It definitely is an issue.
One of the first things we ask through shelter diversion is, “Who is your family? Who are your people?” For about 65% of youth, we found that family conflict is largely what's driving youth homelessness. If you ask the youth why they're coming to the shelter, it somehow breaks down ultimately to a conflict with family.
What we also found is that there still is a drive to be attached to family and friends. That's still their community. Sometimes it's a matter of just giving people a bit of time and saying, “You're safe. Regardless of what happens, you're safe.” If it takes a week, maybe then we can re-engage and see if....
Family is much larger than just a couple of people. When we talk about family and friends, we're talking about your entire community. It could be a grandparent, a cousin, an older sibling. When we're asking for permission to speak to family, we're really looking beyond someone you might have an immediate conflict with to a much larger group, especially in rural communities, where families tend to be larger and physically placed.