There’s a kind of urban legend about services for homeless folks. Maybe you’ve heard it. The legend goes like this: If someone wants to get into housing, they can. If someone wants to get into a shelter, they can. There are ample, clean beds just waiting — all a person living outside needs to do is accept the generous offers of help they receive when teams of police stomp by, bagging up tents and throwing away tarps.
This story usually concludes with a housed person determining that homeless people “should go to a shelter and get help.” ...