The Connection at St Martin-in-the-Fields’ Post

All the yes on this 🙌. As someone who has faced both addiction and housing insecurities, I assure you trauma is the gateway. I do believe because we do not talk about it or share of how recovery is possible because of shame and stigma, how hope is not gone, the cycles continue. It is why I recover outloud. No human should ever be seen as a blight because they are experiencing homelessness. They are mothers, fathers, siblings, children. They ARE Philadelphians. When we say “let’s cleanup our streets and rid the neighborhood of the unhoused so we don’t have to look at it” as we’re seeing this harmful rhetoric growing recently, you are talking about your neighbors, someone’s child, someone’s family, a fellow Philadelphian. When we say those in addiction or experiencing homelessness are unworthy or unwanted, you forget that we DO recover, that if there is breath in our lungs, hope is not lost. 8 years and 2 months of life I’ve gotten to live in recovery, so when you see them as disposable, you see me, this PhD researcher, mother, daughter, sister, and nationally recognized executive leader as disposable. I AM the face of addiction. Imagine what might be possible if we all had equitable access to care and resources? I long for a city that cares for ALL of its citizens. Instead of “ridding ourselves” of the unhoused let’s rid ourselves of the barriers to healthcare, mental health services, food security, housing and employment. Human beings are not disposable elements to be swept away for your comfort. Sweep our streets of the inequities, not people. #weDOrecover #NotThrowawayPeople #addressTheTrauma

What we should be doing is empowering those that we are saying is affected by this policy. Instead of trying to maintain and warehouse homelessness we need to work together to empower those to overcome. We spend a lot of time focusing on encampments when we should be empowering the connections to take the person out of the encampment or shelter. As if we can focus on housing people the towns won’t have any encampments to clear. Too much hyper focus on protecting an encampment and not enough in preventing and empowering the person to not even be in the situation affected by this law. Because say that they allow encampments to stay what are you going to do to help house the people that fall through the cracks? As regardless of this law or that law. Of this debate or that debate. There are people that have no where to go and when we focus only on a law and not on action in between we are setting ourselves up for failure. This article words it as a end all situation. As someone who overcame homelessness I know that one law, one person didn’t break me. It’s the idea that a law or that the world is against you backed up by those that are supposed to be leaders and experts that breaks you. It’s when you turn to an expert or service and they say “ yea there isn’t help or this is against you” We need empowerment not pity .

Some encouraging strategies for results-driven efforts to abate homelessness. What really works? What works better and why? Take a couple of minutes to find out: https://lnkd.in/ghPchwcQ

It's common to talk about homelessness without hearing from the homeless themselves. Check out our latest conversation with Mr. Avery, and don't forget to like and subscribe. #peoriail #solutions #homelessnessawareness #socialentrepreneurship

What is homelessness? There are so many preconceived ideas about homelessness, however, there are so many ways a person can become homeless and not be recognised as such. There are many preconceived ideas about the who and why of homelessness. Curious? Take a few short minutes and watch this animated film that will answer many questions and start a conversation... https://lnkd.in/g2kxtnMz #homeless #housingisahumanright #housingdignity #affordablehousing #sharingwithfriends

6/31 Help us humanise the issue of homelessness by listening to and sharing the stories of people who have experienced it themselves. We have many inspiring stories you can share. https://ow.ly/JOoA50TBBKU

Register today for our webinar on August 1st: "The Grants Pass Decision on Homelessness: An Inside Look" regarding the historic decision on homeless encampments on our city streets.

The Point-In-Time (PIT) count is the annual process of identifying and counting individuals and families experiencing sheltered and unsheltered homelessness in New Mexico. Here is the 2023 report and soon the 2024 report will come out!

Learn how to start a conversation about homelessness with children, teaching them how to show kindness toward an issue that's often misunderstood and judged unfairly: https://lnkd.in/eHYv4Kxu

Powerful message about our current approach to homelessness and the paradigm shift we must consider to truly make substantial changes. We currently place unrealistic barriers on our homeless population in our attempt to assist them. The Department of Veterans Affairs believes in the "Housing First Model" which recognizes the path to dealing with life's challenges is considerably easier when you start with shelter. The same theory Maslow coined in 1943 is still relevant today #hierarcyofneeds #housingfirst