Long-term Solutions to Homelessness - Justice - Zachary Rezler
In Canada and many other countries, homelessness is an issue that is prevalent and not taken seriously by many citizens and governments. Although unfortunate, many people today ignore or don’t recognize the true hardships homeless people go through, resulting in a lack of effort to resolve this issue of homelessness. As part of the Catholic Church’s teachings, the Catholic Social Teachings (CST) educate society on how to live a life in the grace of God, tending to those who are vulnerable and working towards the common good. Since these are the main themes of CST, homelessness, an issue that relates to the most vulnerable in a society, if solved, would initiate further action
…show more content…
In Windsor, Ontario, the area in which I live, homelessness is a big issue. As well, the amount of establishments that have went out of business and are currently being unused is outrageous, smilier to other parts of the world. Currently, these buildings are useless, however, they could be used to create housing for the homeless. Nowadays, there are many volunteer “missions” that involve students building houses in third-world countries, proving to solve homelessness issues for the long-term in those parts of the world. In communities like mine, it is often forgotten that we have these situations all well, making “missions” like these that renovate rundown buildings and make them available for homeless people would be incredible. However, communities must work with the government to make this possible, allowing for more communication between local citizens and government officials on the importance of this issue. This will give homeless people the chance to use these buildings as homes until they have obtained employment and can find their own means of living. These buildings would be strictly available for the homeless and will create a long-term option for the homeless people in my community. With my solutions, homeless people now and in the future will be able to have long-term options of housing and better education to establish a career, both while benefiting the homeless people and educating others, especially students, on the importance of this issue. As these are both acts of justice, they follow several of the CST (i.e. “Life and Dignity of the Human Person,” “Rights and Responsibilities,” and “Option for the Poor and Vulnerable”). “Life and Dignity of the Human Person” is a CST that promotes the importance of respecting every human being’s life and dignity, proving that these ideas of educating the homeless and providing them with housing follows
The National Coalition for the Homeless (2006) is the most effective strategy as it seeks to address the problem of homelessness through various means, including volunteer work, advocacy efforts, and contributions. Firstly, the strategy requires people to volunteer their time to work directly with the victims of homelessness in the city to help them meet their immediate needs. People can volunteer their time to work with children in various programs, share hobbies, and help build houses and shelters among others (Miller, Hess, & Orthmann, 2011). This is extremely important and can help victims of homelessness to acquire some of the basic needs they lack.
Here in Tahoe, we are lucky enough to experience a great quality of life, and only a few have to face the horrible life of poverty and homelessness. However, nationwide, even right outside the basin, homelessness is a growing epidemic across the country. There are many ways one can become homeless; for the most part poverty. There are also different concentrations of homeless in different types of terrain, such as urban or suburban areas. Last, there is the ever- growing homeless population, and how much money it costs us for others to live in poverty. These are the questions we ask ourselves about homelessness, and the only way we can help is to know the facts about this lingering subject.
In conclusion, homelessness has impacted our society greatly. It is a severe issue in our society that is not experienced by choice. Homelessness is an unkind experience for individuals who are forced to encounter a lack of adequate and affordable housing, poor shelter conditions, and the issue of economic inequality. The government of Canada needs to step up and start addressing this issue as soon as possible. The only way poverty will stop increasing in Canada is by the support and social assistance from the Canadian government.
Homelessness is a condition of people who lack regular access to adequate housing. As this condition becomes a growing problem in Canada people are forced to deal with the issues. Who are the homeless? They range from children to adults and even in some cases, families. Why are they homeless? Poverty, lack of jobs or well paying jobs, decline in Social Services, domestic violence, mental illness, and chemical dependency contribute to the majority of the homeless within our society. What effects does being homeless have on members of the family? It contributes to many physical and mental health problems for both parents and their children. Homelessness is a world-wide issue, yet zeroing in on Canada, the majority of the homeless live on the streets of Toronto and Vancouver where they seek shelter anywhere from a park bench to dark alleys. The fact remains that homelessness will always be a problem yet over the years, the number of homeless people has been on the rise and something must be done. Homelessness, specially in families, is a devastating experience. It disturbs nearly all aspects of family life, damaging the physical and emotional health of family members. In addition, it interferes with children's education and development and often results in the separation of family members. It is hard to say exactly who the homeless are because it is usually a temporary circumstance and not a permanent condition. -2- Therefore more appropriate manner of estimating homelessness is to look at the number of people who are currently experiencing homelessness rather than the number of "homeless people". WHO ARE THE HOMELESS Homeless people range anywhere from 11 to 65 years of age. Most studies show that homeless adults are most likely to ...
the cost of living in Toronto has come to a record high, we need to start doing something about it now before no one can afford to live at all. There are more than 30,000 women, men and children in the city's homeless shelters annually. Many of thousands more sleep on the streets or considered the “hidden homeless”. About 70,000 households are on Toronto’s social housing waiting list and on the brink of becoming homeless because of the skyrocketing prices of owning a home in Toronto. The Federal Government and the province have begun a slow reinvestment in housing in past years, the number of affordable housing being built now doesn’t even compare near the levels of the early 1980’s. Habitat for Humanity has been building houses for low income
Researchers from the Parliament of Canada have proven that there are “as many as 300,000 homeless in Canada” . Homelessness is a major social issue which is present in society throughout most of the world; when it comes to Canada it is no exception. The homeless are known as people who do not have a home or a stable place of residence, they are seen as individuals who sleep in “shelters, public places, vehicles, abandoned building or someone else’s home” . In the past few years homelessness in Canada has become a growing social issue. Researchers say that there are approximately one hundred million homeless individuals who live in public areas, which means they are that one hundred million out one billion homeless individuals who are not appropriately sheltered . Most homeless individuals are part of minority groups such as immigrants, aboriginals, youth, women and families. However, a number of the homeless are simply part of different cultural communities or they may just be mentally ill. There are three types of homeless individuals such as, chronically homeless, cyclically homeless and temporarily homeless . Chronically homeless are individuals who are faced with mental illnesses or substance abuse, cyclically homeless are individuals who had a situation change in their life for the worst and lastly temporarily homeless are individuals who become homeless but not for long .There are many questions and concerns about the homeless population since the causes and consequences are negatively impacted.
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
If you do not already know what homelessness means, it is someone who is not able to live in a stable residence because of financial or psychological problems, so they are forced to live on the streets or put themselves on the streets, because they feel it would be a better fit. Homelessness in Canada is a very large and concerning issue because of the growing population.
in the society . In Canada, homelessness has become a crisis and communities have struggled to respond as the
Studies have shown that, due to the sheer stress and anxiety of being homeless, 30% of the population increase their use of drugs and alcohol. Many homeless people are employed either fulltime or part-time. According to the US Conference of Mayors2008 report, approximately 2% of the homeless population is employed for a period longer than 30 days. Most homeless people are men. The number of homeless families, single women, and unaccompanied youth continue to be a large growing group. Men currently make up 43% of the homeless population. (US Con. Of Mayors 2005). Homelessness is an issue that has become prominent within the last century because of government handouts and assistance programs. The homeless are more likely to be the victims rather than the perpetrators of crime. They are less like to commit crimes against persons or property. Crimes associated with the homeless population are non-violent and non-destructive crimes. At least one homeless person is murdered each month due to hate crimes.. Many of the homeless don’t even report crimes committed against them. Creating more shelters and programs for e homeless will only enable them to stay in their situation. The goal of projects and programs all over the
Homelessness can happen to anyone unexpectedly. Many poor people are at the risk of homelessness. The cost of living and trying to find affordable housing can be very difficult. Many who are homeless are in poverty, have a mental illness, or addictions. Homelessness happens from personal, as well as structural factors. Many aren’t able to make enough for rent, as well as, utilities, food, and other expenses each month. More than 6 million Americans pay more than half of their income towards rent (Reamer, 1989). The trend is once someone becomes homeless, it is likely they will be homeless repeatedly. To end homelessness, affordable housing will have to be created because it is peoples largest single expenditure (Anderson, 2013).
Homelessness is a significant topic that Canada has been dealing with for decades. People who are homelessness all are homeless due to many different circumstances. Canada’s government has been working with an ongoing investigation to end homeliness.
According to Lee Tunstall, homelessness is a social problem that “has been growing since the 1970’s” (2009, para.1) and has caught the attention of both the Canadian government and the general public (Tunstall, 2009) . Predominantly, the homeless are individuals or families with no permanent residence who also lack the resources or abilities necessary to arrange for their own adequate housing and living (Stearman, 2010). This matter affects a diverse demographic of the Canadian public. In 2003, the Toronto report card on housing and homelessness reported that out of 32,000 people who used homeless shelters, 15% were families, 22% were youths between the ages of fifteen and twenty-four, 18% were single women and 48% were single men (2003).
Countless throughout the streets of Jackson, MS there are homeless people asking for food, money, etc. and some people aid them and others walk away. However, does anyone ever see the other side of the equation? Driving down Gallatin St. one night I saw firsthand the “other side”. Because of this, the issue that my research will cover is homelessness. Homelessness is defined as a state in which individuals lack a fixed, regular, and adequate night-time residence. Poverty, lack of affordable housing, declining wages, lost jobs, the economy, foreclosure, decreased assistance programs, domestic violence, substance abuse, mental illness, single parenthood, etc. are some of the causes of homelessness in America. Some of the proposed solutions are: affordable housing and homeless prevention programs. However, there needs to be less energy focused on providing temporary housing for those who are homeless, and more focus on providing permanent, affordable housing. Homelessness is an issue that should concern all of us. With a decrease in this situation it would clear up the amount of people walking around on the streets and everyone would feel more comfortable traveling at night. If someone is homeless, it is a common belief that they are more inclined to criminal activity; therefore less homelessness could equal less crime. Homelessness is not discriminatory and can happen to anyone at any time.
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.