Homelessness Articles Journal Entry

            “The Meanest Cities”, by America talks about the different views on homelessness in the United States. It discusses how some cities, especially in Florida are extremely unkind and basically think that homelessness is and should be a crime. However, it also talks about how other cities in the United States think that the homeless should be helped and they should be provided with opportunities that will help them break out of their stage of homelessness.

“Brother Don’t Spare a Dime” talks about how the it’s the homeless peoples fault for the situations that they are in. The article talks about a few different cases where somebody lent them a hand, and they took the help, but then just went straight back to the lives they had been living while they were homeless. The article also talks about how the people that are homeless chose the lifestyle that they are living and they think it is easier to live that way, rather than put in hard work to get a better lifestyle.

“Throw the Bums Out” talks about a man named John Derbyshire, a business man who took a trip to San Francisco. On this trip he noticed how many homeless people were in San Francisco and he went to visit some of the local attractions and he noticed that in the very expensive new library that costs $10 to get in. The reason that it costs money to get in the library is because they do not want homeless people to use the bathrooms, and they do not want the homeless to think it is a place to “hangout”.

I think that these articles have some good points about homelessness, but there are other things that I do not agree with. In “Brother Don’t Spare a Dime”, I agree that the homeless should try and get back on their feet, and not take advantage of people, but I do also think that some of the people just think it is easier to hangout on the streets. In “the Meanest Cities” I do not agree with the fact that some people think that homelessness should be a crime. Some homeless do not choose to be like that. Some of them are on the streets because there has been a tragedy in their lives and the only place to go is the street. Just because these people do not have a home does not mean that they are not human beings. It is their right as a U.S. citizen to live anywhere they please. They should not be penalized for trying to get some sleep.