There’s no denying that our nation faces a homelessness crisis. But media coverage about this crisis, and the policy ideas proposed to address it, often exclude a huge portion of the homeless population: women and their children.
Those of us who skim the news with our morning coffee would be forgiven for not knowing the damning statistics: nearly 40 percent of our nation’s homeless are families; almost 25 percent are children. Nearly all of the families for whom we provide shelter at Win, the nonprofit I lead in New York City, are led by single women. Many have fled domestic violence.
These families are the forgotten face of homelessness in America. In New York City, they are actually the majority of the homeless population. They’re our neighbors, our children’s classmates, our co-workers. And as citizens of the wealthiest nation on earth, we know we can do better by them — particularly the children. The time has come to stand up for these children and their families. The time has come to demand that our society breaks the cycle of homelessness.
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