Staff Reading Suggestions: Part VII

There are a lot of misconceptions around being homeless. That’s one of the biggest lessons Lauren learned when she became Imagine LA’s People and Operations Manager earlier this year. She sees the real stories behind family homelessness working with all the different teams throughout Imagine LA every day. This article by the LA Times highlights the importance of breaking down these stereotypes and myths for people not working in the field. The main factor behind family homelessness and most unhoused populations is the lack of affordable housing. But by being seen as a problem mainly faced by individuals, family homelessness does not get much attention in the mainstream media. That’s why Imagine LA is proud to have opened our own housing complex this year: Missouri Place. ?

Missouri Place houses 73 such families. Forty-four units are designated as Permanent Supportive Housing: affordable housing with on-site supportive services for families who are emerging from homelessness. Twenty-nine units are reserved for low-income families. It’s developments like these that will help these populations the most. Read more about the housing crisis here: Cause of homelessness? Not drugs or mental illness, study says - Los Angeles Times (latimes.com) ?