I had an interesting encounter while walking to work the other day. Each day, I walk about a half mile to work, as I like to park for free and there is unmetered parking available about that far from my office. The parking spots are in "da hood" though - I've never experienced or witnessed any problems, but the area has a sort of lower-class black feeling that tends to scare away all the whiteys on Capitol Hill. I'm plenty comfortable parking there though, as I know lots of the local kids from playing basketball on the local courts over lunch and after work.

Anyway, on the way to work each day, I walk through this area, and I am frequently asked for money. Nothing aggressive, and I often don't give anything. But, if the requester seems legitimate, I'll usually give some coins or a dollar bill. I view this as a minor form of charity, where instead of giving to organizations, I give directly to people who need it (and/or are willing to ask for it). In any case, if I give away a dollar, maybe I'll eat less ice cream that week, so it isn't so bad for me.

On this occasion, the person requesting money, a young black man perhaps 28 years old, approached several of us men as we finished crossing a street. He seemed pretty excited, maybe he wanted crack or whatever, so I gave him a buck. The other men ignored us as I gave him the dollar, except one guy. He was, for all appearances, a minor hip-hop artist or garage attendant - floppy clothes, baller walk, and wry expression. And what did he say? Let me paraphrase "Yo man! Go get a job! Why you askin' for money when we all gotta go to work?!"

That slightly surprised me, but it isn't an uncommon outlook towards the homeless or panhandlers. What surprised me was that he continued to lightly upbraid me for giving the other guy a buck. "Why you givin' him money man? You work hard, you put on your pants each day just like he do. Why can't he work like that?" I protested that I viewed it as charity, and that I was "lucky". He wasn't having any of it: "Ain't no luck man - you work for it just like everybody. Ain't no luck about gettin' a job and workin'."

I weakly protested that I meant "fortunate", not "lucky", but the argument was over. Walking down North Capitol Street, NE, Washington DC, I was chastened by a young, apparently low-class black man for giving money to a panhandler. And that, my friends, is why you just can't accept stereotypes - you have to go out and talk to people, have personal experiences with folk, and see what life is like.

Maybe one day I'll get mugged, and I'll stop parking where I park, and I'll pay my $12 per day for secure parking and an insulated world, where I never have to see anyone I don't choose to. But for now, I'll keep doing my thing, greeting crossing guards, smiling kids, gentle elderly folk - and yes, panhandlers - on my way to my car and my free parking.