Homelessness

Officials overseeing Catholic Charities-connected housing initiatives are calling on Congress to boost funding and expand tax credits for affordable housing programs that serve older adults and homeless people.

When Hurricane Dorian caused evacuations in September 2019, many Haitian immigrants living in the Bahamas were deported. Now the government plans to demolish the homes of about 3,000 Haitians living on Abaco.

Even during a global pandemic, the World Day of the Poor will be an important opportunity for parishes to highlight the importance of charity and spiritual comfort for those in need, said a Vatican official.

A moratorium on evictions in the U.S., announced Sept. 1 by President Donald Trump, will keep thousands of Americans in their homes through the end of the year, but it does not cancel rents owed.

The creator of "Homeless Jesus," 50-year-old Canadian sculptor Timothy Schmalz, says he aims for his work to disturb the comfortable and maybe provide a little comfort to the marginalized people he depicts in his work.

As New York's court system prepares to hear cases again and the June 20 expiration of Gov. Andrew Cuomo's moratorium on evictions approaches, Antonio Garcia, an official of Catholic Charities of New York, said the agency is prepared to help at-risk tenants.

Many Catholic Workers across the United States are reacting to the pandemic with curiosity, hope and a commitment to living according to principles of the founders, Dorothy Day and Peter Maurin.

For the Catholic Worker's meal center in LA, known as the Hippie Kitchen, meeting the increased need while preventing the spread of coronavirus has meant improvising — both in how it provides its services and how it prevents the spread of the virus.