Dear Editorial Board,
The day after reading your editorial Dignity is Not the Solution, I was sitting around the woodstove at Dignity Village talking with village residents. Many were puzzled by your message. Of course, Dignity Village is not the solution to homelessness, they said. Building more affordable housing is!
Everyone with whom I spoke wanted desperately to get into regular housing but could not afford to do so. They all had low-paying jobs that put regular housing out of their reach. And since they were neither mentally ill nor addicted, they were given low priority in the limited number of subsidized housing programs. They had the choice of living either on the streets or at Dignity Village. They chose the latter: a safe and loving community until regular housing can be found.
Pitting Dignity Village against JOIN is in nobodys best interest.
Kate Lore
Dignity Village Advisory Board
Social Justice Director, First Unitarian Church of Portland