Inequitable Pathways: Street Outreach Programs as Racialized Organizations

• In Event: Racial and Ethnic Minorities Section Roundtables Session
  In Refereed Roundtable (90 minute): Table Ten: Racialized Ideologies, Epistemologies, and Social Discourses

Abstract

In this paper, we examine how street outreach programs function as racialized organizations that shape racial and ethnic disparities in exits from homelessness. Focusing on Miami-Dade County, the study integrates ethnographic fieldwork with quantitative analysis of Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) data to assess how organizational approaches influence housing outcomes. We draw on our qualitative data to describe how the three street outreach programs reflect three approaches and racializations: (1) a housing-focused, multiracial team; (2) a lived-experience-oriented, predominantly White team; and (3) an assertive, Hispanic White team. We argue that outreach teams are not race-neutral service providers; rather, staff composition, geographic focus, and organizational practices shape differential housing outcomes.

Our quantitative analysis includes 10,795 street outreach enrollment episodes (2023–2025), examining two primary outcomes: placement into permanent housing and returns to homeless services. Our findings provide moderate support for the hypotheses. The racial and ethnic composition of clients generally aligns with the racialization of each organization. The housing-focused, multiracial program demonstrates the smallest racial and ethnic disparities in both permanent housing placement and returns to homelessness. The lived-experience, White program shows mixed patterns, including some unexpected advantages for Black clients but substantial ethnic disparities favoring non-Hispanics. The assertive, Hispanic White program produces the highest rates of permanent housing placement overall but exhibits the largest racial disparities favoring White clients and ethnic advantages for Hispanics.

Overall, our study highlights how organizational variation—particularly staff racial composition and outreach strategy—shape distinct inequitable pathways out of homelessness. By shifting analysis from metropolitan-level disparities to organizational processes, our findings underscore the importance of examining how service systems themselves generate or mitigate racial inequality.

Authors

• Matthew D. Marr, Florida International University

• Qing Lai, Florida International University