Coming Home and No Place to Live: Understanding perceptions among public housing residents about the reintegration of formerly

incarcerated individuals in these locations

Harlem Community & Academic Partnership Policy Work Group

www.hcapnyc.org hcap.pwg@gmail.com

Harlem Community and Academic Partnership (HCAP)

A partnership of community residents, community-based
organizations and service providers, academia, and public health institutions.

Roots in substance use and infectious disease and

hard-to-reach populations

Use a Community-Based Participatory Research

(CBPR) approach to focus on identifying what works to effectively address the social determinants of health to improve the health of East and Central Harlem residents and other similar communities

HCAP Mission Statement

HCAP is committed to community-centered good health and well-being for all residents. In pursuit of this goal, we strive to:
Identify Social Determinants of Health Advocate for Community-centered public health initiatives Implement Community-Based interventions to improve health and well-being, using a Community-Based Participatory Research approach

Influence health policy formulation and implementation

Facilitate community and academic partnerships for research and policy

HCAP Policy Work Group

Established in 2000 (the first Intervention Work Group) Charged with examining broad policy barriers to reentry for recovering and
active drug users formerly incarcerated and returning back to in East and Central Harlem.

Shifting Reentry from a Criminal Justice issues to a Public Health issue

Translating research into policy -> policy into practice

Composition of PWG
initially led by community-oriented academic policy researcher who coached the work group on the policy analysis & advocacy (PA&A); currently all members have the capacity for PA&A and equally lead Current focus is on successful community reintegration of formerly incarcerated individuals Conducted a CBPR study on perceptions of NYCHA residents on formerly incarcerated individuals returning to community

PWG work

Why focus on this issue?

Housing instability is one of the major risk factors for recidivism
Tremendous challenges faced by people returning to East and Central Harlem and a lack of affordable housing NYCHA is essentially only affordable option in the midst of rising housing costs and gentrification, yet formerly incarcerated individuals are denied access We feel its extremely crucial to hear NYCHA tenants voices around this issue since they are one of the groups most affected by policies and practices

http://www.hcapnyc.org/pubs/pwgreport1housingandreintegrationineastandcentralharlemcominghomeandnoplacetolive

http://www.hcapnyc.org/pubs/pwgreport2cominghomeandnoplacetoliveunderstandingperceptionsamongpublichousingresiden tsaboutthereintegrationofformerlyincarceratedindividualstotheselocations

Coming Home and No Place to Live: Understanding Perceptions among Public Housing Residents about the Reintegration of Formerly Incarcerated Individuals to These Locations

1. General Awareness and Knowledge Among NYCHA Residents About How Formerly Incarcerated Individuals Access Housing 2. Sources of Information About Formerly Incarcerated Individuals Seeking Housing

3. Perceived Barriers to Housing

4. Community Support for Formerly Incarcerated Individuals To Access Stable Housing

5. Solutions for Formerly Incarcerated Individuals To Find Housing

Coming Home and No Place to Live: Understanding Perceptions among Public Housing Residents about the Reintegration of Formerly Incarcerated Individuals to These Locations

1. General Awareness and Knowledge Among NYCHA Residents About How Formerly Incarcerated Individuals Access Housing Nearly all participants reported being aware that people returning to the Harlem community from prison and jail had significant problems finding affordable housing.

2. Sources of Information About Formerly Incarcerated Individuals Seeking Housing Participants described learning about how NYCHA prohibits formerly incarcerated individuals from housing through formal and informal means.
3. Perceived Barriers to Housing The most overwhelming barrier expressed by the respondents is the discharge planning/transitional services system.

Coming Home and No Place to Live: Understanding Perceptions among Public Housing Residents about the Reintegration of Formerly Incarcerated Individuals to These Locations

4. Community Support for Formerly Incarcerated Individuals To Access Stable Housing A form of selective tolerance emerged in the area of community support. Respondents reported on a continuum for which type of formerly incarcerated individual they would accept or tolerate living next to in their community. 5. Solutions for Formerly Incarcerated Individuals To Find Housing Solutions often centered on fixing the limitations, infrastructure, and inadequacies of the housing system and to reevaluate how budget resources drives policy formulation and implementation in this system. The housing system is missing the human element.

Coming Home and No Place to Live: Understanding Perceptions among Public Housing Residents about the Reintegration of Formerly Incarcerated Individuals to These Locations

Its hard for a regular person to get housing, so let alone someone coming home. They already stigmatize you as a criminal, so youre automatically turned away. For people that have family in NYCHA and they are wiling to let them in and they are living under the radar (unknown to NYCHA), once they found out, the entire family will be on the streets. All for doing what family is supposed to do. In NYC its all about location. The economy is crazy and rents are going up along with the land property. In the morning people are measuring the blocks in Harlem, because businesses are coming and property values are going up. Harlem is changing.

Recommendations Based on Community Response

Increase the use of treatment program slots and community availability for treatment Address NYCHA system issues

Increase job training opportunities

Increase transitional and reentry support services

More affordable housing

Policy Recommendations Based on the Community Response

Fund community-based organizations with Alternative To Incarceration programs in communities impacted by high recidivism rates Fund community-driven job training programs Ban the box on job applications that discriminates individuals with criminal justice record

Maintain the New York Prison-Based Gerrymandering Bill

Necessity for a Holistic Solution

It is important to note that communities such as East and Central Harlem are often plagued with so many different social problems that it is difficult to pull explicit and freestanding solutions. The answer to the problem of formerly incarcerated individuals finding housing upon return is not simply, "find more housing. This community has been persistently marginalized and affected by the issues of poverty, which affect the daily lives of everyone without addressing fair access to employment, education, and health care, housing becomes only one aspect of this problem.

Thank you!
Harlem Community & Academic Partnership Policy Work Group
www.hcapnyc.org hcap.pwg@gmail.com