On a single night, over 500,000 people are experiencing homelessness. New programs, as mentioned in the previous blog post, have slowly been created to help combat this problem. With the more types of solutions being found, awareness is trying to be raised in addition to helping these people. It is important that the general public is aware that homelessness is a problem, and is not something that can be “hidden” or turned away from.
Homelessness is not something that all people realize as a major issue. People often find it easy to brush off a single homeless person that they walk by in their hometown, without even regarding that man or woman as a person. It is easy to ignore someone that you don’t know, and that you most likely never will. We have already formed our own preconceptions of who this person is, their story, and what they are doing about it. For anyone that does not come in contact with the homeless population on a daily, or even a rare, occurrence, they do not have a understanding of what life is like for someone living on the streets. Many often think of homeless people wearing dirty clothes, pushing around a shopping cart, and carrying bunch of bags, but this is not always the case. Some people are only a few paychecks away from being homeless. A homeless man, who recently lost his home stated “I’m still the same person I used to be when I worked,” he said. “The only difference is I don’t have a roof over my head right now.” This man says he spends his days wandering through the downtown area of his city and public areas. Most of his clothes are donations, and he does not have difficulty receiving them due to local missions. Shelter is the biggest concern for him, as the main shelter in the area is only opened when it under 40 degrees. Furthermore, in this specific situation, this man lost two of his friends during the winter months due to the frigid temperatures. In the housing shelter, it can only accommodate 100 people, and then there is a waiting list to get in. Each day a couple people are typically turned down. More information about this situation can be read here. Homeless is not always caused because of lack of money from careers. Alcohol and drugs are leading causes of homeless as they become expensive if one is addicted. Keeping this in mind, not every single person is a addict. There will always be mix of reasons why people have become homeless, but it is important to remember it is not always from the reasons that are often assumed.
3 Comments
Tessa Meiss
2/20/2018 11:38:35 am
I really like the introduction of the blog, even though I didn’t read the first blog I was still able to figure out what the blog is about will no difficulty. I personal statement from the homeless man is a really good touch that makes the blog more personable and it shows your work ethic and interest in this subject.
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Morgan
2/22/2018 06:56:03 am
I like how this post really pulls at the heartstrings. I also like how it acknowledges that addiction is a factor in homelessness, but emphasizes that not all homeless people are addicted. By including the testimonial of the recently homeless man, the post became more personable and compelling. Overall, this is a very well written post.
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Julia
2/22/2018 09:47:29 am
I really like how you had interactive parts on this one (the survey)! Makes it more fun for the reader. And the diagrams really help also. It was interesting for me to learn about this and how it works over a period of time/throughout someone’s life. This is a really cool topic!
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AuthorMy name is Alyssa MacDonald, and I am a senior at Dunlap High School. I will be writing about some of my exciting travels that I have been able to experience! Archives
April 2018
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