Florida Has 83,000 Homeless Children

December 15, 2011

Florida has more than 83,000 homeless children, according to a new report by an advocacy group, and doesn’t do well in dealing with it, putting it near the bottom of states in that regard.

A report released this week by The National Center on Family Homelessness said Florida ranks 42 out of 50 states in the number of homeless children, their well being, state policy related to it and other measures.

The group says the recession has dramatically increased the number of homeless children in the state and the nation as a whole since 2007. Nationally, the number of children who don’t have a home has gone up almost 40 percent in that period.

“The state of Florida must provide the needed resources for quality services and programs to children and their families who are homeless,” said Suzanne Edwards, President of the Florida Coalition for the Homeless. “Prevention is the key to healthy and stable families.”

By The News Service of Florida

Comments

8 Responses to “Florida Has 83,000 Homeless Children”

  1. Karma Zopa Khandro on December 29th, 2011 10:29 pm

    very sad that since most people think of death in the same way they view homelessness… they just play ostrich and pretend that it will go away or that it does not even exist

  2. Wondering--- on December 18th, 2011 11:19 pm

    What exactly is a homeless child? Does this mean the child is without food or shelter or is this a child in foster care? Then does that also describe children who are not living with a parent but are living with a relative?

    I am confused! —– When I think homeless—I think no where to go home to. Like after school, no place to go. If the child is with an individual that provides food, shelter, and care then I don’t think homeless. Please define homeless as it relates to these children.

  3. rita croley on December 17th, 2011 12:05 am

    please let us all stop and think before we judge all the families there may not be that many,but it maybe there parents are dead or on drugs .and they have no family to take them in if it is that many in florida what about larger states, it may be our children in the same way by morning ,i for one hope and pray not

  4. Amy M on December 15th, 2011 7:59 pm

    well maybe the parents are not welfare beggers

  5. Rufus Lowgun on December 15th, 2011 12:17 pm

    We’re too broke to help those homeless children. We’ve got to pay for the unemployed to take drug tests, after all.

  6. Janice Parker on December 15th, 2011 9:16 am

    If the Dept of Children and Families would update their records, there might not be as many homeless children. I know one grandmother who would gladly take her twin grandchildren back but because a complaint was lodged against her that was proven false and because they haven’t updated their records and the complaint is still showing on her record, they won’t let her have them. A lot of this is DCF stupidity.

  7. Kathy on December 15th, 2011 6:53 am

    Good luck with that one!!

  8. 429SCJ on December 15th, 2011 3:56 am

    A whole generation thrown asunder, by pure greed.