Look around: who does American allow to become homeless? And what does that say about us?
Black people are five times more likely to experience homelessness and Native Americans are four times more likely to experience it than someone who is white. Systems and services that are meant to help people exit homelessness often produce worse outcomes for people of color.
This is no accident.
Since before the United States even existed, people of color have been denied what’s at the heart of a just and equal society — including a place to call home. The methods have varied and included land theft, enslavement, Jim Crow laws, redlining, and mass incarceration, to name a few. The result is that people of color disproportionately experience homelessness.
But it doesn’t have to be this way. There is no path to an equitable country without ending homelessness. It’s perhaps the ultimate unraveling of our social fabric — and it must be remedied in order to build a more just society. It’s incumbent upon all of us to help build this future.
Community Solutions is proud to be a member of the National Racial Equity Working Group, a coalition of organizations working to center racial equity in our efforts to end homelessness. Read our statement of shared values on racial equity and homelessness.
