Being homeless is defined as an “individuals who lack a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence,” according to the legal definition of the McKinney-Vento Act and being under such definition is not a pleasant experience. In the most recent worldwide study by HomelessWorldCup, there were an estimated “100 million homeless worldwide and 1.5 billion people lacking adequate housing.” This is the truth that many people do not even want to attempt to fix, or even face. With the advances in technologies and the current progressive culture itself, there is no reason for the statistic to be that high. It is our moral duty as empathetic beings to solve and prevent further instances of homelessness, by giving the current homeless comfortable, …show more content…
Becoming homeless can happen to anyone in the blink of an eye with most thinking that they will never have to deal with this harsh reality in their lives. In an excerpt from Sherman’s article, in an interview with struggling resident Shondra Patrick, she explains how her rent went from a month-to-month lease, until “the cost of the rent up slowly over the course of the last six years from $850 to almost $3000.” This increase continued until Shondra was forced to move out into a family residence. This technique is happening everywhere, from highly populated and famous downtowns, to the calm, suburban life in any given area. Overtime, everyday people are forced to leave and become homeless, all due to their financial position. But of course, what does this have to do with you or affect you? Not only does general homelessness contribute to increases in crime, poverty rates, and drug use, but they are discriminated against socially and even politically. In an anonymous published report, “The Criminalization of Homelessness,” the author explains how many states have created ordinances that “target” the homeless, making it illegal to simply sit or sleep in public areas. The author also goes on to explain how other more, extreme measures have been taken by cities to discriminate the homeless by “sweeps of areas in which homeless people sleep, laws that restrict their freedom of movement, search and seizure of
Our Tired, Our Poor, Our Kids :Summary In “Our Tired, Our Poor, Our kids”(2001), Anna Quindlen claims that “There are many homeless mothers and children”(332).Quindlen addresses this issue by needing to find homes for many children the past month (“thousands”) ,as well for those families that wait by their belongings until found a room to sleep. The population of homelessness people isn’t decreasing it’s increasing rapidly. She reveals these problems in order to inform people the outrages numbers of homeless families ,and also “explains some of the effects of homelessness on children,emphasizes the importance of affordable housing,and touches on the effects of welfare reform on homelessness”(329).
“The two biggest factors driving homelessness are poverty and the lack of affordable housing” (Watson) which is why the Andre House started off with this idea of transition housing. With no one to turn too, one can be isolated all alone in this world and lose faith in humanity. Anyone can be homeless, “It affects men and women of all ages, and involves single people, married couples and those with families” (pg. 59, Crane). The Andre House has daily interviews with individuals who show that they are clean of drugs, employed or at least seeking employment to show that they can be in these houses that offers meals, and no charge of rent. By getting this offer of housing, the “guests live together in community, supporting one another on their journey and helping each other transition into permanent housing” (andrehouse.org).
While circumstances can vary, an individual’s first choice is rarely to choose homelessness due to the inability to afford housing or other unforeseen circumstances. The support of friends, family, and community programs/shelters are first suggestions when a person becomes displaced. When these suggestions become inadequate, living on the streets is the next favorable/affordable option. According to the National Alliance to End Homelessness, on a night in January of 2015, there were 564,708 people homeless in the United States (para 3).
Frankish et al. (2009) explains “there is no single pathway to homelessness, but rather homelessness is the result of a complex interaction of factors” (p. 24). Individuals who experience multiple factors with the potential to contribute to homelessness may be more vulnerable than others. Some of these vulnerable populations include indigenous people, victims of abuse, those suffering from mental illness, substance users, people with disabilities, and low-income earners or individuals already living in poverty (Gaetz, 2010). Since the impacts of homelessness typically worsen the longer one spends without adequate housing, it is important to consider which populations are most likely to get stuck in the cycle of homelessness.
As time goes on, the rate of homelessness rises as the population rises. Homelessness then was mostly caused by a family’s history of being homeless, drug abuse, mental disorders, and tyrannical leaders forcing his people into poverty. In modern times, several organizations are now trying to end homelessness by building cheaper housing projects more affordable to the poor and homeless shelters; these projects usually cost a fair amount of money.
It is indiscriminate and has no concern for one’s status, race, ethnicity, background, religion, and so on. Therefore the fear of homelessness is the fact that it can happen at any time.. As a result of the United States economic situation, there is a lack of jobs and livable wages provided for growing communities. The insufficient provision of financial aid is among the factors that cause homelessness. Unable to be financially independent, the homeless tend to meet their financial needs through illegal avenues. These avenues involve the interaction with drugs and
The article “The State of Homelessness in America” provides
Homelessness is a complex social issue with a variety of economic and social factors such as poverty, lack of affordable housing, physical and mental health, addictions, and community/family breakdowns. Homelessness has increased its number by at least a 1% since last year, reached nearly 554,000 people who are living in harsh conditions. The government and its policies/bans only harm the homeless instead of being beneficial to them. With the “City wide bans on camping in public have increased [along with the]… city wide bans on sleeping in public…, sitting or lying down in particular places… [and,] bands on sleeping in vehicles have [all] increased”(Wiltz).
California’s homeless epidemic affects hundreds of thousands of individuals and families daily. Despite efforts to address this problem, it persists and even worsens in some areas of the state. The issue of homelessness in California is a problem that requires a complex approach involving both short-term and long-term solutions. This essay explores the numerous causes and effects of homelessness in California and examines the strategies and policies implemented to address this issue. California’s homeless crisis was not always as bad as it is known to be now.
Homelessness is a product of social inequalities. Karl Marx stated that the capitalist society produces two prominent classes which are in conflict with each other, bourgeoisie and proletariats. The bourgeoisie are the oppressors who own the means of production and the proletariats are the oppressed workers who labor for the bourgeoisie. Capitalism is distinguished not by privilege but instead by individuality of property ownership and that those who create the conditions of the oppressed group express this power in the form of laws that function to serve the bourgeoisie’s interests (Marx, 2004, p.129).
Homelessness is one the most ignored problems in the United States with citizen and politician. Homeless people are walked by and ignored. Nobody ever thinks that they will be homeless. Due to the economy, people live paycheck to paycheck making house payments very difficult. Most people will want to believe most homeless people are drug addicts or alcoholics, but most people will be surprise to know that it is no all true.
In the United States homelessness has been a substantial problem for decades. The reason for homelessness is greatly debated especially
The policies of criminalizing homelessness and poverty has been occurring, and invented in San Francisco, in 1876 with the introduction of the “ugly laws.” These laws particularly targeted those with disabilities, and restricted people’s ability to appear in public spaces (Punishing the Poorest 2015, 6). These laws have not disappeared, they have just been rebranded, and then redeveloped into even more specific laws directed at the homeless. In fact, the more recent introduction of “quality of life laws” are truly just a re--- of the ugly laws and the continued crusade against homeless people, rather than homelessness. These “quality of life” laws, are really anti-homeless laws; these laws place a housed citizens right to the city and life above those dispossessed citizens.
It is hard to imagine life as a homeless family. I hope that I’ll never have to move my family from shelter to shelter as some families must do every day. According to the essay “Homeless” by Anna Quindlen, we should take more time in our lives to see the pain that homelessness creates. I agree with Anna Quindlen’s assertion that a home is everything. A home can provide certainty.
The issue of homelessness in America has been evident since the early 1600’s. Across the country men, women and children spend their nights on the streets not knowing when or if they will ever find a permanent home. States and federal officials or city councils have tried to alleviate or at least reduce the number of homeless over the last several decades at a city, state or national level but it continues to be an ongoing problem. There is a multitude of factors that account for the growing homeless population that affects each state in the country differently. Though there are many contributing factors that contribute to the amount of people living on the street at any given night in the U.S.