[EDITOR’S UPDATE: This post has been changed to be classified as a Letter to the Editor, since it reflects a reader’s opinion. It does not necessarily reflect the opinions of South King Media, nor its staff:]
Below is an original poem by writer Abbe Rollick, who lives near Burien’s homeless encampment on SW 152nd Street & 6th Ave SW:
Am I A Hypocrite?
Am I a hypocrite,
If I refuse to pander
To norms gone awry.
I watch a homeless encampment,
Below my window
Turn into a drug haven.
The city’s answer is
To clean their mess
And leave the rest.
Even as I lose sleep,
With their nightly antics
And daily confrontations
Of psychotic drama.
Smells of burning fentanyl
Greet me through my window,
And on the sidewalks.
I’d rather not see bare butts–
And brawls.
Explain safety to my grandkids.
I don’t know who I am,
Without compassion.
But I have no ration,
Of sympathy for what was
A homeless few
That grew,
Into answers of what the city can’t do.
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For refusing to see the humanity in poor people, you are a hypocrite.
For putting only your needs ahead of everyone else, you are a hypocrite.
For having no sympathy for those who need it most, you are a hypocrite.
Revel in your hypocrisy, you are not alone.