Youth Helping to End Youth Homelessness

08Jul09

The Problem
Report Says 1 in 50 U.S. Kids Are Homeless – TIME

New funds should be spent on a model that stresses permanent housing above all

Two Young Solution Seekers
14-year old David Ashby & 11-year old Zach Bonner

The Big Deal

By now, many of you have heard of at least one of these young men walking to raise money and awareness for youth homelessness.  When I first heard of little Zach Bonner (@ZachyB1 on Twitter), I was floored.  This young man started walking around his neighborhood while he was still in his single digits of life because he felt a need to help other kids who didn’t have homes.  As I watched a clip of Zach’s first interview, I could not believe the eloquent simplicity and passion he displayed while explaining his mission.  A testament to how “less is more”, Zach grabbed his favorite little red wagon & went door-to-door asking neighbors to donate supplies so that he could provide a little something to help homeless youth in Florida.  People were so moved by this little dude’s commitment that he soon found himself needing to establish a nonprofit to handle it all.  How many of US could to that at age seven?  Zach has now arrived in DC – completing the final leg of his multi-year walk from FL to come meet the president and plead the case of the millions of homeless youth in our country.

David, a few years older than Zach, also found himself moved to raise awareness by walking for homeless youth.  He is also from Florida & is attempting to complete his entire walk from Orlando to DC  over the summer.  David’s story shows the importance of teaching youth to learn more about those in their immediate communities – his passion for homeless youth stemmed from a research project in which he learned that some 70 of his classmates were homeless.

If you live in a city, you likely see people who are homeless on a daily basis.  If you live in a rural area, you likely see people who are homeless on a daily basis.  Homelessness knows no bounds – age, race, location do not matter.  And while the media is mainly highlighting middle-class families who are “suddenly struck” by homelessness, the bulk of homeless families are those that have been trapped in the cycle of poverty for years already.  You may not know who these families are because poverty is frustrating and embarrassing, so many have learned to “play it off” (says the woman struggling to balance bills & groceries because her monthly unemployment “income” is $3.65 over the limit for her to qualify for government assistance).  All it takes is one medical incident or a crazy hot week (read: lots of A/C) that drives a person or family over the edge.

Homeless youth not only have to contend with this poverty, but they also have to worry about family issues that make it unsafe for them to live at home (K. Berger notes in her 2008 textbook that poverty carries with it a high correlation of family dysfunction).  Sometimes parents just can’t afford to care for older children, so youth lose their homes when they become old enough to work (or turn 18 & are no longer allowed to live in the homes of parents on government assistance).  The causes of youth homelessness are numerous, but no matter your stance on these causes, the issue remains that young people are without places to live.

Zach and David understand this last piece.  They embarked upon their journeys last month, with this simple idea in mind: it doesn’t matter how a young person *became* homeless; what does matter is that youth are no longer relegated to *remain* homeless.  So simple, yet so impressive.  What’s more is that both of these young men experienced family emergencies during their walks, but BOTH have kept on going.  Zach’s grandmother passed about a week ago and David’s sister sustained brain damage after being struck by a vehicle while riding her bike.  While neither young man denied his pain, they both understood that homeless youth don’t get “time off” to tend to their family issues, so they both keep trucking.  Again I ask, how many of US would be so dedicated?

In the morning, I will be joining Zach on his last mile from the Southeast corner of  Lafayette Park (The White House) to the Capitol Building, where we hope our POTUS will take a few moments to greet Zach and accept all the letters people submitted on behalf of homeless youth.  I will also keep tracking David’s walk & hope to be in the crowd as he completes his walk.  While these two young men aren’t alone in trekking for the homeless, they have certainly caught my eye in a day when you see so many youth traumatizing, rather than uplifting each other.  I can only hope that others jump into the game as well.

(For more information about those making trips across the nation on behalf of the homeless, check out the following efforts:

• The invisiblepeople.tv Road Trip (@invisiblepeople) – Mark is a formerly homeless man documenting the experiences of homeless  people across the nation.  This year’s road trip is sponsored, in part by Ford Motors.
• “Segway Off The Streets” – 2500 miles to support Stand Up for Kids, an all-volunteer nonprofit that serves homeless youth around the country.
• Homeless Youth Pride Walk 2009 (@chloenoble) – two women walk across the country to raise awareness for the increasing numbers of LGBTQ youth who are homeless.  Yes, parents across the nation are denying housing to their children based on sexual orientation.

I’m sure there are more, feel free to leave links, etc. in the comments section!

Filed under: Call to Action   |  2 Comments
Tags: Current Events, Homelessness, LinkedIn, Youth Homelessness