The world is fighting with a number of challenges and among all these challenges issues related to the youth are most threatening. Youth is considered to be the future of any nation. Homelessness is all around the world and mostly people who dealt with this issue of homelessness believe in providing support to the homeless children. This social issue of homeless children is getting worst with time and homelessness is prevailing in youth mostly. It has become a significant social issue globally, in both developing as well as developed countries. According to the resources, each year, around 4.2 million youth experience homelessness and out of these 700,000 are the unaccompanied minors (they are without parents and family). Number of youngsters facing homelessness are becoming is increasing exponentially in our society than ever before. Homeless youth is found everywhere and there are different causes why this social issue is prevailing at such a speed. Homelessness in youth is caused by three primary causes family, residential, and economic problems. Physical and sexual abuse, strained relationships and parental negligence are also among the root causes that increases homelessness. Limited scale of housing assistance programs and lack of affordable housing also serves as a cause of youth homelessness.
Street children are the focus of attention when issue of youth homelessness is brought under consideration. Homeless youngsters are also accused of fraudulent behavior and are exploited by criminals as well. Different organizations are working for supporting the homeless youth so that they could be saved from criminals. Social workers are trying their best for helping them in providing them safe places to live (Zhang et al, 2019). Despite decades of policymaking and launching of hundreds of programs for homeless youth, this social issue still wants global attention. According to Johns Hopkins, for prevention and intervention street outreach workers need to make effective policies. Street workers are putting all their efforts for ending youth homelessness as street children need stable housing, supportive connections with caring adults so that they could get access to the mainstream services that would place them on the right track that would lead them towards a better life. Street workers are specially trained, how to deal with the homeless children who are forced to live on unsafe roads and parks because of any reason though it is financial instability or fraudulent behavior.
Street workers are serving as backbone for ending homelessness of the youngsters. They are supporting different agencies so that homeless children could be assisted for having good life as street workers are saving their lives. Non-profit organizations have street workers who try to engage and educate homeless street children. Outreach street workers are helping homeless street children in various ways. They train them how to fight against the harsh realities of life by making them realize that they are always there for providing assistance to those who need their care, concern, and protection. In some of the cases, the homeless children are not having serious issues with their families, so street workers encourage them to go back to their home. In other cases, if homeless children provide some solid reason why they dont want to return to their homes, street workers of non-government organizations give them other options. Homeless children are encouraged to go to the shelter homes where they would be provided with the basic necessities of life.
A large number of organizations are working for protecting the homeless street children. There are organizations are specially working for protecting homeless children. One of the most recognized organizations that are striving hard for providing protection to homeless children is Covenant House (Greeson et al, 2019). It is an institute, struggling hard for creating awareness, why it is important to help homeless youngsters who are forced to live out of their homes. This organization is not only helping homeless youth itself but also creating awareness so that other organizations could also come on the front foot for helping the youth who needs care and protection. They believe that if the homeless children are supported and put on the right track they could play a constructive role in making their country a better place to live. According to the stats provided by Covenant House, more than 2 million children in America will face a period of homelessness. This organization provides emotional and financial support to the children who are being taken in care by their street workers. This organization strives to be the model of care for adults and children facing homelessness in the USA, Canada, and Latin America.
Like Covenant House, there is another organization StandUp For Kids that is striving hard for ending the youth homelessness. This organization has been working for supporting the homelessness children since 1990 and is almost run entirely by the outreach street workers. This organization has shown dedication for making a difference to homeless children who are at risk. This organization is working hard for ending homelessness and promise to make the homeless youth a constructive part of society. This organization builds connections with the homeless youth population. Volunteers working for this organization go from street to street to find homeless children who are waiting for such organizations.
They offer them opportunities so that they could stabilize them or otherwise help street kids and homeless youth. They try to win the confidence of the homeless children and inculcate in them self-confidence that they are capable of fighting against the difficulties they are facing. Organizations like StandUp For Kids and Covenant House are providing support to homeless youth and trained them emotionally and psychologically (DeChants et al, 2019). These organizations make other realize that these homeless children need our attention because when young people age out of the foster care and other services, provided by welfare organization they become susceptible to homelessness and threats, like human trafficking. These organizations play a significant role in keeping youngsters away from crimes and other violent activities. These organizations support the homeless street children and work on their physical and mental health. Homeless youth is at more risk of developing mental, cognitive, physical and emotional diseases so these organizations help them in their personal growth.
Many other remarkable services are provided by these organizations that work best in favor of homeless children. These organizations are supporting homeless youngsters by offering services like the justice system and protect their legal rights. They offer homeless children with affordable houses and they are also provided with employment opportunities. For most homeless children, it is difficult to find a job as they lack proper guidance. These organizations offer them the counseling session and the experts guide them in the best direction so that they could make their lives better by working hard. They offer them care, education and all the opportunities that they deserve. Not only they provide a place to live and confidence rather these organizations also support them in terms of professional growth by providing them comprehensive intervention services. One of the most significant works being done by these organizations is, they help in identifying children who want their care and attention. Both Covenant House and StandUp For Kids are creating awareness by arranging campaigns so that people would help them in identifying children living, begging and working on the street (StandUp For Kids). These organizations are good for homeless people as they are working for making homeless children a useful part of the society. These organizations want homeless children to be treated as constructive part rather than considering them a burden on society.
Streets workers are the real heroes as they help those who are even rejected by their families. They could make a lot of difference as they are burdened with the responsibility of looking for the homeless street children who need their help (Ct et al, 2019). Street workers coordinate with other activist groups and oversee the programs related to food. They also assist the homeless children in coping with the difficulties by encouraging them and by associating them with other organizations that need volunteers. Outreach street workers provide many services. They promote programs as well as resources that could be used best for supporting homeless children. They encourage homeless youth to utilize their potential for the right causes and motivates them to participate in programs that would help to remain housed and stable. Homeless children went through both psychological and physical trauma. Being deprive of the basic necessities, they get into depression. In many cases, they become the victim of many criminal activities. They develop potential signs of poor health and nutrition. They went through unmet dental and physical needs, chronic hunger, poor hygiene, lack of shower or baths, fatigue, poor self-esteem and difficulty in trusting people and socializing.
With time, as this social issue of homelessness in youth is getting worse form, street workers are becoming more active in making people aware of the severity of this issue. Efforts of street workers have changed the childhood of these homeless kids who were living on the streets, by providing them financial and moral support so that they could believe in them and work for making their lives better. They have changed their lives by providing them justice and employment opportunities. They made their lives different from what they were spending on roads by defining ways for them with proper guidelines. They changed their ways of thinking about life and providing them self-confidence. They made them realized that they are a valuable part of society and future depends on them. They changed their perception about life by making them realize that they are no less if they could work upon them. Street workers changed their pessimistic childhood into an optimistic one and assure them of a promising future by enabling them to trust their choices and decisions that would help them throughout their lives.
So taking a look at the above discussion, it could be said that street youth are the volunteers who dedicate their lives for serving humanity one way or the other. Street workers play one of the most constructive parts in society. They assist and help the homeless kids by providing them with affordable housing and employment opportunities. Street workers try to provide them all they have and make people aware about this social issue so that they could be supported by the community in which they live. As a whole it could be promulgated that street workers and the non-profit organizations become the only ray of hope for the homeless youth who put all their efforts in making their lives better.
References
Ct, P. B. (2019). Sexual Health Services for Homeless Youth A Qualitative Analysis of their Experiences.Journal of Social Service Research,45(3), 429-443.
DeChants, J., Bender, K., Stone, K. (2019). Incorporating Youth Voice into Services for Young People Experiencing Homelessness. InHomelessness Prevention and Intervention in Social Work(pp. 335-358). Springer, Cham.
Greeson, J. K., Treglia, D., Wolfe, D. S., Wasch, S. (2019). Prevalence and Correlates of Sex Trafficking among Homeless and Runaway Youths Presenting for Shelter Services.Social Work Research,43(2), 91-100.
StandUp For Kids Helping homeless and street kids. (2019).Standupforkids.org. Retrieved 2 December 2019, from HYPERLINK https//www.standupforkids.org/ https//www.standupforkids.org/
Zhang, N. S., Schonberg, J., Syme, S. L., Auerswald, C. L. (2019). My Hope Is... A Hope-Based Typology of Homeless Youth.Youth Society, 0044118X19826418.
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