Begging
From Free net encyclopedia
Image:Samarkand-beggars-1905.jpg Begging includes the various methods used by persons to obtain money, food, shelter, drugs, alcohol, or other things from people they encounter during the course of their travels. It is also referred to as sponging, spanging (short for "spare-changing") or (in American English) panhandling.
In larger cities, it is common to see beggars asking others for money, food, or other items. They may also offer services, such as washing car windows, otherwise known as squeegeing. One outgrowth of begging, particularly among young women, is to turn to prostitution. One method of begging that is particularly dangerous is for beggars to station themselves either in or near vehicle traffic in order to peddle goods or solicit donations, for example walking between lanes at a red light; when this is done with a sign, it is often referred to as "flying". In these cases, beggars run the risk of being struck by passing vehicles.
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Forms of begging
Image:Bum.jpg Beggars will often share successful approaches or '"spange lines" which seem to attract more attention or to entice or entertain passersby. Examples include:
- Long, often exaggerated stories of the mendicant's plight or some task they are trying to accomplish, such as travelling cross-country for some noble goal
- A direct request for money for alcohol or drugs, in the hopes that the "honesty" approach will gain sympathy
- Clever approaches such as "I'll bet you a dollar I have your name tattooed on my ass" (where the beggar has the actual words "Your Name" tattooed), or lines like "Do you have change for a dollar?" (since people are more likely to trade change than give it away) followed by "Can I have it?" when the mark shows he or she does in fact have change.
- Requests for something other than expected (i.e. something other than money, food or cigarettes), such as "Can you spare a kidney?"
- Displays of bohemian audacity, such as "I'll lick my tit for a dollar"
- Religious minded beggars like Sufi Fakirs who do a small religious rite in exchange for money.
Restriction of beggars
Canada
The province of Ontario introduced its Safe Streets Act in the 1999 to restrict specific kinds of begging, particularly certain narrowly-defined cases of "aggressive" or abusive panhandling. [1] This law is not wide-ranging, and in 2001 survived a legal challenge under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, although further court appeals remained possible. [2]
British Columbia enacted its own Safe Streets Act, resembling the Ontario law, in 2004, although there are also critics in that province who oppose such laws. [3]
United States
In many larger cities, such as Chicago, Illinois, peddling has been banned. In Chicago, there are a number of signs at regular intervals reminding people that peddling is banned. This rarely dissuades the beggar, and the constitutionality of such bans are questionable; in addition, their ethics have been questioned. In 2004, the city of Orlando, Florida passed an ordinance (Orlando Municipal Code section 43.86) requiring panhandlers to obtain a permit from the municipal police department. The ordinance further makes it a crime to panhandle in the commercial core of downtown Orlando, as well as within 50 feet of any bank or automated teller machine. It is also considered a crime in Orlando for panhandlers to make false or untrue statements, or to disguise themselves, to solicit money, and to use money obtained for a claim of a specific purpose (e.g. food) to be spent on anything else (e.g. malt liquor). The Atlanta, Georgia, city council approved a ban on panhandling on August 16, 2005, and Mayor Shirley Franklin is expected to sign the ban into law. Begging is also banned in the London Underground System, however there are "busking spots" that can be hired out in some major tunnels to allow musicians to entertain commuters.
Begging outside the U.S.
In some countries begging is much more tolerated and in certain cases even encouraged. For instance in India it is considered dharma to give alms to a beggar and many sadhus also beg strictly for food as their traditional way of life limits any income. Even Shiva, the Hindu god is believed to have run his household by begging among rishis and sadhus. Some are even beggars for generations and continue their family tradition of panhandling. Many beggars in the subcontinent even have sizeable wealth which they accumulate by "employing" other smaller and newer beggars. Moreover they also have territories and even engage in verbal and physical abuse of encroaching beggars.
Use of funds
A common criticism of beggars is that they will spend money received on "irresponsible" or "unnecessary" items, particularly on drugs, alcohol, or tobacco. This is often stated as a reason for not giving money to panhandlers. Also, in many communities, various government and private charitable social services may be available such as welfare, soup kitchens and homeless shelters that reduce, if not eliminate, any survival need for begging.
A 2002 study of 54 panhandlers in Toronto reported that of a median monthly income of $638 CDN, those interviewed spent a median of $200 CDN on food, and a median of $192 CDN on alcohol, tobacco, and illegal drugs (Bose & Hwang 2002). The Fraser Institute, however, criticised this study citing problems with potential exclusion of lucrative forms of begging and the unreliability of reports from the panhandlers who were polled in the Bose/Hwang study. (CANSTATS 2002)
Outreach workers in downtown Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada surveyed that city's panhandling community and determined that approximately three-quarters use donated money to purchase tobacco products while two-thirds purchase solvents or alcohol. (Winnipeg "Change for the Better" programme - PDF)
Begging on the Internet
Begging like other activities has also adapted to the net taking on an "e-panhandling" role. Instead of begging on the streets, cyber panhandlers set up a website where they "beg" for money. Later variants tried to request money for their personal needs that were beyond their financial ability with some success. (See also, Internet begging)
Famous beggars
Bibliography
Income and spending patterns among panhandlers, by Rohit Bose and Stephen W. Hwang. CMAJ. 2002 September 3; 167(5): 477–479. Retrieved 10 April 2006, from [4]
Begging for Data, CANSTATS. 3 September 2002. Retrieved 10 April 2006, from [5]
Born Losers: A History of Failure in America, by Scott A. Sandage (Harvard University Press, 2005).
External references
- Bangladeshi Beggar - audio of beggar working the streets of Dhaka, Bangladesh
See also
- Beggarware, software authors ask that anyone using their software make a donation to the authors
- Bumvertising
- Homelessness
- Internet begging
- Poor law
- Vagrancyar:تسول