Social and Political Philosophy Essay

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Homelessness in America

When discussing the United States' current economic crisis, comparisons with the Great Depression are becoming more common. Tent cities or makeshift shelters in specified areas or just beyond city limits are becoming familiar sites across the country. Each of these 'cities' contains dozens if not hundreds of families struggling to just survive (Maide "Top Causes of Homelessness in America"). Homelessness in America should be a growing concern, yet the government's preoccupation with the problems on Wall Street and in the Middle East leaves little for America's poor and disadvantaged.

Homelessness can be defined as the lack of a permanent, safe and affordable night-time residence. The exact statistics on homelessness are difficult to ascertain, as the precise number of people who experience homelessness is ever changing. Recently it's been estimated that about 1.6 million are people living in emergency shelters or transitional housing. In a study conducted in 2007, The National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty estimated the annual homeless population be roughly 3.5 million people. Of these 1.35 million are children. The fastest growing segment of the homeless population is families with children.

The numbers of homeless in America are unacceptable when considering that the country is a great deal more advanced, especially from an economical and technological standpoint, than most other countries of the world. The National Alliance to End Homelessness projects that the current economic crisis will force an estimated 1.5 million more people into homelessness over the next two years.

Roughly one-third of the nation's homeless population consists of families with children.

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As the economy deteriorates this number is continuing to rise. In 2007 37.3 million U.S. households reported having severe housing cost burdens. Today, that burden has grown and many families are falling victim to the home foreclosure crisis as well as the layoffs that have been sweeping the country. Nearly two-thirds of low income households face severe housing cost burdens and about 12.7 children, over one in six, live in households spending more than half their income on housing leaving little for other essentials. (Maide "Suddenly Homeless in America").

A 2009 study by the National Center on Family Homelessness found that 1 out of 50 American children become homeless each year. On any given night more than 300,000 children are without a home. The study estimates that some 83% of homeless children will have been exposed to at least one serious violent event before they reach 12 years of age. Of those, nearly 25% will have witnessed acts of violence within their own families. Homeless children have three times the rate of emotional and behavioral problems of non-homeless children. Furthermore, they are also four times more likely to experience delayed educational development ("America's Youngest Outcasts: Report Card on Child Homelessness."). The resultant economic and psychological costs for society will be remain for years to come, surfacing in the crime rate, healthcare costs, and the loss of tax revenue typically generated by individuals with gainful employment.

Government help for affordable housing is needed today more than any time since.....

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