Reputation Ethan Ward

* 2023 Housing Narrative Award: Best Podcast Episode *

In this first episode, award-winning journalist Ethan Ward invites you into his own journey of homelessness, from restless nights in his car to the burden of carrying shame. Ethan takes listeners to the streets where he would park to sleep and shares memories of his time there. He also chats with Saba Mwine-Chang from the Homelessness Policy Research Institute at the University of Southern California. They reflect on the complex and systemic racial issues fueling the homelessness crisis.

Ethan chats with Lisa Chilton, a senior who couch surfed for five years after losing several family members and draining her savings. Lisa spent time between many homes or at bus stops, dragging carry-on luggage everywhere she went. In a conversation taped at her apartment in Hollywood, she shares how being unhoused forced her to constantly adapt to new surroundings and talks about the emotional, mental, and physical toll of losing her home.

Ethan talks to Joel, a former foster youth who fought hard to avoid becoming unhoused. He also chats with Gail Winston, a manager of the supportive housing division at LA's Department of Children and Family Services. They discuss the challenges that foster youth face, including finding housing and support after aging out of the system.

From navigating transphobia and misgendering to being turned away from shelters, the unique experiences of transgender people are often overlooked. Emily Garcia and Yahni Rose, both transgender women who were unhoused at an early age, share their experiences navigating homelessness infrastructure. They also discuss how the lack of resources for the transgender community often forces them onto the streets. There are insights from Bamby Salcedo, president of the Trans Latin@ Coalition, that are a powerful reminder of the intersectionality of homelessness and gender identity.

Joshua Ray Williams was an unhoused man who overdosed inside a Jack in the Box fast-food restaurant in downtown Los Angeles. The episode begins with Ethan's recollection of how he first discovered Joshua's story while researching a February 2021 article about unhoused people who died in L.A., which is how Joshua's family learned about his death. Ethan shares Joshua's last journal entries that offer a glimpse into Joshua's inner thoughts and struggles. He then takes listeners to the Jack in the Box location where Joshua died, recounting details shared by the manager about what she remembered.

Ethan also talks with David Mayes, Joshua's former guardian. David discusses Joshua's past, his tendency to disappear for long periods, and efforts made to find Joshua before his death.

The statistics are staggering - over 450,000 people experienced homelessness in the U.S. last year, and there are estimates that between 17,000 and 40,000 of them die each year. You'll hear from Dr. Jan Gorniak, DO, MHSA, a board-certified forensic pathologist in Nevada, and Lauren Silver, a medical death investigator in Colorado. They tell the stories of unhoused people after they’ve died and how family members are notified. Through their experiences, you'll gain a new perspective on homelessness and the impact it has on people's lives – even after death.