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Homeless woman was living inside Michigan rooftop store sign with computer, coffee maker (apnews.com)

submitted 8 months ago by Wilshire@lemmy.world to c/news@lemmy.world

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[-] gAlienLifeform@lemmy.world 238 points 8 months ago

A spokesperson for SpartanNash, the parent company of Family Fare, said store employees responded “with the utmost compassion and professionalism.”

“Ensuring there is ample safe, affordable housing continues to be a widespread issue nationwide that our community needs to partner in solving,” Adrienne Chance said, declining further comment.

Warren said the woman was cooperative and quickly agreed to leave. No charges were pursued.

“We provided her with some information about services in the area,” the officer said. “She apologized and continued on her way. Where she went from there, I don’t know.”

I feel like there's very few opportunities these days to say this, but the cops and business owners in this situation actually seem to have behaved in a very humane and decent way here, so that's a nice surprise

[-] TachyonTele@lemm.ee 118 points 8 months ago

I was 100% assuming she was arrested. Very relieving that's not what happened.

[-] ZeroCool@vger.social 67 points 8 months ago

Yeah, it's messed up that nearly everyone from the US would read that headline and make the same assumption without batting an eye because we've been conditioned to expect nothing else from police. It sure would be nice if we lived in a country where policing was actually a civil service and not a damn street gang.

[-] skeezix@lemmy.world 19 points 8 months ago

Wat? She still alive?

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[-] sentient_loom@sh.itjust.works 61 points 8 months ago

cops and business owners in this situation actually seem to have behaved in a very humane and decent way

Well it's nice that they didn't beat her to death. But they still kicked her out and didn't actually provide any more help. "Services in the area" probably will be less adequate than what she'd had before they booted her.

I don't expect them to actually take care of her, but they don't get a gold star for declining to bludgeon, strangle, or imprison her. She's on her own.

[-] gAlienLifeform@lemmy.world 42 points 8 months ago

I mean, I would add on not sticking her with a criminal charge as an important thing they didn't do here, because the whole story of "oh you missed a court date because we sent the notice to an address you haven't lived at in years, so now we're fining you on top of the original criminal charge that brought you in here, [soon] wow, you've got a lot of missed court dates and unpaid fines, you look like a career criminal who needs the book thrown at them" happens a lot,

And there's a very real chance that the contractors looked the other way and then this woman's residence got discovered they could have lost their licenses or otherwise gotten in trouble

Like, I think what you're pointing out is a really important perspective and we shouldn't lose sight of the fact that a woman with a home was made homeless here, but I think a lot of relatively powerless people here tried to be as humane as an inhumane system would let them be, and I think that's important too. I think the way this world gets less shitty is when more people start making these little steps towards revolutionary kindness and then those little steps start getting bigger and bigger.

[-] sentient_loom@sh.itjust.works 14 points 8 months ago

Again, it's not praiseworthy that they merely declined to abuse her. I'm not scorning them, but they get zero credit for declining to abuse her (beyond the abuse of kicking her out with no help).

there's a very real chance that the contractors looked the other way

Without evidence, there's no point in this speculation unless you're hired by their PR to praise them (which seems unlikely).

the way this world gets less shitty is when more people start making these little steps towards revolutionary kindness and then those little steps start getting bigger and bigger

Sorry, but this is absolute nonsense. It's meaningless. She is homeless.

a woman with a home was made homeless

This is the only story. Let's not waste time praising the heroic saints who kicked her out.

[-] dot0@lemmy.world 25 points 8 months ago

mate it's ok and good to acknowledge a small measure of good that may exist in a very terrible situation.

humans are not meant to focus on only the doom, gloom, and cynicism of it all 100% of the time.

[-] sentient_loom@sh.itjust.works 13 points 8 months ago

a small measure of good

There was no measure of good whatsoever. Her situation was made objectively worse, and we're presuming to praise those responsible merely for not making it even more worse. I'm not the one who created any doom or gloom. I didn't kick her out. And it's not cynical to sympathize with the homeless woman instead of with the people who kicked her out. Mate.

[-] InternetUser2012@midwest.social 8 points 8 months ago

So you're saying it would have been better for her if she was charged with crimes? She would be stuck with fines and probably jail time. You do realize SHE was breaking multiple laws by being there right? So yeah, it is a small measure of good because they looked the other way rather than filing charges.

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[-] skeezix@lemmy.world 38 points 8 months ago

This is where it’s at in the US: people feel a warm sense of happiness when a marginalized person isnt beaten to death or shot by authorities.

[-] Cethin@lemmy.zip 19 points 8 months ago

I agree it sucks, but they can't reasonably let her continue living there after they found out. There's so many legal and ethical issues with that. They are not qualified to provide housing. We need to provide better alternatives.

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[-] Snapz@lemmy.world 7 points 8 months ago

No, the humane and decent thing would have been to leave her the fuck alone. She's not hurting anyone.

[-] state_electrician@discuss.tchncs.de 7 points 8 months ago

That just tells us the woman is white.

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[-] Aeri@lemmy.world 68 points 8 months ago

Contractors curious about an extension cord on the roof of a Michigan grocery store made a startling discovery: A 34-year-old woman was living inside the business sign, with enough space for a computer, printer and coffee maker, police said.

“She was homeless,” Officer Brennon Warren of the Midland Police Department said Thursday

Sounds like she had a home you goddamn narcs

[-] RememberTheApollo_@lemmy.world 61 points 8 months ago* (last edited 8 months ago)

“There are much better options”

She had private shelter, no rent, probably HVAC. about the only thing missing was a bathroom, but there’s no mention of any waste she could ha e left.

Sounds like a pretty good deal. Wonder what “better” is.

[-] Spacehooks@reddthat.com 7 points 7 months ago

No electric bills as well I imagine.

[-] xmunk@sh.itjust.works 47 points 8 months ago

Sounds like long enough for her to claim squatters rights and no longer be homeless.

[-] dual_sport_dork@lemmy.world 26 points 8 months ago

The threshold in Michigan is 15 years of conspicuous, uncontested, and exclusive occupancy. So, no.

[-] Tikiporch@lemmy.world 9 points 8 months ago

The court may argue that the space behind a retail marquee is not a home.

[-] rickyrigatoni@lemm.ee 13 points 8 months ago

Pure commercial zoning, legally can not be a home.

[-] Zorg@lemmings.world 8 points 8 months ago

There's a lot of bullshit in zoning to begin with. Why exactly can't we have mixed commercial and residential areas in suburbia? Slap some apartments on top of grocery stores, bakeries/restaurants, and shops; or is forbidden to have much of anything within walking distance of homes?

[-] Crashumbc@lemmy.world 8 points 8 months ago

Because then you wouldn't need a car

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[-] Coach@lemmy.world 46 points 8 months ago

Not really "homeless" now is she?

[-] SpaceNoodle@lemmy.world 68 points 8 months ago

She is now, since they kicked her out. She wasn't before that.

[-] ObviouslyNotBanana@lemmy.world 9 points 8 months ago

I mean... She isn't there anymore

[-] Snapz@lemmy.world 34 points 8 months ago

This was not a homeless woman, this woman had a home.

[-] enbyecho@lemmy.world 30 points 7 months ago

The director of a local homeless assistance group is quoted as saying:

“Obviously, we don’t want people resorting to illegal activity to find housing."

IANAL but here's a funny twist of the law. It's not generally illegal, per se, for the woman have done this until she was caught and legal action was taken and was successful. The mere act of it was not in itself illegal. Heck, in California you have to give squatters 3 days notice (the area where she stayed could be seen as "vacant").

Anyway, food for thought. Lest, you know, one require housing.

[-] Ullallulloo@civilloquy.com 8 points 7 months ago* (last edited 7 months ago)

Trespassing is illegal, even if the law sometimes gives even law-breaking squatters extra rights in evictions.

[-] enbyecho@lemmy.world 34 points 7 months ago

Yes, trespassing is illegal. But you haven't trespassed until it's established that you have trespassed. Legally.

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[-] uhhhehhh@lemmy.world 27 points 8 months ago

That is all I would need to distract me from being homeless

[-] Gruntyfish@lemmy.world 26 points 7 months ago

[-] SpaceNoodle@lemmy.world 16 points 8 months ago

She had a home, but they kicked her out.

[-] CosmicCleric@lemmy.world 15 points 8 months ago

That's innovative, have to give her that.

~Anti~ ~Commercial-AI~ ~license~ ~(CC~ ~BY-NC-SA~ ~4.0)~

[-] GoodandPlenty@lemmy.world 14 points 8 months ago

“On the roof, it’s peaceful as can be, and there the world below don’t bother me…”

[-] perviouslyiner@lemmy.world 12 points 8 months ago

"Welcome to camping with Steve"

[-] uberdroog@lemmy.world 10 points 8 months ago

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[-] AppleTea@lemmy.zip 10 points 8 months ago

squatters rights take entirely too long to kick in these days

[-] vodkasolution@feddit.it 10 points 7 months ago

that makes me sad

[-] Malfeasant@lemmy.world 9 points 7 months ago

Luxury. Best we could manage was a paper bag in a septic tank.

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[-] tsonfeir@lemm.ee 8 points 8 months ago

Doesn’t sound homeless to me. Maybe they should just let her stay.

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this post was submitted on 09 May 2024

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