Loading...
Loading...
Click here if you don’t see subscription options

Catholic and nonprofit organizations working to combat homelessness say no two homeless cases are the same and that no single proposal can address the problem. But advocates for the homeless see hopeful signs in a federal plan unveiled June 22 by the Obama administration. The plan, titled "Opening Doors: Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness," was released at the White House by the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness, which has expressed concern over national data from 2008-09 that shows a significant rise in family homelessness. Described as "the nation's first comprehensive strategy to prevent and end homelessness," the plan was mandated by the Homeless Emergency Assistance and Rapid Transition to Housing Act, known as HEARTH, which was signed into law by President Barack Obama in May 2009. Among other things, the plan calls for strengthening partnerships—and forging new partnerships—among government agencies to help the more than 600,000 Americans who are sleeping on the streets and in shelters every night through existing housing, health care, education and human service programs. "I think the plan was well-written and has the potential to be effective," said Eileen Higgins, who is an associate division manager with family and parish support services of Catholic Charities in the Archdiocese of Chicago.

Comments are automatically closed two weeks after an article's initial publication. See our comments policy for more.

The latest from america

The 12 women whose feet were washed by Pope Francis included women from Italy, Bulgaria, Nigeria, Ukraine, Russia, Peru, Venezuela and Bosnia-Herzegovina.
"We, the members of the Society of Jesus, continue to be lifted up in prayer, in lament, in protest at the death and destruction that continue to reign in Gaza and other territories in Israel/Palestine, spilling over into the surrounding countries of the Middle East."
The Society of JesusMarch 28, 2024
A child wounded in an I.D.F. bombardment is brought to Al Aqsa hospital in Deir al Balah, Gaza Strip, on March 25. (AP Photo/Ismael abu dayyah)
While some children have been evacuated from conflict, more than 1.1 million children in Gaza and 3.7 million in Haiti have been left behind to face the rampaging adult world around them.
Kevin ClarkeMarch 28, 2024
Easter will not be postponed this year. It will not wait until the war is over. It is precisely now, in our darkest hour, that resurrection finds us.
Stephanie SaldañaMarch 28, 2024