Homeless Youth : An Unseen Population

Our text illustrates that there are various populations within the homeless community. These people are homeless for different reasons, whether its voluntary or involuntarily. Runaways and Victims of

Being homeless presents many challenges for youth that they normally live day to day, unable to develop plans for forming a productive life structure. Since many homeless youth don’t have money so they start begging or selling drugs or start prostituting to earn money to cover their basic needs. The basic problem of homelessness is the human need for personal shelter,

Burwick, Andrew; Durso, Laura; Friend, Daniel; Gates, Gary; Oddo, Vanessa (2014, February 14) Identifying and Serving LGBTQ Youth: Case Studies of Runaway and Homeless Youth Program Grantees. Retrieved from http://aspe.hhs.gov/report/identifying-and-serving-lgbtq-youth-case-studies-runaway-and-homeless-youth-program-grantees

There are millions of homeless youth in America. On any given night, you can find these children ducking into abandoned buildings, crammed up against alley dumpsters, curled inside the big yellow slide of a local playground. I imagine they are thankful for sleep, wary of a new day, but thankful nonetheless. Homelessness at such a young age if left alone, leads to increased rates of conflict. The more homeless youths now, the more our country as a whole will have to deal with divorce, mental illness, and the need for government assistance.

Homelessness is a major problem in the United States. An incredibly vulnerable group is the homeless youth due to their young age and lack of education. According to Edidin, Ganim, Hunter, & Karnik (2012) on any particular night in the United States there are ~2 million homeless youth living on the streets, in shelters, or in other temporary accommodation. Youth become homeless for multiple reasons whether it be because they have aged out of foster care, ran from home, were kicked out of their home, or because they have become homeless along with their family members. Within the umbrella categorization of homeless youth there are high at risk subgroups, common misconceptions, and a serious concern of lack of support and medical services.

Today in Canada, a rise in youth homelessness is being observed across the country. Despite common assumptions, the issue of street youth is not isolated to Toronto or Montreal, but has become pervasive across the country. Although accurate statistics are impossible to come by, the disturbing reality is that both urban centers and rural communities nationwide, are struggling to provide their youth with adequate, affordable housing. Issues surrounding the supply and affordability of housing, combined with personal circumstances characterized by instability, are distancing youth’s access to housing. These causes and their overall consequences, must be faced before lasting solutions can be shaped by society. Housing Canada’s street youth will

Youth who live on the streets are there for two main reasons either they chose to leave the home because of the living situation or they will leave home because they are kicked out or drugs and alcohol have led them onto the streets. 20% of the homeless population is youth and it is increasing every year because of the changes that our generation is going through and being affected by. The rates of suicide in homeless youth are 10.3 times larger then an average Canadian youth. (McKay, E. (2009). Independent Living Accounts: Leaving Homelessness in the Past.).

Throughout the United States, there are a large number of individuals that goes unnoticed. Hidden in right plain sight, but are overlooked. They can be our friends, family, classmates, or the person standing right next you to at this moment. There are young individuals who are facing the tremendous challenge of being homeless. They are overlooked by many in society. However, there have been countless individuals, groups, organizations dedicated to ending youth homelessness. However, they are confronted with challenges due to the lack of interest. The lack of interest found within society can contribute to barriers to ending youth homelessness.

Any logical human should agree that in order for a developing mind to successfully flourish, homelessness can not be a factor within a young adult's life. An understanding commonly found among those with a rewarding lifestyle comply that a stable life for an adolescent is a basis for a favorable career and homelessness should not be associated. Homelessness is a component in a number of teens lives in Arizona, which by default significantly decrease their chances from having said favorable career, thus prohibiting them from having a fortunate life. Abusive relationships, economic hardships, and being involved with the Juvenile System are just a few of the many factors that play into making teenagers believe homelessness is their only option.

One of the stakeholders for this program is homeless youth, because they are obviously affected by their lack of basic needs. Another stakeholder is the families of homeless youth, the parents who most likely have been separated from their child because of not having the means to take care of them. Homeless youth shelters are another stakeholder and that can benefit from having children in their shelters and similar nonprofit programs can benefit too. The community and society is another stakeholder that benefits from not having homeless children on the streets. Law enforcement and hospitals are other stakeholders that are affected by the amounts of resources they use when dealing with homeless youth and homeless people in general.

Alone and troubled, surving the hardship of the world all by yourself. Youth are unfortunate to have life experience on how to survive the world, many youth don’t have job experience or money to support themselves to get back in school and live a normal life style. Becoming homeless at a young age puts a great deal of damage on teenagers, the longer time period a person is homeless can cause long term emotional and psychical harm considering the distant they have to go to just to survive. Living on the streets, youth doesn’t get three square meals a day like a average teenager would, they live off poor diets and lack of malnutrition causing the effects of having a

StandUp for Kids defines volunteering as a service that willing participants engage in to diminish the epidemic of homeless youth and impacting their lives in several different communities across America. I’m basing my assumption on this organizations mission statement and their expectations they have for individuals that want to support their programs. From my research, I was able to clearly determine that they want committed people to join the fight to end the statistic of 13 children dying every day due to homelessness.

In order for a community to be successful people should not up some individual freedom. 40% of homeless youth in America are LGBT because they have been kicked out of there homes for being LGBT because, their parents or parent doesn't want them because of their sexuality. Homeless LGBT give up the right to learn, eat, sleep comfortably and be loved when they are kicked out.

Walking through a major city or metropolitan area there are a countless number of people who are wearing old and ripped clothing, carrying bags or pushing grocery carts full of junk, looking like they have not bathed in weeks and most of them holding signs begging for change just so they can eat something that day. Over the past eight years the amount of homeless individuals has continuously decreased throughout the country. Homelessness in America is a serious problem, especially with higher rates in unemployment happening. Americans

For instance, if anunderage individual becomes homeless there are a number of groups set out to aid them instantly. One group in particular is called the Convent house for youth. It is a fast assistance group that finds suitable housing for homeless youth. Not only do they do that, they also provide help for individualsin need of assistance to establish a beneficial finical plan that will help arrange their budget based on their current wages and expenses (Housing).