Homelessness as an Alternative Existence of Young People

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The chronically homeless face a stark reality: lack of access to support systems, adequate shelter, and sustenance, with little hope for something better. For young people, however, life on the street may be merely a temporary stage in their lives. This book tells of homelessness among young people – the causes and their attitudes to the various problems they face.

Young homeless people describe a life in which they lose their privacy, the possibility to satisfy their basic needs, and, often, their self-respect in order to survive. The latter half of the book considers what happens when these young people return to society and how they navigate difficulties as they attempt to leave their past behind. Often, the struggle is not solely one of coping with the stigma of their experience; rather, they must face the legacies that linger long after their lives have turned a corner: drug addiction, criminal records, and accumulated debt.

Based on interviews with homeless people in Prague, "Homelessness as an Alternative Existence of Young People" paints an authentic picture of this social group and documents the often unseen social consequences of the transformation to capitalism from communism.