No Place to Go

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Recommended: The effects of homelessness

Homelessness is viewed as a social problem of our society because people consider it to be an undesirable condition. It’s something that most people don’t want to see or think about. Our communities share a social responsibility to find ways to eradicate homelessness. The article, Helping the homeless get off the streets, takes the functionalist approach to eradicating homelessness, in addition to this approach; the Symbolic Internationalist Perspective would be a beneficial addition to the solution of homelessness. The field research method needs to be used to experience homelessness first hand.

The homeless are thought to have caused their own troubles (Kendall, 2010. p. 39). But anybody in society can fall prey to homelessness at anytime in their lives. Some people become homeless because of a job loss, a death of a caregiver, or economic downturns. Being homeless comes with all kinds of problems other than not having a place to sleep. It brings illnesses such as tuberculosis, malnutrition, AIDS and severe dental problems. Just like the general population homeless people also suffer from alcoholism, hypertension, asthma, diabetes and a multitude of “mental illnesses” (Kendall, 2010.p.36). It also brings violence from the homeless attacking each other because of the day to day pressures of trying to survive (Kendall, 2010. p.13). The homeless live in absolute poverty because they are not able to secure the basic necessities of life such as food, clothing and shelter (Kendall, 2010. p.32). Sickness only compounds the day to day issues of the homeless. They do not have access to adequate healthcare or health insurance and often let a condition or sickness go on so long that it becomes a life or death issue by the time t...

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...rces that are in place for the homeless to judge whether they are working properly or need to be changed. The Field Research Method would be best because it allows the researcher to experience what the homeless person experiences as they struggle to survive.

In conclusion, homelessness is something that will always plague society. But the public must enact ways to ease the suffering of the poor and homeless. Society is interdependent and it should only be natural for mankind to offer a helping hand to someone in need.

References

Kendall, Diana. Social Problems in a Diverse Society. 5th ed. Boston: Allyn & Bacon, 2010. Print.

Killiam, Joe (2008, July 6). Helping the homeless get off the streets. The Greensboro News and Record.

Retrieved February1, 2010 from http://www.news-record.com/content/2008/07/06/article/helping_the_homeless_get_off_the_streets

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