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Causes and effects of homelessness in u s
Causes and effects of homelessness in u s
Homelessness in poverty in the united states
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Over the last few years, California has been experiencing a rise in the homeless population despite the efforts to reduce homelessness throughout the nation. According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, California has the highest number of homeless people in the United States at 21 percent of the homeless population (or 115,738 people in 2015), and 64 percent of them had no shelter in 2015. However, it doesn’t stop there. Due to gentrification and and rising housing costs, the problem of homelessness in California has been exacerbated in large cities like Los Angeles. In more recent years, California has been experiencing large jumps in the homeless population, such as a 20 percent increase between 2014 and 2015 and a 5.7 percent increase between 2015 and 2016 in Los Angeles County according to the LA Times. …show more content…
Over the last few years, many organizations have attempted to fix the problem of homelessness in the whole nation. As a result, other states have had a large decline in the homeless population, yet California has continued to increase and continues to top the nation in the number of homeless people.
Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority reported that the number of homeless families and veterans in Los Angeles fell 18 percent and 30 percent, respectively. Despite the large decline reported by the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, homelessness has failed to decrease and actually increased in LA by 11 percent. These statistics highlight the problem of the fast increase and slow decrease in the homeless population in California, contributing to the increase, rather than a decrease, in the homeless
There are an estimated 2,981 homeless people in San Antonio each day. Out of these, 1,243 were unsheltered and a staggering 31% of those are people with families. In addition, the average age of a homeless child in San Antonio is 6 years old. An overall picture shows that homelessness has dropped nearly four percent from 2012 to 2013. Further, an average of 610,042 people are homeless across the United States on any given night. “Of that number, 36 percent – 222,197 people – were in families, representing a drop of 7 percent for that group” (Chappell, 2013, p. #). More than a third of these people were not found in shelters, abandoned buildings, cars, or under bridges. Although, there has been a small decline in homelessness, it’s still necessary to drastically change these statistics by solving the causes of homelessness. Sleeping in vacant buildings and under bridges is unacceptable. These statistics are very alarming and a solution needs to be found.
Here in Tahoe, we are lucky enough to experience a great quality of life, and only a few have to face the horrible life of poverty and homelessness. However, nationwide, even right outside the basin, homelessness is a growing epidemic across the country. There are many ways one can become homeless; for the most part poverty. There are also different concentrations of homeless in different types of terrain, such as urban or suburban areas. Last, there is the ever- growing homeless population, and how much money it costs us for others to live in poverty. These are the questions we ask ourselves about homelessness, and the only way we can help is to know the facts about this lingering subject.
With nearly 3.18 million people in the United States, there are 610.042 individuals who are homeless which calculates to about nearly one in five individuals (U.S. Census Bureau, 2014 and HUD/US, 2013). At any time situations can change that can render an individual’s homeless. There are no qualities that exempt individuals from the chances of becoming homeless. However, there are certain predispositions and characteristics that can predict the likelihood of becoming homeless. Homelessness can be contributed to a number of situations such as occupational stress, financial stress, mental health issues, substance use, gender, age, race, disabilities, incarceration, chronic illness, and family stress.
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.
Homelessness is a problem that happens in many different countries around the world. Definitions of homelessness are defined in different meanings by different people. However, the Stewart B. McKinney Act defines a homeless person as “ one who lacks a fixed permanent nighttime residence or whose nighttime residence is a temporary shelter, welfare hotel, or any public or private place not designed as sleeping accommodations for human beings” (McNamara 1025). It is impossible to find out exactly the number of homeless; however, the researchers can do a study to estimate that number. Based on different statistics from different researchers, the homeless population in America has been increasing as “an alarming rate” (Markos and Lima). Therefore, even though America is one of the most powerful countries in the world, homelessness, which has many common causes, has always been a big problem in society.
Homelessness in the United States has been an important subject that the government needs to turn its attention to. There has been announced in the news that the number of the homeless people in many major cities in the United States has been increasing enormously. According to United States Interagency Council on Homelessness reported that there was an estimation of 83,170 individuals have experienced chronic homelessness on the streets of the United States’ streets and shelters on only a single night of January 2015, which is a small decrease of only 1% from the previous year (People Experiencing Chronic Homelessness, n.d.). The United States must consider this subject that most of the people underestimate it and not pay attention
Although most people know what homelessness is and it occurs in most societies, it is important to define because the forces of displacement vary greatly, along with the arrangement and meaning of the resulting transient state. The Stewart B McKinney Homeless Assistance Act of 1987 defined a homeless person as “an individual who lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate night-time residence or a person who resides in a shelter, welfare hotel, transitional program or place not ordinarily used as a regular sleeping accommodation, such as streets, cars, movie theaters, abandoned buildings, etc.” Resent surveys conducted in the U.S. have confirmed that the homeless population in America is extremely diverse and includes representatives from all segments of society, including: the old and young, men and women, single people and families, city dwellers and rural residents, whites and people of color, employed and unemployed, able workers and people with serious health problems. The diversity among people that are homeless reflects how difficult it is to generalize the causes of homelessness and the needs of homeless people. Robert Rosenheck M.D., the author of Special Populations of Homeless Americans, explains the importance of studying homelessness based on subgroups, “each subgroup [of homeless people] has unique service needs and identifying these needs is critical for program planning and design.” Despite these diversities, homelessness is a devastating situation for all that experience it. Not only have homeless people lost their dwelling, but they have also lost their safety, privacy, control, and domestic comfort.
In the United States, it is practically impossible to walk down most streets without coming across a homeless person. The issue of homelessness has worsened because of the number of veterans back from our most recent wars. They have resorted to homelessness as their only refuge after being unable to maintain a stable home and/or not receiving the treatments they need. But as veteran homelessness demands more attention, especially in California, various solutions are being brought to action. The “housing-first strategy” being offered to homeless veterans and those endangered of becoming homeless, has played a major part in moving California closer to having an end to veteran homelessness in 2015.
Many people debate on weather homeless people should receive guidance or just be abandoned. Do homeless people deserve our service and to be supported, or are they just lazy individuals trying to take advantage of people? Homelessness is a growing dispute in cities. It has became an extensive problem for the community. Homelessness can not and should not be ignored. The number of homeless people in the United States is quickly growing. It seems like no one cares to help them. Even our heroes like police officers show no sympathy towards the homeless. “Homeless people appeared on the streets of Bucharest in 1990. Since then, their number and the problems created by this phenomenon have steadily increased in all major
Imagine your life with no food and no home at all; looking for something to eat in the trash cans and living under the 91-Freeway, scary isn’t? Well, if the government doesn’t do anything this will become reality. Poverty and homelessness has been a major issue in the USA. According to Emily Alpert Reyes, a writer in the Los Angeles Times newspaper, about 8.9 million people in California live under the federal poverty limit ($23,021 annually for a family of four); in Los Angeles, about 25.9% of the residents live with income below the poverty level. The poverty rate in Los Angeles has been increasing in the past years because city revenues are in long-term stagnation and expenses are climbing (Kantor, Brian, and Contreras-Sweet). Poverty and homelessness in Los Angeles can be prevented by providing services to the homeless, increasing taxes and creating more jobs.
Homelessness is a serious issue affecting millions of people worldwide. By definition, homelessness involves a lack of housing as well as an inability to acquire and maintain an adequate residence, especially during the night. As of right now, the homeless population constitutes about 11% of the poor population in the Unites States (Susser 412). Furthermore, statistics show in 2013,
In 2007, 76.82% of all homeless people lived in urban areas; 4.27% Rural; 11.04% Urban-Rural Mix; 5.14% Mostly Urban; and 2.73% Mostly Rural. Statistics show that there are 29 homeless people per 10,000 in urban areas, with only 14 per 10,000 in rural areas. When ever you go into a big city such as Portland OR, or Seattle WA, you will see homeless people on every other street, or make-shift “forts” that they built for themselves to live in. These percentages show the accuracy of the results based on visual observations. The top three states with the highest homeless population are California with 115,738; New York with 88,250;
Although the United States is a developed country, homelessness has been a major predicament for decades. Surprisingly, around 3.5 million Americans will suffer from homelessness each year. Defined by Paul A. Toro, homeless individuals are “people staying in shelters for the homeless, on the streets, or in other similar settings (e.g., in abandoned buildings, in make-shift structured, in parks)” (463). Therefore, homelessness occurs when an individual lacks a permanent home and has to illegally or legally seek some sort of alternative shelter. According to the article, “An International Understanding of Homelessness”, the homeless are divided into three significant groups, which include homeless families, adults and youth (Toro 463). In America,
It is shocking to know that approximately 3.5 million people in the United States, 1.35 million of them children, are likely to experience homelessness in a given year . About 40 percent of single homeless people are abusing drugs or alcohol and sadly, the majority of homeless people with addictive disorders have never received any type of drug or alcohol treatment . Not only is homelessness an economic issue, but it is a social one as well. Homelessness is increasing in the United States and it is a problem that which strikes Americans of every age, religion and ethnicity and affects people from urban and rural communities alike. A few factors contribute to the increase in homelessness. Low wage jobs, high unemployment rates and a high cost of living force countless Americans to choose between housing, food and other basic necessities. People become homeless for multiple reasons. The number of people who became homeless boomed in the 1980s, as federal funds were taken from low income housing and social assistance programs for low income families and the mentally ill. While economic factors are usually a primary cause for homelessness, long term issues like mental illness, drug addiction, and alcoholism can aggravate situations of poverty and put people at greater risk of being homeless. This is a problem because the high cost of health insurance leaves homeless people without access to proper care to treat mental illness or drug or alcohol addiction. Fortunately, the government has decided to take action against this problem. The city of San Francisco has received $5 million in federal and foundation grants to fund counseling services to h...
This great nation of awesome power and abundant resources is losing the battle against homelessness. The casualties can be seen on the street corners of every city in American holding an ?I will work for food? sign. Homeless shelters and rescue missions are at full capacity. There is no room at the inn for the nation?s indigent. Anyone who has studied this issue understands that homelessness is a complex problem. Communities continue to struggle with this socio-economic problem while attempting to understand its causes and implement solutions. The public and private sectors of this country are making a difference in the lives of the homeless by addressing the issues of housing, poverty and education.