But thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, we no longer have islands of hunger, illness, isolation, abuse and neglect, and housing instability to contend with; these exist in all quarters of our community. And now, citizens who would never have dreamed that they would be in a position to ask for some sort of assistance are presently facing terrifying alternatives. We are seeing people who have never experienced homelessness, being forced to navigate it for the first time.
I have seen through my work how homelessness can be crippling, dark, humiliating, and nearly impossible to shake from one's identity. People who have lost their money and homes lose their social stature and enter the bottom of American class structure. Through consulting with the directors of the Pueblo Rescue Mission, Posada, and Pueblo Triple Aim Corporation we ascertained roughly how many people might be eligible for help and the best way to create outreach.
We distributed fliers with information about UWPC's Economic Impact Payment Outreach Project to Pueblo's human services agencies, and in them we requested help in directing eligible homeless persons to the filing station. One of the greatest outcomes is that we are able to see the impact of this project directly. A local woman experiencing homelessness was able to receive her stimulus check at the Rescue Mission and recently shared that it was a life changer in the truest sense. She stated that she, like most persons who find themselves in a homeless state, do not choose that condition; that this is an unfortunate excuse that some use to dismiss those who are homeless as hopeless or unfixable.
'Why are we giving tax dollars to the homeless when we could be giving it to corporations and the top 1%? Damn greedy homeless!' ~Kentuckians, proud red state relying on blue states' federal dollars
Amen
Not homeless but never got mine
And who created homeless
And they do it drugs. Good job.