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Dialogue on Homelessness at Central Library

November 1st, 2007 Tana

Reprinted with permission from The Capital Times. Dialogue on Homelessness Slated, Pat Schneider, 10/30/07 

No one living or working in downtown Madison can deny that homelessness is a problem, says Donna Asif.

Merchants, condominium dwellers and homeless people all experience the friction and frustration of sharing the streets, Asif says. “Nobody is happy, but nobody is talking to one another,” she said in an interview.

As a first step to get communication going, Capitol Neighborhoods Inc., the downtown neighborhood association, is hosting “A Dialogue on Homelessness: Nurturing Our Capacity for Change,” 2-5 p.m. Saturday, November 3, at the Central Library, 201 W. Mifflin St.

“We haven’t become human to one another,” Asif, a member of Capitol Neighborhoods, said of downtown residents who regularly confront one another on street corners and in parks, often with fear and loathing. “We’re neighbors whether we’ve got a roof over our heads or not.”

“I pass people sleeping on a grate in freezing weather and ask myself, ‘What am I going to do about that?’” she said.

Asif said she has been working for weeks to put out word of the forum in the homeless community and among downtown residents and businesspeople.

People from all parts of Madison are invited to participate in the moderated discussion.

Admission is free; refreshments will be served.

Entry Filed under: Central Library, Community Issues, Events