Posted 4/29/21 to VAntage

“HUD VASH will not help with housing voucher in West Haven, Ct. Due to I have not been homeless for three years. I came up to help mom from Florida, but she passed. Thus my West Palm Beach Housing Authority Voucher was cancelled. Now six months living in a garage,no heat . Don’t know how long I can hold out.” (Link to comments)

This veteran is in a life & death situation in CT yet West Haven VA sends him away?

I hate the MSM expression “the homeless” because it completely dehumanizes people who are homeless. Consider LA. Over 66,000 unhoused people. One human person without proper shelter is a disgrace to our society but 66K is beyond the beyond. A heroic judge, THE HONORABLE DAVID O. CARTER, JUDGE, has given LA until Oct. 1 to get everyone housed.

His statement is not a dull read, especially if you like history texts, the law and common decency, expressed so well.

LINK to injunction–110 page pdf.

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
CIVIL MINUTES – GENERAL
Case No. LA CV 20-02291-DOC-(KESx) Date: April 20, 2021
Title: LA ALLIANCE FOR HUMAN RIGHTS, et al. v. CITY OF LOS ANGELES, et

Discussion, p. 60 >

This Court cannot idly bear witness to preventable deaths. This ever worsening public health and safety emergency demands immediate, life-saving
action. The City and County of Los Angeles have shown themselves to be unable
or unwilling to devise effective solutions to L.A.’s homelessness crisis. For the
reasons discussed below, the Court must now do so.

Specific Actions, dates, etc…begin on pg. 109.

The issues in LA, while massive, are similar to other locations. In the “old” days, towns set up “poor farms” or alms houses. Today, I think it is worse.

This comprehensive injunction can serve as guidance, adapted, for other court challenges to get people sheltered and housed.

HUD-VASH is the VA program. Each state receives a limited number of vouchers. For the veteran posting from an unheated garage in CT (quote above), I suspect he was given misinformation. I hope he will get other opinions:

National Call Center for Homeless Veterans at 1-877-4AID-VET

https://www.va.gov/homeless/hud-vash.asp

Criteria is not provided. Vets must call. Case management is a requirement–probably a very good thing if there is proper staffing.

https://www.va.gov/homeless/hud-vash_eligibility.asp

https://www.hud.gov/program_offices/public_indian_housing/programs/hcv/vash

El Paso. Photo story w/8 pictures. (Link) Here is a caption for one.

Homelessness can happen to anyone. I have I have a College degree from Colorado and a history of 10 years in the military. After I left the military, I ended up doing a lot of minimum wage jobs and ended up being homeless. I stayed in hotels in Ciudad Juarez, outside the bus station, at restaurants until I found the Opportunity Center through the internet. These minimum wage jobs were eating my life little by little. I am now working and living at the Veterans Transition Living Center (VTLC). I have a son and he is my motivation. I want to save some money and to go back to school and I want to take care of my son. Don’t be afraid of us. We are not bad people. With direction, support services and guidance we can overcome homelessness (Stephen).

Housing programs for veterans vary by state. Washington appears to offer some aid (Link). Iowa? Have to go searching on the state website (Link).

Congress funded the HUD-VASH program during the “Great Recession” in 2008/09…and then cut the funds substantially for the last four years–including for 2021. Meanwhile, Covid-related evictions are inevitable. Animal shelters in big cities have had to take in formerly homed dogs due to Covid, job loss, and homelessness. No kill shelters have become kill shelters in places like NYC and Corpus Christi. For humans, the streets are kill streets.

Judge Carter spells it out. There is no defense for everyone who has mismanaged their localities, funding and made lousy policies that helped to contribute to this crisis for years.

Laura (Guest author)

Update: Progressives Jimmy Dore and Ron Placone add information about this situation; they make good observations on the financial and ethical factors and praise Judge Carter’s boldness. (No kind words at the end for Wall Street or Dems if you are sensitive about such things.)