Poor people are frequently unable to pay for housing, food, child care, health care, and education. Difficult choices must be made when limited resources cover only some of these necessities. Being poor means being an illness, an accident, or a paycheck away from living on the streets.
"Why Are People Homeless?," The National Coalition for the Homeless, September 2002
The incidence of homelessness began to increase in the 1980s, and by the beginning of the twenty-first century homeless people could be found on the streets of virtually every American city. The National Coalition for the Homeless identified two trends that were largely responsible for the rise in homelessness in the preceding twenty to twenty-five years: a growing shortage of affordable rental housing, and an increase in poverty. Between 1970 and 1982 demolition of many low-rent, single-room hotels in major cities contributed to the shortage of rental housing, according to Homelessness in America (Oryx Press, 1996), a publication of the National Coalition for the Homeless. New York City, for example, lost 87% of its $200 per month or less rooms that had housed low-income people, including many suffering from mental illness or substance abuse. Eroding employment opportunities and declining public assistance were identified as two factors contributing to the rise in poverty.
The U.S. Conference of Mayors (USCM) began studying the problems of hunger and homelessness in 1980. Their annual surveys of twenty-five major cities
FIGURE 5.5
produced sixteen years of comparative data published in annual reports. The U.S. Conference of Mayors—Sodexho Hunger and Homelessness Survey 2003 indicated that while the federal definition of affordable housing was housing that cost 30% of a family's income, the average low-income family in cities surveyed by the U.S. Conference of Mayors spent 46% of their income on housing. In 2001 the National Low Income Housing Coalition estimated that in the median state a minimum-wage worker had to work eighty-nine hours each week (more than the equivalent of two full-time jobs) to afford a two-bedroom apartment at 30% of his or her income.
In 60% of cities included in the U.S. Conference of Mayors' 2003 survey, families might have to break up in order to be sheltered—some shelters, for example, took only women and children, forcing fathers to go to another shelter for men. In 48% of cities families might have to spend their daytime hours outside the shelter. Although the waiting time for public housing averaged twenty-four months in surveyed cities, people in shelters remained homeless an average of five months.
Locating the Homeless Population
Counting homeless people presents special challenges for the Census Bureau. Typically, shelters have been the source of data on the number of people without homes.
FIGURE 5.6
However, except in the coldest of weather, some homeless people avoid shelters in favor of more independent living in parks, under bridges, and in other remote locations. The Census Bureau reported that between 1990 and 2000 the number of people living in emergency and transitional shelters decreased 4.4%, from 178,638 to 170,706. In 2000 the Northeast claimed the largest proportion of the nation's shelter population (30.7%), while the Midwest had the least (16.7%). Nearly one-fifth (18.7%) of the population in emergency and transitional shelters lived in New York State.
Hunger and Homelessness in Major Cities
The U.S. Conference of Mayors' 2003 survey indicated that in the twenty-five major cities surveyed, requests for emergency food increased an average of 17% from the preceding year. Requests for emergency shelter increased an average of 13% from the preceding year. An estimated 59% of requests for food came from families with children.
USCM data provided a picture of the changing profile of the homeless population. As the proportion of single men dropped from 51% in 1990 to 41% in 2003, families with children rose from 34% to 40%. During that period the incidence of homeless single women and unaccompanied youth each rose two percentage points. (See Figure 5.6.) The same survey estimated that in 2003 nearly half
FIGURE 5.7
of the homeless population was African-American, while 35% was white and 13% was Hispanic. (See Figure 5.7.)
Government Efforts to Address Homelessness
The first federal task force on homelessness was created in 1983 to provide information to local communities on how to obtain surplus federal property. The Homeless Eligibility Clarification Act of 1986 removed the requirement for a permanent address and other barriers to existing programs such as Supplemental Security Income, Aid to Families with Dependent Children, veterans' benefits, food stamps, and Medicaid. The Homeless Housing Act, passed that same year, also helped fund emergency shelters across the nation.
The 1987 Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act required federal agencies to identify and make available surplus federal property, such as buildings and land, for use by states, local governments, and nonprofit agencies to assist homeless people. The Act and its subsequent amendments also provided community block grant programs for health care and mental health services to the homeless and amended the Food Stamp program to facilitate participation by homeless persons. The 1990 amendments specified in greater detail the obligations of states and local educational agencies in assuring the access of homeless children and youth to public education.
The Bringing America Home Act (H.R. 2897) was introduced in 2003 during the 108th Congress. The comprehensive bill designed to end homelessness proposed, among other features, a requirement that use of any federal dollars for demolition of existing housing would require a replacement resulting in no net loss of housing units.
Homeless Crime Victims
Battered women who lived in poverty often face the choice between remaining in abusive relationships or becoming homeless. In 2001 the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence estimated that half of all women and children experiencing homelessness were fleeing from domestic violence. In its 2003 survey of hunger and homelessness, the U.S. Conference of Mayors reported that domestic violence was cited as the main cause of homelessness by 58% of responding cities.
On the streets homeless people were vulnerable to becoming victims of crimes such as theft and assault. A National Coalition for the Homeless study reported that between 1999 and 2003 the number of homeless people who died from violent attacks decreased from forty-eight to nine. However, the number of incidents of violent attacks against homeless people tripled from twenty to sixty-one. Such statistics were only an indication of the problem, though, since many more crimes were thought to be unreported.
Employed but Unable to Feed the Family
Many of the mayors who participated in the survey on homelessness reported that the strong economy of the late 1990s had not benefited the homeless in their city. They cited increasing housing costs, for example, which made it more difficult for the poor to afford housing. In 1999 every participating city reported a lack of affordable housing. Low-skill jobs, generally the only type of work for which many homeless people could qualify, were difficult to find. Welfare reform had also sparked an increase in the number of requests for emergency food assistance.
In 2004 the U.S. Department of Agriculture estimated the minimum cost of feeding a one-year-old child at $75 per month. By the time a child reached age nine, and on through the teenage years, the minimum monthly cost of feeding that child ranged from $120 to $130. The monthly minimum food costs for a family of four—two adults and two children—ranged from $422 to $488 depending on the ages of the children.
Unemployment
Many cities surveyed reported shelters were filled due to significant community job losses, low wages in the area, and lack of affordable housing. The U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics documented the increase in the nationwide unemployment picture from 2000 to 2003. Some of the hardest hit areas were Alaska, Washington, Oregon, Michigan, the District of Columbia, South Carolina, and Louisiana.
As unemployment rose, American workers were concerned about the loss of jobs to overseas locations where labor costs were cheaper. A Department of Labor report titled Extended Mass Layoffs Associated with Domestic and Overseas Relocations for the First Quarter 2004 revealed 51% of mass layoffs were permanent closures of worksites affecting 10,019 workers. Just 2.5% of the 182,456 workers separated from nonseasonal jobs between January and March of 2004 were the result of relocating work overseas. One-third of layoffs related to movement of work occurred in the Midwest and another 31% were in the South.
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