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Inspired by personal curiosity about the experiences of one panhandler in Venice, California, the creator of Project Hello realized that an awareness of the homeless as individuals would increase awareness of the issue as a whole and ideally lead to more empathetic discussion of the problems the displaced face. In order to give the homeless more visibible individual identities, the project began to distribute large versions of those ubiquitous nametag stickers, upon which participants would write their names:
Originally, the idea was to distribute 5,000 of these giant nametags to homeless in Los Angeles over the course of one weekend. We thought it would be great if the homeless started a movement, or a sort of uprising, and every street corner was occupied by people holding up a sign, demanding that they be seen as human beings and not trash. We wanted the homeless issue to be front-page news, simply build awareness by giving the homeless a voice, and give homeless organizations a platform to offer solutions.
As the program grew, the creators collected snapshots of participants, which became the core of a traveling exhibit and, when funding becomes available, a book.
The basic idea cleverly challenges passersby to see the homeless as unique (and to see them at all, rather than letting them fade into the background). On some levels, however, the the project could become a double-edged sword, calling attention to homeless individuals while creating a new barrier: making them visible, but as part of an art project–albeit a socially-minded one.
. Historian Shae Davidson's research interests include public policy and the relationship between culture and civil society. His publications range from articles on industrial history to absurdist poetry.
