Megan Barlow

Melissa Schafer
August 8, 2015

Ethnography

Homeless Youth Resource Center

Anthropology 1010
For the past three months I have had the opportunity to work directly with the homeless
youth of Salt Lake City. While working at the Homeless Youth Resource Center downtown, I
have been able to observe and relate my studies to a group of people very different from myself.
By doing so, I was able to better understand the things I was learning about, and apply real life
observations to my ethnography. Ethnography is the recorded studies of a culture, and it is the
core of Cultural Anthropology, so while studying cultural Anthropology, it is very fitting that I
learn how to be an ethnographer as well. I was able to directly observe the clients at HYRC and I
was also able to have interviews with staff members. When I first started volunteering here, I had
a little bit of culture shock, mostly do to my lack of experience with people who are or have been
homeless. I was completely unfamiliar with why they were there, how they got by day to day,
what their thought processes were, what kind of goals they had and so on. The more time I spent
there, the better I was able to understand the mind set they were in and the force that governed
their choices. Homeless Youth are most of the time using the thought process of someone living
in poverty. This thought process is equivalent to someone who is in survival mode. They dont
have much, so every decision is based on what is very next (i.e. their next meal, where they will
sleep, the next time they can shower), and not what will happen next week, month or year.
Understanding this piece of information really helps to communicate with the teens better.
Communication within this culture is limited to mostly high school level conversations. The
staff members are very firm and direct with the clients, and they are careful to not become a
counselor figure to any of the clients because they provide resources only. The lingo used in this
group of people varies, but is consistent with high school/college vocabulary. There is a lot of

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cussing throughout the facility including from the staff members. Like it was mentioned earlier,
the communication is also filtered by a thought process of survival. Almost everything that is
spoken about between the clients, or the staff and the clients, is based around what is coming
next. There isnt often talk about the future beyond a month or even a week.
At HYRC they serve kids and adults ages 15-22 and these youth rely on the Homeless
Youth Resource Center for food, clothes, shoes, a shower, and backpacks. There are scheduled
breakfast and lunches every weekday, and dinner as well on Friday. The clients have to be put on
a list in order to be able to get breakfast and clothing items, this is so that they can be sure to
provide for everyone. The food that HYRC has to give the clients comes solely from donations,
whether it be money or food that is given to the center. They are able to provide the food because
of others who are willing to give money, time, and food. Andrew, the coordinator is the one who
schedules who does what meals. He has to stay on top of it and make sure there is always food for
the youth. They usually serve abut 30 clients per meal, and they have dozens in and out the door
each day to pick up resources for basic living. They get to pick a couple of shirts, a couple of
pairs of pants, one pair of new underwear, and a pair of shoes. From what I could tell they keep
track of what and when each client get their clothing items and backpacks. All of the clothing
items, backpacks, food, bikes, accessories, sheets, towels and anything else they have, come from
donations. Once in a while, Volunteers of America, will send a box of new underwear or socks,
and the rest is solely from donations.
In regards to Economics, the goods and services that are received are free of charge
because they are donated. The time, clothing and food is all the product of donations received
from the community. It is very important for HYRC to explain this to their clients and help them
understand where everything is coming from that they are being given. I was invited to start
leading a group at HYRC, which would be considered a "step up" to be a part of the groups held
there, to help teach the clients how we sort the clothing items that are donated, and give them a
better understanding of the work and services that are put into HYRC. I will be working with
them to show them how to organize items, to make decisions, and gauge an idea of what work
goes into the organization of the donations. I have witnessed a few of the teens take their allotted
items and then sell them to used clothing stores to make a profit off of. While walking in or out
of the center I have heard people asking each other for cigarettes or gum, with something in
exchange that would be of value to the other, like a match or something. Because they are a poor
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community being taught how to live in a middle class world, it takes a lot of teaching about the
processes of things, and why things are done a certain way. There is definitely a learning curve
for many of the clients. HYRC uses redistribution of the goods that are donated, and then
HYRC keeps track of the amount of items that each client takes each time they come buy.
While serving at the Homeless Youth Resource Center, I often hear many stories while
sorting through donations, from the clients about their relationships. Most stories pertain to the
drama within the relationships, but some are stories of their recent successes and some are their
fears in the relationship. The staff members are always there to provide the resources they have
to help in any way they can. While I was there during my normal volunteer time, I heard a girl
talking about how scared she was of her boyfriend, and why she couldn't leave. From my
perspective, her reasoning for staying was not justified, but from her view, there were no other
options. Her reasons being something along the lines of "he will kill me if I leave", and "I just
love him and can't imagine my life without him", even as far as "he's perfect for mewhen he's in a
good mood." The staff member helping her, let her know about the lawyers that they had contact
information for, and names and addresses of shelters that she could stay at, giving her a positive
outlook for an escape, but making sure to leave any advice and opinions out of it. Most of the
hardships of the homeless youth are the result of a relationship, or multiple relationships gone
wrong. Inappropriate relationships are assumed to bethe number one cause of homelessness in
youth. The structure of a relationship, or a family is almost non existent in this group of
individuals. That is why the teens are in survival mode. The effect of a relationship, legal or not,
has a huge effect on all humans, and whether it be abused or neglected, it messes with our minds
and leaves us with nothing. Now, this isn't the case for allof the clients, but it is for a good chunk
of them. Volunteering here has taught me the importance of family, no matter how it's
structured, it's important to have the support.
Family is often the cause of homelessness in these youth. It is really sad that most of the
hardships of these youth are caused by abuse, much of it stemming from their own families. The
kinship of these teens are almost non existent in terms of participation in each others lives. Their
kinship is really made of the people that they choose to have in their lives. I have noticed groups
of homeless teens riding to and from West Valley to visit the resource center, and they act like a
little family. Beyond the youth at the center though, I wasnt able to further interview or observe
other kinship ties.
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Political Organization is a very interesting thing to ponder with the cultural group that I am
serving. At the Homeless Youth Resource Center there isn't much leadership in the lives of the
teens. Of course, the clients have the staff members to talk to and observe, but being homeless, or
avoiding home is usually the result of very little to no leadership or guidance. The staff members
are informal leaders, and are able to provide options for other leaders to be of access. Decisions
are very easy if they are being made for the present. Future decisions are very difficult and
eitheravoided or made for the present instead. As far as social stratification, which is very present
among homeless youth, it is not usually in favor of the clients at HYRC. They are among the
lowest classes without even having a place to live. There aren't any rules in the clients lives, and if
there are, they aren't enforced or followed because there isn't a guardian or person of trust.
There is a very fine line between a resource center and a counseling center, so as far as rules are
concerned there isn't much room for them. Conflict in this environment is resolved by the
restriction of the person causing conflict from coming back. They are basically removed from the
center with a warning to not return. Conflicts arise when a client isn't being respectful, or is
causing harm to themselves or someone else in the center. There are a couple of rules within the
center to avoid harm in any form. As far as political organization goes, it relates the most to
Chiefdom. All of the food and valuables are pooled together, and are then redistributed to those
who need it. They are distributed evenly to each person. Essentially there are headman (the staff
members) and followers (the clients).
At the Homeless Youth Resource Center, I wouldn't say that there is gender inequality,
among the clients, but seven staff members are women, and four are men, all of which are gay.
All of the volunteers that I know of are women as well. I think that this stems from the broader
culture of christians in the SLC community, and I think that men in this culture can tend to feel
more entitled and less obliged to volunteer. I don't know think that there is very much equality
among the volunteers, but there is among the teens. It is interesting that those needing help are
equally men and women, and those giving help are mainly women, or gay men. As far as the
teens go though, there isn't really a division of labor that I've seen. Which is also interesting that
those that need help, give help equally among men and women, but those who dont need help
but are giving help tend to me women or gay men.
From what I have observed, there is not any use of religious practices throughout the
culture at HYRC. The staff members nor the clients talk about their religious practices, and I
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honestly couldn't guess whether they are religious or not. I don't know if that is a good thing or a
bad thing. I suppose it could be both. It seems that some people are better people with a religion
in their lives and others are better people without religion in their lives. I haven't heard one
person, client or staff member, talk about their religious practices or beliefs though. I haven't
heard any of them talk about any rituals or traditions either. I'm not sure if they do or don't have
religious practices because they're homeless, or vice versa.
Many of the clients at HYRC have piercings and tattoos, but I think that the biggest factor
in their personal expression is the clothing that they are able to get from the center. Most of the
time that they spend at the center is spent picking out clothing from the racks. Often I would
notice, while hanging up the new donations, that the teens would find something that they really
liked because it was cool, or funny and they would be really excited about it. Some of the brands
of clothes and shoes that are more popular and are taken quickly when they are donated are DC,
Vans, H&M, Oakley, Element, and Nike. Some care more than others about what they look like.
Some of the teens, I have also noticed,purposely find the most plain and simple clothes, I'm
assuming so they'll blend in more and avoid being seen. This could be because of previous abuse
that has taken place, but it could also just be because they might not care. Hair style varies
tremendously here. Some of them have hair that hasn't been brushed or washed in months, some
of them are clean cut and shaven, and some of the girls do their hair, meaning curl or straighten
it, once in a while. A lot of the girls that I see in there have their hair up in a pony tail often,
which probably helps avoid knots and keeps it out of the way. Jewelry is not commonly worn by
the clients. There is a section of jewelry that is available for them to take out by the clothes, along
with hats, belts and purses, but most of them spend their items on actual clothing. I think that
overall, many of the teens/clients go for that rougher skater look. There is one kid that is really
classy, and you would never in a million years guess that he was homeless just by looking at him,
but the majority of them go for a skater punk look. There is not a way to define whether or not
they fit the "culture" though because anyone can be homeless, and their different styles and
circumstance will play a role in their style.
A lot of what has been discussed explains the social norms of the culture, and the values of
the teens, which are pretty consistent across the group because they often interact on the streets
and in the center. For the youth to overcome homelessness they first understand why they are
there, and how to get out of it. More often than not they are stuck in a mindset of homelessness
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and that is what holds them back from escaping. Some of them are also just so used to receiving
things for free, or with minimal work, that leaving homelessness is too hard for some.
I have truly come to respect how well each Volunteers of America staff member treats each
client, even when some of them come in drunk or high, or both. They help them get what they
need to live and they are on their way. The staff members have an understanding of how people
don't change until they are ready to change, and I think this has a really big impact on how a lot
of the clients are able to change. I noticed a board in the back while I was sorting clothes and
shoes on Wednesday, and it was filled with all of these letters to HYRC about how thankful they
were to HYRC for providing for them and helping them get back on their feet. A few wrote
where they were now, and signed their names and a couple just said thank you and were
anonymous.I think this shows that understanding the mindset of the teens, and working with
them based off of that, is the best way to helping them out.

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