1 10 22 https://streetvibesarchive.net/files/original/324abb8dc1f2d230eaa59669113dca38.pdf c6ad727357da2d1352805be93ed90d65 PDF Text Text An AffordAble Confronting the School for Terrorists Housing SucceSS Story Page 8 Page 12 Nov. 1-14, 2010 • Issue 187 • One Dollar ADVOCATING JUSTICE • BUILDING COMMUNITY Blankets,Water and Other Bad Ideas Helping homeless people isn’t so simple By GreGory Flannery Editor P People in homeless camps often need basic necessities. REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson. eople are living in tents and shacks in isolated pockets of urban Cincinnati. They generate trash, as we all do, but they don’t have an easy way to dispose of it. Last month a religious group decided to help, visit­ ing homeless camps and removing trash. The camps were cleaner for a while. The volunteers were proud of their work. But does this kind of volun­ teering, helpful in the short term, make the problem worse? The consequences of charity aren’t always posi­ tive. That’s why some people donate to large non-profit organizations but spurn pan­ handlers. Charity can have political implications (see “On the Left Side of God,” below). For some people, charity is first and foremost a religious act. To social workers engaged in the complex business of helping people living an almost feral life, simple acts of charity sometimes can be an impediment to bring­ ing them indoors, making it easier for them to stay on the outside. Enabling homelessness Members of John 15:12 Ministries visited home­ less camps Oct. 9 after first distributing trash bags to residents who wanted their assistance. Rumpke, a trashdisposal company, sent a garbage truck for the volun­ teers to fill. John 15:12 Ministries takes its name from this state­ ment by Jesus of Nazareth in the New Testament: “My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.” The organization’s goal went beyond tidying up homeless people’s quarters, according to an announcement dis­ tributed the week before the event. “The most important part of this event is to show them we love and care about them, just as Jesus loves all of us,” the announcement said. “To learn from them and about them, and to just be good neighbors. … This is an awesome opportunity to get out on the front line and truly see what homelessness See Blankets, P. 9 On the Left Side of God Politics in the world of charity By Joanne Zuhl Portland, Ore. – A 4-inch­ square, 96-page booklet once was considered the embodi­ ment of social justice and empowerment of the poor, and for years its publisher attracted financial backing from the Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD) through the Archdiocese of Portland. The local Catholic Campaign – a private nonprofit foundation operated by the United States Conference of Conservative Catholics are working to end funding for poverty-alleviation programs. REUTERS/Tony Gentile. Catholic Bishops – helped launch the booklet with a $5,000 grant in 2008, making sure information on health care, shelter, employment and supportive services was in the hands of people experiencing homelessness and poverty. That was until this spring, when a call to the office of Justice and Peace of the Archdiocese of Portland pointed out the offense on page 25. There, under the category of health care, was a listing for Planned Parenthood, which in a half- inch space included a description of the various basic ser­ vices, including contraception that the organization provides to low- or no-income custom­ ers seeking health care. The message from CCHD managers at the Portland Archdiocese, although supportive of the booklet’s overall mission, was made clear in terms of funding: If Planned Parenthood remained in the booklet, CCHD, in keeping with Catholic teaching, could no longer fund Street Roots, the publisher of the Rose City Resource guide. Street Roots decided to keep the listing. But what was behind the call? Why now? What changed after five years of CCHD support for Street Roots? How did a piece of information sud­ denly morph into a theological offense? Starting in autumn 2009, other groups began asking the same questions. The Chinese Progressive Association in San Francisco was among the first to get the call: CCHD, one of the founding funders for the 38-year-old Association, had to cut ties with the work­ ers’ rights program. Also in California, the Young Workers United was told it was being cut from funding as well, as was the Rebecca Project for Human Rights, which helps homeless and disadvantaged women who have children. L.A. Community Action Net­ work was “defunded” at its See On the Left, P. 6 �2 Editorial BY ThE ­ NUMBErS ­ 3.92 The amount, in billions of dollars, of Neighborhood Stabilization Program funds approved by Congress in 2008 (see page X). 25,000 The number of AfricanAmerican and Hispanic students Steve Sunderland helped integrate at City University of New York (see page 16). 32 The length of time, in years, that “Michael” has been “a sober drunk” (see page 3). 1 The number of record labels The Retros have talked to so far (see page x). Twice The number of times the Ugandan vice president’s husband admitted hitting her (see page X). 27 The number, in millions, of Americans who take anti­ depressants (see page X). 25 The page number of the ad in the Rose City guide that cost Street Roots its grant from the Catholic Campaign for Human Development (see page 1). 15:12 The chapter and verse of the Gospel of John that gives one homeless ministry its name (see page 1. 98.5 The combined prison sentences, in years, served by non-violent protesters at the School of the Americas (see page x). STREETVIBES November 15-30, 2010 Streetwise By GreGory Flannery Editor You Are One of the Reasons We’re So Odd This is a funny business, putting together a street newspaper. By way of giving thanks, I’d like to tell you some of what’s involved. Our cartoonist, Anne Skove, has a job in the legal profession that involves lots of travel. In addition to drawing for Streetvibes, she recruits new writers and sends postage stamps for our use. Our arts columnist, Saad Ghosn, is a physician. He wrote this week’s column (“Artists as Activists”) and two others prior to leaving the country for a month to care for a dying relative. One of our photographers, Jon Hughes, is chair of the Journalism Department at the University of Cincinnati. Another, Vinit Murthy, is a particle engineer at Procter and Gamble. Another, Aimee Willhoite, is a full-time college student. Our proofreader, Jeremy Flannery, examines the entire edition at night, after getting off work. One of our writers, Margo Pierce, is a freelance journalist who has won national awards. She is also a busy volunteer and board member of a local non-profit organization. Yet she has spent hundreds of hours consulting with the paper on design, planning and fundraising. Our new graphic designer, Elizabeth Schulenberg, lays out the pages after she’s finished with her full-time graphics job. Our social critic and film critic, David Heitfield, has worked as editor of two daily newspapers, as a defense attorney and as an assistant prosecutor. Our printing costs are covered in part by the generosity of United Nations Appeals Judge Mark Painter and by the Sisters of Charity. Many of our writers, such as Carly Tamborski, Corey Gibson, Samantha Groark and Brian O’Donnell, are fulltime college students with part-time jobs who make time to interview people, research issues and write news stories about what they learn. Our poets include Bonnie Neumeier, director of the Peaslee Neighborhood Center; Spencer Ledyard, stationed in Afghanistan with the U.S. Air Force; Rick Stansberger, a teacher; and homeless people who struggle just to survive. Stephen Paul Lansky, a professor at Miami University, shares short stories and an occasional painting with us. Reuters, the international news syndicate, lets us publish its photographs. Some of our vendors, such as Lee McCoy and George Herrell, write essays about their experiences. Other vendors, such as Willa Davis, write poetry. Another vendor, Anthony Williams, contributes his drawings. Our food writer, Jeni Jenkins, creates new dishes and photographs them – after her day job as education coordinator for the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. One of our writers, Ariana Shahandeh, makes Persian delicacies and delivers them to our office for our vendors and other homeless people to enjoy. I’m sometimes invited to talk to students and other groups about Streetvibes. I always tell them, “Streetvibes is the oddest newspaper you’ll find in Cincinnati.” That’s true on a variety of levels: First, everyone but the editor is a volunteer, yet we’ve received both national and international journalism awards. Second, the quality of our content is wildly inconsistent – and that’s by design. We want a broad range of voices, including professional writers, students trying to hone their skills and homeless people who lack formal training but have had the most expensive education available, the kind acquired by living on the streets. Third, ours is a newspaper with a mission – two missions, actually. Our first mission is providing the opportunity for homeless and other low-income people to earn a small living by distributing Streetvibes. The vendors are the reason for the paper’s existence, as one of our volunteers reminds us whenever we seem to forget. Our second mission is advocacy journalism. Streetvibes is an activist newspaper, advocating justice, building community. We are here to rattle people’s consciences, to urge them to act, to make them pound the table, to prod them into asking questions – and sometimes to make them laugh. We especially like to make people laugh at Cincinnati City Council and the Cincinnati Center City Development Corp. (3CDC), two of the most ridiculous, reckless and hurtful institutions in this city – and the reason Cincinnati is thought of as a place that is cruel to poor people. One of the reason Streetvibes is so odd is we’re a community paper, which means the weird, eclectic and eccentric get all jumbled in with the mainstream, minority and other elements that make Cincinnati unique – the very uniqueness that city council and 3CDC are actively trying to suppress in favor of a packaged homogeneity that just isn’t real. Finally, ours is an odd newspaper because of you. With newspapers across the United States cutting staff, shrinking news coverage and going out of business altogether, Streetvibes has enjoyed dramatic growth in circulation since 2008. By supporting our vendors, you directly help to fight poverty. As the nation prepares to celebrate Thanksgiving, I’m grateful for all the volunteers who make this feisty little street paper come together. I’m grateful for our donors. I’m grateful for our readers. Streetvibes is an activist newspaper, advocating justice and building community. Streetvibes reports on economic issues, civil rights, the environment, the peace movement, spirituality and the struggle against homelessness and poverty. Distributed by people who are or once were homeless, in exchange for a $1 donation, Streetvibes is published twice a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Address: 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 Phone: 513.421.7803 x 12 Fax 513.421.7813 Email: streetvibes2@yahoo.com Website: www.cincihomeless.org Blog: streetvibes.wordpress.com Streetvibes Staff Editor Gregory Flannery Art Director Joseph Szydlowski Vendor Coordinator Georgia Bohannon Contributing Writers Michelle Dillingham, Samantha Groark, Margo Pierce, Jeremy Flannery, Michael Henson, David Heitfield, Corey Gibson, Jeni Jenkins, Saad Ghosn, Lew Moores, Larry Gross, Eli Braun, Jesse Call, Michael Fanning, B. Clifton Burke, Carly Tamborski Photography/Artwork Aimie Willhoite, Lynne Ausman, Anne Skove, Vinit Murthy, Jon Hughes, Brad Foster Proofreader Jeremy Flannery The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that works to eradicate homelessness in Cincinnati through coordination of services, public education, grassroots advocacy and Streetvibes. �STREETVIBES November 15-30, 2010 Column 3 Beyond the bootstraps Long-Term Success Begins with Compassion By MarGo Pierce/www.writerdiva.coM Contributing writEr The first time I remember taking a drink was when I was about 12 or 13 and I got a little glass of Mogen David wine at Thanksgiving to have a toast. And it was the most magical moment I’d ever had in my life. When I took that drink, it hit the back of my throat, it went down and it was like a bomb exploding inside me and it was just this warm rush feeling. What I remember from that— and it seems like it was just yesterday—for the first time in my life I felt OK. I just felt OK. I don’t know another word to describe it. Everything just went whhhhheeeeww. For the next 11 years I chased that high. That’s all I ever wanted. I always wanted to feel like that, and when I wasn’t doing it I was thinking about it, planning on how I was gonna get it. I don’t know how fast it progressed or anything else, it’s kind of hard to remember. Michael (not his real name) looks off into the distance as he talks about being a “sober drunk” for 32 years. His voice is even, calm but not devoid of emotion. With smiles and laughter, he describes his childhood in Cincinnati, Ohio, as “typical middle class.” Alcohol—at least for people like me that I know—sets up this craving. … I don’t know how to describe it unless you’ve experienced it. People talk about it as being a lack of willpower. The line about willpower: The line about willpower is, “The next time you have a bad case of diarrhea, just use a little willpower on it and see how far it gets ya.” You’ll end up with a runny leg. It’s just not that simple. I think it’s critical for anyone dealing with alco­ holism that they are entitled to – if I can use that word—be told what their problem is. And I don’t just mean somebody yellin’ and screamin’ at ’em and sayin’ “You’re a drunk and you better sober up.” I’m talking about professional people telling them, “You have alcoholism. This is what it’s doing to you. This is the only solution and this is what we think you ought to do.” And help you starting some kind of plan to get sober. It’s a great mantra of every drunk, “It’ll be differ­ ent this time. It won’t be as bad this time, I won’t do ‘this’ this time, I won’t do ‘that’ this time.” And every time you do it over and over again. Insanity and alcoholism is absolutely doing the same thing over again and expecting different results. Every day after day after day after day. I talk to multiple DUI offenders and I’ll tell them, “Anyone can get a DUI. A social drinker can get a DUI – they have a bad night, they make a bad decision, they get into a car and they get arrested and they get a DUI. They will go to jail, they will pay the fine and they will tell themselves, ‘I am never, ever, ever going to do that again, and they will never, ever do that again. And we drunks say the same vow and we’ll be drinking and driving the next day.” We just have this amazing ability to block out all the consequences. And the reason we block it out is because we’re scared to death. We’re scared to death because we don’t know how to not drink. He says what it takes to get sober is different for each person. He describes the intervention he par­ ticipated in with his mother. Michael was 10-years sober at the time. We had Mom in the room. It was me and my brother and two sisters and this professional lady. I knew Mom was in trouble because my little sister had called me and told me what was going on. We were hitting Mom with everything we had, and she was like Superman – she was deflecting everything. Finally my little sister said, “Mom, I know you’re drinking a lot of vodka.” She got real indignant and she looked at her and said, “How can you possibly know that?” And Tammy (not her real name) said, “Because I see you walk into the bathroom with an empty glass, and then you come out with a full glass but I haven’t heard the faucet run.” There was dead silence and Mom said, “OK.” And that’s all there was. That’s what got to her. Her finally realizing that, yeah, people know … if this little 8-year-old kid knows I’m doing it. Sometimes what helps a drunk is the power of a memory. There’s different things in my life that kind of stick out. I went into a bar in downtown and I’d been working downtown at the time, went there every day and the barmaid knew us. So she started getting me something to drink. … I always drank it in a glass. And I told her, “No, just give it to me in the can.” The reason I wanted it in a can was because I knew I was shaking so bad that it was going to be really, really hard to get that glass to my lips without spillin’. At this time I had just turned 23. When I was drinking that can I had a flashback, just a moment in time when I was 18 and sitting in this bar. A guy walked in. … This guy was probably in his sixties. He just looked disheveled and tired and old. He got this double-double with the beer chaser and he had to put his head all the way down to the bar to get his lips on the drink so he could put it back because he was shaking so bad that if he didn’t he was going to spill it. Then he did the same thing with the beer chaser and he ordered another one. … And after the sec­ ond one he just kind of went sssssshhhhheeeww­ www and he was OK then, he got a fix. Sometimes what helps a drunk is the power of stories. I heard a guy say one time – he lived in a card­ board box in the Bowery of New York, that’s where he ended up. That was his home. And after he sobered up, he lived there for another two years. I knew him when he was 36 or 37 years sober and he died over 50 years sober. And he said, “A lot of yi’z never made it down in the gutter with me and livin’ in a box. A lot of yi’z picked the gutter up and took it home and put it in your living room for your wives and kids to live in. I din’ hurt nobody livin’ in that box.” Everybody has moments when we see ourselves for the way we really are—and when he said that I knew exactly what I was. And what it triggered was the thought, “Instead of being so damn full of selfpity and anger about where you’re at, you ought to be a little grateful for where you didn’t end up.” What every drunk needs is his pain, according to Michael. When I was 22 booze started not doing the same thing, and that’s what happens with alcoholics. There’s a lot of reasons why drunks quit drinking. One of them is because it quits working – and for me, it quit working. No matter how much I drank – in search of the ever-lasting buzz – I couldn’t get it no matter what happened. I woke up every morn­ ing and I was just this miserable human who was living to drink, and I could no longer even get that little buzz from when I was 13. The old saying is first the man takes a drink, then the drink takes a drink, then the drink takes the man. That’s what happened – I was drinking to live. What brings people to their knees, for lack of a better term, to a point where they’re able to get some help—if help’s available to them – is they have to reach a point of pain so bad that they want to get out. They have to. So every time we rescue people – there’s a difference between rescuing and helping – every time we rescue someone from their pain, we’re denying them their pain, we’re denying them the chance to get sober. And the support of people willing to teach and learn is imperative. Dad drove me to the treatment center, and this is kind of a good picture of people who don’t understand alcoholism. I had a can of beer in my hand all the way up to walking into the emergency room. My dad said, “I don’t get it. You want to quit drinking and you’re walking into this place with a can of beer.” And I said, “Dad, if I knew how to quit drinking, I wouldn’t have to go into this place.” What happened when I called this treatment center – the reason I stayed – was because I found people who knew what my problem was. Not only that they knew what my problem was, they also knew what the solution was. Before I was gonna be able to get better, number one, I had to get detoxed, I had to get off of it and I knew I couldn’t do it on my own. I had been physically addicted for a long time. I had a guy tell me one time, “If you want to learn how to be sober, you ought to hang around sober people. If you’re trying to learn how to drink, I guess you hang around drinking people.” So that’s what I did. Out of this treatment center was a huge social organization out of all the people who were graduates of this treatment center. We did a lot of stuff together. We learned how to be sober together. The American myth of individualism tells people who are struggling with addiction, abuse, mental illness or poverty to simply pull themselves up by their own bootstraps. In reality, specially designed services and other kinds of support are essential to the process of transformation. This column one in an occasional series that will explore what it takes to Forget the Bootstraps in order to live a better life. I was basically socially stonewalled from the time I was about 14. I had absolutely no social skills whatsoever. For somebody who thinks al­ cohol is the best friend they’ve evenr had in their life, then all of a sudden it gets stripped away from him. I had nothing to lean on. It was very scary, very scary. What’s totally useless is ordering alcoholics to “quit drinking so much,” because they simply don’t know how to do that. I absolutely think you can pull up on all your bootstraps all you want, but until you have a solu­ tion to your problem, you’re going to keep doing the same thing you’ve been doing because you don’t know of any other way to do it. Everything you’re telling him he already knows. He already knows his drinking is a problem – he’s not stupid. He knows that there’s a problem. The problem is that he doesn’t know what the solution is. Don’t forget a sense of humor…. Want to hear a good drunk joke? A guy walks into work one morning and he’s got his arm all bandaged up and in a sling and his face is all scratched up. His buddy said, “Jesus! What hap­ pened to you?” And he said, “Man, I started drink­ ing yesterday and decided to go horseback riding. So I get on this horse and I’m so drunk I can’t sit on him. I fall off, my foot gets caught in the stirrup and he just keeps on going.” And the guys said, “Man, you’re really lucky. How’d you finally get off?” and he said, “My wife came out of K-Mart and unplugged him.” You gotta be able to laugh, you really do. A version of this column, reprinted with permis­ sion, was first published in the Denver VOICE. �4 International News STREETVIBES November 15-30, 2010 Despair Takes a Young Man’s Life ­ Kevin Goodreau’s final warning By JereMy Flannery Contributing writEr P hiladelphia, Penn. – An estimated 27 million Americans were taking antidepressant medications in 2005 in the United States, according to the U.S. Cen­ ters for Disease Control. The medication works for many patients, while others suffer side effects that outweigh the benefits. For Kevin Goodreau, a medical techni­ cian and musician, the side effects were fatal. “In November of 2009 I was under extreme stress,” Goodreau said in late Sep­ tember. “I had a few life changing events happen. In retrospect, it was nothing that major, but thoughtprovoking enough to make me realize that something needed to change substan­ tially. I did a few things on my own to help my problem. I had quit smoking for two months and started exercis­ ing regularly. “In early January things started looking pretty good. I was optimistic about my future. I had a new sexual relationship. It had been four full years before I had any kind of physical relationship with a woman, and I was ex­ tremely excited. So, in short, I had made the resolution that 2010 was going to be the first year in a new life of selfactualization and somewhat healthy living. And I was doing a pretty good job of helping myself. Unfortunately for me, I had previously made an appointment with a psy­ Kevin Goodreau blamed medicinal side effects for destroying his life. Courtesy of Smoker and the Rollers. chiatrist back in November ‘09. So I went to see her on or quite close to Dec. 30, 2009.” Goodreau’s psychiatrist diagnosed him with mild schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, he said. She prescribed Goodreau with the antipsychotic medications Lamictal and Abilify. “Within one week of consuming these medications I began to experience what is known as tardive dyskinesia,” Goodreau said. “The symptoms were excruciating. I would find myself incapable of sitting still and would have, on numerous occasions, uncontrollable and long lasting seizure-like episodes. These symptoms were very frightening for me. But, to be honest, they pale in comparison to the devastation that the antidepres- sant Lexapro has brought to my life.” Goodreau quit taking Lamictal and Abilify, and returned to his psychiatrist in January, he said. Goodreau requested Lexapro by name. “I took it upon myself to quit the antipsychotics,” Goodreau said. “And the side effects went away. Two weeks into January I went back to the (psychiatrist) and she prescribed the Lexapro. I was happy. It had literally, with the very first dose, begun to take effect. In fact, I remember there was a feeling like I was tripping on LSD while I took the medication. The medicine worked, and it worked well. “I took it for only two weeks before I quit cold turkey. Within one week of using the Lexapro, I began to notice incredible physiological changes: chronic fatigue, complete impotence, loss of libido and a lack of ability to recognize my own basic emotions. I was literally stunned.” Lexapro is a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI), a prescription-only antidepressant medication used to treat major depressive disorder and generalized anxiety disorder, according to the manufacturer. Fatigue, insomnia, decreased libido and anorgasmia (difficulty achieving orgasm) are among the side effects listed on Lexapro’s label. Goodreau insisted that Lexapro had physically damaged his nervous system, and he thought the side effects he was suffering with were irreversible. Those side effects from the medication affected Goodreau for the rest of the nine months in his life. He chose to end his life at age 28 on Oct. 20, 2010 because he thought he would never be a whole person again. Goodreau left behind a suicide note to explain his decision. “I love life (friends, family, doing stuff ) very much … and this has been very hard on everyone,” he wrote. “I cannot express how sorry I am about this decision. I am too scared to live a life in impotence and disability. And you can’t help me with that. I will not forfeit the life that should have been for the one where I live in my parents’ basement in shame and weakness. “It is very important to have someone that you can love and who loves you back, on real human terms. I had that once, so my life was not meaningless. But I cannot “Feed Me, Seymour, ­ Feed Me All Night Long…” ­ By Jeni Jenkins Serving Size: 4-5 bellies Autumn Squash Casserole 1 tablespoon olive oil 2 yellow squash, diced in large chunks 2 zucchini squash, diced in large chunks 1 medium yellow or white onion, chopped 3 cloves fresh garlic, diced 2 tablespoons butter or butter substitute for vegans 2 packages crushed Ritz (butter) crackers Salt and pepper (Optional for vegans) 1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese Trying to find a tasty way to enjoy that summer squash? This recipe I threw together to take to a weekly neighborhood potluck. I was trying to find a creative way to get some more vegetables into the mix, and this was definitely a crowd pleaser. Enjoy! Heat oven to 350 degrees • Sauté squash in olive oil over medium high heat for 5-7 minutes. Pour squash in 9”x12” baking dish. • Sauté onion and garlic in butter over medium heat for 3-5 minutes, remove from heat. • Mix the onion/garlic mixture with the crushed crackers and Parmesan cheese. • Evenly pour the mixture over the top of the squash as a cracker topping. • Bake uncovered in oven for 15-20 minutes or until cracker topping is browned Voila, FEED! feel that feeling anymore. Whatsoever happened to my brain is not my fault. It is the Lexapro. I will not concede this fact to the simplicity of ignorance and the ‘you’re just depressed’ argument. My dick doesn’t work anymore. I have no libido. I can barely remember why I liked things like music. … Do not let them convince you that this is just depression. That is the easy way out of trying to understand a real prob­ lem. These drugs are the problem. End of the story.” Goodreau hoped his story would warn others about the risks of antidepressant medications. “There was a very real feeling that something had permanently changed within my nervous system,” Goodreau said in an interview. “The sexual symptoms are terrible, but the core of this disease called PSSD (post­ SSRI sexual dysfunction) is something far more frightening. It is difficult to describe if you don’t experience it. I believe the answer lies in widespread neurological damage which, most likely, cannot be reversed. “I am more than willing to share with anyone the reality of PSSD. Many people don’t even realize that the drugs are the problem. If I can help people to understand the truth behind the psychiatric death machine while preventing them from undergoing a lifetime of needless suffering, I would be somewhat happy. I would like to work with my support group called SSRIsex@yahoo. com to get the word out as much as possible.” �STREETVIBES November 15-30, 2010 5 News Domestic Violence in high Office ­ A blemish on a record of women’s rights By Joseph Opio It was the soap opera that gripped an entire nation. A distinguished engineer, challenging his wife’s divorce petition, argued that he had “slapped her only twice, for insubordination.” On the face of it, it seemed like your average case of an abusive husband justifying wife battery. Prob­ lem is, the wife in question was none other than Specioza Wandira Kazibwe, Uganda’s vice presi­ dent at the time. Kazibwe had shot to global prominence in 1994 when President Yoweri Museveni had named her to the second most powerful office in the land. Kazibwe’s new position had made her the firstever female vice president in Africa. It also earned Uganda universal acclaim for its pro-women politics. became a source of national embarrassment. Some congratulated her for speaking out against domestic violence. But others criticized Kazibwe, a surgeon and mother of five, for “en­ couraging rebelliousness in marriages.” One cabinet colleague of Kazibwe’s was later quoted arguing that the entire matter illustrated why women are ill suited for politics in the first place. To women activists, it was sufficient evidence that Kazibwe’s elevation to the vice-presidency had all been a cosmetic service to the cause of women’s emancipation. “When Kazibwe became vice-president, we all celebrated the dawn of a new era,” said Sylvia Ta­ male, a leading law professor at Makerere Univer­ sity. “But after she confessed that her husband had been battering her all along, it proves that women Vice President Specioza Wandira Kazibwe shocked Uganda by revealing she was a victim of domestic violence. Joseph Opio. Married to a successful engineer, Kazibwe was perceived as an inspiration for women, her stint as vice president marked by her relentless promo­ tion of women’s rights. Yet in 2002 a nation was shocked when Kazibwe confessed that she was seeking divorce from her husband. She cited an abusive marriage and infidelity as her reasons. “Enough is enough,” Kazibwe told a gathering on International Women’s Day. “How can you beat a whole vice president? I’m very sorry.” Kazibwe’s confession might have been inspired by the theme for that year’s celebrations, which was “Break The Silence. Stop Domestic Violence.” But it triggered mass consternation. Charles Kazibwe, it turned out, had routinely battered his wife of 28 years, philandered and fathered two children by another woman. That a woman so powerful had been trapped in the sort of abusive marriage that’s so common all over Uganda was shocking enough. That a woman so powerful had proved so powerless in her own household throughout her entire vice-presidency can’t be emancipated fully unless they are liber­ ated in all aspects of life. It’s no use emancipating a woman in public yet she remains at the mercy of an abusive husband at home.” Kazibwe’s predicament inspired women activ­ ists to renew their fight to have a law regulating domestic relations. “Kazibwe was the example,” says Jackie Asiimwe of the Uganda Women’s Network, an NGO crusad­ ing to promote women’s rights. “She was a power­ ful vice president, but in private her husband was hitting her.” But although the Domestic Relations Bill was drafted over 10 years ago, it still is yet to be passed into law. The bill aims to outlaw marital rape, ease divorce for women, grant property rights to wives and regulate polygamy. Sadly, it has been op­ posed at each and every turn by conservatives and religious leaders fearful that “it will grant women so many rights and lead to the disintegration of families and African family values.” Nsubuga Nsambu, a senior parliamentarian and vocal opponent of the Domestic Relations Bill, even went on record to brand it “a conspiracy on the part of single and highly learned women to take over the country.” The failure to convert the Domestic Relations Bill into law thus far remains the sole blemish on Uganda’s otherwise immaculate crusade to pro­ mote gender equality and empower its women. It’s a crusade that was initiated and spear­ headed by president Museveni long before the UN signed its Millennium Declaration in September 2000. Kazibwe’s elevation was Museveni’s most celebrated “affirmative act” but it has not been the only one. The president’s pro-women policies have seen women gain positions of influence in public office and increased girls’ access to education and eco­ nomic opportunities. Women now form 40 percent of Parliament, up from 18 percent in 1993, according to statistics from the Ministry of Gender. There are also eight women in the 24-member cabinet. Elsewhere, women occupy top-most positions at the Uganda Revenue Authority, the Uganda Hu­ man Rights Commission, the Deputy Speaker of Parliament and the deputy heads of the Judiciary, Civil Service and Electoral Commission. Such gains are expected to be consolidated, thanks to the government’s twin policies of Uni­ versal Primary Education and Universal Second­ ary Education. Both policies put special emphasis on girls; and with such free education, families have been weaned off the age-old practice where­ by scarce financial resources were spent educating boys while the girls got married off instead. As a result, Ministry of Education figures have shown that the number of girls is equal to that of boys all the way through primary and second­ ary school. Statistics of girls accessing university education have also spiked, inspired in no small part by the government’s affirmative decision back in 1990 to grant 1.5 bonus points to female appli­ cants. The proportion of female students has since risen from about 20 percent to 35 percent in 1998 and to 51 percent in 2008. Not that women’s rights crusaders are resting on their laurels. The failure to pass the Domestic Relations Bill remains a thorny issue, as does the nonexistence of an Equal Opportunities Commis­ sion. Article 32 (2) of the 1995 Ugandan Constitu­ tion committed Parliament to make laws for the establishment of such a commission, a brief that remains unfulfilled. Tamale argues that the absence of the Equal Opportunities Commission and the Domestic Re­ lations Bill failure betray a strategic lack of politi­ cal will, lamenting that “women are in positions of power without power.” Tamale is among the top decision-makers at Uganda’s leading university. But her concerns aren’t entirely elitist, as her detractors have been known to claim. At the zenith of Kazibwe’s divorce, radio phone-in debates were flooded by ordinary women who expressed concerns and deep-seated fears about their own positions “in a country where the nation’s highest-ranking woman could be so flagrantly abused by her own husband.” And unless Uganda promulgates a domestic-re­ lations law between now and 2015, such concerns are bound to remain, ensuring that despite its sparkling successes in all other spheres of women empowerment, Uganda will still have fallen pain­ fully short of achieving this particular goal. © www.streetnewsservice.org �6 Issues STREETVIBES November 15-30, 2010 On the Left Side of God Continued from page 1 own request after CCHD tried to censor its newspa­ per. Women in Transition in Louisville, Ky., had its grant rescinded, and Preble Resource Center, which serves homeless youths in Portland, Maine, was ordered to return to CCHD funds for its Homeless Voices for Justice program. In Oregon, Children First for Oregon, a child advocacy group for vulnerable children, was culled from the list of grantees earlier this year. Besides CCHD’s support, and beyond the com­ monality of their missions, these groups share something else: They were all targeted, investigated and determined unfit by a campaign of Catholic con­ servative groups that, via the prolific capacity of the Internet, have formed a nationwide coalition calling for the defunding of more than 50 poverty-alleviation organizations, and a radical overhaul – and even disbandment – of CCHD. To date, 10 U.S. bishops, an unprecedented num­ ber by Catholic news reports, have publicly sus­ pended their annual, mandatory collection among parishioners for CCHD because of claims that CCHD funded “anti-Catholic” organizations. The allegations by the group Reform CCHD Now against grantees begin as crimes against the Catholic Church for sup­ porting abortion and gay-rights issues and extend to direct attacks on community organizing and social empowerment. It could be dismissed as a fringe ele­ ment, if not for the use of the campaign by politically vested parties to discredit, disrupt and defund the work of community organizing groups long-support­ ed and heralded by U.S. bishops. This year Catholic Campaign for Human Devel­ opment celebrated 40 years of funding community programs that address the root causes of homeless­ ness and poverty. Nationwide, it has distributed more than $400 million in self-help grants to 8,000 agencies across the United States, making it the na­ tion’s largest private funder of self-help groups for the poor. CCHD is a rarity in the world of charitable invest­ ment in that it does not fund direct services like its faith-based counterparts, Catholic Charities or St. Vincent DePaul. Instead, recipients of CCHD’s grants are organizations that work to foster systemic change through partnering with common-cause groups and community organizing. Because of its role in com­ munity organizing projects, the Portland Archdio­ cese is considered a core funder of poverty-allevi­ ation and empowerment projects in Oregon and a voice among faith-based efforts to shape policy around social-service needs in Multnomah County. The attacks by Reform CCHD Now and its fol­ lowers are prompting a “review and renewal” pro­ cess by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. What the bishops decide could have major consequences for the thousands of cash-strapped nonprofits that CCHD supports, and the millions of poor and disenfranchised people who rely on these programs that today serve as proxy to government initiatives. ‘Eternal vigilance’ In summer 2009, the Texas-based Bellarmine Veri­ tas Ministry, an opaque “Catholic grassroots orga­ nizing ministry” traceable to one man, Rob Gasper, released an investigation into recipients of CCHD’s grants. This June the Virginia-based American Life League released a report echoing Bellarmine’s conclusions: that CCHD was funding what it called “anti-Catholic organizations” based upon the orga­ nizations’ actions and the actions of their partners and affiliates. These groups called on parishioners to boycott their donations to CCHD until the bishops revise the granting oversight. The groups specifi­ cally target 50 organizations they are demanding the CCHD stops funding. These reports surfaced during the thick of the health-care reform debate, a flagship in President Obama’s agenda, which the bishops opposed over abortion issues. In fact, the reformers singled out the bill and demanded that any grantees that supported the health care reform legislation “must state clearly and publicly that they will not promote any piece of legislation which gives federal support to abortion or family planning.” Bellarmine, American Life League and Human Life International, also based in Virginia, are the three primary organizations behind Reform CCHD Now, although Reform CCHD Now claims more than 20 organizations working on behalf of the nationwide campaign. These three groups have driven the re­ form movement to viral levels online with blogs and video and through the multitude of online Catholic and pro-life news services, including LifeNews.com and LifeSiteNews.com. “We started forming the coalition when we found very anti-Catholic things being funded by Catholics,” says Stephen Phelan, communications manager with Human Life International. “Michael Hitchborn (with American Life League) wanted to meet and they refused, and Bellarmine also tried and didn’t a get a response. So everybody went public with it.” “Because of the Internet, we’ve been able to get the information out to much more people in a much shorter period of time,” says Michael Hitchborn, a researcher with the pro-life organization American Life League. ‘Which is why the CCHD is finding it much harder to hide with their tactics they’ve been using.” Those tactics, according to Hitchborn, are to fund groups that do not conform to Catholic teaching, deny that they are “anti-Catholic” groups and then continue funding with the complications essen­ tially swept under the rug. Many of the organiza­ tions already defunded this past year were longtime recipients of CCHD funding, and praised for their work in building cross-community partnerships and networks to fight the causes of poverty. However, it’s those partnerships that factor into nearly all of the groups singled out by the reform movement. In fact, more than 30 groups reformers want defunded are listed because they are members of the Center for Community Change, a D.C.-based cross-community organizing movement that stopped receiving CCHD funding in 2001. “That’s a problem because there’s no account­ ability,” Hitchborn says. “The groups that are receiv­ ing CCHD money are getting trained by (Center for Community Change), which means they are being trained in cross-issues advocacy. And that’s a prob­ lem. So what we called for is an immediate disasso­ ciation from (Center for Community Change) for any group receiving CCHD money.” Hitchborn says he will continue investigating organizations to weed out the recipients of CCHD’s grants and says he’s working on a new report for release soon. “Because of the long history of CCHD funding errant organizations, there’s no way that we could let up,” Hitchborn says. “Eternal vigilance is the price of freedom. And if we are going to make sure that an organization that claims to be Catholic remains Catholic, they need to adhere to Catholic teaching.” Subhead: ‘We didn’t even do anything wrong’ For nearly four decades the San Francisco-based Chinese Progressive Association organized the Chinese and Asian immigrant community, including thousands of restaurant workers who received less than minimum wage or were living in the margins. With the support of CCHD, the organization en­ gaged workers to successfully raise San Francisco’s minimum wage from $6.75 to $8.50, and in 2006, helped lead the charge for all workers in the city to receive paid sick leave. This work, along with its housing program, youths and environmental justice work, and its workers center, was funded by CCHD for years. But by September the local CCHD said the relationship was over. It was pulling the plug on $30,000 it had granted to the organization’s worker center. “They called me and they said they needed to talk,” says Alex T. Tom, the Chinese Progressive Association’s executive director, “that people were getting ready for the bishops meeting in the fall and they were fanning the flames and pushing CCHD to resolve the issue.” The issue was the Association’s publication of a voter pamphlet that opposed California’s Proposi­ tions 8 and 4, which banned same-sex marriages and required parental notification for some abortions. It was an effort that had nothing to do with the CCHD’s funding, which was specifically allocated for the organization’s Worker Center. “It was right when the economic crisis happened,” Tom says. “It was really poor form, poor taste and very bad timing when they decided to revoke the funding. “In general, worker centers don’t have the easi­ est time. Anti-poverty work is not something that is heavily supported. It helped us build a movement. And now we have to find a consistent revenue stream that doesn’t rely on support that we used to receive from CCHD.” Preble Street in Portland, Maine, received CCHD grants for 13 years for its work in empowering the homeless, most recently a $30,000 grant in 2009. However, it was defunded at the end of 2009 and asked to return unspent grant money to CCHD be­ cause the organization joined the campaign against a measure to overturn the state’s same-sex marriage law. For Preble Street, it was an extension of their advocacy for rights and opportunities for the home­ less youths within the GBLT the organization cares for and supports. The CCHD grant, however, actually was awarded to Preble Street’s project called Home­ less Voices for Justice, which works for social change on behalf of – and with the leadership of – people in poverty and homelessness. Homeless Voices did not participate in the campaign on the law. However, as Homeless Voices’ fiscal agent, Preble Street was called to return funding, and did so with a $2,400 check. In a letter to CCHD Director Ralph McCloud, Preble Street Executive Director Mark Swann defend­ ed his group’s position: “Throughout our history, when Preble Street and Homeless Voices for Justice have taken differing posi­ tions, there has never been any effort to force or stifle the opinion of the other. Indeed, regardless of Preble Street’s point of view, we have chosen to facilitate the expressions of opposing positions such as those of (Homeless Voices) by the support we offer them – embodying the principles of CCHD social justice teachings. “Punishing Homeless Voices by demanding the return of much-needed funds because of Preble Street’s advocacy around issues of social justice is deeply troubling,” Swann wrote. “It is unfortunate that the CCHD and the local diocese is choosing not to be part of these important efforts.” Women in Transition in Louisville, Ky., is but a shadow of its former self after CCHD rescinded a $25,000 grant at the end of 2009. Women in Transi­ tion runs skill-building programs for at-risk women and organizes on issues of affordable housing and health care. CCHD was a sponsor of the organiza­ tion since 2005, until this past year when it received a letter from someone pointing out Women in Tran­ sition’s relationship with Wench Self-Care Collec­ tive, a local women’s health organization. Wench is pro-choice, and has helped escort women to and from the city’s abortion clinic, but it also focuses on women’s nutrition and education around healthy eating habits, which is where Women in Transition and Wench crossed paths. Women in Transition says it never worked with Wench on reproductive rights, just healthy eating, cooking classes and health fairs. Khalilah Collins, Women in Transition’s executive director, says her organization had received CCHD grants for $20,000 and $25,000 each year since 2005. The 2009 fall grant for $25,000 had been approved and the check in the hands of their fiscal spon­ sor, Catholic Charities, but it was never delivered. Collins says she was told by Catholic Charities that unless she signed a letter saying that her organiza­ tion regretted the situation and would not work with the Wench group or any other group whose mission contradicted Catholic teaching, the money was in jeopardy. It was more than a third of the organiza­ tion’s budget, and money they had counted on. “The more I thought about it, the more upset I got,” Collins says. “We didn’t even do anything wrong.” (Collins says there were also questions about the agency’s 501(c)3 status, but that had not disrupted funding before.) Collins didn’t write the letter. “I felt that our integrity was questioned as an organization, and all we have is our integrity and our voice, and you’re questioning that,” she says. “We can’t be a part of that.” Collins says she never knew who wrote the letter about Wench, and that the relationship is not even traceable through Women in Transition’s website. However, by November, just before the 2009 collec­ tion for CCHD, Women in Transition and others were singled out in a press release by the American Life League and others within Reform CCHD Now for ties to Planned Parenthood, which led a workshop at an event the organization-co-sponsored with Spalding University. “It’s not about WIT and Wenches,” Collins says. “We’ve never done any work on choice at all. We steer clear of that number one thing because we know we could lose our funding.” But the funding is gone. “We have no money right now. None. I didn’t get paid last week, the rent hasn’t been paid, because we’re out of money,” Collins says. Subhead: ‘It’s taking away care from those who need it’ “These are politically motivated attacks,” says Chris Korzen, executive director of D.C.-based Catholics United, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organiza­ tion doing online advocacy and education programs around the Catholic Social Tradition. “And they fit into this broader narrative that we’re unfortunately seeing in our system now, where social change is limited to charity and not actually fixing social struc­ tures that cause poverty and other problems.” The intent of these attacks, Korzen says, is to demonize community organizing behind the argu- See On the Left, P. 7 �STREETVIBES November 15-30, 2010 Continued from page 6 ments against abortion and same-sex marriage. “That’s the end result of what this campaign is doing,” Korzen says. “It’s taking away care from those who need it.” Korzen, a Catholic, says Catholic social teaching is being hijacked by political agendas. “This hyper-individualism that some are pushing in a political context does not have a lot of support in Catholic social teaching,” Korzen says. “So essentially what we’re seeing is groups who are using Catholic teaching to promote what really is a secular agenda.” It’s not a new thing, Korzen says. Indeed, CCHD for decades has had its critics. But today it gets the added boost of leveraging political gains with a galvanized voting block, further inflamed by the personalities parading through our ever-expanding media options. “For sure, we’ve seen a movement to the right in Catholic institutional settings, and I’d even go as far to say there are some elements of the Catholic institutions and some parts of the (U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops) that have essentially been taken over by the Republican Party. That sounds like a strong statement, but it’s the truth. Over the years the conservative movement has worked very hard to cultivate support in the Catholic churches.” Case in point, Korzen says, is the U.S. bishops’ opposition to the health-care reform bill, which was singled out as a defundable offense by the reform­ ers, “even though the Catholic Church believes that health care is a human right,” Korzen says. “That never would have happened in the 1980s.” In response to the reformers’ investigations and allegations, bishops across the country have issued statements in defense of CCHD’s operations, includ­ ing Archbishop John Vlazny of the Portland Diocese. Vlazny wrote on the issue in the Catholic Sentinel in late 2009, prior to Street Roots being defunded. “Once again this year objections have been raised to the Campaign because some CCHD-funded groups have taken actions in conflict with CCHD guidelines after they were funded,” Vlazny writes. “… When the facts were confirmed, the groups were defunded. Other allegations were raised, but the charges proved to be inaccurate or a misunder­ standing had occurred. Mistakes are made, they are quickly corrected. But the negative voices drone on, and I suspect their problems are more political than religious.” Ralph McCloud, the executive director of CCHD based in Washington D.C., says CCHD isn’t beholden to the partisan arguments behind the attacks. “We go to where poor people are, where nobody else wants to go, to let them speak boldly. I think we’re somewhere boldly embedded between the right and the left, and neither one of them can have a claim on it,” he says. McCloud says he cannot go into details on the upcoming review and renewal of CCHD, which will be conducted by the bishops, but that it will look at ways CCHD’s funding process can be more “respon­ sive to the needs of the contemporary current reali­ ties,” he says. “I think where it gets murky sometimes is when people are in coalitions with a group where their main focus is somewhere else,” McCloud says. ‘That’s one of the things hoping to come out of the review and renewal process. We’re securing assistance from folks who are theologians and ethicists to find where the line is so we’re not arbitrary in our decisions.” Just as the reform campaign proliferated on the blogosphere last summer, Matt Cato was hired to head the Portland Archdiocese Office of Justice and Peace, which administers the local CCHD funding process. With his appointment in August 2009, the office merged with the archdiocese’s Respect Life Activities Office. By early December, CCHD informed Children First for Oregon that it would not be con­ sidered for future grants because of its 2006 opposi­ tion of a measure to require parental notification for minors seeking abortion. Cato said Children First has the support of the Archdiocese, but that the group could not receive CCHD funds. Children’s First advocates on behalf of children in foster care, living in poverty, those who need health care and those suffering from abuse or neglect. Children First declined to talk on the record about the situation, but Cato said it could not longer be funded by CCHD because of its opposition to the measure, even in cases of incest or abuse. “The bishops do not recognize any exception to abortion,” Cato says. Those are doctrinal objections for the Catholic Church. Cato says he has no contact with the groups attacking CCHD, but that he is familiar with the more political ideologies behind their motivation. “I’m not speaking for these organizations, but I do know that plenty of people are uncomfortable Issues when a group of low-income or poor persons have power,” Cato says. “So you have the power of money, which corporations have, and you have the power of people, which is what community organizing is. The power of people which needs to balance the power of money, and that’s what community organizing is about, and a lot of people are uncomfortable with the poor having the voice.” Subhead: ‘I’m not attacking social justice’ Stephen Phelan, communications manager with Human Life International, denies any political agenda to the reform movement. “It’s easy to confuse what we’re saying with a polit­ ical message,” he says “We’re not out to get anybody. We want to see real Catholic teaching take hold.” Phelan says that what has changed, from groups receiving years of funding from CCHD to being con­ sidered inappropriate and defunded, is the political backdrop. “I think when (CCHD) first started, it made more sense for Catholics to align with the more liberal (groups),” Phelan says. “The Democratic side of the coin was doing good work back then. It wasn’t all these other things - anti-marriage, abortion, and Marxism. So what’s happened in the last 40 years is the same groups that were once pretty cool to work with have gotten more radically political, and the CCHD has continued to work with them, and been opposed to the church on a lot of these issues. After a couple of decades, it’s like, really? What are you guys thinking?” Regardless of Phelan’s intentions or viewpoint, the criticism and condemnation of CCHD has for decades been framed by politics. In the 1980s and ’90s, former political appointees from the Nixon and Reagan administrations painted CCHD as a political arm of the liberal agenda. One appointee distrib­ uted a paper saying CCHD used Catholic money to prop up “leftist political activists plotting to destroy our economic system” and told Catholics to instead give their money to direct services. Others have said CCHD promotes a “political agenda far to the left of mainstream America.” Repeated attacks conclude that people should not give money to CCHD because its mission is not charity, but rather social justice. “I have gotten a lot of feedback from people who are both excited and angry about the research that I’ve done,” American Life League’s Hitchborn says. “It’s interesting. The people who write me that are angry say I can’t believe that you are arguing against the bishops. They don’t address the concerns. They say, ‘Why are you doing this? Why are you attacking social justice?’ I’m not attacking social justice.” A more recent voice to the opposition to CCHD has been Deal W. Hudson, the former director of Catholic outreach for George W. Bush’s 2000 and 2004 campaigns, and now the director of InsideCatholic. com. He has advanced the Reform CCHD Now, citing its defunding campaign in his writings online, and added among those to be defunded the attendees to the U.S. Social Forum 2010 that included workshops on reproductive and gay rights. “One criticism leveled at the CCHD Reform Now research is that it was alleging ‘guilt by association.’ But that misses the point completely,” Hudson writes. “The presence of 21 CCHD grantees at U.S. Social Forum isn’t problematic because grantees are keeping company with the wrong people, but because they’re actively participating in a forum designed ‘to set a national action agenda.’ Looking at the program, it’s safe to assume that the agenda includes the right to abortion and gay marriage, as well as a larger ideological commitment to various forms of Marxism – an ideology condemned by the Catholic Church.” The Catholic Media Coalition, another Catholic news source, for years has pushed to revamp CCHD, and calls for Catholics to boycott giving money to the charity because “the good groups funded by CCHD are not sufficient to balance the many evil groups supported, groups working for socialism by electing liberal politicians. CCHD helped to give us the radi­ cal, left-wing Congress we have today.” Compare that to celebrity pundit Glenn Beck, who told followers earlier this year that that if they find the words “social justice” or “economic justice” on their church website, to “run as fast as you can.” “Social justice and economic justice, they are code words. Now, am I advising people to leave their church? Yes! … If you have a priest that is pushing social justice, go find another parish,” Beck said. “One of the effects of this, too, is essentially these folks are saying to a new generation of Catholics who still believe in social justice that you’re not wel­ come here anymore,” Korzen says. “It’’ going to shift demographics, where folks who still believe in social justice are just not considering themselves Catholic anymore. I saw that growing up as an altar boy in Rhode Island. From the perspective of the Catholic community, which should be a diverse community across racial and cultural lines; I don’t want to be a part of a church that builds itself as an exclusive club. 7 It’s damaging to the church, as is any attempts to use Catholic teaching as a political battering ram. And we just see more of that every day.” Subhead: ‘You’ve got to draw a line’ Matt Cato with the Portland Archdiocese office of Justice and Peace and Respect for Life, says that the reform movement’s attacks on CCHD have not changed how they consider grantees. However, Cato says he has added a line to the local CCHD grant ap­ plication. “We still look at the same criteria,” he says. “It’s always been on the application do you act in accor­ dance of the teachings of the Catholic Church. I just added to that, ‘Can you tell me the ballot measures that you or your executive director has supported in the last five years?’ That was an easy one to have missed. It’s usually not on someone’s Web site.” The decision came after learning of Children First For Oregon’s position on Measuren 43. Still, Cato maintains that there are differences be­ tween material and proximate relationships between organizations that would determine if a group is eligible for funding. “There’s a point where you’ve got to draw a line. Just because the organization does this here or is as­ sociated with another organization, it doesn’t mean this organization is tainted,” Cato says. Planned Parenthood, however, is the exception. Since 2005 Street Roots has received $40,000 from CCHD for the newspaper, the Rose City Resource guide and for the eastside expansion to open a remote office for vendors. In all those years Planned Parenthood has been a part of its listings (prior to 2008, the Rose City Resource was included as a part of the newspaper). Likewise, Street Roots has always included information on organizations helping atrisk gay, lesbian, transgender and bisexual youths and adults. Planned Parenthood is a “nuclear” red flag in the Catholic Church, Cato says. It is simply too hot to handle. “I’m not going to tell you how to run your busi­ ness. You guys do great work,” he says. “You make the decision in future resource guides to include that information or not, and if you include (Planned Parenthood), we can’t give you a CCHD grant.” Cato says there is room for working together, re­ gardless of whether CCHD is funding a program. “Jesus had dinner with the tax collectors, prosti­ tutes and sinners,” he says. “You just can’t completely separate your self with those you completely dis­ agree with. As Catholics, we’re called to evangelize, not preach to the choir.” (Street Roots has not been asked to return any funding from CCHD) “It’s disturbing that a small group of right-wing fringe elements within the Catholic Church are being successful at undermining the Catholic Campaign for Human Development’s work to address the root causes of poverty through promotion and support of community-controlled, self-help organizations and through transformative education,” says Street Roots Executive Director Israel Bayer. “At the end of the day, a witch hunt is a witch hunt, and that’s exactly what Street Roots and dozens of community organizations working to fight poverty in the United States are facing, a witch hunt born out of fear and intolerance. And let’s be clear, this is far from over. Every group that currently receives funds from CCHD is being asked to not take part in activities, or align themselves with the very groups it will take to dismantle poverty in this country. In our case, the very tool is the Rose City Resource guide. The guide gives people experiencing homelessness and poverty a chance to become their own advocates through education, and now it’s being used against us because we have chosen to deliver to people, without judgment, the resources that are available to them in our community. “Saying that, we’re not defeated,” Bayer says. “Maybe it was a blessing in disguise that one of the groups defunded in this fiasco was a community newspaper like Street Roots that takes its journalism seriously enough to tell the whole story, and get it out to the broader public for a larger debate.” For years the Catholic Campaign for Human De­ velopment supported the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, ACORN. However allegations against various ACORN franchises in 2008 and 2009 turned the nationwide communityorganizing group into a pariah, and CCHD cut off all funding for ACORN organizations, locally and na­ tionally. ACORN was recently acquitted in New York of any wrongdoing surrounding the pimp/prostitu­ tion videotape scandal, the most salacious accusa­ tions against an ACORN franchise. Originally published by Street Roots, USA. © www. streetnewsservice.org �8 News STREETVIBES November 15-30, 2010 Confronting the School for Terrorists ­ Thousands killed with U.S. help By Janice sevre-dusZynska Contributing writEr N ovember is an important month for people of faith who observe Nov. 1 as All Saints Day and Nov. 2 as All Souls Day. November is also an important month for the grassroots effort to challenge our government to realign its priorities to the needs of the people: Reduce the $864 billion now spent annually for the U.S. military budget and the 1,500 U.S. military bases throughout the world. November is a busy month for those with peace and justice ministries. The weekend before Thanksgiving, Nov. 18-21, thousands of people of all ages and walks of life from across the country and world will gather at the gates of Fort Benning in Columbus, Ga. The annual witness is a transformational expe­ rience as we chant a litany of our Latin American brother and sister saints: the infants, toddlers, children, teenagers, the mothers and fathers, grandmas and grandpas who were slaughtered during the El Mozote massacre by those trained at the U.S. Army School of the Americas (SOA). Holding high our white crosses, which stand for the life and death of another human being, we re­ member them as we sing “Presente.” We recognize the blood on our own hands and join in solidarity to vigil in prayer, witness by our presence and do nonviolent civil disobedience to close this school for terrorists in our own backyard. ning Road. The School of the Americas (in 2001 renamed the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation) has trained over 65,000 Latin Ameri­ can soldiers. These graduates have consistently used their skills to wage a war against their own people. Among those targeted by SOA graduates are educators, union organizers, religious workers, student leaders and others who work for the rights of the poor. The cost to U.S. taxpayers: millions of dollars. In 2000 alone the figure was more than $22 million. “There is an atrocious history of colonial­ ism, slavery, war, racism and exploitation in the Americas,” Bourgeois says. “Five hundred years ago, colonial powers depended on the brutal military repression of the conquistadors to ex­ ploit the wealth of Latin America. The conquest continues today as the region’s highly profitable natural resources are extracted by multinational corporations with little or no benefit returning to the people in the surrounding communities. And, as in the colonial era, military force is still used to control the people of Latin America.” Examples abound. They include Columbia, Chile, Argentina, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicara­ in Bogota, Pope Paul VI made the first papal visit to the New World and addressed the landowning audience, calling them to conversion: “What can I say to you, men of the ruling class?” he said. “What is required of you is generosity. This means the ability to detach yourselves from the stability of your position, which is a position of privilege, in order to serve those who need your worth, your culture, your authority ... “You, lords of this world and sons of the Church, you must have the genius for virtue that society requires. Your ears and your hearts must be sensi­ tive to the voices crying out for bread, concern, justice and a more active participation in the direction of society.” In their final message, the bishops activated a “Church of the Poor,” committed to social jus­ tice in Latin American communities: “In many places in Latin America there exists a situation of injustice that must be recognized as institutional violence, because the existing structures violate people’s basic rights: a situation which calls for far-reaching, daring, urgent and profoundly in­ novative change.” The gathering at Medellin gave rise to a “Theol­ ogy of Liberation.”In base communities, campesi­ ‘Theft from the poor’ As of February, 322 acts of nonviolent civil dis­ obedience have been committed by U.S. citizens to close the SOA. So far 297 people have served a total of 98.5 years in prison for “crossing the line at Fort Benning.” First-timers have been sentenced to three months in federal prison and fined. The second time it’s six months and a steeper fine. Activists have also served a total of 53.5 years of probation and home confinement. “The SOA is a symbol of death and suffering,” says the Rev. Roy Bourgeois, a Maryknoll priest of 38 years, former U.S. Naval Officer during the Vietnam War and Purple Heart recipient. “The school should not exist. It is a scandal, a theft from the poor. The millions of dollars of our taxpayer money to run the school should be directed to our schools for children.” In 1990 Bourgeois founded the School of the Americas Watch. He had worked with the poor in Bolivia for five years. There he learned how U.S. foreign policy supported military dictators in Latin America who have protected the interests of the wealthy and multinational global corporations – at the expense of the poor. He barely escaped the country with his life. This year is the 30th anniversary of modern-day saints and martyrs: Archbishop Oscar Romero of El Salvador, who was gunned down while presid­ ing at Mass; the beatings, rapes and killings of the four American churchwomen in El Salvador, Maryknoll sisters Maura Clarke and Ita Ford, Ursuline Sister Dorothy Kazel of Cleveland and lay missionary Jean Donovan. It is also the fifth anni­ versary of the vicious murder in Amazonian Brazil of Dorothy Stang of Dayton, a member of the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur. Ford and Clarke were friends of Bourgeois. “These women and Romero are such an inspi­ ration to people of faith,” he says. “Adding to the pain of their deaths, it hurts even more to know that the guns used to kill them were given by the U.S. and that those responsible for their killings were trained by the SOA.” In many ways Romero and the women repre­ sent the thousands upon thousands of innocents – unnamed saints and martyrs we will never know, yet who are remembered as we vigil on Fort Ben­ SOA Watch has been calling for the closing of the school of Americas for the past 20 years. Robert Pohowsky. gua and El Salvador. ‘Lords of this world’ During the 1980-1992 conflict in El Salvador, more than 75,000 peasant campesinos were tor­ tured, mutilated and assassinated by the armed forces funded by the United States. government. Under presidents Jimmy Carter and Ronald Rea­ gan, the U.S. government’s foreign policy spent millions of dollars to supply weapons to the brutal Salvadoran military, which protected the few rich and powerful landowners at the expense of the majority of the peasants. The latter were labeled “communists” by the wealthy ruling class because they sought agrarian and economic reform. The people were led by Jesuit priests who abandoned their comfortable lives as intellectuals and went into the countryside to share the lives of the peasants. The first to do so was Rutilio Grande, a Salvadoran Jesuit whose life was altered by the Conference of Medellin. The bishops of Latin America gathered in Me­ dellin, Columbia, in 1968 and did a dramatic turn­ around. For centuries they had supported the un­ just and deplorable status quo – which included the conquest and enslavement of the Indians. At Medellin, they changed their loyalty from oppres­ sor to the oppressed. As the conference opened nos studied Scriptures to help them name their suffering and oppression and to connect the deaths of their children from hunger with eco­ nomic injustice. Ana Carrigan described the situation in Salva­ dor Witness: The Life and Calling of Jean Donovan. “Priests who spoke out for the poor were tor­ tured and brutally murdered,” she wrote. “When Oscar Romero was appointed archbishop and head of the Salvadoran Church, those in power believed the triple alliance of the rich, the mili­ tary and the Church would return. Romero was perceived as a timid man and a traditionalist. However, as one after another of his priests were murdered, he underwent a conversion. When the body of his priest friend, Rutilio Grande, was found, he excommunicated the killers and held a funeral Mass in the Metropolitan Cathedral for the first Salvadoran martyr. A bond and a solidar­ ity evolved between the peasants and their church and their new national leader, whom they called Monsignor.” ‘Kingdom of violence’ “These days I have to walk the roads gather­ ing up dead friends, listening to the anguish of See Confronting, P. 10 �STREETVIBES November 15-30, 2010 9 Local News Blankets,Water and Other Bad Ideas Continued from page 1 is about.” But homeless camps are not the place to “see what homelessness is about,” ac­ cording to homeless advo­ cates, who point out that the great majority of homeless people don’t live outdoors. They stay in shelters or double up with family or friends. Moreover, some advo­ cates for homeless people are uncomfortable with the religious thrust of this kind of volunteering. But Annette Melk, who organized the Oct. 9 cleanup, said her group doesn’t push religion on homeless people. “We build personal rela­ tionships with the homeless, encourage them and build friendships with them,” she said. “We don’t push church on them. If they want to pray with us, we pray with them.” John 15:12 Ministries visits homeless camps to provide rides to church for those who want to attend. The volun­ teers provide a variety of other services as well. “John 15:12 Ministries is heavily involved with the homeless,” Melk said. “Our founder is down at the homeless camps several times a week. We do wa­ ter runs numerous times a week, and they give us the jugs back. We take firewood in winter. Someone just donated 72 blankets. I just got off the phone with a guy who has 12 tents.” That is the problem, according to some people who work to get homeless people out of camps and into treatment and housing. While firewood and blankets have obvious benefits for people living outdoors, what’s really needed is housing. Some homeless people have addictions, and others have mental illnesses. If they are comfortable outside, the argument goes, the incentive to get treatment and housing might be lessened. “I want people to continue helping,” says Lea Drury, an outreach worker with Lighthouse youth Services. “However, there is a fine line between helping and enabling, and we all need to work toward being on the same page.” Lighthouse, Programs to Assist in the Transition from Homelessness (PATH) and other programs in Cincinnati send trained outreach workers to find people staying outdoors and connect them to professional services. Religious volunteers would be more helpful if they collaborated with the professionals, according to Josh Spring, executive director of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. When homeless people set up camps, they are sometimes treated as criminals. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier. “We want to see collaboration between the people who are doing this every day and volunteers that feel a call to do this,” he says. “If a group is going out and visits a camp and one of their new friends says, ‘I have this issue, and I’m ready to do something,’ we want those volunteers to call PATH. We want everyone working together, having their own role, getting everyone connected to the bigger picture.” ‘We don’t ask’ That kind of collabora­ tion hasn’t been achieved yet. Earlier this year Melk attended a meeting of the Homeless Outreach Group, made up of social workers, advocates and police officers who specialize in working with homeless people who live outdoors. The meeting didn’t go as planned. Melk said John 15:12 Ministries protects the locations of homeless camps, knowing that publicity can lead to hate crimes, vandalism and assaults on the people who live there. She declined to tell Streetvibes the locations her group planned to visit Oct. 9. “We are going to the camps prior and let them know what we’re doing and ask if it’s OK to bring guests,” Melk said. “We definitely are going to respect their wishes and get their permission.” Having asked residents’ permission, Melk later invited a reporter to join the volunteers, but Streetvibes declined. Thee kinds of precautions Melk described only go so far. After the Oct. 9 cleanup, John 15:12 Ministries posted photographs of its project on Facebook. Several of the photos make the location of homeless camps easy to identify. Melk said the volunteers don’t ask homeless people about any criminal records they might have. “We just go out and hang out with them,” she said. “We are more concerned with being a friend – not judging them, not holding anything in their past against them.” Open-mindedness can lead to unexpected trouble, however. When Melk met with the Homeless Outreach Group, she showed slides of her group’s work. She told the social workers that some camp residents have visited the homes of volunteers. That elicited concern from the social workers. One told Melk that a photo showed her client and asked if Melk knew the person is a former sex offender. “We don’t ask about that,” Melk reportedly said. “We just trust God.” Faith is generally considered a virtue. But without knowing a person’s behavioral or mental-health problems, are the church volunteers putting people at risk? Melk left the outreach meeting in tears, according to several people who were present. Spring and Drury say they both welcome the assistance of religious people and other volunteers but want to make sure the assistance is actually helpful. “I value all people with a passion for helping homeless folks in Cincinnati,” Drury says. “On a monthly basis homeless outreach service providers come together to discuss what’s working and what’s not. We are trying to ensure our efforts are focused on guiding a person out of homelessness when that is their goal. That being said, I’m concerned that going into camps and removing trash may be less than helpful to our struggle. I would like to see faith-based outreach groups in collabo­ ration with us in an effort to end homelessness.” Caroling at the camps Its work with homeless people has given John 15:12 Ministries a certain kind of street sense. Organizers warn volunteers, for example, to be wary of the kind of help they give. In an e-mail, Kathy Casper, the group’s founder, described a request that was not granted. “There is a fine line between helping and en­ abling,” Casper wrote. “We want to help and be good stewards of God, but yet not enabling. That is a hard one to explain and comes with experience. Just keep in mind, when visiting with the camps, you do not need to give them everything that is asked of you (and they will ask). Example: this week­ end one asked someone in my group for a ride to the store. He said, ‘Sure! Annette will take you.’ … When I asked what was needed, she wanted beer. I then told her no, we do not do beer runs.” The proof of the ministry’s value is in the lives that have changed, according to Melk. “We have several transfor- mation stories of people who have moved on and are now leading productive lives,” she said. Casper raved about the good that was done Oct. 9. “The impact of what took place that day cannot be put into words,” she wrote. “People who have never been to the camps or even around the homeless were out socializing in the camps as well as picking up trash. The experience was greater than just picking up trash. It provided those our society deem unworthy with dignity, a sense of self-worth and the knowledge that people do care.” Spring, however, says the problem of homelessness is more complicated than untrained volunteers appre­ ciate. “The complicating factor for me is we’re taught to do all this in a professional format,” he says. “Then what is the role for people who want to do something but don’t have that training? At the coalition, our position is they should be on the front lines, advocating for change. But some people prefer to work with individuals. “Each has a role. That’s why we need to figure out how these go together. It doesn’t make sense for both groups to work with the same people and have no connection. That just causes more confusion for the people we’re all trying to help.” Meanwhile John 15:12 Ministries is preparing for another visit to homeless camps – this time to sing Christmas carols. �10 News STREETVIBES November 15-30, 2010 Confronting the School for Terrorists ­ Continued from page 8 widows and orphans and trying to spread hope, “ Romero said. In his weekly homilies, which were broadcast on radio throughout the country, he named what he saw as the root of evil of Salvadoran brutality. “Among us there are those who would sell the just man for money and the poor man for a pair of sandals; those who, in their mansions, prac­ tice violence and accumulate plunder; those who crush the poor; those who bring the kingdom of violence closer while they lie upon their beds of ivory; those who take over house upon house and field upon field until they appropriate the whole territory, and remain sole owners of the country. “That is why we have denounced what in our country has become the idolatry of wealth, of the absolute right, within the capitalist system, of private property, of political power in the national security regimes, in the name of which the inse­ curity of the individual is itself institutionalized. No matter how tragic it may appear, the Church, through its entrance into the socio-political world, has learned how to recognize, how to deepen its understanding of the essence of sin. The fun­ damental essence of sin in this world of ours is revealed as the death of Salvadorans; and the worst offense against God is to turn the children of God, temples of the Holy Spirit, the body of Christ in history, into victims of oppression and injus­ tice, into slaves to economic greed, into fodder for political repression.” Romero urged journalists to be clear and objec­ tive about what was happening in the country, as he had heard reports from abroad that gave a false picture of the truth. In his weekly broad­ casts he read the names of those who had been slaughtered that week, their villages and where their body pieces were found. Once “disappeared,” they never existed, according to the military, who threatened to kill anyone who came near the newly tortured and decaying bodies found every morning in the streets. Applauded by the poor wherever he went, he was the only dissenting voice willing to name and clear up the confusion, willing to release the anguish of the widowed and orphaned. He also learned he was on the death squads’ hit list. A singularly brave and prophetic dissenting voice despised by the military, Romero’s words ring true today: “Because the Church has opted for the real and not for the fictitious poor, because it has opted for those who really are oppressed and repressed, the Church lives in a political world, and it fulfills itself as Church also through politics. It cannot be otherwise if the Church, like Jesus, is to turn itself toward the poor.” ‘Stop the repression’ In February 1980 Romero wrote to President Jimmy Carter and read the letter from the pulpit: “Mr. President: “In recent days, a report has appeared in the national press which has greatly disturbed me. Marchers carry symbolic caskets, memorializing victims of U.S. foreign policy. Robert Pohowsky. According to the article, your administration is studying the possibility of backing the present government junta and giving it economic and military aid. “Because you are a Christian and have said that you want to defend human rights, I take the liberty of expressing my pastoral point of view on this matter and of making a specific request. “The information that the United States govern­ ment is studying ways in which to build up the armaments of El Salvador greatly disturbs me. Re­ portedly, you plan to send military equipment and consultants to train three Salvadoran battalions in logistics, communication and intelligence. If in fact this information is correct, the contribution of your government will do nothing to support greater justice and peace in El Salvador. Without doubt, it will intensify injustice and the repression of the organized people who have fought, so many times, for their fundamental rights. … As a Salva­ doran, and as the archbishop of the Archdiocese of San Salvador, I have the obligation to see to it that faith and justice reign in my country. There­ fore, if you truly want to defend human rights, I urge you: “– To prohibit the sending of military aid to the Salvadoran government. “– To guarantee that your government will not intervene, directly or indirectly, with military, economic, diplomatic or other pressure, to try to determine the destiny of the Salvadoran nation. “It would be a deplorable injustice if, through the introduction of foreign weapons and forces, the development of the Salvadoran nation was frustrated. Foreign intervention would suppress and impede the autonomous decision-making process already begun along appropriate econom­ ic and political lines.” The letter apparently had little effect, as the money was given. On March 23, 1980, the night before he was gunned down, Romero appealed to the conscience of the ordinary young peasant sol­ diers, the rank and file of the Salvadoran security forces. It is a famous homily that is known world­ wide and often quoted: “I would like to make a special appeal to the members of the army and specifically to the ranks of the National Guard, the police and the military. Brothers, each one of you is one of us. We are the same people. The peasants you kill are your own brothers and sisters. When you hear the voice of a man commanding you to kill, remember instead the voice of God: ‘Thou shalt not kill!’ God’s law must prevail. No soldier is obliged to obey an order contrary to the law of God. There is still time for you to obey your own conscience, even in the face of a sinful command to kill. “The Church, defender of the rights of God, of the law of God, and of the dignity of each human being, cannot remain silent in the presence of such abominations. “The government must understand that re­ forms, steeped in so much blood, are worthless. In the name of God, in the name of our tormented people whose cries rise up to Heaven, I beseech you, I beg you, I command you, stop the repres­ sion!” Janice Sevre-Duszynska is an ordained Roman Catholic woman priest and a former prisoner of conscience for School of the Americas Watch. For information on the School of the Americas Watch, visit www.soaw.org. �// I t2~.iNUAL PIN~~~[3~®[3~ @lfCTD~ ®[f)~ execxmve DIReCTORI OF OHO JUBTIOe a. POI.JOY oeNTeRI TIC~T PRilce: tso.oo t40 FORI MeMBeRS call PUJWHase ONUNe BT: www.mNmHOMeL.es8.0RG caN'T arreND? RaeRIVe a TaBLe FORI SPONSORI a HOMeLess INDMDUaL YOURI ORGaNIZaTION FORI IM386RIVaTIONS ORI ORI STRtJe1VIBeS veNDORI tso.oo DONaTION 1400.00 (IO Bem) &OLD LEVEL: •2500 ou!!~~~::!o~Rs. Investment Management. Anancial Planning. Since 1898. SILVER LEVEL: •1500 f ~2t!E~~2s~ COMMUNITY LEVEL: •500 XavleRI UNIVeRBrTY BILL & suzaNNe JOINeRI DOl«3eN QUINN TOM & CaTHY CRialN JOHN & FRiaNCle PePPeRI For questions or to become a sponsor contact Lynne Ausman (5 1s\'I 365-6958• 117 E• 121H St• CINCINNAfl~ OH 45202 Greater Cincinnati Coalition For The Homeless �12 Story STREETVIBES November 15-30, 2010 An Affordable housing Success Story ­ From Valley Homes to Villas of the Valley By Michelle dillinGhaM Contributing writEr O ne of the policy goals Affordable Hous­ ing Advocates (AHA) set for 2010 was to increase the amount of affordable housing. Un­ fortunately, we have found many of our advocacy efforts have been directed simply towards trying to preserve the affordable units we have. Kelan Craig of the Coalition on Homelessness and Housing in Ohio chairs a recently created Preservation Subcommittee for AHA, which meets to discuss affordable-housing preservation issues, specific buildings of interest and strategies for preserving at-risk properties. He recently posted an article on the AHA Listserv called “Neighbor­ hood Stabilization Program (NSP): Innovative Development Strategies for Very Low-Income Housing,” published by the National Housing Law Project. Based in Oakland, Calif., the National Housing Law Project was established in 1968. It publishes research on housing law and policy is­ sues, and its mission is to advance housing justice for low-income people. The article highlights the Valley Homes Housing in Lincoln Heights as an example of innovative uses of Neighborhood Sta­ bilization Program funds. In response to the nation’s foreclosure crisis, Congress signed into law the Housing and Eco­ nomic Recovery Act in 2008. Title III of that act created the Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP) and granted $3.92 billion dollars for emer­ gency assistance to states to redevelop abandoned and foreclosed homes. The Recovery Act added an additional $2 billion in NSP funds, known as NSP2, which was allocated using a competitive grant process. One rule of using NSP funding is that grant recipients must put 25 percent of their funds into uses that actually result in housing units to be occupied by very low-income households. When I worked at City Hall, a member of Cincinnati City Council suggested NSP funds be used to build a new police station in Price Hill. Of course, the ad­ ministration informed him this was not an allow­ able use of the money. Hamilton County is using NSP funds for the demolition and re-development of Valley Homes Housing in Lincoln Heights. The new housing de­ velopment will be named, “Villas of the Valley.” Valley Homes was built as a temporary home for African-American workers at the Wrights Aero­ nautical Plant during World War II and was only meant to house families for six years. Fifty build­ ings were built in townhouses made up of four to eight units, which totaled about 300 homes. In 1953 a residents’ cooperative purchased Valley Homes from the federal government. The National Housing Law Project publication provides a very informative and detailed account of the Valley Homes history and the subsequent events leading to the NSP funding to re-build Valley Homes. I found this history intriguing and I encourage Streetvibes readers to read the full report. For brevity’s sake, we fast-forward to 2005, when the cooperative owed more than $200,000 in utility bills and the complex’s garbage service was cut off for non-payment. With the help of the Le­ gal Aid Society, a low-income developer took over management and worked with the Model Group, which agreed to redevelop Valley Homes by utiliz­ ing NSP funds to provide critical gap-funding. When Phase I is completed, Villas of the Val­ ley will be 42 two-bedroom cottages for seniors. Thirteen of these will be for very low-income households. Phase II will be 35 townhomes with no age limits, five multi-family units and three or four single-family homes that will be available for purchase. Interestingly the article notes the original design included more units that would have included 65 senior accessible cottages. This new configuration required the approval of the zoning commission, but two of the seven members of the zoning commission refused to meet to approve this plan, so the developer was forced to move forward with a reduced plan of 42 accessible units. Again political resistance to the development of low-income housing development rears its ugly head. Success in the case of Valley Homes is attributed to the developer’s initiating a series of community meetings and showing integrity throughout the process, thereby earning public trust. It also dem­ onstrates the incredible tenacity needed. In order for this all to work, the developer had to pull to­ gether NSP funding along with a half-dozen other funding sources. Cobbling together enough fund­ ing to support affordable housing development can be extremely complicated, but it is possible. For more information, visit the National Hous­ ing Law Project at www.nhlp.org. For a link to the NSP article, contact Michelle Dillingham, AHA project coordinator, at mdmswlsw@hotmail.com. Cartoon by AnnE SkovE facebook.com/streetvibes cincinnati twitter.com/ street­ vibesnews streetvibes.wordpress.com �13 Columns STREETVIBES November 15-30, 2010 The World’s Common Bond ­ Alex Carruthers reveals the coolest thing ever By ariana shahandeh Contributing writEr Alex Carruthers is a Cincinnati solo musician, along with being a fourth of the band The Retros, founded by Mia Carruthers, a graduate of the School for the Creative and Performing Arts and member of the cast of MTV’s Taking the Stage. He spoke with Streetvibes about the band’s search for a label, his love for music and Cincin­ nati. Has the band spoken to a label? “We’ve only talked to one. We’ve only talked to Univer­ sal. Right now we are get­ ting our electronic press kit together, and then we’ll send it out to masses and see what we get back from that. We are just basically trying to get someone to fund our next record because we did the first one by ourselves and we can’t afford to do it again. “When we talked to Uni­ versal – they function to do whatever the artist needs them to do. So if we said, ‘Hey we need a producer, and we want you to handle everything. We just want to play the songs. We don’t even care if we write them.” Or (we) could be like Jack Johnson – he just sends them a master copy and says, ‘Here is my masterpiece.’ And (Universal will) just do it. That’s what we’re looking for.” Crosstalk about Cincin­ nati being “boring” … “People always say that, but I disagree. Cincinnati is a cool town. There’s always stuff going on around town. I have so much passion for Cincinnati. When people move, they miss their Skyline, their Graeter’s. When I was gone for two years, I would just mention to a random person, ‘Oh what I would do for a coney right now.’ They would say, ‘We’ve got the cans.’ But it’s not the same. I love Cincinnati. It’s where I grew up. “I call it a bite-size city. It’s small, especially compared Alex Carruthers at the Mad Hatter. James Zanoni. to big cities. The music scene is decent for the size of the city that we have. There is lots of (music) going on, different genres. It’s not like Chicago, where there are lots of bands that sound like they are from Chicago. I don’t think there is a Cincinnati sound, which is cool. And that’s also something that is still up for grabs, which is interesting to me as well.” I’m sensing some competi­ tiveness. “Oh there is always competition, and I’m very competitive in nature. But that’s the thing I love about music: There is no competi­ tion, there is only collabora­ tion. How can you be better than another band? There is no scale or judging, you can’t win a championship for being in a band. It’s either you create great music and you entertain people or you don’t. You get to that level where you get paid to do it, and then that’s it. “It’s all about doing what you love. I’ve gotten a lot of comments about that. I play in a ballgame with Seth and a couple of my friends. Some guys I went to high school with are on the team, and I haven’t seen them in years. They are like, ‘What are you doing?’ ‘I’m playing music.’ And they (say,) ‘I’m work­ ing at AT&T’ or whatever. During one of our games, (someone says,) ‘Nobody gets to do what they want at this age, except for Alex.’ I was like, ‘What?’ ‘Yeah, you are the only one that gets to do what they love.’ That’s cool, that’s really special. I think I don’t have as much money as I’d like to have and everything set up ideally. But the fact that I can get up every day and come to work and absolutely love it. When I play (solo, acoustic) gigs, I just people-watch the whole time – pick up on what songs they might like just by looking at them. With time, you get good at that. You learn a lot about people without ever talking to them. Having them listen to my music, I understand a little bit about them.” What is something you have the most doubt over? “That’s a tough question. You put me on the spot. I don’t know … maybe time? In that, this is a young man’s game. I’m not old by any stretch of the word, but I look at my band, like Mia (Carruthers) and Seth (Ewing Huff ), and they are three or four years younger than me. I fear and doubt that I’ll WANT MORE STREETVIBES? get too old before something may happen.” How old is too old? Your dad (Dan Carruthers is also a musician and the band’s manager) is gong to be pissed when he hears that. “My dad still says the same thing. He’ll (say,) ‘Aw, I’m too old.’ I know that he’s not. That’s the thing that’s cool about music, that you can never be too old, as long as your fingers can move and your voice can sing and your brain can think in a musical way. It’s based on old hearing; you can be deaf and still play music. That’s why I have on the back of my business card, ‘Music is the world’s common bond.’ ” Coincidentally, I can agree. “I truly believe that. I can go anywhere in the entire world and play a song that has rhythm and that has a refrain, and anybody that has heard anything like that can understand: ‘Oh, I understand that he is playing music, by the rhythm and the beat.’ Or by the sound of the guitar, or whatever they might be able to understand and recognize, and I think that is the coolest thing ever.”  | CHECK OUT THE STREETVIBES BLOG http://streetvibes.wordpress.com �Story & Poetry Corner 14 I Am Elisa STREETVIBES November 15-30, 2010 Anthony Williams Art By elisa hill I am Elisa! But, in my family I’m known as the darkest grape on the vine. I am the one who is always willing to forgive all the unkind. They refuse to see me as being dark and truly lovely. They just don’t know that I am one of Gods special angels, yes one of many. I am Elisa! I have survived the hurt, pain, rape and despair. My God has blessed me with this poetry light so beware. I am thriving because of the unconditional love in my heart. I am Elisa! The precious one who after attempting suicide God gave me a second start. I know in this life that I am the one to take this stance. I am Elisa! Yes! I may be called crazy but I am beautifully cool with a great style just by chance. I want to be today’s Mya walking that mile with Gods hand. So who do I think I am, you ask? I am Elisa, a poet here and now! So joyfully I can smile and say with a great strength and determination. World, I am Elisa and my time is now! Believe It By willa d. Jones Believe it when you see someone bundle up sleeping in the street Believe it when you see someone looking in the garbage for food to eat Believe it cause all of these things are real and none are made up Believe that there are many men, women and children who are down on their luck Believe that with the economy all twisted and headed straight to hell Believe that there are many who just give up, commit suicide or take leave for a jail cell Believe that, to the homeless, jail with three hot meals, cell buddies for friends and a cot Believe to some may mean nothing but to the homeless means one hell of a lot Believe with faith all things are possible for all including you and me Believe in God, have faith and pray then change will come all you have to do is believe Achilles heel By Josh Mcconnell Love, is my Achilles’ heel. Another night of lonely glow of sorrow that breaks my spirits shine. Like a poisonous arrow to the foot, I take a tender heart into a whirlwind of oblivion, Round and round it goes as the hole of agonizing pain settles in and grows wider and Deeper as I sink deeper into the core like clock-work. I can’t go backwards, can’t go forward and I cannot stay in neutral, I am in a dilemma, a state of discombobulation. They say love is blind, beautiful, strong and forever, but never did they say that love is Also hard work, stressful, frightening and sometimes torture. When you know in your heart the love you feel is the love that’s real, love can save you Make you strong and righteous, love can at the same time make you weak, Love can destroy you and love can also be your Achilles’ heel too! Reclaim Your Dignity… Reclaim Your Voice A HUMAN RELATIONS SUMMIT 5:30 – 8 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 18 at Cincinnati City Hall, 3rd floor Featured speaker: Michelle Alexander, author of The New Jim Crow Panel discussion Sponsored by Cincinnati Human Relations Commission, the Amos Project, Faith Community Alliance of Greater Cincinnati and the Ohio Justice and Policy Center Cleo’s Joke Corner A preacher and his son were walking by a gravestone. The gravestone said, “Where you are, I once was. Where I am, you’re going to be.” The preacher took a crayon from his son and wrote on the gravestone, “To follow you, I am content. But I don’t think I will, because I don’t know where you went.” �Shelter: Women and Children Central Access Point Cincinnati Union Bethel St. Francis Soup Kitchen Churches Active in Northside FreeStore/FoodBank 557-2873 Madisonville Ed & Assistance Center 4230 Hamilton Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45223 241-1064 112 E. Liberty Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 1841 Fairmount Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45214 Grace Place Catholic Worker House 681-2365 762-5660 271-5501 4600 Erie Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45227 Serves area codes: 45226, 45227, 45208, 45209 St. Vincent de Paul 6037 Cary Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45224 Salvation Army 535-2719 591-2246 381-SAFE 768-6907 300 Lytle Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Bethany House 562-8841 872-9259 Crossroad Health Center 381-2247 5 E. Liberty St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 Health Resource Center Homeless Mobile Health Van McMicken Dental Clinic 357-4602 352-2902 352-6363 40 E. McMicken Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mental Health Access Point Mercy Franciscan at St. John 558-8888 981-5800 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 NAMI of Hamilton County PATH Outreach 1125 Bank Street, Cinti, Ohio 45214 131 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter 15 resources STREETVIBES November 15-30, 2010 458-6670 977-4489 Treatment: Men Other Resources Shelter: Men Charlie’s 3/4 House 784-1853 2121 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 City Gospel Mission 241-5525 Prospect House 241-0490 381-4941 Starting Over 1419 Elm Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 682 Hawthorne Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45205 Justice Watch St. Fran/St. Joe Catholic Work. House 961-4663 Treatment: Both 761-1480 1821 Summit Road, Cinti, Ohio 45237 Drop Inn Center 721-0643 Interfaith Hospitality Network Lighthouse Youth Center (Youth) 471-1100 221-3350 3330 Jefferson, Cinti, Ohio 45220 Housing: CMHA Excel Development OTR Community Housing 721-4580 632-7149 381-1171 114 W. 14th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tender Mercies 721-8666 27 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tom Geiger House Dana Transitional Bridge Services Volunteers of America Anna Louise Inn 961-4555 751-0643 381-1954 421-5211 621-5300 961-1983 OTR: 1620 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Walnut Hills: 2631 Gilbert, Cinti, Ohio 45206 Our Daily Bread 621-6364 1730 Race Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 351-0422 381-6672 830 Ezzard Charles Dr. Cinti, Ohio 45214 Goodwill industries Healing Connections Mary Magdalen House 771-4800 751-0600 721-4811 241-2965 People Working Cooperatively 351-7921 The Caring Place 631-1114 United Way 211 Women Helping Women 977-5541 Off The Streets 421-5211 1522 Republic Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Hamilton County ADAS Board 946-4888 Recovery Health Access Center 281-7422 Sober Living 681-0324 Talbert House 641-4300 Advocacy Catholic Social Action Community Action Agency Contact Center 421-3131 569-1840 381-4242 1227 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Food/Clothing Lord’s Pantry OTR/Walnut Hills Kitchen & Pantry AA Hotline CCAT Joseph House (Veterans) 217 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 381-0111 1223 Main St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 2728 Glendora Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45209 Caracole (HIV/AIDS) 621-5514 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 2203 Fulton, Cinti, Ohio 45206 961-4080 Peaslee Neighborhood Center Franciscan Haircuts from the Heart First Step Home Anthony House (Youth) 241-2600 241-2563 214 E. 14th St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 661-4620 Shelter: Both Center Independent Living Options Emmanuel Community Center 1308 Race St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 961-2256 Treatment: Women 1437 Walnut Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mt. Airy Shelter 921-1613 St. Raephaels Salvation Army Serenity House Day Center Open Door Pantry 863-3184 863-1445 422-8555 868-3276 Northern Kentucky Brighton Center 859-491-8303 799 Ann St. Newport, KY Franciscan JPIC Gr. Cinti Coalition for the Homeless 721-4700 421-7803 117 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Intercommunity Justice & Peace Cr. Legal Aid Society Ohio Justice & Policy Center Faces Without Places Stop AIDS 579-8547 241-9400 421-1108 363-3300 421-2437 Health Center for Respite Care Hamilton/Middletown ECHO/Hosea House 859-261-5857 Fairhaven Resuce Mission 859-491-1027 Homeward Bound Youth 859-581-1111 Mathews House 859-261-8009 Homeless & Housing Coalition 859-727-0926 Parish Kitchen 859-581-7745 Pike St. Clinic 859-291-9321 Transitions, Inc 859-491-4435 Welcome House of NKY 859-431-8717 205 West Pike Street, Covington, KY 41011 621-1868 3550 Washington Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45229 Women’s Crisis Center VA Domiciliary VA Homeless 859-491-3335 859-559-5011 859-572-6226 �16 Column STREETVIBES November 15-30, 2010 Drawing for Peace ­ Steve Sunderland’s artistic vocabulary By saad Ghosn Contributing writEr “A question always haunts me: What am I doing for peace?” says Steve Sunderland, an artist, writer and professor of social work at the University of Cincinnati (UC). Sunderland is the director of “Peace Village,” a healing educational organization he founded after the 2001 Cincinnati riots and the 9/11Trade Center attack; it uses art, music, conferences and various creative means to heal from violence and promote inner and social peace. Sunderland actually has done and daily does a lot for peace. Growing up in New York City in the 1950s and ’60s, early on he developed good organizing skills that found him an important player in many social justice and liberation movements. As a college student he was actively involved in the hunger program for Mississippi, the Civil Rights Movement in Washington, D.C., desegregation and setting up a union for graduate students at Indiana University/ Bloomington, promotion of student academic freedom of speech under the American Students Organization and development of compassionate and inclusive means to fight anti-Semitism as part of the National Training Laboratories. After graduating from Case Western Reserve University with a Ph.D. in organizational behavior and administration, his energy focused on desegregating higher education. He functioned as vice president of the Master Plan at City University in New York City, helping integrate 25,000 African-American and Hispanic students based on open-admissions policy. Then, until the 1977 recession, he was head of a small college for African-American and underprivileged individuals in New York, pulling them out of welfare and enrolling them into a master’s degree program that combined study and work. This is when he moved to Cincinnati to join UC, initially as dean of the College of Community Services, then as a professor at the School of Social Work and lately at the School of Education. At UC he continued his activist work toward the integration of higher education. As an organizer, Sunderland followed in the steps of his father, a British im­ migrant, labor organizer and communist leader in New York City in the late 1930s. As an artist, Sunderland took his inspiration from his maternal aunt, a mentally handicapped artist whose beautiful paintings adorned the walls of his family house. For two years he attended the first public High School of Music and Art in the country, in the center of Har­ lem. Students of all ethnic backgrounds populated it, his first experience with real diversity. Sunderland, however, did not do art until he was in his sixties. Art came back into his life with the 2001 Cincinnati riots and the 9/11 attacks of the same year. Inspired by Jacob Lawrence’s documentation of Harriet Tubman’s and Frederick Douglass’s life stories on particleboards, he decided to use cardboards to document and reflect the events going on at the time. Armed with cardboards, markers and crayons, he mingled with the rioting crowds, watched, listened and drew mostly the faces and emotions of those present. He also involved his UC students, enrolled in a class on conflict resolution, to do the same. Witnessing the events through the faces and feelings of participants rendered on cardboard grew in scope and intensity, and Posters4Peace was born. Sunderland has since been using the technique non-stop. He drew people’s reactions to the 9/11 attacks. For the past nine years he has drawn the feelings of participants in a yearly Vietnam peace conference led by Vietnamese Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hahn; the conference includes Vietnam War vets, anti-war protesters and Vietnamese people, all gathered for healing and reconciliation. With students, Sunderland Steve Sunderland stands in front of Dreaming of College, his cardboard pastel drawing. (above) Photo by Saad Ghosn. What Is Inclusion, cardboard pastel drawing, by Steve Sunderland. (left) Photo by Saad Ghosn. draws scenes of hunger. With children, he draws events that affect them. He also draws themes of inclusion in the classroom, natural disasters such as the tsunami in Indonesia and earthquake in Haiti, wars and the misery of death. “I draw about the pain I encounter or experience, pain of those who want social justice, fairness, pain caused by poverty, loss of hope, no jobs, racism,” he says. “I draw mostly faces of people I meet. I draw them myself; also invite them, if willing, to partake in the activity. Afterwards we all share the images, discuss feelings and messages.” After the 2001 Cincin­ nati riots, when the city hired a consultant to mediate between police and the community, Sunderland was invited to join in to elicit police officers’ and citizens’ feelings about the violence. Drawing on cardboard, he prompted participants with two questions: “How do you feel about the riots? And what would your drawing of a healthy city be?” He obtained hundreds of response drawings that served as conversation starters to address the issues; they eventually contributed to a peace treaty with the police. After the 9/11attacks, drawings were reactions to the events, to the sense of impotence generated and to how to respond to the trag­ edy. With the Vietnam vets, they were about feelings of hurt, regret and anger. In all instances, Sunderland uses the drawings as vehicles for an immediate reflection on the problem addressed, an expression of his own reaction and feelings and those of others involved, everyone empowered and engaged in a dialogue for a peaceful resolution. “Art provides a vocabulary; it is a liberating activity,” he says. “It is also a communi­ cation tool that allows ex­ change of ideas, feelings. Art can plant a seed of compas­ sion and function as an in­ strument for peace. Drawing images and feelings, sharing and discussing them, break down artificial boundaries between individuals, lead them to a deeper apprecia­ tion of their humaneness.” Through Peace Village and with his students at UC, Sunderland has recently focused on inclusion, hunger and Islam. His drawing, What is In­ clusion, created in response to a conference of dis­ abled individuals, ponders whether there is room in our hearts for mixing people despite their disability – or only room for segregation. Dreaming of College is about the disabled student wanting to be in college but not in an isolated corner. Sunderland is also a writer who authors a regular col­ umn on peace in the month­ ly online Metro newspaper. “I want both my art and writing to be at the human level,” he says. “My work illuminates peace in some fashion, catching a look on the face of a person, a word or expression that throws light on justice – sketches of hope and compassion in a world that struggles to keep peace alive. I want my drawings to heighten reflec­ tion and action for and with others. Through art and con­ versation, I aim to rebuild the world of people caught in tsunamis of violence and despair, to signal the power­ ful inner spirit of love.” Artists as Activists is a regular column highlighting Greater Cincinnati artists who use art as a vehicle for social change. Saad Ghosn is the founder of SOS Art. Ghosn can be reached at saad. ghosn@uc.edu. � 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 2010 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 1-14, 2010 Subject The topic of the resource Homelessness Description An account of the resource Pg 1: Blankets, Water and Other Bad Ideas On the Left Side of God Pg 2: Street Wise Pg 3: Beyond the Bootstraps Pg 4: Despair Takes a Young Man’s Life Pg 5: Domestic Violence in High Office Pg 6: On the Left Side of God Continued Pg 7: On the Left Side of God Continued Pg 8: Confronting the School for Terrorists Pg 9: Blankets, Water and Other Bad Ideas Continued Pg 10: Confronting the School for Terrorists Continued Pg 11: Annual Dinner Pg 12: An Affordable Housing Success Story Pg 13: The World’s Common Bond Pg 14: Arts & Poetry Pg 15: Resources Pg 16: Drawing for Peace 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 November 1-14, 2010 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Gregory Flannery Joseph Szydlowski Georgia Bohannon Michelle Dillingham Samantha Groark Margo Pierce Jeremy Flannery Michael Henson David Heitfield Corey Gibson Jeni Jenkins Saad Ghosn Lew Moores Larry Gross Eli Braun Jesse Call Michael Fanning B. Clifton Burke Carly Tamborski Aimie Willhoite Lynne Ausman Anne Skove Vinit Murthy Jon Hughes Brad Foster Jeremy Flannery Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Aimie Willhoite Alex Carruthers Anne Skove Arts & Poetry B. Clifton Burke Brad Foster Carly Tamborski Corey Gibson David Heitfield domestic violence Eli Braun Georgia Bohannon Gregory Flannery Jeni Jenkins Jeremy Flannery Jesse Call Jon Hughes Joseph Szydlowski Kevin Goodreau Larry Gross Lew Moores Lynne Ausman Margo Pierce Michael Fanning Michael Henson Michelle Dillingham politics Saad Ghosn Samantha Groark Schools Steve Sunderland Terrorists Valley Homes Vinit Murthy https://streetvibesarchive.net/files/original/e0874e0b6106503172fc8f078f61a10a.pdf aec2fba13b2fb4d2d2826780a7e23b7a PDF Text Text Get to ‘Get Low’ Prisoner Wins Nobel page 10 page 4 Nov. 1-14, 2010 • Issue 187 • One Dollar ADVOCATING JUSTICE • BUILDING COMMUNITY Homeless Awareness Week in Cincinnati By Carly Tamborski Contributing Writer C itizens marched Oct. 16 through downtown Cincin­ nati and Over-the-Rhine to demand an end to homeless­ ness, a positive resolution for gentrification and reason­ able wages. The march, part of Home­ less Awareness Week, Oct. 15-23, kicked off from Buddy’s Place on Vine Street, where marchers rallied. The marchers stopped at points highlighting places where, homeless advocates say, unjust acts against homeless people occurred, including places where the Cincinnati Center City Development Corp. (3CDC) and the city have displaced people from low-income housing and public spaces. “This march is for justice, Joanne Burton, public-con­ trolled government, living wages, the end of homeSupporters march through downtown Cincinnati in support of homeless people. About 150 people participated in the Oct. 16 demonstration. Aimee Willhoite. See March, P. 9 How I Snuck in on the Dalai Lama ­ Even mystical security has its weaknesses By Gregory Flannery Editor T he “self” is an illusion, according to the Dalai Lama, so it’s fitting that I saw him under false pretenses, passing the security checkpoint under an assumed name. The U.S. State Department had ordered me kept out, but I got in. The security process for screening journalists for the Dalai Lama’s visit Oct. 21 was almost as obscure and com- plex as Tibetan Buddhism itself. I was in, then I was out, then I was back in. Finally, on the day of his appearance, a university staffer handed me a press badge and said, “Here. You’re Eric Frisbee.” Eric Frisbee is a photographer for WHIO (Channel 7) in Dayton, Ohio. I am not Frisbee, but I felt like one, my media credentials tossed back and forth from Oxford, Ohio, to Washington, D.C., and back again. In the end, the security apparatus was ridiculously flawed. At the security checkpoint, no one even asked for my ID. The badge said I was Eric Frisbee, and I got in. ‘You are not allowed’ I submitted my application for media credentials – includ­ ing date of birth and socialsecurity number – Sept. 20. An Oct. 12 e-mail from Miami University notified me of ap­ proval for the Dalai Lama’s pri­ vate morning session at Hall Auditorium. A staffer even let me in on a parking secret that prevented my having to walk or catch a shuttle across campus. But three days later my credentials were revoked – and by a player I didn’t even know was involved. Claire Wagner, director of Miami’s News and Public Information Office, called Streetvibes and left a phone message. “I’m calling with bad news,” she said. “We received an e-mail from the State Department, who is in charge of security for the day. We had supplied all of the personal information about the media. They have sent back a note saying you are not allowed to be in the venue that day. No details. I’m very sorry.” An essential part of Tibetan Buddhism is the notion of impermanence – everything changes. This was to prove true in this case. I phoned Wagner to ask for clarification. I requested the e-mail from the State Depart­ ment and the name of the person who said I couldn’t cover the Dalai Lama’s visit. That person’s name, it seems, is off-limits. Wagner sent this e-mail: See Dalai, P. 6 �2 Editorial ­ Streetwise By The Numbers ­ 72 The percentage of residents of Section 8 housing assistance who are employed or retired (see page 5). 12 The tallest building, in number of stories, that Steven Paul Lansky can comfortably enter (see page 11). 11 The length, in number of years, of Liu Xiaobo’s prison sentence in the People’s Republic of China (see page 4). 1976 The year Murder Victims’ Families for Reconciliation was founded (see page 3). 2 The number of people initially barred by the U.S. State Department from a visit by the Dalai Lama (see page 1). 150 The size, in number of participants, of the Homeless Awareness March (see page 1). 1,000 The average distance, in miles, between farm field and U.S. grocery store (see page 6). 1930 The year in which Get Low is set (see page 10). 31 The number of NFL teams that don’t seem to need problem players (see page 7). 10 The approximate number of police officers outside Music Hall during Sleeping Beauty (see page 10). By Gregory Flannery Editor Don’t Tread on Other People A conservative friend of mine has been critical of the Tea Party movement. “Anger,” he says, “is not a good organizing principle.” My friend and I disagree on almost every political issue; but on this point, he is correct. He doesn’t mean there is no place for anger in politics but rather that a movement primarily fueled by anger is unlikely to advance. Shared ideas and principles are far more effective. The Tea Party isn’t a movement at all, of course; it’s a mob. In the last few weeks of the 2010 election campaign I heard a radio commentator express concern that the Tea Party was beginning to resemble the brown-shirted thugs who stirred German rage to the point that the Nazi Party won office and ruled for 12 years. I thought the warning farfetched, and then came the attack last month on a woman at debate between candidates for a U.S. Senate seat in Kentucky. Lauren Valle, an activist with the progressive movement MoveOn.org, tried to approach Republican candidate Rand Paul to give him a fake award for promoting the domination of GOP policies by big business. Paul’s supporters pulled a wig off Valle’s head and knocked her to the ground. In a horrifying scene played on video throughout the world, a campaign coordinator for Paul held her down by putting his foot on her neck. The symbolism is perfect. Some Tea Party members have tried to paint Valle’s behavior as suspicious. Why was she wearing a wig? But their awareness of history is lacking. Participants in the original Boston Tea Party dressed as American Indians as they seized and destroyed crates of British tea. They didn’t, by the way, attack the crew of the ship. Tea Party gatherings often fly the “Don’t Tread on Me” flag from the American Revolution. Tea Party activists seem perfectly willing, however, to tread on others. Fortunately, Valle wasn’t seriously injured, though she reported swelling in her face and soreness in her neck and shoulders. As if the assault she suffered weren’t bad enough, the chief perpetrator, Tim Profitt, demanded an apology from Valle. In a local TV interview, Profitt said, “She’s a professional at what she does. When all the facts come out, people will see that she’s the one who initiated the whole thing.” And there you have the Tea Party at its essence: Approaching one of its candidates at a public event in order to make a dissenting statement is perceived as an act of provocation, something to be stopped at the cost of violence. Valle had sought to give Paul the Employee of the Month Award from RepubliCorp. – a make-believe group created by MoveOn.org in an act of political satire. The fact that the man who attacked Valle is named Profitt made the satire complete. The problem, of course, is that satire is lost on thugs. The lasting damage from this kind of incident isn’t the minor injuries visited upon Lauren Valle but the damage inflicted on the body politic. Political violence is always and everywhere to be condemned. The Paul campaign fired Profitt – as it knew it must. “The Paul for Senate campaign is extremely disappointed in and condemns the actions of a supporter last night outside the KET debate,” said a statement by Paul’s staff. “Whatever the perceived provocation, any level of aggression or violence is deplorable, and will not be tolerated by our campaign. The Paul campaign has disassociated itself from the volunteer who took part in this incident, and once again urges all activists – on both sides – to remember that their political passions should never manifest themselves in physical altercations of any kind.” That’s rather craven, all in all. “Both sides” weren’t involved in violence. Paul’s side was. Even so, it’s better than the statement by the campaign for Jack Conway, Democratic candidate for the Senate: “We can disagree on issues, and I don’t know what preceded the incident, but physical violence by a man against a woman must never be tolerated.” Agreed: Men shouldn’t assault women. Furthermore, women shouldn’t assault women. Nor should men assault men or women assault men. But Conway missed both the opportunity and the point. What happened at that debate is a harbinger of things to come. Tensions have been unloosed in this country that, if not calmed, will lead to far greater violence. It is increasingly becoming acceptable to make scapegoats of minorities – undocumented workers and Muslims are especially in vogue as targets these days. We must reclaim our ability to disagree without vilifying our opponents. U.S. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), in an act of glorious civic virtue, showed in 2008 what leadership is about in a republic. At a town hall meeting toward the end of McCain’s failed presidential campaign, a woman in the audience denounced then-Sen. Barack Obama as a Muslim – as if being one were some kind of ignominy. McCain took the microphone and firmly corrected the woman, his own supporter. “No, ma’am,” he said. “You’re wrong.” My conservative friend once told me that the chief value of democracy isn’t that it leads to the selection of the most qualified candidates or that it is the fairest way to govern. The chief value of democracy, he said, is that it provides a non-violent means for a change in power. He makes a good point. It’s important that we all remember that. Unbridled political passions are dangerous. STREETVIBES November 1-14, 2010 Streetvibes is an activist newspaper, advocating justice and building community. Streetvibes reports on economic issues, civil rights, the environment, the peace movement, spirituality and the struggle against homelessness and poverty. Distributed by people who are or once were homeless, in exchange for a $1 donation, Streetvibes is published twice a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Address: 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 Phone: 513.421.7803 x 12 Fax: 513.421.7813 Email: streetvibes2@yahoo. com Website: www. cincihomeless.org Blog: streetvibes.wordpress. com Streetvibes Staff Editor Gregory Flannery Art Director Joseph Szydlowski Vendor Coordinator Georgia Bohannon Contributing Writers Michelle Dillingham, Samantha Groark, Margo Pierce, Jeremy Flannery, Michael Henson, David Heitfield, Corey Gibson, Jeni Jenkins, Saad Ghosn, Lew Moores, Larry Gross, Eli Braun, Jesse Call, Michael Fanning, B. Clifton Burke, Carly Tamborski Photography/Artwork Aimie Willhoite, Lynne Ausman, Anne Skove, Vinit Murthy, Jon Hughes, Brad Foster Proofreader Jeremy Flannery The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that works to eradicate homelessness in Cincinnati through coordination of services, public education, grassroots advocacy and Streetvibes. �8 STREETVIBES November 1-14, 2010 Column 3 M I N U T E S Considering Advocacy By Margo Pierce Contributing Writer A dvocacy frequently gets a bad rap. Trying to get a specific idea, group of people or posi­ tion heard above the barrage of information flooding our daily lives can appear to be “special treatment” and therefore dismissed as “biased.” This negative label appears to be applied most frequently when an idea, group or position doesn’t have popu­ lar support or challenges the currently accepted norm. The problem is that people are fickle and often contradictory in their tastes, so the accepted stan­ dard frequently changes. There are some long standing – some might say hard-core – beliefs in the United States that leave al­ ternative perspectives fighting hard to be heard and seriously considered. The first that comes to mind is the value of human life. Millions of dollars will be spent to rescue a few dozen people from a mine, a baby who fell down a well or people displaced by a tsunami. We invest a huge amount of money on having fire departments, hospitals, Coast Guard rescues and other emergency responses – available at a moment’s notice – even though the proportion of people served is small. A house fire might involve a few people; and even though car crashes occur every day, the number of people served per crash is usually that large. Why are these people considered worth the effort? It doesn’t matter if the house on fire is a crack house and the people trapped inside are drug deal­ ers – the fire department will respond. It doesn’t matter if human traffickers drive the overturned van on the freeway – law enforcement will still attempt to rescue the driver and the “cargo” of slaves. At the same time, we have a system of laws that punishes some people with the death penalty. We spend an unimaginable amount of money to preserve life and yet we’ve created a system of laws that selectively destroys other lives. This dichotomy isn’t a simple one to unravel but the arbitrary way in which we value and devalue life is an excellent test case for the role of advocacy. Some families who have lost a member as the result of murder – the people closest to the victims, the people who have the most legitimate argument for revenge – are trying to get the death penalty abolished. An argument could be made that they didn’t really care about the victim if they don’t seek revenge, but these families contend the opposite is true. It is because of their love for the life lost that they don’t want to see another life end. The act of forgiveness makes it possible for them to reinforce their belief that the life of their murdered child, par­ ent, aunt or grandmother is valuable. Murder Victims’ Families for Reconciliation (http://www.mvfr.org/) is an example of a minor­ ity voice trying to be heard and actively seeking to change a popular notion – state-sanctioned murder is OK, even necessary. Founded in 1976, Murder Vic­ tims’ Families for Reconciliation (MVFR) describes itself as “a national organization of family members of victims of both homicide and executions who op­ pose the death penalty in all cases. MVFR includes people of many different perspectives. Because violent crime cuts across a broad spectrum of so­ ciety, our members are geographically, racially and economically diverse.” Another groups that’s advocating for change is the Death Penalty Information Center (www.deathpen- Editor Gregory Flannery presents Margo Pierce the Streetvibes Contributor of the Year Award. Bradley Foster. altyinfo.org). This group sums up its argument with two simple sentences: “Vindication for victims and closure for victims’ families are often held out as primary reasons for supporting the death penalty. However, many people in this community believe that another killing would not bring closure and that the death penalty is a disservice to victims.” In Cincinnati, the Intercommunity Justice and Peace Center (www.ijpc-cincinnati.org/) is a long­ standing advocacy group working to abolish the death penalty. The group lobbies elected officials, supports the families of people on Death Row through the Families That Matter program, coordi­ nates a chapter of Ohioans to Stop Executions and leads Murder Victims’ Family Members, a program to help people “search for healing and a restored life.” For 25 years the Intercommunity Justice and Peace Center has served the role of bringing together like-minded people to combine efforts to change the conversation about the death penalty, to take a rational look at the effects of violence perpetrated by government against its own people. It could be argued that their efforts and those of others advocating abolition aren’t very effective. Ac­ cording to the 2009 Gallup Crime Survey, conducted annually, 65 percent of Americans “support the use of the death penalty for persons convicted of mur­ der,” and only 31 percent oppose the death penalty. These numbers have been fairly constant over time. Challenging such an ingrained notion appears to be an uphill effort for such a small number of people, so why bother? Advocacy is a means by which people can bring to light ideas and opportunities for change that might never be considered in the rush to conform. It is through considering challenges to what is popular or assumed to be true that we can examine the valid­ ity of our position, behavior, thinking, etc. Being imperfect beings, we make mistakes but we have the ability to change our thinking, actions and laws. Complacency is easy. It requires no effort. How­ ever, the act of thoughtfully considering an issue, researching it from as many angles as possible (there are always more than two sides to any argument, despite the polarization presented by most news programs), making a decision to act in support of that position and staying open to new information to test your position is the difficult role of advocacy. The next time you dig in your heels and dismiss a view the conflicts with your own, pause long enough to consider how you would respond if your position were the minority and dismissed out of hand. You might not be tempted to pick up a picket sign or even write a check, but if you’re willing to consider alternatives, then the advocate you listened to ac­ complished something important – opening a mind. Many people work hard to make a difference for the less privileged in the Queen City; “Eight Minutes” is an opportunity to learn who those people are and what motivates them to be a positive influence. �4 International News ­ STREETVIBES November 1-14, 2010 Nobel Prize for Chinese Freedom Fighter Liu Xiaobo and Charter 08 demand human rights By Andrew Anderson Contributing Writer N ews headlines were brief­ ly alight a couple weeks ago about the recipients of the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize, Liu Xiaobo and Charter 08. To many Americans, it was noth­ ing more than a curious item to be quickly forgotten. What interest does a Chinese dissident hold in our lives? His name is spelled funny – who would even try to pronounce it? Who has heard of Charter 08, and who cares? President Barack Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2009. We know that name and we celebrated and debated that announcement for weeks. If our consciousness ever recorded the name of this year’s Noble Peace Prize winner, the memory is quickly fading. This is unfortunate, for Liu Xiaobo and what he repre­ sents has arguably more signifi­ cance to human rights and peace than President Obama. “Liu Xiaobo” is three syllables: “LEE-OWE” (pronounced as one syllable) “SHE-OW” (pronounced as one syllable) “BO” (like “boy” with the “y” lopped off ). Chinese names always have the family name or surname first, followed by the given name. Liu is an intellectual, writer, literary critic and human-rights activist. He advocates demo­ cratic reforms and the end of one-party rule in China. Until recently he was better known outside China than inside. The Chinese govern­ ment considers his writing subversive, and his name is censored. Born in 1955, he has a Ph.D. from Beijing Normal Uni­ versity, where he has also taught, and was a visiting scholar between 1988 and 1989 at Columbia University, the University of Oslo and the University of Hawaii, among others. “ ing students to leave, saving hun­ dreds of lives. (“Junzi” was a term coined by the Chinese philosopher Confucius to describe his ideal hu­ man.) Liu was imprisoned for over 18 months in maximum-security Qincheng Prison and released after signing a “letter of repentance” for his involvement in the Tiananmen Square protests. Since 1989 Liu has been ar­ rested four times and when not in prison has been under constant government “monitoring.” This has included building a sentry station next to his home and tapping his phone calls and Internet communi­ cations. Liu’s wife, Xia, once complained to guards in the sentry station, who had blocked her best friend bring­ ing two bottles of wine and a deliv­ ery person bringing a birthday cake for her husband. The guards said, “It is for the sake of your security. It has happened many bomb attacks in these days.” Liu Xiaobo has been arrested for his ideas and words. He has never been violent. He has not threat­ ened to harm anyone or destroy any property. He has criticized the Chinese political system and advocated democracy. He was most recently arrested for helping write “Charter 08.” He was sentenced to 11 years in prison and deprived of political rights for two years. He is serving that sentence in Jinzhou Prison in Liaoning Province. Charter 08 is a manifesto pro­ moting political reform and democ­ ratization in the People’s Republic of China. It was written by “China Human Rights Defenders,” including Liu Xiaobo. Charter 08 es­ pouses six fundamental principles: freedom, human rights, equality, republican­ ism, democracy and constitutional rule. Charter 08 advo­ cates fulfilling these principles by creat­ ing a new constitu­ tion that provides separation of power, legislative democ­ racy, an independent judiciary, public con­ trol of public servants, the guarantee of human rights, election of public officials, rural-urban equal­ ity, freedom of association, freedom of assembly, freedom of expression, freedom of religion, civ­ ic education, protection of private property, financial and tax reform, social security, protection of the environment, a federated republic and truth in reconciliation. The ideas in Charter 08 are not new. Charter 08 takes its name from Charter 77, a key document writ­ ten by intellectuals and activists in the former Czechoslovakia and part Liu was sentenced on Christmas Day in hopes that Western democracies would be too preoccupied to care.” A new constitution Liu was visiting universities in the United States in 1989 when the Tiananmen Square protests erupted. He returned to China to join the movement and was later named one of the “Four junzis of Tiananmen Square” for persuad­ of the democracy movement led by Vaclav Havel in the late 1970s. Charter 08 draws on Charter 77 as well as the U.S. Constitution, the French Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen, the Universal Declaration Human Rights of the United Nations, South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the Constitution of the People’s Republic of China. ‘Root out the organizers’ The China Human Rights De­ fenders started discussing and drafting Charter 08 in late spring 2008. Chinese authorities did not pay much attention at that time. Things quickly changed, however, days before the charter was pub­ lished. On Dec. 6, 2008, police in eastern China detained Wen Kejian, a writer who signed the charter, questioned him for about an hour. Police told Wen that Charter 08 was “differ­ ent” from other dissident writings. They considered it “a fairly grave matter” and promised an aggres­ sive investigation to “root out the organizers.” They pressed Wen to remove his name from the charter. He declined, citing his belief that the charter was a turning point in history. On Dec. 8, in the far south of China, police called Zhao Dagong, a writer who had signed the char­ ter, for a “chat.” They asked if he were the organizer for signatures gathered in southern China. At ap­ proximately 11 p.m. about 20 police officers entered the home of Zhang Zuhua, another of the charter’s main drafters. Zhang was taken to the police station and questioned for over 12 hours. Zhang’s wife watched the po­ lice search their home, confiscate books, notebooks, Zhang’s pass­ port, all four of the family’s com­ puters and all their cash and credit cards. Later Zhang learned that his family’s bank accounts, including those of both his and his wife’s par­ ents, had been emptied. Late that day, Liu Xiaobo was taken to jail. The next morning one of the charter’s signers, Pu Zhiqiang, a Beijing lawyer, was called in for a police “chat.” In the evening, physi­ cist and philosopher Jiang Qisheng was called into the police station. Both had signed the charter and were friends of its authors. Charter 08 was published Dec. 10, 2008, the 60th anniversary of the United Nation’s Universal Dec­ laration of Human Rights. Police returned to Wen Kejian’s home of and threatened him with imprisonment if he wrote about Charter 08 or Liu Xiaobo’s arrest. They asked, “Do you want three years in prison – or four?” Liu, detained in December 2008, was not formally arrested until June Liu Xiaobo is serving 11 years in prison for “subversion.” Courtesy of Amnesty International. 23, 2009. Police released a state­ ment: “Liu has been engaged in agitation activities, such as spread­ ing of rumors and defaming of the government, aimed at subversion of the state and overthrowing the socialism system, in recent years.” On Dec. 23, 2009, Liu was tried for two hours in a closed court­ room. His wife, Xia, was not allowed to be present, though his brotherin-law was. Diplomats from more than a dozen nations, including the United States, Great Britain, Canada, Sweden, Australia and New Zealand, were denied access and stood outside the courtroom wait­ ing for the verdict. Liu was sentenced on Christmas Day in hopes that Western democ­ racies would be too preoccupied to care. The Chinese government convicted him of “subversion”; but as Liu said, “Opposition is not equivalent to subversion.” ‘This must change’ Dissidents asking for reform in China are nothing new. China’s one-party political system of “democratic dictatorship” is one of the more repressive modern states. So why did Charter 08 have such a strong response from Chinese authorities? While it is impossible to know for sure, there are a few things that make Charter 08 different: • The language of the charter is simple and eloquent in its expres­ sion of noble ideas. • It has broad appeal, coalesc­ ing what many Chinese have been thinking. It appeals equally to peas­ ants and former party members and has been signed by Chinese citizens from all walks of life. • Intellectuals within the society, not politicians or young radicals, are putting it forth. • Internet use and infrastructure have grown enough within China that copies of Charter 08 are avail­ able and discussion about it is pos­ sible, though difficult due to cen­ sorship. The primary site hosting the charter and associated discus­ sions was “attacked” via computer and shut down Oct. 14 and is still See Nobel, P. 6 �5 Columns STREETVIBES November 1-14, 2010 Meeting the Bible Verse Man ­ Thinking about being homeless By Larry Gross Guest Columnist I ’m in downtown Cincinnati on most mornings now, going to a freelance job in Northern Kentucky; and on most mornings, I see him while I’m waiting at the bus stop. You can tell he’s probably homeless; that’s the way he appears to me. His black hair is uncombed, his white face badly in need of a shave and his clothes are basically rags. His shoes used to be shoes. Now I’d consider them heavy, dirty socks. He doesn’t smell good and his eyes look a little crazy – not mean, just a little off. There is something else different about him, something that makes you take notice when you see him. Pinned to his rag of a shirt, with safety pins, are small index cards with handwritten Bible verses on them. The verses are in black – I think with a marker – and he’s wearing six to 10 of them on most mornings. No, I don’t read the Bible verses he has pinned to himself. I don’t want him to think I’m paying attention to him. He approaches people for money, but so far not me. Every time I see him – and I’m not sure why – my mind turns to myself. I wonder what my approach would be to being homeless and living on the street. This man wears Bible verses pinned to himself. Others sit on corners with cardboard signs asking for help. Some simply have a paper cup, assuming you know they need money. Some take it to the streets, preaching the word of God to anybody who will listen. A few sing to get a few coins. More than a few ask for a cigarette, perhaps to test the water before asking for money. Some offer Streetvibes for a donation of a dollar. I don’t know what my approach would be, but I think about being homeless more than I care to admit. Sometimes I look in my wallet on a Monday morning and see 20 bucks, realizing it’s going to have to last me until Friday when that freelance check should come in the mail. So often it doesn’t. Often I think to myself that family and friends would never let me live on the street but I take little comfort in that. Living off handouts doesn’t appeal to me, especially from people I love. Maybe it’s easier to ask strangers. Maybe someday I’ll be forced to find out. While I don’t know how I could handle being homeless, all I know for sure is that I’d be scared, actually scared to death. I don’t know if I could survive and don’t know if I would want to. I don’t know what would keep me strong and want to carry on. Maybe the man with the Bible verses pinned to his shirt has found a way to find strength through them. Maybe for him it’s important to write those verses. Maybe it’s encouraging to wear them and think about their meaning. I mean, when you’re homeless, few people are on your side. Perhaps to him, if no one else is in your corner, God is. I’m thinking when he wears those Bible verses pinned to his shirt, it’s probably comforting to look up at the heavens instead of looking down at a cold, lonely sidewalk. Those Darned Facts Trump Section 8 Myths ­ The ‘projects’ aren’t what you think By Michelle Dillingham Contributing Writer A t my neighborhood’s com­ munity council meeting last week I had the oppor­ tunity to provide some affordablehousing advocacy. Our neighborhood police officer was updating the group about a multi-family property in our neigh­ borhood that had been recently vacated and is now undergoing ren­ ovation. The officer reported there had been residents who had lived there for over 20 years, but recently a new group of younger renters had moved in and created problems. The building also suffered a bedbug infestation. The officer said there was a lot of “Section 8” there and now the landlord hopes to rent to “working families” instead. When he finished, I addressed the group and said, “I noticed the officer made a distinction between ‘Section 8’ and ‘working families,’ yet many people who use Section 8 vouchers ARE working families. Sometimes there are problems, but they can be attributed to a number of factors. It is important to not just blame it on people who use Sec­ tion 8. I just wanted to let everyone know that.” I got a nice nod from a couple of the residents and one of the fire­ men from the local firehouse. I felt pretty good about myself for a moment, then regretted that I did not have more solid numbers at the tip of my tongue to make my point more persuasive. Fortunately, Elizabeth Brown, president of Affordable Housing Advocates (AHA), recently shared a link on the AHA Listserv to the U.S. Department of Housing (HUD) website, which includes detailed information on Housing Choice Voucher programs. If you go to this link, you can view information on all of Ohio’s public housing authori­ ties all the way down to the project level. The information includes race, ethnicity, income and source of income, household size and length of stay. The Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority (CMHA) is the largest landlord of affordable hous­ ing in Cincinnati. In fact, CMHA has such an important role in our local affordable-housing landscape that AHA has included it as one of the five areas of focus in its Policy Agenda for 2010. It is worthwhile to note AHA’s specific advocacy goals in relation to CMHA, many of which are being actively worked on by AHA’s members: • CMHA will increase public and other affordable rental hous­ ing throughout Hamilton County, including increasing the number of accessible units to better meet the need. • CMHA will fully utilize its cur­ rent funds for the Housing Choice Voucher program, obtain additional funds from HUD, and assist pro­ gram participants obtain housing in neighborhoods of their choice. • CMHA will improve the effec­ tiveness, efficiency and safety of the Housing Choice Voucher program to make it work better for tenants and landlords. • CMHA will begin to redevelop the English Woods site with mixedincome rental and homeowner housing. • CMHA will select an executive director committed to and capable of accomplishing CMHA’s mission. • Local Government appoint­ ing authorities will appoint CMHA board members who are dedicated to CMHA’s mission. There are many assumptions made about people who live in sub­ sidized housing, and a data source such as the one HUD provides can help to bring some reality to the discussion of the Section 8 program and the site-based voucher users (i.e., “projects”). For example, you can find out that in the Millvale housing project, 38 percent of the residents have been there less than one year, 32 percent of the residents work and 16 percent have Social Security or a pension. Here are the usual negative comments I have heard about the CMHA program or about people who live in CMHA units, followed by data available on the HUD web­ site: • “There is too much Section 8” or “There are too many ‘projects’ in Cincinnati.” Reality? CMHA man­ ages a total of 4,628 units. • “People who have Section 8 or live in projects don’t work.” Real­ ity? 28 percent work and 44 percent receive Social Security or a pension – meaning they worked at one time, enough to earn credits to be able to receive Social Security or a pension. • “The people who live in CMHA housing are just lazy young people with too many kids.” Reality? Fourteen percent are elderly, and 21 percent are disabled. A full 47 percent of CMHA units have a single occupant, meaning they have no children. Another 22 percent of all units have only two household members. This means 69 percent of CMHA households have two or fewer members in their household. • “Once someone moves into CMHA, they never move out.” Real­ ity? 43 percent of households have lived in a CMHA unit for less than two years, while 22 percent have lived in a CMHA unit for two to five years. The main staple of effective advocacy is accurate data to help combat stereotypes and misinfor­ mation. I encourage housing advo­ cates to utilize this information as you sit in your community council meetings, work lunches and even at the kitchen table. Knowledge is power. For more information, visit https://pic.hud.gov/pic/RCRPub­ lic/rcrmain.asp. To join AHA or its listserv, write mdmswlsw@hotmail. com. �6 Issues STREETVIBES November 1-14, 2010 Eat Your Food Where it’s Grown ­ The value of buying local By Sarah Robinson Contributing Writer T here has been some considerable buzz the past few years about “local food movements” and “buy local” campaigns. The First Lady has an organic garden, Michael Pollan has appeared on Oprah and you might have seen some “Ohio Proud” stickers at the grocery store. Why is this important? Buying local means reduced petroleum consumption. The Dalai food you buy at the grocery store, on average, travels 1,000 miles from where it is produced and processed to where it shows up on the shelf. All that transportation, not to mention refrigeration, has contributed to the food system’s accounting for onefifth of total energy use in America. Buying local is good for your neighborhood’s economy. Money spent on local products at locally owned businesses is re-circulated into the community. Local farmers tend to hire local workers and to buy most of their supplies and equipment at other local businesses, so what is spent in Road-trip produce is picked for its ease of transport and its appearance, not its genetic diversity, nutrition or taste. Because of the prevalence of this kind of produce in our markets, the seeds of thousands of different kinds of individual vegetables and fruits have been lost. Farmers can only grow a select few species, hybridized, genetically modified and selectively bred to withstand the transport. Buying local is not just for produce. It can impact everything you eat, even your cereal and potato chips. They not only have been shipped a thousand miles after being processed, but all the individual ingredients that make up that box of cereal or that bag of chips have to get to the factory first. That can add another couple hundred or thousand miles, considering how many ingredients make up the final product. These factors are not going unnoticed by people all over this country. When food is bought locally, it has a positive impact on the whole community. The environment, the food itself, the economy and most of all people themselves all benefit. Continued from page 1 “I did ask the State Dept. if I could forward contact info. to you and they declined. This is the short e-mail I first got: ‘The criminal history checks revealed the two following people will NOT be allowed to access any venue: “(One other name) “Greg Flannery (Media/Press List).’ ” This was partly useful. I now knew that I wasn’t alone: Someone else had also been denied entry. I phoned Wagner again. She told me only that the second person is “not a media person.” “I hope you understand I’m just the conduit on this,” she said. Streetvibes has filed a public-records request for the uncensored e-mail, containing both the name of the sec­ ond person who was banned and the name of the State Department official who sent it. With less than a week before the Da­ lai Lama’s appearance, I called Wagner to ask if Streetvibes could send a differ­ ent writer. The answer was no. “The State Dept. deadline will not allow any changes/additions of me­ dia,” she wrote. Getting nowhere with Miami Uni­ versity, I called the U.S. State Depart­ ment. I reached James J. Finkle, public affairs officer for the Bureau of Diplo­ matic Security, on Mon., Oct. 18. He promised to look into it. Nobel your town stays in your town. Buying local means that your produce is more likely to be picked when it is fresh – especially if you go to your local farmers market – which means it is more nutritious and better for you. Produce is often fragile when ripe and is susceptible to bruising and rotting, which makes 1,000­ mile road trips very difficult. Fruits and vegetables are picked before they are ripe and then sprayed with ethylene, a chemical that forces ripening, so, for example, that roadweary tomato is nice and red when you go to buy it. Buying local means farmers can grow more diverse crops. This yielded some improvement. Wagner left a phone message later that day. “I just got off the phone with the State Department,” she said. “They’re willing to take another reporter for Streetvibes.” ‘Are you going to demonstrate?’ Still unresolved, of course, was the reason behind all this: Why did the Diplomatic Security Bureau of the U.S. State Department want me kept away from the Dalai Lama? In 2009 I wrote an article in which some Buddhists criticized him for violating other Bud­ dhists’ freedom of religion (see “Rejoic­ ing Against Oppression,” issue of Sept. 15-30, 2009). Could that be it? My only criminal conviction is for trespassing, the result of a non-violent anti-war demonstration in 2006. Could that be it? A call Tuesday, Oct. 19, from Special Agent Ken Jones seemed to leave both possibilities open. “Have you ever had any police trouble?” Jones asked. I told him about my trespassing conviction. “Are you going to demonstrate against the Dalai Lama?” he asked. “No,” I said. “I just want to report on his speech.” “Demonstrations are fine, but a press pass isn’t the best way to go about that,” he said. “I just want to report on the Dalai Lama’s speech,” I said. “As far as demonstrations go, we’re ordinarily not in the business of discouraging them, but a press pass would put someone much closer to the Dalai Lama, and you can under­ stand why a security person would be concerned,” Jones said. “I just want to report on the Dalai Lama’s speech,” I said. Jones then asked if Streetvibes could send another reporter. I told him we could. “Someone will get back to you soon,” he said. I asked the reason I had been banned. “I don’t know the specifics of that, and very frankly, if I did, I would prob­ ably not be allowed to tell you that,” Jones said. I don’t know what changed the State Department’s mind, but that night I received a phone message and e-mail from Wagner. She forwarded the fol­ lowing e-mail from the State Depart­ ment: “Claire, Headquarters has ap­ proved Mr. Flannery for a media press pass for Wednesday’s events. Please contact him to let him know.” Thus I reported, as instructed, at 8 Continued from page 3 down as of this writing. Liu and Charter 08 have become symbols of the struggle for a more humane and democratic China. The authorities quickly recognized this and acted to squelch the movement. In doing so, they ironically made sure the cry was heard. The Nobel Committee made the world at large aware of Liu Xiaobo and Charter 08 this year. The committee stated, “(We have) decided to award the Nobel Peace Prize for 2010 to Liu Xiaobo for his long and non-violent struggle for fundamental human rights in China. The Norwegian Nobel Committee has long believed that there is a close connection between human rights and peace. Such rights are a prerequisite for the ‘fraternity between nations’ of which Alfred Nobel wrote in his will.” We should not quickly forget Liu Xiaobo and Charter 08. They represent a move toward a freer and more humane life for the nation with the largest population on earth. They need our help to succeed. Liu Xiaobo and the authors of Charter 08 summarize the situation this way: “Unfortunately, we stand today as the only country among the major nations that remains mired in authoritarian politics. Our political system continues to produce human-rights disasters and social crises, thereby not only constricting China’s own development but also limiting the progress of all of human civilization. This must change, truly it must. The democratization of Chinese politics can be put off no longer.” To view the full text of Charter 08, sign a copy of the charter and learn more about Liu Xiaobo and the human rights movement in China, visit www.charter08. com. a.m. Thursday, Oct. 21, to attend the private session with the 14th Dalai Lama, at Hall Auditorium at Miami University. I was told to arrive 90 minutes early for the 9:30 a.m. session in order to pass security. Police officers were everywhere in sight. So was a metal detector. When it came time to enter, there was no press badge for me. One of Wagner’s staff handed me a badge and said, “Here. You’re Eric Frisbee.” And that’s how I got in. You’ll want to know what the Dalai Lama had to say, and I wish I could tell you. After the president of the univer­ sity presented an honorary doctorate of laws, the chief of the Miami Tribe in Oklahoma spoke, followed by a chorus singing the tribe’s welcome song, fol­ lowed by a presentation by three pro­ fessors touting the university’s efforts to preserve Tibetan culture, including a digital sand mandala, a Web page teaching the Tibetan language and a Web page containing important Ti­ betan texts. At that point I had to leave in order to hurry to a noon meeting in Cincinnati. But I heard the Dalai Lama say this much: “Have a compassionate attitude – openness.” I’m trying. Openness remains the is­ sue. I’m still waiting for Miami Univer­ sity to comply with our public-records request. �7 Sports STREETVIBES November 1-14, 2010 The Death Watch is All the Bengals Have Mike Brown has to go at some point By B. Clifton Burke Contributing Writer M y optimism has faded, my apologies run dry, my hopes dashed. What was once a blooming plant of excitement and pride is now wilted, browned and angrily tossed near the compost heap. I would set it atop the rest of the rotting vegetation, but following after it simply isn’t worth the effort. In his recent press conference, Marvin Lewis has once more invoked the spirit of the metaphorical shovel – the layman’s tool that represents a hardworking and unglamorous lifestyle for his players – but the only thing I can imagine worth using a shovel for these days is to fling out the bullshit stacked in and around Paul Brown Stadium. After carelessly handing away the game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Oct. 10, there is no more defense for the various tiers of helpless leadership within the Bengals organization. At the very top sits the head villain himself, Mike Brown. Here is a man who has made it clear he is unwavering in the way he runs his business even as it persists to perform in unremarkable fashion. He has also proven he cares little about Cincinnati and eagerly awaits the day that he can once more threaten the townspeople into paying him even more of their tax money. He hides behind a shroud of redemption, pointing to the careers he’s resuscitated as feel-good tales of second chances and marginal wins. In reality, the people he has helped come at bargain prices, and that is the real motivation behind all the signings of troubled young men. When it works – and admittedly it has in many cases – he is touted as some kind of humanitarian, but what is conveniently overlooked is that 31 other teams need not stoop to problem children in order to win. There will come a day when I can no longer root for a Mike Brown team with a good conscience, knowing how unjustly he has served the city in which I reside. I expect that day to present itself once the current stadium lease ends or Brown sues Hamilton County for not paying him the promised money it simply doesn’t have. He will not back down because he simply doesn’t care. He is out for himself. Subhead: Short satisfaction Next in the pecking order is the team’s president and general manager. Oh, wait, there isn’t one. This unorthodox approach saves Brown money and allows his ego to think he has lived up to the standard of his father, who was able to successfully work as both team owner and general manager simultaneously. If there’s one “ thing Brown seems unable to grasp, it is that he does not have his father’s football instinct; and this delusion has kept the team from being serious contenders. One can only hope that that number is soon coming to an end. Somewhere in the flowchart is his daughter and her husband, Katie and Troy Blackburn, who hammer out details over contracts with player agents and end up either missing out on high-profile free agents (Warren Sapp) or prolonging rookie holdouts (seemingly everyone except Carson Palmer). The value of both of their positions remains something of a mystery, and the likelihood of this tandem turning around the team for the better once Brown finally dies seems overly optimistic. The fact that they are younger is the only hope for a brighter Bengals future, but considering the family lineage, sometimes you just have to call a scrooge a scrooge. Next up is a person with some football sense, Coach Marvin Lewis. During the Mike Brown era, there have been two distinct time periods: before Marvin and after Marvin. There’s no point on rehashing the dark ages of Dave Shula, Bruce Coslet and Dick LeBeau. But since Marvin has been in Cincinnati, the Bengals have gone from inept to competitive. That alone is a feat when examining the misery that came before him. That feat has a fairly quick expiration of satisfaction. Once fans see a team become competitive, they want more right away, and that is what Lewis has struggled to attain. Marvin has a good eye for talent and runs a pretty sound operation. He knows what an NFL team should look like, and most of his men seem to buy into it as well. However, the man is an inadequate game manager on the sidelines and doesn’t seem to have the ability to instruct players well enough individually to produce much of an improvement in their development. Once a player joins the Bengals, he typically remains that kind of player until he leaves the team. They rarely get worse, but they also don’t get better. Putting Marvin upstairs next to Brown and making him a general manager makes sense, but I don’t think that will happen. Lewis wants more personnel decision-making power and an indoor practice facility; that would mean Brown would have to concede some of his ego and more of his money. I think this might be the last of Marvin Lewis in this town once the 2010 season wraps up, and that’s a shame. Subhead: Continuing sting Who’s next then? Most Bengal fans point to Mike Zimmer. Not only is Zim At the very top sits the head villain himself, Mike Brown. Here is a man who has made it clear he is unwavering in the way he runs his business even as it persists to perform in unremarkable fashion.” * Monday, Nov. 8, 2010, 8:30 p.m. vs Pittsburgh Steelers * Sunday, Nov. 14, 2010, 1 p.m. at Indianapolis Colts * Sun, Nov. 21 at 1 p.m. vs Buffalo Bills * Thursday, Nov. 25, 2010, 8:20 p.m. at New York Jets at Jets * Sunday, Dec. 5, 2010, 1 p.m. vs New Orleans Saints * Sunday, Dec. 12, 2010, 1 p.m. at Pittsburgh Steelers at Steelers * Sunday, Dec. 19, 2010, 1 p.m. vs Cleveland Browns * Sunday, Dec. 26, 2010, 8:20 p.m. vs San Diego Chargers * Sunday, Jan. 02, 2011, 1 p.m. at Baltimore Ravens a fan favorite, thanks to his turning around a bad defense in a short time and persevering through the unexpected death of his wife last year; he also has the undying loyalty of his men. That isn’t as pervasive a sentiment in the NFL as maybe it should be these days. With mediocre players performing for him at overachieving levels, it makes sense that fans would want that to translate into the whole team. The problem, though, is that it would mean removing Zimmer from what he’s best at – coaching defense. Let’s not forget the examples of LeBeau and even Marvin, making a great coordinator into a poor or average head coach. With today’s game, the head coach can be more of an overseeing cheerleader who manages the game and the clock well and need not worry about the X’s and O’s as much – that’s what coordinators are for. Of course, it isn’t that simple, but not every great position coach makes a good head coach, so caution is in order. The longest-standing figurehead with the Bengals is the offensive coordinator, Bob Bratkowski, who, after the evil emperor himself, has earned the title of least-liked sports figure in Cincinnati. Between squandering loads of offensive talent and constant bewildered play-calling, Brat should be thankful he coaches here, because in every other part of the world he would have been fired. In the loss to the Buccaneers, and even some of the wins this year, he has demonstrated further ineptitude in leading this offense to the heights it’s capable of. Bashing this man has become too easy, but somehow he keeps it from happening nearly each and every week. His star pupil and gem of a talent for the past eight seasons has been the golden boy, Quarterback Carson Palmer. Despite convincing the world otherwise thanks to one great season, Palmer should be labeled as nothing more than average. The comparisons to Drew Bledsoe continue to hold up. Carson has been insulated with numerous excuses as to why he hasn’t performed the way he did in 2005. It seems that the majority of the world would rather find any other reason than to admit that maybe he just isn’t that good. Yes, he has suffered some injuries, but other great quarterbacks have as well, only to return as greats. Yes, he at times has lacked explosive weapons, but the same response goes for the great ones again. There aren’t better quarterbacks on the street right now that should supplant No. 9 this week or even this season; but if this franchise continues to pretend he is as good as it gets, they will fall further and further behind. Perhaps he has become complacent with no quarterback to compete for his job, perhaps he feels his average play still justifies his immense contract; but the fact is he has slid each and every year away from that once heralded “elite” plateau. Thinking there is still room for improvement in his skills is naïve. I want the Bengals to succeed. I want to know what it feels like to have my team win the Super Bowl. I want to feel satisfied for six whole months; but with these men currently in their places, I am dubious that will ever happen. This franchise has reached its critical mass, and unless a major change in the power structure takes place, I think we will continue to feel the sting. I can feel it all slipping away. Mojokong – somebody’s got to say it, and since I don’t get paid for this, allow me to be the one. �I 22~..fNUAL PIN~~~~~@~~ @LTD{}~®[?)~ . - For questions orto becottte a sponsor Greater Cincinnati _______ co_ ma _ct _~_ vn_n_ e A_us_ttt_ an_(_ Sl_ ~J~6_ 5_ -6_ 95_ 8 _ __,,,C.._o__ __.alition _. Eor �STREETVIBES November 1-14, 2010 March 9 Local News ­ Continued from page 1 stealing, low-income afford­ able housing and people power,” said Josh Spring, executive director of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. “We want more than just awareness. We demand change. This march gives the opportunity to demand change and oth­ ers the opportunity to learn why we need change.” Burton, who was home­ less, died after a police cruis­ er ran over her as she lay in the grass in Washington Park. No charges were filed against the officer who killed her. Each night in Cincinnati 1,200 to 1,500 people are homeless or staying in emer­ gency shelters, according to Spring, who estimates that at least 25,000 sleep in home­ less shelters in Cincinnati every year. The 150 marchers in­ cluded low-income fami­ lies, high-income families, suburban residents, Over­ the-Rhine residents, college students, disabled young adults, able-bodied elders and people from several eth­ nic backgrounds. Handmade signs, T-shirts and sheets carried messages such as, “Stop the war on the poor,” “End the 3CDC occupation,” “Living wage jobs,” “Gentri­ fication is a crime,” “Homes not hotels” and “I’m home­ less. If I sleep on the grass, will you kill me, too?” Rebecca Davis, who works at the temporary service CFA, brought her daughter and granddaughter to the march. “I’m not homeless, but I’m like one paycheck away from being homeless,” she said. “I’m marching today because I believe that homeless people don’t have a chance. I don’t want my daughter or granddaughter to grow up and be homeless. It’s that I actually see the homeless people sleep­ ing outside. I wake up at 3:30 in the morning, the bus picks me up and people are just sleeping outside at the Shell station.” “ Josh Spring, executive director of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless, addresses a rally before the Homeless Awareness March. Vinit Murthy. ture Gateway Quarter office. Gateway Quarter is the new name for the “revitalized” parts of Over-the-Rhine, the Fountain Square District and the central business district that feature new or reno­ vated storefronts, condos or lofts. Spectators and passersby reacted to the march with cheers, claps and whistles. Shop owners went onto the sidewalks to shout words of encouragement. The third stop, the future 3CDC headquarters at 1400 Race St., brought attention to the company that many believe is behind the gentri­ fication of Over-the-Rhine. The fourth stop on the march, Washington Park, might just be the most af­ fordable “housing” in the city. With shady trees and benches aplenty, the park is a commonplace for homeless people to socialize and sleep. 3CDC is renovating the park at a cost of $47 million. The overhaul disregards the wishes of the neigh­ borhood and will make the park inhospitable to home­ less people, according to the Homeless Coalition. Clark, a homeless man who declined to give his last name, sat on the steps of the gazebo, which was being used as a makeshift clothes line, and watched the marchers move through the park. He declined to go into detail about the cause of his homelessness. “I’ve been homeless for about 16 years now,” he said. “The only history I got is a criminal history. Why I’m marching today because I believe that homeless people don’t have a chance.” ‘Whatever you can do’ Buddy’s Place, the start­ ing line, provides permanent supportive housing for 20 people who are coming out of homelessness. The sec­ ond stop was 1428 Republic St., an apartment building offering affordable hous­ ing, where tenants recently received notice to move out for the building’s renovation. Ironically, this building is across the street from the fu­ are these people acting like homelessness has just become an issue? The same thing they’re fighting for now we fought for 16 years ago, but now that they’re moving people out of the park and Over-the-Rhine, it’s like it’s only just become important now. … “To get by, some people cell cigs for a quarter. There are only two ways of get­ ting paid in this world: the legal way and the illegal way, but Washington Park is still harmony; it’s the only place in the city you can come that won’t make you feel bad for having nothing. You steal, rob, whatever you can do to survive or make a livin’. ” Other stops included the Drop Inn Center; the former site of the Milner Hotel, 151 W. Seventh St., an affordable housing complex that once provided overflow for public shelters, now the location of upscale condos; and the Dennison Hotel, which has 150 units of single-room occupancy. Model Manage­ ment, which recently pur­ chased the building, plans to remove all the tenants and convert the building into 60 units of permanent sup­ portive housing. That kind of housing is beneficial, but 90 units of affordable housing will be lost, Spring said. Why couldn’t Model Management develop these 60 units in one of the many buildings already vacant downtown? The march then proceed­ ed to the Metropole Apart­ ments, notable for two rea­ sons. 3CDC has purchased the Metropole and is forcing out residents of the feder­ ally subsidized apartments in order to build a boutique hotel (see “3CDC Accused of Racial Conspiracy,” issue of Sept. 1-14). In addition, just steps from the Metropole entrance, Robert Meehan was beaten so badly that doctors had to place him in a medically induced coma – one of a series of hate crimes against homeless people in Cincinnati in the past year. ‘All I got’ As the march moved toward Fountain Square, reactions from onlookers changed from cheers to stares. Outdoor diners were curious about the approach­ ing mass, and stood up to read the signs. At Cadillac Ranch, a man read the signs aloud to a young boy, who asked what was going on. Organizers of the march hoped their actions might provoke a reaction from 3CDC, Gateway Quarter and other downtown interests, but they seemed to ignore the event, unresponsive to the demonstration and phone calls. At Fountain Square, Spring asked for volunteers to dis­ tribute copies of Streetvibes, risking arrest in an act of non-violent civil disobedi­ ence. A city ordinance and rules established by 3CDC, which has the manage­ ment contract for Fountain Square, forbid regular dis­ tribution of the newspaper there. About three dozen volun­ teers distributed copies of Streetvibes. No police officers or 3CDC security personnel were on the square, even though – or because – 3CDC had been informed of the plan in advance. “We intend to continue challenging the unjust laws and rules that prevent our vendors from distribut­ ing Streetvibes on Fountain Square,” said Gregory Flan­ nery, editor of the paper and a participant in the march. The only people who seemed to mind the stunt on Fountain Square were a wed­ ding party that arrived at the same time for photos. Kenny Bussell said he hopes this is the first step in eliminating the ban. Bussell now stays at his brother’s house. He became a Streetvibes vendor about a year ago, when he was homeless. “It helps me every day, gives me a few bucks so I don’t have to ask for some­ thing to eat,” he said. Bussell, who turned 50 on Oct. 25, distributes Streetvibes for four to five hours a day. From 8-10 a.m. he is usually be spotted outside the Kenton County Court­ house in Covington, then stands by the Walgreens store on Madison Avenue for a couple hours. He rode his bike throughout the march. “I try to take care of my myself on my own, without friends or family,” Bussell said. “I raise tomatoes, and they are $2 a pound. My tomatoes ran out about three weeks ago, and people even started stealing them, so Streetvibes is really all I got right now.” 3CDC, Model Manage­ ment and the people be­ hind Gateway Quarter do have imaginative ideas to bring money to downtown, and they create beautiful structures. But should a city reflect what one company wants? What type of people will make up the “new” down­ town? Clark, the homeless man in the park, thinks he knows. “The future people of downtown are the ones with money,” he said. “You got to have money. The schools, buildings, shops – all that stuff is multi-million dol­ lar things in the works. You gotta have money in the park now.” �10 Arts STREETVIBES November 1-14, 2010 The Dance of Class Consciousness ­ ‘Sleeping Beauty’ in the hood By Lea Ottenheimer Contributing Writer I n 2004 I became hooked on a reality show, like so many oth­ ers in the United States. I felt a certain amount of guilt about buying in to the American craze for this genre, but I think that this show, So You Think You Can Dance, had a redeeming qual­ ity that the other reality shows did not: it made experiencing the art form of dance something the general public could enjoy. Now, there are many people who seek out dance performances who would not have done so before the show aired. I am one of those people. Unfortunately, tickets to most dance performances remain out of my fi­ nancial range, especially tickets to the ballet. I can honestly say that I didn’t think I liked ballet before I watched my first pas de deux on the show, but because So You Think You Can Dance sparked my interest in this classic art form, I decided to seek out local dance performances to attend. I attended my very first ballet Oct. 23. It was Sleeping Beauty, performed by the Cincinnati Ballet Company. As I had so little experience going to the ballet, I brought a friend who had been to a number of performances so I could compare my observations to the performances she has seen. It was my friend, Jen, who had first introduced me to So You Think You Can Dance, so as a fellow dance lover , she seemed the perfect choice for my evening’s companion. The performance was at Cincin­ nati’s Music Hall, a massive and ornate 19th-century building which is across an old cobbled street from Washing­ ton Park, which the city is attempting to reclaim from the Over-the-Rhine residents for the type of people with whom I would be watching the ballet – those who can afford tickets to perfor­ mances at Music Hall. Music Hall still sits in the center of what many would term a “ghetto.” Jen and I walked two blocks through Over-the-Rhine from a parking meter on Central Avenue to Music Hall. It was a warm, dry night, and many people were out sitting outside on stoops. I felt I had been transported to Dickens’s London, where the wealthy picked their way through dirty streets and dirty faces, trying to pretend not to see any of it, as they headed for a type of entertainment those around them could never afford to enjoy. Even my friend clutched my arm and stuck close to me, afraid of all the scary poor people we were walking past. Much to her relief, we made it to the upperclass sanctuary without loss of life and limb, and she hurried up the steps with me following more slowly and painfully as I had borrowed a pair of high-heeled shoes so I could try and look like I belonged to the group of people who frequent Music Hall. I’ve learned from experience how hard it is to remain an incognito ob­ server at an upper-class function when wearing sneakers or combat boots. We had very good seats, right up close to the stage in the second row, and I had every expectation of being swept away by the performance – like Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman, when Richard Gere takes her to the opera for the first time. Of course, since reality always ends up being different from fantasy, I wasn’t swept away, though I did enjoy the performance. It’s slightly embarrassing, but I found myself fighting to stay awake a couple times. I think the problem was that I love stories; and in a ballet, much of the performance has very little to do with the progression of the narrative. In the last act, the wedding scene, where we were promised a pas de deux from Sleeping Beauty and her prince, I was very much surprised by four of the wedding guests. First a pair of cats, a female dancer dressed as a white Persian and a male dancer dressed as a cat I can only assume was meant to be Puss in Boots, danced a very funny routine that made everyone laugh. Then Little Red Riding Hood was chased around the stage by her Big Bad Wolf. When I asked Jen what she thought about the other fairy tale char­ acter’s crashing Sleeping Beauty’s wed­ ding, she said, “Well they had to figure out something to fill up the fourth act since the wedding scene took only five minutes.” I thought that was very fine reasoning. The other thing that puzzled me was that, after a dancer or couple or group of dancers finished their solo or dance, the audience would clap and the dancer/dancers would bow to the audience. They would sometimes even go off the stage and then come back on just to take their bows. Jen told me she hadn’t seen that in other ballets and was also puzzled by it. However, the audience seemed to know when they were supposed to applaud. Some even applauded after particularly brilliant or astounding dance moves. Every now and then it made me think I was at a tennis match. The performance as a whole was re­ ally wonderful. The skill level of those dancers, especially Sleeping Beauty and her Prince, was astonishing. I was blown away by what those dancers could do; and it is much to their credit that I paid more attention to what was happening on stage than to the type of people who made up the audience, which is where my interest usually lies at this type of function. Much to my surprise, after all the pains and care I took putting together my ensemble for the evening, there were a few people in the audience not dressed up. There were even a few faces of color present, though all belonged to well-dressed people. Of those few wearing jeans, I supposed that there were some who felt secure about their wealth and status and so felt free to show up looking however they wanted, while those of us who felt less secure, or who knew just how out of place we were, made much more of an effort to appear as though we belonged. I am glad I was inspired to seek out a local dance performance and do my part to show support for the art form. However, the experience as a whole only served to remind me of the class war going on downtown. Jen and I went out to smoke a cigarette during intermission with many other audience members, and I felt utterly ridiculous standing on the steps in my borrowed feathers watching fellow members of the audience look out nervously past the 10 or so police of­ ficers providing an armed guard to the shadowy figures moving around in the park across the street or sitting on the stoops down the block. I was amazed that the Cincinnati Police Department could spare so many officers to stand in front of Music Hall for four hours to make sure no “unsavory characters” got too close. It made me wonder if they would even have allowed me to ascend the stairs if I were wearing my usual street clothes. As much as I enjoyed the perfor­ mance of the Cincinnati Ballet Com­ pany, I don’t think I’ll be attending an­ other ballet any time soon, at least in this city. There are quite a few people, I know, who can enjoy themselves even if their enjoyment is bought at the cost of the comfort and liberty of others. The British Empire was forged by just such people, as were the Roman and Greek empires before that. I, however, am not one of those types of people, and I’m OK with that. When the Crazy Old Man Talks ­ See ‘Get Low’ for the acting By Brian O’Donnell Contributing Writer W ith a cast of headlin­ ers, Get Low relies on the shine of its star power to move an otherwise slug­ gish tale. Set in the 193’s during the Great Depression, Get Low is the story of a hermit viewed by his town as a cantankerous curmudgeon. It seems everyone in this town has a story to tell about Robert Duvall’s character; the gossip from towns­ folk paints a picture of him that matches his grizzled visage. Part comedy, part mystery and part drama, a folk-tale story is driven by its cast, who convinc­ ingly guide the audience through the ethereal events that create Duvall’s character, the infamous Felix Bush. A lifelong resident of a town who knows him not as the hand­ some and eccentric youth he once was, but as the local weirdo incessantly harassed by neighbor­ hood children, Duvall leads the cast in a performance as good as any of the roles that made him a legend. Waiting to die, guilt-ridden and alone, Duvall’s Bush plans what he terms a “funeral party” that he can attend while still living. This prospect pushes him from his selfimposed imprisonment back into the lives of the townspeople, who fear him for the numerous tall tales spread about him, the same yarns he wants retold at his party. The strengths of Get Low aren’t in the story of this hermit and his funeral party, but in the power of its ensemble cast, including Bill Murray and Sissy Spacek. Solid performances by everyone involved keep the plot fresh. Duvall’s character enlists the help of Frank Quinn, a shady funeral-home director played by Murray, who is convincing rather than distracting. With liquor almost always in hand, Murray’s character is responsible for creat­ ing the funeral party. Through his lighthearted performance as an untrustworthy mortician with myriad past careers, the story of Felix Bush slowly unravels, with Spacek a central part of his tumul­ tuous past. Despite the slowness of the story, the film is strong in the tal­ ents of its actors who bring life to an otherwise short-lived premise. Perfectly cast, subtle characteris­ tics bring the story’s players out of myth into the realm of the very real. From Duvall’s labored breath­ ing throughout as a frail old man to Spacek’s gentle sentimentalism as the one person who remembers Bush as a charming enigma, Get Low is a period piece about for­ giveness and community catharsis that ultimately allows for a peace­ ful resolution. Don’t expect an intense sto­ ryline relying on Murray to soothe the tension. Well-developed characters drive an otherwise short story. The actors’ flawless execution easily holds a high spot on a list of best performances for everyone involved. �STREETVIBES November 1-14, 2010 Story 11 Into Steady Meditations ­ By Steven Paul Lansky T hey woke me early. I washed my bearded face in the tile bathroom and dressed in my light yellow button-down shirt, black gabardines, and slipped on the beige linen and silk jacket. I had my last look at this faded, light-green­ walled dormitory with its gritty tile floor. I followed the final instructions, received my meds (still on Geodon), my wallet with credit cards, business cards and IDs, my cash in the money clip, the extra cash they had given me for the trip and the train ticket. The whole place seemed familiar. A flash of memory that was eerie as all hell swept through me. Every time I had been asked during treatment if I had “been here” before, I had a sense that I was lying when I said, “No.” I think a part of me believed they would catch me in this lie, as they had records, but they never let on. It was a question that always came in a series of questions, and the answers never led to any concrete conclusion on my part, except for the sure knowledge that while I was being questioned the questioner was always, each and every time, weighing the length of my stay and the state of my recovery. The drug and alcohol counselor had been the least helpful. He had light brown hair that looked unwashed, tattoos on both forearms, looked like he might have had a facelift, and talked in an uneducated drawl. I told him I was clean and sober over 12 years, and I missed my local meetings. He told me that I was too well to attend meetings on the ward. The only treatment available was for current users, who were required to go to a six-month residential program. He could not recommend that for me. I think I made a mistake when I asked if he was a veteran. He was. I wonder if there was something in my file about my aversion to the military. So, that last morning I was sure that my release was planned but could be aborted if I showed signs of abnormality. I got my breakfast on the fly. Two staff that I had never seen before took me to a van. I had my pack and the acid burn of the stolen green cotton button-down shirt. My hairbrush had broken and been replaced with a better one. (The staff member who had procured the plastic replacement referred to it as a Cadillac, a typical slang for the best of its class.) But the shirt was a total loss. I recalled bitter moments when one staff helped search the ward, looking in fellow patients’ hampers and wardrobes for the J. Peterman, forest green, button-down shirt. We searched without accusing anyone, an awkward exercise, but no one took visible affront; I suspected a young fellow who wore a makeshift turban he’d crafted by tearing a pillowcase. He often used the bathroom next to my room even though he lived in another room that had its own bathroom. He was bearded, thin and often practiced some awkward martial arts in the outdoor smoking area, flailing his arms and legs like a gigantic, dizzy, daddy longlegs. This thin man also was Arabic and was a regular target of derision from Do th the other patients ep D ownin sycholog and the male staff. g. ical r ecord He had been s rev eal m in one fistfight. We y ave rsion never recovered the stolen in to th e mil shirt. As the van sped through hand and itary? REUT the morning streets, I opened noted in the margins ERS/ Larry the envelopes with aftercare where the story most piqued instructions and my discharge my imagination. One of the wonderfully plan. I scarfed a bagel and psychiatrist’s techniques for modern and full of drank a juice after peeling opening up the dialogue with people who looked so different passing through the back the foil seal. I watched the alleged murderess in the from the people with whom I university campus. I struck out the windows trying to novel was to give her a piece had lived for three weeks. up a conversation with the figure out where I had been. of fruit or a vegetable to hold Now, reflecting back on man. Awkwardly at first, but We arrived at the train while he questioned her. In those weeks I feel an odd with growing patience, we station. All I ever saw of one instance he shared an sense of privilege. As an took to one another. I think it Trenton, New Jersey, was the apple, in another a yam. I educated, middle-class, white started when he offered me a train station and the interior wondered as I read about the schizophrenic, the time spent newspaper. of the Drake facility where I relative sizes of the produce with the mixture of young “See those steps?” he asked. had been held. I figured out and then began to think about and old, black, Asian, African, “Yes,” I said as the train which ticket and which train the size of the character’s Puerto Rican and white, pulled through a kind of I needed without help from hands. downtrodden and unique outdoor theater with grass and the staff. They would have My brother lives in Vermont seemed so worth the time. I concrete steps. screwed it up, from the advice and he is knowledgeable about know few people are able to “There was a photo,” he they gave. The two of them produce, gardening and pest cross worlds of such diversity stopped talking, turned to a didn’t spend much time on control. He is a statistician as I do, and it is something corrugated cardboard trashcan me, preferring to talk to one who researches methods both soothing and frightening. and rummaged through another. Both were black, to develop more successful There is a sense of humility, it, pulling out yesterday’s the woman was heavy-set techniques for growing food. somewhat forced, but totally Washington Post. He flipped and spoke in a British accent. I wondered about his young real, that I resonate to. through the paper and handed They seemed impressed that daughter and her sexual I changed trains in me the section folded back. I could read the schedule and fantasies as I read about this Washington. In the station, “A girl from Texas my knew that I couldn’t get on the teenage woman who was I found a pharmacy, got granddaughter’s age with first Washington, D.C., train, accused of such a horrible some suppositories for my cancer.” because it was an express crime. My niece was years hemorrhoids and a fiber His voice was low, obviously commuter train. Then I said from being a teen. I wondered, supplement. I browsed a moved by the article. goodbye to them and walked though, if my brother would bookstore, walked outside and “What kind of cancer?” I onto Amtrak, a free man. find this historical novel as checked out a fountain on a asked. I felt my body change; I compelling as I did. There was traffic island. The train station I read and looked at the walked freely, a new bounce this sense of my life moving was quite grand, with the photo, been taken just days in my gait. I had a time finding on to free ideas, into steady tile floors, the tall pillars, the before. The young woman an empty seat, eventually meditations. railings and the high ceilings was pictured in the outdoor sitting next to a young woman. The books I had read during with skylights. On the way to theater. She had traveled with I pulled out Alias Grace by the hospital stay included New York, I had stayed in the her family to Virginia for an Margaret Atwood and began one about a college professor waiting area and never saw experimental treatment. to read. The book was on my traveling to India, one about what the station had to offer. “Are you a doctor?” he reading list and I harbored a Greek shipping family I was on the same train I asked. thoughts of meeting the (probably the Onassis clan), had ridden east. I recognized “No,” I said, “but my mother author in Toronto later in the one about black women in a the porters, the only blacks on has cancer.” summer. Miami University, variety of sexual relationships, the train. Soon I settled into an “I’m sorry,” he said. “I have where I was finishing my one about an Egyptian king observation car. A man with leukemia but it is in total MA, had included this text and his harem, and a couple a khaki multi-pocketed vest remission.” in the first-year curriculum, of others that were such doing a crossword on a tiny I looked at him again. so I hoped to teach it to quick reads that they slipped clipboard caught my attention. He was fairly thin, well put undergraduates in the fall. unnoticed from my memory. He had close-cropped gray together, with workman’s Given my interest in creativity I looked up from my reading. hair, a good tan, and was shoes, blue jeans. and primary sources, as I read Before long the young woman working the puzzle in ink, “The way you asked, and I realized that in the 1970s I had disembarked at her stop. peering with red-edged eyes your appearance, I thought had cycled on my 10-speed I moved to the window seat. through wire-rimmed reading maybe you were a physician.” through the very region where A Japanese businessman lenses. The train the book was set. I had a pencil sat next to me. The train felt was in Virginia, See Meditations, P. 12 �Story 12 STREETVIBES November 1-14, 2010 Meditations Continued from page 11 “No, I’m a writer and a teacher.” I noticed a bullet hole in the glass of the observation car above us. My paranoia did not flare at the sight of the bullet hole, but it registered for a moment. Something about this man in this setting seemed to work with the bullet hole, adding a slightly fearful dimension to the conversation. There was some open land with a huge house in the distance on a hill, hidden by foliage. He noticed my attention to the landscape. “Do you know what that is?” he asked. “No.” “It’s Monticello.” I looked again. “I’ve taken this trip many times. I’m on my way to my granddaughter’s high school graduation in West Virginia. I live in Baltimore. It’s easy to drive to D.C. and take the train from there. Too short a distance to fly, anyway the airport is two hours from the town.” I had a sense that I had connected with a raconteur. Easing back into the seat, I wondered if I could keep this civil. A heavyset balding fellow in blue jeans and a crimson sweater with a mustache and bushy eyebrows moved through the car followed by his son. The man noticed the pins on my new companion’s vest and commented, slowing his hike through the train car. “Are you a Boy Scout leader?” the man asked. “These are military decorations.” He frowned in disapproval, and a sense of feeling offended hung in his tone. “It’s Flag Day.” The man lowered his head and moved by without apology. After a moment, I asked, “Where did you serve?” “In Vietnam.” “What branch?” “Marines.” He paused. “That was rude of him.” From the look on his face I knew he had seen combat and it had taken a lot out of him. “What do you do now?” “Semi-retired. But I was an equine photographer.” This explained the many-pocketed vest. A niche so specific. My curiosity was piqued. “In the sporting sense? You photographed race horses?” I asked. “Yes, for magazines and newspapers.” “Did you write articles, too?” “No, not usually. Sometimes I would write captions, but usually I worked with a writer. There were times where the writer would have photo ideas, or I might have a story angle connected with a series of photos.” “My ex-wife is a racing buff. Did you photograph The Derby?” “Yes. I covered some of the major stories, but mostly I worked for a Baltimore daily doing human-interest pieces that sometimes got picked up for syndicated use. I did a piece about a girl that cleaned stables at Churchill Downs. She was the granddaughter of a famous jockey. Those photos ended up everywhere. My editor helped me get pictures of a trainer’s family that had ancestors with connections to Irish royalty. I worked with some great editors over the years.” “I heard on NPR about this new book on Seabiscuit.” “Great book,” he said. “I just sent the author a drawing of Seabiscuit that hung in my office for years.” “You know her?” He took a breath. “My editor contacted her publicist. The publicist wouldn’t give my editor contact information, but passed word on to the author. She’s real protective. A famous equine artist who is dead now did the drawing. It’s a valuable piece and she didn’t understand my generosity. I think she thought I was trying to sell it. But it hung in my office for years, and I had had enough of it. You know, I just felt like she would get more out of it than I would. I had enjoyed it, but it seemed the thing to do. So, she accepted it. I shipped it to her and got a nice thank you note. That was worth it.” Now, knowing he was a Vietnam veteran, I wanted to talk about his war experience; I sensed he had something to share. I wanted to ask him: Do we study Vietnam to do better in the next conflict, to avoid being in conflict, to understand better how different people, cultures and races can thrive mutually and convivially with open trade, free communication and welfare for all? What about a universal doctrine encouraging pursuit of happiness? But this conversation wasn’t ready for such directed dialogue. Am I too paranoid to suggest that what must be learned is to move away from war toward meditation? Is art a solution to a peaceful time? Does war come and go like the wind? Can I be a warrior without taking up a weapon against an unknown assailant? Is joining an army the first wrong step? Even conscription can be circumvented. There must be an alternative if one believes in honest individuality and nonviolence. Civility. I cannot move out of the civil discourse. Civil disobedience is only understood as a mass movement while individual anarchic acts are seen as behavioral deviance or mental instability. The state reacts to aberrant behavior by trapping dissenters and medicating them, creating the therapeutic state. Who could disagree with that? Am I a dissenter or ill? Maybe both. The photographer spoke in a quiet way. “My brother-in-law, Ola, was a famous Danish contemporary writer. I talked to him often about his writing when I visited my sister. What do you write about?” “I collect moments,” I said. “Lately, the ones that have stirred me have been in performance when I was playing harmonica with a folk group in Cincinnati called Jake Speed and the Freddies. Playing the harmonica involves a set of complex breathing techniques. The breathing calls to mind meditation, and when I think of moments, I feel the breathing that stays calm within them. In writing, I try to capture moments where some situation and combination of ideas meld to generate a story.” He let me finish and let the words stay in the air. “Ola used to talk about moments. He would get the same tone of voice, the same thrill I hear in you.” “A spiritual advisor of mine tells me that what is real is what perceives the breath, the knower, the presence that is life itself.” He listened intently, nodding his head up and down. I think we both saw what would come next in this conversation, a deeper degree of intimacy. I wondered if we talked about Vietnam and war if I would boil with anger. He had no idea that I had been in a Trenton State Mental Hospital for three weeks. The Geodon appeared to be holding me now. All that had changed with the new medication was the schedule. I took it in the mornings 20 minutes after a full breakfast instead of at bedtime. The Did t he re train moved, swaying from tir REUT ERS/ ed railroa side to side, through sunny, Marc d per elo d wooded, Virginia hills. el Po sonnel ta zo. ke th “My favorite Vietnam novel e trai n bec is Going After Cacciato by Tim ause they O’Brien. His The Things They feare d flyi ng? Carried is powerful, too.” Before he could respond I let my thoughts lead me into a meditation: Vietnam Era literature by survivors of the conflict is a necessary result of war. Ideas about courage and conflict contrast with the depersonalization of death. Ideological conflicts that lead to war have a millenarian history. What future utopia might be possible if everyone on the planet could learn from the Vietnam War? But each war presents differently to theorists. It’s not like men and women in orange jumpsuits and scrubs could just come and sterilize the remains and bury them with dark steel spades in wet earth. The whole thing seems never to go away nor should it. Is it ignorance that causes conflicts? Are they premeditated? Why should tolerance be so necessary with each breath? I was caught in this field of attachment. What I needed to remember is that there have always been wars, there will always be wars, and to just watch and take the perspective of George Carlin, who says something like, “If people want to kill each other, let ’em. I can’t control other people; I can just watch and enjoy the ride. I know that my role is just to point out what’s funny about it, follow on the legacy of Lenny Bruce.” I think I said something like that to this new acquaintance on the train as I was finding another side of myself. I wanted to listen to him, to hear his pain. “Tim O’Brien is good. The Things They Carried is amazing. There is a new Vietnam Reader that I’ve seen. Do you have any interest in teaching a course on Vietnam literature?” “No. Not that I’m not interested, but my focus has been on homeless literature. The connection to Vietnam tends to be when the homeless veteran enters my field. Miss America has taken the homeless-veteran problem as her issue, but I don’t know of any literature that connects the Vietnam veteran and homelessness. Most of the veterans I’ve come across have been socially and economically integrated into society.” “When you teach homeless literature what texts do you use?” “There are many, ranging from personal accounts like Lars Eighner’s to George Orwell’s novel from the ’30s. I include a counter-culture classic by Gurney Norman from the seventies and the Buddhist perspective by essayist Gary Snyder. I’m still developing the course idea and I hope to teach after I finish my degree. Currently I don’t have a teaching job; I’m finishing my thesis memoir.” I think I was beginning to bore him. I was losing interest in conversation. “I think I’ll take a smoke,” he said, excusing himself and heading for the smoking car. I had passed by it before. It was a half a car with ashtrays and haze. It reminded me of smoking rooms in mental institutions. I’m going to change the way this chapter is constructed for a few lines to attend to some details that now aren’t clear in memory. The photographer talked passionately about the author Sherwood Anderson and his book Winesburg, Ohio. He reported that a developer had demolished the author’s house. To the town’s credit, his office was preserved in a museum or library, but the structure that originally housed it no longer exists. This story held my interest only marginally and See Meditations , P. 13 �STREETVIBES November 1-14, 2010 Story & Poetry Corner I don’t know why it slips from detailed account to summary other than my ignorance about Anderson and his text. Later in the summer I picked up a used paperback copy and read much of it until I discovered insects living in the binding. After that I just tossed it onto the tile porch; only partially hidden from the elements, the pages quickly yellowed and turned to leaves. Before I cast the novel aside I was struck by how much the characters reminded me of people in my own neighborhood, especially the undertone of dysfunction. I was coming to understand the story of mental illness is not unusual or rare; it appears in small towns and large cities, in women and men, young and old, of all backgrounds. It does not even respect religious or economic differences. I wonder now how much this traveling acquaintance inferred about me from our dialogue. Community paranoia exists in the coffeehouses where I write these narratives, the therapeutic state is talked about as a government that controls its population by medicating them. Imagine how much George Carlin would enjoy watching a U.S.A. where the pharmacies no longer had psychoactive drugs. I think of one of my favorite films from my adolescence, King of Hearts. In it a French town is occupied by Germans in World War I while the insane asylum’s inmates are accidentally let loose to populate the village, instead of the villagers, who fled when warned. It is touching and humorous, and the conclusion seems to indicate that the insane are gentler and healthier than the sane. I wonder sometimes about this but my counselor assures me that I am truly out of balance and at risk of being killed when I am off my medication. I couldn’t bring all this into the conversation on the train with anyone. And I was still out of balance while precariously managing to stay out of trouble for now. My anxiety continued as my companion said goodbye. I went to the dining car for dinner. I sat with three others and introduced myself. I felt a bit of self-loathing as a middle-aged woman with short, mousy, brown hair and a small, straight nose introduced herself as a retired prison guard from Oregon. She left her job to travel around America by Amtrak and now was returning to face finding another job. I don’t remember much about her traveling companion except that she was heavier and they seemed to be a lesbian couple, conservatively dressed and trying to fit into the background. Then in a burst, the man across from me, who was balding, thin, in a pale blue, button-down sweater took off his horn-rim glasses and while wiping them on a white handkerchief told about the rolling White House on this track and the WWII hidden bunkers on this train’s run. As I listened, I wondered if the current government has an official train and if the retired officers who travel by Amtrak are in service still, or if they ride the train because they are frightened of air travel. It came as a flash of conspiracy theory discomforting and setting my paranoid thoughts afire for a few minutes. Then I ate my steak and potato without saying much about myself. I sensed that if I did disclose who I was, I’d be just like them; and that might have been better than feeling what I felt, but I wasn’t capable of being a healthy member of this society with its necessary right wing hypocrisy. My anxiety now kept me from riding elevators in buildings taller than 12 stories. I would always ask, when entering a modern skyscraper, is there a way to do this by stairs? After dining with these three and never learning what the bald man did for a living, I paced back through the rocking train cars to my seat, where I returned to reading Margaret Atwood and dozing. As it got dark it got harder to read. The lights kept failing when the train stopped for fuel and water and other reasons that were never explained. I talked briefly with a couple across the aisle. The man was a bit of a long hair, and turned out to be a composer returning to make his dissertation defense at the College-Conservatory of Music in Cincinnati. His wife had an eastern European accent. We talked until we tired of things to say. With a mutual sigh, we all sat still as the train bumped slowly along that final turn over the dark Ohio River. It had been nearly 20 years since I had had a stay in a facility as rough as this one had been. I had told myself then that. if faced with a state facility again, I’d rather take my own life. Here I was, not thinking such thoughts at all. Relieved that Dr. Nuñez had had the courage to keep me on Geodon. It was just a matter of adjustment. I would see my counselor in Cincinnati. I would finish the reading list, take my oral exam for my master’s degree and then get a teaching job. A sense of relief swept through me when the train stopped at Union Terminal. In the dark Cincinnati morning my gray Toyota shone in the amber streetlight of the empty parking lot. I keyed the door after flipping my brown pack into the cluttered trunk. As I sat down I saw the dead daisy fallen, withered and stuck to the side of the clear Stewart’s Orange Creamsicle bottle standing in the drink holder between the seats. Poetry ­ Meditations Continued from page 11 13 My Friends and Me By Willa Denise Jones In today’s world it’s hard to be able to call anyone a true friend But I was blessed with two in my life and that’s the way it’s always been I was blessed in grade school with these two people who never left my side In good times, bad times, sad or happy times my friends they didn’t mind We became close by sharing our differences about people, places and things Before long we invented a club called “Ladies Only” in our hearts we sang We recruited a few to the club but their friendship only lasted for a little while Ten years later the club is still open, my friends and me are in for long the mile We began to trust, believe and share our belief only to each other from our heart Never knowing that God had our friendship, God had us three right from the start Today we still come together periodically for club meetings “Ladies Only” And it’s open to only us for to be without the club we’d truly be lonely So we keep in touch and we talk about men, stress and all kinds of attitudes We talk about what’s the right way, the wrong way and how to stop the blues Being older now with the understanding of women’s needs are everyday So have someone you can confide in is a God sent all of the way Yes, I have been blessed with two friends and to God I will always thank you Thank you for your so many blessing, thank you for me, Vee and Bratty too! What Am I By Elisa Hill I am a dove flying in a sky of bluish gray. I am a rock lying at the end of the driveway just sitting idly by, while the wind plays. I am the tension in your mind that causes you to scream. I am the electrical current that brings you the energy. I am taller than the Empire State Building in the fantasy of your mind. I am the sweetness in the cake that gets finished in just the nick of time. I am the conductor to the train that is running softly but, internally through your soul. I am the puncture wound that left a scar upon your nose. I am the seeker of just who you need to be. I am the redeemer of your life encased in a sweet dream. I am the postcard they forget to write before they go. I am the government protecting all that you conceive to be real and untold. I am the past time that keeps you still in the moments of calm. I am not reality with the clearness of your mind. I am the thing that causes satisfaction to your soul to unwind. I am a daydream, a silly thought that yet unfolds. Still you ask, “What are you, this thing in my mind?” What I am is just a moment in time to see unclearly and have a distorted view. I am the sensitivity to light that you seem to hold on to. So with every blink of your wondering eye, I am something different floating aimlessly in your mind. ?! t a h ay W S They always say time changes things, but you actually have to change them yourself. – Andy Warhol _____________ �14 Games & Extras Crossword ­ Cartoon By Anne Skove www.facebook.com/streetvibes cincinnati ­ twitter.com/ streetvibesnews ­ streetvibes. wordpress.com ­ STREETVIBES November 1-14, 2010 �Shelter: Women and Children Central Access Point Cincinnati Union Bethel St. Francis Soup Kitchen Churches Active in Northside FreeStore/FoodBank 557-2873 Madisonville Ed & Assistance Center 4230 Hamilton Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45223 241-1064 112 E. Liberty Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 1841 Fairmount Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45214 Grace Place Catholic Worker House 681-2365 762-5660 271-5501 4600 Erie Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45227 Serves area codes: 45226, 45227, 45208, 45209 St. Vincent de Paul 6037 Cary Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45224 Salvation Army 535-2719 591-2246 381-SAFE 768-6907 300 Lytle Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Bethany House 562-8841 872-9259 Crossroad Health Center 381-2247 5 E. Liberty St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 Health Resource Center Homeless Mobile Health Van McMicken Dental Clinic 357-4602 352-2902 352-6363 40 E. McMicken Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mental Health Access Point Mercy Franciscan at St. John 558-8888 981-5800 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 NAMI of Hamilton County PATH Outreach 1125 Bank Street, Cinti, Ohio 45214 131 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter 15 Resources STREETVIBES November 1-14, 2010 458-6670 977-4489 Treatment: Men Other Resources Shelter: Men Charlie’s 3/4 House 784-1853 2121 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 City Gospel Mission 241-5525 Prospect House 241-0490 381-4941 Starting Over 1419 Elm Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 682 Hawthorne Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45205 Justice Watch St. Fran/St. Joe Catholic Work. House 961-4663 Treatment: Both 761-1480 1821 Summit Road, Cinti, Ohio 45237 Drop Inn Center 721-0643 Interfaith Hospitality Network Lighthouse Youth Center (Youth) 471-1100 221-3350 3330 Jefferson, Cinti, Ohio 45220 Housing: CMHA Excel Development OTR Community Housing 721-4580 632-7149 381-1171 114 W. 14th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tender Mercies 721-8666 27 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tom Geiger House Dana Transitional Bridge Services Volunteers of America Anna Louise Inn 961-4555 751-0643 381-1954 421-5211 621-5300 961-1983 OTR: 1620 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Walnut Hills: 2631 Gilbert, Cinti, Ohio 45206 Our Daily Bread 621-6364 1730 Race Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 351-0422 381-6672 830 Ezzard Charles Dr. Cinti, Ohio 45214 Goodwill industries Healing Connections Mary Magdalen House 771-4800 751-0600 721-4811 241-2965 People Working Cooperatively 351-7921 The Caring Place 631-1114 United Way 211 Women Helping Women 977-5541 Off The Streets 421-5211 1522 Republic Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Hamilton County ADAS Board 946-4888 Recovery Health Access Center 281-7422 Sober Living 681-0324 Talbert House 641-4300 Advocacy Catholic Social Action Community Action Agency Contact Center 421-3131 569-1840 381-4242 1227 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Food/Clothing Lord’s Pantry OTR/Walnut Hills Kitchen & Pantry AA Hotline CCAT Joseph House (Veterans) 217 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 381-0111 1223 Main St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 2728 Glendora Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45209 Caracole (HIV/AIDS) 621-5514 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 2203 Fulton, Cinti, Ohio 45206 961-4080 Peaslee Neighborhood Center Franciscan Haircuts from the Heart First Step Home Anthony House (Youth) 241-2600 241-2563 214 E. 14th St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 661-4620 Shelter: Both Center Independent Living Options Emmanuel Community Center 1308 Race St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 961-2256 Treatment: Women 1437 Walnut Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mt. Airy Shelter 921-1613 St. Raephaels Salvation Army Serenity House Day Center Open Door Pantry 863-3184 863-1445 422-8555 868-3276 Northern Kentucky Brighton Center 859-491-8303 799 Ann St. Newport, KY Franciscan JPIC Gr. Cinti Coalition for the Homeless 721-4700 421-7803 117 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Intercommunity Justice & Peace Cr. Legal Aid Society Ohio Justice & Policy Center Faces Without Places Stop AIDS 579-8547 241-9400 421-1108 363-3300 421-2437 Health Center for Respite Care Hamilton/Middletown ECHO/Hosea House 859-261-5857 Fairhaven Resuce Mission 859-491-1027 Homeward Bound Youth 859-581-1111 Mathews House 859-261-8009 Homeless & Housing Coalition 859-727-0926 Parish Kitchen 859-581-7745 Pike St. Clinic 859-291-9321 Transitions, Inc 859-491-4435 Welcome House of NKY 859-431-8717 205 West Pike Street, Covington, KY 41011 621-1868 3550 Washington Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45229 Women’s Crisis Center VA Domiciliary VA Homeless 859-491-3335 859-559-5011 859-572-6226 �16 Column STREETVIBES November 1-14, 2010 Art Inspired by Race, Riots and Rap ­ A rtists ctivists as By Saad GhoSn Contributing Writer Terence Hammonds’s sub-cultural view I n his first year of college, Terence Ham­ monds was asked to do a cultural portrait of himself; he did not know what to do. The assignment, however, stayed with him and raised many questions in his mind about cultural identity and belonging, questions that have since then determined the content and direction of his art. Hammonds, an African-American artist born and raised in Over-the-Rhine, always drew as a child. Recognizing his artistic inclinations, his mother enrolled him in the School for the Creative and Performing Arts. There he met two teachers who greatly influenced him. Kathleen Carothers, a drama teacher, regularly took him to the museum, asking him each time to write a paper on an art piece of his choosing, triggering early on his critical thinking about visual images. John Brengelman, an English teacher and musi­ cian, gave him records and books, introducing him to underground art and the subculture of music. Throughout school, Hammonds got good exposure to various art media and developed skills in many of them. He was then obsessed with John Lennon and many times drew the Dakota Hotel where Lennon died. Hammonds also painted homeless people and alcoholics in his neighborhood, connecting to city life and its social ills. After graduating from high school, Ham­ monds received a full scholarship to the School of the Museum of Fine Arts Boston at Tufts Univer­ sity, where he later earned a bachelor of fine arts degree. His college years helped him refine his visual language; they also made him think cultur­ ally about the world and where he fits. Rap music was very popular at the time and somewhat synonymous with black urban youth; Hammonds listened to it all the time. He did a series of silkscreen prints, titled Temporary Tattoos, representing tattoos of famous rap stars; the prints could be temporarily transferred onto someone’s skin. It was also his take on the idea of original and real, a tenet of the hip hop culture. Along the same line, he made fancy-looking, fake Certificates of Provenance for commonly used slang terms, pointing to ownership. “I was very interested in what mainstream culture thought of differing subcultures, of their relation to race and class in history,” he says. Questioning the fixed and framed identity one might give a diverse subculture, in this case asso­ ciating rap music to black race, Hammonds cov­ ered his studio floor with subway tiles on which he printed the first reproduced image of a break dancer. By not cleaning the screen between print­ ings, the images became intentionally blurred. They served as his commentary on the change the hip hop movement underwent, progressing from the Bronx in New York City to other parts of the United States and also on the various multiethnic influences it incorporated. In his last year of college Hammonds did a large installation at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. It consisted of silhouettes of rap danc­ ers and images of the first 250 rap artists to record music, all silkscreened on a wall paper patterned after the plantation in Gone With the Above: Terence Hammonds stands in front of his silkscreen print, Nina Simone. Saad Ghosn. Left: Get Up on the Down Stroke, 4’x4’ wood dance floor with graphite drawings and silkscreened images by Terence Hammonds. Tony Walsh. Wind. Exhibited at the same time, displayed in a broken antique cabinet, were old Haviland Limoges plates on which he printed images of the first break dancers. The cabinet had a bro­ ken leg, propped up by first-edition books from the Civil Rights Movement, books of slave songs containing coded messages, books by Leroy Jones and Langston Hughes. It was his reference to the origin of hip hop culture, fed at its base by the cultural history of the African-American people, also an allusion to it being a precious, yet poorly handled, gift. Returning to Cincinnati after six years in Boston, Hammonds continued to examine in his art the identity and history of subcultures in the United States, the role of protest and rebellion in the Civil Rights Movement and its importance for freedom and democracy. “I am reaping the benefit of the Civil Rights Movement, of the fight so many undertook, at the expense of their own lives, to allow each of us freedom in this country,” he says. “I went to an Ivy League school with full scholarship just based on merit; I can freely express myself. … This was unheard of 50 years ago for African Americans.” Quiet Riot, his first show in Cincinnati, was based on a real story that followed the death of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Fearing riots, the mayor of Boston invited all residents to protest King’s assassination and mourn together by watching a concert by James Brown, the “Godfa­ ther of Soul,” on TV. Boston remained riot-free, with popular music a factor. In his show, Hammonds played a video of the concert on a 1960-era TV. He printed images of the riots that happened in Cincinnati and all over America on a set of Russel Wright dinner plates called “American Modern” and displayed two miniature dance floors, each 4’x4’, covered with silkscreened images of riots. Further illustrating the Civil Rights Movement and its influence on American life, Hammonds later did four additional dance floors. One of them, Get Up on the Down Stroke, is titled after a line from a folk song. It consists of a wood board decorated with graphite drawings and prints of images from the ’60s and ’70s counter-cultural movements, riots, draft-card burnings, scenes from the Rolling Stones concert in Altamont and from the Kent State massacre. “My images meant to evoke an era now gone, a time when youth was idealistic, not afraid to change the world,” he says. “The dance floors (are) spaces where cultures are exchanged.” In his work, Hammonds will persevere, ad­ dressing subcultures, protest and authority. He views his art as monuments celebrating the activist movements of the past and hopefully the present. “I want my artwork to remind of a time when people fought for the better good of the entire humanity,” he says. “I want the youth to look back, realize that history existed and that it can be reinvented. Raising me, my mother always stressed the duty to give to society, to contribute positively to life. It is a lesson I will never forget.” Artists as Activists is a regular column highlighting Greater Cincinnnati artists who use art as a vehicle for change. Saad Ghosn is the founder of SOS Art. Ghosn can be contacted at saad.ghosn@ uc.edu. � 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 2010 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 1-14, 2010 Subject The topic of the resource Homelessness Description An account of the resource Pg 1: Marching, Remember, Demanding How I Snuck in on the Dalai Lama Pg 2: Street Wise Pg 3: 8 Minutes Considering Advocacy Pg 4: Nobel Prize for Chinese Freedom Fighter Pg 5: Meeting the Bible Verse Man Those Darned Facts Trump Section 8 Myths Pg 6: Eat Your Food Where It’s Grown Pg 7: The Death Watch is All the Bengals Have Pg 8: Annual Dinner Pg 9: March Continued Pg 10: The Dance of Class Consciousness Pg 11: Into Steady Meditations Pg 12: Meditations Continued Pg 13: Meditations Continued Pg 14: Games & Extras Pg 15: Resources Pg 16: Art Inspired by Race, Riots and Rap 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 November 1-14, 2010 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Gregory Flannery Joseph Szydlowski Georgia Bohannon Michelle Dillingham Samantha Groark Margo Pierce Jeremy Flannery Michael Henson David Heitfield Jeni Jenkins Saad Ghosn Lew Moores Larry Gross Eli Braun Jesse Call Michael Fanning B. Clifton Burke Carly Tamborski Aimie Willhoite Lynne Ausman Anne Skove Vinit Murthy Jon Hughes Brad Foster Jeremy Flannery Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Aimie Willhoite Anne Skove B. Clifton Burke Bengals Brad Foster Carly Tamborski David Heitfield Eli Braun Georgia Bohannon Gregory Flannery Jeni Jenkins Jeremy Flannery Jesse Call Jon Hughes Joseph Szydlowski Larry Gross Lew Moores Liu Xiaobo Lynne Ausman March Margo Pierce Michael Fanning Michael Henson Michelle Dillingham Mike Brown Nobel Prize Protests Saad Ghosn Samantha Groark Section 8 Terence Hammonds Vinit Murthy https://streetvibesarchive.net/files/original/627dab65b83f60058f4d3a63baa7e2a8.pdf c855e3c1a3b82f161d86f604e9b446f2 PDF Text Text Hate crime hearing One Nation gathers to protest in D.C. - See page 3 - See Page 8 Oct. 15-31, 2010 • Issue 186 • One Dollar ADVOCATING JUSTICE • BUILDING COMMUNITY Union Gets Slaughtered in Vote ­ Intimidation at meat plant or lack of interest? By Carly Tamborski Contributing Writer E Ellen Dienger, organizer with UFCW Local 75, led a Sept. 29 rally of about 40 persons in support of workers at Tri-State Beef. Jon Hughes/ Photopresse. mployees of Tri-State Beef, one of the last major slaughterhouses in Cincinnati, voted Oct. 1 to reject union membership. The vote was 38-to-9 against being represented by United Food and Commercial Workers Local 75. There was one void ballot in the election supervised by the National Labor Relations Board. Workers voted from 9 to 10:30 a.m. on whether they wanted Local 75 as their agent for collective bargaining with Tri-State Beef. “We feel like workers just aren’t ready at this time,” said Ellen Dienger, an organizer with Local 75. “They’ve been through a lot. There’s a lot of intimidation that’s been going on – people were afraid. When your employer is threatening to shut your plant down if you vote against the union and they have the police walking through there, that creates fear. They told the workers things like, ‘Well, you can vote for the union, but if you do, you’re not going to have a job anymore. A lot of them believed that and just weren’t ready. Owners say that in lots of plants, but the workers didn’t see that it was kind of a tactic of their employer to keep them from joining the union.” Robert Runtz Sr., owner of the company, denied that any threats were made. He said the company treats employees well. It was the union, not the company, that was heavy-handed during the campaign, according to Runtz Sr. The microwave dispute Two days before the election, on Sept. 29, Runtz Sr. and his son, Bobby, an employee, stood outside the slaughterhouse as Local 75 held an outdoor rally in support of the workers. “I don’t think my people even want this,” Runtz Sr. said. “It’s the union that keeps pushing them and harassing them – going over to their houses at 7, 10, 11 o’clock at night. They come here and bribe them with T-shirts, pop, potato chips, pretzels. On Monday morning, that woman (Dienger) was here at 4:30 a.m. giving out T-shirts.” But the union simply tried to communicate with employees as best it could, Dienger said. “We did our best to explain how unions worked to everyone we possibly could,” she said. “We weren’t always able to contact all the workers because we didn’t know how to get a hold of them, but we sent information and tried to talk to as many people as we could.” Local 75 filed petitions in August asking the National Labor Relations Board to conduct an election. Microwave ovens for heating workers’ lunches seem to have been a flashpoint at the plant. The first set of microwaves was brought in by the workers, according to Dienger. Runtz Sr. said he provided them, which wasn’t something he had to do, but he considered them a small luxury for his employees. See Union, P. 13 Environmentalism through Art and Design ZeroLandfill turns scraps into new art By Corey Gibson Contributing Writer T he United States generated nearly 246 million tons of trash in 2005, according to the latest estimate by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The highest point in Hamilton County is “Mount Rumpke,” a mountain of trash at a Colerain Township landfill standing at an astounding height of 1,045 feet above sea level. A 2006 survey of municipal solid waste management in the United States revealed that Ohio contributed over 15 million tons of trash to the ever-growing piles of waste in the United States. The numbers become even more staggering when one realizes that, on average, each person in Ohio generates over one ton of garbage every year, recycling only 26 percent and throwing 74 percent into the dump. Although Ohio beats out many other states when it comes to the number of curbside recycling programs – some states have none – Ohio still ranks high among other states when comparing average amount of trash thrown away each year, according to the study. ZeroLandfill, a program dedicated to keeping the amount of trash thrown into landfills at a bare minimum, is working to change those statistics. ZeroLandfill “fills the gaps for educators’ material needs and creates behavior change for architects and interior designers, as what was formally considered waste is redirected into the community,” according to its website. Jeff Krejci, co-founder of the company, began picking personally to take that stuff. Landfill employees began to up expired carpet specificaJeff used to take it to his invite artists and arts education books during sales calls garage, and him and his kids tors to pick up the material to in 2004. He took the books, would separate the stuff and use for their own projects or removed the carpet samples find places to take it to.” and recycled them. The carRealizing he needed a See Landfill, P. 7 pet, the cardboard books and simpler way to recycle all the the pages themselves were material he was picking up, sent to different recycling staKrejci, Dungan and tions to be broken down and other fellow Zeroreused. “The very early origins of it started because I work for a company called InterfaceFLOR,” says Susan Margraf, co-chair of ZeroLandfill Cincinnati. “Jeff Krejci, who is the representative for Cleveland, started with Mike Dungan. They starting going around and noticing in design firms as they were in there, calling on these firms, piles and piles of stuff loaded up and ready to go in the trashcan. They took it upon themselves Photo by Tyler Macko. Illustration by Joseph Szydlowski �2 The Vibe ­ Streetwise By The Numbers ­ 30 The maximum percentage of a person’s income spent on housing defined as “affordable” (see page 7). 60 The number of years the family of Ahmad Al’Azzah has lived in a Palestinian refugee camp (see page 4). 52x82 The size, in inches, of Judging Me by Albert Andrew Fausz Jr. (see page 16). 43 The number of homeless people killed in hate crimes in the United States in 2009 (see page 3). 1-10 The rating system for judging candidates in “range voting” (see page 11). 200,000 The number of vendors distributing street papers around the world (see page 9). 25 The length, in feet, of a rope Republicans would throw a person drowning 50 feet from shore (see page 6). 210 The number of cows slaughtered at Tri-State Beef every day (see page 1). 2 The date in October when tens of thousands rallied in Washington, D.C. (see page 8). 400,000 The amount of decorating scraps, in pounds, repurposed by ZeroLandfill (see page 1). By Gregory Flannery Editor Of Forked Tongues and Bedbugs Electoral politics is essentially a popularity contest, and successful politicians know that they can often succeed by appealing to the least common denominator. It is no surprise, therefore, that Cincinnati Mayor Mark Mallory went to the trouble of coming out in favor of the local professional baseball team: “All year long, the Reds have given us great moments to celebrate, and they won the division in the most dramatic fashion. That was the perfect way to win the division and head to the playoffs. Cincinnati has Reds-fever and we’re going to ride it through October.” Unfortunately, Mallory was wrong. October isn’t yet finished, but the Reds are. The Philadelphia Phillies beat them in a three-game sweep. U.S. Rep. Jeanne Schmidt (R-Miami Township) at least has the courage to take on a more troubling issue: “Ohio is at the epicenter of a growing national bedbug problem,” she says. After due consideration, she has publicly stated her position. Schmidt opposes bedbugs. More surprising is the endorsement that former state legislator Tom Brinkman Jr., candidate for Hamilton County Auditor, received from what he called “Cincinnati’s Progressive Weekly.” Brinkman is co-chair of Citizens Opposed to Additional Spending and Taxes (COAST), a group that few would consider progressive. Nor do many consider CityBeat progressive any longer. But that’s the publication Brinkman was citing. In the paper’s Oct. 6 edition, the “Porkopolis” column written by Kevin Osborne carried this headline: “It’s Not a Misprint: Vote for COAST Leader.” After accusing incumbent County Auditor Dusty Rhodes of duplicity, Osborne makes this statement: “Although I certainly don’t agree with Brinkman on some issues, he is exactly as he sells himself to voters.” That, however, is the opposite of what Osborne said in the same column 18 months ago. The Jan. 21, 2009, edition of “Porkopolis” opened with this headline: “COAST Speaks with Forked Tongue.” Jeff Berding’s Latest Monstrosity Consistency isn’t the highest good in public affairs, of course – and it’s a good thing, too, or we’d have seen a whole lot of earnest voters and activists cited to court a few weeks ago. In order to encourage people to take advantage of Ohio’s opportunity for early voting, Christopher Smitherman, president of the Cincinnati Chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), camped with supporters outside the Hamilton County Board of Elections. The Sept. 27 stunt included tents on the sidewalk. Fortunately, none of the campers held signs saying, “Homeless – Please Help.” The Cincinnati Police Department, ever vigilant about public safety, has been issuing citations to panhandlers who dare sit down on the sidewalk while asking for alms. The charge? Obstructing the sidewalk. That charge apparently applies only to people so desperate that they have to beg for sustenance. This is not to say that the NAACP supports the city’s cruelty toward poor people. A few days later the organization blasted a new restriction on panhandling. The proposal came, of course, from City Councilman Jeff Berding, who has distinguished himself in office by working hard to make the lives of poor people even more difficult. Last year he proposed taxing the nickels and dimes given to panhandlers. He dropped that idea but has now succeeded in getting council to forbid asking for money from people feeding parking meters. Smitherman blasted the new ordinance. “Only a monster would propose legislation that criminalizes the poor in the middle of an economic great depression,” he said. “Council does not know what it is like to be poor and engage in class warfare instead of teaching citizens how to say no.” Dangerous Drawings by Children But then, saying no can get citizens in big trouble. Witness the Sept. 24 raids by the FBI, targeting anti-war protesters. Agents entered eight homes and offices of union and anti-war activists in Minneapolis and Chicago. They seized computers, books, documents, notebooks, cell phones, passports, children’s drawings, photos of the late Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X, videos and personal belongings. The FBI also raided offices of the Twin Cities Anti-war Committee, seizing computers; served federal grand-jury subpoenas to activists in Illinois, Minnesota and Michigan; and paid visits to others in Wisconsin, California and North Carolina. The majority of those targeted by the raids had participated in anti-war protests at the 2008 Republican National Convention in St. Paul, Minn. Harassment of peace activists is not exactly new in the United States. President Richard Nixon was notorious for his heavy-handed suppression of opposition to the Vietnam War. But what makes this latest round of harassment all the more disheartening is that it was conducted by the FBI under a Democratic administration. STREETVIBES October 15-31, 2010 Streetvibes is an activist newspaper, advocating justice and building community. Streetvibes reports on economic issues, civil rights, the environment, the peace movement, spirituality and the struggle against homelessness and poverty. Distributed by people who are or once were homeless, in exchange for a $1 donation, Streetvibes is published twice a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Address: 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 Phone: 513.421.7803 x 12 Fax: 513.421.7813 Email: streetvibes2@yahoo. com Website: www. cincihomeless.org Blog: streetvibes.wordpress. com Streetvibes Staff Editor Gregory Flannery Art Director Joseph Szydlowski Vendor Coordinator Georgia Bohannon Contributing Writers Michelle Dillingham, Samantha Groark, Margo Pierce, Carly Tamborski, Jeremy Flannery, Michael Henson, David Heitfield, Corey Gibson, Jeni Jenkins, Saad Ghosn, Lew Moores, Larry Gross, Eli Braun, Jesse Call, Michael Fanning, B. Clifton Burke Photography/Artwork Aimie Willhoite, Lynne Ausman, Anne Skove, Vinit Murthy, Jon Hughes, Brad Foster Proofreaders Jeremy Flannery The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that works to eradicate homelessness in Cincinnati through coordination of services, public education, grassroots advocacy and Streetvibes. We are proud members of: �STREETVIBES October 15-31, 2010 3 National News ­ Counting Hate is the First Step Congress considers “Hunt for homeless. Kill one for fun. We’re 87 percent sure it’s legal.” tracking attacks on homeless people ‘Protect all Americans equally’ By Margo Pierce Contributing Writer “W hen I hear the horrific stories about murders, assault and rapes committed against our nation’s homeless, I ask myself, ‘Is this really America?’ When I hear the story of Norris Gaynor being beaten to death by baseball bats while sleeping on a park bench. I ask myself, ‘Where’s all this violence coming from?’ When I hear about John Mc Graham being doused with gasoline and set ablaze, I was shocked and horrified this could happen to a fellow human being and just wonder where we are heading.” This was part of the opening statement by U.S. Sen. Benjamin L. Cardin (D-Maryland), a member of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime and Drugs. The statement was part of a Sept .29 hearing, “Crimes Against America’s Homeless: Is the Violence Growing?” A five-person panel presented testimony regarding the Hate Crimes Against the Homeless Statistics Act (S.B. 1765). Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) is a co-sponsor of the bill, which would require the FBI to add attacks on homeless people to the data it collects on hate crimes. The Hate Crimes Statistic Acts of 1990 requires the Justice Department to track crimes motivated by race, religion, sexual orientation and ethnicity. Disability was added in 1994 and gender or gender identity were included later. The new bill does not add additional punishments for hate crimes against the homeless. “I want the federal government to track how many crimes are being committed against homeless just because they are homeless,” Cardin said. “The best way to develop a strategy to deal with a problem is to make sure that you have accurate information in order to be able to act.” Pointing to the limited statistics collected by the National Coalition for the Homeless over the past 11 years, Cardin characterized hate crimes against the homeless as “pervasive and growing.” The report indicates that 43 homeless people were killed as a result of hate crimes in 2009, making it the deadliest year to date. During that same year approximately 640,000 people were homeless on any given night, according to the latest report to Congress by the Department of Housing and Urban Development. “Here’s what we do know: violence is occurring against this population. We know that the un-housed population is growing. One could make an educated guess that these two facts may lead to more victims,” Cardin said. “I don’t want to guess – I want to get the facts.” ‘Hunt for homeless’ The effort to clarify what hate crimes are and the importance of this legislation fell to Erik Luna, a professor at Washington and Lee University School of Law and an adjunct scholar at the Cato Institute. Quoting the Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program, A protester holds an anti-hate sign at a rally in Denver. REUTERS/Gary Caskey. which establishes the guidelines and procedures necessary for collecting data, Luna began by defining the crime itself. “The UCR guidelines describe a hate crime as a ‘criminal offense committed against a person or property which is motivated, in whole or in part, by the offender‘s bias.’ In turn, bias is defined as a ‘preformed negative opinion or attitude toward a group of persons based on their race, religion, disability, sexual orientation or ethnicity/national origin.’ The guidelines then provide a series of criteria that might support a finding of bias,” Luna said. “All told, the guidelines attempt to provide some type of standards for data collection and a basis for subsequent scrutiny of this information.” He took issue with some of the reporting by the National Coalition for the Homeless in its latest annual report, “Hate Crimes Against the Homeless: America’s Growing Tide of Violence,” published in August. Luna said that some of the 43 deaths reported were unsubstantiated, as the report itself acknowledges. The methodology for the data collection is inconsistent and therefore unreliable, he said. These facts support the need for data gathering by the FBI, according to Luna. Cardin introduced U.S. Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-Texas) as “the voice of many people who otherwise would not be heard in the chambers of Congress.” She spoke in favor of the legislation. “Between 1999 and 2010 there were more than 1,000 bias-motivated attacks committed against the homeless; 291 of these attacks were homicides,” Johnson said. “This is more than twice the number of homicides committed in all other hate-group categories combined. A misconception is that these attacks happen to belligerent bums. However, many of these individuals were sought out by their attackers. Some victims never even spoke to their attacker before they were killed.” Johnson gave two examples of hate crimes committed in 2009, including a wheelchair-bound homeless woman in Seattle who was repeatedly raped by an attacker who said, “I can rape you and get away with it. …You’re homeless? No one cares about you.” Near the University of Texas at El Paso, four unknown men set a 41-year-old homeless man on fire. He survived the attack but “lives with serious burns.” “The federal government has fallen behind the states on this issue,” Johnson said. “Currently, there are four states who already recognize homelessness as a category of hate crime. Several more have legislation pending. These are not simply Democratically run states. Florida had a Republicanelected governor and legislature at the time their homeless hate crimes bill was signed into law. “If Congress continues to not take a stance on this issue, we send the message that we are willing to look the other way. Treating homeless individuals rudely or inhumanely is seen as acceptable by far too many Americans. It is the one group where it is still acceptable in most circles to disparage. How do we end that if even Congress is unwilling to treat these individuals equally?” Before going onto the next round of testimony, Cardin quoted an advertisement in “a popular men’s magazine”: Law enforcement officers are used to seeing the worst of human behavior. While they can be perceived as hardened by the constant barrage of violence in their work, they are also the most well-informed about criminal activity and how to develop strategies to deal with it. Richard Wierzbicki, commander of the Hate Crimes/AntiBias Task Force of the Broward County, Florida, Sheriff’s Office in Florida, testified that data is the best place to begin. “I am a longstanding member of the nation’s law enforcement community with over 32 years of public service and can attest to our profession’s interest in advancing strategies that enhance the prevention, investigation and prosecution of crimes committed against the homeless population, including crimes motivated by bias,” Wierzbicki said. “Rigorous and widespread collection, reporting and analysis of bias-motivated crime data is one such solution. … That is why the Broward County Sheriff’s Office, the largest accredited sheriff’s office in the United States, supports the legislation.” Wierzbicki also gave examples of homeless people who have been attacked in his community, including one that was videotaped and posted on YouTube. “The availability of data about biasmotivated crimes is instrumental in inspiring community action to protect various population groups subjected to bias and is critical to law-enforcement agencies for developing plans of action, deploying resources and measuring our progress,” he said. “Take our experience in Broward. I lead the Hate Crimes/ Anti-Bias Task Force created in 2008 … as a direct response to data in the Florida Attorney General’s annual hatecrimes report, which indicated that our county – Broward County – led the state in reported hate crimes. “The data told us where the crimes were occurring, who was being targeted, and why they were being attacked. Based on the data, we were then able to decide how and where to deploy resources to combat hate. Regrettably, our attorney general’s hate-crimes report – no different than similar reports in other states – did not tell us anything about bias-motivated crimes against the homeless population because such data is not collected as part of uniform crime reporting, even though those of us who have worked the beat know full well that such crimes occur. By lacking such data, our task force simply could not plan a meaningful response to bias-motivated crimes against our large homeless population.” Wierzbicki said that the legislation will not create an “undue burden” on law enforcement and that the data collection is critical for ensuring public safety. “It is my strong conviction that it must become standard practice for all law-enforcement agencies to vigorously collect data on the number and types of incidents of bias-motivated crimes against homeless victims,” he said. “When the homeless population is left out of national hate-crime data col- See Crime, P. 12 �4 International ­ STREETVIBES October 15-31, 2010 Three Wise Men in an Occupied Land It’s not the Bethlehem of Sunday school By Carly Tamborski Contributing Writer Most people in Western culture aren’t very familiar with the conflict between Israel and Palestine. Ask which lands are fighting or why, and most will respond with vague stories about terrorism or suicide bombs they overheard on the evening news; and, of course, most assume the conflict is over religion. Little Town of Bethlehem, a powerful, eye-opening documentary, explores all sides by telling the stories of three men with distinctive identities in the conflict: One is a Palestinian Muslim, another a Palestinian Christian and the third an Israeli Jew. All three grew up in the cycle of hate and went against their societies’ norms to encourage the two lands to resolve issues peacefully, willing to risk everything to end the violence. Most viewers can connect with one of the faiths represented in the film, but different religious traditions are not what’s causing suicide bombs, air raids or discrimination – fear is the root of the problem. The movie doesn’t talk against Israel or Palestine, but rather against the Israeli occupation, focusing on the negative effects often distorted by the media. Little Town of Bethlehem was screened Sept. 30, free of charge, at the University of Cincinnati by Howard Tolley, professor of political science and director of the UC International Human Rights Certificate Program. The film referenced both the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and Mahatma Gandhi, connecting the Israeli/ Palestinian struggle with other historical movements that resulted in the expansion of human rights. Home is a prison The three main characters speak English, with Arabic subtitles at the bottom of the screen. After the three characters are introduced, the film’s title is shown as urban rap music plays and scenes of modern Palestine are shown: people playing volleyball on the beach and lounging in bikinis, armed men, checkpoints, riots and burning flags; people playing cards, smoking a hookah, sharing a family dinner, woodworking and drinking wine. Sami Awad is a Palestinian Christian whose grandparents lived in Palestine. When the oldest was 12 and the youngest was 2, the family lived in a village shared by Muslims, Christians and Jews. In 1948, Israeli forces came and tried to kick the family out of Jerusalem. As Awad’s grandfather tried to save his family and escape, a sniper’s bullet killed him, leaving Awad’s grandmother alone with her seven children. In 1967, four years before Awad was born, war broke out between Israel, Egypt, Syria and Jordan. This resulted in the West Bank, Gaza Strip and parts of eastern Syria being occupied by Israeli forces. Awad’s parents fled to the United States. Awad was born in Kansas City, Kansas. His family moved to Bethlehem when he was 6 months old. Ahmad Al’Azzah is a Palestinian Muslim. Before the conflict, his grandparents lived in a village where Jews were considered neighbors and friends. When Israeli forces came to their village in 1948, his grandparents escaped. His mother was 1 year old at the time, and they lived in caves until 1949. After that year, they were told to live in a Bethlehem refugee camp for 10 days, but those 10 days became 60 years. Al’Azzah has lived his entire life in the Azzah refugee camp, where he now lives with his wife, three children and mother. In 1949 the refugee camp had about 900 people. The area is small – 200 meters by 150 meters – so the ability to expand as a community is limited. Since then the camp has grown to more than 2,026 people. Approximately 48 percent are children. Refugees are allowed to come and go during the day, but must return at night to the “prison,” as Al’Azzah referred to it. “I live in a place where violence could be on a daily basis,” he said. Yonatan Shapira is an Israeli Jew and former Israeli fighter pilot. His grandparents, Zionist settlers, moved from Eastern Europe to Palestine in 1933. Most of the Zionist activists who went to Palestine in the beginning of the 20th century weren’t religious, he said. The immigration was a nationalist movement of people who had enough of anti-Semitism in their old communities. Fifteen years after settling, his parents witnessed the establishment of Israel. Shapira was born on an Israeli Air Force base in 1972; his father was also a fighter pilot. ‘Cry with them’ Each of the three main characters discussed what it was like to grow up in their environments, sharing some of the moments that hit them hardest. As their number of violent experiences increased, they came to believe that peace is not achieved through violence. Awad was greatly influenced by his uncle, who moved to Jerusalem in the 1980s and created the Palestinian Center for the Study of Non-Violence. “Many people went to my uncle’s center with Palestinians in non-violent actions against the occupation, so that opened my eyes to a different world that existed. Israelis came who were neither soldiers nor settlers. I started to hear Israelis say, ‘We understand.’ I heard Israelis say, ‘Forgive us. We don’t know.’ That was powerful. It reached the point where my uncle was actually seen as a threat to the security of Israel and led to him being arrested, put on trial and deported.” His father soon sent him to the United States to finish his education. Awad moved back to Palestine, settling in Bethlehem, in 1996. He Courtesy of Ethnographic Media and his future wife worked at an organization that tried to bring back the concept of non-violence to Palestine. He describes his community as so interconnected that friends from first grade are still his best friends. Some of his friends chose to engage in acts of violence and armed resistance, but Awad did not. “I’m still friends with those people, and I’ve seen many of them reach the point where they said violence was a wrong choice,” he said. “I’ve had friends who’ve had members of their families in prison or killed, so it’s not easy. When people are in pain, you have to feel their pain. When they cry, you have to cry with them. When they’re angry, you have to be angry.” Al’Azzah recalled Israeli soldiers surrounding Bethlehem and shooting at houses. When they started shooting at his house, Al’Azzah’s father, mother and some neighbors escaped to the basement. Al’Azzah went back upstairs to save a valuable appliance. “I wanted to save the TV because we paid a lot of money for it, and we need TV,” he said, laughing. He carried it to a back room, but soldiers noticed him and started shooting. He laid flat on the floor for 10 minutes – the longest 10 minutes of his life, he recalled. “I made it down, and everyone was crying because they thought I had turned into a martyr, but I saved the TV, and we still have it,” Al’Azzah said. In 1996, after studying abroad, Al’Azzah moved back to Bethlehem and opened Holy Land Trust, where he was reintroduced to the woman who became his wife. Shapira said his high school years included classes in a variety of interesting subjects and a great social life. He loved to hang-glide. At that time he wanted to be an Israeli fighter pilot in the air force like his father, but knew little about Palestinian perspectives. “When I was in high school, to me, the Palestine Liberation Organization was a group of Palestinians who were very angry and didn’t like us,” Shapira said. “Israel was supporting the peace, but very, very militarist, encouraging you to enroll in the army and be a good soldier.” ‘Every child born’ The increase in violence after the creation of Israel created a snowball effect, as more and more problems created an even greater need to address the issue. In 2002 all the leaders of Arab nations made a peace offer to Israel in what was called the Arab Peace Initiative in Beirut. Within a day or two a suicide attack in Israel sparked a massive military raid in many Palestinian cities, including the siege of the Church of Nativity. During the arrangements for the peace process, the Israeli government Continued on next page �STREETVIBES October 15-31, 2010 tightened its occupation of Palestine, creating more distress for the three men. Permits became necessary to travel between the West Bank and Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza or the West Bank and Israel. Roads were created only for Jews. Checkpoints were established on roadways and access points to borders. One of Al’Azzah’s children has a low immunity and he knocked on every doctor’s door and every hospital he could, looking for a treatment in Palestine. He gives his son shots to raise his immunity, but his condition isn’t improving. When he realized he had exhausted all the local resources and the Palestinian doctors couldn’t help him, the Israelis gave Al’Azzah and his wife a one-time permit to take his son to an Israeli hospital. During the massive military raid in Palestine shortly after the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative, Awad’s wife went into labor during a night of fighting, screaming and gunshots. Two of his Spanish journalist friends helped the couple. At a checkpoint, Awad presented his U.S. passport, and his friends presented their Spanish passports. The Israeli guards would allow the three of them through, but not the pregnant woman. That was not an option. “Then we went on a dirt road that only settlers used and snuck into Jerusalem,” Awad said. “The next day our daughter was born in a hospital. We snuck into Bethlehem to be with our family, and on coming from our house, we see the tanks and hear the shooting and shelling and sirens. It was incredible – in the midst of all of this there was such peace in our family. Every child born on this earth is a gift of God. Every child born is born in the image of God.” As a young man, Shapira looked up to his father as a hero, loved his country and was proud to call the Israeli Air Force a key part of his identity. “The air force directed me to fly helicopters, and I remember saying to everyone, ‘They found the best job for me because I’m willing to risk my life to save other people’s lives,” Shapira said. “The Israeli society is very militaristic. The way we’re being educated and told about the army is an amazing example of a society that worships power, military strength and growing this nation.” ‘I can’t be silent’ Of course, violence is not a new method of resolving conflict. Wars in the 20th century, the U.S. Civil Rights Movement and studying peaceful leaders impacted each man in his own way. “I was exposed to Martin Luther King, who had a very strong, very powerful presence,” Awad said. “He always had the attention of everyone around him when he spoke. To be strong is not something to be ashamed of, but the message that you bring out is more important. For Martin Luther King, it was a message of non-violence, a message of equality.” The Holocaust influenced both Awad and Shapira, who visited former concentration camps during their ethical journeys. “I went to Birkenau to witness what really happened in the Holocaust,” Awad said. “To be in such a place, International where so many people were killed, seeing the wall of death where thousands were shot, the ovens where people were burned, the ponds where their remains where thrown in – it was horrifying. “I witnessed busloads of Israeli children with Israeli guards come off the bus and they would walk into Birkenau through the railroad singing the Israeli national anthem. The shocking part was to hear the language this guide was using. Not to explain this violent act as an act that happened against the Jewish community, but humanity in general, and shouldn’t happen to anyone in the world – but presenting this act as ‘what the Arabs and the Palestinians want to do to us now.’ These children are experiencing one of the most traumatic episodes of their life, and many of them probably had family killed in these places. That planted fear in their hearts. They hear, ‘Fear the Palestinians, don’t trust them, don’t make peace with them.’ ” In the film, eerie scenery of Auschwitz-Birkenau is paralleled with modern Palestine. “In high school, I went to Poland to see the concentration camps,” Shapira said. “I remember standing next to this huge pile of human ashes and the notion of knowing that I am the son of a fighter pilot and exsquadrant in the Israeli army, I was so proud that we made it, and I am proof of that fact, and I’m standing there.” The world kept silent while Israeli families were executed in concentration camps, as Shapira’s family constantly reminded him. “Because I’m an Israeli, I can’t be silent,” he said. He grew increasingly uneasy about the occupation of Palestine. “It was after they dropped a bomb on a house that killed 15 innocents, including nine children, that left me with a feeling that I’m one of the children’s killer,” he said. It was at this time that Shapira questioned his ability to identify with his country or the motives of the air force. “My older brother called me and said after what he saw and what he experienced, he would not go back,” Shapira said. “My younger brother was traumatized by what he was told to do. He told me he has constant nightmares, that he sees the eyes of the Palestinian girl trapped in the car they shot. ‘No way back’ Each of the three men had his own method for promoting peace and non-violence. Shapira participated in a retreat where Israelis and Palestinians lived together for a weekend and promoted dialogue between the two groups. “The man next to me said his young sister was paralyzed after an Apache Israeli helicopter shot a missile on their neighbor’s house,” he said. “For the whole weekend, I was very active – talking, organizing things, playing. We sang together, ate together. But I couldn’t tell. I couldn’t tell anyone that I was a pilot in the air force, and something that was so much a part of my pride I couldn’t mention, because I was ashamed.” He also went to a meeting for Courage to Refuse, a group of soldiers, reservists and ex-soldiers who had the courage to say no to their commanders. He watched as people like him stood on a stage and proudly shared their stories. “I looked at them with admiration and envied their wholeness,” Shapira said. That meeting inspired him to bring a few pilot friends to another meeting, and he got the idea to join even more pilots with similar beliefs and drafted a letter to the air force. He joined the group Courage to Say No, which refuses to hunt innocent civilians. “We were raised to love the state of Israel and to contribute to the Zionist enterprise, but we refuse to take part in the attacks in the air force in the concentrations of civilians,” the pilots’ letter said. “We are of the idea that the air force is an inseparable part of us, but we refuse to hunt innocent civilians. These actions are illegal and immoral, and are the direct result of growing occupation, which corrupts Israeli society as a whole.” The next morning’s newspaper criticized the pilots’ letter in an article titled, “Rebellion of the Pilots,” in which the air force commander referred them as traitors. A few days after the article was published, Shapira’s father ran into a friend while grocery shopping. The friend didn’t know Shapira was one of the organizers. “He said to my father they should put us all against the wall and put bullets in our heads,” Shapira said. “The air force commander referred to us as traitors. To say, ‘No, I’m not going to obey this order or participate in something illegal or immoral,’ is very important. But it’s just the first step. The second step that is maybe more important is to now reach out to your enemy and to try to correct the wrongdoing on your part.” The first meeting for the group Shapira created, Combatants for Peace, was held in Bethlehem and had 25 Israeli ex-fighters, 25 Palestinian ex-fighters, both men and women, and some had even spent time in prison for fighting against the Israeli occupation. “The meeting was very, very charged, with people who literally wanted to kill you,” Shapira said. “Many of us Israelis were afraid that we’d be kidnapped or killed, and many of (the Palestinians) were afraid that we were collaborating with Israeli intelligence. … We know there’s no way back from here because the ‘we’ and ‘them’ cannot exist anymore, and we felt as Israelis we are actually joining the Palestinian non-violent struggle for liberation.” Most of the Palestinians in the group are Muslim. Some are very religious, just as some of the Israeli members are very religious. “If we who fought against each other and killed each other struggled together in non-violence, anything is possible,” Shapira said. ‘Fear takes you over’ What makes these people brave is that they’re purposefully standing out in a sea of violence to get their message across. People who don’t flow with the traditional rules of society tend to get noticed faster, which has definitely been the case for these men. “I was accused by other Palestinian 5 political factions of being a collaborator, an agent to the Israelis,” Awad said. “It has happened many times that people who are accused of being collaborators were killed. My determination always came and continues to come from seeing how the Palestinian community reacts to non-violence and in turn engages in nonviolence. All three men had the opportunity to choose a better life in other countries multiple times, but all three refused. “I’ve been given many opportunities to live in the U.S.,” Awad said. “As difficult as it is, as there is so much pressure here, I feel there’s a calling, and you can do something to make the situation better for millions of people. When Jesus talked about loving your enemy, no longer will there be two of them. No longer is there an ‘us’ and ‘them.’ As humans, we are one.” Today Al’Azzah trains people in the methods of peaceful activism at the non-violence program at Holy Land Trust, which he heads. He’s still unable to take his son to an Israeli hospital. Because the three main characters in the film are men, gender is somewhat skewed in the film, but women from both Palestine and Israel have been active in the nonviolent movement and side for peace. Some were seen in the film at the checkpoints, and Shapira’s mother goes to Palestinian villages every week to give aid and support. A discussion followed the screening. Each of three panelists representing the three religious viewpoints in the film gave a fiveminute statement. Zeinab Schwen is founder of the Cincinnati Chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR). “The situation is distorted by the media,” Schwen said. “Even before 1948, Palestinians have used nonviolent-like strikes. Even now there are weekly peace demonstrations: Every week people gather together and march against violence. Some have lost their lives to bullets doing so.” The second panelist, Susan Einbinder, a professor at Hebrew Union College, was ordained as a reformed rabbi in 1983. She’s also a member of the Refusal Solidarity Network. “I really want to say that it touched me that no one in the film made the conflict about religion, which is what Western culture typically thinks,” she said. “The second part is that all participants describe the militarism of their society.” The power of fear caught the attention of Sister Alice Gerdeman of the Intercommunity Justice and Peace Center. “One of the things that struck me was the emphasis of the power of fear and what can happen when fear takes over,” she said. “Fear takes you over, and when it takes you over, you don’t do rational things. When we allow fear to permeate society, we give up the ability to make rational or kind decisions. There’s something wrong in a society when fear of a person or probable event dictates how we’re going to react. This film shows how fear can lead people to put up a wall.” �6 Issues STREETVIBES October 15-31, 2010 City Backing for Affordable Housing Cincinnati must have an inclusionary ordinance By Michelle Dillingham Contributing Writer A s downtown Cincinnati sees major redevelopment projects, most of which receive assistance from the city in one form or another, Affordable Housing Advocates (AHA) continues its quest to ensure there are affordable housing options for all of Cincinnati’s citizens. Of course, “affordable” is relative if one ascribes to the definition that housing cost is affordable if it costs no more than 30 percent of one’s income. Using this definition, for someone making $100,000 a year, “affordable” means something very different from what it means for someone making $20,000 a year. Typically, when you hear people talk about “affordable housing,” they are generally referring to housing for those who live at or below the federal poverty line. For us in Cincinnati, this means a full one-quarter of us. One strategy that advocates use to ensure these individuals and families are able to afford housing in new developments is to promote required inclusionary language for those projects that receive city funding. Last year the Housing Committee of the Cincinnati Chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) drafted a proposal for a local inclusionary ordinance, which was endorsed by AHA. If passed, it would require that any market-rate housing development receiving city assistance include some affordable housing. Specifically, developments that receive city assistance would have to have no less than 20 percent of all rental units in each development affordable by households with incomes under 50 percent of area median income, and no less than 20 percent of all residential units for sale in each development would have to be affordable by households with incomes under 80 percent of area median income. This proposal defines “city assistance,” showing the variety of ways a developer can (and often does) receive help from the city: • A developer can receive tax increment financing. • A developer can receive land acquired through eminent domain. • A developer can buy land sold to it by the city at a price less than fair-market value. • A developer can use a city-funded housing or economic development loan or grant program, including the Community Development Block Grant Program, the federal HOME Program and funds from the general fund or from the capital fund. As development deals pass through City Hall day in and day out, many of which include city assistance, the time is ripe to resurrect this discussion once again and keep the focus on how to promote access to affordable housing for all Cincinnatians. It takes a majority – five votes of the city’s legislative body, city council – to pass an ordinance. One way to keep up on recently passed ordinances is to read the City Bulletin, which includes all legislation passed by city council. The City Bulletin is published by the clerk of council, and anyone can go to the clerk’s office on the third floor of City Hall to pick up a free copy. Democracy is Not a Spectator Sport ­ Get involved or get screwed 1 By Nicholas Hoesl Guest Columnist www.facebook.com/street­ vibes cincinnati ­ twitter.com/streetvibesnews ­ streetvibes.wordpress.com ­ T hank God we still have the print media. Don’t you get a little tired of all those TV commercials (excuse me – infomercials) in which candidates tell you all their good points in 30 seconds? Then there are the “attack ads,” which send the message, “Why should you vote for me? Well, because my opponent is a bum.” This year we are told that one party might stay home because the other party is angry but enthusiastic at its chances, sucking most of the electricity out of the TV set. Whatever happened to one’s civic duty to vote? Show me a no-show and I’ll show you a nerd (for lack of a better four-letter word). Even Plato had a message for them: “Those who are too smart to engage in politics are punished by being governed by those who are dumber.” Television has changed politics. Woe to the contender who abhors make-up, comes across as wooden, stiff, or has a smirk on his face. When the late Daniel Schorr asked a producer what it took to be a success on TV, the answer was, “If you can fake sincerity, you’ve got it made.” The turnout among young no-show voters, the worst age group, is expected to be dismally low this year. Would it suit them if they could vote on-line or from their cell phones? How about giving them a chance on a new car? Would declaring Election Day a holiday help? It’s harder to run for office today. You have to be thick-skinned or be skinned. When President William Howard Taft was campaigning, someone threw a cabbage at him. It rolled to Taft’s feet. He was quick to re-act: “I see that one of my adversaries has just lost his head.” Another politician answered an unrelenting heckler, “If I ever need a brain transplant, I’ll ask for yours. I want one that hasn’t been used.” There are pundits who try to make politics simpler. Political satirist P.J. O’Rourke says, “God is a Republican, and Santa Claus is a Democrat.” Here’s another definition of the two parties: If a man were drowning 50 feet from shore, a Republican would throw him a 25-foot rope and tell him to swim to the other end of the rope because it would be good for his character. A Democrat would throw him a 100-foot rope and run off for others to save. Then there was the “come on” want ad: Young Republican woman would like to marry young Democrat. Object? Third party. To be sure, politics can be fun. Will Rogers told us, “Everything is changing. People are taking their comedians seriously and their politicians as a joke.” Who couldn’t agree more when he added, “Politics has gotten so expensive that it takes lots of money just to get beat with.” What would he say today? Jay Leno likes to tell his young audiences, “If God wanted us to vote, he would have given us candidates.” Political promises can go in one year and out the other. When candidates waffle, have they seen the light or just felt the heat? Democracy is not a spectator sport. Use it or lose it. Vote often. �EPIC Win Elderly Persons in Community is about to celebrate its 21st anniversary. Courtesy of EPIC. An EPIC Community Asks for Your help Best kept secret in housing for the elderly By Ruth Ravenna Contributing Writer E lderly Persons in Community (EPIC), 910 York Street, has been a home to elderly, low-income men and women for 21 years. The house was renovated to accommodate nine residents at a time. Each has his or her own bedroom with a private bath, community living and dining rooms, three meals a day, laundry facilities and an attendant on duty 24 hours a day, seven days a week. This is not a nursing home. It is a shared living facility for the elderly who cannot live alone, but who do not need the restrictions or expensive care provided in a nursing home. The residents call EPIC their home and the other residents their family. Most of the residents have no living family to look out for their best interests. EPIC Home is really their home. It looks like a home and feels like a home. The residents will tell you the home-cooked food is good, almost like their mothers cooked. We all know that “ 7 Local News ­ STREETVIBES October 15-31, 2010 no one cooks like Mom did, so this is a great compliment to those who prepare the meals. EPIC is celebrating its 21st Anniversary Dinner at 6:15 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 21 in the undercroft at St. Peter in Chains Cathedral. Dinner reservations are $35 per person. Send your reservation check to Monika Cure-Shahid, 703 Ezzard Charles Dr., Cincinnati, Ohio 45203. Like other small non-profit organizations, EPIC has need of financial assistance. Approximately 65 percent of its funding comes from Residential State Supplement, which is capped at $877 per month per resident. The actual cost per resident is $1,350 per month. In order to meet expenses, $4,257 per month has to come from outside sources. The difference in funding is made up from grants, corporate and private donations and fundraising events. Unfortunately, all sources of funding are less this year than ever before. Donations can be in the form of a check; goods such as paper products, cleaning supplies, food or storm doors for the four outside doors. There is always a need for volunteers to help with the grocery shopping or to take residents to their medical appointments. To help, contact Marlene Hamilton at 513241-7979 or mail your donation to EPIC, 910 York St., Cincinnati, Ohio, 45214. Donations are tax-deductible. EPIC is celebrating its 21st Anniversary Dinner at 6:15 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 21 in the undercroft at St. Peter in Chains Cathedral.” Landfill Continued from page 1 as educational materials for students. In the back parking lot of a Cleveland, Ohio, furniture store in 2006, ZeroLandfill was founded. ZeroLandfill says it has repurposed over 400,000 pounds of expired samples since its founding. With ZeroLandfill programs in Cleveland, Cincinnati, the Twin Cities, Indianapolis, Boston and other cities on the way, this newfound way to think of discarded items has been catching on around the country. “It started from one guy putting stuff in his garage, and now it has almost grew to a nation-wide thing,” Margraf says. ZeroLandfill Cincinnati alone has kept nearly 80,000 pounds of trash out of the landfills since 2008. In 2009 a man from Brown County came in a large truck and hauled away thousands of pounds of tile for a project, according to Margraf. The total last year was around 70,000 pounds of material, including large amounts of tile and rubber flooring that were donated. “You can take as much as you want,” Margraf says. “We just weigh it before they leave, and we record how many pounds of each category of material gets diverted and we total it up at the end,” says Carrie Harms, co-chair of ZeroLandfill Cincinnati. “Architect and interior design libraries are filled with this kind of material,” Margraf says. “They gather it for projects and then it just becomes overwhelming in terms of the amount of materials they have, so this is an outlet for them to provide the stuff they don’t want or need to be used in a different way.” The program distributed material to artists and educators on three days last month. “We’re probably close to 10,000 pounds, and it is our last day,” said Carrie Harms, co-chair of ZeroLandfill Cincinnati. They expected the number to rise by the end of the day. The small Norwood building that operated as distribution headquarters contained small mounds of material along three walls: metal scraps; uniquely shaped and colored pieces of square and rectangle tiles; a long row of huge binders filled with little squares of carpet, each a different color and texture; piles of fabric in hundreds of different prints and styles. A sign-in sheet showed the diversity of participants. Some people identified their occupations as student or art teacher; others wrote, “Grandmother.” People with a variety of interests pick up the material. “We get a lot of art teachers, day care centers, artists and just people who are crafty,” Harms says. “Anyone can come.” �8 National News ­ STREETVIBES October 15-31, 2010 One Cause, Many Voices:Why We Went Progressives try to gather strength Editor’s note: Tens of thousands went to Washington, D.C., Oct. 2 for the One Nation Working Together rally. More than 200 people from Greater Cincinnati participated in the rally, including union members, peace activists and members of faith-based groups. Katy Heins collected the following statements from local participants, explaining their reasons. “I so wanted to attend President Obama’s inauguration but was simply unable to make the trip. This trip is a unique opportunity for me to show support for our president at a time when the media seems full of negative information about him and the programs he is putting forward. I have faith that Obama is the best person for the job of bringing this country back to a place that we all can be proud of, so I’m presenting myself in honor of what he’s doing and what we might be able to do, as a nation, to live up to our creed.” – Sarah Davis “I’m going first of all because I believe President Obama is doing a good job. I agree with the direction of his policies and believe they will make for a stronger country in the 21st century. My other reasons are more personal. My father (who is deceased) marched in Selma. My parents were members of NAACP. My Dad was an activist in Harold Washington’s mayoral campaign. My husband (also deceased) was an activist in the West End. I believe I am representing them and my granddaughters in standing up for justice for those less privileged.” – Margie Wells-Davis class, or a massive counterattack by the ultra right that will sweep everything we have fought for, away. I’m going to Washington to join the broadest coalition possible to stop this right wing counterattack on working people in this country. I recognize, with no illusions, the Democrats are not, nor have ever been in my lifetime, ‘my party.’ But I also recognize that the current Republican Party is at this time in history my most dangerous enemy. I do not exaggerate. Losing my health care, with as many shortcomings as it has, losing my union contract, losing my disability benefits, in my view is what is at stake. I hope October 2 can be part of the strategy of defeating the ultra right in the November elections and preventing them from re-taking Congress and putting into effect their antiworking class agenda.” – Phil Amadon “The only cushion I have in my life at this time is the solidarity of my union and the century of progress that made it possible for me to have disability benefits. This is a time where there can be a little bit of progress, a reversal of decline for the working “I’m attending this trip to represent a government that stands for change from the old status quo. This climate of status quo has eroded this country for years and should not be allowed to resurface. We must unite and stand in support of our present administration that vows through democratic means a nation finally at peace in all fronts. This trip adds representation from all those interested in eliminating the fundamental prejudices and misconceptions made by the disruptive force that is intent on dividing this nation and to create chaos where there wasn’t. In the words of the great Martin Luther King, ‘We shall overcome.’ And this dream should live on through our efforts. And I want to be a part of that effort.” – Mike Austine “The reason I’m going to the One Nation March is because I have three boys that I have to take care of, and I want them to know that, if we all stick together in this world, we as a nation can keep moving ahead. We have had too many leaders who have come before us to make this way already, like Dr. King and Malcolm X. These men died fighting to make this world a better place for us. But if we let the Tea Party people get their way, we will all have more problems than we have now. We can’t let that happen. My kids need a better life just as well as their kids will.” – Dina Smith Top: Dan La Botz (gesturing), an Ohio candidate for U.S. Senate, led supporters to Washington for the One Nation rally. Paul Davis. Above: The One Nation rally drew progressives from across the United States. Paul Davis. “It means a chance for us as a country to stand up again to rise above the hate for our country, our president and even ourselves. Since Dr. Martin Luther King’s ‘I have a Dream’ speech, when have you seen plenty or anyone have a successful march of people of many colors? You have not. Well, today marks a new beginning, a better tomorrow and a goodbye to yesterday. Yes, we are in a recession. Yes, we are losing jobs left to right. But if it took eight years to mess up how, can we clean it up in two? What this march means to me is a chance to listen, a chance to be heard, a chance to live, a chance to rise again and a chance to not ‘take back America’ but to move America forward. Let’s be like Rosa Parks: Refuse to let our freedom go.” – Rob Richardson, SEUI Local 1 �STREETVIBES October 15-31, 2010 An open letter to President Obama... Fighting Poverty a Single Page at a Time Homeless people change their lives by selling street papers least I’m earning an income selling The Big Issue. If I’m having a tough day at work, I go to the park and take a spin on the playground roundabout. When I have cleared my mind, I go back to my pitch and get on with the business of selling the magazine. My dream is to have a place of my own. Danielle Batist I’d like to set up a small Street News Service Editor home-based business, as I am now a good salesman. uying a paper at I tell other vendors to keep cost price and sell- pushing forward with the skills that they have and to ing it for the cover never give up.” price – keeping the proMore than 100 street ceeds. It sounds like a very papers across the globe, simple business model, and it is. But providing an in cities like London, Cape income is only the first tool Town, Chicago, Oslo, Tokyo street papers use to tackle and in between, share that homelessness and exclusame vision: to provide the sion. means and opportunity for Every day, street paper homeless people to help vendors around the world themselves. hit the streets with the latVendors with street est edition of their paper or papers can access a range magazine. They sell from of other services, includtheir designated pitch in ing sales training, drug and busy shopalcohol ping streets, counseloutside malls ing and or in front of housing office buildsupport. ings, hospiSeveral tals, universistreet-paties, sports per projects grounds or also run train stations. savings They are programs there, come and art and rain or shine, literacy working to classes or earn their organize own living in rehabilitaan increasingtive sports ly challenging activities. climate. “Street Street papers from around They are papers are the world. INSP. people like a hand up, Steven Robnot a hand ert, a vendor in Cape Town, out,” says Lisa Maclean, South Africa, who like so executive director of the many people moved to the International Network of city as a teenager with big Street Papers (INSP). dreams. But without money An international charity or a job, he roamed the organization, INSP unites streets, struggling to meet and supports 110 street pahis basic needs. When two pers, including Streetvibes, of his close relatives passed in 40 countries. The netaway, loneliness kicked in work was founded in 1994 even harder. It was through with a handful of street the street paper that he papers and a few hundred found back purpose in his vendors. Today more than life. 200,000 homeless vendors “Life is still not easy for me,” Robert says. “I live in See Street, P. 14 a homeless shelter, but at B 9 National News ­ Streetvibes wants to interview President Obama. REUTERS/Larry Downing. Streetvibes also doesn’t pay its writers and Volunteer requests photographers. We are all volunteers. Many street paper vendors in the Unitinterview for street ed States are veterans, so this is a senvenue to talk about your agenda to newspapers worldwide sible broaden support for veterans with PTSD. D ear President Obama, I volunteer as a contributing writer for Streetvibes, the award-winning street paper from Cincinnati, Ohio. Streetvibes, published by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless, is part of the International Network of Street Papers, reaching millions of readers around the world. Vendors, who are financially struggling, homeless or formally homeless individuals, go through training and become certified distributors of a street paper. At Streetvibes, vendors distribute the paper throughout the community for a profit of 75 cents per copy, which serves as a supplemental income. I am reaching out to you to request an interview for Streetvibes on behalf of street papers, our vendors and the international community. Streetvibes is non-profit and grassroots. It does not take government money. Should you grant this request, Streetvibes will collaborate with our vendors to include their questions. Street papers aim to be the voice of homeless individuals and homeless or poverty-stricken families, who are often left voiceless in the public discourse. The interview would be published in street papers worldwide, so by granting an interview to the street-paper community, you would be recognizing a legitimate source of grassroots journalism, positively reaching out to the international community and getting in touch with the roots of how your campaign started. There is no amount of partisanship that can undo that. No president has yet granted an interview to a street paper, so this is an historic and long overdue request. Sincerely, Ariana Shahandeh �10 Poetry Corner The Welcome Tour: Camp Smedley Butler, Okinawa STREETVIBES October 15-31, 2010 In My Heart “Homeless and Alone” By Booger Love By Elisa Hill They got into my heart over the years When other people tried I walked away From them and left but when it come to I may be homeless and alone, but that doesn’t mean I’m any less important. I too have a heart and a reason to be alive. It just may take me longer. With a greater will to survive. I’ve endured all the stairs and the questions of why I don’t have a home. I sleep in the grass like I am one of many sheep being tended to in a flock. We fall in tune and the loneliness never seems to stop. I pray nightly hoping for a better tomorrow. Hoping for a place to stay. A decent meal to eat. A nice warm shower to clean my feet. But my reality is that I am homeless and alone. I come from a big family with plenty to spare. Only problem is I was too far gone in my addiction. To understand all the hurt I had caused. So I do not hold any blame unto my family. For me, I did this to myself. Each day now I do go to counseling and seek help. I go to groups and while I wait, I listen. To others’ stories of despair and hurt, of how hard it is to allow yourself the right to be better. Have a drug free life. I just feel so grateful to be alive. Many nights I thought it would be my last. There are times at night I relive my deadly past. Of smoking crack and selling my body. To being beaten and thrown out like trash. I managed to make it through to see another day of life. At this time I may be struggling, but I know things will get better. As long as I continue to pray. Seek help for my addiction. Most of all stay true to myself. No one can do this for me. I must fight for my own life and health. So today I am homeless and alone. Tomorrow I will struggle to fight on. See, I am important and worthy of life. So when you walk by and see me sitting on the grass, Please don’t pity me. I accept my mistakes and will regain my composure. God is my blessing. My life can be renewed. I start today while you’re there sitting reading the news. Homeless and alone, we’re important too. By David S. Pointer The dead Marine’s mother Is being escorted around Okinawa, she arrives at The Provost Marshal’s Office with the officer of the day fairly early in the morning, and an incarcerated prisoner elects to bombard her with his fresh feces. The desk sergeant has me trade my blackgear and .45 for a mop and bucket high blocking prisoner haymakers while helping him to hold his new mop and conduct unbecoming becomes a clean black tile floor Your kids, there’s no walking out on you all I have a lot of little sisters and a lot Of little brothers that love me So much they are a lovely family and They won’t give up on you and I Tried to walk out on a lot of them But they put Jesus on me and He Opened my heart up so they could get In and now they are indeed in my heart I love my younger family with All my heart and they are deep in My heart forever and ever always This is my story about my young Family I can’t walk out on Hope to see all of you soon Love you all with all my heart �STREETVIBES October 15-31, 2010 11 Issues Women Flee, and White Men Just Can’t Think A modest proposal to end electile dysfunction By David Heitfield Contributing Writer M y secret high-school crush was a beautiful, intelligent woman who was way out of my league. She was my little red-haired girl (although blond), so I couldn’t actually talk to her; we would flirt by ringing the landline phone once to let the other know s/he was being thought about, and the occasional anonymous prank phone call. As soon as she got the chance, she got the hell out of Ohio. Times have not changed. Attractive, intelligent women do not think about riches, or landing the man of their dreams; they simply think about getting out of Ohio. All the time. When they get up, when they go to sleep, when they eat, when they poop, when they make love. The few who manage to stick around, usually because they have a family or they’ve lobotomized themselves with alcohol or religion, still dream about leaving Ohio and berate themselves for never doing so. And the latest Quinnipiac University poll gives good evidence that while the weather might be cited as the reason our women want to leave, the real reason is that Ohio men are the most selfabsorbed idiots on the planet. How else to explain the overwhelming desire of Ohio men (63 percent to 30 percent) to send President George W. Bush’s former budget director to the U.S. Senate, all in the name of “change”? “It would seem that Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher’s best shot at victory might be finding a way to stop men from voting,” opined Peter Brown, polling assistant director. I’d take it further: The only way to save democracy, our economy, our country is to stop white men from voting. Let ‘em spit and scream and scratch their nuts on the radio and cable news and in the bars. Just don’t let them near a voting booth. Now, I have many white male friends, being one myself; even so, I must admit that, as a group, Ohio white males are incapable of complex thinking outside sports or the occasional stray thought, “I wonder if that penis enlargement pill really works.” And while taking away their right to vote is probably not feasible, at least until China takes over in 30 years or so, we could tweak the voting process itself in a way that will promote true democracy, decentralize the two-party system, and confuse the poor Ohio white male in a way that he’ll need a pill just to have an Election. But first we need to understand the source of the problem, and for that I’ll turn to the Danish philosopher Soren Kierkegaard, who understood the basis of whitemale thought better than anyone. Life is paradox and uncertainty, stupid First, let’s acknowledge that any attempt to encapsulate Kierkegaard in a few paragraphs is itself banality. But when the argument is to take away the white male’s voting power – and you’re probably one of three people reading this in a newspaper you bought to help some homeless person – it’s best not to take ourselves too seriously here. For Kierkegaard, the essence of human life is anxiety, and the fully realized life courageously embraces this fact. Any attempt to “let go” or relieve oneself of such angst is cowardly and always results in self-deception and despair. Anxiety comes from the existential angst resulting from a self that is a synthesis of elements that will always remain in opposition to each other: the human vs. the “natural” realm, self-assertion vs. relating to others, finite vs. infinite, subjective vs. objective, necessity vs. possibility, temporal vs. eternal. The anxiety of human life only goes away when one ceases to be a complete person – basically through death, insanity or self-deception. In his seminal work, Either/Or, Kierkegaard presents two distinct ways of living: The first is that of the romantic idealist, and the response is from the “ethicist” (a Christian judge) who argues for an enlightened ethical life. Many college students who read the work mistakenly see it as a progression – that is, that the “ethical” life is a higher state of being than the romantic non-conformist. Kierkegaard actually preferred a third option – his infamous “leap of faith” – but of the two, he was clearly partial to the former, because the romantic at least tried to make life “interesting.” For all his reasoned sense of social obligation, the ethicist merely turns his life into an abortion. (See Limbaugh, Rush.) For our purposes, Kierkegaard saw the basis of white male thinking – bourgeois life – as personification of the Hegelian dialectic: That is, all conflicts that are the paradox of human life should be synthesized and “resolved” for some “greater good.” Since Kierkegaard believed such synthesis to be impossible, the white-male way of thinking is nothing more than cowardly selfdeception. Easy money, easy life, easy religion, finding the path of least resistance – all come at the price of one’s humanity. You gain a little peace, you go to sleep thinking you are always right, and you lose your integrity in the process. And that’s how the white men of Ohio end up sending George W. Bush’s budget director to the U.S. Senate. The results of the Quinnipiac poll are filled with hysterically self-deceptive paradox: 37 percent of voters say they are angry at the federal government; and of those, 81 percent support sending George W. Bush’s former budget director back to Washington. Fortyfive percent of Ohio voters say the economy is getting worse, and so 79 percent of those voters favor sending George W. Bush’s former budget director back to Washington. “ Nader running for president. You like Nader, but you don’t want to “throw your vote away” by voting for him, thus helping Bush. With range voting, no problem: Give Nader a 10, since you like him best; give Clinton a 6, since you like him better than Bush; and give Bush a 1, since you think he sucks. Instead of making a “false” choice based on some self-deceptive resolution for the “greater good,” you vote in accord with how you feel about each candidate. You have an authentic vote, rather than a cowardly vote. Cincinnati has a history of trying to change the voting system, given its brief try at proportional representation in the 1950s and subsequent attempts to put proportional representation on the ballot. There is good evidence that range voting is superior to proportional representation and would appeal to a wider political spectrum of voters. For more information, you can go to RangeVoting.org. I’d also recommend an interesting read from William Poundstone, Gaming the Vote, although I believe it might be out of print now, even though it only came out two years ago. At the very least, maybe angry voters who hate the federal government and think the economy sucks will evaluate their vote a little more closely before sending George W. Bush’s budget director back to Washington. And maybe, just maybe, we can keep some of those intelligent, attractive women in Ohio. Until January, anyway. The only way to save democracy, our economy, our country is to stop white men from voting.” Home on the range Range voting is the best answer I know. Both major parties hate it, and for good reason: It invites paradox and uncertainty into the results. Third-party candidates would actually have a chance to gain power and influence. Pollsters would hate it, moneyed interests on both sides would hate it. No longer would the Democratic Party run on the “We suck less than they do” platform. Political ads couldn’t just attack one candidate, but would have to attack several; and in doing so, negative ads would be much less effective. Studies have shown that the real winners in range voting are the voters themselves: They come out of the voting booth with a much greater sense of satisfaction. It’s so simple, and it so reflects our own vox populi culture that the only reason this isn’t getting more press and acceptance is that it scares the hell out of the established order. Instead of voting for a single candidate, you vote for each candidate based on a “range” of scores, say, 1-10. For example, say you have Bush, Clinton and �12 Crime Local News STREETVIBES October 15-31, 2010 Continued from page 3 The Size of the Problem lection and reporting, we fail in our responsibility to protect all Americans equally.” “With 43 known deaths, 2009 was the deadliest year for attacks on homeless people in a decade and the second highest since NCH (National Coalition for the Homeless) began tracking the violence in 1999. NCH has found startling data in the number and severity of attacks. However, the reports also acknowledge that since the homeless community is treated so poorly in our society, many more attacks go unreported. ‘Almost a sport’ But not everyone was in agreement during the hearing. David B. Muhlhausen introduced himself as a research fellow in empirical policy analysis with the Heritage Foundation but immediately distanced himself from his credentials, stating “The views I express in this testimony are my own and should not be construed as representing any official position of the Heritage Foundation.” “While every case of a violent act committed against homeless person is tragic and should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law, the prevalence of these crimes do not rise to a level that requires formal data collection by the federal government,” Muhlhausen said. He cited the conclusion – “deadliest year in a decade” – in the annual report by the National Coalition for the Homeless. “By the collation’s own count there were only 43 … homicides in 2009. To properly understand the prevalence of these murders as a percentage of all murders reported by the Federal Bureau of Investigation: In 2009 the FBI counted 15,241 murders in the United States,” Muhlhausen said. “The 43 murders counted by the National Coalition for the Homeless represents 0.28 percent of all murders reported by the FBI. Conversely, all other murders accounted for 99.72 percent of the total. Needless to say, the number of murders of homeless by domiciled individuals is a minuscule fraction of total murders.” Muhlhausen challenged the need for collecting data related to “perceived social problems.” “When Congress considers the need for collecting data on any social phenomena, the nature of the evidence presented to Congress should be instrumental to the decision-making process,” he said. “A wrong assessment of the evidence can lead Congress to waste valuable resources. An objective and fair analysis of the data presented in the collation simply does not provide support for the need for the Hate Crimes Against the Homeless Statistics Act. “While some may argue that the lack the of reliable and objective data on the number of crimes committed against the homeless by domiciled individuals is justification enough for federal intervention, such logic leads the federal government down the unending road of collecting data on any perceived social problem, whether the problem warrants attention by the Federal government. The Hate Crimes against the Homeless Statistics Act of 2009 is unnecessary.” Cardin was surprised that Muhlhausen testified against the bill – he said he was expecting to hear testimony in support – and responded by turning Muhlhausen’s point back on him. “I appreciate you mentioning the statistics of the advocacy community,” Cardin said. “The issue is whether we have the same numbers as to the number of people who are victimized because they’re homeless versus the other statistical information we have about violent crime, which is collected in a different manner. It seems to me we’re comparing apples to oranges. “The debate today … is to decide whether we have adequate information to make judgments.” Cardin pointed to the ease with which this data could be collected: Wierzbicki said it would be as simple as adding a check box with “homeless” as a category, in the same way that law enforcement already identifies hate crimes against religious, ethnic, gender and other protected groups. “I applaud your efforts with the Hate Crimes/AntiBias Task Force,” Cardin said. “You have recognized that you have an issue that you need to deal with in Broward County. … I take it that you are seeing crimes, violent crimes committed against individuals solely because they’re homeless.” “Correct,” Wierzbicki said. “They’re not being targeted for robbery,” Cardin said. “ They’re not being targeted for an anger assault. They’re being targeted because they are being perceived by the attacker as a worthy victim because they are homeless.” “The beatings in Broward County … it was almost a sport and the attacks were very violent,” Wierzbicki said. “The research shows that the attacks on home- • 1,074 reported acts of bias motivated violence have been committed against homeless individuals between 1999-2010. • 291 homeless individuals lost their lives as a result of the attacks. • Reported violence has occurred in 47 states, Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C. Michael Hesson of Norwood has been charged in the brutal beating of a homeless man in Cincinnati. Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office. less are more violent because the attackers view them as sub-human. They have no place to retreat.” Cardin returned to Muhlhausen and asked if he’d object to having “uniform national information” on status crimes related to race, religion or homelessness that goes beyond types of crimes. Muhlhausen said he agrees that data collection is a good idea but doubts that the report by the National Coalition for the Homeless “rises to the level” of “requiring national legislation.” “I do not oppose collecting the basic information,” he said. “What I’m concerned about is that the data presented in a way to suggest that there’s a rising tide of violence and in fact there is no tide.” “We don’t know that,” Cardin said. “Based on the evidence that we have,” Muhlhausen said. “If you base it on the evidence of the advocacy community, then we do have a rising tide,” Cardin countered. “We do have a problem, that there has been an increased amount of violence. It reminds me of people who say we shouldn’t try to stop war because we can’t stop all wars. We can’t fight for human rights because we can’t end all human rights abuses.” “The fact is that there are other segments of society that are probably far more victimized,” Muhlhausen said. “Burglars target people with homes; we’re not concerned about that. What about crimes about people with homes? We’re not collecting statistics on that as a hate crime.” “But we do have uniform statistics on that,” Cardin said. “I take issue with you. We do have good information on burglaries in this country. We don’t on attacks against the homeless. You say you don’t object to having good information. You say you don’t object to having it isolated into protected classes. I interpret from your comments that you want to be opposed to this bill – and it’s your right to do that – but I don’t see any rational support for it.” Like a smoke alarm Cardin then turned to Brian Levin, director of the nonpartisan Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at California State University, where he teaches in the Department of Criminal Justice, and asked him to address one of the reasons for addressing homeless statistics – ending homelessness in this country. Cardin wanted to know if this data collection could ultimately help military veterans, victims of domestic violence, addicts and others get off the streets and prevent people from losing housing. “With unemployment at over 9 percent, the housing situation, which has been well documented … it’s important to recognize that many people who never thought they would be homeless have in fact become homeless,” Levin said. “It would be nice to have some common sense prevail here. “As Professor James Weinstein from Arizona said, Kristallnacht was more than the sum of assault and arson that took place on the evening of November 8, 1938. These are offenses are against a pluralistic democracy.” Kristallnacht, German for “Night of Broken Glass,” “Our data also suggests that the perpetrators of these attacks tend to be young men and teenaged boys. In the 11-year history of our hate-crime reports, the vast majority of the attacks against homeless people have been committed by youth as young as 10 years old. In 2009: • 80 percent of the attacks were committed by people under 30 years of age. • 98 percent of perpetrators were men. • Nearly one in three attacks ended in death. Source: National Coalition for the Homeless Annual Report – Hate Crimes Against the Homeless: America’s Growing Tide of Violence, published August, 2010. For the full report, visit http://www. nationalhomeless.org/publications/hatecrimes/ hatecrimes2009.pdf. For more information on the Senate hearing, visit http://judiciary.senate.gov/hearings/hearing. cfm?id=4815. was a Nazi pogrom in which 91 Jews were murdered, between 25,000 and 30,000 were placed in concentration camps, more than 1,000 synagogues were destroyed and tens of thousands of Jewish businesses and homes were looted. It is widely considered the prelude to the Holocaust. “The criminal law consistently looks at the context, the target, the timing, the occasion and the motive of offenses. …The U.S. Supreme Court held … motive is something that the government can punish by statutes, not just with regard to sentencing,” Levin said. “For example, burning a church in a pluralistic society such as ours is different than burning a barn. And we have to look at the fact that many of the homicides that take place are due to things we would call routine, personal relationships – bar fights, intimate. These are horrible crimes, but the notion of random attacks by people who select others because the status characteristic is egregious. “In the same way a smoke alarm sends out a message that something is wrong, I believe that we have enough data to indicate that there’s an additional problem. … The homeless are regarded as a socially acceptable target for aggression.” In written testimony, Levin addressed the issue of devaluing homeless people. He quoted President Barack Obama at the signing of hate-crime legislation in 2009: “At root, this isn’t just about our laws; this is about who we are as a people. This is about whether we value one another.” And he went on to say explain how gathering data – an apparently clinical activity – is essential to the valuation of human life. “One of the hallmarks of our civilized society is our national commitment to the transparent collection and analysis of official data that impact the public’s health, safety and welfare. … Advancements in computer-aided crime data collection … will significantly enhance our knowledge to combat a terrible evil scourge that is killing and maiming some of the most vulnerable souls in our society,” Levin wrote. Reviewing the arguments against adding the bill, Levin chose to focus significant attention on the question of “choosing to be homeless.” “Perhaps the least impressive argument relates Continued on next page �to the mutability of homeless status,” he wrote. “The argument states that homelessness, unlike race, is a changeable condition that most people would not want, so why offer to count it or protect on the basis of that condition? As a practical matter, mutability is a diversion from proper analysis of whether a group characteristic should be covered in hate crime laws, because many currently covered categories are in fact mutable. “Hate-crime categories like religion, nationality, gender, age or disability are either mutable or potentially so. The fact that one’s religion can be altered does not make it less worthy of statutory recognition, and for that reason it is covered in both federal law and by virtually every state statute. Furthermore, the fact that a particular status characteristic, like disability, is one that many would not choose has not precluded its inclusion in many statutes either.” ‘That’s not America’ Cardin pointed out that Simone Manning-Moon Union 13 Local News STREETVIBES October 15-31, 2010 eloquently explained how some people find the only way to manage life obstacles is to live on the street. Her brother, Norris Jay Gaynor, was a man with mental disabilities, who was beaten to death in Florida in 2006 for being homeless. “Your brother, Norris Jay Gaynor … was proud that he was taking care of himself on the streets,” Cardin said. “I’m impressed by the fact that he didn’t want to take government benefits because he thought he could take care himself. He didn’t ask much of this country.” “He didn’t,” Manning-Moon said. “If he did realize on some days that he needed help, his innate notion that he shouldn’t rely on the government or anyone … took over and won out. It is ironic that his killers … actually had many of, if not more of, the problems my brother had in his younger years, but they somehow never carried the accompanying notion that they were to man-up and try to take care of themselves.” Cardin told Manning-Moon that is was reasonable for her brother to expect this country – which promotes and defends freedom and diversity – to address hate crimes. “The local newspaper described one of the convicted killers of my brother and the attacker of two others that night as ‘someone whose friends said routinely went out seeking homeless people to beat and attack.’ If we think about what the value would be of having legislation would actually help law enforcement … track, understand, have on their radar this type of behavior – imagine what the possibilities if that tracking had happened earlier and Brian Hooks would have been identified earlier as someone who is prone to this type of behavior,” Manning-Moon said. Closing the hearing, Cardin thanked the panelists for their testimony and putting a face on the broad concepts being discussed. In what could have been rhetoric for supporting a foreign war and fighting terrorism, he summarized the argument for passage of the Hate Crimes Against the Homeless Statistics Act. “The nation’s first priority is to protect its citizens,” he said. “When someone is brutally attacked or put in harm’s way solely because they don’t have a roof over their head – that’s not America.” Continued from page 1 Over time, workers began to complain about how dirty the microwaves had become. Runtz Sr. said that, because the workers were the ones who used them, it was their responsibility to clean them. “I kept telling them to clean them, and finally I threw them out because of the roaches,” Runtz Sr. said. Workers told their churches about the loss of the microwaves, then brought in new microwaves that had been donated, according to Runtz Sr. Dienger says Runtz Sr.’s version isn’t true. “Part of the issue with the microwaves was that they belonged to the workers, but the owners threw them away,” she said. Runtz Sr. doesn’t consider himself a difficult employer. “We don’t enforce the rules we’re supposed to enforce,” he said. “We’re pretty lenient.” Employees are supposed to go through a 90-day training period, when they’re paid $8-8.50 an hour, but TriState Beef only makes employees go through a 30-day training period, after which they’re paid at least $9 an hour, Runtz Sr. said. Some workers arrive around 5 a.m., but most arrive at around 6:30 a.m. and leave at 4:30 p.m. They have 15-minute breaks in the morning and afternoon. Dienger acknowledged that the workers like Runtz’s lenient attitude about scheduling, and thinks some might have voted against the union because they were afraid they would lose that flexibility. “We told them that they’d still be able to have that type of freedom, but like I said, it was just the sheer intimidation and fear of not having a job or the fear that things were going to change,” Dienger said. A bloody mess A tour of the plant showed the environment to be disgusting, of course – it’s a slaughterhouse. The company and its employees would be out of work if they didn’t cut up cows everyday. The company processes 210-220 cows a day. The smell was wretched. Inside and outside the building, flies periodically landed on arms, legs and faces. Runtz Sr. led the tour. He walked to the microwaves, three stacked on top of each other on a shelf. Speckles of old, dry food stuck on the inside from lunch breaks past. He turned and stopped at a doorway, of- fering a peek inside but warning about what lurked beyond it. The slaughter room was large and open. Blood flowed and settled in pools on the gray floor before being washed down a drain. Carcasses of cows hung upside-down from a track that danced around the perimeter of the room. Some of the bodies still had heads, while others were decapitated and skinned. Others were cut down the middle, and the innards had become outtards. Employees seemed upbeat, joking and laughing. Granted, the owner had just walked through the door, but friendly shouting, joking and conversations between workers echoed through the building. Runtz Sr. only allowed a few steps into the slaughter room. Walking further could contaminate the process. White aprons soiled with blood were a staple of every employee in the room, and walking just a few steps closer would’ve gotten a visitor spattered with blood as well. Before leaving the slaughter room, Runtz Sr. thanked the workers and asked if they were happy, to which they replied with laughs and “Oh yeah.” After showing the freezer room, walking upstairs to a hallway off the entryway, Runtz Sr. stopped a worker who was cleaning his equipment. “Hey, Jose, do we treat you bad? Yell at you or anything?” Runtz Sr. said. The employee smiled and shook his head, saying “No.” That response isn’t surprising, according to Dienger. “When the owners are standing outside the building with the workers, of course the workers feel like they have to say they love their jobs,” she said. In a press release prior to the rally, Dienger gave a less cheery picture of Tri-State Beef. “The plant owner and his family have been continuing intimidating and trying to divide the workers with continued threats of shutting the plant down, surveillance of workers as they talk to union organizers and forcing workers to remove union stickers that they have the right to wear,” she wrote. “The plant is approximately 70 percent Latino and the rest split between white and black Americans. Some of the reasons workers have been trying to organize is to stop discrimination in their pay and the way they are treated, to obtain living wages and fair wage increases, and to improve safety conditions at the plant. “At least one out of every five workers The union rally attracted more support than the union election did. Jon Hughes/Photopresse. have been injured on the job, and recently Tri-State Beef received a serious offense and fine from OSHA (Occupational Safety and health Administration) for not having a guard placed over the trough where the entrails are disposed without which workers could fall into and be seriously injured.” Runtz Sr. dismissed the allegations. “We’ve never had any problems or complaints before,” he said. “All I know is, one day a church tried to call OSHA, but I don’t care. Let them. None of what those people are saying is true.” Like it or leave it Recent union organizing campaigns in Greater Cincinnati have had mixed success. United Food and Commercial Workers Local 75 won an election to represent workers at American Food Group. But workers at Champion Windows turned down a bid to join the Iron Workers Shopmen’s Union. Unions enable employees to collectively negotiate their wages and working conditions, potentially obtaining benefits they wouldn’t have received on their own. Also, union-sanctioned strikes are legal, so workers can’t be fired for striking. The possibility of strikes makes employers realize that downtime will hurt productivity, and a negotiated solution might be better for both owner and employee. Unions can offer training courses for workers to advance in their fields, encourage teamwork, give legal protection and keep workers from being exploited by their employers. Others, however, argue that unions could raise wages and benefits to unrealistically high levels above what the market can sustain. This causes the owner to raise the costs of goods, making them unattractive to customers. Some believe unions pit employees against employers, instead of bringing the two together to create quality products. Unions also require members to pay dues. The reason workers at Tri-State Beef rejected union membership is clear, according to Runtz Sr. “These people are happy with what they’re doing,” he said. “I don’t know why they’d be afraid of me. I’m the easiest going guy in the world.” But Dienger sees it differently. When working conditions are poor in any company, it’s easy for workers to complain to each other or talk to one another about it, but not many workers are OK with being the whistle-blower about the company’s anti-union campaign, she said. “It’s definitely illegal to say they’re going to shut the plant down, but it’s hard to find employees who are willing to go and be a witness in front of their boss, in front of the labor board, and say, ‘Yes, I heard that,’ ” Dienger said. “So, if and when people are willing to do that, that’s when they could make more progress.” But Roy Runtz, another of the owner’s sons, said the company’s workers have other choices. “If you don’t like how you’re treated, go work somewhere else like McDonald’s or White Castle and see if they pay you more,” he said. �14 Extras STREETVIBES October 15-31, 2010 Cartoon by Anne Skove ­ One Street Paper at a Time around the world have improved their lives through selling INSP street papers. Maclean’s aim is to increase that figure over the next few years. “In the 16 years of our existence, the INSP network has grown immensely,” she says. “The number of existing papers on all continents has expanded and we have helped to launch new ones, particularly in Africa. “The 200,000 figure is a landmark for us, but we always look at the road ahead. Street papers provide an opportunity unlike any other charity, giving Continued from page 9 homeless and marginalized people a chance to speak out, earn a living and change their lives. Our job is to unite these papers and support them in their fight against homelessness, poverty and social exclusion around the world.” Coinciding with the United Nations International Day for the Eradication of Poverty on October 17, INSP released the outcome of its latest study into the impact of street papers on poverty and homelessness elimination. The research shows that, in 2009, 71 per cent of street papers helped their vendor force to get out of their homeless situation and move on. In addition to providing an income, 84 per cent said they improved their vendors’ well-being and almost 90 per cent said they increased their confidence. A quarter of papers were involved in creating policy change on housing and homelessness in their city or region. As part of an international campaign on the UN’s anti-poverty day, street papers on all continents will run an advertisement (see page 10). The poster slogan, “The Future is in Your Hands,” urges read- ers around the world to get involved in the streetpaper movement, regularly buy a copy from their local vendors and help to tackle poverty in a manageable way. The relationship between readers and their papers is unique. As the 2009 INSP study shows, 80 per cent of street papers engaged their readership through interaction with vendors and the content of the magazines. Articles on social injustice and tackling homelessness appeared in North American and European street papers, while taboo-breaking issues such as HIV/ Say AIDS and women’s and gay rights helped to break down barriers in societies across Africa. Interviews with celebrities and other public figures boosted street-paper sales from Australia to Latin America. Articles written by any of INSP’s 110 member papers are made available through its independent news agency, the Street News Service. Street papers can republish all material free of charge. At the same time, readers around the world can access the best of international street paper journalism online via www. streetnewsservice.org. ! ? t a h W “There is no need for temples, no need for complicated philosophy. Our own brain, our own heart, is our temple. My philosophy is kindness.” – Tenzin Gyatso the 14th Dala Lama __________ �Shelter: Women and Children Central Access Point Cincinnati Union Bethel St. Francis Soup Kitchen Churches Active in Northside FreeStore/FoodBank 557-2873 Madisonville Ed & Assistance Center 4230 Hamilton Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45223 241-1064 112 E. Liberty Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 1841 Fairmount Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45214 Grace Place Catholic Worker House 681-2365 6037 Cary Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45224 Salvation Army 535-2719 591-2246 381-SAFE 768-6907 300 Lytle Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Bethany House 762-5660 131 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter 872-9259 Shelter: Men 271-5501 4600 Erie Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45227 Serves area codes: 45226, 45227, 45208, 45209 St. Vincent de Paul 562-8841 1125 Bank Street, Cinti, Ohio 45214 Treatment: Men 784-1853 2121 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 241-5525 Prospect House 241-0490 381-4941 Starting Over 1419 Elm Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 1437 Walnut Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mt. Airy Shelter 661-4620 Shelter: Both Anthony House (Youth) 921-1613 682 Hawthorne Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45205 Justice Watch St. Fran/St. Joe Catholic Work. House 761-1480 1821 Summit Road, Cinti, Ohio 45237 Drop Inn Center 721-0643 217 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Interfaith Hospitality Network Lighthouse Youth Center (Youth) 471-1100 221-3350 3330 Jefferson, Cinti, Ohio 45220 Housing: CMHA Excel Development OTR Community Housing 721-4580 632-7149 381-1171 114 W. 14th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tender Mercies 721-8666 27 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tom Geiger House Dana Transitional Bridge Services Volunteers of America Anna Louise Inn Treatment: Women Food/Clothing Lord’s Pantry OTR/Walnut Hills Kitchen & Pantry 621-5300 961-1983 OTR: 1620 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Walnut Hills: 2631 Gilbert, Cinti, Ohio 45206 Our Daily Bread 621-6364 1730 Race Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 357-4602 352-2902 352-6363 40 E. McMicken Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mental Health Access Point Mercy Franciscan at St. John 558-8888 981-5800 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 NAMI of Hamilton County PATH Outreach 458-6670 977-4489 Center Independent Living Options Emmanuel Community Center Peaslee Neighborhood Center 241-2600 241-2563 621-5514 Franciscan Haircuts from the Heart 381-0111 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 First Step Home 961-4663 Treatment: Both AA Hotline CCAT 351-0422 381-6672 830 Ezzard Charles Dr. Cinti, Ohio 45214 Joseph House (Veterans) 241-2965 1522 Republic Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Hamilton County ADAS Board 946-4888 Recovery Health Access Center 281-7422 Sober Living 681-0324 Talbert House 641-4300 Advocacy Catholic Social Action Community Action Agency Contact Center 421-3131 569-1840 381-4242 771-4800 751-0600 721-4811 People Working Cooperatively 351-7921 The Caring Place 631-1114 United Way 211 Women Helping Women 977-5541 Off The Streets 421-5211 Hamilton/Middletown St. Raephaels Salvation Army Serenity House Day Center Open Door Pantry 863-3184 863-1445 422-8555 868-3276 Northern Kentucky Brighton Center 859-491-8303 799 Ann St. Newport, KY Franciscan JPIC Gr. Cinti Coalition for the Homeless 721-4700 421-7803 117 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Intercommunity Justice & Peace Cr. Legal Aid Society Ohio Justice & Policy Center Faces Without Places Stop AIDS 579-8547 241-9400 421-1108 363-3300 421-2437 Health Center for Respite Care Goodwill industries Healing Connections Mary Magdalen House 1223 Main St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 1227 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 961-4555 751-0643 381-1954 421-5211 Health Resource Center Homeless Mobile Health Van McMicken Dental Clinic 214 E. 14th St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 2728 Glendora Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45209 Caracole (HIV/AIDS) 381-2247 5 E. Liberty St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 1308 Race St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 961-2256 2203 Fulton, Cinti, Ohio 45206 961-4080 Crossroad Health Center Other Resources Charlie’s 3/4 House City Gospel Mission 15 Resources STREETVIBES October 15-31, 2010 ECHO/Hosea House 859-261-5857 Fairhaven Resuce Mission 859-491-1027 Homeward Bound Youth 859-581-1111 Mathews House 859-261-8009 Homeless & Housing Coalition 859-727-0926 Parish Kitchen 859-581-7745 Pike St. Clinic 859-291-9321 Transitions, Inc 859-491-4435 Welcome House of NKY 859-431-8717 205 West Pike Street, Covington, KY 41011 621-1868 3550 Washington Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45229 Women’s Crisis Center VA Domiciliary VA Homeless 859-491-3335 859-559-5011 859-572-6226 �16 Column STREETVIBES October 15-31, 2010 A Father’s Fight, a Father’s Art ­ Andy Fausz’s struggle for justice A rtists as ctivists By Saad GhoSn Contributing Writer “A rt is a part of me,” says Albert Andrew Fausz Jr., also known as Andy. “It is like the heart that beats to keep me alive or the brain that activates my body. I cannot live without it; and when I make it, I am fulfilled.” Art is also Fausz’s conversation, his way to communicate with others, to convey what he thinks and believes, what preoccupies him. Raised by principled, highly ethical and religious parents, since his childhood Fausz has been very sensitive to evil in the world and to the potential power in each individual to make a difference. He uses art as a guiding light to interpellate the viewer and trigger a better change. “Our world has a lot of pain, destruction, problems,” he says. “We need to work out our differences, make earth a better place for all. Art is a potent tool in this respect. It can get the word out on various issues, create communication, lead to answers and favor transformation.” Fausz, a visual artist born and raised in Northern Kentucky, attended Grandview Elementary School and Bellevue High School; he excelled in art all along. After high school he took a break for few years, exploring life, working different jobs, then entered Northern Kentucky University to study drawing, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in fine art. Even before art school Fausz drew all the time and exhibited his work; it consisted mostly of images out of his head, many related to rock and roll, popular at the time. In college, his art became more personal both in imagery and content. It was often religious-based, questioning the reason for evil when we’re all given the ability to be good spirits and well-doers; it was dark, reflecting the darkness in the world, but also always included elements of hope and beauty. “I was being an activist, speaking to the world of what I felt was wrong,” he says, “but also pointing to the beauty available, to the fact that we can share and help each other.” In college, Fausz started a relationship that brought him a daughter; unfortunately the relationship soon derailed and he had to fight in court for the right to see and spend time with his child. From that moment on all his work focused on the pain caused by a broken relationship, his longing and concerns for his daughter, his dealing with a judicial system often insensitive to the needs of fathers. “Our family-court system is failing fathers,” he says. “I had to prove I was the father of my child, that I was drug- and alcoholfree, that what I was being accused of was wrong – and this despite an impeccable past. I had to hire lawyers and lost all my life savings. Most important, I wasted precious time I could have spent with my baby.” Sweet V, a large mixed-media painting Fausz “ created around the time he split up with his child’s mother, shows in its center a big, ominous head representing the mother, a dominating, powerful and controlling force in this instance. In its left lower corner is a small portrait of himself being pushed out of the page; in the background is a fading, ghost-like image of his daughter as he remembered her the night before, sleeping peacefully. He depicted the mother’s face with eyes and mouth closed, as if unwilling to see or talk, thus unresponsive to his helpless and hurt feelings. In Judging Me, a very large 52”x82” mixed-media painting on paper, Fausz shares his experience battling the court to gain the right to see his daughter. He drew the judges as skeleton referees surrounding him and accusing him. He is in the middle of the picture, his mouth wide open, screaming to defend himself. In the right half is the mother of his child, her head upside down, radiating thick lines of aggression; on one side of the painting are knives being thrown at him. To add hope to his situation, Fausz also incorporated a little house, flowers floating in the background, a Sacred Heart, allusion to himself, a good person wanting a good relationship. In Protecting our Eggs, also a very large painting on paper, he states that even when one is the father, the rightful provider of the “egg,” the current family court system often denies him all rights, as if only mothers matter for a child’s healthy development. Fausz’s recent paintings have all included self-portraits, portraits of his daughter, of her mother, images of good and evil, all interacting in different fields of color, line work and stylistic imagery, to reinforce emotions and feelings. They contain both beauty and pain and incorporate stories, poems, conversations, They can be hard to see, uplifting at times, but always trigger conversations with the viewers and an opportunity for Fausz to talk about his struggles and the family court system he has been experiencing, thus clarifying his message. “Artists and art shows provide a vehicle for conversations, for people to meet and talk,” he says. “They get thoughts and exchanges started, vital to any change. My work right now focuses on my situation as an estranged father, also at shedding light on our family court system in order My work right now focuses on my situation as an estranged father, also at shedding light on our family court system in order to make it more humane.” Top: Andy Fausz stands in front of one of his paintings. Saad Ghosn. Above: Sweet V, mixed-media painting and photo by Andy Fausz. to make it more humane. It will always deal with the pain I see and feel around me, thriving for a better world.” Now that he is able to spend more time with his daughter, Fausz hopes that the beauty of their relationship will start to transpire into his art. He would like to continue addressing religion and its good values, the power of love, ongoing social issues such as fighting greed, food and famine, the futility of wars. “For me, the best aspect of art is sharing it and sharing myself and my feelings through it,” Fausz says. “My images come naturally and subconsciously; they reflect what I had lived, thought, experienced. My art breathes on its own; it urges me to partake in the goodness of life.” Artists as Activists is a regular column highlighting Greater Cincinnati artists who use art as a vehicle for change. Saad Ghosn is the founder of SOS Art. Ghosn can be contacted at saad.ghosn@ uc.edu. � 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 2010 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 October 15-31, 2010 Subject The topic of the resource Homelessness Description An account of the resource Pg 1: Union Gets Slaughtered in Vote Environmentalism Through Art and Design Pg 2: Street Wise Pg 3: Counting Hate Is the First Step Pg 4: Three Wise Men in an Occupied Land Pg 5: Three Wise Men in an Occupied Land Continued Pg 6: City Backing for Affordable Housing Democracy is Not a Spectacular Sport Pg 7: An EPIC Community Asks for Your Help Pg 8: One Cause, Many Voices: Why We Went Pg 9: Fighting Poverty a Single Page at a Time Pg 10: Arts & Poetry Pg 11: Women Flee, and White Men Just Can’t Think Pg 12: Crime Continued Pg 13: Union Continued Pg 14: Arts & Poetry Continued Pg 15: Resources Pg 16: A Father’s Fight, a Father’s Art 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 October 15-31, 2010 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Gregory Flannery Joseph Szydlowski Georgia Bohannon Michelle Dillingham Samantha Groark Margo Pierce Carly Tamborski Jeremy Flannery Michael Henson David Heitfield Corey Gibson Jeni Jenkins Saad Ghosn Lew Moores Larry Gross Eli Braun Jesse Call Michael Fanning B. Clifton Burke Aimie Willhoite Lynne Ausman Anne Skove Vinit Murthy Jon Hughes Brad Foster Jeremy Flannery Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Aimie Willhoite Andy Fausz Anne Skove B. Clifton Burke Barack Obama Bethlehem Brad Foster Carly Tamborski Cincinnati Congress Corey Gibson David Heitfield Democracy Eli Braun Environmentalism EPIC Georgia Bohannon Gregory Flannery Hate International news Jeni Jenkins Jeremy Flannery Jesse Call Jon Hughes Joseph Szydlowski Larry Gross Lew Moores Lynne Ausman Margo Pierce Michael Fanning Michael Henson Michelle Dillingham Protests Saad Ghosn Samantha Groark Vinit Murthy Women https://streetvibesarchive.net/files/original/2e2870501e546706613f8b3d3b690c03.pdf 127cb631a9a55c867527eb46941db712 PDF Text Text Immigration Protests Mark Reds Game CS13 Re-examines and Reinvents art page 6 page 7 Oct. 1-14, 2010 • Issue 185 • One Dollar ADVOCATING JUSTICE • BUILDING COMMUNITY Cost of Justice: $42,000 an Hour ­ Too much prosecution? By Eli Braun Contributing Writer “ ‘S mall potatoes’ is no defense,” a judge tells a defendant in a recent New Yorker cartoon. And while “small potatoes” might be a poor defense, it might be reason enough to keep a case out of court. That’s the thrust of a new study on the cost of prosecuting criminal defendants in Hamilton County. The study, which I helped research for the Ohio Justice & Policy Center (OJPC), asks the question: How much does it cost taxpayers to put people on trial, from their initial detention to a con­ viction or acquittal? The OJPC study only counted adult cases and exclud­ ed juvenile cases. It also excluded the costs of civil cases, policing (except testimony in court by police) and cor­ rections. Generally, if a program did not deal directly with adult crimi­ nal defendants, it wasn’t counted. The result was astounding: For every hour the Hamilton County Courthouse was open for adult criminal cases in 2008, taxpayers put up $42,000. That’s just under $400,000 per weekday and $2 mil­ lion per week. The cause, in part, is a flood of small-potatoes cases. Hamilton County files twice as many misde­ meanor cases annually as Frank­ lin County – despite comparable population size and demograph­ ics. The misdemeanor filing rate is 1 per 23 people in Hamilton County and 1 per 45 in Franklin County. In fact, Hamilton Coun­ Warped justice: Unnecessary prosecution drives up costs. Eli Braun. ty’s misdemeanor filing rate far exceeds Franklin County’s even after excluding cases stemming from workforce and for the entire com­ study, as the report explains, because Cincinnati’s regressive marijuana or­ munity’s safety. The study highlights “policymakers and taxpayers should dinance (see “Cincinnati’s Marijuana three points. understand the economic impact of Law Fiasco,” issue of May 15-31). First, during this economic misdemeanor arrests and subsequent downturn, counties have come to court functions.” ‘Flooding the system’ understand that prosecuting petty Second, regarding social impacts infractions such as loitering, open beyond money, an excessive misde­ Such heavy misdemeanor casel­ containers of alcohol and curfew meanor caseload needlessly creates oads carry enormous costs – not just violations can often lead to expensive for taxpayers’ wallets but for the city’s prosecutions. OJPC undertook the See Justice, P. 5 Serving the Ministry of Irritation ­ A woman priest point? That’s what Jesus is about – not about be­ ing consumers, not about the constant search for security.” works for reform ‘Another system of evil’ By Gregory Flannery Editor P eople gather at an undisclosed location to celebrate Mass. They face persecution if they are caught – not from the state, as in the early days of the Christian church, when the Ro­ man Empire forced believers into catacombs or, as in the 20th century, when communism forced Catho­ lics in Eastern Europe underground. These Catholics fear repression by their own religious leaders, the hierarchy of the Roman Catho­ lic Church. Their priest is a woman, Janice SevreDuszynska, who says God called her to the ministry. In 2008 a female Catholic bishop ordained SevreDuszynska. The Vatican holds that both women thereby incurred automatic excommunication. Catholics who attend a liturgy presided over by Sevre-Duszynska risk the same punishment, and she spoke on condition that the location of their gathering not be reported. Sevre-Duszynska says she celebrates Mass where she’s invited. She moved to Cincinnati last year when her mother-in-law’s health declined. For 25 years SevreDuszynska was a teacher in Lexington, Ky. For the past two years she has served as a priest. She sees her vocation as something more than a ceremonial Janice Sevre-Duszynska celebrates Mass. Robert Pohowsky. role – it is inevitably and vigorously political. “Jesus was very political,” she says. “They’ve got him so watered down. They want to stay in their comfort zone, but that’s not what he was about. He was about empowering people. If the church isn’t standing up for the poor and oppressed, what is the Last summer Sevre-Duszynska was one of 37 peace activists arrested during a demonstration at the Y-12 nuclear-weapons plant in Oak Ridge, Tenn. (see “A Joyous Hammer Strikes Again,” issue of Aug. 1-14). During the protest – she prefers the term “witness” – she danced a polka and wore a stole, or liturgical scarf, bearing images of children around the world. “To me, this is a sacrament,” she says. “It was great to be with all these peace- and justice-makers from around the world. That’s where I’m happiest – on the streets.” In 2002 Sevre-Duszynska was sentenced to three months in a federal prison for her participation in a protest at the School of the Americas at Fort Ben­ ning, Ga. She sees her liturgical role completely in sync with her political work, opposing what she calls “the idol­ atry of the weapons.” Indeed she points to priests and nuns who have participated in non-violent civil disobedience as “models of priesthood” for her. “These are the Old Testament prophets, people who address the powers that be,” Sevre-Duszynska says. “They say, ‘Is this how you treat my people? Is this taking care of the basic needs of my people?’ See Priests, P. 5 �2 The Vibe ­ By The Numbers ­ 710 The amount, in dollars, that Choctaw Indians sent to poor people in Ireland in 1847(see page 11). 1420 The address on main Street for CS13’s new gallery (see page 7). 1903 The year W.E.B. Du Bois wrote The Souls of Black Folk (see page 16). 400,000 The death toll for bats so far from white nose syndrome (see page 7). 100 The cost, in millions of dollars, spent by Hamilton County on adult prosecutions in 2008 (see page 1). 2009 The year the Rev. Mark Schmieder died (see page 14). 1 The number of decades Riccardo Taylor spent as a Streetvibes vendor (see page 12). 10,000 The number of ex-prisoners asking the Safer Foundation for help finding jobs (see page 8). 15 The date in September when supporters of immigrants’ rights unveiled posters at a Reds game (see page 4). 5,265 The cost, in dollars, to shelter and re-house a family of four after they’ve been evicted (see page 4). StreetWise By GreGory Flannery Editor A Year of Writing Artfully When Saad Ghosn wrote his second biweekly column for Streetvibes, he asked that we change the tag line we had first used, identifying his day job. Ghosn is a physician and a medical professor. He didn’t want those facts distracting readers from the subject of his column. He also organizes SOS Art, an annual exhibition of art on social and political themes. He is a busy man, and he takes both medicine and art seriously. Our Sept. 1 edition was the one-year anniversary of Ghosn’s column, “Artists as Activists” (see page 16). In the past year he has showcased the work of artists in Greater Cincinnati whose work in a wide range of media – painting, poetry, sculpture, mixed media – give expression to the human condition and the irrepressible urge to improve, even ennoble, it. We look forward to another year of “Artists as Activists.” Ghosn is one of a corps of volunteers whose writing, photography, layout and proofreading make Streetvibes what it is. Do You Find This Titillating? Of course, what Streetvibes is doesn’t appeal to everyone. In the past few weeks some street papers in the United States, including Streetvibes, have found themselves in conflict with the Catholic Church. Street Roots in Portland, Ore., lost funding from the Archdiocese of Portland because the paper publishes a resource guide that includes Planned Parenthood. That organization offers contraceptive and abortion services, of which the Catholic Church disapproves. In the case of Streetvibes, copies of a recent edition were distributed to a group of Catholic ninth-grade students, which probably was not a good idea. The Sept. 1 edition contained an interview with rock star John Mellencamp, who used vulgar language in referring to members of Congress. Catholic organizations have previously criticized Streetvibes for quoting people using coarse language. For what it’s worth, I bet that every one of the kids who received that issue of our paper was already familiar with the word that Mellencamp used. But we’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again: Streetvibes isn’t written for children. Let them enjoy such innocence as they can on their path to adulthood. We don’t use vulgar language in order to titillate – and no, that’s not a naughty word. People in distress sometimes use vulgar language, especially faced with the kinds of issues that are often the subject of articles in Streetvibes: Poverty, homelessness, oppression. We believe in quoting people as they really speak, and sometimes that offends certain readers. At the same time, our society has an unhealthy habit of believing some words – which aren’t at all vulgar – shouldn’t be spoken in public. The result can make certain problems worse, which is the point of Margo Pierce’s column, “Eight Minutes using the V Word” (see page 3). Ohio Didn’t Kill This Time We are pleased to report that Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland commuted the death sentence of Kevin Keith, who was scheduled to be poisoned Sept. 15 by prison guards. The state prefers to use the phrase “lethal injection” – a bit of word play that should offend all our readers, given that its use is intended to mask the odious nature of what is done. Keith benefited from a nationwide petition campaign calling on Strickland to spare his life. Many believe Keith is innocent. His supporters included more than 30 former state and federal judges and prosecutors, the Ohio Innocence Project, the National Innocence Network, more than 100 religious leaders and organizations and 13 leading experts on eyewitness and memory. Strickland changed Keith’s sentence to life in prison without parole. La Botz Says, ‘ONO, You Don’t’ Dan La Botz, Ohio’s Socialist candidate for the U.S. Senate, has filed a complaint accusing the Ohio Newspaper Organization (ONO) and its corporate members with making illegal corporate contributions to Rob Portman’s and Lee Fisher’s Senate campaigns. ONO is a for-profit business enterprise created by the eight largest newspapers in Ohio. ONO organized three televised debates (using television stations owned by ONO’s members). No candidate other than the Republican and Democratic candidates are allowed to participate in these debates (see “Dems and GOP Say, ‘Stay Away,’ ” issue of Sept. 15­ 30). By arranging the debate in such a way, ONO has, in effect, made an illegal corporate campaign contribution to Fisher and Portman, according to La Botz’s complaint with the Federal Election Commission (FEC). “Clandestine deals between corporate America and its preferred candidates cannot be tolerated in free elections,” La Botz says. “If corporations, including news organizations, are to participate in American politics, they must – absolutely must – comply with the law. They must be neutral. They must be fair. They cannot simply shovel money, coverage, television exposure and political favors to the two major-party candidates. Nor can candidates legally bargain for these gratuities. “If they really believe in a democratic process and fair elections, the news organizations and candidates named in this complaint should take action immediately to include all other parties and candidates in the debates they are organizing. The FEC, as the guarantor of fair elections, should also act at once to ensure that I and other parties and candidates are included in these and other such debates. I think it important for these and for future elections to hold these candidates and their corporate sponsors accountable for their wrongdoing.” STREETVIBES October 1-14, 2010 Streetvibes is an activist newspaper, advocating justice and building community. Streetvibes reports on economic issues, civil rights, the environment, the peace movement, spirituality and the struggle against homelessness and poverty. Distributed by people who are or once were homeless, in exchange for a $1 donation, Streetvibes is published twice a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Address: 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 Phone: 513.421.7803 x 12 Fax: 513.421.7813 E-mail: streetvibes2@yahoo. com Web site: www. cincihomeless.org Blog: streetvibes.wordpress. com Streetvibes Staff Editor Gregory Flannery Art Director Joseph Szydlowski Vendor Coordinator Georgia Bohannon Contributing Writers Michelle Dillingham, Samantha Groark, Margo Pierce, Paul Kopp, Jeremy Flannery, Michael Henson, David Heitfield, Corey Gibson, Jeni Jenkins, Saad Ghosn, Lew Moores, Larry Gross, Eli Braun, Jesse Call, Michael Fanning, B. Clifton Burke Photography/Artwork Aimie Willhoite, Lynne Ausman, Anne Skove, Vinit Murthy, Jon Hughes, Brad Foster Proofreaders Jeremy Flannery The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that works to eradicate homelessness in Cincinnati through coordination of services, public education, grassroots advocacy and Streetvibes. We are proud members of: �8 3 Column STREETVIBES October 1-14, 2010 M I N U T E S Using the V-Word Chronic vaginal pain is common but rarely discussed By Margo Pierce Contributing Writer When the pain your experience is socially acceptable – a headache, lower back pain, a sprained ankle – it’s a perfectly reasonable topic of conversation and frequently leads to sharing, “This medicine works for me.” But if you’re a woman and the pain you experiences results from just putting on a pair of panties and walking across the room, well, you’d best keep that little problem to yourself. What more than six million aren’t talking about much is vulvodynia – vaginal pain disorders. According to the National Vulvodynia Association (http://www.nva.org), this statistic represents a variety of pain disorders ranging from a rash and occasional irritation to constant pain or sharp pains during sexual intercourse. There is no known cause for vulvodynia and the only treatment is alleviating the various symptoms that are diagnosed. The current definition, according to the association, is “chronic vulvar pain without an identifiable cause.” “We cannot educate and we cannot better understand our bodies until we get rid of the stigma that’s attached to the word ‘sex,’ ” says Patty Brisben, founder of non-profit Patty Brisben Foundation for Women’s Sexual Health (www.pattybrisbenfoundation.org). “I want people to be more open because it’s not only going to be about us – it’s going to be happening to our daughters and our daughter’s daughter. It’s so important to learn more about our bodies. We pay that forward to our children by being able to openly talk.” So how does a woman deal with an ailment that has no known cause and no known cure? The first step is to pay attention to what your body is telling you – something isn’t right. Then persist in getting a diagnosis, even when you’re being told there’s nothing wrong with you. “We have to educate, and we have to allow women to know that this truly does exist. This is not in their mind,” Brisben says. “When women go see their health-care providers, they generally have to see seven doctors, and I’ve heard high as 16. A lot of women have suffered and still are suffering in silence because they have been dismissed by their doctors: ‘Maybe you should see a marriage counselor. Drink a bottle of wine (before sex). Get a good lubricant; it’s going to be so much better.’ ” The board of directors of the Brisben Foundation includes physicians who are treating women with vulvodynia. Brisben says more research and collecting information about this disorder is a top priority for the foundation. “We’re currently starting a registry and the women who are now being treated for vulvodynia can go in and report what’s going on Patty Brisben asks why it’s OK to say “erectile dysfunction” but not “vagina.” Jon Hughes/ Photopresse. with their treatment,” she says. “This is going to better educate our physicians on how to treat this. There is no cure. There is none because there is so little research done. Doctors are seeing more and more patients with this … and trying to find answers.” The stated mission of the Patty Brisben Foundation is to “support research to identify information and develop tools that enable women to have appropriate discussions regarding sexual health among themselves, with their family members, relational partners and health-care providers.” That last one – health­ care providers – is a special concern for Brisben. In addition to developing two educational videos to help educate physicians and their patients about vaginal pain disorders, Brisben says she wants women to understand that finding a doctor who will listen to their concerns is critical. “If you cannot go in and you cannot sit with your health care provider and you’re not able to open up to him or her about what’s currently going on with your body, if they’re not giving you sound information, they’re not talking to you …you need to look for another health-care provider – someone you are comfortable with, someone who is going to provide answers,” she says. Brisben expects doctors to do their homework. She says resources about vulvodynia are not as extensive as they need to be, but the information is out there and the docs need to learn all they can in order to help women. “I don’t think it’s fair for any woman to go to her health-care provider and not be able to get answers,” she says. “I want doctors to know that women should not suffer in silence anymore. They should be able to provide more answers and more information. “I’ve been in this industry working with women and sexual health and providing a safe environment for them to be able to have a platform to ask questions and learn more about their bodies. I take great pride in that. I love that. I fell in love with this platform early on. I’ve always wanted to be for all women … to be the one to go out and find these answers for women.” While vulvodynia is a priority for the Brisben Foundation, the organization advocates for women’s health in a variety of ways. Menopause, cancer, breast health, vaginal health, female sexual dysfunction, intimacy after childbirth and libido are the other areas unique to women – rarely discussed but deserving attention. October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, but breast health is hardly dinner-table conversation in most households. It is only by openly discussing and sharing information about women’s sexual health that we will begin to develop a healthy relationship with these issues, according to Brisben. Does this seem far-fetched? Consider the last time you saw a TV ad for erectile dysfunction medication. In her ideal world, Brisben would like to have women sitting in the bleachers at Little League baseball games or sitting around the dinner table discussing vulvodynia and the research efforts underway to find much needed answers. “This is when the suffering in silence will stop, and this is when our doctors will really be able to know that it’s important to … talk to women about these things,” she says. Many people work hard to make a difference for the less privileged in the Queen City; “Eight Minutes” is an opportunity to learn who those people are and what motivates them to do be a positive influence. �4 Issues STREETVIBES October 1-14, 2010 Study Backs Federal Eviction Aid ­ A little help now prevents homelessness later By Michelle Dillingham Contributing Writer U nlike with corporate institutions, it is a rare luxury in the world of socialservice non-profits to find the time and resources to conduct program evaluation and research. Funding for such “extravagant” activities is hard to come by – and yet so important as we seek to identify best practices (otherwise known as “good ideas that work”). Under the watch of Kevin Lab, a fellow social worker and director of programs at the St. Vincent de Paul Society, that agency was able to conduct research on the effectiveness of the Emergency Food and Shelter Program (EFSP). EFSP dollars are federal monies for non-profits to provide emergency assistance for people who are homeless or at risk for homelessness. St. Vincent de Paul used EFSP funds for emergency rental assistance to those facing eviction. In 2007 they provided 128 households with rental assistance, then studied the follow-up data in 2008 to see how effective the assistance was. Their research revealed that a majority of households whom they assisted were able to avoid eviction for at least one year. They were a diverse demographic group, and a majority of those assisted were children. The data also pointed to indicators of increased or decreased likelihood of future eviction. Clients who didn’t face a court eviction hearing in the year prior to receiving EFSP assistance had a smaller chance of facing an eviction hearing after the assistance was provided. Less than one-third of clients who recently started a new job went on to face eviction. And only 9 percent of clients who were temporarily off work due to health reasons faced an eviction after receiving EFSP assistance. “EFSP rental assistance is a relatively low-cost, effective method of homeless prevention for households, especially those with children, facing a short-term financial crisis,” the study found. “EFSP funding should be increased to prevent a greater number of households from becoming homeless.” The study includes compelling cost comparisons showing how assisting a potentially homeless family in their apartment for at least one month with EFSP funds ($700) is significantly more cost-effective than the cost of sheltering and re-housing a homeless family of four ($5,265). Perhaps most important was the conclusion that, even though certain characteristics might be present in a household, no one characteristic can be seen as a determining factor of future housing stability. Lab emphasizes that the findings of the study “are not meant as tools to reject some requests for assistance but to alert us to the special help some people may need to carry forward and maintain their plan for housing stability.” For a copy of the study, contact Michelle Dillingham of Affordable Housing Advocates at 513-421-2701. Explore Your Fairy Tale Forest It’s more important than you realize By Sarah Robinson Contributing Writer I had the privilege this summer to intern at a nature sanctuary in the northern Appalachians of Ohio. The temperate broadleaf (deciduous) forest is southern Ohio’s backyard, but is sadly ignored or taken for granted by Ohioans. The forest here in southern Ohio is the same kind of forest that is in Europe and eastern China. It is also the most disturbed forest in the world. After all, people like to live in the same climates that all those trees, flowers, birds and animals like to live in, too. There are more species of oak, salamanders and mussels – to name just a few – here than in our partner forests around the world. But one legacy we do share lies more in the cultural than biological. Hundreds of years ago, before Europeans cut down most of their forest, people were living and writing in it, and carried those stories with them to the New World. Most of the fairy tales we tell in America are the ones that come from Europe, and they take place in the same kind of forest that is here in our backyard. I feel it every time I step out onto a trail here: “I am walking through a fairy tale.” I am from the West and an admitted nature snob, so I was not sure what I was getting myself into when I came here. I am happy to say that I was pleasantly surprised. The life teeming in these woods is different from what I am used to, but it is just as – if not more – important than the Redwoods of California or the Ponderosa Pine of the Rockies. Southern Ohio’s forest is known as a “biodiversity hotspot,” second only to the rainforest. It is home to the most impressive spring wildflower display in the country, and its fall color rivals New England. So get out there, explore. Look around you. Grab an identification book and start getting to know your neighbors by name. Some of them are disappearing quickly. But they are all important. Let’s not let our forest be known only by some out-of­ date children’s stories. �5 Local News ­ STREETVIBES October 1-14, 2010 Justice Continued from page 1 a large class of former offenders. The over-criminalization of “small potatoes” cases ends up scarring petty offenders as criminals, who then face barriers to jobs and education. Third, excessive caseloads prevent public-safety officials and prosecutors from identifying truly important cases. The study offers an analogy from Janet Moore, a former senior staff attorney at OJPC. Moore compares the county’s criminal justice system to a resource-intensive, resource-scarce hospital emergency room. “Flooding the system with lowerlevel misdemeanor cases is equivalent to swamping the ER with head colds and nosebleeds,” she says. It’s not easy to find the patient with a heart attack when the waiting room is full of minor cases – patients with little more than a sniffle, patients who should not be patients. The study continues, “In addition to obscuring the important cases, the flooded system makes it harder for judges, prosecutors, defenders and jail personnel to implement evidence-based best practices, such as risk/needs assessments and diversion programs that improve public safety.” The most concrete of these three considerations, of course, is the first: money, and it’s the principal subject of the OJPC study. The study aggregated expenditures spread across city and county departments in an unprecedented effort to calculate the full financial burden of court prosecution. In its own words, the study “provides hard numbers to substantiate the expense of pre-conviction operations and to provide an impetus to seek less costly alternatives like mediation.” In the end, the judicial budget made other county expenditures look like small change. The $100 million that the county spent on adult criminal prosecutions – at a rate of $42,000 per hour – was three-and-a-half times larger than what the county spent on public works. Public works includes stormwater management and road, bridge and highway maintenance. It was nearly 14 times larger than what the County spent on environmental functions, including solid waste, air quality and litter management. It was also 1.35 times larger than what many residents see as the county’s bloated recreational activities budget. In 2008, these courthouse expenses exceeded the city’s expenditures on Paul Brown Stadium, Great American Ballpark, Cincinnati Museum Center, the Zoo and even the riverfront development project – combined. Mediation steps up The problem is not that court budgets are bloated; it’s that the demand is too high. Simply cutting office budgets would therefore prove disastrous. In fact, the county’s public defender is already under-funded, according to a 2008 report by the National Legal Aid & Defender Association (see “The Best Justice You Can Afford,” issue of September 1, 2008). Their report, Taking Gideon’s Pulse, found that misdemeanor staff attorneys in Hamilton County handle nearly 2.5 times the caseload recommended by national standards – the equivalent of 30 attorneys handling the work of 74. On average, in 2008, a Hamilton County public defender spent just one hour and 42 minutes per misdemeanor case, including trials. A system can reduce costs by reducing the demand on courthouse functions, which could be as simple as reducing the number of cases filed in court. The county could revise its unusually draconian charging and prosecuting decisions to mirror those of Franklin County or other counties, or it could take steps to intercept small-potatoes cases before they reach the courtroom. One promising strategy has been mediation. Hamilton County approved mediation services in 1974 through a joint city-county effort. Thousands of misdemeanor cases were referred annually. Of these referrals, 80 to 90 percent were successfully diverted from court, with low recidivism rates. Diverted cases included assault, criminal damaging, trespassing, disorderly conduct and telecommunication harassment. In 2008 there were 14,399 cases in these categories – nearly 40 percent of the annual misdemeanor caseload – that were potentially eligible for mediation services. Despite these successes, pre-filing diversion to mediation in misdemeanor cases was effectively eliminated during the recent economic crisis. Yet mediation might be back on Hamilton County’s horizon. With a grant from the Ohio State Bar Foundation, a group of stakeholders will implement a mediation program over the next few years. The working group includes faith-based organizations, law enforcement, prosecutors, defense attorneys, the courts, OJPC, the YWCA and the Cincinnati Bar Association. The Cincinnati Mediation Project “uses trained volunteers overseen by professionals to bring low-cost/no­ cost dispute resolution services and education on mediation skills to highneed neighborhoods,” according to a recent program announcement. It works both “to address conflicts before they rise to the level of a police call” (conflict prevention) and to divert cases that do enter the criminal justice system (dispute resolution). “The criminal justice system is at capacity. You can’t consider new ideas when you’re struggling to complete what you’re mandated to do,” says Paul Komarek, the project’s director. The mediation program adds “play­ ers, resources, and techniques that are not currently available,” and most important, says Komarek, changes “who we think of as the consumer.” With $100 million at stake, disagreements might seem inevitable. But reforming an expensive court system need not pit one group against another. A system that diverts small-potatoes cases – or diffuses them before they become cases – benefits the entire community. Petty disputes would not need to assemble a judge, a bailiff, defense attorneys, prosecutors, sheriff’s deputies and other court personnel. With a smaller caseload, prosecutors could focus on tough cases and county leaders could invest in other priorities. Such a system could truly achieve, in the words etched above the courthouse pillars, “the first end and blessing of social union.” The study, “$42,000 for a Courthouse Hour: The Cost of Processing Adult Criminal Cases in Hamilton County, Ohio,” can be found at http:// www.ohiojpc.org/text/publications/ court cost.pdf Priests Continued from page 1 This militarization is another form of idolatry. These corporate, multi-national organizations get to do what they want without regard to the needs of the people. This is another system of evil.” The effects of war are not merely theoretical to Sevre-Duszynska. She first encountered them as a child. Her uncle was in Battle of the Bulge during World War II. When she was 10, her uncle told her, “Our parents and sisters and priests taught us not to kill.” The lingering pain of what he saw and did during the war made a mark on Sevre-Duszynska. One night before battle, her uncle was giving haircuts. “The next day he picked up body parts and had to put them in the bag,” she says. “His whole life was more or less traumatized with that single event. All I could see was the pain inside of him. It affected his whole being.” In Lexington, Sevre-Duszynska taught English as a second language. There, too, she saw the effects of war. “My children suffered from the ravages of war and economic disparities – children who lived through the war in Bosnia-Herzegovina, children from different parts of Latin America,” she says. “I made my classroom into a sanctuary. That was very healing and a great joy.” ‘Changed by the fire’ Healing and joy are not always characteristics that women associate with the Roman Catholic Church. Sevre-Duszynska is active in Roman Catholic Womenpriests and directs its “Ministry of Irritation.” The organization supports women who believe they have priestly vocations. It once posted a billboard that said, “You’re waiting for a sign from God? Here it is: Ordain women.” Prior to being ordained by Bishop Dana Reyn- olds, Sevre-Duszynska sought to become a priest in a more conventional way. When a man was going to be ordained in a Catholic cathedral, she stepped forward, too, saying God had called her to the priesthood. It didn’t work. The Catholic Church forbids women from priesthood. “The argument of the Church is that there were no women at the last Supper,” she says. Catholics who support women priests argue, however, that, in the New Testament, it was a woman – Mary Magdalene – who first announced the resurrection of Jesus. Nor was Jesus’ crucifixion unique, according to Sevre-Duszynska. “The Romans crucified women and children, too,” she says. “Jesus experienced humanity. It wasn’t a superman thing.” Earlier this year the Vatican issued a statement again stating that women are forbidden to become priests. The context of the reminder infuriated Roman Catholic Womenpriests. “The ordination of women appeared on the list of most serious crimes against Roman Catholic canon law, or ‘delicta graviora’ – putting it in the same category as sexual abuse of children by priests, according to Vatican Information Service. … We demand an end to misogyny in the Catholic Church,” said a statement by the group. The issue of women’s ordina­ tion isn’t Sevre-Duszynska’s only criticism of the contemporary Catholic Church. “It’s not just adding women and stirring,” she says. “We’re worker priests. We’re about reforming and transforming.” She believes the church has strayed from its founder’s mission, reflected in the absence of people whom, she says, Jesus would welcome. “Where are women?” she says. “Where are homosexuals? Where are street people? The god of Jesus is full of compassion, walking with us, a fierce defender of the poor and marginalized.” Sevre-Duszynska’s own life has had its share of pain. Her mother died when Sevre-Duszynska was 15. She lost her 18-year-old son to a traffic crash 20 years ago. “I think you come out on the other side of a very difficult loss and you are changed by the fire,” she says. “I was transformed by that.” Transformation is at the heart of Sevre-Duszyn­ ska’s ministry. She rejects the idea that suffering in this life is meant to be endured in hope of paradise after death. “I see my priesthood really as empowering, liber­ ating, being a voice for the voiceless,” she says. “In the Old Testament, God said, ‘Forget the smoke from the sacrifices. I want you to work for the needs of my people.’ I never bought into this ‘next life.’ This is the place. We are here on this earth. We’re all here to care for one another, including the animals. Spirituality is not compartmentalized. The personal is the politi­ cal is the social is the religious. That’s how I name Jesus. There’s not a separation. Our personal lives are entwined with the political.” �6 Local News ­ STREETVIBES October 1-14, 2010 Time to Build a ­ ‘Reverent Fear’ ­ Homeless march meant as show of strength By Jesse Call Contributing Writer P eople concerned about homlessness will march Oct. 16 through Over-the-Rhine and downtown. “We want to throw away the fatalism. ... We believe that we will win,” says Josh Spring, executive director of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. As part of Homelessness Awareness Week, the nonviolent march will visit several sites that have been important in the struggle against homelessness, both positively and negatively. Spring says the march has a triple goal: • Inspiring those battling homelessness to organize together to stand up for their rights, especially those who believe nothing will change or that they are already defeated; • Educating the citizens of Cincinnati about homelessness on their streets; and • Showing the large number of people willing to stand against the “gentrifiers and developers” who are pushing homeless people away. “3CDC and City Hall should have a reverent fear of us – of the people,” Spring says. The Cincinnati Center City Development Corporation (3CDC) has long been a target of the Homeless Coalition because of its development plans, which have pushed people out of affordable housing downtown and in Over-the-Rhine and restricted access to several areas frequented by those experiencing homelessness, including Washington Park and Fountain Square. The march will include stops at more than a dozen sites, highlighting 3CDC’s role in furthering homelessness in Cincinnati, according to Spring. These include the still-vacant apartments on the 1300 block of Race Street, where people were forced out of their homes for “economic development” purposes in 2006; the Metropole Apartments, which for 30 years offered subsidizedhousing, but which 3CDC purchased and plans to convert into a boutique hotel; and Washington Park, where many people experiencing homelessness often congregate, now undergoing major renovations that, the Homeless Coalition fears, will make it a private park. 3CDC describes its work in Washington Park as “an important and critical next step in the overall, on-going renaissance of Over-the-Rhine (to create) beautiful, safe, public, green space ... for all neighborhood residents as well as visitors to enjoy,” according to a press release. The Homeless Coalition calls it “gentrification.” The march will also visit spots where allegedly bias-motivated crime against those experiencing homelessness has occurred, including near the Metropole, where a man was severely beaten. Other sites include daylabor halls, which “pay slaves’ wages and keep people in poverty,” Spring says. However, the coalition also hopes to feature organizations that have a positive impact, such as Venice on Vine restaurant, a job-training program operated by Power Inspires Progress; Rohs Hardware, which has a long history of employing Over-the-Rhine residents; and Over­ the-Rhine Community Housing. Speakers will talk about the importance of each site in the battle against homelessness. In addition, the Homeless Coalition is planning three “theatrical events.” The hope is that people will not feel alone in their struggle and will realize that “there are more of us than there are of them,” Spring says. Some might believe that actions such as marching and sharing fliers are outdated, but many of those are actually afraid of people organizing against them, according to Spring The march is scheduled from 1 to 3 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 16, beginning at Buddy’s Place, 12th and Vine streets. For more information, call the Homeless Coalition at 513­ 421-7803. A sign opposing Arizona’s immigration law. Bradley R. Foster. Going to Bat for Immigrants ­ Protest at Reds game to ‘escalate the struggle’ By Eli Braun Contributing Writer O ne, two, three strikes you’re out at the old ball game, as the song goes. But it took just one strike for Dan Moore and Sarah Jaine Szekeresh to get booted from Great American Ballpark on Sept. 15, after unfurling a banner over the center field wall during a game against the Arizona Diamondbacks. The banner, which reached nearly to the grass, proclaimed, “Not in Arizona, Not in Ohio: Immigration Reform Now,” with the words SB1070 crossed out. SB1070 is the bill number of the new Arizona law that targets undocumented people through racial profiling. It has been condemned by both civilrights leaders and the federal government. Moore and Szekeresh were arrested for disorderly conduct and spent six hours at the Hamilton County Justice Center. Charged with a fourthdegree misdemeanor, they face up to a $250 fine and 30 days in jail if convicted. The pair pled not guilty and will have a bench trial Oct. 4. Later during the baseball game, two other activists, Ruairi Rhodes and Zach Fisher, unrolled a second banner with the message, “Shame on Arizona, Don’t Spread the Hate.” It also plugged MoveTheGame.org, a website petitioning Major League Baseball to change the venue of the 2011 All-Star game, currently set for Phoenix. Rhodes and Fisher were not arrested. The protesters were tossed out for violating the stadium’s ban on political signs and interrupting the game, but it remains unclear whether violating stadium rules actually constitutes a criminal offense. Regardless, talking about his arrest misses the point, according to Dan Moore. “Immigrant families get arrested every day for bogus reasons, and these criminal records cause significant damage to their lives,” he says. “All this talk about being arrested – when I can go home and continue my job and my life – just dramatizes the true catastrophe going on in immigrant communities around deportation. Families get ripped apart. It’s hard to pity myself.” Nevertheless, the risk of arrest is a real concern for undocumented people. “It highlights the role that allies can play in the struggle for immigration reform,” Moore says. “Immigrants have owned much of it, but when it comes to tactics that would expose undocumented people to unnecessary risks and even deportation, allies must also step up. We must work to responsibly escalate the struggle.” Moore, who organizes lowwage and immigrant workers with the Cincinnati Interfaith Workers Center, says the four protesters planned their action with the help of immigrant communities. Butler County Sheriff Richard Jones has pushed similar antiimmigrant legislation for Ohio. “It’s not acceptable there, it’s not acceptable here,” says Sarah Jaine Szekeresh, who was arrested with Moore. Protests have followed the Arizona Diamondbacks across the country. “We don’t have ambassadors between states,” Moore says. “Baseball games are as close as we get, and these actions communicate to people in Arizona that anti-immigrant hate will not be welcome here. It won’t be normalized.” The protesters’ message, disseminated on the Associated Press wire, reappeared in Arizona newspapers. Arizona’s SB1070 mandates that police apprehend people they suspect to be undocumented during the course of a police stop. No authority has clarified how police are supposed to discern someone’s nationality. In response, some activists have created T-shirts with the phrase, “Do I look illegal?” Several immigrant-rights and civil-liberty organizations have filed lawsuits against the law. These lawsuits claim that SB1070 violates two essential provisions of the 14th Amendment: the Equal Protection Clause, by subjecting people to police stops and detention based on their race or origin; and the Due Process Clause, by being impermissibly vague. The U.S. Department of Justice also sued in federal court, arguing that the Arizona law bypasses the federal immigration law and therefore violates the Constitution’s Supremacy Clause. In July, a federal district court agreed that SB1070 usurps federal authority over immigration and temporarily blocked some parts of the law. The state of Arizona appealed, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit is scheduled to hear arguments in November. Moore was present in Phoenix on the day SB1070 went into effect. “What I took back,” he says, “is that people are more prepared now than ever before to raise the stakes on immigration.” In particular, “there’s a lot that allies can do in this struggle that has not been done so far.” And it seems they can have fun doing it. Ruairi Rhodes says the protest combined two of his great loves: immigration reform and Reds baseball. Moore says that when they unrolled the banner over the outfield wall, the people behind them couldn’t see it. “What’s it say?” they asked. Moore answered, “Pete Rose for the Hall of Fame!” A shorter version of this article appeared at WagingNonviolence.org. �Local News ­ STREETVIBES October 1-14, 2010 7 CS13 Finds a New Way of Doing Art Collective, original and not for sale By Brian O’Donnell Contributing Writer C incinnati’s Over-the-Rhine neighborhood has a reputa­ tion for being both historic and dangerous. Within the past decade, however, the community has become the center of Cincinnati’s art revival, calling itself home to numerous galler­ ies and cafés that peddle eclectic wares ranging from vinyl records to canvass paintings, all in the name of art. One Over-the-Rhine gallery creates art with no commercial intention. Contemporary Space 13 (CS13) doesn’t act like other galleries. It doesn’t even look like them. The “gallery” is simply a performance space, according to Aaron Walker, one of about 15 core members of CS13. Nick Swartsell and Walker are two of the faces making up what they say is a collective project to facilitate conversa­ tion and engage the community in art projects. “The main objective is a dialogue with the community that surrounds the space,” Walker says. “The goal of CS13 has always been to be plural.” The members of CS13 have back­ grounds ranging from fine arts to jour­ nalism to library science. Walker gradu­ ated from the University of Cincinnati’s College of Design, Architecture, Art and Planning with a degree in fine arts. Swartsell studied political science and English at Miami University. Between them, they are only six years out of col­ lege. Youth is the norm for the group, with the oldest member age 30. Swartsell and Walker are reluctant to take credit for CS13. They’re hesitant to even have their names known; they consider the gallery to be a collective, with no leadership hierarchy. “We try to keep a low personal pro­ file,” Walker says. The less personal, the easier it is to be part CS13, he says. The gallery evolved from the demise of Murmur, a do-it-yourself music space in South Fairmount. When CS13 emerged from Murmur, Walker says, the focus shifted from strict music and art projects to exhibitions about social practice that would address the audi­ ence in that context. The friendships forged at that space led directly to CS13‘s formation in June 2009. “We’ve kind of shied away from any one person, like, being the face of the group,” Walker says. “It’s a collective endeavor.” As a collective, CS13 is always allow­ ing members to tackle different projects through varying media. Uniformity is no part of the collective. “I don’t think any of us understood what it would look like when it was finished,” Swartsell says. Even so, Walker and Swartsell sound like the de facto spokespersons for the gallery. When others are explaining CS13 and what it does, they look toward the duo for clear definitions. Walker de­ scribes the group as “structured enough that we’re stable but organic enough for surprises.” He says the vision for CS13’s future is “more of the same but better.” “Widening the conversation,” is Swartsell’s response. He and Walker share a desire to build on what CS13 learned and accom­ plished in the past year. If there is a need for increased efficiency, the gallery is clear about operating within its ideals. Walker says CS13 doesn’t sell art, and donations are solicited at musical events only to cover production costs. The space itself was always funded by its members. “I try to steer away from the idea of the artist as struggling,” Walker says. Many galleries act the part of art mavens but CS13 has taken a step back to make its art a collaborative learning process, Swartsell says. “One of the goals that’s emerged with CS13 is interaction,” he says. Aural Grid is a prime example. In this project, CS13 used contacts within the Over-the-Rhine to place musicians on the roofs of buildings in a two-block perimeter around Main Street, Orchard Street, Sycamore Street and 13th Street. Walker describes it as a rooftop soundscape that bordered on ambient. This kind of interaction generates buzz. Swartsell says CS13 receives a lot of support for exhibitions. The recent Out in the Open exhibition showcased one of the collectives’ goals – social dia­ logue. The exhibit, a collaboration with the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless included photographs and first-hand accounts about homeless­ ness and the neighborhood of Over­ the-Rhine. CS13 opens at a new location, 1420 Main St., with a celebration and Designed by Jesse Reed. fundraiser on Oct. 1 and 2. The event includes a potluck dinner the first night and 10 musical acts on the second. The goal is to get enough money to pay out­ standing bills and continued operating costs. “It’s just not done yet,” Walker says. Bat Fungus is a Problem for Humans ­ Extinction would mean more insects By Sarah Robinson Contributing Writer S omething is killing off the bats in this country, and scientists are stumped. Not too long ago, in the winter of 2006, bats were spotted lying dead outside some caves in New York. On their noses and wings was a white fungus (geomyces) that thrives in cold and humid condi­ tions such as caves. Scientists aren’t sure if the fungus is causing bat deaths or is a secondary symptom, but bats all over New England are waking up in the middle of their hibernation period, losing their fat stores and either starving or freezing to death. The fungus is highly contagious between bats. There are already places in New England where there are no more bats at all, and the fungus is rapidly spreading to the rest of the country. As of April 2009, 400,000 bats have died from this “white nose syndrome,” and the little brown bats could be completely extinct within two decades. White nose syndrome affects, in addition to the little brown bat, the tricolored bat, the northern long­ eared, the big brown, the smallfooted and the Indiana, which is already endangered. All these bats are insect eat­ ers, and their demise could mean disaster for agriculture, ecology and recreation. One bat can eat its own body weight in insects every night. Caves all over the United States might be closing in the next few years in an attempt to corral the spread of this devastating fungus. Bats are highly sensitive to dis­ turbances in their environment anyway, and as they begin prepara­ tions for their long winter hiberna­ tion, it is especially important to leave them be in their caves. “We don’t feel satisfied ending the con­ versation as we go into another year.” Pursuing these creative interests un­ der the context of community and navi­ gating the art world in a different way is how Walker perceives CS13’s goal. “That’s the payoff,” he says. �8 Beyond the Bootstraps ­ STREETVIBES October 1-14, 2010 Invisible Punishment Lasts a Lifetime ­ Former prisoners need a fair break By Margo Pierce Contributing Writer P rison isn’t just a punishment – it’s a place apart with its own culture and rules. The experience of prison changes not only the inmate, but the families, friends and the community from which the convicted individuals come. More than 80 percent of inmates leave prison, and yet almost no preparation is done by anyone in any of these groups to support successful reentry. The Safer Foundation in Chicago, Ill., helps inmates navigate the barriers to re-entry, according to B. Diane Williams, executive director. B. Diane Williams: It is our role to help people with criminal records help themselves. They are not com­ ing to us asking us to fix everything for them; they are asking for some tools and support for fixing those things that need to be fixed. All of our programs help people with criminal records, and our pri­ mary focus is employment. But we recognize that employment alone doesn’t work, so we form linkages with other programs, and we pro­ vide additional services ourselves so we can better prepare people to go to work. It’s really a much broader picture – what people call a reentry picture –than just an employment picture. If you think about this, people who have been in prison for any period of time … what they know about (their) community is exactly what they left when they went to prison. They don’t know any dif­ ferences, any shifts, any change. If there were not ATMs when they went to prison, they have no idea what an ATM is. So when they come home, they expect exactly what they left, be­ cause nobody has begun to prepare them for what they might experi­ ence; and that might be differences inside their households, on their blocks, in their communities at large. They’re looking for what was when they left. What was is what got A painting crew, part of the Safer Return initiative, paints viaducts along train lines in Chicago. Courtesy of Safer Foundation. them in trouble in the first place. If you’re in the institution for a very long time, you get to make very few choices. So if you aren’t prepar­ ing to make good choices when you go home…you find yourself falling into the same bad choices that you made before you went in. But according to Williams, it’s not enough to wait for a person to leave prison and see how s/he fares. The work has to start before the inmate gets out. B. Diane Williams: We go inside the prisons in a number of differ­ ent ways. One example is we go in what we call Welcome Panel format, which means we have people [with us] from the community to which that person’s returning; people will­ ing to help them make that transi­ tion home. Whether we do that face-to-face or through a video or teleconferenc­ ing format, we try to connect with them before they come home so that, when they come home, they have a support system. They know there’s someone there to help them with the transition. The word “rehabilitation” is seldom heard anymore. The fact is, people are more likely to leave prison with bigger problems than when they went in. That means they are not ready to successfully renter the community. B. Diane Williams: Some of the people who come to see us … need help before they can go to work. They need substance abuse treat­ ment or they need medical treat­ ment. When we are comfortable that somebody is ready to go to work, the first step for them will probably be one of the work crews that we run. We have bids on projects … and have responsibility for clean­ ing the street and snow removal and those kinds of things. We have a number of other opportunities where we are cleaning areas around train tracks … We’re moving into the area of urban landscaping and things like that so our people can get to work right away. By definition, these are low-pay­ ing opportunities. But the intent is to prepare them with both the soft skills and hard skills they can then use for permanent employment. Our goal there is to look for higher paying, better-benefit kinds of op­ portunities for people. Safer Foundation provides jobreadiness workshops and classes, but former inmates need more than just job preparation. They need to be able to navigate what Safer Foundation calls “invisible barriers.” B. Diane Williams: When we talk about invisible barriers, they’re everywhere. There are those people who don’t even know that they have a certain perspective on people with a criminal record; there are people who believe that everybody in our prisons have significant mental health issues, have killed lots of people, have raped lots of people, have commit­ ted very violent crimes. And what we know is that a great majority of people are not in prison for violent crimes. Employers assume that they are going to disrupt the workplace. Employers assume that they’re going to bring violent tendencies into the work place. They assume that they are not going to contrib­ ute. If you interview the employers who hire our clients, they will tell you the exact opposite. The em­ ployers will tell you that they are the people most appreciative of the opportunity. They are the ones em­ ployers find most flexible; they will do whatever is needed to be done in a given environment because they really appreciate having an oppor­ tunity to have that job. There are blanket scenarios that prohibit people from going to work, and the health care industry is a perfect example. If you have a retail theft, you can’t go to work in direct patient care in a health care facility. When that law first came about, we had many people coming to us asking for help. One particular nurse had been on her job for 20 years and they let her go. To help bridge the gap between the behavior that landed someone in prison and the reality of their behavior after conviction, some states are using “certificates of good conduct” issued by parole board or courts. These official documents tell a potential employer that the individual has “cleaned up” her/his act. With tens of thousands of people leaving prison every year, this makes re-entry into the workforce more likely… B. Diane Williams: We work with probably about 300 employers, but we have 10,000 people com­ ing to us who want jobs. The last three years we placed 2,500 to 3,100 people each year. Not everybody who comes to see us is ready to go to work, but we could certainly place more people if we have more opportunities. There is a word called “hope” that is often deemed as hokey. I will tell you that, if people don’t have hope, they don’t try. So one of the things we have to do is that we have to prove to people that opportunities do exist. I believe that the American people at large are people with good hearts who want to do the right thing, and this is the right thing. To hold somebody accountable for bad decisions for the rest of their lives is not the premise for this country. And yet it is the behavior of this country today. The people that we serve are their brothers, their sisters, their nieces, their nephews or their next-door neighbors. These are ordinary people who want to have ordinary lives but have made some bad deci­ sions or have been put into some bad situations. While they are not perfect, neither is anyone else on this planet perfect. But we can have a higher level of productivity in this country if we support these people in living their lives in the way they way they really want to live them. The American myth of individualism tells people who are struggling with addiction, abuse, mental illness or poverty to simply pull themselves up by their own bootstraps. In reality, specially designed services and other kinds of support are essential to the process of transformation. This column is the third in an occasional series that will explore what it takes to Forget the Bootstraps in order to live a better life. �STREETVIBES October 1-14, 2010 Office Window By Rick Stansberger Fallen leaves are just leaves when they don’t have toddlers to throw them around, watch them twist down, grab handfuls and flap them like wings. “Come away from there!” says the teacher to the little ones “That is a professor!” as if naming a caged bear or a piece of road machinery. “No, they’re beautiful!” I walk to the glass and say, at a loss to tell her how they’ve transformed the day. Re-Assessing Shirley By Rick Stansberger One day her life went from You’re so gifted! If only you’d apply yourself! to There was an error in the way your test was scored and so she went into the general student population the gifted program got rid of a statistical anomaly and whatever happened after that wasn’t the program’s fault. My Father’s House By Willa D. Jones In my father’s house there are many mansions Many mansions, with many rooms to rest and pray in In good times, in bad times, day, night, sleep or wake times All the time I spend in my father’s house cause his house is mines When I was homeless, a drunkard, a drug addict and all alone I found much comfort and peace just praising in song When I was hungry, hair nappy, dirty and smelling really bad I held onto my sanity, when my belief in pray was all I had As in any house with rules, my father has commandments of ten Even though I would make mistakes, I’d always repent of my sins And ask for forgiveness with the understanding to make a change A change for the best so there would be no more fear or pain Taking what each day brings in pray and always believe Having faith to know that my father’s will is best for me While searching for God’s love, wisdom and understand­ ing I come into the realization of just what my heart was demanding I began to go to church to learn more about my father’s house I found peace and my soul was saved I could finally an­ nounce I learn that there is a place in my father’s house for every­ one The young, the old, the lost and the sick at heart and mind I learned the mistakes I’d made were all of one kind I understand today that we must learn from the mistakes we’ve made And know only by the grace of God can our souls be saved So won’t you come visit in the house of my father Learn the bible and know that with my father there is no other Take your time and search you soul to truly find yourself An understand that in our fathers house is where we’ll be forever safe with plenty of help Art by Anthony Williams Poetry Art & Literature 9 �10 Art STREETVIBES October 1-14, 2010 Cartoon by Anne Skove ­ Love writing? Or is taking photos your thing? Volunteer at Streetvibes and you could see your stuff in print! Contact Greg Flannery at 513-4217803 x 12 or by e-mail at streetvibes2@yahoo. com �STREETVIBES October 1-14, 2010 11 International News Development Aid in Recession By Samantha Bailie Street News Service I n times of eco­ nomic downturn, development aid often becomes an issue low on the agenda. With the deadline for the Mil­ lennium Development Goals approaching in 2015, some countries fail to keep their promises. Back in the 1970s the United Nations (UN) passed a resolution rec­ ommending that wealthy countries donate annu­ ally 0.7 percent Gross Na­ tional Income (GNI) to developing countries in Official Development As­ sistance in order to help the fight against poverty. This is still the target today, and every year the club of wealthy nations, the Organization for Eco­ nomic Co-Operation and Development (OECD), produces figures show­ ing how much each rich country gives in Official Development Assistance and what percentage of its GNI that figure repre­ sents. Dochas (the Irish As­ sociation of Non-Gov­ ernmental Development Organizations) recently warned of a significant aid shortfall to reach Mil­ lennium Development Goals. Ireland is well off track to deliver on its own projected aid lev­ els for 2010, even if still within European Union targets. Ireland had set itself the goal of being leader on international development; instead, however, the island has been continually cutting its overseas aid budget and breaking its promise to reach the 0.7 percent target by 2012, essentially affecting millions of the poorest people in devel­ oping countries. The aid figures do show an increase in the five years since the Mil­ lennium Development Goals were established, but a big shortfall in what donors initially stated they would provide. Ire­ land had been on track to achieve its aid targets un­ til 2008, when it reached 0.59 percent of national income. Last year, how­ ever, it cut the aid bud­ get by 224 million euro and this year has seen a further cut. Therefore the island is well off its own target for this year, being back to approximately 0.52 percent. The gov­ ernment has effectively given up on the 2012 deadline and has now moved its commitment to the 0.7 percent target by 2015. A recent opinion poll by Ipsos MRBI, commis­ sioned by Dochas, sug­ gested that Irish people believe that the govern­ ment should deliver on its aid promises to main­ tain its international reputation. The survey found that 81 percent of respondents agreed it was important for Ire­ land’s reputation that the government delivered on its aid promises of spending 0.7 percent of national income on overseas aid by 2015 at the latest. In the survey, respondents were asked if Ireland should con­ tinue to support overseas Where did the green go? Irish foreign aid (in millions) Ireland ponders its commitment 1500 1200 900 600 300 0 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 Source: http://mdgs.un.org/unsd/mdg/Data.aspx aid even with its current economic difficulties. The results showed a massive support for over­ seas aid, with 84 percent of respondents agreeing that it should continue, even in economic down­ turns. Dochas Director Hans Zomer says, “Public support for investing in overseas aid – even in an economic downturn – continues to be strong. This shows that people in Ireland believe in a just and fair world, and that the economic crisis shouldn’t be a reason for us to turn our back on the world’s poorest peo­ ple. The figures remind the government that people in Ireland feel strongly about our tradi­ tion and our obligations towards those less fortu­ nate than ourselves.” Irish people might be of the opinion that the government needs to follow through on promises; however, when it comes to personally giving to charity, a dif­ ferent problem is uncov­ ered. Trevor Anderson, Oxfam Ireland’s Head of Retail and chair of the Irish Charity Shops Association, says, “Ox­ fam Ireland experienced continued like-for-like growth every year for the past 10 years since our conception, and so this is the first time we have not seen the development we achieved in previous years. … We are currently 5 percent down on bud­ get and 4 percent down on last year.” When it comes to physically giving to char­ ities people are keep­ ing their hands firmly in their pockets, many claiming that “charity begins at home.” Let us remember however, that in 1847, in the time of great poverty and famine in Ireland, the Choctaw Indians, a poor, margin­ alized community them­ selves, collected $710, a small fortune, and sent it to help the starving and needy. Despite their own poverty, they did their best, something that Ire­ land should do now. As Dochas states with regards to contributing during a recession: “Aid is now not less afford­ able than before. The aid target is set in percent­ age of national income, meaning the aid budget goes up and down in line with the economy. In other words, it is equally difficult in good times as in bad to adhere to the target; in both cases it’s not a case of affordability, but of courage of convic­ tion.” © www.streetnewsser­ vice.org Want more Streetvibes? Check out the StreetvibeS blog at: http://streetvibes.wordpress.com �12 Column STREETVIBES October 1-14, 2010 A New Life Means a New Challenge ‘Streetvibes’ vendor turns a new page By Riccardo Taylor Staff writer Not often do we have the opportunity to start life over – that is to say, have a new begin­ ning. I am more than pleased to say that I have had just such an oppor­ tunity. I guess every new story should start at the beginning, so shall we began there. For more than a decade I have been involved with the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. This in itself is a milestone, for I generally don’t have time to be involved with anything for more then a brief period. Yet I find myself, with more than a decade with this entity. “Streetvibes: Show a little support!” If you have ever seen me on the street, that’s my familiar cry. Just imagine. For over 10 years that has been a part of my world, selling a street paper. Of course, you have to figure that that is not the only thing I do in order to live. I often have to find ways to survive – hus­ tling to eat or finding a place Say to sleep. One can become very accustomed to that life style, and in fact find oneself without any other options but to hustle in order to survive. The reality is that it can be such away of life that one starts to believe that there is no other way to exist. We all understand success is not what you do but how well you do it. Therefore, the ques­ tion is: To whose expense do we chalk this move? Like a game of chess, the objective is to capture the position of the other players. It’s not as calculated as “dog eat dog,” but you surely have to be willing to go the distance. As Malcolm X has said, “By any means neces­ sary.” Now just imagine. The real­ ity hits you that it doesn’t have to be this way. I can be differ­ ent, the world can be different, and all I need to do is put forth a little effort. Shockingly good fortune has reared its lovely head, oppor­ tunity has knocked, alas some relief, but not without effort on my part. Too often we don’t give ourselves the chance to engage change. No, it’s “I got to do what I do.” In reality we made that up. Stuck in your head – that it cannot be differ­ ent – you just keep the same old actuality, nothing based on reality. So we put some effort into alleviating our hardship, and the next thing you know an opportunity opens. Not to pat myself on the back, but I can declare some credit for the recent changes in my status. If you haven’t noticed (for those who know me) I have not been on the corner with Streetvibes. The fact is that I have moved up a step, if you will, and I am presently holding a position with the coalition that just might be the key to my future. Well, I guess, nothing ventured, nothing gained. The question might be what to do with the opportunity when it comes. This is perhaps the greatest challenge: learning and then understanding what it is I need to do. Actually, if you take that as a question rather than a state­ ment, then you find the answer is more complex then you’d think. Yes a challenge, know­ ing just what I need to do and what needs to be done. So often the opportunity comes, and with our inexperi­ ence, we allow our confidence to slack because we haven’t the self-belief that we can com­ plete the task. “Oh, it’s much easier to just do nothing and accept it like it is.” Yet opportunity is rare in the life of the streets. There is no change until you make that challenge that calls for you to do something about your situation. Again, it is not often ! ? t a h W “It is clear that, if we look only to retributive justice, we could just as well close up shop. Forgiveness is not some nebulous thing. It is practical politics. Without forgiveness, there is no future.” ____________ - Bishop Desmond Tutu, quoted in The Sunflower Riccardo Taylor, longtime Streetvibes vendor, has a new job. Aimie Willhoite. that we have the opportunity to start life over. I have had that opportunity dawn on my day, and now I have to take on the challenge which I have created for my own life, as it were. A new beginning! Now, for those of you who know me, my voice will not have that old familiar cry, “Streetvibes: Show a little support.” My voice will have to turn to action, and I will have to meet all challenges as they come. To the future, thanks for your good will. Riccardo Taylor, a former Streetvibes vendor, is now civilrights outreach coordinator for the Homeless Coalition. �Poetry STREETVIBES October 1-14, 2010 13 Ode to Washington Park by the Common People MAYOR MALLORY AND 3CDC It happened on your watch Mayor Mallory during your election our vote counted Will our voice count now? My friends and neighbors have felt ignored In so-called “community meetings” As you work to make a “new” attraction in our city Please consider the sacrifice you are asking of this place The more you take away the more misery will happen There is a culture and spirit here That is the people, the trees, the history Reconsider the disenfranchisement of the homeless and forgotten Listen to the people of Washington Park Not the corporate backers I am disgusted by the city’s blatant disrespect For the voices of the people without financial power To build a park that serves only to support the aesthetic beauty Determined by those who are passing through or own property is an injustice How dare you steal this from the community? We will say a prayer for you WASHINGTON PARK This is where it is This park is a public square to be used by all the people Friends, loved ones, family It’s a place to come to rest This park is home for me I see a lot of cool people It holds many memories It’s not right to destroy our history We are losing our community park. It’s a gathering place I’ve met people here who have given up, And most who are getting up Walking through the park on my way to Kroger’s I stumble on the most entertaining events Gospel music, community events, resources and outreach Are you still capable of hearing the voices of the forgotten? We are united in our need for peace and refuge We have made our wishes known A deep-water pool Breeze blowing through the ancient trees Sweet singing lullaby of the wind When I had no friend in the world Who could keep my deepest secrets? The trees have been my friends I watch the birds and squirrels here It’s my pleasure spot The old Linden deserves to live Save the trees they give us shade We want a USABLE recreation spot Including a basketball court Replant the buddy tree We need jobs Can you open the pool up? It’s hot and kids want to go swimming Many folks down here don’t have air conditioning I miss playing sharks and minnows with a pool full of kids I turned my first back flip inside this park I won several ribbons and felt good about myself Please give my child that same opportunity If you can find funding for all of your renovations You can find money to keep a pool open Wha t wil l we tell t he c hildr en? Jon Hugh es/P hoto pres I want the park fun with swings se. and a cleaner slide And older kids stuff It’s unsafe to have unsupervised water system Stories of the past connect in this sacred space Mama Look! Washington Park can be fixed for less than By Elisa Hill 48M I think the total budget for Social Services is I thought you were looking. about 2 million I thought you were looking. Where are our priorities? I thought you were looking out the corner of your eyes. 3CDC’s plans are anti-green and anti- I thought you were looking at my pain in the night’s sky. sustainable I thought you were looking when he tore off my clothes. Tradition is the heartbeat of a City I thought you were looking when he put that rag Skyline, Graeters, Grippos and over my nose. WASHINGTON PARK I thought you were looking when he kept walking past The poor and the homeless are a part of this our house. town I thought you were looking when he came in and sat We must be protected down on our couch. I walk through the park to get my kids I thought you were looking when he said, “Hello! I like Let’s keep the park for the people of Over­ your little dress.” the-Rhine I thought you were looking when I kept on getting Make the park accessible to ALL the upset. residents I thought you were looking but, I guess you were not. House the people of the park I thought you were looking when I felt my heart stopped. It should not be about money but about I thought you. people I thought you were. People is what makes this city I thought you were looking. Take care of the people I – Mama, look! And the people will take care of the city Why does change have to be bad for To all of the children we’ve lost to undeserving violence: residents that still live here? “Babies, we are looking. We will make a change!” Listen to the residents please Where is the low income housing, the weekly rental rooms Most Favored Nation The blue-collar housing around the park? We all cannot buy condos Gentrification needs to stop now For Tom Romano How did the city planners forget To plan for the community needs By Rick Stansberger This is absurd to have to wash clothes in a bathtub Here comes Claude We need a Laundromat desperately clutching his quiz. This is too much with only a little to work He’ll fight you two hours with over half a point. What did the children do to deserve to have “His Dad’s an MD, their school, a PhD, Swimming pool and basketball court taken and an MBA,” away? laughs Justin. What do you suggest we tell the children? “The only way he can beat that Lines taken directly from letters written by is to get himself named residents of Over-the-Rhine and concerned Most Favored Nation.” citizens at a rally July 2h to raise issue with Yes. the renovation plans of Washington Park. And right now Compiled by Bonnie Neumeier. you’re in his way. �14 Q&As with VIPs STREETVIBES October 1-14, 2010 Interview with Champ Dog of the late Rev. Mark Schmieder By Vickie Cimprich Contributing Writer Interviewer: Some of Mark’s many friends will be surprised to know that you are a poet. What about that? Champ: I don’t make poems as a rule, but when Mark’s friends held the roast for him, they asked me to come up with a little something. Interviewer: How do you account for the special friendship that Mark and you enjoyed? Champ: Well, as all who knew him knew well, Mark would give anyone the shirt off his back. And from the get-go, we both sensed that I had no use for the shirt off his back. So that was never an issue for us. Also, there was the riverboat. Early on it was understood that if I became Mark’s dog, I would be mascot of the Marco Polo and get to navigate a good part of the Ohio with him and his brother Carl. Interviewer: Is there any truth to the rumor that you’ve been seen sniffing around bushes on any church or civil property in Greater Cincinnati or Northern Kentucky? Champ: Not me. Interviewer: What about the scuttlebutt that you’ve been offered positions as visiting professor at the Athenaeum, the Pontifical Institute of the Josephinum or the Franciscan University at Steubenville lecturing on Great Dogs of the Bible? Champ: Ditto. Interviewer: What are your plans? Champ: I have a great home, keep well fed and well groomed. It’d be good to see service on the Marco Polo again. Long days drifting down the green Ohio, napping while Carl read the charts. Sometimes I dream of being a wolf in Umbria, in Italy. St. Francis and I talk over how things are, how different people see things. When I put my paw in his hand, St. Francis’s face is Mark’s face. Other dreams, I taste somebody’s sores. They taste like salt, like sweat or tears. Mark tells me that the person who tastes like this is Lazarus. Interviewer: Do you miss Mark a lot? Champ: Now that you mention it, I haven’t seen him since the last time he went out the door. Does seem like an awful long time since. The late Rev. Mark Schmieder. Clarissa Peppers ‘Let’s Go Somewhere Primitive’ ­ Seth Ewing Huff wants to think about it By Ariana Shahandeh Contributing Writer Seth Ewing Huff, one-fourth of the band The Retros, started by lead singer Mia Carruthers, began his solo music project, Archer’s Paradox, while still in high school. “Diamonds in the City,” a song from that album, was re-recorded with The Retros for their EP, We Will Grow, among the most revered songs on the EP. Huff spoke with Streetvibes about his hope for the band’s upcoming album, originality in lyricism and fame. Q: Another band member expressed an interest in working with a different producer for each song in the next album. Is this something you also want to pursue? A: Yeah, I would like to do that also. Maybe not every song, but definitely have a few different ideas going on throughout the entire (album). Q: Are there any producers you’d like to work with specifically? A: Is this a fantasy world? Can I pick anyone? Q: Yes. A: Kanye West, Dangermouse, etc. But with this next CD, I’d like to work with someone who doesn’t really have a “sound” but figures out what sounds best for the group really well. Like a Rick Rubin kind of guy: you can never really tell, “Rick Rubin produced this because it has a certain swag to it,” but he always makes a quality record. Q: I think you guys should produce “Above All the Sound” (originally produced by Archer’s Paradox and now being reproduced in an upcoming Retros album) with John Mayer. A: I tell you what, I wish we could get that. That would add to my dream for the band. We just play musical chairs with the instruments. I’ll go to drums for a song, Mia (Carruthers) will go to bass and keyboard, Stefan (Wright) will go to keyboard. I want to get that Beatles thing back, where it’s cool for everyone in the band to be a front man. I want it to be OK again to do that. I think producing with a bunch of different people on this album would be a step in that direction. I make hip hop beats for fun. I rapped on a song. Right now it’s not a healthy thing for a musician to be doing because (an artist) needs to be very “what you are: I’m this.” I’d like to break that. Producing with a bunch of different people would be another thing that would help us in (that) sporadic kind of movement. Q: What’s your favorite lyric off the Vampire Weekend album? A: It’s probably in the song “Run.” The one lyric – “So lead my feet away, ’cause all they do is stay, and I don’t think your eyes have ever looked surprised.” It’s the perfect reason to run away and find something else. That whole song is good; it’s got such a simple meaning: you and I, let’s go somewhere else and leave all this behind – let’s go somewhere primitive. I would love to do a big stunt like that someday to write an album to just go out in the middle of nowhere – just disappear – and then just come back with this product. It’s a little cliché’ now. Q: What are some other cliché’s musically? A: I’m tired of everybody talking about taking their clothes off. It’s not an original thought. Ever since clothes have been around, you can take them off. Just quit. Vampire Weekend uses very specific words in the song “Campus” about waking up and putting on a sweater. That’s a cool way of being literal. That’s like using that imagery to paint a picture. The not-cool way of being literal is when Kesha says, “There’s a hole in the wall, it’s a dirty free-for-all.” We know exactly what (she) is talking about; (she’s) laying it on way too thick. Pop music right now has found a way of making it literal and up front and make it not cool at all. You don’t even have to think about it. I want to think about it. Q: What’s the most original way you’ve heard love portrayed in a song recently? A: In music, love is always there somewhere. It’s like a story. There’s always got to be some sort of hint of love there. I was just listening to a new Kanye (West) song called “Monster.” Jay Z is rapping. He is talking about all these horrible things he does because he is a monster: (“Murder murder in black convertibles, I kill a block I murder avenues, Rape and pillage a village, women and children, Everybody wanna know what my Achilles heel is, Love - I don’t get enough of it.”) You are talking about doing all these horrible things that have nothing to do with love, and the reason you do it is because you don’t get enough love. That’s such a classic sob story but it was a cool way of portraying it. Yeah, Jay Z, I get what you mean there. I know you don’t actually do those things, but you are just making a statement. It’s the reason for a lot of people doing horrible things. It was just a cool way of putting love into a song called “Monster.” It was a cool way of just oozing it in there. Q: How do you feel about the idea of fame, both the destructive and exciting part of it? A: I honestly love every aspect of it and completely want to be engulfed in it. It’s one of my dreams. I could sit here and (say) “I want to do it all for the music – and I do – but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want to be famous. I want as many people as possible to connect with some sort of art form that I produce, whether it’s music, or literature, or movies or some sort of visual (content). Q: You’re interested in other creative outlets? A: Oh yeah. Musicals, writing, movies. Entertainment in general just … baffles me with its awesomeness. I just love the way that stuff can make you feel. It’s hard to explain. I get so inspired when I see some sort of art form being accepted by a large group of people. Like when Avatar came out, everybody loved it. And I loved it so much more because everybody loved it. Q: You’re like the antithesis of a hipster. A: Ha! Exactly. It’s not because I’m trying to follow the pack or anything. I love it because it’s so cool that everybody likes this one thing; everybody came together to see this one thing. This reached out to many people. That’s awesome. That’s most inspiring to me. �15 Resources STREETVIBES October 1-14, 2010 Need Help or Want to Help? ­ Shelter: Women and Children Central Access Point Cincinnati Union Bethel St. Francis Soup Kitchen Churches Active in Northside 381-SAFE 768-6907 FreeStore/FoodBank 557-2873 Madisonville Ed & Assistance Center 300 Lytle Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Bethany House 4230 Hamilton Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45223 241-1064 112 E. Liberty Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 1841 Fairmount Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45214 Grace Place Catholic Worker House 681-2365 762-5660 271-5501 4600 Erie Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45227 Serves area codes: 45226, 45227, 45208, 45209 St. Vincent de Paul 6037 Cary Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45224 Salvation Army 535-2719 591-2246 562-8841 872-9259 381-2247 5 E. Liberty St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 Health Resource Center Homeless Mobile Health Van McMicken Dental Clinic 357-4602 352-2902 352-6363 40 E. McMicken Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mental Health Access Point Mercy Franciscan at St. John 558-8888 981-5800 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 NAMI of Hamilton County PATH Outreach 1125 Bank Street, Cinti, Ohio 45214 131 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter Crossroad Health Center 458-6670 977-4489 Treatment: Men Other Resources Shelter: Men Charlie’s 3/4 House 784-1853 2121 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 City Gospel Mission 241-5525 Prospect House 241-0490 381-4941 Starting Over 1419 Elm Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 682 Hawthorne Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45205 Justice Watch St. Fran/St. Joe Catholic Work. House 961-4663 Treatment: Both 761-1480 1821 Summit Road, Cinti, Ohio 45237 Drop Inn Center 721-0643 Interfaith Hospitality Network Lighthouse Youth Center (Youth) 471-1100 221-3350 3330 Jefferson, Cinti, Ohio 45220 Housing: CMHA Excel Development OTR Community Housing 721-4580 632-7149 381-1171 114 W. 14th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tender Mercies 721-8666 27 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tom Geiger House Dana Transitional Bridge Services Volunteers of America Anna Louise Inn 961-4555 751-0643 381-1954 421-5211 621-5300 961-1983 OTR: 1620 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Walnut Hills: 2631 Gilbert, Cinti, Ohio 45206 Our Daily Bread 621-6364 1730 Race Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 351-0422 381-6672 830 Ezzard Charles Dr. Cinti, Ohio 45214 Goodwill industries Healing Connections Mary Magdalen House 771-4800 751-0600 721-4811 241-2965 People Working Cooperatively 351-7921 The Caring Place 631-1114 United Way 211 Women Helping Women 977-5541 Off The Streets 421-5211 1522 Republic Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Hamilton County ADAS Board 946-4888 Recovery Health Access Center 281-7422 Sober Living 681-0324 Talbert House 641-4300 Advocacy Catholic Social Action Community Action Agency Contact Center 421-3131 569-1840 381-4242 1227 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Food/Clothing Lord’s Pantry OTR/Walnut Hills Kitchen & Pantry AA Hotline CCAT Joseph House (Veterans) 217 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 381-0111 1223 Main St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 2728 Glendora Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45209 Caracole (HIV/AIDS) 621-5514 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 2203 Fulton, Cinti, Ohio 45206 961-4080 Peaslee Neighborhood Center Franciscan Haircuts from the Heart First Step Home Anthony House (Youth) 241-2600 241-2563 214 E. 14th St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 661-4620 Shelter: Both Center Independent Living Options Emmanuel Community Center 1308 Race St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 961-2256 Treatment: Women 1437 Walnut Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mt. Airy Shelter 921-1613 St. Raephaels Salvation Army Serenity House Day Center Open Door Pantry 863-3184 863-1445 422-8555 868-3276 Northern Kentucky Brighton Center 859-491-8303 799 Ann St. Newport, KY Franciscan JPIC Gr. Cinti Coalition for the Homeless 721-4700 421-7803 117 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Intercommunity Justice & Peace Cr. Legal Aid Society Ohio Justice & Policy Center Faces Without Places Stop AIDS 579-8547 241-9400 421-1108 363-3300 421-2437 Health Center for Respite Care Hamilton/Middletown ECHO/Hosea House 859-261-5857 Fairhaven Resuce Mission 859-491-1027 Homeward Bound Youth 859-581-1111 Mathews House 859-261-8009 Homeless & Housing Coalition 859-727-0926 Parish Kitchen 859-581-7745 Pike St. Clinic 859-291-9321 Transitions, Inc 859-491-4435 Welcome House of NKY 859-431-8717 205 West Pike Street, Covington, KY 41011 621-1868 3550 Washington Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45229 Women’s Crisis Center VA Domiciliary VA Homeless 859-491-3335 859-559-5011 859-572-6226 www.facebook. com/streetvibes cincinnati twitter.com/ streetvibesnews streetvibes. wordpress.com �16 Artists as Activists STREETVIBES October 1-14, 2010 Exploring her ‘Two-ness’ Ellen Price finds unity in art A rtists ctivists af·ford·abil·i·ty By Saad GhoSn Contributing WritEr A s the light-skinned child of a bi-racial marriage – mother white and father AfricanAmerican – the subject of race always proved both non-existent and ever present in Ellen Price’s life. The first question she remembers being asked in kindergarten by other African-American children was whether she was black or white. “I do not know,” was her answer,” later supplemented, after having queried her mother, by “I am colored, but fair … and nice” Price, a local artist and professor of art at Miami University, Oxford, grew up in a residential neighborhood of Queens, New York, mostly inhabited by well-off, middle-class, AfricanAmerican families. Raised by progressive, politically left-leaning and non-churchgoer parents, she was from an early age sheltered from the habitual societal interactions and class integration. Her home was her sanctuary, and she had a happy childhood, spending time drawing and playing with her sister, often visiting New York City, its parks and its wonderful museums with her mother, a former art teacher. When graduating a semester early from high school, she joined open life classes at the Art Students League in New York City, where she was really taken by drawing – the challenge, concentration, professionalism and sense of achievement it imparted. She decided to become an artist and a few years later obtained a bachelor’s degree in arts from Brooklyn College, then a master of fine arts degree in printmaking at Indiana University, Bloomington. All along, questions of race, ethnicity and identity were embedded in her mind. In her teens, obsessed with fitting in, she smoked mentholated Newport cigarettes to emulate other African-American girls of her school and befriended those who had an afro hairdo. She also unconsciously adopted a more southern accent. In college, finding herself in a mostly white world, she was quite sensitive to racist remarks she would occasionally hear, attributing them to ignorance and fear. These questions, however, did not clearly permeate her art until many years later. In college, Price’s paintings and prints were mostly based on the figure and sketches of people in the subway, reflection of urban life. In graduate school, many of her etchings were of cows, a possible link to their maternal character. Her subsequent artwork dealt with lawn ornaments, landscapes and trees – ornaments and trees often depicted lonely and isolated, as if stating their uniqueness, their somewhat disconnected identity. In 1993, more than a decade after the death of both her parents, Price lost her paternal uncle, the last link to her father’s family. She inherited from his estate a collection of photographs of relatives, many of whom she had never met before; all represented, however, her connection to the black side of her family. Reflecting on these images, on what they meant to her and to her history, she decided to use them in her art and make a statement. Instead of working with the full image and the entire portrait, Price decided to crop the face and feature only parts of it in her prints, thus alluding to both the incompleteness of information, and the often hidden and unknown side of reality. She did a series of these prints titled, So Many Why’s. Representing only fragments of the faces of her relatives, such as isolated lips, eyes, hair, semiprofiles, they indirectly and subtly raised many questions she had been having throughout her life about herself, her origin and her family. “Issues of identity and fragmentation have followed me everywhere,” she says. “As an individual whose African-American descent is not obvious, the space between what is revealed and what is hidden had become a familiar psychic territory. I made this indistinct zone inhabit my prints, and by using cropped elements of speech and hearing implied my incomplete knowledge of the subjects bearing my surname – as if at once I desired to know, connect and understand and at the same time acknowledged what I could never know.” Her print, By Halves, from the same series represents the half face of one of her relatives. Smiling, it elegantly challenges the viewer to discover its other side, weighing at one edge of the image as if pulling the past to unveil itself into the present, the unknown to merge into the known. It was also Price’s dealing with the dual aspect of her own personality. “In his 1903 book, The Souls of Black Folk, W.E.B. Du Bois writes about the double consciousness, the ‘two-ness’ of African-Americans,” Price says. “My portrait series is my search to resolve my own ‘two­ ness’, to locate my identity in history.” Price keeps coming back to her portrait series, adding new prints as if in a permanent dialogue with her questioning of race and identity, with preconceptions of family and history. Her prints serve as a confrontation of prejudices regarding who is black. She would like people to connect to them and think about the issues they raise. She recognizes, however, that they are only the expression of her own experience that she wants to share – not impose. More recently, Price created prints based on war imagery: helmets, armors, military hardware. Her monotypes, Two of Each and Royale, juxtapose images of a crown with artifacts of European military history, thus highlighting the relationship between political power and war. Her etchings, Armor Study and Bassinet, examine humankind’s long history of organized warfare. Her latest monotypes depict explosions based on the recent Gulf of Mexico oil spill. When not doing her own art, Price teaches printmaking. In her teaching. She always tries to Top: Ellen Price in her studio. Tom Featherstone. Above: By Halves. Print and photo by Ellen Price shake students out of their complacency – provoke thinking and discussions about issues, encourage empathy, looking at the world differently. Price likes to quote Arthur Miller, who said: “That which is not made into art is lost.” Making art, showing it, communicating through it, is very important to her. “Art is what makes us human beings,” she says. “It brings the sublime, the spiritual; it transcends immobility. Art has been central to my life; it helped me claim my history and assert my identity. It keeps my questioning alive, and hopefully it triggers the same in the viewer.” Artists as Activists is a regular column highlighting Greater Cincinnati artists who use art as a vehicle for change. Saad Ghosn is the founder of SOS Art. Ghosn can be contacted at saad.ghosn@uc.edu. � 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 2010 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 October 1-14, 2010 Subject The topic of the resource Homelessness Description An account of the resource Pg 1: Cost of Justice: $42,000 and Hour- Serving the Ministry of Irritation Pg 2: Street Wise Pg 3: Eight Minutes Using the V-Word Pg 4: Study Backs Federal Eviction Aid Pg 5: Justice Continued Priests Continued Pg 6: Time to Build a ‘Reverent Fear’ Pg 7: CS13 Finds a New Way of Doing Art Pg 8: Invisible Punishment Lasts a Lifetime Pg 9: Arts & Poetry Pg 10: Arts & Poetry Continued Pg 11: Development Aid in Recession Pg 12: A New Life Means a New Challenge Pg 13: Arts & Poetry Continued Pg 14: Interview with Champ ‘Let’s Go Somewhere Primitive’ Pg 15: Resources Pg 16: Exploring her ‘Two-ness’ 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 October 1-14, 2010 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Gregory Flannery Joseph Szydlowski Georgia Bohannon Michelle Dillingham Samantha Groark Margo Pierce Paul Kopp Jeremy Flannery Michael Henson David Heitfield Corey Gibson Jeni Jenkins Saad Ghosn Lew Moores Larry Gross Eli Braun Jesse Call Michael Fanning B. Clifton Burke Aimie Willhoite Lynne Ausman Anne Skove Vinit Murthy Jon Hughes Brad Foster Jeremy Flanner Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Aimie Willhoite Anne Skove Arts & Poetry B. Clifton Burke Brad Foster Corey Gibson CS13 David Heitfield Eli Braun Ellen Price eviction Georgia Bohannon Gregory Flannery Immigrants Ireland Jeni Jenkins Jeremy Flanner Jeremy Flannery Jesse Call Jon Hughes Joseph Szydlowski Larry Gross Lew Moores Lynne Ausman Margo Pierce Michael Fanning Michael Henson Michelle Dillingham Ohio Paul Kopp Prisoners Recession Rev. Mark Schmieder Saad Ghosn Samantha Groark Seth Ewing Huff Vinit Murthy https://streetvibesarchive.net/files/original/050cf922042f1ad2f2c9949fb66db705.pdf 7a76ac18c4ad150ed40c31a21ac706b0 PDF Text Text Artists as Activists Page 16 Page 11 Sept.15-30, 2010 • Issue 184 • One Dollar ADVOCATING JUSTICE • BUILDING COMMUNITY The Business of Changing Lives Addressing social issues with yogurt, fish, energy and education By Lynne Ausman Staff Writer I Grameen Bank borrowers attend a weekly centre meeting to make loan repayments. Lynne Ausman. Death Comes for Unit One Lessons from a police investigation By Gregory Flannery Editor O fficial reports on traffic accidents aren’t known for their sensitivity, but humanity has a way of revealing itself in unexpected places. Consider the Ohio State Highway Patrol’s investigation of the July 27 death of Joann Burton, fatally injured by a police car while she lay in the grass of Washington Park. The 87-page report, released Sept. 2, contains pathos amid the sterile jargon that usually characterizes such documents. The report also contains conflicting statements by witnesses, each of whom had a different perspective when Cincinnati Police Officer Marty E. Polk drove over her. Some said Burton was visible under her blankets, others said, as Polk did, that she was not. Overseen by Highway Patrol Sgt. Matthew Hamilton, the investigation formed the basis for Hamilton County Prosecutor Joe Deters’s conclusion that felony charges should not be pursued against Polk (see “3CDC is the Enemy of the poor,” page 11). Traffic-accident reports commonly refer to vehicles involved in collisions, and it’s easier to say this “unit” went this way and that “unit” went that way than to keep saying, for example, Mr. Smith’s car did this and Mrs. Jones’s car did that. Thus the bare-bones explanation of what happened July 27 is, in the words of the report, “Unit 1 was lying on the ground, concealed by blankets. Unit 2 attempted to drive around the blankets, but drove over the blankets and Unit 1.” Unit 1 is Joann Burton. She lived on Burton Avenue. Polk told investigators he drove on the grass through the park every day that he patrolled it. Some of Burton’s flesh was found on the exhaust pipe of Unit 2, which was the patrol car driven by Polk. Polk is also referred to as “Eagle Eye” in one witness’s statement – a perhaps unintentional irony, given that Polk says he didn’t see Burton, but only the blankets under which she lay. Another irony is the report’s description of the scene of the accident: “Daylight, area covered by large trees creating shade and shadows.” This will change soon enough, of course, now that 3CDC has begun the process of refurbishing Washington Park, with plans to fell 59 trees, against neighbors’ objections (see “Neighborhood Rejects Takeover,” issue of Aug. 1-14). And there is this disconcerting observation by Sgt. N. Holden, who questioned Polk after the accident: “I appreciate you giving me a statement and your cooperation, and I’m sure that, that hearing (is) going to come back to be in your favor to show that there’s nothing to hide.” Following are excerpts from the Highway patrol’s report. ‘I don’t recall’ Statement by Officer Marty E. Polk, from interview conducted by Sgt. See Death, P. 3 n Bangladesh in the 1970s, Mohammad Yunus founded Grameen Bank, an organization that seeks to end poverty by extending small loans to poor people who are often excluded from commercial banks. From Grameen Bank, Yunus developed a philosophy of social business, in which, instead of building profit, the bottom line is addressing some social problem. Social businesses are cause-driven. Similar to many businesses, investors contribute start-up money to get the business going. Once it is off the ground and turning a profit, the investors begin to regain their initial investments. Unlike conventional businesses, however, social businesses don’t pay dividends; all profits are reinvested back into the business to ensure sustainability and continued growth. Grameen Bank was the first social business. As it grew and became selfsustaining, Yunus used his philosophy to address social issues such as childhood malnutrition, inadequate medical care, lack of clean water, foot-borne diseases and access to energy. While I was in Bangladesh this summer, four social businesses and Grameen sister organizations had a particular impact on my experience. Grameen sister organizations are not social businesses per se, but work to address some social problem – often not seeking to make any revenue. The sister organizations operate more like nonprofit organizations in the United States. See Business, P. 8 �2 Editorial By The Numbers 14th The name of the street where people denounced 3CDC for displacing poor people (see page 11). 11 The percentage of U.S. drivers who wore seat belts before laws required it (see page X). 1909 The year the Anna Louise Inn opened (see page 4). 6 The number of years a mayfly lives in larval form (see page 16). 4 The average weekly pay, in U.S. dollars, earned by some child laborers in Bangladesh (see page 1). 30 The number of people injured by a bull in Spain earlier this summer (see page 7). 535,000 The number of people who stayed in emergency shelters last year (see page 6). 59 The number of trees 3CDC plans to destroy in Washington Park (see page 1). .04 The percentage of Ohio voters who cast ballots in the Socialist Party primary last spring (see page 5). 7 The number of corporations that control Cincinnati (see page 12) STREETVIBES September 15 - 30, 2010 Don’t Drink the Tea By Gregory Flannery Editor As I write this, about 10 people are waiting outside for a chance to see a doctor. The Homeless Med Van is in front of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless, where patients can be seen every Friday morning. Operated by the Cincinnati Health Network Inc., the Med Van provides free health care to people who have no place to live. As I write this, millions of children in Bangladesh are suffering from malnutrition, lack of clean water and crippling foot diseases. They might never see a doctor. Lynne Ausman, art director of Streetvibes, spent five weeks there this summer, and she tells some of what she observed in her story, “The Business of Changing Lives,” on page 1. As I write this, a close family member is in acute pain. He is 28 years old. He sometimes walks only with the assistance of a cane. Strangers often ask why such a young person needs a cane. He has rheumatoid arthritis, which made him unable to work several years ago, which means he has no funds to pay for medical care. He has applied for Medicaid, but each state’s eligibility requirements vary. In Ohio, a person who has no income can receive Medicaid only if he is younger than age 18, older than age 55 or certified as permanently disabled by the Social Security Administration. My family member isn’t permanently disabled – yet. If he doesn’t get treatment soon, he might become permanently disabled. He is, for now, on a waiting list for low-cost medical care. Streetvibes is an activist newspaper, advocating justice and building community. Streetvibes reports on economic issues, civil rights, the environment, the peace movement, spirituality and the struggle against homelessness and poverty. Distributed by people who are or once were homeless, in exchange for a $1 donation, Streetvibes is published twice a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Address: 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 Phone: 513.421.7803 x 12 Fax: 513.421.7813 Email: streetvibes2@yahoo. com Website: www. cincihomeless.org Blog: streetvibes.wordpress. com Streetvibes Staff Waiting doesn’t always mean help is finally gotten. My family member once waited weeks to see a doctor at a public-health clinic, then spent hours in the waiting room, only to be informed that he needs to see a specialist. He came away with no less pain, a great deal more discouragement and a $50 fee to pay. As I write this, Tea Party fanatics are railing against the health-care reform signed into law by President Barack Obama. You have heard their lies: “socialist medicine,” “governmentcontrolled health care” and “death panels” that will decide which people are unfit to be kept alive. Their most outrageous lie, of course, is that the United States cannot afford Obama’s limited health-care reform. We can afford to spend trillions to conquer and occupy unarmed nations – first Afghanistan, then Iraq – but we cannot afford to provide basic health care to all Americans. As I write this, I am aware of how fortunate I am. I recently had surgery. The surgery followed expensive medical tests – a CT scan, an MRI – and months of consultation with physicians. Nurses monitored my recovery from the operation. They gave me medicine for pain. The physician checked my progress while I was in the hospital and after I returned home. When complications followed, prescription medication helped me. The costs of this care go beyond the obvious. There is the physician’s bill, of course, and the cost of the diagnostic tests, performed by health-care professionals using expensive machinery; and the cost of hospital upkeep. But a great many people are required for surgery to take place. Someone must do the scheduling. Someone must fill out the paperwork at the admission desk. Someone must clean the operating room. Someone must prepare the patient’s food. Someone must manufacture the surgical instruments. Someone must tell visitors where to find patients. Someone must patrol the parking lot where visitors leave their cars. In case my good fortune were lost on me, my physician spelled it out. He said, “In Third World countries, many people die from this kind of tumor, because it goes undetected.” I told him, “I live in Monfort Heights.” He didn’t laugh. Access to medical care is no laughing matter. I am fortunate to work for an employer that provides health insurance, which will pay much of the cost of my care. In four years, tens of millions of Americans who have no health insurance will be able to receive health care, part of the new health-care reform. When you vote in November, remember that this small progress has been made, especially if you are one of the millions of people who are unemployed or one of the millions whose homes have been seized by bankers. If you are fortunate to have a home, to have a job, to have health insurance, to have good health, you might not understand why health-care reform is needed at all. Stop by our office some Friday morning. I will be glad to introduce you to people who have none of these things. They are in pain. They are ill. They are standing on the sidewalk, waiting to see a doctor in a van – well, some of them are standing. Some are sitting on the sidewalk, because standing too long is painful. Even so, they, too, are fortunate. They could be living in Bangladesh. They could be living in U.S.-occupied Iraq. They could be living in U.S.-occupied Afghanistan. They could suffer the ravages that the Tea party would inflict on this country. Prevention is the best treatment for that disorder. Vote. Editor Gregory Flannery Art Director Lynne Ausman Vendor Coordinator Georgia Bohannon Contributing Writers Michelle Dillingham, Samantha Groark, Margo Pierce, Paul Kopp, Jeremy Flannery, Michael Henson, David Heitfield, Corey Gibson, Jeni Jenkins, Saad Ghosn, Lew Moores, Larry Gross, Eli Braun, Jesse Call, Michael Fanning, B. Clifton Burke Photography/Artwork Aimie Willhoite, Lynne Ausman, Anne Skove, Vinit Murthy, Jon Hughes, Brad Foster Proofreaders Jeremy Flannery The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that works to eradicate homelessness in Cincinnati through coordination of services, public education, grassroots advocacy and Streetvibes. We are proud members of: �STREETVIBES September 15 - 30, 2010 3 Local News The Way Unit 1 Came to Her Death Continued from page 1 Matthew Hamilton … Q: What path did you take after you entered Washington Park? Polk: I don’t recall. Q: Was your view obstructed by anything? Polk: No. Q: Did you leave your patrol car running after the crash? Polk: I really don’t remember. Q: Did you activate your incar camera at any time prior or during the rash: Polk: I don’t recall. ‘You ran over my legs’ From synopsis by Sgt. Matthew Hamilton … “Officer Polk advised he was on routine patrol in Washington Park and was driving slowly through the grass as he and other officers normally do. He stated he noticed some blankets and went around them to the left and then felt a ‘thump, Visitors at a makeshift memorial for JoAnn Burton. Bradley R. Foster. thump.’ Officer Polk advised he jumped out of his car and observed a woman combative, I don’t know, with them, you know, but behind his patrol car. He asked her what happened she didn’t want to go to the hospital. That’s what, and she stated, ‘You ran over my legs.’ ” … you know.” … “Officer Polk stated he saw two blankets “I didn’t recognize her. I’ve seen her down there and thought that he moved to the left of the before but, you know, I never recognized her. I blankets before he felt the ‘thumps.’ Officer Polk don’t really know her name.” … denied observing any other items near the crash “But I did hold her arm, her hand for her, you scene; however, there were several other items know. That’s what she wanted, and, you know, I surrounding the area of the blankets, including the said, ‘We’ll get the fire company and we’ll get you pink and gray backpack, which was snagged and checked and make sure everything’s OK, get you dragged by Officer Polk’s patrol car.” to the hospital to get checked, because she really didn’t want to go, but I said, ‘Lady, you go to go to ‘I go around people’ the hospital.’ ” … “I was on that access road just From statement by Officer Officer Polk denied a little bit, then I went off just Marty E. Polk to Sgt. N. Holden looking around, because there’s observing any other “I noticed the blankets. I people on the access road this items near the crash went around to the left and I’m and that and, you know, I didn’t scene; however, there sure I missed the blankets but want to, you know, so I just go were several other items the next thing I know is, I was around people.” … surrounding the area of driving along about 5 mile, real Holden reviewed Polk’s the blankets, including slow, I heard ‘thump, thump.’ As medical history with him. Polk the pink and gray soon as I heard that, I jumped said he has sleep apnea. backpack, which was out the car. I did hear somebody Q: How were you feeling? snagged and dragged by holler – I don’t know who it Polk: “Oh, I was feeling great. Officer Polk’s patrol car. was – I jumped out the car. I I said ‘hi’ to everybody ’cause I looked over. This lady, she was know people down there, you laying, she was laying but she stood up. She sat know. They know me, and I said ‘hi’ to them.” … up, you know, and I’m looking at her legs. I said, “I saw the blanket, like I said. I don’t know if her ‘What happened, ma’am?’ She says, ‘You ran over legs were out, you know. I’m saying her legs could my legs.’ I said, ‘Oh,’ then I proceeded to say, I have been out, you know. She could have just put say, you know, she said, ‘I’m in pain,’ and I called them out. I don’t know, you know, but, uh, I know for a rescue unit right away and I called the fire when I heard the ‘thump, thump,’ that’s when I department to get there right away and then I jumped out of the car, sir.” called for my supervisor – ‘Get down here right At the end of the interview, Holden says, “I now’ – you know, the situation. As I looked up to, appreciate you giving me a statement and your you know, I said, ‘Stand by one second, ma’am,’ cooperation, and I’m sure that, that hearing going you know. I held her hand and everything and to come back to be in your favor to show that looked over and I said, ‘Did anybody witness this,’ there’s nothing to hide.” and I took – the people came forth and I said, ‘Please stay here because I need – we need your ‘He should not have’ statement, so stay here, with what happened, you know.’ So they stayed there, which was nice of From statement of witness Jacqueline Williams them. Finally the fire company came and then the … rescue unit came behind that. She was talking and, Q: How could you tell there was a body under the you know, no problem, but like all of a sudden, blanket when you first saw it? I guess when they put her on the –what do they Williams: ‘The person’s head was not covered call that thing? The, um, bucket or, you know … by the blanket. It was a black female, but I couldn’t yeah, the gurney thing – she, I guess, she just got tell that till after. All I could see was the person’s hair. It was an afro. Her face was covered.” Q: Lying in a straight line or were her knees bent? Williams: “Don’t know. I only saw the top part of her head.” Q: Would it have been difficult for the officer to have seen her? Williams: “I can’t answer. In my opinion, he should have been able to see her, and he should have been able to see there was a person in the blanket, because her head was not covered.” Q: What do you think caused the incident? Williams: ‘The police car driving on the grass, knowing that people sleep in the grass.” … “He should not have ran over the blanket without knowing if it was empty or not. … He didn’t have any lights on. He wasn’t chasing anyone. He just needed to be more diligent about running over blankets.” Eagle Eye From statement of witness Deborah A. Gross … Q: Have you seen the officer here before? Gross: “Yes, several times. We call him Officer Eagle Eye. Q: Had that officer driven through the grass before? Gross; “No, not that officer. He is one of the cooler officers.” Q: Do you think the officer saw the victim? Gross: “No, I don’t think he did. A lot of people leave things behind all the time.” Q: Did the officer provide medical assistance to the victim? Gross: “Yes, immediately. He really tried to help her.” ‘Looked like a blanket’ From statement of witness David Bevis … Q: Do you think the officer saw the lady? Bevis: “No, there was no way he could have known. It just looked like a blanket crumpled up. No part of her was visible. She was completely covered up by the blanket.” Q: Do a lot of people sleep in that park and on the ground? Bevis: “Yes, quite a few.” Call 513-421-7803 x11 to learn about Streetvibes subscriptions �4 STREETVIBES September 15 - 30, 2010 Local News Anna Louise Gets a Makeover At 101 years, she deserves it By Brian O’Donnell Contributing Writer E very homeowner knows renovations are a lot of work and often costly. But how do you renovate a home that houses more than 150 women and children? The answer is simple: $12.4 million and a staff dedicated to doing it right. For the Anna Louise Inn, a safe haven of transitional housing for women and children, the renovations are long overdue. The inn, in downtown Cincinnati near the Taft Museum, is operated by Cincinnati Union Bethel, the city’s oldest socialservice agency, which once assisted riverboat men and their families. Cincinnati Union Bethel began its service in 1830, providing worship opportunities to travelers along the Ohio River. As the group grew, a Sunday school was created that within 30 years became the largest Sunday school in the world, with 3,500 pupils. The agency’s greatest achievement, however, might be with the Anna Louise Inn and the services provided by the home. The land for the inn was donated by influential Charles Taft, brother of President William Howard Taft, and the inn was named for his daughter, Anna Louise. In 1909, on the corner of Third and Lytle streets, the inn opened with the goal of supporting women as they transitioned from their rural homes to the urban environment of downtown Cincinnati. ‘Much more robust’ The red-brick building emits the beauty of century-old architecture, but also the decay of the same century’s wear and tear without renovations. Inside the home, the walls are bordered with detailed molding and even marble fixtures holding up floor-to-ceiling mirrors. Through a series of narrow hallways, rooms reminiscent of college dorms house women as they transition. Some of these women stay for less than a year, while some, such as Mary Catherine Scheely, have been there for 30 years or more. Scheely, 79, was originally from Oldenburg, Ind., but came to live at Anna Louise out of necessity. “I came to the big city ’cause I had to get a job,” she says. “I was very scared. I knew nothing about Cincinnati.” The inn benefited her so much that she still lives in its family-like environment after 33 years. “I’ve learned a lot of things and appreciate living here ’cause I had no other place to live,” Scheely says. Giving women a safe and affordable housing option is only part of the inn’s purpose. Since its creation, Cincinnati Union Bethel has expanded Anna Louise to include social services such as a free dental clinic and a legal aid society. Mary Carol Melton, project manager for Cincinnati Union Bethel, says she is proudest of the Off the Streets program that provides housing and services for women recovering from prostitution. “Miracles happen every day in this program for women,” Melton says. Thirty people worked over the course of a year to devise and implement Off the Streets, culminating in partnerships with more than 25 agencies, including the Cincinnati Police Department. “It’s been a wonderful example of how a community can come together and have a meaningful impact,” Melton says. Now having served more than 400 clients since starting in 2006, Off the Streets is about to have its first participant graduate from the University of Cincinnati, with a degree in addiction studies. “Everyone deserves credit for making this happen,” Melton says. Successes like Off the Streets don’t come easy. When Steve MacConnell first arrived at Cincinnati Union Bethel nine years ago, he described it as suffering from a lull in leadership. With a background in law spanning 26 years, MacConnell says, “I thought I had some skills to find and bring a staff of builders to create a much more robust agency.” It was his goal to begin creation of a board of directors to ease day-today operations from the dedicated but small executive staff of six. Now the agency’s chief executive officer, MacConnell describes the current administration as a body of 21 people operating through an array of committees that bring new issues to the board. ‘Community of women’ Stephen MacConnell and Mary Carol Melton of Cincinnati Union Bethel. Jon Hughes/Photopresse. rooms heavily damaged by a range of issues such as drooping ceilings and peeling plaster, it was clear to MacConnell that renovations were a necessity. “I started thinking about it as soon as I got here,” he says. MacConnell shopped the idea around to real-estate companies until he learned of the $12.4 million price tag on the project. Hope for renovations “seemed to continue to run into brick walls,” he says. “Then the miracle happened.” Relying on successes like Off the Streets that garnered local and national attention, Cincinnati Union Bethel attracted about $10 million in tax credits from the Ohio Housing and Finance Agency. Once the financial issue was solved, renovations proved to be a logistical nightmare. The board had no experience in such a large undertaking. Recruiting the Overthe-Rhine Community Housing as a partner helped immensely, according to Melton. “We were really thrilled to have their expertise,” she says. The renovations, set for completion in the fall of 2011, will lower the total capacity of the inn but will increase the quality of life and service for residents, MacConnell and Melton say. “I think the emphasis is on the enhanced amenities and completing our mission,” Melton says. With central air-conditioning to Upon his arrival, MacConnell noticed the state of neglect the Anna Louise Inn had fallen into over its century of existence. With some of its rested in Advert Inte isin gi Affordable Rates etvibes? tre nS be added, rooms will be enlarged to include private kitchens and bathrooms, a move away from the communal amenities. As renovations take place, MacConnell says, funds and plans are in place to help residents through the construction period either by relocating them off the premises or to a part of the building that is not yet under construction. At 100-years-old, there is concern about preservation of the inn’s historical architecture. “It’s just an institution in Cincinnati,” MacConnell says. The outside of the building will remain unchanged while the inside will undergo some touchups in addition to renovations of rooms that will involve the removal of walls. “The inside beauty will match the outside,” Melton says. For Scheely and the other residents, the renovation, though perhaps inconvenient when it comes to daily living, is a godsend. “It’ll be good for all the ladies,” she says. “They’re not used to all that.” The luxuries added by the renovation will enhance Cincinnati Union Bethel’s ability to stay on its mission. “Women tell us all the time: The safe community of women is very comforting,” Melton says. Many sizes (full page, 1/2 page, 1/4 page, 1/8 page) Black & White and Color available Discounts for Nonprofits Contact Lynne at 513-421-7803 ext. 11 Become a Fan of Streetvibes on Facebook or lynneausman@cincihomeless.org http://www.facebook.com/streetvibescincinnati for more information. �STREETVIBES September 15 - 30, 2010 Local News 5 Dems and GOP Say, ‘Stay Away’ Third-party candidates want to join debate By Jesse Call Contributing Writer A s Ohio’s major-party candidates for the U.S. Senate prepare to field questions in a debate Oct. 8, candidates for smaller parties are working to be allowed in the debate at all. Although they come from very different political perspectives, Dan La Botz, the Socialist Party candidate, and Eric Deaton, the Constitution Party candidate, have teamed together to petition for inclusion in the upcoming debates. The online petition calls upon Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner to “ensure that all of the candidates in the Ohio Senate race as well as other national, state and local races have an equal opportunity to participate in debates before the public,” citing the fact that she is the official “responsible for overseeing elections” in Ohio. La Botz also has made a separate appeal Socialist Party candidate Dan La Botz wants to participate in a debate for a seat in the U.S. Senate. to the debate’s sponsor and host, the Ohio Jon Hughes/Photopresse. News Organization. Brunner, who lost the Democratic primary The Ohio News Organization, a consortium unlike the major-party candidates, he has for the same Senate seat that La Botz and to be present for his day job and is therefore of eight daily metro newspapers in Ohio, is Deaton seek, is organizing a debate for unable to attend meetings during work hours. hosting the debates. The organization said it secretary of state candidates in which many “I’m going to do everything possible to be feels it is more fair to the voters of Ohio if they third-party candidates are included. She included in the debate,” La Botz says. can have a more substantive debate among also has taken steps to make sure that Ohio La Botz says he is looking at other options, the two candidates most likely to be elected ballots include the party affiliations of thirdincluding legal action, and that he will “do his rather than asking the same questions of party candidates, instead of just calling them best to show up at the debate” and ask to be more candidates. “independent.” included. “The logic is sound: In a television debate Despite multiple requests for comment format, when time constraints limit the ‘A question of efficiency’ made to the campaigns of Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher, number of questions and answers to be the Democratic candidate, and Rob Portman, heard, it is of the utmost But, although Brunner the Republican candidate, as well as to the importance that voters hear said she believes all “The logic is sound: Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee from the two candidates candidates should be heard, and the National Republican Senatorial who are clearly the frontIn a television debate she is not sure whether or Commitee, all of them chose not to respond runners for the office,” format, when time not she will work to include to this story. Benjamin Marrison, editor constraints limit the the third-party candidates “I’m sure many in my party wouldn’t agree of The Columbus Dispatch number of questions in the senatorial debates. with me (on including all candidates in and lead organizer of the and answers to be “Frankly, my personal debates),” Brunner says. debates, said in a statement. heard, it is of the philosophy is that everyone Deaton says he “While we have and will utmost importance that should be included,” she knows the majorcontinue to write about voters hear from the says. “The presidential third-party candidates when party candidates two candidates who are are “afraid of Only .04 percent of model excluded warranted, including them clearly the front-runners (his) candidacy” the voters in the primary in debates limits Ohioans’ candidates who for the office.” and that he “feels election voted on the ability to hear answers from we knew had great -Ben Marrison strongly that he Socialist ballot statewide, the top candidates on issues potential,” he says. would win the race and only .17 percent voted critical to the state’s future.” “The presidential on the Constitution Party ballot, according to Marrison also noted that they are following if he is included model is a terrible Brunner. That is low compared to even other in the debates.” the format used in U.S. presidential debates, model. The real issue minority parties, including the Libertarian La Botz says he which also routinely exclude third party is giving all candidates Party, which had 0.3% statewide. was not surprised candidates. an opportunity to “Some would argue that the number of that the major That example is a poor one to follow, present their views, voter voting Socialist Party ballots was so parties did not according to La Botz. and that (time) excuse small that it would be a question of efficiency respond, noting is ridiculous. The on whether or not to include Dan (La Botz),” ‘A terrible model’ that he thinks they American people Brunner says. would prefer to understand our country Brunner says she will keep checking on “The presidential model excluded have no debates is in a crisis, and they the level of support for inclusion of the candidates who we knew had great potential,” at all because want to hear opinions candidates before making a decision on he says. “The presidential model is a terrible they are afraid to – all the positions that whether or not to lobby, as secretary of state, model. The real issue is giving all candidates commit to any are out there.” for their inclusion. an opportunity to present their views, and controversial -Dan La Botz “Now, whether I am going to go out and that (time) excuse is ridiculous. The American positions. He make this a major issue remains to be seen people understand our country is in a crisis, says he wants to because it falls into an area where I really and they want to hear opinions – all the challenge the major-party candidates on how don’t have enforcement, and I would simply positions that are out there.” their parties have bankrupted the country would be using persuasion to try to make La Botz says that approval for the socialist and ignored the will of the electorate to care sure all candidates are included,” Brunner perspective is increasing throughout the for the environment and end foreign wars. country, citing polls conducted by major says. La Botz encourages those who believe he research organizations including Gallup, Pew, and other third-party candidates should be She also admits she wants to be careful about the appearance of any influence on the and Rasmussen. included in the debates to sign the petition He also says that it is more fair to include race, given that she is a former candidate. and write letters to the editors of Ohio’s major candidates like him because, in many cases, “I wouldn’t want it to appear as though I metro newspapers. was doing this for personal reasons,” Brunner he is forced to decline invitations to town hall The petition is available online at http:// meetings throughout the state because of says. “So, you know, that is where I would www.change.org/petitions/view/petition_ the cost of having to travel and the fact that, hesitate.” for_inclusive_political_debates_in_ohio. �6 Issues STREETVIBES September 15 - 30, 2010 Homeless Families on the Rise Community services increase By Jeremy Flannery Contributing Writer T he number of homeless families continues to rise in the United States, according to the 2009 Annual Homelessness Assessment Report to Congress by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Over 170,000 American families used emergency shelters or transitional housing in 2009, compared to 131,000 families in 2007, about a 30 percent increase since 2007. The average lengths of stays of families in shelters also increased from 30 days in 2008 to 36 days in 2009. About 535,000 homeless people, as part of families, used emergency shelters or transitional housing in 2009. “Three-fifths of the people in homeless families are children, and more than half of the children are under age 6,” the report says. There might be more families at risk of becoming homeless, as the report found that families entering homeless shelters are increasingly coming from other housed situations, such as doubling up with friends or other family members. But the issue of homelessness is witnessing some improvements in the United States, according to HUD: A child picks up food from a pantry with his family. Aimie Willhoite. • The number of chronically homeless people decreased by 10 percent from 124,135 in the January 2008 point-in-time (PIT) homelessness and the success of sheltering homeless Americans, estimate to 110,917 in the January 2009 PIT estimate. About 53 percent according to the report. of the reports from local continuums of care showed a decrease in • Nearly 1.56 million people used an emergency shelter or transitional chronic homelessness. housing program from October 2008 through September 2009, • 112 more communities used the Homeless Management Information compared to 1.6 million in 2008. Two-thirds were homeless as System, the electronic system used to track services of homeless individuals and one-third were homeless as family members – at least shelters, for a total of 334 participating communities. one adult with one child under 18 years of age. • The number of beds in permanent supportive housing increased from Individuals experiencing homelessness tend to be adult males, members of 2008 to 2009 by about 23,000, for a total of over 219,000 beds. a minority group and middle aged, the report says. • Though the number of homeless people remained fairly stable, with “More than 10 percent are veterans, and more than 40 percent have a about 643, 067 homeless Americans on a single night, the number of disability,” the report states. Family members experiencing homelessness sheltered homeless is increasing, according to the report. This number tend to be children – about 60 percent – or adult women under age 31 might be due to the increased participation of communities tracking without male partners. Education is a Start, but Laws Work By Michelle Dillingham Contributing Writer T he Campaign for Affordable Housing is a non-profit organization whose mission is “to create a more receptive political climate for favorable government decisions on land-use matters and allocation of public resources.” The campaign argues we need more and better public information about affordable housing. By knowing public opinion, members hope to develop better public-education materials for advocates. Recently they did a meta-analysis of publicopinion research on attitudes about affordable housing that was collected from the late 1990s to 2003. Although the research was drawn from a wide array of sample groups, the findings yielded similar patterns of response. They found essentially two story lines. The first story line is one of positive attitudes toward affordable housing, that the basic American values of fairness and opportunity appear to be the underlying value in their responses. The second story line is how attitudes change when the issue is framed as a local issue or “right next door”; when it hits home, “darker issues of fear overtake fairness and opportunity for many Americans.” Here in Cincinnati we see how mainstream media often uses fear when referencing project-based properties or homeless shelters, and it dissuades public opinion against supporting affordable housing. Another example of attitudes being supportive on a general level, but not a local one, is that people report they are supportive of generalized “policies” to expand affordable housing such as alleviating tax burdens. However when it gets local or specific, such as changing one’s own neighborhood zoning or increasing the number of apartments in one’s building to be affordable but a neighboring property or business, it was units, it is not supported. not given equal volume – sort of like the “oops” That said, the researchers conclude that broadcolumns in newspapers hidden on the last page based campaigns should speak to the general that people rarely read. need for more affordable As I write this, I wonder: housing, calling on values Is this too transparent? Lesson? Public-education such as fairness and equal Are we showing our hand? opportunity. However, Certainly not. Planning campaigns are effective, but when advocating for local communications around strict enforcement trumps every housing efforts, use a what people are really time, which is why many housing more targeted messaging concerned about is not advocates prefer to focus on that address worries about underhanded or an attempt promoting required inclusionary increased crime and at being subliminal – it’s zoning and other enforceable poor maintenance. The keeping it real. policies to increase affordable researchers emphasize, Public education can be housing. Then again, elected “Advocates must be a powerful tool, but it is not officials are the ones who float ready to prove these fears the whole answer. Consider such legislation – and they are unfounded.” the seat belt. Despite elected by the people whose We must convince educational campaigns opinions can drive their agenda. Cincinnati’s prior to 1980, only 11 neighborhoods that percent of Americans used first, affordable housing will benefit not only the seat belts. By 1990, 37 states had seat-belt laws tenants, but the neighborhood as a whole; second, that were “secondary” – meaning an officer had to those who will directly benefit are children, the observe another traffic violation before issuing a elderly and working families; and third, we need seat-belt ticket. Subsequently, the national average to showcase many examples of “high quality, of seat-belt use rose to 50 percent. By 2007, in the attractive, affordable and safe housing to counter 25 states that had “primary” seat-belt laws on the the negative preconceptions about appearance books – meaning an officer can issue a citation and crime and their impacts on property values.” without observing any other offence – their usage The Campaign for Affordable Housing is a rose to 88 percent. great resource for affordable-housing advocates. Lesson? Public-education campaigns are It asserts that, if communications are crafted at a effective, but strict enforcement trumps every local level, they can “unlock the specific missing time, which is why many housing advocates prefer messages that will create national change one to focus on promoting required inclusionary community at a time”. zoning and other enforceable policies to increase Of course, their research findings are intuitive. affordable housing. Then again, elected officials I can recall many discussions at City Hall about are the ones who float such legislation – and they police and fire calls for service and other “quality are elected by the people whose opinions can of life” issues being raised in the context of drive their agenda. project-based housing. Later, when the data Chicken or the egg, chicken or the egg? revealed it was not the tenants drawing the calls �STREETVIBES September 15 - 30, 2010 7 Gallery Opening Somewhere in Northside By Steven Paul Lansky Contributing Writer Somewhere in Northside, at Chase and Hamilton, up a short flight of stairs a new art space, Chase Public, opened. Theme – the domestic – Public Conversation – Tim Parsley artwork – Red paper lantern over Robert Murphy – Mike Fleisch – cross discipline and artists and! Dan … introduces Murphy. – Non-lecturer – poet homebuilder – some beats – hip-hop outside – the border between mythic truth and the domestic dirty windows dusk – headlights green & red traffic signals a house boarded up is a myth of urban renewal; labor exploited or unremembered toil – toil pulled through without greed, within need. What are you doing in my clothes? Taoist saying! windows set back – sills and indent above – stripes above, wide stripes on vertical and horizontal surfaces – red, gray, white, brown. A skateboard heard below – crack-crack & crackcrack wheels on sidewalk. Sodium vapor lamps arch over strorefronts & traffic signals—amber glow. A child voice – a song rings a cell phone in the audience – is this interruption? Rumble Beat Bass – Murphy quotes Celan, Emerson, Lao-Tse, Gnostic gospel, marvel, not the commix, the kind child let in and let out of Murphy’s non-lecture – reading without the UHM, or like, or you know, no his economy of speech is never casual. “Laughter shall keep us unafraid.” “A pair of wings … quicksilver back of a mirror … the blue in a feather.” A bluish bus lit inside and out. beep-beep. “I had seen a heron just the other day.” motor sounds “should you be walking alone along the river.” “past the chicken coop.” “everything flown the coop that had once owned feathers.” “the red fox – having taken over the badger …” “a red blur … across the frozen pasture.” “Not even Aesop.” A loud muffler. A cackling laugh. A starter. “An eagle higher than a hawk flies. Waiting for the return of the bison …” A plastic coffee mug, a travel cup holds up the windowpane – but not much air. “dutchman’s breeches… marsh marigolds.” “for the telling of a good tale.” On Murphy’s shirt a bear with a swirling human like spirit within – a salmon just beyond paw and gaping maw. “a tin can orbiting three-hundred miles above the earth.” Tim is wearing Wallabees – shoes by … Clark(e). No, they’re slip-on – similar. Music wafts up – Goose’s foot and leg shaking. “numinosity” – Murphy – “The paintings look back at you.” A guy eating a slice of pizza as he stands on the sidewalk Then tapes a poster – the sound of tape pulling. “How light was filling the space” – Tim – “Work that’s realist like this runs the risk …” “All we’re left with are these empty …” “the figure has left the room entirely …” “theology … parallel history of painting …” Reflection of the paper red globe in windows, cut by window frames – some horizontal – some vertical. “We build these houses & people move into them.” Urban Renewal “Voyeurism – waiting for the best look we could get at this …” “… finding beauty …” – “sacrament –” “– mundane –” “something pretty profound starts to occur.” The Return of the Winged Prodigal Maybe the animals are overworked By Nicholas Hoesl Contributing Writer H e’s back! After eight days of being “free as a bird,” a hungry, hapless, Harris hawk named Tex is safely back at the Cincinnati Zoo. An alert Clifton resident called the zoo hotline with a sizzling tip in sighting the naughty bird hanging out in a nearby tree. The zoo’s head bird trainer, Gary Denzler, rushed to the scene, armed with heavy leather, a whistle in his mouth and carrying the hawk’s favorite snack – a mouse. Call it a capture enraptured. I wondered. Was it the whistle, the mouse or the love of Gary that convinced the flying star of the “Wings of Wonder Show” to surrender? Or was he just bored to death and longing for more of the limelight? Others pondered why he didn’t venture farther west to explore the greenery of Mount Airy Forest, Oxbow and Shawnee Lookout. Gatekeepers at Miami-Whitewater Forest told me he could have teamed up with two resident red-tailed The good news is that Tex has his job back, even hawks in the park. They are known for whistling though he’s forced to sit out a year. I ask you: Is this at each other. I don’t know how many zoo hawks a bad rap? I think the hawk escapade was meant to are waiting in the wings, but a “Whistling Hawk send the zoo a message: “Don’t take us for granted. Chorus” would be a crowd pleaser. Next time it will take more Recently Time magazine than a few mice and whistling featured an article, “Inside ‘Dixie’ to get us back. So your the Minds of Animals.” The Others pondered why he cheetah runs 100 meters in six current belief is that they are didn’t venture farther west seconds. We fly. Can they chat far smarter than we realized. to explore the greenery of with a chimp? Are they fluent in Parrots can match wits with Mount Airy Forest, Oxbow cheetonese? We are rock stars!” chimps. Liz Wilson, a parrotand Shawnee Lookout. behavior consultant from Here’s what the zoo should Gatekeepers at MiamiPhiladelphia, said she heard do. Let’s let bygones be bygones. Whitewater Forest told me several cases in which people Get the mayor to issue a he could have teamed up come home feeling blue proclamation: “The Prodigal Has with two resident red-tailed and their parrots asked, “Is Returned.” Then let the feast hawks in the park. begin. Forget about the fatted something wrong?” I don’t call calf. Give Tex and his entourage anyone a “bird brain” anymore. a banquet fit for this two-legged king. Serve up A colleague of Tex, named Tucson, also flew off pheasant, wild turkey, frog legs and squirrel. Top in the middle of a show two months ago, but he returned in five days. Do you sense a pattern here? it off with fermented berries. After that, it’s show Are these hawks victims of workplace stress similar time. Bring on those dancing cock-a-doodle cockatoos. to the stress that freaked out Steve Slater, the Jet Tex would be speechless. But I can hear him Blue flight attendant who became a folk hero of saying, even now, “I am no ungainly, ghastly, the skies? This news was closely followed by a bull in Tafallo, Spain, that charged over a fence into the gaunt and ominous bird of yore, and I will roam – crowd, injuring 30 people. nevermore!” �8 STREETVIBES September 15 - 30, 2010 Food “Feed Me, Seymour, Feed Me All Night Long…” Festive Tomato & Basil Bruscetta on Italian Toast Serving Size: 8-12 bellies Olive oil cooking spray 1 loaf Italian bread, cut in ½ inch slices 4-5 Roma tomatoes, diced 1 red onion, peeled and chopped 3 cloves fresh garlic, diced 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar 5 sprigs fresh basil chopped Salt and pepper (Optional for vegans) 1 cup shredded Italian cheese • • • Jeni Jenkins. By Jeni Jenkins Staff Writer • T his recipe for bruscetta came naturally, as I’ve always had a heart for Italian food and eating food with my hands. The great thing about bruscetta is that it’s practically effortless for the amount of enjoyment that follows. Plus, this hearty appetizer is great for potlucks, family gatherings and parties. Enjoy! • • • Heat oven to 350 degrees. Coat baking sheet with cooking spray. Lay sliced bread face-down on baking sheet. Heat in oven 5 minutes on each side. Combine onions, garlic, tomatoes, basil and vinegar in bowl. Mix well. Remove bread from oven and scoop heaping tablespoons of mixture on each slice of bread. Sprinkle lightly with Italian cheese. Bake in oven for 5-7 minutes or until cheese is bubbly. Voila, feed! The Business of Changing Lives Continued from page 1 Grameen Danone Grameen Danone is a partnership between Grameen and Dannon, the French yogurt manufacturer. The mission is to bring better nutrition to poor, rural children who often suffer from nutrient deficiencies, such as vitamin A, zinc, iron and calcium. Grameen Danone yogurt, packed with these nutrients, is served in sixand eight-ounce cups. The yogurt is made from fresh milk purchased from farmers in the area, some of whom are Grameen Bank borrowers, directly benefiting the borrowers and other local farmers. Women in the village sell the yogurt door-to-door for six or eight taka (about 11 U.S. cents) per cup, depending on the size and flavor. (Mango flavor costs more). By distributing the yogurt in this manner, one woman in the village is employed. The yogurt is also sold in Dhaka, the capital city. The cost is slightly higher in the city, with the price cheap enough that poor families can purchase it but high enough that the profit helps to cover the cost of production and distribution in the rural villages. Grameen Fisheries The Bangladeshi government loaned Grameen over 1,000 fishing ponds in the northwestern part of the country. The ponds have been for fisheries for centuries. Grameen devised a plan that would also help to alleviate poverty while turning the fisheries into a profitable business. The result was a 50/50 partnership between Grameen and the poor families living along the fishing ponds. The families provide the labor of maintaining and fishing the ponds, and Grameen provides training, expertise and breed the fish to stock the ponds. The profits from selling the fish is split equally: 50 percent going to the fishermen, women and families and 50 percent going to Grameen Fisheries to cover overhead and operating costs. Grameen Shakti Grameen Shakti is a sister organization dedicated to bringing green energy, health, income and jobs to rural Bangladesh. Grameen Shakti has four main programs: solar-energy systems, improved cooking stoves, biogas and organic fertilizer. Families purchase solar panels through a soft credit scheme, making them affordable. The panels are able to power lights and fans in a village home for several hours a day. Most Bangladeshis do not have access to natural-gas lines to operate cooking stoves. As a result, people have to burn debris, wood and crop residues as fuel to cook food. This leads to deforestation and soil erosion as well as health problems – smoke and pollution inhalation – for women, who are often responsible for cooking. Engineers work one-on-one with A Bangladeshi woman prepares food on an improved cooking stove. She would not have been able to afford the cooking stove without the help of Grameen Shakti. Lynne Ausman. See Business, P. 9 �STREETVIBES September 15 - 30, 2010 International Issues 9 The Business of Changing Lives Women and a child at Grameen Fisheries help to prepare caught fish for market. Lynne Ausman. Continued from page 8 need of the money the children can earn. It takes about one week to sew all of the beads and embellishments on a wedding sari. One child makes 900 taka a week (less than $13 U.S.); another, a girl, makes about 250 taka (less than $4). We asked the children what they want to be when they grew up. It seemed too easy to wonder why we would even ask this type of question – these children are “grown up.” They work eight hours a day and have school three hours a day. Their lives seem to parallel that of a working American graduate student. But even if I were discouraged by the barriers stacked against them, the students were full of hope: they want to be teachers, doctors, pilots, businessmen. They are determined to improve their lives and leave the slums, and Grameen Shikkha is determined to help them achieve their goals. One might wonder what three hours of classroom instruction would do, but the goal of Grameen Shikkha is to provide what little families to construct biogas plants on the villagers’ education they can to children who would property and train families on maintenance and otherwise work for 12 or more hours a day. biogas technology. Families use the waste from Fighting child labor in Bangladesh is difficult: So their livestock to generate the biogas. Similar many people are struggling to make it day-toto the solar panels, the materials are purchased day. Convincing families to give up some of that through a soft-credit program, making the plans potential income is difficult. But Grameen Shikkha affordable. The improved cooking stoves helps keeps going back to the families because they families use the biogas efficiently. know the parents want to provide a better life for their children. Grameen Shikkha The instruction in primary school could lead to scholarships to go on to high school and help the Grameen Shikkha is Grameen’s effort to address children improve their lives. Grameen Shikkha has illiteracy and lack of educational opportunities for launched a new scholarship program that will help poor children. The mission of Grameen Shikkha students’ families pay for high school and perhaps is to provide slum children with a basic education earn scholarships to university. to improve their work opportunities. Students A month learning about all of the receive instruction in English, Bangla, different ways that Grameen is working simple mathematics, social sciences to address poverty in Bangladesh and the environment. They also study wasn’t nearly enough to completely Bangladeshi customs and arts. understand all of the issues that The school, a single 10’x4’ room, contribute to the level of poverty in has no desks or chairs but 20 smiling Bangladesh, but it was enough time to students and a teacher sitting on the floor learn the impact that a social business with a stack of books in front of each can have on one family’s life. student. The chalkboard at the front of Cincinnati has several social the room had a welcome message for businesses that aim to help the us visitors from the United States. The community overcome poverty. room was dimly lit, with one light bulb Streetvibes provides entrepreneurial dangling from the ceiling. The students, opportunities and an income to ages 12 to 14, were in fifth grade. homeless people. Venice on Vine is a The students rise at 6 a.m. and begin pizza restaurant and catering service work, many of them sewing beads and that teaches job skills to low-income embellishments on saris to be worn by Cincinnatians. Building Value salvages brides. They work until 9 a.m., taking reusable materials for sale while a break until 2 p.m. School is from 2 providing people who have workforce to 5 p.m. Students then return to their disadvantages an opportunity to gain homes, where they work until 10 p.m. valuable experience and transition into This doesn’t leave much time to play or A Grameen Shikkha classroom where children receive three hours construction and retail careers. study, but their families are in desperate of basic education a day. Lynne Ausman. �10 Reader Survey STREETVIBES September 15 - 30, 2010 Please take a few minutes to complete this survey. Your responses will be used to help Streetvibes evaluate the newspaper and the vendor program. This survey, a vendor survey and overall evaluation is part of Streetvibes plan to achieve long-term sustainability and growth. Thank you for your time and input. Please return the survey to 117 E. 12th Street, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202. Thank you for your time and input. If you prefer, you may take the survey online at https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/streetvibes 1. How often do you purchase Streetvibes? Multiple copies of every issue Every issue Once a month Once every few months Once or twice a year Never 2. Where do you purchase Streetvibes? 3. Do you purchase from the same vendor when you buy? Yes No Sometimes 4. On a scale of 1 to 10, how familiar would you say you are with the vendor program? (1 being not familiar, 10 being very familiar) 5. Why do you purchase Streetvibes? To support the vendor To read the articles Other: 16. If Streetvibes developed relationships with local businesses that resulted in vendors selling the paper outside of the business, would you be: More likely to purchase the paper Less likely to purchase the paper About the same 17. Have you ever found a vendor to be threatening? Yes No 18. What would you say is the theme of Streetvibes? General local news Social Issues Local Events Other: 19. How much of the paper do you read? Cover to cover Maybe half Only if an article looks interesting I only buy to support the vendor, I don’t really read any of the paper None/I don’t buy Streetvibes Other: 20. If you do not purchase Streetvibes, is there a specific reason you choose not to purchase Streetvibes? 6. What do you like most about Streetvibes? 7. What do you like least about Streetvibes? 8. Are you aware that the vendors are homeless, formerly homeless or very low-income? Yes No 9. Do you look for the vendor badge when purchasing a Streetvibes? Yes No 10. What do you think the vendors do with the money they earn? Pay rent/utilities Buy food Purchase necessities (personal hygiene products, etc.) Other: 11. Do you or have you ever paid more than $1 when purchasing a Streetvibes? Yes No 12. How much are you willing to pay for a Streetvibes paper? $1 Between 1 and 2 dollars $2 More than two dollars Other: 13. Vendors purchase the paper from the publisher for 25 cents and sell the paper for one dollar, keeping the 75 cent profit as their income. If the vendor cost of purchasing the paper was increased to 35 cents, how much would you be willing to pay for a paper? $1 $1.25 Other: 21. Do you view Streetvibes as an alternative to panhandling? Yes No Sometimes Other: 22. Streetvibes provides a new perspective on social issues in Cincinnati. Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree 23. What is your age? 24. Sex/Gender Male Female 25. What is your highest level of education? High School/GED Some College College Graduate Professional Degree 26. What is your ethnicity? African American Asian Hispanic/Latin Origin White, non-Hispanic Other: 27. What is your annual household income? $ 28. Is there anything else you would like to tell us about your experience reading and purchasing Streetvibes? 14. If vendors wore clothing or carried bags that identified them as Streetvibes vendors would you be: More likely to purchase the paper Less likely to purchase the paper About the same 29. Do you have any comments or suggestions for improving Streetvibes? 15. If Streetvibes developed relationships with local faith congregations that resulted in vendors being able to sell the paper after services, would you be: More likely to purchase the paper Less likely to purchase the paper About the same �STREETVIBES September 15 - 30, 2010 11 Local News 3CDC is the ‘Enemy of the Poor’ Prosecutor’s ruling fuels anger By Corey Gibson Contributing Writer A Sept. 3 protest against the Cincinnati Center City Development Corp. (3CDC) went on as planned but with an added agenda item: the decision not to pursue felony charges against a police officer who ran over a woman lying on the grass in Washington Park. Joann Burton’s death and the decision not to seek an indictment of Cincinnati Police Officer Marty Polk are part of an ongoing “attack on people who are financially poor and/ or homeless,” according to Josh Spring, executive director of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Spring and about 20 other people gathered at 14th and Race streets to demand support for the right to fair housing, to be able to keep that housing and for equal justice when someone’s life is taken. The protest came the day after Hamilton County Prosecutor Joe Deters announced he would not pursue felony charges against Polk. “This was originally planned as an antigentrification protest,” Spring said. “It seems what happened to Joann and what happened yesterday is kind of a symptom of the greater issue – that somehow a cop felt OK in an anonymous situation to drive over somebody’s blanket and clearly disregarding people around him, similar to when you push people out of their homes. The judicial process has done nothing about it.” Much of the protest focused on 3CDC and the city displacing poor people from their homes, from Washington Park and from Washington Park Elementary School, now closed to accommodate 3CDC’s plans for the park. One teenage protester yelled that, for “taking my school away, I hate 3CDC.” The protest also served as a memorial to Burton. “I don’t think a police officer would go into Ault Park or some park in Oakley and drive through the grass,” Spring said. “I don’t think they would be as quick to disregard the humans around them” Michael Burnham, a theater professor at the University of Cincinnati, offered a unique point-ofview of the police officer. “Here is this basically good policeman, who is caught trying to make a kind of safety, cosmetic safety,” Burnham said. “It is the police officer’s job to protect what 3CDC thinks is the park, opposed to what the people think the park is. And there is this skewed sense of what safety is. And people that live around the park say, ‘I’ve lived here all my life and it is safe.’ ” Yet police officers still drive through the park each night to inspect what people there are doing. The protest, which took place in a small abandoned lot, was adjacent to Washington Park. On the other corner is a vacant house with a small 3CDC sign hanging off the balcony. Someone once lived in those apartments, sat on that balcony, but 3CDC has bought the building and left it vacant. On another corner is the location that 3CDC has decided to build a home office. As the protest went on, workers went in and out to watch the protesters and grab tools, none seeming disturbed by people who were marching against the organization they were building for. Kelly Leon, spokeswoman for 3CDC, watched the protest from across the street. Between 15 and 20 people marched, holding signs that said, “Citizen Controlled Government,” “Stop Driving through Our Parks” and “When did we vote for 3CDC? Did we miss an election?” Chants included, “Our Kids Cannot Swim in a Dog Park” – a pointed reference to 3CDC’s plan to close the public pool in Washington Park and build a dog park. “Our voices as poor people are not heard,” said Vanessa Sparks, a resident of Over-The-Rhine. “We tried to negotiate, we tried to stick out at the table, in a trusting manner, and now we have to take our demonstration to the street. We are hopeful that the powers that be in the city will begin to listen, because we would not be out here if our voices would be heard.” Steve Sunderland, a resident of Over-theRhine and Streetvibes contributor, said 3CDC is “whitewashing the community.” “I’m for people being involved in their own neighborhoods, making decisions about their own neighborhoods, not being pushed away and not being killed because they’re poor,” he said. “That’s the outrage that is here.” Vera Zlatkin, a resident of Over-The-Rhine, carried a sign that said, “3CDC is the Enemy of the Poor.” “I think that because 3CDC is buying up a lot of property and taking the park away from the people that live here and taking homes from people who have lived here most of their lives,” she said. “It just isn’t right.” Protesters denounce 3CDC. Bradley R. Foster. Cartoon by Anne Skove �12 STREETVIBES September 15 - 30, 2010 Short Story House at the End of the Road By Spencer Ledyard Contributing Writer H e had never heard anything come from the back room until the rats had finally come into the old house, with their scurry feet and nibble teeth. There never had been any pests, no squirming silverfish or fat raisin roaches or those ever propagating fluff ball mice, as if the house was more solid and sanctified than any mortar-brick church, and he had always been proud of that. A testament to his craftsmanship. A man was nothing but things he built up, though many had made a lasting reputation tearing down. But that was all over now. There were rats in the back room and he had to trap them and bring to them death so he could live comfortably. When there had been a job for every man in the army, he had wanted to go but his job was a necessity to the war effort so he couldn’t leave. He had wanted to go but his heart hadn’t, only his brain and his sense of duty, but it didn’t matter much because he couldn’t. America with all the young men gone was a buffet, and he had many friends who could find many things: a jigger of gin here, good fabric for sewing there and maybe a movie or a grilled chicken. Little gifts to the women were the acts of a saint back then and on the Sunday afternoons, with their mothers off at church functions and their fathers putting in an extra day at the factory. … It did much good for the blood, and much harm to the soul. How did the golden sun on their long legs look so much like guilt when you were done, and planning never to see them again? Worse was the shallow bid it took to comfort the recent widow, like a lustful grim reaper and he left that scene only twice, both times tasting ashes and feeling cold, before he swore it off. The best place for rat traps was down at the hardware store, so he walked there and walked back, talking a time or two to himself, and to the faintly budding trees about how they were doing, were they feeling well, did they need anything. He had begun talking to plants when his wife died and he wanted to raise up a garden. He had first talked, though he didn’t know it, to his squash, which weren’t doing so well. He had asked what they wanted, bending and preening, turning and turning and turning over the compost, till he asked if they wanted some more fertilizer and it seemed that they did. When he gave some and they thanked him The rats wouldn't answer questions. REUTERS/Krishnendu Halder. by swelling, well … that became the thing to do. He never stopped talking any “thank you” came when it stopped wobbling on its longer when out in the garden, and he got to know own. He looked out the window. The tree outside them so well, and how to happy them. had feathered leaves, growing cool green, budding Then once, when he walked inside, he didn’t blue-white; thin, sallow bark and dense twigs like stop talking. He talked to the stoop and the door, piles of straw. He had planted it when he bought the kitchen floor and tiles, the sink, the fridge, his the lot, which he would build the house on with big and made bed. It seemed that, when things his wife. She would ramble on all day and fill the broke, they told him how to fix them and, when house up with her larking, harking, lady voice and mended, they quieted and showed their gratitude fill his ears till it drove him crazy, but he had never by working well. But these rats were another been much of a talker and there were things he business altogether and you couldn’t talk to them didn’t want to say and didn’t have to ’cause she because they ran away and didn’t listen and never gave him a chance. She didn’t know about wouldn’t help you help them. So death was the all the women and how he had felt like the grim only answer if you couldn’t ask a question, and it reaper and how he had tasted ash. She asked him was soon and never got less soon. to do things and he did them. Then she died and He set the traps and shut the door and walked he had the garden and the house and the rats back through the house, mumbling to the creaking and the quiet when he wanted it. He didn’t want floorboards and the loose door handle to the other it much anymore but he had it and he had it now bathroom and sat down at the kitchen table. He at the table, looking out the window. In the back wobbled the table a bit and smiled because the room he heard a snap. Cincinnati, Are You Crazy? The crimes we allow to happen downtown. Do we need another hotel? I don’t think so. 3CDC has bought so much property in Overthe-Rhine it should be a crime, especially the way they acquire the property. They told the former By Lee McCoy landlords, “I’ll buy this if you get rid of the tenants. Streetvibes Vendor Either evict or relocate them.” Like I said 3CDC has their fingers into everything in Over-the-Rhine incinnati, how crazy can you get? and downtown and they are so greedy. Fountain Violence is in epidemic proportions. The Square, where a street vendor is not allowed to sell proposal Sheriff Simon Leis wanted to Streetvibes for a dollar donation, but they will sell build a new jail was turned down you a bottle of beer for about $4 twice. I believe no big deal for him or better. – he just went out and bought him I would like to 3CDC has started the a brand new boat to fight crime on renovation of Washington Park to see 3CDC build the Ohio River. the tune of a whole lot of millions. something that lowBut let me tell you what: Our Now I know a lot of that came income people could sheriff knew there is more crime from a government grant but you afford, instead of on the streets of Cincinnati than on know and I know it will run over. condos and lofts. the river, unless you call squatters It will cost only the taxpayers. on the river a crime. But that’s just I always thought Washington the tip of things. Let’s look at people being set Park was a historical landmark. It’s the second free from the Hamilton County jail every month oldest park in Cincinnati. I always thought it was a because of overcrowding. The county is using sacrilege to disturb a body in a burial ground. If it fewer than half of the 565 ankle bracelets used to is, somebody forgot to tell 3CDC it’s a crime. put people on home arrest. I would like to see 3CDC build something that Not only are people being released without low-income people could afford, instead of condos oversight, but each ankle bracelet costs tax payers and lofts. whether they are used or not. Cincinnati, are you Cincinnati, you’re so crazy. You had nothing else crazy? It’s like telling someone I’m trying; and better to do so you pick on the panhandlers again. it isn’t a lie, but the problem is you’re trying but Now they have to be on their feet to get money. failing. Also our sheriff knew he was going to get That the craziest law I ever heard. a new jail. No jobs – what are people going to do The Drop Inn Center has been on 12th Street for but turn to crime now? He’ll get his new jail. Just a years. Its founder, Buddy Gray, was the man. He matter of time. was a champion fighter. I remember it to be a soup There’s a lot of stupidity going around in kitchen where you could come in get something Cincinnati these days. A lot. And if you see it, then to eat and get some help. Not anymore. You have you’re not the only Lone Ranger in Cincinnati. to be a resident to enter the building. Now they Now, let’s look at a real master criminal, 3CDC. have fired the executive director, Pat Clifford, for Forcing people out of their home – the tenants no given reason. Hell, you didn’t even give him a of Metropole – so they can add another hotel reason. Pat Clifford was no Buddy Gray but I have C to pat Pat Clifford on the back for all he has done over the years he has put in. Well done, Pat. Well done. I wish you well in whatever you do next. Cincinnati, here is another crime. You have tried everything to move the Drop Inn Center. I guess you came up with the perfect crime, putting the School for the Creative and Performing Arts (SCPA) next door. All the tricks and hoops the Drop Inn Center has had to jump through, and they still have to move. Where? Your guess is better than mine. Oh yeah, did I mention 3CDC has offered to relocate the Drop Inn Center? Mighty big of you, but I think you have a trick up your sleeve. “Trick no good.” Seems like the city of Cincinnati, with all the billions of dollars that you have invested in – just to name a few – renovations of Fountain Square, Washington Park, SCPA, Paul Brown Stadium, Great American Ballpark, you would think you would have put enough up to keep the pools open for our children. I remember when the people used to be able to say what should be what and shouldn’t be, but just like the seven hills of Cincinnati, you have the seven corporations. They are Procter & Gamble, Kroger Co., Federated Department Stores, Fifth-Third Bank Corp., Western & Southern Financial, American Financial Corp. and E.W. Scripps, and they support our city government with campaign contributions. We the people can’t match the money they pour in but we vote and we remember. You used to say, “Come on down and see what’s up downtown.” I can’t afford to come downtown anymore. Parking has gone from $1 an hour to – are you crazy? – $2 an hour. That’s another crime. Raise your voice, Cincinnati, and be heard. Let’s do away with these crimes. A voice is priceless. Maybe if you speak up, your voice might be heard, might count. Only if you don’t act, don’t speak, don’t show up – then it doesn’t count. �STREETVIBES September 15 - 30, 2010 Essay Contest 13 Common Sense and Civility By Keith E. Craun Contributing Writer T here are so many problems in the United States that it is difficult to decide where to begin. The wealthiest country in the world should not have this much poverty nor this much disparity between the rich and the poor. We have too many people addicted to too many things – not just drugs, but alcohol, porn, gambling, junk food; and the list goes on. For a nation that started with the cry of “No taxation without representation,” our tax structure is unbelievably complicated and designed to favor those who pay to have it written. Our prisons are overcrowded either because we are too cheap to build more prisons or because we send too many people there for crimes that should be handled with hospitalization or halfway houses or some other way. So which problem would I choose to handle first? None of these. I think that the biggest problems in this country are lack of civil discourse and lack of common sense. I used to tell people that common sense was the least common thing in America today, followed closely by common courtesy. We have to learn to speak to each other without all of the shouting and demonizing language. We have to recognize that most people are not on the extreme right (those God-fearing, pro-life, prodeath penalty, cut taxes for the rich, tough on crime, National Rifle Association life members). Nor are most people on the extreme left (those socialist/communist, pro-choice, soft on crime, pot smoking, let the government take care of us, nonpatriots). For instance, I know a person who is patriotic enough to have Can we all agree that, when our government spends more than served honorably in the U.S. Army (101st Airborne, thank you a penny to make a penny, then it is time to stop making pennies? very much). He believes that abortion should be legal but very No business in this or any other country would continue to sell rare, and he believes that we are smart enough to be able to make something for less than it costs to make. That’s just common laws and incentives to make that happen. He believes that we sense. should be tough on crime. But he also believes that, if tobacco This is where I think we should start. We should all contact our and alcohol can be legal and heavily taxed, then marijuana elected representatives and demand that the U.S. government should also be legal and heavily taxed. He and his wife are both stop making pennies. I’m not suggesting that we get rid of college-educated. Yet it takes them about 30 hours each year pennies and round everything up to a nickel. I’m suggesting to get their tax papers organized, to send them to the guy who that we stop making them but keep using them. If the American charges them a couple hundred people really want to use pennies dollars, to get them ready to send then we can take them out from to the IRS. So he believes that we under the sofa or out of the jar need the “Fair Tax,” which would by the front door or wherever basically abolish the income tax you keep yours. Heck, the and give us a national sales tax. government could even authorize He believes that the government the banks to buy pennies back ‘Streetvibes’ essay contest should be fiscally responsible, but from us one day a month for he has not seen it in his lifetime. $1.05 per 100 pennies and it Two readers recently suggested Streetvibes hold an So, I ask, which category does would still be cheaper than what essay contest on the theme, “How to Improve Our this guy fit into? And can we the government spends to make Country.” They donated money for three prizes; $100 discuss this guy without shouting them. for first place, $75 for second place and $50 for third down his positions? Pretty simple. And we can all place. So how do we solve the twin agree on this one small thing The rules called for writing about a single problem problems of lack of civil discourse without shouting at each other facing the United States and proposing a solution. and lack of common sense? We or bringing our other beliefs into The winner of the contest is Keith Craun of have to go to a level of common the discussion. Then, once we Alexandria, Ky., whose essay appears on this page. sense on which we can all agree do that, we might realize that Craun was the only person who participated in the and discuss it with civility. Then we have common ground on contest. This in no way diminishes the quality of his we can move up to harder and something else and we can solve essay. It does, however, touch on the very issue that harder problems. another small problem. Next motivated the contest in the first place: the decline Common sense is very hard to thing you know, we are caring of participation in civil society. Craun’s essay fittingly get to. Common sense, to me, says about the nation and not just our touches on that subject. that our tax structure should be own little plot. – Gregory Flannery, Editor understandable enough for our Well, we don’t all agree on even high school graduates to be able this small thing. If we ask our to fill out their own tax forms in 10 representatives to stop making hours or less. Other people want to keep all of the deductions we pennies – even for just a couple of years – the lobbyists for the presently have and all of the lobbyists we presently have, so we zinc and copper mines, who sell the metals to the mint, are going can’t start there. to try to stop this small idea. But I say we do it anyway. I simply Common sense, to me, says that, if marijuana use and sales can’t think of any smaller level that we can reach for common were legal and taxed, we would have better control of it, have less sense and civil discourse to take root in our government. crowding in our jails, increase our tax revenues and even create By the way, I am in my 50s and have never once smoked or jobs. But there are way too many people who cannot be swayed used marijuana in any way. And yet I know that, when some of on this subject, so we can’t start there. my friends read this essay, they will want to argue some of my I have an idea for the level of common sense where we can at points. least get started. I hope they are civil. How to Improve Our Country If you like what you read, but don’t live in the Cincinnati area, you can subscribe to Streetvibes. Call us at 513-421-7803 x 12 to learn more about subscribing to Streetvibes. �14 Poetry Page Hammock: Early September Sundress By Lea Drury some house somewhere once i lived so many figs hung-in branches low and heavy, ripe with fruit’s sweet jam and crawling long her wrist his long chin resting crushing blackberry-pulp purples, smeared, mirroring the shade of a sleepy sun. i was a murderess Between young trees. REUTERS/Ajay Verma. my pockets full as the night i’d run away to Madeline, she knowing how figs and berries reached. i’d pluck them STREETVIBES September 15 - 30, 2010 My Heart Can’t Take the Beating By Josh McConnell Streetvibes Vendor All my life I've searched, and yet I've not found. Searching for answers, longing for love. Scouring the earth to find what's not yet been found. I came close a time or two, I've had my heart broken once before and now it's broken again once more. Scared to give up, scared to continue my quest and discovering further disappointments. Scared to quit for I may die if I do. I've attended a mass and found the perfect match, maybe too perfect for me, it's too unclear to tell. I'm in a lot of pain, almost too unbearable to endure. By Anne Skove i’d drop four in my big stained pockets; yes i would tell her how, with all the fruit my hands could smash. Swaddled like a baby in a low sling, high grass tickles her back. Rockabye between young trees. The air smells of wood smoke. I've been betrayed I’ve been hurt by everyone I've ever loved. I wish to God I didn't have a conscience, because with conscience comes with feelings and I’ve had just about as much as I can take. I wish I was in Love, Branches creak, heavy with hard pears. Wasps lie in wait. I wish someone would Love me back. Laughter of Women By Elisa Hill Laughter of women is a universal language. One understood by all. It’s like that day when you shed no more tears. Or that moment you realize that the love you have for yourself is real. The laughter brings peace to the heart. It’s a motion that starts you to seeing stars. Laughter is that lover you hold in a dream. If for only one moment it is so real you believe. Laughter has side effects like euphoria, feeling like your floating or on a great natural high. Laughter gets colder when there is mal intent inside. Laughter of women is heaven sent. It says your OK and that you deserve this moment. I am grateful for laughter in those rare moments of calm. Laughter is that recipe to good health and happiness for all. So I implore you to laugh tonight in the still of the night. I want you to all laugh even though you may want to cry. God gave us that right to show we too are alive. Why does Love have to be so complicated, why does it have to hurt so much? I wish I was dead, I wish I was alive. I don't know anymore, but what I do know is that my heart can't take the beating anymore. The Men By David S. Pointer It wasn’t a box car supper social They weren’t exchanging job leads A badger-haired hooligan rammed The yard bull into a cattle horned Hat rack for ruining the fish soup The men trampled egg wire baskets And pumpkin goulash trying for a train Letter to the Editor Enjoy this Ride To the Editor: It will be a sad day if them damn Republicans can continue their lunacy that doesn't do anything to improve the state of our Nation domestically. And Republican leadership has offered nothing in the benefit of normal people. We are the ones who are suffering and unfortunately too many times so gullible to believe in the programs of those who are not. That trickle-down B.S. has never happened. They have jobs and lots of money – most times in the millions. They are lying. They don't care about you if you make less than $200,000 a year. Our President Barack Obama and this Democratic Congress will continue to do what is best for our nation by building again the middle class and small business. Open your eyes and stop looking for failure. Sit back and enjoy this ride. And once again don’t you dare let those idiots have this country back. We get to have eight years to enjoy the Age of Obama. That is my opinion. This nation must prove the media pundits and the Tea Party wrong. All Democrats and independents with any Republicans that have good sense will vote Democratic in 2010. Do so without worry. It is a secret ballot. Walter Madison Washington Jr. Over-the-Rhine Have something on your mind? Want to comment on an article? Let us know: 117 E. 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 streetvibes2@yahoo.com �15 Resources STREETVIBES September 15 - 30, 2010 Need Help or Want to Help? Shelter: Women and Children Central Access Point Cincinnati Union Bethel St. Francis Soup Kitchen Churches Active in Northside 381-SAFE 768-6907 FreeStore/FoodBank 557-2873 Madisonville Ed & Assistance Center 271-5501 300 Lytle Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Bethany House 4230 Hamilton Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45223 241-1064 112 E. Liberty Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 1841 Fairmount Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45214 Grace Place Catholic Worker House 681-2365 6037 Cary Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45224 Salvation Army 535-2719 591-2246 762-5660 4600 Erie Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45227 Serves area codes: 45226, 45227, 45208, 45209 St. Vincent de Paul 562-8841 872-9259 Treatment: Men Charlie’s 3/4 House Shelter: Men Prospect House Justice Watch 241-0490 St. Fran/St. Joe Catholic Work. House 381-4941 Starting Over 1419 Elm Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Interfaith Hospitality Network Lighthouse Youth Center (Youth) Treatment: Both 761-1480 AA Hotline CCAT Franciscan Haircuts from the Heart 961-4663 3330 Jefferson, Cinti, Ohio 45220 Housing: CMHA Excel Development OTR Community Housing 721-4580 632-7149 381-1171 114 W. 14th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tender Mercies 721-8666 27 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tom Geiger House Dana Transitional Bridge Services Volunteers of America Anna Louise Inn Food/Clothing Lord’s Pantry OTR/Walnut Hills Kitchen & Pantry 621-5300 961-1983 OTR: 1620 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Walnut Hills: 2631 Gilbert, Cinti, Ohio 45206 Our Daily Bread 1730 Race Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 351-0422 381-6672 621-6364 Goodwill industries Healing Connections Mary Magdalen House 771-4800 751-0600 721-4811 241-2965 People Working Cooperatively The Caring Place United Way Women Helping Women Off The Streets 351-7921 631-1114 211 977-5541 421-5211 1522 Republic Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Hamilton County ADAS Board Recovery Health Access Center Sober Living Talbert House 946-4888 281-7422 681-0324 641-4300 Hamilton/Middletown 421-3131 569-1840 381-4242 Northern Kentucky Advocacy Catholic Social Action Community Action Agency Contact Center 1227 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 961-4555 751-0643 381-1954 421-5211 381-0111 1223 Main St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 830 Ezzard Charles Dr. Cinti, Ohio 45214 Joseph House (Veterans) 471-1100 221-3350 621-5514 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 961-4080 721-0643 241-2600 241-2563 1308 Race St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 2203 Fulton, Cinti, Ohio 45206 217 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 458-6670 977-4489 Peaslee Neighborhood Center Treatment: Women 1821 Summit Road, Cinti, Ohio 45237 Drop Inn Center 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 961-2256 2728 Glendora Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45209 Caracole (HIV/AIDS) 558-8888 981-5800 214 E. 14th St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 First Step Home Anthony House (Youth) 40 E. McMicken Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mental Health Access Point Mercy Franciscan at St. John Center Independent Living Options Emmanuel Community Center 661-4620 Shelter: Both 357-4602 352-2902 352-6363 921-1613 682 Hawthorne Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45205 1437 Walnut Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mt. Airy Shelter Health Resource Center Homeless Mobile Health Van McMicken Dental Clinic Other Resources 784-1853 2121 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 241-5525 City Gospel Mission 381-2247 5 E. Liberty St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 NAMI of Hamilton County PATH Outreach 1125 Bank Street, Cinti, Ohio 45214 131 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter Crossroad Health Center 117 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 579-8547 241-9400 421-1108 363-3300 421-2437 Health Center for Respite Care 3550 Washington Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45229 Brighton Center 863-3184 863-1445 422-8555 868-3276 859-491-8303 799 Ann St. Newport, KY Franciscan JPIC 721-4700 Gr. Cinti Coalition for the Homeless 421-7803 Intercommunity Justice & Peace Cr. Legal Aid Society Ohio Justice & Policy Center Faces Without Places Stop AIDS St. Raephaels Salvation Army Serenity House Day Center Open Door Pantry ECHO/Hosea House Fairhaven Resuce Mission Homeward Bound Youth Mathews House Homeless & Housing Coalition Parish Kitchen Pike St. Clinic Transitions, Inc Welcome House of NKY 859-261-5857 859-491-1027 859-581-1111 859-261-8009 859-727-0926 859-581-7745 859-291-9321 859-491-4435 859-431-8717 205 West Pike Street, Covington, KY 41011 621-1868 Women’s Crisis Center VA Domiciliary VA Homeless 859-491-3335 859-559-5011 859-572-6226 �16 Artists as Activists STREETVIBES September 15 - 30, 2010 Instead of Pollution, Recycled Art Roscoe Wilson creates from what exists “For me, to be an artist is to be an activist. They are not separate. For the past 15 years I have made work that consistently raises concerns about over-consumption, waste, destruction of our environment, big coal and big oil. My work investigates broader issues to draw people in to take a closer look.” - Roscoe Wilson A Wisconsin residents and environmental pioneers John Muir and Aldo Leopold. From the start Wilson’s work addressed as nature, how it is being affected and destroyed by our consumerBy Saad Ghosn oriented, industrialized Contributing Writer society, but also how it can be protected and enriched, contributing oscoe Wilson, a local artist and associate to a better life. professor of art at Miami University“If we treat our world Hamilton, grew up in rural northern well, the world will treat Indiana and southern Michigan. He lived most of us well and we’ll end Roscoe Wilson. Saad Ghosn. his life in close contact with nature, surrounded up treating each other by water, trees, woods and animals. This shaped better,” he says. trees, magnificent expression of nature on earth, his environmental values as he learned to love From his first year of college and throughout but also vulnerable to human destruction and the earth, its beauty and poetry, the materials graduate school Wilson was encouraged, in victim of polluting waste. Having a Ball represents composing it, its inhabitants. addition to design, to think of content. He probed a dead tree, result of urban construction/ “Growing up in nature enabled me to develop inside himself, connecting to his childhood and destruction. Last Stand speaks to industrial insult, past experiences, and researched his themes and an awareness only a forest, lake, field, can offer,” nature bulldozed away, replaced by degraded grabbed at historical references. His art came he says. earth. Oil Field, another painting from the same from a personal place, but at the same time took a In college, even though destined to create series, shows a destitute landscape of black oil universal dimension, adding to his own symbols art, he spent significant time studying biology, drums, suffocating a decaying, barren, leafless imagery and concepts borrowed form books and discovering the secrets behind the function of the tree. On the trunk of the tree are remnants of a nature. He repeatedly referred, for instance, to the natural world. child’s tree-house, alluding to the innocence of mayfly, an insect that emerges every six years from childhood disappearing, pushed away from its Wilson started drawing at a very young age. a larval form under water to live for only 24 hours, Very early on and influenced by his father and natural source and habitat. The dead branches of thus alluding to the hidden world behind what one the tree are shown taking over the entire sky and grandfather, he also made and built things out of sees every day. wood and recycled material. These experiences horizon, replacing life with death, obstructing the Concerned by the big waste characteristic of served as his initial engagement into the arts. future. Wilson meant his image as an apocalyptic He later attended Wabash College, Indiana, our consuming culture, and having developed a landscape of the never-ending wasteful great appreciation for natural materials, his art earning a bachelor’s degree in art and biology, consumption. Started before the recent BP oil was often based on found objects, rusty nails, then Purdue University, earning a master of spill in the Gulf of Mexico, it proved prophetic in prints printed on discarded boxes, paintings on arts degree in painting/printmaking, and the its realism and message. Wilson is now preparing recovered wooden lathes. His sculptures and University of Wisconsin (UW), earning a master a tapestry installation of prints of oil drums, one large installations would also often use collected of fine arts degree focusing on printmaking, print for each day the BP spill lasted; they will be bottle caps and cardboard boxes, arranged and sculptural installation and painting. While at pinned up together in a large piece, ominously organized to initially draw the viewer by their UW, he studied the history of environmentalism invading the entire display space. vibrant colors, large scale and esoteric appeal, and drew inspiration for his artwork from former While teaching, Wilson also engages his then to trigger deeper questioning and students to think about the various issues that understanding. concern him and the world. He does it either by Instead of making new things, Wilson discussing works of established artists who have gave new life to things that had already raised consciousness through their art or by giving existed, thus not adding pollution to the students assignments based on specific topics. world and reaffirming his message of As a mentor to the students’ ecology club and in charge of their art club, he uses both venues to “reduce, reuse, minimally consume.” integrate art with environmental awareness. In addition to his “art recycling” and Wilson will continue to use his art as his voice distressed by the large amount of “trash” for the protection of the environment. He wants thrown away at parties he attended, to read more, learn more, connect with similarly Wilson started a widespread recycling concerned individuals, add to the debate and program at his college, involving other make a change. Coal, mountaintop removal in students, friends and later family. strip mining and, the origin and culture of food Waste and recycling aside, Wilson are topics he would like to explore more and became progressively interested address in his artworks. He feels that most social in broader themes, those of the and political issues relate to the environment, are environment, polluting energies, interconnected and stem from the same roots. climate changes. The deleterious effect “Art is an important expression of who I am,” he on the planet of burning coal, oil and says. “It is a continued synthesis of my experiences natural gas; the devastating result of and beliefs, and as such carries and communicates oil spills on the ecosystem; and the my messages. I love the earth and want to preserve green potential of alternative sources of it; I want my art to shake our apathy for the energy – solar, wind and geothermal – degrading environment. Our backyards, deserts, preoccupied him and found their way oceans, have become receptacles for waste to into his art. Oil Field, graphite and oil painting by Roscoe Wilson. dump, spill, and leak into our lives. It has to stop.” His Tree series consists of paintings Saad Ghosn. that address the beauty and majesty of rtists ctivists R Artists as Activists is a regular column highlighting Greater Cincinnati artists who use art as a vehicle for change. Saad Ghosn is the founder of SOS Art. Ghosn can be contacted at saad.ghosn@uc.edu. � 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 2010 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 September 15-31, 2010 Subject The topic of the resource Homelessness Description An account of the resource Pg 1: The Business of Changing Lives Death Comes for Unit One Pg 2: Don’t Drink the Tea Pg 3: The Way Unit 1 Came to Her Death Continued Pg 4: Anna Louise Gets a Makeover Pg 5: Dems and GOP Say, ‘Stay Away’ Pg 6: Homeless Families on the Rise Education is a Start, But Laws Work Pg 7: Somewhere in Northside Pg 8: “Feed Me, Seymour, Feed Me All Night Long…” Pg 9: The Business of Changing Lives Pg 10: Reader Survey Pg 11: 3CDC is the ‘Enemy of the Poor’ Pg 12: House at the End of the Road Cincinnati, Are You Crazy? Pg 13: Common Sense and Civility Pg 14: Arts & Poetry Pg 15: Resources Pg 16: Instead of Pollution, Recycled Art 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 September 15-31, 2010 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Gregory Flannery Lynne Ausman Georgia Bohannon Michelle Dillingham Samantha Groark Margo Pierce Paul Kopp Jeremy Flannery Michael Henson David Heitfield Corey Gibson Jeni Jenkins Saad Ghosn Lew Moores Larry Gross Eli Braun Jesse Call Michael Fanning B. Clifton Burke Aimie Willhoite Anne Skove Vinit Murthy Jon Hughes Brad Foster Jeremy Flannery Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF 3CDC Aimie Willhoite Anna Louise Anne Skove Art Arts & Poetry B. Clifton Burke Brad Foster Cincinnati Corey Gibson David Heitfield Democrats education Eli Braun Georgia Bohannon GOP Gregory Flannery Jeni Jenkins Jeremy Flannery Jesse Call Jon Hughes Larry Gross Lew Moores Lynne Ausman Margo Pierce Michael Fanning Michael Henson Michelle Dillingham Northside Paul Kopp Pollution Recycling Roscoe Wilson Saad Ghosn Samantha Groark Vinit Murthy https://streetvibesarchive.net/files/original/0b2292b580a3bd86c7ac97dea9074512.pdf 6a107392eb7f58baf40e4fa187e35b43 PDF Text Text Allegories of Oligarchies Page 7 Artists as Activists Page 16 Sept. 1-14, 2010 • Issue 184 • One Dollar ADVOCATING JUSTICE • BUILDING COMMUNITY 3CDC Accused of Racial Conspiracy Metropole tenants sue to stop eviction By Corey Gibson Contributing Writer The Metropole Apartments are a racially integrated housing complex. Approximately 60 percent of the he Cincinnati Center City tenants are African Americans, a Development Corporation majority of whom are elderly or (3CDC) is using strongdisabled. The 230-unit building, arm tactics to force people from the whose tenants receive federal Section Metropole Apartments, according to 8 assistance with rent, has been a civil-rights lawsuit filed Aug. 18 in one of the only affordable housing federal court. projects in the downtown area since The complaint by the Metropole 1971. Tenants The Metropole Association offers the alleges 3CDC The lawsuit accuses 3CDC only racially used Cincinnati of deliberately eliminating integrated lowPolice officers income housing low-income housing from to harass and downtown, yet downtown Cincinnati to intimidate residents are make room for upscale, residents. The being forced out predominantly white complaint also to make way for residents, in direct violation alleges that a chic, up-scale of both the national and the sale of the hotel. state Fair Housing Acts, subsidized Downtown is both of which call for the low-income one of only three development of housing apartment communities in that will racially integrate building was Hamilton County communities. deceptively that has been conducted, racially integrated violates federal housing law and will for over 30 years, according to the promote racial segregation. lawsuit. Yet for the past 10 years Defendants in the suit include 3CDC, HUD and the city “have 3CDC, the city of Cincinnati, the actively and deliberately sought to U.S. Department of Housing and dismantle, displace or eliminate Urban Development (HUD) and the affordable housing from downtown new management of the Metropole Cincinnati,” the lawsuit says. Apartments. Attorneys for the plaintiffs are Terence Brennan and See Metropole, p. 4 Jennifer Kinsley. T Attorney Terence Brennan SAYS 3CDC is working to segregate downtown. Brad Foster. Canada’s Forgotten Children The traumatic legacy of Indian residential schools By Allan Sheppard Street News Service E Assembly of First Nations National Chief Phil Fontaine waits in the foyer of the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Canada. REUTERS/Chris Wattie. dmonton, Canada – The Canadian residential schools system was designed to assimilate Aboriginal children into westernized society. Many of them suffered psychological, physical and sexual abuse. Some 15 years since the last school was closed, victims are still in search of justice. The Edmonton Street Society is committed to help Canada’s forgotten children. Harold Robinson, an adjudicator of cases involving victims’ compensation, recently discussed the issue. “The area that I propose to talk about tonight is extremely sensitive. It is sourced in nothing but pain and anguish; it has had an absolutely devastating impact on whole generations of people. “I approach the work remembering the teachings of my granny and of my mother, who raised me: to be respectful, to be a good listener, to be helpful, and I try and apply those principles in the work that I do as an adjudicator. See Abuse, p. 6 �2 The Vibe By The Numbers Zip The cost, in dollars, for producing your own TV show, radio program or film at Media Bridges (see page 3). 250,000 The size of the exhibition space, in square feet, at the Newseum in Washington, D.C. (see page X). 2003 The year Keith Banner and Bill Ross founded Visionaries and Voices (see page 15). 42 The length, in number of days, that Gen. James Dozier was held captive by the Red Brigades (see page X). 100,000 The average amount of compensation, in dollars, paid to victims of abuse at Indian residential schools in Canada (see page 1). 21,000 The number of members of Secret Cincinnati’s Facebook group (see page 10). 2014 The year the new health-care reform finally takes full effect (see page 13). 230 The number of units of affordable housing lost to 3CDC’s takeover of the Metropole Apartments (see page 1). 700 The estimated number of hours that Michael Fanning has spent watching Star Wars (see page 9). 1967 The year Carl Yastrzemski achieved professional baseballs’ triple crown (see page 12). StreetWise STREETVIBES September 1 - 14, 2010 By Gregory Flannery Editor Some Losses Are Happy Occasions One of our most durable vendors, Riccardo Taylor, won’t be selling Streetvibes for the next year – and we’re glad. Taylor is now civil-rights outreach coordinator for the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless, a position funded by the federal Volunteers in Service to America program. The rules of the program forbid participants from simultaneously holding other jobs. We hope, however, that Taylor will continue “Street Life,” his occasional column for Streetvibes. Among Taylor’s new duties will be organizing a Homeless Congress in Cincinnati, a forum for homeless people to work together in their mutual interest. Taylor succeeds Rob Goeller, who spent his tenure organizing tenants at the Metropole Apartments (see “3CDC Accused of Racial Conspiracy,” page 1). As a Streetvibes vendor, Taylor developed a regular clientele by virtue of his hard work, pleasant manner and straight talk. In recent years he has helped to train new Streetvibes vendors. We’re going to miss his sales, but we’re glad to know he’ll be working to defend the civil rights of people who are homeless. Some Losses Are a Decade Late It seems Cincinnati Police Chief Thomas Streicher Jr. will retire next year. Let all the people say, “Amen.” Under Streicher’s leadership, the Cincinnati Police Department has far too often been characterized by brutality, racism, disdain for the public and poor morale, exacerbated by mayors and city councils either too insensitive to the harm he caused or too afraid to deal with it. The police department has undergone meaningful reform in recent years, in spite of Streicher – indeed, against his active resistance, and only at the cost of an uprising in Over-the-Rhine in 2001, followed by years of monitoring by federal court and judicially mandated changes in the police department’s use of force. At one point Streicher’s disrespect nearly landed the city in contempt of court before a federal judge. Employed by a city government too craven to deal with him, Streicher, a man lacking respect either for his office or for the people he is sworn to serve, stayed on the job a decade after he was no longer wanted. Along the way he helped make the city and the police department an object of national scorn. The only thing more shameful than the record of Police Chief Thomas Streicher Jr. is the city’s refusal to protect their constituents from the damage that he caused. Streetvibes is an activist newspaper, advocating justice and building community. Streetvibes reports on economic issues, civil rights, the environment, the peace movement, spirituality and the struggle against homelessness and poverty. Distributed by people who are or once were homeless, in exchange for a $1 donation, Streetvibes is published twice a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Address: 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 Phone: 513.421.7803 x 12 Fax: 513.421.7813 Email: streetvibes2@yahoo. com Website: www. cincihomeless.org Blog: streetvibes.wordpress. com Streetvibes Staff Editor Gregory Flannery Art Director Lynne Ausman Vendor Coordinator Georgia Bohannon A local TV news station recently reported the death of “four NATO members in Afghanistan.” The phrasing is curious for what it does not say: These weren’t people who belonged to a club. They were soldiers. Invaders. Contributing Writers Michelle Dillingham, Samantha Groark, Margo Pierce, Paul Kopp, Jeremy Flannery, Michael Henson, David Heitfield, Corey Gibson, Jeni Jenkins, Saad Ghosn, Lew Moores, Larry Gross, Eli Braun, Jesse Call, Michael Fanning, B. Clifton Burke By the time this edition is printed, a young friend of mine will have landed in Afghanistan, where he will build bombs for the U.S. Air Force. His poetry has appeared in Streetvibes and in SOS Art. He joined the Air Force in order to secure college tuition – if he survives the war. He does not support the war, he says. By that he means he does not agree with the idea of the war. But he builds bombs. Nothing could be more supportive. Photography/Artwork Aimie Willhoite, Lynne Ausman, Anne Skove, Vinit Murthy, Jon Hughes, Brad Foster A few years ago, the night before a jury deliberated whether some friends and I had committed the offense of trespassing during an anti-war protest, my family hosted a young man who was on the run. He had refused to go on a second tour of duty in the war on Iraq. He later turned himself in and was given a choice: Prison or combat. He chose combat and came back with one eye and other vital parts missing. Proofreaders Jeremy Flannery Some Losses Defy Categories Every generation has to learn again: War is always a bad idea. Some Losses Can Be Stopped Ohio is getting ready to poison another prisoner. Kevin Keith is scheduled to be killed Sept. 15. His last chance seems to be an order of clemency by Gov. Ted Strickland. A surprising line-up of opponents to the execution hope to sway him. They include more than 30 former state and federal judges and prosecutors, the Ohio Innocence Project, the National Innocence Network, more than 100 religious leaders and organizations and 13 leading experts on eyewitness and memory – some of whom support the use of the death penalty in principle, but say Keith should not be executed. Two petitions bearing more than 20,000 signatures also call on Strickland to stop the execution. Among those calling for clemency are former U.S. Appeals Judge Nathaniel R. Jones, former Ohio Attorney General Jim Petro and former Ohio Supreme Court Justice Herbert R. Brown. Keith, 46, was convicted of murdering two women and a 4-year-old girl in Bucyrus in 1994. Keith’s attorneys say new evidence shows Keith was wrongfully convicted based on faulty and improperly influenced eyewitness identification. The new evidence identifies an alternative suspect, who told a police informant that he was paid to carry out the crime. The main evidence used to wrongfully convict Keith was the eyewitness identification of a surviving adult victim, who identified Keith after telling at least four people he couldn’t see the shooter’s face because the shooter was wearing a mask. The Ohio Parole Board unanimously voted against recommending clemency Aug. 19. The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that works to eradicate homelessness in Cincinnati through coordination of services, public education, grassroots advocacy and Streetvibes. We are proud members of: �STREETVIBES September 1 - 14, 2010 8 3 Column M I N U T E S with a High Tech Megaphone Media Bridges puts media into the hands of the community By Margo Pierce Contributing Writer We have the right to free speech in this country, but unless you have the cash to pay for the expensive gadgets to broadcast your speech, your options for communicating are limited. Enter Media Bridges (www.mediabridges.org). “We exist to give you a voice,” says Christa Zielke, development coordinator for Media Bridges. “If you have something to say, a talent to share, an argument to make, if you have an event that you filmed that you think is important to air – we’re here to make that happen. “We’ll give you the tools. We’ll give you the education. We’ll give you the facilities, whether it’s on film, video, the Internet, radio, whatever form of media. (Media Bridges) is a community media center. These exist all over the country, and the purpose of community media centers is to provide the public with the ability to create and produce their own independent, community media productions.” Zielke says the organization is a “big, fierce advocate of the First Amendment.” The community center offers cost-free classes in Christa Zielke says Media Bridges helps people overcome the digital divide. videography, digital photography, Jon Hughes/Photopresse. editing, studio use and graphic died.’ ” design – anything that will enable diverse,” Zielke says. Located at 1100 Race St., Media individuals to create media. The influence of Bridges chose to move to Over-the“Then we also provide … free Rhine in 2001 after the uprising equipment – cameras, video grassroots media against police violence in that cameras, lighting, audio,” Zielke says. This is important because it means neighborhood. “The only caveat is that they provide local issues get attention and can “We wanted to be where we were us with a copy of their final product, influence the mainstream media. needed the most,” Zielke says. “You which we then air on the four cableLocal cable access channels provide hear a lot about the digital divide, access stations that we operate.” one vehicle for sharing ideas. On which is the gap between the haves In addition to managing the community access channels 4, 8, 15 and have-nots in terms of access to four local community-access cable and 24, the viewing public can see technology. Broadcast education channels, Media Bridges launched a locally produced television shows is expensive. You’re talking about a new radio station, WVQC, in July. All and stories. $40,000 degree to go get the skills to locally produced programming can “There’s a gentleman who did be able to create and edit your own be heard on 94.7 FM and www.wvqc. a program on the money lending production, your own show. Most org. Feedback on the new endeavor people in this community – at least a has been “great,” according to Zielke. practices of some of these checkcashing and financial loaning lot of them – do not have those kinds While she’s pleased about this, she’s institutions that are prevalent in low- of financial resources. “ not surprised. income communities,” Zielke says. Funded in large part by the Describing local programming “He did this story a year before it Community Access Preservation on most local radio stations as ever hit any of the mainstream. This (CAP) Act, which set up a fund “homogenized,” Zielke says the was happening in his neighborhood requiring cable companies to pay “corporate media conglomerates” … something that was important to for their use of public land to run that own more than 80 percent him. Sometimes what’s important cables and other private industry of local radio stations – with 50 to mainstream media isn’t always equipment, Media Bridges has percent of those owned by just two what is closest to the heart of a 15-year contract with the city companies – rely on opinion surveys neighborhoods. … of Cincinnati to operate four to guide their content, virtually “Look at a neighborhood like Over- community access cable stations. eliminating the possibility of homethe-Rhine. This neighborhood has However, private funding in the form grown programs. amazing breadth of arts agencies and of grants, individual donations and “We’ve got a variety of programs activist and activity and community other resources cover the cost of the on there, from a veteran benefits centers and schools. So much FM radio stations, education classes program to LGBT programming to happening … that’s not going to get and other programs. Goth and industrial music to local as much attention as, ‘There was a The Alliance for Community music to Hemp Rock – a marijuana shooting on 13th street. Two people Media (www.alliancecm.org) legalization advocacy – so it’s pretty provides a great deal of information, including updates to the CAP act and related congressional action and local media centers including Media Bridges. The First Amendment rules It’s difficult to list and describe all the classes and programs Media Bridges operates throughout the year, but one of the most popular is the kids’ camps. “The kids have an enthusiasm for film and media and music production that you don’t see with anybody else. We want to do this movie about aliens where Elvis comes in and then a space ship comes and then there’s monster in a mansion …it’s awesome,” Zielke says. “Because kids grew up with technology … these kids came out of the womb with a cell phone and a video cam and an iPod and a laptop. They have this innate understanding and capacity to pick up technology like you wouldn’t believe. When you give them a little bit of the theory and technique behind that, it’s amazing what they can do. “This summer we had Oscarnominated film director. His name is Steven Bognar … producer of a film that was nominated for an Oscar this past year called The Last Truck: Closing of a GM Plant. He led a two-week class called Independent Film Bootcamp. We had a bunch of teens from all over the city to create their own film. They then screened it over at Memorial Hall over on Elm Street, and it was a damn good film! It was a thriller/suspense/drama … It was really exciting to watch that process take place.” Media Bridges doesn’t edit or censor programs that are produced by the community. They advise the producers of their legal responsibilities and refer all complaints and compliments back to the individuals responsible for the programming. They serve as a vehicle for communication; they don’t play Big Brother. “We have a very strong commitment to the First Amendment, and that is reflected in how we operate our cable access stations; that is, you submit it, we’ll air it,” Zielke says. “We do ask that if it’s inappropriate for children, red-flag it for us and we’ll put it on between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m. Otherwise, anything that the community wants to put on there, we feel they have the right to put on there.” Many people work hard to make a difference for the less privileged in the Queen City. “Eight Minutes” is an opportunity to learn who those people are and what motivates them to be a positive influence. Margo Pierce can be contacted at www.writerdiva.com. �4 Local News STREETVIBES September 1 - 14, 2010 3CDC Accused of Racial Conspiracy Continued from page 1 ‘Racial steering’ the tenants would “receive at least a one-year notice in writing” if the The Metropole Apartments meet a sale were approved. The tenants were critical need for low-income housing lied to and kept in the dark about downtown, according to the lawsuit. the sale of their homes, according to That is one of several reasons the sale the lawsuit. The tenants received no of the building should be stopped, notice of the sale until after it had Brennan says. been finalized. “Federal law requires that they HUD approved the sale of the not allow conversion of housing building, the transfer of its housingthat is subsidized by a HUD-backed assistance contract and a relocation mortgage, which the Metropole was, plan for the residents without a when there is hearing to allow still a need for for tenants’ low income “The Metropole, which in itself input. HUD affordable also failed to is a racially integrated lowhousing in the conduct any income housing resource, area,” he says. type of analysis is going to be destroyed “The city and on whether in the context of this any number granting the desegregation of downtown of entities approval into an upscale, predominantly in this case would have an white community of upscale have actually adverse effect housing.And that, in documented on the racial America, where we don’t there is a need integration or allow segregation, where we for HUD’s on people with protect people’s civil rights permission. disabilities as a free society – we are very To allow these or hinder confident that the courts will developers to go fair-housing not allow this to stand.” forward the way opportunities - Attorney Terence Brennan they have is a in the city. violation of the By approving national housing law.” the sale of the Metropole and not Congress passed the National conducting any analysis on the Housing Act of 1937 “to remedy outcome of the sale, HUD is in direct … the acute shortage of decent, violation of the Fair Housing Act, safe, and sanitary dwellings for Brennan says. low-income families.” Yet 3CDC, The Fair Housing Act requires HUD and the city of Cincinnati HUD to prevent the sale of property are trying to get rid of the last if it promotes racial segregation. But affordable housing in the downtown HUD has allowed 3CDC to displace area, according to the complaint. the tenants of the Metropole for Congress has also stated that the the sole purpose of building a hotel national housing policy has “not that will allegedly promote racial directed sufficient attention and segregation. resources to preservation of existing “The relocation plan that has been housing and neighborhoods” and put in place is change tantamount to that, if the national housing goal of racial steering,” Brennan says. “The a decent home and suitable living residents by and large (have) been environment for every family is shown possible places for them to to be achieved, “a greater effort move that are in racially segregated must be made to encourage the neighborhoods, in housing that’s preservation of existing housing and racially segregated. All these are neighborhoods.” violation of the Fair Housing Act.” Congress has also stated that Police intimidation HUD, local governments that receive federal aid and private developers The lawsuit says 3CDC has must promote housing that furthers repeatedly acted stop the tenants racial integration – the opposite of from voicing their opinion. During a what will result from the loss of the meeting between tenants and 3CDC Metropole Apartments. on Nov. 4, 2009, one of the tenants On May 26, 2009, the owners of attempted to bring two advocates the Metropole, Showe Builders Inc., into the meeting. But Cincinnati sold the building to 3CDC for $6.25 Police officers stopped the advocates million. 3CDC plans to convert the at the entrance of the building (see apartments into a boutique hotel “Metropole Tenants Tell 3CDC: ‘Hell with a restaurant and modern art No, We won’t Go,’ ” issue of Nov. museum, a project that will cost an 15-30, 2009). 3CDC had requested estimated $48 million. Two months the presence of the police to “keep after the sale, tenants received a housing advocates out of the letter from Showe Builders saying meeting,” the lawsuit says. they should not worry about false At that meeting, 3CDC announced information claiming the owners plans to relocate the tenants. When were “negotiating for a possible sale tenants attempted to challenge of the building.” The letter also said Residents protested the sale of the Metropole Apartments in Nov. 2009. Clarissa Peppers the relocation, they were allegedly “berated” by 3CDC. The lawsuit says 3CDC violated tenants’ right to organize freely, to associate freely with one another and with legal counsel and to be assisted by housing advocates. The use of the police to intimidate tenants and suppress their efforts to have advocates attend the meeting are all violations of their rights, the lawsuit says. The complaint says 3CDC has routinely used police officers for intimidation when demanding access to tenants’ apartments without notice. One account, by Robert Wavre, head of the Metropole Tenants Association, says a police officer who frequently accompanied management verbally accosted him for displaying a sign protesting the displacement. “This same officer accosted plaintiff Robert Wavre while both were riding a bus, screaming repeatedly at him that she would ‘knock his block off,’ ” the complaint says. The tenants’ attorneys say 3CDC’s relocation plan is “unfair and deceptive.” 3CDC promised tenants that the “relocation program will insure that tenants’ monthly rent will not increase and all related moving expenses will be covered,” that each tenant would receive assistance and that 3CDC would “ensure that the relocation plan … (will) ultimately result in improved, higher-quality living conditions.” With little exception, none of these promises have been fulfilled, the attorneys say. Tenants have been shown apartments in segregated neighborhoods, often in high-crime areas with little transportation or job opportunities. 3CDC has also contradicted some of the previous statements, saying only some of the moving costs will be covered, the rent might increase and that one-on-one assistance from 3CDC might not be provided, according to the complaint One of the defendants, Model Follow Streetvibes www.facebook.com/streetvibescincinnati twitter.com/streetvibesnews streetvibes.wordpress.com Group/Brickstone Properties, managers of the Metropole Apartments, are providing the relocation services. The tenants’ lawsuit accuses the company of conspiring with 3CDC to steer tenants into housing that it owns or manages. The lawsuit says 3CDC and Model Group/Brickstone Properties have devised a scheme to make even more money out of the eviction of the tenants by making them move: As a result, 3CDC gets a new hotel, and Model Group/Brickstone Properties finds tenants to fill its apartments. The complaint quotes an unidentified but “prominent” businessman who lobbied the Louisville-based 21c Museum Hotel chain to invest in redeveloping the Metropole: “You can’t have those types of places across the street from the Aronoff Center. It’s like parking a Bentley on 14th and Main and expecting the Bentley to still be there.” The lawsuit accuses 3CDC of deliberately eliminating lowincome housing from downtown Cincinnati to make room for upscale, predominantly white residents, in direct violation of both the national and state Fair Housing Acts, both of which call for the development of housing that will racially integrate communities. “The Metropole, which in itself is a racially integrated low-income housing resource, is going to be destroyed in the context of this desegregation of downtown into an upscale, predominantly white community of upscale housing,” Brennan says. “And that, in America, where we don’t allow segregation, where we protect people’s civil rights as a free society – we are very confident that the courts will not allow this to stand.” Work on the new hotel is scheduled to start this fall. 3CDC has given the approximately 100 remaining tenants until Nov. 2 to move. At that time tenants’ lawyers intend to ask a federal judge to stop the redevelopment project until further notice. The tenants are also going to seek a restraining order to stop the relocation process. Kelly Leon, spokeswoman for 3CDC, declined to comment on the lawsuit. The local HUD office also declined to comment. �5 Issues STREETVIBES September 1 - 14, 2010 3CDC and Death in Over-the-Rhine By Gregory Flannery Editor T he fences have gone up. Soon the dead will be removed from their graves. Soon dozens of trees will fall. Welcome to Washington Park, now under the control of the Cincinnati Center City Development Corp. (3CDC). The July 27 death of Joann Burton – crushed by a police car while lay she in the park grass – said best what residents of Over-theRhine have been saying all along: 3CDC is killing their community. Last month the first fencing rose, segregating the north end of the park from residents, their swimming pool and basketball court to be destroyed. Construction of an underground parking garage requires the disinterment of residents long ago buried in what later became Washington Park. 3CDC plans to raze 59 trees, despite the protests of those who have long called the neighborhood park their own. Meanwhile on Aug. 6 relatives, friends and neighbors gathered for Burton’s funeral at New Prospect Baptist Church. The photos, poetry and reflections on this page are dedicated to her memory. After her death, 3CDC asked Burton’s family to move a small memorial erected near the place of the accident that killed her. Nothing will stop 3CDC’s plan to make the park more palatable for the wealthy: Not old trees, not neighbors’ protests, not the presence of human graves, not grief for a woman killed as she lay resting in a place where she and those like her are no longer welcome. Visiting a memorial to Joann Burton are Mark Shears (left); her husband, Thomas Oats (second from left); and her son, Kenneth Burton (right). Jon Hughes/Photopresse. Destroy and Displace Jerry Burton (left) helps carry his mother's casket. Jon Hughes/ Photopresse. By Aubrey Bowman Streetvibes Vendor Joann It will be sad. It will be shameful. The destruction of Washington Park will be a destruction of history in that part of Over-the-Rhine. First, I want to apologize for speaking out at this late stage, for I am a recent transplant to the city of Cincinnati (about eight or nine years). I’ve learned the story of getting the Banks together, how long it’s taking, all the political doubletalk; it’s funny to me. Same old politics all over the country. Alas, the powers left one thing out: The beginning of the end of the neighborhood near Cincinnati Music Hall and the surrounding streets: Elm Street, Race Street, 14th Street, etc. Sober minds would have picked the better choice for a parking garage on the west side of Music Hall – Central Parkway! Access to freeways, more room for all the (new) traffic. This makes more sense to all sober-thinking politicians. But these are the politicians of the 21st century. “The street car will be in the way of the parking garage,” is their thinking. The total destruction of history and the displacement of people is the thought of these 21st-century politicians. Hopefully the lawyers will make it another Banks controversy to slow down and/or stop this type of unsober thinking. By Marlena Cook We lost our sister. Only God knows how much we miss her. Her heart is blessed. She doesn’t have to take anymore of life’s mess. God has her in his right hand. Joann more than just a sister A great friend. Even though the sun has set We will not forget, this is a part of God’s plan. Joann not just a sister A great friend. She doesn’t see anything but better days. In spite of the crazy way she left Black is never a sin always in Killin us has become a trend I won’t break but I will bend. Rolled over by a cop car More than just a sister Now she’s a shooting star. Park Poem By Peter McGrover What does a park mean to most people when we say the word “park”? I think for most of us a park, especially Washington Park, means a place to gather, spend time with friends and acquaintances, have fun, share joy, enjoy peace and maybe even meditate or play a few games of chess or checkers. Washington Park for most of us means a central gathering place in the heart of downtown Cincinnati and Over-theRhine. For those who use it and enjoy it on a regular basis, it means for them a public domain and public square to be enjoyed by all, not just a select few. Washington Park serves the public good and benefits the public as a whole. It must be continued to be enjoyed by all the people of Cincinnati who live in the city, whether it be on a regular basis or just passing through for the day. This park, especially Washington Park, begins with all the people of this city and brings peace, joy and mutual respect to the city. Let the city continue to relish this park and keep it for all the people to enjoy, not just a select few. �6 STREETVIBES September 1 - 14, 2010 International News Canda’s Forgotten Children Continued from page 1 “The rewarding thing about doing adjudication is, for the most part, at the end of a hearing, what I hear from claimants is, ‘I feel better for having told my story to you.’ Now, they feel better for getting it out, but it doesn't make their life any better. “Claimants have sometimes waited 20, 30, 50, 60, 70 years to tell their stories. And so they’ve lived with hurt. They’ve lived with anger. They’ve lived with pain for that amount of time. It’s a pain that doesn't dissipate. It’s a pain that tends to build upon itself over time." The first travesty “Just being taken away from your home, that is the first travesty. Everything builds from there. Regardless of whether anything bad or constructive or good happened at a residential school, there is still that first sin, I’ll call it, of taking kids away from parents. “What we explore through the residential school process is: How has that experience, being taken away from their family – how has the abuse that people have suffered at residential schools – affected their lives? We go through this list: How are you at relating to other people? How has this affected your ability to tell your spouse you love him? How has this affected your ability to hold your children? How has this affected your ability to tell your children you love them? How do you cope with nightmares? What do you do when someone reminds you of a priest or a nun or an employee? Usually what we end up talking about is people who feel anger, rage. Often I hear, ‘I wish that so-and-so was here; I’d kill him.’ That's real. “I hear about how people drink, about how drugs have entered their lives. About how they would rather wake up in the morning and start drinking than have to think about or be reminded of the abuse or to think about how they can't relate to those closest to them, those who care about them most. “So we look at all these consequential harms. According to the model, you get X-number of points (for each harm). It’s a points system. And there’s this horrible reverse/inverse relationship where the more points you get – i.e., the more screwed up your life is, the more damage that has been done – the more money you get. And in the grand scheme of things, it is not a lot of money; we’re talking, on average, about 100, 150 thousand dollars, maybe. “That’s for a lifetime that has been damaged and wrecked, and that is for the lifetimes of others that have been exposed to or have been in the same house as survivors. So we do a damage that goes beyond individuals. It really reaches out to families. It reaches out to communities. It reaches out over generations, which isn’t surprising: The residential school has been around for over a hundred years." Three hard questions “What I've learned in six years is there are three great commonalties. It doesn’t matter what the story, the degree of abuse, how a claimant has managed to survive or persevere, they want to know three things: 1. “Why? The first question always is: Why? And it's not necessarily, ‘Why was I abused?’ It is, ‘Why was I taken away from my family?’ Who gave the government that right? And often what chokes claimants up the most is, they’ll recount how their parents were just powerless; the Indian agent or a supervisor gave them no choice. 2. “Are you listening? The second thing everybody wants to know is: Are you listening? Do you hear me? And that is pointed directly to the adjudicator in the room. Because unless the adjudicator in the room hears and respects your story, then you're nowhere. So being able to reframe and convey the story is absolutely critical." 3. “Are you sorry? The third thing that just about every claimant on some level needs is to hear the word ‘sorry.’ Now that’s not for me, as an adjudicator, to say, ‘Sorry.’ But we have sometimes representatives from the church and always a representative of Canada in the room. And very often, that representative – it might be a lawyer who’s been at it for 20 or 30 years, long in the tooth and perhaps just as jaded as everybody else in the room – will give a heartfelt apology. And that, maybe more than just hearing the story perhaps goes as far, if not farther, than anything that I as an adjudicator might do on the day. That’s the power of an apology, because, you know, to apologize effectively, you’ve got to look somebody in the eye. You’ve got to be empathetic. And you’ve got to mean it. And to mean it, you have to have heard the story. You have to embrace that individual and their harms to some degree. So, you know, the hearing experience is powerful, and the goal is to ensure that it’s helpful. Treatment: A cone of silence “Another part of the residential-school hearing process has to do with treatment, past treatment and future treatment. The hearing books are thick, and a good chunk of that has to do with doctors that they’ve seen, psychiatrists, or if they’ve been in corrections – sort of the daily log of their lives. You can have STREETVIBES Only purchase Vendor Streetvibes from BADGED vendors. Vendors wear their WHITE badges while they sell the Mary paper. a hearing book four inches thick and only have one or two pages where a doctor or a psychiatrist or somebody in corrections has had the foresight to ask, ‘Have you been in residential school? Have your parents been in residential school? Have you come in contact with somebody who'’ gone to residential school?’ “And when the question is asked, the floodgates open, the gates into that person and explanations as to why the individual is (perhaps) the way they are – mistrustful, addicted to alcohol, unable to communicate – because in residential school they were hit over the head with a clapper every time they tried to speak their own damn language. Or they were told, ‘If you tell anybody about this abuse, we’re gonna get you.’ Or just because the whole damn residential school experience, in general, was a pedophile’s dream come true. There’s a cone of silence there. People didn’t talk for 30, 40, 50, 60 years. Because that cone of silence doesn't stop at the gates of residential school. It stays with them. “The challenge is daunting. It’s going to take a concerted effort. Whether it’s a group of newspaper people, a group of psychiatrists, a group of police, a group of judges, doctors, how do we start (with them) or with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, to focus the minds, the talents, and the resources of others to start asking that first critical question: Have you been to residential school? Do you know somebody who has? Have you been contact with, have you been raised by? You’re not necessarily asking, ‘Have you been abused by?’ Because you’re not going to get an answer to that. But just knowing whether somebody, either directly or on the periphery, has exposure: It’s like radiation. It gives you a pretty good immediate sense of what the future actions should be or could be. “Unless the question is asked, the cork stays in the bottle, and we’re not getting the full story. It’s like mapping a genome: You need the entire sequence in order to understand it. If we can equate this thing to a hundred-year disease, you’ve got to know the full mapping of the thing, so that you can battle it, so you can deal with it, so you can get some cures out there for it. “I think that's why it’s important to talk about it, even though it makes a lot of people uncomfortable. “But we need to talk about it in the right way. This isn’t some drive-by accident where you can express morbid curiosity in the thing and move on. It's got to be based in those principles that our mushums and kookums (grandfathers and grandmothers), moms and dads, taught us about being respectful, about wanting to be helpful, and using our talents as best we can.” Originally published by Edmonton Street News © www.streetnewsservice.org. 1128 Walnut St Pizza by the Slice Tues and Thurs Buffet($7.00)-11AM-2PM Wed-Thur-Fri-Sat 9PM-3AM �STREETVIBES September 1 - 14, 2010 7 Issues Allegories of Oligarchies Individualism is to individuals as Christianity is to Christians By David Heitfield Contributing Writer The following is an open letter to Pfc. Bradley Manning, who was arrested in May in connection with leaking a 2007 video showing a U.S. helicopter attack in Iraq that killed several civilians, including two reporters. Manning is under investigation as the source of other classified documents obtained by Wikileaks; he currently is in solitary confinement under suicide watch in Quantico, Va. D ear Bradass78: I think I love you. I guess now that the New York Times dragged you out of the closet – poor Midwestern boy alienated by his sexuality, first in Oklahoma then in the Army – I should qualify that my love for you is rooted in respect for your ballsy action, your youthful idealism and the pathos of shared experiences: was a Korean linguist in the Navy about 30 years ago. So one of the things I’ve found most amusing about your story is the media-expressed horror that such a 22-year-old enlisted kid would have access to classified information. As we both know, you are the ideal candidate for this work: intelligent, young (the older you are, the more you’ve done that could be used as blackmail), single and lacking the social connections or economic status to find a more lucrative vocation. Who else would do this work – in a war zone, no less - or under $20k a year? While I don’t remember the details, I recall having many conversations with people I worked with along the “What would the public do if they actually knew what was really going on?” hypothesis. Back then, for instance, no one had any idea that the National Security Agency (NSA) dwarfed the CIA in budget and manpower or how many millions of dollars we spent on pointless war games – such as the annual war games that always cause the North Koreans to threaten retaliation. Or how we would deploy aircraft-carrier battle groups just to show the Russians we were badass. During the Cold War, when nation-states still mattered a little, the government feared other governments, not news organizations. We would watch government-produced films about cunning Russian spies offering us a lot of money or blackmailing us over some personal character weakness. We were lectured about how some of the local Korean prostitutes were known North Korean spies who were happy to get the smallest amount of information, such as where you might be going for deployment. I don’t recall anyone ever warning us about Walter Cronkite. It was all a little surreal. So I well understand access to that information has a heady impact on youthful idealism, regardless of your politics or patriotism. It literally changes your perception of the world forevermore. I recall the 1981 kidnapping of Gen. James Dozier by the Italian Red Brigades as a seminal moment of my youth (this information has long been in the public domain, so no secrets here). I don’t know how or why I had access to the intelligence – I worked on Far Eastern stuff, so I lacked a “need to know” any of it. And yet I did, and I was amazed at how our information was so at odds with what was being widely reported in the media – namely, that the deputy chief of staff of NATO's Southern European land forces was secluded in an unknown place by evil communist terrorists, and we were unable to do anything to secure his release. The media fed the “communists are evil and secretive and bad and you should be very, very scared” narrative so popular during the Cold War. The fact was the Red Brigades “plumbers” who kidnapped the general were bumbling idiots, and we knew where he was every moment of his 42 days in captivity. It was all about the sausage- WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange published classified documents allegedly provided by Pfc. Bradley Manning. REUTERS/Scanpix Sweden. making of politics, something government would rather not have its subjects think about too much. The Italian government did not want to do anything and would not allow the U.S. to do anything. Political stalemate. President Reagan then enlisted the help of his good buddy Ross Perot – yes, that Ross Perot – to use his “private forces” to rescue the general. Being the good patriot, Perot left Texas, and while flying to Italy, the Italians got wind of the effort and decided to do the rescue themselves to save face – and they got him without firing a single shot. Dozier was pronounced a hero, the Italian government was strengthened from increased pride and confidence of its people, the Red Brigades were all but destroyed and Reagan got a bunch of roads named after him. At your age, Brad, I was impressed by several things in that story: 1. Our intelligence-gathering is far more awesome than anyone was remotely aware; 2. Rich people are capable of amassing their own private armies at will; and, free of messy democratic accountability, apparently have more clout than Presidents; 3. The role of the “free press” is not to inform the public, but to reinforce the narrative of the ruling class. So, Brad, your venal sin, for which you must be sacrificed, is revealing how the sausage is made. We don’t want confirmation of what we already know: The war is an abject failure and a senseless waste of money and lives; drone aircraft don’t work all that well, despite 60 Minutes propaganda about how awesome it is; Pakistan sucks; Afghan police are drug-addled corrupt rapists; and civilians are being killed at an alarming rate, increasing the power and sympathies of the Taliban instead of suppressing it. Thanks to the 24-hour news cycle, your story was already downplayed and discredited by the media and the White House soon after Wikileaks published some of the documents. It’s only classified “Secret,” it doesn't tell us anything new and you’re just a confused young boy seeking attention because Mommy didn't love you enough. Unfortunately, you also fit into the most powerful narrative in America today: Everything is the fault of the bottom-feeders; those at the top of the food chain are always blameless. The unemployed are to blame for unemployment; the homeless are to blame for homelessness; welfare is to blame for poverty. Positive psychology is the law of the land today: The cure for all the evils of the world is simply to change how you think about them. Got cancer? Focus on the positive and see it as a spiritual opportunity to be a role model! Middle-aged and unemployed? Time for a spiritual renewal! Anger is a destructive emotion – get rid of it! If you’re depressed, we’ll give you some pills. All better now? Our Brave New World is rapidly taking shape – although it’s not so much a government conspiracy as a cooperative conflation of corporate, academic, religious and government interests all serving the same master. Repeat the mantra: The top of the food chain is blameless. You have the power to make yourself happy or miserable. Jesus loves the winners. Individualism today is all about your individual responsibility to conform to the will of the oligarchy. Know that you’re not alone. The Obama administration has shown its propensity toward blaming the whistleblowers or sacrificing personnel who might cause bad press on Fox News. At least two other leakers have been punished: In May, FBI linguist Shamai Leobowitz was sentenced to 20 months in prison after pleading guilty to passing classified information to a blogger. In April, former NSA senior executive Thomas Drake was indicted on charges that he passed classified information to a reporter who wrote a series of articles about the NSA in 2007. And that’s why this is a love letter, Brad. You saw something, it made you angry, you thought your fellow citizens should know about it. You thought about future consequences (not your own) instead of “living in the moment.” You were disturbed by what you knew, and you did something about it, instead of placating yourself with positive thinking. Consciously or not, you had some idea that sacrifice and redemption are actual concepts that matter (to people and their institutions), that Prosperity Jesus is a sham, that liberty has nothing to do with either Glenn Beck’s bastardization of Thomas Paine or Obama’s hopenchange illusion. Your epithet in modern America, in which the ideal of individualism is exalted while the value of the individual is rapidly becoming extinct, is probably best summed up by Marge Simpson, after her campaign against cartoon violence resulted in the town’s covering the genitals of Michelangelo’s David: “One person can make a difference … but probably shouldn’t.” Warm regards, Dave Former military analyst Current unemployed lawyer and positive-thinking meditator �8 STREETVIBES September 1 - 14, 2010 Food “Feed Me, Seymour, Feed Me All Night Long…” Creamy Baked Rice Serving Size: 3-4 bellies 2 tablespoons olive oil 2 tablespoons minced garlic 1 chopped white or yellow onion 2 stalks celery, sliced 2 cups vegetable broth 1 can cream of mushroom soup 1 cup sour cream 4 cups leftover long grain rice • Jeni Jenkins. By Jeni Jenkins Staff Writer T his simple dish was created while trying to decide what to do with a giant bowl of leftover steamed rice. I searched the cupboard and fridge for ingredients that would do, and thought, “Well, this could work.” To my surprise, this was delish. It was so good that my kids devoured two servings each – and believe me, they are a tough crowd. According to my kids, this will now be a regular meal in our dinner rotation. Serve as a side dish or main dish. Enjoy! • • • • • • In a skillet, sauté onion, celery and garlic in olive oil over medium heat for 3-4 minutes. Pre-heat oven at 325 degrees. Add broth and soup and bring to a boil. Simmer for a few minutes, then slowly stir in sour cream, adding a tablespoon at a time. Spread rice in shallow baking dish. Pour creamy sauce over rice, spreading equally, making sure to cover every grain. Bake at 325 for 20 minutes or until hot and bubbly. Voila, FEED! �STREETVIBES September 1 - 14, 2010 9 Films Reel Life: A Film Fanatic’s Journey But don’t get me started on George Lucas By Michael Fanning Contributing Writer I like movies. A lot. I know more about Ann Archer than I do my own sister. I'm the kind of guy who watches the threehour “making-of” bonus DVDs for films that don't warrant them, like Porky's II. I closely monitor Wikipedia to make sure they're getting the bits about my favorite obscure actors right. (Can you believe Graham Beckel's profile didn't mention Jennifer 8? Jesus!) Additions, alterations and deletions are made accordingly. Every year my heart breaks when the Oscars run the remembrance reel of whichever actors died the previous year. This is typically when I find out which of my obscure favorites has passed away (the newspapers rarely run it). Sometimes the Oscars themselves forget to mention them. I only recently found out that Brion James, one of the replicants in Blade Runner, died a decade ago! “Time to die,” I can hear him saying. I lit a candle. This is all George Lucas's fault, you understand. It all started May 25, 1977, the release date for Star Wars. No, I didn't need to look it up. I've seen Star Wars more times than I care to mention (300+). In my youth, it was my very religion. As far as worship goes, Jesus Christ was fifth on my list, behind Walrus Man. If I had spent as much time reading books as I did watching Star Wars as a kid, I could be directing condescending glances toward Steven Hawking. If I've seen Star Wars more than 300 times, that adds up to something like 700 hours. That's a month, my friends. And here's the kicker: Only in the past few years have I thought this might have been a waste of time. No time to bleed Movies affect my everyday existence in subtle ways. For example, I remember events, chronologically, by what movies came out the same year. It sounds oddly Native American if I say it out loud. My cousin, Mark, for instance, was born in the year of The Falcon and the Snowman. My niece, Sarah, was born in the year of The Ghost and the Darkness. I sound like I’m Cherokee. I carried a picture of Ridley Scott in my wallet when I was in my teens. I'm not kidding. He made films like Legend, Blade Runner and Alien, which are still unmatched in their ability to transport you to another place. This was something I often needed in my childhood. You never feel like you're looking at sets or props when you watch these films, but rather the real deal. Of course, these days Scott has switched to making films for mass appeal rather than artistic merit, (viz. Matchstick Men, Blackhawk Down and Kingdom of Heaven) which brings me to another point. Everyone knows that certain talents and abilities fade over time, but nowhere is this more egregiously conspicuous than in the medium of filmmaking. Francis Ford Coppola, auteur of The Godfather and Apocalypse Now is also the creator of Jack and Dracula. Spielberg's The Terminal and War of the Worlds left me vomiting for months. And George Lucas is king of them all. Not only did he inflict the Star Wars prequels upon us (Darth Vader was never a whining Canadian) but only after he went back to his earlier glorious efforts and fucked them up from the inside out. Nihilo sanctum estne? Movies helped me through my youth. No one got me through the death of my mother when I was 15 more so than Arnold Schwarzenegger. Predator was a much needed everyday (yes every day) escape. Arnold was my Austrian therapist who eased the fear and pain of my mother’s terminal illness, with his H-Bar, far more than any of the family counselors who only made my situation seem more stark and intense. As long as I had Predator in the machine, I was too busy on my alien-killing mission to watch my family disintegrate. Me and Jessie Ventura didn't have time to bleed. You can tell a lot about a person by the movies they like. They say the eyes are the windows of the soul, but so is anybody’s top-five movie list. If, for example, I were to have gone on a date with a woman who said, “I don’t care what movie we see, as long as there’s no subtitles,” one could safely assume said date doesn’t like to read anything at all and will probably in the near future break off your relationship for reasons involving your “chi.” Get out while you’re ahead. Way to go, movies! If you ever hear someone say Titanic is the best film he ever saw, you don’t really need to hear him say anything else, do you? It’s like having a discussion on politics and someone saying, “George W. Bush was the most accountable, open, civic-minded president we’ve had in decades.” You might as well stop there. You’re dead to me. Getting back to relationships, movies greatly helped me land my beautiful, blond, buxom wife, Alex. I’ve always had a freakish memory with an intracranial file cabinet of great film quotations to use on unsuspecting dates. I mean, I never said anything to her like, “Of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, you walked into mine.” Rather I used subtler stuff from lesserknown films, jokes mostly, to make up for my complete lack of handsomeness and creativity. She bought it all, hook line and sinker. “I thought you were original,” she now says in a glum, wed-locked voice. Not in the least! High-five, movies! Hey, Michelangelo Film as art is a strange subject for me. Nothing can create a cathartic experience for me quite like film. Yet, given the choice between being a famous novelist or filmmaker, I’d be a novelist, hands down. Why is this? I love films for their accessibility, but do I not take them as seriously as literature for the same reason? One thing is for certain: I’ve never wanted to be a film director. Every one of my favorite films – and I mean every one – has a horror story about how it was made. Star Wars was, right up to the final editing, a complete piece of shit. The special effects were initially not working properly, and the first edit was, apparently, horrendous. The filming became off-schedule and over-budget, giving Lucas terrible hypertension. Talented editors (including Lucas’s then-wife, Marcia) pulled it together in the final hour to make it what it is. Marcia then promptly dumped Lucas for a younger guy. Blade Runner, Apocalypse Now, The Abyss and a host of others are perfect examples of why not to get into filmmaking. Most movies, including many big budget ones, are filmed in four months. Saving Private Ryan was filmed in only 28 days. The Abyss, on the other hand, took nine months to film in a huge tank of cold water, with one actor or another nearly drowning on a daily basis. Apocalypse Now took an entire year to film, with Francis Coppola having constant emotional collapses. He was convinced he was making a terrible film for most of the shoot. Ridley Scott’s Legend burned down the entire James Bond sound stage in England. This building was so large you could have built a ballistic missile submarine in it. His previous film, Blade Runner, went over budget, over schedule, changed writers mid-stream, with Scott having to put up with two of the most priggish producers that ever walked. Jerry Perenchio and Bud Yorkin, to this very day, despite the masterpiece status of Blade Runner, give interviews stating that they can’t understand why Scott had to shoot so many takes of certain scenes. Imagine two guys with expensive suits and gleaming white teeth watching Michelangelo from the floor of the Sistine Chapel, saying stuff like, “Why’d you use that color? Will you fuckin’ hurry this along, please? I’m not payin’ for any more paint.” You get the picture. Producer Bud Yorkin, in a hilarious 2007 interview, states that “as a director myself,” Scott’s methods were infuriating him. Yorkin insinuates he is in the same company artistically as Ridley Scott. What is Bud Yorkin’s own masterpiece, you might ask? Arthur II. Tied down My 8-year-old daughter Juliet has the singular challenge of having a father who is a film fanatic. I explain to her, as she watches Stuart Little, that this film was written by M. Night Shyamalan and Bruce Joel Rubin. “You see, Julie, Shyamalan saw a meteoric rise to fame with the success of The Sixth Sense, but has since pulled a Joseph Heller with all subsequent efforts,” I say. “Bruce Joel Rubin wrote such films as Jacob’s Ladder and won the Oscar for writing Ghost, which was directed by Airplane’s Jerry Zucker, of all people! Most Bruce Joel Rubin films are about death in some shape or form, so you can enjoy the humorous contrast of his writing Stuart Little.” Her eyes glaze over after a while, and sometimes she cries. However, more recently, I think I’ve made a breakthrough. I was watching 2001: A Space Odyssey, and I had tied Juliet to a chair facing the screen. I was pointing out the magnificent photography of the late Jeffrey Unsworth and John Alcott as we watched several of the film’s opening scenes. “But,” I conceded to her finally, as the ape-men screamed at the monolith, “you might find all this a little boring, being 8 and all.” And then the most extraordinary thing happened. Though still bound to her chair, she looked curiously at the jumping ape-men, and said, “No Dad, I don’t.” �10 Issues STREETVIBES September 1 - 14, 2010 Real Change Comes in Aggregate Improving Cincinnati using loyalty and discontent is that the author was being part of the solution. And so was Sabu. Clay Shirky, author of Cognitive Surplus, writes about the social effects of the Internet on society and how it can have civic value. He creates a definition of two By Ariana Shahandeh types of Internet user: those Contributing Writer who make and share LOLcats – images of kittens with A response to comments captions added to make the over the CityBeat column, pictures even more adorable “Cincinnati is Just OK.” – and those who don’t. But the division boils down to n July 28 writer K. something deeper. Bunthoff broke up “The real gap,” he writes, with Cincinnati. “is between doing nothing In CityBeat’s weekly “Living and doing something, and Out Loud” column, in the someone making LOLcats format of a break up letter to has bridged that gap." Cincinnati, Bunthoff wrote, Shirky describes how our “I’ve been telling myself for media landscape has evolved years that you’re a diamond to allow us to become in the rough. But let me be more than just honest: consumers. We Your rough can be producers. exterior Shirky describes how our media landscape We can create really gets has evolved to allow us to become more than and share. in the way just consumers. We can be producers. We The Internet of, well, can create and share. The Internet is not like is not like the whatever the Television, an icon of the past one-sided Television, an might be media landscape. And what we do with the icon of the past obscured time we used to spend just being consumers, one-sided media beneath it.” the time we now spend creating and sharing. landscape. And In an often what we do with bitingly city’s downfalls, without an the time we used to spend honest manner, the letter initiative to change them. just being consumers, the went on to describe time we now spend creating “Instead of being part of the writer’s targeted and sharing, Shirky calls the solution, you are part disappointments with the “cognitive surplus.” of the problem,” wrote city. The unique interest of commenter Sabu. What Sabu “One thing that makes the column, however, was the current age remarkable,” might not realize, however, not so much in the content, O but in the reaction to the content. This contribution to “Living Out Loud” became one of the most commented on pieces of the series. Where an empty comment section often followed past columns, displayed here, at the conclusion of this article, were more than five pages of impassioned responses. “Cincinnati is not pretty?” one reader wrote. “Really? Not the skyline, the hills, or all the trees? How about the largest collection of Italianate architecture outside of Europe? What about Ault park, Fountain Square, Mt. Adams, Hyde Park, Clifton Gaslight?” Many readers were turned off by the idea of complaining about the he writes, “is that we can now treat free time as a general social asset that can be harnessed for large, communally created projects, rather than as a set of individual minutes to be whiled away one person at a time.” By commenting on Bunthoff’s article online, reader Sabu was contributing to our cognitive surplus. And by submitting the article, so was Bunthoff. Cincinnati, we need more of that. We need more contributions to our cognitive surplus. It doesn’t have to exclusively be a comment on a news site. An example of Cincinnati’s cognitive surplus is Secret Cincinnati, an online initiative to pool together tips from passionate Cincinnatians about the area’s best undiscovered places. It started out as a Facebook group where people could leave wall messages with their tips. Soon the group grew so large, over 21,000 members, that the tips had no shelf life. The group’s creators worked together over a weekend to build a Web site where the tips could be aggregated. It might seem from these examples that a contribution, however small or frequent, comes from a place of affection. And that is true for much of it. But I noticed something ironically inspiring about the comments that followed Bunthoff’s article. Scattered throughout the fiercely loyal comments were those of cautious agreement. “There was a time that I loved Cincinnati,” wrote one reader, who concluded, “Cincinnati is not trying, and I find it depressing and disappointing to realize, at least for me, this is as good as it gets.” Another reader wrote, “In my humble opinion, there is not enough good to outweigh the bad.” These comments did not come from a place of affection, but they were still something. Those comments were still a contribution. Isn't it interesting that something supposedly so passive and uninspiring as discontent should provoke action? What if we changed the way we used our new media opportunities to specifically contribute to our city’s cognitive surplus? What if we created a sort of hyperlocal cognitive surplus? Any time we use the Internet to participate, to produce, let’s seek out those pockets of online activity that are unique to our city and a make a contribution. And if we can’t find those pockets, we create them. For example, submitting content to be published on a local paper’s Web site is creating a pocket. Commenting on that content is contributing to that pocket. Making a group on Facebook that aggregates tips on where to go in Cincinnati to enjoy the city is creating a pocket. Submitting a tip: contributing to the pocket. Shirky writes in Cognitive Surplus, “Any shift, however minor, in the way we use a trillion hours of free time a year is likely to be a big deal." There are many ways to view the unexpected surge in comments over Bunthoff’s article in an age where newspapers are dead and you’re probably not even reading this. I saw it as an opportunity to collaborate our affection, and even our discontent, to make a positive difference for a city whose motto is “Juncta Juvant” – “Strength in Unity." �STREETVIBES September 1 - 14, 2010 11 Poetry Page A Gift of Sorrow By Willa D. Jones A Friend By Willa D. Jones There was love, peace and happiness on my side One man with me for twenty years, just my kind He had purposed to me three times all of which I said no Not knowing that time was running out for us as we go He became ill with high blood pressure and then had a stroke I had everything I needed but when he died he left me broke I went from the house, to the car and even the pool in the back To being homeless, eating trash and even smoking crack I tried living with people I knew back when times were good It would never last being a outcast and so misunderstood I tried homeless shelters with beds and eating solid food But shelters have curfews I was not for following the rule I found myself all alone hungry and sleeping in the street I lost everything, only the clothes on my back could I keep My grief for the lost of my man had turn to sorrow for myself I knew there was a lesson in this hand I had been dealt I started to pray and read the Bible all of the time Asking god to help me to soothe my aching mind I began to find strength with new feelings and new ideas I stopped smoking crack, drinking and got my head clear I went to a shelter for homeless addicts and prostitutes I found strength to bite my tongue and do what I had to do I went to A.A. and N.A. meetings and talked out loud To hear my story let me know the change was in the clouds I finally graduated and was able to rent my own room Got a job, got healthy and my spirit went up to the moon I started talking to the Lord in pray and song everyday And he turned my sorrow into a gift of life I’m proud to say So to have sorrow or feel pity on oneself all of the time Will take you nowhere but that wrong and narrow line You must look up and recognize where you need to be going And ask God to help you understand what it is you’re sowing Just remember a gift of sorrow can be a very powerful lesson And as long as you have faith and believe in god’s word can You then receive God’s blessings To be called a friend is sometimes very hard to be To be a friend is a honor with many responsibilities To have a friend someone you can always depend on To have a friend with you even when all hope is gone Being human beings we all fall short of God’s grace Being human plus a friend can be a difficult race Due to difficult circumstances in everyone’s life To put trust and faith in someone can be only strife So for me I keep the faith and never forget to pray As I sing that old hymn what a friend we have in Jesus each and everyday The Recruit By David S. Pointer told the senior drill not to skull fuck his future but, the senior brought the brim of his campaign cover down to break the boy’s nose & the recruit brought his boot up polishing the seniors balls infirmary blue What’s Up Economically By David S. Pointer Become a Fan of Streetvibes on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/streetvibescincinnati Like customers continuing to hold We never get any unsaturated answers To our important economic questions As each President is presented With a customized set of signature sentences To present a pacified public preoccupied With everything from Winnie the Pooh to internet Porn As the highly elevated Economically insane Continue to inhabit Love’s lifelikeness Knowing collegiality Is a difficult contagion to detect. And what average consumer Can positively identify The clear ever increasing Kettle-cooked contaminant of commerce Made by modern chemists, Or that which is packaged To be as appealing as The double scarlet Day lily of a dream? Are you interested in helping with Streetvibes? Are you a proofreader, writer, poet, artist or photographer? If so, contact Greg Flannery 513.421.7803 x 12 or email streetvibes2@yahoo.com �12 Sports STREETVIBES September 1 - 14, 2010 Learning a New Tune about the Reds Almost time for a victory march appeared to swing for the By B. Clifton Burke Contributing Writer S o maybe these Reds aren't so bad after all. Earlier in the summer I wrote that I was skeptical the Reds would end up contenders, but that if it became late August and they were still in a pennant race, I would change my tune. Well, consider it changed. In what has been a perfect storm of success this season, the Reds find themselves hunting a playoff spot for the first time since Al Leiter and the Mets blanked Cincinnati in a one-game playoff in 1999. There have been times this season that it appeared they were letting it slip away again, but this is a resilient group who specializes in come-from-behind wins and proving doubters wrong and have battled their way to the top of the NL Central standings. There were many variables to the season that had to unfold in just the right way for the Reds to make it this far. The starting pitching rotation has surpassed expectations, thanks to the development of young arms like Johnny Cueto and rookies Travis Wood and Mike Leake. Former ace Edinson Volquez continues to make his way back from Tommy John surgery; and while he has yet to consistently find his all-star stuff since returning, he still has stretches where he looks dominant. Bronson Arroyo, the staff's most veteran and consistent pitcher, has quietly put together one of his best seasons as a Red and has become something of an anchor to the rotation. Then there is Homer Bailey, who has also had arm troubles this year, but has pitched well and looked sharp since returning from his own rehab stint in the minors. Another pleasant surprise has been the play of Brandon Phillips hitting from the lead-off spot. In years past, Phillips hit clean up and fences on every swing. This season, he swings to simply make contact, and his batting average and on-base percentage have improved as a result. Thanks to Phillips making it safely to base so often, the phenomenal Joey Votto has enjoyed a windfall of success this year. Votto is perhaps the best pure hitter to come from the Reds' farm system since Eric Davis in the late ’80s, and his disciplined approach at the plate has him in the conversation not only for the league's MVP, but also for the hallowed triple crown, which hasn't been achieved by anyone since Carl Yastrzemski did it in 1967. The Reds line-up is pretty good on its own, but adding a gem like Votto makes it elite – and pitchers must always account for that devastating number-three hitter. The man who hits behind Votto, Scott Rolen, has also enjoyed the all-star seasons of both Phillips and Votto. At times Rolen has shown his old age as he's been hampered by a bad back, but his bat has produced more than what I thought the grizzled veteran was capable of when he's been in the line-up. He has provided the Reds with a nice option at the clean-up spot. Others, like outfielder Jay Bruce, catchers Ramon Hernandez and Ryan Hannigan and utility infielder Miguel Cairo, have batting averages higher than expected and have nicely filled in as the team's supporting cast. The bullpen has hit a few bumps in the road along the way this year but has collectively put together a nice season, giving manager Dusty Baker one less thing to worry about. All in all, the Reds have outdone themselves this season. For a team so ensconced in mediocrity for the past decade, fans can now look at each other in pleasant disbelief over the wins that continue to pile up. The division's only other threat, the St. Louis Cardinals, continue to push the Reds for a playoff spot, but the Cards appear more beatable than in past seasons, and are having a tough month of August as well. It all spells out Cincinnati baseball in October – once an annual event, but one that has become far less regular over the years. Whether the Reds can hang with the big dogs in a playoff tournament remains to be seen, but simply getting there is a major accomplishment. At this point, it would take a collapse of monumental proportions to miss out on such an accomplishment, but the Reds have given little reason for anyone to think such a letdown is imminent. There are still various concerns on the team – young outfielders striking out too much, starting pitching showing cracks and inconsistencies, veterans racking up injuries. But the fact remains that it's late August, and the Reds are in first place. Haven't said that in a while, and it feels good to admit. Hang tight; the finish line is near. What We See and What We Don’t Hurricanes, homelessness and other disasters By Michelle Dillingham Contributing Writer I had applied and was accepted into a graduate program for what I thought would be Jungian analysis – my first year I was stuck studying a bunch of post-Freudians. One thing I remember was the French psychoanalyst Jacque Lacan and his fascination with the “eye” and the “seer” and “being seen.” He would write stuff like, “The big Other designates radical alterity, an other-ness which transcends the illusory otherness of the imaginary because it cannot be assimilated through identification.” I recall feeling irritated by Lacan’s writings, namely because I thought of myself as quite intelligent, yet I could not figure out what he was saying. My fascination with the concept of observer versus the observed is not lost, though, as I listen to an interview of a reporter tell his story of how he aimed his camera at people reaching out screaming for help in the flood waters of Katrina. A new museum exhibit opens this week at the Newseum in Washington, D.C., between the White House and the Capitol Building. The Newseum is a 250,000-square-foot museum of news. The exhibit, Capturing Katrina, focuses on the reporters’ perspective of how they covered the tragic events of Hurricane Katrina five years ago. Two local newspapers – The Times-Picayune in New Orleans and the Sun Herald of Biloxi and Gulfport, Miss. – shared the 2006 Pulitzer Prize for public service for their Katrina coverage. A journalist from one of the papers talked about how they were not simply covering a story; they were experiencing the same loss as those they observed. Their offices were flooded and communications severed yet they continued to report on what was going on. From the Newseum’s press release about the exhibit: “Capturing Katrina will explore a cross-section of themes related to hurricane coverage: reporting made risky by angry mobs and armed looters; logistical challenges including power outages, disrupted phone service and impassable roads; ethical choices between reporting the story or rescuing victims; and the vital role of news websites in providing essential information to residents. The exhibit also examines the national news media’s role in shining a spotlight on the horrific conditions facing residents and the government’s slow response to the disaster.” As I listen to the journalist being interviewed on the radio about the exhibit, I thought of the power of the media that can reveal stories that so often go untold. Recently a woman told me she had heard about the number of homeless people in Cincinnati, but she just didn’t really see it, and she really did not grasp the scope of the problem. In about 10 minutes I rattled off a number of points about a decreasing and increasingly dilapidated affordable housing stock, the lack of housing for people who work in minimum-wage jobs such as security guards and food service workers, the fact that the wait list for the voucher program at Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority has not been opened up for four years and that the few family shelters in Cincinnati have wait lists as well. Street papers like Streetvibes offer a forum to express perspectives that are often not covered by mainstream media. Experiences such as being homeless, being young and aging out of the fostercare system and having to find housing and being an advocate against what seems like a sea-wave of talking heads can all be reflected here. Affordable Housing Advocates (AHA) recognizes the importance of imagery and perception as we advocate for our mission of ensuring good, safe, accessible, affordable housing for all people in the Cincinnati region. We are inundated with negative stereotypes that are perpetuated about people who are homeless, about people who live in subsidized housing, about working families who rely on housing subsidies to survive. The Katrina exhibit shows side by side two news articles, one a light-skinned group of men wading into a store – the headline says they have “found food,” while a similar photo of darkskinned individuals says they are “looting.” As advocates, we know imagery is powerful – both visual and in written word. AHA is currently working on securing funds to help develop public education materials. Please let us know of any resources to support our effort, and help us continue to “keep it real.” Contact AHA, 117 E. 14th Street, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202. �13 Issues STREETVIBES September 1 - 14, 2010 Health Reform: What’s in it for the Low/No-Income Uninsured? By Barbara DiPietro Contributing Writer cover single adults. The health-reform law expands Medicaid to everyone earning less than 133 percent of the federal poverty level – about $14,400 a year if you’re single. Unfortunately, the Medicaid expansion doesn’t go into effect until Jan. 1, 2014, so most low/noincome people without health insurance have to wait three and a half more years until they can qualify for health insurance. Individual states can choose to expand their Medicaid programs newly enrolled in Medicaid, depending on the strength of the outreach and enrollment efforts. While we are waiting to get people enrolled, states are busy trying to prepare their systems to handle the influx of enrolling so many new people. Not only does this mean doing some repairs and upgrades to the information technology (IT) systems, but it also means we need more doctors, nurses, dentists and other providers to be available to see all these new patients. There is a shortage of primary care primary-care providers in underserved communities. The law also addresses With all the screaming and the shortage of nurses by sign-waving and political developing incentives and a ugliness, it was hard for career path for nursing, loan anyone not to be turned off repayment and retention to the details of the healthgrants (which will increase reform debate. People were the capacity for education) sure the sky would fall if it and training programs. passed and that the country Throughout these initiatives, would turn into a socialist training programs are crafted police state. Alas, pass it that focus on primary care did; and last time I checked, models such as medical the sky was still there, and homes, team management there are still few signs of of chronic disease and socialism. programs that integrate So now that the dust is physical and mental health settling, what’s in it services. The hope that impacts low/ is that a small no-income folks and Projections are that between 16 million and 23 million people army of doctors, those health-care will be newly enrolled in Medicaid, depending on the strength of nurses and other providers who treat providers can be the outreach and enrollment efforts. While we are waiting to get them? The good developed in the people enrolled, states are busy trying to prepare their systems to news: a bunch of next few years to handle the influx of enrolling so many new people. Not only does stuff. The bad news: meet the health this mean doing some repairs and upgrades to the information You have to wait for needs of so many technology (IT) systems, but it also means we need more doctors, it. people who need nurses, dentists and other providers to be available to see all The biggest-ticket care. these new patients. There is a shortage of primary care doctors item is an expansion Likewise, and nurses of all kinds around the country, so there’s a lot of of Medicaid, the there’s also a work to be done, and the health-reform law recognizes that. health-insurance need to expand program that mostly community health serves low-income women, centers so that there’s a place early (Connecticut already doctors and nurses of all children, senior citizens in for about 20 million new has), but with the budgets kinds around the country, nursing homes and those patients to go and receive tight, it’s unlikely states so there’s a lot of work to be services. Community health who are disabled. Right now can afford that just yet. The done, and the health-reform centers are communitymost adults without small good news for state budget law recognizes that. based and patient-directed children don’t qualify for directors is that the federal To build this workforce, organizations that serve Medicaid, even if they’re sick. government will pay 100 the law invests $1.5 billion populations with limited There are a few exceptions in percent of the cost for the over five years in the access to health care. some areas like Washington, newly eligible for the first National Health Service These include low-income D.C., and Massachusetts, couple of years, reducing the Corps, which helps provide populations, the uninsured, which have local programs federal share to 90 percent by scholarships and loans to those with limited English that help pay for medical 2019. medical students willing to proficiency, migrant and care, but there’s never been Projections are that work extra years in highseasonal farm workers, one standard across the between 16 million and needs areas. The goal is to individuals and families country for Medicaid to 23 million people will be fund an estimated 15,000 experiencing homelessness and those living in public housing. To provide for the needs of these clinics, the health-reform law dedicates $11 billion for community health centers over the next both years for both operating and capital needs. The operating funding will expand services that include dental, addiction, mental health and primary care while the capital funding will help construct new sites where there is a need for them. Health Care for the Homeless projects will receive nearly 10 percent of the funding so these service sites will be expanding significantly to meet the specialized needs of this population. These three components –Medicaid expansion, workforce development and growth in community health centers – are major parts of the law that will impact people with low/no income. Today many who fall into this category are uninsured. Tomorrow that will likely still be the case in many areas. But on Jan. 1, 2014, major things start happening as millions can start enrolling in Medicaid. Until then, there’s a lot to be done to prepare. Barbara DiPietro is director of policy for the National Health Care for the Homeless Council. Interested in volunteering with Streetvibes? Contact Greg Flannery at 513-421-7803 x 12 or by e-mail at streetvibes2@yahoo.com Do you remember the magic of your First Book? Please consider giving the gift of reading to a low-income child in Cincinnati this year. Established in 2001, First Book - Greater Cincinnati has already granted more than 45,000 books and over $60,000 to local nonprofit literacy programs serving thousands of low-income children in Greater Cincinnati. Make checks payable to “First Book - Greater Cincinnati” I Want to Bring the Magic of Books to Children Who Need Them! $20 (10 books) Please return your contribution to: First Book Greater Cincinnati 572 Northland Blvd. Cincinnati, Ohio 45240 Name: Address: E-mail: $40 (20 books) $80 (40 books) $100 (50 books) Other $ _______ �14 STREETVIBES September 1 - 14, 2010 Vendor Voice What’s a Former Felon to Do? Hiring ex-cons is in everyone’s interest By George Herrell Streetvibes Vendor T o rehabilitate means to restore that which one has lost, to restore to a state of health and constructive activity. By title, the duty of the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections is to do just that. Yet the state of Ohio, as is true with many other states, still shows prejudice towards ex-offenders, refusing to hire them to fill employment positions for which they would otherwise be qualified, jobs such as poll workers. Once our sentences have been served, we as ex-offenders are allowed to vote, and we are expected to cooperate with census takers in our respective cities so that our votes and numbers can be counted and used to benefit society as a whole. However, we are viewed as unfit by many to work in those same areas. We can’t work at the polling places at which we cast our ballots or count our own numbers, which are used to generate financial revenues. Is this justice? Programs such as the Talbert House, River City Corrections and the Pogue Rehabilitation Center (operated by Volunteers of America) devote countless hours and tax dollars providing extensive case management geared toward teaching individuals with felony records the importance of “change” and giving them the skills necessary to implement that change. A recent Web search provided a glimmer of hope. I found that there are employers out there who are willing to look beyond applicants’ sometimes-jaded pasts in an attempt to offer an opportunity, a second chance, to those individuals who truly seek to better themselves. Employers such as Messer Construction, the University of Cincinnati, Frisch’s Restaurants and Sarah Lee Foods have all hired and continue to employ individuals who are ex-felony offenders – and with much success. Recidivism: That’s a term we’ve become very accustomed to hearing when it comes to ex-offenders. It refers to that fact that so many become repeat offenders, and it projects a sense of hopelessness. But when it’s virtually all but impossible for them to earn a living wage, is it any mystery that so many would revert back to what they know best? No one I know wants to have to constantly look over his shoulder all the time or wants to face the possibility of returning to jail, and yet it’s also a fact that no one I know wants to go hungry or be homeless or wants to see his children go without. There’s a certain pride that goes along with going into a store and purchasing what one wants or needs, a pride that goes along with providing for one’s self. I, for one, honestly believe that, given the opportunity, people would rather work and earn a decent living versus breaking the law and facing incarceration, especially if they’ve been there before. But take away that opportunity, and people will do what they must to get by. Please don’t misunderstand: That’s not to say that there aren’t individuals who commit crimes regardless. The fact that there are priests who molest and the rich who embezzle attests to that. However, on a basic level, people should be given the opportunity to change. In the Bible, it’s stated that Jesus said, “Let he who is without sin cast the first stone.” Now I’m not implying that everyone commits crimes, but we all make mistakes. What if no mistake was ever forgiven? Where would we be? To employers: Prisons are filled with skilled, talented individuals, most of whom want only the opportunity to change. And to the state of Ohio and other states like it: Either commit to extending the opportunity to show change where employing ex-offenders is concerned – or admit to the total failure of the Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections. It Don’t Hurt No More And Now I Can Help Others By James Brown Streetvibes Vendor B rother James DeMarlo Brown is a man who cares about his fellow citizens and community. Psalm 116:8 says, “For thou hast delivered my soul from death, mine eyes from tears and my feet from falling.” James has not had an easy life. He has had his many ups and downs, but his connection with God and his positive attitude have kept him going. He believes that he still has to deal with daily struggles and setbacks, but his face routinely sports an optimistic smile. He tries to help others who are still in the place he used to be in. The ways he does this range from holding cookouts to passing out Our Daily Bread pamphlets or just being there to listen. He understands what it is like to want to give up. He could have given up a long time ago but he knows no matter how bad things get, it can always get better. James wants to guide those who have lost their way to gain a positive mindset. Hope is a powerful thing that everyone deserves, and he tries to bring that to everyone he meets. James always has a smiling face and a kind word for anyone he sees. Sometimes his positive words are met with negativity. Many people have tried to bring him down, yet he perseveres. James’s birthday is Nov. 13, and in his next years of life he will continue to do what he does everyday. He will continue to lead a helping hand to anyone he can. James has no plan of leaving Over-the-Rhine, which is the community he knows and loves. On a daily basis he lives by some of the lines to his favorite prayer: “There is no obstacle I cannot overcome. … My hopes and dreams can manifest today.” James Brown, Streetvibes vendor. George Ellis. Streetvibes vendors keep 75% of sales. Consider helping Streetvibes with our publication costs by making a tax-deductible donation or by purchasing a subscription. Streetvibes is the activist newspaper, advocating justice, building community. Your gift is tax-deductible and will go to producing the paper every two weeks. Started in 1997, Streetvibes is distributed by homeless and formerly homeless vendors who purchase the paper for 25 cents and sell it for $1, keeping the 75 cent profit. Make checks payable to “Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless” I want to support Streetvibes and the vendors. $25 Please return your contribution to: GCCH 117 E. 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 Name: Address: E-mail: $50 $100 $150 Other $ _______ �15 Resources STREETVIBES September 1 - 14, 2010 Need Help or Want to Help? Shelter: Women and Children Central Access Point Cincinnati Union Bethel St. Francis Soup Kitchen Churches Active in Northside 381-SAFE 768-6907 FreeStore/FoodBank 557-2873 Madisonville Ed & Assistance Center 271-5501 300 Lytle Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Bethany House 4230 Hamilton Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45223 241-1064 112 E. Liberty Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 1841 Fairmount Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45214 Grace Place Catholic Worker House 681-2365 4600 Erie Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45227 Serves area codes: 45226, 45227, 45208, 45209 St. Vincent de Paul 6037 Cary Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45224 Salvation Army 535-2719 591-2246 762-5660 562-8841 872-9259 381-2247 5 E. Liberty St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 Health Resource Center Homeless Mobile Health Van McMicken Dental Clinic 357-4602 352-2902 352-6363 40 E. McMicken Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mental Health Access Point Mercy Franciscan at St. John 558-8888 981-5800 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 NAMI of Hamilton County PATH Outreach 1125 Bank Street, Cinti, Ohio 45214 131 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter Crossroad Health Center 458-6670 977-4489 Treatment: Men Other Resources Shelter: Men Charlie’s 3/4 House 784-1853 921-1613 Center Independent Living Options Emmanuel Community Center 961-2256 Peaslee Neighborhood Center 2121 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 City Gospel Mission 241-5525 Prospect House Justice Watch 241-0490 St. Fran/St. Joe Catholic Work. House 381-4941 Starting Over 1419 Elm Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 682 Hawthorne Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45205 Franciscan Haircuts from the Heart 961-4663 2203 Fulton, Cinti, Ohio 45206 Treatment: Both 761-1480 1821 Summit Road, Cinti, Ohio 45237 Drop Inn Center 721-0643 471-1100 221-3350 3330 Jefferson, Cinti, Ohio 45220 Housing: CMHA Excel Development OTR Community Housing 721-4580 632-7149 381-1171 114 W. 14th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tender Mercies 721-8666 27 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tom Geiger House Dana Transitional Bridge Services Volunteers of America Anna Louise Inn 961-4555 751-0643 381-1954 421-5211 621-5300 961-1983 OTR: 1620 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Walnut Hills: 2631 Gilbert, Cinti, Ohio 45206 Our Daily Bread 1730 Race Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 621-6364 771-4800 751-0600 721-4811 241-2965 People Working Cooperatively The Caring Place United Way Women Helping Women Off The Streets 351-7921 631-1114 211 977-5541 421-5211 1522 Republic Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Hamilton County ADAS Board Recovery Health Access Center Sober Living Talbert House 946-4888 281-7422 681-0324 641-4300 Hamilton/Middletown 421-3131 569-1840 381-4242 Northern Kentucky Advocacy Catholic Social Action Community Action Agency Contact Center 1227 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Food/Clothing Lord’s Pantry OTR/Walnut Hills Kitchen & Pantry 351-0422 381-6672 830 Ezzard Charles Dr. Cinti, Ohio 45214 Joseph House (Veterans) 217 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Interfaith Hospitality Network Lighthouse Youth Center (Youth) AA Hotline CCAT Goodwill industries Healing Connections Mary Magdalen House 1223 Main St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 2728 Glendora Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45209 Caracole (HIV/AIDS) 381-0111 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 First Step Home 961-4080 621-5514 214 E. 14th St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 661-4620 Shelter: Both Anthony House (Youth) 1308 Race St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 Treatment: Women 1437 Walnut Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mt. Airy Shelter 241-2600 241-2563 117 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 579-8547 241-9400 421-1108 363-3300 421-2437 Health Center for Respite Care 3550 Washington Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45229 Brighton Center 863-3184 863-1445 422-8555 868-3276 859-491-8303 799 Ann St. Newport, KY Franciscan JPIC 721-4700 Gr. Cinti Coalition for the Homeless 421-7803 Intercommunity Justice & Peace Cr. Legal Aid Society Ohio Justice & Policy Center Faces Without Places Stop AIDS St. Raephaels Salvation Army Serenity House Day Center Open Door Pantry ECHO/Hosea House Fairhaven Resuce Mission Homeward Bound Youth Mathews House Homeless & Housing Coalition Parish Kitchen Pike St. Clinic Transitions, Inc Welcome House of NKY 859-261-5857 859-491-1027 859-581-1111 859-261-8009 859-727-0926 859-581-7745 859-291-9321 859-491-4435 859-431-8717 205 West Pike Street, Covington, KY 41011 621-1868 Women’s Crisis Center VA Domiciliary VA Homeless 859-491-3335 859-559-5011 859-572-6226 �16 Artists as Activists STREETVIBES September 1 - 14, 2010 Freaks and Other Artists Bill Ross, Keith Banner celebrate possibility I nfluenced by Flannery O’Connor’s works, which always gave voice to those who were shunned, Keith Banner, a well-published Cincinnati writer, started in his mid-20s to write about freaks. They are, in his words, “forms of our essential displacement.” “Putting the reader in the point of view and body of someone who is denigrated and marginalized is always a deliberate political move,” Banner says. “It is my way to make the reader identify and connect with the other, accept and humanize the other despite the difference, realize we’re all equal and beautiful, that the world is bigger than we are, and that we need to be at peace with each other.” “Art saved and shaped my life,” says Bill Ross, a well-exhibited local artist. “It helped me find out who I was, also what was my mission. It let me explore social venues I would not have otherwise. It empowered me, and through collaborative work, allowed me to empower others.” Ross and Banner met in the early 1980s, studying art at the Herron School of Art and Design, at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis. Ross graduated with a degree in painting, Banner shifting later to English and graduating in legacy alive. Professionally, both Ross and Banner applied their art background to the field of social work. They worked in group homes, mostly with mentally handicapped individuals, providing them care and managing their needs. Artists at heart, they merged art with social work, combining and enhancing the powerful effects of both. “We are culture workers and not only social workers,” they say. “We use our artistic skills to help individuals grow Bill Ross and Keith Banner stand in front of text paintings by Dale and develop.” Jackson. Saad Ghosn. This is how Ross one day discovered Thunder-Sky and his wonderful creative world. At a meeting set designs; Mike Weber, for his abstracted images; up to discuss his health concerns, Thunder-Sky and Donald Henry, for his robot versions of himbrought along a tool box that he opened with a self and his friends. smile; it contained hundreds of his amazing drawAmazing Chaos is a collaborative piece Ross did ings, unseen until then. A disabled Native Ameriwith Becky Iker, who has Down syndrome. With can and gifted artist, Thunder-Sky would always minor editing, Ross shaped in color Iker’s pencil dress in a clown collar and construction hat and drawing, the final result reminiscent of a cave walk the streets of Cincinnati drawing demolition painting with its mystery and hidden subtleties. While Ross was painting, Banner kept writing. and construction sites. He published several short stories and a novel, Ross and Banner quickly organized a show all with strong social messages. He is working of his drawings in 2000. This opened the gate to as on a new novel relating the death of a 7-year-old many other disabled artists, starting with Antonio disabled girl killed by her stepbrother. Ignored, Adams, now a well known and well represented pushed away and debased while alive, her sudCincinnati artist. It also led to the progressive By Saad Ghosn den disappearance makes everyone realize her establishment of a venue for individuals with disContributing Writer inner beauty, her true innocence, how much she ability to explore and develop their artistic talent touched each of them. Meant as an empowerment at the same time using their creative expression of the weak and rejected, the work stresses the for their well-being. This venue, later known as creative writing. They have been together since, importance of every individual, even those initially Visionaries and Voices, gave artists ownership in partners in life and work. Together in 2003 they perceived as useless and insignificant. an inclusive environment where they felt valued, founded Visionaries and Voices, an art studio In The Wedding of Tom and Tom, from his book a chance to create and show their work, an opthat provides artistic and cultural opportunities The Smallest People Alive, Banner tells the story of portunity to collaborate and celebrate with other for artists with disabilities. In 2009 they founded two disabled gentlemen living in a group home, in community members. love with each other. Caregivers, braving the rules Thunder-Sky Inc., an art gallery that showcases Five years later, to avoid potential conflict of of the agency running the home, assist them to and supports unconventional artists from the interest with its source of funding, Banner and get married. The story reflects Banner’s rejection region, aiming at keeping Raymond Thunder-Sky’s Ross left the then well established Visionaries and of rules, codes and regulations that negate the huVoices and immersed their energy in man essence and mar its potentials, imprison the the creation of a new gallery, Thunderindividual, obstruct his good and poetic nature. It Sky Inc. The new gallery focuses on art, ends with a liberating act, the vision of hundreds exhibitions and literary publications; it of stigmatized individuals running over the officiais meant as a collaborative, non-segretor to get to their freedom place, a celebration of gated space where both disabled and universal spirit asserting itself and coming to life. non-disabled artists work side by side, Both Ross and Banner use their own art and with no real difference, triggering each various art involvements to equalize people and other’s vulnerability and letting go of link them together. their ego. “Society wants to frame us and categorize us,” All along and despite their otherwise they say. “One is retarded or not, intelligent or not. heavy engagements, Banner and Ross continued their own creative endeavors. … One’s free potential as human being is often ignored. We want to make it hard to categorize and Ross painted non-stop. His paintdifferentiate people; it is our political statement, ings – surrealistic, fantastic, personal at the beginning – changed their focus few and art helps us achieve it.” years ago; it became collaborative, with disabled artists creating composition and content and Ross adding pattern, colors and depth. "Pink light, like exploding roses. The red-light district. Ha ha. “Collaboration took No. A stampede … I am on the other side and I look up and me to places I was not all these shaved-headed people are running right at me in the able to go on my own,” red light. It's like they just got freed, you know? Like the he says. “It also helped concentration camp just opened its doors and they got out build confidence in the and they're running … They're coming right at me. And I want disabled artists showthat to happen … I want them to run me over," ing them someone else he says, looking right at Tom A. and Tom B. "And they do. takes them seriously.” They stomp all over me. They gotta get somewhere, don't they?" Ross has since collaborated with six (from The Smallest People Alive, by Keith Banner) disabled artists, among Amazing Chaos, collaborative pencil and acrylic painting them Kevin White, on wood panel by Becky Iker and Bill Ross. Bob Scheadler. known for his elegant A rtists ctivists The Officiator at The Wedding of Tom and Tom: Artists as Activists is a regular column highlighting Greater Cincinnati artists who use art as a vehicle for change. Saad Ghosn is the founder of SOS Art. Ghosn can be contacted at saad.ghosn@uc.edu. � 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 2010 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 September 1-14, 2010 Subject The topic of the resource Homelessness Description An account of the resource Pg 1: 3CDC Accused of Racial Conspiracy Canada’s Forgotten Children Pg 2: Street Wise Pg 3: Eight Minutes with a High Tech Megaphone Pg 4: 3CDC Accused of Racial Conspiracy Continued Pg 5: 3CDC and Death in Over-the-Rhine Pg 6: Canada’s Forgotten Children Continued Pg 7: Allegories of Oligarchies Pg 8: “Feed Me, Seymour, Feed Me All Night Long…” Pg 9: Reel Life: A film Fanatic’s Journey Pg 10: Real Change Comes in Aggregate Pg 11: Arts & Poetry Pg 12: Learning a New Tune About the Reds What We See and What We Don’t Pg 13: Health Reform: What’s in it for the Low/No-Income Uninsured? Pg 14: What’s a Former Felon to Do? Pg 15: Resources Pg 16: Freaks and Other Artists 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 September 1-14, 2010 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Gregory Flannery Lynne Ausman Georgia Bohannon Michelle Dillingham Samantha Groark Margo Pierce Paul Kopp Jeremy Flannery Michael Henson David Heitfield Corey Gibson Jeni Jenkins Saad Ghosn Lew Moores Larry Gross Eli Braun Jesse Call Michael Fanning B. Clifton Burke Aimie Willhoite Anne Skove Vinit Murthy Jon Hughes Brad Foster Jeremy Flanner Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF 3CDC Aimie Willhoite Anne Skove Arts & Poetry B. Clifton Burke Bill Ross Brad Foster Canada Christianity Cincinnati Corey Gibson David Heitfield Eli Braun Ex-cons Georgia Bohannon Gregory Flannery Hate Crimes Health Reform Jeni Jenkins Jeremy Flanner Jeremy Flannery Jesse Call Jon Hughes Keith Banner Larry Gross Lew Moores Lynne Ausman Margo Pierce Metropole Michael Fanning Michael Henson Michelle Dillingham Natural Disasters Over-the-Rhine Paul Kopp Reds Saad Ghosn Samantha Groark Star Wars Vinit Murthy https://streetvibesarchive.net/files/original/4959cd661b1c08e30445d756a4ad7e9c.pdf a88ffe7d9511531bfdbe4696eb74d24e PDF Text Text Interview with Artists as John Mellencamp Activists Page 7 Page 16 Aug. 15-30, 2010 • Issue 183 • One Dollar ADVOCATING JUSTICE • BUILDING COMMUNITY No Fence Sitting in This Match The art of fencing and overcoming By Corey Gibson Contributing Writer C Edward Wright, an Olympic fencer, teaches children the sport. Vinit Murthy. A Quarter-Century Cause IJPC still working for peace and justice By Brian O’Donnell Contributing Writer A ug. 6 marked the 65th anniversary of the day the United States killed 140,000 people in Hiroshima, Japan, with an atomic bomb. In a quiet park along the Ohio River near downtown Cincinnati, the Intercommunity Justice and Peace Center remembered the event with a candlelit walk at dusk through paper sunflowers representing renewed hope and life. The mood was visibly somber as guests were invited to read the messages on the sunflowers, inscribed with quotations of peace and forgiveness from the likes of the late Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and poet Maya Angelou. (L to R) Eunice Timoney Ravenna, Sr. Alice Gerdeman, and Kristen Among those in attendance was Sister Janet Barker of Intercommunity Justice and Policy Center. IJPC. Schneider of the Sisters of Divine Providence. Born four years after the end of World War II, she remembers recognition of Hiroshima’s destruction. learning in school of the atomic bomb as necessary to end “Partly, we haven’t learned from it, but it’s more of a the War, that it was OK. Her understanding of the event now sorrow,” he said. “Especially since it’s likely it could happen sees it as “a horrible devastation that 140,000 people were again.” killed by a bomb the United States dropped.” Mark Burwinkel said his attendance at the park was in See Cause, p. ontending for an Olympic medal is itself an accomplishment. But some athletes, such as Edward Wright, had to contend with more than just the rigors of sport and competition to get there. Wright had to struggle as a child to even be allowed to get into the game. 1963 was a momentous time for the civil rights movement in the United States. President John F. Kennedy promised a civil rights bill. James Meredith became the first AfricanAmerican student to graduate from the University of Mississippi. The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. gave his “I Have a Dream” speech and issued his letters from Birmingham Jail after being arrested during protests against racial segregation – protests sometimes broken up by police with fire hoses and attack dogs. 1963 was also the year Edward Wright would join Brooklyn High School’s fencing team. Thirteen years later he would fence in the Olympics. On a Saturday in late July, Wright walks into the Corryville Recreation Center wearing a worn yellow T-shirt that says, “A Champion Maker” in bold, black lettering across the front. He is hardly what someone would picture when they think about an Olympic fencer who is just past his prime. He is stocky, about six feet tall, with long dreads that dip just past his shoulder. A few wiry gray hairs stick out in all different directions. He is wearing black sweats and Timberland boots. Little beads of sweat trickle down his forehead as he arrives at the gymnasium, as if he were warming up before the class had even started. Wright tells his See Fence, p. 3 �2 The Vibe By The Numbers 24 The deadline, in number of hours, for a city council committee to post its agenda prior to a meeting (see page 11). 50,000 The number of West End residents displaced by the construction of Interstate 75 (see page 12). 1492 The year American Indians began fighting terrorism (see page 16). 12 The number of years Pat Clifford served as executive director of the Drop Inn Center (see page 12). 1996 The year Edward Wright won a national fencing championship (see page 1). 11 The hour of the morning by which Rose was blissfully drunk (see page 6). 140,000 The death toll from the U.S. atomic bombing of Hiroshima (see page 1). 13,000 The amount, in dollars, needed to keep the executive director’s position at the North American Street Newspaper Association through the end of the year (see page 6). 5 Andrew Martin’s age when his mother left his family (see page 13). 48 Joann Burton’s age when she died in Washington Park (see page 9). StreetWise By Gregory Flannery Editor “A Result of the Work’ The Drop Inn Center is under pressure from the city of Cincinnati, from its satrap – the Cincinnati Center City Development Corp. (3CDC) – and from Downtown Cincinnati Inc. – so its decision to fire Pat Clifford, executive director, must be seen in that context. That’s why no one is talking: It’s too hot to handle. Clifford, who has worked at the Drop Inn Center for 20 years – the past 12 as executive director – learned Aug. 9 that he was no longer needed. The board fired him without giving a reason, Clifford says. “I was called to a meeting, where I was told,” he says. “Some board members were present, and they informed me. The staff members were informed the next day. It’s basically a decision to part ways. The board hires and fires the director. I work by their leave: ‘Your services are no longer required. A decision has been reached, and that’s that.’ That was basically the tone: ‘We wish you the best.’ ” Clifford says he didn’t see it coming. “Yeah, I was surprised,” he says. “It wasn’t like anything had happened to lead me to think this was going to happen, I don’t want to speculate as to why.” Clifford is a consummate professional, but the context for his dismissal is no mystery to outsiders. He cares about homeless people. He believes in the mission of the Drop Inn Center. These mark him as the enemy of the forces that forced him out. Cincinnati wants the Drop Inn Center’s property for other purposes. It’s in the way. He’s in the way. “It’s an internal restructuring, a result of the work that’s been done, without any political pressure,” says Elissa Pogue, president of the board of the Drop Inn Center. Sure. “The work that drives all of this is to do what’s best for homeless people,” Pogue says. The board of the Drop Inn center has named Arlene Miller, the center’s chief financial officer, its interim director. Clifford’s successor isn’t yet known. “Right now we don’t have anybody in mind,” Pogue says. Nor does Clifford know where he’ll go next. “I don’t know,” he says. “I want to be of service somewhere. That’s who I am. I’m concerned about basic human necessities, making sure people have those.” The poor kind fool. That is so not in sync with Cincinnati. It’s Just a Coincidence Similarly, the death of Joann Burton – run over by a police car as she lay in the grass in Washington Park – can be seen as a freak accident. Or it can be seen as an illustration of the forces that mark Cincinnati as a place hostile to homeless people. Washington Park, across the street from the Drop Inn Center, is about to be closed off from the neighborhood, with 59 of its trees destroyed, the dead who lie beneath it disinterred to make way for an underground parking garage, its swimming pool and basketball court destroyed, in order to make the park more appealing to the upper-income people whom 3CDC and city council want to inhabit Over-the-Rhine. These things are all coincidences. Don’t bother yourself with the deeper meaning. Naughty Language Streetvibes recently declined to participate in a ceremony honoring its work on behalf of people who have disabilities (see ‘Streetvibes’ Boycotts Own Award,” issue of Aug. 1-14). The Cincinnati Human Relations Commission wanted to present the award on Fountain Square, where a city ordinance and 3CDC’s regulations forbid our vendors to distribute the newspaper. The Cincinnati Enquirer reported our position, which prompted a conservative Catholic blog (richleonardi.blogspot.com) to weigh in. The blog called Streetvibes “the profanity-filled newspaper published by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless.” We think this refers to words such as “cocksucker,” used by rocker John Mellencamp in an interview in this edition. For the record, we believe that any organization, such as 3CDC, that forces poor people out of Over-the-Rhine or closes its park qualifies for the term “cocksucker.” Progress Comes to City Hall But let us not be glum. Progress happens – slowly, slowly. Thus Cincinnati City Council has grudgingly decided that the city will no loner automatically bar all persons everywhere who have ever been convicted of a felony of any kind anywhere under any circumstances from being hired for a city job. The city will no longer require job applicants to answer a question on its application form about criminal records. Rather, applicants can make their case in the interview process. Granted, this is a small change, but an important first step. The Ohio Justice and Policy Center labored long and hard to get this far, arguing that a person convicted of a crime and imprisoned for it has already paid her debt to society and now deserves a second chance. Otherwise, what’s a person who made a mistake to do? Sleep in Washington Park? That can get you killed. Work at a homeless shelter? That can get you fired without warning. It’s a cruel cocksucker of a city we live in. STREETVIBES August 15 - 31, 2010 Streetvibes is an activist newspaper, advocating justice and building community. Streetvibes reports on economic issues, civil rights, the environment, the peace movement, spirituality and the struggle against homelessness and poverty. Distributed by people who are or once were homeless, in exchange for a $1 donation, Streetvibes is published twice a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Address: 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 Phone: 513.421.7803 x 12 Fax: 513.421.7813 Email: streetvibes2@yahoo. com Website: www. cincihomeless.org Blog: streetvibes.wordpress. com Streetvibes Staff Editor Gregory Flannery Art Director Lynne Ausman Vendor Coordinator Jeni Jenkins Contributing Writers Michelle Dillingham, Samantha Groark, Margo Pierce, Paul Kopp, Jeremy Flannery, Michael Henson, David Heitfield, Corey Gibson, Jeni Jenkins, Saad Ghosn, Lew Moores, Larry Gross, Eli Braun, Jesse Call, Michael Fanning Photography/Artwork Aimie Willhoite, Lynne Ausman, Anne Skove, Vinit Murthy, Jon Hughes Proofreaders Lynn Baker Jeremy Flannery The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that works to eradicate homelessness in Cincinnati through coordination of services, public education, grassroots advocacy and Streetvibes. We are proud members of: �STREETVIBES August 15 - 31, 2010 3 Local News No Fence Sitting in This Match Edward Wright, left, teaches students the art of fencing. Vinit Murthy. “I even stopped going to church,” Wright says. “I wanted to make the team.” students to start preparing for the The practicing paid off and Wright hour-long class. His voice is grizzly made the team and worn, the in 1963. And he voice of someone has been at it who continually “Because he stresses ever since. Wright shouts. Yet Wright, form … and execution, placed fifth in a soft-spoken the movement is done the team-fencing individual, correctly. That translates event in the 1976 never yells at the into the kids not just Olympics, was students and tries stabbing or swinging a U.S. National to help them not or move backwards or Championship only understand forwards – they are having Fencing finalist fencing, but to have the discipline to do and most understand where the movements correctly.” recently, in 1996, fencing can take - David Jacobs won the U.S. them in their National Veteran futures. Championship. Reaching that level of competition ‘Not just stabbing’ was a struggle for Wright because of the color of his skin. Wright’s fencing career started in “Most of the clubs kept black the form of soccer. He played soccer for three years on his Brooklyn junior people from joining,” he says. The New York Fencing Club, at high-school team in the late 1950s, the time, had only one or two black before dreaming of making the highmembers when Wright tried to join in school football team. At the time, the late ’60s. Wright didn’t agree with Wright was a lot smaller than he is the stipulations the club set for him today and he couldn’t make the cut and decided not to join. for the high school football team. So “They were racist,” he says. he went back to playing soccer, even Luckily, the man revered as “the though the coach would never put father of American fencing” Georgio him in. Santelli, was seeking out Wright. At “I’d tell the coach to put me in,” first Wright was a bit timid to study Wright says. “I’d say, ‘Coach there’s under Santelli because of the intense five minutes left and we’re winning workouts; Wright says he could 10 to nothing.’ He never put me in. hardly last 10 minutes. But after a That’s how bad I was.” few years he began studying under Wright’s soccer coach suggested Santelli. he try out for the fencing team. “He made champions out of Although fencing was a foreign idea bunch of us,” Wright says. “And by a to Wright at the time, he found a bunch of us, I mean a bunch of black place that taught fencing, gave it a shot and practiced seven days a week people.” Wright wants to do the same thing for an entire summer, sometimes for his students. He wants them to practicing three to four hours a day. Continued from page 1 learn discipline, he wants them to become the best fencers they can possibly become and he wants to get scholarships for his students. Watching one of his classes, it is easy to tell that Wright pushes his students to perfect every aspect of their fencing. “Because he stresses form … and execution, the movement is done correctly,” says David Jacobs, Wright’s assistant fencing instructor. “That translates into the kids not just stabbing or swinging or move backwards or forwards – they are having to have the discipline to do the movements correctly.” The class is more of a workout than one might expect from a sport that has bouts as short as three minutes long. Although the air was humid and sweat droplets were forming on the forehead of Wright and most of his students, the grueling workout continues. The students, who range in ages from pre-teens to much older men and women, receive flurries of instructions from Wright. “En-guard” Wright yells, clapping his hands to a beat he wants the students to follow as they lunge forward, ending with a thrust of the sword at an imaginary opponent. The students keep attacking forward until they reach the other side of the room. Wright then makes the students practice their retreat back to the side of the gymnasium they were previously on. The attack and retreat exercise continues for a short while as Wright dodges in and out of the seven students, correcting the stances of each and every person until they are all in unison, lunging across the gymnasium. The right of way After a few more times back and forth across the gymnasium, Wright stops the students in place and tells them to hold out their swords, called “foils,” for upwards of 60 seconds. Although a foil only weighs slightly more than one pound, the students counted off the 60 seconds in less than 30 seconds, just to get the exercise over with quicker. Wright continues to make the students hold out their foils and count at lower increments, from 60 to 30 to 20 to 10 and finally 5, until the students are visibly tired. After another short break, the students, who all have their own bags of fencing equipment, put on their fencing masks and all-white fencing uniforms in preparation for the final phase of the class. Nearing the end of the class, Wright takes each student aside for some one-on-one teaching while the rest of the students have their own bouts, in which two students fence and the others act as the referees. Scoring a point in fencing seems difficult, but refereeing a bout might be even more so. To score a point in fencing, and ultimately get to the five touches needed to win a bout, the fencer has to have “the right of way.” That is, the fencer has to initiate the attack or execute a block of his opponent’s attack, called a “parry,” before he can score. The tip of the foil is the second fastest moving object in sports, after a marksman’s bullet, so refereeing a bout seems impossible. Each referee calls on the others to assist one another in making the correct calls during the impromptu See Fence, p. 4 �4 Local News STREETVIBES August 15 - 31, 2010 No Fence Sitting in This Match from the student he is fencing with. After a one-on-one session, bouts. Wright gives tips to the student and Even though the students’ bouts calls the next over, only to repeat the are impressive, the highlight of process again. the class is Wright’s one-on-one DeAndre Cruse, a newcomer, says interaction with them. As a student’s he enjoyed the class. He spent much and Wright’s foils clash together of his time with Jacobs, Wright’s in combat, assistant, who also called a taught Cruse The attack and retreat “conversation,” the proper way exercise continues for a short it is as if Wright to hold his foil, knows exactly the form he while as Wright dodges in and where the needed to use out of the seven students, student is when making correcting the stances of going to strike. lunges and other each and every person until He stops the requirements. they are all in unison, lunging bout and takes Cruse’s mother, across the gymnasium. the tip of the Jerri Williams, student’s foil, says she enjoys points it to his chest and thrusts it watching it. into his dark black uniform, telling “And I think he enjoyed doing it,” the student to hit him there. The Williams says. conversation between the swords She also says the workout and continues again as the student tries the discipline her son was going to to hit the spot – succeeding only receive were an added bonus. when Wright lets him. With his eyes Wright moved from New York to half closed, Wright retreats, fending Cincinnati nearly 15 years ago to off thrusts from the foil, and then teach fencing. He says he still enjoys lunges forward for a halfhearted it, even after teaching thousands of attack that catches the student off students in his 35-year career. guard. Wright casually looks around “I want to make champions,” the room and observes his other Wright says. “I just want to make students as they fence each other, champions.” all the while still defending strikes Continued from page 3 Edward Wright. Vinit Murthy. A Quarter-Century in the Cause have small successes along the way but there’s tries to limit the influence of military recruiters in always the next step.” public high schools and offers students alternative The vigil in Theodore Berry International Working alongside other groups locally and ways to serve the country. Her other programs Friendship Park was not only for remembrance of nationwide, IJPC continues to advocate a growing relate back to IJPC’s origins in education and the dead, but also a call to activism. list of causes, including the use of the death understanding. “One of the biggest reasons I came is it creates penalty in Ohio. “It’s about broadening your mind,” Barker says. energy, energy for a “We get very disappointed “We just want people to be informed.” difference,” Burwinkel every time there is an execution,” IJPC’s Day of Dialogue program brings said. “We will not be a part of any Gerdeman says. together people with opposing viewpoints to Sister Alice Ohio has executed a total of 382 discuss controversial topics and slow down the activity that has violence Gerdeman, IJPC’s prisoners in its history, according conversation. as one of its strategies. The coordinator, spoke to the Ohio Department of “This offers a chance for transformation and power of non-violence and of the upcoming Rehabilitation and Correction. learning,” Barker says. good is greater than any evil.” U.S. Senate vote on Despite holding political views In a continuation of its commitment to - Sister Alice Gerdeman ratification of the that can polarize people, Gerdeman education, IJPC offers “Peace Team/Nonviolence” new Strategic Arms says God provides and gives IJPC training. This offers people skills for successfully Reduction (START) Treaty, which calls for nuclear what it needs. intervening in potentially arms reductions by the United States and Russia “We’ve always managed to violent situations without “We need a new start,” she said. scrape by,” she says. In the 1980s, IJPC escalating them. Barker says Gerdeman has been with IJPC for 19 years. From donations by advocated for justice in there is no shortage of people She says IJPC acts as an advocate for issues individuals and grants, IJPC wanting to train, and she has Latin America, in particular ranging from immigrant rights to racism to the has managed to continue its a waiting list for upcoming for refugees who fled the environment. Now celebrating its 25th year, advocacy for 25 years, always training sessions. civil war from El Salvador. Gerdeman recalls how the organization has through non-violence. With its 25th anniversary This led IJPC to a courtroom changed since 1985. “We will not be a part of celebration on the way, IJPC victory against the U.S. The group was very educational in its infancy. any activity that has violence provides more than 20 services State Department, allowing It “built on education to advocate,” she says. as one of its strategies,” and activities in the name of the refugees to enter the In the 1980s, IJPC advocated for justice in Gerdeman says. “The power social justice. United States. More recently, Latin America, in particular for refugees who “In order to confront of non-violence and good is the focus on Latin American fled the civil war from El Salvador. This led IJPC violence and war, we need to greater than any evil.” rights has shifted to human to a courtroom victory against the U.S. State Kristen Barker heads up be the opposite of it in the way rights in general. Department, allowing the refugees to enter the IJPC’s peace and non-violence we speak and act,” Gerdeman United States. More recently, the focus on Latin program. Her program has says. American rights has shifted to human rights in two goals: uproot war and tear down unjust IJPC’s 25th anniversary celebration will be Sept. general. structures. She works toward these goals through 25 at Purcell Marion High School. Call 513-579“Justice work never stops,” Gerdeman says. “You various programs such as Before You Enlist, which 8547 for ticket information. Continued from page 1 Follow Streetvibes www.facebook.com/streetvibescincinnati twitter.com/streetvibesnews streetvibes.wordpress.com �STREETVIBES August 15 - 31, 2010 5 Issues Street Papers Revolt at Meeting Layoff of staff prompts uproar By Gregory Flannery Editor C hicago, Ill. – Members of the North American Street Newspaper Association (NASNA) reacted angrily to news that the board of the organization planned to lay off Executive Director Andy Freeze. The July 30 annual meeting of NASNA turned into a rump parliament, with delegates from street newspapers across the United States and Canada forcing the board to reconfigure the conference schedule in order to debate the layoff. The board said it’s out of money due to unexpected rent expenses at its office in Washington, D.C., and the loss of a grant that had paid for the executive director’s position. The layoff is necessary in order to avert bankruptcy, according to Serge Laureault, a NASNA board member and executive director of L’Itineraire in Montréal, Canada. Freeze, who is the former education coordinator for the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless, is NASNA’s first and only paid staff. Israel Bayer, president of the board, said NASNA had no paid staff for its first 12 years and will now continue as an all-volunteer organization. Bayer is executive director of Street Roots in Portland, Ore. Representatives of street papers criticized the board for not informing them of the fiscal crisis earlier. Bruce Gimbel, who recently started a street paper in Tampa, Fla., said he would have gladly raised money to help keep Freeze as executive director. Several new street papers said Freeze was instrumental in helping them. The heated debate led to several last-minute nominations for vacancies on the board (see “Differences as Strengths,” page 5). The NASNA annual meeting re-convened July 31. The board said it needed $13,000 to keep Freeze on the job through the end of 2010. Freeze then announced that, for the good of the organization, he would not continue in the executive director’s position. Freeze said his strength has been in member services, not in fundraising. Board members Rick Barnes, publisher of the Denver VOICE, and Ben Siew, a psychologist affiliated with Barnes’s for-profit and non-profit work, were absent from the session. The meeting at DePaul University was in a room containing a blackboard. The board listed as one of its future priorities “better communication with members.” Laureault, who has been a NASNA board member for six years, announced that he would not seek election to another two-year term. Andy Freeze, North American Street Newspaper Association executive director. Lynne Ausman. Laureault is president of the board of the International Network of Street Newspapers. With no executive director, NASNA reverts to an all- volunteer organization, with the board responsible for the tasks that Freeze had performed. Differences Build NASNA’s Strength NASNA builds a new board of volunteer leadership By Margo Pierce Contributing Writer board. They come from cities of varying sizes and geographic location and hicago, Ill. – Street bring essential skills to the papers have two things in tasks of fundraising and common: a commitment to developing journalistic serving economically disadvantaged excellence. The new board individuals and a passion for members are Gregory supporting those people. The list of Flannery, editor of differences is significantly longer Streetvibes; David Jefferson, and ranges from opposing views editor of Spare Change News on editorial content and political in Boston, Mass.; Kathleen activism to handling vendor training Porch, development and the importance of paid staff. manager for Real Change Bringing these varied perspectives in Seattle, Wash; and Eddie together is the reason for the annual Young, executive director of conference of the North American The Amplifier in Knoxville, Street Newspaper Association Tenn. (NASNA). In an organization Approximately 75 people from utilizing journalism to street papers all across the United make a positive impact, States and Canada gathered July 30 Flannery says he hopes -Aug. 1 to learn from each other and Streetvibes Editor Gregory Flannery pitches in. to use his experience to participate in the annual meeting. improve the credibility of This year’s conference included a the street-paper movement. dramatic change in the makeup of A biography on NASNA’s NASNA’s board Web site of directors. (nasna.org) says “I learned a long time ago that the board must do all this while After a heated “I learned a long time ago Flannery “made a small newspaper can make a big trying to maintain services in the debate about his mark by difference,” Flannery says. “If you face of a budget shortfall resulting in that a small newspaper can the loss of exposing illegal put a whole lot of small newspapers the layoff of Executive Director Andy make a big difference. If funding for the wiretapping by the together, they can make a huge Freeze, NASNA’s only paid staffer. you put a whole lot of small organization Cincinnati Police difference. That’s what NASNA is.” “The board has to do a better newspapers together, they (see “Street Department” With each paper representing a job of communicating with the can make a huge difference. Papers Revolt at and “later wrote different community, culture and membership,” Flannery says. “At That’s what NASNA is.” Meeting,” page articles that led local priorities, it’s going to be a the general meeting, we saw what -Gregory Flannery 5), members to the successful challenge to keep this volunteerhappens when the membership wanted prosecution of driven governing body focused learns there is a problem. The more from their board: more three Catholic priests who had on broader and commonly shared members set aside their differences communication, more input, more sexually abused children.” Also challenges – the criminalization of and became engaged and tried to accessibility. noted is the 2009 “Best Feature homelessness (see “Being Homeless help. If we can channel that energy To make that happen, four people Story” award he received from the is Against the Law,” issue of March and commitment on our shared offered their time to fill vacant International Network of Street 14), panhandling restrictions, objectives, the board can help move positions on the nine-member Papers. inadequate shelter space, etc. And the street-paper movement forward.” C �6 STREETVIBES August 15 - 31, 2010 Column Parsing Poverty and Community Rose celebrates her birthday, and mourns R ose’s birthday started early, and it started out happy. Rose is not but she seems glad to see them. her real name, but Rose is what we’ll call her. She hangs out nearly It’s not much of a life and it’s not that many dollars. every day on the steps of a building near the place where I work, and But she does have her friends. we have become friendly. She is a small, damaged woman with a random collection of teeth, a history of grief and a fondness for Steel Reserve malt * * * * * liquor. She’s damaged, I say, in all the ways that alcohol and living can cause, but you can see that she might have been a lovely woman at one time. She’s At various times in my life, I have worked as a community organizer. slim – probably too slim – and has a ready smile, and she manages to bring a For part of that time, I had a mentor in the field who told me that what we certain stylishness to her clothing, in spite of it all. were doing was not necessarily winning victories for a community. In doing For her birthday, she and her friends had gathered in the morning in front community organizing, we were organizing community, he said, and the of the apartment building right next to the office where I work and where creation of community was a victory all by itself. some of them lived. At 8:30, as I was scrambling to get in to work on time, she Think about what we build when we build community. We create bonds stopped me and asked, did I have a safety pin? among a group of people who share some common interest and common “It’s for my first dollar,” she explained. She reminded me it was her need and, in the process of addressing that interest and need come also to birthday. share an identity and a sense of fellow-feeling and an ethos of I didn’t have a safety pin, but somebody did, mutual support. This is worth having even if we don’t win the for when I saw her a couple hours later, she new playground or stop the power plant (though I won’t deny waved to me and pointed to a pair of dollar that winning is nice). bills pinned to her blouse. They fluttered there By Michael Henson all day. She must have collected many more * * * * * dollars; by 11, when I stepped out again, she was blissfully drunk and her eyes were glazed. Even the best of birthday drinking cannot always She had an open can of Steel Reserve in her hand and her friends, equally outmaneuver pain. By mid-afternoon, when I come back from an errand, drunk, were all around her, laughing loudly and singing snatches of song. Rose is in tears. She has moved from the steps to the shade of a tree and How could a birthday be better than that? she sits at the foot of the tree, sighing and cursing and lamenting in words too obscure and unprintable for me to repeat here. She has a lot to lament: * * * * * husband, children, false sisters, her health, her teeth – all gone. But – this is the miracle of poverty as a gift: Her friends are all around her, right on the One of the paradoxical effects of poverty is that it drives people apart, but ground with her. What they said was as obscure and unprintable as Rose’s it also brings them together. People in poverty are pushed to the fringes of curses and lamentations, but it seemed to be a comfort to her to have them society, but they are also pushed into the arms of one another. If we study lamenting and cursing right along with her. communities in poverty, we see a great deal of horizontal violence, in which Rose lamented, and her friends comforted. people who are pressed down attack each other instead of the oppressors. And so the day wound down. Her friends did what friends do – they stayed But we also see heroic acts of mutual support. Rose and her friends have at her side and they comforted her in her hour of need, just as they shared her no steady income, but they have an “abandominium” they have developed joy hours earlier. out of a nearby abandoned building where they share space, food and other resources, just like a commune, minus the bean sprouts and fortified by malt * * * * * liquor. This is an aspect of poverty rarely noted or commented on: the bonds of To break with poverty is to break with the mutually sustaining community mutual support, usually manifested in family, but also extending to others. of the poor. And such a beak can be painful and dramatic. There is a whole This is not something very often measured or praised. Any night we can turn literature dedicated to the pain of that break (as in Great Expectations by on the news and see reports of violence in poor communities. If we read the Dickens or Sons and Lovers by D.H. Lawrence). “Don’t get above your raisin’” reports, we can know how many reported acts of violence happen each year, warns an old country saying (and an even better bluegrass song). To break city by city, neighborhood by neighborhood, and we know these numbers are with this community is to mark oneself as proud, arrogant, self-centered, only a fragment of what actually occurs. But for the acts of kindness, sacrifice, puffed-up, better than others. And the person who leaves poverty might solidarity, we have no measure at all. We may not know of all the abuse that experience a great deal of alienation, isolation, guilt, prejudice, disorientation occurs, but we have statistics. But we have no statistics for the frequency of and loneliness. nurturance, care, or support. Crime? We can tell you. But what is the opposite And yet, for addicts in poverty, such a break with the community might be of crime? We don’t even have a word for what happens when a person has crucial to recovery. Old people, old places, old things is a formula for relapse. every reason to commit crime but doesn’t. The recovering person must find new community quickly, before the terrible sense of isolation, coupled with the cravings of addiction, bring the addict * * * * * right back to the corner. Hence, the urgency of the 12-step programs, which build a new community Who paid for Rose’s party? It had to be the people around her, her for the addict, as well as after-care planning and other systems of support. neighbors and friends. Pensioners gave up a little of what they had. The metal scrappers came back from Garden Street with a little of what they made * * * * * turning car fenders and abandoned refrigerators into cash. Somebody went downtown and flew a sign on Court Street for a few hours, so people were When I left for home, the sun had shifted again, and Rose’s party had able to eat and, more important, drink through the day. moved across the street. She had drunk herself nearly numb, and her eyes What does Rose have left to celebrate? Most of her teeth and most of her were distant and abstracted. She was weeping more quietly now, and only self-respect are gone, as are her husband to cancer and her children to foster two of the friends remained. They were drunk and subdued as well. Perhaps care. they were thinking of their own losses. Perhaps they had drunk enough Steel I think there is a certain purity to her celebration, like that of a saint or a Reserve that they did not need to think at all. Bodhisattva, for she has nothing left to celebrate but another day of living. The dollars still fluttered from Rose’s blouse. She waved again, and I You or I might not call it living, but it’s her life to decide what she’s living. crossed to wish her happy birthday one last time. If it’s too far a stretch to compare a sloppy drunk in Over-the-Rhine to a She wiped back the latest tears from her cheeks and she thanked me and saint or a Bodhisattva, then let’s leave her to celebrate the generous dollars she smiled. that have come her way. You can be sure they will be gone before morning, Her friends smiled with her. ammered H Michael Henson is author of Ransack, A Small Room with Trouble on My Mind, The Tao of Longing and Crow Call. www.facebook.com/ streetvibescincinnati twitter.com/ streetvibesnews streetvibes. wordpress.com �STREETVIBES August 15 - 31, 2010 7 Music Interview When the Walls Come Tumbling John Mellencamp on poverty and music T oledo, Ohio – Editor’s note: John Mellencamp met last month with Ken Leslie of the Toledo Streets. They discussed Mellencamp’s long career in music and his commitment to social justice. Reprinted with permission of the Toledo Streets. Ken Leslie: On behalf of 1Matters, Toledo Streets and the street paper movement and everyone who has lost domestic or financial autonomy in our country, thank you for your time today. We first met two years ago or so when you made an un-promoted stop at the annual Tent City, Project Homeless Connect, in Toledo. You just wanted them to know they matter. Bob Merlis (Mellencamp’s publicist) told me you were touched by the experience. How so? John Mellencamp: When you see what progress can produce, and also what progress can discard, it makes a feller wonder if some of the progress, let me put it this way, calling it progress does not make it right. In this country right now there is no middle class, no place for middle class. You are either really rich or you are really down and out. It’s hard times in this country right now. KL: You brought your wife, Elaine, and son, Speck, with you to Tent City. When you had your private talk with some of the unhoused, at first Speck stood back, but by the end of your conversation he was in the circle listening to every word. Compassion is a pretty cool thing for a father to pass on to a son. Did he share his thoughts on the experience before and after? JM: I don’t remember exactly, but I will tell you he is a very activist type of kid. I found that out when he was pretty young. He did some research at school on some chocolate company and he wrote them a letter and it said, “You cheapskates, why don’t you hire and why don’t you pay fair, ya so-and-so.” And he almost got me into trouble last year, too. KL: How so? JM: He had a petition on Facebook to try to get me to stop smoking. He had, I think, about a half a million people sign up and he had to get a million. The whole conversation was just at Thanksgiving last year. We had completed our Thanksgiving dinner and I lit up a cigarette at the table. He looked at me and he went like, “Really, Dad?” And I said, “What do you mean, ‘Really Dad’, I smoke all the time?” And he said, “Yeah, but it’s Thanksgiving, I’m not done eating.” I said, “OK, I’ll go somewhere else; it’s a big house.” So I went into another room. A couple hours later he walks up and said, “Hey Dad, if I get a million people to sign up on Facebook, would you stop smoking?” And I said, “Yeah, go ahead.” That was the end of the conversation. By the time the thing had started, ya know, a couple weeks into it, Larry King wanted him to come on, Good Morning America asked him, and of course I wouldn’t let him go on anywhere. First of all, I don’t want him talking about my bad habits; and second of all, ya know, I knew he’d reach his mark. KL: And then what? JM: And then I’d have to stop smoking. KL: Would ya? Have you tried? How many times have you tried? JM: Listen, I have no desire to stop, so there’s no reason to even have that conversation. If I would have wanted to stop smoking, I would have years go. KL: Took me like 32 times of quittin’ to finally do it. JM: Yeah, well, you wanted to stop. I’m confirmed. KL: And your other son, Hud? JM: He’s 16 years old and he fights tomorrow night. KL: Boxer or Extreme? JM: Boxer. He holds five state championships John Mellencamp says an early band mate was shunned for being black. Toledo Streets. right now. He just got back from Annapolis. They want him to be a boxer for them and he went up and trained for two weeks. KL: Was that nerve-wracking to see him box? JM: No, I know how much Hud trains. He’s ready to fight. His record is 20-2. He’s a bad-ass, I can tell ya that. KL: Did you ever box? JM: No, I could fight in the street, but this is a sport to him. He’s very good at it. I’m proud of them both. KL: When you were on stage at Tent City, you spontaneously decided to invite everybody there to your concert, all of the unhoused people. JM: Right. KL: Sixty to 70 people went, and I understand you talked to them from the stage about hope. As you know, one of the guests came back from the show and said “Ken, John talked to us from the stage – I guess I really do matter.” That was the founding moment of 1Matters and actually that’s why we’re here today. Your whole career, you’ve had the compassion for and worked for those with little or no voice. What is the root of that compassion in John Mellencamp? Where does it come from? Was there something in your childhood maybe that started this feeling of compassion? JM: Well, for me, it started with race. I was in a band when I was 13-14 years old and it was the mid-’60s and it was a racially mixed band. I was the lead singer, and this black kid was a singer. He was a couple years older than me, really good. We’d play every weekend at fraternities and in hotels and stuff like that. It was a soul band. And I saw the way people treated him. Ya know, it was like wow, really? Wait a minute, you loved him on stage, but now he’s gotta go wait outside? And so I think that made quite an impression on me as a young guy. KL: How’d you respond? JM: Well, there were times that there were fistfights. I remember in a little town in Indiana there was a fistfight in between one of our breaks because of his race. So, ya know. KL: And since then you’ve carried on standing up for farmers, for the people. I remember Jena. You stuck up for people there and actually put a lot of your work and effort into that. JM: Well I’m Sisyphus myself; I’m always the guy who’s rolling the rock up the hill. Ya know, and every time I get too close to the top, I either let it roll back down on purpose or it just rolls back, catches on fire and rolls down at someone. So I know what it’s like to have to work at something. My struggle is obviously different than some folks’ struggle, but nevertheless we all have our problems. KL: How would you define your struggle? JM: Um, well I’ll answer it like this: A man writes to what he strives to be, not what he is. KL: The crucible that caused me to get involved in this movement in 1990 was a result of performing in comedy clubs all across the country in the late ’80s and seeing more and more people on the streets. It was the statistic that 60 percent of them were families with children that forced me to act and do something. For you, with Farm Aid, tell me about that one moment that caused you to be a part 25 years ago and to maintain it even today. JM: I had written a song with a friend of mine called “Rain on the Scarecrow,” and I had just made an album about what I had seen – ya know, what prosperity had done to the small towns, how they had leveled them out and devastated small-town America. So we made this record called Scarecrow; and then when Willie (Nelson) called, there was like, it took me about a second to decide I wanted to be a part of Farm Aid. When Willie called up, he had like a vague notion of what Farm Aid was gonna be. It was no more than just a vague notion, and we really had no idea it was gonna last. We have our 25th anniversary coming up October 2. KL: What was Willie’s notion? JM: Ah, he didn’t really have much of a notion, it was a bunch of maybes and guesses and “I don’t knows,” ya know. KL: Did that start because of Bob Dylan’s comment at Live Aid? JM: Ah, that’s what he said, you know, that Bob had said something about, you know, that we should try to take care of our own people. I think that inspired Willie. KL: One of the things that I’ve always admired about you is your courage in social justice. You take a huge pile of truth, dump it in front of them and say, “Smell this.” Based on your lifetime of fighting for the truth, has your position changed in the sense See Wall, p. 10 �8 Food and Art STREETVIBES August 15 - 31, 2010 “Feed Me, Seymour, Feed Me All Night Long…” Grilled Cheese w/ Tomato on Sourdough Serving Size: 1 belly ½ tablespoon unsalted butter (or substitute for vegans) ¼ tablespoon fresh minced garlic 2 slices sourdough bread 4 slices fresh tomato 2-4 slices aged white cheddar cheese (or substitute for vegans) Tired of plain ol' grilled cheese sandwiches? Try this one on for size. Jeni Jenkins. Heat butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and sauté 30 seconds or until lightly browned. Place cheese and tomatoes on sourdough and saute each side for approximately 1 minute or until each side is toasty brown, making sure garlic coats each side. Voila, feed! Cartoon by Anne Skove ! ? t ha W y Sa ___________________ We’ve got to take back the ideal of justice. We’ve got to take back this principle of human dignity. We’ve got to take it back from vengeance, from hatred. We’ve got to say, “Look, we’re all in this together. We are human beings.” – David Kaczynski �9 Local News STREETVIBES August 15 - 31, 2010 Officer Runs Over Woman in Park Crushed to death while lying in grass By Gregory Flannery Editor J oann Burton’s death in Washington Park remains under investigation by the Ohio State Highway Patrol. She died July 27 of injuries sustained after being run over by a police cruiser as she lay on the grass. Burton, who was homeless, was 48. The Hamilton County Prosecutor’s Office will decide whether to file criminal charges against Cincinnati Police Officer Marty Polk, who was in the park on a routine patrol. Polk drove off a service road and into the grass, according to the police department. Officers at the park initially told Streetvibes that Burton had only sustained a foot injury. County Coroner O’dell Owens ruled the death accidental, caused by blunt-force injuries. Burton suffered a lacerated liver and pelvic and rib fractures, according to Owens. The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless organized a vigil in Burton’s memory in Washington Park the night of the fatal accident. Josh Spring, executive director of the Homeless Coalition, also called for a change in police procedures. “The Burton family and the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless anxiously await the results of the state investigation,” Spring says. “The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless demands a change in policy. Other than in extreme situations, such as a shooting, police must not be allowed to drive through the grassy, pedestrian areas in parks. This practice is simply too dangerous. Together we can prevent such a tragedy.” Cleo’s Joke Corner What do you call a detective who takes bubble baths? Sherlock Foam. Thomas J. “Cornbread” Oats (center) listens to a hymn sung by an unidentified woman (right) July 27, while friends and acquaintances of his wife, Joann Burton, construct a makeshift candle-lit memorial during a vigil. Burton, 48, a homeless woman, was killed late that morning when a Cincinnati Police cruiser ran her over while she was lying on the grass in the park. Jon Hughes/Photopresse. Poetry Corner Four Haiku Poem Cancer Treatment: B D S. P The Unknown Story y avid ointer *** Needle exchange site where night shift teens mainline towards love *** Blue reef surfers rumble and ride a dream *** Three strikes out of trouble at the bowling alley *** Elder’s rag box off rez homeless shelter now arson ash Woman By Elisa Hill God gave her that title that you just can’t tuck away. God gave her that throne that you just can’t dismiss today. God gave her that voice in which to call out his name. God gave that torch to light up the lands. God gave her that rib to show she has purpose. God gave her that husband to show she is worth it. God gave her that child through so much adversity and pain. God gave her that glory to survive all the rains. God gave her that peace in which her eternity is heaven sent. God gave her that receipt that she paid her dues well spent. See, God gave her his blessing to be whatever she chose to be. She chose to be a great woman, now all life chooses to envy. Thank God! Rock on to all great women! By David S. Pointe Need based assistance Was met with greed Based resistance as Dr. Royal Rife’s new Microscope and cure For cancers’ stemming From viruses and bacteria Were suppressed by an Earlier cunning congress Seated in service to the Medical and pharmaceutical Fortunes to be made then Multiplied when more Unsuspecting people Became patients seen By strategically silent Doctors providing a Certain brand of Quality Care like mortuary assistants Specializing in an untold Spectrum of dark The Men By David S. Pointer It wasn’t a box car supper social They weren’t exchanging job leads A badger-haired hooligan rammed The yard bull into a cattle horned Hat rack for ruining the fish soup The men trampled egg wire baskets And pumpkin goulash trying for a train �10 Music Interview STREETVIBES August 15 - 31, 2010 When the Walls Come Tumbling music, as opposed to building a record or constructing a record. KL: How did you choose the locations? that does authority always win? JM: By the way the tour was routed. I knew that I was gonna be close to JM: Oh, I’m a hypocrite, there’s no question about it. Don’t you know a Memphis, and I knew I was gonna start in Savannah and I have a house hypocrite when ya see one? You’re looking right at him. Ah yeah, I’m in the in right outside of Savannah on an island, so it gave me an opportunity to wind all the time because ya have to be in the wind all the time. If you’re stay there and work a couple days, and then we went to Memphis. Then we steadfast on your commitments … I have a new song. It’s called, “Save Some tried to go to Texas to the building where Johnson also recorded, but it was Time to Dream,” and I address that and it says, “Always keep your mind open condemned and they wouldn’t let us in. So we ended up having to go to San and always question your faith.” You can’t just say that this is my position and Antonio, which was kind of out of the way, but we were only there two days. this is my position for life because, ya know, you discover new information, KL: We absolutely love “Right Behind Me” – the sound, the feel. From the very you see, you grow up. You see things through different eyes. So, you know, I start with Miriam Sterm’s attacking strings. suppose that in the world’s eyes, I’m a hypocrite because I’ll say one thing JM: It’s that corner, that’s the same corner that Robert Johnson recorded and do another, but I said one thing 25 years ago and being judged for an “Hell Hound’s on My Trail” in San Antonio, Texas, Gunter Hotel. And like action that I did today. So, ya know, things change, man. T-Bone (Burnett) said, that’s the best-sounding corner I ever heard. KL: How so? I hear more respect for you and your work in fighting authority KL: Right, that is such a great song. And the hook, the hook is incredible – and I see you winning over time in the things you’re taking on. Is that an you know, “You know the devil, he thinks he got me, he ain’t got me.” illusion? Last question, I can tell you that from when I was unhoused and living in JM: I guess that’s an illusion, ’cause I don’t feel that way. my car, you nailed the feeling of hopelessness in “Graceful Fall.” KL: How do you feel? Since 2007, foreclosures and job losses increased the number of families in JM: I feel like you’re damned if ya do and damned if you don’t – so to hell shelters nearly 30%. Each night there are 640,000 unhoused Americans who with it. That’s what I feel about it. have lost domestic autonomy and are living on the streets and in shelters; 15 KL: Just go with your spirit then. percent are veterans. Some of those will be selling the very street papers which JM: Yeah. are carrying your words right now. As you did from the stage in Toledo, what KL: In the past few years there have been people talking about drafting you are your words of hope to all of our brothers and sisters who are living on the to become an authority, to get you involved with politics. I see you as too honest streets of our country? for that. JM: Wow, that’s a big question, that’s an awfully big question. I wish I had JM: Oh, I couldn’t do that at all. My “cocksuckers” and “motherfuckers” something that I could say that seemed to address that question, but I’m not would probably not fly very well in conversation in the Congress, ya know. sure I really do at this point in our country. So, I don’t know, you know. KL: I could see you on the floor: “Your honorable son of a bitch …” KL: You’ve always been a fighter, you’ve always had hope. JM: “Ya’ lying ccksucker.” Yeah, I don’t think it would go very good. JM: Well, I’ve always, ah, I’ve always had a bunch of dumb cliché things KL: Which is a real good that my family taught me segue to… that I always passed on to JM: Besides, why was my kids. My grandfather that job open? Cause passed them on to me and the guy that was doing it they’ve always provided couldn’t stand it anymore. some sort of hope in my He wanted to quit because life. the hypocrisy was too great They’re not very for him, so he said, “I can’t eloquent, but the greatest do this anymore.” Not me. advice I ever got in my life KL: You’ve always fought and, it’s not very eloquent, convention in your work, but “If you’re gonna hit your life and your music. a cocksucker, kill him.” And No Better Than This And what my grandfather is the perfect example meant when he said that of busting convention was, if you’re actually to shreds. It’s so not the going to do something, McMusic they play on the don’t talk about it, don’t McRadio today. This is a brag about it, just go do it tasty CD. What was your and do it to the best that inspiration for the whole you can possibly do. And premise? that’s what he was saying, JM: Well, I knew I was don’t be threatening, gonna go on tour. Bob don’t be talking, don’t be (Dylan) and I did a tour bragging. I think that, as un-eloquently as it was last summer, and I knew said, it was probably one of I was gonna come close the most important things to all these places. It was said to me in my life. kind of a leisurely tour, so KL: Which is a perfect I thought, well hell, at the thing to say to the people time, let’s make the most on the streets, because if out of this – we’re gonna be Mellencamp's music has long featured political themes. Toledo Streets. you’re gonna get off the in these places, and that streets, you can. was just how it started. JM: You can, you need to! See, the problem is most people give up too early And then I wrote the songs and I wrote all those songs in about in about 10-15 and I’m not talking about just the people on the street, I’m just talking about days, I don’t’ know. It was just I’d get up every morning and I’d write. I’d write two or three songs in a day and I let the songs write themselves, as opposed to people in general. They give up on relationships too early, they give up on themselves too early, they give up on life too early. I mean I’ve been writing sometimes when you write songs you try to steer them a way that you would that since I was a kid. In the song called, “Jack and Diane,” you know they like them to go. But these songs, I just, they kind of wrote themselves really, I were only 16 and already giving up. People just give up too early, they just just let them go wherever they wanted to go and that’s how they ended up. quit, you know: “This is too hard” or “I don’t wanna do this anymore.” KL: What about the idea of the recording process, recorded in mono? I think that’s a problem, and I think that’s a problem our country has. JM: Well, of course, it was a rebellious act of, ya know. There is a song on Over the decades it was allowed to happen by the work ethic and through the record called, “The West End,” and it says “It’s worse now, look what capitalism. A lot of things that affect this country that allow people to think progress did.” So I decided that, you know, to go just as far away from the that way, that the world owes them a living. And as soon as you start thinking popular culture of music as I possibly could and just go back to where it that somebody owes you something, forget it, man; you’re done. And as soon began. The whole record was recorded on one channel and, ya know, one as you start thinking you’re right and everybody else is wrong … It’s like the tape machine (a 1955 Ampex), and the whole band played it once and there guy who was married six or seven times, hell, I think it might be me – I think was one microphone. this could be me, I’m starting to think this is my problem. KL: It is such a pure sound. Ken Leslie has been throwing starfish back in the ocean since 1990 and can JM: There are no over-dubs, no echo, there’s no anything. It’s just what the be contacted at 1Matters.org. room sounded like and it was fun because it was musicians actually playing Continued from page 7 Want more Streetvibes? Check out the Streetvibes blog http://streetvibes.wordpress.com �STREETVIBES August 15 - 31, 2010 Vendor Voice 11 Four Subjects: A Scenario Things aren’t always as they seem L ife on the street can take many turns or, if you will, present many different scenarios. A day can have circumstances and situations that can be baffling, unwarranted or dangerous. In all conclusion, it’s just another day in the life – that familiar way of doing things, if you haven't heard, then sit a spell and hear the way it goes. Street life, disaster and triumph all rolled into one, each episode an integral part of the life – or, if you will, perhaps we'll call it “the game.” Changes and adjustments all included, we begin the games that constitute the life. Applying my minor skills with the language, we'll use four different subjects. “Be not naive, get it straight.” Every player actual exists. Let us start with the Profound Dude. True to the game, he lives his name. Profound! This dude comes up with everything he needs. A professional finder. A place to sleep, something to eat, a dollar or two for his pocket. A way to get to his next stop, these are his objectives in life. A life where sadness and joy are equal. Never to be one without, he has questions for all the answers; seek, and you will find. Always endured with an air of contentment, prowling the neighborhood for his next find, he lives life without concern. Never seeking change, his pleasure in life is to find that one big score, that find that will allow him to retire his cart. Meanwhile he will keep searching for his next find. Profound! Next on our list of characters is the Con Man. He is an investor. Oh, does he have something for you! A line that can't be true, full of promises that you’re sure to believe. A small investment will get you nothing, perhaps an attitude because he has hoodwinked you for a dollar or two. Down the block he strolls looking for his next mark. A seller of dreams and hopes that, for the sake of your common sense, you want to believe. Yet that is his game! Hey, want to buy a bridge (Brooklyn’s)? Or perhaps a wall (China’s)? Ah! The Trickster. Now this is a dude that you have to watch, because he is out for what he can get at your expense. His game is based on pure lies. Though you think you might have heard this before (the con man), there is a difference. Unlike his closest of kin, the Trickster is asking for small change – that is, until you go into your pocket to spare him the change so that he can get something to eat. The moment he sees your wad, he remembers he has to ride the Metro, so now it’s, “Can you spare more?” The dissimilarities don’t end there. The Trickster can be an illusionist. He might have a month-old hospital band on his arm to convince you that he just left the hospital for some terminal injury. So do you have a little more for a prescription he can’t afford? Listen to his spiel and you’re sure to be tricked. Now we come to the last but not the least of the players. Mr. Pitiful. Think you’ve heard every story that’s ever been told? Well, he has a new one for you. The day his wife left and his children ran away from home, and his poor dog died from starvation. Then there’s the one about how he’s new to the area, just got off the Greyhound. Can you direct him to the nearest shelter or perhaps tell him where to get a meal? Better yet, “I’m starved. Can you spare $5? Please, please, I need pity on me. Can’t you see that I can’t do anything on my own?” Of course, not all street players have some deception in mind when you encounter them. However, the reality is that those who are out to deceive you are on the prowl. It is my belief that, if you have at least some indication of who you encounter, then you will have a better judgment of the people who have that life of the street, thus allowing you to better judge the needs you perceive. Ah, such a familiar term: “Perception.” The golden rule: Things are not always what they seem. Nor can we react in that pre-determined way of our beliefs or ideas. We all tend to do what we know and know what we do. Suzy Cincinnatian Finds Her Voice How to advocate for affordable housing By Michelle Dillingham Contributing Writer H er name is Suzy Cincinnatian. She believes everyone should have the opportunity to live in housing whose appliances work, free of roaches, free of chipping leadpoisoned paint; that families should not have to decide between paying the rent, and paying for medications or food. Sometimes Suzy Cincinnatian hears about a developer getting a tax break from the city for a redevelopment project yet there is no plan to include affordable units, and the developer plans to move out the people of lower incomes who live there now. Sometimes she hears that some city politicians are delaying a much-needed transitional-living apartment project, or they want to displace a homeless shelter. She is angered: This isn’t right and wishes there was a way she could share her opinion. She wonders, “Isn’t anyone going to do anything about this?” The first thing Suzy needs to know is that much of what happens that impacts affordable housing, such as subsidies and projects, is centered in the legislative process at City Hall and the Hamilton County Board of Commissioners. This is why Affordable Housing Advocates AHA, as an advocacy organization, encourages monitoring and weighing in on decisions made by officials elected to those bodies. An effective way to engage with Cincinnati city leadership is to review council’s calendar and write an e-mail or call to let them know your opinion. Anyone can review the city’s committee agenda to see what is on deck for discussion and action. Sometimes the agenda does not come out on the city’s Web site until right before the deadline, which is 24 hours before the meeting. Something Suzy Cincinnatian might not know is that anyone can call the council member who is chair of the committee and simply ask her staff what, if anything, is on the calendar related to housing. They will refer to something on the agenda as an “item,” which can be in the form of a motion, an ordinance, a resolution or communication: Motion: A motion is a formal proposal by a member of council, in a meeting, that the council take certain action. Ordinance: An ordinance has the effect of local law in the City of Cincinnati. Ordinances are codified in the Municipal Code of the City of Cincinnati. Resolution: A resolution is an action by the Council that generally does not have the effect of law. A resolution generally expresses council's will, intent or policy on a particular matter. Also, the council generally appoints individuals to serve on authorities, boards and commissions by the adoption of a resolution. Communication: A communication can be a letter, an e-mail, or any written form of communication from anyone that a council member can add to the agenda so it can be a permanent part of the city’s record. An Internet search strategy to monitor housing issues in Cincinnati is to check “Council On-Line” linked to the city’s Web site. Here you can put in the word “housing” for a search and it will provide you with any and all items that have come through City Hall related to housing. Having a vocal, visible presence from those who advocate for affordable housing is important to help set a pattern of response and awareness of the affordable housing agenda by council and commissioners. Opponents to affordable housing testify, write and meet with city and county administration, employees and elected officials to dissuade them from supporting affordable housing. We must do the same to provide a balance as they contemplate decisions that have a great impact on all of us. There are a great number of issues that Suzy Cincinnatian can get involved in: the development of Over-the-Rhine, which includes significant changes to Washington Park and its surrounding housing stock; participating in “PLAN Cincinnati,” our city’s planning document for the future; and a plethora of state and federal legislation that affects affordable housing locally, to name a few. Of course, another way to get involved is to come to AHA’s monthly member meeting and get informed on all the most upto-date events and happenings related to affordable housing in Cincinnati. AHA members are effective advocates collectively and we can always use more voices: We attend meetings of the board of the Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority Board and city council and in the near future will be meeting with political candidates to educate them on the affordable housing community’s concerns. If you are like Suzy Cincinnatian, she now knows that AHA is here to help find her voice for affordable-housing advocacy. For more information on how to get involved with AHA, call Michelle Dillingham, AHA project coordinator, at 513-602-4260. �12 Guest Column STREETVIBES August 15 - 31, 2010 ‘Streetvibes’: An Appreciation And a hope for things to come By Martha Stephens Contributing Writer I ’m retired, and I spend the winters with my daughter in a progressive town in New Mexico. The first thing I look for at home are my back issues of Streetvibes – I want to see what’s really happening. Coming back this spring, I saw that Cincinnati life seemed to be going from bad to worse, that progressive people are not organized, that big money is in the saddle sitting taller than ever, moving to take over every foot of downtown space, for instance, for its own profiteering, buying its own Republican City Council, hoping to ride the rest of us into the abyss. We are to have the city they want us to have, like it or not. To me it feels like an occupied country here. Street papers are wonderful, though. I love them, and I was happy to read about street papers around the world in the June reports by Greg Flannery (see “Do You Want to Hold Me?,” issue of June 1-14). It’s wonderful that Greg was able to go to Australia and compare notes with other editors and tell us how they do things and how we compare in Cincinnati. And we do well! We have a heckuva good paper here and good numbers, selling 8,000 papers a month through the work of no less than 50 vendors and a great many talented writers, individuals willing to work hard just for conscience and no pay. Street papers, Greg tells us, all provide income for vendors; but for me, at least, their value goes way beyond that, for the best of these papers tell us not just about poverty and homelessness but the root causes of poverty and homelessness and help us map out the struggles we have to wage to provide every citizen a place to live and a job and health care and all the rest – in short, to change our whole rapacious economic system. ‘We need to know’ Business values are not human values, and money machines are quite ready to throw people out of their spaces if they can’t make money off them. Tom Dutton knows this better than anyone, I’m sure, and I was glad to see his comprehensive piece called “Over-the-Rhine: A context for the city’s attack on the Drop Inn Center” (See “District 9: Over-the-Rhine,” issue of June 1530). The brutal displacement of people who get in the way of commerce is an old story in Cincinnati, and I appreciated Dutton’s careful outline of the displacements of recent years – from the Milner to the Metropole; from the ordinance in 2001 to control low-income housing in “impacted” areas, to the attempt to zone out service agencies from Over-the-Rhine. What was in it for the refugees? Nothing but promises – never kept. For the hundred units lost at the Milner Hotel in 1994, where low-income individuals had found a home for many years, not one exists today, Dutton writes. I had wondered about that. If people don’t want homeless faces staring at them from the streets and doorways of downtown, gazing at the responsible citizens strolling down the sidewalks to Music Hall, shouldn’t we provide, as Dutton says, more decent-paying, lower-skilled jobs? Some affordable housing, some treatment for addiction, some health care, some child care, some education? Aren’t those the ways to reduce homelessness? Seems all too obvious, yet apparently it can’t be done. “The crisis of affordable housing” is the subject of Michele Dillingham’s report in the same June issue, and the data on Section 8 availability seems truly amazing – 24,000 subsidized units for the 121,000 families who need them. Dutton’s piece, and Dillingham’s, moved me to go back to a certain book I possess on the blood-smeared history of the West End, a book called Contested Ground by John Emmeus Davis (Cornell University Press, 1991). It tells quite a story. Over 50,000 residents, mostly black and some of them householders, became refugees from the West End during the so-called urban renewal cataclysms of the 1940s, ’50s an ’60s – throwing out citizens from their homes for the sake of industrial takeovers, for “improved” housing and for the clear cutting of hundreds of acres to build Interstate 75. In those years a whole vibrant way of life was lost. The black churches were lost, the black settlement houses, the black schools and libraries, the nightclubs, the rich musical New York-style entertainments. Author Davis came down from the east during the ’80s to research and write this story. He studied a lot of documents and interviewed a lot of citizens, some of whom still remembered all that had taken place. He interviewed Maurice McCracken. Beginning in the 1960s, West Enders had gotten organized and fought back. They won back some of their rights, and Davis was particularly interested in this fightback in Cincinnati against the power elite of the city/business coalition of the time, the same one we struggle against today. In Greg Flannery’s report, “Beggars Must Now Be Choosers,” we learn that this alliance is now trying to take away the long-standing right of the Coalition for the Homeless to set minimum standards for its members, which have allowed for the sheltering of people who also panhandle (see issue of July 1-14). One must watch to see what happens to the coalition’s lawsuit to block the city’s new panhandling rule. It is a suit that also tries to restore the coalition’s prerogatives, and the loss of the role traditionally played by the coalition seems like a very serious matter. We should all be contacting the city, perhaps, about this ugly denial of free speech for the poor and about the attack on the coalition. “Brother, can you spare a dime” is a plea not to be spoken in Cincinnati? The physical violence against the homeless around the country is well documented in the July report by Margo Pierce (see “Hate Wave,” issue of July 1-14). It makes painful reading. Anger against people who are in need or simply different is rising in these hard times, and we read in “Sheriff Wants to Follow Arizona” about a local sheriff who flies off to Arizona to study the anti-emigrant law he hopes to emulate in Butler County (see issue of June 1-14). What next for poor old Cincinnati? Haven’t we seen it all? On emigrants, I was glad to read Jeremy Flannery’s report on the International Socialist Organization’s (ISO) forum at the University of Cincinnati. I’d have looked in on this meeting, had I known about it. An ISO activist from Chicago came down to participate, and another speaker was Dan La Botz, who’s running for the U. S. Senate and knows a great deal about the lives of Latinos. He is the author of the book, Democracy in Mexico: Peasant Rebellion and Political Reform. We need to know the bad and the ugly in his town and all that the power elite is up to – but also that people of conscience are still among us. I liked hearing about the doctors and other workers at the McMicken Dental Clinic, about the defeat of a strange new sex-offender law, about the Avondale Youth Council, about the “New Marijuana Majority” (see issue of July 15-31). I enjoyed the reports by Saad Ghosn on engaged artists and Bonnie Neumeier’s poem “If Only” about her dreams for Overthe-Rhine. ‘We must organize’ It was good to read about the presence in Northside of four individuals speaking out around the country for nuclear abolition, in the report “Sad Anniversary for the A-Bomb” (see issue of June 15-30). I wondered if this group knew about Carol Rainey’s book, A Hundred Miles from Home, on the long-hidden nuclear waste in our own area. Their work report made me think about a favorite little verse of mine by John Hall Wheelock, called “Earth”: “A planet doesn’t explode of itself,” said drily The Martian astronomer, gazing off into the air -“That they were able to do it is proof that highly Intelligent brings must have been living there.” I appreciated the column by Michael Henson, “A Message to Social Workers” (see issue of July 1-14). Helping is wonderful, he writes, and many of our social workers are very good at it, but workers can help only “too late and too small,” and so should also work to change the system that is creating such massive need. “We are bound,” he writes, “to operate on good, evidence-based practices. But it is not enough. We have to be political.” I was glad to see this view expressed. During my long years at U.C, I ran into officials and faculty who felt that teachers should not express their own views about society in the classroom. I felt we had a perfect right to do just that, whenever it was relevant to what we were teaching, and as long as we gave students a chance to speak up, too. I tried to design courses that would lead to vivid exchanges and change students’ minds about society, and I hope we did change some minds. Also in July was the splendid frontpage picture of solidarity people marching through the Arizona desert to simulate the desperate journey of the migrants, whose bones are so often found in that scorched Sonoran earth (see “Trail of Tears, Trail of Death,” issue of July 15-31). Churches are in the forefront of struggle these days, and it was good to read about the work for jobs of the Amos Project, their support for Senator Brown’s Local Jobs for America Act and their delivery of 1,000 job applications to the offices of U.S. Rep. Steve Driehaus (D-Cincinnati) and U.S. Sen. George Voinovich (R-Ohio). Certainly workers are in a cruel position these days. Paul Kopp makes this clear in his July report, “Championing the Workers’ Rights” about the attack on union supporters at Champion Windows and Doors (see issue of July 15). Most people can hardly find out about struggles like this any more – they aren’t considered news by our morning newspaper or on TV, but maybe it’s just as well. I recall that, in the first issue of a magazine I once edited, The Cincinnati Review, a piece was sent us by a young journalist who was being placed on probation for union-organizing at Cincinnati Suburban Press (CSP). His name was Greg Flannery, and after wild and almost comical performances by CSP officials at a National Labor Relations Board hearing, he wrote up that story, too: “On the Union Battlements: More Dirty Tricks.” Here was the Streetvibes mode before there was a Streetvibes. I think street papers are the souls of cities. I wish we could print 10 times, 20 times, more papers than we do. All of us readers should perhaps get up from our desks and computers and figure out how to help circulate our street paper, help it reach out to all the citizens who could engage with it and who might become as disturbed as we are by the crimes against humanity we see around us every day. We must organize –somehow – against the ruination of life on our small, inconspicuous planet. Should we all go out and stand in the street and say, “We won’t move until …?” I don’t know, but we must do something – together. We like to remember that there’s more of Us and than there is of Them. If there’s power in numbers, we have the numbers. Why then are we so abjectly shy and silent so much of the time? ß Does anyone have the answer? Martha Stephens is the author of The Treatment: The Story of Those Who Died in the Cincinnati Radiation Tests. �STREETVIBES August 15 - 31, 2010 13 Book Review From the Streets to the Sanctuary I met God while I was homeless better life and a more normal American life. The American dream was all I wanted but I was in jail because nobody seemed to believe that I needed By Andrew Martin a good night’s sleep. The judge understood me and freed me without any Contributing Writer criminal record, and he even flew me back to Cincinnati. I missed most of all just having a bed to sleep in at night, a nice shower and a place to eat three ll the first 21 years of my life I traveled and lived with the homeless, meals a day. This judge was the first of many times that God began to help me whether it was in my father’s house or on a beach in Tampa, Fla. and show me that He cared for my life. When I was 5 years old, my mother left my father with seven In 1984, God answered my prayer by sending a youth pastor of an children. Life became difficult with her departure, and I learned to live international student ministry to call me. With this youth pastor, I began to without many of the bare essentials of life. My Dad housed many homeless seek God for his answers through the study of the book of Genesis. I came to people in our house as we were growing up, and I got to hear their stories realize that God created us all and he had a wonderful purpose for our lives. and understand the amazing Though I was now 21 years of age, never finished high school, was variety of lives that they lived a sorrowful single father and never held down a real job, I decided to until they fell on hard times. As the years went by, I saw my own life trust God to make a new start and go to college. It was his love that I grew up in Mount Auburn fall apart from the poor decisions I made. motivated me and gave me courage to face the “Red Sea” that was in with my Dad and my six other front of me. It was His love that changed this shy boy into a man with I was taken from my family and put into siblings. Since we were very great confidence and hope for a bright future. In the past, all I knew an orphanage. Later I became a teenaged poor, most of my friends were was hardship and failure. God’s love motivated me to reach out to single father and a high-school dropout. those whom my Dad invited to my brothers and sisters who lived on the streets and were homeless. I began to lose all hope in life, and began stay in our house. Amazingly, it I used to spend every day witnessing on the streets God’s love to to turn to alcohol and drugs. Many nights was these street people, many those who walked by. I discovered that God has a great purpose for I found myself sleeping on the streets homeless, who watched us as everyone and that even failures or being homeless does not mean when I was just in my late teens. Deep children while my Dad was at defeat or hopelessness. In fact, in God, they are places or stations in despair crept into my soul, and I really work and we got to know them your life where you can grow in faith and love. felt that there was no way out. like family. I began to write and speak out every chance I could get – even My father was a roofer and writing a few articles in the past in Streetvibes and other newspapers. painter who worked in Cincinnati. I learned early in life that every person After graduating from five colleges and becoming a registered nurse, in 2005, has a story. I learned that many homeless people were once very successful I wrote my first book, Crossing the Red Sea, named “inspirational book of the in the world's eyes. Due to poor choices, addictions or tragedies, they lost year” by Christianstoryteller.com. God helped me to write this book because everything. One homeless man I knew was once a millionaire who built I wanted to share my story with others, including those who lived on the customized homes but fell in the trap of alcoholism and lost everything. streets and the homeless. In many ways, living on the streets or becoming homeless can happen to I had an interview with Barbara Cain on 93.3 FM radio station, and stories any one of us. Yes, there are some who could get a job and better their lives have been written about the work of God in my life in some of the local but others are just victims of life’s challenges or choices that went bad. In newspapers. Those who live on the streets or who are homeless represent all my teen years I became homeless for a while and understand the everyday of us. They all have stories and it is great to have a newspaper like Streetvibes hardships just to find a shower or to get a meal without being looked down on that enables the homeless to have a voice so that they can be heard. by the rest of society. Homeless people are not looking so much for handouts Last year I wrote a second book, His Vision, His Beauty, and His Glory: Our but for support and help so that they can get back on their feet and work out life and purpose on planet earth. I recently finished my third book, To Be things that went bad in their lives. There are always going to be people who With God. My books are read all over the world, but at one time I lived on the are unemployed in our society. streets. A few years ago my supervisor at work went to Rome and gave Pope As the years went by, I saw my own life fall apart from the poor decisions I Benedict XVI a signed copy of Crossing the Red Sea. made. I was taken from my family and put into an orphanage. Later I became I find much of what I learned on the streets and from the homeless people a teenaged single father and a high-school dropout. I began to lose all hope who lived with us over the years is the wisdom of God. God’s truth is seen in life, and began to turn to alcohol and drugs. Many nights I found myself so clearly through their struggles of life. Jesus teaches us in the gospel to sleeping on the streets when I was just in my late teens. Deep despair crept embrace all people and that the good news must be preached to the poor into my soul, and I really felt that there was no way out. (Matthew 11:5). Everyone deserves the right to be heard and the dignity of life At the age of 16, I left home and found myself wandering on the streets in which has been given to all of us by our creator. We must lift up the fallen with Tampa. I was eventually arrested and put in jail. The day that I was arrested prayer and let them know that there is always hope in God. There is no shame I was sleeping in an abandoned truck in a gas station in Tampa. Though the in living on the streets or being homeless; even Jesus was homeless. Instead, truck had no tires, I was falsely accused of trying to steal the truck, but only may God’s good purpose be carried out in all of our brothers and sisters, no slept in the truck to get a good night’s sleep. In jail, I thought long and hard matter where you are in life. You are not alone; God is with you. about the meaninglessness of my life and I got on my knees and prayed Andrew Martin is pastor of University Bible Fellowship Church in Highland sincerely to God for the first time, “Dear Lord, Help me. Amen.” Heights, Ky. Like many who live on the streets or who are homeless, I just wanted a A There’s A Gleam in the Bengals And no holdouts as the season begins By B. Clifton Burke Contributing Writer I t was January 11, 1986, at Cleveland's old Municipal Stadium where Marty Schottenheimer gathered his troops on the sideline and told them that there existed a part of football beyond that of our physical senses. He called it “the gleam.” He didn't go into detail; he simply told them it existed and to go get it. I used to think he was the only one who ever knew anything about the gleam and that perhaps he was a mystic, but reading about the Bengals lately, I think I can sense the gleam, too. I'm an emotionally cautious person these days when it comes to the Bengals. I used to get all fired up when training camp would roll around and pronounce them serious contenders … every year. Then the 2008 season came along and crushed my spirit. Obviously, last year soothed some of that trauma, yet nonetheless, I've tried to remain guarded about my favorite team – it just isn't working. They have a gleam to them. Even when I try to think analytically about the whole thing, it still equates to the Bengals having a great season. I don't detect a clear weakness in this team, and they were damn good last year with what seems like half of this year's roster. They're deep at nearly every position, they have a platoon of healthy players returning and now they have real star power. The coaches can feel it, the players can feel and I can, too. Something is certainly shining in Georgetown, Ky. right now. I know what you're thinking: It's TO that's getting me so excited. Well, you're mostly right. What I am dying to find out is how the Bengals will attack the New England Patriots in Week 1. Even if Antonio Bryant still isn't healthy, suddenly Cincinnati has one of the deepest receiving corps in the league and can throw to a plethora of targets. Jason LaCanfora of the NFL Network said that what he hears from scouts is that Owens is best when teams put him in motion and move him around to seek out match-ups that favor the offense. Buffalo wasn't able to use TO like that last year, but our offense can put him all over the field and still not draw double teams. With Chad Ochocinco and Jermaine Gresham on the field, too, defenses will have to pick their poison against these guys. That's even if we pass all that much. Bob Bratkowski has been steady with his remarks that this remains a power-run team, and that, he says, won't change. Who can blame him? Now that Cedric Benson is officially off the hook with the commissioner's office, might as well use him up – considering he becomes a free agent after this season. The line is built for the run, especially if that fat ass Andre Smith can get it going, and the stable of running backs complements one another nicely. I don't think anyone has a problem with the Bengals racking up the rushing yards, but it's when they need to pass that needs improved, and after a vigorous campaign to improve just that, I think they will be. Not one player held out because they didn't like their current contract, despite the upcoming labor skirmish swirling around the new collective bargaining agreement and despite its being the cool thing to do. No one (of importance) hurt himself in the off-season. No one got suspended. Fans are flocking to Georgetown in record numbers to scream support to their team. National pundits now like the Bengals. Mike Brown just pulled off one of the most successful off-seasons in recent memory. Crazy things are happening. It's the gleam! Mojokong—bubbling over. �14 STREETVIBES August 15 - 31, 2010 Guest Column Likes and Dislikes in My Life Why is one so often connected with the other? By Larry Gross Contributing Writer Feel free to let me know if I’m full of it, but it seems in everyday life – at least in mine – there are things I like that are so often connected with things I don’t like, or vice versa. Sometimes you have to put up with some of life’s discomforts and nuisances to get to the pleasures. Sometimes it’s the other way around. I’ll give you some personal examples of what I’m getting at. I dislike the whole process of showering in the morning, getting the hot water right, using the soap and washing my hair while getting shampoo in my eyes; but afterward, I like the idea that I’m clean. Shaving is something I never look forward to, but I like applying after-shave to my face when the task is done. I’ve been using this Arctic Blue stuff for years and like the way it stings when it touches my shaved face. I’m sad and don’t like it when family and friends pass away, but cheer up when I remember how lucky I was to have had the chance to know them. I like talking to strangers while riding on the bus but I don’t like it when I start to suspect that the person I’m talking to is crazy. I hate having to record all those ATM receipts I have stuffed in my wallet but I love the fact I always know exactly how much money I have in my checking account. Having President Obama in office is something I like, but I dislike the fact that he’s turned out to be a conservative. Even an old fart of my age still enjoys having sex, but even old farts like me don’t necessarily enjoy a lot of small talk after the sex is over. We can talk later. Not that I sleep around that much, but when I do get a “date,” I like touching real breasts on feel when I’ve had too much of it. women. Those breasts can be of any size or color; I I believe in and like taking public transportation don’t care. What I hate discovering are fake breasts but dislike it when that public transportation of any size or color. I know doesn’t show up on time. immediately if they’re not I enjoy lending books to When I go grocery shopping at real. It’s a turnoff. friends that I think they might I dislike having arguments like but I become annoyed Kroger, I really dislike it when or disagreements with and dislike it when months I hold up the line and have friends, but like the fact that or even years go by and they to tell the cashier that I need I know them well enough to don’t bother to return the cigarettes and she or he has simply say what I think. book. to go to the service desk to When I go grocery Getting back to the old fart get the key to go and unlock shopping at Kroger, I really business, I like the fact that the cigarette case to get the dislike it when I hold up I still look at pretty young cigarettes; and I especially the line and have to tell the girls but dislike the fact that dislike it when he or she gets cashier that I need cigarettes sometimes I feel like a dirty the wrong brand and has to and she or he has to go to old man. repeat the whole process, but the service desk to get the I like listening and I like it when the ordeal is over key to go and unlock the watching thunderstorms for both of us. cigarette case to get the or heavy rain but dislike it cigarettes; and I especially when I’m caught out in those dislike it when he or she gets the wrong brand and thunderstorms or heavy rain. has to repeat the whole process, but I like it when I like snow but don’t like it when it starts to melt. the ordeal is over for both of us. While I don’t like the fact that I’m getting older – While on the subject of cigarettes, there’s I wish time would slow down – but it’s better than nothing I like better in the morning than a the alternative, which is being dead. I like the fact cigarette with a cup of coffee, but I dislike the fact that I’m smarter than I was 20 years ago. I wish I that probably both coffee and cigarettes are killing knew then what I know now. me. All right, I’m done. Those are my examples I like the alternative press like Streetvibes of likes associated with dislikes or vice versa. but dislike the fact that so many newspapers, Actually, writing this has given me a bit of a including those I don’t like, are struggling. headache. While I dislike taking aspirins to get rid Cooking fancy meals for guests or even for of headaches, I like the fact that the aspirins get rid myself is something I enjoy, but I dislike having to of the headache and in this case have enabled me do the dishes afterwards. to finish this column on a somewhat intelligent I like looking at Jessica Simpson but can’t stand note. to hear her sing. The same goes for Faith Hill. Or maybe not. Vodka is my drink of choice and I like it very much, but dislike how I Affordable Rates etvibes? tre nS rested in Advert Inte isin gi Many sizes (full page, 1/2 page, 1/4 page, 1/8 page) Black & White and Color available Discounts for Nonprofits Become a Fan of Streetvibes on Facebook Contact Lynne at 513-421-7803 ext. 11 http://www.facebook.com/streetvibescincinnati or lynneausman@cincihomeless.org for more information. Streetvibes vendors keep 75% of sales. Consider helping Streetvibes with our publication costs by making a tax-deductible donation or by purchasing a subscription. Streetvibes is the activist newspaper, advocating justice, building community. Your gift is tax-deductible and will go to producing the paper every two weeks. Started in 1997, Streetvibes is distributed by homeless and formerly homeless vendors who purchase the paper for 25 cents and sell it for $1, keeping the 75 cent profit. Make checks payable to “Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless” I want to support Streetvibes and the vendors. $25 Please return your contribution to: GCCH 117 E. 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 Name: Address: E-mail: $50 $100 $150 Other $ _______ �15 Resources STREETVIBES August 15 - 31, 2010 Need Help or Want to Help? Shelter: Women and Children Central Access Point Cincinnati Union Bethel St. Francis Soup Kitchen Churches Active in Northside 381-SAFE 768-6907 FreeStore/FoodBank 557-2873 Madisonville Ed & Assistance Center 271-5501 300 Lytle Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Bethany House 4230 Hamilton Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45223 241-1064 112 E. Liberty Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 1841 Fairmount Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45214 Grace Place Catholic Worker House 681-2365 4600 Erie Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45227 Serves area codes: 45226, 45227, 45208, 45209 St. Vincent de Paul 6037 Cary Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45224 Salvation Army 535-2719 591-2246 762-5660 562-8841 872-9259 381-2247 5 E. Liberty St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 Health Resource Center Homeless Mobile Health Van McMicken Dental Clinic 357-4602 352-2902 352-6363 40 E. McMicken Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mental Health Access Point Mercy Franciscan at St. John 558-8888 981-5800 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 NAMI of Hamilton County PATH Outreach 1125 Bank Street, Cinti, Ohio 45214 131 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter Crossroad Health Center 458-6670 977-4489 Treatment: Men Other Resources Shelter: Men Charlie’s 3/4 House 784-1853 921-1613 Center Independent Living Options Emmanuel Community Center 961-2256 Peaslee Neighborhood Center 2121 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 City Gospel Mission 241-5525 Prospect House Justice Watch 241-0490 St. Fran/St. Joe Catholic Work. House 381-4941 Starting Over 1419 Elm Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 682 Hawthorne Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45205 Franciscan Haircuts from the Heart 961-4663 2203 Fulton, Cinti, Ohio 45206 Treatment: Both 761-1480 1821 Summit Road, Cinti, Ohio 45237 Drop Inn Center 721-0643 471-1100 221-3350 3330 Jefferson, Cinti, Ohio 45220 Housing: CMHA Excel Development OTR Community Housing 721-4580 632-7149 381-1171 114 W. 14th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tender Mercies 721-8666 27 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tom Geiger House Dana Transitional Bridge Services Volunteers of America Anna Louise Inn 961-4555 751-0643 381-1954 421-5211 621-5300 961-1983 OTR: 1620 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Walnut Hills: 2631 Gilbert, Cinti, Ohio 45206 Our Daily Bread 1730 Race Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 621-6364 771-4800 751-0600 721-4811 241-2965 People Working Cooperatively The Caring Place United Way Women Helping Women Off The Streets 351-7921 631-1114 211 977-5541 421-5211 1522 Republic Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Hamilton County ADAS Board Recovery Health Access Center Sober Living Talbert House 946-4888 281-7422 681-0324 641-4300 Hamilton/Middletown 421-3131 569-1840 381-4242 Northern Kentucky Advocacy Catholic Social Action Community Action Agency Contact Center 1227 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Food/Clothing Lord’s Pantry OTR/Walnut Hills Kitchen & Pantry 351-0422 381-6672 830 Ezzard Charles Dr. Cinti, Ohio 45214 Joseph House (Veterans) 217 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Interfaith Hospitality Network Lighthouse Youth Center (Youth) AA Hotline CCAT Goodwill industries Healing Connections Mary Magdalen House 1223 Main St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 2728 Glendora Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45209 Caracole (HIV/AIDS) 381-0111 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 First Step Home 961-4080 621-5514 214 E. 14th St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 661-4620 Shelter: Both Anthony House (Youth) 1308 Race St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 Treatment: Women 1437 Walnut Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mt. Airy Shelter 241-2600 241-2563 117 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 579-8547 241-9400 421-1108 363-3300 421-2437 Health Center for Respite Care 3550 Washington Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45229 Brighton Center 863-3184 863-1445 422-8555 868-3276 859-491-8303 799 Ann St. Newport, KY Franciscan JPIC 721-4700 Gr. Cinti Coalition for the Homeless 421-7803 Intercommunity Justice & Peace Cr. Legal Aid Society Ohio Justice & Policy Center Faces Without Places Stop AIDS St. Raephaels Salvation Army Serenity House Day Center Open Door Pantry ECHO/Hosea House Fairhaven Resuce Mission Homeward Bound Youth Mathews House Homeless & Housing Coalition Parish Kitchen Pike St. Clinic Transitions, Inc Welcome House of NKY 859-261-5857 859-491-1027 859-581-1111 859-261-8009 859-727-0926 859-581-7745 859-291-9321 859-491-4435 859-431-8717 205 West Pike Street, Covington, KY 41011 621-1868 Women’s Crisis Center VA Domiciliary VA Homeless 859-491-3335 859-559-5011 859-572-6226 �16 Artists as Activists STREETVIBES August 15 - 31, 2010 Found Objects and a Found Voice Thomas Phelps speaks through his art “I am a tinkerer,” Thomas Phelps says. “All my life I have collected stuff – found and discarded objects I have used to make things out of my imagination. I give them a new life and a voice. They end up speaking for me.” Phelps, a mixed media/installation artist, was born in 1939 in Cincinnati, where he currently resides. He is of African-American origin, the son of parents who relocated from the South. Until the age of 21 he grew up in the West End neighborhood of Cincinnati, in the Lincoln Courts housing project for low-income families. In elementary school he was introduced to art, and his creative ability was recognized and encouraged by his art teachers all along. He won several art contests, including a citywide contest in ninth grade, sponsored by Shillito’s; it earned him a one-year scholarship to attend the Art Academy of Cincinnati. Phelps’s social awareness was practically lacking while growing up. The housing project where he lived and spent most of his time was his world; it kept him isolated and protected, disconnected from the rest of society. There and at school he mostly encountered fellow African Americans, with no direct reasons for racial questioning or confrontation. His parents, who had experienced the oppressive South, did not want him to deal with such issues. “My social awakening to racial and ethnic discrimination came only at the age of 17,” Phelps says. “It was, however, in relation to the Native Americans’ plight. I read by chance an article describing the slaughter by thousands of buffalos to starve the Indians who relied on their meat; also how at one point the Indians were given blankets infested with smallpox in order to decimate them. I was appalled and revolted, and these injustices stayed with me.” Phelps’s artwork, until as then with no specific statement, started addressing the American By Saad Ghosn Indian situation. Mr. and Contributing Writer Ms. Red is a painting that depicts an isolated and powerless Native American couple, separated from their community. They Slaughtered Me to Kill Us, a mixed-media piece, superimposed the image of an American Indian and that of a buffalo, a reflection on the history of the U.S. government as it pertains to Native Americans. Who Are the Founding Fathers?, a mixed-media hanging quilt incorporating found objects, shows a picture of four American Indian men positioned in front of the four U.S. presidents on Mount Rushmore. In the center of the piece is a T-shirt depicting American Indians on horseback and in war apparel; it says, “Fighting terrorism since 1492,” ironically questioning who are the terrorists when it comes to Native A rtists ctivists Thomas Phelps in his basement studio. Saad Ghosn. American history. In the 1960s, thanks to the civil rights movement, Phelps became more aware of the issue. His black identity, its culture and its ancestral roots became very important to him. Through the Cincinnati Art Museum and traveling traders, he discovered African art and artifacts; he was taken by the fetishes, their imagery, their meaning. He also came across yard art brought from the South that connected him to the spirit of African ancestors. “Society was trying to de-Africanize and demonize us,” he says. “They associated our culture with voodoos, devils, sorcery. For me, these artifacts spoke loud through their rawness and sense of mystery; they grew on me, impacted me strongly even when not fully understanding them.” Phelps’s work shifted then to mixed-media installations influenced by the African art he was experiencing; they became his identity statement, a cultural connection to his background and origin. “I did not use my art to make statements about the civil rights movement going on at the time,” he says. “I used it instead to assert who I was, to connect to the history of blacks in this country and elsewhere. Once I found the link to my roots, I kept speaking to it, and nobody could take it away from me.” In the 1980s, with Jimi Jones and Ken Leslie, two African-American artists from Cincinnati who felt like him, Phelps co-founded the Neo Ancestral artists’ collective movement. Their goal was to make artistic visual statements related to African-American identity, legacy, community and culture. On his own or as part of the group, Phelps continued creating his statement in mixed-media installations. He would exhibit them in public or private venues, outdoors or indoors, such as at Third World Gallery, which featured African-American art, and at the Arts Consortium, the Contemporary Arts Center, the Weston Art Gallery and the Cincinnati Art Museum. Imprisonment, created for the Weston show, consisted of fences, posts, bars, a hanging body, a target image and weapons. It alluded to institutional prisons, but also to the isolated and confined condition of many minorities, the vulnerability and violent victimization of the poor and weak in our society. Watermelon Mama and the Melon Chilluns Fetish, recently exhibited at the Cincinnati Art Museum, was part of a series of installations Phelps created based on postcards that debased and degraded the black race, associating it with watermelons, cotton and animals. It shows on one side a black baby in a cradle with a watermelon and a cross, the baby in his innocence and nakedness reminiscent of Jesus Christ, also a victim to this world; and the cross symbolizing the hypocrisy of hateful acts in the name of Christianity. The other side displays an African lady, two babies, watermelons, cotton and crosses. “I meant my piece in defense of all human beings, plants, animals, objects and subjects of unjust, vulgarized characterization, by civilized, God-avowed human beings in the USA,” he says. Phelps also used his art to make statements about wars, their casualties and the military-industrial complex. His installation, Weapon of War Fetish, created for an SOS Art show, reflects on how military efforts support and produce aggressive weapons, propaganda and monetary gain. “I will always be a pacific activist,” Phelps says. “My art advocates my ideas, my beliefs, my history. It is my outlet and my voice. It empowers me and possibly others who want to hear; I do not use it, however, to convince or impose my views.” Watermelon Mama and the Melon Chilluns Fetish, front and back, mixed media installation by Thomas Phelps. Thomas Phelps. Artists as Activists is a regular column highlighting Greater Cincinnati artists who use art as a vehicle for change. Saad Ghosn is the founder of SOS Art. Ghosn can be contacted at saad.ghosn@uc.edu. � 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 2010 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 15-30, 2010 Subject The topic of the resource Homelessness Description An account of the resource Pg 1: No Fence Sitting in This Match A Quarter-Century Cause Pg 2: Street Wise Pg 3: No Fence Sitting in This Match Continued Pg 4: No Fence Sitting in This March Continued A Quarter-Century in the Cause Continued Pg 5: Street Papers Revolt at Meeting Differences Build NASNA’s Strength Pg 6: Parsing Poverty and Community Pg 7: When the Walls Come Tumbling Pg 8: “Feed Me, Seymour, Feed Me All Night Long…” Pg 9: Officer Runs Over Woman in Park Pg 10: When the Walls Come Tumbling Continued Pg 11: Four Subjects: A Scenario Suzy Cincinnatian Finds Her Voice Pg 12: ‘Streetvibes’: An Appreciation Pg 13: From the Streets to the Sanctuary Pg 14: Likes and Dislikes in My Life Pg 15: Resources Pg 16: Found Objects and a Found Voice 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 August 15-30, 2010 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Gregory Flannery Lynne Ausman Jeni Jenkins Michelle Dillingham Samantha Groark Margo Pierce Paul Kopp Jeremy Flannery Michael Henson David Heitfield Corey Gibson Saad Ghosn Lew Moores Larry Gross Eli Braun Jesse Call Michael Fanning Aimie Willhoite Anne Skove Vinit Murthy Jon Hughes Lynn Baker Jeremy Flannery Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Advocates Aimie Willhoite Anne Skove Bengals Cincinnati Corey Gibson David Heitfield Eli Braun Gregory Flannery IJPC Jeni Jenkins Jeremy Flannery Jesse Call John Mellencamp Jon Hughes Larry Gross Layoffs Lew Moores Lynn Baker Lynne Ausman Margo Pierce Michael Fanning Michael Henson Michelle Dillingham Music NASNA Paul Kopp police brutality Saad Ghosn Samantha Groark Thomas Phelps Vinit Murthy https://streetvibesarchive.net/files/original/2ad596bc0bc4c8839b4224a6e4adb28c.pdf 98cab100c716a187357b786daea4d626 PDF Text Text Barbara Gamboa’s Life-Canvas Page 16 CUE Page 6 ADVOCATING JUSTICE • BUILDING COMMUNITY Aug. 1-14, 2010 • Issue 182 • One Dollar A Joyous Hammer Strikes Again Clowns and courage against nukes By Janice Sevre-Duszynska Contributing Writer Oak Ridge, Tenn. – “For those of you on Serious clowning. General Mayhem (right) and a companion clown submit to arrest. Tom Bottolene/CircleVision.org. probation, turn off your ankle bracelets,” said folk singer/songwriter Steve Jacobs, a member of the St. Francis Catholic Worker in Columbia, Mo. About 250 activists began the July 3-5 gathering for Resistance for a Nuclear-Free Future at Maryville College. The purpose of the weekend was to increase awareness about nuclear issues and to promote direct action. Thirty-seven activists were arrested. “The timing – two months after the 2010 NonProliferation Treaty Review Conference and before the mid-term congressional elections – provided an opportunity to focus attention on nuclear disarmament and the need for nuclear-free and carbon-free energy,” the Nuclear Resister reported. Participants celebrated the 30th anniversary of Nukewatch, the Plowshares movement and The Nuclear Resister. The conference received a message from the Rev. Louis Vitale, written from the federal prison in Lompoc, Calif., where he was held until the end of July for trespassing during a protest at Ft. Benning, Ga. Participants also wrote messages of support for other anti-nuclear and anti-war prisoners. ‘Imperial darkness’ Ralph Hutchison, coordinator of the Oak Ridge Environmental Peace Alliance (OREPA), related the history of the protests at the Y-12 nuclearweapons complex in Oak Ridge. “On Aug. 6, 1988, the 43rd anniversary of the bombing of Hiroshima, the blue line at Oak Ridge was crossed, and the first nuclear resistance there began,” he said Ralph Hutchinson. “It has been maintained ever since. In 1998 six actions launched modern-day resistance. After 9/11, the Y-12 Nuclear Weapons Complex was renamed the Y-12 National Security Complex." Y-12 was the code name for the site that enriched the uranium for the atomic bomb that the United States used to destroy Hiroshima, Japan in 1945. The plant produces essential components for all U.S. thermonuclear warheads, according to See CLOWNS P. 4 ‘Streetvibes’ Boycotts Own Award Vendors aren’t allowed to work there Staff Report T he Cincinnati Human Relations Commission announced it would present an award to Streetvibes on July 26 for giving job opportunities to people who have disabilities. But Streetvibes declined to attend the award presentation because it was on Fountain Square, where vendors are prohibited from distributing the newspaper. “If our vendors aren't welcome on Fountain Square, the staff and volunteers don’t want to be there either,” said Gregory Flannery, editor of Streetvibes. The Human Relations Commission held a fourhour celebration July 26 to mark the 20th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The federal law forbids discrimination in hiring practices and requires public facilities to be accessible to people who have disabilities. Speakers included U.S. Rep. Steve Driehaus (D-Cincinnati) and City Manager Milton Dohoney. Streetvibes is an employment system for homeless and other low-income people. Vendors, some with physical or emotional disabilities, purchase copies of the paper for 25 cents each and offer them for a donation of $1. The Cincinnati Center City Development Corp. (3CDC) manages Fountain Square under a contract with the city. A city ordinance and 3CDC rules effectively forbid Streetvibes vendors from distributing the paper on Fountain Square, according to Kelly Leon, spokeswoman for 3CDC. Flannery says he questions the constitutionality of any ban on distributing a newspaper on public property. He also points to a 2002 ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court throwing out an ordinance that banned religious displays on Fountain Square. Justice Paul Stevens cited “the square's historic character as a public forum.” “I doubt that 3CDC’s rules trump a Supreme Court ruling or the First Amendment,” Flannery says. “Fountain Square is a public forum. How can the city of Cincinnati ban a newspaper from a public forum?” Flannery says efforts to get 3CDC and the city to allow Streetvibes vendors to work on the square have so far been fruitless. Leon directed him to call the city solicitor’s office, which didn’t answer phone calls or an e-mail, he said. Last week, on the paper’s behalf, attorney William Gallagher wrote to the city solicitor. "I write this to you hoping you will take steps to remove a practice that strikes me as unfair and many as unconstitutional. … 3CDC permits corporations to make money on the square on a regular basis by selling food, drinks and products,” Gallagher wrote. “It permits CityBeat to distribute daily its newspaper on the square. The Enquirer is immediately accessible to someone on the square. However, members of our community who are struggling to find shelter, food and stability are denied an opportunity to sell a newspaper on public property by a private corporation allegedly working in the city’s interests.” Flannery says he hopes the matter can be resolved without the need for further litigation against the city. Streetvibes is published by the Streetvibes can’t be distributed on Fountain Square. Anne Skove. Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless, which filed a First Amendment lawsuit against the city last month. At issue in that case is a city regulation that requires homeless shelters to take action against residents who panhandle. If the Human Relations Commission presents the award to Streetvibes anywhere besides Fountain Square, the paper will be glad to receive it, according to Flannery. “The 20th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act is an occasion worthy of celebration,” he says. “But to offer an award for our work with vendors at a location where they are unwelcome – prohibited by law – is insensitive at best and hypocritical at worst.” �2 The Business of Journalism By The Numbers 23,000 The profit, in taka, that a Bangladeshi woman made on the sale of a cow (see page 8). All The number of Streetvibes vendors prohibited by 3CDC from distributing the paper on Fountain Square (see page 1). 2001 The year Joy Friedman broke free from prostitution (see page 3). 25 The number of years Barbara Gamboa taught disabled and emotionally impaired children (see page 16). 80 The age, in years, of a linden tree that 3CDC will destroy in Washing ton Park (see page 4). 50 The amount, in dollars, for third place in the Streetvibes essay contest (see page 5). 30 The number, in millions, of copies of To Kill a Mockingbird that have been sold (see page 13). 3 The age of a child who cooked make-believe chicken at Interfaith Hospitality Network (see page 5). 1989 The year the fictional Arjuna became supervisor at the Pauline Warfield Lewis Center (see page 7). STREETVIBES August 1-14, 2010 Editorial By Gregory Flannery Editor Newspapers have a role, if they will fill it I n the mid-1990s I worked for a small daily newspaper that decided to put a feature story on the front page everyday on the theme, “Everybody Has a Story.” The theory was that people want “good news,” and we were going to give it to them. The statement is true so far is it goes. Every human being has a unique story about how she became who she is. But as a matter of journalistic principle, the statement is absurd. Not everyone has a story that merits attention in a newspaper, let alone on the front page. I protested the rule to no avail. Then, when it was my turn to write the front-page feature, I wrote about a dog that ate bees, wondering if – no, hoping – it would be too stupid to be published, thereby breaking the hold that this notion (“Everybody has a story”) had on the newspaper’s management. Sure enough, the editor put my story about the bee-eating dog on the front page. In fact, a clipping of the article was posted on the newsroom bulletin board, with a note saying, “An excellent use of the genre.” It seems that every dog has a story, too. I think about that editor when I see CNN anchors reading messages that viewers send on Twitter and when I see meaningless videos posted on local news shows: female cats nursing puppies. I think my former newspaper editor was onto something – and it’s not healthy for journalism or for civic dialogue. What we’re increasingly seeing on news broadcasts is the popularization of narcissism. Everybody has a story, everybody has an opinion and now, thanks to “social media,” everyone can publish it. If it’s outrageous enough or cute enough, it will get on the news. Equal access to the means to express oneself is certainly democratic. But journalism isn’t supposed to treat all views and all stories as equal. Central to the role of journalism is the act of discrimination: This story is more important than that one. This fact is essential; that one is not. This opinion has more merit because it’s informed, whereas that opinion is merely inflammatory. Have you ever read the comments about news stories posted online by readers of the Cincinnati Enquirer? Some are funny, many are vicious and most are irrelevant. The impulse to treat all opinions, all views, all perspectives as valuable has resulted in a lowering – rather than an elevation – of public discourse. All this comes at a time when the current wisdom holds, “Print journalism is dead.” Don’t believe it. We had been told that television was destroying newspapers. Now we’re told that the Internet is destroying newspapers. It’s no secret that newspapers in the United States are in trouble. Many have gone out of business in recent years, including the Cincinnati Post. Many more have dumbed down their content in a misguided bid to attract readers. This is true of daily newspapers as well as some that once considered themselves “alternative newsweeklies.” Analysis, investigation and enterprise reporting have lost ground to entertainment. As I write this, I’m preparing to attend the annual conference of the North American Street Newspaper Association. Streetvibes is part of a worldwide phenomenon: the growth and expansion of street newspapers. In the past year, new street newspapers have begun publishing in Toledo, Philadelphia, New York City, Seoul and other places. Many street papers, including Streetvibes, have seen their circulation grow. We received a letter last week from someone who said she has long bought Streetvibes in order to support the homeless people who distribute it but who, having read the content, now buys it in order to keep reading. If you look at street papers around the world, what you notice is a concentration on serious content – stories about human suffering, injustice, the victories of poor and oppressed people. Street papers have limited resources, an abundance of earnestness and a growing readership. There’s a story there: Write something worth reading, and they will come. I often meet with students from colleges and high schools and tell them that Streetvibes is the oddest newspaper in Cincinnati: written and photographed almost entirely by volunteers, our circulation is growing, while for-profit newspapers seem to be struggling. Throw in the fact that our paper is distributed by homeless and other low-income people trying to make a small living, and readers understand that we (and other street papers around the world) have a sense of mission that larger mainstream newspapers and broadcast news stations seem to lack. Print journalism isn’t dead. And everybody doesn’t have a story worth publishing on the front page of a newspaper. Readers want meaningful content. In the next edition, I’ll let you know what happens at the annual conference of the North American Street Newspaper Association. These things are important, just as it’s important to know that the city of Cincinnati bans the distribution of Streetvibes on Fountain Square (see “Streetvibes Boycotts its own Award,” page 1). 2 The number of clowns recently arrested at a nuclear-weapons plant (see page 1). www.facebook.com/ streetvibescincinnati twitter.com/ streetvibesnews streetvibes. wordpress.com Streetvibes is an activist newspaper, advocating justice and building community. Streetvibes reports on economic issues, civil rights, the environment, the peace movement, spirituality and the struggle against homelessness and poverty. Distributed by people who are or once were homeless, in exchange for a $1 donation, Streetvibes is published twice a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Address: 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 Phone: 513.421.7803 x 12 Fax: 513.421.7813 Email: streetvibes2@yahoo. com Website: www. cincihomeless.org Blog: streetvibes.wordpress. com Streetvibes Staff Editor Gregory Flannery Art Director Lynne Ausman Graphics/Layout Nick Swartsell Veronica Glass Vendor Coordinator Jeni Jenkins Contributing Writers Michelle Dillingham, Samantha Groark, Margo Pierce, Paul Kopp, Jeremy Flannery, Michael Henson, David Heitfield, Corey Gibson, Jeni Jenkins, Saad Ghosn, Lew Moores, Larry Gross, Eli Braun, Steven Paul Lansky, B. Clifton Burke, Michael Fanning Photography/Artwork Aimie Willhoite, Lynne Ausman, Anne Skove, Vinit Murthy, Jon Hughes Proofreaders Lynn Baker Jeremy Flannery The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that works to eradicate homelessness in Cincinnati through coordination of services, public education, grassroots advocacy and Streetvibes. We are proud members of: �STREETVIBES August 1-14, 2010 3 Beyond the Bootstraps Free at Last, Now Freeing Others Joy Friedman. Chris A.P. Bedell Breaking free means a safe place and people who care By Margo Pierce Contributing Writer I am a survivor from the life, of the life of prostitution. Everything that we represent here I am a survivor of—domestic violence, prostitution, drug addiction, criminal justice system, homelessness, rape, all of that. I came here as a client and was a participant in the program in the beginning in 2001. I came straight out of incarceration into treatment and treatment introduced me to Breaking Free. Joy Friedman, women's program manager at Breaking Free in St. Paul, MN, makes direct eye contact as she speaks. There is no edge in her tone of voice and no hesitation in her manner. She is an advocate in a house of advocates helping women leave prostitution. When the door is closed to her office, what was once a bedroom in a converted house at 770 University Avenue West, her presence fills the space between boxes, piles of papers on a cluttered desk and the two guest chairs that leave only a skinny floor space for navigation. We educate the girls on what they [get] caught up in, cuz a lot of times we, as victims, blame ourselves and society helps us with that, saying, “You should do something else. You should have never gotten in this. It’s your fault. You cause this to happen to you. You chose this.” In these groups we actually talk about what led up to it. Little girls don’t daydream about being involved in prostitution. I didn’t ask to get raped at 15 by a pimp and have three of his guys torture me and be held captive for 24 hours. Yeah, I survived it and got out of it, but the trauma that was done to me is with me the rest of my life. That’s a big piece people don’t really look at or seem to forget, is that in prostitution it’s not just the sex piece. It’s not just, “OK, stop having sex, get you a regular job.” If you’ve had sex with one guy or 1,000 guys that impact of how you had it—the fact that we’re bought, you compromised your morals, your values if you had them in the first place—and here a stranger is doing things to you that’s supposed to be done in an intimate, loving, caring, respectful, agreedupon relationship. That stuff sticks with you. You feel less, you feel dirty, you feel, “Oh my God, what have I done?” and that itself can be torture. And then you get that soiled feeling of, “Who’s going to want me after that? Am I ever going to be able to get the husband, the white picket fence, the dog, the family? Who’s gonna want a prostitute for a wife?” And there’s a lot of people who will help you with that as, “Once a ho, always a ho.” Tricks help you with that. Pimps help you with that to confirm, “Don’t go anywhere else because nobody’s going to accept you. Who in society is going to have a prostitute as their day care provider, or their receptionist? You’re never going to be anything. And once they find out about your life, they’re going to get rid of you. So stay with me, I love you for who you are and what you do. Don’t worry. It’s safe, we don’t judge you here.” Breaking Free is one of only a few dozen organizations in the United States that is available to assist an estimated 100,000 prostitutes leave “the life.” Breaking Free offers those currently caught in the life of prostitution as well as survivors of prostitution a lifetime of support through peer counseling, support groups, temporary and permanent housing, case management and access to essential services such as health care, mental health support, addiction programs and more all in one place. By providing a safe place, the house in the heart of an urban center becomes a haven. The first step is a 14-week program called Sisters of Survival. The dynamics of prostitution is what we talk about in there, such as boundaries, recruitment, self-esteem, do you want this job? We compare the job versus a career, or a real 9-to-5 versus prostitution, escort services or dancing. Is that a job? Then we look at the differences in jobs, like workman’s comp protection, 401k plans, taxes. You look at all that. That’s the thing about prostitution people don’t understand, you have low self-esteem and somebody in that lifestyle opens their arms to you, it’ll come down to “I need someone to appreciate who I am. I need someone to make me feel important.” So, a lot of girls get trapped through dancing. When you go into dancing, you’re actually the center of attention. Men come to see you. They give you money, they’ll buy you drinks. We know there’s an ulterior motive, but that feeds that missing piece. This is a process for every girl. It’s a process for me and I’ve been out 10 years. I still have problems of my own, where I have to deal with issues—like I don’t have a relationship. Why? Cuz I don’t know how to have one. Even though I’m up here working with women and I’m helping them understand where we’ve come from and where we can go, that piece of relationship—mmmm. Can’t do that yet. Sex, it has no meaning to me. If that’s what a relationship’s about I guess I won’t have one because I’ve had enough sex to last me a lifetime. If that’s what he wants and that’s what it’s all about then I’m ok with being by myself. A woman knocks and opens Friedman’s door. I’ve got a girl on the phone who’s in desperate, desperate measures. I don’t know exactly how to handle this. Friedman picks up a pencil at the same time she picks up the phone and begins to talk. Where ya at? It’s OK, honey. Are you OK at the moment? Are you safe? You remember me? Where did I see you? Good for you! You don’t want to do it anymore. You need to see your probation officer. Do you have an addiction? Keep it real with me. Last time you used? What’s your drug of choice? Have you ever been to treatment, honey? It’s OK You’re tryin’ to fix a problem by admitting to it. That’s not a bad thing. You can let ‘em know you been sober. It’s not like you’re tellin’ on yourself negative, you’re tellin’ them you need help. It’s not your fault—someone’s using your situation. Whatever we’re askin’ of you ain’t nothin’ compared to where you been. We want to get you someplace safe to stay. Have your probation officer call me. Getting Free The following organizations provide services to women and men either in the criminal justice system or trapped in the sex trade. The Empowerment Program Provides education, employment assistance, health, housing referrals and support services to women who are in disadvantaged positions due to incarceration, poverty, homelessness, HIV/AIDS infection or involvement in the criminal justice system 303.320.1989 1-800-659-2656 TTY http://www.empowermentprogram.org/ Sex Industry Survivors' Anonymous Mission: Support groups for women and men who are currently in the sex industry and are trying to get out or who have already gotten out but are trying to find recovery. Membership requirement is a desire to leave the sex industry. Services: Peer support meetings of survivors talking to one another. Meeting formats may be downloaded at no cost to all who want to set up local meetings. 888-702-7273 (toll-free) http://www.sexindustrysurvivors.com Polaris Project Polaris Project is a national organization working to end human trafficking and slavery. They conduct direct outreach and victim identification, provide social services and transitional housing to victims and operate the National Human Trafficking Resource Center (NHTRC) serving as the central national hotline on human trafficking. National Hotline: NHTRC@polarisproject.org 1-888-3737-888 http://www.polarisproject.org I can advocate on your behalf. You don’t have to be with those men. You don’t have to do this. You deserve better than that. You can do this. It’s going to be hard because it’s going to be change but you can do this. You got bigger and better things waiting on you out there. It’s OK where we are right now. Friedman hangs up the phone, makes some notes and then looks up. The girls are real willing and open to hearing me because I talk our language, so they know I’ve been there. There are certain things about that lifestyle that, if you’ve been in it, there’s just certain language and certain things you know that you can’t just read that and learn it. See FREE P. 10 �4 Local News STREETVIBES August 1-14, 2010 A Joyous Hammer Strikes Again CONTINUED FROM P.AGE 1 OREPA. Jay Coghlan of Nuclear Watch New Mexico talked about President Obama's Nuclear Posture Review, which includes the new Uranium Processing Facility at Y-12; the Chemistry and Metallurgy Research Replacement Project at Los Alamos, N.M,; and the first new nuclear weapons plant in 32 years, in Kansas City. A protest is planned there for Aug. 14-16. Recommendations at the conference included focusing on abolition – treating nuclear weapons as something as evil as slavery – and revitalizing public opposition to nuclear power. The issues are linked, according to Hattie Nestel, a member of the Shut It Down Affinity Group, active against the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant in Vermont. “No nuclear weapons and no nuclear power,” she said. Kathy Kelly of Voices for Creative Nonviolence recently returned from a month-long visit to Pakistan. She spoke about people trapped during night raids and U.S. drone attacks in connection with the so-called War on Terror. Kelly said she met an Afghani man who is one of 7,000 people who drive cars for the U.S. Army. A roadside bomb, an “improvised explosive device,” shattered his arm and leg. Soldiers took the man to an Italian hospital, and he never heard from them again. He whispered that he had seen U.S. forces kill people without any reason, Kelly said. Workshops covered a wide range of peace and justice issues, from “Nonviolent Blockading” to Protesters block the road at the Y-12 nuclear-weapons facility. Tom Bottolene/CircleVision.org. “The Second Part of the Action: Representing Yourself in Court.” Liz McAlister of Jonah House, widow of Plowshares Eight member Phil Berrigan, discussed a quilt draped in back of the stage, quoting the Hebrew Prophet Isaiah: “They shall beat their swords into plowshares. Nations shall learn war no more.” “Isaiah announced the impossible,” she said. “And we must, too, in times like now of imperial darkness, of duplicity and conniving in high places. They dust off their tomes to ‘just wars,' but the words of Isaiah must come to pass. These words surpass the human even while they demand conversion of hearts. We are not objects of fate. Despair is to our shame. Come forth. Come forth … They dent the weapon in seeking to transform the object, and the transformers are transformed themselves.” Hammer time The Rev. Carl Kabat, a Catholic priest for 51 years, has spent 18 years in prison. He sometimes dresses as a clown – “a fool for Christ”– during protests. He reminded activists not to be too serious. He also reminded Catholics that the hierarchy has condemned nuclear weapons. “Working for justice is a constitutive element of the Gospels,” Kabat said. “It can be legal or illegal. Then we celebrate.” Kabat quoted Rosa Parks, famous for refusing to yield to racial segregation on a bus in the southern United States in the 1950s: “You mothers know. You do it because it needs to be done. We have a part in heavenly decisions.” Kabat is one of the Plowshares Eight, who entered a General Electric weapons factory in King of Prussia, Penn., in 1980 and used household hammers to start destroying warhead cones on missiles. Molly Rush, another of the Plowshares Eight, talked recalled her skepticism about the late Phil Berrigan, a former Catholic priest who was a legend in the anti-war movement. Rush said she and Berrigan were brainstorming. “We talked about how we would get inside the GE plant,” she said. “When Phil Berrigan said, ‘Perhaps we could drive up in a floral truck, bringing flowers’ … I thought it was a crazy idea.” She quoted Berrigan: “Human beings made these (bombs), and human beings can unmake them.” The lesson of the first Plowshares action? “It takes vulnerability,” Rush said. “When I hammered down on the warhead, a piece of it chipped away and cut me under my chin. I was not invulnerable." Thirty-seven people were arrested in protests at the Y-12 plant – 23 for blocking the road with a banner and 14 on federal trespassing charges. (Disclosure: The writer was among those arrested. So was Jon Blickenstaff of Cincinnati.) Neighborhood Rejects Takeover Killing trees, pushing out the poor Bonnie Neumeier, director of the Peaslee Neighborhood Center, reinforced the point. “African-American children drown at a rate three times higher than others,” she said. By Gregory Flannery Neumeier also pointed to the larger issue, the Editor use of 3CDC to make Over-the-Rhine more attractive to people with high incomes, displacing nstead of welcoming plans to “improve” many of the poor people who have lived in the Washington Park, residents of Over-theneighborhood. The park takeover, for example, is Rhine gathered July 24 to mourn what intended to appeal to patrons of concerts at Music they’re about to lose. Hall and residents of condominiums that 3CDC The city of Cincinnati has is developing in formerly low-cost given control over yet another apartments. public space to the Cincinnati “Do not spend our money “(Vice mayor) Roxanne Qualls Center City Development Corp. herself literally suggested the on something we do not (3CDC), which plans to close people who live around this park want.” Washington Park for 18 months could be charged to maintain it,” -Vermel Perkins while it destroys the swimming Neumeier said. pool, basketball court and 59 She then listed some of those trees. An underground parking garage, dog park neighbors: the Drop Inn Center, shelter for homeand water-play area are part of the estimated $47 less people, which the city is trying to force out; million renovation. Over-the-Rhine Community Housing, which proVermel Perkins, a longtime resident of Overvides affordable housing for low-income people; the-Rhine told the gathering that the changes are and churches that have long served the neighborunwelcome and dangerous. hood. All this comes as city council pursues zoning “What I don’t want to see in this park is the sochanges that would restrict non-profit agencies in Over-the-Rhine. called sprinkler system,” she said. “I am in favor “We don’t want a manicured, fancy, expensive of saving lives and teaching children to swim. You cannot learn how to swim in a sprinkler. Do not spend our money on something we do not want.” See TAKEOVER P. 12 I Avtar Gill likes Washington Park. Vinit Murthy. �STREETVIBES August 1-14, 2010 5 Local News The Games Homeless Kids Play Real rice and imaginary snakes By Angela Pancella Contributing Writer “ Are you a volunteer?” a 4-year-old wants to know. Another small boy, 5 years old at most, is careening through the yard zapping imaginary spider silk from his imaginary web shooters. I help him up when he lands flat on his back at the bottom of the slide. “Thanks, Spidergirl,” he tells me. I’m at the Interfaith Hospitality Network’s Day Center. Yes, to answer the 4-year-old’s question, I am here to volunteer. The task of all us volunteers is simple/complex/humbling/utterly gratifying: We help children play. I’ve been at this twice a week for a couple weeks now; while the experience is still new, I’d like to share a bit about what I’ve learned so far. The Interfaith Hospitality Network (IHN) matches religious congregations with families experiencing homelessness. In the evenings, families stay at places provided by a variety of local churches and synagogues, eat dinner and spend time with volunteers from congregations. In the mornings, all the families go to the IHN Day Center in the old St. Michael Church complex in Price Hill to work on getting into a more stable housing situation. Several case managers are on staff. Most of the day, the children remain under their parents’ supervision. Four days a week there are morning classes in budgeting, parenting and life skills that the adults attend, and then in the afternoons the adults do chores around the center. It is during these times that volunteers and staff help most with the children. I went to IHN after taking classes in early childhood education through the College of Mount St. Joseph and after working at Our Daily Bread in Over-the-Rhine. Through my classes, I’d learned much about the resiliency of children even in times of great hardship. Through Our Daily Bread, I knew people experiencing homelessness might be going through hardships I can’t begin to understand. It made me wonder: What would the children at IHN be like? The first morning I volunteered, Will Leever, IHN’s child-care coordinator, brought out uncooked rice in a large tray along with measuring cups, spoons, funnels and plates. A small group, infants to 5-year-olds, clustered round to check At play at the Interfaith Hospitality Network Day Center. Courtesy of IHN. out these treasures. Older children were attending a summer camp, thanks to Cincinnati Public Schools’ Project Connect. Soon little chefs were presenting home-cooked pretend meals for us to taste. “What’s this?” I asked a girl who offered a plate of rice. “Scrambled eggs!” I acted like I was gobbling it all up. A 3-year-old boy gave me his plate of rice next. That was chicken. Another plate was cake. So what are the children at IHN like? They are children. They love pretending, they love attention, they love exploring. Love of pretending means play that mimics adult tasks such as cooking, because play is the means by which children rehearse their later lives. It also means that when I am turning a jump rope for a small boy, he suddenly decides the rope is a snake that must be run from, and then a snake that must be caught. In class, we talked about how make-believe provides a space where children can feel in control in a world where so much is out of their control. When my snake-hunting friend triumphantly grabs the rope, this no longer feels theoretical. “I won!” The children’s love for attention means that if I help push a child in a Little Tikes car around the play yard, I must be prepared to give a turn to every other child, too – and I must keep careful track of how many turns everyone has had. There is no finer-tuned sense of justice than that possessed by 2-, 3- and 4-year-olds. I give turns as best I can; there will be other opportunities for them to learn how life can be unfair. Love of exploring means all volunteer eyes have to be sharp. All parents know the lament, “I just turned my back for one second.” Our job is to make sure no one gets hurt, no matter where they run, climb or crawl. I love watching the determination of very small children climbing the ladder on the playhouse – just as long as there’s another volunteer to catch them going down the slide. I’ve loved my time at Interfaith Hospitality Network. I encourage anyone who has an interest in children’s development, who wants to provide support for families experiencing homelessness and who values play to call IHN at 513-471-1100 or write info@ihncincinnati.org. The more volunteers who are there regularly, the more individual attention each child can receive – and children thrive on this. How to Improve Our Country ‘Streetvibes’ essay contest L ots of people move to the United States, but a lot fewer ever decide to leave. For example, in 2002, 27,299 Canadians immigrated to the United States, but only 5,299 Americans permanently moved to Canada. Last year more than 1.1 million immigrants became legal, permanent residents of the United States. That speaks volumes about how great a place America is, but it doesn’t mean that we can’t make it even better. Whenever we have a federal election, millions of citizens go to the polls and vote for the candidates they believe will work hard to improve things, yet millions of others – at least 40 percent of eligible voters since 1970 – do not even bother to vote for a president. By not voting, they waste a very important freedom. If you think voter apathy is a problem, you’re on the right track. Now just tell us what you’d do to correct it. Or even if you’re one of the more than 2 million Americans in a state or federal prison, let us know if you think crime in America is a significant problem and tell us how to reduce it. It’s no secret that in 2008 more than one in every 100 adults in the United States was behind bars, the highest documented incarceration rate on earth. Of course, other countries have lots of people who do bad things, such as the drug barons who force us to try heroin and cocaine. Is that the way it is, or do Americans voluntarily hand them tens of billions of dollars every year for highly addictive chemicals that ruin our lives? What if only 10 percent of that money would be used instead to help homeless people or to train Americans for better paying jobs? Do you think we have any problems worth mentioning? Poverty? Racism? Homelessness? Domestic violence? If so, tell us what they are and what we should do to solve them. You could win up to $100 and help to make our nation an even better place to live. Explain what you know about one problem in the United States and describe in detail your plan to help solve it. The importance of the problem you mention will be considered, but more weight will be given to how insightful and practical your solution is and to the quality of the writing. The prizes will be $100 for first place, $75 for second place and $50 for third place. Send your essay of up to 1,000 words to streetvibes2@yahoo.com or Streetvibes Essay Contest, 117 E. 12th St., Cincinnati, Ohio 45202. Entries must be received by Sept. 1. Include your full name, age, mailing address, phone number or an email address where we can reach you. If you are a student, tell us where you go to school. Judging will be by the volunteers who contributed the prize money and by Streetvibes staff. Donors for the prize money include Robert Pohowsky. Are you interested in helping with Streetvibes? Are you a proofreader, writer, poet, artist or photographer? If so, contact Greg Flannery 513.421.7803 x 12 or email streetvibes2@yahoo.com �6 Local News STREETVIBES August 1-14, 2010 Homeless and Hopeless No More Gregory Flint and the power to change By Gregory Flannery Editor bitter at me for not being in his life. He’s scarred. The whole family has to heal.” Flint says his life changed this year. Jan. 7 was his last day of drinking, he says. On Jan. 11 he started a program at the Salvation Army intended to help end his addiction. He graduated July 4. G regory Flint is on his way. It’s been a long journey out of homelessness, addiction and prison. After growing up in Avondale, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy at age 18, serving from 1984 to 1992. “I became homeless after getting discharged out of the Navy,” he says. “That’s when my drug addiction and alcoholism started. I stayed with a couple of women, having children. Then I was sleeping in front of the courthouse, in abandoned buildings. I’ve been to the penitentiary twice on drug charges.” Flint’s familiarity with inebriation came very early in life and set his course for decades. “I started drinking at the age of 5,” he says. “My Dad would give me beer to help me sleep. I started liking the way it mad me feel. I didn’t really know myself because, growing up, I was always using. I was basically a loner. I had two brothers beneath me but I never felt like I fit in. I was the black sheep of the family.” That sense of isolation, fueled by addiction, affected the next generation as well. “Being homeless doesn’t just affect me,” Flint says. “It affects my family, too – the lack of sleep, the lack of rest for my mother worrying about me. I took from my Mom. I stole from her. My son is still Gregory Flint has been sober six months. Jeni Jenkins. “God delivered me,” Flint says. “I have a little over six months sober.” He wears a lapel pin marking him as a member of the Salvation Army’s “Redeemed team.” “You only get this when you graduate,” he says. “I wear it proudly.” The changes in Flint’s life have been dramatic. He attends Constellation Baptist Church in College Hill, where he is a member of the men’s chorus. He goes to daily Narcotics Anonymous meetings. Now living in the Salvation Army’s transitional housing, where he’ll stay two months, Flint plans to move onto long-term transitional housing. “It’s been suggested by my sponsor that I stay in structure for two years because I was a chronic user,” he says. A little more than a month ago Flint was hired as a prep cook and dishwasher at Via Vite. His employer knows about Flint’s background – and therein lies the moral of Flint’s story, he says. “My employer was very pleased with the way I’ve changed my life,” Flint says. “He knows my background. If a person just looks at the things you’ve done, they’re not looking at you. Society will try to label you. I have two felony convictions but I’m not a felon. Spiritually, a person can look at you and see if you’re a good person. Then they’ll see that you made some mistakes but that’s not who you are.” Flint says he knows his struggle isn’t over, but he is proud of the progress he has made this year. “I have to do a lot of self-talk: ‘You’re a good guy, Gregory. You’re doing a good job.’ Meditation is very important to me,” he says. “I journal: How did I feel when things didn’t go my way? Was I close to relapse?’ Being vigilant is very important.” As for the future, Flint knows exactly what he wants. “My goal is to further my education in culinary arts,” he says. “My dream is to be an executive chef and own my own restaurant.” Learning by Serving Poor People Cincinnati Urban Experience By Brian O’Donnell Contributing Writer F or many students, summer is a time for pool parties and beach vacations; but for a group of 36 high-school students from Green Bay, Wis., summer is the season of volunteering and extra-curricular education. Since 2007 the Cincinnati Urban Experience has coordinated with parishes, non-profit groups and universities nationwide to bring students of a variety of ages to Cincinnati’s historic Over-the-Rhine neighborhood. This is the same neighborhood that a year ago WLWT (Channel 5) reported was the most dangerous neighborhood in the United States. The program and the neighborhood offer an opportunity for students to gain awareness and become active within the community, according to Jeni Jenkins, education director for the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Most of the students who come for Cincinnati Urban Experience trips are completely unaware of the neighborhood’s condition and its perceived problems, she says. “It’s considered a dangerous neighborhood, but I don’t focus on the negative stuff,” she says. Kendra Burbach is a 17-year-old student from Green Bay who didn’t know much about the neighborhood except for its name and location. Burbach, along with her peers, expected a large city like Chicago, unlike Green Bay, which she described as small by comparison. But instead the students found themselves surrounded by Overthe-Rhine’s striking architecture. The students volunteered at local non-profit agencies such as Tender Mercies, which assists homeless individuals who suffer from mental or Jenkins says. Many of those who speak to the emotional disabilities. students during the education sessions are activ“I always wanted to do something like this,” ists or are formerly homeless. Jenkins also includes Burbach says. speakers of differing viewpoints, such as CincinVolunteering at the Peaslee Neighborhood Cennati Police officers. ter, distributing food at the FreeStore FoodBank The students glean much from the experience, and other agencies has an impact, the students and the non-profit agencies appreciate the help. say. “They appreciate “Everyone the fact we bring has been them steady volunthankful,” says teers,” Jenkins says. Carly Ripp, 15. One of the most Cincinnati important aspects Urban Experiof Cincinnati ence, however, Urban Experience is not simply is how the trip can volunteer change the particiwork. Without pants, Jenkins says. context, the Students are someessence of times surprised volunteerism by the notion that is lost, Jenkins homeless people says. The idea deserve dignity is to combine Students from Green Bay, Wis., volunteer in Over-the-Rhine. and respect, she service with Jeni Jenkins. says. Participants education, begin to think including time to reflect and talk about the work more critically about homelessness and have their being done. eyes opened to things they didn’t know about, “If I reach at least one of them who come on the Jenkins says. She hopes these ideas will stay in trip, I’ve made a difference,” Jenkins says. the students’ minds when they start their careers, She wants the students not only to interact with improving understanding of poverty and breaking the community, but to understand the issues that stereotypes. affect the area, such as gentrification and the idea “I learned to be thankful for everything we do of a living wage and how minimum wage often have,” Ripp says. “I wanted to help people. I look fails to meet that standard. at the world from a different viewpoint. … People “One of the things Jeni is informing us a lot with all the money and power are taking over with about is what the city is doing against poorer no regard.” people,” Burbach says. In the end, Jenkins encourages students to ask, Education on these issues is not without bias, “Where do we go from here?” �STREETVIBES August 1-14, 2010 7 Short Story Seeking the Wild Cleanliness Starting with mangled care By Steven Paul Lansky Contributing Writer 1989 A gray slop sink with four old frayed mops, knots hooked in clumps of filth, orange plastic handles lying at odd angles in a state of utilitarian neglect. The white tile halls of the Pauline Warfield Lewis Center looked neglected, too, barely cleaner than the maintenance closets, rags scattered, paper towels strewn, stacked with supplies. Begging, stuttering patients in ill-fitting clothes lurked with nicotine-deprived and psychotropic drug-induced tremors behind nearly every locked door. “Got a cigarette?” was their halting mantra. Green walls, wooden doors with small, square wired windows swung into areas between the wards keyed only by staff or supervisor. In the odoriferous custodial closets the new supervisor, Arjuna, driven to work by need for income, found brass and rubber squeegees without extension handles, empty and busted spray bottles, spent orange aerosol cans in need of disposal, food wrappers stuck to the yellow tile floor, orange and black vacuums clogged with dust, rubber belts broken, black cloth bags with damaged fasteners and no new replacement green liners. Stacked among boxes of toilet tissue and paper towels were half-empty five-gallon buckets of red, yellow and blue floor solutions, each with a specific use. At the hallways’ ends were brown steel doors without windows that, when keyed, swung into corners with external doors, also locked and windowless. This was a dark place to be walking with a cleaning crew of former patients pushing housekeeping carts of heavy brown plastic and bright yellow vinyl. Churchill was the best of all janitors Arjuna ever supervised. Church trained Arjuna to run a fourman cleaning crew at Lewis Center, a dirty, neglected state mental institution. Tile floors became endless corridors, a maze of doorways keyed by a fistful of master keys turning sometimes clockwise and other times counter clockwise. Scratched in the paint or plain wood above each knob was an arrow to indicate key direction to the uninitiated. Each supervisor carried keys; workers could only borrow them. The patients waited by the locked doors begging for a soda or a cigarette. Arjuna shared with the crew but not with the patients. One of the originals had been fired; and when Arjuna saw him at the central office and supply center, the worker stuttered that he wanted to be friends. “Could I have your number? Will you call me?” And Arjuna was cold and distant, had his own priorities. The worker knew trouble like the supervisor never could. Arjuna heard the man leapt to his death from a freeway overpass. The poet turned supervisor could not face his former employee’s funeral. Hoist a pint for him – someone (Arjuna had given up booze and weed). Now a college graduate, he’d had to beg for a job – no name please … one of the lost janitors of the ’80s. He never hurt anyone but by embarrassment of his pitiful nature. Ashamed to be pitied. Churchill was patient with Arjuna until Church was the last of the original four-man crew Arjuna had inherited. Church and Arjuna had had one night when they disagreed. Churchill had fight in him though mostly was gentle as a lamb. Arjuna had to call Captain Star, the neatly uniformed tough talker of the campus police. Everyone referred to them as “security” but Star fumed if it wasn’t “Officer Star” or “Captain Star.” A flash of eye and tooth and flaring tempers were quenched in a thirsty cool soda while Star stood by, his arrogant mustache bristled with calm. “A disagreement between two good men, two good workers.” Lisa, the other supervisor, had been a problem. Now that she’d been fired, Arjuna had responsibility for the whole crew, the whole building. Church had difficulty adjusting to the supervisory change, his job was no longer set; he had to face a team approach with Arjuna making more decisions. As many as 14 workers might turn up on a given night, or as few as five. Arjuna’s task was to settle things down and to clean the building. In training, Arjuna, Churchill and the freaky suicidal toilet man had cleaned half the building. Lisa and her crew cleaned the other half. Over a period of months the job had expanded and it became increasingly more difficult to finish in the allotted time. Arjuna had asked Nate, a thin white manager who moved with the frantic energy of a speed freak, to talk to Lisa about helping at the end of the night. At least, Arjuna asked, she could send some fellows over when they were through. Thin Chuckie was set in his ways, though, and Lisa didn’t want to disrupt his routine, she claimed. Once Arjuna was under the stars, smoking a glowing Camel, giving himself a break alone, when he saw Lisa driving around the parking lot in the company van. It wasn’t even that late. Arjuna had mentioned it to Nate. “If she has time to drive around … couldn’t she drive over to the far end with some crew members and help us knock out the kitchen and the kitchen hallway? It’s not fair, Nate. She’s finished and I’m still milking my cunt.” scared, but had a sense that he was on the other side now. No more joints with Riley, the welfare artist, Arjuna had hung with before he got the job. No more fighting Lisa. He told Nate he’d take the job. Nate agreed to bring him back to his car after he took the crew home. It was a clean sweep. Now he turned his back on Riley and the drugs; he headed for responsibility. Soon Arjuna would be a non-smoker. Trains pass at switches in the night— head beams cut gleaming paths like two janitors methodically backing mops— one out of a room, arms in locomotion, legs, patterns of moving oaks steady over damp rag heads, the room butts against a hall, where the other works easily, pausing to clear doorways. I stand in the twinight of my struggle, where they intersect – a rock, between them and a hard place. At Ronald’s Bar “Are you serious?” “Yup,” Ned answered. “Quit your job?” “Spent the day in the park drinking wine.” “No painting? No writing?” “No. It’s OK till next month and the bills come due.” A homeless man sweeps the floor at a shelter. REUTERS/Brian Snyder. Arjuna had heard the phrase from a Scottish folk singer. Nate had been stunned. He had talked to Lisa. Then she started sending her crew over to help for awhile. A week and a half passed that were better. Tommy, her floor man, was cheerful, a laconic talker. “Arjuna, we understand one another,” he said, as he noticed Arjuna growing out his hair, wearing a headband and a short ponytail. Tommy did this handshake thing, with the fists and the thumb. Arjuna had the sense they were dopers. “I caught Lisa smoking dope with Tommy and Thin Chuckie in the van while you were in the kitchen.” Nate was waiting for Arjuna in the lobby late. “Could you drive the van home and drop them off? You’ll have an extra five hours a week.” Arjuna had cracked his hardest habit. He was So I sidle over to the counter after thinking, “Good luck. Wouldn’t want to be unemployed without support in this slush.” Major slush raining from the sky. First time ever the plow driver lifted the blade so he wouldn’t coat me in icy spray. Coffee … The dishwasher, a toast of a chick, says she quit her day job today, too. “Finish the shift?” “Yep.” She had worked at the movie theater. Go figure. The bartender, Ned, he’ll land on his feet, 14 years on the job without incident. Ronald’s Bar & Grill changed owners. Regulars beware. Things will be changing. Yep … change is in the wind. The first time I heard the song, “Man in the Long See CLEANLINESS P. 10 �8 STREETVIBES August 1-14, 2010 Issues I’m So Far West that I’m East Life and lending in Bangladesh By Lynne Ausman Staff Writer L ynne Ausman, who is art director for Streetvibes and administrative coordinator for the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless, is in Bangladesh for a five-week internship. Ausman is studying the Grameen Bank, founded by Muhammad Yunus, co-recipient of the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize. Grameen bank pioneered the concept of microlending – making small loans, without requiring collateral, to help people in Third World countries to help them establish businesses. While in Bangladesh, Ausman has been blogging about her experiences. Following are some excerpts. To follow Ausman’s adventures, visit “So West I’m East” at sowestimeast.wordpress.com. The Drive July 8 Driving in Bangladesh is a life-changing experience. Even native Bangladeshis typically do not drive. If they have the means, they will purchase a car and then hire a driver by the day to drive the car. In short, travel by vehicle in Bangladesh is mostly a guessing game governed by horns, luck and close calls. At 70-plus kilometers per hour, vehicles come up on bicycle-powered rickshaws very quickly and changing into a lane that already has a massive bus or extravagantly decorated truck is tricky. It’s a lot of stop-and-start and speed-and-swerve. When we arrived at the village of Dhambhamari, we walked to the bank branch. The countryside is lush and green – beautiful scenery; and we weren’t even that far out of the city. It’s quiet in the village, with few horns blaring and smogfree air. After about a five-minute walk through we boarded a rickety water taxi to take us across the flooded plain. Followed by another five-minute walk, we arrived at a small tin hut with 40-plus women packed inside, all chatting and preparing to pay their loans to the center manager and discuss various business-related issues. After the meeting and speaking with some of the women, we were invited by several to go to their homes and see how they make their products. Muhammad Yunus and Lynne Ausman. Brandi List. One woman used the money from the loan to purchase a cow for 17,000 taka beautiful and well-maintained. However, it was and grain for 10,000 taka. She fattened the cow not the memorial that kept our attention. Upon and used the milk from the cow for six months. entering the grounds, we were immediately being She then sold the cow for 50,000 taka, making a followed by a large group of teenage boys. This 23,000 taka profit. (1 U.S. dollar equals 70 taka). In following and staring happens to white foreigners addition to paying off loans, women are also able all the time, but rarely is the group aggressive. This to put money into a savings account and into a group of boys were polite but insistent on havlife-insurance pension plan. ing their picture taken with me. So somewhere in We visited the National Martyrs Memorial, Bangladesh there is a group of boys with a picture dedicated to the men who lost their lives in the of me and them. A little later, we were posing for Bangladeshi fight for freedom from Pakistan in a group picture and there were Bang;adeshi men 1971. The memorial is large, and the grounds are See BANGLADESH P. 12 “Feed Me, Seymour, Feed Me All Night Long…” Re-Done Potato Broccoli Scramble Serving Size: 3-4 bellies 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil 2 tablespoons butter (or substitute for vegans) 1 cup chopped red onion 3 cloves fresh garlic 4 leftover baked potatoes, cubed 3 cups pre-cooked broccoli florets 1 tablespoon curry powder Salt and pepper Optional for vegans: 1 cup chopped or sliced American cheese 4 eggs, scrambled Re-Done Potato Broccoli Scramble. Jeni Jenkins. By Jeni Jenkins Staff Writer L ast week I hosted an amazing group of 35 students from Green Bay, Wis., for the Cincinnati Urban Experience (see “Learning by Serving Poor People,” page 6). Cincinnati Urban Experience is an alternative break program designed to provide participants with an experience of meaningful service and social-justice education that will motivate them to become active in the fight to end poverty and homelessness. On one of the students’ nights here, they kindly • Heat oil and butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. • Add onions and garlic and sauté 1 minute. • Turn heat slightly down to medium and add potatoes. Mix evenly with onions and garlic. • Add broccoli to the top of the potatoes, and continue cooking the potatoes for 1 minute, then mix broccoli and potatoes together and continue to cook an additional 3-4 minutes until potatoes are crisp and brown. • Sprinkle evenly with curry powder. Season with salt and pepper to taste. • For non-vegans, push veggie mixture aside in skillet and pour in eggs. Scramble until cooked to your liking and then mix eggs and veggies together. Turn off heat. • Sprinkle with American cheese and cover for 1 minute or until cheese is melted. • Serve with toast or English muffin and fruit. • Voila, feed! • invited me to partake in a baked-potato dinner. As an Idahoan with a fondness for the glorious root, I graciously accepted. We feasted on baked taters loaded with broccoli, red onions and cheese, and it was fabulous. A couple days later as they were packing for home, they informed me that they had bagged up these leftovers for me to take home. After they left, I took them home to a nearly empty fridge. I was famished, so I decided to quickly whip up this recipe using the leftovers. This was so tasty that I feasted on it every meal for two days. It works for breakfast, lunch or dinner. My suggestion is to reserve one night for baked potatoes, save the leftovers and then throw together this scramble for a lovely brunch the next day. Enjoy! Interested in volunteering with Streetvibes? Contact Greg Flannery at 513-421-7803 x 12 or by e-mail at streetvibes2@yahoo.com �9 Vendor Voice STREETVIBES August 1-14, 2010 Prisoners Help Save City Pools Meanwhile 3CDC plans to eliminate one By Lee McCoy Streetvibes Vendor T Lee McCoy distributing Streetvibes. Eamon Queeney. he men at London Correctional Institution (LCI), I want to give you a note of praise. I understand the hard work that you had taken upon yourself to raise $1,000 to help the kids in Cincinnati so they can get out of the heat. You had to sell a lot of veggie pies and other items. Being an ex-guest myself of LCI, my state pay was $18 a month. Your $1,000 could have brought a lot of commissary items. I want you to know I see a lot of kids splashing around having a good time. It was nice seeing them there instead of hanging on a corner, getting in trouble. My hat goes off to you guys. Good luck. God bless each and every one of you. Stan Chesley, the Cincinnati lawyer, led the fundraiser to keep the city pools began this spring knowing after the Cincinnati Recreation Department announced it would close four pools because of the budget. The fundraising effort gathered donations enough to keep the pools open in Mount Auburn, College Hill, Fairview Heights and the East End, and the donations are enough to keep some of the pools open two weeks after most are scheduled to close by. Just keep on swimming. But now let’s get to the nitty gritty. The World Choir Games will be here in 2012. It is our mayor’s pet project. If you don’t know where the festival will be, let me enlighten you: It will be in Washington Park (see “TAKEOVER, page 4). I mean a renovated Washington Park – minus a swimming pool. Was I supposed to say that? Oh, well. Sink or swim. About 200,000 spectators and 20,000 participants are expected from 70 countries. I can imagine the revenue the city will generate. No wonder the swimming pool was not open. Back in 1978 I was a Navy SEAL officer on a submarine called U.S. Enterprise. We were 4,000 fathoms under the sea and the sub exploded. Fighting my way to the surface, I grabbed an air bubble. It busted, so I did what comes natural – I passed gas and grabbed that. I fought all kinds of creatures. I even had sex with a mermaid. She got pregnant and had twins. Out came Charlie Tuna and Bumble Bee. If you believe this, maybe you believe next summer all pools will be open. Art by Anne Skove Art by Anothony Williams Say ! ? t a h W It may well be that our means are fairly limited and our possibilities restricted when it comes to applying pressure on our government. But is this a reason to do nothing? Despair is nor an answer. Neither is resignation. Resignation only leads to indifference, which is not merely a sin but a punishment. – Elie Wiesel �10 STREETVIBES August 1-14, 2010 Beyond the Bootstraps Free at Last, Now Freeing Others CONTINUED FROM P.AGE 3 Word has traveled so a lot of people know me or know of me. And they know me from the streets and they know me from this side. The women are real receptive to it because they want out. A lot of girls are falsely convinced that there is no way out and they’re terrorized or tortured into believing that if they try to get out this individual will find them, hurt them or hurt their families— that instilled fear is real to us. It may not be real to everybody else, but it’s real to us and that’s all that matters. “I believe he’s going to go hurt my kids or my mother or my family members because I’ve watched him do it to other girls.” So you’re scared to even try to attempt it, you feel trapped mentally, not to mention physically, so that you don’t go nowhere. You don’t try to escape because you’re scared of the consequences, ‘What if?’ Right now I have a lady that needs to move into transitional housing. I have two of them actually— one of them is coming from the criminal justice system, one is coming from treatment. Now both these young ladies both these girls have extensive criminal backgrounds and they want to get out. But once again, those barriers of, “If I get out, what kind of job am I going to be able to have?” I’m a role model for both of them right now because they’ve seen me come up out of the dirt, literally, out of jail with nothing and advance up the ladder as I have and get that respect and bring back things that I never thought I’d have and getting positions that we never would have thought women like us could be in. Vednita [Carter, Breaking Free founder] believes in hiring survivors, regardless of the backgrounds. We believe in second chance opportunities and empowering them. But with these women I show them that we can do this despite our records, despite everything in that. All they have to do is want it. If they want it, Breaking Free and myself are willing to walk, Vednita is willing to walk not in front of them but side by side with them, hold their hand the whole journey, not halfway through it. This program offers a lifetime of support. So it’s not like after 14 weeks you’re done with our program or the funding ran out so your stuff is over. This is ongoing so if you leave us today and go back to the life, we’re not going to feel any different about you. We’ll pray for you and try to hope that God protects you while you’re out there. And that you come back to us alive. We’ve got many women that haven’t made it back and that we ended up attending their funerals. So what I do is just let them know, “If you fall, it’s OK. Call me.” We have an emergency cell phone, they can call any time. I’m out in the streets doing outreach, so when I see them I treat them no differently from the first day that I met them, which means a lot to them. We want people to know that we’re human— don’t have that sympathy and pity for us—poor her, poor her. No, it’s just a situation happening. I need help and support to get out of it. We’re women like you. We are somebody’s child. How would you want your child to be treated if this happened to her? No one’s exempt from this. The women involved in this didn’t cause this. The facts here are a woman’s caught up in a very violent situation and as a community we need to come together and embrace her, otherwise why should she get out of it? The American myth of individualism tells people who are struggling with addiction, abuse, mental illness or poverty to simply pull themselves up by their own bootstraps. In reality, specially designed services and other kinds of support are essential to the process of transformation. This column is the second in an occasional series that will explore what it takes to Forget the Bootstraps in order to live a better life. Seeking the Wild Cleanliness CONTINUED FROM P.AGE 7 Black Coat,” I was coasting down Reading Road into Over-the-Rhine in my ’73 yellow Plymouth Valiant in the rain. As the song vibrated my frayed speakers, Kent Wright asked, “Who sings this?” Kent was 10 years older than me. He was a temporary worker and my assistant supervisor. We were on our way home from the Pauline Warfield Lewis Center at 11 at night. Rainwater splashed around my balding tires. I supervised a crew of 13 janitors, all mentally ill client-workers, part of a mangled recovery program. (We were in the habit of calling managed care “mangled care.”) Kent smelled of sweat and alcohol in the damp smoky car. I puffed on a strong filter-less cigarette, braking for the light at the corner of Liberty and Reading. “It sounds like Bob Dylan,” I said, “but I’ve never heard it before.” I had given up drinking nine months earlier, and the tangy alcohol smell on Kent was frustrating. He wasn’t considered one of the clients because he was a temp worker. His black skin glistened in the wet light of Cincinnati’s deep struggling night. “Where do you want me to drop you?” I asked. “It don’t matter,” he said. “Anywhere along here.” I wondered where he was going, what his home was like right now … but I had to take care of myself first. That meant getting home, up the three flights into the big high-ceilinged rooms where I must get to sleep to wake early to go tutor English at the university tomorrow. The cigarette smoke tickled my nose as Bob Dylan’s nasal voice rattled. Earlier Kent and I had played basketball oneon-one in the hospital gymnasium as the crew finished putting away the orange and black vacuums, yellow and orange buckets and long-handled mops. By now they knew the routine. The new workers followed the example of the old-timers. Kent kept me puzzled with this amazing scoop move under the hoop. He switched his dribble in the lane from left to right, then made a figure in the air as his right hand swept the ball away from my reach. Neither of us had an outside game. Kent was bigger, heavier, but quicker. I had the reach and height advantage, though. We both smoked and wheezed with fatigue as we approached 11 points one by one. I felt I had to establish some kind of dominance over this man so that he wouldn’t undermine my authority with the rest of the crew. Kent knew floor product, stripping and waxing and the scrubbing machine better than I did. And he knew he knew. It was best to let him work alone. But, then I might find him on a phone in an office, not working, or smoking in a non-designated area. If I could beat sted in Adv erti Intere sin gi Affordable Rates tvibes? tree nS Kent in one-on-one it would mean a lot. Bob came into the gym just as I scored, rising gracefully over Kent with a right-handed finger roll. Bob had been a welder. He had a pocked gray face from when an acetylene regulator blew up in his face. Two days earlier I had come up behind him in an office as he was eating fried chicken out of a wastebasket. “Bob,” I said, “You had lunch with the crew. You don’t need that.” “Oh, man, it’s habit.” He looked at the floor, kicking at the carpet. “I was homeless back in ’82 and I just got into the habit. Now when I see food, I just can’t help …” “It’s OK. There’s no shame in having been homeless. I’ve been there, too.” “Yeah. You won’t tell Nate.” “No,” I said. Kent stood and waited, his hands on his hips. His shirt was soaked through, rings of sweat around his eyes beaded. “Man, that was a move. Do it again.” I dribbled with my right hand, turned with my back to him, crossed the dribble, spun into a reverse pivot and swept past him to the basket. “That’s 11!” I said. “You can’t win,” he said. Many sizes (full page, 1/2 page, 1/4 page, 1/8 page) Black & White and Color available Contact Lynne at 513-421-7803 ext. 11 or lynneausman@cincihomeless.org Call 513-421-7803 x11 to learn about Streetvibes subscriptions �STREETVIBES August 1-14, 2010 11 Housing Issues Granny Flats & Backyard Cottages Accessory dwelling units could be the fix By Michelle Dillingham Contributing Writer I have always suspected that the problem of homelessness was in some way related to the lack of affordable housing. My suspicion was confirmed when I read what Nan Roman, president of the National Alliance to End Homelessness, has written: “The solution to homelessness is housing.” It’s interesting how so many people try to make it about something else. Seeking policy solutions to our local affordablehousing crisis, I again ventured in search of best practices and found Seattle’s Affordable Housing Report supporting the idea of “accessible dwelling units.” Whenever I research a best practice being used to help alleviate the lack of affordable housing, I inevitably find myself reading zoning codes, alas. This adventure was no different as I delved into the fascinating world of accessible dwelling units or “ADUs.” The ADU has been defined a few different ways, but the simplest definition I found is: “An accessory dwelling unit is a habitable living unit that provides the basic requirements of shelter, heating, cooking and sanitation.” Homes with detached garages, daylight basements, two-story homes, larger homes and alley access apparently lend themselves to ADUs. Simply put, an ADU is any dwelling that is secondary to the main dwelling but that can provide adequate facilities to be an independent living unit. In 2008 the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) released a report, “Accessory Dwelling Units: Case Study,” that explains how the rise in popularity of the ADU can be attributed to the need for smaller housing despite a large stock of large houses with surplus space and a growing elderly population that hopes to “age in place.” HUD’s report looks favorably upon this housing option and notes other positives: ADUs can assist homeowners to bring in additional revenue by having tenants pay rent. Companionship or services are other benefits. ADUs add affordable units to existing housing, which is as an efficient use of existing housing stock and infrastructure. ADUs offer units in single-family neighborhoods for people at various stages of their life cycle or for people with disabilities who want to live independently but still can be close to needed support. Opposition comes in its usual form: concern about increases in parking and traffic, decreases in property values, the threat to the “single-family character” of a neighborhood. However, these concerns have not been borne out in cities that have allowed ADUs with zoning regulations that provide controls. In a quick on-line search of the city of Cincinnati’s zoning code, I saw no reference of ADUs or cottages. Supporters like the fact that there would be a decreased need for government subsidies, presumably because there would be more affordable “market rate” ADU units available. Also, new housing units are created while the look of a single-dwelling development is maintained. ADUs provide a means for senior citizens, single parents or families with grown children to remain in their homes and neighborhoods and obtain extra income. Most compelling to me is that the ADU can provide a broader range of accessible and more affordable housing. I encourage affordable-housing advocates to explore these creative ways to identify more affordable housing – affordably. There are a seemingly endless number of resources online to help communities codify zoning to support ADUs. For example, Vermont has a great brochure online that provides a wonderful synopsis of ADUs, “Adding an Apartment to Your House: New Opportunities for Homeowners: Accessory Dwelling Units.” At a Bar Near You: Guns R Us Ohio prepares to let firearms in saloons By Nicholas Hoesl Contributing Writer I n the Gulf of Mexico, we know that oil and water don’t mix. What about guns and alcohol? Ohio permit holders cannot yet carry loaded handguns into bars, restaurants and sports stadiums, but Senate Bill 239 breezed to passage. Some say it was “ram-rodded.” It passed without any meetings to hash out compromises on both sides of the aisle. Who said bipartisanship is dead? Earlier this year the National Rifle Association (NRA) helped passengers to tote guns on Amtrak, hardly as an effort to boost ridership. Then an amendment allowing concealed weapons in national parks was snuck into the popular creditcard reform bill. Now you’re safe from people and bears. There’s more. Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives have agreed to a special exemption from new finance-disclosure laws for the NRA. They’re on a roll. What next? How about opening up the Cincinnati Zoo to those packing heat? Get a gun lobby to sponsor “Gun Day” – great practice before going to the big parks. Of course, endangered species would be off-limits. Now that we have casino-style gambling at church festivals, introducing a few loose cannons into the crowd would liven things up. If this sounds far-fetched, last year 200 people showed up for “Take Your Gun to Church Day” in Kentucky. I don’t know if “Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition” was the favorite hymn. Not to be outdone, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal recently signed yet another “Bring Your Gun to Church” bill. The city of Kennesaw, Ga., went beyond the right to bear arms. By law, every home in that city must have a gun. Do you remember the incident in Watford City, North Dakota, when a rancher gunned down three men at an American Legion club after he was served two glasses of what he called “unsatisfactory beer?” In my neighborhood, a bar went out of business after a murder took place there. On the door of my library is a sign, “No Concealed Weapons.” Just keep it all up front. If you’re in a long line, does a gun get you better service? Do saloonkeepers believe that guns in bars will boost sales or bring back the smokers, or do they long for the blazing saddles of the Wild West? Can time-honored gentlemen’s duels be far behind? I’m all for honoring a long tradition. Every American should be allowed one single-shot, muzzle-loading flintlock musket. Today’s guns should be at least as hard to get as a fishing or driver’s license. There are well-meaning folks who believe that, if we gave a gun to everyone who entered a plane, it would be a real deterrent to terrorists. I first heard that one from Archie Bunker. Our recent gun-slinging culture has evolved from the Saturday Night Special to the Sunday Street Sweeper. Buy a sweeper and you can skip target practice. It’s as easy as shooting fish in a barrel. Another tip: Pass over the licensed gun dealers and go to the gun shows, where few questions are asked and there’s no IQ test. Pick up a few hotpotato grenades. The NRA endorsed Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland after he said he would sign the bars-restaurant bill if it passes in the Ohio House of Representatives. It wasn’t long ago that U.S. Sen. George Voinovich commented on Ohio’s proposed concealed-weapons law: “If guns made us safer, we’d be the safest country on Earth.” Keep in mind that our governor hails from the south end of the state, where people still talk of the feuding Hatfields and McCoys. Never mind that the Fraternal Order of Police, county sheriffs, police chiefs and state associations representing county prosecutors all called this bill a dangerous idea. The politicians seem to be saying, “What do they know?” and “They don’t have the gun lobbies on their backs.” In the past election, Democrats got $1.2 million from the NRA. This could be more than a shotgun wedding. Nicholas Hoesl is a retired pharmacist and author from Westwood. Want more Streetvibes? Check out the Streetvibes blog http://streetvibes.wordpress.com �12 STREETVIBES August 1-14, 2010 Issues I’m So Far West that I’m East CONTINUED FROM P.AGE 8 surrounding our translator, who was taking the picture, to watch the photograph be taken. Rolling Blackouts July 11 Bangladesh is still considered a Third World country. However, the country’s economy and world presence is growing quickly, especially in the garment industry. As a result, there are rolling blackouts constantly. At first, all of us would stop and wait for the generators to kick on before continuing what we were doing. However, we all noticed that no one else seems to notice the blackouts. Last night solidified in all of our minds how much we have adapted to the blackouts in such a short time. There were six of us hanging out in my hotel room at the end of the day when the lights went out and the dull hum of electricity went out, and we all kept talking and carrying on like nothing had even happened. By far the safest and possibly easiest way to get around, other than walking, is by hiring a car and driver for the day. It’s pretty cheap – usually between 200 and 500 taka per person for the day. Yesterday 10 of us decided to go to Bashundhara City, the largest shopping mall in Southeast Asia. We had the hotel hire us a van. We all piled in and three blocks later we were sitting on the side of a road with an over-heated vehicle in 100-degree heat and 100 percent humidity. However, in order to get to a safe place to pull over, we had to do a U-turn into oncoming traffic – and I’m serious about the oncoming traffic, large buses, rickshaws and other cars coming straight for us as we go the wrong way on the wrong side of the road. The driver called another driver, and off we went to the mall. This gigantic mall has eight floors of shops of all kinds. I purchased a pair of Gucci sunglasses, priced at 2,000 taka. I paid 1,500 taka after some haggling – for a total of about $25. I also purchased some scarves and gifts. We had the opportunity to meet Muhammad Yunus yesterday. “Each of us have the capacity to change the world,” he said. Sirajgonj July 18 In the village we spent most of our time visiting Grameen loan recipients and learning about how Grameen has changed their lives. We spoke with a new borrower, an experienced borrower, a student loan recipient, a struggling member and Grameen Bank staff. We also spent a good amount of time just hanging out outside the bank, where villagers would stop by because they heard foreigners were in town. We stayed at the bank branch in two rooms – no air conditioning (mosquito nets a must), giant roaches, spiders, geckos and squat toilets. We were lucky. One of the other groups didn’t have showers and had to use a bucket on the roof. Oftentimes we would be hanging out in our room after dinner, playing a card game and several children would sneak upstairs and get us to come outside. When we went outside, 20 or more people would be in the yard waiting to see us and teach us some Bangla phrases. The children would A micro-loan helped this woman make a large profit on her purchase of a cow. Lynne Ausman. beg to have their pictures taken – mostly so that they could see themselves on the camera screen. We also visited a local primary school where the children sang songs and showed off their English skills. Neighborhood Rejects Takeover CONTINUED FROM P.AGE 4 park,” Neumeier said. “Who’s going to be living in Over-the-Rhine?” The planned destruction of the trees was especially galling to participants in the rally, held when the temperature was in the mid-90s. A linden tree estimated to be 80 years old is among those scheduled to be destroyed. Johnny Ridley first talked about swim meets he participated in at the Washington Park Pool when he was a child. Then he pleaded for the trees to be saved. “I don’t want to see the trees cut,” he said. “If it weren’t for the trees, we’d be burning up right now.” Theater director Michael Burnham talked about the way other cultures regard old trees, including England and Germany. He mentioned the German immigrants who settled in Over-the-Rhine in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, giving the neighborhood its name. “You are sitting in the living room of the city of Cincinnati, the one place where you can go when it’s hot and there is shade,” Burnham said. “Linden trees grow here. They also grow in Germany, where they are considered sacred. We had some German folks here. Ever wonder how that tree got here 80 years ago? If we lose that tree, what does it say about who we are?” Burnham led a ritual in which he twirled with a watering can, watering the condemned trees and inviting the crowd to join him in dedicating the trees to the people who run 3CDC, their ancestors and descendants. “We dedicate you in the name of those who would cut you down,” Burnham said. “In their name, we dedicate you to their ancestors, who may have known better. And we dedicate you in their name to their children’s children for as long as it takes to grow a tree, so that they may know better.” Become a fan of Streetvibes on Facebook! Streetvibes vendors keep 75% of sales. Consider helping Streetvibes with our publication costs by Streetvibes is the activist newspaper, advocating justice, building community. Your gift is tax-deductible and will go to producing the paper every two weeks. Started in 1997, Streetvibes is distributed by homeless and formerly homeless vendors who Make checks payable to “Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless” $25 Please return your contribution to: GCCH 117 E. 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 Name: Address: $50 $100 $150 Other $ _______ �STREETVIBES August 1-14, 2010 13 Poetry The Mockingbird that Never Died Celebrating a classic novel’s anniversary By Lew Moores Contributing Writer J ean Louise “Scout” Finch is a tomboy. She is 6 years old as the story begins, has taught herself to read even before the first grade, yet hates the idea of going to school, addresses her father by his first name and refuses to back away from – indeed, even initiates - a good physical fight with boys. She lives in fictional Maycomb, Alabama. The Great Depression began a couple of years earlier and FDR is president. Maycomb was an old town, but it was a tired old town when I first knew it. In rainy weather the streets turned to red slop; grass grew on the sidewalks, the courthouse sagged in the square. … There was no hurry, for there was nowhere to go, nothing to buy and no money to buy it with, nothing to see outside the boundaries of Maycomb County. But it was a time of vague optimism for some of the people: Maycomb County had recently been told that it had nothing to fear but fear itself. The story is told through Scout’s eyes. She lives with her brother, Jem, and father, Atticus Finch, a lawyer. At the outset, she and Jem befriend a boy named Dill, who is spending the summer with his aunt, who lives next door; and they spend much of their time early in this classic novel figuring out how to flush out a neighborhood recluse named Boo Radley. It was Dill, Scout points out, who “first gave us the idea of making Boo Radley come out.” But while this coming-of-age novel starts off as an evolving story of a child’s awe of the mysterious and a child-like excitement over a pending sense of adventure, it quickly becomes a more profound exploration and examination of race and class and poverty, of the evil and the noble, in the Deep South of Depression-era America. A quick summary: Atticus Finch is asked to defend an AfricanAmerican man accused of raping and beating a white woman at a time when rape was a capital offense and black men could be extra-legally lynched just for whistling at a white woman. Part of the canon This year marks the 50th anniversary of the 1960 publication of Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, a book that won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction in 1961, was made into an award-winning film in 1962, has sold, by media accounts, more than 30 million copies over the years, and is widely taught in high schools across the country. One media account noted that in 1988 the novel was being taught in 74 percent of the country’s public schools. The 50th anniversary is being marked across the country with readings, panel discussions, music and performances at libraries, bookstores and other public forums. The New York Times noted in late May that at least 50 events had been planned. The National Endowment for the Arts has issued a list of discussion questions for those studying the novel – “How does Atticus quietly protest Jim Crow laws even before Tom Robinson’s trial?” – as well as the historical context of civil rights in the United States. The New York Times also noted that recent sales of the book have been “robust,” especially in the South and in the Midwest in states like Ohio, Indiana and Illinois. HarperCollins, the novel’s publisher, notes on its Web site that most events took place last month, with another handful this month and more in September, from Mobile, Ala., to Boston to Des Moines, Iowa. In Cincinnati, the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center marked the anniversary by showing the film July 11. More than 30 school-age children from Dayton attended. Andrea Faulkner is the manager for English/ Language Arts curriculum for Cincinnati Public Schools. While the novel is not required reading at CPS, many teachers have taught the novel. “It’s being taught at different grade levels, mostly at the high-school level,” she says. “We supply a district-adopted textbook. Many teachers supplement that textbook with novels that are part of the English canon.” Faulkner taught the novel for eight school years while she was an English teacher in Brown County and at Northwest Local School District in Colerain Township. She chose to teach the novel. She says she always prepped her class for what they were about to read, the history of Jim Crow, of the Depression, about Harper Lee and how this would become her only work (she is now 84 years old), an introduction to some of the characters her students would meet in the novel and also the language. The phrase “nigger-lover” is quite common in the text, and the alleged crime is rape. How did she deal with the language in the book? “I pre-warned every group of students I had,” Faulkner says. “But I’m going to teach the book as written. I tell the students, ‘When it’s your turn to read, if you choose to leave that out, I respect that, but I don’t want you to replace it with anything.’ I asked my African American students, ‘Am I offending you by doing this?’ I asked my white students the same. It’s also part of our standards to teach how language changes, is affected by events and time. “As you teach it, you take the children and have them go back and look at how they would respond to this injustice. Now this is the 1930s and you’re white, so how do you respond? You’re African American, how do you respond? Female, how do you respond?” Faulkner asks her students to transport themselves back close to 80 years to and step into the shoes of a character from the 1930s, much as Atticus asks Scout to “climb into his skin and walk around in it,” referring to anyone whose motives are hard to fathom. Were Faulkner’s students able to appreciate the events that took place during the Depression, with a pre-civil rights-era America? “It depended on the group of kids and on how much detail I would need to go into,” she says. “Depression, they got – especially Brown County, where there is quite a bit of poverty. A lot of students could understand poverty. The Depression was not the big issue. It was trying to understand the racial issues.” Could they wrap themselves around the racial issues? “They can,” Faulkner says. “It just takes a little more exposure. They have very limited exposure.” ‘Moral Ritalin’? Mockingbird is more often taught at the highschool level, rather than college, according to Jennifer Glaser, assistant professor of English and comparative literature at the University of Cincinnati. “That’s primarily because of the age of the main characters and the fact that it has become a classic adolescent fiction,” Glaser writes in an e-mail. “Coming-of-age novels are often absent from American lit curricula. Sometimes, for better or worse, the popularity of a novel keeps it out of the college classroom as well. “However, I think there’s definitely room for (Mockingbird) in the college English department. The novel brings up a lot of important issues about the history of American attitudes toward race, the use of pejorative language for African Americans and the like. I think it would invigorate discussion for many college students and would let them compare how their own attitudes toward race have changed from the first time they’ve read the novel until now.” Glaser has never taught the novel at the college level. “Although I think it could be a great book to teach in a class that focused on American attitudes toward race, Southern literature,” Glaser writes. “What’s interesting about Lee’s novel is the way in which it provides a particular snapshot of the Jim Crow South of Harper Lee’s childhood. If I were teaching the novel, I would definitely talk about how important Lee’s exploration of racism in the South was, but I’d also allow my students the room to be critical of the work and some of its pieties. The writer Malcolm Gladwell recently published a great critique of the novel/film in the New Yorker that I’d have my students read alongside all the glowing criticism the novel has inspired.” The piece Glaser refers to appeared in an August issue of the New Yorker last year. The piece is provocative. Gladwell calls the fictional Atticus a “Jim Crow liberal” and compares him to some Southern politicians of the 1950s, such as Gov. Jim Folsom of Alabama, who believed that African Americans should be accommodated, treated well, with a sense of noblesse oblige. They should be treated with a sense of neighborliness. But that didn’t mean legally ending segregation or opening polling places. Atticus Finch was one of them. He didn’t rail against injustice, was in no way a political or civil-rights activist. He accepts with stoicism – we’ll appeal – Tom Robinson’s guilty verdict. “If Finch were a civil-rights hero, he would be brimming with rage at the unjust verdict,” Gladwell writes. “But he isn’t. He’s not Thurgood Marshall looking for racial salvation through the law. He’s Jim Folsom, looking for racial salvation through hearts and minds. “Here is where the criticism of Finch begins, because the hearts-and-minds approach is about accommodation, not reform.” Others have chipped away. Thomas Mallon, writing in the New Yorker in 2006, on the publication of a biography of Harper Lee, called Atticus a “plaster saint,” and said that if the novel were widely read in public schools, “it is less because the novel was likely to stimulate students toward protest than because it acted as a kind of moral Ritalin.” The syndicated columnist Kathleen Parker, writing last month on the 50th anniversary, took issue with Gladwell’s assessment. “Lee’s famous and only novel has earned scorn as critics opine about the way things should have been, not only in real life but also in the artistic treatment of the era,” Parker wrote. She is suggesting the setting is 1930s Alabama. What would you expect of Atticus Finch? William Kunstler? The late Allen Brown of Cincinnati? It would be close to another 30 years before we get to Martin Luther King Jr., Medgar Evers, civil rights and voting rights bills. ‘Stand up’ Miss Jean Louise, stand up. Your father’s passin’. It is a moving passage. Tom Robinson has just been convicted, but the African Americans in the balcony at the courthouse , from where Scout and her brother have watched the proceedings, pay homage to the man who tried to defend Robinson. One of them, the Rev. Sykes, asks Scout to stand. “The Depression era setting of the novel may seem foreign to 21st-century students, but I think Lee still makes the novel infinitely relatable by focusing on young characters who are being introduced to the pain of the adult world for the first time,” Glaser writes. “The work endures because it spoke to truths about race that still resonate in the present day. “ What did Faulkner want her students to take away from the work? “I think the major points they took away were injustice and to be intolerant of injustice,” she says. “The story appeals to today’s students. If the kids didn’t quite understand being treated poorly or persecuted because of the color of their skin, they did understand injustice. So when Tom is found guilty, the kids, just like Scout, are mad. “What excites me is just the desire of our young people to read.” �14 Have something on your mind? Want to comment on an article or vendor? STREETVIBES August 1-14, 2010 Let us know: 117 E. 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 streetvibes2@yahoo.com If you like what you read, but don’t live in the Cincinnati area, you can subscribe to Streetvibes. Call us at 513-421-7803 x 12 to learn more about subscribing to Streetvibes. �15 Resources STREETVIBES August 1-14, 2010 Need Help or Want to Help? Shelter: Women and Children 4230 Hamilton Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45223 FreeStore/FoodBank Central Access Point Bethany House 381-SAFE 557-2873 1841 Fairmount Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45214 Grace Place Catholic Worker House 681-2365 112 E. Liberty Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Madisonville Ed & Assistance Center 271-5501 4600 Erie Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45227 Serves area codes: 45226, 45227, 45208, 45209 St. Vincent de Paul 6037 Cary Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45224 Salvation Army 762-5660 241-1064 562-8841 872-9259 357-4602 352-2902 352-6363 40 E. McMicken Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mental Health Access Point Mercy Franciscan at St. John 558-8888 981-5800 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 NAMI of Hamilton County PATH Outreach 1125 Bank Street, Cinti, Ohio 45214 131 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter Health Resource Center Homeless Mobile Health Van McMicken Dental Clinic 458-6670 977-4489 Treatment: Men Other Resources Shelter: Men Charlie’s 3/4 House 784-1853 921-1613 Center Independent Living Options Emmanuel Community Center 961-2256 Peaslee Neighborhood Center 2121 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 City Gospel Mission 241-5525 Prospect House Justice Watch 241-0490 St. Fran/St. Joe Catholic Work. House 381-4941 Starting Over 1419 Elm Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 682 Hawthorne Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45205 Franciscan Haircuts from the Heart 961-4663 2203 Fulton, Cinti, Ohio 45206 Treatment: Both 761-1480 1821 Summit Road, Cinti, Ohio 45237 Drop Inn Center 721-0643 471-1100 221-3350 3330 Jefferson, Cinti, Ohio 45220 Housing: CMHA Excel Development OTR Community Housing 721-4580 632-7149 381-1171 114 W. 14th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tender Mercies 721-8666 27 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tom Geiger House Dana Transitional Bridge Services Volunteers of America Anna Louise Inn 621-5300 961-1983 OTR: 1620 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Walnut Hills: 2631 Gilbert, Cinti, Ohio 45206 Our Daily Bread 621-6364 1730 Race Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 St. Francis Soup Kitchen Churches Active in Northside 241-2965 Hamilton County ADAS Board Recovery Health Access Center Sober Living Talbert House 946-4888 281-7422 681-0324 641-4300 People Working Cooperatively The Caring Place United Way Women Helping Women Off The Streets 351-7921 631-1114 211 977-5541 768-6924 St. Raephaels Salvation Army Serenity House Day Center Open Door Pantry 863-3184 863-1445 422-8555 868-3276 Advocacy Northern Kentucky Catholic Social Action Community Action Agency Contact Center 421-3131 569-1840 381-4242 859-491-8303 799 Ann St. Newport, KY 579-8547 241-9400 421-1108 363-3300 421-2437 621-1868 Women’s Crisis Center VA Domiciliary VA Homeless 117 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Intercommunity Justice & Peace Cr. Legal Aid Society Ohio Justice & Policy Center Faces Without Places Stop AIDS Brighton Center ECHO/Hosea House Fairhaven Resuce Mission Homeward Bound Youth Mathews House Homeless & Housing Coalition Parish Kitchen Pike St. Clinic Transitions, Inc Welcome House of NKY Franciscan JPIC 721-4700 Gr. Cinti Coalition for the Homeless 421-7803 859-261-5857 859-491-1027 859-581-1111 859-261-8009 859-727-0926 859-581-7745 859-291-9321 859-491-4435 859-431-8717 205 West Pike Street, Covington, KY 41011 Health Center for Respite Care 3550 Washington Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45229 535-2719 591-2246 771-4800 751-0600 721-4811 Hamilton/Middletown 1522 Republic Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 1227 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 961-4555 751-0643 381-1954 421-5211 Food/Clothing Lord’s Pantry OTR/Walnut Hills Kitchen & Pantry 351-0422 381-6672 830 Ezzard Charles Dr. Cinti, Ohio 45214 Joseph House (Veterans) 217 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Interfaith Hospitality Network Lighthouse Youth Center (Youth) AA Hotline CCAT Goodwill industries Healing Connections Mary Magdalen House 1223 Main St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 2728 Glendora Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45209 Caracole (HIV/AIDS) 381-0111 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 First Step Home 961-4080 621-5514 214 E. 14th St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 661-4620 Shelter: Both Anthony House (Youth) 1308 Race St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 Treatment: Women 1437 Walnut Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mt. Airy Shelter 241-2600 241-2563 Crossroad Health Center 5 E. Liberty St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 381-2247 859-491-3335 859-559-5011 859-572-6226 �16 Artists as Activists STREETVIBES August 1-14, 2010 Barbara Gamboa’s Life-Canvas Barbara Gamboa in front of her painting, Guerlain, the Song of Haiti. Bill Howes. Freedom fighter wages art A s a teenager, Barbara Gamboa was known as “the freedom rider.” The youngest person in the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE), she would spend her free time designing signs and posters to be used in marches and demonstrations. This was in the mid-1960s, when segregation was prominent and the civil rights movement expanding. Gamboa, of African American origin, was born A rtists ctivists as By Saad Ghosn Contributing Writer in Selma, Ala., a city the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. put on the activists’ map. At age 4 she came to Cincinnati to join her parents, who had preceded her, leaving their fields in the deep South for a new and free life, working in the kitchen of downtown’s Mills Restaurant. In Cincinnati, she lived in many places, and as a child, art would always busy her hands. “Art came to me very early,” Gamboa says. “I would draw pictures in the sand, paint with nail polish and charcoal pieces, make dolls and clothes from paper bags, create designs from chewinggum foil …” High-school art teacher and well-known Cincinnati artist Jack Mueller recognized Gamboa’s talent and encouraged her to attend the Art Academy. Tuition was high, though, and not knowing what to do, Gamboa, 17, joined the army to become a surgical nurse. She worked mostly in the operating room, in an orthopedic treatment center in Fort Gordon, Ga., witnessing many limb amputations due to the Vietnam War. The violence she encountered then has stayed with her ever since. After three years in the army and an interlude living in California, Gamboa returned to Cincinnati, now married with children. She decided to pursue her education, earning a master’s degree in education, focusing on developmental disability, at the University of Cincinnati. For more than 25 years she taught disabled and emotionally or behaviorally impaired children in the Cincinnati Public Schools. Whether in high school, in the army, unemployed or teaching children, Gamboa always used art as a means for self-expression and as a tool to achieve her social and educational objectives. In high school, she used her art for justice and equality. In the army, her paintings addressed problems of poverty and malnutrition in Biafra and the colonialist wars in Africa at the time. While teaching, she used art to engage her students, introduce important concepts, address timely issues and illustrate history. To help her students learn to read, she drew images, connecting them to words. Teaching black history, she used collages from old newspapers creating artistically attractive bulletin boards to capture kids’ interest and attention. For each subject taught she would organize her art to coincide with the topic, art becoming itself part of the learning. During that period Gamboa received four teacher art grants from the “Keep Cincinnati Beautiful” program. The grants funded her use of photography to teach kids about the environment, recycling and community values. She and her students traveled the city, taking photographs about environmental issues. The grant also helped start school gardens, teaching children about foods, their origins, their role in a healthful diet and a green environment. Five years ago Gamboa retired from teaching. The violence she had experienced both in the army and dealing with kids’ problems resurfaced as post-traumatic stress disorder, causing her heart arrhythmia. Having more free time, she started making art daily; it helped her recovery. Gambo’s art addresses race, slavery and other issues. “All issues are whole, interconnected, generalized,” she says. “Their causes stem from the same well. It is not only black and white; it is most often good and evil, right and wrong.” Good Ship Fidelity, a mixed media sculpture, represents a small boat in which she positioned, naked, hair cut and chained, Barbie dolls she painted silver. It reconstituted, based on historic diagrams, the physical reality of a slave boat. “While making this piece, I was always in tears,” she says. “It made me relate directly and emotionally to the fate of thousands of my distant relatives; (it) also put me in touch with the bigotry and injustice still prevailing in our society.” Gamboa features dolls and baby figures in other installations. She uses them as innocent, vulnerable indicators and victims of neglect and violence. “When I was young, I thought more in terms of race,” she says. “Now I realize that, in our maledominated society gender … control and domination of women is often the real issue.” Her painting, Guerlain, the Song of Haiti, is about poor indigenous living conditions of Haiti, perceived as a tropical paradise by insensitive tourists. Upstream is about Katrina and the wiping away of family structure as a result of the physical ravage. In The Greeting, a woman in the background, a hummingbird and lush vegetation depict her longing for a welcoming garden. When not doing her own art, Gamboa curates shows, bringing together artists of various cultural and ethnic backgrounds, connecting them by ideas and themes. The shows concretize her views of a reconciled, tolerant, happy world. I See Africa: Perceptions, Reality and Imagining, a show she recently curated at the Kennedy Heights Arts Center, allowed a group of diverse artists to bring forward their concepts of Africa, contributing to a multifaceted reality not only of the continent but also of life in general. “I am an activist through my own art,” Gamboa says, “also through my use of art to empower others. There are things I won’t bear, and I respond to them. For me, life is what counts, and kindness and good human qualities are the essence. There is no separation between my life and my art. My canvas becomes my life; both blend together.” Composite image of Good Ship Fidelity, mixed-media sculpture by Barbara Gamboa. Bill Howes. Artists as Activists is a regular column highlighting Greater Cincinnati artists who use art as a vehicle for change. Saad Ghosn is the founder of SOS Art. Ghosn can be contacted at saad.ghosn@uc.edu. � 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 2010 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 1-14, 2010 Subject The topic of the resource Homelessness Description An account of the resource Pg 1: A Joyous Hammer Strikes Again ‘Streetvibes’ Boycotts Own Award Pg 2: The Business of Journalism Pg 3: Free at Last, Now Freeing Others Pg 4: A Joyous Hammer Strikes Again Continued Pg 5: The Games Homeless Kids Play Pg 6: Homeless and Hopeless No More Learning by Serving Poor People Pg 7: Seeking the Wild Cleanliness Pg 8: I’m So far West That I’m East Pg 9: Prisoners Help Save City Pools Pg 10: Free at Last, Now Freeing Others Continued Seeking the Wild Cleanliness Continued Pg 11: Granny Flats & Backyard Cottages At a Bar Near You: Guns R Us Pg 12: I’m So Far West That I’m East Continued Pg 13: The Mockingbird that Never Died Pg 14: Information is Power Pg 15: Resources Pg 16: Barbara Gamboa’s Life-Canvas 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 August 1-14, 2010 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Gregory Flannery Lynne Ausman Veronica Glass Jeni Jenkins Michelle Dillingham Samantha Groark Margo Pierce Paul Kopp Jeremy Flannery Michael Henson David Heitfield Corey Gibson Saad Ghosn Lew Moores Larry Gross Eli Braun Steven Paul Lansky B. Clifton Burke Michael Fanning Aimie Willhoite Anne Skove Vinit Murthy Jon Hughes Lynn Baker Jeremy Flannery Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF 3CDC Aimie Willhoite Anne Skove B. Clifton Burke Bangladesh Barbara Gamboa Boycotts Cincinnati Corey Gibson David Heitfield Eli Braun Gregory Flannery Gregory Flint Jeni Jenkins Jeremy Flannery Jon Hughes Journalism Larry Gross Lew Moores Lynn Baker Lynne Ausman Margo Pierce Michael Fanning Michael Henson Michelle Dillingham Ohio Paul Kopp Prisoners Protests Saad Ghosn Samantha Groark Steven Paul Lansky Streetvibes To Kill a Mockingbird Veronica Glass Vinit Murthy https://streetvibesarchive.net/files/original/3ef2bd0f6885627309b2386691f10a2f.pdf 0553b2729b0a06d34ee5cb0fcacc2a28 PDF Text Text Northside Parade Page 3 Golden Wanton Page 7 July 15-31, 2010 • Issue 181 • One Dollar ADVOCATING JUSTICE • BUILDING COMMUNITY Championing the Workers’ Rights Workers hope to unionize window manufacturer By Paul Kopp O Workers picket Champion Windows, where a union vote will be held this month. Jon Hughes/Photopresse. ne moment during a recent rally outside Champion Windows and Doors in Sharonville could be seen as an example of the crisis haunting the capitalist system, as the rising tension between factory workers and management escalates. The factory’s shifts are changing and Charles Amos, a former Champion factory worker, is walking along the side of the road, talking to many of his former co-workers as they leave or arrive to work. Suddenly another car leaving the factory complex speeds up, heading straight for Amos – finally swerving at the last second to avoid hitting him and a few other former workers and union organizers close by. Amos and the others identify the driver as one of their supervisors at the factory. Amos is perhaps the most spirited protester in attendance. Holding a sign showing the salary of Champion owner and CEO Dennis Manes, square footage of his home and other personal information, Amos stands close to each passing car, repeating variations of the same sentiment to each driver: A change is going to come. See CHAMPION P. 4 The Trail of Tears, Trail of Death U.S. policies are killing migrant workers By Janice Sevre-Duszynska " The U.S./Mexican border es una herida abierta (an open wound) where the Third World grates against the First and bleeds. And, before the scab forms, it hemorrhages again, the life blood of the wounds merging to form a third country – a border culture.” – Gloria Anzaldua, Borderlands/La Frontier: The New Mestiza. Sonoran Desert folk say that before one dies in the desert – from extreme heat and dehydration – he becomes delusional. He strips off his clothes and covers himself in the sand, heating himself up even further. As his body gives way, scorpions, spiders, insects, snakes and other animals invade as the huge turkey vultures swoop down and begin their meal. Since 1994, with the implementation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and U.S. border policies that channel migrants to the deadliest part of the Sonoran Desert, it is estimated that more than 5,000 migrants from Mexico and Central America have died on the U.S.-Mexico border in Arizona/Sonora. Many succumb to unbearable temperatures above 110 degrees. Others are never found as they dissolve into that which is part of the desert. Activist march in support of migrants. Janice Sevre-Duszynska On May 30, in an act of solidarity with migrants and to raise awareness of their plight, people from across the country and world participated in the sixth annual Migrant Trail Walk, a 75-mile, sevenday trek from Sasabe-Sonora to Tucson. “Today, as we celebrate the 520th weekly community vigil, 10 years of bearing witness to the human casualties of the deadly border policies of militarization and enforcement imposed on border communities, we cannot help but continue to ask when this madness will stop,” said Kat Rodriguez, coordinator of the Tucson-based Coalicion de Derechos Humanos (the Coalition of Human Rights), a non-governmental organization. The continued increase in the recovery of skeletal remains indicates that more individuals are being funneled into more isolated and desolate terrain of the Arizona-Sonora border, the organization reports. See TEARS P. 4 �2 The Vibe By The Numbers 33 million The amount, in dollars, of a levy voters approved in Seattle for affordable housing (see page 11). 1990 The year Jerry Judge took a writing workshop that changed his life (see page 16). 5,000 The number of migrants estimated to have died crossing the Sonoran Desert to Arizona (see page 1). 10.5 The Cincinnati unemployment rate, as a percentage of the labor pool (see page 6). 10-14 The number of unfair-labor charges against that a union might file against a window manufacturer (see page 1). 100 The number of days a 1,000-year-old egg is buried before being served (see page 7). 215 The number of the ballot proposition by which California voters legalized medicinal marijuana (see page 6). A few The number of months Stephanie Meinberg has been buying Streetvibes (see page 14). StreetWise By Gregory Flannery Editor 3CDC and the Stench of Death All non-profits are not created equal. In fact, some exist for the purpose of maximizing the profits of others. Take the Cincinnati Center City Development Corp. (3CDC) – please! Created by Cincinnati City Council and the corporations that rule the city, 3CDC is now embarked on taking over Washington Park and turning it into a playground for patrons of Music Hall and the new urbanists who move into condos developed after 3CDC kicks out the poor. The transition will be complete after 3CDC, with the help of Mayor Mark Mallory and Vice Mayor Roxanne Qualls (remember when she was considered a “liberal”?) succeed in kicking out the Drop Inn Center, many of whose residents like to sojourn in the park, along with those residents of Over-the-Rhine who haven’t yet been forced out. “Despite neighborhood outcry, 3CDC has removed the only Over-the-Rhine deep-water pool and the basketball park from the plan and added a dog park that was not asked for,” says Josh Spring, executive director of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. “Now 3CDC plans to remove dozens of historic trees, eliminate the street parking touching the park while creating their own parking garage below the north end of the park. To make matters far worse, 3CDC has presented no plan for where people will go while the park is shut down for up to 14 months. The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless has demanded that a portion of the park remain open at all times, that construction be staggered or that a temporary alternative site be named. The fact is that in a neighborhood made of concrete, if there is no place for people to ‘legally loiter’ conflict will increase. Neighborhoods need parks and nature. People need buffer zones between themselves and concrete and business and sometimes other people.” City council recently approved funding for the Great Park Takeaway. Now the dead themselves are objecting to the takeover. Seems 3CDC will have to come up with a plan for dealing with the remains of the people buried on the land that now houses Washington Park. Stay tuned. Yes, it’s come to this: In its pursuit of profit, 3CDC will dig up human remains. One Killed, One Spared The state of Ohio is now on track to execute more people in a single year than Texas, long the nation’s premier death-dealer. In May Ohio poisoned – the polite term is “lethal injection” – Michael Beuke, after having kept him in a cage for 27 years. But in June Gov. Ted Strickland granted clemency to Richard Nields, commuting his sentence to being caged for the rest of his life. The Ohio Chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union urges people to call Strickland’s office at 614-466-3555 or governor.info@governor.ohio.gov to thank him. While you’re at it, you might ask how it is that Strickland – a Democrat, an ordained minister and a former prison psychologist – can sleep at night after approving the poisoning of human beings. Judging the World Judge Mark Painter of Cincinnati, the only American on the United Nations Appeals Tribunal (UNAT), has returned to Cincinnati after the court’s second session, held for two weeks in New York City. Its first session was in March in Geneva. The court orally announced decisions on the cases July 1, in the General Assembly Hall. A synopsis of the decisions will be posted on the UN Web site later this month. The UNAT is the highest court of the new internal-justice system, which was instituted in 2009 to provide access to independent and professional courts for staff members and management. The judges were elected by the General Assembly. Cases included disputes over promotions, discipline, pensions, contract matters and many other issues. These cases continue the development of the UN internal law. Painter served as a judge in Hamilton County for 27 years, 13 on the Municipal Court followed by 14 on the Court of Appeals. STREETVIBES July 15-31, 2010 Streetvibes is an activist newspaper, advocating justice and building community. Streetvibes reports on economic issues, civil rights, the environment, the peace movement, spirituality and the struggle against homelessness and poverty. Distributed by people who are or once were homeless, in exchange for a $1 donation, Streetvibes is published twice a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Address: 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 Phone: 513.421.7803 x 12 Fax: 513.421.7813 Email: streetvibes2@yahoo. com Website: www. cincihomeless.org Blog: streetvibes.wordpress. com Streetvibes Staff Editor Gregory Flannery Art Director Lynne Ausman Graphics/Layout Nick Swartsell Veronica Glass John Peet Casey Salsinger Vendor Coordinator Jeni Jenkins Contributing Writers Michelle Dillingham, Samantha Groark, Margo Pierce, Paul Kopp, Jeremy Flannery, Michael Henson, David Heitfield, Corey Gibson, Jeni Jenkins, Saad Ghosn, Lew Moores, Larry Gross, Eli Braun, Jesse Call, B. Clifton Burke, Michael Fanning Photography/Artwork Aimie Willhoite, Lynne Ausman, Anne Skove, Vinit Murthy, Jon Hughes Proofreaders Lynn Baker Jeremy Flannery The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that works to eradicate homelessness in Cincinnati through coordination of services, public education, grassroots advocacy and Streetvibes. 27 The number of years the state of Ohio kept Michael Beuke in a cage before poisoning him (see page 2). 6 The number of days “Scabs” went without medication in the Hamilton County Justice Center4 (see page 13). We are proud members of: The United Nations Appeals Tribunal. Courtesy UN. �STREETVIBES July 15-31, 2010 Photo Essay Celebrating Independence in Style Northside has the most vibrant Independence Day celebration of any neighborhood in Greater Cincinnati, featuring progressive social and political causes. This year the neighborhood marched and held a rock 'n' roll carnival July 3, a festival of freedom, social justice and equality. Photos by Jon Hughes/Photopresse. Follow Streetvibes www.facebook.com/streetvibescincinnati twitter.com/streetvibesnews streetvibes.wordpress.com 3 �4 Local News STREETVIBES July 15-31, 2010 Championing the Workers’ Rights CONTINUED FROM P.AGE 1 “We are going to get back in,” he says. “I was fired, he was fired, she was fired (pointing at others standing around him). We’re going to get our jobs back, but I’m not coming back. I’m going to make it better for the people that will be coming back.” Unfair practices Champion has since called Amos and offered to rehire him, and he has accepted, even though he said he wouldn’t be returning. Despite the working conditions, he likes his job and is humbled by the lack of job options in this economy. He says he will continue his support for workers’ rights and the unionization of the factory workers. “The workers at Champion Windows and Doors are trying to self organize”, says John Bielak, a regional organizer for the International Ironworkers Union, who is assisting the Champion workers with their unionization process as well as with their workers’ rights issues. He says Amos was terminated on the spot for incorrectly cutting one piece of glass while another worker, who is friendly with the management, cut 35 window frames wrong and is still working at Champion. “There are a lot of things going on in there with the management with the workers’ rights and the way they are being treated – basically changes in policy against the workers, trying to hamper them and coerce them not to go union,” Bielak says. Bielak, who has been assisting the workers since March, says they have 10 to 14 complaints of unfair labor practices against Champion, which the Ironworkers Union is helping them file with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). Bielak and other union representatives have been meeting with the NLRB to set an election date for Champion workers to decide if a union will represent them. The election is scheduled for July 21. To someone driving past the factory entrance, the scene might have looked like a picket line, but in fact it was more of a protest. This is because most of the workers, even though they support the union campaign, are flying under the radar for fear of losing their jobs, according to Bielak. The few workers in attendance are mostly those who have recently been terminated. “I got hurt on the job,” says Robert Jones, who worked as a welder. “I came back and they fired me.” Jones broke his knuckle and missed three weeks of work. During the time he was gone, he signed a union card and began joining the protests outside the factory. When he returned, he says, he was told he was being let go because he missed too much work. “I had a doctor’s excuse and everything,” Jones says. Sarah Jones, his sister, was let go under similar circumstances. She missed two days of work due to an illness, which sent her to a hospital, and was let go shortly after returning. Sarah Jones says she called and left a message on the company’s voicemail saying she was sick. Her supervisors told her that they never received the message. Like her brother, Jones had also begun to openly show support for the union. ‘Pins and needles’ Bielak says that individuals who are no longer working for Champion will still be able to vote in the union representation election; but under NLRB rules, the company has the right to contest their votes. Those who feel they have been terminated due to their union activities can get their jobs back, but it is a long process. In the case of Champion, the workers will take their complaints to Bielak, who will file a complaint with the NLRB. If the board decides in favor of the workers, they will receive all the wages they missed plus interest, reinstatement of insurance benefits, as well as in anything else that was lost. It’s what they call “Make them whole,” Bielak says. Overall the problem workers seem to have with the company’s management seems to be with they way they treat their employees rather than a dispute over wages. “How can you have a supervisor who jumps on grown men and cusses them out on the floor, and then when someone says something back to him he fires them?” Robert Jones says. Jones and his sister say that, if the union wins the election, Champion will need to make a lot of changes before they would consider going back to work at the factory. Also present at the rally is Brandon Wilson, another former Champion employee, who shared an experience similar to Amos’s. Wilson says he was written up for leaving his station to use the bathroom after his work was finished, and written up and suspended yet again for using the bathroom a second time, even after he informed his supervisors it was an emergency. He was eventually let go for getting adhesive stuck to 15 pieces of glass. Wilson had also been an open supporter of the move to unionize. He was fired in early June and has since found employment elsewhere. Wilson says he has never worked for a company that is run like Champion. “It’s more like a sweatshop,” he says. “You are on pins and needles every day when you walk into that place.” Numerous attempts were made to contact representatives of Champion Windows and Doors. Inquiries were directed to CEO and owner Dennis Manes, as well as the company’s employee relations department, both of which have not returned messages. A message left on the company’s Web site was also not returned. The Trail of Tears, Trail of Death CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 “This ‘Funnel Effect,’ which has been documented by the Binational Migration Institute, has shown that the practice of sealing traditional crossing points ultimately pushes migration into the deadliest areas,” Rodriguez said. “The extent of this crisis is not known as the numbers of human remains recovered in neighboring states are not available.” 282 ribbons In 2006 I participated in the weeklong walk as a member of the Christian Peacemaker Team and BorderLinks, an interfaith educational community in Tucson. Our trek was nothing like the gauntlet of death that migrants face. The 130 of us who participated were accompanied by support vehicles and unlimited amounts of food, water and medical attention provided by interfaith communities. Still, it was challenging to walk many miles each day in the unrelenting sun. ”Where are you from?” asked a U.S. Border agent. After showing him our drivers’ license, we symbolically gave up our identifications -- as migrants do -- by placing them in a metal box. As we crossed the border into Sasabe-Sonora, Mexico, we gathered in a church to pray and be blessed on our pilgrimage by the local priest. As in the Southside Presbyterian Church in Tucson, the body on the cross in the Catholic church there was of Christ as an indigenous migrant refugee. Twelve people picked up three coffins, remembering the women, men and children who have died in the desert. Tohono O’odham Indians Maria and Jim, a married couple, blew a sage incense Migrant Trail Walk, 2006. Janice Sevre Duszynska. blessing through an eagle feather to each one of us. In their consecration, they evoked the Grandmother and Grandfather and displayed a string with 282 ribbons -- one for everyone who died in the borderland in 2005. Then we each took a wooden, white-painted cross. I chose one of a “desconocida,” an unknown woman who died in the desert heat that year. On the other side was the word “Presente.” What we held up in our hands represented the life and death of another human being. As we wandered farther into the desert, we felt haunted. All around us were signs of our migrant sisters and brothers, Christ the refugee: bandannas, discarded clothing, shoes and boots, baseballstyle caps, cowboy hats, ski caps to keep warm on cold nights, blankets, paper refuse from fastfood places and more, including an uncountable number of empty gallon jugs, many with ropes tied to them. To keep hydrated, we were to drink two to three gallons of water each day. A migrant would need around eight gallons of water to barely See TEARS P. 5 �STREETVIBES July 15-31, 2010 5 Local News The Trail of Tears, Trail of Death CONTINUED FROM P.AGE 4 survive the desert and cross over. It’s typical for migrants to cross the border at dusk, when the night vision surveillance doesn’t catch them and the buster lights haven’t been turned on. They often travel at night under the Milky Way while the whirligig sound of searching helicopters pierces the quiet desert sky. They journey until the early morning, when they’ll lie low in the unforgiving heat of the desert bush where rattlesnakes are common. The Border Patrol watches them on radar in their office through cameras called “cherry pickers,” which resemble the machines in the movie Return of the Jedi. Their heat sensors can detect movement thousands of times smaller than what we see. Migrants must face the desert’s many trails, where it’s easy to lose one’s way. There are quick floods called “washes” 2-10 feet deep in the canyons and fierce “dust devil” storms that swirl for 20 minutes at a time. If they are caught by the Border Patrol, migrants face the possibility of mistreatment. Beatings have been reported, and withholding of water and food at detention centers is not uncommon. During the week of our walk, the bodies of six migrants were found in the desert. Desert folk say that, for each body found in the desert, many others will never be found. On the Sunday morning after we trekked our last 6.7 miles into Tucson, some of us participated in a “die-in” in front of the Border Patrol office. We mourned the “dead” as if they were our migrant mothers, fathers, children. To leave is to suffer “The nearly 2,000-mile border between the United States and Mexico has long been a zone of conflict and change, a cultural crossroads where First and Third Worlds meet,” said the Rev. Delle McCormick, a minister of the United Church of Christ and director of BorderLinks. “Many patterns of international economics and politics that affect all of our communities can be seen in sharp focus in the borderlands.” The creation of a “free trade” zone along the border in 1965 began the flood of U.S. manufacturing plants to Mexican border towns. In 1994 the enactment of NAFTA exacerbated the difficulties. As a result, cities along the border have exploded as migrants, not able to find work elsewhere in Mexico, move north to find work along and across the border. Today serious health problems, massive poverty, disintegrating families and environmental degradation are the unintended and often unrecognized legacies of this “development.” In addition, serious immigration problems have escalated. “To leave one’s land is to suffer,” said a coffee farmer from Chiapas, Mexico, who now works for Just Coffee, a cooperative of coffee growers. He told us that, since the passage of NAFTA, hundreds of thousands of coffee farmers in Chiapas and other parts of Mexico have been forced to leave their lands because of the fall in coffee prices. After NAFTA, the price of 90 pounds of coffee fell from $150 to $35. Then there are the middlemen who take their cut. The farmers could no longer support their families and needed to seek fair work. The U.S. response to the increase in migrants crossing the border has been to increase the militarization of the border. Now migrants must cross in more remote and dangerous areas of the deserts; this has increased the number of migrant deaths.  Miguel Pickard, a Chiapan economist from the Center for the Economic and Political Investigation for Community Action who spoke to us and participated in the walk, said we should be asking why this is happening. What is causing Mexicans who do not want to leave their land to do so? Pickard said the main reason is NAFTA. NAFTA promotes a “savage, no-holds-barred capitalism” in which more jobs are being lost, he said. Since 1994, under NAFTA, Mexican farmers no longer receive subsidies for growing their crops. However, U.S. and Canadian farmers still do. Cheap, highly subsidized corn and other crops from the United States and Canada are allowed into the Mexican market. Mexican farmers cannot sell their crops and make a profit –- or compete with the open market. This is what drives Mexican peasants from their farms. Then a Mexican family must develop survival strategies, so they send a family member –- son, brother, husband or wife -– from the land into the cities. If a job is not available in the cities, they continue on to the United States. Before the border became tightened and militarized, Mexican migrant workers were able to work in the United States seasonally as needed and then return to their families in Mexico. Now the migratory pattern has ended. It is too expensive to return because of coyotes and the militarization of the border, Pickard explained. “Under neo-liberalism, the wealth is concentrated in the hands of those designing the free trades which are more than just agreements,” Pickard said. “NAFTA and the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) have not been designed or voted on by the people but by ‘business types.’ As a result of their passage, the rich have gotten richer, and the middle class and poor have gotten poorer.” Pickard explained that other countries such as China, South Korea and India operate with tariffs on imported goods that have allowed their economies to grow. Argentina got out of the World Bank so it could put tariffs on imports to protect its industries. NAFTA, however, is part of a paradigm shift that began in the 1980s, according to Pickard. It did away with tariffs that protected infant Mexican industries and agricultural products and kept out foreign competition. The result in a country like Mexico – which is not on the top of the development slope – Is that the local economies are destroyed. Before, this was not permitted. “NAFTA has frozen countries on the development path, and Mexico has gone down the last 20 years into a more relative and absolute poverty,” Pickard said. “The solution is to do what many academics are saying and what is already happening on a global scale: Open the borders now and eliminate barriers so that the movement not only of goods and capital is allowed but also of people for labor. Why does one person have to die responding to the natural supply and demand of labor?” In March, at a hearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committe, former President Bill Clinton apologized for forcing Haiti to drop tariffs on imported subsidized rice during his presidency. This destroyed Haitian rice farming and severely damaged its self-sufficiency. It appears he was regretting CAFTA and NAFTA. Time to Revive Good Manners Rude behavior is good for no one By Will Kirschner There is a lot on our plates lately: the oil spill, the Iraq War and the economy are all things the average American worries about. However, I have a solution that will help alleviate at least some of our worries: courtesy. Courtesy is not just holding the door open for women; it extends to all areas of your life. Not checking your e-mails during a presentation is not just the courteous thing to do, but could help you get business for your company. Courtesy pays dividends; however, it is surprisingly a dying concept. One example of how seldom people think with courtesy is the recent Miami University sorority event at the Underground Railroad Freedom Center downtown. If you have not heard, these “future leaders” arrived so inebriated that they did not all make it through the door before they got sent home in cabs. Some who got in then pro- ceeded to trash the bathrooms, tried to urinate on a historic slave house and snuck in large quantities of alcohol, according to a memo sent by event coordinator Rhonda Miller to the sorority. This was after one of the other Miami Ohio sororities got in trouble for trashing a lakeside event center. As a college student at the illustrious party school, Ohio University, I feel qualified to offer some insight into why some people no longer act with any decency. So many of the students feel they are entitled to do whatever they please with no consequence. Whoever gets in their way will just get trampled. Ask any full-time resident of a college town and they certainly will be able to tell you all about the problems they have with the students. They have to live with students who only think of themselves and how they can get as drunk as physically possible, no matter the consequences. Just diagnosing the problem is not enough; the cure is more complicated. It really does start with nurture and how parents treat their children. More and more parents are coddling their children and making them feel like the center of the universe. While it is important to make sure your kids know they are important, it is equally important that they do not think they are so important they do not have to be courteous to others. All too often you see parents bending to the will of their young children, and they begin to believe the world revolves around them. It can easily be seen how this translates straight into the behavior exemplified by the sorority, because no one ever told them they were not the most important people out there. The situation is more complicated by how the media feeds this self-attention frenzy, with the bevy of “reality” TV programs out there. One needs to only look at MTV’s newest hit, The Jersey Shore, to find examples of people being rewarded for their selfishness. Young people see them boozing heavily and creating havoc at bars, and they want to party like them. A culture is created in which, if you are not partying hard, then your not partying at all. Changing a culture that lacks common courtesy is going to begin with us. Courtesy is infectious: If we start putting others first, they will repay the favor. Courtesy might not catch the first time someone is exposed, or even the second; but sooner or later they will start wanting to share the good feelings with someone, and then it will start to spread. Interested in volunteering with Streetvibes? Contact Greg Flannery at 513-421-7803 x 12 or by e-mail at streetvibes2@yahoo.com �6 STREETVIBES July 15-31, 2010 Local News Church Group Lobbies for Jobs Calling for creativity and government help By Corey Gibson ing for job opportunities. “People think of striking out on their own,” lack of employment opportunities is a Stern said. “That way they can create their own, matter of concern for people of faith. and get ahead and have some of that dignity.” That’s why the AMOS Project, a faithTerry Jones, a convicted felon and father of two, based coalition striving to solve many social has been doing whatever he can to provide for problems in the Cincinnati area, held a panel his family. His solution for fixing the job crisis is discussion June 30 about ways keeping young people off the that jobs can be brought back to streets and educating them to Cincinnati. “There are no jobs in Hamilton earn money the right way. The panel consisted of people County or in the rest of Ohio. “We need to bring promise from all walks of life. Some were They just disappeared. And back to the city,” Jones said. mothers, others were fathers. Kristina Schnister, a single what we need is a national Some were convicted felons, jobs program called the Local unemployed mother of two, while others had master’s degave the most moving examJobs for America Act.” grees. Yet they all stood for the ple of how unemployment has same thing. They wanted to be affected many people in the employed and they wanted to help others who Cincinnati area. were not employed. “I have been turned away for being over-qualKen Stern, one of the panelists, is the commuified as many times as I have been for someone nity garden director for Findlay Market. He started with yet a higher education than myself,” she said. a program that would help people grow their own Schnister, crying, continued on with confession vegetables in urban gardens and take the vegetaabout her inability to buy presents for her children bles they did not want to keep for themselves and on their birthdays or being able to buy the food sell them at Findlay Market. she wants, because food stamps have regulations “People are working in the gardens and creating about the food that can be bought with them. a business opportunity for themselves,” Stern said. Although she was a case manager for the third “We are creating our own opportunities by taklargest social-service agency in Ohio, she still caning a different chance and creating our own hope. not find a job. We have four goals. One was to provide locally “It has been extremely difficult two summers grown, healthy and nutritious food in the central in a row to tell my kids we are not going to have a city. Second was to help people have access to this yearly outing, that we will not have a vacation, that nutritious food. Third was to help people become we may not even have money for their birthdays,” gardeners and help create a business opportunity, she said. and the fourth was to contribute to revitalizing With nearly a 10.5 percent unemployment rate Over-the-Rhine.” in Cincinnati, this story is one that can be heard all Yet Stern sees that many jobs have been lost. around the Tri-state area. Yet like all the people in The manufacturing jobs that might have been the room, Schnister is determined to find a job. available in earlier decades are not there anymore. “You wont see me melting in the couch from He believes people need to be creative when lookself-pity?” Schinister said. “I will be out there try- A ing to change things for people such as myself.” The final panelist, Pamela Franklin, treasurer of the AMOS Project, finished the discussion with an uplifting speech about banding together as a community and pulling through these tough times. “We all must band together as a whole to make things better,” she said. “Those who are eating cannot relate to those who are not eating.” Her message about thinking together and changing the way democracy has treated the middle class resounded strongly throughout the room. U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) sent a letter to AMOS and to the panel discussion. It extended his gratitude to the AMOS Project and declared his appreciation for getting out the word about the Local Jobs for America Act, introduced by Brown, which he said would create 1 million jobs nationwide and over 26,000 for Ohioans. Paul Graham, director of the AMOS Project, endorsed the bill. “There are no jobs in Hamilton County or in the rest of Ohio,” he said. “They just disappeared. And what we need is a national jobs program called the Local Jobs for America Act.” Yet the AMOS Project and all the people that came out to support the group did not stop there. They went to the streets of downtown Cincinnati and began a rally, chanting, “Tell me what democracy looks like. This is what democracy looks like” and “What do we want? Jobs. When we do we want them? Now!” The group marched to the offices of U.S. Rep. Steve Driehaus (D-Ohio) and U.S. Sen. George Voinovich (R-Ohio) to deliver over 1,000 job applications to each. Outside the offices were crowds of people wearing “I need a job” T-shirts and holding signs that protested the fact that there are very little job opportunities in Hamilton County. The Weedy, Wild Wild West California prepares to tax legal marijuana By Coulter Loeb “ Wanna buy some weed? Wa-wanna buy some weed?” a shaking, stumbling man wearing a leather jacket and a small cap holds out a small baggie containing less than an eighth of an ounce of the green herb in a small California Park. “It’s some of the good stuff,” he insists. Having been informed less than 30 minutes earlier by local street vendors that drug pushers had been using my current location, Berkeley’s People’s Park, to push meth-sprayed cannabis to unsuspecting citizens, I politely declined. I had heard of the methods dealers use to get customers hooked on drugs, but the feeling of culture shock remained as the man stumbled away toward another group of youth. In Berkeley, Calif., cannabis use has been all but legalized. Citizens smoking pot on the street is seen as just another one of the locale’s cultural curiosities. In addition to the shady man in the park, locals mention a local black-market dealer by the name of “Aquarius.” With access to one of California’s many legitimate and legal medicinal marijuana dispensaries, he hangs out with his two dogs on Telegraph Avenue, giving anyone who can pay “the good stuff.” He is spoken of as a friend among the community and provides a safe, affordable product to Berkeley residents. Sitting in a small metal chair on the sidewalk in front of a busy coffeehouse, “Sam” holds a lit marijuana cigarette as one might hold a Camel: publicly and nonchalantly. “It’s just become such a part of the culture and every day life here. Sure, you kind of have to look out for the cops if you don’t have a (medicinal marijuana identification) card, but people smoke on the street all the time,” she says. An orderly market As of June, California’s policy makers had hammered out many of the policies surrounding medicinal cannabis ever since it’s statewide legalization in 1996. But being the “leader in all things counter culture”, as High Times editor Dan Skye says, the state has continually explored how medicinal cannabis might be implemented into public policy. In some areas, such as Berkeley, the unregulated black market has reached the point that pot has become a part of the community. It can be seen being smoked on the sidewalk and is smelled everywhere. It also means that nearly anyone can tell you where to get some. In Berkeley, the lack of regulation and enforcement policies has led to a new weedy wild west, where the majority of the non-marijuana card carrying public is on their own to find good, untaxed sources of cannabis. But for the majority of California, a system of order and control is emerging from the chaos. In the 14 years since California’s legalization of medicinal cannabis, public opinion has slowly shaped the policies surrounding the state’s initially controversial medicinal marijuana dispensaries. Patients’ rights groups have lobbied for the availability of safe, reliable sources of medicinal cannabis and have won a number of measures easing restrictions on the legal cannabis market. California voters passed Proposition 215, the Compassionate Use Act of 1996, with a 56 Marijuana plant. Coulter Loeb. percent majority. The proposition stated chiefly that the state would ensure and protect the right of any California citizen deemed by a doctor to be able to benefit from the use of cannabis to acquire and medicate their ailments by using medicinal marijuana. In 2005 the Oakland city government decided to pass a measure regulating how the medicinal cannabis industry would function in the city. It made cannabis the Oakland Police force’s lowest priority See WEED P. 10 �STREETVIBES July 15-31, 2010 7 Dining Cakes, Jell-O and Ale in Fear It’s a buffet, but is it really Chinese food? By Michael Fanning Entering Buddha's House of the Golden Wanton is like entering the Forbidden City in Beijing, except there’s a roof over everything and they serve orange Jell-O. It’s a buffet restaurant that opened in the last year or so, and I was wondering how it stacked up against several hundred similar buffets in the Tri-state. The building itself was, painted white and yellow when it became the Wanton, was obviously a Pizza Hut about a year and a half ago. The refitted interior is a strange mixture of varnished fauxopulence and just plain incomplete. What look like chandeliers from an Arabian oil magnate’s house hang from the corrugated metal ceiling. You can still see the wiring. However, as long as you don't look up, you will not be disappointed. Plastic jade dragons adorn the partitions between the booth seating and the custom made wooden tchotchki racks in the windows holding faux treasures from the Ming Dynasty. Everything is gleaming and new. I’m dying to know how much it cost to gut and remodel the place in this manner. It must have equaled whatever they shelled out for the building in the first place. But why spend so much on an interior only to have no ceiling? Bizzaro. The Wanton is close to where I work, and I’ve brought my co-worker, Kelly, who is our resident sushi expert. I base her qualifications on the fact that she just got back from her first vacation to Japan, and she’s a big fan of My Neighbor Totoro. She will come in handy soon. Beijing pizza We are led to our booth, and in a moment are greeted by our waitress. When I say “greeted,” I mean this in the fashion of two boxers “greeting” each other before a long brawl. Our waitress orders us to the buffet. We move quickly. The staff are all young, and their English skills are certainly limited – not much beyond, “Is Pepsi OK?” They have the bodies of figure skaters, a remarkably attractive bunch. The food selections at Chinese buffets are pretty much the same: fried rice, sweet and sour chicken, pepper steak, egg rolls, as well as purely American fare like pizza, fried clams, stuffed mushrooms and the like. The standard desserts are present as well. Orange Jell-O, tapioca and bananas with a mysterious red sauce poured over them. I strongly suspect this is the same sauce on the sweet and sour chicken; and in the name of good journalism, I put some on my plate. Kelly and I make it back to our table, and I compare our selections. Everything I have is brown and fried. Everything Kelly has is green and organiclooking. I know full well that my eating will be my demise. When I’m dead, they will find an entire order of crab Rangoon lodged in my chest. On this first round I got pepper steak, fried rice, crab Rangoon, orange Jell-O, a slice of pizza and some white gelatinous stuff that I’m assuming is a coconut-flavored dessert. It looks just like a hunk of hard-boiled albumen. They had crab legs at the buffet as well but these crabs looked to have had muscular dystrophy in life, so I avoid them. Kelly got rice and what I think is a pile of bamboo. There is no mystery to me as to why women outlive men. The banana dish is not bad, really. The red sauce cannot be tasted and therefore is just like eating a banana. The orange Jell-O is actually pretty gross, and I’m not sure how they screwed that one up. The white albumen is next. I say to Kelly, “Here goes.” She gives me a team-spirited thumbs-up. I am completely mystified. It does taste kind of coconutish, but it isn’t pudding; it's too firm. I swallow and give Kelly a blank smile. I have no idea what I’ve just eaten. The real test is yet to come: the sushi bar. I Chinese Food or American? REUTERS/Natalie Behring haven't had much sushi, and Kelly is along to guide me through the ins and outs of it. As I eat my brown, fried selections, Kelly looks at my plate and says, “Mmmm, that looks good,” but I know she really means, “I bet you live to see 43 tops, maybe 45 if you would stop licking your plate.” On a side note, my dad just got vanity tags for his new Avalon that say, “4 BYPASS.” Killing the whale As we munch, I observe the other patrons of the Wanton seated near us. The crowd is mostly what you would expect in a buffet: It is a bovine horde. A man close to me that must weigh upward of 400 pounds. I’ve never felt pity for a piece of furniture, but his chair certainly has mine now. The chair reminds me of Joe Morton’s last line in Terminator 2, “I … don't … know … how … much … longer … I … can … hold … this.” Then he explodes. A heated argument between two employees suddenly erupts next to me and Kelly. While shooting menacing glances at the table she’s been waiting on, a server is unleashing a Chinese diatribe at a young woman who has been sweeping the floors. I certainly don’t understand what they are saying, but I can’t help but think she's inciting the sweeper to join her in an all-out assault: “If we take them now, when they are full and sleepy, we can roll their fat flesh off of the back dock. I can’t watch anymore.” A male server at a table close to us doesn't appear to be any happier than his cohorts. I observe him take a round of beverages to his table. He hands a bottled beer to a guy and then quickly runs around the partition wall to the left of our booth. The customer twists off the top of his beer, and it erupts everywhere with foam. It has obviously been shaken. The server behind the partition jumps up, laughing and pointing at the beersoaked man. “Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, you beer exprode!” he yells. As I finish my pizza, I wonder what the origin of the staff's general surliness could possibly be. I remember a restaurant when I was in France 10 years ago. Our waiter was not a happy chap. My wife and I were accompanied that night by a local Parisian, a former college roommate of my wife’s. I asked our friend if she could explain the young man’s grumpiness. She simply shrugged and said, “Can you blame him? It is a subservient job.” I guessed this made some sort of sense at the time and figured that, if the French think this way about busing tables, why not the Chinese? Then another thought dawned on me. I was surrounded at the Wanton by a bovine horde being served by grace- ful, beautiful, healthy, well shaped people. That in itself must be unappealing to them. Then another thought: the food that Chinese people eat seems to be some of the healthiest worldwide. What I now have on my plate, as we all know, is not authentic Chinese food, but rather American cuisine with soy sauce. From what I’ve observed, Chinese people tend to eat rice and vegetables and other healthful, colorful things – not the deep-fried mess before me. All plates in my sight (not including Kelly’s) are full of brown lumpy things, and lots of it. We are forcing the staff to defile their own healthy cuisine to pander to us, the bovine diabetic horde. Then we force them to watch us shovel it down our gullets in quantities that would kill a blue whale. This might rub me the wrong way, too, if I were Chinese. We are forcing them to become accomplices in our own unhealthy lifestyles. It must be disturbing to them. What the staff here must talk about after work! You would probably hear, “Wow, you see fat man, table 43? He have ass like Liberty Bell. His wife eat whole pizza, then eat table!” Ready to jump Only once have I had authentic Chinese food. It was many years ago when I had a girlfriend who worked at a small Chinese-owned and Chinesestaffed toy company. We were invited to a dinner hosted by her boss. My girlfriend and I were the only Westerners in the group. It was a wonderful experience, the food was incredible and didn’t in any way resemble the food I was eating now. The people were delightful and the experience would have been completely great were it not for one small item. You might have heard of the Chinese “delicacy” called the “1,000-year-old egg.” Well, they served these at the dinner party. I decided to be intrepid and try one. I will try to describe it. This is an egg that has been covered in a mixture of wood ash, quicklime and salt, then buried in the ground for a about 100 days. After this time has passed, it is not used to ward off evil spirits, but rather eaten. The shelled egg is slick and a terrifying translucent black. I set one on my plate and looked at it as someone about to base-jump for the first time looks downward from the top of a radio tower. I observed the Chinese guests around me at the table; all eyes were directed my way. I knew that, despite the fact that this was their “delicacy,” deep down they know it’s fucked up. It must have taken decades of cultural conditioning to get used to this See CAKES P. 12 �8 STREETVIBES July 15-31, 2010 Vendor Voice Go Vibrant Cleo’s Joke Corner Events to help you on the way to heathly living By Aubrey Bowman Streetvibes Vendor If you were on Fountain Square June 21, you got the chance to get healthy via a new initiative called Govibrant – Making Healthy Living Easier. Some of the many organizations involved include the United Way of Greater Cincinnati, the American Cancer Society, American Lung Association, Cincinnati Health Department, Artworks and other organizations dedicated to healthy living. This is a brand new event, designed to make Cincinnati a healthy city. Govibrant wants to serve as your one-stop spot to connect you to health and wellness events in Cincinnati. Their goal is the catch phrase, “10 Better in 10 Challenge: Try to Get Healthy with Healthy Activities in 10 Weeks.” Visit their Web site at govibrant.org for more information. Here are some upcoming events: Until 7/23/10, Cancer Society “Paint it Pink,” acscan.org/cincinnatipaintitpink. Aug. 7 Lady Distance Classic Run/Walk, fleetfeetcincy.com/calendar. Aug. 28-29, MS150, Kimberly.Neff@nmss.org. Aug. 30, Cancer Society Golf Classic, 888-22276446, ext. 4213. Sept. 5, Cheetah Run at Cincinnati Zoo, cincinnatizoo.org. Sept. 12, Sunflower Revolution, sunflowerrev. com. And remember: “Don’t Go Through Life with No Vibes.” What do you call on an octopus that’s down on its luck? Squid Row. Art by Anthony Williams Intoxication By Willa D. Jones Streetvibes Vendor Intoxication is being drunk if only just for a little while Intoxication can become a bad habit with a crooked smile Being high and intoxicated all alone can make no sense Being homeless, a panhandler plus drunk can be a bad defense Fear of not knowing what your next move will possibly be Can be intoxicating without a drink, please believe me The fear of failure constantly day in and day out Can be an eye-opening experience to make a change, no doubt Once you realize there is another way to live life every day To work, maintaining your money and then a place to stay Things start to fall in order eventually surely but slowly And you start to change your ways each day ever so boldly Intoxicating thoughts will not be able to hold you back Knowing that with the help of God you can get back on track So don’t stay intoxicated by the fears of the world today Ask God to help, read the Bible and never forget to pray. “Feed Me, Seymour, Feed Me All Night Long…” Whimsical Sun-dried Tomato Pesto with Penne Serving Size: 5-6 bellies 2 cups fresh basil leaves, chopped, with stems cut off 1 cup pine nuts 3 cloves fresh garlic ¾ cup extra virgin olive oil and 4 oz. sundried tomatoes – or 8.5-ounce jar sun-dried tomatoes packed in olive oil ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese (optional) 16 oz. penne pasta • Prepare the pasta according to package instructions, cooking al dente. • Combine basil, pine nuts, garlic, oil and sundried tomatoes in food processor until well blended. • Transfer the pesto to a large serving bowl and add the pasta, toss well to coat evenly. • For added zest, mix in the grated Parmesan. • Season with salt and pepper to taste. • Voila, feed! Sundried Tomato Pesto. Jeni Jenkins. By Jeni Jenkins Staff Writer I made this dish on a day when I had less than 30 minutes to throw something together for a community potluck. The date had completely slipped my mind and there wasn’t time to run to the grocery. After racking my brain on what to make, I stepped out on my porch, and my former neighbor handed me a bundle of fresh basil leaves from her garden. I told her my dilemma, and she suggested I make pesto, which I had never made before. She told me how she makes hers and, to my surprise, I had the ingredients on hand. I ran inside and tossed everything in my blender (I didn’t own a food processor). After taste testing, I whimsically threw in a jar of sun-dried tomatoes that I had purchased months. To my surprise, it was tasty. I mixed the pesto with some pasta and rushed over to the potluck that had already begun. A bit worried about its reception, I placed the dish on the table and got into line. By the time I got to my dish, the entire bowl had been devoured – which means I didn’t even get to enjoy the fruits of my own labor. Since then I’ve made this dish several times for other potlucks and it’s always a hit. This is a perfect summer dish, and I enjoy it with salad and bread. �STREETVIBES July 15-31, 2010 9 �10 STREETVIBES July 15-31, 2010 Issues The Weedy, Wild Wild West CONTINUED FROM P.AGE 6 Francisco, the Terra, had been reserved. Massive stuffed baked potatoes had been prepared. Vendors had lined up at a chance to get a booth at the First Annual 2010 High Times Medicinal Cannabis Cup. Dan Skye, editor of High Times, remarks on the significance of the event. “The industry has advanced to the point where new industries are cropping up all the time,” he says. “You see this all the time when something reaches its tipping point – all these industries come forward to serve both the consumer and the cultivator. It’s evolving”. It’s evolving, all right. On the entrance floor, new types of smoking devices, LED grow lamps and entire prefabricated hydroponic grow boxes sit with smiling vendors idly standing by for anyone who happens to make eye contact. The occasional cannabis plant stands defiantly tall and healthy among the tables and wares. Continuing down the stairs into the second part of the convention, anyone in attendance is greeted to a smell familiar to most of those there: Somebody's smoking some pot. If anyone were unlucky enough to arrive on this and stated that the city would work toward creating a tax structure and enforce regulation over medicinal cannabis. By 2007 medicinal marijuana had been legalized for 11 years. The courts had already defined parts of how California’s growing medicinal marijuana community interacted with the state, but the majority of marijuana’s legal issues remain in the grey. State laws still contradict federal laws. No one knew how the free-market cannabis industry would look. Then Richard Lee, a 33-year-old marijuana activist, decided to place an ad in San Francisco’s East Bay Express. Inspired by a visit to a cannabis college in Amsterdam, Lee had decided to test the lines around commercial medicinal marijuana. His ad, declaring, “Cannabis Industry Now Hiring”, promoted a trade school whose classes aimed to introduce standards to the fledgling industry on a commercial level. It taught students how to legally open a medicinal marijuana dispensary. After an initial public reaction of 200 phone calls in the first week, 20 students assembled in a small storefront on 15th Street in Oakland. Soon, the waiting list for classes grew to three months. As students began to apply what they had learned, “there were a couple rogue agents that just threw up a pot shop,” says Salwa Imrahim, executive assistant to Oaksterdam University’s founder, Richard Lee. Before the city had time to react to the rogues, “16 more popped up in the area, and the market supported it”. The city, facing the debt generated by several local renovation projects, decided that there might be a taxable market in the sudden crop of mediIt’s all but legal in Cailifornia. Coulter Loeb. cal cannabis dispensaries. “The city decided to permit (the dispensaries), second section any time between 3 and 4 p.m. the and that’s how they would control them, without first day, they would then enter the mass of people shutting them down entirely,” Lee says. jammed shoulder-to-shoulder, trying to get past Four dispensaries were established to sell the many displays of medicinal cannabis and a game show booth where free cannabis is given medicinal marijuana to patients with a doctor’s away every hour. The mass of people was there for recommendation. the third portion of the convention: the Prop 215 By 2009 Oaksterdam University had outarea. grown its storefront’s walls and had moved to its In front of the entrance to this special section, a 30,000-square-foot headquarters. Satellite camsign says: “Cash Only. Medical Marijuana Recompuses had popped up in Los Angeles, Ann Arbor mendations.” Anyone who had paid the $35 enand California’s North Bay. trance fee could pay for an on-site doctor’s consulThis growth continued across California, where tation. The doctor would provide either a one-year several municipalities decided to adopt structure recommendation or, if he believed a more detailed and taxation guidelines for medicinal cannabis. medical history was required, would give a 30-day There are currently 563 dispensaries across northtemporary recommendation for the price of $99 ern and southern California, according to dispento any U.S. citizen, regardless of the state on their saryguide.com. driver’s license. The inevitable convention Those who receive recommendation also receive a green wristband and are directed toward By last month, June 19-20, things had grown to a door leading to an adjacent, open-air parking the point that High Times had decided to throw a lot in the inner city. A doorman checks their wrist little industry convention, showcasing the state bands, and they are allowed to freely roam about of the medicinal cannabis industry in California. the Prop 215 section. Modeled after the High Times Cannabis Cup, Having grown up in Cincinnati, where mariheld annually in Amsterdam, this was to be the juana still remains in a state of prohibition, I first event of its kind anywhere inside the United immediately noticed that something was differStates. ent about the Prop 215 section. The pipes, bongs, A small space just next to the Bay Bridge in San bowls, balloons, vaporizers, joints and blunts were as varied as the people smoking them. Massive, 12-foot balloons grow from one end of the lot, full of THC-laden vapor from a line of cone-shaped machines constantly provide samples to anyone who asks. Innovative new smoking devices are passed among complete strangers. Even on a windy day, anyone in the parking lot has at least a contact high from simply being outside. A paper tube the size of a small telescope, a medicinal megablunt, begins to circulate around the crowd for over an hour, leaving a cloud of smoke in its wake. The San Francisco Fire Department stands by to deal with those who collapse in the afternoon sun and respond to five medical emergencies during the event. Sporadically, a stretcher can be seen working its way through the mass of people, an EMT with an oxygen mask close behind. Coughing is heard from every direction. Billions for the state And money is everywhere. Booths line up along either side of the lot and sell medicinal marijuana to any patient with a green wristband. $20 and $50 bills are constantly in exchange between vendors and visitors. Every patient is smoking, and every patient is smoking cannabis taxed by the state of California. “This is huge state income tax here” Skye says, “You have all kinds of taxes here. As far as I know, California is broke. New York is on the verge. Isn’t it time we start looking at something that will allow states to balance their budgets?” Many of the movement’s earliest members are present, speaking to the public about issues such as patients’ rights, responsible use and government responsibility. Legal experts also give advice to anyone with a question. It has come to the point that, in November, California will have near-complete legalization on the state ballot. If the measure passes, anyone in the state of California “will be allowed to carry up to an ounce of cannabis and be allowed to cultivate up to a 5x5 foot crop for personal use,” Imrahim says. The measure would also leave the decision of whether or not to permit dispensaries in a given area up to the local county or municipality. According to a recent statewide Field Poll, a majority of 56 percent of California’s citizenry support legalizing and taxing cannabis to generate public funds. In the past 14 years, cannabis laws in the states have transformed from total prohibition to allowing a fledgling industry to take root on the shores of San Francisco Bay. Thousands of medicinal marijuana patients in the state of California stand on the verge of complete freedom to medicate freely and grow their own medication. California’s tax regulator, the Board of Equalization, estimates that there is a $1.4 billion unregulated black market for cannabis in the state. Tourism and spin-off industries would be expected to generate $12-18 billion yearly for the state, according to the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, a California-based pro-legalization lobby. California stands capable of hosting the only potentially multi-billion dollar cannabis tourism industry in the United States, where anyone over the age of 21 can whip out a bowl in Golden Gate Park to smoke a bowl of Vortex or Cali Gold, this year’s winners in the sativa and indica categories. States suffering from budget deficits will take notice. Millions of bloodshot eyes stand fixed on the upcoming election. For an audio slideshow, visit coulterloeb1.sites. livebooks.com/data/web/publish_to_web/index. html. Call 513-421-7803 x11 to learn about Streetvibes subscriptions �STREETVIBES July 15-31, 2010 Housing Issues 11 Best-Laid Plans Sometimes Work Seattle’s plan can help affordable housing here By Michelle Dillingham Contributing Writer About six months ago Affordable Housing Advocates (AHA) established its Policy Agenda for 2010, which helped prioritize its advocacy goals for the year. AHA’s policy agenda includes the following goals: • 1) Provide targeted advocacy for affordable housing to local elected officials, • 2) Advocate with the Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority (CMHA) on such issues as encouraging full Housing Choice Voucher utilization and thoughtful selection of CMHA’s executive director, • 3) Educate community leaders and citizens on affordable housing, and • 4) increase the amount of affordable housing. Last month AHA completed one of its strategies under “public education” by distributing the report, “State of Affordable Housing in Hamilton County: The Crisis.” In the after-glow of this accomplishment AHA members turn their attention back to the policy agenda and find plenty to do. Arguably, one of the most difficult goals is number four, to actually increase the amount of affordable housing in Cincinnati. In an effort to seek out best practices in other cities, I stumbled across a compelling report out of Seattle, Wash. The City of Seattle Planning Commission published its “Affordable Housing Action Agenda” in February 2008. Although Cincinnati and Seattle are different in many ways – for example, Seattle has almost twice the population as Cincinnati – the lack of affordable housing, homeless numbers and other data such as affordability turns out to be quite similar to AHA’s report. The Seattle report lists some successful efforts that are underway to provide affordable housing, one of which was a voter-approved 2002 housing levy that diverted $33 million out of Seattle’s Office of Housing toward affordable housing. This levy was overwhelmingly supported by voters again in the 2009 election. (OK, maybe we are not so similar.) What is particularly interesting in Seattle’s report is that each of its strategies includes suggested language that would amend the city’s Comprehensive Plan. For example, Strategy number 3 is: “Encourage the use of Incentive Zoning Programs.” Proposed language for the city’s Comprehensive Plan: “Consider using an incentive zoning system that requires affordable units, regardless of whether a developer takes advantage of the bonus or not.” Another strategy I found particularly interesting is Strategy number 7: “Work to expand housing choices, including accessory dwelling units, backyard cottages, also known as detached accessory dwelling units, and cottage housing citywide.” Implementation strategy: Promote backyard cottage programs in areas well served by transit, particularly around light-rail stations.” Wow. Reading this strategy prompted me to research the “backyard cottage” concept, and I found it so interesting I plan to cover it in the next issue of Streetvibes. Stay tuned. Cincinnati is currently engaged in developing Plan Cincinnati, “a comprehensive document that will serve as a long-range plan to guide and manage growth, protect the environment and influence future development in our city.” I encourage you to take a look at proposed language changes to Seattle’s Comprehensive Plan as we consider our own plan and how we can ensure affordable housing is included in our future. You can see AHA’s report at ahacincy.org. You can find Seattle’s report at seattle.gov/planningcommission/docs/SPC_AffordableHousingRpt.pdf. Is Graffiti a Crime or an Art Form? By Brian O'Donnell Contributing Writer Self-described Robin Hoods are at the forefront of what they describe as the biggest counter-culture movement since punk. Exit Through the Gift Shop showcases graffiti and explores the meaning of idealistic self-expression and its relationship with commercialism. This documentary is the directorial debut of notorious street/graffiti artist, Banksy. Despite the film’s exposition of the dangerous work of pasting 10-foot murals multiple stories above busy streets, the film is less about the history of street art and more about what constitutes art. Regardless of whether or not Banksy can be trusted as an honest filmmaker, Exit Through the Gift Shop shows how any hirsute individual with enough passion and the right endorsements can make himself into a millionaire. Thierry Guetta , a Frenchman whose face is framed by unruly sideburns that wrap into a mustache, seems to annoy everyone he meets with his somewhat eccentric penchant of filming everyone and everything. Through filming his cousin, known only as Space Invader, Guetta finds himself wholly immersed in the world of street art – or what police organizations worldwide refer to as “graffiti.” Director Banksy doesn’t seem too concerned with the facts. The history of street art is glossed over, and those involved go by monikers and wear masks or have their faces blurred. Banksy himself is interviewed, though there is no way to tell who is actually talking, as his face is obscured by a hood and he speaks with a distorted voice. Exit Through the Giftshop chronicles Guetta’s rise from amateur filmmaker to documentary filmmaker to street artist to pop-super-artist as he meets and films the perpetrators of the street art movement, culminating with his meeting the elusive and infamous Banksy. However, don’t expect a film about Banksy and his somewhat anti-capitalist persona accompa- nied by his exploits in stenciling his art on a wall in the West Bank separating Israel from Palestine. It’s not even a movie about the modest beginnings of street art as it gains acceptance as legitimate art, though that story could have benefited the picture. Banksy, whom the movie purports to be about, takes a side seat to Guetta, who becomes a mainstream success using the expression of a counterculture movement. Guetta copies the street art style made famous by people like Shepard Fairey, who is famous for the iconic two-tone Obama campaign poster. Hiring a team of artists to create his ideas, Guetta manufactures an art exhibition at Banksy’s behest and sells millions of dollars worth of art under the name Mister Brainwash. It’s almost as if Banksy is playing a joke on the unwitting Guetta. Or maybe the audience is the unwitting participant. Neither documentary nor mockumentary, Exit Through the Gift Shop can easily be seen as a kind of joke mimicking the sardonic commentary of Banksy’s own graffiti. The movie becomes one about the art world and Guetta, who is instantly born feet first into it while other characters will never make money off spray painting private property. Or it could be a simple prank on us and Guetta. As Bansky puts it, “It’s not Gone with the Wind, but there’s probably a moral in there someplace.” Want more Streetvibes? Check out the Streetvibes blog http://streetvibes.wordpress.com �12 STREETVIBES July 15-31, 2010 Dining Cakes, Jell-O and Ale in Fear CONTINUED FROM P.AGE 7 thing. It’s like Westerners with our cheese, I guess. We eat it and enjoy it and don’t even think about it being a byproduct of a mucous membrane. I understand the whole idea of cheese makes the Japanese recoil from it like a cobra. Anyway, I tried the 1,000-year-old egg. It can only be compared to eating the eyeball of a long dead sheep. It was revolting. I scored many points with the Chinese crew that evening but ruined my chances of putting my mouth anywhere near my girlfriend that night. The food at the Wanton is not authentic Chinese food. Nor do I imagine most patrons want a foreign experience when they come. I remember going to a Japanese restaurant downtown a few years ago. That’s the place where a Japanese chef cooks the food in the middle of your table, which has been converted into a cooking surface. I am interested in foreign cultures of most types and looked forward to a “Japanese experience.” I also wanted the chance to work on my limited Japanese language skills. When the chef arrived at our table, I was crestfallen to find that Miguel, our chef, was from Mexico. Not only was I not going to practice my Japanese that evening, but I suspected the tempura might have a Tex-Mex spin to it. “What part of Japan are you from?” my motherin-law asked. “The south side,” he responded. The palace escape The time has come for Kelly and me to hit the Wanton’s sushi bar. We fill our plates with about six pieces each. All are a different type and I look forward to Kelly explaining them. We sit down and I begin the interview. Me: So, Kelly, you’re a sushi expert, right? Kelly: I never said that. Are you going to finish your orange Jell-O? Me: Tell me what you’ve got on your plate there. Is that sushi? Kelly: Of course it is. There’s a lot of different types. Most of it is American-style sushi. Me: How can you tell? Kelly: Because the outermost layer is rice and not nori. Nori, she explains, is the “compressed algae” wrapped like a rubber band around the sushi and holds it together. American sushi, she explains, is typically wrapped in an outer layer of compacted rice. Me: Now, sushi is Japanese, right? Kelly: Yes, and it is weird in a Chinese restaurant. They’ll probably serve pierogi next week. Me: Do Chinese people eat sushi? Kelly: Not really. Me: Where did the idea of sushi come from? Kelly: Well, according to Japanese lore, there was an empress who was driven from her palace when it was attacked. Before she fled, she grabbed some food to take with her, namely rice and fish. She climbed up a tree to hide from the invaders and ate the rice and fish compressed together. And thus was born the greatest appetizer since calamari. Though possessed of a dancer’s physique, Kelly puts away the sushi like a Japanese submariner on furlough. If I didn’t mention it before, I’m paying for lunch. Me: So, having just gotten back from Japan, how does the Wanton’s sushi measure up? Kelly: It's not bad, I guess, but the spider-roll is a travesty. A spider-roll, she explains, is sushi made with an entire deep- fried soft-shell crab. It is soft because it is caught while molting. The Wanton’s SpiderRoll is made with a fried shrimp sticking out of it. On my plate A Chinese boy stares at a statue in Beijing. REUTERS/Guang Nin. it looks like a shrimp-shaped Me: Mine says, “You are doomed.” boat sunk in a lagoon of white rice. The tail sticks Kelly: Hey, that would make a great title for this straight up. piece: “Cakes and ale in fear!” Kelly: There’s an alarming amount of avocado in I remind her that she is the sushi expert and to this sushi as well. There are no avocados in Japan. leave the writing to the pros. There’s also no carrots in sushi but that hasn’t Me: Well, thank you for your information, Kelly. It stopped the Wanton’s kitchen from adding them. was a fun and informative interview. We conclude that this is strictly American sushi Kelly: Whatever. Give me your Jell-O. and go with it. Kelly tells me that sushi restaurants We roll ourselves out of the restaurant and know are everywhere in Japan, common as McDonald’s, we'll accomplish little else at work that day, our and can be very inexpensive. bodies busily digesting. As we cross the parking Kelly: In Japan, a buffet restaurant is called a “Vilot, Kelly says, “I feel like I should be wearing a cow king.” bell.” Me: Why is that? I thank her again for her expert opinion on the Kelly: Because you eat like a Viking. sushi and think about what I have just observed at Or a Delhi resident, I think, looking around. Buddha’s House of the Golden Wanton. It was not Me: What’s that orange stuff on that sushi there? Kelly: That’s orange Jell-O. Chinese culture I witnessed. I feel the urgent need Me: Jesus, they put orange Jell-O in the sushi? to go back and explain ourselves to the young Kelly: Uh, no I think that was on my plate already. Chinese staff. I want to say, “We're not all like this. We are given our bill with two fortune cookies on a Americans have redeeming qualities! little black tray. Fortune cookies are, of course, an I try to think of redeeming American qualities, and American invention. Kelly reads hers to me. the first things that come to mind are – no joke – Kelly: “It is better to have beans and bacon in corn dogs and Arby’s curly fries. peace than cakes and ale in fear.” Streetvibes vendors keep 75% of sales. Consider helping Streetvibes with our publication costs by making a tax-deductible donation or by purchasing a subscription. Streetvibes is the activist newspaper, advocating justice, building community. Your gift is tax-deductible and will go to producing the paper every two weeks. Started in 1997, Streetvibes is distributed by homeless and formerly homeless vendors who purchase the paper for 25 cents and sell it for $1, keeping the 75 cent profit. Make checks payable to “Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless” I want to support Streetvibes and the vendors. $25 Please return your contribution to: GCCH 117 E. 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 Name: Address: E-mail: $50 $100 $150 Other $ _______ �13 Poetry STREETVIBES July 15-31, 2010 Jail Haiku - the Verse Things I Saw Sent back to stay in C-pod. She pays back with moon. Always something new Even though nothing happens. I’m given one pill. Jail chaplain visits. We talk. It’s so good to see Alice Gerdeman. Kelly sleeps here now. So fast Keisha had to move, Barely had time to say, “War? Stop!” She’s at Talbert House. She’ll get out in half the time. She’ll miss Friday’s show. Library visit Because Greg is with the press M. Logan brought in. Five minutes later Angry female CO says Why are you in here? Marilyn explains She was brought here by a guard. “Chaplains sit by pod!” When we reach the pod I’m told I have guests waiting Diane and Janet? A protest in support of Barbara Wolf. Andrew Anderson By Barbara Wolf Sticky Holding Cell Women talk about their kids Laughter hits cement Edinburgh Clouds, three spires Haggis? Bologna and cheese Loud muffled orders Speaker system out of whack I’m moved to first floor Awakened by a pink sky Keisha and I talk about life I walk with Sandy The TV is way too loud No caffeine… headache Keisha and I listen as Chaos turns into silence Michael talks through glass He leaves without looking back e-mails many friends They are turned away, each one Except Deborah Jordan. Deborah, glorious. Bright light on all night Headache for three entire days. No sleep, no sleep. Cough. Keisha talks of me Says I am an activist And nice to be with. Jacky says, “You’re an activist? Tell me how to organize.” New York is from New York. A D-pod porter.. she’s smart. Coretta Scott King. Midnight. Tall, dark, loud. Many find her difficult. She feels she’s a man. The eater gets moved to A. Did not clean. Kicks door loudly. They talk to Judy. All the people in her head. We play (jump) checkers. I’m an atheist. Jesus doesn’t help Midnight. She’s moved from our pod. We are served “Cat Food” I picture a cat sniffing. It turns, walks away. Roof top. Loud music. Judy moves from space to space. “Scabs” yells at column. When the visit ends I return to my cell tired. Buzz. Another guest. A priest has stopped by We talk about mental health He leaves two bibles. They sweep the floor, mop with bleach. Locked in, I watch sky float by. Sun is up so bright, Horizon has disappeared Window dirt tells tales. New cellmate, Kelly. Deep resonate, rhythmic breath. It puts me to sleep Locked behind orange door. Walk in circles on gray floor. What do beige walls say? Five guards come to move Scabs out, she gets them to let her move. If we need something, … not their job to wait on us, it’s to watch us wait. No meds for six days. “They might be in tomorrow.” Energy seeping. Noise is outrageous. Pod has become rude teen camp Yelling in the vents. Dred tells of H-pod chairs. I want to get that on tape. Friday has arrived The Contact Center visits Jacky is amazed.. Amala visits. We talk until the phone cuts… E-mail from Iraq. One toilet, two beds, Little sink, hanging orange peel. Ah, sweet smell of orange. ..needs to organize I’d given her their numbers She’s thrilled to see them. 6 o’clock. Dinner. A shout, “Ms. Barbara, they’re here!” air sucked out of pod. Wednesday 4, shakedown Salt packets tossed in pod We remake our beds. Woosh. Window Banging. Shouting. Fifty.. sixty people there. Midnight’s moved… Too loud. Only I liked her singing 4 to 6 a.m. Looking up.. Waving, waving down from peace filled holes amazing transfer. Pushy porter fired. �14 STREETVIBES July 15-31, 2010 Art and Letters Artwork by Anne Skove Letters to the Editor Poignant and Moving To the Editor: I work on Ninth and Main, and for the last few months have become somewhat loyal to the Streetvibes vendor at Court and Walnut. I find myself looking for him, only buying the paper from him, always trying to make the effort to say hello and be honest with him (when I don’t have cash, or when I’ll return with some). I like him. Last week he handed me the paper (which I’ll admit I don’t actually read all that often), and made quick mention to “check him out on page 11.” It’s only today that I’ve finally gotten around to it, and his article absolutely blew me away. Truly. As a writer and an editor, my life revolves around words. As a reader, they are my passion and my salvation. Riccardo’s words floored me, so beautifully and artfully were they written. His message and its delivery struck a very deep chord, and I’m shamed to admit I was more than a little surprised and how intelligent and eloquent he was. Yet another case of making simple assumptions, of people in certain situations, or of a certain gender, or race … and finding them utterly incorrect. So moved was I by his article that I shared it with a co-worker who also knows of Riccardo (and who wanted to know after reading if I’d sent my “comment” e-mail yet). In fact, it was all I could do not to jump up from my desk, in my air-conditioned building, at my very safe and stable job, and run out right that minute to talk to Riccardo about his article, call him by name (now that I know it), look him in the eye and tell him how good, really good his writing is. I look forward to doing just that the next time I see him (perhaps tomorrow?), but I also wanted to take a moment to say thanks, to you, Streetvibes staff and vendors, for doing something so good, so real and so positive. And for giving me an opportunity to get to know a fellow human being just a bit better. And for getting to read his poignant and moving words. And for making me think. Stephanie Meinberg Cincinnati Have something on your mind? Want to comment on an article or vendor? Let us know: 117 E. 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 streetvibes2@yahoo.com If you like what you read, but don’t live in the Cincinnati area, you can subscribe to Streetvibes. Call us at 513-421-7803 x 12 to learn more about subscribing to Streetvibes. �15 Resources STREETVIBES July 15-31, 2010 Need Help or Want to Help? Shelter: Women and Children 4230 Hamilton Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45223 FreeStore/FoodBank Central Access Point Bethany House 381-SAFE 557-2873 1841 Fairmount Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45214 Grace Place Catholic Worker House 681-2365 112 E. Liberty Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Madisonville Ed & Assistance Center 271-5501 4600 Erie Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45227 Serves area codes: 45226, 45227, 45208, 45209 St. Vincent de Paul 6037 Cary Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45224 Salvation Army 762-5660 241-1064 562-8841 872-9259 357-4602 352-2902 352-6363 40 E. McMicken Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mental Health Access Point Mercy Franciscan at St. John 558-8888 981-5800 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 NAMI of Hamilton County PATH Outreach 1125 Bank Street, Cinti, Ohio 45214 131 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter Health Resource Center Homeless Mobile Health Van McMicken Dental Clinic 458-6670 977-4489 Treatment: Men Other Resources Shelter: Men Charlie’s 3/4 House 784-1853 921-1613 Center Independent Living Options Emmanuel Community Center 961-2256 Peaslee Neighborhood Center 2121 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 City Gospel Mission 241-5525 Prospect House Justice Watch 241-0490 St. Fran/St. Joe Catholic Work. House 381-4941 Starting Over 1419 Elm Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 682 Hawthorne Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45205 Franciscan Haircuts from the Heart 961-4663 2203 Fulton, Cinti, Ohio 45206 Treatment: Both 761-1480 1821 Summit Road, Cinti, Ohio 45237 Drop Inn Center 721-0643 471-1100 221-3350 3330 Jefferson, Cinti, Ohio 45220 Housing: CMHA Excel Development OTR Community Housing 721-4580 632-7149 381-1171 114 W. 14th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tender Mercies 721-8666 27 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tom Geiger House Dana Transitional Bridge Services Volunteers of America Anna Louise Inn 621-5300 961-1983 OTR: 1620 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Walnut Hills: 2631 Gilbert, Cinti, Ohio 45206 Our Daily Bread 621-6364 1730 Race Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 St. Francis Soup Kitchen Churches Active in Northside 241-2965 Hamilton County ADAS Board Recovery Health Access Center Sober Living Talbert House 946-4888 281-7422 681-0324 641-4300 People Working Cooperatively The Caring Place United Way Women Helping Women Off The Streets 351-7921 631-1114 211 977-5541 768-6924 St. Raephaels Salvation Army Serenity House Day Center Open Door Pantry 863-3184 863-1445 422-8555 868-3276 Advocacy Northern Kentucky Catholic Social Action Community Action Agency Contact Center 421-3131 569-1840 381-4242 859-491-8303 799 Ann St. Newport, KY 579-8547 241-9400 421-1108 363-3300 421-2437 621-1868 Women’s Crisis Center VA Domiciliary VA Homeless 117 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Intercommunity Justice & Peace Cr. Legal Aid Society Ohio Justice & Policy Center Faces Without Places Stop AIDS Brighton Center ECHO/Hosea House Fairhaven Resuce Mission Homeward Bound Youth Mathews House Homeless & Housing Coalition Parish Kitchen Pike St. Clinic Transitions, Inc Welcome House of NKY Franciscan JPIC 721-4700 Gr. Cinti Coalition for the Homeless 421-7803 859-261-5857 859-491-1027 859-581-1111 859-261-8009 859-727-0926 859-581-7745 859-291-9321 859-491-4435 859-431-8717 205 West Pike Street, Covington, KY 41011 Health Center for Respite Care 3550 Washington Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45229 535-2719 591-2246 771-4800 751-0600 721-4811 Hamilton/Middletown 1522 Republic Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 1227 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 961-4555 751-0643 381-1954 421-5211 Food/Clothing Lord’s Pantry OTR/Walnut Hills Kitchen & Pantry 351-0422 381-6672 830 Ezzard Charles Dr. Cinti, Ohio 45214 Joseph House (Veterans) 217 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Interfaith Hospitality Network Lighthouse Youth Center (Youth) AA Hotline CCAT Goodwill industries Healing Connections Mary Magdalen House 1223 Main St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 2728 Glendora Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45209 Caracole (HIV/AIDS) 381-0111 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 First Step Home 961-4080 621-5514 214 E. 14th St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 661-4620 Shelter: Both Anthony House (Youth) 1308 Race St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 Treatment: Women 1437 Walnut Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mt. Airy Shelter 241-2600 241-2563 Crossroad Health Center 5 E. Liberty St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 381-2247 859-491-3335 859-559-5011 859-572-6226 �16 Artists as Activists STREETVIBES July 15-31, 2010 Poetry that Keeps the Door Open Jerry Judge’s unexpected outcome “ Poetry found me and gave me a different voice,” says Jerry Judge, a Cincinnati poet who started seriously writing only in his mid-forties. “I was having strong feelings about many issues and not a good way to express them adequately. Poetry worked for me; it gave me a powerful tool to get them out.” While growing up, Judge loved to read; he wrote a few short stories for his own pleasure, also on high school and college assignments; he even published a couple in his twenties. He also occasionally wrote poems in an attempt to impress girls. His academic career, however, took him into business administration and then social work, a field he has worked in ever since. Initially and for a long time he held a demanding and stressful job in public child welfare; it consumed most of his time. For the past nine years he has been a caseworker for Big Brothers/Big Sisters, a mentoring program that pairs kids with adults who serve as their role models. In 1990, deciding to slow down professionally, Judge took a writing workshop. This is when he discovered his strong affinity for poetry; he has been writing it since, publishing his poems in various magazines, in seven chapbooks to date, participating regularly in writing groups and in public readings. “With poetry everything came out – my thoughts, feelings, fantasies, joys, worries, questions,” he says. “Each poem would take me on a different discovery path, put me in touch with unexpressed or unexplored parts of myself, and the outcome often unexpected.” A rtists ctivists as By Saad Ghosn Contributing Writer As a result Judge wrote about fatherhood, family life, relationships, death, social issues, politics. His poems on justice, peace and wars, also abounded even though hard to come because of all the feelings and pain involved and all it took to dig them out. Judge did not shy away from them, however; he wrote many over the years, pertaining to the violence of wars, the futility of innocent deaths, the inflicted ravages of youthful demise, the hypocrisy of warmongers. He recently put them all in a chapbook he titled, Night Talk in the Barracks. “It was important to let them all out together in a book,” he says, “They were clearly stating my anti-war perspective, and I was loudly saying: ‘This is me.’ ” “Cleansing for Americans,” one of the poems in the book, satirically addresses the attraction Americans have for violence and their self-destructive use of might and weapons when facing the problems of the world. Through his words, Judge progressively overlapped bombs with flags, with church, and transformed an apparent ode to violence into a sarcastic American prayer: “We will wave our flags and bomb./We will attend church and bomb./Bombs will cleanse./Hallelujah!/ Forgive us our sins./Hallelujah!/Bombs. Bombs. Bombs.” In “Deep In The Heart,” he treats of money, greed and wealth, of their self gratifying role in Jerry Judge. Photo by Saad Ghosn. triggering and shaping wars: “How right to have a in anti-war activities, rallying with similar minded President/dedicated to the super rich./At straobjectors in Austin, Texas, writing regularly for the Fatigue Press, an alternative press for military tegic points across America,/certain men will men. Whenever he feels a peace and justice issue pause and contemplate/their wealth. The gleam needs to be heard, he is always prompt at writing from their smiles/will light the skies of Afghaniletters to the editor or to congress, participating in stan and Iraq.” His poem, “No Forwarding Admarches and demonstrations. dress,” goes back to the Gulf war. Its title evokes In Cincinnati, Judge has also been instrumental death, loss of contact, abandonment, reflective at strengthening the voice of other poets, encourof Judge’s feelings at the time, sorrow mixed with aging them in their writing and publishing. He anger and a sense of isolation. Images of violence is an active participant in the Cincinnati Writers coincide with the insensitivity to violence when Project and the Greater Cincinnati Writers League, it affects others and the callous detachment from groups that meet regularly to read, review and crireality when TV announcers play only the out-oftique poetry, develop writing skills, foster learntouch advertisers. It also reminds of Cincinnati ing, at the same time mentoring emerging poets City Council’s proposal to outlaw begging by the and forging relationships. homeless in order to not inconvenience downJudge will continue writing poetry, as it is his town merchants. Judge closes on all these feelings voice. with the image of empty eyes, a metaphor for the “I would like to write more about homelesslost soul of society, a statement he felt applicable ness, about progresto our country. sive issues I have Judge reads his podeep feelings for, the ems in public whenBy Jerry Judge environment, childever he can, sharing his hood, warfare, climate feelings and powerful warming,” he says. “Also I should have known at the stadium. images with varied about poverty, domestic audiences. Quarterback’s neck snapped. violence, child abuse; “I feel the need to Fifty thousand frenzied fans cheering dissident poetry that inshare my poetry, to tackler dancing flamenco over still body. volves me from within, have someone else that is universal. I learn hear it or read it,” he I should have known from television. a lot when I write. Poetsays. “I want it to make Clean-cut announcers foaming at mouth. ry keeps the door open an impact. When I feel American flags undulating as and lets me wander, like strongly about someIraq’s people are blown into scraps. an explorer, inside my thing, I have to voice it, own territory.” and my poetry comes to I should have known from City Hall. Judge also wants his my rescue. It becomes To protect downtown merchants poetry to trigger action my conversation, my an ordinance was passed in himself and in others. communication. I use forbidding begging. He wants it to clearly it to trigger awareness, and loudly state his thinking, to plant a I finally knew when I opened the curtains beliefs, to reflect who he seed.” on the other side of his eyes. is. He always carries in Judge has also been Void. Empty. his wallet “As a Man,” a an activist for peace No forwarding address. poem by David Ignatow, beyond his poetry. whose last lines say, "I When in his early am haunted by the poem/yet to be written/that twenties he enlisted to avoid being drafted to I may live as a poem/when I die as a man." This Vietnam, he soon became a conscientious objecwould also be his wish. tor, ready for imprisonment if not discharged. Awaiting court decision, he actively participated No Forwarding Address Artists as Activists is a regular column highlighting Greater Cincinnati artists who use art as a vehicle for change. Saad Ghosn is the founder of SOS Art. Ghosn can be contacted at saad.ghosn@uc.edu. � 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 2010 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 15-31, 2010 Subject The topic of the resource Homelessness Description An account of the resource Pg 1: Championing the Workers’ Rights The trail of Tears, Trail of Death Pg 2: Street Wise Pg 3: Photo Essay Pg 4: Championing the Worker’s Rights Continued The Trail of Tears, Trail of Death Continued Pg 5: The Trail of Tears, Trail of Death Continued Time to Revive Good Manners Pg 6: Church Group Lobbies for Jobs The Weedy, Wild Wild West Pg 7: Cakes, Jell-O and Ale in Fear Pg 8: Go Vibrant Pg 9: The Voice of the Street… Pg 10: The Weedy, Wild Wild West Continued Pg 11: Best-Laid Plans Sometimes Work Is Graffiti a Crime or an Art Form? Pg 12: Cakes, Jell-O and Ale in Fear Pg 13: Jail Haiku-the Verse Things I saw Pg 14: Arts & Poetry Pg 15: Resources Pg 16: Poetry that Keeps the Door Open 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 15-31, 2010 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Gregory Flannery Lynne Ausman Nick Swartsell Veronica Glass John Peet Casey Salsinger Jeni Jenkins Michelle Dillingham Samantha Groark Margo Pierce Paul Kopp Jeremy Flannery Michael Henson David Heitfield Corey Gibson Jeni Jenkins Saad Ghosn Lew Moores Larry Gross Eli Braun Jesse Call B. Clifton Burke Michael Fanning Aimie Willhoite Anne Skove Vinit Murthy Jon Hughes Lynn Baker Jeremy Flannery Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF affordable housing Aimie Willhoite Anne Skove Arts & Poetry B. Clifton Burke California Casey Salsinger Corey Gibson David Heitfield Eli Braun Government Graffiti Gregory Flannery Jeni Jenkins Jeremy Flannery Jerry Judge Jesse Call John Peet Jon Hughes Larry Gross Lew Moores Lynn Baker Lynne Ausman Margo Pierce Marijuana Michael Fanning Michael Henson Michelle Dillingham Migrant Nick Swartsell Paul Kopp Photography Saad Ghosn Samantha Groark Seattle Veronica Glass Vinit Murthy Workers Rights https://streetvibesarchive.net/files/original/c0f949b7e30901e0331e39cb7ebabf19.pdf ea67913714d5f0d3fa890ddf35d8fcf2 PDF Text Text The Comedy of Zach Anner Page 6 World Cup Commentary Page 10 July 1-14, 2010 • Issue 180 • One Dollar ADVOCATING JUSTICE • BUILDING COMMUNITY Hate Wave: Attacks on Homeless Violence is epidemic, and some don’t even want to count By Margo Pierce Contributing Writer I f 27 people had been killed in the United States in one year for being African-American or for being Jewish or for being developmentally disabled, there would be a national uproar. In 2008, 27 people were killed in the United States for being homeless, according to the National Coalition for the Homeless. Where is the uproar? Homeless people all over North America are being set on fire, beaten, stabbed, shot, strangled, brutalized by police, harassed and raped. Many of these crimes go unreported, and the ones that do come to light might not necessarily be recorded as hate crimes. That means statistics for tracking the violence in order to find ways to address it are inadequate. Understanding this phenomenon begins with the source of the assaults and apathy surrounding them. “People are just being targeted because they are homeless. It’s a safe crime, it’s almost like vandalizing a street sign,” says John Joyce, co-executive director of the Rhode Island Homeless Advocacy Project (rihap.org/). “The victim doesn’t come and tell the police about it. They’re ashamed of where they’re at in their life right now. “I can’t understand why, but it’s accepted that it’s OK to assault homeless individuals. It’s just bigotry at its best. People are being targeted because they’re homeless. You’re carrying your life on your back, in your backpack; and people see that and for some odd reason people want to assault people who are more vulnerable.” During testimony before the Rhode Island Legislature on a bill to require tracking crimes against the homeless and police training on homelessness, Joyce played the Bum Hunter video to show how attacking homeless people has become a form of entertainment. The bill passed the state house and senate and is expected to be signed into law. “The victims don’t really want to come forward because the way the police departments think and the community thinks: ‘No one’s going to believe me anyway if I do get assaulted.’ If the homeless community here in Rhode Island knows that the police departments will listen to their complaints, they’ll come forward,” Joyce says. The complexities of social attitudes influence all facets of government in the execution of their role as protector of the common good. This is reflected in an opening statement in Homelessness, Victimization and Crime: Knowledge and Actionable Recommendations, presented in 2008 by the Institute for the Prevention of Crime at the University of Ottawa. “In 1998 the mayors of some of the largest cities in Canada declared homelessness a national disaster,” the report says. “Since then, studies conducted in a number of Canadian cities provide evidence that the number of homeless people on the streets is increasing and consequently that the demands on shelters and other services can be expected to rise. … Those without adequate shelter are more likely than A protester holds an anti-hate sign at a rally in Denver. REUTERS/Gary Caskey. the housed to be victims of violence and, for women, victims of sexual assault.” What the report can’t provide is uniform, consistent data on the number of crimes committed against homeless people across Canada. Nor can the U.S. government provide that same data. Beyond victims’ reluctance to report, another problem is the apparent indifference of law enforcement to collecting See ATTACK P. 4 Beggars Must Now Be Choosers City rules: free shelter or free speech By Gregory Flannery Editor C Josh Spring addresses a press conference at the federal courthouse after the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless filed suit against the city of Cincinnati over new panhandling restrictions. At far left is attorney Jennifer Kinsley. Gregory Flannery. incinnati City Council has found a way to cut the number of people staying in homeless shelters: Kick out the beggars. New rules require shelters that receive city funding to enforce “clear and consistent consequences” for clients “known to be panhandling.” Calling the rules a violation of homeless people’s First Amendment rights, the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless filed suit June 16 in federal court to block the city from enforcing the rules. The fight over the city’s latest attack on panhandling is part of a larger conflict that has been fought behind the scenes until now. The new rules not only prompted a constitutional challenge but also shed light on tensions between the two organizations most responsible for addressing homelessness in Cincinnati: the Homeless Coalition and the Cincinnati/ Hamilton County Continuum of Care for the Homeless. (Disclosure: Streetvibes is published by the Homeless Coalition.) ‘Forced to censor’ The city’s new rules are vague, which is part of the complaint filed by civil-rights attorney Jennifer Kinsley. The “clear and consistent consequences” are not yet defined. But the clear meaning is panhandlers will be evicted from city-funded shelters, according to Josh Spring, executive director of the Homeless Coalition. Because panhandling is protected by the U.S. Constitution’s guarantee of free speech, the rules must be struck down in court, Spring says. “This would kick people out from where they sleep at night for doing something that is constitutional,” he says. “We will not stand for this new war on the poor.” Kinsley wants a federal See BEGGARS P. 12 �2 The Vibe By The Numbers 16 The percentage of street papers around the world with national circulation (see page 7). 20 The number of years the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless oversaw minimum standards for emergency shelters (see page 1). 97,000 The difference between the number of families eligible for subsidized housing and the number of subsidized housing units available in Hamilton County (see page 11). 1965 The year photographer Gordon Baer began working for the Cincinnati Post (see page 16). 700 The cost, in dollars, of a 30day supply of medicine for a patient with bipolar disorder (see page 3). 27 The death toll for homeless people killed by hate crimes in the United States in 2008 (see page 1). 58 The percentage of conservatives in Ohio who support the medical use of marijuana (see page 13). 6 The average number of miles a soccer player runs in a World Cup match (see page 10). 8.5 The number of hours per day Antonio Carlino sells a street paper in Germany (see page 11). 10 The age at which Zach Anner ran away from home to meet Cindy Crawford (see page 6). StreetWise By Gregory Flannery Editor Does the New Masthead Make Our Butt Look Fat? Streetvibes introduces some stylistic changes with this edition. Please note our new masthead on page 1, our first-ever logo (next to the page numbers) and new poster on page 9. This month marks one year since we doubled our publication schedule, so we’re in a celebratory mood. For its first 12 years Streetvibes was a monthly publication. Going bi-weekly was a double risk: Would readers buy more papers? Would writers, photographers and artists contribute more content? The answers are yes and yes. The full-year tally isn’t yet available, of course. The actual anniversary isn’t until July 15. But we have averaged a monthly circulation of 6,544 for the first five months of 2010. By comparison, our circulation for the month of January 2009 was 3,415 copies. In other words, we’ve nearly doubled our readership. Content seems to be the key. We often receive phone calls or e-mails from people who say they bought their first copies of Streetvibes as an act of charity or solidarity with our homeless vendors – but they bought their next copy because they wanted to see what was inside. We Don’t Fix Cars A close relative expressed surprise when he heard I work for Streetvibes. He thought it was an automotive magazine, and he knows that I am to mechanical skills what BP is to environmental protection – that is, inept. Most people in Greater Cincinnati have never heard of Streetvibes but we hope that will change. Our new logo and poster are part of a marketing campaign designed by Linda White and Nick Donell, students at Antonelli College. They also designed a brochure, stationery and Web site, all of which we plan to use in the coming months to expand our little street paper’s reach – and, most important, our vendors’ opportunities for earning an income. Their fellow Antonelli student, Veronica Glass, has helped lay out each edition for the past few months. We even have a new multi-media presentation, courtesy of Eamon Queeney, a journalism student at UC. Queeney spent time with our vendors and staff and put together an amazing five-minute mini-documentary that captures the essence of Streetvibes. You can view it at http://www.eamonq.com/data/slideshow/2/publish_to_web/index.html. Students are a big part of Streetvibes. We encourage young writers and new writers to contribute to the paper. In the past year we’ve published articles and photography by students at Northern Kentucky University, the University of Cincinnati, Xavier University, Miami University and the College of Mount Saint Joseph. We’ve occasionally shared the work of high-school students with our readers. Students get the opportunity to improve their skills while being published and at the same time helping homeless people. But we’ve also had the privilege of publishing the work of professionals – writers, photographers and artists whose careers are long established but who contribute their work because they believe in our mission. They include Jon Hughes, chair of the journalism program at UC; Lew Moores, an acclaimed former reporter for the Cincinnati Post and Cincinnati Enquirer; Margo Pierce, a 2009 Peter Jennings Fellow; David Heitfield, former editor of the Aspen Daily News; Eli Braun, an advocate for prisoners at the Ohio Justice and Policy Center; Anne Skove, who formerly practiced law in the Commonwealth of Virginia; and others. Something Different About a Street Paper Streetvibes is an odd little paper. When I meet with school and community groups, I tell them that we’re unlike any other publication in Cincinnati. That’s true in several ways. In an age when mainstream newspapers are losing circulation and going out of business, Streetvibes has been gaining readers and increasing its print run. I believe this is happening because of – not in spite of – our unusual business model. First, we don’t exist to make a profit. Instead, we exist in order to give homeless and other low-income people a way to earn a living. Streetvibes is primarily a self-employment scheme. Vendors buy the paper for 25 cents a copy and distribute it for a donation of $1 or more, keeping the profit they earn. In 2009 vendors sold more 43,000 copies, earning more than $30,000 – and that doesn’t include the tips that readers often give them. Second, Streetvibes is produced almost entirely by volunteers. The editor is the only paid staffer. The art director, the writers, the photographers, the artists and proofreaders all contribute their work. But grassroots journalism doesn’t mean dirt-cheap journalism. In July 2009 Streetvibes won the “Best Feature Story” Award from the North American Street Newspaper Association, coming on the heels of a similar award from the International Network of Street Papers. We have many hurdles ahead. For now, our vendors are pretty much limited to downtown and Clifton, because Cincinnati’s limited public transportation makes it difficult for them to get to other neighborhoods. We constantly struggle to meet our bills, including postage for subscriptions. City ordinances make it illegal for our vendors to distribute the paper on Fountain Square – an outrage that we hope to challenge in the near future. Can you imagine? In this country that boasts about having freedom of the press, it’s illegal to distribute Streetvibes on Fountain Square. Yes, we face obstacles, but we’re determined to take them on, inspired by the determination of the homeless people who earn an income distributing Streetvibes and encouraged by the generous support of our readers. Thank you for a successful year. STREETVIBES July 1 - 14, 2010 Streetvibes is an activist newspaper, advocating justice and building community. Streetvibes reports on economic issues, civil rights, the environment, the peace movement, spirituality and the struggle against homelessness and poverty. Distributed by people who are or once were homeless, in exchange for a $1 donation, Streetvibes is published twice a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Address: 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 Phone: 513.421.7803 x 12 Fax: 513.421.7813 Email: streetvibes2@yahoo. com Website: www. cincihomeless.org Blog: streetvibes.wordpress. com Streetvibes Staff Editor Gregory Flannery Art Director Lynne Ausman Graphics/Layout Nick Swartsell Veronica Glass John Peet Casey Salsinger Vendor Coordinator Jeni Jenkins Contributing Writers Michelle Dillingham, Samantha Groark, Margo Pierce, Paul Kopp, Jeremy Flannery, Michael Henson, David Heitfield, Corey Gibson, Jeni Jenkins, Saad Ghosn, Lew Moores, Larry Gross, Eli Braun, Jesse Call, B. Clifton Burke, Michael Fanning Photography/Artwork Aimie Willhoite, Lynne Ausman, Anne Skove, Vinit Murthy, Jon Hughes Proofreaders Lynn Baker Jeremy Flannery The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that works to eradicate homelessness in Cincinnati through coordination of services, public education, grassroots advocacy and Streetvibes. We are proud members of: �STREETVIBES July 1 - 14, 2010 3 Column Time to Forget the Bootstraps More than “Suck it up” to deal with being bipolar By Margo Pierce Contributing Writer T he barista greets some customers by name and wishes everyone a good day. Under the “Pick up” sign stands an older woman wearing a jacket, skirt and tennis shoes, staring into space. A man with three children sits at a table sipping coffee while the kids run around; he’s the only customer in casual clothes in this coffee shop on the first floor of a many-storied office building in downtown Cleveland, Ohio. Two tables over sits a man in a traditional blue suit with a striped red tie. Which one has been diagnosed as bipolar? It could be any coffee shop in any town. The hiss of steaming milk, the slamming of a refrigerator door, the grinding of beans, “Mocha latte for Bob!” The man in the blue suit begins to talk. I was diagnosed with bipolar in about 2000 and through the next two or three years had a rough time trying to figure things out. It’s really a disorder that causes mood swings. It used to be called ‘manic/depressive disorder,’ in which manic—or mania—is the highs. The other side, depression, is traditional depression where you feel hopeless, sad, paralyzed. You really can’t do anything, which reIt’s a biological disease. ally hurts people in It can happen to anyone. their everyday lives trying to live and tryWhen you think about ing to make things the person sleeping happen. under the bench and It causes erratic then you see the behavior. It’s very person ready for opendebilitating on both heart surgery, they’re sides. You cycle back probably just as sick, and forth between but nobody’s going to make fun of the guy with the mania and the depression. It’s quite the heart problem. So I a big span somethink the biggest thing is awareness, and that’s times. Dan DiMarco something I feel like I looks away, breakcan help with. ing eye contact. Is he looking out the window, maybe at the man with the children? At the request of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI,) the organization for which he’s a volunteer board member, he is sharing his story. I used the term ‘I was missing something’ with my doctors. Looking back, in high school I did everything well, felt good. Into college I started feeling not as productive. Then I got out of school, and in my first few jobs … I wasn’t able to do as much as I had before and that frustrated me, and I wanted to figure out what was wrong. I couldn’t concentrate like I used to. I didn’t pick things up technically the way I used to. In the past I was always picking up things quickly. Socially I was still fine. In fact, that helped, allowed me to hold onto a lot of my jobs I had. Looking back at home, my wife noticed it, but not family and friends. I was always outgoing and fun. …There was a lot of periods of inactivity at home where I wasn’t doing anything. Anytime I was home I was laying on the couch. I couldn’t cut the grass, I couldn’t paint the walls, I couldn’t really do anything because of the depression. Anything I had to do felt like lifting my car over my head. Once I started this ‘I’m missing something’ came probably three to five years of ‘Maybe I ought to go talk to someone. Maybe I have fear of failure. Maybe I have fear of success.’ What to do, who to go see—I had no idea, so that went back and forth. Then I went to church with my family. My 1-year-old and I were walking around in the back of the church and I saw a flyer from a nun who’s a psychologist and I took that and I went to see her. She thought it was depression, which part of it definitely was, so she recommended me to a psychiatrist to get the full analysis. Joni Mitchell chimes in with “California.” Oh it gets so lonely / When you're walking / And the streets are full of strangers / All the news of home you read / More about the war / And the bloody changes / Oh will you take me as l am? / Will you take me as l am? / Will you? When I heard ‘bi-polar,’ it scared the hell out of me because it just sounded scary. Then, when I started on this medication stuff, it finally hit me that I’ve got to take this forever. At the time, late twenties, to think that I’ve got to have a pillbox out on the counter like grandma does for the rest of my life is scary. The medication management took a long time and it was exhausting. You can’t take a blood test, say, ‘OK take four of these and call me in the morning.’ It’s a total guessing game. We experimented with 15 different options over the course of the next two or three years. I was full-speed ahead so it was just like, ‘Let’s figure it out and do what we have to do.’ When I’d go pick up my 30-day supply and it’s $700, I’d just shake my head and start getting concerned, and then a week or two weeks later it changed anyway. I can appreciate it’s got be extremely difficult for people who are in bad situations. With the bi-polar we settled on two drugs that kind of made things OK. It was at that time I felt really good, started a new job, which helped, and then that’s when I joined NAMI. I thought, ‘I feel good, I’m going to try and help.’ So the two medications boxed things in. Then the doctor portrayed it as some of the depression wasn’t being treated and so we tried an additional drug to complement the two I was taking, and that didn’t work. He twists his wedding ring—a gold band— on his finger. Then he takes it off, fiddles with it and puts it back on, eyes down the entire time, before taking it off to roll it between his fingers again. If the doctors are guessing, essentially, educated guessing, figuring out how to fix things, then it’s nearly impossible—and I’ve tried with my wife and several other people— for people to understand what’s going on in my head. With this recent bout of depression that’s still kind of hanging around, I tell my wife that I’m sitting at my desk and I can’t make my phone calls. That’s what I have to do. I have a lot of calls—I can’t make my phone calls. She says, ‘What do you mean?’ I’m just sitting here and my hands are on my desk and it feels like they’re chained to the desk and I just can’t make the calls. Loving and right next to me and supporting me the whole way—and she says, ‘Well just suck it up, pick up the phone. Why can’t you just pick up the phone?’ Dan DiMarco. Denver Voice. Your brain does a lot of amazing things. It’s very powerful, so if turns around on you and tells you not to do something, ya ain’t gonna do it. In the momentary quiet another female singer croons in the background …”Only you guy trying to believe that you changed…” I was in a fundraising walk (for NAMI). … I basically sent the e-mail to 400 people throughout my network, basically saying, ‘This is me, this is what happened. I didn’t choose this, I can appreciate it’s got it’s who I am, so be extremely difficult for please donate.’ I inpeople who are in bad cluded in that the situations. With the bi-polar family members I we settled on two drugs hadn’t told. That that kind of made things was the way to let OK. It was at that time I felt them know. … You really good, started a new would think people job, which helped, and then would push away that’s when I joined NAMI. after something like I thought, ‘I feel good, I’m this, but I was amazgoing to try and help.’ ingly surprised at the level of support from friends and family with the walk… You see people who are super-successful. They lose their job, they get divorced, they lose another job, they become an alcoholic— I see, I’ve been flirting with all of that. You see people like that and think, ‘What a loser, he can’t get his life together.’ Well, he may think the same thing. Some people are too proud to throw their hands up in the air and say, ‘I need help. I don’t know what’s going on.’ I think that keeps a lot of people away. I’m 100 percent sure that if my dad felt the same way when he was 29, I don’t think he would have said anything. So, I think as generations move on there’s more advertising about it, more awareness. So I think you’ll get more and more people entering the system, if you will, and acknowledging that they have something. It’s a biological disease. It can happen to anyone. When you think about the person sleeping under the bench and then you see the person ready for open-heart surgery, they’re probably just as sick, but nobody’s going to make fun of the guy with the heart problem. So I think the biggest thing is awareness, and that’s something I feel like I can help with. People will say, ‘What can I do?’ and first of all, don’t yell at me when I can’t call someone. And secondly, the old good listener trick— that’s real helpful. Follow Streetvibes www.facebook.com/streetvibescincinnati twitter.com/streetvibesnews streetvibes.wordpress.com �4 STREETVIBES July 1 - 14, 2010 Issues Hate Wave: Attacks on Homeless CONTINUED FROM P.AGE 1 the information. The 2007 Hate Crimes Statistics, the most recent annual report compiled by the FBI Uniform Crime Reporting Program, illustrates this point. More than 13,000 law-enforcement agencies provided data about bias-motivated crime, with 2,025 agencies (15.3 percent) reporting 7,624 incidents. “The remaining 84.7 percent of the participating agencies reported that no hate crimes occurred in their jurisdictions,” the report says. Some states, such as Mississippi – with a deeprooted past in racial violence – reported zero incidents of hate crimes in the entire state. Delving into what makes a hate crime could begin to explain why jurisdictions don’t want to report these crimes. Attacked for who they are A hate crime is an illegal act motivated by hatred toward individuals or property because of an identification as or affiliation with a particular race, color, national origin, ethnicity, religious tradition, sexual orientation or physical or mental disability. (Canadian law also includes language as a prejudicial motivation). Crimes can be against people, including harassment, terroristic threats or assault; or against property, such as trespass, arson or vandalism to the building, the grounds surrounding a structure or personal property inside. The definition of a crime, or illegal activity, motivated by hate seems obvious. But the laws and prosecution of such crimes is the subject of much debate among political leaders, victims’ advocates and activists. The end result – the legal definitions – can be charges carrying stiff or light penalties, depending on where the crimes are committed and the discretion of prosecutors and judges. The Criminal Code of Canada: Hate Provisions (http://www.media-awareness.ca/english/resources/legislation/canadian_law/federal/criminal_code/criminal_code_hate.cfm) requires specific proof of the criminal act and the intention to commit the crime. In the United States, racially motivated hate crimes were defined as early as 1964 in the Civil Rights Act but it wasn’t until 2009 that disabilities and sexual orientation were added to this legislation, when President Obama signed the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act. The thing that differentiates a hate crime from others is that it is “based on a characteristic or condition of the victim” by a perpetrator who “seeks to not only commit the crime against the particular victims but to send a message about that victim to the larger community,” according to Sherrilyn Ifill, professor of law at the University of Maryland and a faculty member of the Peter Jennings Project for Journalists and the Constitution. Those defining elements are determined by history, she says. “We cannot ignore the reality that hate-crime legislation and our view about the particular condemnation that we have for hate crimes comes out of our very particular history. We didn’t just sit down one day and decide if there should be legislation that covers certain kinds of crimes against certain kinds of victims,” she says. “The genesis of the crimes comes out of a history of violence against particular members of our community, particularly racially based hate crimes. It comes out of a very particular time in the history of U.S. violence, in particular, against African Americans, whether it is individualized violence, whether it is mob violence in the form of lynching, whether it is Klan violence – that’s the history it comes out of. So that’s the genesis of it. “It doesn’t mean that our civil rights laws don’t also cover gender discrimination in the work place, for example. We come to expand those laws out of that history, to add other aspects, to add other pieces of it that strike us in the same way, that go to the core of who, at least, we aspire to be as a society and as a country.” How we protect, or fail to protect, vulnerable populations in our communities is a demarcation of our progress in achieving that image. “This is really, in many ways for me, a very critical issue of democracy and freedom – that is, your ability to walk on the street and not be physically attacked for who you are,” Ifill says. “When we want to talk about freedom and we want to talk about democracy, we tend to think about voting. I think many people take for granted the assumption that you can walk on the street unmolested so long as you’re not committing a crime. There can be no other more corrosive activity to a society that purports to be free and democratic than allowing citizens to be attacked on the street for who they are.” A push to include homelessness as a classification in U.S. hate-crime legislation is getting a nod from states passing their own hate-crimes legislation. Ranging from mandating reporting and police training (Rhode Island) to tougher sentencing for individuals convicted of hate crime (Washington state), these laws are codifying state concern about homeless people. The combination of the recent rise in homelessness as a result of the economic downturn and a rise in the reported cases of violent deaths of homeless people has resulted in greater awareness about the risks to people living outdoors, also known as “rough sleepers.” “The risk of victimization is higher among homeless persons who live on the street as opposed to in shelters … 78 percent of rough sleepers had been victims of crime during their most recent period of sleeping on the street; however, only 21 percent of these incidents were reported to police,” says the report by the University of Ottawa. Over the past decade there has been a dramatic increase in the number of violent acts committed against people experiencing homelessness, but coming up with hard data is difficult when there is no standard for reporting such crime and when there is no mandatory reporting, according to the National Coalition for the Homeless. The coalition compiles its own statistics based on FBI crime data, verifying police and media reports and information provided by advocates and support groups. Even though the data is incomplete, it reveals an upward trend that many say justifies the need for more data collection. Canadian law enforcement does not officially compile data on hate crimes against the homeless, either. National newspapers such as the New York Times and USA Today and wire services such as the Associated Press have recently reported on hate crimes against the homeless in Cincinnati, Ohio. ‘Just a bum’ John Johnson needed 18 stitches in his head and his girlfriend was in fear for her life after an April 10 attack at a camp in Cincinnati where they lived. Johnson, 52, says he was sleeping under a highway overpass at about 3 a.m. when four men attacked him. “I was awakened by four young men telling me to exit the property,” he says. “As I was complying with them, they started beating me with pipes and bats upside the head and up and down the left side of my body.” Three of the four attackers have been captured. Charged with felonious assault are Michael Hesson, 24; U.S. Army Private Riley Feller, 24, stationed at Fort Knox, Ky.; and Spec. Travis Condor, 25, stationed at Fort Bragg, N.C. A fourth suspect, also stationed at Fort Bragg, has not yet been caught. Johnson was attacked a few weeks after the city of Cincinnati trimmed trees obscuring a small homeless camp near Interstate 75. As a result, the handful of people living there were exposed to almost constant public view during daylight hours. What wasn’t well known was that people at the camp didn’t sleep in the shack that was visible to traffic; they slept under a nearby highway overpass. The attackers allegedly beat Johnson and chased him up a hill, calling him a “bum” and saying, “We don’t want you here” and “Get a job.” The assailants threatened a woman staying with Johnson but didn’t harm her. “This was not some guys out half-drunk, having a good time at my expense,” Johnson says. “These guys were cold and calculated. It was planned.” The fact that the four attackers knew where to find Johnson indicates that the assault was premeditated, according to Josh Spring, executive director of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH). This was the fourth violent attack on a homeless person in Cincinnati in less than a year that GCCH knew of, Spring says. • In summer 2009 two real-estate agents who were drunk assaulted a homeless man downtown. One knocked the homeless man’s insulin bottle out of his hand. When police arrived, one of the realestate agents said, “He’s just a bum.” Both men were convicted of misdemeanors. • In December 2009 a homeless man reported that a group of youths sprayed his coat with charcoal lighter fluid and threw a match, setting him on fire. • In January 2010 a new Streetvibes vendor was beaten to the point that he had to be placed in a medically induced coma. “In Cincinnati, hate crimes against homeless people definitely seem to be on the rise,” Spring says. “The National Coalition for the Homeless has 2003 Deaths Non-Lethal Total 9 61 70 2008 27 79 106 10 year total 244 636 880 Total Number of cities where crimes occurred over 10 years: 263 Age range of the accused/convicted: 10 to 75 years Age range of the victims: 4 months to 74 years Gender of victims: Male: 547 Female: 80 (Data provided by the National Coalition for the Homeless) been tracking hate crimes … because they saw a turning point where they were occurring more and people were being targeted as a popular thing to do.” Hate, Violence, and Death on Main Street USA: A Report on Hate Crimes and Violence Against People Experiencing Homelessness 2008 is the most recent report by the National Coalition for the Homeless, which describes “an overwhelming trend” in crimes against the homeless perpetrated by young men and boys. Over the past 10 years the majority of attacks against the homeless have been committed by teenage boys and youth as young as 10 years old. In 2008, 43 percent of attacks against homeless people were committed by teens aged 13-19, and 73 percent of the accused/convicted attackers were ages 25 and younger, the report says. “Some of the accused/convicted have been quoted as saying, ‘It was just a vagrant,’ ‘It was fun,” or they did it because they ‘could,’ ” the report says. ‘We really have a problem’ Neil Donovan, executive director of NCH, says “many smart people” have studied the issue of homelessness in the United States and have told him that it’s not possible to end homelessness to the point where we don’t have to worry about it anymore. The necessary public will and resources are lacking. However, he says that’s no excuse for ignoring a very real danger in our communities. “It really is a matter of life and death,” Donovan says. “There are examples of individuals, solely because of their status as un-housed, (who) are at risk of loss of life. When that happens, that rises to a special level of attention, and it’s really our responsibility to protect the health and well being of our un-housed brothers and sisters.” This is one of the reasons NCH is working with the Southern Poverty Law Center to lobby for national legislation to amend the Hate Crimes PreSee ATTACK P. 5 �STREETVIBES July 1 - 14, 2010 5 Issues Hate Wave: Attacks on Homeless legislation is coming from some unlikely places. Brian Davis, executive director of the Northeast vention Act to include homelessness as a classifi- Ohio Coalition for the Homeless, says the Anti-Defcation reported by law enforcement. A strong and amation League (ADL) opposed adding homelessvocal supporter of this effort is Brian Levin, director ness to the hate-crimes law in Texas, arguing that it of the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism would water down the law. at California State University and a former staffer at “In Texas, the legislation came before the Generthe Southern Poverty Law Center. al Assembly, and the Anti-Defamation League op“As a criminologist, there are certain types of posed it. That’s the only time I know of that they’ve data that we rely upon, and homicide data is one of publicly come out in opposition to a hate-crimes them; and what we’re seeing is that more homeless bill, and the bill died,” Davis says. “They don’t want people (are) murdered in apparent hate crimes than to cheapen existing hate-crimes statutes or open all of the other traditional hate-crime victims com- the door to frivolous claims.” bined in any given year. And what I mean is race, Davis says the ADL argued that homeless people religion, sexual orientation, disability, etc.,” Levin can “de-select” themselves from being homeless – says. “If that’s the case, then we that is, opt not to be homeless. really have a problem where the “Their concern is that homelaw should protect them. And we “Victimization on the street is less people can de-select themshould have a federal law reflect psychologically distressing selves from that group by getit, because in many areas the and can lead to depression ting housing,” he says. “Of all the homeless are not treated as vicand low self-esteem, which groups that have current protims – they’re treated as crimi- in turn contributes to apathy tected status that it would seem nals themselves. would not speak up would be the and feelings of futility, “The fact of the matter is, is group that you could de-select making it more difficult to that we have clear and very disyourself from – namely, religion. escape further abuse.” turbing issue of violence against “The other concern is that, as the homeless that is done by we all know from working with folks who are responding to prejudice.” the homeless, it’s not so easy to de-select yourself The criminalization of homelessness (See “Being from being homeless. In many cities, there are seriHomelessness is Against the Law,” edition of March ous barriers to getting housing.” 1) makes activity such as sleeping in a public place This notion that homelessness is a mutable conor even sitting too long in one location a crime, dition is a “red herring,” according to Levin. punishing people without a permanent address “In discrimination jurisprudence, which is the with fines and jail time. antecedent to hate-crimes legislation, mutability “There is a tendency to focus on crimes com- was never a prerequisite,” he says. “Certainly race is mitted by homeless people without also examining the genesis of these kinds of protections. It’s never their heightened vulnerability to victimization – been regarded, nor does the 14th Amendment … rates that are higher than for the housed,” the Uni- say the mutability was not the be-all requirement. versity of Ottawa report says. It’s really a red herring. The perverse reality of homelessness is that be“I think what we need to look at is, ‘Is there a ing victimized by hate crimes makes further victim- problem, a manifestation of prejudice and discrimization likely. Noting that homelessness “disrupts ination due to certain socially identifiable characimportant social bonds and impairs personal net- teristics?’ If that’s the case, then we should address working” for successful interpersonal interaction it.” and efforts to leave the streets, the report explains The 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution inthat this means many people are trapped in that cludes the language that “all persons” are included environment. in the clause, “No state shall make or enforce any “Victimization on the street is psychologically law which shall abridge the privileges or immunidistressing and can lead to depression and low ties of citizens of the United States; nor shall any self-esteem, which in turn contributes to apathy state deprive any person of life, liberty or property and feelings of futility, making it more difficult to without due process of law; nor deny any person escape further abuse,” the report says. within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the Resistance to adding the homeless to hate-crimes laws.” In 2009 a group of six juveniles attacked a 30-yearHate, Violence, and Death on Main Street old homeless man sleeping next to railroad tracks in Lynn, Mass. The boys, ages 11 to 14, threw bricks, Feb. 14, 2008; Frederick, Maryland: William Sigler, stones, bottles and sticks, inflicting life-threatening 49, was found guilty of a fatal attack on Samuel injuries. Police charged the juveniles with armed Webster Hood Jr., 57, a homeless man living in assault with intent to murder, aggravated assault Frederick. Police were called to respond to an unand battery with a deadly weapon, assault with inconscious Hood with his skull cracked open from tent to maim with a dangerous weapon and a civilthe attack. Authorities report evidence of stranrights violation. gulation and severe trauma to the head and neck Robyn Frost, executive director of the Massafrom repeated assault chusetts Coalition for the Homeless, compared the vulnerability of homeless people to that of groups March 23, 2008; Bartlett, Tenn.: Two homeless men protected by hate-crimes legislation, such as Afriwere the victims of an attack on Easter Sunday. can Americans and homosexuals.“At a time when Brenner Holloman, one of the victims, was unhurt increased numbers of individuals and families but witnessed everything. The attackers, adult without housing is at an all time high… I think that males ages 19-22, used Molotov cocktails, a home- it has escalated this issue right to the top, right next made concoction that consists of a bottle filled to any one of those particular populations that are with gasoline and set on fire. now designated.” The brutality of the attack in Lynn could be kind June 26, 2008; Kansas City, Mo.: Rolando Aaron of tipping point, leading Massachusetts to reconand Paul W. Simmons, both 19, were charged with sider adding homeless people to groups protected first-degree robbery for attacking a 54-year-old by hate-crimes laws – a move they had earlier rehomeless man with a brick and robbing him. The jected. victim, a Vietnam War veteran, told authorities “The biggest tipping point right now is you’ve that he woke up Thursday morning and found got such high populations in Massachusetts who someone searching through his pockets. ….The are extremely vulnerable because they don’t have victim stood and tried to fight them off. The sushousing, and I think this issue right now is affectpects hit him in the head and back with a brick. ing far greater numbers of people,” Frost says. “So I think the combinations of issues sadly like ocFrom Hate, Violence, and Death on Main Street curred in Lynn and the combinations of numbers USA: A Report on Hate Crimes and Violence Against are actually skyrocketing could be a good tipping People Experiencing Homelessness, a 2008 report by point to re-file it.” the National Coalition for the Homeless. CONTINUED FROM P.AGE 4 ‘Shallow motives’ That protection can be provided through legislation and education, according to Levin. “The same types of offenders are committing the same hate crimes against the homeless that we’ve seen with other victim groups, yet it appears, from the limited data that we have, that the homeless are among the most violently victimized of any victim group out there,” he says. “Therefore, we need not only education, but educational initiatives to protect the homeless … training for social services and law enforcement as well as for young people in schools. “The more we can educate young people at critical times in their lives about what prejudice is and that they might actually experience it, the more they’re able to address their feelings when they feel certain prejudices. Moreover, the more that we can say that this is not socially acceptable and institutionalize that, as well as institutionalizing the message that there might very well be punishment as well, I think serves a later good. The word’s already out there that the homeless are potential victims.” Levin says laws can serve as a deterrent because the effectiveness of a deterrent depends on the circumstances of the crime and the offender. “Since most hate crimes – the attacks against the homeless – are done mostly by people with shallow motives, the prospective of punishment actually very well can be a deterrent. … If someone’s out for a thrill and … if there’s a message that’s out there that says, ‘Guess what? You’ll be prosecuted,’ that will deter some of the offenders. It won’t deter all of them, but people with shallow motives for committing crimes and little benefit are among the most deterrable.” The Homelessness, Victimization and Crime report from the University of Ottawa concludes with a number of “actionable recommendations.” These suggestions fall in line with what many homeless advocacy groups across the continent have been recommending: • Housing and supports, which include “providing advocacy and advice for homeless people; invest more resources at all orders of government into strategic tools to measure and reduce homelessness in Canada.” • “Invest in programs to help at-risk youth to stay in school and acquire life skills; improve mental-health services for those with persistent mental illness; and educate the public about homelessness.” • “Provide training for police and other enforcement personnel on best practices for intervention with homeless people; implement comprehensive drug strategies … and repeal legislation that excludes youth with behavior problems from mainstream education.” “This synthesis of the research literature and the recommendations are aimed at policy makers in all orders of government to assist in reducing homelessness, victimization, criminal offending and public disorder,” the report concludes. Donovan of the NCH takes a similar position. “Homelessness shouldn’t be over-thought, overanalyzed and over-solved,” he says. “The reason that we have homelessness is because of a lack of accessible and affordable housing, jobs with a universal living wage and health care for all. The solution is the reverse of that. “Any further explanation, any further complicating factors, really are distractions and frankly avoidance of the problem. What we really need to do is … respect people by staying focused on the issue.” Helping people get off the streets makes for fewer targets, but it won’t address the essential issue, according to Ifill. “I think people want to believe that hate crimes are a thing of the past, and understandably so,” she says. “But the reality is that they’re not, and that only by our attention and only by very vigorous law enforcement response – prosecution by prosecutors of hate crimes, reporting not only by law enforcement official but by citizens who see and know when hate crimes occur – are we going to be able to get our hands around this.” �6 Column STREETVIBES July 1 - 14, 2010 A Message to Social Workers Social work is not enough streets and into permanent housing. And it is a positive thing; it’s wonderful for those n this country, we have a major problem of whom we successfully get into housing. poverty complicated by addiction, which is But when I think of the entire spectrum of homecomplicated by poverty. It’s a major, mutually lessness among the addicted population, I feel the reinforcing entanglement. effect of what we do is like And it’s not going away. There spitting in a galvanized buckis nothing in the current diet on a hot day. There’s still rection of addiction policy or a lot of room in that bucket; economics that says anything and after that bubble of spit By Michael Henson will change without major dries, we’ll barely be able to intervention. And there is know it was there. no political will in any direcWhat we do is wonderful tion for major intervention. When Jesus said, “The and life-changing for the individuals we work with, poor ye have always with you,” he could have been but it’s a drop in the bucket compared to the need. thinking of American social policy. A thousand programs operating on best practicThe sad and infuriating part of it is that, as educa- es across the country can’t change the fact that the tors, counselors and social workers, we do many of jobs and the homes are not there. the right things – and they do help. But we’re forced Good, evidence-based practice is essential, and if to do them too late and too small. we are educators, social workers, or counselors, we For example, it’s easy to see that investing heav- are ethically bound to operate on good, evidenceily in schools, including academic, enrichment and based practices. prevention programs, keeps kids out of trouble. We But it’s not enough. know what works; research shows what works. But We have to be political. we don’t invest heavily in schools, and so we have to invest later in prisons and treatment facilities, all * * * * * of which are also overloaded and underfunded. To take another example, I work in a program, I used to tell helping professionals that, if all they founded on best practices, which shows every sign did was good teaching or good counseling or good of success for those individuals we help. The con- case management, then they were parasites. I didn’t cept is called Housing First and operates on the no- mean it as harsh as it came out and everybody got tion that, if you provide housing for chronic home- defensive and I never got my point across and it less alcoholics, they have a better chance of getting was all ugly and I’ve stopped using that analogy. sober than if you try to get them sober, then try to But will you let me try one more time? I promise find housing. The people at the top who plan such not to abuse you. What I meant to say through that analogy was things are happy to point to our project as something positive to get homeless alcoholics off the that, if all we do as change agents is what is sanc- I ammered H tioned by our jobs, then we are in danger of using the poor for our own gain. The poor need us in the long run less than we need them. For if there were no more poverty, many of us would need to get real jobs. Or, as William Blake puts it, Pity would be no more If we did not make somebody poor. And mercy no more would be If all were as happy as we. If our livelihoods depend upon continuation of a social problem that could be solved, then we should, in all responsibility, work to solve it. Once it’s solved – and I do believe poverty could be solved if we had the will – we can turn our skills to other needs. I believe it’s important to do a good job on the job with the resources we have. And I know it takes a great deal of energy and commitment just to get through the workday. But good social work or counseling practice alone will not solve the problem. We don’t reach enough people, we don’t reach them soon enough and we don’t reach them often enough. I don’t have a lot of faith that, in a world of Glenn Becks and Rush Limbaughs (not to mention the spinelessness of their opponents) we can get much traction on a remaking of society in the way we need. Not even the liberals, who are supposed to care about such things as economic justice and social progress, seem to care about the addict in poverty. But we have to speak up. They’ll threaten our funding; they’ll call us poverty pimps; they’ll say we’ve crossed boundaries, but we will have spoken the truth, our truth. Social work is not enough. Michael Henson is author of Ransack, A Small Room with Trouble on My Mind, The Tao of Longing and Crow Call. The Sexiest Palsy A young filmmaker/comedian finds support By Ariana Shahandeh Contributing Writer Z ach Anner, a 26-year-old Texan, entered a contest to win a show on Oprah Winfrey’s new television channel. Anner opened his audition tape expressing his earnest desire to enter the contest, but said he “didn’t know where I’d fit. I have something called cerebral palsy, the sexiest of the palsies, and that sort of limits where my strengths are.” After a skit exploring hilariously failed attempts at cooking, fashion and yoga – “This isn’t yoga. I’m just putting on pants.” – Anner proposed the idea of a travel show for “people who never thought they could travel.” He described how most travel shows are a bit out of touch with how most people travel. His show would not be about how to plan the perfect vacation, but rather how to still have a good time even when things go wrong. Anner spoke with Streetvibes about his idea. What initially sparked the idea of a travel show for “every man”? I think it was going on trips with my dad. My dad took me to Europe twice. Just that experience, having to break down my electric wheelchair and get it on trains and hide money from (pickpockets) in my wheelchair and just having a good time no matter what happened. I used to go on trips with my mom, and we would go to just a random city and go to a hotel and play bingo, just making the best of whatever the situation was. So what do your parents think of all this? They’re very disappointed in me (laughing). No, they’re really, really proud, and we’re all just trying to figure out how to deal with it. It still kind of feels like a dream. Do you want friends from The Wingmen project (a comedic mockumentary about a group of romanti- cally challenged young men who try to set up a dating service, produced by award-winning filmmaker Marshall Rimmer) to be involved in the production of the travel show? Yes, absolutely. They are the guys that I really want to do (the show) with. They’re really, really helpful to me, and they’re good at filming. I can’t imagine doing it without them. They don’t care about the disability at all. And so nothing is sacred; they have no problem just driving off in my chair. It’s a non-issue. What was a moment you remember from your youth that you feel really stuck out to you and you think contributed most to who you are right now? There were a couple moments. I went to London with my dad and my brother for the first time, and things just weren’t going well in London; and one night my dad just said, “OK, well, why don’t we just go to Paris, instead?” So we got on a train and we went to Paris that day, and we just had the greatest time there. There’s an excitement you feel when you’re being spontaneous and you’re being open to an experience. And then when I was really young, about 10 years old, I ran away with my friends from third grade to meet Cindy Crawford. We ran away to New York City – well, we got about six blocks. But my brother packed us peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and I stole 50 bucks from my mom and we were going to go to New York City and meet Cindy Crawford. What is something that’s surprised you most during all this success and support of your idea? My eyes were opened through this experience that there were a lot more people with disabilities that shared my sense of humor. That’s what I’ve always wanted, to find a community of people with disabilities that felt the same way that I did. Because a lot of people in this disability community didn’t necessarily get my humor or think that it was positive. To get the sense that there are people out Zach Anner. Zach Anner. there that just want to be funny and have a good time and let their personality shine beyond their disabilities has been overwhelming. I didn’t have an idea of the scope of that until this whole thing happened. How do you want to be remembered? Wow, I’m just trying not to be forgotten right now. I mean I don’t think it’s important if I’m remembered or not. I just hope that if I make any sort of imprint, it’s so that I can give anyone who would automatically be dismissed by most people a fair shot. I don’t think it’s necessarily about me being remembered; it’s about opening doors for others to go through. If someone has a disability or a disadvantage, that they have a chance to follow their dreams and not just be automatically dismissed by others. Does that make sense? I don’t really feel like I’m that important. I have no illusions about what’s going on here. It’s really nice, but I feel like, if I’m going to give back one thing it’s that anybody can do this. �STREETVIBES July 1 - 14, 2010 7 International News A Whole World of Street Papers Survey assesses growing movement S treetvibes is a member of the International Network of Street Papers (INSP), a professional organization devoted to fostering the development of this unique social enterprise around the world. Although the 108 papers that make up INSP greatly vary in editorial policy, size and distribution, their common goal is to provide self-employment to homeless and other low-income people, who purchase street papers and sell them at a profit. INSP recently surveyed its members. Ninety-five papers participated. Following are the results. Geographical area covered by paper: o o National – 16% Selected cities/regions: 83% Circulation frequency: o o o o o o o Weekly 7 papers, 7% Bi-weekly 15 papers, 15% Monthly 39 papers, 41% Every 2 months 21 papers, 22% Quarterly 7 papers, 7% Other 8 papers, 8% Overall average circulation: 1, 422, 600 Vendors On average, how many vendors do you work with per edition? o 1-20 24 papers, 25% o 21-50 26 papers, 27% o 51-100 18 papers, 19% o 101-200 18 papers, 19% o 201-500 14 papers, 15% o 500+ 8 papers, 8% Who are your main vendor group? o Homeless 73 papers, 76% o Street homeless 53 papers 55% o Ex-homeless 64 papers, 67% o Slum dwellers 26 papers, 27% o Refugees/Immigrants - 23 papers 24% o Unemployed 66 papers, 69% o Drug/Alcohol users 56 papers, 58% o o o o o Elderly (over 60) Youth (under 24) Women Mentally/physically disabled Other 38 papers, 40% 24 papers, 25% 44 papers, 46% 43 papers, 45% 11 papers, 11% Social and Economic Situation What do you consider to be the main social and economic problems that you face in the area (town, city, region, country) where you work? o Health: Drug/alcohol abuse, HIV, domestic violence, lack of health care o Immigration: Refugees, asylum seekers, racism, xenophobic tendencies o Homelessness: Shortage of homeless shelters, mentally ill people o Social: Gap between rich and poor; tidying up of public areas – people pushed to the edge of society; social exclusion; discrimination/intolerance; lack of basic services, water, electricity; spending cuts; lack of acknowledgement that poverty exists; no industry – not enough jobs for unskilled workers; political attitude; inadequate government services; a need to change society’s misconceptions about poverty and homelessness, gentrification o Police: Criminalization of begging/homelessness/vagrancy, fines, jail sentences; police violence towards homeless, harassment. o Poverty: Increasing debt; economic crisis, businesses closed, bankruptcy; high cost of living i.e. rent, food, bills; low minimum wages; low unemployment benefit; lack of affordable housing; cost of public transport too high; lack of funding for additional housing projects; veterans; eviction o Crime: Prostitution, crime rate. o Jobs: Lack of education; low -killed workers, no jobs, unemployment o Other: Agriculture failing, poor environmental conditions Impact of your work In what ways has your whole organization had an impact on the eradication of poverty in 2009? o Policy change 24 papers, 25% o o o o o o Readership engaged Vendors moved on Earned income Campaigns Press coverage Events 75 papers, 78% 68 papers, 71% 51 papers, 53% 38 papers, 40% 63 papers, 66% 46 papers, 48% Impact of your street paper project Please estimate the total number of vendors who have benefited from your street-paper project in 2009? o 1-50 34 papers, 35% o 51-100 10 papers, 10% o 101-200 18 papers, 19% o 201-300 9 papers, 9% o 301-500 15 papers, 16% o 500+ 12 papers, 13% How have these vendors benefited from your street paper project in 2009? (Please tick ALL that apply) Improved wellbeing 80 papers, 84% Earned an income 82 papers, 86% Training/education 49 papers, 51% Increased confidence 84 papers, 88% Moved on 68 papers, 71% Rehabilitation 37 papers, 38% Cultural/arts activities 52 papers, 54% Sports activities 31 papers, 32% Impact of any additional projects Does your organisation run any additional projects? o Housing support 23 papers, 24% o Drop in centre 27 papers, 28% o Health support 26 papers, 27% o Cultural/arts activities 40 papers, 42% o Drug/alcohol rehabilitation 20 papers, 21% o Sports 29 papers, 30% o Campaigning 29 papers, 30% o Social enterprises 34 papers, 35% o Social-work provision 29 papers, 30% Please estimate how many people benefited from your additional projects in 2009. 113,663 Participants at the International Network of Street Papers Conference in Melbourne, Australia. INSP. �8 STREETVIBES July 1 - 14, 2010 Recipe “Feed Me, Seymour, Feed Me All Night Long…” Easy-To-Please Veggie Fried Rice Serving Size: 4-5 bellies Veggie fried rice. Jeni Jenkins. By Jeni Jenkins Staff Writer W hen I was growing up, we rarely ate out; but when we did, we went for Chinese. I can remember my mother’s giddiness at the mention of “take-out” and even more her excitement when it was decided that we would upgrade to the Chinese buffet. What joy! Alas, her joy was not shared amongst us little ones during the wee years. For us, getting Chinese meant watching our parents devour strange exotic dishes out of white boxes or standing in line with our empty white porcelain, wrinkling our noses at the funny smelling vats of “Ewww” what is that? What snobs we were. Things have changed and now I can hardly restrain my giddiness at the mention of Chinese food. I’m American and Americans love Chinese food. Well, not really. We love our idealized version of Chinese food. Truth be told, most Americans, unless they have traveled to China (which I haven’t), probably aren’t familiar with traditional Chinese cuisine (which I am not,) as most Chinese-American restaurants have adapted to cater to Western taste buds (like mine). Of all the dishes I have tried over the years, fried rice is still one of my faves – I even liked it as a child – although it can be difficult to find a vegetarian or vegan version at a restaurant. Fried rice is arguably one of the most popular Chinese-American dishes, aside from the infamous “Sweet and Sour Chicken” and “General Tzo’s Chicken,” both American adaptations. This recipe is a simple, Americanized version that is full of veggie goodness and will easily please your snobbiest critic. even my kids love it, and they are total food snobs. 2 cups water 1 cup jasmine rice 2 tablespoons oil – preferably sesame, but olive or vegetable will suffice 1 sliced zucchini 1 or 2 bell peppers (I prefer red and green) 2 tablespoons minced garlic 1 chopped red onion 2 cups frozen peas ¼ cup chopped green onions 1/3 cup sesame seeds Crushed red pepper ¼ cup soy sauce Other spices to taste 4 uncooked eggs or egg substitute scrambled in a bowl (optional for vegans) • Combine water and rice in medium saucepan. Bring to boil, then cover and simmer on medium-low for 20 minutes. • While rice is cooking, heat oil in a wok or large skillet on medium-high. Toss zucchini, red onion, peppers and garlic in oil over medium-high for approximately 2 minutes. • Add the frozen peas and stir-fry an additional 2 minutes. • Add green onions, sesame seeds, crushed red pepper and soy sauce and stir-fry together for 1 minute. • Push veggies to the side of the pan, leaving enough room to pour in the uncooked eggs. If needed, heat 1 tsp oil first. For approximately 1 minute fry the eggs on medium heat until fluffy, using a spatula, constantly chopping and moving the egg around so as not to burn the egg. • Remove from heat, stir the cooked eggs with the fried veggies. • Carefully stir in the hot jasmine rice. • Voila, FEED! Artwork By Anthony Williams y a S ! ? t a h W “Be as generous as possible to beggars.” -- Pabongka Rinpoche Liberation in the Palm of Your Hand __________ �STREETVIBES July 1 - 14, 2010 9 �10 Sports STREETVIBES July 1 - 14, 2010 Drinking from the World Cup Fans of the USA soccer team celebrate ahead of a 2010 World Cup match against Slovenia in Johannesburg. REUTERS/Brian Snyder. Is it un-American to enjoy soccer? By B. Clifton Burke Contributing Writer A s the pinnacle of sports unfolds in another hemisphere, and the majority of human beings on Earth tune in to follow along, the United States has once more displayed its resistance to a game that we call soccer, but everyone else calls football. Yet for the first time I have noticed that, when I admit to someone else that I enjoy soccer and the World Cup, it feels like I am admitting to them that I am slightly less American as a result. Why must we feel challenged by the international interest of the sport? Why is watching soccer a hippie or liberal thing to do? The first question is this: Is soccer really ignored in the United States? The answer is a bit complicated because millions of people play it in school, but no one wants to watch it or read about it. One measure that I hold to be true is that ESPN, the very network that airs every match, shows very little World Cup footage in its nightly highlight show; and when they do, it’s buried behind baseball, golf, NASCAR, NBA (even though the season just ended) and more baseball. ESPN will only make decisions that make it more money; and if the interest for World Cup footage were greater, it would be moved up in the show. I can't adequately explain why the United States has turned its back on soccer. Perhaps it’s the lack of scoring that turns Americans off. We’re about succeeding at all costs, and points means success, so therefore, we wanna see more points. Or maybe it’s because soccer isn't an American sport. While baseball, basketball and recently football have seen their rosters become increasingly international, they are all very much considered inherently American. Soccer, then, is the opposite of that – and something opposite of inherently American offends our inner patriot. Perhaps it’s a bit of social conditioning that steers us clear of following futbol. Or maybe it’s just one too many sports to follow. The English Premier League – widely considered the top soccer league in the world – takes place during the NFL season and can be both expensive and hard to find on cable television in the States. Speaking of television again, it can’t help that the matches are aired live beginning at 7 a.m. and ending around 4 p.m.; most of us work then, or at least pretend to, so what can you do? Regardless of the reason, a stigma about soccer remains in the American psyche and it is robbing the good people of some terrific athletic competition. Not only are the games – or, that is, matches – highly entertaining; the culture of the game is excellent, too. The first thing to think about is that it takes place in South Africa, where it is currently winter. Because of the extreme time and temperature difference, to me, it feels like watching soccer being played on another planet. Then there is, of course, the vuvuzallas. For those of you unfamiliar, a vuvuzalla is a small plastic horn used by soccer fans in South Africa. They make a noise that is an imitation to what a Viking horn should sound like. When played with thousands of others, it sounds like a swarm of something big and winged. Many Americans can’t stand the sound – television manufacturers have posted to their Web sites ways to audibly tune out the sound on their sets – but I don’t feel it distracts one bit from viewing the game. Since it is a constant cacophony, one adjusts and tunes it out on his own. Plus, it’s part of another culture. Who are we to demand something as harmless as horns are banned from the stadiums? Another enjoyable side dish to the World Cup is the British commentators. I get such a kick out of hearing their slang and descriptions about the game. When New Zealand finished with a draw to Italy, the players were described as “going absolutely potty.” Typically, the play-by-play announcer has the smooth British accent, but the analyst often has more of a Scottish rogue, and it’s those guys who are at times hard to understand. Nonetheless, it simply would not be the same to hear a standard American accent list off all those exotic names. Which brings me to my last favorite cultural aspect of the game: the players. Not only do they have spectacular names like Tshabalala, Boudebouz, Zigic and Kaka, names fit for any Star Wars universe; they also have every range of skin color and hair style, yet all look singularly soccer-like no matter what their appearance (except the Australian team; they look like dentists). Still, don’t let the long hair fool you; these guys are tough. Not only do they run an average of six miles a match, they also get kicked, head butted and aggressively booty-bumped into the ground on a very regular basis. Plus, they are minimally protected by padding – shin guards and a cup is all you get; good luck. Yet when they’re on their feet and with the ball, poetry unfolds. Their ability to control a round object so completely with their feet is astounding. Doing it while evading defenders and a goal tender is truly remarkable. This is why goals come so infrequently and are such a premium: They are hard to do. When a player makes a goal, he often appears more relieved than pleased; when they miss, they look like their house just burned down. The pressure for the players – especially the favored ones – is immense. Their countries are counting on them and are often unforgiving to the smallest failures. For some places, their team has to win and do it in entertaining fashion in order to feel good about things. But on the same token, heroes are celebrated for life. There are very few events that bring the world together like the World Cup. In global popularity, it is an unmatched spectacle of sport. If the United States ever developed a similar passion toward the game, perhaps it’s team would be more of a force. But for now, they are lukewarm like their nation’s interest in the game. Call 513-421-7803 x11 to learn about Streetvibes subscriptions �Housing Issues STREETVIBES July 1 - 14, 2010 11 Safe, Affordable and Unavailable The crisis of affordable housing By Michelle Dillingham Contributing Writer A ffordable Housing Advocates (AHA) recently hosted its annual meeting, which included a presentation of the report, “State of Affordable Housing in Hamilton County: The Crisis,” followed by some very moving speakers from the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless Speakers Bureau, who spoke candidly to the 40 or so housing advocates about their experience of being homeless. A group of AHA members and volunteers convened earlier this year to conceptualize what a report on the state of affordable housing would look like. They used Louisville’s “State of Metropolitan Housing Report” as a model. Louisville annually publishes a report on affordable housing and does a nice job. Some of Louisville’s reporting in previous years has been on “Targeting of CDBG Funds” and “Production and Rehabilitation of Affordable Rental Housing.” AHA’s report was written by a group of people who had expertise in various areas of affordable housing. The data for the report was pulled from various sources, including the last U.S. Census. Soon the data from the 2010 Census will be available, and it will be interesting to compare any changes. AHA’s report has seven sections: Affordability, Foreclosures, Homelessness, Affordability and Transportation, Residential Segregation, Substandard Housing and Accessible Housing. AHA recognized the need for a baseline assessment of where our community is in terms of affordable housing. One of the frustrating things as an advocate is to read misinformation in the press or hear false statements by elected officials or other leaders related to affordable housing. For example, we often hear from city leaders, “We have more than enough affordable housing in Cincinnati.” Yet in reality the demand for affordable housing far outweighs the supply. In Hamilton County, there are approximately 24,000 units of housing with rental subsidies, yet there are approximately 121,000 families who qualify for the assistance because of their low income. The waiting list for Housing Choice Vouchers (Section 8) has been closed since 2007; and when it was last open for two days, over 14,000 families sought applications. The young woman from the speakers bureau told how she had gone to Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority a few days earlier and was told it would be six to eight months before a unit would be avail- able. One of the more intriguing pieces of information in the report is that between 1994 and 2009 Hamilton County has lost over 2,000 units of project-based subsidized housing. AHA’s report offers quantitative evidence that we do not have enough affordable housing. AHA sub-titled this report, “The Crisis,” to reflect the reality that the housing situation we face is unstable and has undergone abrupt changes given recent changes in our economy. The report demonstrates that the availability of safe, accessible, affordable housing in Hamilton County is not meeting the needs of our community. What is particularly exciting is that advocates now have a document against which to measure progress toward (or regression from) our goal to have more safe, accessible, affordable housing. AHA believes strongly in public education about the reality of affordable housing, and defining the problem is the first step. You can find a link to the report on AHA’s website at http://www.ahacincy.org/. Worldwide Vendor Spotlight Up From Below By Ilse Weiss Contributing Writer N uremberg, Germany – Antonio Carlino has laid cable and drilled deep – a tough, dirty but respectable job. Since last autumn he’s sold Strassenkreuzer, a clean job. Nevertheless, Carlino was shy at first because it’s hard to reveal himself as poor but very creditable. He’s now 54 years old, “too old,” he says, and smiles. Well, he wouldn’t consider himself too old for anything. He’s talking about the employment office, potential employers. They’ve considered him to be too old for ages. As a result, Carlino doesn’t get any more work, not even a temporary job. At least this way, Carlino doesn’t get broken, tired or worn out. His hands are hard and calloused, but as soon as he smiles, his brown eyes twinkle. If good-natured meant that someone would be of great courage, then Carlino is very good-natured. He was already, when he arrived from Sicily in Nuremberg with his now deceased parents in 1970. “I was always in the building trade,” he says, declaring at the same time that he always wanted to earn his own money. But he remained semi-skilled, and his command of German was poor, so he was among those easiest to replace when things weren’t going so well on the building site. For 30 years everything went quite well. Carlino knows Nuremberg, especially from below. Public works, laying cable – he felt comfortable doing that. Then he lost his job again. He looked for another job for one and a half years, and time was running out for him. He finally joined a scheme working as a kitchen porter in the warm shelter; that’s all there was. Through the warm shelter, Carlino came into contact with the Strassenkreuzer sales department and sellers. Last September he submitted his unemployment-benefit supporting documents to be able to register as a seller. Then he got the first issues for 70 cents each and stood on the street. “The first time you have to get over it,” Carlino says. “But the people there were so nice, and then it got easier.” Especially an old lady with a bicycle. He remembers the time she praised him for his courage. This builds up. “Why should I hide?” he asks. “When you get nothing, you have to go out in life.” He’s doing just that. In the middle of the city center, near the ship of fools, Mr. Carlino often sells starting at 8:30 a.m. until around 5 p.m., depending on how business goes. In the big Italian ice cream parlors he can use the toilet; one of the waiters will then watch out for his newspapers. It might be that the countrymen have a heart for Carlino. And the customers, too. Carlino sells so consistently that he would soon like to be an established seller. Then he wouldn’t have to depend entirely on state benefits, at least. “I want to go my own way in peace,” Antonio Carlino is a street-paper vendor in Germany. he says. Gerd Grimm. To turn an honest penny is to have an outlook. Originally published in Strassenkreuzer. © www. “Fifty-four isn’t old age – for employers, it is. But streetnewsservice.org not for me. What the heck.” �12 STREETVIBES July 1 - 14, 2010 Local News Beggars Must Now Be Choosers CONTINUED FROM P.AGE 1 judge to issue preliminary and permanent injunctions to block the new rules. She represents the Homeless Coalition, Grace Place Catholic Worker House and Paul Eggleston Sr., who sometimes stays at the Drop Inn Center and sometimes panhandles. “Mr. Eggleston suffers from numerous physical and mental disabilities and receives social security assistance each month,” the complaint says. “This income, however, is insufficient to meet his mounting medical bills and also to cover food, clothing and basic necessities. As a result, Mr. Eggleston on occasion engages in non-aggressive solicitation to supplement his subsistence earnings. Mr. Eggleston fears that if (the new rules) take effect, he will be forced to either forfeit his First Amendment right to solicit alms or to live on the streets. Mr. Eggleston intends to continue soliciting alms as necessary to support himself and will therefore be excluded from the Drop Inn Center Shelterhouse and other homeless shelters in Cincinnati as a result.” The rules “are unconstitutional on their face,” Kinsley’s complaint says. She cites alleged violations such as “impermissible content-based restriction on protected expression,” prior restraint on speech, vague and overbroad restrictions and “improperly burden(ing) the right of free association.” People such as Eggleston aren’t the only ones forced to make a choice under the new rules. So are organizations like Grace Place, which provides temporary housing to women and children who are in transition from homelessness. The new rules would force Grace Place to choose between respecting people’s rights and providing them shelter, according to Kinsley. “It will either be forced to censor, silence and punish the free-speech rights of its clients or to risk funding,” the complaint says. “Grace Place does not intend to comply with the anti-panhandling provision and therefore risks losing its certification as a result. In addition, if Grace Place elects not to enact an anti-panhandling policy in response to the city’s motions, it will be forever foreclosed from seeking government funding should it desire to do so in the future.” Going along It is telling that Grace Place is the only shelter in the Homeless Coalition that joined the lawsuit as an individual plaintiff. The explanation lies in the fact that Grace Place doesn’t accept city funding – or more, to the point, funding channeled through the Continuum of Care. City council didn’t pass an ordinance requiring the anti-panhandling policy at shelters. It passed a motion directing that the rule be made part of the city’s minimum standards for shelters. But first it took responsibility for monitoring the standards away from the Homeless Coalition – and gave it to the Continuum of Care. Kinsley’s lawsuit challenges that move, too. The Continuum of Care is in charge of managing – and disbursing – city and federal funding for programs serving homeless people. By joining the lawsuit, a shelter would be declaring it doesn’t want the Continuum of Care – the agency with the money – placed in charge of monitoring it. While some management at other agencies say off the record that they don’t want the changes in minimum standards, none are saying so publicly. Doing so could risk their relationships with the people who decide on funding. Relationships between the three players – the city, the Continuum of Care and the Homeless Coalition – are at the heart of the conflict. In a May 28 e-mail to various agencies serving homeless people, Kevin Finn, director of the Continuum of Care, said council’s decision to change the system arose from its relationship with the Homeless Coalition. “I have no insight into or knowledge of the relationship between the city and the Homeless Coalition,” Finn wrote. “I can only guess about the status of this relationship from what I read in the pages of Streetvibes, and I would never purport to speak to the status of that relationship. However, I believe the status of that relationship is a factor in this issue.” Spring had pleaded with the Continuum of Care to oppose changing the minimum standards – a process created and monitored by the Homeless Coalition for 20 years. In an e-mail to Finn, Spring appealed for his support. “Kevin, I am not asking you to stand up and yell, ‘Hell no, we won’t allow this change!’ I am simply asking you to stand up and tell the truth to council and our agencies,” Spring wrote. “I am just asking you to say the coalition has done this for 20 years. … There is no need to change this. The coalition should continue to monitor the minimum standards.” Instead Finn gave a tepid acknowledgment that there was no need for the change. But, he said, the Continuum of Care would go along with it. “I do not believe that this change must be made,” Finn wrote. “On the other hand, if passing minimum standards is a condition of receiving funding from or through the city, as the above named funds do, then it also makes sense to have the entity which oversees the funding oversee the minimum standards monitoring. Therefore, if the city does decide, after dialogue with the coalition, to end their current shelter monitoring relationship, and then designates the (Continuum of Care) to take over the monitoring of emergency shelter standards, we will.” “He told me’ The city never engaged in a “dialogue with the coalition,” Spring says. Moreover, the Continuum of Care was more than a passive observer in council’s actions, he says. Finn actually wrote the panhandling rules enacted by council, according to Spring. “I know Kevin wrote the panhandling rules,” Spring says. “He told me he wrote it.” Finn and a Streetvibes writer exchanged phone messages but didn’t connect in time for an interview. While the two agencies have sometimes disagreed in the past, they have collaborated until now on items such as minimum standards and the homeless counts required for federal funding. But their differences are now coming to the fore. Publicly distributed e-mails between Finn and Spring contain increasingly sharp remarks on a variety of topics. Spring cautioned against “the Continuum of Care or any other organization creating pressure based on misinformation.” Within an hour Finn replied, “For the record, I would encourage the Homeless Coalition, or any other entity, to seek clarification on such issues before trashing anyone publicly – not after.” Three days later Finn warned against escalation: “It is important for those of us who are fighting to assist homeless people not to get distracted and off target and begin wasting our energy fighting each other.” It might be too late. The Homeless Coalition is a membership organization. One of the chief benefits of membership is participating in the minimum-standards process. Taking that role away from the Homeless Coalition is an economic threat to the coalition’s existence, according to Kinsley’s complaint. “If (the council motions) take effect, the coalition will no longer be vested with the responsibility of providing the minimum-standards certification program, and as a result will likely lose members and funding,” the complaint says. Streetvibes vendors keep 75% of sales. Consider helping Streetvibes with our publication costs by making a tax-deductible donation or by purchasing a subscription. Streetvibes is the activist newspaper, advocating justice, building community. Your gift is tax-deductible and will go to producing the paper every two weeks. Started in 1997, Streetvibes is distributed by homeless and formerly homeless vendors who purchase the paper for 25 cents and sell it for $1, keeping the 75 cent profit. Make checks payable to “Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless” I want to support Streetvibes and the vendors. $25 Please return your contribution to: GCCH 117 E. 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 Name: Address: E-mail: $50 $100 $150 Other $ _______ �STREETVIBES July 1 - 14, 2010 Guest Column 13 The New Marijuana Majority Support for reform of prohibition is growing By Corey Gibson Contributing Writer S eventy-three percent of Ohioans support the use of medical marijuana, according to a poll conducted as part of a study by the University of Cincinnati Institute for Policy Research. A surprising 58 percent of conservatives and 64 percent of people over the age of 65 also support the use of medical marijuana. Yet some people are still struggling with Ohio’s marijuana laws. The study cites one man, Randy Brush, who was sentenced to three years in prison after four marijuana plants were found in his backyard. Brush had no prior criminal history. Another case cited in the study is that of Addie Cyrus. Cyrus, who has no criminal record and the full support of her doctors to smoke marijuana to help with medical problems, was arrested in 2009 after the Knox County Sheriff’s Office seized 813 grams from her home. The fact that she is smoking marijuana with her doctor’s knowledge is not going to be admissible in court. While California considers legalizing marijuana, Cincinnati has made it a jailable offense. This is where the National Organization REUTERS/Alexandria Sage. for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) steps in. NORML sup- na and marijuana reform, according to Ryan. driving under the influence if he has any mariports the right of adults He poses a question to anyone he meets who juana metabolites in his body. to use marijuana re- opposes his positive views of the use of mariWith such strict “The current law in Ohio (is), if you have marijuana laws in the sponsibily, whether for juana: “What is your ethical or moral justifica- some sort of marijuana offense, that you could medical, personal or in- tion for putting someone away, taking away lose your driving license,” Ryan says. “You city of Cincinnati, a dustrial purposes. It has their freedom, for consuming or possessing political candidate’s also provided a voice for something like marijuana?” Marijuana Math stating he or she Americans who oppose In a recent local political forum that Ryan supports the use of • Approximate amount spent annually in the the prohibition of mari- attended, Fox News commentator Phil Heimmedical marijuana U.S. on the war on drugs: $40 billion juana and want to end lich asked candidates if they would support is rather surprising. • Percent of Americans who favor full legalizathe legal struggles that the use of medical marijuana. Under a city tion of marijuana: 44 percent “Every single candidate said yes to medical ordinance, possession often accompany smok• Number of states that allow the medical use of of a small amount of ing marijuana. NORML marijuana, and one of them said yes to full lemarijuana: 14 advocates for respon- galization,” Ryan says. “I was stunned.” pot – less than 100 • Number of people arrested for a marijuana law With such strict marijuana laws in the city grams – can result in sible marijuana smokers violation in 2008: 847,864 an immediate arrest, who want the drug legal- of Cincinnati, a political candidate’s stating he • Number of people arrested for a marijuana law or she supports the use of medical marijuana leading to 30 days in ized in the near future. violation since 1965: over 20 million. The number one pri- is rather surprising. Under a city ordinance, jail and a $250 fine Source: Miami Valley Chapter, NORML ority of the Miami Valley possession of a small amount of pot – less chapter of NORML? than 100 grams – can result in an immediate “Get people aware and engaged in changing arrest, leading to 30 days in jail and a $250 politicians’ minds,” says Robert Ryan, state fine (see “Cincinnati’s Marijuana Law Fiasco,” chapter coordinator for Ohio NORML. issue of May 15). Another controversial pro- could be sitting at home, not even in your car, The hardest job for NORML is getting peo- posal, which might be enacted nationwide, get a marijuana charge and you could lose ple to feel comfortable talking about marijua- would mean a person could be arrested for your license. Does it make sense economically. Your license is taken away. How can you get to your job? You’re going to end up losing your job and going on unemployment and making the situation worse.” The Miami Valley chapter of NORML, which just formed this year, is working to change these laws and make politicians realize that marijuana prohibition is not control. “We have been in contact with several lawyers and seeing if the cities have the ability to lessen the (paraphernalia) offense,” Ryan says. Drug-paraphernalia charges are even more misguided than drug charges, Ryan says. Paraphernalia can be anything from a straw to a spoon to a pipe to nearly anything else drugs can be smoked out of; and those charges can carry larger offenses than the drug charges themselves. With most people uncomfortable talking about legalization, Ryan has a tough job ahead. In a one-minute advertisement entitled, “Legalization: Yes We Can,” seen on the NORML website and local TV channels, people of different professions, ages and cultures call for the repeal of prohibition. “These are normal people that say marijuana prohibition doesn’t work,” Ryan says. “Let’s legalize it, tax it and control it.” For more information about NORML, visit miamivalleynorml.org and OARO.org. �14 STREETVIBES July 1 - 14, 2010 Art and Poetry A Jump Into Blackish Water, Wavy with Moonlight By Spencer Ledyard I was in a tree, blank on the bank of the Mississippi, Looking out and falling asleep, no town for miles, No lights but moonlights, up and down in rapids, Little rising rolls of water over rocks in the riverbed. A raft come by, logs tied together with hemp line, Logs from a tree like the one I was in but heavy With river water. There was so much river in them, And a boy on the raft with so much river in him. He tied himself to the raft with extra hemp line. He stripped as bare as nature would allow him. There was no town for miles, nothing to hold him Back but any fear he might have made for himself. He jumped. The blackish water waved around. The only sound for miles was The sound he made himself. Ode for Ms. Johnny Mae By Willa D. Jones I heard that Ms. Johnny Mae had passed away Gone to glory to she took her leave just yesterday I never knew her well enough to sit and chat On a good day I would see her in the front where she sat I know as long as I remember her face and her smile Sitting on the front porch with grace and so much style I will remember the kindness she shared with everyone Her kindness can be rewarded now that her life is done As long as we keep her in our minds and in our hearts She will forever be in our memory never to part So may God bless and keep you close Ms. Johnny Mae Forever in eternity for your peace and for your soul We all pray By Anne Skove Become a Fan of Streetvibes on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/streetvibescincinnati Letters to the Editor Blindly Following To the Editor: Yes, Obama’s at fault for the slowness of the BP oil spill cleanup. What’d he do wrong? He listened to an oil company. He believed what they said and accepted their assurances. And here come the Republicans ready to set things right. The Republicans would never blindly follow the dictates of an oil company, would they? Or just swallow their assurances at face value? Of course not. So America can sleep better now, knowing that a political party that’s not afraid to take on Big Oil is waiting in the wings to save the day. Martin Stiller Cincinnati Have something on your mind? Want to comment on an article or vendor? Let us know: 117 E. 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 streetvibes2@yahoo.com If you like what you read, but don’t live in the Cincinnati area, you can subscribe to Streetvibes. Call us at 513-421-7803 x 12 to learn more about subscribing to Streetvibes. �15 Resources STREETVIBES July 1 - 14, 2010 Need Help or Want to Help? Shelter: Women and Children Central Access Point Cincinnati Union Bethel St. Francis Soup Kitchen Churches Active in Northside 381-SAFE 768-6907 FreeStore/FoodBank 557-2873 Madisonville Ed & Assistance Center 271-5501 300 Lytle Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Bethany House Grace Place Catholic Worker House 681-2365 241-1064 4600 Erie Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45227 Serves area codes: 45226, 45227, 45208, 45209 St. Vincent de Paul 6037 Cary Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45224 762-5660 131 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter 4230 Hamilton Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45223 112 E. Liberty Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 1841 Fairmount Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45214 Salvation Army 535-2719 591-2246 872-9259 Shelter: Men 562-8841 1125 Bank Street, Cinti, Ohio 45214 Treatment: Men Charlie’s 3/4 House 241-5525 Prospect House Justice Watch 241-0490 St. Fran/St. Joe Catholic Work. House 381-4941 Starting Over 1419 Elm Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 1821 Summit Road, Cinti, Ohio 45237 Drop Inn Center 721-0643 Interfaith Hospitality Network Lighthouse Youth Center (Youth) 471-1100 221-3350 3330 Jefferson, Cinti, Ohio 45220 Housing: CMHA Excel Development OTR Community Housing 721-4580 632-7149 381-1171 114 W. 14th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tender Mercies 721-8666 27 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tom Geiger House Dana Transitional Bridge Services Volunteers of America Anna Louise Inn 1308 Race St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 Food/Clothing Lord’s Pantry OTR/Walnut Hills Kitchen & Pantry 621-5300 961-1983 OTR: 1620 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Walnut Hills: 2631 Gilbert, Cinti, Ohio 45206 Our Daily Bread 1730 Race Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 621-6364 621-5514 Franciscan Haircuts from the Heart 961-4663 Treatment: Both 381-0111 AA Hotline CCAT 351-0422 381-6672 830 Ezzard Charles Dr. Cinti, Ohio 45214 241-2965 1522 Republic Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Hamilton County ADAS Board Recovery Health Access Center Sober Living Talbert House Hamilton/Middletown 421-3131 569-1840 381-4242 Northern Kentucky 117 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 579-8547 241-9400 421-1108 363-3300 421-2437 Health Center for Respite Care 3550 Washington Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45229 771-4800 751-0600 721-4811 St. Raephaels Salvation Army Serenity House Day Center Open Door Pantry Brighton Center 351-7921 631-1114 211 977-5541 421-5211 863-3184 863-1445 422-8555 868-3276 859-491-8303 799 Ann St. Newport, KY Franciscan JPIC 721-4700 Gr. Cinti Coalition for the Homeless 421-7803 Intercommunity Justice & Peace Cr. Legal Aid Society Ohio Justice & Policy Center Faces Without Places Stop AIDS People Working Cooperatively The Caring Place United Way Women Helping Women Off The Streets 946-4888 281-7422 681-0324 641-4300 Advocacy Catholic Social Action Community Action Agency Contact Center Goodwill industries Healing Connections Mary Magdalen House 1223 Main St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 1227 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 961-4555 751-0643 381-1954 421-5211 241-2600 241-2563 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 Joseph House (Veterans) 217 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 458-6670 977-4489 Peaslee Neighborhood Center 2203 Fulton, Cinti, Ohio 45206 761-1480 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 NAMI of Hamilton County PATH Outreach 961-2256 2728 Glendora Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45209 Caracole (HIV/AIDS) 558-8888 981-5800 Center Independent Living Options Emmanuel Community Center Treatment: Women 961-4080 40 E. McMicken Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mental Health Access Point Mercy Franciscan at St. John 214 E. 14th St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 First Step Home Anthony House (Youth) 357-4602 352-2902 352-6363 921-1613 661-4620 Shelter: Both Health Resource Center Homeless Mobile Health Van McMicken Dental Clinic Other Resources 682 Hawthorne Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45205 1437 Walnut Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mt. Airy Shelter 381-2247 5 E. Liberty St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 784-1853 2121 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 City Gospel Mission Crossroad Health Center ECHO/Hosea House Fairhaven Resuce Mission Homeward Bound Youth Mathews House Homeless & Housing Coalition Parish Kitchen Pike St. Clinic Transitions, Inc Welcome House of NKY 859-261-5857 859-491-1027 859-581-1111 859-261-8009 859-727-0926 859-581-7745 859-291-9321 859-491-4435 859-431-8717 205 West Pike Street, Covington, KY 41011 621-1868 Women’s Crisis Center VA Domiciliary VA Homeless 859-491-3335 859-559-5011 859-572-6226 �16 Artists as Activists STREETVIBES July 1 - 14, 2010 Photos in Service of Justice Gordon Baer’s enduring effect M ississippi 1, Mississippi 2, Mississippi 3: These are the words that introduced Gordon Baer to photography. Baer was 8 years old when on a Saturday morning, accompanying his father to a meeting at the high school where he served as football coach, he heard these words coming from a room in the basement. He found out they were being pronounced by Brother Josephus teaching a student camera club, using the words to time the exposure of his photographs. Brother Josephus would then take a piece of white paper, put it in a waterlike liquid, and an image will progressively appear. Baer was mesmerized. Baer, a photojournalist, was born in Louisville, Ky. As a child he had an old box camera he used for assignments at the YMCA activity club he belonged to and for the yearbook in his Junior high school. Very early on he was also developing and exhibiting his own photographs. Baer attended the University of Kentucky at Lexington, initially studying chemistry, then the University of Louisville, focusing on fine arts and photography. At both places he documented life on campus functioning as the student newspaper’s photographer. In the beginning, his desire through photography was to organize and control people, telling them what to do; he soon realized, A rtists ctivists as By Saad Ghosn Contributing Writer however, that the control he was seeking would be more powerfully achieved by controlling viewers’ emotions by the images he would create. His photos became full of feelings, focusing on social issues and ills, the human always at their center. While a student at the University of Louisville, Baer interned as a photojournalist at the Louisville Courier. He met Shirley Williams, a writer, who took him to visit her family in the Appalachian foothills of eastern Kentucky. There he witnessed the battering and destruction of the rugged landscape by careless companies that had acquired the rights to mine the coal-rich area. The landowners had been lured to sign deeds allowing the underground exploitation of their land, not informed that new extraction technologies would make it unstable, causing mountaintops to run down the valley. They were angry, rebelling at the rape of their land and the pollution of their streams, and wanted to make their plight to the governor. Baer’s photographs spoke for them. Not only were his 25 prints of the ravages he saw exhibited in the State Capi- Gordon Baer says individuals come first. Saad Ghosn. tol; they were also flown to Washington, D.C., shared with Congress and the National Governors’ Conference. The photos had not ended for many of them, that it had helped accelerate passage of legislation con- installed itself in their living rooms, dreams, relationships. Baer reflected with eloquence trolling strip mining. Baer also actively participated in the civil and moving images their situation and daily rights movement, attending marches, dem- turmoil. His photographs, exhibited in Washonstrations and protests, documenting them ington, D.C., part of the Vietnam Memorial and spreading their images. He had met Rev. Dedication Display, earned him the prestiMartin Luther King Jr., who regularly visited gious Nikon World Understanding Award, Louisville, where his brother led a parish. “given to the photographer whose work best Baer followed King to Washington, D.C., and serves the common purposes of man.” When visiting Louisiana, Mo., for a workcaptured in his photos the freedom march of 1963. shop, Baer focused his photography on a In 1965 Baer joined the Cincinnati Post as group of workers enrolled by corporations to a photojournalist. This took him to various farm Stark Apple Orchards. He documented assignments, some mundane, oth- their exploitation and poor treatment, worse ers more socially concerned. One than that of previous prisoners of what used assignment was to photograph a to be a German prisoner-of-war camp. family with an autistic child. Parents In 2000 he did a moving series of phowith such children were blaming tographs related to his dying aunt Beck, a themselves for their kids’ condition, reflection on the frailty of the aged human Bruno Bettelheim, the renowned being, on mortality, also on the potential nechild psychiatrist, having theorized glect of the elderly in impersonal and underthe disorder was linked to cold, un- staffed nursing homes. Two years ago Baer was the moving force caring parents. Aware of the oftenunjustified sense of guilt this theory behind Shattered Myths, a show involving was generating, Baer instead showed many local artists, including himself, dealin his photos the humane family en- ing with the Iraq war and its deleterious efvironments of the affected children, fects on human beings, military and civildepicting affectionate, loving, yet ians alike. In his works, Baer always advocates for powerless parents. During the Vietnam War, while the poor, the exploited, the abused – for the based in Korea with the U.S. Air human in general. He also speaks loudly Force, Baer used his photographs to his opposition to violence of any sort. As he call attention to American soldiers originally wanted, he was able to develop often misbehaving, insensitive to a strong photographic arm with which to and disrespectful of the local cul- touch the viewer, involve and implicate him ture. He documented the abusive into his images. Baer’s camera has always treatment and shattered lives of the served as his strong voice. “I was able to use the power of the phomany “comfort” women the war tographic print to successfully transmit my conditions had favored. In the late ’70s Baer captured the messages, make people feel things I feel myenduring effects of war on returning self,” he says. “I am at a crossroads right now, Vietnam veterans. He attended group not sure how to go. I want to start writing therapy sessions of vets suffering and put my wisdom in words. But whatever from post-traumatic stress disorder, I do, I know that I will always focus on the visited their homes, participating in individual’s rights, on peace in this world.” their family lives, experienced firsthand their persistent nightmares. He quickly found out that the war It Takes Time for Psychic Wounds to Heal. Gordon Baer. Artists as Activists is a regular column highlighting Greater Cincinnati artists who use art as a vehicle for change. Saad Ghosn is the founder of SOS Art. Ghosn can be contacted at saad.ghosn@uc.edu. � 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 2010 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 1-14, 2010 Subject The topic of the resource Homelessness Description An account of the resource Pg 1: Hate Wave: Attacks on Homeless Beggars Must Now Be Choosers Pg 2: Street Wise Pg 3: Time to Forget the Bootstraps Pg 4: Hate Wave: Attacks on Homeless Continued Pg 5: Hate Wave: Attacks on Homeless Continued Pg 6: A Message to Social Workers Pg 7: A Whole World of Street Papers Pg 8: “Feed Me, Seymour, Feed Me All Night Long…” Pg 9: The Voice of the Street Pg 10: Drinking from the World Cup Pg 11: Safe, Affordable and Unavailable Pg 12: Beggars Must Now Be Choosers Continued Pg 13: The New Marijuana Majority Pg 14: Arts & Poetry Pg 15: Resources Pg 16: Photos in Service of Justice 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 1-14, 2010 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Gregory Flannery Lynne Ausman Nick Swartsell Veronica Glass John Peet Casey Salsinger Jeni Jenkins Michelle Dillingham Samantha Groark Margo Pierce Paul Kopp Jeremy Flannery Michael Henson David Heitfield Corey Gibson Jeni Jenkins Saad Ghosn Lew Moores Larry Gross Eli Braun Jesse Call B. Clifton Burke Michael Fanning Aimie Willhoite Anne Skove Vinit Murthy Jon Hughes Lynn Baker Jeremy Flannery Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF affordable housing Aimie Willhoite Anne Skove B. Clifton Burke Casey Salsinger Comedian Corey Gibson David Heitfield Eli Braun Filmmaker Gordon Baer Gregory Flannery Hate Crimes Jeni Jenkins Jeremy Flannery Jesse Call John Peet Jon Hughes Larry Gross Lew Moores Lynn Baker Lynne Ausman Margo Pierce Marijuana mental illness Michael Fanning Michael Henson Michelle Dillingham Nick Swartsell Paul Kopp reform Saad Ghosn Samantha Groark Social Work Veronica Glass Vinit Murthy Violence World Cup