About tales of the street sd

San Diego’s streets are full of people one paycheck away from a good home, escaping an abusive relationship or the demons of PTSD. When we stop and talk with people, we meet families, brothers, mothers, seniors, veterans, teenagers, all looking for a home. Some find it in each other, some choose to stay in protective corners. This site is about our shared humanity, a documentary project by award-winning photojournalist Peggy Peattie, Ph.D., who has been telling the stories of America's homeless individuals for 40 years, 23 of them in San Diego.

Countless organizations exist around feeding and housing the homeless, treating their physical and mental ailments, and yet there are more homeless on our streets than ever, hidden in plain sight.

Maybe we can’t all offer a home or a job or money to our less fortunate brothers and sisters, but we can offer them the dignity of knowing who they are, and hearing their stories. Maybe if we get to know the residentially-challenged among us, instead of walking around them, we might see them more clearly, as our neighbors, people with incredible survival skills, who have a lot to share, if we are willing to stop and listen.