Communication + Participation = Impact

This month the Law Center launches our new blog, part of a strategy to increase our communication, especially on line. Why? We want to engage as many people as possible in our work to end and prevent homelessness in America. The more people we engage, and the more we all work together, the bigger the impact.

Public opinion surveys show that the public wants to help-and wants government to act. A national Gallup survey conducted in 2007 for Fannie Mae found that 58% of the public feels the nation is doing a poor job addressing homelessness-and that much more effort is needed. Moreover, 87% were willing to donate to organizations working to address homelessness, and 54% would be willing to pay higher taxes to fund programs to help. What's more, according to a national survey by the Opportunity Agenda, also in 2007, 77% of Americans believe that housing is a human right, and 51% hold this belief "strongly."

Given this level of support, why isn't government more responsive? I think it's because while people care, and want government to act, that doesn't always translate into specific advocacy demands on government. Yet that advocacy is exactly what we need: It will make our own advocacy more effective and our collective voices more powerful.

Through our new blog-and our facebook page, our twitter account and our Wiki, we'll be working extra hard to keep you up to date on the most current happenings and advocacy-and how YOU can make a difference!

One way you can get involved - contact your representative and ask them to co-sponsor H.Res 582 to recognize the right to housing for all children & their families! See below for more details.

In response to a request from the Fair Housing Justice Center in New York City, the Law Center submitted an amicus (friend of the court) letter to support a formerly homeless man's request that the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) reconsider its decision concerning his fair housing complaint. The Law Center became involved in this individual matter because HUD's interpretation and application of the Fair Housing Act in this case could have far reaching implications for discrimination complaints filed by homeless or formerly homeless people with a history of alcoholism.

Under its Fair Housing programs, HUD investigates and resolves housing discrimination complaints under the Fair Housing laws. This individual had applied for housing, but was denied admission because he had a record of alcoholism and could not show that he met the provider's requirement that applicants demonstrate six months of sobriety prior to admission. The Fair Housing Justice Center had filed a complaint with HUD claiming that the provider had violated the Fair Housing Act by discriminating against its client based upon his disability.

HUD determined that there was no reason to believe discrimination had occurred, finding that the man had not established that he is a person with a disability, and therefore the admission standards did not violate federal law. However, case law clearly supports the contention that a history of alcoholism is a covered disability under the Fair Housing Act. For that reason, before rejecting him, the landlord should have made an individualized assessment as to whether he should be denied admission to housing.

Earlier this month, the Law Center celebrated another big victory in Pennsylvania when a homeless student who had missed more than five months of school after being illegally disenrolled by his district was able to return to classes.

A U.S. District Court judge granted a preliminary injunction ordering the student's school district to immediately re-enroll L.R., whose family became homeless last year when their home was destroyed by a fire. Prior to being disenrolled without explanation, the student, who has special education needs, had attended school in the district since kindergarten.

Under the McKinney-Vento Act, enacted in 1987, even if a school district disagrees with a family as to whether the child has a right to attend their school, that child has the right to stay in the family's school of choice pending full resolution of any dispute. This provision was ignored by the school district in this case until the court's recent order.

The Law Center, in partnership with the Education Law Center-PA, filed a lawsuit in March urging the court to direct the district to re-enroll L.R. in its schools in accordance with the McKinney-Vento Act. By granting a preliminary injunction and ordering the district to immediately enroll L.R., the court found that L.R. would suffer "irreparable harm" in the absence of school stability.

Eric Tars, children and youth attorney at the Law Center, explained, "The language of the law is quite clear, but this is the first judicial opinion confirming Congress' intent that homeless students need to be enrolled pending a dispute. This is tremendously important, because we've seen schools across the country leaving students unschooled for months. This ruling lets them know this practice won't be tolerated."

The Law Center is excited to announce the release of its 2009 annual report. We welcome you to take a look at what we were able to accomplish with the help of our magnificent donors and partners last year. Check it out here, and feel free to share it with other friends, advocates, and partners.

Congresswoman Maxine Waters (D-35th CA), a long-time champion of housing rights for people experiencing poverty, has actively begun to seek co- sponsors and support for House Resolution 582, which expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that children in the United States have a right to adequate housing. The resolution calls attention to the plight of thousands of children and families in the United States who lack the basic resources of shelter and security that stable housing provide. An estimated 1.5 million children are homeless in the U.S. each year. The Law Center is launching a campaign to support and pass the resolution--please act NOW! Call your Congressional representative and ask them to cosponsor H. Res. 582.

You can find a summary of the bill and talking points to support it here. Call your representative today and ask him or her to co- sponsor H. Res. 582.

As our country continues to suffer the effects of the economic downturn, many cities lack adequate shelter or food to meet the needs of the growing number of individuals and families who are homeless. Unfortunately, the increase in homelessness has coincided with a disturbing national trend to criminalize homelessness through measures ranging from anti-camping laws to food sharing restrictions.

The Law Center and the National Coalition for the Homeless published a report in 2007 outlining types of food sharing restrictions, such as ordinances and policies that discourage or prohibit individuals from sharing food with people experiencing homelessness. The report also highlights constructive alternatives to food sharing restrictions, profiling cities that have explored innovative ways to facilitate food sharing outside the boundaries of food pantries and soup kitchens.

Where does your community fall on this spectrum? As we update Feeding Intolerance: Prohibitions on Sharing Food with People Experiencing Homelessness, we are looking for stories to include about your city. Please send information about any proposed or enacted ordinances that criminalize food sharing or positive ways in which your community or another is facilitating food sharing to sshubitowski@nlchp.org. Please send examples even if you think we might already know about them. Deadline for getting the information to us: Friday, April 30th.

The cost of providing housing and services to individuals and families experiencing homelessness for the first time can vary tremendously. Costs can extend from $581 for an individual's stay in Des Moines, Iowa to as much as $3,530 for a family's monthly stay in Washington, D.C. Recently, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development released a study examining costs associated with first-time homeless families and individuals.

HUD's cost study, "Costs Associated with First-Time Homelessness for Families and Individuals", examines how much it costs to house and serve homeless individuals and families across six sites for emergency shelter, transitional housing, and permanent supportive housing. The report studies costs of first-time homeless individuals in Des Moines, IA; Houston, TX; and Jacksonville, FL. In addition, HUD observed costs of first-time family homelessness in Washington, D.C.; Houston, TX; Kalamazoo, MI; and upstate South Carolina.

Across the six areas, the study identifies that most first-time individuals and families experience homelessness only once or twice and use emergency shelter for a limited period of time at fairly low costs. The few that experience longer stays, generally in transitional housing, experience very high costs.

Overall, the study indicates that rental vouchers are as cost effective--and in some areas much more cost effective--than temporary solutions such as shelter or transitional housing.

The Law Center is seeking nominations for its annual Personal Achievement Award, to be presented at the 2010 McKinney-Vento Awards ceremony. Each year, the Personal Achievement Award honors a formerly homeless individual for success in overcoming adversity as well as his or her continued commitment to the issue of homelessness. The Law Center will select a winner from among the nominations and cover any travel expenses so that the honoree may attend the McKinney-Vento Awards event.

Please consider nominating someone you know for the Personal Achievement Award by emailing Jessica Libbey. Please include a brief, one-page description of your nominee, addressing the ways he or she meets the criteria listed here. We look forward to receiving your submissions.

Sally Dworak-Fisher joined the Public Justice Center in 2002, where she has worked on a variety of projects, including class action litigation to protect homeless children's education rights and public education about homeless students' rights. In the March/April issue of the Clearinghouse Review, Ms. Dworak-Fisher published an article entitled "Educational Stability for Students Without Homes: Realizing the Promise of McKinney-Vento."

Ms. Dworak-Fisher has also worked as a legal assistant at the Central American Refugee Center and as a high school teacher. Prior to joining the Public Justice Center, she clerked for two different federal judges at the Federal District Court in Detroit, and practiced immigration law at Ayuda, Inc., representing battered immigrant women and persons seeking asylum from persecution in their home countries.

Ms. Dworak-Fisher graduated with honors from University of Michigan Law School in 1997. She received a B.A. in Government with a concentration in International Relations from Cornell University in 1989.

We are grateful for the knowledge and experience Ms. Dworak-Fisher brings to the Board, and look forward to working with her.

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