Waatea News: Caroline Herewini gives powerful voice to hidden crisis of women’s homelessness

This morning on Waatea News, Caroline Herewini, Kaiwhakahaere at Te Whare Tiaki Wāhine Refuge and Steering Committee member of the Coalition to End Women’s Homelessness (CEWH), joined Dale Husband to speak about the rising crisis of women’s homelessness in Aotearoa.

Caroline highlighted findings from CEWH’s report Ngā Ara ki te Kāinga, which reveals that around one third of wāhine experiencing homelessness identify as Māori. The statistics speak to deeply embedded structural inequities. But as Caroline made clear, beyond the data lies the lived reality of violence, vulnerability and invisibility.

She shared the story of a wāhine Māori in Porirua who was rough sleeping in front of a shop. The woman she described was physically handled and berated by local shop keepers. 

Caroline’s team responded swiftly, bringing the woman into their building and contacting her whānau. 

But the trauma of what she endured remains.

“There’s a whole lot of them [homeless people] on the street but the difference is gender,” Caroline said. 

Caroline said that no homeless man in Porirua that she and her team have seen has gone through something similar.

“You do not see people going up to them [rough sleeping men], giving them a hard time, shaking them or putting their hands on them, lifting up their blankets, having a look at what’s around them… berating them in public. You don’t see that!”

This is the gendered reality of rough sleeping. It’s also why many women avoid visible homelessness altogether, instead potentially enduring dangerous living situations or precarious housing to avoid exposure.

The invisible crisis

“Our wāhine are the most unhoused, unseen, invisible part of our community. Why is that?” Caroline asked. 

For older women, the risk of homelessness is rising. Caroline pointed to the growing numbers of wāhine entering crisis after experiencing elder abuse, the breakdown of long-term relationships, or the loss of a partner through death or divorce. The compounding pressure of rising rents, food prices and stagnant wages leaves many without the ability to recover.

And when they reach the door of a refuge, the need far exceeds the capacity.

“We can only have up to 12 women in our whare. Do you know for us as tangata whenua that can be one whānau? If we have no supply or staff what do you think happens? We move with an immediate response. We would never leave anybody out there without connecting them to something, to a lifeline,” Caroline said. 

Caroline explained that some women come to the refuge for an hour. Some stay for two days, others for two months or more. The journeys are different, but the reasons are shared.

“They are in our whare because they are not safe in their whare, in their community,” said Caroline. 

Are you safe in your whare?

Dale Husband referenced a powerful campaign he had seen which posed the question “Are you safe in your whare?”, reflecting on how many people fail to see the realities that wāhine face.

Caroline posed a stark challenge:

“For women to go on the street, then all the flags should be up. Have a think about it… for a woman to be on the street -  that is huge.”

Dale responded: “That is huge.”

As the kōrero closed, Dale thanked Caroline for “opening our eyes and ears to the reality of wāhine who are forced to live rough through homelessness or domestic violence and some of the realities they face.”

Caroline Herewini’s voice is one of fierce advocacy, deep insight and compassion. Her kōrero is a call to action: to see the women we often overlook, and to ask hard questions about the safety of our communities, our homes, and our systems.

Ngā mihi nui ki a koe, Dale, me te whānau o Waatea News. Thank you for welcoming Caroline Herewini onto your show and for creating space to share this powerful kōrero. Her insights into women’s homelessness in Porirua and across the motu bring much-needed awareness to a crisis that is too often hidden.