A key tenet of harm reduction is meeting people who use drugs where they’re at. The coronavirus challenged advocates’ ability to do just that, prompting them to think differently about how they provide and deliver services.
Homelessness
As snowfall pelts the region, outreach workers in Chicago are working to provide supplies and shelter to the homeless community. Advocates are calling on the city for support as shelters deal with limited bed capacity in the pandemic.
The leader of a Chicago nonprofit focused on homelessness says the demand for their services has skyrocketed. "We are getting inundated with calls, emails and walk-ins from people that never imagined they would ever need help like this before.”
The city of Chicago has been partnering with Hotel Julian downtown, paying for 175 rooms to house those experiencing homelessness amid the pandemic. Alderpeople recently extended this partnership into February. But is it enough?
Chicago’s homeless population would receive significant funding and support from the city under Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s budget proposal. As part of our “Firsthand: Living in Poverty” series, we take a look at how that money would be allocated.
For many homeless people in the Chicago area, finding a safe space to recover from illness or injury is a challenge, especially during a pandemic. Medical respite centers aim to offer that refuge through medical care and support services.
Mayor Lori Lightfoot and interim Chicago Public Schools CEO Jose Torres on Thursday unveiled a new Chicago Families Forward Fund, which they say will distribute more than $9 million in assistance to CPS families before the end of the fall semester.
Ann Marie Frank is using social media to help feed homeless individuals in her community and beyond. We visit Des Plaines to see how she’s opened her kitchen to make thousands of lunches — with the help of family members and volunteers.
A new Illinois law will make feminine hygiene products available for free at homeless shelters. Advocates say the legislation spotlights an often-overlooked issue, but they’re calling for funding to “put some teeth behind it.”
Researchers at the University of Chicago’s Inclusive Economy Lab found that 26% of Black students at Chicago Public Schools experience homelessness during their academic tenure. We discuss those findings and what can be done to better support homeless students.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed legislation Thursday that makes feminine hygiene products available for free at homeless shelters and at public universities and community colleges throughout Illinois.
Fear, uncertainty and misinformation surrounding the COVID-19 vaccine can lead to hesitancy in any community. Advocates serving homeless Chicagoans talk about the role trust plays in reaching this vulnerable population.
More than 224,000 renters in the Chicago area said they aren’t confident they’ll be able to pay next month’s rent, according to a recent survey. With the state’s ban on evictions ending soon, organizations serving the homeless anticipate an uptick in the number of people who need help.
Over the past year, a small group of people who are homeless have established a tent encampment in a small Avondale park. Similar encampments are all over Chicago, and as Illinois’ eviction moratorium nears its end, the number of unhoused people is expected to grow.
As the spread of COVID-19 sparked restrictions and closures across the U.S. a year ago, organizations serving the homeless were forced to balance their work with the goal of keeping staff members safe. Here’s how some Chicago providers have handled the pandemic — and how they’re dealing with the latest set of challenges.
This month’s deep freeze has left Chicago’s homeless residents in deadly peril. But housing insecurity is not just an extreme-weather problem, some advocates say, and the city needs to take a bolder approach to housing policy.
