Without Contention: the Plight of Homeless Veterans

Downrange in America - Snapshots of Homeless Veterans
All across America, on any given night about 68,000 former American service men and women are on the streets without a place to call home. Many of these people that we see on the street corners once proudly wore the uniform of our nation’s military. These are brave men and women who have served their country, and have fallen on difficult times. Of that number, 48,000 veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars have been identified as being currently homeless. Homelessness among veterans is the end result of a whole series of events that result in diminished capacity, loss of self-determination, most often loss of employment, isolation, poverty, loss of family, and lack of self-esteem; all leading to an inability to pay for housing. This book is a snap shot of the aspects of veteran homelessness, as well as what this country is doing to help them get off the streets.
Even though we see them, somehow they have become invisible in our consciousness as people who should get a job. The reports of homelessness which are prepared by the Veterans Administration show that over 1/3 of them are veterans of the Iraq / Afghanistan wars.
Downrange in America shows the plight of homeless veterans in a different light, as the statistics, and cell phone pictures suggest some questions for us to consider. Is this a result of their combat service in Iraq or Afghanistan? What happened to them over there to cause such isolation and difficulty to readjust back to society? What is the government doing to help homeless veterans, and is there anything that I could do to assist?
Here is the question for America to answer: What can we do for those who answered the call to arms and went to war for our country, and are now they are living on the street without a home? The VA is working very hard to end the tragedy of homeless veterans. The Secretary of the VA has declared war on homelessness among veterans. Will you join the battle?