1

Kaopua

Kira Kaopua

Mr. Ryan Smith

English 11 Section 3

23 February 2021

Solutionary Project: Homelessness in Hawaii

Introduction:

Drug abuse, rape, neglect, and lack of proper health care are just a few of the factors of the

everyday struggle of the homeless population in the United States. As stated in an article written

by Will Sarvis as he puts effort into publicizing the corruption of the U.S. government he

explains, “criminalization of homelessness is problematic for several reasons, including legal

deprivation of life-sustaining activities (such as sleeping and eliminating waste), to loss of

freedom and other citizenship rights.” The lack of morality and empathy the government has

towards the homeless population has and continues to cause an unnecessary amount of conflict.

Politicians view these living and breathing people as a statistic. They are ignorant that these

people struggling with addictions are using drugs to cope with their trauma because they can’t

afford much less access the proper care they need. The reoccurring problem constantly reverts to

the stigma the government pushes onto society stating that the homeless are criminals’ belief in

this ridiculous stereotype is proof of the lack of true education of the homeless struggle. To be

homeless is to be helpless, it starts as a living situation but turns into an inescapable mentality. I

am willing to put the needed effort and contributions to make a change in the issue of

homelessness. Since this is a global topic I’ve decided to interact with the issue more intimately

and genuinely by caring for a homeless family.

Homelessness in Hawaii is a systemic injustice in the local economy and government.

Hawaii needs to do this to give the issue more attention and support to solve the problem and

help those who are being affected. The leading causes of homelessness in America are lack of

affordable housing, unemployment, mental illness, substance abuse, and lack of needed services.

These issues are rooted in systemic inequality along with social and economic status at birth.

The Problem:

The cost of living much less surviving in America for middle- and lower-class people is a

struggle that lasts a lifetime. The average expense of a single person living in this country is a

minimal cost of around $1,100 per month and $1,3200 per year. The minimum wage in the

United States is $7.25 per hour. The lowest cost of rent on average is $800per month, the reason

it being the cheapest because where rent is this low the area is neither safe nor practical in terms

of work-life matters. The overall average rent in America is $1,249 per month. An average

American spends around 1.6 million dollars on core essentials of survival such as food shelter

and transportation, one-third of the cost is spent on housing alone. The inflation rate in this

country is self-evidently outrageous. The economy makes it nearly impossible for someone who

comes from a background in poverty to make even a mediocre life for themselves. With endless

effort, U.S. citizens still face difficulty trying to make ends meet.

The standards that need to be met in order to obtain employment are set so high it makes

people with low credentials automatically fall into unemployment. The groups of people that

face the most rejection when seeking employment are minorities, ex-convicts, the uneducated,

and the poverty-stricken. I find the need to display good financial credit to receive employment

is the most contradictory standard that needs to be met. The reason why the person is trying to

find a job is to receive compensation which then turns into credit. But the fact that corporations
3
Kaopua

are doing credit checks to determine acceptance for work is a major setback for many people.

Instead, these people should be doing background checks and personality assessments to make

judgments off of character rather than if they have good credit or not. Although racism is close to

inescapable especially in America the color of someone’s skin should never be a factor of

judgment when considering an applicant for employment. Race does not determine work ethic

and definitely should not waiver one’s judgment in considering any candidates. In August 2020

there’s was an all-time low of 5.2% employment rate of African Americans. Substance abuse and

unemployment go hand and hand the constant need to feed an addiction and or multiple

addictions consume all money and attention. Those who suffer from substance abuse are often

using drugs to self-medicate for their mental and physical pain. Self-medicating leads to a

lifetime addiction and with addiction comes poverty due to the lack of time given to take care of

essential tasks such as paying bills and going to work or finding work. These people end up

homeless and any money they find or are given goes straight to appeasing their addiction. This

drug abuse issue traces back to health care. The topic of unaffordable healthcare is the most

prominent issue when it comes to homelessness because so many more issues are created by the

lack of this necessary care. Most Americans are still uninsured because of the rising healthcare

expenses. Politicians blamed insurance companies when insurance companies play the smallest

role in the battle for healthcare. Our country monetizes and capitalizes on anything that they find

essential to living and healthcare is one of these. The corruption of our country is exploited when

we see these homeless people decaying right in front of our eyes. Since the people in poverty can

afford to pay the medical bills they are rejected from receiving care and must live in pain. Since

they have no housing they are more susceptible to viruses and disease and our country is aware

of this, but they still deny these people who suffer from poverty. This also plays a big role in
4
Kaopua

terms of mental illness and substance abuse. Most are born into homelessness and endure trauma

at a young age. This causes them to develop mental illnesses such as schizophrenia, psychosis,

and bipolar disorder. Since they are unable to receive therapeutic or medical help at a young age

they turn to drugs to aid them in trying to cope with their illnesses or trauma. It is inevitable

homelessness in America is caused by the government's need to capitalize on the suffering of

their citizens.

Previous Efforts:

In solving homelessness, the minds of the ignorant are automatically drawn to the solution of

creating shelters because it gets them off of the streets no longer deeming them as “homeless”

people. This solution has been tried by many people from many different places yet this issue

still exists which proves that creating homeless shelters is helpful but not effective in the long

run. To solve a problem, it is crucial to follow it back to the source in which it was created, in the

instance homelessness is deeply rooted in lack of governmental support towards the people they

are responsible for. For example, in the economy of Hawaii, the people that are applying for

welfare and monetary support are the native people. The economy of Hawaii is centered around

tourism and taking care of people who don’t live here but visit for a good time. The exploitation

of tourism is forcing the citizens of Hawaii into homelessness because the cost of living is

unmanageable. The issue of homelessness is rooted in capitalism and creating cheap easy fixes

such as shelters in unsafe areas will do nothing. To solve homelessness the government must

invest money in these people providing them with rehab, healthcare, and affordable housing. In

my efforts to contribute to homelessness I will model the basics of my explanation to a solution

for homelessness on a minor scale because I hardly have a fraction of the power and money the

government has. I find it compelling to help these people because I have been blessed with so
5
Kaopua

much and I am fully aware that it could be me in that economic and social state. I will invest

time and money into a homeless family. I plan on aiding them in seeking the medical attention

they need, create a donation page for them so the burden of basic living essentials won’t weigh

on them so that they can focus on bettering their quality of life. They will have the mental

capacity to go find a job or go to school because I will do my best to alleviate the pain and

anxiety that comes with the homeless lifestyle. I believe that more can be accomplished if time

and effort are invested in a more centralized goal rather than applying yourself to the issue as a

whole. Creating intimacy with a social issue such as homelessness is the only way one can create

a relationship and truly understand what it is and how it affects people. By creating a relationship

with a homeless family, I will in turn help me to understand what it means to be homeless, so I

can find accurate solutions.

The Solutions:

To create success, it is inevitable to adapt to prevalent positive solutions. One of these

solutions being following the steps of creating housing-based solutions, prevention, and stability,

and lastly right to shelter. An example of a housing-based solution would be the federal housing

assistance initiative. Federal housing programs are one of the most successful housing-based

solutions to reduce homelessness. The two largest federal housing programs are public housing

and federal housing vouchers. Housing vouchers allow low-income households to rent modest

market-rate housing of their choice and provide a flexible subsidy that adjusts with the family’s

income over time. Studies show that public housing and federal housing vouchers are highly

successful at reducing family homelessness and ensuring that these families remain stably

housed out of the shelter system. I can model this in the society that I live in by creating a

communal donating website and advertise it on social media platforms as well as posting flyers
6
Kaopua

in high traffic areas to promote the support of the cause in my community. With the donations, I

will use them to fund and create rent for the homeless family. This will allow them to learn how

to facilitate their money to essential needs.

The biggest part of abolishing homelessness is prevention and stabilization. The major

prevention point includes prevention of drug use and relapse. Addiction hampers heavily with

healthy coping mechanisms, proper brain functioning, and is incredibly expensive. To aid this

topic if it is relevant to the family I am assisting I will make it one of my biggest goals to provide

mental health care. I find these the most important to provide because nothing can be achieved or

solved if their mind is not healthy. To create stability I must first create trust, the most effective

way to create trust is to foster a relationship with these people and make them aware that my

intentions are in their best interests. In their situation, the form of stability that they need is

financial. To do that I will help the parents find jobs, and find a way to take care of all outer

expenses such as food and clothing.

Right to shelter is more of a politically centered topic homeless should be denied access to

a shelter unless they are dangerous and threatening the safety of those in the shelter. But in

society, people who need help and are striving to find a safe place to are getting turned away

from these shelters because they have an illness or disease. I find that this is one of the main

causations of people in need of help not wanting help. At the mental state of a homeless person,

there is little or no hope for themselves in terms of creating a better life and becoming healthy

but when they are denied safety and security it sets them into an inescapable depressive

mentality. To fix this I will strive to petition to make a change in the shelter system so that

everyone has available and accessible safety options whether it be a certain area where they can

set up their encampment safe from external harm or a concrete place to stay. IN this instance the
7
Kaopua

moral concept of empathy is crucial because safety is something every person strives to achieve

for themselves and those they care about.