February 10, 2021

The RVA Eviction Lab and VCU School of Social Work will host a virtual event Feb. 18 at which three teams of young people from Richmond-area community organizations will present the findings of research they have conducted over the past year into eviction and housing instability in Richmond.

The teams were formed through a partnership between the School of Social Work and the RVA Eviction Lab, part of the L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs at Virginia Commonwealth University, and with three community organizations: Advocates for Richmond Youth, Six Points Innovation Center and Virginia Community Voice.

The teams will present their research on the impact of eviction on mental health, the relationship between eviction and gun violence, and the impact of eviction on LGBTQIA+ Black and brown youth. The virtual event will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. via Zoom. It is free and open to the public, but registration is required at www.tinyurl.com/yeerforum.

“Research is a tool for change that all communities should have access to,” said Alex Wagaman, Ph.D., associate professor in the School of Social Work and an organizer of the event. “We are excited for stakeholders to hear what the youth-led research teams found through their work and to see it influence community change.”

Destini Barnette, who is part of the Advocates for Richmond Youth research team, said the research will help change the narrative around eviction in Richmond.

“We have to change the narrative in order to change the outcome,” Barnette said.