discussion

DISCUSSION1.docx

Directions: There are TWO parts to this assignment.

PART ONE:

1a. Watch these 3 videos:

· What Happens When Cities Make Homelessness a Crime: Hiding The Homeless - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nYFeY2pS0ks

· 3 Sickening Ways America is Criminalizing Being Poor - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MLwHSzu_rTc

·  Nowhere To Go But Jail? • Over Criminalized #3: Homelessness - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJf1o5G6HMY

1b. Is the criminalization of the homeless necessary?

1c. Provide 2 alternatives to criminalizing the homeless.

The National Coalition for the Homeless is a good place to start your research:

http://nationalhomeless.org/issues/civil-rights/

Here's a great graph showing the problems with criminalizing the homeless:

http://visual.ly/criminalization-homelessness

(you must cite the research to support your answer)

2a. Choose your issue RELIGION or DRUGS (you only need to choose one video and answer one option for 2b).

IMPACT OF RELIGION - Watch the video:

· Good Magazine: On Skid Row Part 4: God - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OGV_FpKP2ro=channel

2b. Do you think religious organizations can do a better job solving the homelessness problem than government programs?

(you must cite the research to support your answer)

or IMPACT OF DRUG ADDICTION - Watch the video:

Seattle is Dying

KOMO's Eric Johnson explores the impact the drug addiction and homelessness

March 19, 2019

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bpAi70WWBlw

2b. Summarize the homeless problem in Seattle and how they can look to Rhode Island to save the lives of heroin addicts and save their city.

3a. Watch the following 2 videos:

. Homeless in the Heartland - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YCHfB4aui9g

. The Poverty Tour—”No Room at the Inn” -

https://vimeo.com/175298754

3b. Should housing be considered a "human right"?

(you must cite the research to support your answer)

Resources to help answer 3b:

Why Jimmy Carter Believes Housing Is a Basic Human Right - https://www.citylab.com/equity/2017/07/jimmy-carter-believes-housing-is-a-human-right/533973/

Fifty Years Later, America Still Isn't Living Up to the Fair Housing Act - https://prosperitynow.org/blog/fifty-years-later-america-still-isnt-living-fair-housing-act

Housing is a human right: TED talk by Sczerina Perot - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=idJqpWbOPJk

UN Fact Sheet No.21, The Human Right to Adequate Housing - https://www.un.org/ruleoflaw/files/FactSheet21en.pdf

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PART TWO:

Often homelessness is not caused by one factor alone but results from a series of events. Concurrent unbearable conditions, situations, or issues also sometimes cause homeless- ness. Therefore, many seemingly unrelated issues are actually interconnected: they weave a web from which escape can be difficult. The challenges can be overwhelming.

Homelessness in America is far beyond a housing crisis. In New York City alone, nearly 60,000 people, about 25,000 of whom are children, are homeless. Dr. Ralph da Costa Nunez, president & CEO of the Institute for Children, Poverty, and Homelessness, speaks to the Beyond Housing 2016 Conference.

1. Watch this video with Dr. Ralph da Costa Nunez:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jvdog9rY-DY

PROFILES

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First, read each of the 4 profiles, then choose ONE profile and immerse yourself in it (ie. put yourself in the person's shoes).

PART 2 -1a. List and describe at least 3 organizations your profile person could turn to for help in their situation (you will need to cite the actual organization and provide a url to their homepage).

PART 2 -- 1b. Describe how you would feel if you were this person. Is it easy to get back on your feet? Frustrating? Frightening?

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PROFILE #1 - VETERANS:

 I’m a Vietnam Vet. I’ve tried to put it all behind me, but sometimes I just break down. I’ve been fired from jobs several times. I wish there was someone I could turn to. The friend I was staying with recently got back together with his wife, so I can’t sleep there anymore. I have nowhere to stay and no one will hire me because of my history. I’ve only got about $500 in savings.

YOU NEED THE FOLLOWING:

A place to stay (at least temporarily) Mental health counseling

A job of some sort

ISSUES TO CONSIDER:

PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder)

Inaccessibility of veteran services

Lack of awareness of veteran services

Employment

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PROFILE #2 - WOMEN WITH CHILDREN (FAMILIES):

 I just loaded everything in my car and drove 600 miles to escape from my abusive ex-boyfriend. I’m pregnant with our 2nd child and my doctor instructed me to work no more than 4 hours a day because I’ve been having some health problems. My son and I have been sleeping in the car for 2 weeks because the shelters are full, and no one will hire me part-time because I don't have daycare for my 3-year old.

YOU NEED THE FOLLOWING:

A place to stay for you and your son

Domestic abuse counseling

A medical checkup

Daycare for your son

Job training (paid)

ISSUES TO CONSIDER

Domestic violence

Health care

Economic instability

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PROFILE #3 - RUNAWAY YOUTH:

 I’m 14 years old. I ran away from home 4 months ago to get away from Dave, my step- dad. He used to hit me and he always yells. The first time I left, the social worker brought me back because Dave promised that things would change. The threats and beatings only got worse after that because Dave said he’d show me who’s boss since I thought I was so tough. So I bought a bus ticket—they can’t bring me back if they can’t find me. It’s hard being on the street, especially because I’m a minor, so they won’t let me into the shelter. I’ve got pretty much nothing. I try to stay out of trouble, but I’m running out of cash, and my friends I met here say the easiest way to make money is to sell drugs—or myself.

YOU NEED THE FOLLOWING:

A safe, stable place to sleep

Legal counseling (for minors)

Abuse counseling Education

ISSUES TO CONSIDER

Child abuse by family member (sexual, physical, psychological)

Delinquency

Turning to prostitution (to support self)

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PROFILE #4 - PEOPLE WITH MENTAL ILLNESS:

 I suffer from major depression. My insurance doesn’t cover mental health services, and I can’t afford the counseling and medication I need. I was a bus driver for 12 years until I got fired last month because I missed so much work. Often it’s just too hard to get out of bed, much less leave the house. My rent is a month overdue, so my landlord is angry. My only family is my ex-wife and kids in Florida, but I can’t go to them for help. It‘s totally hopeless.

YOU NEED THE FOLLOWING:

Counseling

Medication (Mental) health insurance

A job (income)

A support system

ISSUES TO CONSIDER

High cost of prescription drugs and therapy

Lack of proper follow-up after mental health treatments

Employment

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As usual, in addition to your own writing respond to at least TWO of your fellow students' posts, keeping in mind the expectations for posting

Points to address should include:

· Were their responses similar or different from yours? Explain.

· Compare and contrast the conclusions you each drew from your observations.

· Ask them additional questions to further our discussion on the topic of homelessness.

. Besides citing the videos you will need to cite at least ONE other source in your discussion and include a reference page.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES:

Homelessness database of articles:

  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/news/homelessness/

 MORE homeless articles http://www.pbs.org/newshour/tag/homelessness/

 NO Safe Place: The criminalization of Homelessness in US cities The National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty  http://www.nlchp.org/documents/No_Safe_Place

Homeless Rights Advocacy Project releases groundbreaking briefs on the "criminalization of homelessness" in Washington

Arresting Homeless People For Being Homeless Is Unbelievably Wasteful

Big US cities report steep rise in hunger and homelessness

A vile teen fad: beating the homeless

'Bumfight' Videos Inspired Joy-Killing Florida Teen Tells Ed Bradley He Killed Homeless Man 'For Fun'

A Dream Denied: The Criminalization of Homelessness in U.S. Cities

Homelessness and Prisoner Reentry - Author: Council of State Governments and National Alliance to End Homelessness (2006) Click on the pdf fact sheet.

Picture the Homeless!

McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act

The Federal Government Says Being Homeless Should Not Be A Crime Prosecuting people for sleeping in public "violates their constitutional rights."

Homeless feeding bans: Well-meaning policy or war on the poor?

The War Against The Homeless - Unimaginable Cruelties

Hate, Violence and Death on Main Street, USA

National Alliance to End Homelessness

National Law Center on Homelessness

Constructive Alternatives to the Criminalization of Homelessness

Huffington Post Homelessness Articles

Examples of 'mean cities'

Feeding Intolerance: Prohibitions on sharing food with people experiencing homelessness