Street people are a constant presence in many cities and even small towns these days. Now, I’m not here to make moral judgements about whether you should or should not give panhandlers money or how you should treat people. Most people living on the street are no threat to you; they’re worried about their own stuff just like everyone else. It’s only when the panhandling turns aggressive that this becomes a problem you have to deal with.
The best way to deal with an aggressive panhandler is the same as the best way to deal with most types of conflict: avoidance. If you’re in a situation where you can see a problem ahead and you can go around it, all the better. Sometimes you don’t have a lot of choice, as happened to me when I got to a popular tourist attraction early in the day before anyone else arrived (I was alone, at the tail end of a business trip) and encountered a women loitering near the parking booth. My choices were to approach her on foot to pre-pay for my parking at the booth or leave altogether. That situation turned out fine—I spoke with her as I paid for my parking and ended up giving her a few bucks when she asked if I had a tampon, which I did not.
The second best way to deal with aggressive panhandlers is escape: Just breeze right past them. Now, you can make all the moral arguments you want about how it’s rude to ignore someone who’s speaking to you, how we should treat all people with kindness, etc. You do what you want, but my standard response to anyone approaching me on the street is to keep on walking, sometimes including a simple, firm “No.” Do not make eye contact. If you stop and listen to their pitch, or you start offering excuses like “I don’t have any cash,” you get drawn into a conversation and give them the opportunity to argue with your excuse. In almost all cases, moving on ends the interaction and the person will leave you alone. If they don’t—if they follow you and insist on a confrontation—you’re getting into problem territory.
Move with purpose and as if you have a clear destination in mind, even if you don’t. You might feel intimidated, but try not to give the impression that you’re running away in fear. If the person follows you and continues to ask or seek to engage you, “I said no!” in your best command voice can help. This happened to me overseas when I accidentally walked over some drawings a seller had spread out on the sidewalk in a crowd (a common scam in parts of Europe). He chased me down, insisting I had damaged his art and needed to pay him. I said no and kept walking to get in line to buy tickets for a museum. He followed me into the line, grabbing my shoulder and aggressively insisting I owed him money. A loud, firm “I’M NOT PAYING YOU, go away!” scared him off. Now, there were plenty of people around as witnesses and he knew he was pushing the boundaries of the law (as aggressive panhandlers do), so this worked well. It might not work as well if you are isolated, and you don’t want to enrage an unpredictable and aggressive person in a situation you can’t escape from. Use your best judgement.
As mentioned, keep a wide berth to the extent that you’re able. It’s common for a panhandler to intentionally (if they’re aggressive) or unintentionally (if they’re just socially inept) try to get inside your personal space. The closer an unknown contact gets to you, the more potential danger you’re in if it goes sideways—you’ll have less time to react to anything they might do. After all, you don’t know their intentions. They could be innocently asking for a dollar because they’re hungry, or they could be using the ask as an excuse to get close to you for a criminal attack —approaching you with a question is, of course, a common criminal tactic. Keep attack distance in mind, and if you are in a situation where just walking away isn’t possible or if you choose to engage, utilize Thompson’s Fence to put up at least a psychological boundary if not a physical one.
This is also where carrying a less-lethal self-defense tool like pepper spray comes in very handy. If you are unable to escape and a conflict keeps escalating, you really don’t want to have to pull your gun to protect yourself. A less-lethal tool is an ideal way to create the distance you need to hopefully solve your problem.
Keep in mind that many street people are dealing with chemical addiction and/or mental health challenges that go unmedicated. You might not be dealing with a rational person, so don’t try to reason with them. Refusing to engage is the best strategy. If you have concerns and you don’t see a way to avoid, as with my experience in the parking lot, just leave. I would have gotten back in my car and left if it had been a man instead of a small-framed woman panhandling in that situation where I couldn’t avoid approaching.
