Free Essay

Homelessness a Social Problem Facing the Contemporary United States

In:

Submitted By pjsumlin
Words 1358
Pages 6
Throughout the United States statistics show that there is evidence of an increase of persons that are in the state of being homeless. Conditions such as unemployment, low income, substance abuse, and mental disabilities are just to name a few. Some of these victims of being homeless are those that are least expected which include members of the military, the veterans, mainly those that have served during the time of the Vietnam War. As a direct result of Post Traumatic Syndrome and other mental/medical disabilities many in this group may not have a permanent home to call their own.
To define homelessness according to the site for National Health Care for the Homeless Council (retrieved 2014), one of the official definitions for the state of being homeless or homelessness is presented as follows:
A homeless individual is defined in section 330(h) (4)(A) as “an individual who lacks housing (without regard to whether the individual is a member of a family), including an individual whose primary residence during the night is a supervised public or private facility (e.g., shelters) that provides temporary living accommodations, and an individual who is a resident in transitional housing.” A homeless person is an individual without permanent housing who may live on the streets; stay in a shelter, mission, single room occupancy facilities, abandoned building or vehicle; or in any other unstable or non-permanent situation. [Section 330 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C., 254b)](National 2014)

This is one of the definitions that tries to explain this large sociological perspective based on trends or patterns and the fact that this social situation requires such a broad explanation to attempt to cover all aspects of homelessness. This explanation does show how widespread and complicated the state of being homeless is and how socially there is not one simple answer to a solution for this problem.
Initially the social problem of being homeless was not considered a major concern and according to Robert Rosenheck in his article on Homelessness in America (1994), when homelessness was first seen as a growing public problem, it was originally linked to the recession of the early 1980’s. Because the trends used for the evaluation process to determine future problems were based on a system present that dealt with poverty, this problem was not of an increasing widespread concern as homelessness was considered to be simple situation due to a “tragic but temporary aberration affecting particularly vulnerable segments of the population.”(Rosenheck 1994). The trends that governed this thought process dealt with,
a) Unemployment,
b) Medical and mental disability
c) Being single and
d) Race with the predominant ethnicity of the African American race. At the time, gender played a role but the role differed based on the previous noted trends. According to Rosenheck, reports that were based on these trends placed homelessness as a “temporary problem that is confined to the fringes of society and does not affect the societal core.” (Rosenheck 1994) Over the years that nonconcrete concern had become a more concrete and widespread situation. That thought process of homelessness being a temporary condition has altogether changed over the past thirty years. Although there has been great improvement within the economy over a ten year period from the time of that report, the situation of being homeless unexpectedly worsened with increased numbers by individual persons and families that were involved. Additional unexpected trends became involved which factored into these increasing numbers which included the military veterans with the Vietnam War era. According to the Executive Summary of The State of Homelessness in America 2013 report by the National Alliance to End Homelessness, “The rate for Veterans was 29 homeless Veterans per 10,000 Veterans in the general population.” The presence of substance abuse presented another factor that created a trend for the increase of homelessness among the younger population and could be directly related to an increase occurrence of teenage pregnancies and teenagers that dropped out of high school. The overall role that race for trends was a small when compared to the overall age of persons involved, but at this time the role of gender became an increasing factor. Finally the increase of chronic participants of homelessness, those who returned to the state of being homeless more by choice than by situation, provided another trend for the increased numbers of homelessness.
Using the sociological theory of interactionist perspective, there is a complex social attitude that seems to have developed amongst some groups in the state of being homeless. One concern is the shift in the thought process that sees this social change or state as a “way of life”, or a permanent state. Another aspect of this theory is best explained within the social organization of some of the occupants of shelters that have made this “temporary” situation to a more permanent one. This form of this social organization seems to have developed where the temporary occupants are referred to as “residents” and those that provide a service are the temporary service providers on a time frame in the facility i.e. nine to five. It was also expressed in a personal interview with a homeless “resident” that many consider these temporary “homes” as a haven, providing a mental security verses a more permanent form of housing that was associated with increased insecurities of working, bills, and taxes. These provision of shelters are a form of “residence” which is being compared more to a place of ownership and less of just a form of temporary placement.
Society on the whole is affected by this social state of being homeless. This affect can be on an emotional level that results in a temporary “fix” by giving donations to those that are “begging” on the street or to the giving of donations to the shelters. Or this affect can be negative for those not empathetic to the situation of the homelessness and view these victims as “irritants” and are hesitant to share the same public space with this group.
Unfortunately the environment of these “shelters” also present a negative public view due to evidence of more violence and harm to those individuals that live near or to the persons that are a part of the social group of being homeless. These homeless persons are more victimized by abuse and violence by those present who are supposed to provide a service or those of the same group of receiving of the same “shelter” service.
Another result of this nationwide social concern is seen by the action of some cities that have put laws in place that make the situation of being homeless a “crime”. In those municipalities, persons are prohibited from sleeping or storing belongings within public places, or are faced with an anti-loitering law. According to the United States Interagency Council of Homelessness in their 2013 report, these laws and regulations are still it being investigated for the overall benefit versus cost analysis.
Over the past decade there has been a large increase in federal funding to find ways to properly deal with this social concern of homelessness. As a direct result of this growing social problem there has been an increase of services and programs that are federally funded to determine what the core problems are and to find ways to effectively decrease if not stop the situation of homelessness. As expressed by Rosenheck in his article, although the problem is not being addressed at the root it should be to stop the trends of homelessness, “One cannot fix a leaky boat by bailing out the water. One must find the holes and patch them.”(Rosenheck 1994). Bibliography

• The State of Homelessness in America 2013, (April 8, 2013) National Alliance to End Homelessness 2013, http://www.endhomelessness.org/library/entry/the-state-of-homelessness-2013 • National Health Care for the Homeless, n.d retrieved on (04/11/2014) http://www.nhchc.org/faq/official-definition-homelessness/ • Rosenheck, R. (1994) Editorial: Homelessness in America. American Journal of Public Health, 1885-86, vol 84, No.12
• United States Interagency Council on Homelessness (2012), National Research Agenda,
http://www.usich.gov

Similar Documents

Free Essay

Homeless Plight

...The Homeless Plight Student Name Course/Professor Date The Homeless Plight Homelessness is on the rise. Homeless people can be seen sleeping in a variety of places such as city subways, terminals, stations, and the underground world of transportation. In the winter, the homeless may be sleeping on top of grates for the warm steam; fires may be burning from cylinders on street corners, under bridges, or in alley ways for warmth. In the summer, buses, subway cars, malls, and fountains are but a slight relief for those homeless until an authority figure moves the person(s) on. In small suburban areas, most of the homeless are hidden and out of view. The United States faces many social problems; however, homelessness is a major dilemma. To understanding the issue of homelessness from a sociologist point of view, different lenses need to be used. The sociological perspectives of functionalism, conflict structuralists, and symbolic interactionism, provide the best angles to assess homelessness in the United States as well as analyzing the efforts to resolve the homeless dilemma the nation faces. There are approximately two million homeless men, women, and children, and the numbers are increasing. For the second consecutive year, homeless families are on the rise (AHAR, 2009). Causes of this dilemma are vast and include hardships from loss of employment, illness, lack of affordable housing, poverty, and the current economy. The number of homeless is constantly changing. Researchers...

Words: 2914 - Pages: 12

Premium Essay

People

...Reducing World Poverty and Homelessness Inskip Rochford Professor: John Hilston Economic Problems and Issues 05/01/2011 Reducing World Poverty and Homelessness Reducing poverty has become a major concern of development policy. To inform policy, research on poverty has focused on income or consumption based poverty measures. Yet it is now increasingly realized that poverty is multidimensional, encompassing all important human requirements. Poverty is now widely viewed in terms of capability deprivation (Kakwani, 2006). The income approach views poverty simply as lack of income (or consumption). Poverty exists when some persons in the society have so little income that they cannot satisfy socially defined basic needs. But lack of income is not the only kind of deprivation people may suffer. Indeed, people can suffer acute deprivation in many aspects of life, beyond those defined as basic needs, even if they possess adequate command over commodities (for example, ill health or lack of education and so on). The conceptual distinction between deprivation of this kind and that primarily resulting from inadequacy of income is of fundamental importance (Kakwani, 2006). The higher a person’s income the greater is his or her command over commodities. The possession and consumption of commodities (including services) provides people with the means to lead a better life. However, possession of commodities is only a means to an end. As Sen (1985) points out “ultimately, the focus...

Words: 1907 - Pages: 8

Premium Essay

Domestic Violence in the United States

...Domestic Violence in the United States Introduction Domestic violence can simply be described as a behavioral pattern established specifically to effect control and authority over another person by means of coercion, fear and constantly through use of violence. It is a deep-rooted societal problem and it can befall anyone irrespective of gender, sexual orientation, race or even ethnicity. Despite being an established state in terms incorporating its social and economic issues, Domestic Violence is still predominant in the U.S. Analysis Regardless of the fact that women are more likely to be the victims of intimate partner violence, Domestic Violence surpasses the gender boundary. Countless individuals have fallen victim of domestic violence either through physical abuse, emotional abuse or financial abuse. Approximately 3 million men and 4 million women are victims of physical violence in the U.S every year and approximately a quarter of the women population and a seventh of the men population will experience severe domestic violence during their lifetime. (U.S. Department of justice report, 2000). With each awakening day, three women are killed by their former or current spouses. Every minute roughly 24 people will fall victim of physical violence, stalking and even rape by their intimate partners; over 10 million men and women within the course of every year. On average, health centers receive over 18 million mental health victims from abusive relationships every year....

Words: 950 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Syllabuss

...[pic] |Course Syllabus College of Social Sciences BSHS/302 Version 6 Introduction to Human Services | |Copyright © 2011, 2009, 2005 by University of Phoenix. All rights reserved. Course Description This course provides a broad overview of the human services discipline using practice settings and social problems as lenses so that the role and function of the human service provider, as well as the clients with whom they work can be understood in context. The course begins with a brief overview of what a human service provider is, and what services these professionals provide. A history of social welfare is provided so that students can gain a historical perspective of how poor and marginalized populations have been cared for in the United States. Generalist practice skills and intervention strategies are introduced generally, but a more in-depth exploration of intervention strategies are discussed in later chapters as they apply to particular social problems and practice settings. The course concludes with an exploration of macro practice where change is affected on a broader scale, both domestically and abroad. Students should leave this class having a good idea of what a human service worker is, what they do, who they work with, as well as the gaining a deeper understanding of the mission, values and goals embraced by the human service profession. Students will gain knowledge of skills needed to do critical thinking, make oral presentations, function in learning...

Words: 2513 - Pages: 11

Premium Essay

Poverty

... 2 AMERICA AND THE UNITED STATES Abstract This article reports the relationship between the United States immigrant and African- American families presented by Daniel Patrick Moynihan in his 1965 report to President Lyndon Johnson remains the most popular folk model for explaining success, failure and mutual aid in “poverty.” The Moynihan model is an enduring part of popular discourses on race, intensified by contemporary immigrant successes narratives. The participant observation research among homeless African-American families and Latin American families had participated in a small business creation in New York City which happened more than three years ago. When kinship norms are typically American, it is said that certain immigrant family forms are more suited to mutual aid crisis. The African- American family is misused as being dysfunctional. It gives an overview of the demographic of “poverty” and how these demographics have changed since 1979. It also considers trends that have emerged over the last few decades and reconsiders the successes and failures of past public policy. It also identifies the growing feminization of poverty and the growing Latino population as the primary challenges currently facing public makers in addressing the issue of poverty in America. “Poverty”...

Words: 2585 - Pages: 11

Premium Essay

Syllabus

...| |College of Social Sciences | | |BSHS/302 Version 6 | | |Introduction to Human Services | | | | Copyright © 2011, 2009, 2005 by University of Phoenix. All rights reserved. Course Description This course provides a broad overview of the human services discipline using practice settings and social problems as lenses so that the role and function of the human service provider, as well as the clients with whom they work can be understood in context. The course begins with a brief overview of what a human service provider is, and what services these professionals provide. A history of social welfare is provided so that students can gain a historical perspective of how poor and marginalized populations have been cared for in the United States. Generalist practice skills and intervention strategies are introduced generally, but a more in-depth exploration of intervention strategies are discussed in later chapters as they apply to particular social problems and practice settings. The course concludes with an exploration of macro practice...

Words: 2545 - Pages: 11

Premium Essay

The Problem

...development of educational, professional development and community programmes, improvements in family relations and parenting skills, and the value of restorative justice for both perpetrators and victims. The chapter concludes with a summary and recommendations for future action. Delinquent and criminal behaviour For many young people today, traditional patterns guiding the relationships and transitions between family, school and work are being challenged. Social relations that ensure a smooth process of socialization are collapsing; lifestyle trajectories are becoming more varied and less predictable. The restructuring of the labour market, the extension of the maturity gap (the period of dependence of young adults on the family) and, arguably, the more limited opportunities to become an independent adult are all changes influencing relationships with family and friends, educational opportunities and choices, labour market participation, leisure activities and lifestyles. It is not only developed countries that are facing this situation; in developing countries as well there are new pressures on young people undergoing the transition from childhood to independence. Rapid population growth, the unavailability of housing and support services, poverty, unemployment and underemployment among youth, the decline in the...

Words: 10941 - Pages: 44

Premium Essay

Media

...development of educational, professional development and community programmes, improvements in family relations and parenting skills, and the value of restorative justice for both perpetrators and victims. The chapter concludes with a summary and recommendations for future action. Delinquent and criminal behaviour For many young people today, traditional patterns guiding the relationships and transitions between family, school and work are being challenged. Social relations that ensure a smooth process of socialization are collapsing; lifestyle trajectories are becoming more varied and less predictable. The restructuring of the labour market, the extension of the maturity gap (the period of dependence of young adults on the family) and, arguably, the more limited opportunities to become an independent adult are all changes influencing relationships with family and friends, educational opportunities and choices, labour market participation, leisure activities and lifestyles. It is not only developed countries that are facing this situation; in developing countries as well there are new pressures on young people undergoing the transition from childhood to independence. Rapid population growth, the unavailability of housing and support services, poverty, unemployment and underemployment among youth, the decline in the authority of...

Words: 10924 - Pages: 44

Free Essay

Social Problem in Us

...SOCIAL PROBLEM Educational Inequality: A Social Problem in the U.S. SOCIAL PROBLEM Educational Inequality: A Social Problem In the U.S. Introduction: The goal of education is to make sure that every student has a chance to excel, both in school and in life. Increasingly, children's success in school determines their success as adults, determining whether and where they go to college, what professions that they enter, and how much they are paid. Why is that getting a good education is dependent upon a person’s socioeconomic status? Education is a right in the U.S, but it seems to be accessible for the privilege. Why do we have inequality in education? Let’s look at different views explaining some possible causes or contributors to this issue. “Social inequality is the expression of lack of access to housing, health care, education, employment opportunities, and status. It is the exclusion of people from full and equal participation in what we, the members of society, perceive as being valuable, important, personally worthwhile, and socially desirable. Economic inequality is expressed through the unequal distribution of wealth in society. This has obvious ramifications in terms of the unequal distribution of what that wealth may purchase; housing, health care, education, career prospects, status - in our society, access to all these things is largely dependent on wealth. Because of the nature of our society - post industrial, competitive, capitalist, commercially driven...

Words: 5078 - Pages: 21

Free Essay

Project

...11. Understanding Development Theory In the Context of Social and Community Change by Michel Adjibodou[1] I. INTRODUCTION If you are fortunate enough to have walked the land and worked with the people of South Central Los Angeles in California, the mountains of Chiapas in Mexico, the plains of Tanga in Tanzania, the hills of Save in Benin, the streets of Hartford, Dorchester and Roxbury, the hills of Funyula in Western Kenya, one common characteristic you probably noticed is the resolve and resilience of those communities. Despite the daily challenges and stresses on their health, income, environment, land, and physical security, the residents are determined to improve their communities and create greater opportunities for their children. Many of us who chose to work in “development”, or who accidently ended up doing this work, must learn how to work in communities which face horrendous challenges. Engaging people in improving their own communities and, perhaps, working on broader issues demands that we develop great skills and knowledge, not to mention a certain attitude, some character, plenty of courage, and listening skills. Most of us simply behave like backpackers on our way to solve the world’s problems and save humanity from itself. Mistakes are made along the way, success stories abound, lives are damaged and rebuilt, hopes restored, and life goes on. Many practitioners working in communities around the world, and people who want to become...

Words: 11505 - Pages: 47

Premium Essay

Patriarchy

... Obviously, the culture of the United States and most other countries is patriarchal. Men have the power and control the women. If you don't believe that consider the basics of how our society functions. Women constantly must fight for their rights and sometimes they struggle just to survive without the power and domination of men threatening them. Whether an individual woman wants to conquer patriarchy will come from her desire to be independent and defined outside the context of men. Look to most world leaders to see how powerful patriarchy is. Women are certainly as capable as men to be President of the United States, yet they are not and probably won't be any time soon. Men have been in that role for so long that our country probably does not believe it is possible. Consider who is typically at the head of a company or leaders in local governments. While certainly more women are fulfilling these roles, it is a constant struggle for the ones who are able to achieve that success with men having much more power just by their biological nature. Men have not had to fight for their place in society like women have. It has been an expectation that they will become leaders because that is what patriarchy is about. Much of patriarchy also has its roots in Christianity. Religions which believe the Bible or other religious text often follow it faithfully by its every word which puts the men in charge. The Bible which most Christians live by states boldly that women should be submissive...

Words: 12725 - Pages: 51

Premium Essay

Woman in Pacific

...WOMEN AND LEADERSHIP: THE STATE OF PLAY Deborah L. Rhode and Barbara Kellerman July, 2006 c Some four decades ago, Betty Friedan helped launch the contemporary women’s movement with her publication of The Feminine Mystique. The book famously identified a “problem that has no name”: American women’s confinement to a separate and unequal domestic sphere. One factor contributing to women’s unequal status was their absence from leadership positions. Another aspect of the problem was the lack of cultural consensus that this absence was itself part of the problem, and a matter of social concern. Over the last several decades, we have named that leadership problem and created a cottage industry to address it. Women’s underrepresentation in positions of power generates an increasing array of committees, commissions, consultants, centers, conferences, and commentary such as the essays that follow. Yet while we have made considerable progress in understanding the problem, we remain a dispiriting distance from solving it. I. The Underrepresentation of Women in Leadership Roles The facts are frustratingly familiar. Despite almost a half-century of equal opportunity legislation, women’s opportunities for leadership are anything but equal. To be sure, the situation has improved significantly over this period, particularly if leadership is broadly defined to include informal as well as formal exercises of authority.[i] By that definition, the percentage of women...

Words: 18043 - Pages: 73

Free Essay

Haapiness

...seriously. Specifically, it is concerned with the nature, opportunities, and challenges facing women’s nongovernmental organization (NGOs), which seek to make real contributions to sustainable development. It uses a case study of COFERENE, a successful women’s NGO in Costa Rica, to explore the nature of partnerships, the contextual factors that shape them, the successes that can be realized from their wise use, and the potential problems that may arise. There are lessons, both optimistic and cautionary, to be learned from COFERENE’S experiences. This article analyzes these lessons. In synthesis, partnerships are complex and demanding, though there are cases in which women’s NGOs have used them effectively to foster sustainable development. Ó 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved. Key words — geographical focus: global, country specific: Costa Rica, sustainable development, partnerships, culture, nonprofits A woman said that her father was a street sweeper. If some people consider this a humble job, her opinion was that a person who has the job of picking up garbage is way superior to the person who throws away Author unknown garbage. 1 1. INTRODUCTION Although progress for women can be ascertained throughout the world in health, education, and labor, there is still much work to be done (Stromquist, 1992, 1996, 1997, 1998; Wetzel, 1993; Wolfensohn, 1998; World Bank, 1999, 2000, 2001; United Nations, 1995a; UNDP, 1997, 1999, 2000)....

Words: 14873 - Pages: 60

Premium Essay

Criminal Record Management

...Criminal Records in the Digital Age: A Review of Current Practices and Recommendations for Reform in Texas Helen Gaebler, Senior Research Attorney William Wayne Justice Center for Public Interest Law The University of Texas School of law March 2013 TABLE OF CONTENTS I. INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................................4 II. THE PROBLEM: CRIMINAL RECORDS AND COLLATERAL CONSEQUENCES .........................................5 Collateral Consequences Overview ......................................................................................................... 5 Who’s Affected? A Look at the Numbers in Texas .................................................................................. 8 Disproportionality and the Criminal Justice System .............................................................................. 10 Reaching Across Generations and Communities ................................................................................... 11 III. AN OUTDATED SYSTEM: OPEN ACCESS TO CRIMINAL RECORDS .................................................... 12 The Background Checking Industry........................................................................................................ 12 Common Practices and Pitfalls............................................................................................................... 13 Past Calls for Reform .....................

Words: 25987 - Pages: 104

Premium Essay

Term Paper

...Chapter One – Introduction 1.1: Introduction 1.2: Origin of the study 1.3: Objectives of the study 1.4: Data collection process 1.5: Limitations 1.1: Introduction Juvenile Delinquency is a terrible problem in the unequal management system of society of the modern world. Juvenile Delinquency is increasing for the fast and speedy development of Industrialization and Urbanization. Industrialization and Urbanization make changes the Family structure which increases the propensity of Juvenile Delinquency. A large scale of people has been shifted to City town from rural area and keeps staying in the abdomen. This also increases Juvenile Delinquency. Now Juvenile Delinquency has emerged as a matter of concern in Bangladesh in recent times with the number of children and young people involved in "criminal activities" rising at an alarming rate. In most of the cases this is not a deliberate choice for the children. Numerous social factors coupled with poor parenting, family troubles and above all extreme poverty are pushing these children to this anti-social position. A child is born innocent and if nourished with tender care and attention, he or she will be blossom with faculties physical, mental, moral and spiritual into a person of stature and excellence. On the other hand, noxious surroundings, neglect of basic needs, bad company and other abuses and temptations would spoil the child and likely to turn him a delinquent. Therefore, expressing his concern for Child...

Words: 23351 - Pages: 94