The homeless

In my vagabond years in the 1970's I mostly saw white homeless on the streets - the so-called "bums" and "winos" such as you will see them in some of my pictures from that time. Blacks in those days often lived in the huge apartments and houses of the whites who had recently fled to suburbia. However, during the growing racism since then I have seen my black friends being more and more squeezed within the ghettos. Every time I return I see them doubling up with more family members in their homes. Eventually the weakest of them are pushed out into the streets. Somehow when the ghetto is totally down and out and suddenly visible most whites can feel some compassion. So in the 80'es I would spend all my spare time between my lectures with the homeless and let them sell my books in the streets to whites. But in the 90's white racism again worsened and the homeless in many cities such as New York were now forced out whereby I lost contact with most of them.