When “You Can’t Get to Where You’re Going:” Mothers’ Experiences in Family Homeless Shelters

Homelessness among female-headed families in the United States is increasing. Up from 1 percent in the 1980s, families now comprise 38 percent of the unhoused population (National Alliance to End Homelessness, 2013). Structural inequalities – poverty, low wages, domestic violence, and lack of affordable housing – are the root causes of homelessness among women with children (HUD, 2012). Yet, classed, racialized, and sexualized stereotypes depict homeless women as “bad” mothers and attribute homelessness to personal choice, criminality, laziness, and alcohol and substance abuse (Connolly, 2000; Friedman, 2000). These stereotypes inform the design of shelter policies and programs, which create “feedback loops” that influence institutional practices and interpersonal relationships (Soss, 2005). While homeless shelters are an important safety net for families with immediate housing needs, shelter environments also present challenges for families (Averitt, 2003; Cosgrove & Flynn, 2005; Deward & Moe, 2010; Mayberry et al., 2014). Using feedback loops as a conceptual framework, my dissertation examined how formerly homeless mothers experienced and responded to shelter rules and procedures, and how shelter environments and relationships therein reflected broader understandings of and approaches to homelessness. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 28 formerly homeless mothers with the goals of: 1) documenting experiences in and perceptions of family shelter environments; 2) examining the explicit and implicit messages about womanhood and motherhood embedded in shelter rules; 3) investigating the negotiation of shelter rules and staff monitoring; and 4) analyzing critical resistance to perceived stereotypes and discrimination in shelters. The study found that rules and rule enforcement reinforced hierarchical relationships between staff and residents. Interviewees experienced shelter rules and classes as explicitly communicative of individualistic and moralistic messages, and implicitly predicated on classed, racialized, and gendered normative models of what it means to be “good” women and mothers. Exposure to heightened staff monitoring of daily behaviors and parenting practices influenced interviewees’ sense of privacy and autonomy in the shelters. Respondents engaged in strategic self-presentation, covert and overt resistance, and stereotype disruption to mitigate disproportionate surveillance or prejudicial treatment. Implications and recommendations for strengthening shelter policies and programs are discussed