As winter deepens, spare a thought for those without a roof over their heads and support those who are doing their utmost to expose this scandal.
One such person is James McNaughton, a 20 year old social activist and former homeless person, who lives in Gateshead.
James has established the Homelessness and the Arts campaign with support from Telefonica O2 through its Think Big social action programme for young people. It uses the power of art to engage society with the issue of youth homelessness
James has exhibited artworks by homeless youngsters in Newcastle and has partnered with fashion photographer Perou to launch a new on-line exhibition which showcases a series of powerful images portraying the realities of homelessness.
The exhibition is on-line at www.o2thinkbig.co.uk. In addition to photographs by Perou, the exhibition features a range of photography by James and other young people from Newcastle and elsewhere who have experienced homelessness.
The exhibition aims to raise awareness of homelessness and to challenge stereotypes about 80,000 young people who experience homelessness every year in the UK.
James says that a major factor that holds back young people is a lack of confidence and self-worth which requires undermining lazy stereotypes to give such young people back respect and dignity.
The aim is simply to urge people to stop ignoring the issue and see the stark reality of youth homelessness by creating an impact and provoking a reaction. This in turn makes it more likely that people will think and act differently about youth homelessness.
I strongly support James' efforts and that of other individuals who might volunteer for homeless charities and certainly treat the homeless with respect.
Yet the priority for me in Parliament is national policy. The coalition government is making matters worse through selling off more council houses without topping up the already drastically limited supply and bringing in benefit changes that could drive thousands out of their homes. Furthermore, its aggressive austerity is hitting the construction industry for six and this is being felt even more harshly in the North East. My job is to both support efforts to put a human face on the homeless but also to overcome the policies that make people homeless in the first place.
Newcastle Chronicle and Journal
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