Reports

‘Poor Life Choices’


Reported by Denise

Published on Monday, November 6th, 2023

Accommodation Human Rights Stigma
Reports

‘Poor Life Choices’


Written by Denise

Published on Monday, November 6th, 2023

Accommodation

Human Rights

Stigma

I’ve never been a fan of labels… especially the really judgy ones.

“He’s a crackhead” or “She’s an alchy”, for example, are in my top three, but “Well, they make poor life choices…” is right up there, topping the charts for me. .. especially if we break that sentence down; like with this picture here.

 

 

This alleyway is someone’s bed tonight.

 

If I’m really, truly, brutally honest, it’s actually his house – minus an actual bed to sleep in of course…

 

I guess we’d call that “poor.”

 

Not much of a “life” though is it really?,…Out there in the freezing cold, seven days a week… more of an existence really, wouldn’t you say?

 

So, let’s look at “choices” then shall we?…Or , more accurately, his lack of them. Which is probably why he sleeps under a bridge every night…

“Poor”

“Life”

“Choices”

 

Feels a little different if we look at it like that now, eh?…

Written by Denise


Denise Harrison is an award-winning writer and film-maker, whose writing career began back in 2017 when she was newly in recovery and living in a homeless hostel. As a way to cope in an ever-changing and often challenging environment (and also as a way to understand herself and to try and make peace with her demons) she began to write, and her website "Just A Girl-My Life" (justagirl.emyspot.com) was born.
Next came her short, dark, animated film "This Is Depression" which won 8 film awards and accolades, and which was the spark that lit the proverbial fire and kick-started her career as an artist who pulls no punches with her brutally honest stories of mental health, homelessness and addiction.
She has 18 awards to date... both as a writer and as a film-maker, is a public speaker, mental health advocate, activist and campaigner and is also beyond proud to be an associate on the world's first cultural leadership programme founded by Arts and Homelessness International.
She is a community reporter for the Listen Up! project,  and shares her knowledge and her story in the hope that others can be inspired, and take heart in knowing that recovery is possible.

Read all of Denise's articles

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Accommodation Human Rights Stigma

2 thoughts on “‘Poor Life Choices’

  1. Thank you so much Denise for succintly and powerfully telling it like it is (not only, but especially, in the light of the recent comments and proposals by the Home Secretary)

    1. Thank you so much for reading. I’d actually written this piece a couple of days before SB made her announcement, so the timing was perfect to get it published to Groundswell.
      I took two photos of the alleyway, 24 hours apart…both stark, both “lonely”…both documenting one man’s life, alone under a bridge…or as SB would imply “someone having a nice little holiday”…

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