At the end of last year, more than 650,000 people in the United States reported being homeless – the highest reported levels in the past 15 years, according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

What are some reasons behind the crisis, and who are the people who are struggling?

Rachelle Ellison was homeless for 17 years.

“I still have a lot of healing to do, but I’ve healed through so many traumas, situations, forgiving people, forgiving myself,” she said.

Ellison is also executive secretary of the People for Fairness Coalition.

“We are an organization who tries to end housing instability through advocacy, peer mentoring, and outreach. And we all are homeless or formerly homeless, and we run the organization,” she said.

Ellison often speaks about her own experiences. When she talks to currently homeless individuals, she tells them, “They can take everything from you but your dignity, your morals, and your values, and the way you see yourself. So don’t let them.”

A Voice for the Homeless

Donald Whitehead is a leading expert on homelessness, currently serving as the Executive Director of the National Coalition for the Homeless.  

“There’s a lot of structural issues, but housing is at the core of that. So we don’t have enough affordable housing. We also don’t have enough jobs that pay livable wages,” he said.

Previously homeless himself, Whitehead says there are a lot of misconceptions about the homeless. One is that they don’t work. In fact, 40 percent of homeless individuals have a job, but wages have not kept up with rising rents.

Homelessness also uncovers the racial divides in our country, he said. “There is a disproportionate number of people of color that are in the homeless population. And it’s not consistent with poverty.”

As homeless people become criminalized in some parts of the country, Whitehead’s mission is to maintain their rights. “We know that people are forced homelessness… where you live or where you don’t should not be how people decide on your worth as a human being.”

Inside California’s homelessness crisis

Substance abuse and mental illness are prevalent among the homeless population. Lack of access to treatment and support services further complicates the situation. Correspondent Jason Motlagh heads to California, which has the highest number of homeless people of any U.S. state.