Submitted by Stephen Dunne
on
Join Josephine Ensign, the author of "Way Home: Journeys Through Homelessness", along with fellow panelists Derrick Belgarde and Sara Rankin for a discussion on homelessness and criminalization in our communities.
Last year's Supreme Court decision in Johnson v. Grants Pass allows cities to fine, ticket or arrest people for sleeping outside, even when no shelter is available. Cities are now considering how, if at all, to shift their response to homelessness and the treatment of those living outside. Meanwhile, the number of unhoused people across the country continues to grow. What might the future hold? Are there more compassionate and thoughtful ways to address homelessness? This panel brings together research, lived experience, and ways forward in our conversations and understanding of homelessness.
Tuesday, May 13 at 7pm (doors open at 6:30pm)
Central Library, 1000 Fourth Ave.
About the speakers:
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Josephine Ensign is a professor in the School of Nursing and an adjunct professor in the Department of Gender, Women, and Sexuality Studies at the University of Washington, Seattle. She is the author of "Catching Homelessness: A Nurse's Story of Falling Through the Safety Net" and "Skid Road: On the Frontier of Health and Homelessness in an American City".
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Derrick Belgarde is an enrolled member of the Confederated Tribes of Siletz Indians of Oregon, and also Chippewa-Cree from Rocky Boy Montana. He serves on the board of Community Roots Housing, Downtown Emergency Service Center, Seattle/King County Coalition on Homelessness, and the Housing Development Consortium. He completed his undergraduate in Public Affairs Magna Cum Laude, and went on to complete his Master’s in Public Administration, both at Seattle University.
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Sara Rankin is a national expert on legal and policy issues relating to people experiencing homelessness. She is the founder and Director of the Homeless Rights Advocacy Project (HRAP) at the Center for Civil Rights & Critical Justice, as well as co-founder and co-chair of the Third Door Coalition. She is a member of the Leadership Committee of the Lived Experience Coalition and serves their designee on the King County Regional Homelessness Authority's Implementation Board.
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