12:36 p.m. - 2005-12-01
Athletes in Gov't housing...
This is random, but I feel like venting on it...
I just went home to grab some lunch and saw a report on ESPN's 'Outside the Lines' about college athletes living in HUD Section 8 housing. Basically, they are applying and living in housing designed to benefit poor people, etc. The either pay very low rent...or sometimes NO rent at all.
Let me tell you why this bothers me. I grew up poor. I got free lunch. I lived in housing projects, trailer parks...even a motel for a brief time. For a while, we used food stamps and I've eaten many meals made up of 'gubment cheese' and eaten many, many breakfasts that consisted of 'Kaboom' cereal because it was one of the cereals that you can get with WIC vouchers. My Mom HATED the fact that we were on government programs...and as soon as she was able to make ends meet enough to get off, we did. I sure as hell hated going through the lunch line at school and having the lady check my name off some list consisting of me and all the rest of the poor kids. Even getting 'reduced' lunch sucked. My school was pretty clique-ish...so when people realized I was a 'poor kid', I was treated differently.
So when I went to college I got financial aid, worked multiple jobs, etc. But I NEVER even considered using the loopholes in the system to get food stamps...MUCH LESS live in Section 8 housing. That is ridiculous. I understand that many college athletes are from poor families and because they are athletes, they can't hold down jobs. But I've also been on the same scholarship the athletes got...and I survived. It sucked, but I made it. With Pell grants, scholarships, etc...it can be done. Hell, it's done every day all over the US.
I just can't see how they can take the apartment that would otherwise go to some single mom with a crappy job, or no job at all.
Maybe I'm way off base on this and I need someone to give me another perspective...but this particular story drove me crazy.
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