Empowering Black People Experiencing Homelessness: The Value of Lived Experience in the Workforce
January 22, 2025
Black people experiencing homelessness face unique and systemic barriers to finding safe and stable living situations. From discriminatory housing policies to implicit biases in hiring practices, the complexities of these issues continue to dog our politicians and befuddle our populace here in Southern California. While clearly no one easy solution can combat such deep and systemic issues, the first step lies in recognizing the power of lived experience and actually leveraging it to create sustainable workforce opportunities.
Lived experience refers to the firsthand, intimate knowledge gained from personally enduring a particular and challenging situation. For Black people who have lived unhoused in Los Angeles, this form of tragic expertise can be used to reshape how the homeless services sector operates. By hiring these individuals, as well as those from other historically marginalized groups, anti-homeless organizations draw upon real-life, authentic perspectives to foster more empathetic, culturally competent and ultimately effective means to ending this crisis.
The Intersection of Race and Homelessness
The truth is, Black people are disproportionately impacted by homelessness. Despite making up just 13 percent of the U.S. population, they represent nearly 40 percent of unhoused individuals. Systemic racism, mass incarceration, and generational poverty are some of the main drivers. Addressing them requires not only focusing on housing but also equitable employment opportunities. Employment is not just about putting money in someone’s pockets—it offers dignity, purpose and a sense of belonging. Workforce development initiatives tailored to Black individuals with lived experience does this. It can also create pathways for systemic change when those with lived experience enter the very sectors tasked with serving the unhoused population.
The Value of Lived Experience
When Black individuals who have been touched by homelessness enter the workforce, particularly
homeless services, we can see them first-hand applying their authentic understanding to achieve better outcomes—advocating for trauma-informed, culturally sensitive approaches, which are too often absent on the ground. This is particularly impactful in Black communities, where shared cultural knowledge helps bridge trust gaps between providers and individuals seeking or needing services.
Lived experience allows for the design and implementation of programs that genuinely meet the needs of those they aim to serve. People who have experienced homelessness understand the nuances of navigating services, as well as the psychological toll of displacement and marginalization. These insights can guide policy changes, enhance service delivery, and lead to getting more people off the streets.
Rebuilding with Dignity
Black people who have experienced homelessness are not just survivors; they’re change agents. When we invest in their professional development and integrate them into the workforce, it’s about more than just getting them jobs. We’re creating a pipeline of leaders whose expertise will push initiatives that are more equitable and responsive—especially for Black people.
When we honor lived experience and break down employment barriers, we can actually begin to reverse the exclusionary cycles that have disproportionately plagued Black communities. Workforce inclusion of those impacted by homelessness is not just a matter of equity—it is an investment in more effective, compassionate, and community-driven solutions.
Note from the author:
To continue exploring the topic of this post, we encourage you to read our paper titled “Workforce Re-Entry Barriers for Black Angelenos with Lived-Experience of Homelessness.” In this comprehensive study, which we wrote in partnership with USC’s Homelessness Policy Research Institute (HPRI), we delve deeper into the systemic issues and innovative solutions that center lived expertise in creating equitable opportunities for Black individuals experiencing homelessness.
