Heidi and Frank Shame the Homeless on 95.5 KLOS

Tuesday morning I was driving a homeless, Jewish, college-age young man to an agency to try to get him housing, Medi-Cal and other assistance. David (a pseudonym) likes hard rock, so we were listening to the Heidi and Frank Show on 95.5 KLOS. After a few songs the hosts, call-ins and guests began mocking homeless people.

The discussion started with the questioning how people who ask for money at highway off-ramps are dressed. If they are dressed too nicely, or in designer clothing, the host said he won’t give any money because he thinks it’s a scam. 

Hard to imagine, especially at this time of year when most people are looking to help each other, when there is more humanity out there than ever, the radio hosts at KLOS 95.5 were busy debating if people that wear an Izod shirt while panhandling deserve their money.

But that is exactly what happened.

One host said that perhaps the homeless guy got the nice shirt at a thrift store, a very plausible answer, but then proceeded to say that she will only believe he is homeless if the shirt looks like he's been wearing if for seven months.

So in order to earn this famous radio personality’s compassion, you have to look like you slept in a garbage dump. Otherwise, if your clothing is too clean, or God forbid, you put on a shirt with an alligator, you are a scam artist.

The homeless person, who refuses to let homelessness rob them of their dignity, and is trying to keep up their appearences, is now guilty of deception.

As I listened to the hosts and their call-in listeners display further callousness, ignorance, and cynicism, I became more and more upset.

Instead of raising money and awareness about the huge problem overwhelming Los Angeles's winter shelters, the hosts were deploring homeless people who didn't look dirty enough to be asking for help.

In place of showing compassion, they were busy having laughs at a massive crisis where tens of thousands of people are without a home in LA alone.

Perhaps Heidi, Frank and Lisa May would consider learning more about the homeless population of Los Angeles. They can visit a shelter, meet the kind folks who serve them food and distribute clothing. I'm happy to make the introductions.

Additionally, I suggest Heidi, Frank and Lisa May, who work for Cumulus Media which is a publicly traded company, start by volunteering for the Tackling the issue of homelessness is complex, frustrating, and time-consuming. Each person is a microcosm of the bigger issues facing our society. Every person has a story and there are no easy answers.