Treating the symptoms instead of addressing the underlying problems
As someone who has worked in trying to address the problems of homeless or nearly homeless individuals, I see one glaring system failure after another. Lack of resources, funding, available “affordable” housing and how the word “affordable” has been so badly taken out of context in regards to the housing/rental markets it is laughable, at best. The abject failure of our society to lift all boats, when those who are on the ninety percent of the spectrum, financially, are suffering for the gains of the top 10 percent. This needs to end, now, before total collapse occurs.
From exorbitant prices on food, clothing, housing, due to “supply chain issues”, which while valid in 2020 and 2021 should actually not be an issue continuing, except for corporate greed at this point. To housing and rental market pricing, which is beyond anyone making fifteen dollars an hour USD, honestly, which after taxes is approximately 24,000.00 a year. Most rentals in areas, for a studio (glorified closet) 900.00/month, annually that is an outlay of 10,800.00. On top of that, utilities, (gas/water/electric/internet/phone/trash) and if they have a car, gas, insurance and maintenance along with another at least 75.00/month for parking at their apartment which is 900.00 annually. Oh, did I mention food? Medical? Clothes? et cetera. Considering utilities are usually about 175.00 per month, if not included, which nowadays, they are added after rent, as many “landlords” are passing the buck on this, in the interest of their pocketbooks, 2,100/year. If you’re lucky, sometimes over this and that is not including the phone, which is another fee, as most folks have gone mobile and not landlines. So this leaves annually about 9000.00 USD for folks to “live” on.
I noted that a studio can go for 900, one bedroom starts at that and screams upwards to 1575.00 to 1675.00 per month, two bedroom, in an urban setting, starts at 1675 and can be found at 2400.00 per month… Outer ring suburbs are edging up towards these numbers. and if you are lucky enough to make 15.00 per hour, there goes your whole check and you better have a second job to make the ends meet. And these landlords use tax breaks and subsidies to build these on tax money, your tax money, so they can offer “affordable” housing to low income, who cannot afford it, as many folks are on fixed incomes, for one reason or another, including retired. Is this how you treat your family?
Vouchers in some instances are bigger insults than assistance, as they are not keeping up with market-rate and then have the added onus of including utilities into the final number, which then knocks the client out of contention for a “decent” place to live, aka a place without maintenance issues, maybe amenities, like laundry, proximity to fresh food supermarkets or markets, doctors, bus lines, off street parking, et cetera. They dangle the hope of a place to sleep where they feel safe, without actually delivering, unless you head to the country, outside of transit opportunities and you have to now have a vehicle to get to work and all those costs, just to find a safe place to sleep.
The have nots have nothing and the haves on the lower end of this equation are now reaching out for resources. Case in point, food banks are now running out of food on a regular basis, because the haves are not having as much left at the end of the paycheck to afford food. Folks who work are now applying for services they thought beneath them seven years ago, because of the upside down nature of our economy in the last almost decade. From abundance, we are now facing a large crisis that everyone glosses over or does not address at all in polite conversation or media.
Efforts to drive the actual homeless out of neighborhoods is a prime example of NIMBY (not in my back yard) happening, as we turn away from the lack of housing for all. When some folks who have decided to live on the street are asked why they don’t get services or stay at shelter, the answer comes back to they are not safe there, and many times, they are not. Others are so lost in their drug addiction or alcoholism, that they don’t want to jump through hoops of getting clean to stay somewhere. And yet we call it “person centered” choice, and we dictate terms of compliance.
Meanwhile, warehouses, office buildings and other corporate/business entities sit empty, all could easily be turned into housing for those folks and for others on the homeless or nearly homeless spectrum. All it takes is a refocusing of efforts and for everyone to stop being so greedy and me first, you last. When did we lose our hearts? When did we lose our soul as a nation? When did we stop believing we were all in this together? When did we think hate should be governance?
I will leave you with these questions and hopefully you can come to your own answers, but the larger issue is this, how much longer as a society can we survive this? Honestly.
