Connecting Research with Advocacy on Homelessness and Housing

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Connecting Research with Advocacy on Homelessness
and Housing
Geoffrey Nelson Department of Psychology Wilfrid
Laurier University Presentation to 2006
Community Forum on Homelessness Linking Ottawa
Research with Action and Policy , November ,
2006, Ottawa
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Overview

• Public policy Why Canada has a problem with
  homelessness
• Research Facts and figures Listening to
  people with housing challenges qualitative and
  action research
• Getting organized, taking action Using research
  for education and advocacy to change public
  policy

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Public Policy

• Caragata, L. (2006). Housing and homelessness. In
  A. Westhues (Ed.), Canadian social policy Issues
  and perspectives (4th. Ed., pp. 267-290).
  Waterloo, ON Wilfrid Laurier University Press.
• Hulchanski, D., Shapcott, M. (Ed.). (2004).
  Finding room Policy options for a Canadian
  rental strategy. Toronto University of Toronto
  Press.

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Public Policy

• For the last 20 years, federal and Ontario
  provincial governments have taken major strides
  backwards in terms of developing an adequate
  public policy for social housing for low-income
  and vulnerable Canadians
• 1984-1993 Mulroney government cut 1.8 billion
  from the federal housing budget and then
  eliminated all federal funding for housing
• 1990 Liberal Task Force chaired by Paul Martin
  Housing is a fundamental human right all
  Canadians have the right to decent housing.

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Public Policy

• 1996 Chretien government downloaded
  responsibility for housing to the provinces
• 1995 Harris government in Ontario cancelled
  promised funding for housing projects
• 1998 Harris government downloaded
  responsibility for housing to municipalities
• 1993-2000 Fewer than 1000 units of social
  housing created compared with 25,000 created in
  1980 alone

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Public Policy

• Federal government created a National
  Homelessness Initiative in 1999
• Funds invested in Supporting Communities
  Partnership Initiative (SCPI)
• Renewal of this initiative in 2003
• 2006 Harper government freezes SCPI,
  effectively reneging on millions of dollars in
  funding to municipalities to combat homelessness

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Public Policy

• Ideology of blaming the victim underlies
  government housing policy since the 1980s
• People are homeless because they choose to be
  homeless or because of some personal defects, bad
  behaviours or poor lifestyle choices/habits
• 2002 Current federal Finance Minister Jim
  Flaherty called for jailing homeless people

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Public Policy

• Structural perspective This alternative view
  holds that homelessness results from lack of
  affordability and diminished housing stock,
  including
• Declining incomes for those at lowest income
  levels
• Rising rents
• Reduced vacancy rates
• Declining rental stock construction
• Lack of adequate government investment in
  non-profit, social housing

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Research Homelessness and Health in Canada

• What are the consequences of recent housing
  policies?
• Frankish, C.J., Hwang, S.W., Quantz, D. (2005).
  Homelessness and health in Canada. Canadian
  Journal of Public Health, March/April, 96,
  S23-S29.

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Research Growing Homelessness in Canada

• Prevalence studies in several large Canadian
  cities, report cards on homelessness have shown
  homelessness to be a serious problem
• Number of homeless people doubled in Calgary from
  1994 to 2000
• 8,853 people in Ottawa stayed in a shelter in
  Ottawa at some point in 2005
• 2001 Census identified 14,000 homeless people
  most agree that this is an underestimate

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Research Vulnerable Groups Are at Risk for
Homelessness, Poor Health

• Many factors associated with homelessness
  adverse childhood experiences, poverty,
  Aboriginal people, disabilities, substance abuse,
  immigrants/refugees, etc.
• A variety of health problems associated with
  homelessness increased risk of mortality, TB,
  substance abuse, mental health problems, HIV
  infection, STDs, violence and assaults,
  difficulty accessing health care, etc.

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Research Housing and Support Can Overcome These
Problems

• Several studies have compared some type of
  intervention with standard care or different
  types of interventions for homeless people with
  mental illness (Nelson, Aubry Lafrance, under
  review)
• Both supported housing and ACT have been shown to
  reduce homelessness and psychiatric
  hospitalization and to improve the quality of
  life of homeless persons

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Research Listening to People with Housing
Challenges

• Qualitative research enables people to tell their
  stories, articulate their needs, and share their
  experiences
• London CURA project - Psychiatric Survivors,
  Participatory Action Research, and Supported
  Housing
• partnered with DHCs in southwestern Ontario
• Conducted focus groups with psychiatric
  consumer/survivors on housing and mental health
  (Forchuk, Nelson Hall, 2006)

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Research Listening to People with Housing
Challenges
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Research Listening to People with Housing
Challenges

• Stories of formerly homeless people with mental
  illness Part of Phase I mental health
  homelessness initiative evaluation changes from
  before to after supported housing in terms of
  personal well-being, relationships, and resources
  (Nelson et al., 2005)
• Well, it supported housing has kept me out of
  jail for a year And I dont shoplift anymore
  and they got me on the right medication I
  cant say anything higher about the Homes Program
  Oh, it is wonderful This is the best my life
  has ever been.
• I work about 4 days/week and then I work every
  night at the housing program I clean the
  dining room.

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Research Listening to People with Housing
Challenges

• Poetry Clarke, Febbraro, Hatzipantelis, and
  Nelson (2005)
• Video productions The Mayor of Tent City in
  Toronto, From Madhouse to Our House
• Dramatic productions
• Putting stores to music Kirkpatrick (2005)
• First person accounts oral presentations, The
  Dream Team, thedreamteam.ca, Waterloo Initiative
  in Supportive Housing
• First person accounts writings from psychiatric
  survivors, e.g., Pat Capponi

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Getting Organized, Taking Action Education and
Advocacy

• Using quantitative and qualitative research,
  various alliances and coalitions have developed
  education and advocacy strategies to create
  change 1 solution, The Dream Team,
  thedreamteam.ca, the National Network for Housing
  and Homelessness, Toronto Disaster Relief
  Committee
• Supportive housing coalitions created in Toronto
  (Trainor et al., 1987) and Waterloo Region
  (Nelson, 1994) in the 1980s successfully lobbied
  the provincial government for more housing for
  people with mental illness

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Getting Organized, Taking Action Education and
Advocacy

• London CURA held annual conferences for the
  community, developed fact sheets and summary
  bulletins, held all candidates meetings during
  provincial and municipal elections
• Phase II mental health homelessness initiative
  111 new units of supported housing created in
  2001 in London

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Getting Organized, Taking Action Education and
Advocacy

• Hamilton - had 674 people with serious mental
  illness living in second-level lodging homes and
  65 in Homes for Special Care (total of 739 living
  in custodial housing), 49 in supportive housing
• Creation of Supported Housing Network
• Many of new units created through Mental Health
  Homelessness Initiative Phases I and II are
  supported housing 158

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Getting Organized, Taking Action Education and
Advocacy

• Ottawa Alliance to End Homelessness
• Ottawa's 2006-2008 Community Action Plan on
  Homelessness to create A City Without
  Homelessness
• Mayoral debate on solving homelessness and
  municipal election strategy

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Conclusion

• Governments are under increasing pressure from
  the corporate sector to cut taxes, thus reducing
  health, education, and social services
• In Canada this has led to government neglect of
  the need for developing social housing for
  low-income and vulnerable populations
• Research has documented increased homelessness
  and consequently negative health and psychosocial
  outcomes for homeless people

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Conclusion

• Research has also shown that people with housing
  challenges can articulate their needs very
  clearly and that supported housing can overcome
  many of the problems associated with homelessness
• It is important to use research to inform public
  policy and to get organized and take action to
  make homelessness a local, provincial and
  national priority, just as we are doing here
  today

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Conclusion

• Ralph Naders recipe for successful advocacy
• Facts - research
• Values belief that housing is a human right
• Strategy getting organized, taking action
• Persistence were in this for the long run
• Fewer ingredients than needed for a chocolate cake

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Thank You!