The Committee on Insular Poverty was charged by the United Neighborhood Houses of New York (UNH) with the responsibility of examining the poor of New York City and the function of human service institutions which are supposed to serve them. Of special concern to the Committee were issues relating to service access and the reported difficulties…

Discusses areas of disagreement between the Institute of Medicine's report, "Homelessness, Health and Human Needs," and the controversial supplementary statement, "Health Care for the Homeless," issued separately by 10 of the authors. (FMW)

Uses aggregate data on academic success rates (test performance) and socioeconomic characteristics to assess the contributions of social, economic, and schooling factors to the pattern of spatial disparity (location relative to the inner city) in Great Britain. Findings indicate a need for more attention to the social dimension of urban problems…

Described in this paper are strategies and programs developed by the Control Data Corporation to address inner-city needs. Strategies cited include the establishment of new plants in economically depressed areas and the encouragement of local community support in business operations. Specific programs discussed are directed at the disadvantaged…

While homelessness results from a variety of factors, ultimately its cause is an insufficient supply of suitable housing. The Federal government must massively intervene to halt the loss of additional low-income housing units, and benefits paid to the welfare-dependent population must approximately double. (MW)

The American Institute of Architects (AIA) became involved in the problem of homelessness through the establishment of the Search for Shelter program, a collaboration with several other architectural organizations. The program, led by the AIA Housing Committee, sought solutions to the housing crisis through a series of workshops held around the…

In order to increase the knowledge base on the public policy issues pertaining to family homelessness, Columbia University and the Institute for Children & Poverty designed and implemented an extensive survey on the demographics of homeless families. Data on more than 140 variables were collected from 743 homeless heads-of-households in the spring…

The majority of parents now living in homeless shelters, typically young single mothers with one or two children under the age of six, have spent their lives spiraling downward through a complex and self-perpetuating cycle of family violence, community violence, and poverty. Sixty-three percent of homeless parents, a survey has found, live with…

This report describes the response of the American Institute of Architects' Housing Committee to the homeless crisis in the United States. Based on information shared at two conferences held by the Committee in 1985, this publication examines the question of how to provide secure, dignified shelter for those with little financial resources. It…

Discusses the basic economic changes and previous conservative policies that have resulted in the increase of homelessness and the decrease in the supply of affordable housing. Argues that the solution to homelessness lies with federally funded, nonprofit housing in various forms. (FMW)

This handbook provides information about gangs for education professionals working with immigrants. As the introduction makes clear, gangs are one of the many problems that newly arrived immigrants face in their neighborhoods and at school in the United States. Following the introduction, the first section describes the types of gangs including…

This report examines homeless families, isolates similarities and differences between homeless and poor but stably-housed families, identifies paths along which families slide into homelessness, and recommends policy changes. The report uses a body of data collected in 1987-1988 on two groups of poor families in Los Angeles (California) half of…

This paper summarizes reports and research on the homeless in the United States, presents findings of a survey of Red Cross chapters on services to the homeless, and describes programs for the homeless of selected Red Cross chapters. Section 1 discusses definitions of homelessness and methodologies used to count homeless people. The homeless are…

The Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) describes programs to improve poor Americans' access to home ownership and economic opportunity. Discusses the Home Ownership and Opportunity for People Everywhere (HOPE) initiative, enterprise zones, housing opportunity zones, and other tools to eliminate barriers to entrepreneurship, job…

Examines the interconnections between African Americans residing in deteriorating urban areas and the broader U.S. society. Focuses on the orientations of 10 men and 10 women in Detroit (Michigan). Interviews with participants suggest a dialectic in which they are both connected to and disconnected from mainstream society. (SLD)