Street kids need us too: special characteristics of homeless youth.

Children and youth are inherently our most valuable resource. Their welfare, protection, development, and positive role in society are essential to the health of this nation. The family is the primary caregiver and is a child's source of love, respect, and guidance as well as good health, shelter, food, and education. For myriad reasons, some families are unable to satisfy these needs or may even create dangerous and life-threatening conditions for their children. Children who flee to the streets are often ones who are not going to "take it" any longer, whether "it" is sexual or physical abuse or severe psychological and emotional neglect and abuse (Able-Peterson and Bucy, 1994). "Street kids" are long-term runaway or homeless youth who have become adept at fending for themselves, often by illegal or dangerous activities. The problems faced by street kids are so severe that living on the streets is preferable to living at home.

Within public recreation services, homeless, unaccompanied youth living on the streets have historically been ignored. Yet, they have potential to be influenced positively through participation in meaningful recreation opportunities. This article will review the recent research on the special characteristics of homeless, unaccompanied youth and innovative recreation programs that currently, or in the future, can exist to serve them.

Who are "Street Kids?"

An estimation of the number of street kids in the United States is almost impossible to make with any certainty. All too often, youth who leave their families, foster homes, and group homes, go unreported. Goodman and Berecochea (1994) estimated conservatively that between one half to two million youth currently live on the streets in the United States. A United States Conference of Mayors study (1992) found the preponderance of street kids range in age from 14-17 years old. The same report stated that most street kids are African-American (52%) while 33% are Caucasian, 1 1% are Hispanic or Latino, 4% are Native American, and 1% are Asian; 9% of these youth have AIDS or are infected with HIV. Gay and lesbian youths seem to over-represent their peers in street youth populations (Kruks, 1991).

Street kids remain at the fringes of society and are casualties of larger social problems including substance abuse, poverty, physical and emotional neglect, and physical or sexual abuse. At the very time these youth are struggling to find identity and acceptance, they have to deal with being perceived as bad, sick, wrong, or evil. Typical personal and interpersonal factors that contribute to running away from home to live on the streets include school problems, mental health problems, attempted suicides, drug abuse/alcoholism, sexual and/or physical abuse by a parent, violence by other family members, a parent(s) who is a drug abuser/alcoholic, and the family has long-term economic problems (Bass, 1992). Abuse, neglect and parental substance abuse often result in low self-esteem that can quickly lead to runaway behavior and substance abuse, resulting in even lower self-esteem. Low self-esteem is the most serious problem of these youth and many feel they had no control over what happened to them in their lives while living at home (Luna, 1991).

The National Association of Social Workers reported that almost a quarter of runaway and homeless youth have mental health problems and 20% have attempted suicide (Bass, 1992). Street kids are likely to experience the results of poor nutrition, inadequate hygiene, respiratory diseases, drug and alcohol abuse, physical and sexual victimization, and unwanted pregnancies. Street kids are also at significant risk for HIV infection and other sexually transmitted diseases because of their high rates of injection drug use and unprotected sexual activity (Goodman & Berecochea, 1994). Much of the sexual activity is "survival sex" where the adolescent exchanges his or her body for food, shelter, money, or drugs.

Recreation Opportunities for People Who are Homeless

Many recreation professionals and the agencies in which they work are returning to the roots of our profession by shaping a new agenda for recreation and parks in the 1990s. Beyond "Fun and Games:" Emerging Roles of Public Recreation, a publication prepared by the National Recreation and Park Association (1994) is reflective of this new agenda. Beyond "Fun and Games" collectively illustrates the "broad range of programs, services, and resources which today bring new dimensions to recreation as a human service" (NRPA, 1994, p. iii). A transformation to include a broader range of human services offered in conjunction with public recreation for traditionally underserved groups has emerged.

Programs designed to meet the recreation needs of people who are homeless are currently being offered in at least two North American cities. The City of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County, North Carolina Park and Recreation Department recognized the growing number of people who were homeless in Charlotte. The department envisioned and realized its ability to help people who were homeless enjoy their inalienable right to recreation. Since 1993 the park and recreation homeless program, in cooperation with other public and private organizations, has served an estimated 1,200 people through comedy shows, theater troupes, softball and flag football teams, various field trips, and summer day camps (NRPA, 1994; Polzer, 1995).

In 1991, City of Toronto Parks and Recreation hired an outreach coordinator to help improve services to homeless and isolated adults. A softball league, soap and towel services, and a street theater group were all successful in improving the lives of participants through leisure opportunities (Needham, 1994). Both of these programs are successful and maintain opportunities to expand services and increase collaborative efforts with local social and human service organizations. Both of these programs exist to serve adults who are homeless and the children who live in homeless families.

Street youths who have no connection to their families are frequently ignored by social service agencies oriented toward the homeless adult population Luna, 1991). These agencies often have eligibility requirements surrounding age and living arrangements and are unwilling or unable to help adolescents who live on the street. Public parks and recreation departments can be the exception to this "rule" with an attempt to fill the gaps in the continuum of care provided to street kids.

Recreation Programs for Street Kids

A recognition of a street kid's potential rather than pathology is imperative for the delivery of successful recreation opportunities. Dail (1992) explained, "Many of the homeless possess positive traits, but have experienced uncommon, and often socially imposed misfortune" (p. 39). Street kids are vulnerable youths who face many problems, often experience poor quality of life, and see little possibility for future achievement. Street youths are engaged in a constant struggle for survival and often have no "discretionary time" for simple diversionary recreation activities offered by community centers or recreation agencies. Well-developed programs that allow street kids considerable input toward programming meaningful and relevant experiences have the potential to channel the youth's energy in positive directions.

Street kids are in need of public and private assistance but are unlikely to access public services because of their mistrust of adults. This mistrust is based on their prior experiences with their families or foster families who pushed them out of their homes or encouraged them to leave. These "throw away" youths who do seek help from social service agencies are often placed in group homes, state hospitals, or detention centers with placement decisions frequently made on the basis of resources, rather than a child's needs. Many of these youth spend years being bounced from one care setting to another, or are returned to neglectful or abusive families (VanderStaay, 1992). Street youth learn quickly that they must look out for themselves because no one else will.

Since street kids rarely seek assistance, outreach (also called streetwork) has been shown to be the most effective way to reach high risk, homeless youth (Able-Peterson, 1994; NRPA, 1994). Street workers usually reflect the population they serve in gender, ethnicity, and sexual orientation and provide positive role models, friendship, and open doors for, kids to save themselves. The Parks, Recreation and Cultural Services Department of Olympia, Washington was faced with the challenge to serve street kids in 1990. To meet this challenge, the department formed a partnership with a local youth services group to offer outreach to street kids who would probably not attend a traditional recreation site on their own. The streetworkers developed relationships with the youth and ultimately tried to connect them to appropriate social services, health care, and recreation so that the street kids could begin to break the pattern of homelessness (NRPA, 1994).

Outreach is most effective when the streetworker has a specific program or activity to suggest to the youth. Two successful recreation programs have been adventure-based recreation and theater groups. Adventure-based recreation allows participants to learn decision-making skills and develop friendships in a wholesome environment without the risk of failure they have come to expect in their lives. Actual activities could include initiative games, trust activities, and multi-level ropes courses. Mild adventure recreation has been shown to increase street kids' self-esteem, self-concept, and self-confidence (Bass, 1992). This type of activity also helps to develop trust in oneself and others, decision-making skills, cooperative behaviors, positive relationships and support, and has the ability to empower youth to take better control of their lives. Development of these interpersonal factors may be more critical for a street kid than food, shelter, or clothing to get them permanently off the street.

Special Protectiveness for individuals

Theater groups designed to be produced entirely by street kids allow participants to express themselves in a way so that they know they will be heard (Needham, 1994). Theater groups also tend to spend much of their time together and develop a special protectiveness for individuals within the group (McLaughlin, Irby, & Langman, 1994). Participation in drama activities can provide a life space where a street kid can imagine something different for him/herself. When theater participants work, play, and perform together, they create an environment in which they can help each other deal with personal traumas and challenges. Participation also can provide a means to reach out to other youth and adults to inform and help them with similar problems and concerns.

Drop-in programs can also be an effective way to provide relevant and meaningful recreation opportunities. A well-developed drop-in program provides homeless youth with a safe, drug-free environment to socialize and become involved in a variety of recreational activities. To counteract the street kids' exclusion from a home-centered family, recreation professionals have opportunities to include homeless youth in existing programs. A model of inclusion ensures choices, support, consistent connections with others, and a personal sense of value. Street kids should be allowed an opportunity to describe what they want for their future and their immediate leisure experience and whenever possible, recreation staff should help facilitate those needs.

While recreation professionals may lack the specialized social work training required of streetworkers, we have the expertise to offer creative and exciting recreation opportunities. To increase the scope of our efforts to contact homeless youth, partnerships and collaboration must occur. Successful partnerships exist with public parks and recreation departments and local social service agencies, homeless shelters, HIV/AIDS organizations, mental health agencies, local educational institutions, arts councils, and private businesses (Kennedy, 1991; NRPA, 1994; Polzer, 1995).

Conclusion

Reaching out to street kids is not an easy task. Some youth in the United States find themselves in situations where the fear of living on the streets is less menacing than the fear of remaining in their homes. Many homeless youth have been pushed out of their homes by the very people who are supposed to protect them. As a result, street kids feel their lives have little value. Healthy leisure opportunities can create life spaces where street kids may realize their positive qualities and see the potential, rather than the despair, in their lives.

The first step toward change is to recognize that no easy, single, or quick solution exists to end homelessness among unaccompanied youth. However, achievable solutions can be found in simultaneous and sustained personal, collective, and private and public sector leadership. Saving our children will be the toughest struggle of our lifetime but we can and must win it together. The second step is to mobilize ourselves, our families, friends, communities, and the agencies in which we work to do whatever is necessary to become informed and committed to help street kids save themselves. Recreation staff should be trained on homelessness issues and crises, encourage community outreach, and participation of the homeless youth in program planning. Friendships with adults take time, and recreation staff should be patient and not take rejection personally. Street kids have been alienated by the system and are slow to reconnect.

The third step toward helping street youth is to provide positive alternatives to the streets for children and adolescents and implement a range of community measures to keep kids safe. Recreation professionals have the knowledge, skills, abilities, and access to critical resources to help provide street kids with opportunities to participate in safe, drug-free, and inclusive recreation programs. Collaboration with other youth serving agencies to give street kids access to healthcare, housing, education, and recreation can extend the network of care to serve street youth.

Trust is a scarce commodity within the street kid population. Perseverance is the key for staff to show they do not want anything from the young people except the chance to offer safe, creative, and empowering recreation opportunities. Research has shown recreation can stimulate positive change in street kids' lives and help get them off the streets, even if for just moments at a time.

References

Able-Peterson, T. and Bucy, J. (1994). The streetwork outreach training manual Washington, D. C.: CASSP Assistance Center.

Bass, D. (1992). Helping vulnerable youths: Runaway and homeless adolescents in the United States. United States of America: National Association of Social Workers Press.

Dail, P.W. (1992, April). Recreation as socialization for the homeless: An argument for inclusion. Journal of Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance, 37-40.

English, A. (1991). Runaway and street youth at risk for HIV infection: Legal and ethical issues in access to care. Journal of Adolescent Health, 12,504-510.

Goodman, E. & Berecochea, J. E. (1994). Predictors of HIV testing among runaway and homeless adolescents. Journal of Adolescent Health 15,566-572.

Kennedy, M. R. (1991). Homeless and runaway youth mental health issues: No access to the system. Journal of Adolescent Health 12,576-579.

Kruks, G. (1991). Gay and lesbian homeless/street youth: Special issues and concerns. Journal of Adolescent Health, 12, 515-518.

Luna, G.C. (1991). Street youth: Adaptation and survival in the AIDS decade. Journal of Adolescent Health, 12,511-514.

McLaughlin, M.W., Irby, M.A. and Langman, J. (1994). Urban sanctuaries. Neighborhood organizations in the lives and futures of inner-city youth. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers.

National Recreation and Park Association. (I 994). Beyond "fun and games": Emerging roles of public recreation. Arlington, VA: Author.

Needham, R (1994, March). Taking recreation to the streets. Parks and Recreation, 70-73.

Polzer, C. (1995, March). How to program to the homeless. Parks and Recreation, 52-56.

United States Conference of Mayors. (1 992). A status report on hunger and homelessness in America's cities: 1992. Washington, D. C.: Author.

VanderStaay, S. (1 992). Street lives: An oral history of homeless Americans. Philadelphia, PA: New Society Publishers.