HOMELESS- A photo speaks a thousand words

Some of us have been more fortunate than others in this world...... but in this case, a photo speaks a thousand words. It could be us in their place, it could be our mother, our father, our sister , our friend. All we need to give to these people and generally people is a smile and not look down on them. That is what the World needs now.
There are many stories of homeless people that have died rich................ sometimes I wonder why then they chose to be homeless.....could it be that the just needed warmth in their heart and they found it amongst other homeless people. Being homeless does not necessary mean that you are a beggar.


Since a picture/photo speaks a thousand words, I found this interesting photography project by
Lee Jeffries . Jeffries has captured breathtaking photographs of homeless people in black and white . These shots show the raw depth and character of  his passion for photography.
Lee Jeffries live’s in Manchester, United Kingdom, where he got the chance to meet a homeless girl. He first took a picture without her consent. But then he went to her, sat with her and discussed her life story. From there his perception about the homeless completely changed and made it his subject of art and discussion. From that time onward his photography got orientated towards conviction and compassion to the world .
In this collection lee Jeffries focused only on  black and white  pictures of homeless people that he met in Europe and the United States. When discussed Jeffries quoted:  ”Situations arose, and I made an effort to learn to get to know each of the subjects before asking their permission to do their portrait.”
to see more of his black and white incredibly details photographs you can visit his Flickr account

Contributing causes....A few Facts from Wikipedia

Major reasons and causes for homelessness as documented by many reports and studies include:

• Unavailability of employment opportunities.
• Poverty, caused by many factors including unemployment and underemployment.
• Lack of accessible healthcare. People who have some kind of chronic and weakening disease but cannot get healthcare either because they don't have money to afford it or because the government will not give it to them are simply too weak to go and work every day.
• Abuse by government or by other people with power.
• War or armed conflict.
• Natural disasters
• Mental disorder, where mental health services are unavailable or difficult to access or as a result of deinstitutionalization. A United States Federal survey done in 2005 indicated that at least one-third of homeless men and women have serious psychiatric disorders or problems.
• Disability, especially where disability services are non-existent or poor performing.
• Social exclusion, including because of sexual orientation and gender identity
• Substance abuse
• Lack of affordable housing. By way of example, an article in the November 2007 issue of Atlantic Monthly reported on a study of the cost of obtaining the "right to build" (i.e. a building permit, red tape, bureaucracy, etc.) in different U.S. cities. The "right to build" cost does not include the cost of the land or the cost of constructing the house. The study was conducted by Harvard economists Edward Glaeser and Kristina Tobio. According to the chart accompanying the article, the cost of obtaining the "right to build" adds approximately $600,000 to the cost of each new house that is built in San Francisco.
• Domestic violence.
• Relationship breakdown, particularly in relation to young people and their parents.
• Prison release and re-entry into society.
• Disasters, including but not limited to earthquakes and hurricanes.
• Forced eviction – In many countries, people lose their homes by government order to make way for newer upscale high rise buildings, roadways, and other governmental needs. The compensation may be minimal, in which case the former occupants cannot find appropriate new housing and become homeless.
• Mortgage foreclosures where mortgage holders see the best solution to a loan default is to take and sell the house to pay off the debt. The popular press made an issue of this in 2008.
• Foreclosures on landlords often lead to eviction of their tenants. "The Sarasota, Florida, Herald Tribune noted that, by some estimates, more than 311,000 tenants nationwide have been evicted from homes this year after lenders took over the properties."