Good Example Of Paper Has To Be Done Based Off An Assigned Book Term Paper

“With No Direction Home: Homeless Youth on the Road and in the Streets” is a case study that explores the situation of life amongst the youths that are homeless in New York City. Marni Finkelstein, the author of the text conducted research to establish the condition of life amongst the homeless children in the city. Finkelstein applied ethnographic methods of studies in a bid to initiate understanding on the condition of street life and street children. In addition, Finkelstein utilized anthropology and all techniques that a company it in order to establish critical understanding of the homeless youths and children on the streets of New York (Finkelstein 39).
In the study, Finkelstein stresses on cultural aspects as well as community factors that are related life of street youths as home agents. The street kids intend to adapt to a new social order. As a result, they have to be homeless on the streets and try surviving. Life on the streets is quite challenging for the street kids. The streets kids must be socialized so as to know how they are supposed to conduct life on the streets. Life on the streets is not a simple process, and one has to be oriented gradually. The inhabitants of the streets had to strive looks for survival by searching alternative methods acquiring finance. Most of the street kids engage in prostitution, drug trafficking and other jobs that are considered odd in the society. The kind of life faced by the street children is so terrible that they are considered failures in life. Some of them end up in drug addicts hence destroying their fortunes almost entirely (Finkelstein 49).
There is a lot of criticism that Americans have imposed on the street kids. The Americans have criticized the homeless unfairly by branding them several negative descriptions (Finkelstein 59). Unfair criticism from the Americans has led to the perpetuation of prejudice and stereotypes from the street kids. Instead of creating a better life for the street inhabitants, the society has only managed to criticize their fellows negatively. Finkelstein gave several reasons that lead to youths’ migration from home to the streets. However, the community is not informed that the street kids depend on relatives, the society and sex partners for survival. The result of the dependence meant that the community played a significant role in encouraging street habitation (Finkelstein 33). Even though street children came from different social origins, the moment they began life on the streets, survival socialization united them. Finkelstein laid focus ton two aspects of street life including arrival and conduction of life after arrival.
Finkelstein used several research methods to establish the gospel truth of street life in the study. By the use of interviews, observation, and questionnaires, Finkelstein managed to create the reality of street life of the youths. In the research, interviews served in getting firsthand information from the street kids in New York. New York City being such a large place, Finkelstein had to take population samples from different sections of the city so as to establish views from various segments of the street youths. Apart from interviews, Finkelstein also used observations in the study so as to record factual information. Observing how the kids conduct themselves takes time. Observation had to be made at certain intervals so as to determine the facts. The interaction between the street youths themselves alongside the interaction between the street youths and other members of the society was evident when correct observational procedures were put in place. Observation was accompanied by recording and analysis of information.
Questionnaires were also important in establishing the facts behind street inhabitation amongst the youths. The general public could be questioned on how they feel about the street youths, the effects of street youths to other people’s daily lives among other factors. Questioning the street kids themselves was also pivotal in understanding and analyzing the cause of their type of life, how they take other people and their plans for the future if there exists any. Finkelstein, therefore established several anthropological facts about street children in the New York City.
During the study, Finkelstein faced several obstacles that prevented the establishment of the truth. Under several circumstances, the street kid did not prefer giving full information based on reality for fear of victimization and other factors (Finkelstein 52). The street children issued information discriminately during the interviews and questionnaires. The information that was provided by the street youth was general leaving the study with a lot of exclamation marks. Finkelstein had to probe from several groups of people in order to establish more facts. Some street groups behaved differently upon realizing that they were under observation and study. Change of behavior, as opposed to the usual behavior, resulted in collection of insufficient data.
The streets were also violent places hence collecting information was somehow difficult due to insecurity. In the places that the street youth live in the New York City, there is a lot of violence. Information collectors, therefore, tend to fear for their lives during the study process. The factor slows down the research process hence delays in feedback and data presentation. It is also hard to conduct interviews or questionnaires for groups of illiterate youths. Some youths moved to the streets without education even the fundamental aspects of education. The uneducated groups of youths did not grasp the concepts as presented by the information collectors. This was a great obstacle in conducting the study.
There is a difference in stereotypes before and after reading the book. Before reading the book, I considered the street youths as violent people who bullied their minors. Being a society with a little moral moderation, the street was governed by the strongest factions and individuals. The supremacy of any member is measure based on the duration they have completed in the region. The new members are treated with a lot of injustices and at times even forced to do certain things that are impossible. Street youths have got leaders who orientate the newcomers. One must dance to the tunes of the leaders or else they find life very pressing in the streets.
Street youth groups are subcultures because they amalgamate kids from numerous cultural origins. There is no uniformity in the streets as to where they specifically come from. The kids originate from several cultural backgrounds. On arrival, the youths have to mingle and share ideas both negative and positive. In the end the day the street children from units of culture devising their way of communication (Finkelstein 25). They develop new feeding habits that are somehow divergent from the normal cultures from other groups of people. There is also a lot of diversity in terms of culture sharing and coordination. The subcultures emerge with very distinct ideas and reasoning techniques.
Several insights can be gained from the book as indicated by Finkelstein. Street culture is a subculture that consists of many amalgamated cultures. It is very difficult to predict they type of behavior that can be found among the street youth. The street youth contains people with divergent sociological backgrounds. They behave differently and distinctively according to what they learn from their experiences. Different sociological backgrounds can be the reason for crime and exchange of criminal techniques among the street children. It is also evident that most street children did not exist on the streets voluntarily but occasionally influenced by certain unavoidable circumstances in life. Poverty is one of the main causes of movement to the streets by youths for survival (Finkelstein 89).
Street families exist due to several factors. Most of these factors emanate from family backgrounds and cultural influences. Youth resolves to the streets because of poverty in their backyard. Some youths are not able to afford even simple meals. They then address to street life so as to make out methods of survival. Some youths also move to the streets due to family conflicts and breakdowns. Sexual assaults and other forms of violence can also lead to escape of the youths to the streets to seek refuge (Finkelstein 84).
The fact that some youths are just willing to leave their comfortable homes for the harsh environments on the streets is astonishing (Finkelstein 139). Specific groups of youths have got perfect lifestyles in their home areas. However, they fall into peer pressure traps and move to the streets only to several criminal offenses. To the contrary, certain groups of youths have lived for some time on the streets are desperately willing to get back to their homes or acquire humane living conditions. Preferences dictate the thinking of the youths.
Street life is not the best option for any youth at any given time. The society should take care of the youth to prevent instances of the formation of street families. The organization starts with the basic unit which is the family. Children should be morally nurtured so as to create a sober thinking mechanism in them. The youths that have a chance of getting away from the street should do so with a lot of urgencies. The government and the society also have got a responsibility of initiation movement of the youth away from the streets because the street environments are not appealing whatsoever.
Work Cited.Finkelstein, Marni. With No Direction Home: Homeless Youth on the Road and in the Streets. Belmont, CA: Thomson/Wadsworth, 2005, p. 1 - 147. Print.