Homelessness In America Essay

Homelessness is an epidemic. In America, “there are around 582,462 people experiencing homelessness right now” (“Homelessness in America”). Homeless people are viewed negatively in society, with many people thinking that that the homeless are irresponsible. However, this view neglects to acknowledge the fact that homeless people have gone through unfortunate events in their life that led to their condition. The phrase, “you are closer to being homeless than a millionaire” is accurate, as there are many ways a regular person can end up homeless. Homeless people do not need criticism, but instead empathy. Despite the belief that homeless people end up in their condition entirely due to their own actions, there are many uncontrollable events such

Healthcare in America is expensive, especially for those without any form of insurance. A regular person can get a sickness or into an accident that can quickly lead to them losing most of what they had. When people get sick or injured, most of their money will go to treatments, medicines, and doctors that will help them recover. These expenses are not cheap and can quickly add up, even if one has insurance. No regular person or family has the salary to pay for these, leading them to rack up debt and lose more money. Additionally, when someone is sick or injured, they cannot work which could potentially lead to them losing their job. With the loss of their job, the family has one less source of income. Money is being spent while none is being earned, which can “quickly drain someone’s savings” (“Homelessness and Health”). In this situation, many people turn to loans that quickly turn to debt they cannot repay. The combination of these factors can cause someone to lose their house and end up in

“Around 40% of the homeless population struggles with alcohol misuse, and over 26% struggle with drug abuse” (“Homelessness and Addiction”).Clearly, addiction is a problem that many homeless people must deal with in addition to not having a house. People struggling with addiction are not given much sympathy in society, partly due to the untrue notion that they did it to themselves. Although the initial decision to try addictive substances is usually taken by choice, the choice to be heavily addicted is not. People try addictive substances as a way to escape from whatever difficult situations they are dealing with in life. Addiction causes rational people to act irrationally, as it rewires their mind to constantly seek to satiate their addiction. The struggle of dealing with addiction while homeless can also lead to overdoses, “especially among veterans” (Grinspoon). Additionally, some people even turn to addiction as a result of homelessness, “continuing the cycle” (“Substance Abuse and Homelessness”). Being homeless is not an easy experience to go through, and people think that drugs will relieve them of the anguish that comes with being homeless. Overall, addiction can cause people to not be able to work or even function, leading them to lose their