Winter Walk

A growing debate in Illinois is exposing a larger national question: Should people experiencing homelessness be punished for surviving in public when they have nowhere else to go? A proposed Illinois bill would limit how local governments can criminalize unsheltered homelessness - particularly when people are engaged in what the legislation calls “life-sustaining activities” like sleeping, resting, or protecting themselves from the elements on public property. The legislation comes in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2024 ruling in City of Grants Pass v. Johnson, which expanded cities’ authority to penalize outdoor sleeping and encampments. Advocates say that decision accelerated punitive local policies across the country, including in Illinois, where dozens of municipalities already enforce ordinances targeting unsheltered people. And that’s where this conversation becomes bigger than encampments. https://lnkd.in/e2NWXDMj

In recent years, a number of high-profile incidents involving a mental health crisis on our streets and in our subways have led to feelings of fear, confusion, anger and being overwhelmed. As we navigate these events, we recommend you keep this blog post from our New York Organizational Partner The Bowery Mission handy. https://lnkd.in/eg83-k6H

Millions of renters with pets face housing instability each year. Housing issues remain one of the leading reasons pets are relinquished to shelters. Lack of affordable, pet-inclusive housing forces families into impossible choices. This is all proof that oppressive systems don’t exist in silos. This article argues that if we want to address animal homelessness, we also have to address the root causes affecting people: poverty, eviction, inaccessible housing, and economic inequality. What would more humane, pet-inclusive housing policies look like in your community? https://lnkd.in/e7rG7xrQ

A web of interrelated social failures in the city of Chicago has left more of the most vulnerable community members sheltering on the train. So every Wednesday night, outreach workers from our Chicago Organizational Partner The Night Ministry gather at the CTA Red Line’s terminal on the city’s North Side to meet this vulnerable community where they are at. On Thursday nights, they do the same at the Blue Line’s terminal stop in the west Chicago suburb Forest Park. They typically engage with roughly 200 people, according to David Wywialowski, the director of outreach and health, but the numbers fluctuate based on the weather. Learn more about this outreach program here: https://lnkd.in/dMe9HA3J T

This budget cut could mean tens of millions are at stake and could mean life or death for thousands. Doug Fraser of our Chicago Organizational Partner, Chicago Help Initiative, talks to Fox 32 Chicago about how the funds raised during Winter Walk can help bridge the funding gap for many local organizations: Franciscan Outreach, The Night Ministry, Ignatian Spirituality Project, The Boulevard of Chicago, Chicago Coalition to End Homelessness. Watch here: https://lnkd.in/eWftMM5e

We already know that LGBTQ+ individuals - especially transgender people - experience homelessness at disproportionately high rates. And shelters are often the first, and sometimes only, point of stability. Last week, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) introduced a proposed rule that requires federally funded shelters to house prospective tenants based on their birth sex alone. This will leave a large number of trans homeless people without a safe place to sleep. https://lnkd.in/erRX-9Uv

We have exciting news to share about our Boston Organizational Partner, Women's Lunch Place! 📣WLP's full-time therapist has been named an EXTRAOrdinary Woman by the City of Boston! For women experiencing homelessness, it can be nearly impossible to find consistent mental health care. Wait lists are long. The bureaucracy can be overwhelming. So it's no wonder that Lianne O'Reilly and her consistent provision of healthcare to women in need were honored by Michelle Wu for Mayor. https://lnkd.in/e_C9s7KU

Bridge Over Troubled Waters has installed 5 public health vending machines all over the city containing: 💙 Narcan 💙 Fentanyl testing strips 💙 Prophylactics 💙 Pregnancy tests 💙 Hand warmers 💙 Socks 💙 Snacks 💙 Toiletries 💙 Wound care kits We are proud of our Organizational Partner's harm reduction vending machines and the impact they will have on our community! https://lnkd.in/eKJp8rYV

In July of last year, an Executive Order was issued directing federal agencies to treat homelessness as a public safety issue that requires interventions previously discouraged by the federal government: 👉 Local bans on homeless encampments, 👉 The rollback of harm reduction strategies 👉 New conditions on federal housing assistance. Then in December of last year, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development released a notice of funding opportunity (NOFO) that upended the United States government’s Housing First approach to homelessness. Dr. Garrett L. Grainger, a research fellow of social inclusion at Wrexham University in Wales, has written a piece for Shelterforce titled "A Grim March Toward Death: What HUD's New Homeless Policy Looks Like on the Ground." In researching the article, Grainger spoke on condition of anyonymity to Administrators from 55 Continuum of Care sites, who shared their views on how proposed cuts, rapid changes to funding guidelines, and delays are affecting their work. https://lnkd.in/etsNEGsM

After Pete's mom passed away when he was just six years old, he found himself in and out of foster care between Sacramento, California and Cape Cod before eventually ending up living on the streets. Read Pete's story, which he generously shared with us on our blog: https://lnkd.in/e3p49SPm We are so thankful for the work that organizations like Comonmonwealth Land Trust and Hope House Addiction Services do for the homeless community in Boston. With their support, Pete is housed, has secured his GED, and is now mentoring others who have experienced similar hardships.