Homeless Children - Research Paper Example

Homelessness: Homeless Children According to thesaurus homeless is an adjective that can be best described as: “of no fixed address, without a roof over one’s head, on the streets, vagrant, dispossessed, destitute, down-and-out.” In present 21st century this has become a problem where more and more people are living on the streets with nowhere to go or a place to call home. Homelessness is one of the major problems faced by all the countries irrespective of developed, developing or underdeveloped. The reasons for homelessness are plenty, but individual and structural reasons contribute heavily to this social problem. Unemployment, poverty, lack of affordable housing, unaffordable housing policies etc are some of the major structural reasons associated with homelessness. But apart from these, individual reasons like alcoholism, drug addiction, lack of qualification and social support, debts, poor physical and mental health, loss of relationships, etc can also contribute heavily to the homelessness problems. Many people have the false belief that developed countries like United States may not have the homelessness problem. It is difficult to believe that United Stets is one of the worst affected countries in the world as far as homelessness is concerned. (See appendix for the state-wise ranking of the homelessness problem in America and also for annual increase of homelessness in a particular area) Even though homelessness affects all the people drastically, the impact of homelessness on children would be more. In March 2009 CNN reported that in America one of every fifty children faces homelessness meaning that more than 1.5 million children face this problem, "These numbers will grow as home foreclosures continue to rise” (CNN. "Report: 1 in 50 U.S. Children Face Homelessness). This paper briefly explains the impacts of homelessness on children. Impacts of homelessness on children “Children living in families who are homeless or at risk for homelessness suffer from hunger, poor physical and mental health, and missed educational opportunities” (The National Center on Family Homelessness). Ellen (1999) also expressed similar concerns. Children born into homelessness are more likely to have low birth weights and are at greater risk of death. Homelessness also exposes infants to environmental factors that can endanger their health. Because homeless families often have little access to health care, many homeless infants lack essential immunizations. Homeless children begin to demonstrate significant developmental delays after 18 months of age, which are believed to influence later behavioral and emotional problems (Ellen, p.2) The children homelessness causes many problems. The absence of a safe place results many diseases for children. Especially young children with no home to comfort themselves result in both poor mental and physical health. The homeless children have a higher percentage of suffering from disease than other children. Due to the lack of care and poor nutrition and shelter, homeless children may become the victims of severe diseases. Young children have a weak immune system and hence diseases can affect them easily, if they fail to get protection under a proper housing. Street children are always vulnerable to health problems. Poor hygienic conditions, lack of control over life styles, association with antisocial elements etc will affect their health immensely. Heredity and environment are the two major things which affect the growth and development of children. It is impossible for the children to grow positively in a street environment. “Homeless children are sick at twice the rate of other children. They suffer twice as many ear infections, have four times the rate of asthma, and have five times more diarrhea and stomach problems” (Bassuk, & Friedman, p.2). Homeless children suffer emotional problems, behavioral problems and mental disorders more frequently than other children who have a secure home of their own. Moreover, they have difficulty in expressing and sharing their emotions, opinions and thoughts because of the inferiority complex. This inferiority feeling may attain dangerous proportions at times add they may become violent and aggressive in their behavior and attitude In most of the cases, the academic achievements of homeless children would be less than that of others. The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) scores of Homeless students are significantly lower than non-homeless students (The National Center on Family Homelessness).The link between education and income cannot be neglected by the governments: more highly educated people have higher incomes. In that perspective, homeless children are not getting enough opportunities for their higher studies because of the skyrocketing educational expenses and hence they are contributing less to the nation building process. Lower income families may not have their own homes and they pay less attention to the education of their children. This concept pass down from generation to generation and until someone gets an opportunity to rewrite somehow. “Stable housing and services that support children would also support reunification of children who were separated from their parents during homelessness” (Shinn, p.7) How homelessness is being addressed by sectors like business, nonprofit & government?  The Obama Administration has already started some serious efforts to solve the homelessness problems in America. Around $2.5 billion of dollars has already been sanctioned by the Obama administration for solving homelessness problems in America. Most of these money sanctioned, goes to more than 6,000 programs including housing and services for homeless people and families (Obama Administration awards $1.4 billion in homeless grants). American Congress should; Increase the availability of the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit, Provide special rental subsidies for safe housing for low-income families whose children suffer from severe asthma or other chronic diseases, Increase the number of Section 8 vouchers, which allow low-income families to obtain housing in the private market, Protect the existing affordable housing stock by providing funds to preserve federally subsidized housing etc on order to eliminate the housing problems (Affordable Housing Shortage Threatens Children’s Health). Most of the states in America are also trying hard to solve the homelessness related problems of the children with the help of nonprofit organizations and business organizations. For example, “the Georgia Coalition to End Homelessness (GCEH) is a statewide nonprofit and advocacy organization that provides training and technical assistance to homeless service providers, information and advocacy for policy makers, and a Help Line for those facing homelessness (Homeless in Georgia, p.9). Nonprofit charitable organizations which are working for the improvement of the social life should give enough attention to the homelessness problems of the public. These agencies can identify those children who take shelter in the streets and can take necessary actions to rehabilitate them. It should be remembered that “street homelessness has costly externalities for the rest of society (and sometimes for the homeless person himself)” (O’Flaherty, p.24). “Low wage employment is frequent cause of homelessness” (Opening Doors: Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness, p.40). Business organizations can contribute a lot in this regard. Being socially responsible companies, these organizations can increase the salaries and protect the employment of the low income employees as part of their corporate social responsibility. Conclusions Homelessness is a big social problem everywhere in general and in America in particular. Homelessness affects the children more than anybody else. The proper physical and mental developments of the children would be affected because of homelessness. It is difficult for the children to seek education properly staying in streets or other’s control. Serious health and social problems like HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, theft, sexual abuse, violence etc are some of the outcomes of homelessness. Homelessness may make the children antisocial elements and it is difficult for the nation to expect something from these children for the nation building process. Business, nonprofit organizations and the government should combine well to solve the homelessness problems in America as it is difficult for the government alone to solve it fully. Homelessness problem should be addressed from the grass root level in order to wipe it off permanently from the American soil. Works Cited 1. "Affordable Housing Shortage Threatens Children’s Health." 1999. Family Housing Fund, June 1999. 15 November 2010. . 2. Bassuk, Ellen L. MD, Friedman, Steven M. 2005 “Facts on Trauma and Homeless Children”. National Child Traumatic Stress Network 15 November 2010. 3. "Children Pay the Price for Homelessness." Family Housing Fund, Oct. 2008. 15 November 2010. . 4. CNN. 10 Mar. 2009. "Report: 1 in 50 U.S. Children Face Homelessness." 15 November 2010. . 5. Hart-Shegos, Ellen.1999. “Homelessness and its Effects on Children”. A Report Prepared for the Family Housing Fund December 1999. 15 November 2010. 6. “Homeless in Georgia 2008”. Georgia Department of Community Affairs. 15 November 2010. 7. Shinn Marybeth. 2009. “Ending Homelessness for Families”. 15 November 2010. The Evidence for Affordable Housing Homelessness research institute 8. O’Flaherty, Brendan. 2009. “Managing Homeless Shelters”. 15 November 2010. 9. “Obama Administration Awards $1.4 Billion in Homeless Grants”. 2010. The Macon County News. Thursday, 21 January 2010. 15 November 2010. 10. "Opening Doors: Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness" United States Interagency Council on Homelessness (UISICH). 22 June 2010. 15 November 2010. 11. The National Center on Family Homelessness. 2010. “Campaign to End Child Homelessness”. 15 November 2010. Appendix States ranked 1-50 with 1 being best and 50 the worst State Score Connecticut 1 Pennsylvania 2 Arizona 3 Oregon 4 Hawaii 5 Missouri 6 Rhode rnIsland 7 Tennessee 8 North rnDakota 9 Oklahoma 10 Virginia 11 Colorado 12 New rnHampshire 13 Illinois 14 California 15 Mississippi 16 New rnJersey 17 Massachusetts 18 Alabama 19 Louisiana 20 Iowa 21 West rnVirginia 22 Nevada 23 Ohio 24 South rnDakota 25 Vermont 26 Kentucky 27 Alaska 28 Delaware 29 Idaho 30 Minnesota 31 New rnMexico 32 Maryland 33 Washington 34 South rnCarolina 35 Florida 36 Wisconsin 37 Michigan 38 New rnYork 39 Montana 40 Georgia 41 Nebraska 42 Wyoming 43 Texas 44 Arkansas 45 Kansas 46 Indiana 47 Utah 48 North rnCarolina 49 Maine 50 (The National Center on Family Homelessness) (Children Pay the Price for Homelessness, p.2) Read More