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Helping Unhoused Neighbors By Thinking About Your Part
Palms Unhoused Mutual Aid volunteers talking to unhoused and housing insecure people in front of Vista Motel.
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Noé Montes
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LAist
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Topline:
While Los Angeles city officials, including Mayor Karen Bass, try to move fast on the homelessness crisis, mutual aid groups and regular neighbors are pitching in to help unhoused people. One volunteer says getting to know who lives around you — housed or unhoused — is a key way to learning about (and possibly helping) someone.
How To LA host Brian De Los Santos and producer Evan Jacoby discuss what they learned in the mutual aid series that hones in on homelessness and how people navigate basic needs.
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• 22:32
Volunteers Take On The Homelessness Crisis, Part 4: 'Being A Better Neighbor'
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Why it matters: About 2,000 people experiencing homelessness die every year in L.A. More unhoused people die in L.A. from extreme weather conditions than in New York City, where there are more unhoused people and more extreme weather.
But volunteers using the mutual aid model have found a way to help these communities, and the basic principle is as simple as asking what someone needs and offering it to them. Maybe it’s food, maybe water, maybe a clean pair of socks.
While they wait for longer-term solutions from local government agencies, these immediate-term services could save their life.
The backstory: The How To LA team reported a four-part series on mutual aid groups and their efforts to aid the homelessness crisis. They also spoke to public and elected officials on what they're doing to help unhoused people.
Get involved: If you want to get involved with a mutual aid group in your neighborhood, these resources can help you get started.
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