Erin Gaede publishes article on poverty and stigma in rural locales
Erin Gaede, PhD candidate in sociology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, recently published an article in Rural Sociology titled “Rural Poverty and Social Stigma: Homeless in America’s Dairyland.” Gaede points out that while scholars often focus on physically visible forms of homelessness in urban centers, in rural contexts, people experiencing homelessness are often unseen as they use varying forms of housing that “hide” homelessness and stigma. Her article uses ethnographic fieldwork and in-depth interviews to find that the stigmatization of homelessness in rural areas hinges on its social hypervisibility. Gaede posits that current policies not only fail to support people experiencing homelessness in rural areas but also exacerbate stigma.