Homeless

The term homeless includes individuals that lack housing, spend nighttime in shelters, or lack housing despite having a family. Homelessness is a serious issue for people and families. Homeless people lack access to necessities, such as nutritious food, health services, as well as education when homelessness includes children. Homelessness is linked to poverty and lack of financial ability. Therefore, it is critical for governments and communities to develop policies that ensure that all individuals have access to decent housing. Homelessness affects individual’s access to basic human needs and is directly linked to poverty and lack of financial opportunities.Homelessness can be categorized according to the duration of time that the person is homeless. Homelessness is temporary when the person is displaced by unforeseen calamities, such as a fire or flood. People affected by temporary homelessness can stand on their own in a short time. Episodic homelessness refers to a situation where a person or family are in and out of homelessness. Finally, chronic homelessness describes a situation where the individuals are unable to gain a residence and, thus, spend more than three months in a homeless situation. In the United States, estimated 550,000 people are homeless, meaning that they spend their nights in transition homes or emergency shelters. The rates of homeless population in the United States vary widely with 111 homeless per 10,000 of general population in Washington D.C compared to 7 in Mississippi. Out of the total number of people experiencing homelessness in the United States, 22.1% are children, 13% are veterans, and 41.6% are disabled individuals. Race statistics show that out of all homeless people, 39%, 42%, 13%, 4%, and 2% are non-Hispanic whites, African Americans, Hispanic, Native Americans, and Asians respectively. Homelessness also continues to be an urban problem with 71% homeless living in central cities, 21% in suburbs, and 9% in rural areas.
Several factors contribute to the problem of homelessness in the United States. The primary causes of homelessness include poverty, job loss, lack of affordable housing, substance abuse, domestic violence, and mental illness. Homelessness is directly linked to poverty, which results from the lack of employment opportunities. For example, minority groups such as African Americans in the United States have extremely high rates of poverty compared to the national level. Subsequently, African Americans have extremely high rates of homelessness compared to the Whites and Asians. To summarize, homelessness in the United States is tied to poverty and lack of economic opportunities.
In order to combat homelessness, the government should adopt the ‘housing first’ concept, where governments prioritize on low-cost housing, targeting vulnerable groups including disabled people, veterans, and families. Second, federal housing assistance that offers tax subsidies and housing vouchers to individuals in need should be implemented. Finally, skills training should be offered in shelters, and programs that help homeless skilled people with employment should be taken advantage of.
In conclusion, homelessness is a critical social vice facing the United States. Individuals with unstable residences or residences not designated for human habitation are homeless. In the United States, estimated 500,000 persons are homeless and have to spend the night time on the streets, in cars, abandoned buildings, or shelter homes. Homelessness for most individuals is temporary, but cases of chronic homelessness are reported in persons with disabilities, drugs problems, and mental challenges. Strategies, such as housing first, federal housing assistance, and employment opportunities, are key to ending the homelessness problem.

More cognitive articles written by Susan Rose read at https://exclusivethesis.com/.