Homelessness Is a Housing and Racism Problem

Housing ends homelessness. Although this claim seems logical and obvious, it has come under attack by people frustrated that the growing visibility of encampments in many US cities is affecting their perceived safety and quality of life. Gregg Colburn and Clayton Page Aldern analyzed data from 30 of the largest metropolitan areas in the US and report their findings in the recently released book, Homelessness Is a Housing Problem. The book adds compelling evidence to what researchers and advocates have known for decades: high rates of homelessness result from structural factors—namely, challenges in the housing market and structural racism. In this article, Pitkin provides a summary of Golburn and Aldern’s book.