Book Review: When Misfortune Becomes Injustice: Evolving Human Rights Struggles for Health and Social Equality

current federal minimum wage), housing first, minimum basic income (Andrew Yang looks smarter and smarter), universal healthcare, and other systemic changes that seemed out of reach before the pandemic, but they also stress the importance of personal attention and respect for those individuals facing homelessness. In instance after instance, caring individuals, made a huge difference in whether a person escaped homelessness or did not. I couldn’t help but think of Craig Mitchell, a superior court judge in Los Angeles who, after being invited by a former inmate to visit him in a shelter, founded a running club for the homeless and brings those who put in the work and maintain sobriety to international marathons each year, including the prestigious Rome Marathon. Like Journeys Out of Homelessness, the 2019 documentary Skid Row Marathon wraps the judge’s story around those of the women and men who, empowered by the personal relationships in the club, overcome homelessness. Clearly, all people need more than just adequate food and a roof over their head. We also need love and respect. Rife and Burnes conclude, “Caring individuals, natural networks of support, and community are essential elements in helping people without homes become more self-sufficient and productive members of our society . . . . Someone once asked, will we ever truly end homelessness? . . . That, we think, is ultimately doable, if we have the political and collective will to accomplish it” (p. 185). The pandemic mantra “We are all in this together,” wherein even conservatives now realize that crowded shelters, jails, and slums endanger everyone’s lives, gives me hope that the change of mind and heart necessary to dramatically reduce homelessness is now within reach. Scott Schaeffer-Duffy, along with his spouse Claire Schaeffer-Duffy, is a founding member of the Saints Francis & Thérèse Catholic Worker in Worcester, MA. He is the author of Nothing Is Impossible: Stories from the Life of a Catholic Worker. He holds a BA in religious studies from the College of the Holy Cross.