Incident that causes "other people's children" to slide
Pleasants, 52, is one of 60,000 people living on the streets of Los Angeles County. Pleasants grew up in San Antonio, Texas, and has been a "other- granted-hood" model at school, according to Michael Pleasants, the younger brother of Shawn Pleasants. Their mother is a teacher, their father works in the air force.
"He (Shawn) plays the trombone and has won several civic awards across the city," the younger brother who also studied at Yale University shared.
Shawn Pleasants have also overcome a physical disability - a congenital defect in their leg and have worn a ankle throughout their childhood. The doctor once said that Shawn would never be able to run a marathon. But in fact, according to Michael, Shawn has run several times and had his peak physical condition in his 20s.
Shawn Pleasants is also the valedictorian of his high school, having received many offers from universities. Shawwn chose Yale and received sponsorships and some scholarships to help pay for most of his tuition. He majored in economics and worked for several years on Wall Street, including a job at Morgan Stanley - a multinational investment bank, before stopping in California.
To fulfill his Hollywood dream, he started working in a photography and film studio. That was in the mid-1990s, and when the DVD industry soon exploded and the company made a lot of money and Shawn bought a large house in the Silver Lake area of Los Angeles. However, conflicts with the co-founder have ended everything, and income is exhausted.
About 10 years ago, at the same time, Shawn's mother died of cancer. The incident caused him to fall into a state of decline both physically and mentally. He moved from place to place, eventually living in a car and finally could not keep the car.
Pleasants are gay and believe they have been married to another homeless person who has been living together for about 10 years before living on the streets. The couple has lived on the sidewalk of Koreatown for about 6 years. "I like a place where I can still go to the library and do the things I need to do," he shared.
Drugs, specifically meth, are a part of Pleasants' lives. He started using drugs before becoming homeless, but affirmed that was not the reason why he lived on the streets. Micheal also confirmed that Shawn started to be addicted while recovering from a back injury before he began living homeless. Shawn Pleasants use meth several times a week to help themselves stay up late to avoid losing things.
Surviving on the streets
Shawn Pleasants have both laptops and mobile phones. Phones and phone services are free under a program under President Trump. He spends most of his time in the library, accesses the internet and has a good grasp of current information.
He supported himself by learning the schedule of places and times he could get free meals. "There are certain churches (providing meals) and some places for certain meals. What you need is to grasp those schedules," he explained.
When asked if Shawn was mentally ill, his younger brother thought he might have suffered from depression and that his family had tried many times to help him get through. There was always an offer for him to move to San Antonio to live with his 86-year-old father. In the long term, they want to see him find a way that can be close to them, perhaps through a government support program. However, Shawn objected. "I don't want to bring other relatives down. I fell into it, I had to find my own way out of it," he said.
It is known that he graduated from a Ivy League school, owned a house and had good living conditions, not surprising. Shawn said that his "hamlet" of un settled people includes musicians, photographers and many other jobs.
When asked how to escape from this life. Shawn Pleasants smiled and said, "I will start another small business again."
