Uncategorized

February 18, 2021 Membership Meeting

by

Click here to Register for our Next Membership Meeting on Thursday, March 18 at 9am Agenda9am Welcome9:10 Chante Stubbs, preview of “Real Talk about COVID-19 vaccines” with frontline staff 9:15 Shaun Glaze, Black Brilliance Research, Participatory Budgeting9:45 Jacob Kuykendall, Civil Survival, Reentry Legal Aid Project 9:55 Coalition Legislative Advocacy Update, week 6 advocacy, Public Safety bills10:15 Member Updates10:25 Coalition Staff Updates10:30 Close Healthcare for the Homeless Network “Real Talk” Series Our meeting started with brief remarks from Chante Stubbs, who described a planned series of “real talk about COVID19 vaccines” virtual events for front line service staff, emphasizing the needs of BIPOC service providers. The purpose of these conversations is to create a space for informal dialogue and discussion about how to best connect COVID19 vaccines to people without homes and staff who work in homeless services and housing. Anyone working directly with people experiencing homelessness in encouraged to join. Details to come. Black Brilliance Research Project In the summer of 2020, a coalition of black led organizations wrote the 2020 Blueprint for Police Divestment and Community Reinvestment. This plan detailed a flexible framework for how to invest money to create thriving communities. One of the main features was the creation of a Black-led collaborative research program to conduct a rigorous analysis of what exactly creates true community safety and true community health for all residents in Seattle and the surrounding areas. This research is a part of that plan, community members have been meeting to do this research. Read more about this effort here. The next stage in this project will consist of brining community members together to better understand the collective needs of our region. BBRP is offering both paid and unpaid opportunities to interested community members and wants your help in circulating this as far and wide as …

Read more

January 21, 2021 Membership Meeting

by

Click here to view our COVID-19 vaccine information for homeless service providers. Click here to see Dr. Yang’s slide deck. Thank you Dr. Maria Yang, Medical Director at the Downtown Emergency Service Center (DESC), and Jody Rauch, Clinical Quality Lead at Health Care for the Homeless Network, for joining us to discuss what is currently available and known about COVID-19 vaccines. State Legislative Advocacy Speak Up Pop Up Workshop Series: Want to gain and practice advocacy skills, help build a strong community of housing justice advocates, and learn enough about our state legislative process to be an effective voice? Join us at our Speak Up Pop Ups! These drop-in workshops will occur every Tuesday from 5:30 – 6:30 p.m. throughout the legislative session and are open to people of all levels of interest and experience with legislative advocacy. We firmly believe that everyone can be an effective advocate for themselves and their community; advocacy really just means speaking up! You do not have to attend all the workshops, but we invite participants to attend multiple session to help you learn and practice advocacy skills, build a community of housing justice advocates, and ensure sustained momentum throughout the legislative session. Click here to register. Coalition Member Updates Salvation Army Sodo Single Adult Shelter: A shelter for single adults run by Salvation Army has opened in a new location in SoDo and is accepting referrals from select social service agencies (view referral form here). Three previous shelter locations (City Hall, Fisher Pavilion, King County Admin) have consolidated into this site at 1039 6th Ave S Seattle WA, 98134. Entry is located at the north end of the property at the personnel gate. Turn South on to 6th Avenue from Airport St or Charles St. Security will check you in and arrange for staff to meet …

Read more

COVID-19 Vaccine Info for Homeless Service Providers (Last Updated 01/21/2021)

by

The Coalition has compiled some resources to help answer some frequently asked questions related to the COVID-19 vaccine and vaccines more generally.  Please review Dr. Maria Yang’s presentation reviewing the effects of Covid-19 on King County and information about currently available Covid-19 vaccines from our January 21, 2021 Membership Meeting.Dr. Maria Yang works as the medical director for DESC. She has spent most of her career working in community psychiatry settings. She also likes cookies. Is the vaccine safe and effective? Short answer: Yes, and yes (about 94% effective).  Watch the video below from the Washington State Department of Health (DOH) about how the vaccine works in your body. We recognize that you or others you know may experience vaccine hesitancy, which is driven by the mistrust of public health and medical institutions due to their historical mistreatment of and unethical studies on Black, Indigenous, POC, disabled, and impoverished communities. Watch and share this video with Public Health staff Hana Tadesse and Dr. Jeff Duchin that debunks common myths about the vaccine, and can help people make their decisions.   When will I and the people I serve be eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine?  We are currently in Phase 1B, tier 1 of vaccine distribution to anyone 65 and older, and all people 50 and older who also live in a multigenerational household. This is in addition to populations eligible during phase 1A including health care workers at high risk for COVID-19 infection, first responders, people who live or work in long-term care facilities, and all other workers in health settings who are at risk of COVID-19. Public health wants you to know that getting vaccinated is not a substitute for mask wearing and social distancing. Stay masked and six feet apart, and if you are concerned you may have been exposed to someone showing …

Read more

An open letter in response to exploitative #BadNews from KOMO/Sinclair

by

In response to more propaganda from Sinclair, the worldwide right-wing media group dedicated to sowing division and promoting fringe arguments, we wanted to set the record straight. There’s no “battle” for the soul of anything, save perhaps for a nation that has allowed its housing market to careen out of control and a lack of leadership willing to address it. The causes of homelessness are clear; there is no mystery here. The core drivers of homelessness are economic, not personal. There is a national shortage of 7 million affordable units that has been increasing every year since 2011. The number of rental homes affordable to low- and moderate-income families in King County has decreased by 36,000 in the last ten years. Meanwhile, the region saw the average rent increase by 47% between 2012 and 2017, and the average home price increase by 53%. The loss of private market rental housing has left 41,000 individuals on fixed incomes and families making the minimum wage without an affordable apartment to rent anywhere in King County. Over 150,000 households in the region pay more than a third of their household income – sometimes far more – on housing expenses. So, we should be clear: this is not just about people experiencing homelessness. This crisis is about all of us. Housing is too expensive for all of us. We should also remember that homelessness disproportionately impacts people of color, particularly Black and Native/Indigenous communities. This is no accident. Racism, too, is an economic position. The racial wealth gap, inclusive of earned wages, plays a significant role in who becomes homeless, as does our history of exclusionary zoning and land theft. We should also not deny the reality that there is a crisis of unsheltered homelessness across the country and in King County. For this …

Read more

December 17, 2020 State Legislative Preview Meeting

by

Agenda 9:00-9:20             Welcome and Intro to State Legislative Advocacy 9:20-10:05           Legislative Priorities from our Statewide Advocacy Partners 10:05-10:30         Lawmaker Insights with State Senator Patty Kuderer and Representative Nicole Macri 10:30-11:00         Special Musical Guest Reggie Garrett State Legislative Advocacy Basics The first step in advocating on the state level is knowing who represents your community in Olympia. Washington state is divided into 49 legislative districts, which elect one senator to the State Senate and two representatives to the State House. You can use this link to look up your legislators: https://app.leg.wa.gov/districtfinder/ To look up your state legislative district and state legislators: Visit app.wa.leg.gov/districtfinder Enter your home address and click “Find My District”. If you do not have a traditional home address, enter a mailing address, or a cross street, shelter address, or park address. This determines who represents you. Make sure that under “District Type”, “Legislative” is selected. This will show you your legislative district (usually a number) and your Washington state senators and representatives. Make a note of your legislative district number. If you haven’t already, rename yourself with your legislative district in front of your name! Make a note of the names of your legislators! Bonus points if you click on your legislators’ names to learn more about them, including what committees they are part of and what bills they’ve sponsored Extra, extra bonus points if you add their contact information to your rolodex! Participating in Virtual Legislative Advocacy With the legislature meeting remotely this year, advocacy will happen remotely as well. Opportunities to connect with lawmakers will happen in the communities we live, which means your program or agency can play an important part in raising the voices of those most impacted by homelessness. We want to give some thought to the questions below. Please reach out to either …

Read more

November 19, 2020 Coalition Membership Meeting

by

Meeting Agenda: 9:00 Welcome and Introduction9:05 Annual Subsidized Pass Program9:25 Coalition Member Updates9:35 COVID-19 Update for Service Providers10:00 City of Seattle and King County Budget Advocacy 10:20 Coalition Staff Updates10:25 December Legislative Preview Preview Thank you to everyone who attended our Thursday, November 19 Membership Meeting. A summary of the resources discussed is listed below and is being added to, please email Jason if you have additional materials you wish to share. We hope to see you next month at our Thursday, December 17 Legislative Preview Meeting. Click here to register. Agenda Highlights Subsidized Annual Pass Sound Transit and King County Metro are launching a program to provide ORCA cards to low income public transit riders. This program, once fully implemented, represents the largest expansion in public transit access locally since the creation of the ORCA LIFT program. The Coalition worked alongside our community partners Transportation Choices Coalition, Seattle Transit Riders Union, Puget Sound Sage, OneAmerica and others for years to make this happen, we are thrilled to see this benefit coming to our community. Click here to learn more. In response to a 2019-2020 budget request by King County Council, Metro worked to establish an income-based fare program for those who cannot afford the current reduced fare options. To create an equitable implementation plan, Metro collaborated with a stakeholder advisory group, prioritizing the mobility needs of priority populations, including people of color, low-income residents, limited or non-English speaking communities, and immigrants and refugees. The Subsidized Annual Pass functions like an ORCA LIFT card that can be offered free of charge to qualifying riders. This pass provides pays for 100 percent of the cost to use: King County Metro buses Rapidride Bus Routes Link Light Rail Sounder Commuter Train Seattle Streetcar Seattle Monorail Access Paratransit Via To Transit Sound Transit Express …

Read more

October 15, 2020 General Membership Meeting

by

Agenda 9:00 Welcome9:10 Statewide Eviction Moratorium Update9:20 Member Updates9:40 November Ballet Overview10:10 City of Seattle and other King County Advocacy Work10:25 Coalition Staff Updates Agenda Highlights Statewide Eviction Moratorium Update On Thursday October 8, Washington State Governor Jay Inslee announced that the temporary moratorium on evictions will be extended through the end of 2020, with no additional loopholes or exemptions. John Stovall with the Washington Low Income Housing Alliance thanked us for the statewide advocacy push that made this possible and encouraged us to send a thank you message to the Governors office using this link. The Housing Alliance also wants to gather stories of people who have faced challenges keeping their housing because of COVID-19. If you or someone you know has a story to share, please consider filling out this form. Health Through Housing Campaign We have a big, exciting opportunity to create emergency homes for 2,000 people experiencing chronic homelessness in our community. On Tuesday October 13, the King County Council voted 8-1 in favor of the Health through Housing proposal. If you’re a King County resident, send a personalized thank you message to your King County Councilmember and Executive Dow Constantine urging them to focus this new one tenth of one cent sales tax revenue on housing people with the lowest incomes, who have disabilities and have been homeless for far too long. Thank you to those of you who took action, please send a follow-up note to ensure that Health through Housing is dedicated to supportive housing with behavioral health services for people at or below 30% AMI. We need to keep a strong focus on making true regional progress on chronic homelessness. Coalition Member Updates  Hopelink Financial Empowerment Training Pt. II: The Coalition in partnership with Hopelink are offering a series of monthly mini-trainings to explore …

Read more

September 17, 2020 Membership Meeting

by

We are grateful to each presenter for sharing their time and passion with us at our September 17 Membership meeting, and to all who shared questions and insight. Thank you to all those listed below for providing content for our meeting: Omar Cuevas Vega, Community Organizer with Statewide Poverty Action Network Christina Wong, Government Relations Director at Northwest Harvest Emily Goodright, Case Manager at Hopelink Whitney Whittemore, Program Manager at Y Social Impact Center Erin McCann, Deputy Director at Legal Council for Youth and Children Joy Scott, Community Services Manager at City of Auburn  Cory Walster, Community Organizer at Civil Survival Rachel Koller, Resource Specialist at Recovery Cafe  Kelsey Mesher, Advocacy Director at Transportation Choices Coalition  Jessyca Murphy, Student Community Manager at Path with Art Below is a summary of some of the topics that we will discussed at our Thursday, September 17 Membership Meeting. This post will be updated as additional meeting materials are collected. Register now for our next Membership Meeting on Thursday, October 15 starting at 9am. Washington Dental Access Campaign Statewide Poverty Action Network (SPAN) has launched its Washington Dental Access Campaign to bring dental therapy to communities in need. Dental therapists are primary oral health care providers that deliver routine preventive and restorative care to those who need it most. Dental therapists are critical to expanding access to dental care where it is most out of reach, providing timely, quality care to rural, low-income communities and communities of color, and to patients who have coverage through Apple Health or are uninsured. Click here to learn more.  Dental therapists were recently authorized to work in select tribal communities. Community dental health advocates are pushing to extend this authorization statewide to bring much needed dental care to communities in need. Click here to support the campaign, and …

Read more

Helping Homeless Students: McKinney Vento 101 Info & Resource Session for Homeless Service Providers

by

Thank you to everyone who attended our Helping Homeless Students: McKinney-Vento 101 Information and Resource Session on Thursday September 3. A huge thank you to Kayla Blau, Mehret Tekle-Awarun, Samie Iverson, Oliver Alexander-Adams, Karen Pillar, Sharonne Navas and Jessyca Murphy for sharing their knowledge and passion with us. We appreciate the lively conversation had in the chat box and out loud during the workshop. You can review some of the tools and resources discussed at the information session below. If you have questions or wish to provide additional materials to this collection, please email your questions to Jason. Read about Education Rights for Homeless and Unstably Housed Students, which includes our updated 2020-2021 King County McKinney Vento Liaison list. Building Changes Click here to view Building Changes’ PowerPoint presentation. Mehret Tekle-Awarun and Samie Iverson shared information about Schoolhouse Washington, a project of Building Changes. In partnership with the Raikes Foundation, they have created the Washington State Student and Youth Homelessness COVID-19 Response Fund to augment existing public dollars that will be used to support students, youth and young adults experiencing homelessness. Building Changes will distribute funds to help organizations, schools, and local tribes meet needs that may otherwise be difficult to fulfill or sustain without additional assistance.  Student Needs Survey: To identify homeless students most immediate needs, Schoolhouse Washington also surveyed McKinney-Vento liaisons across the state who work directly with highly mobile students and their families. In return, they received responses from liaisons in 74 school districts across 32 counties who collectively serve nearly 17,000 students experiencing homelessness in Washington State. Click here to review the findings of their study. The top five needs identified by survey respondents were: food, mobile hotspots/internet access, devices (e.g. laptops, tablets, computers, phones), hygiene supplies, and rental assistance. Narrative responses shed light on what school districts are doing …

Read more

August 20, 2020 Coalition Membership Meeting

by

Defund the Navigation Team and City of Seattle Budget Advocacy  The Seattle City Council voted to defund the entire Navigation Team as part of their 2020 budget rebalancing work, but Mayor Durkan vetoed the Council’s budget, so our work is not over. Check out this Op-Ed from REACH Co-Director Chloe Gale and our Executive Director Alison Eisinger explaining why the Navigation Team is wasteful, ineffective, and does not help to end homelessness. Negotiations over the 2021 city budget begin in a few weeks. Click here to sign up for advocacy alerts. Defunding the Navigation Team is part of a border effort to re-balance the city budget towards more culturally appropriate community support services and affordable housing. This effort is being led by a coalition group called Decriminalize Seattle, which the Coalition on Homelessness is a member. You can learn more about their efforts at participatory budgeting  here.  COVID-19 Toolkit for homeless service providers  The King County Healthcare for the Homeless Network (HCHN) has updated its COVID-19 Outreach Provider Toolkit to aid homeless service staff in their work. Michael Young-Hall and Chante Stubbs with HCHN will be joining us Thursday to review the toolkit and discuss how best to utilize it at your program.  Coalition Community Updates  Census 2020: The 2020 Census is underway, and under attack. The Federal Government is threatening to intentionally not include all residents in the final reported count, and the deadline for data collection has been arbitrarily shortened from October 31 to September 30. When in Doubt, Count. It is more important than ever to help those you work with complete the Census by the end of September. For those without a traditional address, the census will be conducting Service Based Enumeration to survey people at locations such as overnight shelter programs and meal sites from September …

Read more