An eight or nine year old boy with dirt on his face, wearing torn jeans, shoes and a dirty shirt doing his best to stop one of the thousand cars in order to allow him to wash car windshields for a pittance. This young man had difficulty carrying a large container containing water and soap as well as a small red carpet which he held in his small left hand. His facial expression revealed fear, doubt and resignation. The inside of me wanted to cry and at the same time I wanted to take him with me and give him a cup of warm milk. He looked like he hadn't eaten anything in days. As he approached our car, the other drivers cursed him and told him to disappear from this world. With a sad look, he continued his way towards our car. His large, dark brown eyes expressed pain, dismay and despair. Heartbreaking stories like this occur most often in the urban metropolises of Mexico and Latin America. These children suffer from the abandonment of their families and the economic difficulties of the country; in addition, they are deprived of health care, exposed to violence, drugs and HIV through sexual promiscuity. Street children do not choose to live in abandoned buildings, cardboard boxes, parks or on the street itself; they are forced to face life challenges that no other human being has experienced in many years. Therefore, street children should be helped due to their constant marginalization. Street children are not always seen as helpless children, although they are often seen as delinquents and worthless children. "...when the child reaches puberty: he is then described as a 'delinquent, lazy, homosexual, aggressive and drug addict', and therefore who 'has his place in an institution'" (http://www.users .global...... middle of paper ......nment they face illness and poverty Children must overcome all the challenges of being alone on the streets These children have fewer resources. and opportunities, and it is up to us to change, or even improve, their lives on the streets. We can do this by creating shelters and perhaps helping children to cultivate themselves in any way we can. . These children are simply children and must be treated acceptably like others. the world Magazine November 2001. Web. January 30, 2010. “Mexico: Street children at high risk of contracting AIDS. The Body: The Comprehensive HIV/AIDS Web Resource Our Mission." Banco Interamericano de Desarrollo. Web. January 30.. 2010. .