Content statement: This interview contains themes of physical violence
“ The thing is, you cannot blame somebody for being homeless, it can even happened to you.”
On my first day at Jacobikerk, I met Marcel, who greeted me with an eager smile and a story he was excited to share. Having seen him around Utrecht the following weeks, his openness made an immediate impression. The following week, as I returned, we chose a quiet bench outside the church. It was a peaceful spot that allowed for a more intimate conversation, yet it still felt a bit intrusive with the lack of privacy and interruptions from fellow members. I could sense a bit reluctance from him as well, but that quickly dissipated once they left. With not much time, he leaped right into it with almost not enough time for me to process.
“I’m not a saint but I’m not a criminal as well”, he clarified. “I was 17, homeless for 30 years, when I left my parents home. The reason was, my father was an alcoholic and he used to beat me up every time when he was drunk. And I got used to after 10 years, getting beaten. You don’t feel it anymore, but the trigger, why I left my parents home was because he hit my mother so hard, she ended up in the hospital. So I decided to be homeless. I took a bag of clothes and that’s it. No job, no social money from the government and I had really nothing. So that’s how it started, and after 30 years, I had my own apartment and I still have it.”
I then asked him how was able to receive it as in Utrecht specifically, there is an enormous housing shortage. “I was lucky” he stressed. “When you want to rent a house the regular way, you’ll have to wait 10 to 15 years”. I asked what people do in the meantime, when there is such a long wait time, and the weather here is quite severe. “You have to stay in the city where you have asked for an apartment. You have to go to the house corporation, wait and [have] patience, but when you’re homeless, you don’t have that time. so I [got] help from housing first, and housing for us is especially for people that are long-term homeless like me. I was homeless for like 30 years. If you meet those people, you have to wait like three months, and you get an apartment”.
Curious to hear his perspective, I opened up about my mixed feelings regarding the Housing First approach. While I initially saw it as the solution, many interviews had highlighted the potential risks, especially for those struggling with addiction, which made me question its overall effectiveness. “I had to come, and I was really addicted to a lot of substances as well. But I’m clean now because I have a girlfriend in Kenya; and of course my apartment keeps myself clean because I have my rest place now. I can put my stuff there without being afraid that it’s getting stolen. I have my rest. When I want to go to bed, I can just go to bed. It’s much different than the time [from when] I was homeless. I have more than just unrest in my life, so I don’t need the drugs anymore”.
I wanted to clarify if it was from the strong sense of support he was able to gain, made him quit to which he agreed. “But when I was homeless, it [kept] me standing up. It was a difficult time, and drugs could kill all the stress. Most of the homeless people are addicted, but it doesn’t say that all homeless people are addicted. There are still exceptions.” I tried to ask him more of what it was like was on the streets, and how it has changed from his perception; but could sense deep reluctance, and decided not to push further. As similar to Seattle, I noticed that it would take a stronger relationship to develop the trust for him to share his story. The following week, he invited me to a walking tour around Utrecht. I was able to see his personal journey with other individuals in the social service industry.
Marcel is also extremely proud of his city and the way that they have handled homelessness. Having been here over a month now, I agree. “First of all, this country is better than any other country in the world. Because this country takes care of the homeless people especially this city. When you go to a Amsterdam, you will see that it’s not like here”. Having been to Amsterdam, the smell, the distance, just the structure is much less integrated. “There are more homeless people in Amsterdam and they don’t have enough places for them, that’s the point. Here, it’s enough everybody can have a bed in the night. And the government helps those people. If you are homeless., you get money from the government.. that’s the best because any other country, we don’t have that.”
write about after the tour recordings.