Homeless in Las Vegas: Stories from the Street

Preface

: : In my first book, The Word on the Street: Homeless Men in Las Vegas (2005), I created a portrait of homelessness by combining interviews with homeless men with an analysis of local news articles on the topic, showing how these marginalized people shatter the carefully constructed illusion that Las Vegas is only about fun and entertainment. The words and thoughts of the forty-eight men I interviewed were central to my research and were the basis for my findings. Words of homeless people—this time, women as well as men—also form the foundation of this book, Homeless in Las Vegas: Stories from the Street. Their stories offer more personal, detailed accounts of homelessness , which I now believe are needed to help effect the necessary changes in public policy that have been slow in coming to Las Vegas. Since 2005, homelessness has increased in Las Vegas, and the conditions faced by homeless people have grown appreciably worse. In my first book, I presented a hopeful argument that the city would do right by its most vulnerable and powerless citizens and visitors. I believed Las Vegas officials might enact better policies to avoid getting a reputation for unbridled nastiness toward the poor, a reputation that might cause some people to avoid going there to spend their money. I thought that the valuable insights homeless men gave me about their lives, especially that they might be viewed as people with problems rather than as problem people, would be heard. I hoped that listening to homeless people could be a cornerstone to policies that did more than hide and persecute homeless people . These hopes were not realized. Preface x : Preface For this book, I conducted in-depth interviews again with forty-eight homeless people in the city between 2005 and 2006. I included women among those interviewed to help counteract the stereotype that homelessness affects only men. I often conducted interviews in what is called the homeless corridor in Las Vegas, where charitable homeless services are centralized, and in public parks, public libraries, soup kitchens, and bus depots. Usually, the interviews lasted between one-half and two hours each and were unstructured. For several weeks I conversed and spent time with individual homeless people. Sometimes, only one meeting was possible . Several of these interviews along with my field notes serve as the basis for the material presented here. Each direct participant signed an Informed Consent Statement, and participants usually allowed me to tape record the interviews for later transcription. I did not use the Informed Consent Statement in all aspects of my direct observation of homeless people. I would sometimes act as a simple observer so as not to interfere with unfolding events or conversations . In order to avoid causing any harm to anyone involved in the study, I changed all the names of homeless men and women I directly studied. :: :: :: Many people helped me in preparing this work. My mother Elizabeth and sisters Marleyse and Susan kept in contact with me over the miles as I wrote and revised. Christopher J. Taylor collected dozens of articles on homelessness from Las Vegas newspapers. Dawn Mollenkopf gave me insights into poverty and social policy. Shawna Parker Brody, Gail Sacco, and Shannon West spoke to me in detail about their work concerning homelessness in Las Vegas. Matt Becker, acquisitions editor at the University of Nevada Press, was supportive, gentle, and encouraging when I needed it. Joanne O’Hare, director and editor-in-chief at the University of Nevada Press, helped me see this writing into print. Two anonymous reviewers of the manuscript gave me detailed comments and suggestions that improved my writing. Mariana Damon, Amanda Haymond, Katie McGinnis, Shaun Padgett, Paul Powell, and Karen Staats each read drafts of my manuscript and gave me useful feedback that enhanced the published work. Julie K. Schorfheide patiently copyedited my work. All errors are, of course, my responsibility. The University of Nebraska at Kearney generously awarded me a Pro- Preface : xi fessional Development Leave from 2005 to 2006, allowing me to conduct this research. The University of Nebraska at Kearney Research Services Council provided grants, both during my leave and in reducing my course load while teaching, allowing me to write and revise. Portions of this book appeared in Forgotten Voice 1(4):7, edited by Gail Sacco. Portions of chapter 3 were first published in The Image of Violence II: Proceedings from the 2007 Society...