Three representatives of the National Coalition for the Homeless, including two former homeless individuals, spoke about their experiences with homelessness and their ideas on how homelessness can be eradicated at the "Faces of Homelessness" panel Nov. 19.The panel discussion was a part of the National Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week, hosted by Brandeis Hillel. The event was organized by Rebecca Ellis '10 and Rebecca Sturgis '11, the coordinators of the Hillel Tzedek Social Justice subcommittee of Hillel. Sturgis interned at the NCH headquarters in Washington over the summer and was responsible for bringing the speakers to Brandeis.

Michael O'Neill, the director of the Faces of Homelessness Speakers' Bureau, a subproject of NCH that works to educate the public about homelessness, also spoke at the event. He told the audience that 3.5 million people experience homelessness each year and that the leading cause of homelessness in the U.S. is the lack of affordable housing.

Two of the speakers, David Pirtle and Terry Snead, shared their personal experiences with homelessness. Snead, 61, a native of Washington, became homeless in 1996 when he was 48 years old. Snead cited his "depression, bad decisions, low self-esteem and being in the wrong place at the wrong time" as factors that contributed to his homelessness. He was homeless for 10 years before NHC helped him find a job and housing. "My feet are now firmly planted on the ground because of NCH," Snead said.

Pirtle, who was diagnosed with schizophrenia when he was 21 years old, said that his illness lost him his job and apartment and was the reason he found himself homeless at 29. "It happened so fast; I didn't even know what was going on," Pirtle said.

Pirtle ended up "train-hopping around the country" and lived in New York City for six months and Washington for over a year. While living in an abandoned building in New York, Pirtle said he was attacked five times by youth gangs. In Washington, he was arrested for shoplifting and spent time in a mental health facility and in homeless shelters. He met O'Neill while living in a homeless shelter. Through the NCH, he eventually received city-subsidized housing and currently lives in Washington.

All three speakers addressed the acts of violence committed against the homeless. According to its Web site, NCH has documented 700 unprovoked attacks against homeless people since 1999, 200 of which resulted in deaths. O'Neill said that 65 percent of these attacks are perpetrated by young people aged 13 to 19.

Sturgis said that attacks against the homeless are motivated primarily by hate. "It's really just a hate thing and a judgment thing and that's all there is to it," she told the Justice. "They see these people sleeping on the street and think it's fun to hurt them or make them feel powerless."

Both Pirtle and Snead discussed the prejudice they experienced while they were homeless. "When you're deemed homeless, a lot of people deem you as trash," Snead said.

"Before I became homeless, I didn't really see homeless folks; they were like part of the scenery," Pirtle said. Pirtle said that public attitude toward the homeless does little to alleviate the problem of homelessness. "Instead of trying to help folks, [authorities] try to run them out of town," he said. Recent laws like Phoenix's ban against sleeping outdoors do not help the city's homeless, Pirtle said.

Universal health care and increased housing at low prices would both help alleviate homelessness, O'Neill said. According to O'Neill, 25 percent of homeless people suffer from mental illness, and many cannot afford medical care. Lower-priced or free care could help mentally ill homeless individuals control their symptoms and improve their quality of life.

"It seems to be a striking contrast that we completely overlook these people we think of as third-class citizens when we think of ourselves as belonging to the greatest country in the world," Ellis told the Justice in an interview after the event.

"The stories the presenters shared were really moving," said Katlin Freschi '13. "It was amazing to hear about what they've been through.