Homelessness : Choices or Policies

Every city, in every state, in every country, in every continent has one thing in common: a large population of homeless people. The homeless are categorized into their own social group by most.Those more fortunate created this identity and do nothing to help them.

Under the government’s close supervision, this needs to stop happening. It is their responsibility to ensure that each citizen is able to practice the right to live in peace and feel as if they are secure while keeping their dignity. Scholars argue that the issue of homelessness has derived from a singular problem which most believe is impoverished beings unable to pay for necessities such as housing, food, childcare, health care, and education. Humanitarian help is not the emergency response that this issue needs. It is in my judgment, upon closer examination, that poverty may be one factor but there is a combination of many issues that contribute into the part of homelessness all under the control of the government and leaders of the Country.

To begin, one key reason as to why homelessness has spiraled down the dark path it’s in right now is due to the violation of human rights. National and local laws have wrongfully criminalized homeless people categorizing them as lawbreakers rather than protecting their rights. Many laws that are created purposefully leave homeless people invisible, kicking them out of the streets, and out of their makeshift shelters giving them this unrealistic label. Some laws even keep people from sleeping or camping out on any public or private property while others ban citizens from feeding the homeless. One is penalized for trying to help someone have a slightly better night than they are normally used to.

Discrimination, social exclusion, and criminalizing are all forms of human rights violations as well.The discrimination of homelessness is in terms of access to housing and land. Homeless people are denied opportunities to live in promising locations. Instead, they are told to live in remote, isolated and poorly serviced areas where there are no jobs opportunities. Many businesses have filed complaints when they see homeless people situated near their locations. They claim that they draw their customers away. Instead of ignoring their complaints, officers act upon it and move the homeless away. The sane and realistic option would be to help them and find a safer and more practical place to spend the night. It would make both parties happy. But the solution, as it mostly is, is the homeless suffering while the complainers are sitting pretty.

Most privileged associate the homeless as incapable humans who are jobless. This stereotype is in fact, one of the worst. Many families that do live in poverty have at least one working member. And most of these jobs are full-time jobs as well. These families aren’t to be considered lazy. But bills such as auto repair and medical do pile up. The savings that most families keep tucked away are spent trying to pay these bills. These poor economic factors disable the homeless’ ability to advance from their situations. And while working these people are most likely receiving a minimum wage which would not be sufficient enough to support themselves and their families. It is to be believed that due to the financial crisis of 2008 the number of homeless has significantly increased. It was said to be the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression and had affected many.

There are many reasons individuals and families find themselves without a home. The family or individual may have experienced the loss of a job, an accident, an expensive health diagnosis, or many other unfortunate life events could have caused the loss of a home and stability. This has been a long-standing public issue that needs adjustments in funding and resources.

According to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, shelter and security are considered basic needs, second only to food, water, and warmth. If a person is to evolve and grow to be a productive member of society, he or she needs food, water, rest, and security. Without the comfort of knowing there will be food on the table for every meal and a place to rest at night, people are unable to fully function to their best ability. This has a major impact on who these people are able to be in society. Without basic needs met, people are unable to act as volunteers for other causes, to take care of their children, to look presentable for a job, and the list continues.

Some people are able to pull themselves and their families out of homelessness. This could be achieved through hard work and effort, by luck, or a combination of hard work and luck. When people are absolutely unable to help themselves because of financial, health, or other reasons, that is when the community should be able to offer a helping hand.

Humans are naturally social creatures. Contrary to popular current beliefs, we will all need assistance from others in our lives at some point. Some people may only need a friend to listen to their issues, some may need assistance in finding a new job when they have been laid off, and others yet may need financial help because of a crisis. Regardless of what needs a person will have throughout there life, it is important that there are available resources to be utilized in times of crisis.

Not only is falling into homelessness stressful and a strike to one’s ego, it is also incredibly expensive to work out of it. In order to rent or buy a living space, a down payment or security deposit is often required. This amount of savings is usually unattainable for those struggling with homelessness. The money that is earned is used for food and temporary housing, making it incredibly difficult to build a savings account. This is assuming nobody involved is suffering from a substance abuse disorder.

It is often thought that homeless people are all suffering from a drug addiction or alcohol addiction. This is an unfair and critical view that shrouds the actual cause of homelessness. Substance and alcohol abuse can be the cause of homelessness but often happens after homelessness occurs. Regardless of how and when drug and alcohol dependence occurs, it should always be viewed as a mental illness and treated as such.

One in every 200 people in Britain is homeless – sleeping on the streets or stuck in temporary accommodation, including hostels and B&Bs, according to analysis from housing charity Shelter. But it might surprise you to know that despite not having a secure home, a small but significant proportion of people experiencing homelessness are in paid employment.

Getting a job is often presented as a solution to getting people off the streets. Indeed, former prime minister Theresa May, in a speech about tackling homelessness, said: Dealing with homelessness…is about more than just accommodation…the key thing is ensuring people can be in work and can be earning and not find themselves in that situation.

But work does not always offer a route out of poverty – and many people who are in work continue to face housing insecurity. Indeed, recent analysis from the housing charity Shelter found that 55% of families in temporary accommodation are in work. And that this rise in “working homelessness” is being driven by a combination of expensive private rents, the ongoing freeze on housing benefit and a chronic lack of social housing.

Being in employment isn’t a straightforward solution to homelessness. And if the Government is serious about ending homelessness then broader issues, such as low pay, insecure work and a lack of affordable housing need to be tackled. Without these changes, the problem is set to get worse.

To conclude, the numbers of homelessness are constantly growing and the government hasn’t done enough to stop them. They violate human rights, allow for a corrupt welfare and economic system, and don’t maintain a sustained focus when given a problem of homelessness to deal with.

While small things like buying someone a meal can make someone’s night a life a lot more enjoyable, it will not end the problem of homelessness in the long run. If the government does more for the cause and realizes their mistakes, this ongoing issue will not be an issue anymore. The streets would be happier as would the rest of the citizens affecting the overall moral of the country. If the government truly has interest upon the well being of their citizens, they should be doing more and changing their many mistakes to try and end homelessness.