Published TUESDAY June 25, 2024: 'No Shelter: A Tale Of Three Families': Pulitzer winner ZUMA Press photographer Renee C. Byer and writer Ariane Lange both staff at The Sacramento Bee, tackle this important story as they follow three families evicted from city shelters: Brittany and her two sons, Tanika Williams, her husband, Michael, and their two daughters, now 18 and 3, and Jessica Rose, her husband, Stewart, and their 11-year-old daughter, Faith. Months after the evictions, all three families were still homeless, and all three bounced between hotels and the street with minimal support from social services. Along with Brittany's son, Tanika's teenager left school. Their stories reveal the complications of assessing homelessness in California. Welcome to 'No Shelter: A Tale Of Three Families'
© zReportage.com Issue #945 Story of the Week: Published TUESDAY June 25, 2024: 'No Shelter: A Tale Of Three Families': Pulitzer winner ZUMA Press photographer Renee C. Byer and writer Ariane Lange both staff at The Sacramento Bee, tackle this important story as they follow three families evicted from city shelters: Brittany and her two sons, Tanika Williams, her husband, Michael, and their two daughters, now 18 and 3, and Jessica Rose, her husband, Stewart, and their 11-year-old daughter, Faith. Months after the evictions, all three families were still homeless, and all three bounced between hotels and the street with minimal support from social services. Along with Brittany's son, Tanika's teenager left school. Their stories reveal the complications of assessing homelessness in California. Welcome to 'No Shelter: A Tale Of Three Families'
TANIKA WILLIAMS, 38, holds paperwork asking her to vacate her room at a press conference in Sacramento, where she appeared with her daughter Makaila, 2, who has sickle cell anemia. She spoke about her family's plight staying at The Greens Hotel which serves as a city homeless shelter. She and her husband Michael, who suffers COPD, and daughter Amaya Martin, 18, were locked out of their room at the Hotel.
© Renée C. Byer/ZUMA Press Wire
TANIKA WILLIAMS holds up her cellphone with a picture of the filthy condition of the shower at The Greens Hotel during a press conference in Sacramento where she appeared with her daughter Makaila, 2. Her family was locked out of their room at the city-run homeless shelter.
© Renée C. Byer/ZUMA Press Wire
TANIKA WILLIAMS, 38, holds her daughter MAKAILA, 2, who has sickle cell anemia at a press conference where she spoke about her daughter and husband who suffers COPD and their plight after they along with her 18-year old daughter were locked out of their room at The Greens Hotel which serves as a city shelter.
© Renée C. Byer/ZUMA Press Wire
Facing homelessness TANIKA WILLIAMS, (R), looks over at BRITTANY ANDERSON, who has a 5-month old and 4-year old at a press conference where she appeared with her daughter Makaila, 2, who has sickle cell anemia, in Sacramento. Williams and her husband who suffers COPD and two children were locked out of their room at The Greens Hotel, a city run homeless shelter. Anderson was evicted a week prior. Both women spoke about their families plight and the terrible conditions at the shelter showing pictures of mold, bugs a shower that didn't even run.
© Renée C. Byer/ZUMA Press Wire
TANIKA WILLIAMS, 38, holds the hand of her daughter MAKAILA, 2, who has sickle cell anemia at a press conference where she spoke about her daughter and husband who suffers COPD and their plight after they were locked out of their room at The Greens, a city run shelter in Sacramento.
© Renée C. Byer/ZUMA Press Wire
TANIKA WILLIAMS, 38, arrives with daughter MAKHILA, almost 3, to see if their beloved betta fish 'Bluez' was alive after property managers had left the fish tank outside overnight at The Greens Hotel, a Sacramento run homeless shelter. They had owned the fish over a year and had kept it throughout their homelessness as they searched for housing.
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MICHAEL WILLIAMS, 52, carries a fish tank that had been left outside overnight by property managers at The Greens Hotel with their beloved pet betta fish called 'Bluez.' The family of four had been locked out of the room the night before. All their belongings were still locked inside the room including his chronic pulmonary medication. In the background his wife TANIKA searches through a garbage bin looking for their belongings.
© Renée C. Byer/ZUMA Press Wire
TANIKA WILLIAMS, 38, searches through a garbage bin looking for their belongings at The Greens hotel, a city run shelter in Sacramento. 'I see a full container of milk and all our groceries' she said. Her family was locked out of their room at the city-run homeless shelter.
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MICHAEL WILLIAMS, 52, peers inside the locked hotel room where his family's belongings were bagged up including his medication for chronic pulmonary disease in Sacramento. The family had been given a 3 day notice to pay rent or quit although they were in a city run shelter.
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TANIKA WILLIAMS, 38, gets ready to load the family belongings that The Greens Hotel workers had bagged up and locked inside their room into their van. After the family was escorted off the grounds by police the night before they were given a voucher for a night in a Motel 6. They returned the following morning to retrieve their things.
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TANIKA WILLIAMS, 38, naps with her daughter MAKHILA, almost 3, at a Motel 6 in Sacramento. On Valentines Day she spoke at a press conference about her family being evicted from The Greens Hotel, a city-run temporary housing facility. The family was staying in a Motel 6 while they searched for permanent housing.
© Renée C. Byer/ZUMA Press Wire
TANIKA WILLIAMS eyes swell with tears as she and her husband MICHAEL (L) try to figure out how they can manage to stay another night in a Motel 6 with their family in Sacramento.
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MAKHILA WILLIAMS, 2, vies for the attention of her parents MICHAEL and TANIKA while staying at a Motel 6 in Sacramento. Her 18-year-old daughter, who is working and attending college, helped pay for the room. They were kicked out of The Greens Hotel on Valentines Day and police paid for the room that night. The Sacramento Homeless Union paid for a few days in the motel, but now they are out of money.
© Renée C. Byer/ZUMA Press Wire
Tanika Williams eldest daughter AMAYA MARTIN, 18, (on bed) who was attending Sacramento City college and working as a hotel hostess to help support the family, pretends to have a spa day with her father MICHAEL WILLIAMS, 52, and sister MAKHILA, almost 3, at a Quality Inn.They had been sleeping in their van, and in hotels when they could afford it.
© Renée C. Byer/ZUMA Press Wire
Tears stream down the face of TANIKA WILLIAMS, 38, who stepped away from her family in the Quality Inn lobby because she didn't want them to see how upset she was. She was running out of options for housing in Sacramento and trying to sort out where to go next. She and her family left later in the month for San Bernardino, hoping to find better services.
© Renée C. Byer/ZUMA Press Wire
JESSICA ROSE wipes tears as she scrambles to pack the family belongings at Arden Acres, a shelter funded by the city of Sacramento, where she and her husband and daughter were being evicted. She was focused on trying to pack the belongings of her teenage daughter Faith, who has autism, while she played outside with friends. Police had come earlier that morning and told her she had until 1 p.m. to pack her things and leave.
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JESSICA ROSE, 40, said she didn't want her daughter Faith, 11, to see how upset she was while she was packing her familys belongings in Sacramento. She did not know where they would be going when police arrived or how much they could take with them.
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JESSICA ROSE, 40, walks past her bicycles and a Sacramento police cruiser after throwing some of her belongings in the trash while being evicted with her 11-year old daughter and husband in Sacramento. She was allowed to store a few items on the property for three weeks until she could save enough money to get a storage unit.
© Renée C. Byer/ZUMA Press Wire
JESSICA ROSE, 40, walks with her daughter FAITH, 11, who suffers from autism, while being evicted from a city-funded shelter in Sacramento. Her daughters pet rabbit had been placed with some friends and Rose was worried she would not be able to get it back. Jessica had been riding the bus daily to take her daughter to and from school. The family does not own a car so she wasn't sure how she could get her daughter to school now.
© Renée C. Byer/ZUMA Press Wire
JESSICA ROSE, 40, returns to her hotel room with her new puppy at the Sacramento Inn & Suites. They had gotten the puppy after losing possession of their pet rabbit when they were evicted. She said if they were going to be street homeless, they wanted a dog. After moving into the Roseville Road shelter, the puppy ran into the street where it was fatally hit by a car.
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JESSICA ROSE, 40, talks about a used RV she bought for 300 dollars from a friend while staying at the Sacramento Inn & Suites. She was worried she wouldn't find an apartment in 30 days and might have had to sleep in the van with her husband and daughter. 'I call 211 and nothing, where is all this money going?' Rose said. 311 and 211 are special telephone numbers in many communities in the United States. The number provides access to non-emergency municipal services.
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BRITTANY ANDERSON, 36, who said she is suffering from postpartum depression, cries inside a Taco Bell restaurant where the homeless mother was waiting to pick up her 4-year-old son from school in Sacramento. She had been evicted from The Greens Hotel, a city-run shelter, along with her 5-month-old baby. She said she had wandered around Elk Grove community all night trying not to freeze.
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BRITTANY ANDERSON, 36, picks up BRITAIN, her 4-year-old from SUY:U Elementary school in Fruitridge Manor. The school was close to the city-run shelter where she used to live along with her 5-month-old. Now evicted she said she wasn't sure how to keep Britain in school.
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After spending all night walking the streets and trying to stay warm BRITTANY ANDERSON, 36, picks up BRITAIN, her 4-year-old from SUY:U Elementary school in Fruitridge Manor in Sacramento. The school was close to the city-run shelter where she used to live along with her 5-month-old. Britain missed so much school after her eviction he was expelled from school.
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BRITAIN ANDERSON, 5, checks on his baby brother BRANDON, 9 months, as their mother BRITTNEY moves them in the shade to keep cool in Sacramento. When shelters evict parents the children become the collateral damage.
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BRITTANY ANDERSON, 36, suffering from postpartum depression, stresses on a street curb with her son BRANDON, almost 1, wondering if she will ever get housing in Sacramento. After being evicted from a city-run shelter with her two sons, she was crashing in a friends over-crowded apartment and did not know how long she could remain.
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BRITTANY ANDERSON, 36, rests on a curb with sons BRITAIN, 5, and BRANDON, 9 months in Sacramento. She was living in an overcrowded apartment and the owner had several dogs and she didn't know how much longer she could remain there. Her son Britain had been expelled from school for missing too many days. 'It could be detrimental to people who don't have a good mindset' she said about being homeless. 'Especially those that have postpartum depression' it can take a really big toll on us.'
© Renée C. Byer/ZUMA Press Wire
