The top local stories this evening from KERA News:
Homeless outreach workers spent six days in January counting the number of 12-to-24 year olds in Dallas County who didn’t have a stable place to live. They ultimately surveyed 179 people as part of the first-ever homeless youth survey in the county.
Keri Stitt is the chief partner relations officer at Promise House, a nonprofit that helps at-risk youth, and whose outreach teams were at the helm of the homeless count.
Stitt said the survey found clear disparities. Of the young people interviewed, about 40 percent were between 15 and 20 years old. More than half were female, and nearly 60 percent were African-American.
A quarter of those living on the streets identified as part of the LGBT community, and a significant number of homeless youth had also come into contact with the juvenile justice system.
Those who took part in the "See Us Now" homeless youth survey said their highest priority, and the one thing they believe will bring them out of homelessness, is affordable housing. And they want more teen shelters where they can feel safe.
Other stories this evening:
- Even if you've never written into one, chances are you've been just curious enough to read an advice column. Jessica Weisberg has a new book that chronicles America's centuries-long history of advice columns. Today on Think, she talked with Krys Boyd about why we obsess over anonymous requests for guidance.
- Fort Worth Opera opens its new season next week with an unusual, landmark work. ‘Maria de Buenos Aires' is a surreal tango opera from 1968, full of demons and lost souls. In this week’s Artist Spotlight, Art & Seek’s Jerome Weeks reports that the opera also has an unusual casting choice: TV talk show host Gaby Natale.
You can listen to North Texas stories weekdays at 8:23 a.m. and 6:20 p.m. on KERA 90.1 FM.
