Ask Lemmy

It depends very much on the country, county or even town where you live. For instance, in some countries there is no safety net at all for poor people, in other countries there are programs to stop homelessness (for instance Finland). In Germany, in general charitable organization advice to give some coins and to talk with beggars, in the UK the advice is NOT to that. Some towns may be flooded by beggars for whatever reason. Some areas (especially tourist hotspots) can be the target of “professional” gangs that manage beggars, which are brought into the towns by bus. I read an article in a US paper, that many beggars are queer people, expelled by their Bible Belt conservative “Christian” families. Taken together you should investigate this per locale. The argument “you’re too lazy to work” usually doesn’t fly: true beggars in many cases have critical mental issues (depression etc) caused by, or the reason for, them living on the street. Many tourists traveling back home, give their final coins to beggars - this is critical, as professional gangs quickly move in to use this as a money making machine. So, sorry, no easy answer! On a personal note: I’m not religious, so I have high moral standards, and I do give money to beggars in my area regularly.