Food, Clothing, Shelter, and... Karaoke?

by Shannon Moriarty

categories: innovation, People doing good things, Stories from the Streets

Published November 10, 2009 @ 11:11AM PT

Joy is just as important to the human existence as food, clothing, and shelter. But when you're living on the streets, it is easy to forget how to find it; among service providers, joy is a need that is too often forgotten.

But on LA's Skid Row, one couple has adopted the task of cultivating joy with a boom box and a microphone. They have turned their love of karaoke into an outlet for LA's homeless. They have no hidden agenda, no underlying motive. Each week, they simply set up the karaoke machine, open the doors and watch the room come alive with music, dancing, and community.

This simple-yet-powerful project has been captured in documentary form by filmmaker Iris Ichishita. Watch the 8-minute video below, then distribute far and wide. Let the music - and the stories - move you.

Living without a home does not take away one's dignity. Living on the streets does not compromise one's need to feel joy. Karaoke is not going to solve anybody's problems... but it might help someone remember what it's like to forget about them.

U.S. Senate Tackles Veteran Homelessness

by Shannon Moriarty

categories: Government, Obama Administration, Policy, USA, Veteran Homelessness

Published November 10, 2009 @ 07:53AM PT

Today, the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs will tackle veteran's homelessness. More specifically - how to end it. This hearing comes one week after VA Secretary Shinseki made a bold commitment to ending veteran homelessness.

The hearing is happening now... you can watch it live or catch an archived video of the testimonies.

Check back later for a breakdown of what was discussed and what this could mean for the greater effort to end veteran homelessness.

Disabled and Soaring Out of Homelessness

by Steven Samra

categories: case management, Housing, Trends

Published November 10, 2009 @ 06:57AM PT

The population of homeless individuals in this country is chock full of people who are suffering from a serious health and/or mental health condition; HUD's 2008 Annual Homeless Assessment Report states that 43 percent of homeless adults suffer from some disability and more than two-fifths of sheltered homeless people have a disability.

While our society has attempted to assist folks suffering with disabilities via the Social Security Administration, the process of obtaining federal disability benefits (SSDI/SSI) is tedious, complex and often far beyond the scope of the typical layperson's ability to navigate and ensure proper and successful completion of the application procedure ("successful" meaning approval of benefits).

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Community Organizing to Combat Homelessness

by Shannon Moriarty

categories: Advocacy, Live Blogging

Published November 09, 2009 @ 10:27AM PT

There is no better way to build community power than by organizing the power of a community. Amid these challenging economic times, and with a former community organizer in the White House, homeless advocates should revisit this timely topic. Today's workshop will cover community organizing through a numbers of lenses - classic community organizing, new media, advocacy, etc.

First and most important lesson in today's workshop: everyone is an expert. Here goes!

1:09 - First observation: the mere topic of community organizing always seems to get people energized and excited. There's good energy in this room. Why? Perhaps because if you believe in organizing, you believe in the idea that we can all be empowered to affect change; if you have hope, you have a reason to fight for your ideals. That's inspiring.

1:13 - Naturally, this is an interactive workshop, so I will do my best to translate this group work into live-blogworthy material.

1:26 - First, some definitions:

• Electoral organizing: Using the electoral process to advance understanding about an issue in order to provide political pressure. Some examples: leaf letting, community meetings, etc.

The New Faces of Homelessness

by Shannon Moriarty

categories: Housing, innovation, Live Blogging, mental health, sexual exploitation, shelter, Veteran Homelessness, youth

Published November 09, 2009 @ 07:42AM PT

Today I am live-blogging from Rhode Island's "Yes We Will" Conference on Homelessness and Housing. The first workshop of the day will examine the "new faces of homelessness" - not necessarily new categories of people experiencing homelessness, but groups that have started receiving more priorities and attention from funders and policy-makers.

10:22 - I like the note that we're starting out on: moderator Mike Burk from the RI Dept. of Children, Youth, and Families notes that many of the groups facing homelessness we will discuss today are homeless as a direct result of policy decisions. For example, Rhode Island intentionally cut off services for foster youth at age 18; homelessness has become an unintended effect.

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Live-Blogging from the RI's "Yes We Will" Conference

by Shannon Moriarty

category: Live Blogging

Published November 09, 2009 @ 07:19AM PT

Today I am thrilled to be live-blogging from the "Yes We Will" Conference - Rhode Island's statewide conference on housing and homelessness.

Rhode Island may be a small state, but it has developed a big homelessness problem. Following a disproportionate number of foreclosures and rising unemployment rates, the state has seen record numbers of people seeking help from shelters in the past year. To make matters worse, tent cities have been springing up in Providence and other parts of the state.

Stay tuned... today's workshops are sure to be interesting!

What's in a Street Name?

by Dominic Mapstone

category: case management

Published November 08, 2009 @ 06:02AM PT

Earlier this year, a homeless man in Philadelphia was killed. His identity was unknown, so he was buried as John Doe. Many argue that this is unacceptable, that we must honor these individuals, in the very least, with an accurate burial that marks who they were by name. Others believe that any kind of mandatory ‘system' that keeps records to identify homeless people is an invasion of privacy.

The homeless man shot by Philadelphia Police in July, was known on the streets as Poppa Doc. But to the coroner he is No. 09-2619. His real identity is yet to be established.

Poppa Doc is not the first homeless person to seemingly abandon their pre-homeless identity and take on a new life under a new guise... and a new name. I've known some homeless people for years without ever learning their real name. I don't think this matters; if I ever needed to know their real name, there's usually someone else on the streets or another service provider who does.

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