Homelessness – The Facts

xtra4On any given night in the United States approximately 750,000 people experience homelessness. recent data shows there are 5.2 million more low-income households that need housing than there are affordable housing units. The primary cause of homelessness isn’t drug or alcohol abuse, nor is it mental illness, rather the lack of affordable housing for low income people and/or families. Over 5 million low income families pay half of their earnings in housing or live in substandard conditions.
According to the National Coalition for Homeless Stats; In 50 cities studied, the official estimated number of homeless people far exceeds the number of shelters and transitional housing space. There are nearly no shelters in rural areas, thus many homeless are forced to live with friends and family in crowded, temporary arrangements.

This epidemic doesn’t only speak of those living on the streets; it also includes minors, those in shelters and transitional housing, living with friends and relatives, in motels and in their cars. Although there is no concrete way to determine the exact number of homeless individuals, the Department of Housing and Urban Development estimates the following:

Approximately 1% of the entire U.S. population is homeless.

0%
Are families w/children (which is the fastest growing segment to date)
0%
Single male
0%
Unaccompanied minors
0%
Of the total homeless population are children under the age of 18.

Further analysis indicates that of the above statistics:

0%
Black
0%
White
0%
Hispanic
0%
Native American
0%
Asian American

Personal factors:

0%
Report not getting enough food to eat.
0%
Veterans
0%
Physically or sexually abused
0%
Were in foster care or similar institutions as children
0%
Were incarcerated at some point in their lives

Employment/Income stats:

0%
Have more than a high school education
0%
Have worked in the past week
0%
Have regular jobs
0%
receive less than $300 per month income

Geographical considerations:

0%
Live in central cities
0%
live in suburbs
0%
live in rural areas

These numbers are staggering and demand action. We need to stand together and do something..

The experience of being in the midst of this crisis is humbling. It’s hard to imagine the stories behind some of the victims of this epidemic. Too many bystanders sit back and decide that these people are failures in life because of their situation. It is too easy to pass judgment on them until we have walked in their shoes, learn their stories and attempt to gain an inkling of what their lives are, and have been, like.

Imagine the single mom who has worked hard her entire adult life to provide for her family. Suddenly, due to the economic crisis or events beyond her control, she loses her job unexpectedly. Now, imagine this woman, who has never utilized or taken from the system, making every effort to get help – only to have door after door slammed in her face.
Day by day everything she has worked for begins to disappear. Her savings, her resources, her home, her belongs, her self esteem, and eventually even her will to live through another day.
She’s forced to look into the eyes of her children and tell them that tonight they have to share this sandwich or even worse, they can’t eat at all. This isn’t a woman that has lived her life trying to abuse the system. She’s done everything expected of her, yet when she faces those in connection to the system, they look upon her poorly and treat her like she is a failure. Imagine going to seek help from government agencies and being denied because you don’t have a residence or you don’t have the ‘necessary documents’ to obtain one. It’s a catch 22.

You can’t imagine the number of people living this same story.

Homelessness is a wide spread occurrence that is seldom talked about and is reaching “epidemic” status. It is rarely addressed in main stream media, is shunned in social circles, and, quite frankly, is a truly scary topic in general – because there are many of us who are one paycheck away from this very situation. We tell ourselves that the problem is “too big” and we alleviate our fears and (possible) guilt of inaction with “how can one person possibly make a difference?”

Individually, there is little or nothing that can be done on an “elimination” basis. It takes a “movement”; which starts with one individual, who is joined by another, and another, and another.

We can no longer ignore or push out of our minds this heartbreaking & forgotten aspect of our fellow human beings. We need to unite in our compassion and humanitarian efforts to address and help alleviate the suffering and circumstance of Homelessness by thinking “joint effort”.

We need to ask ourselves,”What can I do to help?”