Informative Essay On Homeless People

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As I drive to work, I see the homeless sleeping on the street, tents, or makeshift shelter they created. I wonder how did they end up here? Why can they pull themselves out of this situation? Why can’t the government do more for them? What can I do? Homelessness has increased for the first time since 2010. According to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development 2017 annual report, they are 554,000 homeless people across the country. Within that total are 193,000 people that have no shelter at night. They are staying in places that people would consider unlivable.
The homeless are just ordinary people, most you wouldn’t be able to distinguish by their appearance. Many of the homeless are families which cover 43% of the homeless population and of that number 23% are children. Veterans make up 23% of the homeless population. The elderly make up 32% of the homeless population. A fact that I did not know is that 44% of homeless people are employed. Their jobs are self-employed work and odd jobs. Even though they are employed, most are below the poverty level. So, I know the homeless can be anybody from elderly to babies. …show more content…

So that is the reason they are homeless, but there are other reasons: unaffordable housing, unemployment, personal disasters (ex. fire, hurricane, etc.), illness, domestic violence, family issues and loss of social services. Often these issues are overlapping for people which compounds issues. Many people do not empathize with the homeless because they don’t understand their situation. They feel they are lazy or they are there by choice. People don’t realize that one event can completely can your life. I think education is needed to improve the homeless situation. Numerous people have misconceptions about the homeless which has led to a lack of concern. This is part of the reason why the homeless situation has not

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