I had never realized St. Louis could get this cold in September. I reached into the back seat to take my 6-month-old daughter and 1-year-old son out of the playpen that was perched in front of trash bags filled with our clothes, and into my arms. The hot, late-summer sun had set, and the temperature plummeted with it. I fought sleep, my eyes watering from exhaustion. What if my babies got too cold and I didn’t wake up? I looked down at my watch. It was 3 AM ─ 4 hours until I had to be up for my shift.
Today, as a Congresswoman, I remember what it was like for us to live out of my car when I’m thinking about how to legislate on behalf of my district. I think about how society wanted me to believe that being unhoused was my fault. We have a deeply rooted misconception in our country that unhoused people have done something to deserve their conditions ─ when the reality is that unhoused people are living the consequences of our government’s failure to secure the basic necessities people need to survive. Many unhoused people work full time but earn starvation, unlivable wages. Some struggle to access mental health services or substance use treatment, making earning a consistent and stable wage nearly impossible.
When I was living out of my car, I did not know where we were going to eat, use the bathroom, rest or enjoy a quiet moment. I used McDonald’s bathrooms to mix baby formula and wash my body because I had no other options. I received food from food pantries, but I could not eat the items that had to be refrigerated or cooked. This never ending
— source time.com | Cori Bush | Jul 30, 2021