November 11th marks Veterans Day in the United States. According to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (USDVA), this annual holiday commemorates “an armistice, or temporary cessation of hostilities, between the Allied nations and Germany [which] went into effect on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month. For that reason, November 11, 1918, is generally regarded as the end of ‘the war to end all wars.’” The USDVA calls Veterans Day “a celebration to honor America’s veterans for their patriotism, love of country, and willingness to serve and sacrifice for the common good.” [Source]
Circles USA profoundly respects the service and dedication of America’s military personnel past and present. We recognize that each branch is made up, first and foremost, of families: ordinary youth, parents, siblings, elders, and spouses who are driven to protect and serve beloved people and institutions within their communities.
While each service member brings this personal orientation into their service, the economic and social hurdles that U.S. military veterans face upon discharge are systemic and widespread. Circles recognizes the historic connection between military service and low-income rural and urban populations, particularly from Southern states. “The Veteran Working-Poor: The Relationship between Labor Force Activity and Poverty Status,” a 2017 study published by the USDVA, states that of the “7.2 million working age Veterans who participated in the labor force (out of 9.4 million working age Veterans)...almost 341,000 (or 4.7 percent) fell below the official poverty level.”
Here, Circles looks at some of the common factors that impact veterans seeking to move from surviving to thriving in their civilian lives.
Poverty, disability, and service: the changing role of veterans in the economy
Pew Research Center (summarizing data from the USDVA and U.S. Census Bureau) reports that, as of 2023, “there are more than 18 million living veterans in the United States, representing about 6% of the country’s adult population.”
Pew’s research shows an evolving snapshot of who serves in the U.S. military, as well as how those figures are likely to change in years to come:
[O]ver the next 25 years… Women, Hispanic and Black adults, and adults under 50 will all make up larger shares of the total veteran population.
The share of women veterans will increase from 11%...to 18% in 2048. The overall number of women veterans is also expected to increase, from around 2 million to about 2.2 million. The number of male veterans, on the other hand, is projected to drop from about 16.2 million in 2023 to just under 10 million in 2048.
The share of non-Hispanic White veterans is projected to drop from 74% to 63%. The share of Hispanic veterans is expected to roughly double from 9% to 15%, while the share who are Black is expected to increase from 13% to 15%. This trend is in line with projections for the U.S. population overall.
Today, 28% of veterans are younger than 50, compared with a projected 34% in 2048, even as the share of older Americans overall is expected to grow. [Source]
As we consider the ways that intersectionality impacts the total well-being of communities, Circles USA is committed to addressing root causes of economic inequality—causes which increasingly include physical and mental disability as well as race, gender (including transgender service members), sexuality, and economic class.
The National Poverty Center’s study “Work-Related Disability, Veteran Status, and Poverty: Implications for Family Well-Being,” published by Journal of Poverty in 2011, calls veterans “a sizeable and heterogeneous [or diverse] subpopulation whose health and well-being warrants specific attention among policy makers because of their service to the nation and the fact that many have incurred service-related injuries.” The study cites increasing likelihood of work limitation related to disability as veterans age, writing that—while “initial differences in work-limiting disability between veterans and nonveterans are small…as they age, the differences between veterans and nonveterans increase. By the time the cohort is in their late 40s and early 50s, veterans have a significantly higher level of work limitation relative to nonveterans.” [Source]
Like many forms of discrimination, ableism compounds already-severe economic struggles for the most vulnerable families. Researcher James Fuller, in his 2024 paper “From Service to Struggle: Exploring the Link Between Service-Connected Disability and Poverty Among Veteran Households,” finds that, although “veteran households with the most severe service-connected disability have the lowest predicted likelihood of poverty…evidence suggests service-connected disability is associated with an increased likelihood of deep poverty among already impoverished households [emphasis added]. Within this context,” Fuller concludes, “veteran households with the most severe service-connected disability have the highest predicted likelihood of deep poverty.”
Housing insecurity, too, often hurts veterans seeking stability in civilian life. In their 2024 study “The State of Veteran Homelessness,” Mission Roll Call cites troubling numbers:
Homeless veterans are three times more likely than the rest of the U.S. population to be infected with HIV. They’re also more likely to be in need of dental care. Dental problems, like missing teeth, can be “tremendous barriers” to looking for and finding work.
Research also shows that homeless individuals are more frequently victims of violent crimes than the general population. Between 2020 and 2022, the National Coalition for the Homeless tracked nearly 2,000 violent incidents targeting homeless individuals.
The trauma of homelessness can also lead to increased suicide rates among homeless veterans. Suicide rates among homeless populations are estimated at nine times that of the U.S. general population. [Source]
The organization further cites that “[m]ore than four million veterans reside in rural communities across the country. This includes many Indigenous veterans, who serve in the U.S. military at higher rates than any other group. Providing comprehensive, high-quality care to these veterans is a challenge, leading to further health disparities among these communities.”
Economic relief for veterans: 2024 and beyond
As the year closes, the American Legion reports that the VA set goals for conquering veteran homelessness in 2024. As the Department of Veterans Affairs mobilizes to “permanently house 41,000 homeless veterans [and] prevent return of homelessness and engage in unsheltered veterans,” the Legion further notes that:
For the last two calendar years, the Department of Veterans Affairs set goals to permanently house 38,000 homeless veterans each year. In 2022, the VA housed 40,401 homeless veterans and surpassed that number in 2023, housing 46,552.
For 2024, VA set three goals: to provide permanent housing for 41,000 homeless veterans; prevent return of homelessness; and engage unsheltered veterans. As of April 30, 2024:
26,772 veterans have been permanently housed. This is 65.3% of VA’s goal of housing 41,000 veterans.
97.8% of the veterans housed have remained in housing. VA’s goal is to ensure that at least 95% of the veterans housed in 2024 stay housed.
Moreover, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) stated last summer that the Biden-Harris administration had moved to expand access to housing for veterans facing Cliff Effect fallout in 2024. “A new set of policy changes…will help more veterans receive assistance under the HUD-Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) Supportive Housing (HUD-VASH) program, and improve their access to supportive housing developments,” HUD reported on their website:
Veterans experiencing homelessness often receive VA benefits as a result of an injury or illness that was acquired or worsened during military service. Before this change, these benefits were considered income when determining eligibility for certain supportive housing developments—causing some veterans to exceed the income threshold for these programs. HUD’s policy changes will help more homeless veterans with service-connected disability benefits gain access to these housing developments.
To advance this goal, HUD recently awarded $20 million “to public housing agencies to continue to improve the HUD-VASH program.”
“No veteran should ever have to experience homelessness, but when they do, they should not face barriers to getting help they deserve,” said HUD Acting Secretary Adrianne Todman. “This policy change will ensure that veterans who are receiving the disability benefits they earned through service and sacrifice can access the housing assistance and supportive services they need to resolve their homelessness.” [Source]
Circles USA’s Administrative Coordinator Gena Atcher, who served in the U.S. Air Force from 1985-1993 and was honorably discharged as a Staff Sergeant, was stationed in the Medical Services Squadron at Columbus Air Force Base in Mississippi, then at the Royal Air Force Upper Heyford in England, before serving her final PCS (permanent change of station) at Ellsworth AFB in South Dakota.
Reflecting on the importance of social supports for veterans at the chapter, community, and national levels, Gena says: “From my personal experience, the military and Circles have many commonalities. In basic training, we came together as raw recruits to learn how to be Airmen in the USAF. In Circles, we come together and learn how to be our best selves, too. Whether you're a veteran or a Circle Leader, you can count on your unit/circle to back you up, to be there to support you in the good and trying times.”
However military service intersects with our lived experiences of family, work, or economic struggle, every one of us owes veterans a debt of gratitude. More than this, we owe our service members (especially those impacted by hardship and structural oppression) the basic resources to transition from military to civilian life with dignity, stability, and supportive communities of practice. We celebrate each Circles chapter’s opportunity to uplift these values and influence crucial policy as we salute our veterans this November 11th…and every day.
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