The Human Rights Crisis – Homeless

Homeless are people who lack a safe, stable place to live. They may sleep outdoors, in shelters or on the streets. They may have nowhere to turn for food, money or other services if they lose their housing. They are frequently stigmatized, mistreated and denied access to health care and other services. Homelessness is a human rights crisis.

The number of people experiencing homelessness in the United States has been increasing since the early 1980s. This era was shaped by a variety of factors, including gentrification and disinvestment in inner city neighborhoods, deinstitutionalization of the mentally ill, high unemployment rates and the rise of HIV/AIDS. This was also a time of deep cuts to the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and other federal agencies whose missions touch on homelessness.

In addition, some major metropolitan areas experienced a rapid increase in homelessness due to the “housing bubble” of the 1990s. Other major causes of homelessness include lack of affordable healthcare, financial crises such as a medical bankruptcy or job loss, and domestic violence. A combination of these and other problems often leads to homelessness, especially for families with children.

While research on the homeless has focused primarily in urban areas, many people who experience hidden homelessness live in suburban and rural communities as well. There has been a paucity of research on homeless populations in nonurban communities, although the situation is likely to be similar to that in urban areas.

The vast majority of those who experience homelessness are men, and almost half are white. In addition, many racial and ethnic minority groups experience rates of homelessness significantly higher than those of the general population. This is largely due to poverty and discrimination, but it also reflects historic patterns of racial and ethnic inequality in America.

A growing body of evidence suggests that focusing on prevention is the best way to reduce homelessness. One approach is called “critical time intervention” (CTI), where help is targeted at key transition periods such as military discharge, aging out of foster care or release from prison. This is a successful approach in several cities and has the potential to dramatically reduce homelessness.

The federal government has taken steps to improve coordination among agencies that address homelessness, notably through the creation of the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness, which includes representatives from all the major agencies whose missions touch upon homelessness. However, the problem persists despite these efforts. Until there is a fundamental shift in the way we view and respond to homelessness, it will continue to be a human rights crisis that requires all of us to act together.