This is a tough story. Not because it was difficult to report or write, but because it points out the flawed statistics we rely on to understand our economy.
Last week, the county conducted a homeless census designed to determine how homeless men, women and children there are in Middlesex County. The trouble is that the count is essentially voluntary, relying on the homeless to come forward and volunteer their status. While this catches many, it leaves those living in the shadows in the shadows while also purposely ignoring a whole category of transients who technically have roofs over their heads.
(A)ccording to Amanda Warga, who works for the Middlesex County homeless Help Line, people living in welfare motels do not count as homeless because they have shelter.
“Although they are homeless in regular language, they can get hotel placement for two months and not be considered homeless,” Ms. Warga said. “Sometimes the hotels are so far out that they can’t find work anywhere and they aren’t counted as homeless. They should be, but they’re not.”
I’d have to agree. Not counting them distorts the true picture of homelessness and what is sometimes called housing insecurity. They have shelter — but only for the moment and it is dependent on forces they cannot control. When the winds change, they often find themselves without shelter, perhaps under a bridge in New Brunswick or living in a tree house on Beekman Road.
South Brunswick Post, The Cranbury Press
The Blog of South Brunswick
Hank Kalet 