12,000 Homeless in D.C.

This number is astounding to me.  Washington, D.C. is not, by any means, a large city.  You see homeless people every time you go to the district; it's almost a desensitizing experience.  I think somewhere along the way I've internalized an image of homeless people as just those living in horrible conditions on the street.  This is not in any way truly representative of the homeless culture in our capital.  In actuality, only about 13% of the region's homeless are living on the streets.  Over a third of the homeless population is employed, and more than 40% have families which generally live in shelters or transitional housing.  According to the Diamondback, we actually have several homeless students going to school here at the university.  The exponential increase in housing costs in the district has forced many families into more marginalized housing situations.  Here at Maryland, rising housing costs may be a predicament that we can relate to, however, for most of us these increases don't mean the difference between having a roof over our heads and being out on the street. 

You can help.  Saturday, November 17th is the Fannie Mae Foundation's annual Help the Homeless Walkathon.  Come down to the National Mall, enjoy some (hopefully) good weather and a lot of good company.  The Walkathon begins at 9:00AM, but be sure to get there a little bit early to complete the registration.  Registration begins at 7:00AM at the intersection of 12th and Jefferson Drive, NW, right on the front lawn of the Department of Agriculture.  Let's make sure UMD is well represented this year...the more people we get out, the more money will be raised.  Check out the massive list of beneficiaries that will receive contributions from the Walkathon at:

http://www.helpthehomelessdc.org/site/c.plI4IcNWJyE/b.2699653/k.C202/2007_Beneficiary_Organization_Directory.htm

See you there!

Peace,

Pat