On August 11, 2010 in a suburb of Atlanta, Georgia, nearly 30,000 people waited in sweltering heat to obtain forms to apply for government-subsidized apartments. While reports indicate that things were orderly at first, as the heat became more intense – 62 people required medical attention – the crowd got restless and pushing, shoving and altercations broke out once the distribution of applications finally began[1].
It was a shameful scene that would never have happened if people didn’t believe that they are entitled to get free or subsidized housing from the government.
Officials admit that they only expected about 10,000 people to show up, and hypothesize that there is not actually 3 times the demand for government housing that they expected, but rather that interested parties opted to bring along family members and even pets to the event. 13,000 applications for federal housing were distributed, and 30 officers were deployed to help control the crowds. 20 people were hospitalized due to “crowd-related injuries” and “failure of some to take their usual medications.”
Given that this chaos ensued simply because applications were being handed out, it is not surprising that officials are urging applicants to mail their applications in rather than delivering them in person. This is the first time since 2002 that this area of Atlanta has offered applications for section 8 housing and housing vouchers.
Thank you for reading! Your comments and questions are welcomed below.
[1] http://www.ajc.com/news/atlanta/housing-crisis-reaches-full-590299.html
Aaaarrrrgggghhhh…. don’t even get me started on subsidized housing.
Must be nice to get a new public townhome for $100/mo… and then to trash the place within a few years. Then blame it on “the man”.
And physically showing up, waiting in a line on a hot day, to get a frickin’ piece of paper?!? What is this? 1970? Third world country? Very lame.
How about a computer, website, and online application? Hell, go to an Apple store and use the computer/internet there.
Road to hell is paved with good intentions….
these people contribute little if anything to America, they expect to receive entitlements as though they are entitled to them for doing nothing except being nothing more than vagrants, then give them food stamps, welfare and then they hate the hand that feeds them the working middle class and upper class, these people would make Chavez happy as a clam if they lived in Venezuela! Maybe we could arrange one way vacation airline tickets!
Second Jimmimax. Too many investors also contribute to this by encouraging Section 8 housing for their properties.
You conservatives disgust me. These are poor people who are in the middle of the Bush recession and you’re blaming them for needing assistance? You’re pathetic.
And I can always tell when a guy from the south is talking about black people, your tone gets really patronizing and you refer to them as a mob or as having some kind of animalistic characteristics.
You’re a bunch of sick racists in the south, is all you are.
I’ll bet you liberals are really proud of this guy, aren’t you?
— Bryan Ellis
I agree with jimmimax, in fact in the long term (change to short term) it would be cheaper to send them to Chavez 1st class.
Hey Jimmi,
Which these people are you referring too? Unemployed, single moms, single dads, spanish, blacks, whites..just who are you referring to? You sound like a disgruntled biggot who’s unsatisfied with his life and need to blame someone, anyone. Maybe we can arrange a one way ticket for you to the deepest, darkest cave so you can lament all your sorry troubles.
How about we not judge people. We have no idea what these people situations and needs are. We know that they need housing. I work everyday with people who are in need of help and help is not available. The programs that you think are fully funded by the govt. has no funds!!! There are people who are coming in for assistance to help feed there children..They have never stepped foot in a social service office in their life.
People are now homeless due to layoff of jobs and can no longer pay there mortages or rent. Do not judge people that you do not know.
These people did not cause what is going on in our economy! Judge not less you be judged….It could be you or a family member in 6 months to a year.
What is welfare now…A third of this countries GNP?? A some point government has to stop being these grown up Americans(i use the term loosely) daddy and let them fend for themselves. Maybe it would force many of them to get off drugs!
This is truly sad. America is in deep trouble.
Every one isn’t rich like yourself. There are a few people that do need help.
There a many people who unfortunately do have an entitlement mentality. For some reason they feel they deserve anything they can get from the government, or anyone else for that matter, because they are “owed” it. Those fortunate enough to get Section 8 housing often times turn into the ones who don’t take care of the property, destroy it, and then blame the landlord.
That said, there are a great many who truly need the help and are deserving of it. They more often than not are great tenants because they appreciate it and don’t want to lose it. How do you tell the difference between these people and the “entitlement” crowd? I’d sure like to know however it’s not up to us to decide. We just have to hope we get the later of the two.
What kills me is that this whole fiasco in Atlanta was to just get on the list. There isn’t even any Section 8 housing currently available in Atlanta at all! Opportunity? Hmmm. Atlanta isn’t the only city with a long waiting list.
Sounds like pent up demand to me.
I’ve had tenants at all economic levels since 1973. There is good and bad at all levels. Some are deserving and some are not. Put away your wide negative paint brushes.
Most of these people don’t have jobs to start with. Instead of just handing out housing vouchers, how about making people work 20 hrs a week their vouchers. Or only those who volunteer 1000+ hrs a year can get a voucher. It might help cut down on some of the violence in these areas.
While the market was booming, I used to soley rent to section 8 tenants in Chicago because of the ridiculous cash that was achievable. When the market crashed, those tenants couldn’t even keep with their portion of the rent, which was usually $200-400. Not all, but many left the house in horrible condition before leaving.
Since then, I have had great success renting to market rate tenants in nicer parts of town.
Some people legitimately need help with housing payments, but most are too comfortable with this system and it provides no motivation to better their situation.
I almost lost it once when I had a prospective section 8 tenant tell me that they weren’t going to rent my house because it didn’t have a jacuzzi!
While I am not in the real estate business. I was reading over the comments, and seriously….It makes me sad to say that I am a human in such a judgmental world. I’m waiting for the mother ship to take me away!
My brother has recently hit hard times when his wife lost her job. Rent and other expenses are so high that they are to the point where they are unable to buy food for their two wonderful little boys. I recently found out that they were eating rice every meal for quite a while. They were ashamed to tell anyone because they don’t want handouts.
His wife is not able to find a job, no matter how hard she tries.
It finally got to the point where they were eating one meal a day so they went down to the welfare office. They were told that they didn’t qualify for assistance, even though they didn’t have any food in the house for the children. (Thank the Republicans for that)
This is the first time in our lives that anyone in my family has had such a difficult time economically.
I now help them with groceries and pay his wife to do assistant/clerical work for me but they are 100 miles away so it’s hard.
So when I come across a guy like Bryan who is just so callous and hateful with people who are having a hard time it makes my blood boil.
I bet you conservatives are real proud to call him one of your own…
To my valued readers: It’s commendable that the family in question didn’t want to look for handouts. It’s unfortunate that so many people are suffering right now. It’s even more unfortunate that what’s happening in the present administration is exacerbating the problem. And it’s also commendable that this commenter is helping his family in their time of need. That’s how needs are supposed to be filled: By taking care of your own, rather than relying on a government who has no legal responsibility or obligation to do so. — Bryan Ellis
How anyone could blame our current economic disaster on the current administration is beyond me. Only a blind conservative would be able to ignore the fact that Bush entered office with a surplus and left with a huge deficit, or that he was on-guard when 9/11 happened and that he is responsible for wasting trillions of dollars on a war in Iraq or that he gave billions to several large corporations that were either involved in criminal misconduct or were totally and completely fiscally inept instead of helping needy citizens.Obama is responsible for none of that.
Pull your head out of the sand Bryan.
Bryan, you must have very proud of Bush and the giant hole he dug for this country. Where was all your righteous indignation then? How come all you conservatives didn’t have any complaints while Bush threw away a surplus budget and turned it into the biggest financial hole this country has ever experienced? Where were your snide comments then?
To my valued readers: This commenter is probably well-meaning, but the reality is simple: No matter how WONDERFUL or how HORRIBLE any past president was, they no longer hold any power. And it’s clear that the economic policies implemented in the past 18 months have made things worse rather than better. What we need is a NEW CHANGE that makes sense. — Bryan Ellis
As for Clinton’s surplus that so many people with absolutely no understanding the budget or how the numbers a rigged up and down to suit what the different parties want to claim, there has never been a true surplus since Roosevelt screwed everyone in the United States with Social Security!.
The fictional surplus of Clinton’s was all smoke and mirrors, primarily derived by taking most of the Militaries budget and shuffling it around until it looked like there was a surplus, (did not really exist), and completely stripped the United States of most of its ability to protect itself. One of the major reasons the Radical Islamist thought they could destroy the World Trade Center and not suffer any for it.
All of the current politicians for the last few decades since Carter was elected have been soft on crazy assholes whose only wish is to kill our country. We have nuclear weapons, we have small tactical nuclear weapons, Iran is going to be shooting medium sized nuclear weapons at us soon. We need to be using our nuclear weapons and crush the people wanting to do nothing but kill us now, tommorrow and next week.
Yes, people will die, but is will not be our people and I am sick and tired of fighting these different engagements with one hand tied behind our backs. This is World War III and it is time we get our heads up, look around, ask who is with us and who is against us and act accordingly.
If you are not part of the solution, you are part of the problem! It is time we tell the world this is how it is and act on it while we still have a country to live in and defend.
The southern 90 miles of Arizona has been abandoned by our Federal Government, just one indication of how much they value our country and our lives as citizens!
We must remember to be humble. Things like this can happen. I’m sure a great number of people having to go through something such as this are grieved dor having to do so. I know people who have been on section 8 of different cultures and they are working class people who have to pay a portion of this rent. There are also elders of our communities who have this assistance and they have family helping as well; we do not know the circumstances of all of the individuals. Some people will try to get over some people’s needs are legitimate.