Homeless News

The remarkable contributions of LGBTQI and the people who make this nation are recognized during pride month. USICH can make use of this opportunity to stay true to its commitment and ensure protection for LGBTQI and the community suffering from high rates of homelessness.

The discrimination against people identifying as LGBTQI is well known and still, these people have limited access to health care, housing, jobs, education, and safety. LGBTQI youth are vulnerable to harmful actions by the government and other systems.

With half of the LGBTQI people protected from discrimination, still, many LGBTQI renters tend to experience discrimination when looking for homes and need to fend for themselves.

This kind of discrimination leads to economic instability as nearly half of the LGBTQI youth and adults are unable to pay even for basic needs like food, housing, and health care services. Transgender and LGBTQI people are more likely to experience homelessness and are at high risk.

Even if such people manage to get home, discrimination against them continues to persist. Despite federal regulations giving equal access to housing programs irrespective of gender or identity, many people are denied housing based on their sexual orientation or gender identity.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development has introduced a new initiative aimed at addressing the issue of LGBTQI+ youth homelessness. This initiative will collaborate with local communities, service providers, and directly-affected young individuals to tackle the obstacles that LGBTQI+ youth face in accessing housing and shelter. The data on the well-being of such populations was also published by the Department of Education which threw light on the efforts to provide equal access to health services for LGBTQI and their families.

Some of the strategies to meet the unique needs of the LGBTQI and youth populations are to collect more data on such people, implement the equal access rule fully, follow a holistic approach to address housing instability and ensure that people participate in the development and implementation of such policies.

USICH is committed to building a country where everyone has a home irrespective of their gender or sexual orientation. USICH along with other providers, advocates, and LGBTQI people experienced homelessness will make efforts to provide a safe, stable, and affordable home to everyone in America.