4 ms·

Most homeless people in America are people who has some form of mental illness or have suffered from some traumatic event. In any case just giving them a home w

Most homeless people in America are people who has some form of mental illness or have suffered from some traumatic event. In any case just giving them a home won't help much, those homes would quickly become drug dens. A better solution is to provide them with shelter, community, mental help, education, and generally good care. This is actually even harder to do than just throwing houses at them. But there is also merit to giving housing to people who are homeless but not mentally ill. Many European countries do this.

throwaway0a5e 5y ago
>those homes would quickly become drug dens. I don't see a problem with that. Sure it's trashy and sure I'd appreciate it if I didn't have to pay for it but a) the alternative is drugs on the sidewalk b) who am I to tell others how to live?
- s1artibartfast 5y ago
  You have to consider destruction of the housing. You can't build a new million dollar home every 5 years for addicts.
- hedora 5y ago
  OK, say you go crazy for some reason. You want me to drop you off in a drug den, and tell the hospitals to refuse to admit you if you seek treatment?
- jimbob45 5y ago
  Remember that virtually every homeless individual started out as a homed individual. To inhabit a home, you need an income to pay rent, you need food, and you need utilities somehow for a bare minimum existence. If you're making the choice to spend your income on drugs rather than rent every month, you're going to quickly return to homelessness and we won't have solved your problem. If you're proposing giving people free rent, food, and utilities indefinitely, that starts to get uncomfortable as it edges toward slavery.
magicalist 5y ago
> Most homeless people in America are people who has some form of mental illness or have suffered from some traumatic event. This isn't true, why does it get repeated so often. Was this just something you've heard before and didn't double check before posting it?
- jwagenet 5y ago
  My understanding in San Francisco is the majority of (visible) unhoused fit the GP description as those who are not mentally ill do make extensive use of shelter services and other avenues to be off the street. Whereas those with mental illness or drug issues do not.
- jjeaff 5y ago
  Are you sure it's not true? Perhaps they should be more specific in that the majority of "long term" homelessness is due to mental illness or drug addiction. Usually, when people refer to homelessness, they are talking about the people living on park benches and pushing around shopping carts or sleeping off their last high sprawled out on the sidewalk. Most of these people need mental health care. Not just a home.
serverlessmom 5y ago
The strongest predictor for being unhoused isn't mental illness, but rather having any exposure to the foster care system: https://www.fosterfocusmag.com/articles/foster-care-and-homelessness https://www.fosterfocusmag.com/articles/foster-care-and-home...

throwaway0a5e 5y ago

>those homes would quickly become drug dens. I don't see a problem with that. Sure it's trashy and sure I'd appreciate it if I didn't have to pay for it but a) the alternative is drugs on the sidewalk b) who am I to tell others how to live?

s1artibartfast 5y ago
You have to consider destruction of the housing. You can't build a new million dollar home every 5 years for addicts.
hedora 5y ago
OK, say you go crazy for some reason. You want me to drop you off in a drug den, and tell the hospitals to refuse to admit you if you seek treatment?
jimbob45 5y ago
Remember that virtually every homeless individual started out as a homed individual. To inhabit a home, you need an income to pay rent, you need food, and you need utilities somehow for a bare minimum existence. If you're making the choice to spend your income on drugs rather than rent every month, you're going to quickly return to homelessness and we won't have solved your problem. If you're proposing giving people free rent, food, and utilities indefinitely, that starts to get uncomfortable as it edges toward slavery.

magicalist 5y ago

> Most homeless people in America are people who has some form of mental illness or have suffered from some traumatic event. This isn't true, why does it get repeated so often. Was this just something you've heard before and didn't double check before posting it?

jwagenet 5y ago
My understanding in San Francisco is the majority of (visible) unhoused fit the GP description as those who are not mentally ill do make extensive use of shelter services and other avenues to be off the street. Whereas those with mental illness or drug issues do not.
jjeaff 5y ago
Are you sure it's not true? Perhaps they should be more specific in that the majority of "long term" homelessness is due to mental illness or drug addiction. Usually, when people refer to homelessness, they are talking about the people living on park benches and pushing around shopping carts or sleeping off their last high sprawled out on the sidewalk. Most of these people need mental health care. Not just a home.

serverlessmom 5y ago

The strongest predictor for being unhoused isn't mental illness, but rather having any exposure to the foster care system: https://www.fosterfocusmag.com/articles/foster-care-and-homelessness https://www.fosterfocusmag.com/articles/foster-care-and-home...