Invisibility, Intersectionality and Identity: Researching (with) Homeless Women

Keywords: homelessness, feminist geography, social geography, cultural geography, gender
Session Type: Virtual Poster Abstract
Day: Saturday
Session Start / End Time: 2/26/2022 09:40 AM (Eastern Time (US & Canada)) - 2/26/2022 11:00 AM (Eastern Time (US & Canada))
Room: Virtual 57

Abstract

Are homeless spaces accessible to all homeless people? People experiencing homelessness often seek refuge in spaces where homelessness is acceptable, such as drop-in centres and night shelters. However, for homeless women, these spaces can be intimidating, unwelcoming and even open them up to encounters with their own perpetrators. Homelessness is experienced very differently for women, and these differences vary further when an intersectional approach is taken, allowing for consideration of how race, disability, sexuality, gender identity and age can further shape how homelessness is lived, felt, and negotiated.

This poster presentation will present my current PhD research on women’s homelessness; presenting data from interviews with women currently experiencing homelessness, women who have previously experienced homelessness and individuals who work with people experiencing homelessness. It will focus on a range of issues faced by homeless women, from health issues to trauma; identity and self-esteem; the services they avoid and the services which have helped them exit homelessness. By developing an intersectional, gendered approach to homelessness, my research is seeking to create a more nuanced account of how homelessness is experienced.