The Lurkers and Homelessness

Babylon 5 is also unique in that it is one of the few sci-fi programs to deal with the issue of homelessness, through its depiction of the poor outcasts on the station, the Lurkers. The series's sympathy always is with the Lurkers, even if Garibaldi occasionally gets angry with them because there's increased crime in Down Below (where the Lurkers live). The series depicts a variety of paths to homelessness: drug addiction, alcoholism, political dissidence (the equivalent of being black in America on Babylon 5), mental illness, etc. The series is also not shy in condemning the right wing Clark administration for ignoring the plight of the homeless and instituting harsh policies against the poor and the mentally ill. Perhaps most importantly, several of the characters in the series flirt with having to live in Down Below, or try to stick up for people in Down Below and their rights. Marcus makes various friends among Down Below's population, as does Garibaldi. Lyta and Byron live in a colony in Down Below that is much like a hippie commune for telepaths. Franklin spends several weeks in Down Below dealing with his drug addiction. I think it's a tribute to Babylon 5 that the series dealt so honestly with these issues.