The Night Crew Podcast
Ep. 17 | Unhoused vs Homeless: Stories From The Night Shift
Dec 01, 2025
Season 2
Episode 17
The Night Crew
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Every night in Kern County, every day across California, and all over the United States, people throw around the word “homeless” like it explains everything....But it doesn’t.
There’s a difference the public doesn’t see or doesn’t want to see.
One group is experiencing "homelessness"
Families, veterans, seniors, people who lost their job, got priced out, or had life hit them hard. They’re trying to get back up.
The other group is living "unhoused"
People battling addiction, untreated mental illness, trauma, and street survival. People who’ve been outside so long they’ve adapted to it. People who don’t trust the system, don’t want help, or can’t accept it.
And yet… America calls them all the same thing.
One label. One problem. One solution.
it’s NOT one problem, and it’s NOT one solution.
In this episode, I’m breaking down the difference between homeless and unhoused, not from a politician, not from a news station, not from a sanitized government report…
but from what I see in the field, at night, as private security watching the real version of California that most people avoid.
You’re going to hear:
🔥 The truth behind the words “homeless” vs. “unhoused”
🔥 How California became the epicenter of the U.S. homelessness crisis
🔥 Why drugs, fentanyl, and mental illness are reshaping Cali streets
🔥 Why private security ends up handling what the system can’t
🔥 And why lumping everyone together keeps the entire U.S. stuck in the same cycle and how nonprofits continue to benefit from the system.
I’m not here to judge....
but I am here to tell you what this looks like when you’re face-to-face with the reality most people only talk about on Facebook.Every night in Kern County, every day across California, and all over the United States, people throw around the word “homeless” like it explains everything.
But it doesn’t.....
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If you or someone you know is experiencing homelessness in Kern County, visit https://bkrhc.org/find-help/ for shelters, outreach, mental-health services, and 24/7 assistance. You can also dial 2-1-1 for immediate resources.