It seems a little strange to blog in reflection of a piece of writing, but I had a really interesting learning experience co-composing the policy analysis with Chelsea, and I wanted to share some of the “behind the scenes” with you. (Sorry, Chelsea, you have heard this all before!)
As a refresher, Chelsea and I are studying the issue of homeless occupants of public space in Portland. We had the benefit of meeting with Ethan (of the Parks and Recreation Department) in class, and since then, have STRUGGLED to reconnect with him. We forged ahead regardless, realizing, that at least for this section of our analysis, we were mostly building our (and our reader’s) background knowledge about homelessness in Portland, and what historical events and policies have helped set the stage for the current crisis.
I learned quickly that assembling this history was going to be WAY more challenging than I anticipated… particularly as someone new to this state. I wasn’t sure what policies or events to look at - I was searching for history that I didn’t have the language to describe. News reports aren’t readily available, journals didn’t seems to have the historical content I was searching for, and book sources by and large did not focus the homeless population of the city. Making matters trickier, policy changes that impact the homeless population usually don’t ‘sound’ like housing policies. For example, using the 2015 example of Lepage's refusal to expand Medicare/Medicaid coverage - as social workers, we are aware of the profound impact this had on the homeless population - however on the surface level, this was a decision about insurance coverage - NOT homelessness or homeless people in public space.
I realized quickly that to get an accurate description of Maine’s history, I couldn’t rely on print sources alone, I would need to get more creative - seeking professionals in the community who have some expertise in this area.
I was fortunate enough to connect (remotely) with David Wagner, our former professor, and Rob Parritt (the director of the Oxford Street Shelter). Professor Wagner validated my research struggle by informing me that in a city of this size, social history is often shared orally, and it would be highly unlikely to find documentation of the sort I was looking. The history of hidden populations is stored in the minds of the remaining few, and gradually, with the help of community members, I was able to bring together pieces of Portland’s underground history. Hearing the history from the viewpoints of different stakeholders (from grassroots to bureaucratic levels) too, helped contextualize my understanding.
The process was more time consuming and gratifying than I expected, and I am excited to share my learning with our class. I learned to reach outside my usual researching procedure and rely on spoken word and lived experience as a springboard for building background and understanding the trajectory of the city. I felt a certain level of privilege as a student, being able to access the expertise of community members who were willing to volunteer some of their time to teach me.
Similar to Portland's history, Chelsea and I are realizing that our policy analysis to address homeless people using Portland's public spaces is sounding less and less like a housing policy... stay tuned!
