Twin Cities Unhoused Union pushing for housing fixes

There are no easy solutions to improving the challenges of homelessness, but Junail Freeman Anderson has spent much of her life seeking them.

She has been homeless many times and has learned to fend for herself and others in the same situation, trying to have a say in decisions made around the issue.

“My belief as always is that all people should be on top,” she said. “People who are on the verge of homelessness should be on top.”

She founded Freedom from the Streets in 2019, an organization made up of people who are currently or previously homeless or are at risk of homelessness. The purpose of the organization is to have homeless people working on homeless issues, and provide the lived experience, according to Freeman Anderson.

She is also the founder and executive director of Twin Cities Unhoused Union (TCUU), a grassroots organization whose membership is composed primarily of homeless or formerly homeless individuals. Whereas Freedom from the Streets stresses direct services and support, the TCUU focuses on advocacy in forms of bills and policies that support the homeless.

Freeman Anderson said the TCUU has group meetings the first and fourth Mondays, either virtual or in person, to discuss current issues and actions.

“We’re campaigning right now for a Practice House,” she said. “This would provide 100 homes for people who are homeless, and it would be run by the people themselves.”

After working with government agencies and homeless rights organizations for years, Freeman Anderson said that what is so important in seeking resolutions is the need for dignity and respect of homeless individuals.

“People often assume that abuse of drugs or alcohol is the main reason for homelessness, and they need to understand that is not true. We have doctors and lawyers who are among the homeless. An actress from ‘Happy Days’ was recently homeless. It can happen to anyone,” she said.

The recent closures of homeless camps does not alleviate the situation, according to Freeman Anderson. “People just move to another site.”

She believes a lot of money has been wasted on closing campsites. “Stop the sweeps,” she said.

Homeless shelters are not the answer, either, Freeman Anderson claimed. “The shelters don’t know how to take care of people. I was attacked in one of them.”

She said the restrictions with most shelters, such as couples not being able to stay together or pets not being allowed, also prevent people from using them. “And they are just a temporary fix,” she added.

“I have been working for years on the issues facing the homeless,” Freeman Anderson continued. She said she has protested, sat on panels, attended the legislature and been part of a book “Homeless in Minneapolis.”

“We want respect, and not to be treated like kids,” she said.

“We have been working hard, without any pay.”

TCUU, which has around 50 members, is pushing hard for funding to operate its own housing.

“We can do a good job,” Freeman Anderson said. “We hope and pray we can get funding through the mayor of Saint Paul.”

Need more affordable houses
Her daughter, Janesha Anderson, has been a big help to her mom in her work to find housing for the homeless.

“I help her print out stories for her group, and I can be on the sidelines and sometimes attend meetings. I have grown up with this. I was homeless when I was a kid, and I remember most of it,” Iesha recalled.

“I can’t think of any solutions, except for more affordable housing,” she noted. “Houses are getting more expensive all the time.”

Janesha is enrolled in a program to be a first-time home buyer, and she is looking forward to that.

“A house has more privacy,” she noted. “In public housing, you sometimes feel like you’re in jail even if you don’t do anything. I see tenants sometimes trying to act like landlords and give other tenants rules. I just wish they could build more houses and duplexes instead of apartment buildings.

“I don’t hate apartments, but they seem so formulaic. With high rents.”

Health and homelessness intertwined
Jewelean Jackson said she grew up as an army brat. While her father was deployed in three wars, she and her mom sometimes lived in a car and sometimes stayed with her grandmother. She has also faced homelessness as an adult.

“I was a homeowner. But I lost my duplex through ID theft,” she said. So she has had past experiences with homelessness.

But she really became involved with working on its issues after she was the first Black female to chair the Community Health Care Center at the University of Minnesota.

“There was a big encampment across the street, and it took me a minute to realize that health and homelessness are intricately intertwined,” Jackson said.

“I have always worked for the betterment of my community, but it’s only been in the past six years I have focused so much on homeless issues,” Jackson continued.

She is currently a member of TCUU and serves as a consultant to Metropolitan Interfaith Council on Affordable Housing (MICAH).

Jackson said it is important that dignity not be excluded from those facing the challenges of homelessness. “So many youth are criminalized,” she stated. “There needs to be another level of understanding, not the stereotypical idea of an unsheltered person.”

Jackson said she believes that the country has the resources to eradicate homelessness.

“However, based on the current administration, that agenda excludes us more than ever. It is more important to rebuild a ballroom or make more bombs to fight a war.

“We all bleed red,” Jackson said, “but our capitalistic system grows greed and keeping up with the Joneses. After a house and a cabin, how much more housing do you need?”

Jackson said the levels of homeless people has been building for five decades.

“Right now, the numbers are highest among seniors and youth,” she said. “And people tend to forget the disabled.”
She said she is disappointed that there is always another study being done, with people making money off it, rather than practical steps being taken.

Jackson was in Washington, DC, when Sen. Tina Smith was working on a housing bill that passed the House by one vote.

“We may have won the battle, but we’re still fighting the war,” Jackson said. She is also hoping a constitutional amendment for a 3/8 cent tax on taxable items will be on the ballot in a couple of years, with that dedicated funding going toward housing.

“It will help all of us,” Jackson said. “People who are housed are more productive employees and citizens.”
More empowerment would be helpful to those facing the challenges of homelessness, according to Jackson. “They would be more apt to recognize resources, get help with navigation and know what they are needing at the moment. On the system side, people would be less likely to look down on the homeless and throw unnecessary barriers in their way. If we get to grips with that, things will move along faster.”