homelessness Essay -- essays research papers

All over America, there are people wandering the streets without a home. These individuals are seen as a crowd, a separate collective existence. They are called the homeless, as if that defines who they are, but we too often neglect to add the unspoken word in that title: people. It seems today that the more fortunate citizens of America who have a roof over their heads have forgotten their innate responsibility to watch over those in this world whom are incapable of caring for themselves. Tragically, â€Å"thirty to fifty percent of the homeless have severe mental illnesses† (Torrey 1). These individuals live life in such a way that few people in this world could possibly even begin to compare their hardships. The fact that they survive completely independently, most without the medication they need, is bewildering. The problems resulting from the lack of attention given to the homeless who are mentally ill can be solved through the establishment of better health clinics, an d stricter laws involving patient care. If more clinics were to be established specializing in the mental health of the homeless, then the attention could be given to them that they need. E. Fuller Torrey, author of â€Å"The Homeless Mentally Ill Should Be Forced To Receive Treatment† describes the habits and reasons for the incredible amount of mentally ill homeless: â€Å"They sleep, importune strangers, gesture to imaginary accomplices, shout angrily at the wind, forage through cans, and sit quietly with glazed ey...