A Return to Social Consciousness:
Leisure Services & the Homeless
by Sandra Wolf Klitzing, M.S., C.T.R.S.

Homelessness is not a new phenomenon. Incidences of homelessness have been recorded since the beginning of documented history. At varying times the lifestyle of homeless people has been glamorized, as in Roger Miller's song "King of the Road," or envied as the "carefree" way of life. This is no longer the case.

Today one cannot read a newspaper, walk to the local library or visit the Lincoln Park Zoo without encountering people who are homeless. At best these people are overlooked or ignored, at worst they are patronized, persecuted or removed from sight.

A review of the history of the early recreation movement shows a philosophical commitment to providing services and advocating for individuals who were economically disadvantaged. Roots of the movement can be traced to concerned people like Joseph Lee, Luther Gulich and Jane Addams, and their social consciousness. Today, however, few leisure services are provided for extremely economically disadvantaged or homeless people. These individuals seem to be both underserved and overlooked by leisure professionals. It is time for the leisure and recreation profession to return to the social consciousness of its early leaders. The purpose of this article is to introduce background information about the issue of homelessness in the hope that this will increase awareness and accelerate exploration of the role leisure service providers can play in combating this problem.

Homelessness in the United States

A variety of definitions have been used to define homelessness. Most define it as a condition of being without a regular dwelling place. The author of Homeless in America, C. Caton, goes beyond the loss of a house with four walls and a roof to the loss of a home in her definition. In Hospital and Community Psychiatry, J. Grunberg and P. F. Eagle included the concept of disaffiliation in their definition. They wrote that loss of family and community bonds is central to homelessness.

Estimates of the number of homeless people in the United States tend to range from 250,000 to 2.2 million, with some figures going as high as four million. Although there has been no agreement on the exact number of the homeless, there is agreement that the number has increased in the last ten years. The fastest growing segment of this population is families and children. There are more women, children, veterans and people with mental illness on the streets than ever before. The present recession, and changes in family structure has reduced the quality of life for increased numbers of individuals.

A variety of factors lead to homelessness. A commonly held myth is that many choose that lifestyle. This simply is not true. Few choose to live on the streets, stigmatized by society. Most do not have the finances, skills, mental stability, or support to break out of the downward cycle. Another myth is that people who are homeless are transient. In fact, a large percentage of homeless people in a given community are from that community. Thus, homelessness is not someone else's problem, but a problem that affects people from our own communities.

Recreation and Leisure Service Response

Individuals who are homeless are a heterogeneous group with multiple needs. The women, children, families, veterans and the mentally ill need more than housing, food, and adequate clothing, although these needs are pressing. They must regain a sense of identity, increase self-esteem, experience social interaction, and have the opportunity to become affiliated with their community. Leisure service providers can play key roles.

Personally and professionally we can increase awareness of the problem in our own community, as well as nationally. Recreation personnel can start looking at people who are homeless individually, instead of collectively. Once the individual is acknowledged it becomes easier to value that person. Instead of walking quickly past someone and never making eye contact, we can look at his face and smile. That one act can help validate that man.

Validating the individual is a beginning. From there we can take larger personal and professional steps. We can volunteer at the local shelter, sponsor a 10-kilometer race with proceeds going to a soup kitchen, or provide recreation programs and fee waivers to individuals who are homeless. We can use our facilities as food or clothing distribution centers. We can provide drop-in centers where people can socialize and recreate. We can run after-school recreation and study programs for children who live in welfare hotels. We can provide drug education programs in housing projects. We can incorporate those individuals who have severe mental health problems into our special recreation programs. These are merely possible areas where recreation and leisure professionals can begin to combat homelessness and disaffiliation. This may be as important in the fight against homelessness as providing shelter and clothing.

In conclusion, the intent of this article is to increase awareness of the issue of homelessness. It is time for the profession to return to the social consciousness upon which it was built. To that end, leisure service providers should become personally and professionally involved in combating homelessness. Awareness is the first step. Action will come from awareness.

About the author
   Sandra Wolf Klitzing is an assistant professor of leisure studies at the Universily of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana.