Community Reality

The central question of this retreat and project at large: What is community?

There are various angles to take. Take, for instance, the government reporting document "The Current State of Homelessness," which is published every year. It frames “community” as critical to homeless care. Phrases like “community partners,” “community-sponsored,” “community-based service providers,” and “community resources” imply compassion, philanthropy, and service. Not only do important labor and resources come from the “community,” but “community” is also the place where homelessness ends. The goal of all homeless organizations it to reintegrate homeless people into the “community.”

Unfortunately, what “community” signifies is highly selective. For instance, it does not include the community homeless have among themselves. “Community” is not used to describe the collective life of those on the streets, despite the obvious communal nature of their lives. In fact, being homeless means a person is on the outside of the “community.” This is demonstrated by the common use of the term “community re-entry.” The work of homeless service is to bring homeless back into the “community.”

The following statement illustrates the separation between homeless and the community. “Pressures placed on runaway and homeless youth by law enforcement, merchant associations, and hospitality ambassadors cause them to become more invisible and drives them further into the fringes of the city” (p. 29, Arizona Homeless Coordination Office, 2009, emphasis added). Apparently, making the community feel welcome means making the homeless unwelcome. Research by Harter et al. suggests that homeless “invisibility” is a common phenomenon created through social structures (2005). Part of creating a sense of community is excluding those who threaten its predictability.

“Community” is the place where volunteers come. It can be developed through programs. Most importantly, the “community” is where people live. It may be low income, but in the end, “community” is composed of housed individuals. It is not a totally closed boundary, as some organizations provide permanent, subsidized housing, but living in a house is a precondition for participation. Unfortunately, the document excludes homeless from the community, and instead focuses on ways to end homelessness by bringing homeless back into the “community.”

So with this divisive model of community in mind, we set about trying to reconceive community in a more inclusive fashion. What better way than drawing? We drew to the prompt: "Draw community."


So we have a home, but a sign making it explicit it is open to everyone. There is also a gathering at table.

Again a home, but this time the home is encircled by a handholding collective.

This time the hand holding is central, and there are no houses at all.

Again with the hands. Common themes? Circles, people focus, hand holding, sharing, and inclusive housing. Following the community drawing, we drew to a different prompt: "What have you seen so far on the retreat?"


Again, we have some very common threads. Separation, wealth, power, and negative interaction. Clearly the world that we are traveling through is not living up to our notion of community.