Please join us at the Statehouse for Homelessness Awareness Day on Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2020

Every year in January, concerned citizens, housing and homeless service providers, and people with lived experience gather at the Statehouse in Montpelier to encourage representatives and senators to renew the commitment to end homelessness in Vermont and bring awareness to all those in our state without a place to call home. For more information, click here.

In preparation for this event, our weekly Round Up focuses on the homelessness crisis in Vermont and across the country, and on solutions.

“This is a solvable problem”

Federal housing voucher programs in Vermont have been underutilized because of a lack of case management support, inadequate affordable housing stock, and an unwillingness by some landlords to rent to tenants with a history of homelessness. Denying housing because of receipt of housing assistance (like Section 8) is a direct violation of Vermont’s Fair Housing Law. About 55% of eligible households are not able to use their vouchers. “People are living in the streets and the woods because we failed to act,” says Champlain Housing Trust Director of Community Relations Chris Donnelly, “This is a solvable problem.”

Taking a closer look at the how we treat homeless people across the country, we are shocked to see shock that in the world’s fifth largest economy, California, homelessness continues to grow, and so too does violence against homeless people.

In LA alone, there were at least 8 recorded incidents where people threw flammable liquids or makeshift explosives at homeless people or their tents within the last year. Some communities, like Clinton Park Alley in San Francisco, opt to spend their funds on installing boulders to deter sleeping on the sidewalks rather than put those resources towards protecting their most vulnerable citizens.

“The first priority in every disaster is to make people safe”

Our Canadian neighbors in Edmonton, Alberta have addressed this issue by “treating homelessness like the disaster it is,” funneling their efforts and their resources as they would a natural disaster.

“The first priority in every disaster is to make people safe – deal with the immediate crisis and provide shelter and support. In most cities, the response to homelessness starts and stops there. A critical feature of Edmonton’s response to homelessness (like every municipal disaster response) is that it ensures safety through outreach and emergency shelter, but it concurrently and urgently focuses on housing people as fast as it can. Since 2009, Edmonton has housed more than 9,560 people using the housing first approach.” The City of Edmonton has reduced homelessness by 43% in under 9 years.

Local victory for homeless rights:

Thanks to the ACLU-Vermont, the City of Burlington now has an official policy which outlines clear steps around the process of shelter removal. This policy will ensure more protection of property for Burlington residents living without homes. When the few possessions of a homeless resident is seized, it often includes items crucial to their livelihood, including sleeping bags, medication, food and clothing which is challenging to replace. “Punishing individuals for sleeping in public when they have nowhere else to go violates the U.S. Constitution and goes against Burlington’s values that all residents be treated with respect and compassion,” stated Jared Carter, a lawyer working with the ACLU. The new policy requires the city to inform people of the specific reason their sheltering site is being considered for removal, provide an opportunity to object to the removal, give notice before taking property from the sites, and then store that property for at least 30 days.

You can join our effort in bringing awareness to and ending homelessness in our state. Come to the Statehouse on Wednesday, Jan. 15 in honor of those who have experienced homelessness, and to demand more action from our representatives. We’ll see you there!