logo
    • Magazine
    • Membership
    • Donate
  • Racial Justice
  • Economic Justice
    • Collections
  • Climate Justice
  • Health Justice
  • Leadership
  • CONTENT TYPES
  • Subscribe
  • Webinars
    • Upcoming Webinars
    • Complimentary Webinars
    • Premium On-Demand Webinars
  • Membership
  • Submissions

Problems Migrate: Lessons from San Francisco’s Homeless Population Survey

Jennifer Amanda Jones
June 26, 2013
Share
Tweet
Share
Email
Print

Homeless

June 25, 2013; SFGov.org (City and County of San Francisco)

While San Francisco city officials are undoubtedly celebrating the drop in the homeless population from 6,455 in 2011 to 6,436 in 2013, which is largely attributed to the city government’s commitment to permanent supportive housing, the demographic questions included in the Biennial Homeless Count offer lessons for the rest of us.

For the first time ever, San Francisco collected demographic information about the sexual orientation of homeless individuals. The survey reported that almost a third (29%) of respondents self-identified as LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer or questioning). This figure is most likely higher than the general population; Alfred Kinsey argued 10% of the population is gay or lesbian, and other studies have reported even smaller percentages.

It is no secret that San Francisco is an LGBTQ-friendly place, and it is not surprising the LGBTQ homeless count might be high. However, there is a deeper lesson for nonprofits across the country.

Problems migrate. Almost 40% of San Francisco’s homeless population became homeless in a city other than San Francisco. Most (24%) hail from California, but many (15%) from around the United States. Youth and those identifying as LGBTQ were more likely than other groups to have relocated to San Francisco after being homeless.

Sign up for our free newsletters

Subscribe to NPQ's newsletters to have our top stories delivered directly to your inbox.

By signing up, you agree to our privacy policy and terms of use, and to receive messages from NPQ and our partners.

Homelessness is a critical problem for LGBTQ youth. In 2012, UCLA’s Williams Institute issued a study of 354 agencies throughout the United States that found approximately 30% of the youth accessing the respondents’ housing programs identified as LGBTQ. Housing programs included emergency shelters, transitional living, independent living, permanent housing, and a host home program.

According to the Williams Institute, the top five reasons why LGBT youth are homeless are because they 1) ran away because of family rejection of sexual orientation or gender identity (46%), 2) were forced out by parents because of sexual orientation or gender identity (43%), 3) encountered physical, emotional, or sexual abuse at home (32%), 4) aged out of the foster care system (17%), and 5) experienced financial or emotional neglect from family (14%).

For LGBTQ youth, it is critical that support be available not just in San Francisco or in LGBTQ-focused organizations, but also in homes, schools, and cities across the country. Multiple studies have confirmed LGBT youth are more likely to attempt suicide, run away, and experience homelessness. Nonprofits and civic groups everywhere, regardless of their mission, can work to prevent this.

Nonprofits of all types, especially those working with youth, might ask themselves a few questions:

  1. Is staff culturally competent and comfortable working with LGBTQ populations?
  2. Is staff trained to actively prevent and/or address harassment or bullying based on sexual orientation and gender identity?
  3. How do you signal that your space is LGBTQ friendly?
  4. Do your demographic surveys of clients include information about sexual orientation and gender identity?
  5. Do you have relationships with LGBTQ organizations and groups that would allow for cross-referrals?

Both San Francisco and the Williams Institute’s reports remind us to focus on the invisible populations among us.—Jennifer Amanda Jones

Share
Tweet
Share
Email
Print
About the author
Jennifer Amanda Jones

Jennifer Amanda Jones, Ph.D. is the Assistant Professor of Nonprofit Management and Leadership at the University of Florida. Her research interests include nonprofit management, philanthropic giving, and social enterprise initiatives. She is a member of Nu Lambda Mu, the international honor society for nonprofit scholars. Prior to her academic career, Dr. Jones was involved in research projects benchmarking the nonprofit sector in San Diego and in the State of California. Additionally, Dr. Jones has spent more than 15 years working with nonprofit organizations of various types and sizes. She also served on the board of directors for a community foundation.

More about: Human ServicesNonprofit NewsPolicy

Become a member

Support independent journalism and knowledge creation for civil society. Become a member of Nonprofit Quarterly.

Members receive unlimited access to our archived and upcoming digital content. NPQ is the leading journal in the nonprofit sector written by social change experts. Gain access to our exclusive library of online courses led by thought leaders and educators providing contextualized information to help nonprofit practitioners make sense of changing conditions and improve infra-structure in their organizations.

Join Today
logo logo logo logo logo
See comments

Spring-2023-sidebar-subscribe
You might also like
Cancelling Student Debt Is Necessary for Racial Justice
Kitana Ananda
To Save Legal Aid, Expand Public Service Loan Forgiveness
Zoë Polk
No Justice, No Peace of Mind and Body: The Health Impacts of Housing Insecurity for Black Women
Jhumpa Bhattacharya, Maile Chand and Andrea Flynn
The Human Impact of the Global Refugee Crisis Must Be Understood—And Acted Upon
Anmol Irfan
Black Americans Need Reparations: The Fight for the CTC Highlights the Roadblocks
Jhumpa Bhattacharya and Trevor Smith
Edgar Cahn’s Second Act: Time Banking and the Return of Mutual Aid
Steve Dubb

NPQ Webinars

April 27th, 2 pm ET

Liberatory Decision-Making

How to Facilitate and Engage in Healthy Decision-making Processes

Register Now
You might also like
Cancelling Student Debt Is Necessary for Racial Justice
Kitana Ananda
To Save Legal Aid, Expand Public Service Loan Forgiveness
Zoë Polk
No Justice, No Peace of Mind and Body: The Health Impacts of...
Jhumpa Bhattacharya, Maile Chand and Andrea Flynn

Like what you see?

Subscribe to the NPQ newsletter to have our top stories delivered directly to your inbox.

See our newsletters

By signing up, you agree to our privacy policy and terms of use, and to receive messages from NPQ and our partners.

NPQ-Spring-2023-cover

Independent & in your mailbox.

Subscribe today and get a full year of NPQ for just $59.

subscribe
  • About
  • Contact
  • Advertise
  • Copyright
  • Careers

We are using cookies to give you the best experience on our website.

 

Non Profit News | Nonprofit Quarterly
Powered by  GDPR Cookie Compliance
Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.

Strictly Necessary Cookies

Strictly Necessary Cookie should be enabled at all times so that we can save your preferences for cookie settings.

If you disable this cookie, we will not be able to save your preferences. This means that every time you visit this website you will need to enable or disable cookies again.