Last night, volunteers spread out across the District to conduct the annual Point in Time (PIT) count, an annual census that helps cities and states measure their progress towards ending homelessness. More specifically, the PIT provides a rough snapshot of how many people are experiencing homelessness on a given night. Miriam’s Kitchen staff supported this effort, canvasing Foggy Bottom and the National Mall to connect with individuals living outside.
Results of the PIT count are expected to be analyzed and released during the summer. However, regardless of what this year’s census reveals, we already have a clear understanding of the District’s homelessness crisis thanks to the guidance of individuals with lived experience; numbers from last year’s PIT count; and data from the District’s robust by-name list. Currently, 2,671 of our neighbors and 432 households are experiencing chronic homelessness. This means that these individuals have been without housing for over a year and are living with complex medical conditions. Without action from Mayor Bowser, these vulnerable citizens will continue to experience homelessness, with very serious risk of losing their lives.
Fortunately, we know that housing ends homelessness and, as we speak, Mayor Bowser is working on a crucial tool to end homelessness: DC’s $15.5 billion budget. We call on Mayor Bowser to use her budget to translate the PIT data into action. The Miriam’s Kitchen community of guests and partners is asking the Mayor to end chronic homelessness for 2,671 individuals and 432 households; and to guarantee that all of our neighbors have the housing they need to thrive. Mayor Bowser has the power to ensure that, by next year’s annual Point in Time Count, nobody is living outside or in shelter. We hope she uses that power to achieve housing justice, not to sentence our neighbors to additional years of homelessness.
For more information and to join the movement, we invite you to follow The Way Home Campaign, an advocacy effort led by Miriam’s Kitchen, to demand that our elected officials invest in housing justice.
