For unsheltered people, outlets are tough to come by

Jobs, Journalism, Justice

Hanna Brooks Olsen is a writer living in Portland.

Articles by Hanna Brooks Olsen

Access Denied: When data doesn’t save the day

By Hanna Brooks Olsen | February 1, 2017

Since Mayor Ed Murray declared homelessness an emergency in November of 2015, there have been countless meetings, town halls and conversations aimed at establishing steps toward the goal of bringing more people indoors. On the second floor of Seattle City Hall in the City Council chambers, task forces and committees and advocates and activists have convened on a regular basis.

There has been a lot of talking. There has been some action. But as the One Night Count — now called Count Us In — demonstrated this year, there are still thousands sleeping outside. ...

Where can you stay when your best friend is turned away?

By Hanna Brooks Olsen | January 4, 2017

Prior to 2015, no indoor shelter in Seattle permitted individuals experiencing homelessness to bring pets inside with them, which often forced a difficult choice. That winter, following the declaration of the State of Emergency, one pet-friendly shelter finally opened, though just for the season, and only for men.

King County Executive Dow Constantine called it “a critical accommodation for many who need to stay warm but understandably won’t abandon an animal companion.” ...

Access Denied: In search of socks

By Hanna Brooks Olsen | December 7, 2016

Despite the popular misconception that homelessness is a life of relative leisure that entails sleeping much of the day, the reality is that most unsheltered folks spend their days on the move. Whether it’s being chased from parks, swept from greenbelts, or pursuing food, water, medicine, services, or other necessary survival items, people who live outside are on their feet a lot. ...

Access Denied: How homelessness is a crime

By Hanna Brooks Olsen | November 2, 2016

In the city of Seattle, you may be ticketed for camping or sleeping in a public place, sitting on a sidewalk, or using the restroom.

In other words, things that people who live inside do every day without thinking twice become punishable offenses when you’re outside with nowhere else to do them. ...

Access Denied: Art is not just for rich people

By Hanna Brooks Olsen | October 5, 2016

At the annual Plymouth Housing luncheon last month, Los Angeles Philharmonic violinist and Street Symphony founder Vijay Gupta told the lesser-known story of composer Antonio Vivaldi. Best known for his “Four Seasons,” Vivaldi wrote many of his most beloved works not for performance by elite musicians, but rather, for girls raised in a home for orphans. ...

Not a Drop to Drink

By Hanna Brooks Olsen | September 7, 2016

Dehydration can kill a person faster than hunger — much faster. Though the human body can survive weeks without food, the average person will begin to show signs of serious dehydration after just two days. Three days without water is typically considered fatal.

In spite of this common knowledge, lawmakers don’t treat access to potable water like a human right. ...

Access Denied: The painful problem with periods

By Hanna Brooks Olsen | August 3, 2016

For a span of about six months in my early 20s, I didn’t buy tampons, and not because I didn’t want to. Working nights as a commercial janitor during college, I trimmed my expenses in any way possible, including helping myself to the menstrual products from the industrial-sized boxes used to stock the machines in the office bathrooms.

It wasn’t my most ethical moment, though I’d argue that the expense and relative unavailability of menstrual products isn’t particularly humane, either. ...