Homelessness is when someone is unable to find a permanent home of their own to live in. There are different reasons why a person becomes homeless, but no one chooses to be homeless. Homelessness is everyone’s problem. Just because it may not be someone we know doesn’t mean we should ignore them. They are people in our community. If we can help we should help. If everyone did their part we could end homelessness. We just have to care enough.

Here are a few facts about homelessness that stand out for me. I think we need to understand these better to know how we can help.

• 57% of people who are homeless are women.
  • Women who are victims of domestic violence have to escape quickly and can’t always take much with them. They might not have money to afford a place to live or food. They could be scared or hurt. We need to make sure they have places to go to that can help them get away from their situation.
  • Single moms might not have enough money to pay for daycare as well rent, food and bills. Daycare can be really expensive so it can be hard to afford it but without daycare they might not be able to work. I think there should be affordable daycare for people in poverty so it doesn’t lead to homelessness or people having to surrender their children because they can’t afford shelter.
• 42% of people who are homeless come from an Indigenous background.
  • Generations of Indigenous people have been affected by residential schools and laws that took away their rights. This still affects people today even though many of our laws are better. There is still a lot that needs to be better. I think we need to make sure Canadians understand how Indigenous people in Canada have been treated. Every Canadian needs to learn the parts of history that have not been taught until now. Generations of non-Indigenous people were taught that Indigenous people didn’t matter and at the same time Indigenous people were taught that they didn’t matter. There’s still lots of discrimination out there towards Indigenous people because that’s what society taught even if they didn’t realize that. We need to listen and learn.
• 13% of people are homeless because of illnesses.
  • This surprised me because I always thought you didn’t have to pay for medical care in Canada. I understand why people in the United States become homeless because it costs so much to see a doctor or be in a hospital. Are the illnesses that lead to homelessness mostly mental illnesses? Do people have to pay money here for some kinds of sickness or surgery here too? I don’t think there are enough services and help for people with mental illnesses. If people are sick in Canada they should be able to get the medical care they need.

This is a comic about homelessness that I did in class. I believe that people who are homeless deserve to be seen and not ignored. It shows you care. We can’t forget they are people too. We can’t assume we know their story. This won’t solve homelessness, but maybe if we have more compassion more people will want to help make it better.

Kindness can change the World. 

 

Created by Finn