Life is a never-ending roller coaster ride. It slowly rises and rapidly falls. It suddenly turns left; then it turns right. It has no definite direction or indication of its plans; instead, it simply goes as it wishes. Life does not stop nor pause. Life goes on regardless of the circumstances. In simpler words, life is a clean slate of uncertainties. Uncertainty is life’s way of saying that there are only a few things one can control. The result of these uncertainties may vary depending on what one chooses to do with these uncertainties. These uncertainties are the essence of life, for it fuels opportunity. The movie entitled “Homeless to Harvard, directed by Peter Levin, illustrates through Liz Murray’s lifestyle how she chooses to cope with …show more content…
It depends on the person on how one chooses to deal with the situation. It depends on the person in allowing one’s emotions cloud one’s judgment. It depends on the person in allowing one’s frustration on the harshness of life control one’s every move. Success is a choice regarding one’s chosen perspective towards strong emotions. Success is a choice by means of one’s preference in one’s emotional stamina. This evident through Liz Murray’s journey to Harvard. Liz Murray did not allow “self-pity” to grasp her chance at being successful. Liz Murray became homeless just after she turned fifteen when her mother died from AIDS, and her father was living in a homeless shelter. Liz didn’t want to stay in a group home considering all the violence and abuse that happen to her before she escaped a group home. She didn’t want to live with her grandfather due to her finding out that her grandfather possibly molested her mother when she was younger. Liz slept on various subways and even the streets if she gets lucky she might sleep on her friend’s couch. She had no choice but to steal -anything- and live by what she could find in the dumpsters. She has nothing. She has no one. She is all on her own. Yet, she didn’t allow her situation to stop her from getting an education. She didn’t allow her emotions to control her decisions. A single person is a spec within its entirety so the world will continue
When we think of homelessness, we often think of people middle aged and older. For many years now, the problem has become more real to the younger generation. Some are there by choice but still, many are there because of circumstances beyond their control. In the report written by Eleanor J. Bader, she uncovers some of the faces of homeless people that just happen to be college students. According to Mary Jean LeTendre, who was interviewed in the report, “no college has ever asked for help in reaching homeless students” (638).
When people see the homeless, they are quick to assume whether the homeless are where they’re at because of drugs, or not being in a stable environment. However, homeless people rarely receive an opportunity to tell their life stories or even have the chance to explain how they ended up in the situations they are in. Homelessness in Boston has persisted and increased for decades. Though there have been efforts to combating the issues of homelessness and housing, it appears that there is no solution in sight. Winter have become nightmares for most of the homeless population in Boston. Weather ranges from thirty degrees down to ten, sometimes single numbers. Weather that is below freezing are moments where people like myself, need to be in warm places. Kourtney McLean is a woman financially and emotionally not stable enough to take care of herself. Ms. McLean has been living on the streets for almost all her life --homeless and struggling to get on her
Tunstall, L. (2009). Homelessness: an overview. EBSCO Publishing Service Selection Page. Retrieved February 5, 2011, from http://web.ebscohost.com/pov/detail?hid=119&sid=d5f751fa-0d0d-4ed1-8deb-483e701af50c%40sessionmgr111&vid=3&bdata=Jmxhbmc9ZW4tY2Emc2l0ZT1wb3YtY2Fu#db=p3h&AN=28674966
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 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
The main issue revolving homelessness is that people are not putting themselves into their perspective. Students who live in shelters and constantly worry about the possibility of eating that day go through a whole different kind of struggle compared to others. This kind of obstacle is not common to relate to. “She slept in libraries, bathrooms and her car. She sold plasma and skipped meals,” (2). Majority of students who enter college have the luxury of receiving secure shelter and food, in which they should. Ms. Evans is an example of
The film is about three families who have previously been threatened with homelessness. In using the first-person narrative, and engaging in a conversational style with graphic animation, the film focuses on the structure of, and social inequality behind, housing in Boston.
As students near the end of the academic year, they are constantly faced with some of the same choices the generations before them have been presented with too. The biggest question a lot of seniors in high school have to answer is if they are going to be attending college or not. There are a lot of legitimate reasons as to why a person might not attend a college, but I personally feel like everybody should have a higher education if they have the opportunity to do so. One of the biggest reasons that people do not have the opportunity to pursue higher levels of school is the fact that they do not have enough money to pay for it. With the staggering amount of debt, the majority of students incur in college, it is becoming a
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
If college counseling is to help students with college and this counseling would be better to
Homelessness needs to be attacked at its source. Developing a transformational campus will provide hope for the homeless by attacking its causes. This “Transformational Campus” is a place where an individual or family experiencing homelessness can go to receive housing, education, counseling, and support in order to help transform his or her life by addressing its root causes . This will be the beginning to the end of homelessness.
“Homeless is more than being without a home. It is tied into education needs, food, security; health issues both mental and physical, employment issues, etc. Don’t forget the whole picture.” (“Boxed In” 2005 pg. 108)
There are countless laws today that subliminally discriminate against homeless people. One such law was passed in 2014 that made it illegal to sleep in public areas of Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Philosopher Jeremy Waldron and author of the essay “Homelessness and the Issue of Freedom” would view this law as extremely unconstitutional and immoral. Waldron would argue that making it illegal to sleep somewhere takes away the homeless persons freedom to live. I agree with Waldron on the claim that outlawing sleeping in public spaces is unconstitutional because by doing so one is taking away the homeless persons only home. For those who do not have a place to sleep the streets are their only homes. The law banning sleeping in public spaces therefore discretely makes it illegal for homeless people to even exist.
Homelessness is a subject that has inspired many to write poems, speeches, and even songs. However, there is more depth to homelessness than just a source for inspiration; this is an ongoing problem for many all over the world. The 40th president to the United States, Ronald Reagan, once said that "what we have found in this country, and maybe we're more aware of it now, is one problem that we've had, even in the best of times, and that is the people who are sleeping on the grates, the homeless, you might say, by choice."(Reagan). The president's expression is very powerful even today, implying that even in the best of times homelessness is one of the top issues in society. Notice how President Regan cleverly used the wording "by choice" at the end of the sentence, what did he mean to convey by this? Was he implying that those who are homeless are so by choice? Or that many individuals perceived homelessness to be a choice? Perhaps it was a way to raise awareness of the impending problems that can lead an individual to homelessness. According to the National Alliance to End Homelessness and the National Coalition for the Homeless, there are three triggering factors that lead to homelessness, lack of affordable housing, unemployment, and health care ("Why Are People Homeless?"). Therefore, when exploring into more depth the determining reasons, considering the key roles that a home, money, and employment play in an individual’s life will facilitate a better understanding of the downward spiral towards homelessness.
Its 3 O’Clock in the morning and you are found with no other choice but, to wunder up and down the empty streets of Broad street in Philadelphia hoping that you would come into contact with someone so that you are able to rob them praying that they have anything on them giving you the chance to survive another day just so that you can put a meal on the table not only for yourself but, also your family as well. Imagine living in a world where the place you were brought up into determines who you are going to become as you grow older in age. Living in a situation where you had no way to build yourself up, prosper and also, strive to become the best person you know that you are capable of being.