Firesteel Blog

Social Media Advocacy: Whose Story Is It Anyway?

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Social media is in a unique position to advocate for ending homelessness in the information age, and many organizations have begun to use this opportunity. But there’s a right and wrong way to do it. Paige McAdam from the Seattle University Project on Family Homelessness thinks the Mean Tweets video produced by the Canadian organization Raise the Roof is the wrong way. She explains why, and also points to work by Facing Homelessness and other organizations that are advocating effectively in partnership with people who are experiencing homelessness.

Domestic Violence Survivor’s Story Is All Too Common

In a new StoryCorps "Finding Our Way" story that airs on KUOW today, Zaneta Reid talks about experiencing domestic violence and homelessness with her four sons. Image credit: StoryCorps.
In a new StoryCorps "Finding Our Way" story that airs on KUOW today, Zaneta Reid talks about experiencing domestic violence and homelessness with her four sons. Image credit: StoryCorps.
In the newest StoryCorps "Finding Our Way" story to hit the KUOW airwaves, a Seattle mom talks about her experiences with domestic violence and homelessness. Our advocacy coordinator invited YWCA advocates who help survivors of domestic violence to listen to the story and share their reflections. Their insights -- like the fact that there are more shelters for dogs than for women in Washington -- may surprise you.

New StoryCorps Interview on KUOW: “No One Really Chooses to Be Homeless”

"Up until I was about like 7 I thought that everyone basically had a home and was pretty much safe all the time," Thandi tells her grandfather, Desmond, in a StoryCorps interview. "But then I learned that some people don’t really have a home, and it made me want to do something." Image credit: StoryCorps
"Up until I was about like 7 I thought that everyone basically had a home and was pretty much safe all the time," Thandi tells her grandfather, Desmond, in a StoryCorps interview. "But then I learned that some people don’t really have a home, and it made me want to do something." Image credit: StoryCorps
"It’s one thing to empathize with people and it’s another thing to do something about it," Desmond Pullen says to his granddaughter in the newest StoryCorps "Finding Our Way" interview, which airs on KUOW today. The pair talk about their efforts to help families at a shelter in Everett.

“Giving People My Story Makes Them Stronger”: The Power of StoryCorps

In a StoryCorps interview that you can hear on KUOW today, the Gilliards talked about falling into homelessness with their three children. Photo by StoryCorps, graphic by Lindsey Habenicht.
In a StoryCorps interview that you can hear on KUOW today, the Gilliards talked about falling into homelessness with their three children. Photo by StoryCorps, graphic by Lindsey Habenicht.
Fearing judgment from a society that stigmatizes poverty, the Gilliards kept their experience with homelessness secret -- until the day their story aired on NPR. Read about the consequences of that broadcast, and listen to their StoryCorps interview, which airs today locally on KUOW.

Storytelling Intersects the Personal and Political

Telling our own stories and listening to the stories of others bridges the gaps that are between us. Image from Pixabay.
Telling our own stories and listening to the stories of others bridges the gaps that are between us. Image from Pixabay.
Is sharing a story a political act? Political science student Paige McAdam, the newest member of the Seattle University Project on Family Homelessness team, thinks so. Read her insightful guest post to find out why.
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