Before I go...

Today it will all change. This is where my education and preparation leave and reality hits like a brick. In a few hours I will visit a homeless shelter in downtown Columbus, Ohio where I will meet the very people I have learned about. I don't have expectations so I did not prepare questions. I am relying on my gut. And right now my gut tells me that what I have learned thus far only brushes the surface.

I am here to give this problem a face. It's about time someone does. We are all in a bubble and the only thing that can pop it is a story: one that is true, gut-wrenching and unbelievable.

The Why

I was first introduced to the homeless my freshman year at Ohio University in Sociology and Anthropology 101 classes. We learned the basics here and even read a book. It more so fell in the lines of a case study, not a first hand account. I made sociology my specialization hoping to learn more. I didn't. 

It was the same facts and statistics in every class. During the winter months I thought I would at least see some kind of media coverage boasting advocacy for the homeless. Four years later, I haven't. The lack of coverage has led me to believe that our society is doing an incredible injustice to these men, women and children by doing nothing.

Under the guise of alcoholism, mental illness and drug addiction it has become easy for us to to look internally and blame the individual instead of outwardly at our stereotypes and institutions for blame. It is easier to turn a blind eye this way.

Although this project might not get anywhere it is my hope that it does. If not, it serves as a symbol for what needs to be done to reveal the truth. Most importantly, we all need to be advocates.

The National Coalition for the Homeless has a great article describing how difficult it is to develop black and white statistics. This piece is a little technical but just skim under each subheading and you can easily gather the most important points.