Homeless People Being Relocated In Preparation For Papal Visit
By Justin Udo
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- The city of Philadelphia is relocating homeless people in Center City in preparation of the Papal visit.
If you walk past Love Park or many other areas in center city, one of the things that is noticeably missing is the presence of the homeless people who frequent those places.
Amir Robertson is a homeless outreach specialist.
"If you're homeless, the best thing I can suggest you do is stay off the streets because you're either going to go to jail or they're going to put you in the worst part of the neighborhood where you're going to end up getting killed," Robertson said.
He said right now shelters in the city are 200 percent past capacity, and the way officials are treating people still on the street goes against the message of love and helping others that the Pope often preaches about.
"They're hypocrites," Robertson said. "The city of Philadelphia, certain departments are hypocrites."
Salaqden Alibe is homeless and says he is a first hand witness to the mistreatment of other people who live on the street.
"The police on the parkway took everybody's belongings and threw them in the trash," Alibe said.
Calls to the Philadelphia office of supportive housing were not returned.
