The last few classes have focused on various methods for counting the homeless. In order to receive federal funding, the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) requires counties to count their homeless populations every two years. Each county comes up with their own funds and methodology to complete the homeless counts. Some counties make the task a community effort to get the most accurate results while others put less effort into the surveys. Because there is not a nation-wide method or funding for these surveys the accuracy of these results are not always reflective of actual homeless populations.

There are problems with such a flexible system for reports.With most methodologies used, it is unlikely that the survey truly reflects the entire homeless population. HUD’s restrictive definitions of what ‘homeless’ is also plays into inaccurate representations. Despite these issues, it is important to count the number of homeless people. These HUD requirements make it so that these counties are unable to ignore the homeless in their areas. The resulting statistics for each county makes it apparent that something needs to be done to assist the homeless. These statistics make the phenomenon of homelessness seem extremely overwhelming. It seems hard to understand where to start as we have found out there are many reasons and structural failures as the why people end up homeless. On the flip side I feel like such reports and statistics can be a wake up call and a motivating factor. Individuals, such as ourselves, can be inspired to volunteer and communities may decide they need better programs.

Coming from a background of studying International Relations, I know what this feeling of despair and being overloaded with negativity means. At the beginning of the semester in my international security class we watched a movie about how a US citizen helped with intense planning of a series of terrorist attacks in India, the movie showed us everything leading up to it, how people were used, real footage of people being shot, real footage of dead bodies, mangled bodies, the destruction, the blood on the walls. Its a terrible thing that we have to see so we know exactly what we are studying in the class. The same goes for hunger and homelessness. We have to see all these things, read about how hard daily life is for someone in the street, how even with these services, daily life is still hard. One of the most striking things from the course that i’ve read is from the very first page of Tell Them Who I Am by Liewbow, “one wonders why more homeless people do not kill themselves.” Its something that really makes you sit back and look, here we are looking at just how little they have to live for, how hard they have to work to get by day-to-day, it really makes you wonder why taking your life isn’t an option when you’re down and out. I guess for them its the same answer to why we don’t give up trying to help with the overall problem of homelessness, its hope. Hope, just like so many other people keeps them alive, hope for a home, hope for a meal, hope for even just a simpler day with fewer worries. We keep the hope that we can make a difference, no matter how small it is, even if its to one person we can make an impact to them, even if it is for a moment. I guess just for me when I’m reading all these things and looking at these daunting numbers of homeless people even in my city, I just have to sit back, take a deep sigh, and really keep hope. It’s the same with politics, my motherland of Mexico is ravaged by drug trade, slayings, corruption, and death, and sometimes I feel like things will never change, that we will forever be the country of drug cartels, that it will never be the beautiful place it once was, but I just keep hoping that it can change. Just like I can keep hope that we can change things, even if its something small, we can all make a difference, no matter how small or big, its something. So don’t lose hope and keep on trucking.

After our last class session and the overwhelming feeling some spoke about, I thought a little more and wanted to blog about some thoughts.  Learning the somewhat intricate nature of homelessness, it’s causes, the personas involved, and what we are actively doing about it.  It is proving to be difficult to know what to do after becoming aware of such a problem in our society that has no easy or discernible answer or solution.  Just being aware of this problem within humanity is a step and being able to recognize all the factors at play helps to better position oneself in a helping and useful way, I also feel that this is not enough.

Volunteering does seem like a great outlet but equally important, is knowing the organization in which I engage with, making sure that my own values and knowledge align  with the organization that is attempting to help the persons I wish to help.  After learning about the restaurant that employs homeless persons for and also feeds them, I felt that model was one of true, genuine, and meaningful change that was very grass roots.  It may take creating programs or businesses that are like minded to that one in order to more properly address this issue.  I can think of a few ways in which I would create a business that has a model or aspect specifically dealing with this issue, and may be a great avenue for further investigation and creation.

One thing is for sure in my mind, cutting government aid and spending on social improvement programs, low income housing, and outreach will not help this problem and it will surely not go away.  Problems arise rather quickly where as solutions take long periods of time to actually start working, and making a statistical change, or decrease in the numbers of homeless persons.

The group presentations were interesting. Each book had its own particular way of conveying some part of the homeless experience. I really enjoyed reading ” helping kids move from homelessness to hope Almost Home”, by Kevin Ryan and Tina Kelley. It was very interesting to see the lives of six different homeless youth. The other presentation that got my attention was homeless mothers. We have so many different concepts and stereotypes of ‘good’ mothers that we tend not to appreciate those who are in worse conditions and yet manage to sacrifice what seems to be seen negatively by the rest of society. Like giving away your child because you are afraid to harm them. It takes a lot for a person to understand that their children are or may be in harm even if it means by the mother themselves. Although it is sad, it seriously is one of the best solutions. I also liked the topic from the side of the social workers stance. It is hard not to get attached with people whom you see day to day or know there story. I have always wanted to help those who are less privileged even with the little that I have. Time and time again these social workers have to confront being the person who denies the help to others because you cannot please everyone. It is hard for them as well. I feel that they go through a mental break down as well because its hard to deny help. I want to read that book, I will get a better insight and with the help of what the group presented I feel that I will be able to really understand the book.

This past week has been very eye opening. From the readings and the specialist to the data exercises. I was not aware of the counts that are done for homeless people. That in itself was intriguing. Although it is nice to know that each county counts there homeless people there are lots of flaws in the counts I believe. Like the specialist said each county either puts time and dedication or they simply go out and make assumptions of how many homeless people are out in the streets or what not. Another issue is also the definition of the term homeless and how broad it truly is and what is defined as being homeless to the county. I think people living in cars, friends houses, in shelters, and those in the street should all be counted for. As to how you measure the amount would be very difficult. I like the outreach method where other citizens of the community volunteer and giving them certain routs in order to obtain the best possible number. The one method I think is favorable and most county’s should do is have some homeless citizens themselves help out with the count. Being a homeless person and living on and off the streets can give you a better insight on the amount of homeless there are. Like mentioned in class in Redlands itself there doesn’t seem to be very much homeless out in the street, perhaps they are in shelters or are hidden in abandon buildings. Homelessness varies and not all county’s in my opinion are putting much effort, which they should because its an issue that is always brought up but there isn’t a lot of people in the county’s putting much effort into solving hunger and homelessness.

“Seven hundred people experiencing or at risk of homelessness are killed from hypothermia annually in the United States. Forty-four percent of the nation’s homeless are unsheltered. From the urban streets of our populated cities to the remote back-country of rural America, hypothermia – or subnormal temperature in the body – remains a leading, critical and preventable cause of injury and death among those experiencing homelessness.” (National Coalition for the Homeless, Winter Homeless Services: Bringing Our Neighbors in from the Cold, 2010)
The above quote was one of the first things I read while researching the affects and conditions that homeless people around the nation are facing during these long and cold winter months. The extreme weather conditions we have been experiencing lately all over the country are bound to affect those who are living on the streets or do not have access to permanent residences. I wanted to know what organizations are doing to combat the risks faced by the homeless during weather like this and how homeless people find shelter and warmth during the winter. After exploring the website for the National Coalition for the Homeless I came across their “winter report”. This report gave data and graphs showing how different organizations respond to the inclement weather and also gave tips on how to spot and avoid different types of illnesses and medical conditions that can come during the winter months.

I thought it was worth looking at this report since our entire nation has been experiencing worse weather than usual this winter, especially the east coast, Midwest and south. I looked at states with different winter shelters and how low the temperatures had to be for those shelters to open and across the board the shelters would have to be open by now and be providing extra care for the homeless during these extremely cold winter months. My findings were not terribly positive, and in many states the care for the homeless during these months left much to be desired. This quote from the website for the National Coalition for the Homeless explains these findings further, saying “In rural areas, shelters often have no outside resources to help them cope with the increased demand caused by cold weather conditions. Many shelters or cities offer expanded winter services only during certain months or only when the temperature falls below a pre-determined and arbitrary cut-off temperature. Above those cut-offs (hypothermia can occur in weather as warm as 50 degrees Fahrenheit) many cities do not offer resources to help the homeless people escape from the cold.”