Toronto’s Homeless Youth: Causes, Consequences and Next Steps

Introduction:

Youth make up an alarming 11% of Toronto’s homeless population, according to Youth Without Shelter. That is to say, a large portion of the homeless population in Toronto has been chronically homeless since they were around sixteen years old. The causes and consequences of homelessness for adults have always been multilateral, but for homeless youth, these causes and consequences are even more poignant to understand, as minors have considerably less agency across the board. Thus, the hardships they face on the streets and in any other compromised living situation are even more severe. Facing chronic homelessness in one’s youth makes one even more susceptible to being trapped in systemic poverty.

Causes:

Unstable parental situations, the main cause of homelessness in youth, come in many different forms. Firstly, there are families who are severely below the poverty line, often comprised of single parents, and cannot afford to provide for their children. Families as such are disproportionately people of colour, as governments tend to pass discriminatory zoning laws that force racial minorities into cultural enclaves where they are deprived of funding for housing, education, healthcare and job opportunities. Government zoning laws are a direct cog in the wheel of systemic poverty.

Raising children under the poverty line is even more difficult when children have disabilities or other underlying medical conditions that are both vital to their well-being and terribly expensive to treat, even under a public healthcare system due to long wait times and pricey medication, which is not covered by the system.

Furthermore, a considerable percentage of homeless youth identify as part of the LGBT2SIA+ community. Many queer and transgender youth are thrown out of their houses by unaccepting parents and left to fend for themselves on the streets where they are much more vulnerable to hate crimes and discriminatory violence.

The idea that homeless youth do not have aspirations of actively trying to improve their situations is false: Pandora Parks, who became homeless at 15, has becoming a doctor as one of her long-term goals. (Photographed by the Toronto Star, 2015)

Consequences:

Though there exists to an extent support systems to aid homeless children and youth socially and financially, even those who are able to find semi-reliable sources of basic necessities like food, water, shelter, clothes and sanitary products have considerable difficulty getting themselves out of the system. Many homeless youths juggle multiple jobs to be able to survive, so they do not have sufficient time to finish their high school education. However, high-school diplomas are needed in order to access higher education and better-paying jobs that can get these people out of the cycle.

Next Steps:

One thing is plain and simple: Because poverty is a systemic issue, we need systemic changes. People who have the privilege of abundance and comfort should use their privilege to stand up to unjust laws that exacerbate disparities between the impoverished and the rich, including everything from zoning laws to anti-homeless architecture projects. However, it is also possible and equally as poignant to make impacts on an individual level. A care package of toothbrushes, shampoo, toothpaste, clean underwear and a warm sandwich can make a substantial difference to anybody especially youth, that are struggling to make ends meet due to a plethora of ingrained injustices in our society.

Works Cited

Monahan, Brian. “Youth Homelessness.” National Network for Youth, https://nn4youth.org/learn/youth-homelessness/. Accessed 6 March 2023.

Spurr, Ben. “Five homeless youth share their stories | The Star.” The Toronto Star, 19 October 2015, https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2015/10/19/five-homeless-youth-share-their-stories.html. Accessed 6 March 2023.

“Youth Homelessness - Toronto.” Youth Without Shelter, https://yws.on.ca/who-we-are/youth-homelessness/. Accessed 6 March 2023.