Back in the US of A

Just a few years ago, shelters were dominated by victims of drug addiction, mental illness or domestic violence. Those remain major causes of homelessness, but another leading cause has emerged. Chris Canter, executive director of Shelter Network in San Mateo, Calif. said, To-day the majority of his clients are homeless because of a job loss. Almost two-thirds, he said, are homeless for the first time. "They have this look on their face like, 'I never imagined this would happen to me. I've worked, I'm educated. This is not supposed to happen to me,' " said Chris Canter

The number of homeless families rose 4 percent in 2009, and then 9 percent last year, a pair of new reports show. In effect, even more Americans were homeless than those numbers suggest, stranded in the awkward process of staying with friends and relatives, for lack of a home of their own. Instances of families "doubling up" between 2008 and 2010 rose nearly 12 percent. Now, over 13 percent of all U.S. homes contain more than one family, the highest proportion since at least 1968. More than 2.8 million homes received foreclosure notices in 2009, as foreclosure activity increased more than 20 percent, according to real estate data provider RealtyTrac. Between 2010 and 2012, 7.4 million more homes will likely enter foreclosure, the Federal Reserve predicts. The national unemployment rate remains stuck near 10 percent.

"Loss of jobs means loss of money, means inability to pay for housing," said Maria Foscarinis, executive director of the National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty "Some people who are affected in that way end up becoming homeless."

Larry Haynes, executive director of Mercy House, a shelter organization in Santa Ana said working-class people are "terrified"

Oregon’s income inequality is similar to Kenya’s. The American minimum wage at $7.25 per hour is grossly insufficient to pay for food, shelter, transportation, and child and healthcare. As inadequate as the federal minimum wage is, there are many incidents where it is not even met. Tipped employees in many states can be paid $2 to $3 per hour. In Massachusetts, agricultural employees are paid as low as $1.60 per hour. Oregon’s minimum wage is the second highest in the nation and rose to $8.50 on January 1. Despite that, Oregon’s per capita income (the sum of all income divided by residents) is $36,125—and $3,500 less than the average American, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis. If you subtract $3,408 for personal taxes paid, the disposable income for Oregonians drops 9.4 percent ($3,408) to $32,717. Oregon’s unemployment is among the highest in the nation.