Scribd
Upload
64 views4 pages

ENG102 Research Proposal

Over 500,000 US citizens experience homelessness daily, including 165,000 children. However, homelessness is often criminalized rather than addressing its underlying causes such as mental health issues, addiction, and poverty. Between the 1970s-present, laws have pushed homeless people into the criminal justice system instead of providing welfare. This research aims to understand how prejudices against the poor and minorities developed and how criminalization has impacted homeless individuals. The study will analyze this issue from the 1970s-present by examining media portrayals, policies, and programs. It is hypothesized that criminalization exacerbates homelessness by increasing psychological stress and barriers to resources.

Uploaded by

Sam Gitonga
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
64 views4 pages

ENG102 Research Proposal

Over 500,000 US citizens experience homelessness daily, including 165,000 children. However, homelessness is often criminalized rather than addressing its underlying causes such as mental health issues, addiction, and poverty. Between the 1970s-present, laws have pushed homeless people into the criminal justice system instead of providing welfare. This research aims to understand how prejudices against the poor and minorities developed and how criminalization has impacted homeless individuals. The study will analyze this issue from the 1970s-present by examining media portrayals, policies, and programs. It is hypothesized that criminalization exacerbates homelessness by increasing psychological stress and barriers to resources.

Uploaded by

Sam Gitonga
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 4

1

English 102

Professor

October 29, 2023

Research proposal

About 553,000 US citizens are homeless daily, and about 165,000 are children.

Homelessness is not an easy topic that can be addressed in isolation without considering factors

such as prevailing societal attitudes towards the poor and other disadvantaged groups. Reports

estimate that between 20 to 25 percent of those experiencing homelessness have major mental

disorders; others can struggle with alcohol and drug abuse, severe physical disability, or other

health problems. Yet, it is not focused on dealing with the underlying factors contributing to

homelessness but criminalizes it. Homeless person criminalization is a term that entails applying

laws and policies on those who are lost in a way contrary to their rights. Research shows that

over and over again, this phenomenon has been recorded in different cities all over the country,

increasing incarcerations of those who are homeless. Aykanian and Fogel (2019) assert that more

than forty-three percent of cities in the US enact criminal laws restricting these basic acts

required for survival on the street. Some groups are more vulnerable to this problem than others.

It includes people of color, mental health patients, LGBTI community members, etc. As such,

this paper aims to understand how society developed prejudices against homeless people and

why they are treated as criminals.

There are very few studies on criminalizing homeless people without recognizing their

historical and cultural contexts. The research question for this study is: What historical and

cultural factors have led to the criminalization of homelessness in the United States, and how has
2

it impacted the lives of individuals experiencing homelessness? The study shall concentrate on

the period between the late 1970s and the modern-day since it is during this period that the

incarceration of homeless people skyrocketed. It will also discuss how media and public views

create a culture of "criminalizing" homelessness.

The basis for this thesis is that homelessness criminalization is based on social prejudices

about poverty and a specific societal group. In the late 1970s US, as it moved more towards non-

welfare states, policies and laws emerged, pushing persons experiencing homelessness out of the

public spaces into the Criminal Justice System. The paper anticipates coming up with the fact

that rather than alleviating homelessness, it only exacerbates the cyclic nature of homelessness.

Besides, it causes other problems, such as mental stress, and hinders access to jobs and

accommodation.

Initial research has revealed several key sources, including Aykanian and Fogel's book

"Homelessness Prevention and Intervention in Social Work: An Encyclopedic Review on the

Criminalization of Homelessness, and its Effects at the Individual and Community Level, title:

"Policies, Programs and Practices." Willison's article, "Ungoverned and Out of Sight: The article,

"Public Health and the Political Crisis of Homelessness in the United States," examines how

criminalization can adversely impact health outcomes for homeless persons. The article by

Borum Chattoo et al., "News portrayals of housing security and homelessness in the United

States," examines the role of mass media in perpetuating the criminalization of homeless people

in the USA.

In summary, the criminalization of homelessness is a complicated matter with firm

foundations in how America views poor people and minorities. This research clarifies that the

criminalization of homelessness contributes to the continuation of poverty and homelessness. It


3

further has adverse effects on the affected people's lives through escalated psychological

problems and impediments to shelters and jobs. Society must realize the damage inflicted on

criminals against homeless people and change toward assistance measures. However, more

research must be conducted to explain and eradicate this prevalent problem in America

comprehensively, and I want this study to contribute towards this objective.


4

References

Aykanian, A., & Fogel, S. J. (2019). The Criminalization of Homelessness. Homelessness

Prevention and Intervention in Social Work: Policies, Programs, and Practices, 185-205.

Borum Chattoo, C., Young, L., Conrad, D., & Coskuntuncel, A. (2021). “The rent is too damn

high”: news portrayals of housing security and homelessness in the United States. Mass

Communication and Society, 24(4), 553-575. )

Willison, C. E. (2021). Ungoverned and Out of sight: Public health and the political crisis of

homelessness in the United States. Oxford University Press.

You might also like