#housingfirst

Una casa può essere molto più di quattro mura. A Firenze un condominio solidale dimostra che l’abitare può diventare uno spazio di rinascita, relazione e dignità. Quando la comunità diventa parte della soluzione, la marginalità smette di essere invisibile.

WATCH live from Washington D.C. Public Hearing to decriminalize sex work

On March 13, Shahera extended her crowd sourcing engagement activity to first-year MSW students at California State University, Sacramento.  Following a collaborative discussion on the barriers to housing and support services, MSW students suggested the following approaches to comprehensively end homelessness:

1.  Re-evaluate and Re-distribute multi-level funding

Establish a permanent and reliable source of funding solely dedicated to affordable housing

Organize tax payer funding to provide a greater allotment to housing and services for folks experiencing homelessness and housing insecurity

Allow less to be funneled into the prison system, and reroute the funds to promote decriminalization practices that effect folks experiencing homelessness

Cut military spending

2.  Establish and Implement Supportive Resources and Procedures

Allow social workers to be the first responders instead of police

Create programs connected to community centers around cities that allow sleeping indoors

Allow materials to be used to create mobile pseudo-shelter without penalization

Improve access to quality affordable health care regardless of financial or housing status

Increase access to mental health resources and services regardless of financial or housing status

3.  Apply and Embrace the Housing First Model

Decrease restrictive shelters and increase amount of low-barrier shelters

Allow access regardless of substance use, criminal background, documentation, pets, etc…

 Establish more affordable housing options outside of shelters that are low-barrier

Increase the quality and quantity of transitional programs for former foster or formerly incarcerated youth

4.  Create, Support, and Market Innovative Housing Programs

Convert closed military bases and hotels into community housing

Establish housing as a right, similar to education and medical insurance

Market a host home platform for people to “rent” rooms to folks experiencing homelessness and housing insecurity by providing incentives (tax breaks, etc.)

In 2008 you could see tent villages and huts standing between trees in the parks of Helsinki. Homeless people had built makeshift homes in the middle of Finland’s capital city. They were exposed to harsh weather conditions.

Since the 1980s, Finnish governments had been trying to reduce homelessness. Short-term shelters were built. However, long-term homeless people were still left out. There were too few emergency shelters and many affected people did not manage to get out of homelessness: They couldn’t find jobs – without a housing address. And without any job, they couldn’t find a flat. It was a vicious circle. Furthermore, they had problems applying for social benefits. All in all, homeless people found themselves trapped.

But in 2008 the Finnish government introduced a new policy for the homeless: It started implementing the “Housing First” concept. Since then the number of people affected has fallen sharply.