Politically Correct Language and Terminology

A Brief 

Los

History of

Angeles

You may have always used the term homeless. In the fight for housing justice, the term has been dropped because of its negative and dangerous connotations. By instead using the term unhoused, we change the situation into a humanitarian one where everyone deserves housing regardless of race, gender, class, sexuality, abilities, etc. Unhoused refers to the lack of housing resources for the community, rather than the lack of an individual's ability to have a home. You can use unhoused, people without housing/homes, and unhoused people.

Through the years, the interplay of "economic factors and race, as well as local governments' reliance on private organizations and policing to manage homeless populations," continues the long history of homelessness in Los Angeles. It began in the late nineteenth century and early twentieth century where, "thousands of single men streamed into Los Angeles for cheap lodging in what would later" be known as Skid Row. As the unhoused people began to search outside of Skid Row, they were seen as "'serious menace to public welfare' and a threat to the sedentary middle-class values of homeownership," thus ruining the image of the city and land  profits. To manage homelessness in cities, they often used law enforcement by being "frequently jailed and ordered to work on chain gangs." There has been community housing developed for the unhoused racially and ethnically diverse poor, but each project was either "subject to citation, condemnation, and demolition," leaving the residences once again searching for insecure housing. 

With this cycle continuing today, the recent COVID-19 pandemic has added another factor against homelessness in Los Angeles. Those experiencing homelessness are more at risk to the virus due to their lack of access to "healthcare, lack of hygiene facilities, and crowded living spaces." Since the pandemic has put added pressure on public funds, many unhoused people were not able to receive the care they needed, where "mortality rates are higher for African American and Latinx California's than white." Not only has the unhoused been affected, but many are being pushed out of their homes, with "illegal attempts by landlords to evict residents [in] predominately Black and Latinx communities," in South Los Angeles. Due to the negative effects of this economic crisis, it has been "labeled the country's worst since the Great Depression." 

Over time, homelessness in Los Angeles has altered in some ways, but there continues to be a reoccurring pattern. Homelessness has often been tied to racism and racial injustice, so much so structural racism is "embedded across systems within the fabric of American society." Starting a path to end homelessness begins with seeing the unseen and designing to their needs and wants. 

How do people become unhoused?

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How can people get out of homelessness?

Who can make a difference?

So what can

we do?

A common myth is that unhoused people choose that lifestyle, or are solely responsible for getting to that low point. However, it can be a gradual process where an individual is fighting every step of the way to avoid being homeless entirely.

Whether it's little access to quality education, or being laid off from your job, or escaping a dangerous individual/situation, or struggling with illnesses that are costly with no access to healthcare, there can be many different reasons someone may not have the income to afford rent or a mortgage. On top of one not having access to important resources, being criminalized by police and incarcerated for looking or being homeless makes the situation more difficult.

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To get out of homelessness is costly, time consuming, and emotionally draining. There are many obstacles to finding safe, quality shelter and to securing a proper job. If you are a caregiver or parent, it can be especially difficult.

Elected officials at almost every level of government can invest in the people suffering from being unhoused. The current mayor of LA has access to an unlimited amount of funds from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) due to COVID-19 that can house every unhoused person (temporarily) in LA hotels. Instead, he has divested more money from social services and into the hands of LAPD, who consistently criminalize and terrorize the unhoused community. 

On top of this, there is very little done on a community level compared to other social issues due to the stigma of being unhoused. Despite being a city of wealthy investors, artists, and developers, the unhoused community sees little care or funds. Instead, they are terrorized off properties by gentrifiers and neighborhood groups, as well as seen as something to be erased or hidden away.

Social justice is a continuous, strenuous process. It is not glamorous, or easy, or a hobby. Figting for someone's rights, in this case that of our Los Angeles neighbors, deserves time and energy and effort.

There are many grassroots organizations on the ground helping individuals everyday to ensure they have the dignity and respect they deserve. This means human connection, needs assessments, and advocating on their behalf.

There are protests, marches, petitions, fundraisers, call-ins, and more to advocate on behalf of the unhoused. Architecture is an incredible tool for social justice because it literally defines space and can speak on behalf of a movement.