Rights of Homeless People and the Balance Between Individual Rights and a Community's Responsibility - Essay Example

Many people think that homeless people are those that don’t have home or shelter alone and are living on the street but actually we can also categorized those that cannot avail safety and security, health services and the basic needs of human beings. Not all panhandlers on the streets are considered homeless people. Some of them have their own houses but they cannot provide themselves with food, clothes, safe and secure shelter. Other rights of homeless people are protection against bad weather and personal security for example health insurances so that just in case they met an accident they are very sure that they will be treated.

One of the countries that provide health insurance to poor people catered by their government is Korea. Poor people are provided with health insurance. In other countries, if people wanted to avail of health insurance in the future, then they have to pay some amount of money in advance. Other rights of homeless people in my opinion are education and work. In the Philippines, in a government school, the government provides for the education of the students especially in the elementary level. Everything is free in elementary level.

Unlike in Korea, in government schools, they have to pay large amount of money in order for the students to avail education. Work is also a very important right of homeless people. In order to stop panhandlers and to stop the increasing number of homeless people, they have the right to be given jobs that will sustain themselves and their family as well. The governments of many countries are in support of the rights of the homeless people but most of the supporters are private institutions and organizations.

Basing from the essay written by Ascher “On Compassion”, from Anna Quindlen’s essay “Homelessness”, she talks about some ordinary citizens just like the mother who offered a dollar, and the French woman who gave the food. It’s not only our government or the institutions or organizations that have the responsibility of helping the homeless people but it also needs to start in us. We, the people who can see the situations of these homeless people, have the responsibilities to help them.

There are also other individual rights and the community’s responsibility to its entire citizen especially to these homeless people that every person needs to know. First and foremost is the right to respect. Not all homeless people will be fully satisfied with the money given to them. Just like the example of Ascher’s in her essay wherein the woman is giving the money to the man but the man kept on staring at the baby and didn’t care to get the money. In return the responsibility of the community is also to treat others with respect and well behaved manner.

If people want respect from other people, start within them first in order to attain that respect of other people. Another individual right is the right to respect the rights of others to feel safe and secure. This is what other people missed. Other people often see homeless ones like they just need food and clothes but the most important one, they cannot provide. Even though they know the solution to provide housing for these homeless people, they are satisfied in just providing them food and clothes.

It is our responsibility to help each other, we, citizens, the government and organizations to work together to help them. It is all our responsibilit