September 05, 2024

‘But what can I do?’: Taking up the call to support our unhoused neighbours

As a group of advocates, lived experts, researchers, and community speakers from Waterloo Region, Ontario, we have had thousands of conversations with people about the homelessness crisis. Some of these conversations are challenging as we confront NIMBYism, misperceptions and fears about homelessness, and false and unfair narratives about the causes and conditions of homelessness. However, by and large, most of the people we speak with are empathetic towards people who are homeless but are at a loss for how to help. One of the most common questions we receive is, “but what can I do?”

We set out to provide some answers to that all important question. We believe the first rule of being a good neighbour to people experiencing homelessness is to respect their autonomy and dignity.. Recognizing that people have different levels of understanding about homelessness and capacity to offer support, we developed a resource to provide tangible actions that people can take in a way that works for them. The resource was designed to respond directly to questions we receive about what someone should do when they see someone who is homeless. It also provides longer term ideas for how people can support the vision to prevent and end homelessness in Canada.

The resource is divided into three sections, each providing multiple suggestions on how to be a good neighbour to people who are homeless and how to advocate at the broader level:

What can I do in the moment?

  •  Be nice, say hello, acknowledge that they are there and may have spoken to you
  • Ask someone what they need
  • Give money, food, drinks to someone you see outside
  • Have a conversation with someone if they are interested, leave them alone if they aren’t interested
  • Acknowledge to yourself any feelings of discomfort you may have

What can I do later?

  • Find local service providers in your community and learn about what they do and how you can help
  • Find and follow local service providers and mutual aid communities on social media to be able to respond when they put a call out for support
  • Educate yourself on homelessness in your community and issues related to homelessness (i.e. poverty, housing affordability, vacancy rate, mental illness, substance use, trauma)
  • Think about what skills, time, and assets you have that you can provide consistently to support people who are homeless (i.e. weekly food prep, hair cutting, driving/delivery, etc.)
  • If you don’t have the capacity to get involved directly, that’s ok. Simply don’t get in the way of other people doing that work

What can I do to make change?

  • Have conversations with friends, families, and neighbours to help people understand the root cause of homelessness
  • Connect with groups doing this work to participate in advocacy and activism in your community (this can be loud or quiet – it all helps)
  • Quiet? Write letters to local government in support of policies or programs that will respond to homelessness in a practical, solution-focused way
  • Loud? Attend a protest or solidarity walk

This resource is available for free on our website in multiple formats for others to add to their own web page and/or to print off copies. We are hopeful that this work is part of a larger conversation about building an inclusive community where everyone is welcome and feels a sense of belonging, and finding spaces for people to advocate and support efforts to address the immediate needs of people who are homeless and long term action to address the crisis.

Check out our infographic: Hello friend infographic – Printable – September 2023

The Unsheltered Campaign is a group of housed and unhoused community members who advocate for year-round support, housing, and alternatives to shelters for all unhoused people in the Waterloo Region.

Disclaimer
The analysis and interpretations contained in these blog posts are those of the individual contributors and do not necessarily represent the views of the Canadian Observatory on Homelessness.