Poverty and Homelessness Essay examples

Poverty is a miserable thing to suffer and is really hard for people to go through it. It does not allow them to live a life that is deserved by all humans not providing them with basic needs, many children are also affected by poverty and it it has the biggest impact on their lives. The disregard of their dietary needs and exposure to environmental toxins results in problems but living in poverty also causes an increase in levels of stress hormones in them which can impair their memory and language acquisition. Due to the extremely high cost of living in this country, most of the homeless people are just jobless men and women who cannot afford a house to stay in, contrary to the popular perception that homeless people are mostly young men with drug, alcohol or mental problems.

The homeless are the epitome of vulnerable. Alone, defenseless, and exposed. A person being alone and on the streets can begin to develop mental issues. They have no friends/family to talk to and confide in. A person who is already weak from the homeless lifestyle can be attacked by anyone; other homeless people fighting for their life or the unjust people of this world. This could leave them injured without aid. The world can be a harsh place, and being exposed to the weather can be the worst factor. The summers can be boiling hot and the winters cold as

The image of homelessness has changed since the Great Depression, when many homeless people were elderly and white. Today a growing number of women and families, including young children, are homeless because of insufficient housing and resources (Bassuk & Rosenberg, 1988). As the number of homeless people has continued to rise over the past decade, homelessness has become a central feature of life in America.

The cost of housing is on the rise and many become homeless because they that are not making enough money to afford the cost of housing. The cost of health care and insurance has risen dramatically over the past years. For families living low or middle incomes that can be devastating. Families or individuals that lack health insurance, a sudden illness, chronic disease or accident can be financially devastating. Many people don’t understand the problems homeless families are facing and most families are homeless because of finical situations or because

Ever noticed the people outside, asking you for money on the train or in the streets? Most have a funny smell, or are barely dressed when it is freezing outside? Those people are more than likely homeless. Being homeless is the state of a person living on the streets, if they have no home. Homelessness occurs because many people cannot afford housing, do not have a job, receive low income, are mentally ill or have a drug addiction (Coalition for the Homeless). Homelessness affects society in a variety of ways making it a social issue. It causes economic downturn, increases poverty, and also causes family dysfunction.

Poverty and homelessness are caused by racism, lack of education, alcohol, drug abuse, and individuals who have been born into poverty and are not able to afford the means to get ahead, such as going to college. Homelessness is defined as the lack of a regular, fixed nighttime residence, no matter whether the homeless live with relatives or sleep in parks, shelters or vehicles. About four million people experience homelessness at

“Homeless is more than being without a home. It is tied into education needs, food, security; health issues both mental and physical, employment issues, etc. Don’t forget the whole picture.” (“Boxed In” 2005 pg. 108)

Statistics show people living in poverty are most at risk of becoming homeless. Economically they are at a higher risk of losing what little they already have.

Homelessness and poverty are no strangers to any United States citizen. On any day you are almost guaranteed to see a homeless person, whether it be a trip to a local Walmart, or a coffee shop in the city, the poverty-stricken are everywhere and completely unavoidable. In the United States there are some sobering statistics on poverty and homelessness. According to an article by Alana Semuels entitled “ The Resurrection of American Slums” the author talks about poverty in the United States. “The number of people living in high-poverty areas . . . nearly doubled between 2000 and 2013, to 13.8 million from 7.2 million” (Semuels, Par 2, 2015). When people think of homeless people they think drug-addict, or mentally insane. What they don't think

Homelessness has always been a major social issue for cities across the nation but in recent years it is reached astonishing proportions. In this essay I will try to summarize ten recently published articles and each of the authors view of homelessness. First I will discuss some of their opinions of the causes of the recent increase of homelessness and who or what is to blame. Next we will look into just a few of the effects of homelessness, both to the homeless and those around them. After that we will explore possible solutions that have been tried or proposed.

Homelessness has always been a problem in major cities across the United States and even the world. This problem also affects out local community and even all of us individually. (Daily) A majority of the American people lives paycheck to paycheck, and according to statistics, we are only one or two paychecks away from becoming homeless. While there are many reasons a person or family can become homeless, a majority of those problems come from a lack of income. The job market of today is quickly dwindling and shows no signs of improvement. This market mixed with new government policies is becoming an issue for struggling American’s on the poverty line. Homelessness is becoming a vast problem

Being homeless can be the least or one of the least desirable circumstances one could imagine, causing great difficulties to one more than one could imagine. People usually become homeless as results from a combined of different effects from of extreme poverty, the lack, and limited affordable housing and the decline of government supports, lack of employment opportunities, poor healthcare, and limited health services for mental illness, domestic violence, foreclosures, and evictions (Wikipedia, 2009, p. 6). These are just some of the major reasons that cause people to become homeless. But not all homeless are without jobs. There is a small percent of them do work, but the minimum wage is simply not enough to cover their rent since they are already struggling living paycheck to paycheck or the work is not steady. Forcing more and more not only single people but also entire families.

Housing. The scarceness of affordable housing is the ultimate source of people being homeless. For renters to be able to meet the expense of a two-bedroom apartment, they would have to make twice the national minimum wage. (National Coalition for the Homeless, n.d.)

Poverty is considered the most common and pervasive cause of homelessness because everything else is linked to it. Had someone not been poor, loss of his job wouldn't land him on the streets; similarly lack of public assistance is only a problem if you need it. In other words, when a person loses his job, or seeks public assonance or looks for affordable housing, he is doing it because his income is unable to help him meet his expenses. For this reason, he can be categorized as poor. Thus many poor people are forced to end up on the streets. Unfortunately a very significant portion of this population is composed of innocent children who are forced to live on streets because their parents cannot afford a house. "In 2007, 12.5% of the U.S. population, or 37, 300, 00 million people, lived in poverty. The official poverty rate in 2007 was not statistically different than 2006 (U.S. Bureau of the Census, 2007). Children are overrepresented, composing 35.7% of people in poverty while only being 24.8% of the total

Throughout the United States, homelessness and poverty have become an overwhelming issue. From people losing their jobs to others having to give up their homes, nearly 14.5 percent of Americans experience some type of poverty. This could look like a small percentage to some but in reality, it's more than 45 million people. While this number may be decreasing, the stereotype of those who are in poverty still remains. It is often thought that those in poverty are non-educated addicts and are generally criminal people. This, however, fails to be proven true. In my personal experiences, it was believed that the homeless and impoverished were of a lower social level and it was easy to assume the poor were in their walk of life for more reasons than simply not having money. Drugs, crime, and poverty all seemed to have the same definition.