Homeless Unfiltered by Invisible People

Invisible People
  • 4.7 (15)
  • SOCIETY & CULTURE
  • UPDATED WEEKLY

Welcome to the Homeless Unfiltered Podcast, hosted by Mark Horvath—the most raw, unfiltered podcast on homelessness you'll find. Get ready for real stories from people with lived and living experiences of homelessness, along with eye-opening insights from service providers, policymakers, and advocates. We dive deep into the hard truths, exposing both wins and failures in the fight against homelessness. This podcast will challenge you, inspire action, and spark change. Tune in and learn how to be part of the solution for positive change!

  1. The Evidence on Homelessness Is Clear. Why Isn’t It Being Solved?

    MAR 28

    The Evidence on Homelessness Is Clear. Why Isn’t It Being Solved?

    I’m really excited to share this conversation with Jennifer Ho. When we were producing our documentary on Hennepin County, several people told me we needed to talk to Jennifer because of her leadership in housing and homelessness. Our schedules never lined up during filming, so I’m really glad we finally got the chance to sit down together for the Homeless Unfiltered podcast. There are some people you just connect with. Jennifer is one of those people. She’s incredibly smart and thoughtful. She brings a unique perspective shaped by both healthcare and housing, and you can feel that throughout this conversation. Jennifer is the Commissioner of Minnesota Housing and previously served at the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. She also comes out of for-profit healthcare, working in managed care, where she saw firsthand how homelessness drives costs and impacts health outcomes. We talk about homelessness, housing, and healthcare. But this conversation goes deeper. At times it turns philosophical, and it challenged me. I think it will challenge you too. One of the biggest takeaways is simple. We know what works. The question is why we have not committed to doing it at the scale needed to actually solve homelessness. Watch our Hennepin County documentary here: Can We End Homelessness? Hennepin County Shows How https://youtu.be/yq1C8l4uSZc?si=J6TxnwAyJD00Ps-D

    46 min
  2. Dangerous Policies That Will Make Homelessness Worse

    MAR 16

    Dangerous Policies That Will Make Homelessness Worse

    Right now, dangerous federal policy changes could make homelessness in America dramatically worse. Instead of working together to prevent and solve homelessness, we’re now spending enormous energy fighting ideology and policies that experts warn will only push more people onto the streets. In this episode, I sit down with Ann Oliva, CEO of the National Alliance to End Homelessness, to explain what’s happening right now inside the federal government and why the homelessness sector is deeply alarmed. Since the Trump administration took office, new executive orders and federal directives have targeted core homelessness policies. These changes are being implemented through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and could roll back evidence-based approaches like Housing First while expanding policies like criminalization, forced institutionalization, and arrests of people living outside. Even more alarming, some proposed funding changes could cut housing support for people who were previously homeless and are now stably housed — potentially pushing as many as 170,000 people back onto the streets. Instead of helping communities solve homelessness, these policies could make the crisis worse in cities and neighborhoods across America. That’s why the National Alliance to End Homelessness and other organizations have taken the extraordinary step of filing lawsuits against HUD to stop policies they believe are unlawful and dangerous. This conversation breaks down what’s actually happening behind the headlines — and why the stakes are so high. In this episode, we discuss: The Trump administration’s homelessness policiesDangerous changes at the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)The rollback of Housing FirstLGBTQ HomelessnessCriminalization of homelessness and arrests of people living outsideLawsuits filed to stop harmful federal policiesHarm reduction and why forced treatment does not workWhy these policies will make homelessness worse for everyone At the end of the day, homelessness is a complex problem that requires communities, nonprofits, healthcare providers, and government to work together. Instead, we’re fighting each other. And that’s not just tragic — it’s dangerous. Because policies that make homelessness worse don’t just hurt people experiencing homelessness. They hurt our communities, our cities, and all of us. Support NAEH here https://endhomelessness.org

    45 min
  3. The Hidden Homeless: America’s Growing Family Crisis

    MAR 3

    The Hidden Homeless: America’s Growing Family Crisis

    Family homelessness is rising in America, but most people do not see it. While public attention focuses on tents and encampments, thousands of families are living in hotels, doubled up with relatives, or moving from place to place just to stay afloat. This hidden homelessness often goes uncounted, and when systems respond too late, families are pushed deeper into crisis. In this episode, KerryAnn Henry, Assistant Director at the New Jersey Department of Children and Families, and Pamela Lilleston, PhD, Director of Applied Research and Evaluation at the New Jersey Department of Children and Families, discuss how family homelessness intersects with child welfare and what it takes to keep families safely housed. We explore the Keeping Families Together model, which pairs housing subsidies with support services, and the data showing it keeps families stable and children with their parents. Preventing family homelessness keeps families together, protects children from unnecessary trauma, and costs far less than responding after the damage is done.

    35 min
  4. Why Housing Reduces Crime and Saves Taxpayer Money

    FEB 22

    Why Housing Reduces Crime and Saves Taxpayer Money

    When people leave prison with nowhere to go, the outcome is predictable. Homelessness. Survival. And too often, a return to jail. One of the leading drivers of homelessness is people exiting the criminal justice system without housing — especially when mental illness or addiction is involved. The cycle is expensive, inhumane, and preventable. In this episode, Terri Power and Jenee Jenkins from CSH join me to talk about Returning Home Ohio, a cutting-edge collaboration with the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction. The program uses supportive housing to reduce recidivism, improve public safety, and save taxpayer money. This conversation goes beyond theory. It’s about what actually works. We also produced a powerful documentary on this work — sparked by Jenee’s idea — that you can watch in the link below. Prison, Homelessness, or Housing? The Choice That Changes Everything https://youtu.be/xZngGA7xfuc?si=BMAWI9GyWm_PqC_6 Listen to the episode. Watch the film. And share it.

    28 min
  5. Unseen and Uncounted: Indigenous Homelessness in California

    FEB 11

    Unseen and Uncounted: Indigenous Homelessness in California

    "There are still tribes that don't have running water. There is no electricity. This is California, not a third-world country. It's in our backyard." Mariah McGill and Christine De Los Santos from Northern Circle Indian Housing Authority share a truth that most Americans don't know exists: the invisible crisis of indigenous homelessness. When they partnered with Mendocino County to actually count Native Americans experiencing homelessness, going where others never looked, to the storage containers, makeshift tents, and forgotten corners of reservations, they discovered that 37% of the homeless population was indigenous. They had been there all along. Just uncounted. This conversation goes beyond statistics. It's about elders living without dignity, about sovereignty that's been ignored, about 109 federally recognized tribes in California alone fighting for recognition. But it's also about hope. About housing that heals, that preserves language and culture, that wraps around people with traditional practices and community care. It's about building homes where Native people don't feel like they're in jail, where gardens grow traditional plants, where elders design spaces for elders. "Partner with the people you're looking to serve," Christine urges. "They are the experts." A conversation that will open your eyes to a crisis hiding in plain sight and to the indigenous leaders refusing to let their people remain invisible.

    35 min
  6. Street Medicine: When Homeless People Can’t Access Healthcare

    JAN 24

    Street Medicine: When Homeless People Can’t Access Healthcare

    In this episode, I sit down with Brett Feldman, one of my all-time favorite people and a national leader addressing homelessness through street medicine. Brett directs USC Street Medicine, which provides healthcare in Los Angeles to homeless people living unsheltered under bridges, in riverbeds, and in encampments because for many people experiencing homelessness, reaching a clinic is impossible. Over the years, we have worked closely together, including traveling to four cities across California to follow and document street medicine teams serving homeless communities. In this conversation, Brett explains why outreach alone does not work, how street medicine improves housing outcomes, and why treating homelessness as a public health issue matters. We also talk about why street medicine does not just save lives. It saves taxpayer money by reducing emergency room visits, hospitalizations, and preventable public health crises. If you care about homelessness, public health, or real solutions that work in Los Angeles and beyond, this episode matters. PLAYLIST: Street Medicine in California: Health Care to Homeless People https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL51CPD51hq2SUwXSPw3cHNE9jsxN_62t-&si=M0tZiHwjsxev1YV0 We Can't Let Homeless People Die: USC Street Medicine on Skid Row https://youtu.be/RWVt_arzYoA?si=B4Yxdoos82aOosA8

    47 min
  7. Housing First Works. So Why Are They Attacking It?

    JAN 16

    Housing First Works. So Why Are They Attacking It?

    Homelessness isn’t getting worse because solutions don’t work. It’s getting worse because we keep ignoring the real cause — the lack of affordable housing — while misinformation falsely blames addiction and harm reduction. In this podcast episode, I talk with Daniel Malone, Executive Director of Downtown Emergency Service Center (DESC) in Seattle, one of the most effective homelessness organizations in the country. DESC houses people with the most complex needs, reduces public suffering, and saves lives every day — yet the very approaches that work are under attack. We break down why Housing First works, why forced treatment keeps failing, and why harm reduction keeps people alive long enough to get better. If you care about real solutions, this conversation matters. Before you watch or listen, please take a minute to fill out our short listener survey at https://invisiblepeople.tv/podsurvey. It helps us improve the podcast and reach more people with stories that matter.

    47 min
  8. Can Shared Housing Help Solve Homelessness?

    JAN 10

    Can Shared Housing Help Solve Homelessness?

    Shared housing is one of the most overlooked and misunderstood tools we have to help solve homelessness. In this episode, we dig into how shared housing actually works, who it can help, and why choice and agency matter when people decide who they live with. We talk about affordability, social connection, and why shared housing should not be treated as a last resort but as a legitimate housing option. This is a follow-up conversation with Kris Freed. The first time Kris joined us, we planned to talk about shared housing, but the conversation shifted to her personal story, which was raw, powerful, and absolutely worth hearing. That episode is linked below. Shared housing is not a one-size-fits-all solution, but it is a critical option we cannot afford to ignore. When done right, it creates affordability, builds social connection, and gives people real choice over where they live and who they live with. Before you watch or listen, please take a minute to fill out our short listener survey at https://invisiblepeople.tv/podsurvey. It helps us improve the podcast and reach more people with stories that matter. Kris's first interview: This Can’t Be My End – From Addiction to Leadership https://youtu.be/-wlSv06E_iI?si=qdlIpifNFIKiEQ63

    43 min
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Ratings & Reviews

4.7
out of 5
15 Ratings

About

Welcome to the Homeless Unfiltered Podcast, hosted by Mark Horvath—the most raw, unfiltered podcast on homelessness you'll find. Get ready for real stories from people with lived and living experiences of homelessness, along with eye-opening insights from service providers, policymakers, and advocates. We dive deep into the hard truths, exposing both wins and failures in the fight against homelessness. This podcast will challenge you, inspire action, and spark change. Tune in and learn how to be part of the solution for positive change!

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