Welfare Advocates’ Ad Thanks Supervisors

An advocacy group for the homeless is putting some of its money where politicians’ mouths are.

The Countywide Coalition for the Homeless hopes that $1,000 worth of radio ads airing today will express its gratitude, and score some political points, by thanking the liberal majority on the County Board of Supervisors for increasing welfare payments to the homeless.

The 60-second commercial will air at least five times today on KACE-FM. It conveys the group’s thanks to three supervisors--Ed Edelman, Kenneth Hahn and Gloria Molina--for raising general relief payments from $312 to $341 a month for thousands of homeless.

“It is not often homeless people and their advocates have reason to thank the L.A. County Board of Supervisors,” says the professionally produced ad. “But the recent actions taken by supervisors Edelman, Hahn and Molina on behalf of homeless people deserve recognition.”

The spot was produced with donated labor, said John Suggs, the coalition’s executive director. He said he hopes the $1,000 spent to air it will pay big dividends in political support.

“To be able to provide a comprehensive response to homelessness, we also need to address the public policy issues,” he said.

When politicians “take a positive step, we feel it is appropriate to thank them,” Suggs said.

But Edelman, an object of the praise, countered, “Better they should spend their money on helping the homeless.”

“I don’t need a pat on the back, but it feels good,” he added. “You take whatever credit you can get.”

Back in March, the advocacy group had planned to run a radio ad urging citizens to call liberal supervisors and demand that the county drop its legal fight against the increase. The plan was canceled after Edelman complained that coalition members should direct their energies at conservative supervisors, “not (at) your friends.”

Then Molina took her seat on the board, and last month the new liberal majority voted 3 to 1 to approve the increase and to make other reforms in the general relief program.

The suit, filed by the city of Los Angeles, accused the county of shirking its responsibilities to the poor. Conservatives, who had controlled the board, had refused since July, 1988, to increase general relief paid to 58,000 people--most of them homeless who do not qualify for other aid.

Suggs said most of the coalition’s members--shelters and providers to the homeless--contributed money for the ad, and all supported it.

In the commercial, the announcer says that liberal supervisors “agreed to change county policies that have been used to deny 6,000 homeless people a month their basic benefits.”

“While we recognize that these steps alone are not enough to end the pain and suffering of homelessness, they are nevertheless important steps in the right direction,” the commercial says. “So thank you, Supervisors Molina and Hahn, and thank you especially Supervisor Ed Edelman, whose leadership helped bring these changes about.”

On Monday, Supervisor Mike Antonovich--who cast the lone “no” vote in Deane Dana’s absence--repeated his criticism that the $38-million cost of the settlement could be better spent on fire protection and other programs.

As for the ad, he said, “It would seem to me that the best way of helping (the homeless) would have been a contribution to the Salvation Army.”