The Human Right to Housing

New Article by Law Center Executive Director Shows Link Between Homelessness and Human Rights

In the newest issue of Shelterforce, the journal of affordable housing and community building, Law Center Executive Director Maria Foscarinis examines homelessness as a human rights issue -- showing the progress we've made and the work that lay ahead.

Her article discusses the startling 20 percent increase in family homelessness between 2007 and 2010, and the increased need for emergency services reported across the country.  These trends stand in stark contrast to the promise the U.S. made in ratifying the Declaration of Human Rights in 1948: that it would help ensure all human beings have "an adequate standard of living."

Thanks to the Law Center and the tireless work of local advocates, we're seeing a paradigm shift toward addressing homelessness as a human rights issue.  With more Americans living in poverty than ever before, this is a critical development.

To read the full article, click here.