Well written, Emme Dunning. One solution for all never works. Recognizing the humanity and the individual is key to helping the most vulnerable. Thank you, Bob Dunning for posting this.
Rob Davis "hit the nail on the head" with his assessment: "“Navigators are really about inviting people back into the community,” Davis said. “I think that if we only had that, even if we didn’t have more rooms, we would be able to help a lot of people make a move off the street. It would be transformative.” Compassion isn't enough. Community "buy-in" and "hospitality" is the key to ending Homelessness. Thank you Emme, for this thorough journalistic analysis. I'm saving (and referring to) this model with the hope that I will be able to garner the courage to be kind.
THIS!: “It’s a completely different model,” Davis said. “It’s a tireless pursuit of a relationship with people. Navigators are a commitment, first and foremost, to the humanity of the people in front of us. You’re not trying to compel them to make a change or threaten them to make a change. You’re saying, ‘I’m going to walk with this person. I’m going to learn who they are and where they’re from. And then I’m going to see if there are options in their life.’ ”
The people with influence and power over the homeless problem often have a direct conflict of interest in that their livelihood and/or purpose would diminish if the problem was solved. Others have an indirect conflict of interest in their continued aversion to the type of real tough love required to solve the problem. The frustrating thing about both conflicts is that we know it and see it and yet deny it... and thus the tragedy of homelessness keeps growing.
It is certainly a complex problem but largely because we have a "saver's complex"... where elites exist to "fix" other people's problems for them... instead of installing a framework that demands people fix their own problems.
My natural father with his mental health issues was homeless in Hawaii for nearly 40 years until they told him no and forced him into a hostel. He gets minimal "help" and has learned how do better caring for himself. Certainly there are people with more severe mental issues or hard addiction... they need involuntary commitment and treatment. But many are just allowed to flounder because "we care".
Thank you for a very comprehensive and interesting article, Emme. Until I became a teacher I was a social worker. In the early 1960's the homeless population was not what we see today. Women with children were the only people able to obtain Aids To Families With Dependent Children. (AFDC) I believe drugs, wars, and inequity in pay and taxes have caused much of the homeless population today. Congratulations on your graduation, Emme. Please keep writing.
I know this suggestion is not a solution which will resolve the immediate crises, but I guarantee it will prevent future crises brought on by Republicans. This is a long-term solution, but if we start talking about it now, we will definitely get some traction in the upcoming midterms.
Voters are angry. Voters support Trump and Republicans or don’t vote at all because they are angry about their economic circumstances.
Housing is the biggest expense any worker has. Investors have driven up the price of residential properties.
Until George W. Bush mutual funds were prohibited from owning residential properties. In the 1950s, 60s and 70s almost any home in California could be purchased on ONE minimum wage salary.
Assemblyman Alex Lee from Milpitas, CA submitted a bill (AB1240) this session to limit the number of homes owned by corporations to 1000. 1000 is a lot but it’s a start.
Congressman Ro Khanna introduced H.R.10028 - Stop
Wall Street Landlords Act of 2024.
The cost of housing keeps most young people destitute, depressed about the future and not voting, leaving them without the brainspace to think about anything political.
Structural change is necessary. Subsidies are counterproductive and massively unpopular.
exceptional piece of literature, emme! you were my darling student in first grade faith formation many years ago! SVDP is a huge advocate of the homeless. keep up your excellent work!
“We Are Not the Strangers Here”
On any given night beneath Yolo’s stars,
a thousand dreams sleep in cars.
Tents bloom like wilted flowers
rooted in sidewalks,
forgotten by power.
They are not strangers to these streets,
only strangers to your eyes.
They carry stories—not statistics—
in the folds of their sleeping bags,
in the silence of government replies.
We see the math.
A 26 percent rise.
But you cannot quantify
a grandmother’s sigh
as she watches her last dollar
flutter down like fall’s first leaf.
You cannot chart
a child’s belief
that the backseat of a car
is just a temporary bed
until morning brings
a better dream instead.
California has pledged its billions.
But still, hope breaks
on broken sidewalks.
Still, systems crack
where people fall through.
Still, a woman named Rosa
crawled her way through
addiction’s cage,
through prison gates,
through policies that expired
as quickly as her housing dates.
She rose.
Not because the system caught her.
But because someone saw her.
Because someone said:
“You are not the problem to be solved.
You are the story to be honored.”
This is the lesson that lingers:
No one heals from a clipboard.
No one rises from being told
that they don’t belong
until they are made to feel
they do.
So don’t just build beds.
Build bridges.
Don’t just erect shelter.
Erect systems
that listen, that labor, that last.
Because when the policy ends,
the person remains.
When the funding fades,
the faces stay.
We are calling for more
than press releases
and photo-op plans.
We’re calling for navigators
who walk beside—not ahead.
Who ask not “Why won’t you change?”
but “How can I help you stand instead?”
Because true transformation
isn’t handed down—it’s handed over.
It’s earned in the tenderness
of one human
seeing another
and choosing not to look away.
So let it be said:
We will not be the state
that criminalizes pain.
We will be the community
that recognizes names.
Rosa. Becky. Robb. Michelle.
These are not cases.
They are people.
And they are us as well.
We are not waiting for change.
We are it.
The first step is not in funding.
It is in witnessing.
So rise, Yolo.
Not to pity, but to promise.
Not to fix, but to foster.
Let no one sleep unseen.
Let no one fall unheard.
And let no one tell you
that dignity
is a privilege,
when it has always been
a birthright.
Beautifully and truthfully said, Andy.
Thank you
Thank your daughter for writing that insightful article.
great writing by emme on a difficult subject
The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.
You're making me smile, Leslie.
Well written, Emme Dunning. One solution for all never works. Recognizing the humanity and the individual is key to helping the most vulnerable. Thank you, Bob Dunning for posting this.
Rob Davis "hit the nail on the head" with his assessment: "“Navigators are really about inviting people back into the community,” Davis said. “I think that if we only had that, even if we didn’t have more rooms, we would be able to help a lot of people make a move off the street. It would be transformative.” Compassion isn't enough. Community "buy-in" and "hospitality" is the key to ending Homelessness. Thank you Emme, for this thorough journalistic analysis. I'm saving (and referring to) this model with the hope that I will be able to garner the courage to be kind.
This piece is some of the best journalism I’ve read in a long, long time.
Thanks Austin. It looks like a lot of hard work went into this one.
Thank you for your kind words. Solving this problem will certainly require a radically different approach to what we now see as the 'standard.'
THIS!: “It’s a completely different model,” Davis said. “It’s a tireless pursuit of a relationship with people. Navigators are a commitment, first and foremost, to the humanity of the people in front of us. You’re not trying to compel them to make a change or threaten them to make a change. You’re saying, ‘I’m going to walk with this person. I’m going to learn who they are and where they’re from. And then I’m going to see if there are options in their life.’ ”
The people with influence and power over the homeless problem often have a direct conflict of interest in that their livelihood and/or purpose would diminish if the problem was solved. Others have an indirect conflict of interest in their continued aversion to the type of real tough love required to solve the problem. The frustrating thing about both conflicts is that we know it and see it and yet deny it... and thus the tragedy of homelessness keeps growing.
It is certainly a complex problem but largely because we have a "saver's complex"... where elites exist to "fix" other people's problems for them... instead of installing a framework that demands people fix their own problems.
My natural father with his mental health issues was homeless in Hawaii for nearly 40 years until they told him no and forced him into a hostel. He gets minimal "help" and has learned how do better caring for himself. Certainly there are people with more severe mental issues or hard addiction... they need involuntary commitment and treatment. But many are just allowed to flounder because "we care".
Thank you for a very comprehensive and interesting article, Emme. Until I became a teacher I was a social worker. In the early 1960's the homeless population was not what we see today. Women with children were the only people able to obtain Aids To Families With Dependent Children. (AFDC) I believe drugs, wars, and inequity in pay and taxes have caused much of the homeless population today. Congratulations on your graduation, Emme. Please keep writing.
Thank you for your insight and for your kind words.
I know this suggestion is not a solution which will resolve the immediate crises, but I guarantee it will prevent future crises brought on by Republicans. This is a long-term solution, but if we start talking about it now, we will definitely get some traction in the upcoming midterms.
Voters are angry. Voters support Trump and Republicans or don’t vote at all because they are angry about their economic circumstances.
Housing is the biggest expense any worker has. Investors have driven up the price of residential properties.
Until George W. Bush mutual funds were prohibited from owning residential properties. In the 1950s, 60s and 70s almost any home in California could be purchased on ONE minimum wage salary.
Assemblyman Alex Lee from Milpitas, CA submitted a bill (AB1240) this session to limit the number of homes owned by corporations to 1000. 1000 is a lot but it’s a start.
Congressman Ro Khanna introduced H.R.10028 - Stop
Wall Street Landlords Act of 2024.
The cost of housing keeps most young people destitute, depressed about the future and not voting, leaving them without the brainspace to think about anything political.
Structural change is necessary. Subsidies are counterproductive and massively unpopular.
exceptional piece of literature, emme! you were my darling student in first grade faith formation many years ago! SVDP is a huge advocate of the homeless. keep up your excellent work!
Thank you so much, great to hear from you!
Wait, wasn’t Emme just in kindergarten? Where has the time gone? What an amazing article. Thank you for bringing attention to this topic.
She grew up fast, Tony.
Very well written. I wonder what 27 billion divided by 180,000 is? If money can't solve the problem of homelessness then what will?
Nice job, Emme! I'm glad someone's shedding some light on the situation.
Very informative, thank you.
Well researched, thanks for sharing this information
The Force runs strongly in the family. Congratulations for your graduation!
Thank you!
Very nice work Emme!