...approximately 3.5 million people without a home, forced to live in shelters and on the streets. Of the millions that are homeless, 1.7 million are children (PBS, 2009). Though there are many agencies and organizations available to provide what assistance they can, it is not always enough. Advocacy groups, in particular, strive to help people meet their basic human needs, such as food and shelter. For these people, advocacy can change their lives. These advocacy programs would not be possible without the support of federal funding from state and local organizations. These programs include the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Grants, Runaway and Homeless Youth Act, joint U.S. Departments of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and Veterans Affairs (VA) Supportive Housing (HUD-VASH), to name only a few. (Alliance to End Homelessness, 2011). The National Alliance to End Homelessness encourages a policy of advocacy in Congress and local government. They believe that members of Congress will be more likely to promote change if they are given to opportunity to understand how many people in their district are suffering and what can be done to stop it. The Alliance explains how advocacy can make a difference, just by calling and writing to policy makers or building relationships with them by meeting with them or inviting them to attend a program explaining the problems homeless people face every day. The Alliance works with Congress directly through meetings and organized campaigns with...
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...Advocate for the Homeless Advocacy is about assisting people in speaking up for themselves and making sure that their ideas and opinions are heard and understood. An advocate should avoid conflicts of interests with the people who give services to the person that he is assisting. The advocate should stand up for the person as if he is standing up for himself. The group of people for who I would advocate for are the homeless. It's estimated that approximately 3.5 million people in the United States, 1.35 million of them children (nearly 40%), are likely to experience homelessness this year. In addition, incidence of homelessness has increased over the past 20 years, and these numbers are only going to get larger as time goes on when economic pressure, job loss, and the rising cost of living are factored in. People experiencing homelessness need a voice. In Washington State there are many organizations that work with and help the homeless population. There are many services provided by the different organizations. Shelters provide homeless people with a valuable place to sleep advocacy coalition’s work behind the scenes to fight civil rights abuses and hate crimes committed against homeless people. Advocates are the voice of homeless people, they routinely meet with homeless individuals to find out what the most pressing needs in the community are and then work on finding solutions to those problems. Activists advocate for homeless people in many ways...
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...view point of advocacy and the population that she would like to see more advocacies work done for. There are many causes in which are in need of more advocacy work, many of these causes this writer agrees with such as the cause of the “Elderly”, the “Homeless” and the “Veterans” are all worthy causes. However this writer’s passion is for the “youth be it that they are troubles and or abused, and disability. However this paper will address the concern of the assigned advocacy in the human services area and examine the explicit population who has particular needs; and the author of this paper will be examining population of the homeless. As an advocate the author will assist with issues that this particular group client’s face on a daily bases things like: food, raiment, shelter, medical training, and transportation. Specific Population: Homeless "The most immediate cause of homelessness in America is deficiency in income better known as “poverty " (University of Richmond, 2003). It is reported that there are somewhere between 5000-6000 people that are believed to be homeless in the United States; that is that a person does not have a undeviating place to live. Homelessness is a problem that brings along other issues like unemployment, poor nutrition, illnesses, violence and drug addictions. Experts are predicting that the number of homeless people will continue to rise if addition aid and innovative programs aren’t developed. Assisting the Client "Advocacy refers to influencing...
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...Advocacy and Homelessness BSHS 441 Joann Wherry 6/6/2013 Advocacy and Homelessness What is advocacy? The classic definition is simply “The act of pleading or arguing in favor of something, such as a cause, idea, or policy; active support. “(Free Dictionary, 2013). To brand this definition more explicit to advocacy inside the Human Services field we need to add just a little more information. A more exact, directed to human services, definition of advocacy could be: to provide assistance to a certain population by supporting or communicating for them to attain the services in which they require. The amount of homeless individuals in America is disturbing. The need for advocacy amongst the homeless populace is in extreme igh demand today. “The recession will force 1.5 million more people into homelessness over the next two years, according to estimates by The National Alliance to End Homelessness.” (PBS, 2013). People find themselves homeless for a multitude of reasons. A lack of affordable housing and the limited scale of housing assistance programs have been the main driving force contributing to the current housing crisis. Homelessness and poverty have always been intricately interconnected. Poor individuals are regularly unable to pay for shelter, food, daycare, health care, and schooling. The main reasons why homelessness continues consist of stagnant or dropping incomes and less secure occupations which offer little to no benefits. Other less underlying...
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...Advocacy Nellie Ortiz BSHS 441 October 24, 2012 Sandra Elizondo Advocacy This paper is to take in hand the issues of advocacy in the human services field. It will observe a specific population of clientele with particular needs; the population specifically is the homeless people. Homeless people need assistance with food, clothing, shelter, job training, and transportation needs, specially homeless people are in need of someone to speak for them, or to lead them to the correct path way. Homeless People & Problems Today there are between one thousand four hundred homeless in the El Paso TX, imagine what the population is in the whole entire United States. It is said that: "The most proximate cause of homelessness in America is poverty" (University of Richmond, 2003), not only poverty but employment better yet to blame the economy. The definition of being homeless means that a person does not have a permanent place to live or stay. No only being homeless is a problem also being poor in nutrition, unemployment, illnesses, drug addictions, and violence. Homelessness is growing tremendously each year and studies have showed that new programs and aid must be given to homeless people; to find a way to maintain it and or to preventing it from growing. Meeting those challenges how to help a homeless person. Being an advocate myself, working with the State, Health and Human Services Commission, I have directed homeless people on how they can be eligible to...
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...Specific Population and the Advocate Role Homeless veterans and his or her families are assisted more in the United States than any other nation in the world. The benefits system for veterans trace back to 1636. Homeless veterans are placed in a mentally and physically position with his or her family. The basic needs for homeless veterans are shelter, medical, and other problems he or she may have. In this assignment advocacy will be defined and the problems veterans are facing. In addition, this assignment will recommend a plan to meet challenges. Finally, the assignment will include how an advocate assists with housing, treatment, short, and long-term medical care, probation education, and domestic violence. Advocacy The definition for advocacy is active support for or recommendation of a particular cause or policy. Also advocacy is the profession or work of a legal advocate. Defending helpless people from taken advantage of, this could include going to curt on the client behalf. Helping to develop new homeless veteran programs in remote areas, the advocate must be familiar with existing programs and the needs of the community is the primary issues for advocacy to address. The advocate empowers the veteran and helps the client set goals for short and long-term achievement. Educating veterans or clients about resources and locating available resources is a help for the homeless, and the advocate must work to change policies that limit the abilities of veterans (Department...
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...Homeless Veterans in America Name Institution Part 1 Statistics show that there are between 130,000 and 200,000 homeless veterans in America. Homeless veterans amount to about one-fourth and one-fifth of the entire homeless population in America. Homeless veterans are a population of Americans who have at one time or the other served their country in war. An estimated 131,000 veterans spend a night homeless, and this population doubles if one considers the population of homeless veterans over the course of the year. An approximate of 40% homeless men are veterans that are a significant considering 34% of the general adult male population is composed of veterans. Besides being homeless, this population faces other problems which include; social, economic, and psychological problems (Alker, 2009). Homeless veterans are more likely to suffer addiction as compared to the general population. According to Alker (2009), 76% of homeless veterans are alcohol or drug addicts. Because of the painful memories and the new reality of homelessness that dawn on them they turn to alcohol and drugs. Coupled with all the problems these homeless veterans experience social problems such as isolation. For this reason, they have no one to share their pains with and, therefore, they rarely receive help for treatable conditions such as addiction (Center for American Progress, 2008). Economic stressors are a root cause of homelessness for American veterans. The skills acquired from their military...
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...others in mind. Advocates help client’s change his or her life for the better. Define Advocacy According to "Wisconsin Clearinghouse for Prevention Resources" (n.d.), “advocacy occurs when someone does an act of pleading for support or recommending. It represents the strategies devised or actions taken and solutions proposed to persuade decision-making at the state and local level to form a positive change for people and their environment” (What is Advocacy). Advocacy also means a person who fights for the rights and needs of individuals who cannot fight for him or herself. In addition, may speak in behalf; assist with any complex situations involving medical needs, homeless needs, victims of domestic violence, or disabled individuals, and families in crisis. Moreover, serve as an educator of resources, skills, discipline of a child; serve as a counselor, or therapist Specific Population: Homeless According to "Atlanta Children’s Shelter" (n.d.), “homelessness affects various people from the he man on the street corner, to the woman with a shopping cart holding all her worldly possessions, and the family or single parent with small children who recently have been evicted, or are victims of domestic abuse.” The homeless population is interesting to me. The city of Atlanta has a large amount of homeless people and many of them are families with children. Many individuals in Atlanta are homeless because of financial and economic problems, drug addictions, domestic violence, and...
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...The Homeless Samantha bates BSHS 442 February 12th, 2012 Mary Beth Bova The homeless are just as important as all other individuals in life and advocacy agency’s are there to help those who are in need. The biggest hit in such a situation are women and children who have no were to turn and end up on the street. Women who have become homeless are either getting out of a bad marriage was there was physical abuse. And in other case the women are not well educated and cannot hold a job after getting divorced. The sad position many of these women have is that the children will become homeless to and be forced to live on the streets. There are some individuals who become homeless due to mental illness because live situations have put them in that position, not been able to hold down a job or function in life. In many cities there are shelters were the homeless can go and get some assistance, for example a meal and place to sleep for the night. In some situation the families will not go to a shelter in the fear that his or her positions will be stolen. In the homeless shelters they should have a safer program making it safer. Young teenage mothers are also at times forced to live on the street due to the parents not wanting to help her raise a child. This could be due to the family not having the funding or ability to raise another child and the baby’s father is not in the picture. There are many individuals who become homeless for other reasons and they might never be able...
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...The role of a homeless health peer advocate is to support a client’s experiencing homelessness to address their physical health issues through various services such as Find and Treat (Tuberculosis X-Ray Screening service), Hepatitis and Latent Tuberculosis, hospital visits, targeted advocacy and health promotion through in-reach coffee mornings at hostels and homeless day centers. Peer advocates supports clients to attend medical appointments and make choices about what next and give practical support in attending follow up appointments and hospital stays. To support clients to address their health needs advocates help find information about health and health services for clients to address their health needs. Advocacy is central in supporting clients and homeless health peers cannot give health advice or tell the client what is in their best interest nor give support in other areas that is not health related, e.g. attending benefit center appointments. A client's situation cannot be discussed with anyone without the consent from client. Advocates do not work with any clients whose behavior poses a risk to the peer advocate and never collect a client from private accommodation or enter their rooms at hostels. Arrangements will be made to collect clients in public areas. The uniqueness of peer advocacy is evident at health in reach sessions and coffee morning which provides regular presence to build a good report with residents through informal chats about health and wellbeing...
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...the Homeless Kathi Chambliss May 14, 2012 BSHS/442 Anita Payne The population I choose was the homeless. I have a lot of compassion for the homeless because of how people perceive them as being lazy, drug addicts, or alcoholics. Because of the economic state of the nation today there is a significant rise in middle class homelessness. (Caldwell, 2012). Even though a large portion of the homeless suffer from psychological issues, lack of food, no job training making most of the homeless unemployable, no housing, no medical care, and have criminal backgrounds, they are still considered human beings, should be offered rehabilitation programs, and easier ways to obtain medications for psychological issues. A large percentage of the homeless suffer from psychological problems. Another problem is in most cities the center that treats indigent psychological problems is usually located in the downtown sections and the homeless cannot get transportation to and from the centers. This makes it hard to get treated for the psychological problems and this causes the person to be unemployable. The homeless need an interested party to negotiate in his or her behalf on matters of conflict or legal matters. Since there are so many areas that the homeless need help dealing with it takes a person who knows the system, where the resources are, and how to use them to advocate in their behalf. Another alarming issue concerning this population is more than 40% of the current homeless population...
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...Launch MKT/571 June 3, 2011 Product Launch Plan Raven’s Outreach Center is a homeless shelter for male veterans the center is in need of a new product launch that will increase awareness about the homeless veterans in Baton Rouge and surrounding areas. Team E has created a plan outlining the services that Raven’s Outreach Center currently offers along with the new services that can be implemented within the business. The plan below also discusses the challenges that Ravens currently faces and the ways to mitigate challenges into opportunities of growth for the organization. Raven’s Outreach Center is a large nonprofit homeless shelter for homeless male veterans in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Raven’s Outreach Center has provided over 10 years of compassionate and empowering support to homeless male veterans in the capital area through outreach and advocacy services. Ravens serve veterans from areas across the world. Each race, including white, black, Hispanic, and non-Hispanic men. There is a major correlation between homeless and personal economic instability. Drugs have been identified as a primary cause of homeless veterans. Economic dependence often keeps men trapped in environments not meant for habitation. There is a high-demand on the market for the services Ravens Outreach Center provides because of high homeless rate within the male veterans. Ravens are a homeless shelter center certified to present a safe and sound environment with a maximum of 52 beds....
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...Homeless Court Programs The Issue: People experiencing homelessness often receive citations for public nuisance offenses and then fail to appear in court. Homeless defendants fail to appear in traditional courts, not because of a disregard for the court system, but due to their status and condition. For many homeless people, their day is consumed with a search for food, clothing and shelter. Most homeless persons are not in a position to fight the procedural or substantive issues a case presents. The homeless are aware that the court also requires a decent appearance. Not wanting to make a bad first impression, a homeless person with poor hygiene or without a place to store belongings may choose not to appear in court at all. Many homeless people are reluctant to attend court given the uncertainty of court proceedings and the threat of custody. Unresolved legal issues can ultimately preclude homeless people from accessing desperately needed services such as employment, housing, public assistance and treatment programs. The Solution: Homeless courts are special court sessions for homeless defendants to resolve outstanding misdemeanor offenses and warrants. Several jurisdictions in California have instituted Homeless Court Programs, including Contra Costa County, Alameda County, and Santa Clara County. San Diego County began the first homeless court program in the country in 1989. Homeless court programs reduce court and jail costs, build community collaboration, improve access...
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...country today, there are thousands of people who are homeless. A homeless person is someone who doesn’t have a permanent home to live; this also means a person who is sleeping in a relative’s sofa or floor. Illness, violence, addictions, poor nutrition, and unemployment are some of the problems that come alone with homelessness. “The most proximate cause of homelessness in America is poverty” (St. Martin’s Hospitality Center, 2013). In this paper, I will briefly touch on issues of advocacy in human services. I will also examine and briefly discuss the homeless population; including my perspective on my ability to assist with the issues that the homeless face such as shelter, food, clothing, transportation, and job training as an advocate. Since the population of homelessness is on the rise, new programs have been formulated by experts in order to aid the homeless and try to prevent the homeless population from increasing. “Advocacy refers to influencing decisions that affect the welfare or interests of another individual or group” (Barsky, A.E, 2000). Helping clients set goals, educating them of the resources they have available, helping them find the available resources, and working towards changes in policies that limit their abilities would be a way of me advocating for the homeless. Empowering clients to change their situation is an important way for me to advocate. One of the best ways that I could advocate for the homeless would consist of me empowering them to put for effort...
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...This paper will briefly touch on issues of advocacy in human services. I will try to examine the needs of a specific population. I will briefly discuss the homeless population. I add a personal perspective on how I can assist with the problems that the homeless face such as shelter, food, clothing, transportation, and job training as an advocate. The most proximate cause of homelessness in America is poverty (University of Richmond, 2003). In the United States today there is approximately between five to six thousand people who are homeless. A person who is homeless is a person who does not have a permanent place to live; this also means a person who is sleeping in a relative’s sofa or floor (McKinney-Vento). Illness, violence, addictions, poor nutrition, and unemployment are some of the problems that come alone with homelessness. Since the population of homelessness is on the rise, new programs have been formulated by experts in order to aid the homeless and try to prevent the homeless population from increasing. Advocacy refers to influencing decisions that affect the welfare or interests of another individual or group (Barsky, 2000, pg. 219). Helping clients set goals, educating them of the resource they have available, helping them locate the available resources, and working towards changes in policies that limit their abilities would be a way of my advocating for the homelessness. Empowering clients to change their situation...
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