The Framework for an Equitable COVID-19 Homelessness Response

What We Heard about COVID-19, Homelessness, and Services from People with Lived Experience

 

Introduction

The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated racial inequity across the country. People experiencing homelessness are among those most affected by both the pandemic and the long-standing and compounding impacts of structural racism. NIS, through the Framework for an Equitable COVID-19 Homelessness Response project, undertook a series of focus groups with people with current and past experiences of homelessness to better understand these compound impacts and the implications they have for policy and service priorities.

From these listening sessions, NIS produced the following series of population-specific briefs to summarize the ideas and recommendations of individuals from ten historically-marginalized communities. Individual focus groups were held specifically for individuals who identify as Asian American
1Asian Americans is a broad term describing a diaspora of people from many specific counties and cultures in Asia. The conversations did not tease out these differences, so they are not addressed here, but we want to recognize that variance of experience and ideas exist.
; Black; Latinx; Native-Indigenous; Pacific Islander, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Queer (LGBQ); Trans*
2Trans* is a term that is used to refer to both transgender identified individuals while also creating space for other gender-expansive identities people have who may not identify as explicitly transgender but are often have similar experiences with gender-binary systems.
; People Living with Disabilities; People with Incarceration Histories; and People Involved with Public Systems.

As the pandemic continues to unfold, it is important to note that the highest offices of government in the United States are currently attacking and halting all federal efforts to recognize and mitigate disparities based on race, ethnicity, gender identity, and sexual orientation.

This is most markedly happening through an Executive Order titled “Combatting Race and Sex Stereotyping.” The National Innovation Service and other national partners recognize and are fighting back against the devastating impact this order could have, as well as the revisionist history laid out in this Executive Order and the White House’s blatant efforts to protect and promote white supremacy.

The ongoing patterns of negative health and housing disparities among communities of color and other historically marginalized communities have resulted in predictable gaps in the pandemic response that have left our most marginalized neighbors at unacceptable risk. 

There is a clear need for further guidance to local jurisdictions who are planning for the response and recovery of the pandemic, in order to ensure that the priorities of historically marginalized communities are centered in the response. While the Executive Order mandates that federal grant and contract funds cannot be used for anti-racism and equity trainings, workshops, and education opportunities, federally-funded programs and municipal leaders can and must continue to prioritize the work of dismantling the barriers and impediments that historically marginalized communities face.

How were these documents created?

The National Working Group on Historically Marginalized Communities  

The National Innovation Service (NIS) team, along with other national leaders, started by creating a national working group on historically marginalized communities. The working group brings together a small group of national and local policy experts and advocates alongside direct service providers and people serving the communities most impacted by the pandemic. It includes representatives from mid-sized cities, rural areas, and denser cities. 

Listening Sessions

The working group partnered with NIS to design a series of listening sessions with historically marginalized communities. The working group members informed which groups to focus on, the questions that should be addressed, the protocols to be used in the listening sessions, and the recruitment of participants from around the country. This work resulted in ten listening sessions with 55 participants in June 2020. The listening sessions represented the following communities: Asian American
1Asian Americans is a broad term describing a diaspora of people from many specific counties and cultures in Asia. The conversations did not tease out these differences, so they are not addressed here, but we want to recognize that variance of experience and ideas exist.
; Black; Latinx; Native-Indigenous; Pacific Islander, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Queer (LGBQ); Trans*
2Trans* is a term that is used to refer to both transgender identified individuals while also creating space for other gender-expansive identities people have who may not identify as explicitly transgender but are often have similar experiences with gender-binary systems
; People Living with Disabilities; People with Incarceration Histories; and People Involved with Public Systems.

Population Specific Briefs 

After conducting the listening sessions, NIS created population-specific briefs to summarize the ideas of each of the ten communities and offer suggested actions that local jurisdictions can take in response to the concerns and priorities raised by people who are being marginalized.

To learn more about designing lived-experience input sessions click here.

Briefs