Small Asian girl in her mid-20s! Echoing everyone’s comments about doing your best to sit near another woman. I know that my friends and I would be more than happy to play along and help a younger girl with “oh hey! How’s it going? I haven’t seen you since thanksgiving!”

I’m going to disagree with some commenters and agree with others: I do not engage with creeps, persistent panhandlers, and/or other people who scare me. I don’t want to show them that I’m feeling uncomfortable and I don’t want to encourage any more interaction inadvertently. I usually just stare dead ahead.

I’m so sorry she’s already had to experience this. Please tell her that she’s not alone

I gently urge you to consider a counterpoint as to why it is against public interest to have unhoused folks concentrated in one area: it's a public health hazard. I remember NoMa during the height of the pandemic and there were concentrated tent populations during the various underpasses. The (1) close contact between folks and (2) the fact that these underpasses had no running water or garbage collection functions made for very unsanitary conditions. I would purposefully walk around these underpasses, versus going straight through, because of how unsanitary they were AND because I feared for my own safety. I am not without sympathy for these folks. But beyond public safety, we have to weigh the public health risks that come with allowing this concentrated population to stay in place.

ACCURATE x infinite