Each year, an estimated 4.2 million youth and young adults experience homelessness, of which 700,000 are unaccompanied minors, meaning they are not part of a family or accompanied by a parent or guardian. On any given night, approximately 41,000 unaccompanied youth ages 13-25 experience homelessness. (2020) Youth Homelessness Overview (ncsl.org)
A Poor Nomad is a game about being a nomadic homeless youth and how dangerous it is to be one. You are Abby. She is a nomadic homeless youth and trying to get basic necessities such as food, water, shelter and money. The purpose of the game is to show you the harsh realities of being a homeless youth.
Why do so many young people leave their homes, even if it means becoming homeless?
For many, home is unsafe and harmful. Youth are physically and sexually abused at high rates (40-60% and 20-40% respectively). Their parents may have addictions to alcohol and/or drugs. In some cases, youth who experience homelessness were asked to leave home. These young people are sometimes called “throwaway youth,” a painful expression of what they may have experienced. This typically occurs when parents disapprove of their behaviors (e.g., school problems, alcohol/drug use, or pregnancy) or lifestyle (e.g., sexual orientation). About half the time, becoming homeless as a young person is not their first experience of being without a home. Roughly 47 percent of young people who are homeless were also part of families who experienced homelessness.While it may be true that some homeless youth leave home for fairly insignificant reasons, for most young people who become homeless, the reality is much different. Those merely attracted to the "excitement” of life on the streets do not last long; the harsh reality of sexual and physical assault, hunger and sickness is usually enough to dissuade even the most adventurous of teenagers. Thus, this romanticized notion of street youth is inadequate. This suggests the need to better understand what leads youth to the streets and what keeps them there.
Characteristics of Homeless Youth
When a young person becomes homeless, where do they go? Finding a shelter to stay in may be challenging for those experiencing youth homelessness. An individual may be too young to enter a traditional adult shelter. In addition, adult shelters may be very intimidating to someone in their teens. If they’re under 18, young people may fear child welfare finding them. And many shelters are simply too full.
Instead of shelter, many young people live on the street or “couch surf” for a while. They may even return home and leave again, repeating the cycle of youth homelessness. For about 73 percent of youth, homelessness lasts more than a month. The vast majority (72 percent) of those who experienced “literal homelessness” (generally, sleeping on the streets, in a car, or in a shelter) also said they had stayed with others while unstably housed.As you might imagine, living on the streets puts young people at risk for many issues: