cover image Tell Them Who I Am

Tell Them Who I Am

Elliot Liebow. Free Press, $27.95 (339pp) ISBN 978-0-02-919095-1

Liebow ( Talley's Corner ) here succeeds in demolishing the anonymity of the homeless. Skillfully blending a social scientist's objectivity with humanitarian concern, he observes women who live in a variety of shelters near Washington, D.C.--how they interact with one another, family and shelter staff; pass their days; and struggle to retain their dignity in the face of rejection by society. Liebow maintains that homelessness is a Catch-22, with few ways out; that homeless women are remarkably supportive of one another; that shelter workers are often dedicated, but also scared and autocratic in spite of their best intentions; that the men in these women's lives seldom offer help; and that homeless mothers are propelled by ties, however flimsy, to their children. Liebow's probing and morally honest report reveals hard truths about the humanity and inhumanity of us all. (May)