Race in the Missoula Coordinated Entry System/Homeless Management Information System

The data on race and other demographic and social variables within the Homeless Management Information System (HMIS) and our Missoula Coordinated Entry System (MCES) makes it strikingly apparent that significant inequities exist resulting in far greater numbers of BIPOC and non-white neighbors experiencing houselessness. These charts show that while Native American/Alaskan people make up 1.6% of the total Missoula population, they make up 14.5% percent of our unhoused neighbors participating in the Missoula Coordinated Entry System. African American people make up just 0.8% of the total Missoula population, but 3.4% of our unhoused neighbors in MCES. White people make up only 63.2% of our unhoused neighbors, while making up 91.1% of the total City population.

*Note: The City of Missoula Census Data graph indicates that Hispanics can be part of every racial category. The Hispanic percentage has been distributed here to make up 2.6 percentage points of the White category, which leaves 1.1 percentage points of Hispanic population to be spread out over the other racial categories.  Of these 1.1 percentage points, we have assigned 0.3 percentage points to the "Two or More Races" category, with the other 0.8 percentage points distributed across the other racial categories, but to what extent that 0.8 percentage points is distributed among the other racial categories is not specified on the Census data available online.

We can’t ignore the facts shown by this data and Reaching Home is actively taking steps to try to ensure that housing services and resources in Missoula are prioritized and distributed proportionate to the makeup of the folks moving through our houseless system. Some of those steps include:

What we’re up to

Check out more
Education

Fostering physical, emotional, social and intellectual growth for Missoula’s youth.

Financial Stability

Removing obstacles and paving the way for hard working families to get ahead financially.

Health

Working to ensure that everyone in Missoula has the tools they need to live a healthy life.