This Guy Is A Disgrace

It's the Fourth of July, better known as Independence Day, in the United States. It's a time for celebrating all that makes America great, for communities to come together and show solidarity, and for showing patriotism in a number of ways. While no one is faulting America for its problems on this holiday, one man who made his living in the United States has decided to be as disgraceful as any human being can be. The fact that he's a former NHL player makes me feel shame for having his name associated with our great sport.

Sean Avery, as shown above in one of his many perfect moments, took to the streets of New York City to harass homeless people on Snapchat. Avery woudl walk up to a sleeping homeless person and ask them if they had the time, waking them from their peaceful slumber that they may not often find while living on the streets. Avery's actions have caused a backlash from his Snapchat followers who feel that Avery's actions have crossed a line of good taste in his efforts to verbally abuse the sleeping people.

"I just want everyone to know that when I'm violently mean towards people on Snapchat, I always turn around and say I’m sorry," Avery said in one video. Due to Snapchat's policies, however, the videos are deleted after 24 hours, erasing any evidence of Avery's actions towards these people. For a guy who publicly championed gay rights in the past, these acts towards homeless people are quite baffling.

Sleep fr homeless people comes whenever one can find it. It's a luxury that they simply cannot afford in their efforts to get off the streets. The Atlantic's Hanna Brooks Olsen spoke to a homeless man named "Joe" in 2014, and his description of trying to get sleep sounds like a harrowing tale.

"Where and how you sleep is often a matter of discipline when residentially challenged," said Joe, who recently moved to Seattle from the Bay Area. "If you're sleeping in a car or RV, shelter or friend's couch, you have the issue of finding a place to sleep and being up and about before the rest of the world is. Usually in a shelter, you have to be up and out by a certain time. If [you're sleeping in] a vehicle, you have to have it moved by a certain time. If you're working you have to find ways to make the job fit your situation or vice versa. You're on others' schedules. And this is where sleep deprivation hits the hardest. It adds up."

Science has already proven that a lack of sleep over a prolonged period of time can factor into other health issues not to mention the increased chances of drug abuse to find that few moments of peaceful sleep. For the homeless, protecting one's accumulated assets while sleeping - lying vulnerable - becomes a battle mentally between protecting one's self and rest.

To see these people rudely awakened by Sean Avery's idiotic question when they have finally let their guard down enough to be sleeping peacefully is entirely unsettling. While none of the homeless people he disturbed will consider pressing charges for harassment, it would be nice to see the New York Police Department intervene and show some good community will towards those that have fallen on hard times. I don't care what charge Avery is charged with, but let's ensure that those who are already down on their luck aren't subjected to additional, unwarranted abuse.

Sean Avery is a despicable human being. That is all.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!