Homeless : narratives from the streets

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Title:

Homeless : narratives from the streets

Author:

Phillips, Joshua Daniel, author.

ISBN:

9781476664576

Personal Author:

Phillips, Joshua Daniel, author.

Physical Description:

vii, 196 pages ; 23 cm

General Note:

Source of cataloging data: WCP

Abstract:

"While it's important to understand how economic systems affect the homeless, it's equally important to learn about day-to-day realities faced by those who rely on public policies. Drawing on the author's experience working in the homeless community, this book presents some of their stories of loss, abuse, addiction and marginalization through interviews, observations and ethnographic research"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Acknowledgments -- Preface -- Camden, New Jersey -- Introduction -- Frank's place -- Researching homelessness -- Defining homelessness -- The case for narratives -- Stories of homelessness -- Losing everything -- Navigating the system -- Manipulating the system -- Seeking recognition/finding community -- What's next? -- Conclusion -- Epilogue -- Appendix A: List of participants and demographics -- Appendix B: Guiding interview questions -- Bibliography -- Index.

Subject Term:

Homelessness -- United States.

Homeless persons -- United States.

Available:*

Library	Material Type	Call Number	Status	Item Holds
Searching... Sugar Grove - Todd Library	Book	HV4505 .P485 2016	Searching... Unknown	Searching... Unavailable

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Summary

A half-century after the "War on Poverty" of Lyndon Johnson, poverty rates remain unchanged. Scholars have advanced polarized theories about the causes of poverty, as politicians have debated how (or if) to fund welfare programs. Yet little research has been conducted where the poor are provided a platform to speak on their own behalf. While it is important to understand how economic systems affect the homeless, it is equally important to learn about the day-to-day realities faced by those who rely on public policies for survival. Drawing on the author's experience working in the homeless community, this book presents some of their stories of loss, abuse, addiction, and marginalization through interviews, observations, and ethnographic research.

Reviews (1)

Choice Review

Phillips (communication, Penn State Univ., Brandywine) presents narratives based on interviews and interactions with homeless individuals he met while working at homeless-serving organizations in New Jersey and Illinois. The narratives force readers to look at what the loss of everything--from family, job, and home to bathrooms, privacy, and dignity--means on a day-to-day basis. The author shows how daunting it is to extricate oneself from homelessness when the entire day must be taken up with bare survival in programs that are usually starved for resources and staff. Phillips draws his academic inspiration from the field of intercultural communication studies. However, he ignores the work on homelessness from the field of anthropology, which for decades has presented the voices of the homeless. An example of this rich trove is Elliot Liebow's book about homeless women, Tell Them Who I Am (CH, Feb'94, 31-3507), whose very title suggests that the writer is a conduit to the outside world. This reviewer wishes that the book had a separate section on methodology and that the author had dealt with the ethical issues inherent in being a provider of essential services and a researcher. Summing Up: Recommended.General and lower-level undergraduate collections; professionals. --Irene Glasser, Brown University