Into the Gap: Women Veterans Describe Homelessness (Article 2 of 4-Part Series About Women Veteran Homelessness)

Date Posted: Tuesday, February 7, 2017

Category: Housing/Experiencing Homelessness - National

This article is the second in a four-part series titled "Coming Out of the Shadows: Women Veterans and Homelessness." It explores why women veterans experiencing homelessness are under-represented in homeless person counts, published statistics, and related reports. It suggests they often remain "in the shadows" because they do not present in "typical" homeless settings, but instead, "couch surf/double up" with friends and family as long as they can (off-the-books kin network more common to women), stay in cars, and/or remain in relationships characterized by domestic violence amongst other arrangements. These unstable housing situations are not, by agency definition, necessarily considered as homelessness in federal agencies like the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Department of Veterans Affairs, a result of the 1987 McKinley-Vento Act and a 2009 update. A lack of transparency in data, "catastrophically" impacts the availability of funding, and therefore, services. Of particular interest is the shared and posted survey results that include personal comments from women veterans who experienced homelessness. They represent all military service branches, differing lengths is service and age groups with all indicating similar experiences. Other related references are linked.

Read the full article at: The Huffington Post