Vulnerable People and Places Blog

        source: https://www.wired.com/2009/11/portland-trimet-mass-transit/        An often overlooked factor for those experiencing homelessness is lack of transportation. A 2019 study by Erin Roark Murphy looked at the role transportation disadvantage can  play in the lives of people experiencing homelessness and found that "cost of transportation... has been found to prevent individuals' upward mobility out of homelessness" (Murphy, 2019).      Murphy argues that lack of transportation is an under studied yet demonstrably influential factor in homelessness in America. Furthermore it's not just those without homes who are impacted by access to transportation, other studies show that "individuals in the lowest income quintile spend about 36% of their annual budgets on transportation alone and this proportion is projected to continue increasing over the next ten years" (Murphy, 2019).       An ...

📷  Image from  iStock  illustrating economic stability. Imagine fighting poverty didn’t drain budgets but instead balanced them.  Across Oregon, many families are feeling the financial squeeze as the cost of everyday life rises exponentially. This financial strain isn’t just blowing out their wallets, it’s violating their sleep, health, and sense of security.  With nearly 15,000 Portlanders experiencing houselessness, it is no secret that the system that was meant to protect us is failing (Parfitt, 2025). 📷  Chart from the  Multnomah County Homelessness Services Data Dashboard  (2025). One promising solution to alleviate the financial strain is through a micro-income program. This program is essentially small, government issued cash allowances designed to provide economic stability for those with lower socioeconomic backgrounds. 📷  Image from the  SEED program website    An example of this kind of program comes from the SEED...

Finding Hope Between the Bookshelves By Miradi Tanzambi The mother in my first story eventually discovered a silent miracle in a location that many of us take for granted: her neighborhood library, after spending months sleeping in her car with two kids. It was more than a structure. Warmth, security, Wi-Fi, storytime for her kids, and a group of individuals who knew her name—possibly for the first time in years—were all present. Community hubs like libraries support families with stability, routine, and care. This is how Community Anchoring works. An homeless parent no longer feels invisible when they have access to a reliable, dependable place, such as a library. They acquire consistency, a sense of community, and nonjudgmental assistance. While she interacts with support personnel, charges her phone, or completes employment applications, the kids can read and play in safety.  Research shows this isn’t just emotional — it works. In The Guardian’s coverage of guaranteed income pr...

 By Arella D Ram     James Earley, “Violet and Blue Silence,”   The new “by-name list” unveiled in Multnomah County’s recent data release is not only far superior to the outdated point-in-time count—it exposes, almost uncomfortably, the government’s earlier posture toward Portland’s homelessness crisis. As OPB reported, the old model relied on a single night’s tally in select areas, producing numbers that vastly underestimated the scale of need. Meanwhile, this new system—tracking individuals across programs—immediately revealed more than 14,400 people experiencing homelessness , compared to the 11,000 previously cited. That jump did not reflect an overnight surge in human suffering, but the simple truth that our former method was never designed to see the whole picture. This forces a painful question: were leaders truly trying to understand the depth of the crisis, or simply meeting the minimum federal requirement to secure funding? When policymakers depend on a o...

Photo Credit: Atlanta Mission, 2025 When we think about solutions to the crisis of the unhoused, it’s easy to focus on the visible needs like tents, shelters, and emergency beds. But long-term recovery isn’t just about a roof, it’s about reconnection. The experience of losing stable housing often leads to isolation, the slow unraveling of community ties, and the loss of dignity. Without addressing these human needs, even the best policies fall short. A growing body of research shows that social connection is just as vital as housing itself. The National Alliance to End Homelessness emphasizes that successful housing programs must pair stable housing with wraparound support, noting that “supportive services are offered to maximize housing stability and prevent returns to homelessness” (National Alliance to End Homelessness, 2022). In other words, providing stability means rebuilding belonging. Programs like Housing First illustrate this principle in action. Instead of making housing con...

  Houselessness is often associated with visible changes including lack of shelter and food insecurity, but there are hidden barriers that individuals endure. The digital divide is one of these overlooked factors, but greatly impacts one's ability to access resources such as jobs, communication, and access to digitally stored information.  In this modern era no person travels anywhere without their smartphone. Without access to these devices, we are heavily inconvenienced in our everyday lives as most of our information is stored digitally, whether that be online banking or digital communication. Noting this, without access to computers, smartphones, and reliable internet, houseless people are cut off from essential resources. This includes job boards, housing listings, vital communication channels, and access to health and wellness. The digital divide also contributes to social isolation, as the inability to connect with others can worsen feelings of loneliness and detachment...

Why This Matters Every day, we see how our current support systems are stretched thin. People who are houseless are often expected to navigate waitlists, eligibility screenings, and service requirements just to get access to basic needs. Meanwhile, survival cannot be paused. Someone needs to eat today, sleep somewhere safe tonight, and stay dry when it rains for months on end. The gap between what people need and what systems offer is where a lot of harm and exhaustion happens. But while institutions take time to act, communities move. Mutual aid shows us a different way of caring, one rooted in shared dignity, immediate action, and the belief that everyone deserves to have what they need. Mutual aid is not charity. It does not ask people to prove they are worthy of support. It simply recognizes that we are all connected, and that our survival is tied to one another. The Gaps in System Support People who are houseless often face barriers that feel impossible to navigate while also tryi...