Mayor Eric Garcetti will take the stage Thursday at the Los Angeles Theatre Center and share a personal story about homelessness.

The performance will be part of a presentation by The Moth, a non-profit organization dedicated to live storytelling, which also produces a weekly podcast and public radio show.

Along with Garcetti sharing his story — the subject of which he did not divulge — 10 people will be randomly selected from the audience to share a five-minute personal story on the theme of “home.”

“Homelessness is best understood through the stories told by those around us,” Garcetti said. “Those experiencing homelessness are not statistics — they’re people with lives, each with their own hopes and dreams. And we’re determined to fight for every Angeleno, no matter where they live in our city. Everyone has a story to tell.

That’s why I asked `The Moth’ to host this special show — because sharing our experiences is how we can humanize this crisis and build more momentum in the work of ending homelessness in Los Angeles,” the mayor said.

During his State of the City speech on April 20, Garcetti said, “There is no issue I spend more time on because I believe homelessness is the moral issue of our time. I’m outraged when there are Angelenos who can’t escape the cold rain, and horrified when someone who has worn our nation’s uniform is begging for change on the corner.”

Garcetti’s proposed budget for 2017-18 includes a plan to increase spending on homeless initiatives to $176 million from last year’s $138 million, and a call for the City Council to pass his proposed linkage fee that he said could raise $100 million a year and leverage up to $300 million every year for affordable housing.

— City News Service 

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