“District residents who are least effected by the recession are willing to pay higher taxes so that no child in our nation’s capital will go without a roof over their head!”
– HCPP Volunteer

This spring, dozens of volunteers and parents headed to City Council to express concern over the Mayor’s proposed budget cuts and propose alternative solutions. READ the powerful letters to city leaders from parents and children in shelters and the HCPP volunteers who know and love them!

The Reality in the District:

• Homelessness among families has doubled this winter over last

• Unemployment has doubled in D.C. as a result of the recession

• 11,000 more D.C. residents fell into poverty last year

• 165,000 D.C. residents earn less than $21,800 for a family of 4

• 2 in 5 DC residents are paying more than 30% of their income on housing

• The DHS budget (which funds homeless services) has been cut despite double family homelessness this year and longer lines at help centers

The City’s budget responds to this reality by cutting services and failing to invest in decent shelters and affordable housing. City revenues are falling, and politicians would rather cut services to the most vulnerable among us rather than raise taxes on those least effected by the recession. Tell your city leaders what you think!

Advocacy Resources

• Check out the latest advocacy campaigns here: Fair Budget Coalition and Save Our Safety Net

• Report: 1 in 50 American children homeless: See the National Center on Family Homelessness 2009 report, “America's Youngest Outcasts: State Report Card on Child Homelessness”

• Center for Housing Policy report “Paycheck to Paycheck” on Wages and Cost of Housing in America

• A 9-year-old child drew the picture on our home page to express how he feels about living in a D.C. shelter which inspired testimony by NCCF and HCPP before the City Council.

• Click Here For More Advocacy Resources and Statistics

How do families become homeless?

Families with children find themselves homeless in the District of Columbia for a variety of reasons. Rising rent costs, landlords selling property, family crises like job loss, parental incarceration, domestic violence, medical problems, mental health problems, fire, and often a combination of many factors. Often times, there is trauma associated with a family’s journey to homelessness. What may start out with a family crisis becomes a knock on the door by the U.S. Marshals and all of their earthly possessions being put out on the street during an eviction.

Where does a family go?

If your family should face a crisis that results in losing your home, where would you go? Most families move in temporarily with family or friends or maybe stay in a hotel for as long as they can. These families are called the “hidden homeless” and living under such uncertainty can be a tremendous strain on a family’s financial resources and on the social supports of whomever they are living doubled-up with. Each year, 7,000 children and their families find themselves in a desperate enough situation to apply for emergency shelter each year in DC. The Virginia Williams Family Resource Center at 920 Rhode Island Avenue NE is the entry-point to the family shelter system in DC. Because there are so few shelter beds available, families must go through great lengths to prove they are homeless and most get turned away. Approximately 350 families are on the waiting list for shelter at any given time. Several families even slept outside during the summer of 2009.

What is the District’s Response?

The District of Columbia government wants to move away from providing costly emergency shelter to providing more “housing first” programs, that is, subsidized housing units with supportive case management services attached. Advocates and the city government agree that families are better off in their own apartment units with services to support independence. The problem is, there simply is not enough affordable housing to keep pace with the need.

It is a false choice to pick between funding housing vs. shelter; we need both safe shelters and access affordable housing so that someday, no child and no family in our nation’s capital will face the devastation of homelessness. While nobody wants to live in a shelter, emergency housing programs with the right supports can help families get back on their feet after a crisis.