Causes of Homeless and Poverty in the City of Miami - Term Paper Example

?Outline 0. Introduction 2.0. Thesis 3.0. Literature review 3 Causes of poverty in Miami 3 1. Poverty 3 2. Poor salaries 3 3. Costly amenities 3.1.4. Domestic violence 3.1.5. Mental instability 3.1.6. Drug and substance abuse 3.1.7. Failure by institutions 3.1.8. The homeless themselves 3.2. Effects of homelessness on the community 3.3. The law and future of the homeless in Miami 4.0. Survey 4.1. Qualitative survey 4.2. Quantitative survey 5.0. Conclusion 1.0. Introduction. Giovan is a mere 21year old lad, but looking at his weathered hands, one would not imagine the boy is of such a tender age. Giovan came from Mexico with the dream of every migrant worker of sending money back home to help his poverty stricken family. The hopeful Giovan fought off all obstacles and managed to send his parents money and save enough to stay on his own. This luck was, however short-lived as Giovan was mugged and beaten to near death. His only option was the Camillus house, which has been his home since then, providing his medication and meeting his basic needs. The number of homeless persons in Miami has maintained a high of at least 4000 people since 2000, with the numbers increasing as years progressed. 82% of this population comes from single-parent families with children constituting the biggest percentage of 74%. Men, generally, more than women are prone to become homeless and at a higher age than women. African American form the biggest share of the homeless at 55%, Whites are second at 27%, Hispanic/ Latino come third at 14%, and any other races stand at 4% (NCH: n.pag). The basic definition for the homeless is people who lack regular, adequate, and fixed residence and sufficient night time. This includes people who spend their night-time in shelters for the homeless. In the USA and in particular, the county of Miami, the homeless include persons who spend their nights in the public and private areas not meant for such accommodation. These people may be homeless permanently, or homeless in transit, and achieving a universally agreed definition of the term homeless remains to be a challenge to date. Homelessness is an apparent feature in Miami, with many homeless persons, their numbers growing, in every street and corner, all across different sexes, ages, and races. The problem of homelessness is a result of many factors, all leading to poverty; the major cause of the plague. Economic depressions, low income, drugs abuse and a lack of proper and viable solutions to the problem are mainly responsible for homelessness. The economic recovery experienced in 2010 saw the numbers decrease to an all time low of less than four thousand persons, although there are worries that their unresponsive behavior to the economic recovery is impeditive to possible solutions (Goodman: 13). 2.0. Thesis. The problem of homelessness in Miami has been interpreted as a result of both the government’s and society’s negligence in addressing the issue. This paper seeks to determine the causes of homelessness in Miami and initiatives taken by both private and government agencies in combating the problem. It shall also look into the cases of hate crimes committed toward the homeless and their basis and the effect of homelessness on the community. To back up the study, it shall analyze the qualitative and quantitative aspects of the problem. 3.0. Literature Review. 3.1. Causes of Homelessness in Miami. 3.1.1. Poverty. South Florida and Miami in particular, are among the highest-ranked states to have suffered the economic depression of 2007. The region, for instance experienced many home foreclosures, a direct cause of homelessness. Of all the basic needs, housing takes up the biggest share of one’s income, it, therefore, receives the first blow whenever resources are constrained. This explains the high rates of homelessness in the county (Gregerson: 34). 3.1.2. Poor Salary. Former homeless persons who get jobs are paid less than what they got from poverty benefits. Although this situation has been remedied by the implementation of the welfare reform legislation, many continue to suffer inadequate finances in their new jobs to effectively sustain and meet their daily needs. It is this situation and reasoning that poverty benefits are much better than wages from employment that drives many back to the streets or keeps them from seeking employment (Gregerson: 37). 3.1.3. Costly Social Amenities. Health care is one of the most important needs of every person. Surveys indicate that more than 30% of the homeless do not have medical insurance. For such a family already struggling to meet their basic needs, an illness is the worst event to come by. When it does, such a family is likely to spend its entire savings in meeting medical expenses, eventually getting to the streets because of its eventual inability to pay rent (Gregerson: 42). 3.1.4. Domestic Violence. This is the second biggest cause of homelessness in women. Women in abusive relationships and marriages face the two possibilities readily available: persevere in the relationship or seek refuge in the streets (Gregerson: 48). 3.1.5. Mental Instability. A significant number of adult homeless, especially men, suffers some form of mental illness. This is because many of the mentally ill persons lack access to support for housing, and the government increased qualifications for these people to be institutionalized means that many of them are left to meet their needs (Gregerson: 54). 3.1.6. Drug and Substance Abuse. While using drugs alone may not lead one to becoming homeless, addiction to drugs while one is poor is a likely cause of homelessness. Addiction increases one’s chances of being displaced from housing due to inability to pay up rent for funds are used to buy one’s daily dose. While on the streets, it is difficult for these persons to access treatment for their addiction and other related illnesses (Harman: 67). 3.1.7. Failure by Organizations. Organizations responsible for alleviating the problem of homelessness, the government included, have received wide criticisms on the way they handle the issue. One such critic is Eddy Ameen, a volunteer with a non-profit organization for dealing with homeless teens. In his view, such organizations have failed to come up with a cohesive approach on how to deal and possibly eradicate the problem. “A lot of the time, there is just zero communication and zero teamwork between all the organizations down here. When you have a bunch of different groups working toward the same thing without even being on the same page, how can you expect anything substantial to get done?” Says Ameen (Gregerson: 17) Organizations have failed to agree on the progress of the problem of homelessness in the county over the years. Statistics are gathered from multiple sources each giving different figures, making it difficult for organizations to agree on the right figures and magnitude of the problem. The government, for its part, has failed to implement a viable way of accounting for the numbers of those homeless. Homelessness, in its very nature, is cumbersome to tally, hence any statistics gathered are inconclusive and unreliable and quantifying the magnitude of the problem becomes difficult. The government is faced with a problem of articulation given that recent studies have shown a decrease in the number of homeless persons in the years during the economic depression as opposed to before the depression. This means that there could be other forces at work influencing the trend. Before such forces are properly articulated and diagnosed, the problem of homelessness shall continue to slip through the efforts of the government and other organizations (Gregerson: 34). Many homeless victims claim not to have received any government aid the entire time they have been on the streets. One such victim is Anthony Brown who claims not to have received any form of assistance from the government. Instead, he says that his help comes from non-profit organizations such as the Camillus house and Salvation Army, and passersby (Gregerson: 37). 3.1.8. The Homeless Themselves. While the problem of homelessness is largely caused by external factors such as the ones stated above, a substantial percentage of the problem can be attributed to the victims. Some of the homeless persons just sit around as they await and hope for help, while they could do a number of things to earn them a living. Barry, a homeless man says “It’s very humbling and sad cause a think I think a lot of us choose to be that way (homeless). They sit around and do nothing all day, but there are some of us that want something better from life” (Gregerson: 77). 3.2. Effects of Homelessness on the Community. Children form an added concern to the problem of homelessness. The rate of children in the streets has been increasing, posing a greater social problem to society. There are two sets of homeless children. One is the group whose entire family are homeless, therefore, they stay with their parents on the streets. The second one, and probably the worse of the two, is those who are on the streets alone, away from their families. These are more prone to engaging in risky behavior and at times extremely dangerous ventures that often land them in trouble. These they engage in as a means of surviving and out of peer influence (Goodman: 22). The most common kind of dangerous activities that such children engage in are drug and substance abuse and prostitution. By the age of 14, many homeless children, especially girls will be in the trade of prostitution. As such, this forms the average age of prostitution in the city of Miami. Studies and observations reveal that half of homeless teenagers engage in prostitution within the first 48 hours in the streets, long before they can be rescued by the government and related organizations. These cases have reduced the level of morality in the county, with prostitution levels rising over the years (NCH: n.pag). The issue of homelessness has helped shape the image of Miami as a people-loving county from the high number of people ready and willing to help homeless and their rage over being barred from helping the poor. The Camillus house receives most of its aid and support from the people from within the community, a show of the affective nature of the people and a wish for the unfortunate to have a better life. The county of Miami actually became the first and only county in the country to pass a special food and beverage tax for the homeless (Book & Raymond: 34). 3.3. The Law and Future of the Homeless in Miami. For a long time, society has taken it upon itself to feed the poor and homeless on the streets. A new policy, however, requires that those feeding the homeless get formal training on how to do it. This is a government effort to curb feeding the homeless food that is unhygienic and improper disposal of waste from the food (Goodman: 34). Over the years, men, women, and children on the streets have been harassed, beaten, and at times set on fire by others in society. These crimes constitute hate crimes committed by those who perceive the homeless in their community negatively. Most of the hate crimes are committed by individuals who believe that the poor and homeless are a menace that needs to be cleaned, while some thrill in taking advantage over the weak and vulnerable (Goodman: 34). Miami, under the state of Florida, in an effort to alleviate this suffering of the homeless at malicious hands, added them into crime legislation so that crime against these people is a hate crime that carries severe punishment. With no promise of improvement in the housing for the homeless, the only hope for the safety of this group lies in recent and future legislations that will heighten their safety and protect them from harassment (Harman: 64). 4.0. Survey. The issue of homelessness in the county of Miami is a weighty issue with varied perceptions. There have been many criticisms on the role of the government in dealing with the issue in a quest to eliminate the problem. To capture these opinions, this study carried out two surveys that would inform its analysis and understanding of the problem: quantitative and qualitative surveys. 4.1. Qualitative Study. The study sought an in-depth view of the problem of the homeless through an interview of the food services director of Camillus home, Ferrara Frank. The home has provided a home for hundreds of the homeless and destitute in the city since its inception. The home works hand in hand with the government and other similar homes in their effort to reduce the problem of the homelessness in Miami. The director was asked to describe the issue of the homeless in Miami whether it was unique or normal compared to other cities. His response was that the homeless situation in the county is a normal occurrence as in most states and cities all over the U.S. the county, compared to other cities such as New York are leading on the number of the homeless by far. The situation, therefore, was not unique to Miami and did not require undue attention. He went on to say that the situation was generally caused by poverty at different dimensions. While some of the homeless were born poor, some became homeless along their lives due to tragedies such as the economic depression that caused many to lose their jobs and homes. Some were as a result of poor economic decisions and spending habits such as involvement in drug and substance abuse. These were features typical to all societies in all countries, both the developed and the undeveloped. On the impact of the situation on society he said that it had both positive and negative impacts on society, the impact depending on the perception of segments of society toward the poor and homeless. There are those who pitied the homeless and contributed to their support through institutions and individual initiatives. To these, the situation had a positive impact as it taught them to be compassionate and groom morality within society. There are those, however, who felt that the homeless were a menace and security threat to society and needed to be eliminated or restricted from interacting with the others. These are largely responsible for the numerous attacks staged against the homeless as their rightful position is in doubt. 4.2. Quantitative study. To make the study more empirical and valid, a qualitative study was carried out. There have been varied views among the residents and the homeless in the county about the issue of homelessness. Blame for the situation is directed at many institutions, the impact of the homelessness on society is perceived to be multi-dimensional, and the role and effectiveness of the government and institutions has received many criticisms and praises. It is these varied views that necessitated an empirical study to gauge a majority of the people’s views on the issue. 50 persons, 25 male and 25 female, were randomly selected for the study. The selection, however, included an equal number of the homeless and others in society to ensure a balanced representation. a). do you feel that we have enough social/governmental help for the homeless in miami. A. yes-38% B. no-40% C. don’t know-22% b). do you think the homeless issue in Miami has caused a negative impact to our city’s image. A. yes-23% B. no-57% C. don’t know-20% The results of the first question indicate that many people, both the homeless and those with homes feel that government accords less help to alleviating the problem of homelessness. These sentiments were aggravated with the recent policies by the government barring people from feeding the homeless freely, requiring them to posses permits to do so. A big percentage, though smaller than the initial one, however feel that the government is doing enough to help the situation. The second question on the impact of the homeless in society received a high number of people feeling that the problem imposed less or no negative impact on society, but rather cultivated goodness among people who took it upon themselves to help the poor. Those who felt that it posed a threat felt so because they felt that they were in their position because they led reckless lives that posed risk to others. 5.0. Conclusion. Giovan is among the many homeless persons who continue to suffer from their own, and those of others’, mistakes. He, like over 4000 others like him, was a victim of an ordeal that landed him in the deplorable situation he is in. His situation is one of the many causes of homelessness such as poverty, drug and substance abuse, mental illnesses, domestic violence, and high cost of social amenities. The homeless have also been blamed for their reluctance to leave the streets and find jobs as they prefer the poverty benefits to low paid jobs available. The problem of homelessness has negative impact on society as it leads to development of vices such as prostitution and violence, especially among teenagers. It also increases the risk of contagious diseases due to the poor hygienic conditions the homeless live in. Study surveys indicate that the government is yet to emerge as a leading advocate for the elimination of the problem, with non-profit organizations such as the House of Camillus emerging as leading aid providers to the victims of homelessness. The future of the homeless in the county seems safer and more secure, but with more suffering for the people because the public are no longer allowed to freely feed them. Employers need to be sensitive to the needs of all persons, regardless of their economic status and professional ability. It is inhuman for them to take advantage of the homeless seeking jobs by offering them wages that cannot sustain them and meet their basic needs. This way, the problem of homelessness will drastically reduce as people will be enticed to work and earn a better living. Works Cited. Book, Ronald & Raymond, David. Fighting Homelessness in Miami. Gotham Gazette, September 22, 2008. Print. Goodman, Peter. Foreclosures force Ex-Home Owners to Turn to Shelters. The New York Times. October 18, 2009. Print. Gregerson, Austen. Homelessness Presents Numerous Problems for South Florida. Florida: University of Miami Press. 2010. Print. Harman, Dana. “Read All about it: Street Papers Flourish across the US”. The Christian Science Monitor, Vol.13 (6): 45-66. 2009. Print. National Coalition for the Homeless (NCH). Causes of Homelessness. Available at www.nationalhomeless.org. n.d. Web. Read More