“A true revolution of values will soon cause us to question the fairness and justice of many of our past and present policies. On the one hand, we are called to play the Good Samaritan on life’s roadside, but that will be only an initial act. … True compassion is more than flinging a coin to a beggar. It comes to see that an edifice which produces beggars needs restructuring.” – The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.

Martin Luther King’s vision is vital as Oregon tackles massive social challenges. We need a restructuring of our system based on values.

Gov. Tina Kotek is responding Oregon’s housing and homelessness crises by ramping up production on new housing.

That’s a good start. But while housing is essential to ending homelessness, it’s not enough.

Increasingly, the ranks of the homeless are comprised of families, the elderly, the disabled and BIPOC communities. Finding homeless people a new home will not guarantee that they stay housed, particularly if they have a history of substance abuse, mental illness, chronic disease, sporadic employment or financial instability.

For far too long, we have cared for the poorest in a dehumanizing way, isolating them in often undignified shelter. The longer homelessness lasts for an individual or family, the more deadly it becomes.

Homelessness takes people captive. Problems and dysfunctions become increasingly more complex and much harder to remedy. The psyche is debilitated; coping and problem-solving skills deteriorate.

As people plummet deeper into the cycle of homelessness, they lose their self-esteem, dignity and reason for being. They are likely to remain fragile even after they are housed.

Without transitional housing, hundreds of individuals and families will be exposed to this trauma of homelessness. This is why transitional programs are so valuable. It’s a comprehensive approach that stops the cycle of poverty and homelessness.

Transitional housing programs like Catholic Charities’ Chiles House in Southeast Portland and Kenton Women’s Village in North Portland are filling a hole in Portland’s safety net. They offer a one-stop experience. We stabilize residents not only with housing, but also with mental health counseling, nutritious food, legal services, children’s programs, financial empowerment training and matched savings.

Without an expanded supply and improved access to transitional housing and affordable, quality housing options, the homelessness response system will continue to fail. People seeking to leave homelessness will falter at a time when the risks of homelessness are increasing.

Now is the time. The lack of transitional housing needs to be solved. Housing is not a commodity; it is a basic human right that goes beyond physical shelter.

Dr. King also said, “Philanthropy is commendable, but it must not cause the philanthropist to overlook the circumstances of economic injustice which make philanthropy necessary.”

He is correct: We must bend our economic, social and political systems, the systems that made us, toward the latter.

As Gov. Kotek declared, “This is a man-made disaster.” And it will take all of us — businesses, elected officials, nonprofits, religious organizations, educational institutions and citizens — to address the systemic structure causing this crisis.

We need a true revolution of values. We must come together to solve the complex social challenges that keep far too many Oregonians from achieving fullness of life.