NYC Homeless Man Shoeless Again Despite Boots

Lawrence dePrimo?

pipl.com...

He's either dead or 57 years old.

people get killed all the time for their sneakers so I have no doubt that he would have been beaten or killed for a $100 pair of boots.
This is a great real life example of how out of touch most of us are with how homeless people live and think.
When you saw the original story of how the policeman gave this guy the boots did it ever cross your mind that it might be a dangerous thing for him to have those boots?probably not.

Originally posted by Tardacus

This is a great real life example of how out of touch most of us are with how homeless people live and think.
When you saw the original story of how the policeman gave this guy the boots did it ever cross your mind that it might be a dangerous thing for him to have those boots?probably not.

Very true.

I once offered a homeless pensioner some money outside Waterloo Station in London, poor woman was about 80 years old and was bundled under a mass of blankets. She declined though, saying she'd get mugged if she had money. I asked the same about a coat, she really did look cold and she said no as she'd get robbed of it.

She settled for a cuppa and a sandwich, but was adamant that anything more would bring her more hassle than it was worth.

CX.

reply to post by Trustfund


I just spent a while watching your comments unfold in the latest Trayvon Martin thread. You truely are an absolutely abrasive human being. It doesn't matter what anyone says it'll always be " oh what? they can't do it because they're poor? They can't do it because they're black?"

Stop trying to pain everyone as a god damnattacker. Save yourself a reply to me, I can figure it out.

"What? only you white facist pigs can do it?"

Was thinking at the time that the boots wouldnt do him any good because his real problem is mental, not lack of boots.

Why? Because any "rational" person, even homeless, wouldnt be without any shoes whatsoever, nor any socks whatsoever, nor any kind of cobbled together wrapping whatsoever to keep their feet warm.
If his problem really was cold feet, he could have found something, anything at all, from newspaper to garbage bags (or duct tape, as one other story in this thread) or some other possession he had, for some kind of weather protection.
But no, he had nothing at all on his feet, and no attempt had been made to do anything about it.

Thus, its really a mental health issue, not a clothing issue.

Now he's without boots again? I'm not surprised. I think a background history search will find he hasnt been wearing any shoes for many years now.

Some people are unfortunately just like that.

Click here for more information.

The guy wants to be barefoot, give him a break.

If he's in NYC, he could have gotten a free pair of boots at any Salvation army, or church sponsored centers. He was prob. barefoot because he wanted to be. Maybe he didn't want to ruin the officers mood of feeling like a hero.

I kept this post that was sent to me from a member called LRP2010 it sure changed my mind on the homeless maybe it will yours also...

When I was a kid (age 11) things became really hard for my family, no work, dad sick, we eventually were homeless for quite a while. My mother, sister and I would sleep in the car, trying to get help where we could. My mother and sister would work when they could but when you don't have an address or a place to clean up, good clothes to wear, it is hard to get work. Thankfully there were people that were kind and would help. But there were the others who wanted to taunt and torment us - one night while sleeping in the car a group of jerks on motorcycles kept circling our car banging on it trying to scare us - as if we weren't already scared before they arrived - nights were hard and many people who haven't seen hardship can be jerks. It is easy to say "get a job" or "take a shower" when the person doing the yelling gets to go home to 4 walls and a bathroom, hot dinner and the escape of the television.

That time of my life shaped my way of thinking and I will never forget being so hungry that I thought I would die, so scared all the time, and so thristy that even now I feel panic when I don't have water handy. And the worse part was the humiliation. We lived in a shelter for a while, slightly better choice than being on the streets - shelters are just a different kind of frightening and nasty (at least from what I remember).

There was this family, and not sure how we ended up in their home, but they took us in for an evening and made us breakfast for dinner. There was so much food and I couldn't believe that people could have so much or be so kind. I will never forget that. There were many people who came along to asist us. A group of young people helped us and would bring us things in the shelter and they kept some of our stuff that we couldn't take in (we didn't have much but didn't want to lose what we had). They never bothered our things and were very kind. Unfortunately the kind people were fewer than the mean ones.

There were so many people living on the streets and some were mentally ill, a few were really scary, some drug addicts, and some were really fine but just didn't know they had a choice. Not knowing a choice is available is probably the saddest of all. But even the "crooks" on the street were doing what they felt they had to do so they could survive - can't imagine things are much different now. The rules are very different when you are in that position. There were a few who were just lazy but in reality most just wanted to eat, some wanted to self-medicate (can't say that I blamed them) and others just wanted to be left alone. There are so many reasons people end up homeless and in many ways it is a trap that is hard to get out of. Even when the body is taken out of the situation, the mind is still there for a long time and that is why so many keep falling back into that same place.

When things changed for us and we were back in our hometown and I went back to school I just couldn't shake that part of me who had lived on the streets and had to beg. It took a long time to crawl out of that place. Long after I had my own home and a great job making good money (I am one of the lucky ones) I still felt like that kid who didn't have a place to live, who most thought of as trash to toss aside or make fun of. I can still feel panic inside and have that fear of being homeless (not even close to a reality but the fear still hangs in the back of my mind).

I work in the real estate industry and now with all the foreclosures and going into homes where people have been evicted, seeing kids toys and special things that had to be left behind, sometimes even pets (so sad), it takes me back. Makes me feel sick to think another family may be going through the very thing I did and knowing they will never be the same again.

So, to answer the question, When I see a homeless person, I give what I can and treat everyone with respect. Sometimes the respect means more than the dollar I can toss in their cup. I don't choose what to give them, I give them what they ask for if I have it. They make the choice with what they do with the money. So if my dollar goes for a bottle of cheap wine, then wine it is......... peace,sugarcookie1

He says he's grateful for the gift, but he wants "a piece of the pie" because the photo was posted online "without permission."

The only pie he will be eating is the left over pie from the trash bin.

Originally posted by MDDoxs

Originally posted by whyamIhere
Not wearing shoes is probably his hustle.

I know I would of given him some money if I would of seen him barefoot.

Unfortunately, mental illness is probably to blame.

Wow that is a great point.

Come to think of it, homeless people with pets really tug on my heart strings and I can not help but donate. This instance would be similar.

This could have been an elaborate ruse that gained nation wide attention.

edit on 3-12-2012 by MDDoxs because: (no reason given)

I do think it is a possible point that being barefoot is his 'gimmick.' Especially since he was sitting outside of a shoe store...

BUT, with that said, i don't think homeless people and traveler people get dogs or pets just as a way to pull on heart strings...I have known quite a few homeless/traveler kids (there's a whole culture of them) and most of them always make sure to travel with dogs. Not only is it a good companion to have when you would otherwise be lonely and alone, but a good dog will always watch your back, defend you, and alert you in the middle of the night while you're sleeping if someone is coming up on you. These are all very important to anyone living on the streets for any reason.

And sure, it definitely doesn't hurt that when we see a homeless wo/man on the streets with an adorable lil pup that we may feel more compelled to help them both out.

Peace

I hate to say this, but I knew those boots would be gone within a week. He probably sold them. I doubt they are hidden like he claims. But ya never know, I'll leave you with a quote from Dave Chappelle.

"Cocaine is a helluva drug"

If that is the case and he sold them for booze money then he deserves to be cold. It goes to show that someone does something really nice like spending his own money to help someone only for him to help himself.

Who in the right mind would buy anything from a homeless person?

MOD NOTE:

The attacks on other members will cease. The thread is about the homeless dude not having the boots bought for him by a cop. It most assuredly is not about the OP, or anyone who has the temerity to disagree with your little opinions.

KNOCK IT OFF.

This is one reason people are hesitant to help, don't let that stop you,

peace out

You know, I’ve seen more than just once on this thread…and other places as well…. people ridiculing Jeffrey for asking for ‘his piece of the pie’. It’s all well and good when we sit behind a computer full of our self-righteous indignation, our breasts swelling with the thoughts of “How dare this man ask for his piece of the pie… who does he think he is?” It’s easy because we’ve never met him face to face. It’s much harder to do if you were sitting down talking to him I would wager. Just a guess there, but if anyone asking that question could dare to try to put themselves in his place… would you not be asking the same thing? I know I would… and here is why I say that.

1.He’s not asking for the whole stinking pie.. he’s asking for a piece of it. The elephant in the room here is that there are indeed people who are making some money off this whole thing. Why is it that we would begrudge him his slice of it as well?

2.Let’s take a look at the other player in this simple act of kindness, the officer. He’s been on morning talk shows, radio shows, been recognized far and wide for his simple act of compassion and I would be willing to bet there is a bonus in his future. All of which I do not and will not begrudge him one little bit.

3.The converse of that is that what has Jeffrey gotten out of the deal other than a pair of boots that he’s said he’s scared to even wear for fear of having them stolen off his feet or worse even still, being killed for. True or not I don’t give a flying fig. The fact is that thus far his piece of the pie has included having his ragged, worn, dirty, sad visage plastered all over various news outlets. He’s had his life story treated in much the same way, flung out there for everyone to read, gobble up, ridicule and weigh in on with pompous, unthinking, unfeeling distain. Here we sit as a collective whole wondering where he gets the gall to ask where his slice of the pie is. He’s got reporters chasing him down in order to give us more fodder for our unappeased appetite for the food of others misfortune in order to make us feel better about our own pathetic station in life that has become so devoid of empathy for the plight of others that at times I have to wonder if perhaps Jeffrey is in some way better off living outside of our ‘society’. He has people so willing to further toss him aside like a piece of trash for various and sundry reasons not the least of which is that he had the unmitigated gall to ask for his slice of the pie? Holy cow. Seriously?

This man has absolutely nothing. Nothing. Can we even conceive what that must feel like? We’ve all made the assumption that when asking for his piece of the pie he means monetary compensation. That may very well be the case, but the fact that it could mean something else entirely seems to have escaped us as a collective whole. We’ve assumed that because he is homeless, hungry with little in the way of worldly possessions he is just as greedy as any wall street banker is. Have you not stopped to consider that his piece of the pie may include someone stepping in and fighting to get him into a safe place to live? A warm safe place to sleep and eat that may provide him also with a little dignity that we seem to want to keep from him? Have we not taken into consideration that his piece of the pie may involve a social worker or mental health professional stepping in to try to get him the mental health assistance that he needs? Or is it just more convenient for us to assume that he is asking for money to be thrown at him because that is the easiest way to assuage our lust for the distain we’ve come to dine on? The fact that most of us have made the assumption that the ingredients of Jeffrey’s pie includes nickels, dimes and dollar bills instead of perhaps caring, dignity and real assistance just absolutely boggles my mind and frankly saddens me.

So I ask again, why should he not ask for his piece of the pie? We’ve put him in the spot light, not of his choosing either, as the face of homelessness in this country. We’ve stripped him of what little dignity he had left. We’ve invaded his privacy, plastering his face and story all over the place and have seen fit to deny him any kind of respect that as a human being he deserves by making unfounded and unproven assumptions on his character. If I were in his place... I would be asking the same thing.

The homeless man refused the cops charity to begin with, and said God Bless you, so the cop felt inclined to do good. Good for him. I dont blame the homeless man for getting rid of the boots though, he would have been robbed, especially with all the attention. Maybe he made some kind of arrangement to sell the boots for several meal tickets or something. Dont damn the guy, you dont know his story.

Wow i can't believe some perceptions people have of the homeless.
It is like some just have such great lifes that they can sit around judge and make assumptions about people.

Why does it seem people who have openly admitted to being right wing seem to have this perfect picture of homeless shelters. Do you have any idea how many get turned away everyday? No but you probably made the assumption that there is room for everyone. And can people understand mental illness? or is that a welfare scam...

I don't understand why everyone is so uptight about him "wanting a piece of that pie." I mean, he's homeless, he's randomly a part of something that went 'viral', and the Cop was on the Today Show.

Somebody write that guy a check.

This is more about the nature of our cultural mindset which carries an unspoken "expectation" when a "gift" is given.

When giving something, give it. Whatever they do with it from there is their choice. Any frustration the giver or others have later with how the receiver used the gift is a problem with the expectations and "failure" to explain the conditions upon which the "gift" is being offered, so the receiver can choose to participate in that exchange or not.

If they do agree to the expectations and then go against them, simply choose to not engage in an exchange with them again.

reply to post by FlyersFan


that would be real easy to set up u know, although it could be the truth. who knows