Rain and the need for a warm dry housing situation

This went down Thursday December 21, 2006 5-6:00 p.m. hour. I noticed a man whom I had told to lower his voice during the 3-4:00 p.m. hour. He was talking to himself loudly, "N*gg*s ain't this'n' that, fa**ots, and le**ians, f**k them, and on and on. He wasn't on my side of the floor, so I just made a comment and let him go on his merry way.

Well.......he stopped near the reference desk, we could hear him but we couldn't see him. One of the other librarian's said something to him and he was quiet for about five minutes. He then got even louder with his rants. The librarian said something to him again and called security. He proceeded to get even LOUDER. WHAT WE DIDN'T SEE WAS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT. The man ranting was white, he sat next to a black man talking all of that mess!!!!

The black man got up and told the white man to do the same. The black man pushed the white man becuase he kept talking about n***as ain't s**t, they ain't goin do s**t. Well, the black man told him to keep talking about n***as and he was going to see what would happen.

Security was called again and finally we saw some of them approaching the area. Too late..... Black man cold clocked the white man and it was on. Security had them on the ground and cuffed. Why was the white man still talking mess????? He was saying that he was minding his own business, listening to his music and the black man attacked him. The black man was saying he didn't even touch the white man. The security supervisor told the black man that she saw him throw the first punch. She then told them both that she wasn't in the mood and they better do what they were told and be quiet while doing so(she's black!)

We (the librarians) find out that the dance between the two men had begun earlier in the day. The white man had been following him around the building and taunting him. Well, they were both homeless, it was raining(had been all day) with no sign of letting up, and it was cold( well, cold for us, warm for others.)

I have learned that this is sometimes the actions taken by those who don't want to spend the night on the street. The find a way to be hospitalized, or jailed. What, shelter you say.....Ah, but that is seldom a choice made with free will by those hardened by life on the streets.