The Normalisation of Homelessness

Abstract

The Irish government has argued that Irish homelessness levels are normal in comparison with other countries. This chapter compares homelessness in Ireland with other countries. It challenges the normalisation of homelessness and the housing crisis as the narrative of normalisation places the blame and responsibility for the crisis on to the victims and how this exacerbates feelings of stigma and shame among homeless people and those threatened with homelessness. It outlines new measures for monitoring homelessness and housing exclusion including the UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Housing three-dimensional approach anchored in human rights and the European Typology of Homelessness and Housing Exclusion (ETHOS) framework. An adequate understanding and measurement of the true scale of homelessness and housing exclusion is required. It shows the health and wellbeing of children is affected not just by homelessness but also by overcrowded or poor housing, and by frequent moves and ‘may cause adverse childhood experiences with resultant mental health effects that may be lifelong’. It provides an estimation of Ireland’s actual level of homelessness and housing exclusion.