Here's how a New Haven family opened up its backyard to welcome the homeless

黑料吃瓜网 Radio | By Ryan Caron King

Published March 21, 2025 at 12:33 PM EDT

A鈥檔iyah Thompson gets a haircut with a razorblade from Jacob Cotto before catching a quick nap before his next shift at Amazon 鈥� right after coming off his last one. Both men live at the Rosette Neighborhood Village, a collective of tents and tiny homes in the back of the Amistad Catholic Worker House in New Haven, Conn.

In 2022 a family in a neighborhood in New Haven opened their backyard to people experiencing homelessness, creating an unexpected community.

A new documentary called "Where Then Shall We Go" captures their journey as they work together to create an alternative to the overburdened shelter system. Advocates have run into regulatory issues 鈥� including city officials who have concerns over building and fire safety.

黑料吃瓜网's Ryan Caron King has been documenting this story for over two years. He talked about it with 黑料吃瓜网 Radio.

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Watch the documentary here.

Ryan Caron King

Ryan Caron King joined 黑料吃瓜网 in 2015 as a reporter and video journalist. He was also one of eight reporters on the New England News Collaborative鈥檚 launch team, covering regional issues such as immigration, the environment, transportation, and the opioid epidemic.

See stories by Ryan Caron King

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SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de 黑料吃瓜网, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programaci贸n que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para m谩s reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscr铆base a nuestro bolet铆n informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

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