Matt Gannon
Poverty and Inequality Research Lab at Hopkins • Marshall Scholar at Oxford • I research housing insecurity, the social safety net, and social mobility.
matthewtgannon.com
- Reposted by Matt GannonPreliminary USDA data show that SNAP caseloads fell by 500,000+ people between September & October 2025. While the number of people participating in SNAP has generally been falling in 2025, this larger drop likely reflects disruption from the government shutdown (& data errors).
- Reposted by Matt GannonThe Trump administration’s attempts to cut one of the most important funding sources for housing homeless people is making it impossible for service providers to keep families safe and sheltered. NHLP’s Deputy Director Deb Thorpe spoke about why with Roshan Abraham from @shelterforce.bsky.social.
- Reposted by Matt GannonGrateful to have contributed to this story, whose headline—"She's 14 and she's moved 26 times"—says everything about the human toll of America's brutal, disastrously broken housing system.
- Reposted by Matt GannonBREAKING: Federal agents just shot and killed a man in Minneapolis after brutally beating him in front of witnesses. We condemn this killing and demand ICE and CBP agents withdraw from Minneapolis immediately.
- Reposted by Matt GannonAmong US adults, any amount of medical debt increased the risk of experiencing #HousingInstability in the next year by 7 percentage points compared with adults without medical debt. ja.ma/4jDxu4G
- Reposted by Matt GannonStarting in October 2026, Trump’s Big Beautiful Bill will shift billions in SNAP costs from the federal government onto states, some of whom could be forced to deeply cut or even shutter their SNAP programs altogether.
- Reposted by Matt GannonNew in @houspoldebate.bsky.social - CA's affordable housing is not affordable to lowest-income tenants, who comprise most tenants - Units built in higher SES areas have a range of affordability levels, promising for integration goals www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.... #housingsky #socsky
- Reposted by Matt GannonWe condemn ICE's killing of a Minneapolis woman today and call on federal agents to withdraw from Minnesota immediately. This tragedy is further proof that ICE is out of control, endangering our communities, and must end its lawless operations before anyone else is brutally hurt or killed.
- Reposted by Matt GannonNo. No. No. Punitive processes make narrowly targeted programs *less* efficient and *more* costly. Because more scrutiny requires more bureaucracy. Punitive processes also make it *less* likely that people will get aid for which they qualify. Because of the roadblocks and stigma scrutiny creates.
- Reposted by Matt GannonCongratulations to the 19 states raising the minimum wage in 2026. But let’s be clear: a $7.25 federal minimum wage is a national disgrace. No one who works full-time should live in poverty. We must keep fighting to guarantee all workers a living wage — not starvation wages.
- Housing First is a housing-focused intervention, and it works. Critics cherry-pick evidence to highlight where programs fall short in health outcomes. That’s important — and access to/funding for services should be increased — but the fact remains that housing outcomes improve, and that’s a start.
- Reposted by Matt GannonHomesick focuses on the experiences of migrants of color moving to rural New England to take well-paid jobs and the resulting misrecognition from white residents. This book helps us better understand how to unsettle such processes of exclusion in diversifying spaces ow.ly/4htC50Xxhmh
- Reposted by Matt GannonICYMI: I spoke with CBS Sunday Morning about my book, There Is No Place for Us, alongside the families whose desperate efforts to secure housing the book follows—people working nonstop and still being pushed into homelessness.
- Reposted by Matt GannonThis is far worse than anyone expected. Trump's HUD plan would cut *two-thirds* of permanent housing and push as many as 170,000 formerly homeless people back onto the street—redirecting funds to work mandates, forced treatment, and encampment sweeps. All as mass internment camps are being built.
- Reposted by Matt GannonI'm facilitating a causal inference reading group next semester for Sociology PhD students. (I will also be learning!) If there are (1) pedagogical articles or (2) empirical examples in soc that you ❤️, will you share in the comments? [And please RT to help me crowd-source!]
- Reposted by Matt Gannon“Low-income tenants who rely on food stamps to feed their families will be immediately faced with difficult choices..." Round up of strategies and protections under federal law to prevent evictions due to loss of SNAP benefits courtesy of @nhlp.bsky.social www.nhlp.org/wp-content/u... #housing+
- Reposted by Matt GannonUpdate: today, 16.8 million people should have *full* SNAP benefits for November. They don't. Most states don't issue SNAP all at once. Some distribute SNAP up to the 28th day. This masks the scale of the problem: 42 million worrying about hunger in the richest country on earth. 🛟 🥗 🩺📊 #econsky
- Reposted by Matt GannonTimely (grim) new NBER working paper: Households screened out of SNAP "suffer tangible downstream economic consequences. Specifically, we find that process-related denials increase debt and delinquencies, and decrease credit scores." www.nber.org/papers/w34434
- Unconscionable. This policy both disregards the robust evidence base and eschews basic decency. www.nytimes.com/2025/10/29/u...
- I’m presenting a couple papers about how public housing reduces homelessness and how eviction moratoria reduce food insufficiency at @appam.bsky.social in a couple weeks. Looking forward to connecting with folks studying housing and social stratification!
- Reposted by Matt GannonCongrats to Prof @zparolin.bsky.social, recipient of the David N. Kershaw Award & Prize, recognising significant contributions to #PublicPolicy & analysis before 40! www.spi.ox.ac.uk/article/prof... @inetoxford.bsky.social @nuffieldcollege.bsky.social @appam.bsky.social @mathematicanow.bsky.social
- Reposted by Matt GannonHUD today fired two civil rights lawyers who spoke publicly about their whistleblower complaint over the Trump admin's cuts to the office that enforces fair housing laws.
- Reposted by Matt GannonNew WP: We study how minimum wage increases affect poverty and food hardship in the U.S from 1981-2019. Different from recent work, we study the Supplemental Poverty Measure + two measures of food hardship, factor in cost-of-living differences, and more. www.iza.org/publications...
- After cutting SNAP by the largest margin in history — despicable.
- Reposted by Matt GannonEach year, the Housing Choice Voucher Program enables more than 2 million low-income families to rent housing. Our new research with RAND Corporation, supported by the Cooper Housing Institute, shows how the program can be strengthened so even more families find safe homes. ow.ly/2mqM50WWaPT
- Reposted by Matt Gannon📍 ZIP codes matter. Raj Chetty, Eric Chyn, Stefanie DeLuca, John Friedman, Nathan Hendren, Larry Katz, and Bruce Sacerdote respond to claims that neighborhoods don’t shape children’s outcomes. The evidence says otherwise.
- Reposted by Matt GannonThe mistake wasn’t building public housing. The mistake was abandoning it. UCLA researcher Richard Kirk lays out a path for revival. 👉 bit.ly/4lx12Af #HousingJustice #HousingEquity #InclusiveDesign
- Reposted by Matt GannonAn MIT literature professor discovered that his students were quietly meeting outside class to write verse. Joshua Bennett on what this means for the future of AI and why poetry matters in a world ruled by tech:
- Reposted by Matt GannonUPDATE: Unlawful arrests and forced displacement of homeless D.C. residents expected to begin this morning at 10 AM with federal and local police throwing away tents at 62 encampments; arrests are expected to begin at nightfall to avoid media attention.https://buff.ly/gRAsxWS
- Reposted by Matt Gannon🚨🗞️ JOURNALISTS: As the criminalization of homelessness runs rampant in DC & across the country, it's more important than ever to rely on data to get the story right. Here are some useful resources that can help you to fight through misinformation 🧵
- Reposted by Matt GannonPeople are not criminals or dangerous, by virtue of their unhoused status. People are struggling to afford rent and food in an expensive city. We should not have homelessness in our nation’s capital. But the path to ending homelessness is housing, not displacement.
- Thrilled to bring these two papers to #ASA2025! Learning so much from so many amazing researchers. Please feel free to reach out to talk about housing and social stratification!
- Reposted by Matt GannonPresident Trump’s order criminalizing homelessness is cruel and doesn’t solve the housing crisis. People need housing, not fines and court orders.
- Reposted by Matt GannonWe can’t arrest our way out of homelessness.
- Cruel, ineffective, and harmful. www.npr.org/2025/07/24/n...
- Reposted by Matt GannonToday, @oppinsights.bsky.social released new research illuminating differences in credit access across the U.S. by race, class, and where you grow up. 🔗 shorturl.at/PxYvH
- Reposted by Matt GannonInterested in using intermediate outcomes to better understand causal mechanisms and predict long-term impacts of interventions? Join Prof. Chetty and Prof. Kosuke Imai at the NBER Methods lectures: 📅 Thursday, 7/24, 3 pm 📍 Cambridge, MA for NBER SI attendees, or virtually ⬇️
- Reposted by Matt GannonThe Senate just passed a devastating reconciliation bill that will harm tenants who are already struggling to pay rent by taking away their access to food and health care.
- Reposted by Matt Gannon“Despite an abundance of new apartments, high rents have left more people than ever cost burdened, and have contributed to a sharp rise in homelessness.” Read the latest report on the State of the Nation’s Housing: www.jchs.harvard.edu...
- Reposted by Matt GannonNew working paper alert! Posted at @equitablegrowth.bsky.social, it investigates the economic geography of social transfer programs and financial income--with implications for the Medicaid and SNAP cuts proposed in the reconciliation bill 👀 equitablegrowth.org/working-pape...
- Reposted by Matt GannonDid you know that more than 1 in 4 adults reported food insecurity in 2024? As Congress considers cuts to the federal #safetynet, an Urban analysis highlights the challenges US households face in meeting basic needs & the potential impact of #SNAP & other federal food program cuts. urbn.is/3DrmZ3Y
- Reposted by Matt GannonAgree--"There is No Place for Us" by @brian-goldstone.bsky.social is a must read. If you want to understand homelessness, the way the economy & our housing policies conspire to leave large swaths of the population destitute and unstably housed--read it. It is gripping and important!
- Reposted by Matt Gannon🚨 NEW: A groundbreaking database from the Eviction Lab, the Housing Initiative at Penn, and the Urban Displacement Project reveals how $46B in emergency rental aid was distributed by states, counties and cities. evictionlab.org/pandemic-ren...
- Reposted by Matt GannonPUBLICATION DAY! Pick up a copy of Doubled Up to learn more about how families use doubling up as a private safety net and how these arrangements reshape family life.
- Reposted by Matt GannonNew Study 🔔: More than 7M Americans face eviction each year. But if they go to court, most do it alone, without a lawyer. Our researchers studied the initiatives that are trying to change this reality, known as Right to Counsel programs or RTC. evictionlab.org/disrupting-t...
- So excited for this event!
- Baltimore friends! I’ll be discussing There Is No Place for Us this Monday (3/31) at the Enoch Pratt Free Library, and I’m thrilled to be in conversation with the extraordinary journalist and storyteller Vann Newkirk. The event is free. Register here: calendar.prattlibrary.org/event/brian-...
- Working on a paper about eviction moratoria and food insufficiency — would love to join an eviction/housing policy panel proposal for APPAM (@appam.bsky.social) if anyone has leads!
- I’m looking for volunteer work with legal aid orgs related to eviction counsel, tenant representation, or access to benefits in Baltimore or DC — let me know if you have recs!
- Looking forward to presenting a poster at @appam.bsky.social! Would love to connect with folks studying housing insecurity (eviction, homelessness, HCV program, source of income protection, ERA, etc.). Excited for some incredible talks!
