Three academics who are based in Canada have written a thoughtful article about preventing homelessness as it is practised in the global north.
The authors are strong advocates for prevention. They investigate how the philosophy that underlies government actions (that being a state which supports a market-based economy) influences the delivery of prevention programs.
The authors also explore how the philosophy of a market based economy infiltrates research about prevention. They ask whether that infiltration blinds us to calling for transformation of child welfare and other systems that are pipelines to homelessness.
People who have experience in the child welfare system are disproportionately represented in the homeless population. A Canada wide survey found that 58% of youth who are homeless in Canada have had experience in the child welfare system. By comparison, less than 1% of the Canadian population have had such experience.1.
The article will be useful to anyone who favours the idea of preventing homelessness. It is published in the International Journal on Homelessness: The Politics of Prevention and Government Responses to Homelessness
Footnotes
- You can read more about the child welfare system and youth homelessness in Canada at the Homeless Hub: Child Welfare and Youth Homelessness in Canada: Who is Responsible?
