Homelessness in the United States

A homeless individual as defined by health centers funded by the U.S. Department of Health is “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 home however is more challenging to define because of the unique personal connotation of the word by an individual. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary simply defines home as "one's place of residence". However the challenge in defining a home results from entanglement between the psychological perception of feeling at home and simply residing between four walls.

History

"Wandering beggars and rogues are a plague to civil society," said William Perkins (1558-1602), an influential English cleric and Cambridge theologian. "They should be taken as enemies of this ordinance of God."

Colonial America

The earliest cases of homelessness date back to the 1640’s in major cities of the original 13 U.S. colonies including Philadelphia and Boston. Wars between the settlers and Native Americans displaced people from both parties. The Kind Phillip War Of 1675-1676 was a driving factor in the displacement of Native Americans. Tension between Native Americans and whites had been brewing for over 50 years over competing land claims, interracial insensitivities and English cultural encroachment on Native America.

Industrial Revolution

The Industrial Revolution itself refers to a change from hand and home production to machine and factory. The Industrial Revolution roughly spanned a period from the 18th to the early 19th centuries. It was a time when mechanization brought major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, production and transportation. These changes made lastly impressions and society, and subsequently contributed to homelessness. Cities became more crowded as people began leaving small rural communities in hopes of finding steady work in factories, the problem was that there job security was basically non-existent. Cities consequently became crowded which led to shortages in housing, thus leaving people without housing options, hence why the street became many peoples' only option.

• During this time the Transcontinental Railroad was being built. With this came train hoppers that would contribute to displaced persons' in an overpopulated area. The construction involved dangerous terrain and tasks, so paired with the operation of new machinery during the time of the Industrial Revolution there was consequently a dramatic increase in physical disabilities as men were injured on the job. We will further detail how disabilities influence homelessness.

The Great Depression

Following the economic boom of the “roaring twenties” came the crash of the stock market in 1929 that threw the United States into an economic depression known as The Great Depression. Businesses began to fail resulting in many people losing their jobs. Many homeowners then lost their property as a result of not paying mortgages or taxes, leaving people to impose in vacant buildings or on vacant land, thus spilling into public space and streets. Those who were unemployed began to make a life for themselves in shanty towns that were referred to as Hoovervilles The rise of Hoovervilles highlight how all throughout history people who are desperate for shelter will create a home for themselves where ever and with whatever possible. Similarly to Los Angeles' Skid Row where the homeless community has created a home with tents, cardboard boxes and blankets.

World War II

World War II played a significant role in reemergence of homelessness in the United States. Many Vietnam veterans returned back from war unable to find work. Contributing to the challenge of finding employment was the fact that many veterans suffered from post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), substance abuse disorders, and physical disabilities causes by their experiences in combat.

Post war, the Universal Declaration of Human Right's passed at the UN general assembly in 1948 in which Article 25 Part 1 states: everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.

Deinstitutionalization of America

In the early 1900's institutionalized care increased patient access to mental health services but the downfall was that state hospitals were often underfunded and understaffed, and the institutional care system drew harsh criticism following a number of high-profile reports of poor living conditions and human rights violations. By the mid-1950s, a push for deinstitutionalization and outpatient treatment began in many countries, facilitated by the development of a variety of antipsychotic drugs. Deinstitutionalization displaced an immense number of mentally ill people, leaving them with little to no access to affordable mental health services. This resulted in many mentally ill people feeling excluded from society, whether from their inability to function in every day society, or through the shunning done by the non-mentally ill, functioning members of society.

Demographics

The January 2014 point-in-time count identified 578,424 people experiencing homelessness. Though the vast majority of the homeless population (401,051 people) lived in some form of shelter or in transitional housing in 2014, approximately 31 percent of all the population (177,373 people) lived in a place not meant for human habitation, such as the street or an abandoned building.

Race

In the US, African Americans and Native Americans are overrepresented among people who become homeless. Furthermore, data indicates that the average homeless person is a middle-aged African American man. Even though the majority of all sheltered people are minorities, almost half of all individuals (45.4 percent) are white and not Hispanic. By contrast, less than one-quarter of persons in families are non-Hispanic and white (23.6 percent) and nearly half are African American (47.9 percent). Thus, people of different racial and ethnic groups may experience homelessness differently—non-minorities more often as single persons and minorities more often with accompanying children.

Gender

Most sheltered homeless individuals are men. In 2009, 71 percent of all sheltered individuals were adult men and only 25 percent were adult women staying alone. Only 1 of every 35 women living alone in poverty access the homeless shelter system. By comparison, adults who become homeless together with children are usually, but not always, women. Women, made use of transitional housing and emergency shelters in fewer numbers than men did – less than 30% of total use – but when looking at the rates of homelessness among families, women make up over 70% of all cases. In other words, men are more likely to be single and homeless, but women are more likely to be homeless with children.

Female Specific Obstacles

• Menstruation

A woman is faced with additional challenges in maintaining their physical health and hygiene when living on the street as compared to a man. Typically, a women living on the street is not financially stable, thus incapable of providing herself with food, shelter or sanitary towels or tampons. In order to maintain dignity as a women feminine hygiene products are not a choice, but rather a necessity. Using the average that women bleed monthly for 40 years of their life, at a conservative average of $8 per month on tampons, women spend an estimated $3,480 on tampons alone in their lifetime. This estimated yearly cost of almost $100 dollars can be impossible to afford in most cases of homeless women. Tampons are considered non-necessity luxury items by most American state governments and are therefore taxed. Recently Canada became the first country eliminate the sales tax imposed on tampons, sanitary napkins, and other feminine hygiene products Ironically there are standard practices of giving out condoms at sexual health clinics in order to promote safe sex, yet protected sex typically involves choice whereas monthly menstruation does not. Many residents in countries across the globe are aiming to follow in Canada's footsteps in making feminine hygiene products cheaper or more easily accessible. The Homeless Period campaign demands that the government "give homeless shelters an allowance to buy sanitary care [items], the same way they do for condoms,"

• Migrant Women

Lack of establishment in a new location where one is residing poses many threats and challenges to migrant women. The absence of family, friends, or other reliable relationships fuel the need of a woman to find other means to support themselves and in some cases their families to the best of their ability. This drives many migrant women, many with little or no education into a dangerous line of work such as prostitution in order to provide for themselves and in some cases their children.

It is also recognized that migrant women’s particular circumstances and experiences may render them acutely at risk of homelessness (FEANTSA, 2002). For example, there are spouses and children who have no personal rights of residency, and who would lose their legal status in the host country if family breakdown were to occur. Family breakdown has been identified as a primary cause of homelessness among migrant women and the role of domestic violence in homelessness among women is well documented, even if the dynamics of this relationship remain unclear.

In North America, where research has focused to a greater extent on the experiences of female immigrants, migrant women are claimed to face multiple issues in addition to those confronted by indigenous populations, which make them vulnerable to homelessness. These include increased risk due to poverty, unrecognized employment and education credentials, isolation, and discriminatory rental and accommodation practices. Migrant women may face particular vulnerabilities, and their need for access to housing may be more pressing because they often do not have established support systems. They also face disadvantages in social status and basic human capital relative to immigrant men which make them particularly vulnerable in contexts of victimization.

Causes

Domestic Violence

Domestic violence is a distinctive and complex type of violence. The intimate relationship between the victim and the perpetrator is historically construed as private and therefore beyond the reach of law. The often hidden site of the violence buttresses this conceptualization. The victim is often financially dependent on her abuser, and other economic and familial factors complicate the victim’s response to abuse. Moreover, women who complain of domestic violence frequently face intimidation, retaliation, and stigmatization, and thus incidents of domestic violence are notoriously under-reported and under-prosecuted throughout the world, including the United States.

• Gender Based Violence

Numerous studies have demonstrated a relationship between gender-based violence and female homelessness. Gender-based violence is defined as “any act of… violence that results in, or is likely to result in, physical, sexual, or psychological harm or suffering for women, including threats of such acts, coercion, or arbitrary deprivations of liberty, whether occurring in public or private life. Violence against women is a leading cause of homelessness. Some domestic violence survivors, particularly those with limited resources, become homeless after fleeing an abusive relationship or after being evicted for reasons related to the abuse, such as police involvement or property damage. Domestic violence is a leading cause of homelessness, particularly for women. More than 90% of homeless women report having experienced severe physical or sexual abuse, and many victims of abuse become homeless after escaping violence because adequate housing is not available.. Half of all homeless women and children reported experiencing physical violence, and 92% of homeless mothers reported experiencing physical or sexual assault. In addition to these painful experiences, most often low-income single mothers with children, are most at risk of becoming homeless because financially they have limited access to savings, assets and credit. In response to violence against women, the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) of 2006 created new housing rights for survivors in some federally subsidized housing, and the 2013 reauthorization of the law expanded these protections to nearly all federally funded housing.

Disabilities

Merriam Webster dictionary defines a disability as a condition (such as an illness or an injury) that damages or limits a person's physical or mental abilities. When considering disabilities in relation to the homeless population one must understand that it is frequently seen that disabilities (whether they are mental, physical, or a dependency) are all entangled. It is often unclear whether the disability was a precursor to homelessness or was developed subsequently as a result of something that occurred once becoming homeless. None the less, the order in which disabilities come into play is irrelevant, but rather their existence among the homeless population is what we will focus on.

Mental Illness

Mental illness which is a condition that impacts a person's thinking, feeling or mood and may affect his or her ability to relate to others and function on a daily basis

According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 20 to 25% of the homeless population in the United States suffers from some form of severe mental illness Relative to this, on a given night in January 2010 26.2% of all sheltered persons who were homeless had a severe mental illness.

In the documentary Lost Angels is states that 2/3 of the homeless population of Skid Row suffer with mental illness, drug addiction, or both. Mental illness can be seen as both a cause for substance abuse, as well as a result.

Low levels of both social benefits and employment put individuals with mental illness at risk. In 2008, 7.5 million Americans received federal supplemental security income, 84 per cent on the basis of a disability, most frequently mental illness

The deinstitutionalization of America left mentally ill people without access to substantial or affordable assistance. There are no governmentally funded closed asylums in the United States thus influencing the high number of incarcerated mentally ill people in jails or prisons. Someone who is mentally ill is more likely to commit crimes (often times very minor crimes) because of their inability to make rational decisions and are consequently arrested as a result of their decisions, but ultimately their mental illness. This highlights a controversial issue as to whether or not the mentally ill should be hospitalized or criminalized.

Physical Disabilities

Whether an individual has a physical disability which has existed since birth or has an onset as a result of an illness or injury, it is obvious that individuals who possess physical disabilities will be faced with a great challenge in finding work, if they are capable of doing so at all. Because of the extra care that is often involved with a physical disability, disabled persons often have much greater medical bills which feed a vicious cycle of needing to work to pay bills and provide for themselves but being physically unable to do so thus leading to unemployed persons ending up homeless.

Keep in mind that risks of developing a disability while homeless are substantial. Exposure to the elements or to communicable disease in shelters, victimization, nutritional deficiencies, co-morbidities, and limited access to health care increase the likelihood that minor disabilities in homeless individuals will become serious functional impairments. People without homes are also at high risk for trauma, which may either cause or exacerbate physical disabilities. Twenty-two percent of surveyed homeless clients report being physically assaulted while homeless. Disabled persons on crutches or in wheelchairs are especially easy targets for perpetrators. Underlying substance abuse or mental illness may increase their vulnerability to trauma and interfere with adherence to treatment of concurrent illnesses.

Substance Abuse

Substance Abuse is highly prevalent among the homeless community and whether it is a cause or result of homelessness is often unclear. Regardless of this, addictive disorders disrupt relationships with family and friends and often cause people to lose their jobs. For people who are already struggling to pay their bills, the onset or exacerbation of an addiction may cause them to lose their housing. A 2008 survey by the United States Conference of Mayors asked 25 cities for their top three causes of homelessness. Substance abuse was the single largest cause of homelessness for single adults (reported by 68% of cities). Although obtaining an accurate, recent count is difficult, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (2003) estimates, 38% of homeless people were dependent on alcohol and 26% abused other drugs

Social Exclusion

Social Exclusion is a key cause of homelessness across developed nations. The mechanisms by which social exclusion leads to homelessness are quite similar for mental illness and minority status. Homeless people often experience social exclusion as a result of being homeless but it must be kept in mind that social exclusion is often times not only a result of homelessness but also a contributing factor.

Sexual Orientation

LGBT youth are at high risk for becoming homeless due to family and social rejection, abuse, and/or conflict. Between 20 and 40 percent of all homeless youth are LGBT identified, though some advocates believe this number is under reported

LGBT housing discrimination is a factor contributing the LGBT homeless population. The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) found in a national study that even at the initial stage of a rental search--an email inquiring about a listing—landlords discriminate against same-sex couples. The federal Fair Housing Act still does not include sexual orientation or gender identity as a protected class but HUD has been making strides under the Obama Administration in using its regulatory authority to ensure greater equality in housing for LGBT people, including for LGBT people experiencing homelessness. As part of its efforts to ensure equal housing opportunities regardless of sexual oritenation the HUD in 2012 released its final rule on Equal Access to Housing in HUD Programs Regardless of Sexual Orientation or Gender Identity. Among other things, this rule required that housing funded by HUD be made available without regard to actual or perceived sexual orientation, gender identity, or marital status. The long-term trajectory of homelessness from youth into adulthood for LGBT individuals remains largely unknown. Risk factors influencing whether homelessness among transitional age LGBT youth evolves into chronic homelessness in adulthood are poorly understood, and prospective studies of homeless LGBT adolescents transitioning into adulthood are mostly lacking.

Gender Identity

Individuals dealing with the challenges surrounding gender identity are at a heightened risk for homelessness, more specifically transgender youth are overrepresented in the youth sector of the homeless population. Gender identity which as defined by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development means: actual or perceived gender related characteristics, whether or not those characteristics are stereotypically associated with the person’s designated sex at birth. The feeling of being out casted by everyday society is commonly expressed by the transgender community and those still working towards identifying their gender.

Issues for homeless transgender youth include the humiliation and physical or sexual victimization that occur at shelters, where transgender clients are most often obliged to stay in quarters and use bathrooms or showers based on birth sex among people of a gender with which they do not identify. Often, they are not even welcomed into a shelter in the first place. The most commonly cited reason among LGBT youth for becoming homeless is running away from families who reject them due to sexual orientation or gender identity. The second most commonly cited reason is being forced out by their family, despite preferring to stay at home, after disclosing their sexual orientation or gender identity.

Affordable Housing Crisis

Lack of affordable housing is a primary cause of homelessness, and the ongoing crisis has led to an increase in the numbers of homeless persons. According to HUD, in recent years the shortages of affordable housing are most severe for units affordable to renters with extremely low incomes. Federal support for low-income housing has fallen 49% from 1980 to 2003. About 200,000 rental housing units are destroyed annually. Renting is one of the most viable options for low income people. The lack of affordable housing has lead to high rent burdens, overcrowding, and substandard housing.

• Statistics show that domestic violence survivors are routinely discriminated against when finding new housing. A lack of affordable housing and housing assistance further limits the options available to these women.

• Both private landlords and public housing authorities frequently deny people with criminal convictions or even arrest records access to housing, leading 1 in 11 released prisoners into homelessness.

Response

Government

Government assistance is something that homeless people often times depend on in order to survive, despite the fact that a very small amount of the US budget goes towards doing so. President Obama’s 2016 budget makes investments needed to end chronic homelessness in 2017, make significant progress toward ending homelessness among families, children and youth in 2020, and sustain efforts to end Veteran homelessness in 2015. In his Budget, the President calls for nearly $5.5 billion in targeted homelessness assistance. In addition to targeted homelessness assistance, the Budget also includes key investments in mainstream programs needed to end homelessness, such as 67,000 new Housing Choice Vouchers to support low-income households, including families experiencing homelessness; survivors of domestic and dating violence; families with children in foster care; youth aging out of foster care; and Veterans experiencing homelessness, regardless of their discharge status.

Public

Although physical and emotional abuse, harassment, and insensitivity are frequently displayed actions or attitudes towards the homeless community by the general public, there is hope and kindness still be to found in abundance toward people in need. The power in quantifying public opinion lies in the assumption that opinion predicts behavior. Previous studies have shown that people’s opinions directly affect their decisions and actions. From a study conducted in the city of Los Angeles California it can be seen that more sympathetic people gave money more often to the homeless than less sympathetic individuals. If media campaigns to increase awareness of homeless focused on the seriousness of homelessness, that homelessness is getting worse, and that there are real structural reasons why a person might be homeless instead of personal failings and negative stereotypes, sympathy may increase. Sympathy and willingness to help the homeless does not translate into the simple action of giving your spare change, but rather in some cases the general public is taking it upon themselves to aid in sheltering homeless individuals. A man in California took it upon himself to build an elderly homeless women- nicknamed Smokey- a tiny home. Smokey states in a local news broadcasted video that "people talk crazy to you", further reiterating the frequent harassment that homeless people face. This act of kindness highlights how some of the general public may form somewhat neighborly relationships with the homeless people which frequent their community.

Media

Considering that all homeless individuals have unique stories and circumstances it is uncertain as to how public interaction with a specific homeless individual or homeless community would have influenced a persons opinion on homelessness, thus implying that there are a wide range of varying opinions. Media coverage plays a large role in influencing public and government responses to homelessness. Homelessness being portrayed as a crime through the media will likely be linked to a lack of sympathy or understanding by the audience. On the other hand, when homelessness is portrayed as a condition it is more likely that overall the audience will express a greater concern and desire for aid to the homeless. Ultimately it is a matter of perspective that determines the tone in which homelessness is presented through the media. This leaves a window for inaccurate and biased representation of the homeless community which often subsequently impacts the (lack of) aid or sympathy for this struggling community of people within our communities. The challenge to not present a single story is a great one due to the various factors and unique circumstances that play a role in the lives of homeless people.

• Social media

Social media has made the world a much smaller place as information travels faster and people are capable of voicing their (negative or positive) opinion on just about anything. Disturbingly, there is an alarming number of vulgar "tweets" on twitter which bash and make fun of the less fortunate people who reside on the streets. Pictures are taken of homeless individuals and turned into jokes on the internet.

On the other hand, social media can be used to expose the truth behind homeless peoples' stories in hopes to bring awareness and subsequent aid to the homeless community. An initiative called Unheard in New York in working to help homeless residents in New York City speak for themselves. They have provided four homeless men, each with their own mobile phone, a month of unlimited text messaging and a Twitter account. These men have found their voices by texting their thoughts, feelings and actions to Twitter. The mission of Unheard in New York is to use social media presence to create real interaction and make them a part of our global community.

Film

The documentary film Lost Angels shows how homeless individuals descent into society’s basement has been exacerbated by the forces of gentrification and the increasing criminalization of homeless people, while exposing the draconian changes to the mental health care system that have brought us here. This documentary examines the lives of individuals from both genders, different races, and a wide age range to expose how extremely varied their circumstances are in terms of what brought them to Skid Row While mental illness, substance abuse, violence, and lack of government aid are all contributing factors to many of their stories, one thing is made evident in the film- for some people the confines of society are impossible to live within and rather the street is where they feel free, or ironically at home.

See Also

Homelessness in America

Overcoming Homelessness

Domestic Violence and Homelessness