May 22 2008
Homelessness in the New Century: Does Anyone Notice?
When I was a teenager in the mid-1980s, the American media was enthralled by the idea of homelessness. It seemed you couldn’t watch the news or see a movie without some reference to the homeless.
Movies from ‘Trading Places’ to ‘Rambo’ addressed the issue and comedians united to create “Comic Relief” to fight the crisis. And, we as Americans got bored with the continuing “crisis”.
A decade later, when they revisited the issue, most of the news programs did so to expose the fraud of homelessness. To hear that decade’s version, everyone who ever held up a “Will Work For Food” sign was actually a millionaire, preying on the soft hearts of hard-working people.
Everyone seemed to have a story about someone they tried to help only to be rebuffed or have the food thrown away. Personally, I only offered help once. My husband warned me against it most of the time, saying that I would become a target for every panhandler around if I gave to one. He was probably right.
However, just once, I saw a man and his dog near the interstate claiming to be broken down and hungry. I was going to the burger joint anway, so I got an extra burger and fries and took them and a cold soda to the man. He was gracious and thankful and immediately gave the burger to the dog, though he ate the bun and fries himself. Maybe I found the one truly needy person or maybe the fraud was as overblown as the original crisis.
When I tell that story, people invariably ask what a homeless person was doing with a pet. Maybe at one time I thought the same way, but I now find it hard to deny anyone the right to companionship. His dog was thin, but not unhealthily so, and obviously well-cared for, with a clean, shiny coat. I have seen pets of the well-to-do that look less loved.
In 2005, the idea of homelessness came roaring back to America with Hurricane Katrina. For the first time, we had Mother Nature, and the Army Corps of Engineers, to blame for the homeless problem. Ten thousand people fled to Houston and sought refuge in the AstroDome. Thousands more were left homeless or jobless because of the hurricanes that season.
For a short time, homelessness regained its popularity as a crisis worth paying attention too. But as news of the hurricanes grew old and people began to cynically ask what these people were doing for themselves, it faded from view again.
Recently, with the mortgage crisis, every aspect of the loss of homes has been exploited by the media from the things that are left behind to the long-term credit damage, but no ones talks about where these people are living. many have gone to live with friends and family members, the classic definition of homelessness. Others are living in their cars and some can afford a home, but it is inadequate based on their family size.
In my community, despite the national glut of housing and a number of empty homes here, rental expenses continue to rise. The average two bedroom apartment is $500 to $600 depending on the neighborhood. Nice places are even more. And yet, that is 30 percent less than the national average cost for housing.
Even though housing here is considerably cheaper than in the rest of the country, it is hard for many people to make ends meet. One friend rents a room from married friends rather than find his own apartment because any decent single bedroom apartment is $500 a month. As a single man working as a mall security guard, he brings home just over a $1000 a month after taxes. He cannot afford to pay more than half of that each month for rent and another $150-200 for water and electricity. So, he rents room.
Another young man I know broke up with his girlfriend and, obviously, they couldn’t live together anymore. Now, he is living in his car until he can get together the money for a security deposit and first and last months’ rent. He shows up almost daily at another friend’s home, conveniently at meal time, knowing she will not turn him away.
As if the American housing crisis is not enough to remind people of the dire consequences of homelessness, one need only to look at Myanmar and China to see the depth of need we currently have. Estimates indicate the two natural disasters have left more than 5 million people homeless. China has asked anyone around the world with spare tents to send them for temporary living quarters.
But while living in a tent can be a fun weekend activity, imagine the horror facing these people. Tents provide little protection against torrential rain or windstorms, against summer heat or winter’s chill. There is no bathroom, no cooking facilities, no refrigeration. Today, the Chinese said the death toll in China exceeds 80,000 and the long-term health effects of the quake are just starting.
Sadly, the simple reality is that China must grab the headlines and get whatever assistance it can for its people now, or like the plight of the American homeless, it will be yesterday’s news and no one’s concern.
