Homelessness in the midst of COVID- 19
A few weeks ago, I was walking down Weyburn Ave. in Westwood on my way to get Diddy Riese Cookies with my best friends. We were enjoying the night and strolling through the buzzing and lively atmosphere that is UCLA’s village. As we approached the intersection, we overheard two homeless people talking about the virus. The tone of their trembling voices made it clear they were extremely worried about their health. They seemed helpless and defeated. Hearing them express this reinforced one thing: Being homeless in LA has always been difficult but in the midst of COVID-19 it is unimaginably scarier. We didn’t know what to do other than buy them a warm meal and water. So that is what we did.
Since the beginning of this pandemic back in late January, we have been hearing “Practice social distancing”, “Wash your hands as often as you can”, and “Please wear a mask!” repeatedly. We all know how to stay safe and do our part in slowing the spread which is essentially, self isolating or quarantining to the best of our abilities. But what about people who simply don’t have a home? Staying at home just isn’t an option for people living and sleeping on the streets or shelters. A recent report published by the nonprofit organization National Alliance to End Homelessness reveals that the homeless population in the United States will be “two to four times as likely to require critical care and two to three times as likely to die as the general population” as a result of the pandemic. It is also important to realize the virus can spread relatively quickly in homeless shelters. Once an individual gets infected it is easy for the rest of the people living in a shelter to be exposed because there is simply no personal space or privacy as a result of the overcrowding. Homeless people typically have underlying medical conditions which inevitably places them at a higher risk for a severe case of COVID-19. In general, the homeless population has approximately twice the mortality rate of the general population. This stems from food and shelter insecurity, lack of proper healthcare, and an overall lack of community and support which are rooted in larger systemic issues. A positive piece of news however is on Wednesday September 9th, the LA City Council decided to allocate tens of millions of dollars in grant money toward rent assistance for homeless people. This is fortunately part of a larger plan to assist the homeless population during the pandemic such as funding for tiny homes (a solution I discussed in my previous blog post!).
In addition to the COVID-19 pandemic, the US is currently experiencing mass unemployment, an eviction crisis, and environmental disasters, all of which contribute to homelessness. Many people are struggling as a result of the careless way in which this pandemic has been handled. This includes college students, mothers and fathers, entire families, and essentially, people like you and me. This brings me back to a sentiment I made in a previous blog post regarding people’s attitudes toward homeless people. The first step in solving this problem is acknowledging that the victims of homelessness are regular people just like you and me. Most commonly, people lose their homes and this unleashes a chain reaction of problems that come with losing the central foundation of a person’s life. Many lives are being changed and destroyed right now, leaving people feeling defeated and confused. Now more than ever, it is important to remember that homeless people already have to worry about surviving everyday, let alone in the middle of a pandemic. The fact that many can choose to simply ignore this is a privilege. For many it’s “out of sight out of mind” but this is the reality of 567,715 people in the US (and counting). This is the harsh reality of those two men I encountered in Westwood.
It is okay to say that the pandemic has “ruined” a lot of things for us. It is okay to feel upset that this year isn’t going as planned or that you’re tired of “everything going on”. But, please remember there are countless people like me and you who don’t even have basic shelter during this rough time.
