Homelessness in Madison

On Saturday December 15^th, thirty individuals came to the Madison Central Library to discuss homelessness. Some were established residents of Madison, others were shelterless community members. Representatives from Capitol Neighborhoods Inc, DMI, the Madison Police Department, and the UW campus were in attendance to present different points of view.

This was the third discussion in a series created by CNI in an effort to break down barriers of communication between homed and homeless residents of downtown Madison. Professional mediators encouraged open and honest discussion and group leaders from previous discussions directed conversations on topics such as housing, mental health, communication & resources, and respect. Each group was given the assignment to talk about their subject, brainstorm ideas to address the problem, and then present the best idea to the full group at the end.

The central problems were narrowed down to the following.

Housing: More personal assistance is needed in shelters and agencies. Users of the agencies want to be treated as people, not numbers.

Mental Health: There is a general need for more mental health assistance when necessary.

Transportation: More options are needed to allow travel to day labor sites, such as the one in Monona. Most shelters are downtown, day labor sites are not and many find it difficult to find reliable transportation back and forth.

Resources: A central database or resource center is needed to provide information on services which many agencies offer for the homeless. Central postings describing where to find simple amenities such as free phone service and public restrooms are located can be particularly useful.

 

Respect: Preconceived notions of homelessness act as a barrier to communication with those that are without stable housing. Establishing a relationship with a homeless individual can be an important step in understanding the difficulties that they are going through.

The issue of respect was the biggest topic of the session, and many people chimed in with personal stories and opinions about their experiences. One person argued that respect is a two-way street. Those without shelter must show consideration for the physical environment and residents must understand that the homeless also deserve to be treated fairly and without prejudice. Safety concerns were also raised, and it was advised that the best way to establish a line of communication is for each side to approach one another in a neutral setting, such as Savory Sundays, a weekly meal for the hungry held at the Capitol basement.

Although some used the forum to vent frustrations about homelessness in Madison, others took the opportunity to work together productively and create ideas for improvement. Some groups even moved to act on their ideas and will continue to meet between the ongoing CNI discussions forums. All participants were optimistic about what Madisonians can do to make the city better for both homed and homeless residents.

CNI will be hosting similar discussions once a month trough March. Check out CNI’s webpage to see the full schedule.