Background Analysis
Inequality is increasing throughout the The United States and this is having a negative job effect on social conditions. In California, Washington, Oregon, Nevada, Hawaii, and Alaska, homelessness exceeds 50 people for every 10,000 people. On the East Coast, only New York and Massachusetts have such high rates (Schweid 34). It is expected that US homelessness could increase by 45% this year (Routhier 9). Homeless people are gradually becoming more numerous in other affluent cities on the west coast. There, too, people lose their homes, mainly due to rising prices and evictions from the housing by court order. At the same time, housing is unavailable for low-income people in the US (Routhier 4). However, this crisis has been developed for a long time – over the past few decades, the federal government has reduced funding for affordable housing and mental health facilities, which has led to the situation when many people across the country appeared homeless.
UN studies also show that the number of homeless Americans in the USA is steadily increasing. Despite the undoubted successes of the Trump administration in the economic sphere – it appeared possible to significantly reduce unemployment and overcome the mortgage crisis – the number of homeless people is constantly growing (Schweid 90). The reason for this is steadily increasing rental rates, while the median hourly wage in the United States over the past half-century has not changed. According to the calculations of the Institute for Economic Policy, in 1973, it amounted to 16.7 dollars, and in 2016 – 17.8 (when calculating, the purchasing power of the dollar was taken into account). However, if in 1973 a studio in the prestigious New York area of the Upper East Side could be rented for $300 a month, now it will cost $3800.
According to various data, the authorities unfairly treat the homeless throughout the country. They are transferred to the category of criminal elements when they are accused of violations – spending the night in the open air, begging (Willse 64). Moreover, the homeless appeared one of the most vulnerable populations in the United States during the coronavirus pandemic. Failure to comply with social distance and basic sanitation leads to the rapid spread of infection.
Officials cited three reasons for rising homelessness: unemployment, poverty, and lack of affordable housing, but in fact, there are many more reasons. In particular, there is a large number of veterans among the homeless, because the US Department of Veterans Affairs is not coping well with its duties and does not provide its wards with social housing and medical services sufficiently. There is another reason people often lose their homes. It applies to those who live in disadvantaged and poor areas, which appeared under the process of gentrification. Parks, business centers, and expensive apartment complexes appear on the site of demolished old houses. Renting a house in the area has risen sharply, and people unable to pay it also join the ranks of the homeless. The number of homeless people is regularly replenished by ex-criminals released from prisons. Most of them have practically no chanctooa we- id jobs and rent a house.
A significant part of the homeless has a job, but they simply cannot afford to pay for housing. Some have disability social facilities due to physical or mental problems but still cannot afford rent. Those who want to work often are not hired because they cannot apply for a job without a permanent address, clean clothes, and the ability to take a shower.
Letter to U.S. Congressman John Garamendi
Dear Mr. Garamendi,
As an American citizen and resident of California, I would like to address you with the ask to consider one of the most acute social problems in the country as a whole and California in particular – the problem of homelessness. Under the conditions of the current COVID-19 pandemic, the issue of homelessness can potentially affect national security (Clark-Ginzberg et al. 3).
Knowing your special attention to the issues of fighting unemployment and ensuring affordable healthcare for all categories of citizens, as well as your 100% pro-veterans record, I do believe that, based on your beliefs in social justice in California – home to the most diverse population in America – you will take into consideration the information presented below, to include it into drawing up the appropriate policies on the stages of agenda-setting and policy formulation. It is known that the political process has certain cyclicality, repeatability. A wide variety of processes indicates that it is rather difficult to single out the stages of the political process that are common to all types. Of course, in solving the problem of homelessness, the implementation of one policy, depending on the results achieved, will be followed by a consistent formulation of the following. However, at the moment, it seems necessary to begin with examining and recognizing the existence of the homelessness problem and outline potential systemic measures to rectify the situation.
The number of homeless people is rapidly growing, which is caused by a weak increase in real wages and unreasonably high housing prices. It is a shame for the country to have a large number of veterans among the homeless, and the fact that citizens who have served their sentences in prisons cannot find work increases the level of the criminal situation in society. Moreover, there is often an unfair and unprofessional attitude of police officers towards homeless but law-abiding citizens.
Today, the liberalist position that the poor themselves are the culprits of their situation and do not try to make efforts to rectify the situation is erroneous since the level of rental rates and housing prices are becoming unbearable even for the middle class, not to mention people with low qualifications and accordingly low income. The task of governments at all levels is to develop a competent, consistent, and effective policy to help the homeless, taking into account all systemic factors of the economic and social plan.
References
Clark-Ginzberg, Aaron et al. Emergency Homeless Services During the COVID-19 Crisis. RAND, 2020. Web.
Routhier, Giselle. State of the Homelessness 2020. Coalition for the Homeless.
Schweid, Richard. Invisible Nation: Homeless Families in America. University of California Press, 2016.
WWills Craig. The Value of Homelessness: Managing Surplus Life in the United States. University of Minnesota Press, 2015.