A Publication of the Coalition on Homelessness
by Jack Bragen
Where I live it is expected—if not outright required—that tenants do not bring strangers into the building. This precaution adds to our safety, and it helps the owners of the building prevent mishaps, such as fire or flooding. Damage means money spent. But from the tenants’ perspective, damage to the building or to innocent bystanders could bring bigger consequences: eviction leading to displacement to the street or worse.
story and photo by Hollie Garrett
I can remember the empty feeling of being disconnected from society while I was in prison. Every day it was a pressing issue to get on the pay phone. Not knowing if we would get out the cell, if there was going to be another lock down, if the phone line was going to be extra long, or if someone was even going to answer the call.
By Jack Walker
Imagine two single parents raising toddlers in DC. One has an annual salary of $65,000, while the other earns $11,000 a year by working part-time. Their financial situations seem quite different; the parent paid more has much more money at their disposal, right?
Financial analysts say not necessarily. These Washingtonians likely have similar amounts to spend each month, and not because one uses their dollars more judiciously.
by Jack Bragen
When I was young, in my 20s, I took pride in being able to get letters to the editor published. For a young adult with severe psychiatric illness, a letter to the editor in a paper is pretty good, but I wanted more. I really wanted to become a writer. Occasionally I submitted stories to publications, and considering the level of the writing I produced back then, I stood little or no chance of getting something accepted.
by Pete White
Today we gather, not in shock, but in a profound sense of sorrow.
Many of us are standing here with a calm face, but beneath it runs a river of despair. Our deepest fears have been laid bare for the world to see. This was never a battle of right versus wrong. This was never just another election. The wound we carry—the wound our nation carries—now lies open and raw,
by Jack Bragen
There is a trapdoor at the bottom of society’s mechanisms, that throws out people onto the street who can’t perform well enough to mind the details or keep pace with the rat race. A person can fall through it due to a massive amount of bad luck.
For people with disabilities, the system of benefits as it currently exists makes it very hard to work and earn enough money to survive without losing your benefits.
In response to the alarming rise in family homelessness, Supervisor Hilary Ronen, with support from the Coalition on Homelessness, introduced new legislation at the San Francisco Board of Supervisors meeting on October 22 to extend critical housing subsidies for families in need. The proposed ordinance amends the City’s Administrative Code to provide up to five years of rapid rehousing assistance for eligible families, addressing the increasing number of families at risk of returning to homelessness due to short-term housing subsidies.
by Jordan Davis
At the September 24 Board of Supervisors meeting, Supervisor Matt Dorsey pulled yet another policy out of his rear end that sounds reasonable on the surface, but in reality further stigmatizes permanent supportive housing (PSH) residents.
Hot off the heels of his proposed legislation to stifle PSH development unless a certain percentage is dedicated to drug recovery housing, Dorsey announced that he was requesting that legislation be drafted that would require that PSH disclose so-called “drug-tolerant”
by Isidore Mika Székely Manes-Dragan
Image courtesy of Wood Street Commons via Instagram
For the third straight year, a group of former Wood Street encampment residents bicycled some 80 miles from Oakland to Sacramento in a show of solidarity with unhoused Californians.
In their annual caravan to the state capitol, the Wood Street Commons residents rode for three days in October to lobby their lawmakers.
by Jack Bragen
Years ago, while I sat in a waiting room at a mental health clinic, I observed an old man who might have had dementia being brought in to get his shot of medication. He was grumpy and complaining at first, but said he felt better after the shot. It is plausible that the person administering it was to the man’s liking. It seems more doubtful to me that the medication,
