All God's Children: Inside the Dark and Violent World of Street Families is a new book written by author Rene Denfeld that explores the story of Jessica Kate Williams, a young women murdered in Portland by a group of street youth. As I wrote at the time:
Jessica Kate Williams was 22 years old and homeless when allegedly 12 other homeless youth and young adults repeatedly stabbed her, set her on fire, and left her to die under a Portland, Oregon bridge on May 23, 2003.
Williams, who suffered from serious mental health problems, was receiving services from agencies that work with homeless youth when she was killed.
Denfeld uses the account of the Williams murder to paint a picture of homeless youth - along with the agencies that work to transform their lives - that would make Newt Gingrich proud.
In an interview published by The Portland Tribune (and in excerpts from the book) she asserts that most homeless youth are on the street by choice and that agencies like Outside In only enable their lifestyles.
And she makes a direct attack on me that is completely false and without merit.
The National Coalition for the Homeless notes that "causes of homelessness among youth fall into three inter-related categories: family problems, economic problems, and residential instability" and Outside In, Portland's best known agency working with homeless youth, reports that data from their clients reveals that:
90% of youth report some form of violence in their homes.
36% of girls report a history of childhood sexual abuse, with the first incident occurring at age seven. These youth flee to the street in hope of increased safety. Some youth find themselves abandoned by their parents. One child was left with a drug dealer for an indefinite time. Another returned home to find the parents had moved out leaving no contact information. Other youth turn to the street because of poverty, joblessness, alcohol/drug use and/or mental health conditions within their families. They feel hopeless about a positive future in their current environment.
30% of homeless youth are sexual minorities: gay, lesbian, bi, trans, or questioning. These youth and their families cannot together manage the many complexities of a developing sexual/gender identity outside of the norm. Most often youth believe they will better their lives when they go to the street.
But Denfeld tells another story:
The majority of the youths I examined actually chose to be on the street. A lot of them came from very adequate, even very loving homes. Their parents often wanted them to come back.
The facts simply do not support Denfeld's statements.
Denfeld goes on the say that during the immediate aftermath of the murder agencies working with homeless youth were "more concerned with protecting the image of homeless youth than addressing the reality of street family violence..."
Provocative statements like that are meant to sell books and not to illuminate the story. Few can (or should) take serious that those who work with homeless youth day in and day out do not take the causes and consequences of violence seriously. As a former staff member at Outside In, I knew kids who died on the streets and knew kids who committed terrible crimes. But the goal shared by all who work at Outside In (and other agencies that work with homeless youth) is to both hold kids accountable for their decisions and to provide them with the skills they need to escape life on the streets. Outside In can report after years of study that "80% of youth who go through our transitional housing program never return to the streets." But few can escape homelessness and poverty without the assistance of caring communities that provide support and that is why churches and others across the nation work with non-profits and government to increase needed services.
Denfeld also reports that the media and others made it appear that Williams was unloved by her family and here she blames me directly:
Articles in the media mentioned Jessica's fetal alcohol syndrome without mentioning that she was adopted, leading the reader to assume Becky was the alcoholic mother who drank while pregnant. Angry readers called the Williams house to yell at Becky, blaming her for Jessica's disability and murder.
Chuck Currie, an advocate who served on the board of the National Coalition for the Homeless, wrote an article titled "Jessica Williams Did Not Have to Die," which implied Jessica had been forced out on the streets by her family. "The only way to truly bring justice to the death of Jessica Kate Williams would be to make sure no young person be forced out onto the streets where she can be killed," Currie concluded. An opinion piece in The Oregonian claimed Jessica's murder was the result of lack of funding to youth shelters, and suggested donations.
The article Denfeld refers to is one written while I was in seminary and published on the National Coalition for the Homeless web site. It was a theological reflection on violence perpetrated against homeless people in the United States.
At no time did I claim that Jessica Williams had been forced out on the street by her family. In fact, the paper dealt mostly with the Biblical stance that we are all responsible for the welfare of one another and that society left Williams down - in many different and complex ways - when she came into contact with those who killed her. I put the blame for her death where it belonged: with her killers and argued that our criminal justice system was not up to the task of breaking the cycle of violence in our society.
Had Denfeld actually spoken with me before publishing her book I would have been more than open to discussing these issues with her. But after reading her interview and the excerpts published today it seems clear that facts would have gotten in the way of the story she wanted to write.
