Anna Quindlen’s “Homeless” Response Essay In the article “Homeless” Anna Quindlen states that people without homes are being discriminated and stereotyped as the homeless. She uses personal knowledge and examples to build her argument. Anna Quindlen states that people in America think that they know that a shelter is best for them, but emotional and physical issues can make the homeless not want to go to these shelters. I always used to think that they should be in a shelter, too, but like most Americans I never really thought about what is preventing them from going. I agree with Anna Quindlen’s points that people with homes do not know what’s best for the people without one and that they are not the homeless if they had a home before, but …show more content…
People in America tend to think that a shelter is best for the homeless, but most of these people do not go to shelters for a reason. For example, in paragraph 7, on page 191, Anna says, “certainly some prefer to do so because they are emotionally ill, because they have been locked in before and they are damned if they will be locked in again.” These homeless people can have emotional or physical problems preventing them from going. Also, people will criticize the homeless and not look at these people as humans. People do not see the homeless as regular humans, instead they just criticize them. Even if they do not know the situation. I also look at these people differently. I feel sorrow for them and think they should find a shelter to live in like most Americans. This is the stereotype of the homeless people. We all think that they aren’t normal and should find a shelter to get help. Finally, Americans always look over the fact that they need help, but we shouldn’t go to drastic measures to help them. I will pass hundreds of homeless people, and helping them will never even cross my mind. Sometimes I won’t even notice them when I walk past where they are sleeping. A lot of people are too selfish to help a person in need. Even if that person is begging for help, most people still won’t help them. People should just put the …show more content…
Even the homeless had a home before that they grew up and raised in. this is evident because in paragraph 2, page 191, Anna states, “she had a house, or at least once upon a time had had one.” Every child has had a place where they grew up in. even if it wasn’t a house with four walls, they still grew up there. Furthermore, Home is wherever you make it, so it is impossible to be the homeless. Even if these people do not have homes right now. So the relevancy of calling these people the homeless should be eliminated. In addition to, they shouldn’t be the homeless, but the people without homes. Since these people are being stereotyped as the homeless, poverty isn’t becoming less
Social issues are difficult to write about because they are simplistic and problematic. Johnson doesn’t say the homeless issue in Los Angeles is good or bad. The story describes the characters leaning more towards bad, but never directly states this. Johnson explores the characters reactions to the issue. From this story, we learn it is easier for this particular family and society to ignore an issue rather than address it.
Principally, to a homeless person, if there was only one thing they hated, it would be pity. The only way society at this point knows how to deal with the homeless is by pitying them. They take the individuals and they put them in a group basically labeled “displaced”, then it is expected that it is up to the state to help them. Many say they try, but because homelessness deals on such a personal level, many don’t get helped because they are grouped. On the personal level, when one sees a homeless person, many, if not most people, shy away thinking that “someone else will help them”. In most cases, they are ignored. Because everyone is thinking this way, not many local homeless people get assistance. In this country, homelessness is one of the last issues to be thought of, which is why the homeless population is now flooding into small cities and towns. Homelessness should be combatted one person at a time and not as a group. I agree that everyone needs to pitch in and help rehumanize these lifeless souls, and with everyone’s help, it can be done on a personal level.
...on the homeless community. I previously held preconceived notions that the homeless consisted of people who were either unable to connect and form relationships with others or didn’t desire to do so. Yet, I observed most everyone greeting one another and reminiscing with those who have been absent from the community for a while, as well as, expressing concern for those missing. I recognized that the homeless may live in a non-traditional way, but they have established their own communities and are successful in forming and maintaining cohesive relationships.
In “Brother, Don’t Spare a Dime,” L. Christopher Awalt says that homeless people are homeless on their own accord. He believes “many of them seem to have chosen the lifestyles they lead” (Awalt))).. This article states that most homeless people would prefer to escape responsibility rather than fix their social and economic problems. Awalt uses an example of a man who had been on the streets for about 10 years. He provided this man with resources to improve his life and within four months he was making progress. By the sixth month the man had checked himself out of the hospital and was back on the streets drunk again. Awalt does show a few people are the victims of tragic circumstances and will bounce back in a short period of time. Awalt believes homeless people have become dangerous to the public, and they do not deserve our money to help them out of their predicament. We do not agree with Awalt’s assumption that the majority of the homeless people in the United States are there because of their lack of responsibility. There are many causes of homelessness that cannot be avoided, and the majority of the people that become homeless will not be on the streets for long.
Take a drive down town and the problem will be apparent, take a look to the left and there one stands, take a look to the right and there’s another. Homelessness is a term used to define a person who does not have a home to go to at the end of the day. Homelessness does not discriminate against age, sex or gender. What is startling to many people is that reasons why so many people succumb to homeless ness in their life; people assume that when someone is homeless it’s because of bad choices that that individual made in their life, which might be true but not for all, “approximately 1 and 5 Phoenix residents live below the poverty line” and that in itself has a lot to do with the current
In the word homeless there are two root words, home and less. Home is what most people would define as the place where they live, or grew up. Less, simply means not as much as. When you combine the two together homeless equals someone who grew up in a home that was held to less standards than what they would normally be held up to. For example, someone who is homeless could live in a box, it sounds terrible but unfortunately it is a part of our reality. Not everyone can afford to live in a house, pay mortgage, and all the other expenses that come with the responsibility of owning a house, or home. Today homelessness still has an affect on many people.
Presently, one of the main causes of homelessness in American is the lack of affordable housing. New York researchers claim that affordable housing is the answer to homelessness. Researcher, Mary Beth Shinn, states, ?homelessness is first and foremost a housing problem not a psychological one? (qtd. in Franklin 15.) Nearly all the families in their study became stably housed regardless of substance abuse, mental illness, physical illness or incarceration. This study indicates that homelessness is not a permanent condition. People do get themselves out of the problem when an intervention occurs to provide them with access to the housing market (NYU 2.) Without permanent housing, people are unable to keep jobs and are more likely to become ill. Permanent housing provides stability that enables them to find and retain employment with health benefits.
Homelessness is one of the biggest issues society (Unites States) faces today. Homelessness is caused by lack of affordable housing, economic situations and decline in federal funding for low income families and the mentally ill. A homeless person is defined as an individual who lacks housing (without regard to whether the individual is a member of a family) including an individual whose primary residence during the night is a supervised public or private (shelters) facility that provides temporary living accommodations and an individual who is a resident in transitional housing. This definition of housing is used by the U.S Department of Healt...
Statistically, over 670,000 Americans are homeless with a growing number. 48 million people go to bed hungry every night. Although we do provide shelters and opportunities in America, millions of people are homeless worldwide. Even on a more minor level there are still hundreds homeless within hometowns. Everyday we encounter the homeless whether by seeing them holding their personal signs at stoplights, confronts with beggars, or viewing them from afar under bridges. In her essay titled “On Compassion”, writer Barbara Ascher uses rhetorical techniques detailing some of her personal homeless experiences within the city life, Asher does effectively use logos, pathos,
Homeless individuals are known for taking hand outs and they prefer to plead for money rather than to go work for it. People assume most of the the money that is given to homeless people they spend it on drugs and alcohol because of the fact that many homeless people have drug and alcohol addictions. It is not uncommon to come across homeless youth and older homeless population that are known to abuse substances like drugs and alcohol. Because of the fact that homeless people have substance abuse problems, they tend face illnesses and infections. Many hard working Americans ask themselves “why don’t homeless people just get jobs?” The assumption is they are just lazy and unmotivated. Homeless people choose to live the life they live. Everyone goes through problems but not all people take the path homeless people do. The problems homeless people face is not an excuse for them to be helped and maintained by other hard working people. Although homelessness might be a choice to some, no one knows the hardships these people have gone through. Some assume these people are just lazy but in reality a lot of these homeless people have jobs of their own, they just can’t afford housing and a decent life. Everyone has their own opinion on homeless people, but that does not change the fact that one should still serve the homeless. Not because homeless people need help but because we are
.... The homeless community is a growing problem that only worsens with time. If we don’t make an effort now, to help the most vulnerable among us, then we are only contributing to this problem. With our unsure economy, nothing is guaranteed, so just be considerate for others who are in an inferior situation, because who knows when you might need a hand.
“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)
Quindlen begins her essay by describing a homeless person by her name, emphasizing that this woman has a name and is a human being just like everyone else. Her goal is to show us that we should be looking at the homeless as the individuals they are, rather than categorizing them all into one group. As Quindlen words it, “It has been customary to take people’s pain and lessen our own participation in it by turning it into an issue, not a collection of human beings” (Quindlen 214). By calling them homeless, we are labeling them by the issue, being without a home, rather than giving them their individuality. The problem is that “We turn an adjective into a noun: the poor, not poor people; the homeless, not Ann or the man who lives in the box or the woman who sleeps on the subway grate” (Quindlen 215). This would be like being called ‘blonde’ instead of by name. Blondes are satirically viewed as ignorant in the media, so being called blonde instead of by name would be using a stereotype as an identity for someone; when in reality that may not be true. I already used the word homeless in this essay multiple times. We use it because it’s easier and quicker; but it can also be hurtful if used the wrong way. Using an adjective to categorize a group of people can be very hurtful, and as Quindlen
If reading an essay is not compelling enough for some, possibly reading unbiased facts can be of more persuasion. Begin by understanding that roughly 564,708 American were homeless as of 2016. Over 80,000 of those homeless Americans are chronically homeless, meaning they’ve been homeless for over a year. About half of the homeless population are over fifty years of age, this creates another issue (“2016's Shocking”). The struggles worsen as those homeless individuals grow older, health begins to be of major concern for such poor living standards. Homelessness can also drastically impact the outcome of life, regardless of age. The chances of illness, injury, and death all increase “For every age group, homeless persons are three times more likely to die than the general population. Middle-aged homeless men and young homeless women are at particularly increased risk” (“The Hard, Cold Facts”). Perhaps, one of the most disturbing aspects of homelessness in America are the troubles that homeless women and their families face. The most common sheltered, homeless families are made up of a mother in her twenties and two children. This is because Eighty-four percent of families who are homeless are led by a single mother. This is caused by the abundant vulnerability of single parent households to become homeless. Those families are statistically among the poorest in this country leading to many
Many homeless people do not have access to healthcare and they go many years without seeing a doctor. According to Fitzpatrick, “there is a clear and defined need for healthcare for homeless people and their families.” She is right, it todays society homelessness is just ignored by many people and has became a serious problem. Most of society does not know about the organizations that help the homeless. For example, Fitapatrick believes in a organization called The Opening Doors Project it is a group of nurses and other health professionals that look at substance abuse within the homeless community. Due to not seeing a doctor and the common knowledge of homeless people abusing drugs and alcohol, “homeless people can have complex and multiple health problems” (Who quoted it). Not everyone agrees with Fitzpatrick, “I am convinced that handouts are basically wrongheaded,” says Sherman. She believes giving anything to the homeless will not help change the homeless persons situation (Sherman). Sherman's advice does not make sence, ignoring the problem will not help either and without proper medical care there is no way to improve homeless health which will cause many people to die a unessary death. According to Hopper, “generative forces behind widespread homelessness runs deep and their correction will req...