Addressing The Issues of Homelessness

           America's Homelessness Crisis       

Addressing The Issues of Homelessness

by : Samuel Gavurin - Alternate Chairman of the Homeless Caucus

             The subject of homeless is an ugly one, mainly because of the persistently held beliefs of John and Jane Doe Public, and the refusal to accept new information that would otherwise challenge such tightly held beliefs.  Such beliefs are often as comfortable as a favorite pair of shoes, and just as difficult to get rid of.  Such beliefs can become prejudices intended to elevate some people on the backs of others. 

             Within the circles of religiosity, the attitudes of some toward the homeless can be quite contradictory. Congregational members may be spiritually divided as to best help the homeless.  While some Churches will give them food and clothes, still others will take the position of "Those people are already receiving the help that they deserve, and to do anything more for them, would hinder what God has planned for them." May it be that God is calling them to help others in need? The thought is that of someone at a beach drowning, and the lifeguard does nothing, not wanting to get involved. "(S)he knew there was risk involved in going into the water, so they really have only themselves to blame for the situation that they're in."

               Still others place the homeless all in one category. "They did it to themselves." This is the belief that all homeless people are alcoholics, drug users, gamblers, sex addicts, thieves, or lazy and unwilling to work. What of those individuals who are victims of hate crimes or domestic violence, what of people who lose their homes because of uncontrollable events such as earthquake, tornado, flood, hurricane, and wildfire? Not all homelessness is the same. Sadly, the bureaucratic system is so quagmired, that people who are hurting for help will die before help even comes, if it even comes at all. Help delayed is help denied.

              Here's a scenario... A tenant is paying $1,000.00 a month in rent for a $1,200.00 square foot apartment. The tenant is working two jobs, has a child with physical needs, and the landlord is making obscene threats. What rights does the tenant have? Very little if any.  While some may have sympathy for the tenant, (s)he really has only two options... 1.) Pay the rent, or  2.) Move out! Unfortunately sympathy will do nothing to pay the rent, and it does absolutely nothing when it comes to the mandatory obscenities from the landlord.  To add insult to injury, someone who has been evicted, is placed on a statewide registry that will haunt them for the rest of their life. While property management laws vary slightly from one state to another; the truth is that most of the rights and authority are with the landlord or management agency, which is all the more reason to know the property management laws for not only North Carolina, but for any other state into which one is planning to relocate. 

               In the State of Florida, if a tenant is being sued for eviction, the tenant has a right to 

heard by a judge; however, in the State of Florida there is a mandatory self-incrimination requirement, that mandates that a tenant must cooperate with either the Landlord, or the Landlord's attorneys prior to any Court proceedings. 

               This mandatory self-incrimination requirement guarantees a victory for the Landlord. Finally, a police officer will come to the apartment and slap a WRIT OF POSSESSION NOTICE

on the front door to be viewed by all. The person being evicted is the object of ridicule, and harassment, as one neighbor after another become self-appointed interrogation experts trying to

get to the truth, as to what was the cause for the eviction.

                Who you are is unimportant, rather it's what you are, that draws or repels others. A man who disheveled in appearance with broken or missing teeth, isn't going to receive the same help as a man who is well groomed and extremely good-looking. There is a form of preferential favoritism at work here, even among those who claim to be impartial. 

               In much the same way as divorce was controversial in the 1970's and AIDS in the 1980's, so too Homelessness has become the new topic of societal stigma. The news of someone being homeless; under certain circumstances, can tear families and long held friends apart.  

              There are many contributing factors that prolong the problems of homelessness. While there are many outreach service programs that are designed to assist those who are homeless, the truth is that many outreach service programs have such absurd rules, that obtaining help is nearly impossible. People need help! They don't need any more bureaucracies instructing them where to go to be ignored, and forgotten.  The experiences of being homeless are not something that can be conveyed by words alone. It needs to be experienced first-hand.  

         There is a Government assistance program which began under President Obama called the Rapid Rehousing Program. This Government assistance program has become a waste of time, and money focusing attention, and resources on individuals who either don't want to be helped, or have become so intellectually impaired, they're unable or unwilling to see their own needs. This is done at the expense of those who are working to improve themselves and need someone to guide them along in their journey to independent and productive living.  

       While change is difficult when it comes to the acceptance of new ideas, the continuation of this path will serve no beneficial purpose to such individuals who are hurting for help.  Even more important than everything that has specified in this article, is HOMELESS PREVENTION.  This can be done through financial grants, and legal advocacy, but the unwillingness of City, County, and State officials will make such required services all but impossible. Homeless prevention is not given the attention it deserves, because when a problem is solved, it ceases to be a revenue source for local municipalities. While there are a variety of homeless prevention services featured online; many of the homeless prevention websites are little more than the electronic variation on the classic shell game played on the unsuspecting visitor, much as would be done at a carnival or county fair.

        

        One way that these homeless prevention websites mislead others, is by endlessly directing to other websites, and these websites want sensitive information such as credit card, and banking information. If the applicant chooses to opt out a message will appear on the screen that reads in part... "If you leave now, all information will be lost. You're almost finished and to leave now would jeopardize any progress you've already made."  Another way in which these 

homeless prevention websites will appear legitimate is by offering "customer support". These are nothing more than commissioned sales people at a computer work station inputting private information, and now there is yet another victim of identity theft.  All of this is very disheartening to someone who may not be homeless yet, but is in danger of becoming homeless.          

         One common misconception about the homeless is that they're lazy and unwilling to seek 

help for themselves. This external image of a man or woman in filthy clothes is an image all too familiar in the American imagination. The problem is that many so-called outreach services have a preferential bias as to whom they're going to help, and who they won't.  So begins the cycle of asking for help, and receiving rejection in return. Such repeated rejections are very discouraging. 

         This is often explained as a "ministry-calling" with the excuse of "We would like to help you, but you don't meet the requirements for our services."  An example of such prejudices are shelters that only help women or men, some shelters help married couples with children, but not single adults.  If a shelter or outreach ministry wishes only to serve African-Americans, they're within their rights to do so, and everyone else is out of luck, and is forced to go elsewhere for help. 

       Such prejudices serve only to exclude others from receiving the help they need, while only benefitting the preferential few.  Before the person who is hurting for help is turned away, the leading official will offer a few consoling words, a meaningless prayer on the person's behalf, and then send them away with zero help. How does this benefit anyone? Answer: It doesn't!

To make matters even worse is the fact that many outreach services have limited availability 

hours. Case in point, some outreach service agencies may have accessibility on Mondays, and Wednesdays from 9:00 to 11:00A.M but this is not including legal holidays. The outreach services that are intended to be a lifeline for those in need, are causing detrimental harm to the same people whom they're supposed to help.     

  Question #1: "Aren't there any shelters for the homeless?" The short answer is yes, but these shelters are severely limited as their functionality. More often than not homeless shelters are a place for a shower, three hots, and a cot, and little else. Depending on the structural size, and the financial resources, homeless shelters may or may not have supportive services, but they're under no obligation to have, or even to offer such services to the residents.

          

     Shelter management also varies from one place to another. While some managers are kind, and treat their residents like family, other managers may treat their residents like livestock. It all 

depends on the individual personality. Sadly, there are some municipalities with zero shelters. This is due in part because the population density may be too small, while still other communities choose to solve the problem either with incarceration, or ignoring the problem altogether and forcing such individuals to relocate elsewhere. 

       Question #2: "There are plenty of affordable housing options online. If someone is in danger of becoming homeless why doesn't (S)he look into them?"  The reason is because, many of these so-called affordable housing websites specialize only in rentals, and unscrupulous Landlords wanting nothing more than to make themselves richer at the tenant's expense. Sadly this question is often asked, not out of compassion, rather it's asked in an accusatory manner, which intended to imply one's own moral and financial superiority.   

        What would be most helpful, is a re-assimilation class so that homeless individuals can learn the basics of opening a bank account, preparing for a job interview, health and hygiene, and basic social interaction skills. This would be combined with counseling, and cognitive therapies to assess the needs of the person(s) being helped.

          The solution to homelessness is simple. What needs to be done is for financial resources to be made available to the public in the form of financial grants. In much the same way as college students can apply for grants to help pay tuition costs, so too houses could become available at little or no cost to such person(s) wanting to purchase a permanent home, and not just another rental.

       Here too there are confusing logistics, because the Bureau of Housing & Urban Development, (or HUD for short) which is a department of the American Federal Government, if asked for help, will send the requestant information on "low cost rentals'' for the State in which the person lives, or is planning to relocate to. This narrow minded thinking often, does not include home buying as an alternative to renting. Renting is not the answer to the problem to homelessness; because more often than not, it is the cause of homelessness!  

         Question #3: "How does someone obtain help to get themselves out of homelessness?" If someone is fortunate enough to have a case manager, they will be instructed to take a VI-SPDAT survey. The Vulnerability Index Service Prioritization Decision Assistance Tool determines a ranking based upon a series of questions, and help is given priority based upon a ranking of 1 to 17. The higher the ranking, the greater the chance of being bumped in line, and receiving help sooner. The problem is that such rankings can hinder a person's ability to obtain housing assistance if their ranking is too low.  This in turn, means that someone waiting for housing assistance, can wait an even greater duration of time waiting his - her turn.  While such tools may be useful in assessing an applicant's present living situation, it does little to determine any specific timeline as to when help will become available.

       

If a newcomer who's been homeless for a few days, scores higher than someone who's been waiting for a few months, the one who's been waiting the longest will be ignored first.  One dangerous downside to this, is that an applicant who is taking the survey, may purposely answer questions in a fraudulent manner, so as to be served faster than others, and to get ahead of the line. 

      Question #4: "Are those homeless veterans in wheelchairs really legitimate?" That is a good question for which there is no easy answer. Anyone may go to a military surplus store, purchase clothes and pretend to be a service veteran, but this a felony bordering on treason. It's not worth the risk. If someone genuinely is a service veteran, and they're either homeless, or facing some other financial adversity, then there are programs that are specifically designed to assist such individuals. Often the excuse for not going through the proper channels is "The Military lost my service records." Even if this is true then, there are other means of verification. This requires discernment. If someone who is homeless claims to be a veteran, and refuses to go to V.A. facility, the chances are very good, that they're lying. What needs to be done to end homelessness is social activism.  Social activism is not the same as the violent protests like that of the Vietnam War era, which was more like social anarchy. Social activism is an organized means of affecting change in the direction that it is needed to flow to benefit a social cause for the greater good and not just the privileged few. 

         To get to the heart of the matter, one must first deal with the matter of the heart. By all outward appearances, an indirect inference can be made that there is a disconnect of the idealized world, from the real world. Such evidences can be seen in the blank stares of extreme desperation looking out onto the vast horizon in hopes for a better life. The problems of homelessness can be solved, but only if people are willing to come out of their comfort zones. Only then will any discernible change be possible.  

          Those who are homeless don't need sympathy or sarcasm, what the homeless need is help, and opportunities to advance themselves to a better life.

      On the date of April 25th / 2014, A congressional panel was investigating the abuses of a Phoenix, Arizona Veterans Affairs Hospital. The statement that exemplified everyone's frustrations was the statement "Delay, deny, wait for me to die!" This statement made by Mike Ricci in reference to the manner in which returning service personnel are often ignored for the most basic healthcare, and preventive services, is also true when it comes to helping the homeless. 

             QUOTATION SOURCE : www.speaker.gov/general/delay-deny-until-you-die. 

       

This mindset is one of apathetic indifference in response to the cries for help. A person in need of help paying their rent or their mortgage will lose their home, before bureaucratic officials decide on what action (if any) they're willing to take. Sadly such apathy can be a contributive cause for a person choosing to commit suicide. 

        Adding to the frustration, is the accessibility of homeless services. Often these services are spread out far apart making it difficult, if not impossible to obtain the help that is needed. This is further compounded by the fact that many homeless services have absurd availabilities such as the first, and third Wednesdays of the month between the hours of 9:00 to 11:00. If someone fails to make it during one of these so-called "service times", no sympathy is afforded to them. Such persons are forcibly told to move on, or else be arrested.

        America is a country that will gladly send money to assist people overseas, while at the same time, ignoring its own citizens who are in need of help. People who are arrested for being homeless, are still homeless when their incarceration has ended. This is a system that has been a worthless failure from the beginning. 

       Why does this practice continue? Because of fear, anger, and indifference to the adversities of others. "As long it's 'them', and not me, that's all I care about!" The mindset is that if a problem is ignored long enough, the problem will solve itself by going away on its own. If the homeless go elsewhere, it will no longer be our problem, and we can go back to living our lives of privileged exclusivity. Another more poignant reason for the ongoing situation is because there are people in the world who get pleasure from the suffering of others. People who are homeless need help, they don't need to be interrogated as to what was the cause of their problems; only to be forced to wait for nothing to happen, then receive a rejection notice that they can't be helped.

        Where the homeless are supposed to go for help, nobody knows, or even cares, just so long as they don't stay here.  The need for advocacy services is not what's in dispute. The dispute is where such services should be located, so as not to be an inconvenience to the financially superior. How much longer must this adversity continue?  When will it ever end?  How many more people must die, waiting for help that will never come? 

It is humanly impossible to put the homeless in their place, when they have no place to go. In summation:  Help Delayed Is Help Denied!