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Cited by 47Homelessness and Social IssuesRacial and Ethnic Identity ResearchRomani and Gypsy Studies

Racial discrimination in the life course of older adults experiencing homelessness: results from the HOPE HOME study

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Paul, Dereck W., Knight, Kelly R., Olsen, Pamela, Weeks, John, Yen, Irene H., Kushel, Margot B.·2020·Journal of Social Distress and Homelessness
DOI 10.1080/10530789.2019.1702248PMC PMC7958187
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Abstract

Over 2.5 million people experience homelessness yearly in the United States. Black persons are overrepresented by three-fold among those experiencing homelessness but little research has examined the relationship between race and homelessness. We aimed to understand the relationship between race and the experience of homelessness for older adults. We used grounded theory methodology to analyze in-depth qualitative interviews (n = 65) of persons experiencing homelessness. We recruited participants who were enrolled in two sub-studies of the Health Outcomes of People Experiencing Homelessness in Older Middle AgE (HOPE HOME) Study in Oakland California. We identified two major themes within interviews with Black participants (n=52) related to race: (1) participants experienced overt racial discrimination in early life and (2) structural racism precipitated and perpetuated adult homelessness. Further, we identified sub-themes of structural racism that contributed to participants becoming or staying homeless: criminal justice discrimination, employment discrimination, exposure to violence, premature death, and limited family wealth. We developed a theoretical model of how these elements of structural racism may increase susceptibility to homelessness. These relationships between racial discrimination and homelessness may serve as targets for policies aimed at preventing homelessness.

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  • This review expands upon previous research that has examined racial, ethnic, and gender disparities in convictions and sentencing, showing that similar disparities also exist during the pretrial stage.

    “This expands upon previous research that has examined racial, ethnic, and gender disparities in convictions and sentencing, showing that similar disparities also exist during the pretrial stage (Omori & Petersen, 2020;Paul et al., 2020).”

    From A Scoping Review of the Relationships Between Cash Bail, Failure to Appear, Re-Arrest, Health and Well-Being, Race, and Gender (2026) · cites this paper as Paul et al., 2020

    The Discussion section, “Interconnected and Compounding Effects of Structural Racism” (page unavailable), reports that Black Americans are more likely to be detained pretrial and face disparities in wrongful convictions and sentencing. It does not report ethnic or gender disparities at the pretrial stage; its comparison of incarceration rates for Black and White men and women does not establish those parts of the claim. (LLM, conf=0.86)

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Authors
Paul, D. W., Knight, K. R., Olsen, P., Weeks, J., Yen, I. H., & Kushel, M. B.
Affiliations
  • University of California, San Francisco (US)
  • San Francisco General Hospital (US)
  • University of California, Merced (US)
Corresponding author
Paul, Dereck W.
ORCID
Venue
Journal of Social Distress and Homelessness
Publisher
Informa UK Limited
Published
2019-12-18
Volume
29
Issue
2
Pages
184-193
ISSN
  • 1053-0789 (ISSN-L)
  • 1573-658X
DOI
10.1080/10530789.2019.1702248
PMC
PMC7958187
OpenAlex
W2995820098
Cited by
47
References
11
Citations by year
2026: 2 · 2025: 10 · 2024: 7 · 2023: 9 · 2022: 8 · 2021: 9 · 2020: 2
FWCI
6.48
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Journal of Social Distress and the Homeless (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
  • eScholarship (California Digital Library) (submittedVersion)
Funders
  • National Institute on Aging at the National Institutes of Health (K24AG046372, R01AG041860)
  • National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities at the National Institutes of Health (R25MD006832)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Homelessness and Social Issues
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Racial and Ethnic Identity Research
  • Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Romani and Gypsy Studies
Keywords
racial discrimination, homelessness, older adults, Black people, structural racism, employment discrimination, violence exposure, premature mortality, family wealth, life course, homelessness prevention

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