Archive for the ‘alaska’ Category
Luke
Posted by invisiblepeople | Filed under alaska, face and voice of homelessness
Luke is homeless and panhandling in Anchorage, Alaska. In Alaska, he is often referred to as a “chronic inebriate”–an individual who drinks too much, too often. Last night, Luke slept at the “sleep-off,” a center in Alaska for chronic inebriates to safely sleep and recover from drunkenness. It’s one of the few warm places to [...]
Dee
Posted by invisiblepeople | Filed under alaska, face and voice of homelessness
Dee is living at the Brother Francis shelter in Anchorage, Alaska. It’s an emergency shelter, and after staying for thirty days, residents must find another place to stay. He’s been in Alaska for nearly 30 years, and he recently found new employment. He’s now searching for low income housing, but he cautions those who haven’t [...]
Jessica
Posted by invisiblepeople | Filed under alaska, face and voice of homelessness
“It sucks being homeless. And I don’t ever want to see my little girl homeless.” This was the first thing Jessica said when I met her in Anchorage. She and her 1-year-old daughter are currently living with Jessica’s aunt, who sometimes kicks them out when she’s angry. She’s a young mother, obviously scared to be [...]
Mark
Posted by invisiblepeople | Filed under alaska, face and voice of homelessness
I met Mark at a soup kitchen in Anchorage, Alaska. He described himself as an average American–six to eight credit cards, a home, boat, and truck. But one day he came home to a basement full of sewage. He ended up keeping his debt but losing everything else. He lived in a tent in the [...]
Kim
Posted by invisiblepeople | Filed under alaska, face and voice of homelessness, road trip
Until my recent trip to Anchorage, Alaska, I had never heard the term “Chronic Public Inebriate,” yet in Alaska the word “inebriate” is spoken everywhere. It is so grafted in Anchorage’s culture that even the homeless call themselves inebriates. At first it bothered me, but I soon learned that Anchorage’s homeless problem is very complex, [...]
