Think about a time when you felt invisible to the world. Maybe you stood up for something you strongly believed in, but no one listened. Maybe you tried to rally support for a person, cause or organization, but people were too busy to help. Maybe you just wanted your voice to be heard, but it seemed like no one cared. Maybe you tried to make friends at school or on a sports team, but people ignored you.
It straight up sucks to feel rejected and invisible, doesn’t it? Even the most social and extroverted people have felt lonely and misunderstood at times. Now imagine feeling that way, day after day, because sadly you’re part of a demographic that often gets overlooked. Imagine you were homeless, and hundreds of people passed by you every day without casting a glance in your direction. According to the National Coalition for the Homeless, 3.5 million Americans experience homelessness each year. And that’s only in our country! I don’t think I will be alive to see the day when every single person on this earth has a home, but I know many homeless people will have the opportunity to let their voices be heard, all thanks to Mark Horvath and InvisiblePeople.tv.
About 16 years ago, Mark had a thriving career in the television industry. A layoff led to relocation, which led to more layoffs, which led to foreclosure, which eventually led to Mark being homeless. The only personal belongings Mark was able to salvage were some photos, furniture, his phone and a camera. After experiencing life without a place to call home for awhile, Mark decided he wanted to do something to make those were invisible become visible. He used what little money he had to buy a domain name and create a WordPress theme with intentions of shooting video of homeless people and sharing them with the world. Mark almost scratched the whole project because he had to sell his fancy editing equipment and couldn’t do what he was so accustomed to doing – putting together well-packaged video pieces. But this ended up being a blessing in disguise because the raw footage is real and impactful. Mark wasn’t sure anyone would watch when he first started posting the videos on his site. Slowly but surely, people did pay attention to what Mark has created. A lot of people.
Mark credits social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter for helping him get the site off the ground. Mark was able to use some of the same skills/strategies that he developed back in his broadcasting days to share the stories of homeless people via social media. Some people call this lifecasting, but Mark prefers the phrase “reality Twittering.” According to Mark, the beauty of InvisiblePeople.tv and social media in general is that we as individuals and as a society have never experienced so many opportunities to affect real change in our world. But make sure you don’t call his site a video blog, because it’s not. InvisiblePeople.tv is a conversation about homelessness, and the site is simply a channel Mark created to get the dialogue flowing.
The success of the site and the videos is amazing, but more positive things have resulted from InvisiblePeople.tv. Mark’s efforts have helped get homeless people off the streets. People are now sleeping warmly inside homes.
Mark is still battling his own homelessness. He says the one thing that has helped him keep a firm grasp on reality when things were really tough is that while working to improve his own life, he simultaneously works to improve the lives of others. To quote Mark directly, “The magic happens when you get out of yourself and go help somebody who’s hurting more than you. Then your problems seem to disappear.”
When you find someone who is hurting, it’s the little things that make the biggest impact. If a friend or neighbor lost his/her job or is struggling financially, make an effort to help. You may have your own monetary burdens that prevent you from helping someone financially, but there are plenty other options. Mark suggests finding a way to get the person who is suffering out of his/her house – go for a walk, take him/her to a movie or go to a free festival/fair. Simply giving someone an excuse to escape reality for a short time can work wonders.
The issue of homelessness opens a nowhere-near-close-to-being-healed wound in me. Someone who was once very close to me experienced homelessness, and there was nothing I could do to prevent it or reverse what had happened. I don’t feel the need to elaborate because this is post is not meant for a pour-your-soul moment, but I know firsthand that not everyone who is living on the streets is a junkie. Many are good and honest people who were dealt a bad hand in life. Even if they are struggling with an addiction, they are still a human being. They are still someone’s brother, sister, mother, father, daughter or son. I ask that you please remember this before you judge.
So, why did I tell you this story about Mark and InvisiblePeople.tv? Mark started the InvisiblePeople.tv Road Trip to take his story and share it with people all over the country. Detroit is fortunate enough to be one of the road trip stops, and Social Media Club Detroit is hosting an event with Mark (Facebook link) on Monday, September 13 from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at the Friendship Circle in West Bloomfield. If you live in the area or want to take a spontaneous road trip, please consider joining us to hear Mark’s story for yourself. Friendship Circle is even providing hot dogs! Get inspired by Mark’s passion and learn what you can do to help support his efforts to give a voice to the homeless.
A special thanks to Mark for taking the time to talk with me for this post. If you have a story about homelessness or want to share how Mark’s site and videos have impacted you, please do so in the comments.