Are poverty and homelessness serious problems? Poverty : an overview / U.S. poverty rates are the highest in the developed world / Severe poverty is on the rise in America / Homeless in America is a growing problem / Youth homelessness is a serious problem / Poverty in the United States is not a big problem / Poverty in the United States is usually short lived / Homelessness is declining / What causes poverty and homelessness? Racial discrimination contributes to the problem of poverty / The absence of fathers causes poverty / U.S. anti-immigrant policy increases poverty / Culture contributes to the cycle of poverty / Lack of support leads war veterans into poverty and homelessness / Saul Landau ; Homelessness is caused by poverty and a lack of affordable housing / Homophobia is a cause of youth homelessness / Do government welfare programs help the poor? Welfare reform has helped people out of poverty / Some welfare programs for the homeless are a good investment / Welfare reform has increased poverty / Welfare programs make poverty worse / Welfare programs for the homeless exacerbate the problem / What strategies would benefit the poor and the homeless? A variety of approaches are needed to cut poverty / Redefining the poverty level would help ease the problem of poverty / Raising the minimum wage is necessary to combat poverty / Education is an important part of a strategy to combat pov Providing housing is the key to ending homelessness