The Homeless

As citizens concerned with municipal politics and the local economy, is it also relevant to be concerned about the homeless? Although it is a natural tendency to ignore the issue, mostly due to the complexity of the problem, children often show great concern for homeless people when presented with them on the streets, and this indicates that we too, at some point, were affected by these dreary sights, although other concerns meriting our attention eventually took precedence.

Let us now take a moment to think about and commence a dialogue regarding homeless people. An opening question could be: "Must we settle for a society that tolerates so many homeless people at the cores of our cities?” The Cambridge homeless situation is not as drastic as it is in Kitchener apparently, but the Cambridge facilities do support Kitchener's overflow, and so it remains a community concern.

Some people argue that there are facilities and resources in place to take care of the homeless, and that we as citizens ought not to get involved, but let those trained professionals handle the task. However through speaking with people who are either homeless, or have experienced homelessness, it becomes evident that there are still many problems with the current social service programs. This is not an effort to undermine the progress made by those who work in the field, rather, it is an effort to shed light on the obstacles faced by those who seek and also those who provide, social services. These obstacles can be relatively easy to rectify with a little ingenuity and cooperation between social service recipients, community volunteers, and designated officials. Thanks to the Occupy Movement, the middle class and social service seekers have been able to mingle, thus allowing for the dissemination of information regarding the obstacles faced by many who seek social assistance. Dysfunction and mental illness affects many among the homeless, however there are also those that are active in their community - a sign of promise for citizenship restoration. By taking the time to speak with seekers and providers of welfare and shelter services, one can discover which key issues need addressing. A comprehensive welfare system needs to take into account all of the issues.

It appears as though we the citizens of our communities are going to have to take this task on ourselves. Given the current state of affairs, the responsibility for the welfare of all the people living in the region rests on us, the citizens and taxpayers. If we continue to rely on the current social assistance programs, we will continue to endure a system failing to reach its potential. We have the ability to house and employ all of these people if we act intelligently and creatively. We do not need more tax money, only better efficiency. Obviously many homeless people are sick and require care before becoming functioning members of society, but it is worth the cost of their restoration according to literature by academic scholar and psychologist B. F. Skinner, and converting people from welfare seekers to taxpayers would bring huge economic benefits to Ontarians.