In my last role abroad, before we left Canada for Zambia, I was working in housing. My role was a housing support worker. The idea behind the position was to offer and find available resources that my clients that are eligible to apply for to prevent being evicted from their homes. I was hired to help support young moms aged 16-25 in a housing program with finding an apartment for them and their babies. At the time of this role, many calls, texts or meetings would happen where the person seeking help, is under the impression that I have apartments already ready to be moved into. Sadly, the amount of times I had to explain to those seeking housing that that was not how my role was positioned. I could only offer so much which over time began to shatter my heart when it comes to community care and finding a strong support network for women, non-binary and small children are involved. 

A lot of people need support for various needs, medical bills pile up, rent going up again, mental health resources such as a therapist/psychologist, car needs to be fixed, the list goes on. These don't include the relationships that exist between the people sharing a roof or a bed. So again, back to my question of what does a safe home mean to you, are the people around you good minded people? Can you go to them about issues you are struggling with or will they judge you? If you had an emergency, could you rely on the people you live with? If someone had an episode that leads them to be aggressive and dangerous, are you able to either help de-escalate or make sure everyone in the room is safe? Is anyone at risk of being harmed? I ask these questions because life is complicated and most people don't have enough emergency funds to be available in case something bad happens and you need to escape. I have read countless stories of people fleeing domestic violence or other forms of unsafe living situations and it breaks my heart that a lot of people may not have a home that is safe to go to. How do you ensure where you live is safe? Are you comfortable having tough chats with friends about possible 'what ifs' so that if you do have an emergency, you have someone to reach to and they are skilled and able to execute supporting you. These conversations matter. Is your neighbourhood safe? What methods and practices have you implemented in your life to keep you guarded, grounded, and if anything goes wrong, you have a place and person to turn to that can be your go-to. 

Having worked with women, children and folks that in the queer community, these are things I often thought about. If someone does not feel like home is safe, what do they do?

It's 2024. Make who you are a safe person for someone, be able to recognise if someone may need more than a shoulder, find ways on how you can make sure the spaces people live/in that you visit are healthy for everyone involved. Be a compassionate friend who sees the ugly and is willing to be a part of the ugly. Safe means be open-minded, educate yourself about the way the world is politically, socially and economically, know the complexities of what queer people experience and see the ways you can be an ally and really go deep with that friendship. Be an advocate, speak up on issues, find accurate resources and challenges things people speak on. Be the person okay with standing alone if nobody else agrees with you.

Small tips that have helped me over time that may or may not help you be someone a community person may need. The world needs more nice people and more kind people. 

Thanks for reading.