Week 1: Homelessness & Walls

In this 2010 release by Gale, the issue of homelessness is discussed. Homelessness is one characteristic that a lot of us would associate with urban centers. This makes us wonder if early cities such as Ur, Carthage which we read of in dusty books had the same problem. Maybe not! I was surprised by the characteristics listed in class: record keeping, social hierarchy, populations ranging to over a few hundred thousand, etc… until, I saw the next sub topic; "The Wall".

The article states that homelessness has "been a problem throughout human history"; however, I do not agree it has become less common nowadays. It seems that with walls, ancient cities and their rulers were able to control their subjects, and therefore homelessness. Kings and nobles lived in castles (priests in some cases) , merchants in the immediate outer circle, followed by artisans, then farmers and lastly laborers who lived in communal houses (they shared, they weren't homeless!). With walls in place, peasants could not disrupt the equilibrium by becoming nobles; if at all their lot improved, they got filtered through one wall at a time. Social hierarchy itself is a psychological wall. According to the article, homelessness in the US "developed during the early stages of American colonial settlement". Colonialism can be seen as the rejection of walls by the people, and homelessness can be seen as the effect. Our ancestors became free and wild, they could roam the continent without borders, and regard one another as equals. What we have in cities of today however, seems to be homelessness without borders.

If you have ever wondered why homeless people sleep against hard walls rather than soft grass, then this answer is for you. Maybe it is an instinctive request for walls to become part of our lives once again.

-O.I

"Homelessness." Current Issues: Macmillan Social Science Library. Detroit: Gale, 2010. Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 23 Jan. 2012.

http://ic.galegroup.com/ic/ovic/ReferenceDetailsPage/ReferenceDetailsWindow?displayGroupName=Reference&disableHighlighting=true&action=e&windowstate=normal&catId=GALE%7C00000000LVX1&documentId=GALE%7CPC3021900081&mode=view&userGroupName=viva_vpi&jsid=00c436e6902918225b2ff11fb16e0d48