Welcome to West Side Homeless Outreach

THE DYNAMIC DOZEN

12 Changes in American Life That Will Eliminate Homelessness

By Loren Franck

Homelessness has always plagued America. Castigated as “bums,” “drifters,” “hobos,” “itinerants” and “vagrants,” people who lack permanent dwellings have had it rough in this land of plenty.

Unfortunately, despite our nation’s abundance, destitution and hunger flourish. Statistics vary, but U.S. homelessness ranges from 0.5 million to 3.5 million men, women and children. All ages, races, colors and creeds fall victim. But it need not be so. America created the homelessness within its borders, and when the problem is addressed successfully, it can be eradicated. That lofty goal will take time and collaborative effort, though.

The following 12 steps, when implemented effectively, would end homelessness in the United States. Clearly, these are monumental changes. However, the dynamic dozen are mandatory steps. For U.S. homelessness to vanish, American culture requires a major overhaul regarding how we live, work and play.

Building on that foundation, let’s examine 12 changes in American life that must occur before our nation eradicates its homelessness.

1. A Job and Living Wage Must Be a Right, Not a Privilege

U.S. homelessness is caused largely by unemployment—and by its cousin, underemployment. Most often, homelessness hinges on one question: can you pay the rent or mortgage this month? Admittedly, because of mental illness, drug and alcohol abuse, or simply giving up the “rat race,” some men and women choose to be homeless. But for those who want to get off the streets, maintain a home, raise a family, and enjoy the other comforts of life, a meaningful job that pays a living wage is mandatory.

2. America Must Focus on People, Not Products

Sick? Take a pill. Need to lose weight? Try the trendiest fitness routine. Bored? Get the latest gadget. Products are touted as the answer to every problem in America culture. But most of life’s problems don’t concern products. They’re people related. And solving these difficulties requires meeting nonmaterial human needs. Some people are homeless because they don’t fit in socially. Others live on the streets because of addiction, inadequate job skills or mental illness. Medication, job training, educational materials and other products can help solve these problems. But to eliminate homelessness, the focus must be on the people involved, not the products used.

3. Community Responsibility for Homelessness Must Surge

Homelessness is more than an individual problem, family crisis or neighborhood challenge. For homelessness to fade into history, people lacking permanent homes must be embraced by their communities rather than treated by them as leprous. Local residents must thoroughly involve themselves in feeding, clothing and housing their neighborhoods’ neediest members. We simply can’t pass the responsibility to end homelessness on government, social service agencies and churches. Communities are a significant part of homelessness’s cause, so they must be a major part of its solution.

4. Cooperation Must Trounce Competition

Competition is ever-present in American culture. Whether on ball fields or in boardrooms, the objective in most U.S. endeavors is to win—and win big. For various reasons—most notably arrogance, selfishness and greed—Americans have elevated competition to a moral imperative. It’s erroneously perceived as a leading virtue. In fact, many who shun competition are considered lazy, unethical, unsociable or otherwise undesirable. And homeless people know competition’s downside well—competition for education, food, healthcare, housing and socioeconomic status. Homelessness won’t go away, however, until competition bows to cooperation. Mutual aid, community networking and collaborative assistance must prevail over selfish ambition, individual accumulation and personal victory.

5. Education Must Become Freely Available

Expectedly, there’s a relationship between people’s educational levels and their risk of becoming homeless. The more education possessed, the lower your risk for homelessness. During our outreach activities to west Los Angeles County homeless people, we’ve never met a neurosurgeon living on the streets. But we have met several men and women who hold bachelor’s degrees, and plenty of people who haven’t attended college or graduated from high school. American culture needs to change so all who want an education can get one. Instead of weeding out applicants and making the educational journey difficult, colleges and universities must become widely inclusive—and readily available for all.

6. Education Must Become Completely Meaningful

It’s one thing to spend four years at a university to study chemistry, history, psychology or one of dozens of other academic disciplines. But it’s quite another to receive training in a field that will guarantee a lifetime income. Accounting, dentistry, engineering and medicine are examples. Most of West Side Homeless Outreach’s college-degreed clients graduated college in subjects that offered few job prospects. To change the face of American homelessness, the emphasis must shift. Graduates should leave college with job skills as well as academic knowledge. A degree in art history does little good if its recipient becomes homeless.

7. Efforts Should Address the Needs of Homeless People, Not the Needs of Volunteers

Volunteerism has revived throughout America. And that’s good when volunteers meet the needs of the organizations they step up to serve. Most charities, especially those that help homeless people, greatly need volunteers. West Side Homeless Outreach is no exception. But too often, people volunteer in order to address their own needs and not those of the less fortunate. For instance, they might volunteer for food service when there’s an overabundance of volunteers. A better option? Ask what the organization needs most, and then volunteer for that job. The organization and its clients will be grateful, and you’ll complete some extremely worthwhile volunteer service.

8. Funding Should Be Public, Not Peripheral

Public benefit charities such as West Side Homeless Outreach are invariably 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations. Their primary purpose is to accomplish their altruistic missions, not to make money. To illustrate, here’s the West Side Homeless Outreach mission: “Founded on compassion, fueled by urgent need, West Side Homeless Outreach extends a much-needed hand up to the west Los Angeles County homeless people who need it most.” For our agency, financial bottom lines aren’t part of the equation. Charities shouldn’t have to compete for the same dollar in the same ways Ford competes with Chevy, or Target goes toe to toe with Walmart. To be ultimately effective, homeless charities should be funded by public money, not through competitive marketing.

9. Healthcare, Including Psychiatric Care, Should Be a Right, Not a Privilege

Mental health is a two-edged sword among the homeless. On one hand, the mentally ill are unusually susceptible to losing their homes. And yet, the flipside is true too. High levels of mental health can help prevent you from living on the streets. However, the relationship between deteriorating mental health and homelessness is cyclical. People who suffer from serious untreated psychiatric disorders become homeless disproportionately. And life on the streets—the stresses, strains, sleep deprivation, fatigue plus lack of privacy and security—exacerbate a homeless person’s mental illness . So, for homelessness to be addressed effectively, healthcare—especially prevention and treatment of mental illness—must be a right for all, not a privilege for a few.

10. Homelessness Must Be Redefined

An undefined problem is unresolvable. To achieve desired results, we must identify the goals and harness all required resources. How true when helping the homeless. So we must first answer the question, What constitutes homelessness? Various definitions abound. For example, is someone living in a motel homeless? Or in an RV? How about someone who sleeps at night on friends’ couches? And how long must someone be without a permanent home? A week? A month? A year? Five years? Throughout America, there are no consistent answers. To be sure, our nation, where the American dream is to own a home, still awaits a compelling definition of homelessness.

11. Help for the Homeless Must Be Perennial, Not Seasonal

Thanksgiving through Christmas is the golden season for helping the homeless. In fact, our resource-line phones ring steadily the week before Thanksgiving and the week prior to Christmas. During those few days, people want to extend a hand up to society’s underprivileged. They’re eager to serve food, donate clothing and blankets, lend their financial support and give their time. The downside? Too many community members neglect homeless people’s needs the remainder of the year. Homeless people have consistent year-round requirements. For example, they must eat, keep warm and dry, and stay safe 12 months a year. Consequently, for best results, assistance to homeless people must be continual, not seasonal.

12. One Letter Makes the Difference

When aiding homeless people, consistent small improvements can lead to major advances. For that reason, we’re striving to improve people’s mindsets regarding homeless people. Affluent men and women who can help homeless people often have a knee-jerk “no” reaction when asked to extend a hand up. So West Side Homeless Outreach wants to change no to now. When asked to help homeless individuals with food, clothing, transportation, reemployment, medical care or temporary shelter, we want people’s immediate reaction to be now. Think of the improvements that would make in homeless people’s lives. Indeed, small things can make a big difference.

In the End

Don’t be fooled by those promising that their agency will eliminate homelessness. However wealthy or well established, a single entity can’t do it. Relegating homelessness to a nightmare of the past will require American society as a whole to move mountains. So ensuring that everyone has a permanent home who wants one will take much more than seasonal fundraising and modest donations. That’s a profound change, one requiring a major overhaul of our society.

Is such a pivotal change doable? Definitely. Will it be easy? Not a chance. But homelessness can be eradicated. And we’ll all need the dynamic dozen to do it.

Loren Franck is president and executive director of West Side Homeless Outreach. In numerous capacities, he’s been helping homeless people for more than 20 years. With his wife, Verlette, they launched West Side Homeless Outreach in 2008.

Comments or questions? Contact loren@wshola.org.

West L.A. County homeless people need your assistance more than ever. You can help us help them. West Side Homeless Outreach is an IRS-approved 501(c)(3) charity, so your donations are completely tax deductible. And why not approach your employer about a matching grant? Click on donate; or mail checks and money orders to West Side Homeless Outreach, Inc., PO Box 5761, Playa del Rey, CA 90296-5761. Thank you for your support.

Can You Pass This Month’s Quiz on Homelessness?

Blog Update

Our frequently updated blog shares little-known facts about homelessness that everyone should know. Click here to visit.

A $100 Donation Ensures:

1. 50 meals for homeless people or

2. 75 personal-hygiene kits or

3. 275 healthy beverages and

4. One million thank-you’s

Starting Young

This ambitious 11-year-old (above) proves you can't be too young to help homeless people. The perils of homelessness have increased noticeably on L.A.'s West Side.

These seniors from Sunrise Senior Living in Playa Vista, Calif., donate more than 1,000 home-baked cookies annually to West Side Homeless Outreach.

Volunteer efforts with West Side Homeless Outreach are a perfect service activity for these middle-school students, who are learning how to assist society’s underserved.