Surge Seen in Number of Homeless Veterans

In this article, “Surge Seen in Number of Homeless Veterans” clearly outlines the underlying problem of US veterans, which is being homeless after military service. Veterans who return from the war often ended up suffering from critical problems like depression, drug and alcohol abuse Indeed, it is the accumulating problems like special traits of the current wars, post-traumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injury, poverty and high house costing that push them into the streets. The article has also stated out that the number of homeless women has increased, as they are now more women serving in combat zones and this has also raise another risk factor for homelessness which is being sexually abused. To try to resolve the problems, the government has introduced a new policy to bring the long-term homeless directly into housing, attempting to prevent homelessn1ess.

After reading this article, I really feel compassion for the veterans as I realize how hard it is for the veterans to actually fit back into the society after returning from the military service. It is in fact quite hard for them to behave normally after experiencing mortar attacks and saw mangled bodies of soldiers and children. Personally, I think the government should maybe create more jobs to help the veterans when they finished their military service. Moreover, perhaps the government could also give them some practical help like social care. For example, helping veterans who are suffering from PTSD and depression to recover from their sickness, so that they could live independently in the future.

Cities Due With A Surge in Shanty Towns

This article “Cities Due With A Surge in Shanty Towns” has shown that USA is currently suffering on an increasing number of homeless people caused by the poor economy. Due to the recession of the economy, many of them have lost their jobs and houses. In the past, people who are homelessness are usually people who are affected by the up and downs in seasonal and subsistence jobs in agriculture. However, nowadays, due to the global recession, jobs like hitchhikers to truck drivers to electricians has made up the number of hundreds of the newly homeless. These people used to be capable to house themselves based on their income but not anymore. They are now forced to live in tent on the streets forming tent-cities and shantytowns. In addition, these new tent cities have taken root and have been a part of the landscape in big cities like Los Angeles and New York. However, the city has planned to help the encampments by providing essential services and permanent housing. Additionally, they also adopted a 10-year plan to address homelessness. However, they are still some weaknesses to their plan like homeless people waiting too long for help.

In my opinion, after reading this article, I was quite shock about the disastrous impact that the recession has brought to the society. I did not know that the recession has brought such serious issues until I read this article. Hopefully with the help of the government, the current situation will gradually improve.

Attacks on the Homeless Rise, With Youths Mostly to Blame

The statement “National violence against the homeless is soaring” would best summarize the whole content of this article, I believe. It deals with serious discrimination towards people who are homeless. A specific case has been introduced: Warren Messner, he was sentenced to have killed Michael Robert, an innocent homeless man when he was 15. Across the country, similar circumstances were also found and investigated. Mr. George Silleti, who is a homeless person, sadly shared his experience of being brutalized and humiliated consistently throughout his entire life. It seemed to be like nowadays we “do not treat homeless people as people”, especially the criminals in these situations are the youth, who are supposed to be the bright future of the country. The issue is actually so serious that it caused violence and deaths to homeless people, captured the public attention for a long time with shocking, painful facts and figures, and presented such a shame that existing in our community. Therefore, the government started to establish educational programs, which aimed to teach students respect to the homeless. Younger students were involved in making posters and the older wrote essays expressing their views towards the problem. Hopefully, justice for the homeless all over the country will be returned soon.

I admit this is the most shocking article among the three I read. In my opinion, the government's response in this case is completely appropriate and essential. Educating the youth would be a difficult task to accomplish, but it is necessary for training young people how to live ethically and sensibly. This issue is clearly a type of discrimination, which must be eliminated in such a modern age like the 21st century, since it is unforgivable and displays an unacceptable, irrational, disrespectful point of view towards the homeless.

Counting the homeless to help end their plight

This article, which was published on The New York Times last February, describes what has been going on with the homeless people in New Haven and discusses related social issues happening around this area, such as: counting practice, rapid increase in the number of homeless people and even the problematic economy situation at that time.

There are many real – life examples introduced in the first part of the article: Mr. Joe, the man collecting cans on the Chapel Street, Victor… They are all homeless, but encounter very different experiences. Some actually desire to be categorized as being homeless, like Victor, who “has been sleeping outside for 14 years”. He finds his life more comfortable when he can live in underpasses and avoid being spotted by the government. Some others strongly refuse to be claimed as homeless, and do not want to be taken to shelters, such as Mr. Joe. He believes he can manage to stay warm and survive. Similar circumstances create a lot of difficulties for people from Health Center to conduct accurate surveys, as well as offer helps for the homeless in New Haven.

On the other hand, the second part of this article presents a variety of social problems occurring throughout recent years in this region. The total number of homeless people in New Haven now reaches 778 individuals, while the local charities are running out of place and resources to help. Although school gyms, churches, shelters are always full and volunteers are kept busy all the time, the demand for homeless services is still too high to be completely satisfied. Moreover, the downturn in the country’s economy has rapidly raised all of the living costs; results in more people cannot afford basically necessities and become homeless every day. Social evils hence increase, as the homeless have to find their ways to live.

In conclusion, homelessness in New Haven relates to many serious issues. Unless the government immediately starts to take actions, the consequences may be unpredictable.

I find this article very informative, as it looks at homelessness in a specific area from the aspects of the government and charity organizations, not the homeless people. I believe the writer is implying an undeniable truth: public help for homeless people is limited. Hence what the government needs to do is sufficiently solve the economic problems of the country, giving their citizens a chance to afford the life they are supposed to have. Otherwise, the number of the homeless shall definitely increase, and may lead to serious consequences like massive increase in crime rate and negative attitudes towards the government.

Who is homeless?

The article “Who is homeless?” was published by the National Coalition for the homeless in July 2009. By reviewing definitions of homelessness and categorizing homeless people into distinct groups, the article reveals different demographic characteristics of those who do not have a home.

At the beginning of this article, the writer lists two definitions of homeless according to the Stewart B. McKinney Act and the McKinney-Vento Act. Basically, they both define “homeless” as being lacked of a regular, stable and competent place to stay at night – time. Being homeless can also mean frequent sharing accommodations with others due to long – term economic disability. In addition, the Department of Housing and Urban Development states that homeless people in rural areas do not tend to live in shelters or stay on the streets. They rather live with relatives in inadequate houses, unfortunately.

The second part of the article focuses on looking into statistics of surveys, mostly conducted by the U.S Conference of Mayors. Therefore, the writer can briefly analyze and give summaries about these figures, which enable him to classify the personalities of homeless people into nine different categories: age, gender, family, ethnicity, victims of domestic violence, veterans, persons with mental illness, and persons suffering from addiction disorders and unemployment factors. Those are what mostly make a person loses his home, and they clearly indicate it is not always the homeless’ fault that got them into such a harsh situation.


Thanks to these illustrations, interesting facts about homelessness have been confirmed and generally discussed, I believe. Personally, I find the part about defining homelessness the most compelling. It could be because I have never thought of how to scientifically identify a homeless person before, I did not imagine there are that many factors required to consider a person being homeless. In addition, the statistical figures in the surveys were shocking to me, since I have always assumed that people become homeless because they are indolent or incapable of finding a job. Now I realize those are not the only reasons; the person’s background will help define who he is and where he is able to live. This truth hence makes me feel much more sympathetic for homeless people. I understand sometimes we do not have a choice, but to cope with life in every possible way we could, even though they are much bitterer than we imagine.

Shanty Towns

The article mentions the increase in number of shanty towns in the USA. The economic stage of the country has led jobs redundancy, resulting in low income and homelessness. Some people have to leave their home to big cities to look for jobs and make a living, though, there are not many available. As a result, people with no job started to camp and live on the streets in tents, forming shanty towns. Furthermore, many problems such as using drug and violence have also risen in these areas. Despite US government’s efforts in trying to help reduce the rate of homelessness by placing additional public facilities, permanent housing and social services, there are still some weaknesses in their plan.

After reading this article, I‘ve learnt that rate of homelessness has become very concerned. It’s unbelievable that the USA is also facing this issue. It is very important to reduce the rate of homelessness as well as enhance the landscape of the cities.

Homeless articles_

Article 1

This fact sheet specifically defines what homelessness and uses numerous facts and figures to analyse the trends and common characteristics of homeless people. To start with the definition, the definition provided by the fact sheet can be simplified into “a person who lacks a fixed night-time residence and has a primary night time residence that is either public or private shelter.” However, Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) defines homelessness slightly differently by stating that it only includes people on the streets or in shelters and have no alternative residences or resources to obtain housing. If this definition is applied in urban areas, a large number of people will be considered homeless and if this is applied in rural areas, it would not be able to include those who are living with relatives in substandard housing. The facts show that homeless population consists of a large number of children, male, families with children, African-American, people who suffered from domestic violence, veterans, people with mental illness, people addicted to drugs and unemployed people.

This article allowed me to consider the importance of specific definition. I used to have a very vague definition of homelessness in my mind but if that is applied to researches undertaken to find out about homeless people, the results would not be accurate enough. I also

Article 2

This article is based on an astonishing story about negative attitudes towards homeless people. It starts with a story of Mr. Messner who killed a homeless person when he was 15. However, the problem in the article is not limited to Mr. Messner’s murder; it deals with the prejudices against the homeless people that are causing other people to shamelessly attack them. In fact, the number of attacks on homeless people is rapidly increasing and there was even an occasion when one hit the homeless person’s head with a baseball bat. The fundamental reason for these actions is simply lack of awareness of these people, which is leading to lack of respect and thereby not treating them as humans. In order to reduce these attacks on people, there should be an education on the homeless people in order to eliminate negative attitudes towards these people.

When I first read this article, I was shocked that homeless people were attacked without any reasons. I was vaguely aware of the difficult situations of these people but I did not know that these people were suffering from prejudices. I wholeheartedly agree with the plan on education, which intends to raise awareness of these people, thereby increasing respect towards them. If this is achieved, I believe that the occurrences of cruel and brutal attacks on homeless people will reduce to a significant extent.

Article 3

This article depicts lives of homeless people on the streets. It deals with a variety of issues and one of them is related to the definition of homelessness. This is because people find it difficult to count exact number of homeless people because many of them are on the border line of homelessness. The article also contains interviews with homeless people, which describe how they became homeless and what kind of situations they are in. According to the interviews, the biggest reason for becoming homeless was poverty, which was caused by worsening economic conditions that people could not afford housing. On top of this, the article describes how the shelters for homeless people are becoming full, meaning that the spaces intended to take care of homeless people are becoming smaller and smaller while the number of homeless people are increasing.

After reading this article, I became more familiar with the situations of homeless people. I have only encountered few homeless people when I was in Korea and when I saw them, I was not aware of their situations and their backgrounds. This article allowed me to become aware that the homeless people need care and that it is not their fault that they became homeless.

Summer Brings a Wave of Homeless Families

After Arielle Figueras proudly accepted her fifth grade diploma, she was homeless the next day.

The family refused to move out the house even their gas and electricity had been shut off, because they want their children to graduate from the school. New Yorkers view summer as vacations and holidays, time to relax and being lazy. However, officials were preparing for a different summer: the swelling of the population of homeless families.

The homeless population this spring was up more than 20 percent over last spring, this is mainly because of the high unemployment rate. This encourages cities to built shelters for the homelessness.

When schools are open the families tend to stay where they are, and when schools are out, they’re told it’s time to go. This has become a routine for the homeless families. Arielle’s family held onto their apartment just long enough for Arielle and her brother Sabino to graduate the fifth grade and eighth grade graduation.

Dixon’s family was also suffering from homeless, therefore Jason Dixon had to live with his father, yet Ms. Dixon actually want Jason back with his brothers, and she must let the intake centre know that they would need another bed for a homeless person.

In this article, I found it quite sad and shocking, because when other students are having their wonderful holidays; others such as Arielle and Jason are worrying about where they could get a place to sleep. As the article shows that the homeless people nowadays are much more than the homeless people from the past, mainly due to expensive resources cost and Landlords are less hesitant in winter time.

Attacks on the Homeless Rise, With Youths Mostly to Blame / Summary and Thoughts

This article talks about the issue of young individuals, mostly teenagers and younger ones physically abusing and attacking homeless people. It particularly focuses on the case of Warren Messner who is now taking the responsibility for the crime he committed 3 years ago at the age of 15, when he jumped on a log laid on a homeless man's ribs. Today, as the interview took place in the maximum-security Cross City Correctional Institution, Florida, Warren was showing his regret and realizing that what had happened was completely senseless and stupid. The article also states that the problem with homeless groups and individual being attacked has been increasingly severe widely across the United States. Several cases have been reported where teenagers are the main attackers. It is surprising or almost shocking as the youngest convicts are only at the age of 10. It also revealed that attacks on the homeless had actually been happening since the 1980s with the story of George Siletti who is now 51 and was attacked by a group of teenagers back in the 1980s in Fort Lauderdale. In the end, information on the Government's acts in order to resolve the problem has also been mentioned. It shows that education can play a vital part in creating and nourishing the knowledge as well awareness of young people upon the homeless, making them respect and treat these people appropriately. According to the National Coalition for the Homeless, many projects, plans and campaigns are being put into action where by speakers who are homeless or once lived on the streets are being inducted into schools to talk and educate children about homelessness and its community and their related issues.

After reading the article, I have realized that homeless people are in urgent needs of care and support. Due to the lack of security and assistance, this group of people have been proven to be extremely vulnerable to the outside world in terms having no respect and creating wrong impressions among others. As homeless and poor people are frequently being judged and stereotyped to be uneducated and dangerous, normal people sometimes have misconceptions and inappropriate perspectives towards these individuals. Many of us tend to judge others based on appearances and backgrounds yet we have almost forgotten or been too ignorant to know that behind the somewhat messy look and inadequate living condition, homeless people can be just as kind, talented, unique and valuable as anybody. Relating to the movie I have recent watched, "The Soloist", Nathaniel - a homeless man gifted with a miraculous ability of playing cellos and violins has shown that it does not matter how people look and where people live, whether they are homeless and have chosen to be homeless, they can live and enjoy their live to the fullest just like anybody can, as long as they are listened, understood, accepted and treated equally by the society.

Why Are People Homeless? / Summary and Thoughts

The article "Why Are People Homeless", published by the National Coalition for the Homeless in July 2009, has given a wider picture upon why homelessness is being one of the major concerns in the United States. Several poverty and housing statistics have been given in order to represent the two severe factors - the increasing shortage of affordable rental housing and the increase in poverty that are contributing to the rising amount of homelessness. This is very true as the linkage between poverty and homelessness has long been inseparable. Poor people often struggle to own permanent accommodations and unable to afford for sufficient food, childcare, health services and education. This, together with the rise in rental costs have forced many families to make difficult choices in which housing is given up in order to prolong the limited resources of other basic needs. Besides that, the plummet of both the nation's and world's economy has reduced work opportunities and caused wage decline, leading to fall incomes and making low-income workers more prone to being homeless. Another crucial factor, which is the effect of globalization and its reduction in manufacturing jobs of the secondary sector and expansion in the higher-skilled service sector, has left these workers unemployed and poor. Moreover, the inconsistency progress of many support groups such as Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) and Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) due to policy change and inflation have contributed to the decline in public assistance. This has diminished the amount of Government-funded cash for supporting the poor, hence causing these people to struggle with affording medical care, food and especially, housing. The demand for assisted housing and federal support for low-income housing have, hence, increased which exceeded the capability of the Government. This has left tons of people homeless or housed by inadequate shelters or poor housing arrangements. Other factors such as domestic violence, mental illness and addiction disorders, which have either forced people to choose to be homeless or disabled them from obtaining access to supportive housing and treatment services were also investigated in the article.

According to the article, homelessness can result from a very complex combination of circumstances where choices between food, shelter, healthcare and education are required to be made. In my opinion, people often have no control over the driving force of poverty and sometimes need to entirely rely on the help and support of the Government and society. It is almost impossible to avoid the fluctuation of economies and their inevitable effects related to declines in job opportunities and wages problems, which frequently lead to unemployment and hence, homelessness. However, other factors such as domestic violence or addiction which we can be completely aware of and have the control over should not be one of the reasons of homelessness. Personally, i think this article, besides addressing the main causes of homelessness which mainly associate with economic and political aspects, also helps everybody recognize the fact that homelessness can be reduced by staying conscious and living healthily.

Surge Seen in Number of Homeless Veterans

This article deals with the problem that many US veterans are now facing with. It’s stated that most of the veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan war become homeless after their military service years.

Accumulating problems with their living for several years after the wars have pushed them into the street. The returnees found themselves disconnected and alone. Some took several years to find a job and ended up an alcoholic and homeless.

Sexual abuse, trait of the current wars, poverty and high housing costs are risk factors for homelessness. The Veterans Affairs is putting effort into preventing homelessness by offering two years of free medical care and identifying psychological and substance abuse problems early.

Reading the article, I realize that it’s so difficult for veterans to make a living after returning home. In my opinion, the government as well as voluntaries organization should help returnees make a stable living after their military service with secured jobs.

Record Number of Families Seeking Refuge in Shelters / Summary and Thoughts

Through the article, it is shown that the rate of homelessness is generally increasing in the United States, indicated by a rising amount of families entering shelter systems. It is mainly suggested that the recession of both the domestic and global economies has been playing a vital part in speeding up the number. However, as the amount of homeless people keeps rising, many other factors apart from the economies such as domestic violence, eviction and overcrowding have been said to be one the main reasons. The article also addresses the importance of focusing support and assistance on homeless families especially when the recession is getting worse. Many reporters as well as policy analysts have suggested that the weakening of the US economy is resulting in budgets for homelessness-prevention programs being cut down, which is now disabling tenants to pay rents and hire lawyers for Housing Court. I found it very shocking as the number of families entering shelter systems has risen from less than 2000 in September 2009 to roughly 9300 with more than 28000 people staying in such temporary accommodations. With several other concerning figures and statistics, I think the article is trying to ring an alarm to the authority as well as the majority of us - the ordinary people. It is very crucial to gain the awareness of the issue and how fast the rate of homelessness is increasing so that appropriate measures and policies can be set by the Government and supported by the civilians in order to help and encourage homeless individuals and families. Surprisingly there is a good sign that many departments which are in charge of homeless people and their related issues are very confident about the progress that they have made and will maintain. They have been assuring that the city will always be well prepared and ready to face any needs of shelters and support. They also mentioned that the fact that the US is withstanding the pressure from the recent high demand has successfully proven their ability in providing sufficient care and support for these people. Honestly, I was completely shocked when such a great number of homeless people are out there on the street, suffering and waiting for help, full of despair and feeling hopeless. It is true that articles like this are to ring the alarm and raise the awareness among the society as well as catching attention to gather help and support. However, I personally think that such appalling figures of homelessness can also help us-the more fortunate individuals realize the true values of our lives and encourage us appreciate the fact that we are luckier to have our daily needs satisfied with enough food, clothes and shelters.

Review of the “Surge Seen in Number of Homeless Veterans”

The article “Surge Seen in Number of Homeless Veterans” gives readers a new insight into a problem faced by US veterans at the moment: being homeless. As a major democratic power, in recent years, the USA has been taking an important part in solving international affairs such as terrorism. Together with other countries, they send soldiers and military forces to frontiers in Middle East such as in Iraq and Afghanistan. The increasing number of US soldiers present in these areas has implied that more and more American people are needed to be recruited into the army.

However, there is a concern. After leaving the army, many war veterans often encounter serious difficulties and problems, which could accumulate over a period of time and push them to street and become homeless. These problems may include sexual abuse, drugs and even high housing costs, etc. In response to the surge in the number of homeless veterans, the government and many organizations have introduced new policy of bringing homeless directly into housing and providing supporting services. As a result, more than 20,000, or about 12 percent, of them have been put into into permanent or transitional homes. However, there are still many potential obstacles and difficulties that need to be overcome.

After reading the article, I have seen how many factors, from physical to social, can lead war veterans into street living and homeless. It seems that the government should spend more money into helping war veterans to stabilize their living after the war, thereby contributing to the development of the society.

Hakyung

New Heaven
This article deals with different individuals related to homelessness. Firstly, we know about Joe, a homeless man, who lived on the streets under the stars for the past two years of his life. However, we learn that Joe is rather different from the ‘homeless people’ we are prejudiced about. According to this article, Joe chooses to live on the streets as he doesn’t want to go to a shelter made for homeless people. He cites that his decision was due to the fact that majority of people at the shelter are addicts, thieves, mentally ill or disturbed. And as he is not one of them, he wants to have a little of that to hang on to.

Reading about Joe on this article, it made me feel that our misconceptions and discriminations against homeless people can be judgmental and wrong. For example, many of us would get an impression of homeless people as those who are unskilled, lazy, dirty and uneducated. However, this helped me understand that there are homeless people who rather choose to be homeless on the street and those who are homeless but got the skills, the education and the place to live in. The article also personally touched me on the matter that Joe didn’t want to mingle with those who were mentally ill, addicts or thieves. Wholeheartedly, I understood Joe’s opinion on this view that he doesn’t want to be affected in any way from those people. This article also left an impression on me that homeless people should be cared and nurtured vigilantly appreciating individuality rather than their problems and issues. In many homeless shelters, it is unable to cope with the large amount of people and different problems/ illnesses/ individuality. Therefore, shelters become pointless in some aspects. In order to protect homeless people, appreciating their individuality and treating as one rather than ‘homeless people’ would be better.

Huong / How Many People Experience Homelessness?

The article is the report on the research conducted by the U.S. Conference of Mayors about people who have experienced homelessness. The survey is conducted through out 23 cities.

• 12 out of 23 cities had to refuse people in need of shelter because there is not enough room
• 10 cities have an increase in number of homeless families with children
• 6 cities have an increase in number of homeless individuals

The homeless population is distributed as

• 42% African-American
• 39% White
• 13% Hispanic
• 4% Native American
• 2% Asian

The average length of stay in emergency shelter is shorter for single men than single women and families. People who are in need of permanent supportive housing usually stay from 1 to 2 years.

• 19% of single homelessness are victims of domestic violence
• 13% are veteran
• 2% are HIV positives

The estimate number of homeless people is varied over a period of time but it can go from 400000 to 3.5 millions people.

HaKyung

Who is homeless?

In the article, it thoroughly examines the meaning of homelessness and who would be considered as homeless and who would not be considered homeless. The article suggests in depth description of what Stewart B. McKinney defined homelessness as and who is considered ‘homeless’. The article is split into different categories such as demographics, age, gender, employment and etc in order to clearly divide each aspect related to ‘homelessness’. According to the article, independent homeless people consists more of male compared to females. Moreover, there are many children who are homeless under 5 years old that takes up the most of the proportion of children who are homeless. The article also represented that amongst homeless people, majority are African-American and the least are Asian. Out of homeless people, there are many who are mentally ill and suffering from addiction disorders such as drugs and alcohol. This factsheet makes a clear analysis of homeless people in different categories which explore in-depth information about who is considered homeless.

After reading this article, I realized that considering one ‘homeless’ is not an easy option to do. It is clearly shown that it’s not a simple as we think to address someone ‘homeless’. Moreover, I thought that if we meticulously investigated people, some people would be considered ‘homeless’ due to their living conditions. On the other hand, we can also say that just because people live on the streets and don’t wear the most clean clothes cannot merely be classified as ‘homeless’. There are fixed ‘rules’ and ‘regulations’ that ‘qualify’ an individual as a homeless person. Moreover, through the article, I noted different proportions of aspects under each category. For example, I’ve learnt that most of homeless people are from ethnicity group of African-American, most homeless people are males, there is a large proportion of children under 5 years old who are homeless and also that battered woman from domestic violence don’t have the strength to be on their own and the only choices they have is either be battered or become homeless. Thus, from this article, my viewpoint on homelessness has become stricter and in a way, disappointed me that people have to be under certain circumstances and conditions to be distinguished as homeless.

Homelessness

There are many reasons and circumstances that lead people to the "homeless state", in which they have no place to live, no food to eat, no medicine for healthcare, no money for education or spending on whatsoever. Some claim the current downturn economy that makes it hard to find a job, causing unemployment rate increase. The decline in charity organizations’ help and the rise in rental payment make housing unaffordable for low-income households. Many other major impacts such as the lack of affordable health care, domestic violence, which is ranked as the number 1 reason by the New York Times, mental illness, overcrowding, and addiction disorders are also making many people suffer, resulting in homelessness.

The government and the administration have set up shelters providing supports for homeless people. According to New York Times, in September 2007, 1185 families entered shelter. The commissioner of the Department of Homeless Service had promised to "effectively and humanelyprovide services to the city's most vulnerable individuals."

Huong / Summer Brings a Wave of Homeless Families

The number of homeless families increases massively in the time of summer. Many families have to move out of their shelters after their children have finished the school year. This is called “the summer surge” when people are kicked out of their house and become homeless. The article expected the number of homeless families to reach 10,000 in summer 2009. There are many reasons for summer homelessness including poor living income, high resources cost and the landlords are unlikely to hesitate as in winter time. Number of homeless families increase has led to the demand of temporary shelter during the summer. Many intake centers in New York have encounter the high number of applicants for shelter. However, the shelter that these centers provide is usually low quality and dirty.
This article shocks me because I always have the image of the US as a wealthy country where people are rich and living happily. However, after reading this article, I realize there is another face of the US, a poorer, less opportunistic side where people are not provided enough with their basic needs.

Review of the "Cities Deal With a Surge in Shantytowns"

The article “Cities Deal With a Surge in Shantytowns” introduces to readers a problematic issue that is currently happening in the USA: the increasing number of shanty towns. The global recession has led thousands of people to lose their jobs and houses. In an effort to look for brighter opportunities, many people, especially those with agriculture's background, have moved to big cities to find better jobs and accommodations. However, they often encounter difficulties since there are not much jobs available. Consequently, in the absence of job and hence income, these people are pushed into encampments and street living. They usually have to live in tents and lean tos, which spread across many urban areas, forming shanty towns or “tent-cities”. In many major cities such as Los Angeles or New York, these types of shanty towns have become an integral part of the landscape. Furthermore, not only the living conditions in these “tent-cities” are far below the “accepted” level, there are also many social problems that have arisen such as drug use, prostitution and violence. To tackle this issue, US government has decided to introduce several plans, including placing additional public facilities, providing permanent housing and social services to these homeless people. However, there are still many weaknesses that have revealed from these plans.

In my opinions, when reading this article, it was interesting, yet alarming to see how homelessness has become a worldwide and major issue, and even wealthy countries such as the USA can still experience this. Certainly, the problem can not be solved in one day, but it requires a large amount of persistent effort and resources spent by the authority over a long period of time. Hopefully, with fiscal budgets being introduced, the global economy would soon recover, thereby making business activities become more effervescent and creating more job opportunities for people. In addition, NGOs should focus more on assisting the government in providing social services and aids to homeless people to increase their living conditions and help them fit in with the society.

Wednesday 3rd Feb - Classwork

Today you will be completing some reading and commentary on articles related to homelessness as a follow-up discussion to 'The Soloist'.

Click here to access today's worksheet

You should probably write your responses into Word first, then copy and paste it onto the blog.

Have Fun!

Mr Ballantine