An Essay on Homelessness in Australia: A human rights issue.
Australian cities are still a major draw cards for many current residents of the nation and those seeking to settle in Australia. The fragility of the Australian land and the often-harsh environment has resulted in the bulk of the population moving to urbanized areas for opportunities to work, live and look to own their own home. These urban centers are often ranked as some of the world’s most livable cities and escalating demand for housing has seen housing affordability scale to heights that are out of reach of many new and existing Australians. The affordability issue is just one that has seen rises in the rate of homelessness in Australia since 2011. There are other factors that cause and influence the growth in homelessness and this essay will identify some of those in an effort to try to better understand why the problem of homelessness exists in a country as wealthy as Australia. This essay will focus on key issues that cause homelessness to still be a problem in Australia whilst also looking at the stigma associated with those that are homeless and how a human rights approach is one possible way of eliminating homelessness.
Homelessness is a human problem and it is therefore important that for this essay, research was conducted more broadly that just that of academic literature and reports. To do this, an interview was conducted with the CEO of Foundation Housing. This organizations purpose is to move people in to housing through emergency accommodation, medium term stay and long term affordable rental properties. Foundation Housing are one of a number of organizations that exist locally or nationally that assist those seeking accommodation. They operate differently to traditional charity model in that they are owners of multiple properties across the state. The purpose of the interview was to seek feedback on many of the topics raised in the research literature and gain an understanding whether a human rights approach to eliminating homelessness is both doable and front of mind for these organizations.
A recent Global Wealth Report released in October of this year, highlighted that Australia was in top place in terms of global median household wealth and second in the world for wealth per adult, just behind Switzerland. Add to this the 10th highest number of ultra-high net worth individuals in the world. Given this evidence of the wealth available in Australia, the growth in homelessness is seen as even more disturbing problem. Statistics showed that the number of homeless people in Australia grew 4.6% at the last census.
To look at why Australia has this problem, I will break this essay in to five distinct topics that can be linked to see how the homelessness occurs and how it may be eliminated. Each topic will present research and how it is viewed by the interviewee in the course of their dealings with the problem. Centrally to each topic though, is the human right aspect and how those affected are either having their rights respected, ignored or abused.
Homelessness has been identified as human rights under the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) that was established by the United Nations in 1976 and designed to make governments obligated to providing adequate housing under a human rights. Australia is a signatory to this covenant and therefore obligated to ensure they are working towards complying. Much of the academic research related to homelessness is done to look at how effectively Australia and other signatories comply or ignore their obligations. Other research takes the view of those affected and attempts to highlight the plight and difficulties homeless people go through in everyday life. It is using research from these two areas’, policy compliance and those affected, that I will analysis whether a human’s right approach is the right fit.
Background research was conducted on the topic of homelessness via several means. There is ample academic literature that discusses the problem and the effectiveness of attempts to eliminate homelessness. To compliment this research, reports in to homelessness were also reviewed as they give evidence of whether the problem is improving or declining and the demographics of those deemed homeless. To add insight to this, some qualitative research was also done with Foundation Housing. The CEO, Kathleen Gregory, was interviewed for this. Kathleen is a leader in the area of affordable housing and reducing of homelessness and has contributed to several reports on the subject. After initially failing to get a response to my interview requests from organizations, I used a contact I know that does work in the homeless area and she made the introductions. The interview was conducted at Foundation Housing office. My questions for the interview were subject to a couple of rewrites as my research of the available literature gave a better insight in to the issue.
I have listed definition as a topic here as it became apparent through my research that defining homelessness is a part of the challenge in how it is addressed. This is highlighted by Chamberlain in his 2014 report on reshaping the policy agenda for homelessness. The first eleven pages of this report are dedicated to defining homelessness. It is important to understand how a human rights issue is defined to then be able to look assess how governments address the issue. Terms used in defining homelessness, such as ‘adequate housing’, invoke just as much discussion in the literature in how to describe ‘adequate’ in a context of where the definition is describing homelessness in certain contexts. For example, city versus rural, developed country versus developing country. Others go even further and states that there is no internationally agreed definition. This difficulty in defining the problem gives governments the ability to approach the topic without having to address the issue directly. How do you legislate for something that has a mixed consensus on how it is described? This has resulted in the Australian Federal Government referring to the rights of homeless people as privileges, as opposed to rights.
Despite the issue in defining the problem, there are agreed elements that constitute homelessness. Many reports refer to the ABS statistical definition as framework that are then able to measure the problem. This definition describes the elements of homelessness if a person;
• Is in adequate dwelling, or
• Has no tenure, or
• If their tenure is short and not extendable, or
• Does not allow them to have control and access to space for social relations.
Health issues for those suffering homelessness are widespread and linked to the stress that is brought on through their circumstances. Physical and mental health problems such as depression and loneliness can lead to substance abuse and accelerated aging through poor diets and limited access to health care. Th abundance of health problems can also lead to the reduction in life expectancy for homeless individuals. A good example of a health condition suffered by homeless people, especially those rough sleeping, is that of heat stroke. It has been reported that over 23% of respondents to health surveys have experienced this condition. This is relatively simple problem to alleviate through access to water and shelter.
Gregory points out that through their surveying of homeless rough sleepers using the Vulnerability Index — Service Prioritization Decision Assistance Tool (VI-SPDAT), Foundation Housing and other homeless assistance providers gain a good insight in to the types of health issues suffered. There was a continuous cycle of rough sleepers presenting at emergency departments for treatment. This was supported in reporting that showed 57% of those surveyed would present at hospital if feeling unwell. Access to regular GP’s meant that homeless people would generally wait until conditions deteriorated rather than seek out early advise. Gregory highlighted that as we have no legislative obligations to make sure people have adequate housing to return to, hospitals and other health providers “exit people in to homelessness”. This was a critical statement as it identified a key weakness in government action and how society has not established framework to deal with furthering the care of the vulnerable.
The root causes of homelessness are debated as much as those of a definition. There are those that lay the blame on the capitalist economic system through to those that discuss the breakdown of families and social exclusion. It is this multidimensional nature of homelessness that challenges service providers to eliminate the problem. Homeless people can arrive at their situation through interactions with the justice system, leaving the family home, loss of jobs or through substance abuse. To try and tackle all these causes would be an insurmountable task. This is why service providers seek to gain intervention to homelessness as early as possible.
64% of those rough sleeping in Perth were male. From this result, it is easy to think this over-representation is what concerns those providing services. However, Gregory discussed that the fastest growing group of homeless people are women over the age of 50. This is due to marriage failures, limited superannuation and savings. Gregory added that this trend will likely continue for another 20 years. This could be taken anecdotally as a generational factor given the length of the trend. These women tend to be more in transient accommodation via ‘couch surfing’ at friends and family homes and are not as represented in the rough sleeping surveys. It is this forward forecasting of the extent that homelessness will continue that further highlights the lack of framework to eliminate the issue.
There is evidence to show the link between homelessness and social. This can lead to a lack of human rights for those suffering from social exclusion in the absence of the right to an adequate standard of living, appropriate health care, freedom from discrimination and social security. For those that are rough sleeping, they are often discriminated against by the law and justice system for minor breaches of the use of public space. Rokach, in their 2004 paper, goes as far as calling homeless people the some of the most stigmatized groups in Western society through their constant battle for survival and the suffering they endure. This stigma is further increased through the fear in the general community as the number of homeless people increases. Unfortunately, those that are the more visible homeless, rough sleepers, face this more than those that are invisible and in accommodation or shelter.
Gregory highlighted this stigma in her dealing with a young mother of two who had spent 14 months living in a tent at a caravan park. The mother felt that the social stigma associated with homelessness was sufficient that should did not go looking for assistance or want to discuss with family and friends. This is also echoed in the previous comments in reference to women over 50 being the fastest homelessness growth group. The social stigma associated with this group and the lack of knowledge of the support available kept them seeking help for accommodation. These instances highlight how a shift in the power dynamic can see those suffering homelessness as having a lack of status and losing self-esteem through their circumstances.
Eliminating homelessness through a human rights approach is a logical step for a modern and wealthy country like Australia. However, being logical has not meant that it has happened. A top down approach that requires governments legislate that it become a legal requirement for individuals to have housing and shelter, may be a theoretical practice that governments are unwilling to adopt. There is a need to keep up pressure on governments by tackling the issue of individuals rights and remove inequalities that exist within a society. The Australian Human Rights Commission list 24 recommendations for eliminating homelessness with a strong emphasis on legislation being a key factor. Without adequate housing, many other basic rights of an individual become compromised. External pressure being applied by international human rights group also needs to be maintained. If Australia is happy to be seen as a signatory to these treaties, it needs to ratify fully the recommendation that are presented.
Gregory acknowledged the need for a legal framework to assist in eliminating or reducing homelessness. However, given the current lack of legislation, a more pragmatic approach needs to be taken. Some suggestions included, smaller homes that can be built closer to infrastructure and services, rental home owners being subsidized if they make their premises available and the use of government acquired properties being handed over to homeless service providers for the use of those in need (Gregory 2018). The interview highlighted the need for homeless service providers to work together and within the existing framework available. This ‘getting on with the job’ approach is required whilst successive governments lack the will to legislate the right to adequate housing. Gregory (2018) pointed out that service providers in Western Australia are possibly the best in the country for coordinating activities and ensuring the best outcomes for those seeking their services.
Homelessness, is at its core, is a human problem. It is one that is founded in the rights of individuals to have adequate shelter and not been in fear of losing this right. As this essay has shown, the starting point to fixing a problem is to define it. This is itself, is a problem as academics, service providers and governments continue to seek consensus on a definition. The causes of homelessness are varied and neither gender or age specific. Addressing the causes of how people become homeless is daunting and the current process in Australia of exiting individuals in to homelessness does not help. The health and social stigma of those that are homeless is an ongoing issue for society. This highlights how one right of the individual being neglected leads to the further compromising of other basic rights. Without a legal framework to work within, service providers are tackling the problem from a bottom up approach and are relying on changing societies views of the homeless to be able drive change at the government level. Despite this, there is still a lot to be done by a nation like Australia. If we are measured by how we treat our disadvantaged, then we are failing and organizations like Foundation Housing will continue to have to assist those that slip through the gaps.
