Thank you to all who were able to join us earlier to begin the conversation of how each of us has a role to play in making safe affordable housing accessible to all in our community. For those who were unable to join us, we missed you and hope you will be able to join in future discussions.
As we discussed, there is no easy answer and a one size fits all approach certainly doesn’t work. No one has all the answers but with our collective expertise, positive real life changing impact can be made in the lives of the most vulnerable in our community.
Below you will find the presentation from today, as well as, the recording of today’s meeting. Please feel free to share with your colleagues and others as you see fit. Also please find the Landlord Advisory Group Sign up form. Please consider participation in this group that will help build the foundation for transforming our system to proactive rather than reactive.
Please be on the lookout for announcements and upcoming meetings.
Home for Good commits to the goals of ending racial inequities as we continue to advocate for, support, and care for our citizens who are experiencing homelessness.
National Alliance to End Homelessness Statement on Structural Racism and Racial Inequity
The National Alliance to End Homelessness stands in solidarity with all parties fighting to end pervasive structural racism in the United States. The recent killings of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Tony McDade, and Breonna Taylor reinforce a terrible legacy of systematic racism, racial injustice, and senseless violence inflicted against African Americans. It is time now that we all stand up in opposition to such oppression.
The vast racial disparities in both homelessness and the impacts of the coronavirus are also stark examples of this historic inequity. They are perpetuated by structural racism throughout our society, ranging from criminal justice, access to healthcare, employment, economic opportunity, and education, to virtually every aspect of American life. Collectively, these disparities reflect an unacceptable indifference to the humanity of African Americans – an indifference that prevents the policy changes that the nation so clearly needs.
Racial inequity causes homelessness. As part of its mission to prevent and end homelessness in the United States, the National Alliance to End Homelessness re-commits itself to the goals of ending racial disparities in the homelessness sector, and confronting structural racism in our nation. The Alliance is dedicated to these efforts: it pledges to continue prioritizing new tools, resources, and research on racial equity and homelessness to help advance the field in this work. It promises to continue collaborating with organizations that are leading equity efforts. And it vows to make the necessary investments in equity structure and training within our own organization.
Rehousing and Coordinated Investment Planning Tool
1C Equity and Rehousing Focus:
People of color – particularly Black and Native American people – are disproportionately impacted by homelessness and they are also disproportionately impacted by COVID-19, being at risk of severe illness and death from COVID-19. As communities plan for the use of existing and newly-available funds, these inequities should inform the decisions being made so that communities are addressing, and not perpetuating, these disproportionate impacts.
Permanent housing is a public health intervention for people in sheltered and unsheltered settings to reduce the risk of severe illness or death from COVID-19. Providing temporary non-congregate shelter and housing people experiencing homelessness in their own unit should be a public health priority.
Address the disparities that people of color face in accessing and maintaining stable housing by utilizing translation services, solicit feedback from people with lived experience, and engage multi-cultural service providers.
HUD and our Federal partners are committed to assisting communities to end homelessness for individuals and families. Collecting complete and accurate data about homelessness in your communities is a core element to achieve the goal.
The SNAPS Strategy sets out three overarching goals for itself and communities:
Communities use their data to optimize systems of care through making ongoing system performance improvements and determining optimal resource allocation;
Communities operate data systems that allow for accurate, comprehensive, and timely data collection, usage and reporting; and
Federal government coordinates to receive and use data to make informed decisions in coordination with other data sets, across and within agencies.
To end homelessness, communities must be able to analyze data at both the system and project levels and to evaluate their efforts by subpopulation, across project types, and in other ways. Not only must communities continue increasing HMIS bed coverage and improving data quality, they also should be using data to gain a more holistic picture of the communities’ progress toward ending homelessness. To assist with this effort, HUD has produced a number of products and tools to assist communities to improve data quality and engage in system and project-level analysis.
To meet and exceed these goals and expectations, the HMIS Committee of the Continuum of Care is designing our Community’s Data Quality Management Plan and they want your input. Please review the samples below and provide feedback to HMIS Committee Chair Tiffany Cole.
Experiencing homelessness is the devastating result of many events and circumstances. We know from experience that the majority of our community members experiencing homelessness do not choose this lifestyle. Instead, they feel the enormous weight of resolving their situation as being too difficult, costly, and beyond their ability. Home for Good and our partner agencies work together with these citizens to make the process easier with a hand-up, not a hand-out. It is our job to support them not only to find a safe place to call home but also to utilize the resources available to help them stay housed. We work hard to assist them as they overcome these genuine and challenging obstacles.
Now, additional barriers exist associated with COVID-19.
The recent epidemic has created more impediments for those experiencing
homelessness by limiting some programs as well as fear from landlords
preventing move-in acceptance. We have seen an increase in requirements for
virus testing requirements, which can be challenging logistically but also
demeaning emotionally. Thanks to the collaborative effort of MercyMed, SafeHouse Ministries, and Home
for Good, we were able to
test 180 people at the emergency shelter. While this helps mitigate the
spread of the virus, it should not be a requirement for securing housing.
As the CDC article points out, staying in a shelter helps protect those experiencing homelessness from contracting and spreading the virus, but permanent housing should continue to be a priority. It stands to reason that to prevent and diminish the spread, they are safer in a home just like all of us.
Now more than ever, it is apparent everyone deserves a safe home.
Now more than ever, it is evident those experiencing
homelessness need more advocates and supporters.
Home for Good is leading the conversation to break down
further these barriers that existed before and as the new hurdles emerge. Home
for Good has created a framework to engage with landlords helping them feel
supported as they assist our vulnerable population. We are working diligently
with the local and state governments to develop systems that prevent
homelessness and build and strengthen existing practices. Some examples include
eviction restrictions and financial assistance programs.
What can you do? Become an advocate by sharing this story and talking to your representatives. You can also help by donating to Home for Good. These funds assist our most vulnerable citizens.
Whether you have banded together with family, friends, neighbors, or colleagues, we have all contributed to great collaboration in our community over the last few months. It goes to show our resilience and compassion we feel for one another. Working together is something this valley is good at, as countless stories show.
One of the most effective coordinated efforts has been the Coronavirus Response Fund, co-led by United Way and the Community Foundation. Thanks to our community’s generosity, they have awarded $843,720 to local organizations helping our most vulnerable citizens.
United Way and the Community Foundation created the Impact Assessment Tool “so that nonprofit organizations in the Chattahoochee Valley can tell their stories. Hopefully these stories will offer supporters an objective way to assess the developing impact of COVID-19, the ways our nonprofit community is responding, and opportunity for investment in both the short & long term.” We encourage organizations to fill it out and for those looking for investment opportunities, to request the results.
We know that the needs of the valley are growing and will continue to evolve. But we can continue to collaborate to ensure a competent and compassionate response is available to everyone. 2-1-1, Home for Good, and partner agency data all reveal an increase in basic needs requests, such as shelter, food, and utility assistance. The connections and relationships remain our most reliable strategy for alleviating these struggles and preventing crises. Home for Good, along with our partner organizations, will continue to be leaders in an alliance to advocate for our people. We are #InThisTogether!
