How Many People Experience Homelessness In The United States?
Homelessness in the Unites States
1. The extent of homelessness
Homelessness is a serious problem in the United States. Present statistics estimate that approximately 3.5 million people, of which 1.35 million are children, are likely to be homeless in any given year. (How Many People Experience Homelessness?) Studies have also established that “…1% of the U.S. population experiences homelessness each year…” (How Many People Experience Homelessness?) Furthermore the figures also indicate that the incidence of homelessness is on the increase in America with homelessness rates tripling between 1981 and 1989. More recently The National Law Center for Homelessness and Poverty reports that over 3 million men, women, and children were homeless over the past year. (Homeless.org)
The most appropriate …show more content…
definition of homelessness is the federal definition of homelessness as stated in the McKinney Act of 1987. A person is homeless is they –
· Lack a regular, fixed, and adequate nighttime residence (or)
· Live in a shelter or transitional housing residence for homeless persons (or)
· Live in a temporary residence for persons waiting for institutionalization (or)
· Are sleeping in a place not intended for human beings (or)
· Will be evicted within one week from their home (or)
· Will be discharged within one week from institutions where they have lived for more than 30 days in a row and they have not found a place to live and they have no money or other resources to find a place to live.
(Stop the Criminalization of Homelessness! )
In terms of gender distribution, men have traditionally constituted the majority of the homeless. However there was also an increase in the number of homeless families in the 1990’s in various regions of the Unites States. One of the most severe areas was New York City
Further studies also indicate that there has been a shift in the ethnic and racial distribution of the homeless. “ A 1960 survey by Temple University of Philadelphia 's poor neighborhoods found that 75% of the homeless were over 45 years old, and 87% were white. In 1986, 86% were under age 45, and 87% were minorities.” (Wikiapedia: Homelessness in the United States)
2. The causes
The causes of homeless are primarily related to economics and the lack of finance. However the causative factors can include a host of social as well as political elements. In terms of the history of homelessness in America, the first major occurrence of homelessness on a large scale took place during the Great Depression. “Large-scale unemployment led to Hoovervilles or outright homelessness across the United States.” (Wikiapedia: Homelessness in the United States) The economic crises of the 1970s also resulted in high unemployment rates which increased levels of homelessness.
Another central cause has been the failure of various urban housing projects to provide affordable housing for poor people. The number of people who were homeless increased dramatically in the 1980s, when federal funds were withdrawn from low-income housing and social assistance programs. (Homelessness in the United States)
According to reports there is at present a lack of affordable housing in the country. This is exacerbated by the “…growing gap between wage earnings and the cost of housing in the United States which leaves millions of families and individuals unable to make ends meet.” (Homelessness in the United States) Low Incomes and minimum wage workers also add to the problem. A further cause of the high levels of homelessness is the cuts in programs like Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF).
Policy change such as the shift in medical policy from institutional to community based care and treatment for mental patients has been cited as major cause of homelessness. The shift towards community based care began in the 1960’ and has been criticized in some quarters. Critics of the policy change state that this has resulted in a number of patients becoming homeless due to a lack of proper care and supervision once outside of the institutional framework. This is also related to another factor namely the “failure of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to provide effective mental health care for many veterans, particularly those of the Vietnam War.” (Homelessness in the United States)
An increase in the instances of domestic violence and the serious increase in marriage breakups has also been mentioned as a significant cause of homelessness – with one survey indicates that ”…as many as 35% of women experiencing homelessness report domestic violence as a cause.” (Homelessness in the United States)
2.
Solutions
The solution to homelessness, according to many experts, lies in the paying attention to the main cause of this social phenomenon. This includes dealing with the economic root of the problem by upgrading low wages and dealing with the important issue of affordable housing. It has also been suggested that project such as Temporary Assistance for Needy Families be refurbished and improved. Another point of view is that homelessness is part of larger problem which has to do with the way the social system in the country works. “Ending homelessness does not mean fixing broken people. It means fixing a broken system.” ( Homelessness & Poverty) This view tends to se the root cause and the solutions to the problem as one which demands an integrated assessment of the entire social, health-care and housing system in the United
States.
In conclusion the problem of harmlessness has many contributing causes. One of the main causes is economic and the disparity between the poor and rich is seen as a central factor in dealing with the problem. However, there are many other contributing factors, including policy shifts and social and health-care issues that need to be addressed in order for the problem to be solved.
Bibliography
Homelessness & Poverty. October 12, 2005. http://anitraweb.org/homelessness/faqs/causes/
Homelessness in the United States. October 12, 2005.http://www.nscahh.org/hunger.asp?id2=8802
Homeless.org. ( main page) October 12, 2005. http://www.homeless.org/do/Home
How Many People Experience Homelessness? NCH Fact Sheet. October 12, 2005. http://www.nationalhomeless.org/numbers.html
Stop the Criminalization of Homelessness! October 11, 2005. http://www.arches.uga.edu/~meglenn/homelessness.html
Wikiapedia: Homelessness in the United States. October 13, 2005.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homelessness_in_the_United_States
1. The extent of homelessness
Homelessness is a serious problem in the United States. Present statistics estimate that approximately 3.5 million people, of which 1.35 million are children, are likely to be homeless in any given year. (How Many People Experience Homelessness?) Studies have also established that “…1% of the U.S. population experiences homelessness each year…” (How Many People Experience Homelessness?) Furthermore the figures also indicate that the incidence of homelessness is on the increase in America with homelessness rates tripling between 1981 and 1989. More recently The National Law Center for Homelessness and Poverty reports that over 3 million men, women, and children were homeless over the past year. (Homeless.org)
The most appropriate …show more content…
definition of homelessness is the federal definition of homelessness as stated in the McKinney Act of 1987. A person is homeless is they –
· Lack a regular, fixed, and adequate nighttime residence (or)
· Live in a shelter or transitional housing residence for homeless persons (or)
· Live in a temporary residence for persons waiting for institutionalization (or)
· Are sleeping in a place not intended for human beings (or)
· Will be evicted within one week from their home (or)
· Will be discharged within one week from institutions where they have lived for more than 30 days in a row and they have not found a place to live and they have no money or other resources to find a place to live.
(Stop the Criminalization of Homelessness! )
In terms of gender distribution, men have traditionally constituted the majority of the homeless. However there was also an increase in the number of homeless families in the 1990’s in various regions of the Unites States. One of the most severe areas was New York City
Further studies also indicate that there has been a shift in the ethnic and racial distribution of the homeless. “ A 1960 survey by Temple University of Philadelphia 's poor neighborhoods found that 75% of the homeless were over 45 years old, and 87% were white. In 1986, 86% were under age 45, and 87% were minorities.” (Wikiapedia: Homelessness in the United States)
2. The causes
The causes of homeless are primarily related to economics and the lack of finance. However the causative factors can include a host of social as well as political elements. In terms of the history of homelessness in America, the first major occurrence of homelessness on a large scale took place during the Great Depression. “Large-scale unemployment led to Hoovervilles or outright homelessness across the United States.” (Wikiapedia: Homelessness in the United States) The economic crises of the 1970s also resulted in high unemployment rates which increased levels of homelessness.
Another central cause has been the failure of various urban housing projects to provide affordable housing for poor people. The number of people who were homeless increased dramatically in the 1980s, when federal funds were withdrawn from low-income housing and social assistance programs. (Homelessness in the United States)
According to reports there is at present a lack of affordable housing in the country. This is exacerbated by the “…growing gap between wage earnings and the cost of housing in the United States which leaves millions of families and individuals unable to make ends meet.” (Homelessness in the United States) Low Incomes and minimum wage workers also add to the problem. A further cause of the high levels of homelessness is the cuts in programs like Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF).
Policy change such as the shift in medical policy from institutional to community based care and treatment for mental patients has been cited as major cause of homelessness. The shift towards community based care began in the 1960’ and has been criticized in some quarters. Critics of the policy change state that this has resulted in a number of patients becoming homeless due to a lack of proper care and supervision once outside of the institutional framework. This is also related to another factor namely the “failure of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to provide effective mental health care for many veterans, particularly those of the Vietnam War.” (Homelessness in the United States)
An increase in the instances of domestic violence and the serious increase in marriage breakups has also been mentioned as a significant cause of homelessness – with one survey indicates that ”…as many as 35% of women experiencing homelessness report domestic violence as a cause.” (Homelessness in the United States)
2.
Solutions
The solution to homelessness, according to many experts, lies in the paying attention to the main cause of this social phenomenon. This includes dealing with the economic root of the problem by upgrading low wages and dealing with the important issue of affordable housing. It has also been suggested that project such as Temporary Assistance for Needy Families be refurbished and improved. Another point of view is that homelessness is part of larger problem which has to do with the way the social system in the country works. “Ending homelessness does not mean fixing broken people. It means fixing a broken system.” ( Homelessness & Poverty) This view tends to se the root cause and the solutions to the problem as one which demands an integrated assessment of the entire social, health-care and housing system in the United
States.
In conclusion the problem of harmlessness has many contributing causes. One of the main causes is economic and the disparity between the poor and rich is seen as a central factor in dealing with the problem. However, there are many other contributing factors, including policy shifts and social and health-care issues that need to be addressed in order for the problem to be solved.
Bibliography
Homelessness & Poverty. October 12, 2005. http://anitraweb.org/homelessness/faqs/causes/
Homelessness in the United States. October 12, 2005.http://www.nscahh.org/hunger.asp?id2=8802
Homeless.org. ( main page) October 12, 2005. http://www.homeless.org/do/Home
How Many People Experience Homelessness? NCH Fact Sheet. October 12, 2005. http://www.nationalhomeless.org/numbers.html
Stop the Criminalization of Homelessness! October 11, 2005. http://www.arches.uga.edu/~meglenn/homelessness.html
Wikiapedia: Homelessness in the United States. October 13, 2005.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homelessness_in_the_United_States