VOICES: Opening Doors | Meet Ashia “We need a place to live and raise our kids.”

Ashia Wilson is proud of the safe and welcoming home she has built for herself and her son in Lansing, Michigan. Because years ago, after returning from jail, she endured many obstacles to rebuilding her life-including navigating probation, securing employment, and facing housing discrimination-all while coping with the loss of her mother. She went from staying on couches and living in shelters to eventually, after much work, finding a landlord willing to give her a chance. Since then, she and her son have found peace and security in their own home. Here, she speaks candidly about the systemic barriers she and others in similar situations face and advocates for change and compassion. Today, Ashia works as the manager of authentic engagement at the Michigan Coalition Against Homelessness, where her work focuses on elevating the voices of people with lived experience and ensuring they play an active role in shaping housing policy. “We don’t want any handouts," she says. "We need a place to live and raise our kids.”
Vera works to end the overcriminalization and mass incarceration of people of color, immigrants, and people experiencing poverty. Vera Voices centers the lives of those most impacted by these injustices. By sharing the stories of system-impacted people, we aim to move past the labels that strip them of their humanity and dispel negative stereotypes forced upon them.
For more information about Vera’s Opening Doors to Housing initiative and how you can help remove barriers to housing for people with conviction histories, visit Vera.org.
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