The Homeless Situation in Portland

Taking a look at Homelessness and Mental Health

By: Lauren Markley

This article presents the harsh and unjust status of the homelessness situation in Portland, Oregon. The numbers presented in the article highlight the severity of the situation noting both the number of people who are homeless in Portland “an estimated 14,000 chronically homeless people” and the number of people who suffer from mental illness who are homeless, “35-40%”. The homeless situation in Portland is something that has gone unchecked and has been ignored for years. Thousands of people are left to fend for themselves and they’re not getting the help and support that they need. The government continues to make false promises and what little efforts that they make, don’t do anything to address the core issues, like mental health and drug abuse.

Mental illness is a major issue amongst our homeless population, and it speaks to how both the government and the rest of the population tend to view people with disabilities. Change needs to be made and action needs to be taken to ensure that these people get the help and support they so desperately need. This highlights an overall issue with society, people overlook people struggling with mental illness or drug addiction and view them as lost causes. The lack of support from the government supports this claim, and the public must take action to ensure that this type of inhumane treatment is corrected.

More information on this topic, including the statistics I refer to, can be found in this article here:https://www.heritage.org/poverty-and-inequality/commentary/why-portlands-homeless-problem-the-worst-the-nation