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. Seeing them beg for money and being ignored, just makes me feel pity for them. A feeling that has escaped from Pandora’s box. A feeling that was happiness and joy eventually turned into disappointment and sadness while thinking about what this world has become. My mother tells me not …show more content…
As the homeless man sits next to his injured companion, he carries him to the corner of the sidewalk and rocks him back and forth. I ask my mother “why don't they feel compassionate to those around us as we are the same species.” My mother doesn't answer the my question as she is still staring at the pair. I look up to her face and I see tears well up in her eyes. We stand there for a good five minutes until …show more content…
Two minutes later we are behind the homeless man and I stare down to his companion whose eyes are wide and black, telling me that he has gone somewhere else. My mother sits next to the man as she comforts him, I follow my mother’s moves. I ask the man “ How did you obtain your companion and how did you end up here?”. He lifts his face and turns to me with a glum look in his eyes. He responds “ It started in 1998. It was Christmas Eve, a time when I had financial stability…” my mind runs through images, I realize he has suffered more than my family. As it turns out his companion (just a puppy then) came to him on his doorstep on christmas eve, 7 years later he lost his house due to losing his job and lost his family in a horrific car crash leaving him with his companion on the street. The only thing he had left was his Christmas present. My mother’s face is filled with sorrow. My mother tells the man “That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”(2 Corinthians 12;10) a quote that has helped my mother through difficulties. My mother grabs my hand and we leave
Today's world is filled with both great tragedy and abundant joy. In a densely populated metropolis like New York City, on a quick walk down a street you encounter homeless people walking among the most prosperous. Unfortunately, nine times out of ten the prosperous person will trudge straight past the one in need without a second thought. A serious problem arises when this happens continually. The problem worsens when you enter a different neighborhood and the well-to-do are far from sight. Many neighborhoods are inhabited only by the most hopeless of poverty - ridden people while others downtown or across the park do not care, or are glad to be separated from them. Such is the problem in New York City today and in Mott Haven in Jonathan Kozol's Amazing Grace. I have lived in New York City all my life and I had no idea that these problems were going on so close to home. If I live about three miles away from Mott Haven and I am not aware of the situation there, then who is?
When people think about homeless individuals, they think of people begging on the street, but not of the thousands of children located in public schools. When reading the “Invisible Child” in The New York Times, Andrea Elliott publicizes that not all homeless people are necessarily begging for money out on the street, but some are living without other people realizing their misfortune. Understanding that not all homeless people are begging for money relates to “The Narrative of Imagination” written by Martha Nussbaum which shows presenting people’s stories allows individuals to understand and empathize with other’s perspectives, resulting in people becoming more open- minded. She believes that empathy develops from sharing stores and people
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.
The strength of a woman is not measured by the impact that all her hardships in life have had on her; but the strength of a woman is measured by the extent of her refusal to allow those hardships to dictate her and who she becomes.”- C. JoyBell C.
In the early hours of the morning on Thursday, January 3, 2013, James G. Fulmer was found frozen to death on the steps of a Nashville Church. James Fulmer was 50 years old, homeless, and physically handicapped (wsmv.com). His tragic story is just one of almost 1,000 homeless men and women will suffer death caused by hypothermia each year. (nationalhomeless.org). Every night in the United States, over 600,000 people encounter homelessness. Their stories are diverse and their paths to homelessness, varied. Many have found themselves on the streets due to domestic violence, job loss and mental illness (npr.org). Some were teachers, accountants, musicians, painters, and even doctors. So many of the homeless population once lead normal lives. Yet, there is a social stigma that views the homeless as lazy, unwilling to work, uneducated and even untrustworthy. In a Capitalist society that places the highest value on image and the almighty dollar, there seems to be little desire to interact with these “outcasts”.
California currently faces the ominous blessing of the El Nino weather system, which promises to bring desperately needed rains in the form of storms and torrential rains. In preparation for these rains, California also has to address the homeless population, who will be stranded in the rains if adequate shelters are not provided for them. In his article, Sunnyvale: Fast-tracked Emergency Homeless Shelter Set To Open, Eric Kurhi cites expert opinions, utilizes emotional appeal, and employs rhetorical devices such as diction in order to provide information on the new homeless shelter opening in Sunnyvale while discussing the overall problem of homelessness.
In Bendarat, one of the first people he meets is Old Bill, another victim of homelessness. Old Bill had been homeless for a
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,
The homeless population in the United States does not only include the humans out on the streets, but also the ones in living in vehicles, emergency shelters, transitional housing, and other unstable environments. Over six-hundred thousand individuals are currently homeless in the U.S. In our current society, people often become homeless due to circumstances beyond their control. Humans often face abrupt personal and public challenges within their lives causing change and displacement in their housing status without notice nor a choice. In relation to personal reasons for homelessness, individuals who identify as LGBTQ and victims of domestic violence encounter many different situational problems leaving them displaced. Furthermore, there has been a sharp increase in unaffordable housing recently causing other people to suffer issues in a more public manner.
The police face many different issues while out on patrol every day. One issue is that of the homeless. In many cities, homelessness has been criminalized, but we, as a society, have to question if this is the right thing to do. Should people who have the misfortune of being homeless be punished further?
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.
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.
Imagine eating Christmas dinner underneath a bridge on the cold dirt because you and your family were evicted from your home. Just trying to find a single meal is what thousands of people, who live on the street, go through each day. They have been kicked out of their houses and apartments because they can't afford rent due to their low paying jobs.
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
I would like to start by saying how I see it and define it in my own words. It is the state where an individual doesn’t have a normal house and are not financially stable in life. It is the situation where you have to look after yourself or another person that is also homeless. You won’t be able to find the proper housing like a normal and secured place to live. All day and all night, you will be trying to sustain yourself from everyday challenges, like looking for food to eat, a place to live, and proper clothing.