Homelessness and the Failure of the Welfare System - Essay Example

In his time on the streets, he speaks of Billy Jack, a longtime homeless person who has recently gotten out of jail after five years. For him, being homeless is a matter of pride and a sense of place. He panhandles, he drinks wine, and he waits every morning for the Sally Ann truck to come by with breakfast and clothing. He is settled in his routine. The Parkdale recreation centre in Toronto is a shelter for the homeless, but, according to Stackhouse, public opinion does not consider these people homeless.

Some have mental problems; some, such as Jim, have at least a part-time job. Jim works to supplement his disability income and believes that working is a way to be healthier. What constitutes a homeless person Is it simply a matter of not have a mailing address or is it based on income Stackhouse says: When I had set out a week earlier to live homeless, I did not expect to be eating pancakes and sausage for breakfast and pastries before bed, or to earn $20 an hour simply by sitting on the ground with a cardboard sign in front of me (233).

On the other side of the coin, Stackhouse goes on to mention his surprise at how much crack passes through the shelters considered representative of public goodwill. He also makes note of the fact that as he moves from one shelter to another, he is apt to see the same people, who are also moving. Some shelters are better than others, for instance in an affluent area of Toronto, Stackhouse talks with an overnight guest, who apologizes for being there and says he knows he shouldn't be. He has a truck, hauls scrap metal to dumps, and makes about $600 to $700 a week.

The problems, Stackhouse has discovered, are more psychological than physical and often not related to simply shelter for the homeless. To be homeless, according to Stackhouse, is to be without a stable environment. He quotes one homeless man in this affluent shelter who says: "This is a real traditional neighborhood (comparing it with his transient existence). I bet these people never have to go anywhere" (232).Refutation of Opposing Argument It is said by some that the homeless do not have the resources, opportunities and skills they need to go back to the main society.

Jack Layton, president of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, offers a more academic view of homelessness in his rebuttal of Stackhouse's article. But instead of looking at the specific details of Stackhouse's experience, Layton makes this a personal vendetta, ignoring the underlying implications in the reporter's series. The situations referred to by Layton are that, after one week outdoors, Stackhouse claims, according to Layton, that public resources are used by crack dealers, that beggars earn professional wages and that there is "more free food than the homeless can eat" (Layton, 235).

Although Layton implies that he is quoting from the article, the phrase about free food is not even in it, which immediately weakens his argument. Layton does admit that emergency shelters alone are not the answer, but his only reference to the personal aspects of the homeless is their need for more respect. He seems to consider money and