A Hidden Crisis: The Pipeline from Foster Care to Homelessness for LGBTQ Youth

A Hidden Crisis: The Pipeline from Foster Care to Homelessness for LGBTQ Youth - The Chronicle of Social Change:

There are more than 400,000 youth in the American foster care system today, roughly that of the population of Sacramento, California. Foster care, created to protect the welfare of children, is a broken system, hobbled by an outdated bureaucracy, underfunded agencies, and overburdened workers frequently resulting in dire outcomes. Research shows thatchildren placed in foster care are more likely to develop Post-traumatic Stress Disorder than veterans of war. In some states, youth are just as likely to be abused in foster care as they are in the home from which they were removed. Foster care has also become a gateway into homelessness. Nearly half of the youth experiencing homelessness today have had at least one placement in a foster home, or group home.