Tale of Two Cities and Homelessness

Patricia Price
a. Statistical data about the prevalence of youth homelessness in New York and
Chicago.
Chicago: In 2005, a study found that almost 25,000 Illinois youth experience
homelessness each year; about 9,000 from the Chicago Area. (Chicago Coalition for the
Homeless)
New York: Covenant House New York serves over 400 homeless youth daily. Every year
they serve about 4300 youth. (Covenant House New York)
b. Statistical data regarding populations of homeless, including youth.
Chicago: The National Runaway Safeline reported that the number of youth calling to say
they are homeless has increased from 758-1956. (Hirst, 2013).
New York: Children under 18 represented 39% of the homeless population. Of that
number, approximately 42% were younger than age 5. Approximately 40% of homeless
youth identify as LGBT. (Safe Horizon).
c. Types/levels of supports available including, but not limited to, shelters, community
and school-based supports, etc.
Chicago: The Chicago Coalition for the Homeless is an advocate for the needs of the
homeless youth. In 2014, CCH drafted House Bill 4501 which allows unaccompanied
minors to consent to their own medical care for non-emergency illnesses and injuries.
There are also organizations such as Chicagos Continuum of Care, Government
Agencies, and many more. (Chicago Coalition for the Homeless).
New York: The Covenant House New York is an organization who works with homeless
youth. They encourage family reunification and if that does not work they encourage for
the youth to become independent finding work, counseling, and more. (Covenant House
New York).
d. The policies supporting homelessness in each state.
Chicago: Working to reestablish homes for youth and eliminate criminal practices.
New York: Working to reestablish homes for youth and eliminate criminal practices.
e. At least one other interesting statistic or learned information of your choice about
homelessness.

Chicago: It was interesting to learn about the large number of homeless youth in Chicago.
New York: It was interesting to learn the amount of youth that are kicked out of their
homes because of their sexual preferences. I did not realize the epidemic.

The information I learned about the amount of homeless youth both in New York and Chicago
was surprisingly alarming to me. I never expected that there were so many young children who
were homeless. I was especially surprised by the number of youth who were homeless because of
this sexual preference. I feel that at such a young age, parents should have a conversation with
their children about things such as this before throwing them out of the house. I feel with this
amount of homeless youth, that parents should be held responsible for abandoning or putting
their children out of the streets. This information enhanced my view on homelessness by opening
me up to the amount of children who are homeless. I like the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless
and the Covenant House New York. I feel that the strategies adopted by both groups will help
homeless children prosper a lot further than they would be able to without any help. One
recommendation I would have for the cities of New York and Chicago would be what I said
before as far as holding the parents accountable for their homeless children. If parents throw their
child out of the house, they should have charges pressed if they do not attempt/find a stable
living environment for their child to stay in. This would help eliminate the amount of children
who are homeless. Also, groups can be served by implementing specialized programs for certain
homeless victims. For example, if a childs parents pass away, there should be programs to deal
with this. If a child is thrown out of the house or a runaway, specialized programs should be
implemented as well.

References:
Chicago Coalition for the Homeless. (2014). No youth alone. Retrieved from
http://www.chicagohomeless.org/programs-campaigns/advocacy-public-policy/no-youth-alone/
Covenant House New York. (2014). Helping homeless kids in New York. Retrieved from
http://www.covenanthouse.org/homeless-charity/new-york
Hirst, E. J. (2013, May 27). Number of homeless youths on the rise, suggests shelter, hotline
data. Chicago Tribune. Retrieved from http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2013-05-27/news/ctmet-homeless-youth-chicago-20130528_1_youths-hotline-shelter

Safe Horizon. (2014). Homeless youth statistics & facts. Retrieved from
http://www.safehorizon.org/page/streetwork-homeless-youth-facts-69.html