One homeless California man is using a small device as a huge tool for advocacy: a flipcam.
Mo has been homeless for over four years, living under a bridge. Armed with his Flipcam -- given to him by a friend -- he interviews other homeless people to give an eye-opening perspective of what it is like to be in their position, as described on TheFW.
In Mo’s latest video, he interviews a man named Andrew, who tells Mo he is new to the streets.
Andrew, who has only been homeless for two weeks, shares that he has a new respect for those without a roof over their heads and discusses other struggles in the interview:
Mo: "How do you survive out here?"
Andrew: "I've been making my own way. Its been hard trying to find a safe place to sleep... I have a cat to take care of, too, which I'm trying to find a home for. So its been kind of rough. I can't get into a shelter with the cat."
Mo commiserates and tells Andrew that his life wasn’t always like this: "I had to learn to survive out here because I worked all my life. I didn’t know what it was [like] sleeping next to someone you don’t know or sleeping with the rats, as we call it."
In addition to his videos Mo has also joined Facebook to continue the conversation about his journey on the streets. He shares the darker side of being homeless, such as having a gun pulled on him and being robbed for $16. He also describes happier times such as getting his first new pair of shoes in years because of support from Facebook.
Fortunately, Mo hasn’t been the only one to document homelessness in this manner.
Mark Horvath, founder of Invisible People and Huffington Post blogger, also interviews the nation's homeless using video.
Since the launch of Invisible People in November 2008, Horvath has shared the stories of hundreds of homeless people from Los Angeles to the Washington, D.C., area.
Horvath himself understands the feeling of invisibility. Almost 20 years ago, he was also homeless.
“I not only feel their pain, I truly know their pain. I lived their pain. You’d never know it now but I was a homeless person,” Horvath shared on his website.
Horvath hopes through sharing his raw interviews he can bring light to a topic many don’t see.
“It’s not that people are bad, but if we make eye contact, or engage in conversation, then we have to admit they exist and that we might have a basic human need to care. But it’s so much easier to simply close our eyes and shield our hearts to their existence,” Horvath, on ignoring the invisible.
Through some very personal stories, both men hope to raise awareness and get people involved in the fight against homelessness.
“I know with all of your help, it’s going to get better,” Mo posted on Facebook on Sunday.
Mo's video has recently made it to Reddit's front page, and many have also visted his donation page to lend their support. Check it out to get involved.