A symposium on Women and Homelessness; Vectors of Invisibility took place September 27th, 2018 at Concordia University to a full house of 100 participants. Why a symposium dedicated to women? Until recently, the image of homelessness was male oriented. The results of the initiative I COUNT MTL 2015, demonstrated that among people living in the streets 24% are women. A percentage that experts believe is grossly underestimated. Beatriz Hoffmann-Kuhnt, member of the Board of Directors at Logifem and Symposium Coordinator, wanted to bring together community practitioners and academics to expose the reality of women experiencing homelessness, so as to identify research gaps and to influence policy. Logifem was one of the presenters along with the Native Women’s Shelter, Chez Doris, YWCA, Dans la rue, Nazareth & Anne’s House, and Shield of Athena providing keys factors to the issue.
So why the difference, why isn’t the problem more visible with women? Senator Julie Miville-Dechêne, Québec’s former Envoy for Human Rights and Freedoms, and President of the Conseil de statut de la femme, explained that most women fear being victims of violence, so they hide. For some, the streets are considered to be the least safe place to stay. They sleep in the car, in warehouses, couch surf, remain in abusive relationships, and turn to the sex trade to avoid being seen. When these women finally seek help, and go to a shelter that has a room and a door they can lock, they sleep for weeks. This is quite different to men, who once they find refuge, they welcome doing activites. The safety women find in these shelters allows them to let their guard down and recuperate, only then can the healing process begin. The hope is that by raising awareness of the particularities of women experiencing homeless, more resources will be available to give women security, stability and the opportunity to regain their dignity. After all housing is a human right.
