Publicizing an Invisible Problem

Ann Duggan is the Director of Public Education for New York's Coalition for the Homeless. For the past four years, Ms. Duggan has helped young people like J.R. by publicizing the plight of homeless families and educating the public about ways they can help.

She says her single biggest challenge is something she calls the "invisibility factor" - the fact the most people do not know how many homeless children exist because we don't see them.

"In New York City, 43 percent of the homeless are kids," says Ms. Duggan, "each night, over 17,000 children bed down in homeless shelters." So, why do so many homeless kids go unnoticed? Because in New York City, homeless families have a legal right to shelter, meaning they are literally "on the streets" less. In many other American cities, however, families do not enjoy this right. Whether we see them or not, thousands of families nationwide live in parks cars, or in deserted buildings. As J.R.'s public service announcement points out, stereotypes about who the homeless are can make it difficult for the public to identify and help the thousands of American children without homes.