I find myself in a small metal room with no door and nothing else except the four walls surrounding me and the floor. Every sound I make ricochets off the shiny surfaces and makes the shallow layer of dark colored liquid on the floor ripple. I bend down and dip a finger into it only to be disgusted and frightened when I realize it's blood.I wipe it off on my jeans and gently put my hand on the wall to my right which, to my surprise, is extremely cold, way colder than metal should be. It makes me shiver. I pull my hand away as an excruciatingly painful jolt resonates in my stomach and forces me to double over. The pain is what I imagine starving to death feels like. I try to remember the last time I ate anything but I can’t. In fact I can’t …show more content…
The movement causes the blanket that was covering my bottom half to slide off my bed and land in a heap on the hardwood floor. I lock the window and stare at the empty street barely illuminated by a single streetlight. My neighborhood is small and no one really bothers to look after it since there are only a few residents, most of which live a long ways down the road. This is preferable to my family considering we like keeping to ourselves.
I watch as the wind picks up a few leaves and sends them spiraling down the sidewalk into the black abyss that is at the end of my extent of vision. The emptiness is oddly peaceful. It creates a welcoming silence, and the dark colors are easy on my strained eyes. I turn around and grab my glasses off my nightstand. After positioning them over my eyes I lean over my bed and start to reach for my blanket but hesitate.
What am I doing? Im 16 and still afraid of the monsters under my bed? I mentally scold myself and tightly grasp the soft blanket. I quickly pull it up onto my bed and wait a few seconds. Nothing. No hands trying to grab my wrists, no demonic snarling, nada. I chuckle slightly. “Wow Tom, those frightening monsters almost got you. Better be more careful next
The homeless population is growing in America. There are more and more Americans living in boxes, sleeping on park benches and panhandling on the streets each day. These people tend to make us, the non-homeless, feel uncomfortable and unsafe. They are also placing increasing stress on the nation's economy. In short, the homeless are a burden on the rest of society. There needs to be action taken against them. "I shall now humbly propose my own thoughts, which I hope will not be liable to the least objection (Swift.)" I propose that all of the homeless be relocated to foreign third world countries. They can then be hired in American factories producing shoes, automobiles and other various goods at less than one dollar per hour.
I stood up slowly, not daring to make any noise that would alert them of my presence. I walked quietly over to where I thought I heard their voices coming from. The youngest one was wearing some kind of ridiculous costume that shone in what little amount of moonlight there was, so they
It is logical that there are numerous health, nutritional, developmental, and psychological problems that are associated with being homeless as a youth. Health problems start even before birth if a mother is homeless and pregnant then her baby is more likely to be born with a lower birth weight than compared to normal children (Rafferty, Y., & Shinn, M., 1991). Children who are born into homelessness have higher death rates (1991). This could be due to the lack of prenatal care for homeless pregnant women. Furthermore, homeless children are more likely to have “upper respiratory infections, minor skin ailments ear disorders chronic physical disorders and gastrointestinal disorders” (Rafferty, Y., & Shinn,
Annotated Bibliography: “Homelessness and the selfish society”. “Homelessness, Citizenship, and Identity : The Uncanniness of Late Modernity” Arnold, Kathleen R. 2004 Kathleen’s book brings up many detailed facts about how homelessness is a never-ending situation due to mental illness, poverty, social structure and political parties. She discusses how many of society groups illegal immigrants, mentally ill, jobless and many other categories under the homeless category.
Homelessness can be categorized into three groups; primary homelessness; those without adequate accommodation, secondary homelessness; also known as couch surfing, and tertiary homelessness; such as boarding housing and caravan parks. These categories range from the most severe to the least severe, with secondary homelessness being the most common form of homelessness for young people. Youth homelessness is a prevalent issue in today’s society, as there are 100, 000 people that are homeless in Australia on any given night, at least half of these people who are under the age of 25. Catholic Social Teaching sums up the key principles of the Catholic Church and issues of justice between different groups in society.
Youth become homeless for a number of reasons including: family violence and neglect, rejection due to sexual orientation or gender identity, the overwhelmed child welfare system and extreme poverty. These youth almost always have experienced unimaginable abuse and trauma, in their homes, their communities, and on the street. It is the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act (RHYA)-funded services and programs that help to rectify the deep injustices that homeless youth experience on a daily basis.
A popular misconception about homelessness is that the homeless population brought their sorrow upon themselves by abusing drugs and alcohol, uncontrollably gambling their money away, or using their money irresponsibly. This leads to people thinking they should not give away their money to the homeless, but to charities claiming to help the homeless community, but what people don’t know is that most charities often do not use the donations to help, but use them for their own advantages. Therefore, people should give money directly and unconditionally to homeless people to help them stay away from the horrible homeless shelters, overcome the reasons that caused them to be homeless, and help them find a good and
The voices in my head become a swelling crescendo. I forcefully grab my head in between my hands as the words echo through my skull. Pain pulsates with every word. I squeeze my temples hard with my palms but the pain is unbearable. Clawing at my face, a scream rips through me; sapping every last drop of energy in my body. Like a rag doll, I collapse onto the cold concrete floor as a growing darkness overcomes me.
The world has many issues. As a Social Worker my goal is to help alleviate some of those issues. But with as many issues as there are I do not have the skill set or time to combat all the issues that I see. Because of this I need to choose an area to focus on and put my effort into that so that my education and training is put to good use. To choose an issue that is most concerning to me I have to look at my community to see where there is a need. When I look at my community I see many people living in poverty. The good thing about my community is that there are many services for those in need. There are several food banks and many other agencies such as No to Abuse, NyE Communities Coalition, and various counseling agencies that provide needed
The population of Los Angeles continues to grow each day because people perceive that the opportunities will improve their economic and social well-being. Most of them get good jobs manufacturing, business and the government giving them the ability to provide for themselves and their children. Those who are not lucky enough do not realise their goals and depend on the government and the society for basic needs. The effort of the city and the government to house the homeless cannot take the pressure of the rising number of the homeless without the support of the society. Los Angeles in the United State’s largest urban and has the highest number of homeless people making the task of housing its population next to impossible without participation
The hammer clicked again. I looked into the guard's eyes as he pointed his gun at me. He stared at me with hatred. This was the end. If only I had more food.
It was three days before Christmas and the anxious excitement has taken over the faces of children. To many the purpose of Christmas is to give and appreciate, yet to others it’s just about wasting money. I remember walking down the streets of Downtown L.A in the business district where the streets are filled with poverty and pity. Looking at the people struggling to find a roof, food, and warmth. I ask myself how would I survive being homeless in the streets.
"GO TO HELL!" I yell down the stairs. My "dad" runs up them as quickly as he can, shouting curses at me as he goes, but before he makes it all the way up, I'm in my room and locking all three locks on my door. Suddenly there's banging and I take a step back. "
This analysis was a little difficult because I wanted to not only find something that interested me but made me uncomfortable too and I succeeded. Growing up, my best friend was Jamaican in an all Caucasian school and I’ve traveled a decent amount to learn other cultures. My undergraduate degree was at a Catholic college where they taught us about other religions. I was able to go to different churches as a child (I.E. Catholic, Jewish, Baptist etc.) so I’m comfortable with different religions. A lot of my colleagues and a few good friends are gay, so what can make some people uncomfortable doesn’t bother me. However, the why and how people are homeless always intrigued me. From ages 16 to 30, I always either went to school full-time and worked
OOver the many years the crisis of poverty and homelessness has increased radically, bringing the issue to the attention of mayor Eric Garcetti and politicians like Senate President Pro Tem Kevin de Leon, who are only starting to propose plans to relieve the frustration and uneasiness of the citizens in Los Angeles and San Fernando valley. The innumerable amount of unfortunate people who were becoming homeless in reached its peak in 1990, slowly dwindling after. But after the recession a couple of years ago, in the 2000’s, the population of those who are unemployed, homeless, and in extreme poverty has increased to unbelievable new heights.