NLIHC, the National Alliance to End Homelessness (The Alliance), and the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP) hosted a webinar, “All Hands on Deck: Mobilizing a Broader Network of Advocates,” on June 25.
Ann Oliva, CEO of The Alliance, moderated the webinar. We were joined by Andrea Vocos, housing coalition manager with United Way of Greater Los Angeles; Jeremy Saunders, co-executive director of Voices of Community Activists and Leaders (VOCAL-NY); and Lindsey Krinks, co-founder and director of advocacy at Open Table Nashville.
Ann opened the webinar by highlighting the persistent affordable housing crisis, decades of disinvestment in our social safety net systems, and growing efforts across the country to propose and pass bills that seek to fine, ticket, arrest, and jail people experiencing homelessness. The good news, Ann emphasized, is that communities and coalitions are defeating many proposed punitive policies at the state and local levels and are mobilizing to secure the resources needed to prevent and end homelessness at the ballot box and through appropriations.
Andrea spoke about the Everyone In campaign, a community movement to build the public and political will to end the homelessness and housing crisis in Los Angeles County. Andrea shared how the campaign activates millions of people across LA County to support real solutions to the crisis through communications and narrative shift, mobilization, and advocacy and policy change.
Jeremy described how VOCAL builds power among low-income people who are directly impacted by homelessness, HIV/AIDS, the drug war, and mass incarceration. He spoke about VOCAL’s organizing power and its focus on intersecting crises.
Lindsey shared how Open Table Nashville disrupts cycles of poverty, supports unhoused individuals, and educates their community about homelessness. She emphasized that Open Table Nashville is not a voice for the voiceless; rather, the organization serves as a megaphone to amplify the voices of people experiencing homelessness.
During the panel discussion, the panelists discussed the strategies they use to broaden their base of advocates, how they navigate challenging political environments, and how their organizations balance defensive and offensive strategies. During audience Q&A, the panelists addressed how to engage people with lived experience in advocacy and how to partner with faith-based communities.
We have uploaded a recording of the call, as well as the presentation slides.
Resources Discussed on the Webinar:
- What Communities Need to Know About the Criminalization of Homelessness
- Emerging Strategies to Combat State-Level Punitive Bills [Alliance]
- Unlocking the Full Potential of the Housing First Approach [Alliance]
- Scaling Services to Meet People’s Needs [Alliance]
- How to Advocate to Your Lawmaker [Alliance]
- The Alliance’s Take Action page
- Policymakers Can Solve Homelessness by Scaling Up Proven Solutions: Rental Assistance and Supportive Services [CBPP]
- VOCAL-US Training and Support Sign-Up
- The Bold New Way
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Last year, more than 13,400 people participated in our monthly Homelessness and Housing First webinar series. Given the tremendous interest among stakeholders and the worsening homelessness and affordable housing crises, we decided to continue and expand the series to focus on the solutions to homelessness. On the webinars, we will share more about proven strategies to successfully end homelessness, best practices for state and local advocacy, and actions advocates can take to advance solutions.
Homelessness demands urgent action from all levels of government. We know what works to end homelessness: providing individuals with stable, accessible affordable housing and voluntary supportive services. We hope you will join us in building the political will and congressional support necessary to do so!