Homelessness
There are certain issues that come to the
forefront of society around the holiday season every year, despite the fact
that some members of our society have to face them every day. One such issue is
homelessness. Many people’s automatic reaction when they think of homelessness
is to think of charity. Giving away money or time in order to help an
organization to aid others, perhaps filling buckets to help people through a
campaign or providing them with food and items to get them through the night. Another
reaction can be to look at the less human side of things. Homelessness in the
eyes of some is little more than the thought of a lack of housing. A lack of
housing can be seen as a lack of an actual housing structure as opposed to the
lack of shelter, warmth, security and privacy that humans deserve. This issue
however concerns much more than just an empty shell to hold a person. It’s
about the person themselves and their rights.
On average this year, about 6 people will
become homeless in Dublin each day. Given that there are around 100 rough
sleepers or more in Dublin at any given time, it is not unrealistic to say that
hundreds of people sleep rough across Ireland every night.
The issue of homelessness can impact on a
person’s human rights in what are sometimes very simple but significant ways
for both rough sleepers and those in shelters or other temporary accommodation.
A few of the most basic rights that are infringed while a person is homeless
may be:
·
Right to Privacy- People of
Ireland have a right to privacy. In the comfort of your own home you’re able to
conduct your affairs in private and not have the public interfere. A homeless
person is hindered from exercising this right to privacy as they lack a
dwelling to be private in. This takes away an element of comfort from a
homeless person’s life that people take for granted every day.
·
Discrimination – People have a
right to live free from discrimination. Many homeless people or those who were
once homeless can battle discrimination based on society’s preconceived notions
about homeless people or the small portion of the homeless community they have
interacted with. This negative attitude to the homeless community may also lead
to violence for a number of reasons and as some of the most vulnerable members
of our society any bias against them only increases this vulnerability.
·
Right to Earn a Livelihood- In
Ireland, people have a right to earn a livelihood and the state has a duty to
protect this. On a very basic level the
challenges one can encounter while homeless can be instrumental in their
inability to become and stay employed. This leads them farther away from the
possibility of ending their homelessness and from contributing to society in a
productive manner in some cases.
·
Right to Education- The people
of Ireland have a right to education, or more specifically, the young
people. It is sometimes hard to remember
that not everyone who is homeless is an adult. Homelessness as a child can
impact a right to an education as it can affect your ability to even be
enrolled in a school much less actively participate in education. Homeless
children receiving residential services as a result of their condition have
been reported to be as young as 13 years old.
Some of the other rights
not often considered which homeless people may be prevented from exercising are
the right to vote, right to an adequate standard of living, right to social
security, etc.
In Ireland, it has been noted that there
are initiatives currently taking place by several organizations in which
homelessness is the main focus to not just help current homeless sufferers but
to prevent the growth and continuation of the homeless condition. The
partnership MakeRoom in particular recently made a submission to the Department
of Social Protection outlining some of the issues which must be taken into
account in order to effectively end homelessness or more specifically reduce
homelessness down to no more than 6 months for those that end up in that
position. The focus is on affordable, private, rented accommodation. While
acknowledging the Housing Assistance Payment (HAP) a better use of resources
would be instrumental in improving the current situation. The faster the person
is helped out of homelessness the less chance there is of them having to suffer
the humiliation of having their human rights infringed in every area of their
life. The support of organizations like Focus Ireland and the Dublin Simon
Community is instrumental to tackling the problem of homelessness as a human
rights issue. The services they provide allow people to accept help, guidance
and training from the possibility of losing their homes right up until finding
a new one.
Additionally, it is worth noting that there
is a growing trend in governments being seen to take increasingly drastic steps
to essentially criminalize homelessness and to an extent, poverty. Although in
Ireland there is a right to housing, seen in statutory law as well as EU
legislation and our Constitution, the legislature has recently put more action
into creating law to restrict the movements of those who are homeless as
opposed to addressing issues that can resolve the problem such as helping them
out of homelessness. Despite the work of good organizations and the current aid
the government can provide to the homeless community this will undoubtedly make
it significantly harder to deal with the issue of homelessness and therefore
ensure citizens are able to exercise their human rights. Homeless people face a
constant stream of challenges that can prevent even the most resourceful of
people from providing for themselves adequately. They are issues that may not
cross our mind until we see the resulting actions from the lack of resolution
to the issues. For instance, homeless people in many jurisdictions are not
allowed to do things like loiter are prevented from or not provided with access
to cleaning facilities and are sometimes made to leave the area which they are
in completely, only to be permanently moved along and ultimately, they may
possibly develop a negative relationship with law enforcement as a result. This
cycle can only lead to more problems for the community as a whole and it is
submitted that this approach is largely detrimental to the homeless community
and their human rights.
Homelessness can stem from a number of
issues such as economic hardship, which many people in society are subjected
to, or possibly substance abuse issues that have gripped certain members of our
community. The author would submit however, that this Christmas, and indeed
year round, people remember that homeless people are deserving of the same rights
and freedoms you have and that it is important to protect them from
infringement. These are things the public become outraged at if they are
allowed to openly and regularly happen to people in their own homes or in their
private space; as a community it is important to remember that just as homeless
people deserve to be spared those outrageous behaviors that accompany the
infringement of rights, they would be much better off with the protection of a
home to aid them in exercising their human rights.
For more information on homelessness in
Ireland and how you can help, check out these links:
Natalie Vernon, GCD FLAC.
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