Sleep-Friendly Benches Respond to London’s Anti-Homeless Spikes
Ah Canada, you're making us all look bad for all the best reasons.
Vancouver takes care of their own, even those without four walls to call home. A particularly high-five-worthy charity in Vancouver built pop-up shelters on benches, inviting homeless citizens to find shelter for the night. London is shuffling awkwardly across the Atlantic.
Teaming up with Spring Advertising for a heartfelt and genuinely useful campaign, nonprofit RainCity Housing installed modified public benches to open eyes and raise awareness of local homelessness while actually providing homeless people a slightly improved temporary sleeping shelter.
After London and Montreal's atrocious 'anti-homeless spikes' sparked furious debate and removals, Vancouver was successfully reminding the globe that it doesn't take much to offer a helping hand. RainCity, a nonprofit providing assistance to Vancouver's homeless population, designed two types of modified benches targeting citizens without shelter.
The first boasted a convertible backrest which functions as an overhanging cover (with the address of RainCity Housing listed to encourage homeless people to "find a home here"). The second was more of an advertising campaign, but heartfelt nonetheless — during the day, the bench sports text reading "THIS IS A BENCH" and after sunset the text glows in the dark and changes to read "THIS IS A BEDROOM."
Although this isn't a new ad campaign (in fact, the benches were installed last year), it didn't get much press amidst the London/Montreal spikes uproar. But seriously, somewhat useful covered benches win over 'anti-homeless' design any day.
Via Gawker and Bustle. Images by Spring Advertising/RainCity.
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