Sir, – The latest figures showing a rise in the number of people sleeping rough in Dublin (now estimated to be over 100) are truly shocking. The response of many is, however, likely to be: “It’s awful that people are having to sleep on the streets – but it is just impossible to know what to do.”
The belief that there is some mystery surrounding how we can respond to homelessness has to be challenged and attention directed towards the policies and the political choices which lead to this appalling form of hardship, and towards the elected representatives and policy-makers with responsibility in this area.
While individual stories (Kitty Holland, December 14th) concerning people sleeping rough do raise awareness of the issue, too often the focus becomes the personal reasons that have led to homelessness, such as alcohol or drug dependency and abusive relationships.
However, attention needs first and foremost to be focused on the appalling failures of Irish housing policy over the past decade or more, which have resulted in the waiting list for social housing soaring to over 98,318 households – a figure that is 75 per cent higher than the waiting list in 2008.
It is to be greatly welcomed that in this Christmas season a spirit of generosity and concern will lead many people in Ireland to contribute to the voluntary organisations working with homeless people. A lasting solution, however, requires that the goodwill of the public be translated by the Government into radical action to tackle the root causes of homelessness and the serious deficiencies in our current housing policy. – Yours, etc,
Sir, – Thank you for publishing the two excellent articles, sad yet positive at the same time, from different continents but which so easily could be from our own island (from Lara Marlowe in the US and Mark Hennessy in London, December 1st). Both somehow captured what we experience in Trust on a daily basis working with people who are homeless.
The life and death of Dubliner John Ryan, once again highlighted the importance of respecting one’s right to privacy. Here the rush to collect, store and share personal data on people labelled homeless seeking a service is a huge ongoing concern and an issue we have raised with the Data Protection Commissioner. John’s wishes were respected right up to the end when he even planned his own funeral – may he rest in peace.
The police officer in the US who gave a pair of boots and socks to a homeless man made international news. It was not the act alone, but the fact that it was an international news story that was encouraging. At a time in our country when we are in danger of drowning in pain, misery, negativity, more experts, more bureaucracy and red tape coming at us from all angles, good news stories showing what is possible at times are rare, but urgently needed to bring some balance and encouragement to the national conversation. – Yours, etc,