Like all individuals, homeless children have mandatory needs that must be met in order to live. First, they need shelter with electricity, running water, and plumbing. They also need the required nutrition for a child to grow properly and healthy. Homeless children are also required to go to school, meaning they need means of transportation and school supplies. Like all children, they also need structure in their lives in order to function in society. They also need the love and attention of others in order to have a sense of belonging. Homeless children need clothing items that are appropriate for the weather as well. For example, they should have a winter coat for the colder months. These children should also have medical check-ups to ensure …show more content…
“A government check can’t look you in the eye and offer advice about how you can turn your life around. A food stamp won’t help find you a job.” (Noel Merino, Page 104). Homelessness may be a gentle subject to discuss with those who are suffering from it. They are often embarrassed, or too prideful to accept help from others. There are many different organizations and shelters that take in donations whether it is money, canned food, clothes, shoes, or just time from another person who cares to help the cause. There are also government efforts that offer help to the homeless community. Homeless shelters provide temporary housing for people who don’t have a place to stay. “In 2005, nearly 500,000 beds were available in the emergency and transitional shelters around the country.” ("The State of Homelessness in America"). Most shelters are gathered in and around cities. There are also public housing units that are available to very low-income families. People who live in public housing pay only what they can afford, which is either a small percentage of their income or a very low monthly rent. People can stay in public housing forever, provided that they obey the rules defined in their lease. Food banks are also a huge help to the …show more content…
Community food banks collect canned goods and other, non-perishable food items and distribute them to homeless people at centers around the country. “America’s Second Harvest operates the largest network of food banks, with more than 200 community food banks, as well as soup kitchens and emergency shelters around the country.” ("The State of Homelessness in America"). Independent organizations, such as churches and local agencies, operate their own soup kitchens and food banks, which are usually operated by volunteers. Escaping from homelessness requires more than a bed to sleep in every night and three meals a day. People need jobs and real predictions for the future. Both the government and private organizations offer job training programs to help homeless people get back on their feet. “First Step” is a program that offers job skills training, computer education, internships, and mentoring. This helps to ensure that homeless people have the proper tools to help them obtain
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
In fiscal year 2006, the HUD, Department of Housing and Urban Development, was presented a budget by the Bush Administration consisting of $528.5 billion for homeless programs (Romeo 1). The problem of homelessness and extreme poverty is not a new occurrence; but in past years more extreme measures have been taken to combat the issue as more people become homeless. Expensive social programs and housing developments for the homeless have been created to help battle the increasing issue. Homelessness is an expensive problem that will never end; furthermore, the condition of homeless people in America is affected by the type of education they receive, the state of the economy, and the amount of funds that are available to house and feed them.
“3.5 million people will experience homelessness in a given year,”(Los Angeles Homeless Services). This shocking number is one of the sad truths in today’s society. Homelessness is caused by a wide range of things including financial issues. The life of a homeless person is hard and comes with set-backs and the constant need to overcome them. Homeless people go through many challenges in surviving without a home. They can suffer from health issues, hunger, and poor emotional well-being.
This great nation of awesome power and abundant resources is losing the battle against homelessness. The casualties can be seen on the street corners of every city in American holding an ?I will work for food? sign. Homeless shelters and rescue missions are at full capacity. There is no room at the inn for the nation?s indigent. Anyone who has studied this issue understands that homelessness is a complex problem. Communities continue to struggle with this socio-economic problem while attempting to understand its causes and implement solutions. The public and private sectors of this country are making a difference in the lives of the homeless by addressing the issues of housing, poverty and education.
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...
Homelessness can result from children running away, being abandoned by parents, extreme poverty within the family and/or unsafe/unstable living conditions. Being in situations where a child has worry about where they are going to sleep or where there next meal may come from gives them little time, if any, to focus or even think about attending school. In addition, attending school means a need for the upkeep of personal hygiene, having clean clothes and most importantly transportation to and from school, which can add more stress to a child outside of the fact they are homeless. Not having these things causes high levels of depression, anxiety and low self-esteem. Th...
Homeless children are in fair or poor health twice as often as other children. They
The government has the power to help reduce the risk of becoming homeless due to economic reasons. Nan Roman, president of the National Alliance to End Homelessness, points out that, in order to end homelessness, the government could make housing more affordable to lower income families “or figure out some way to supplement people 's income through vouchers or tax credits" (qtd. in Housing the Homeless). This would mean that even if a person, or an entire family, lost their main source of income, they would still have the me...
While Soup Kitchens are a way to feed the poor or homeless, it not a program that effectively helps the homeless onto their feet, it simply keeps them fed. (www.merriam-webster.com) These do help the unsheltered homeless population though. While there are shelters, not everyone has access to them or some even chose not to go. In the city of Los Angeles, there are about 27,000 homeless people who are unsheltered, that’s 1 in 378. There are various factors that cause homelessness; these include a decline in public assistance, domestic violence, drug and alcohol abuse, job loss, divorce, low wages, poverty, severe depression, physical disabilities or mental illnesses. From the year 2011 to 2012, the number of homeless people skyrocketed. In New York City alone, there are more homeless people in the year 2014 than there were in the recession of the 1980s. (www.studentsagainsthunger.org)
Homelessness is increasing more every year. In fact, according to the National Alliance to End Homelessness, over 640,000 people experience homelessness every night. (Hunger and Homelessness in North America) By definition, the homeless are groups of people that do not have a home. They can be people who are mentally ill, unemployed, veterans, or even children born into unfortunate families. Since they have nowhere to go, the homeless usually live inside abandoned buildings, in the streets, or in makeshift homes, such as a cardboard box or homemade tent. Although some work to find a decent home, many still suffer from depression or are psychically disabled and cannot work. (Overview of Homelessness in America) These people do not choose to be homeless, instead they become homeless due to a series of unfortunate events; namely losing their source of income or becoming homeless by birth. One instance of this occurred in the life of Hazel Washington. Hazel was fleeing an abusive relationship when she moved in with her relative and his girlfriend, but she was not told about their impending eviction. Because of this, her roommates took everything she owned an...
The National Association for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth (NAEHCY) defines Homelessness “is a lack of permanent housing resulting from extreme poverty and/or unsafe or unstable living environments” (NAEHCY, 2011, p. 2). In the year 2004, it was required that all states were to report to CSPR (Consolidated State Performance Report) of data collected of children and youth enrolled in any educational services (Bowman, Dukes, Moore, 2012, p. 6). The table presented below shows reports the school years of 2004-2010.
Minors in states of homelessness often begin to lack education due to the lack of transportation to and from school and insufficiency of appropriate records; the lack of education makes the potential of becoming financially stable in the future slim. Many homeless youth become resistant to change, either by choice or by circumstance, and remain in challenging circumstances throughout their adult life. Many homeless youth become stuck on the track of homelessness without the help of organizations who aim to help these specific
With the number of homeless students on the rise, schools encounter new educational challenges that include: establishing and maintaining enrollment procedures that would not discourage school attendance; lack of teacher-training/awareness in the special needs of homeless children; the non-existence of a school transfer system for homeless children that would be least destructive to a child's education, while all the time not overlooking the basic needs of food, clothing, shelter, security and medical care that homeless families with children require immediately.
People should help the homeless by aiding them with healthcare, housing, and childcare. Homelessness is not a new trend and is growing more everyday. Homeless people should not be different from anyone else when it comes to getting a helping hand.
When most people think about what kind of people are homeless, they often think of a shabbily dressed, elder male sitting in the front of a random doorway, with a wine bottle in a brown paper bag. However, homelessness for the past years has begun to be more visible. Homeless children are portrayed in welfare and academic literature as a category of "children at risk." Whatever happens in early childhood can affect a child 's lifetime. In young children, the results are harsh. Stress can result from major trauma, which can weaken the developing brain and lead to lifelong problems. Homelessness is becoming more known as a worldwide problem affecting countries with no regard to economical superiority. Children are the ones affected by: substance