Dear Future President,

I believe every single person living in the United States should have a place to call home, somewhere where they can feel safe and live peacefully in, but are we doing enough to help? Homelessness is a serious concern in America because the homeless are judged very quickly on their status and the number of people becoming homeless are growing.

One reason homelessness is a problem in America is typically, homeless people are judged immediately because of their appearance and position in society.Underneath the surface of a homeless person though, there is always story and a reason. The usual thought of why one is homeless are mostly negative, but homelessness can be due to a variety of reasons, such as financial issues, lack of employment opportunities, decline in available public assistance, and/or lack of affordable health care(“Why Are People Homeless?”). When I would walk down the street, usually in an urban area, seeing a someone homeless always made me think of how they ended up having no place to call home. When passing by, Americans will usually ignore the homeless, as if they’re invisible, with only some pedestrians helping. Everyone deserves the same respect, regardless of one’s living situation, because each and every American is human and they deserve the same rights as the people around them.

 Next, homelessness is an issue in the United States because the risk of someone not having a home has been growing slowly over the number of years. One main reason the homeless population has been increasing is due to that they cannot afford to buy a house (“Snapshot of Homeless”). Over the years, when I have visited mostly metropolitan places, I have seen more and more people living on the streets, begging for basic necessities more people take for granted.Two trends have been responsible for the rise in homelessness in America in the past 20-25 years: a growing shortage of affordable rental housing and a simultaneous increase in poverty (“U.S Homeless Facts”). With more expensive house marketing in current 2016, approximately 633,782 Americans experience homelessness in a given night, with 142,168 (22.1%) children, 62,619 (13%) veterans, and 269,991 (42.6%) unable to work in some way (U.S Homeless Facts). 

On the other hand, some Americans living in a homeless state have gotten to where they are because bad decisions, as in criminal history or addiction, that influence the path of their life. While people who experience homelessness due range from financial reasons to fleeing domestic violence, some Americans who had gotten involved with drugs or other issues, causing them to live their lives on the streets with a considerable amount being“chronically homeless”, which is “an unaccompanied homeless individual with a disabling condition who has either been continuously homeless for a year or more, or has had at least four episodes of homelessness in the past three years” (“General Homelessness Facts”). Although a small fraction of Americans have ended up homeless due to addiction, an majority of those who have ended up in shelters on in the streets have worked hard to make ends meet. Even with all the shelter and the organizations, there are Americans out there just yearning for a nice, warm place to reside in.

In conclusion, those who are experiencing homelessness are calling out for help to those willing to lend a hand. I propose a solution that might help some Americans have a home. I believe if everyone was given a minimum amount of money from the U.S government to afford a basic home with the vital things needed, one will be able to be employed and pay off the loan in the future years.With this idea, along with the shelters and the organization, I think one day, homelessness can be a thing in the past in America. No one deserves to wonder at night if they’ll even eat the next day or survive, because in the end, everyone just wants to call a place home. Thank you so much for your consideration and I hope you will be able to read this.

Thank you, 

Kiely

 “General Homelessness Facts”. Green Doors. N.p.

“Snapshot of Homeless”. National Alliance to End Homelessness. N.p.

“U.S Homeless Facts”. Front Steps. N.p.

“Why Are People Homeless?” NationalHomeless.org. N.p.