Alan To Civic Engagement Homelessness

Alan To   

ART 3170-01

Homelessness 

In my opinion civic engagement means making a difference that will not only impact you but society in a positive way by using and creating tools which are given to you or seek. The severity and impact your engagement depends on the scale of the problem in which you are trying to tackle. The bigger the problem that has been identified and targeted the bigger impact you will have on society. For my problem I've chose the problem of Homelessness. This problem is not only relevant to me but to society as homeless people are littered all over the streets of la and other cities. This is a problem because these individuals need help to become functioning members of society as well as unfortunately making the streets less safe. As a individual who has almost been homeless back when I was in middle school due to financial problems, I try my best and find what's available to me so I don't end up homeless on the street. My goal is to give and provide opportunity to the homeless population by providing them basic amenities such as new clothes, hygienic products, and a basic education. As Sabine Springer defines the homeless population as, "Houseless persons are then defined as those sleeping rough or using public or private shelters". As a result they are incredibly uncleanly which can lead to the spread diseases and various other uncleanly traits without knowing such as HIV as spoke upon by Woliski stating, "health issues that increase the risks of HIV acquisition and transmission and adversely affect the health of people living with hiv." By educating the homeless population on topics such as basic skills and providing basic amenities they can learn, improve, and be helped integrating back into society.  Helping the homeless cause will not only benefit me but will provide social reassurance to inviduals who are in need, knowing that I'll help contribute to this problem which is ongoing can be me giving back to society.

Due to the nature of my problem this is not a easy task and will require more people than just me. As there are a lot of homeless people who are in need currently, I plan to volunteer my free time to help provide a hand for an organization who are already tackling this problem such as the food bank. To help people get off the street will help the city and the citizens feel more safe as they are less inclined to cross paths with a indivudal who's high on drugs. The first citizen I interviewed is also from Cal state la that goes by the name of lily. She's a 21 year old Cal State La student finishing up her last year. I proposed to educated and provide the homeless individuals with opportunities to help them integrate into society again due to means of education, amenities, and guidance. She thought this was a great idea and would be interested in volunteering her time to help the cause by means of basic support. She doesn't have a statement but likes the vision. 

By helping out at the local food bank as well in the future founding a non profit to further help homeless individuals through what we think would would be more effective by providing them more opportunity, support, and guidance will be our thank you to society. When I was younger and my family went though financial stress I was unaware of all the financial opportunities that were easily accessible around me. By providing an education and another vision at a way of life they soon could stand on their own two feet without organizations helping them.

The New York Times. (2003, July 7). The definition of Civic Engagement. The New York Times. Retrieved November 5, 2021, from https://archive.nytimes.com/www.nytimes.com/ref/college/collegespecial2/coll_aascu_defi.html.

The Definition of Civic Engagement.” The New York Times, The New York Times,                             7 July 2003, Civic engagement. Civic Engagement | Youth.gov. (n.d.). Retrieved November 5,               2021, from https://youth.gov/youth-topics/civic-engagement-and-volunteering.

Springer, S. (2000, June 21). Homelessness: A proposal for a global definition and classification. Habitat International. Retrieved November 5, 2021, from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0197397500000102.

Wolitski, R. J., Kidder, D. P., & Fenton, K. A. (2007, August 4). HIV, homelessness, and Public Health: Critical Issues and a call for increased action. AIDS and Behavior. Retrieved November 5, 2021, from https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10461-007-9277-9.