It’s not really a surprise that some people don’t like homeless people. They’re often seen as lazy, dirty, drunk or druggies etc. Businesses don’t like them sleeping outside of their shops and cities don’t like them making the city seem lower class. So someone came up with probably one of the worst solutions. Homeless spikes. Continue reading
LGBT*QIA and homelessness
In light of recent events in the USA I thought this post would be relevant while still keeping with the bogs theme.
#Lovewon
For the sake of available figures and facts I’ll be reference the United States for this post as the most extensive studies on this issue has been done there. The letters in LGBT*QIA stands for
Lesbian
Gay
Bisexual
Trans*
Questioning
Intersex
Asexual
These statistics have been gathered from the William Institute;
40% of homeless youth served by agencies identify as LGBT*QIA
40% of people served by drop-in centers are part of the LGBT*QIA community
30% of street outreach clients identify as LGBT*QIA
30% of clients in housing programs identify as LGBT*QIA
There are many reason why a large amount of homeless individuals are Queer but one main reason has been discrimination in many aspects of their lives.
Parents who oppose the LGBT*QIA community and lifestyle are known to cast their children aside because of their religion or just personal beliefs. Parents feel personally betrayed by their childs orientation to the point where some kick them out of their own homes and the kids end up on the street.
Some LGBT*QIA kids also experience this discrimination at school and so are more likely to drop out before finishing due to this harassment. This can lead to them not being able to get and keep a well paying job, resulting in becoming homeless.
Sometimes it isn’t just lack of education that prohibits these individuals from getting jobs, sometimes it’s their bosses disagreeing with their life and so fire them purely on the basis of clashing morals and opinions. In America 32 states have no laws that stop Trans individuals being fired purely on the fact that they’re transexual. That number is way too high and again can result in the person falling into homelessness.
It should be a basic human right to not be void of security and safety and yet thousands of individuals are being discriminated against purely because of their orientation.

Coffee shop does things differently and shows compassion for the homeless
A speciality coffee shop which prides itself on doing things differently is showing compassion for Fitzrovia’s rough sleepers by asking its customers to donate a coffee so that a homeless person can come in and enjoy a free cup.
At Black Sheep Coffee, 63 Charlotte Street., customers are invited to donate a coffee so that a homeless person can enjoy a cup for free.
The initiative which started this spring is in stark contrast to the Fitzrovia Business Improvement District which has been discouraging its members from engaging with Fitzrovia’s rough sleeping community.
Gabriel Shohet, one of the co-founders at Black Sheep Coffee and responsible for the Free Coffee Initiative, told Fitzrovia News that everyday they see homeless people in the area and would like them to come into the shop and “get a coffee just like anyone else”.
For each donated or “suspended coffee” the shop staff write a…
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My First Night Homeless – by Mark Horvath
Homelessness is not a ‘lifestyle choice’
Homelessness in Australia
Not many people consider the idea of homelessness in their own country. For me I never know I never really thought about it in my own country. I always think about it being in less fortunate countries. However this is not the case. Many Australians go every night without a proper place to sleep.
Homeless statistics in Australia
Homelessness in it’s most basic form.
Typically when people think of homelessness they think of older men or women living in dirty clothes and living under bridges. In reality homelessness is a lot more common than a lot of people think. In Australia there are over 105,000 (about 0.5% of our population) people who are considered homeless.