Homelessness in Germany is a significant social issue, one that is estimated to affect around 678,000 people. [1] This figure includes about 372,000 people that are accommodated (in refugee shelters, etc.) by public services, e.g. by the municipalities. [2] Since 2014, there has been a 150% increase in the homeless population within the country. [3] Reportedly, around 22,000 of the homeless population are children. [1] [ citation needed ]
In addition, the country has yet to publish statistics on homelessness at a Federal Level [4] despite it being an ongoing and widespread matter.
In 1933, the Nazi Party passed a Law "against Habitual and Dangerous Criminals", which allowed for the relocation of beggars, homeless, and the unemployed to concentration camps. [5]
In 1942, British bombing raids destroyed a total of 3.6 million homes, with 7.5 million Germans left homeless. [6]
The homeless levels have risen more than 4% between 2017–2018. [1] In addition, according to BAGW's report, refugees are more likely to be homeless. [7] The number of homeless people with a refugee background increased by 5.9%. A majority of the homeless population is men (three in four). [7] There is a worrying increase in the amount of young homeless in some countries including Germany. [8]
The Federal Government acknowledges that homelessness in Germany is caused by multiple factors, "such as financial, domestic, and individual psychosocial reasons" and that it is not merely rooted in the lack of affordable accommodation [4] According to Global Homelessness Statistics, "Around 50% of poor households spend more than 40% of their disposable income on housing". [8] The Berlin Homeless Shelter Association provides housing to the homeless population in Berlin, Germany.
Research has been conducted to investigative proactive ways to prevent homelessness. People being evicted from their homes is one of the most common factors for homelessness. Some instruments used to stop the eviction process, include financial support, legal provision for cases of hardship, and assistance negotiations with landlords. [9] As stated by Dr. Busch-Geertsema, coordinator of the European Observatory on Homelessness, prevention is categorized in several ways: primary prevention (larger risk groups), secondary prevention (those being threatened with eviction), and tertiary prevention (persons who are already homeless). [9]
Demographic features of the population of Denmark include ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations, and other aspects.
The demography of Germany is monitored by the Statistisches Bundesamt. According to the most recent data, Germany's population is 84,607,016 making it the most populous country in the European Union and the nineteenth-most populous country in the world. The total fertility rate was rated at 1.58 in 2021, significantly below the replacement rate of 2.1. For a long time Germany had one of the world's lowest fertility rates of around 1.3 to 1.4, however there has been a small increase in recent years. Due to the low birth rate Germany has recorded more deaths than births every year since 1972, which means 2021 was the 50th consecutive year the German population would have decreased without immigration. However, due to immigration the population has actually increased during the last half-century. In 2019 the number of people with a foreign background was 26%; this category includes foreigners, naturalized citizens, ethnic German repatriates from Eastern Europe and the children of all of the above.
The demography of Sweden is monitored by the Statistiska centralbyrån. Sweden's population was 10,555,448, making it the 15th-most populous country in Europe after Czech Republic, the 10th-most populous member state of the European Union, and the 87th-most populous country in the world. The total fertility rate was rated at 1.66 in 2020, which is far below the replacement rate of 2.1.
Squatting is the action of occupying an abandoned or unoccupied area of land or a building, usually residential, that the squatter does not own, rent or otherwise have lawful permission to use. The United Nations estimated in 2003 that there were one billion slum residents and squatters globally. Squatting occurs worldwide and tends to occur when people find empty buildings or land to occupy for housing. It has a long history, broken down by country below.
Eviction is the removal of a tenant from rental property by the landlord. In some jurisdictions it may also involve the removal of persons from premises that were foreclosed by a mortgagee.
British Afghans are British citizens and non-citizen residents born in or with ancestors from, Afghanistan, part of worldwide Afghan diaspora. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) estimates that there were 79,000 people born in Afghanistan living in the UK in 2019.
Homelessness or houselessness – also known as a state of being unhoused or unsheltered – is the condition of lacking stable, safe, and functional housing. The general category includes disparate situations, including:
Discrimination against homeless people is the act of treating unhoused people or people perceived to be unhoused unfavorably. As with most types of discrimination, it can manifest in numerous forms.
The right to housing is the economic, social and cultural right to adequate housing and shelter. It is recognized in some national constitutions and in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. The right to housing is regarded as a freestanding right in the International human rights law which was clearly in the 1991 General Comment on Adequate Housing by the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. The aspect of the right to housing under ICESCR include: availability of services, infrastructure, material and facilities; legal security of tenure; habitability; accessibility; affordability; location and cultural adequacy.
Croatia is a destination, source, and transit country for men, women, and children subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically conditions of forced prostitution and forced labor. Croatian women and girls fall victim to sex trafficking within the country, and women and girls from Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and other parts of Europe are subjected to forced prostitution in Croatia and in Europe. Men reportedly are subjected to forced labor in agricultural sectors, and children, including Roma, are subjected to conditions of forced begging and theft. In 2017, Taiwan women and men, as well as Croatian and Bosnian women, were subjected to forced labor and forced criminality in an illegal call center.
Homelessness in New Zealand has been linked to the general issue of lack of suitable housing. The homeless population is generally measured through the country's census and by universities and other academic centres. In 2009, urban homelessness were estimated at less than 300, while rural homelessness was estimated between 500 and 1000. An additional 8,000–20,000 live in "temporary accommodation unsuited for long-term habitation ." Homelessness in New Zealand has traditionally been reduced by the provision of state housing, similar to Germany and other developed countries.
Homelessness in Denmark is considered a significant social issue in the country. Since 2007, comprehensive counts have been performed every other year in week six. The latest, from 2017, counted 6,635 homeless people in Denmark. The total number of people experiencing homelessness at some point in 2017 was estimated at 13,000, while earlier estimates have placed it between 10,000 and 15,000. Roughly half the homeless are in the Capital Region. When compared to many other countries, such as the United States, the rate of Denmark's homeless is significantly lower, which has been linked to the relatively comprehensive welfare system.
Family homelessness refers to a family unit who do not have access to long term accommodation due to various circumstances such as socioeconomic status, access to resources and relationship breakdowns. In some Western countries, such as the United States, family homelessness is a new form of poverty, and a fast growing group of the homelessness population. Some American researchers argue that family homelessness is the inevitable result of imbalanced “low-income housing ratio” where there are more low-income households than there are low-cost housing units. A study in 2018 projected a total of 56,342 family households were recognized as homeless. Roughly 16,390 of these people were living in a place not meant for human habitation. It is believed that homeless families make up about a third of the United States’ population, with generally women being the lead of the household.
Homelessness in China is a significant social issue. In 2011, there were approximately 2.41 million homeless adults and 179,000 homeless children living in the country. However, one publication estimated that there were one million homeless children in China in 2012.
Austerity measures and the ongoing fiscal crisis have significantly spurred the rise in homelessness in Greece in the 21st century. Instances of homelessness have been dominantly concentrated in the city of Athens. Homelessness remains a relatively under-examined area of social policy in Greece, with the first organised counting for homeless people taking place in May 2018. Governments and non-profit organisations alike have made efforts to counter this phenomenon.
Homelessness in Sweden affects some 34,000 people.
The number of people living in dangerous and subpar housing has significantly expanded as a result of the economic and financial crisis. The issue at hand no longer solely affects one nation in the world. The majority of nations are attempting to solve this issue in some form. Because of increased unemployment and declining wages, more people are unable to afford housing costs, increasing their risk of being homeless. Spain, which suffered greatly from COVID-19 and the accompanying economic downturn, is likewise grappling with a huge rural population decline problem. Homelessness is a serious socioeconomic issue that affects 40,000 people in Spain. Immigrants make up a disproportionate number of the homeless population. There are a lot of young people who are homeless; according to some estimates, 30% of Spain's homeless are between the ages of 18 and 29. Just 5% of the country's population, according to Spain's Research Institute for Depopulation and Development of Rural Areas, resides there. Homelessness and public begging are not officially forbidden under Spanish law.
Anti-Chechen sentiment, Chechenophobia, anti-Chechenism, or Nokhchophobia, refers to fear, dislike, hostility, hatred, discrimination, and racism towards ethnic Chechens, the Chechen language, or the Chechen culture in general. Anti-Chechen sentiment has been historically strong in Russia, and to some degree has spread to other countries in the former Soviet Union, such as Azerbaijan, to Europe, the Middle East, and to the United States. For decades, the main causes of hatred against Chechens have been largely due to the created narrative which depicts a violent mentality of Chechens, the association of Chechens with Islamic extremism, and Russian imperialist propaganda targeted at Chechens.
Housing in the United States comes in a variety of forms and tenures. The rate of homeownership in the United States, as measured by the fraction of units that are owner-occupied, was 64% as of 2017. This rate is less than the rates in other large countries such as China (90%), Russia (89%) Mexico (80%), or Brazil (73%).
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