By Elijah-Juan Pearcy Eye of the Hurricane
Douglass senior Khalil Wilson often takes time on Sunday mornings to feed the homeless near the McDonald’s restaurant on Woodward Avenue near Canfield Street.
“I feed the homeless because I have so much money and am not doing anything with it but buying junk food, clothes, etc.,” said Wilson.
The nearby Crossroads of Michigan soup kitchen nearby is only open every other Sunday. When the kitchen isn’t available, Wilson doles out meals.
“A homeless man told me in April that Crossroads is not open every Sunday,” Wilson said, “so I decided to provide breakfast for the homeless up and down Woodward until I run out.
“I usually buy $30 worth of breakfast and walk up to them and ask ‘Are you hungry?’ and hand out breakfast sandwiches,” Wilson said.
Wilson is trying to change how people view the homeless.
“I see how people get treated when they go into McDonald’s. They’re not asking for change. They’re hungry, and I feed them,” Wilson said.
Though the number of homeless in Detroit has shown a decline in recent years, it is still an issue. In 2011, there were 19,213 total homeless people in the cities of Detroit, Hamtramck and Highland Park, according to data obtained from the Homeless Action Network of Detroit.
“I’m not saying everybody should be like me,” said Wilson, “but just try to do something positive. When somebody walks up to you, just try to help them. Just do something positive.”
