013

Occupy Homelessness: Last night’s meeting with City Council — and beyond

May 2, 2013

Alternative housing for the homeless: two examples.

May 3, 2013

Dignity Village, Portland: Viable Template for Addressing Homelessness?

May 4, 2013

Homeless-in-Bloomington: Ubuntu and Garage Sleep-In News on Graduation Day

May 5, 2013

Homeless-in-Bloomington: 3rd night tonight: “Drive In, Sleep In!”

May 5, 2013

Homeless in Bloomington: Press release re: garage sleep-in

May 6, 2013

Homeless in Bloomington: city now calls the “Dream Garage” illegal

May 7, 2013

Homeless in Bloomington: five people arrested . . .

May 8, 2013

Homeless in Bloomington: Mayor responds to “the crackdown”

July 13, 2015

LOVE globally, LOVE locally: the abstract idea and one concrete example