Dec. 11—CUMBERLAND — Dozens of protesters gathered in Riverside Park Tuesday afternoon against a city ordinance banning the consumption of food and drinks in the park.
“Every part of this goes against our values enshrined in the Constitution,” said Elliott Slater, co-coordinator of the Maryland-based United Workers Association.
The ordinance was unanimously approved by the City Council and mayor on Oct. 1, after complaints from the regent of the Daughters of the American Revolution Cresap Chapter, which has cared for the George Washington headquarters cabin in the park for nearly 90 years, about vagrancy.
The park provided a central location for area church groups to bring food to those in need. Supporters of the ban said the park was plagued by vagrancy, trash and strong urine odors.
The United Workers organized the protest to raise awareness about the growing problem of homelessness in and around Cumberland.
The ordinance has sparked debate and disdain around the issue of homelessness among citizens and groups like the United Workers.
“They criminalize homelessness,” Slater said Tuesday, “and keep the vagrants out of sight.”
Slater and other members of the group believe the ordinance, among other things, directly targets the homeless population and does not help solve the problem overall.
‘The fate of homelessness’
Janet Heavner, the other co-coordinator of the United Workers, said the vigil was intended to directly raise awareness in the city about the “homelessness situation.”
“People need jobs, people need affordable housing,” she said. “What we need to do is work with state and federal agencies to provide more opportunities.”
Heavner cited the decline of the industry since the 1990s, which has led to a dramatic contraction of the region’s labor market and an increase in the number of homeless people.
“The solution to the crisis we face is for everyone to come together and make choices that positively impact citizens,” Slater said.
Front lines
Ammie Balheim has experienced homelessness in the area firsthand. She gave an emotional speech during the vigil.
“I was told there would be better jobs here and better opportunities,” Balheim said as she fought back tears. Her family came to Cumberland from neighboring West Virginia.
Instead of being given a chance, Balheim was placed in the area’s only homeless shelter, the Union Rescue Mission.
Jim Mundy, another local man who became homeless, told a similar story.
Mundy left Cumberland for an extended period before the 1990s, but eventually returned only to find that the health care he received elsewhere had become more expensive.
“It was completely different from when I left in 1990,” he said.
Rising costs, lack of resources
Tifani Fisher, the Allegany County NAACP president, who said she was a survivor of homelessness, echoed Mundy and Balheim’s concerns.
“The city depends on just one union mission,” she said. “They don’t want people to get off Interstate 68 and look at our problems.”
Nearly 50% of Cumberland residents fall into the so-called Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed (ALICE) population – a group that earns above the federal poverty line but still struggles to afford housing and health care.
“I don’t have enough money to get the credit to buy my own house,” Fisher said.
According to Fisher, it is these individuals who are just one paycheck away from homelessness.
Fisher said the first step in solving the complex problem of homelessness is “to actually acknowledge our problems and work together.”
Kevin Jones, a native of Cumberland who recently joined the United Workers, believes the city should directly address homelessness, instead of just using ordinances to “sweep it under the rug.”
“You can do better,” he said. “Bring awareness to other things.”
Andrew Creelman is a reporter for the Cumberland Times-News. To reach him, call 304-639-4403 or email acreelman@times-news.com
