Essay Example on Poverty in America: 11.3% Living Under the Line

Poverty in America

A good number of the American people are living under the poverty line. The homeless problem is persistently getting worse in the United States. Majority of the poor people are mostly faced with the challenge of paying for house rent, buying food, access to health care, childcare, and education. Tough choices should be made when inadequate resources fulfil only some of the requirements. In 2000, approximately 11.3% of the population in the U.S. lived under poverty. However, the population living under extreme poverty has risen over the years. According to research done by The National Homeless Information Project, approximately 3.839 individuals living in the State of Florida were homeless.

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Obtaining accurate statistics of homeless people globally can be challenging for various reasons. The understanding of homeless can attract various meaning, from merely the absenteeism of acceptable accommodation to permanent lack of a place of residence which provides that offers identity, security, and emotive well-being (Padgett, Henwood, & Tsemberis, 2016). Definitions attract varied definitions across the nations because homelessness is defined culturally established on concepts such as security of ownership and adequate housing. Most of the governments are faced with a challenge of commitment and inadequate resources to measure the extent of homelessness. Being considered homeless is embarrassing for than government. Also, some parents, mostly women do not wish to be considered as homeless for the panic of losing their kids.

Family homelessness is a major social problem that has affected a god number of families internationally. It manifests itself through diverse social, cultural, economic, and language context internationally. In the United States, approximately 60,000 families with kids are homeless on every single night. Canada also faces a growing rise in the number of homeless families and has attracted attention. Many families are dependent on Emergency accommodation. The rise in unemployment, dependable lack of affordable accommodation, poor, social and economic policies are the main contributors to this issue.

Domestic violence

Domestic violence is a worldwide issue that cut across states boundaries, racial, cultural, and socio-economic and class distinctions. It is broad and deeply embedded issues that mostly affect women's well-being and health. Domestic violence has for long been ignored and not well understood by many. However, this is a leading reason for the homelessness of most women and children. Most women affected by these situations and are to leave their homes; they greatly suffer the psychological and physical consequences of leaving their homes (Wright, 2017). Also, their support is taken. This mostly has negative impacts on various regions of the societal system, and as a result, affects the growth of a country.

Drug and alcohol abuse

The correlation between homelessness and addiction may seem controversial. Though, there is a very high rate of drugs and alcohol abuse among homeless people. People who are drug addict may not become homeless, but in most cases, people who are poor and addicted have a high likelihood of becoming homeless. In most cases, drugs abuse are mostly used as a way of coping in stressful situations. Homeless individuals are mostly faced with stressful situations such as financial set-backs, family conflicts, and lack of proper housing and care of the kids. This, in turn, may result in mental health and further addictions inhibit the ability of the family to attain a stable life.

Inefficient Social Protection Systems

The capability of an individual especially women to build and maintain a self-governing household has been proven to be dependent on the status of their family and the degree to which they can access protection to upkeep their household and finance their needs. Social protection plays a significant part in the configuration of the displaced population in any country. With access to an appropriate social system, that is characterized by affordable access to health care facilities. Also, a society that provides social support, including, income security, unemployment, invalidity or provides security from loss of main income can guarantee non-occurrence of homelessness (Utrzan, Piehler, Gewirtz, & August, 2017). With the lack of such systems families and individuals who are vulnerable in events of adversities results in homelessness.

Displacement through natural disaster and conflicts

Displacement is a common result of natural disaster and clashes. Although, the situations through which an individual is rendered homeless or displaced experience the same situations. Both displacement by conflict and by natural disaster can results in; loss of the members of the family, separation from the family members, loss of possession, and experience depression and trauma. During these events, the people affected unaware, despite that, they are further subjected to biasness in the provision of assistance, discrimination in the provision of aid, forced relocation.

Mental health

Approximately 22% of lone adults who are homeless suffer from serious and unrelenting mental illness. Homelessness strengthens poor mental illness. The experience of stress and trauma linked to homelessness can result in depression, fear and substance abuse. Despite that, the rise in the number of homeless individuals cannot be attributed to them being released from the health institutions. Most of the ill health individuals who are also homeless are in most cases are unable to access supportive housing and or treatment (Zufferey, 2016). To compart mental illness affordable and adequate housing should be provided to the people who are homeless, they should be provided with adequate food supply, medical care.

Adequate Housing Policies

The United Nations identifies homelessness as a developing issue worldwide. It is a human right to have a formal shelter. According to Leilani Farha, the right acceptable housing must be viewed just like the right to live in peace at a given place, with dignity and adequate security such sufficiency should encompass the security of ownership, service availability, affordability, accessibility cultural and location adequacy(Phillips, 2015). With the achievement of sufficient housing, then homelessness will not be occurring. The United Nations members devoted themselves to ending homelessness and gradually being acquainted with the rights to ample shelter through their obligation to the New Urban Agenda (2016).

Combatting the homeless issue is essential in achieving the vision 2030 agenda. The progress in attaining the eradication of homelessness support and can interfere with the success and attainment of different goals. Families who are affected by homelessness are categorized among the susceptible population whose conditions are worsened by their incapacity to access public services. With no proper address of their challenges, often these people including their families struggle to get basic services even including the most basic to satisfy their wants. It has been highlighted that poverty is a mutual denominator in the familiarities of homelessness.

Sound social defence policies have greatly contributed to the reduction in homeless families worldwide. It has demonstrated that gender and family sensitive social safety policies and initiation of programs that are directly linked with the effectiveness of the designed policies to reduce family homelessness.

Internationally, there has been the establishment of public and national support programs, which has been the most successful housing solution in the reduction of homeless individuals. This is enabled housing to be affordable to individuals who are vulnerable. This housing program has been a success in reducing the number of homeless individuals. For instance, in the Netherlands, they presented direct monetary assistance to most of the qualified renters. This initiative gave the government a blueprint.

The compassionate housing model put together housing support and housing assistance for persons and families who are living with mental illness (Johnson, Ribar, & Zhu, 2017). The housing initiatives are mostly governed by the civil society, investments and the private sector. This has greatly contributed to the reduction in the resources needed to sustain emergencies of heath, institutional services and accommodation. Families who are affected by homelessness are categorized among the susceptible population. For this reason, the housing model address their challenges, to combat their struggle to getting their basic services to satisfy their wants.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the housing principles have been implemented in the majority of the cities and nations, across the world as a means of fighting homelessness. This policy work based on the assumption the homelessness can be eradicated with the provision of shelters and emergency housings. Social protection plays a significant part in the configuration of the displaced population in any country. With access to an appropriate social system, that is characterized by affordable access to health care facilities. Also, a society that provides social support, including, income security, unemployment, invalidity or provide security from loss of main income can guarantee non-occurrence of homelessness

References

Johnson, G., Ribar, D. C., & Zhu, A. (2017). Women's Homelessness: International Evidence on Causes, Consequences, Coping and Policies.

Padgett, D., Henwood, B. F., & Tsemberis, S. J. (2016). Housing First: Ending homelessness, transforming systems, and changing lives. Oxford University Press, USA.

Phillips, L. (2015). Homelessness: perception of causes and solutions. Journal of Poverty, 19(1), 1-19.

Utrzan, D. S., Piehler, T. F., Gewirtz, A. H., & August, G. J. (2017). Stressful life events and perceived parental control in formerly homeless families: Impact on child-internalizing symptoms. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 87(3), 317.

Wright, J. (2017). Poor and homeless in the sunshine state: Down and out in theme park nation. Routledge.Zufferey, C. (2016). Homelessness and social work: An intersectional approach. Routledge.