Those experiencing homelessness are closest to the problem and closest to the solutions but are often undervalued, stigmatized and scapegoated for the issues in our community. They are not seen as an equal partner in developing homelessness solutions. The COVID-19 pandemic and the latest manifestations of the movement for racial justice serve as a reminder that racism and other forms of oppression are key drivers of homelessness throughout the United States and especially in our Seattle-King County region.
We must invest in strategies that address barriers identified by our unhoused neighbors and amplify housing solutions co-designed by people with lived experience and expertise of homelessness. We must invest in strategies that shift from a victim- or needs-analysis in an attempt to “fix” people living homeless to a systems-change approach that recognizes the role policies, politics, systems and the white nonprofit industrial complex play in perpetuating and maintaining inequities. We must invest in strategies that seek to heal the long history of housing inequity through approaches that shift resources and power back to racially marginalized and historically disenfranchised communities.
In King County, the Washington State Lived Experience Coalition (LEC) Seattle-King County Chapter is working closely with the King County Regional Homelessness Authority (KCRHA) and We Are In to flip that script and recognize the Indigenous wisdom, cultural assets, resiliency and community knowledge that folks with lived experience of homelessness and our communities bring. Together, finally, we are building a homelessness response system that is shaped by those most impacted.
Our most recent project is also the one about which I am most excited: Partnership for Zero. Partnership for Zero is a new, united approach to dramatically reduce unsheltered homelessness in King County, starting in downtown Seattle. We aim to build a future in which homelessness is rare, overall, and brief when it occurs by creating the infrastructure and capacity to put every person experiencing unsheltered homelessness on the path toward permanent housing equitably. This work is grounded in the steadfast belief that everyone deserves a safe place to call home, the stability from which is proven to increase engagement with supportive services and reduce the chances of returning to homelessness.
Partnership for Zero is made possible by an innovative collaboration between people with lived experience and expertise of homelessness; grassroots, community based organizations; advocates; service providers; government; business; philanthropy; and the faith community. When I hear “public-private partnership,” I usually think of government and private donors. But Partnership for Zero is bringing together more than bureaucrats and big names –– it’s bringing our entire community to the table. It centers those with lived experience, especially Indigenous, Black, Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander, disabled and LGBTQ2SIA+ — communities overrepresented in homelessness. The result is a human-centered approach that treats people experiencing homelessness as people, meets them where they are and matches them with resources that meet their needs.
As someone who experienced homelessness long ago, I am confident that Partnership for Zero’s new approach will make a transformative difference for folks experiencing homelessness in our communities. First, the development of a “By-Name List” –– a comprehensive list of all the people experiencing homelessness in a designated area and their individualized needs –– will provide us with the information necessary to get folks the right resources. Whereas traditional efforts to track homelessness rely on data from a count that occurs one night per year, a By-Name List will allow us to account for every person experiencing homelessness in real time, including qualitative data on how we can best serve them (i.e. health concerns or whether they have a pet), which is hugely important when matching our unhoused neighbors with resources, services, shelter or housing placements.
Crucially, Partnership for Zero is also making a significant investment in peer outreach so that those who have lived experience of homelessness and an understanding of how the system works can support others as they navigate the path from unhoused to housed. It was peers who helped me on my journey of recovery and out of homelessness. Peer outreach workers often have better results because they are better equipped to establish the trust needed to bring folks inside. Through shared struggle and pain, peer navigators can connect with and support our unhoused neighbors in a way that others can’t.
I am proud of and encouraged by the role that the LEC has and will continue to play in this partnership. Together, we can build a stronger, racially equitable and socially just King County.
Dr. LaMont Green is the executive director of the Washington State Lived Experience Coalition Seattle-King County Chapter.
Read more of the Feb. 23-Mar. 1, 2022 issue.