Fix Homelessness | How to rebuild human lives

Dr. Robert Marbut and Billy Baldwin Talk with Megyn Kelly About Fentanyl Film

_{Center on Wealth & Poverty and Robert Marbut
April 30, 2025
1
Drug Epidemic}

On National Fentanyl Awareness Day, Senior Fellow Dr. Robert Marbut appeared on The Megyn Kelly Show alongside actor Billy Baldwin to discuss their new documentary, “Fentanyl: Death Incorporated.” They talk about the lethality of fentanyl, where fentanyl is coming from and how it is getting across U.S. borders, and the legal and social difficulties of getting people into treatment. Find out more about “Fentanyl: Death Incorporated” at fentanyldeathincorporated.com. …

Discovery Releases New Data and Policy Approach for Seattle’s Homelessness Crisis

_{Discovery Institute
November 7, 2024
2
Homelessness}

Download the Report. Discovery Institute Releases New Homelessness Data and Policy Approach for Seattle Seattle, WA- If the growth rate of unsheltered homelessness in King County remains unchanged, the population experiencing unsheltered homelessness will double from nearly 10,000 to a staggering 20,000 in less than three years. A new report from Discovery Institute’s Fix Homelessness Initiative offers policy recommendations and new data to address the crisis. A study performed by Discovery Institute found that 49.7% of people experiencing homelessness and enrolled in Seattle programs first began experiencing homelessness outside of King County. Data also reveals a dramatic redistribution of funding away from emergency and transitional beds towards permanent …

The Toxic Patterns that Keep People on the Streets

_{Jonathan Choe
June 10, 2025
1
Homelessness}

We Heart Seattle’s “Recovery First” Model is Working Seattle voters say the homeless drug crisis remains a top three issue. But the Harrell administration is still engaged in a game of Whack-a-Mole and has failed to find long-term solutions. That’s because they’re not addressing the drivers of this humanitarian disaster which include drug addiction, mental illness, and broken relationships. Instead, city officials are touting the wrong metrics for success such as the number of tents removed from the streets. Meanwhile, We Heart Seattle’s “recovery first” intervention model is working. And they’re outreach workers have identified some new patterns that are keeping so many people in this vicious cycle. I followed them in this …

Microsoft Pulls Major Tech Conference from Seattle Over Crime, Drug Use, Homelessness

_{Ari Hoffman and Jonathan Choe
June 10, 2025
5
Homelessness}

Seattle has lost one of its most high-profile tech events due to mounting concerns over public safety and deteriorating conditions in the city’s downtown core. Microsoft has confirmed that it will no longer host its annual Build conference in Seattle starting in 2026, citing issues related to rampant homelessness, visible drug use, and urban decay. According to an internal email obtained by journalist Jonathan Choe of the Discovery Institute, Visit Seattle—the city’s official tourism and marketing organization—was informed that Microsoft will cancel its 2026 event and release all future holds for the conference in Seattle. The email, titled “DEFINITE BOOKING CANCELLATION NOTICE,” said the decision was heavily influenced by the experience of company …

Farewell

_{Marvin Olasky
May 30, 2025
4
Homelessness}

After writing weekly for three years, this is column #156 and my last in Fix Homelessness. Three conclusions: “Housing First” is profoundly inhumane. Encouraging people to commit suicide by enabling their addiction — now you can drug and drink in privacy — is wrong. All drugs are not the same. People can live with a weed habit. People die with a meth habit or years of alcoholism. When addiction incapacitates a person, the right principle is Deal With Addiction First. The same principle goes for mental illness. Freedom’s not another word for no thinking left to lose. When a person goes from muttering to himself to hearing his own muttering plus voices yelling at him, it’s not kind to leave him alone. When medication can help as it often does, any …

Cereal or Eggs?

_{Marvin Olasky
May 23, 2025
4
Homelessness}

“Morning by morning new mercies I see.” That line from the hymn written in the 1920s, “Great Is Thy Faithfulness,” summarizes not only the Christian life but the way some beaten-down humans suffering homelessness come to believe that God can change their lives — or at least they can improve their own lives by moving from cereal (morning by morning) to bacon and eggs. “Bird by bird, buddy.” In the 1990s, Annie Lamott wrote Bird by Bird, a book about becoming a writer. The title comes from the time her ten-year-old brother fought frustration while trying to finish a report on birds that he’d struggled over for three months. “My father sat down beside him, put his arm around my brother’s shoulder, and said, ‘Bird by bird, …

Robert Marbut on America’s Homelessness Crisis, Strategies for Uplifting the Homeless, and Effective Government Policies

_{Wesley J. Smith and Robert Marbut
May 16, 2025
2
Homelessness}

Homelessness has reached crisis proportions. Few issues of human dignity are as heart wrenching as the wretched scenes in our most prosperous cities — San Francisco, Los Angeles, Portland, and Seattle — where one can drive down main thoroughfares and be confronted with tent encampments lining streets that provide scant shelter for thousands of destitute people. The crisis is as multifaceted as it is seemingly intractable. What is the role of mental illness in the crisis? What about drug addiction? Is the rising cost of housing part of the problem, and if so, what can be done about it? What protections does society owe these vulnerable people based simply on their humanity and what responsibilities, if any, do they owe to greater society? It’s all such a mess, it is tempting …

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Street Report

from Jonathan Choe

This Man Is Only One Reason Microsoft Pulled Its Tech Conference from Seattle

_{Jonathan Choe
June 10, 2025
1
Homelessness}

The Tent That Broke the Camel’s Back This dude living in a tent is one of the reasons why Microsoft pulled its prestigious developer’s conference from downtown Seattle. Meanwhile, Mayor Bruce Harrell remains clueless on how to address the mental health crisis on the streets. It’s costing the city millions in tourism dollars. Microsoft pulls tech conference from Seattle over crime, drug use, homelessness“The customers cited the general uncleanliness of the street scene, visibility of individuals engaging in drug use & unhoused individuals.”My latest collab with @choeshow https://t.co/sCmZU8dmNj— Ari Hoffman 🎗 (@thehoffather) June 10, 2025 …

Internal Memo: Urban Decay “Contributing Factor” to Microsoft Conference Leaving Seattle

_{Jonathan Choe
June 6, 2025
2
Community Impact}

Breaking I have obtained the internal memo outlining reasons behind Microsoft Build’s exit from Seattle. This is an absolute indictment on Mayor Bruce Harrell’s administration and shows his failure to get the homeless drug crisis under control. #BREAKING: Seattle restauranteur David Meinert says the massive Microsoft Build (@Microsoft) developer conference won't be returning to Seattle next year after attendees complained about urban decay, open-air drug use, and numerous tents lining the streets. 🧵👇 pic.twitter.com/PJs9VYT1TK— Jonathan Choe (@choeshow) June 6, 2025 Seeking Next Location Microsoft Build says it has “struggled to find its footing and identity post-Covid.” It appears Las Vegas and San Francisco are two locations …

Microsoft Conference Leaving Seattle Due to Urban Decay

_{Jonathan Choe
June 6, 2025
1
Crime, Law, and Order}

Breaking Seattle restauranteur David Meinert says the massive Microsoft Build developer conference won’t be returning to Seattle next year after attendees complained about urban decay, open-air drug use, and numerous tents lining the streets. Mayor Bruce Harrell Meinert is also torching Mayor Bruce Harrell for allowing these conditions to prosper in the downtown core and claims the Downtown Activation plan is bloated with bureaucracy and is lacking leadership. Disruptions Pro-Hamas protesters also disrupted Microsoft Build 2025 in Seattle, harassing attendees with insane glitter bombs. Lone Tent Downtown residents say this is the lone tent the city has failed to remove near the Seattle Convention Center. It has been reported to the Find It …

Car Prowler Breaks into Car in Broad Daylight, Claims It’s His Car

_{Jonathan Choe
June 6, 2025
1
Crime, Law, and Order}

Confronting the Prowler Seattle residents confront a suspected car prowler in broad daylight. This fella is so brazen, he continues to riffle through the vehicle with cameras rolling. 911 is called but cops don’t show up in time. This is Mayor Bruce Harrell’s lawless city. Watch Out Keep an eye out for this fella. …

Drug Addicts Continue to Overrun Chinatown Park

_{Jonathan Choe
June 3, 2025
1
Drug Epidemic}

Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell announced a $1 million public-private partnership to revitalize Chinatown-ID. Big money coming in from The Asian American Foundation Program started this month. Look how it’s going so far. …

East Oakland Filled with Trash and Barred-Up Fast Food

_{Jonathan Choe
May 20, 2025
1
Crime, Law, and Order}

“Be Careful Out Here” East Oakland, CA remains a disaster. Due to high crime in the neighborhood, the Wendy’s has to operate with bars on the windows. A few blocks away, homeless encampments and shanty towns continue to thrive. This is now Mayor-elect Barbara Lee’s city. NEW: We are on the ground in Oakland, CA and some neighborhoods are an absolute disaster. A sense of lawlessness overwhelms the streets. But @SenecaSpeaks21 is leading a movement that could help bring in a new mayor and turnaround this failing city.pic.twitter.com/engKUtwaYm— Jonathan Choe (@choeshow) March 27, 2025 …

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Restorations Podcast

Brian Chandler’s Journey from Addiction to Service

_{9
Caitlyn McKenney
March 26, 2025}

In this episode of Restorations, Caitlyn McKenney is joined by Brian Chandler of Seattle's Union Gospel Mission.

Homelessness CEO Spends 24 Hours Unsheltered in Seattle

_{8
Caitlyn McKenney
February 26, 2025}

In this episode of Restorations, Caitlyn McKenney is joined by Kim Cook the CEO of Bread of Life Mission in Seattle's historic Pioneer Square.

Addiction Treatment Should Look Like This

_{7
Art Dahlen
December 5, 2024}

In this episode of Restorations, Caitlyn McKenney is joined by the founder of Battlefield Addiction Art Dahlen. As a former addict, Art shares personal insights on addiction treatment, the policy environment in Seattle, and the power of language.

Our Mission

Discovery Institute’s Fix Homelessness initiative offers innovative research and compassionate solutions to the growing crisis of homelessness, addiction, and mental illness facing many American cities. Our mission is to serve as a resource for policy leaders, business owners, and neighborhood organizations trying to meaningfully reduce homelessness and to help those suffering realize their full human potential.

Support Our Work

Jim Palmer of the Orange County Rescue Mission on causes and cures for America’s homelessness crisis

_{8
Jim Palmer
November 1, 2021}

In this episode of Humanize, Wesley J. Smith speaks with Jim Palmer, the president of the Orange County Rescue Mission about the many causes and potential cures of America’s seemingly intractable homeless crisis. It is a crucial, if disturbing, conversation that touches upon the most existential needs of people and our mutual responsibilities to each other. Homelessness has reached crisis proportions in which even our most prosperous cities — such as San Francisco, Los Angeles, Portland, and Seattle — witness thousands of people living in squalid tent encampments lining streets that provide scant shelter for people that many of us would rather ignore. It’s all such a mess, it is tempting to throw up one’s hands in despair. But understanding the causes of homelessness is …

Robert Marbut on America’s Homelessness Crisis, Strategies for Uplifting the Homeless, and Effective Government Policies

_{29
Robert Marbut
May 23, 2022}

[not] anything helps

Discovery Institute’s Fix Homelessness Initiative pairs journalism with research on homelessness, addiction, and mental illness. Our mission is to help city leaders, service organizations, and business owners meaningfully reduce homelessness and improve lives.

Resources

National Report

“Housing First” — and often only — has demonstrably failed. Congress and the Executive Branch must shift the focus onto untreated mental illness and substance abuse to reduce homelessness, drug overdoses, jail overcrowding, and misuse of emergency rooms. Herein we make policy recommendations to Congress to truly help rebuild human lives.

Get the National Report

Legal Guide

We have created a legal guide for cities to maintain compliance with the Martin v Boise decision. The guide outlines best practices for compliance and provides models for successful ordinances that balance enforcement, housing, and legal requirements. The guide is written by Joseph Tartakovsky, attorney for the City of Boise in the Martin v Boise case.

Get the Legal Guide

Case Studies

We have created case studies of cities that have delivered cost-effective and rapid results on homelessness. We’ll show you how San Diego built an emergency shelter and moved 700 people off the streets, how Burien eliminated camping in public parks, and how Modesto reduced quality-of-life crimes associated with homelessness by 83 percent — all within 60 days.

Get the Case Studies