Welcome to the National Conversation About IDs
The inability to get a piece of paper or a plastic card should not be the cause of homelessness
New & Noteworthy
The National Conversation: "What's Possible?"
May 7 Identity Documents and the Social Security Administration Zoom Session/Chat
***Identity Documents and the Social Security Administration***
A Vital and Necessary Conversation Regarding Social Security! You can access the Zoom Session and Chat below.
Thomas Anderson, Directing Attorney of Inner City Law Center's Benefits Advocacy Team (https://innercitylaw.org/) in Los Angeles conducted a one-hour Informational Session on Wednesday May 7.
Mr. Anderson's presentation focused on which vital documents the Social Security Administration currently accepts for proof of age, identity, and citizenship or non-citizenship eligibility. He also addressed how and where to find the rules and regulations necessary to support your client when working with a Social Security Field Office.
Additionally, Mr. Anderson will also touch on recent news and changes which are currently causing delays and headaches for you and your clients as well as methods to support your clients through the noise.
Zoom Session
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1V3Q_vZCglvD1BcH-wNE_zqU7MEav6qbS/view?usp=drive_link
Chat Session
https://drive.google.com/file/d/19-C6EMVqROVHtythqzvmrBqOIUAJ0-Rk/view?usp=drive_link
For more information or you have questions, please email joel.nationalconversation@gmail.com
The National Conversation About IDs continues to be an advocate for eliminating barriers to obtaining identification documents across America. We know that many face these barriers and we are committed to working with you to find solutions.
Our February 5 One-Hour Information Session:
Building Statewide Power for ID Access: Eliminating Barriers to Accessing Government Identification
WAS FANTASTIC!
A vital and necessary conversation and panel discussion on how to initiate an ID Project and create a process to access state-issued identification! What a beneficial hour for those who have reached a roadblock in procuring a birth certificate and/or state-issued identification!
Three dynamic and passionate women lined up as our panel members: Eileen Kelly, Founder of the ID Collaborative out of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Marybeth Moran, Founder, the ID Access Project and Tammy Meyers, Homeless Outreach Coordinator & Founder the ID Program of the Spokane Regional Health District, Spokane, WA.
They shared their stories and answered questions on how they initiated ID Projects in their area of the country. Each described her particular methodology, the narrative behind how her individual ID Program began, funding possibilities, where and how their projects are doing today and more.
The National Conversation About IDs continues to be an advocate for eliminating barriers to obtaining identification documents across America. We know that many face these barriers and we are committed to working with you to find solutions.
The National Conversation: "What's Possible?"
Dear Members:
We had a very interesting and important one-hour panel discussion upcoming on November 6, 2024. Watch the Session: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1BvFDcVOlrjoEiS4uk6ka2L26QmUxB5CB?usp=sharing
Panel members included Rick Mitchell, Executive Director Homeless ID Project in Arizona (the largest stand-alone ID Project in the country), Christine Dragonette, Director of Social Ministry at St. Francis Xavier Church, St. Louis, and co-founder of the 100-member Missouri State ID Access Coalition, Ishvaku Vashishtha, attorney and Equal Justice Works Fellow , Inner City Law, (a Los Angeles-based nonprofit, public interest law firm that provides legal services for poor people with an emphasis on housing issues) and Amy Shelton, Vice-President of the
Acorn Fund Pocatello (a volunteer run nonprofit assisting people experiencing homelessness or housing insecurity with obtaining vital records and work clothing so they can apply for and secure employment and housing. There will be plenty of opportunity for questions.
Please email joel.nationalconversation@gmail.com for information the session.
The National Conversation About IDs continues to be an advocate for eliminating barriers to obtaining identification documents across America. We know that many of your clients face these barriers and we are committed to working with you and each of our members to find solutions
The National Conversation: "What's Possible?"
Dear Members:
We had our latest conversation and information session today and it was packed with relevancy! The Video and PDF Presentation Slides are available below! You'll need to click on the PLAY arrow on the video to start it.
Topic: Building Statewide Power for ID Access
Date: Aug 7, 2024 9:43 AM Arizona
Passcode: D0Cq!+gp
PDF Building Statewide Power for ID Access: Eliminating Barriers to Accessing Government Identification for Your Clients: https://onedrive.live.com/?cid=374FEF4204ED7451&id=374FEF4204ED7451%21s9285132477af4d03bc122fc730cd3d96&parId=374FEF4204ED7451%21340&o=OneUp
Two Important Topics were discussed today:
· Building Statewide Power for ID Access: Eliminating Barriers to Accessing Government Identification for Your Clients
· Steady, High-Paying Employment for your Clients Is Possible
Christine Dragonette, Director of Social Ministry at St. Francis Xavier Church, St. Louis and Sara Ruiz, Executive Director, the Ashrei Foundation and co-founders of the Missouri State ID Access Coalition (https://www.moidaccess.org/) They will share their experience, challenges, and areas of learning in both building up direct ID and birth certificate support as they work towards systems level change in a statewide coalition.
Jeff Lee, Recruitment & Program Partnerships Manager, FreeWorld.org., will discuss how your clients can obtain High-Paying Jobs. FreeWorld is a tech-enabled nonprofit that aims to end generational poverty and recidivism by accelerating economic mobility for returning citizens.
Our next one-hour informational session is November 6, 10 a.m. Pacific, 12 noon Central, 1 p.m. Eastern. Please email joel.nationalconversation@gmail.com for information or to register for the session.
The National Conversation About IDs continues to be an advocate for eliminating barriers to obtaining identification documents across America. We know that many of your clients face these barriers and we are committed to working with you and each of our members to find solutions.
The National Conversation: "What's Possible?"
Dear Members:
Our special informational session regarding City of Grants Pass, Oregon v. Johnson Supreme Court Decision is complete and was brilliant. The video for this meeting is at: Click to Download
Ishvaku Vashishtha, Equal Justice Works Fellow at Inner City Law Center in Los Angeles (Inner City Law), presented a coherent, information-packed program. A decision has not yet been handed down by the U.S. Supreme Court. Oral arguments were presented in April.
Mr. Vashishtha works to advance economic justice in Los Angeles by advocating for unhoused individuals who lack identification documents through an in-person clinic, direct representation, and systemic advocacy. Broadly, his project concerns the deprivation of human and civil rights that stem from poverty and homelessness.
Ishvaku previously interned with the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, where he worked on a range of federal, state, and local policy advocacy, including the Electoral Count Reform Act. He also worked on impact litigation challenging discriminatory citation schemes that targeted unhoused people with the ACLU of Southern California.
As a clinical student, he helped pass SB 1197 in Arizona, which eliminated juvenile fees and vacated existing debt. Ishvaku received his JD from Berkeley Law in 2023 and his Bachelors in Political Science from UC Berkeley.
The National Conversation About IDs continues to be an advocate for eliminating barriers to obtaining identification documents across America. We know that many of your clients face these barriers and we are committed to working with you and each of our members to find solutions.
Our next informational session is August 7- Session Scheduled-Topic: Building Statewide Power for ID Access:
Presenters are: Christine Dragonette, director of social ministry at St. Francis Xavier Church in St. Louis, Missouri and Sara Ruiz, executive director of the Ashrei Foundation in St. Louis.
Please email joel.nationalconversation@gmail.com for information or to register for the session.
GAO Report to Congressional Committees
U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) Report to Congressional Committees: HOMELESSNESS Barriers to Obtaining ID and Assistance Provided to Help Gain Access Committees:
GAO-24-105435, HOMELESSNESS: Barriers to Obtaining ID and Assistance Provided to Help Gain Access
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Movement Advance Project Session Recording 5/3/2023
The Movement Advancement Project (MAP) ID Study may be the most comprehensive, in-depth study on the national ID crisis in over a decade. The study “... is a robust cross-population analysis and recommends systemic solutions to remove barriers and improve access to IDs.” To access the recording of the May 3 Conversation discussion with Logan Casey, Senior Policy Researcher & Advisor Movement Advancement Project, presenting, click the link https://drive.google.com/file/d/1UcwTFZCix2j-tZN4y8Xrl8dZQ7J8KHld/view?usp=share_link
ID Tools Webinar
"Helping Individuals Experiencing Homelessness Obtain Identification Documents"
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On February 3, 2022 HHRC hosted a session introducing the ID Toolkit. The event featured Homeless ID Project and The National Conversation About IDs.
Click below to access the Webinar and the Toolkit
Display their FAQs
Customers have questions, you have answers. Display the most frequently asked questions, so everybody benefits.
Kentucky Legislation Signed Into Law
Transforming the Landscape of Identification for Those Experiencing Homelessness
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Passed April 2023. Click on the link https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/record/23rs/hb21.html to access information
HR 8221- IDs for an Inclusive Democracy Act
Transforming the Landscape of Identification for Those Experiencing Homelessness
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Kat Calvin
Founder, Project ID & Spread The Vote Informative Federal Legislation Session
Click below to access the Online Session
About Us
Why is this conversation necessary?
In every state across the nation there are individuals and families experiencing or at risk of entering homelessness. In many cases they have lost - or perhaps never possessed - their legal identification documents. Getting those documents, including a state ID or birth certificate, can seem impossible. The issue is complicated by the fact that there are at least 50 different answers to the question.
We are creating ONE SINGLE NATIONAL VOICE to solve this problem
Our reason for being
The focus of the conversation is on ending and preventing homelessness by providing State ID, birth certificates and other needed documents.
Identification is the means and not the focus.
- Recognizing that an ID provides access and not success, it is expected that affiliates will build and utilize partnerships and collaborative efforts with agencies supporting an end to homelessness in their geographical area. The entity will assist in promoting such partnerships.
- Raising awareness of the existence of, and barriers caused by, lack of an ID will be a primary goal. The entity will endeavor to accomplish this awareness on a national level.
- Success on a national scale will require local and national legislative relief and assistance. The entity will coordinate these efforts with help from local affiliates.
- Because lack of an ID creates an insurmountable barrier, and because this barrier is not evident to most, we intend to be at the center of the national conversation about homelessness. The entity will provide a conduit for affiliates to enter, contribute to, and understand that conversation.
Our mission and vision
Mission Statement: To end and prevent homelessness across the nation by promoting and supporting organizations focused on providing legally recognized replacement identification documents to those in need.
Vision Statement: To create and support a 50-state solution to the issues caused by “lack of an ID” such that lack of ID ceases to be a barrier to ending or preventing homelessness.
Belief Statement: We believe that a person's ability to get a piece of paper or a plastic card should not be what stops them from ending their homelessness.
If you believe in our mission, if you share our vision, if you believe as we do that lack of an ID should not determine one's success, please join us.
Join the conversation on one of our monthly meetings.
We look forward to working with you!