Homeless in America: the Harsh Reality of the Epidemic

Here is a commentary by Henry Cisneros that I recently read. Cisneros served as the secretary of the Department of Housing & Urban Development during the Clinton administration and is currently part of the board of the National Alliance to End Homelessness. To read the complete article, go to http://www.mysanantonio.com/opinion/stories/MYSA021807.4H.cisneroscomment.45122bc.html.

"The most recent estimate, and the first in more than a decade, shows that at minimum 744,000 men, women and children experienced homelessness in the United States on any given night in January 2005. Distressingly, about 23 percent had a disability and were homeless for long periods.


These numbers are derived from taking a snapshot of the problem; the reality is that homelessness is quite fluid and that over the course of the year about 3.5 million people are without a home.

These grim statistics add up to a single truth: There are too many people who experience homelessness and far too many who spend years — quite literally — sleeping on the streets. What these statistics do not address, but what we know is also true, is that many more people are living on the periphery of homelessness, at risk of eviction or living in a precarious situation because they cannot afford their housing...


However, homelessness is the symptom of a much larger problem in our country — the lack of affordable housing. In the context of today's market realities, the federal government's role in providing, preserving and producing affordable housing is essential to getting homeless people back into housing (thus putting the housing in Housing First) and, equally as important, for preventing homelessness in the first place.

Dramatic cuts in the Department of Housing and Urban Development budget and reductions in the number of housing vouchers make it more difficult — if not impossible — to end homelessness. Without critical dollars for affordable housing, communities — even those early pioneers demonstrating results — are doomed to failure.

But the good news is that this failure is not inevitable. We have an incredible opportunity to help communities move forward with their efforts to end homelessness. By replicating promising strategies, and by increasing our nation's commitment to affordable housing, we no longer have to settle for placing a Band-Aid on this national tragedy. We can end it. "

Americans today must face a harsh reality: 3.5 million people are annually homeless. In a country preaching freedom, liberty, and prosperity, the reality falls quite short of this ideal. What makes homelessness even worse in the U.S. are the cuts in the Department of Housing and Urban Development budget. The U.S. government is not doing enough to prevent the epidemic and thus the problem continues to plague the nation. More money needs to be spent on relieving the problem; now is not the time to cut back on funding relief. We need more affordable housing for the homeless to get back on track. We need long term goals to prevent homelessness.