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Working for Homeless Veterans

By Dave Kettenhofen

As I sit in the relative comfort of my home the temperature outside is 10 degrees and dropping. I feel fortunate. For some 500,000 veterans the street will be their home this year; no furnaces, fireplaces, or warm beds.

The fact that 30-40% of the homeless men in the United States are veterans is an outrage. These men answered their government's call to arms and now they are MIA-missing in America. Where is the special Senate committee to try to determine what happened to them? We know without a doubt that they exist. When will their peace come?

Many of the homeless vets are suffering from mental illness, PTSD, and substance abuse directly related to their combat experiences. But the overwhelming cause of homelessness is the lack of affordable housing. Back in 1989 there were 4.1 million more households in need of affordable rental united ant there were units available. With the current economic recession things are getting worse. In a recent survey of 28 major U.S. cities there was a 26% rise in emergency food requests and a 13% increase in requests for emergency shelter.

The Veterans Administration has two special programs to assist the homeless veteran; the homeless Chronically Ill Program and the Domiciliary Care for Homeless Veterans Program. These programs which began in 1987 have provided treatment for about 12,000 homeless veterans so far. The VA also has general benefits and services to assist homeless vets, Obviously these programs are not equipped to meet the demand for services.

Some veteran's organizations are doing a lot of work in this area. They are fundraising and pounding the streets doing outreach. Some are opening transitional homes where homeless veterans receive counseling, job training, and other educational services until they are able to go it on their own. These organizations should be applauded for their work. However due to a serious lack of manpower and sufficient funds these programs can only put a dent in the overall problem.

Ultimately the solution is the responsibility of the government who sent these men to war. But what do the politicians have to gain by supporting homeless vets? These vets don't have lobbyists; they are not members of veterans groups-they are an underclass. Hell, they don't even vote. The politicians would rather be visible at welcome home parades, "support the troops" functions, and memorial dedications where the media is present-primetime. The look good shaking hands and patting vets on the back. Programs for the homeless might interfere with the almighty budget cuts everyone is clamoring for. The issue which has been dodged by politicians since the Revolutionary War wasn't even mentioned in the first Democratic debates this fall.

That leaves it up to us, VVAW and all the other veterans organizations. If the politicians consider us just a bunch of social clubs we have to prove them wrong. We must put pressure on them to resolve the problem by instituting workable programs with adequate funding. The homeless vets are the brothers that fought alongside of us and those of us who have been more fortunate cannot let them down. The politicians can't be allowed to forget that taking care of veterans is part of the cost of waging war. Write or call your congressmen and make them accountable in the upcoming elections.