Hidden Homeless: No one is tracking the next generation born into homelessness in Arizona

A gut-wrenching 911 call back in November 2022 made it clear that the 12News I-Team needed to start digging into the newest generation being born into homelessness. On that November night, emergency crews called to “The Zone” Phoenix’s largest homeless encampment after someone reported a child in the middle of the street near 11th Avenue and Madison. Police later learned it was the remains of a 20-24 week old fetus left by a fire, next to a dumpster in the heart of the encampment. Police believed this case was a miscarriage and prompted questions on whether there are enough resources for pregnant women experiencing homelessness. Despite a growing homeless population in the Phoenix metro area and the city’s largest homeless encampment being just a few blocks east of the state Capitol, Arizona doesn’t track homeless pregnancies like some other states do. We take a deep dive into the struggles of motherhood and homelessness on the streets of Phoenix in the Cost of Crisis documentary, Hidden Homeless