Question: Are homeless shelters dangerous places?
Answer: “No, but…”
First the “No”:
I started volunteering at a homeless shelter when I was only 13 years old. I certainly didn’t feel in any danger.
I brought both of my children to volunteer when they were each babies and they safely volunteered into adulthood. My wife volunteered. My mom volunteered. I would not have taken my family to a shelter if it were dangerous.
In 30+ years of working/volunteering in shelters, I have only felt in danger twice. I have experienced danger far more frequently on vacation than in a shelter.
Now for the “But…”
Homeless shelters do have conditions that naturally create conflict:
- Crowded places escalate conflict.
- Sleep deprivation escalates conflict.
- High levels of PTSD escalate conflict.
- Insufficient staffing levels escalate conflict.
- Improperly trained staff escalate conflict.
- (There are many more… too many to list here)
None of these factors make shelters inherently unsafe, but they do mean that shelters need to plan, prepare and train for conflict.
In fact, conflict prevention and de-escalation is the #1 skillset required of someone who works in a shelter.
So, here’s the real question:
Is your organization treating conflict management as a core skill? Or as an afterthought?
Because if your staff’s job description stops at food, beds, and case management, you’re setting them up for preventable problems.
A shelter can be low-barrier. It can be welcoming. It can be safe. But safety doesn’t happen by accident. It happens by training.
National Alliance to End Homelessness Interview
This question came up during a recent interview I did with Rachel Pearsall of the Center for Learning at the National Alliance to End Homelessness.
We discussed “Preventing and deescalating conflict in homeless response”:
- Part 1 (10:36): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lLuAQMHZ7Rs
- Part 2 (11:11): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h59qWtMLTQE
Peace,
Ryan