THE TRUE NATURE OF HOMELESSNESS

As a result of socio-demographic research conducted for the last 7 years, the Pomeranian Province is the only province in Poland with an up-to-date diagnosis of the problem of homelessness. The last survey conducted in 2007 indicates that there are around 3000 homeless people in the Pomeranian Province – no less than 2211 adults and 197 children. The problem in the region is serious, especially in the biggest cities. The largest number of homeless people was recorded in Gdańsk (no less than 626), Gdynia (no less than 347) and Słupsk (no less than 260). Despite the fact that the knowledge of homelessness (the scale of the problem, causes, results) is limited, the stereotype of a homeless person is deeply rooted in the society. It is based on the image of the homeless staying in public places – dirty and degenerate drunkards living in railway stations or shafts and collecting cans. This stereotype becomes the main obstacle for the homeless to be re-integrated into society and the job market. Such an image of homelessness exists but it is the extreme and constitutes only 20% of the homeless population. It is, however, most easily noticed because homeless people who lead such a lifestyle are constantly exposed. Those who encounter the homeless in the streets or railway stations may not be aware of the fact that what they see is just an element of the homeless community which is very diverse in terms of age (the youngest are born in homelessness and the oldest are over 90), education (people with basic education as well as university alumni), family background (people from children’s homes and so called ‘good homes’) and experiences (people experiencing violence and other social ills as well as those who were once business people). And so, hardly anyone realizes that the homeless are in fact people without permanent address in their ID’s or those who, out of different reasons, cannot stay in their place of residence (due to violence, poor or crowded living conditions, conflicts with parents). Hardly anyone is aware of the fact that those nameless people living in homelessness are also single mothers, young girls running away from violence at home, little children staying in the institutions, divorced men, pensioners who became a burden to their families, people who were not able to face economic changes taking place in the country and finally those who live like anybody else during the day, only come back to the shelter every night (it is 50 per cent of the homeless population in the Pomeranian Province).

What you should know:

1.Homelessness is a problem of poor as well as wealthy and developed countries. The scale of homelessness in the Pomeranian Province, ranging between 2.5 and 3 thousand homeless people for every 2 million residents of the region (0.15 per cent), is similar to the scale of the problem throughout Europe.

• Budapest – around 3 thousand homeless people for every 2 million residents
• Norway – 5.6 thousand homeless people for every 4.6 million residents
• Dublin (county) – 2.051 thousand homeless people for every 1.1 million residents
• Greece – 17 thousand homeless people for every 10.7 million residents
• Germany – 310 thousand homeless people for every 82 million residents

2. It is not true that the homeless live only in the streets. Street homelessness (rooflessness) concerns only about 20 per cent of the population of the homeless whereas the majority, over 60 per cent, stays in the institutions (nightshelters, shelters, houses, protected flats – houselessness). Homelessness does not equal street homelessness.

The results of the socio-demographic survey show that the scale of street homelessness (people living in uninhabitable places) amounted to 17.1 per cent in 2007. The number of the homeless staying in various institutions (shelters, nightshelters, single mothers’ homes) amounted to 64.9 per cent of the homeless population in 2007. The majority of the homeless are unrecognizable on a tram or a bus, this part of the homeless population does not look or smell stereotypically.

3. Homelessness does not concern only men and people from lower strata of society . Homelessness is a complicated and multidimensional social problem.

There are not only men but also women (around 20 per cent), children and young people (over 8 per cent) among the homeless population. Homelessness is also a problem of people with secondary and higher education (nearly 20 per cent). Only a small group of the homeless resorts to begging (5 per cent).

4. The assumption that all homeless people are alcohol addicts and homelessness is a social pathology is a myth. Causes of homelessness are diverse and it is not always the homeless who are responsible for their situation.

Uzależnienie od alkoholu (39,7%) jest jedną z wielu - ale nie jedyną - z wskazywanych przyczyn bezdomności - inne to m.in. wymeldowanie, przemoc, eksmisja, konflikt w rodzinie, bezrobocie, niepełnosprawność. Bezdomność uwarunkowana jest wieloma czynnikami systemowymi, prawnymi, instytucjonalnymi i jednostkowymi. Najczęściej jest splotem i wypadkową tych czynników.

5. Homelessness by choice does not exist

Researchers and practitioners in the field are convinced that homelessness by choice does not exist. Homelessness is always the result of underlying problems such as addiction, mental illness, breakdown of the family, etc. Declaring oneself homeless by choice is more a justification of the situation rather than a real factor and cause of homelessness. A case in point is fleeing from domestic violence, which can hardly be called homelessness by choice.

6. 1.Re-integration of the homeless into society does not only depend on their will and readiness to do so. Stereotypes of homelessness make it difficult for people facing this problem to get out of homelessness.

Homeless people emphasise that the negative attitude of the society towards them and false image of homelessness impedes their re-integration with the society (getting a job or a flat). According to the homeless, the stigma of homelessness is one of the main obstacles in getting out of homelessness.

7. 1.Responsibility for dealing with homelessness does not lie solely on social welfare. We are all responsible for solving this problem.

Social welfare is not the only entity responsible for dealing with homelessness and it will not be able to solve this problem independently. What is crucial to solving the problem of homelessness is efficient social policy taking into account the participation of many sectors: labour market, housing industry, health service, judiciary and education. The participation of citizens and mass media is also essential. The more people, companies and institutions are involved, the greater the chance to help the homeless and deal with the problem of homelessness.

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