A writer who has compiled a book about the experiences of people on the streets will donate the proceeds o his book to Emmaus, a homelessness charity with significant links to Salford.
Emmaus Salford will sell the poetry book No Homeless Problem, which documents the lives of 44 homeless people.
After experiencing a past fuelled with alcoholism and homelessness, Séamus Fox travelled the country speaking to homeless individuals living at Emmaus charity schemes and compiled it into a book, “No Homeless Problem“.
No Homeless Problem is a poetry book written by Séamus Fox and inspired by the life stories of 44 homeless people living in Emmaus communities across the UK. They give honest, brutal and eye-opening accounts of living life on the streets.
Séamus Fox is an Irish writer who moved to London in 2015 to find work and after several months found himself homeless. Seamus was exposed to the many social and human injustices that result in so many people ending up on the streets and after spending two weeks on his friend’s sofa, he visited Emmaus.
He then began traveling around the UK for nine months speaking to other homeless people and finding out more about their experiences.
Salford Now spoke to Séamus to find out more about his inspiration behind writing No Homeless Problem and the way in which he pieced together the poetry inside.
Speaking about the way he controlled the production of his book, Séamus revealed: “I wanted to prove a point, individualism versus collectivism. One of the main problems with society is that we think everything is an individual problem, so when someone is suffering we always blame.
“I don’t think many people will notice unless I tell them but there are no labels in the book. You won’t know if the protagonist is a man or a woman, you won’t know their religion and place names are only mentioned once.
“The reason why I did this is because people naturally look for labels to hang onto and identify and a lot of the time, to judge. So what I was doing when I was writing the poems was forcing people to look at exactly what I wanted them to look at.”
Emmaus is a homeless charity that provides a place to stay and also offers work within their own social enterprise. Living in a stable environment with the opportunity to work helps residents to regain self-esteem they may have lost as a result of being homeless whilst also providing residents with skills they can carry with them for life.
Séamus said: “We need to realise how important Emmaus communities are because they are rebuilding communities that are slowly breaking down in today’s society.”
100% of the proceeds made from No Homeless Problem will be donated to Emmaus by Séamus Fox.
Homelessness in Salford is an issue that has gotten increasingly worse over the past two years with those unintentionally homeless and in priority rising by 52% in a year.
If you are currently in fear of becoming homeless or are currently homeless in Salford, you can call Emmaus Salford on 0161 737 8279, email at info@emmaussalford.org.uk or find them here.
No Homeless Problem and other poems by Séamus Fox are available from all Emmaus stores or here, priced at £7.99.
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