Latino homelessness up 26% over pandemic, say Los Angeles officials

The number of homeless in Los Angeles County climbed 4.1% to 69,144 people since 2020, according to the results of the most recent count released by the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority on Thursday.

The annual count, which took place from Feb. 22-24, also found the number of unhoused people in the City of LA rose 1.7% to 41,980, reports Fox 11 Los Angeles.

"While it is too soon to know what this year’s count results will mean long-term, the numbers are suggesting there is a flattening of the curve that is driven by the necessary and effective economic programs that helped keep people in their homes throughout the pandemic," said Kristina Dixon, Acting Co-Executive Director at LAHSA. 

This year’s count was the first since 2020, as last year’s was canceled due to safety concerns during the COVID-19 pandemic. Volunteers conducted the February count by driving around areas instead of on foot as in the past.  

In 2020, LAHSA found the county’s homeless population increased 12.7% over the previous year, while the city’s jumped by 14.2%.

Between 2018 and 2020, LA County saw a 25.9% increase and the City of LA experienced a 32% increase, reports Fox 11.

“The pandemic had a profound effect on homelessness,” Dixon said at a Thursday press conference.

LAHSA also said Thursday that Latinos now make up 44.5% of LA County’s homeless – up 26% over the pandemic, reported Spectrum News 1 SoCal reporter Kate Cagle on Twitter.

Hispanics, especially males, and other non-white voters were more likely than white voters to say high inflation is causing them major financial strain in their lives, according to a Wall Street Journal poll from March.

Cagle also reported that LAHSA said the nature of homelessness in the county had changed. LA County saw 17% more tents, vehicles and makeshift shelters but only a 1% increase in street homelessness.

“Covid measure made homelessness more visible because people left tents up during the day and night,” she wrote in another Twitter post.