What should be done about homelessness in Hawaii
One of the main causes of homelessness in Hawaii is a scarcity of available housing. This scarcity allows sellers to increase the prices of homes, and is why thousands of Hawaii residents are unable to afford a place to live. Unfortunately, the incomes of many people are unable to keep up with the rising costs of homes. In order to help alleviate this problem, more affordable housing must be built. The government needs to work with developers and funding sources to increase the number of homes and therefore decrease the amount of people facing homelessness. (1)
Other factors preventing people from being able to afford homes in Hawaii include welfare cutbacks and rising unemployment. The government should increase support services available to at-risk populations. These include substance-abuse treatement, life skills training, case management, and legal services, all of which are extremely important in getting victims of homelessness back on their feet. Moreover, through these services, outreach workers strive to educate >individuals and teach them skills that are essential in order to both gain and maintain employment. An increase in support services, as well as in the number of outreach workers, is necessary to end homelessness in our state.
Besides increasing affordable housing, additional transition and emergency shelters must also be built. These shelters provide people with a place to stay as they try to get back on their feet. Currently, there is a shortage of such shelters, and homeless individuals are actually put on waiting lists when they apply for places in them. Building more shelters is crucial in improving the situation being experienced by these people. (2)
Direct service to current and potential victims of homelessness is not the only thing needed to help alleviate this problem. Research and data collection is essential in the battle against homelessness. Hawaii will make much more of an impact against the problem if they have better knowledge of the homeless population and their needs. The government must collect data to clearly understand the homeless situation and how they can improve it. Only then can they help the homeless and prevent others from losing their homes.
Finally, the community needs to work together in order to improve the homeless situation and provide solutions. There are many conflicting opinions in the situation. However, unless a compromise can be reached, nothing will be accomplished. It is illegal for people to reside on public property. Tourism authorities want homeless people to stay off the beaches, saying that the homeless create a bad image for Hawaii and may drive visitors away. Other people claim that the presence of homeless people prevents them from enjoying other public places such as parks. Act 50, which went into effect in May 2004 allows police to arrest homeless individuals if they return within a year to a place from which they were “rousted” previously (3). Homeless people are left with nowhere to go. Wherever they go, someone will complain and call the police to remove them. The community must work together in order to come up with a solution. This is the only way homelessness in
Hawaii can ever end.
1) http://starbulletin.com/2005/05/01/news/story3.html
2) http://www.honoluluadvertiser.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051024/NEWS01/510240327/1001/NEWS
3) http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2004/08/30/hawaiis_homeless_law_fuels_tension/