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A staggering 4,282 people are currently experiencing homelessness in the San Gabriel Valley. This enormous figure has service providers like Union Station struggling to find both short- and long-term solutions for unhoused people in the area.

Union Station offers a broad array of services to those experiencing homelessness in the region, from basic medical care to temporary housing:

“It’s about taking one individual at a time, building a relationship with them and helping them move from the streets into their own apartment,” says Shawn Morrissey, associate director of Union Station.

But there’s a limit to what Union Station can accomplish without access to more supportive housing. “We need our community to acknowledge that this is a crisis,” says Keith Hendirksen, a program manager at Union Station.

Hendriksen sees the housing crisis as an empathy crisis—a failure of others to imagine what life would be like without a home.

Take the basics: Unhoused people are deprived of bathrooms and showers. Their access to food and water storage is severely limited, and it can be impossible to find a comfortable place to sleep.

“There needs to be more understanding and more compassion,” says Hendrikson. “We need to all come on board to end this.”

Join the Everyone In team and learn how to push for more housing across L.A.

As Angelenos, many of us walk down streets every day where people are sleeping in tents, resting under blankets or sitting in makeshift shelters. If we can, we offer some money or share some food, but usually we walk on, heavy-hearted, and vow to do more the next time.

But for outreach teams that work with unhoused Angelenos, the suffering on our streets is a call to action. These teams are dedicated to providing care that is at once quotidian and profound — not just handing out supplies, passing out food or administrating basic medical care, but also listening, empathizing, learning, building trust and recognizing the humanity of those who feel they have been left behind.

“They tell us, ‘No one has talked to me, no one has touched me. No one has offered me any help,’” says Tia, a registered nurse, works with unhoused people as part of St. Joseph’s outreach team. “And when we connect with them, they feel something. We bring them to our center, where they can take a shower, eat a meal, and feel human again. Everything that we do is trying to bring humanity back to that individual, to build their self-worth and reconnect them with life.”

Outreach teams hail from a diverse range of backgrounds — from peer counselors with lived experiences of homelessness, to mental health professionals, social workers and nurses. Their arsenal of skills must be broad enough to tackle the complex issues that drive folks into homelessness. “It’s really important to have a diverse team because the people we’re working with are diverse,” says Tia.

If you’d like to help these outreach teams, one of the best things you can do is to push your local representatives to build more housing in your area. It takes months of work to get people on the streets ready for housing, and the job of an outreach worker is only possible if there are enough available units to place people in.

Join the Everyone In team and learn how to push for more housing across L.A.

Note: There is an upcoming Stories from the Frontline event at Mariachi Plaza in Boyle Heights on November 8. Read about the Venice event below, and you’ll see why you need to be there.

On June 20th, community members packed the backyard of The Brig bar in Venice to hear equally harrowing and hopeful stories from those who’d experienced homelessness.

Created in partnership with the John and Marilyn Wells Family Foundation’s “Stories From The Frontline,” the turnout was exceptionally high for an area of town that’s long been associated with NIMBY opposition to supportive housing, signaling that more and more people are recognizing the need for real solutions to our homelessness crisis.

The night not only helped people understand what it’s like being homeless in Venice and across Los Angeles, it also highlighted the work of local service providers — including Venice Community Housing, Safe Place for Youth and St. Joseph Center. The call to action was clear: support the four supportive housing buildings, and one temporary housing site, currently being proposed in Venice.

“I never thought I’d end up homeless. The thought scared me to death. Every day, I would say to myself, ‘This is only temporary.'” — Sue Gallagher

“I’ve been looked at badly and had people say things to me like, ‘It’s your fault’ and ‘You got yourself into this situation.’ I want my siblings to know not to give up hope and that they are not a burden on anyone, no matter what people say.” — Erika Herod

“Because I had a safe and stable place to live, I was able to do what I needed to move forward and get recovery.” – Motique Alston

“I’ve never been in an environment with so many people dealing with the same problems and supporting one another. I now believe that I have a future.” – Daniel Chavez

All across the Southland, activated citizens like you are demanding fair and compassionate solutions to our homelessness crisis. By speaking out and showing up, we’re already changing the lives of our unhoused neighbors. In just the last 6 months, here’s what we’ve accomplished together:

• In February, the L.A. City Council pledged to build 222 units of supportive housing in all districts of L.A. before July of 2020 for a total of 3,330 units. So far we’re at 2,122.
  
• In April, new laws in L.A. made it easier to build more supportive housing and convert old motels into housing.
  
• From Arcadia to Pasadena and Malibu, residents across our region are fighting for comprehensive, local solutions to homelessness that are tailored to the needs of specific communities. Just days ago, Baldwin Park and South Pasadena ratified their own plans to end homelessness.

And this is just the beginning. By devoting time and energy, we’re making sure the plan to end homelessness in L.A. is implemented fully and effectively. And we’re telling our politicians and NIMBY neighbors that ending homelessness is all of our responsibility.

So stand up to ignorance and intolerance. Be brave. And get your friends to join us.

Durante las semanas anteriores hemos compartido una serie de testimonios centrados en experiencias de personas en todo Los Ángeles y quienes se han visto afectadas por la pandemia. 

Personas como Alejandro, estudiante de UCLA cuya educación ahora es en línea. 

O como Angélica González-Harris, quien ahora vive con la realidad de arriesgar su salud pues se desempeña como trabajadora de categoría esencial en una gasolinera.  

Otras personas como Danny García, un vendedor ambulante, que pasa estragos dada la pérdida económica de la gente que se ha quedado resguardándose en casa.  

Theo Henderson, el creador del podcast “Nosotros, los Sin casa,” está viviendo sin casa en este momento y no cuenta con un sitio seguro para pasar la cuarentena.  

Todas estas personas residentes viven experiencias diferentes, pero todas son gente cuyas vidas y formas de viva se ven amenazadas por el alto costo de la vivienda en nuestras comunidades. 

Y no se encuentran solos. 

Millones de inquilinos por toda el área de Los Ángeles están en riesgo de ser desalojados, una amenaza que hizo resonancia en el reciente estudio por la Facultad Luskin en UCLA.

Es por eso que hemos creado una petición para exigir el perdón de pagos de alquiler e hipotecarios, la cual hasta ahora ha sido firmada por más de 7,000 personas a favor. 

Únete a nosotros y comparte tu experiencia.

Cobertura en la prensa Los Angeles Times, L.A. Daily News, y Spectrum News 1.

Homelessness dipped in L.A. and countywide, but more people are living on the streets for the first time. What do the numbers mean? Join us at today (Friday) at noon pst for the 2018 Los Angeles Homeless Count Overview webinar.

First, the bad news: The streets of Los Angeles don’t look especially encouraging. The Homeless Services Authority has just released their findings from the 2018 Homeless Count, and 53,195 Angelenos are living without permanent homes. Of those, 39,826 live on the streets, with no shelter beyond a vehicle, tent, or sleeping bag. And the problems that can lead to homelessness, like low wages, high cost of living, and housing scarcity, show no signs of relenting. If our homelessness problem still seems disgraceful and widespread, that’s because it is.

Now, the good news: For the first time in four years, the Homeless Count did not increase. In fact, homelessness decreased three percent overall across our county. What’s even more heartening is that veteran homelessness is down eight percent, and chronic homelessness is down 18 percent.

Thanks to funds from Measure H and Measure HHH—and advocates like you—people on the cusp of homelessness are finding affordable housing and getting help with rent. The most vulnerable people experiencing homelessness are moving into long-term supportive housing. And more people on the streets are being connected with outreach teams who can connect them with the emergency services and facilities they need to heal.

These results prove that we have the right plan and our approach is working. But they also show that this crisis won’t go away overnight.

These results prove that we have the right plan and our approach is working. But they also show that this crisis won’t go away overnight. Angelenos from all walks of life need to keep raising their voices and showing up for our unhoused neighbors.

That’s where you come in.

Join us to lend your much-needed time, skills, and passion to our movement. You can phone bank to get your neighbors and elected leaders on board, get trained to speak before City Council and the Board of Supervisors, canvass door-to-door, or host a house party with a purpose. Whatever commitment you make, it will help accelerate our progress.

It takes a big effort to solve a big problem. There’s no denying it. Fortunately, we have an effective plan that’s already underway. Now, we just need you to keep up the pressure.

When it comes to the topic of homeless Angelenos, fears and misinformation reign. Some paint our house-less neighbor as drug addicts and criminals; others see construction of new supportive housing units as a threat to their quality of life and personal safety.

It’s understandable that folks would fear the unknown — but it’s vital for us to correct their misconceptions.  If we want to end homelessness, and build supportive housing across L.A. County, we all need to get on the same page.

Help us bust these common myths. Tweet the facts to show you’re committed to fighting bigotry with truth.

Myth #1: Homeless people prefer living on the streets

It sounds crazy, but we hear this all the time from people who don’t know any better. The truth is this: People living on the streets want to live in stable housing. Nobody enjoys sleeping on a sidewalk.

The problem is a lack of housing. Since 2015, L.A. County has moved more than 14,000 homeless residents into supportive units. But, to make a real and lasting impact, we need to help many, many more.

Shelters are another issue. Of the 12,000 emergency shelter beds we do have, many fill up every night. Mayor Garcetti recently announced plans to build 1,500 more, but that would still only provide short-term shelter to around a quarter of our unhoused population. (In comparison, New York has over 60,000 shelter beds, serving around 77,000 homeless people.)

The truth is that a lack of affordable housing, a dearth of supportive solutions, and far too few shelter beds have pushed thousands of people onto the streets. These folks are homeless because they can’t access housing—not because they love the lifestyle.

Myth #2: Homeless people just need to get jobs

Many homeless people already have jobs, but average wages are too low to keep up with exploding rents. About 44 percent of homeless people around the country did some paid work during the previous month, according to a 1996 survey by the Urban Institute. In 2013, the Department of Housing and Urban Development found that 17 percent of homeless adults in families had paying jobs and 55 percent worked during the previous year.

But rents keep rising. Today, 1 in 3 renters in the Los Angeles metropolitan area is considered “severely rent burdened,” meaning they spend at least half of their income on housing. Additionally,  L.A. County is the most unaffordable region in the country for the poorest renters, according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. It’s estimated that a rent increase of just 5 percent across the county would push 2,000 people into homelessness. This is why we need more supportive housing solutions now.

Myth #3: There will always be homeless folks in L.A. because our weather is so great

Unhoused people are not foreign intruders; a majority are longtime residents who’ve fallen on hard times. More than three-quarters of people experiencing homelessness in L.A. County have lived here for at least five years, and 57 percent of those living on the streets have been living in L.A. for more than 20 years.

Perpetuating the idea that our homeless neighbors are foreigners only further dehumanizes them. And, by not recognizing this crisis as homegrown, it’s far easier to ignore it.

If you believe in ending homelessness in L.A., share these facts with a friend or neighbor. Help us build momentum and show our unhoused neighbors that we believe in bringing #EveryoneIn.

Elected officials in L.A. play a huge role in determining how resources across the county are used to help our homeless neighbors. L.A. has more people than any other county in the nation and has the third-largest metropolitan economy in the world, so naturally we have a lot of elected officials and a lot of resources to go around — and also to keep track of. Here is a quick overview of some of the different elected officials and groups directly responsible for shaping and implementing policies around homelessness:

• Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors – Five elected officials who oversee all county departments (e.g., the L.A. Sheriff’s Department) and have direct oversight over unincorporated parts of the county. Each supervisor has nearly two million constituents — more than twice as many as the average congressional representative — and manages a $30 billion budget.
  
• City Councils and Mayors – Each one of L.A.’s 88 municipalities is governed by a city council and mayor, which together oversee all city agencies (e.g., police departments, school boards) and city budgets. The number of council members varies across cities, as does the division of responsibilities between the council and the mayor. In some cases, the mayor is a specific role within city council and in other cases, the mayor is elected and works separately from city council. You can learn more about your city’s government here.

When individual politicians and groups of elected officials put their weight behind real solutions and the long-term plan to end chronic homelessness in L.A., they can get a lot done very quickly. This is particularly true when they’re working together and have the support of their constituents. So where do you fit in on a day-to-day basis and what can you do to ensure that your voice is being heard?

• You elect these officials and are technically their boss. If you look at the org chart for the county government, the top spot belongs to the electorate — that’s you!
• In between election cycles, you can contact them at their offices to tell them how you want them to vote or stances you think they should take on key issues, like homelessness. You can call, email, or even set up an appointment with their office.
• Elected officials hold votes and meetings publicly, many of which include time for people to speak and advocate for a specific course of action.
• At a local level, most cities have neighborhood or community groups that can push for specific items either formally or informally. For example, the City of L.A. has Neighborhood Councils, which receive a certain amount of funding from the city to spend as they wish and which can also submit Letters of Community Impact for the City Council’s consideration when they are voting.

Elected officials have always played a huge role in determining how L.A. deals with homelessness, but at the end of the day, they represent you. We need everyone in, at every level of planning and decision-making, to make sure that we’re all heading in the right direction.