FAST FACTS:
(Memphis 2/13/10) The heated debate over handling downtown panhandlers has the city looking at proposals to make it illegal, but not everyone agrees.
In the coming weeks, the city will consider the link between single beer sales and panhandling. However, the real concern for many is panhandlers themselves. They are often the first people tourists see. They'll walk right up to you, especially if you look like a tourist. But not all panhandlers fit the mold. Cross-country panhandlers like Thea Ross and Tyler Giuliani are new to Memphis and read about the proposed bill Friday morning.
"I don't think the cops should make it illegal because its kind of like making being broke illegal, poverty illegal," says Ross as she sits in the doorway of an abandoned downtown building on Second Street."I don't think that's fair."
Giuliani just got out of jail for panhandling in another state so now he's careful about local laws. "I like to ask cops first. I just don't want to go to jail for flying a sign or panhandling."
But for workers at downtown businesses, they see the results of panhandling everyday.
Neal Hamilton says he often is forced to usher panhandlers away from the outdoor seating area of his downtown restaurant and he says they often deter customers. "If you give them anything, look out, they're all over you. They will follow you until you go in somewhere or literally push them away."
Is panhandling enough of a problem to make illegal? Tourists are split and so are Memphians. While some say it deters them from going near stores where panhandlers loiter, others say they have no problem telling them to back off.
"I would say I'm not interested and keep walking," says one tourist from Baltimore, while another says it would deter her.
For Memphians ready to spend a Friday night in bustling downtown, the sheer presence of panhandlers is testament to the need for more social services. While some oppose making panhandling illegal, others argue it's the only resolution.
"You see panhandlers who are overweight, bellies out to here," says one Memphian. "What are they doing with the money? They're drinking it away and we're giving it to them."
Panhandlers like Giuliani and Ross admit, for some fellow panhandlers, new laws won't change a thing.
"I don't think making panhandling illegal will help people get jobs at all. I think it'll just put more people in jail. They give them a ticket and they give them a fine, then what happens? They go panhandle to pay the fine. It's kind of a silly cycle, but maybe I'm biased."
- Proposal would ban panhandling downtown
- City looking at link between single beer sales and panhandling
- Tourists and Memphians split on proposal
(Memphis 2/13/10) The heated debate over handling downtown panhandlers has the city looking at proposals to make it illegal, but not everyone agrees.
In the coming weeks, the city will consider the link between single beer sales and panhandling. However, the real concern for many is panhandlers themselves. They are often the first people tourists see. They'll walk right up to you, especially if you look like a tourist. But not all panhandlers fit the mold. Cross-country panhandlers like Thea Ross and Tyler Giuliani are new to Memphis and read about the proposed bill Friday morning.
"I don't think the cops should make it illegal because its kind of like making being broke illegal, poverty illegal," says Ross as she sits in the doorway of an abandoned downtown building on Second Street."I don't think that's fair."
Giuliani just got out of jail for panhandling in another state so now he's careful about local laws. "I like to ask cops first. I just don't want to go to jail for flying a sign or panhandling."
But for workers at downtown businesses, they see the results of panhandling everyday.
Neal Hamilton says he often is forced to usher panhandlers away from the outdoor seating area of his downtown restaurant and he says they often deter customers. "If you give them anything, look out, they're all over you. They will follow you until you go in somewhere or literally push them away."
Is panhandling enough of a problem to make illegal? Tourists are split and so are Memphians. While some say it deters them from going near stores where panhandlers loiter, others say they have no problem telling them to back off.
"I would say I'm not interested and keep walking," says one tourist from Baltimore, while another says it would deter her.
For Memphians ready to spend a Friday night in bustling downtown, the sheer presence of panhandlers is testament to the need for more social services. While some oppose making panhandling illegal, others argue it's the only resolution.
"You see panhandlers who are overweight, bellies out to here," says one Memphian. "What are they doing with the money? They're drinking it away and we're giving it to them."
Panhandlers like Giuliani and Ross admit, for some fellow panhandlers, new laws won't change a thing.
"I don't think making panhandling illegal will help people get jobs at all. I think it'll just put more people in jail. They give them a ticket and they give them a fine, then what happens? They go panhandle to pay the fine. It's kind of a silly cycle, but maybe I'm biased."
