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I'm terrified that we're about to let a literal army of people become homeless, when it could so easily be prevented.
But this is also a moment to acknowledge that the level of homelessness in the United States has been a scandal for decades, and we're all complicit in a crime.
But this is also a moment to acknowledge that the level of homelessness in the United States has been a scandal for decades, and we're all complicit in a crime.
I spent a few years working with homeless people during and immediately after college, and I saw a lot of the structural barriers to getting people housed. Lack of social support services, the need to cough up first, last and deposit for an apartment, etc.
But I also saw tons of victim-blaming and hateful attitudes to the homeless. I sat through horrible board meetings where people argued with a straight face that we should only help "nice" homeless people, or people who were "grateful enough." Plus NIMBY garbage.
We always used to repeat the same old facts -- like that almost anyone is a few bad months away from becoming homeless. Most middle-class people are way less secure than they imagine (probably one reason to blame the homeless for their problems: to "prove" it can't happen to me.)
The thing is in the early and mid-1990s there was much more public dialogue about how to help the homeless. Crystal Waters had a hit song ("She's Homeless") and there were tons of other songs urging sympathy for the homeless. Newspapers ran tons of hand-wringing articles /op-eds.
The common thread in these articles was "how can we look away from this problem?"
And then... everyone figured out a way to look away from the problem.
Cities doubled down on "broken windows" policing and slashed social spending, creating a downward spiral. More victim-blaming.
And then... everyone figured out a way to look away from the problem.
Cities doubled down on "broken windows" policing and slashed social spending, creating a downward spiral. More victim-blaming.
I'm just gonna say the obvious: if you oppose building a homeless shelter or other services near you, you're a NIMBY.
Likewise, if you oppose building tons of affordable housing near you, you're a NIMBY.
Cities are only as good as their support for the homeless.
Likewise, if you oppose building tons of affordable housing near you, you're a NIMBY.
Cities are only as good as their support for the homeless.
