Facts About Homelessness

The National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty states that each year approximately 3.5 million unique individuals experience homelessness in America.  1.35 million, or 39%, of them are children.  45% of those children are under the age of 5.  25% of them are between the ages of 25 and 34; and 6% are aged 55 to 64.

According to the National Coalition for the Homeless, the primary causes of homelessness are: poverty, eroding employment opportunity, lack of/decline in public assistance, and lack of affordable housing.  The NCH identifies other contributing factors as: lack of affordable health care, domestic violence, mental illness, and addiction disorders.

The 2005 and 2007 US Conference of Mayors determined that families with children are among the fastest growing segments of the homeless population, comprising more than 23% of the total homeless population.   Demographically, the national homeless population is estimated to be 42% African-American, 39% White, 13% Hispanic, 4% Native American, and 2% Asian.  67% of the homeless individuals (not in families) are male, while 65% of those in families are female.

The US Conference of Mayors also determined that over half of all major cities cite domestic violence as a primary cause of homelessness among women. 

Locally, the numbers are similar.

According to information gathered for the City’s Blueprint to End Chronic Homelessness, more than 4,094 individuals experience homelessness each year in Chattanooga, with over 1,000 homeless children in public schools.  Each night, an estimated 400-500 individuals sleep outside or in shelters, with nearly 100 of them in families.

A 2006 survey by Tammy Garland at the University of Tennessee noted that 21.4% of the homeless were working at the time of the survey, and 40% had been employed within the last 6 months.

According to data provided by the Chattanooga Regional Homeless Coalition, Chattanooga’s homeless population is 50% African-American, 48% White, and 2% Latino.  61% of our area’s homeless are between the ages of 30 and 54; 24% are children under 18, and 3% are over the age of 60.  As many as 40% of the homeless families in Chattanooga have experienced recent domestic violence.  15-25% of our area’s homeless are veterans.

In 2006, the five main self-proclaimed reasons causes of homelessness were:
1.) unemployment/underemployment
2.) substance abuse
3.) Eviction
4.) mental illness/disability
5.) domestic violence.

Many people seem to believe that the homeless can be stereotyped into the panhandler, the beggar, the bum.  In fact, homelessness does not seem to conform to any stereotype.  It is true that many of the homeless do suffer from mental illness and addiction, but most do not.  Most will never be seen as homeless; they will not be identified.  And, they should not; homelessness does not define them – it is simply a condition.  The homeless among us are our neighbors, our coworkers, our family and our friends.  They are victims of circumstance which have resulted in a condition of homelessness. 

Here at the Community Kitchen, we work every day to assist men, women and children in escaping the condition of homelessness.  Thank you for making our work possible.

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