Homelessness as a Serious Social Problem Among Children - Essay Example

Homelessness: an issue in child development Homelessness is a social condition of people lacking regular dwellings and therefore spends both their day and night hours out and exposed to the elements of weather. Homelessness is a serious social problem among children with the official government statistics showing that out of five children, one experiences homelessness in the United States every year. Homelessness affects all the facets of the life of a child. The experiences of homelessness inhibit the emotional, physical, behavioral and cognitive development of the children. Homeless children require immediate help from the government, non-governmental organizations and members of the society since everyone should play a role in cushioning children from the adverse and varied effects of homelessness. Homeless children live on the streets and make a living by either begging for money and food remnants from pedestrians or by scavenging for food in dustbins and dumpsites. The children face myriad stressful and traumatic conditions. The fact that the children are too young to comprehend such conditions causes them immense psychological and emotional stress. Among the basic effects of homelessness in children is the fact that it hampers their emotional and behavioral development. The children do not receive love and affection from anyone. As such, they systematically acquire wayward behaviors and tend to act aggressively to other members of the society. They face varied stressful conditions in their daily lives. They therefore accumulate the stress as they grow a feature that makes affects their ability to act rationally and impairs their ability to judge issues normally (Yumiko, nccp.org). Shelter is among the basic human needs. Failure to acquire shelter implies that such an individual cannot afford a number of other needs including healthcare. Homeless children face extreme cold both at night and in cold weather. They sleep in dump conditions especially in rainy weather. The exposure to such rough ecological conditions makes homeless children vulnerable to a number of medical conditions. They are likely to suffer from malnutrition owing to their irregular and unpredictable eating pattern. They are also likely to suffer from pneumonia among other ailments that arise from exposure to extreme weather conditions. Additionally, they are likely to suffer from cholera given the poor levels of hygiene in the streets. The impoverished state of such children makes it difficult for them to afford health care services. This implies that they are likely to die. Homeless children are vulnerable and lack the protection, love and affection of their parents. This implies that they lack the guidance and defense that parents would give their children in normal circumstances. Such factors make the children vulnerable to drug use, prostitution, violence and crime among many other social vices. Drug dealers and human traffickers are likely to target homeless children owing to the fact that no one accounts for their wellbeing. Most people consider homeless children a nuisance. The lack of effective legislations to protect the vulnerable groups makes it difficult for the children to lead desirable lifestyles. They contribute to the rise of social vices in the society and may even contribute to the prevalence of unique diseases among a population in a city given their deplorable and unhygienic living conditions. The causes of homelessness among children are just as varied as the effects of the concept are among children. Key among the causes is domestic violence. Domestic violence wrecks families with children in the families suffering the brunt of such violence. Children ran away from harsh parents who unleash violence and terror on them. As domestic violence break families, they children are likely to escape by taking to the streets. The number of throw away teens is on the rise a feature that shows an increasingly weakening family structures in the country as such children escape nonfunctional families and violent parents. Addiction to drugs and mental illnesses are yet some other factors that contribute to the rising number of homeless children (Hart-Shegos 4). Most families fail to care for their mentally ill or addicted children who in turn wonder off to the streets and begin living homeless lives. Solving the problem of homelessness among children should therefore be a fundamental priority to both the government and the society. Children represent the future of a society. An increasing number of homeless children jeopardize the future of a country. Solving the problem requires the participation of a number of both social and legal institutions in the society. Non-governmental organizations for example revamp their operation and set up centers for homeless children. The centers should have the ability to track homeless children and adopt them as soon as they prove their vulnerable state. At the centers, the children should access clean and warm hostels for shelter, food and adequate clothing. Furthermore, the children should access educational services and undergo through psychological tests and counseling in order to restore their health and psychological wellbeing. The government has an equally integral role to play in solving the problem of homelessness among children. The government should provide adequate funding to the non-governmental organizations that protect homeless children. Additionally, the government should formulate and implement laws that protect children. The laws should secure the lives and future of the children by ensuring that families care for their children and in case of domestic violence, the government should have a way of caring for the children. As explained earlier, obtaining official statistics of homelessness among children is difficult. This portrays the ineffectiveness of the current systems that leave children vulnerable. Solving the problem of homelessness among children further requires the input of every individual citizen. Parents should strive to provide peaceful and love filled homes for their children. Providing for the physical and psychological needs of the children is a basic responsibility of the parents. The parents should therefore ensure that they resolve their problems effectively and abhor from the use of violence in resolving family feuds. The above factors would ensure that children have reliable and safe homes from where they grow to become responsible healthy and mentally stable members of the society. I look forwards to working with such non-governmental organizations as Horizon for Homeless Children and Home Aid among others with the view to contributing to resolving the problem of homelessness among children. I will begin by carrying out surveillance of the streets and low-income neighborhoods most of which are always prone to family violence and throw away tens. This way, I will recruit the children into the organizations and secure shelter, clothing and food for them. As I develop my career in social services with the institutions, I will develop a network for research in order to investigate the problem and obtain effective information that can help to formulate and implement appropriate policies to help curb the problem thus create a safe society for every child. The lack of reliable research information on the extent of the problem is a factor that portrays the extent of the problem facing the society. I therefore promise to develop an extensive research body that will investigate the nature of the problems and identify the most vulnerable groups, causes of the problems and ways of resolving the problem. Carrying out effective researches is integral in resolving the problem. The researches will provide reliable statistic to help both governmental and non-governmental to plan their operations and save the society from the calamity that threatens to spiral out of control. Additionally, the research findings will help in the formulation of appropriate civic education programs in order to develop societies that care for their children thus preventing the rise of homeless children. Work cited Hart-Shegos, Ellen. Homelessness and its effects on children. Minnesota: Family housing fund, 1999. Print. Yumiko, Aratani. Homeless children and youth: Causes and consequences. nccp.org, 2009. Website. http://nccp.org/publications/pub_888.html Read More