Interacting with People Experiencing Homelessness

According to The Seattle Times, “homelessness has increased 30.2% since 2010.” On any given night, there are nearly 12,000 people sleeping unsheltered in our city. This makes our homeless population the third-largest in the country behind New York City and Los Angeles.

The causes of our region’s homelessness are multi-faceted:

1. Wages that haven’t kept pace with Seattle’s cost of living
2. An overly competitive housing, rental, and subsidized-housing market
3. Lack of investment in services for mental health, substance use and co-occurring disorders
4. A job market that punishes those have served time in prison
5. Systemic racism, xenophobia and transphobia/anti-LGBTQ+ attitudes entrenched in home loan and rental agreements
6. A changing economy
7. Personal catastrophes like domestic violence, death of a loved one or divorce

Taken together, these challenges have delivered a perfect storm. Undoing the harm of these systemic practices and policies will take time. The solution to homelessness is more housing — and affordable, below market rate units and permanent supportive housing take time to plan, build, and fill.

What we as a caring community can do right now is decide how we treat our neighbors who lack housing. The vast majority of people experiencing homelessness did not choose to become homeless. More often, a catastrophic event forces people into homelessness. We know our members care about this issue, so we offer these tips on interacting with people who are experiencing homelessness with compassion.

1. First and foremost, remember people experiencing homelessness are people with hopes, dreams, and aspirations of their own.
2. Trust your instincts if you feel in danger. Some of our homeless neighbors are in crisis.
3. People who lack housing often cite a deep feeling of isolation as a key mental health challenge. Don’t avert your eyes or ignore people. It’s appropriate to acknowledge their presence, make eye contact or smile.
4. When you feel comfortable, engage someone in conversation. We all deserve to be heart, and we all feel better when are humanized. Take a moment to hear someone’s personal stories or ask for their name.
5. Offering someone a snack, waters, or something to read is an appreciated gesture.
6. Avoid offering unsolicited advice. People don’t need to be told to get a job or where to find shelter.

As city and country outreach teams work with these individuals to find them housing and support services, we can all strive to be better neighbors to our fellow community members.