What Does It Mean To Be Homeless

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Without a Home Over half a million people are homeless in the United States. A quarter of these homeless people are under the age of eighteen, or also known as children. 50 percent of the homeless that are over eighteen years, are fifty and older with health and injury prone problems. One in five homeless people suffers from untreated severe mental illness, and half of these people self medicate themselves. Eight percent of the homeless population are veterans, and forty-five percent of that number is blacks or Hispanics. Most people think that being homeless means begging for money on the streets with a sign, or sleeping on the sidewalk with your dog or cat and maybe even a bag to store some things in; but what does “being homeless” actually mean? Homelessness in the United States and is a bigger problem than most people think. …show more content…

How about they go get a real job.” Being homeless doesn’t have to mean you live on the streets and ask for money every day. Any person who lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence is considered homeless. It doesn’t have to be someone who didn’t attend college or chose the wrong path and ended up being homeless. Some people can’t really help what medical issues they have like veterans; about eleven percent of the homeless adult population are veterans. Why veterans? Lots of veterans live with lingering effects of post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and substance abuse, which are compounded by a lack of family and social support networks. With that being said, military occupations and training are not always transferable to the civilian workforce, placing some disadvantages when it comes to competing for

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