Human Needs First

Factoryjoe/Wikimedia

Home is where the heart is. I can feel at home with the man I love; with my mother; with my friends who love me. Being in a place without love, safety and security is not “homey.” Even if there is a roof over my head, it’s a box. A trap. A source of anxiety and despair. A state of “less-ness.” We need to reframe the conversation on homelessness. Instead of talking about what someone doesn’t have, let’s talk about what each person actually needs.

First, let’s define human “needs.” In the mid-1900s, American psychologist Abraham Maslow introduced his “hierarchy of needs.” Maslow’s framework of needs is a pillar of modern psychology, and it is also a theory commonly applied to business management. Maslow posited that of all the human needs, the most basic physiological needs must be met first.

Second, let’s begin to look at how the well basic human needs are being met in Washington, D.C. According to the latest census in 2016, there are 8,350 people experiencing homelessness in D.C. Over 50 percent are children under 18. That is a 14.4 percent increase versus 2015.

There are ten 24-hour/day emergency shelters and six 12-hour/day emergency shelters open from 7 a.m. to 7p.m. Where do the children residing in the 12-hour shelters go at 8 a.m. or noon or 3 p.m.? What if there is no school today or no childcare? How much time does it take to get ready for school or travel to daycare? Where do they shop for warm clothes? Where do they go when they have the sniffles? What about fresh air and exercise? Where do they go after school?

All people don’t want or need a lease, at least temporarily. For a variety of reasons, many people need someone else to shoulder the responsibility of managing the day-to-day work of running a household. My 93-year old mother, a marine, is just one example. If she didn’t live with me, where would she go? And if the only choice is a filthy, dangerous, crowded city shelter — outside actually sounds preferable.

Third, let’s look at the cost of providing these inadequate services. According to the District of Columbia Interagency Council for Homelessness Strategic Plan for 2015-2020, the city spends over $53,000 annually per homeless unit, and it plans to continue to spend over $53,000 per year without committing to providing private bathrooms or kitchens, or transportation to schools and jobs. There are multiple documented cases of assault, food -borne illness and rodent infestations in D.C. shelters. For a cost to the D.C. taxpayer of $150 per day, I think we can do better.

Finally, let’s talk about what we can do better. Assuming we already have a budget of $145 per day for emergency shelter, the city can choose to provide emergency housing in a private mobile/modular home with private bathrooms, kitchen and laundry for less than $50 per day.

The additional $95 per day can go toward counseling, job training, child care and recreation. If we treated our current homelessness an actual emergency, with the help of the U.S. National Guard, FEMA or other experienced professionals, short- and medium- term solutions that satisfy basic human needs can be implemented within seven days. Not weeks, not months, not years. To provide 4,000 modular homes (1,300 square feet of living space, plus 2,600 square feet/house surrounding), we would need 200 acres. In fact, there are two adjacent D.C.-owned sites slated for redevelopment totaling 257 acres that should be considered: the Hill East/Reservation 13/DC General site (67 acres) and adjacent the RFK Stadium-Armory Complex (190 acres).

In the U.S. Constitution, the framers believed that the general welfare was so essential that it was in the preamble. To quote FDR, “The test of our progress is not whether we add more to the abundance of those who have much; it is whether we provide enough for those who have too little.” There is “enough” money in the city budget. There is “enough” available land already owned by D.C. It is a choice how the money and the land are allocated. What is more important to our city: more luxury condos, more stadiums and parking lots or basic needs for 8,350 people experiencing homelessness?

Let’s reframe homelessness and prioritize basic needs. Let’s talk about ensuring that our citizens’ basic needs are met. No one has a monopoly on the answers. But we can reframe the problem. How many shelters can address all basic needs, 24/7, 365 days a year in one location? How much time and money and energy is spent traveling to other sites for services? What is the gap in basic needs not being met? Let’s hold current and future D.C. contractors and elected officials accountable to servicing our citizens with dignity and respect.

Even for a well-educated, well-fed, well-rested adult, it is not easy to navigate and make sense of the city’s services and departments. But we do need to try harder to re-allocate and refocus; to summon the courage, determination and persistence to change the course of increasing poverty, despair and fear. Contact your ANC, city council member, the mayor and the deputy mayor of Health and Human Services. Ask the hard questions, especially if you benefit from nonprofit time and money or city time and money. That means you. Employers, employees and consumers.

Spread the word: Human needs first, not bureaucracy first.


Issues |Education|Housing|Shelters


Region |Washington DC

information about New Signature, a Washington DC tech solutions and consulting firm

Advertisement

email updates

We believe ending homelessness begins with listening to the stories of those who have experienced it.

Subscribe

RELATED CONTENT