Unmet Needs of Individuals Experiencing Homelessness Near San Diego Waterways The Roles of Displacement and Overburdened Service Systems

Homelessness is among the most urgent crises facing the United States. In addition to tents or sleeping bags on urban sidewalks, many people experiencing homelessness exist outside of public view, along rivers and other waterways, and elsewhere "out in nature." This paper explores reasons...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inJournal of health and human services administration Vol. 43; no. 2; pp. 105 - 130
Main Authors Flanigan, Shawn, Welsh, Megan
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Los Angeles, CA SPAEF 22.09.2020
SAGE Publications
Southern Public Administration Education Foundation, Inc
Southern Public Administration Education Foundation
Subjects
Affordable housing
Canyons
Conservation organizations
Criminal justice
Health aspects
Health services
Homeless people
Homeless persons
Homelessness
Housing
Influence
Judicial system
Marginalized groups
Mental disorders
Needs
Public health
Quality of life
Rivers
Sanitation
Shelters
Sidewalks
Sleeping bags
Social services
Urban areas
Water quality
Waterways
California
United States > US
Homelessness
Infectious disease
Public health
Human-environment interactions
Social service systems
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Summary:Homelessness is among the most urgent crises facing the United States. In addition to tents or sleeping bags on urban sidewalks, many people experiencing homelessness exist outside of public view, along rivers and other waterways, and elsewhere "out in nature." This paper explores reasons individuals live near waterways, specific health and human service needs of this population, and why these needs remain largely unmet. We conducted in-depth, semi-structured interviews with 84 individuals experiencing homelessness, 56 of whom were currently residing or had previously resided near the San Diego River or in nearby canyons, as well as seven key informant interviews with homelessness services and environmental conservation organizations. Our findings reveal that people live near urban waterways for several reasons, including the competing influences of systems designed to ameliorate the impacts of homelessness, such as criminal justice systems, public health systems, and the emergency shelter system.
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-1
SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1
ObjectType-Feature-2
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ISSN:1079-3739
2168-5509
DOI:10.37808/jhhsa.43.2.3