How does advocacy impact affordable housing?
Your voice is important and impactful. There may be several obstacles for a project - many are procedural (environmental requirements, zoning, etc.) and not directly affected by advocacy, but some obstacles, particularly with regards to urban planning and some funding streams, are very directly affected by public opinion, and thus advocacy. Public support is one of the most crucial elements for a project to succeed. This is where church and Christian community support and advocacy are most needed and effective.
Affordable housing can sometimes be opposed by neighbours, generally out of fear of the unknown or “othering” people who come from a different place in life. It is not difficult for a few vocal and fearful people to make a setting feel hostile to a project, even if, in fact, most people support the project. Your job of advocacy might simply be to get people who support a project to show up. It’s so important that local community members voice their support for a project. The necessary homes for your neighbours depend on it.
Why should Christians advocate for housing?
Historically, the Church has worked to provide housing for those in need, but is that still part of our vocation in twenty-first century Canada? Isn’t housing now the realm of our governments?
Many Rooms grew out of a commitment to the belief that Christians have a God-given responsibility and gifts to work for the health and wellbeing of their neighbours, including neighbours who need housing. Of course, Christians have always been a part of this work, but it can be challenging and overwhelming to figure out how to get involved.
Scripture encourages us
Isaiah gives us a prophecy about a place where all are housed, and nobody is displaced:
They shall build houses and inhabit them; they shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit. They shall not build and another inhabit; they shall not plant and another eat; for like the days of a tree shall the days of my people be, and my chosen shall long enjoy the work of their hands. (Isaiah 65:21-22)
In Luke’s gospel, when Jesus is asked how we can tell who our neighbour is, Jesus replies that our neighbour is the person most in need, using the parable of the Good Samaritan to make his point. After being passed by people whom he might have once assumed were his neighbour, the injured traveler received mercy from someone whom he previously might have avoided and not trusted. Who is the traveler’s neighbour? “The one who showed him mercy.” Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.” (Luke 10:25-37)
Jesus reminds his disciples that, on the day of judgement, there’ll be significant concern for how his followers treated the least of those among them. He shares how the Son of Man will differentiate between those who turned a blind eye, and those who helped the downtrodden.
‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world, for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.’…‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did it to me.’ (Matthew 25:31-46)
Christian communities are powerful
Advocating for housing means engaging with the people who make policies and allocate funding. That’s politicians and government agencies.
An institution, like your church, represents a significant number of voters and will get a politician’s ear quicker than an individual. If your church can advocate for housing as a community, that’s powerful. It’s powerful witness, it’s powerful ministry, it’s powerful care for your neighbour.