Serenity is 20 years old, pregnant, and living in a tent homeless in San Diego. She shares that one of the reasons she's turned away from shelters is that there are no bottom bunks available, and because she is pregnant, she cannot sleep on a top bunk. Often, shelters are for men or women, and those that are able to help pregnant women are full.

We were able to connect Serenity to a street medicine team. While I was on the phone with the nurse practitioner, she told me they are seeing more pregnant women out on the streets. We featured four street medicine teams in California here    • Street Medicine in California: Health...   They will be able to help Serenity with medical care and connect her to social services that will hopefully get her off the streets. In this interview, Serenity shared she has trouble getting to doctors, so medical care was the first crisis that needed to be solved, and street medicine teams are the very best.

The day we were at this homeless camp, police and sanitation were doing a homeless sweep. Mayor Todd Gloria continues to pass laws that make homelessness a crime. Part of his containment strategy is aggressive sweeps. Homeless people are given three hours to move all of their belongings, or they lose everything. In the hot sun, Serenity was forced to move to the other side of the street only to have to move back again. We documented San Diego's cruel criminalization of homelessness here    • Criminalization of Homelessness: San ...  

This is no longer about housing and homelessness. Politicians have weaponized the criminalization of poverty for their political agendas. Support for housing as a solution to end homelessness decreases every day, while support for the criminalization of homelessness increases. This is all while homeless numbers are skyrocketing. It's horrible that a young pregnant woman is sleeping in a tent, but if we don't take action now to prevent and solve homelessness, we will see more women and the elderly outside.

If you live in San Diego, please contact your lawmakers to get homeless people the help they need and to stop criminalizing homelessness.

More:

Criminalization of Homelessness: San Diego's Failed Response to a Homelessness:    • Criminalization of Homelessness: San ...  

YouTube Short with Serenity talking about how she is embarrassed to tell her friends that she's homeless and the challenges of getting help:    • A 20 year old pregnant woman, shares ...  

==================================

Subscribe here: https://www.youtube.com/c/invisiblepe...

Invisible People’s website:

http://invisiblepeople.tv

Support Invisible People:

https://invisiblepeople.tv/donate

On Patreon:   / invisiblepeople  

Invisible People’s Social Media:

   / invisiblepeople  
  / invisiblepeople  
  / invisiblepeople  
  / invisiblepeopletv  
  / invisiblepeopletv  

Mark Horvath’s Twitter:

  / hardlynormal  

About Invisible People

There is a direct correlation between what the general public perceives about homelessness and how it affects policy change. Most people blame homelessness on the person experiencing it instead of the increasing shortage of affordable housing, lack of employment, childhood trauma, lack of a living wage, or the countless reasons that put a person at risk. This lack of understanding creates a dangerous cycle of misperception that leads to the inability to effectively address the root causes of homelessness.

We imagine a world where everyone has a place to call home. Each day, we work to fight homelessness by giving it a face while educating individuals about the systemic issues that contribute to its existence. Through storytelling, education, news, and activism, we are changing the narrative on homelessness.

This isn’t just talk. Our groundbreaking educational content reaches millions of people every month. Our real and unfiltered stories of homelessness shatter stereotypes, demand attention and deliver a calltoaction that is being answered by governments, major brands, nonprofit organizations, and everyday citizens just like you.

However, there is more work to be done on the road ahead. Homelessness is undoubtedly one of our biggest societal issues today and will only continue to grow if we don’t take action now.

Invisible People is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to educating the public about homelessness through innovative storytelling, news, and advocacy. Since our launch in 2008, Invisible People has become a pioneer and trusted resource for inspiring action and raising awareness in support of advocacy, policy change and thoughtful dialogue around poverty in North America and the United Kingdom.