Homelessness Kills Analysis

Improved Essays
Jan Gurley the author of homelessness kills talks about the common response people make when the subject of homelessness arises: “…compassion fatigue, and the feeling that there's nothing new about the intractable problem of homelessness.” At least this is the common response of people who do not fully understand the complexity of homelessness. For us as Americans, we need to understand how homelessness is something that affects us.

Efforts to raise awareness and call people to action on the subject of homelessness have proven useless. This being because people don’t understand how this is their problem. Lacking initiative, most Americans still refuse to take part in fighting against it. Let’s start with some facts. In San Francisco, one

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    Los Angeles is well known for its overpopulation, tall structures and ideal weather. It is portrayed as an ideal place to live. An issue that is often over looked and ignored is the homeless crisis in Los Angeles. In a 2015 Los Angeles Times article, “How Los Angeles’ homeless crisis got so bad” Shelby Grad and Gale Holland, question the severity of the homeless crisis through various questions. For instance, “Is the homeless population really increasing?”, “Why is this happening?”, and “Is there a cycle of homelessness among the working poor?”…

    • 828 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Homelessness In Sacramento

    • 1646 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Urban Rejects: Why the Homeless Still Sleep on the Streets of Sacramento The existence of homeless people in our society is still apparent today. There are over 2,538 men, women, and children homeless in the Sacramento area, (Sacramento Steps Forward). Everywhere you glance around in our cities, parks, businesses, and streets it is more than likely that you will observe a homeless person grappling to live. Homelessness is not prejudice toward race, gender, or class.…

    • 1646 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Throughout the world, homelessness is an ongoing problem that affects millions of people on a daily basis. Many people face an intense struggle to survive harsh conditions and stay alive. It is a constant effort to break out of the homelessness despite the fact that the society turns against the homeless population. Homelessness is a societal issue that cuts through every race, age, and cultural background; however, the lack of affordable housing is a common issue homeless people share. Societal issue, such as homelessness affects micro, mezzo, and macro levels of social work.…

    • 1263 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Satire On Homelessness

    • 1019 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Homelessness has become an epidemic in America. It is a situation that is dismissed and ignored because people like to blame the homeless for their own dismay. People like to state that homelessness is a result of laziness and all they need to do is get a job. I never had to worry about whether I was going to have food on the table or a place to sleep. I have been fortunate enough to live a life where I have everything I need to live comfortably.…

    • 1019 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Unfortunately, the homeless will continue to live under such conditions because there is little to no resources available in their communities to provide adequate assistance. By raising awareness within our communities brings the issue of homelessness to the forefront thus exposing the need to provide ample solutions that produce permanent results instead of temporary relief. While homelessness exists around the world, finding ways to end the issue in southern California, has been, and remains a daunting task to combat. Gloria Goodale states, “Overall, California experienced the second-largest increase in the number of homeless people (1,786 individuals) among the 50 states this past year, according to the Us Department of Housing and Urban…

    • 237 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    On any given day in the cities and towns of America, a serious social problem is ever present yet ignored by most. Men, women and children are living on the streets, in parks, in cars, in makeshift cardboard structures and in shelters all across our country. These are the poorest people in the United States. According to The National Alliance to end Homelessness, in January 2014, in a required census count, there were over 578,000 actual homeless people in communities across the country(2014). It is estimated that that number could be closer to 3 million.…

    • 788 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Danger Of Homelessness

    • 2059 Words
    • 9 Pages

    Homelessness poses a danger to our society and its ability to succeed. There are many ways to eliminate the problem of homelessness. Vagabondage in America is the most shameful problem we ignore. The impacts of homelessness on vagrants are substantial. Homelessness should be addressed by the government, because it creates serious issues for homeless individuals and there are effective options for solutions.…

    • 2059 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    “There's enough grief in this world without always getting into whose fault it is.” -Lisa Samson. Homelessness is a problem in society today that most people know exist, but many choose not to do anything about. Per the National Alliance to end Homelessness, “On a single night in January 2015, 564,708 people were experiencing homelessness.” On top of this, there is a large number of people at risk of homelessness, and other people who have experienced homelessness at some point in their life.…

    • 1532 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    The latest annual homeless count in Seattle which is determined by the “one night count,” has shown an increase from the previous year and in the latest 2016 one night count it was estimated nearly 4,505 were without a shelter. Homelessness unfortunately comes along with a variety of negative connotations and assumptions. Prior to this quarter we had our own preconceived notions and judgments of what we thought “homelessness,” to be. Turns out we were wrong and learned quickly each and everyone has their own reasons and stories that led them to where they are. Unfortunately, too many of these reasons were out of the hands of the individuals themselves.…

    • 1598 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Great Essays

    They identify policies as a key factor when addressing homelessness; they state that “Workable and effective policies addressing homelessness need to be based on a clear definition of homelessness.” They go on to state that “older outdated policies only address minimal issues of homelessness and failing to recognize the dynamics involved will result in less effectiveness. “Good practice” policy incorporates changing how homelessness is seen and by addressing the housing psychological and social needs of the homeless, as well as integrating across programs and increasing independence through capacity building.” Another key factor related to the homeless issue is inequality among residents. Greene, S., Pendall, R., Scott, M., & Lei, S. (2016) argue that “cities drive economic growth in high-income countries, creating hubs of innovation and generating an outsized share of national wealth.”…

    • 1442 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Proposal For Homelessness

    • 2455 Words
    • 10 Pages

    Problem and Background There is a growing rate of homelessness in the United States and it is happening to individuals from all walks of life. Sub groups including veterans, children, families, senior citizens are the collection of homeless individuals. In the 2015 Annual Homeless Assessment Report (AHAR) to Congress, 564,708 people were homeless on a given January night. Majority of these individuals (69 percent) were staying in residential programs for homeless people, and 31 percent were found in unsheltered locations. Twenty-three percent (127,786) of all homeless people were children, under the age of 18, nine percent (52,973) were between the ages of 18 and 24, and 68 percent (383,948) were 25 years or older.…

    • 2455 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    It is hard to turn a blind eye on homelessness because there are a large number of people in the community globally. It is a strange thing to say that humanity is doing good when there are many people of different age groups eating out of trash cans, sleeping on sidewalks, and sometimes even dying in the streets due to poor health conditions. Some people might find it difficult to make a change because they think the problem is too big, but they can start to make a change from small and local. For example, in Los Angeles, homelessness is a big issue. Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority reported that the homeless people in the county of Los Angeles are about forty thousand.…

    • 1132 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Our society preaches the idea of equality, freedom and happiness but is not willing to make the sacrifices needed for this to happen. In order to successfully diminish the issue of homelessness, help is needed form each member of society. There is not one simple solution that will eradicate poverty overnight, but there are many different ways in which a difference can be made. By putting a focus on healthcare directed specifically at the homeless, by working to provide permanent housing and by taking the time to listen or give anything within your means to the homeless we can make a difference. Homelessness should not be ignored just because it does not directly affect you.…

    • 2068 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    I. Attention Getter: Having you ever imagined how it feels like to not be able to sleep on your cozy bed but on cold streets? Or you have to transit from one shelter to another and not knowing what is coming for you next? II. Thesis: Many people are suffering from being homeless.…

    • 806 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Nowadays, the problem of homeless people is rather a pressing one, and unfortunately, is widespread all over the world. You can’t go anywhere in a large country without people holding a sign saying “homeless, please help!”. Most of them are an effect of mental illness, poor survival skill, and drug abuse which makes it very difficult and not easy for them to restart their live and get a job. They are out of control for knowing what they should do, what they need, and what they have to do. They have no other way out than to live in the street, sleep under bridges, and beg for some money.…

    • 1019 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays