Hear to Help: Listening to Portland's Unheard

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 The connections created through human interaction harbor immense power. People need to make those connections in order to flourish in their lives because no one was ever meant to live in isolation. Humans are complex and very social creatures. Sadly, the homeless populations in our society and on the streets of American cities have reached awful heights with lacking governmental policies or policing assistance to help these individuals. I always thought to some extent that one of the root causes of homelessness is addiction- while that may be the case sometimes addiction can also usually be the outcome that arises through someone experiencing homelessness. The opportunity and accessibility to obtain drugs and alcohol as a homeless person is easier than finding secure housing or employment options. A foundation called the Mission Harbor Behavioral Health organization published an article discussing how and why homelessness has become such a prominent issue in the U.S. today: “Homeless populations are much higher in states where residents have to pay a more substantial portion of their income to house payments than the average U.S. citizen. When someone is in a precarious financial situation, any adverse circumstances can push them over the edge into a position where they can lose their home. Divorce, illness, and drug addiction can plunge someone already struggling to maintain a roof over their head into homelessness and poverty” (Mission Harbor Behavioral Health, 2021).



As a society, there are better ways and a more compassionate outlook to be had towards the homeless fighting addiction and that is to not give up on them or write them off as addicts; not to categorize or generalize them. Addiction is the response to not having stable connections and fulfilling relationships with others. There are those who may have never had the opportunity to learn valuable life-skills, healthy coping, or how to build quality relationships. This is where you can help. There is an amazing local resource for our community called the Portland Rescue Mission. It is a one-hundred percent community funded organization that seeks to help the homeless begin to remake their lives. They have seven locations (ranging from three community houses, a shelter, a women/children sanctuary as well as one for men) in place to reach out to members struggling with a variety of problems to meet a diverse set of needs. If you can help in any way by donating your time or by giving financially please do so by clicking on this link. By helping to draw the homeless population into a safe and healthy community so they can find friendship and connection, our society gets one step closer to cleaning up the streets and having the unspoken members of our neighborhoods taken care of and finally heard in their stories and their experiences. 



References

Mission Harbor Behavioral Health. (2021). What’s the connection between homelessness and addiction? Mission Harbor. Retrieved from https://sbtreatment.com/homelessness-addiction/






Published by: Julie Pogarchenko (Communications Undergrad at PSU)

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