Homelessness And Negative Connotation

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The solution to homelessness is not a quick fix it’s a problem that contains various complex issues and factors. Typically, when Americans think of the homeless we associate them with a negative connotation, single individual’s living on the streets suffering from substance abuse. However, that is not the case; the homeless can include a variety of people from groups of families to war veterans. Housing should not be a luxury only provided to certain individuals, it is a basic human right that no one should be denied. Therefore, we as Americans should not associate the homeless with negative connotations, but instead work together to improve the current state of the homeless. We must work to bring awareness and solutions to the situation, by …show more content…
The dangers that homeless community faces are often overlooked and ignored, even though they are at a higher risk to receive violent acts against them. According to the Jan Gurley article “Homelessness kills, but we can save lives” assaults, rapes and murder are the most common acts of violence in the urban areas, where the majority of the homeless community resides in. One may assume that it is the law enforcement job to prevent these actions from occurring, however, it seems that the police might as well not exist to these homeless communities. Countless of crimes are committed against these defenseless individuals and remain unreported because of fear. The National Coalition for the Homeless reports that most victims of hate crimes remain silent due to the fear of the attacker retaliating. A compelling piece of evidence provided in the article focuses on the attack of a homeless man, who was aggressively attacked by 4 unknown individuals. These violent acts of aggression against the homeless are often ignored because there are very few laws that protect them. If we as a community enforced more safety laws for the homeless we would be able to reduce these incidents and create a safer …show more content…
We can assume that not being able to obtain housing can lead to individuals health problems as they are unable to receive the common amenities in a normal household such as water. While Gurley express an exaggerated opinion on reasons for the homeless causes of death, she is still a physician and understands that most of the health issues suffered by the homeless are easily treatable. The reason for the health disparities among the homeless can be easily connected to their lack accesses to medical assistance, but just like any regular person knows, in order to receive medical treatment you need healthcare. Medical insurance is expensive and not many can afford it, which excludes many homeless from ever receiving proper medical care. This never ending cycle just increases the number of people remaining untreated, however it’s just not physical problems that the homeless community faces it is also mental. A large percentage of homeless people suffer from mental illness but rarely ever receive treatment for it. This is where the shelters play a key component on resolving the health disparity issue, by allowing more homeless shelters to be constructed we can increase the treatment size of the homeless

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