Sleep Out is a participatory event where Covenant House Georgia supporters give up their beds for one night to sleep outdoors on CHGA’s campus, in support of young people experiencing homelessness and escaping trafficking.
Imagine turning 18 years old and not having a warm bed or a place to call home. This is the case for many youths, not just in Atlanta, but all over the nation. On Thursday, Nov. 20, Covenant House Georgia held their annual Sleep Out event to raise awareness to youth homelessness in Atlanta and around the nation.
Covenant House Georgia is a non-profit organization that provides emergency shelter and support services for young people, ages 18-24, who are experiencing homelessness or escaping human trafficking in the Atlanta area. Covenant House Georgia is also an LGBTQ+ safe space.
Sleep Out is a participatory event where Covenant House Georgia supporters give up their beds for one night to sleep outdoors on CHGA’s campus, in support of young people experiencing homelessness and escaping trafficking.
When you Sleep Out, participants join a worldwide movement to end youth homelessness! As part of the larger Covenant House International federation of shelters, Covenant House Georgia works in partnership with our peers to plan the best possible event, combining Sleep Out best practices with the unique needs of our Atlanta community
Some services they offer are Drop-in & emergency shelter, transitional housing, healthcare, educational support, job training.
According to the Covenant House Georgia, over 3,300 youth experience homelessness in Atlanta. 49% of youth experiencing homelessness have been sexually exploited. 40% of youth experiencing homelessness are LGBTQ+, despite only 7% of the general population of youth identifying as LGBTQ+. Moreover, LGBTQ+ youth are more likely to be victimized than non-LGBTQ+ youth on the streets.
Additionally, 16-19-year-olds have the highest unemployment rate of any age group, at 12.6% (more than 3x the national average) and higher for at-risk youth. This leaves many without options to escape homelessness.
Board Chair of Covenant House Georgia, Ben Deutsch, said every child deserves to have a place they call home and a haven.
“Every child should have a place that they feel safe in,” he said. “Our young people are not invisible or forgotten. This is why the Covenant House Georgia was created and why we continue to sleep out every year to highlight such a critical issue. We will do this in solidarity with 100 young people who will be sleeping inside because of all the arduous work, and all the goodness that you have all done tonight with donations.”
Covenant House International Director of Programming Kedren Jackson said the sleep-out is not a reenactment of homelessness nor a performance.
“This is not just for fun; this is not simply to hang out. This is an invitation to move through this space with humility and to see our young people with a different level of clarity and respect,” she said. “Tonight, we may see their humor, leadership, vulnerability, creativity, hesitation, raw emotions, and uncertainty. None of this is random, and it all comes from somewhere.”
Throughout the event program, participants were able to experience a talent show displayed by former and current youths in the program, a candlelight vigil to remember youths who were lost this year due to homelessness, a tour of the campus, and then the sleep-out event.
The night ended with everyone camped outside in their sleeping bags by fire pits, mingling until they fell asleep.
What was thought of as just a sleep-out event to some turned into not only a transformational but also an in-depth, hands-on experience for people. Between hearing from the youths and everyone sitting around the pit fires and sleeping, it turned into more than just sleeping outside; It became a purposeful movement.
First-timer participant of the sleep out, Vanessa Wright, and her friends said they wanted to find ways to give back to the community.
“This was something I’ve always wanted to do but never knew where, and one of my friends told me about this and brought me along,” she said. “I am so glad we are doing this, and I’m also grateful it’s not too cold as I thought it might be. This type of thing is important, and more people should know about it and be willing to do things that can be uncomfortable.”
Another participant, who also happened to have experienced homelessness as a youth, Kenneth Dwight, said he has been doing the sleep-out for a few years now and is happy to be able to contribute.
“What’s crazy is I was once in some of these guys’ positions. Going home from home, living out on the streets not having a stable home or resources. It was tough for a while, but I was able to find some stability through my uncle, who took me in,” he said. “Programs like the Covenant House Georgia are crucial because youths not only in Atlanta but all over the country are on the streets being exposed to all kinds of bad things that aren’t growing them, so I’m just happy to help in any way I can because I was once one of them.”
Before the end of the night, everyone bundled up in their sleeping bags and drifted off to sleep to the sounds of crickets and fire cracking.
For more information about Covenant House, resources, or to donate, visit https://www.sleepout.org/georgia.