Homeless Veterans Research Paper

San Francisco is attempting to end homeless veterans in the city and the city's Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing has particularly focused on unending strand of homelessness among veterans. San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee stated,

It was also found that the veterans in the HUD-VASH group, according to the survival analysis, had a lower risk of returning to homelessness over the course of the five-years, when compared to the other two groups (Rates and Risk Factors for Homelessness After Successful Housing in a Sample of Formerly Homeless Veterans). This shows that with the assistance of different organizations within the communities, homeless veterans have a bigger chance of reintegrating back into society.

Today, I’m going to explain all of the pros and cons of remaining neutral. The topic will be on the homelessness of veterans all over the United States of America. While it may not seem a large deal, it’s quite larger than we would most likely ever imagine. So without further ado, here we go!

There are thousands of homeless veterans in the United States. However, a group in Missouri is doing their part to make sure that people who have served our country have a place to stay. They are creating a neighborhood of tiny houses that will be just for veterans. The name of the group is the Veterans Community Project.

In spite of having many advantages, veterans over-represent in the homeless population. The question “Why?” begs an answer. Forty years have passed since the Vietnam Conflict ended and homeless veterans became a representative image in American society. Surprisingly, it appears there are no studies on the factors contributing

One of the key factors that contribute to homelessness among veterans is Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). PTSD affects a large number of military veterans from every war, though the rates differ depending on which war they served in, PTSD affected 30% of Vietnam veterans, 11% of Afghanistan veterans, 20% of Iraq veterans, and 10% of veterans who served in the Gulf War (How Common is PTSD). Half of veterans with PTSD do not receive the treatment they require and 20% - 50% of those who do receive treatment do not finish it (Robson). The lack of treatment is important considering that 45% of homeless veterans have some kind of mental illness (Paquette). The homecoming of a veteran has been related to that veteran’s degree of PTSD. Veterans with a negative reception upon their arrival tend to have harsher PTSD (Tull). It is no wonder then that, those who had the hardest time re-entering society, Vietnam veterans, among whom 30% have had PTSD, make up 47% of homeless veterans (coalition for the Homeless). These veterans had the hardest time out of any, when they returned public opinion was against them, and many were unjustly called “Baby Killers”. This critical rejection made it harder for Vietnam veterans to deal with their PTSD, because it held them back from discussing their experiences in war (Tull). Having

According to the 2012 Annual Homeless Assessment Report released by the Departments of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), an estimated 62,619 veterans were homeless on any given night in 2012. The good news is that the estimate represents a 7.2 percent decline from the 2011 estimate and a 17.2 percent decline compared to the 2009 estimate ("Veterans," 2013). Although progress is being made, there is much to be done. There are veterans with the same needs as the general homeless population, but also veterans with severe physical and mental health disabilities, related to their service, that necessitate permanent housing with supportive services.

383,087 veterans live in massachusetts out of the 383,087 , 1,264 veterans are homeless. How is it that someone could give their life up to serve, and receive nothing in return after serving. When you are out of the military and have served your 4 years active and 2 years in-active you are provided with Veteran services, Health care, Benefits and services, Burial and Memorials. You would think that the population of homeless veterans would be less but ¾ they only provide for 4 years after you getting out. “VA's health care offers a variety of services, information, and benefits.

Thirteen percent of all of the homeless in the United States are reported to be veterans (Hoffler, Dekle & Sheets, 2014). Because of this issue veteran suicide rates are much higher than the general population as are the rates for veterans substance abuse (McCarl 2103). Behavioral health needs and housing are currently the two of the largest needs that are facing veterans at this time. The VA has housing programs and a large funding source though each VA may have differing program structures the VA itself is lacing in outreach programs and psychoeducational programs for homeless veterans. Also Homeless veterans themselves underutilize the services available to them. (Gabrielian, Yuan, Rubestein, Anderson, Gelberg 2013) This homeless veterans

Imagine one making a huge decision to leave family, friends, and a familiar lifestyle to go serve and protect their country for months or years at a time. Imagine one risking their life and putting forth their time just to come back to no home, money, or health care while have developed a mental illness. The government promises all of these benefits one may never see and they end up on the streets without a home finding ways to cope which may lead to addiction. A study shows that “There are estimated to be about 50,000 homeless veterans on any given night with about 1.4 million others at risk of becoming homeless, the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans said, citing government statistics” (Shaw). Many of America’s homeless veterans have served in World War II, the Korean War, Cold War, Vietnam War, and many other wars. Nearly half of homeless veterans served during the Vietnam era. Two-thirds served their country for at least three years, and one-third were stationed in a war zone. Homeless veterans all across America come from different backgrounds and homelessness does not discriminate against gender. These veterans, including males and females, suffer from homelessness due to: being unemployable; suffering economic hardships; battling substance abuse, and lacking proper legal aid. Yes, there are plenty of resources out there to assist the homeless veterans that may help some but there are still too many veterans living on the streets.

“It’s like the path of least resistance... After a while, your self esteem gets really low and you don’t feel competitive any longer… Like you are already defeated.” (Applewhite ¶ 17). A quote from a homeless veteran shows how even though he has tried to relieve himself of the homelessness, it does not always end with the outcome that he wants, which leaves him feeling defeated, as well as thousands of others. About ⅓ of the homeless population are veterans, and they are usually the ones that need the most help (VA Expands Partnerships ¶5). The struggle that homeless veterans face everyday in the United States is a growing problem that needs to be fixed because it will continue to get worse. The healthy and productive success of

In political news this week, some news journals are making an effort to show what some veterans have to go through. 84 year old war veteran twins say “it’s hell” after their home foreclosed. Clifford and Gary Koekoek survived living under Nazi occupations and fighting in the Vietnam jungles. But, today they say they are living in “hell” and sleeping in their car since their home was foreclosed in California around October. Clifford and Gary were born in the Netherlands, and grew up under the Nazi rule before retreating to the US. Both brothers worked in Hollywood and then served their country at war. The twins never married or had kids because of what they saw in the Holocaust. "All my life, I've seen people killed, tortured, loved ones taken

FACTS: The most effective programs for homeless and at-risk veterans are community-based, nonprofit, “veterans helping veterans” groups. Programs that work best feature transitional housing, with the camaraderie of living in structured, substance-free environments with fellow veterans who are succeeding at bettering themselves.

According to the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans (NCHV), nearly 200,000 American Veterans are homeless on any given night (Rieckhoff). NCHV - the resource and technical assistance center - reported that the number of Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) and Operation Enduring Freedom (Afghanistan) - (OEF) veterans are becoming homeless much more quickly than Vietnam veterans. As the war in Iraq and Afghanistan continues the number of homeless veterans increases. The next generation of American Veterans is on its way home, and tens of thousands more will return from combat over the years to come. Upon returning home from Iraq and Afghanistan thousands of veterans are facing a new nightmare, the risk of homelessness.

Moreover, in most communities, especially the cities, these veterans who are in their 20s and 30s are found loitering around church buildings, shopping centers, and under the bridges due to the fact that they don’t have anywhere to stay, someone’s, you see them around traffic light signers on the street with placard written on, homeless veterans Vietnam war begging for money or food. This is a big disgrace to the United States at large, and has creates a huge problem since the government has been relentless to intervene to the crisis. However, according to the National coalition for homeless Veterans,