excerpt from one of my class readings...

"If you study people who have climbed to the pinacles of power and influence in American society, you usually find they they have had "all the advantages." Most started life with competent parents, had more than their share of brains, energy, or charm, and then had unusually good luck. Without any one of these advantages they might have done well, but not as well as they did.
The same rule applies to those at the bottom of the economic ladder. Those who end up on the street have typically had all the disadvantages. More started life in families with a multitude of problems; indeed, many came from families so troubled that they were placed in foster care. Many had serious health and learning problems. A large number grew up in dreadful neighborhoods and attended mediocre schools. After that, most had more than their share of bad luck in the labor market, marriage, or both. It is the cumulative effect of all these disadvantages not bad luck alone, that has left them on the streets."  The Homeless - Christopher Jencks