Domestic Violence within the Homeless Community

Domestic Violence within the Homeless Community

Source: Unsplash

The Facts

According to Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), 233,832 are people experiencing unsheltered homelessness in the United States. Of the 233,832, 50,767 are families with children. Currently, 30% of homeless people are adult women. (portlandoregon.gov) Bradley Angle, which works to support survivors of domestic violence, reported that 70% of domestic violence reports are from homeless women. (www.kgw.com) Homeless women are 1/3 of the fastest growing populations HUD homeless populations. (portlandoregon.gov) Specifically, in Portland, Multnomah County has experienced a 20% rise in homelessness in 2023, the total amount of people homeless in Portland is currently 6,297. (willametteweek.com)

Source: Unsplash

The Problem

There is an overwhelming need for domestic violence victims to find emergency shelter after an incident or when trying to leave an abuser. Many shelters in Portland, OR have lowered capacity limits from the ever-lingering battle against COVID-19. In the past two years, the population of homeless women have raised by 15%, of that 15% nearly half have reported being victims of domestic violence. Furthermore, once homeless they are much more likely to experience violence on the streets, this is especially true for women of color. (portlandoregon.gov) Many women feel they need to stay in domestic violent situations because of the lack of housing available to them.

What qualifies as abuse?

controlling money
critisizes you
demeans you
physically hurts you
keeps you from friends and family
threatens to "out" you
refuses birth control or keeps you from using birth control
keeping you off leases, mortgages or bank accounts
threatens you based of immigration status
keeps you from finding a job or attuning school
threatens to report your immigration status
controls who you see or what you do
forces you to engage in sexual activity
threatens to harm your children or take you from them
hurts members of your family

* abuse can effect people of all backgrounds regardless of race, age, disability,sexual orientation or gender.

What we can do?

It is very important that we work with healthcare and domestic violence partners to try and remedy this problem. If you suspect someone is in an abusive situation, report it. Make sure to provide resources to the victim for counseling, emergency shelters and legal assistance. Push to pass laws to protect women when it comes to evictions and renting. We need to be able to provide confidential reporting for all DV victims. Currently the stay limit at a emergency shelter is only 60 days, we need to extend this time to allow women and families enough time to get back on their feet.

Portland DV Resources