(no subject)
The next couple posts will be things I've written for school, and am proud/interested enough to repost here ...
This is a paper which I wrote several years ago and was encouraged to publish, but like a dolt, I never followed up on that (considering e-mailing that professor ...).
PS - must give kudos to my parents for their open and loving acceptance of my own coming out - I didn't really expect otherwise, but I want to note it anyway, because so many don't get that. I'm wearing a gay pride pin at this moment that my dad gave me for Christmas - that's where I'm at with them. <3 <3 <3.
PPS - I stand as strongly as possible against the anti-trans sentiments in the gay community - there is absolutely no reason why transpeople shouldn't receive the same level of respect and acceptance that gays and lesbians want. I'm not trans myself (possibly genderqueer, but I haven't pinned that down yet), but I absolutely support anyone's right to identify as whatever gender they feel most effectively describes themselves. Transphobia in general strikes me as idiotic, but the transphobia in the gay community especially pisses me off.
In Jonathan Kozol's book, "Rachel and Her Children", the author conducts an in-depth exploration into the lives of homeless families in New York City in 1988, dealing primarily with mothers and their young children. Unfortunately, while Kozol's book provides a great deal of insight into the struggles of families in New York shelters, it only shows that one demographic of homeless people. Sadly, homelessness affects many different groups and many different kinds of people beyond the scope of Kozol's project. One group with increasing instances of homelessness are lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgender (LGBT) adults and teenagers, who face different dangers and struggles once on the streets or in shelters than other homeless people have to deal with. According to a 2003 statistic cited by Theresa C. Nolan in her "Outcomes for a Transitional Living Program Serving LGBTQ Youth in New York City" article, 25 to 40% of homeless people under 21 self-identify as LGBT. These unusually high numbers are often due to homophobia in these individuals' families. Many are kicked out of their childhood homes when they come out, or when they are merely suspected of being gay. These figures are corroborated by a 2007 study done by the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Policy Institute and the National Coalition for the Homeless ("Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Youth: An Epidemic of Homelessness), which adds that "50 percent of gay teens experienced a negative reaction from their parents when they came out and 26 percent were kicked out of their homes [...] one-third of youth who are homeless or in the care of social services experienced a violent physical assault when they came out" (Ray 5). Nolan also quotes studies that say that many people are identifying their sexuality as gay, lesbian, transgendered, etc at younger ages (their teens and early twenties, as opposed to mid to late twenties), when they are still living with and being supported by their parents and therefore are often without means of self-support if their parents kick them out. When these individuals are forced onto the streets, they face a daunting choice - they can either turn to homeless shelters, where they may face homophobia and violence from fellow residents and shelter employees (if they are admitted at all), or they can attempt to find gay-friendly alternatives. It is not only the LGBT homeless who struggle with this decision. Gay rights activists and other concerned groups are divided on the best recourse for the LGBT homeless - inside or outside the shelters.
For the transgendered, homelessness is an especially serious crisis. Discrimination by family, schools and workplaces limit the capacity transgendered people have to support themselves, and many are also unable to pay for critical parts of the gender reassignment (hormones, therapy, etc). According to the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Policy Institute's guide to transitioning shelters to accommodate the transgendered, "1 in 5 transgendered people are in need or at risk of needing homeless shelter assistance" (Mottet 10), and when they end up there, they face even more persecution and problems. Most homeless shelters are segregated by gender, and transgendered homeless people may find themselves either housed as a gender they do not identify as, or put into danger when they are forced to shower, dress, etc with members of a gender they do not fully physically resemble. Many shelters also have sex-based dress codes, and penalize transgendered residents for dressing as the gender they were not born as. Shelter staff have great difficulty knowing where to place transgendered residents, and some shelters have stopped bothering (one facility in Atlanta has posted signs that say "No Transvestites", revealing not only discrimination but a misunderstanding of the situation - a transvestite is an individual who dresses as the opposite sex than they are physically; a transgendered person believes they were born as the wrong gender and often attempts to correct this perceived mistake). Surgical gender reassignment is a poor basis on which to decide who is which gender - the operations are prohibitively expensive, running over $70,000 at times (Mottet, 16), and not all are physically able or willing to endure the risk of surgery. There is a fear that male-to-female residents placed in female-only facilities will sexually assault the other residents, or that men will claim to be transgendered in order to gain access to women in shelters, but no study has ever revealed the latter and no study has ever revealed any conflicts between male-to-female transsexuals and female residents that was unlike conflicts between biological females (Mottet, 18). If transgendered homeless people are allowed into homeless shelters, there are several areas of concern which the shelter staff must be prepared to deal with. This includes issues revolving around restroom and shower use and protection from assault by fellow residents. These have to be resolved according to the specific nature and facilities of the individual homeless shelters, which makes them more and more reluctant to allow transgendered residents at all.
Those in favor of alternatives to homeless shelters cite the numerous incidences of bigotry, violence and discrimination that have occurred with homeless shelters. Matt O'Connor reports on one such instance in an article for the Chicago Tribune entitled "Lesbian alleges shelter left her out in the cold". This documents the experience of Michelle Wang, a 27 year old lesbian who became homeless after a dispute with her girlfriend and was refused shelter at New Life Interim Housing (a homeless shelter based in Chicago) upon revealing her sexuality to a staff member. Chicago's Department of Human Services discovered that, despite the staff member's claim that shelter was fully occupied when Ms Wang called, at least 2 beds were still available. According to O'Connor, this kind of discrimination is not uncommon - in the article, he says that "A recent report found an epidemic homeless problem among young lesbians and gays and cited incidents of anti-homosexual harassment at homeless shelters around the country. The study--issued in January by the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force and the National Coalition for the Homeless--said one Michigan facility required that gay and lesbian youths wear orange jumpsuits to set them apart from others". This kind of segregation opens LGBT shelter residents to homophobic responses from staff and other residents and can put them in an increased amount of danger. The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Policy Institute's findings agree with O'Connor, and give further examples of discrimination in shelters, including numerous facilities that forced residents who revealed an LGBT identity to leave, and a shelter that "removed the bedroom door of an out gay youth, supposedly to ward off any homosexual behavior. The second bed in the room was left empty and other residents were warned that if they misbehaved they would have to share the room with the gay kid.'" (Ray 8). These kinds of discrimination and persecution have led many LGBT homeless people to believe that they would in fact be safer on the streets.
Those who argue in favor of residence in homeless shelters stress the dangers that the LGBT homeless, particularly teens, face outside the shelters. An article by Kilian Melloy for Edge magazine, "Homophobia in Shelters Scare Homeless Gay Youths Away", discusses the alternatives that LGBT youth turn to instead of resorting to homeless shelters, and argues that they are in fact much riskier than life within a conventional homeless shelter. Many young gay men attempt to make contact with other men via the Internet, and offer sex in exchange for a place to live. This is defined in the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Policy Institute's article as "survival sex - exchanging sex for anything needed, including money, food, clothes, a place to stay or drugs". The article then quotes a study done of homeless youth in Canada which found that those who were LGBT were 3 times more likely than heterosexual homeless youth to participate in survival sex. Melloy quotes Tim Sigsworth, chief executive of the Albert Kennedy Trust (a voluntary organization based in England dedicated to aiding LGBT homeless people), who says that this practice can make these men vulnerable to sexual abuse, mistreatment and STDs. Drug and alcohol abuse is also included among risks that the LGBT homeless face. Gayle Jones, a chairperson on another LGBT advocate group based in England, believes that the fear of homophobia in shelters is disproportionate to the number of actual instances, and encourages education and advisement for LGBT youth on the options that are open to them.
For those in favor of homeless shelters, the answer is not to leave the LGBT homeless to seek out new options when homeless shelters are unwelcoming or dangerous, but to improve the standards of living in shelters and to battle against incidents of discrimination. One positive outcome of Michelle Wang's experience in Chicago was that the lawsuit she brought against the shelter resulted in a settlement requiring further steps to be taken to ensure no further sexuality/gender-identification related discrimination occurs. Additionally, the city of Chicago now has "plans for a mandatory training session on sexual orientation discrimination for shelters funded with tax money" (O'Connor 1). The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Policy Institute's article concludes with a list of steps that can be taken to make homeless shelters safer for their LGBT residents, emphasizing the necessity of education and training for all staff and employees, and the establishment of clear and strict anti-discrimination policies. A related article from the same group advises on methods to make homeless shelters safer and more comfortable for transgendered residents, which, in addition to the anti-discrimination policies and security that lesbian/gay/bisexual residents need, includes alternate sleeping/bathing/restroom facilities for those of ambiguous or altered gender.
One of the responses to inadequate homeless shelters is the establishment of a number of shelters solely intended to serve the needs of LGBT teens and young adults. One such facility, located in Manhattan, is run by Green Chimneys Children's Services and serves as a transitional living place for LGBT youth. Theresa C. Nolan's article "Outcomes for a Transitional Living Program Serving LGBTQ Youth in New York City" reports on this facility and documents the rate of success based on a group of 40 former residents. The shelter employs LGBT staff members, as well as empathetic and accepting heterosexual employees, to provide positive role models for their young residents, and introduces them to the gay-positive culture in their neighborhoods and encourages the residents to integrate a healthy gay identity into their racial/ethnic identities (the article deals mainly with a facility with apartments in Harlem, and includes many African-American and Latino residents). The shelter also strongly encourages its residents to complete their high school education and to develop skills in "budgeting and money management, interpersonal skills, independence and responsibility" to improve their abilities to support themselves once discharged from the program. Most residents stay within the program for nearly a year (the average in the group studied was 10.5 months), and of the 40 individuals in the group studied, 13 left because they successfully completed the program, 7 left to pursue other opportunities, 3 left voluntarily but with no stated future plans, and 17 were expelled for repeatedly violating the rules of the program. The Green Chimneys facility is attempting to improve its program to increase the number of safe exits from the program and to ensure the stability of those who have gone through the program. The New York Times published a report of a similar facility in East Detroit called Ruth's House (named for an African-American lesbian who established a similar sanctuary for local gay teens in the 1930s). It quotes several current residents describing the safety and security they feel within the shelter, but goes on to say that the number of LGBT shelters and the housing capacity within them is not even close to meeting the need. As of the article's publication in May 2007, there are approximately 25 LGBT shelters in the United States, and the article estimates that the total number of beds for LGBT homeless people in San Francisco is 15 and 50 in New York City. When compared to the numbers that the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Policy Institute gives - 20 to 40 percent of a 575,000 to 1.6 million person homeless youth population - it becomes clear that these shelters, however well-intentioned, cannot help more than a tiny selection of the vast LGBT homeless population. In addition, many of these shelters only serve LGBT people under the age of 21. In a case such as Michelle Wang's and for many other LGBT adults forced into homelessness, these shelters are not an option.
While the establishment of LGBT shelters is admirable and has provided a necessary haven for some LGBT teens, they have a limited scope and can serve only a very few. From an economic standpoint, it is probably a better option to improve current mainstream shelters - it's much cheaper and more efficient to revise policies in an existing facility that can house hundreds than it is to establish, staff and administrate an entirely new facility than can only house a few dozen. The purpose of homeless shelters is to provide sanctuary and aid to those in desperate need, and this should not be limited only to heterosexuals in need. Every source quoted within this paper has attested to the disproportionate number of LGBT individuals within the homeless population. The shelters that reject, abuse and discriminate against them are cutting off a significant percentage of those they are in place to serve, and it is inexcusable. Education and better anti-discrimination policies are the most obvious tools available for relieving the problems within shelters. Those who wish to improve the lot of homeless LGBT individuals should also vote for and support those government officials who propose greater allocations of funds and support to the homeless in general and to the LGBT population specifically. This is a critical factor in this problem - according to the New York Times article, federal financing for the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act (which provides money for the establishment of programs to aid homeless youth) dropped $1.5 million in 3 years (from $105.4 in 2003 to $103.9 in 2006). This has a deeply negative effect on shelters and their ability to serve the homeless youth, and can only add to the difficulty in revising and adjusting policies to accommodate LGBT residents.
Sources: (I should really render this into footnotes...)
http://www.thetaskforce.org/downloads/reports/reports/HomelessYouth_ExecutiveSummary.pdf
Ray, N. (2006). Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender youth: An epidemic
of homelessness. New York: National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Policy
Institute and the National Coalition for the Homeless.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/17/us/17homeless.html?pagewanted=all
http://www.aclu-il.org/blog/archives/2007/05/from_the_chicago_tribune_lesbi.shtml
http://www.ct.gov/dcf/lib/dcf/safe_harbor/pdf/homophobia_in_shelters_scare_homeless_gay_youths_away.pdf
http://www.clasp.org/CampaignForYouth/PolicyBrief/RunawayandHomelessYouthAct.htm
http://www.thetaskforce.org/downloads/reports/reports/TransitioningOurShelters.pdf
Mottet, L., & Ohle, J. (2003). Transitioning Our Shelters: A Guide to Making Homeless Shelters
Safe for Transgender People. New York: The National Coalition for the Homeless and the National
Gay and Lesbian Task Force Policy Institute.
This is a paper which I wrote several years ago and was encouraged to publish, but like a dolt, I never followed up on that (considering e-mailing that professor ...).
PS - must give kudos to my parents for their open and loving acceptance of my own coming out - I didn't really expect otherwise, but I want to note it anyway, because so many don't get that. I'm wearing a gay pride pin at this moment that my dad gave me for Christmas - that's where I'm at with them. <3 <3 <3.
PPS - I stand as strongly as possible against the anti-trans sentiments in the gay community - there is absolutely no reason why transpeople shouldn't receive the same level of respect and acceptance that gays and lesbians want. I'm not trans myself (possibly genderqueer, but I haven't pinned that down yet), but I absolutely support anyone's right to identify as whatever gender they feel most effectively describes themselves. Transphobia in general strikes me as idiotic, but the transphobia in the gay community especially pisses me off.
In Jonathan Kozol's book, "Rachel and Her Children", the author conducts an in-depth exploration into the lives of homeless families in New York City in 1988, dealing primarily with mothers and their young children. Unfortunately, while Kozol's book provides a great deal of insight into the struggles of families in New York shelters, it only shows that one demographic of homeless people. Sadly, homelessness affects many different groups and many different kinds of people beyond the scope of Kozol's project. One group with increasing instances of homelessness are lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgender (LGBT) adults and teenagers, who face different dangers and struggles once on the streets or in shelters than other homeless people have to deal with. According to a 2003 statistic cited by Theresa C. Nolan in her "Outcomes for a Transitional Living Program Serving LGBTQ Youth in New York City" article, 25 to 40% of homeless people under 21 self-identify as LGBT. These unusually high numbers are often due to homophobia in these individuals' families. Many are kicked out of their childhood homes when they come out, or when they are merely suspected of being gay. These figures are corroborated by a 2007 study done by the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Policy Institute and the National Coalition for the Homeless ("Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Youth: An Epidemic of Homelessness), which adds that "50 percent of gay teens experienced a negative reaction from their parents when they came out and 26 percent were kicked out of their homes [...] one-third of youth who are homeless or in the care of social services experienced a violent physical assault when they came out" (Ray 5). Nolan also quotes studies that say that many people are identifying their sexuality as gay, lesbian, transgendered, etc at younger ages (their teens and early twenties, as opposed to mid to late twenties), when they are still living with and being supported by their parents and therefore are often without means of self-support if their parents kick them out. When these individuals are forced onto the streets, they face a daunting choice - they can either turn to homeless shelters, where they may face homophobia and violence from fellow residents and shelter employees (if they are admitted at all), or they can attempt to find gay-friendly alternatives. It is not only the LGBT homeless who struggle with this decision. Gay rights activists and other concerned groups are divided on the best recourse for the LGBT homeless - inside or outside the shelters.
For the transgendered, homelessness is an especially serious crisis. Discrimination by family, schools and workplaces limit the capacity transgendered people have to support themselves, and many are also unable to pay for critical parts of the gender reassignment (hormones, therapy, etc). According to the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Policy Institute's guide to transitioning shelters to accommodate the transgendered, "1 in 5 transgendered people are in need or at risk of needing homeless shelter assistance" (Mottet 10), and when they end up there, they face even more persecution and problems. Most homeless shelters are segregated by gender, and transgendered homeless people may find themselves either housed as a gender they do not identify as, or put into danger when they are forced to shower, dress, etc with members of a gender they do not fully physically resemble. Many shelters also have sex-based dress codes, and penalize transgendered residents for dressing as the gender they were not born as. Shelter staff have great difficulty knowing where to place transgendered residents, and some shelters have stopped bothering (one facility in Atlanta has posted signs that say "No Transvestites", revealing not only discrimination but a misunderstanding of the situation - a transvestite is an individual who dresses as the opposite sex than they are physically; a transgendered person believes they were born as the wrong gender and often attempts to correct this perceived mistake). Surgical gender reassignment is a poor basis on which to decide who is which gender - the operations are prohibitively expensive, running over $70,000 at times (Mottet, 16), and not all are physically able or willing to endure the risk of surgery. There is a fear that male-to-female residents placed in female-only facilities will sexually assault the other residents, or that men will claim to be transgendered in order to gain access to women in shelters, but no study has ever revealed the latter and no study has ever revealed any conflicts between male-to-female transsexuals and female residents that was unlike conflicts between biological females (Mottet, 18). If transgendered homeless people are allowed into homeless shelters, there are several areas of concern which the shelter staff must be prepared to deal with. This includes issues revolving around restroom and shower use and protection from assault by fellow residents. These have to be resolved according to the specific nature and facilities of the individual homeless shelters, which makes them more and more reluctant to allow transgendered residents at all.
Those in favor of alternatives to homeless shelters cite the numerous incidences of bigotry, violence and discrimination that have occurred with homeless shelters. Matt O'Connor reports on one such instance in an article for the Chicago Tribune entitled "Lesbian alleges shelter left her out in the cold". This documents the experience of Michelle Wang, a 27 year old lesbian who became homeless after a dispute with her girlfriend and was refused shelter at New Life Interim Housing (a homeless shelter based in Chicago) upon revealing her sexuality to a staff member. Chicago's Department of Human Services discovered that, despite the staff member's claim that shelter was fully occupied when Ms Wang called, at least 2 beds were still available. According to O'Connor, this kind of discrimination is not uncommon - in the article, he says that "A recent report found an epidemic homeless problem among young lesbians and gays and cited incidents of anti-homosexual harassment at homeless shelters around the country. The study--issued in January by the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force and the National Coalition for the Homeless--said one Michigan facility required that gay and lesbian youths wear orange jumpsuits to set them apart from others". This kind of segregation opens LGBT shelter residents to homophobic responses from staff and other residents and can put them in an increased amount of danger. The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Policy Institute's findings agree with O'Connor, and give further examples of discrimination in shelters, including numerous facilities that forced residents who revealed an LGBT identity to leave, and a shelter that "removed the bedroom door of an out gay youth, supposedly to ward off any homosexual behavior. The second bed in the room was left empty and other residents were warned that if they misbehaved they would have to share the room with the gay kid.'" (Ray 8). These kinds of discrimination and persecution have led many LGBT homeless people to believe that they would in fact be safer on the streets.
Those who argue in favor of residence in homeless shelters stress the dangers that the LGBT homeless, particularly teens, face outside the shelters. An article by Kilian Melloy for Edge magazine, "Homophobia in Shelters Scare Homeless Gay Youths Away", discusses the alternatives that LGBT youth turn to instead of resorting to homeless shelters, and argues that they are in fact much riskier than life within a conventional homeless shelter. Many young gay men attempt to make contact with other men via the Internet, and offer sex in exchange for a place to live. This is defined in the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Policy Institute's article as "survival sex - exchanging sex for anything needed, including money, food, clothes, a place to stay or drugs". The article then quotes a study done of homeless youth in Canada which found that those who were LGBT were 3 times more likely than heterosexual homeless youth to participate in survival sex. Melloy quotes Tim Sigsworth, chief executive of the Albert Kennedy Trust (a voluntary organization based in England dedicated to aiding LGBT homeless people), who says that this practice can make these men vulnerable to sexual abuse, mistreatment and STDs. Drug and alcohol abuse is also included among risks that the LGBT homeless face. Gayle Jones, a chairperson on another LGBT advocate group based in England, believes that the fear of homophobia in shelters is disproportionate to the number of actual instances, and encourages education and advisement for LGBT youth on the options that are open to them.
For those in favor of homeless shelters, the answer is not to leave the LGBT homeless to seek out new options when homeless shelters are unwelcoming or dangerous, but to improve the standards of living in shelters and to battle against incidents of discrimination. One positive outcome of Michelle Wang's experience in Chicago was that the lawsuit she brought against the shelter resulted in a settlement requiring further steps to be taken to ensure no further sexuality/gender-identification related discrimination occurs. Additionally, the city of Chicago now has "plans for a mandatory training session on sexual orientation discrimination for shelters funded with tax money" (O'Connor 1). The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Policy Institute's article concludes with a list of steps that can be taken to make homeless shelters safer for their LGBT residents, emphasizing the necessity of education and training for all staff and employees, and the establishment of clear and strict anti-discrimination policies. A related article from the same group advises on methods to make homeless shelters safer and more comfortable for transgendered residents, which, in addition to the anti-discrimination policies and security that lesbian/gay/bisexual residents need, includes alternate sleeping/bathing/restroom facilities for those of ambiguous or altered gender.
One of the responses to inadequate homeless shelters is the establishment of a number of shelters solely intended to serve the needs of LGBT teens and young adults. One such facility, located in Manhattan, is run by Green Chimneys Children's Services and serves as a transitional living place for LGBT youth. Theresa C. Nolan's article "Outcomes for a Transitional Living Program Serving LGBTQ Youth in New York City" reports on this facility and documents the rate of success based on a group of 40 former residents. The shelter employs LGBT staff members, as well as empathetic and accepting heterosexual employees, to provide positive role models for their young residents, and introduces them to the gay-positive culture in their neighborhoods and encourages the residents to integrate a healthy gay identity into their racial/ethnic identities (the article deals mainly with a facility with apartments in Harlem, and includes many African-American and Latino residents). The shelter also strongly encourages its residents to complete their high school education and to develop skills in "budgeting and money management, interpersonal skills, independence and responsibility" to improve their abilities to support themselves once discharged from the program. Most residents stay within the program for nearly a year (the average in the group studied was 10.5 months), and of the 40 individuals in the group studied, 13 left because they successfully completed the program, 7 left to pursue other opportunities, 3 left voluntarily but with no stated future plans, and 17 were expelled for repeatedly violating the rules of the program. The Green Chimneys facility is attempting to improve its program to increase the number of safe exits from the program and to ensure the stability of those who have gone through the program. The New York Times published a report of a similar facility in East Detroit called Ruth's House (named for an African-American lesbian who established a similar sanctuary for local gay teens in the 1930s). It quotes several current residents describing the safety and security they feel within the shelter, but goes on to say that the number of LGBT shelters and the housing capacity within them is not even close to meeting the need. As of the article's publication in May 2007, there are approximately 25 LGBT shelters in the United States, and the article estimates that the total number of beds for LGBT homeless people in San Francisco is 15 and 50 in New York City. When compared to the numbers that the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Policy Institute gives - 20 to 40 percent of a 575,000 to 1.6 million person homeless youth population - it becomes clear that these shelters, however well-intentioned, cannot help more than a tiny selection of the vast LGBT homeless population. In addition, many of these shelters only serve LGBT people under the age of 21. In a case such as Michelle Wang's and for many other LGBT adults forced into homelessness, these shelters are not an option.
While the establishment of LGBT shelters is admirable and has provided a necessary haven for some LGBT teens, they have a limited scope and can serve only a very few. From an economic standpoint, it is probably a better option to improve current mainstream shelters - it's much cheaper and more efficient to revise policies in an existing facility that can house hundreds than it is to establish, staff and administrate an entirely new facility than can only house a few dozen. The purpose of homeless shelters is to provide sanctuary and aid to those in desperate need, and this should not be limited only to heterosexuals in need. Every source quoted within this paper has attested to the disproportionate number of LGBT individuals within the homeless population. The shelters that reject, abuse and discriminate against them are cutting off a significant percentage of those they are in place to serve, and it is inexcusable. Education and better anti-discrimination policies are the most obvious tools available for relieving the problems within shelters. Those who wish to improve the lot of homeless LGBT individuals should also vote for and support those government officials who propose greater allocations of funds and support to the homeless in general and to the LGBT population specifically. This is a critical factor in this problem - according to the New York Times article, federal financing for the Runaway and Homeless Youth Act (which provides money for the establishment of programs to aid homeless youth) dropped $1.5 million in 3 years (from $105.4 in 2003 to $103.9 in 2006). This has a deeply negative effect on shelters and their ability to serve the homeless youth, and can only add to the difficulty in revising and adjusting policies to accommodate LGBT residents.
Sources: (I should really render this into footnotes...)
http://www.thetaskforce.org/downloads/reports/reports/HomelessYouth_ExecutiveSummary.pdf
Ray, N. (2006). Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender youth: An epidemic
of homelessness. New York: National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Policy
Institute and the National Coalition for the Homeless.
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/05/17/us/17homeless.html?pagewanted=all
http://www.aclu-il.org/blog/archives/2007/05/from_the_chicago_tribune_lesbi.shtml
http://www.ct.gov/dcf/lib/dcf/safe_harbor/pdf/homophobia_in_shelters_scare_homeless_gay_youths_away.pdf
http://www.clasp.org/CampaignForYouth/PolicyBrief/RunawayandHomelessYouthAct.htm
http://www.thetaskforce.org/downloads/reports/reports/TransitioningOurShelters.pdf
Mottet, L., & Ohle, J. (2003). Transitioning Our Shelters: A Guide to Making Homeless Shelters
Safe for Transgender People. New York: The National Coalition for the Homeless and the National
Gay and Lesbian Task Force Policy Institute.