As positive as this is, it feels a little patronizing to tell people that all they need is skills and they can start a business and live the American Dream. My hometown has a massive homeless problem, but it’s a problem made of one part mental illness, one part drug addiction, and one part racism. (It also does not have a booming tech sector.)
I laud any efforts to improve the lot of the homeless population, and there probably are some people who, given training and encouragement, can pull themselves out of homelessness and into the workforce, but that’s only the beginning. There needs to be something in place to stop people from being homeless to begin with, and to offer much more addictions support, besides the general needs of reducing racism and mental illness stigma. It’s is definitely no magic bullet.
