Reply to Bowser Spreads the Wealth opens homeless shelters in each DC ward

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]http://ich.dc.gov

Start your journey here. Read about the homeless situation in DC as well as the game plan to address it.

Recognize that you have well over 1,000 homeless families in DC (and that's likely a lower estimate than reality since it's based on the point in time count). Recognize that there are well over 2,000 homeless kids in DC. These families must live somewhere. These children must go to school somewhere.

I realize that some of you feel like you worked hard to afford your nice home and good school. That's fine. But you live in DC, and DC has a homeless family housing crisis. Fortunately, the mayor is doing her best to address the problem (whereas many communities simply ignore the problem and waste so much money on emergency responses and services like shelters, ambulances, ER visits, etc.).

Data proves that the best practice is to disperse families in need of assistance throughout the community as opposed to segregating them in the poorest neighborhoods.

The bottom line is this: if you don't like it, then you can leave. Move WOTP. Move into a gated community in the burbs. Nobody will make you stay. It just seems so odd to me that city folk are getting hysterical over this. I mean, you live in DC...a city with a homeless family housing crisis...what do you expect? If you want a homogenous neighborhood, then look elsewhere.

I'm sure someone will say, "Why should we leave? We bought our home and want to stay!" That's fine. You can stay. Nobody will make you leave. But please realize that these families are lifetime DC residents. They aren't transplants. Their DC roots run deep...generations. They can't leave because they have nowhere to go. These are people suffering the effects of generational poverty. They've been failed by the education system. They've been failed by the child welfare system. Their communities have been over-policed, they've been criminalized (and so have their parents, brothers and sisters), and they are saddled with court imposed fines and debt that propel them into a never ending cycle of crisis. They live in a world that you can't even begin to comprehend. It's beyond sad. It's a rather hopeless existence.

Having worked in this arena for two decades, I count my blessings everyday because I realize that my life has a great deal to do with the fact that the deck wasn't stacked against me when I was born into a two-parent home with loving, well-educated, healthy, mentally stable, employed parents who themselves had a well-resourced family network. And I focus my career and pro bono work on do

ing whatever I can to try to improve the system for those who unfortunately entered the world with the cards stacked against them.

I honestly think that you'll be pleasantly surprised when you realize these plans ultimately have zero impact on your lives. I truly believe that.

You make some good points but you are are wrong to assume the homeless are lifelong residents. It's well known that homeless folks make their way to DC from MD and VA because DC has laws requiring housing.  Police officers and others in public service will even advise homeless folks to get to the district. We have a huge problem but we are also inducing demand and homeless folks are purposely coming to DC.  And they mayor has yet to address where all the families will go after their 90 days is up I these temporary shelters. How will she address mental illness, addiction, generational poverty, illiteracy etc in
, in such a short time. These are the questions we should be asking.

[/quote][/quote]

Most are lifelong residents.

DC, MoCo and PG are cooperating on a regional approach to address homelessness. Google it.

You must be a resident in order to access services. That's a fact. You can't just show up a get housing. 
(The only possible exception being Covenant House for youth.)

[/quote]

How does a homeless person prove residency? and you are wrong, if a homeless families shows inside DC borders the law requires that DC provide emergency shelter.   there is no tangible regional approach to this as DC is the only one that legally mandates housing for homeless families.   ANd then we end up housing most of them back in the hotels in suburbs.  If this is cooperation we need to start fresh. [/quote]

I'll bite ... they can establish residency with a driver's licence or another form of government identification.[/quote]

What do you think DC will do if the person says they have no government ID but their family lives in DC and they need temporary shelter? Just refuse them?[/quote]

Caseworkers do their damnedest to divert.

Where did you last live?

Can they take you back?

Do you have a relative you can stay with?

Let's talk to your relatives. Can we pay Aunt Sue $300/month to let you stay with her?

Will grandma in NC let you stay with her? If she will accept you, we will buy you bus tickets.

They don't just hand everyone a key to an apartment. They try hard to screen and redirect them. [/quote]

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