who are the homeless?
DESCRIPTION
A mash-up of info from Change.org\'s End Homelessness blog, Invisible People TV, National Alliance to End Homelessness\' FAQ and the Boulder Shelter for the Homeless\' wisdom gained from over 25 years of sheltering.TRANSCRIPT
WHO ARE THE HOMELESS?
A Short Introduction
Why you don’t want to learn about homelessness
Emotional overwhelm: what happens if I care? • Helplessness• Vicarious trauma
Mind traps: why is this so confusing?• It’s hard to make sense of all the
statistics.• Insomnia Transformation: when did my ideas start to change? • Close contact with the wrong side of
the American dream is a powerful experience.
• It’s hard to go back.
How to learn about a seemingly impossible problem like homelessness.
With a willingness to make mistakes.
“Is an intelligent human being likely to be much more than a large-scale manufacturer of misunderstanding?” -Phillip Roth
How to learn about a seemingly impossible problem like homelessness.
With skepticism and openness.
“O my body, make of me always a [person] who questions!” –Franz Fanon
How to learn about a seemingly impossible problem like homelessness.
With a big heart.
“Everybody can be great... because anybody can serve. You don't have to have a college degree to serve. You don't have to make your subject and verb agree to serve. You only need a heart full of grace, a soul generated by love.” -Martin Luther King, Jr
What’s homelessness?
Homelessness is the condition of not having a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence.
The Numbers
If the shelter had only ten clients…7 White1 Hispanic1 Black1 Native American
8 men2 women
4 will work6 will be unemployed
3 will have mental health issues4 will have substance abuse issues
3 veterans
5 will stay 7 days or less
Who becomes homeless?
There is only one generalization
that adequately describes the
homeless: they don’t have a
house.
Families
Victims of domestic violence
Veterans
Persons with mental illness
Persons suffering from addiction
Minimum wage employees
How do people become homeless?
The most proximate cause of homelessness is poverty. This, combined with a lack of affordable housing borne by declining government support, has created a housing crisis for poor people.
What issues affect the homeless?
1. The homeless experience mental anguish, a loss of dignity, depression and feelings of insecurity.
2. They are sick more often than the average American while only half have healthcare.
3. They are likely to be subject to discrimination and violence while living on the streets.
Looking more deeply
ListenTake Care
In their own words