Category: Homelessness & Poverty
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Bridge Over Troubled Water Opens New Transitional Home for Homeless Youth
Photo by Alejandro Ramirez On Friday Sept. 22, Bridge Over Troubled Water opened a new expansion for a transitional home in Brighton in an effort to double the amount of housing it can offer to homeless young adults in Boston. The new house offers meals, in-house counseling and employment assistance among other services. “We don’t…
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Drop in food insecurity ‘not statistically significant’
Recently published Census data shows a modest dip in the overall household poverty rate in 2016, yet the Food Research & Action Center (FRAC) said that progress has been “too little and too slow.” “While progress is good, it merely underscores that poverty in this country remains too high, particularly harming children,” FRAC President Jim…
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There is No Place Like Home
Janelle has been a guest at Rosie’s Place for almost a decade. She is a single mom with five children, ages seven through 22. She worked with Rosie’s Place’s public policy department recently to feel more confident speaking out for her rights. She gave testimony at the State House about her struggle to find a…
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Homelessness is not Contagious
On face value, the photo accompanying this article is very funny. Unfortunately, many people are under the impression that homeless people are dangerous, mentally disabled, alcoholic or drug addicted. Yes, that can happen over time, but it doesn’t always happen at the onset of homelessness. Let’s get this issue of homelessness straight. First, homelessness is…
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How Inequality Became the Big Issue Troubling the World’s Top Economists
After a riveting keynote speech from Neil McInroy at this year’s Global Street Paper Summit, it is clear that social inequality is becoming a greater focus for economists. In a recent feature for The Conversation, Steve Schifferes, professor of financial journalism at the University of London, takes a deeper look at why social issues are…
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Minimum-Wage Boost Making Dent in MA Child Poverty
It’s a significant dent. The share of Massachusetts children living in poverty is down, and state job growth along with recent boosts in the minimum wage are cited as big factors pushing the positive trend. The data from the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey show the child poverty rate for Massachusetts dropped from…
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Boston Courts to Homeless People: You Don’t Matter
My column this week was supposed to be about the so-called “Free Speech Rally.” It was supposed to be about the pride that swelled in my chest as my adopted hometown—which has itself faced more than enough issues when it comes to racism—overwhelmingly rejected (to the tune of 40,000 people) the same crap that engulfed…