About Culturally Specific Homeless Services

Culturally specific homeless services are homeless services that are provided by a specific cultural community, for members of that community, and traditionally refers to communities of color.  

What are Culturally Specific Homeless Services?

Multnomah County definition:

“Culturally specific services are services provided for specific populations based on their particular needs, where the majority of members/clients are reflective of that community, and use language, structures and settings familiar to the culture of the target population to create an environment of belonging and safety in which services are delivered. Culturally specific organizations typically refer to organizations with a majority of members/clients from a particular community. Culturally specific organizations also have a culturally focused organizational identity and environment, a positive track record of successful community engagement, and recognition from the community served as advancing the best interests of that community.”

--> Contracting and Procurement for Culturally Specific and Responsive Services, Multnomah County Office of Diversity and Equity

Coalition of Communities of Color definition: 

• Majority of members and/or clients must be from a particular community of color
  
  
• Organizational environment is culturally focused and the community being served recognizes it as a culturally-specific organization
  
  
• Staff must be majority from the community being served, and the leadership (defined to collectively include Board members and management positions) must be majority from the community being served
  
  
• Organization has a track record of successful community engagement and involvement with the community being served
  
  
• The community being served recognizes the organization as advancing the best interests of the community and engaging in policy advocacy on behalf of the community being served

--> Protocol for Culturally Responsive Organizations, Coalition of Communities of Color, Ann Curry-Stevens, and Marie-Elena Reyes

Other components:

The term “culturally specific provider” originally referred to organizations that served people of color. Nowadays, people sometimes use culturally specific providers to refer to organizations intended to serve people from any marginalized background. Whether the definition should include non-racial/ethnic groups is still debated.

• “Culturally specific services are services developed by and for a specific community – particularly those that have been traditionally marginalized and/or underserved.” - Culturally Specific Service Provision for Survivors of Domestic Violence, DC Coaltion Against Domestic Violence (web archive page)
  
  
• “A culturally specific organization (or CSO) serves a particular cultural community and is founded, led by and staffed with people who are members of that community.” - Culturally Specific Organizations Provide Targeted Impact, Esra Khalil