Last year, the United States saw its biggest increase in homelessness in decades. The 12 percent spike was dramatic—but maybe not shocking. Homelessness in America has risen steadily for years, and local and state governments have struggled to respond. Some have provided more housing while others have cracked down on encampments. Across the U.S., more than 650,000 people are now homeless. And in June, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that cities could ban them from sleeping in public.
Just a decade ago, the outlook wasn’t so bleak. Between 2010 and 2016, U.S. homelessness dropped as 87,000 people got off the streets. What’s happened since?
Dennis Culhane, a professor of social policy at the University of Pennsylvania, researches homelessness and assisted-housing policy. As Culhane explains, last year’s unusual rise was largely the result of the crisis that resulted in Texas authorities bussing large numbers of migrants to states with shelter systems already near their breaking points. But, he says, it’s also a symptom of government failures. Western states’ unpreparedness and inability to respond were obvious—other problems, less so …
Gustav Jönsson: What happened last year?
Nick Fewings
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