Tag: homelessness
State-sanctioned encampments, like this one in Athens, can provide shelter for the unhoused. But are they deferring permanent solutions?
Proponents of sanctioned encampments, like First Step in Athens, say they’re a safer, healthier alternative to the communities of tents and lean-to shacks that have become a part of our cities’ landscapes. People living on the street are vulnerable to violence and arson; these informal camps can also lack sanitation and waste disposal infrastructure, which adds to the risk of infectious disease. But critics of state- and city-authorized camps say there’s little evidence that they ultimately reduce homelessness. In fact, some say they do the opposite by diverting funds that could be used for more permanent solutions.
As Atlanta continues to grow, unhoused people are finding a new voice—and new allies
Facing ongoing encampment sweeps, an affordability crisis, and the punishing effects of the pandemic, members of Atlanta’s unhoused community are amping up their activism and finding support in mutual aid organizations like Sol Underground
Atlanta newcomer Whiz Socks offers wearable art that gives back
Atlanta-based Whiz Socks offers colorful socks designed by Atlanta artists Yoyo Ferro and Jake Llaurado, with a "buy one, give one" mission to help Atlanta's homeless population.
Marshall Rancifer found recovery after addiction. Now he helps Atlanta’s homeless get off the streets.
Six nights a week, Marshall Rancifer visits Atlanta neighborhoods to help thousands of homeless men, women, and children by passing out meals, hygiene kits, overdose medication, and condoms—and, if they want, referrals to permanent housing or treatment.
This museum inside a shipping container will change how you think about homelessness
The Dignity Museum, an exhibition that focuses on the challenges and bias of homelessness, officially opened this past Saturday in a bright red shipping container at the College Park headquarters of nonprofit LoveBeyondWalls.
Here’s where to find Atlanta’s emergency warming centers
Last winter, nearly a dozen people in the greater Atlanta area died of hypothermia from freezing temperatures, the majority of whom were homeless. When temperatures plummet, homeless Atlantans have limited options in finding a safe, warm space. Here is a list of Atlanta's current emergency warming shelters, how to contact them, and when they begin receiving people in need.
The I-85 fire could have destroyed Basil Eleby’s life. Instead, it may have saved it.
When he was suspected of starting the fire that collapsed a portion of I-85 in Atlanta, Basil Eleby—a homeless man who grew up without a family and struggled with addiction—was facing felony charges that would put him in jail until he was in his sixties. But one year after the fire, Eleby is on the path to recovery, thanks to the help of the Atlanta community.
Street Saviors: How Atlanta is helping—not jailing—the homeless, mentally ill, and addicted
Robby Ivy is “care navigator” for Atlanta's Pre-Arrest Diversion Initiative, a program has created an unlikely alliance between police officers and criminal justice activists. Together, they’re trying to answer a key question: Can helping the addicted, mentally ill, and homeless instead of hauling them to jail make Atlanta safer?
How one Atlantan turned her homelessness into hope for others
When not working part-time at Pizza Hut, she would while away hours downtown at the library or the Five Points MARTA station, writing poetry or listening to a CD if she had batteries. It planted the seed for ChopArt, a nonprofit that Whitley, now 28, founded to help homeless children and teens find dignity, community, and opportunity through art.
When you buy, Design Samaritan donates furniture to families in need
“We give these families something that could be a new heirloom piece,” founder Paul Bowman says. “It’s like a metaphor that symbolizes their own transformation.”