Plug Them in and Turn Them On: Homelessness, Immigrants, and Social Capital

The purpose of this study is to address the links between homelessness and migration. In particular, it sought insights into the housing insecurity among immigrants that derives largely from the growing economic disparities between newcomers and other Canadians and the concomitant lack of affordable housing. Based on an earlier study by some of the team members (Springer and Kilbride 2003) we knew that factors such as the larger family size of many immigrants, their visible minority status, and the lack of support that other recent immigrants can afford to offer made them especially vulnerable to homelessness, which was something they never anticipated when arriving in Canada.

Publication Date: 
2006