Abstract
Homelessness is one of the social problems that are encountered today. Contrary to what would be thought, the problem is not exclusive to developing countries. It is also found in the developed economies, such as the United States. However, the plight of people who experience homelessness is more important than the country in which the homelessness is experienced, and its impact on their health, both mental and physical, and general social life in terms of the use of drugs, alcohol, and substance and their vulnerability to committing crime, not forgetting the negative impact it has on children. It is important that these problems are brought to attention to encourage its alleviation.
Homelessness in America
Introduction
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For instance, the McKinney Homeless Assistance Act of 1987 as defining a homeless person as a person who either “lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence, or lives in a shelter, an institution, or placed designated for, or ordinarily used as a sleeping accommodation for human beings” (as quoted in Hombs, 2011, p. 274 ). The definition seems to imply that homelessness is something that can be experienced by anyone at a point in his or her lifetime; it includes within its scope the section of society that has the ability to afford homes including those who are only temporarily away from the homes they own. As such, it appears to downplay the plight of those facing the real difficulties of homelessness. In their definition of homelessness, some scholars choose to look at it as a manifestation of “a shortage of suitable affordable accommodation in the housing market” (as cited in Ravenhill, 2012, p.7). The inclusion of the word “suitable” appears to detach rooflessness from homelessness. In a “What is Homelessness” research, the findings showed that people with homes “believed that people visibly sleeping on the streets wanted to be there, it was a ‘lifestyle choice’” (Ravenhill, 2012,