Renee Banton - veteran, hero, Angelino
Women veterans are seven-and-a-half percent of all American vets and that percentage is growing. And, so are the problems faced by women who have served time in the military. Not so long ago, veteran Renee Banton was addicted to crack and living on the streets. That all changed one Mother's Day. Now she's helping women veterans get their lives on track. (posted 3/10/11)
By Emily Frost

 

Los Angeles Police Department argues nonprofits are better than handouts on Skid Row
Few would disagree that donating time or resources to the homeless is a good idea for the community. But the way in which the homeless receive assistance can either help or hurt them in the long term. (posted 11/18/10)
By Chris Foy

 

New Directions help veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan
Los Angeles has 20,000 homeless veterans, the largest population in the country. With the Veteran Affairs already overwhelmed by veterans from previous wars, New Directions is one of the organizations filling the gap in service for new homeless veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. (posted 11/11/10)
By Emily Frost

 

Apartments offer studios for homeless and low-income people
The newly opened Renato Apartments on San Julian Street offers housing for homeless and low-income individuals. (posted 11/04/10)
By Albert Sabate

 

Census workers team up with organizations to count homeless
The U.S. Census Bureau is working with Los Angeles homeless organizations to help count the homeless. (posted 3/23/10)
By Timothy Beck Werth

 

South LA Podcast: Mayor’s Office Tries to Solve Homeless Problem With Sock Drive
The Mayor's Census Office is offering socks to the homeless to get them to participate in the 2010 census. (posted 2/19/10)
By Timothy Beck Werth

 

Interview with the Corporation for Supportive Housing’s Jonathan Hunter on The Soloist
Jonathan Hunter, the Managing Director of the Los Angeles region of the Corporation for Supportive Housing, is applauding the release of the film The Soloist. Hunter says the relationship between LA Times Steve Lopez and homeless musician Nathaniel Ayers sets an example for how to deal with the homeless. (posted 4/23/09)
By Jonathan Horn

 

Many Homeless Receive Housing Downtown
Downtown Los Angeles is quickly becoming more residential and affluent. A study by the downtown property owners group finds more people are choosing to live in renovated lofts and condos downtown rather than commute from the suburbs. But it's not just the affluent who are now calling downtown home. More than 100 people also received keys to apartments on skid row. Adriana Venegas-Chavez has more on this home for the homeless. (posted 4/16/09)
By Adriana Venegas-Chavez

 

Beyond Shelter’s Barbara Hill on Homelessness in South LA
ARN's Kaitlin Funaro speaks with Barbara Hill of Beyond Shelter about what non-profits are doing to help combat homelessness in Los Angeles. She says the increase in homeless in South LA is putting a strain on local services. (posted 3/06/09)
By Kaitlin Funaro

 

Homelessness in Los Angeles
The foreclosure crisis coupled with an economic meltdown has put more strain on a neighborhood still struggling to reinvent itself. The US Department of Housing and Urban Development gave the greater Los Angeles area $73 million in grants, but it won't be enough to solve the crisis. Homeless service organizations are reporting an increase in homeless families, and are struggling to make do with limited resources. The last homeless census was done in 2007, and found that on any given night 73,000 people were homeless. That was the year the foreclosure crisis started to affect South L.A. Low rent apartment buildings bought by speculators with bad loans began going into foreclosure, affecting dozens of families. Without enough permanent, low-income housing available, more and more families and individuals are being pushed into homelessness. Even families that were homeless, but found housing, are now back on the streets. (posted 3/05/09)
By Timothy Beck Werth