LGBTQ Youth Homelessness is a Crisis

                    

         Did you know that a significant percentage of LGBTQ people in the United States face family rejection and homelessness because of homophobia and transphobia? According to a recent article in the Washington Post, that’s exactly the impossible struggle that tens of thousands of LGBTQ young people find themselves in every day. Rejected by their families and owed no support by the state because of their age, these vulnerable teens find themselves on the street, facing a daily struggle to find a place to sleep and food to eat.

                    For me, the struggle begins with awareness. Unless people know about the problem, they aren’t going to be likely to help fight it. In order to do my small part, I’ve shared a fiction series to illustrate the crisis of today’s homeless queer kids in my social network. I’m hoping to foster some empathy and distill some love. While stories that I've shared are fiction, everything it wrote is real. Yes, it may seem impossibly horrible and over the top, but everything I’ve shared has happened to people I know, and is still happening — even now.

                    Please think hard about the issues I’m writing about. Think hard about how you can help. Thank you!

 

Minorities in the Homeless Population

Have you paid attention to those you see on the side of the road, often holding a cardboard sign? Sure, you probably notice them, but what do you notice about them? 

Something that has probably passed many by is the glaring racial disparity among the homeless population. This graphic provides a helpful summary of the proportions of minorities who make up the homeless population in America versus the general population. 

From National Alliance to End Homelessness

What does this discrepancy tell you about systemic racism and our economy? In our efforts to eliminate homelessness, we must also eliminate racism from all parts of society. Why else would there be such disparity between the two kinds of populations? 

For more eye-opening facts about racial disparities in homelessness, visit the National Alliance to End Homelessness and the National Coalition for the Homeless.

Immigrant Homeless, matter

When you think about homelessness, do you ever think about immigrants? Sometimes, we do not realize the amount of vulnerabilities that exists within this population. Most immigrants come to America because of the instability in their country, usually because of war, famine, climate change and persecution. However, once arriving to America, they face a new challenge rooted in language, cultural and educational barriers. Because of this, they are forced to take on labor extensive jobs, with unhealthy working conditions and schedules.

According to the Center on Human Rights Education, Los Angeles, California homeless population rose 6% to 46,874 individual, with a large portion being immigrants. It is important that as a society that we support our most vulnerable, which is why I wanted to include a resource that can be accessible and helpful to an immigrant homeless. The Health Care for the Homeless provides resources to immigrants who are homeless or are on the path to becoming one. They also provide Spanish and other languages, making the resource attainable.

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https://www.hchmd.org/services-and-resources-immigrants