MORE THAN 75 ADVOCATES GATHER TO CELEBRATE ‘SPEAK UP!’ PROGRAM THAT EQUIPS FORMERLY HOMELESS  TO LEAD HOUSING SOLUTIONS AMID FEDERAL CUTS

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LOS ANGELES, CA– Kia, who experienced homelessness after aging out of foster care, is now part of LA County’s system to end youth homelessness. Lydia, once homeless herself, is now a city housing commissioner. More than 75 advocates, mentors, and policy experts gathered today in South Los Angeles to celebrate stories like these–finding stability through affordable housing and services–at the launch of the expanded Speak Up! program. At the future childcare center of the newly opened Ruth Teague Homes, where veterans, youth and families, who formerly experienced homelessness live and receive supportive services, Speak Up! alumni spoke about the program, which pairs supportive housing tenants with experienced coaches over several months of leadership development. 

As communities struggle with rising costs, inflation and cuts to Medicaid, supportive housing—a proven solution to help our chronically homeless neighbors—is at risk, making Speak Up! more important than ever. 

“As priorities for funding affordable housing and services change at the federal, state, and local levels, we need experts at the table, and there’s no expertise as valuable as the people who have experienced homelessness,” said Jaline Gilliam, Associate Director at  CSH (Corporation for Supportive Housing) Los Angeles. “Speak Up! changes lives and communities through storytelling and confidence building for people whose voices are urgently needed now.”

Speak Up! Alumni hold a range of advocacy and leadership roles throughout the state. The program has prepared nearly 75 people with lived experience of homelessness to become effective advocates for supportive housing. Today, experienced participants can be found at the table with government and service provider partners to shape programs and policies. 

“I was in foster care, and I’m a survivor of human trafficking. Now I’m changing systems that impact people’s lives, and I love being able to serve in the community I came from,” said Kia Dupclay, CSH Speak Up! Alumna and youth systems analyst. “People look at me like I’m one in a million, but so many people just like me want to work and thrive. They just need support and resources to get there. If I had aged out of foster care and had gone straight to supportive housing, I could have avoided a lot of terrible experiences during my transition.”