The homeless are disrespected by society because society has failed them, making a near impossible problem to solve. The homeless are society�s illegitimate children and no one wants to claim any responsibility for them. So rather than taking responsibility for its shortcomings society shifts the blame to the homeless and ridicules them for their inability to work. I guess it�s a lot easier to jeer at a problem than to fix it but if we could understand the problem we would be able to effectively help these people. However it�s easier to prosecute them for their problems than it is to fix them, but with a little help we could erase this problem.
We treat our homeless like a blemish on our perfect world. It is possible to be fined for being homeless and the average homeless person spends thirty-five days a year in jail. However if we want to get these people off of the streets we must help them, not prosecute them since once they�re out of jail they�re only going to have one place to go. Leaving them in a jail forces them to rely on the state, with a little help they could be self-supporting and contributing members of society. One year for an inmate in jail can cost over $30,000 and while we may want the homeless out of sight there must be a more economical solution. While on the streets the homeless put a huge strain on the government. Inefficiently using many different public systems, they rack up huge bills for the government yet still leave with nearly nothing to show for it. Current help offered to the homeless is just band-aid solutions. A permanent solution is needed.
The real solution to homelessness is embarrassingly obvious. If they are homeless we must create affordable housing. Many programs have been started across North America, in new buildings, old hotels and non-profit apartment complexes. However many of these buildings lack the basic facilities for living such as washrooms and kitchens. These homes may help somewhat by putting a roof over their heads but they still force the homeless to rely on public systems. Being able to cook for themselves is the first step towards becoming independent and puts them one step closer to leading a normal life. If the homeless can�t do that then they are forced to find cheap restaurants when they are shut out of soup kitchens and shelters, which is a huge drain on their meager resources and it also puts them one step closer to a regular life. There have been more successful projects however and these are providing a vital steppingstone out of the streets. If a vagrant can find employment they can now afford housing (assuming there is available funded housing,) and their work now goes towards goals. By getting to the source of the problem these houses are getting people off of the streets forever.
However many may never leave the streets. To these people we can only offer kindness. We have to get over old stereotypes and realize that the homeless aren�t so different from us. Most of them are not substance dependant, are able-bodied and are sane. These people, with almost no help can save themselves but they are all just people, human beings with pasts and futures. Maybe we can�t get them off the street, but help doesn�t need to be written on a cheque. The simplest gestures can make a huge difference in their quality of life. A simple wave, a short conversation, some spare change, anything could change their life and once they start to feel like humans again maybe everything else wouldn�t matter so much. Maybe a life without a home could be a happy one. Maybe with this new outlook, they�d have the hope to fight their way off the streets. They aren�t bad people, they just have fallen behind societies relentless pace and they could catch up. Their lives started just like every one of us, and we should treat them accordingly.
The homeless are nothing to be ashamed of. They are societies children from birth, and while they may lose a piece of themselves to the streets, that piece can be returned with a little bit of kindness. No one needs to be homeless and with our help maybe one day no one will be. We�re all born as humans, why should money separate us?
