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Their story: Homeless Indigenous women in Cairns and Mount Isa, Australia

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 November 2014

Valda Wallace ,
Deborah Graham ,
Deb Selway  and
Tamara Kelly
Valda Wallace*
Affiliation:
Indigenous Centre, James Cook University
Deborah Graham
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, James Cook University
Deb Selway
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, James Cook University
Tamara Kelly
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, James Cook University
*
address for correspondence: Valda Wallace, Indigenous Centre, James Cook University, PO Box 6811, Cairns, Queensland, 4870, Australia.
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Abstract

Homelessness is affecting Australian Indigenous women disproportionately in comparison with the Australian population. Homeless Indigenous women in Cairns and Mount Isa, Australia, were interviewed about their experiences of homelessness, understanding of causes and services available to them. Reasons for homelessness for the women interviewed circled around relationship breakdowns, patterns of repeated homelessness, lack of access to services in remote areas and lack of affordable housing. The need for affordable and safe housing, suitable to accommodate a variety of family groups, from single women to large families was a recurrent theme.

Keywords

homelessnessAustralian IndigenouswomenhousingCairnsMount Isa
Type
Articles
Information
Journal of Tropical Psychology , Volume 4 , 2014 , e9
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s) 2014 

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