Right now, we, as a community, have a chance to make sure that homeless families get the help they need, rather than languishing at the DC General shelter, in motels or rec centers, or on the street. Through the 2015 budget, the DC Council can devote the resources needed to help create a high-quality family homeless system. That means providing year-round access to decent shelter when it is needed and sufficient case management and services to help families quickly move from shelter to a safe and stable home.
But we need your help! DCFPI and 22 other organizations put together “Helping Families Home: A Roadmap for the District.” This plan would put DC on a path to providing families access to decent shelter when they need it, while also offering help to quickly move from shelter to a safe and stable home.
You can help by signing a petition in support of the roadmap — and sharing it with your network.
The unexpectedly harsh winter DC faced this year brought the crisis of the family homelessness system into sharp focus. Families have been able to enter shelter only when it is cold. Shelter conditions have been deplorable. And many families have been in shelter for too long.
No one wants to repeat the crisis from last winter, when some families were placed in recreation centers — which the courts found could lead to irreparable harm to children — and only on nights when it was below 32 degrees. Yet without sufficient planning and funding, the likelihood is high that the crisis will be repeated next year.
Sign the petition to let the DC Council know that you care about homeless families. Over 1,400 children spent time in emergency shelter this winter, and no one wants that to happen again. By signing the petition and sharing it with you friends, you can help make sure that this year’s homeless families crisis is not repeated next year.
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