Domestic violence is among the leading causes of homelessness, is driving growing numbers of women to sake safety in the streets. At a Friday, February 16 Ethnic Media Services briefing, domestic violence prevention advocates and a formerly unhoused survivor discussed how domestic violence often leads to homelessness and shared firsthand experiences of homelessness as a result of IPV. THE IMPACT OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE ON HOMELESSNESS Domestic violence, also known as intimate partner violence (IPV), involves “violence, abuse or aggression committed by a former or current intimate partner,” said Dr. Anita Hargrave, Assistant Adjunct Professor at UCSF. Last month, to better understand the experiences of IPV survivors currently experiencing homelessness, the UCSF Benioff Homelessness and Housing Initiative released Toward Safety, a report analyzing IPV data from June 2023 in the California Statewide Study of People Experiencing Homelessness (CASPEH) — the largest representative study of homelessness since the mid-1990s. Dr. Anita Hargrave, Assistant Professor, UCSF and lead BHHI researcher of the report “Toward Safety: Understanding Intimate Partner Violence and Homelessness,” shares data on the availability of shelter for those fleeing domestic violence. This new report found that 40% of participants reporting IPV in the six months before homelessness reported violence as a reason for leaving their last housing, while 20% said it was the primary reason. IPV “is particularly dangerous for those at the economic margins,” said Hargrave. “Many survivors reported that relatively modest amounts of financial support could have helped them avoid homelessness — which left them even more vulnerable to increased violence, as 42% of IPV survivors prior to homelessness experienced it unhoused as well.” 73% of those who reported IPV before homelessness believed that a $300 to $500 monthly subsidy would have kept them housed for at least two years, while 83% believed that a one-time $5,000 to $10,000 lump sum would have, and 92% believed that a housing voucher limiting rental contributions to 30% of their income would have. 95% of all survivors said high housing costs were a barrier to regaining housing. In short, “Many IPV survivors are forced to choose between a rock and a hard place: enduring violence at home or risking homelessness,” said Hargrave. “You can’t address the link between IPV and homelessness without addressing the need for permanent affordable housing.” RISING IPV AND HOMELESSNESS IN NEW YORK CITY Domestic violence has particularly been on the rise in New York City, where 40% of women and children in homeless shelters are there because of IPV. “Despite New York City making progress in reducing other forms of homicides, domestic violence homicides persist, and continues to disproportionately impact Black and Hispanic women,” said Jennifer White-Reid, Chief of Staff at Urban Resource Institute (URINYC), which provides transitional housing for thousands of domestic violence survivors and homeless families. Between 2021 and 2022, IPV homicides increased 29% citywide, 225% in Brooklyn and 57% in the Bronx. Jennifer White-Reid, Chief of Staff & Senior 27
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