Homelessness among young people is hard to see.  We call them the invisible homeless: they don’t want to be seen, counted, identified, singled out.  Besides, they don’t consider themselves homeless at all. They’re between places.  Roughing it. Couching it. Living off the land. They’re not seeking services, unless they’ve got no other option.  And they’re young and creative – they feel like they’ve got a hundred options.  Even if it involved trading favors for a place to sleep, sleeping somewhere someone others might balk at, or moving from place to place – it still feels an option.

They look like teenagers. I laugh when folks ask me what homeless teens look like, ask me what the teens at the shelter are like, because there are no ways to answer that.  They’re teenagers, and so they look like teenagers.  They wear the fashions that their peers do – sometimes fashions that us aged folks might gawp at, but that’s an age thing, not a homeless thing.  They’re just about as scruffy as any teen I know – or just as polished, too.  They’re travelling in packs – of other homeless teens, or with teens from other social circles.  They go to school, or they don’t. They make good choices, and they make mistakes. They’re normal.

Except in some ways, they’re not.  They’re tired, and they look tired, world-weary.  They’re walking around the store with a backpack, around and around, keeping moving so as not to be kicked out.  Or they’re sitting wherever they can sit and not be bothered, staying as long as they can.  They look exhausted because they’re not sleeping enough.  They’re trying really hard to look like their peers, but sometimes things slip through – they’re wearing the same jeans they’ve been wearing for three weeks.  They’re not joining their peers in activities that cost money.  They’re stressed.  They’re hungry.  They’re normal teens in a not-normal situation.

They’re at-risk.  At-risk is a term I’m still struggling to understand (at-risk for what?) – I just know that it means that these are young people on the edges.  Sometimes they’re using substances or engaging in criminal activity – sometimes to survive, sometimes because they don’t know any other options.  Often, they’re struggling under the burden of mental illness – FASD (fetal-alcohol syndrome) and PTSD (post-traumatic stress) are among the most common, but some are working to manage bipolar, schizophrenia, anxiety, or depression.  Many are LGBT – an umbrella term for those who are gay, lesbian, bi, transgender – or, in general, identify differently than their birth-gender or standard sexuality.   Many of these youth face discrimination and rejection from their communities – as well as their families.  This isolation and rejection can lead to homelessness, as well as depression, suicide, and increased risk for violence and sexual assault.  Most homeless youth are behind in school, or have dropped out of school – it is very difficult to focus on education when you don’t know where you’re sleeping, when you don’t feel stable.  They’re at much increased risk for suicide – when you live your life in crisis and it feels like everything is falling apart, and you have nothing left – it can be hard for anyone, especially a young person, to hold onto life and hope.

I keep waiting, hoping that the world will start to see these young people who fall through the cracks, who are hanging on the edges.  Because I know that with the right support, encouragement, and confidence, they can find their feet.  When you think you’re invisible, you think no one knows, no one cares, and no one wants to help.  We want to, we do, and we know that others do.

Join us: Pray.  Give. Donate. Volunteer. Share your story.