KEISHA BROWNISSA BA

JANUARY 12TH, 2014U.S. GOVERNMENT

Where Do We Go From Here?

TO BE HOMELESS BASICALLY MEANS THAT YOU DO NOT HAVE A HOME. USUALLY, HOMELESS PEOPLE LIVE ON THE

STREETS, IN SUBWAY STATIONS, IN A CAR, OR IN HOMELESS SHELTERS.

What Does It Mean to be Homeless?

A Glance into Homelessness

Local Statistics

According to the Youth Service Opportunities Program, each year 100,000 people experience homelessness in New York alone.-

In 2013, New York City had more than 50,000 homeless people living in shelters, 22,000 being children.

This graph represents the number of people who slept in a homeless shelters from 1983 to 2013. As you can see, 2013 has the highest amount of people sleeping in homeless shelters since 1983.

• THERE ARE APPROXIMATELY 1.7 MILLION HOMELESS TEENS IN THE U.S.

• APPROXIMATELY 14 PERCENT OF HOMELESS TEENS IDENTIFY AS LGBT.

• 1 IN 7 YOUNG PEOPLE BETWEEN THE AGES OF 10 AND 18 WILL RUN AWAY.

• THE AVERAGE AGE A TEEN BECOMES HOMELESS IS 14.7 YEARS.

Relevant Info

-HOMELESSNESS CAN AFFECT PRETTY MUCH ANYONE. MOST OF THESE PEOPLE INCLUDE FAMILIES, LGBT TEENS, CHILDREN, ABUSE VICTIMS, TEEN PARENTS, U.S. MILITARY VETERANS, PEOPLE WITH MENTAL ILLNESSES, ELDERLY PEOPLE, COLLEGE STUDENTS, AND THE LIST GOES ON AND ON. FOR THESE PEOPLE, MONEY AND FOOD IS A VERY BIG ISSUE. MOST HOMELESS PEOPLE HAVE RELATIVES THAT THEY CAN POSSIBLY GO LIVE WITH, BUT THEY HAVE NO CLUE AS TO WHERE THEIR RELATIVES LIVE.

-HOMELESSNESS CAN HAPPEN TO ANYBODY. FOR EXAMPLE, YOUR PARENTS COULD LOSE THEIR JOBS OR YOU CAN GET KICKED OUT OF YOUR HOUSE. HOMELESSNESS IS VERY POSSIBLE.

Who Does Homelessness Affect?

On the StreetsOn the Streets In Shelters In Shelters

Homeless people are not safe on the streets.

Hypothermia kills an estimated 700 homeless

people a year. The large majority of street

homeless New Yorkers are individuals living with mental illness or other severe health problems.

Condition in many shelters are inhospitable and unsanitary.

The rules of the homeless shelters make it difficult for homeless people to find and maintain a job that can help them get back on their feet.

The terrible conditions are making it difficult for children who live in those shelters to do well in school.

The Issues of Homelessness

Suggestions for Improvement

Provide more resources and support to help homeless people get jobs that they can make a living with.

Improve the conditions of homeless shelters and create more space to prevent crowding. In addition, make sure that the shelters are inspected.

Provide more affordable housing.

Resources for Donations, Volunteering, and More Info

Volunteering and Donations New York Careshttp://www.newyorkcares.org/volunteer New York Rescuehttp://nycrescue.org/ Coalition for the Homelesshttp://www.coalitionforthehomeless.org/pages/volunteer Hope for New Yorkhttp://hfny.org/volunteer/http://hfny.org/volunteer/• Teen Jean Drivehttp://www.dosomething.org/teensforjeans

Information Coalition for the Homelesshttp://www.coalitionforthehomeless.org/