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Alright, alright, my name is Angie Whitehurst. I'm an interviewer, we are at 1233 1st Street Southeast. It is October 26th, 2021. Do I have permission to record this interview Matthew? Yes, ma'am. Alright. We're going to start with some background bio. Could you tell us your full name? My name is Burns, Matthew.

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And where were you born? I was, I was born in South Carolina. And I was raised in Washington DC. Okay, and when did you first arrive in Washington, DC? I first arrived in Washington DC in 1975, yeah, 1975

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And what brought you here? Um, my family moved here. And are you currently experiencing homelessness? Yes ma'am.

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Could you tell me for how long and describe that situation? Um, it's been, it's been...let me...without the pandemic, it's been going on for now, for like the last five years. And you're because of the fire...your temporary shelter burnt down? Yes, ma'am.

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Why do you think homelessness continues to be a big problem in Washington, DC? I would figure it would be like that because, you know, because we we not orchestrating, we, we, we... either one of us, We're not, we're not combining with each other. We're not collaborating with each other. As long as we don't come together, we're not going to make nothing happen. Okay, has your ability to live in this city changed in any way over the past five years or so. In the last year? Yeah. I'm...I'm...actually I would say no.

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Okay. I would say no. And what do you think are the biggest causes of homelessness in this area? In the DMV, I should say? Uh, lack of communication.

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Has your family's ability to get affordable, or yourself, affordable housing changed over the course of time in this area? Has my family? Yeah, or yourself? Like in your situation? Has it changed, is it the same? Uh, same.

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It's the same? Yes ma'am. Have you seen any significant changes in the neighborhood? Uh, At this point. Not not really.

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Has it impacted any housing? The ability to find housing? Yeah, they have...it packed lot of people. And what kind of housing situations or neighborhoods are accessible to you? Or people in your situation? Um, I would say. Uh, People that I orchestrate...people that I always be around. You know, so, I accumulate like that. You know, I'm a people, I try to be a people person.

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Okay. Yes ma'am. And how does the job situation in the city affect people's ability to access housing? Run that by me again, ma.

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How does the job situation affect people's ability to access housing? If they don't have proper housing, jobs be kinda difficult, because at the end of the day, you're going to have to have somewhere you want to lay your head at, you have to take a shower, you know, you can't do these certain things if you out here living in the streets. You know? Okay, and what kinds of jobs are available to you? Me, personally, being on my disability, it's really no jobs available for me due to my disability.

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Alright, um, would you say there are not enough jobs for other people in your situation? Uh...They're basically not hiring a lot of people now, at the moment because they...why? Because they're using robots. They using modern technology. This is how they doing now out here, using modern technology. Next thing, government programs...with the government programs and services that you know about and the changes to those services is for homeless people. Are they better? Or, or, are they worse? The services that, you know about.. Um, I dealt with few services, but some is up to par, but some is not up to par. Yeah.

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Okay, have changes in the welfare system affected homelessness in any way? Changes in the welfare system? Yes. Has it affected?

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Yes. I would think so. Yes, ma'am. I would think so, I would think it did. Okay, um, how would you describe the state of homeless shelters in DC? And how do those shelters affect homelessness? My thing is now, is...is... is, if we, like I said, if we can't communicate with one another, each other, then I don't think nothing's going to prosper or never work or combine and come together. You know, if we don't collaborate or have any time to come together to uh...towards one another.

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What do you think about the housing progress that are available for the homeless people? Are they better, are they worse? Do they meet the need, do they not meet the need? I think they should fit the needs, right, they should be able to really enable you to be able to accumulate themselves together. They got, they can stand for themselves, then it could work. If it don't, I don't think it'll work. Alright let's go to the next thing, criminal justice, um, how has policing in the area affected homelessness and have the policy changed in any ways that affect homelessness? Or let's... we can say ... Oh, ah, what I can say, I can say this though, ma...um, Any precautions, we getting...I like to balance things out where it's though, where we can work things in accordingly and then everything will fall in place and I think we can do that and things. It could work out better for everyone, everybody.

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Do you think police brutality has any impact on homelessness? Yes, it ... Yes, it do. It do. It have a very impact on it because simple fact, because if you're being targeted out here in this society being targeted, right? Predominantly the black youth, right? They lock them up, right? Not giving him a chance. Now, giving nobody a chance in this world, man. You know, if we don't combine and it balance things out, we will always be separated. Does the war on drugs have anything to do with that? No. I would think not.

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What about um, the criminalization of poverty and homelessness? Where people feel like they are criminalized because they're poor and homeless, they're criminalized because they are homeless...and does that have any impact? The impact of it is that that is not uh... [To someone else] Baby. You, you hold me now? You hold me now? [To Angie Whitehurst] Okay, the impact of it, is just that, you know, if we do not come together, as a domain of people, we're not going to have nothing to prosper in this world. The same thing that Martin Luther King and Malcolm X said. You know, that's why if you take gas and destroy them. It's nothing left.

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Okay, what impact do prisons have on all of this, on the homelessness? Actually helps them. Because, in there, it gives them time to get their stuff together. Out there in the open world, it give them time to get yourself together. It really give him time to get their self together. In a predicament like this. They have to get yourself together, man. If we don't have nobody to help get us together, it aint gone work, ma. It's not going to work. It's not going to work. Nothing is world going to work if you dont...There's nothing in this world will work, if we don't combine ourselves together, ma. How do you think...in what ways are people's lives shpaed because of criminal records? Um, say it again?

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How...In what ways are people's lives shaped by criminal records? What impact does criminal has, have on one's life? If you have a criminal record? Right. Would it affect your life? I would say if it ain't it, if you don't, if it aint impacting, if if I can't balance out where as though, I can't help nobody. Then I don't think you could work for me. Yes, ma'am.

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Okay now lets go to the next thing, which is healthcare. Yes, ma'am. In what ways...How are homeless people impacted by Healthcare? How are homeless people impacted by healthcare?

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Their health. Yeah, health. In what way does homelessness affect their health? Because, health, at the end of the day. If you don't have nowhere to stationary yourself, then you can't, you can't take care of yourself. You can't...you're going to degrate yourself.

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How would you describe healthcare services for the homeless, those that are unhoused? That are out on the street? Have there been any significant changes to these services that you are aware of? I, I, I haven't seen many changes. Well, I'll be honest with you, I haven't seen any changes. And what about mental health? What is the impact of mental health? [To someone else} You going up? Okay.

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[Back to Angie Whitehurst] I think mental health is is is, uh, I think I just came from mental health. I think mental health is destroying a lot of us though, for real. You know, I think it really is. Well let's talk about education. Do you think that education affects, um, homelessness? Do education? Yeah, having education or access to education?

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Effect homelessness? Yes Do it effect? Not really. Yeah. Okay, well, how would you rate..because you know they have training programs and skills programs...

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Yes, ma'am. How would you rate those? Are you aware of those? Not off hand, no, not off hand, ma. Okay, um, next thing is domestic violence and sexual violence.

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Yeah. Has Physical or sexual violence in the home had an impact on homelessness? Do you think some people are homeless because of, of, physical or sexual violence in the home? No. Does violence on the street effect homelessness?

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No, I'm not...I, I don't agree with that. Does it have any impact on the family? Nah, I wouldn't say that either. [To someone else] What's up babe? [inaudible conversation]

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Okay, I have to... from four to five, I have to take a breaks though. Okay? Alright. Yes ma'am. Are you aware of any groups or organizations that are doing something together to get rid of homelessness, to end it?

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No. Okay, um, why do you think there's so little being done to end homelessness? Because... because...uh, this government, president. It was only for a certain amount of people and that the people of us. You know, the most Americans. If you could give 50 people to join you in doing something to end homelessness, what would you have those 50 people do?

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To end homelessness? Yes What I'd have them to do? Ma, Imma tell you this. I'm going to have them in job training, right? So where when they get a job, they can train other people and they can help other people. We got to help each other. If we don't help each other, It's nothing going to get done if we don't help each other. Okay, what's the barriers to...what barriers are making it difficult for people to stick together?

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We'll make it variance. To mobilize against homelessness? What's keeping people from getting together now, to mobilize people like yourself? Drugs, alcohol. And how would you overcome that...

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And uh, images, and images that will keep people departed, images. If you got if you're going to portray an image, be your image, you understand? Yeah. Okay, and what would it take for you involved in putting an end to homelessness? Well, it would..It would take me to get myself together first. That, you know, that's what I would do. I'd get myself together first. Now if you could build a better world, what would it look like? and what would your community be like, idealy, that you would live in? What is your better world?

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My world will be.... Love, true peace, freedom, and justice Okay, if you could design your own housing solution being as creative. As you want to be, what might it be? You can design your own your house. What would your house be? If I would design my house? It would be uh...stated...It would be like the president house, huh? You want the best. What might your employment situation look like? Or your income? Your revenue?

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Um, It'd be up to par. I say up to par. Yeah, how do you think we might make your vision come true? Be a reality? If I make it a reality, then we're going to make it a reality. Are there any questions that I should've asked you that I did not ask?

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No ma'am. I want to thank you for a lovely interview Absolutely. Especially in such a stressful time.

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[Laughs] Yes. Thank you for taking the time to do this and if I have other questions, may I callyou? Yes, you can, Yes, ma'am. Thank you so much.

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Yes ma'am. God bless you. I love you dear. Now. I'm gonna ask you one more thing, Ma...