Internal Problems in Homeless Shelters
There is sometimes corruption and theft by the employees of a shelter as evidenced by a 2011 investigative report by FOX 25 TV in Boston wherein a number of Boston public shelter employees were found stealing large amounts of food over a period of time from the shelter's kitchen for their private use and catering. Several problems emerge when a homeless shelter is present. Homeless shelters have been argued to have a negative effect on businesses. Businesses for years have complained that they frequently witness pedestrians being stopped outside their stores by homeless people begging for money. Such events have led to the creation of local laws that prohibit “aggressive panhandling.” Another problem is that it is often difficult to decide on where a homeless shelter should be built. Neighborhoods as well as schools argue that homeless shelters bring in bad element to their surroundings. Also far too many shelters have become nothing but housing facilities. They fail to provide job training or education that would assist the homeless population with gaining their own housing. Housing through homeless shelters offer no lasting solutions just temporary ones. Drugs and alcohol also tend to surround homeless shelters. Many administrators advocate that shelters should be drug and alcohol free but this has failed to take place in most locations. Lastly, no classification system for shelters has been put into effect. There are no mechanisms to separate those who have mental illnesses from the rest of the homeless within shelters.
Read more about this topic: Homeless Shelter
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