Traces of Home

• Comforts of Home
• Community and Relationships
• Safety and Risk
• Law and Policy
• One Paycheck Away

Comforts of Home

“I asked if I could take a picture of them in their ‘home’ and they replied, ‘this is definitely not a home." -Thomas Carr
 

Jeff* and Valerie* live in a camp next to an abandoned building. They stay outside when the weather is good, and move inside when it rains or snows. Their camp is neat and orderly, complete with a system for receiving mail and a small library. They are clear, however, that this dwelling is, “definitely not a home.” 

Carr’s partners are creative and intentional in the ways they bring the comforts of home to the places where they find shelter. Some of the camps he encounters are raked or swept often to keep them tidy. Many feature cooking materials and ways to hang the laundry. Toys and lunchboxes underline that Colorado has 2,356 people in families with children experiencing homelessness.

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Community and Relationships

"He told me about his camp and said that he had inherited it from another homeless fella who left the area. He says he helps younger homeless folks in the effort to keep them safe." - James*

While photographing a camp in Littleton, Carr received a dinner invitation. Later that night, Stan*, Chris*, and Lyle* served him flank steak and Cheetos as they chatted about living outside. Several others living in the park also joined the meal. Stan*, a former Army Ranger, has chosen to live outside for the last ten years, diverting his government benefits to support his daughter and grandchildren. Stan’s* experience as an Army Ranger makes him an important part of a community in the park that shares resources and expertise to help each other survive. 

Many members of the homeless community work together to solve problems, stay warm, and stay safe. Jimmy* recounted that he inherited his camp from a community member who moved away. He pays that generosity forward by training people new to the lifestyle in tips and tricks of living outside. Sharing resources and expertise helps to build bonds between those experiencing homelessness, establishing relationships that help people navigate their world. 

The challenge of mobility, however, threatens these communities. Carr’s partners must continually change locations in order to avoid arrest or loitering charges. Wolf*, like many of Carr’s partners, stacks all his belongings on a bicycle to move around. He rides across the city with a sleeping bag on the back and belongings hanging from the handlebars. He keeps moving because he has few connections in the downtown area, and considers himself “a bit of a loner.”

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Safety and Risk

​​​​​​“I’ve already died and I’ve come back from it. I can’t be hurt any more than I already have.” - Cindy*

Living outside can be perilous. Colorado’s extreme weather exposes those without protective clothing to the ravages of sun, wind, rain, cold, and snow. Camps located along the river frequently flood, and inhabitants face the dangers of cold, disease, or even drowning. Improvised cooking and heating implements, like propane, can be extremely unstable and dangerous. Assault, the dangers of substance abuse, and arrest are constant threats. While shelters and community groups attempt to offer respite, long term support networks can be difficult to find and harder to navigate.

When Carr met Cindy*, she seemed sad and distant. She told him she’d struggled with drugs and the law and had endured abuse. As Carr listened, she said “I’ve already died and I’ve come back from it. I can’t be hurt any more than I already have.” Pedro* echoed her sentiments, sharing that he’s been assaulted and accused of criminal activity many times. “If I was a criminal, like a drug dealer or a thief, I wouldn’t be homeless, would I?”

Carr believes that some of his partners could move past homelessness if offered the right opportunity. Others, he feels, need a more consistent and long term structural support system. For his partners who struggle with mental health concerns or addiction, healthcare and social support can be hard to find.

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Law and Policy

"He would rather not have to move and lose many of his belongings, but he said he tends to go with the flow and feels that the police are just doing their jobs." - Martin*

Within the Denver city limits, transiency is criminal. People experiencing homelessness are subject to charges of vagrancy and loitering, confiscation of goods, and as of 2020, violation of the camping ban. This ruling limits where members of the homeless community can sleep and take shelter, how long they can remain in one place, and how many material items they can keep with them. It sparked controversy between those who felt that the homeless community introduced health, safety, and substance abuse risks to neighborhoods around Denver and others who questioned where those without homes were supposed to go.

Some of Carr’s partners voiced frustration with the camping ban, discussing times they had been evicted or had goods confiscated by law enforcement. Chris* highlighted that without an identification card, which requires a permanent address to obtain, most of those affected by the ban were unable to vote on it. Some spoke of the challenges of constant mobility, and the barriers to finding consistent social support. Martin* told Carr that he understands that the police have to do their jobs. He is frustrated with the burden of constantly moving and losing his belongings. He said that “individual officers may be good people, but it’s too hard to trust them.” Others, like Samuel* sympathized with the health concerns and safety risks created by having so many people sharing exposed spaces, saying the camps have gotten “too large, dirty, and unsafe” to be sustainable. He had been volunteering to help keep some areas clean.

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One Paycheck Away

"Homelessness does not discriminate, it can happen to anyone, and it affects everyone.  It does not recognize sex, gender, race, ethnicity, nationality, etc." - Thomas Carr

Part of Carr’s inspiration for the Traces of Home project came from a difficult period after being unexpectedly laid off from work. His family struggled, and worked with public assistance to get back on their feet. “I realized that we were perilously close to not being able to pay for food and shelter. When I started back to work doing archaeological surveys and encountering homeless camps, it was suddenly more personal,” he said. 

As Denver’s population has exploded, growing nearly 20% since 2010, housing costs have risen along with it. In 2011, the median cost of rent in Denver was $1019 each month. In 2020, that amount was $1606. During that time, wages have remained stagnant while other cost of living factors have skyrocketed. These factors include food costs, goods and services, as well as healthcare. One of Carr’s partners recounted having to choose between chemo treatment for her cancer and housing. She chose treatment.

As we developed this exhibit, we were all moved by the breathtaking nearness of these experiences. In a 2018 study conducted across four Denver colleges, including students from the University of Denver, 18% of respondents reported they had experienced homelessness during the previous year.

Many of Carr’s partners described the homes they once owned, the careers they once had, and the families they once supported (or still do). As we learned their stories and became familiar with their faces we worked to confront the perception that their reality is fundamentally different from ours. As Carr noted, “Homelessness does not discriminate, it can happen to anyone, and it affects everyone.  It does not recognize sex, gender, race, ethnicity, nationality, etc.” In some cases, the realities of homelessness are only one missed paycheck away.

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