Feb 20, 2023
At its core, the N Street Village story is one of humanity, resistance, and advancing racial and housing justice. It began in 1972, when Pastor John Steinbruck opened the doors of Lutheran Place Memorial Church, at the center of Washington DC’s embattled 14th street corridor, to women and children in need of shelter and care. It was 6 years after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr, a devastating act that reverberated across the nation and ignited riots just blocks from the White House. That moment led to the founding of N Street Village, which has evolved over the last fifty years into a national model for serving women experiencing homelessness. The process starts, as explained with clarity and compassion by N Street Village CEO Kenyatta Brunson, by welcoming them without judgment, providing the time and resources needed to recover from domestic violence, disability debt, divorce, death, key drivers of women’s homelessness, and advocating for the expansion of safe and affordable permanent housing. It takes tremendous skill and heart to both address complex individual needs and reform public policies rooted in racism. Kenyatta tells her powerful story here.