Trans Discrimination from Housing

Welfare systems like homeless shelters are important resources that everyone should have the right to access regardless of race, gender, or sexual identity. However, the reality of the situation is far from that ideal. According to the NCTE, one in five transgender individuals have experienced homelessness at some point in their lives. Social service and homeless shelters that work with this population often fail to culturally and appropriately serve transgender homeless people, including denying them shelter based on their gender identity; inappropriately housing them in a gendered space they do not identify with; and failing to address co-occurring issues facing transgender homeless adults and youth.

However, there are still opportunities that are being created to combat this issue. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration has created and promoted educational resources on serving LGBT homeless youth. Even better, the Administration for Children and Families helped to develop a program to help support LGBT foster youth as well as preventing them from having to face homelessness with the largest-ever LGBT focused federal grant.

If you'd like to learn more, the NCTE has a useful page on their site here that states your housing rights and laws that protect from discrimination as well as what someone can do if you encounter said discrimination. Lisa Mottet and John M. Ohle have a great pdf here with a useful guide to making homeless shelters safe for transgender people that gives a more in-depth look at the subject.