Homeless Books Essay, Research Paper

Have you ever realized how lucky you really are when you are driving under a

bridge or in poor part of town and you see a homeless person begging for work or

food, or do you just drive by and act as though you never saw the horrible site

and go on about your buisness? Just like in the book "Les Miserables"

Fantine becomes homeless to take care of her daughter, who she gae to the

Thenardiers, for what she thought was a better life. Everywhere you go,

everwhere you look, there is always someone less fortunate than you, some places

more than others. Homeless people come from all walks of life. Anyone can become

homeless, you could be born to a rich or just well-off family and end up under a

bridge across town. Have you ever wondered, what are some situations homeless

people find themselves in every day liek Fantine did? Homeless people aren’t as

fortunate as people with roofs over their heads. THey have to search up and down

to find a place to sleep where they won’t be awaken by a police officer who

doesn’t like where they are. But regardless of who these people are, they are

still people, "who come from all walks of life, all races, and

religions" (Marx 4). Although many were born into homelessness or were

brought down to it by their parents, many have lost their jobs during economic

changes of the 1980’s and weren’t able to find other work, either because they

were to old to be hired or didnt’ have the correct skills (Marx 4). All over the

world people because of the way they look and mainly becuse they arent’ to the

level of society the average person is on. But not only adults are homeless,

teenagers and children are living on the streets as well. Many are

"runaways and throwaways" (Hyde 52) Just because you dont’ see the

swaarms and swarms of children living on the street, it doesn’t mean they arent’

there. Seven hundred fifty thousand to one million three hundred thousand boys

and girls are homeless because they are runaways from either broken, abusive, or

dysfunctional families. But many also come from being thrown out of their homes,

some for reasons and some for no reasons at all. (Hyde 52). But either way its

no excuse to throw your child out on the street. But all teenagers, children and

adults all need places to live ("Homeless in America" 146). Thousands

of Americans stay in shelters each week ("Homelessness"). Shelters

such as church basements, old hotels or even buildings built for shelters

usually always stay full (Marx 4). Every day people are turned away adn even

some have given up on finding a bed to sleep in (marx 4). So jsut like Fantine

had to "sell herself" just to make it along, people on the streets are

doing this everyday just to get a warn meal to eat (Hugo 97). Next time you are

driving out of town don’t look out your window and think poor soul, do something

the best way you can, even if it is just giving a bottle of water.