Should you give to strangers on the streets?

NORTHAMPTON, Mass. (WWLP) - 'Tis the season of giving, but a recent random act of kindness has raised the question: should you give money to strangers on the streets?

Especially at this time of year, we see a lot of people out on the streets asking for donations. Many people will donate a dollar or two, but the now-famous photo of a New York police officer giving shoes to a barefoot homeless man has some people questioning whether the man deserved the shoes.

Since the photo went viral, some New Yorkers reported seeing that homeless man barefoot once again. Many people told 22News that regardless of what happened to his shoes, what really matters is the gesture itself.

“It's much needed kind gesture to be publicized to show other people that they need to open their hands and their arms. It's not necessarily the season. It's always the season to give,” Alan Seidner of Palm Bay, Florida said.

The homeless man told the New York Times that he hid the shoes because they were worth too much money.

Some people said rather than giving cash, they donate food to the homeless.