I’ve always considered myself an advocate for ending homelessness and erasing the negative stigma of mental illness. But last weekend as I was leaving Third Street Stuff and Coffee carrying my overpriced drink, a homeless man approached me –  and I shied away.

The one thing I never thought I’d feel like is a hypocrite.

To be completely honest, I was scared. As he approached me and asked me for money, it was my initial reaction to turn away and get into my car as quickly as I could. But that would be hypocritical. I had just spent $3 on a coffee that I surely didn’t need.

All those times, I had advocated for the homeless through speech, college research papers and volunteering, and yet there I was — in the midst of a situation so many face — and I was choosing to be cold.

It’s not my job to try to fix their problems or to try to change their life, but it is my job to be nice to others.

I see a lot of people that are angry with homeless people, saying, “they’re just drug addicts,” or, “they’re just lazy!” But that’s a person who deserves respect.

At the very least, they deserve kindness. And it all starts with changing our attitude. Instead of treating the homeless like worthless pariahs who we ignore and speed past on the street, why don’t we just be nice?

According to the National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty’s 2013 study, 66 percent of homeless people have problems with mental illness, alcohol or drug abuse. Additionally, one in 20 Americans lived with a serious mental illness, such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or major depression, according to mentalhealth.gov.

Mental illness, drug addiction and alcoholism are legitimate medical issues that all lead to homelessness, and the negative stigma associated with these issues needs to change.

It is often mistakenly assumed that drug abusers lack moral principles or willpower, and that they could stop using drugs by simply choosing to change their behavior. In reality, drug addiction is a complex disease, and quitting takes more than good intentions and a strong will.

Once we change our attitudes about these diseases and the people that have them, we can work toward ending homelessness. No one would ever choose to be addicted to drugs or alcohol.

If we are all products of our environment, how can we place blame on the individual? As sad as it is, people are often the rule and rarely the exception.

We all have the capacity to be nice. Helping homeless people doesn’t make you a good person. It should make you a normal person. Life is difficult enough. We should all be on each other’s team.