Homeless in the Shadows of the Jungle

The Jungle is a 20-acre plot of land heavily covered in trees and bushes in Olympia, Washington situated between two wetlands. The summer is hot and wet, the fall is cold and wet, the winter is brutal and wet, and the spring season is just plain wet.

It is also where approximately 45 unhoused persons live in varying types of structures ranging from tarp-covered tents to cobbled-together wood and sheet metal structures.

While some of the Jungle’s citizens struggle with substance abuse or mental health issues, there is a very strong sense of independence. Many have told Simpson that they don’t want to live in “your” society; that they feel unwanted and unwelcome; and that they like being right where they are. As cities and counties begin to criminalize homelessness, some of the unhoused look for places that are out-of-the-way such as here.

“I would rather be in the shadows here than out there in the light,” one homeless man told Simpson.

The site is a culture unto itself. It has its own language, its own way of doing things, its own rules — to say nothing of the fierce sense of independence that many inhabitants share. There also is a sense of cooperation, a sharing of information or resources is common.

These photographs were taken between December  2023 and March 2024 in which Simpson talked with many of those living there and made these images to provide a look into – and perhaps an understanding of — their society.

John Simpson

John Simpson is a retired history instructor at Pierce College in Lakewood, Washington. From 1992 to 2022, he worked part-time as a photojournalist and journalist for the Ranger Newspaper, a publication that covers Joint Base Lewis-McChord located near Tacoma, WA. Between 2005 and 2012, he embedded with combat forces from bases in both Iraq and Afghanistan. Since 2023, he has documented the growing issue of homelessness in the world’s wealthiest country while focusing his efforts on the homeless living in Olympia, Washington.