Foreigner's corner

Last Sunday, a few of my friends and I tried getting into the holiday spirit by doing something good.

We went downtown and passed out sandwiches and water to the homeless living in "Hobo Park."

Seeing all of those people, young and old, living outside in the cold really made me appreciate and reflect on my life.

Perhaps more importantly, it got me thinking and comparing the state of homelessness around the globe.

I am old enough to realize and even admit that I live in a state of ignorant bliss when it comes to homelessness. Sadly, I am not alone.

It seems that society does not want to be bothered with the problems of people living on the street.

You might see and hear about homelessness in your own communities, but most of us never see or understand that homelessness is a growing problem throughout the world.

According to a United Nations report, currently there are more than 500 million people around the world who are either homeless, or living in low-quality housing and are in danger of becoming homeless.

The majority of these people are women and children.

It seems that women are twice as disadvantaged by their need to earn a living while providing care for family members.

The growth of mass homelessness is greatest in Africa, Asia and Latin America, since this is where the global population rate is growing the fastest.

Global homelessness is caused by the same factors that lead to local and national homelessness.

These factors include poor decision-making, mental or physical illnesses, drug or alcohol addictions, domestic violence, lack of education and job skills, environmental disasters or, for some, just plain bad luck.

Although most people agree that help is needed, not much is being done to battle the issue. Part of the problem is that the global homeless population is considerably large.

In fact, the poverty level is so high in some third-world countries that the majority of the population could be considered homeless.

While we might never be able to completely get rid of homelessness, we do have the power to greatly decrease the problem. The truth is, if we do not address the international homelessness problem now, we are failing as world citizens.

We have a responsibility to take care of one another. This is our opportunity to express kindness on a local, national and global level. This is our opportunity to prove that ending homelessness should be one of humanity's top priorities.

What we must recognize is that homeless people are people, no different than you or me. They have rights and privileges just as we do; we just so happen to have the longer end of the stick. As fellow humans we are required to help those in need.

So what are you waiting for? Get ready, get set, help!