10 Facts About Homelessness

All week I’m writing about hunger and homelessness for National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week. These 10 facts will give you a better sense of homelessness and hunger in the US in 2008. They are from the Coalition for the Homeless, HELP USA, National Alliance to End Homelessness and Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.

Most homeless are not lazy people. Many adults living in shelters have jobs but cannot afford housing, especially in major cities such as New York, Los Angeles and Washington, DC where housing costs are astronomical.
The majority of people in New York City shelters on any given night are families.
The number of homeless continues to increase. There are now 35, 200 homeless in New York, up from 21,100 in 1998
36.2 million people lacked access to adequate food at some point in 2007.
There were 13 million “food insecure” households last year. This includes 691,000 children and 783,000 seniors.
400,000 US veterans have experienced homelessness this year with 195,827 without shelter on any given night.
Between 1 and 1.5 million teenagers experience homelessness at least one time per year.
Homelessness is not just an urban issue. About 9% of all homeless people live in rural areas.
Homelessness and hunger can be solved when we all devote enough energy and resources to help hungry and homeless people in our communities today. Volunteer and support the following organizations Coalition for the Homeless, National Alliance to End Homelessness.