Poverty in the Philadelphia

Philadelphia has a population of 1.5 million people. As of now in Philadelphia 200,000 people live in poverty. Unemployment rate in Philadelphia is 7.2 % which is higher 1.5% then national rate. One in four people are at risk of hunger in Philadelphia. There are approximately 4000 homeless people on any given day,500 of those people living on the streets, and rest 3,500 men, women and children who live in shelters. Last year City's Office of Emergency Shelter and Services served 14,986 homeless people. Out of that number 9,468 were adults without children, 2,011 were heads of households and 3,507 were children. Children and families constitute approximately a third of the shelter population of any given night. Families entering shelters were single parent household, 86 % of these were female headed and 14% male headed.Approximately 20 % of the single individuals and 13 % of families are chronically homeless meaning that they are homeless for more then one year.

STATISTICS HOW CHILDREN BECAME HOMELESS

15% FOSTER HOMES

44.9 % PARENTS WHO DRANK HEAVILY

20.5% PARENTS WHO USED DRUGS

11.3% SUBJECTED TO CHILD ABUSE INVESTIGATORS

28.1% BEING MOLESTED

MAYOR'S REPORT:

ON THE STREETS : 500 HOMELESS PEOPLE SINGLE ADULTS

EMERGENCY SHELTERS : 2155 SINGLE ADULTS, 1504 PEOPLE IN FAMILIES

TRANSITIONAL HOUSING: 393 SINGLE ADUTLS, 1746 PEOPLE IN FAMILIES

AGE DISTRIBUTION IN SHELTER:

18 - 25 9%

26 - 45 49%

46 - 65 40%

65 + 3%

RACE DISTRIBUTION IN SHELTER:
African Americans 80%
Latino/a 6%
White 13%
Asian 1%
Other 3%

The reason why I think any of the cities not just Philadelphia does not provide homeless people with enough, better and more comprehensive services is because its the minority that they have to deal with. I personally think that minority people are not taken seriously and that bigger and stronger parties don't care about the minority. Other reason is that the minority is usually people of color, Hispanics, and other people that came from other countries. If they were all white Americans, i don't think this would be an issue at all.