Archive for September, 2009
Harold
Posted by invisiblepeople | Filed under face and voice of homelessness, road trip
Harold is one of over 12,000 individuals living in our nation’s capital without a home. I met him in Lafayette Square, a park located directly across the street from Obama’s government subsidized cushy home, 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. When Harold was released from prison, he moved in with his grandmother. She passed away and he had [...]
Cotton
Posted by invisiblepeople | Filed under face and voice of homelessness, road trip
“Brutal and senseless.” This is how Cotton describes homelessness. It might just be the most succinct and heart-breakingly accurate explanation I’ve heard in a long time. Cotton is homeless and disabled. She lives in a tent in Greensboro, NC. If that’s not bad enough, she has been living this way for over 16 years. This [...]
Yong
Posted by invisiblepeople | Filed under face and voice of homelessness, road trip
Three months ago, Yong lost everything – including her house and all of her possessions – in a fire. To make matters worse, she did not receive the insurance money she needed to survive. She ended up homeless. Yong’s recollection of her first night homeless in Greensboro, North Carolina broke my heart. She was terrified. [...]
Jim
Posted by invisiblepeople | Filed under face and voice of homelessness, road trip
After working hard his entire life, Jim should be settling into retirement. Instead, he is 69 years old and living in a tent in the woods of Greensboro, North Carolina. Jim only wants to return to his former life. His three wishes are simple: to go back to work, to get his home back, and [...]
Coreen
Posted by invisiblepeople | Filed under face and voice of homelessness, road trip
Coreen is homeless, but she is also a survivor. I met her on her second day living in Nickelsville, Seattle’s infamous tent city. Rather than stay in an abusive relationship, Coreen ran with just the clothes on her back to escape the daily beatings. I’m glad she got away, many victims of domestic violence are [...]
Ed
Posted by invisiblepeople | Filed under face and voice of homelessness, road trip
Ed lived under a bridge before moving to his makeshift “apartment” in a Nashville wooded area. While his current living arrangement isn’t ideal, it is impressive. If nothing else, it proves that some people can make the best of a bad situation. Still, Ed looks forward to someday having a real apartment with a real [...]
Debbie
Posted by invisiblepeople | Filed under face and voice of homelessness, road trip
Debbie lives in a tent in a wooded area in Nashville, Tennessee. I met her the week of her 55th birthday. Sadly, Debbie says she is not new to homelessness. She loves Nashville because she has spent most of her life here, but said she cannot finding housing she can afford. She just wishes she [...]
Angela
Posted by invisiblepeople | Filed under face and voice of homelessness, road trip
Since last year, I have been documenting the stories of the homeless. For the past months, I have traveled from coast-to-coast talking to people living in the streets, in shelters, in weekly-rate hotels, and under bridges. Nearly one hundred interviews (and thousands of pairs of donated socks) later, my perspective on homelessness has changed dramatically. [...]
Vickie
Posted by invisiblepeople | Filed under face and voice of homelessness, road trip
For four hard months, Vickie has been living under a bridge. She says that there are lots of rats and ants, yet this is where they now call home. She ended up on the streets as a direct result of the recession; Vickie’s boyfriend lost his job and their ability to pay rent. When I [...]
Ulysses
Posted by invisiblepeople | Filed under face and voice of homelessness, road trip
I met Ulysses under a bridge in Atlanta, Georgia. He was sleeping on rocks, and said it was his favorite spot. He called it “home” and said he was happy there. But you have to wonder, how happy a person can be when thousands of cars drive by every day, seeing him live like this, [...]
