In our recent webinar, Teen and Young Adult Homelessness: Youth and Providers Partnering on Solutions, community partners discussed how we can end homelessness together. CFTH Strategic Partnerships and Advocacy Manager Laura Ellsworth asked our speakers, “What would you want people to know about youth who are experiencing homelessness?” Here are their answers:
Brian Starbuck, Council for the Homeless
“There really needs to be support in place for these youth that are aging into adulthood. These are the people who are going to be running our country in the next ten years. If we don’t support them, they aren’t going to be able to support us later on in life. They are our kids: nieces, nephews, sons, and daughters. They all deserve a helping hand. We’re all better off when everyone has a safe, stable home.”
Megan Griffith, Janus Youth Programs
“There’s this thought that youth want to be on the streets or this common myth that they’re just messing around and don’t want to go to school or just want freedom. The reality is that this homelessness traces back to other things. It’s not a choice to be on the streets. Homelessness is usually connected to some other form of trauma. If we don’t try and understand how trauma works and its impacts, then we’re never going to be able to get a grasp on the homelessness and housing crisis.”
Joshua Butler, Janus Youth Programs
“We have to remember that youth and young adults aren’t choosing to be unhoused. You hear people try to lump everyone experiencing homelessness together as a monolith, acting as if they’re not individual people. By taking away that humanity, it’s doing a huge disservice to the people who are facing difficulties every single day just trying to survive.
Go out there and educate people on what it’s really like to be facing homelessness day in and day out – sometimes for years at a time. It’s not easy. It’s hard, and these are real people with real experiences who are going to have to face and work trauma through for a long time. Why don’t we band together as a community and ensure that it’s as short-lived as possible?”
Terrell Berry, A Way Home Washington
“We can prevent and end homelessness. It’s about finding creative solutions, being courageous, and not taking no for an answer. It’s also about listening to the youth. Youth homelessness in 2023 looks very different from youth homelessness in 2015 – times are changing. Listening to youth stories is so important in order to understand the current experiences of homelessness.
The youth we work with are able to make key decisions. They recognize rent is expensive and try to come up with creative solutions on their own. They just need a little help doing it. Authentic youth engagement is one of the best parts of our programs.”