FM Coalition for Homeless Persons

Response to Article, “Fargo Police Arrest Man for Attempted Sexual Assault”: Focus on Homelessness Misplaced

fmchp — Thu, 19 Mar 2009 17:11:25 +0000

This was written in response to a letter published in The Forum, regarding a sexual assault allegedly committed by a homeless shelter guest. The response was submitted to The Forum to be published as an editorial, but was never published, so thought it should be provided here:

Rape and sexual assault can happen anywhere, to anyone. It is unfortunate that this situation needed to involve people staying at a homeless shelter, for (reading many of the comments listed), the result is a perpetuation of negative stereotypes related to homeless persons.

Homeless people are people, with the same foibles and character defects and positive attributes as the rest of us. This doesn’t make them better or worse than the rest of the population; instead, they are a part of the same population made up of you, me, and our neighbors. Homelessness affects people who are young and old, of all races and backgrounds. Approximately 75% of homeless people suffer from a serious mental or physical disability, yet many work in part time or full time employment positions.

Homelessness doesn’t only affect adults; children suffer as well. This most vulnerable section of the population has a right to a safe and permanent residence, no matter the choices made by their caretakers, or the stereotypes perpetuated in society. Homeless children don’t deserve to be homeless, and need to be protected.

For many, homelessness is not a choice. It is the result of an illness, a handicap, the loss of a job, the inability to make home payments, and yes, sometimes, poor decisions. The events that lead to homelessness are prevalent in society, especially in today’s economic climate, and can affect many of us. How long would you need to be in the hospital before you were unable to make your home payment? How many weeks would you need to be without work before payment of rent becomes impossible?

There are over 500 homeless persons in the Fargo-Moorhead area each and every night. Homelessness IS a problem here, and rather than placing blame, let’s try to solve the problem. How do we provide more affordable housing? How can we get people into living-wage jobs? What types of services can be offered to treat the severe disabilities suffered by a large portion of the homeless population?

Yes. There was an alleged, attempted rape, committed by someone staying at a shelter. There are many people who stay at shelters every night who do NOT commit crimes, and there are also many people who are not homeless who DO commit crimes. The fact that this man was homeless is a coincidence, and is not indicative of the homeless population in the area.

Homelessness is a problem that needs to be solved. How can we make that happen?

Bekah Krueger

Executive Director, FM Coalition for Homeless Persons

Homelessness in Fargo-Moorhead

fmchp — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 17:16:03 +0000

Although homeless persons are not as visible in the FM area as in other, more metropolitan, regions, homelessness DOES occur in our area, and it occurs much more frequently than one would think. In 2006, the Wilder Study found that there were 587 homeless persons in the Fargo-Moorhead area. When the number of people who were “precariously housed” (living with friends, etc.) was included, that number rose to1066 people. Another study will be conducted this fall, and it is predicted that the number of homeless people in the region will have increased, perhaps significantly. The economic climate of today, the foreclosure rates, and the number of bankruptcies (many health-related) have exacerbated the issue.

Homelessness affects people of all nationalities, ages, and backgrounds. It’s easy to picture what one might imagine to be the “typical” homeless individual, but in truth, there is no “typical” person in the homeless community. Homeless persons are black and white, children and adults, male and female. Some have struggled with poverty their whole lives, and some have only recently experienced homelessness due to a loss of job, illness, or home foreclosure. Many people in the region are “living on the edge”, only a paycheck or singular event away from losing their home. In many (if not all) instances, homelessness can be avoided or prevented. Providing more living-wage jobs, affordable housing, and transportation are all vital steps in ending homelessness.

If one considers the hazardous winter we have had this year, it is almost unimaginable that people are living outside in such conditions; however, they are. Individuals, no matter what their background or circumstance, should not need to be living outside in this weather, or at any time. The term “frozen to death” should never need to be uttered in our region.

The FM community is comprised of multitudes of generous, understanding, caring, and capable individuals. If we all give just a bit of our time, our resources, and our energy, the issue of homelessness can and will be addressed. Everyone needs a place to call “home”, especially children, and we can make this a reality in Fargo-Moorhead.

February 2009 Project Homeless Connect

fmchp — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 19:51:59 +0000

Thank you to everyone who participated in our February 2009 Project Homeless Connect event. It was the first time that I had ever attended PHC, and was so amazed at how smoothly things seemed to run! The agencies provided such vital services, and it was clear that the people attending the event truly appreciated the work of the agencies.

The number of volunteers we had just astounded me! There were so many cheerful, helpful, and truly awesome people who took time to volunteer for PHC…thank you!! There is no way that PHC could exist without the many MANY wonderful people who participated, and I’m so grateful to have been able to be a part of the event.

Looking forward to our August PHC, I hope to have even more service agencies involved, with more services provided. If you know of anyone who would be interested in providing any type of service for those in need, please contact me: directorfmchp@gmail.com. Someone performed acupuncture in February, and this was so neat; I’d love to have more unique services provided!

Project Homeless Connect is a powerful event, and needs to be promoted to any and all people who can benefit. If you have suggestions about how to spread the word, please let me know.

Thank you once again to all who helped!

Welcome!

fmchp — Sat, 14 Feb 2009 22:51:03 +0000

Welcome to the new FM Coalition for Homeless Persons blog!

We are so excited to launch a new website, and thought that a blog would fit in perfectly with that site.

Visit us at: www.fmhomeless.org!