Joe Comfort (New Haven homeless man)
Joe Comfort | |
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Undated photo of Comfort |
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/0/0c/Joe_and_brit_pol.jpg/220px-Joe_and_brit_pol.jpg)
Joe Comfort is an American homeless man living in New Haven, Connecticut. He has been described as a "street legend".[1] He was featured in the Local Characters Trading Cards for New Haven, exhibited in 2005.[2] He earns money doing odd jobs including raking leaves, window washing, and repairs.[3] He has also worked for Yale fraternities, cleaning up after parties.[1]
Joe Comfort was at one point a carpenter for the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, and claimed to at one point be a licensed plumber. He attributes his lack of employment to potential employers' fear of having to pay workers compensation if his medical problems recur.[4]
Advocacy
[edit]Joe Comfort has spoken out at public hearings against welfare cuts in the state of Connecticut.[4] He has also spoken out against harassment of homeless people by the police.[5]
External links
[edit]- A video of Joe Comfort talking about himself
- Transcript of a committee hearing in the state of Connecticut, at which Joe Comfort spoke
References
[edit]- ^ a b Hayden, Pat (October 2007). "Cleaning House Fraternity brothers hire homeless help". The New Journal Magazine at Yale. Vol. 40, no. 2.
- ^ "Local Characters Trading Cards for New Haven". lesliekuo.com.
- ^ "COLUMN: City government and business must help homeless". HighBeam Research. Archived from the original on 2011-05-16.
- ^ a b "Hartford Plan on Welfare Is Met With Tales of Woe". The New York Times.
- ^ "YHHAP dedicates candlelight vigil to the city's homeless". Yale Daily News. Archived from the original on 2008-10-15. Retrieved 2007-11-29.