Innovative solutions to end homelessness
Posts tagged PHAs
Working With PHAs To End Homelessness
Feb 18th
This post was originally written for the National Alliance to End Homelessness blog.
As communities redouble their efforts to achieve the goals of Opening Doors, one thing is abundantly clear: we need all hands on deck to truly end homelessness in this country. This includes our partners at public housing agencies (PHAs) both as providers of mainstream housing resources and as key collaborators within our existing systems of care. As we continue to focus on permanent solutions like permanent supportive housing and rapid re-housing strategies, we must expand the tools and resources available to support these efforts. This includes broadening and deepening our connections with our PHA partners.
This past week’s National Conference on Ending Family and Youth Homelessness saw some of the most exciting and influential thinkers in the field come together in Los Angeles. On Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness (USICH) convened public housing agencies and Continuums of Care (CoCs) from targeted communities for a special pre-conference session to highlight the ways in which communities have successfully worked across HUD programs to create more opportunities for housing and services targeted towards persons experiencing homelessness.
The session began with More >
Labeling People as Homeless Strips Individuals and Families of True Identity
Aug 10th
I can remember the first time I was introduced to People First Language. I was at a mental health conference when a panelist described our state legislature as schizophrenic. A gentleman that I did not know at the time stepped up to the microphone in the audience and stated rather firmly that the characterization was offensive. No, it wasn’t one of our esteemed state legislators!
This man, who is now a friend of mine, stated that he had schizophrenia himself. He went on to explain how using a condition or disability as the primary way of identifying a person or group of people is extremely harmful. He did not want to be labeled a schizophrenic, as if his condition summed up all that he was. He is a man that lives with schizophrenia, but his disability does not define him.
It was an important moment for me, and I try diligently to focus on people – not conditions – in my speech, both professionally and personally.
Words matter. The way that we construct language has an effect on how we see and understand the world. Focusing on one’s condition or circumstances increases the likelihood that the listener identifies the person or people as More >
