Malign Neglect: Homelessness in an American CityWhy are there so many people living in the streets today? Why are thousands more only a paycheck or two away from homelessness? In this book, Jennifer Wolch and Michael Dear reveal how homelessness happens and why "blaming the victim" doesn't work or even make sense. Malign Neglect tells the truth about homelessness in America - how we have chosen to ignore it, how our elected officials prefer not to think about it, how homelessness has become so widespread, and why any of us could become its next victims. It also clarifies what professionals and citizens alike can do to make a difference. Malign Neglect provides a detailed account of how the homeless individual is linked to wider national, even global, forces of social change. Wolch and Dear reveal how patterns of neglect by public leadership have combined with structural changes in society to make homelessness "the most visible tip of a vast iceberg of poverty and deprivation" that has emerged out of the politics and economics of the 1980s. The authors show how twenty years of economic restructuring, the dismantling of the welfare state, demographic changes, and the collapse of affordable housing markets have led to the current crisis of homelessness. Using the example of Los Angeles, dubbed "the homeless capital of the United States", Malign Neglect demonstrates the impact of two decades of welfare cutbacks and economic dislocation at the local level. It provides definitive accounts of the street lives of homeless people, illuminating the subculture of chronic homelessness. The authors examine local community reactions to the homeless on the streets of Venice, Pasadena, and Los Angeles and tell the story of what life is like for thehomeless women on Skid Row. They describe the social networks that promote survival among people who have reached rock bottom and show how escape from homelessness requires integrated support services - for housing, health, job training, and substance abuse counseling. |
Contents
Economic Restructuring | 47 |
Erosion of Affordable Housing | 65 |
The Divergent Geography of Jobs and Housing | 93 |
Copyright | |
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Other editions - View all
Malign Neglect: Homelessness in an American City Jennifer R. Wolch,Michael J. Dear Snippet view - 1993 |
Malign Neglect: Homelessness in an American City Jennifer R. Wolch,Michael J. Dear No preview available - 1994 |
Common terms and phrases
AFDC affordable housing African-American agencies alcohol Angeles County Angeles Economy budget Burnam Children's Defense Fund clients clinics coping county's crisis declined district downtown Los Angeles DPSS drug economic eligible emergency employment example facilities federal funds gatekeeper gentrification geography grew growth Hollywood homeless households housing units human services income increased industries Joseph's Koegel labor Latino less living Long Beach Los Angeles County low-income low-skill jobs manufacturing Medi-Cal ment mental-health mentally disabled million mobility neighborhoods networks NIMBY nonprofit panhandling Park Pasadena percent poor population poverty problems programs protohomeless rates recipients region relatively rent residential residents restructuring San Fernando Valley San Gabriel Valley Santa Monica sector shelter Skid Row social service Southern California spending street tion Union Station urban Venice voucher wage welfare West Hollywood Westside Wolch women workfare