Beyond Hope 2025

What does it mean to be a person without ID? Without a legal identity, it can become nearly impossible to access essential services including food banks, healthcare, housing and social programs. The stress of navigating a complex government (or multiple government) systems to get the proper ID, in the proper order, in the proper place, can be overwhelming at best and devastating at worst. For any individual, and especially those facing compounding barriers, the lack of identification can be a painful and dehumanizing maze.   On top of daily needs, the lack of ID can block access to some legal rights and protections, including voting, registration for services, and resolving legal issues. For those whose identification does not match their name or gender the above problems can be compounded.