In 2023, life is complicated all the way around. A content creator aimed to make the point that helping out unhoused people asking for money, even when you’d like to help, might be more than you expect.
TikToker Thatsokeezy (@thatsokeezy) created a video in which she plays the part of both an unhoused person living in the woods and a person who offers help but can’t quite get on the same page about how to help that person. It also highlights the technological advancements that we’re all navigating at this juncture.
The video, which has received more than 863,200 views since going up on Nov. 5, starts with the creator depicting a person going to her car and being stopped by an unhoused person asking for money.
“You think you can help me?” says the person in need. “I’m homeless.”
The person at the car offers a dollar, and the unhoused person states that $20 would be more helpful, given she was looking to get lunch and toiletries, and citing inflation.
They go back and forth for a bit, and when the person at the car maintains she doesn’t carry much cash, the unhoused person notes, “I have Cash App.”
The person at the car is incredulous, but as the unhoused person points out, “Of course, I got a Cash App. This is 2023. What do you expect?”
The person at the car then offers the gas station pizza she just bought, but the unhoused person wants to know if the meat in the pizza is grass-fed and the crust is gluten-free.
Finally, they arrive at a possible plan: $20 for the unhoused person if she’ll look sad for a TikTok, but then the unhoused person wants $50 and then $60, noting, “I got to charge a little more than $20 for that because at this point, you’re taking up a lot of my time.”
@thatsokeezy #homeless #2023 #fyp #funny ♬ No Lyrics – Kilo G
Commenters on the TikTok relayed some similar baffling experiences with representatives of what is, to be fair, a misunderstood and sometimes unfairly maligned group of Americans.
“I told one guy I didn’t have cash and he pulled out a card reader,” said one. “I was SHOOK.”
“I DONT EVEN HAVE A CARD READER HANDY,” the creator responded in all caps.
“I offered a ‘homeless’ lady food and her response was ‘I guess,'” another shared.
The creator said to that, “That’s wild to me.”
Another shared a food offering gone awry: “One time this homeless guy said ‘oh nah, I don’t do salad.'”
“I just say, I’m broke too,” one shared.
The creator, revealing that this skit was at least inspired by a real encounter, commented, “That’s what I should’ve said.”
Someone else shared, “My dad gave this homeless man 3 dollars and he called my dad broke.”
That led to a series of comments about their comparative fortunes, and one who simply said, “That is peak everything omg.”
The Daily Dot has reached out to the creator via Instagram direct message.