Helping the Homeless Locally
Homelessness remains a widespread issue in the United States and locally. By positioning ourselves to understand the problem we can help address the issue head-on by donating to local service providers who are qualified to do the work.
Homelessness happens for a variety of reasons, but it is usually a combination of factors rather than a single cause. These factors can be broken down into lack of housing or affordable housing, the link between homelessness and health, escaping domestic violence, and racial inequality according to the National Alliance to End Homelessness.
Many people experience it temporarily, while others struggle with chronic homelessness due to long-term barriers. Addressing homelessness requires a combination of affordable housing, social services, mental health care, and employment support. State-wide in 2023, 10 people for every 10,000 people in Illinois’s population experienced homelessness. In the Central Illinois Continuum of Care region, 5 people for every 10,000 people in the general population experienced homelessness. This is about a fourth of the national average in the United States, where 23 people for every 10,000 people have experienced homelessness according to The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development this has also coincided with an increase in panhandling reports locally.
While panhandling is not illegal, giving directly to people may be well-intentioned, direct cash donations to people experiencing homelessness may not always be the best way to help. Bloomington-Normal is fortunate to be home to a large amount of human services focused on tackling the homelessness problem head-on. Visit our How to Help tab to see how you can contribute time, talent, or monetarily to addressing homelessness within our community.