1 10 12 https://streetvibesarchive.net/files/original/bf7a26f633262f050c13593529a23908.pdf 093dcd7d75849e538c12eb3a5b2eece8 PDF Text Text April 2004 ~----------~~~~~~ . VI Protesting the Iraq War - Around the Globe, Millions Gather on One-Year Anniversary Hundreds of thousands of people worldwide rallied March 20 against the war in Iraq. Hundreds gathered in downtown Cincinnati on the one-year anniversary of the American-led invasion. There were over 300 events in the U.S and protests in more than 60 countries, In more than 600 cities and towns around the world, people took to the streets to say yes to peace andno to pre­ emptive war and occupation, calling for an end to the occupation oflraq and President Bush's foreign policies. Hundreds of thousands of activists al.so raised their voices at rallies in London, Cairo, Tokyo and other cities in Europe,Asia and e lsewhere. in the United States, Chicago police in full riot gear lined downtown streets as thous ands of war opponents marched about two miles to the city's Federal Plaza. The Rev. Jesse Jackson told Chicago demonstrators to express their opposition to the war by voting against President Bush In Europe, one of the biggest protests was in Rome, where up to 300,000 marchers jammed the streets. Protesters demanded that Italy withdraw its 2,600 troops from Iraq. And in London, two protesters climbed the Big Ben clock tower. Early Saturday morning, the two anti-war demonstrators weari}\g climbing notable protests included a 100,000 person march and rally in New York City. The event was peacefu~ unlike a demonstration one year earlier that drew 100,000 people and produced several clashes between demonstrators and police. An event in held in San Francisco was attended by more than 50,000 people. In Crawford, Texas, where President George Bush owns a ranch and often vacations, 1000 protesters converged to repudiate his militaristic policies and call for a diversion of the billions of dollars that are being spent on war to domestic programs like schools, health clinics, housing and homelessness. Military families and veterans led a protest that drew 1500 to Fayetteville, North Carolina, outside the Fort Bragg military base. gear scaled the Big Ben clock tower at the Houses of Parliament and held up a small bannerthat read "Time for Truth" before coming down several hours later. (The Big Ben stunt sparked concerns about ,,.,.-7,. security around the cap ital's landmarks, which is supposed to be at a high level to guard against a possib le terrorist attack) London's Metropolitan Police estimated that some 25,000 people took part in the rally between Hyde Park and Trafalgar Square in the center of the British capital. In Cincimati, hundreds ofprotestors story andphotos by Jimmy Heath met downtown at Cincinnati's Fountain Square to join the March and Rally Against 'VVar and Occupation. The message cb.lring the event in downtown Cincinnat i was that even though rally organizers support US troops, they do not support US policies that sentAmerican troops into Iraq. The war in Iraq has claimed the lives of two tri­ state residents - over 500 American soldiers have died since the invasion, and I 0,000 Iraqis have been killed in the conflict. Banners listing the names of individual soldiers who have died in Iraq were disp layed on Fountain Square. The rally program included a series of speakers, a memorial to those who have died in Iraq, and a short march followed by another gathering on FoW1tain Square. Rally participants marched around the block to the Federal Building and then back to Fountain ,,, i- . ' :::.. Square while pounding on drums and chanting anti-war slogans. Although police estimated the crowds ize at 250, organizers say the numbers were much closer to 800. Over three do:z.en groups were represented at the rally. The collaborative effort was intended to give strength to individual organizations participating in the event. " Each person at the rally represents someone else who could not be here," says Sister Alice Gerdeman CDP, of the Intercommunity Peace andJustice Center and coordinator of the event. "I was pleased with the spirit of the participants, and with the energy generated by this event. The real measure of success will be when people take this energy and are able to change policy," said Gerdeman. (For more information call the Intercommunity Peace and Justice Center at (513) 579-8547 �STREETVIBES The Tri-State's Homeless Grapevine Streetvibes, the Tri-State's alternative news source, is a newspaper written by, for, and about the homeless and contains relevant discussions of social justice, and poverty issues. It is published once a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Becoming a Streetvibes Vendor is a great way for home­ less and other low-income people to get back on (or stay on) their feet. Streetvibes Vendors are given an orientation and sign a code of conduct before being given a Streetvihes Vendor badge. All profits go directly to the vendor. The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a group of shelters, agencies and individuals committed to ending homelessness in Cincinnati through coordinating services, educating the public and grassroots organizing. GCCHStaff Georgine Getty - Executive Director Brendan Goodwin - Administra­ tive Coordinator Andy Erickson - Education Coordinator Elizabeth Linville - Civil Rights Coordinator Janice Faulkner - Receptionist Mar y Gaffney- Receptionist Streetvibes Jimmy Heath, Editor Photoi:raphers Mary Burke, Anthony Dent, Jimmy Heath, Be1ta Lambert Cover Iraq War protesters march in Cincinnati, March 20, 2004 - photo by Jimmy Heath Streetvibes accepts letters, poems, stories, essays, original graphics, and photos. We will give preference to those who are homeless or ven­ dors. Subscriptions to Streetvibes, de­ 1ivered to your home each month ' can be purchased for $25 per year. Address mail to: Streetvibes Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH) 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 (513) 421-7803 e-mail: streetvibes@juno.com web: http://bomeless.cinci.com STREETVIBES Reader Mail My daughter and I go to Findlay Market almost every Saturday. We have met two very nice vendors there that we talk to every week. One is Julie and she tells us about her new grandchild and we give each other a hug. She always has a smile for everyone. The other vendor is Robert Manassa. He is always very nfoe and tells us when he has a new poem in the Streetvibes. We have quite a collection on our refrigerator. He always has an uplifting message. When we don't see them we look for them. We feel like they are our friends. Inge & Sandy Seybold Greetings, Over the last 25 years of my adult life, I have been homeless about 10 years. Sometimes it was by choice, but quite often by necessity, so I have a pretty good feel about the issues involved. Whether it be poverty, drug abuse, alcoholism, fear of the authorities, or any other reason, homelessness has become a cancer in our society. As a spiritual man, my life revolves around helping others better themselves, and any contribution to your newspaper may help achieve that for some people. Please add my name to your mailing list, and if possible, I would like to submit some articles for your consideration. Unfortunately, I am not able at this time to send either money or stamps to help defray your costs. Hopefully, my future submissions will help counter that problem. Gary Hallford California State Prison Vacaville, California Mr. Hallford will be placed on our mailing list. Unfortunately, we don 't have the resources to fill all subscriptwn requests from Prisoners. Ifyou would like to sponsor a prisoner for Streetvibes, subscriptwns are $25 per year. If you like, you can designate a prisoner or we willpick one for you - editor. Dear Streetvibes Community: After more than 1 Y2 years paper and continue to educate as the Administrative Coordinator others about the pressing problem at the Greater Cincinnati Coalition of homelessness in Cincinnati. To for the Homeless, r have decided to the vendors- you are the heart of move on. I' ve decided I wanted to this program and I have enjoyed getting to know each of you. You try life in a new city and was offered a great job in Boston always liven up the office and provide great insight into the coordinating a fair trade program for an organization that works in El development of this program. Best Salvador. So as I begin to wrap up of luck to all of you and thanks for your dedication to my business here and pack up my the Homeless apartment, I keep Coalition. finding myself To the reflecting on my time donors, funders, here at the Homeless members, Coalition. As the supporters and all Administrative the homeless Coordinator, I was advocates of always the guy in the Cincinnati: Yours back of the office is not an easy job in sitti ng in front of the this city. I am so computer all day - I proud of the Brendan Goodwin would tell people diversity in our membership and that I had the boiing job at the Coalition, but I really supporters-it truly represents a have loved every minute of it. I am strong grassroots effort of endinae continuously amazed at what this homelessness and is unique to this small organization has been able to city and this country. Thank you, accomplish throughout its history, thank you, thank you for your but especially in the past year. donations, volunteer work and There are so many people to say support of the work of the goodbye to and to thank that I Homeless Coaljtion. In a city that think I have to break it into groups. continues to crimjnalize and shun To the Streetvibes those experiencing homelessness, Community: Thank you for your your efforts and your voice are support of this newspaper- I hope what is making real, systemic that you take the time to learn more change in our community. about the program so that you To Over-the-Rhine: This neighborhood has been my place of understand exactly how you are affecting people's lives through work as welJ as my home for three your support. Additionally, I hope years now. Thank you for welcoming me into your you take what you read in this April, 2004 Streetvibes Vendor Comment Cards She [Streetvibes vendor] was very well groomed and spoke up so everyone could hear her. Keep up the good work. God has people out here who will hear our cry l I always buy Streetvibes 'cause it wouldn't take much to be homeless. AH it takes is to miss the rent. I always give money to street persons. Streetvibes is a great tool for those who need money for food, etc. All the vendors I have met were polite and never pushy. ~ Write Us! We 'd like to hear from you.... Send letters or ·} f, comments to: \ ~, Streetvibes@Juno.coni, ,,. or write the Coalition office attn: Streetvibes Letters 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 ' , commLtnity full of history, struggle and activism. I am proud to have been a resident of th is neighborhood that never gets the respect it has earned. You, my neighbors, have taught me so much about life-its struggles and its rewards and I will continue to look for neighborhoods as diverse and rich to call my home. To the staff of GCCH: Thank you for the support, the laughs, the crazy made-up games that we played to relieve stress and for your un-ending dedication and compassion. I will miss coming into the office on a Sunday afternoon to finish up some work and finding half of the staff is there as well. I have never worked with a more talented, fun (and funny) staff before. Thank you for your friendship and I look forward to continuing to support your work here at the Homeless Coalition. l just realized that the only other time I have contributed to Streetvibes in the form of an article, was my introduction Jetter when 1 first started. You have seen me behind all of those fundraisinae ads each month asking for you to attend an event, or buy our book, or donate money, so this is a little different. BUT .. . in the true spirit of my job at the Homeless Coalition, I have to do it one more time .. . please go to page l1 of your Streetvibes and show your suppo1t through a financial donation. Thank you again, everyone. I will miss you all and l wish you the best in your work in the future. Sincerely, Brendan Goodwin Page 2 �Lesson on Vine Street ordinary as to slip easily from memory, others so extraordinary as a bright, bittercold day to stay in mind for a Jong, Jong in C incinnat~ some winters ago. I time. And I have carried the image saw a woman and four children of this woman and these children. almost photographically. for over gather to cross at Fourteenth and Vine. Around them were the traffic two years now. They stay with me. in motion on Vine. the traffic at rest in part, I suppose. because of a on Fourteenth. the vigilant and little riff of drama between the reposed dope boys leaning against woman, who was tipsy. and the oldest of the children, a girl with a the boarded windows of the pool hall the walkers with their canes or proud. wary eye. The woman was white. the their strollers or their bags of children were black, and it seemed groceries. Around them all was a maze of brick and neon, the woman was an interloper in this scene. She looked like someone's signboards, walk lights. glass. vinyl p lywood. chrome. paper. grandmother. but she did not look like theirs . And the oldest girl asphalt, plastic. and. in the path of who may have been twelve. was a passing truck, a p Jume of diesel smoke descending. clearly in charge. She had the smaller children linked. hand to The comer of Fourteenth and Vine in Cincinnati is a busy hand. lined up at the curb like marchers. They were packed. corner. one of the busiest. at the heart of the ghetto that erupted in identically. in bright insulate d coats. Apri l 2001 in response to the hooded. bundled. and immob ilized like fine china packed for shipping. police killing of Timothy Thomas. Thomas, an unarmed Black man They were bright -colored beauties, admirably protected and prepared wante d fo r traffic offenses. die d for the bitte r cold air of Vine just a few short blocks away in an alley off Republic Street. a darker. Street. quieter place where you will see But the woman was bare­ fewer people. But at 'Fourteenth handed. dressed shabby, out of and Vine. at any hour of the day or season and out of fashion in a night, it is not at all uncommon to camel-colored cloth coat with a see women and children and all kerchief knotted at her chin. Twenty years ago. she would not manner of people crossing or waiting to cross. many of them so have looked out of place. for she by Gray Dog On would have looked like many Vme. Some of them are the major. get-in-the-news terrible, but most women among the thousands of are the small usual. almost Appalachian migrants who shared this neighborhood with growing manageable, easily unnoticed sort numbers of African-Americans. of terrible. Two blocks down She reminded me of women I have seen in coal camps. or in country Fourteenth is Washington Park stores, or outside storefront School; two blocks up Vine Street is Saint FrancisSeraph. Qiildren churches on Wednesday nights are on these streets much of the after services. These are knotty. ti me. And it seems to me a terrible strong-minded. sharp-tongued women, hard-scrabble matr iarchs, thing that a childshould witness. the moral and emotional centers of day after day, such physical and struggling displaced families. They moral damage. such a daily are woman of great density. The corner ofFourteenth and Vine in made solid by Cincinnati is <t busy corner, one ofthe grief and wisdom. busiest, at the heart ofthe ghetto th<tt But this erupted in April, 2001 in response to the woman had lost police killing of Timothy Thom<tS.. . that soIidity; she had not that focus. disillusionment in which She was the center. it seemed. of nothing. She teetered unsteadily to matriarchal figures are made either the right, then back to the left, tlien pitiab le or fearsome by addiction, men drift hollowly toward the next again to the right as she leaned fi x. young men waste arrogantly on toward the youngest child. the wide .eyed one, and extended a the comers, the young women shaky hand to take him by the become young mothers become mitten. For a moment. the old prostitutes . woman wobbled. and it seemed she This of course is not the might mislead this wide .eyed one whole story of Vine Street. I have fr iends up the street who are a into the teeth of the traffic . hard-working, church-going family The girl. from her end of the line, watched with a dubious eye. Gray Dog,,,, Many terrible things happen cont on page 7 at the corner of Fourteenth and Because over 8,000 childen in Cincinnati are without a home every year. Homeless Awareness Week May 10 -14, 2004 Schedule of Events Gtealer ] Cincinnati Codition For 1heHomeless Monday, May 10 - Join us for a screening of Dark Days, an award-w inning docume ntary depicting the lives ofh omeless me n and women liv ing in abandoned train twme ls in New York City. A d iscussion by forme rly h omeless Cinc innatians will follow. 7 -9pm at Ka ldi's Co ffee House (12 04 M ain Street, Over-the-Rhine). Tuesday, M ay 11- H omeless Civil Rights D ay. The rights of homeless individuals are being disregarded in m any c ities across .the U.S. Cincinnati h as been ranked the 6th Me anest City for its treatme nt of h ome less in div idu als. Help us spread aware ness t o combat the criminalization o f h omelessness. M eet us at the G CCH o ffices on Tuesday at 11 :30 am (117 East 12th Street). Wednesday, May 12- Book Club. P ick up a copy of The St reet Lawyer by John Grisham and join us for our b ook c lub . We ' ll d iscuss the book and how it re lates t o re al homeless issues right h ere in Cincinnati. 6 :30 - 8:3 ~m. Meeting Room 3A at the Cinc innati Pub lic Library (800 Vme Street). Thursday, M ay 13 - A rmchair Advocate Day. Fight to end homelessne ss without leav ing y our own h om e. Educate yourse lf and others by s urfing the internet and letter writing. Visit ww w.nationa lhom ele.ss.org, www.hom eless.cinc y.com and othe r we bsites to fm d out h ow y ou can become involve d. Write le tters t o the e ditor, coWlCihnembers and state re presentatives stressing the need for a fford able hous ing to e nd homelessness. Friday, Ma y 14 - The Homeless Aware ness Music Extravaganza! Enj oy the S oul Mission Chorale, W inton Woods High Sch ool Choir, Stepp' n Out and Nu-Vue, Jake Speed and other gre at performers. 7 - 9pm at Christ Emmanuel Christian Fellowship (2324 M ay Street in Walnut Hills). All events are free and open to t he public. For m or e information, call the Homeless Coalition - 421-7803 STREETVIBES April, 2004 Page 3 �April, 2001 Did Cincinnati's Civil Unrest Change City Politics? story and photos by Jimmy Heath 19year-old Timothy Thomas was wanted o n misdemeanor arrest warrants and running from police in Over-the-Rhine on S aturday, April 7th, 2001 when he was shot by a C incinnati policeman. Police O fficer Stephen Roach, who had never fired his weapon on duty, shot a nd killed Thomas in a dead-end alley off Republic Street. Thomas appeared to be reachi ng for h is waistband during a confrontation with the policema n in the alley, accordi ng to ea rly police Man on 12th Street with picture ofMal,colm X and Maron Luther King III. reports. Timothy Thomas was the fourth black man killed by Cincinnati said Rev. Damon Lynch IIL pastor of Over-the-Rhi ne's New Prospect police si nce November of 2000, and the fifteenth such victim since Baptist Church, referri ng to the latest shooting death. Hamilton County Prosecutor Mike Allen, who denounced 1995. Tho mas was the father of a three-month-old son. participants as "law-b reaking thugs who should be prosecuted This month is the third anniversaiy of the shooting of Thomas. His death fueled nearly a week of civil unrest and rioting in uiban vigorously," an nounced he was indicting 63 people arrested o n felony C incinnati. charges, ranging from aggravated rioting, breaking and entering, Violence erupted on Monday, April 9th. 2001 following a police weapons possession, inducing panic and other misdemeanor offenses, news conference about the Thomas shooting. Angry residents crowded such as resisting arrest and disorderly conduct. Cincinnati City Hall targeting their rage All of these events led the evening news programs - the against the Mayor, C ity Council men:bers, and violence. the fear, the images of rampaging "thugs" and buming police representatives. The protesters filled the dumpsters. The media continued to descend on the scene to reco rd the counci l chambers, some standing on tables and mayhem throughout the week - eventually the whole world knew what was going on in Cinci nnati. chairs screaming at city leaders, almost preventing them from leaving during the th ree­ Local and nationally recognized civil rights activists came to hour confrontation. Over-the-Rhine calling for peaceful discussions and an end to violence Thomas's mother, Angela Leisure, took on the streets. It made for good TV and painful politics. The death of Thomas was the shot heard around the w orld, with Cincinnati suddenly the podium at one point and demanded an explanation for the shooting of her son. "You thrown into the international spotlight. His death was a rallying point 'Timothy Thomas took h im from his family and his so n and we for national discussio ns o n police violence, poverty and racism. want to know why. And don't get me w rong, even when you tell me why, it's not going to make it better." The lack of answers fueled additional anger and frust ration in the assembled crowd and the waiting comm.mity. That evening, (Monday night) after a makesh ift march from City Hall hundreds of angry protesters assembled outside police headquarters in downtown C incinnati. Police in riot gear and on horseback sprayed the crowd with a chemical irritant and fired at the protesters with beanbag shotguns. A brick was thrown, breaking the glass front door of police headquarters. Ten arrests were reported. The rioti ng became more serious Tuesday afternoo n and evening as crowds took to the streets agai n. Clothing shops, restau rants and convenience stores were bro ken into and looted. The fire department stayed busy putting out building and garbage can fires. Most of the unrest was focused on the downtown, West E nd and Over-the-Rhine neighbomoods - some of the poorest communities in the city. C incinnati NAACP President Norma Holt Davis said the fatal shooting of Thomas by a Cincinnati police officer lead her to only one co nclusio n. "It appears the police force has declared war on African-Americans," she said. " Fifteen black males have died at the hands of C incinnati police in the past six years. Before the Protestor confronts Cincinnati policeman on Central, Parkway, Over-the-Rhine. healing p rocess can ever finish, the w ound reopens," STREETVIBES April, 2004 Civil Unrest Page 4 �When protesters first took to the streets, the events in Cincinnati were put in the context of a "race riot." However, when the discussions turned to racism, the frustration of the oppressed and the poor, the g leam of the story started to wear thin. A lot of people on the streets saw themselves as fighting the oppressor white society which is not quite the same as fighting against white people. Is it possible that Timothy Thomas would have never been shot in the first p lace if he had been white? Nearly 800 people were eventually arrested for violating the four-day curfew imposed by Mayor Charlie Luken when he declared a state of emergency on Wednesday, April 12. Over 1,000 people attended the funeral on Saturday, April 14 for Timothy Thomas at New Prospect Baptist Church in Over-the­ Rhine. More than a funeral, it was a media and political show-and-tell event. The Mayor was there and so was the Governor of Ohio, along with other political bigwigs and throng,s of reporters. Following the service, mourners joined with hundreds outside the church and marched peacefully through the Over-the-Rhine neighborhood where Thomas was shot. Some 1,000 people of all races participated in the march. Conspicuous ly absent from the march were the politicians. Politically, nothing much has changed. The poor neighborhoods, predominately African-American communities, still feel the frustration of being black in a white dominated City Hall and police force. Some inner-city residents are just as frightened of the police as they are of the drug thugs and street-comer-gangsters Many of the thugs and looters, who were "vigorous ly" prosecuted three years ago have long-since been released from j ail after serving out their sentences, only to return to the street filled with prison-anger and resentment. Many businesses in Over-the-Rhine, even after three years, continue to struggle with the stigma of the event with many fearful Ms. Fa1111y SWvall, from her apartment at 15th md Republi.c St.reel, money-spending white suburbanites staying away from the downtown Over-tlie-Rlut1e. Her raisedftsl, she later I.old me, wru- 11ot a11 act of area in droves. def11111ce, bllt ofresolve a11d delerminaikm. People frequently ask me if things in Over-the-Rhine have returned to normal. Sadly, things have slowly returned to the same as how tenuous the relations are between the police and the African­ American community. And it reveals dissatisfaction in the areas of before- if "normal" is a war zone, a crime zone, and a drug-filled education, jobs and economic opportunity, housing and community zone. The most obvious thing is the slow and agonizing lack of leadership. Wtlh this crisis has come the opportunity for improvement. progress in community and police re lations. Although the police have Cincinnati must make rea l changes in each of U1ese areas if the city is adopted less lethal methods for subduing suspects (they are now armed to grow beyond the turmoil of that fateful week three years ago. with the recently approved Taser stun guns), the sense of isolation and Many Americans, particularly white Americans, are quick to lack of communication dominates the relationship betwe.en the police deny race as the primary motive in almost any negative act against a and the community, even to this day. person of color (unless the person committing the act is wearing a The police division's leadership has been criticized as white sheet). Police brutality cases are just a symptom of the illness. Cincinnati city government continues to struggle with the ' distasteful' unresponsive and uncaring. It is simplistic to dismiss the deaths of black people at the hands of police as unfortunate and unavoidable symptoms of poverty and racism, confronting the issue.with window dressing, sound bites and half-hearted attempts at reconciliation. In aspects of police work. The police must come to understand the frustrations and fears that these incidents engender in the communities Cincinnati government, denial may be the most serious affliction. • it patrols. Even more significant from the perspective of black Cincinnatians is that no city police officer has ever been convicted of a killing. (There has been only one reprimand.) Sadly, all that makes the.news is the drama of life on the streets in the inner-city. We don't often hear the stories of the families and the senior citizens and the majority of residents in Over-the-Rhine and other poor Cincinnati neighborhoods that are law-abiding and working hard to support their families - trying to build something for themselves and their neighbors. V./e only hear the horror stories of shootings, robbery and drug dealing. The drama that feeds the evening news is taken as truth by middle-class Cincinnati. Even in the face of overwhelming historical precedent, American denial about the role that race or racism plays in these, and similar events, remains strong. Despite repealed warnings from civll rights leaders and black police officers in Cincinnati, the police department's official response was that the shootings must be considered individually rather than as a pattern. Tragic as the death of Mr. Thomas was, the rioting that swept the city was about more than the loss of one young man. It was about the deep rifts that Oiildren <»1 Vine Street, last s11111.rner. separate citizens and city government. It shows just .. - STREETVIBES April, 2004 Civil Unrest Page 5 �A similar path of ignorance invo lves Jewish by Dr. Steve Sunderl<uzd education about the uniqueness of being a Jew and the similarities, Teaching and Leaming in a roots, a nd connections to Minefield Christian history. Jewish The reactions to the education of Christianity and movie, 'The Pass ion of the Christian education of Jewish Christ," have been and cont inue religious complexities is almCIS't to be remarkable, a nd not only in non-existent. How many the press and our letters. Many educators are realizing that a large Christians u nderstand why so me Jews cont inue to have faith in and impa-tant part of Western education has bee n poorly done, if religious values? Being a Jew is a complex hu man act ivity that can done at all. Just recently, many te defined a nd d iscussed if there educators acknow ledged that we is an interest and if there can be a knew almost noth ing about Islam form of respect and welcoming. and that it was time to begi n to How many Christia ns have place ourselves into curricula into Jewish synagogues ventured studies and experiences in to learn about the roots of their mosques, along w ith talking to !mans a nd others interested in teaching about this great religion and its many interpretations around the US and the world. This educational e ffort has teen thr illing for many of us w ho have teen conscious of the impact of ignorance king transformed into e ducation about religions in the daily life of learners and Dr. Steve Sunderland wors hipers in our faith in Judaism and/or just to midst. ience the critical and exper What many of us have not realized, unti l this movie revealed defining holidays of Jew ish people? How many Jews have it so sharply and painfu lly, is that feel "invited" in observing in a there are also e xplosive reactions non-religious way the Easter to being a Jew and teing a experience? The absence of Christian based o n ignorance. As educators, many of us have taught comfort in e xploring these major faiths adds to the fr iction in our about intolerance a nd avo ided religious communit ies, lays the certain negat ive themes in groundwork for perpetual Christian history and docu ments misundersta ndi ngs, a nd conti nues and their p owe r in the formation to explain why simplistic of Western attitudes toward generalizations, often offensive people who believe and don't and v iolent, persist amongst many telieve in Christianity. It has Jews a nd Christians about each teen an u nwritten law that other and each other's religious Christian brutality and Chr istian teliefs. examples of heroism and Where there is ignorance tolerance be slighted and even of basic human a ctions, we can ignored, especially in p ublic expect the creation of stereotypes education. that keep people "content" in their What has also been lost rxejudice. Where bias is a cted and avoided has been an upon in the form of friendships understanding of the values of denied, e mploy ment lost, or Christianity, the reasons that many negat ive acts going u nchallenged, people have teen draw n to this the reality of peace is last and we faith and the meaning of te ing a are all wa lking on a "minefield." Christian in the be.>t ofsen.res. Our "=vivaI," many of us Educators do not know how to telieve, is determined by holding teach about faith and spirituality onto our prejudice a nd keeping without fearing that the close "to our own ki nd," hopi ng "teachin~" will be interpreted as that our group can protect us. proselytizing. As a result, the Know ing that courage to venture basics of Christia n life, the ways the holidays define and illu minate too far away may w ind up in pain faith, and the ultimate concerns of and wounding, or worse, keeps many people from any form o f a Christ ian believer are j ust movement. Many leaders outside the general education of reinforce this situation, retelli ng most people. The Peace Village STREETVIBES Apri/J 2004 know either what is reing sa id and/or what to say in return. This is the rea lity that many of us are in because this is often the first peaceful discussion with others who may d iffer from our bel iefs. Asking questions that commun icate our interest, our confusio n, and our feeli ngs of being in some danger can be asked in w ays that promote peace and friendship if we ask ourselves, if we can, "Just how am I aski ng this question?" O ften many of us change a question into a statement, and may slip into this form and need to be self-caught, if we can. Questions to and w ith each other are steps in the minefield. When we see ourselves e xploding and others Listening 'Kith tlze Ears of exploding. we need to stop a nd <l Peace Friend - Discussions of pause, repair, address the wounds, this movie in general and and prooeed w ith caution. Christian and Jewish religion in I love reading letters from specific has worked best when the my old students remind ing me of liste ning assumes an attitude of what ki nd o f teacher I was. I peaceful frie ndliness. I try and wince when I read them, knowing what I left out, or chose to avoid start by alerting us to the tecause of my fear, or, what I was minefield of not hearing what is ofte n said, teneath the words and j ust ignora nt about that would in the words, and not heard have made a differenoe. Most of because our e ars are stuffed with. us as teachers are learners, riding our tongues read ied to respond. the waves of the u ncertain and The listening that I am reaching e njoying the ride toward glimpses for may not involve a n immediate of. u nderstandi ng in the eyes of our stude nts, friends, and co­ response; sometimes going around a circle and just teachers. We return to teach ing introducing one's self from a faith and learning tecause we have position is e nough to unclog our faith in the co nnection between ears. Somet imes we test listen education and peace, just as we when some one who has teen or is search the Scriptures tecause we frighte ned has a chance to spea k have faith in the connection to with support of the group, w ith peace that arires in the beauty of a phrase. Now, we stand o n a the stated realization that the group supports their right to say different ground, perhaps a what has hurt or frightened them . minefield, and we are called to Listeni ng to these words, in make the connections again. peaceful attitudes, often allows Shalom, Salaam, Pa z. others to join in and s hare what Dr. Steve Sunderland, they might have been hidi ng in professor ofSocial Work at fear. Whenever this form of the University of Cincinnat~ disclosure happens, it is often is th e Director of The Peace useful for the people who didn' t know that such feelin~ of fear Village, a group of individuals could exist, to make stateme nts of from the national and not know ing. Peaoe Friends do international community not wa nt to cover up their feel in~ committed to examining all or their areas of not knowing issues ofPeace in the world. people and there can be fruitful Dr. Sunderland also heads up ti me used to listen to just the Posters-for-Peace which themes o f fear and support. stories of the.re who have been "blown up" by trying to as k about the best path toward safety and freedom . Many people choose to be a 'by-stander" in the minefield, choosing to wait for others to lead or protest the conditions. Some people refuse to accept the conditions of immobility and seek to find new grou nd for j ourneyi ng to safety. Ste p by step, we can = these .people moving toward knowledge, risking that each step can be followed by the.re behind with safety. I wa nt to write about an e ducational process that helps us move together, with safety, with guidance, and with the faith that through e ducation an important new experience of peace can be ach ieved. Quali.J:y QriestWns are Acts- of Peace <uzd Not War ­ engages people in expressing their visions of Peace, in their own words, through the creation ofposters. S ometimes it is shocking that people feel so deeply and so differently about their rel igions and the religious Only $25 per month ... beliefs of Call Streetvibes @ 421-7803 others. Some people have (Business Card Size, ad ready copy) never heard Reach 18,000 customers per month! such remarks and do n' t Rent This Space! Peace Village Page 6 �Proposed federal funding will devastate voucher program by Elb;abdh Linvilk The Federal Budget for 2005, released by the Bush Administration in Febru3!}'. calls for huge cuts in the funding for housing vouchers. The voucher program. which is commonly referred to as Section 8, allows families to move into rent al housing and pay 30 percent oftheir inccme for rent, while the government subsidizes the rest. The city ofCincinnati has nearly25,000 individuals experiencing homelessness each -year. Currently, there are only around 7,000 vouchers available through CMHA. This new budget will hurt the program in a variety of ways: it will reduce the number of households that will be assisted by a voucher, it could increase the amount of rent tenants are required to pay, and it may force housing authorities to shift their assistance to higher income families. This budget will result in the loss ofapproximately250,000 vouchers nationwide. In Ohio, we will lose 12 % of our vouchers. This means a cut of I0,340 frcm the 85,300 vouchers in use today. It currently takes some households over a -year to receive a voucher. With the new cuts. the time on a waiting list could drag on even further. In addition. the budget proposal calls for policy changes in the administration of the vouchers that cou ld damage the program even further. Public Housing Elizabeili LUtvllk Authorites will be given flexibility in determining how to administer the voucher program. In order to administer the program. the budget proposal will allow them to eliminate the requirement that tenants pay no more than 30% of their income for rent. Increased rent could force families to live in overcrowded, substandard housing or to tum to the shelter system for housing. Another change the HousingAuthorities may have to m3ke because of the budget cuts is to focus the voucher assistance on higher income families. These families would require less fmancial assistance than lower income households. 'What dces this mean for Cincinnati? The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities recently released this information. As of July of2003 , Cincinnati had 7 ,375 vouchers. The proposed cut will decrease voucher funding by .$5,062,417. Ifthecuts are made by eliminating available vouchers, 894 would be lost. If they are made by increasing the rent burden to voucher holders, the annual rent would increase an average of $672 foreach household. There is a growing housing crisis in this country. Over 2 million households utilize housing vouchers across the country. 40% ofthe individuals utilizing vouchers are elderly or disabled; the majority of the rest are low-income families with children. According to a recent survey of Ohio shelters, there has been a 30% increase in the need for shelter. This number will likely increase even further with these budget cuts. The current administration may think that they cannot afford to continue to fund this program, but can the elderly, the disabled and children afford to lose this housing assistance? If you are interested in helping raise awareness on this is.sue, go to www.cohhio.org to send an alert to your representatives in congress. National Homeless Advocate Censored by Assistant Secretary of HUD Donald Whitehead, the first formerly homeless African. American Executive Director for the National Coalition for the Homeless (NCH). was barred from a HUD meeting, on Tuesday March 16th, in which he had been invited to spe3k on the Continuum of Care consolidation plan. Senior members of the Department's national office elected to censor Mr. Whirehead, asking him to leave the meeting. NCH provides a wealth and diversity of knowledge that represents a perspective shared by many in the advocacy world, but not by HUD. NCH has been highly critical ofHUD's controversial Chronic Hcmeles.snes.s Initiative as well as their proposed FY2005 budget that seeks to eliminate 250,000 section 8 vouchers, due to the detrimentaleffect these programs and cuts will have on the growing numbers o fh orne less children and familie.s. NCH joined in a letter signed by other prcminentnational, state and loca l advocacy groups including. NAACP, National Organization of Women, Volunteers ofAmerica, and Child Welfare League of America raising concerns regarding HUD's present position on the provision ofhorneless assistance funds. The fact that Donald Gray Dog... . and loud music, and in a thousand other turnings frcm her path. So she had aver<; adult duty and she would have to answer to someone if anything went wrong. She was wise to be W3!}' of such a wcman. It seemed at that moment, delerence, fear, anger, suspicion, and deftroice all warred within her as she studied what that unstable woman might do next. And that is all I can tell you. 'What more do I know of them? Nothing at all. I had a task tefore me at the time. I jaywalked past them to the hardware for a pound of nails and I did not look back. I stood in line to pay my money and didnot think, as I think now, that I had witnessed a mcment of afflicted grace. What do I mean by calling such an ordin3!}', fragment of living by such a title? Only this We make a misl3ke ifwe look for sanctity and respectability only in the Mother Teresa mode. We make another mistake ifwe see in the failures of a place like this comer only failures. There is tote foundherescmething ofsanctity and something of failure in almost evetyone. This toddling. someone's­ grandmother-looking wcman has. I think, a sad, unknowable story. It would seem her grandmother brain h3s been unmoored by cheap wine or maybe OxyContii). Her addled angels have failed to protect her ro1d she has been marked and shamed in ways I cannot know. Perhaps, in the way of the intoxicated, she hoped, in that bright and penitential day, to bring herself a moment of resurrected wholeness. Perhaps she was trying awkwardly to do right, a saintly inebriate, blind guide, unprotected protector, a broken Bodhisattva, a being holy and deluded in a place where even blessedness is lhctured. We here, after all, to do such kindness as we can. We are here to guide each other through perilous crossings. But the corner of Fourteenth and Vine is a place of conflicted blessings. \'k are wise to be wary ofeach other. The corner of Fourteenth and Vme is a sad place, full of wounded people. But there is brightness, even sanctity, a grace in affliction, even here. cont. from page 3 with no pull toward any of this. In the streets around, there are a numter ofhalfway houses, treatment centers, and transitional housing units where the work of recovery hums along. There are innocence and strength in these streets. but they are in the background, and quiet. Little of this is out on the street; none of it is as vivid and compelling as what is out on the corner where damaged and corrupted life staggers, weaves, toddles, struts, pimp walks, and cruises by at every hour. This girl, with her defiant, almost adolescent eye, had a task: to weave these children from one place to another through the color and danger of the street. And was that damaged woman one of their dangers? Thegirlseemed to think so, and she knows her world much betterthan I. She knows her world much tetterthan a child should know it. There are dro1gers in the dope boys, in the traffic, in the sexual predators cruising day and night, in the distractions of neon STREETV/BES April, 2004 Whitehead, one of the nation's most well respected homeless advocates, was denied the opportunity to address advocates who are designing a plan to address hcmeles.sness in the DC Metropolitan area is surprising. Whireheadsaid, "If we are to move focward, and achieve notable progress in our goals for strengthening the social fabric of America, this type of censorship must end." 20 YEARS SERVING THE NEIGHBORHOOD Empowering our neighborhood c hildren through peace. art and education Peaslee Neighborhood Center 215 East 14th Street Over-the-Rhine Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 (513) 621-5514 Page 7 �by Adam Holdorf, Patty L<me Three 11-year-olds got caught up in a lie that sent a homeless man to jail fo1· eight months. According to the Contra Costa Times, the girls didn't want to get in trouble for being late to school, so they covered it up by saying they were attacked by a homeless man in a park in Garden Grove, California. Eric Nordmark, a 36-year-oldself­ described nomad, was jailed for eight months on assault and child molestation charges be fore one of the girls finally ca me forward to say she and her friends made up the story. Nordmark maintained his innocence while in j ail and recalls his incarceration as " very terrifying." While Nordmark says he doesn't hold a grudge against the girls, he has not decided on whether he will sue them or the city. The girls are be ing referred to Juvenile Court. A federal class-action lawsuit filed on behalf of homeless children and their parents says that welfare programs in Suffolk County, NY, move homeless children from school to school, and schools resist enrolling and busing them. The suit claims local schools are failing to provide homeless children with suitable clothing shoes, b ooks, food, and transportation to enable them to attend school and is "depriving homeless children of a chance for a better future," according to the New York Times. The state receives millions of dollars in federal aid to educate the home less, according to advocates. The suit also addresses a prerequisite for school requiring proof of a permanent address for school enrollment, which "results in children be ing turned away at the school house door," say the plaintiffs. The suit seeks compliance, not monetary damages. Eight homeless veterans received full military honors at a special fwieral service held outside San Diego. According to theSan Diego Union Tribune, local Vietnam veterans,members of the 82ndAirbome, and e'•en Pearl Harbor survivors came to show respect for their military ''family" •some serving as honor guard, others as pallbearers. 1!1e number of home less veterans dyrng in the re gion has increased, although no one knows why. The Homeless Veterans Burial Program gave more than 80 homeless veterans dignifie d services and funerals over the last several years. Other cities have similar programs. '1 think we all fear dying alone," says Al Pavich, president of the Vietnam Veterans ofSan Diego. He attends many of these memorials and tells the lJnion­ Tribune that his organization offers treatment, job training. and counseling to homeless veterans. An estimated 270,000 ve terans are homeless. The health ofsome homeless workers in Florida may have been put at risk when the owner of a downtown St. Petersburg building hired them for a demolition job. The Tampa Bay Tribune reports that county officials may levy more than $15,000 in penalties against the owner, who is accused of hiring a number of homeless to remove crumbling asbesto.s pipe insulation without proper safety precautions. Asbestos can cause life-threatening problems, including cancer or scarring in lung tissue. Regulations require that workers wear protective clothing and treat asbestos before stripping it off pipes. 0 fficials discovered the violations last year while inspecting the apartments. Dignity Village, the 60­ person tent city placed on the outskirts of Portland, Oregon, was designated a legal campsite by a four·to·one vote of the Portland City Council on Thursday, February 26. According to KOIN-TV (koin.com). the new legal status gives the camp the right to stay at its current site next to the Portland Airport. In public testimony before the council's vote , homeless residents of the tent camp .spoke out in its favor; before the camp, " when I became homeless, I went into the woods," said village treasurer Tim McCarthy. '1 was a ll alone - this was the first chance I had to be around other people in the same s ituation." Campers have requested a 10-year lease on the city-owned land they currently inhabit, which is also used as a leaf­ recycling yard; the council will respond in a few months. The delay in the lease negotiation "made it possible .. , for the council to skirt the [issue of the] inadequacy of the site," charged the Oregonian in an editorial, "and its own ethical responsibility to clean it up ifthe city intends to become > the camps sponsor.» Story, Editorial and Art Submis­ sion Deadline/or the May. 2004 edition of STREETVIBES is Fridav. April 9th v . Support your local Streewibes Vendor! Yourvendorkeeps70 cents ofevery dollar..... WLO;]L&' l sing the song ofhope, wishing for peace and Ju1pp iness. Of spiritual feeling and IU1pp iness. For God's wisdom and Salvation, kindness and freedom ofprayer. And in the minds and hearts ofmen, they dre<1m ofbrothers <1nd fathers and ofson :S­ respect. Honoring hum<1nity is to be tile keeper of Lbve, and to redeem yourself of temptation ofsin. To renew the soul of d<1mn<1tion, so they be right, and of Heaven. l:tj Ronald English, Streetvibes Vendor Nonviolence is not a garment to be put on and offat will. Its seat is in the heart, and it must be UJl inseparahle part ofour being. Mahatma Gandhi You cannot shake hands with a clenched fist. Indira Gandhi �Keep The Faith and Never Give Up through his biography, but his teaching. I sit at my desk as usual, His story is not only about his biographical talking to my friends, the homeless, who I am around r-----:::~=:::---i life, but about life through faith every day - it seems today that some are in God and His heavy laden, down unchanging with personal hand. Suffering problems. Thinking through cancer that they may have and radiation found a job or a therapy over the place to stay, they im!I0"-....;;;;....1 years has not sometimes feel Ms. Mary Gtiffney stopped him from defeated when things don't come through. accomplishing his goals. He earned his Doctorate of Education I talk to my friends about this person who I am now going to from theUniversity of Cincinnati, speak about. This gentleman I along with his wife, Monia Posey, have known since a young child. who also received her doctorate. He was reared in church - St John They hope to start a charter school A. M. E. Zion Church. He is for urban children. known all over the city and in every For it is said, "I can do all neighborhood. He is Reverend Dr. things through Christ, who Michael Posey. strengthens me." He has been the pastor now As I close this for this for many years at the church. 'vVith month -to my friends, the readers hope and faith In God he has and especially the homeless accomplished many things, not only children; never say '1 can't do." !if by 1l4ary Gtiff1iey you say that, have you really kept the faith? It is said that before His word falls, heaven and eaith will pass away. As we enter the Lenten season and celebrate the sacrifice of his death and raising, like the blooming of the flowers and trees, we celebrate new life for the coming new year. The ultimate measure ofa person is not where one stands in moments ofcom­ fort and convenience, but where one stands in times ofchallenge and contro­ versy. Martin Luther King, Jr Buy Streetvibes From Badged Vendors Only! Streetvibes Vendors are required to sign a code of conduct and agree to abide by all the rules of the Streetvibes Ven­ dor Program. If a Vendor misrepresents or breaks the rules, she/he may be removed from the Program. To report a Vendor, call 421-7803. ext. 16 The GCCH would like to thank Starbucks for their generous donation of coffee and pastries. Streetvibes Vendor Code of Conduct All Vendors Sign andAgree to a Code of Conduct Report Any Violations to GCCH- 421-7803 1. Streetvibes will be distributed for a $1 voluntary donation. If a customer donates more than $1 for a paper, vendors are allowed to keep that donation. However, vendors must never ask for more than $1 when sellingStreetvibes. 2. Each paper purchased from the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH) cosls 30 cenls. Papers will not be given out on credit. Old papers can not be traded in for new papers. 3. Streetvibes may only be purchased from GCCE;l. Never buy papers from, orsell papers to other vendors. 4. Vendors must not panhandle or sell other items at the same time lhey are selling Streetvibes. 5. Vendors must treat all other vendors, customers, and GCCH personnel with respect. 6. Vendors must not sell Streetvibes while under the infiuence. 7. Vendors must not give a "hard sell" or intimidate anyone into purchasing Streetvibes. This includes following customers or continuing to solicit sales after customers have said no. Vendors must also never sell Streetvibes door-to-door. 8. Vendors must not deceive customers while selling Streetvibes. Vendors must be honest in stating that all profits STREETVIBES go to the individual vendor. Vendors must not tell customers that the money they receive will go to GCCH or any other organization or charity. Also, vendors must not say that they are collecting for "the homeless" in general. 9. Vendors must not sell papers wllhout their badge. Vendors must present their badge when purchasing papers from GCCH. Lost badges cost $2.00 to replace. Broken or worn badges will be replaced for free, but only if the old badge is returned to GCCH. 10. Streeh1bes vendor meetings are held on the first weekday of the month at lpm. The month's paper will be released at this meeting. If a vendor cannot attend the meeting, he or she should let us know in advance. If a vendor does not call in advance and does not show up, that vendor will not be allowed to purchase papers on the day of the meeting or the following day. Five free papers will be given to those who do attend. 11. Failure to comply with the Code of Conduct may result in termination from the Streetvibes vendor program. GCCH reserves the right to terminate any vendor at any time as deemed appropriate. Badges and Streetvibes papers are property ofGCCH, and must be surrendered upon demand. April, 2004 ''Judge Palntc.r's book is already a classic in its field." 40 Rules fr>r the Art of Legal Writing Pl' rfixl 801m(f - l 34 J.unJycc &. f.imJ~·u; ri""" C>iv1<ln11 o1 r~A t'1m..d 1ing lr1<:. 24-19 l',1u•vit•w A\'Cnue Cinnnn.1ti, (lh1(l-l!'ill 'I JOM!ph P 1Cmi.1m, D1:an Co lh.-gc u1 L,rn university ot dn~matt pngt·~ l - 9 wplto!i l .5-1 1"~ -t 1 41• !>.~1 1 ilo21 .9~ -t ~ $21).\1~ ,..., JO t1t 111 0 ~ 'Sl'I ~. 1.40 ... ~ t ltl(I ~ti . $2)93"" ~·1.d rnr <»pt"" n1 TH'E I FGAI WRffEJ( Ch.."C'\. lor _ _ _ _ _ cn.:l1>e!4!J Nnmr U t1 Page 9 �Out With The Old, In With The New.... story and photos by Mary Burke In February, a three story brick building at 302 Mulberry Street in Over-the-Rhine was demolished. Earlier in the week several bricks had fallen off the building onto the street and sidewalk below, which might have prompted the owner or the Cincinnati Building Department to take action. According to the Hamilton County Auditor, the building was constructed in 1875. Douglas M. Spitz is the owner. County records show he purchased the then 122-year-old Before.... building on February 27, 1997 for $12,000. Simultaneous to this demolition, five new townhouses are being constructed at 126 through 134 Mulberry, just a block west of 302 Mulberry Street. The townhouses are listed for sale at a price range of $209,900 - $259,500. Each townhouse boasts a view of the city and brick & stone facades. The brick walls at 302 Mulberry were 3 bricks thick and the building, now demolished, provided a view of the city. After.... 5. Single Family Homes . City Vlews Open Floor Plans Two Car Garages Will Customize Several Floor Plans Two and One Holl Baths lox Abated Q11,i/i1_1 /311i/t llJ 1·111cJ111!/ /l•,11/1 I C¢1 f 01 )\)IC ij • MICHAELSWEENEY· ~e , . .c,.,01111.t 241 3400 00 Vine)1ard* lf(>l1E.I. le•. For Free Pre-Approvol Contact: Joanie Rees TravisArd 563-2021 521-1653 New condo up the street National Homeless Civil Rights Organizing Project (NHCROP) We'd like to hear from you.... Send letters or comments to: Streetvibes@Juno.com~ or write attn: Streetvibes 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 STREETVIBES · •;, 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 homelesscivilrights@yahoo.com Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (513) 421-7803 April, 2004 Sensitivity to the immense needs ofhumanity brings with it a spontaneous rejection of the arms race, which is incom­ patible with the all out struggle against hunger, sickness, un­ der-development and illiteracy. Pope John Paul II Page 10 �Mother's Day is May 9. Whetl'er she is a mother, a grandmother, an aunt, a wire, or a.s;ster, Motl'er's Day is our chan:e to show the special women in our lives how much they really mean to us. Mother's Day is also a chance to honor tl'e spirit of motherin~ Mothers are there to make sure we are clotl'ed, clean,fed,safa, and warm. They are tl'ere to tuck us in and kiss away tears. They are there to read to us, to listen, and to steer us down the right path Nationally, 3.5 million people experience horrelessress over tl'e course of a year. Homeless families make up over 40% of that population. lhisyear in Cincimati alore, over 5,000 families and over 8,000 children will experien:e homelessness. The above drawing was created by Asherah, age nine. She was one of many participants in our Mother's Day card contest for homeless youth. Children across Ohio participated in tl'e comest. Asherah was a resident ofthe SalvationArrey Family Shelter in Cincimati at the time she drew this picture. Her family is one of 5,000 in Cin:innati that will experience You can honor your mother by helping the families who need it tl'e most. The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Horreless has been working for 20 years to eradicate horrelessness in Cincinnati. "vVe firmly believe that by coming together as a community, we can reach this goal. Please help us as we work to erase homelessness from the childhoodrremories of 8,000 kids in Cincinnati this year. r--------------------------------------------------, I By sending this corqileted form along with your donation, Asherah's Mother's Day card will be sent to the person you de.s;g­ lnate below. The card will inform the recipient that a donation has been made in his or her name to tl'e Coalition for tl'e Home­ lass. Donor's narre, address, and phore number N arne and address of the person to whom we should address tl'e card Who should the donation be placed in honor ofAn memory of! Who should we say the card is from? If you would lika the card sent to an additional person, please indicate on another sheet of paper 1he same information as above. Send this form along with your donation to: 'The Greater Cincinn:ali Coalition for tile Homeless, 117 East 1 ZSlred, Cincinn:ali, Ohio 4520Z ~--------------------------------------------------4 STREETVJBES April, 2004 Page 11 �Family Violence Option Campaign Builds Momentum by Lynn Williams well over halfofthe women receiving welfare have experienced OEC Organizer physical abuse by an intimate partner at some point during their From Rep. Jean Schmidt; adult lives, with as many as 30 "!wish the Family Violence Option would have been percent ofthese women reporting in place when !was going through abuse in a current relationship. a domestic violence crisis. It Many ofthese women want would have helped me get my life to escape the cycle ofabuse, to begin anew, and yet they find back together much sooner, " stated Catrina Weber, a member of difficulty in doing so because of the Ohio Empowerment Coalition requirements on our state welfare Steering Committee who spoke at system. ln the coming months I the OEC's Press Conference held at the Statehouse on February 17'» plan to introduce legislation that The Press Conference was held to will allow Ohio to adopt the draw public attention to the need Family Violence Option. This for the Family Violence Option in permits the waiver ofrequirements Ohio. Rep. Jean Schmidt, who has for a victim ofdomestic violence agreed to introduce the FVO when complying with those legislation, was unable to be requirements would make it more present due to campaigning in her difficult for the victim to escape domestic violence or would Distric~ but she released a public unfairly penalize the individual. statement for the Press Conference. Her aide, Ben Additionally, the bill will Larocco, was present to read Rep. address the need for a state system Schmidt's statement as fol/,ows: that will screen victims of domestic "The effects ofphysical, violence and refer them to mental and emotional abuse affect appropriate counseling and supportive services. Al/,owing hundreds ofthousands offamilies these individuals to escape the each and every year, sadly many in Ohio are included in that count­ environment ofabuse is essential and those are the ones we know in their return to healthy, fully about-likely hundreds more productive citi<Pts. silently endure this trauma, hoping I look forward to working with all involved on this one day for a glimmer ofhope. It is my intent to try to help legislation and I am honored to be these victims- victims ofabuse and involved in the effort to break the neglect, ofphysical battering and chain offamily violence in Ohio." emotional conflicts - victims The Press Conference through no fault oftheir own have followed a day long Presidents Day become part ofa destructive cycle Training to build media skills of that tears away at the very heart leaders from the OEC. The leaders offamilies today. then participated in the Press Conference the next day. Groups I am told that currently included Appalachian People's Action Coalition (APAC) of Athens; Stop Targeting Ohio's Poor (STOP), Cleveland; Empowerment Center of Greater Cleveland; Community Organizing Center, Columbus; Cincinnati Welfare Rights Coalition; Miami Valley Full Employment Council, Dayton; Bethany House Family Shelter, Cincinnati; Drop-Inn Center Full Circle Program, Cincinnati; and endorser group Action - Ohio Coalition for Battered Women, Columbus . The FVO is a state option that the Federal welfare law, otherwise known as Temporary Assistance to Needy Families or TANF, permits states to implement to protect domestic violence victims who apply for public assistance. Forty states, including Ohio's neighbors Kentucky and Indiana, have ah'eady adopted the Family Violence Option. Many studies have shown that domestic violence is prevalent in a majority of families who apply for public assistance. (Source: Welfare Information Network) As many as 60% ofwomen receiving pub lie assistance have been domestic violence victims as opposed to 22% in the general population. (Source: "A Review of Research on Welfare and Domes'tic Violence," Journal ofSocial Issues, 2000) The Family Violence Option will: o Ensure that public assistance recipients are screened for domestic violence by tJ:ained caseworkers Possible House Hearings on Exempt Status for 501(c) Groups Know Your Rights Brochure Available! In a March 2 speech to the Federation ofAmerican Hospitals, House 'vVays and l\i.Teans Committee Chair Bill Thomas (R-CA) said he wants the committee to investigate the benefits tax exempt groups give taxpayers, and consider whether more specific requirements shoold be imposed in exchange for exempt status. A committee spokesman said nothing has been scheduled. Thomas' speech raised the issue ofsimilar activities by nonprofit and for-pro.fit entities, such as credit unions and banks, saying, "Frankly there's been a lot of activity over the last decade in the tax-preferred area - the 501(c)(3)s, (c)(4)s, (c)(6)s - that requires a broader examination of just what is it the taxpayers are getting for their money." He said the issue was raised recently in a dispute between the American Hospital Association and the Department ofHealth and Human Services over hospital charges to uninsured patients. A committee spokesman said the scope of any inquiry would be broad, and not confined to credit unions and hospitals. Rent This Space/ (Business Card Size, adready copy) Reach 18, l.XX2 customers IDer month Only $25 per month. __ Call Streetvibes @ 421-7803 STREETVIBES April, 2004 o Make support services available to recipients o Allow recipients affected by domestic violence to be eligible for exemptions .from welfare time limits and work requirements by participating in alternative programs to help put their lives and the lives of their children together. "Right now there is no requirement that domestic violence victims who apply for welfare in Ohio will receive suppot'tive services to assist in overcoming this barrier." "Some counties provide a lot of help, but unfortunately, other counties do little or nothing. The FVO would improve this situation by requiring counties to assist domestic violence victims," said Katy Heins, Director of the Contact Center. The Ohio Empowerment Coalition is urging the Ohio Assembly and Governor to protect domestic violence victims in Ohio by adopting the Family Violence Option. A statewide Mobilization Conference/Lobby Day will be held on :tvlay 6 at the Trinity Episcopal Church, 125 E. Broad Street, in Coltunbus tocontinue mobilizing on the FVO Campaign. For more information about the Conference and/or the Family Violence Option Campaign call the Ohio Empowerment Coalition at 1-877­ 862-5179. Rep. Jean Schmidt may be contacted at 614466-8134 or ·write her at 77 South High Street, Columbus, 43215. The Know Your Rights Brochure is now available at the Coalition's office. The brochure is a legal guide for Cincinnati's h omeless and covers a person's basic rights when interacting with the police, as well as some local laws that might be of interest to the homeless population. If you are a homeless person or if you work with homeless people and would 1ike to obtain free copies of the brochm·e for yourself or your agency, pleasecall 421-7803, or stop by the Coalition office and pick one up. Politics Page 12 �Manifest Destiny by Adam Holdorf, Real Change newspaper UC Berkeley International Studies professor Chalmers Johnson has been a Cold Warrior for much of his career. When the Soviet Union crumbled, he expected the United States ­ declaring itself the winner of the US-Soviet face-off - to pack up its Cold War military outposts, consummate its nuclear disarmament treaties, and devote itself to peacetime pursuits. Appalled by U.S. foreign policy in the 1990s, he began to wonder: had America's arms race against the Soviets masked some more fundamental purpose? The result of those musings was his 2000 book, Blowback: the Costs and Consequences of American Empire, which ignited a brush fire among foreign-policy wonks over to what degree U.S. citizens are endangered by their country's foreign policy in places such as the Middle East. Then came September 11, 2001. People asking "Why do they hate us?" had, in Blowback, an answer. The network of American military bases on every continent except Antarctica; the secret and not-so­ secret wars which have taken civilian lives from Panama to the Philippines - the price of American hegemony, he had warned, is terrorism against its citizens. Now, writes Johnson in The Sorrows of Empire, "it no longer seems necessary to issue warnings; instead a diagnosis, even an autopsy, may be more appropriate." The American Empire - the military's untempered and untethered operations, the Bush doctrines of "preventive war" and unilateralism - is all about us. And no regime change in the White House will make it go away. "A revolution would be required," he writes. But Johnson finds hope, too - in the millions of marchers who opposed the Iraq War; in the anti­ globalization movement that debuted in Seattle in 1999; in the vehement disagreement of 30 percent of the American public to our nation's policies. RC: You have said that you began thinking of the United States' foreign policy as one of empire when you visited Okinawa. Johnson: I was invited by the governor of Okinawa, the poorest, most southerly island of Japan, after the incident of September 4, 1995, in which two Marines and a sailor had abducted, beaten, and STREETVIBES raped a 12-year-old girl. The When George Bush says we nuclear weapons [with regard to Iraq]. are the greatest force of good in Pentagon would have you believe Third, a tradition of deceit the 1995 rape was a single, unusual history, or when he says "You're incident. The truth of the matter is either with us or against us," which by the government in speaking to is a line Lenin liked too, but it the public. I would cite above all that the rate of sexually violent February 5, 2003, when Secretary crimes in Okinawa leading to court actually comes from the Bible ­ we're talking about a passionate martial is about two per month. of State Colin Powell sat in the One of the things I remember most ideological error that is leading us United Nations Security Council into, my opinion, very very vividly is the locals' deep and and issued a long statement that, as we now know, was an utter tissue dangerous straits. abiding belief that they were being Security of Defense victimized by both the Japanese of lies. Our Secretary of State has Rumsfield in October said that "we simply no credibility left on earth. government and by the Pentagon. Fourth, bankruptcy. The island was essentially a military don't have a metric" - his phrase, meaning a measure - we don't have Everyone knows what is happening colony between 1945 and 1972. The Japanese government, which to the American federal deficit; it is a metric for whether we are wishes to have the alliance with the succeeding against terrorism. But I catastrophic. As Herbert Steinman, who was once Chairman of the United States but does not want to think we do have a metric: in the have American troops located very eight years between 1993 and Council of Economic Advisers once close to its own citizens, essentially 2001, including the attacks of 9111, said, "Things that can't go on forever don't." Whatever you dumps them all in the equivalent of Al Qaeda carried out five major think of the Constitution, I Puerto Rico. bombing incidents around the guarantee you an economic crisis is My first in reaction was that world. Since that time, in just two something that everyone will have Okinawa must be exceptional. As a years, down to including the to come to grips with when it suicide attacks in Istanbul against result of studying American bases around the world, I concluded that the British consulate and the HSBC occurs, and it could happen at any Bank, Al Qaeda has carried out 17 time. the real tragedy of Okinawa was not that it was unusual or atypical ­ major bombings. The situation of RC: You're saying that the fault it was far too typical of the sexually terrorism is clearly worse now lies deeper than with the current violent crimes, environmental since 9/11, and reveals the administration. Do you see hope pollution, noise, bar brawls, drunk inappropriateness of an overly for change in your lifetime? driving accidents that are militarized response to terrorist Johnson: I think it's perfectly associated with our overseas bases. incidents. possible to imagine the removal of President Bush and his RC: Are there lessons for our RC: You say it would take "a administration. He seems well on occupation of Iraq in this? revolution" to return to some of Johnson: It's really interesting how the principles that were his way toward discrediting himself. But no matter who much the American press has tried expressed in the Declaration of replaces him, we'll have enormous to suggest that our bringing Independence - a declassified difficulties standing up to the democracy to Japan under General CIA budget, for example. Is it vested interests of the Pentagon, MacArthur after World War II is a too late for the democratic the intelligence agencies, and the model for our activities in Iraq. principles that founded our military-industrial complex. If you I've wanted to always say that if republic? you believe that, then you've got to The Pentagon would have you believe the 1995 rape was a leave Okinawa single, unusual incident. The truth of the matter is that the entirely out of the rate of sexually violent crimes in Okinawa leading to court discussion, because the last martial is about two per month. One of the things I remember thing we ever did most vividly is the locals' deep and abiding belief that they was bring were being victimized by both the Japanese government and by democracy to the Pentagon ... Okinawa. It's certainly a place Johnson: That's what we're going where no one thanks the United ask me right now whether I think that's going to happen, I'm sorry to to find out, in a very short period States for its presence. say I really don't. I think the polls RC: Your very first quote in The of time. My last chapter called "The Sorrows of Empire" has a strongly suggest that 70 percent of Sorrows of Empire is President Bush saying "Our nation is the the public endorses the Bush discussion of four main sorrows. Administration and the war policy; One is perpetual war: Bush and greatest force for good in Cheney have mentioned between history." You trace that 30 percent is adamantly opposed. 50 and 60 nations on earth that And 30 percent in a country as big sentiment back to Woodrow Wilson and his League of as the United States is not a small they would like to bring about number. Nations, and show it's led many a regime change through preventive One of the things that war. leader astray. Where did we go Second, the end of the appalls me about the current wrong this time? Republic, in the sense of the political situation is how none of Johnson: The United States has hollowing out of the Constititution: the Democrat [presidential made potentially a fatal mistake James Madison, easily the most candidates] seem to be offering an after the demise of the Soviet important author of the alternative to what American Union in 1991 in starting to Constitution, declared that the behavior in the world should be. convince itself that it is a new None of them have any real single most important article in it Rome. That we are a colossus afoot in the world, no one can was that the right to go to war had criticism of the size of the Defense possibly resist our military power, budget, the amount of money to be in the hands of those elected by the people, never in the hands of spent. Some of them - that is, we are beyond good and evil, we a single man. In October 2002, our most of them - voted for war do not need friends. We begin to sound like the Roman Empire, Congress voted to give that power powers to be transferred to the to a single man when he felt like it, President [in the case of Iraq]. which of course was a military on his impulse, including the use of dictatorship. April, 2004 GCCH News Page 13 �Spring Within These Walls .... by Michael Henson First hints: A red haze among the maples. A great clutter of branches thrown down by a storm. A row of daffodils that raise their baffled heads out of the cold beds of the garden. The light, stretched back by the black fingers of the trees at the horizon, stretched back by the rooftops at the head of the alley, ekes out the lingering days. The winter rains become the spring rains, cold and persistent. The rivers rise to their banks; they darken with silt. They boil coldly in their drive to the Gulf bearing downstream anything loose in their path. Then, a day that ignites green fires at the tips of the sycamores. A day when the earth shimmers with a dim mammalian pulse. After the million deaths of winter, partisan births, clandestine cadres, in tens and twelves, here, and here, and in the hedges. Everything swells. Everything grows more numerous. New hungers arise, some small as the belly of a vole, some neatly small as thought. Others large as a field of wheat. Still others larger than we dare name. Everywhere the hungers assert themselves. They stretch among the root hairs in the compost. They call from the nests tucked in the branches of the cedars. They quiver on the dark floor of every pond. They weep themselves known in the houses of the poor. by Reenie Ware Gadsden Correctional Facility, Quincy, Florida I've developed a relationship with God; I've put all my trust in Him, It is God, and only God who can help me conquer sin, We're all God's children and we all fall short, Only God can judge us for He truly knows our heart. I've met different people from all walks of life, We're all fighting sin, to stop doing wrong and instead do right. I've learned to care, love and respect myself, I've learned that I am more important than anyone else. I've had a chance to realize just how valuable my life is, A chance to realize it's not better to receive than give. Give to one another because it is the right thing to do, To give to those who are less fortunate than you. I've lived, I've learned and I've changed for the better, I've learned that change brings on new challenges. Within these walls is not where I want to be, However, within these walls is where I've regained my sanity. Tell Me Who? by Robert Manassa Who woke me up this morning? Who stops my heart from yearning? To do the things I know is wrong Who keeps me safe from all harm? Tell Me Who? Who puts shoes on my feet? Who gave me food to eat? Who stops me from living a life of crime? Who keeps me in check, walking a straight line? Tell Me Who? Some may say it's Emanuel, The man who met the woman at the well, I need to find an answer soon, Before I'm met with doom Tell Me Who? CHILD OF THE UNIVERSE We See You by Merry Ferrell Hey you, standing over there. On every corner, everywhere. Dealing drugs to your family and friends, Give your brother a hit, he'll never quit. Can't you see, they are losing their mind? Her looks are gone, his teeth are missing. They've lost their hope and dreams and their Homes. You think you're Kool. I know you are a Fool. I tried it once, I tried it twice. I don't like it. You say you are looking for the ultimate high. You'll never find it, you will slowly die. The Crack drug slowly eats you from the inside out. The dealer eats your money and leaves you alone. No love. No joy. He's gone. God held my hand and He held on tight. He showed me what was wrong and what was right. I'm never alone. He shares my Home, my Dream my Joy, my Life. I firmly believe that mother universe will provide all that I am in need of to sustain this life of mine. Each of us can harness the talents and energies to accomplish everything we set for ourselves as a goal. We are each in the space and place we belong in. Where we are and where we are headed is already pre-destined. It has been determined by the seeds we have sewn in this life and by those of the past. Its success depends on how well we attend to the crop we have planted within us. when in doubt we must speak truthfully...... .in all matters love every one with a open hand ...... even when it is painful to do so ..... .look into tomon-ow and do what is for the good of all ...... .including you Great care should be taken of what you manifest. Do not speak or act anything negative into existence ... Knowingly refrain from these activities. STREETVIBES April, 2004 Art & Poetry Page 14 �Always with you, Always with me Brick by Brett Zwoli11ski byjh mountains we climb and seas we traverse time we buy and life passes by in my mind there is but only one thought .. madden ing horror. pent up fear illusions, inebriating crimes told again and again, the story of mine whose life are we seeing? how and when did it all begin? lt is the famous bricks, pinning our hopes to cold concrete. broken glass. and scattered dreams. Because. it is real, it.becomes a triumph, breaking the calm with deliglltfulsounds and hope from a child's vo ice. ti mes immemorial, deathunveiled e mpty and bleeding, caroused and cheating Please understand my fear I' m the only one standing here When I woke up. I didn't know what to do f do remember I prayed to you This time and place is new to me There's no instruction for me to see Please God can I hold your hand At least I won't be lonely as I stand My feelings and goals are hard to do But God. deep in my heart, there really for you Their paths you make and choices you give Are.those that I chooe to live You are my master, I am your servant I seek you. l submit to you Even without you in my view With your grace and mercy everyday l can face fear and doubt in every way As everyday goes past My faith in you. I know will last Thank you God in every way Thank you God just for today to let go ... Now we hold on even tighter grasp for breath of fres h air; ahhh... the spirit released... earth inhaled to our nostrils becoming one with yourself in passionate fit rage and rancor, tearing at flesh killing me softly, taking my breath love is liberty, love is freedom love is mercy, love is justice Sendyour poetry to Streetvibes 117East12th Street, Cin, 0 45202 lt is, because there is a dream. cloaking the desperation with denial and a foolish dance, tapping the broken concrete, like a broken hammer. lt comes to us, because it never dries your eyes, but breaks your heart There is enough pain to consume your spirit. And then it dies because the ancient mantra fortifies the dreadful discourse, allowinghumans to pass in the street, asleep. Gregory Payton _____ ,,_ ' r:..f_ _:__ by Jimmy Heath ..........=.......,...---· • Window Jesus, Over-the-Rhine STREETVIBES April, 2004 Art & Poetry Page 15 �Spinning the Past, Threatening the Future fusl within themselves. Pl:llilical aphorisms don' t Perhaps such steeliness has been almost ooilerplae in gal any more c oganl: "Who oonlrols the post cont ras the history; excuses for ~gressive future; who cont ras the present w ar have never been hard to come oonlrols the past." by. Jn this c ase, no amount of Georga Orwell's famous gaopdilical analysis - from media pundits, acaiemics and observation lJ"'S a long way toward e xplaining why- a full other commentators - CC1Uld year after the invasion of Iraq ­ really do more lo shed light than the m edia battles oorer prewar lies the l ight bulb comprehension that lhese people in c harge h:rl from are so ferccioos i n the United lhe o utset macre the determination Slates. Top oimini.stralion officials are going all out to that war ii would be. airbrush yeslen:lay's creceplions on So, e very attemp t al civic l:ehalf of lcdays. And tomorrow's. engagamenl and demonstrations The future they want most against the war £ enario was, in effect, trying to impede '1eaiers" to conlid starts on Election Day. And with scarcely seven months who h :rl already gone aroond the bend .A very big berrl. One of the to g<> in the presid2nlial American m ass media taboos was campaign, the past that Bush officials are most eaga to obscure lo serious!y suggest the possibility that the Joi of them - Bush, is their own record. Jn late 2IXl2 and e arly last year, wheneorer the Cheney, Rumsfeld, Rice and, yes, drive to war hit a bump , they I'bwall - were, in lheir purs uit of w ar on Iraq, significantly maneuvered carefully to keep the w~ car<Nan moving ste.adil y deranged. Wetting b a:;k from their forw ard. There was no doobt; they conclusion of war's necessity, lop were a hard.driving bunch. The Bush aiministraliono fficials ­ mo.st powerful .oi.u :rl of the Bush with assistance from many foreign-policy team rano n the reporters and pundits - were fuel o f certitucre at such a reading t he c alendar backwazds, prodigious rate that e""' their hell-bent en gaiting lhe i nvasion uncrerway well before the e>.treme momentum had momentum ­ mayte, in p art, because their heal of summer. lives' trajectories seemed to T here was ilio pdilical cremand it. War h:rl been declared weather lo be naoigated. Though by Nomum,Sclomon, powerful than munitions." L ater, m uch mare susceplibbo lo any and all words were to be m anipulation than the four vasll y outma1ched by the big guns se..ons , the electoral storms trained on lrtq. would be starling for the 2004 One afternoon, 14 mcnlhs prasidenlial contest, and a secured ago, inside a little shop in v ictory o<rer Iraq well in aiv ance Baghdad's crowded souk, a young seemed aivisable. boy sat behind an old de.sk, l:row n The pea:;e-saeking e yes wicre, quielly wat hing his pretense w as dripping with father unfurl carpets far polenlial charaie in the moolhs before t he c us\\:l:ners, and I woncrered: «Will invasion. Journalists kepi wriling my country's missiles kill you?" and talking about the chances of Key questions of the past war as though Presid2nt Bush are also crucial far the future. For instance, c an the United Stales h ain't alreaiy m aie up his mind lo o rd2r ii. Yet w hat Bush said in c redibly wage a " war on public w as e xa:;lly opposite to terrorism.. by engaging in warfare reality- a «one.eighly."When that terrorizes civilians? he t alked about preferring lo find Clo... lo 10,000 lrtqi an <eceptabbo alternaliva lowar, c ivilians haoe died because of the he was det>rmined lo bypa.<s and war during the past year. destroy every allernati"8 to w... Does the mix of mendacity R alional arguments would and deadly violence from the Oval not Work lo forest all the Office really strike against terrorism . or does ii fuel terrorist presidential order to unlea.sh the Pantagon. Despite the obstacles, cycles? which included vital a:;livism arrl Arrl, i n the realm of news p rotests for pe.,e , the c hief media, how many journalists are execuli"8 easily gpt to have his willing and able to go beyond war - the best kind, to be fought reliance on official sources and endUied on! y by others . e nough lo bring us truth about lies that result in creath? Eighteen months agp, looking out at Baghdad frcm an Nonnt0t Solhrrt.on wrU s a: upper story of a hot>!, I thought of sy»dicatetl colllmn o n mdiaa>>i poleics. He is co-avthor (weh something Albert Camus once w rote. « And henceforth, the only Reese Et!ich) of' Targa Iraq: What the N ews M edia Didn't Tell honorable course will be lo sl ake everything on a formidable Yoa," pablishetl in 2003 by g amble: that wards are more Co >Uxt Books. story, Editorial "A1aybe we could get a betrer pricejor 1he car ij'we hired a real estate agent." and Art Submis­ sion Deadline/or the iWav. 2004 edition of STREETVIBES is Friday, April 9th Streetvibes exists as a f orum for the expression of the •·iews a11d opinions of our readers and supporters. The opinions exp ressed herein are not necessarily those of the Streetvibes sta or the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeles-s. STREETVIBES April, 20-04 Editorial Page 16 �have allocated an entire ly Buy Me Love manufactured romantic symbo lism of"reality" te levision, but the cyberspace? Why are we so profits are undeniable. Te levision accepting o f this marketplace of networks don' t have to pay to these objects. human product? According to one by Hannah Kane Stranger still isthe fact that study, conducted by Andrea Baker enormous sa Jaries to reality The Beatles proclaimed in 1964 that money can't buy me te levision "stars;•and .advertisers we buy into the diamond industry's of Ohio University, Lancaster, the love. J-Lo echoed that S€lltiment in messages about the relationships are anxious to get the attention of average commitment time for 2001 when she argued that love between men and women and couples who meet online is theyoung demographic that has latched onto the genre. In fact, the accelerated- they tend to fall in don't cost a thing. In 40 years, pop money. The diamond industry's advertising is unabashedly sexist, love and marry within a year to a popu larity ofthese shows have music has maintained its belief in year and a half. As is the case with c aused executives to rethink the the sacredness oflove. Love is heterosexist, and materialistic. sO!llethingthatshouldn' tbe Feminist, GLBT, and anti­ many other new technologies, we way television is made. Reruns are purchased. It should remain consumerism movements, however, can' t get enough of those gadgets, out, new "casts" are in. And this have failed to prevent diamonds , a inventions, and inn ovations that means there will be no shortage of untainted despite our culture of frivolous luxury, from somehow capitalism and commodification. help us to maximize our time. Why "reaf' television love stories for us But love has fallen victim to glittering their way into mainstream should it be any differentregarding to gossip about, or to participate in our quest for love? the same consumer culture that consciousness. Perhaps the true for those who are inclined. turned religion into glow-in-the­ irony of the diamond industry is the So, if anyone is looking to An even more recent prove the Beatles wrong, there is a fact that, despite c'laims that "a addition to the love industry dark Jesus keychains and major diamond is forever," diamonds can arrived with the reality television deP3ftment store sales that wealth ofevidence to point to that commemorate formerly religious boom of the past several television supports the theory that love is in fact be shattered, chipped, holidays. discolored, or destroyed. seasons. Picking up where "Love indeed for sale. Nowadays, one can There's more to peddling Love is the final frontier in Connection" and "'The Dating buy love via romance novels, love love than just diamonds. Game" left off, hit shows like "The Before song c ompilation albums, dating the war between what we hold you even consider giving or sacred and what we are willing to Bachelor:· "The Bachelorette," services, personal ads, lingerie, manufacture, brand, and bargain wearing a ring, you have to find the "Joe Millionaire," "Average Joe," romantic comedy films, sex toys, for. And the truth is, it's a losing right person.And the masterminds "B!ind Date," "Elirnidate," "Who magazines, and more. And that behind internet dat ing want to help "Wants to Marry a Multi­ doesn' t include the abundance ofe­ battle. Millionaire?," "Who Vtants to solicitations that appear in our In a world of internet dating you. For a fee, services like and television marriages, love is match.com and love.com will allow Marry My Dad?," (are you inboxesevery day, inviting us to becoming decidedly less romantic. you to enter your specifications and exhausted yet'!) are changing the grow, augment, join, and other less-than-pure verbs , all of which But we first took the he art out of find the perfect mate. If you're the way America dates. Dating is no love long ago. In 1948, De Beers longer a private affair between two will make us more attractive to type ofperson who already knows what you' re looking for (no taller people, as millions of viewers tune others. For those of us looking for told us that a diamond is forever and we , blinded by the 14 sparkly than 6' 2" , no shorter than5'10"; a more conventional form of love , in each week and discuss around carats of a history-making PR perhaps 'Ille can find comfort in J­ the water cooler the next day. brown eyes, please; smokers need campaign, agreed. not apply; wanting to adopt Dating is no longer a personal Lo's heartfelt lyrics-provided, of In 1888, De Beers children), then you might as.weII matter as some shows give the c ourse, we can get past the glint viewing audience the power to speed up the Darwinian process from her $3 million 6.1 carat Harry Consolidated Mines, Ltd. was created to capitalize on the and get on with the virtual determine the romantic fates of the Wmstonpink diamond engagement lovelorn. Dating is no longer ring. enormous diamond mines that had matchmaking. recently been discovered in South romantic as cameras zoom in on HatZJtah is a senior at This is more than a niche Africa. Before 187 0, diamonds first kisses and microphones market - some people are getting Emerson Co!kge, and doesn't rich off of other people's desire for arnplifythesweetnothing,s. No, were truly a rare commodity; the watch as much TVas one might only known sources were in the romance. Singles looking for love dating is not what it used to be. assume. Reprinted from the riverbeds in India and the jungles of spent over .$300 million on online Reality television has made it Febmary 2004 issue of Vl'hat's personal ads in 2002. weird, perverted, voyeuristic, Brazil. After the South African Up, Baston. mines were discovered, De Beers Why are people so willing cynical,clicM, and profitable. to put themselves on sale in People question the reality quickly monopolized the g loba I industry and organized a massive advertising campaign in an effort to maintain the now mythical perception that diamonds are precious and scarce, and thus maintain a high market value. Much has been written about "conflict diamonds" or "blood diamonds;' detailing the horrific labor and human rights abuses that characterize the diamond industry. Despite the controversy, 85 percent of American women own a piece of diamond jewelry. The industry's advertising campaigns consistently and effectively portray the diamond as themostmeaningfulexpress ion oflove and devotion. Considering the fact that diamonds serve an entire ly utilitarian purpose (industrial precision-cutting) and have little intrinsic monetary value, and that the diamond industry has managed to maintain its extraordinarily high prices all these A wire wall Sculpture, 1821 Race Street, Findlay Market in Over-the-Rhine years, it's a.Jmost bizarre that we Berta's Art Corner STREETVIBES April, 2004 Editorial Page 17 �Handling of Huntington Meadows a Crime by Brian Garry "high level." It's the black church against the black people. It's the black church against poor people. Where were those churches during the whole scandalous, criminal, and planned closing of Huntington Meadows? This community of people surrounded their churches. The churches should have stood up for the residents. Search the newspapers and see if there are any quotes from these pastors (Ed. Note; The former Huntington Meadows housing complex was closed last year and low-income tenants were moved out. New condominiums are planned with neighborhood churches taking the lead in development of the site.) In Huntington Meadows we have black on black crime on a "standing up for" their defenseless neighbors in need. Now the churches are pawns in the hands of politicians and "developers" that are part of a racist and classist plot to rid the city of poor and black people. Our city council said that they "had no money" for the former residents, yet they have 13.5 million to wreck it down and build expensive single family houses? The closing of Huntington Meadows was criminal, as will come out the in lawsuit filed in federal court. The deal with the churches developing the area is hypocritical at least. These churches did not stand up to fight the immoral closing of Huntington Meadows and they are now reaping the benefits ofthis hideous mass eviction. Show me a quote from that time period from one of those pastors advocating that the people not be kicked out of their homes. The church should protect the rights of the poor, not stand on their backs to climb up the economic ladder. A Broken Promise: the limits of work in the new economy by Timothy Harris A recession, the old joke goes, is when your neighbor is out of work, but when you lose your own job, that's a depression. So what happens when one in four full time workers often has to choose between rent, food, and utilities, and at least that many more are excluded from the economy altogether? That's when the joke really stops being funny. Two recent books offer an fresh look at the demise of the American Dream. Beth Shulman's The Betrayal ofWork examines the trend toward low wage work and how all of us, in the long run, pay the hidden costs. Keeping Up with the Dow Joneses, which describes the growing equality gap, the burgeoning prison state, and the system of workfare, is more ambitious but ultimately over-reaches. Its critique of neo-liberalism offers less of a unifying theme than a long list of things we' re against. It is this tone of "we leftists" against the world that undermines this book's appeal. The Betrayal ofWork, on the other hand, begins with the common sense notion that a fair day's work should draw a fair day's pay. While this hasn't been the case for at least two decades, the problems of low wage work, says Shulman, go far beyond the minimum wage. Benefits in the low wage service sector are mostly non­ existent. The work is often demeaning and dangerous with management by intimidation being the norm. There is little to no flexibility to deal with sickness, childcare, or family problems. Little training or chance for advancement is available. Shulman brings what could be a dry policy discussion to life with by allowing three workers to speak for themselves. Single mom Linda Stevens once dreamed of being a business lawyer, but now stmggles to raise a daughter while working full­ time in a food court and part-time as a clerk. "I work hard," she says. "I take care of my customers. But I feel like I'm being stabbed in the back. The owner keeps telling me that we are family. But this is no way to treat family." Janitor Flor Segunda supports a disabled husband who is only able to work occasional day labor and three children on $6.00 an hour. She has worked for the same employer for six years. Bob Butler sharpens knives at a poultry processing plant. At $8.20 an hour, he is one of the factory's most highly compensated workers. "They care about the chickens more than us," he says. The Betrayal ofWork makes three arguments for a more just economy: Low wage work is not just somebody else's problem. We all pay because society subsidizes low wage industries by picking up the social costs of widespread poverty. Similarly, we all benefit by low wage work in ways that are deeply unfair. A moral society does not maintain cheap prices in the midst of affluence at the expense of the most desperately poor. Finally, bad jobs do not have to remain bad jobs. The manufacturing sector was filled with lousy jobs as well before organized labor created the 40-hour week, benefits, and the family wage. There is no reason, she argues, that the service industty cannot be unionized as well. In fact, this is the only strategy likely to yield results. The service sector needs to organize, and the more privileged middle-class needs to move beyond single-issue fragmentation to support the stmggles of the working poor. The alternative is a never-ending race to the bottom in which we all lose. Keeping Up With The Dow Joneses documents a divided society as well, where the growing gap between rich and poor is buttressed by a system geared to profit for the few at the expense of the many. Author Vijay Prashad unites the attack on organized labor, the expanding prison-industrial complex, and the rollback of welfare that was completed under the Clinton administration under the rubric of neo-liberalism. The book veers from the overly general to the weirdly specific. For example, Prashad takes the militant Kensington Welfare Rights Vendor: 70 cents Printing and Production: 30 cents Union to task for not having a "program for the transformation of the state." This sort of sectarian squabbling, however well meant, is probably interesting to a couple dozen people, and no one - outside of those few who have actually used the phrase "this historic juncture" in the course of casual conversation - cares what they think. Real social transformation requires a broad­ based movement that has appeal beyond the left ghetto. If practical program is what you're looking for, Shulman offers specifics. Where Prashad merely instmcts us to "build socialism," the final chapter of Betrayal of Work offers a "Compact With Working Americans." This includes policy recommendations as broad as strengthening the right of workers to organize and as specific as expanding the Earned Income Tax Credit. While much of the platform goes well beyond what mainstream Democrats would now support, it's amazing what can happen when enough people shove hard in the same direction. Reprinted from Real Change Where Your Dollar Goes .. . The Streetvibes program maintains a minimal overhead cost so that our vendors can keep as much of the proceeds as possible. Please call our office at 421-7803 for more information about the program. Many thanks for your support. Streetvibes exists as a forum for the expression of the views and opinions of our readers and supporters. The opinions expressed herein are not necessarily those of the Streetvibes staff or the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. STREETVIBES April, 2004 Editorial Page 18 �FRAC-Food Research and Action Center News One of the most disturbing and extraordinary aspects of life in this very wealthy country is the persistence of hunger. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) reports, based on a national U.S. Census Bureau survey of households representative of the U.S. population, that in 2002 , 11.1 percent of all U.S. households were "food insecure" because of lack of resources. Of the 12.1 million households that were food insecure, 3.8 million suffered from food insecurity that was so severe that USDA's very conservative measure classified them as "hungry." Since 1999, food insecurity has increased by 3.9 million individuals: 2.8 million adults and more than one million children. In 2002, 34.9 million people lived in households experiencing food insecurity, compared to 33.6 million in 2001 and 31 million in 1999. See FRAC's analysis of and a link to the full report: Household Food Security in the United States, 2002 Definitions: What Do Hunger and Food Insecurity Mean in the United States? Very simply, hunger is defined as the uneasy or painful sensation caused by lack of food. When "hunger in America" is discussed, people are referring to the recun-ent and involuntary lack of access to sufficient food due to poverty or constrained resources, which can lead to malnutrition over time. In some developing nations where famine is widespread, hunger manifests itself as severe and very visible clinical malnutrition. In the United States hunger manifests itself, generally, in a less severe form. This is in part because established programs help to provide a safety net for many low­ income families. While starvation seldom occurs in this country, children and adults do go hungry and chronic mild undemutrition does occur when financial resources are low. The mental and physical changes that accompany inadequate food intakes can have harmful effects on learning, development, productivity, physical and psychological health, and family life. STREETVIBES New phrases have emerged over the last two decades to describe the widespread but less severe hunger problems we typically face in the United States. Food security is a term used to describe what our nation should be seeking for all its people ­ assured access at all times to enough food for an active, healthy life, with no need for recourse to emergency food sources or other extraordinary coping behaviors to meet basic food needs. In a nation as affluent as ours this is a readily achievable goal. EDITORIAL: EFFECTS OF FOOD INSECURITY ON PATIENTS (American Academy of Family Physicians, March 1, 2004) In this editorial David H. Holben of Ohio University College of Health and Human Services and Wayne Myles of Ohio University College of Osteopathic Medicine, discuss the role physicians can play with patients who may suffer from food insecurity or hunger. The editorial suggests ways in which physicians can determine if a patient experiences food insecurity or hunger, the effects food insecurity and hunger have on health and development, and which federal food assistance programs physicians can refer patients to if a patient is thought to be experiencing food insecurity or hunger. http://www.aafp.org/ afp/20040301 I editorials .html#3 TEXAS AGRICULTURE DEPARTMENT REVAMPS RULES ON WHAT FOODS SCHOOLS CAN SERVE TO STUDENTS (US A Today, March 4, 2004) The Texas Depaitment of Agriculture released new regulations for school food service to reduce the fat and sugar content of foods eaten by students at school. The regulations include limiting the number of times foods such as French fries ai·e served, limiting portion sizes (e.g., 12 oz limit on soft drinks), and the sugar/syrup content of foods such as flavored milks and canned fruit. In August 2003, Texas Agriculture Commissioner Susan Combs banned "foods of minimal nutritional value" from Texas elementary schools and during lunch time at middle schools. The new rules will affect some 4.2 million school children. These regulations will go into effect in August 2004 at schools that participate in the National School Lunch Program, School Breakfast Program and After School Snacks. http:// www.usatoday.com/news/health/ April, 2004 2004-03-04-school­ nutrition_x.htm The link to the regulations is: http:// www.agr.state.tx.us/foodnutrition/ policy/food_nutrition_policy.pdf BERKELEY, CALIFORNIA MIDDLE SCHOOL STUDENTS GROW, PREPARE OWN MEALS (New York Times Magazine, March 7, 2004) On the campus of Mm.tin Luther King Jr. Middle School, in Berkeley, California, students grow and prepare their own school lunches, getting a "seed to table experience" that reinforces the connection between the earth and the food we eat. The program is part of the "Edible Schoolyard" program inspired and led by Alice Waters, organic chef and owner of Berkeley's Chez Panisse restaurant. Waters hopes that these predominantly low- to middle-income students will learn about the food they eat and consume more fruits and vegetables. http:// www.nytimes.com/2004/03/07 I magazine/07WATERS .html (free registration required) REPORT FINDS THAT PUBLIC ASSISTANCE DOES NOT COVER BASIC EXPENSES FOR MICHIGAN FAMILIES (Grand Rapids Press, Grand Rapids, MI, March 8, 2004) A study by the Michigan County Social Services Association, designed to measure the buying power of people receiving public assistance, found that families enrolled in TANF and food stamps ended up about $900 short each month when trying to cover basic expenses. These expenses include rent, utilities, food and transportation. The 2004 Market Basket Survey found that a family of three needed to pay $1,733 in basic expenses each month, more than twice what the average family receives in benefits. http://www.mlive.com/news/ statewide/index.ssf?/base/news-3/ 1078440003205080.xml NORTHWEST INDIANA FOOD PANTRY OFFERS ETHNIC FOOD CHOICES, SERVICES TO SPANISH­ SPEAKING CLIENTS (Times, Munster, IN, March 11, 2004) The Village Food Pantry in Valparaiso, Indiana staited a weekly Spanish Food Pantry on Fridays in order to assist Spanish­ speaking clients by serving them staple foods from their native countries (e.g., pinto beans, rice, com flour and jalapenos). The Spanish Food Pantry also assists FRAC News families in obtaining benefits like food stamps, health care and other services. The food pantry is also working to translate its client paperwork into Spanish. The first Spanish Food Pantry night was attended by 21 percent of the pantry's regular clientele. http:// nwitimes.com/aiticles/2004/03/ 11/news/porter_county/ fa546ff4355c93318625€Je540006re04.txt NEW HAMPSHIRE STATE LABOR COMMISSIONER URGES LEGISLATORS TO RAISE MINIMUM WAGE (Portland Press Herald, Portland, ME, March 9, 2004) Labor Commissioner James Casey tried to salvage a bill that would increase New Hampshire's minimum wage to $6 an hour, pointing out that, at $5 .15 per hour, the state's minimum wage is at least $1.10 below all other states in New England. Casey said that an increase would be "the right thing to do, the compassionate thing to do." He also noted that no other New England state "has reported higher unemployment as a result" of a minimum wage increase. An estimated 31,000 workers in New Hampshire earn minimum wage. http://news.mainetoday.com/ apwire/D8 16E9GG2-67 .shtml WISCONSIN FOOD PANTRY SEES INCREASE IN NEEDY PEOPLE (Wisconsin State Journal, Madison, WI, March 8, 2004) The St. Vincent de Paul Society food pantry in Madison has seen a significant increase in the number of needy people. The number of clients at the pantry has increased 35 percent in one month and more than 20 percent over the previous quarter. According to society director Ralph Middlecamp, the reasons for the jump in need are because many people who were working two jobs to get by have lost one in the slow economy, and an increasing number of Chicago residents ai·e moving to Madison. "Chicago is undergoing some hard times economically, and the city is also tearing down some of its housing projects," Middlecamp theorized. http:// www.madison.com/archives/ read.php ?ref=wsj : 2004:03 :08:345387:FRONT To subscribe to the weekly FRAC News Digest go on the web: http://capwiz.com/fraclmlml. Ben Winter Food Research and Action Center (202) 986-2200 x3019 phone (202) 986-2525 fax Email: bwinter @frac.org Page 19 �$1 Donation Need Help or Want to Help? Mt. Airy Center 661-4620 Volunteers of Amer. 381-1954 Ifyou need help or would like to help please call one of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless members listed below. SHELTER: Both Anthony House 357-4602 (Youth) Caracole (AIDS) 761-1480 Friars Club 381-5432 Drop Inn Center 721-0643 Haven House 863-8866 Interfaith Hospitality 471-1100 Lighthouse Youth Center (Teens) 861-1111 St. John's Housing 651-6446 ~~fulle~RS: Women and YWCA Battered Women's Shelter 872-9259 (Toll Free) 1-888-872-9259 Bethany House 557-2873 Salvation Army 762-566 O Welcome Hse. 859-431-8717 Women's Crisis Center 859-491-3335 HOUSING: CMHA Excel Development Miami Purchase OTR Housing Net. ReSTOC Tender Mercies Tom Geiger House SHELTER: Men City Gospel Mission 241-5525 Garden St. House 241-0490 Joseph House (Veterans) 241-2965 St. Francis/St .Joseph House 381-4941 TREATMENT: Women First Step Home 961-4663 Full Circle Program 721-0643 Formed in f984, The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a membership organization. Our member groups serve the homeless through emergency shelter, transitional living facilities, permanent housing, medical services, social services, soup kitchens, and mental health/addiction services. The Coalition also consists of individual citizens who want to take an active role in ensuring that Cincinnati is an inclusive community, meeting the needs of all of its citizens. Join the fight to end homelessness; contact the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless at (518) 421-7808, 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 ~ Greater ,Cincinnati Coalition For The Homeless a 721-4580 632-7149 241-0504 369-0004 381-1171 721-8666 961-4555 TREATMENT: Men Charlie's 3/4 House 784-1853 Prospect House 921-1613 Starting Over 961-2256 TREATMENT: Both NA. Hope line 820-294 7 AA Hotline 351-0422 C.CAT. 381-6672 Tai bert House 684-7956 Transitions, Inc 859-491-4435 VA Domiciliary 859-559-5011 DIC Live-In Program 721-0643 OTHER SERVICES: AIDS Volunteers of Cincinnati 421-2437 Appalachian Identity Center 621-5991 Beech Acres 231-6630 Center for Independent Living Options 241-2600 Churches Active in Northside 591-2246 Cincinnati Health Network 961-0600 Co mm unity Action Agency 569-1840 Contact Center 381-4242 Emanuel Center 241-2563 Freestore/ Foodbank 241-1064 Fransiscan Haircuts 651-6468 Goodwill Industries 771-4800 Coalition for the Homeless. 421-7803 Hamilton Co. Mental Health Board 946-8600 Mental Health Access Point 558-8888 Hamilton Co. TB Control 632-7186 Health Rsrc. Center 357-4602 Homeless Mobile Health Van 352-2902 House of Refuge Mission 221-5491 Legal Aid Society 241-9400 Madisonville Ed. & Assis. Center 271-5501 Mary Magdalen House 721-4811 rvlcMi cken Dental Clinic 352-6863 Our Daily Bread 621-6864 Peaslee Neighborhood Center 621-5514 Project Connect Homeless. Kids 357-5720 St. Vincent De Paul 562-8841 The Emergency Food Center 471-4857 Travelers Aid 721-7660 United Way 721-7900 VA Homeless 859-572-6226 Women Helping Women 872-9259 MIDDLETOWN/HAMILTON (Butler County) St. Raphaels (Food Bank/Soup Kitchen) 863-3184 Salvation Army 863-1445 Serenity House Day Center 422-8555 Open Door Pantry 868-3276 New Life Baptist Mission (Soup Kitchen) 896-9800 Hope House (Homeless. Families/Singles) 423-4673 treetvi BUY FROM BADGED VENDORS ONLY I Who Would Jesus t Bomb? Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 2004 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource April 2004 Subject The topic of the resource Homelessness Description An account of the resource Pg 1: Protesting the Iraq War- Around the Globe, Millions Gather on One-Year Anniversary Pg 2: Reader Mail Pg 3: Lesson on Vine Street Pg 4: April 2001 Did Cincinnati’s Civil Unrest Change City Politics? Pg 5: April 2001 Continued Pg 6: The Peace Village Pg 7: Proposed Federal Funding Will Devastate Voucher Program National Homeless Advocate Censored by Assistant Secretary of HUD Gray Dog Continued Pg 8: Homeless News Digest Pg 9: Keep the Faith and Never Give Up Pg 10: Out with the Old, In with the New… Pg 11: Mother’s Day Pg 12: Family Violence Option Campaign Builds Momentum Pg 13: Manifest Destiny Pg 14: Arts & Poetry Pg 15: Arts & Poetry Continued Pg 16: Editorial Pg 17: Buy Me Love Pg 18: Handling of Huntington Meadows a Crime A Broken Promise: The Limits of Wok in the News Economy Pg 19: FRAC Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Streetvibes Archive Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Streetvibes Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource April 2004 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Georgine Getty Andy Erickson Brendan Goodwin Mary Gaffney Elizabeth Linville Janice Faulkner Jimmy Heath Berta Lambert Mark Burke Anthony Dent Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Andy Erickson Anthony Dent Arts & Poetry Berta Lambert Brendan Goodwin Cincinnati Editorials Elizabeth Linville Federal Funding Food Research FRAC Georgine Getty Huntington Meadows Iraq Janice Faulkner Jimmy Heath Mark Burke Mary Gaffney Peace Village Protesting Reader Mail Vine Street https://streetvibesarchive.net/files/original/cc7f630cf802000d3101c4794820618d.pdf 636c4ce26d806e2868393d4765ae3bd4 PDF Text Text August, 2004 STREETVIBES National Voter Registration Day Held at Drop Inn Center Last month, the Drop Inn Center shelter in Over-theRhine, along with the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless and volunteers from the Community of Good Shepard participated in National Homeless Voter Registration Day. Ohio and 16 other states participated in the national event. Volunteers conducted the registration drive at the Drop Inn Center for clients and anyone else who needed to register to vote. With nearly 800,000 without a home on any given night nationwide, organizers are hoping to register tens of thousands. In the 2000 election it only took several hundred votes to affect the outcome in Florida. “With Ohio gaining attention in the national media as a major swing state this election year, it is important that homeless individuals, and other disenfranchised groups of people register and go out to vote on election day,” said a representative of the Homeless Coalition. “We hope that efforts such as this registration drive will help keep Ohio from becoming the ‘Florida’ of the 2004 election.” It is a common Mary Harrington (right) completes voter assumption that individuals without a permanent Whether a person is a minority, is poor, or does not have a address are restricted from voting, but under home, as an American citizen, the United States he or she has the right to vote. A voting residence is a Constitution, place that an individual returns every American citizen - without to on a regular basis. This can be a shelter that a resident stays regard to at frequently (even if it is only personal several days out of the month), property - has the right to vote. transitional housing, or an outside area (under a bridge). Many homeless Many homeless people, however, individuals who have felony while qualified records are also told that they to vote, are unable to register cannot vote. Only convicted felons who are in jail cannot due to the many vote. Those who have served policy and legal their sentences must simply rebarriers placed register to be allowed to vote. before them. registration card Georgine Getty, executive director of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless stated that, “A lot of times people think that you need a home to vote. This is simply not the case – voting is the right and duty of all citizens. This year more than ever people need to know that their voice counts, especially in this election, especially in this city.” There was an election type atmosphere at the shelter with bunting, balloons, and snacks for participants. The last day for registering for the upcoming presidential election is October 4th. by Jimmy Heath Artists, curators and critics argue that all art is political - the status quo is either reinforced, rejected or rendered invisible. Despite the current administration’s dismissal of the anti-war movement, more and more Americans are choosing to publicly declare their opposition to government policies. As American civil rights and basic freedoms come under increasing attack from within all levels of government, artists are raising their collective and individual voices. Artists are coming out with their own visions of dissent. In the old Mockbee Building on Central Parkway, over 100 artists gathered to display their art and speak to their truth about the war in Iraq, racism and violence in an art show first organized last year by Dr. Saad Ghosn, a professor of medicine at the University of Cincinnati and artist Eric Triantafillou. The 2003 SOS art show was such a success that they decided to make it an annual event. The show last summer featured almost 60 local artists. The Patriot Act, Cincinnati’s unresolved civil unrest and decreasing tolerance for dissent made Ghosn and Triantafillou want to continue to encourage artists’ social commentary. In addition to visual art, the programs included poetry reading, a panel discussion, music, plays, videos and movies. “Just the number of artists participating this year says something,” says Ghosn. Also an accomplished artist, Ghosn has several pieces featured in the show. “A true artist is someone who can see beyond the immediate. They can see in a pure way. Most schools don’t teach that, most galleries don’t let you do that.” photos by Jimmy Heath Art Examines Politics Triantafillou is familiar with the danger in making challenges that Dr. Saad Ghosn are political in nature. Last year banners were torn down. he displayed a banner on the “How do we keep it Essex Art Studio in Walnut going – this work – this Hills protesting suppression of spreading of ideas? Art civil liberties. An unidentified connects people and encourages person tore the banner down. them to participate. We need Triantafillou hung the banner people to put their heads up again, along with a second together in this way, for peace banner featuring an image of and justice,” said Dr. Ghosn. President Bush. Again, the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless �Streetvibes Streetvibes, the Tri­ State’s alternative news source, is a newspaper written by, for, and about the homeless and contains relevant discussions of social justice, and poverty issues. It is published once a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Becoming a Streetvibes Vendor is a great way for homeless and other low-income people to get back on (or stay on) their feet. Streetvibes Vendors are given an orientation and sign a code of conduct before being given a Streetvibes Vendor badge. All profits go directly to the vendor. The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a group of shelters, agencies and individuals committed to ending homelessness in Cincinnati through coordinating services, educating the public and grassroots organizing. GCCH Staff Georgine Getty - Executive Director Allison Leeuw - Administrative Coordinator Andy Erickson - Education Coordinator Elizabeth Linville - Civil Rights Coordinator Janice Faulkner - Receptionist Mary Gaffney - Receptionist Streetvibes Jimmy Heath - Editor, Layout and Design Photographers Jimmy Heath, Berta Lambert Cover Donna Gordon (left) completes her voter registration Streetvibes accepts letters, poems, stories, essays, original graphics, and photos. We will give preference to those who are homeless or vendors. Subscriptions to Streetvibes, delivered to your home each month, can be purchased for $25 per year. Address mail to: Streetvibes Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH) 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 (513) 421-7803 e-mail: streetvibes@juno.com web: http://homeless.cinci.com Page 2 Shaking the Money Tree by Jimmy Heath mean the bums down at City In spite of everything Hall? Was he making reference being closed on the Monday to the vagabonds in Cincinnati following July 4th, including government who try to squeeze the government, the banks, and every dime out of the public? most of downtown, the City of Did he mean the sophisticated Cincinnati decided to keep the panhandlers in suits who run downtown parking meters open our City? for business. Parking at The radio listening downtown meters is normally public fell for this stupid drivel; free on Sundays and holidays. all you had to do was take note What happened? of the remarks from callers to I don’t want it to seem the live broadcast. The attitude like I’m nitpicking here, and towards Cincinnati’s poor is not this isn’t really about some confined to the boardroom and lousy downtown parking government office or radio meters. For me, it is just station. It makes itself affirms the greed and apparent when the public misplaced priorities of a is provided an City government who opportunity to blame routinely turns a blind someone. (I’m sure if eye to poverty and the Wally’s tirade was homeless, but somehow Jimmy Heath directed toward city always manages to find a government instead of way to shake the money tree. the hapless “bums,” the But it got worse on that listening public would have Monday, July 5th. I made the jumped on that bandwagon mistake of turning on the radio too.) in my car, looking for the news I find it tedious and lame on the way to work. to blame everything wrong A local conservative under the sun on poor people. radio station spent nearly an Most of this nonsense is wornhour and a half spewing hate out and untrue, like the old about “bums” and panhandlers “welfare-Cadillac” fable. You in downtown Cincinnati. Wally, know the story - it’s where dirt the host of the show, was poor people take their meager perturbed by all the “rich bums” public assistance checks and making $80 a day begging from buy Cadillacs instead of taking the unlucky and fearful public. care of business. The irony was not lost on me. We have heard this Cincinnati city government sickening radio prattle before continues to be the biggest too; the same station last year panhandler around; bilking tax­ spent a week on a pretend paying citizens out of millions homeless round-up, with all the of dollars by subsidizing “hilarious” variations on the nefarious market-rate theme including luring “bums” development projects, parking with “40 ounce beers” and a garages and a billion dollar free one-way bus trip to the riverfront development. This is edge of the county. Outraged the same local government that citizens who called the station digs for quarters from parking were ridiculed and hung up on. meter revenues on a holiday Too bad those callers didn’t weekend. realize how much their Wally included in his indignation added entertainment low-brow tirade a description value to a cruel radio show of his recent trip down Main prank. Sadly, most of the Street and how desolate it was callers on both these occasions on a Saturday night with bars supported “eradication” of the empty and storefronts vacant. “bums.” That’s because people are sick So who do we blame for of all the bums, he said. Did he the City’s wretched disregard of the poor and the cruel public attitude toward the underprivileged? Is poverty simply the downside of capitalist policy and practice? Is this disregard a symptom of police brutality and racism? Is it ignorance, meanness or greed? Is it all of these things? No one wants to take care of the poor. It can be an ugly and depressing business. People who work in shelters and other places serving the poor are not getting rich on their career choice, and the work can sometimes be frustrating. But there are great joys in this work too, and that is why people give up their lives to it. The so-called “bums” are human beings, rich in life, character and spirit – we have much to learn from each other. As long as we degrade other human beings in order to feel better about ourselves or look for someone to blame for society’s ills we will never reach our potential as a human culture. It takes guts in this City to speak out for the poor, even if it is simply a matter of human decency. The City continues its quest to deny the existence of the poor. Yet many of the City’s ills are born from the mistreatment of the lessfortunate, trapped by poverty and a scornful popular media. Cincinnati was named one of the meanest cities in the country for its mistreatment of the poor and the homeless. No one who works close to the street is surprised by this characterization. Plans for a “vibrant” downtown have no room for poor people. The City struggles with a dying downtown. Many plans have come and gone over the years, with little thought given for the reasons why the City is a ghost town on weekends. I have to stop writing now so I can go feed the parking meter. I’d rather not pay the $14 parking ticket, but I will give the City their lousy quarter. Help STREETVIBES Celebrate 100 Issues! How has STREETVIBES touched your life? Streetvibes will soon be celebrating its 100th issue and nearly 10 years of publishing in Greater Cincinnati. Do you have a Vendor story or thoughts on this milestone that we could share with our readers? Do you have a favorite story from a previous issue? Please contact us at the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless, 117 East 12th Street, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 - or send us an email. We would love to hear from you! Streetvibes �36% of Cincinnati’s homeless once served our nation Who are the Homeless? Why are so many of our honored veterans on the streets? What can YOU do to help? I WILL DONATE: $20 $40 $60 $80 $100 $150 There are 25,000 people in Cincinnati that experience homelessness each year. Who are these individuals? 36% of the homeless on the streets of our community are veterans, yet only 13% of Ohio’s population are veterans. Why are so many of our past veterans living with no home? Here at the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless we are working to end homelessness for ALL individuals through education, advocacy and coordination of services. We are looking to find systemic solutions and real change that goes farther than the generous services our kitchens and shelters provide. This summer we are honoring past heroes, celebrating our freedom, and hoping for an end to the struggle overseas; let us not forget those who struggle here in our community this very day. Please consider a tax deductible contribution today and help create positive change in your city. Send your donations to Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 Streetvibes Page 3 �We Showed Up At The Table But It Felt Like We Were In The Wrong Room 3CDC Presentation of Plans for Washington Park at Over-theRhine Community Council, June 28, 2000 moved over and disregarded. We always see projects that serve the more affluent get more attention. The specifics of implementation are drawn up and seen on the page, money is found, and people in positions of power say, “Go by Bonnie Neumeier with our blessings.” Our Long Time Washington Park vision gets lost on the page. Resident of Over-the-Rhine It’s always hard to find When City Council resources and programs to abolished the Planning serve the poor and working Department of the City of class people, and especially Cincinnati it took away a public now at a time when our space and process to hear government is waging war in neighborhood concerns IRAQ. Bonnie Neumeier (center) at Cincinnati Public School Board meeting regarding neighborhood plans, We showed up at the at least a place we can publicly table, but it feels like we were there will be in their time, on broader area of Over-the-Rhine. voice challenges and concerns in the wrong room. We were You can’t just decide from on and hope for reconsideration. not in the room where decisions this planet, a time when they too can sit at the councils of high that something’s got to go Many residents and are being made about our choosing.” to make way for your plans neighborhood organizations neighborhood. The 3CDC has been busy without the people involved at again showed up at the table to I was fortunate to hear planning in rooms where we the “councils of choosing”. wrestle with developing a Dr. Bernice Johnson Reagon, a have not been invited. And we We need the continuum comprehensive plan for our long time activist and historian now are last on the list of of care from shelter to community, even though we had from the Civil Rights public bodies 3CDC has been permanent affordable housing a good plan of l985 that never Movement, founder of Sweet approaching to get approval of to be intact in this reached implementation. We Honey in the Rock on a Friday their plans for Washington Park neighborhood. If we believe in pour our hearts out and speak night (June 25th, 2004) when area, the sites for SCPA and diversity; both racial and with a diverse voice EVERY Cincinnati Women’s MUSE economic diversity, then we TIME, AGAIN AND AGAIN Choir sang her Liberty or Death Washington Park School, and about what we dream about and Suite for their spirituals concert designs for housing in the area. need to work harder at finding It feels like a template is ways that people in all our envision for our neighborhood COME STEPPIN’ IN already worked out and the grid diversities can co-exist. That (jobs with livable wages, FREEDOM’S NAME. We affordable housing is secure and schools with solid educational definitely need some steppin’ in is dropped on us from on high. And you come to us on the neighborhood organizations are programs, housing; both rental freedom’s name. The last song same night that the fate of not sacrificed for a vision that and alternative home ownership of the suite was entitled Rothenberg and Washington disregards their importance or models that we can afford, WHEN? WHEN? WHEN? Park neighborhood schools are disrupts their painstaking years green spaces that we can enjoy, Within her composer notes Dr. of commitment and service to neighborhood serving Bernice Johnson Reagon writes being decided upon at the Cincinnati School Board our neighborhood. We need businesses that we can work for about this song: “This is the meeting. I want to believe and concrete drawings and and shop in, services that we’ve question that is for all time resources for the low-income worked hard to develop and and any time you find yourself imagine a time when people in this city, particularly those housing piece of our that meet our needs and treat us a part of a society or a struggling at the bottom of the neighborhood plan. A lot has with dignity and respect.) community, but because of changed in the housing picture It always comes down to some bias or stigma, you watch economic ladder, are seen, are respected, are valued, are not in this neighborhood since City POWER, THE INEQUITIES as others take steps and move blamed for poverty and Council passed it June 26 th of OF POWER. Who has the through doors that are closed oppression. When will we be 2002. Market rate developers power to set an agenda and get to you. Even as we exercise seen as assets? need to be challenged to do the resources to support it? our right to choose, there are The beauty, the strength, affordable housing as well as The little people always get so many people waiting and the fierce determination to keep partner with groups who do stepped on, pushed out, and struggling and wondering if on keepin’ on in spite of affordable housing so that obstacles is astounding to me. affordable housing is not lost in There has been much work and the planning. Neighborhood development going on here over people need to witness progress the 30 plus years I’ve lived here on the affordable housing side through grassroots efforts. You of the equation. We need our cannot only hold up Music Hall public schools, Washington as the cultural anchor. Park and Rothenberg, to get as Neighborhood people identify much attention as SCPA. with many peoples’ Steppin’ in freedom’s name in organizations as anchors. You this neighborhood means justice cannot discount those needs to be had for the people organizations and decide their who’ve called this home for fate. We are fortunate to have years and want to reap the organizations like Drop Inn benefits of development in Center, Tender Mercies, concrete ways that serve our Emmanuel, ReSTOC in the interests as well. WHEN? Washington Park area, and WHEN? WHEN? WILL WE Jaylyn’s mother and sisters and brothers would like to thank everyone many other associations and SIT AT THE COUNCILS OF for all their prayers, gifts and all the nice things they have said. Thank people’s organizations in the CHOOSING? you! - Mr. Jaylyn Dudley, submitted by Julie Walker, Streetvibes Vendor Page 4 Streetvibes �Independence From Homelessness As I sit here at my desk by Mary Gaffney thinking about the meaning of Hi there, my Streetvibes Independence Day, celebrated readers and friends of the Homeless Coalition. Hope you with parades and picnics, I wonder what these words mean had an enjoyable Independence Day. I want to thank all of you to the homeless. Sitting here I saw the look on who purchased some of their Streetvibes last faces, of month. The disappointment program really when the job they helps our were so grateful vendors; it gives to have was taken then something away from them. of their own. One of my There are visitors lost his still some people job and on top of out there who that his pay has insult our been delayed. For vendors with Miss Mary Gaffney some reason he nasty remarks, didn’t even get but to those who are kind, I paid. You would be surprised thank you and may God bless at some of the personal you. problems my friends are confronted with and at times they feel they are at the end of their rope, and some don’t care anymore. I find time to talk with them, regardless of their problems. I have been asked why I always speak about my homeless friends in my column. They answer, I’m proud to say, is that I‘m around them five days a week. Even if they have had a rough time, a bad day, they always treat me with respect and courteousness. If you render kindness, you receive kindness. But to answer the question, I say, will always say, that these are my friends regardless of their circumstances. You cannot judge a book by its cover, and you may have to look more than one time. Still, you may have to stop and study what you read. It could be history, science, or whatever! It really made my day when I recently ran into three of my friends who I hadn’t seen in two years. They ran up to me calling my name! Ms. Mary! They told me they were working now. I had known them when they were homeless. At that time, they didn’t have a cigarette or anything! They had to sleep at the Drop Inn Center or Washington Park. Remember, it doesn’t cost anything to recognize someone, to smile at a stranger on the street. May God bless each and every one of you. Columbus Loses Major Shelter pressure building on The Open by Elizabeth Linville, Shelter, the shelter’s board Civil Rights Coordinator researched options for On Friday, July 1, relocation and other ways to Columbus, Ohio’s The Open continue providing services to Shelter closed to residents for homeless men. In May of 2000, the last time. According to its they were lucky to receive a website, The Open Shelter was donation of $450,000 that “the only ‘24-hour emergency allowed them to purchase the walk-in shelter’ for men in building located Central Ohio.” The on the Sciota shelter had been Peninsula which, open since 1983 and the board hoped, was unique in would provide Columbus for more stability and having no admission keep the shelter requirements for its open. residents. Unfortunately, Since the late The Open Shelter, nineties, The Open Elizabeth Linville like many non­ Shelter has profits, has faced financial struggled to keep its doors difficulties during the past few open. According to The Open years. Two years ago, it lost a Shelter’s website, in 1998 the majority of its funding and was City of Columbus created the forced to sell the building (to Sciota Peninsula Relocation Task Force to assist in the relocation of The Open Shelter from the Sciota Peninsula area, a prime location for development near the downtown area. With city the city of Columbus), sign a lease with the city, and cut its daytime hours. When the lease ran out last month, the shelter was finally forced to shut down. There is speculation that the prime reason for the loss of city funding which led to the shelter’s closure was the organization’s refusal to relocate to another area of Columbus. The Community Shelter Board (which administers city funding) sited the reason the shelter’s refusal to meet “community standards” as the main reason. These standards include clean bed linens, private areas for meetings between staff and clients, and a good relationship with the surrounding community. It is uncertain whether the shelter could have remained open if they had decided to relocate to another area of the city. The shutting down of this important shelter to central Ohio is a warning for us in Cincinnati. Currently, the development group, 3CDC, is working on a plan for the redevelopment of Washington Park. The Drop Inn Center, located so close to the park, will obviously be affected by this plan, although at the moment it is difficult to tell exactly how. The Open Shelter will remain a presence in Columbus, providing outreach and advocacy services for the homeless community, as it has throughout its existence. Homeless men across the city of Columbus will miss its primary mission: providing shelter Don’t be Squirrelly! Buy Streetvibes! Streetvibes Page 5 �Interview with Ernest Hubbell by Georgine Getty When I first met you, you were under the Clay Wade Bailey bridge (August 2003) with a whole bunch of folks. How have things changed since then? Well the coma. That changed my whole life. People started caring about me. You were in a coma? What happened? I was drinking and with my Diabetes, it caused a sugar back­ up. From sleeping outdoors I had Pneumonia and it all caught up with me. How long were you in the coma? About a week, but I stayed in the hospital for about two months. I had a tracheotomy. It was unusual. In the hospital, I had visions and dreams. I saw Jesus, but I had real bad dreams too. I felt like I was right in the middle of a chapter. Jesus told me he needed a friend. It was, like, real to me. Even when I came out of the coma, I was faced with the problem of “is this real?” The paranoia kicked in and I tried to escape. After I realized it was no longer a dream, I was o.k. But I kept seeing this Jesus guy. I thought I was going to heaven, but Jesus told me to be patient. What happened when you left the hospital? I met Sharon and Curtis (from PATH. PATH is a team of outreach workers who specify in clients with mental health needs – ed. note). They got a hold of Debbie (from Tender Mercies, which provides housing and individualized supportive services to homeless persons with histories of mental illness. – ed. note) and they got me into Tender Mercies within a week. And then I met Arnetta (Case Manager at Tender Mercies) and they welcomed me in and took care of all my needs. . . like clothes. And then there’s Sally. She took care of my hygiene needs. Bob’s been encouraging my rehabilitation and making me exercise. He makes sure I don’t forget appointments and is a personal friend. Ed makes sure we have food. All of the staff is so nice, they’re good people. John makes sure that you’re taken care of. If you have a complaint, he takes care of it. He tolerates everyone. He tolerates me, I’m paranoid, and he comforts me. Marcia (Executive Director) invited me to help get benefits (for Tender Page 6 Mercies) and talk to people and she welcomed me out there. That really made me feel like I was somebody. When I got there, I couldn’t walk, I was short-winded, obesity. They really took care of me. I work for Stacy now at the Commissary (inside Tender Mercies). She took me to the Golden Coral. Then there’s Miss Gales, the psychiatrist. She gets me medicine to help me sleep because of the nightmares and she never scolds me. They really care about me. The volunteers feed me. I’ve never gone hungry there. Ernie Hubbell How’s your health been lately? the Homeless Coalition is always I’m recuperating. It’s been better. I have Diabetes and I take there if I need to buy papers (Ernie is a badged Streetvibes medication for the pain and the vendor – ed.note). They don’t do sleepless nights. I have some mental problems with Depression services or anything, but they and Paranoia. I stopped drinking. were there with us under the I eat better and have a place to Hello My Name Is... sleep. I socialize with a lot of people now and I’m building my ...Ernie Hubbell strength back. Are you from Cincinnati? Half my life. I’m from Michigan originally but I plan to stay here the rest of my life. I love Cincinnati. What do you like about Cincinnati? There are caring people here. It’s friendly. I come from a cold town and the people here are very friendly. I’ve never met anyone in Michigan who would go up under the viaducts and try to bring people to programs like Tender Mercies. What are your hopes for the future? To manage my own life and begin to do things on my own. Hopefully I’ll get a part-time job when my legs heal up. I’ve been going to the Lord’s Gym and working to make my legs strong. The Lord’s Gym (corner of 12th and Race) is very special. I go to church on Thursday night for Bible Study. My preacher is Larry and his wife Carol are like a mother and father to me. If I need something, they always give it. They’re from the Vineyard church. What would you like the readers of Streetvibes to know? That the people at Tender Mercies are very special. If you have physical or mental problems, you can go there. If you need a nice church or anything, you should try the Lord’s Gym. Also bridge and stuck it out through the protest and they represented us in the courts. They spoke really well on our side. Thank you! Originally from Michigan, but a long-time Cincinnatian, Ernie became homeless a little over a year ago when his “money ran out and his job ran out.” He started drinking because his girlfriend left him. At first he lived with a friend, but then his friend got a girlfriend and he had to move out. At that time, he met the people who were living under the Clay Wade Bailey Bridge and joined them. Ernie was present during last summer’s bridge protest and followed the group into court where he observed the proceedings and lent his moral support. Shortly after, Ernie lapsed into a Diabetic coma that lasted a full week. He currently is recuperating and rebuilding his life at Tender Mercies in Over-the-Rhine. Streetvibes Letter... Dear Editor, I could hardly believe my ears! Now we are going to rebuild Fountain Square? Moving the Fountain a few feet to the center of the area? How many millions? The way we have money to blow on insignificant stuff you would think that everyone had a job, housing, ample food, health care, new bridges, enough police, resurfaced roads, etc! Mike Shryock, Madeira Newspapers are unable, seemingly to discriminate between a bicycle accident and the collapse of civilization. - George Bernard Shaw It’s amazing that the amount of news that happens in the world every day just exactly fits in the newspaper. - Jerry Seinfield Streetvibes 20 YEARS SERVING THE NEIGHBORHOOD Empowering our neighborhood children through peace, art and education Peaslee Neighborhood Center 215 East 14th Street Over-the-Rhine Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 (513) 621-5514 �A Letter To City Council About The Freedom Center Dear Councilman Smitherman, Thank you so much for extending to me a free invitation to view the Underground Railroad Freedom Center before its opening to the public. It is my understanding that proponents of the facility have already approached you requesting your vote for city funding of this Center. It was wise for you to tour the so-called Freedom Center with certain members of the community before committing to vote in favor of spending tax dollars to keep such a facility running in the future. It also provided me with an opportunity to develop an informed opinion as to whether or not this facility will live up to the expectations of the African American community. Thanks to your invitation, I have come to a reasonable conclusion. That conclusion is that the Underground Railroad Freedom Center is an extreme disappointment that will in no way satisfy our thirst for a building meant to commemorate, celebrate, and memorialize our struggle (and, indeed, continuing struggle) for freedom. The Underground Railroad Freedom Center - as it now stands - makes no effort to tell the whole truth regarding slavery, the racism that would have us slaves still, and the undying resolve of African Americans to fight against such bonds. It is totally devoid of any depiction of the murder, raping, and torture of our people. It leaves out the story of runaway slaves that were killed enroute to freedom, and it gives more than its proper amount of credit to white abolitionists, Abraham Lincoln, and the Civil War. An entire half of the museum is used to highlight the plight of freedom struggles other than our own (including mention of suffrage, the tearing down of the Berlin Wall, the Jewish holocaust, etc). The children’s section of the facility is actually more inspiring than the adult section. The whole thing is just an utter disgrace. It is my opinion that those responsible for what makes up the content of this Center (including and especially Mr. John Pepper) clearly want to present a story that will make white visitors comfortable notwithstanding any denial of the truth or betrayal of the African American community. In short, what has been marketed as a tribute to our struggle is in actuality a sugar-coated, white­ washed version of what we as African Americans have gone through and continue to go through. I personally left out of the Freedom Center more disheartened that when I went in. If African Americans in Cincinnati don’t respond with righteous indignation toward the belittlement of our plight, we are no freer than the original slaves who never dared to travel the Underground Railroad. I, therefore, urge you, Mr. Smitherman, not to spend a penny of City money funding what amounts to an insult and a lie. Yours in the Struggle, Amanda E. Mayes Co-Chair, Coalition for a Just Cincinnati Mr. Smitherman did not respond. The main problem with city funding of the Freedom Center is that whatever funds are earmarked for this facility will have to come at the expense of something else. I seriously doubt that those funds will come from the police budget or from money planned for other development on the Banks. This funding will likely come from the part of the budget set aside for city services in our neighborhoods (and especially those that aid the poor.) - Amanda 3CDC – What Is It? goal of raising $50 million in by Vera Zlatkin private sector capital to help As 3CDC reveals its fund Center City Projects. plans for the developing Over­ 3CDC will also work closely the-Rhine and the Washington with the Cincinnati Park area, more and more people are asking this question; Development Fund, a community development What is it? What is 3CDC? financial institution focused The Cincinnati Center principally on housing.” City Development Corporation The list of the 24 (3CDC) was created in July 2003. It is a private non-profit Board of Directors members of 3CDC reads like a page corporation whose initial focus from the Fortune Five is the implementation of Hundred CEO’s of development projects in three Cincinnati. The members are key areas of downtown, mostly made up of male white Washington Park, Fountain wealthy heads of Cincinnati’s New parking garage being built at Central Parkway and Vine Street Square, and the Banks on the largest corporations, such as riverfront. Company Joseph A. Pichler corporation, which makes it a Proctor and Gamble, Cinergy, The following leads the working group separate entity unto itself. That American Financial Group, and information was taken directly charged with development in means that it is able to make from the 3CDC website - http// The Kroger Company. The Over the Rhine. You will find decisions and to take action Chairman of the Kroger www.3cdc.org/. the entire list of the Board of without first getting the Capital and Operating Directors and their titles at the approval of City Council. How Funding above website. much power does 3CDC really “The city of Cincinnati The above information have? Will the general public has committed to invest $100 calls to mind a number of have any say in plans for the million over five years to questions and concerns, for development of our Downtown support Center City plan example how was this board areas? Will 3CDC continue as a projects. This amount is selected and by whom? corporation after the consistent with its historical Considering that one of the development is completed? If annual capital investment in members of 3CDC’s Board of so, what will their purpose be? City development projects. Directors is also chairman of In the meantime the Funds will primarily come from The Kroger Company which is displacement of disadvantaged Downtown and Over the Rhine receiving millions of dollars people continues and Tax increment Financing (TIF) from the city for the building of privatization; that is, corporate districts. In addition, Over the its Vine Street garage, is it control of public properties and Rhine is eligible for possible that certain city institutions is becoming the Empowerment Zone funds and officials have been making norm. Federal Community backroom deals that will allow The phrase, “Knowledge is Development Block Grants. Big Business to determine Power” may be trite, but it is The private sector will public policy? true. create the Center City Vera Zlatkin 3CDC is a private Development Fund, with the Streetvibes Page 7 �The Peace Village enthusiasm for teaching about peace for disabled people. We did posters in ways that are most unusual in that those who could not speak in any language I could understand made clear to their helpers what they wanted to be written or drawn on the cardboard. Suddenly, it was clear, and powerful, and energizing. “We want our rights, our FULL rights,” each poster said in one form or another. I hope sometime you get to meet Linda and her group. Recently, I have had the good luck to meet with about 50 young people who have agreed to use their summer as interns in the organizations that work with the poor, the hungry, the crazy, and the victimized. We met as part of a “reflection” activity at Xavier by Dr. Steve Sunderland I want to honor some people who are working for peace that is out of the spotlight, out of the glare of television, out of the minds of average citizens who read newspapers and watch television expecting that the reality of our community and world is adequately portrayed. Tracy Kidder, in his latest book, Mountains Beyond Mountains: The Quest of Dr. Paul Farmer, A Man Who Would Cure the World (2004). Random House, asks Farmer why he continues to make “house calls” in rural and mountainous Haiti when he could be back at Harvard teaching and doing research. Farmer explained: “”...people from our background—like you...like me—we’re used to being on a victory team, and actually what we’re really trying to do...is make common cause with the losers. ...We Dr. Steve Sunderland want to be on the University. The purpose of our winning team, but at the risk of turning our backs on the losers, no, meeting was to give each person a chance to draw their most powerful it’s not worth it. So you fight the learning from their first four weeks long defeat.” Haitian people who are very sick matter just as much as of service in our poorest communities. Most of the youth Americans in the upper class, were from area high schools, public Farmer is saying to an audience of and parochial, and from some of small and dedicated people who our colleges. Funded by the continue to work in conditions of Mayerson Foundation and staffed such meager resources as to shock by outstanding teachers, the youth anyone who has a sensibility of met with me to draw and talk. We caring. Why has Haiti been so shared about the reality of our thoroughly abandoned? The city’s profound neglect of the poor questions stares out at us like a and the ways in which each person candle on a desert, a pin prick that learned that simple and vital illuminates such a little part of the actions made a great deal of surrounding darkness about the difference. We saw and heard people and issues somehow about children who were as hungry surviving in the darkness of for food as they were for smiles, courage and anonymity. human contact, and someone to Linda Kunick is president of People First. Linda is one of the play with. We saw posters and heard stories about the need for most articulate peace workers I “patience” in listening to stories know even though she is learning and trying to make sense of them. disabled. She is working for the Stories from the poor indicated rights of people who have serious disabilities from cerebral palsy and some important trust placed in the listeners, a trust that each person other causes. Her organization’s did not want to abuse. “No matter mission statement proudly states: what you have done,” a poster with “We believe that all people with a person sitting in a chair covering disabilities should be treated as their head talking to someone equal and be able to speak up for sitting and listening on the floor, “I what they want. By serving as will respect and love you.” leaders and working together as a The posters were signs of TEAM with all members of the the dying of many Cincinnatians community.” Linda invited me to from the “normal” culprits of do posters with her group of 15 addictions, poverty, little useful people recently based on our parenting, and rejection. No one successful experience at a prior could look at the pictures and not meeting of disabled people. Linda want to ask: “Why do we want to is a peace maker with enormous Page 8 waste the talents of such impressive youth on these people?” Yet, if you could have been there, you would have heard the resolve in these young voices, seen the courage in their eyes, and saw another generation of activists who are on a journey neither their schools or their parents know a lot about. These young people know the victory of small acts of genuine caring. They do not expect anything in return as they know they are not in the “business” of caring. The lesson they have learned about our society is one that is priceless: the celebration of human happiness, caused, witnessed, honored and tenderly accepted, is the special gift, the inoculation of the potion of happiness that may yield the deep understanding of humaneness. There is a moment in the movie, “Gandhi,” when Nehru brings news to the fasting Gandhi that the violence against the police has stopped and that the people are putting garlands of flowers around the necks of the police. Gandhi, starting to cry, turns and says: “Perhaps we have gone overboard.” The humor breaks Nehru and he opens his heart of tears, too. This moment reminds me so much of Saad Ghosn, a Lebanese American peace worker, poet, artist, and professor of medicine at the University of Cincinnati. Looking into Saad’s face is to look deeply into his gentleness and his resolve that peace, like tears, is always ready to surface when the touch is right. Saad organized the second peace exhibit for artists of Cincinnati, encouraging the 100 or more artists to bring their finest work about peace. The art was shown in a semi-converted old factory that is now a series of two exhibit halls. Only minimal repairs have been finished and the art was placed everywhere on these old and hardened walls. Each weekend night and afternoon, poetry readings, musical offerings, and panels on some topic related to peace were offered for free. At the opening, the artists and those who wanted to hear descriptions of the art by the artist, walked the building. About 50-75 of us walked from painting to sculpture to television to hear, see, and welcome what each artist offered. I had come earlier in the day to put up some posters of mine and some posters from different projects I have facilitated plus a very large picture from Israel of a gigantic tank with balloons and flowers emerging from its turret. This picture was completed by six Israeli high schools students who had worked with Rabbi Kelman’s rabbinical students in one of the few Reform Jewish High Schools in Israel. It adorned the wall, fairly Streetvibes shimmering with joy and it was diagonally across from Saad’s harrowing works. It is very hard for me to imagine brutal presentations coming from such a gentle man. Saad has Gandhi’s beautiful open face, large soft eyes, and a voice that rarely is above a whisper. A little smile, impishly, is often on his lips as he shares such deep gratefulness for participating in this event. Yet, Saad knows violence and truth and drives the observer to the point of having to either face his work or turn away in shock and hopelessness. The theme of “innocence” is at the base of his work on display. One picture is split in two with the bottom part being the heads of little dolls hanging, dangling in the space he has let them fall to, while the upper part of the picture, above a platform with toy soldiers in black, he has three figures: Money, Power, and Religion. Seeing the doll heads is very difficult but nothing compared to the next picture. Here, is a large structure, we see the broken bodies of dolls, all painted black, and mixed together in a death pile that is too unbearable for me to look at for long. Saad has titled this work, “Turning Their Bodies Into Oil.” But artists cannot leave the battleground with only despair. There is the humor of the hanging sculpture of Bush riding a bomb like a cowboy riding a bull that leaves us laughing. And, there is the remarkable beauty of so many paintings of the dead that seem to imply that maybe, just maybe they are sleeping a simple and acceptable peace. I find the artist leading me into the picture to see what could have been if violence was not our culture’s choice and then, it is easy to see the beauty in the human form not touched by war, bullets, blood, and danger. The human form becomes an expression of love in all of its colors, now twisting to reveal the shape of the body in play, now showing the body extending a finger or toe to touch a loved one. There is more to life than war even though we are swimming in the polluted waters of it. Dr. Steve Sunderland, professor of Social Work at the University of Cincinnati, is the Director of The Peace Village, a group of individuals from the national and international community committed to examining all issues of Peace in the world. Dr. Sunderland also heads up Posters-for-Peace which engages people in expressing their visions of Peace, in their own words, through the creation of posters. �The Fourth Annual Public Forum on Homelessness THE IMPOSSIBLE WILL TAKE A LITTLE WHILE: Living and Acting with HOPE in Difficult Times Wednesday, October 13, 2003 8:30am to 5pm Franklin County Veteran’s Memorial Wayne Brehm Room 300 West Broad Street, Columbus, Ohio Presented by The Columbus Coalition for the Homeless In Partnership with The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless, Otterbein College, The Columbus Metropolitan Area Church Council & The Interprofessional Commission of Ohio Featuring PAUL LOEB as keynote speaker This forum will focus on advocacy, through the work of volunteers and professionals, for the needs of marginalized people - particularly those who are very poor and often homeless. The attendees will hear presentations by one of the country’s leading proponents of citizens living, acting and working for a more justice and equitable society for all people. “Paul Loeb brings hope for a better world in a time when we so urgently need it.” ­ Millard Fuller, founder of Habitat for Humanity For more information about Paul, see www.paulloeb.org Poverty – The New Slavery ibe s Streetvibes etv to subvert the possible improvements required by the working class. The vast majority of the upper class donates large amounts of both time and money to superfluous charities that look good on paper, and provide various write-offs, but do not make a valid improvement in anyone’s standard of living except their own. Though it may look good to save the ozone, or protect baby seals, or donate money to save the rain forest, what have you done for society? You donate money to political campaigns that promise to be tough on crime, and end deficit spending. In reality, you mandate a further separation of the classes. Very few rich people deal drugs. If you live in an environment where your only potential way to pay for the necessities of life are either a dead-end minimum wage job, or to break the law by selling drugs, what do you chose? Quite often those who choose the latter do not have an reading. Advertisements prey on the need for acceptance, by getting a new car, name brand appliances, specific soda pops, etc, until those who cannot afford these unnecessary items steal them. The drug trade is a violent world, and survival is a game with no true victors, only victims. Perhaps the time has come to look for a more rational approach in our dealings with each other. How many people subsist on wages that are inadequate? How many people live with no health insurance? How many jobs are being outsourced to foreign countries? How many times have you bought a pirated CD or videotape? Can you look in the mirror and honestly tell yourself it’s OK? Do you really think giving a person 25 to life in prison for a petty crime is justice? Feel free to drop me a line with your thoughts or ideas.... e Str by Gary Hallford, California State Prison Solano 6-140L PO Box 4000 Vacaville, CA 95696-4000 Whether you find yourself struggling to make ends meet on the street, working for a major corporation at minimum wage, or as an enlisted member of the military, one constant remains: it is virtually impossible to pay your rent, afford any form of public transportation, pay for medical care, to obtain competent legal representation in civil or criminal cases. Education above state mandated Minimums? Adequate job training to progress into a better lifestyle? Very unlikely... The sad truth in the matter is that with the exception of the air we breathe, everything costs money. Too many people in the middle and upper-classes consider the working class to be a drain on their continued supremacy, and act both publicly and privately education that provides any opportunity for advancement. This country’s prison system is full of under-educated poor folks that chose instant gratification rather than ethical conduct. Whose fault is it? Partly, it’s due to an education system that is a complete failure to the students, and the taxpayers. Some of the blame rests on the politicians that mandate maximum sentences ­ three-strikes laws - and remove functional programs that might possibly improve a former prisoner’s chance at success after release. Also, you have local political agendas that unfairly distribute tax dollars for the sake of road repairs and other needs, by using the prison system as the county’s population. (Lassen County, California has 30% of its population in prison.) And lastly, part of the problem is a lack of personal responsibility throughout society in general. From the President, down to the local junky, personal responsibility is at an all-time low. The point is, that this country has become totally deluded with the “gimmee, gimmee, gimmee” attitude. Too many young people are more adept at video games than Support Your Vendor Page 9 �More Than Just a Home by Charlotte Ruddy, Peaslee Neighborhood Center Volunteer. Countless times I’ve questioned the life I’m leading and whether I approach my days with the right mindset. It seems too easily that we loose sight of what really matters. Within a materially “privileged” environment I’ve come to realize just how naturally we get trapped in the rhythm of our own rat race. And what is essential to the heart, and to our very livelihood…the raw, wholesome, simple things…like compassion, laughter, and friendship, become overlooked by petty cravings, for bigger and better “things”, that are oh-so­ short-lived in their fulfillment. The “priorities” in my life have been under reconstruction for as long as I can remember. I found myself wavering through the tides of adolescence and the mass media’s misleading influences. However, with every new experience I’d encounter along my soul search, I tried to find a fresh perspective, a new outlook on life that would keep me attuned to the loveliness all around us. Even in our seemingly disoriented existence, I’ve always found it possible to uncover that ‘universal happiness,’ an uncomplicated sense of beauty, wherever I happen to be called upon. On a last minute’s notice this summer, I was blessed by the opportunity to escape from my middle class life, to serve needy Mexican families in a ‘colonia’ bordering Texas (where thousands come empty handed, with the hopes of crossing the border into the U.S.), with my fellow senior high youth group from Friendship United Methodist Church. Our objective was to demonstrate God’s love by providing two families with sturdy structures they could call home. However, going into this trip, not only could I not foresee just how crucial our material resources are needed around the world (that we take for granted and consume so carelessly), but Page 10 even more gravely, could I not imagine how much joy and beauty there was dancing through a community, referred to by many as the “underprivileged”. I’d had experience working within underserved communities before, however as we traveled across the border to Mexico we’d enter into an unfamiliar level of poverty. From first glance one could find the dirt roads, dust whipping through the Photos by Charlotte Ruddy air, undomesticated dogs roaming free, trash layering demonstrated through our the earth’s surface, and the expressions of a deep desire to homes…made of recycled offer our help and for these families to graciously receive it. With the language barrier (Spanish vs. English), we became fully engaged in our universal behaviors…such as smiling, waving, playing with the children, and showing kindness and gratitude. These are essential elements in any environment, in any setting. The two families, whom we were building homes for, were living with minimum resources; i.e. lack of drinking water, no plumbing or electricity, and little access to food. However, these basic needs never appeared to get in their way of the small joys of the day, such as watching their children play and enjoying a tasty plate of beans. My group’s family consisted of a mother, Sara, who was probably in her mid thirties boxes, borrowed wood, and and her 3 year old daughter, truck tops. It could be hard to Celina. Celina, who was find beauty in land that looked rambunctious and friendly, with so hungry for life, like trying to her twinkling eyes, lift hopes in a war zone. was the force However, this drawing the youth disheartening perception was group and her radically revitalized as soon as family together. we came in contact with the While we worked people; saw their smiling faces, on their new home, their loving embrace for family, Sara stood at the and their appreciation for door frame of their everything life offered them…a temporary shelter joyfulness unknown to me. It and attentively, was so beautifully simple, like patiently watched life was intended to be. With us, while her tender, open arms, they accepted daughter, Celina, us into their community, even would tease us and though we were foreign in their play, just as any humble eyes. And so, with each other high spirited, day of straining physical labor cheerful child. also came an emotionally, Most of our day intimate time of building was spent relationships. hammering nails Although we came from into boards to practically worlds apart…the create the walls of core of our existence was their home. As the faithfully the same. This was week progressed, Streetvibes not only did we see the house take shape but also we saw an unspoken bond between the volunteers and this family. It’s hard to explain how you can be so attached to people we’d only known for one week. Even though in the end, this simple structure we built for this family was just sturdy walls, a tar roof and a linoleum floor…what was created was much, much more. What I learned from this experience was that what we considered some of the “essentials” of life are not always necessary to finding joy in a day. Meals shared with the family, a piggy back ride for Celina, a smile shared with Sara all made us celebrate the human spirit and our brief time together. I hope that I continue to carry their passion for life in my heart. This life lesson they gave to me was just as great, if not greater, than what we left for them, the permanent shelter they now call home. �Homeless News Digest Compiled by Patty Lane The Salvation Army in Flatbush, New York, wants to help house the homeless by building them a place to live. According to the New York Times, the Army wants to build a nine-story, 117-unit shelter but residents groups have been protesting the project for months. Their biggest argument: the facility is too big for the area and fear it would unfairly tax local resources. “There isn’t a ninestory building in the community. So the largest building in our community is going to be a homeless shelter,” State Senator Kevin Parker tells the Times. He says he has received hundreds of letters from angry residents. In June he sent a letter to Mayor Bloomberg to oppose the shelter. Alfred Peck, the Salvation Army’s director, describes Flatbush as an ideal location for the shelter. “The reality is that this is a family shelter, providing services for other New Yorkers who have fallen on hard times,” he says. The plan calls for the Salvation Army to occupy the shelter under a nine-year lease. Opponents are calling for a moratorium on shelter construction and a focus on lowincome housing. Police and homeless advocates are hitting the streets and back alleys of Oakland, California after a series of vicious beatings of local homeless people, one fatal on those living on the streets. KTVU reports a 52-year-old victim died after a weekend beating. He may have been sleeping when a group of unidentified men assaulted him at a makeshift campsite. Other homeless people witnessed the attack. “It is pretty cowardly for a group of people to viciously attack an obviously defenseless person,” Sgt. Bruce Brock tells KTVU. “He was a completely innocent victim.” The man died from a blunt force trauma. Two weeks ago, three local teenagers were arrested for severely beating a homeless man with a board. At least two other victims have been hospitalized from recent attacks. Witnesses told police that the suspects in the most recent death were between 16 and 20 years old and did not live at the encampment. As the city of Calgary grows, so does the number of people living on its streets. An indepth survey of the Canadian city revealed a total of 127 people on the street. Research shows overall growth is at 49-percent (for a total of 2,597 people). Of those, 77 percent were male, 23 percent female, and there were more than 100 families. Lack of affordable housing is a problem, and so is government funding cuts, according to Alderman Bob Hawkesworth. “The fact that the province canceled housing programs in the early nineties in my view has been a contributing factor to the growth of homelessness,” he tells CFCN. Homeless agencies are calling on the government to step up funding for low-cost housing, increase the assured income program, and raise Alberta’s minimum wage. Commissioner Addie Greene, who led the effort to open the center. But not everyone is convinced this will solve the homeless problem. “It’s not a perfect solution,” says Lisa Lickstein, a volunteer coordinator for the project. “It’s a comprehensive program with broad-based support. It’s a nice start.” Life could get tougher for New York City’s homeless population as the Republican National Convention heads to town in late August. Service providers fear searches and requests for ID will keep many of the city’s homeless from obtaining free food, clothing, and even a place to stay and pray. “They’re basically going to shut us down,” Mary Bivona, case manager with Catholic Charities, tells the weekly City Limits. Planned street closures and security checks will cut off the homeless and low-income clients from essential services. Between West 31st Street and West 33rd, from 7th to 9th Avenues pedestrians will need a “business related purpose to enter,” according to the mayor’s office. Providers have been meeting to discuss the problem. Some solutions include distributing homeless ID cards, providing more shelter beds, or opening up city parks for sleeping. “It’s going to look like pretend, make believe,” a 55-year-old homeless man tells the Weekly. “Like, ‘Oh, we don’t have homeless people here; we take care of our own.’ It’s all bull#*@%.” Lynn Lewis, co-director of the advocacy group Picture the Homeless, says she’s concerned about their rights. “We are primarily concerned about making sure that people’s civil rights and liberties are not trampled on,” she says. “Let’s have some common sense. There are a lot of homeless people here; they’re not going to evaporate.” A new action plan is being drafted in Newark, New Jersey to help find homes for the area’s homeless. The Newark Advocate reports this comes the morning after volunteers conducted a late-night count of the homeless under bridges, at rest stops, and along alleyways. Members of the Licking County Housing Initiative found at least 66 people sleeping in unsheltered areas, like cars, on porches or anywhere they could find a makeshift roof. “This is not a problem that will go away,” housing coordinator Jonda Clemings tells the Advocate. “This is a problem that we will deal with one step at a time.” Time allotted for each person to stay in a shelter is limited, and the cycle of finding a permanent home begins again. Executive Director Debbie Tegtmeyer says they need a more detailed plan to offer to help people gain permanent housing. Advocates drafted plans to help both families who need homes and those who are homeless and have a substance abuse, mental illness, or other debilitating problem. Possible action plans include outreach and emergency, transitional, and permanent supportive housing. New plans, like finding quality childcare for homeless parents who have jobs and need baby sitters, and providing transportation for homeless people who find jobs and need to commute, are also options. Palm Beach County will open a 12-bed assessment center in October allowing homeless people in need of emergency assistance to receive care right away. The emergency assessment plan will provide them with medical care, diagnoses, and referrals to other programs for additional help. Of the estimated 4,000 homeless in Palm Beach County, close to 500 live on the streets and 263 need emergency housing. “It will provide same-day access to a bed,” Sheila Smith, executive director of the Palm Beach County Homeless Coalition, tells the Post. “Oftentimes, it Berta’s Art Corner... takes days to get a Over-the-Rhine waterfall, detail of mural in dead-end alley bed, and by that just off north side of Elder Street, between Race Street and time it’s too late for some people. Goose Alley They get lost.” Members from the group presented their plan to county commissioners recently. “Once the county commission sees the success of it and the county sees the success of it, a lot of people are going to step up to the plate and we’ll be able to build a facility like the one in Miami,” says County Streetvibes Page 11 �Streetvibes Vendor Code of Conduct About the Greater Cincinnati All Vendors Sign and Agree to a Code of Conduct Coalition for the Homeless and Report Any Violations to GCCH - 421-7803 1. Streetvibes will be distributed honest in stating that all profits go Streetvibes.... This program has helped for a $1 voluntary donation. If a customer donates more than $1 for a paper, vendors are allowed to keep that donation. However, vendors must never ask for more than $1 when selling Streetvibes. 2. Each paper purchased from the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH) costs 30 cents. Papers will not be given out on credit. Old papers cannot be traded in for new papers. 3. Streetvibes may only be purchased from GCCH. Never buy papers from, or sell papers to other vendors. 4. Vendors must not panhandle or sell other items at the same time they are selling Streetvibes. 5. Vendors must treat all other vendors, customers, and GCCH personnel with respect. 6. Vendors must not sell Streetvibes while under the influence. 7. Vendors must not give a “hard sell” or intimidate anyone into purchasing Streetvibes. This includes following customers or continuing to solicit sales after customers have said no. 8. Vendors must never sell doorto-door or on private property, unless given permission from the owner of that property. 9. Vendors must not deceive customers while selling Streetvibes. Vendors must be to the individual vendor. Vendors must not tell customers that the money they receive will go to GCCH or any other organization or charity. Also, vendors must not say that they are collecting for “the homeless” in general. 10. Vendors must not sell papers without their badge. Vendors must present their badge when purchasing papers from GCCH. Lost badges cost $2.00 to replace. Broken or worn badges will be replaced for free, but only if the old badge is returned to GCCH. 11. Streetvibes vendor meetings are held on the first weekday of the month at 1pm. The month’s paper will be released at this meeting. If a vendor cannot attend the meeting, he or she should let us know in advance. If a vendor does not call in advance and does not show up, that vendor will not be allowed to purchase papers on the day of the meeting or the following day. Five free papers will be given to those who do attend. 12. Failure to comply with these Rules and Regulations may result in termination from the Streetvibes vendor program. GCCH reserves the right to terminate any vendor at any time as deemed appropriate. Badges and Streetvibes papers are property of GCCH, and must be surrendered upon demand. The mission of the North American Street Newspaper Association (NASNA) is to support a street newspaper movement that creates and upholds journalistic and ethical standards while promoting self-help and empowerment among people living in poverty. NASNA papers support homeless and very low-income people in more than 35 cities across the United States and Canada. Streetvibes Vendor: 70 cents Printing and Production: 30 cents Page 12 The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH) was formed in May of 1984 for one purpose: the eradication of homelessness in Cincinnati. What started out as a coalition of 15 volunteers meeting weekly in an unheated church basement has since grown into a Coalition of over 45 agencies and hundreds of volunteers dedicated to improving services for homeless individuals, educating the public about homelessness and empowering homeless individuals to advocate for their civil rights and housing needs. Streetvibes is a tool of GCCH used to help us achieve our goal of ending homelessness. On the one hand it is a self-sufficiency program geared towards the homeless and marginally housed individuals who are our vendors. Streetvibes vendors buy the paper for 30 cents per copy and sell it for a suggested one-dollar donation, keeping the profit that they have earned. hundreds of people find and maintain housing. The vendors also sign a code of conduct stating that they will behave responsibly and professionally and they proudly display their official Streetvibes badge while selling the paper. Our vendors put a face on “the homeless” of Cincinnati and form lasting friendships with their customers. On the other hand, Streetvibes is an award-winning alternative newspaper and part of the international street newspaper movement. Focusing on homelessness and social justice issues, Streetvibes reports the often-invisible story of poverty in our community. Streetvibes is also proud to include creative writing, poetry, articles, photography and interviews written by homeless and formerly homeless individuals. Streetvibes enjoys a loyal reader base that respects the honest portrayal of the joys, sorrows, and challenges facing the people of Cincinnati. Streetvibes is a member of the: The International Network of Street Papers (INSP) unites street papers sold by homeless and people living in poverty from all over the world. INSP is an umbrella organisation, which provides a consultancy service for its partner papers and advises on the setting up of new street papers and support initiatives for marginalised people. Where Your Dollar Goes... The Streetvibes program maintains a minimal overhead cost so that our vendors can keep as much of the proceeds as possible. Please call our office at 421-7803 for more information about the program. Many thanks for your support. Streetvibes Help STREETVIBES Celebrate 100 Issues! How has STREETVIBES touched your life? Streetvibes will soon be celebrating its 100th issue and nearly 10 years of publishing in Greater Cincinnati. Do you have a Vendor story or thoughts on this milestone that we could share with our readers? Do you have a favorite story from a previous issue? Please contact us at the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless, 117East12th Street, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 - or send us an email. We would love to hear from you! �Peaslee’s 20th Anniversary, December 14th, 2004 by Bonnie Neumeier It was a dream-filled day, December 14th, 1984. Everlene Leary and Kathleen Prudence (two of several mothers of children at Peaslee when it closed as an elementary school in spring of l982) stood on the porch of Peaslee surrounded by community supporters, and handed over a check to buy the former school so that the neighborhood could keep Peaslee as an educational resource in Over-the-Rhine. Three years before, the community had fought to keep Peaslee as a neighborhood school. We lost that fight, but these women and their supporters had turned defeat into victory. The Board of Education finally sold the building to the Peaslee coalition to develop it for the community. We finally had the keys of hope in our hands. When anniversaries come around, it’s important to lift up and honor the valiant effort that women with the support of the Over-the-Rhine community and a broad based coalition from around this city waged in order to liberate Peaslee for the people’s use. It’s important to remember our strong roots and continue with that spirit and resolve. Each new dawn we wake up and commit ourselves to breathing life into the programs and possibilities that Peaslee holds for our neighborhood. We carry on by respecting and understanding deeply the story of our roots. This spirit needs to live in our bones. On this journey we need to learn how to integrate new challenges, energy, and possibilities, never forgetting the founding story and what neighborhood women made possible and why. We were clear from the very beginning that Peaslee would approach education differently and that Jerry Lawson, school board member, handing over the keys to Kathleen neighborhood persons would Henson - board member Everlene Leary is on the Peaslee porch also. always be a part of the glad that we are celebrating the got my identity here.” decision making. We want This sense of power 20th anniversary. When I think programs that encourage and within contributes to the back, I never thought about support people to claim their possibility that people beauty, their strength, and their having a 20th anniversary. We collectively can claim their made it! We are still serving voice. We believe we can be sense of shared power here in the neighborhood. That’s actors and creators of our own important because we fought so Over-the-Rhine. With this history. We do not have to be shared power we can dream big hard to get Peaslee. This was victims to poverty and my first time getting involved in and spread our sense of truth, oppression. We want Peaslee peace and justice, not only in always to be about finding ways anything. I stay involved our own neighborhood, but because I like what we are to support people in building beyond into the world. their own sense of pride, power doing here. Sometimes when THANKS FOR you go to Peaslee and see the and accomplishments. I asked children’s faces, those faces Everlene Leary about this STANDING WITH US make you want to keep on upcoming importance of OVER THE YEARS… going. I found my voice here at Peaslee’s 20th birthday. She IN SOLIDARITY WE Peaslee. I was always proudly declared: ALL CAN TAKE PRIDE somebody’s Mom, Danny’s “We are continuing to IN OUR UPCOMING wife, and I found my self here serve children and at Peaslee. I got a name now. I 20th ANNIVERSARY. neighborhood people. I’m just CBS Slants the Voucher Debate by FAIR-L (Fairness & Accuracy In Reporting - Media analysis, critiques and activism) http://www.fair.org/activism/ cbs-vouchers.html On its June 28 broadcast, CBS Evening News debuted a new campaign feature called “What Does It Mean To You?,” an attempt to contrast John Kerry and George W. Bush’s positions on major issues. But the first installment’s discussion of public school vouchers presented a slanted view on a very controversial topic. The report began by profiling Catherine Hill, a grandmother raising her brother’s seven-year-old twins. As correspondent Byron Pitts explained, “For three generations, she believed in public education, raising her children, grandchildren and a host of relatives’ children in the same neighborhood school where she volunteered. But times have changed.” Pitts explained that Hill is now taking part in a voucher program in Washington, D.C. that “would give some 1,600 public school students the opportunity to go to a private school on a $7,500 voucher.” He continued: “But the future of any federally funded voucher program will depend on who voters choose in November.” As Pitts explained, Bush favors such vouchers programs, while Kerry does not. CBS then aired brief comments from a public school principal in support of increasing public funding for schools. The report made little effort to be balanced, giving significantly more airtime to the voucher-supporting grandmother (nine sound bites) than to the anti-voucher principal (two sound bites). But worse, the CBS report presented no real information about voucher programs. Instead, viewers were left with a choice: either vote for Bush and support a grandmother who wants better for the children in her care, or side with Kerry and the school administrator. As Pitts put it at the close of the report, “As for Mrs. Hill, she says the voucher program won’t just give her children a choice... It will give them a chance.” In place of such emotional appeals, CBS might have included evidence on the academic benefits of vouchers— benefits that research show have been mixed, as a 2001 General Accounting Office survey concluded (Associated Press, 10/1/01). CBS might also have looked more seriously into D.C.’s voucher program. As the Washington Post reported earlier in the month (6/11/04), “The D.C. voucher program did not receive enough applicants from public schools to fill all the slots available, and some of the children who will receive the federally funded tuition grants already attend private school, officials said yesterday.” Surely there are substantive questions to be Streetvibes raised about a program that is attracting few applicants among its intended population. Pitt’s suggestion that public school students could go to private school “on a $7,500 voucher” is misleading. According to the liberal group People for the American Way, half of D.C.’s private schools cost $10,800 or more per year. With a maximum voucher amount of $7,500, private school attendance would still be out of the reach of many lowincome families. (For more, see: http://www.pfaw.org/pfaw/ dfiles/file_230.pdf) It is refreshing to see CBS devote attention to serious campaign issues that separate Kerry and Bush. But if they really intend to show viewers “what it means to you,” they will need to be more informative and even-handed. CONTACT: CBS Evening News Phone: 212-975-3691 email to:evening@cbsnews.com Page 13 �The Other Side of the Desk HOPE Free Troy Pitts & Michelle Whyte Life is becoming short and by Anonymous hard, Have you ever thought just a nights are cold and long. wee little bit, No where to go, no where to Of how it would seem to be a sleep, misfit, And how you would feel if you I’m feeling death beneath me. Crying out for help, had to sit, but no one’s around. On the other side of the desk? Sad and alone.I feel like going home. Have you ever looked at the Will someone Hear, Listen, man who seemed a bum, As he sat before you, nervous— Open up their Heart Cause living on the streets is dumb— tearing me apart. And thought of the courage it Finally I hear a Voice come took to come, from Above, To the other side of the desk? Telling me to Stay positive and Have you thought of his dreams that I’m Loved! Reaching out for his Hand, that went astray, right then, I have to take a Of the hard, real facts of his stand. every day Before I sleep I say my Prayer, Of the things in his life that Hold my head up high: make him stay, On the other side of the desk? I Pray to God to let Me live because I ‘ve got to stay Did you make him feel that he positive was full of greed, I Pray to God to let me Stay Make him ashamed of his race Strong, or creed, Ask for forgiveness for what Or did you reach out to him in I’ve done wrong. his need, I Pray to God for Better Days, To the other side of the desk? cause now I see the Err of my Ways. May God give us wisdom and Look Up, Stay Focused, lots of it, Be Strong and of Good And much compassion and Courage! plenty of grit, Blessings and Peace be upon So that we may be kinder to You those who sit and All People You Reach. ON-THE-OTHER-SIDE-OF­ THE-DESK. I was deep into bondage, And the master was me. I sought out destruction, And from this world to be free. I was ruled by my fear, And I ran from the pain. The pain of existence, In a world that’s insane. I covered my feelings, I chose to forget. I was numbing myself, With a drug that was wet. I fell deeper and deeper Into an abyss, a black hole. I was quenching my spirit, And I was selling my soul. But then I hit bottom, And in the mire I was stuck. I was all out of excuses I had run out of luck So I bowed down my head, And I tried hard to pray. But my mind was blank, I knew not what to say. And then I cried out, From the depths of my soul. Oh dear God up in heaven, I now surrender it all. Then He answered me gently, With a tear in his eye. I have been waiting so long, From your heart, to me cry. Now He wakes me each morning, And He guides me each day. If I yield to Him all, And don’t stand in His way. Sands of Time My Inspiration by Jeff Branham by Jeff Branham Remember how so all alone, we always used to feel. With the lights all on, but no one at home, when the torment was much to real. We always said that we didn’t care, that we were slowly dying. But when the pain was just too much to bear, We realized that we were lying. We took ourselves to the ultimate low, where we can stay no longer. And after the emotional flood had had its flow, we knew that we must get stronger. But now a brand new happiness, can be both yours and mine. And all the things we can afford to miss, will be lost in the sands of time. The things of which I write about, are the things within my life. From the joyfulness that makes me want to shout, to the pain that cuts like a knife. From the love that is void and unrequited, to the love both sure and true. From being overwhelmingly excited, to the morbidity of feeling blue. Things such as the way things used to be, and things that have touched my soul. These are the things that are dear to me, in this way, my story is told. This is the way that I feel a part, as I write without reservation. I write down what is inside of my heart, for this is my inspiration. Page 14 by Bob Jones He has given me directions, And a reason to be. I’m blessed with a spirit That’s happy, joyous and free. Now each morning I kneel Thanking Him from my heart. For the salvation He’s given A re-birth, a new start. And each night I look back, And I speak to His Son Saying: Thank you Dear Lord, For another day that is done. SLOW DANCE Have you ever watched kids On a merry-go-round Or listened to the rain lapping on the ground? Ever followed a butterfly’s erratic flight Or gazed at the sun into the fading night? You better slow down Don’t dance so fast Time is short The music won’t last. Do you run through each day on the fly? When you ask “How are you?” Do you hear the reply? When the day is done, Do you lie in your bed With the next hundred chores running through your head? You’d better slow down Don’t dance so fast Time is short The music won’t last. Ever told your child, We’ll do it tomorrow And in your haste, not see his sorrow? Ever lost touch, Let a good friendship die ‘Cause you never had time To call and say “Hi”? You’d better slow down Don’t dance so fast Time is short The music won’t last. When you run so fast to get somewhere You miss half the fun of getting there. When you worry and hurry through your day, It is like an unopened gift.... Thrown away... Life is not a race. Do take it slower Hear the music Before the song is over. I seek only the knowledge, Of His divine Will for me. And the power to carry it out, To help others and be free. Streetvibes Writers! Submit your Poetry to STREETVIBES ­ Streetvibes@juno.com �Against Culture Unfinished Business Will the new advances in technology that herald the new millennium bring with them greater understanding? Did the Microwave oven herald the end of world hunger? Have they found a pill that will uplift the human heart? No, the miracle that always saves mankind is the one described in the miracle of the loaves and fishes from the Bible. In these times when greed is, indeed, not only justified, but celebrated, it is even a greater miracle when people find it in their hearts to share. In those times, we discover that our true wealth is that heart which, when we open it up, we find, is limitless. And our true poverty, is, certainly, our endless clutching at those things which will disappear before our very eyes, those things which, at the time of our last breath, will reveal themselves as being, truly, without substance. The Bullet I tried to domesticate the bullet, To take her with me to school, To teach her the alphabet And have her speak. But she is made of black clay And stuffed with canned blood. I tried to domesticate the bullet, To take her to the water-spring, To the fields of dew. But she has consumptive lips That love to kiss the lips of death To rummage our wreck And blow ashes in our eyes by Warren Perkins You are not who you listen to You are more than your issues Your skin color is not who you are You are more than your genes. More than the sum of your parts More than part of a whole Time changes 1/4 and 2/5 have no power Everything is the same 1/4 of something is a whole upon itself You are complete You are more than your race You’re more than your ethnicity You have a ship You are the Captain Heed the Call by Robert Manassa Hush – Someone’s calling your name If you don’t listen, then who’s to blame? The fault is yours and yours alone. He’s been calling since the day you’ve been born. It’s not the voice of a neighbor or next door It’s the voice you’ve heard before Why won’t you hear? Could it be ‘cause of the word, fear? Can’t Go Home KNOW THY SELF Jewel D. Wilks A person who knows not And knows not that they know not Is foolish—disregard them A person who knows not And knows that they know not Is simple—teach them A person who knows not And believes that they know Is dangerous—avoid them A person who knows And know not that they know Is asleep—awaken them A person who knows And knows that they know Is wise—follow them All of these persons reside in you Know Thy Self And to yourself be true. You don’t have to suffer anymore By now we should know Someone died on the old rugged cross That someone is Jesus He settled the score Heed the Call. Shutter Speed by Mecello Barrar Lord, why am I walking your streets at night? Did you know that homeless days started with a homeless night. Rain pouring down on my head, but where can I go? I know one place where I cannot go, and that’s home for sure. Cause for some reason they wanted me gone. Will tomorrow be a better turn? Cause I can’t go home. This homeless life can’t be true. Whatever happened to my life? How did it ever come to this? Wasn’t poor nor either rich. I be down on my knees just asking the Lord to please give me a place to sleep. People looking at me like I’m dirty because I’m all on the street. Living in boxes and buildings make what I can to feed the children. Wife die 2 years ago. Hard to explain to my baby boy that mama won’t be back No more, And we can’t find a place to call home Can’t find a job And we forced to be gone. Lord, all I ask of you is to open the hearts of all your children. Make them help one another. Stop looking down at my kind, and give just a little change. Before it’s somebody in their lives living this homeless life... by Jimmy Heath I tried to domesticate the bullet, To lead her to the truth, To wash her copper with perfumes And replace her gun powder with sweets. But she refused to be unlocked, And remained dripping pus, With poison in her breath. Iraqi poet Owl in the City, downtown Cincinnati Streetvibes Page 15 �Surge in Homeless Families Sets Off Debate by Leslie Kaufman In small cities like this one and big ones like Kansas City, Mo. and New York, families are knocking on the doors of homeless shelters in growing numbers. Inside a faded yellow-brick Victorian on a block near downtown here, dozens of families know of the increase firsthand. Behind the front door, the 11 rooms of the Landon House Shelter are packed with homeless parents and their children, often exceeding the 48-bed capacity and requiring the staff to roll out cots. In the communal kitchen, someone is always cooking, and the refrigerator has eight different gallons of milk. Children wander in and out screaming for peanut butter and jelly bars and fruit punch boxes. Behind the house is a courtyard where mothers gather to smoke while the children run in circles. “We are always full,” said Darlene Johnson, executive director of the shelter. “Pretty much bursting out of the seams.” With its rents near record highs and wages stagnant, this wind-swept Plains city of 60,000 about 60 miles northwest of Minneapolis has seen the number of families requesting shelter climb by 45 percent in the last decade, to an average of 124 families a night. The number of homeless families in Minnesota tripled to 1,341 in 2003 a night from 434 in 1991, when the state first started conducting surveys every three years, and most of the last increase came in rural areas like this one. And Minnesota is not alone. It is hard to count homeless families, because by their very nature they drift from relatives to shelters to friends’ homes. The nationwide count most often cited comes from the Urban Institute, a research group in Washington that surveyed homeless assistance providers in 1996. It found that at least 1.4 million children and 2 million adults were homeless, but that number has surely grown as cities like Columbus, Ohio; Philadelphia; St. Louis; and New York have all reported surges at their homeless shelters for the last two or three years. Some experts on homelessness say the numbers are growing because of the widening gap between low pay and high rents. But others say the federally built homeless shelter system, which helped pay for welcoming surroundings like the Landon House Shelter, has become too attractive for poor families to resist. Federal officials, who do not dispute the national growth in homeless families, say both theories appear to have merit. But they say the lack of consensus on the precise cause makes it hard to deal with the increase. “In places where good data is kept, it is clear that the numbers of homeless families are increasing,” said Phil Mangano, executive director of the White House Interagency Council on Homelessness, the federal agency that coordinates government programs related to the homeless. But a lack of hard research, Mr. Mangano said, has prevented the Bush administration from advocating any solution, even as the government has begun efforts to reduce chronic homelessness among single men. “It is an urgent problem,’’ he said, “but we have learned that an ad hoc reaction may make it worse.” Family homelessness first emerged as a national problem in the mid-1980’s. After a public outcry over the wretched conditions endured by many such families living in crumbling converted hotels, President Ronald Reagan in 1987 signed the McKinney Act, which gave states money to build emergency shelters and help such families. In the years since, billions in federal dollars have financed an explosion in the number of such shelters. In 2003 alone, the federal government spent $1.3 billion on more than 3,700 local programs that run shelters. Yet the demand for such beds has hardly slaked. Some liberals have expressed concern that these shelters have done little more than hide a shameful epidemic from public view, while conservatives have argued that they have become an expensive magnet for poor families who are unhappy with their living situations and are seeking government help. Yet, almost everyone agrees that the number of families knocking on their doors continues to swell. Kato, Street Newspaper Vendor (Buenos Aires, Argentina) Kato has been a vendor of Hecho en Beunos Aires for about six months. I’ve been living on the streets for seven years now, after losing my automobile spare parts business, which went under when the system began to punish the pockets of ordinary workers. First, people couldn’t afford cars for going to work and ended up using bikes and then the same worker was in turn replaced by a machine and ended up unemployed or on the streets. No one sells anything to anyone any more. This year there will probably be 15-20% more people on the streets as this present political system is awful. The socio-economic system destroys you as you have nothing basic - no flat, no job, no partner. Last year, I had a partner but the booze - cheap litre boxes of wine - always led to arguments. Drink and drugs do your head in and of course you become violent. The magazine has helped pull me away from booze, which I’ve been drinking since I was very young and left my family. The police used to be dangerous but now they’re better. In the old days they would take you from the plaza and stick you away for 24 hours, to hide you Page 16 from the public. Now the dangers on the street vary. In Buenos Aires there are lots of races and attitudes and it’s a place with little prejudice, but there are still problems of marginalization and aggression. People let themselves be sucked in to being excluded as they have no culture that tells them otherwise. The only culture they get is through media but the mass media are leading readers and viewers towards a kind of cult of ignorance and irresponsibility. What I see is that where there is culture, there is space for people to be accepted. But where it is missing, whether the person in question is a lawyer, doctor or street cleaner, people ignore you completely. Selling the mag is like when I had my own business as it lets me affirm something about myself. You can get a bag of food once a Streetvibes month- rice, pasta, beans, lentils, oil and nothing else. But to be honest food isn’t the main problem in Buenos Aires. The fast food places throw loads of food away and we collect it. Selling the magazine gives me more than just food and that is important. For more information, email Patricia Merkin at pmerkin@hechoenbsas.com. �Iraq Insurgency Larger Than Thought Contrary to U.S. government claims, the insurgency in Iraq is led by well-armed Sunnis angry about losing power, not foreign fighters, and is far larger than previously thought, American military officials say. That number is far larger than the 5,000 guerrillas previously thought to be at the insurgency’s core. And some insurgents are highly specialized - one Baghdad cell, for instance, has two leaders, one assassin, and two groups of bomb-makers. Although U.S. military analysts disagree over the exact size, the insurgency is believed to include dozens of regional cells, often led by tribal sheiks and inspired by Sunni Muslim imams. The developing intelligence picture of the insurgency contrasts with the commonly stated view in the Bush administration that the fighting is fueled by foreign warrior’s intent on creating an Islamic state. “We’re not at the forefront of a jihadist war here,” said a U.S. military official in Baghdad, speaking on condition of anonymity. The military official, who has logged thousands of miles driving around Iraq to meet with insurgents or their representatives, said a skillful Iraqi government could co-opt some of the guerrillas and reconcile with the leaders instead of fighting them. Even as Iraqi leaders wrangle over the contentious issue of offering a broad amnesty to guerrilla fighters, the new Iraqi military and intelligence corps have begun gathering and sharing information on the insurgents with the U.S. military, providing a sharper picture of a complex insurgency. “Nobody knows about Iraqis and all the subtleties in culture, appearance, religion and so forth better than Iraqis themselves,” said U.S. Army Lt. Col. Daniel Baggio, a military numbers squared with his spokesman at Multinational Corps headquarters in Baghdad. findings in a study of the insurgency completed in Iraq. “We’re very optimistic about One hint that the number the Iraqis’ use of their own is larger is the sheer volume of human intelligence to help root suspected insurgents - 22,000 ­ out these insurgents.” who have cycled through U.S.­ The intelligence boost run prisons. Most have been has allowed American pilots to released. And in April alone, bomb suspected insurgent safe U.S. forces killed as many as houses over the past two 4,000 people, the military weeks, with Iraqi Prime official said, including Sunni Minister Iyad Allawi saying insurgents and Iraqis supplied information “Nobody knows about Iraqis Shiite militiamen for at least and all the subtleties in fighting under one of those air strikes. culture, appearance, religion the banner of a radical But the better and so forth better than cleric. view of the Iraqis themselves,” said U.S. Guerrilla insurgency also Army Lt. Col. Daniel Baggio, leaders come from various contradicts a military spokesman at corners of much of the Multinational Corps Saddam’s popular Baath Party, wisdom about headquarters in Baghdad. including it. “We’re very optimistic about lawyers’ the Iraqis’ use of their own groups, Estimates of prominent the insurgents’ human intelligence to help families and manpower root out these insurgents.” especially tend to be too from his low. Last Military Bureau, an internal month, a former coalition security arm used to purge official said 4,000 to 5,000 enemies. They’ve formed Baathists form the core of the dozens of cells. insurgency, with other attacks Most of the insurgents committed by a couple hundred supporters of Jordanian militant are fighting for a bigger role in a secular society, not a TalibanAbu Musab al-Zarqawi and like Islamic state, the military hundreds of other foreign official said. Almost all the fighters. guerrillas are Iraqis, even those Anthony Cordesman, an Iraq analyst with the Center for launching some of the devastating car bombings Strategic and International Studies, said the figure of 5,000 normally blamed on foreigners ­ usually al-Zarqawi. insurgents “was never more The official said many than a wag and is now clearly car bombings bore the ridiculous.” “Part-timers are difficult “tradecraft” of Saddam’s former secret police and were aimed at to count, but almost all insurgent movements depend on intimidating Iraq’s new security services. cadres that are part-time and Many in the U.S. that can blend back into the intelligence community have population,” he said. been making similar points, but U.S. military analysts have encountered political disagree over the size of the opposition from the Bush insurgency, with estimates administration, a State running as high as 20,000 Department official in fighters when part-timers are Washington said, also speaking added. on condition of anonymity. Ahmed Hashim, a Civilian analysts professor at the U.S. Naval War generally agreed, saying U.S. College, said the higher and Iraqi officials have long overemphasized the roles of foreign fighters and Muslim extremists. Such positions support the Bush administration’s view that the insurgency is linked to the war on terror. A closer examination paints most insurgents as secular Iraqis angry at the presence of U.S. and other foreign troops. Many guerrillas are motivated by Islam in the same way religion motivates American soldiers, who also tend to pray more when they’re at war, the U.S. military official said. He said he met last month with four tribal sheiks from Ramadi who “made very clear” that they had no desire for an Islamic state, even though mosques are used as insurgent sanctuaries and funding centers. “‘We’re not a bunch of Talibans,”’ Anthony Cordesman paraphrased the sheiks as saying. At the orders of Gen. John Abizaid, the U.S. commander of Mideast operations, Army analysts looked closely for evidence that Iraq’s insurgency was adopting extreme Islamist goals, the official said. Analysts learned that ridding Iraq of U.S. troops was the motivator for most insurgents, not the formation of an Islamic state. The officer said Iraq’s insurgents have a big advantage over guerrillas elsewhere: plenty of arms, money, and training. Iraq’s lack of a national identity card system ­ and guerrillas’ refusal to plan attacks by easily intercepted telephone calls - makes them difficult to track. “They have learned a great deal over the last year, and with far more continuity than the rotating U.S. forces and Iraqi security forces,” Cordesman said of the guerrillas. “They have learned to react very quickly and in ways our sensors and standard tactics cannot easily deal with.” Death Toll of U.S. Forces in Iraq Reaches 900 Last month a roadside bomb exploded north of Baghdad, killing one U.S. 1st Infantry Division soldier and bringing to 900 the number of U.S. soldiers killed in Iraq since the beginning of military operations in March 2003. Major Neal O’Brien of the 1st Infantry Division said the most recent soldier killed was on patrol in a Bradley fighting vehicle in Duluiyah, 45 miles north of Baghdad, when the bomb detonated shortly after midnight in late July. On the previous day, two U.S. Marines and two U.S. soldiers were killed in action in Anbar Province, a Sunni- dominated area west of Baghdad. A count by The Associated Press put the number of American soldiers killed since the war began at 900. Counts of the number of U.S. service members killed in Iraq vary, with some already exceeding the 900 figure. Streetvibes The Pentagon’s latest casualty update, put the death toll at 893 service members, plus two civilian Defense Department employees. There have been five military personnel reported killed since the last Pentagon update. Page 17 �FRAC News Child Care Subsidies, Poor Families, Face Uncertain Futures (“Child Care, Up in Smoke,” New York Times, July 8, 2004) The TANF reauthorization bill has stalled in Congress and along with it, provisions expanding child care assistance. Currently only 15 percent of eligible children receive federal child care assistance. Without child care help, low-income parents are at greater risk of losing their jobs and returning to welfare. The U.S. House of Representatives proposed only $1 billion in new money for child care in its welfare bill, which would have made the backlog worse by the end of the decade. But U.S. Senator Snowe of Maine got the Senate to raise the figure to $6 billion over the next five years. However, the bill is unlikely to move this year. States have already started dismantling their child care programs due to budget shortfalls and inadequate federal subsidies, turning away eligible children and cutting payments to child care providers. Public’s Opinion on Food Pyramid Sought (U.S. Department of Agriculture, July 2004) U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Ann Venemen announced that the public is invited to comment on the configuration of the new food pyramid, strategies to improve awareness about the food pyramid, methods to help consumers personalize the system, strategies to improve educational messages, interactive tools to illustrate the messages, and communication media for delivering the message. A public meeting is slated for August 19. The food pyramid is being revised along with the Dietary Guidelines. The final release of the new food pyramid and related customer material is set for early 2005. Medicare Calls Obesity an Illness and Opens Door for Coverage (“HHS Announces Revised Medicare Obesity Coverage Policy; Policy Opens Door to coverage Based on Evidence,” U.S. Newswire, July 15, 2004) In a change in Medicare policy, barriers to obtaining Medicare coverage for anti-obesity treatments have been lowered, announced HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson. The new Medicare policy classifies obesity as an illness. By law, Medicare covers “medically necessary services for illness and injury,” and prior policy specifically said obesity was not Page 18 an illness. The announcement allows the public to request Medicare to review scientific evidence to determine if a treatment related to obesity could be covered. program participation had increased 300% in the pilot schools. Approximately 80 percent of teachers reported fewer complaints of hunger from students in the pilot program. High Gas Prices Hit Poor Workers Hard (“For many lowincome workers, high gasoline prices take a toll,” Motorway News, July 12, 2004) With gas prices averaging $1.89 per gallon nationally, low-income workers are particularly feeling the effect. Poor workers often live farther from new jobs due to the location of affordable housing, have little access to public transit, and drive older, less fuel-efficient cars. Denise Quenneville drives 30 miles each way to earn $7 an hour, but must spend $23 in gas every two days to get there. For the working poor like Quenneville, the gas price hike amounts to “a palpable pay cut.” South Carolina: Church and State Link Raises Concern (“Government, churches work together,” Charleston Post and Courier, July 13, 2004) The government is recruiting churches for the fight against hunger in South Carolina. The state’s Department of Social Services (DSS), which administers the state’s food stamp program, established a Faith-Based and Community Initiatives office last year to enlist more churches to open food pantries and afterschool snack programs, or provide transportation to welfare­ to-work participants. DSS has turned to churches because budget cuts have left the agency with too few social workers. The Low Country Food Bank receives some of its food from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and distributes food to scores of churches. In turn, the churches often offer spiritual guidance. Critics are concerned about linking services and religious messages and say government should not cut funds to trained social service professionals. Summer Camps Offering Healthier Menus (“Kids’ summer camps clean up menus,” The State, July 12, 2004) Meals are getting healthier at summer camps. “Honestly, it’s better than the food I get at home,” said 15­ year old camper Gabe Wolff as he dug into a salad. Camps are responding to pressure from parents and public health officials who are concerned about childhood obesity. “Ten years ago a camp with a salad bar was an anomaly. Today it’s really the norm,” said Jeffrey Solomon, executive director of the National Camp Association. The move toward healthier menus helps camps stay competitive. As many as one quarter of campers demand vegetarian options. Camp counselors see a difference when children consume less sugar and caffeine. New York: School Breakfast Participation Up 300% in Pilot Program (“Academics & Breakfast Connection Pilot: Interim Report on New York’s Classroom Breakfast Project,” Nutrition Consortium of New York State, June 2004) A pilot program that serves free breakfast to children in their classrooms has been found to increase participation in the School Breakfast Program, and decrease student absenteeism, tardiness, visits to the school nurse, and disciplinary referrals. The Academics & Breakfast Connection Pilot (ABC) program was implemented at the beginning of the 2003-2004 school year in 19 schools in upstate New York by the Nutrition Consortium of New York State. The interim report on ABC found breakfast Minnesota: Economic Recovery not Affecting Growing Food Lines (“No summer vacation for hunger in Minnesota,” Workday Minnesota, July 13, 2004) Sue Kainz, a top official of Minnesota FoodShare, says that despite the claims of a growing economy, food shelf usage is still increasing around the state, mainly in suburban areas. Many working families with children are having a tougher time making ends meet, contributing to a fifteen percent increase over last year’s shelf usage. The demand is intensified during the summer because school breakfast and lunch programs are not available. Kainz remarks the end of school causes children to lose their “food safety nets.” San Francisco: Restaurants Accept Food Stamps (“Restaurants on food-stamp menu,” Sacramento Bee, July 4, 2004) Elderly and disabled food stamp participants who are unable to cook for themselves may now use their Electronic Benefits Cards (EBT) at participating eateries in the San Francisco restaurant meal program. In one recent month, San Francisco restaurants had 11,000 foodstamp transactions totaling roughly $58,000 in federal Streetvibes benefits. The program is the first of its kind in California, which now joins 18 other states with restaurant programs for seniors, disabled or homeless persons. Food stamp advocates support the program but also have concerns. “We’d hope you’d be able to get culturally appropriate foods,” said George ManaloLeClair, legislative director at California Food Policy Advocates. He also worries that, if people see food stamps used at fast-food eateries, it would reinforce a misconception that food stamp recipients are buying junk food. Rhode Island: Summer Food Demand Outstripping Food Bank’s Supply (“Low in the food chain,” Providence Journal, July 7, 2004) “We’re running out of food,” says Bernie Beaudreau, executive director of the Rhode Island Community Food Bank, which distributes food to 435 member agencies across the state. The Food Bank hit a record the past year, giving out 7.9 million pounds of food, an increase of 1 million pounds over the previous year. “I’m tired of eating cat food,” said one elderly man who asked for assistance at a food bank in Olneyville. The food shortage is partly caused by reduced donations from large supermarket chains. Working Poor Emerge as New Class (“Inside Story: America’s New Class,” Times Record News, June 27, 2004) A new class of American workers is emerging — what economists call the “working poor.” For the working poor, expenses caused by illness or a car repair can leave nothing to buy food, even with a full-time job. People are working more, but higher-paying jobs have been cut due to a poor economy. The expected new jobs are mostly low-paying. In Texas, one in two children live in or on the edge of poverty. They are not “poor like you see in the movies,” because they have electricity, water and food. But they may have gone without them the month before or the food may have come from a food bank. To subscribe to the weekly FRAC News Digest go to: http:/ /capwiz.com/frac/mlm/ For questions, comments, and news tips, please contact: Helen Yuen Food Research and Action Center 1875 Connecticut Avenue, NW Suite 540 Washington, DC 20009 (202) 986-2200 x3019 Email: hyuen@frac.org �Mass. Elderly Homeless Rate Jumps by Samuel J. Scott, BIGnews The number of elderly homeless people in the state has increased by 9 percent over the past four years, according to a study conducted by the Massachusetts Housing and Shelter Alliance (MHSA). The survey, which was conducted in February and released recently, found 1,077 elderly people living in emergency shelters, transitional housing and hospitals throughout Massachusetts. A 2000 study counted 938 people. “We need to expend every effort to ensure that no one’s ‘golden years’ have to be spent within the dependence and impoverishment of a homeless shelter,” said MHSA Executive Director Joe Finn in a statement. “The models to appropriately house these homeless elders exist. Let’s just do what it will take to make it happen.” MHSA’s survey found that 775, or 72 percent, of the homeless elders in Massachusetts live in the Greater Boston area. In addition, 38 percent of the elders counted in the survey are veterans; 7 percent were older than 70; 17 percent were women; 64 percent had a physical disability; and 51 percent suffered from a mental illness or disability. Je’Lesia Jones, a Politics vs. People by R.V. Murphy The two Americas that political pundits talk about both converged on downtown Seattle July 19-21. The National Governors Association held its annual meeting at the Westin Hotel. Corporate sponsors such as Microsoft, Nextel and Armgen picked up the $150,000 tab for the three-day event. Another America that included disabled and elderly people searching for better health care, political advocates, labor leaders, the homeless and the disenfranchised were meeting only a few blocks away at Westlake Park and Steinbrueck Park. Inside the Westin, speakers included former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich and Homeland Security head Tom Ridge. Those outside could hear Democratic presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich, one of the few Congressmen to vote against the US invasion of Iraq, The American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees’ Gerald McEntee, and John Boonstra of the Washington Association of Churches. On Friday night, interested parties could cough up $5,000 to share a steak dinner with six Republican governors at the El Gaucho. On Saturday morning, about 100 young people, some not even in college yet, gathered at Seattle Central Community College and marched down Capitol Hill to Westlake Park. Thirteen Seattle police escorted them on motorcycles, making a ratio of about one cop for every nine marchers. “We heard about [this march] on the Internet,” said one recent high school graduate, who didn’t want to give his name. “With what’s going on in Iraq, young people have to become spokesperson for the state’s Executive Office of Elder Affairs (EOEA), said “the report is disturbing because the elderly are our most vulnerable people.” “We are dismayed that homelessness is on the rise among the elderly,” she added. Jones said the reported increase came during a time when the state legislature had cut an EOEA program that helped find elderly people places to live. “Governor Romney requested full funding of the Elder Residential Assessment and Placement Program [for this fiscal year], but the state legislature refused his request,” said Jones. However, Charles Rasmussen, a spokesperson for House of Representatives Speaker Thomas Finneran, dismissed the charge. “I think it’s somewhat shortsighted to put all the blame on us like that because of a cut to one program,” he said. “We can’t spend money we don’t have.” In addition, Finneran is working on improving the economy and the availability of housing in Massachusetts, according to Rasmussen. Despite the budget cut, however, EOEA is still doing what it can to help homeless elderly people, according to Jones. “We will certainly do everything we can to come to their aid,” she said. The National Governors Association Annual Meeting active.” show his support). Those students joined The NGA Convention isn’t about 2,000 other activists at open to the public. Seattle Police Westlake Park. That group blanketed the block around the marched another half-mile, with Westin all weekend and all whoops, hollers and chants as marchers moved through preset they circled routes. NGA behind the spokesperson There was a large sign, Westin Hotel Christine on 6th LaPaille told “Billionaires for Bush, the best Avenue. The the Portlandparade based website president money can buy.” included indymedia.org dozens of that “NGA Another young lady dressed as events are AFSCME members in closed to the bright green t- if she were dining at Bill public because shirts, antiof security Gates’ private reception later George Bush concerns and signs almost because the that day held a sign reading, two numerous association is to count, and a private “Corporations are People assorted other organization colorful that exists to Too.” As she walked along she costumes. advocate Some exclaimed, “I’m a corporation. policy of the positions.” marchers’ While the Thank you for paying all my observations NGA admits dripped with other media, income tax.” irony. There Real Change was a large was turned sign, “Billionaires for Bush, the down for a press pass because it best president money can buy.” is an “advocacy newspaper” in Another young lady dressed as if the words of NGA press secretary she were dining at Bill Gates’ Jason Feuchtwanger. private reception later that day Organizations like indymedia held a sign reading, question the influence corporate “Corporations are People Too.” sponsors like Microsoft and As she walked along she Starbucks CEO Orin Smith, one exclaimed, “I’m a corporation. of the featured speakers, have Thank you for paying all my over the governors. income tax.” After the march, the scene The refrain of “Put People at Westlake was reminiscent of a First” (which happened to be the high school pep rally the night event’s sponsor) was often heard before the big game — though and pleas for a governor, any the “big game,” for many, will be governor, to come meet with the the November election. marchers went unheeded. (On Delivering the mantra that the Sunday, there was a breakthrough average person’s voice counts, in that regard as Pennsylvania Kucinich exclaimed, “You’re the governor Edward Rendell came state, you make it real. You make out to meet with members of it feel. You’re the people that Americans Disabled for Attendant build the roads.” Almost on cue, Program Today (ADAPT) and two people arrived wearing Streetvibes George Bush and Dick Cheney masks, wearing prison uniforms and a ball and chain attached to their feet. At times like this, the governors located just a few blocks away were practically forgotten. “I came down here looking for some literature on how to get rid of Bush,” said Joanne Brown, a Seattle resident. “I was looking for some literature about what’s really going on. Not what the media portrays.” In 1991, when the first George Bush was in office, Brown had two jobs including one as a hostess in a Smith Tower restaurant. Until recently, she’d been homeless. She has grown to be highly skeptical of those in power. “Bush said that Iraq wasn’t going to be another Viet Nam,” she said, holding a sign that read “Bush Must Go.” “I never thought it would be until he said it. She said she plans to become more politically active. After the Westlake affair began to wind down, about 400 members of ADAPT, many in wheelchairs, headed to Steinbrueck Park for a rally. ADAPT was lobbying for governors to sign a resolution favoring home care for the disabled and elderly rather than forced institutionalization. Some ADAPT members camped across the street from the Westin on Sunday and others blocked the street with chants for the governors to sign their resolution. On Saturday night, the 30­ odd governors who came to this year’s convention attended a private reception at Bill and Melinda Gates’ home, culminating in a moonlight boat ride on Lake Washington. Reprinted from the July 22, 2004 edition of Real Change, Seattle, WA. Page 19 �TREATMENT: Both N.A. Hopeline 820-2947 A.A. Hotline 351-0422 C.C.A.T. 381-6672 Talbert House 684-7956 Transitions, Inc 859-491-4435 VA Domiciliary 859-559-5011 DIC Live-In Program 721-0643 TREATMENT: Men Charlie’s 3/4 House 784-1853 Prospect House 921-1613 Starting Over 961-2256 TREATMENT: Women First Step Home 961-4663 Full Circle Program 721-0643 HOUSING: CMHA 721-4580 Excel Development 632-7149 Miami Purchase 241-0504 OTR Housing Net. 369-0004 ReSTOC 381-1171 Tender Mercies 721-8666 Tom Geiger House 961-4555 Dana Transitional Bridge Services, Inc 751-9797 Caracole (AIDS) 761-1480 Friars Club 381-5432 Drop Inn Center 721-0643 Haven House 863-8866 Interfaith Hospitality 471-1100 Lighthouse Youth Center (Teens) 961-4080 St. John’s Housing 651-6446 Need Help or Want to Help? If you need help or would like to help please call one of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless members listed below. SHELTERS: Women and Children YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter 872-9259 (Toll Free) 1-888-872-9259 Bethany House 557-2873 Salvation Army 762-5660 Welcome Hse. 859-431-8717 Women’s Crisis Center 859-491-3335 357-4602 SHELTER: Men City Gospel Mission 241-5525 Garden St. House 241-0490 Joseph House (Veterans) 241-2965 St. Francis/St.Joseph House 381-4941 Mt. Airy Center 661-4620 Volunteers of Amer. 381-1954 SHELTER: Both Anthony House (Youth) Formed in 1984, The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a membership organization. Our member groups serve the homeless through emergency shelter, transitional living facilities, permanent housing, medical services, social services, soup kitchens, and mental health/addiction services. The Coalition also consists of individual citizens who want to take an active role in ensuring that Cincinnati is an inclusive community, meeting the needs of all of its citizens. Join the fight to end homelessness; contact the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless at (513) 421-7803, 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 OTHER SERVICES: AIDS Volunteers of Cincinnati 421-2437 Appalachian Identity Center 621-5991 Beech Acres 231-6630 Center for Independent Living Options 241-2600 Churches Active in Northside 591-2246 Cincinnati Health Network 961-0600 Community Action Agency 569-1840 381-4242 241-2563 Contact Center Emanuel Center Freestore/ Foodbank 241-1064 Fransiscan Haircuts 651-6468 Goodwill Industries 771-4800 Coalition for the Homeless 421-7803 Hamilton Co. Mental Health Board 946-8600 Mental Health Access Point 558-8888 Hamilton Co. TB Control 632-7186 Health Rsrc. Center 357-4602 Homeless Mobile Health Van 352-2902 House of Refuge Mission 221-5491 Legal Aid Society 241-9400 Madisonville Ed. & Assis. Center 271-5501 Mary Magdalen House 721-4811 McMicken Dental Clinic 352-6363 Our Daily Bread 621-6364 Peaslee Neighborhood Center 621-5514 Project Connect Homeless Kids 357-5720 St. Vincent De Paul 562-8841 The Emergency Food Center 471-4357 Travelers Aid 721-7660 United Way 721-7900 VA Homeless 859-572-6226 Women Helping Women 872-9259 MIDDLETOWN/HAMILTON (Butler County) St. Raphaels (Food Bank/Soup Kitchen) 863-3184 Salvation Army 863-1445 Serenity House Day Center 422-8555 Open Door Pantry 868-3276 New Life Baptist Mission (Soup Kitchen) 896-9800 Hope House (Homeless Families/Singles) 423-4673 $1 Donation August, 2004 STREETVIBES BUY FROM BADGED VENDORS ONLY Cover Story Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless You Don’t Need a Home to Vote... Serial Number � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 2004 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource August 2004 Subject The topic of the resource Homelessness Description An account of the resource Pg 1: National Voter Registration Day Held at Drop Inn Center Pg 2: Shaking the Money Tree Pg 3: GCHC Pg 4: We Showed Up at the Table But it Felt Like We Were in the Wrong Room Pg 5: Independence from Homelessness Columbus Loses Major Shelter Pg 6: Interview with Ernest Hubbell Pg 7: A Letter to City Council About The Freedom Center Pg 8: The Peace Village Pg 9: Poverty-The New Slavery Pg 10: More Than Just a Home Pg 11: Homeless News Digest Pg 12: Vendors Pg 13: Peaslee’s 20th Anniversary, December 14th, 2004 Pg 14: Art & Poetry Pg 15: Art & Poetry Continued Pg 16: Surge in Homeless Families Sets Off Debate Pg 17: Iraq Insurgency Larger Than Thought Pg 18: FRAC News Pg 19: Mass. Elderly Homeless Rate Jumps Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Streetvibes Archive Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Streetvibes Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2004 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Georgine Getty Allison Leeuw Andy Erickson Elizabeth Linville Janice Faulkner Mary Gaffney Jimmy Heath Berta Lambert Donna Gordon Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF 3CDC Allison Leeuw Andy Erickson Art Arts & Poetry Berta Lambert CBS Columbus Donna Gordon Drop Inn Center Elizabeth Linville Ernest Hubbell FRAC Freedom Center Georgine Getty Homeless News Digest Iraq Janice Faulkner Jimmy Heath Mary Gaffney poverty Slavery The Peace Village Voting https://streetvibesarchive.net/files/original/06c68beeaca11fe7a6356f5fa0068a3c.pdf be246243b785a9dbcf8d4c4b52889649 PDF Text Text �Cincinnati 3rd Meanest City Toward Homeless Drop Inn Center Kicks oft Hollday, Fundraislng Drive Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless �The Stigma of Section 8 Housing • lli11\*ll l1i 11Wl1¥n!l1l014'1 >cl V111lt Iha CoafiUon' New Website �91 "'' 01 llhl 'I I '™ !'II I '' •><oil' ti llUti I! December 21, 2004 Washington Park, Ower-the-Rhine �Dancing in Poverty ill .A Journey to Streetvibes Words from Ms. Mary �Streetvl Letter PWI) t-lvllh111111w l'UtWlf!t tt11v1t bHn 11h1111~1m91r9cr ftli1Frn t;iil!lluld llilllff nl'lppeFl~ct il!11~lthrc~r cnn �. i PntJna Your Vote••• Your Voice 1dwtatdle.-lleroflad:lv....... ,.~. 294 Jntild tlM Ga:JI •llllihlftd. �The Right Thing For the R~ht Reason: A Journey from Addiction to UnderMandlng Over--the·Ahlne: The Struggle for Place �Imagine Peace and Unity In Over-the-Rhine �"Homeres&ness: A Teacher's Gulde'' Available Next Month City Budget Cuts Affect Soclal Services �TheP Villag �The Safe and Sleble Famlles Laglalatkm Wiii End Gaps In the System I I �SltmfvllM• Vendor Codcf of Canduat About the Grealer Cincinnati AN «Cm1MI Coalition for Homeless and Streelvibes.... Where Vendor: 70 cents Ycur Dollar Gees .... Buy Streetvibesf • Suppn Your Local Vendor �Break My Fall 20 Y•am SERVING THE °'11N·thrl-Rhlne NEIGHBORHOOD 1 ��Momtnv: � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 2004 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource December 2004 Subject The topic of the resource Homelessness Description An account of the resource Pg 1: Cincinnati 3rd Meanest City Toward Homeless Drop Inn Center Kicks of Holiday Fundraising Drive Pg 2: The Stigma of Section 8 Housing Pg 3: Homeless News Digest Pg 4: Dancing in Poverty A Journey to Streetvibes Pg 5: Streetvibes Letters Pg 6: Unexpected Prajna Your Vote… Your Voice Pg 7: The Right Thing for the Right Reason: A Journey from Addiction to Understanding Over-the-Rhine: The Struggle for Place Pg 8: Imagine Peace and Unity in Over-the-Rhine Pg 9: “Homelessness: A teacher’s Guide” Available Next Month City Budget Cuts Affect Social Service Pg 10: The Peace Village Pg 11: The Safe and Stable Families Legislation Will End Gaps in the System Pg 12: Streetvibes Vendor Code of Conduct About the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless and Streetvibes… Pg 13: History-Making in Motion Break My Fall Pg 14: Arts & Poetry Pg 15: Arts & Poetry Continued Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Streetvibes Archive Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Streetvibes Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource December 2004 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Georgine Getty Alison Leeuw Andy Erickson Rachel Lawson Kate McManus Janice Faulkner Mary Gaffney Jimmy Heath Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF addiction Alison Leeuw Andy Erickson Budget Cuts Cincinnati Drop Inn Center Food Research FRAC Fundraising Drive Georgine Getty Holiday Homeless News Digest Janice Faulkner Jimmy Heath Kate McManus Mary Gaffney Over-the-Rhine Peace Village Rachel Lawson Section 8 Housing Social Services Teachers Vote https://streetvibesarchive.net/files/original/a9d05912c7680d0676cf4af6e9870e57.pdf 4377fc17dfcf610befcc475ce36bb66f PDF Text Text Streetvibes February 2004 Homeless Men receive Settlement from City Of Covington by Jimmy Heath Three men met last month near the Covington riverfront levy, close to the Ohio River bank campsite they once called home. Present were their attorneys, Robert Newman and Covington lawyer Linda A. Smith. The men were among eight who sued in U.S. District Court in Covington after city workers removed their riverfront camps in April of 2002. A lawsuit was filed in federal court in May 2002 alleging the city of Covington violated the due process rights of the individuals who lost their personal property. Homeless advocates said most of the 30 men living on the riverbank were away at work when the Covington city workers removed their belongings from city property without notice. During a “sweep” of homeless camps, Covington city workers removed and destroyed property of individuals who at the time considered the Ohio River bank their home. Items such as sleeping bags, medication, tents and clothing were taken. One of the men lost a litter of kittens and family photographs. No notice was given to the homeless residents and their property was not held but thrown away. City officials, including Covington Mayor Butch Callery, described the riverfront camps as a “health hazard and an eyesore.” City crews were ordered to remove any objects that looked like housing or bedding. In June of 2002, hundreds of people, including advocates from the National Coalition for the Homeless, and the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless assembled for a Homeless Rally and March to Covington City Hall to support the claimants and to draw attention to the plight of the homeless. The march was organized by the individuals who lived on the riverbanks, the National Civil Rights Organizing Project and Northern Kentucky service providers and advocates. In late December of 2003, the City of Covington decided to settle with the claimants and on January 23rd, at the site of the injustice, the homeless campers received their settlement checks. Philip Folk, attorney Robert Newman, Delbert Thompson, Charles Singleton and attorney Linda Smith gather at riverfront campsite for press conference. Claimants Folk, Thompson and Singleton each received a check for $1,000. Each of the men received $1,000 checks, handed out by attorney Robert Newman, against the backdrop of the Ohio River where the campers once made their home. They will receive another $1,000 each later from attorneys’ fees. “There’s now a nationwide precedent that cities cannot take the property of homeless people without notice and destroy it,” said Cincinnati civil-rights attorney Bob Newman, during a press conference at the riverfront site. “It’s a fair warning I think, to Covington and any other city that homeless people are human beings just like everybody else and they have the same constitutional rights as a homeowner, so we’re very happy about that.” Annabelle and Carrie Johnson organizations and projects in the Over-the-Rhine neighborhood, including serving as Board President for Peaslee Neighborhood Center, and serving on the Over-the-Rhine Community Council. Carrie and Annabelle have found a personal way to stay involved through the long haul, not letting hard times deter their vision and dream for a just world. It is their willingness to listen to each other and hear the challenges that brings out their collective wisdom. They are a team of freedom seekers. Other 2004 Keep the Dream Alive Honorees included, Bennett J. Cooper, Chief Executive Officer of the Central Community Health Board, Cincinnati City Council Member David Crowley, Kameron Franklin, student and volunteer, Darlene Hicks of Unity House, Nanci J. Mays, student and volunteer, Joseph and Susan J. Pichler, volunteers and advisors, Rev. Dr. Michael and Monica J. Posey, pastor and educators, and Rev. James Shappelle, pastor of Mother of Christ Church. Keeping the Dream Alive In They have both been very Cincinnati active in the neighborhood and they continue to be advocates for basic human rights for all citizens. They have lived in the community for a long time and are well respected. While Carrie goes out in public, attending meetings and speaking for various neighborhood issues, her sister Annabelle is behind the scenes making it all possible. Carrie Johnson is a tireless volunteer for various Jimmy Heath photos St. Mark Catholic Church held the third annual “Martin Luther King-Keep the Dream Alive Celebration.” on Monday, January 19th, to honor several Cincinnatians who work for peace through example and the spirit of their daily lives. This year’s honorees included Carrie and Annabelle Johnson, two sisters who live and work in Over-theRhine. Father Paul Marshall, SM, of the University of Dayton, speaks about the spirit and life of Martin Luther King Jr. Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless �STREETVIBES The Tri-State's Homeless Grapevine Streetvibes, the Tri-State's alternative news source, is a newspaper written by, for, and about the homeless and contains relevant discussions of social justice, and poverty issues. It is published once a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Becoming a Streetvibes Vendor is a great way for home­ less and other low-income people to get back on (or stay on) their feet. Streetvibes Vendors are given an orientation and sign a code of conduct before being given a Streetvibes Vendor badge. All profits go directly to the vendor. The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a group of shelters, agencies and individuals committed to ending homelessness in Cincinnati through coordinating services, educating the public and grassroots organizing. GCCH Staff Georgine Getty - Executive Director Brendan Goodwin - Administra­ tive Coordinator Andy Erickson - Education Coordinator Elizabeth Linville - Civil Rights Coordinator Mary Gaffney - Receptionist Streetvibes Jimmy Heath - Editor ­ Design & Layout Photographers Jimmy Heath, Berta Lambert Cover Attorney Robert Newman hands out settlement check to riverfront campers... photo by Jimmy Heath Streetvibes accepts letters, poems, stories, essays, original graphics, and photos. We will give preference to those who are homeless or ven­ dors. Subscriptions to Streetvibes, de­ livered to your home each month, can be purchased for $25 per year. Address mail to: Streetvibes Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH) 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 (513) 421-7803 e-mail: streetvibes@juno.com web: http://homeless.cinci.com A New Year’s Challenge to a City by Jimmy Heath, Streetvibes Editor the mess that is caused by all of this Cincinnati continues to be a insanity. City Council produces scary place for African-Americans dog-and-pony shows for the press. and the poor. Outraged citizens and terrified Last month, Martin Luther community residents continue to King Jr. would have been 75 years cry out for something to be done. old. I wonder what he would have Some community leaders to say about current affairs in hope that finding jobs and more Cincinnati, or how things would be constructive alternatives for some different if he were still alive. The of these young men will help solve words of Dr. Martin Luther King the problems. But the lure of the continue to be prophetic. Sadly, drug trade is powerful. It pulls not much has changed for the better. While King busily toured the country trying to spread his message of hope to poor communities, the most danger he faced was not in the Deep South, but in northern cities. In later conversations King admitted that he felt real Speaking out for justice can be a lonely thing danger in Chicago during one of his visits; there was these young men out of high more anger and hatred in the north school, and out of mainstream than he had ever faced in the Deep society and into jail or death. South. There are no imaginative outlets Cincinnati’s first homicide for these young men on the street of 2004 happened in the middle of corners. We need social forces in Liberty Street in Over-the-Rhine in place, and education as part of the broad daylight, in front of dozens civil rights movement. of witnesses. Somebody finally A study of the effectiveness stepped-up and identified the of Ohio public schools ranked Ohio shooter and an arrest was made. 33rd of 37 states and Washington The unacceptable state of our DC in the percentage of Africancommunity and other poor Americans who graduate. Only neighborhoods in Cincinnati says half of Ohio’s African-American something about the general public high school students condition of our society. There is graduate, while 82 percent of white something horrible going on when students graduate. Is there a murders become routine in certain relation to the drug-dealing culture neighborhoods. and these high drop out rates? The police say that over In 2003, 10 of the city’s 75 90% of the city’s homicides are homicides occurred in Over-thedrug related. Yet we continue to Rhine. In 2003, Cincinnati see the dope boys occupy our recorded its most deadly year since street corners with impunity. There 1977. 2003 was the fifth straight are dozens of so-called drug year that the city’s homicide total dealing hot-spots in OTR and other increased. The 75 murders in 2003 places in the city; everyone knows marked a 12 percent increase over where they are but the police say 2002’s 66 killings. The 75 deaths they are powerless in doing much nearly spoiled the decade’s long about it. As a resident, I feel record for homicides in Cincinnati. powerless too. In reaction to 2004’s first White people continue to homicide, some members of drive down my street in Over-theCincinnati City Council proposed Rhine, buying dope from the open more money be funneled to an antiair drug market on the corner. gang task force and a gun violence There is a perception among white education program at Children’s suburbanite drug users that Over­ Hospital in an effort to try to curb the-Rhine is the place to buy drugs. black-on-black crime and create Black men continue to kill more community policing. City each other over drug thefts and Council was divided by racial lines territorial disputes. The police over the ensuing debate. Africanarrive with note pads, body bags American members of council and crime scene tape to clean up made the proposal, which was S T R E E T V I B E S February, 2004 From the Editor eventually shelved. In Cincinnati, low-income neighborhood residents are among the least likely to vote. Most feel frustrated by the process, and the choices. Most Cincinnatians in general, just don’t care. A recent survey of 300 registered city voters revealed that citizens aren’t sure how to fix things. And 63 percent of voters said the city is “on the wrong track.” What do all of these statistics mean? Martin Luther King addressed the fundamentals of human devotion as a path to social, economic and relational success. As a society, we place value on certain people, those that produce, or are of the right color, or act a certain way. As a civilized society, you would think that we could do things better. We are great toolmakers, surrounding our lives with technology, yet we still haven’t figured out the simple act of getting along. We don’t always recognize the value of life in our neighbors. We don’t respect strangers. We don’t have much regard for poor children attending public schools. 40% of black children live at the poverty level; almost the same as 50 years ago. Our ability to have a conscience, a memory and the capacity to love is routinely disregarded in our modern culture over the value of stuff and our own domains. The root of criminal behavior, the low-priority given to low-income children, and the disregarding of whole neighborhoods, is our failure to focus on humanity in all our endeavors. These problems will not be solved without a human transformation - a human revolution. Education is our best hope. “Everything which is distinctly human is learned.” Genuine human community transcends all borders. It is an allembracing citizenship of people capable of creating value on a huge scale. Do we as a city have the wisdom to perceive the interconnectedness of all life and living things; courage not to fear but to respect differences and strive to learn from people of different cultures? What does it really mean when we say we want to clean up a neighborhood? What would Martin Luther King say? Page 2 �Homeless News Digest by R.V. Murphy Chicago panhandlers can receive as much as $400 thanks to a class action lawsuit filed on behalf of 5,000 panhandlers who claimed their civil rights had been violated when they were arrested or ticketed while politely asking for money, according to the Chicago Tribune. The case, filed in federal court in 2001 and decided five days before Christmas, focused on a local disorderly conduct law that let police arrest people on public streets for drunkenness, lewdness, and panhandling. If arrested the person could be fined up to $500. “Having a blanket prohibition like that isn’t legal,” says Mark Weinberg, one of the attorneys representing the panhandlers. “You can ask for help across the street, you can ask for the time, but if you asked me for a dollar the city could throw you in jail.” Federal magistrate Jan Nolan approved a settlement that calls for Chicago to pay $99,000 in damages. The city, which admits no wrongdoing, will also pay $375,000 to cover attorney fees and the cost of distributing the money. Not all panhandlers qualify; people who were cited or arrested only for panhandling — and not other violations — are eligible. In addition, Chicago officials revoked the panhandling ordinance last year; a spokesman was quoted as saying that “the lawsuit helped us realize that [the ordinance] was too broad and wasn’t going to be accepted legally.” There are more than 146,000 people on waiting lists for public housing in New York City and one of the largest homeless populations in the country. Therefore housing advocates are outraged at a new report from Assemblyman Scott Stringer (D-Manhattan), which shows there are more than 5,000 publicly owned apartments in New York standing vacant. According to the New York City Housing Authority, many of the vacant apartments are in buildings slated for repair. The city’s Housing Authority says it’s easier to renovate apartments when the buildings are vacant. A News 12 Report (http://tinyurl.com/2gzfd) says the average wait for public housing in the city is eight years. In the Bronx alone, there are over 1,000 publicly owned units vacant. Six police officers in Apopka, Florida, face charges for firing pepper balls into a homeless camp, according to Local6.com. An internal investigation completed last week showed the officers had violated a number of department regulations in the September incident at the camp. Former Apopka Officer Brian Davis, who is now an Orange County deputy sheriff, reportedly revealed the incident while applying for his current job. No transients in the camp were injured. Punishment for the officers has not been announced. A makeshift homeless encampment with tents made of blankets has been targeted by the city of Pittsburgh, according to PittsburghChannel.com (http://thepittsburghchannel.com/ news). City crews are posting warnings this week telling the six people living under the Roberto Clemente Bridge that they have a week to remove their belongings before the city does it for them, says Public Works Director Guy Costa. The encampment was removed in November but the occupants moved back. Under terms of a settlement in a lawsuit brought on behalf of the homeless people, the city must give seven days’ notice before clearing away an encampment, to give occupants time to move, and must store any personal belongings rather than discarding them. The bridge is a main thoroughfare to the new baseball stadium and is named for Roberto Clemente, Hall of Fame outfielder for the Pittsburgh Pirates. Clemente died on Jan. 1, 1973, in the crash of a cargo plane carrying relief supplies to those left homeless by an earthquake in Managua, Nicaragua. Some Irreverent Thoughts On Religion by Gray Dog I hear on the radio that, in Alabama, which is fiftieth of fifty states in spending on health care for prisoners, lets prisoners die of treatable cancers and other diseases because the private health care corporation in charge of prison health care wants to keep costs down. The story interviewed a man who was sentenced to two years, developed a cancer that was never diagnosed until too late, then was released. He’s now getting treatment, but he has only a thirty percent chance to live. He would have had pretty good odds if the prison doctors had diagnosed it and if they had allowed the treatments. But now he has a one in three chance to live. Pull a B&E in Alabama, you could get a death sentence. This is the same state, Alabama, where half the population is bothered by the very expensive removal of a very expensive set of stone Ten Commandments from the lobby of the state courthouse. The Ten commandments, for those of you who are heathens, is God’s list of things one should (or shalt) do or not do. These include the ever popular Thou Shalt Not Kill. Am I missing something here? philosopher. His answer, “Jesus Christ.” Makes sense. Jesus was famous for his preventive strike doctrine and for favoring tax breaks for the rich. His friends were the wealthy and powerful and he taught that “the spin shall make you free.” What would Jesus do? What would Jesus wear? How would Jesus vote? What would Jesus drive? (Okay, I think we know.) Who would Jesus kill? All the bad guys, or just the really bad ones? How would Jesus handle an aggressive panhandler? Where would Jesus hang out? Where would Jesus send his kids to school? Would he send them to a Christian academy? Another American who seemed to have taken Jesus as his favorite political philosopher was Martin Luther King, Jr., who spoke of how his commitment to the ministry of Jesus Christ “led him to take a stand, not just on civil rights, but on poverty, and on war. True compassion,” he said in 1967, “is more than flinging a coin to a beggar; it is not haphazard. And superficial. It comes to see that an edifice which produces beggars needs restructuring.” During his election campaign, someone asked George Bush for his favorite political Jesus was the First Republican? Jesus was the First Radical? Take your pick. S T R E E T V I B E S February, 2004 Thank You! by Robert Manassa I’m writing to say thanks to all of the many patrons who purchase Streetvibes from me. I can’t really find enough words to express my gratitude to you all. Each time I see the smiling faces coming toward me I can’t help but try to hold onto my emotions. I’m filled with lots of elation. Some of you may not take the time to talk to me, the reason for your hesitation I can’t figure. That’s not an issue with me. Each month I try, with all that’s inside of me, to compose the poems of my heart and soul. You may or may not feel me, but believe me, it’s something I know is true. The things I write about are from experiences I had in life. I hope I am an inspiration to you. I hope to reach some of you. I know I won’t reach all, though I want to. Keep on being the faithful patrons that you are. Again, I say thank you! The hottest places in hell are reserved for those who, in times of great moral crisis, maintain their neutrality. Dante It is penance to work, to give oneself to others, to endure the pinpricks of community living. Dorothy Day Streetvibes 3rd Best in North America by the North American Street Newspaper Association Story, Editorial and Art Submis­ sion Deadline for the March 2004 edition of STREETVIBES is Friday, February 12th Page 3 Page 3 �Myths breed neglect, violence against Cincinnati’s homeless should be allowed to live under by Andy Erickson get themselves out of an bridges. Respondents were asked unexpected situation. Education Coordinator Sue was in her sixties and to leave comments. These same myths also Many of the comments was a nurse for many years. A discount the many homeless few months ago she unexpectedly said things like, “They are bums children in our city. No one likes lost her job and became homeless who chose not to get an education to think of a child going and got involved with drugs, as a result. She fought hard and homeless. Therefore, many of us alcohol or crime eventually obtained housing. instead. Society The proportion of women and children in the When I spoke to her recently, owes them however, she was once again in homeless population today is larger than it has danger of becoming homeless due nothing,” and been since the Civil War era. A recent article “They are not to a job loss. She was crying in USA Today reported that families now make ‘down on their when she said, “I just want to up 41% of the homeless population in the US. luck.’ That have a place where my kids can In Cincinnati, children make up one third of would imply come visit me.” our homeless population. Despite facts like that these People often have an these, many of our housed Cincinnatians people worked image of the homeless as “bag firmly believe the myths they hear about the hard in life and ladies” or “drunken bums.” But homeless... that fate dealt the majority of our homeless them tragedy… citizens are like Sue, living in the homeless got exactly what shelters or on the streets because don’t. To admit that children are they deserved.” of rising housing costs, job loss, homeless and hungry is to admit There are many comments that we have homeless people and other economic problems. The proportion of women like this, and you can view them who need help and care from the all at http:// and children in the rest of us. The sad fact is that homeless population www.wcpo.com/ there are 8,000 children in today is larger than it news/2003/local/ Cincinnati who will experience has been since the Civil 07/17/ homelessness at some point War era. A recent homeless.html during the year. Not one of the article in USA Today Myths like angry comments on Channel 9’s reported that families the ones quoted poll even mentioned them. now make up 41% of above serve a While many people use the homeless function. If we stereotypes to justify neglect of population in the US. believe that the homeless people, others go even In Cincinnati, children homeless don’t further, using them as justification Andy Erickson make up one third of deserve help (or for hate speech or physical our homeless that they are violence. A disturbing number of population. Despite facts like beyond help), it makes it easy for comments on the Channel 9 these, many of our housed us to ignore the men, women, and website suggested that the Cincinnatians firmly believe the children who are experiencing homeless be “locked up” or myths they hear about the homelessness in our city. We can “forced to leave town.” One homeless. write them off as undeserving and person said we should “make it An online poll conducted forget about them. Of course, in illegal for them to vote.” Another by Channel 9 in August 2003 order to do this, we have to even casually stated, “Toss the bums in the river for all I care, as asked people to state whether or discount the many people like not they thought homeless people Sue, who work hard every day to long as it will improve the city visually.” At the height of the issue over the bridge encampments, when this poll was conducted, homeless people in Cincinnati frequently became victims of hate crimes and physical violence. Some were pelted with rocks, bottles, or eggs while they slept. Others’ belongings were stolen or destroyed. Some people’s camps were even set on fire. Nationally, hate crimes like these have been growing in numbers. Over the past four years, there have been 212 documented hate crimes against homeless people, 123 of which resulted in death. We need to abandon the harmful myths that we spread when we talk about homeless people. We at least owe that to the homeless children in our community, to the victims of hate crimes, and to people like Sue who have worked so hard to get out of their situation. We need to recognize that homelessness affects thousands of people every year in this city, and that harmful speech can only make matters worse. Write Us! We’d like to hear from you.... Send letters or comments to: Streetvibes@Juno.com, or write the Coalition office attn: Streetvibes Letters, 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 Peaslee Neighborhood Center 215 East 14th Street Over-the-Rhine Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 (513) 621-5514 Empowering our neighborhood children through peace, art and education S T R E E T V I B E S February, 2004 Page 4 �Can You Force The Homeless Into Shelters? by Judy Newkirk The weather is bitter cold today and most people are warm inside shelter. Not Mike. He’s been sleeping in a sleeping bag on Calhoun Street in Clifton for two years now under the protection of a slight overhang in front of the Indian Krishna Restaurant. They give him a free meal every day, I’m told. I’m not sure. It’s hearsay from a couple of welldressed men down the street about a block away who told me also, “Not to worry. He’s happy there so leave him alone.” So I leave him alone, give him a dollar, tell him not to freeze to death because I care about him, and go on my way. Oh, I did get him to promise me that he would go with social workers should he feel really sick. They’ve been there before to talk to him, Psychiatric Mobile Crisis Unit, CRI’s PATH people and I got the report back from them that there’s no way to force Mike into shelter – something about Ohio’s Revised Code and that City Council vacillates on the issue. Do you suppose that maybe Mike ought to sue over the issue of neglect? Does anybody really talk to him much? One day about a month ago I did just that. Out of curiosity I asked Mike where he came from. Aliens, he said. He comes from Russia, his commanding officer is coming back, he works for the Feds, he Maybe that’s why I leave him works for the Butler County alone. Relatively speaking, he Sheriff’s department as an seems pretty cool with himself undercover cop. He once had a house in Oakley, worked on a job when he crawls out from under his tent and hobbles toward where he had to be alone a lot, Arby’s for coffee. grew up in foster care and has Well, I told you how I been in Rollman’s when it was a talked to Mike, listened to his psychiatric hospital where the talks, and that day, a few weeks doctors told him it was a DNA ago, thought he was willing to go problem. I got all this while into shelter. I waited for two sitting with him at Arby’s on hours for the CRI, PATH people Calhoun where he drank enough coffee with enough sugar packets to show up. They never did even though the two policemen who and smoked enough cigarettes to cause brain damage. “Stop aggravating me, lady! I like However the snow,” he replied....I left to go Mike is not home, where my concern caused a stupid. He wanted to be big argument with a friend who had warm. He lived in his own van after his asked me if I business failed. new of a place where they would leave him alone enough to came into Arby’s called them for me on their cell phone. It was enjoy nature. He loves the snow. He doesn’t like cults. He doesn’t voice mail. The only thing I got accomplished, according to want missionaries after him. Well, I don’t either. I’m a Mike’s next report, was to get him humanist. Mike shouldn’t have to shooed off a busy traffic area. Police had told him to leave listen to a sermon to get a free Krishna. I happened to drive by meal, to get clean clothes and a and view him in a doorway shower, possibly a shave and a haircut, to get the dirt cleaned out around the corner across the street from under his findernails, to live from Inn the Wood restaurant. It was the holiday season and no in an atmosphere where al least one was working on a phone line. there’s more mental stimulation It was raining and cold. than all day dead in a sleeping “Get in the car, Mike,” I bag. He shouldn’t be coerced to said, “I’m taking you down to the take drugs that might turn him Drop Inn Center.” into a zombie existence or even “Stop aggravating me, cause further brain damage. Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius — and a lot of courage — to move in the opposite direction. Albert Einstein Know Your Rights Brochure Available! The Know Your Rights Brochure is now available at the Coalition’s office. The brochure is a legal guide for Cincinnati’s homeless and covers a person’s basic rights when interacting with the police, as well as some local laws that might be of interest to the homeless population. If you are a homeless person or if you work with homeless people and would like to obtain free copies of the brochure for yourself or your agency, please call 421-7803, or stop by the Coalition office and pick one up. S T R E E T V I B E S February, 2004 lady. I like the snow,” he replied. I left to go home, where my concern caused a big argument with a friend who had lived in his own van after his business failed. He was there for a long time, even in the dead of Ohio’s winter. My friend did have a heater that would at least allow him to get to sleep until about two in the morning when he would wake up and shiver his body for enough warmth to get back to sleep. Mike has a sense of humor and is not threat to outsider. One time after the holidays when I gave him change, he asked if the red mark on my right cheek had been caused by someone hitting me with a snowball after they refused to get into my car. Yesterday, when I walked past Krishna, Mike was up and talking about Elliott Ness, the Untouchables, and I just walked away like everybody else does. But I wonder. Did socalled parents sit him down in front of the television set for long hours without speaking to him about what he’s viewing? I’ve seen it in a child when I volunteered for a very short time at LaBlonde Boys and Girls Club – the ability to get into a fantasy world and the ability to live totally in another dimension that is not the norm in our society. I think Mike needs psychoanalysis but he’ll never get it. It’s for the rich to make them even more powerful. National Homeless Civil Rights Organizing Project (NHCROP) 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 homelesscivilrights@yahoo.com Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (513) 421-7803 Help build a powerful, resident led organization! The Republic Street & Vine Street Block Clubs are fighting for the rights of lowincome residents in Over-the-Rhine and they are going strong. Block clubs are forming in other parts of the neighborhood, too. Call the Contact Center at 381-4242 or stop by 1227 Vine Street in Over-the-Rhine to learn more about how you can get involved with these resident led organizations. Page 5 Page 5 �The Peace Village by Dr. Steve Sunderland flower we only barely imagined. I The Peace Village joined sit on a hill, under very bright the ceremonies in Cincinnati Winter sun, the temperature honoring Rev. Martin Luther King, hovering around 17 degrees, Jr. Monday, January 19. We warmed by the knowledge that started at Fountain Square and peace is at work, both under and walked with the community to hear over the ground, reaching deeply the MLK Choir, led by Peace for sustenance, raising its arms to a Villager, Kathy Roma, and some friendly sun and moon, and wonderful talks. I used to sing in awaiting the snow and rain of the chorus and had to decide everyday. I can see my breath with whether to walk in the march or each exhale. I can feel the pulse of sing. peace as life even though I am I chose to walk and enjoy bundled up. We continue, hand to the singing from the audience at hand, season to season, signal to Music Hall. Everything was free signal, walking with and for peace. and we welcomed everyone to “What more do we need to walk with us and our beloved community. Peace Villager, Roy Jones, an extraordinary young Cincinnati artist, has shared with me his painting of the Rev. King in the jail cell in Birmingham. When I look at this fresh look at the young King, I can see both his anxiety about being in a Southern jail and his dreams for Dr. Steve Sunderland a different day. We work for this day for our troubled know about war?” This question city and world. jumped out at me as I visited and I was reminded of all I tried to see all of the “D-Day didn’t know about King’s impact Museum” in New Orleans. on the South when I visited the Obviously the work of proud Ogden Art Museum in New museum planners, the story spills Orleans. out in many directions as we easily The museum is dedicated to can see how little the US was giving a space to Southern artists prepared for the German and and it is has the best collection of Japanese war plans. Very quickly, African American art I have seen following Pearl Harbor, the change outside of Hampton University’s in the American policy and action wonderful museum. It also has a occurs as a giant war machine is great collection of non-African fueled and unleashed to American artists as well. King is a counterattack the Nazis and “Japs.” topic in many paintings and Very early in the museum we get to pictures. meet soldiers from Germany and There is a photo of Rev. the U.S. through pictures, films, Ralph Abernathy and Rev. King on and audio tapes of what it was like the first desegregated bus that must to encounter war. If this is not be seen. Their look is surprise and enough, there are veterans of the anxiety: “Were they really on the WW 2 walking and sitting bus?” throughout the floors, eager to What does our fledgling answer any question and clarify the work mean? We are a band of allreality. I asked one vet, probably in season peace planters, caring for his 80s, about the survival of those our gardens as best we can. This is thousands of paratroopers that was good work. At this time. With sent behind the lines at the very each other. We plant hoping for a start of the D Day landing. No harvest; we reap, hoping that our exhibit seemed to answer what fruit is tasty; we look into the happened to them. The vet said ground and wonder at the miracle with a gruff voice: “We lost almost of seeds and roots. “What has every damn one!” End of grown peace, right here and in this conversation. season?” we wonder. What has Each floor was filled with turned over the right amount of soil exhibits about technical prowess so that the seed took just the right and the consequences in death to root, received the nourishment these very young men. Voices of from us and the ground, and survivors were heard coming from transformed into the plant and certain exhibits, accompanied by S T R E E T V I B E S February, 2004 the pictures, the sad and horrible through the wounding and pictures of very young men who crippling battles. The price of were heading into what surely was stopping Nazis and Japanese a kind of hell that even the pictures policies meant nothing short of the and words and sounds of arms loss of more people than could be could not portray accurately. I was counted and, so many, that it numbed by the films of the beach seemed like a ridiculous idea that landings, with wave after wave of war would continue. The passion Allied soldiers stepping out of the of the soldiers was clear and their landing crafts (invented by and commitment to each other was New Orleans native) into a curtain made evident. Yet, it was clear that of bullets, mines, bombs and every this “great” war was fought with conceivable obstacle. And, they the very young, inexperienced, and died, in waves, in layers, in the gullible class of “warriors,” water, on the land, in foxholes, in whether they are American, sandy holes, and in the arms of English, Canadian, German, medics, other soldiers, shocked and Japanese or Italian. So many wounded or just lucky to have young people dead. found an angle that kept them safe We were in New Orleans at from the storm of killing arms. the same time that preparation was Vets of the war were taking place for the Sugar Bowl proudly everywhere, welcoming football game. Thousands of visitors, selling books and stuff in college youth, parents, alums, and the gift shop, and taking bags as we friends were walking the streets, entered. Large planes are in the day and night, celebrating in the front lobby of a very large entrance rituals of end of the season football area. A kind man takes us to the games. Here were thousands of side as we go in and says that there young people enjoying themselves, are two ways to see the exhibits, mostly men but lots of women depending upon time. He is a wearing their school colors. A kindly grandfather type, genuinely good mood was evident interested in our seeing as much as everywhere as long as you steered possible. We proceed into the first away from those “warriors” who exhibits and very quickly we see had a little too much to drink. that there is no “short” tour; rather, How many of these young men any length of time will be a test of were going off to Iraq, or our emotions and our capacity to somewhere else equally dangerous? imagine the carnage that will be Would they understand why they described. I was reminded of were going? Would I understand walking the grounds of Gettysburg, why their lives were being gambled the entrance of the Holocaust in this old and bloody game? We Museum in Washington, D.C., and are at war. Close to 500 American the Austrian Concentration camp at soldiers have been killed; close to Mauthausen: no one entering 3,000 soldiers wounded, and we would ever be the same when you were on “Orange Alert.” How left. much more do we need to know Three hours of looking and about war, the death of young men feeling were enough for my wife, and woman, and the madness of Stefanie, and I. I finished the battle? museum by going to the book store to find some publications on peace. Dr. Steve Sunderland, There was not one book on peace professor of Social Work at or the psychological consequences the University of Cincinnati, of the battles on the soldiers, the is the Director of The Peace people of the countries, and/or the Village, a group of connection of what we were seeing individuals from the to the continuation of war. In an national and international obvious way, the whole museum community committed to could have been a poster for peace. examining all issues of The death of all of these people, Peace in the world. Dr. mostly young soldiers, under Sunderland also heads up indescribable conditions, shouted Posters-for-Peace which out that this was a barbaric way of engages people in solving problems of aggression and expressing their visions of violence. What would the world Peace, in their own words, have been like if there had been no through the creation of Hitler, no military adventure by posters. Japan and no response by the Allied forces? was a question that was (Business Card Size, ad ready copy) impossible to ignore. Millions of Reach 18,000 customers per month human lives were lost. Millions of lives were broken Call Streetvibes @ 421-7803 Rent This Space! Only $25 per month... Peace Village Page 6 �How Do We Treat Our Fellow Man? by Mary Gaffney conflict in the world; low employment in the city, etc. You Happy New Year to each and every one of our readers. name it we got it! It all makes me think. Maybe you are not a bible When you see this issue of Streetvibes, it will be the second reader, but in the Book of month of 2004. Revelation it says these things will It is my prayer to our Most come to be; wars, fires, and Heavenly Father that, with His floods. It talks about flying chariots love and mercy, (airplanes). It also this year will be speaks of more peaceful and destruction by prosperous in working to help fires (terrorists). These things make our fellow man, you wonder. How especially, as you is our fellow man know, my treating each homeless friends. other, regardless I care very deeply Ms. Mary Gaffney of race, creed, or for our homeless friends. We are all his children in color? On the unemployment scene; the city, the country, it His eyesight. As I watched the flakes of makes you wonder when all of this will end. snow begin to come down today But my real issue, as you and I looked at my friends coming in from the cold for a cup of coffee know, is homelessness which I deal with every day. The question or a warm smile, I want to make these days a little brighter. I can’t answer is why there isn’t more concern for these people. I As we enter the New Year get calls from people who are it seems like there is so much We must be prepared to make heroic sacrifices for the cause of treat poor and disenfranchised peace that we make ungrudgingly individuals as second-hand citizens. for the cause of war. There is no Martin Luther King task that is more important or challenged us to question these closer to my heart. philosophical dilemmas in our Albert Einstein everyday lives, no matter what our life circumstance. More than 30 years after his death Martin Luther King Jr. is seen as the voice for all poor people – people left behind in the wake of economic affluence, who are stuck in low paying jobs and homelessness and poverty. After 30 years, his voice still rings true. The Martin Luther King Jr. Day Memorial March was held in downtown Cincinnati to rekindle the spirit of his work and to provide a voice to the unheard, to provide inspiration to those who have been cast aside by society’s indignities. Spirit of MLK Celebrated The tri-state’s observance of the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday included many events on Monday, January 19th, the official federal holiday. A highlight of the yearly remebrance is the march from Fountain Square to Music Hall, which this year featured a performance of a requiem written by the Rev. Charles Walker, minister of the 19th Street Baptist Church in Philadelphia. Many people know first hand that the work that eventually took King’s life still goes on today. The challenges that human rights workers face now are bigger than ever. Segregation and racism still have a stronghold on African American communities. Police and City government continue to concerned about people sleeping in tents. Also, why are policemen hassling our Streetvibes Vendors and the homeless in general? It seems at this time there is no real answer. I am asked why the city leader can’t do anything. I can’t find an answer. As I sit here today with my friends, some are hurt, cold and really disgusted, with no jobs, and with families. Some have had a police record and it is still held against them, making it difficult to get services. It isn’t only men but women and families too. Not all of these men and women are addicts which is a stereotype of the homeless. I know because I am with them everyday. And believe it or not, there are many things that you can learn from these folks that will open your eyes to what is really happening. As the New Year begins let it begin with more love for our fellowman, and may there be more peace in the world. Until the next Streetvibes, be good and always remember that God loves you. Wish List... Can You Help? Streetvibes newspaper is published monthly on a shoe-string budget from the offices of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Can you help us with some of the following items? * Digital Camera & Accessories * VCR for making copies of Streetvibes TV show and for educational packets * Blank VHS tapes * Desktop paper folder * Supplies (paper towels, toilet paper ) * Cleaning Supplies * Office Supplies - postage stamps, floppies, copier paper and other supplies If you can help, contact us at: Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless, 117 East 12th Street, Cincinnati, OH 45202 (513) 421-7803 e-mail: Streetvibes@juno.com MLK Rally on Fountain Square S T R E E T V I B E S February, 2004 Page 7 Page 7 �Berta’s Art Corner A Winter’s Painting, Washington Park, Overthe-Rhine, looking east at 12th and Elm Street Buy Streetvibes From Badged Vendors Only! Streetvibes Vendors are required to sign a code of conduct and agree to abide by all the rules of the Streetvibes Vendor Program. If a Vendor misrepresents or breaks the rules, she/he may be removed from the Program. To report a Vendor, call 421-7803. ext. 16 Authorized Vendors always wear a Badge! Streetvibes: A proud member of the North American Street Newspaper Association.... Representing over 50 street newspapers throughout the United States and Canada VISIT - www.nasna.org Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired signifies, in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed. Dwight D. Eisenhower (1890-1969) Front Streetvibes vendors are paticipants in a program at the Coalition for the Homeless that allows them to distribute the Streetvibes newspaper for a $1.00 donation. The money used to purchase the paper goes to the individual vendor. Vendors are not employees of the Coalition for the Homeless. Vendors are not fundraising for the Coalition for the Homeless. Back of Badge While we make every effort to provide a forum for those without a voice, STREETVIBES and the staff of THE GREATER CINCINNATI COALITION FOR THE HOMELESS, is not responsible for statements, and do not necessarily endorse the opinions of the people whose writings are represented here. Each vendor must sign and agree to abide by the following code of conduct.... 1. Streetvibes will be distributed for a $1 voluntary donation. If a customer donates more than $1 for a paper, vendors are allowed to keep that donation. However, vendors must never ask for more than $1 when selling Streetvibes. 2. Each paper purchased from the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH) costs 30 cents. Papers will not be given out on credit. Old papers can not be traded in for new papers. 3. Streetvibes may only be purchased from GCCH. Never buy papers from, or sell papers to other vendors. 4. Vendors must not panhandle or sell other items at the same time they are selling Streetvibes. 5. Vendors must treat all other vendors, customers, and GCCH personnel with respect. 6. Vendors must not sell Streetvibes while under the influence. 7. Vendors must not give a “hard sell” or intimidate anyone into purchasing Streetvibes. This includes following customers or continuing to solicit sales after customers have said no. Vendors must also never sell Streetvibes door-to-door. 8. Vendors must not deceive customers while selling Streetvibes. Vendors must be honest in stating that all profits go to the individual vendor. S T R E E T V I B E S February, 2004 Vendors must not tell customers that the money they receive will go to GCCH or any other organization or charity. Also, vendors must not say that they are collecting for “the homeless” in general. 9. Vendors must not sell papers without their badge. Vendors must present their badge when purchasing papers from GCCH. Lost badges cost $2.00 to replace. Broken or worn badges will be replaced for free, but only if the old badge is returned to GCCH. 10. Streetvibes vendor meetings are held on the first weekday of the month at 1pm. The month’s paper will be released at this meeting. If a vendor cannot attend the meeting, he or she should let us know in advance. If a vendor does not call in advance and does not show up, that vendor will not be allowed to purchase papers on the day of the meeting or the following day. Five free papers will be given to those who do attend. 11. Failure to comply with the Code of Conduct may result in termination from the Streetvibes vendor program. GCCH reserves the right to terminate any vendor at any time as deemed appropriate. Badges and Streetvibes papers are property of GCCH, and must be surrendered upon demand. Nelson Mandela... Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our Light, not our Darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the World. There is nothing enlightening about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It is not just in some of us; it is in everyone. And as we let our own Light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others. Page 8 �Making shelters safe for all Is it Worth Your Penny? by Judi Clark Ohio stands to lose apselection (beds genders How much are you willing proximately $750 million in general closer to staff may by Elizabeth Linville be better). In The National some situations, Coalition for the Homeless there are enough (NCH) and the National Gay transgender and Lesbian Task Force residents to create released an important new a wing solely for Elizabeth Linville report in December of 2003 them. entitled Transitioning Our Harassment: Shelter staff Shelters: A Guide to Making should work to address and stop Homeless Shelters Safe for harassment of transgender people. Transgender People. This guide is This should be included in written to help shelters provide safe policy. housing for transgender persons. Dress Codes: Dress code “We believe that every should not be based on gender. A person has the right to shelter and more constructive policy would that right should not be denied focus on covering of certain body because of ignorance, injustice or areas, not on wearing gender insensitivity,” said Donald appropriate clothes. Whitehead, Executive Director of Concerns of Other the National Coalition for the Residents: Some residents may be Homeless. uncomfortable and unwilling to live The following is a summary with a transgender resident. of some of the important steps the Trainings with the shelter residents guide recommends shelters enact to may be one way to deal with this protect the civil rights of problem. transgender people. Referrals: A resident’s The Intake Conversation: transgender status is confidential in Staff should talk with all potential referrals, unless they give residents about their privacy, safety permission to staff ahead of time. and any policies affecting Many transgender people transgender residents during this face discrimination in the conversation. It is important to workplace and in housing; this inform the resident about a shelter’s intolerance can increase their confidentiality policy and that chances of becoming homeless. It transgender status is a part of this. is important that shelters and other It is also recommended that intake social service agencies work to forms allow clients to describe their create a safe environment for own gender, rather than giving people of all genders. them the typical options of male, If you are interested in female, and other. reading this report in its entirety, Restrooms: Transgender you can download a copy at the people should be allowed to use Task Force’s website (http:// whichever bathrooms match their www.TheTaskForce.org). self-identified gender. Shelters should provide whatever privacy and safety alterations necessary to facilitate this. Showers: This, too, is an area where privacy is a necessity. Transgender people should use the showers that correspond to their self-identified gender. Sleeping Arrangements: This should be based on a transgender person’s self-identified gender. Safety precautions should be taken in determining the best bed to pay to keep schools open, help low-income working parents stay employed with child care services, food for the hungry, services to elderly Ohioans? Is it worth your penny? Ken Blackwell doesn’t think so. In a move that is both irresponsible and a possible conflict of interest, Secretary of State Ken Blackwell is leading an effort to repeal the penny sales tax added in the last budget. The sales tax, while not the most desired way to raise revenues for Ohio, allowed us to retain many of the services and programs that were slated to be cut. Hundreds of OEC members and supporters sent postcards and made phone calls in support of increasing the sales tax if it meant keeping services. We testified in budget hearings and rallied in Columbus. We met with our legislators to let them know how important child and health care were to Ohioans. Now all of these gains are in jeopardy. revenue funds if the sales tax is repealed. All gains we made in the last budget debate will be lost. Ohio will not be able to afford to continue spending on social service programs and education without the money the penny generates. Local government funds will also be cut. That means you may not have a firefighter when you need one or the library where your child does school work will be closed. Ohioans cannot afford to sit back and let this happen. We must work hard to educate our friends and neighbors, let them know what Ken Blackwell and the anti-tax lobbies are not telling them. We have a tough fight ahead of us. Mr. Blackwell and his group of supporters have the money to pay professional lobbyists. We have only our collective voices. We used those voices effectively last spring. We need to use them once more to defeat this proposal and SAVE OUR PROGRAMS. The GCCH would like to thank Starbucks for their generous donation of coffee and pastries. Story, Editorial and Art Submission Deadline for the March 2004 edition of STREETVIBES is Friday, February 12th S T R E E T V I B E S February, 2004 Page 9 Page 9 �People Tell George Bush “Move-On”! by Mary Burke & Dianna Schweitzer On Monday evening, January 12, 2003 at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York City, MoveOn.org named the winner in their “Bush in 30 Seconds” campaign. A 30-second TV ad that focuses on George W. Bush’s trillion-dollar debt. America’s children was the winner in the nationwide search for the best spot to tell the truth about the Bush Administration’s policy failures. The ad also got the highest rating from members of the public, who gave it the “People’s Choice” award as well. “Child’s Pay,” by Charlie Fisher, 38, of Denver features young children working in difficult service and manufacturing jobs – washing dishes, hauling trash, repairing tires, cleaning offices, assembly-line processing and grocery checking – followed by the line: “Guess who’s going to pay off President Bush’s $1 trillion deficit?” Sean Mullaney (l) and Dianna Schweitzer thank Al Franken for his amusing participation. government and our role in the world and to create opportunities for education. The energy has a high celebratory element too, making it feel so right to sing, dance, and beat the drum for the principles of peace, democracy, and the power of people working collectively. A panel of celebrities and political experts helped choose the winners after more than 110,000 people came to the Web site www.bushin30seconds.org in December to rate the more than 1,000 ads posted. Over 2.9 million viewer ad ratings were submitted. The contest was created by MoveOn.org Voter Fund to try to make the political process more accessible to ordinary Americans unlikely to be hired to create advertising in traditional political campaigns. “This has been an amazing experience in grassroots engagement, and all of us have been thrilled to work with such creative people,” said Eli Pariser, campaigns director for the MoveOn.org Voter Fund. “These ads give voice to the deep concerns our millions of members have with the direction our country is headed.” The MoveOn.org Voter Fund is a political committee created to comply with the new federal campaign finance laws. It runs ads and engages in other efforts to expose the policy failures of the Bush Administration. More information can be found at www.moveonvoterfund.org and at www.bushin30seconds.org. As of January 22 MoveOn.org reports that CBS has refused to run the winning ad claiming it is too controversial. What is CBS’s interest in keeping this ad off the air? Perhaps more importantly, what else has CBS kept from us and who controls the mainstream media? it an un-American act, thanks in to convey both his fear of the United States as well as his love of part to the Patriot Act. The biggest inspiration and our strength and beauty. Liberty entertainment of the evening, and Cabbage was the name given to the reason for the event, were the sauerkraut during World War I, 30-second videos and their similar to our Freedom Fries and creators. The content of the ads Freedom Toast of today.) Janeane Garofalo served as the host and she was gut-wrenching, ironic, playful, edgy, sad, angry and just downright kept everyone clever. The number of entries was laughing with incredible; over 1,500 videos were her smart insight into our entered in the contest from all over the US. The entries ranged from culture, obviously homegrown and folksy especially the media. Several to very polished and professional, other celebrities with ads running the gamut making it to the top 15. including As evidenced by the videos, Michael Moore, people are angry about the actions Moby, Al of the Bush Administration Franken, John Sayles, and Julia regarding the invasion of Iraq, the tremendous deficit, elimination of Stiles environmental protections, the participated in blurring of the separation of church the event. and state, etc. However, the event It was was not so much about anger as it especially was about taking action. Taking exciting to action produces a contagious attend such an Michael Moore congratulates winner Charlie Fisher event at this energy, inspiring each of us to do what we can to educate ourselves time in our and others regarding our country, when people are attacked The evening awards gala for speaking out with voices was kicked off with the crowd of dissent. The entertainers standing for the National Anthem, and video participants were the Jimi Hendrix rendition of Star taking a chance on receiving Spangled Banner. Comedienne heat from the Republican Margaret Cho then took the stage and humorously explained why it is National Committee (or Repugnant National important to give people “too Committee as Cho called much information”, as the slogan them). Actress Julia Stiles goes. She says that it’s important acknowledged she was to speak out on issues that make fearful of participating people uncomfortable, because that’s how change is going to come knowing that she would likely be labeled as unabout. The audience was inspired by Chuck D. of Public Enemy. His American. She went on to say it is that fear that keeps music and his message brought people quiet and it is for everyone to their feet as the precisely that reason that she audience danced and engaged in a call and response. Rufus Wainright realized she must speak out. While free speech is brought a smile and recognition guaranteed in our with a sweet rendition of his song Dianna Schweitzer (left) and Mary Burke (right) congratulate finalist Ty “Liberty Cabbage”. (The song was Constitution, the political Pierce (center) of Columbus, Ohio, winner of best animation for his video environment today has made “What I been up to...” written by Wainright, a Canadian, S T R E E T V I B E S February, 2004 Bits & Pieces Page 10 �8,00 0 HO M E LESS CH I L DRE N H AT E CRIME S IN V IS IB L NT E ME DOM VIO EST L Y LO P EM UN L TA S EN E M LN IL N IO T IC V E TY Y RT PO VE R R E G N U H ADDICTION Y ED AG TR HOM ELE SS CIN I N CIN N AT I U N N M E E ET D S SS E EL C I VO wear your heart on your sleeve I WILL DONATE: $25 $50 $75 $100 $200 $500 They aren’t your normal candy hearts. Instead of “hug me” or “be mine,” they are the many frightening messages that Cincinnati’s homeless hold in their own hearts. This year in Cincinnati, more than 25,000 individuals will find themselves homeless at some point. They are laid off their jobs, fleeing abusive relationships, battling mental illness or addicted to drugs and alcohol. They are men, women, children, families, veterans and disabled people. They are all ages, races and from many backgrounds. They are staying in our shelters, on the streets, in abandoned buildings or doubled-up with their friends and relatives. Their hearts may be broken. The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless believes that by addressing the root causes of the problem through education, advocacy and the coordination of services, we can end homelessness in our city. But we can not do it alone. We depend on the community to open their hearts. This February, please help us achieve our fundraising goal, so that we can continue our important work. Cut the coupon and pick a heart. Rest assured, it will warm the hearts of others. Send your donation to: Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 all donations are tax-deductible S T R E E T V I B E S February, 2004 GCCH News Page 11 Page 11 �Now at Public Library; THROUGH OUR EYES Book by Catholic high school students and Homeless Coalition by John Zeh The colorful 79-page book, “Through Our Eyes: Reflections on Homelessness,” an unprecedented exploration of issues prepared by high school students and the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH), is now available at the Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County. “This is a big step for the Coalition, to help educate more people so they can see the true lives of homeless people,” said GCCH director Georgine Getty. At a reception, she applauded the book’s creators for their “vision to shed light on homelessness and social justice outside their own comfort zones.” Homelessness issues are problems shared by “all of us,” she said. “They touch many whose lives are just like our own.” The book is available at the Main Library’s Education and Religion department downtown at 800 Vine Street and can be sent to any of its 41 branches via www.CincinnatiLibrary.org or (513) 369-6900. The book’s call number is 362.509771 T531 2003. In the collaborative, experiential learning project researching the book, students journeyed into the Over-the-Rhine neighborhood northwest of downtown to visit a homeless shelter and GCCH office. They conducted interviews to learn about the issues through the eyes of people without homes or ones who recently lacked a home of their own. The O-T-R “hood” and GCCH became their classroom, with real-world lessons. The book is to be the cornerstone of GCCH’s new, multi- media outreach effort for area educators. It is full of color photographs, personal reflections, poetry, artwork, and nine interviews conducted by some 71 Mother of Mercy students. The digest will be packaged with a videotape and supportive print material to educate students about causes and results of America’s growing homeless crisis. Kevin Pease and Serendipity Design directed design, layout, and artwork requiring “long hours to ensure that all participants had their voice represented and their vision accurately captured in book form,” said Getty. “Kevin is not your every-day graphic designer,” she added, but one on a “holistic journey, with an incredible work ethic and infinite patience.” Mother of Mercy educators Susan Straub and Kathryn Schnier were also recognized. Kara Koch, Abby Powell, and Katie Freshley were credited for their photography used in the full-color cover collage showing a child’s face, the GCCH office sign, and a member of Artists for the Drop Inn Center, one of the formerlyhomeless people profiled in the book. The cover was enlarged to make a large poster for GCCH’s Elm Street office near Music Hall. The project was funded with a $5000 grant from the Greater Cincinnati Youth Grantmaking Council, which has national support from the Corporation for national and Community Service and locally by Xavier University and the Manuel D. and Rhoda Mayerson Foundation. GCCH describes itself as “a unified social action group, fully committed to our ultimate goal: eradication of homelessness with respect for the dignity and diversity of our membership, the homelessness, and the community.” Its work includes coordination of services, educating the public, grassroots organizing, and advocacy. It is a member of Greater Cincinnati Community Shares, often called a grassroots, people’s United Way. GCCH was formed on May 30, 1984 as a political action organization to advocate for the needs of homeless people citizens of Greater Cincinnati who had no voice in the halls of power. It began with just an answering machine and a coalition of 15 organizations and advocates. Since then, it has grown to include over 70 agencies: advocates for the poor and homeless, homeless individuals, shelters, transitional houses, emergency food programs, social service agencies, churches, low-income housing groups, and co-ops. Membership crosses all political, social and religious lines. It directs its energy toward both meeting the immediate need for emergency shelter and transitional housing and toward providing permanent housing, jobs and health care for all. It meets monthly to share information and discuss public policy issues affecting the city’s homeless population. Journalist John Zeh experienced homelessness himself when an apartment manager evicted him before her conviction of laundering money orders that Zeh and others used for rent. He lives in O-T-R, and can be reached at johnzeh146@yahoo.com. Story, Editorial and Art Submission Deadline for the March 2004 edition of STREETVIBES is Friday, February 12th Write Us! Send letters to: Streetvibes@Juno.com, or write the Coalition - Streetvibes 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 S T R E E T V I B E S February, 2004 GCCH News Page 12 �Words from the Evangelist… Do Justice… Walk Humbly With God Micah 6:6-8 and Matthew 25:31-46 were written in different centuries and in times that were very different from our own, yet they address relationships in a way that is contemporary and real for us today. Micah 6:6-8 tells us that God is more concerned with how we treat one another, ourselves, and God than in our rituals and celebrations. The prophet Micah lived in the eighth century B.C.E. It was a time filled with personal and political excess and corruption. Micah proclaimed that individual actions and relationships could make or break the entire realm. He also pointed out that the people would eventually make loving and life-giving choices, and their world would again be filled with joy. Eight centuries after Micah lived, Jesus words in Matthew 25:31-46 echo the words of the prophet. Jesus tells us that the way we treat friends, family, and strangers is, in effect, the way we treat God. I believe the city of Cincinnati in this year 2004 can gain a lot by taking head to both the words of the prophet and Jesus. Having received the ranking of the 6 meanest city to homeless individuals it behooves us to evaluate our relationship to those individuals who are homeless. The scripture clearly tells us that what God requires of us is to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with our God. MARCC, the Metropolitan Area Religious Coalition of Cincinnati, has made housing (and therefore homelessness) one of its two priorities for the 2004 year. They are the people of faith who th helped bring us the Collaborative Agreement and have been advocates of social justice since the riots of the 60’s. I am proud to be a part of this ecumenical effort for justice and a humble walk with God. There are many other agencies and individuals out there working in their own way to eradicate this social problem from our community. Now is the time for us to come together and stand against the personal and political corruption of our time. It is time for people of faith to come together in prayer and definitive action that promotes justice and demonstrates our humble walk with God. All are not called to be activists, but all can pray. All are not homeless, but all need affordable and safe housing. All are not unemployed, but all need a livable wage. All are not addicts and Sheltered White Girl’s Eyes Opened by Shelter by Kate Mock, Ursuline Academy Student In my world that’s enough to make headlines. Until this semester, I never stepped outside of my perfect picket fenced world. Everyone I know shares my background: decent parents, comfortable home, maybe some siblings—nothing too dramatic. It was always in the back of my mind, the fact that not everyone lives as I do, but I was too busy to prove it to myself. Ursuline Academy’s Community Service class forced me to get out there and see what I’ve been sheltered from. After learning of the different service opportunities in Cincinnati, I decided that I would work best at the Drop Inn Center because its mission most closely correlated with my own—to help those less fortunate overcome the trials of poverty and homelessness. I am passionate about providing for the less fortunate because in many cases it is not their fault that they ended up in their position. If one has excess, why shouldn’t it be given to those who have nothing? Makes good sense to me. Beginning work at the Center, I was filled with romantic notions of righting all wrongs and seeing every person immediately put into low-income housing. I imagined myself forming close friendships with every resident in the Center and touching lives irreversibly. I quickly learned that social reformation takes a bit longer than that. I didn’t have any particular view of the neighborhood or the population with which I would be working—I simply saw them as people dealt a cruddy hand in the game of life. I did get nervous when I parked my car; everyone walking by was potentially armed and ready to attack me, rape me, and run off with my car and my wallet. After the first few visits, however, I was able to ignore those ridiculous ideas and continue with business. The Drop Inn Center wasn’t like any place I’d ever been in before. The crystal-clean world of the upper middle class is shattered the second you walk through the doors. People are milling around, outside and inside; people sleep on the benches in the main room; women sit at tables all day and stare into space. These people have nowhere else to go. When I first began visiting the Center, it wasn’t so bad: a few people occupied benches, no big deal. By the middle of November, however, the main room was filled with people, and the smell was suffocating. It’s not easy to access a shower when you don’t even have a home, and the people have to wear practically everything they own, so you end up with lots of people crowded into one room, each person dressed in multiple layers of clothing, and not a single person has showered in several days. I avoided wearing anything nice to the Center, like my leather coat—not because I thought I’d be mugged, but because I felt horrible exhibiting my own affluence around people so obviously down on their luck. The atmosphere is humbling, to say the least. I regret that my job didn’t have much social interaction. I was usually stuffing envelopes in Christina’s office, or making posters in a vacant upstairs room. I suppose it’s for the best, because I usually clam up when interacting with strangers. I helped with resident surveys one day, and while I had a wonderful conversation with one resident, Lamaar, no one else warmed up to me. Obviously, they know I’m “just a volunteer” and they know that I know that they’re homeless, so it’s not like they want to S T R E E T V I B E S February, 2004 discuss the stock market with me. I respect that. But with that in mind, I never really knew what else to say to them, so I didn’t say much. Christina and her officemate, Lisa, were wonderful, and I enjoyed sharing office time with them. It didn’t hurt that we liked the same music while working. Tom Lee was another staff member I looked forward to seeing. I haven’t the slightest idea if he knows me, but he worked the front desk when I would arrive, and he had a wonderful charisma about him, always whistling or singing to himself. Volunteering at the Drop Inn Center taught me that service isn’t always as simple as handing a person your coat. It has to be run as efficiently as a business, and it requires many employees. Sure, you just hand out food and blankets, but that only brings temporary relief. If you want to end homelessness, you have to find jobs and housing. I was never directly involved in the advocacy program, but it was all around me. The Drop Inn Center isn’t simply about getting people warm and fed; it’s about getting to know the residents and helping them as best you can. When Tom Lee would come down with a money deposit from one of the residents, Christina always knew who the person was, and why he or she wanted money, and frequently expressed satisfaction knowing that the person finally had some. The staff doesn’t know everyone’s history or even everyone’s name, but they care. You can tell they care because they come back to work every day. It’s sad knowing that there is a limit to how much they can do. It was awful, stuffing envelopes in the office, and hearing people discuss how temperamental the grants can be, and how hard they have to work GCCH News mentally ill, but all need healthcare. When we include all in the development and growth of our city, all will benefit. As a formerly homeless individual I serve as one of the CoChairs of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless and I firmly believe that people of faith can bring about major changes in this fight to eradicate homelessness from our community. However, we must first care enough to act lovingly and justly toward the men, women, and children who experience homelessness in our community. I challenge you, the reader, (a person of faith) to do justice and walk humble with your God in this year of 2004. Call the Coalition at 4217803 and learn what you can do to help. His Humble Servant, Rodney L. Sutton, Sr. The Evangelist to ensure that the money comes through. Even worse was doing resident surveys and hearing some people complain about everything the staff wasn’t doing, completely disregarding everything that had already been done. Though the work was frequently tedious, volunteering at the Drop Inn Center only strengthened my resolve to work for social harmony. I intend to continue volunteering, and possibly exploring other locations in need of assistance, such as ReSTOC and Peaslee. Seeing the little things that can be done for these organizations is inspiring, and I feel that it is my human responsibility to do as much as I can while I’m young and have the time and resources. I wish everyone could see what I’ve seen, because I don’t think homelessness is a reality to many of the middle-class. But it is a reality, and in a society where so many people live in obscene excess, it only makes sense that these people give a little back. I hope people step outside of their sheltered worlds to help this noble cause, but I hope they don’t expect to see immediate results; it’s an ongoing battle, and every miniscule step is a victory, whether or not one can see the effects. For this reason I intend to continue doing volunteer work throughout my life—it is a cause I feel strongly about, and a few months of my life is not enough. I hope to find plenty of volunteer opportunities in college, and I plan to teach music in underprivileged schools after graduating. My Personal Mission Statement; When one finds oneself with excess time, and in the position to maintain excess possessions, it becomes one’s moral obligation to share the wealth with those less fortunate in any possible way, whether large or small. Page 13 Page 13 �The Work of the Dead by Michael Henson In every life cut short, so many things are left undone. The dishes stacked and crusting in the sink. The dogs unfed. Three new strings on the guitar, the others still in their wrappers. The bedroom half-painted, one side fresh and glossy, the other a map of patching plaster islands. And the oil that really ought to be changed. And the letter unsent: it only needs a stamp and someone to walk it to the mailbox. And all the work of love: words and gestures still bundled in their little proud houses and the keys lay right on the table where we left them. And even the nation, this sprawling, addled nation: Such a tangle of dropped threads, interrupted projects, failed promises. Who will beat down the hammers of greed? Who will untangle the knots of deceit? Those whose lives have been cut short are crowded into their darkened theater where they watch us bawling and arguing like actors in an ancient drama. They watch us closely, for they want to know who will take on the unfinished work of the dead. Enjoy your life and be happy. Being happy is of the utmost importance. Success in anything is through happiness. More support of nature comes from being happy. Under all circumstances be happy, Even if you have to force it a bit, To change some long standing habits. Just think of any negativity that comes at you As a raindrop falling into the ocean of your bliss. You may not always have an ocean of bliss, But think that way anyway and it will help it to come. “Doubting is not blissful and does not create happiness. Be happy, healthy, and let all that love flow through your heart.” This sentiment is not original with me. The Maharishi said it back in 1987. It was good advice then and, at the beginning of 2004, it is still good advice. May the Blessings of God be yours today and everyday. peace J. Manigan Inseparable Hearts Morning: Frost still lines the grasses, still paints the gravel of the path. My shoes scuff loudly against the frozen gravel and a thicket gives up its startled finches as I pass. Further on, the sudden, harsh, cry of a hawk. Six times, she cries Seven times Eight times Nine times, Ten! The sun strikes gold beneath her wings. by D-Von Sanders by Mike Henson Oh how I miss you on lonely days like this, What I wouldn’t do for the comfort of your hug and kiss. What I wouldn’t give for the precious gifts your heart brings, Your love is more valuable than any material things. If I was an Angel, I would give up my wings just to have you by my side. If finding happiness requires directions then you must be my guide. they can have my pride, take away my silver plates and shiny gold; all I need is you to fill the empty space that’s been placed within my soul. Oh my Inseparable Heart, I will go far beyond places, I am told no man has gone before. As long as you are there my Inseparable Heart, to hold once I open the door! S T R E E T V I B E S February, 2004 The Corpse of the Crow by Michael Henson This bird must have borne his body lightly, for he weighs no more in my hands than a cupful of ash, no more than a husk, no more than my mother when she died, no more than a snatch of breath. I have no fear of him now, beak or claw; he does not growl at me, nor glare with his bright black eye, nor stump in a wounded circle, single-winged, more fearful of me than of the trucks of Eastern Avenue. Yet I hold him gingerly, so light in my hands, I feel he might float off, and with respect, as if he were a chalice (though I know this is from guilt for I could not save him. Clumsy, fearful, I know I made his dying harder). Now, I admire him closely in his undiluted blackness. For there is, I think, nothing blacker than the blackness of this tar-drop eye that glints with bright liquid light. And there is nothing blacker than the blackness of these feathers. Each barbule is alive with stark, black light: the mail of the breast, the broad black oars of the wings, the curtains of the throat, the tufted crest at the peak of the skull, the quilted layers that blanket the legs, and the small, intricate feathers that guard the eye, matted by what seems to be a single black tear. And I admire the perfect machinery of the beak, milled and crafted with the clean lines of a chisel. And the black-greaved, leathered legs, jointed like a crustacean and fitted with mechanical claws. I fold him, carefully, into bullet shape and place him, for burial, in the crotch of a tree. Broken ark Bird of warning Temple of cinders Casket of the lost voice. For information on submitting your poetry or art to STREETVIBES email Streetvibes@juno.com Art & Poetry Page 14 �Walk A Little Plainer Daddy Walk a little plainer daddy, Said a little boy so frail I’m following in your footsteps And I don’t want to fail. Sometimes your steps are very plain. Sometimes they are hard to see; So walk a little plainer daddy For you are leading me. I know that you once walked this way Many years ago. And what you did along the day I really like to know. For sometimes when I am tempted, I don’t know what to do. To walk a little plainer daddy For I must follow you. Someday when I’m grown up You are like I want to be. Then I will have a little boy Who will want to follow me. And I would want to lead him right And help him to be true. So walk a little plainer daddy For we must follow you. Soldiers Song by Gary Lehmann A soldier’s eyes slam open interrupting the dead of night like a bayonet in the belly. Ancient fears, forgotten features. His lady brings him water. “It’ll be all right now, honey.” SNAKE LORD WHY? Let me tell you about this girl named Sweet and Petite From heavens above you would think She is a precious gift. But in reality, she makes me sick. See, in her mind, she says she’s a witch. But down on earth we know her as a trick. Like fire and thunder, she often makes em wonder. You know, like Stevie Wonder Calling herself Queen Bee But in reality she lied to me. She’s the devil’s child, running wild makes herself an angel to light You know, smooth, like Dolomite. But it’s out of date, she’s always late Or, her name might be Gail, she’ll put You in living hell. Post with no bail. She’s too fat, she might break her back. Thinks she goes lovey-dovey, she’ a tell-o-tubby She’ll cut you up with her eyes. You got a date with cake and can’t be late. No, in reality, she’s just a snake. Thinking that her heart is made of steel. That girl needs to chill before somebody breaks her grill. She’s bad for your health. Get that poison off your chest and leave her to rest. Lord, why did you put me here to die, to burn, to learn? Lord, why did you put me here to die, in a world full with pain? What is there to gain in this wicked game? What is there to gain when your back is against the wall, and you constantly fall, when everytime you try to get by you fall on your face? What’s left to save the human race? What is there to gain when hope is gone and you are standing all alone? To burn in hell or die in a jail cell? When pain and sorrow, and it seems like no tomorrow, thinking back to the goodness we once had. It seems to me that the worlds is so sad when everybody professes to keep it so real when it comes down face to face. They hold their head down in disgrace in this wicked place. When everybody’s puffing on so much chronic smoke, it seems that life is one big joke. When kids play with guns thinking that this is a game of fun, and money rules the world, and its war and tears, and its man that they fear. Don’t they know the Savior is near? And the heavens open up and I heard a voice say “My son, what I said will be, so always keep your faith in me.” Then I said to the Lord, “Will I drown in the sea or weaken like a willow tree?” Then in reply, the Lord said to me, “Stay strong even if you stand alone.” So my brothers and sisters, we must have hearts like steel to keep it real, looking up to God’s beautiful grace in surrounding this wicked place. Shutter Speed by Jimmy Heath Ron English, Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial March, Elm Street S T R E E T V I B E S February, 2004 Art & Poetry Page 15 Page 15 �On the Homeless Front by Israel Bayer Twenty-six years after his turbulent experience in the jungles of Cambodia and Vietnam, Timothy Buchanan became homeless. It’s been nearly 32 years of hardship and anguish for a man who left the United States and traveled 10,000 miles to fight for his country in one of the longest conflicts our nation has ever known. Buchanan was exposed to the chemical Agent Orange on more than one occasion and has post traumatic stress disorder. He talks softly when he says, “I got peppered with that stuff (Agent Orange) over and over again. “I’ve been pretty unstable, due to stress and the streets, for a long time. I’ve dealt with flashbacks and nightmares since I left that place. I just started to talk about my experiences in the mid’90s, but now that I’m ready to let it all out, rarely do people want to listen.” The Department of Veterans Affairs estimates that nearly 300,000 veterans are homeless on any given night in the United States. In addition, more than a half-million veterans experience homelessness in a given year, more than a dozen veterans are homeless or have experienced homelessness at street roots newspaper. According to the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans, there is a complex set of factors contributing to homelessness for U.S. veterans. A large number of displaced and at-risk veterans live with the lingering effects of posttraumatic stress disorder and substance abuse, compounded by a lack of family and social support networks. With an estimated halfmillion who experience homelessness in a given year, the VA estimates that it reaches only 20 percent of those in need, leaving more than 400,000 veterans without services. The average time between soldiers coming home from Vietnam and then becoming homeless was about 12 years, according to Linda Boone, executive director of the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans. But “my gut instinct tells me that, because of the economy and the lack of affordable housing, there will be a significant difference in the time veterans start becoming homeless, compared to Vietnam War veterans,” said Boone. “Veterans are coming home much more abruptly than they did in Vietnam, it may be a lot harder to support your family with the economy the way it is,” she said. “We think there’s an opportunity to prevent homelessness with veterans.” Prevention starts at the Department of Defense, according to Boone, but she said it’s just not happening. Many homeless veterans and advocates in the field say veterans coming out of the military should be given the proper counseling and services needed to enter back into society. “If they would have admitted the damage Agent Orange would have done to me, and given me the proper therapy for being ‘on vacation’, if you Streetvibes Vendor: 70 cents Printing and Production: 30 cents know what I mean, then maybe I could have done better in this life. “I went as crazy as a bed bug after seeing what I saw. I was awful sick when I got back to the states, but I was no longer under any impression that we were saving the world from communism. I thought by going to war I could prove myself to be a man. I was raised on that John Wayne bull#$%@, and that’s exactly what it is — bull#$%@. “I think being homeless has a lot to do with my experience in Vietnam,” Buchanan said. “When I got back, the VA didn’t care about me. For years, I would go in to receive help and they would just call me a dope addict. I selfmedicated because of the constant pain I was in.” “I was hit four times by an AK in the first burst, and was hit once with friendly fire by the 2nd platoon as they came in from the rear. I got gangrene and then they cut my leg off a week later. “The thing that has always bothered me about all of this is that I couldn’t help feeling like the Red Coats, ya’ know,” Buchanan said. “We weren’t protecting anybody from anything. We were the invaders and we didn’t have a cause. The only cause was survival for soldiers and that’s a dangerous circumstance to be in.” According to the Indiana School of Medicine, during the Vietnam War, psychological breakdowns on the battlefield were as low as 12 per 1,000. But in 1973, when direct American troop involvement in Vietnam ended, the number of veterans with psychiatric disorders began to increase Where Your Dollar Goes... The Streetvibes program maintains a minimal overhead cost so that our vendors can keep as much of the proceeds as possible. Please call our office at 421-7803 for more information about the program. Many thanks for your support. tremendously. They began to show symptoms such as intense anxiety, battle dreams, depression, and problems with interpersonal relationships long after their combatant role in the Vietnam War had ceased. Some advocates believe that a more progressive system could be put into place to deal with substance abusers, especially for vets who may have come home with an addiction, like many did from Vietnam. “You shouldn’t have a system that punishes vets on the streets for using,” said one advocate who declined to be named. “It’s a system that punishes people who have seen horrific things or who may be in extreme pain for using a drug to selfmedicate. It’s crooked and wrong. Who are we to say, ‘We’re very proud you went and risked your life for your country, but because you’re a user the punishments will be prison and homelessness.” “We are seeing more Gulf War veterans on the streets in Portland,” says Don Hanson, a Vietnam vet and the career services coordinator with Central City Concern. “In some cases, Gulf War Syndrome is playing a part. Some were probably exposed to chemicals, and the VA is recognizing that more and more. There are a lot of diseases attached to Vietnam and the Gulf War.” Of the 697,000 U.S. troops who served during Operation Desert Shield and Desert Storm, more than 100,000 have registered with the Department of Veterans Affairs or the Department of Defense, saying they have health concerns. While most of these veterans have been diagnosed with a variety of conditions, more than 154,000, or about 20 percent of those examined, have undiagnosed symptoms, which commonly include fatigue, muscle and joint pains, headaches, memory loss, skin rash, diarrhea and sleep disturbances. There’s no record of how many people are on the streets from the Persian Gulf War or any other conflict the United States has been involved in. “There’s more and more people who are on the streets since the Vietnam era, and that’s probably since some of us are dying out,” says Hanson. Reprinted from street roots, Portland, Oregon, November 2003. Streetvibes exists as a forum for the expression of the views and opinions of our readers and supporters. The opinions expressed herein are not necessarily those of the Streetvibes staff or the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. S T R E E T V I B E S February, 2004 Editorial Page 16 �More on Homeless Veterans by Israel Bayer News & Editorial gallon drums in which it was stored. Other herbicides, including Agent White and Agent Blue, were also used in Vietnam to a much lesser extent. Between 1961 and 1971, the U.S. military in South Vietnam used more than 19 million gallons of herbicides for defoliation and crop destruction. Several types and combinations of chemicals were used but Agent Orange was the most commonly applied, specifically between January 1965 and April 1970. Herbicides other than Agent Orange were used in Vietnam prior to 1965, but to a very limited extent. Some of the herbicides applying. Source: The Department of Veterans Affairs If the trial of Agent Orange is any measure, it could be decades before the United States and the VA acknowledge what veterans and their families say is a very real disability: “Gulf War Syndrome.” Gulf War Syndrome The VA calls Gulf War Syndrome a non-scientific label used to describe the unexplained illnesses characterized by fatigue, joint pain, skin rash, memory loss and/or diarrhea. According to the Department of Veterans Affairs, panels of experts have agreed that the group of veterans suffering affected by disasters such as earthquakes and airplane crashes, The Evolution of Postand are now referred to as postTraumatic Stress Disorder traumatic stress syndrome. Post-Traumatic Stress Source: Indiana School of Syndrome is a very new term. It Medicine was only in World War I that Agent Orange psychiatric syndromes first came Thirty years after its use, to be associated with military the United States finally combat. Until then, it was acknowledged the application and assumed that such causalities potentially devastating affects of were due to cowardice or lack of the defoliant known as Agent discipline. World War I found Orange. This recognition may that the explosion of shells caused open the door to services for not just physiological damage but many veterans suffering the also symptoms called ‘shell effects of toxic exposure. shock,’ and that there was a Viewed as disability, the connection between psychological chronic and debilitating affects of stress and combat. toxic exposure to Agent Orange During World War II, can be an obstacle to psychiatric causalities increased veterans trying to Statistics on homeless veterans: by 300 percent over World War I. return to civilian life. — 23 percent of the homeless population are veterans At one point in the war, the It is also another number of men being evacuated disability that for psychiatric reasons exceeded aggravates a stable life — 33 percent of the male homeless population are veterans the total number of new recruits. and can lead to During the Korean War, a homelessness. — 47 percent are from the Vietnam era new method of dealing with In September psychiatric breakdown was 2000, VA recognized devised. Instead of evacuating that Agent Orange was — 17 percent are from post-Vietnam era affected individuals, they were used in Korea in the given immediate onsite treatment late 1960’s and — 15 percent are pre-Vietnam era so that they could return to duty as approved Agent soon as possible. Evacuations Orange examinations — 67 percent served three or more years due to psychiatric reasons for U.S. veterans who Source: National Coalition for Homeless Veterans dropped from 23 percent in World served in Korea in War II, to 6 percent in the Korean 1968 or 1969. In from the purported syndrome is used in the early years contained War. March 2001, it was ordered that probably not suffering from a greater concentrations of dioxin, During the Vietnam War, those examinations be made battlefield breakdown was as low available to all other veterans who according to the Department of single, common ailment, but rather from a variety of illnesses as 12 per thousand. But in 1973, may have been exposed to dioxin Veterans Affairs. Spraying with overlapping symptoms. occurred in all four military zones when direct American troop or other toxic substances in a involvement in Vietnam ended, Gulf War Syndrome has of Vietnam. Heavily sprayed herbicide or defoliant during the areas included inland forests near been attributed to a number of the number of veterans with conduct of or as the result of sources, including exposure to the demarcation zone; inland psychiatric disorders began to testing, transporting, or spraying increase tremendously. They radiation from depleted uranium forests at the junction of the of herbicides for military used in artillery, side-effects of borders of Cambodia, Laos, and began to show symptoms such as purposes. anti-biological immunizations, South Vietnam; inland forests intense anxiety, battle dreams, Agent Orange was a depression, and problems with and biological weapons. north and northwest of Saigon; herbicide used in Vietnam to kill The VA says that a number mangrove forests on the interpersonal relationships long unwanted plants and to remove of potential causes have been southernmost peninsula of after their combatant role in the leaves from trees that otherwise and mangrove forests Vietnam War had ceased. investigated, but no single theory Vietnam; provided cover for the enemy. appears likely to explain all of the These symptoms were The name, “Agent Orange,” came along major shipping channels southeast of Saigon. undiagnosed conditions. linked to those shown by people from the orange stripe on the 55Some Vietnam veterans In tens of thousands of get disability compensation for protocol medical examinations of Agent Orange-related illnesses. Persian Gulf veterans to date, the VA pays disability compensation VA and the Department of to Vietnam veterans with injuries Defense medical authorities say Advertise in Streetvibes! or illnesses incurred in or they have found no evidence of aggravated by their military infectious diseases beyond the Reach thousands of service. Veterans do not have to range of illnesses common in the downtown workers prove that Agent Orange caused population at large. Research each month! their medical problems to be studies now in progress will eligible for compensation. provide more scientific answers to Rather, VA must determine that this question, but no rigorous, Call 421-7803 for more the disability is “servicereproducible research to date has information about how connected.” A Veterans Services established that Gulf War Representative, at a VA medical veterans’ illnesses are caused by advertising in center or regional office, can an infectious agent. Streetvibes will work explain the compensation Source: Department of Veterans program in greater detail and Affairs for your business.... assist veterans who need help in Extra! Extra! S T R E E T V I B E S February, 2004 Veteran News Page 17 Page 17 �The Iraqis Who Hated Saddam Hate the Americans More by Paul McGeough In Khaldiyah, it’s a war of nerves. A three-meter-deep crater marks the explosion point of a careering car bomb that the local police knew was inevitable. Just across and down a highway that cuts through this small town west of Baghdad is the home of a man the US suspects could help bring an end to these relentless attacks tribal sheik Fanar Al-Kharbit. As black smoke cleared over Khaldiyah and its dusty main street was swept of body parts, shattered glass and clothing now reduced to singed rags, locals went through the grim ritual of tallying the dead - more than a dozen policemen, at least one student from a nearby school, a fruit vendor, a few other streetstallholders and a man who worked in a nearby sewage control office. Acutely aware that he is 120 times more likely to die than his counterpart on the beat in New York, police officer Khalid Hammed said: “The best thing the US can do for us is pull out.” Like other guerilla conflicts, Iraq has become a war of attrition. Super self-protection by the Americans makes them a difficult target. So the insurgents turn more on Iraqis who are seen to be helping the US - police and security workers, the judiciary and local political leaders. The number of attacks against the US is down, but this doesn’t mean that the security situation is any less fraught. While the American forces are poised defensively, like a coiled spring, and while fear grips that portion of the Iraqi people that doesn’t necessarily support the resistance, it is impossible for the US to pull Iraq out of the social and economic chaos that makes many Iraqis hunger for what they remember as the day-to-day orderliness of Saddam’s Iraq. There is little doubt that as a sheik in the Sunni hotbed between Ramadi and Faluja, Fanar Al-Kharbit knows more than he lets on. And there’s the rub: the US has him pegged as a potential source of what it likes to call “actionable intelligence”, but it doesn’t have enough to pull him in. American tanks have rumbled into his walled compound on the banks of the Euphrates River no fewer than seven times in the past few weeks, soldiers tumbling out to rummage through his home while, he says, telling him all the time to “shut up”. The sheik is still full of hard talk, but those who know him say he is a shadow of his former self. Reputed to be one of the richest men in Iraq, he used to strut in crisp traditional dress and hobnob with the most senior elements of the regime. Saddam was a frequent guest at his table until a falling out over business in the early ’90s. Now he is ill-kempt and gaunt. “In the first few months relations with the US were friendly, but now they are trying to provoke me,” he said, pointing to the charred remains of reed beds by the Euphrates, which he said he had been ordered to burn so that his activities might be observed more closely from US observation posts. “This is not liberation, it is an occupation. People are very tired after Saddam’s three wars. I’m worried if the Americans keep attacking me, that my tribe will react - but for now I have told my people not to cause trouble.” The difficulty for Fanar AlKharbit is that in running Saddam into ground, the Americans have displayed a new understanding of Iraqi tribalism and how it dovetails with the resistance. The latest resistance attacks and US arrests - including nine who were described by the officer in charge of Saddam’s detention, Major-General Ray Odierno, as “mid-level operatives: financiers, organisers, arms suppliers” underscore the fluid structure and make-up of the opposition that confronts the US in Iraq. US officials insist that the strategic direction comes from Izzat Ibrahim Al-Duri, a longserving Saddam lieutenant whose family properties overlook the farm on which Saddam was dragged from his burrow and who this week became the most senior official of the former regime still on the run. But hampered by poor communications, the evidence suggests great local autonomy and a degree of friction between several competing resistance groups with varying agendas, but all of which are bent on causing trouble for the US. There are Baath Party loyalists, some of whose ardour might be diluted by the finality of Saddam’s capture. But there are also dozens of locally run cells that claim to be vehemently antiSaddam and to be driven by nationalism and a need to protect their huge natural resources especially oil - from what they see as an American grab. Then there are the foreign fighters claimed by the US to be in the service of al-Qaeda and one of its offshoots, Ansar al-Islam. These so-called jihadists come from across the Arab world and are thought most likely to be the parties behind the wave of suicide bombings that started in the summer with the attack on the Jordanian embassy in Baghdad. Responsibility is never claimed for the bombings. The US variously lays the blame at the feet of the foreign terror groups or the Baath Party loyalists. Co-ordination between the resistance groups is little understood, but it is thought to be erratic. Now, some Iraqi villages are being encircled with barbed wire. Only those Iraqis with USissued identity cards may come and go; the relatives of suspected insurgents are being detained and, in some cases, their homes are being demolished. And the Americans are being urged to mirror the Israelis’ extensive West Bank and Gaza informants’ network, which has underpinned the Israeli campaign of summary execution for terror suspects - but which has failed to end the violence or advance the peace. After the Americans’ widely criticised decision to disband, rather than attempt to harness the better elements of the Iraqi military and intelligence services, the US now is calling for help from veterans of Saddam’s feared mukhabarat - the secret police. Also, it is trying to enlist former Iraqi servicemen into the new Iraqi army. But it has suffered a major embarrassment with the revelation that more than one-third of the first Iraqi battalion in training had gone AWOL - only days before it was to begin active service. The US now boasts that it has deployed or is training a greater number of Iraqi security forces than there are US forces in the country - almost 160,000. But they have a way to go. Apart from the campaign of fear by bombing, the police are subjected to near-ritualistic humiliation in the total refusal of city motorists and others to acknowledge their authority; they are widely accused of threatening bogus charges against motorists who refuse to offer bribes and those who are posted at service stations to control angry petrol queues often sell pole position on the queue to the highest bidder. Anger simmers at the prospect of a long wait for adequate supplies of electricity, petrol and cooking gas. If the US stays the course with its timetable for a fully elected new Iraqi government, it could be years before it can be demonstrated that Iraqis are in control of Iraq. Delays on both fronts create a perfect environment for guerilla war. Whatever he is up to, and however dispirited Fanar AlKharbit appears, it seems that the sheik wants to keep punching. Returning to his place against the wall in the pale afternoon sun, he said: “I’ve told the Americans to get out of my neighbourhood. They wouldn’t be here if I was a leader of the mujahideen. And if they keep going like this, a lot more US soldiers will die.” Prisoners Advocacy Committee — Ohio PO Box 1746 Cincinnati, Ohio 45201-1746, or submit a prisoner’s name and jail number at cleves1947@yahoo.com Finding pen-pals for people incarcerated in jails throughout Ohio. Streetvibes exists as a forum for the expression of the views and opinions of our readers and supporters. The opinions expressed herein are not necessarily those of the Streetvibes staff or the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. S T R E E T V I B E S February, 2004 Editorial Page 18 �FRAC - Food Research and Action Center News FOOD STAMP PARTICIPATION INCREASES IN OCTOBER 2003 TO MORE THAN 23.3 MILLION PERSONS; IS MORE THAN 6.4 MILLION PERSONS HIGHER THAN IN JULY 2000 (January 7, 2003) Participation in the Food Stamp Program in October 2003 (the latest data available) increased by 608,748 persons from the previous month, to 23,315,024 persons. Some of this increase was due to continuing high rates of joblessness, states improving access, and the effects of the food stamp reauthorization implementation. But a majority of the growth in October over September was in recipients of Hurricane Isabel disaster relief. Excluding states that received disaster relief and Alaska, the overall one month increase becomes 1.2 percent instead of 2.7 percent. The October 2003 level of Food Stamp Program participation represented a rise of almost 3.2 million persons compared to the October 2002 level and more than 6.4 million persons since July, 2000 (when program participation nationally reached its lowest point in the last decade). http://www.frac.org/html/ news/fsp/03oct.html FOOD STAMP PROGRAM CONTINUES TO EXPAND DUE TO USDA EFFORTS (GovExec.com, January 5, 2004) Only 62 percent of those who are eligible for food stamps currently participate in the program. When the TANF law was passed in 1996 there were almost 26 million people enrolled in the Food Stamp Program. By 2000 that number had dropped to about 17 million. Many of the people who left TANF and got jobs were still relying on emergency food assistance providers for food. Advocates, program administrators and politicians alike saw the dramatic drop in the program as a cause for concern. The U.S. Department of Agriculture has been working to simplify the program, improve access and fund outreach efforts. States have also been encouraged to loosen their asset requirements and ease the application process. However, some states have put cost-cutting to rein in budget deficits ahead of program improvements. “It still takes a bit of [state] money to bring in a lot of [federal] money,” said James Weill, president of FRAC. The efforts have begun to make a difference: from September 2001 to September 2003 participation jumped 27 percent to 22.7 million persons. http://www.govexec.com/ dailyfed/0104/010504nj1.htm percent). Many states have had to cut spending to reconcile their budgets. Defeat of a tax increase in Oregon will result in the “end [of] the Oregon Health Plan as we know it,” said Peter Bragdon, the governor’s chief of staff. Thirtyfour states have cut spending on Medicaid and the State Children’s Health Insurance Program over the past two years. http:// www.nytimes.com/2004/01/05/ national/05STAT.html (free registration required) COLUMN: WITH CHILD POVERTY RATES HIGHER THAN MOST INDUSTRIALIZED NATIONS, U.S. GOVERNMENT MUST SUPPORT NEEDY (Washington Post, December 21, 2003) In this column, Timothy M. Smeeding, director of the Luxembourg Income Study of OBESITY EPIDEMIC MAKES relative poverty rates in developed HEADLINES IN 2003, countries, points out that we still EXPERTS SAY HEALTHY have a child poverty rate that is EATING AT SCHOOLS IS significantly higher than in wealthy IMPORTANT (Post-Gazette, European nations, Canada and Pittsburgh, PA, January 1, 2004) Australia. “We in America have America’s obesity epidemic high child poverty rates because we grabbed headlines around the choose to, not because we cannot nation in 2003. The Centers for do anything Disease about it.” Control and Not only are more American Not only are Prevention children poor, many live in extreme more estimate poverty, despite that fact that lowAmerican that 60 income single mothers in the U.S. children percent of work more hours than do single poor, many Americans mothers in any other wealthy nation, are either live in putting them at risk for hunger and extreme overweight poverty, making it harder for them to ever or obese, despite the and 15 escape from poverty. “Poor children fact that percent of in France, Germany and the Nordic low-income 6- to 19countries are six times more likely to single year-olds escape poverty than their American mothers in are counterparts.” the U.S. overweight, work more which is hours than do single mothers in any almost three times the number from other wealthy nation, putting them 1980. Dr. J. Michael McGinnis of at risk for hunger and making it the Robert Wood Johnson harder for them to ever escape Foundation points out that the from poverty. “Poor children in current epidemic foreshadows a France, Germany and the Nordic future health crisis. “We may be countries are six times more likely raising the first generation of to escape poverty than their children that is sicker and dies American counterparts.” http:// younger then their parents. The www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp- sheer availability of food has led dyn?pagename=article&node people to graze throughout the day =&contentId=A16659-2003Dec19 on foods that are largely nutrientpoor and calorie-rich.” http:// AFTER THREE YEARS AND www.post-gazette.com/localnews/ $200 BILLION IN 20040101closeup0101p4.asp CUMULATIVE BUDGET SHORTFALLS, WORST MAY THE AMERICAN ACADEMY BE OVER FOR STATES, BUT OF PEDIATRICS STRESS WILL CONTINUE RECOMMENDS THAT (New York Times, January 5, SCHOOLS CONSIDER 2003) Tax revenues in most states RESTRICTING SOFT DRINK rose slightly in the second half of SALES (American Academy of 2003 for the first time since midPediatrics, Press Release, January 2001, ending three straight years of 5, 2004) In a policy statement, the budget shortfalls totaling $200 American Academy of Pediatrics billion. Slow job growth and rising recommends that school districts health costs will continue to stress consider restricting the sale of soft state budgets. The past three years drinks to prevent health problems represented a dramatic change in that result from over consumption. budget realities for many states. The Academy points to the Compared to the last recession in relationship between increased risk 1991, when states raised taxes by of overweight and obesity and 5.4 percent over the previous increased sugared soft drink year’s tax collections, taxes were consumption. They note that, as raised much less in 2003 (by 1.5 soft drink consumption increases, S T R E E T V I B E S February, 2004 FRAC News milk consumption decreases. They recommend that schools stock nutritious alternatives such as water, real fruit juices and low-fat milks to preserve funds from vending machines. In addition, the Academy recommends that soft drinks not be sold in competition with the National School Lunch Program. http://www.aap.org/ advocacy/releases/ jansoftdrinks.htm For the entire policy statement by the American Academy of Pediatrics:http:// www.aap.org/policy/s010119.html PRESIDENT OF CONSUMERS UNION URGES PARENTS TO CHALLENGE VENDING CONTRACTS WITH SCHOOLS, EMPHASIZE NUTRITIOUS CHOICES (Consumer Reports, January 2004) In this editorial, Jim Guest, president of Consumers Union, which publishes “Consumer Reports,” urges parents to challenge soft drink vending contracts between schools and beverage manufacturers in order to emphasize nutritious choices for school children. Noting that few states have laws regulating such contracts, Guest points out that it is up to parents and individual school districts to monitor what is being sold to students while at school. http://www.consumer reports.org/main/detailv4.jsp? CONTENT%3C%3Ecnt_id%20= 3719159F3EB50-4AD9-4D1AB029-1C55C5888754 MODEL WORKFARE SERVICES PROGRAM IN UTAH MAKES EFFORT TO INCREASE ACCESS TO FOOD STAMPS (Salt Lake Tribune, Salt Lake City, UT, January 5, 2004) Utah’s Department of Workfare Services has been highlighted as a model for the federal Workforce Investment Act of 1998, which requires all local workforce areas to develop a system to deliver federally funded employment and some public assistance programs at one location. In a report by the Center for Law and Social Policy, the Utah office was found to be a model program but still needed improvement in raising awareness of clients to public benefits available at the site. The low level of food stamp participation by clients (who are leaving the TANF program) was also shown as a concern. Since the report was released over a year ago, Utah has made efforts to increase access to food stamps. http:// www.sltrib.com/2004/jan/ 01052004/business/126235.asp FRAC’s web site is http://www.frac.org Page 19 Page 19 �TREATMENT: Both N.A. Hopeline 820-2947 A.A. Hotline 351-0422 C.C.A.T. 381-6672 Talbert House 684-7956 Transitions, Inc 859-491-4435 VA Domiciliary 859-559-5011 DIC Live-In Program 721-0643 TREATMENT: Men Charlie’s 3/4 House 784-1853 Prospect House 921-1613 Starting Over 961-2256 TREATMENT: Women First Step Home 961-4663 Full Circle Program 721-0643 HOUSING: CMHA 721-4580 Excel Development 632-7149 Miami Purchase 241-0504 OTR Housing Net. 369-0004 ReSTOC 381-1171 Tender Mercies 721-8666 Tom Geiger House 961-4555 SHELTER: Both Anthony House (Youth) 357-4602 Caracole (AIDS) 761-1480 Friars Club 381-5432 Drop Inn Center 721-0643 Haven House 863-8866 Interfaith Hospitality 471-1100 Lighthouse Youth Center (Teens) 861-1111 St. John’s Housing 651-6446 Mt. Airy Center 661-4620 Volunteers of Amer. 381-1954 Need Help or Want to Help? If you need help or would like to help please call one of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless members listed below. SHELTERS: Women and Children YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter 872-9259 (Toll Free) 1-888-872-9259 Bethany House 557-2873 Salvation Army 762-5660 Welcome House 859-431-8717 Women’s Crisis Center 859-491-3335 SHELTER: Men City Gospel Mission 241-5525 Garden St. House 241-0490 Joseph House (Veterans) 241-2965 St. Francis/St.Joseph House 381-4941 Formed in 1984, The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a membership organization. Our member groups serve the homeless through emergency shelter, transitional living facilities, permanent housing, medical services, social services, soup kitchens, and mental health/addiction services. The Coalition also consists of individual citizens who want to take an active role in ensuring that Cincinnati is an inclusive community, meeting the needs of all of its citizens. Join the fight to end homelessness; contact the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless at (513) 421-7803, 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 OTHER SERVICES: AIDS Volunteers of Cincinnati 421-2437 Appalachian Identity Center 621-5991 Beech Acres 231-6630 Center for Independent Living Options 241-2600 Churches Active in Northside 591-2246 Cincinnati Health Network 961-0600 Community Action Agency 569-1840 Contact Center 381-4242 Emanuel Center 241-2563 Freestore/ Foodbank 241-1064 Fransiscan Haircuts 651-6468 Goodwill Industries 771-4800 Coalition for the Homeless 421-7803 Hamilton Co. Mental Health Board 946-8600 Mental Health Access Point 558-8888 Hamilton Co. TB Control 632-7186 Health Rsrc. Center 357-4602 Homeless Mobile Health Van 352-2902 House of Refuge Mission 221-5491 Legal Aid Society 241-9400 Madisonville Ed. & Assis. Center 271-5501 Mary Magdalen House 721-4811 McMicken Dental Clinic 352-6363 Our Daily Bread 621-6364 Peaslee Neighborhood Center 621-5514 Project Connect Homeless Kids 357-5720 St. Vincent De Paul 562-8841 The Emergency Food Center 471-4357 Travelers Aid 721-7660 United Way 721-7900 VA Homeless 859-572-6226 Women Helping Women 872-9259 MIDDLETOWN/HAMILTON (Butler County) St. Raphaels (Food Bank/Soup Kitchen) 863-3184 Salvation Army 863-1445 Serenity House Day Center 422-8555 Open Door Pantry 868-3276 New Life Baptist Mission (Soup Kitchen) 896-9800 Hope House (Homeless Families/Singles) 423-4673 $1 Donation February 2004 Streetvibes BUY FROM BADGED VENDORS ONLY Cover Story Riverfront Campers Receive Settlement From Covington Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 2004 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource February 2004 Subject The topic of the resource Homelessness Description An account of the resource Pg 1: Homeless Men Receive Settlement from City of Covington Keeping the Dream Alive in Cincinnati Pg 2: A New Year’s Challenge to a City Pg 3: Homeless News Digest Some Irreverent Thoughts on Religion Pg 4: Myths Breed Neglect, Violence Against Cincinnati’s Homeless Pg 5: Can You Force the Homeless into Shelters? Pg 6: The Peace Village Pg 7: How Do We Treat Our Fellow Man? Spirit of MLK Celebrated Pg 8: Vendors Pg 9: Making Shelters Safe for All Genders Pg 10: People Tell George Bush “Move-On”! Pg 11: Donate Pg 12: Now at Public Library; Through Our Eyes Pg 13: Words from the Evangelist Sheltered White Girl’s Eyes Opened by Shelter Pg 14: Arts & Poetry Pg 15: Arts & Poetry Continued Pg 16: Editorial Pg 17: More on Homeless Veterans Pg 18: The Iraqis Who Hated Saddam Hate the Americans More Pg 19: FRAC Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Streetvibes Archive Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Streetvibes Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource February 2004 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Georgine Getty Andy Erickson Brendan Goodwin Mary Gaffney Elizabeth Linville Jimmy Heath Berta Lambert Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Arts & Poetry Berta Lambert Brendan Goodwin Bush Cincinnati Covington Editorials Elizabeth Linville Evangelist Food Research FRAC GCCH Gender Equality George Bush Georgine Getty Iraq Jimmy Heath Martin Luther King Jr. Mary Gaffney memorial MLK New Years Peace Village Public Library Religion Saddam veterans Violence https://streetvibesarchive.net/files/original/72ca3f8258b73488cb0bfff92aa0c349.pdf 6acf4ac5a4e25537f156bb4449b934cf PDF Text Text Streetvibes January 2004 Homeless Memorial Remembers Those Who Have Died in 2003 As the sun went down on December 22nd, the shortest day of the year, people gathered in Over­ the-Rhine’s Washington Park to remember the homeless who have died during 2003. Since 1990, the National Coalition for the Homeless (NCH) and the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH) has sponsored National Homeless Persons’ Memorial Day on or near the first day of winter to bring attention to the tragedy of homelessness, and to remember our friends who have paid the ultimate price for our nation’s failure to adequately address the complex issue of homelessness. In an effort to maximize the impact of the day, the National Coalition for the Homeless encouraged state and local groups to join in the national event. Each year since its inception, the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless has been joined by state and local groups across the nation in holding special events to honor those who have died, and to recommit ourselves to the task of ending homelessness. This year over 100 cities sponsored events which included candlelight marches and vigils, graveside services, plays and other performances, and special religious services to remember the citizens in their city who have died without a home. A short, non­ denominational service was held in Cincinnati, followed by a gathering and refreshments at nearby Nast Trinity Church. The day was gray and unseasonably warm when the small, but dedicated group of clergy, homeless, formerly homeless and members of the housed community in Cincinnati gathered around the barrel fire in downtown’s Washington Park to remember those that died homeless in 2003. Huddled around the barrel fire for warmth and as a symbolic gesture, nearly 75 people and media took pause to listen to a litany of names of those that society has forgotten. The candlelight vigil featured a reading of each of the names of the 19 homeless people known to have died this year in Cincinnati. A candle was lit in memory of each name read. Oftentimes, homeless individuals pass away with no one to remember or mourn their passing. Homeless Person’s Memorial Day seeks to remedy that by gathering family members, shelter workers, government officials and concerned citizens in a ceremony to quietly remember. In an attempt to put a human face on the problems of homelessness the Homeless Memorial serves as a reminder of the countless who die needlessly every year in this country. Advocates place emphasis on the need for affordable housing, a true living wage, and substance abuse treatment for the homeless. Women and children continue to be the fastest growing segment of the homeless population. Homeless citizens, supporters go ‘Home for the Holidays’ at annual Coalition dinner can make a difference. One’s and fought his arrest” with media by John Zeh Cincinnati attorney Jennifer Kinsley had just finished her first year of law school and completed an internship at Volunteers for the Arts in New York City on a small stipend when she took the subway to the airport with her last $2.50 to fly home for a visit. Upon arriving at LaGuardia Airport with empty pockets, she got bad news: all flights to Michigan were cancelled. “I was stuck,” she told some 240 people gathered for the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless Annual Dinner on December 9. “Something of a drama queen, I sat down and balled and screamed with bloodshot eyes. It was very embarrassing.” Fate and personal outreach by another traveler intervened, helping her learn lessons that have since served her well and have helped local homeless people. The first, she smiled, call ahead and confirm the flight! problem can be solved by interviews under the Clay Wade someone reaching out to help.” Bailey Bridge. “He told the Kinsley put the lessons courtroom about his friend’s death she learned to work when under a bridge and there was not a Cincinnati police threatened to dry eye in court, including the arrest people living under judge’s,” said Kinsley. bridges last summer. That “The response was “was repugnant to me,” said dramatic. A little girl stopped by Kinsley, a former public under the bridge with a pillow. defender. “Jails should not be Coalition Dinner... replacements for homes or cont. on page 11 apartments. It offended my basic notion of human dignity, human rights.” Georgine Getty, Executive Director, A member of the addresses GCCH dinner crowd progressive law firm Sirkin, Pinales, Mezibov But a greater gift was help and Schwartz downtown, from another traveler at the airport. A woman, ironically also Kinsley obtained a restraining order from Judge a lawyer from Michigan, “was Susan Dlott that forced the willing to share my misery and City to give people living give me $40. I got to go home.” outdoors 72 hours notice Her experience illustrated before they are moved, both sides of an individual’s arrested, or have their heartfelt problem and how her personal belongings trashed needs were quickly met, exactly (as they were to make way the mission of agencies making for baseball parking). up the Greater Cincinnati Kinsley credits citizen Attorney Jennifer Kinsley gives keynote Coalition for the Homeless. address Don Henry, who “stood up “Sometimes the smallest things Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless �ON A SCALE OF ONE TO A HUNDRED, HOW MUCH DO YOU DISAGREE WITH THE CITY’S TREATMENT OF CINCINNATI’S HOMELESS? I WILL DONATE: $1 $20 $40 $60 $80 $100 He’s only 18 months old and already he’s trapped in the cycle of homelessness in Cincinnati. His mother needs an affordable place to live and a job with a living wage as she escapes a life of domestic violence. The current treatment of homeless individuals in our city means that he may never be able to live in a home of his own. There are 25,000 people in Cincinnati that experience homelessness each year. More than one-third of those are women and children. The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless believes that by addressing the root causes of the problem through education, advocacy and coordination of services, we can end homelessness in our city. The more support we have from the community, the further our efforts reach. Please cut the coupon and pick a box. It could mean that one less child will have to live in one. Send your donations to Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 S T R E E T V I B E S January, 2004 Page 2 �Editorial Homeless News Digest STREETVIBES The Tri-State's Homeless Grapevine Streetvibes, the Tri-State's alternative news source, is a newspaper written by, for, and about the homeless and contains relevant discussions of social justice, and poverty issues. It is published once a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Becoming a Streetvibes Vendor is a great way for home­ less and other low-income people to get back on (or stay on) their feet. Streetvibes Vendors are given an orientation and sign a code of conduct before being given a Streetvibes Vendor badge. All profits go directly to the vendor. The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a group of shelters, agencies and individuals committed to ending homelessness in Cincinnati through coordinating services, educating the public and grassroots organizing. GCCH Staff Georgine Getty - Executive Director Brendan Goodwin - Administra­ tive Coordinator Andy Erickson - Education Coordinator Elizabeth Linville - Civil Rights Coordinator Mary Gaffney - Receptionist Streetvibes Jimmy Heath - Editor-in-Chief, Design & Layout Photographers Jimmy Heath, Berta Lambert, J.Michael Skaggs Cover Homeless memorial in OTR’s Washington Park, photo by Jimmy Heath Streetvibes accepts letters, poems, stories, essays, original graphics, and photos. We will give preference to those who are homeless or ven­ dors. Subscriptions to Streetvibes, de­ livered to your home each month, can be purchased for $25 per year. Address mail to: Streetvibes Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH) 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 (513) 421-7803 e-mail: streetvibes@juno.com web: http://homeless.cinci.com North American Newsbriefs by Molly Rhodes and R.V. Murphy Homeless newspapers in Germany became prime property in late October when J.K. Rowling offered them exclusive publishing rights to the opening chapter of the latest Harry Potter book, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, before it hits the stores in its German translation. The first chapter was printed in more than 20 street magazines in Germany, Switzerland, and Austria, according to the German news corporation Deutsche Welle (www.dw­ world.de). Rowling agreed to the early taste of the book as an effort to provide a much needed boost to the homeless services and jobtraining programs the street papers support. Rowling was herself an unemployed single mother living on welfare benefits before gaining success with the Harry Potter franchise. “It was the greatest gift to us to be able to publish the chapter,” Birgit Müller, editor of Hinz & Kunzt, Germany’s biggestselling street magazine, told Deutsche Welle. The offices of Hinz & Kunzt started fielding dozens of phone calls a day from impatient Potter fans as soon as the announcement was made. “The vendors are over the moon. It will give us a massive boost.” One of the four Ohio teenagers accused of kicking, urinating on, and shocking homeless people with a stun gun in downtown Cleveland this past August was sentenced to spend the rest of the year in jail, followed by 150 hours of volunteer work with homeless service organizations. “If I could order it, I’d order no Thanksgiving dinner, no Christmas dinner while you are there,” Cleveland Municipal Judge C. Ellen Connally told Joshua Langenheim, 19, at the sentencing hearing, according to the Cleveland Plain Dealer (www.cleveland.com). “You don’t deserve it.” Langenheim and his three accomplices were all caught when a video tape they had made of their attacks – which also showed them laughing at the people they were assaulting – was found in their car. The other three defendants are all minors and are currently undergoing trials in S T R E E T V I B E S January, 2004 Juvenile Court. In his tearful read of his apology in court, Langenheim said, “I don’t know if this was the downfall… or the turning point in my life. All I know is that I look at things differently.” Poet David Fewster doesn’t paint glossy pictures of his life in his latest publication, Diary of a Homeless Alcoholic Suicidal Maniac and Other Picture Postcards. The autographical collection of poems details his life, from watching other homeless people, including one who muttered “loudly about a conspiracy theory involving George W. Bush, Saddam Hussein, Mariah Carey and a large buttered artichoke named Leon,” to picking up chicks at Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, according to the Tacoma News Tribune (www.tribnet.com). Fewster published the book with the help of a $3,000 grant from the Tacoma Arts Commission, and doesn’t know what his next plan is for his life. “To be honest, I expected to be dead like 2 1/2 years ago,” he told the News Tribune. “I’ve obviously got a lot of problems to continue to sort out as I bop along.” For a copy of Fewster’s book, email him at davidfewster@netscape.net. Homeless people in Roch­ ester, New York are organizing. The city’s refusal to let the home­ less use vacant buildings has led to the formation of Poor People United, according to the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle (Demo­ crat andCronicle.com). Last month, five members were arrested on trespassing charges for breaking into a down­ town building in an effort to publi­ cize the issue. “The county has refused to help,” said Charles Kellum, a member of the group. “That’s a human rights violation.” The group recently held a press conference in front of City Hall to draw attention to their plight. “We’re asking the commu­ nity to see this emergency,” said David Cox of Rochester, another member of Poor People United. “The poor are the ones suffering. I’m sick and tired of abstract activism for people thousands of miles away. When are we going to be concerned about our fellow Americans?” During the rally, partici­ pants held candles and read from the Universal Declaration of Hu­ man Rights, which the United Nations adopted in 1948. Some in the crowd said making those pleas was the least they could do. For the homeless, said activist Jessica Chapman, there was little else they could do. “We have only one thing left — our voices,” said Chapman, who works at a homeless shelter. A homeless man jailed for trespass made a donation in the “four figures” range to a children’s museum, according to the Ogden Standard Examiner. “Don’t let it be said that this isn’t the season to be giving,” said Ogden police lieutenant Dave Tarran. Lynn Goodwin, director of the Treehouse Children’s Museum, said she was surprised to find “a substantial amount” of money in a locked mailbox at Christmas Village near a playhouse the organization is auctioning. “We didn’t anticipate that anyone would actually put dona­ tions in the box,” Goodwin said. But last week, Goodwin found a stash of money orders that weren’t made out to anyone, so she called police. Neither she nor police disclosed the exact amount. “We thought the money may have belonged to someone else,” Goodwin said. “We thought it may have been stolen, and we thought it best to report it.” Tarran said that at the same time police received Goodwin’s call, they were investigating the source of some money orders in the same series that they found in the belongings of a homeless man who was in the Weber County Jail. The man had been arrested the night before for sleeping in a vacant inner-city home. The man said he received the money orders as payment of an insurance settlement. Police were suspicious, but an investigation of the man’s story, including interviewing the business that issued the money orders, proved he was telling the truth. Goodwin said she was told that the man wanted to rectify things in his past and wanted to make the donation to help children. “It was a very generous gift, and we appreciate it.” Goodwin said she only had one regret regarding the gift: “We do wish we knew who the anonymous gentleman was, so we could thank him.” The man told police he wished to remain anony­ mous. Page 3 Page 3 �History of Church Spans in his 3 year of service. I am Decades proud to say that in all these rd by Mary Gaffney, Member of St. years, 10 of the pastors were previously youth in the church John A. M. E. for the year 2004 and are now ministers with I bring greetings to each churches of their own. and every one of you in this first But there was a gracious month of the new year, 2004. May this year bring more love and lady minister, Rev. Sister Nina Robinson, who I can remember as happiness into your life. And to you my homeless friends, may this a young person, very close to my family, and the Rev. John Wesley year be more successful and Logan. Her work for God and peaceful in your needs and help. man was not easy, but she still My thankfulness in this maintained her faith. Now she New Year is that my God, your has gone to the Great Beyond. God, lets me see a New Year and Her church is still going strong will be able to be here to see that and there are my church, St. still beautiful John A. M. E., and gracious reached this ladies there. I 112nd year can hold anniversary. With dearly and this New Year remember the there is a long late Irene history. This Simpson, church was Maude Gray, founded in 1891 Hazel Jenkins by Rev. John H. and Phoebe Moreland on Mathew. George Street. Miss Mary Gaffney I have The name of the been a member of the Saint John church then was St. John Tabernacle A. M. E. Zion Church, Gospel choir for 57 years. Many dear ones have passed on to the until 1916. Under the leadership Great Beyond. And to the of Rev. James Foate, the name gracious ones who are still at was changed to St. John A. M. E. Saint John’s who have weathered Zion, and it moved to Barr and Mound Street, where it was under the storms, they were an inspiration to me. I say thanks to his pasturage from 1916 to 1925. Rachel Haynes, who celebrated The church began to grow. In 1935, under the leadership of Rev. her 100th birthday in October. J. L. Black it ran until 1938. St. Sister Loretta Jefferson and Sister Raynelle Mount have been loyal John Zion continued its growth and faithful members in the St. from there. Since then we have had 9 ministers. Rev. Charles H. John’s Gospel Choir for 65 years. There are faithful men too. Wilson is the current pastor, now Brother Alvin A. Walker served for 58 years in St John’s, working in Administrative Services, and was a member of the choir and a Scout Master with Troop 372 and along with Edward Jordan, was working in the Christian Education Department. These faithful ones have also gone to the Great Beyond. But with their teaching and love for the Alvin A. Walker youth, they are still there. Brother James Anderson started as a child and is still there, and has served in many capacities in the church. As I speak, I am not the only one in St. John’s to be thankful and proud of 112 years. There are generations of families still involved in St. John’s. To this we say “Blessed be the Glory!” We are looking forward to this year, reaching out to our fellow man, and growing stronger in the service of Our Lord. We Peaslee Neighborhood Center 215 East 14th Street Over-the-Rhine Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 (513) 621-5514 Letter.... Volunteer Carpenter Needed! The Homeless Coalition is seeking a volunteer to build shelves and doors for closet space in our new office. We will supply materials! Please call Brendan at the Coali­ tion, 421-7803, extension 13 Story, Editorial and Art Submis­ sion Deadline for Empowering our neighborhood children through peace, art and education The GCCH would like to thank Starbucks for their generous donation of coffee and pastries. the February 2004 edition of STREETVIBES is Friday, January 9th S T R E E T V I B E S January, 2004 say “Praise God from whom Blessings Flow!” St. James A. M. E. Zion Church, on the hilltop (3485 Wilson Avenue) was built with prayer by the late Reverend Nina Robinson. When the trees were cut down and the ground leveled off, Reverend Robinson and the congregation were there praying and asking God to bless the hallow ground. Everything that went into the original building of this Church was offered up to God first. Reverend Robinson is now deceased, but her vision and faith live on. She said, “I waited patiently for the Lord and He inclined unto me and heard me cry.” To date, St. James A. M. E. Zion Church is pastured by Reverend Eleanor B. Wilson. God has been faithful to this congregation. A special program, “On the Right Track” meets every Saturday from 11:30AM to 1PM. This is a support group for recovering addicts (drugs or alcohol). The meetings are conducted by recovering addicts. Together, they reach for Heaven, knowing that al things are possible with God, if you just believe. Dear Editor, I have noticed since Alicia Beck retired from the Coalition for the Homeless that the obituary page has been missing. I say the page should be resurrected for the homeless friends of GCCH, and the low-income resident’s and supporters in the city. Sonny Williams, Over-the-Rhine resident Write Us! We’d like to hear from you.... Send letters or comments to: Streetvibes@Juno.com, or write the Coalition office attn: Streetvibes Letters, 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 Page 4 �An update on the issue of panhandling by Andy Erickson, Education Coordinator outreach worker, has interacted with at least 103 mouth and you’re too close to a crosswalk (or people on the street, 35 of whom now have ATM, bank, or bus stop, among other things), some form of housing. you’re at risk of being arrested. From the Cincinnati Enquirer, October Back in March, Cappel’s costume and When panhandlers get arrested, most of 12th 2003: Cincinnati police arrested 55gift shop co-owner Rich Cappel said to the them go to jail because they can’t afford the year-old [name removed] Friday on Cincinnati Post, “Panhandling is probably the fine. Then they’re off the streets for a couple charges of improper biggest single deterrent to bringing people to days (30 at the maximum), and solicitation after a man asked when they get out they have just town to shop at our store.” More recently in a plainclothes officer for 10 November, Cappel talked to City Beat about the as little money as when they cents. According to police outreach program. “There’s no doubt about it,” went in. So they probably go reports, [the man] asked the back to panhandling – except this he said. “Things are going in a great direction, officer for the dime after dark which is refreshing. It’s a huge improvement time they know a little better and 20 feet from a crosswalk. from two years ago.” what they have to do to keep He is being held at the Rich Cappel sits on DCI’s panhandling from getting arrested. Also, Hamilton County Justice task force along with Police Captain Whalen, while in jail they are losing time Center on $500 bond. City Councilmembers Pat DeWine and David that could be spent looking for Under the city’s existing Andy Erickson jobs or services to help them get Crowley, homeless advocates, social workers, panhandling ordinance it is illegal and downtown business owners. Cappel isn’t out of their current situation. for anyone to verbally ask anyone else for The panhandling ordinance hasn’t solved the only one who thinks the outreach position “money, goods or any other form of gratuity” has caused a huge improvement. At a recent anything. It’s not ending panhandling, and it’s after dark or within 20 feet of a crosswalk. The meeting, Captain Whalen stated that the police not getting people off the streets. It’s just newest revision to that ordinance, passed in were “ecstatic” about the new outreach program getting people arrested and costing taxpayers 2003, bans panhandling everywhere else, too – and how much it has helped. even more money. unless you’ve got a license. About 100 One of the reasons why the outreach Not surprisingly, the ACLU recently panhandlers have been arrested since June. worker program has gotten rave reviews, while announced that it would sue the City of The panhandling ordinance is worded so the panhandling ordinance has gotten the city Cincinnati for violating panhandlers’ First vaguely that a businessman who asks to borrow sued again, is that Amendment right change from a friend for the parking meter is in the outreach to free speech. violation of the law. Of course, he would never The panhandling ordinance is worded so worker program Last year, be arrested because this isn’t the intention of the vaguely that a businessman who asks to treats panhandlers when City Council panhandling ordinance. The intention is to borrow change from a friend for the parklike humans. was drafting the make it as easy as possible to arrest the scruffyCouncilmember Pat ing meter is in violation of the law. Of registration looking people who ask you for money DeWine’s response portion of the course, he would never be arrested because downtown. to panhandlers has panhandling this isn’t the intention of the panhandling Councilmember Pat DeWine, the main been to equate ordinance, the ordinance. The intention is to make it as sponsor of the panhandling ordinance, would them with litter, Coalition for the have liked to ban panhandling altogether. But easy as possible to arrest the scruffy-looking graffiti, and broken Homeless was he knew that a ban on panhandling would people who ask you for money downtown. windows – trying to convince violate the First Amendment right to free “quality-of-life them that a more speech. “If you can’t ban it, the next best thing issues” that he repeatedly says the city needs to compassionate and proactive approach would is to regulate it out of existence,” said DeWine clean up. But you can’t throw panhandlers in help solve the issue better than the city’s during a City Council meeting on the jail like you can throw litter in the dump. The punitive ordinance. We stressed that the only panhandling ordinance. ACLU effectively said the same thing when they way to stop panhandling would be to eliminate The law does not apply to “the act of announced their lawsuit against the city. the need for panhandling. We asked them to passively standing or sitting with a sign” as long The city needs to understand that create a $50,000 position for an outreach as there is no “vocal request other than a homeless people and panhandlers are citizens, worker who could work one-on-one with response to an inquiry by another person.” If too, and they need to treat them as such. If for panhandlers to find out why they need to you’re quiet, you’re okay. If you open your the comfort of downtown visitors, city officials panhandle. The will attempt to “legislate out of existence” a outreach worker panhandler’s right to ask for a dime, what is the could then help find city saying to panhandlers? That they don’t care services that the about them or their problems. panhandler might People shouldn’t have to beg on the need to get out of street, and downtown visitors shouldn’t have to their situation. City feel distress because of the panhandlers they Council said no. encounter. These are two different groups who But another have two different needs. But the City’s organization was response to this issue has so far been one-sided: The Know Your Rights listening. Brochure is now available at the they kick the rights of the poor and homeless to Downtown Coalition’s office. The brochure is the side so that the comfortably housed can feel Cincinnati, Inc. a legal guide for Cincinnati’s (DCI), a coalition of more comfortable. homeless and covers a person’s If we’re going to solve some of the downtown basic rights when interacting with issues surrounding poverty and homelessness, businesses, thought the police, as well as some local we need to do it in a way in which all people get they’d give the laws that might be of interest to the treated with respect. We need more people to outreach worker a homeless population. If you are a jump on board with services like DCI’s outreach try. They put up homeless person or if you work $25,000 of their own program, a program that works with other with homeless people and would organizations to help people out of poverty and money to hire like to obtain free copies of the someone who could homelessness once and for all. We need to brochure for yourself or your move away from thinking that jail time is a engage panhandlers agency, please call 421-7803, or solution to panhandling. Forcing people to sit in downtown. Since stop by the Coalition office and pick jail for need of a dime isn’t going to help the city September, Brent one up. Chasteen, DCI’s new or the panhandler move ahead. Know Your Rights Brochure Available! S T R E E T V I B E S January, 2004 Education Page 5 Page 5 �The Peace Village by Dr. Steve Sunderland Another killing of an police “have to” do it this unarmed African American male by way, is the mantra. our police: Doesn’t that sentence The racial drive the blood to boiling? Last implications are weekend a neighbor was killed frightening: No white while eating and going in and out person has been killed by of a local White Castle. I had the police in the past few never met him nor ever seen him. years and the black citizens of Cincinnati have He was like most of my neighbors in that he went to work, had his seen the research that own family and friends, and was documents more black being pulled over by white largely invisible. I don’t know what he did to provoke 6 police police officers. Black officers to beat him senseless until leaders, largely clergy, have tried to maintain a he died. All the videos of the killing do not include what low key line toward the happened just before he tried to brutality and the pattern of violence directed punch a police officer. Our city has practiced its toward black males by our Image from police cruiser video camera. At this point Jones is subdued, on the reaction to these events and we police. Just recently, at a ground in front of car, and his breathing has stopped. large black church, I shall continue to play out the call and response of blacks and whites attended an interfaith meeting of and children who are out too late, Waiting out the monitor, to the unanswered questions. What several thousand, that called for discouraging the media from being just must not be tolerated. Last meager improvements in city is not being talked about, what month there was a funeral for Mr. a watchdog on the absence of does not seem worthy of discussion services relating to employment of Nathaniel Jones. And the city progress, placing the blame on is that the police chief and his minorities and alternative services ticks... misguided liberals, or radical for women instead of jail. The division has not taken the steps in (The name of the deceased blacks, doing nothing unless the prior months to work with our issue of police incompetence was person is the same name of one of pushed to the point of agreement for controlling police slipped under the rug. At another embarrassment, and then doing just Cincinnati and the country’s most meeting, called by a liberal force in good faith. Several distinguished jurists, Judge the barest level, are all tactics in reviews by a federal court women’s organization, to discuss Nathaniel Jones. Judge Jones was evidence in Cincinnati at this time. appointed “monitor” the lawyer for the NAACP after And so we are back at a have sharply Marshall left and responsible for flash point. Our city’s successful criticized the police pushing many of the most critical mounting of a riverboat holiday to division and the civil rights cases. He served very end the summer, coupled with the police chief for well on the federal bench, 6th upswing in fortunes of our slowly complying Circuit Court, for many years, he professional football team, added with the center of was a key part of the effort to end to by the selection of a female the agreement: new apartheid in South Africa and just president for the University of and serious training recently retired from the bench to Cincinnati, and the completion of of police officers be a private lawyer. I remember the funding campaign for our who are facing the lonely picket that I was on national museum on “the mentally ill people; outside the Federal Building in underground railroad,” have all new and better ways Cincinnati as several of us made it disguised what is rotting in of working with Cincinnati’s bowels. Well meaning clear that the police-community African-American collaborative needed to be signed, and intelligent people are so Dr. Steve Sunderland males who are and Judge Jones, coming out of the frustrated as to be incoherent. accosted by the Whatever remained of the coalition building, and giving me a smile and police; and, participating in our police-community agreement, a thumbs up. The identical name between the black ministers, the community problem solving the tone was low key, shrugging calls out to many of us who are so liberals, and agents of the local our shoulders about police meetings on a regular basis to thankful that Judge Jones has had a government, is further broken. understand the community. slowdowns, and committing to full life of justice seeking. Sadly, Racial lines have been quickly The police seem to have keep some kind of pressure on the the other Nathaniel Jones will drawn. Symbols of might over police to follow the agreement. No right are back is full sway. The heard that they were deficient in never have the opportunity for any “communicating” their reasons for police were present at this meeting. basic institutions of amelioration kind of life.) violence and so they offered a Rather than building teams have yet to enter in with anything Dr. Steve Sunderland, media blitz on what had happened, of people to successfully that supports the kind of changes professor of Social Work at even though some of the key facts demonstrate inter-cultural necessary for peace. We need an the University of Cincinnati, continue to be unclear. cooperation between the police and urban will that will work to educate is the Director of The Peace Communication with community as the community, the method of our police force in non-violent Village, a group of an ongoing way of building police and governmental methods when appropriate, limited individuals from the relationships with groups is not participation has been to violent means when necessary, and national and international part of their understanding. Police demonstrate competence in cooperative methods all the time community committed to are saying that they cannot be “running in place.” The police with citizens who want to be allies examining all issues of supervised or held accountable for chief, the mayor and the city for justice and order in our city. Peace in the world. Dr. violent responses to people who manager have all shown that if they We need citizens to stand up to Sunderland also heads up are threatening them. They are only do nothing, the problem may police terrorism and say it will not Posters-for-Peace which “trained” to act and that is be minimized and go away. Doing be permitted again. We need engages people in sufficient for their actions. Sadly, the agreement with the police and leaders in city government that are expressing their visions of our city manager, mayor and city the community may suggest that active in building bridges of racial Peace, in their own words, council are going along with this the problem, whatever that is, may harmony. Killing mentally ill through the creation of attitude on the part of the police be festering, lingering, ticking, and/ people, beating to death drug over posters. chief and the police union. The or worthy of consideration. dosing people, or, mouthy teens, S T R E E T V I B E S January, 2004 Peace Village Page 6 �U.S. Conference of Mayors - Hunger and Homelessness indicated that requests for assistance were not Denver Mayor John Survey 2003 surveyed emergency assistance facilities Hickenlooper, Detroit Mayor met. 25-City Survey Finds Unemployment, Lack of Affordable Housing Account for Increased Needs have had to decrease the number Cedar Rapids Mayor Paul of bags of food provided and/or Pate and co-chair of the the number of times people can Conference’s Task Force on receive food. Of these cities, 48 Hunger and Homelessness, said percent have had to significantly “These survey results indicate, as limit food provided. they have in past years, that there Hunger and homelessness The survey finds that 59 is still a great deal to be done to continued to rise in major American cities over the last year, percent of those requesting emergency “These are not simply statistics,” according to the new U.S. food assistance were Conference of Mayors-Sodexho said Nashville Mayor Bill Purcell, members of families Hunger and Homelessness who co-chairs the Conference’s Survey, released last month at the with children and their parents, and that Task Force on Hunger and Conference of Mayors 39 percent of the Headquarters. As the overall Homelessness. “These are real economy remained weak, requests adults requesting such people who are hungry and homeassistance were for emergency food assistance less in our cities.” employed. increased by an average of 17 “These are not percent over the past year, and simply statistics,” said Nashville address the serious issue of requests for emergency shelter homelessness in America.” assistance increased by an average Mayor Bill Purcell, who cochairs the Conference’s Task People remained homeless of 13 percent in the 25 cities Force on Hunger and for an average of five months in surveyed. Homelessness. “These are real the survey cities. Sixty percent of “This survey underscores people who are hungry and the cities said that the length of the impact the economy has had homeless in our cities.” time people are homeless on everyday Americans,” said Twenty-three participating increased during the last year. Conference of Mayors President cities reported that lack of Single men comprised 41 percent and Hempstead (NY) Mayor affordable housing was the of the homeless population, James A. Garner. “The face of leading cause of homelessness. families with children 40 percent, homelessness has changed and Other causes most likely single women 14 percent, and now reflects who we least attributed to homelessness unaccompanied youth five suspect. During this holiday include mental illness or lack of percent. season, I urge all Americans to needed services (18 cities), lowIt is estimated that recognize their obligation to help paying jobs (17 cities), and substance abusers account for 30 their neighbors in need.” substance abuse and the lack of percent of the homeless Twenty participating cities needed services (17 cities). population in the survey cities and reported that unemployment and Participating cities were persons considered mentally ill various employment-related account for 23 percent. problems were the leading causes most likely to attribute homelessness to a lack of Seventeen percent of the of hunger. Other causes most affordable housing (21 cities), homeless in survey cities are likely contributing to hunger mental illness and the lack of employed and 10 percent are include low-paying jobs (13 veterans. cities), and high housing costs (11 needed services (20 cities), substance abuse and the lack of Eighty-seven percent of cities). needed services (19 cities), and the cities surveyed expect that As need increased, 56 low-paying jobs (17 cities). requests for both emergency food percent of the cities surveyed Eighty-four percent of the assistance will increase again over reported that people in need were cities reported that emergency the next year. Ninety-one percent turned away due to lack of expect that requests for resources. Over 14 percent of the shelters have turned away homeless families due to lack of emergency food assistance by requests for emergency food resources. Over 14 percent of families with children will assistance are estimated to have the requests for emergency food increase next year. Eighty-eight gone unmet during the last year. assistance are estimated to have percent expect that requests for For families, 15 percent of the gone unmet during the last year. emergency shelter will increase requests for assistance have gone For families, 15 percent of the next year, and 80% expect unmet. Just over half the cities requests for shelter by homeless families will increase in 2004. Even with an improving economy, city officials believe that economic conditions will continue to have a negative impact on the problem of hunger and homelessness. The mayors of the 25 cities included in the survey are members of the Conference of Mayors Task Force on Hunger Streetvibes@juno.com and Homelessness. They are or Boston Mayor Thomas Menino, Burlington Mayor Peter Clavelle, Streetvibes Charleston Mayor Joseph Riley, 117 East 12th Street Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley, Cincinnati. Ohio 45202 Cleveland Mayor Jane Campbell, DEAR READERS! Send us your Vendor Stories Do you have a favorite Streetvibes Vendor that you would like to tell us about? Send your stories or comments to: S T R E E T V I B E S January, 2004 Hunger Survey Kwame Kilpatrick, Kansas City Mayor Kay Barnes, Los Angeles Mayor James Hahn, Louisville Metro Mayor Jerry Abramson, Nashville Mayor Bill Purcell, New Orleans Mayor C. Ray Nagin, Norfolk Mayor Paul Fraim, Philadelphia Mayor John Street, Phoenix Mayor Skip Rimsza, Portland Mayor Vera Katz, Providence Mayor David Cicilline, Salt Lake City Mayor Rocky Anderson, San Antonio Mayor Ed Garza, San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown, Santa Monica Mayor Richard Bloom, Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels, Trenton Mayor Doug Palmer, and Washington Mayor Anthony Williams. The complete survey can be downloaded at usmayors.org. Wish List... Can You Help? Streetvibes newspaper is published monthly on a shoestring budget from the offices of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Can you help us with some of the following items? * Digital Camera & Accessories * VCR for making copies of Streetvibes TV show and for educational packets * Blank VHS tapes * Desktop paper folder * Supplies (paper towels, toilet paper ) * Cleaning Supplies * Office Supplies - postage stamps, floppies, copier paper and other supplies If you can help, contact us at: Streetvibes, c/o Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless, 117 East 12th Street, Cincinnati, OH 45202 (513) 421-7803 e-mail: Streetvibes@juno.com Write Us.... We’d like to hear from you! Send letters or comments to: Streetvibes@Juno.com, or write the Coalition office attn: Streetvibes Letters 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 Page 7 Page 7 �Through Our Eyes: Reflections on Homelessness Each vendor must sign and agree to abide by the following code of conduct.... takes you on a experiential journey of learning by high school students as they leave their suburban comfort zones to explore the homeless of Cincinnati. A collaboration of Cincinnati’s Mother of Mercy High School and the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless, Through Our Eyes attempts to educate high school students and the larger community about homelessness. The books are available from the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless for $10 each, plus $2 shipping and handling. Make checks payable to the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless, 117 East 12th Street, Cincinnati Ohio 45202. For more information call (513) 421-7803 1. Streetvibes will be distributed for a $1 voluntary donation. If a customer donates more than $1 for a paper, vendors are allowed to keep that donation. However, vendors must never ask for more than $1 when selling Streetvibes. 2. Each paper purchased from the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH) costs 20 cents. Papers will not be given out on credit. Old papers can not be traded in for new papers. 3. Streetvibes may only be purchased from GCCH. Never buy papers from, or sell papers to other vendors. 4. Vendors must not panhandle or sell other items at the same time they are selling Streetvibes. 5. Vendors must treat all other vendors, customers, and GCCH personnel with respect. 6. Vendors must not sell Streetvibes while under the influence. 7. Vendors must not give a “hard sell” or intimidate anyone into purchasing Streetvibes. This includes following customers or continuing to solicit sales after customers have said no. 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If a vendor does not call in advance and does not show up, that vendor will not be allowed to purchase papers on the day of the meeting or the following day. Five free papers will be given to those who do attend. 11. Failure to comply with the Code of Conduct may result in termination from the Streetvibes vendor program. GCCH reserves the right to terminate any vendor at any time as deemed appropriate. Badges and Streetvibes papers are property of GCCH, and must be surrendered upon demand. Buy Streetvibes From Badged Vendors Only! Streetvibes Vendors are required to sign a code of conduct and agree to abide by all the rules of the Streetvibes Vendor Program. If a Vendor misrepresents or breaks the rules, she/he may be removed from the Program. To report a Vendor, call 421-7803. ext. 16 Authorized Vendors always wear a Badge! Front Streetvibes vendors are paticipants in a program at the Coalition for the Homeless that allows them to distribute the Streetvibes newspaper for a $1.00 donation. The money used to purchase the paper goes to the individual vendor. Vendors are not employees of the Coalition for the Homeless. Vendors are not fundraising for the Coalition for the Homeless. Back of Badge While we make every effort to provide a forum for those without a voice, STREETVIBES and the staff of THE GREATER CINCINNATI COALITION FOR THE HOMELESS, is not responsible for statements, and do not necessarily endorse the opinions of the people whose writings are represented here. S T R E E T V I B E S January, 2004 Page 8 �French Lawyer; World Leaders Should Take Stand in Saddam Trial Controversial French lawyer Jacques Verges says he is willing to defend Saddam Hussein in court and, if he can, bring world leaders to the witness stand, in what could be a huge embarrassment for the United States, France and other countries. Verges spoke to last month at the end of a visit to Amman to visit the family of former Iraqi deputy prime minister Tareq Aziz to prepare for his defense following his surrender to US troops after the fall of Baghdad. Asked if he was also ready to defend the former Iraqi leader, who was captured last Saturday night by US troops in northern Iraq, Verges said: “If other people seek my counsel I would have no reason to refuse”. But he insisted that “all Western heads of state”, from the time of the 1980-1988 Iraq-Iran war to the latest Iraq conflict, should take the stand when the imprisoned former Iraqi officials go on trial. “At the Nuremberg trial, the four allies accused the Nazi leaders of certain war crimes and crimes against humanity,” Verges said, in reference to the trials of leading Nazi party officials after the defeat of Germany in World War II. “Right now the former Iraqi regime is being blamed for certain events that took place at a time when its members were treated as allies or friends by countries that had embassies in Baghdad and ambassadors not all of whom were blind (to Iraqi crimes),” he said. “Today, this indignation appears to me contrived,” he added. “When we reprove the use of certain weapons (we need to know) who sold these weapons,” he said about Iraq’s past purchase of arms from France, Britain, the United States and Russia. “When we disapprove of the war against Iran (we need to know) who encouraged it,” Verges added. The United States maintained ties with the Saddam regime in the 1980s and tacitly approved the war on its nemesis, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, in Tehran. Verges also slammed the UN embargo that was slapped on Iraq after it invaded Kuwait in 1990 and criticized the US administration’s backing of the sanctions, which he said caused the death of an estimated half-a-million people. “Mrs. (Madeleine) Albright once said that this is the price to pay for democracy,” he said of the secretary of state under former US president Bill Clinton. “If that is the case then it should be said as well and only then will a trial be fair. Otherwise it will be an execution of hostages,” he said of the former Iraqi leaders now held at secret locations by the US-led coalition. A quintessential devil’s advocate who has made a career of arguing what most choose not to hear, Verges, 79, has half a century of experience defending unpopular causes. His clients included the likes of Gestapo chief S T R E E T V I B E S January, 2004 Klaus Barbie and convicted terrorist Ilich Ramirez Sanchez, alias Carlos. More recently he became vice president of the International Committee to Defend Slobodan Milosevic and represented the former Yugoslav leader in a suit before the European Court of Human Rights. Tareq Aziz’s family, which has found sanctuary in Jordan, has sought his help to defend the former Iraqi official, who suffers of heart trouble and diabetes. “The first course of action I will take is to find out about his health because he is sick and has heart troubles,” Verges told AFP, adding that he has a “lot of respect” for the veteran Iraqi diplomat. Verges is also demanding that the coalition in Iraq release a “written and precise document” listing the charges they have against Aziz and all the other prisoners. “My course of action ... must benefit all the prisoners because when we solve the status of Mr. Aziz we solve the status of the others,” Verges said. Write Us! We’d like to hear from you.... Send letters or comments to: Streetvibes@Juno.com, or write the Coalition office attn: Streetvibes Letters 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 Streetvibes: A proud member of the North American Street Newspaper Association.... Representing over 50 street newspapers throughout the United States and Canada www.nasna.org World News Page 9 Page 9 �photo by Jimmy Heath Blessed is he that considereth the poor by Vera Zlatkin There are Angels among us that we never see, For they are hid by the grime of the street, By hair that is tangled and matted, And by newspapers wrapped ‘round their feet. There are Angels among us that we never hear, For the noise and the din of the street. Their cries go unheeded, their voices unheard, “please help, we have nothing to eat.” But we go on our way unaware that we Have passed by Creatures of the Light; Without having been touched or moved to respond, We lost our blessing that night. I wrote this poem for Clara and KY, a homeless couple who died in a fire in Clifton Heights. Their bodies were found in an abandoned house where they had taken shelter from the rain and the cold. I am dedicating this poem to the people who were forced to move out from under the bridge and to seek shelter elsewhere, after the mayor declared them to be an “eye-sore.” I am dedicating it to all of you along with this prayer, Entrance to abandoned house in Clifton where KY and Clara died. Their handwritten sign welcomed everyone. “May you always be safe, and may you find the shelter you seek.” I met KY and Clara at a rally opposing the war in Iraq. We talked for a few minutes while I waited for my bus. Clara noticed that it was getting dark and she asked me if I had far to go after I got off the bus. I assured her that I would be fine. KY pointed at an alley on the other side of Calhoun photos by Jimmy Heath In Memory of Lee Scalf.... Lee passed away in December of 2003. Early in his life, Lee was a coal miner, wood and coal hauler, and at one point operated his own mining business. His skills as a carpenter, and extremely creative and competent fix-it person served him well in his work for ReSTOC, the Drop Inn Center and self-employed as a maintenance and general construction specialist. He was an avid fisherman and hunter and loved to be in the woods, mountains, country and nature. He was a big John Wayne fan and loved to read western and frontier stories. A self-declared “down home” person, Lee’s fondest memories were of fishing trips with friends and streamside meals of fresh pan-fried fish served with good conversation. Lee was a compassionate and generous person, frequently sharing his skills and financial resources with those in need. He spent much of his personal time from work tending to elderly ReSTOC tenants in Over-the-Rhine and helping them with special maintenance projects. He also S T R E E T V I B E S January, 2004 Street. “That’s our home,” he said. I liked them immediately. I was impressed by their openness, by their obvious devotion to each other and their sense of social justice, but most of all I was impressed by the fact that even with their own struggles to simply survive, they were kind enough to express concern for the well-being of a stranger. Clara and KY (a Vietnam veteran) were good hearted people who blessed us with their presence here on earth. Please don’t let them be forgotten. I know they must have touched many lives. If you knew them, if they touched your life, tell about it, or write about it. Keep their memory alive. Send your reflections to Streevibes. Lee’s ‘famous’ ruler suspenders the Drop Inn Center recounted a spent many weekends at the Drop road trip to Mexico that he made Inn Center doing unpaid repair with Lee and some of his friends. work, and visiting with and It was a hilarious adventure encouraging residents along the fraught with arguments and path of recovery from substance mishaps. Bonnie Neumeier abuse. Lee was 12 years in brought her guitar to the service recovery from alcoholism. During for Lee and his years at ReSTOC, he A self-declared “down home” person, sang songs with the passed many Lee’s fondest memories were of audience. of his fishing trips with friends and Others came construction streamside meals of fresh pan-fried forward and skills and fish served with good conversation... shared their techniques on stories of Lee to others. and their good times together. Lee There was standing room Scalf’s family, also present at the only at Lee’s memorial service at memorial, was surprised by the Nast Trinity Church in Over-theRhine. Lee’s friends came forward many friends that Lee had made in his life and work. Lee will be and spoke about his life and their missed by everyone. relationship with him. Tom Lee of Page 10 �Coalition Dinner... a political action organization to advocate for the needs of Greater Cincinnati homeless citizens who Johnny on the Spot put up a had no voice in the halls of portable toilet.” With the court order, “people no longer have to power. It began with a coalition of 15 groups and advocates fear that they will be arrested for sleeping under a bridge,” she said. gathering to address homeless “Police must help the homeless peoples’ plight. It has grown to over 70 member agencies: person contact the Coalition, advocates for the poor and which helps solve problems with its communal approach.” homeless, homeless individuals, shelters, transitional houses, Coalition director Georgine Getty hailed Kinsley as emergency food programs, social “one of her personal heroes,” service agencies, churches, and low-income housing groups/conoting “what an incredible year this has been for (GCCH).” Getty ops. Its membership crosses all thanked Streetvibes vendors for political, social and religious lines. helping circulate 60,000 copies last year and writers/editors for Streetvibes, the region’s getting the paper rated the third homeless newspaper, covers social justice and poverty-related best in North America by the North American Street Newspaper issues once a month. Becoming a Association. vendor is one key way for Fanny Johnson (left) presents Service Provider of the Award to Annie homeless and other low-income Dinner participants Coleman applauded the ten or so vendors people to get back on their feet. who enjoyed the tasty pasta dinner It’s a hand UP for people who are at Xavier University’s plush Schiff often in a place of Family Center. “Every day you getting only a hand out, are the face of the homeless or even no hand at all, coalition,” Getty told the vendors. says GCCH’s Getty. “You piss off some public official This year’s every day.” Mayor Charlie Luken dinner was has called the monthly tabloid his underwritten by Rudler biggest pet peeve. & Associates, Sisters of Getty is proud that GCCH Charity, Xavier U’s Office of Mission and convinced the business-led Downtown Cincinnati Inc. to hire Ministry, First Step an outreach worker to point Home, First Unitarian panhandlers toward area agencies Church, Goodwill, SC where they can find help; “...part Ministry Foundation, of a philosophical shift in looking Sodexho, Lighthouse for ways to end poverty instead of Youth services, Drop mere homelessness.” Inn Center, Winton Savings & Loan, and GCCH was featured a lot Xavier University. in local and national news, “reaching 5 million, 600 thousand GCCH’s agenda for 2004 and her own people,” said Getty. recent experience show And over 30 Mother of Mercy High School students that much work Rodney Sutton (left) receives the Jimmy Render Award for Homeless Activism remains to be done, helped GCCH publish a book from GCCH Board Member Kevin Finn Kinsley said. The City with an “amazing” array of interviews, profiles, photos, is making panhandlers register or face fines artwork, and personal reflections that will help GCCH fulfill a New and even jail. “It’s an Year’s resolution, Getty said. unfair, unconstitutional (approach) to The “Through Our Eyes” paperback will be embedded in an solicitation of educational packet with handouts donations. Needs must be met. We must and a videotape to help teachers educate friends, explore systematic causes of homelessness in area schools’ families, others.” One thing is 2004 curriculum. certain, Kinsley One aim of the school outreach project is to “reduce the concluded, “As we move forward, we will perpetual violence” against homeless people, Getty said. “We do it by giving and must keep shining the spotlight on receiving together.” homeless people. There must be Cincinnati no rest until every man, woman, native John Zeh lives and child has a safe home to go in Over-the-Rhine and to.” helped write The Greater Cincinnati “Ecotactics, The Sierra Coalition for the Homeless, now Club Handbook for Bonnie Neumeier (right) presents the Buddy Gray Lifetime Achievement Award to at 117 East 12th Street in OverEnvironment Activists” Sister Mary Graff the-Rhine, was formed in 1984 as for Earth Day 1970. cont. from page 1 S T R E E T V I B E S January, 2004 GCCH News Page 11 Page 11 �News & Editorial Faces of Homelessness in Santa Cruz by Becky Johnson and Robert Norse WHY CAN’T THESE KIDS COME HOME FOR CHRISTMAS? Santa Cruz, Ca. — When Stacie and Orley Jones arrived in their RV from Kentucky, they thought they were planning a better life for their four kids. They didn’t know how hard it would be to get housing, and wound up living in their RV much longer than they had anticipated. One day in April, social workers from Child Protective Services showed up and took all their kids. “They’d gotten an anonymous complaint that we were having sex in front of our kids and that I was smoking marijuana in front of my kids,” said Orley. “It wasn’t true, of course,” said Stacie. No such charge was ever filed against the couple and no witness ever came forward to testify against them. But their children were not returned. “CPS is trying desperately to find something to pin on this couple to justify the seizure,” reports Roxanne Acquistapace who founded “Independent Advocacy” to help people like Stacie and Orley who are caught up in a system which divides and sometimes destroys families under the guise of protecting them. During court ordered counseling, Stacie was asked to report intimate details of her sexual life with her husband, and chastised when she failed to be forthcoming. The counselor also intimated that she should leave her husband. Acquistapace was outraged. “They have no business pressuring people to make those kinds of decisions with their lives, but then they are homeless and living in an RV. They feel they have some kind of right to pass judgment on them.” Despite no charges having been filed, Stacie and Orley are being told they must wait until January to get their kids back. Judge Robert Yonts, perhaps under pressure from nervous CPS officials, issued a gag order on the couple and the attorneys, banning them from talking about the case. (The Jones had been appearing on a local radio show.) They are not allowed to bring friends and supporters into the courtroom. 4-DAY JURY TRIAL FOR A DOG ON THE BEACH When Jhon Golder took his dog onto its beach, he didn’t think he was doing anything wrong. “There were two other people with dogs on the beach too.” Yet when Officer Eric Seilly ordered him off the beach, only Golder was cited. “They ran my license and a warrant for my arrest came back that I knew shouldn’t have been there,” said Golder between one of the hearings for his jury trial. “They charged me with resisting arrest and with assault on a police officer, both misdemeanors, so I qualified for both a public defender and a jury trial.” The jury found Golder innocent on the assault charge but guilty on the resisting arrest charge. The jury also was told that the original arrest warrant had been reported in error just as Golder claimed. Golder was sentenced to 60 days in County Jail, 54 days suspended, 120 community service hours, $120 restitution and two years probation. The original “dog on the beach...” charge was never prosecuted. CITY SELLS OUT SENIORS Homelessness in Santa Cruz is a direct result of the lack of affordable housing in the City. The DeAnza Senior Mobile Home Park on the cliffs overlooking Natural Bridges State Beach was one of the few such places that provide at least 198 senior households with affordable housing and rent control. But when MHC, the owner of the park sued the City for denying them a reasonable return from their asset (they bought the park in 1994 for $8.4 million knowing full well that all residents were protected by a rent control ordinance) they claimed the park was really worth as much as $80 million. The City spent about $500,000 in legal bills fighting the suits, but in August suddenly settled and on August 23rd, they voted 6 - 1 to gut the rent control ordinance. The one concession they had wrangled from MHC were 34 year leases for the current DeAnza residents only, the automatic effect was the loss of equity in their homes for most of the seniors. Critics argued that the City could win the suit if they continued. But Mayor Emily Reilly claimed she couldn’t “bankrupt” the City by defending the senior’s assets. Council member Rotkin warned the City could lose up to $16 million if it were to continue and to lose the suit. “That is highly unlikely,” argued Attorney Michael Constantine who wrote the San Mateo mobile home rent control ordinance. “At best they could get the differences in the back rent — a sum of about $1.5 million, if they S T R E E T V I B E S January, 2004 could win at all.” The City cited Belcher. Homeless activists are budget woes was the sole reason hopeful this victory will rein in the for the settlement. Two months police department. City Council, later (Nov.25, ’03) City Council which abolished the Citizens Police voted to spend $300,000 on golf Review Board last January, is course improvements. prone to rubberstamp every police MOVE-ALONG ORDINANCE request for increased funding and TO BE TESTED AT TRIAL authority. Steve Argue and Matt MORE HOMELESS DEATHS: Hartough both refused to move a DOMINICAN HOSPITAL political table after one hour’s time NEGLECT, DISCRIMINATION from a location in front of the CHARGED Pacific Trading Company that both Patches died late this men were boycotting. City Council summer when she sought treatment passed a Move-Along Every Hour for an infected arm four times at law along with other anti-homeless Dominican Hospital. Night after night she was turned away. On her laws last January to please merchants against the fourth trip to the emergency ward recommendations of its own she was admitted and scheduled for an amputation of her infected arm. advisory committee. Pacific Trading Company Two days later, the day before owners Carolyn and Clark Heinrich surgery, she died. Her husband Chico, claimed they kept turning not only supported these laws but played an active role in lobbying her away because they were the City to spend $7000+ to move homeless and had no insurance. On November 14th, Linda a planter railing out 8" eliminating 20+ seating spaces to Patches died late this summer when she discourage street sought treatment for an infected arm four musicians, youth, times at Dominican Hospital. Night after and homeless. night she was turned away. On her fourth Both Argue and trip to the emergency ward she was admitted Hartough were and scheduled for an amputation of her arrested and jailed infected arm. Two days later, the day before for failing to surgery, she died. Her husband Chico, comply with the claimed they kept turning her away because new law, enacted they were homeless and had no insurance. in January of 2003. BLUE LAGOON WINS Sipos was taken to the emergency room, suffering two seizures in the POLICE HARASSMENT TRIAL ambulance. The ER personnel In federal court, the owners were able to treat a third seizure she had in the ER ward. Yet Linda of the Gay-friendly “Blue Lagoon” won a lawsuit against the Santa was released in a wheelchair in the Cruz Police Department for rain later that evening when a blood test showed a trace of harassment when they sent uniformed officers into the bar with alcohol in her system. C.J., her a German Shepard police dog to common-law husband, begged the staff to admit her. sniff the customers and hang out for hours at a time. And of a police “They told her to get a bus officer in full uniform standing out in the rain in a wheelchair,” C.J. cried, sobs catching in his throat. at the front entrance with a police dog. Why did then Lt. Patricia “I woke up the next morning ( in Sapone of the SCPD do it?” their campsite) and she lay dead beside me.” C.J. is a well-known “She did it to further her career,” said Reno civil rights street musician in Santa Cruz who attorney Terri Keyser-Cooper. helped start the recent street “And she did it because she could.” performers union SAFE (Society Wells said “The City has for Artistic Freedom and denied any wrong-doing but the Expression). “For the past 5 1/2 jury has already awarded $116,000 years I woke up every morning in damages and court costs and with Linda and told her I loved her. legal fees. The combined legal I don’t know how I am going to go costs for both the plaintive and the on without her.” defense will run over a million FIRST OFFICIAL DEATH BY dollars.” On November 25th, The EXPOSURE REPORTED City Council met in closed session “Crazy Jimmy” who many to consider whether to appeal the knew on Pacific Ave. died on verdict. Patty Sapone was widely November 23, 2003 in the considered to be next in line for Pogonip. Coroners are labeling the Chief of Police in Santa Cruz, a death of James Cline Jr., age 57, as position only recently vacated by at least partially due to exposure. the retirement of Chief Steven West Coast News Page 12 �Absolute Poverty The Dominican Republic and an outsider’s point of view by Mahri Leonard-Fleckmann If I had an English dictionary with me, I would be tempted to look up the word “poverty.” From where I am right now, sitting on my porch watching the sun set through the palm trees, eating fresh cow cheese, it is hard to believe I live a poor life. When I imagine that word, I see a different world, one of hunger and thirst and dirty, exhaust-filled streets; when I imagine that word, I see a world where there is no roof over your head, nor people to care for your well-being, nor water available to drink. Yet from an outsider’s point of view, poverty does not reach an extremity far beyond this one. Families often are lucky to make 1,000 pesos a month (roughly $30). Children go without shoes, babies without diapers, adults without shirts, and in a September school panic, mothers wonder how to scrape together enough money to purchase 40 peso notebooks for their children (a little over $1). People cook over outdoor fires, houses are made of cheap wood or heavy leaves, and about half have dirt floors. Electricity is nonfunctioning, and the people feel blessed that the recent construction of a potable water system with taps limits trips to the river. Yes, it is a poor community. However, here in my small rural village in the Dominican Republic, I have quickly learned that poverty is not always so easily defined. Undeniably, the people of my community of Gurabo have very few things. They have never gone to a restaurant nor have they seen a movie. They lack the most basic health education; many do not know how to read. Their diet consists of rice and beans, and the sign of Christmas wealth is a family’s ability to roast their own pig. On the other hand, food is never lacking. Neighbors feed each other from bottomless vats of rice. In this rich land, there is an over-abundance of avocado and mango, the most expensive fruits in U.S. grocery stores. The air is perfectly clean, and children run along the dirt road with no concept of the dangers of cars or strangers. When one woman falls ill, the entire village takes care of her and her children. And you would never catch a person sleeping on the ground unless so desired. Of course, it is not all so romantic as I portray. First, remember that I live in a beautiful village and so escape the dangerous, stifling city barrio. Second, work is impossible to find outside of factories and the sporadic selling of crops, and because of this, some of the men spend their days in a drunken haze. Girls get pregnant between the ages of 12 and 14, and men beat their wives or girlfriends without second thought. Most importantly, the Dominican Republic lacks the state security nets that help those in poverty in the U.S., and the poor must rely on neighbors for food since soup kitchens and welfare do not exist. However, many of these things are universal as well. As in the U.S., people lack good healthcare and education and are often overlooked by the government. And as in all societies, poverty forms a cycle that is difficult to overcome, and families often find themselves rewriting history through the generations. Sometimes though, I wonder. Here in my village, people do not pine for American wealth. The pain of materialism does not touch their unknowing minds, and they seem to benefit from a much purer happiness found in the company of friends and the time to sit in the late-afternoon sun and visit with neighbors. Since arriving in this country one year ago, I have gone through several paradigm shifts. The first, obviously, was the severe lifestyle change between middleclass American and poor Dominican culture. The second came when I visited the poorer side pined for my simple life in Gurabo, where surprisingly, I had never of the island, the hell called Northern Haiti. While entering the been so content. So what is poverty? Dominican Republic had placed a Perhaps it is the streets of St. Louis new rung on the stepladder of my on a cold winter night, with no perspective of poverty, Haiti made chance of seeing a friendly face or my village seem like heaven. The being offered a plate of food. roads there were potholed and Perhaps it is the Dominican dusty, impassible but for the rare, Republic or Haiti, with their severe dilapidated bus system known as economic failure and non-existent the “tap-taps.” The land was hard social programs. Perhaps real and dry, and for that reason there poverty is found within the arms of were virtually no crops or food. the rich, who search for meaning There was very little water and within the material wealth of their people flocked to the almost nonexistent, drained wells. Huts were lives. Or perhaps it is none of the above or all of them combined. slapped together with cow dung, I have come to believe one and people squatted on the streets thing in the past year, which you to defecate. For every case of malnutrition found in the However, many of these things are universal as Dominican well. As in the U.S., people lack good healthcare Republic and education and are often overlooked by the there were hundreds in government. And as in all societies, poverty forms a cycle that is difficult to overcome, and families Haiti, and often find themselves rewriting history through the the little generations. Sometimes though, I wonder. Here in children held out my village, people do not pine for American wealth. their hands to you with may find naïve and romantic (you desperate hunger in their large, could easily be right): poverty is a yellowed eyes. flowing term, incapable of a After Haiti, I returned to the U.S. for a visit, and what I saw concrete definition. To me, poverty has nothing to do with there reminded me of Haiti’s monetary wealth or the access to hunger in reverse. There was no air-conditioning or heating systems. lack of food — in fact, there was Poverty is a lack of something an over-abundance. People appeared as the living dead in their much deeper, an emptiness of spirit that can be found in any culture, in manicured outfits, walking hurriedly without bothering to even any social bracket, in any economic condition. So I urge you to take a glance at the people around them. moment to redefine your own It seemed to me they were racing the clock, hungrily searching for an wealth and consider carefully where your poverty lies. unnamed happiness, buying Mahri Leonard-Fleckmann lives anything and everything. They among the poorest of the poor in were missing the beauty of the sky the Dominican Republic with the and devaluing the importance of family and friends. I felt stifled and Peace Corps. Berta’s Art Corner.... Dancing in Steel Concrete and Sky. Entrance to Ruth Lyons Lane on East 6th Street, Downtown Cincinnati. Photo by Berta Lambert S T R E E T V I B E S January, 2004 Page 13 Page 13 �The Snag in the Sweater is Repaired Always with you, Always with me by Dr. Steve Sunderland by Brett Zwolinski I caught my sweater on a nail And it ripped. The company promised to repair it. And they did. mountains we climb and seas we traverse time we buy and life passes by in my mind there is but only one thought... maddening horror, pent up fear illusions, inebriating crimes told again and again, the story of mine whose life are we seeing? how and when did it all begin? A snag repaired. Some worker opened the Cardboard box, Took out the damaged garment, Laid it out And decided where the nail Had ripped the threads. times immemorial, death unveiled empty and bleeding, caroused and cheating Needles were on a table and One was selected. Wool was found, Matched, And then the weaving Of the rip began. to let go... Now we hold on even tighter grasp for breath of fresh air; ahhh... the spirit released... earth inhaled to our nostrils becoming one with yourself in passionate fit rage and rancor, tearing at flesh killing me softly, taking my breath The weaver may have paused. Checking for the placing of The new with the old. To see the blend. After more weaving, More checking, And more weaving Until finished. A friend may have been Invited to look At the finished sweater. New hands held the repair, And a nodding occurred. Agreement was reached That the hole, once so Clear, had disappeared into the whole, taking On a completeness, A finality, and A healing. The sweater was placed in a new box, Addressed and sent Knowing that a gift Was being offered. love is liberty, love is freedom love is mercy, love is justice Yes, I too... NOW, WHO WILL LEAD THE WAY? by Gina Miller Yes, I too have been homeless. Yes, I too have been hungry. Yes, I too have been without money. Yes, I too have been unemployed. Yes, I too have been ridiculed. Yes, I too have felt alone. Yes, I too have felt afraid. Yes, I too have thought of suicide. Yes, I too have struggled. Yes, I too have become courageous. Yes, I too have reached out for help. Yes, I too have become employed. Yes, I too have returned to school. Yes, I too have a permanent place to live TODAY. Yes, I too am willing to help other people. Yes, I too am grateful! buddy, you led the way to help the downtrodden people, who could not help themselves; Homeless, Low-Income Housing you, with “in-your-faceconfrontational-attitude” Now, who will lead the way? Earnest, you led the way with the Civil Rights Movement, bussing and discrimination, you, with your quiet & yet, steadfast attitude; Now, who will lead the way? I opened the box and Removed the sweater. One hole invisible And the sweater glowed. The Peace Village is warmer For our repairing the rips And snags of violence. No tear is too small. No thread so different it can’t be used. No holding in hands of weavers Too crippled, too new, too Frightened to seek to Make whole. At times of war, violence and fear, Weavers weave. At times of death from bullets and bombs, Weavers weave. At times when injustice had tripped the heart, Weavers weave. Strangers left the new Peace in their hands. As the light shines On our work, We place our work in The hands of those Who are weavers And we are grateful. S T R E E T V I B E S January, 2004 My Simple Prayer by Robert Manassa Each nite before I go to sleep I pray a prayer of my soul to keep Please protect the ones that I love Guide them and keep them And let them know that I’lll always love them so Father God – full of grace Please give me the strength to run this race At times it is almost too hard to bear But I don’t forget that you are always there You’ve been with me through thick and thin By my side you’ve always been Mac, you led the way empowered people for a peaceful planet; fought for arms disarmament, you, with your quiet voice, put up a hard & strong fight; Now, who will lead the way? All of you, were branded Radicals, Troublemakers, Renegades; All had the strength of giants; NOW, WHO WILL LEAD THE WAY? Judi Mendriski Help me to learn to love my neighbor as myself And when you’ve done all that you can do Give me a house in your Kingdom Where I can praise and serve you forever more Art & Poetry Page 14 �Winter by Michael Henson Season of silence. Snow drops through the empty halls of air. Silence builds sedimentary seam upon seam. By day, by night, the white screen falls. Tomorrow, the slush of labor. Tomorrow, the rasp of blades. Tomorrow, the clatter of silicon. For now, the loud, the hard are smothered in the fall of snow. The white mouth swallows sound. A shotgun, a man chopping wood the vigilant cough of a buck fall and die in the bonecold air. The truck that rattles the bridge floor The hish of cars on the highway A shout in argument fall and die, fall and die. All sounds rise to fall and die. A Single Woman’s Prayer Undying Love Dear God, I’ve faced another day, Praying true love would come my way. I give my cares, and woes to you. Knowing you will see me through. Praying you will send a brother, Who wants more than a convenient lover. Someone who is kind, and gentle Softly sweet, sane not mental. Someone who can see in me All the reatness that’s in me. Who will be a guiding light, When I can’t sleep late at night. Who will give me space to work things out, Whenever there is even far doubt. He who’ll be my perfect mate, I’d prefer that he be straight. Accept my strength and never fear Or cause my eye to black and tear. But most of all, before I end, Make this man my dearest friend. She speaks to me in hushed tones. I look to the heavens to seek her face. But I cannot find her. Now listen: sibilant lisp of the universe For information on submitting your poetry or art to STREETVIBES email Streetvibes@juno.com by Larry Ushby She speaks once again. I look once more to seek her... But still I cannot find her. I close my eyes and she speaks I hear her. The small, still voice says she loves me. My heart beats wildly when I hear those words That is when she gives to me her Undying Love I Hear You On the phone...all alone You had the nerve to say “I miss you in a special way” Explained all that you did today The unpacking was going well Talked about the drive from hell I thought, he is crazy He must be. “Though I’m glad he arrived safely” So you say there are plans for us. I bought a ticket for the bus Packed a bag and off I go Because I miss you- and you me so. You had so much to say About us two when times were gay, There is only one thing left to say I hear you! by Jimmy Heath Shutter Speed Street Scene, Havana, Cuba S T R E E T V I B E S January, 2004 Art & Poetry Page 15 Page 15 �The Taxing Truth by David Bisson Lurking behind the recent string of federal tax cuts are the blueprints for a far-right-wing revolution. In a June column in the Washington Post, Grover Norquist, President of Americans for Tax Reform and the radical right’s antitax ringleader, laid out a program to transform our current tax system into a single flat tax on wages. Unlike Steve Forbes and others who have tried to radically alter the tax code in a single swoop, the contemporary conservative movement favors a more gradual assault. “The new Republican policy is an annual tax cut,” proclaimed Norquist, and “each of the Bush tax cuts, past and proposed, moves us toward fundamental tax reform.” When they say “fundamental tax reform,” rightwingers are talking about dismantling the progressive tax system that has facilitated social progress in the U.S for the past 70 years. They are trying to smother the widely held belief that people should be taxed at different rates based on their ability to pay. And they are proposing a change in the tax system that would hurt most Americans by shifting the tax burden off capital and investments and onto the wages of low- and middle-income taxpayers. To market what should be a wildly unpopular agenda, the conservative movement has devised an arsenal of disinformation. For three years in a row, President Bush has exploited workers’ insecurities in a stagnating economy to pass major tax breaks for his wealthy campaign donors under the guise of economic stimulus. This summer’s 2003 tax cut provides a potent example: although it was sold as a “jobs and growth” package, the bill is a targeted giveaway to high-income earners and investors who are likely to save their windfalls. Working taxpayers, by contrast, would spend tax cuts now in ways that would stimulate job creation and economic growth. The only thing Bush’s tax cut stimulates is growth in economic inequality. An honest look at the numbers reveals the tax cut’s staggering inequities. Over the next 10 years, the bill will deliver the same amount, $90 billion, in total tax cuts to the top one-tenth of one percent of all U.S households — the tiny number with yearly incomes over $1 million — as it will to the entire bottom 88 percent. Already, the Republicans’ annual tax cut strategy has had dire consequences for America’s fiscal health. In July, the Bush Administration announced an estimated $455 billion federal budget deficit for fiscal year 2003. A long-term analysis by the Center for Budget Priorities (CBPP) concludes that “under realistic projections, budget deficits will remain at or above $325 billion for each of the next ten years and total $4.1 trillion over that period.” While the Bush administration and its supporters have been quick to blame the deficits on unanticipated spending demands, the CBPP report demonstrates that federal tax breaks enacted since 2001 will, over 2003 and 2004, cost nearly three times the combined costs of combat and occupation in Iraq and Afghanistan, reconstruction and relief after the 9/11 attacks, increased expenditures on homeland security, and the cost of fighting terrorism worldwide. America is at a crossroads of tax and budget policy. The choices made by citizens and legislators in the near future will lead the nation down one of two diverging paths. Politicians and pundits on the right have offered assurances that the deficits are “manageable’ while advocating ever more tax cuts aimed at the Break My Fall Inn when we saw previews for the movie, “Homeless to Harvard: the Liz Murray Story”. The staff agreed to let us watch the first half, due to our bedtime. As Liz’s story unfolded, it was clear that many of the women in the room were deeply moved. Liz was just 15 when she became homeless. She had grown up with loving, but drug-addicted parents in NYC. When Liz’s mother was diagnosed with AIDS, the family broke up. Eventually, social services came and took her away from her father because she never attended school. She went to live with her mom and grandfather but ran away. The last scene we got to watch that night was when Liz’s mother died of AIDS. I thought that if I could see the rest of the movie I might be able to get out of my own downward spiral, and wrote about it on my on-line journal. Liz Murray stumbled across the post and invited me to her apartment in New York City so I could watch the second half of the movie… with her! I jumped at the opportunity and a week later I was on the bus. Liz and I hit it off immediately. We were the same age and although our childhood and homeless experiences were very different, we had a lot in common. We went out to eat, and then watched the rest of the movie. I sat next to her as I watched the story of how she rose above homelessness to get herself into Harvard University. Although she never really attended school for any continuous time, she decided to go to high school at age 17 and graduate in two years at the top of her class—while homeless. She ended up getting a New York Times Scholarship to Harvard. She is currently attending Columbia University, giving speeches about her life, and writing a book that will be out in the spring. Liz was amazed by my story. She kept telling me that I had a lot of potential. She was so positive about my situation. She kept reminding me that I wasn’t going to be homeless forever, that like her; I would have an apartment someday. I left Liz’s house determined to do something with myself, but I wasn’t quite sure by Crystal Evans It was February when I ended up homeless. But I realized long before that my life was in a downward spiral. Every time I hit what I thought was rock bottom, something else would happen and I’d fall a little deeper. I had run away from spiritual and emotional abuse at home at age 19. A few months later I ended up with a traumatic brain injury and a broken neck in a car accident. Because of the brain injury, I lost nine jobs in 16 months. I became homeless, got on my feet, and found myself homeless again seven months later. I was afraid I was never going to stand again, and that I would always be a nobody. Before ending up homeless I had goals for myself, but after living in a shelter surrounded by drug addicts, alcoholics, those with mental illness, and people dying of AIDS, I saw no hope. Most of these people had been homeless for years, and many were my age when it first happened. I was staying at Pine Street wealthy. Accepting this conservative revolution is likely to produce a fiscal train wreck that the right will use to justify elimination or privatization of social programs that most Americans want and need— namely Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. The main beneficiaries of that train wreck would be large corporations that would profit from privatization of core government services, and wealthy individuals who do not depend on the current safety nets and who would keep more of their incomes under a flat tax. The remaining majority would have less job security, healthcare, and retirement security. If the right succeeds in shifting responsibility for funding social programs to state and local governments whose tax systems disproportionately burden people with lower incomes, most people would pay more taxes for fewer services. Or we can choose the other path: honoring our commitments to aging generations while investing in a future of shared opportunity and prosperity. David Bisson is an intern at United for a Fair Economy and an Economics major at the University of Massachusetts— Amherst. what. On my list of goals before I ended up homeless was to finish school. What was I waiting for? What was stopping me? I couldn’t think of anything. I already knew I could get help paying for school from MassRehab because I was disabled. I decided to apply to Harvard Extension School and go for the writing program. I’m still homeless but I am also a student. I’m in rehab at Spaulding Rehab Hospital for my brain injury. I volunteer at Ronald McDonald House and the Children’s Hospital. I keep an online journal on homelessness. I have been speaking at colleges in the New England area, and I’m applying to Harvard University for fall of ‘04. Liz Murray and I are still in contact, and she will continue to be my inspiration. I want other people to know they can rise above homelessness and get somewhere in life. Being homeless doesn’t mean your life is over. It’s simply another challenge a person must overcome, one that makes one stronger in the long run. Reprinted from Whats Up Boston, December 2003 Streetvibes exists as a forum for the expression of the views and opinions of our readers and supporters. The opinions expressed herein are not necessarily those of the Streetvibes staff or the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. S T R E E T V I B E S January, 2004 Editorial Page 16 �New Budget Eliminates Mandatory NewsDomestic & Editorial Violence for our state. Services web site and search each that nearly half of the women Training Then why hasn’t Ohio adopted the of the counties for the exemptions receiving public assistance are Option More Important Than Ever by Judi Clark As all of us were working hard to save social services and education, a little known act known as the Preferred Arrest Bill was quietly abolished. This act, HB 335 signed by former Gov. Voinovich in the 1993-1994 session, made domestic violence training for caseworkers mandatory, recognizing the number of domestic violence victims seeking assistance. Enacted prior to the 1996 welfare reform bill – TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families), and Ohio’s subsequent devolution of OWF (Ohio Works First) to each of the 88 counties, HB 335 was rarely enforced, as far as we can tell, once TANF went into affect. It is more important than ever for Ohio to adopt the Family Violence Option. Studies show victims of domestic violence. Abuse is a major obstacle to becoming self-sufficient. The Family Violence Option (FVO) will allow Ohio to “waive program requirements for a victim of domestic violence when complying with the requirements would make it more difficult for the victim to escape domestic violence or would unfairly penalize the individual.” What this will mean to individual counties in Ohio is an increase in the number of hardship and good cause exemptions they are allowed to give. Fewer families would be sanctioned and lose their assistance. The Family Violence Option was part of the 1996 welfare reform bill (TANF). Currently forty states have adopted the FVO. Ohio has 88 counties with 88 different sets of criteria for hardship and good cause exemptions. Go to the Ohio Department of Jobs and Family (www.state.oh.us/scripts/odjfs/ hardship). It’s amazing how different each county is. We have to wonder if anyone in Columbus is keeping track of how each county is doing things. No wonder families are falling through the cracks! Many counties don’t even have specific rules for domestic violence victims. Caseworkers seem to be making it up as they go. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has a protocol in place for states to use which includes training for caseworkers in screening public assistance applicants and recipients, and identifying victims of domestic violence. Caseworkers can then offer support services to families to help victims. A statewide training program in Ohio would make it easier for many counties to get training for caseworkers. Ohio could simply adopt the recommendations of HHS and not spend time developing a new plan Economic Recovery Leaves Ohio Behind November marked the national observance of Homelessness and Hunger Awareness Week (November 1622), and Ohio¹s homeless organizations are focusing on the huge unmet demand for shelter in our state. “We want people to know that Ohio experienced an average increase of approximately 30% in demand for shelter from 2002 to 2003,” said Rick Taylor, Managing Director of the Coalition on Homelessness and Housing in Ohio. This data was compiled from a survey of three fourths of the shelter programs that receive funding from the State of Ohio. To respond to this growing demand, shelters and services throughout Ohio are calling on community leaders to put in place resources and policies to address the growing flood of families and individuals who are finding themselves homeless. While the economic picture for the country points to some economic recovery, Ohio is not one of the states seeing improvement. Ohio continues to see unprecedented increases in families and individuals in need of shelter. Ohio rated second to last among states in job growth from the end of 1997 through last year. Ohio Policy Matters reported Ohio lost 118,500 or one out of seven Streetvibes Vendor: 80 cents Printing and Production: 20 S T R E E T V I B E S January, 2004 manufacturing jobs from March 2001 to March 2003. The impact of these losses continues in September 2003 with 6,500 Ohioans running out of unemployment benefits. With loss of manufacturing jobs for 38 consecutive months, Ohio has seen huge increases in foreclosures and evictions followed by double digit increases in request for shelter “Given that Ohio lags behind all other states except Michigan in job growth and the inability for many to find jobs, it is no wonder we are seeing many Ohioans losing their homes,” said Taylor of COHHIO. Local and state advocates are asking for Where Your Dollar Goes... The Streetvibes program maintains a minimal overhead cost so that our vendors can keep as much of the proceeds as possible. Please call our office at 421-7803 for more information about the program. Many thanks for your support. Ohio News FVO? It’s a little tricky, but it can be done. If Ohio administered the Ohio Works First (OWF) program at the state level instead of devolving control to each county, the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services (ODJFS) could simply tell the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services that Ohio will adopt the FVO. Because of the devolution of control of OWF policies to each county, it will take an act of the Ohio Legislature to adopt the FVO. This is actually quite simple, but our state legislators are trying to act like it’s complicated. Ohio Empowerment Coalition will work hard in the months to come to convince our legislators that this is not only fiscally responsible for Ohio but the humane thing to do. We urge each of you to contact your legislators and talk to them about the Family Violence Option. community discussions involving those experiencing homelessness to construct both statewide and local plans to address homelessness. Advocates are seeking help from the community, media, religious organizations and the collective talent that exists in Ohio to finally address the problem of our citizens living for years in shelters, on the streets and in abandoned housing. What is the revolution that we need? We need to dissolve the lie that some people have a right to think of other people as their property. And we need at last to form a circle that includes us all, in which all of us are seen as equal... We do not belong to the other, but our lives are linked; we belong in a circle of others. Barbara Deming The first thing to be disrupted by our committment to nonviolence will be not the system but our own lives. James Douglass Story, Editorial and Art Submission Deadline for the February 2004 edition of STREETVIBES is Friday, January 9th Page 17 Page 17 �Visit to Chrysalis by Ellen Sinis In LA, there are maps available for just about everything. A map of the stars on Hollywood Boulevard. A map of celebrities’ homes in Beverly Hills. A map of the studios where Clark Gable and Greta Garbo became legends. But one place you won’t find a special map for is the twenty block section of downtown known as skid row. In fact, not even the police seem to know who or what is there. A week-and-a-half ago, my journey through skid row began in a parking garage in which my rental car was protected from the community outside by wrought iron bars that stood two stories tall. On the sidewalks beyond the garage, I walked with my fellow visitors past dozens of people that called this street home. We saw addicts shooting up, gamblers tossing dice, and dealers making sales. But most disturbingly, we saw people who were together on the street, yet were totally alone in the world. In fact, homelessness is just as much about being alone as it is about being without shelter. It is as much about being disconnected from society, self, and hope as it is about living just to survive. After crossing the street, we arrived at our destination, the Chrysalis Center, a Taste of the Nation grant recipient. Chrysalis provides training and resources to help homeless men and women find jobs. For the hardest to employ, it provides jobs as well, through two businesses that together take in over $3 million each year. Just inside the door, we found ourselves in a serene environment. Chrysalis was closed for lunch, but as we spoke with its leaders, we could see the line of clients forming outside the door. The lunch hour concluded, and it took not 30 seconds for the room to come to life once the door was opened. In half a minute, about 25 people entered into the room with a clear sense of purpose. They went immediately to work...using the phones to make follow-up calls on applications, using the computers to look for jobs, signing up to see a case manager, and filing into classrooms. The bustle of activity stood in stark contrast to the streets outside - the positive atmosphere was almost palpable. It was clear that Chrysalis provided much more than a path to work; it provided a supportive environment in which clients where sharing positive experiences in community with one another. Chrysalis offered not just the skills and tools to be successful at work; it also offered the relationships and support network to feel successful in life. For the homeless, it is unlikely that the former will exist for long without the latter. Chrysalis uses the tagline “Changing lives through jobs.” A job is the goal for each individual, but a successful job search is the inspiration for the whole Chrysalis community. Their shared ritual provides some insight into the strength of that community. Every time a Chrysalis client gets a job, he or she is invited to ring the success bell. Standing in the middle of Chrysalis’s main room, the client rings the bell, often with tears dripping from her face. Everything in the building stops, and the cheers begin. This ritual is a simple celebration of one person’s success, and a whole community’s shared purpose. It serves as a reminder that success is possible, and helps clients know they are no longer alone. Today in LA, the police department will release its newly freed prisoners in skid row. The foster care system will drop off the children who have just aged out of its program by turning 18. These new residents of skid row will join the thousands of people living on the streets, or, if they are lucky, the thousands living in shelters. They may be offered food to satiate their hunger. But until they find hope and purpose, their hunger for wholeness will continue. I am grateful that Share Our Strength is also helping to satiate that most important hunger, replacing disconnectedness with community, and despair with success. by Kevin Smith, Aiken High School Prisoners Advocacy Committee — Ohio PO Box 1746 Cincinnati, Ohio 45201-1746, or submit a prisoner’s name and jail number at cleves1947@yahoo.com Finding pen-pals for people incarcerated in jails throughout Ohio. Streetvibes exists as a forum for the expression of the views and opinions of our readers and supporters. The opinions expressed herein are not necessarily those of the Streetvibes staff or the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. S T R E E T V I B E S January, 2004 Editorial Page 18 �FRAC News From the Food Research and Action Center FOOD STAMP PARTICIPATION INCREASES IN SEPTEMBER 2003 TO MORE THAN 22.7 MILLION PERSONS; IS ABOUT 5.8 MILLION PERSONS HIGHER THAN IN JULY 2000. (December 4, 2003) Participation in the Food Stamp Program in September 2003 (the latest data available) increased by 353,413 persons from the previous month, to 22,705,267 persons, as high rates of joblessness continued, more states improved access, and the effects of the food stamp reauthorization improvements continued to be felt. According to FRAC’s analysis of preliminary monthly data from USDA, in the last six months the caseload grew by an average of more than 281,000 persons per month. In the 12 months before that, the average was 150,000 per month. The September 2003 level of Food Stamp Program participation represented a rise of more than 2.9 million persons compared to the September 2002 level, nearly 4.9 million persons compared to September 2001, and about 5.8 million persons since July, 2000. http://www.frac.org/html/news/fsp/ 03sept.html BUSH ADMINISTRATION CONSIDERS ADOPTION OF ERADICATING CHILDHOOD HUNGER AS A MAJOR GOAL FOR 2004. (Washington Post, December 5, 2003) The Bush Administration is looking for big ideas to put on the top of its agenda for the year leading up to the presidential election. One major idea being considered is announcing that the United States will return a person to the moon. Among other ideas being considered for announcement during January’s State of the Union address: ending childhood hunger. A senior administration official said policy experts have been “going to considerable effort to see how much it would cost to attack child hunger.” http:// www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/ articles/A36960-2003Dec4.html REPORT LINKS INADEQUATE CHILDHOOD NUTRITION AND UNREALIZED INTELLECTUAL POTENTIAL. (Chicago Tribune, December 2, 2003) A study that appeared in the November issue of Pediatrics, the journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics, found that good nutrition and schooling can lead to substantial intellectual gains in adulthood. The study examined Guatemalan women who had been given nutritional supplements in the first two years of life and schooling through the primary grades. Women who were given nutritional supplements improved their academic achievement scores significantly over women who received schooling alone. “You’re going to get quite a return on your investment if you foster education. But if you also improve nutrition in early childhood, your return will be magnified,” said Reynaldo Martorell of Emory University, author of the study. Another study of identical twins conducted by researchers at the University of Virginia showed that growing up in poverty can erase a number of points from a child’s IQ score. The Virginia study found that deleterious mental factors account for 80 percent of the decline in IQ scores of very impoverished twins. These studies contribute to a growing conviction among scientists that gene function is highly dependent on environmental conditions. http:// www.chicagotribune.com/news/ local/chi0312020135dec02,1,680344.story (free registration required) COLUMN: THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT MUST TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR HUNGER. (Seattle PostIntelligencer, Seattle, WA, December 5, 2003) In this piece, columnist Helen Thomas of Hearst Newspapers highlights that it will take more than charitable donations at Christmas to deal with the problem of hunger in the United States. The Census Bureau says 34.8 million Americans live below the poverty level. David Beckmann, president of Bread for the World, estimates it would cost the federal government $6 billion annually, or six cents per person per day, to expand government programs such as school lunch and food stamps to cut the hunger rate in half. Thomas points out that while many want to help the poor, others believe in survival of the fittest, such as President Reagan’s counselor Edwin Meese, who told reporters “that poverty was merely anecdotal and that people went to soup lines ‘because they don’t want to pay for their lunch.’” Writes Thomas: “Much as private and religious groups may try to provide for the poor, it is still the responsibility of this government to make sure no one is left behind in the bread line. We are our brother’s keeper.” http:// seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/ 151106_thomas05.html S T R E E T V I B E S January, 2004 WORKING PEOPLE CANNOT SUPPORT THEIR FAMILIES IN AMERICA. (Newsweek, December 1, 2003) In this column, Anna Quindlen describes a new kind of poverty in America: Officials at urban food pantries note that more and more low-wage workers are coming to them for emergency food assistance. “America is a country that now sits atop the precarious latticework of myth...that work provides rewards, that working people can support their families.” “You never used to see kids at soup kitchens,” says Julia Erickson of City Harvest in New York. During the economic boom in the 1990’s, a quarter of American workers made less than poverty level wages ($8.70 an hour for a family of four) and many did not have health insurance, sick pay or retirement provisions. According to Beth Shulman, author of “The Betrayal of Work,” the bottom 10 percent of American workers earn just 37 percent of the median wage, while their counterparts in other industrialized nations earn upwards of 60 percent of the median wage. In addition, those countries provide health and child care. http://www.msnbc.com/ news/997103.asp?cp1=1 COLUMN: RECORD FEDERAL DEFICIT WILL HAMPER FUTURE OPPORTUNITY FOR TODAY’S CHILDREN. (Los Angeles Times, December 1, 2003) In this column, Ronald Brownstein makes a direct connection between the Bush Administration’s current fiscal policy, record deficits, and the costs to the next generation of taxpayers. He points out that much of the funding for President Bush’s policy initiatives, paid for by increasing the national debt, simply transfers the bill to the next generation. The administration’s tax cuts would reduce federal revenue by $400 billion per year by 2012. Meanwhile, the annual bill for many of government’s functions will increase over the next decade: Medicare will cost more than $500 billion per year, defense spending will reach $600 billion annually, and interest payments on the federal debt will climb to $350 billion. “To call this behavior a breakdown of fiscal responsibility misses its true nature. This is a stunning abandonment of generational responsibility. Washington is behaving like a father who steals his kid’s credit card and goes on a bender.” http:// www.latimes.com/news/ nationworld/nation/la-naoutlook1dec01,1,2243514.story (free registration required) FRAC News OP-ED: PROPOSED FEDERAL TANF RULES WOULD FURTHER STRAIN STATE BUDGETS, HURT RECIPIENTS. (Philadelphia Daily News, Philadelphia, PA, November 24, 2003) In this op-ed piece, Jonathan M. Stein criticizes the proposed TANF legislation now making its way through Congress, saying it would further strain state budgets by imposing stricter work requirements without providing federal funds for child care and job training. Such mandates would leave Pennsylvania and New Jersey “Govs. Rendell and McGreevey with little choice but to slash crucial services.” The proposed TANF legislation would also hurt TANF recipients who would be forced to work 40 hours a week in an economy where the average American works fewer than 40 hours per week and 2.5 million jobs have been lost since early 2001. http://www.philly.com/ mld/dailynews/news/opinion/ 7338708.htm REPORT: RECORD NUMBER OF NEW YORK CITY EMERGENCY FOOD PROVIDERS CLOSE OR RATION FOOD BECAUSE OF DEMAND. (New York City Coalition Against Hunger, November 25, 2003) Demand at New York City’s more than 1,000 emergency food providers increased faster than their ability to meet that demand, forcing 36 agencies to close entirely and nearly half of the remaining agencies to ration their food by turning away hungry people, reducing portion size, and/or cutting hours of operation. Providers that stayed open were forced to turn away almost 150,000 New Yorkers, of whom 41,796 were children —a 330 percent increase among children compared to three years ago. The New York City Coalition Against Hunger’s annual survey of New York City hunger also found that 83 percent of food pantry and soup kitchen officials said that the demand for food will increase over the next six months. “It is clear that struggling charities can no longer be the city’s first line of defense against hunger and poverty,” said Joel Berg, Executive Director of the Coalition. Press release: http://www.nyccah.org/ media/overall%20pressrelease.doc (Word Document) Full report: http://www.nyccah.org/media/ fullreport.doc (Word Document) The FRAC website is http://www.frac.org To subscribe to the weekly FRAC News Digest go to: http://capwiz.com/frac/mlm/ Page 19 Page 19 �TREATMENT: Both N.A. Hopeline 820-2947 A.A. Hotline 351-0422 C.C.A.T. 381-6672 Talbert House 684-7956 Transitions, Inc 859-491-4435 VA Domiciliary 859-559-5011 DIC Live-In Program 721-0643 TREATMENT: Men Charlie’s 3/4 House 784-1853 Prospect House 921-1613 Starting Over 961-2256 TREATMENT: Women First Step Home 961-4663 Full Circle Program 721-0643 HOUSING: CMHA 721-4580 Excel Development 632-7149 Miami Purchase 241-0504 OTR Housing Net. 369-0004 ReSTOC 381-1171 Tender Mercies 721-8666 Tom Geiger House 961-4555 SHELTER: Both Anthony House (Youth) 357-4602 Caracole (AIDS) 761-1480 Friars Club 381-5432 Drop Inn Center 721-0643 Haven House 863-8866 Interfaith Hospitality 471-1100 Lighthouse Youth Center (Teens) 861-1111 St. John’s Housing 651-6446 Mt. Airy Center 661-4620 Volunteers of Amer. 381-1954 Need Help or Want to Help? If you need help or would like to help please call one of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless members listed below. SHELTERS: Women and Children YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter 872-9259 (Toll Free) 1-888-872-9259 Bethany House 557-2873 Salvation Army 762-5660 Welcome House 859-431-8717 Women’s Crisis Center 859-491-3335 SHELTER: Men City Gospel Mission 241-5525 Garden St. House 241-0490 Joseph House (Veterans) 241-2965 St. Francis/St.Joseph House 381-4941 Formed in 1984, The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a membership organization. Our member groups serve the homeless through emergency shelter, transitional living facilities, permanent housing, medical services, social services, soup kitchens, and mental health/addiction services. The Coalition also consists of individual citizens who want to take an active role in ensuring that Cincinnati is an inclusive community, meeting the needs of all of its citizens. Join the fight to end homelessness; contact the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless at (513) 421-7803, 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 OTHER SERVICES: AIDS Volunteers of Cincinnati 421-2437 Appalachian Identity Center 621-5991 Beech Acres 231-6630 Center for Independent Living Options 241-2600 Churches Active in Northside 591-2246 Cincinnati Health Network 961-0600 Community Action Agency 569-1840 Contact Center 381-4242 Emanuel Center 241-2563 Freestore/ Foodbank 241-1064 Fransiscan Haircuts 651-6468 Goodwill Industries 771-4800 Coalition for the Homeless 421-7803 Hamilton Co. Mental Health Board 946-8600 Mental Health Access Point 558-8888 Hamilton Co. TB Control 632-7186 Health Rsrc. Center 357-4602 Homeless Mobile Health Van 352-2902 House of Refuge Mission 221-5491 Legal Aid Society 241-9400 Madisonville Ed. & Assis. Center 271-5501 Mary Magdalen House 721-4811 McMicken Dental Clinic 352-6363 Our Daily Bread 621-6364 Peaslee Neighborhood Center 621-5514 Project Connect Homeless Kids 357-5720 St. Vincent De Paul 562-8841 The Emergency Food Center 471-4357 Travelers Aid 721-7660 United Way 721-7900 VA Homeless 859-572-6226 Women Helping Women 872-9259 MIDDLETOWN/HAMILTON (Butler County) St. Raphaels (Food Bank/Soup Kitchen) 863-3184 Salvation Army 863-1445 Serenity House Day Center 422-8555 Open Door Pantry 868-3276 New Life Baptist Mission (Soup Kitchen) 896-9800 Hope House (Homeless Families/Singles) 423-4673 $1 Donation January 2004 Streetvibes BUY FROM BADGED VENDORS ONLY Remembering those who died on the streets... Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 2004 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource January 2004 Subject The topic of the resource Homelessness Description An account of the resource Pg 1: Homeless Memorial Remembers Those Who Have Died in 2003 Homeless Citizens, Supporters go ‘Home for the Holidays’ at Annual Coalition Dinner Pg 2: Donate Pg 3: Homeless News Digest Pg 4: History of Church Spans Decades Pg 5: An Update on the Issue of Panhandling Pg 6: The Peace Village Pg 7: U.S. Conference of Mayors-Hunger and Homelessness Survey 2003 Pg 8: U.S. Conference of Mayors-Hunger and Homelessness Survey 2003 Continues Pg 9: French Lawyer; World Leaders Should Take Stand in Saddam Trial Pg 10: Blessed is He That Considereth the Poor Pg 11: Coalition Dinner Continued Pg 12: Faces of Homelessness in Santa Cruz Pg 13: Absolute Poverty Pg 14: Arts & Poetry Pg 15: Arts & Poetry Continued Pg 16: Editorial Pg 17: New Budget Eliminates Mandatory Domestic Violence Training Economic Recovery Leaves Ohio Behind Pg 18: Visit to Chrysalis Pg 19: FRAC News Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Streetvibes Archive Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Streetvibes Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource January 2004 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Georgine Getty Andy Erickson Brendan Goodwin Mary Gaffney Jimmy Heath Elain Coffy Elizabeth Linville Berta Lambert J. Michael Skaggs Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Arts & Poetry Berta Lambert Brendan Goodwin Church domestic violence Economic Recovery Editorials Elain Coffy Elizabeth Linville Food Research FRAC GCCH GCCH Dinner Georgine Getty Holidays Hunger J. Michael Skaggs Jimmy Heath Mary Gaffney memorial Ohio panhandling Peace Village Saddam Trial Santa Cruz Survey U.S. Conference of Mayors https://streetvibesarchive.net/files/original/2807aa64cf08c68cdc5c1640a0686402.pdf eae6f63f35372906b8224580daa03f4e PDF Text Text July, 2004 STREETVIBES photo by Jimmy Heath Developers Fast Track Their Plan for Over-the-Rhine The Drop Inn Center at Elm and 12th Street, Over-the-Rhine, is a target for removal from the community by developers Streetvibes Investigation Last month, the private development group 3CDC (Cincinnati Center City Development Corporation) undertook a lightning-fast public relations campaign to get approval for their development plans around Washington Park. 3CDC Executive Director, Steven Leeper, and assistant Kathy Schwab attended meetings of the Over-the-Rhine Chamber of Commerce, Cincinnati Public School Board committees and other business and stakeholder groups presenting a Powerpoint presentation of a redesigned Over-the-Rhine. After the Cincinnati Planning Department was eliminated in December of 2002, the decision was made by city leaders to privatize city planning. For that reason, Cincinnati Center City Development Corporation (3CDC) created in July of 2003. Much about the organization is available on their website, www.3cdc.org. Joe Pichler, former Chairman of Kroger, was placed in charge of the Over-the-Rhine Working Group, tasked with revitalizing the area, especially around Washington Park. They spent some time looking for a full time director. On January 30th of this year, Steven Leeper was hired. Leeper has the Drop Inn Center.... Cont. on page 10 McCrackin celebration builds on his legacy, calls citizens to action by John Zeh photo by Berta Lambert Some seven years after he died, the Rev. Maurice McCrackin’s fervor for social justice was commemorated as activists marched from Washington Park in Over-theRhine to a Unity Day festival at the west end’s Laurel Park June 12. The day’s theme was “No to war in Iraq — No to the war on the poor in Cincinnati,” naming greed and concentrated wealth as enemies of the poor, said organizer and former Cincinnati City Council candidate Brian Garry. “Mac Day was a wonderful event. The organizations, food and entertainment were diverse like McCracken’s struggles,” Garry told Streetvibes. “The march was one of the best I’ve been to. Residents and activists and church people came together to stand up for the rights of lowincome people, it was truly a beautiful sight. We need to join the white and black activist communities to present a comprehensive vision of Cincinnati that is not just a response to city council,” he said. “We need to take the lead.” Collaboration among various groups is important, according to Vera Zlatkin, several housing projects and the White House, McCrackin another McCrackin Day one planner’s proposed closure threatened to starve to death if organizer. “There are many the city tore down the Milner of the Drop-Inn Center as groups who are working to do evidence that the city is waging Hotel downtown. Garry notes something, but they don’t have a war against the less-affluent. that city officials went to the power because they’re so Despite organizational and McCrackin’s bedside and small,” she said. “If we can institutional hurdles, Zlatkin is bring them together, we all will promised to find homes for the optimistic about preserving the homeless and mentally ill have a louder voice.” historic Park, but concedes that The cheerful atmosphere displaced by the demolition. activists may be fighting a The activist started eating was an appropriate losing battle against increased again, but the city reneged on commemoration for a minister gentrification. who became the “conscience of its pledge, Garry charged. “We have to be able to “Hopefully, the Rev. Mr. the city,” Garry told reporters. reverse it,” she said. In 1979, McCrackin was McCrackin can be a inspiration for activists today to be willing “Sometimes I feel like all us imprisoned 111 days for to put themselves on the line little groups are standing with refusing to testify against two hammers and a chisels for what they believe in,” said escaped felons who had hammering away against a huge Sister Helen Cullen, another kidnapped him. He had been wall. And there are bulldozers McCrackin Day organizer. arrested numerous times for Growing gentrification in coming at us. We are trying to anti-war protests and actions Over-the-Rhine is driving out fight a battle with hammers and against poverty and racism. In chisels and they are coming the homeless and poor, Zlatkin 1990, at the age of 85, he said, noting the closing of after us with bulldozers!” scaled the White House fence protesting the first U.S. war against Iraq. Every time police encountered McCrackin, the minister went limp. As an ardent pacifist, he fought the system any way he could. McCrackin founded Camp Joy, a camp for poor innercity youth, and helped desegregate Coney Island. A few years after the protest at People’s March on Central Parkway, Downtown Cincinnati Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless �Streetvibes Streetvibes, the Tri­ State’s alternative news source, is a newspaper written by, for, and about the homeless and contains relevant discussions of social justice, and poverty issues. It is published once a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Becoming a Streetvibes Vendor is a great way for homeless and other low-income people to get back on (or stay on) their feet. Streetvibes Vendors are given an orientation and sign a code of conduct before being given a Streetvibes Vendor badge. All profits go directly to the vendor. The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a group of shelters, agencies and individuals committed to ending homelessness in Cincinnati through coordinating services, educating the public and grassroots organizing. GCCH Staff Georgine Getty - Executive Director Allison Leeuw - Administrative Coordinator Andy Erickson - Education Coordinator Elizabeth Linville - Civil Rights Coordinator Janice Faulkner - Receptionist Mary Gaffney - Receptionist Streetvibes Jimmy Heath, Editor, Layout and Design Photographers Jimmy Heath, Berta Lambert Cover Veterans Section at Spring Grove Cemetery Streetvibes accepts letters, poems, stories, essays, original graphics, and photos. We will give preference to those who are homeless or vendors. Subscriptions to Streetvibes, delivered to your home each month, can be purchased for $25 per year. Address mail to: Streetvibes Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH) 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 (513) 421-7803 e-mail: streetvibes@juno.com web: http://homeless.cinci.com Page 2 Greed Transcends Compassion politics of poverty keeps the by Jimmy Heath middle-class fixated on each It’s been said that a society can be judged by how it other while burying the silent treats its less fortunate citizens. majority behind a curtain of Market forces and development shame, bureaucracy, and suspicion. The politics of drive our avaricious city poverty squashes dissent with government, and anyone who injustice and denial and lack of gets in the way of this access. Those who vocalize “progress” is pushed aside. their discontent, especially The truth again reveals itself in the continuing battle to people of color, are dismissed and disrespected and always get rid of the Drop Inn Center homeless shelter in downtown’s ignored. Parading low-income Over-the-Rhine neighborhood. citizens in front of the public Developers and City leaders who care little about the clients and claiming them as participants in the process using the Drop Inn Center are merely pinpoints and focused on their “vision” marginalizes those of how the neighborhood people. Community should look. These participation in plans perpetuate the discussions is used to stereotypes, and belittle legitimize the process those who are struggling that ultimately destroys to get back on their feet. Jimmy Heath them while lending Meanwhile, little effort credibility to a flawed is made by the City to address the root causes of homelessness. and one-sided process. The persistent growth of All they know is they don’t like our urban poor suggest that how it looks. poverty is neither an economic When you think of the aberration nor a reflection of people who use these services in Cincinnati - those who are on the morals of 34 million poor adults and children in this the bottom of the economic country - or the millions who ladder - you can’t help but wonder what is wrong with this border on poverty. When you read between city. Cincinnati’s homeless are the lines you will find that it’s least able to defend themselves; really all about getting rid of least likely to be able to the Drop Inn Center and places exercise even basic political power. It’s maddening, horribly like it; a strategy hidden under a plan for revitalization and cruel and sad at the same time. development of the Over-theThe exclusion of poor Rhine neighborhood. people from official policy Plans are being made for discussions continues to be an important factor in the failure of the land occupied by the Drop Inn Center by people who don’t the City to alleviate poverty. even own the property. The The politics of poverty in this power of capitalism reigns City has followed a fairly straight trajectory - provide and above everything else, sometimes even above decency concentrate power into the and compassion. hands of the privileged few. It’s not just about the The politics of poverty value of the land that the Drop uses covert, subtle means to Inn Center has occupied for project a façade of almost three decades. It’s about accountability while making deals behind closed doors. The the ugliness of homelessness. It’s about fear and racism. It’s about being greedy. It’s about perception and ignorance and power. Personally, I can’t think of a better use of land than for helping people get back their lives. The Drop Inn Center revitalizes human beings. Right in the heart of what we proudly refer to as the richest nation on earth, poverty and powerlessness are flourishing. The signs are unmistakable: the United States of America is in a state of decay hidden beneath layers of fresh paint and drywall and upscale urban development. During the 1960’s there was a great deal of optimism about the prospect of eliminating poverty forever. In the last three decades much money has been spent on social programs, but the poor have not disappeared. We attempt to clamp the lid down on seething inner-city discontent by keeping fragments of hope alive, while requiring the ruling elite to cede none of its power. The public has begun to believe that there is no solution to poverty; that places like the Drop Inn Center breed poverty. It’s all a big lie, of course. We’ve been brainwashed into thinking there are no answers because the real long-term solution to poverty lies in empowerment of the poor, which threatens the power monopoly of the privileged class. If you get in the way, watch out! The Drop Inn Center is again faced with one of its greatest battles. This drains resources, time and energy from people whose work would be better spent helping folks get their lives back. Meanwhile, City leaders look for ways to make the problem invisible, by trying to push it out of sight. GCCH Welcomes New Staff Member I’m from Indianapolis Dear Streetvibes Community, which isn’t too far away, I have been and I recently finished here in Cincinnati for school studying Nonabout a month now, profit Management. I do and I guess its time I have work experience at introduce myself. My various social service name is Allison Leeuw, nonprofit organizations, and I will be the new ranging from large Administrative Allison Leeuw organizations such as the Coordinator at the Zoo, to smaller domestic Greater Cincinnati violence shelters and agencies Coalition for the Homeless. I am educating “at-risk” youth. I hope not from around here… but I am these fundraising and social service getting settled here in Cincinnati, experiences will help me to and at the Coalition. I am thankful accomplish my work here. for the friendly welcome I have I suppose I will be spending thus far received from my co­ workers, and community members a lot of time here at the Coalition office behind the computer, or on of Over-the-Rhine. Streetvibes the phone trying to raise money for our cause. I will be writing grants, increasing awareness, and I hope to attract new donors to the Coalition. The problems that cause homelessness in our community run deep, and we need a deep coalition of support to eradicate this poverty. I am sure I will come across challenges from a variety of sources during my time here. Yet I have already seen dedication and passion for social justice here in this community; and I am inspired. I do hope to be out and about as well and I welcome any visits or suggestions from the Streetvibes Community. Stop by the Coalition, or drop me a line at allisonleeuw@yahoo.com. �36% of Cincinnati’s homeless once served our nation Who are the Homeless? Why are so many of our honored veterans on the streets? What can YOU do to help? I WILL DONATE: $20 $40 $60 $80 $100 $150 There are 25,000 people in Cincinnati that experience homelessness each year. Who are these individuals? 36% of the homeless on the streets of our community are veterans, yet only 13% of Ohio’s population are veterans. Why are so many of our past veterans living with no home? Here at the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless we are working to end homelessness for ALL individuals through education, advocacy and coordination of services. We are looking to find systemic solutions and real change that goes farther than the generous services our kitchens and shelters provide. This summer we are honoring past heroes, celebrating our freedom, and hoping for an end to the struggle over seas; let us not forget those who struggle here in our community this very day. Please consider a tax deductible contribution today and help create positive change in your city. Send your donations to Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 Streetvibes Page 3 �One year ago homeless stopped city from sweeping camps by Andy Erickson Education Coordinator arrived, displaying a temporary restraining order against the police, and a lawsuit against the city filed on Henry’s behalf. The reporters swarmed her. She and Don Henry spoke in a circle of cameras. The lawsuit filed against the city charged that the city had a pattern and practice of violating homeless people’s civil rights. Reporters scribbled in their notebooks. The people living in the camp cheered. Nearly a year ago, a group of homeless men and women stood up to the city’s threats and prevailed. Led by Don Henry, homeless folks living at the foot of the Clay Wade Bailey Bridge in Cincinnati protested the city’s orders to Don leave or be Henry’s camp arrested for wasn’t the only trespassing. The one that had been city gave a 72­ given an eviction hour deadline – notice. Four 1:00 on Friday, other camps were July 18, 2003. also told they had They gave no to move out by Andy Erickson indication of that Friday. where Henry and These camps were his bridgemates should go. clustered together on the other The residents of the side of downtown. The earliest camp chose to protest the city’s eviction would take place at actions. They started their 9:00. protest at 1:00 on Thursday, 24 That morning, before I hours before they were told to went to Don Henry’s protest, I get out. They marched along drove to these other camps to the intersection of Third Street see if anything was happening. and the Clay Wade Bailey The first person I saw was a Bridge. They carried protest cameraman. He wasn’t with the signs that read, “Don’t hide the press. I asked him who he was, homeless. Help them.” but I don’t remember his A lot of press came out response – a film student, I for the event. It was a good think, from one of the local story. Microphones were universities. He was filming interviewing and cameras were Robert, the one person who had filming all day. What would not yet moved from his camp. happen when the deadline The cameraman left soon after I arrived? Would the police spoke with him. really come? How many people I knew Robert. I had would they arrest for met him before, and he trespassing? News outlets remembered me. He was polled audiences: should people worried and said he needed my be allowed to live under help. He had to be out by downtown bridges? Audiences 10:00. He knew the deadline were split. Lots of people were was looming and he feared watching. being arrested. He had found a As the deadline grew new camp on the riverbank, but closer, the atmosphere grew couldn’t move all of his things increasingly more intense and by himself before the deadline. more exciting. The numbers of He showed me where he homeless people picketing stayed – under a small bridge grew. Social workers arrived, with barely even enough room helping many people get into to sit upright. I’ve never really services they needed. People gotten used to seeing the camps who had heard about the that some homeless people live protest on the news drove to in. To see one is to see the the camp to donate food, home of someone who’s all but drinks, and support. There given up. They’ve taken the must have been 100 people few things they have left from there, all waiting for the life and moved them underneath deadline and wondering what a bridge. It makes you wonder would happen when it struck. what had to happen to lead After a long, 24-hour them here, and why there’s so protest, the deadline came – many of them. Everyday people and went. No one came to drive over these streets arrest the so-called trespassers complaining about the cost of on Friday, July 18. Instead, gasoline while their fellow attorney Jennifer Kinsley citizens try to make homes Page 4 photo by Jimmy Heath Help GCCH find footage of protest The camp and protest sign under the Clay Wade Bailey Bridge beneath their exhaust fumes… Robert was convinced that if we stuffed my car full of his things, we could do it in one load. He was almost right. We had fill up his shopping cart, too. Robert tried to give me directions to his new camp. I didn’t understand. Finally he just told me to follow him. He grabbed his shopping cart and started pushing. I drove slowly behind him. He pushed past the US Bank Arena, past the Great American Ballpark, past construction sites and parking lots. One person told him to get the #$@* out of the road. Most people just stared. I helped Robert move his stuff into his new camp along the river. An officer drove by. I thought he might stop, but he just kept on going. Robert thanked me and I drove to Don Henry’s camp. When I got to Don’s camp, I noticed that some of the people who had been evicted from the camps near Robert’s were marching now with Don Henry. That cameraman was there, too – the one who I’d seen with Robert earlier that morning. He filmed Don’s protest the entire day after leaving Robert’s – from the early-morning pickets to Jennifer Kinsley’s arrival and the announcement of the lawsuit. I sometimes wonder who that cameraman was – and if he ever did anything with the footage from that day. If anyone knows him, please tell Streetvibes him I’d like to see it. I bet it would make a pretty good film. After Jennifer made her announcements and Don signed some legal documents; after the press vans were packed and driving back to their stations; after the social workers left feeling good about a victory; a few of us stayed behind and helped Don clean up his camp. He’d fought a good fight that day and won. Now he could rest in his own bed, in his own camp, and no one – not the police or the politicians – was going to make him move. We shook hands, congratulated Don and the other campers, and prepared to leave. We were heading to our cars when we noticed two men in the parking lot across from the camp. One had a camera in hand. Georgine Getty, the director of the Coalition for the Homeless, walked over to them and asked them who they were. They were from the Black United Front. They explained that they were just there to keep an eye out for Don. They were concerned about his safety; worried something might happen to him now that all the press cameras were gone. “We just want to make sure no one tries to bother Mr. Henry tonight,” they told Georgine. She cites that as one of the more touching experiences she’s had working here. They were there as neighbors, watching out for the people in their community. Protest.... cont. next page �Hate Crimes still a major issue for the homeless by Elizabeth Linville dangerous state in the country On June 15th, the for people experiencing National Coalition for the homelessness. Although there Homeless released its annual was no ranking this year, Ohio hate crimes report still figures Hate, Violence and prominently in this Death on Main report. In 2003, Street USA: A there were 7 Report on Hate separate incidents Crimes and in the state Violence Against resulting in 7 nonPeople lethal acts. Experiencing Nationally, there Homelessness. The were 9 deaths by Elizabeth Linville report is a hate crimes and 61 compilation of data collected non- lethal acts. from news reports and homeless The report also focuses shelters on the number of on hate speech against homeless homeless victimizations that individuals. In Cincinnati, this have occurred in the past five was seen with the “Derelict years (1999-2003). Round-Up” done by 700 WLW In 2002, the report DJ Bill “Willy” Cunningham. ranked Ohio the 4th most His radio show broadcasted Protest.... Don eventually got his own apartment. Social workers were able to work with him because they knew where he was living and they had gotten to know him personally. It takes time to get someone into housing after they’ve been living on the streets. Trust has to be built, services need to be available, and the individual needs to be ready. When cities perform sweeps, camps get moved out of sight, campers learn to hide, and social workers have more difficulty finding people who need help. In order to end homelessness, we need to work on its causes. In order to help individuals, we need to meet them where they’re at. Moving a homeless man from a bridge to the riverbank won’t solve his problems. I like the way Don put it: “Don’t hide the homeless. Help them.” A year ago this month, a lot of people heard that message – and I think a lot of people understood. Don’t be Squirrelly! Buy Streetvibes! from a bus that was used to take homeless people from the downtown area to be dropped off in the suburbs. When the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless called to protest, Cunninghan’s response was to scream “go to hell” and hang up the phone. Nationally, a new genre of “Bum Videos” has gained popularity. In the past four years, five different videos have been produced; each shows homeless people who have been coerced to perform dangerous stunts for money, alcohol, or food. These videos exploit the individuals used in the taping and encourage viewers to behave in an outrageous manner towards homeless individuals. In Cleveland, for example, four teenagers attacked five sleeping homeless men with a stun gun. They also kicked them and urinated on them, all while videotaping the attack. In this case, the offenders were arrested and charged with assault. In many other hate crimes cases, the attacker is never found or the crime is never reported. In a hope to obtain more information on this disturbing trend of violence against individuals who are homeless, the National Coalition has requested a General Accounting Office Investigation of the issue. Hopefully, a study such as this and the recently released report will bring more awareness to the problem and help determine ways to stop the violence. The Cicadas and the Homeless was good. With this she then by Mary G. Gaffney turned her attention to a When June arrived we question about the homeless. were greeted with the famous Sometimes she comes to the and exciting visitors who come Homeless Coalition with me to our section of the United States every 17 years. The visit and she has met some of the homeless who brings hysteria to come to the the young and old. office. It is all the talk She during the few watches weeks they are television and here, and then they hears the will be forgotten news about until 2021. Cincinnati It makes building and you wonder how remodeling they fly, this blind everywhere. friend, with pretty Her questions wings of black and Miss Mary Gaffney are, “What gold, some with about the homeless, where are different colored eyes. they going to live?” Some of I watched as they the plans they have for these crawled out of their shell, after struggling and making their way projects include removing the out of the ground, with the help homeless. “You tell me, grandma, of the rain. and they tell me in Sunday This whole affair makes school and church that we me stop and think how these should love one another and creatures will return to the care for our fellow man. God ground as fertilizer when they loves us.” die! First of all, my When my greatgranddaughter is 11 years-old. granddaughter asks a question; when she looks me in the eye, I We can never say that our little ones aren’t paying attention to never know what might be us, or television. You’d be coming. Sometimes she asks surprised at what they see and me about the bible. Her recent hear, especially when they are questions were about the talking about news on the Cicadas. television. For example, the When Noah was told by God to build an Ark and gather Washington Park issue, and how the area might be developed. up two of every animal, male She has also seen the and female of each species, with Drop Inn Center and she knows the impending destruction of that this is where some of our the world by flood, her questions was, “Did this include homeless friends stay. With development plans being talked the Cicadas?” about for that area, she worries I could not specifically answer that question but I know about where the people are going to stay. The foxes have that everything that God made Streetvibes holes, the birds have nests. But some men have no place to lay their head. Some of the people have jobs, but they also may be dealing with physical or mental problems. When you sit down at your dinner table, or when you go into your living room to watch television or you go to your bedroom for a nice, peaceful rest think of our friends who are not that fortunate. Until next month, remember God loves us all, regardless of who we are, our background, or our circumstance. 20 YEARS SERVING THE NEIGHBORHOOD Empowering our neighborhood children through peace, art and education Peaslee Neighborhood Center 215 East 14th Street Over-the-Rhine Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 (513) 621-5514 Page 5 �Homeless News Digest compiled by Patty Lane s Streetvibes ibe Streetvibes Vendors are required to sign a code of conduct and agree to abide by all the rules of the Streetvibes Ven­ dor Program. If a Vendor misrepresents or breaks the rules, she/he may be removed from the Program. To report a Vendor, call 421-7803. ext. 16 etv Page 6 Buy Streetvibes From Badged Vendors Only! get bogged down.” Cullen says the financial requirement is a violation of the Charter of Rights. He hopes to raise the money, but is also considering a legal challenge to have the election law declared unconstitutional. Polling stations will be set up in Calgary, Canada to allow the city’s homeless to cast their votes. “For most of our people, walking half a mile or a mile to get to a polling station becomes an impossibility,” Debbie Newman tells the CBC. The director of program services says they need to take services to their clients. Four years ago, Elections Canada changed its rules, allowing the homeless to use shelters as their permanent address. But while homeless voters could register during the last election, they still had to find the polling station in their area. Shelter resident Peter Savage says he’ll vote. “There area people who are here for a short time, like myself,” he says. “And they care. We care.” About 850 people stay at the drop-in center every night. An Arizona woman is working to make sure Father’s Day is not so hard on some area homeless men. Laura Borgeson is director and events coordinator of the Shoebox Ministry in Scottsdale. She’s heading a drive to fill 600 lunch box tins for homeless men for Father’s Day. With the help of a network of donors, she collected close to 2,000 items to fill purses for homeless women on Mother’s Day. But, she tells the Arizona Republic, men are harder to please. She’s come up with a list that includes baseball caps, aftershave, small tools, cologne, deodorant, work gloves, watches, and sunglasses. Borgeson’s mother started the ministry in 1988, and while she says there is food, shelter, and medical assistance, there are no personal products. The group started out delivering 30 shoebox toiletry kits; now they are up to 7,500 to 61 agencies. e Str An annual count of homeless people in and around Denver, Colorado finds there are fewer people homeless but 43 percent of them are children. According to the survey children represent a growing percentage of homeless people living in motels, emergency shelters or other temporary housing in metro Denver. The count also found 60 percent of all homeless people lived just outside of Denver. While the number of homeless in the county is down this year, the survey revealed 8,668 people are homeless, 43 percent of whom are under the age of 21. “Some of the homeless children live in cars at night. Some are in shelters. Some of them are in schools, but don’t know if they’re going to be at the same school the next day,” Metropolitan Denver Homeless Initiative president Tom Luehrs tells the Denver Post. The survey also counted 2,442 people in transitional housing, where they may remain for six months to two years. Luehrs says housing costs and unemployment remain the leading cause of homelessness. Homeless advocates say while the overall count of homeless people may be lower, their requests for help from homeless women and families are not. A recent community march in Raleigh, North Carolina focused on ending homelessness. The rally came a day after city leaders announced their own 10-year plan to end homelessness. Supporters of the plan tell WRAL-TV of Raleigh-DurhamFayetteville that the city’s 10­ year plan is a progressive commitment, but critics say 10 years is way too long. The plan consists of two points: focusing on sources of hardship like domestic violence and drug abuse, and allocating more money to shelters. “The situation is much harder today because a lot of jobs are going overseas, and mass immigration has taken a lot of entry-level jobs,” homeless Vietnam veteran Ritchie Hammond tells WRAL. Raleigh Mayor Charles Meeker remains optimistic the city can actually end homelessness. “It’s an attempt to try and solve the problems of the homeless person,” Meeker said of the plan. Aboriginal housing advocates from across Canada met in Winnipeg recently to search for solutions to homelessness. Native leaders say the number of aboriginal people in Winnipeg has increased over the past decade and it hasn’t helped that 10 years ago the government stopped investing in programs that built low-rent homes for urban aboriginals. “Because of the lack of housing in Canada, the lack of social housing, the lack of affordable housing, it’s very frustrating for them,” says Larry Wercherer, who runs an emergency shelter. He tells CBC that waiting lists for existing properties have long caused an increase in the number of native people living in motels, shelters and on the streets. A random sample of around 350 homeless people found that over 75 percent of those in shelters, requiring intervention or on the streets were aboriginal people. Meanwhile, elsewhere in Canada, the city of Ottawa will receive $17 million toward ending homelessness as part of the National Homelessness Initiative started in 1999. The money will be granted over two years. “Canadians coast to coast have identified homelessness as a major concern,” Defense Minister David Pratt told the CBC. Funding to continue the program was allocated in last month’s federal budget, but it requires a locally designed plan. The city of Ottawa did approve a plan that includes $11 million for capital development projects, $4 million for services preventing homelessness and aiding the homeless, and $2 million for research and working with other local service providers. Residents in Louisville, Kentucky are mourning the death of a homeless man who was savagely attacked in April. WAVE 3-News reports Clifton Agnew died from his injuries last week. Police say two men beat, stabbed, and sodomized Agnew as he lay sleeping in an alley. The suspects are in custody. The attack left Agnew in a coma for several weeks. When local homeless advocate Kaye Thomas learned what happened to the man, she visited him in the hospital and encouraged others to send him get-well cards. Thousands came in and Thomas spent hours reading them to him. One read, “The word homeless is not your identity, that may be how you live but that’s not who you are.” Services were held at the church where Agnew ate lunch almost everyday. From the pulpit at his funeral, Thomas spoke one more time to the man who touched so many lives. “The Kentucky School for the blind sent you a card, written so sweetly in Braille,” she read. The 53-year-old man was buried at Resthaven Cemetery. A homeless man who says he is the voice of the poor is running into an election roadblock in Canada. Daniel Cullen of Kelowna, British Columbia, wants to run as an independent candidate but doesn’t have the $1,000 dollars required by Elections Canada. The homeless man is broke and is panhandling to raise the money. “The people I do know don’t have the money. The people who have the money don’t know me,” Cullen tells the CBC. “There has to be a barrier,” says Liberal Party candidate Vern Nielsen. He says Cullen has a valid point, but adds that the deposit is not unreasonable. “We could potentially have 100 people all running as independents, and then the whole process would Support Your Vendor �A King Without a Throne ­ Interview With Washington Park Tent Man, King DaviyD Former Washington Park resident, DaviyD Interview by Georgine Getty Where have you been staying the last month? Washington Park. I’ve been there since the 6th of May. I was in jail for two weeks for a ticket from 2003 (driving without a license) and I got out on the 6th of May. I didn’t go to Washington Park with the plan of building a hut. I’m a man of God, and when I was locked up for 14 days, I didn’t get any visits and God took care of me the whole time. So you built a hut? Right. When I got out, I was walking and meditating on the Most High throughout the city and God showed me pieces. I just started picking up pieces and taking them back to my spot in Washington Park. When I got them all together I realized ‘oh my God!’ I can build a roof over my head. I moved here in 1994 and I know I’ve helped many people in this city. I’m not from this city or state. I have no relatives here. Do you still have your hut? No. By the grace of God that hut stood for 25 days in Washington Park. On the first of June, the police came and took my house away. It wasn’t a hut to me, it was my house. I slept in my house while it stormed and the wind blew. I was dry and my house never blew down. I’m an individual who built his own house. There are people who sleep here in this park, well, I’m going to build a roof over my head. Where are you staying now? I’ve been sleeping on benches (in Washington Park) ever since they took my house away. What are your plans? Well. I’ve had some time to think since they’ve taken my house away and I have some questions. What was their intent of taking my house away? If you are people who fight for justice, righteousness, you are strength for the meek . . . what were you thinking when you took my house away? Because photo by Jimmy Heath now I sleep completely outside since you took my house away. I’m still sleeping there. Many people are sleeping there on blankets. What do you think about Washington Park being redeveloped? Why are you developing it? Are you doing it to help these people who obviously need help? If this is our city and this is supposed to be one of the top 10 places to raise a family, then why are we not as a family of Cincinnati helping the less fortunate of the city? No matter where we are, we are a family. If there is a part of the family that is not getting along with another, then we have a problem. If there is a part of the family that is trying to hide another part that maybe doesn’t look so shiny, and they’re just trying to hide and cover it up, then that’s a problem. What would you like the readers of Streetvibes to know about you? I need the readers of SV to spread the word about what’s going on to the rest of Cincinnati. I am a pure man of God. I am not here to stereotype the truth. I am not here to categorize the truth with religion. I live upon every letter, every dotted “i” and crossed “t” of the word of God. For my life, it is His will, and not mine. What does the Word of God mean to you? Liberty, wherever I go. It allows me to not have to prove myself to no one. I can be me. I can be the image and likeness of God without being influenced by the ways of the world. I started my life as an orphan. I lived in many foster homes. I didn’t grow up in church, but church was in me. I got adopted when I was 7 years old. I’ve been from coast to coast, north, south, east and west. I’ve lived in Europe and Korea. I’ve adjusted. I got in the flow instead of forcing something. Did you go to Europe and Korea in the army? Yes. How long were you in the army? Approximately 6 years. I had secret clearance. I was an avionics electronic aircraft repair man. I left with an honorable discharge. From there I trained in marketing and managed many restaurants. I’ve been a teacher everywhere I’ve been. I had a year of college. I’m very “above average” when it comes to society’s vision. I know I can go get a smashing job somewhere. I have come to choose God, so I don’t live on my own accord. God says “a righteous man’s footsteps are ordered by the Lord.” And the footsteps that I have taken in the past few years have not been through my own consciousness but because God ordered them and I chose to do His way. Can you tell me what you saw in prison? When I was locked up, I saw my future. I saw myself perishing when I saw all them young boys around me. For whatever reason, they’re choosing to do what they’re choosing. No one if offering them any type of positive future. We lock the youth up and that’s it. Some of those young boys in there are not criminals. Maybe they did a crime or were around the wrong people because they wanted to be a part of something but so. many of them I talked to you could tell the criminal thing was not in them, it wasn’t in their hearts. They’re just doing what’s all around them. We need to find out who’s redeemable and who can be saved. Programs need to be implemented to re-direct lives. Bond should be contingent on it. Help them see positive options and directions. That would be a wonderful program. This is not just for the younger crowd, but the elders also. I ran into some older people and kids too who couldn’t read. Nobody’s taking care of them. When you’re 5, 6 or 7, you want to learn. When you’re 9, 10, 11 and no one’s told you anything yet, you’re going to move with whatever seems to be moving. They don’t have no choice. Thank you for sharing your thoughts with us. Any final comments? I beseech the people not only in this city but around the world that if you have any righteousness in you concerning God, the only way wickedness can triumph is for righteousness to absolutely do nothing and I’m begging those of the righteous status to please stand up and become one and let’s begin to change what God sent us to change. What was in the beginning so shall it be in the end. Hello, my name is... For over three weeks DaviyD was living in a home of his own construction in Washington Park in the neighborhood of Over-the-Rhine. Following the police protocol established after the bridge sweeps of summer, 2003, DaviyD’s home was removed. DaviyD is an established sight at Findlay Market, where he plays the Jymbay, an African Drum, for his many fans. He is a veteran who was released from service after six years with an honorable discharge. He is also the father of two, a daughter, age 8 and a son, age 6. DaviyD started his career as a supervisor in marketing. After his release from the justice center on May 6, he found himself with no place to go and built a make-shift home in Washington Park. Recently the victim of violence (in late March, he was shot on 14th and Vine and he was assaulted one month ago on Elm Street) and medical problems (he suffered three strokes in 2001). DaviyD is currently working with a local outreach worker to achieve housing and self sufficiency. Streetvibes Page 7 �The Peace Village annual summer session course on, “Social Work and Peace.” The course looks at how issues of peace can be emphasized in the practice of social work professionals. The Peace Village Project: “Ending Hunger in the Peace Village,” is being organized with 11 area high school teachers and students plus support from the UC Peace Village student organization. The Wright State University Peace Village, Dayton, Ohio is being formed with students and faculty from the school of social work and other areas of the university. One organizing meeting has been held and there are plans to see ways of moving to projects. by Dr. Steve Sunderland For the past months, a group of undergraduate and graduate students, led by graduate student, Guneet Aulakh, from India, have been meeting about improving peace at the University of Cincinnati. An official university student group has been formed, officers elected and several projects launched. “A Tunnel of Oppression,” an exhibit with other students about areas of oppression in the world was featured for a week during the University’s WorldFest programs. Out of these efforts, and weekly planning sessions at the Wesleyan Student Foundation, thanks to the generosity and leadership of Wesleyan staffer, Jeanne Smith, a set of activities for the coming year are in stages of planning including: a student to student support program that will link Dr. Steve Sunderland an international I have been encouraged student with another university by Dr. Carl Brun, chair, student; a monthly or bi­ department of social work, monthly international music evening to share different forms WSU, and his wonderful class to take the step into creating a of music; a monthly or bi­ peace group. The students monthly international peace movie showing, accompanied by know that Carl has opened a door of opportunity to them and discussion groups; and, they enter, wary and delighted, participation in a universitya chance to join a serious peace wide hunger program to raise movement. food and money for our The Peace Village Cincinnati food store for the Newsletter continues to be sent poor and homeless, the Free out each week plus a monthly Store. column in Streetvibes, the Raymond Walters newspaper of the Cincinnati College, University of Homeless Coalition continues Cincinnati, has a group of to be published. Content of the faculty and students that have participated in a second annual, both publications involves activities in the Peace Village “Peace Conference.” Faculty from the vantage point of many have also opened their classes authors. to poster sessions on peace in I continue to marvel at the academic areas of English, the editor of Streetvibes, Jimmy sociology, history, and Heath, and his quiet dedication communications. and commitment to his readers The leaders of this gang and to all homeless people. His of faculty, Helen Kegler and last issue had his article on Grace Auyang, have now been honoring a deceased homeless joined by another group of person. Jimmy reminds us of faculty eager for the next step. the radical changes needed to One faculty member, Maria Damos, and I are plotting to use welcome our “strangers” into our homes and hearts. poetry for peace; Grace is There is nothing more already into peace work with expansive of hope than working her sociology students, and with teachers and their students others are pioneering curricula of peace. Gently, simply, and innovations, too. with a grace, the posters begin University of to color in a different world, a Cincinnati’s school of social work will be offering the second powerful world shaped by Page 8 respect and compassion, and these very young people, in a very short time, find their voices. You must meet these “teachers,” these gems of civility and humor, and see them “shining’ in their classrooms. One teacher, Craig Rush, keeps asking his students to keep making the UN laws relevant to the students’ world. Another, Steve Elliot, muses with his students about the reduction of all problems to “simple black and white, the good guys and the bad guys.” Indonesian Peace Project is continuing with follow-up program plans based on two meetings with peace makers from Indonesia who have visited the Peace Village in Cincinnati. The visits were under the supervision of Ohio University’s South East Asian Program. Religious tensions between Christians and Muslims may be one focus as well as other concerns about promoting peace. Northside’s Second Annual Peace Makers Dinner is being planned for the fall. Last year over 100 neighborhood peace makers were honored with a dinner and music. This year our community has been faced with another set of challenges to our peace and the community has ably responded, albeit with the causalities of horror that continue to plague communities serious about living in peace. Plans are being made for the third annual vigil and Interfaith Walk on September 10th and September 11, 2004 in memory of those who died and those who worked for peace in the rescue effort. Last year’s event taught us a great deal about what we needed to hear and say about justice and peace and the old team, led by Mira Rodwin, is reuniting to make another expression of respect. Peaslee Community Center Freedom Murals have developed in 8 inner city agencies in Cincinnati in cooperation with the Peace Village and tile artist, Suzanne Fisher. Working initially with posters depicting the relationship of the concept of freedom and their agency, staff and clients create puzzle pieces out of posters until there is agreement about what the major theme is and how it can be converted to a large tile mural to adorn the outside of the building. The final murals are “signs” of “safe houses,” places in Over-the-Rhine that community residents can receive care and a new perspective on community Streetvibes development. These are many of the projects underway. I have not included the wonderful work of Hans Klee, Munich and Harare, founder of Global Friends, to make the links with the Peace Village strong and creative. Amos Hopkins joins Binny Singh in India in a great chance to build a foundation in three of Binny’s schools. I hope to hear more from them and others in Israel, Argentina, and Nigeria about what is happening in their Peace Village efforts. I have also omitted from this letter the beginning planning for interfaith discussions with Jewish and Christian youth, thanks to the help of Barbara Dragul, Ed Irvin, Steve Elliot, Daniel Septimus, and Sam Joseph. In sum, the work of peace, in peace, for peace is obviously the work of many hands and hearts, some new and some old. We touch each other, heal with one another, find a laugh and a tear along our paths, and stand in awe of how beautiful our friendships have become as the way of peace. We are not blind to what is happening in our little world as new stories of bloodshed and worse appear. Yet, my old friend and Vet for Peace, Paul Davis repeatedly reminds me that we are a force for and with peace, carrying a message to young and old, here and there, that is no more than our own steps, our own heartbeats, and our own connections to each other and the world. The larks parked for the moment in the nest outside our door are long gone, flying now on their own power. Tuesday Henson is walking the walk of a one year old who feels at peace, trusts the ground she totters on, smiling all the time. The Peace Village is as much her and her future as anything and it is our combined work that will make it a future of some peace. I thank everyone mentioned, hinted at, unmentioned, and tottering toward our golden image of peace. Dr. Steve Sunderland, professor of Social Work at the University of Cincinnati, is the Director of The Peace Village, a group of individuals from the national and international community committed to examining all issues of Peace in the world. Dr. Sunderland also heads up Posters-forPeace which engages people in expressing their visions of Peace, in their own words, through the creation of posters. �The Fourth Annual Public Forum on Homelessness THE IMPOSSIBLE WILL TAKE A LITTLE WHILE: Living and Acting with HOPE in Difficult Times Wednesday, October 13, 2003 8:30am to 5pm Franklin County Veteran’s Memorial Wayne Brehm Room300 West Broad Street, Columbus, Ohio Presented by The Columbus Coalition for the Homeless In Partnership with The Greater Cincinnati Coalition or the Homeless, Otterbein College, The Columbus Metropolitan Area Church Council & The Interprofessional Commission of Ohio Featuring PAUL LOEB as keynote speaker This forum will focus on advocacy, through the work of volunteers and professionals, for the needs of marginalized people - particularly those who are very poor and often homeless. The attendees will hear presentations by one of the country’s leading proponents of citizens living, acting and working for a more justice and equitable society for all people. “Paul Loeb brings hope for a better world in a time when we so urgently need it.” ­ Millard Fuller, founder of Habitat for Humanity Goodbye, Cicadas! For more information about Paul, see www.paulloeb.org “I object to violence because when it appears to do good, the good is only temporary; the evil it does is permanent.” — Mohandas K. Gandhi “Mankind must put an end to war, or war will put an end to mankind...War will exist until that distant day when the conscientious objector enjoys the same reputation and prestige that the warrior does today.” — John F. Kennedy “More than an end to war, we want an end to the beginning of all wars — yes, an end to this brutal, inhuman and thoroughly impractical method of settling the differences between governments.” — Franklin D. Roosevelt “There must be, not a balance of power, but a community of power; not organized rivalries, but an organized peace. — Woodrow Wilson Streetvibes Page 9 �photos by Jimmy Heath Drop Inn Center.... Cont. from page 1 reputation for being a power broker and deal maker. His previous job was in Pittsburgh where he worked to develop stadiums and housing. There are mixed evaluations of his success, according to editorials from Pittsburgh. Leeper started his work in Cincinnati on April 1. One of the first things he did was to commission a study of Over­ the-Rhine by Manhattan based designers Beyer, Blinder and Belle. Their study looked at the Washington Park Area, including placement of schools in the area. Unfortunately, not many people knew of their efforts and the firm only received input from a small group of area developers and business leaders. Nevertheless, the plan was completed and, on May 26, a high level meeting including School Superintendent Alton Fraily, top area CEO’s, representatives of the new Arts School and 3CDC meet to officially unveil the new proposal. It included changing the placement of two area schools, an expansion of the park and a new housing development. A 90-day time frame is given for approval by School and City bodies. After approval by this body, on June 2, the plan was released to the media, coordinated by 3CDC. Within a two week period from June 7 to June 18, presentations are given to many decision making bodies including the Cincinnati School Board, Cincinnati City Council, Washington Park School Parents and the Cincinnati Planning Commission. The public was given no notice of 3CDC’s attendance to any of these meetings. As a result, public comment was very limited. In the midst of this process, some participants in the 3CDC process expressed willingness to talk about concerns of homeless agencies. It is said that board members have expressed willingness to have discussions about the issues of safety and homelessness. However, others, including Leeper in his comments to City Council, were unsure why community groups were so concerned. One of the parties who has concerns is the Drop Inn Center, especially it’s Page 10 The Nannie Hinkston House and Drop Inn Center Transitional Housing; corner of 12th and Elm Streets, Over-the-Rhine Transitional Housing Program. The 18 units that house sober graduates of their treatment program are shown as being taken for a new school in 3CDC’s plan. Members of the Transitional Housing group attended a school committee meeting on June 10 th, but the plan was not up for discussion at the time. Transitional Housing residents in attendance were concerned about their buildings being taken without adequate replacement. They also regretted not having any input into the planning process. Drop Inn Center representatives passed out information about their project including the fact that it is a sober residents with drug testing and a counselor on site and that it is a historic mixed-use building, with community serving businesses on the first floor. They hope to be included as the plan moves forward. On one hand, leaders like Cincinnati Councilmember Jim Tarbell expressed hope that the developments proposed by 3CDC will stimulate a major change in Over-the-Rhine and boost homeownership and property values. However, the Homeless Coalition, community residents and others continue to be very concerned about the impact these developments may have on shelters and housing, as well as the future of neighborhood schools. Pat Clifford, Director of the Drop Inn Center, said “Our vision is to have a successful, truly mixed income, multi cultural area in Over-the-Rhine where people are accepted and encouraged to grow. The first thing we need to do is develop trust. I fear that this quick timetable for approval with limited public input and sketchy details will only serve to erode people’s trust and put the neighborhood in further jeopardy.” From left; Elizabeth Linville, Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homelsss; Debra Brundidge, DIC Counseling Coordinator & Pat Clifford, General Coordinator of the Drop Inn Center at Cincinnati Public School Board meeting. Streetvibes �Planning For A Place Where We Belong by Mary Burke I feel so used and discarded after reading the “Washington Park plan unveiled” in the June 1 edition of the Enquirer. And then to read on June 10th that the 3CDC plan for the schools had been approved by the Board of Education. I just feel sick. I along with over one hundred people participated in a threeyear long process to develop a plan for OTR. The city provided consultants, staff overtime and other resources to this plan that admittedly was hurried to an uncertain finish. We had hope that the implementation phase would allow us to work out the difficult issues that were missing from the plan. Important issues like how public dollars will be invested to support the plan and how we can invest simultaneously in our dying affordable housing stock and the thriving market housing. We knew that the market housing demand for subsidy would drown out the affordable housing need for sustainability. Our sense that the “market” would consume huge amounts of public dollars was proven out by the $2 million dollar public subsidy to the private condo development at the Kroger Garage and the $6 million dollar subsidy to the parking garage itself. In addition, along with about 50 other people I engaged with the Cincinnati Public School process where consultants and architects were hired to facilitate a planning process for neighborhood schools. We spent our time and energy and more importantly invested hope for something better in OTR. We earnestly engaged in a process. We believed we could help shape the future. Then 3CDC arrives on the scene and with the click of a mouse a PowerPoint slide eliminates our work and their new plan is unveiled. Not only were our plans disappeared, so were our local institutions and housing. My hope in our system of governance and civic life was further diminished. I feel like dropping out. I find cynical people funny but I don’t want to be cynical. I don’t want to sit on the sidelines and complain. I want to participate in the civic life. Maybe that’s what makes me feel sick. Groups like 3CDC stomp on people’s fire. We do burn with the hope of inclusion and real democracy and there is truly a visceral response when we are negated. Hopelessness moves in quickly. Then there are the shootings and the killing. We feel we have no power to effect systemic change that could address the reason young men kill each other. We feel excluded. We are excluded. Fortunately there are people like Bonnie Neumeier, Damon Lynch, and Eileen Cooper Reed, and writers like Alice Walker. They pick-up people like me and re-ignite our fires. With them we can come to believe that there can be another way and together we can create it. So I hope to stay tuned for the rest of the story. Ultimately the anger and despair will be transformed to hope and action. We will find a way to include all people in our future. We will find a way to peace. We will find a way to transform our government and civic life so that people rule and corporate interests do not. And, we shall not be moved. Or to be more precise, The Drop Inn Center shall not be moved. Shelter Programs Critical to Support of Homeless Veterans Who are homeless veterans? The U. S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) says homeless veterans are mostly males (2 % are females). The vast majority are single, most come from poor, disadvantaged communities, 45% suffer from mental illness, and half have substance abuse problems. America’s homeless veterans have served in World War II, Korean War, Cold War, Vietnam, Grenada, Panama, Lebanon, or the military’s antidrug cultivation efforts in South America. Forty-seven percent of homeless veterans served during the Vietnam Era. More than 67% served our country for at least three years and 33% were stationed in a war zone. How many homeless veterans are there? Although accurate numbers are impossible to come by... the VA estimates that more than 299,321 veterans are homeless on any given night. And, more than half a million experience homelessness over the course of a year. Conservatively, one out of every four homeless males who is sleeping in a doorway, alley, or box in our cities and rural communities has put on a uniform and served our country ... now they need America to remember them. Why are veterans homeless? In addition to the complex set of factors affecting all homelessness … extreme shortage of affordable housing, livable income, and access to health care … a large number of displaced and at-risk veterans live with lingering effects of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and substance abuse, compounded by a lack of family and social support networks. A top priority is secure, safe, clean housing that offers a supportive environment. Doesn’t the Department of Veterans Affairs take care of homeless veterans? To a certain degree, yes. According to the VA’s 1997 report, in the years since it “began responding to the special needs of homeless veterans, its homeless treatment and assistance network has developed into the nation’s largest provider of homeless services. Serving more than 100,000 veterans annually.” With an estimated 500,000 veterans homeless at some time during the year, the VA reaches less than 20% of those in need. What services do veterans need? Veterans need a coordinated effort that provides secure housing and nutritional meals; essential physical health care, substance abuse aftercare and mental health counseling; and personal development and empowerment. Veterans also need job assessment, training and placement assistance. What seems to work best? The most effective programs for homeless and at-risk veterans are community-based, nonprofit, “veterans helping veterans” groups. Programs that seem to work best feature transitional housing with the camaraderie of living in structured, substance-free environments with fellow veterans who are succeeding at bettering themselves. Because government money for homeless veterans is currently limited and serves only one in 10 of those in need, it is critical that community groups reach out to help provide the support, resources and opportunities most Americans take for granted: housing, employment and health care. There are Streetvibes about 200 community-based veteran organizations across the country that have demonstrated impressive success reaching homeless veterans. These groups are most successful when they work in collaboration with Federal, State, and local government agencies, other homeless providers, and veteran service organizations. Veterans who participate in these programs have a higher chance of becoming tax-paying, productive citizens again. For More Information log on to http://www.nchv.org Page 11 �Streetvibes Vendor Code of Conduct About the Greater Cincinnati All Vendors Sign and Agree to a Code of Conduct Coalition for the Homeless and Report Any Violations to GCCH - 421-7803 Streetvibes.... 1. Streetvibes will be distributed go to the individual vendor. This program has helped for a $1 voluntary donation. If a customer donates more than $1 for a paper, vendors are allowed to keep that donation. However, vendors must never ask for more than $1 when selling Streetvibes. 2. Each paper purchased from the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH) costs 30 cents. Papers will not be given out on credit. Old papers can not be traded in for new papers. 3. Streetvibes may only be purchased from GCCH. Never buy papers from, or sell papers to other vendors. 4. Vendors must not panhandle or sell other items at the same time they are selling Streetvibes. 5. Vendors must treat all other vendors, customers, and GCCH personnel with respect. 6. Vendors must not sell Streetvibes while under the influence. 7. Vendors must not give a “hard sell” or intimidate anyone into purchasing Streetvibes. This includes following customers or continuing to solicit sales after customers have said no. Vendors must also never sell Streetvibes door-to-door. 8. Vendors must not deceive customers while selling Streetvibes. Vendors must be honest in stating that all profits Vendors must not tell customers that the money they receive will go to GCCH or any other organization or charity. Also, vendors must not say that they are collecting for “the homeless” in general. 9. Vendors must not sell papers without their badge. Vendors must present their badge when purchasing papers from GCCH. Lost badges cost $2.00 to replace. Broken or worn badges will be replaced for free, but only if the old badge is returned to GCCH. 10. Streetvibes vendor meetings are held on the first weekday of the month at 1pm. The month’s paper will be released at this meeting. If a vendor cannot attend the meeting, he or she should let us know in advance. If a vendor does not call in advance and does not show up, that vendor will not be allowed to purchase papers on the day of the meeting or the following day. Five free papers will be given to those who do attend. 11. Failure to comply with the Code of Conduct may result in termination from the Streetvibes vendor program. GCCH reserves the right to terminate any vendor at any time as deemed appropriate. Badges and Streetvibes papers are property of GCCH, and must be surrendered upon demand. The mission of the North American Street Newspaper Association (NASNA) is to support a street newspaper movement that creates and upholds journalistic and ethical standards while promoting self-help and empowerment among people living in poverty. NASNA papers support homeless and very low-income people in more than 35 cities across the United States and Canada. Streetvibes Vendor: 70 cents Printing and Production: 30 cents Page 12 The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH) was formed in May of 1984 for one purpose: the eradication of homelessness in Cincinnati. What started out as a coalition of 15 volunteers meeting weekly in an unheated church basement has since grown into a Coalition of over 45 agencies and hundreds of volunteers dedicated to improving services for homeless individuals, educating the public about homelessness and empowering homeless individuals to advocate for their civil rights and housing needs. Streetvibes is a tool of GCCH used to help us achieve our goal of ending homelessness. On the one hand it is a self-sufficiency program geared towards the homeless and marginally housed individuals who are our vendors. Streetvibes vendors buy the paper for 30 cents per copy and sell it for a suggested one-dollar donation, keeping the profit that they have earned. hundreds of people find and maintain housing. The vendors also sign a code of conduct stating that they will behave responsibly and professionally and they proudly display their official Streetvibes badge while selling the paper. Our vendors put a face on “the homeless” of Cincinnati and form lasting friendships with their customers. On the other hand, Streetvibes is an award-winning alternative newspaper and part of the international street newspaper movement. Focusing on homelessness and social justice issues, Streetvibes reports the often-invisible story of poverty in our community. Streetvibes is also proud to include creative writing, poetry, articles, photography and interviews written by homeless and formerly homeless individuals. Streetvibes enjoys a loyal reader base that respects the honest portrayal of the joys, sorrows, and challenges facing the people of Cincinnati. Streetvibes is a member of the: The International Network of Street Papers (INSP) unites street papers sold by homeless and people living in poverty from all over the world. INSP is an umbrella organisation, which provides a consultancy service for its partner papers and advises on the setting up of new street papers and support initiatives for marginalised people. Where Your Dollar Goes... The Streetvibes program maintains a minimal overhead cost so that our vendors can keep as much of the proceeds as possible. Please call our office at 421-7803 for more information about the program. Many thanks for your support. Streetvibes Half of the American people have never read a newspaper. Half never voted for President. One hopes it is the same half. ­ Gore Vidal Editor: a person employed by a newspaper, whose business it is to separate the wheat from the chaff, and to see that the chaff is printed. - Elbert Hubbard Trying to determine what is going on in the world by reading newspapers is like trying to tell the time by watching the second hand of a clock. - Ben Hecht People everywhere confuse what they read in newspapers with news. - A. J. Liebling �Why are NA Meetings Important To Me? by Antonio Reed Why are N.A. meetings important to me? I struggled for the longest time with drug addiction. It took so many things from me over the years: my family’s trust, I lost many friends and women who were involved with me. It took me a long time to see the destruction that drugs caused in my life and in the life of others: 3 of my children - Antwan LaMarr Robinson, Elijah Ishmeal Reed, Dontonio Devontae Reed are permanently committed to Children Services and my only daughter, Antoinieshia Trynce Reed, I’m fighting to get custody now so I can be a part of her life. My oldest son, Antonio LaMote Reed, Jr. stays with his mom. I can see him, but drugs took me from being a father to my children. N.A. Meeting is just like Chemo treatment is to a person who suffers with cancer. It don’t cure the disease that I suffer from, but it does arrest it. Knowing from my past, if I don’t stick with N.A. Meetings, I run the risk of returning to active drug use again. N.A. meetings are like insulin is to a diabetic. If they don’t take their shot, they run the risk of going into a shock. N.A. meetings is like a kidney to the person who needs it to continue living. N.A. meetings are like a breath machine to someone who can’t take a breath of life without it. N.A. meetings are like the umbilical cord attached to the fetus whose life depends on it for its nourishment while in the mother’s womb. When I came to the place I’m at I had nothing at all left in me, not even the will to go on living. I lost my self-respect, self-worth, morals, a woman who I really loved - but it turned out I loved drugs more, to the point where I no longer knew how to treat her and she left. I had self-hatred, guilt and shame running wild inside of me. I felt abandoned, not loved by myself or others. But N.A. Meetings changed me a lot. Where else could I go and be dealing with something inside my head and question God about it? Inside my heart I felt hopeless about the situation and the answer came to me from God through someone at the meeting who had been through what I’m now dealing with. And by doing the right thing for the right reasons, things got better for them. By me hearing that, it gives me hope that the same thing can happen to me. There is a spirit in N.A. meetings that I personally can say is God. It doesn’t matter about age, race, sexual identity creed religion or lack of religion. There is only one requirement for membership ­ that is having the desire to stop using. That’s it. I listen. I learn from others who are just like me. While I have not regained a lot of things I have gotten myself back - and the belief that things will be OK for me. The three most important things in life right now are: first, God, second, staying clean no matter what happens third, the program of N.A., because without it, I would return to using and I wouldn’t be accountable for nothing. N.A. saved my life. “Urban Plunge” Students Experience Life on the Streets by Lindsay Dalmolin St. Edward’s University sophomore Kacy McCoig had what every college student dreams of for spring break; a free plane ticket to Cancun, paid in full by her own mother. McCoig declined. She and four other St. Edward’s students had already made their own Spring Break plans. They wanted to be homeless for five days on the streets in Austin. McCoig joined Shyda Hogue, Robby Haddad, Paul Hagey, and Stephanie Daniel on the streets through Urban Plunge, a program St. Edward’s Campus Ministry offers students as an alternative spring break. Anna Aldave, the programs founder and director, also accompanied the students for their five days on the streets. From 5am till late evening, they learned how to cope as a homeless man or woman would. The group ate at soup kitchens and churches, tried panhandling, attended “church under the bridge” (a worship service beneath I-35), built friendships with others living on the streets, and slept at Central Presbyterian Church downtown at night. “Slowly you start to realize the rhythm of the homeless life,” Hagey said. “The food, being out all day and not having a place to really sit down and relax, it wears you out. You get caught in the rhythm, and it’s hard to get out because you’re tired and you’re hungry.” The experience was made more trying by citizens of Austin and some of the homeless themselves. On the streets, they received dirty looks and rude comments from people in passing. When panhandling, they felt worthless and ignored. Some of the homeless felt that the urban plungers were usurping resources devoted to them. But not all of homeless felt that way about the two year-old program. Most of the men and women living on the streets they met were extremely friendly and helpful and understood why the group was out on the streets. McCoig was overwhelmed by the advice from the homeless. “They would tell us which churches and soup kitchens offered the best meals.” The non-housed even shared personal stories from their lives. When walking downtown back to the Presbyterian Church, a fiftysomething year old homeless man named Mark ran up to the group. He’d seen them on the news earlier that morning and wanted to share his story with them. He was homeless because his medical bills had escalated out of control. As a veteran, he was unable to pay for housing on top of his treatments for cancer, as he had just recently been diagnosed. He was college-educated, a Christian, and trying to get off the streets. “These guys (the homeless) are the best spiritual teachers I have ever seen,” commented Aldave. “I feel so very loved and accepted by these people. That’s the thing that my mind cannot even comprehend, and that’s the thing that will have me doing this as a spiritual discipline probably for the rest of my life.” Aldave started the Urban Plunge program a year ago at St. Edward’s. The idea stemmed from a 1-day street retreat she attended that was hosted by a group called the Faithful Fools from San Francisco. Aldave, a campus minister, was so blown away by the experience that she brought a similar program to the Austin area. The goal of the program is to build a bridge between the housed and non-housed and to show compassion for those without homes. Recruiting students to apply for the Urban Plunge program is not easy. Most of the students who apply are the ones who really have a desire to do it. McCoig wanted to do it to get away from the mundane day-to-day life, and she knew that Urban Plunge was her opportunity. She might not have had the sunny white beach and beautiful ocean, but her time on the streets have given her more perspective than a pretty little island ever could. “I thought it would be a life-changing experience, and that’s what it has been,” said McCoig. Reprinted from Austin Homeless Advocate, April 2004 News From The OHIO EMPOWERMENT COALITION The Family Violence Option Campaign (renamed the “Safe and Stable Families” Campaign) has persuaded Rep. Jean Schmidt of Loveland, Ohio to introduce the FVO policy as a bill: H.B. 481 HB 481 has been assigned to the Ohio House Health Committee. Since the Ohio Assembly adjourned for the summer on May 27 , we don’t expect any action on it until September when the Ohio Assembly returns to Columbus. However, over the summer, the Safe and Stable Families Campaign will definitely be active! Summer will be a golden opportunity to meet with state representatives to educate them th on the bill and its importance. The plan will be to get the bill heard in September with public hearings, but we must work hard over the summer to make sure the committee chair & committee members believe this is a very important bill that must be prioritized. Many other issues are clamoring for their attention. Streetvibes The Safe and Stable Families Campaign also needs financial support to get HB 481 passed by the Ohio Assembly. Campaign contributions can be sent to Contact Center, 1227 Vine St., Cincinnati, OH 45202. For more information or to endorse the Campaign, call the Contact Center at 513/381­ 4242. Page 13 �No-name Poem A Servants Prayer by Steve Kors III by Robert Manassa Coke is white and grass is green. But I liked to drink Because it made me mean. Heavenly Father up above Please protect the ones I love. Guide them and keep them and let them know that I’ll always love them so. I drank from the left And drank from the right. I drank all day. And drank all night, I drank in the sun, I drank in the rain. I would get burned Or soaked with no pain. I have a shot of Beam In that stinky bar. Feels like a wet dream, Then I have to find my car. I’m sending up this prayer, down on my knees Father God – all of my sins, forgive them please I’m not to proud to beg I’m standing on my last leg. Precious Lord – please continue to hold my hand I need your help and grace to help me stand I need you not only for a day If these words are wrong in any way Then Father God – teach me how to pray When I was drinking I got real numb! The Dayton police Knew I was dumb. I was real dirty. I had lost my pride... Sometimes I would wake up, And wish I’d died. I was like a fish. I thought I drank well. But it all turns out I was a cracked bell. The devil had owned me To where I was beat. I lost all my family. And lived on the street. I have a new family who helps me stay dry And when I’m with them I sometimes cry. Now that I’m sober And all is well I found Jesus Christ who keeps me from Hell. Across the Park by Michael Henson Confusion, fear and lies; What good can come when people die? Red Blood spilt On barren land To complete an alchemical plan, Red Blood to Black Gold, Deviously poisoning, polluting, choking our Heart. Men tortured, defiled, dishonored by their Brethren, Captured on film, a permanent bruise Not to be overlooked. Truth and honor wither away; They know they do not belong. Boundaries grow hazy Accompanied by roles: Who the victim? Who the villain? Both? Neither? For what purpose and to what end? Why fight a war Paid with lives Only to gain confusion, fear and lies? Zach Chotzen-Freund of Santa Barbara, CA, examined in this excerpt the esprit that leads 17-year-olds to sign up for war. Fittingly, he’s 17. Across the park I see a woman and she is dancing down the sidewalk. There is too much of her and everything movable is moving but she is graceful and her step is slow and smooth. A set of headphones nestles in her braids and I do not know what she hears among the evening traffic of West Eighth Street. She steps and stops rocks forward at the neck pecks at the air with her hand She steps and stops rocks forward at the neck pecks at the air with her hand steps stops rocks pecks to the music that is wrapped around her head until she sees that I am staring and she stops. I am in awe of her but she does not know that so she stops her dance and slowly walks her sidewalk until she thinks I may not hear. And then she sings. Off now, children! Off to war! Kill in your country’s name! For murder on behalf of kin is what allows our boys to win And rest someday in cherished lore. So off now, off to war! Off now, children! Off to war! Make your fathers swell with pride! For though you’re young, they love to hear that you’re a splendid bombardier And dodge death like a matador. So off now, off to war! Off now, children! Off to war! Bring smiles to your mothers’ eyes! They hate to lose you, sure that’s true, but if flags of red, white and blue Are at your funeral, souls will soar. So off now, off to war! Page 14 Streetvibes Writers! Submit your Poetry to STREETVIBES ­ Streetvibes@juno.com �Unwritten Beatitudes The Cold Within by James Patrick Henry Six humans trapped by happenstance In black and bitter cold Each one possessed a stick of wood Or so the story’s told. Their dying fire in need of logs The first woman held her back. For of the faces around the fire She noticed one was black. The next man looking cross the way Saw one not of his church, And couldn’t bring himself to give The fire his stick of birch. The third one sat in tattered clothes He gave his coat a hitch. Why should his log be put to use To warm the idle rich. The rich man just sat back and thought Of the wealth he had in store. And how to keep what he had earned From the lazy shiftless poor. The black man’s face bespoke revenge As the fire passes from his sight. For all he saw in his stick of wood Was a chance to spite the white. And the last man of this forlorn group Did naught except for gain, Giving only to those who gave Was how he played the game. Their logs held tight in death’s still hands Was proof of human sin. They didn’t die from the cold without, They died from the cold within. 1. Blessed are the ignorant for they shall be taught. 2. Blessed are the humble for they shall be made proud 3. Blessed are the blind for they shall see 4. Blessed are the falsely accused for they shall exonerate 5. Blessed are the losers for they shall be triumphant 6. Blessed are those in tribulation for they shall experience bliss 7. Blessed are those in debt for they shall be forgiven 8. Blessed are those in prison for their minds shall be set free 9. Blessed are the addicted for they shall be made whole 10. Blessed are the impaired for they shall renewed 11. Blessed are the pacifists for they shall honored 12. Blessed are the powerless for they shall overcome 13. Blessed are the scared for they shall no longer doubt 14. Blessed are those who serve for they shall be served 15. Blessed are the undesirables for they shall find acceptance By Club Quaker, Youth Group of Eastern Hills Friends Meeting: Jeremy Coppock, Nathan Coppock, Daniel Coppock, Daniel Montgomery, Grace Montgomery, Matt Whispe, and Jamie Pogue. Knock the dust off your boots, my boy, It’s time to ride again. The frontier has gone restless now And we must crush this rebellion. . . . These people understand only violence, So let’s give it to ‘em now. We’ll ride ‘em down like Cherokee; We’ll trample ‘em like Pueblo. These savages are ruthless; They understand no law. So we’ll pick up our Peacemakers, And shoot ‘em like Choctaw. . . . Rally round the flag, my boy, And grab your rifle, too. The Red Man’s turned Brown, my boy, And there’s a lot of peacemaking to do. Megan Foley, a 16-year-old from Long Island, focused like many on the ambiguities of a war that was supposed to enhance moral clarity. Reprinted from Street News Shutter Speed by Jimmy Heath Street Musician, Main Street, Over-the-Rhine Streetvibes Page 15 �An Icon, and Then He’s Gone by John M. Glionna, Los Angeles Times Beijing - For many foreigners, he is Tiananmen Square’s most recognizable figure, outshining even Chairman Mao Tse-tung - whose body still lies in state at a far end of the vast public space. Just after noon on June 5, 1989, the day after Chinese troops stormed the square to brutally crush a student political uprising here, a solitary protester engaged in a modernday David versus Goliath showdown: Clutching nothing but two shopping bags, he stood his ground before a column of oncoming tanks on the adjacent Avenue of Eternal Peace. Captured by newspaper photographs and cable news footage, the tense standoff lasted several minutes, a seeming eternity to onlookers waiting for the tanks to overrun the man, before he was hustled from the scene by onlookers. On the 15th anniversary of the government crackdown in which hundreds, perhaps thousands, were killed, this lone dissenter’s story remains the most enduring mystery of the violent confrontation. No one knows whether he’s dead or alive. Chinese activists and government officials say they aren’t even sure of his name. “For me, he represents the unknown soldier of the Chinese democratic revolution,” said John Kamm, executive director of the Dui Hua Foundation, a San Franciscobased human rights group. “What’s so strange is that his act of bravery was conducted in plain view of the world. But other than seeing his act, we know so very little about him.” The British tabloid Sunday Express shortly after the incident identified the man as a 19-year-old named Wang Weilin, the son of Beijing factory workers. But activists question the accuracy of a reporter they say did not visit China and relied on telephone calls to supposed friends of the man. In 1999, on the 10th anniversary of the Tiananmen crackdown, Chinese leader Jiang Zemin was asked what had happened to the mystery man. He responded in English, “I think never killed.” Jiang said government officials conducted their own search for the protester, checking morgues, prisons and computer registers, but could not find him. But they could get no Page 16 China has never acknowledged that civilians died in the bloodshed. help from Chinese citizens As for the lone protester, themselves: No one in the activists hope he has survived, country has ever seen the but fear the worst. images. In fact, no ordinary “Either he’s been killed Chinese beyond the protesters already or he’s still in some and soldiers involved even black hole in a Chinese prison,” knows of the standoff. Even said Sharon Hom, executive today, Chinese can’t see the famous photograph, even on the director of the U.S.-based group Internet. Attempts to download Human Rights in China. “If he is alive and free, a man willing the picture are blocked by the to stand in front of a tank would government. have come forward by now and On the eve of the not stay silent. This is not anniversary this week, Tiananmen Square was crowded someone who is just going to disappear.” with thousands of tourists and Human rights activist locals milling under floodlights Xiao Qiang calls his inability to - presumably watched by locate the protester one of his plainclothes policemen. most frustrating Brigades of failures. Xiao bicyclists was studying passed on Just after noon on June 5, abroad at the the crowded 1989, the day after Chinese University of boulevards troops stormed the square to Notre Dame that when the surround the brutally crush a student Tiananmen square, and political uprising here, a crackdown a group of solitary protester engaged in occurred. old women a modern-day David versus He watched drew a curious Goliath showdown: Clutching coverage of the chaos on crowd as nothing but two shopping television, they including the exercised to bags, he stood his ground footage of the the beat of a before a column of oncoming drum. tanks on the adjacent Avenue protester’s standoff. Two Yet of Eternal Peace. days later, he several returned to people China and spent three months nearby said they had never there to be with his countrymen heard of the tank man or his at a difficult time. moment of fame. “This incident changed “I’ve never seen him,” my life,” said Xiao, who later one man said. “Was he worked as executive director of Chinese?” For the rest of the world, Human Rights in China. During 12 years in that job, he twice the image remains an icon of thought he had found the freedom. The protester has Tiananmen protester. shown up in a Wim Wenders Once, in 1993, an movie, and his image has been Australian lawyer called to say reproduced on posters and Tshirts. In 1998, Time magazine that a man claiming to be Wang proclaimed him one of the 20th Weilin was seeking political century’s top 20 revolutionaries, asylum there. Xiao telephoned the man and determined that he whose “moment of selfwas an impostor. transcendence [was seen] by Four years later, a group more people than ever laid eyes in Texas called to say that it had on Winston Churchill, Albert found the protester, who was Einstein and James Joyce seeking asylum in the United combined.” States. Again, Xiao talked to Some believe the man the immigrant, who became endured months, or years, of elusive about details of that day. political reeducation. Others Then he disappeared. say he was hunted down and The man-tank showdown executed. came after months of Human rights activists demonstrations in Tiananmen say that 50 to 100 people were Square by students decrying executed in the wake of the such issues as government Tiananmen Square crackdown ­ corruption, lack of free speech some for crimes as simple as and high unemployment. burning a police motorcycle or, As tens of thousands of in one case, taking a photograph troops from the People’s of the tanks in the square. In Liberation Army converged on addition, 15,000 to 20,000 the square and surrounding people were detained. areas for cleanup after the first The activists say 99 still day of attacks, a slender man remain in prison for their seemed to appear out of actions during the protest. Streetvibes nowhere. As cameras rolled, he positioned himself in front of a column of 18 tanks. Not far from the spot where in 1949 Mao proclaimed China “a people’s republic,” the man gamely stood his ground. The lead vehicle stopped, spewing exhaust, then moved to the right and left to avoid the defenseless demonstrator. Each time, he stepped up to remain in its path. At some point, he shifted both shopping bags to one hand. Then he jumped onto the tank and appeared to say something to its driver. “I remember him screaming down the tank hatch at the driver,” said Jeff Widener, at the time an Associated Press photographer, who shot several images of the standoff from a sixth-floor balcony of the nearby Beijing Hotel. “I think the guy was majorly angry and wasn’t thinking straight. I was just waiting for him to get blown away.” Mickey Spiegel, China specialist at Human Rights Watch, who still hangs a poster of the face-off in her New York office, said, “Nobody even knows that much.” But Human Rights in China’s Hom believes that another symbol of defiance has been overlooked: the tank driver. “Both the man in front of the tank and the soldier inside are worthy of our attention,” she said. “Inside, you had a soldier who was obviously not following orders for not running the man down, someone who was probably later harshly disciplined. He obviously saw it as wrong to run over an unarmed man. Although the man who defied China’s military might be missing, his legacy remains. “The whole [Tiananmen Square] incident was a public relations disaster for Beijing, the effects of which continue to this day,” said Richard Baum, director of the Center for Chinese Studies at UCLA. “It has cost the Chinese government enormously, not just in terms of sanctions and abuse accusations abroad, along with U.S. congressional votes against renewing China’s mostfavored-nation status, but in the government’s reputation as being the Butchers of Beijing.” Activists say the world can thank a man on whose identity it can only speculate. “He was just an average guy who decided that he’s had enough,” said Widener, now a photographer for the Honolulu Advertiser. �Cold Turkey by Kurt Vonnegut Many years ago, I was so innocent I still considered it possible that we could become the humane and reasonable America so many members of my generation used to dream of. We dreamed of such an America during the Great Depression, when there were no jobs. And then we fought and often died for that dream during the Second World War, when there was no peace. But I know now that there is not a chance in hell of America’s becoming humane and reasonable. Because power corrupts us, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Human beings are chimpanzees who get crazy drunk on power. By saying that our leaders are power-drunk chimpanzees, am I in danger of wrecking the morale of our soldiers fighting and dying in the Middle East? Their morale, like so many bodies, is already shot to pieces. They are being treated, as I never was, like toys a rich kid got for Christmas. When you get to my age, if you get to my age, which is 81, and if you have reproduced, you will find yourself asking your own children, who are themselves middle-aged, what life is all about. I have seven kids, four of them adopted. Many of you reading this are probably the same age as my grandchildren. They, like you, are being royally shafted and lied to by our Baby Boomer corporations and government. I put my big question about life to my biological son Mark. Mark is a pediatrician, and author of a memoir, The Eden Express. It is about his crackup, straightjacket and padded cell stuff, from which he recovered sufficiently to graduate from Harvard Medical School. Dr. Vonnegut said this to his doddering old dad: “Father, we are here to help each other get through this thing, whatever it is.” So I pass that on to you. Write it down, and put it in your computer, so you can forget it. I have to say that’s a pretty good sound bite, almost as good as, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” A lot of people think Jesus said that, because it is so much the sort of thing Jesus liked to say. But it was actually said by Confucius, a Chinese philosopher, 500 years before there was that greatest and most humane of human beings, named Jesus Christ. The Chinese also gave “Blessed are the peacemakers” us, via Marco Polo, pasta and in the Pentagon? Give me a the formula for gunpowder. break! The Chinese were so dumb they There is a tragic flaw in only used gunpowder for our precious Constitution, and I fireworks. And everybody was don’t know what can be done to so dumb back then that nobody fix it. This is it: Only nut cases in either hemisphere even knew want to be president. that there was another one. But, when you stop to But back to people, like think about it, only a nut case Confucius and Jesus and my son would want to be a human the doctor, Mark, who’ve said being, if he or she had a choice. how we could behave more Such treacherous, humanely, and maybe make the untrustworthy, lying and greedy world a less painful place. One animals we are! of my favorites is Eugene Debs, I was born a human being in 1922 from Terre A.D. What Haute in my Human beings are does “A.D.” native state of Indiana. Get a chimpanzees who get crazy signify? That commemorates load of this: drunk on power. By an inmate of Eugene Debs, who died saying that our leaders are this lunatic asylum we call back in 1926, power-drunk chimpanzees, Earth who was when I was nailed to a only 4, ran 5 am I in danger of wrecking wooden cross times as the by a bunch of Socialist Party the morale of our soldiers other inmates. candidate for fighting and dying in the With him still president, conscious, they winning Middle East? Their hammered 900,000 votes, morale, like so many spikes through 6 percent of his wrists and the popular bodies, is already shot to insteps, and vote, in 1912, pieces. They are being into the wood. if you can Then they set imagine such a treated, as I never was, the cross ballot. He had like toys a rich kid got for upright, so he this to say dangled up while Christmas. there where campaigning: even the As long as there is a lower class, I am in shortest person in the crowd could see him writhing this way it. As long as there is a criminal element, I am of it. As and that. Can you imagine people long as there is a soul in prison, doing such a thing to a person? I am not free.” No problem. That’s Doesn’t anything entertainment. Ask the devout socialistic make you want to Roman Catholic Mel Gibson, throw up? Like great public who, as an act of piety, has just schools or health insurance for made a fortune with a movie all? about how Jesus was tortured. How about Jesus’ Never mind what Jesus said. Sermon on the Mount, the During the reign of King Beatitudes? Blessed are the Henry the Eighth, founder of meek, for they shall inherit the Earth. Blessed are the merciful, the Church of England, he had a counterfeiter boiled alive in for they shall obtain mercy. public. Show biz again. Blessed are the peacemakers, Mel Gibson’s next movie for they shall be called the should be The Counterfeiter. children of God. And so on. Box office records will again be Not exactly planks in a broken. Republican platform. Not One of the few good exactly Donald Rumsfeld or things about modern times: If Dick Cheney stuff. you die horribly on television, For some reason, the most vocal Christians among us you will not have died in vain. You will have entertained us. never mention the Beatitudes. And what did the great But, often with tears in their British historian Edward eyes, they demand that the Ten Gibbon, 1737-1794 A.D., have Commandments be posted in public buildings. And of course to say about the human record so far? He said, “History is that’s Moses, not Jesus. I indeed little more than the haven’t heard one of them register of the crimes, follies demand that the Sermon on the and misfortunes of mankind.” Mount, the Beatitudes, be The same can be said posted anywhere. about this morning’s edition of “Blessed are the the New York Times. merciful” in a courtroom? Streetvibes The French-Algerian writer Albert Camus, who won a Nobel Prize for Literature in 1957, wrote, “There is but one truly serious philosophical problem, and that is suicide.” So there’s another barrel of laughs from literature. Camus died in an automobile accident. His dates? 1913­ 1960 A.D. Listen. All great literature is about what a bummer it is to be a human being: Moby Dick, Huckleberry Finn, The Red Badge of Courage, the Iliad and the Odyssey, Crime and Punishment, the Bible and The Charge of the Light Brigade. But I have to say this in defense of humankind: No matter in what era in history, including the Garden of Eden, everybody just got there. And, except for the Garden of Eden, there were already all these crazy games going on, which could make you act crazy, even if you weren’t crazy to begin with. Some of the games that were already going on when you got here were love and hate, liberalism and conservatism, automobiles and credit cards, golf and girls’ basketball. Even crazier than golf, though, is modern American politics, where, thanks to TV and for the convenience of TV, you can only be one of two kinds of human beings, either a liberal or a conservative. Actually, this same sort of thing happened to the people of England generations ago, and Sir William Gilbert, of the radical team of Gilbert and Sullivan, wrote these words for a song about it back then: I often think it’s comical how nature always does contrive that every boy and every gal that’s born into the world alive is either a little liberal or else a little Conservative. Which one are you in this country? It’s practically a law of life that you have to be one or the other? If you aren’t one or the other, you might as well be a doughnut. If some of you still haven’t decided, I’ll make it easy for you. If you want to take my guns away from me, and you’re all for murdering fetuses, and love it when homosexuals marry each other, and want to give them kitchen appliances at their showers, and you’re for the poor, you’re a liberal. If you are against those perversions and for the rich, you’re a conservative. What could be simpler? Page 17 �FRAC News director of Army Emergency Relief, says families qualify for Blueprint to End Hunger benefits as soon as they enter Unveiled on National Hunger service. Spiegel says states Awareness Day (National Anti- nationwide have been asking Hunger Organizations, June, 3, the Department of Defense to 2004) Thirteen organizations explain how military families that comprise the National Anti- can access such programs as Hunger Organizations (NAHO) food stamps and the Women, unveiled a new “Blueprint to Infants and Children nutrition End Hunger in America.” The programs. “I think the stories of NAHO Blueprint recommends families being in need are pretty programmatic investments and striking,” said Ellen Vollinger improvements in the national of FRAC. “Now more than nutrition safety net to halve ever, we must make sure as a hunger and food insecurity in community that the families of the US by 2010 and to end both these troops are taken care of by 2015. It outlines strategies here on the home front,” said to improve benefit adequacy Mayor of San Jose, Ron and access in the Food Stamp, Gonzales. child nutrition, WIC and emergency feeding programs. One in Four Workers Live at “Our nation has the tools and Federal Poverty Level resources to end hunger. Our (“Working...and Poor,” Blueprint offers a realistic plan Business Week Online, May 31, for achieving that goal,” said 2004) Twenty-eight million NAHO Chairperson H. Eric working Americans, or one in Schockman. four workers between the ages of 18 to 64, make less than Hungry Children More Likely $9.04 an hour, putting them to be Sick and Hospitalized below the federal poverty level (“Kids who go hungry likely to for a family of four. The loss of land in poor health,” Boston white-collar jobs offshore has Herald, June 1, 2004) Infants produced headlines; less and toddlers who do not get publicized are the problems of enough to eat are more likely to the working poor, such as get sick and be hospitalized, unpaid sick days and jobs with according to a recent study no benefits. For those on the published in this month’s edge of poverty, one event such Journal of Nutrition. Children as a stalled car, can lead to up to age 3 with limited or being fired or financial ruin. A uncertain access to nutritious 2003 study by the Federal food are 90 percent more likely Reserve Bank of Boston found to be in only fair or poor health that in the 1990s, the chance a and 30 percent more likely to poor person would remain poor be hospitalized. John Cook, increased compared to the lead author of the study, said 1970s. “If current trends poor nutrition harms children persist, a greater and greater by weakening their immune share of wealth will keep going systems and ability to learn. into the hands of the few,” said Co-investigator for the study James Sinegal, CEO of Costco Carol Berkowitz said that the Wholesale Corp., who worries nation’s health care costs may that lack of mobility will be higher because so many destroy initiative among the eligible children do not actually working class. Families who go receive food stamps and then just beyond a poverty-level are more likely to become sick wage by earning $7 to $10 an enough to require hour, can become ineligible for hospitalization. vital assistance such as food http://news.bostonherald.com/ stamps, child care assistance, national/ and the earned-income tax view.bg?articleid=30098... credit. Says Ron Haskins of the Study available at: http:// Brookings Institution, “For www.nutrition.org/cgi/content/ them, Horatio Alger does not abstract/134/6/1432 apply.” Food Stamp Demand Surges Among Military Families (“Hungry U.S. families can’t be defended,” Oregonian, June 2, 2004) Demand for food stamps among the families of national guardsmen and reservists skyrocketed several hundred percent from 2002 to 2003. Col. Dennis Spiegel, deputy Page 18 Revised Food Pyramid Will Recommend More Fish, Fiber, & Exercise (“Rebuilding the pyramid,” Cape Cod Times, May 28, 2004) The food pyramid, the federal government’s guide to healthy eating, is undergoing revision. Federal advisors will recommend Americans eat more fish, fiber, and fewer refined grains such as white bread. The U.S. Department of Agriculture asked its Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee to change the pyramid’s focus from maintaining a healthy diet to losing weight. In addition to dietary changes, the committee recommended 30 to 60 minutes of vigorous exercise for adults most days. California: Bill Approves $7.75 Minimum Wage, Governor Likely to Veto (“$1 increase in state minimum wage gets Assembly OK Governor, against more regulatory burdens on California businesses, likely to veto bill,” San Francisco Chronicle, May 28, 2004) A bill in California’s Legislature would raise the state’s minimum wage by $1, from $6.75 to $7.75 in 2006. However, Governor Schwarzenegger would likely veto the bill if it came before him. California’s minimum wage is currently the lowest on the West Coast. In order to match the purchasing power of the state’s minimum wage in 1968, it would have to be $8.92 an hour today, according to labor officials. “In my [district] nobody can live on anything less than $15 an hour. That’s why many wage earners have two jobs,” said Assemblyman Manny Diaz (DSan Jose). New York: Food Stamp Use on the Rise (“Food stamp use on the rise,” The Journal News.com, May 27, 2004) In April, 17,322 residents of Rockland County received food stamps, an increase of 18.6 percent since December 1999. A county official said the last time demand was so high was in 1992. Recipients such as Yajaira Rodriguez calls the benefit “a blessing.” Carmen Loras, of the Community Action Partnership in Haverstraw, notes that two years ago three people a week visited CAP for food stamp information. Now 15 people a week come in. A majority are Spanish-speaking. Food stamps, however, only provide poor families with some support. They also rely on food pantries and soup kitchens, particularly at the end of the month, when food stamp benefits have been exhausted. Arizona: Number of Hungry Arizonans Growing (“Number of hungry Arizonans growing,” Arizona Republic, May 30, Streetvibes 2004) Doris Campbell is among an estimated 630,000 Arizonans struggling to put food on their tables — “food insecure” under federal definitions. Campbell has been relying on the senior lunch program for 10 years to get a consistent, nutritious meal. Arizona’s rate of food insecurity in 2000 was 12.5 percent, compared to 10.8 percent nationally. Food insecure households include working poor families, senior adults, people with physical and mental disabilities, the unemployed, the homeless, and immigrants. Ginny Hildebrand, executive director of the Association of Arizona Food Banks, encounters people who have part-time jobs, seasonal work, or service-related work, all paying salaries too low to meet a family’s basic needs. New York: Rewards of a 90­ Hour Week: Poverty and Dirty Laundry (“Rewards of a 90-Hour Week: Poverty and Dirty Laundry,” New York Times, May 31, 2004) Laundromats in New York City employ thousands of “wash and fold” workers to do customers’ laundry. The majority of these workers are paid less, often much less, than the minimum wage of $5.15 an hour and speak of abusive, sweltering work conditions. Inriqueta G. works 70 hours a week and earns $350 in cash, $400 less a month than what she would earn if she were paid the minimum wage plus overtime. Many of the workers are immigrants. “Life is a lot more difficult here than I thought,” says Piedad G. “Sometimes I think I was crazy to come here. This is a country with a lot of opportunities, but in order to take advantage of those opportunities you have to suffer a lot.” To subscribe to the weekly FRAC News Digest go to: http://capwiz.com/frac/ mlm/ For questions, comments, and news tips, please contact: Helen Yuen Food Research and Action Center 1875 Connecticut Avenue, NW Suite 540 Washington, DC 20009 (202) 986-2200 x3019 Email: hyuen@frac.org �Bush Campaign Seeks Help From Thousands of Congregations by David D. Kirkpatrick, The New York Times The Bush campaign is seeking to enlist thousands of religious congregations around the country in distributing campaign information and registering voters, according to an e-mail message sent to many members of the clergy and others in Pennsylvania. Liberal groups charged that the effort invited violations of the separation of church and state and jeopardized the taxexempt status of churches that cooperated. Some socially conservative church leaders also said they would advise pastors against participating in such a partisan effort. But Steve Schmidt, a spokesman for the Bush administration, said “people of faith have as much right to participate in the political process as any other community” and that the e-mail message was about “building the most sophisticated grassroots presidential campaign in the country’s history.” In the message, Luke Bernstein, coalitions coordinator for the Bush campaign in Pennsylvania, wrote: “The Bush-Cheney ’04 national headquarters in Virginia has asked us to identify 1,600 `Friendly Congregations’ in Pennsylvania where voters friendly to President Bush might gather on a regular basis.” In each targeted “place of worship,” Mr. Bernstein continued, without mentioning a specific religion or denomination, “we’d like to identify a volunteer who can help distribute general information to other supporters.” He explained: “We plan to undertake activities such as distributing general information/updates or voter registration materials in a place accessible to the congregation.” The e-mail message was provided to The New York Times by a group critical of President Bush. The campaign’s effort is the latest indication of its heavy bet on churchgoers in its bid for re-election. Mr. Bush’s top political adviser, Karl Rove, and officials of Mr. Bush’s campaign have often said that people who attended church regularly voted for him disproportionately in the last election, and the campaign has made turning out that group a top priority this year. But congregation is disseminating advisers to Mr. Bush also the information, however, the acknowledge privately that issue is more complicated. If appearing to court socially the congregation had a table conservative Christian voters where anyone could make too aggressively risks turning available any information off more moderate voters. whatsoever without any What was striking about institutional responsibility or the Pennsylvania e-mail oversight, then a member might message was its directness. be able to distribute campaign Both political parties rely on literature without violating tax church leaders - Africanlaws. But very few churches American pastors for the have such open forums, Mr. Democrats, for example, and Potter said. “The I.R.S. would white evangelical Protestants ask, did the church encourage for the Republicans - to urge this? Did the congregants church permit to go the polls. And in The campaign’s effort is this but not other the 1990’s, the latest indication of literature? the Christian Did the Coalition its heavy bet on church in any developed a way support reputation as churchgoers in its bid this?” a political for re-election. Mr. Mr. powerhouse Bernstein, the by Bush’s top political e-mail distributing message’s voters guides adviser, Karl Rove, and author, in churches officials of Mr. Bush’s declined to that alerted comment. conservative campaign have often Mr. Schmidt, believers to said that people who the campaign candidates’ spokesman, position on attended church said the esocial issues mail message like abortion regularly voted for him only sought and school disproportionately in the individual prayer. But volunteers the Christian last election, and the from among Coalition was the “friendly organized as campaign has made congregations,” a nonpartisan, turning out that group a not the endorsements issuetop priority this year of the any oriented religious lobbying and organizations or groups. voter-education organization, “The e-mail is targeted and in 1999 it ran afoul of to individuals, asking federal tax laws for too much individuals to become involved Republican partisanship. in the campaign and to share The Bush campaign, in information about the campaign contrast, appeared to be with other people in their faith reaching out directly to community,” Mr. Schmidt said. churches and church members, “Yesterday, a liberal judge from seeking to distribute campaign San Francisco overturned a information as well as ostensibly nonpartisan material, partial-birth abortion ban which banned that abhorrent like issue guides and procedure. That is an example registration forms. of an issue that people of faith Trevor Potter, a from across the United States Washington lawyer and former care about.” chairman of the Federal He said that the Election Commission, said the Pennsylvania e-mail message campaign’s solicitation raised was part of a larger national delicate legal issues for effort. The number of congregations. “If the church is doing it, congregations mentioned ­ 1,600 in just one state ­ it is a legal problem the suggests an operation on a vast church,” Mr. Potter said. “In scale. the past, the I.R.S. has sought But even some officials to revoke and has succeeded in of some conservative religious revoking the tax-exempt status groups said they were troubled of churches for political by the notion that a parishioner activity.” might distribute campaign If a member of the Streetvibes information within a church or at a church service. “If I were a pastor, I would not be comfortable doing that,” said Richard Land, president of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention. “I would say to my church members, we are going to talk about the issues and we are going to take information from the platforms of the two parties about where they stand on the issues. I would tell them to vote and to vote their conscience, and the Lord alone is the Lord of the conscience.” The Rev. Barry Lynn, executive director of the liberal Americans United for Separation of Church and State, argued that any form of distributing campaign literature through a church would compromise its tax-exempt status. He called the effort “an absolutely breathtakingly large undertaking,” saying, “I never thought anyone could so attempt to meld a political party with a network of religious organizations.” In a statement, Rev. Dr. C. Welton Gaddy, president of the Interfaith Alliance, a liberal group, called the effort “an astonishing abuse of religion” and “the rawest form of manipulation of religion for partisan gain.” He urged the president to repudiate the effort. In a statement, Mara Vanderslice, director of religious outreach for the Kerry campaign, said the effort “shows nothing but disrespect for the religious community.” Ms. Vanderslice continued: “Although the Kerry campaign actively welcomes the participation of religious voices in our campaign, we will never court religious voters in a way that would jeopardize the sanctity of their very houses of worship.” How many congregations or worshippers will choose to cooperate remains to be seen. In an interview, the Rev. Ronald Fowlkes, pastor of the Victoria Baptist Church in Springfield, Pa., said he had not seen the email message but did not think much of the idea. “We encourage people to get out and vote,” Mr. Fowlkes said, but as far as distributing information through church, “If it were focused on one party or person, that would be too Page 19 �357-4602 Formed in 1984, The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a membership organization. Our member groups serve the homeless through emergency shelter, transitional living facilities, permanent housing, medical services, social services, soup kitchens, and mental health/addiction services. The Coalition also consists of individual citizens who want to take an active role in ensuring that Cincinnati is an inclusive community, meeting the needs of all of its citizens. Join the fight to end homelessness; contact the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless at (513) 421-7803, 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 SHELTER: Both Anthony House (Youth) SHELTER: Men City Gospel Mission 241-5525 Garden St. House 241-0490 Joseph House (Veterans) 241-2965 St. Francis/St.Joseph House 381-4941 Mt. Airy Center 661-4620 Volunteers of Amer. 381-1954 SHELTERS: Women and Children YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter 872-9259 (Toll Free) 1-888-872-9259 Bethany House 557-2873 Salvation Army 762-5660 Welcome Hse. 859-431-8717 Women’s Crisis Center 859-491-3335 If you need help or would like to help please call one of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless members listed below. OTHER SERVICES: AIDS Volunteers of Cincinnati 421-2437 Appalachian Identity Center 621-5991 Beech Acres 231-6630 Center for Independent Living Options 241-2600 Churches Active in Northside 591-2246 Cincinnati Health Network 961-0600 Community Action Agency 569-1840 Contact Center 381-4242 Emanuel Center 241-2563 TREATMENT: Both N.A. Hopeline 820-2947 A.A. Hotline 351-0422 C.C.A.T. 381-6672 Talbert House 684-7956 Transitions, Inc 859-491-4435 VA Domiciliary 859-559-5011 DIC Live-In Program 721-0643 TREATMENT: Men Charlie’s 3/4 House 784-1853 Prospect House 921-1613 Starting Over 961-2256 TREATMENT: Women First Step Home 961-4663 Full Circle Program 721-0643 HOUSING: CMHA 721-4580 Excel Development 632-7149 Miami Purchase 241-0504 OTR Housing Net. 369-0004 ReSTOC 381-1171 Tender Mercies 721-8666 Tom Geiger House 961-4555 Dana Transitional Bridge Services, Inc 751-9797 Caracole (AIDS) 761-1480 Friars Club 381-5432 Drop Inn Center 721-0643 Haven House 863-8866 Interfaith Hospitality 471-1100 Lighthouse Youth Center (Teens) 961-4080 St. John’s Housing 651-6446 Need Help or Want to Help? MIDDLETOWN/HAMILTON (Butler County) St. Raphaels (Food Bank/Soup Kitchen) 863-3184 Salvation Army 863-1445 Serenity House Day Center 422-8555 Open Door Pantry 868-3276 New Life Baptist Mission (Soup Kitchen) 896-9800 Hope House (Homeless Families/Singles) 423-4673 Freestore/ Foodbank 241-1064 Fransiscan Haircuts 651-6468 Goodwill Industries 771-4800 Coalition for the Homeless 421-7803 Hamilton Co. Mental Health Board 946-8600 Mental Health Access Point 558-8888 Hamilton Co. TB Control 632-7186 Health Rsrc. Center 357-4602 Homeless Mobile Health Van 352-2902 House of Refuge Mission 221-5491 Legal Aid Society 241-9400 Madisonville Ed. & Assis. Center 271-5501 Mary Magdalen House 721-4811 McMicken Dental Clinic 352-6363 Our Daily Bread 621-6364 Peaslee Neighborhood Center 621-5514 Project Connect Homeless Kids 357-5720 St. Vincent De Paul 562-8841 The Emergency Food Center 471-4357 Travelers Aid 721-7660 United Way 721-7900 VA Homeless 859-572-6226 Women Helping Women 872-9259 July, 2004 Drop Inn Center Fights for its Home Cover Story Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless Homess Vets Continue to Pay - Page 11 The Price of Freedom BUY FROM BADGED VENDORS ONLY STREETVIBES $1 Donation � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 2004 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource July 2004 Subject The topic of the resource Homelessness Description An account of the resource Pg 1: Developers Fast Track Their Plan for Over-the-Rhine McCrackin Celebration Builds on his Legacy, Calls Citizens to Action Pg 2: Greed Transcends Compassion Pg 3: Donate Pg 4: One Year Ago Homeless Stopped City from Sweeping Camps Pg 5: Hate Crimes Still a Major Issue for the Homeless Pg 6: Homeless News Digest Pg 7: A King Without a Throne- Interview with Washington Park Tent Man, King DaviyD Pg 8: The Peace Village Pg 9: Public Forum on Homelessness Pg 10: Drop Inn Center Continued Pg 11: Planning for a Place Where We Belong Shelter Programs Critical to Support of Homeless Veterans Pg 12: Streetvibes Vendor Code of Conduct About the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless and Streetvibes… Pg 13: Why are NA Meetings Important to Me? “Urban Plunge” Students Experience Life on the Streets News from the Ohio Empowerment Coalition Pg 14: Arts & Poetry Pg 15: Arts & Poetry Continued Pg 16: An Icon, and Then He’s Gone Pg 17: Cold Turkey Pg 18: FRAC News Pg 19: Bush Campaign Seeks Help from Thousands of Congregation Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Streetvibes Archive Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Streetvibes Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource July 2004 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Georgine Getty Alison Leeuw Andy Erickson Elizabeth Linville Janice Faulkner Mary Gaffney Jimmy Heath Berta Lambert Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Alison Leeuw Andy Erickson Berta Lambert Bush Drop Inn Center Elizabeth Linville Food Research FRAC GCCH Georgine Getty Hate Crimes Janice Faulkner Jimmy Heath King Daviyd Mary Gaffney McCrackin Ohio Over-the-Rhine Peace Village Students veterans https://streetvibesarchive.net/files/original/8cd345dfaf2eecfa682db29a39eca65f.pdf ecf38c6cbe887501ab0af5a4e0887df6 PDF Text Text June, 2004 STREETVIBES Mother’s Day Luncheon kicks off a week of awareness-raising events Cincinnati’s Mayor Luken proclaims May 9 – 15 “Homeless Awareness Week” by Andy Erickson Education Coordinator Last month, the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless and its member agencies held a week’s worth of events during the officially proclaimed “Homeless Awareness Week” in Cincinnati. from the Lee Chapel Praise Dancers. A lot of work went into this event, and all of it was donated. GCCH absolutely must take some space to thank Concordia Lutheran Church for donating the space, and the nearly 30 volunteers from Adath Israel Congregation, Summit Country Day School, and Caracole who helped the event run so smoothly. A very special thank-you goes out to The week was kicked off on May 9 with a Mother’s Day Luncheon for some of the families residing in our local shelters. About 100 people attended the event. Guests were treated to a lasagna dinner from Betta’s Italian Oven, gift bags, door prizes, free family portraits, and a performance the anonymous donor who paid the entire bill for the caterers and the gift bags. The Mother’s Day Luncheon coincided with a similar luncheon held by the Columbus Coalition on Housing and Homelessness. While the celebration of Mother’s Day was certainly the main point of these events, the two events were held at the same time in each city to make another point: that homelessness is a significant problem for families in our area and across the nation. Nationally, families have become the fastest growing segment in the homeless population. According to Homeless in Cincinnati, a study conducted by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH) and AIR, Inc., nearly 6,000 families experienced homelessness during the year 2000. Because of the large number of homeless families in Cincinnati, the number of homeless youth is also high. According the study, 8,000 children experienced homelessness during the same year. On May 10, GCCH showed Dark Days, an awardwinning documentary about people living in abandoned train tunnels in New York City. The film gives a truthful and often very personal presentation of homelessness and the living conditions these people must endure. Though the film in itself is quite good, the story that surrounds the making of the film is also interesting. The film’s director, Marc Singer, had never made a film, nor even used a camera before he made Dark Days. Because he had little money, the film’s subjects agreed to double as the crew, creating lighting by “borrowing” electricity from the city, working the sound, and even fashioning carts that could move along the railroad tracks in order to provide the film’s moving camera shots. Briefly, Singer ran out of money and ended up living in the camp himself. The film does end on a happy note, though, thanks in part to the New York City Coalition for the Homeless. The film won several awards at the 2000 Sundance Film Festival, including best cinematography and the audience choice award. Over 15 people participated in “Panhandling for Justice” on May 11, the third event in our Homeless Awareness Week. Panhandling for Justice took place downtown during lunchtime. Participants educated the lunch crowds while carrying cardboard signs that stated facts about homelessness like,“1300 people will be homeless in Cincinnati tonight,” and “Ohio is number four in hate crimes against the homeless.” Participants also passed out literature informing the public about the decision of Homeless Awareness... Cont. on page 10 Cincinnati City Council Votes To Extend Panhandling Registration by Jimmy Heath Last month Cincinnati City Council voted 5-4 to extend a law that requires people to register and get a license to panhandle in the City of Cincinnati. The law was intended to curb aggressive panhandling and create an image of a friendlier and safe downtown Cincinnati for would-be shoppers, workers and tourists. In a survey of downtown visitors and workers nuisance begging tied with parking as the number one complaint. The renewal of the law, first enacted a year ago, was supported for extension by Council members Jim Tarbell, David Pepper, Sam Malone, Pat DeWine and David Crowley. “It’s hard to find a good reason to be against it,” said Council member DeWine, saying that the law has discouraged panhandling. “Let’s not change something that works.” Council members Laketa Cole, Christopher Smitherman, John Cranley and Alicia Reece voted against the renewal. Council member Chris Smitherman said he viewed the law as an infringement upon freedom of speech rights. The city had the option to include an outreach component in the ordinance when the law was first enacted a year ago. Mayor Charlie Luken said at the time that he would veto the ordinance if it included outreach because he felt enough money is already given to social services in Cincinnati. The Cincinnati Panhandling License outreach money was removed from the original Panhandling Registration proposal and the law passed Cont. on page 3 with strict rules for Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless �Streetvibes Streetvibes, the Tri­ State’s alternative news source, is a newspaper written by, for, and about the homeless and contains relevant discussions of social justice, and poverty issues. It is published once a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Becoming a Streetvibes Vendor is a great way for homeless and other low-income people to get back on (or stay on) their feet. Streetvibes Vendors are given an orientation and sign a code of conduct before being given a Streetvibes Vendor badge. All profits go directly to the vendor. The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a group of shelters, agencies and individuals committed to ending homelessness in Cincinnati through coordinating services, educating the public and grassroots organizing. GCCH Staff Georgine Getty - Executive Director Allison Leeuw - Administrative Coordinator Andy Erickson - Education Coordinator Elizabeth Linville - Civil Rights Coordinator Janice Faulkner - Receptionist Mary Gaffney - Receptionist Streetvibes Jimmy Heath, Editor, Layout and Design Photographer Jimmy Heath Cover Detail of Homeless Awareness Quilt, sewn by Susan Smith. Photo by Jimmy Heath Streetvibes accepts letters, poems, stories, essays, original graphics, and photos. We will give preference to those who are homeless or vendors. Subscriptions to Streetvibes, delivered to your home each month, can be purchased for $25 per year. Address mail to: Streetvibes Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH) 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 (513) 421-7803 e-mail: streetvibes@juno.com web: http://homeless.cinci.com Page 2 addiction and A Journey I Needed To Make experienced struggled with them through the by Jimmy Heath, Streetvibes Editor As a teen, I struggled with fitting in at school and making friends. I wanted to belong to the cool group of kids even though I wasn’t sure what that meant. What is cool? I had all the skills to be successful in school. And sometimes I bordered on being a nerd. But I picked the schoolyard rejects, troublemakers and dopers as my friends and companions. I learned to skip school. I learned to smoke cigarettes and talk back in class. Jimmy Heath We were always on the edge of disaster, it seemed. We barely stayed out of trouble, which was mostly a testimony to our resourcefulness and our ability to lie. We were on a constant mission for dope and alcohol and a place to hang out while we fashioned our adventures. The Vietnam War was in full swing at that time. Jimi Hendrix was still alive. The Woodstock Music & Arts Festival drew half a million people to Max Yasgar’s farm in New York. The Doors were blowing our minds, along with Janis Joplin, the Beatles, and the Rolling Stones. I learned to play rock and roll, spending time banging out rough cords on an old Supra electric guitar. I discovered wine when I was sixteen, after a friend and I stole a bottle from the neighborhood corner store. We guzzled the pilfered fifth of cheap Petri Port wine in an alley near my home. It was horrible stuff, but we drank it anyway. By the time our bottle of rotgut was drained we were both staggering drunk, barely able to stand up. I dragged myself home, stumbling up the stairs to my bedroom. The heavy effects of the alcohol overcame the spinning room and nausea and I eventually passed out on my bed. In spite of the sickness, I went back and did it again. I had successfully established a lifelong relationship with alcohol. As a youth, I experimented with all of the illegal drugs that were available at the time too. The drugs that were coming out of California were state-of-the-art; Orange Barrel LSD and Window Pane acid from Berkeley, opium from New York. Hashish and pot. There were drugs everywhere. It went with the music, the hair, the clothes, the attitudes. I eventually learned to outgrow most of my youthful indiscretions and drug-induced behavior, but my alcoholism remained with me for most of my adult life. I was nearly middle-aged when decades of drinking started to catch up with me physically. The years of alcohol abuse began to eat away at my body. Nine years ago this month I faced my lifelong alcohol addiction and got hope and sobriety at the Drop Inn Center’s recovery program for homeless men. I often tell people that the Drop Inn Center saved my life. The Drop Inn Center provided me with a choice that I didn’t think I had. Alcoholism is a widespread disease, affecting about 7% of American adults ­ nearly 14 million people in the United States. Liver cirrhosis resulting from alcohol abuse is one of the ten leading causes of death in the United States. At least seven million American children have alcoholic parents. No one knows for sure what drives a person to alcoholism. Alcoholism runs in families, and children of alcoholics are four times more likely than other children to become alcoholics, but children of drinkers do not always become alcoholics. Child and adolescent psychiatrists know these children are also at greater risk for having emotional problems than children whose parents are not alcoholics. (There was never booze of any kind in my house growing up. Liquor was totally foreign and forbidden in our strict Catholic household.) Like many other diseases, alcoholism is chronic, meaning that it lasts a person’s lifetime, it usually follows a predictable course, and it has symptoms. Alcoholism doesn’t discriminate by color or class or social standing or education. Almost everyone has knowledge of, or has had a relationship with someone who has many twists and turns. Addiction destroys human beings and their families. Addiction hurts not only the addict, but everyone around them. Addictions are not about will power. The problems facing addicts, alcoholics, and their families are miserable, disgusting, and sometimes infuriating. The situation is often hopelessly discouraging. The road to sobriety is paved with difficulties and pitfalls. It was a hard and painful journey that I made into the Drop Inn Center nine years ago, staggering through my life with the disease of alcoholism ­ homeless and without hope or the will to live. Threat of death by alcohol did not scare me. I thought that was the way I was going to die, and there was nothing I could do about it. But because of the Drop Inn Center I am alive today. The Drop Inn Center showed me how to get sober and stay that way. They also led me on a journey of discovery in the community of Over-the-Rhine, a place where I continue to live and learn each and every day. How does one describe getting their life back? It is hard for a recovering addict to explain. It is a spiritual thing, and comes from deep inside. But ask my friends and family about me during my addiction and they will describe what hell must have been like. The cost of addiction can’t always be measured by economics or loss of life – it is what we do to our loved ones that is one of the greatest tragedies. Now sober for nine years, I continually ask myself how I can give something back to honor this gift of life that was freely given to me and many others who have looked for help at the Drop Inn Center. I’m one of many lucky ones who have survived an addiction, saved by a homeless shelter in Cincinnati. My sobriety is a gift to remember and celebrate every day. I don’t spend a lot of time regretting the past or my lost youth. It was the journey I needed to make to get to where I am now. Buy Streetvibes From Badged Vendors Only! Streetvibes Vendors are required to sign a code of conduct and agree to abide by all the rules of the Streetvibes Ven­ dor Program. If a Vendor misrepresents or breaks the rules, she/he may be removed from the Program. To report a Vendor, call 421-7803. ext. 16 Streetvibes �How do I know? I used LETTERS to be one. Now I’m a prison activist. From Readers reform Linda Tant Miller Dear Friends, Am I the only one who realizes that the stage was set for the abuse of Iraqi prisoners on the day that Saddam was put into a cell with pictures of his dead sons and friends? I am no fan of Saddam’s, but he is a human being ­ although just barely - and rubbing anyone’s nose in the fact that their children and friends have been recently killed, absolutely constitutes psychological abuse. Everyone seemed really proud of the fact that Saddam was being mentally tortured - apparently with the approval of the White House and the U.S. as a whole. It’s not a huge leap from there to the physical abuse of other Iraqi prisoners. The abusers probably thought their actions would meet with the same approval. Besides, abuse and murder of prisoners is a routine American practice and most USAR MPs are police and corrections officers in their civilian lives. They’re just performing business as usual, only in federal rather than state or local uniforms. Stop Execution We would like to pose the following question to your readership – Should the State of Ohio Execute Greg Lott? Please consider the issue of mental retardation. The US Supreme Court recently barred the execution of the mentally retarded. In 1986 Lott was assessed with an IQ of 72. Recently experts have tested Lott based on his IQ and his adaptive skills. One expert says his IQ qualifies him as mentally retarded, while a second says his adaptive skills qualify him as mentally retarded. Since neither expert finds both qualifiers, the judge says he’s not mentally retarded. What do you say? Please consider the issue of innocence. The victim lived 10 days after the attack. He identified his attacker as a very light complexioned African American man with long straight hair that he knew from the barbershop. Mr. Lott does not fit that description. When shown a picture of Mr. Lott, the victim said he was not the Panhandling Registration is a part of DCI, they fund the Cont. from page 1 panhandling, including no panhandling at crosswalks, after dark or near ATM’s. Panhandlers who use a sign and don’t request money verbally are exempt from the ordinance. The panhandling license is free and requires registering at the Health Department and a police check. A trained social worker with the Cincinnati Health Department, the agency charged with registering and processing panhandler registrations, works “full time” registering about 3 panhandlers a week. Violators face jail time and fines for not being registered. Downtown Cincinnati Inc, (DCI) a non-profit organization representing downtown businesses, provided $25,000 for an outreach worker, which they have since renewed. Since that time, Brent Chasteen, the DCI outreach worker has been very successful in getting people off the streets and into treatment, housing and other programs. Council member David Pepper side-stepped this important detail, stating that since the city outreach. Some council members said the law has benefited downtown businesses and has connected panhandlers who might be homeless, mentally ill or substance abusers with social service programs. “Some people who didn’t have a home now have an apartment,” Council member Pepper said. Council members seemed to be in agreement that registration wouldn’t eradicate panhandling downtown. But there was much debate about the overall effectiveness of the legislation. Opposing Council members said the law has only bumped panhandlers from downtown Cincinnati to other neighborhoods. Some said they thought the city’s panhandling problem was a little better, but weren’t convinced it was because of the registration. Cincinnati police have made 155 panhandling arrests in nine months, including some people who were arrested multiple times. One man was arrested 16 times by Cincinnati police. No criteria for the success of the panhandling attacker. Could Greg Lott be innocent? Please consider the issue of attorney error. Evidence of Mr. Lott’s innocence, which the defense finally discovered in 1991, has never been presented in court. The defense failed to make timely use of the evidence; therefore, it has NOT been reviewed by the federal courts. Could it change the outcome in the courts? Should Greg die because of these errors? Please consider the issue of prosecutorial misconduct. The prosecutor told the jury that Lott showed intent to murder by bringing lamp oil into the house during the robbery. They said the victim did not own oil-burning lamps. This was damaging to Mr. Lott’s case. It was later revealed that the prosecutor knew of a police report noting oil-burning lamps in the house. Would that have changed the minds of the jury? A three-judge panel of the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals decided to stay Greg Lott’s execution to give federal court time to consider whether there are grounds for a new trial. It seems obvious to us – Mr. Lott deserves a new trial. The Staff of the Intercommunity Justice and Peace Center ­ Kristen Barker Alice Gerdeman, CDP Eunice Timoney Ravenna registration were ever developed so the true effectiveness of the ordinance is unknown. Is it successful if a high number of people register, or if there are no registration applications or arrests does this imply that there are no panhandlers or that the law is a success? A lawsuit against the ordinance is still pending, based on both the national and state constitution. According to lawyers, you cannot pick a specific group of people and require that their speech be registered. The city lost this very lawsuit about 3 years ago when trying to ban panhandling outright. Meanwhile, the dialog by Council infers that the program is a great success. “We don’t know why this works, but it does, so why mess with it? This is like a delicious pot of chili we are all enjoying, so why would you go back and ask, ‘can we remove the onions?’” said Council member DeWine. City government leaders in Dayton, New Orleans and Memphis, which already have registration requirements aimed at curbing aggressive panhandling, say success depends on how strictly the law is enforced. District 1 Police Captain James Whalen, who testified during the discussion of the ordinance, said he expected enforcement to be low. Officers would rather see the panhandlers get some help rather than spend time in jail and waste police resources, he said. “We can arrest all the people we want, but if they go back out on the streets then we still have a problem,” Council member Laketa Cole said. Georgine Getty, Executive Director of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless said that, “Outreach to panhandlers has proven to be incredibly useful in curbing the number of panhandlers downtown. This is because it addresses the root causes of poverty behind panhandling. Registration, on the other hand, is a costly, detrimental, unconstitutional layer of bureaucracy that is stigmatizing to panhandlers and further alienates them from the services they need to become self-sufficient.” Streetvibes Mother’s Day Brunch This letter is just a few words of appreciation for being there for homeless families. My name is Gail. I have three boys aged 13, 12 and 7. I cherish their lives, and due to circumstances me and my children are homeless. But thanks to Interfaith Hospitality they have a place to sleep and try to have a normal child’s life. I believe children are resilient and they are stronger than adults and they seem to adapt to situations better. The Mother’s Day Brunch was very uplifting and comforting. Going and seeing families in the same situation was very difficult. At one moment my tears were uncontrollable because my heart was so heavy and grateful that someone cared enough to think of others rather than themselves. Thank God for the Homeless Coalition. Please know that you are appreciated; never stop what you are doing for mothers and children. Page 3 �ON A SCALE OF ONE TO A HUNDRED, HOW MUCH DO YOU DISAGREE WITH THE CITY’S TREATMENT OF CINCINNATI’S HOMELESS? I WILL DONATE: $1 $20 $40 $60 $80 $100 He’s only 18 months old and already he’s trapped in the cycle of homelessness in Cincinnati. His mother needs an affordable place to live and a job with a living wage as she escapes a life of domestic violence. The current treatment of homeless individuals in our city means that he may never be able to live in a home of his own. There are 25,000 people in Cincinnati that experience homelessness each year. More than one-third of those are women and children. The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless believes that by addressing the root causes of the problem through education, advocacy and coordination of services, we can end homelessness in our city. The more support we have from the community, the further our efforts reach. Please cut the coupon and pick a box. It could mean that one less child will have to live in one. Send your donations to Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 Page 4 Streetvibes �Panhandling for Justice spreads awareness about homelessness by Elizabeth Linville On Tuesday, May 11, students and local advocates took to the streets of Cincinnati in a “Panhandling for Justice” event as part of Homeless Awareness Week. The event, which the Coalition for the Homeless has organized the past two years, featured individuals walking through the downtown business district with signs displaying facts about current issues and passing out flyers. This year participants focused on a variety of issues: the panhandling registration, the release of “bumfights” videos by major retailers such as Amazon.com and Elizebeth Linville and Rachael Richardson Panhandle for Justice near Best Buy, and proposed downtown’s Fountain Square federal cuts to the Housing Choice Voucher program. cuts have been an issue tenants are required to pay, and The panhandling throughout this year. The it may force housing authorities registration was a timely issue, Federal Budget for 2005, to shift their assistance to higher as city council was near voting released by the Bush income families. Our city, like on renewing the Administration in the rest of the country, cannot legislation in the February, calls for afford to see these cuts at a time Cincinnati City huge cuts in the when more people than ever are Council Law funding for housing experiencing homelessness. Committee (see assistance vouchers. The “Bumfight” videos story page 1). The Housing Choice have become a large issue this Participants in the Voucher Program past year. These hate videos are “Panhandling for (commonly referred being produced showing Justuce” event to as Section 8) homeless individuals fighting, Elizabeth Linville spread the word that performing bizarre acts, or allows families to the registration, which was engaging in self mutilation and reside in market-rate rental enacted in an ordinance last injury to each other. The housing and pay 30 percent of year and is now up for renewal, their income for rent, while the individuals are paid with small is unconstitutional and amounts of money, food, or voucher covers the rest. The unnecessary. Requiring alcohol. At first the videos 2005 budget proposal will hurt someone to register to were mainly being sold online by the program in a variety of panhandle violates his or her ways: it will reduce the number independent dealers, but now first amendment right to major retailers such as of households that will be freedom of speech. Amazon.com, Barnes and assisted by a voucher, it could Housing Choice Voucher increase the amount of rent Noble, and Best Buy are also selling these videos. Participants in the Panhandling for Justice event circulated flyers asking people to contact the CEOs of these corporations (see following list) to tell them to stop selling the videos, which encourage violence against individuals who are homeless. Amazon.com – Jeffrey Bezos, CEO (206) 266-1000, Best Buy – Susan Busch, Corporate PR, (612) 291-1000, Barnes and Noble – Stephen Riggio, (212) 633­ 3300 Some citizens were receptive and interested in the facts displayed and handed out during this event, while others seemed unwilling to pay attention to the plight of our country’s poorest individuals. One participant reported a woman telling her to “stop making me sad,” when approached with a flyer showing a homeless child. Both reactions are evidence that the “panhandlers” at least made some sort of impression on the individuals that they encountered during this event. For further information on any of these issues, please call the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless at 513-421-7803 or check out any of these websites: www.homeless.cincy.com, www.neoch.org, www.cohhio.org, or www.nationalhomeless.org. Cincinnati from the Point of View of a Chicagoan by Natasha Matusova Racism and classicism are inherent in society; compassion seems not to be. The state of Over the Rhine seems to embody this. Few outside the community seem to Don’t be Squirrelly! ET VIB ES Streetvibes own way, try to make a small dent. I am scared, though, because I fear that that inspiration will fade as I start having to deal with my life again, and getting an A on tomorrow’s test will become more important than helping others. I cannot say that I won’t try, because, as Bonnie Neumeier told us, “ You got to keep on keepin’ on.” (Natasha visited Cincinnati as part of a one week service learning trip with Northwestern University, Chicago) RE Rhine was so much worse; in a way, it was so much greater. No one that I know of has stood against the gentrification of my neighborhood. No one has spoken out for the rights of the residents. No one has really fought. But to delve into the history of Over the Rhine, is to delve into a history of a unified struggle. Buddy Gray, Bonnie Neumeier, Jimmy Heath among many others have fought for the neighborhood and its people. So what does this all have to do with me? It has everything to do with me because I have been inspired. It has everything to do with me because I now want to take action. Although I could never hope to make the kind of difference the aforementioned people have made, I will, in my ST Buy Streetvibes! actually care. Its richness lies in its culture and history, but this is of no consequence to the poor and the homeless. That is what I learned this week. Being from Chicago, I never really expected to be touched. I figured it couldn’t be any worse than what I see every day. The first time I stepped on Vine Street, I thought, “ man, I wish my block was this lively.” I didn’t think twice about it. I just knew that Over-the-Rhine was starting to feel the effects of gentrification, just like my neighborhood was. I quickly realized how naïve I was. My neighborhood, with its fake gangs and small time drug dealers, had so much less in common with Over the Rhine than I had lead myself to believe. In a way Over the Support Your Vendor Page 5 �students “absolutely love him,” says Charles Strobel, who started the campus as an outreach ministry for the homeless in 1995. After Pancoast’s class, many go on to take classes in computer and job skills or earn their GED. term options.” North American Briefs Two men are facing compiled by Patty Lane Stressed-out city charges after a brutal attack dwellers nationwide are finding a new way to get de­ on a homeless man in An Ohio woman is stressed. No need to head to a Louisville, Kentucky. Police taking on a tremendous tell WAVE-3 News that Clifton spa or vacation spot to journey one step at a time. recharge. Some are finding Dale Agnew, 53, was sleeping Kim Denmark is walking that by becoming temporary in an alley behind a Salvation across America to draw Army shelter when two men attention to welfare reform “street bums” they can regain attacked him. After punching, their perspective on life. It’s and the plight of the all part of a program called homeless. During her journey kicking, and beating Agnew with a trash can and a crock she hopes to gather enough “street-retreat” designed to cleanse the spirit. The pot, the men then allegedly signatures to get her on the Peacemaker Center, a group stripped the homeless man of floor of Congress, where she his clothes and sodomized him that follows the tenets of Zen, wants to present one million with sticks, boards and bottles. has been organizing retreats on signatures to ask for welfare the streets of New York for He was then stabbed and other reforms. “I want it repeatedly. Agnew suffered to come to the top of the more than 10 years. Pretending to be homeless has head trauma, broken ribs, and agenda, not the bottom,” she a cost. For $150, small groups a lacerated colon and rectum. tells the Athens Banner At one point his injuries Herald. She puts in about ten of about 10 people hit the streets with no ID and no appeared so severe that miles a day to reach her goal money. The “retreats” last investigators were preparing of 2,704 miles during her 52­ murder charges. His condition anywhere from three to five month trek. She wears an days. “You don’t know when is improving and he remains orange jump-suit filled with you are going to get your next signatures of those she has met hospitalized. Friends of the victim say he posed no threat along the way. On the road meal. You rely on asking people on the streets where the to anyone. The shelter’s she eats and sleeps at the free lunches and shelter can be director is calling for more to mercy of volunteers and be done to protect the communities who have given found, and you find they are homeless. “That’s the reason very generous,” says Zen her support throughout her teacher Francisco Lugovina. we need the Salvation Army trip. and other overnight shelters,” On April 8, Detroit Retreats have also been held in says Brenda Mattingly. She Montreal and London. A police dispatched bulldozers veteran of the program calls it hopes the community shares to destroy a shack that had the outrage she feels. “We feel an exercise in bearing witness been the home of Ralph everybody here is an asset to to the joy and pain of the Thomas, 56, for more than universe. ten years. Thomas, 56, had an our community and are hour to gather what belongings worthwhile people. We don’t In a verdict this week, see a dividing line as to who a jury in Ontario, Canada he could from the shanty he recommended special clinics built out of plywood, blankets, should be protected and who shouldn’t.” and tires on a vacant lot. be established to stop the A former Vanderbilt spread of tuberculosis. “This breaks my heart,” According to The Globe, half University football coach is neighbor Eloise Nash told the using his own life experiences of the province’s homeless Detroit Free Press. “Where is to help homeless people in population is already infected. he going to go?” Over the An inquest into the deaths of Tennessee get back on their years, Thomas had turned his feet. Fred Pancoast volunteers three people who died of TB shack into four clean and tidy his time in Nashville, teaching wrapped up this week with the rooms with a wood burning release of the jury’s stove for food and warmth and classes once a week to help down-and-out men and women recommendations to prevent a laundry system with a learn how to rebuild their future deaths. The jury also clothesline. Although his recommended public health lives. He tells The home is gone, Thomas says he’s alright, and he has a place Tennessean, “All of us have departments track and analyze had our tough times in life, TB screening results with their to keep his possessions. An new public health information and I’ve had mine. A lot of outreach coordinator for an people have helped me and I organization that assists system. All workers and want to help back.” He begins volunteers in shelters and elderly people in southwest his life skills classes by asking homeless drop-in centers must Detroit brought Thomas some his homeless students to open sandwiches, clothes and an also be screened for TB before up about their lowest point. being hired. But homeless invitation to a homeless advocates expressed Eventually he gets them to shelter. “He may qualify for describe how they got there some additional financial disappointment that the jury and then brainstorm a list of failed to address stopping TB. support,” says David They suggest moving the ways they can escape from Esterbrook of Bridging their situations into better, Communities. “We’d like to homeless out of overcrowded more productive lives. His shelters and putting them in talk to him about some long­ Homeless News Digest Page 6 Streetvibes affordable housing to help stop the spread of the disease “If SARS was not a wake-up call on this issue, then what will be?” Cathy Crowe told The Globe. Crowe, a nurse who works extensively with the homeless, is infected with TB. Meanwhile, in Austin, Texas, a $500,000 federal grant will help homeless people get the health care they need. “We’re able to quadruple the number of people we can see,” Lisa Glenn, director of Health Clinics told News 8 last week. The clinic treats about 1,200 people a year, but the grant will allow 5,500 people to be treated. Giving homeless people access to health care will ease up Austin’s emergency rooms for real emergencies. “There are patients with nine emergency room visits in a six-month basis,” says John Gilvar, of the city’s Community Health Centers. “They go back on a routine basis for ear infections, upper respiratory infections, and they are taking up space and costing the community a lot of money by using the emergency room.” He says the grant will help take the city’s homeless health care issue in Austin to a new level. In addition to medical care, the grant also allows patients to receive dental, vision, mental health and substance abuse care. 20 YEARS SERVING THE NEIGHBORHOOD Empowering our neighborhood children through peace, art and education Peaslee Neighborhood Center 215 East 14th Street Over-the-Rhine Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 (513) 621-5514 �Many Sides To Everything by Mary A. Gaffney I’m writing this during the month of May. School will soon be out for the summer, and we will be welcoming the cicadas for their 17 year visit. Whether we want it or not the cicadas will visit! To my homeless friends and buddies, to the ones that have found employment, I would like to say that God is Good. Just keep on believing, my friends, and to the ones who are still looking for help, hold on. Today I’m thinking about the late Gentria Lynn Thomas whose life was ended recently. There are many sides to everything, to every life. The question is, have you really taken to the time to study the person? granddaughter was working on a drawing and in a clear voice Gentria Lynn Thomas Gentria asked if she could have came several times to the Homeless Coalition office. The it. On her second visit to the office she got another drawing first time she came in I had my from my great-grand daughter. 11 year-old greatLater that granddaughter evening, my with me. She grand daughter sometimes was with me at comes to the home, watching office when television, school is out. where we heard I want the news of her to see the Gentria life of the Thomas’s death. children and the I remembered people that how Gentria come into our Miss Mary Gaffney smiled and office. I want talked quietly to her to learn how this child when visiting the to be kind to them, and never office. She would smile and her forget that homelessness can eyes would light up. I had to happen to anyone. explain to my grand-daughter On this particular day, what had happened, and to she met Gentria Thomas and remember Gentria’s visits, the they spoke to each other. My Homelessness; The Threat We All Face by Crystal Evans Cambridge MA As I stood on the steps outside of Youth On Fire* I looked around at the crowd. We were all there that morning with the same goal: to abolish poverty, defeat the forces of racism, militarism and economic exploitation, and create a world we all can live in together in peace with economic and social justice. Cars honked and people shouted in agreement with us. On April 3, the statewide March to Abolish Poverty reached Cambridge. Two weeks prior, I met Eli Beckerman, the local coordinator for the march. He had come to Youth on Fire in search of speakers. I had agreed to speak and also volunteered to help out with final details that needed to be taken care of before the march. I spent the days leading up to that Saturday morning helping to make signs and a banner to carry during the march, designing and distributing fliers all over Cambridge, and thinking through what I would say when I addressed the crowd. Becoming a homeless activist was the last thing on my mind when I ended up homeless in February, 2003. At that point I was more worried about day­ to-day survival, where I would sleep and how I would find food. I could barely manage my own life, not to mention advocate for others. I never expected to end up homeless. I had always thought that most homeless people were “homeless by choice” and that if they really no matter how hard we tried it wanted to help themselves they just wasn’t enough. It seemed could. I was 19 when I got in a like every service/program I car accident in February, 2001, applied for ended up with a ended up with a broken neck budget cut. It felt like there and a traumatic brain injury, and was no way out. suddenly found myself unable But after 11 months to hold a job due to cognitive bouncing around the shelters and neurological problems. I and staying on the streets I didn’t have family to support finally got the call I had been me—I was on my own. waiting for. I moved into my Not being able to hold a apartment in January. At that job also meant I had no health point, being an activist against insurance. And, without poverty only seemed natural. insurance, I couldn’t get I shared my story with medical care or rehab for my the crowd. Afterwards, we injuries. I battled with the state headed through Harvard Square of New Hampshire for months holding signs with messages trying to get Medicaid but was like, “Housing is a Human denied every time. By the fall Right,” “Poverty Equals of 2002, I had lost my ninth job Violence,” and “Economic and couldn’t afford rent. Not Justice For All.” Along our knowing what else to do, I left route we passed several of the New Hampshire and headed to places I stayed—shelters, store Boston, knowing there were more shelters and better medical care there. I figured I’d only be homeless for a couple of weeks. Weeks turned to months. I could get medical care in Massachusetts, but housing was a completely different issue. The Section The Know Your Rights 8** waitlist froze in April of Brochure is now available at the 2003 and subsidized housing Coalition’s office. The brochure waitlists were three years is a legal guide for Cincinnati’s long. homeless and covers a person’s It didn’t take me long basic rights when interacting with in the shelters to realize that the police, as well as some local there were very few of us that laws that might be of interest to were truly homeless by the homeless population. If you choice. All it can take is a are a homeless person or if you loss of a job, a fire, domestic work with homeless people and violence, or a sudden illness would like to obtain free copies or disability to become of the brochure for yourself or homeless. Most of us were your agency, please call 421­ doing everything possible to 7803, or stop by the Coalition get out of our situations, but office and pick one up. gift of the drawings and the way she spoke. I want to say to everyone; don’t be quick to judge anyone, because first of all, you need to look beyond the person in front of you, and understand the problem and secondly, don’t be quick or harsh to judge. Any one of these circumstances could befall you at anytime. No matter how wealthy you are, you can still have all the problems. I always say be kind to the homeless and the lonely, because we can be up today and down tomorrow. Remember, we are all God’s children and it doesn’t take a lot of effort to be kind to one another, regardless of race, creed or color. He loves us all. See you next month, if the creek don’t rise. doorways, alleys, and other homeless programs. A few homeless people thanked us for marching as we walked by them. I was glad to be an active part of the March to Abolish Poverty. Many people expect the poor to help themselves. By uniting together as residents of Massachusetts, we bring awareness to how budget cuts are impacting the poor and homeless, and remind people that we are all at risk so we all have to be in this together. * Youth On Fire is a drop-in center for at-risk youth in Cambridge. ** Section 8 is a federal housing subsidy program. Crystal is an active member of Youth On Fire and other local non-profits. You can read about her experiences at www.beinghomeless.com. Reprinted from What’s Up Magazine Know Your Rights Brochure Available! Streetvibes Page 7 �The Peace Village by Dr. Steve Sunderland seeming “cheapness” of the Breaking out of my own death of African American numbness: The past few weeks males. The riots of 2001 have been ones of great stopped the city for a week of confusion and numbness for me. horror and reflection that many I have felt inundated with of us thought would bring us unbelievable events: out of the patterns that had a) The Gibson movie as new reinforced averting our eyes to seeds of hate; the ongoing brutalization of b) the revelations of Richard certain communities and groups Clark about the deafness to in our city. An innovative warnings about September 11th; healing process was initiated, c) the testimony of Clark and “The Collaborative Agreement,” national security advisor, Rice, that called for new methods of about what was “known” by her communication within the and others; police and between the police d) the increasing death toll of and the community. Police Americans and Iraqis and the procedures were found that seeming unraveling of the could reinforce “community” effort to work for peace; policing with a different e) the decision of the Sharon government to unilaterally withdraw from the Gaza, AND the explicit support of president Bush for this plan and the failure of Sharon to convince his own political party; f) the American acknowledgement and support of the Israeli policy of assassinating opposition political Dr. Steve Sunderland leaders; g) the unresponsiveness of the perspective on participation of world community to the the general citizenry in the genocide in the Sudan coming policing process of identifying at the same time as the “hot spots,” and working anniversary of the similar “collaboratively” to bring the genocide in Rawanda; good will of the police and the h) the 50th anniversary of community together as a team. Brown v. Board of Education at This process does not exist as the same time that resegregation of this date even though of the nation’s schools millions of dollars have been continues unresponded to by the used to promote the process. branches of the federal Our city is becoming government; numb, again. Healing has i) Cincinnati continues without stopped. The killings by police any addressing of the causes of have changed but community the riots of 2001 while police residents are killing each other procedures, under criticism by a at record levels. federal monitor, are unchanged MY KEY FITS WHAT? along with the attitude of Who has a good answer “racial profiling”; and, to the lock without a key? j) recent news coming out of Who can lift the fog and Iraq suggest new levels of help see the clouds? suicide by American armed What makes sense when forces while pictures of despair is the name of the drug? humiliation of “prisoners” has Yet, there are young brought the president and the people holding fasts for the secretary of the department of hungry in our city. defense to the point of Yet, there are apologizing “for the torture” to international students who are the American armed forces, the making their countrie’s plight Iraqi prisoners and people, and known. the American people. Yet, there are Christians When I started the Peace and Jews from high schools Village three years ago, the willing to meet and learn about focus was on promoting healing the “other.” from the riots by taking action Yet, there are Islamic to face the taboo areas of our people willing to open the door, city and culture that have one more time, to discussion allowed the numbing of our and the answering of the police and community to the questions of fear. Page 8 Yet, there are courageous editors and writers willing to not let the homeless die without some shred of respect for their lives and their deaths. A mural of elders in our most dangerous neighborhood shows hands touching in love. Little children paint pictures of an underground railroad riding a rainbow of hope. Finches grow their four little ones to the point that they can fly as the cats scowl. Peace can happen and is happening. Taking the Peace Village as an antidote to the language of numbness: What helps under these conditions of “war” on the peace processes? What can any person do to make a difference, stand up to the waves of violence, and, take a position of conscience? The suspension of the laws of war (Geneva Accords), following the attacks of September 11, have deeply invaded our common culture of what is acceptable in both language and action. Fighting terrorists without understanding the sources of terror is basically a national panic attack. Devoting billions of dollars for revenge on some “enemy” blinds our confusion with evil. Holding “suspects” from our war in Afghanistan for months without access to lawyers or judges increases the fear that our enemies will do the same and that there is no real rule of law for anyone. A policy of murdering “suspected” terrorists without any thought of bringing them to justice is international capital punishment and the ultimate torture without trial, review, or appeal to anyone. And, we support our allies in this same corroding behavior: we are breaking down the layers of decency and acceptance of the rule of law. Standing aside, without strong protest about the genocide in the Sudan and, through the absence of agreed upon AIDS funding, makes us a part of a world of evil that keeps slapping us in the face. Yet, the Peace Village is moving with gentleness and a resolve to make language and action converge in compassion. We are engaged in actions that highlight reflection about the numbness of our local, national and international events. One commitment is to reflect and change mis-education about Jews, Christians and Moslems amongst youth and adults who are able to work through their fears of the other religions. Here is a little of my own Streetvibes reflection on the actions that are emerging connected to the movie, “The Passion of Christ,” by Mel Gibson. The Gibson movie laid down a barrage of hateful messages about Jews, while providing a fictional version of the Gospels, and temporarily threatening the possibility of mutual respect between Christians and Jews. One part of me wanted to just let the movie go by and not comment: “This too shall pass.” But talking with Cincinnati youth and elders of both religions about their mutual ignorance and fear of each other only made it clear that the movie has given us a door for discussion about what may be behind the religious images. Religious hatred builds from fear and fear is what is dominant in the discussions of the major religions. Holidays are celebrated or known about, within and without the religion, without knowledge of connections to each faith. Rarely have people felt welcomed in another person’s sacred churches, temples, and discussions. Very few people have ever visited a church, synagogue or mosque if it is not their own religion. My old friends, Sam Joseph, Ed Irvin, and my new ones, Hans Klee, Barbara Dragul, Lama Aloosma, and the youth have counseled me to go into this area with caution and modest expectations. Both groups of religions have done a very good job in blinding each group to the strengths within and between the faiths. Opening a door and making a bridge for mutual respect and the creation of friendship will take action and patience. But the violence of doing nothing in a violent world is not my choice; yet, the numbness of shock of deep-seated hatreds continues to plague my consciousness. Dr. Steve Sunderland, professor of Social Work at the University of Cincinnati, is the Director of The Peace Village, a group of individuals from the national and international community committed to examining all issues of Peace in the world. Dr. Sunderland also heads up Posters-for-Peace which engages people in expressing their visions of Peace, in their own words, through the creation of posters. �Dad Remembered Homeless It has been about 4 years since I wrote an article for Streetvibes. But today as I was riding my bike with my 4 year old son on the back in a bike seat, I ran into two street vendors who were so full of joy as I approached them. They reminded me of my wonderful father, Joseph E. Martin who use to be a street vendor. In 1999, I wrote an article in Streetvibes, “A MAN FOR THE HOMELESS—MY WONDERFUL FATHER.” My father spent his whole life as a single father raising 7 children by himself, and helping the homeless people in Cincinnati. I still see some of the homeless people who used to live in his house selling Streetvibes. My father was a self-employed contractor who provided not only room and board but jobs for the homeless in Cincinnati. Since 1999, my father had to eventually sell his house and move into a senior citizens home. When I visit him, I can see how much he misses his house and helping the homeless. Due to the fact that he is getting older, he has trouble taking care of himself. But if he could, he would buy another house and continue to help the homeless. I know that there are many like him in Cincinnati who we do not even know exist. My Dad never sought recognition but he deserves it. My wife and I work as Registered nurses, I work at Mercy Fransican hospital in Western Hills and she works at Deaconess Hospital up in Clifton. Over the years, my Dad has taught me alot about homeless people. As nurses, we take care of many as patients. There are so many reasons why people end up without a home. Many lose their jobs or fall prey to alcoholism or divorce. No matter the reason, it is a serious issue that must be dealt with in Cincinnati. The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless does so much to address the needs of the homeless but so much more is needed. Reverend Maurice McCrackin did so much when he was living as a voice for the homeless. I feel privileged that I got to know him and share the gospel with him. It is nice that St. Joseph Catholic Church is honoring his life on June 11-13. There are many who have shared his passion for the homeless and his desire to fight for the less fortunate. My father was one of them. This story I write for him, in honor of a wonderful father and a good role model for the citizens of Cincinnati. I miss seeing him in his house and helping the homeless. I miss going to his house to pray with the homeless and the many special people who I got to know. In fact, many got the courage through prayer to put their lives back together. Many of the homeless who stayed with my father, learned from my father roofing and painting, and started their own businesses and bought their own house. Though my Dad, does not own a house anymore, he still has a big heart for the homeless. God has called me to give the gospel to teenagers and college students in Cincinnati and throughout the world. In 2002, I visited South Korea to attend a World Mission report as a part of a Korean Missionary Journey Team. As I walked the streets in Seoul in the mornings, I saw many homeless people just like here in Cincinnati. Though many Koreans could not speak English, I got a chance to share breakfast with a few in South Korea. Dad, I love you very much and I am proud to be your son and for what you have done for the homeless. In the same spirit of Reverend Maurice McCrackin, God gave you a special gift, it was not wealth or fame, but a big heart for those who were less fortunate. Jesus once said, “Go to the street corners and invite to the banquet anyone you can find.” The kingdom of heaven is filled with those who are less fortunate. Jesus also said, “I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.” Our nation is most blessed when we serve and care for those who are less fortunate. We must not forget our brothers and sisters. We must help them by remembering the words of Jesus and listening to his voice. We must remember that what we do for the homeless, we do for Jesus and to serve his purpose of going to the streets and inviting them into his kingdom. May the people of Cincinnati join the fight to end homelessness through prayer and sharing God’s love with those who are in need. Shepherd Andrew Martin University Bible Fellowship Church, Cincinnati IRS Warns Charities Against Engaging in Political Campaign activity. Using an example of a Activities sponsored debate or forum, the Last month the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued a news release reminding charity groups to stay out of partisan political activities during this election year. This year’s notice was very early in the political season, providing another indication that the presidential sweepstakes are already underway. Organizations tax-exempt under 501(c)(3) of the Tax Code are prohibited from participating or intervening in any political campaign on behalf of, or in opposition to, any candidate for public office. The IRS notice explains that it uses a facts and circumstances test to decide whether an organization is engaging in prohibited political IRS said if the debate or forum shows a preference for or against a certain candidate it becomes a prohibited activity. Debate or forum sponsors can be seen as providing preferential treatment by giving the candidates spun questions, not giving each candidate the same opportunity to answer, and not asking a broad set of questions that covers many issue areas. It is important to note, however, that charities can engage in a number of nonpartisan election related activities and should not shy away from doing so. Using the same example of a candidate debate or forum, the IRS said a charity could legally host such an activity. National Homeless Civil Rights Organizing Project (NHCROP) 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 homelesscivilrights@yahoo.com Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (513) 421-7803 Streetvibes Page 9 �Homeless Awareness... Awareness Week, May 14, was Cont. from page 1 reserved for our Homeless mainstream stores to sell the Awareness Music Bum Fights videos, the Bush Administration’s decision to cut Extravaganza. Performers housing vouchers, and the City included Christ of Cincinnati’s vote to renew Emmanuel Church the panhandling registration. Choir, Jake Speed, You can read more about these Divine Sisters, issues elsewhere in this edition Stepp’n Out, Tribe of Streetvibes. of Levite, and Soul On May 12, GCCH held Mission Chorale. a book club discussion of John Media Bridges Grisham’s The Street Lawyer. filmed the event, The book, though fiction, and we will report speaks eloquently about the the date and time real-life violations of homeless of its broadcast individuals’ civil rights. While Mother and Daughter get ready for a photo portrait at Homeless Mother’s Day Brunch homeless advocates believe that when that information losing your home does not becomes available. mean losing your rights, GCCH staff would politicians and others who like to thank the perceive the homeless as undeserving – or even worthless nearly 100 people who attended the – often disregard homeless event for their people’s rights when creating kindhearted charity public policy or dealing with – over $500 was homeless issues. The Street Lawyer follows Michael Brock, donated to the Coalition for the a lawyer who makes a change Homeless during from working in a large this event. GCCH corporate law firm to working would also like to at a legal clinic for the thank Jerrold homeless. He quickly learns how often – and how severely – Dowell for pulling this event together. homeless people’s rights are The violated in today’s society. Homeless We reserved May 13 for Homeless Mother’s Day Brunch before arrival of the guests Awareness Quilt, our “Armchair Advocate Day.” created by Susan Smith, On this day, we encouraged toured each event. The people to stay home and use Homeless Awareness their time to learn more about Quilt is a beautiful the issue of homelessness. interactive quilt, People were encouraged to complete with doors that investigate web pages, books, open to reveal facts or movies related to about homelessness and homelessness. We also asked fabric that can be pulled that people take actions to resolve current problems facing from different pockets to reveal famous the homeless and at-risk quotations. populations, such as the Mayor Luken proposed cut in housing officially proclaimed May vouchers, the renewal of the 9 – 14 “Homeless panhandling ordinance, and the Awareness Week” in sale of Bum Fights videos. The last day of Homeless Cincinnati. Lee Chapel Praise Dancers perform for guests GCCH Executive Director Georgine Getty uncovers the Homeless Awareness Quilt sewn by Susan Smith (see cover) Page 10 Streetvibes �Streetvibes Vendor Julie Walker and her grandson, Jalyn at one week old. Three months later he is still on oxygen, but he is doing well at 7 pounds! “Thanks to everyone for your support!” There is only one pretty child in the world, and every mother has it. - Chinese Proverb Proclamation from Cincinnati Mayor Charlie Luken honoring Homeless Awareness Week Streetvibes Vendor Code of Conduct All Vendors Sign and Agree to a Code of Conduct Report Any Violations to GCCH - 421-7803 1. Streetvibes will be distributed for a $1 voluntary donation. If a customer donates more than $1 for a paper, vendors are allowed to keep that donation. However, vendors must never ask for more than $1 when selling Streetvibes. 2. Each paper purchased from the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH) costs 30 cents. Papers will not be given out on credit. Old papers can not be traded in for new papers. 3. Streetvibes may only be purchased from GCCH. Never buy papers from, or sell papers to other vendors. 4. Vendors must not panhandle or sell other items at the same time they are selling Streetvibes. 5. Vendors must treat all other vendors, customers, and GCCH personnel with respect. 6. Vendors must not sell Streetvibes while under the influence. 7. Vendors must not give a “hard sell” or intimidate anyone into purchasing Streetvibes. This includes following customers or continuing to solicit sales after customers have said no. Vendors must also never sell Streetvibes door-to-door. 8. Vendors must not deceive customers while selling Streetvibes. Vendors must be honest in stating that all profits go to the individual vendor. Vendors must not tell customers that the money they receive will go to GCCH or any other organization or charity. Also, vendors must not say that they are collecting for “the homeless” in general. 9. Vendors must not sell papers without their badge. Vendors must present their badge when purchasing papers from GCCH. Lost badges cost $2.00 to replace. Broken or worn badges will be replaced for free, but only if the old badge is returned to GCCH. 10. Streetvibes vendor meetings are held on the first weekday of the month at 1pm. The month’s paper will be released at this meeting. If a vendor cannot attend the meeting, he or she should let us know in advance. If a vendor does not call in advance and does not show up, that vendor will not be allowed to purchase papers on the day of the meeting or the following day. Five free papers will be given to those who do attend. 11. Failure to comply with the Code of Conduct may result in termination from the Streetvibes vendor program. GCCH reserves the right to terminate any vendor at any time as deemed appropriate. Badges and Streetvibes papers are property of GCCH, and must be surrendered upon demand. A mother is the truest friend we have, when trials, heavy and sudden, fall upon us; when adversity takes the place of prosperity; when friends who rejoice with us in our sunshine, desert us when troubles thicken around us, still will she cling to us, and endeavor by her kind precepts and counsels to dissipate the clouds of darkness, and cause peace to return to our hearts. - Washington Irving Before I got married I had six theories about bringing up children; now I have six children, and no theories. - John Wilmot Take motherhood: nobody ever thought of putting it on a moral pedestal until some brash feminists pointed out, about a century ago, that the pay is lousy and the career ladder nonexistent. - Barbara Ehrenreich Berta’s Art Corner Streetvibes Sunlight on a spigot Page 11 �ReSTOC Holds its 26th Anniversary Celebration & Dinner ReSTOC (Race Street Tenants Organization Cooperative) held its 26th Anniversary and Appreciation Dinner on May 2 at Elder High School in Price Hill. Residents, volunteers, staff and board members, and supporters joined together to celebrate another important year at ReSTOC, an Over-the-Rhine neighborhood low-income housing cooperative. A donated dinner of lasagna and other food items was provided to guests, along with entertainment and a progress report from Andy Hutzel, director of ReSTOC. Various volunteers and ReSTOC board members were recognized and honored including former director Jennifer Summers. Some of ReSTOC’s achievements this year included: • Serving as a meaningful volunteer site and learning experience for over 2,000 volunteers visiting Over-theRhine from suburban neighborhood’s. • Completing the renovation of 5 vacant, historic buildings into 25 affordable, family housing units in Over-the-Rhine. • Providing housing to 25 formerly homeless men and women. • Continuing to provide decent, quality housing for over 100 lowincome households. • Beginning a resident block club program with the Contact Center that empowers neighborhood residents to take back their streets.. ReSTOC is a low-income, racially integrated, community housing developer in the Over-the-Rhine neighborhood of Cincinnati, Ohio. ReSTOC was chartered in 1978 when the Drop Inn Center Homeless Shelter volunteers quietly but steadily worked to rehab several buildings; both abandoned and occupied, and ultimately saved a building from deterioration and three tenants from displacement. Founded as a co-operative in 1978, ReSTOC continues to have a Board of Owners that is at least 51% lowincome co-op tenants. ReSTOC’s history of development is born out of a grassroots initiative to create community ownership of housing. ReSTOC has always had a strong volunteer and community base. ReSTOC continues to utilize sweat equity on every development project. Much of ReSTOC’s development in the early years was done solely with private fundraising and volunteer labor (unit-by-unit, year-by­ year). ReSTOC has grown and changed over the years, developing larger projects and accessing many resources to continue a mission of providing quality, permanent housing. ReSTOC also continues its private and volunteer development with various programs. The 90 people attending ReSTOC’s 26th Anniversary Dinner represented a diverse group of people in support of decent, affordable housing. Thanks to those who attended and to the following sponsors: Tony Maas and JTM Meats, Coca-Cola, Elder High School, Busch Bros. Elevator Company, Cincinnati Central Credit Union, Clifton Ave Motor Service, Nu-Blend Paints, Southern Ohio Plate and Window Glass Corp Dinner is served Guests enjoy dinner entertainment The Vine Street Stompers perform during the ReSTOC 26th anniversary and appreciation dinner, held at Elder High School. Page 12 Streetvibes �The Rocking Chair by Marc D. Goldfinger She was leaning over the railing at the luggage conveyer. That was the first time I had seen her in over two years. I had my luggage in my hand and came around her from behind, surprised that she hadn’t seen me yet. Wondering why she hadn¹t seen me waiting for the luggage by the belt. I came up and tapped her on the shoulder. “Oh. I didn’t see you. Did you already get your luggage?” I hugged her and gave her a kiss on the cheek. “Mom. It’s so good to see you.” “Did you get your luggage already? Dad is waiting outside.” I carried my bag and walked next to her. The terminal doors swished open. The humidity stained the air. My father was waving to us. He was smiling but he looked sad to me. Something was different about my mother too. Maybe it was just me. This was the first time I had seen them since I had kicked my heroin habit. After thirty-two years of shooting dope some things were bound to be changed. I walked up to my father. Hugged him. He hugged me back. Everything felt strange. Maybe it was me. “When is Stella and Irv coming in from the cruise?” my mother asked. “Tomorrow night,” my father said. It was a brand new Buick. My father always did like Buicks. It seemed like a long ride to the condo from the airport. Everything seemed different than I remembered it. We made small talk as we rode. The kind of talking that you don’t remember later. I felt like smoking a cigarette. I needed a meeting. I watched the Florida landscape slip by. A man with shabby clothing held a sign as he stood at the exit of the interstate. The sign said, ‘Will work for food. Please help.’ I looked at all the cars around me, passing the man standing by the highway. The air-conditioning blew cool air on my face as we passed the man with the sign. The sweat was beaded on his face. “When is Stella and Irv coming in from the cruise?” my mother asked. “Tomorrow night,” my father said. They took me out for lunch at a kosher deli. More small talk. About different relatives. Who was sick. Who wasn’t sick. How hardly anyone went to the pool anymore. How everyone at the condo was getting older. Or dying. I had a corned beef sandwich with pickles. My mother had a salad. My father had liver and onions. He only ate a little bit of it. I remembered he never really liked liver and onions that much. When we got back to the condo I called the NA helpline. I needed a meeting. I felt numb and couldn’t process what I was feeling. My father and I went out to the pool. We were the only ones there for awhile. He had an old white sailor’s cap on. It was pulled down and it made him look like a boy with gray hair and wrinkles. He smiled with sad eyes as we talked. One other person came out to the pool and talked with us for awhile. He had been a stockbroker. He still played with stocks and my father talked with him about the market. I looked around the pool. There were six metal tables, about fifteen straight-back chairs, and about 25 chaise lounges on the patio by the pool. There were close to eighty condos in this section of the complex. It was 92 degrees. There were three of us at the pool. A few days ago some teenagers had been swimming at the pool. The police came. On most days the water is still. My father and I went back in to change. Mom was sitting on the back porch in a rocking chair. She called out to us. “When is Stella and Irv coming in from the cruise?” My father glanced at me. “Tomorrow night,” he answered. “Oh,” she said. And kept rocking. I changed into dry clothes. My father went to lay down and take a nap in the living room. Other than when company came over that was the only time anyone ever used the living room. I looked around the den. I had moved in there when I had first gotten out of prison. My parents had gone to a show the first night that I was there. My father had an old prescription for narcotics in the fridge and I ate them all. I passed out with a cigarette in my hand. Left a two inch burn in the den rug. It was a new rug. It was ten years later. That night, after supper, I went out to a meeting. No one showed up except for me. I read recovery literature and walked back to the condo. It was just me and my mind. The company couldn’t have been worse. My parents were already in bed by the time I got home. I turned the light out and listened to the fan on the ceiling spin. It was right over the bed. I imagined what would happen if it were to fall on me while I slept, still spinning as it dropped. The imagination is limited when it comes to the real. Things get left out. The morning light crept under the shade. I got up and went to the bathroom. Then I prayed and meditated. There was a meeting near the apartment today that I knew would happen but I was afraid Streetvibes anyway. For me, the alternative to meetings was unacceptable. My mother was sitting on the back porch rocking in the chair. They had closed in the golf course out back with new condominiums. I missed the vegetation that had surrounded the course. My father walked into the room. “She rocks all the time since the sickness. She asks the same questions over and over. I don’t know what to do so I just let her rock.” There were tears in his eyes. I walked out to the porch and asked her if she wanted to come in for breakfast. “In a little while,” she said. There were tears in her eyes. “Are you all right?” I asked. “Yes, I’m all right,” she said. She didn’t look directly at me. She stared out at the golf course. There were so many tears in her eyes that I didn¹t know what was keeping them from spilling down her cheeks. I put my hand on her shoulder. “Is there anything I can do?” “Let me rock,” was what she said. I walked back into the den. My father was sitting there. There were tears behind my sunglasses that he couldn’t see. I felt an impulse to keep them from running down my cheek. My father was crying. “Let her rock,” was all he said. So we did. Reprinted from BIGnews, New York City, June 2004 Page 13 �As the Crow Flies Inadequate What Shall I Render? by Michael Henson by Lisa Weber by Robert Manassa, Streetvibes Vendor It smells like something Straight had just died. through the mists of morning, Down on hands and knees, he rises, I search the rug. leaving the branch of pine where he has waited. My fingers rake the plush. He crosses the eroding field of corn, Under these nails the irrigation ditch, There is some dirt and blood, and the pale road of gravel, but no hope. and sets his course, straight, Digital and vacant, over the water tower and the village hall. a voice reaches me. Field after field, he flaps over Solace to silence. broad rectangles of soybeans It reminds me how close I am, then the smaller rectangles to becoming a simple whore. of the swelling suburbs. He crosses the malls and golf courses, I want to tear that need places barren as a sea of plastic, from my skin, and does not look down. to expose what lies beneath. He crosses the black ring of the beltway It just gets muted by choked with tractor trailers a desperate quiet and the parkway that even scares me. planted thick with SUVs. I bring my knees to the floor, To his right and to his left pass come eye to eye. the towers of the cell phones Rolling and rolling, the radio stations covering myself with and the star-headed towers of the television. something, He slides an updraft over the factories more pure. humming and yawning with the start of the shift Something perhaps, human. and the dark somnolent mills still sleeping under a blanket of dust and abandonment. The morning light blazes at the flanks of the corporate centers in their pools of chilled asphalt. But he does not look to the right or the left, nor does he veer to either side. He flies steady and true, straight across the apartment complexes straight down the lanes of the tormented projects The Bottom Line straight to the throbbing center by Michael Nelson straight to the pierced heart of the city. Sin on our streets, Death in our city, The bottom line is, Life shows us no pity. Be Yourself by Bruce Wilmer The world would like to change you; There are pressures all around. You must decide just who you are, Then firmly hold your ground. You have an image of yourself, An ideal sense of you, And to this vision you must always Struggle to be true. You know what you are good at, And you know where your talents lie, But if you are ruled by others, Your uniqueness could pass by. Remember, there is much to learn, But all new things aren’t good. Wisdom lies in what you’ve learned, And what you have withstood. So, be yourself and don’t allow The world to take control. Preserving you identity, Is life’s precious goal. Page 14 Women cheat on husbands, Men cheating on wives, The bottom line is, more pain in their lives. Kids killing kids, Cops shot everyday, The bottom line is, We all need to pray. People watch violence, See ladies quite nude, The bottom line is, Our morals are crude. I don’t have fine clothes, nor jewelry I don’t have a high position given me, I don’t even understand my missions, I can’t make a decision What shall I render? I can’t truly say I’ve done things right, I don’t even pray both day or nite, Sometimes I just plain forget, I wake up the next morning feeling regret, What shall I render? What shall I give in exchange for my soul? Am I going to far? Am I being too bold? I know God shed his precious blood for me, If I don’t have anything to render, Am I truly worthy? What shall I render? Diversity by Wanda (OTR Resident) The money people are attacking my home. On the west, they’re tearing down homes and the symphony wants Washington Park, in the name of cultural diversity. On the east, the business men and the rich landlords push for a ballpark and intervening districts, in the name of economic diversity. On the south, the downtown council wants to expand north and change all the streets to two-way, in the name of diversity. In the center is my home and yours, the poor, working poor, handicapped, homeless, all live and survive, day to day. The powers want diversity. We already have it. They should help, not attack. I will stand up for the right to live where I want, I won’t be in the middle of diversity. Our leaders are weaklings, Our court systems fail, The bottom line is, Does Truth ever prevail? The bottom line is, The end may be near, The bottom line is, Mankind shall know fear! Streetvibes Writers! Submit your Poetry to STREETVIBES ­ Streetvibes@juno.com �A queen bee, wrapped quite securely from the neck down in a cocoon of silk, hanging on a spider’s web, asked a passing drone what he thought of her hair. He replied, “Oh, you are a tangled mess!” She said, “What did you say?” But by this time the drone had passed out of earshot, so the spider answered her for him, “Your Majesty, he was simply referring to the quality of my workmanship and showing your Highness the utmost respect simultaneously. He simply inquired, ‘How do you do, your tangledness?’” “Oh, that’s much better.” * A blind man, after completing his research at the Library of Alexandria, Egypt, leaves and is traveling down the road. Up ahead on the other side he hears an animal trainer with his elephant having fun with a group of blind men. After having each feel a part of the animal he asks in turn what he thinks the creature is. The one who felt the tail says he thinks it’s a snake. The one who felt a leg says, “A tree trunk.” The one who felt its side says, “The side of a house.” The lone blind traveler listens and laughs. A passing stranger asks him, “What’s so funny?” The lone blind traveler replies, “It’s quite simple and easy to deduce what the unseen creature is. It produces more #$%* than we will ever know what to do with. It takes up a great deal of space. And it’s capable of trampling down much in meadow, forest and town, but eventually leaving plenty of room for new growth. The unseen creature is obviously a Republican. THE VIETNAM VETS SANGHA Life Is Like a Chicken Wire Fence by jh Through the void, the outstretched hand directs you to the icy, blind stare. Fearful, glassy, scratched and marred. Retarded plea, old recital, tedious. I want to go.... Beneath the surface of this rounded gem, speaks a chorus of screaming violence. There is a smell. I want to leave, keep on walking. Then, our fears grow like fruitless vine. Clinging to the cracks and concrete, in that place, beyond the Fence. “Sorry, I don’t have anything to give.” “Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius — and a lot of courage — to move in the opposite direction.” - Albert Einstein Numbness settles in and the world breaks down To a question, a begging and violent question about you And me, caught in the ice with fire all around, and A dog barks at a baby that is learning to walk just As hands hold the dog, caress the baby, and release: WHO WILL GIVE PEACE A CHANCE? 10,000 posters later, the question Is fixed in the tombstone, attached to The unbeating heart, twisted In the pictures of a travelogue to hell, tangled Among the bodies making a pyramid, a child’s Game gone to lynching, hanging from a tree, caught In tape, on video, “Hello, Mom.” and fused In the future memory of another child-warrior, imprisoned In the smiles of the lost. I read in Jane’s book that awareness Can happen by opening a door in A story so horrible that the only way out Is in, through, around, crawling in the s@#$ Pile to find the understanding. The child went in, The adult emerged. Join hands, friends, and help Me look for the door in, out, deeper, above and Into understanding and love. The vets have taught forgiveness, patience, and Holding the heart in our breath as a way of releasing The wisdom of our suffering. Now, many of my brothers and Sisters are crying, losing hope, forgetting the old skills of ringing Our world bell of being awake. That ringing in my ears is also the bell of hope. Can you hear it? The Peace Village Shutter Speed by Jimmy Heath by jba Race Street, Over-the-Rhine Streetvibes Page 15 �Ursuline Academy Students Explore Homelessness in humbled, educated and grew Cincinnati spiritually from the Ursuline Academy is founded on a long history of educating young women in the tradition of St. Angela Merici. St. Angela (1474-1540) believed that it was only through the education of young women that society would take on Christian values and attitudes necessary for change. Her belief in the role of women was counter-cultural and futuristic and began a movement that has become world wide, know as “Ursuline Education”. Homelessness is a problem not only in the world, but in our country - and in our city. But what can we do about it? Over the years Ursuline Academy has hosted a “Shantytown,” a threeday awareness-raising event in which students construct and sleep in cardboard “shanties.” Each evening there are activities, guest speakers and musicians, and a fund-raising dinner to help combat homelessness and educate people about this very real problem that affects thousands of people. With the recent controversy over the rights of the homeless in Cincinnati and elsewhere, we will have special interest in learning the facts about homelessness and why this social problem causes such extreme reactions from people. Ursuline Shantytown participants with Streetvibes guest speaker Grady Cook (l) up in a home similar to mine. It struck me how foolish I had been and that what these people were faced with sometimes dealt with things beyond their control. I’ve learned not to judge or associate people with certain groups, for everyone is an individual with their own story to tell. by Maeve Elder I was surprised at how much I was affected by my Shantytown experience. I helped organize the event and I go to the Drop Inn Center frequently. I’m not unfamiliar with the homeless. Shantytown (reflections written But the fact is that I am by Ursuline students particpating unfamiliar with homelessness. in Shantytown) Spending three days in a Shanty was difficult for me. I by Holly Fields hadn’t been aware how much Shantytown was one of simple comforts meant to me. the most eye-opening I was no longer able to go into experiences that I have my room and relax in solitude participated in for quite some because I was living at school, time. Never have I been so a place always bustling with thankful for what I have, or activity. Sometimes it felt so felt so humbled by the oppressive that I couldn’t just presence of others. go home. I was forced to Homelessness was a way of life somewhat unknown to me. think about how it would feel I had little background on this if I didn’t have a “home” to means of living and had never look forward to at the end of three days. been faced wit it. Upon I struggled with the fact hearing the stories form the that I had relatively no control men and woman of the Drop over my situation. Inn Center and the Greater In this case, I had Cincinnati Coalition for the committed to participating and Homeless, my previously I couldn’t just give up and formed ideals changed leave, but there were moments drastically. I had a certain when I wanted to. For people opinion of homeless people, who are really without a home, and instantly after the talks, I felt ridiculous and ashamed for getting out of the situation they are in isn’t even a my way of thinking. These concrete option. were people just like me. As some one who often Many of them had had a shies away from asking people positive family life and grew Page 16 for favors, it was humiliating to have to ask people for money, fully aware that I couldn’t pay them back. My experience with Shantytown completely changed me and while opening me up to the experience of being homeless, it compelled me to analyze my own needs and values. I will not claim that I have been acquainted with homelessness in a real form, for that is certainly not the truth. I have, however, been forced to step out of a comfort zone, which I didn’t even know existed, to learn more about an experience I had previously claimed to know a lot about. by Elizabeth Brandel I entered the chapel at the beginning of Shantytown with a few goals – to get a break from my hectic schedule, to meet new people, and to learn more about homelessness. Despite the fact that I achieved all my goals, the experience affected me more than I could have ever imagined. I was Streetvibes experience. I bonded with my fellow upper-classwomen as we ate together at the Drop Inn Center. We saw, together, tears welling up in people’s eyes as they told their story. We were moved and changed. For myself, it made me thankful for what I have. I found a new love and respect for my family and friends. Throughout the entire Shantytown experience, I grew closer to people, especially to my friend Jenny. We sat in our box and talked for hours about our lives. The experience gave us the opportunity to simply talk, and share our story. As one of my best friends, I had not been able to tell her things due to our busy schedules. However, I have learned that you have to make time. Life is short, and you are in control of how you spend it. I have learned to let my guard down and cry with people I normally don’t. I am typically a person who doesn’t let people “in” or show my emotions that much. I sobbed at Shantytown. This may not be a big deal for many people, but it was for me. Shantytown affected me emotionally as well as gave me time to find myself and let others find me as well. It was a refreshing experience and made me a happier person at Ursuline Academy. I would recommend this experience to anyone who needs a break and is in search of something more – of yourself, your friends, your life.... Ursuline.... cont. next page �by Alexander Zaitchik If the president wasn’t so forthright about his disinterest in the world, it would have been hard to believe him last month when he said the abuse in Abu Ghraib prison “doesn’t represent the America I know.” But who can doubt him? To represent the America George W. Bush knows, there would have to be explosive snapshots of Iraqi detainees lounging by the Abu Ghraib pool, barbequing ribs and snorting primo Bolivian coke off empty cases of Coors Light. There would have to be shocking reports of prisoners with family members on the Iraqi Governing Council being handed sweetheart deals on professional sports franchises and energy firms. Of course, if the President were more of a newspaper-reading sort of feller, he wouldn’t have been so shocked by the pictures. As a tough-on-crime Texan, he would have recognized such treatment immediately, perhaps even feeling a little swell of pride. If he’d ever put down the Bible for a broadsheet after his conversion, he’d know that “Texas prison” is one of the most feared phrases in the language - and he’d know why. When he sat down in front of Arab TV audiences last month to explain the true American way, he could have pointed to an October, 1999 story in the Austin American Statesman that detailed how female prisoners there were regularly kept in portable detention cells for hours at a time in summer heat with no water. “In fear of more time in the cages,” the article explains, “many women submit sexually to their oppressors and are raped, molested and forced to perform sodomy on their captors.” And in 1996, if Bush hadn’t so busy handling the transfer of $9 billion in public funds over to the University of Texas Investment Management Company, the governor might have had time to read about the videotape that surfaced that year depicting prison guards brutalizing inmates in the Brazoria County Detention Center in Angleton, TX. The tape, which was originally shot for use as a training video, showed riotclad guards beating prisoners (arrested on drug violations) and forcing them to crawl while kicking them and poking them with electric prods. Had Bush cleared a little time to watch this video, he would had an easier time digesting the images out of Abu Ghraib, and thus saved himself those few moments of humiliating supplication in front of all those Arabs, based as they were on the faulty assumption that those pictures “weren’t America.” If only some governor’s aide had told him in 1999 about the hunger strike at the notorious Terrel Unit facility in Livingston, TX, where death-row prisoner Michael Sharp said before his execution, many guards “think it is their patriotic duty to torture and brutalize prisoners.” If only he had not been so busy reclining in box seats at Rangers home games, the governor might have known that prisoners’ attorney Donna Brorby had described Texas’ super-max prisons as “the worst in the country,” where guards reportedly gas prisoners and throw them down on concrete floors while handcuffed. Then the president might have been better equipped to recognize his country in those pictures. Considering all the downtime the President has spent in the Lone Star State since 2000, he might have even heard about the 2002 conclusion of the 30-year legal battle Ruiz v. Johnson. In its write up of the case, the Austin Chronicle reported the words of Texas Judge William Wayne Justice, written after hearing lengthy expert and inmate testimony on prison conditions: Texas prison inmates continue to live in fear. More vulnerable inmates are raped, beaten, owned, and sold by more powerful ones. Despite their pleas to prison officials, they are often refused protection. Instead, they pay for protection, in money, services, or sex. Correctional officers continue to rely on the physical control of excessive force to enforce order. Those inmates locked away in administrative segregation, especially those with mental illnesses, are subjected to extreme deprivations and daily psychological harm. But no, the abuse at Abu Ghraib does not represent any America that George Bush could possibly have known about. The America he knows never sets foot inside prisons. It just owns them and fills them and builds them. Anything that happens after that, well, it might as well be another country. Alexander Zaitchik can be reached at: zaitchik@nypress.com Ursuline Students from Ursuline and Moeller joined together for an educational activity which drove home the importance of food distribution throughout the world. We ate soup and bread, and afterwards listened to Mark Teegarden from the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. That night we slept for the final time in our shanties, this time on an even colder night. Shantytown really made me think about the lives of the homeless on a much more personal level. The most influential part of the three days was realizing, in comparison to the real thing, I had a cardboard shanty to sleep in - most homeless people are outside completely vulnerable to the elements. I had friends to bring me lunch. I had my shantybuddy to help me bundle up and keep warm. The hardest part of Shantytown for me was the uncertainty. Where would my next meal come form? How would I get my homework finished? I found that the most underestimated part of homelessness is the difficulty to go about daily life if you don’t know what the next hour will bring. Shantytown made me appreciate my life so much more, and it made me realize that homelessness is an issue I want to help dissolve. Livable wage and affordable housing are important concerns in this country. I may not have all the answers, but at least I have some experience to guide me in the search. Abu Ghraib - Doesn’t It Ring a (Prison) Bell? from page 16 by Kasey Wilson From April 26th to the 28th, 25 Ursuline academy students temporarily experienced homelessness during Shantytown. We constructed cardboard “shanties” outside of the school to sleep in for two nights. We were told to only bring the clothes on our back and necessary toiletries outside of the school to sleep in for two nights. The first night, we visited the Drop Inn Center and toured the building. We ate dinner with the residents and talked with homeless and formerly homeless people. That night, we slept in our shanties, thankful for the warmth on a chilly night. During the next day, we begged for food and battled sleepiness during school. The second night, Ursuline hosted an Empty Bowls Night. Streetvibes Page 17 �What Sinclair Doesn’t Want You to See on ‘Nightline’ Last month, ABC’s Nightline broadcast read a list of U.S. soldiers who have died in Iraq. But some viewers weren’t able to see the program: The Sinclair Broadcast Group, which owns several ABC affiliates, announced that it would not air the Nightline segment on its stations. A statement on Sinclair’s website explained: “While the Sinclair Broadcast Group honors the memory of the brave members of the military who have sacrificed their lives in the service of our country, we do not believe such political statements should be disguised as news content. As a result, we have decided to preempt the broadcast of Nightline this Friday on each of our stations which air ABC programming.” Sinclair’s rationale for the censorship of Nightline is explicitly political: “Before you judge our decision, however, we would ask that you first question Mr. Koppel as to why he chose to read the names of the 523 troops killed in combat in Iraq, rather than the names of the thousands of private citizens killed in terrorists attacks since and including the events of September 11, 2001.” A response statement from ABC said that the network did broadcast a list of the victims of the September 11 attacks on the one-year anniversary. This is not the first time that Sinclair’s conservative political leanings - 98 percent of its 2004 political contributions have gone to Republicans (MediaChannel.org, 4/29/04) ­ have led the company into journalistic controversy. In February, a Sinclair news crew was sent to Iraq to cover the “good news” that was allegedly going unreported in the rest of the media (Baltimore Sun, 2/18/ 04). And shortly after the September 11 attacks, Sinclair executives required stations to air editorial statements in support of the Bush administration (Extra!, 11-12/ 01). Sinclair controls about 60 TV stations, including eight ABC affiliates, some in substantial population centers: WSYX— Columbus, Ohio KDNL— St. Louis, Mo. WXLV— Greensboro, WinstonSalem, High Point, N.C. WEAR— Mobile, AL & Pensacola, Fla. WLOS— Asheville, N.C. WCHS— Charleston & Huntington, W.V. WGGB— Springfield, Mass. WTXL— Tallahassee, Fla. It’s possible that some Nightline viewers, faced with how many American lives have been lost in Iraq, may become opposed to the war. It’s also possible that others will see the show as an argument for fighting and winning in Iraq, so that these deaths will not have been in vain. Journalists, however, should not decide whether to report the reality of a war depending on what they assume the political reaction might be. The American people need full reporting on the situation in Iraq - including the toll in U.S. and Iraqi lives - so that they can make an informed judgment on whether the war’s goals are worth the costs. Sinclair may claim that it honors the memory of the dead members of the military. It evidently prefers, however, that they should be remembered without being mentioned. “Harsh Methods” Aren’t Torture, Says the NY Times from FAIR-L (Fairness & Accuracy In Reporting) The New York Times, revealing the interrogation techniques the CIA is using against Al-Qaeda suspects, seemed unable to find a source who would call torture by its proper name. Last month’s article, headlined “Harsh CIA Methods Cited in Top Qaeda Interrogation,” described “coercive interrogation methods” endorsed by the CIA and the Justice Department, including hooding, food and light deprivation, withholding medications, and “a technique known as ‘waterboarding,’ in which a prisoner is strapped down, forcibly pushed under water and made to believe he might drown.” The article took pains to explain why, according to U.S. officials, such techniques do not constitute torture: “Defenders of the operation said the methods stopped short of torture, did not violate American anti-torture statutes, and were necessary to fight a war against a nebulous enemy whose strength and intentions could only be gleaned by extracting information from often uncooperative detainees.” The article seemed to accept that the techniques described are something other Page 18 the Convention, “torture” is: than torture: “The tactics “any act by which severe pain simulate torture, but officials or suffering, whether physical say they are supposed to stop or mental, is intentionally short of serious injury.” The inflicted on a person for such implication is that only purposes as obtaining from him interrogation methods that or a third person information or cause serious physical harm would be real and not simulated a confession, punishing him for an act he or a third person has torture. committed or is suspected of The article quoted no having committed, or one who said that the CIA intimidating or methods described ...a technique coercing him or a were, in fact, third person, or torture. Yet it known as would have been ‘waterboarding,’ in for any reason based on easy to find human which a prisoner is discrimination of rights experts who strapped down, any kind, when would describe such pain or them as such. The forcibly pushed suffering is website of Human under water and inflicted by or at Rights Watch made to believe he the instigation of reports that “the might drown.” or with the prohibition against consent or torture under acquiescence of a public official international law applies to or other person acting in an many measures,” including official capacity.” “near drowning through Noting the Convention’s submersion in water.” The article did quote the reference to “consent or acquiescence” would have been Geneva Conventions’ prohibition against “violence to helpful in evaluating the claims made by officials in the article life and person, in that the U.S. can skirt particular...cruel treatment and prohibitions on torture if torture” and “outrages upon detainees are formally in the personal dignity, in particular, custody of another country. humiliating and degrading In fact, the Convention treatment.” But it did not quote the definition of “torture” Against Torture, which the U.S. signed in 1994, explicitly under international law, prohibits sending a person contained in the 1984 anywhere “where there are Convention Against Torture, substantial grounds for which makes it clear that believing that he would be in psychological as well as danger of being subjected to physical methods of coercion torture.” are prohibited. According to Streetvibes The Times might have looked back to its own archives on the subject to find critics of U.S. detention policies. Some of the information included in the May 13, 2004 article was first reported on March 9, 2003— except the original story quoted Holly Burkhalter of Physicians for Human Rights, who decried the lack of a “specific policy that eschews torture.” It also noted critics’ assertion that “transferring Qaeda suspects to countries where torture is believed common— like Egypt, Jordan and Saudi Arabia— violates American law and the 1984 international convention against torture, which bans such transfers.” While the article did impart important information about the tactics being used by American agents to interrogate terrorist suspects, it’s also critical to know whether these methods violate international or domestic law. By relying solely on administration officials to define what torture is and what the U.S. government’s legal obligations are, the New York Times failed to provide the context necessary for readers to make an informed judgment. CONTACT: New York Times Daniel Okrent, Public Editor mailto:public@nytimes.com Phone: (212) 556-7652 Toll free comment line: 1-888­ NYT-NEWS �Food Research and Action Center News (FRAC) (“Farmers’ Markets To Accept Surging Food Prices (“Food Prices Surge,” The Washington Post, May 2, 2004) The price of many basic food items has been climbing steeply, and the trend is expected to continue through 2004. Milk, meat, eggs, oil, and produce prices are rising nationwide, marking the first case of serious food inflation in years. The price increases are due to a stronger economy, increasing fuel costs, and bad weather here and abroad. One measure of the price of groceries shows a 10 percent increase in a year. There is some evidence price increases now are moderating. http:// www.washingtonpost.com/wp­ dyn/articles/A57945­ 2004Apr30.html Some School Lunch Programs Exceed Federal Fat Content Guidelines (“What’s For Lunch?,” Pasadena Star News, May 2, 2004) Five school districts in Los Angeles County were found to exceed federal guidelines for fat content in their school lunch nutrition programs. The school districts have stated that the data were outdated and have corrected their lunch menus to be in compliance. The survey was conducted by the California Department of Education, seeking to discover if the state’s school lunch programs were contributing to childhood obesity rates. State superintendent of public instruction Jack O’Connell noted that, “For many of our students a school lunch is the only healthy meal of the day,” and “while most California schools are doing a good job in providing healthy meals, we can do better.” http:// www.pasadenastarnews.com/ Stories/ 0,1413,206~22097~2123533,00.html States’ Tax Receipts Rise, Leading To Some Surpluses (“States’ Tax Receipts Rise, Leading To Some Surpluses,” The New York Times, May 4, 2004) Thirty-two states across the nation are reporting budget surpluses for fiscal year 2004, according to a survey by the National Conference of State Legislatures. Tax revenues have been stronger in recent months than the same period a year ago, giving many states their first consistent increase in three years. However, the surpluses are small, and tax collections are not rising fast enough to keep pace with increasing Medicaid, pensions, and education costs, which account for the bulk of state budgets. As a result, 33 states faced projected shortfalls in their 2005 budgets. In recent years most states compensated for the lost revenue by cutting programs, raising tuition and fees, or borrowing. http:// www.nytimes.com/2004/05/04/ politics/ 04TAXE.html?ex=1084248000& en=296ffe9566be8e20&ei=5062 &partner=GOOGLE Obese Kids More Likely To Be Bullying Victims And Aggressors (“Obese Kids More Likely To Be Bullying Victims And Aggressors,” SFGate.com, May 3, 2004) A study of by Queens University in Ontario found that obese children are more than twice as likely to be bullied at least once a week than their peers. Obese children are also more likely to be bullies. The study underscores that obesity endangers not just a child’s physical health, but emotional as well. The findings support similar research conducted previously in England and a study in the U.S. that found obese children, due to health problems and teasing from being overweight, rated their quality of life as low as did child cancer patients. http:// www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/ article.cgi?f=/news/archive/ 2004/05/03/ national0904EDT0479. DTL&type=health Oregon Anti-Hunger Efforts Win Federal Praise (“Hunger-relief Efforts Win Feds’ Stamp Of Approval,” Salem Statesman Journal, May 6, 2004) In 1996-98, Oregon had the hungriest households in the nation. The state’s efforts to fight hunger through raising food stamp participation shot its participation rate to 84 percent in 2001, one of the highest nationally. Undersecretary Eric Bost of the U.S. Department of Agriculture in a recent visit in Oregon lauded the state’s efforts, emphasizing the continued need to raise participation rates. He spoke of the administration’s commitment to “ensure that eligible people participate in all of our nutrition programs.” Bost also mentioned that food stamp eligibility is not tied to welfare, a misconception many families had after Congress put time limits on welfare cash payments. Having enough food is important for schoolchildren as well, who otherwise have difficulty learning and growing, said a state human services official. http:// news.statesmanjournal.com/ article.cfm?i=79681 Only 1 In 3 Eligible Connecticut Children Has School Breakfast (“Let’s Take A Walk And Talk About Hungry Children,” Hartford Courant, May 2, 2004) Connecticut may be the richest state in the country, but it ranks 44th for its participation rate in the school breakfast program. Only a third of the children eligible for free and reduced price lunch also eat a school breakfast. Less than half of Connecticut’s schools even serve breakfast. End Hunger Connecticut! is advocating legislation requiring all schools with a large percentage of lowincome students to offer breakfast. The legislation is part of other anti-hunger efforts in the state, where food banks like Foodshare serve increasing need every year. The state will hold a 3-mile Walk Against Hunger. http:// www.ctnow.com/features/ lifestyle/hc-susan0502.artmay 02,0,6159537.column Billions In Public Aid Going Unclaimed In New York City (“Let feds, state help you, say Betsy & Marty,” New York Daily News, May 4, 2004) Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum and Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz held a news conference at Brooklyn Borough Hall last Friday urging borough residents to take advantage of billions of dollars in federal and state aid going unclaimed in the city. 835,000 New Yorkers who are eligible to receive an average of $1,100 each in food stamps every year are not doing so. Also underutilized is the Women, Infants, and Children program that gives an average annual benefit of $431 to pregnant women and new mothers to meet their children’s nutritional needs. Less than half of the 525,000 eligible women in the city who qualify get the benefit. http://www.nydailynews.com/ boroughs/story/189776p­ 164196c.html Farmers’ Markets To Accept Food Stamps Streetvibes Food Stamps,” NBC4.TV News, April 28, 2004) Food stamp participants may now use their Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) card at select Los Angeles County certified farmers’ markets. While most farmers’ markets have traditionally accepted food stamps, the EBT card, which works like an ATM debit card, “presented a unique challenge,” said Pompea Smith, director of the Hollywood Farmers’ Market. The use of wireless point-of-sale devices now gives poor families access to farmers markets and fresh produce. The California Department of Health Services hopes that raising awareness about the Farmers’ Market EBT program and its convenience will raise food stamp participation among eligible families in Los Angeles County, says Smith. http:// www.nbc4.tv/news/3247752/ detail.html Obesity Found Among New York City Toddlers (“One-Quarter Of Poor NYC Toddlers Are Overweight,” Yahoo News, April 28, 2004) A recent study found 22 percent of 2- to 4-year olds enrolled in a food & nutrition assistance program for low-income New York City residents are overweight, with 18 percent close to being obese. The toddlers are enrolled in the New York City Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC), a branch of the federal WIC program for low-income families. The study suggests that steps against obesity should begin at a very young age. The author of the study, Dr. Mary Ann Chiasson, also pointed to the problem that low-income families are generally limited to buying inexpensive foods, which are often unhealthy. Healthier foods such as fresh fruits and vegetables are expensive. http://story.news.yahoo.com/ news?tmpl=story&cid=571&ncid =751&e=2&u=/nm/20040428/ hl_nm/nyc_toddlers_dc To subscribe to the weekly FRAC digest go to - http:// capwiz.com/frac/mlm/ Helen Yuen Food Research and Action Center 1875 Connecticut Avenue, NW Suite 540 Washington, DC 20009 (202) 986-2200 x3019 phone (202) 986-2525 fax Page 19 �357-4602 Formed in 1984, The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a membership organization. Our member groups serve the homeless through emergency shelter, transitional living facilities, permanent housing, medical services, social services, soup kitchens, and mental health/addiction services. The Coalition also consists of individual citizens who want to take an active role in ensuring that Cincinnati is an inclusive community, meeting the needs of all of its citizens. Join the fight to end homelessness; contact the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless at (513) 421-7803, 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 SHELTER: Both Anthony House (Youth) SHELTER: Men City Gospel Mission 241-5525 Garden St. House 241-0490 Joseph House (Veterans) 241-2965 St. Francis/St.Joseph House 381-4941 Mt. Airy Center 661-4620 Volunteers of Amer. 381-1954 SHELTERS: Women and Children YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter 872-9259 (Toll Free) 1-888-872-9259 Bethany House 557-2873 Salvation Army 762-5660 Welcome Hse. 859-431-8717 Women’s Crisis Center 859-491-3335 If you need help or would like to help please call one of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless members listed below. OTHER SERVICES: AIDS Volunteers of Cincinnati 421-2437 Appalachian Identity Center 621-5991 Beech Acres 231-6630 Center for Independent Living Options 241-2600 Churches Active in Northside 591-2246 Cincinnati Health Network 961-0600 Community Action Agency 569-1840 Contact Center 381-4242 Emanuel Center 241-2563 TREATMENT: Both N.A. Hopeline 820-2947 A.A. Hotline 351-0422 C.C.A.T. 381-6672 Talbert House 684-7956 Transitions, Inc 859-491-4435 VA Domiciliary 859-559-5011 DIC Live-In Program 721-0643 TREATMENT: Men Charlie’s 3/4 House 784-1853 Prospect House 921-1613 Starting Over 961-2256 TREATMENT: Women First Step Home 961-4663 Full Circle Program 721-0643 HOUSING: CMHA 721-4580 Excel Development 632-7149 Miami Purchase 241-0504 OTR Housing Net. 369-0004 ReSTOC 381-1171 Tender Mercies 721-8666 Tom Geiger House 961-4555 Dana Transitional Bridge Services, Inc 751-9797 Caracole (AIDS) 761-1480 Friars Club 381-5432 Drop Inn Center 721-0643 Haven House 863-8866 Interfaith Hospitality 471-1100 Lighthouse Youth Center (Teens) 961-4080 St. John’s Housing 651-6446 Need Help or Want to Help? MIDDLETOWN/HAMILTON (Butler County) St. Raphaels (Food Bank/Soup Kitchen) 863-3184 Salvation Army 863-1445 Serenity House Day Center 422-8555 Open Door Pantry 868-3276 New Life Baptist Mission (Soup Kitchen) 896-9800 Hope House (Homeless Families/Singles) 423-4673 Freestore/ Foodbank 241-1064 Fransiscan Haircuts 651-6468 Goodwill Industries 771-4800 Coalition for the Homeless 421-7803 Hamilton Co. Mental Health Board 946-8600 Mental Health Access Point 558-8888 Hamilton Co. TB Control 632-7186 Health Rsrc. Center 357-4602 Homeless Mobile Health Van 352-2902 House of Refuge Mission 221-5491 Legal Aid Society 241-9400 Madisonville Ed. & Assis. Center 271-5501 Mary Magdalen House 721-4811 McMicken Dental Clinic 352-6363 Our Daily Bread 621-6364 Peaslee Neighborhood Center 621-5514 Project Connect Homeless Kids 357-5720 St. Vincent De Paul 562-8841 The Emergency Food Center 471-4357 Travelers Aid 721-7660 United Way 721-7900 VA Homeless 859-572-6226 Women Helping Women 872-9259 June, 2004 Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless Draws Attention to Cincinnati Families Homeless Awareness Week Cover Story BUY FROM BADGED VENDORS ONLY STREETVIBES $1 Donation � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 2004 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource June 2004 Subject The topic of the resource Homelessness Description An account of the resource Pg 1: Mother’s Day Luncheon kicks off a week of awareness-raising events Pg 2: A Journey I Needed to Make Pg 3: Letters from Readers Pg 4: GCHC Pg 5: Panhandling for Justice spreads awareness about homelessness Pg 6: Homeless News Digest Pg 7: Many Sides to Everything Pg 8: The Peace Village Pg 9: Dad Remembered Homeless Pg 10: Homeless Awareness Continued Pg 11: GCHC Pg 12: ReSTOC Holds its 26th Anniversary Celebration & Dinner Pg 13: The Rocking Chair Pg 14: Art & Poetry Pg 15: Art & Poetry Continued Pg 16: Ursuline Academy Students Explore Homelessness in Cincinnati Pg 17: Abu Ghraib Pg 18: What Sinclair Doesn’t Want You to See on ‘Nightline’ Pg 19: FRAC News Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Streetvibes Archive Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Streetvibes Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2004 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Georgine Getty Allison Leeuw Andy Erickson Elizabeth Linville Janice Faulkner Mary Gaffney Jimmy Heath Susan Smith Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Abu Ghraib Allison Leeuw Andy Erickson Arts & Poetry Cincinnati city council Elizabeth Linville FRAC GCHC Georgine Getty IRS Janice Faulkner Jimmy Heath Mary Gaffney Mother’s Day Ney York Times panhandling Prison ReSTOCK Susan Smith The Peace Village Ursuline Academy https://streetvibesarchive.net/files/original/8288922e819012085549e1e0581e845b.pdf d2292af8daea96e1600ae9e9d6051d94 PDF Text Text Streetvibes March 2004 Radio Marathon Brings the Voices of Homelessness to with my family when I was the Airwaves car younger – I’ve never forgotten this,” by Jimmy Heath On one of the coldest days of the year, Cleveland homeless advocates spent the night outside in a makeshift booth to campaign for homelessness awareness. The Seventh Annual Homelessness Marathon aired from Cleveland, Ohio on Thursday, February 12th and ran until 9AM on Friday. The homeless and advocates brought their concerns to the public in the overnight marathon radio show heard across much of North America. The 14 hour radio broadcast originates from the streets of a different city each year. The radio broadcast - the longest regularly scheduled public affairs program in America is “the most significant media event focusing on homelessness and poverty” according to Donald Whitehead, executive director of the National Coalition for the Homeless. “Homelessness continues to be a silent issue, and we will do whatever it takes to give homeless people a voice,” founder and radio host Jeremy Weir Alderson said. “We give them the chance to tell their stories and talk about the obstacles they face. And from what I’ve seen, America does care.” As in past years, the broadcast booth was set up outside to dramatize the plight of people with nowhere to go in the cold. The St. Malachi Center on Cleveland’s west side was host to the event, providing an indoors respite from the cold, along with hot food and drinks, some of which were donated by the Cleveland Restaurant Association and other local agencies. Calls were taken from around the country; the program focused on homeless issues nationwide. The program’s goal was to generate a national dialogue about homelessness and poverty in America and to create positive momentum for solving these problems. Presidential candidate Dennis J. Kucinich called in on-air during the Marathon to express his gratitude to the work of the homeless advocates in Cleveland. “Society has an obligation to provide housing to everyone,” he said. “Affordable housing, jobs – these are things that I’m concerned with,” said Kucinich . “First thing we need is affordable housing and living wage jobs. Then we need universal health care, tuition-free college. But first we need to address immediate needs. There is a fundamental moral obligation to help people. I lived in a said Kucinich. His message to those still on the streets? “Never resign yourself to being homeless.” Kucinich sponsored a Homelessness Summit in 2003 in his home district of Cleveland. The Summit assembled advocates, elected officials, and homeless people to examine the causes of homelessness in the district and identify the gaps in services and ways to close them. Kucinich convened the Summit in response to the increasing frequency with which his constituents were contacting his office about homeless related Brian Davis, executive Director of the Northeast Ohio Coalition for the services. More than 26,000 people are Homeless (left) is interveiwed bt Marathon host Jeremy Weir Alderson homeless in Cuyahoga County Homelessness Marathon. This years’ every year since its inception in (Cleveland) according to Brian Davis 1998. The first broadcast was heard Marathon was heard on nearly 80 of the Northeast Ohio Coalition for stations nationwide, and on 25 to 30 only on WEOS in Geneva, New the Homeless (NEOCH). stations carrying the Canadian York. The sixth broadcast, in 2003, There were no on-air Homeless Marathon. Visit the was heard on more than 70 stations solicitations for money as Maraththon’s Web site - http:// coast-to-coast, with another 18 “consciousness raising, not fund www.homelessnessmarathon.org. stations airing a parallel Canadian raising,” was the Marathon’s policy. “The most important thing we do is put homeless people on the air,” says Marathon producer Karen D’Andrea. “So we make a great deal of effort to get their participation, by working with shelters to set up special listening rooms, contacting advocacy groups, and making a kind of homeless people’s block party right at the broadcast site.” Many homeless people and advocates took advantage of the free call-in and the onsite microphone. The broadcast was made available free to stations via the NPR and Pacifica satellites and a Webcast. The Marathon continues to grow Fred listens to the Marathon on the radio Streetvibes Vendor: 70 cents Printing and Production: 30 cents Where Your Dollar Goes... The Streetvibes program maintains a minimal overhead cost so that our vendors can keep as much of the proceeds as possible. Please call our office at 421-7803 for more information about the program. Many thanks for your support. Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless �STREETVIBES The Tri-State's Homeless Grapevine Streetvibes, the Tri-State's alternative news source, is a newspaper written by, for, and about the homeless and contains relevant discussions of social justice, and poverty issues. It is published once a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Becoming a Streetvibes Vendor is a great way for home­ less and other low-income people to get back on (or stay on) their feet. Streetvibes Vendors are given an orientation and sign a code of conduct before being given a Streetvibes Vendor badge. All profits go directly to the vendor. The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a group of shelters, agencies and individuals committed to ending homelessness in Cincinnati through coordinating services, educating the public and grassroots organizing. GCCH Staff Georgine Getty - Executive Director Brendan Goodwin - Administra­ tive Coordinator Andy Erickson - Education Coordinator Elizabeth Linville - Civil Rights Coordinator Mary Gaffney - Receptionist Streetvibes Jimmy Heath, Editor Photographers Jimmy Heath, Berta Lambert, Curtis Proffitt Cover Homelessness Marathon outdoor radio broadcast booth, Cleveland - photo by Jimmy Heath Streetvibes accepts letters, poems, stories, essays, original graphics, and photos. We will give preference to those who are homeless or ven­ dors. Subscriptions to Streetvibes, de­ livered to your home each month, can be purchased for $25 per year. Address mail to: Streetvibes Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH) 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 (513) 421-7803 e-mail: streetvibes@juno.com web: http://homeless.cinci.com Ohio Cities Face Common Challenges by Jimmy Heath There are an estimated 26,000 people in the Cleveland, Ohio metro-area who experience homelessness each year. Over 2,000 are homeless each night. In appearance and circumstances, the faces of homelessness in Cleveland are the same as in Cincinnati. Men and woman, families and children, all struggle to afford decent, affordable housing while maintaining a sustainable living. Women and children continue to be the fastest growing segment of the homeless population in both of these Ohio cities. Cleveland is now the home of the largest shelter in the state. 2100 Lakeside Place has a capacity of 400 persons, but more than 500 people are routinely housed there each night when the weather is bad and because they never turn people away who need help. Lack of affordable housing Ohio’s largest shelter, 2100 Lakeside Place is the major contributor to the Streetvibes newspaper nearly eight dealing with the issue of homeless population in both homelessness is education, and Cleveland and Cincinnati, and is the years ago. reversal of commonly held The Homeless Grapevine, number one cause of homelessness stereotypes. With public support, nationwide. published by NEOCH for over ten we can move the problem of years, has had a history of Spousal abuse, drug homelessness into the past. A struggles with identity and addiction and mental health issues moral and ethical change in public amongst the homeless are some of controversy with Cleveland city attitudes about the less fortunate government. the concerns shared by homeless will allow the homeless to find the advocates in both of these Ohio “Mayor White hated the dignity and the strength within paper,” says Davis. cities. themselves to realize their own Both cities “But the cops were struggle with NIMBYmuch more sympathetic potential and grace. With government support, we can begin ism, (Not-In-My-Back­ early on, especially Yard), as shelters are since the vendors police to help people find their own way pushed to the more themselves. The police out of homelessness with affordable housing, a living wage industrial and know that if there is a warehouse areas of the problem with a vendor, and educational opportunities. The visit with advocates in city - away from jobs, we will take care of it.” Cleveland last month taught me transportation and Cincinnati’s mayor Jimmy Heath that even though we share the opportunity, and people and city council detest same struggles, we also share the Streetvibes too. In the past the who do not want to come face-to­ same hopes. The common mayor has publicly derided the face with the problem of community, Americans in general, homelessness in their own paper and the vendors, but neighborhood. Cincinnatians in general continue to don’t want to see the problems of homelessness persist. The Northeast Ohio support the concept of a street Cincinnatians are paper sold by homeless vendors. Coalition for the Homeless supportive of the work that is In my travels I visit many (NEOCH), headed up by executive director Brian Davis, struggles to cities and shelters, and I am always going on to alleviate homelessness keep the shelters and advocates on struck by the similarities. Denial of in our city too, and will continue to be if they to listen to their hearts a unified course of action. the problem by government instead of the status quo. “We sometimes are kept at officials is universal. Animosity arms-length politically, but we help and hate bridge many gaps, including legal crimes against the homeless issues and grievances. All of the shelters need this collaboration,” are common says Davis. “We have one shelter occurrences. that won’t even let us in because All of these issues know we have handled some client grievances against them. This no borders. particular shelter used the cloak of The common privacy to protect themselves from struggle of the scrutiny. But we try where we can homeless to provide links in the system.” remains the Cleveland advocates also same in every boast a street newspaper, The city. Homeless Grapevine, which The helped launch Cincinnati’s own first step in NEOCH’s Brian Davis S T R E E T V I B E S March, 2004 From the Editor Page 2 �ON A SCALE OF ONE TO A HUNDRED, HOW MUCH DO YOU DISAGREE WITH THE CITY’S TREATMENT OF CINCINNATI’S HOMELESS? I WILL DONATE: $1 $20 $40 $60 $80 $100 He’s only 18 months old and already he’s trapped in the cycle of homelessness in Cincinnati. His mother needs an affordable place to live and a job with a living wage as she escapes a life of domestic violence. The current treatment of homeless individuals in our city means that he may never be able to live in a home of his own. There are 25,000 people in Cincinnati that experience homelessness each year. More than one-third of those are women and children. The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless believes that by addressing the root causes of the problem through education, advocacy and coordination of services, we can end homelessness in our city. The more support we have from the community, the further our efforts reach. Please cut the coupon and pick a box. It could mean that one less child will have to live in one. Send your donations to Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 S T R E E T V I B E S March, 2004 Page 3 Page 3 �Homeless News Digest Compiled by R.V. Murphy A group of homeless people is seeking to get Denver mayor John Hickenlooper to create a tent city for the city’s homeless. With the help of a college professor, the group studied tent cities in Portland, Seattle, and Los Angeles and presented a 39page proposal for their own to the city’s Commission on Homelessness, according to the Denver Post. A tent city is a small plot of land where people with no available shelter could sleep without fear of police harassment, bulldozers, or predators. Advocates for the tent city estimate that setting one up would cost $100,000. There is no precise census of homeless people in the Mile High City. A survey by the Metro Denver Homeless Initiative, an advocacy group, puts the population at about 9,700. The number of shelter beds has remained at about 1,000 since the early 1990s. Families and children are the fastest-growing segment of the homeless population. The Denver Post and the Rocky Mountain News have both come out against the tent city idea. But surprisingly, the idea is drawing criticism from the most unlikely critics. The Colorado Coalition of the Homeless says, “the plan fails to address health, safety and sanitary issues and it doesn’t address causes of homelessness such as mental illness, substance abuse, job loss and the lack of affordable housing.” San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom recently held the first of many promised meetings of his new “Homelessness Cabinet,” made up of representatives from roughly 10 city agencies wrestling with the problem. He told the San Francisco Examiner that the planned weekly, or at least monthly, meetings would “connect the dots” and provide accountability so that needed services are delivered efficiently and homelessness can be ended in the coming decade. Newsom also said he plans to save some $400,000 a year by eliminating the Mayor’s Office on Homelessness. “It’s disbanded,” he said, adding, “I’d rather put those dollars in direct services.” The mayor said he wants to create much closer communication and cooperation among the various city agencies that together spend more than $100 million a year dealing with aspects of chronic homelessness. Last week, Dallas mayor Laura Miller held a town hall meeting for the homeless, according to the Dallas Morning News. Miller wanted to hear opinions on city plans for a homeless assistance center. The city has narrowed down possible sites to three. Some homeless people and advocates are concerned that one of the sites is eight miles from downtown. “It’s like throwing a party and no one will come,” Linda Cahanin said. “They want us out of downtown. Out of sight, out of mind.” James Waghorne, president of the Dallas Homeless Neighborhood Association, said the group collected signatures asking which site homeless people preferred. The city plans to open a facility for 24 hours, seven days a week that offers restrooms, showers, laundry, drug and alcohol counseling, mental health services, child care, computer access, lockers and other services. Voters approved $3 million for the facility in a May bond election, but officials say that does not cover the cost and that they must also raise private money for the facility. The City Council is scheduled to vote on the facility Feb. 25. Hundreds of migrant workers in Merced County in California could be left homeless this summer, the county’s housing authorities have said. The Modesto Bee reports that state funding to build new migrant worker housing is in danger, and Planada’s dilapidated Felix Torres Migrant Center was in such poor condition it was forced to shut down last October and designated for demolition. Back then, the state had enough cash to build more housing. Now funding is in jeopardy, and about 400 migrants, their spouses and children could be left without a place to stay. The department had set aside about $4.1 million to build the new facility, with another $3 million promised by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. There has been no official announcement to withdraw the funding, but Nicholas Benjamin, executive director of Merced County’s Housing Authority, said he believes the project won’t be funded, and that once the state funding goes, the federal money will go as well. Many migrant workers sleep in their cars. S T R E E T V I B E S March, 2004 On a 28-degree night in February, advocates count those living outdoors. by Andy Erickson due to the cold weather. Education Coordinator The drop in the numbers On February 3, a night that from May to February is probably reached a low of 28 degrees, the also due in large part to the cold Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the weather. On a night like this one, Homeless, the PATH team, and a many people who would have handful of volunteers counted 24 otherwise slept in camps outside people sleeping outside in might have sought warmer cover in Cincinnati. The count was shelters, abandoned buildings, or conducted by the Homeless friends or family’s dwellings. Outreach Group, a coalition of Another reason for the social service agencies change in numbers that provide outreach to could be attributed those living on the to the increase in street. outreach to this The Homeless population since the Outreach Group formed summer months. last summer when Brent Chasteen, an people living under outreach worker for downtown bridges Downtown clashed with city Cincinnati, Inc. has officials who wanted helped over 40 Andy Erickson them removed. The people get some struggle resulted in form of housing just since many changes in the way the September. The PATH team and police, social service agencies, and other members of the Homeless the homeless population interact. Outreach group have also had many During the height of this issue, successes. social service providers recognized At this point, however, the the need for increased, coordinated reasons for the change in numbers outreach to those who sleep are only educated guesses. It will outside and out of sight from many take a few more quarterly surveys agencies that help homeless before patterns in the outdoor individuals. homeless population can really be The survey on February 3 is understood. One thing that the first of what will become a everyone in the Homeless Outreach quarterly effort to count those Group agrees on, however, is that living outdoors. The Homeless whether the number is 193 or 24 Outreach Group hopes that these homeless people sleeping outside, counts will help social service that number is far too many. providers better understand who is living outside, where they are 20 YEARS staying, and how the numbers tend to fluctuate. By better SERVING THE understanding the changes in this NEIGHBORHOOD population, outreach workers will be able to better serve this population. A similar but separate survey was conducted nearly nine months ago on May 21. That survey found 193 people living outside, along with 1018 people living in shelters. The recent February count did not survey shelters, but it could be assumed that the numbers would have been slightly higher than the May count, Story, Editorial and Art Submission Deadline for the April, 2004 edition of STREETVIBES is Friday, March 12th Homeless News Empowering our neighborhood children through peace, art and education Peaslee Neighborhood Center 215 East 14th Street Over-the-Rhine Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 (513) 621-5514 Page 4 �Your Negro Tour Guide: Truths In Black And White by Kathy Y. Wilson Emmis Books Hardcover, 284 pages ISBN: 1578601436 Price: $19.99 Review by Jimmy Heath I look forward each week to picking up Cincinnati’s City Beat magazine and reading the prose of award-winning columnist Kathy Y. Wilson. Her column, Your Negro Tour Guide, is the first thing I look for when I pick up the city’s free weekly art and politics newspaper. When Kathy came to City Beat from her former job as a reporter at the Hamilton-Journal News, City Beat editor John Fox gave her a job and free reign to write about anything she wanted. And write she has! Kathy’s cutting commentaries dissect the AfricanAmerican experience from her own perspective and personal experiences, and challenges white Cincinnati with potent and biting observations of the city and its disowning of racism, classism and poverty. Each of her columns reaches into the realm of denial, rips it up, and takes to task those who are responsible. There is a softer, compassionate side to Kathy Wilson too. And there are echoes of her own life and history here; her mother and family and friends, and how they all played a part in her becoming who she is today. It is good stuff, and only Kathy Y. Wilson could pull it off. For hard-core fans like me, her best columns have now been published into a book, Your Negro Tour Guide, Truths in Black and White. Published in a limited run by Emmis Books here in Cincinnati, the book is a collection of Wilson’s City Beat articles from the last three years. In her introduction Wilson writes, “herein lies the truth. During three years I’ve gotten better at telling it – mine and ours.” Her new book is a fresh and deliciously irreverent Kathy Y. Wilson discusses her newly released book with the crowd at Joseph-Beth declaration of everyday life and politics in Cincinnati, lucidly described by a woman who knows how to get to the root of culture and relationships. Wilson is an insightful philosopher, who weaves her keen insight into words, assembling and dissecting human social behavior in Cincinnati. If you don’t know Kathy Wilson, and want to find out what all the fuss is about, pick this book up as a primer to your life, and a guide to Cincinnati in black and white. I think people who are considering the move to Cincinnati need to read this book. White suburbia needs to read this book. It is a way to learn about this troubled city from a sharp and witty, hopeful and honest perspective. There are three truths: my truth, your truth and the truth. Chinese Proverb Know Your Rights Brochure Available! The Know Your Rights Brochure is now available at the Coalition’s office. The brochure is a legal guide for Cincinnati’s homeless and covers a person’s basic rights when interacting with the police, as well as some local laws that might be of interest to the homeless population. If you are a homeless person or if you work with homeless people and would like to obtain free copies of the brochure for yourself or your agency, please call 421-7803, or stop by the Coalition office and pick one up. S T R E E T V I B E S March, 2004 National Homeless Civil Rights Organizing Project (NHCROP) Jimmy Heath photo Kathy Wilson’s Book Brings Clarity To Cincinnati Politics 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 homelesscivilrights@yahoo.com Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (513) 421-7803 Help build a powerful, resident led organization! The Republic Street & Vine Street Block Clubs are fighting for the rights of lowincome residents in Over-the-Rhine and they are going strong. Block clubs are forming in other parts of the neighborhood, too. Call the Contact Center at 381-4242 or stop by 1227 Vine Street in Over-the-Rhine to learn more about how you can get involved with these resident led organizations. Page 5 Page 5 �The Peace Village by Dr. Steve Sunderland grief train that I have been riding since the 1980s. At that time, thanks to grief organizations, Parents of Murdered Children, Compassionate Friends, a grief specialist, Ken Czillinger, and grieving parents, Rachel and Paul Burrell, we started drawing and meeting with children who had experienced a death in their lives. We didn’t know then that the pictures and music, the hugging and discussions, were working little miracles in the hearts of children, but we hoped that we were making a statement to children who were in the abyss without much guidance from parents, schools, and religious The mail brought the very good news that I will receive the Friedl Dicker-Brandeis award at the first annual teacher recognition luncheon of the Social Studies Department of the Cincinnati Public Schools. The letter informs me that Friedl Dicker-Brandeis “...was a teacher and art therapist who used drawing lessons to bring both solace and catharsis to the traumatized children in the Czechoslovakian ghetto called Terezin.” I believe that this award is for everyone in the Peace Village working with children at this time of war and violence. I share it with the whole village, youth and child, adult and senior that are making a major difference by being with children at this time in a way that heals what can be repaired, reconciles what has been shattered, and works for more peace with Dr. Steve Sunderland justice. Sitting in Children’s Hospital, Cincinnati, last institutions. We called our work, “Fernside,” partly for the street that week, listening to Ambassador the Burrells picked up their artistic Kuslijugic, representative from son, David, when he was alive. Bosnia to the United Nations, I But also because we wanted to find immediately thought back to his opening statement: “We must learn a “side” we could draw and live on that connected the dead and the to remember without hating and with justice.” How are the children living. We wanted the children to and adults of the war zones to do grow up without hating their this AND HOW DO WE HELP deceased family and friends. And, THEM? I remember the faces of most importantly, we wanted the the children of the Winton Place children to not grow hating Youth Center the day of the riots themselves. Very quickly we and the day after when we did learned that our efforts needed to some posters. We pushed stretch to that place in the child’s ourselves to draw the killings that had preceded the riots and to face, heart where all of the blame and responsibility for the death had as only 7 and 8 year olds can face been lodged. Art was one great the violence that has become a major part of Cincinnati life. Many way to reach and touch. I remember a very little one, 5 or 6, posters had guns, bullets finding drawing with me about her little their marks, and blood dripping, brother’s death and coming up with splotching, and all over. The war a drawing of a “broken heart.” zone was this neighborhood and “Let’s draw a healing heart,” I not just downtown. And we drew requested and she obliged and right and talked, over and over again next to her “first” heart she drew a until one little child asked, “What picture of a heart with a band-aid are you going to do with our pictures, Puppetman?” I told him I stretched across. We both looked at the hearts and then at each other, would protect them; take them to smiled, hugged and kept on some churches that wanted to see drawing. them and to also make their own. I sense that something a little “Take good care of them,” he like this was going on with Friedl warned me, “they are us.” I have been caring for these Dicker-Brandeis in her concentration camp. I had not posters and the additional 10,000 that have been made since that time heard of her before last week and I had seen the children’s art from this and the unknown number made by camp in lots of books, a beautiful children who were part of a long S T R E E T V I B E S March, 2004 book by E. Markarova and R. Miller (2001) Friedl DickerBrandeis: Vienna 1898Auschwitz 1944: The artist who inspired the children’s drawing of Terezin. It exists as a very valuable look at her life and work. In a remarkable essay on what she was doing with art and children in the camps, she makes this beautiful point: “The teacher, the educator, should attempt to influence the child as little as possible. A teacher ought to be restrained to the utmost when it comes to influencing the pupils...The ideas of children cannot be directed. Not only would one rob oneself of the chance to gain access into the world of the child’s ideas, but one would lose an overview of the current degree of the child’s openness and ability and his psychological state.” The authors of the above book make the point that DickerBrandeis never mentions that war, the physical plight of the children, or any political idea in her essay. She directs her ideas to those who may be working with her and following after her in this “work.” I bow to this strength of not increasing the burden on the children of the context of their lives and wonder how she did it without losing her own spirit of hope. For this “work” is aimed at the part of our imagination in which hope and very strong emotions, including peace and justice, reside. Her insights about how to bring the “art” of the inner beauty of the child to the surface really defies words but is a beacon for those who continue the “work.” How many children (and adults) in the war zone put their heads down without the hope of peace? Drawing opens the heart a little and sometimes that is just enough to make it from one part of a day to another, as every artist knows. Another sentence continued to ring in my ears from last week’s conversations with Bob Herring, principal of Nativity Elementary. Somehow our discussion moved to the current exhibit at one of our art museums called, “the Treasures of the Vatican.” “I am not going to see it,” Mr. Herring said with the only sound of defiance I had heard from him in our discussion. He continued: “The Catholic Church is stuck in keeping up buildings, paintings, and sculpture and confusing them with the real treasures of the church, the children.” Right in the war zone of Nativity, he continues to think about the need for a “new” church that has invested in children as the “works of art” and celebrates these human creations. I heard him Peace Village speaking for many religions, many school systems, and many cities that have abandoned the children in the war zones to another sports stadium, another shopping mall, and another cut in taxes for schooling. Keeping away from Vatican art seemed a most unusual form of protest; yet, I smiled as this clear thinking educator continued to try and “draw” another picture that made sense to him and his notion of a truly caring religion. So an award will be given to our work in the Peace Village, to everyone holding a child’s hand and heart with the beauty of teaching, service, art, and the memory of this remarkable woman, alone with children’s spirits, lighting one more great candle. Dr. Steve Sunderland, professor of Social Work at the University of Cincinnati, is the Director of The Peace Village, a group of individuals from the national and international community committed to examining all issues of Peace in the world. Dr. Sunderland also heads up Posters-for-Peace which engages people in expressing their visions of Peace, in their own words, through the creation of posters. Wish List... Can You Help? Streetvibes newspaper is published monthly on a shoe-string budget from the offices of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Can you help us with some of the following items? * Digital Camera & Accessories * VCR for making copies of Streetvibes TV show and for educational packets * Blank VHS tapes * Desktop paper folder * Supplies (paper towels, toilet paper ) * Cleaning Supplies * Office Supplies - postage stamps, floppies, copier paper and other supplies If you can help, contact us at: Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless, 117 East 12th Street, Cincinnati, OH 45202 (513) 421-7803 e-mail: Streetvibes@juno.com Page 6 �Cleveland Shelter for Women Re-opens; Provides Safety same room, a former has bathrooms on each floor with Suellen Saunders, the program and Support the gymnasium, on bunk beds or mats working doors. There are plans in manager, seem committed to on the floor. In 2003, Catholic by Elizabeth Linville Charities announced they were During the month of February, staff members of GCCH stepping down as the agency in charge of the shelter. Nearly a visited the newly opened year was spent attempting to find a Community Women’s Shelter in new provider to run the shelter and Cleveland, Ohio. The emergency a better location to house people. shelter had opened less than a week before the visit, and residents The chosen provider was Mental Health Services (MHS), a nonand staff were living and working profit that serves mentally disabled, in an atmosphere of slight chaos. homeless adults. Other The staff of the new programs provided by shelter, though, were the organization include enthusiastic about a mobile crisis team and providing a safe child trauma services. environment and According to MHS’s assisting women out executive director, of homelessness. Steven M. Friedman, The Elizabeth Linville the organization is Community Women’s “expanding our mission once again Shelter is a replacement for what to include all in our community was Cleveland’s only emergency who are homeless, regardless of women’s shelter, the Bishop whether or not she has a disability.” Cosgrove Center. Repeated In its first week of service, complaints had been made about the new shelter appears to be conditions in the center, which was providing a much better run by Catholic Charities. There atmosphere for the women it were allegations of drug and sex serves. Both Nickie Antonio, the abuse on shelter premises. All the new director of operations, and women and their children slept in maintaining a safe shelter and continuing to make improvements based on the needs and desires of the residents. Clients live in rooms of varying size (from 4 beds a room to larger, dormitory style accommodations). The staff is trying to place women in rooms based mainly on compatibility. This allows some women more privacy (such as those with children or mental issues), while others can take advantage of the support network and closer proximity to staff the dormitories provide. Women who had lived at the old shelter reported that they were able to sleep much better in these new environments. There is full time security placed at the shelter to help guard against the sex and drug abuse problems at the old site. At previous incarnations of the shelter, women were not permitted to shower with the door closed. Antonio reported that one woman told her that, before moving to the new facility, she had not showered in four months. The new shelter Poor to Put ‘Bushville’ Tent City at NY Convention A group fighting poverty announced plans last month to erect a tent city called “Bushville” during the Republican Party convention in August, one of several demonstrations expected in a summer of political protest in New York. The Poor People’s Economic Human Rights Campaign will put up the tents for five days before the Aug. 30 September 2 meeting, which will nominate President Bush to run for a second four-year term in the November 2 election. The group said it will also demonstrate at the Democratic Party’s national convention in Boston at the end of July, but had no plans to set up a symbolic shantytown there. “We will be marching because both Democrats and Republicans alike have failed to address our real life and death issues,” said spokeswoman Cheri Honkala. She said the political establishment neglected poor and homeless people and issues such as health care, housing and farm workers’ rights. Honkala, a formerly homeless mother in Minneapolis, Minnesota, said the group will provide “reality bus tours” in rundown areas of New York, Philadelphia and New Jersey from the tent city. She declined to disclose its precise location. The group plans a march on August 30 from U.N. headquarters to the Madison Square Garden convention venue, she said. As a prelude to the summer protests, the US led war in Iraq The Lone Ranger of Righteousness by Paul Rogat Loeb It’s my right to run. This is Ralph Nader’s core case in announcing his 2004 presidential candidacy. Yes, Nader has a legal right to do this. He also has a legal right to donate $100,000 to the Republican Party and become a Bush Pioneer. That doesn’t make it a good idea. So much of Nader’s career has been built on reminding us of our common ties. It’s not ok, he’s argued, for companies to make unsafe cars, pollute our air, or pillage shared resources. Actions have consequences, he’s pointed out with persistence and eloquence. Now, he’s taking the opposite tack, fixating on his own absolute right to do whatever he chooses, while branding those who’ve argued against his running as contemptuous censors, who “want to block the American people from having more choices and voices.” This argument would seem familiar coming from an Exxon executive. Coming from Ralph Nader, it marks a fundamental shift from an ethic of responsibility to one of damn the consequences, no matter S T R E E T V I B E S March, 2004 will be the focus of anti-war rallies on March 20 in New York and around the country. The date was chosen by the United For Peace and Justice organizers because it is the first anniversary of the invasion of Iraq. One protest will feature military families in Fayetteville, North Carolina, with the “September Eleventh Families For Peaceful Tomorrow’s” group, whose members lost loved ones in the 2001 hijacked plane attacks on America. New York activists organized one of the largest antiwar rallies on February 15, 2003, when hundreds of thousands took to the streets to oppose the war over Iraq’s purported weapons of mass destruction. Weapons stockpiles have not been found and how much populist precedent he tries to dress it up with. The reasons to defeat Bush escalate daily. This regime enacts massively regressive tax cuts, wages pre-emptive wars and lies about their justification, smashes civil liberties and appoints hard-right judges to shut down any challenges, and does their best to totally destroy the union movement. They attack root structures of democracy by disenfranchising tens of thousands of Florida voters, redistricting dozens of Texas, Pennsylvania and Michigan Congressional seats in raw power grabs, and jamming Democratic the works for further improvements, such as kitchens on each floor and better meeting rooms for case management and substance abuse programs There are various approaches to assisting an individual out of homelessness. Some see providing and helping pay for an affordable apartment as the best way. Others see basic shelter that provides a safe place with access to structured programs and permanent housing as the best option. As we left the shelter that night, a woman stopped a member of our group to complain about conditions inside. She did admit, though, that it was a huge improvement over the previous women’s shelter. Shelter life is difficult and there will always be complaints. Cleveland’s Community Women’s Shelter and its staff are at least working to improve conditions. We can hope that, for some women, this facility might be the answer. more than 500 Americans and thousands of Iraqis have been killed. “The intensity of interest is different than it was before the war began,” said Bill Dobbs of United For Peace and Justice. “For months, there has been a quiet vindication of our position, but we still need to send a clear message against Bush policies.” A spokesman for another activist organization, Campaign to Demilitarize the Police, said it planned monthly demonstrations through the convention to highlight police conduct at rallies. Last month, 52 anti-war protesters sued the New York Police Department and said officers unlawfully arrested peaceful protesters and detained them for up to 12 hours after an April 7, 2003 rally, only to dismiss all the charges. phone banks in New Hampshire. They brand all who oppose them as allies of terrorism. That doesn’t even count global warming, which (as sources from Fortune Magazine to the New York Times and a Pentagon study have recently warned) now brings the potential for melting polar ice caps to shut down the Gulf Stream and plunge Europe and Northeastern North America into a man-made ice age. This election may decide the very habitability of our planet. How Ranger... cont. on page 12 Page 7 Page 7 �by Jamie Poque Ohio Congressman and Presidential Candidate Dennis J. Kucinich visited Buddy¹s Place in the inner-city neighborhood of Over-the-Rhine as part of a campaign stop in Cincinnati last month. He talked briefly about how impressed and inspired he was by the work of Buddy Gray and RESTOC and by what they have done for the Over-the-Rhine community. He said that the work done by Buddy Gray shows “the capacity for one individual to unite a neighborhood and make a difference.” Congressman Kucinich then fielded questions on issues ranging from his “Department of Peace” proposal, to a question about a possible U.S. conspiracy to blow up the World Trade Center, to economic issues like healthcare and jobs from the crowd of about fifty gathered together in the Miami Center for Community Engagement meeting space of Buddy’s Place. Kucinich also spoke about the need to “create change at the voting booth. War is not inevitable. We have come to think of it as inevitable and it is not,” said Kucinich, in reference to the war in Iraq, citing the loss of lives of both Americans in service, and Iraqi citizens. The Cleveland-area congressman talked at length about the issue of affordable housing, something especially relevant to the crowd of people in attendance, most of whom live or work in poverty-stricken Over-the-Rhine, one of the neighborhoods where many of the city¹s homeless and low-income people reside. He said that, “the government has an obligation to see that every person has a roof I resolve to speak ill of no man whatever, not even in a matter of truth; but rather by some means excuse the faults I hear charged upon others, and upon proper occasions speak all the good I know of everybody. Benjamin Franklin Community Resource Cards Rockdale Temple has announced the release of the latest in its series of Community Resource Cards. The new one, printed in Spanish, is customized for the needs of Cincinnati’s rapidly growing Hispanic/Latino population. The tri-fold, plastic cards are funded by the Health Foundation of Greater Cincinnati as a project of Rockdale Temple, in consultation with Bienstar, Su Casa and The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. In addition to the Hispanic Resource Card, the Resource Card Project has also produced cards for senior citizens, the homeless, and public school and Catholic school students covering the Tri-state area. Cards can be ordered from: CC 5300 Hamilton Avenue, #210 Cincinnati, Ohio 45224 - or send a fax request to: (513) 541-0099 S T R E E T V I B E S March, 2004 Jimmy Heath photos Presidential Hopeful Dennis Kucinich Visits Over-the-Rhine over their head.” Congressman Kucinich has faced pressure to drop out of the race for the Democratic Presidential nomination in order to allow the front runner to focus on the general election, but addressing these concerns, he said unequivocally “I’m not leaving.” Presidential candidate Howard Dean has dropped out of the race leaving Kucinch and Al Sharpton trailing far behind in third place. Congressman Kucinich also made appearances at a fundraising dinner in Clifton and at the University of Cincinnati, where he outlined his plans for affordable housing, employment and fair trade. Buddy’s Place, a project of ReSTOC, provides the Center for Community Engagement storefront to Miami University. The building also provides 20 units of housing to persons who were previously homeless. Streetvibes Vendor Code of Conduct All Vendors Sign and Agree to a Code of Conduct Report Any Violations to GCCH - 421-7803 1. Streetvibes will be distributed for a $1 voluntary donation. If a customer donates more than $1 for a paper, vendors are allowed to keep that donation. However, vendors must never ask for more than $1 when selling Streetvibes. 2. Each paper purchased from the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH) costs 30 cents. Papers will not be given out on credit. Old papers can not be traded in for new papers. 3. Streetvibes may only be purchased from GCCH. Never buy papers from, or sell papers to other vendors. 4. Vendors must not panhandle or sell other items at the same time they are selling Streetvibes. 5. Vendors must treat all other vendors, customers, and GCCH personnel with respect. 6. Vendors must not sell Streetvibes while under the influence. 7. Vendors must not give a “hard sell” or intimidate anyone into purchasing Streetvibes. This includes following customers or continuing to solicit sales after customers have said no. Vendors must also never sell Streetvibes door-to-door. 8. Vendors must not deceive customers while selling Streetvibes. Vendors must be honest in stating that all profits go to the individual vendor. Vendors must not tell customers that the money they receive will go to GCCH or any other organization or charity. Also, vendors must not say that they are collecting for “the homeless” in general. 9. Vendors must not sell papers without their badge. Vendors must present their badge when purchasing papers from GCCH. Lost badges cost $2.00 to replace. Broken or worn badges will be replaced for free, but only if the old badge is returned to GCCH. 10. Streetvibes vendor meetings are held on the first weekday of the month at 1pm. The month’s paper will be released at this meeting. If a vendor cannot attend the meeting, he or she should let us know in advance. If a vendor does not call in advance and does not show up, that vendor will not be allowed to purchase papers on the day of the meeting or the following day. Five free papers will be given to those who do attend. 11. Failure to comply with the Code of Conduct may result in termination from the Streetvibes vendor program. GCCH reserves the right to terminate any vendor at any time as deemed appropriate. Badges and Streetvibes papers are property of GCCH, and must be surrendered upon demand. Page 8 �The Sun Will Come Out and women who had a by Ms Mary Gaffney, determination and a faith. Some Greater Cincinnati Coalition for of their work was not easy, with the Homeless climbing and To the walking up on readers and the road of life. purchasers of I know at times Streetvibes paper, that the people welcome to the had a rough spot third month in the in their road, but year 2004! were able to go While around it, and sitting here by my now have living room Ms. Mary Gaffney caught the window, one glimpse of reaching for the stars minute it is snowing, the next minute it is raining. And before I by gaining some position in life. As I first stated, there was got up from my chair, I looked up first darkness and dreariness. and could see that the clouds Before you know it, the sun seemed to be parting, and there comes out. We all have dark was a little ray of sunshine. And before I could turn around, lo and days, but we must keep traveling. Know as you travel with faith that behold, the clouds were gone. before you know it, there is the The sun was out, bright as ever, sun shining bright. I know the with strong rays of warmth. I sun doesn’t shine bright all the began to think that this was like time. If it did, could we accept it? life, especially like my homeless friends. Oh, you might say “there Could the earth accept it? If you could take a she goes again!” Yes, because I moment and think of the life of enjoy being around them. my friends who need help. How For six years, off and on, I’ve been with them, helping them they have to accept life, good or bad. There is sometimes no work and getting to know them. And I or other things, but they try to really know them, when they are remain happy. down or don’t care or even when I always say, it doesn’t they are a little bit happy. I can still talk with them and give them cost much to give a smile, and if they approach you, take the time a smile. Some even call me and opportunity to speak to them. “mom”, “granny” or “miss”. I answer them and tell them to keep You never know what is in the future. the determination, for there’s a We are all the children brighter day ahead, if you just placed in this garden of life who keep the faith. must brave hard weather, wind, On a Thursday of last month, I was the guest at a Xavier rain and storms. Remember, for every dark cloud there is a silver University luncheon called lining. Until next time remember, “Reaching for the Stars, 2004”. God loves you and me – all races, The event honored emerging creeds and colors. Cincinnati leaders, young men Progress he came forth out of slavery like a man just woke up from sleep. by Ms. Mary Gaffney Since that length of time, The following is a speech just think how the colored race has by Mrs. Nazarine Procter, given at progressed, built churches, New Hope A. M. E. Church in Ft. colleges and organized societies. Gaines, Georgia, in 1945. We have in the State of Georgia, Man comes into this world Bishops, Presiding Elders, without his consent, and preachers, teachers, leaves it again without doctors, undertakers, his will. During his stay and many other on earth his time is positions the colored spent in one continuous man can hold not only round. in Georgia, but Let us take a throughout the United view of the path we States of America. have trodden since This view represents freedom. It had been 82 the Negro at the years since Abraham Nazarine Procter present time. Lincoln gave to the For a world his immortal proclamation, thousand years in Thy sight is but and for a time we have enjoyed yesterday. Now in conclusion, freedom, however imperfect it may members of the Church of God have been. Have we shown and society, build your hope upon ourselves worthy of it? Thanks be Jesus Christ, the Solid Rock, that to God, we are not our own when the storms of life is raging, judges. The world has set in and the foaming billows are judgment against us. We have risen dashing, we can confidentially say, since the last 82 years of our life in on Christ the Solid Rock I stand, acts, but what of the future? What all other ground is sinking sand. has time brought us to? The work of our race is Out of clutter, find twofold; subjective and objective. simplicity. From discord, Let us look at the Negro at the find harmony. In the close of the war; look at him middle of difficulty, lies walking out from under bondage with not anything in his head, his opportunity. hand, his heart, or his pocket. And Albert Einstein on the first day of January, 1963, Streetvibes: A proud member of the North American Street Newspaper Association.... Representing over 50 street newspapers throughout the United States and Canada VISIT - www.nasna.org Buy Streetvibes From Badged Vendors Only! Streetvibes Vendors are required to sign a code of conduct and agree to abide by all the rules of the Streetvibes Vendor Program. If a Vendor misrepresents or breaks the rules, she/he may be removed from the Program. To report a Vendor, call 421-7803. ext. 16 S T R E E T V I B E S March, 2004 Page 9 Page 9 �Cincinnati Inner-city Children Share Their Lives Through Photography Exhibit A photography exhibit showing the lives of inner-city children in Cincinnati was held last month at the Kid’s Café at Our Daily Bread soup kitchen in Over-the-Rhine. Parents and teachers came to the exhibit to see the display of writing and photography created by the children. The exhibit was the culmination of a week’s long project that engaged the Kid’s Café children in photography and writing. The photos and the combined writing showed the lives of inner-city children from their own perspective. Kids were encouraged to take photos that reflected their life and surroundings, including family, friends, pets and environment. Volunteers from Ursuline Academy in Blue Ash, headed up by student Molly Berendt, organized the photography project for the children at Kid’s Café, with lessons and discussions that took place throughout the month of January. The program was designed to promote an increased awareness of life in Over-the-Rhine and also give inner-city children the opportunity to develop photography and writing skills under the teaching of Over-theRhine photojournalist, Jimmy Heath. Each child was given a one-time use camera along with a list of possible subjects to photograph. After taking all the photographs, the children were led through exercises that enabled them to express the meaning and significance of their photographs through writing. The photographs were developed and each child created a piece of art around their favorite photos to show at the exhibit. The photomontages were put into frames and displayed alongside the children’s writing exercises. “This was such a wonderful experience for these children,” says Molly Berendt, a junior at Ursuline Academy and Beth Cadle, Senior at Ursuline Academy, with Alexandria volunteer at Kid’s Café. “They had so much fun and will appreciate their artwork forever. The exhibit will be a chance for each child to display his or her photographs and it gives the public a chance to have a glimpse of a child’s life in Overthe-Rhine.” The photos, along with the children’s writings, are also scheduled to be displayed at Peaslee Neighborhood Center in Over-theMolly Berendt, of Ursuline Academy works with Nicholas, age 4 on his photography Rhine and at Ursuline Academy in project Blue Ash. Homeless Awareness Week Join the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless during the week of May 10 – 14 during our Homeless Awareness Week. All week long, fun and informative events will be held for the public. Look for more details in the April issue of Streetvibes.... Monday, May 10 – Movie Night. Join us for a showing of Dark Days, a film about homeless men and women living in abandoned train tunnels in New York City. A discussion by formerly homeless Cincinnatians will follow. Tuesday, May 11 – Homeless Civil Rights Day. S T R E E T V I B E S March, 2004 May 10 – 14, 2004 The rights of homeless individuals are being disregarded in many cities across the US. You can help by attending this informative event and taking part in our simple, yet effective actions. Wednesday, May 12 – Book Club. Pick up a copy of The Street Lawyer by John Grisham and join us for our book club. We’ll discuss the book and how it relates to real homeless issues right here in Cincinnati. Thursday, May 13 – Armchair Advocate Day. Fight to end homelessness without leaving your own home (instructions in next month’s Streetvibes)! Friday, May 14 – Homeless Awareness Concert. Local performers will make this a wonderful closing event. Soul Mission Chorale, Winton Woods High School Choir, Stepp’n Out, and NuVue gospel singing group are just some of the performers scheduled. Bits & Pieces Page 10 �by Jimmy Heath In spite of a federal lawsuit filed against the City of Cincinnati on behalf of former tenants of Huntington Meadows and investors, the project to tear down and replace the now-abandoned housing units with new up-scale condos won City Council support. Over one-thousand units of affordable housing will be lost when the project is completed. Last month, Cincinnati City Council voted 7-1 in favor of the plan, a day after former tenants filed a federal lawsuit claiming the city conspired to evict residents to free up the site for upscale housing. The goal of the lawsuit was to stop the vote and compensate those forced out. The suit also accused Vice Mayor Alicia Reece of using her power for the financial benefit of herself, her family, and her friends. The suit said the plans to develop the Huntington Meadows site were calculated and designed to improve the value of nearby property owned by Alicia Reece’s father, Steve Reece, while harming African American females living at the housing complex. wrote, “I categorically deny these false allegations. This is nothing more than a pattern of malicious, slanderous, and false allegations filled with ‘personal attacks’ by certain attorneys designed to defame my name in the community. I will continue to fight for neighborhood development throughout our city.” “We want progress in this city,” said Jennifer Kinsley, the residents’ attorney. “What we are trying to stop is development on the backs of the residents evicted from this property.” With plans by two local churches to turn the property into several hundred houses and condos, attorneys who filed the lawsuit said a number of people stand to benefit from the deal, including the churches which planned to invest less than $500,000 of their own cash in the project. About $14 million of taxpayers’ money will be used to build the new single family houses in the Bond Hill neighborhood of Cincinnati. Jimmy Heath photos City Council Approves Plan For Huntington Meadows In a statement to Development local news, Alicia Reece But Mayor Charlie Luken vowed the lawsuit would not halt progress on the project or interfere with council’s vote. “We will not be discouraged by frivolous lawsuits,” Luken said. City Council voted to give the two local churches control of the nearly $14 million to develop the nowabandoned apartments. Until it shut down about 18 months ago, Huntington Meadows was the largest privately owned apartment complex in Cincinnati with over 1000 rental units. The tenants were evicted after the management company said residents faced the dangers of mold, sewage, asbestos and other health problems. The city plans to buy the land and demolish the Huntington Meadows apartments. The land will be turned over to the two community churches. The lots will be sold to potential homeowners and builders. Many previous city redevelopment efforts have failed. Mayor Charlie Luken said the city manager has safeguards in place to make sure the city watches how its money is spent. “I think we’ve all learned a little bit about having some confidence in the people who are making the decisions. I think for too long we just put people at desks. They just filed papers. They didn’t look carefully at things. I think with Valerie Lemmie, she’s changed all that,” Mayor Luken said. Council member John Cranley cast the only vote against the plan. Council member Pat DeWine was unable to cast a vote because of a conflict of interest. The proposal had ample support from members of the two churches involved in the redevelopment plan. Mayor Charlie Luken issued a statement that “the city intends to move forward with the housing development, and we will not be deterred by those who have no interest in helping the city and its neighborhoods.” Reverend Jordan from the Allen Temple, one of the developers, called the allegations outlined in the lawsuit “ridiculous.” DEAR READERS! Send us your Vendor Stories Do you have a favorite Streetvibes Vendor that you would like to tell us about? Send your stories or comments to: Streetvibes@juno.com or Streetvibes 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati. Ohio 45202 Aaron Raines Memorial Garden, Lower Price Hill - Photo by Curtis Proffitt S T R E E T V I B E S March, 2004 GCCH News Page 11 Page 11 �Haiti’s Collapse supporting and perhaps leading the current chaos. But in hundreds, perhaps thousands, of instances, it is Aristide’s own toughs who have turned against him. Someone has convinced them that he no longer represents Haiti’s future; no doubt someone with money. In a country as poor as Haiti, the man with more money to spend will win in the end (as in the favelas of Brazil and the slums of Colombia), because it is so very hard to maintain the high moral ground when no one’s paying you to do it and the kids are starving back in the village or your one-room shack. And the miserable street – with its thugs and its slumdwellers, with its students and bricklayers and flat-tire fixers and car-wash boys, with its orphans and preachers and market ladies and tap-tap drivers, with its cart-pullers and trough-cleaners, its seamstresses and tailors, its cockfighters and garbage-pickers, numbers-runners, whores and money-changers – is Haiti’s political steamroller. The gods must help the Haitian politician the street has finally turned against – nothing else will. It will be interesting to see who will reward the “resistance” for its courage, and how. If Aristide must fall, let us hope still for real, meaningful elections in Haiti, soon. But let us not expect them. Amy Wilentz, an associate professor of journalism at Columbia University, is the author of ‘The Rainy Season: Haiti Since Duvalier’ (Simon & Schuster, 1989). by Amy Wilentz The Aristide administration, which has been overthrown once already, has been egalitarian in the lives destroyed during its time: Among its dead can be counted the president’s former friends and his foes, democrats and supporters of dictatorship. Among the victims have been policemen and prisoners and politicians; rich men and poor, journalists and slum-dwellers, human-rights workers and doctors and businessmen. Almost no sector has been untouched. No one can argue that JeanBertrand Aristide’s presidency has been in any way successful other than this: It exists. He was elected in 1990 with enormous hope by an overwhelming majority in a legitimate election – and quickly overthrown by the Haitian Army and its friends. In 1994 he was returned to power through the good will of the Clinton Administration, in the optimistic expectation that he would be able to turn Haiti around. He was not able to do so for a combination of reasons, some political, some personal and most having to do with his inability to conduct a happy relationship either with the Bush Administration or with his own business and intellectual elite. Washington also cut off huge portions of aid, which cannot have helped Aristide’s standing. Still, a fatal combination of arrogance and naïveté on his part made Aristide’s difficult position much more intractable. Meanwhile, the Haitian opposition has been coddled and pushed toward the depths of intransigence by Aristide’s detractors in the US government, in both Haiti and in Washington. By now, with the country well on its way to chaos, many argue that Aristide has exhausted the electorate’s patience and must be replaced. Yet now – as he finally begins to recognize how powerful the opposition has become despite all his political jockeying and playacting – should be the time for all friends of Haiti, especially in the US government, to support Aristide’s continuation at the helm: not because he is good but because he is president. Aristide is a transitional figure and not the best of these. He is no Mandela, and he does not have the political maturity to control the violent forces that swirl through Haitian politics – no easy job. Yet the future of Haiti hinges on support for institutions and for a state based on law. As part of the unrest, a gang element managed to take over Gonaïves, one of Haiti’s largest cities – a ramshackle affair of shantytowns and gingerbread houses atop salt flats and roads made undrivable by potholes, with few enough institutions as it is. This gang, which styles itself the Cannibal Army or, in its latest incarnation, the Artibonite Resistance Front (perhaps more palatable to the international community), has burned down the courthouse and the prison in Gonaïves, released the prison population and forced the mayor to flee. Though there may be elaborate and in some cases good excuses for these actions, taken as a trend they do not bode well for the rule of law. In the wake of the Gonaïves takeover, ten lesser cities have fallen to such forces, each in differing circumstances but all motivated by encouragement from sectors of the opposition and by the sense that Aristide is about to fall. That will not be helped by State Department spokesman Richard Boucher’s hints on February 9 that a solution to the situation might not necessarily include President Aristide. Three of the towns have been retaken by the government. The numbers of Aristide’s detractors, their unwillingness to stop their protests even in the face of police brutality and killings and their takeover of Gonaïves and other towns have brought a new humility to Aristide, which sits rather uncomfortably on his proud shoulders. Still, the situation has been volatile enough to force him to make necessary concessions, under pressure from the Organization of American States and Caribbean Community, to the opposition. Because the opposition is swollen with self-importance in the wake of so many bloody victories in the countryside, it may not respond to Aristide’s eleventhhour overtures. It was not moved by a huge outpouring of support for him in the streets of Port-auPrince on the recent anniversary of the fall of Duvalier. When Aristide returned to power, he bravely disbanded the Haitian Army and then promptly permitted a kind of mass civilian militarization without insuring his continuing control over it. A remnant of the old army is Ranger... Bush’s regime with Nazis, but splintered votes can produce Terrible consequences.) Nader seems to have forgotten his own historical contribution to a different, more hopeful path, where he encouraged thousands of citizens to join in challenging illegitimate actions of power. He once recognized that progressive politics gathers its strength from the breadth of citizen movements. Now he acts, with an almost messianic fervor, a Lone Ranger intent on holding on to his own moral purity whatever the pleas of his compatriots and whatever the cost to the planet. By denying the real choices we face, he betrays the best of his legacy. Will Nader’s candidacy ultimately matter? Many of his supporters have bolted. He may not get on the ballot in every state. But if the election is close enough, his candidacy could still have a tragic impact. We all know the Florida numbers. We forget that the Nader vote made the difference in New Hampshire as well, and that him blindly. his support in states like Oregon, As we work to challenge’s Washington, Wisconsin, New Bush’s lies and to reach out to our Mexico, and even California forced fellow citizens, we can build Al Gore to divert time, money and autonomous community. We can resources away from other close connect with coworkers and races he might well have otherwise neighbors, work to unite historically won. separated progressive movements, As a leader in the keep raising core issues no matter conservative group Concerned who’s elected in November. We Women for America recently told the don’t have to be true believers. But Washington Times, the Bush ticket we’re faced with as critical a choice may be in trouble, and they need a and challenge as we’ve experienced Nader alternative “to draw in our lifetime. It’s too bad that by Democratic votes away from the prizing his own righteousness over Democratic candidate.” the risks of his actions, Ralph Nader Because the more strongly has just made that challenge a little Nader campaigns, the more time, bit harder. money, and energy we’ll all have to divert away from the prime task of defeating Bush. (Business Card Size, ad ready copy) Assuming the Reach 18,000 customers per month admittedly flawed John Kerry becomes the Call Streetvibes @ 421-7803 Democratic nominee, we don’t have to support cont. from page 7 can Nader know this and still run? He says he’ll raise the otherwise buried hard issues. He says he’ll bring disenchanted citizens back into politics. He offers Byzantine explanations of how he’ll actually help defeat George Bush by raising fresh subjects and approaches, opening up “a second front of voters against the regime,” and offering an alternative for moderate Republicans. But he can raise the issues on his own, as he has throughout his life. He can do it without his every critique of the “two-party duopoly” driving people away from voting for the Democratic nominee. He can do it without offering the illusion that a purely symbolic vote will do anything to get Bush out of office. (I keep thinking about the endless political infighting that helped Hitler rise to power, culminating in the German Communist Party’s ghastly slogan, “After Hitler, us.” I’m not equating S T R E E T V I B E S March, 2004 Rent This Space! Only $25 per month... Politics Page 12 �Ohio Empowerment Coalition Joins in “Presidential Dialogue With America’s Families” by Lynn Williams, OEC Organizer, with background information from Center for Community Change On January 29 the Ohio Empowerment Coalition traveled 512 miles to Columbia, South Carolina, to join over a hundred other community and neighborhood organizations, in addressing the Democratic presidential candidates. This event, the “Dialogue with America’s Families” was co-produced by the People’s Agenda for Economic Justice and the Center for Community Change (www.communitychange.org) in association with radio host Tom Joyner. The Dialogue was carried live from 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 pm on the largest NBC affiliate in the state, WIS-TV, as well as C-SPAN and MSNBC. Members of the Ohio Empowerment Coalition from Cincinnati, Athens, Cleveland, Dayton and Adams County, as well as participants from Columbus, Blanchester and Greenfield, boarded the bus that left from the Contact Center in Cincinnati. Most bus riders were from the Cincinnati Welfare Rights Coalition. “We want the Presidential candidates to take seriously the needs of poor families in this country. We want changes made in welfare laws that will help families get out of poverty, not throw them deeper in debt. We want answers!” stated th Catrina Weber, co-chair of the Cincinnati Welfare Rights Coalition, before boarding the bus. The Center for Community Change’s “Presidential Dialogue with America’s Families” was the grassroots kickoff for the Center’s Community Voting Project to elevate the voices and issues of low-income families through voter registration and mobilization in 2004 and beyond. Over 3000 leaders from South Carolina, Ohio, Georgia, Illinois, Mississippi, North Carolina, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Montana descended on Columbia in solidarity that poverty issues be vigorously brought to the consciousness of Presidential candidates and the public eye. All Democratic Presidential candidates except Sen. Lieberman attended the Dialogue and fielded questions. President Bush was also invited but did not attend. The Dialogue consisted of individuals directly affected by government policies on Medicaid, TANF, public education, NAFTA, immigrant policies, and the military’s occupation of Iraq. The Dialogue gave low-income people the rare opportunity to pose questions directly to the candidates. It gave unparalleled public attention to low-income issues within the context of a presidential election. After the Dialogue, participants boarded buses to rev up support for voter registration and voting in the primary Letting Rumsfeld Set the Rules by Jim Naureckas The Washington Post (11/0/ 03) described an unusual arrangement between the Pentagon and 18 local TV stations across the country: In exchange for being allowed to interview Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, the stations agreed to also air interviews with three or four other Pentagon officials, like Paul Wolfowitz and Paul Bremer. One should always question when government officials dictate to news outlets how they will be covered. And particularly for local TV news, which rarely covers national politics, interviews with four or five different people giving the same point of view is a large price to pay for getting access to a public official. But Rumsfeld is not just any official; he’s an official with a clear track record of obfuscation and denying reality. To cite just one example: In a September 25 interview, a reporter from Sinclair Broadcasting said to Rumsfeld, “Before the war in Iraq... you said they would welcome us with open arms.” Rumsfeld responded with a denial: “Never said that.... Never did. You may remember it well, but you’re thinking of somebody else. You can’t find anywhere me saying anything like [that].... I never said anything like that because I never knew what would happen and I knew I didn’t know.” But on February 20, Rumsfeld was asked by PBS’s Jim Lehrer: “Do you expect the invasion, if it comes, to be welcomed by the majority of the civilian population of Iraq?” And Rumsfeld responded: “There is no S T R E E T V I B E S March, 2004 throughout Columbia. In South Carolina the primary was the following Tuesday. On the way back to Cincinnati participants on the bus spoke with enthusiasm of the event. “This was really worth while to go to. I feel that people from across the country were unified in expressing the needs and concerns of low-income people. I wish I could have taken my children because this would have shown them first hand the democratic process and what it means to be a citizen in our country. We each matter too!” stated one participant. For more information contact the Ohio Empowerment Coalition at 1877-862-5179. question but that they would be welcomed. Go back to Afghanistan—the people were in the streets playing music, cheering, flying kites, and doing all the things that the Taliban and the Al Qaeda would not let them do.” Eric Rosenberg of Hearst Newspapers (11/9/03), who pointed out this contradiction, also noted that Rumsfeld has denied statements he made concerning Iraq’s supposed “large clandestine stockpiles” of chemical and biological weapons (House Armed Services Committee, 9/18/02); later, when asked whether he had been wrong to claim that Iraq had “extensive stocks” of such weapons (Pentagon briefing, 10/30/ 03), Rumsfeld retorted: “You go back and give me something that talks about extensive stocks.... I’d be surprised if you found the word ‘extensive.’” If you can’t trust a person to acknowledge his own words, can you really trust him to accurately convey the complex reality of what’s going on in Iraq? Instead of following Rumsfeld with three or four of his subordinates, TV news should put on some independent experts who can set the record straight. (212) 633-6700 http://www.fair.org/ E-mail: fair@fair.org GCCH News To be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing its best day and night to make you everybody else, means to fight the hardest battle which any human being can fight, and never stop fighting. e.e.cummings Write Us! Send letters to: Streetvibes@Juno.com, or write the Coalition - Streetvibes 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 Page 13 Page 13 �I’m Not Alone THAT’S JUST A LITTLE RUDE by Robert Manassa They seem so dreary, the problems of today They’re taking all the poor people rights away They’ve ended welfare, they’ve cut SSI, low-income housing programs are in disarray. There are no treatment centers, shelters are shuttin’ down. We can’t even sleep on park benches, even there they push us around In Atlanta, it’s really getting dark, you might just go to prison for sleeping in the park. As poor people struggle from town to town, they see new stadiums opening, and schools and churches closing down. While they use a poor man’s tax dollars to bailout S&L’S Their not building him houses, they only building jails. While the poor can help pay for battleships or other weapons of war, their told money to help themselves isn’t available anymore. While the working poor help pay farmers not to grow any food They’re the one’s who are starving and that’s just a little rude!!! I wake up this morning, singing a new song. I even took the time out to thank the Lord. I’ve been reborn There’s not a day or nite that passes me by That I don’t send up praises to the Lord on high. I know that I have all my sins forgiven me. I have my Heavenly Father above, Watching over me continuously. I never, ever worry; I don’t have to fret, I have someone walking and talking with me. He’s never left me, nor has he failed me yet, I’m not alone. Bring Our Children Home On The Brink by Vera Zlatkin by Anthony Wayne Stone to all those who cannot or will not understand me These Bones will Rise Again - until we all have homes again (inspired by traditional “them bones will rise again”) by Melissa Tuckey Over the Rhine is under attack by the rich who neglected her and now want her back. and everywhere i look i see the signs of war, led by bankers and bulldozers and greed to consume more. buddy gray was a friend of mine he was under attack for feeding the hungry and teaching them to fight back for loving the children of Over-theRhine for standing in the way while others just stood by You can kill buddy gray but not Over-the-Rhine the spirit that lives here continues to rise these bones will rise again these bones will rise again these homes will rise again these homes will rise again the sun will shine again in over the rhine again you can kill buddy gray but not Over-the-Rhine the spirit that lives here has been around a long time these bones will rise again these bones will rise again until we all have homes again until we all have homes again. In loving memory of buddy gray, may his spirit live on, always as i drink the drink that brings eternal life, i realize th ethings i’ve done to my self since i first took the drink of the dark and dead, that drove me to the brink of insanity, so that i must drink to regain my santiy, even though now, the wish for life eternal is now lost, barely holding onto sanity as i drain the life force of the immortal criminal who sought my life and wallet, and who now hears the sound of his last minutes on earth, this is the brink, and as you stare at me, i can see that insanity is even closer, for if i am to survive, one must die, you or me. In This Deadend submitted by Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan They smell your breath. You better not have said, “I love you.” They smell your heart. These are strange times, darling... And they flog love at the roadblock. We had better hide love in the closet... In this crooked dead end and twisting chill, they feed the fire with the kindling of song and poetry. Do not risk a thought. These are strange times, darling... He who knocks on the door at midnight has come to kill the light. We had better hide light in the closet... Those there are butchers stationed at the crossroads With bloody clubs and cleavers. These are strange times, darling... and they excise smiles from lips and songs from mouths. We had better hide joy in the closet... Canaries barbecued on a fire of lilies and jasmine, these are strange times, darling... Satan drunk with victory sits at our funeral feast. We had better hide God in the closet. S T R E E T V I B E S March, 2004 Someone’s heart is broken, Another daughter dies. Somebody’s father won’t come home; Somewhere a family cries. Five hundred now and counting. Today – eleven more. How many people have to die Before we end this war? Strangers in a distant land, Our children kill and die Learning hoe to hate and fear, Never knowing why. Six hundred soon will be the toll; The wounded- many more. And the number of Iraqi’s killed Is someone keeping score? A soldier draws his final breath, With comrades standing by. Along a road a bomb explodes And seven people die. One expert says, “at least three years”; Another, “nearly ten”. How long? My God, How Long! Before We bring them home again? Darkness by D-Von Sanders There is darkness on the surface of the deep But is the darkness really bad Because with light comes life then death and emotions Of pain and suffering, for the things you’ve never had So is the darkness really bad? We was born in darkness of the womb Of our Mother Earth, and we will return to Darkness Until the dawn of our new birth So is the darkness really bad? No I don’t think so Because in the Darkness there is peace From Heaven above and Hell below Art & Poetry Page 14 �Crows Awaken For information on submitting your poetry or art to STREETVIBES email Streetvibes@juno.com by Michael Henson Two crows awaken in the snow at dawn. All night, they have roosted on an iron truss of the television tower. All night, the red light at the peak of the tower pulsed in their dream like a bolus of radiant blood. Now, they shake the snow from their shoulders and stretch their wings and legs. They are cold at the claw, cold in the joints. Snow stretches all around them, caked in the branches of the trees, along the power lines, and in the untracked street. They call, they call to warm themselves, then lift from the iron roost to feel the cold air under their wings. The city roars with traffic. The cables hum with messages. Even the trusses of the tower thrum with an electric mumble. But other birds hear the call of the birds and they answer. Soon the hillside rattles with the gravel of their voices. Up in the crow-patterned air they greet and they are greeted. They call again and call again joyous, wild. Death by Detachment by JH What is this other world on the Corner? Of violent and menacing gestures, and growling peril. And bloated pockets, filled with danger. The bulky shells, and anger gone wild, fills the street with deadly void, inside and outside the soul, with and without spirit. Ways of My Heart by Anthony Wayne Stone when you look at my heart, please know that its shape is sharp, with the edges of a razor, quick to cut. when you look at my heart, please know that its color is still red, though it is darker than most, and yet, i’ve known darker. people are afraid to be around me, afraid of things they cannot yet see, afraid to love me, because a dark love is all i can give, and yet they refuse me, when i ask them to teach me this love that they preach to me, this love that is light to the heart, this bright love that they speak so fondly of. Clashing on the gray, the staggering limbs askew, twirling, menacing, frightened, of the blue and white shadow. Tomorrow is a hazard, out of reach, on a dusty shelf. Beyond the dream of home, and mom, and warming family. To get there is a nonsense dream, in TV land and liars, peddling another place, a vision beyond reach. so before you judge me, look at your own heart, and see how it grows, and tell me what it is that you find. Shutter Speed by Jimmy Heath Street Musicians, 7th and Vine Street, Downtown Cincinnati S T R E E T V I B E S March, 2004 Art & Poetry Page 15 Page 15 �Hard-core homeless prefer the outdoors by Rachel D’Oro Ron Feldhouse draws the line at 45 degrees below zero. Then it’s time to sleep indoors. Otherwise, the 47-year-old man sets up camp in the woods outside Fairbanks, where winter temperatures can hover around minus-20 or colder for weeks at a stretch. Dealing with extreme elements is the norm for Feldhouse and other hard-core homeless Alaskans who live outdoors in weather so cold it can be easily fatal for the unprepared. “It’s a learned art,” Feldhouse said. “After a while, you just start getting used to it.” Many of Alaska’s indigent a population that’s difficult to measure - cope by drifting from couch to couch or sleeping in motels, cars, boats and homeless shelters in the state’s larger cities. But a small number say they prefer dealing with the bitter cold to following rules at shelters, which offer limited stays, forbid the use of alcohol and drugs and impose strict curfews. Ed Heeckt arrived in Alaska a year ago from Arlington, Washington, settling in Juneau where he got a short-lived job processing fish for $8.50 an hour. He stayed at the Glory Hole, a local shelter, for a week, but hated the cramped quarters. Unable to afford even the cheapest rent, he set up a hand-medown tent among spruce and alder trees at an abandoned mining site just outside downtown Juneau. In the summer, he has a perfect view of the cruise ships that frequent the Southeast Alaska town. “I can’t handle the snoring and the smelly feet of a shelter,” said Heeckt, 36. “But I’m very independent and I can survive anywhere.” Practiced campers say it’s not that hard to stay warm - it just takes a little ingenuity. They dig caves out of snow mounds, pack snow high around outer tent walls for insulation, and line inner edges with clothing. Some burrow in trash bins or curl up in doorways. On cold nights, Heeckt burns a can of gel fuel inside his tent for 10 minutes to get it “nice and warm.” He puts on layers of shirts, pants, a couple pairs of socks and a hat before diving into his mummy-style sleeping bag, which is sandwiched between a plastic foam pad and a pile of blankets. Feldhouse, who’s been without a permanent home in Alaska and North Dakota for 25 years, is a regular at several Fairbanks coffee shops. When temperatures plummet, he can be found inside long past midnight, nursing a cup of coffee before heading to his camp on his bicycle. “People ask me, ‘Don’t you get cold?’ No, not really, only when I get out of my sleeping bag,” he said. “I just don’t like being tied down. Living like this lightens the load. I don’t have to answer to anybody, don’t have bills to pay.” In Anchorage, a city of 274,000, agencies that work with the homeless estimate between 8,000 and 10,000 people find themselves without a permanent roof at least temporarily over any given year. Only a fraction end up at one of the 35 makeshift camps currently well-hidden around the city and its suburbs. The number of camps fluctuates as authorities make periodic sweeps. Many campers are Alaska Natives, said Norma Carter, social services director of Bean’s Cafe, a day shelter and soup kitchen. She knows a 92-year-old man who grudgingly moved into a subsidized assisted-living home three months ago. The elderly man, who grew up in a Western Alaska village, told Carter he misses his old life. “I think it’s a cultural thing in some cases, where people are accustomed to taking a boat up the river and sleeping on the bank, under the stars,” she said. “For others, it’s just not having money, not wanting to be found. There are different reasons why people camp.” It’s a choice for Ellamae Clark, who has camped in Anchorage for nine years. She shares a site with her boyfriend and six other men. They sleep four to a tent, which goes a long way to staying warm. Clark said they all drink heavily, so watching each other is crucial to avoid freezing to death. Clark, 43, said she rarely feels the cold, having grown up in the village of Selawik above the Arctic Circle. “I even sleep in shorts,” she said. “For me, it’s an easy life. Having a camp is harder in the summer because you have to watch out for teenagers who want to vandalize it. In the summer, it gets too hot.” Chronic homelessness is almost unheard of in rural villages, where few people are strangers. That applies even to the southwestern hub of Bethel - a largely Yupik Eskimo town of 5,900 people that serves as the regional center for 56 villages in the Yukon-Kuskokwim delta. “Yupik society is pretty generous,” said Bob Herron, Bethel’s city manager. “If your second cousin is in need, society out here will take care of them. You can pretty much get help.” Most of Alaska’s homeless wind up in Anchorage, Fairbanks, Juneau and other urban areas, where shelters, public transportation, job opportunities and lowincome medical care are available. Leaving the state, however, is not an option for those who can’t scrape together the price of a oneway airplane ticket to a warmer place. But many wouldn’t want to live anywhere else, said Jetta Whittaker, director of the Juneau shelter. “It’s certainly easier to be homeless somewhere else where it’s not as cold, where you can sleep under a bridge and it’s not life-threatening,” Whittaker said. “But this is their home, their community.” Streetvibes 3rd Best in North America by the North American Street Newspaper Association Streetvibes exists as a forum for the expression of the views and opinions of our readers and supporters. The opinions expressed herein are not necessarily those of the Streetvibes staff or the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. S T R E E T V I B E S March, 2004 Editorial Page 16 �Towards a Justice That Lasts by Kathe McKenna The most common ingredient in justice systems is punishment. The thought is that if the person who committed the crime is punished appropriately, the victim will be satisfied. Justice, on the other hand, implies a vision where the needs of the victim as well as the perpetrator are considered. Why? Because crimes affect all of us, not just the individuals involved. The grossest example of this is the higher real estate values where the crime statistics are lowest. The principles of restorative justice speak to this breach that crime creates within the community. A commonly cited example of this manner of dealing with crime is the story of a teenager who robbed a local tire store. As a second offender, the young man was at risk of time in jail where, everyone agreed; his chances of becoming a more serious criminal were greater. A mediation between the thief and the older couple who owned the store was arranged. Step one was for the young man to learn about the impact of his crime. The immigrant couple described the effect on their tentative financial survival, but also the fear that hampered their continuing work. The sentence agreed to by both victim and perpetrator (as well as the courts) was for the young thief to volunteer in the shop. This enabled him to repay the victims financially. It also taught him the workings of a business; knowledge he shared with his peers. What began as restitution grew into a mentoring relationship and then a part-time job for the youthful offender and a new engagement with local teen-agers by the owners of the store. This may seem an easy situation, but there are incidents of rape victims and their rapists who have successfully (and voluntarily) completed the process. It is important for victims to confront their attackers and to articulate the harm they have suffered. And how liberating it is when true remorse is the result. If the victim remains merely a witness or, worse, an observer of the court system dispersing punishment, there is little movement away from being just a victim. Even in capital cases, victims’ relatives will often describe the empty sense of relief or closure when the murderer is executed. In the soup kitchen where I work, guests are often ex-offenders. An infraction of the common rules of courtesy that we have all agreed upon results in a person being barred. This expulsion is first and foremost done to cut through the explosion. It gives the one acting badly and those affected by his behavior an opportunity to breathe deeply. The offending party is invited to a meeting of those who experienced the incident, not for the purpose of receiving his punishment, but to explain what happened from his perspective and to hear the impact of his actions on both staff and other guests. Sometimes there is someone to whom an apology is owed and this must be done. If there appears to be genuine comprehension of the problems inherent in one’s disruptive behavior and a willingness to do better in the future, the guest is welcomed to return. This is so much more fruitful than just imposing a certain number of days out depending on the severity of the outburst. When only punishment is inflicted, there is no opportunity for reflection on alternatives, never mind remorse. Sometimes a guest who has committed a violent act refuses to meet with us. This is always an indication that he is not yet able to address his own behavior. Often men request a time-measured bar rather than engage in such selfexploration. The invitation to begin to develop even this small step in selfawareness is a gift we offer to our guests. For many, it is the first time they have been given such an opportunity. It requires much more from the staff than meting out a sentence. But the effort, time, and healing brings attention to one’s unconscious habits—the first step in changing behavior. Such changes then affect the larger community, and justice is truly served. Reprinted from the January 2004 issue of Whats Up, Boston. S T R E E T V I B E S March, 2004 Berta’s Art Corner “Genius of Water” - a 9 foot bronze statue stands above other statues illustrating the uses and need for water. The 43 foot tall “Tyler Davidson Memorial Fountain” was bought in Munich, Germany by Henry Probasco as a memorial to his brother-inlaw, was erected in 1871. Whatever you do, you need courage. Whatever course you decide upon, there is always someone to tell you that you are wrong. There are always difficulties arising that tempt you to believe your critics are right. To map out a course of action and follow it to an end requires some of the same courage that a soldier needs. Peace has its victories, but it takes brave men and women to win them. Ralph Waldo Emerson Editorial Page 17 Page 17 �Nathanial Jones: The Question Remains by Brian Garry Would cops have administered mouth to mouth resuscitation if it was their wife or mother or child, lying on the ground, not breathing? If you will, remove from your mind, the badges and police uniforms - forgetting the color of the people involved. Imagine six men, bludgeoning one man to death with metal poles. The man on the ground lies dying, moaning, begging for his mama...his last word…. mama…... What do you see? Is it just? Is it fair? Is it a destiny that you would wish upon any one? Rich white man from Indian Hill on the ground and six low income black men brutally beating him. What would the police response to that situation be? Would it have been different than how they have treated the beating of Nathanial Jones? Medical attention was never received The Republican controlled coroner’s office allegation that Jones was on PCP is questionable at best. Information came out that he was “on PCP” before the coroners report came out. Then on Tuesday the coroners report coincidentally matches the previous unsubstantiated allegation. Fishy. “What’s the problem here?” That’s a damn good question. That is the question that the second officer asked upon arrival to the White Castle the evening Nathanial Jones was murdered by the Cincinnati Police. I’ll tell you the problem. The problem is with the police attitude. They don’t value black people’s lives. They value animals over black people’s lives. They can chase around a 1,200 pound, wild, rambunctious cow for two weeks but they can’t chase a black man a round a parking lot for 20 minutes without killing him. They even built the cow a stable, had 24 hour watch, and brought him bales of hay to eat. They also had tranquilizer guns ready to shoot the cow. Guilty of being happy and then encountering the Cincinnati Police: What happened between the last picture of him on the surveillance tape in the front of White Castle to when the second cop arrived and he was on the other side of White Castle? Which cop hit the remote and turned the camera back on? Why is this not revealed in the video tape? The tape does not show an officer that was not involved in the struggle? Who could have possibly used the alleged remote? I interviewed two male mental health nurses concerning the treatment of Nathanial Jones. When asked if Nathaniel should have died, both said “no.” When asked if they had restrained someone of Nathaniel’s size before, both said “yes.” When asked if they would have been able to apprehend Nathaniel both, said “yes.” When asked if they could restrain someone of Nathanial’s size without killing him one said, with jest, “it’s very rare we have to kill our patients” and the other said, satirically, “well I would hope we wouldn’t kill someone.” I then asked the nurses to comment on the behavior of the police. One nurse stated “It takes us 10-15 minutes to calm them down but the police don’t seem to have the patience to do this.” The other cited special training provided by the Ohio Mental Health Department called Crisis Intervention Services. “We have special holds and maneuvers that they teach us, to make sure the patient is safe…You think that when a patient begins to get quiet, that he is calming down, but often it is because he can not breathe. We always make sure the patient is safe.” What if the police had waited for the force’s mental health specialist to arrive? Those cops that killed Nathaniel were not trained to deal with Nathanial Jones and therefore should never have engaged him. What if the cops had just walked away? So what, a guy is enjoying himself at White Castle? Since Nathanial was not committing a crime, the cops should have just left and Nathanial would be alive. There was no evidence that he was a danger to himself or anyone else. So, it was really a matter of ego that Nathanial Jones was killed. If Nathaniel had lunged at me, I would have backed up and moved to where he couldn’t hit me. How would those officers have treated him if he were white? Anyone would try to get up if they were being beaten with metal poles. We must step up the fight. Our tactics up to this point have been ineffective. Citizens of Cincinnati, our brothers and sisters, are still being murdered, whether by bullets or choke holds or being whacked to death. Remember, police, you are a Public Servant. Which one of us is the public and which one of us is the servant. If what we’ve seen on that tape is “official police policy,” then the “official police policy” is wrong. If it is “police policy” to savagely, and in a Neanderthal like manner, bludgeon one of our citizens to death, then that policy must go. If it is part of “police policy” for six men with clubs to take out their repressed anger and frustration on a defenseless, unarmed, sick person who was in need of medical attention, then our “police policy” needs serious revision. Clubbing him, like a group of cave men would club down a buffalo. Getting back at them with every swing, every punch, every beat down. It seems that their clubs, their phallic symbols, are making up for their inadequacies. Something just seems backwards. An occupying force of renegade cops is ruling our city, while our government officials sit back and wring their hands. Not one of our city government officials has even had the balls to acknowledge to us that what happened that night “was wrong”. If they need a pair, then I’ve got an extra set they can borrow. our city council doesn’t run the city; the cops and rich people do. We elect City Council members who don’t represent us. We call protests and fifty people show up. We have become numb to the police murdering our people because it has become so common place. The time has come for “We the People” to stand up and take the bull by the horns. This is our city, we’re gonna take it back. Crying is not enuf. Talking is not enuf. We will win this battle. We will bow to no one. We are not afraid of Lukkken. We are not afraid of Strike-her or Fangman. We don’t fear death. We are not afraid to die. We will charge, we will nonviolently storm city hall and take over. We will win. They will turn and run. Our principles of equality and peace will live and their principles of oppression and greed will die. They will not hurt any of us ever any again. Fight back. Walk Tall. Join the resistance. We are courageous, powerful resisters. We, the poor people and black people are uniting under one banner and saying No! to cops who brutalize and those who allow cops to brutalize. Ain’t no power like the power of the people cuz the power of the people don’t stop! The question remains: “What’s the problem here”? Streetvibes Vendor Sonny Williams and his daughter Sara Streetvibes exists as a forum for the expression of the views and opinions of our readers and supporters. The opinions expressed herein are not necessarily those of the Streetvibes staff or the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. S T R E E T V I B E S March, 2004 Editorial Page 18 �FRAC - Food Research and Action Center News FRAC RESPONSE TO PRESIDENT BUSH’S FY 2005 BUDGET PROPOSAL, AND RELATED BUDGET STORIES (FRAC News Alert, February 5, 2004) The President’s Budget Proposal fails to provide new investments to increase access to the federal Child Nutrition Programs. This omission is particularly glaring given the US Department of Agriculture’s stated goals in the Budget of reducing hunger, combating obesity, and improving nutritional status. A spate of recent studies have shown that the best way to accomplish those goals is to reach more children and families with the benefits of the federal nutrition programs. http://www.frac.org/ html/news/2005budget.htm BUSH ADMINISTRATION DEFENDS LONG-TERM BUDGET CUTS IN PLAN TO CUT THE DEFICIT IN FIVE YEARS (Washington Post, February 6, 2004) A computergenerated Office of Management and Budget (OMB) estimate highlights the continued spending clampdown and budget cuts to domestic programs in the “out years” that would have to be achieved in order to meet the Bush Administration’s goal of cutting the deficit in half by 2009. Such sustained spending cuts to domestic programs (e.g., lowincome education, child care, job training) would represent an unprecedented shift in federal priorities and would be the first sustained rollback in federal spending since the 1930s. The document’s tables are normally part of the Budget but this year, according to Richard Kogan of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, OMB “took extra pains to hide them.” The administration cautioned that no budget decisions have been made beyond 2005 and also took issue with the interpretation of the long-term budget that shows declines in spending on domestic programs for low-income people: “This administration has done a lot for low-income people,” said OMB spokesperson J.T. Young, citing increases in food stamp participation and the recent Medicare prescription drug plan. http://www.washingtonpost.com/ wp-dyn/articles/A173152004Feb5.html The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities says that the President’s budget would make the nation’s fiscal problems worse; and that the deficit-reducing proposals are disproportionately tilted against lower- and middle-income families, while affluent and powerful constituents are essentially given a free ride. http://www.cbpp.org/22-04bud.htm he Children’s Defense Fund says the Bush Administration’s budget proposal presents a reckless plan to expand tax cuts for the rich at the expense of the most vulnerable Americans including 12.1 million children who live below the poverty line. http:// www.childrensdefense.org/ release040202.php the end of June. Only 1,000 jobs were created by the economy in December and 2.8 million manufacturing jobs have been lost in the past 41 months. Congress voted in 2002 to give unemployed workers an additional 13 weeks of benefits and extended the program twice. But it expired just before Christmas. Congressional Republicans said another extension wasn’t necessary because job growth was near at hand. http:// www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/ articles/A617152004Jan29.html?nav=hptoc_b Center on Budget and Policy Priorities analysis: http:// www.cbpp.org/1-29-04ui.htm REPORT FINDS HIGHCALORIE, LESS NUTRITIOUS FOODS ARE MORE AFFORDABLE FOR LOW-INCOME PEOPLE (Los Angeles Times, February 1, 2004) Low-income people tend to choose more high-calorie, low-nutritious foods because they provide more energy for the dollar, researchers have concluded. “Energy-dense foods composed of refined grains, added sugars or fats may represent the lowest-cost option,” said Adam Drewnowski, director of the Center for Public Health Nutrition at the University of Washington. For low-income people, choosing these kinds of products “may represent a deliberate attempt to save money,” he said. The report also found that women from food insecure households were less likely to get enough fruits and vegetables and, on average, weighed about 10 pounds more than women from food secure households. “People know what food costs. Parents know they are buying enough to make their kids and themselves not hungry, but they know they are not getting a totally balanced diet,” said Jim Weill, FRAC’s president. http:// www.latimes.com/news/ nationworld/politics/wire/sns-apfood-for-the-poor,1,3891154.story (free registration required) IN-DEPTH EXAMINATION OF THE CHARACTERISTICS OF RURAL AND SMALL-TOWN POVERTY (Amber Waves, U.S. Department of Agriculture, February 2004) This article discusses how rural counties with high poverty rates differ across racial and demographic lines. Comparisons are made among and between high-poverty counties populated by African Americans, Hispanics, Whites, and Native Americans. Of the 444 non-metro counties classified as high-poverty counties in 2000 (based on 1999 income), three-fourths reflect the low income of racial and ethnic minorities and are classified as Black, Native American, or Hispanic high-poverty counties. Some high-poverty areas have low labor force participation rates and could benefit from job training and job development. Others have a high share of female-headed families with children, and programs that provide child care and secure child support would help defray child care costs and open up employment opportunities. http://www.ers.usda.gov/ Amberwaves/February04/Features/ Anatomy.htm RECORD-HIGH 375,000 JOBLESS WORKERS LOSE UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS IN JANUARY; 2 MILLION WILL LOSE THEM BY JUNE (Washington Post, January 30, 2004) An analysis of Labor Department statistics by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities shows that 375,000 jobless workers, the highest number for January in the three decades the statistics have been tracked, will have exhausted their unemployment benefits in January. About 2 million additional jobless workers will exhaust benefits by S T R E E T V I B E S March, 2004 REPORT: NEARLY 1.2 MILLION OHIOANS EXPERIENCE FOOD INSECURITY (Plain Dealer, Cleveland, OH, January 31, 2004) A report by the Children’s Hunger Alliance entitled “Hunger in Ohio: The State of the State 2004,” shows that nearly three-quarters of a million Ohio residents experience food insecurity during an average month. “These families live on the verge of hunger and are often unsure how they will be able to afford their next meal,” said William Dolan, CEO of the Alliance. Some 129,000 additional children and 180,000 adults experience the worse condition of hunger. The Alliance recommends that Ohio change its food stamp FRAC News requirements and allow recipients to show eligibility once a year instead of every six months. Last year, more than $100 million in federal food stamp funds were left unused by potentially eligible people in the state. The Ohio Department of Education is also working to expand School Breakfast Program participation through initiatives like “breakfast in the classroom.” http://www.cleveland.com/news/ plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/news/ 1075545104213372.xml. For the full Children’s Hunger Alliance report: http:// www.childrenshungeralliance.org/ Hunger%20Report%20files/ Ohio2004.pdf EDITORIAL: OHIO CHILDREN MUST RECEIVE FREE AND REDUCED-PRICE MEAL BENEFITS THEY ARE ELIGIBLE (News Journal, Mansfield, OH, February 4, 2004) This editorial urges the Ohio community to do more to find a way to get free and reduced-price meals to school children who are eligible for them. Calling the situation where low-income students miss meals while at school “needless hunger,” the editorial points out that students who are hungry have trouble focusing on their classes. Free and reducedprice school meals must be available to eligible students in a discreet manner to alleviate stigma, outreach must be performed to alert parents to the resources available, and summer meals must be made available at sites that encourage participation and provide food as well as activities. http:// www.mansfieldnewsjournal.com/ news/stories/20040204/opinion/ 347678.html ACTIVISTS URGE WASHINGTON STATE LEGISLATORS TO PASS ANTI-HUNGER BILL (Associated Press, January 30, 2004) Anti-hunger activists urged Washington State legislators to support proposed legislation that would simplify the Food Stamp Program and require schools to offer free and reduced-price breakfast and lunch programs. House Bill 2769 would make free and reduced-price school meal programs mandatory, expand summer food programs, extend food stamp benefits for five months to people leaving the TANF program, and simplify the food stamp process so that recipients would only have to report changes in income that make them ineligible. http://www.kgw.com/ sharedcontent/APStories/stories/ D80CRGEO0.html Page 19 Page 19 �TREATMENT: Both N.A. Hopeline 820-2947 A.A. Hotline 351-0422 C.C.A.T. 381-6672 Talbert House 684-7956 Transitions, Inc 859-491-4435 VA Domiciliary 859-559-5011 DIC Live-In Program 721-0643 TREATMENT: Men Charlie’s 3/4 House 784-1853 Prospect House 921-1613 Starting Over 961-2256 TREATMENT: Women First Step Home 961-4663 Full Circle Program 721-0643 HOUSING: CMHA 721-4580 Excel Development 632-7149 Miami Purchase 241-0504 OTR Housing Net. 369-0004 ReSTOC 381-1171 Tender Mercies 721-8666 Tom Geiger House 961-4555 SHELTER: Both Anthony House (Youth) 357-4602 Caracole (AIDS) 761-1480 Friars Club 381-5432 Drop Inn Center 721-0643 Haven House 863-8866 Interfaith Hospitality 471-1100 Lighthouse Youth Center (Teens) 861-1111 St. John’s Housing 651-6446 Mt. Airy Center 661-4620 Volunteers of Amer. 381-1954 Need Help or Want to Help? If you need help or would like to help please call one of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless members listed below. SHELTERS: Women and Children YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter 872-9259 (Toll Free) 1-888-872-9259 Bethany House 557-2873 Salvation Army 762-5660 Welcome Hse. 859-431-8717 Women’s Crisis Center 859-491-3335 SHELTER: Men City Gospel Mission 241-5525 Garden St. House 241-0490 Joseph House (Veterans) 241-2965 St. Francis/St.Joseph House 381-4941 Formed in 1984, The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a membership organization. Our member groups serve the homeless through emergency shelter, transitional living facilities, permanent housing, medical services, social services, soup kitchens, and mental health/addiction services. The Coalition also consists of individual citizens who want to take an active role in ensuring that Cincinnati is an inclusive community, meeting the needs of all of its citizens. Join the fight to end homelessness; contact the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless at (513) 421-7803, 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 OTHER SERVICES: AIDS Volunteers of Cincinnati 421-2437 Appalachian Identity Center 621-5991 Beech Acres 231-6630 Center for Independent Living Options 241-2600 Churches Active in Northside 591-2246 Cincinnati Health Network 961-0600 Community Action Agency 569-1840 Contact Center 381-4242 Emanuel Center 241-2563 Freestore/ Foodbank 241-1064 Fransiscan Haircuts 651-6468 Goodwill Industries 771-4800 Coalition for the Homeless 421-7803 Hamilton Co. Mental Health Board 946-8600 Mental Health Access Point 558-8888 Hamilton Co. TB Control 632-7186 Health Rsrc. Center 357-4602 Homeless Mobile Health Van 352-2902 House of Refuge Mission 221-5491 Legal Aid Society 241-9400 Madisonville Ed. & Assis. Center 271-5501 Mary Magdalen House 721-4811 McMicken Dental Clinic 352-6363 Our Daily Bread 621-6364 Peaslee Neighborhood Center 621-5514 Project Connect Homeless Kids 357-5720 St. Vincent De Paul 562-8841 The Emergency Food Center 471-4357 Travelers Aid 721-7660 United Way 721-7900 VA Homeless 859-572-6226 Women Helping Women 872-9259 MIDDLETOWN/HAMILTON (Butler County) St. Raphaels (Food Bank/Soup Kitchen) 863-3184 Salvation Army 863-1445 Serenity House Day Center 422-8555 Open Door Pantry 868-3276 New Life Baptist Mission (Soup Kitchen) 896-9800 Hope House (Homeless Families/Singles) 423-4673 $1 Donation March 2004 Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless “Homelessness Marathon” hits Ohio Airwaves BUY FROM BADGED VENDORS ONLY Streetvibes Serial Number � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 2004 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource March 2004 Subject The topic of the resource Homelessness Description An account of the resource Pg 1: Radio Marathon Brings the Voices of Homelessness to the Airwaves Pg 2: Ohio Cities Face Common Challenged Pg 3: Donate Pg 4: Homeless News Digest On a 28-Degree Night in February, Advocates Count Those Living Outdoors Pg 5: Kathy Wilson’s Book Brings Clarity to Cincinnati Politics Pg 6: The Peace Village Pg 7: Cleveland Shelter for Women Re-Opens; Provides Safety and Support Poor to Put ‘Bushville’ Tent City at NY Convention Pg 8: Presidential Hopeful Dennis Kucinich Visits Over-the-Rhine Pg 9: The Sun Will Come Out Progress Pg 10: Cincinnati Inner-City Children Shar Their Lives Through Photography Exhibit Pg 11: City Council Approves Plan for Huntington Meadows Development Pg 12: Haiti’s Collapse Pg 13: Ohio Empowerment Coalition Joins in “Presidential Dialogue with America’s Families” Letting Rumsfeld Set the Rules Pg 14: Arts & Poetry Pg 15: Arts & Poetry Continued Pg 16: Editorial Pg 17: Towards a Justice that Lasts Pg 18: Nathaniel Jones: The Question Remains Pg 19: FRAC Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Streetvibes Archive Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Streetvibes Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource March 2004 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Georgine Getty Andy Erickson Brendan Goodwin Mary Gaffney Elizabeth Linville Jimmy Heath Berta Lambert Curtis Proffitt Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Arts & Poetry Berta Lambert Brendan Goodwin Cincinnati city council Cleveland Curtis Proffitt Dennis Kucinich Editorials Elizabeth Linville Food Research FRAC GCCH Georgine Getty Haiti Huntington Meadows Jimmy Heath Justice Kathy Wilson Mary Gaffney memorial Nathaniel Jones New York Ohio Over-the-Rhine Peace Village Photography Presidential Election Radio Washington Post https://streetvibesarchive.net/files/original/5e5dc7dfa42c1354bdb0114753506b6f.pdf 4753718904d001b73b9d6a184d302712 PDF Text Text May, 2004 STREETVIBES Fort Washington Hotel To Be Replaced By Upscale Condos alternatives for the clients. demolition of the Milner Hotel in Story and photos by Jimmy Heath jobs, transportation, affordable housing and services. Many of Supposedly, other places will take 1994, which resulted in the loss of the residents work during the up the slack. But none of that has 115 affordable housing units in Red’s baseball games or other been formalized – there were no downtown Cincinnati. The downtown events in menial lowdiscussions on the issue, no study Milner Hotel, once a low-income paying jobs. Many others work in or concern for the impact this will rooming house, was torn down nearby restaurants, others get by have on poor people. And there is for the construction of Greenwich on fixed incomes. a lot of money in this deal,” says Village, a market rate complex for “Most of the people will Clifford. higher-income people. be able to find other housing Many Earlier this At the present time the Fort downtown,” says Roger, the desk agree that the decade, Main clerk at the Fort Washington Hotel Hotel needs Street in Over­ Washington Hotel offers who has lived in the building off work beyond the-Rhine low-cost affordable housing and on for nearly ten years. just cosmetic experienced “They will be able to go to the changes. The significant to the working poor and Dennison Hotel or the Metropole Hotel is in need renovations people on fixed incomes around the corner. A lot of these of major that gentrified a folks are on fixed incomes, so electrical and wellwho want the flexibility of they will be able to get help.” plumbing work established weekly rental rates. The Hotel serves as an as it stands community. In Advocates for affordable alternative to many people who today. just a fivecould otherwise wind up on the Businesses on block span housing are worried that street. The residents are mostly Main Street are from l2th Street turning the historic building the working poor; folks who can’t anxious to see to Liberty, over afford market-rate apartments and the property 200 units of Another option for lowinto market rate housing can’t commit to long-term leases developed – the low-income income housing may soon be lost will further erode the stock or pass stringent tenant screenings aging building housing were in downtown Cincinnati. The but who still need an affordable is surrounded lost. The Fort Washington Hotel on Main of low income housing in roof over their head. by new adjacent West Street has about 100 rooms and the city of Cincinnati.... “An affordable rooming development End community nearly as many residents but it house is preferable to a homeless including the has soon may be closing due to a shelter, a park bench or an alley,” new Contemporary Arts Center experienced the demolition of two development project that will says Pat Clifford, general and the Aronoff complex. There housing projects; Laurel Homes transform the turn-of-the-century coordinator of the Drop Inn are at least 200 new units of and Lincoln Court, as part of the structure into 10 upscale Center shelter. “We are losing a upper-income market rate housing HUD Hope VI program which condominiums. scheduled to open in the grants cities federal money to turn The rehab project is slated lot of places where residents can go when they manage to save a downtown area within the next aging “projects” into mixedto begin in about 2 – 6 months. few dollars or are on their way to two years. income units. Financing of the project will getting back on their feet. There Many advocates for lowWith a need for lowdepend mostly on the presale of seems to be less and less income housing remember the income housing that already the new condominium units. The outstrips the supply, public project will begin as early as this redevelopment projects and spring and will develop 10 units private development continually at 1,600 square feet of living contribute to the leading cause of space with starting prices of homelessness - lack of affordable around $250,000 each. There are housing. plans for balconies and indoor Georgine Getty, Executive parking. The building originally Director of the Greater Cincinnati opened in 1888 as an office Coalition for the Homeless stated, building but later was converted “lack of affordable housing is the to a hotel. number one reason that women At the present time the become homeless in Cincinnati, Fort Washington Hotel offers lowwhich means it is also the number cost affordable housing to the one reason that children become working poor and people on fixed homeless in Cincinnati. We are incomes who want the flexibility talking about 8,000 children each of weekly rental rates. Advocates year who experience the horror of for affordable housing are worried homelessness simply because that turning the historic building developers and businesses didn’t into market rate housing will take them into account in the further erode the stock of low attempts at ‘progress.’” income housing in the city of She concluded, “It really is Cincinnati. a shame, because Cincinnati is big For several decades the enough for us all if we would only Fort Washington Hotel has served make the effort to include the working poor of Cincinnati, There are plans to restore the turn-of-the-century facade everyone.” providing access to downtown Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless �Streetvibes Streetvibes, the Tri­ State’s alternative news source, is a newspaper written by, for, and about the homeless and contains relevant discussions of social justice, and poverty issues. It is published once a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Becoming a Streetvibes Vendor is a great way for homeless and other low-income people to get back on (or stay on) their feet. Streetvibes Vendors are given an orientation and sign a code of conduct before being given a Streetvibes Vendor badge. All profits go directly to the vendor. The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a group of shelters, agencies and individuals committed to ending homelessness in Cincinnati through coordinating services, educating the public and grassroots organizing. GCCH Staff Georgine Getty - Executive Director Allison Leeuw - Administrative Coordinator Andy Erickson - Education Coordinator Elizabeth Linville - Civil Rights Coordinator Janice Faulkner - Receptionist Mary Gaffney - Receptionist Streetvibes Jimmy Heath, Editor Photographers Jimmy Heath, Berta Lambert, Sonny Williams Cover Fort Washinton Hotel, downtown Cincinnati - photo by Jimmy Heath ET VIB ES Page 2 the north can be hazardous to your health. But there are many other dangers too, especially for women. According to the National Gentria Lynn Thomas’s Coalition for the Homeless in body was found in a pile of Washington, DC about 10% of clothing on a Cincinnati street last victims of hate crimes month. Someone called committed against the 911 to report an homeless are women. unconscious person lying (Log on to on the street near www.nationalhomeless.org/ Broadway and Third in the hatecrimes/fullreport.pdf downtown business for a full copy of the district. When police Jimmy Heath report; Hate, Violence and arrived they found Thomas Death on Main Street dead, possibly murdered. USA). Investigators think she may have “I did what I had to do to been killed elsewhere and then left make it out there,” a woman on the street. The Hamilton resident of the Drop Inn Center County coroner was to perform an told me. “I would do anything on autopsy but as of this writing the the street. A woman on the street is cause of her death remains unknown. According to the police, like a commodity. It is a different way to survive than the men. But the death has been ruled as a now I’m here so I can get my kids homicide and there is a suspect in back. I need to do this more than her murder. that. It’s crazy out there” Gentria Thomas was a Getting people off the street homeless person who frequented is the first step, and this alone is the Drop Inn Center and spent not always easy. There is fear and afternoons with friends in Washington Park. The struggle she mistrust and sometimes mental had with her life was punctuated at illness and addiction. Many people who the end by an are homeless cycle anonymous and in and out of the possibly violent justice system, at death, a blurb in the taxpayer expense, news. for minor infractions This is the like drinking in ultimate indignity “There is a choice that has to be public or for homeless people made in this country to end panhandling. The - to die in public, homelessness, and it’s exactly the justice system does alone and on the same as the choice an artist has to Gentria Lynn Thomas nothing for the street. make to create something homeless except Although the beautiful: it is a choice between provide a brief respite from a night murder of Gentria Thomas may be respect and contempt. Studying an isolated incident, I am reminded on the street. Mostly, it just creates Aesthetic Realism made for a new a criminal record and that makes it of the cycle of life and death, integrity in my life. I learned that increasingly difficult to find especially the loneliness of dying beauty and ethics are inseparable— housing or employment. Many homeless. The disconnection that the way to take care of myself police bring people to the Drop Inn was by trying to be fair to other between society and the homeless Center instead of taking them to person - a life of isolation and people, that in order to express jail, and that is a sympathetic poverty - makes the loss of life something original, I had to be profoundly tragic. Without friends, beginning. impressed by the world in a deep Every year in December we way. We have to oppose contempt resources, or a family connection, mourn the passing of our homeless in the way this country is run, and only a stranger’s generosity brothers and sisters on the longest prevents an anonymous burial in a we have to oppose it in ourselves.” night of the year. [see Streetvibes, pauper’s grave. Anthony C. Romeo, AIA, January 2004]. Homeless workers, Principal, Urbane Architects, We are constantly asking why? What can be done to prevent family and friends gather in P.C. Washington Park for a memorial the death of a homeless person service to remember the people from going unnoticed? Will the who have died during the year crime go unsolved? For advocates while living on the streets of of the poor and the homeless the Cincinnati. It is a solemn occasion, question also arises; how many marked by a barrel fire in the park more preventable deaths will go Support and the cold-winter wind of a late unchecked? Your December evening. The service is Those that simply die of old Vendor age or because they have an undetected illness should not die alone on the street like so many do. Gentria Thomas’s death adds a new twist because of the possibility of homicide. But her death also Streetvibes Vendors are required to sign a code of conduct reminds us of the nasty side of life and agree to abide by all the rules of the Streetvibes Ven­ on the street and the element of dor Program. If a Vendor misrepresents or breaks the danger - real danger, that can get rules, she/he may be removed from the Program. To report you killed. Without shelter, life a Vendor, call 421-7803. ext. 16 outside during the winter months in by Jimmy Heath, Streetvibes Editor RE Subscriptions to Streetvibes, delivered to your home each month, can be purchased for $25 per year. Address mail to: Streetvibes Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH) 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 (513) 421-7803 e-mail: streetvibes@juno.com web: http://homeless.cinci.com repeated throughout countless cities in the US each year, remembering the homeless and others who have lived and died outside. But after the holidays, the remembrance wears thin The Homeless Memorial is a remembrance and a challenge to all who listen to not let the lives or deaths of people on the street go unnoticed. The occasion is especially poignant for me - I know some of the folks who have died in recent years. I could be one of those people on the list of the dead too ­ dying outdoors, anonymous and nameless, drifting out of life unnoticed. In the end, this is the plight of many of the homeless – they eventually die and strangers grieve their passing. I didn’t know Gentria Thomas. But I know of the life. I’m all too familiar with the death of those on the streets. All of these words are simply put to paper to remember someone who died outside of society – not a fitting memorial to a human being, but it is all I can do. I grieve for the many that die unnoticed and forgotten. I hope to see everyone home someday, safe from the hazards of life on the streets - safe from a silent, unnoticed death. ST Streetvibes accepts letters, poems, stories, essays, original graphics, and photos. We will give preference to those who are homeless or vendors. Death On The Street Buy Streetvibes From Badged Vendors Only! Streetvibes �ON A SCALE OF ONE TO A HUNDRED, HOW MUCH DO YOU DISAGREE WITH THE CITY’S TREATMENT OF CINCINNATI’S HOMELESS? I WILL DONATE: $1 $20 $40 $60 $80 $100 He’s only 18 months old and already he’s trapped in the cycle of homelessness in Cincinnati. His mother needs an affordable place to live and a job with a living wage as she escapes a life of domestic violence. The current treatment of homeless individuals in our city means that he may never be able to live in a home of his own. There are 25,000 people in Cincinnati that experience homelessness each year. More than one-third of those are women and children. The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless believes that by addressing the root causes of the problem through education, advocacy and coordination of services, we can end homelessness in our city. The more support we have from the community, the further our efforts reach. Please cut the coupon and pick a box. It could mean that one less child will have to live in one. Send your donations to Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 Streetvibes Page 3 �Police Use of New Taser’s Raises Questions Amanda E. Mayes, Co-chair, Coalition for a Just Cincinnati In December of last year a divided City Council voted in favor of equipping every police officer with a taser despite feelings many residents had that the tasers could be misused. (As you well know, at the time of the taser debate, African-American residents appeared at Council’s meeting to oppose the Taser purchase, stating that Police were already too prone to use force on black subjects and adding that they feared the weapons would be deployed too readily in black neighborhoods). Notwithstanding the charged racial climate in Cincinnati - and in particular strained race relations between African American citizens and the CPD - Cincinnati police deemed it necessary to zap at least four people not long after receiving these tasers. Countless other times, the police have threatened citizens with the use of these tasers. For instance, last month while at City Hall, Cincinnati Police Lt. Doug Ventre threatened to tase activist Nathaniel Livingston, Jr. while escorting him out of City Council chambers. In light of these facts, some serious questions must be they be shot into a crowd? Can asked. What precisely is the tasers be used on individuals who policy on police use of tasers? are clearly disabled or who don’t For example: have the health of an average 1.) Under what circumstances is it individual (for example: a person acceptable for an officer to tase a confined to a wheel chair or a citizen? So far it seems police pregnant woman)? discretion has been arbitrarily 4.) How many times can an applied. For example, suspects officer tase an individual during a who have posed no physical threat single arrest? Can an officer to police repeatedly officers have tase any been tased (as suspect? was the case It goes with a 33 year without old Price Hill saying that man who the answers police tased to these because he questions was “acting should have Taser issued to the Cincinnati strangely” been clearly Police and whom established they never BEFORE brought up on criminal charges). Council voted in favor of issuing 2.) How many officers can tase a these tasers. It may even be the single citizen at any one time? case that the above mentioned Thinking back on the Nathaniel questions (and many more) have, Jones case, had all six officers indeed, been answered and been armed with tasers, could all policies put in place. If that is the of them have tased Mr. Jones if case, I appreciate the prudence they all claim to have perceived a involved and would like to know threat? if that information was made 3.) Are there age, weight, or other available to the public. considerations that would prohibit However, if these the use of tasers no matter the decisions were not made before circumstance? For instance, can Council voted to issue these tasers tasers be used on children? Can - as I suspect is the case - the Taser Used on Man Threatening cigarette, Suicide Cincinnati police said Cincinnati. one of the officers they saved a man’s life last month by using a taser on him to keep him from committing suicide. This was one of the most recent tasing’s, taking place around 3 a.m. in the middle of the suspension bridge. The man threatened to take his own life in the early morning hours by jumping off the bridge in downtown James Robinson of Westwood was threatening to jump into the river because he was distraught over being robbed on Vine Street. Officers talked with him for several minutes and got him to move away from the railing by offering him a cigarette. When the man stepped away from the railing to get a used his taser to subdue him. Police said the man did not suffer any serious injuries from the tasers. He was placed under medical care. Cincinnati police have had tasers for over three months and have used them about 100 times. According to police, just pointing the taser or threatening appropriate policies must be put into place post haste, and it is the responsibility of Council to see that that is done. African American citizens in Cincinnati live with a police force that has no compunction about calling us Niggers. We are profiled by the police and constantly harassed. We, therefore, don’t trust the police and equally distrust an establishment that protects them. If we are really to come to any kind of racial reconciliation, we must be honest and hardworking on these issues. Lip service is a waste of our time. It is easily detected and only serves to foster distrust and resentment. I urge you to respond with righteous indignation against a police force that has served to help divide our city along racial lines, hasn’t reduced crime a bit, and continues to eat up more and more of the city budget. I urge you to consider what would have been the attitude of the African American community had Mr. Livingston been tased on Citicable for holding a sign in City Council Chambers? For many, many reasons you are urged to be aggressive about preserving the civil rights of your constituents. I shudder to think of what will be the consequences if you choose to do otherwise. its use causes compliance. Nearly 450 police officers have been voluntarily shot by a taser since its introduction, so that officers learn firsthand the effects of the high voltage discharge device. The first time a taser was used was against a suspect in Price Hill on January 9th. Cincinnati spent $1 million to buy tasers for most of the police officers. New Council Rules To Be Challenged In Court Nathaniel Livingston Jr. Last month I filed a federal lawsuit against The City of Cincinnati, Mayor Charlie Luken and FOP Vice President Keith Fangman to stop the City from violating my civil rights. Along with the Complaint, I filed a motion requesting an immediate temporary restraining order to stop Mayor Luken and City Council from enforcing the unconstitutional Rules of Council which have been used to throw citizens like me out of City Hall, and to stop the police from giving tickets to citizens like me who say unpopular things on Fountain Square. During the last year I have been arrested or ticketed at least six times for saying “F@#& The Police” or “Nigganati” on Fountain Square and at City Hall. The same Mayor and police officers who don’t want to hear me say these offensive things have defended the KKK’s right to call Black people “niggers” on Fountain Square, and Lt. Jeff Butler’s use of the word “nigger” on videotape. Some people argue that I should give up my rights to say whatever I want to at City Hall or on Fountain Square. These people, including those of you in the media, never suggest the Klan, or the Chabad, or the Know Theatre Tribe give up their rights. This lawsuit is about defending my Constitutional right to attend City Council meetings and speak if everyone else is allowed to do so. The suit is also about defending my right to engage in offensive speech on Fountain Square as long as other people are allowed to do so. If City Council objects to the comments of speakers at City Hall then they have the option of discontinuing the Citizens’ Forum. Until then, however, the law is clear. If one person is allowed to speak, then everyone is allowed to speak. That’s America. Love it or leave it. I am somewhat concerned about Judge Dlott being assigned this case because she has worked with Keith Fangman and the FOP in the past during the Collaborative Agreement which I think was a sweetheart deal for the cops. Nevertheless, I trust that Judge Dlott will be fair in this case. Streetvibes exists as a forum for the expression of the views and opinions of our readers and supporters. The opinions expressed herein are not necessarily those of the Streetvibes staff or the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Home Page 4 Streetvibes �Street Vendors Sell Knowledge by Saleha Ghani, University of Cincinnati News Record Staff Columnist What does a dollar mean to you? For some people, it means something from the 99-cent menu at Wendy’s or a 20-minute phone call. I used to think that a dollar wasn’t worth much, but a few days ago I discovered how much an extra buck can do. I was walking into the Blockbuster on Corry Street near the University of Cincinnati campus trying to think of a good “date movie” when that nice black guy who is often seen selling copies of Streetvibes, a newspaper published by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless, asked me if I would by a copy from him. It would only cost me a dollar, he said. Usually I shrug off street vendors with a smile and continue on my way, but I was in a good mood that day and happened to have a dollar in my pocket. At the time, I thought he was the lucky one since I usually don’t buy things from street vendors. In retrospect, I see that I am the lucky one. While waiting in line at Blockbuster I began perusing the newspaper. This is what I learned by giving a Streetvibes vendor my dollar: Streetvibes vendor’s keep 70 cents of each dollar collected while selling the newspaper. They are usually homeless or lowincome adults who are working hard to get themselves out of poverty. Unlike the homeless guy who sits on a bucket when you turn onto Hopple Street from I-75 who is always holding a sign saying he is hungry and homeless (one of the letters is written backwards to encourage sympathy), Streetvibes vendors work hard to earn money. They even have to taken an oath promising not to sell the newspaper while under the influence. This just makes me angrier at the old white guy who bumbles around McMillan Avenue smelling like he’s been swimming in alcohol, who goes around asking people for their change. I once saw him laying on the couch at KFC and offered to buy him food, but he said he didn’t like chicken and just wanted money. Now I don’t know any of these people or their life stories, but I do know that I’d rather give money to someone who is making a genuine effort to get back on their feet, than to someone who is just sitting around waiting for someone to hand them a few bucks. Not only does the publication provide employment for those who may have difficulty getting jobs elsewhere but have the motivation to get off or stay off the streets, it also gives them an opportunity to express their creativity. The publishers give vendors and the homeless preference when deciding what to print. But enough about the homeless. What about the rest of us? Sure, college kids usually don’t have much money, but would it kill us to give a few bucks here and there to someone who really needs it and is willing to work for it? By buying a copy of Streetvibes, you’ll also learn about the poverty situation in Cincinnati. The most recent issue of Streetvibes has an article about Cincinnati City Council’s effort to remove the homeless who have found shelter under bridges and highway passes to make the city look better. Instead of trying to help the homeless by providing real shelters, the city is sweeping its problems under a rug. I learned all of this just by giving a dollar to a vendor on my way into Blockbuster. He inspired me to buy a pack of Peanut M&M’s for a dollar from the guy who stands on the corner of Jefferson Avenue and MLK. Hand him a dollar, and you’ll get M&M’s and a little flyer about the importance of being drug-free. Who knew that a dollar could help so many people? Florida Street Paper Sues Over Vendor Crackdown For the second time in just over three years, the city of Hallandale Beach Florida faces a lawsuit from The Homeless Voice newspaper, which says the Atlantic coast town is unfairly cracking down on its street vendors. The organization that publishes The Homeless Voice newspaper sued Hallandale Beach in federal court last month, seeking to block city efforts to keep street vendors off medians and sidewalks, a lawyer for the organization said. The suit - the paper’s second against the city in about three years - asks the court to rule that the city is interfering with the newspaper’s constitutionally protected right to distribute its product, said John David, who represents the Cosac Foundation. ‘’It’s always important that people protect their rights to free press and free speech, and that’s exactly what we’re doing,’’ he said. “The efforts of my clients are important to meet the needs of the homeless.’’ Unlike Streetvibes, where vendors keep all of the sales profits, proceeds from the sale of Hallandale’s street paper go to The Homeless Voice/Helping People in America shelter in Hollywood FL, said Lois Cross, a shelter volunteer. The city is simply enforcing a state statute that prohibits newspaper vendors - and everyone else - from standing in the street to solicit business, said Hallandale Beach Vice Mayor William Julian. Vendors are allowed to use sidewalks and medians - a contention disputed by The Homeless Voice - but are not permitted to step down into the paved portion of the road reserved for traffic, he said. ‘’This is not a homeless issue for me or the city of Hallandale - this is a safety issue,’’ he said, adding that several vendors had been killed or injured in recent years. Since 2000, officials in Weston, Aventura, Hollywood, Pembroke Pines, Davie and other National Homeless Civil Rights Organizing Project (NHCROP) 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 homelesscivilrights@yahoo.com Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (513) 421-7803 Florida cities have considered or enacted measures to restrict street vendors. In 2001, Homeless Voice founder Sean Cononie sued Hallandale Beach for banning his vendors while allowing those of The Herald and Sun-Sentinel daily newspapers to do business in the streets. The suit was settled and the vendors were allowed to return. About a year ago, Hollywood issued tickets to three Sun-Sentinel vendors and one Herald vendor hawking newspapers in the street. The newspapers sued in federal court, arguing that their constitutional right to freedom of the press had been violated. They asked Judge Patricia A. Seitz to order Hollywood to stop its enforcement efforts, but Seitz rejected the newspapers’ request. While other street papers around the US, Canada and Europe enjoy support and praise from government officials, many street papers continue to be attacked by city lawmakers intent on removing or restricting the freedoms of homeless persons in public. Cincinnati’s Streetvibes newspaper has faced many serious challenges from the City in recent years, including attempts to Streetvibes outright ban the sales of the paper, restrictions on where the paper can be sold and statements from City Hall citing Streetvibes as “contributing to the demise of downtown Cincinnati.” “Some see this as ‘meaness’ directed at people who are least able to defend themselves,” said Jimmy Heath, editor of Cincinnati’s Streetvibes newspaper. “But most people know what is really going on and they support the people selling the paper on street. And the courts have always been just in these matters.” An Alcoholic? by Linda Corey An alcoholic is a real character; drinks to forget hurt and failure. Plays the victim. Role: anger, fear, shame, guilt. The behavior is selfish. The alcoholic character staggers around constantly wanting another drink, and then wakes in the morning with a hangover. The first word in the morning is the guilt. Oh, what have I done now? Then there is a crisis or a problem. The alcoholic says, “Well, how am I going to get another drink? The insanity starts all over again. An alcoholic is spiritually dead. Alcohol is their higher power, their God. Page 5 �Homeless News Digest compiled by Patty Lane A man who police say beat a homeless man in an attack linked to a White supremacist group has accepted a plea agreement. According to the Seattle Times, David Nikos Platos of Tacoma plead guilty to firstdegree murder in the death of 42­ year-old Randall Townsend. His girlfriend also plead guilty to second-degree murder. As part of their pleas, both will testify against two others charged with aggravated murder. Police say the defendants planned last month’s attack so that one of them could earn red shoelaces in the White supremacist movement. The victim, however, was White. Instead of spending Spring Break hitting the beach and partying, some Minnesota college students decided to use their time to help those in need. Seven women and four men spent their time volunteering at a homeless shelter in Florida, doing everything from painting and casework to sorting clothes and fixing church pews. According to the Sun Sentinel, they also hit the streets. “They did some street outreach ride-alongs and went under bridges and to local parks,” says Diane Bates, executive director of the shelter. For some it was their second Spring Break spent at the shelter. “It was too short a time,” says senior Mariana Mayers. “I wish I had more time to help out, but Spring Break is only one week.” A daytime shelter has different needs than a regular homeless shelter such as providing breakfast, lunch, showers and hygiene items and a clothing closet. The shelter also provides a food bank and bus tokens for such things as job interviews and medical appointments. Bates praises their work: “They not only bring the work that they do in terms of physical labor, but they also bring up our morale. They’re really inspiring. It’s a privilege for us to have them,” she says. From 2000 to 2002, the number of homeless people at Calgary’s homeless shelters rose by 30 percent. But that won’t stop the Alberta capital’s largest shelter from closing its doors this spring. The Calgary Drop-In Centre faces a cash crisis that could shut it down as soon as May 1. In 2002, the Drop-In Centre and the Page 6 city’s four other facilities sheltered 14,181 separate individuals. “That is really unacceptable in Canada and particularly in Alberta,” Floyd Perras of the Mustard Seed Street Ministry told the Calgary Sun. “You feel a hopelessness for these individuals.” A Vancouver politician is calling on citizens to organize patrols of schoolyards in the West End neighborhood of the city, where, says Liberal Party representative Lorne Mayencourt, the homeless and the addicted are increasingly loitering. Mayencourt blames the hangouts on a police crackdown forcing addicts out of the Downtown Eastside, the city’s historic slum neighborhood. But Vancouver School Board trustee Andrea Reimer says cleaning up needles and crack pipes from playgrounds is only a half-measure. The people creating the problem, she told CBC News, “don’t go away. They just leave that neighborhood. And they’re going to go to other neighborhoods.” Reimer says a longer-term solution would include more money for drug treatment and housing. A new bicycle lending and ownership program for the homeless is underway in Kentucky. WAVE 3 Television reports the project, started by Wayside Christian Mission, will give homeless people a transportation option through a bicycle lending facility. The 12­ bike program is expected to go city-wide by the end of the year. Reverend Maurice McCrackin UNITY DAY Honoring the life and Work of the Reverend Maurice (Mac) McCrackin June 11 – 13, 2004 St. Joseph Catholic Church 745 Ezzard Charles Drive at Linn Street “Come whenever you can and stay as long as you can...” - Rev. Maurice McCrackin • Free Breakfast - Lunch – Dinner • Fun Stuff • Vision, Strategy, Action • Art Show / Videos • Small Groups • Music • Information on community organizations • Children’s Activities Amos 5:24 - “But let justice run down like water, and righteousness like a mighty stream.” As Mac said: “It is up to us to work out the irrigation system.” Come help spearhead the movement for change in Cincinnati. We are the ones in control of Cincinnati’s future. What kind of city do you want to live in? Any contributions will be gratefully received. Please make checks payable to St. Joseph Catholic Church c/o Mac Day. Write “Mac Day” in the memo line. Donations are tax-deductible. For more information contact St. Joseph Catholic Church; 513-381-4526 or Brian Garry; 513-236-4180 or e-mail: briangarry@briangarry.com Streetvibes �Labor of Love by Mary Gaffney Happy Easter to each and everyone. When this issue of Streetvibes reaches you, the celebration of the resurrection of Jesus’ death will be over. To my homeless friends, it is on behalf of you that I speak on the problems that you are facing each day, for each of you are still struggling to have employment and a place to live, where there will be no fear of being locked out, abused; some of the things that can happen to my homeless friends. I still try to find time to talk to them, encourage them to not give up. Sometimes they are not in the best of moods while they are trying to secure a job. Sometimes their past, which includes time in Well, some of my friends have worked, served this country, jail, makes these things difficult. They have served their and some have served time for their time, and when they are let out, misdeeds. Yes, they have paid the price and served they are expected to find work. the time for what they were Some receive training – all of involved in. this and they still When a can’t get a job. person gets They are also released from prison, they are victims of people giving them an told to find employment. But attitude, is doesn’t always reminding them work out. They that others work have trouble for a living. Miss Mary Gaffney Remember, they finding a job because they have are watching you as you behave this way. For us a record and no home. This certainly makes them bitter, and more fortunate, we have homes, they feel no one cares. Some jobs, etc. people resort to drinking, etc, and a don’t care attitude. But I talk to them and continue to tell them that there are people who care, and don’t give up on you. Go to an official who is higher if you have to, and ask to see the person who is in charge of the homeless programs. It doesn’t take much to speak with kindness and a little smile. You never know what the future holds for each of us. With the conditions in the world today it is time for everyone to stop and think and remember we are all brothers and sisters in the sight of God, regardless of race or nationality. In the Father’s words, we are all his children. Remember to please be kind because you never know when the kindness you share will be returned to you. The Taxing Truth by David Bisson Lurking behind the recent string of federal tax cuts are the blueprints for a far-right-wing revolution. In a column last year in the Washington Post, Grover Norquist, President of Americans for Tax Reform and the radical right’s anti-tax ringleader, laid out a program to transform our current tax system into a single flat tax on wages. Unlike Steve Forbes and others who have tried to radically alter the tax code in a single swoop, the contemporary conservative movement favors a more gradual assault. “The new Republican policy is an annual tax cut,” proclaimed Norquist, and “each of the Bush tax cuts, past and proposed, moves us toward fundamental tax reform.” When they say “fundamental tax reform,” rightwingers are talking about dismantling the progressive tax system that has facilitated social progress in the U.S for the past 70 years. They are trying to smother the widely held belief that people should be taxed at different rates based on their ability to pay. And they are proposing a change in the tax system that would hurt most Americans by shifting the tax burden off capital and investments and onto the wages of low- and middle-income taxpayers. To market what should be a wildly unpopular agenda, the conservative movement has devised an arsenal of disinformation. For three years in a row, President Bush has exploited workers’ insecurities in a stagnating economy to pass major tax breaks for his wealthy campaign donors under the guise of economic stimulus. Last summer’s 2003 tax cut provided a potent example: although it was sold as a “jobs and growth” package, the bill is a targeted giveaway to high-income policy. The choices made by citizens and legislators in the near earners and investors who are future will lead the nation down likely to save their windfalls. one of two diverging paths. Working taxpayers, by contrast, Politicians and pundits on the right would spend tax cuts now in ways have offered assurances that the that would stimulate job creation deficits are “manageable’ while and economic growth. The only advocating ever more tax cuts thing Bush’s tax cut stimulates is aimed at the wealthy. Accepting growth in economic inequality. this conservative revolution is An honest look at the likely to produce a fiscal train numbers reveals the tax cut’s wreck that the right will use to staggering inequities. Over the justify elimination or privatization next 10 years, the bill will deliver of social programs that most the same amount, $90 billion, in Americans want and need—namely total tax cuts to the top one-tenth Social Security, Medicare, and of one percent of all U.S households — the tiny number with Medicaid. The main beneficiaries of yearly incomes over $1 million — that train wreck would be large as it will to the entire bottom 88 corporations that would profit from percent. privatization of core government Already, the Republicans’ annual tax cut strategy has had dire services, and wealthy individuals who do not depend on the current consequences for America’s fiscal safety nets and who would keep health. In July of last year, the Bush Administration announced an more of their incomes under a flat tax. The remaining majority would estimated $455 billion federal have less job security, healthcare, budget deficit for fiscal year 2003. A long-term analysis by the Center for Budget Priorities (CBPP) concludes that “under realistic projections, budget deficits will remain at or above $325 billion for each of the next ten years and total $4.1 trillion over that period.” While the Bush administration and its The Know Your Rights supporters have been quick to Brochure is now available at the blame the deficits on unanticipated spending demands, Coalition’s office. The brochure is a legal guide for Cincinnati’s the CBPP report demonstrates homeless and covers a person’s that federal tax breaks enacted basic rights when interacting with since 2001 will, over 2003 and 2004, cost nearly three times the the police, as well as some local laws that might be of interest to combined costs of combat and the homeless population. If you occupation in Iraq and Afghanistan, reconstruction and are a homeless person or if you work with homeless people and relief after the 9/11 attacks, would like to obtain free copies increased expenditures on of the brochure for yourself or homeland security, and the cost of fighting terrorism worldwide. your agency, please call 421­ 7803, or stop by the Coalition America is at a office and pick one up. crossroads of tax and budget and retirement security. If the right succeeds in shifting responsibility for funding social programs to state and local governments whose tax systems disproportionately burden people with lower incomes, most people would pay more taxes for fewer services. Or we can choose the other path: honoring our commitments to aging generations while investing in a future of shared opportunity and prosperity. David Bisson is an intern at United for a Fair Economy and an Economics major at the University of Massachusetts— Amherst Through Gandhi and my own life experience, I have learned about nonviolence. I believe that human life is a very special gift from God, and that no one has a right to take that away in any cause, however just. I am convinced that nonviolence is more powerful than violence - Cesar Chavez Know Your Rights Brochure Available! Streetvibes Page 7 �The Peace Village by Dr. Steve Sunderland museum of the Old John Street Church, we drew posters of what stood out most from our four intensive days of seminars and touring. One of the first year students had drawn a beautiful picture of the cross fashioned from the beams that were destroyed at the World Trade Center that stands at the side of the site. She spoke eloquently about how the cross moved her and how inappropriate it was since no other religious symbol was in evidence. Very quickly, the other members of the trip joined her in agreeing that we had learned so much about diversity and had seen no sign of it at the World Trade Center. A wonderful discussion ensued as one member, TAKING A PEACE TRIP: One of my dreams came true: taking a peace trip with group of people dedicated to learning as much as we could about the different meanings of “peace.” Nine of us, squeezed into a big blue van, headed out from Columbus, Ohio to learn about peace in New York City. Peace Village member, Rev. Paul S. Stark, Wesley Foundation University of Cincinnati Student Center, plus Peace Villager, Ryan Chewning, first year student, UC, joined with six Ohio State University students and the Rev. Donald Wallich, Wesley Foundation, Ohio State University, for four days of visiting and studying the ways of peace in Methodist, Catholic, Presbyterian, and Jewish service organizations plus meeting with representatives of interfaith peace Dr. Steve Sunderland organizations and having the joy of being a Methodist, thanked another at the UN. We visited the World Trade Center site the home church person, a Catholic, for coming on the trip and for “putting up with of the oldest Methodist congregation in America, the Old her stereotypes of Catholics.” A smile of peace was her answer as John Street Church, and St. John we began to reflect on the deeper the Divine, Harlem, Chinatown, lessons we had gained about the Little Italy and mid-town ability to open our minds to the Manhattan. meanings of peace, friendship and We stayed in a most solidarity with those working for unusual church that was peace. Our conversation returned undergoing massive renovation: St. Johns/St. Andrew in the 80s on to the importance that one person can make in the working for the West Side. This Methodist peace. We felt very lucky to have Church also housed an Orthodox met so many people who were Jewish Congregation, a Sufi working for peace under many dance group, the set for the religious flags. television program, “Law and Yet, our discussion after Order,” and many support groups. being at the World Trade Center We slept on the floor of the “Board Room” until a mouse and had opened our eyes to the questions about how religious the cold chased us to pews and organizations participate in peace couches in other rooms. (After a day, the Holiday Inn “called” me. activities. Was the major I went.) The church was also the motivation a chance to promote a faith based program, aiming at center of a food distribution program that was massive and we enlisting disciples, while also working for social justice? Could joined a team of the church in taking a morning to empty a large sectarian organizations, even ones moving van of foodstuffs and then that had no desire to convert recipients of their peace efforts, packed shelves with these accomplish this goal while also treasures. representing a religious frame of The most important reference? The Rev. Bud consequence was being with Heckman, executive director of college students and ministers as the US Conference of Religions we underwent the change that For Peace, startled us with his only deep immersion in peace opening statement: “We assume work can bring. Toward the end of the trip, sitting in the basement/ that religions are forces for evil Page 8 until we see how their actions promote peace and justice.” Bud led us in a thoughtful workshop that helped us explore just how serious we were about wanting and working for peace. Bud challenged us to begin to choose to see if what we really wanted was to promote charity or, and here he stared straight at us or, “do you really want to change your mind set and become Moses, leading to major changes?” “Seeing the real structure of peace and what we are up against,” Bud went on, “means changing our minds about who and what is important in what we do.” His talk began to offer a powerful tool for looking at the Methodist, Presbyterian, Jewish, and Catholic programs as well as helping us understand the forces arrayed against the UN efforts for peace. Peace work, in sum, seemed like a minor backwater for the world, flowing as a thin stream to and from the major religious organizations. Or, most sadly, a minor river in an ocean of war making organizations and countries that have tremendous resources, but look at the UN as an artificial harbor for peace. The decisions that made up this structure of aggression seemed to be well known by each organizational religious representative we spoke to. Yet, the willingness to make do with pennies when billions of dollars were desperately needed for hunger, housing, health, and other basic community peace programs were a part of their heroism and inspiring commitment. Walking the halls of the UN we saw the consequences of the policies of neglect in the pictures and exhibits of wars, the charts about hunger, and the too long list of those who have died, under UN sponsorship, from trying to protect or bring peace. A fabulous Sengelese guide tried to keep our spirits high, inspiring us with stories of how peace had been achieved and lost and then regained. There was a sense of time running out for peace work. Ruth Messenger, Peace Villager, and president of the American Jewish World Service, a peace corp kind of organization for Jewish college students wanting to work for justice in non-Jewish places, spoke of the costs of inaction in the fight to reduce AIDS in Africa. “Your children will ask you,” Ruth pointedly said, “just what you did to reduce this genocide.” We all nodded at her statements and were able to connect them to our UN guide: “I believe the UN is working and can work better,” Streetvibes she said with assurance. “Yet, the problems facing us are immense,” she mused, as we looked at the room where the Security Council meets. We finished our tour looking at a charred sculpture of a religious figure severely burned by the bomb at Hiroshima. “More have died from hand guns in the world last year than from the bomb she said.” The pictures were echoes of the pictures in the lobby of the UN of children, of the same age, starving to death from hunger and malnutrition. “Would there be time for these children to regain childhood, adolescence, and a safe adulthood?” we had to wonder as the story of world war and the small role of the UN became increasingly visible. Just as the cold wind of the World Trade Center, added to the devastating pictures of what the buildings looked like after the bomb, and it was starting to touch our marrows, we made it over to the 12 o’clock service at the Old John Street Church, a little 18th century structure looking way out of place in the midst of the skyscrapers of Wall Street. As we walked into the church and up the stairs we were warmly greeted by the sounds of hundreds of voices singing, “This Little Light of Mine,” as an African-American Baptist congregation had come down from the Bronx to lead the service. Their joyous voices, the warm greetings, and the general spirit of love and joy, so filled us as to make us forget, for the moment, what lay outside this door.45 minutes of intense Baptist group therapy made our smiles return, our hopes stop limping, and our hearts full of the spirit of joining a community of song and hope. The sun shone in this little church, as our voices joined in the chorus of some of the oldest and best peace songs. Dr. Steve Sunderland, professor of Social Work at the University of Cincinnati, is the Director of The Peace Village, a group of individuals from the national and international community committed to examining all issues of Peace in the world. Dr. Sunderland also heads up Posters-for-Peace which engages people in expressing their visions of Peace, in their own words, through the creation of posters. �The GCCH would like to thank Starbucks for their generous donation of coffee and pastries. Streetvibes is a member of the North American Street Newspaper Association and the International Network of Street Papers e Str etv ibe s Buy Streetvibes From Badged Vendors Only! Support Your Vendor Streetvibes Vendor Code of Conduct All Vendors Sign and Agree to a Code of Conduct Report Any Violations to GCCH - 421-7803 1. Streetvibes will be distributed for a $1 voluntary donation. If a customer donates more than $1 for a paper, vendors are allowed to keep that donation. However, vendors must never ask for more than $1 when selling Streetvibes. 2. Each paper purchased from the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH) costs 30 cents. Papers will not be given out on credit. Old papers can not be traded in for new papers. 3. Streetvibes may only be purchased from GCCH. Never buy papers from, or sell papers to other vendors. 4. Vendors must not panhandle or sell other items at the same time they are selling Streetvibes. 5. Vendors must treat all other vendors, customers, and GCCH personnel with respect. 6. Vendors must not sell Streetvibes while under the influence. 7. Vendors must not give a “hard sell” or intimidate anyone into purchasing Streetvibes. This includes following customers or continuing to solicit sales after customers have said no. Vendors must also never sell Streetvibes door-to-door. 8. Vendors must not deceive customers while selling Streetvibes. Vendors must be honest in stating that all profits go to the individual vendor. Vendors must not tell customers that the money they receive will go to GCCH or any other organization or charity. Also, vendors must not say that they are collecting for “the homeless” in general. 9. Vendors must not sell papers without their badge. Vendors must present their badge when purchasing papers from GCCH. Lost badges cost $2.00 to replace. Broken or worn badges will be replaced for free, but only if the old badge is returned to GCCH. 10. Streetvibes vendor meetings are held on the first weekday of the month at 1pm. The month’s paper will be released at this meeting. If a vendor cannot attend the meeting, he or she should let us know in advance. If a vendor does not call in advance and does not show up, that vendor will not be allowed to purchase papers on the day of the meeting or the following day. Five free papers will be given to those who do attend. 11. Failure to comply with the Code of Conduct may result in termination from the Streetvibes vendor program. GCCH reserves the right to terminate any vendor at any time as deemed appropriate. Badges and Streetvibes papers are property of GCCH, and must be surrendered upon demand. 20 YEARS SERVING THE NEIGHBORHOOD Empowering our neighborhood children through peace, art and education Peaslee Neighborhood Center 215 East 14th Street Over-the-Rhine Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 (513) 621-5514 We have grasped the mystery of the atom and rejected the Sermon on the Mount. Ours is a world of nuclear giants and ethical infants. We know more about war than we know about peace, more about killing that we know about living ­ General Omar Bradley Streetvibes Support your local Streetvibes Vendor! Your vendor keeps 70 cents of every dollar..... I sing the song of hope, wishing for peace and happiness. Of spiritual feeling and happiness. For God’s wisdom and Salvation, kindness and freedom of prayer. And in the minds and hearts of men, they dream of brothers and fathers and of son’s respect. Honoring humanity is to be the keeper of Love, and to redeem yourself of temptation of sin. To renew the soul of damnation, so they be right, and of Heaven. by Ronald English, Streetvibes Vendor Page 9 �Cincinnati’s Big League Opening Day Photo’s by John Zeh, Streetvibes Vendor In most big-league cities, Opening Day is just the first of 162 regular season games. In Cincinnati Ohio, Opening Day resembles a holiday. Tickets for the 128th Reds Opening Day game against the Chicago Cubs at Great American Ball Park sold out in a record 16 minutes. Thousands of fans lined downtown streets on April 5th for the 85th Findlay Market Opening Day Parade and Vice President Dick Cheney was on hand to throw out the ceremonial first pitch at the Stadium. This year’s Opening Day festivities took on a somber tone with the passing of Reds minority owner Marge Schott, who died on March 2 at the age of 75, and Reds outfielder Dernell Stenson, who was killed in Arizona on November 15. Both Schott and Stenson were honored with video tributes and a moment of silence prior to the Opening Day game. Schott was represented at the Findlay Market Parade by her sisters and a 21-St. Bernard salute in honor of Schott’s love for dogs. The Grand Marshall for the Findlay Market Parade was former big-league outfielder Dave Parker. Parker, a Cincinnati native, played 19 years in the Major Leagues including four seasons with the Reds from 1984 to ’87. This year’s parade featured 182 parade units and 20 marching bands. Sam, one of two nationally-trained bald eagles, flew into Great American Ball Park from center field at 1:30 to begin the pregame ceremonies at the Red’s stadium. Platinum-selling country music star Sara Evans sang “God Bless America” and Cincinnati native and Universal recording artist Nick Lachey sang the National Anthem, followed by a flyover by U.S. Marine F-18 fighter jets. Vice President Cheney, escorted by Reds majority owner Carl H. Lindner, then strolled to the mound and delivered a strike to Reds catcher Jason LaRue. Underground Railroad Freedom Center Opening Day Parade marchers Parade marchers in vintage Cincinnati Red Stockings uniforms Berta’s Art Corner Sara with mother goat - photo by Sonny Williams, Streetvibes Vendor In every child who is born, no matter what circumstances, and of no matter what parents, the potentiality of the human race is born again: and in him, too, once more, and of each of us, our terrific responsibility toward human life; toward the utmost idea of goodness, of the horror of terror, and of God - James Agee Inside the Window, 40 W. Liberty Street, NE corner of Liberty and Race Streets, Over­ the-Rhine Page 10 There have been periods of history in which episodes of terrible violence occurred but for which the word violence was never used...Violence is shrouded in justifying myths that lend it moral legitimacy, and these myths for the most part kept people from recognizing the violence for what it was. The people who burned witches at the stake never for one moment thought of their act as violence; rather they though of it as an act of divinely mandated righteousness. The same can be said of most of the violence we humans have ever committed - Gil Bailie Streetvibes �Photo’s of Fallen Soldiers Stirs Controversy Flag-draped coffins are secured inside a cargo plane on April 7 at Kuwait International Airport. Military and civilian crews take great care with the remains of U.S. military personnel killed in Iraq. Soldiers form an honor guard and say a prayer as, almost nightly, coffins are loaded for the trip home. The aluminum boxes, in ordered rows, are bound by clean white straps on freshly scrubbed pallets. American flags are draped evenly over the coffins. Uniformed honor guards form on either side of the pallets as they move from the tarmac to the entryways of the cargo planes. There are prayers, salutes and hands on hearts. Then the caskets are carefully placed in cargo holds for a flight to Germany. In recent weeks, military and civilian contract crews have loaded scores of these caskets onto planes departing the U.S. military area of Kuwait International Airport, south of Kuwait City. And the rituals are repeated over and over again. More time also is devoted to the dead. The fallen come into Kuwait on flights from Baghdad. Before they are loaded onto the outbound aircraft, soldiers in full uniform form parallel lines along the tarmac. There is a prayer. Then loaders lift up the coffins, which are joined on board by soldiers who share the final journey. After going first to Germany, according to the military, they fly to Dover Air Base in Delaware. Since the end of the Vietnam War, presidents have worried that their military actions would lose support once the public glimpsed the remains of U.S. soldiers arriving at air bases in flag-draped caskets. To this problem, the Bush administration has found a simple solution: It has ended the public dissemination of such images by banning news coverage and photography of dead soldiers’ homecomings on all military bases. In March, on the eve of the Iraq war, a directive arrived from the Pentagon at U.S. military bases. “There will be no arrival ceremonies for, or media coverage of, deceased military personnel returning to or departing from Ramstein, Germany airbase or Dover, Deleware base, to include interim stops,” the Defense Department said, referring to the major ports for the returning remains. Though Dover Air Force Base, which has the military’s largest mortuary, has had restrictions for 12 years, others “may not have been familiar with the policy,” the spokeswoman said. This year, “we’ve really tried to enforce it.” “The way everyone salutes with such emotion and intensity and respect. The families would be proud to see their sons and daughters saluted like that,” says Tami Silicio, a contract employee from the Seattle area who works the night shift at the cargo terminal. For U.S. troops, April has been the worst month of this war, with over 100 service members killed by hostile fire. “So far this month, almost every night we send them home,” Silicio said. “... It’s tough. Very tough.” Silicio says those who lost loved ones in Iraq should understand the care and devotion that civilians and military crews dedicate to the task of returning the soldiers home. Silicio says she shares her motto, “Purpose and Cause,” with colleagues who appear worn down from the job: “We serve a purpose and we have a cause — that’s what living life is all about.” Ms Silicio, 50, worked for Maytag Aircraft Corporation, which has a contract to handle cargo for the US Government at Kuwait’s international airport. In the course of her job, she would often see soldiers’ coffins in the back of aircraft, on their way from Iraq to burial in the US. Earlier this month ­ one of the deadliest for coalition soldiers - Ms Silicio decided to photograph the coffins. She then asked a friend, Amy Katz, to forward the image to her local newspaper, The Seattle Times. “Tami wanted to share the image with the American people,” said Ms Katz. The editor of The Seattle Times, Mike Fancher, said he decided to publish the photograph on the front page because it was “undeniably newsworthy”. Ms Katz said that after the picture was published Ms Silicio was “called into her supervisor’s office and severely reprimanded. She explained why she did it, but they fired her and her husband (David Landry) too.” She said Ms Silicio “really wanted mothers of the soldiers to know how the coffins were handled”. After being fired, Ms Silicio was quoted as saying: “I feel like I was hit in the chest with a steel bar... I have to admit I liked my job and liked what I did.” Portions of this story were researched from the Seattle Times and the Washington Post. Some of the photos released through the Freedom of Information Act and now in the public domain. More photos can be viewed at http://www. thememoryhole.org Streetvibes Page 11 �InkTank Writing Project Engages Drop Inn Center Residents InkTank was created in November 2003 to act as a lightening rod for local writers, where writing could flourish outside programs housed in universities and academic institutions. We are striving to nurture non-traditional voices and the creativity inherent in all of us through writing-based initiatives. At the present time, the Tank is up and rolling in a broad range of venues. We work on creative writing skills with children ages 8-12 at Emanuel Community. At the Drop Inn Center, volunteers meet with two writing groups on a weekly basis - partipants in their residential substance abuse recovery programs. Creative writing classes for seniors are offered at the Corryville Recreation Center, as well as a class by Kathy Y. Wilson. A group for young women at 7 Hills Neighborhood Center puts special emphasis on African American culture. “Women of Success in Over the Rhine,” a cooperative effort with Emanuel Center, Jobs Plus, Peaslee Neighborhood Center, the Sarah Center, and OTR Chamber of Commerce was presented at Final Friday in March in honor of Women’s History Month. Our latest addition to the InkTank stable of cultural partners, Playhouse in the Park, will sponsor our alternative speakers’ series in the fall. And we are in discussion with the University of Cincinnati to add a service component to writing courses for college credit. At the root of all our endeavors is the belief that good writing can and does happen in less than conventional or ideal circumstances. Writing is power and everyone with a pen and a piece of paper has the potential to write. But not everyone who has something of value to say has the resources to find a vehicle for their voice in traditional ways. By bringing together community centers, area writers and teachers, volunteers, and arts supporters, InkTank can encourage new voices, improve cross-cultural understanding , and perhaps, unite a city the same way its been done since the invention of language, by telling each other our stories. Some of the InkTank writing from the Drop Inn Center Recovery Program Being a Father by Antonio Reed I picked this topic because I am a father in name only. I have five children and for three of them I was a part of their lives just a little. My oldest son is about to be 16 and my only daughter is about to be 9 months. I can’t say I know how to be a father because I feel that drugs have always stood in my way. If drugs wasn’t with me, they were with one of my baby’s mothers. One of them is the woman I have three children with. Her past is being held against her. I know all the wrong things my father has done in my eye sight, how I wanted him to be there for me, to support me. But it never happened. He has three children, me, a brother of mine and a sister. They had the support. I didn’t. They are doing good. I’m not now. I’m trying to figure out how not to follow those same footsteps, the mistakes that my father made. And I hated him so much for that. One day when the drugs no longer clouded my mind and I could see clearly that I was walking in my dad’s footprints, doing the exact same thing. And it really hurts me. At times, more than I sow it. That was one of my reasons for using drugs, to cover those hurtful feelings. I tell myself each and every day that I can be a good father. The only thing I have to do is give myself that chance. Three of my children are in the custody of Children Services. I can’t see them until they get to be eighteen years old. One is fifteen. One is seven. One is three. And my daughter I’m in court with now. There are a few things I want very bad in life. Here they are: To learn how to stop using drugs for good. To be a part of all my children’s life so that I can one day tell them the truth of why I couldn’t be there. I’ve hurt from not having a father for so long. I know I got what it takes to be one. Fatherhood by Drew A father should be strong and at the same time have the compassion of a mother. A father should lead with a firm hand and also have motherly tenderness. A father needs to discipline, but also reward. A father must teach to honor and respect, to hold one’s own and be responsible for yourself as well as for any loved one or fellow human being. A father must know when to scold as well as when to embrace, to protect and love when times are so cloudy. Fathers must create sunny days when skies are gray. And above all else, a father should absorb the pain that leaks out from our children, absorb it like a sponge. To know when to be hard as a rock, yet soft as cotton, planting seeds of growth in our little ones so that they will have an unlimited future. This is what a father should do. Father – Hood! My father. by Ron O’Neal When I was young, I thought I would like to be like my father. But the older I got, the less like him I wanted to be. Maybe it’s because I never realized how hard it was to be one until I became one. Compared to me my father was great. It’s like saying you can do something someone else is doing, because it looks so easy. I never realized what my father was up against at the time. Now I would like to take my hat off to him for doing a great job. I only wish I could do even half the job he did! Now I know how much he cared for me. Being a Father by Victor Shearer When I think about being a father, I wish I could be a better father in the life that I now live. The father that I knew was always drinking, fussing. But he made us do what we had to do. The house was clean. The beds were made. My mother was somewhat happy – at least until there was the discovery of a new woman. He was having an affair while with my mother. Well, I guess my view of a father was to make sure the house was clean and the kids did their chores. At least that was what I thought with my first little girl. I raised her with the help of my mother, God bless her heart. I love my mother so much. She did everything she could to make us happy. She made me the father I am today. If I had the chance to do it all over again, I would do it with love, understanding, and comfort. Don’t be Squirrelly! Buy Streetvibes! Page 12 Streetvibes �Comic Store Pulls Bumfights Video in Response to Boycott by Paula Mathieu Once in a while, David really does beat Goliath. Sometimes a handful of ordinary people make a difference, even if it’s a small one. That some time is today. Due to a boycott initiated by the Homeless Empowerment Project (HEP), publisher of Spare Change News, Newbury Comics has removed the Bumfights and Bumhunter videos from its shelves. These videos, which Newbury Comics had been selling, capture homeless people performing violent acts on themselves and others in exchange for small amounts of money and food. “It feels good, what can I say. We’re told our whole lives that little individuals can make a difference, and we did,” said Nate Marsella, who handed out flyers and stood in the cold during each boycott. “It was a good thing, a good lesson.” According to Alex Tsouvalas, HEP volunteer and organizer of the boycott, the decision to take on Newbury Comics was not taken lightly. Tsouvalas had tried unsuccessfully to work quietly with Newbury Comics beginning in August 2003, urging them to stop selling the videos. “Newbury Comics didn’t really get it. They always tried to frame the issue as their right to sell offensive material. They never seemed to care about the people who were abused or exploited,” said Tsouvalas. The decision to remove the videos came abruptly on February 3, as a news crew from New England Cable News (NECN), interviewed HEP staff and volunteers regarding the boycott. Newbury Comics, rather than meeting with NECN reporter Mont Fennell, issued a statement saying, “Due to the media circus, we’re pulling the videos.” “I was a little pissed to hear that they took the videos off the shelf because of the media circus. I still have a bad taste about Newbury Comics in my mouth,” said Marsella. On the positive side, Tsouvalas noted that it was good to see HEP become active on an issue of local advocacy. “There’s the important advocacy that we normally do on a daily basis, giving people income and a public voice, and then there’s getting out in the street about an injustice we see, like this video. It’s the first time we’ve done anything like this. As an organization we’ve learned a lot, how to build relations with other media outlets and use the media of Spare Change News to affect local issues.” HEP staff and volunteers are celebrating this small victory, but are putting it into perspective. The problem of exploiting homeless people persists. “When people are poor and desperate and someone can make money off of them, exploitation can happen,” said Tsouvalas. He described that during the first protest three men on the streets asked an HEP volunteer how much they might be paid to appear in such a video. “That’s a level of desperation that’s hard for us to understand,” said Tsouvalas. While Bumfights and Bumhunters are no longer for sale at Newbury Comics, the culture of violence against homeless people portrayed in the videos remains widespread. Spare Change News distribution manager Ken Campbell relayed during the television interview with NECN that when he was homeless, some teenagers set fire to the blanket under which he was sleeping in a park. According to the National Coalition for the Homeless (NCH), in 2002 there were 37 documented incidents of similar crimes against homeless people, resulting in 16 deaths. NCH is encouraging people to support legislation that would classify deliberate acts of violence against homeless people as a hate crime. National Student Organization Works to End Hunger participate in the Hunger and campuses across the country organize Hunger and Homelessness Homelessness Awareness Week, fill and Homelessness out the online registration form or by Wendy Guild Swearingen The National Student Campaign Against Hunger and Homelessness (NSCAHH) works with a coalition of students and community members across the country to end hunger and homelessness through education, service, and action. “Students organize a variety of projects ranging from food drives, to weekly service projects, to tutoring programs, to studentrun soup kitchens,” said Jennifer Hecker, the organizing director of NSCAHH’s National Organizing Office in Amherst, Massachusetts. Describing NSCAHH’s inception and goals Hecker said, “The National Student Campaign Against Hunger and Homelessness was established on the belief that students are a critical force in the fight against hunger and homelessness. Today, the Student Campaign is the largest national coalition of students and community members working to address the problems of hunger and homelessness through community service, education, and advocacy. “We know that hunger and homelessness don’t have to exist in the richest country in the world. But as a society we haven’t prioritized addressing hunger and homelessness in any systematic way and therefore these problems continue to grow. Our goal is to increase civic involvement and create a community that demands the end of hunger and homelessness. Since our inception, we have mobilized countless volunteers and raised more than $1.5 million for hunger and homelessness relief efforts.” Started two decades ago by the PIRGs [Public Interest Research Groups] and USA for Africa, NSCAHH is now the largest student network fighting hunger and homelessness in the country, with more than 600 participating campuses in 45 states. Among its many accomplishments in the past sixteen years, NSCAHH has helped school Awareness Weeks; held conferences to educate students and administrators about hunger and homelessness issues and projects; established food salvage programs that provide surplus cafeteria and restaurant food to food banks and shelters; developed Project Partnership to build community and campus coalitions; organized political efforts; and, through the Annual Hunger Cleanup, involved some 110,000 volunteers in service projects to raise more than $1 million for domestic and international relief. NSCAHH makes getting involved easy. If you would like to Streetvibes Vendor: 70 cents Printing and Production: 30 cents Streetvibes call (800) 664-8647. Students should check with other campus organizations to find out which groups are active on the issues or want to be. The site also provides links to letter templates that students can customize and send to their local senators, representatives, and newspaper editors. The letters ask support for the Section 8 Housing Voucher program, the National Housing Trust Fund Act, and the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program. Reprinted from Spare Change News Where Your Dollar Goes... The Streetvibes program maintains a minimal overhead cost so that our vendors can keep as much of the proceeds as possible. Please call our office at 421-7803 for more information about the program. Many thanks for your support. Page 13 �Prison by Reenie M. Kidd Ware 18 months n Florida State Prison, stated the Judge, I was shocked, appalled, I needed a hug. My addiction, this time, had taken me too far, No longer could I keep my feelings locked in a jar. I thought my life was over, my life, as I knew it, Once again, I messed up; yeah I guess I blew it. I did not know what was ahead, I just felt I‘d rather be dead. My family I hurt, they no longer claimed me, Disturbed and torn, I called on God, please help me. Once realizing that God was still there for me, He never left me; it was I who left He. So I started to pray more and more each day, Realizing that God was in my life to stay. As time went on the pain subsided, Because of God’s love for me, I’m a survivor. I may be in prison, but that’s just technically, Because I have peace of mind, so really, I’m free. So just when you think that life is too tough, Pray and pray some more, you can never pray enough. Turning Grey In Summer I.B. Iskov I know what men want obsessed with beauty thin enough to pass through a needle I dress each day pretending to be size 8 squeeze into clothes ten years too tight Crack of Dawn by jh The assemblage of slouching young men, frowning, angry arms and hair and music. Gathered in their own garbage - bottles, bones, wind-blown trash circling the shattered hearts. someone else stares at me through the glass a pathetic woman turns grey like the sky in mist and fog Hideous, deadly, desperate eyes repeat the scanning ritual - Melt, Weed, Knife, Rob. Death by time, their youth buried, beneath the smoldering asphalt, that marks their pitiful scent. I imagine but and yellow catch sunlight drown in the grey of a cloud The future was then, marked by the innocence of a young child, scarred by the slashing of the relentless hate of men, and mom, and broken glass. earlier in summer men watched me shine the colour of a snapdragon after the rain Like stained and broken bedding, they wait by the curb, for the end of their minds. Reprinted from NYStreetnewsbiz We must always remember how precious we are, I’d rather be here, at peace, because I’ve come so far. Prison to me is a blessing in disguise, No more living sinful, because today I’m more wise. For me whatever problems I have, I give to God, He takes away hurt and pain, without sparing the rod. Prison time has given me the chance to look at my life, I want to serve God, be a good sister, mother, daughter and/or a good wife. So life is what you make it, don’t ever give up, Turn your life over to God, for He you can trust. So...18 months, so stated the judge, if I could see him, for he saved my life, I’d give him a hug. Book of Change by Sonny Williams how to say you’ve changed to two dead girls after ravishing them in the jungle; because they were VC. tossing them on the trail with holes in their middle to bleed in the mud by the village where their ancestors lived for centuries both face up turning nightly with screams of pain, pleas for mercy in your dreams? Page 14 I’m Not Alone by Robert Manassa The Bullet Iraqi poet I tried to domesticate the bullet, To take her with me to school, To teach her the alphabet And have her speak But she is made of black clay and stuffed with canned blood I tried to domesticate the bullet, To take her to the water-spring, To the fields of dew. But she has consumptive lips That love to kiss the lips of death To rummage or wreck And blow ashes in our eyes. I tried to domesticate the bullet, To lead her to the truth, To wash her copper with perfumes And replace her gunpowder with sweets. But she refused to be unlocked; and remained dripping pus, With poison in her breath. I woke up this morning, singing a new song. I even took the time out to thank the Lord. I’ve been reborn There’s not a day or nite that passes me by That I don’t send up praises to the Lord on high. I know that I have all my sins forgiven me. I have my Heavenly Father above, Watching over me continuously. I never, ever worry; I don’t have to fret, I have someone walking and talking with me. He’s never left me, nor has he failed me yet, I’m not alone. Writers! Submit your Poetry to STREETVIBES ­ Streetvibes@juno.com Streetvibes �Friends Departed To my friends that have passed, That fell victim to the streets, just another nameless face, forgotten by most. With the dawning of a new day, To you I make this vow; That people will once again know your name And you shall not be forgotten. City Cancer Love by Joani Lacy by Geraldine Devine Urban blight is multi-faceted. Ii comes in the form of decaying buildings, once grand and cared for until the caring died. It comes in the shape of rotting ideals whose reality is never near the dream. Urban blight is a city cancer, curable, but difficult to treat while it spreads through the streets. It feeds off of reckless youth with their pumped up energy until there is nothing to be done, except to excise the diseased areas. Love is a word that used to sound and mean so much When it was spoken from someone’s mouth, then that person you should trust. Urban blight is a symbol of our times. God and the devil facing off under a street lamp. I wish to thank you, my friends, For the lives you touched, Including mine. Our friendship, the times and memories we shared, I shall cherish. To you, my friend, I will not say goodbye, only Until we meet. For in my heart, You’re still very much alive. Dawn of Time by Dwight A. Turner Love was never a word to be and action, that was just thrown around. t had real meaning, real feeling; and with a persons heart it covered so much ground. Love used to be and action, or in English known as a verb, But now we are living in a time where not much of a purpose does it serve. Let’s take this word, give and show it as our Father does from above. Let’s take, put, power, spread, and recharge this important word called Love. In the universe there’s a cluster of stars. Cam I touch one without touching two? I may even touch the sun without it burning me. I blessed your country to be brave and free, But you keep locking yourself up, throwing away the key. Is it that I can see? Or is it the light within, which makes you afraid of me? I gave you light, from the sun, the moon, the stars, That you see. So why in this world is it so hard for you to see me? Shutter Speed by Jimmy Heath Liberty Street, Over-the-Rhine Streetvibes Page 15 �At the Crossroads of Gender and Homelessness by Soula Pefkaros It Was a Wonderful Life dir. Michéle Ohayon (Ridgebury Films) You wouldn’t realize it but the woman standing next to you is homeless. She looks clean and kept. She has a job. She has an honorary doctorate and comes from an upper-middle class family. She was a famous singer who traveled around the world on tour. She lived in a beautiful home on the beach and spent free time horseback riding with her children. But she fell. She broke her hip and had to stop teaching, lost all her money in medical bills and lives out of her car with her dogs. She got sick, lost the apartment she shared with her husband and lives out of a U-Haul when she can afford it. Her husband left her pregnant with a sixth child and does not pay his child support. She has permanently damaged her back from endless nights of sleeping in the reclined driver’s seat of her car. She was a business consultant, successful, until recession caused her to lose all her clients; she lives in a motel with her three children with no support from her exhusband. It Was A Wonderful Life, directed by Michéle Ohayon and narrated by Jodie Foster, is a docudrama about the lives of seven of the thousands of “Hidden Homeless” women in the United States. Newly out on DVD, the film exposes the stark realities that homeless women face in order to Their stories are unique, survive day to day. Through this with some similarities. Josephine, a exposé, Ohayon poses critical painter from an upper-middle class questions about the experience of homeless women and the crossroad family, said, “It seems to me that in a society where people don’t care of gender and homelessness. about the homeless, anyone could We talk about become homeless,” a feeling that homelessness; this is what we do. resonates with each of the women. We seek to be a “voice for the Reena, who was a successful singer voiceless.” It is through this in her youth and led a comfortable understanding that we struggle to life until suffering the economic put an end to the myths of devastation of a bad divorce, says, homelessness, get at its roots, and “Why can’t the help come before find some way out. There is a you’re homeless?” plethora of films, articles, and According to the film, after books that address homelessness. What we don’t realize is that in our a divorce, a mother and children discussion of homelessness, we are remiss in recognizing the genderWe have clearly fallen into a specific struggles that hole so deep that services sometimes separate a woman’s experience from a meant to aid those in need man’s. often result in worsening the Homelessness means high risk as situation. Our system is individuals find themselves such that, in a moment, any susceptible to the elements of a world without shelter. person can find himself or For many women, staying herself homeless and yet at a shelter is not an option climbing out of this poverty because of the risk of rape or assault or having their can take a lifetime.... few possessions stolen from them. Homeless women will experience a 73 percent drop stay out of the public eye. in standard of living; a husband will Keeping clean requires involved exertion for any homeless experience a 42 percent increase. Fifty percent of divorced fathers do person and can be the weight that not pay child support. Two thirds tips the scale in finding work. Cleanliness carries with it an added of divorced fathers pay more in monthly car payments than child urgency for homeless women as seeming unclean and “homeless” is support. The inefficiencies of social a risk factor. As Lou, one of the women spotlighted in the film says, services for homeless or at-risk women are made gravely clear. In just keeping clean takes the whole the case of Reena, it is a court day. system that does not enforce the child-support payments a divorced father is supposed to be making. In the case of Jeanette, it is a Section 8 program (a federally funded housing assistance program) that isn’t paying its half of the rent. It is social work case-managers that are overwhelmed with a staggering 4,000 cases each. We have clearly fallen into a hole so deep that services meant to aid those in need often result in worsening the situation. Our system is such that, in a moment, any person can find himself or herself homeless and yet climbing out of this poverty can take a lifetime. The harsh truth is that things have not changed much in the 11 years since the film’s initial release. The country continues to face chaotic economic turmoil and consistent cutting of funds. The title of the film is resonant with the poverty and homelessness many women (and others) are forced to deal with during these years of massive military spending and reduced social services. And the film goes beyond awareness; it stirs something deeply personal as you witness the resolute strength mustered by these women. At that point, the challenge is there—it is your turn to act. Soula is an activist, freelance writer, and member of the live-in community at Haley House in Boston Reprinted from What’s Up Newspaper Beltway Humor: Media React to Bush’s Weapons Jokes FAIR - Fairness & Accuracy corps, which seemed to write it off Hemmer mentioned that “there was show a sense of humor, and I think, a slideshow shown a little later. as harmlessly “self-deprecating” In Reporting - 112 W. 27th for the most part, it was taken that Maybe we’ll get to that later in our way.” As the morning wore on, humor. Many of the press accounts Street, New York, NY 10001 When presidents appear at the annual Radio and Television Correspondents Dinner, it’s traditional for them to tell a few jokes. But when George W. Bush appeared last month (3/24/04), he made a series of “jokes” about the failure to find the weapons of mass destruction that had been the central justification of his invasion of Iraq. Part of Bush’s routine included slides showing administration officials looking around the White House for something. “Those weapons of mass destruction must be somewhere,” Bush explained while showing one of the images, which elicited laughter from the audience of politicians and media figures. Interestingly, Bush’s comments were hardly controversial to the Beltway press Page 16 the next day did not raise questions about Bush’s humorous reference to his administration’s bogus rationale for a war that has cost thousands of lives— American and Iraqi. For the media, such humor was expected. “Well, every night we hear people on TV telling jokes about President Bush, but last night it was the president’s turn to tell jokes about the president,” CBS anchor Julie Chen explained (3/25/ 04), adding that “at least someone’s making jokes about it other than the late-night talk show hosts.” CNN’s American Morning show on March 25 provided a glimpse at the gulf between the media reaction and the public response to Bush’s sense of humor. After playing some clips from Bush’s speech, CNN anchor Bill broadcast. There were some good funny lines in that, too.” But once CNN aired Bush’s weapons jokes, its audience saw what the anchors and correspondents missed. CNN anchor Soledad O’Brien announced that the program was getting a surprisingly negative stream of emails from viewers, and asked Hemmer what the reaction at the dinner had been. He explained: “I think the reception was pretty receptive, for lack of a better phrase. I can understand what you’re hearing. There was a little rumbling about whether or not it was sensitive enough to the reality that we all know two and a half years later, also with the situation in Iraq as well. But overall, I think it was a speech that was given a way where the president tried to Streetvibes CNN co-anchor Jack Cafferty read numerous messages from outraged viewers, and characterized the reaction as “overwhelmingly” negative. NBC’s Washington bureau chief Tim Russert defended Bush’s comments, explaining on the Today show (3/26/04) that while Democrats and military families might be critical, “rather than be judgmental, let me just step back. Ironically, for me the exact same joke was told to me two weeks ago by a very rabid anti-war Democrat. In the context of that evening, after the president made those jokes, he had very emotional comments about the military in Iraq…. So if Weapon’s Jokes... Continued on page 18 �Finding the Invisible Class by Lindsay Thomas You probably already know that Harvard University is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States. Nearly 370 years old. Maybe you also know that Harvard is the wealthiest nonprofit institution in the world aside from the Roman Catholic Church. But did you know that until 2002 Harvard paid its lowest level workers as little as $6.75 an hour? Between the years 1994 and 2001, Harvard’s endowment fund nearly tripled to $20 billion, while the university cut wages and benefits of the lowest-paid employees, keeping well over 1,000 of them below the federal poverty line. Harvard had a habit of outsourcing positions such as janitors, guards, and dining hall workers to avoid classifying them as full-time employees, and therefore avoiding giving them vacation time, sick days, and other benefits. Even directly hired “regular” employees’ wages hovered around only $10 an hour. In the fall of 1998, a group of Harvard students took action and planned the Harvard Living Wage Campaign. In 1999, during his senior year, one of the campaign volunteers, Greg Halpern, decided to take some action of his own. Halpern didn’t know any of the above statistics when he entered his freshman year at Harvard in 1995. But by graduation he would begin the four-year project of chronicling these workers’ untold stories and capturing their forgotten faces in his book, Harvard Works Because We Do. It all started around 4:00 a.m. with a woman named Carol- Ann Malatesta, who cleaned the Phoenix, an all-male social club where Halpern was a member. “Carol-Ann came into work and started to clean up the party we had just had,” he said. “There was an unusually good dynamic between her and everyone because she went out of her way to talk to everyone. But she started to wipe the table where one guy had his legs up. He was so fixated on the TV, I guess, that he just lifted his legs up, not really noticing CarolAnn, so she could finish wiping the table.” After the incident at the Phoenix, Halpern decided to document the personal stories of some of Harvard’s grossly underpaid employees, individuals with two jobs and 70-hour workweeks, who still could not make ends meet. With a camera and a tape recorder, he set out to meet another side of Harvard. In the preface to the book, Halpern recalls one of many humbling moments during the project: “When I asked Gary Newmark - the first person I interviewed for this book - if I could talk to him about his job, his response was, ‘You want to know about regular working stiffs? You want to know what I do? I unloaded from a truck probably every book you ever read at Harvard. That’s what I do.’ It was my first honest conversation with a campus service worker.” Harvard’s Progressive Student Labor Movement began the Living Wage Campaign with a handful of students, including Halpern and his friend Aaron Bartley, one of the initial founders of the campaign. The goal was simple - to convince the university, Cambridge’s largest employer, to adopt the living wage ordinance that the city was already reviewing to bring the minimum wage up to an inflation adjustable $10 an hour. For three years, the campaign struggled against the unwillingness of the Harvard administration and then-university president Neil Rudenstein to acknowledge unjust labor and wage practices. Halpern’s photographs and interviews, which were passed around to students and faculty, were indisputable evidence of the real - but often unnoticed ­ individuals suffering the hardships of unfair wages. “What I wanted was for the reader to have to make eye contact with these people - a kind of confrontation between the reader and the workers,” he said. “It was my way of making the reader look them in the eye and meet the kind of people they may never have noticed before.” One of the most striking series of photographs, all of which are in black and white, is of Wilson Saint Claire, who we learn is from Haiti. Standing outside one of Harvard’s characteristic red brick halls in a tweed vest and blazer and looking confidently into the camera, he might pass for a professor on his way to class. On the following page we see the same Wilson Saint Claire hunched over in workpants and work shirt to clean under a piece of furniture, and his story: “I was 20 when I finished college. Yes, I finished college. And the thing that is difficult for us when we come here is that no matter your class in Haiti, when you come here, you have to work as a cleaner just to survive. . . . My old supervisor, he was from Haiti, and he was high class there, too. And so when I started, when I picked up a mop, he told me, ‘Don’t think about it, Wilson, just do it.’” After a three-week sit-in, the Living Wage Campaign convinced the Harvard administration to implement a one­ time wage boost, scoring a victory for living wage campaigns nationwide. The win was indeed something to celebrate, yet the campaign’s primary request - an actual living wage - was adamantly refused. Poignantly absent from Halpern’s collection of photographs are any images that might instill a sense of resolution. Much work remains to be done. Harvard still outsources a portion of its lower wage employees. With inflation, in a couple of years the one-time wage increase will become insignificant. Even more, the Living Wage Campaign itself is struggling to maintain a cohesive center, according to Halpern. “After the sit-in, most of the students who helped graduated and then none of the incoming students took over,” he said. “In ten years, is anyone going to remember?” Harvard Works Because We Do is an arresting reminder of the people behind a movement that, even if only briefly, reached across the great divide that exists between the server and the served. “To respect another person, I came to feel, was to acknowledge his or her own complexity,” said Halpern in his preface. “I accepted that I might never understand all of what was said to me, and I came to appreciate how complicated the relationship was between workers and the beneficiaries of their labor.” For updates on the current efforts of the Harvard labor movement, visit hcs.harvard.edu/ ~pslm/livingwage/portal.html Lindsay can be reached at spraguelt@yahoo.com Reprinted from What’s Up Newspaper Street Life PROLOGUE.... As a child then, my days, just as they do now, contained a large portion of this cotton wool, this non-being. Week after week passed at St. Ives and nothing made any dint upon me. Then, for no reason that I know about, there was a sudden violent shock; something so violently that I remembered it all my life. I will give a few instances. The first: I was fighting with Thoby on the lawn. We were pummeling each other with our fists. Just as I raised my fist to hit him, I felt: why hurt another person? I dropped my hand instantly, and stood there, and let him beat me. I remember the feeling. It was a feeling of hopeless sadness. It was as if I became aware of something terrible; and of my own powerlessness. Virginia Woolf - A Sketch of the Past We were on Second Avenue, Sarah and I, within sight and sound and salt of the ocean, a gentle breeze carrying away exhaust fumes and giving us back the sea. The clouds had parted, the rain festival had lapsed, the sun shone everything green and new. It was the sort of evening when one plays ultimate Frisbee until ten at night, when skaters and bikers and walkers stroll beneath the grassy slopes and beside the blue-green waters of Greenlake; past sunbathers, sail boarders, volley ball players, and those who come simply to nap under a rare and glorious Seattle sun. We knew these streets well, before their renewal, our nightly walks touched by the kids that lived–or survived–there, on drugs and prostitution with AIDS and crime. We knew things that we didn’t really want to know–that more than half of the prostitution in downtown Seattle was performed by young boys, that most of the “johns” went to church on Sunday, and that business would be slow until after Monday Night Football. We knew that a girl could demand a higher price if she looked “fresh” and that if a man said to you, with something of a drawl, “you’re healthy woman, you’re healthy,” it meant that he thought you were fat but wanted to sleep with you anyway. We were based on the first floor of a dilapidated warehouse– there was plenty of space if you didn’t mind the rats. It wasn’t bad in the summer, but in the winter the roof leaked and the heat didn’t. Streetvibes Periodically one or more rats would die in the walls–either by poison or natural causes–and decay there for several weeks. At the end of that time, the stench would dissipate and hundreds of flies, grown large on uninterrupted feeding, would release into the center in search of fresh meat. They carried the stench of their diet. But their size did have an advantage–they were slow and easy Street Life.... Continued next Page Page 17 �Street Life.... Continued from previous page.... to kill. The warehouse served as a drop-in center for street youth. Church groups would bring meals, there were games and places to sit out of the cold, it was place where kids could get mail, clothing, talk, rest, learn life skills, and get connected to social services. It was the best of what a Christian outreach service could be– ministering to the needs of others with minimal pressure toward conversion. I had been there for maybe three months; Sarah was my mentor. We had dropped by the center to pick up some forgotten item. But the sun and the air had worked their magic; we were out to have fun, happy to be alive. Our plan, only half spoken, was to walk through Pike Place Market–a bustling open air market where fish hustlers played the crowd and hurled whole salmon across crowded aisles to be iced and wrapped. The market was on a bluff overlooking the water, perched atop a park winding down to the waterfront. In anticipation, we were already there. Second avenue, where our bodies remained, was a Mecca of deep store fronts. The buildings were from another time: doors set ten feet in from the sidewalks, some with slanted display cases to draw in the casual shopper, others with slanted and tiled walls. There had been a time when these entryways rang as invitations to life, giving character and energy to those who passed by and through their doors. But now they spoke of decay, empty sockets gazing out upon the street. They spoke no longer of life, but of concealment, of being jerked off the street, of crimes hidden from all but the most direct passerby. Such a crime was in progress that day. A young man held a girl up against the wall, her plea jerking us back to Second Weapon’s Jokes.... Continued from Page 16 you look at the evening in the totality, the people who were there I don’t think came away with some of the same conclusions as people who just heard snippets on the radio or television.” David Corn of The Nation magazine was one of the few journalists openly critical of Bush, writing on The Nation’s website: “This was a callous and arrogant display. For Bush, the misinformation— or disinformation— he peddled before the war was no more than material for yucks. As the audience laughed along, he smiled. The false Page 18 Avenue: ‘Please don’t hit me again, please don’t hit me.’ Training lost, I spoke instinctually, calling out to him to leave her alone, to ‘cool it’ in there. Testosterone played a role – men do not hit women, and besides, there was a woman by my side. It mattered not that we were just friends, nor that my impulse actually increased her danger. Somehow, to fail to defend one woman was to fail to defend all women. Time slowed as the assailant turned toward me. Reason kicked in–I should have called the police–but now there was no time. I told Sarah to stay a bit back and to the side, to be ready to run for a phone, but most of my attention was fixed on my assailant. He turned toward me in fury, how dare I interrupt him! And as I tried to talk to him, I realized that he was just a boy, with short black hair and brown eyes, maybe 15 years old, tears streaming down his face as he repeated again and again, “nobody knows how much it hurts, nobody cares.” I suddenly found that I could not strike him. I wanted to take him into my arms and hold him tight, to calm his struggles, to tell him that not everyone would abandon him and leave him without compassion and structure. I felt something in him begging for boundaries, begging for love. As he cried, he swung at me, but other than blocking his blows and trying to talk him down, I was powerless to strike back. I lost my glasses, I almost lost my manhood, I would limp for weeks. But his tears arrested me as even the day had not. It would not be fair to say that in that moment I cared more for a stranger than I did for myself. In that moment I forgot myself. I was not successful in talking him down, but there were pauses between his blows. My training told me not to try and hold him–I still question that decision, as did some of my companions–and I realized that he would keep striking until we called the police. This saddened me, but Sarah made the call. For him, forcing us to call was a last measure of control, showing that he was in charge, that my interruption didn’t matter. He departed, girlfriend in tow, and I felt helpless to stop her. Or rather, he finally allowed her to drag him away, as she had been trying to do all along. Then began a period of profound introspection and waiting. Though in pain, we sat on the curbside waiting for the police. They never showed–no doubt, the prospect of a couple of assumed drunks fighting on Second Avenue was not worth their time. Eventually we made our way to the police station. And, through contacts on the street, learned the names and something of the history of both the boy and the girl. I don’t know whether this event ever made a difference in the boy’s life. The police report was but a minor addition to his record. But the event did have a profound effect upon me and his girlfriend. Some time later, when she was in prison, I heard that she would tell her cell mates of this strange person who had tried to help her but would not strike her boyfriend– even in self-defense. My actions interrupted her belief in the violence of the streets–the only life she knew–and may have opened other possibilities in how she saw her world. At least, I hope so. The last I heard she had given up drugs and prostitution, but was still in denial about alcohol. She had also left her boyfriend–perhaps he had left her–and was very close to a woman at our center. But I should not flatter myself. While our ordeal may have interrupted her world, only sustained relationships could support lasting changes. Fortunately, there was a women at our center with whom she had that sort of relationship. Last I heard, the boy was in Alaska, running from various criminal charges in Washington. Sarah stayed with me for several hours after the assault, talking me down, praying with me, and hopefully finding support for her own ordeal. But I am sad to say that the last is uncertain, as I was so shaken by the event and by my own reactions that I was just as self-absorbed in the aftermath of the confrontation as I was selfforgetful in passing through it. At least, I was haunted by the young boy’s face, his tears, and by my own reactions. Never before had I so lost myself, never before had I been so arrested by another’s suffering that I was unable to feel the physical pain of repeated blows until much later. It was not courage, for had the threat been greater, I would have acted differently. I did not feel that I was a victim in the normal sense of the word. My sense of powerlessness came not from being physically dominated, but from the recognition of a young boy’s pain. In a primal moment, I lost the filters which shielded me from feeling the claim of another’s suffering. In that moment, and in the reflections which followed, I recognized something I would not be able to articulate for years to come. Life, at its deepest, is a wounding–or at least, a vulnerability to be wounded. Without that vulnerability, one cannot be arrested by the beauty of a day, a chance smile, a sick friend, a widow, a stranger, or sudden tragedy. Without that selfforgetfulness, we cannot find ourselves. We live most fully, most intensely, in openness to such wounding–better a clean wound that heals than the hidden wound that festers. And while I may never be able to return the gift, I still tremble in the debt I owe that young boy. At least one time in my life, I have seen the face of god, and lived. statements (or lies) that had launched a war had become merely another punchline in the nation’s capital.” MSNBC’s Chris Matthews also seemed appalled by the media’s reaction (3/25/04): “Well, there’s four or five cases where the president told a yuck about the fact he couldn’t find weapons of mass destruction, and the press being supportive in their laughter. Maybe sycophantic, but they laughed.” Perhaps it’s no surprise that the conservative Fox News Channel would defend Bush’s comments, but Fox’s line of defense at times became arguably more offensive than the remarks themselves. Fox News Sunday host Chris Wallace, after admitting that “I must say, I still think it’s funny,” introduced the subject (3/ 28/04) by saying that “the day after, some Democrats and the families of some American soldiers in Iraq, some who died in Iraq, said they were offended by this kidding about the missing weapons of mass destruction.” But you didn’t have to work for Fox News to go to bat for Bush. The Los Angeles Times penned an editorial in his defense (3/27/04) headlined “Commander in Comedy.” The paper noted that “presidents have always used selfdeprecation to deflect criticism,” then lamented the fact that “Democratic National Committee Chairman Terry McAuliffe and other Democrats are acting like laughs should be banned from serious politics.” The paper also made this odd comparison: “Democrats saying that Bush can’t joke about it without insulting soldiers is like the GOP claiming that Democrats can’t oppose the war and be patriotic.” The problem is not that someone told a joke about WMD. It’s that as the chief purveyor of the WMD falsehood, which resulted in the deaths of hundreds of Americans and thousands of Iraqis, it is beyond bad taste for George W. Bush to joke about WMD. It’s the difference between a comedian making a joke about O.J. Simpson looking for Nicole Brown Simpson’s “real killer,” and O.J. Simpson making the same joke. Streetvibes �Food Research and Action Center News (FRAC) on why it has refused to run the ad. HOUSE PASSES CHILD NUTRITION PROGRAM BILL WITH STRONG BIPARTISAN SUPPORT FRAC (Press Release, March 24, 2004) The House of Representatives approved, by an overwhelming bipartisan majority (419-5), its child nutrition reauthorization bill, The Child Nutrition Improvement and Integrity Act (HR 3873). This bill will expand the availability of nutritious meals to more children in school, in outside school hours programs, and in child care. The bill makes key improvements in the nutrition programs, such as expanding successful paperwork reduction pilots in the Summer Food Program that have already resulted in more low-income children receiving nutritious meals during the summer months; extending eligibility for snacks and meals to children in homeless and domestic violence shelters up to the age of 18; making it possible for more low-income children from military families to receive free and reduced price school meals; allowing for-profit child care centers that serve significant numbers of low-income children to participate in the Child and Adult Care Food Program; providing migrant children with automatic eligibility for free school meals; creating new ways to improve the nutrition environment in schools; and making the application process for school meals easier for many low-income families. http:// www.frac.org/html/ federal_food_programs/cnreauthor/ 032403reauth.htm Institution, March 24, 2004) The Brookings Institution, in cooperation with the Foundation for Child Development and Duke University, released a new index of child well-being, which assesses trends in seven quality-of-life areas for children from 1975 to 2002. Although children are safer than they were 30 years ago and teenage birth rates have substantially declined, more children are obese, living in poverty, and attempting suicide than in 1975. See the full report and PowerPoint presentation at: http:// www.brookings.org/comm/events/ 20040324.htm Read an event summary at: http:// www.brookings.org/comm/op-ed/ 20040324wellbeing.htm SHARE OUR STRENGTH ACCEPTING GRANT APPLICATIONS FOR GREAT AMERICAN BAKE SALE FUNDS (Share Our Strength, April 2004) Share Our Strength will be accepting grant applications for this year’s Great American Bake Sale grant-making campaign beginning April 4th. Applicants must be either current sponsors of the USDA’s summer feeding or afterschool meal service programs for children, or advocacy organizations that provide technical assistance to these programs. Applications will be accepted from registered nonprofits and schools in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. The priority deadline to submit an online application is May 31st. The final deadline is July 25th. http:// www.greatamericanbakesale.org REPORT: CHILD WELL­ BEING INDEX FINDS MORE STATES CAN CONSIDER CHILDREN ARE OBESE, LIVE PRIVATE CONTRACTORS TO IN POVERTY (Brookings SIGN UP FOOD STAMP RECIPIENTS, USDA SAYS (Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Seattle, WA, March 24, 2004) Undersecretary for Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services Eric Bost said at a House Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture hearing that the U.S. Department of Agriculture would consider letting states use private contractors to sign eligible people up for the Food Stamp Program, even though federal law says government workers should do the job. Undersecretary Bost noted that if a state had a better way to provide services and save money, then it should be considered. In Florida, a pilot program will allow non-government workers to handle applications for food stamps, as well as Medicaid and TANF benefits. http:// seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/ apwashington_story.asp?category=1 152&slug=Food%20Stamps COLUMN: PHILADELPHIA METRO NEWSPAPER REFUSES TO RUN FOOD STAMP ADVERTISEMENT (Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia, PA, March 24, 2004) Philadelphia Inquirer columnist Tom Ferrick Jr. wonders why the Philadelphia Metro Newspaper publisher is refusing to run an ad from the Greater Philadelphia Coalition Against Hunger. The coalition hoped to include several quarter page ads in the Metro encouraging low-income Philadelphia citizens to apply for food stamps, part of a greater Food Stamp Program outreach effort by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. However, Coalition staff received a phone call from the paper’s ad representative saying that the publisher would not run the ad. The publisher refuses to comment http://www.ers.usda.gov/ publications/efan03013/ NEW YORK CITY JEWISH COMMUNITY ORGANIZATION HIRES FULL-TIME FOOD STAMP COORDINATOR (TimesLedger, Queens, NY, March 25, 2004) The Jackson HeightsElmhurst Kehillah, a coalition of 13 Jewish community organizations in Queens, has hired a full-time food stamp coordinator with a grant from the Nutrition Consortium of New York. Many of the clients are Hispanic persons and immigrants who are not aware that they can participate in the program. The Kehillah applied for the grant after it attempted to start a food pantry at its Jackson Heights office. So many people needed food assistance that the landlord forced it to shut down. http:// www.timesledger.com/site/ news.cfm?newsid=11169351&BRD=1079 &PAG=461&dept_id=170338&rfi=6 SAN FRANCISCO FOOD PANTRY DEMAND “JUMPED AT AN ALARMING RATE” OVER THE PAST THREE MONTHS (San Francisco Examiner, San Francisco, CA, March 25, 2004) Since the beginning of 2004, the number of people seeking emergency assistance at San Francisco’s food pantries has jumped at an alarming rate. The San Francisco Food Bank is on pace to distribute 20 million pounds of food this year, equivalent to 44,000 meals a day, an increase of 11 percent over 2003. The food bank says it probably cannot provide much more food than it is already giving out. Mayor Newsom’s special advisor on homeless issues, Angela Alioto, recently called for an investigation. “There is no question the crisis on San Francisco streets is bordering on third-world atmosphere,” Alioto said. “I’ve never seen anything like it in my 15 years working on this issue.” http:// www.sfexaminer.com/templates/ story.cfm? displaystory=1&storyname =032504n_food To subscribe to the weekly FRAC News Digest on the Web go to: http://capwiz.com/ frac/mlm/ Food Research and Action Center 1875 Connecticut Avenue, NW Suite 540 Washington, DC 20009 (202) 986-2200 x3019 phone (202) 986-2525 fax Email: bwinter@frac.org Streetvibes Page 19 �TREATMENT: Both N.A. Hopeline 820-2947 A.A. Hotline 351-0422 C.C.A.T. 381-6672 Talbert House 684-7956 Transitions, Inc 859-491-4435 VA Domiciliary 859-559-5011 DIC Live-In Program 721-0643 TREATMENT: Men Charlie’s 3/4 House 784-1853 Prospect House 921-1613 Starting Over 961-2256 TREATMENT: Women First Step Home 961-4663 Full Circle Program 721-0643 HOUSING: CMHA 721-4580 Excel Development 632-7149 Miami Purchase 241-0504 OTR Housing Net. 369-0004 ReSTOC 381-1171 Tender Mercies 721-8666 Tom Geiger House 961-4555 St. John’s Housing 651-6446 SHELTER: Both Anthony House (Youth) 357-4602 Caracole (AIDS) 761-1480 Friars Club 381-5432 Drop Inn Center 721-0643 Haven House 863-8866 Interfaith Hospitality 471-1100 Lighthouse Youth Center (Teens) 961-4080 Mt. Airy Center 661-4620 Volunteers of Amer. 381-1954 Need Help or Want to Help? If you need help or would like to help please call one of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless members listed below. SHELTERS: Women and Children YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter 872-9259 (Toll Free) 1-888-872-9259 Bethany House 557-2873 Salvation Army 762-5660 Welcome Hse. 859-431-8717 Women’s Crisis Center 859-491-3335 SHELTER: Men City Gospel Mission 241-5525 Garden St. House 241-0490 Joseph House (Veterans) 241-2965 St. Francis/St.Joseph House 381-4941 Formed in 1984, The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a membership organization. Our member groups serve the homeless through emergency shelter, transitional living facilities, permanent housing, medical services, social services, soup kitchens, and mental health/addiction services. The Coalition also consists of individual citizens who want to take an active role in ensuring that Cincinnati is an inclusive community, meeting the needs of all of its citizens. Join the fight to end homelessness; contact the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless at (513) 421-7803, 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 OTHER SERVICES: AIDS Volunteers of Cincinnati 421-2437 Appalachian Identity Center 621-5991 Beech Acres 231-6630 Center for Independent Living Options 241-2600 Churches Active in Northside 591-2246 Cincinnati Health Network 961-0600 Community Action Agency 569-1840 Contact Center 381-4242 Emanuel Center 241-2563 Freestore/ Foodbank 241-1064 Fransiscan Haircuts 651-6468 Goodwill Industries 771-4800 Coalition for the Homeless 421-7803 Hamilton Co. Mental Health Board 946-8600 Mental Health Access Point 558-8888 Hamilton Co. TB Control 632-7186 Health Rsrc. Center 357-4602 Homeless Mobile Health Van 352-2902 House of Refuge Mission 221-5491 Legal Aid Society 241-9400 Madisonville Ed. & Assis. Center 271-5501 Mary Magdalen House 721-4811 McMicken Dental Clinic 352-6363 Our Daily Bread 621-6364 Peaslee Neighborhood Center 621-5514 Project Connect Homeless Kids 357-5720 St. Vincent De Paul 562-8841 The Emergency Food Center 471-4357 Travelers Aid 721-7660 United Way 721-7900 VA Homeless 859-572-6226 Women Helping Women 872-9259 MIDDLETOWN/HAMILTON (Butler County) St. Raphaels (Food Bank/Soup Kitchen) 863-3184 Salvation Army 863-1445 Serenity House Day Center 422-8555 Open Door Pantry 868-3276 New Life Baptist Mission (Soup Kitchen) 896-9800 Hope House (Homeless Families/Singles) 423-4673 $1 Donation May, 2004 STREETVIBES BUY FROM BADGED VENDORS ONLY Fort Washington Hotel Affordable housing succumbs to upscale “development” Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless Serial Number � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 2004 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource May 2004 Subject The topic of the resource Homelessness Description An account of the resource Pg 1: For Washington Hotel to be Replaced by Upscale Condos Pg 2: Death on the Street Pg 3: Donate Pg 4: Police Use of New Taser’s Raised Questions Taser Used on Man Threatening Suicide New Council Rules to be Challenged in Court Pg 5: Street Vendors Sell Knowledge Florida Street Paper Sues Over Vendor Crackdown Pg 6: Homeless News Digest Pg 7: Labor of Love The Taxing Truth Pg 8: The Peace Village Pg 9: Vendors Pg 10: Cincinnati’s Big-League Opening Day Pg 11: Photos of Fallen Soldiers Stirs Controversy Pg 12: InkTank Writing Project Engages Drop Inn Center Residents Pg 13: Comic Store Pulls Bumfights Video in Response to Boycott National Student Organization Works to End Hunger and Homelessness Pg 14: Arts & Poetry Pg 15: Arts & Poetry Continued Pg 16: At the Crossroads of Gender and Homelessness Beltway Humor: Media React to Bush’s Weapons Jokes Pg 17: Finding the invisible Class Street Life Pg 18: Street Life Continued Weapon’s Jokes… Pg 19: FRAC Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Streetvibes Archive Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Streetvibes Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource May 2004 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Georgine Getty Alison Leeuw Andy Erickson Elizabeth Linville Janice Faulkner Mary Gaffney Jimmy Heath Berta Lambert Sonny Williams Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Alison Leeuw Andy Erickson Berta Lambert Boycott Bush Cincinnati city council Drop Inn Center Elizabeth Linville Florida Florida Street Paper Food Research FRAC Gender Quality Georgine Getty Hunger Janice Faulkner Jimmy Heath Mary Gaffney Media National Student Organization Opening Day Peace Village Photography Police Soldiers Sonny Williams Street Life Suicide Vendors https://streetvibesarchive.net/files/original/54fdf16fb7fc5e3547b5f5829f167070.pdf 2390a898e1efd5722f899891d57fac24 PDF Text Text November, 2004 STREETVIBES Remembering buddy gray From Streetvibes November 2002 by Jimmy Heath November 15th is the sixth anniversary of the shooting death of our good friend Buddy Gray. It was one of those moments in my life that I will always remember. I’ll never forget the details of that day, the horrible reality of the incident that took his life. My friend Donald Whitehead called me at work on that Friday morning and gave me the news that Buddy had been shot to death. The phone dropped out of my hands in disbelief and shock. I left work immediately and caught a bus back into downtown and Over-the-Rhine to join my friends at The Drop Inn Center, trying to figure out what had happened. I was hoping in my confusion for some sort of kinship with the strangers on that bus, some relief, some recognition of my shock, some assurance that everything was going to be alright. Certainly the whole city had heard what happened to Buddy? I wasn’t alone, was I? It was a long, lonely ride on that crowded bus into downtown. Walking to the Drop Inn Center from the bus stop on that bright, sunny morning, I saw the late morning edition of the Post in a paper rack that coldly announced; BUDDY GRAY SHOT DEAD. How could a man, a man that had helped so many, be dead? I thought that he couldn’t be killed. He had 100th ISSUE caught inside each one of us. Like a deadly, choking pressure that begins in your gut and pulls at your heart and bends your back. Why do these horrible days become so indelibly etched into our memories? I guess, that is the irony of the heart, of being human. All these memories make us into what we will eventually become rescued me but could not save himself. The mindless bullets had entered his body and destroyed his flesh. Until that moment, until I saw that indifferent headline in the paper rack, I hadn’t accepted the reality of Buddy’s death. At that moment the truth finally sunk in. Buddy was gone. Taken by violence. I worried about Buddy’s friends and loved ones who were grieving what had happened, and I was dreading the grief I was about to witness at the Drop Inn Center. Access to the Drop Inn Center where Buddy was shot was restricted but Buddy Gray (left) and the late Rev. Maurice McCrackin somehow I made my way through later in life. As Buddy’s life was a the front doors. The cops were long gone and the remnants of what part of me, so was his death. The memory of Buddy’s had happened had been cleaned up. work brought words of comfort and Buddy’s assassin had been arrested on the scene and taken away to jail. admiration from all across the Buddy’s body was being taken care country. And his work and spirit of at University Hospital. Staff and continues to live on to this day. I friends who were not at the hospital see it everywhere, in the buildings, in the people, and in the work he were gathered together at the Drop left behind. This is his legacy and Inn Center. It would be a couple it is what keeps me focused. I hope days until the details of what had happened during the shooting came in the coming years I am up to the task. I hope the good memories of to light. my friendship with Buddy will At that moment though, always remain vivid. there was the grief. The pain was Donald Whitehead joins the NCH as Executive Director From Streetvibes, February 2002 by Jimmy Heath Donald Whitehead has joined the National Coalition for the Homeless (NCH) as the newly appointed Executive Director. Formerly, Mr. Whitehead has served as a program supervisor at Goodwill Industries and as Executive Director of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. A Cincinnati native, Whitehead is breaking new ground by becoming the first AfricanAmerican and first formerly homeless Board President, and now Executive Director of the NCH. The National Coalition for the Homeless is the oldest homeless advocacy group in the nation. Its governing board represents 35 states including the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. “NCH has a strong record in advocacy for the homeless, from the McKinney Act to the Community Investment Housing Trust. NCH has continuously steered America towards real solutions to this countries biggest failure,” Whitehead said. Whitehead will direct four focus areas; housing, income, health and civil rights for the homeless. Whitehead hopes to lead a real grassroots effort to end homelessness. “I’ll bring empathy to my work at NCH,” says Whitehead. “I know what it took to end my own homelessness.” For the last 6 years Whitehead has worked in the community as an activist and an advocate for homeless persons. When asked how he felt about leaving Cincinnati to work in Washington, Whitehead said, “I’ve received so much support from so many people and groups here, from the Drop Inn Center, ReSTOC, and many others. I have a great deal of gratitude and I have mixed feelings about leaving too. It’s going to be tough. I’ve had a real healing relationship with all of my family here in Cincinnati. I hope to develop a more inclusive environment for homeless people to get involved in their own advocacy.” Streetvibes 100th Issue Timeline February, 1997 – First issue of Streetvibes published, independently of Cleveland’s Homeless Grapevine. Pat Clifford, director of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless, remembered the legacy of buddy gray on the first cover. The first printing of Streetvibes was 300 copies. May, 1997 – Streetvibes features a story on the opposition by neighborhood service providers to the proposal for a new Reds Stadium in the neighborhood, fearing its impact on Over-theRhine residents and housing. July, 1997 – Congress finalizes welfare reform, imposing time limits up to five years for continued welfare benefits and granting states greater freedom to impose their own standards for welfare recipients. September, 1997 – All homeless shelters in the city are full. Streetvibes becomes a founding member of the North American Street Newspaper Association and representatives attend the second annual conference. October, 1997 – Streetvibes features an article about the plan to move the location of the Cincinnati School for the Performing Arts (SCPA) to an area near Music Hall, raising concerns about forced relocation of the Drop Inn Center. December, 1997 – ReSTOC, an Over-the-Rhine low-income housing co-operative, breaks ground on buddy’s place. The building provides housing for homeless individuals. The Reverend Maurice McCrackin passes away. TIMELINE continued on page 4 Donald Whitehead Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless �Streetvibes Streetvibes, the Tri­ State’s alternative news source, is a newspaper written by, for, and about the homeless and contains relevant discussions of social justice, and poverty issues. It is published once a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Becoming a Streetvibes Vendor is a great way for homeless and other low-income people to get back on (or stay on) their feet. Streetvibes Vendors are given an orientation and sign a code of conduct before being given a Streetvibes Vendor badge. All profits go directly to the vendor. The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a group of shelters, agencies and individuals committed to ending homelessness in Cincinnati through coordinating services, educating the public and grassroots organizing. GCCH Staff Georgine Getty - Executive Director Allison Leeuw - Administrative Coordinator Andy Erickson - Education Coordinator Rachel Lawson - Civil Rights VISTA Kate McManus - Civil Rights VISTA Janice Faulkner - Receptionist Mary Gaffney - Receptionist Cover Streetvibes vendors, volunteers and staff.... Streetvibes Jimmy Heath - Editor, photographer Streetvibes accepts letters, poems, stories, essays, original graphics, and photos. We will give preference to those who are homeless or vendors. Subscriptions to Streetvibes, delivered to your home each month, can be purchased for $25 per year. Address mail to: Streetvibes Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH) 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 (513) 421-7803 e-mail: streetvibes@juno.com web: http://homeless.cinci.com Page 2 Letter From the Director Dear Streetvibes Readers: Happy 100th Issue! To prepare for this landmark, I had the pleasure of sitting down with the rest of the staff of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless and going through the last 100 issues to help piece together the timeline. I was amazed by the journey of this paper from humble, one-page insert in the Cleveland Grapevine to the publication you hold today. I was also touched by the incredible amount of time, energy and talent that has gone into Streetvibes over the years. Even more important than our growth, I was also struck by how Streetvibes has stayed true to itself. Streetvibes continues to be a place for the real story of homelessness to be told by the people who are living it. These stories may slip through the cracks of more mainstream papers, but they come through in Streetvibes with honesty and clarity. I would be remiss if I let this opportunity go by without thanking the many people who help make Streetvibes come to life each and every month. First, there is Jimmy Heath, editor of Streetvibes, who puts in countless hours and enriches each issue with his writings and photography. It is under Jimmy’s guidance that Streetvibes has been honored as one of the top street newspapers in North America. Andy Erickson, who runs the vendor part of the paper, recruits new vendors while ensuring that our current vendors have a voice in the running of the paper. Our vendors, who put a face on homelessness with each paper they sell and are out there in rain or shine for their customers. All of the contributors to Streetvibes who take the time to tell their stories and share their artwork. And finally, the readers of Streetvibes, whose dedication to justice over the years helps Streetvibes continue to grow. Thank you to everyone! I hope you enjoy this issue and continue to support this remarkable paper! Sincerely, Georgine Getty, Executive Director, GCCH The View From Within by Jimmy Heath Streetvibes Editor We are proud of Streetvibes and how it has made an impact on the lives of our vendors, the community and the people who support our street paper. Streetvibes brings a unique message, a voice for those left behind - a perspective that without Streetvibes, would go ignored and unheard. When I first came to Streetvibes, I was not a writer or a professional journalist. I didn’t know what it was to put together a news style publication. I’m still learning everyday. It’s not just about the nuts-and-bolts of everyday newspaper publishing. My lessons come from a unique and important point of view; the everyday lives of our community poor and the vendors who sell and write for the paper. Through the telling of these honest stories from the Jimmy Heath street, I have learned many valuable lessons. These lessons have been the most important and personal of all because they continue to teach me my responsibilities as a human being living in a community - a community where, even after 40 years since the civil rights movement, people still struggle to be heard and recognized and respected. A community where poor children are left behind. Where low-income senior citizens are lost and hidden from sight. I’ve learned about what it means to give charity, watching other people interact with the poor. You can see the best and worst of people when you observe them in charitable acts. I’ve learned what it means to have power, both political and economic, in a poor inner-city community. It is amazing to watch how this power plays out in the lives of my neighbors. How access is denied, where the cries for help go ignored. Although I can’t forgive them, I understand where uninformed white people get their perspective. It’s an unspoken power that comes with birth. But ignorance does not absolve us of our responsibilities. We need to stop and think and make an effort to learn and promote change from within ourselves. People ask me all the time, “What can I do to help?” The first step is education. We hope that Streetvibes provides a beginning to this selfexamination. I am struck by how many good people I meet everyday who have distorted notions of who and what the homeless are. All of us are victims of stereotypes. We are constantly bombarded by the media, movies and TV with portrayals of the homeless as winos, bums and crazy streetpeople who yell at fire hydrants and invisible adversaries. This is a sad commentary on our society. People are willing to listen and learn, yet are honestly surprised when their stereotypes are shattered. Some of this comes from lazy thinking – we let others do our thinking for us because it is too hard, too painful, to do first-hand exploration of these serious issues. We want it hand-fed to us, as painlessly as possible, even at the expense of truth. What we don’t Streetvibes 100th Issue know first-hand is suspect – all of it. We are not born with these notions of racism, sexism, classism; our ways of thinking are learned. These are serious lessons coming from a small street newspaper project, put together on a shoe-string budget and with plain spoken words from the street. There is much to be learned from simplicity and honest expression that speaks to truth. I have gotten more out of this work than I have given. I guess that is what education means. The learner is always on the receiving end of the gift of daily lessons. We hope that Streetvibes continues to give readers the truth about the issues of poverty and homelessness. We hope that as we move past our hundredth issue, we all continue to learn that positive change comes from listening to everyone, including the voices from the street. Our newspapers are abused. We are told that they are irreverent, coarse, vulgar, ribald. I hope they will remain irreverent. I would like that irreverence to be preserved in America forever and ever— irreverence for all royalties and all those titled creatures born into privilege. We like to read about rich people in the newspapers; the papers know it, and they do their best to keep this appetite liberally fed. - Mark Twain �Save the Date You are cordially invited to attend the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless’ Annual Dinner HOMES, DIGNITY AND HOPE ­ A 20 YEAR CELEBRATION December 9th, 2004 6:00 pm @ Xavier University, Cintas Center Keynote Speaker - Dr. Ron Arrundle Director of Social Work College of Mount Saint Joseph Including Dinner, a Silent Auction, Raffle, Prizes, Awards, and Entertainment For tickets, please send $25 to GCCH at 117 E 12th Street, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 Make checks payable to GCCH and write ‘ticket’ in the memo.... (If you are a service provider, please send $20 for your ticket. The discount is our way of saying Thank You!) FOR MORE INFORMATION PLEASE CALL 421-7803, EXT. 16 Reserve a table for your church or company for $200 (10 seats) Sponsor dinner for a homeless individual for $25 Donate an item for our silent auction Streetvibes 100th Issue Page 3 �TIMELINE Homeless News Digest compiled by Patty Lane and Jimmy Heath Two men in Ohio have been indicted in the beating death of a homeless man. According to the Columbus Dispatch, a third suspect is discussing a possible plea deal and may testify against the other two. Daniel Fetty, 38, was found naked in a trash container October 2. He died at a Columbus hospital just hours after being found. Police say he was beaten with boards and bricks. Acquaintances of the victim say he had just begun making salads and washing dishes at a restaurant and was saving for an apartment. The killers, both of Waverly, were indicted by a grand jury on aggravated murder charges. This is the first slaying in four decades in Waverly, a city about 60 miles south of Columbus. All three men are being held on $1 million bond. An Arizona resident who was once over her head in debt is teaching a group of homeless people lessons of financial hardship and credit repair to keep from making the same mistakes. Darlene Salle selfpublished a book called I Owe, I Owe, So Off to Work I Go, and tells the Arizona Republic she never forgot her painful experience. “The book has sold well, but I wondered what else I could do with it,” Sallee said. She created an evening financial class for Central Arizona Shelter Services, a Phoenix homeless shelter helping them with everything from the basics of budgeting to credit repair. CASS Development Coordinator Bill Manson says it’s been great for clients. “Darlene has been very good and receptive with our clients. She doesn’t talk down to them at all. Her classes bring a level of awareness that truly makes a difference.” Sallee provides all her own materials for class, since there is no budget to cover it and also gives each participant a free copy of her book. “I just try to give them tools to get them to think about money and priorities,” Sallee says. “People have wound up here not because they’re stupid or want to be in the system, but because something serious happened. I just feel like it’s a gift to be able to spend time with people who are really trying to get Page 4 out of the system. I know how hard it is to get out when you’re at such a low point, but I feel like I’m making a little dent.” A Hawaii judge has ordered a homeless man to curb his shopaholic ways after the man racked up debt and committed forgery. Leon W. Grant was living at a homeless shelter but according to Deputy Prosecutor Mark Simonds, “was spending a great deal of money on clothing…. He was known for his Tommy Bahama shirts.” Grant was two months away from completing a drug treatment program and clearing his record of forgery and theft charges when he was terminated from the program last October. He was later indicted on federal bank fraud charges and spent time in federal detention before being placed on five years’ probation. The 44-year­ old Wailuku resident was found guilty of 19 counts of seconddegree forgery, second-degree theft and attempted second-degree theft in 2001 cases. He was charged with writing bad checks on his own and others’ Bank of Hawaii accounts. Grant said he was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, which affected his drug use. The judge warned Grant that he would face harsher penalties if he reoffends. “And no more shopping at Tommy Bahama,” the judge said, “until you’re financially stable.” A federal jury in Los Angeles deadlocked last month on charges that a homeless woman bilked a government Social Security program intended to help the elderly and disabled. Dessie Robinson, 55, was scheduled to return to federal court Nov. 30 to be retried on 24 felony fraud counts, said Thom Mrozek, spokesman for the U.S. attorney’s office in Los Angeles. Robinson, who contended she has diabetes, heart trouble, ulcers and a hearing problem, was accused of defrauding the government of $17,525 by cashing monthly disability checks and then requesting and cashing duplicate checks. Robinson, who was arrested at a downtown homeless shelter in July, alleged that authorities improperly targeted her and 20 other people in a Social Security probe because they are black. Federal authorities denied the allegation. The St. Louis County Medical Examiner’s Office used dental records last month to identify the body of a homeless man found in the woods near Point of Rocks last week. The body of Richard John Neumann, 49, of Duluth was found Oct. 4 by a passer-by in the woods near Eighth Avenue West and First Street. “We identified the remains through items found at the scene, which led us in the direction of Mr. Neumann,” said Detective Sgt. Bob Erspamer, head of the Duluth Police Violent Crimes Unit, which routinely investigates deaths in the city. “The investigation then showed that neither friends nor family had seen Mr. Neumann since sometime in mid-August. With the help of family, we were able to locate dental records.” Because of the body’s decomposition, neither the cause nor manner of Neumann’s death could be determined. The death of a homeless man whose body was found in a vacant lot has been ruled a homicide, Milwaukee police said last month. An autopsy determined that Rex Robert Baum, 49, died of blunt force trauma to the body, police Capt. Eric Moore said. A passer-by spotted Baum’s body on a Tuesday afternoon near South 1st Street and West Lincoln Avenue, said Sgt. Ken Henning, spokesman for Milwaukee police. No arrests have been made in the death, Moore said. An Elizabethtown women’s group is headed to the Louisville Wayside Christian Mission to get a feel for what it’s like to run a soup kitchen. After the experience, M.O.R.E. for Women will be ready to open the Bread of Life Soup Kitchen at 34 Dee St., off East Dixie Avenue in Elizabethtown. The kitchen will serve local homeless and other needy people, the elderly and anyone who is just lonely, said Nelle Thomas, who heads the group. Volunteers will provide music, activities and an opportunity for social interaction. The first of these meals will start at noon Nov. 20 at New Hope Community Church’s fellowship hall. The second one is scheduled for noon Dec. 18. “If there is a good response, we could very well do it on a long-term basis,” Thomas said. M.O.R.E. members, who are looking for more volunteers, have passed out fliers advertising the kitchen to local motels, cash advance businesses and laundromats — all places sometimes frequented by people in need. Streetvibes 100th Issue continued from page 1 January, 1998 – Donald Whitehead assumes the position of director of the Homeless Coalition. Streetvibes raises circulation to 2,000 copies per month. April, 1998 – Over-the-Rhine residents rally against changing Vine Street to two way because of safety concerns. Cincinnati City Council rules in favor of the business community to make Vine Street two-way. May, 1998 – National Coalition for the Homeless launches the National Civil Rights Organizing Project to document human rights abuses of homeless people. June, 1998 – City of Cincinnati’s panhandling ordinance is ruled an unconstitutional limitation of free speech by a district court. Jimmy Heath, administrative coordinator of the GCCH assumes duties of Streetvibes editor. Previously, the production of Streetvibes was divided among the staff and volunteers of GCCH July, 1998 – Despite concerns expressed by low-income housing advocates, the Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority applies for Hope IV funding to demolish and rebuild Lincoln Court housing project. August, 1998 – National shortage of affordable housing documented locally; 48% of Cincinnati’s low-income renters spend more than half of their income on housing. November, 1998 – 3rd annual Standdown is organized by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless and the Veterans Administration. The two-day event provided opportunities for homeless people to receive medical attention, legal services, food and clothing. December, 1998 – The annual Homeless Memorial takes place in Washington Park, remembering the homeless who had died in the past year. February, 1999 – Laurel Homes joins Lincoln Court as a Hope IV project which will cause a loss of nearly 1300 units of low-income housing. TIMELINE continued on page 5 �The Zen of Streetvibes Vending From Streetvibes, June 2001 by Jimmy Heath Jimmie Gipson is typical of many of the Streetvibes vendors. He’s clean cut, well spoken, and challenges the stereotype many people may have of a homeless person. He is a man who has been down on his luck and has struggled to find his way. But Gipson finds enjoyment in his work as a Streetvibes vendor. He plies the sidewalks of downtown Cincinnati looking for a good place to sell his stack of Streetvibes papers. A good spot for selling has to meet several criteria; it needs to have a steady stream of passersby (lunchtime hours are best) and the folk walking by need to be somewhat sympathetic. “I like the challenge of getting the attention of people who are trying to ignore me,” says Gipson. “Once I get them to listen to me, and I show them what I have, they will almost always buy a paper.” Gipson has also developed relationships, not only with customers on the street, but business owners. “I have a couple of businesses that will let me sell on their property,” Gipson says. “As long as I ask and I don’t create a nuisance, people will let me sell the paper at their business.” When Gipson goes out with his Streetvibes, he makes good money. Sometimes $10 to $20 dollars an hour. He says he has sold over 600 of the papers in just over a month. A lot of people just give him money, or let him keep the change. Jimmie Gipson says that some of the vendors have disputes over territories and street corners, but it doesn’t bother him - there are plenty of good spots for selling Streetvibes in Cincinnati. “Can I interest you in a Streetvibes TIMELINE newspaper to help the homeless?” says Gipson to a businessman walking by his post at 5th and Vine Street. Creating an Alternative Media Empire There are nearly 50 street newspapers published in the US, written or sold by homeless and formerly homeless people. Some of the papers vary widely in content, philosophy and format. And they come in all sizes from simple two page newsletters reproduced on a photocopier all the way up to mainstream, stylish full color magazines with runs of over 100,000 per month. The Streetwise newspaper in Chicago is one of those high-end street papers. It has slick full color printing, major advertisers, celebrity interviews and a full-time Zen cont. on page 13 To My Fellow Readers by Ms. Mary Gaffney Thanks to our regular customers, who each month purchase Streetvibes from my homeless friends, helping them help themselves. I have been writing monthly for the paper and you all know by now the concern I have for our friends, the vendors. I, the staff of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless, and the Streetvibes editor, Jimmy Heath, wish to thank each and every one of you for supporting this paper. This month celebrates the 100th issue of Streetvibes. That’s 8 years and 4 months that the paper has been published and been available to the public. With your purchase of the paper each month you have helped support the homeless and lowincome people who work so hard to sell the paper. This has helped in so many different ways, providing food, shelter and their other needs. We say thank you, thank you for your kindness and concern for your fellow man. As the winter months begin to filter in, bringing cold nights, the little donation you have made toward purchasing the paper will keep them and their family warm. May God forever bless you. Until next month, remember, it doesn’t take much to give a smile to someone. Regardless of creed or color, as I always say, we are all children who are placed in the same garden of life. are down or don’t care or even when they are a little bit happy. I can always talk with them and give them a smile. Some even call me “mom,” “granny” or “Miss.” I answer them and tell them to keep the determination, for there’s a brighter day ahead, if you just keep the faith. On a Thursday of last month, I was a guest at a Xavier University luncheon called “Reaching For The Stars, 2004.” The event honored emerging Cincinnati leaders, young men and women who had a determination and a faith. Some of their work was not easy, with climbing and walking on the road of life. I know at times that the people had a rough spot in their road, but were able to go around it, and now have caught the glimpse of reaching for the stars by gaining some position in life. May, 1999 – GCCH forms the Speakers Bureau. The Bureau organizes homeless people to share their stories with groups, schools and churches throughout Greater Cincinnati. September, 1999 – Demolition of Laurel Homes begins. Jimmy Heath is given a fellowship with the Congressional Hunger Center; Tom Billman assumes Streetvibes editor duties fulltime. November, 1999 – Stop The Clock campaign to fight Ohio’s welfare cuts begins. Protestors demand that Ohio adopt the federal option of cutoff after five years instead of Ohio’s current three years. January, 2000 – GCCH becomes a regional civil rights site for the National Civil Rights Organizing Project. February, 2000 – “Artists for the Drop” organize a benefit concert in support of the shelter’s efforts to oppose the School of Creative and Performing Arts plan to relocate the Drop Inn Center. March, 2000 – U. S. Census Bureau attempts to count homeless people in Cincinnati ­ the census count is disputed because advocates say the numbers are inaccurate. Miss Mary Gaffney The Sun Will Come Out From Streetvibes, March, 2003 – by Ms. Mary Gaffney To the readers and purchasers of Streetvibes paper, welcome to the third month in the year 2004! While sitting here by my living room window, one minute it is snowing, the next minute it is raining. Before I get up from my chair, I look up and see the clouds parting, and there is a little bit of sunshine. Before I can turn around, lo and behold, the clouds are gone. The sun was out, bright as ever, with strong rays of warmth. I began to think that this was like life, especially like the lives of my homeless friends. Oh, you might sat, “there she goes again!” Yes, because I enjoy being around them. For six years, off and on I’ve been with them, helping them and getting to know them. And I really know them; even when they continued from page 4 As I first stated, there was first darkness and dreariness. Before you know it, there is the sun shining bright. I know the sun doesn’t shine bright all the time. If it did, could we accept it? If you could take a moment and think of the life of my friends who need help. How they have to accept life, good or bad. There is sometimes no work, or other things, but they try to remain happy. I always say, it doesn’t take much to give a smile, and if they approach you, take the time and opportunity to speak to them. You never know what is in the future. We are all the children placed in this garden of life who must brave hard weather, wind, rain and storms. Remember, for every dark cloud there is a silver lining. Until next time remember, God love you and me – all races, creeds and colors. Streetvibes 100th Issue April, 2000 – Bonnie Neumeier is forcibly removed form the Greater Cincinnati Arts and Education board because of her opposition to the SCPA plan which includes relocation of the Drop Inn Center. May, 2000 – Streetvibes begins extensive coverage of opposition to globalization, examining the effects of free trade on homeless sand impoverished people. June, 2000 – Alicia Beck becomes executive director of the GCCH after Donald Whitehead leaves to become director of the National Coalition for the Homeless. Streetvibes remembers the sixth year anniversary of the demolition of the Milner Hotel which resulted in the loss of 115 units of low-income housing. TIMELINE continued on page 6 Page 5 �Fire Cat Review The Fire Cats are a group of advocates dedicated to fighting poverty and criminalization who live right here in Cincinnati. This month, they are joined by their Fire Cat chums from Columbus. Fire Cat Orange: Chipotle traitors! You guys don’t appreciate the deliciousness of the burrito bol. Yummy (gives evil glances to Fire Cat Grey and Fire Cat Black). Fire Cat Magenta: The awesomeness of the burritos is almost enough to overlook the evil of McDonald’s. Chipotle: Fire Cat Orange: I love Chipotle! I enjoy the burrito bol with lots of corn. Lots and lots of it. Lots! Fire Cat Turquoise: I’ve never had a bad burrito. They are all good. The tacos are good too. Fire Cat Magenta: Yeah, Chipotle’s is pretty good. I don’t like the corn too much, but the cheese is the best part. I think that’s the reason people keep coming back. Fire Cat Grey: Burrito bol’s not cool Go for the calories, go for the fat. This should be the official meal of the Fire Cat! Fire Cat Blue: Too bad they’re owned by McDonald’s – they are delish, but did y’all see Supersize Me? Yikes! Fire Cat Black: Yeah. . . that takes away from the deliciousness. Save me from the wrath of Fire Cat Orange! Reality Shows: Fire Cat Blue: The Next Greatest Champ is so good. It’s about boxers and they’re not very good at boxing, but they’re supposed to be good at boxing and there’s lots of scheming. Plus, Eye of the Tiger (which is also the Fire Cat’s theme) is the theme song. Sometimes, there’s a musak version of it that plays during montage scenes. Fire Cat Black: I though “Wife Swap” was just a Dave Chapelle sketch. Fire Cat Orange: I enjoy VH-1’s Surreal Life. Flava Flav and Brigitte are crazy in love. Or just crazy. Fire Cat Turquoise: The Real World used to be really good, but it’s not anymore. Now it’s just irritating. The presidential debates are kind of like a reality show. Fire Cat Magenta: Does Best Week Ever on VH-1 count? I think Fire Cat Review it does, so that’s my favorite. Oh, and I really like Made on MTV. The high school nerd/beauty queen episode is awesome! Fire Cat Grey: I am still waiting for the Fire Cats reality show. Now there is a show where the ratings would not be low. Fire Cat Orange: The new Real World is kinda good. I hate Road Rules! Fire Cat Blue: Is Clear here? Things that have Piqued the Fire Cat’s Interest: • Lost – the new so good/pointless show on ABC. • The Presidential and Vice Presidential Debates – who will reign supreme? • Cookies. Always. • Apple disposal remedies, ie: muffins, pie and coffee cake. • The 100th Issue of Streetvibes – put that in your pipe and smoke it Charlie! • Secret Machines – an Out of Town thang. • CSI, Monk, Law and Order – pick your crime show poison and also Arrested Development, Scrubs, Sex and the City and Aqua Teen Hunger Force. T.V. is the balm for the busy feline activist’s soul. • The Virgin Suicides and other good books. • Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind’s release to DVD • “My Boo” by Usher and Alicia Keyes – perhaps the worst song ever to be unleashed since “Lady” by Styx. Hate in Corporate Over-the-Rhine From Streetvibes, April 1997 Chamber of Commerce and its commentary by Berta Lambert clean-up subsidiary, Impact. Marge Hammelrath and Jim Jennifer Sizer’s mother is a Tarbell have for nearly 20 years recent president of the Over-therepresented the under-the-rock Rhine Chamber. She is the public persona of the anti-poor and antirelations person for the infamous buddy gray attitudes of the art-bar Damon Lynch III’s so-called ULI corporation speculators of Main coalition and she is the PR person Street. for both the OTR Chamber and Jim For several years, the old Verdins Pendleton Art Center guard conservatives have been (Verdin is responsible for the supplanted by the overt guerilla phallic Corporate Bell Tower vis-à­ activities of Chris Frutkin, Jennifer vis his Verdin Bell Company). Sizer and Peter Calloway. For None of the rascals named nearly two years these folks, along above is and OTR resident. Peter with their greed-ideology friends Calloway, however, is a resident. have disrupted the meetings of the His personality seems driven by 30 year-old Over-the-Rhine this current fashion of right-wing Community council (ORCC). It entrepreneurial spirit beliefs. At had been necessary in recent ORCC’s October meeting he was months to move its meeting place, videotaped thanking buddy gray’s appoint a sergeant-at-arm, tighten its still very open meeting process, video tape its meetings, and on several occasions request additional police presence at its meetings. Chris Frutkin is the nephew of the wealthy Ed Burger. He is in his 30’s and an owner of several properties in the neighborhood. As a yuppieentrepreneur, he is a board A No Way Buddy Gray sticker member of the Over-the-Rhine Page 6 friends taking down the hate-filled No Way Buddy Gray stickers and announcing the existence of a No Way Buddy Gray organization. The reader will find it useful to know that the sticker with a telephone number remains on post throughout the city is a third generation effort. It was preceded first by a gray and black silver dollar sized Stop Buddy Gray sticker, and then by a fluorescent green or sometimes reddish hand sized circular stick-on. If you called the number on the most recent sticker, which was disconnected by 10AM the day buddy was shot, you were invited to push 1 or 3 for separate hate messages. The recordings consisted of lies, misinformation and inferences of improprieties. Frutkin, Sizer, and Calloway bear the moral responsibility for the hate campaign and the climate of fear for buddy’s personal safety. Within twenty-four hours of buddy’s death, new stickers appeared in Over-the-Rhine which read, “Where there is a Wilbur, there is a way.” Wilbur was the name of the man who shot and killed buddy gray. Streetvibes 100th Issue TIMELINE continued from page 5 August, 2000 – Streetvibes begins printing full color on the front and back page. ReSTOC rehab project on Vine Street comes under fire from Cincinnati City Council. Hart Realty, the largest property owner in Over-the-Rhine, opts out of Section 8 housing program resulting in a continued loss of low-income housing and paving the way for further gentrification in the neighborhood. September, 2000 – Ohio welfare cutoffs begin. Plan for relocation of the School for Creative and Performing Arts (SCPA) is approved by the Cincinnati Public Schools Board. October, 2000 – Streetvibes adopts magazine style format. November, 2000 – Nader campaigns in Cincinnati. January, 2001 – Preliminary reports of Greater Cincinnati Homeless Study is released. February, 2001 – Tom Billman steps down as Streetvibes Editor. Dam Marschner assumes full-time editor duties. March, 2001 – Covington Kentucky City Government battles against proposed Life Learning Center, a multipurpose service center for homeless people. Dan Marshner becomes Streetvibes editor. April, 2001 – Homeless Think Tank is developed to provide input to the Continuum of Care funding process for homeless services. May, 2001 – Civil unrest, after the shooting death of an unarmed teenager by a Cincinnati policeman shatters Over-the-Rhine and other lowincome neighborhoods. June, 2001 – Streetvibes celebrates five years of publishing. August, 2001 –. Streetvibes Editor Dan Marschner leaves for the Peace Corps. Jimmy Heath returns as Streetvibes editor. TIMELINE continued on page 7 �Sweeping of camps halted by the homeless From Streetvbies, October 2003 by Andy Erickson A little over a year ago, Don lost his job, his threebedroom house, his two cars, and then his wife and his kid. “I lost everything that ever meant anything to me,” he said. That’s when Don started sleeping under a bridge. “When I first moved under this bridge,” Don says, “I begged for trash bags from a city building. I wanted the place to look half-decent. I filled 13 garbage bags. I didn’t want to be an eyesore.” But “eyesore” is exactly what the city labeled Don’s camp Don Henry (left) speaks to Andy Erickson of the Homeless Coaltion when they threatened him with eviction. On July 15, police “resulted from the official policy, broken windows, they are not officers arrived at Don’s camp to custom, and practice of the City of solving any problems, except post “No Trespassing” signs. The Cincinnati to engage in a pattern of perhaps the “cleaning up” of an officers took pictures of the people depriving the constitutional rights overpass – until someone moves who lived in the camp and told of homeless individuals.” back in. them to be out within 72 hours or The city went to great The City’s approach does be charged with criminal trespass. lengths in their attempt to remove nothing to prevent homelessness or “What is the issue with the camps from underneath downtown lessen poverty. The City rarely public seeing me here?” Don bridges. In June, a meeting shows any desire to attack the root asked. “I guess they drive by and between the Mayor’s office, police causes of homelessness – like rising see that I’m a disgust to their ways officials, the Governor’s office, the unemployment or rising housing of thinking. But I’m not bothering Ohio Department of Transportation costs. They just want to move (ODOT) and Downtown anyone. They say that I’m a people from under bridges. When distraction, but someone could be Cincinnati, Inc. took place to come camps are swept, the people who up with a plan to remove camps distracted by the new stadium. lived there move somewhere less from under bridges. The meeting Should we tear that down?” visible, and then the City is happy ended after the representative from because the homeless are out of Don and his fellow bridgemates responded to the order ODOT insisted that, despite the sight and out of mind. fact these people were camping on by erecting an eight-foot by fourSocial service agencies in ODOT property, ODOT had no foot sign facing the busy the area are trying a different legal right to remove them. But intersection where his camp is approach. Outreach workers stress located. The sign read “Don’t hide the city was determined, and finally the need to first build a relationship got ODOT’s permission to do what with people, earn their trust, and the homeless. Help them.” They it wanted with the camps then called on people to join them then help them get into the services underneath the bridges. for a 24-hour vigil ending at 1pm they need. This approach works, City officials often invoke on Friday – the time that the order but it takes time. Uncompassionate “quality of life issues” or the to vacate would take affect. approaches like the sweeps of “broken windows” theory when Don didn’t realize what homeless camps (and the recently they talk about camps like Don’s. kind of effect his impromptu passed legislation that helps the city The “broken windows” theory protest would bring. Supporters put more panhandlers behind bars) honked as they drove by, delivered states that if we fix broken only make matters worse. windows, clean up litter, erase donations, stopped to talk, and Don says he knows the carried picket signs. Social service graffiti, and remove the visible people of Cincinnati are generally homeless, like Don, from public workers met with Don and others compassionate people. “There’s a sight, the quality of life in the City at his camp, placing some of them minister who comes down to talk will turn for the better. into services they needed. And at to me every Sunday,” he says. “I The problem with this 1:00 on Friday – when the police tell him not to give up on me. One theory is that Don isn’t a piece of were supposed to arrive – Don’s day I’ll get out of here.” litter. He’s not a broken window, lawyer arrived instead with a Don plans to stay under his temporary restraining order against and he’s not graffiti. He’s person bridge for a little while anyway. the police and a lawsuit against the who’s lost his home and is living in He’s earning that right. And he public. He obviously shouldn’t be city. wants to make sure people see that. treated the same way we would Don happily signed the Especially other homeless people. deal with a broken window. The necessary papers. The lawsuit “I’m not really doing this for me,” theory makes Don a scapegoat for could possibly overturn many of Don explains. “I’m doing this to the City’s problems. the actions that the city has taken help all the people who live out Don knows this. “Why are here.” against the homeless in the last two people messing with me when they years. So far things are working could be having a meeting about The filed complaint asks out. On July 21st, Judge Dlott how we could solve the drug that the new and old panhandling extended the restraining order for problem? Or how we could stop ordinances be declared 20 days. On August 11th, another people from killing each other in unconstitutional, and that the city hearing will be held to determine Over the Rhine?” he asks. be barred from performing sweeps the fate of the bridge sweeps, the When the city attempts to of homeless camps. The complaint panhandling ordinance, and the treat people experiencing also states that the panhandling way the city will treat its homeless homelessness as if they were laws and the threat of sweeps citizens in the future. Streetvibes 100th Issue TIMELINE continued from page 7 November, 2001 – Streetvibes remembers buddy gray on the fifth anniversary of his shooting death. December, 2001 – The long awaited Cincinnati Homeless Study is released by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. January, 2002 – Cincinnati Mayor Charlie Luken asks the City Solicitor’s office to examine ways to tighten restrictions on panhandling, years after previous ordinances were deemed unconstitutional and were overturned. March, 2002 – ReSTOC’s new rehab project leads development on Vine Street. April, 2002 – In a GCCH campaign thousands of citizens tell Mayor Luken that they support Streetvibes. The Civil Unrest of April 2001 is remembered in photographs. June, 2002 – Protests against Hope IV development project, which threatens displacement of low-income families, continues. July, 2002 – Nearly 400 people gather in Covington Kentucky to march and protest treatment of the homeless, which included sweeping of homeless camps on the Ohio River and destruction of personal property. September, 2002 - Huntington Meadows housing complex lowincome residents face eviction for redevelopment project. Georgine Getty becomes Executive Director of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. November, 2002 – Citizens gather in the alley where Timothy Thomas was killed. The April 2001 shooting death of Thomas sparked three days of protest and civil unrest. January, 2002 – Streetvibes TV plans its return to regular broadcasting. April, 2003 – ReSTOC celebrates its 25th anniversary of providing housing for lowincome citizens. National Coalition for the Homeless ranks Ohio as the fourth most dangerous state for homeless people. TIMELINE continued on page 10 Page 7 �Move Homeless From Under Bridges Streetvibes, October 2003 story by Jimmy Heath On Wednesday, September 17th, Cincinnati City Council voted on a resolution allowing the city and police to immediately remove homeless individuals living under bridges and highway overpasses. The city has already erected no trespassing signs in areas used by the homeless. Although the areas are public property, according to the city solicitor the city has the right to remove individuals who pose a “public safety threat to themselves or to the general public.” Although loosely defined, the “safety threat” is being used by city council to move homeless people from areas that might be in clear view of the general public, thereby tarnishing the city’s image. The author of the resolution, Councilman Chris Monzel, was outraged when he saw a person defecating in public while driving in his car with his family. Monzel said more needs to be done. “It’s a public health issue, a public safety issue,” said Monzel. “I just believe the current situation in this city is unacceptable.” An encampment near the Spring Grove Avenue exit from Interstate 75 has been there undisturbed for about five months, Monzel said. The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless has been working to help coordinate outreach to people living outside and under the bridges. Working with the police and social service agencies, many of the homeless have been moved into programs or housing. A temporary restraining order issued by U.S. District Judge Susan Dlott expired over a month ago, and many of the homeless people already have left the camps. Attorney Jennifer Kinsley filed a lawsuit in July on behalf of Don Henry, a homeless man the city attempted to evict from beneath an overpass at Third Street under the Clay Wade Bailey Bridge. Kinsley, who continues to represent the homeless, promised to fight in court the legality of any new city sweeps. A variety of people spoke against the current resolution during the public speaking portion of the City Council meeting. Elaine Coffey gave an emotional response to the resolution, “I’ve been homeless too, and I know what it is like. Why don’t you do something about the dope dealers that are loitering on my street? Why aren’t trespassing laws enforced against them?” Roger, a man who is currently living under a bridge in downtown Cincinnati told council, “We are human beings, just like you all.” Georgine Getty, executive director of the Greater Cincinnati Life Under a Bridge Streetvibes, October 2003 by Jimmy Heath It’s truly the American dream unfulfilled; living under a bridge, in a camp on the river, or in a clump of bushes near the railroad tracks. Not exactly the future we would hope for ourselves or our children or anyone else for that matter. How and why does a person’s life reach the point of homelessness? And why, when there seems to be other options available, would a person choose to live outdoors in 10 degree weather, in the rain, the snow, exposed to not only these cruel elements, but an unforgiving society? What drives a person to live outside of the so-called social order? The answers are as diverse and complex as the varied personalities that make up this sometimes forgotten and ignored segment of our society; the homeless. There are issues of addiction and mental illness, which brings with it fear and apprehension and distrust of the systems designed to reach out to the person needing the services. Social service agencies are pushed to the breaking point, hard pressed to find staff and time to devote to gently persuading folks to come in off the street. And for those reasons, and more, the answers are never simple. To bring the homeless in out of the weather requires an approach that respects the individual nature of each person. If their perceived needs aren’t met and there is mistrust, they may Page 8 feel fearful and run. Blanket solutions and ultimatums are not the answer. What works for one, will not work for another. There is a fear by the sidewalk traveling public of engaging homeless people. Observe the homeless man holding the sign at a downtown corner as people pass and react. You see fear in the general public manifest in many ways. Most commonly, the homeless person is ignored, others increase their distance, and sometimes people react in disgust and even anger. There is certainly a serious and hurtful disconnection between the general public, politicians and homeless persons. I was passing through Fountain Square one day, and I observed an interaction that some young men were having with a homeless man who had asked them for spare change. The men entertained themselves by throwing some loose change on the ground, laughing while the disoriented man chased after the rolling coins. I didn’t know who to feel sorry for; the simple-minded men who entertained themselves at some poor Coalition for the Homeless said, “the people who live under these bridges are among the most challenging for social services to find, engage and assist. The outreach network in Cincinnati grows stronger and more committed every day. However, when homeless camps are swept, it gives homeless people one more reason to mistrust the system and frustrates the outreach workers attempts to keep necessary contact with people.” Over the past month, the Homeless Coalition has worked diligently with social service agencies, police and homeless individuals to propose sustainable solutions to moving people out from under bridges. “We all agree that human beings should not live under bridges...The city has conducted sweeps before. This city still has people living under bridges,” said Getty. “If we continue unfortunate’s expense or the man chasing the nickels. There was the radio talk show host who called for a “homeless roundup” to remove homeless people from the city because they are “nothing but drunks and derelicts.” Part of the perception problem is driven by public discussions. A Cincinnati City Councilman recently spoke in disgust and outrage that he and his family had witnessed a homeless man defecating in public. This Council member sponsored and succeeded in passing an ordinance that called for the immediate removal of all homeless persons living under bridges and highway overpasses. This, in spite of recent and successful collaborations between Streetvibes 100th Issue to sweep people away without treating the reasons that they became homeless in the first place, we will continue to have people living under bridges.” There continued to be much discussion among more compassionate members of City Council as to whether the current proposed resolution would just make life harder for people living outside. “Out of sight does not mean the issue of homelessness goes away. It does nothing but move them from one place to another place,” said Council Member Laketa Cole who voted against the ordinance. “It seems to be an overreaction to the whole problem of homelessness,” said Council Member David Crowley. “I view this issue as almost one of mean-spiritedness.” “I don’t think it is mean spirited at all,” said Mayor Charlie Luken, in defense of Monzel’s resolution. “What we are talking about are aesthetics. We are not talking about changing anything but the way it looks,” said Councilmember Minette Cooper in opposition of the ordinance. “It’s the city’s responsibility to stand up and protect properties, especially properties they own, for all the citizens,” Monzel said. “The lack of compassion showed by the five city council members who voted for Monzel’s resolution tonight was absolutely shocking,” said Georgine Getty. “We don’t need more laws,” say homeless and advocates. social service agencies, the Homeless Coalition, and the police to move people out from the bridges in a humane manner. We can all agree that people should not be using outdoors spaces as a public toilet, but the continued passing of ordinances shows little depth in the analyses of the homeless condition. No one should have to live outside, without the simple life sustaining things, like a shower or a stove; things we take for granted. In my neighborhood of Over­ the-Rhine, I have witnessed many visiting suburban folks partying on Main Street relieving themselves in our alleys and behind our buildings. The tourists leave their drink cups and beer bottles scattered on the ground and in our parking lots. They walk on Main Street, the so-called entertainment district, with drink cups in hand, while neighborhood folks and the homeless continue to be harassed and ticketed for the same infractions. The middle-class gentry who live in our neighborhood use the small patch of grass at our community enter as a toilet for their pets. Our neighbors and community and the homeless see these disparities, and they understand what it means. The message to the poor is “get out!” and for those spending so much money, it’s “go about your business.” It is no wonder that there is so much fear and distrust on the part of the homeless in Cincinnati. Apparently, it isn’t enough to be a human being. Maybe living under a bridge isn’t such a bad idea after all. �Homeless Men receive Settlement from City Of Covington From Streetvibes, February 2004 and clothing were taken. One of Rights Organizing Project and In June of 2002, hundreds by Jimmy Heath the men lost a litter of kittens and from the National Coalition for the Northern Kentucky service Three men met last month family photographs. No notice was Homeless, and the Greater providers and advocates. near the Covington riverfront levy, given to the homeless residents and Cincinnati Coalition for the In late December of 2003, close to the Ohio River bank their property was not held but the City of Covington decided to Homeless assembled for a campsite they once called settle with the claimants home. Present were their and on January 23rd, at the attorneys, Robert site of the injustice, the Newman and Covington homeless campers received lawyer Linda A. Smith. their settlement checks. The men were among Each of the men received eight who sued in U.S. $1,000 checks, handed out District Court in by attorney Robert Covington after city Newman, against the workers removed their backdrop of the Ohio River riverfront camps in April where the campers once of 2002. A lawsuit was made their home. They filed in federal court in will receive another $1,000 May 2002 alleging the each later from attorneys’ city of Covington violated fees. the due process rights of “There’s now a the individuals who lost nationwide precedent that their personal property. cities cannot take the Homeless advocates said property of homeless most of the 30 men living people without notice and on the riverbank were destroy it,” said Cincinnati away at work when the civil-rights attorney Bob Covington city workers Newman, during a press Philip Folk, attorney Robert Newman, Delbert Thompson, Charles Singleton and removed their belongings attorney Linda Smith gather at riverfront campsite for press conference. Claimants Folk, conference at the riverfront from city property site. “It’s a fair warning I Thompson and Singleton each received a check for $1,000. without notice. think, to Covington and During a “sweep” of thrown away. City officials, any other city that homeless people Homeless Rally and March to homeless camps, Covington city including Covington Mayor Butch Covington City Hall to support the are human beings just like workers removed and destroyed Callery, described the riverfront everybody else and they have the claimants and to draw attention to property of individuals who at the camps as a “health hazard and an same constitutional rights as a the plight of the homeless. The time considered the Ohio River eyesore.” City crews were ordered march was organized by the homeowner, so we’re very happy bank their home. Items such as to remove any objects that looked about that.” individuals who lived on the sleeping bags, medication, tents like housing or bedding. riverbanks, the National Civil Katie Fischer, National Low Income Housing Coalition, reads Streetvibes Mary Burke, Director of the Over-theRhine housing network, reads Streetvibes Bill Faith, Director of the Coalition on Housing and Homelessness in Ohio reads Streetvibes David Knoll, chair of Standdown, reads Streetvibes Captain James Whalen, District One Cincinnati Police, reads Streetvibes Pat Clifford, General Coordinator of the Drop Inn Center, reads Streetvibes Streetvibes 100th Issue Page 9 �The Peace Village The recent conference of the Peace Village on “Ending Hunger in the Peace Village,” on October 2nd, featured student teams sharing their visions of how their schools, or college programs, could reduce hunger by teaching their fellow students about the needs of the hungry in our city. “Teaching” meant being clear that peace could not be available to a hungry person because they had to spend their food budget on uninsured medical treatments, or that tightly stretched dollars had to be spent on prescription drugs that were not covered by limited or non-existent fringe benefits, or that the weekly part-time wage could not adequately cover food and the basics of housing, utilities, or insurance. One by one, each team shared with the conference the ways in which this “message” would be delivered. Each team hoped that the information would spur both interest and action. Gathering cans of food for the Free Store/food Bank, or a related pantry, would be the result of all of the efforts. But something bigger was also on the table. What students are teaching and learning is the twin lessons that hunger has no place in our city and that students can do something very important to reduce it. Teaching peace through a goal in reducing individual and family hunger places these students into a discussion that has been largely invisible in our community. We have not taught the reasons for hunger being so extensive or for the rising need of our citizens, many of them working one or two low paying jobs, for relief from the stark reality of hunger. Our students have not been asked to think about the hard choices facing an increasing number of families who are choosing, if choice is the right word, to keep the family together through reducing the food budgets during the emergencies arising from money just running out by the end of the month. Our students are not learning about how they can encourage hungry children to eat federally supplied breakfasts and lunches in ways that do not increase stigmatization of the children. Sharing the plans for action and learning opened up the Dr. Steve Sunderland possibility of community wide approaches that will make a local difference in each neighborhood or school community. More than collecting cans or dollars for cases of food, a consequence of this program will be the deepening of each person’s knowledge about the power of young people to organize for peace in their schools and communities, irrespective of race, economic class, gender, and religious perspective. These student leaders have already asked themselves the critical questions of what is the important information so necessary to change indifference about peace due to hunger into action for peace based on joining energy and resources. Stopping hunger is a form of learning about how to stop conflict and victimization. Reducing hunger through programs of assistance also reduces ignorance about the ways in which society maintains a cruel relationship with the weakest members of our community. The joining of young people to such a peace effort will alter some people on a permanent basis. Seeing hunger as humanmade by choices our society makes to ignore, trivialize and punish large number of citizens, forces a kind of teaching on the young students that will shift their interests into social justice. Bringing the mission of this effort down to personal involvement may encourage the kind of further teaching and learning within the school that leads to wider participation from other students and teachers. Can students teach peace? We are all realizing that teaching for social justice is within the power of youth. Teaching for us means to study the issues of hunger and how they can be realistically addressed in our educational institutions within a limited time. The consequence of this teaching is action at the level of consciousness that is at a deep and important level. I applaud our new teachers and their passion for a society that can learn about needs and do something about it. The connections between old and new teachers was evident throughout our day and in our closing ceremony. A student from Ursuline Academy gave us some inspirational final words as a counselor from Aiken led us in a chorus of “We Shall Overcome.” On the table, where people were leaving, there were cans of food brought by students and teachers for the Free Store, cases, really of generous hopes and beliefs. We are off! TIMELINE continued from page 8 May, 2003 – Report on the Panhandling for Awareness Campaign organized by the GCCH and the Cincinnati Youth City Council. June, 2003 – Streetvibes reports on the new effort by City Hall to curb panhandlers by requiring them to get a license. August, 2003 – Homeless people living in camps under Cincinnati bridges are ordered to move out. Homeless gather to fight the eviction. Community shows its support of the homeless. November, 2003 – GCCH’s Annual Standdown event is held in Over-the-Rhine’s Washington Park. January, 2004 – GCCH Annual Dinner is featured in this month’s Streetvibes. February, 2004 – Homeless men receive settlement from City of Covington after city workers removed their riverbank camps and destroyed personal items. April, 2004 – Hundreds gather in Cincinnati to protest one-year anniversary of Iraq War, joining millions of protestors around the world. May, 2004 – Downtown’s Fort Washington Hotel is slated for upscale condo development which will result in more loss of low-income housing. June, 2004 – Cincinnati City Council votes to extend controversial Panhandling Registration ordinance. July, 2004 – The Cincinnati Center City Development Corporation (3CDC) fast tracks its plan for development of the Washington Park area of Over­ the-Rhine resulting in another threat to the Drop Inn Center shelter. August, 2004 – The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless and the Drop Inn Center begin campaign to register homeless voters. September, 2004 – New GCCH homeless education packet is piloted in Cincinnati schools. November, 2004 - Streetvibes celebrates 100th issue! Page 10 Streetvibes 100th Issue �Curtis Norvell finds healing at Drop Inn Center Program From Streetvibes, October 2001 by Lisa Bridges “Life has taught me that there is a bit of good in the worst of us, and a bit of bad in the best of us, but we are all children of God, and we all have a right to be here. I invite who ever reads this little article and is not satisfied with the way you’re living I need you to know, we no longer have to remain stuck. One thing this addict/ alcoholic do know is I had to be ready! And only I knew when Trey was ready. Me, myself have lived my life on a wire without a net. Funny thing about fear, it kept me from the rooms of recovery and today fear keeps me from returning to the horrors of active addiction. Like Martin Luther King Jr. today, Trey has a dream. Thank You God!” - Curtis “Trey” Norvell LB - What is the biggest change in your life since you have started the program at the Drop Inn Center? Trey - “I’ve stopped fighting….meaning: completely surrendering to the simple program (of NA and AA.) And it has taken me so long to do this.” LB - What has your experience offered you at the Drop Inn Center? Trey - “It has offered me a sense of freedom from active addiction and alcoholism. Also, the opportunity to sit back and reflect on life in the past, the present, and what I want to accomplish in the future.” LB - Where do you see yourself in the future? Trey - “In one of two places: either in broadcasting (which Trey has already completed some schooling for), or starting a program for young men ages 18-25. Trey got really excited about a program for young men. Offering them a strong since of encouragement and empowerment. “It is a difficult age for a sense of belonging, and I want to be able to be there for these men. I have noticed since I have been living here, I have been approached by many young people who have questions, and need support and encouragement.” LB - What has been your biggest learning experience? Trey - “I know what other people meant at all the other treatment centers that I went to. You have to REALLY, REALLY want it and today I really do. I don’t want to drink or drug anymore. And today, I feel and understand this surrender.” Cathy Johnstone of COHHIO reads Streetvibes Spencer Wells of COHHIO reads Streetvibes Tom Stricher, of The Other Place, reads Streetvibes Streetvibes 100th Issue Page 11 �Streetvibes Vendor Code of Conduct About the Greater Cincinnati All Vendors Sign and Agree to a Code of Conduct Coalition for the Homeless and Report Any Violations to GCCH - 421-7803 Streetvibes.... This program has helped 1. Streetvibes will be distributed honest in stating that all profits go for a $1 voluntary donation. If a customer donates more than $1 for a paper, vendors are allowed to keep that donation. However, vendors must never ask for more than $1 when selling Streetvibes. 2. Each paper purchased from the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH) costs 30 cents. Papers will not be given out on credit. Old papers cannot be traded in for new papers. 3. Streetvibes may only be purchased from GCCH. Never buy papers from, or sell papers to other vendors. 4. Vendors must not panhandle or sell other items at the same time they are selling Streetvibes. 5. Vendors must treat all other vendors, customers, and GCCH personnel with respect. 6. Vendors must not sell Streetvibes while under the influence. 7. Vendors must not give a “hard sell” or intimidate anyone into purchasing Streetvibes. This includes following customers or continuing to solicit sales after customers have said no. 8. Vendors must never sell doorto-door or on private property, unless given permission from the owner of that property. 9. Vendors must not deceive customers while selling Streetvibes. Vendors must be to the individual vendor. Vendors must not tell customers that the money they receive will go to GCCH or any other organization or charity. Also, vendors must not say that they are collecting for “the homeless” in general. 10. Vendors must not sell papers without their badge. Vendors must present their badge when purchasing papers from GCCH. Lost badges cost $2.00 to replace. Broken or worn badges will be replaced for free, but only if the old badge is returned to GCCH. 11. Streetvibes vendor meetings are held on the first weekday of the month at 1pm. The month’s paper will be released at this meeting. If a vendor cannot attend the meeting, he or she should let us know in advance. If a vendor does not call in advance and does not show up, that vendor will not be allowed to purchase papers on the day of the meeting or the following day. Five free papers will be given to those who do attend. 12. Failure to comply with these Rules and Regulations may result in termination from the Streetvibes vendor program. GCCH reserves the right to terminate any vendor at any time as deemed appropriate. Badges and Streetvibes papers are property of GCCH, and must be surrendered upon demand. The mission of the North American Street Newspaper Association (NASNA) is to support a street newspaper movement that creates and upholds journalistic and ethical standards while promoting self-help and empowerment among people living in poverty. NASNA papers support homeless and very low-income people in more than 35 cities across the United States and Canada. Streetvibes Vendor: 70 cents Printing and Production: 30 cents Page 12 The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH) was formed in May of 1984 for one purpose: the eradication of homelessness in Cincinnati. What started out as a coalition of 15 volunteers meeting weekly in an unheated church basement has since grown into a Coalition of over 45 agencies and hundreds of volunteers dedicated to improving services for homeless individuals, educating the public about homelessness and empowering homeless individuals to advocate for their civil rights and housing needs. Streetvibes is a tool of GCCH used to help us achieve our goal of ending homelessness. On the one hand it is a self-sufficiency program geared towards the homeless and marginally housed individuals who are our vendors. Streetvibes vendors buy the paper for 30 cents per copy and sell it for a suggested one-dollar donation, keeping the profit that they have earned. hundreds of people find and maintain housing. The vendors also sign a code of conduct stating that they will behave responsibly and professionally and they proudly display their official Streetvibes badge while selling the paper. Our vendors put a face on “the homeless” of Cincinnati and form lasting friendships with their customers. On the other hand, Streetvibes is an award-winning alternative newspaper and part of the international street newspaper movement. Focusing on homelessness and social justice issues, Streetvibes reports the often-invisible story of poverty in our community. Streetvibes is also proud to include creative writing, poetry, articles, photography and interviews written by homeless and formerly homeless individuals. Streetvibes enjoys a loyal reader base that respects the honest portrayal of the joys, sorrows, and challenges facing the people of Cincinnati. Streetvibes is a member of the: The International Network of Street Papers (INSP) unites street papers sold by homeless and people living in poverty from all over the world. INSP is an umbrella organization, which provides a consultancy service for its partner papers and advises on the setting up of new street papers and support initiatives for marginalised people. Where Your Dollar Goes... The Streetvibes program maintains a minimal overhead cost so that our vendors can keep as much of the proceeds as possible. Please call our office at 421-7803 for more information about the program. Many thanks for your support. Streetvibes 100th Issue Don’t be Squirrelly! Buy Streetvibes! �Zen cont. from page 5 professional staff. There are over 200 homeless and formerly homeless vendors hawking the Streetwise newspaper at any given time. One thing all of these papers have in common is that homeless vendors not unlike Cincinnati’s Jimmie Gipson sell them and keep the profits. They write the stories and are involved in the editorial process. There are many ways to measure success in the street newspaper business. Streetvibes, and the street paper movement, has become the alternative voice for people whose voice has gone unheard for so long. When the mainstream media fails, the street newspaper succeeds. Street newspapers tell it like it is without the confines of advertiser politics. That is one of the real successes of street papers like Streetvibes. Homeless people can especially speak their mind where before, they would be ignored by the mainstream media. Advocates for the poor also find a voice in the street paper movement and use the network extensively for getting the word out about local community and national issues. Legal Alternative For many cities, including Cincinnati, the street newspaper movement grew out of the need for creating an alternative to panhandling. Although the First Amendment right to free speech protects people who are peacefully engaged in panhandling, the City of Cincinnati took measures to strengthen a 1992 aggressive panhandling law. Jimmie Gipson says that he used to be a panhandler himself. “Some of those guys make good money,“ says Gipson, pointing to a nearby panhandler. While homeless advocates and the ACLU were disputing the anti-panhandling issue in the courts, the idea for a street newspaper for Cincinnati was developed as an alternative. For several months Cincinnati’s Streetvibes was a one-page supplement to the Homeless Grapevine, a Cleveland, Ohio street newspaper. Using Cleveland’s Grapevine newspaper as a model, Streetvibes published its first full issue in February of 1997. In the spring of 1998 the proposed antipanhandling ordinance was ruled unconstitutional by the US District Court, thereby legalizing peaceful panhandling. These days, Jimmie Gipson competes for a share of the street with panhandlers, but he doesn’t mind. The New Success Because of the panhandling legal dispute, making profits as a business was not the impetus for publishing Streetvibes. The paper was also developed as a program to help people get back on their feet. In the publishing office of The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless, vendors gather to socialize, drink coffee, and discuss the issues of the day. The vendors purchase their papers and head out to the streets. There are countless success stories surrounding the history of the Streetvibes newspaper. Many vendors have sold the paper for years and have come to rely on it for their livelihood. Others use the program to find a way out of a temporary situation and move on. “We work with the vendors to help them reach their personal goals,” says Alicia Beck, [former] Director of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Traditionally, the GCCH staff has worked with vendors to help them meet their goals. “We are in the process of hiring a full-time staff person to help the vendors with their needs,” says Beck. “Our goal is to develop vendor support groups that will identify issues for the vendors, provide educational opportunities and health services. We will be able to help vendors with referrals for housing and other types of assistance.” The Streetvibes newspaper is an empowerment program for homeless folk who are looking for a way to get their lives back. “I really enjoy selling Streetvibes,” says Jimmie Gipson. “It makes me feel good, like I’m doing something that matters.” The Challenge The most difficult aspect for Streetvibes vendors is consistency. Many of them live on The Lost Boy Hello, my name is Reggie. I’m back in treatment for the 48th time not because I’m homeless, but also because I have a drug addiction. Homelessness doesn’t have a color or age or place. I’ve found out in my 16 years of being homeless that it doesn’t classify who a person is. I’ve met some of the nicest people that were homeless. Sleeping under bridges and not knowing where they were going from one minute to the next. It’s only ignorant Streetvibes 100th Issue the streets because they suffer from circumstances that prevent them from following a regular schedule. Lack of housing affects many different areas of somone’s life: no place to store their things, nowhere to take a shower, few safe places to rest. Selling Streetvibes is a great alternative for homeless people because they make their own hours. The best vendors come as close to consistent sales as they can; they sell in the same general area to repeat customers month after month. Jimmie Gipson hopes to use the money he earns from Streetvibes to improve his situation: “I like this job. My dream is to make enough money to get a place of my own. In the meantime, though, I’ll just keep meeting people and letting them know about life on the streets.” Jimmie continues, “I want to thank the people for encouraging and inspiring me by wanting to help and feeling that they are doing their part. I keep telling them that their support is very necessary for improvement of the homeless problem. Editor’s Note: Special thanks to vendor Jimmie Gipson, whose generous donation of his time made this article possible. To learn more about vendors or for more information, contact the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless at (513) 421-7803. people that don’t understand and can care less about homelessness. I’ve lost my dignity, my family, jobs, money, and most of all I lost contact with the little boy that was born March 19th, 1966. The little shy kid that got A’s and B’s in school. The kid that everyone liked. The kid that never went to jail or stole anything until he lost his self in the dark alleys. Long and lonely streets of crack cocaine. I’ve never had a chance to feel what it is like to live free and be happy without a mood altering chemical in me. Page 13 �Mourning the Morning The Other Side of the Desk by Rachel Lawson (My sophomore year of college I visited West Africa and was inspired by an individual and this was written in dedication of Agiee-the silent hero) Anonymous Have you ever thought, just a wee little bit, of how it would seem to be a misfit, and how you would feel if you had to sit, on the other side of the desk? She always sat in the dark I assumed it was because it was cooler in the daytime heat of Africa Until I noticed her sitting in the dark at night She was so close to the wall trying to blend in, trying to hide I smiled, ignorant and turned on the bright and revealing light It’s amazing how the light captures fresh bruises, new black eyes, scratches, and wounds My memory flashed back to all the times she hid in the dark And reality hit and I finally knew why I quickly became a hero I would tackle whatever and whoever did this and the abuse would stop now All she had to do was tell me who She told me her pain And I told her my plan As the result of being raised in a different culture I had a desire to disrupt this routine of being abused The only problem was when the morning arrived The mourning said I don’t want you to come to my culture and disrupt what is accepted The mourning said I would only cause more bruises The mourning was praying for that comforting night And the morning willed me not to tell The mourning asked me to do nothing She said every slap in the face wasn’t that bad It would heal I should just forget about it and not let it affect my journey In the end it became my journey From the dark to the light The day when the sun can shine rather than trying to hide in the dark My journey to understand why the sun hides And the morning mourns Have you ever looked at the man who seemed a bum, as he sat before you nervous – dumb – and thought of the courage it took to come, to the other side of the desk? Have you ever thought of his dreams that went astray, of the hard, real facts of his every day, of the things in his life that make him stay, on the other side of the desk? Did you make him feel that he was full of greed, make him ashamed of his race or creed, or did you reach out to him in his need, to the other side of the desk? May God give us wisdom and lots of it, and much compassion and plenty of grit, so that we may be kinder to those who sit, on the other side of the desk. Death by Detachment The Bullet Iraqi poet I tried to domesticate the bullet, To take her with me to school, To teach her the alphabet And have her speak But she is made of black clay and stuffed with canned blood I tried to domesticate the bullet, To take her to the water-spring, To the fields of dew. But she has consumptive lips That love to kiss the lips of death To rummage or wreck And blow ashes in our eyes. I tried to domesticate the bullet, To lead her to the truth, To wash her copper with perfumes And replace her gunpowder with sweets. But she refused to be unlocked; and remained dripping pus, With poison in her breath. Page 14 by JH What is this other world on the Corner? Of violent and menacing gestures, and growling peril. And bloated pockets, filled with danger. The bulky shells, and anger gone wild, fill the street with deadly void, inside and outside the soul, with and without spirit. Clashing on the gray, the staggering limbs askew, twirling, menacing, frightened, of the blue and white shadow. Tomorrow is a hazard, out of reach, on a dusty shelf. Beyond the dream of home, and mom, and warming family. To get there is a nonsense dream, in TV land and liars, peddling another place, a vision beyond reach. Streetvibes 100th Issue The Work of the Dead by Michael Henson In every life cut short, so many things are left undone. The dishes stacked and crusting in the sink. The dogs unfed. Three new strings on the guitar, the others still in their wrappers. The bedroom half-painted, one side fresh and glossy, the other a map of patching plaster islands. And the oil that really ought to be changed. And the letter unsent: it only needs a stamp and someone to walk it to the mailbox. And all the work of love: words and gestures still bundled in their little proud houses and the keys lay right on the table where we left them. And even the nation, this sprawling, addled nation: Such a tangle of dropped threads, interrupted projects, failed promises. Who will beat down the hammers of greed? Who will untangle the knots of deceit? Those whose lives have been cut short are crowded into their darkened theater where they watch us bawling and arguing like actors in an ancient drama. They watch us closely, for they want to know who will take on the unfinished work of the dead. �Bush is my Shepard Acquainted With The Nite Bush is my Shepard, I am in want, He maketh me to lie down on park benches, He leadeth me by still factories, He restoreth my doubt in the Republican Party, He guideth me in the path of the Unemployed for his parties sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of soup kitchens, I am hungry. I do fear evil, for thou art against me; They Cabinet and Senate, thy do discomfort me; Tho didst prepare a reduction in my wages; In the presence of m creditors thou anointed my income with taxes, So my expenses overuneth my income. Surely, poverty and hard times will follow me all the days of the Republican administration. And I shall dwell in a rented house forever. by buddy gray i am one acquainted with the nite, from my growing years in the country, to my adult life in the inner-city. i began with the very dark – unless moonlit nites, with people all asleep. And crickets – thousands it seems – chirping their screeky, leggy noises, and occasionally – in the wee hours of the nite, long distance soulful whistle of the train, blowing for a crossing – long and deep. Then to the city, at first hard to sleep, since, it seemed, there were always people and machines that never sleep. All beneath my 4th floor window – echoing between the concrete, or hot-muggy polluted summer + poverty, stress. Many nitely screams of our city’s women being battered, on lonely, unsafe, nite streets – or echoes imprisoned in an apartment with an abuser. Cops – often siren-maniacs – racing dangerously down dark, skinny, populated streets. Going the wrong way down one-way streets, chasing one individual. The flood of the voices and cars of the well-to-do in evening gowns, oblivious to the social stress. Ending their social event – in the wee AM hours – from Music Hall across the street, just before dawn – the whirring, brushing sound – of the city’s street sweeper. Through many all-niter work projects at the shelter, or sleepless, tossing nites, i’ve heard and seen it all. The Bottom Line by Michael Nelson Sin on our streets, Death in our city, The bottom line is, Life shows us no pity. Women cheat on husbands, Men cheating on wives, The bottom line is, more pain in their lives. Kids killing kids, Cops shot everyday, The bottom line is, We all need to pray. People watch violence, See ladies quite nude, The bottom line is, Our morals are crude. Our leaders are weaklings, Our court systems fail, The bottom line is, Does Truth ever prevail? The bottom line is, The end may be near, The bottom line is, Mankind shall know fear! Relatively by Derek Landers Relatively speaking he was my husband to my mother’s mother and the son of another Reich polished boots and martial mannerisms were his yet he knew no order Relatively speaking he was my father’s father and the son of a people dispossessed from their homes and heritage held hostage by the geography of North America and the ties of the delta bayous he knew pain Relatively speaking she was wife to my father’s father and the daughter of a kidnapped African women and a Frenchman’s contempt for that women’s humanity Jim Crow she’d come to know she knew not who she was Relatively speaking I am their mongrel progeny I span the waters of their existence uniting four continents and no one Relatively speaking I am alone Shutter Speed by Jimmy Heath Kroger Company got a tax-payer subsidized parking garage - Over-the-Rhine got this lousy rock Streetvibes 100th Issue Page 15 �TREATMENT: Both 820-2947 N.A. Hopeline 351-0422 A.A. Hotline 381-6672 C.C.A.T. 684-7956 Talbert House Transitions, Inc 859-491-4435 VA Domiciliary 859-559-5011 DIC Live-In 721-0643 Program TREATMENT: Men Charlie’s 3/4 House 784-1853 921-1613 Prospect House 961-2256 Starting Over TREATMENT: Women 961-4663 First Step Home Full Circle Program 721-0643 HOUSING: 721-4580 CMHA Excel Development 632-7149 241-0504 Miami Purchase OTR Housing Net. 369-0004 381-1171 ReSTOC 721-8666 Tender Mercies Tom Geiger House 961-4555 Dana Transitional Bridge 751-9797 Services, Inc 761-1480 Caracole (AIDS) 381-5432 Friars Club 721-0643 Drop Inn Center 863-8866 Haven House Interfaith 471-1100 Hospitality Lighthouse Youth Center 961-4080 (Teens) St. John’s Housing 651-6446 Need Help or Want to Help? If you need help or would like to help please call one of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless members listed below. SHELTERS: Women and Children YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter 872-9259 1-888-872-9259 (Toll Free) 557-2873 Bethany House 762-5660 Salvation Army Welcome Hse. 859-431-8717 Women’s Crisis 859-491-3335 Center 357-4602 SHELTER: Men City Gospel 241-5525 Mission Garden St. House 241-0490 Joseph House 241-2965 (Veterans) St. Francis/St.Joseph 381-4941 House 661-4620 Mt. Airy Center Volunteers of Amer. 381-1954 SHELTER: Both Anthony House (Youth) Formed in 1984, The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a membership organization. Our member groups serve the homeless through emergency shelter, transitional living facilities, permanent housing, medical services, social services, soup kitchens, and mental health/addiction services. The Coalition also consists of individual citizens who want to take an active role in ensuring that Cincinnati is an inclusive community, meeting the needs of all of its citizens. Join the fight to end homelessness; contact the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless at (513) 421-7803, 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 OTHER SERVICES: AIDS Volunteers of 421-2437 Cincinnati Appalachian Identity 621-5991 Center 231-6630 Beech Acres Center for Independent Living 241-2600 Options Churches Active in 591-2246 Northside Cincinnati Health Network 961-0600 Community Action Agency 569-1840 381-4242 241-2563 Contact Center Emanuel Center Freestore/ 241-1064 Foodbank Fransiscan Haircuts 651-6468 Goodwill Industries 771-4800 Coalition for the Homeless 421-7803 Hamilton Co. Mental 946-8600 Health Board Mental Health Access 558-8888 Point Hamilton Co. TB Control 632-7186 Health Rsrc. Center 357-4602 Homeless Mobile 352-2902 Health Van House of Refuge Mission 221-5491 Legal Aid Society 241-9400 Madisonville Ed. & Assis. 271-5501 Center Mary Magdalen House 721-4811 McMicken Dental 352-6363 Clinic 621-6364 Our Daily Bread Peaslee Neighborhood 621-5514 Center Project Connect Homeless 357-5720 Kids St. Vincent De Paul 562-8841 The Emergency Food 471-4357 Center 721-7660 Travelers Aid 721-7900 United Way VA Homeless 859-572-6226 Women Helping 872-9259 Women MIDDLETOWN/HAMILTON (Butler County) St. Raphaels (Food Bank/Soup Kitchen) 863-3184 863-1445 Salvation Army Serenity House Day Center 422-8555 Open Door 868-3276 Pantry New Life Baptist Mission 896-9800 (Soup Kitchen) Hope House (Homeless Families/Singles) 423-4673 $1 Donation November 2004 STREETVIBES BUY FROM BADGED VENDORS ONLY Celebrating the 100th Issue Streetvibes Timeline The Best of Streetvibes Serial Number Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless Inside � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 2004 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource November 2004 Subject The topic of the resource Homelessness Description An account of the resource Pg 1: Remembering Buddy Gray Pg 2: Letter from the Director Pg 3: GCHC Pg 4: Homeless News Digest Pg 5: The Zen of Streetvibes Vending Pg 6: Fire Cat Review Pg 7: Sweeping of camps halted by the homeless Pg 8: Move Homeless from Under Bridges Pg 9: Homeless Men Receive Settlement from City of Covington Pg 10: The Peace Village Pg 11: Curtis Norvell finds healing at Drop Inn Center Program Pg 12: GCHC Pg 13: Zen Continued Pg 14: Art & Poetry Pg 15: Art & Poetry Continued Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Streetvibes Archive Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Streetvibes Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 2004 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Georgine Getty Allison Leeuw Andy Erickson Rachel Lawson Kate McManus Janice Faulkner Mary Gaffney Jimmy Heath Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Allison Leeuw Andy Erickson Arts & Poetry buddy gray Camps Covington Curtis Norvell Donald Whitehead Drop Inn Center Fire Cat Review Georgine Getty Homeless News Digest Janice Faulkner Jimmy Heath Kate McManus Mary Gaffney Over-the-Rhine Rachel Lawson The Peace Village