News / Economic Divide

Explosion of homelessness in US West Coast

Sunday, 03 December 2017 2:05 PM [ Last Update: Sunday, 03 December 2017 2:05 PM ]

People wait in line for free shoes, clothing and backpacks provided to the more than 4,000 homeless and underprivileged children in Los Angeles, California, United States, in this October 1, 2015 file photo.

The number of homeless people is now over 168,000 in California, Oregon and Washington, 19,000 more than what was counted in 2015. In fact, as the West Coast’s tech economy booms, the number of homeless people is rising out of proportion.

Tent camps are now everywhere; in the parks, under the bridges, along the sidewalks, almost everywhere you look. Abject poverty is in the open like never before and moving people off the streets has turned out to be an uphill battle.

A new study by the University of Washington found a strong link between rising housing prices and rising homelessness. A five-percent rent increase in Los Angeles, for example, would mean about 2,000 more people would go homeless.

While high housing costs and rental vacancy rates are said to be the main culprit, homeless advocates say it is outrageous to see the widening gap between the haves and the have nots.

The gap between the rich and the poor has pushed thousands of people to the breaking point and yet, things have become more complicated since Donald Trump took office as the US president.

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