Category: Profiles
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Radio
While I was working at the needle exchange, there was a couple I still cannot get out of my mind. They were in their early 60s, homeless, and they had come up for the warmer weather. They liked Massachusetts best, but they wintered in Florida. Snowbirds. That’s the expression people have for those who have…
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Finding a Place for LGBTQ Homeless Youth
It was a bright summer day in Cambridge when I first walked into the shelter run by Youth on Fire (YOF) near Harvard Square. A program of the AIDS Committee of Massachusetts, YOF provides necessary services to homeless youth ages 14 to 24. As my eyes adjusted to the dimmed light, I was greeted with…
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American Privilege in the Kingdom of Bahrain
MANAMA, Bahrain —A few weeks ago, I returned from my first trip to the Middle East. Having lived in and visited many parts of the U.S., and having lived for short stints in Canada and Europe, I felt a calling to make the long journey into an Arab nation. I wanted to see with my…
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Joe Finn: Executive Director, Massachusetts Homeless Shelter Alliance
“I have always fundamentally believed that the issue of homelessness needs to be addressed. And all of my life’s work has been focused on what we can do to end it and meet these people’s needs.”—Joe Finn For Joe Finn, devoting his life’s work to helping the needy has always made sense. Coming from a…
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Hobo Jacket
1. What experiences or concerns did you bring to bear on your decision to launch Hobo Jacket? Do you have a background in homelessness issues, fundraising, programming, social networking, etc.? Do your specific life experiences connect meaningfully with your decision? As a kid, I’ve seen the unfortunate struggle for donations, and I’ve always felt bad…
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Gimme Shelter: Government Policies Fail Homeless Mothers and Kids.
Three years ago Daphna Browne [a pseudonym] was living in the Bronx with her then-10-year-old daughter. Life was difficult. Browne was on Social Security Disability because of severe depression and an anxiety disorder; still, if she was thrifty, she could pay her $650 monthly rent and support herself and her child. Her life began to…
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Marian Wright Edelman
SCN: Thank you so very much; we’re deeply honored that you would take this time to talk with us. It’s my understanding that my predecessors had a brief interview with you concerning your summer program. MWE: Right—which we are very proud of. And it’s just growing and growing. It’s where our movements going to come…
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Upward Spiral
My mother had always shown me what the streets looked like from a distance. Taking me to Pine Street Inn, and having me help out was her scared straight program for me. We would hang out in Harvard square to watch the performers, but the other colorful characters were much more intriguing to me. The…
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Fathering: A Short Story
When I was asked to write something about my father, I first thought to myself, “That will be a short story.” See, there isn’t much I can tell you about my old man because I never really knew him. I don’t remember him as a child, and I only saw him once or twice when…
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First Person Account: Homeless and Looking for Work
Chris Hazen www.street-papers.org Denver Voice You will never know how strong you are until you become homeless. Serious adversity challenges you to an extent that you whole being excels. You will get sick on the streets. I don’t mean a cold or a sniffle. I mean a lung infection that drags on for weeks. A…