National Alliance to End Homelessness

Even as many volunteers are taking to the cold streets to try to find and quantify the number of homeless Americans living there now, two lawsuits filed late last year in a federal District Court are blocking millions of dollars from reaching the neediest people. The first lawsuit was filed by the National Alliance to End Homelessness (NAEH), and the second by a coalition led by Washington State’s Attorney General Nick Brown. The lawsuits seek to stop the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) from redirecting a larger share of public dollars to treatment-based homeless programs. Both suits seek to force the continued pretense that permanent subsidized housing projects will end homelessness. These efforts fail the smell test. Read More ›

In a memorable scene from “Casablanca,” actor Claude Rains plays a corrupt police chief ordered by the Germans to shut down a popular nightclub after patrons indulge in a disfavored patriotic song. “But I have no excuse to close it!” protests Rains. “Find one,” is the curt reply. Rains orders everyone to leave immediately. When the nightclub’s owner Rick (played by the unforgettable Humphrey Bogart) demands to know “on what grounds,” Rains exclaims: “I’m shocked, shocked, to find that gambling is going on in here!” He then cordially thanks the staff member who hands him his night’s winnings. In a similar show of manufactured outrage, executives at the National Alliance to End Homelessness filed a lawsuit September 11 in Rhode Read More ›