Literature Review

The purpose of this project was to undertake a comprehensive literature review on Aboriginal peoples and homelessness, to complement the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation's (CMHC) research in the development of a homeless data collection and management system. The literature review was supplemented by telephone interviews with experts in the field, including both academics and service providers. This literature review will expand CMHC's understanding of the causes of homelessness for Aboriginal peoples, especially those causes that are distinct from the non-Aboriginal homeless population. There is very little literature that addresses the issue of Aboriginal homelessness in Canada per se. Other bodies of literature that may be relevant are: the general literature on homelessness in Canada; the research of Aboriginal socio-economic conditions and housing; the literature on urban Aboriginals and street youth; the literature on Aboriginal health issues; and the research on the Aboriginal "skid row" lifestyle. Aboriginal homelessness has many features in common with homelessness in the general population, but it also has several distinctive features (e.g. rural-urban migration, racism and discrimination, "Third World" on-reserve housing). Similarly, many of the same strategies are recommended to.