3 10 24 https://streetvibesarchive.net/files/original/30973030a13e519f9cfaa5ddbbe68dac.pdf fc110684f0882284106d2d3130e0d217 PDF Text Text M a r c h 7 t h - M a r c h 2 1 t h 2 0 1 9 | Vo l . 2 3 I s s u e 5 ( N o . 4 0 2 ) advo cating justice | building communit y Any opinions in this issue are of the authors and don't necessarily represent Streetvibes or The Homeless Coalition. ARTICLE ON PAGE 8 This Issue is sponsored by (Retired) Judge Mark P. Painter Find previous issues of Streetvibes online at: cincistreetvibes.org Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition 113 E. 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 streetvoice | 12 �2 COALITION N o v 27--Mar N o v 19, 0 18 || No. N o . 402 393 Mar 21, 22019 From The Editor: Anti-vax Movements and Social Media GABRIELA GODINEZ Editor-in-chief W ith the recent measles outbreak, the antivaxer movement has come to the foreground once again. I’ve seen many media outlets, both entertainment and news media, come out with pieces about the topic, though you don’t need to be Vox, Jubilee, or the Washington Post to share your opinion. All you need is internet access and a social media profile. 18-year-old Ethan Lindenberger knows this all too well. Ethan is known at this point as the Ohio teenager who went against his mother’s wishes and got vaccinated once he no longer needed her consent. On March 5th he spoke in front of a senate committee hearing where he discussed his upbringing and subsequent defiance. He grew up without being vaccinated because his mother, like many other anti-vaxers, thought it would cause autism as well as other brain issues. He said that his mother found most of her “evidence and information” through social media. According to the Associated Press, even when his mother was presented with facts from sources like the CDC she still didn’t agree with the findings, saying that her child has been made “the poster child for the pharmaceutical industry.” When Ethan showed her mother scientific facts, she responded,“that’s what they want you to think.” There is much to unpack just with that bit of information alone. Let’s just pretend for a moment that vaccines did in fact cause autism. They don’t, just to be clear, but let us pretend. Anti-vaxers with this belief would rather have their child die of measles or polio, treatable illnesses, than have a child with autism. That is a piece of this issue that often gets overlooked because unfortunately our society favors able-bodied and able-minded people. Ethan’s mother is not alone in these beliefs. The dangerous antivaxers movement creates a hotbed of misinformation all throughout social media. It could be said that most antivaxers are concerned parents that are fed falsehoods and conspiracy theories through their social media timeline. When we repeatedly click specific articles, like specific posts, or view certain videos, the algorithms of those platforms continue to show you similar posts. This makes it simpler for vulnerable people to fall into an echo chamber of misinformation. Youtube has taken steps to try and combat misinformation by adding links of information about specific topics covered in conspiracy videos. However, most of the time these are Wikipedia links, which are easily dismissed by people who are already lost to the conspiracy theories. Facebook as of the time of this editorial has not included any sort of effort nor has Twitter. In our current culture of exclusively reading headlines and retweeting/ sharing without further investigation, it often doesn’t matter if the articles and theories are debunked by credible sources. I do understand there is so much frustration with the healthcare system in America. Many times drugs are pushed by big pharma, doctors dismiss marginalized folks, and often it feels like no one is listening, but allowing children to be susceptible to treatable diseases wont hurt the capitalist healthcare system. It will only hurt those children and people with autoimmune disorders. There are cases where children react negatively to vaccines. I admit that should not be ignored. Those are cases where they wouldn’t be forced have vaccinations in order to attend public schools; these children would instead be one of those who benefit from herd immunity. The problem with these cases not being fully discussed on social media is when they are used as cases to promote the lack of vaccination in other children who are fully capable of doing so. This is not a simple issue, and it’s not even an issue of it’s own. All this comes from misuse of social media, disillusionment with the healthcare system, and the social media echo chambers we create. I don’t think there is any one solution, but for now we can continue to read credible sources and share those on our social media feed to combat the misinformation. Don't forget to treat anti-vaxers with compassion when you share scientific facts. Unfortunately, most of the time when people make up their minds, there is very little anyone else can do to persuade them to change. Hopefully, like Ethan, these children survive and find accurate sources to be able to take their fate into their own hands. 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 individuals experiencing homelessness or on the edge of homelessness, in exchange for a $2.00 Donation. Streetvibes is published twice a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH), a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that works to eradicate homelessness in Cincinnati. 113 East 12th St. Cincinnati OH, 45202 Ph: 513.421.7803 FAX: 513.421.7813 WEB: www.cincihomeless.org EMAIL: streetvibes@cincihomeless.org Editor-in-chief: Gabriela Godinez Feregrino Executive Director: Josh Spring Director of Development: Mona Jenkins Director of Education: Dr. Mark Mussman Distributor Program Manager: Sallie Mascus Layout: Gabriela Godinez Feregrino Reception: Bonita Batton, Larry Johnson Maintenance: Pete Roper ------------------------------------------CONTRIBUTORS THIS ISSUE Writers: Josh Spring, Gabriela Godinez, Holly McCall, Kahara Nakahara, Carlos Garcia Rawlins, Shaylim Valderrama, Key Beck, Dr. Mark Mussman, Bill Woods, Tess Sohngen, Kim Green, Willa Denise Jones, Robert Park, James Brown, Cleo Wombles, ------------------------------------------Photography/ Artwork: Pngtree.com, canva.com, Gabriela Godinez, Dr. Mark Mussman, INSP.com ---------------------------------------------Thank You For Reading Streetvibes And Supporting Our Mission To Build Community And Advocate Justice. Streetvibes and The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless do not endorse candidates for public office. THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED �3 COALITION No. 39 | Nov21, 2 - 2019 N o v 19, 2 0 402 18 Mar 73-Mar | No. From The Director: Education Opportunities JOSH SPRING Executive Director Y ou may or may not know that our Homeless Coalition has a robust public education program. We strongly encourage you, your friends, family, employer and any group you may be a part of to take advantage of our education opportunities. Regularly people call us wondering if they can volunteer in some way. Often folks want to do something like a coat or clothing drive. We welcome people who want to get involved in our work by explaining that the best way to start getting involved is through listening and being educated. We offer several different experiences for individuals and groups of any size. Our longest-running opportunity is our Speakers’ Bureau. Our team of individuals who have personally experienced homelessness are teamed up with our Director of Education, Dr. Mark Mussman. Together one of our Speakers and Dr. Mark present to crowds of all sizes from one or a few people to hundreds of people. They present to people of all ages; children, youth, adults and in many settings, whether it be at our office, a school, place of worship, business, community council, service organization, etc. Through Speakers’ Bureau, those attending learn about the personal experience of homelessness from someone who knows how to time for discourse, questions, insights and comments. In order to sustain the program, the hosting group pays $80, $40 of which compensates our Speaker for their time and $40 of which covers a portion of the costs to the Coalition. Most Speaker’s Bureau activities last for an hour to an hour-and-a-half, but we are able to work with hosts to hone the event to the needs of the group. If you are reading this, you must know about our many committed Streetvibes Distributors. But you probably don’t know about our Streetvibes Distributor Shadow opportunity. Have you ever wondered what it is like to attempt to sell newspaper on the sidewalk while dealing with the stereotypes of some passersby, the eyes that turn away, the nasty comments, potential harassment as well as the good wishes and friendly responses? What is it like to attempt to get a person who likely hasn’t experienced homelessness themselves to purchase a paper about social justice issues, poverty and homelessness? Through our Shadow experience, groups can learn from an experienced Streetvibes Distributor about the many facets of their work and then the group joins our Distributor in going to the sidewalks and attempting to distribute the paper. To finish the experience, attendees and our Distributor spend time discussing what the responses from the general public were like, how those taking part felt, why there are stereotypes and how to deal with them. Very often, participants walk Students at a local High School host a speaker from the Speakers Bureau. make their experience accessible to many different audiences. Attendees also gain understanding of what societal and systemic policies and decisions have caused, maintained and grown homelessness and the systemic changes we must make to end homelessness. And of course there is away with knowledge and increased understanding they didn’t even know they were missing. We charge $80 for this event to cover some of our costs. As the Homeless Coalition we are constantly involved in organizing with people to stop gentrification and the displacement, disruption and scattering of communities that is inevitably apart of it. In Hamilton County we are short 40,019 affordable homes. But how Instead Citywide Shantytown offers an extended period of time to learn, discuss, debate, listen, teach and grow. Students participate in the Streetvibes Distributor Shadow program. did we get here? Our Over-the-Rhine Peoples’ Movement Social Justice Walking Tour is a great opportunity to both audibly and visually learn about how we reached our current affordable housing and homelessness crisis and to better understand why so many adults and children in Cincinnati and Hamilton County are experiencing homelessness or housing instability. Participants join Dr. Mark in walking up and down streets learning about specific examples displacement and how they happened. People taking part will learn about the public policies and private influence and control that has caused so many people so much hardship. Participants will also learn how we can do things differently, how we can leverage the powers of our local government to save affordable housing, prevent displacement and build new affordable housing. For this, we also charge $80 to cover some of our costs. You may have heard of our Citywide Shantytown opportunity. Most often high schools and universities take part in this awareness raising opportunity. At times business have decided to join also. Shantytown can be honed to the particular group. Most often, groups of people sleep outdoors, learn about the personal experience of homelessness from one of our Speakers’ Bureau Speakers and spend an extended period of time discussing with our Speaker and Dr. Mark about why we have homelessness and what we can do as a society to end it. Attendees are able to spend time discussing personal experiences with each other and exchanging ideas of how they can get involved. Shantytown is not intended to mimic homelessness or experience homelessness, as that can’t be done by sleeping outdoors by choice for a night. THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED Finally, our Cincinnati Urban Experience (CUE) provides opportunity for groups of people to join us for an extended period of time; usually for a week or a weekend. During this time, groups take part in all of the educational programs explained above, but also spend time volunteering with some of our Member-Organizations and learning directly from our directservice Member-Organizations about what they do and why and how they do it. The extended time, allows for education about more aspects of needed change, including more information about how affordable housing can be developed, the need for living wages, efforts to stop the theft of wages, immigration reform, changing the processes by which people exiting jail and prison so people have the opportunity for sustainability, the importance of medical care. In general, CUE allows groups the opportunity for a more intense look at the systems and societal decisions that cause and perpetuate homelessness and how it requires organized social movement to end it. Of course, we are biased about the value of our educational programs, but our bias comes from years of honing these opportunities and receiving positive feedback from so many people who say their perspectives and even ambitions were changed for the positive. If you are able, check out our website at www.cincihomeless.org. Please reach out to Dr. Mark Mussman, do discuss how we can work together to provide one or multiple of these opportunities for you and/or people you know. He can be reached at markmussman@cincihomeless.org, 513-421-7803 and 117 E. 12th Street, Cincinnati, OH 45202. �4 ADVERTISMENT NMar ov 2 7 - -Mar N o v 19, 0 18 | |NNo. o . 393 21,22019 402 March 1 - 23, 2019 For tickets please call (513) 381-2273 Purchase tickets online at www.cincyshakes.com AD Donated by Mark and Sue Ann Painter season sponsored by the Otto M. Budig Family Foundation THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED �NMar o. 397 3 -Mar | Nov 221, - N2019 o v 19, 2 0 18 | No. 402 U.S. NEWS 5 The Strike A 1968 sanitation workers' strike brought Martin Luther King to Memphis and changed history. Fifty years later, Cleophus Smith, a striker, recalls the events leading to King's death. Cleophus Smith, left. Photo By Richard L. Copley HOLLY MCCALL ContributingWriter C leophus Smith remembers the night of 4 April, 1968, like it was yesterday. “I was trying to get some rest, when I heard commotion and screaming outside, and my wife came and woke me up,” says Smith, known to friends as “Cleo.” “She said, ‘Dr. King has been shot.’" he recalls. “All hope is lost,’ I said to myself." Smith, 75, was one of the Memphis Sanitation Department workers striking for better working conditions when Martin Luther King traveled to Memphis that April as part of his Poor People’s Campaign to support the strikers. The strike began after two sanitation workers were crushed in a malfunctioning city trash truck on 1 February, 1968. The subsequent walk-out was sanitation workers’ third attempt to strike. “In both ’65 and ’66, the men walked out, but at the time, the workers were mostly older,” Smith says. “They were threatened with losing their jobs or going to jail, so they went back. It was like they got out on a limb, then the limb got sawed off.” Two years made a difference: Smith, then 24, was hired 15 April, 1967, as part of a hiring wave that resulted in a demographic change in the department. Soon he and some of the other young Turks, including labor organizer T.O. Jones, decided it was time to make change. “One of the older men said to about 30 of us, ‘You young men are going to mess our jobs up,” recounts Smith. “We said, ‘with respect, sir, we’re trying to make situations better for you and for us.’” King was in town on 28 March to join strikers for what was supposed to be a non-violent march. “I got close enough to shake his hand,” Smith says. History shows the march became violent when protesters who weren’t employees of the sanitation department used the opportunity to break windows and vandalize downtown Memphis businesses. In an all-too-familiar scene from the Civil Rights Era, police responded in kind. “I got sprayed with mace and got a dog sicced on [set upon] me,” says Smith. “I hit that German Shepherd on the nose and it went down. The cop standing there unsnapped his holster and said to me, ‘hit him again.’” Smith recounts how he took off running to his mother’s house, which was near Clayborn Temple AME Church, itself a safe haven for those in the Civil Rights movement. “I ran into my mother’s house and she said, ‘Son, you look like you seen a ghost,” he says. “I said, ‘Mama – I almost became a ghost!'" King returned to Memphis 3 April and was assassinated by James Earl Ray the next day. Smith credits Jones, Reverend Ralph Abernathy, and Jesse Epps of the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) for leading the strike to a successful conclusion a few weeks after King’s death. “We really thought things were over (after King’s death,) but two or three weeks later, the Mayor (Henry THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED Loeb) signed the labor agreement,” Smith says. For 30 years after Memphis signed an agreement with AFSCME, conditions greatly improved for sanitation workers, according to Smith. But the last 20 years, it’s gone “haywire,” he says, with renewed racial discord coming from both blacks and whites. “I think if Dr. King were alive today, it would kill him from grief to see how things are going,” Smith says. And that, he says, is why 51 years after he started his career with the Memphis Department of Sanitation and 50 years after a strike brought King to the city, and to his fate, he’s still on the job. “Last year, a friend asked me when I was going to retire, and I said: ‘There’s justice to be done. If you see something is wrong, you do what you can to make it right. "I just try to get this job done.” Courtesy of The Contributor / INSP.ngo �GLOBAL 6 NMar ov 2 7 - N o v 19, 18 | |NNo. o . 393 -Mar 21,2 02019 402 Malnourished Venezuelans Hope Urgently Needed Aid Arrives Soon CARLOS GARCIA RAWLINS & SHAYLIM VALDERRAMA Reuters Y aneidi Guzman has lost a third of her weight over the past three years as Venezuela's economic collapse made food unaffordable and she now hopes the opposition will succeed in bringing urgently needed foreign aid to the South American country. Guzman's clothes hang limply off her gaunt frame. The 38-year-old is one of many Venezuelans suffering from malnutrition as the once-prosperous, oil-rich OPEC nation has seen its economy halve in size over the last five years under President Nicolas Maduro. Venezuelans' diets have become ever more deficient in vitamins and protein, as currency controls restrict food imports and salaries fail to keep apace with inflation that is now above 2 million per cent annually. Growing malnutrition is one of the reasons Venezuela's opposition leader Juan Guaido has moved ahead with his plans to bring supplies of food and medicine into Venezuela by land and sea on Saturday, despite resistance from Maduro. Maduro, who denies there is a humanitarian crisis, has said it is a "show" to undermine him. On Thursday, crowds cheered as Guaido led a convoy of opposition lawmakers out of Caracas on an aria Guitia carries her son Yeibe Medina after bathing him at home near San Francisco de Yare, Venezuela, February 18, 2019. The pair live with Guitia's five siblings and parents in a one-room tin shed with a dirt floor and no running water. Work is scarce and they live off payments for odd jobs and a monthly government handout of heavily-subsidised basic food supplies. They have taken to inventing meals with what little they have like lentils with plantain from the trees in their backyard. Guitia said her son had lost weight over the past five months until Caritas gave them some nutritional supplements. REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins not provided details on how they would bring in the aid. In response, Maduro denounced the aid, saying in televised comments that he was considering closing the border with Colombia and would close the border with Brazil. Aid has become a proxy war in a battle for control of Venezuela, after Guaido in January invoked a Yaneidi Guzman, 38, shows the food she has in her kitchen at home in Caracas, Venezuela, February 19, 2019. Guzman has lost a third of her weight over the past three years as Venezuela's economic collapse made food unaffordable and she now hopes the opposition will succeed in bringing urgently needed foreign aid. She is one of many Venezuelans suffering from malnutrition. "It's not that I want to be rich, or a millionaire", Guzman said. "But I do want to give my children a good future, to make sure I can take them to the doctors when they get ill ... and that they eat well." REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins 800 kilometre (500 mile) trip to the Colombian border where they hope to receive food and medicine. Guaido has constitutional provision to assume an interim presidency, saying Maduro's reelection last year was fraudulent. "I hope they let the aid in," said Guzman, who despite holding down two jobs cannot make enough money for the tests, supplements or proteinrich diet that doctors have prescribed her. She and her husband make less than $30 per month and prioritize feeding their three young children. While there is a vacuum of government information, almost twothirds of Venezuelans surveyed in a university study called, "Survey on life conditions," and published last year, said they had lost on average 11 kilograms (24 pounds) in body weight in 2017. On the wall of Guzman’s home in the poor hillside district of Petare in the capital Caracas, hangs a wooden plaque with the psalm "The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing." Yet her fridge is empty except for a few bags of beans. Sometimes she wakes up not knowing what she will feed her family that day. Mostly they eat rice, lentils and cassava. While Guzman says she would welcome the aid, she is concerned the one-off shipment would be a drop in an ocean given Venezuelans' needs. "You don't only eat once," she said. Some political analysts say Saturday's showdown is less about solving Venezuela's needs and more about testing the military's loyalty towards Maduro, by daring it to turn the aid away. Some aid agencies like Catholic THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED relief agency Caritas are already on the ground providing what help they can. In San Francisco de Yare, a town 70 kilometres (45 miles) south of Caracas, Maria Guitia's one-year-old baby's belly is distended and his arms thin. The pair live with Guitia's five siblings and parents in a one-room tin shed with a dirt floor and no running water. Work is scarce and they live off payments for odd jobs and a monthly government handout of heavilysubsidised basic food supplies. They have taken to inventing meals with what little they have like lentils with plantain from the trees in their backyard. Guitia said her son had lost weight over the past five months until Caritas gave them some nutritional supplements. The United Nations and Red Cross have cautioned against the politicization of aid. The United States, which is pushing Maduro to step down, sent aid for Venezuela to a collection point in neighbouring Colombia in military aircraft, in a show of force. Guzman dreams of living once more not off foreign aid or government handouts but her own work. "It's not that I want to be rich, or a millionaire," she said. "But I do want to give my children a good future, to make sure I can take them to the doctors when they get ill ... and that they eat well." Courtesy of Reuters / INSP.ngo �NMar o. 397 3 -Mar | Nov 221, - N2019 o v 19, 2 0 18 | No. 402 GLOBAL 7 Tokyo Street Count KAHARA NAKAHARA The Big Issue Japan 12.30am, the middle of the night. Shinjuku station, after the last train Groups visit 9 areas mall groups of people in down jackets and other winter garments gather in Shinjuku station after the last train departs. Among them are young and old, men and women. These are volunteers who are going to take part in the Winter Tokyo Street Count taking place on the nighttime streets. Tokyo Street Count is a homeless census on the streets at night. Citizens take part, and it is organized by the Advocacy and Research Centre for Homelessness (ARCH), a civil society organization that makes policy suggestions and conducts research on the homelessness issue. The volunteers take to the streets of Tokyo by foot after the final train and record the number of homeless people and their sleeping conditions. Since research began in January 2016, the census has been conducted in 11 wards in Tokyo prefecture. The census for this winter is planned in three parts. The first takes place on January 20, beginning at half past midnight, and counts the four wards of Shinjuku, Shibuya, Chiyoda and Chūō. There are about 30 people taking part in the survey in Shinjuku, including students and members of supporting organizations. The ward is divided into 9 areas such as Shinjuku Station West Exit area, City Hall and Central Park area, and a group of 3-4 people visit each. Mr. Takuya Kitabatake (a co-representative of ARCH) briefs the groups about their confidentiality obligations and other matters to note, before they allocate their roles and head to the streets at 1am. The group we are accompanying is visiting the area around Shinjuku station. Even in the middle of the night, neon lights are shining brightly. To make sure there are no omissions in the survey, the group must cover all the streets in the area under their responsibility. They mark their walking route on the map, making sure they don’t miss the backs of any buildings or small alleyways. When they see any homeless people, they make detailed notes of the location, number of people, living conditions (cardboard huts, sleeping bags, etc.) and gender. If they see people on the move, they also make a note of details that describe their characteristics, such as “XX Plaza, a man in his 50s, navy blue top, red bag”. Since the person on the move might be re-counted at their destination, the headquarters checks for duplicate records using this information. S The census ends at 3am There are 582 homeless people in the four wards By 2.30am, half of the planned roads on the map are marked out. As we walk around, we see people wrapped in sleeping bags and dozing off while seated, people living in houses made from cardboard boxes, and people walking around carrying their bags in order to warm up in the cold weather – all sorts of living conditions that cannot be summarised in just the one word: “homelessness”. We are also surprised to see people using unexpected places as beds, like those sleeping in the dark space between buildings, or lying quietly at the roots of garden plants. Ms. Takahashi, a university student studying social welfare, took part in this study for the first time. “Homeless people are clearly visible on the streets at night. It’s a somewhat strange feeling,” she said. Indeed, you feel a different kind of presence of the homeless people, who hardly stand out in the bustle of the daytime. Mr. I, who has been a volunteer since it began in 2016, said, “It is nice that citizens can easily join the Street Count. With more people joining in, I hope it raises awareness and encourage people to ask, for example, ‘I wonder how that man is doing?’” The survey of the designated area is done by 3.30am. As they return to the headquarters, the volunteers exchange their thoughts while waiting for the first train. A woman who joined the activity for the first time said, “There are many kinds of lifestyles – there are people who make houses with cardboard boxes, and there are people who only have a sleeping bag.” Another woman, joining for the second time, said, “It would be great if the life suited to each person could be sustained even after they received support.” A little while later, it is announced that based on today’s survey, conducted by 91 citizens in total, there are 582 people living on the streets in the 4 wards. Protocol for homeless people in public spaces ARCH, which runs the Tokyo Street Count, was founded in 2015 by students and graduates studying urban design at Tokyo Industrial University. They regard the issue of homelessness as “an ‘urban issue’ that concerns jobs, housing and public spaces, and therefore people from all walks of life”. The purpose of the count is to “capture the actual situations of homeless people, which is not achieved by the current survey conducted by the Tokyo government”. The survey by the Tokyo government is carried out in daytime, in parks, streets, alongside rivers and in stations, and many administrative plans are based on the figures obtained from it. However, 55.6 per cent of people work during the day despite their homelessness [National survey of homelesness by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare in 2016]. The current survey cannot capture those who only live on the streets at night. In answer to this, ARCH carries out the survey between the time of the last train and dawn. The result is that, although in 2017 the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare announced that there were 5534 homeless people in Japan and 499 homeless people in Tokyo’s 11 wards, the Summer Street Count in the same year revealed 1307 homeless people in Tokyo’s 11 wards, about 2.6 times the figure of the government survey. It is also remarkable that there are 440 citizens (762 participations) in total, from junior high school students to seniors in their 60s, who have taken part in the survey so far. Mr Kitabatake said, “To realise a metropolis where people support each other, it is important to firstly acknowledge the existence of others. I hope that more people can take part in the Street Count and that this will become an opportunity for people to realize that homeless people do exist.” As the 2020 Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games draw nearer, the group is making suggestions for “Tokyo to establish its position as taking serious action regarding the homelessness problem”. ARCH takes reference from Australia’s legacy, where a “protocol for homeless people in public spaces” was reached, spurred on by the 2000 THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED Sydney Olympics. Mr Kitabatake, who visited Sydney after the protocol was concluded, said: “From this protocol, it was acknowledged that homeless people also have the right to be in public spaces. In fact, even in parks there, you can now see white-collar workers and homeless people taking naps on the same lawn, all as citizens leading their lives. People value and support each other. I believe that if there are more places like this, we can have a strong society that is also kind and gentle.” It is ARCH’s hope that Tokyo will strive to become such a city. The Tokyo Street Count takes place every year in the summer and winter. Let’s consider what it means to be a ‘kind and gentle’ neighbourhood as we walk the streets at night. Information about ARCH (Advocacy and Research Centre for Homelessness) A civil society organization founded in October 2015. The team conducts research and advocacy relating to the issue of homelessness. Members are pro bono workers including researchers, students, field workers and legalists. On the other side of the lavish and grand event of Tokyo 2020 are people who are disadvantaged socially and economically, the organization works towards the goal of a society that leaves behind a legacy of diverse people living together and supporting each other’s lives, rather than one where socially and economically disadvantaged people are pushed to the sidelines while a huge event takes place in Tokyo in 2020. Translated from Japanese by Lily Su Courtesy of The Big Issue Japan / INSP.ngo �FEATURE 8 NMar o v 2 7- -Mar N o v 19, 0 18 || N o . 393 21,22019 No. 402 Boarded Up DR. MARK MUSSMAN Staff Writer H ow many people need to die on the street before we enact long-lasting systemic change? Last week, we honored the life of Danny Lee Miles, just 61 years old, on the corner of Race and Liberty. Danny Lee is just one of what will likely be over 100 people who die in Cincinnati because of homelessness in 2019. Every person who spoke at the memorial commented on how they wish they could have done more, that there is a crisis, and that Danny Lee was a kind and gentle soul. The details of his passing were unknown at the memorial, but we do know that he died alone, outside, in the cold, on a night with temperatures in the 20’s. The emotions on the corner ran high as clothing items and food were handed out to whoever needed them. Organizers, who want to honor Danny Lee, said that these items were being given out in honor of Danny Lee, from Danny Lee himself. Curious passerby who stopped to asked what was going on were shocked to learn of Danny Lee’s passing, and many had stories to share about reaching out to him, and sharing food with him. Danny Lee’s life didn’t need to end short. He had been living in a Northside group home for many years before finding himself out on the streets in October of 2018. A person connected with the group home said that he Block resident points to the boarded up doorway, around the corner on Liberty was de-comping, which means that his mental state wasn’t able to handle stressors. This may have led him out to the street last fall, but the system ended up failing him. Several organizations and individuals had helped him while he was staying on the corner of Race and Liberty Streets, but ultimately, they were unable to prevent his death. Danny Lee had been estranged from his family for almost two decades, but their communication with the organizers was similar to that of those who passed him by each day - they wish they had done more. It seems that his mental state had put up barriers between him and his family for some time. Although Danny Lee attended the University of Louisville and received an EMS Certificate, he was unable to care for himself at the end of his life. Some questioned if we could have forced him into the shelter, after all, Prince of Peace operates a winter shelter literally across the street. Prayers, pleas, and calls for system change were the focus of the memorial. One family, who lives on the block, attended the memorial because they had brought him blankets, mittens, and Employees from Alabama Fish, across the street, came over to offer their condolences THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED other items over the past few months. The young kids looked on as their mother spoke, “...I even offered to get him an Uber to the homeless shelter one night because it was very cold. But he was like ‘I’m okay, I’m okay.’ You know that was the kind of person he was, he didn’t ever ask for help, ever, but because we saw him everyday, we wanted to help. It breaks my heart that we live in a city that would board up a doorway, to keep him from being seen on a main street, rather than give him the help that he needed. He was human being. He was more than just a homeless face. He had a family. We loved him. We were his family.” Danny Lee passed away in the doorway on Race Street, just out of sight from busy Liberty Street. He had been sleeping in the doorway on Liberty, but the doorway was recently boarded up. It seems clear that the purpose of the board was to prevent him from sleeping there, in the eyes of someone, to remove the blight. Since the doorways on Race Street, on the same building were not also boarded up, it seems clear that this was about visibility - they don’t want people to see poverty in the gentrifying neighborhood. As “OTR” creeps northward into Over-the-Rhine and FC Cincinnati decimates the West End, only two blocks from where Danny Lee died, the push to remove signs of poverty have been elevated. But what does it mean to push people further into the shadows? Liberty Street is literally a battleground right now. The City is back at the drawing board regarding the Liberty Street Pedestrian Safety initiative. The southern part of Overthe-Rhine may have a SID forced upon us, forcing affordable housing out of the area. North of Liberty, the Brewery District continues its plan to �N o. 39 | Nov 2 - N o v 19, 2 0 18 Mar 73-Mar 21, 2019 | No. 402 FEATURE 9 Father Reynaldo Taylor opens with a prayer, standing near him are Bison, Brian Garry, and Sam Landis turn the neighborhood into a museum, erasing all contributions and existence of African Americans from the neighborhood. Liberty Street is a major traffic artery, with “rush hour” from 7am to 7pm during the weekdays, as it connects the two interstate highways. Those of us who cross Liberty daily know the dangers of the street, but dying, alone in the cold, is not on the agenda of any of these current battles. Streetvibes Distributor and Contributor, Kim Green made an impassioned plea for affordable housing at the memorial. She used her voice to bring light to the pressing issues that we face in the neighborhood today. At the podium, Kim proclaimed that “here in a city where developers are coming in, taking historical buildings, making them into storefront eateries, it’s really heartbreaking… today people are buying these buildings, they are trying to genocize (sic)... move affordable housing out. The churches, the Homeless Coalition, and [the shelters], they are doing their part to try to help with affordable housing. The City of Cincinnati and City Council are to be ashamed of themselves to let this happen. City Council stand up, help your community - let’s get affordable housing!” We know how to eradicate homelessness through affordable housing, livable wages, and housing protections, but it seems to me that people are still stuck in the mentality that it’s the fault of the individual, so therefore we have no responsibility. This mentality can be traced back to the Reagan Administration, who pushed the idea that churches should be responsible for dealing with homelessness, not the government. Unfortunately, the government has manufactured the current housing and homelessness crisis. By dismantling public housing in favor of privatization, by rewarding developers for displacing residents in favor of market-rate housing, by allowing wages to fall way below a livable wage, by giving landlords carte blanche protections to Recently boarded up doorway on Liberty Street THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED deny and remove people from housing, the government has created and maintained a system that has resulted in the crisis we have today. We have been to too many funerals over the past few years. The Homeless Coalition’s memorial service that takes place on the longest night of the year counted over 110 people last year who died due to homelessness. Over the past year, the City and County have worked together to make it an arrestable offense to live outside on public or private property. The claim that people who are living outside pose a significant threat to the public is wrong, and forces people further into the shadows, further into isolation. Here we have an individual who was seen every day, yet was in danger himself, and the system wasn’t enough. We are short 40,000 units of affordable housing. All the shelters are over capacity. The jail is also overcrowded. Unless we do a major affordable housing push, a push for livable wages, a push for housing protections, the number of people who lose their lives to homelessness will continue to rise. While so many people are gaining from the displacement of people from our neighborhood, shouldn’t they take on some of the burden? We’ve lost more than 2400 units of affordable housing in Over-the-Rhine over the past 10 years. We are hemorrhaging our neighbors, yet someone is making a great profit off of it, using benefits and public incentives that come out of our taxes. The family who helped Danny Lee with blankets and mittens and offered to get an Uber to the shelter ended their memorial statement with this call to action. “We live on a block with all these vacant buildings. No one’s doing anything with them but making a profit eventually… we have to do better as a people. We just got to do better. No one should have to die outside, alone, in the cold.” �10 LOCAL NMar o v 2 7- -Mar N o v 19, 0 18 || N o . 393 21,22019 No. 402 The Power And The Need For Citizen Organizing BILL WOODS ContributingWriter C itizen organizing of every type received attention at an all day forum on Saturday February 23rd. Two hundred plus activists took part in "The Power of Organizing - Finding Your Community's Voice," an event sponsored by the Murray and Agnes Seasongood Good Government Foundation. Speakers, panels, and breakout discussions focused on how citizens can have an impact on government policy and the decisions that effect their communities and neighborhoods. The day began with a keynote address by Karen Hobert Flynn, the President of Common Cause U.S.A. Although Flynn now heads an organization that spends a lot of time and energy promoting political reforms at the national level, she believes in citizen organizing at all levels. In fact, Flynn began her career organizing at the grassroots. Reflecting on how state legislators often try to avoid contact with constituents, she revealed that one of her strategies as a young activist was to corner representatives right before they entered the bathroom. Flynn had some of her previous successes at the state level. She played a key role in organizing the adoption of public financing for campaigns for state elective offices in Connecticut. As a regional director for Common Cause, she assisted a number of state chapters, including Ohio, in their reform efforts. She stressed that some of Common Cause's best work continues to take place in the states, and she noted its success (in collaboration with other groups) in passing redistricting reform in Ohio last May. Flynn emphasized the importance of having the Seasongood event at this particular moment in U.S history. Citizen organizing to preserve our democratic institutions is critical. On a positive note, she proclaimed that citizen involvement in groups such as Common Cause has greatly increased in the last two years. The morning panel that followed the keynote focused on the nuts and bolts of organizing. Featuring local people with diverse organizing experiences, the panelists emphasized how they went about recruiting and working with volunteers. For instance, if citizens are going to give their time and talents to an organizing effort, they need to be appreciated and to believe that their involvement makes a difference. If it's a major effort involving a coalition of groups, one panelist stressed that a corps of leaders must evolve that works well together and trusts one another. All the panelists noted organizers must prepare their groups for unexpected setbacks, which can often be used as learning experiences. Moderated by Liz Blume of the Season Good board, the panel included Jennifer Summers of the Peaslee Neighborhood Center, Dorothy Smoot of the Partnering Center, Bill Woods of Applied Information Resources, and Nicole Edwards of the Sierra Club. One of the most valuable parts of the day occurred before lunch. Attendees split into three groups, and these breakout sessions allowed everyone to say why they were there. These sessions also encouraged people to present their ideas about needed organizing projects in Cincinnati. As an example, many neighborhood representatives noted that neighborhoods are isolated and need some kind of coalition in order to be heard and taken seriously by public officials. Over lunch, two full time community organizers, DeMario Cooper of the Ohio Organizing Collaborative, and Katy Heins of Community Change, shared their thoughts on the theme "Why Organize?" Heins began by saying that organizing is all about providing sufficient power to citizens to insure that they have an impact on public decisions that effect their lives. On a variety of issues from fair wages to affordable housing, Community Change works with citizens in various cities and states to bring this about. DeMario Cooper agreed with Heins' statement about "power." Often working in low-income AfricanAmerican neighborhoods, he described the inequities that exist without effective organizing. He was especially blunt about the inequities confronting Black males. As an example, he pointed to the huge percentage of Black males who serve prison terms in this country and the deep hole this places them in once they are released. Issue 1, on last November's ballot, was a justice reform initiative that would have eliminated much of the unnecessary incarceration in Ohio. Although the organizing effort for Issue 1 by groups such as the Ohio Organizing Collaborative ended in defeat, Cooper already sees some positive next steps emerging from that campaign. A final panel also featured diverse citizen organizers discussing their recent work and how they go about it. Catherine Turcer, Director of Common Cause/Ohio, described the organizing that went into the campaign to bring about redistricting reform in Ohio. She depicted how the successful state-wide signature gathering by volunteers for the grassroots Constitutional Amendment proposal persuaded members of the Ohio House and Senate to draft a real reform proposal of their own which the voters passed overwhelmingly passed last May. Panelist Josh Spring, the Executive Director of the Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition, told attendees about his work in organizing tenants. Tenants, especially those living in publicly assisted apartments, often need to know their rights in order to stand up to landlords who fail to maintain their buildings or who are attempting to evict them in order to raise rents or to sell their properties to developers. Spring has been successful in his goal of working with tenants so that they successfully speak and take action for themselves. As a conclusion to the day, David Altman, Executive Secretary of the Seasongood Foundation, and Michael Coffey, of the Greater Cincinnati Foundation, talked with attendees about the availability of grants for citizen organizing. Altman noted that it was a good sign that two local foundations not only saw the need for citizen involvement in public decisionmaking, but they also recognized the importance of organizing that involvement. Opi-Hate At The Top ROBERT PARK ContributingWriter A monotonous seemingly endless series of almost daily full-page ads in the NY Times from Purdue Pharma explained what a responsible company they are and how hard they’re trying to help with the opioid overdose crisis. This company is the maker of OxyContin and other opioids, and is owned by one family, worth about 13 $billion according to Forbes magazine. The recent history of Purdue Pharma, described in the NY Times (Jan.16, 2019) is visible because of law suits. In 2007 the company paid a 634 $million fine on federal criminal charges against top management, members of the Sackler family. They were charged with lying about the dangers of OxyContin in promoting the drug to doctors. More than 200,000 opioid overdose deaths have occurred since 1996 when the drug was introduced. The Sackler executives were removed from management of the company but continued to run it, according to subsequent law suits. Massachusetts attorney general, Maura Healey, is suing Purdue right now and new information has appeared as a result. Aside from further evidence of wonton murderous profiteering (about one billion $ per year in OxyContin sales), some insight into how these people think has emerged from internal company documents. When president of the company in 2001, one Sackler brother wrote: “we have to hammer on abusers in every way possible… They are the culprits and the problem. They are reckless criminals.” Ruling class contempt for the working class: this is about as clear as it gets. Thousands of people with injuries caused by their work, or by accidents, with pain from appropriate medical treatments or from deferred or absent medical care, trying to keep their lives on track and deal with family obligations, they are the criminals. Kids that don’t see a livable future are the criminals. Trump’s losers, which includes most THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED of us whose attainments in life didn’t depend on bullying, cheating or lying, we are the criminals. These are not anomalous ruling class attitudes, they are normal. Their class education trains them to think that way (although some wealthy people with a strong streak of honesty and integrity actually acknowledge, to themselves at least, a more accurate view of reality). Workers are blamed for industrial injuries and illnesses when process design and operating procedures are the culprit; students are blamed for enormous debt; homeowners devastated by banking fraud are blamed for reckless borrowing. We need to figure out who the criminals are, folks. �N o. 39 | Nov 2 - N o v 19, 2 0 18 Mar 73-Mar 21, 2019 | No. 402 11 LOCAL Diet, Childhood, and Homelessness: An Ohio Study TESS SOHNGEN ContributingWriter N ew Ohio Study Provides Insights into Food Access for Homeless Youths at a Drop-In Center When you’re young and don’t have a suitable place to live, how do you eat? A recent Ohio study examined exactly what food is provided at a youth drop-in center to answer this question. This study is the first of its kind to go into the service center and evaluate the food available to the 60-plus youths it serves every day. While previous research has taken a broader lens to the food resources available to homeless youths, the results of this new study demonstrate what’s possible when a service center can provide a quality food environment to adolescents – and the “x-factor” for doing so. How Many Youths Experience Homelessness? Deemed “The nation’s invisible homeless population”, more teens and young adults are living on the street than ever before in US history, and their numbers are rising. In one year, nearly 1.7 million youths will experience homelessness. These unaccompanied youths — any person under the age of 25 living without adequate housing and without a parent committing petty crimes for food or shelter. In their eat-or-be-eaten world, homelessness is the gatekeeper to experiencing violence, acute and longterm illness, and food insecurity. The Food Environment for Unsheltered Youths As many as 96% of youths experiencing homelessness are also affected by food insecurity, according to research by the Canadian Journal of Public Health, which has published several studies around youth homelessness and food resources in Toronto, where youths are also a growing portion of the country’s homeless population. Here is just one example of how fast and deep the knife can cut for unsheltered youths. The lack of access to nutritional and adequate food has long-term negative health effects for young men and women. “Inadequate nutrition can permanently alter children’s brain architecture and stunt their intellectual capacity, affecting children’s learning, social interaction and productivity,” according to Feeding America’s 2018 Child Food Insecurity Module. New Study – Evaluating Food Sources for Homeless Youths With limited resources to find work and money, homeless youths often 1 in 6 children 13M experiences hunger in the United States Number of children who live in "food insecure" homes in the United States Source: www.nokidhungry.org or guardian – are more vulnerable to the consequences of homelessness. Without guardian supervision, these young men and women are more prone to victimization – trading sex and unpaid work, panhandling, and turn to charitable services, crime, and begging for food. Here are the mostcommon food sources for homeless youths, according to a study published in Public Health Nutrition journal: (65%) admitted to theft as a means to food, (63%) food supplemented by welfare agencies, (61%) begging for money or food, (44%) begging for food items, and (34%) asking for help from friends and relatives. In a new and groundbreaking study from the Ohio State University Institutional Review Board, researchers evaluated the food at one of resources used most-extensively by youths experiencing homelessness: drop-in centers. Drop-in shelters targeted specifically for youths are typically the initial point of service for these young people since they are less restrictive than other service centers and aim to build trust and relationships with these adolescences. But how are they able to provide food to youths, and does the food meet their health needs? The researchers evaluated the variety and quality of food provided at a youth drop-in center in the Central Ohio region, assessing the type of food available, how accessible it was to youths in the center’s kitchen, and the health quality of those items. Their findings were surprising to the researchers. Not only did the center offer a fairly high variety of fruits and vegetables but also limited obesogenic (unhealthful) foods accessible to the adolescents they served. The X-Factor for Providing Adequate Food at Drop-in Centers These findings sharply contrasted previous studies and hypotheses predicting that food provided at these types of shelters did not meet adolescent’s nutritional needs. Researchers speculate a notable x-factor THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED for why the results from the Central Ohio study are so different: available funding. The level of funding available to drop-in centers is a crucial determinant of the types of food organizations can offer its homeless populations. When the welfare center relies on charitable donations of food, the quality, quantity, and nutritional value of the food available plummets. On the contrary, centers that can afford to pay staff, purchase food, and cover the costs of rent and utilities does not depend on donated food. This drop-in center in Central Ohio purchased most of the food it provides to young people from local food banks. The center also provides laundry, shower facilities, recreational activities, links to additional community resources, and beds to adolescents. On average, the center sees between 60-80 homeless youths ages 14-24 daily, with two to three new clients arriving each day. In Summary The study was the first of its kind and could contribute to more research in the future that examines homeless youth’s food environment. However, since the study was conducted at the only youth drop-in center in the metropolitan area – and considering the money available to the center – these finding don’t attest to the food environment and availability of youth shelter houses elsewhere in the country. This study simply shows that with adequate funding, services can be an adequate food resource for youths experiencing homelessness. �12 A Friend 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 is someone STREETVOICE Gusty Winds The Sky was dark The Sun was gone you can depend on To have a friend with you when all hope is gone Being human beings we all fall short of God’s grace The arrival of Rain made the Gusty Winds Come Being human plus a friend The Air can be a difficult race was cool Due to difficult the rain circumstances in every persons life To put trust and faith in someone can be only strife felt good As I embraced the Gustv Winds See 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 every day!! WILLA DENISE JONES Streetvibes Distributor Contributing Writer and Son God Loves you more than me! KIM GREEN Streetvibes Distributor Contributing Writer No More Tears I woke up this morning and smelled the coffee. You just don’t know about life, until you wake up. I was born November 13th, 1970. Life is real. Life is precious. I’ve been through hell and back, but I’m here. Psalm 116:8—"For thou hast delivered my soul from death, mine eyes from tears, and my feet from falling or stumbling.” N ov 2 N o v 21, 19, 2019 2 0 18 || No. N o . 402 393 Mar 7 --Mar Take Time Time- Everything in life takes time Time to plant Time to be born Time to die But let us remember To spend time with our loved onesMy mom and dad are no longer alive I can no longer hug them I got stabbed through the heart on July, 1994. I had two heart attacks on March, 2006. November 20th, 2018 they took an old heart valve out, and replaced it with a new one. They put a pace maker in on February 8th, 2019. and say hi and that I love Yes, life is so precious. The kids today are not raised the way we were. the time you will remember I need the old school people to come cleanup the streets. JAMES BROWN Streetvibes Distributor Contributing Writer you If your mom and dad are still alive please give them a long hug and tell them you love them Your heart and mind will feel so good that you took that and even more days you can do You will know that God has blessed all of you CLEO WOMBLES Streetvibes Distributor Contributing Writer Streetvibes Writing Circle If you would like to submit a story for publication in streetvibes, come join Katelyn Lusher and Chris Wilkey for a group writing session! S treetvibes is distributed by individuals who purchase the paper for 75 cents per copy and sell it for a $2.00 donation, keeping the profit they have earned. Becoming a Distributor is a great way for individuals who are financially poor to get back on (or stay on) their feet. This program provides supplemental income for those unable to secure other employment. Money earned helps meet basic housing, food and health care needs. The program is a hand up for people who are often in a place of getting only a hand out, or even no hand at all. All Distributors wear a badge and usually a vest and can be found selling the paper in Downtown Cincinnati, Clifton, Northside, Northern Kentucky and at area churches. THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED �STREETVOICE No. 39 | Nov21, 2 - 2019 N o v 19, 2 0402 18 Mar 7 3-Mar | No. Just Because THE NATIONAL EMERGENCY DEBATE Just because I’m homeless does not mean I deserve to be forgotten. Just because I’m homeless doesn’t meant I should not be seen Are you not feeling a sense of urgency 13 Just because you have fine clothes and a nice home does not make you a better woman or a better man. Do you love to watch the sunset? Do you like Just because I’m homeless doesn’t mean I should have no rights in my homeland to count the stars? emergency? I may not have fine clothes or a nice home, but I do have plenty of dignity, and my vote still matters. the troubles in your heart? How would you define a bonafide I may not have a briefcase, a smartphone, and busy appointments, but I still have dreams and hopes for the future. laugh out loud, play their games, and let them I just need to find my way back home again. Do you hide their eggs on Easter? Read their About The Donald's national crisis? Wouldn't be like a sneak attack by Isis? When you walk by, I can see that look in your eyes, and I wonder what are you afraid of? You remind me of how it used to be for me. I want you to know that just because you are busy does not mean you will always be so free. Does it seem to you to be a bogus call, To say it's for money for a border wall? BILL WOODS Contributing Writer Just because I’m homeless does not meant I forgot what it’s like. Are you worried about keeping your job forever? Paying your bills on time? What the doctor may say? And wondering if your pension will still be there some day? Just because I’m homeless doesn’t mean I cannot see. Everyone is walking fast like they are in a hurry. Everyone has that look in their eyes, wondering what I am doing out here? What happened to me? Wondering how I survive? Every day is a very long day in my world and I am worried too, you see. Do you like to walk in nature so you can forget When you play with your children do you believe they are so smart? card out loud on Mother’s Day? Watch the fireworks on the Fourth of July, and go to bed early before Christmas the oldfashioned way? Just because I’m homeless doesn’t mean I forgot about those old traditions, I just do my best to ignore what it’s like to sleep at the down town missions. I wish you could visit with me for a day, a week, or a year, so you could really know what it’s like being out here. Maybe you think it just doesn’t matter because it could never happen to you, is that right? Sometimes I want to wave just to see if you would wave back to me. Maybe you think we don’t have much in If I tell you my name, would you at least offer me a smile as if I am still important? common because of where you sleep at night. I want people to see me but when they do, I just look down at my shoes. I don’t really want your pity and would rather It’s easier that way you see, just because I’m homeless you think you know about me. Just because you don’t live where I live, or sleep where I sleep does not mean you understand. WAYNE SHIPMAN Streetvibes Distributor Contributing Writer THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED be left alone I know we really have so much in common But we go our separate ways just because I have no home �PET HOROSCOPES 14 NMar o v 27- -Mar N o v 19, 0 18 || N o . 393 21,22019 No. 402 Pet Horoscopes by Dusty Changepurse Pisces (Ten of Swords) - Have you have had it? Are sensing the that the end is near? The future is bleak, I know. Maybe it’s the end of your pet’s life, maybe its the end of puppyhood, or maybe it is just the end of your rope with even having a pet. Either way, this is a month of transitions, so know that sometimes it is best to find a way to process loss and move to a more positive place. Hard decisions need to be had for your pet this month. Aries (Seven of Cups) - Abundance is the name of the game, but, everything comes with a price. Remember my forewarning of this being a month of closure and things ending so know that dreams are often realized when we keep their limitations in mind. Your pet has been feeling spoiled these past few weeks, but what happens when the spoiling stops? Beware of negative behavior from your pet(s) when the going stops being good. with some insomnia/late night shenanigans, so be prepared. And yes, I know that is literal, but remember it isn’t their fault. Your Leo pet has been feeling some extra energy and vibes these weeks, so they are trying to make sense of the world and the rules. Remember, new pets means new accidents. Virgo (Eight of Swords) - Wow! Are you feeling the squeeze? Well your pet is fur sure. Your pet is feeling quite bound and restricted. It may not just be about the rules either. They are afraid of messing up. Try to help instill some confidence in your pet this month. I am always one to say that self-care is so important, but sadly pets don’t know this. Your pet has been making sacrifices and now it is your turn. Give up some of your personal time for some pet R and R. They actually need this now more than ever. Throat, mouth and ears are going to be affected this month. Taurus (The High Empress) - Your pet is on one, but it is as it should be. Yep, here kitty kitty, we got catnip! Sadly, you Taurean pet is having an internal conflict with balance. They may need some nature in their life to help center them. This is a time for you to bring some nature or creativity to your pet’s life. Also, this is a good time to set some boundaries for your pets. Remember we reward good behavior, not just giving them treats for “not being bad.” and your pet knows it. You both have your feelings, emotions and actions aligned and that is where you need to be. Your job is to move together through the journey of life and learn from each other. I will warn you that your pet is going through a jealousy phase this month, so beware. Basically, if you are introducing new (fur) people into your household consider limiting access between temporarily. This may help mitigate any negative territorial behavior. Sagittarius (Page of Wands) - Listen bird, you are one egotistical, free-spirited cutie pie. Wait, how do you do that? Yes, be prepared to be amazed by your fine feathered friend. They are all about the creative sparks and making things happen. Don’t worry, they are going to show you just how awesome birds can be. But be warned, this new found confidence can lead to flying away. If you let your pet friends have free range, keep a vigilant watch. This sense of freedom may cause them to flutter away. Capricorn (Six of Swords) - Your pet needs a vacation. A vacation from you, from life, from everything! So why not take them to the doggie spa or kitty coral. You will need to keep an eye on them because they are feeling a lack of engagement. There may be something holding them back, so figure it out and help them push through. They will feel challenged, but together you can be successful. This is a time of transition, so it is important that you are present with your pet. Gemini (The Hermit) - Your pet (and maybe you) will be feeling slightly overwhelmed and withdrawn this month. Perhaps think about spending some extra time with your pet or maybe they need some alone introspective time. I mean sure, they are happy to see you when you get home, but beware of destructive behavior when they are alone. Honestly, your smart furbaby has probably learned to hide all their mischief (and damage). So look in hidden corners and nooks, you may find that item you have been missing for while now. Cancer (Ace of Wands) - Usually this card means one is feeling inspired or growth. I personally find it is usually a clue for us to rely on your intuition to figure something out. Well, our reptile friends especially are using this skill to grow… right out of the cage. If you have a reptile, they are going to be an escape artist this month. Be sure to watch their living environment. Whatever your solution may be, know your pet is overthinking things. So simplify. If you are thinking of getting a new pet, well, you have your answer. Leo (The Moon) - The only thing to do is howl at the moon! Okay, we get it! It’s 2 a.m. and everything is exciting, but just go to sleep. This is a time of transformation within your pet. They learning to lean into their personality. Your pets will be dealing Libra (Seven of Pentacles) - So you have put in the hard work, and now you can start to see the results. Finally. That furbaby has finally learned all the cute tricks. Even the birdiebrains are finally getting it. I mean, who doesn’t need a bird who can tell a knock knock joke. For this moment, just enjoy the successes of your training. If you are in the middle of a training program, keep at it. You will definitely reep the benefits. Remember, it is about the big picture here. Plan for the future. So the trainings isn’t for the tricks, it is help the behavior. Scorpio (Knight of Cups) - Moving forward should be the goal for your pet. You have a good thing going Aquarius (Three of Wands) - You see all that kitty? Everything the apartment light touches is yours. Okay that may sound like a scene from a cartoon, but that is because you kitty feels like the monarch of the household. That is probably true. You are in the midst of change, so it is important to keep up the momentum. Your pet is going to be looking for new adventure and the plans have be set, so time to operationalize it. This may be a time to introduce new toys, tricks and challenges to their care. Make them look forward to something new. Hey, it only takes a string and a feather do this, but why not make it sound like an epic challenge About the Author: Dusty Changepurse (they, them, their) is cultural and creative artist whom infuses spirituality, creativity and social justice into their work and everyday life.They have been providing tarot-based guidance, readings, and pet horoscopes for a couple of years. They believe tarot is a useful tool for self-reflection, knowledge growth, and self-care. They enjoy crystals, kombucha and vegan food. The horoscopes presented should not be seen as medical/ veterinary advice. If you or your pet needs actually medical assistance, please see a medical professional. THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED �N o. 39 | Nov 21, 2- N o v 19, 2 0 18 Mar 73-Mar 2019 | No. 402 Central Access Point 381-SAFE Shelter: Women and Children RESOURCES Prince of Peace Lutheran Church 621-7265 1528 Race St. 45202 Churches Active in Northside Bethany House 557-2873 4230 Hamilton Ave. 45223 591-2246 FreeStore/FoodBank 241-1064 1841 Fairmount Ave. 45214 The Esther Marie Hatton Center for Women 2499 Reading Road 562-1980 Grace Place Catholic Worker House 681-2365 112 E. Liberty Street 45202 Madisonville Ed & Assistance Center 271-5501 4600 Erie Ave. 45227 Serves area codes: 45226, 45227, 45208, 45209 6037 Cary Ave. 45224 Salvation Army 762-5660 St. Vincent de Paul 562-8841 131 E. 12th Street 45202 1125 Bank Street 45214 YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter 872-9259 Treatment or Supportive Recovery: Men Shelter: Men Charlie’s 3/4 House 784-1853 Shelterhouse 721-0643 2121 Vine Street 45202 411 Gest St. 45203 Prospect House 921-1613 1437 Walnut Street 45202 Starting Over 961-2256 1805 Dalton Ave. 45214 Treatment or Supportive Recovery: Women St. Fran/St. Joe Catholic Work. House 381-4941 682 Hawthorne Ave. 45205 City Gospel Mission 241-5525 Parkway Center 661-4620 First Step Home 961-4663 Shelter: Youth 2203 Fulton, Cinti, Ohio 45206 Sheakley Center for Youth (18-24 y/o) 2522 Highland Ave. 45219 569-9500 Lighthouse Youth Crisis Center (10-17 y/o) 3330 Jefferson Ave 45220 961-4080 Shelter: Family Interfaith Hospitality Network Treatment or Supportive Recovery: Both AA Hotline 351-0422 CCAT 381-6672 830 Ezzard Charles Dr. 45214 Joseph House (Veterans) 471-1100 1522 Republic Street 45202 Caracole (HIV/AIDS) 761-1480 CMHA 721-4580 Excel Development 632-7149 OTR Community Housing 381-1171 114 W. 14th Street 45202 Talbert House 221-HELP Tender Mercies 721-8666 27 W. 12th Street 45202 Tom Geiger House 961-4555 Volunteers of America 381-1954 Anna Louise Inn 421-5211 Cincinnati Union Bethel 768-6907 VA 977-6800 VA Homeless 859-572-6226 Food/Clothing First Lutheran Church 421-0065 1208 Race St. Food - Last Monday 12-1 Clothing - second Monday 12-1 Lord’s Pantry 621-5300 OTR/Walnut Hills Kitchen & Pantry 961-1983 OTR: 1620 Vine Street 45202 Walnut Hills: 2631 Gilbert Ave. 45206 Our Daily Bread 621-6364 1730 Race Street 45202 St. Francis Seraph Ministries 549-0542 St. George Food Pantry 2554 Dennis St. 45219 751-8771 St. Anthony Center 1615 Republic St. Advocacy Catholic Social Action 421-3131 Community Action Agency 569-1840 Contact Center 381-4242 Franciscan JPIC 721-4700 Gr. Cinti Coalition for the Homeless 421-7803 117 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 2401-2411 Reading Rd. 45202 2401 Reading Rd. 45202 241-2965 Hamilton County Mental Health and Recovery Services Board 946-8000 Recovery Health Access Center 281-7422 Sober Living 681-0324 Talbert House 221-HELP Housing: 15 Legal Aid Society 241-9400 Ohio Justice & Policy Center 421-1108 UpSpring 363-3300 Health Cincinnati Health Network 2825 Burnet Ave. 45219 Other Resources Center Independent Living Options 241-2600 Peaslee Neighborhood Center 621-5514 215 E. 14th St. 45202 Franciscan Haircuts from the Heart 381-0111 Goodwill Industries 771-4800 Intercommunity Justice & Peace Cr. 579-8547 Mary Magdalen House 721-4811 1223 Main St. 45202 People Working Cooperatively 351-7921 The Caring Place 631-1114 Talbert House 751-7747 United Way 211 Women Helping Women 977-5541 Off The Streets 421-5211 Hamilton County Office of Reentry 946-4304 138 E. Court Street Room # 101 First Floor Cancer Justice Network 404-3882 Hamilton/Middletown St. Raephaels 981-4200 Salvation Army 863-1445 Serenity House Day Center 422-8555 Open Door Pantry 868-3276 Northern Kentucky Brighton Center (11-17 y/o) 859-491-8303 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 799 Ann St. Newport, KY 205 West Pike Street, Covington, KY 41011 Women’s Crisis Center 859-491-3335 VA Domiciliary 859-572-6202 Emergency Shelter of Northern Kentucky 634 Scott St. 41011 859-291-4555 Want to advertise in Streetvibes? You can support our mission and spread the word about your business. For more information contact Gabriela Godinez Feregrino, 961-0600 email streetvibes@cincihomeless.org Center for Respite Care 621-1868 3550 Washington Ave. 45229 Crossroad Health Center 381-2247 5 E. Liberty St. 45202 Health Resource Center 357-4602 McMicken Integrated Care Clinic and Mobile Medical Van 386-7899 40 E. McMicken Ave, Cinti, Ohio McMicken Dental Clinic 352-6363 40 E. McMicken Ave, Cinti Mental Health Access Point 558-8888 NAMI of Hamilton County 351-3500 PATH Outreach 977-4489 THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED �16 NMar ov 2 7 - -Mar N o v 19, 0 18 | |N o . 393 21,22019 No. 402 S treetvibes is distributed by individuals who purchase the paper for 75 cents per copy and sell it for a $2.00 donation, keeping the profit they have earned. Becoming a Distributor is a great way for individuals who are financially poor to get back on (or stay on) their feet. This program provides supplemental income for those unable to secure other employment. 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ALFRED WOOLFOLK SINCE 10/2003 ASRES AYENAW SINCE 2012 BERTA LAMBERT SINCE 1997 BETTIE BAILEY SINCE 10/2017 BRANDON NELSON SINCE 4/2008 BRIAN ADAMS SINCE 7/2017 CHARLES WILLIAMS SINCE 7/2017 CHRISTOPHER KAIHATSU SINCE 7/2017 CLEO WOMBLES SINCE 10/2003 CRANDALL COBB SINCE 2004 DARREL ROZIER SINCE 7/2017 DAVID MCCANE SINCE 2017 ERIC VALDEZ SINCE 2/2017 GERALD FRANKLIN SINCE 7/2017 GRADY COOK SINCE 1997 HENRY BRELAND SINCE 7/2017 JAMES BROWN SINCE 3/2009 JAMES DAVIS SINCE 8/2000 JENNY BURTON SINCE 7/2017 JIMMIE GIPSON SINCE 2001 JON DARBY SINCE 2/2006 JOHN HORN JOSEPHINE BASKERVILLE SINCE 9/2008 J’TORI TYMAN SINCE 5/2014 KIM NGUYEN SINCE 7/2017 KENNY BUSSELL SINCE 10/2009 KAREN COLLETTE SINCE 7/2008 LARRY BROWN SINCE 10/2007 LEE MCCOY SINCE 7/2009 LEONARD JACKSON SINCE 2/2005 MARY MUELLER SINCE 5/2005 MARK SHEARS SINCE 4/2012 MAURICE GOLSBY MELISSA MOSBY SINCE 9/2014 MIKE CARANO SINCE 4/2016 RAESHAWN GIPSON SINCE 3/2009 RAYNARD JONES SINCE 10/2008 RICKY WOODS SINCE 4/2015 RICCARDO TAYLOR SINCE 1999 RONNIE PHILLIPS SINCE 10/2009 SAMUEL JACKSON SINCE 10/2006 STACIA HOLLANDER SINCE 2017 STEPHANIE EAKES SINCE 7/2017 SYLVESTER WALKER SINCE 7/2017 TALINA HILL SINCE 2/2011 VICTOR MUMPHRY WILLA JONES SINCE 1/2010 WINNIE RICE SINCE 7/2017 QUEENACELASTINE SINCE 7/2017 TIA CASS SINCE 11/2007 THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED TONY THOMAS SINCE 3/2005 KEITH EUTSEY SINCE 2/2011 VIOLET COLLINS SINCE 2017 � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. 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Title A name given to the resource March 7-March 21, 2019 Subject The topic of the resource Homelessness Description An account of the resource Pg 1: Cover Page Pg 2: Anti-Vax Movements and Social Media Pg 3: Education Opportunities Pg 4: GCHC Pg 5: The Strike Pg 6: Malnourished Venezuelans Hope Urgently Needed Aid Arrives Soon Pg 7: Tokyo Street Count Pg 8: Boarded Up Pg 9: Boarded Up Continued Pg 10: The Power and the Need for Citizen Organizing Opi-Hate at the Top Pg 11: Diet, Childhood, and Homelessness Pg 12: Street Voice Pg 13: Street Voice Pg 14: Pet Horoscopes Pg 15: Resources Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Streetvibes Archive Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Streetvibes Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource March 7-March 21, 2019 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Josh Spring Gabriela Godinez Holly McCall Kahara Nakahara Carlos Garcia Rawlins Shaylim Valderrama Key Beck Dr. Mark Mussman Bill Woods Tess Sohngen Kim Green Willa Denise Jones Robert Park James Brown Cleo Wombles Pngtree.com Canva.com INSP.com Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Anti-Vax Bill Woods Canva.com Carlos Garcia Rawlins Cleo Wombles Dr. Mark Mussman education Free Lunch Program Gabriela Godinez Holly McCall INSP.com James Brown Josh Spring Kahara Nakahara Key Beck Kim Green Ohio Pngtree.com protest Robert Park Shaylim Valderrama Social Media Strike Tess Sohngen Tokyo Venezuela Willa Denise Jones https://streetvibesarchive.net/files/original/76d26bae37374821b5f46bb15d745d7f.pdf e6034159406b27a1ce27535f28e13ead PDF Text Text Any opinions in this issue are of the authors and don't necessarily represent Streetvibes or The Homeless Coalition. BLACK HISTORY MONTH Special Edition This Issue is sponsored by Cecilia and Tom Kloecker Find previous issues of Streetvibes online at: cincistreetvibes.org Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition 113 E. 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 streetvoice | 12 �2 COALITION N o v 21-March 2 - N o v 19,7,22019 0 18 | |NNo. o . 393 Feb. 401 From The Director: History Isn’t a Series of Stories 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 individuals experiencing homelessness or on the edge of homelessness, in exchange for a $2.00 Donation. Streetvibes is published twice a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH), a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that works to eradicate homelessness in Cincinnati. 113 East 12th St. Cincinnati OH, 45202 Ph: 513.421.7803 FAX: 513.421.7813 WEB: www.cincihomeless.org EMAIL: streetvibes@cincihomeless.org Editor-in-chief: Gabriela Godinez Feregrino Executive Director: Josh Spring Josh Spring giving a speech. Credit:Amanda Meet JOSH SPRING Executive Director W hen we talk about history, we tend to discuss particular individuals, groups or campaigns that were covered in abundance by the press and that accomplished specific changes. Or we look at history as a series of highlighted stories through decades. These parts of history are very important and certainly can serve as inspiration for our work continuing. But not looking at the whole picture and instead seeing history as a limited number if inspirational stories can make systemic change seem unobtainable. Take for example the “Civil Rights Movement”. We learn about “Brown v. Board of Education”, “Rosa Parks and the Montgomery Bus Boycott”, the “Little Rock Nine”, the “Lunch Counter Sit-Ins”, “Ruby Bridges”, “Freedom Riders”, “Marches, Dogs, Hoses and Bombs in Birmingham”, the “March on Washington”, “I Have a Dream”, the “Civil Rights Act”, the “March to Montgomery”, the “Poor Peoples’ Campaign” and the assassination of Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. I list each of these in quotations because the way history is taught and discussed, these actions have in many ways been made into products that sell books, movies and are used by corporations to fain care. For many they have become stories of the past you hear about, with larger than life characters who had some genius ideas, unfettered focus and through these this limited list of events, accomplished major changes. What do most people think about this information? They feel uplifted and thankful. What does history told in this way lead most people to do? You might say to yourself, “Well, I can’t have that unfettered focus because I have to go to work, I have to feed my kids, I have to pay the rent” or “I have to find a home, I have to avoid harassment by the police, I have to deal with family issues, I have to play with my children…”. Or perhaps, “Well, I don’t have any genius ideas”, “I’m not good at giving speeches”, “I don’t know how to lead a march or organize a boycott.” So then we say, “I really wish we had a ‘Martin Luther King’ today, we really need a strong leader.” But here’s the thing, history, systemic change and over-throw of systems don’t actually happen in a series of stories led by fearless, other-worldly strategic geniuses with nothing else going on in their lives. No, changing systems and creating and implementing new systems are accomplished by the hard work of many people, with different sets of strengths and limitations and with lots going on in their lives. The larger than life characters in these stories were not larger than life. They struggled, screwed up, got distracted at times, had other close people to care for, got confused and were not isolated islands spitting out perfect ideas and plans. These stories are not story-book at all. They all involve people going to long meetings, arguing about tactics, trying to agree on goals, planning actions and then having to reschedule them, implementing plans that work and plans that don’t. People didn’t one day just decide to make some major move that would have long-lasting impact. People planned, evaluated, fed their kids, attended marches, went to school, gave speeches, cleaned their dishes, cried, looked for employment, clapped, struggled to pay the rent, felt scared but supported each other, read, led, followed and everything else humans have to do both to live and force change. The gathering of people created support systems that allowed this to be possible. We learn about all of these stories that from the tell of it seemed to achieve major accomplishments through a limited number of wonderful actions. We don’t learn about all of the many, many more other actions, both successful and unsuccessful. We don’t learn about the many boycotts in small towns, the neighborhood marches to stop displacement, the workers gathering to demand fair wages, the many lawsuits to challenge inhumane municipal laws, the disruption of discriminatory meetings, the rallies against red-lining, the establishment of neighborhood-serving organizations, the sit-ins at public offices, etc. We don’t learn about the hours, days, months and years of knocking on doors, streetcorner conversations, hanging flyers, making phone calls, cooking meals for gatherings, documenting evidence, honing statements and crafting demands. People and organizations behind current inhumane systems want us to think that movements are the result of one or a few special people. In fact, they, themselves, want to believe that too, because, for them the reality that movement and the topple of injustice is led by small groups of regular people who build into larger and larger groups of regular people, is much scarier. We have the power. THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED Director of Development: Mona Jenkins Director of Education: Dr. Mark Mussman Distributor Program Manager: Sallie Mascus Layout: Gabriela Godinez Feregrino Reception: Bonita Batton, Larry Johnson Maintenance: Pete Roper ------------------------------------------CONTRIBUTORS THIS ISSUE Writers: Josh Spring, Patricia Patton, William Schomberg, Simon Daveson, Alessandro Jedlowski, Felix Winternitz, Key Beck, Dr. Mark Mussman, Bill Woods, Janiah Miller, Kim Green, Willa Denise Jones, Janiah Miller, June Alexander, Ricardo Taylor, Mo Poetry Phillps ------------------------------------------Photography/ Artwork: Homeless Coalition, canva.com, Gabriela Godinez, Amanda Meek ---------------------------------------------Thank You For Reading Streetvibes And Supporting Our Mission To Build Community And Advocate Justice. Streetvibes and The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless do not endorse candidates for public office. �No. 39 3 | Nov 2 7, - N2019 o v 19, 2 0 18 Feb. 21-March | No. 401 3 COALITION Segregation Then, Segregation Now DR. MARK MUSSMAN Staff Writer T he Cincinnati region is home to segregated neighborhoods and schools. The typical American mantra is that we have overcome segregation and with that, we’ve created a level playing field. Recently, I wrote about how little has changed in Cincinnati over the past couple of decades, and I mentioned that schools are more segregated now than ever, especially when it comes to income segregation. As an educator, I wanted to dig deeper into racial segregation in our schools. There is considerable educational research that shows that educational success is only linked to two indicators: family income and school expenditures on curricular materials. In Ohio, these two things are intricately linked, as school funding is dependent on property taxes. In a few rare cases, there are some communities who are able to offset their residential property taxes with commercial property taxes, but for the most part, if a neighborhood has expensive homes, the schools in the neighborhood will be able to spend more per student. The school that spends the most in Ohio, spends nearly $40,000 per student on their education. In Hamilton County, Indian Hill spends the most per student; in 2016 that number was nearly $20,000. These amounts dwarf the $10,000 spent on each student in Cincinnati Public Schools. As my work brings me in and out of schools on a constant basis, I am always surprised when I visit a non-segregated school. It is rare, but it does happen. I wondered what this would look like, on a statistical level, so I began doing a data search. The State of Ohio keeps records on public schools, but does not provide information on charter, private, or religious schools. Since the segregation in the Catholic Schools in Cincinnati seems to be anecdotely related to racism: as my family members have vocally said they will send their children to Catholic schools because there are “too many Black people” in the public schools, I can readily and wholeheartedly say that the push for a Catholic school education comes more out of racism than their adherence to Catholic beliefs. However, the Catholic schools in Cincinnati aren’t completely white, as many schools are completely Black, especially at the elementary level. An example of this is in East Walnut Hills, where St. Francis de Sales Elementary is almost entirely African American, and Mercy Montessori, just a few blocks away is mostly white. Until the demographic information is made available, we can just go from our experience, and know the Black Catholic schools and the white Catholic schools. Focusing on the public schools has the benefit of also thinking deeper into the racial dynamics of the neighborhood, or municipality, in which the schools operate. In my research, I am including the demographic data from 49 local schools. I was unable to get Ohio data from Dater, Gamble, Taft, and Seven Hills School, which I suspect are each racially segregated. I also had to use Mason Middle School data, as the high school data wasn’t on the state’s page. Finally, Harrison High School data was not available. However, the data I did collect represents more than 50,000 students in the Cincinnati region, in Ohio. I did not include Northern Kentucky, although recents reports put that region near the top of the most economically segregated schools in America. When school desegregation efforts were in full swing in the 1970’s, the definition of segregation was a school with 70% or more of one race or ethnic group. This is the standard that I am using here. The results below show that most students in Cincinnati go to a segregated school. The level of segregation would be shocking, if we didn’t expect this to be the case. Of the 50,274 students in the 49 local schools, 34,814 students attended racially segregated schools. Far more than half of the attendees. 9 schools have less than 10 African American students in attendance: Ross, Claremont-Eastern, BethelTate, New Richmond, Goshen, Taylor, Mariemont, Batavia, and Madeira. The total population of these schools is 5,237 students. Less than 90 students total, in all of these schools, are African American. Ross High School has the distinct honor of the most white, at 98%. Other schools that are 90% or more white include: Amelia, Loveland, Turpin, Anderson, Oak Hills, Milford, and Little Miami Local School District. Schools in the 80-89% white category include Lebanon, Kings, Reading, Monroe, and Indian Hill. Schools that are 70-79% white include: Wyoming, Lakota, Deer Park, and Norwood. This leaves Sycamore on the border at 67% with a 8% African American population. It should be noted, that these levels of segregation are not natural, and that segregation comes from decades of racism in housing, education, employment, transportation, health care, etc. None of this “just happens” but rather it is a concerted effort by banks, real estate professionals, racist policies, and policing. Many of these communities were “Whites Only” communities, through redlining, restrictive covenants, and other concerted efforts to exclude people of color from settling there. This is also not some historical issue, if it was, then we wouldn’t continue to have severely segregated schools. There’s another side to this, where schools are segregated at more than 70% African American. The most segregated Black school is Woodward, (again Taft data wasn’t available, which I suspect is very highly segregated as well), with 94% African American, and 1% white. Shroder comes in second at 93% African American, followed by Hughes at 90%, Aiken at 86%, Withrow at 83%, North College Hill at 81%, Western Hills at 78%, Mount Healthy at 74%, and Virtual High at 70% African American. Other than North College Hill and Mount Healthy, these are Cincinnati Public Schools. Generational poverty creates a more expensive remedy for these schools, as schools are forced to pick up more slack, even serving two or three meals a day, ramping up wrap-around services such as medical care, and providing familybased education options. Schools that are majority white have less additional expenses because of the generational wealth that our public policies granted them over the last generations. There are some schools that aren’t so severely segregated, but I might argue are still segregated, but they have a larger Hispanic or Asian population, which tilts the numbers into 3 boxes, instead of two: African American and white. This includes Princeton, which is 23% white, 46% African American, and 21% Hispanic. While no one is a majority alone, it reaches segregation levels while including Asian and Pacific Islander as well. Also, I would put Mason City Schools into this category as well, with 61% white, but less than 4% African American. There is a large Asian population in Mason schools, at 24% of the student body. Winton Woods also fits in this category with 27% of the students of Hispanic, Asian, or multiracial identity. A discussion about the socalled “model minority” in education, what that means for other minorities, and how this dilutes race-based measures, will need to be saved for another article, but it’s an important consideration when looking at the statistics. We are left with 11,120 students who attend desegregated schools, based upon the formula I discussed above (70% threshold). Each of the following 10 schools have less than 70% of a single race or minority grouping. The percentage of African American and white students total in each school is between 80 and 88 percent. While these numbers may not accurately portray the community within which the school resides, as there are other schools, such as charter and religious schools, it may make a statement about the school’s commitment to creating a social system that enables students to make informed decisions on their exposure to people of different ethnicities. Four of the schools, Clark Montessori, Oyler, SCPA, and Walnut Hills are Cincinnati public schools, while the other six are mostly suburban schools: Colerain, Fairfield, Finneytown, Lockland, Northwest, and St. Bernard/Elmwood Place. Only one school, SCPA is more than 50% African American, at 53%. These numbers don’t get to deeper issues of representation. What does it matter if a school’s student population is desegregated if there are no African American teachers or administrators? How are Black students treated differently when it comes to punishments, or even advance courses such as AP? What is the graduation rate for African American students? What is the level of police presence in each school? How are the relationships different between students and staff, including detention guards and so-called School Resource Officers? But what we can gleam from this data is that we are still in an active mode of segregation when the vast majority of our students attend extremely segregated schools, live in segregated neighborhoods, and ultimately, live segregated lives. Graph Shows that most students attend segregated schools, with the vast majority of white students attending segregated schools. THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED �4 ADVERTISMENT THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED N o v 221-March - N o v 19, 7, 2 02019 18 | N o . 393 Feb. | No. 401 �No. 39 3 | Nov 2 - 7, No v 19,| 2 0 18401 Feb. 21-March 2019 No. 5 U.S. NEWS Reflections On African-Americans And Politics - 1963-2019 BILL WOODS ContributingWriter H ow have AfricanAmericans fared in the political process in the last five and a half decades? This period covers the flowering of the Civil Rights Movement and the election of the first African-American President. It's a time frame that produced major advancements, but also left large problems and issues to be addressed. When Streetvibes editor Gabriela Godinez-Feregrino decided to dedicate this issue to Black History Month, she asked me to do a piece on AfricanAmericans and politics. As an aging white man, I took on this assignment with trepidation. Nevertheless, I determined to offer my observations on this theme beginning with the year I graduated from college in 1963. Much of the South was still legally segregated in the early 1960s, and I graduated from a Midwestern college that still accepted national fraternities on campus that prohibited AfricanAmericans from membership. During the summer after graduation in 1963, I landed a temporary job writing press releases for the City Charter Committee, Cincinnati's reform political party. It was a Council election year, and Charter was determined to reelect Theodore M. Berry, an African-American attorney, to that body. Under the PR-voting system (proportional representation), Berry had been elected to Council by large margins, but the voters abolished PR in 1957. Political observers at the time attribute the successful effort to eliminate proportional representation to a whispering campaign that Berry was getting too powerful and might eventually become mayor. That summer was also the backdrop for the March on Washington, where thousands of African-Americans rallied for Civil Rights. I remember on that August afternoon, Forest Frank, the Director of the Charter Committee, called me into his office to watch this event on a small television set. In that setting, I heard Martin Luther King give his "I have a dream" speech. It was impossible not to be moved by his powerful words, and I think I unconsciously thought that this was an historic moment. From August onward, Dr. King became one of the key figures in the Civil Rights movement, and more and more effective, peaceful protests took place throughout the South. Meanwhile here in Cincinnati that November, Theodore Berry won back a seat on Council. In the next few years, the movement moved forward on a number of fronts throughout the country. For instance in Washington, D.C., a flurry of activity took place. Lyndon Johnson became an activist President after the assassination of John F. Kennedy, and he was able to move legislation along that had been bogged down for a long time. One of the major Civil Rights laws that passed during this period was the Voting Rights Act, an act that for years helped eliminate state laws designed to prevent African- Americans from voting and participating in the political process. President Johnson also launched what he called "The War on Poverty," a plan that brought about urban projects such as the Community Action Program, Model Cities, and additional funding for housing and job training. These initiative weren't sufficient to eliminate poverty, but they did provide needed assistance to inner city Black neighborhoods. These Civil Rights advances caused several backlashes in the country. Politicians such as Alabama Governor George Wallace made his reputation by defying the new federal laws, and the once solid Democratic South began its shift to the Republican Party. The urban riots that took place in cities across the nation from 1966-1968 were in part due to Black inner city residents feeling that all the fanfare about Civil Rights and desegregation had not done much to improve their lives. Meanwhile more AfricanAmericans were elected to public office. Changing urban demographics made this possible, and when Carl Stokes was elected Mayor of Cleveland in 1967, he became the first African-American mayor of a major U.S. city. When I was teaching at Wilmington College in 1969, I interviewed the Mayor when he received an honorary degree at the College's graduation ceremonies. This trend continued. Not only were more and more AfricanAmericans selected as mayors, but also a number of them were elected to Congress from cities such as Detroit, Cleveland, and New York City. In fact, Lewis Stokes, Carl Stokes' brother, was elected to Congress from a Cleveland area district, and he served for years as an influential member of the Congressional Black Caucus. A precursor to Barack Obama's successful campaign for President in 2008 was the Rev. Jesse Jackson's credible bid for the Democratic nomination for that office in 1988. In short, the progress of AfricanAmericans winning public office has gone forward to the present day. Finally, Barack Obama was elected to the nation's highest office for two terms. At the moment, at least two African-Americans are vying for the Democratic nomination for President in 2020. Nevertheless, several major problems plague our political system today that makes life difficult for millions of African- Americans. The influence of "big money" in political campaigns at all levels gives way too much influence to wealthy interest groups. Little attention in recent times has been paid to growing poverty and income inequality, and a large percentage of low-income families and individuals are African-American. The safety net of programs and services for people in need has been gutted over the last three decades. Reforms must put in place that will make average Americans, and especially people in need, the focus of attention of our elected representatives. A second problem for AfricanAmericans is their minimal influence on the Republican Party. In the last fifty years, the Party of Lincoln has become the white man's party, and Republican officials tend to ignore Civil Rights issues or issues of urban poverty. This fact makes the Democratic Party the only political outlet for AfricanAmericans. In summary, African-Americans have had a lot of progress politically over the last half-century, and that fact should be celebrated. However, it must not be ignored that the U.S. is at turning point in dealing with some critical economic, social, and political issues. We all must make some adequate public responses to them or accept a steady decline. Racial Analysis within Homelessness PATRICIA PATTON Contributing Writer I t was a chilly crisp morning as I walked to the bus stop on my way to work. Almost daily after I arrive and secure my space to wait, I am confronted by a frumpily dressed white male asking for money to buy him a cup of coffee. My feelings are mixed: should I give him something or should I, as so many others do, dismiss him? Should I reply with the standard response, “why don’t you get a job?” While I often comply by giving them a dollar or two, long after my act of generosity the questions in my head remain. Why am I helping a white male? I mean, given their gender and race, they run the world; the sky’s the limit. I wonder do they know the power they possess? The question inspired me to look further into the challenges this population faces, so I did some research and found that according to the National Alliance to End Homelessness there are currently 10,095 homeless people across the state of Ohio. In addition, Take Away, a public radio program, states that African Americans comprise 12.6 percent of the population, yet 40 percent are classified as homeless. Furthermore, Dr. Marion Moser Jones, a professor with the University of Maryland School of Public Health who has studied the homeless from 1985-2015, states that the causes of homelessness between the two races differ. For blacks discrimination, social isolation, and drug abuse could factor. While for whites homelessness is usually due to or is the result of mental illness, disability, and alcohol abuse. Also factor in a limited availability of housing for blacks and economic inequalities in general. While both races share the devastating reality of homelessness the reasons and or causes of the condition veer. Black woman who become homeless are usually more likely to have THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED experienced sexual abuse, while white women are more likely to be victims of physical abuse. Blacks are more likely to have experienced poverty in childhood, while white homeless adults experienced varying forms of abuse coming up. In conclusion, these studies suggests that non-profit agencies designed to help the homeless should not only think about providing housing for them, but look into the array of cultural differences, and needs that contribute to this chronic condition. I believe that with this in mind we will inspire long lasting change and hence diminish the chance of homelessness from recurring again and again. �GLOBAL 6 N o v 221-March - N o v 19, 7, 2 02019 18 | N . 393 Feb. | oNo. 401 African churches boom in London's backstreets Members of the eternal sacred order of cherubim & seraphim church parade through the street to celebrate their annual thanksgiving in elephant and castle, london, britain, july 29, 2018. the church was founded by moses orimolade tunolase in 1925 in nigeria and is attended by worshippers of nigerian descent who come from all over the country for services. reuters/simon dawson WILLIAM SCHOMBERG & SIMON DAWESON Reuters O n a cold, grey Sunday morning, in a street lined with shuttered builders' yards and storage units, songs of prayer in the West African language of Yoruba ring out from a former warehouse that is now a church. The congregation, almost entirely dressed in white robes, steadily grows to around 70 people as musicians playing drums, a keyboard and a guitar pick up the pace of the hymns. Some women prostrate themselves on the floor in prayer. In the sparse formerly industrial building, its interior brightened by touches of gold paint, a speaker reminds the group of a list of banned activities -no smoking, no drinking of alcohol, no practicing of black magic. In a street outside, a pastor flicks holy water over the car of a woman who wants a blessing to ward off the risk of accidents. The busy scene at the Celestial Church of Christ is repeated at a half a dozen other African Christian temples on the same drab street and in the adjacent roads - one corner of the thriving African church community in south London. Around 250 black majority churches are believed to operate in the borough of Southwark, where 16 per cent of the population identifies as having African ethnicity. Southwark represents the biggest concentration of African Christians in the world outside the continent with an estimated 20,000 congregants attending churches each Sunday, according to researchers at the University of Roehampton. Reflecting the different waves of migration to Britain in the 20th Century, Caribbean churches began to appear in the late 1940s and 1950s as workers and their families arrived from Jamaica and other former British colonies. African churches opened their doors in London from the 1960s, followed by a second wave in the 1980s. Migrants, many of them from Nigeria and Ghana, sought to build communities and maintain cultural connections with their home countries by founding their own churches, often founded in private homes, schools and office spaces. As the communities grew, the churches moved into bigger spaces in bingo halls, cinemas and warehouses, gathering congregations of up to 500 people where services are streamed online by volunteers with video cameras. There is a striking contrast with the empty pews at many traditional Church of England churches where congregations have dwindled for years. "We pray for this country," said Abosede Ajibade, a 54-year-old Nigerian who moved to Britain in 2002 and works for an office maintenance company. "People here brought Christianity to Africa but it doesn't feel like they serve Jesus Christ anymore." Anyone travelling around south London on a Sunday morning will see worshippers, often dressed in dazzlingly coloured African clothes, making their way to churches, each with their different styles of worship. Hymns are sung only in African languages in some temples, or only in English at others. Some pastors take worshippers for full immersion baptisms in the cold of the English Channel. Others believe that when congregants suddenly start speaking in unknown languages it marks the presence of the Holy Spirit. But the researchers from the University of Roehampton found things that many churches have in common, including a drive for professional advancement, a commitment to spend three hours or more at Sunday service and typically very loud worship. “That is how we express our joy and gratitude to God," Andrew Adeleke, a senior pastor at the House of Praise, THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED one of the biggest African churches in Southwark, in a former theatre. “The church is not supposed to be a graveyard," Adeleke said. "It is supposed to be a temple of celebration and worship and the beauty is to be able to express our love to God, even when things are not perfect in our lives." For some, the noise from amplified services is a problem, leading to complaints to local authorities from residents. But many churches face bigger challenges than unhappy neighbours: Some provide food for people struggling to make ends meet, or work with young people at risk of recruitment by gangs. Andrew Rogers, who led the University of Roehampton researchers, said pastors had to juggle retaining the churches' African identity while appealing to children of first generation immigrants, many of whom have never lived outside Britain. They typically have a more liberal world view which can be hard to reconcile with conservative Pentecostal teachings. Rogers recalled speaking to one pastor who lamented he was unable to talk about religious miracles to his children. "If the church doesn't adapt, then they are going to leave and look elsewhere," Rogers said. Courtesy of Reuters / INSP.ngo �GLOBAL N o. 39 3 | Nov 2 - 7, N o2019 v 19,| 2 0 18401 Feb. 21-March No. 7 Netflix and Nollywood: What the streaming giant’s involvement in Nigeria’s massive film industry means ALESSANDRO JEDLOWSKI Reuters G lobal streaming service Netflix set its eyes a few years ago on Nigeria’s film industry, better known as Nollywood. Distribution of Nigerian movies on Netflix started around 2015. At the time the American giant bought the rights of blockbusters such as Kunle Afolayan’s October 1st, Biyi Bandele’s Fifty and several others, after they had already been distributed in Nigerian cinemas. During the Toronto International Film Festival 2018, Netflix announced the acquisition of worldwide exclusive distribution rights for Nollywood star Genevieve Nnaji’s debut film as director, the comedy Lionheart. The film marked the first Netflix original film from Nigeria. Many saw this as the beginning of a new era in the relationship between one of the world largest streaming platforms and Africa’s most prolific film industry. But, is this actually true? Is Netflix going to transform Nollywood? And how significant will its impact on the Nigerian film industry be? Difficult questions These are not easy questions to answer. Nollywood’s economy and modes of production are unlike those of most other film industries. Over the past 20 years, Nigerian films have circulated mostly on videotapes and Video Compact Discs (VCDs). This distribution system made the industry widely popular across Africa and its diaspora. But it prevented Nollywood from consolidating its economy and raising the quality of film production. Piracy dramatically eroded distribution revenues and producers had trouble monetising the distribution of their films. Nollywood prioritised straight-to-video distribution because cinema theatres had almost disappeared in the country (as in most other parts of Africa) as a result of the catastrophic economic crisis that affected Nigeria in the 1980s. New multiplexes have emerged since the beginning of the 2000s. However, today there are only about 150 widescreens for a population of almost two hundred million people. The cinemas that exist are often too expensive for most of the population that used to buy and watch Nollywood films when they were distributed on tapes. Within this context, many in the industry thought that streaming could be the best solution to the industry’s problems with distribution. However, a closer look to the history of what has been labelled the “Nigerian Netflix” (iROKO.tv, the leading streaming platform for Nigerian contents) shows that the reality is more complicated. When the company decided to move its headquarters from Manhattan to Lagos it encountered countless difficulties. They were mainly connected to the costs of infrastructure development in Nigeria and to the hostility of local distributors who controlled Nollywood’s economy since its creation. Weak internet Internet connection in Nigeria is still too weak and expensive to guarantee easy access to streaming platforms. As a result, Nollywood content distributed by iROKO.tv and Netflix circulates mostly in the diaspora. Netflix is aware of this problem and is investing in infrastructures to secure a better connection for its Nigerian audiences. But larger investments seem to be necessary to produce a significant impact on audiences’ behaviour. Accessing Nollywood films via piracy or local screening venues will continue to be, at least in my view, the key strategy adopted by the largest percentage of Nigerian viewers. Netflix could have better chances in across Africa through its Africa Magic channels, has reacted nervously to Netflix’s increased interest in African markets. MultiChoice wants Netflix to be more closely regulated. These two aren’t the only telecommunication “superpowers” in the field. France’s Canal Plus and the Chinese StarTimes have also made a few investments in Nollywood over the past few years. The competition among all these actors will probably have a positive impact for viewers across Nigeria and the continent. It could bring lower subscription fees for streaming and TV content packages. There are also likely to be new investments in content production and infrastructures. And there’s larger continental and global exposure for Nollywood films in the offing. Foreign investments It remains to be seen how good these developments will be for Nollywood producers. Until now, foreign investments in Nollywood have mostly translated into “more of the same” content. Working conditions for crews and actors have remained the same – basically, low budgets and quick shooting schedules. in production budgets. Rather, they invest in better structuring distribution networks to extract as much profit as possible from the Nigerian industry. And most African audiences are indeed happy with how Nollywood is, even if they tend to complain regularly about the low quality and the repetition of film contents and aesthetics. The fact that Nollywood as it is keeps on attracting audiences makes investors reluctant to change the scale of their production budgets. There are a few bigger productions, with higher production standards, that have emerged over the past few years in Nollywood. But they have hardly been the result of investments made by foreign firms like Netflix, Canal Plus or MultiChoice. Nigerian producers are those who are mostly concerned about raising the quality of Nollywood films. They want to give better content to their audiences and reach global screens. In most cases, the people investing money in these kinds of projects have been independent producers or groups of investors related to the new business of multiplexes in Nigeria. In my view, the question is: will these people benefit from Netflix, so as to continue investing in higher quality A boy is seen through a camera monitor as he acts in a scene during the making of "Ake", a film based on the childhood memoirs of Nigerian writer Wole Soyinka, in Abeokuta, southwest Nigeria July 16, 2013. Nigeria's movie business, often known as Nollywood, is one of the biggest in the world. Most films are produced in local languages - Yoruba, Hausa and Igbo among them - while many others are made in English. Nollywood also has a growing audience among Africans living abroad, keen for a taste of home, whether watched in south London hairdressers or rented from Texas video stores. Nigeria shot its first film, "Palaver" (Trouble), in 1904. Picture taken July 16, 2013. REUTERS/Akintunde Akinleye penetrating the country’s elite market, as richer people in Nigeria and across Africa have easier access to reliable power supply and internet. This might be the reason why MultiChoice, the South African telecommunication giant controlling much of Nollywood distribution In fact, big investors seem to be mainly interested in Nollywood’s already established popularity with African audiences. Making Nollywood more palatable for international audiences doesn’t seem to feature. This means that in most cases they are not ready to invest bigger money THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED content? Or will Netflix and other international companies end up taking over the industry to make it only a bit more of the same? Courtesy of The Conversation / INSP.ngo �FEATURE 8 N o v 221-March - N o v 19,7, 2 02019 18 | |NNo. o . 393 Feb. 401 Sidewalk Smart FELIX WINTERNITZ Contributing Writer R on English is busy dodging delivery vans and the odd streetcar when we first meet at the corner of 12th and Vine. It seems fated we’ll cross paths almost immediately three more times, once as he’s displaying his chalk art along Main Street during a Final Friday, then later on the crowded avenue outside the Pendleton Art Center, and finally sharing the Metro bus to Madisonville (on Jan. 20, 2019) where English is busy preparing to premiere his showing of paintings at the neighborhood’s community center. “On the street outside” is a phrase that probably best describes this Picasso of the sidewalk set. He’s a longtime outsider looking inside the Cincinnati art world from a distance, a bad boy who inhabits the streets and corner stoops of OTR rather than the posh galleries of, say, a Mount Adams or Hyde Park. “Hey, I know you!” English shouts at our last random meeting. It’s seems like karma has come calling, fateful crossings which demand a story on this outgoing street personality. English, for his part, is happy to converse about painting: “My hand just starts to move, and I don’t know if I’m in control of it,” says English of his creative process. “It’s more like a dream.” In a sit-down interview, Ron Ron English, Over-the-rhine street artist, posing with original work. Photo Credit: Felix Winternitz English appears animated and enthusiastic, prone to bold statements. English, in fact, is likely Over-therhine’s most visible street artist. His meandering home base can be found along Main and Vine adjoining the Liberty strip; his colorful chalk-on- cardboard canvas, however, proves universal … “I want to believe in myself so that I can leave my legacy behind,” English remarks. “I want to live a life of honesty, righteousness, and in peace. … I have a dream of happiness and spiritual blessings, of a poor man’s honor, to achieve and thrive for growth, to form myself to be a very unique person.” Ron English’s medium is plainly cardboard, chalk and colored pencils. He’s a vendor for the street-corner shoppers, selling his wares to make a living. His gallery is somewhere between the Brewery District in “NoLi” (North of Liberty) and the Gateway Quarter in “SoLi” (South of Liberty). English artfully crosses between these two districts, two distinct realms of Liberty that are worlds apart. “I say you should be around people because you love them for who they are and not what they have,” states this artist, advocating – without any prompt – his unusual lifestyle; he gladly elaborates on his perceptions. “Love is the true power.” Local artist Ellen Stedtefeld prizes the three English originals she owns: “I like the vibrancy of his pastels, but I like the precision of the colored pencils. Both have a great sense of energy and life. “For my birthday, my sister and her boyfriend bought me three original artworks by Ron English,” continues THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED Stedtefeld. “As I understand, English considers himself as an outsider artist as he has little to no formal training, but a strong desire to create. “Like many outsider artists, he makes his work out of humble materials –cardboard, colored pencils and chalk pastels – and he sells them on the streets in downtown Cincinnati,” explains Stedtefeld of her fondness for the sidewalk art. “As the resident art expert in the family, I am often asked ‘Is that really art?’ and in the case of Ron English, I give a resounding YES.” For an outsider, Ron English certainly has his fans. The Prairie Art Collective recently showed a selection of English’s pastel drawings on cardboard as well as a site-specific mural. As the reception announcement put it, “A well-known street artist, he’s seen showing his work on doorsteps and street-corners. English produces Cubist pastel drawings ‘inspired by the Lord.’ ” The ebth.com web sales site currently lists this English original for $35: “An original triptych of marker and crayon drawings on found cardboard by contemporary Cincinnati artist English, (who) mainly produces Cubist figural drawings. These images depict stunning minimalistic abstracted portraits of three men drawn in black ink with subtle blue crayon accents. The pieces are titled Man, Man, and Lincoln.” �No. 39 3 | Nov 2 -7, N2019 o v 19,| No. 2 0 18401 Feb. 21-March English even attracted the attention of well-known muralist Jan Brown Checco as part of a community project entitled the “Murals and Can-paign” project. The themes and images consisted of temporary murals created for the Vine Street corridor between Central Parkway and Liberty Street. The inspiration came from the hearts and minds of young people living in Over the Rhine. The workshop engaged 60 participants during five months at Peaslee Neighborhood Center, a convocation teaching the teens “to be more aware of the importance of public art and its responsibility to uplift life on the streets.” Finally, there are these observations from the Intu Outsider Art web site, produced by a tag-team of area artists: “We drove down to Main Street bustling with the activities of the monthly Final Friday. We knew our destination. We FEATURE saw Ronald English sitting on the stoop [and] was conversing with passers-by and had cardboard and his colored pencils. He waved excitedly and raised a framed piece as a flag. “We parked and by the time we had gotten to the storefronts of Shadeau and Envoi, he had already made his way down the street. [English] said he had heard about ‘this website’ and said he wanted to sell the drawing he had done of a personality from American Idol. He said ‘it looks just like her ... it's Susan Boyle.’ “We purchased the work and began to pursue answers regarding his (recent) absence. He explained that he had been in the hospital for months recovering from the amputation of six more toes. He had previously had three removed, results of gangrene. “We spoke about the direct or obvious transference of Ronald’s mood to the tone of the work. Choices in subject, tone, color, fragmentation, all appear as parallel.” Ronald Leroy English was born in Cumminsville in 1955. He attended school here, won school spelling bees and excelled in sports, particularly basketball as a center. He mentions that he has a “bunch” of brothers and sisters as well as half-brothers and sisters. English says he served in the Army National Guard, according to one online artist’s biography. During the time he was away in National Guard service, his mother was murdered. English says he returned to discover he had no remaining possessions or a home. He’s since lived on the streets, experiencing the desperation associated with substance abuse. English has participated in art projects sponsored by behavioral services associated with mental disease. THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED 9 His various projects have linked him with Visionaries and Voices, the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless, and Our Daily Bread. English says he actually began drawing in the late 1990s. He was staying in a room with the door open and he woke up to see paint cans in the hallway. It’s exactly as one onlooker observed, amid the crowd at the Pendleton Art Center: “That was his moment of discernment, his lightningbolt flash of percipient insight.” (Cincinnati’s English, by the way, is not to be confused with the betterknown artist Ron English, a nationally known figure who coined the term “POPaganda” to describe a trademark fusion of high and low imagery, mixing superheroes and comic strips with art history iconography in a prolific output of paintings, billboards and sculptures.) �10 STREETVOICE N o v 221-March - N o v 19,7, 2 02019 18 | |NNo. o . 393 Feb. 401 Street Life: Our Reality RICARDO TAYLOR Streetvibes Distributor Contributing Writer F or those of us who are invested in the life of the streets, there are never moments of mirage. Times when we thought/ believed those instances where we saw or imagined relief from our selfimposed plight in life. It is always the same, that reflexive appearance, like our reflex ion in a mirror. Our reality, existing momentarily in hopes and dreams of a presupposition of what life is supposed to be, only having to return to the reality of our true existence! How easy is it to see that relief from the immediate sufferings, which we often find ourselves with promises of tomorrow? “Well I know that Friday is payday, so I can spend what I have and then take care of my bills on Friday!” Only to find that when Friday comes my bills have doubled! So, often we find that our intent is not so much a reflection of our ability or our being, but better stated a mirage of our desires. Our experiences tell us that the reality we perceive is unreal, yet we continue to commit ourselves to acts that we know are non-beneficial towards our welfare or well-being. A mirage! Our image suffers the reflection of ourselves, and we hardly see ourselves in reflection and instead see ourselves in an arena of whom we’d want or try to be! The self becomes lost in a sort of fantasy, losing the way we view the world, and of course our true selfimage. We often start to lose hope, that most fundamental grasp of sanity! We become that mirage of self, and we know from experience, that when hope dies, we prey instead of pray and our lives spin out of control! That oh, so, miserable feeling of self-image becomes the mirage of our longings in such that we find ourselves in the mirage of whom we’d like to be; allowing our reality to become the stage of that thin line between reality and the wishes we have for our wellbeing. That no man’s world where only hopes and dreams exist: Our Reality. Roots June Alexander Contributing Writer W hen you asked us about our roots the first thing in my mind was my hair. Instantly, the smell of heat and grease came to mind. Roots conjured up images of a child’s straw bottomed chair and family voices. When I was young my hair was long and my mother washed it every Saturday night to ready for Sunday and the school week to come. In some strange adult way this was entertainment to my daddy. He would come into the kitchen and tease me. It hurt to have my mother comb out my hair. “Sit still,” mamma yelled. “Hold your ear so I don’t burn it!” All this and Daddy’s teasing made me cry harder. He didn’t have to go through this girl torture! “Stop it!” I screamed!” That only lead my grandmother to chime in, “Make sure you get deep down to her roots! Make sure those roots are good and straight! Years later Black Pride, Dr. King, power signs and our roots personified by the Afro.. Unfortunately the afro was not meant for me. The afro became another symbol of my “roots” awakening. The afro was proud like the black power sign. It stood high, which was more than I could say for my hair. It just curled up or fell back down to my shoulders. On a good day I managed to look like an electrocuted porcupine. Of course, well- meaning elders explained, “You can’t do that. You got good hair.” Many years later I was in college away from my mother’s hot combs, so I decided to have a relaxer put into my hair. Against wise counsel, I went to a beauty parlor and got me a relaxer. After all I was paying for it with my own money. And it was with more of my money I had to pay a doctor to tell me why my hair fell out. My roots landed me at the white beauty shop. In her deep southern accent the hairdresser asked carefully, “Baby, who your people…who your folks…” At first I didn’t understand; or better yet, I suddenly developed that great American disease…denial! She made a shield with her body against the other patrons and held my face in her hands. As discreetly and as compassionately as she could she asked, “Baby, how much white people in you?” All I could do was laugh. I replied, “ According to my great-great aunts our family didn’t get black until 1952.” She mellowed and continued to treat my scalp and left-over hair. All the while she keep talking about how I couldn’t do my hair like other black girls and it ain’t how light the skin is that always tells the mixture, it’s other things…and so on and so forth. Her account of black and white mixing and back in the day when people were passing faded into another awakening. It turn in to my grandfather who looked like an old version of Sean Connery and my grandmother’s dark skin. My granddaddy’s pain of not being neither here nor there; his pain of knowing his white cousins lived just across the street and it couldn’t be acknowledged until after death tornadoed into his painful discovery about his brother being taken from the family because his brother’s skin was too dark. My grandmother’s constant battle with self-image because she came from slaves and field hands with dark skin and coarse hair. My grandmother’s every moment trying to prove she was just as good as the more educated, light skinned upper class relatives on my grandfather’s side of the family. My grandmother's self-hatred turned into poison. Watching a once loving woman become evil and bitter because she looked and loved more like Hattie McDaniels than Halle Berry break my granddaddy’s heart knowing there was nothing he could do to change the world—gave me pain. Roots!? How dare you ask me about my roots. Is this your idea of some cruel and twisted joke? You know about my roots. You took them from us. Just like that hot comb, your heated disdain and hatred for us burned and destroyed my roots. My soul, my light, and my compass-- you took from me. My aunts and my mothers tried to hide me because we were witches and healers like our ancestors. Just like the torture of straighten my hair was to make me more comfortable to white THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED people. Straightened out or white out my roots. You took our art, music, and even our religion away from us. And if that way enslaving enough you lied about Egypt, the Bible, classical music even art. We were all there. From the very beginning, we were there! You took my soul. You took our souls and then you want to know why we act the way we do. What did you expect? We would all become black Ken and Barbies? And integration, the same lie you sold the Native Americans and the Aborigines. You didn’t want to integrate you wanted to annihilate. But it didn’t take. It can’t take…and so here we are all living in niggerdom. You striped us of everything that made us human. Our healers, our teachers, our witches, our religions, and our earth. And you wonder why we are living in niggerdom. But the joke is on you, look at your own children killing themselves to achieve an unnatural standard of beauty, life and success. All the while killing your own with a religion filled with hate and bigotry. Deciding who can love and who is worthy to pursue happiness. No! The joke is on you because now your children are all living in niggerdom. We are all wondering around with addictions, medications, gentrification, and anlationtion. With no hope of being human or humane again we are all now living in niggerdom. I’m not the only one whose roots have been straightened. �STREETVOICE Black History Month: The What, The Why, The How No. 39 3 | Nov 2 -7, N2019 o v 19,| No. 2 0 18401 Feb. 21-March KEY BECK Contributing Writer B lack History Month can be a time of celebration, activism, or even remembrance. It can also cause some to have confusion as to what we are celebrating. Is it black people, black accomplishments, or maybe black excellence. In short, it is all of those things. Black History Month was created to highlight the impact the black Diaspora had on the world from inventions to cultural events. It has a strong history of gaining a deeper understanding of all the contributions black people have made throughout history. Black History Month started out as “Negro History Week,” and it was imagined by Carter G. Woodson and other African-Americans, such as minister Jesse E. Moorland. It is important to note that in our current climate and point in time, the use of the word “negro” is pejoritve and an “in-group” term, meaning folx who do not identify as black should not voluntarily use it. Same can be said for other “N-Words,” that are often used against people of the Black Diaspora. Black history month started out as merely a cultural holiday celebrated by individual black people, church groups, and community organizations. It wasn’t fully realized until 1976, when the month of February was officially designated as Black History Month. Black History Month (or also sometimes called African-American History Month in the United States) isn't just an American celebration, there are months devoted to celebrating black history all over the world. The United Kingdom first celebrated Black History Month in 1987 thanks to the organized leadership of Ghanaian analyst Akyaaba Addai-Sebo. In Canada, Black History Month was officially recognized in December of 1995, following a motion introduced by the first black Cana- dian woman elected to Parliament, the Honourable[sic] Jean Augustine, MP of Etobicoke-Lakeshore. (Fun fact: Since 1976, every U.S. president has officially designated the month of February as Black History Month.). There are many reasons why Black History Month should be important for everyone. It not only educates people about the numerous contributions that black people have helped create, but it also uplifts all people by educating them about a culture full of innovation, resilience, and inspiration. For black folx, learning about their culture helps them to understand how their culture has impacted the world. It also gives them hope that adversity can be challenged and defeated. It should also be noted that it illuminates the many barriers that still exist such as racism and white supremacy. So while we celebrated these accomplishments, we must remain vigilant and never become complacent. We need to engage 11 our communities in the fight for racial equity. We must break the silos and start collaborating together with other marginalized communities. We must also educate ourselves on the folx who came before us like Sarah Goode (Folding Cabinet Bed), Granville T. Woods (Multiplex Telegraph) and Charles Richard Drew (Blood Cells Separation). We must support our inner-city public schools and black organizations. We must insist that our kids curriculum contain the history of black people (as well as other marginalized groups). It is important to recognize and celebrate all the accomplishments of the Black Diaspora. It starts with recognition, recognition leads to acknowledgement and acknowledgement results in celebration. Celebrating Black History Month is something that makes all of us better people because it teaches us to value history and the people who create it. Gentrification: The Destruction of the Poor JANIAH MILLER I Contributing Writer grew up in Newport, Kentucky, but I still had connections to Cincinnati because of my family, they live across the 52 neighborhoods, there are a few to name, Amberly Village, Madisonville, Walnut Hills, and Evanston. Although a family member told me that Cincinnati was not safe in some areas and to always be cautious, I overlooked that notion. I started thinking about why it got that reputation and came to find out it was because people had been predisposition to believing that a bunch of poor, black, and brown people lived there that wasn’t necessarily the whole case anymore. Sure, there were poor black and brown people who lived their but with a growing gentrified Over-theRhine that had begun to change. When I say “change” it was not because the people who lived there got the help and resources they needed, it was because they were being ousted from their own community. Places that were near and dear to the Over-the-Rhine community like the Drop-Inn Center were pushed to the outskirts of Cincinnati, out of sight out of mind. As this displacement continues to happen these community members continue to fight to have a voice and stand their ground for the community that they have held and loved so near and dear to their hearts. With its struggles, they still love it because it’s a place called home, not like wealthy “non-profits” in disguise to turn a profit off the poor to build some posh new building. They disguise themselves to the public by saying they are making Over-the-Rhine an “up and coming” place, a renaissance, but really, they are pushing out the community to make room for affluent individuals while overlooking that the 53% of children in poverty that live in Cincinnati are not going to go away with a fancy new building. Instead they are helping speed the process up of intergenerational poverty through econcide, the urbanization and removal of certain groups through economic opportunities. I came to learn that certain neighborhoods would get these labels cast on them— society is predisposed to stigmatizing the poor, and people of color, we are bad because of our zip code THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED and then disposable when found that something we had was valuable, i.e, our neighborhoods. Therefore, everything is not what it seems to be, sure people in OTR might be poor and are people of color but why? What circumstances led this neighborhood to get this way? What’s their story? Bonnie Neumeier, long time Over-the-Rhine community advocate says, “Often the institution looks at poor people as if they are just looking for a handout, lazy, no good work ethic when these people have led some of the greatest under talked about social movements that have happened in history—our people aren’t sitting on our laurels waiting for a handout. We organized a movement that tried, still tries, to figure out community-based solutions to uses facing us.” My vision for OTR is to be a city that does good for the community and not just people who can bring a profit. There doesn’t need to be gentrification to beautify and revitalize a community. Let’s start giving equitable resources to communities that are already being displaced as if they are cattle. It will become easier to “other” problems of housing inequality because they will feel individualized since everyone is being spread out to different places, it will be harder to pinpoint areas that need the most resources. Gentrification is the destruction of the poor; it doesn’t give them a place. �12 Can You STREETVOICE Can You shut em down? Does the world believe that this is the worlds solution Can you shut em down? Keeping factory’s open with no work, now that’s pollution Can you shut em down? The free clinics, people homeless, no more Drop Inn Center Can you shut em down? Washington Park, the sanitation workers, I can’t help but litter Can you shut em down? Over the rhine was white then it was black, I thought we were all together Can you shut em down? I’m confused so tell congress I really thought they knew better Can you believe in your heart that the decisions of our country are either republican or democratic? Can you believe that out of all the people in the world two simple parties be worthy of so much static? Can you close your eyes to the reality of the fear that has such a tight grip on our nation today? Can you keep living shut down and shut up? I’m baffled but not lost for words I can honestly say For me, learning to live without doubt or fear in my life and keeping God so close to my heart I have no doubt that without God’s blessings this world is doomed to fall completely apart With much faith and without any reguards for the republicans or democratics controlling my being Without any doubt what so ever today I know that almighty God is the only real thing So can you shut em down? Now slow down and take the time to think,what do you really understand? You need to come back into the days of Adam and Eve and remember when only God ruled the land! WILLA DENISE JONES N o v 21-March 2 - N o v 19,7,22019 0 18 || N o . 393 Feb. No. 401 Homelessness Homelessness is a place that, has a lot of drought Homelessness is cold with wet nights, Homelessness is a cardboard box that a person calls their home To receive a blanket or a kind word means a lot to a person, sleeping on the curb If you open your eyes tell me what you see That person experiencing homelessness on the street one day could be you or me! KIM GREEN Streetvibes Distributor Contributing Writer Streetvibes Distributor Contributing Writer Streetvibes Writing Circle If you would like to submit a story for publication in streetvibes, come join Katelyn Lusher and Chris Wilkey for a group writing session! S treetvibes is distributed by individuals who purchase the paper for 75 cents per copy and sell it for a $2.00 donation, keeping the profit they have earned. Becoming a Distributor is a great way for individuals who are financially poor to get back on (or stay on) their feet. This program provides supplemental income for those unable to secure other employment. Money earned helps meet basic housing, food and health care needs. The program is a hand up for people who are often in a place of getting only a hand out, or even no hand at all. All Distributors wear a badge and usually a vest and can be found selling the paper in Downtown Cincinnati, Clifton, Northside, Northern Kentucky and at area churches. THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED �No. 21-March 39 3 | Nov 2 7, - N o v 19, 2 0 18 Feb. 2019 | No. 401 STREETVOICE Presidents' Day 2019 Did this year's Presidents' Day Cause you sadness and dismay? A yearning to turn back the clock, And feeling nostalgia for Barack. Would you even replace Donald With a Prez known as Ronald? And who could ever call it daft, To prefer an Adams, Tyler or Taft? BILL WOODS Contributing Writer 13 I Don't Want to be Black I don't want to be black, Those are the words that my ten year old son told me with tears in his eyes. He is tired of being viewed as a threat. 5'1, 130 pounds, broad shouldersEasily mistaken for a man, A man who is black, Another black man, who could easily be shot in the back. Seen as having a weapon, Even when he is empty-handed. Seen as resisting arrest, Because he doesn't understand why he is arrested. Seen as obstructing when what is obstructed is his liberty, Not wanting to be black, Because there's too many things he is taught not to be. Not wanting to be black, Even though his black role models are hard-working, Educated examples of who to be. Not wanting to be black, Because it's hard to be black, and feel free. Warned that when in the presence of police don't move, Don't turn, never run, Don't grab or hold onto anything, That they can say is a gun. Watch who you hang with, What is seen is not always what is perceived. Warned over and over, So I won't be the nextBlack mother left to grieve. Told to never become irate, Even if he is falsely blamed or accused. That " Hands up, don't shoot," Really means don't move! Because " I was in fear for my life," Is the excuse they will use, And even when there is evidence, That is not the truth, Justice is refused. MO POETRY PHILLIPS Contributing Writer THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED �PUZZLE 14 CROSSWORD PUZZLE NO. 200 Across 1. Intense adverse criticism 5. Skewer 9. Stitches 13. Racing sled 14. Overwhelming fear and anxiety 16. Ellipse 17. Assist in wrongdoing 18. Assuage 19. Abnegate 20. Trials 22. Trader 24. Record of events on a voyage 26. Story 27. Incantations 30. Conundrum 35. Actor's prompt 36. Dig 39. Worthless material 40. Deficiency 42. Mythological water nymph 44. Stable gear joining two draft animals 45. Be of use to 47. Virtue 49. Annoy 50. Relating to the mind 52. Not moving as quickly 54. Taxis 57. Prevarication 58. Preside over 62. Young animals 66. Mature 67. Pal 69. Stolen goods 70. Examination by word of mouth 71. Vast multitude 72. Group of three musicians 73. Water source 74. Bird shelter 75. Assist PUZZLE SOLUTIONS CROSSWORD #189 Down 1. Musical notation 2. Part of the ear 3. Historic periods 4. Large hemispherical drum 5. Health resort 6. Part of the hand 7. Recess 8. Jewelled headdress 9. Soft drink 10. Tied 11. Have need of 12. Cunning 15. Oscillation 21. Exchanged for money 23. Chickens 25. Narrow secluded valley 27. Smooth in manner 28. Smooth brown oval nut 29. Close violently 31. Frozen 32. Orchard 33. Manufacturer 34. Peak 35. Marine mollusk 37. Compete for something 38. Corn spikes 41. Tools for a specified purpose 43. Aromatic herb 46. Decorative fabric 48. Work hard 51. Coniferous tree 53. Riches 55. Nobleman 56. Keep aside for future use 58. Morass 59. Opaque gem 60. Small wooded hollow 61. Concludes 63. To a greater extent 64. Painful sore 65. Halt 66. Angry dispute 68. Up to the present time Nov 2 - N o v 19,7, 20 18 | |NNo. o . 393 Feb. 21-March 2019 401 SODOKU PUZZLE NO 391 - MEDIUM SODOKU PUZZLE NO 391- MEDIUM PUZZLES from puzzlechoice.com and puzzles.ca THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED �No. 39 3 | Nov 2 -7,N2019 o v 19, 2 0 18 Feb. 21-March | No. 401 Central Access Point 381-SAFE Shelter: Women and Children RESOURCES Prince of Peace Lutheran Church 621-7265 1528 Race St. 45202 Churches Active in Northside Bethany House 557-2873 4230 Hamilton Ave. 45223 591-2246 FreeStore/FoodBank 241-1064 1841 Fairmount Ave. 45214 The Esther Marie Hatton Center for Women 2499 Reading Road 562-1980 Grace Place Catholic Worker House 681-2365 112 E. Liberty Street 45202 Madisonville Ed & Assistance Center 271-5501 4600 Erie Ave. 45227 Serves area codes: 45226, 45227, 45208, 45209 6037 Cary Ave. 45224 Salvation Army 762-5660 St. Vincent de Paul 562-8841 131 E. 12th Street 45202 1125 Bank Street 45214 YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter 872-9259 Treatment or Supportive Recovery: Men Shelter: Men Charlie’s 3/4 House 784-1853 Shelterhouse 721-0643 2121 Vine Street 45202 411 Gest St. 45203 Prospect House 921-1613 1437 Walnut Street 45202 Starting Over 961-2256 1805 Dalton Ave. 45214 Treatment or Supportive Recovery: Women St. Fran/St. Joe Catholic Work. House 381-4941 682 Hawthorne Ave. 45205 City Gospel Mission 241-5525 Parkway Center 661-4620 First Step Home 961-4663 Shelter: Youth 2203 Fulton, Cinti, Ohio 45206 Sheakley Center for Youth (18-24 y/o) 2522 Highland Ave. 45219 569-9500 Lighthouse Youth Crisis Center (10-17 y/o) 3330 Jefferson Ave 45220 961-4080 Shelter: Family Interfaith Hospitality Network Treatment or Supportive Recovery: Both AA Hotline 351-0422 CCAT 381-6672 830 Ezzard Charles Dr. 45214 Joseph House (Veterans) 471-1100 1522 Republic Street 45202 Caracole (HIV/AIDS) 761-1480 CMHA 721-4580 Excel Development 632-7149 OTR Community Housing 381-1171 114 W. 14th Street 45202 Talbert House 221-HELP Tender Mercies 721-8666 27 W. 12th Street 45202 Tom Geiger House 961-4555 Volunteers of America 381-1954 Anna Louise Inn 421-5211 Cincinnati Union Bethel 768-6907 VA 977-6800 VA Homeless 859-572-6226 Food/Clothing First Lutheran Church 421-0065 1208 Race St. Food - Last Monday 12-1 Clothing - second Monday 12-1 Lord’s Pantry 621-5300 OTR/Walnut Hills Kitchen & Pantry 961-1983 OTR: 1620 Vine Street 45202 Walnut Hills: 2631 Gilbert Ave. 45206 Our Daily Bread 621-6364 1730 Race Street 45202 St. Francis Seraph Ministries 549-0542 St. George Food Pantry 2554 Dennis St. 45219 751-8771 St. Anthony Center 1615 Republic St. Advocacy Catholic Social Action 421-3131 Community Action Agency 569-1840 Contact Center 381-4242 Franciscan JPIC 721-4700 Gr. Cinti Coalition for the Homeless 421-7803 117 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 2401-2411 Reading Rd. 45202 2401 Reading Rd. 45202 241-2965 Hamilton County Mental Health and Recovery Services Board 946-8000 Recovery Health Access Center 281-7422 Sober Living 681-0324 Talbert House 221-HELP Housing: 15 Legal Aid Society 241-9400 Ohio Justice & Policy Center 421-1108 UpSpring 363-3300 Health Cincinnati Health Network 2825 Burnet Ave. 45219 Other Resources Center Independent Living Options 241-2600 Peaslee Neighborhood Center 621-5514 215 E. 14th St. 45202 Franciscan Haircuts from the Heart 381-0111 Goodwill Industries 771-4800 Intercommunity Justice & Peace Cr. 579-8547 Mary Magdalen House 721-4811 1223 Main St. 45202 People Working Cooperatively 351-7921 The Caring Place 631-1114 Talbert House 751-7747 United Way 211 Women Helping Women 977-5541 Off The Streets 421-5211 Hamilton County Office of Reentry 946-4304 138 E. Court Street Room # 101 First Floor Cancer Justice Network 404-3882 Hamilton/Middletown St. Raephaels 981-4200 Salvation Army 863-1445 Serenity House Day Center 422-8555 Open Door Pantry 868-3276 Northern Kentucky Brighton Center (11-17 y/o) 859-491-8303 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 799 Ann St. Newport, KY 205 West Pike Street, Covington, KY 41011 Women’s Crisis Center 859-491-3335 VA Domiciliary 859-572-6202 Emergency Shelter of Northern Kentucky 634 Scott St. 41011 859-291-4555 Want to advertise in Streetvibes? You can support our mission and spread the word about your business. For more information contact Gabriela Godinez Feregrino, 961-0600 email streetvibes@cincihomeless.org Center for Respite Care 621-1868 3550 Washington Ave. 45229 Crossroad Health Center 381-2247 5 E. Liberty St. 45202 Health Resource Center 357-4602 McMicken Integrated Care Clinic and Mobile Medical Van 386-7899 40 E. McMicken Ave, Cinti, Ohio McMicken Dental Clinic 352-6363 40 E. McMicken Ave, Cinti Mental Health Access Point 558-8888 NAMI of Hamilton County 351-3500 PATH Outreach 977-4489 THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED �16 N ov 2 - N o v 19, 7, 2 02019 18 | N o . 393 Feb. 21-March | No. 401 S treetvibes is distributed by individuals who purchase the paper for 75 cents per copy and sell it for a $2.00 donation, keeping the profit they have earned. Becoming a Distributor is a great way for individuals who are financially poor to get back on (or stay on) their feet. This program provides supplemental income for those unable to secure other employment. Money earned helps meet basic housing, food and health care needs. The program is a hand up for people who are often in a place of getting only a hand out, or even no hand at all. All Distributors wear a badge and usually a vest and can be found selling the paper in Downtown Cincinnati, Clifton, Northside, Northern Kentucky and at area churches. ALFRED WOOLFOLK SINCE 10/2003 ASRES AYENAW SINCE 2012 BERTA LAMBERT SINCE 1997 BETTIE BAILEY SINCE 10/2017 BRANDON NELSON SINCE 4/2008 BRIAN ADAMS SINCE 7/2017 CHARLES WILLIAMS SINCE 7/2017 CHRISTOPHER KAIHATSU SINCE 7/2017 CLEO WOMBLES SINCE 10/2003 CRANDALL COBB SINCE 2004 DARREL ROZIER SINCE 7/2017 DAVID MCCANE SINCE 2017 ERIC VALDEZ SINCE 2/2017 GERALD FRANKLIN SINCE 7/2017 GRADY COOK SINCE 1997 HENRY BRELAND SINCE 7/2017 JAMES BROWN SINCE 3/2009 JAMES DAVIS SINCE 8/2000 JENNY BURTON SINCE 7/2017 JIMMIE GIPSON SINCE 2001 JON DARBY SINCE 2/2006 JOHN HORN JOSEPHINE BASKERVILLE SINCE 9/2008 J’TORI TYMAN SINCE 5/2014 KIM NGUYEN SINCE 7/2017 KENNY BUSSELL SINCE 10/2009 KAREN COLLETTE SINCE 7/2008 LARRY BROWN SINCE 10/2007 LEE MCCOY SINCE 7/2009 LEONARD JACKSON SINCE 2/2005 MARY MUELLER SINCE 5/2005 MARK SHEARS SINCE 4/2012 MAURICE GOLSBY MELISSA MOSBY SINCE 9/2014 MIKE CARANO SINCE 4/2016 RAESHAWN GIPSON SINCE 3/2009 RAYNARD JONES SINCE 10/2008 RICKY WOODS SINCE 4/2015 RICCARDO TAYLOR SINCE 1999 RONNIE PHILLIPS SINCE 10/2009 SAMUEL JACKSON SINCE 10/2006 STACIA HOLLANDER SINCE 2017 STEPHANIE EAKES SINCE 7/2017 SYLVESTER WALKER SINCE 7/2017 TALINA HILL SINCE 2/2011 VICTOR MUMPHRY WILLA JONES SINCE 1/2010 WINNIE RICE SINCE 7/2017 QUEENACELASTINE SINCE 7/2017 TIA CASS SINCE 11/2007 THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED TONY THOMAS SINCE 3/2005 KEITH EUTSEY SINCE 2/2011 VIOLET COLLINS SINCE 2017 � 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 2019 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource February 21-March 7, 2019 Subject The topic of the resource Homelessness Description An account of the resource Pg 1: Cover Page Pg 2: From the Director Pg 3: Segregation Then, Segregation Now Pg 4: GCHC Pg 5: Reflections on African-American and Politics Racial Analysis Within Homelessness Pg 6: African Churches Boom in London’s Backstreets Pg 7: Netflix and Nollywood Pg 8: Sidewalk Smart Pg 9: Sidewalk Smart Continued Pg 10: Street Life Roots Pg 11: Black History Month Gentrification Pg 12: Street Voice Pg 13: Street Voice Pg 14: Puzzles Pg 15: Resources Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Streetvibes Archive Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Streetvibes Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource February 21-March 7, 2019 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Josh Spring Patricia Patton William Schomberg Simon Daveson Alessandro Jedlowski Felix Winternitz Key Beck Dr. Mark Mussman Bill Woods Janiah Miller Kim Green Willa Denise Jones Janiah Miller June Alexander Ricardo Taylor Mo Poetry Phillps Homeless Coalition Canva.com Gabriela Godinez Amanda Meek Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Alessandro Jedlowski Amanda Meek Art Bill Woods Black History Month Canva.com Dr. Mark Mussman Felix Winternitz Gabriela Godinez Gentrification Homeless Coalition Janiah Miller Josh Spring June Alexander Key Beck Kim Green London Mo Poetry Phillps Netflix Nigeria Patricia Patton politics Ricardo Taylor Segregation Simon Daveson Street Life Willa Denise Jones William Schomberg https://streetvibesarchive.net/files/original/53661ad19eef5e7b4a30527f1f110dc9.pdf fcb84e824733936f2ff12487d6dacc09 PDF Text Text F e b r ua r y 7 t h - F e b r ua r y 2 1 t h 2 0 1 9 | Vo l . 2 3 I s s u e 3 ( N o . 4 0 0 ) advo cating justice | building communit y Any opinions in this issue are of the authors and don't necessarily represent Streetvibes or The Homeless Coalition. This Issue is sponsored by (Retired) Judge Mark P. Painter Find previous issues of Streetvibes online at: cincistreetvibes.org Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition 113 E. 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 streetvoice | 12 �2 COALITION N ov 2 o v 19, 0 18 || No. N o . 400 393 Feb. 7 -- NFeb. 21,22019 From The Director: Soccer, Sound, Symphonies and Displacement 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 individuals experiencing homelessness or on the edge of homelessness, in exchange for a $2.00 Donation. Streetvibes is published twice a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH), a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that works to eradicate homelessness in Cincinnati. 113 East 12th St. Cincinnati OH, 45202 Ph: 513.421.7803 FAX: 513.421.7813 WEB: www.cincihomeless.org EMAIL: streetvibes@cincihomeless.org Editor-in-chief: Gabriela Godinez Feregrino Executive Director: Josh Spring Director of Development: Mona Jenkins Director of Education: Dr. Mark Mussman Distributor Program Manager: Sallie Mascus Josh Spring giving a speech. Credit:Amanda Meet Layout: Gabriela Godinez Feregrino JOSH SPRING Executive Director F C Cincinnati has petitioned the City of Cincinnati to make a significant zoning change to the area of the West End they want to build a stadium. Council Members are saying that before they vote on this change, they need to see a completed study that shows how noise from the stadium will adversely affect functions at Music Hall. As this discussion occurs, we are struck by the fact that the topic of housing and displacement is largely absent. The weak community benefits agreement signed by FC Cincinnati on which the city council vote last year regarding stadium funding hinged, included that a study of affordable housing and adverse effects would be complete. This study, being done by an out-of-town firm is not due to be finished until June. However, the preliminary research shows that likely thousands of people’s housing would be threatened. The preliminary research mirrors what our organization has been saying since last year. FC Cincinnati said they would not displace anyone. While we have said, even if that is true, the stadium will lead to development Reception: Bonita Batton, Larry Johnson prospecting, gentrification, increased rents and displacement. However, true to form, FC Cincinnati has already displaced neighborhood small businesses and residents. Why is it that city council is saying that before they vote on this zoning change, they must first be able to read the report on the negative affects the sound from a stadium would have on Music Hall, yet they have not required that the report on housing and displacement be completed first? Both common sense and the preliminary findings of the study indicate thousands of people could be displaced from their homes through a significant loss of affordable housing and rising costs to people who own their homes. We, of course, believe that spending millions of dollars, especially public dollars to benefit the billionaire owners of FC Cincinnati is wrong. Not investing very large sums into digging our way out of our current housing crisis (40,000 homes short, 28,000 in the City) is wrong. Not having necessary protections against unjust evictions and displacement for profit is wrong. We are working to get the city to establish significant, annual revenue sources for the newly established Affordable Housing Trust Fund, which passed last year after more than a year of our advocacy. We are working to get legislation that would actively protect people’s right to not unjustly be put of their homes. But come on, shouldn’t it be widely accepted that the ability for individuals and families to stay in their housing and neighborhood and not experience homelessness is more important than the quality of sound at Music Hall? Shouldn’t it be on the tips of the tongues of all city council members that certainly a study regarding housing loss would get at least the same deference as a study about sound affecting symphonies, ballets and operas? Please take the time to email city council at citycouncil@cincinnatioh.gov and tell them not to vote on anything for a soccer stadium without having been able to thoroughly consider the completed housing study. THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED Maintenance: Pete Roper ------------------------------------------CONTRIBUTORS THIS ISSUE Writers: Josh Spring, Humberto Marquez, Amanda Becker, Kris Janssens, Robert Park, Adeshola Ore, Andres Martinez Casares, Dr. Mark Mussman, Bill Woods, Key Beck, Kim Green, Willa Denise Jones, Mariela Jara, emilio Godoy, Felix Winternitz, ------------------------------------------Photography/ Artwork: Homeless Coalition, pngtree. com, Gabriela Godinez, wraphome.org, Amanda Meek ---------------------------------------------Thank You For Reading Streetvibes And Supporting Our Mission To Build Community And Advocate Justice. Streetvibes and The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless do not endorse candidates for public office. �No. 39 | Nov 21, 2- N o v 19, 2 0 18 Feb. 7 3- Feb. 2019 | No. 400 3 COALITION Wholly Unrecognizable DR. MARK MUSSMAN I Staff Writer recently attended a college reunion where a couple people used the same term to describe Cincinnati today: wholly unrecognizable. I listened to them say that Over-theRhine has changed so much that they couldn’t even believe it was the same place when we graduated school nearly 20 years ago, in 2001. I heard them talk about restaurants and bars that they uncritically visited while on vacation or with family. I realized then that the optics of the City had changed so much, but nothing else substantial has changed, especially when it comes to poverty, homelessness, and civil rights. Recent reports put the ethnic diversity of Cincinnati around 1950’s United States. We are mostly just Black and white, with a sprinkle of other ethnic identities. And by a sprinkle, I mean less than 5%. African American people are routinely denied healthcare, education, transportation, housing, and other basic necessities. Redlining continues to this day. Schools are more segregated now than ever, as more than half of our schools are 90% (or more) one ethnicity. Most students in public schools (82%) are economically disadvantaged. Home ownership rates among Black families (34%) are less than half of that for white families (74%). Other objective measures show that Black and white Cincinnatians live in two separate cities. Median household income comparisons show a stark reality: Black median household income at $24,272, compared to white median household income at $57,481. When applied to housing standards of affordability, it becomes clear that Black families are being priced out of their own neighborhoods. For example, a recent developer received preferred developer status on a Vine Street property in Over-the-Rhine through a City RFP process. This developer came to the Over-the-Rhine Community Council meeting in January seeking a letter of approval. Since the Community Council has prioritized affordable housing, the developer claims that 1 of 4 units will be affordable at 60% AMI. At 60% AMI, this means that most people in Cincinnati (59.99%) cannot afford this apartment. And when you take in the great disparity between Black and white resident income, this essentially removes any likelihood that a Black person or family would be able to move into this apartment. I often hear claims that crime has decreased due to investment in Over-the-Rhine and other inner core neighborhoods. But the reality is that crime may actually increase throughout the region due to instability. When people are forced from their neighborhood into other neighborhoods, there are turf issues and issues of representation. According to Census data, at least 25% of all people in Cincinnati moved within the last year, but certainly for some groups this number is higher. Cincinnati crime stats mimic national trends of decreasing incidents of violent crime; however, in 2002 Cincinnati saw 64 murders, and in 2017 there were 70. This is a slight increase, but meaningful when thinking about how things have or haven’t changed. Overall, Cincinnati is classified as having more crime than 95% of American cities. Larger looming issues, such as representation in the police force, have remained unchanged. 68.1% of sworn police officers in Cincinnati are white, while the white population in Cincinnati is less than 50%. One police officer as the LGBTQAI liason. One police officer as the Homelessness liaison. Shouldn’t all officers be trained to deal with LGBTQAI and individuals who are experiencing homelessness? Also deeply concerning is the disparate way African Americans are treated within the criminal justice system. While African Americans only represent 12.5% of Ohio’s population, they are 45% of incarcerated Ohioans. While Justice is purportedly Blind, people of color are more likely to be sentenced to death for killing a while person than killing a person of color in Ohio. A white body is seen as infinitely more valuable than a person of color. Your zip code affects your sentencing as well. And neighborhoods in Cincinnati remain so segregated, that our region is #5 in racial segregation. Economic segregation in our region is also near the top of the charts. And your zip code could add, or remove, 20 years to your life expectancy. In terms of homelessness, we know that systemic and interpersonal racism continue to decrease the housing stability of people of color. African Americans are overrepresented among those experiencing homelessness because of Slavery, Jim Crow, Redlining, Urban Renewal, Mass Incarceration, and Gentrification. Without the generational wealth that white people were handed by the federal government, people of color have no level playing field. Areas that were once deemed “white only” continue to be almost all white. Inner city neighborhoods that were economically neglected since the 1930s, where Black families were forced to live for many generations (because they were legally denied entry to other neighborhoods until the Fair Housing Act in 1968) are now being displaced by white generational wealth. Black families cannot compete with that. African American wealth is predicted to be $0 by 2050, meaning that generational wealth is still exclusively a white policy benefit. Today, the shelters are still full. We are still short 40,000 units of affordable housing in Hamilton County (35,000 in Cincinnati). While obvious visual changes may have occurred, structurally we are still the same Cincinnati. We continue to criminalize homelessness while privatizing public resources. Our education, transportation, healthcare, public services, etc., are still segregated. Some things have changed: neighborhoods such as Overthe-Rhine, Mt. Auburn, and Walnut Hills have each lost thousands of Black residents since 2001. Between 2000 and 2010 the City of Cincinnati as a whole lost more than 9,000 Black residents. Our neighbors are being forced out by white generational wealth, and we have no mechanism focused on equity. The wealth and income gap between Black and white Cincinnatians has grown, and without a determined focus on affordable housing, living wages, and housing protections, we will continue to see two separate Cincinnatis: one for Black people, and one for white people. A Day Devoted To Community Organizing BILL WOODS ContributingWriter A re you concerned that citizens are often overlooked in public decisions in Cincinnati, Columbus, and Washington, D.C.? On Saturday February 23rd, the Murray and Agnes Seasongood Good Government Foundation is holding day long forum on citizen organizing. With the title "The Power of Organizing - Finding Your Community's Voice," the forum will feature panels and discussion groups on everything from basic neighborhood organizing to building coalitions in order to pass ballot initiatives. Karen Hobart Flynn, the President of Common Cause, will be the event's keynote speaker. Flynn has a wealth of experience in organizing to bring about political reform. Before joining Common Cause's staff in Washington, D.C., she chaired Common Cause in Connecticut. She led a grassroots movement in the state that successfully brought about the public financing of election campaigns. When she first came to Washington, she was a regional director of a number of states including Ohio. As national president, she supports state chapters that are organizing to protect voting rights or to bring about redistricting reform. A number of local organizers will be sharing their expertise and experiences as members of panels and as group discussion leaders. Josh Spring, Executive Director of the Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition, Jennifer Summers, Director of the Peaslee Neighborhood Center, Michelle Dillingham, Director of Community Shares, Alice Schneider of Applied Information Resources, and Catherine Turcer, Director of Common Cause/ Ohio are a few of the people involved in the day. Other local organizations taking part are CUFA, the Sierra Club, Bold New Democracy, One Westwood, Invest in Neighborhoods, and the Woman's City Club. After Karen Hobart Flynn's keynote address, a panel led by Liz Blume of the Seasongood Board will explore common roadblocks that often get in the way of community problem solving and organizing. Following this panel, attendees will meet in discussion groups dealing with ways to organize around diverse issues that range from neighborhood concerns to the promotion of citywide policies. A luncheon discussion will deal with the question of why citizen organizing is critical at this moment in U.S. public life, and an afternoon panel will focus on some local organizing activities that are currently underway. THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED Next, Jeff Blevins, Chair of Journalism at the University of Cincinnati, will give a brief presentation on the role of the news media in community life and the ways grassroots movements can cultivate news coverage for their actions. Finally, a wrap up session will allow attendees to talk about, "where do we go from here?" Since promoting good government is the goal of the Seasongood Foundation, it believes that citizen involvement in public decisions is critical to achieving that end. The Seasongood Board hopes that the Forum on February 23rd will stimulate some projects for future Foundation funding. This event will take place at the Renaissance Hotel in downtown Cincinnati from 9:00 to 4:00. For further information about attending, call (513)721-2180. �4 ADVERTISMENT THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED NFeb. ov 27 - -NFeb. o v 19, 18 | |NNo. o . 393 21,2 02019 400 �N o. 3973-|Feb. Nov 221, - N2019 o v 19, 2 0 18 Feb. | No. 400 5 U.S. NEWS Deb Haaland becomes one of first two Native American congresswomen AMANDA BECKER Reuters T he day before Deb Haaland was sworn in last week as a freshman lawmaker in the most diverse U.S. House of Representatives class in history, she said the weight of being one of the first two Native American women to serve in Congress had not yet fully hit her. Haaland, 58, had just conducted a brief staff meeting and was sitting in her new office on Capitol Hill as staffers got phones working and solved logistical problems like wrestling a printer through a narrow doorway. The first-time elected official represents New Mexico's 1st Congressional District and is a member of the state's Laguna Pueblo tribe. "Congress has never heard a voice like mine," the Democrat said. "As the first Native American woman in Congress, I know that there will be an expectation on me by tribes across the country to be somebody that can move their issues forward," Haaland said. "That's absolutely something I feel optimistic that I will be able to do." She said there is an "epidemic" of missing and murdered indigenous women, and Haaland would like Congress to hold additional oversight hearings on the issue and make sure tribal justice systems have the resources they need to conduct proper investigations. Also at the top of her list is combating climate change, which threatens fragile tribal lands. "If you're not scared to death right now about climate change, you're not reading the Deb Haaland works in her office at the U.S. Capitol before being sworn in as one of the two first Native American women in the U.S. House of Representatives in Washington, U.S., January 3, 2019. REUTERS/Brian Snyder news," she said. Haaland is one of a recordbreaking 102 women who will serve in the 435-seat House during the 20192020 session. There are many firsts among them. Haaland and Sharice Davids of Kansas, a member of the Ho-Chunk Nation, are the first Native American women. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota and Rashida Tlaib of Michigan are the first Muslim women. Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts and Jahana Hayes of Connecticut are the first black women to represent their states. All are Democrats. When Haaland was born in 1960, Native Americans did not have the right to vote in New Mexico - despite being granted full U.S. citizenship by the federal government in 1924. They got it in 1962, making the Southwestern state the last in the nation to extend it. On Thursday, Haaland welcomed her new constituents to an open house at her congressional office before being sworn in on the House floor. She wore traditional tribal garments to the ceremony, including a pomegranate blossom necklace of silver and turquoise, signifying protection and strength, made by a Laguna artist. After raising her hand to take the oath of office with her peers, the consequence of the milestone sunk in. Overcome with emotion, Haaland turned to embrace Davids, borrowing the edge of her new colleague's scarf to dab away her tears. Courtesy of Reuters / INSP.ngo Who Shut down the shutdown? ROBERT PARK Contributing Writer W ho ended the shutdown? The Democrats? Nancy Pelosi? Mitch McConnell? None of the above. The shutdown got shut down when workers took Laguardia Airport off-line on Friday, January 25. A rolling disaster of massive commercial disruption was about to unfold for capitalist America and that pushed the GOP over the edge. Disgusted and outraged employees – TSA security and FAA air traffic controllers – did what their unions should have done at least two weeks ago. We don’t know what positive role IF ANY their national union leadership played here. More likely, as with all great accomplishments for workers rights, the real leadership probably came from the bottom, from the workers collectively voting with their feet. In past momentous worker actions (like getting the 8 hour day) what typically happened was some outrage finally broke the camel’s back and thousands of workers hit the streets, with their leadership frantically racing to catchup with the members. We’ll have to watch and see if the current union leadership at the top even bothers to get out and walk quickly, let alone run; to acknowledge the profound lesson we just learned, again. What happens in three weeks? Maybe the next shutdown should be pre-empted by a strong credible threat: next time it won’t take three weeks to stop it, we’ll stop it on day two. The federal unions should sign on to a pledge: “You want shutdown, you’ll get shutdown, motherfucker.” They could even toss out the idea of a general strike so that the rest of us can get involved in determining our future. It’s about time the labor movement showed the Democratic Party for what it is: why didn’t THEY call for a walkout and promise protection? This would have been a great opportunity to encourage a lot of Trump’s base to re-think their world view. The federal THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED unions that should have immediately responded to the shutdown include: the American Federation of Government Employees (TSA, IRS, Social Security, Homeland Security, CDC..), National Treasury Employees Union, National Air Traffic Controllers Association. And of course the AFL-CIO - the American FEDERATION of Labor – itself should have been there instead of doing nothing like they did when Reagan fired our air traffic controllers years ago (1981). This isn’t just about Trump or the GOP, or even the pathetic Dems; the labor movement needs house-cleaning, redemption and resurrection. They could set the agenda for America if they wanted to. �GLOBAL 6 NFeb. ov 2 7 - -NFeb. o v 19, 18 | |NNo. o . 393 21,2 02019 400 40 Years Since the Khmer Rouge Regime Came to an End in Cambodia A tourist peers at photographs of people who died in Khmer Rouge custody Credit: Robert Carmichael/IPS KRIS JANSSENS Inter Press Service T he anniversary is not actually celebrated. After all these years, talking about the Khmer Rouge is still controversial. This is partly because the genocide came ‘from within’. Almost every family has a feud that goes back to this dark history in the seventies. How could this have happened? The Marxist guerrilla movement was able to grow with support from North Vietnam. The Cambodian General Lon Nol, who came to power in 1970 after a coup, wanted to fight these communists and was backed by the United States – at the time involved in the Vietnam war. American bombings hit many civilians, who started to dislike the government and welcomed the Khmer Rouge soldiers when they marched into capital city Phnom Penh in 1975. But euphoria soon turned into fear. You were in danger if you were considered to be ‘intellectual’. Being able to read, speaking foreign languages or even wearing glasses could be fatal. In the documentary Iron Legs, by filmmaker Vanna Hem, San Sovan explains how she escaped death. “They asked me to write something”, she recalls. She is left-handed, but used her right hand and produced some barely readable words. She could walk out freely - being labelled ‘illiterate’. Starvation and torture Guerrilla leader Pol Pot wanted an agrarian society, without external interference. People had to leave the cities and were forced to work on the field. Many died from starvation, exhaustion or sickness. The regime was very suspicious and every possible enemy was tortured and killed. The ‘Tuol Sleng’ or ‘S21prison’ in Phnom Penh, where these executions took place, gives a clear impression of this violence. As it is a former school building, you can still see the classrooms that were later turned into torture chambers. The building remained untouched since the seventies. I visit this genocide museum with Toby, a young Thai man who comes to Cambodia’s capital for the first time. As we walk through the building, Toby becomes very quiet. “Shall we go now?” he asks after a while. When he learns about Khmer Rouge soldiers killing children, he’s done with the visit. The regime figured that children would only take revenge once they’d find out their parents were murdered. Judgment In a scarce interview, with American journalist Nate Thayer, Khmer Rouge leader Pol Pot would later say “his conscious is clear”. He acknowledges he killed enemies of the movement, but “we had to defend ourselves. To say that millions died is too much”. The interview took place in Anlong Veng, close to the Thai border, where Pol Pot survived for over 20 years after his regime collapsed. He died in 1998 and was never brought to justice. The same goes for most of the other leaders of the movement. There is, however, a Khmer Rouge tribunal. In November last year, the court gave its final verdict, after twenty years of investigations. Two senior leaders, Nuon Chea (92) and Khieu Samphan (87), were both sentenced to life imprisonment. One was ‘Pol Pot’s right hand’, the other one ‘head of state’. Kaing Guek Eav, alias Duch (76), had been sentenced to life before. He was the chief commander of the S21 prison. These are the only convictions made by the “Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia” (ECCC) since it came to existence in 1997 in collaboration with the UN. The total cost of the court is about $300 million. Barely taught I discuss the result of the court with some young Cambodians. “Thanks to the trial, people are at least talking about this difficult period”, someone says. “In my school there was very little information about the Khmer Rouge during history class, although the regime lasted almost four years.” Just think how European schools teach intensively about the empowerment and the consequences of the Nazi-regime - comparable to Khmer Rouge when it comes to atrocities and number of victims. Immediately after the Second World War, the Nuremberg trials helped to cope with the traumas. Controversial Prime Minister Why did it take so long in Cambodia, only to sentence three people? THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED “If they would dig deeper, they will inevitably arrive at the responsibility of today’s politicians,” someone says, “… thus of Hun Sen,” he whispers immediately after. I’m getting used to Cambodians lowering their voice when they talk about their prime minister. Not out of respect, but out of fear to get into trouble. The current prime minister Hun Sen was a troop commander under the Khmer Rouge regime. But he always denies he played an active role in the genocide. In 1977 he defected to Vietnam. The Vietnamese, who invaded Cambodia two years later, made him part of the new Cambodian government. In 1985 he became the prime minister, which he still is today. Future Hun Sen did indeed oppose the idea of finding more perpetrators, “as this could cause a civil war”. It is one of his favourite statements to defend his policy - which is a factual dictatorship. He refers to the peace and stability his governance brought during the last fifteen years. This is a popular message among the generation of Khmer Rouge survivors. But this country has a very young population, almost two-thirds of them being under the age of 30. This generation was born after the civil war and did not grow up in fear. These are young, ambitious people with dreams and hopes for the future. Lots of them don’t need a tribunal to give their verdict on the current politicians who clearly have their roots in this dark past of the Khmer Rouge. �NFeb. o. 397 3 -| Feb. Nov 221, - N2019 o v 19, 2 0 18 | No. 400 GLOBAL 7 Bullets Against Pots and Pans in the Crackdown on Venezuela’s Protests HUMBERTO MÁRQUEZ Inter Press Service T he protests in Venezuela demanding an end to the presidency of Nicolás Maduro in the last 10 days of January, whose soundtrack was the sound of banging on pots and pans in working-class neighbourhoods, had a high human cost: more than 40 deaths, dozens wounded and about a thousand detainees, including 100 women and 90 children under 18. In Catia, a working-class neighbourhood west of Caracas, a number of young people were shot dead between 21 and 25 January, while National Police and military National Guard commandos demolished improvised roadblocks and barricades made with trash, managing to quash the protests. “They managed to do it. The local residents say that in the streets where several of these boys fell, silence and solitude have prevailed after 6pm. The pots and pans have not returned,” said sociologist Rafael Uzcátegui, head of Provea, an organisation that has been recording human rights violations in the country for decades. These protests have two special elements: they are taking place in neighbourhoods and sectors that until recently formed part of the government’s social base, reflecting the anger felt by the poor in the face of the country’s socioeconomic collapse, which has turned their protests into “mini-Caracazos,” recalling the violent protests given that name in February 1989, which resulted in hundreds of deaths. Furthermore, they have been submerged in the institutional crisis that has had the country in its grip since January and which has put Venezuela at the forefront of world geopolitics, with a struggle for power that is also playing out between the governments of the United States and other countries of the Americas and European countries, on the one hand, and China, Russia and Turkey, on the other. Maduro, 56, who governed the country from 2013 to 2019, was sworn in on 10 January for a second term after winning an election in May 2018, the results of which were not recognised by the legislature or by most of the opposition or the governments of the Americas and Europe. The election was called outside the legal timeframe by a National Constituent Assembly composed solely of government supporters, the electoral authority banned the main opposition parties and leaders, and a cloud of irregularities enveloped the campaign and the voting day itself, according to complaints from local and international organisations. The opposition-controlled National Assembly refused to recognise Maduro’s re-election and the president of the legislature, Juan Guaidó, 35, declared himself acting president on 23 January, before a crowd in Caracas, while mass opposition demonstrations were held in some 50 cities. Since 21 January, when 27 members of the National Guard mutinied in a barracks in the neighborhood of Cotiza, north of Caracas, refusing to recognise the re-election of Maduro, “cacerolazos” – pots-and-pans protests – spread, and groups of local residents in poor neighborhoods of the capital and cities in the provinces improvised barricades and clashed with the security forces and irregular civil groups of sympathisers of the ruling United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV). Looting of shops also broke out in several cities in the provinces. The 21-25 January crackdown left 35 people dead, dozens injured by bullets or plastic pellets, and 850 arrested. “On 23 January alone, 696 people were arrested – the largest number in a single day of protests in 20 years,” said lawyer Alfredo Romero, director of the Penal Forum, an organisation that follows the question of those detained for political or social reasons. The Forum counted 12,480 arbitrary detentions from February 2014 – the year of the first mass protests against Maduro – to October 2018, classifying 1,551 people as political prisoners, of whom 236 were still in prison when the report was produced. The list has now grown with those arrested so far this year. Since Maduro first took office in 2013, Provea and other human rights groups have reported that at least 250 people have died in street protests. Romero said the state uses a “revolving door” strategy: when political detainees are released, usually on parole, another group is arrested for similar reasons. In January, “the order the security forces received was to arrest protesters. It is clear that the government decided to assume the cost of stopping the protest in the poorer areas, which in the past were ‘Chavista’ but have now turned against Chavismo,” he said. Chavismo was the political movement of Hugo Chavez, president from 1999 until his death in 2013. Demonstrators clash with security forces during a protest of opposition supporters against Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro's government in Caracas, Venezuela January 23, 2019. REUTERS/Carlos Garcia Rawlins For two decades, the urban poor and working-class supported Chavismo, but they have now increasingly turned against Maduro, exasperated by the high food prices, the collapse of services such as water, electricity, health and transport, and the increasingly acute shortage of medicines or cooking gas. Rupert Colville, a spokesman for the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, said in Geneva on 29 January that “just over 40 people have been killed” and of these “at least 26 were allegedly shot dead by security forces or progovernment armed groups during the demonstrations.” Provea contends that at least eight people were killed in extrajudicial executions in Caracas and two provincial cities when members of the National Police’s elite FAES squad entered their homes. “FAES receives training for lethal action, against extortion or kidnapping. It is not trained to handle public order situations. Its codes and weapons, which are highly lethal, are not in proportion to the rules of proportional and gradual use of force applicable in situations of popular protest,” said Uzcátegui. The arrests, which included 100 women and at least 90 children and adolescents, “have been carried out in indiscriminate sweeps, to spread fear and discourage protests,” Romero said. One such case is that of Jickson Rodriguez, 14, who is epileptic as a result of an old head injury. He and his young friends were banging on pots and pans near his family’s barbershop on the night of 22 January in Villa Bahia, which is located in Puerto Ordaz, an industrial city on the banks of the Orinoco River, 500 THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED kilometres southeast of Caracas, when National Guard units captured him and six others and took him to a barracks that guards a steel plant. “Since I wasn’t crying, I was the one who received the most blows. I told the guards, ‘Why are you beating us when we’ve already been arrested?’ and they slapped me. They gave me blows to the head. I told them ‘you can’t hit me on the head, I have epilepsy, and they told me: ‘Shut up, you’re a detainee’,” he told his family and journalists a few days later. “I found him, handcuffed, after searching for him in various places where they were holding people, the afternoon of the following day,” said his mother Rosmelys Guilarte, 39, a hairdresser who also has three daughters. “He was beaten on the soles of his feet, so there would be no visible bruises. He had a convulsion while he was in detention, which is why he was handed over to me two days later.” Jickson “was accused by the judicial police of participating in looting that took place miles from where we were banging on pots and pans that night – something that was impossible. He has orders to report to the authorities every 30 days. I try to get him to rest a lot, this has been really hard on him,” she said from her home. For Uzcátegui, “the government’s strategy has three components: repression in the face of the discontent shared by most of the population, betting that the current political conflict will wane, and attempts to limit the visibility of the crisis by going after the media and journalists.” Courtesy of Inter Press Service / INSP.ngo �FEATURE 8 N ov 2 o v 19, 18 | |NNo. o . 393 Jan. 11- -NJan. 25,2 02019 398 Haitians abandon forgotten town, isolated for over a decade (Top Left) Anita bathes his son Romenson Exalus at their house in Boucan Ferdinand, Haiti, April 10, 2018. (Top Right) Boys walk along a trail, that was used in the past by terrain vehicles connecting with Bois Negresse, on the outskirts of Boucan Ferdinand, Haiti, October 10, 2018. (Bottom Left) Children attend a class at the school at a Baptist church in Boucan Ferdinand, Haiti, October 10, 2018. (Bottom Right) Residents dance at a bar in Boucan Ferdinand, Haiti, April 8, 2018. Sunday evening is the only time when the bar is open and residents gather there to socialise and dance. Credit: REUTERS/Andres Martinez Casares ANDRES MARTINEZ CASARES Reuters N ear the bottom of the island of Hispaniola in southeast Haiti is a forgotten village, cut off from its own country, and slowly emptying as its residents leave for the neighbouring Dominican Republic. Without health services, electricity, or paved roads, Boucan Ferdinand lost its only road to the nearest Haitian town, Bois Negresse, in devastating floods back in 2004. Some of its residents have left for the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince and others cling on to a precarious life. Many have crossed illegally into the more prosperous Dominican Republic. "They do not have access to basic social services, this situation is at the root of the mass migration to the Dominican Republic," said Jean Gilles Viola, mayor of the municipality that governs Boucan Ferdinand and around 20 other villages. Those who remain live in thatch and stick hovels, collecting rainwater to drink and at constant risk of infectious diseases. Some children, in impeccable blue uniforms, walk to a school in the town of Chapotin - a trip that takes an hour and a half over a narrow path, impassable in the rainy season. In the village are two makeshift classrooms, run by the Baptist and Catholic chapels. "This year my children will not go to school," said village farmer Wilber Jean in October, as his children played nearby. "Here you pay a ton. There," pointing across the border, "the president pays." Children collect firewood or graze small flocks of goats and sheep to help their parents. During planting time, many skip school in order to help on the farms, earning less than $2 a day. In the mornings, the village smells of burning firewood brought by the children as the women make breakfast: sometimes there is pasta, but more likely coffee and a piece of bread. Often there is rice and beans. Meat, a luxury. Haiti, which according to the World Bank is the poorest country in the Americas, has not recovered from a powerful earthquake that hit it on 12 January 2010, leaving more than 200,000 dead. The countryside has been emptying out. Less than half of Haitians live in rural communities compared to 84 per cent in 1960, World Bank data shows. Boucan Ferdinand seems to have THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED fallen off the map. Radios mainly capture Dominican signals. "I'm tired of looking for stations in Haiti," complained Polo, a 64-yearold man who returned here with his wife and one of his grandchildren after spending more than 40 years in the Dominican Republic. Aurana Augustin 'Timatant' sold bread and sweets until a few months ago when the left half of her body was paralyzed. Today, the grandmother spends her days lying in bed. The nearest Haitian health centre is across a mountain, so she has been crossing the border on a mule to seek care in the Dominican town of Duverge. The local government wants to rebuild the road taken out by the floods but lacks the financial means, said the mayor. �N o. 39 Nov 221, - N2019 o v 19, 2 0 18 Feb. 73- |Feb. | No. 400 FEATURE 9 What's in a name? Everything, say Australia's indigenous people ADESHOLA ORE Reuters T he north bank of Melbourne's Yarra River is dotted with a series of Aboriginal-made art installations. The eel-shaped winding paths, the metal shields and the message sticks are a reminder of the original inhabitants of this part of Australia. The riverside area, Birrarung Marr, is one of the locations that a local heritage trust takes visitors to on its indigenous-led guided walking tours so they can learn about the area's First People. That includes their names for various sites. For the Wurundjeri People, the river's name is not the Yarra but the 'Birrarung' – which means 'river of mists'. "Having the river recognised as the Birrarung can be really important," said Rob Hyatt, education manager for the Koorie Heritage Trust, and leader on some of the tours. "It's not just a name. It is actually a cultural site." Although 'Yarra' is an Aboriginal word that means 'flowing river', Hyatt said, the waterway was mistakenly given that name by one of the city's early founders. To the Wurundjeri People, the river remains the Birrarung, said Hyatt, which is why the Wurundjeri Council has pushed to have the name restored. National debate Indigenous Australians trace their lineage back 60,000 years, and across the country a growing number of groups - from Aboriginal-led organisations to grassroots movements and politicians - want Aboriginal names used for geographic landmarks rather than the names given by settlers. The debate about the country's colonial history reignited in January after the federal government proposed ordering local governments to conduct citizenship ceremonies on Australia Day – 26 January, which marks the arrival of the first fleet of British settlers in 1788. Several local councils have stopped holding citizenship ceremonies on Australia Day because of concerns the date is insulting to Aboriginal people. For many indigenous Australians, 26 January is "Invasion Day", the start of Britain's colonisation of Aboriginal lands and their brutal subjugation. The government's proposal was seen by many as offensive. The country's 700,000 or so indigenous people track near the bottom of its 25 million citizens in almost every economic and social indicator. Jonathan Richards, a fellow at the University of Queensland's School of Historical and Philosophical Inquiry, Aboriginal elder Max Eulo performs a smoking ceremony during an official function on the foreshore of Sydney Harbour, Australia, November 27, 2013. Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull on February 10, 2016 said that the government was failing to meet a number of goals aimed at improving the lot of its embattled aboriginal population as he released its tenth annual report card on indigenous issues. Just two of seven targets in the 2016 Closing the Gap report, which outlines the government's record in meeting its own targets on issues such as infant mortality, life expectancy and economic performance, are on track to be met. Picture taken November 27, 2013. REUTERS/David Gray said some place names - such as The Leap and Murdering Creek - reflect frontier violence against indigenous people. "There are also names of places that commemorate individuals who are known to have been violent towards Aboriginal people. It's right across Australia," he told the Thomson Reuters Foundation by phone. "This is Aboriginal country, every single part of it. To use the Aboriginal names is a really good way to remind people of the truth." In some places that has happened: the globally recognised sandstone landmark Uluru was known as Ayers Rock until 1993, when the Aboriginal name Uluru was included in its dual name. Many Australians now refer to it simply as Uluru. And in June 2018, the Electoral Commission agreed to change the name of the federal seat of Batman in Melbourne's inner-north to Cooper in recognition of indigenous activist William Cooper. John Batman, considered one of Melbourne's founding fathers, was accused of involvement in the massacre of Aboriginal people in Tasmania during the early 1800s. The inner-city Melbourne council of Darebin wants Batman's name removed from a park in its area, part of a wider effort to rename places associated with him. Susan Rennie, mayor of Darebin, said the move was very well accepted locally, though there was some back- lash from people living "well outside of Darebin". "We did receive some negative and at times very angry feedback from people who aren't part of our community who felt as though we weren't acknowledging history and the role of Batman in Australia," she said. Darebin's experience also shows that the process does not always run smoothly: its bid to rename the park Gumbri, in honour of a Wurundjeri elder, was rejected by the Geographic Names Victoria office in June after family members of the late elder opposed the use of the name. Rennie said the council was working with indigenous groups such as the Wurundjeri Council in considering new options. "The history of John Batman and his treatment of Aboriginal people was seen as being really problematic in terms of having a local park named after him," she told the Thomson Reuters Foundation by phone. "It's important for Wurundjeri People to see their language and their names and places recognised in writing, but it's equally important for Australians who aren't First Nations people to understand and see that connection in everyday things." Broadly positive In the north-east state of Queensland, two mountains considered sacred to the native Darumbal People were renamed in May: Mount Jim Crow and Mount Wheeler reverted back to their indigenous names of Baga THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED and Gai-i respectively. The renaming followed the award of native title for the region to the Darumbal people in June 2016. Such title legally recognises indigenous groups as the traditional owners of a tract of land. Nyoka Hatfield, an elder of the Darumbal People, said the name Jim Crow was "akin to apartheid" in South Africa. "Jim Crow is the name of the racist system that they had in the United States of America. A lot of people associated the words Jim Crow with that racist system," Hatfield said. And although some letters to local newspapers and comments on social media had criticised the name reversal, the positive responses had outweighed the negative. "People say it's wonderful. They are speaking the traditional language and getting to know the traditional language," she said. It is not the only recent change in Queensland: in 2017, the state government restored the name for the Fraser Island part of the Great Sandy National Park to K'gari, which for the local Butchulla People means 'paradise'. Hatfield, who teaches the Darumbal language and culture in schools, said she hoped that renaming places would lead to a wider understanding of the country's indigenous past. "Whatever part of Australia you live in, you should know its history." Courtesy of Reuters / Thomson Reuters Foundation / INSP.ngo �10 GLOBAL NFeb. o v 27- -N o v 19, 0 18 | |N o . 393 Feb. 21,22019 No. 400 Mexico’s Forests, Both Victim of and Solution to Climate Change EMILIO GODOY Inter Press Service " I dream of a healthy, sustainable, well-managed forest,” says Rogelio Ruiz, a silviculturist from southern Mexico, who insists that “we have to clean it up, take advantage of the wood, and reforest.” These activities are essential for the ecosystem, especially to adapt to the impacts of climate change, said the president of the La Trinidad Communal Lands Commissariat, in the municipality of Ixtlán de Juárez, in the state of Oaxaca, some 840 km south of Mexico City. Forest habitats are precisely one of the best natural mechanisms for mitigating climatic change, but at the same time they face the consequences, such as rising temperatures, variations in rainfall regimes and the spread of pests. The ecoregion where La Trinidad is located, the Sierra Juárez mountains, is well aware of this. Since 2017 it has been facing an outbreak of the pine sawfly, which eats the needles of the pine tree, the most common species in this area of central Oaxaca. Local organisations estimate that some 10,000 hectares are at risk from this pest. Ruíz explained that 106 of his community’s 805 hectares have been damaged. La Trinidad has a traditional Mexican system of government for collectively-owned and worked land, which is different from an “eijido” because the land here cannot be sold. In September, “we applied aerial fumigation” of a biopesticide and now “we will use handpumps,” said the community leader, one of those attending the celebration in Ixtlan this month of the 35 years of struggle against the private forest concessions that were once predominant here. The struggle gave rise to community- 2014. These undertakings exemplify the development of Mexican community forestry, considered a global model, for its success in generating social, economic and environmental benefits. In 2016, Mexico, the secondlargest country in Latin America, with 1.96 million square kilometres (196 million hectares), had 20.3 million hectares of temperate forest, 850,000 hectares of mesophilic mountain forest, 50.2 million hectares of scrubland, 7.9 million hectares of grasslands, 11.5 million hectares of rainforest and 1.4 million hectares of other vegetation, according to the National Institute of Statistics and Geography. he non-governmental Mexican Civil Council for Sustainable Forestry lists 4,886 forest communities and ejidos, of which some 2,100 commercially exploit the forests. But only seven million hectares, in the hands of some 600 communities, operate with a management and conservation plan, a requirement for obtaining approval for the harvesting programmes promoted by the state-run National Forestry Commission. Mexico’s timber production totals seven million cubic metres annually, of which Oaxaca in the south contributes just under seven per cent. Forest ecosystems provide water to urban areas, regulate the water cycle, provide food, and capture carbon dioxide (CO2), the gas responsible for global warming, among other ecological services, according to scientific studies. As a result, in the face of the threats posed by climate change, forests require public policies that generate better economic incentives, offer legal certainty about land tenure, expand markets and increase productivity, say silviculture organisations and experts. Ixtlan, which means “place of threads or fibres” in the Zapotec language and where 600 hectares have Workers from the forest community of Ixtl·n de Ju·rez inspect seedlings to be planted in the forest they manage within the municipality of the same name, in the southern state of Oaxaca, Mexico. Their plan is to build a seed orchard to generate pine species more resistant to climate change. Credit: Emilio Godoy/IPS managed forests like this one. La Trinidad, made up of 291 community members and their families, has a permit to annually extract 5,000 cubic metres of wood during an eightyear management plan, in effect since been damaged, has undertaken the fight against pests by experimenting with five species of pine in the community nursery. “In November and December, we do seed selection. We want fastergrowing, pest-resistant species. We are The Sierra Ju·rez forest in the southern Mexican state of Oaxaca is vulnerable to the effects of climate change, but at the same time it can help fight the phenomenon. Credit: Emilio Godoy/IPS confident that the new species will be more resistant,” explained Sergio Ruiz, forestry advisor for the community enterprise Santo Tomás Ixtlán Forest Union. The community of Ixtlán, also in the municipality of the same name, owns 19,125 hectares, of which 30 per cent is used for forestry. Its activities also include ecotourism, a gas station, a shop, a furniture factory and a water bottling plant. In 2018, the community nursery provided 360,000 seedlings, 100,000 of which went to reforestation while the other 260,000 were donated to nearby communities. The hope is to create a seed orchard. A study under preparation by the state-run Technical University of Sierra Juárez analyses climatic factors such as temperature, moisture and soil conditions in Ixtlán. In 2015, Mexico emitted 683 million tons of CO2, making it the second largest polluter in the region after Brazil. Of that total, 20 million tons came from the loss of forest lands. This Latin American country adopted its own goal of zero deforestation by 2030, a real challenge when average annual logging represents 200,867 hectares lost between 2011 and 2016, according to estimates by the Superior Audit of the Federation, the Mexican government comptroller’s office. Other sites in the Sierra Juarez mountains are also exposed to climate change, although their height above sea level temporarily protects them from insects. Such is the case in the municipality of San Juan Evangelista, where silviculturists are preparing to adapt their forests to the phenomenon. “It is important to clean up the forest, because it takes away combustion power and the risk of pests. In addition, managed forests allow more carbon sequestration than unmanaged forests. They can help prevent climate change from accelerating,” said Filemón Manzano, technical adviser to the forestry community in that municipality. Analco, which means “on the other side of the river” in Nahuatl, consists of THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED 150 community members, the owners of 1,600 hectares, of which 1,000 are covered by forests and 430 of which are exploited. The community operates a nursery for 3,000 seedlings. Manzano and academics from the state-run Postgraduate College of Agricultural Sciences are preparing research on CO2 absorption by managed forests, estimated at five tons per year per managed hectare. Under the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, Mexico pledged to reduce, by 2030, up to 14 million tons of annual CO2 emissions from land use, land use change and forestry, by promoting sustainable forest management, increasing productivity in forests and jungles and promoting forest plantations. But the outlays needed to implement mitigation measures would total 11.789 billion dollars up to that year, at a cost of 53 dollars per ton of CO2. Zero deforestation would require 7.923 billion dollars and sustainable forest management would require 3.861 billion dollars. In July, the Mexican forestry sector proposed a long-term policy, greater investment, an adequate legal framework, strengthening community forest management, community participation in the design of measures and a link to climate change, as part of the “Forests with people, forests forever” campaign. Rogelio Ruiz called for more support to better care for the ecosystem and thus reap more benefits. The study “Toward a Global Baseline of Carbon Storage in Collective Lands”, published in September by the Rights and Resources Initiative, a Washington-based global network of 15 partners, estimated that Mexican community forests trap 2.8 million tons of CO2. Manzano called for more forest management. “We want to show how managed forests contribute to the conservation of the planet. It’s going to be important to have more resistant species and create a good mix of species,” he said. Courtesy of Inter Press Service/ NSP.ngo �N o. 39 Nov 221, - N2019 o v 19, 2 0 18 Feb. 73- |Feb. | No. 400 11 GLOBAL Shedding Light on Forced Child Pregnancy and Motherhood in Latin America MARIELA JARA Inter Press Service R esearch and campaigns by women’s rights advocates are beginning to focus on the problem of Latin American girls under the age of 14 who are forced to bear the children of their rapists, with the lifelong implications that entails and without the protection of public policies guaranteeing their human rights. The Latin American and Caribbean Committee for the Defence of Women’s Rights (Cladem) addressed the issue of teenage girls who fell pregnant as a result of rape, in a 2016 study in 14 countries of the region, to remove the cloak of invisibility. Julia Escalante, a Mexican lawyer and Cladem regional coordinator, said that it was the case of Paraguayan girl Mainunbuy (not her real name) that motivated them to delve deeper into the issue. The girl became pregnant in 2015 after she was raped by her stepfather and was not allowed to have an abortion. Cladem and Equality Now turned to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) in May of that year, which urged the Paraguayan state to protect the Paraguayan girl’s life and rights. But that did not happen, and since then similar cases have arisen in the South American country, the last one in November. “The case of Mainunbuy led us to ask what is happening in other countries of the region. We found a lack of policies to prevent pregnancy and childbearing among children, and to protect the rights of girls,” she said. A study published this year by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) reported that this is the second region in the world, after Sub-Saharan Africa, with the highest teenage pregnancy rate, with 66.5 births per thousand girls and adolescents, compared to a global rate of 46. In addition, of the 7.3 million births to adolescents under the age of 18 that occur each year in the region, more than two million are to girls under the age of 15, and if the trend continues that figure will reach three million by 2030. Cladem’s study of 14 countries, Child Mothers. Forced Child Pregnancy A group of girls from the Amazon region of Peru, the region with the highest teen pregnancy rate, including girls under 14. Latin America is the second region in the world in terms of teen pregnancy, only behind sub-Saharan Africa. Credit: Mariela Jara/IPS and Motherhood in Latin America and the Caribbean, underscores that according to the laws in this region, all births to girls under the age of 14 are legally the result of rape or statutory rape. Organisations that defend women’s rights in the region say that a forced child pregnancy occurs when a girl under the age of 14 becomes pregnant without having sought or desired it and faces obstacles that keep her from having an abortion if she so wishes. Cladem’s data on births to girls under 15 reveal that in 2015 there were 122 in Uruguay, 1,432 in Peru, 1,444 in El Salvador, 1,600 in Nicaragua, 2,787 in Argentina, 6,045 in Colombia, 10,277 in Mexico, 13,332 in Bolivia and 26,700 in Brazil. This Lima-based regional network that is active in 15 countries is carrying out the campaign “Child Pregnancy is Torture”, which has contributed to raising awareness about this silenced issue in the international community. Escalante emphasises the responsibility of governments, which it called upon to gather specific, brokendown statistics on pregnancies and childbirths to girls under 14 years of age. It also called for prevention Some 14,000 girls have been raped in the last six years,î reads the poster on the left during a demonstration in Lima on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, which is celebrated Nov. 25. Rape is the cause of child pregnancy and forced motherhood in Peru, as in other Latin American countries. Credit: Mariela Jara/IPS measures through comprehensive sex education with a gender perspective from early childhood onwards, the inclusion of such content in the media, and a halt to the sexualisation of girls in the media. At the same time, it demanded that States remove the normative, legal and cultural obstacles that prevent access to abortion for pregnant girls, and thus avoid irreparable damage to their physical and mental health. The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has been sounding the alert on the steady rise in teen pregnancy and motherhood in Latin America and the Caribbean. In a 2014 report, it noted that 20 per cent of pregnancies to girls under the age of 18 involved girls under the age of 15 who had been raped. Speaking to IPS, Olga Isaza of Colombia, Unicef ’s deputy representative in Peru, first specified the figures for child motherhood in the country, which serves as an example of the phenomenon in the region. She said that between 2011 and 2017, the public health system attended 14,325 births to girls under 15. In addition, in 2015 the National Registry of Identification and Civil Status registered 1,538 newborns to mothers between the ages of 11 and 14 years. “In 71 per cent of the cases, the fathers of these newborns were older than 18, which confirms the sexual abuse underlying these pregnancies,” Isaza said. The annual teen pregnancy rate in Peru is 13 per cent of all pregnancies – a percentage that rises as high as 30 per cent in Amazon jungle regions such as Loreto. “The group of girls under 14 is the one that worries us most because there is a relationship of submission and power that leads to girls having children, girls whose rights to be protected against all forms of violence and to live according THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED to their age and to grow up are violated,” said the U.N. official. Isaza mentioned five policy recommendations to ensure the rights of adolescents and young people presented in Peru by the United Nations agencies, led by UNICEF and UNFPA (the U.N. Population Fund), and which can be adopted in other countries. For example, the design of comprehensive policy packages to address the development aspect of children under 14 and access to friendly health services at appropriate times of the day and with specially trained personnel, as well as comprehensive sex education and making such information available to the girls’ families. “It is about the home and school being safe spaces for every child and adolescent, for them to have health, education, protection against all forms of violence, and participation in their communities,” Isaza said. He added that priority should be given to the areas of greatest risk in each country and that, in order to be effective, these measures of comprehensive action by the State must be culturally appropriate, including personnel trained and qualified to provide quality services, and a sufficient budget to be implemented efficiently. Isaza noted that 13 of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which make up the Development Agenda 2030, are directly associated with children and adolescents, in order to reach that year with this generation in better conditions in terms of health, education, justice, protection and gender equality. “And the only way to do that is to make the SDGs a commitment of the States and for each segment of society to assume its role and live up to it, to agree on a broad social consensus,” she stressed. Courtesy of Inter Press Service / INSP.ngo �12 What’s Going On STREETVOICE What’s going on ask singer Marvin Gaye What’s going on in our world of today Stealing from each other, killing one another Lying, cheating and still calling each other brother Disillusioned by what our lives should really be Misunderstanding that we’re all born in sin, you and me Forgetting each day to let live and let love Forgetting to give all praises due to God up above Everyone needs to take time out to pray And ask God to forgive our sins each and everyday To replace hate with peace and love where ever we can Only then can we see what’s going on all over the land So for me this is what’s really going on We as a people must come together before all life is gone!!! WILLA DENISE JONES Streetvibes Distributor Contributing Writer Nov 2 N o v 19, 0 18 || No. N o . 400 393 Feb. 7 -- Feb. 21, 22019 Homelessness Homelessness is a place that, has a lot of drought Homelessness is cold with wet nights, Homelessness is a cardboard box that a person calls their home To receive a blanket or a kind word means a lot to a person, sleeping on the curb If you open your eyes tell me what you see That person experiencing homelessness on the street one day could be you or me! KIM GREEN Streetvibes Distributor Contributing Writer Streetvibes Writing Circle If you would like to submit a story for publication in streetvibes, come join Katelyn Lusher and Chris Wilkey for a group writing session! S treetvibes is distributed by individuals who purchase the paper for 75 cents per copy and sell it for a $2.00 donation, keeping the profit they have earned. Becoming a Distributor is a great way for individuals who are financially poor to get back on (or stay on) their feet. This program provides supplemental income for those unable to secure other employment. Money earned helps meet basic housing, food and health care needs. The program is a hand up for people who are often in a place of getting only a hand out, or even no hand at all. All Distributors wear a badge and usually a vest and can be found selling the paper in Downtown Cincinnati, Clifton, Northside, Northern Kentucky and at area churches. THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED �STREETVOICE No. 39 | Nov21, 2 - 2019 N o v 19, 2 0400 18 Feb. 7 -3 Feb. | No. A Succinct Analysis Of The Recent Federal Shutdown Things in D.C. got really chancy, But holding firm was Speaker Nancy. Trump had tantrums to get his way, Homelessness Sidewalk people. Street smart. Ron English, a diva in chalk. Sebastian, the sombrero-clad bicyclist. Memories surround Carl at the old Carl’s Bar. Raymond Thunder-Sky, adorned in a hard- But Speaker Nancy refused to play. hat helmet; Now we are in a three week break, green wig. And grownups better negotiate. BILL WOODS Contributing Writer 13 Fifi Taft Rockefeller, feisty in sequins and They are all Mayors of 12th Street. Screen doors. Slammed shut. Suddenly open. Nickels. Dimes. A Gateway Quarter brawl. Corner dealer. Cops stop. They smile. All once farmland here. Long before the Drop. Rows corn. Holstein cows. Dairy airs. Hillbilly feuds. Zombie Amish. Jammed cicada jelly. Accidental empires. Cobble-stone alleys of the Rhine. A hungry legend. Perhaps apocryphal tale. Batavia’s lost gold ingots, buried. What lies beneath. Somewhere hidden. A secret under our 12th Street rubble. Gold-miners still dig here. Like fierce gerbils. Welcome to 12th Street. FELIX WINTERNITZ Contributing Writer THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED �14 PUZZLE Pet Horoscopes by Dusty Changepurse N o v 27--N o v 19, 0 18 || N o . 393 Feb. Feb. 21,22019 No. 400 Leo (Ace of Coins) - I know you think your bird is a birdbrain, but look who’s chirping. I kid. For you bird lovers, this is the time for you to learn something new about your pet. Birds need to be stimulated, not just locked in a cage and forgotten.Try a new snack, a new toy, or a new activity. Maybe even a new friend? Your Leo pet needs something Aquarius ( Three of Swords) - Training is prob not going new in their life. Sadly, they may have some issues related to well and trust me when I say both you and your pet are their feathers this month, so keep an eye on that. frustrated. Be careful of your tone and attitude with your pet right now. Aquarius pets are in their feelings this month. Positive reinforcement is what your pet needs now. You may Virgo (Three of Coins) - You and your pet need to work on think your you are calm and assertive, but your pet hears a routine. Sure, you are doing your best, but right now that routine is what is lacking. This is the month that you both stern and demanding. need to double down on your hard work. Working hard together may bring you closer than you think. If you just Pisces (Seven of Cups) - If you are a repetile parent, hooray! got a new pet and are feeling overwhelmed, surprise,l this Your scaly friends are having a good month, but beware is what you signed up for. All Virgo pets, and their owners, of things relating to water. Water bowls, dehydration, need to focus on working hard now so that it is easy later. swimming, etc. Meaning, make sure your pet has enough, but not too much. Also, check to see they aren’t having any skin issues. Feel free to give them a neat treat this month Libra (Knight of Swords) - You and your furry friend (and because they have a vet appointment and they will not be snakes) have been at each others necks. You have been feeling the struggle, and your pet notices it. Please don’t happy. think it has to be you or them. This is the month that you both need to work on patience. I promise you that if you Aries (Ace of Wands) - You and your pet have been playing stick it through the squeeze, you will leave the experience mind games with each other. Where is that mystery pee feeling more knowledgeable. smell coming from? Can I trust them not to knock over my plants? Your pet is having boundary issues. Heck, we all are right now. You may need to use empathy to find out what is Scorpio (Knight of Coins) - Scorpio pets are pretty chill really the problem. Maybe they are under-stimulated or they this month. It is all about spoiling them this month. Your miss you. Boundaries is the name of the game this month. scorpio pet would love some sort of grooming. They are feeling themselves and not everyone can give themselves Asserting those boundaries now will pay off, trust me. a purrrfect cleaning. It is time to make your pet shine and smells good. Also, the cards didn’t say this, but feel free to Taurus (The Tower) - The old regime has fallen. You may add a new outfit to their closet. They could use the self-care think you have things under control, but when you put those day. Just saying. two pets together, something always seems to go wrong. Your pets are needing more autonomy, and sadly you may have to give it to them. Think about expanding the area your Sagittarius (Six of Cups) - Cha-Ching! If you have wanted furry friends can visit. A trip to a park, or pet daycare, may an exotic fish, get it. Exotic fish are having a particularly good month. If you are already up to your gills in fish, then be what you need to nip the behavior in the bud. add more? Your water-living friends will feel like a monarch under the sea for a while. You may have noticed them being Gemini (The Emperor) - Who is running the house, you extra social already. You may as well splurge on them, or them? And yes, that is what your pet is asking, not you. because they will bring luck with them. Sidenote: If you just Gemini pets love to rule the roost. Why else would they perch lost a pet, this may be the month to consider adding another on the back of the sofa, or hid in the top of the closet? Even friend to join the family. Moving on can be painful, but you though you feel like you don’t know shih-tzu, know that you may be surprised once you open your heart again. are, in fact, a great fur parent. Your gemini pet must learn that both of you can rule in this kingdom. Wait. What? Capricorn (The Empress) - Um, is your pet-a-preg-nent? Yay, and congrat! If not, then check on them. Some pets may be Cancer (The Devil) - Um Sorry? The Devil card doesn’t mean dealing with digestive issues this month. Trust me when I your pet is evil, although when you come home to house full say, Capricorn pets are going through it this month. Your of ripped cushions, shredded toilet paper, and garbage amiss pet family may see some growth this month. You may need you question that assertion. This card means your Cancer to consider how many pets is too many pets. Also, I sense pet has been suppressing some things and they are bound to some pets will deal with leg issues this month. So take care burst out. This could be an injury, a sickness, or some form during play. of trauma. Search for the root cause of the erratic behavior before thinking they are a lost cause. THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED �No. 39 Nov 2 - N o v 19, 2 0 18 Feb. 73- |Feb. 21, 2019 | No. 400 Central Access Point 381-SAFE Shelter: Women and Children RESOURCES Prince of Peace Lutheran Church 621-7265 1528 Race St. 45202 Churches Active in Northside Bethany House 557-2873 4230 Hamilton Ave. 45223 591-2246 FreeStore/FoodBank 241-1064 1841 Fairmount Ave. 45214 The Esther Marie Hatton Center for Women 2499 Reading Road 562-1980 Grace Place Catholic Worker House 681-2365 112 E. Liberty Street 45202 Madisonville Ed & Assistance Center 271-5501 4600 Erie Ave. 45227 Serves area codes: 45226, 45227, 45208, 45209 6037 Cary Ave. 45224 Salvation Army 762-5660 St. Vincent de Paul 562-8841 131 E. 12th Street 45202 1125 Bank Street 45214 YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter 872-9259 Treatment or Supportive Recovery: Men Shelter: Men Charlie’s 3/4 House 784-1853 Shelterhouse 721-0643 2121 Vine Street 45202 411 Gest St. 45203 Prospect House 921-1613 1437 Walnut Street 45202 Starting Over 961-2256 1805 Dalton Ave. 45214 Treatment or Supportive Recovery: Women St. Fran/St. Joe Catholic Work. House 381-4941 682 Hawthorne Ave. 45205 City Gospel Mission 241-5525 Parkway Center 661-4620 First Step Home 961-4663 Shelter: Youth 2203 Fulton, Cinti, Ohio 45206 Sheakley Center for Youth (18-24 y/o) 2522 Highland Ave. 45219 569-9500 Lighthouse Youth Crisis Center (10-17 y/o) 3330 Jefferson Ave 45220 961-4080 Shelter: Family Interfaith Hospitality Network Treatment or Supportive Recovery: Both AA Hotline 351-0422 CCAT 381-6672 830 Ezzard Charles Dr. 45214 Joseph House (Veterans) 471-1100 1522 Republic Street 45202 Caracole (HIV/AIDS) 761-1480 CMHA 721-4580 Excel Development 632-7149 OTR Community Housing 381-1171 114 W. 14th Street 45202 Talbert House 221-HELP Tender Mercies 721-8666 27 W. 12th Street 45202 Tom Geiger House 961-4555 Volunteers of America 381-1954 Anna Louise Inn 421-5211 Cincinnati Union Bethel 768-6907 VA 977-6800 VA Homeless 859-572-6226 Food/Clothing First Lutheran Church 421-0065 1208 Race St. Food - Last Monday 12-1 Clothing - second Monday 12-1 Lord’s Pantry 621-5300 OTR/Walnut Hills Kitchen & Pantry 961-1983 OTR: 1620 Vine Street 45202 Walnut Hills: 2631 Gilbert Ave. 45206 Our Daily Bread 621-6364 1730 Race Street 45202 St. Francis Seraph Ministries 549-0542 St. George Food Pantry 2554 Dennis St. 45219 751-8771 St. Anthony Center 1615 Republic St. Advocacy Catholic Social Action 421-3131 Community Action Agency 569-1840 Contact Center 381-4242 Franciscan JPIC 721-4700 Gr. Cinti Coalition for the Homeless 421-7803 117 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 2401-2411 Reading Rd. 45202 2401 Reading Rd. 45202 241-2965 Hamilton County Mental Health and Recovery Services Board 946-8000 Recovery Health Access Center 281-7422 Sober Living 681-0324 Talbert House 221-HELP Housing: 15 Legal Aid Society 241-9400 Ohio Justice & Policy Center 421-1108 UpSpring 363-3300 Health Cincinnati Health Network 2825 Burnet Ave. 45219 Other Resources Center Independent Living Options 241-2600 Peaslee Neighborhood Center 621-5514 215 E. 14th St. 45202 Franciscan Haircuts from the Heart 381-0111 Goodwill Industries 771-4800 Intercommunity Justice & Peace Cr. 579-8547 Mary Magdalen House 721-4811 1223 Main St. 45202 People Working Cooperatively 351-7921 The Caring Place 631-1114 Talbert House 751-7747 United Way 211 Women Helping Women 977-5541 Off The Streets 421-5211 Hamilton County Office of Reentry 946-4304 138 E. Court Street Room # 101 First Floor Cancer Justice Network 404-3882 Hamilton/Middletown St. Raephaels 981-4200 Salvation Army 863-1445 Serenity House Day Center 422-8555 Open Door Pantry 868-3276 Northern Kentucky Brighton Center (11-17 y/o) 859-491-8303 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 799 Ann St. Newport, KY 205 West Pike Street, Covington, KY 41011 Women’s Crisis Center 859-491-3335 VA Domiciliary 859-572-6202 Emergency Shelter of Northern Kentucky 634 Scott St. 41011 859-291-4555 Want to advertise in Streetvibes? You can support our mission and spread the word about your business. For more information contact Gabriela Godinez Feregrino, 961-0600 email streetvibes@cincihomeless.org Center for Respite Care 621-1868 3550 Washington Ave. 45229 Crossroad Health Center 381-2247 5 E. Liberty St. 45202 Health Resource Center 357-4602 McMicken Integrated Care Clinic and Mobile Medical Van 386-7899 40 E. McMicken Ave, Cinti, Ohio McMicken Dental Clinic 352-6363 40 E. McMicken Ave, Cinti Mental Health Access Point 558-8888 NAMI of Hamilton County 351-3500 PATH Outreach 977-4489 THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED �16 NFeb. o v 2 7- -NFeb. o v 19, 0 18 | |NNo. o . 393 21,2 2019 400 S treetvibes is distributed by individuals who purchase the paper for 75 cents per copy and sell it for a $2.00 donation, keeping the profit they have earned. Becoming a Distributor is a great way for individuals who are financially poor to get back on (or stay on) their feet. This program provides supplemental income for those unable to secure other employment. Money earned helps meet basic housing, food and health care needs. The program is a hand up for people who are often in a place of getting only a hand out, or even no hand at all. All Distributors wear a badge and usually a vest and can be found selling the paper in Downtown Cincinnati, Clifton, Northside, Northern Kentucky and at area churches. ALFRED WOOLFOLK SINCE 10/2003 ASRES AYENAW SINCE 2012 BERTA LAMBERT SINCE 1997 BETTIE BAILEY SINCE 10/2017 BRANDON NELSON SINCE 4/2008 BRIAN ADAMS SINCE 7/2017 CHARLES WILLIAMS SINCE 7/2017 CHRISTOPHER KAIHATSU SINCE 7/2017 CLEO WOMBLES SINCE 10/2003 CRANDALL COBB SINCE 2004 DARREL ROZIER SINCE 7/2017 DAVID MCCANE SINCE 2017 ERIC VALDEZ SINCE 2/2017 GERALD FRANKLIN SINCE 7/2017 GRADY COOK SINCE 1997 HENRY BRELAND SINCE 7/2017 JAMES BROWN SINCE 3/2009 JAMES DAVIS SINCE 8/2000 JENNY BURTON SINCE 7/2017 JIMMIE GIPSON SINCE 2001 JON DARBY SINCE 2/2006 JOHN HORN JOSEPHINE BASKERVILLE SINCE 9/2008 J’TORI TYMAN SINCE 5/2014 KIM NGUYEN SINCE 7/2017 KENNY BUSSELL SINCE 10/2009 KAREN COLLETTE SINCE 7/2008 LARRY BROWN SINCE 10/2007 LEE MCCOY SINCE 7/2009 LEONARD JACKSON SINCE 2/2005 MARY MUELLER SINCE 5/2005 MARK SHEARS SINCE 4/2012 MAURICE GOLSBY MELISSA MOSBY SINCE 9/2014 MIKE CARANO SINCE 4/2016 RAESHAWN GIPSON SINCE 3/2009 RAYNARD JONES SINCE 10/2008 RICKY WOODS SINCE 4/2015 RICCARDO TAYLOR SINCE 1999 RONNIE PHILLIPS SINCE 10/2009 SAMUEL JACKSON SINCE 10/2006 STACIA HOLLANDER SINCE 2017 STEPHANIE EAKES SINCE 7/2017 SYLVESTER WALKER SINCE 7/2017 TALINA HILL SINCE 2/2011 VICTOR MUMPHRY WILLA JONES SINCE 1/2010 WINNIE RICE SINCE 7/2017 QUEENACELASTINE SINCE 7/2017 TIA CASS SINCE 11/2007 THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED TONY THOMAS SINCE 3/2005 KEITH EUTSEY SINCE 2/2011 VIOLET COLLINS SINCE 2017 � 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 2019 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource February 7-February 21, 2019 Subject The topic of the resource Homelessness Description An account of the resource Pg 1: Cover Page Pg 2: From the Director Pg 3: Wholly Unrecognizable Pg 4: GCHC Pg 5: Deb Haaland Becomes One of First Two Native American Congresswomen Who Shut Down the Shutdown? Pg 6: 40 Years Since the Khmer Rouge Regime Came to an End in Cambodia Pg 7: Bullets against Pots and Pans in the Crackdown on Venezuela’s Protests Pg 8: Haitians Abandon Forgotten Town, Isolated for Over a Decade Pg 9: What’s in a Name? Pg 10: Mexico’s Forests, Both victim of and Solution to Climate Change Pg 11: Shedding Light on Forced Child Pregnancy and Motherhood in Latin America Pg 12: Street Voice Pg 13: Street Voice Pg 14: Puzzles Pg 15: Resources Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Streetvibes Archive Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Streetvibes Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource February 7-February 21, 2019 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Josh Spring Humberto Marquez Amanda Becker Kris Janssens Robert Park Adeshola Ore Andres Martinez Casares Dr. Mark Mussman Bill Woods Key Beck Kim Green Willa Denise Jones Mariela Jara Emilio Godoy Felix Winternitz Homeless Coalition Pngtree.com Gabriela Godinez Wraphome.org Amanda Meek Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Adeshola Ore Amanda Becker Amanda Meek Andres Martinez Casares Australia Bill Woods Cambodia Child Pregnancy Climate Change Deb Haaland Dr. Mark Mussman Emilio Godoy Felix Winternitz Gabriela Godinez Haiti Homeless Coalition Humberto Marquez Indigenous People Josh Spring Key Beck Kim Green Kris Janssens Latin America Mariela Jara Mexico Motherhood Native American Pngtree.com Protests Robert Park Venezuela Willa Denise Jones Wraphome.org https://streetvibesarchive.net/files/original/ab3de947bdd825e108df5c91d23a3a2b.pdf b83266fdf36937487c6fc08fd33f12de PDF Text Text J a n ua r y 2 5 t h - F e b r ua r y 8 t h 2 0 1 9 | Vo l . 2 3 I s s u e 2 6 ( N o . 3 9 9 ) advo cating justice | building communit y Keep An Eye On... Any opinions in this issue are of the authors and don't necessarily represent Streetvibes or The Homeless Coalition. By Dr. Mark Mussman Article on page 8 This Issue is sponsored by Cecilia and Tom Kloecker Find previous issues of Streetvibes online at: cincistreetvibes.org Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition 113 E. 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 streetvoice | 12 �2 COALITION N ov 2 o v 19, 0 18 || N o . 393 Jan. 25- -NFeb. 8, 22019 No. 399 From The Director: Are Niceties the Cost of True Niceness? 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 individuals experiencing homelessness or on the edge of homelessness, in exchange for a $2.00 Donation. Streetvibes is published twice a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH), a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that works to eradicate homelessness in Cincinnati. 113 East 12th St. Cincinnati OH, 45202 Ph: 513.421.7803 FAX: 513.421.7813 WEB: www.cincihomeless.org EMAIL: streetvibes@cincihomeless.org Editor: Gabriela Godinez Executive Director: Josh Spring Director of Development: Mona Jenkins Director of Education: Dr. Mark Mussman Distributor Program Manager: Sallie Mascus Josh Spring giving a speech. Credit:Amanda Meet Layout: Gabriela Godinez JOSH SPRING Executive Director O ften people in Cincinnati have this sense that one should always act both nicely and politely. For example, at times we have been criticized after gatherings and meetings for continuing to press questions, saying things that make some uncomfortable, questioning motivations, etc. Often these criticisms haven’t necessarily been of the content of what we were saying, just simply the fact that we were forcefully speaking or acting; that we were not being nice. Now, of course there is nothing generally wrong with being nice. However, not all situations call for niceties. Some issues call for being direct and truthful. Well all situations call for being truthful, but the truth often isn’t nice. That is a part of what is interesting about this prescription to be polite and nice. How often is it truthful and how often is it a cover for what is really going on? How often are we choosing to ignore real problems and not stop or change the systems that are causing them or take on the people at the helm of those systems? We live in a city where the life expectancy of a person can twenty years less depending upon which side of a particular street they live on. In Hamilton County over 56,000 households are trying to fit into less than 16,000 homes they can afford because we are short 40,000 affordable homes. As a result, on an average day in 2018, nearly 90 percent of families with children who sought shelter, were turned away, because there wasn’t room. If you are Black in Cincinnati you are more likely to be evicted from your home, be displaced so that someone who is white with more money can move in and more likely to die at a younger than average age. In the last 15 years we have spent at least a couple billion dollars on housing, yet homelessness is the worst it has ever been, because we have built luxury housing for people who already had homes at the expense of housing people with lower incomes can afford. We play host to some of the largest corporations in this country and even the world, yet there is no requirement that people be paid a living wage. In 2018 more than 109 people died with their lives cut short by homelessness. The thing is, none of this is nice or polite. Of course, when we are criticized, these are the truths we are speaking or the motivation for what we are saying or doing, but when I say, ‘none of this is nice or polite’, I’m not referring to the important reason’s to not be nice when confronting systems that cause these major problems and deaths. I mean literally these systemic problems are not nice or polite. In a town where politeness and niceties socially are championed, why don’t we choose these for those things that matter the most like the opportunity for a healthy life, with housing you can afford and income that covers needs? I think the reason is because as a community we end up putting more value on the superficial acts of being nice and polite. Holding corporations, legislators, developers, etc. accountable and forcefully making change as united People isn’t polite and nice. Our community often chooses the niceties of social interaction over the true niceness and politeness that would mean equal access to needs; conversational respect over respect of human life. Reception: Bonita Batton, Larry Johnson Maintenance: Pete Roper ------------------------------------------CONTRIBUTORS THIS ISSUE Writers: Josh Spring, Ashley Archibald, Zachary Headings, Tharanga Yakupitiyage,Riham Alkousaa, Danielle Engolo, Dr. Mark Mussman , Bill Woods, Birgit Müller, Maurice Golsby, Willa Denise Jones, Zy’auna Crawford, Kimore Gover, ------------------------------------------Photography/ Artwork: Homeless Coalition, Freeimage. com, Gabriela Godinez, Street Sense, Inter Press Service, Hinz& Kunzt, Reuters, Amanda Meek ---------------------------------------------Thank You For Reading Streetvibes And Supporting Our Mission To Build Community And Advocate Justice. Streetvibes and The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless do not endorse candidates for public office. THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED �No. 39 Nov 28, - N o v 19, 2 0 399 18 Jan. 253 -| Feb. 2019 | No. 3 U.S. NEWS Microsoft loans $500 million to address the county’s housing crisis ASHLEY ARCHIBALD Real Change M icrosoft’s leaders announced 16 January that the company would forward $500 million in loans and grants to spur the construction of affordable housing throughout King County, Washington [which includes county seat Seattle], in an effort to lessen the twin crises of housing affordability and homelessness in its home region. The company will invest $225 million at lower-than-market-rate returns targeted at subsidizing the preservation and construction of middle-income housing on the east end of the county as well as $250 million at market-rate returns to support lowincome housing throughout the county. The remaining $25 million will be doled out in grants to address homelessness, according to a blog post by President Brad Smith and Chief Financial Officer Amy Hood. The first $10 million of that money will go to boost existing efforts, including the Home Base program, which helps people avoid eviction and funding the new joint agency between Seattle and King County to combat homelessness. To put the scale of the investment in perspective, Mayor Jenny Durkan wrote that the city of Seattle and other partners have invested $710 million in affordable housing over the past two years, which they anticipate will create 4,000 new affordable homes by 2022. According to the post, the company spent eight months designing the plan in partnership with real estate site Zillow, the Boston Consulting Group and Challenge Seattle, an alliance of leaders from the region’s 18 largest employers. The infusion of funds is important, but it’s only the beginning, Smith and Hood wrote. “Even more capital will be required. And more critical still is the need for public policy changes to make it easier and more attractive to build affordable housing,” the post reads. The gap between the number of jobs created and the number of housing units is vast. Microsoft found that since 2011, the number of jobs has spiked 21 per cent while the number of housing units constructed rose by only 13 per cent. The result is a severe pinch in supply that caused housing prices to rise 96 per cent in just eight years. The increase in prices has a direct impact on homelessness. An oftcited study found that for every $100 increase in rent, homelessness jumped up by 15 per cent. Despite significant improvements in the number of households exiting homelessness, the overall homeless population continues to grow year on year. Elected officials celebrated the announcement but acknowledged that the new investments were just part of a regional solution and that more help was needed from all levels of government and the private sector. “The problem is tremendous. This investment is a wedge of the pie chart that is a solution but just a wedge,” said King County Councilmember Claudia Balducci. “I hope this will motivate and challenge the rest of us, in government and the private sector to fill out the rest of that pie. We need workforce housing, affordable housing, assisted living, housing for people experiencing homelessness, senior housing, all of it.” Funding to build and preserve housing is one critical piece of the solution, but the political will to get it built — sometimes in the face of severe public opposition — is another. Seattle is in the midst of a fight over its Mandatory Housing Affordability policy, which opponents believe will disrupt the character of their neighborhoods and potentially result in more displacement of households that are hanging on by a thread. “That is one of our big challenges, that’s a rock we have to push up the hill,” Balducci said. Balducci represents the east side of King County, and lives in a neighborhood that was developed to house workers being reintegrated into communities after the wars of the mid20th century. There was opposition then too, she said. “People who lived there before my single-family neighborhood was built used to charmingly refer to it as ‘the monstrosity up the hill,’” Balducci said. She argues that creating new housing for low- and middle-income households will make for a healthier community by providing access to high-opportunity areas that are aligned with upward mobility and success. “That’s what we should be all about,” Balducci said. “We should be all about opportunity.” Courtesy of Real Change / INSP. ngo Serving up food and literature ZACHARY HEADINGS Street Sense A t the corner of 15th and Irving NW in Washington D.C., on a cold November morning, a man stands beside a cart laden with granola bars, fruit, bottles of water, and books. As people hurry by on their morning commute, he calls out, “Good morning! Free books! Free food!”. His name is Christopher Stewart and he tries to do this every month. Stewart is the librarian at Bell High School/Columbia Heights Education Campus, which serves 1,400 students in grades 6 - 12. He started offering food and books at that corner when he was first hired last year. The “brunch” that he offers is a continuation of a program that Stewart implemented when he worked at the Bellevue Public Library in Anacostia. He says that the brunch is an opportunity to recognize the epidemic of homelessness in the District and to encourage others to think about how they can help. “When people feel like they want to tackle homelessness, it becomes such a big issue that they draw back and say, ‘I can’t do anything about it. It’s too big’,” Stewart says. “In the grand scheme, [the brunch] is small. But it could brighten someone’s day.” More than 20 people stop at Stewart’s table during his hour on the corner. CHEC students make up most of Stewart’s patrons, but they are not his only focus. “It’s not necessarily targeted specifically at people who are homeless, because we want to build community,” Stewart explains. “I want people who are homeless, people who have homes, students, teachers, and everyone to just come and eat together and to discuss a great book and see how many similarities they have, as opposed to differences.” Frederick Carter, who lives nearby, strikes up a conversation with Stewart on his way past the table to catch a bus. While he does not take a book, Carter is appreciative of the offer of both books and food. “It’s always good to see a blessing first thing in the morning,” he says. Stewart describes having books on the street, free to pick up, as “liberating.” Anyone walking by on the street is welcome to stop and chat, grab some food, and take a book. Even if they do not have time to read, Stewart encourages public transit users to take a book and leave it on the seat. “It makes all the difference,” he says. Not long after Carter continued on his commute, several CHEC students hurried by Stewart’s table. The bell had rung and they were facing detentions, according to Stewart. “Did you all have breakfast?” he asked. “You’re already late. You may as well have something to eat.” Some of the students grabbed granola bars and water and hurried to class; others stayed for a few moments to talk about books they had read. A few students listed their interests and asked Stewart which book they should take. Some people don’t feel comfortable going to public libraries, according to Stewart. A common feeling of being overwhelmed by the contents of a library or insecure about one’s own research abilities while in a library has been labeled as “Library Anxiety ” in recent years. However, Stewart is more concerned about people avoiding public libraries due to their associations with government. For example, a 2017 essay published by Time magazine outlined discrimination against undocumented people in libraries and the organization Libraries Everywhere published a detailed report about concern over immigration enforcement in libraries. It is not all about the books, however. The food is an important aspect, too. “It’s amazing how things can happen and trickle into something else,” Stewart says. “You know, ‘I didn’t eat this morning, so I’m going to go THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED into work mad, so I’m not going to give great service, so I’m going to get fired from work. So now I can’t pay my bills. So something as small as feeding [people] is huge.” Right now, the brunch is a local event. The books were either donated by the American University radio station, WAMU, or purchased by Stewart at a thrift store. He purchases the food from local grocery stores. In the future, Stewart wants to scale it up. “I want to offer this each month, in each ward,” Stewart tells me. “[I want to have] an actual table set up with books and food. No formalities, just [the] community coming together for five seconds or five minutes to grab a bite to eat, pick up a book, and/or discuss a great read.” He plans to start offering the brunch in every ward next summer. Stewart’s eventual goal — or “hopeful dream,” as he puts it — is to open a small café that “empowers readership and has great food.” He wants it to be a pay-what-you-will establishment, where those that pay nothing are treated the same as those that pay a lot. “Community, hospitality, and a safe space is the goal,” Stewart says. “[That’s] where relationships are cultivated and where strangers become family.” Courtesy of Street Sense / INSP.ngo �4 ADVERTISMENT THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED NJan. o v 225 - N v 19, 0 18 | |NNo. o . 393 - oFeb. 8,22019 399 �N o. 39 3 |- N ov 2 8, - N2019 o v 19, 2 0 18 Jan. 25 Feb. | No. 399 5 GLOBAL Eat Plants, Save the Planet A plantain farm on the outskirts of Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire. Current food production is among the largest sources of environmental degradation across the world. Credit: Friday Phiri/IPS THARANGA YAKUPITIYAGE Inter Press Service W hile the modern agricultural system has helped stave off famines and feed the world’s 7 billion residents, the way we eat and produce food is posing a threat to future populations’ food security. With an expected increase in population to 10 billion by 2050, ensuring food security is more important than ever. However, current food production is among the largest sources of environmental degradation across the world. If such production and consumption patterns continue, we will soon exceed our planetary boundaries needed to survive and thrive. “It was quite dramatic to see how much those planetary boundaries would be exceeded if we don’t do anything,” said Marco Springmann, one of the authors of a report examining the impact of the food system on the environment. “The food system puts pressure on land management, in particular deforestation. If you knock down too many forests, you basically really mess up the regulating system of the ecosystem because forests store carbon dioxide but they also are habitats for wild species and biodiversity reservoirs,” he added. Over 40 per cent of the world’s land has been converted or set aside for agriculture alone. This has resulted in the loss of more than half of the world’s forests. The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) notes that commercial agriculture is a key driver, especially the production of beef, soy beans, and palm oil. This can be seen in the Amazon where trees have been cut down and land converted to make way for agricultural activities such as cattle ranching and soy cultivation, much of which is used as animal feed rather than for human consumption. In fact, half of the planet’s usable land surface is devoted to livestock or the growing of feed for those animals, an area equivalent to North and South America combined. The intensive use of fertilisers has further diminished land productivity, leading to degradation and even desertification. Moreover, such actions have contributed significantly to greenhouse gas emissions (GHG). According to the “Options for keeping the food system within environmental limits” report, published in the Nature journal, the food system emitted over 5 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide in 2010 alone. The study also estimates that the environmental effects of the food system could increase by 50-90 per cent without any targeted measures, beyond the “safe operating space for humanity.” Springmann pointed to three ambitious measures that are necessary in order to stay within environmental limits including technological improvements which can increase sustainable food production and thus decrease the demand for more cropland. Another measure seems to be even more daunting: shifting to a plantbased diet. “If you go even more plantbased that would be even better for greenhouse gas emissions, and also it is more well-balanced and better for your health. The estimates are such that we would reduce the pressure on land use if we changed our diets,” Springmann said. The Nature report found that dietary changes towards healthier diets could help reduce GHG emissions and other environmental impacts by almost 30 per cent. A new report from the EAT-Lancet Commission also highlighted the need for dietary changes for environmental sustainability and public health. “The food we eat and how we produce it determines the health of people and the planet, and we are currently getting this seriously wrong,” says one of the commission authors Tim Lang. “We need a significant overhaul, changing the global food system on a scale not seen before in ways appropriate to each country’s circumstances. While this is unchartered policy territory and these problems are not easily fixed, this goal is within reach.…the scientific targets we have devised for a healthy, sustainable diet are an important foundation which will underpin and drive this change,” he added. EAT-Lancet Commission’s recommended planetary health diet requires the consumption of red meat to be cut by half, while vegetables, fruit, and nuts must double. North America has one of the highest meat consumption rates in the world. In 2018, American meat consumption hit a record high as the average consumer ate over 222 pounds of red meat and poultry. If they are to follow the planetary health guidelines, North Americas would have to cut their consumption of red meat by 84 percent and eat six times more beans and lentils. While plant-based diets have THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED gained popularity in the region, seen through the success of the Beyond Meat and Impossible Burger companies, Springmann noted that information alone may not be enough to promote dietary changes. “Of course everyone can change their diet and it would be great if they can do that. But if it is not made easy for the average consumer to do that, then many people won’t do it,” he said. Springmann suggested changing the prices of food products to include health and environmental impacts. Beef for example would need to cost 40 per cent more on average due to its contribution to GHG emissions. This provides governments with potential revenue to invest in other areas such as the subsidisation of healthier products. In addition to dietary changes, the EAT-Lancet Commission state that zero loss biodiversity, net zero expansion of agricultural land into natural ecosystems, and improvements in fertiliser and water use efficient are needed. “The transformation that this Commission calls for is not superficial or simple, and requires a focus on complex systems, incentives, and regulations, with communities and governments at multiple levels having a part to play in redefining how we eat,” said The Lancet’s Editor-in-Chief Richard Horton. “Our connection with nature holds the answer, and if we can eat in a way that works for our planet as well as our bodies, the natural balance of the planet’s resources will be restored. The very nature that is disappearing holds the key to human and planetary survival,” he added. Courtesy of Inter Press Service / INSP.ngo �GLOBAL 6 NJan. o v 2 25 - N-oFeb. v 19,8, 20 18 | |NNo. o . 393 2019 399 With clubs and churches, Berlin becomes home for migrants RIHAM ALKOUSAA Reuters A li Mohammad Rezaie does not celebrate his birthday because his Afghan parents never noted the date he was born. Yet he knows exactly when he arrived in Berlin to seek asylum: 15 October, 2015. That day changed his life. "It wasn't a special day. I was tired and had been on the road for two months," he said of his overland journey through the Balkans. Since then he's sung in a choir and done internships and temporary work at a nursing home, a bakery, hotels and restaurants. It is a far cry from the village of his birth 26 years ago. More than one million people have come to Germany as migrants since 2015 under Chancellor Angela Merkel's open door policy. Since then, migration has divided Europe and helped propel a rise of far right parties. Rezaie is among those doing their best to make Germany home, but integration is a journey with many highs and lows and it requires more than simply finding a job and learning German. One woman who helped him is Chris Wachholz. They met at the choir and she later invited him to cook and practice German at the home she shares with her husband. A common interest in motorbikes deepened their friendship. "Meeting this family was like being given an opportunity for my birthday. They are like my ... mother and father," he said. But his immigration status prevents him taking further steps. His Syrian migrant Haidar Darwish performs during a show at Silverfuture club in Berlin, Germany, July 8, 2018. REUTERS/Alessia Cocca asylum application was rejected and he can only stay on as a 'tolerated person', which means he will not be deported but lacks secure status. As a result, it is unlikely the temporary job he has found preparing food and cleaning at the Lufthansa lounge at Berlin's Tegel airport will be made permanent. "I have an apartment here. I know many nice people. If they deport me I'll lose everything," he said. His fear is exacerbated because his Afghan ethnic group, the Hazaras, have faced attacks from militants in Afghanistan. Many migrants say they are welcomed by Germans but others say they have experienced hostility. At the same time, a handful of militant attacks by migrants have enabled some politicians to argue they represent a threat to German society. For some, though, the move to Germany has meant new freedom. Haidar Darwish was dancing in Schwuz, one of Berlin's oldest gay clubs, last year when Israeli student and drag queen Judy La Divana approached him and asked him to perform in her show. He had never danced on stage in his homeland Syria, but La Divana convinced him to try. "Now, many people ask me when and where my performances take place so they can come. Not to brag about it," he said. Syrian migrant Haidar Darwish performs during a show at Silverfuture club in Berlin, Germany, July 8, 2018. REUTERS/Alessia Cocca THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED To supplement this income, he works at Bruno’s, a fashion and erotic shop that targets gay men. "I found out that the store manager ... had come to my shows many times and we'd even danced together once," he said. Sexual freedom was not the main reason he left Syria in 2016 - the country is at war, after all - but it represents a discovery he would not trade. For others, the quest for freedom has been fraught. Joseph Saliba was nine when his father sent him to work for a friend in Damascus who restored wood and mosaics. He slowly fell in love with the craft and later become a wood restorer. His business was booming when war broke out in 2011. Scared of being drafted into the Syrian army, he decided to flee to Europe three years ago. His German language class went on a field trip to Berlin Cathedral and immediately he felt a connection. He offered to volunteer in restoration work at the church using tools he had made himself. A year later, the church offered him a paid job. The church became a home but not Germany. Authorities refused to give him a refugee travel document and referred him to the Syrian embassy in Berlin. Saliba said he did not want to enter the embassy of the government from which he had fled and he is suing the German government to get a refugee passport. "I fled the lack of freedom to get freedom here," he said. "I didn't find this freedom here." Courtesy of Reuters / INSP.ngo �NJan. o. 3925 3 |-NFeb. ov 2 -8, N2019 o v 19, 2 0 18 | No. 399 GLOBAL 7 Morocco’s Migrant Workers Struggle to Send Money Home Last year, global diaspora remittances totalled 650 billion dollars, three times the amount of foreign aid given to developing countries. Credit: Kristin Palitza/IPS DANIELLE ENGOLO Inter Press Service M orocco may have hosted the United Nation’s historic Global Compact for Safe, Orderly and Regular Migration (GCM) conference. But when it comes to remittances— migrant employees, entrepreneurs and business owners all face the same challenge in Morocco: sending money legally to their home countries. Remittances is an all-important issue for migrants and their families left in the land of their origin, and one of the compact’s 23 objectives. However, Moroccan legislation limits money transfers abroad, in effect preventing migrant workers supporting their families or investing in their home countries. “I have been working for more than four years now in Morocco, but I have never been able to invest in my home country,” says Esther, a Congolese migrant working as a journalist in Morocco. “I cannot help my family, because Moroccan money cannot be sent abroad.” Last year, global diaspora remittances totalled 650 billion dollars, three times the amount of foreign aid given to developing countries. This continual familial fiscal flow significantly helps reduce poverty, by providing funds for health, education, and the launching of businesses. Morocco’s own diaspora plays a significant part in its own economy. Money transfers from the Moroccan diaspora reached more than 60 billion dollars in 2015, representing six per cent of the country’s GDP, according to a 2017 World Bank report. Nevertheless, if Morocco is aware of the importance of its diaspora’s role in its economy, that isn’t reflected in its financial policy that does not allow the country’s migrant workers to also contribute to the development of their home countries. Like most migrant workers in Morocco—the majority of whom come from sub-Saharan countries—Esther fell back on informal money transfer networks to sustain her family, giving money to an agent in Morocco. “Several times I sent some money to my family through these informal networks, but I was never at ease because it is risky,” Esther says. “Most of the time you don’t know the person you are negotiating with. He or she might steal your money.” She recalls that two years ago, her cousin, also living in Morocco, fell victim to a dishonest money transfer network that he had used before. “My cousin used to make money transfers with a friend of his. But one day, he gave his friend 17,000 dirhams ($1,900) to transfer to his family. The guy vanished.” Due to such risks, some migrants adopt other strategies, such as annual fiscal pilgrimages, taking the money limit permitted by Moroccan customs. Emilie, a Congolese hairdresser in Casablanca, travels back to her home country every six months to buy merchandise and deposit earnings in a Congo account. “I have no choice, I have to travel regularly in order to save my earnings at home, knowing that I cannot leave Morocco with a big amount of money,” Emilie says. But while this option allows migrants to subvert money transfer barriers and the risks of dishonest brokers, it costs much more because of the flight, which for many migrant workers is unaffordable and hence makes the strategy unfeasible. Unbeknownst to most migrants, a Moroccan law actually does allow people to send a set amount per year— 10 000 dirhams (1,050 dollars)—to each member of a person’s immediate family. But this method requires lots of paperwork and proofs of identity. Also, members of the same family must have the same name and if not the case—a common occurrence among families in sub-Saharan families—the bank will reject a transfer demand or demand additional papers legalized at the THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED embassy. Often banks simply decline to assist. Observers note how it’s not just migrant workers who are negatively impacted by tight money transfer rules in countries like Morocco that drive people to use illegal money transfer networks: government exchequers lose out on the likes of fees and taxes generated by legal transfer systems. “Despite these constraints, I think it is a step [in the right direction] to be able to send money, even if it is only for family support,” says Esther, while noting how investment remains a challenge. “I thought about buying an apartment in my country, but it is not possible to send a big amount of money.” Objective 22 of the GCM’s cooperative framework aims to “Establish mechanisms for the portability of social security entitlements and earned benefits.” Whether that proves good enough for migrant workers in Morocco remains to be seen, now that the compact has officially been adopted as of the morning of 10 December. “If I leave Morocco today and return back to my home country, there will be nothing there for me,” Esther says. “It is really a pity after so many years of work.” Courtesy of Inter Press Service / INSP.ngo �FEATURE 8 N o v 225 - N o v 19, 0 18 | |NNo. o . 393 Jan. - Feb. 8,22019 399 Keep an Eye On… DR. MARK MUSSMAN Staff Writer T he new year always brings a renewed interest. People head in droves to the gym for the first, attendance at Church spikes, and people’s resolutions stay on their mind. In a year, a great deal of things change. This year, we need to be vocal about things that have a disparate impact on people experiencing homelessness, as well as, those who are on the edge of homelessness. The following are a few things that we need to stay on top of this year. Pricey Policies For your housing to be considered “affordable,” you should be spending no more than 30% of your income on your housing, including utilities. Last year, Duke Energy raised everyone’s bill by $200, spread over the course of the year. This rate hike was approved by the Ohio Legislature, and there was literally fees and tickets that people who park in the residential parking spots may be able to cover some of the program costs, but what is the psychological effect on people who get parking tickets when visiting the neighborhood? The eventual fall out of this program may force the City to scrap the program, or to extend it north of Liberty. It is a new cost that we all need to keep our eyes on. Privatization of Public Space Privatization is a perennial issue that affects us all. In the past, I have written on neoliberalism, and the quest to turn public wealth into private riches. We are seeing a robust movement of privatization in Cincinnati, and across the country, which is draining our collective wealth in exchange for individual riches. For example, over the past two years, we lost Ziegler Park to 3CDC, who now controls who is able to use the park, when, and how. They provide private security to force people who are experiencing homelessness away from the park. Others have see the concerted effort put in place to remove people from the park. This loss of public space continues in other ways as well. Looking up and down the sidewalk, you will see more restaurant and bars stumbling out into public space. The loss of sidewalk space represents a serious loss of our community. When bars get seating space on the sidewalk, they create a permanent barrier so that people will be allowed to drink alcohol on the sidewalk. While this represents a double standard, as people who are experiencing homelessness are criminalized for the same behavior, it also means that people with disabilities, families with strollers, and large families, are obstructed on the sidewalk. Ultimately, this means that we are pushed out from our usual spaces. Forced to find new routes. Renaming to Own The so-called Over-the-Rhine Brewery District plans to have a banner year in 2019. The Brewery District Community Urban Redevelopment Permit Parking Signage in Over-the-Rhine nothing that we could do to stop it. This year, we are looking at higher food prices, higher cable and internet prices, and higher parking costs. In Over-theRhine, south of Liberty, all on-street parking will now be either metered or permit only. The cost to park in Overthe-Rhine has increased dramatically recently, and it is the most expensive outside of the Central Business District. Whether you will be paying at the meter, or for the parking permit, you will be spending more time looking for parking, and more time walking from your parking spot. The residential parking program needs to over-sell the spots to be successful. By using my basic math skills, I’ve found that at full price, the City must sell 1250 parking spots to break even. (There are projected program costs of around $75,000, and the permits cost $60 each. An unlimited number of permits will be sold.) There are only 500 parking spots, so each spot will have been, at least, double sold. The complained that the 3CDC workers have “banned” them from park bathrooms. 3CDC has leased out the park decades from the City, but they should still maintain their public status. Unfortunately, many people feel that the park is private now. In 2019, we are looking at the privatization of Findlay Playground. Model Group, a large developer, has plans to lease the alleyway next to the park. Last week, I noticed a fence around the alleyway, which to me, confirms that Model was successful with their privatization. Currently, there is a fence around Findlay Playground, and local organizers are trying to collect the stories of those who frequent the park. I have written extensively about how the police and the City team up to create a hostile environment in their quest for gentrification of Overthe-Rhine. Check out the police lights set up around Findlay Park, watch the increased patrols, and you will clearly Corporation (BDCURC) is getting ready to unveil their own wayfinding signs north of Liberty. You may have already seen medallions in the sidewalk, but have you seen the giant signs that are blocking the sidewalks in some places? The Brewery District’s Master Plan’s mission clearly shows a lack of inclusion of low-income residents: “To envision investment and development opportunities for businesses and real estate developers that will be supported by the neighborhood, and that will help guide efforts for physical public improvements to accommodate such development.” By renaming the part of the neighborhood, the Brewery District is trying to remodel the neighborhood into a false vision of the past, which is only inclusive of white, rich, and alcohol guzzling tourists. Look out for other things being renamed, including streets, so-called “Districts,” and other public spaces. THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED Housing Protections and the Affordable Housing Trust Fund In Ohio, renters have very few protections. Your landlord can refuse taking your rent, then evict you for non-payment of rent. This practice is a threat to stable housing. While change in Ohio may take long, we are looking to push forward housing protections that would stop this type of deceitful practice. Along with the local Affordable Housing Trust Fund, housing protections such as these will ensure people will be able to stay in their homes. Unfortunately, the Trust Fund isn’t funded yet, so we will be working this year to ensure funding for affordable housing. The Homeless Coalition is currently fighting for the right of selfdetermination in federal court. If we are successful, we will have prevented the stripping of many Constitutional Amendments, including Freedom of Speech and protections against cruel and unusual punishment and the seizure of personal property. This lawsuit will have a large regional impact, and is definitely something to watch this year. Special Improvement District (SID) Another thing to keep your eye on this year is the proposed Special Improvement District (SID) for southern Over-the-Rhine. A SID has existed downtown for a couple decades, which funds Downtown Cincinnati Inc. (DCI). DCI employs people as Downtown Ambassadors who spend the days and night sweeping up the sidewalks and gutters. They are also available for people who have questions. As I have written before, 3CDC, Urban Sites, and the Over-the-Rhine Chamber of Commerce, are planning on hoisting a SID on the southern part of Over-the-Rhine. They are using scare tactics to pressure residents at the Community Council to accept the tax plan. Only 60% of the property owners (based upon the linear footage) need to vote for the SID to impose a tax on all of the properties in the proposed SID. In the end, this will cause rents to raise, and will increase homelessness in our area. It will also create a force to police the streets, pushing people who are experiencing homelessness into the shadows. When SIDs are created, laws criminalizing homelessness are likely to follow. When people are forced into the shadows, they are more likely to be victims of violent crime. Each of these issues negatively impacts the lives of those who are experiencing homelessness and those who are on the edge of homelessness. Without the efforts of the Homeless Coalition, our member organizations, and our supporters, many of these changes would go by without note, and the voices of those who are affected would be lost. �N o. 39 ov 28, - N o v 19, 2 0 18 Jan. 253 -| N Feb. 2019 | No. 399 FEATURE (Top Left) Large Sidewalk Medallion for Brewery. (Middle Left) Sidewalk Seating for Local Bar. (Top Right) Findlay Playground Fenced Off. (Middle Right) Permit Parking Signs Go Up in 2019. (Bottom Left) Sidewalk Blockage for Brewery District. (Bottom Right) Large Signage at Grant Park. THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED 9 �10 GLOBAL N o v 225 - N o v 19, 0 18 | |NNo. o . 393 Jan. - Feb. 8,22019 399 Rescuing People At Sea Is A Sailor’s Responsibility BIRGIT MÜLLER I Hinz&Kunzt t was a full-blown distress call that the German Shipowners’ Association issued to politicians. Between 2014 and 2016, more and more commercial ships were rescuing drowning refugees in the Mediterranean – and it was leaving the German Shipowners’ Association feeling overwhelmed. One ship owner from Hamburg was – and continues to be – particularly hard hit. Christopher E.O. Opielok supplies oil and gas rigs off the Libyan coast. “Our crew members are seeing people die; they are drowning in front of our eyes,” he told German tv channel n-tv in 2015. His crews succeeded in saving the lives of 1,500 refugees during this period. A lot has happened since the height of the crisis. The ship owners’ SOS was heard, and both the EU and German Navy have since sent ships to help – periodically, at least. They are supposed to put a stop to people smuggling, “but they have also saved the lives of refugees,” says Ralf Nagel, Chief Executive Officer of the German Shipowners’ Association. There are a number of aid organisations who go out on special ships to rescue refugees, he adds: “That has been a big help for commercial shipping.” It is a good thing because, unlike aid organisations’ ships, most commercial ships are not suited to rescuing dozens, let alone hundreds, of people at sea. “Cargo ships are built for the quick transportation of goods, so they normally have high sides,” one captain told Hinz&Kunzt. This means that rescuing people at sea is a major technical challenge, he added. Using a pilot ladder is only a possibility for a few, strong people and life boats can usually only take a few people. In addition, there is often too little food, water and life-saving equipment, including blankets, on board – let alone facilities for adequately accommodating cold and dehydrated people and providing medical care. “Some refugees freeze to death within minutes [of being brought] on board after we have pulled them out of the water,” ship owner Opielok told n-tv. The psychological strain on the crew members was – and is – huge as a result. “Many crews are traumatised,” Opielok continued, “and many people are have looked for another job.” For ship owners, such rescue operations are also commercially disadvantageous. “But insurance covers many of the costs,” says Nagel, the German Shipowners’ Association CEO. It reimburses the costs for fuel, supplies and life-saving equipment. “The biggest burden is borne by people working at sea,” he says. Every shipping company and captain would, of course, pick up refugees if they were asked for help. “Rescuing people at sea goes without saying,” Nagel says. “Every sailor knows how dangerous it can be at sea. And an overloaded dingy with 150 people on board is always an emergency situation.” Rescuing people at sea is not just a matter of honour for sailors: it is also governed by international law. “The only time when it’s a matter of discretion is when the rescue would put the lives of the crew at risk,” Nagel clarifies; for example, if a ship needed to approach a burning oil platform to help people. “Then the captain can decide to keep a [safe] distance because the risk of explosion,” Nagel explains. “But if I see a sinking dinghy, fundamentally, there’s no room for discretion.” In practice, ships are ordered to the scene of an accident by the Maritime Rescue Co-ordination Centre (MRCC), which knows where every ship is at any given time. Captains must obey the orders of the MRCC, whether or not they can then continue on their delayed journey. “We can’t evade our responsibility or simply pass by – that’s not on,” Nagel says. “Any captain who doesn’t follow an order can face criminal prosecution, including retrospective prosecution.” Those saving lives can also face problems. In June, Italy refused the Danish container ship Alexander Maersk permission to enter an Italian port. This was not despite, but because, of the face that the ship had 100 rescued migrants on board. “If a German ship had been affected, we would have put pressure on politicians,” Nagel says. And that is what the Danish government and the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) did: Italy eventually allowed the Alexander Maersk to enter the port of Pozzallo, after days of waiting. Translated from German by Holly Bickerton Courtesy of Hinz&Kunzt / INSP. ngo Helpers from Sea-Watch spotted an overloaded dingy at the end of May in the middle of the Mediterranean. The refugees were able to be saved and brought ashore. Mitten auf dem Mittelmeer entdecken Helfer der Sea-Watch Ende Mai ein ¸berf¸lltes Schlauchboot. Die Fl¸chtlinge konnten gerettet und an Land gebracht werden. Credit: CHRIS GRODOTZKI / SEA-WATCH.ORG THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED �N o. 39 3 |- N ov 2 8, - N o v 19, 2 0 18 Jan. 25 Feb. 2019 | No. 399 STREETVOICE 11 Commissioner Driehaus, Councilman Mann, and County Issues in 2019 Commissioner driehaus and councilman mann reflect on issues confronting county and city government in 2019 at the first community issues forum of the new year. Image from Freeimages.com BILL WOODS Contributing Writer W hat are the important issues confronting City Council and the Hamilton County Commission in 2019 and beyond? Councilman David Mann and County Commissioner Denise Driehaus addressed this question as well as assessing how they see local government's role in future developments and plans at the first Community Issues Forum of the new year. Instead of speaking separately, the two elected officials informally talked in tandem and responded to the many questions of Forum attendees. Budget issues, according to both Mann and Driehaus, are the first big hurdles facing both the City and the County. Driehaus explained that the County confronted a $28-million deficit that must be dealt with. At the moment a hiring freeze is in place, and cuts have been made to basic services. She indicated that a hike in the sales tax might well be necessary. Although the projected City deficit is not as high as the County's, It still adds up to millions of dollars. Traditionally, noted Mann, the Police and Fire budgets are held harmless, and these services take a huge percentage of the City's revenue. That means that other services and departments must absorb the cuts. Mann, who chairs the Finance Committee, was critical that too much revenue has been lost in recent years due to the City's cutting of a large portion of its share of the property tax. Driehaus and Mann talked about the negative impacts on their budgets due to the major loss of money from the State Local Government Fund. They told Forum attendees to tell Governor DeWine that this funding needs to be restored. Both implied that the long-standing mantra of "no new taxes" is making government at all levels unworkable. Several members of the audience asked the speakers about tax abatements and their impacts on revenue for public services. They questioned whether these abatements were really needed to bring in businesses and spur development. Mann defended tax abatements as a tool that had been necessary to broker developments that had improved the city's economic climate. However, he said that the City's abatement policies were under review, and that stiffer requirements were now being written into abatement agreements. He mentioned a proposal being considered by Council to require major housing projects to include a percentage of affordable units in their developments in order to qualify for abatement. Staying with the theme of housing, Mann said the City has established a fund to help tenants who are evicted from housing to survive the crisis of suddenly having no place to live. Citing the book, "Evicted," he acknowledged that evictions create a myriad of problems including homelessness. Mann also noted his support for the recent establishment of an affordable housing trust fund, but he admitted that this fund still lacked a funding base. Attendees pressed Driehaus about the Sheriff 's cooperation with ICE in terms of contacting ICE officials when the County is holding an undocumented immigrant. This policy, they declared, has brought about some tragic deportations. Driehaus agreed to meet with advocates of immigrant rights to further discuss this ongoing issue. Both Driehaus and Mann voiced their support for improving the declining bus service. They said that SORTA needed to put forward a plan with an adequate tax proposal, and they mentioned growing grassroots support for having a public transit system that connects city residents with the suburban job base. Mann and Driehaus told Forum attendees they had enjoyed this informal give and take with them. They promised to come back in the fall. The Forum on January 31st will feature Josh Spring, Executive Director of the Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition, providing an update on homelessness in Greater Cincinnati. HIV Services in Cincinnati MAURICE GOLSBY I Contributing Writer t’s important that people are aware of what’s going on with HIV services. It happened to me, it can happen to anyone. No one is exempt from HIV. I came across these services when I was in jail. They told me where to go, and the Northern Kentucky Health Department asked me if I wanted to be a part of a support group. I said yes, and that’s how I heard about Positive Souls. We have a group called Positive Souls for HIV positive men and a group called Girlfriend to Girlfriend for HIV positive women. There’s another support group called Neamans and Caracole has a support group as well. Only men of color are in Positive Souls and only women of color are in Girlfriend to Girlfriend. Positive Souls is the oldest support group, around since 1999. They’re like family to me now. We lost a lot of members, people who founded the group. Some of them died from HIV/AIDS, cancer, one got killed. Caracole offers you case management and house management. Once you get a case manager, she’ll do anything you ask her, within reason. She’ll take you to a doctor if you’d like her to. Housing manager will call a furniture place to get your furniture. It’s called New Life Furniture. The case workers keep track of what I’m doing and not doing. I can’t lie to her. She has it all right in front of her and says, “Maurice, this is what you need to do.” I moved in on a Tuesday, by Friday they delivered my furniture. I was fully furnished, bed and everything. I always slept on the floor before and later came up with a bed. I only had to sleep on the floor for two nights this time! If you live in northern Kentucky, there’s the Northern Kentucky Health Department. They have HIV/AIDS THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED support services. I get a $20 gift card for groceries from them. I got a lot of donations from friends, like pots and pans, and a church called Higher Faith. They also donated a bed when I was living in Mt. Washington. Pots, pans, dishes, the whole nine yards. If anyone needs to know anything with support groups, come talk to me. I have no problem telling people about it. I have no problem sitting down and talking to people. Someone said, “You have HIV? You don’t look like it.” Well, I do. It’s safe to be around me. We look like everyone else. �12 STREETVOICE Girls Writing Circle Peaslee Neighborhood Center has a continued partnership with Rothenberg Preparatory Academy, conducing the Girls Writing Circle in the after school program. Our circle creates an open and safe space for girls to express themselves, and be heard and validated by their peers. Our hope is to give our girls an opportunity to discover and display their creativity, opinions, and voices through a process that is grounded in respect and an appreciation for each girls’ unique gifts. Blossoming I love when the flowers are blossoming. They smell delicious And are pretty. When they are blossoming, I think of when my hands Are opening and closing. I like when the flowers Are blossoming Because they open As slow as a turtle. ZY’AUNA CRAWFORD Junior Writer N o v 25 2 - -NFeb. o v 19, 2 0 18 || No. N o . 399 393 Jan. 8, 2019 Creeping Thistle A woman that I am very close with Is my mama. We are very alike, But we’re also different. I love her with all my heart, And I know she loves me. Me and my mama have fun times, Sometimes we have bad times. But when all that’s done, I know that my mama is the person That I can turn to, And I know she will always Have my back, No matter the situationIf I’m wrong, Or if I’m right. I just love my mama With all my heart. I love her smile, Her laugh, The way she talks, The advice she gives me. She is my whole heart, And I love her And I always will. I am blessed to call her my Mama. KIMORE GOVER Junior Writer Streetvibes Writing Circle If you would like to submit a story for publication in streetvibes, come join Katelyn Lusher and Chris Wilkey for a group writing session! S treetvibes is distributed by individuals who purchase the paper for 75 cents per copy and sell it for a $2.00 donation, keeping the profit they have earned. Becoming a Distributor is a great way for individuals who are financially poor to get back on (or stay on) their feet. This program provides supplemental income for those unable to secure other employment. Money earned helps meet basic housing, food and health care needs. The program is a hand up for people who are often in a place of getting only a hand out, or even no hand at all. All Distributors wear a badge and usually a vest and can be found selling the paper in Downtown Cincinnati, Clifton, Northside, Northern Kentucky and at area churches. THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED �STREETVOICE No. 39 Nov 28,- 2019 N o v 19, 2 0 399 18 Jan. 253- |Feb. | No. The Federal Government Shutdown Mother Goose 13 A Wall Did you ever think about a wall ? Or the meaning of it to us all ? Pussy cat, pussy cat, why the big frown? "I'm upset by the government shutdown. So many services unavailable to us all, So Trump can rant about his stupid wall!" BILL WOODS Contributing Writer Today we have several walls Walls between the rich and the poor Walls that define prejudice what a eye sore Walls that stop the people from having voices Walls that deny people to have choices So what are our lives worth or living for If we as a people don’t come together to open the door To the realization we are being controlled And without the faith in God our souls we sold I believe we have enough walls in our lives Why pay for another wall we already have strife We as people must come to understand That only threw God grace will we live in this land WILLA DENISE JONES Streetvibes Distributor Contributing Writer THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED �PUZZLE 14 CROSSWORD PUZZLE NO. 188 Across Down 1. Annoying person 1. Optical device 5. Accumulate 2. Ahead of time 10. Hymenopterous insect 3. Abrade 14. Speed contest 4. Stress 15. Highest part in choral music 5. Perform 16. Friendly nation 6. Post 17. Metallic element 7. Not in favor of 18. Largest satellite of Saturn 8. Celestial bodies 19. Bellow 9. Form of musical 20. Parially melted snow composition 22. Former currency of Italy 10. Hawkish 23. Stringed instrument 11. With relatively 24. Large indefinite number high volume 26. Pace 12. Roofing material 28. Speak up 13. Funeral mound of wood 31. Diving bird 21. Chance event 32. Chess piece 25. Cut into cubes 35. Fossil fuel 27. Artifice 37. Tennis stroke 29. Average 41. Lyric poem 30. Part of a roof 42. Act of help or assistance 32. Cooking vessel 44. Lubricant 33. Fuss 45. Add up 34. Sodden 47. Net 36. Roster 48. Quantity of paper 38. Fish eggs 49. Railway vehicle 39. By way of 51. No longer new 40. Type of wood 53. Pronouncement 42. Spline 56. Devastate 43. Scorch 60. Bill of fare 46. Charge of wrongdoing 61. Oaf 48. Change to the contrary 64. Asian pepper plant 50. Measuring sticks 65. Concludes 52. Research workplace, 66. Bordered in short 68. Memorization by repetition 53. Impenetrable 69. Continent 54. Country 70. Pass along 55. Good example 71. Self-satisfied 57. Particles 72. Kind of duck 58. Garb 73. Sludge 59. Lament 74. Catch sight of 60. Food product NJan. o v 225 - N o v 19, 0 18 || N o . 393 - Feb. 8,22019 No. 399 SODOKU PUZZLE NO 391 - MEDIUM 62. Large sweet juicy fruit 63. Squad 67. Staining substance PUZZLE SOLUTIONS CROSSWORD #188 SODOKU PUZZLE NO 390- MEDIUM PUZZLES from puzzlechoice.com and puzzles.ca THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED �N o. 39 ov 2 8, - N o v 19, 2 0 18 Jan. 253 -| N Feb. 2019 | No. 399 Central Access Point 381-SAFE Shelter: Women and Children RESOURCES Prince of Peace Lutheran Church 621-7265 1528 Race St. 45202 Churches Active in Northside Bethany House 557-2873 4230 Hamilton Ave. 45223 591-2246 FreeStore/FoodBank 241-1064 1841 Fairmount Ave. 45214 The Esther Marie Hatton Center for Women 2499 Reading Road 562-1980 Grace Place Catholic Worker House 681-2365 112 E. Liberty Street 45202 Madisonville Ed & Assistance Center 271-5501 4600 Erie Ave. 45227 Serves area codes: 45226, 45227, 45208, 45209 6037 Cary Ave. 45224 Salvation Army 762-5660 St. Vincent de Paul 562-8841 131 E. 12th Street 45202 1125 Bank Street 45214 YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter 872-9259 Treatment or Supportive Recovery: Men Shelter: Men Charlie’s 3/4 House 784-1853 Shelterhouse 721-0643 2121 Vine Street 45202 411 Gest St. 45203 Prospect House 921-1613 1437 Walnut Street 45202 Starting Over 961-2256 1805 Dalton Ave. 45214 Treatment or Supportive Recovery: Women St. Fran/St. Joe Catholic Work. House 381-4941 682 Hawthorne Ave. 45205 City Gospel Mission 241-5525 Parkway Center 661-4620 First Step Home 961-4663 Shelter: Youth 2203 Fulton, Cinti, Ohio 45206 Sheakley Center for Youth (18-24 y/o) 2522 Highland Ave. 45219 569-9500 Lighthouse Youth Crisis Center (10-17 y/o) 3330 Jefferson Ave 45220 961-4080 Shelter: Family Interfaith Hospitality Network Treatment or Supportive Recovery: Both AA Hotline 351-0422 CCAT 381-6672 830 Ezzard Charles Dr. 45214 Joseph House (Veterans) 471-1100 1522 Republic Street 45202 Caracole (HIV/AIDS) 761-1480 CMHA 721-4580 Excel Development 632-7149 OTR Community Housing 381-1171 114 W. 14th Street 45202 Talbert House 221-HELP Tender Mercies 721-8666 27 W. 12th Street 45202 Tom Geiger House 961-4555 Volunteers of America 381-1954 Anna Louise Inn 421-5211 Cincinnati Union Bethel 768-6907 VA 977-6800 VA Homeless 859-572-6226 Food/Clothing First Lutheran Church 421-0065 1208 Race St. Food - Last Monday 12-1 Clothing - second Monday 12-1 Lord’s Pantry 621-5300 OTR/Walnut Hills Kitchen & Pantry 961-1983 OTR: 1620 Vine Street 45202 Walnut Hills: 2631 Gilbert Ave. 45206 Our Daily Bread 621-6364 1730 Race Street 45202 St. Francis Seraph Ministries 549-0542 St. George Food Pantry 2554 Dennis St. 45219 751-8771 St. Anthony Center 1615 Republic St. Advocacy Catholic Social Action 421-3131 Community Action Agency 569-1840 Contact Center 381-4242 Franciscan JPIC 721-4700 Gr. Cinti Coalition for the Homeless 421-7803 117 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 2401-2411 Reading Rd. 45202 2401 Reading Rd. 45202 241-2965 Hamilton County Mental Health and Recovery Services Board 946-8000 Recovery Health Access Center 281-7422 Sober Living 681-0324 Talbert House 221-HELP Housing: 15 Legal Aid Society 241-9400 Ohio Justice & Policy Center 421-1108 UpSpring 363-3300 Health Cincinnati Health Network 2825 Burnet Ave. 45219 Other Resources Center Independent Living Options 241-2600 Peaslee Neighborhood Center 621-5514 215 E. 14th St. 45202 Franciscan Haircuts from the Heart 381-0111 Goodwill Industries 771-4800 Intercommunity Justice & Peace Cr. 579-8547 Mary Magdalen House 721-4811 1223 Main St. 45202 People Working Cooperatively 351-7921 The Caring Place 631-1114 Talbert House 751-7747 United Way 211 Women Helping Women 977-5541 Off The Streets 421-5211 Hamilton County Office of Reentry 946-4304 138 E. Court Street Room # 101 First Floor Cancer Justice Network 404-3882 Hamilton/Middletown St. Raephaels 981-4200 Salvation Army 863-1445 Serenity House Day Center 422-8555 Open Door Pantry 868-3276 Northern Kentucky Brighton Center (11-17 y/o) 859-491-8303 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 799 Ann St. Newport, KY 205 West Pike Street, Covington, KY 41011 Women’s Crisis Center 859-491-3335 VA Domiciliary 859-572-6202 Emergency Shelter of Northern Kentucky 634 Scott St. 41011 859-291-4555 Want to advertise in Streetvibes? You can support our mission and spread the word about your business. For more information contact Gabriela Godinez Feregrino, 961-0600 email streetvibes@cincihomeless.org Center for Respite Care 621-1868 3550 Washington Ave. 45229 Crossroad Health Center 381-2247 5 E. Liberty St. 45202 Health Resource Center 357-4602 McMicken Integrated Care Clinic and Mobile Medical Van 386-7899 40 E. McMicken Ave, Cinti, Ohio McMicken Dental Clinic 352-6363 40 E. McMicken Ave, Cinti Mental Health Access Point 558-8888 NAMI of Hamilton County 351-3500 PATH Outreach 977-4489 THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED �16 N o v 211 - N o v 19, 18 | |NNo. o . 393 Jan. - Jan. 25,2 02019 398 S treetvibes is distributed by individuals who purchase the paper for 75 cents per copy and sell it for a $2.00 donation, keeping the profit they have earned. Becoming a Distributor is a great way for individuals who are financially poor to get back on (or stay on) their feet. This program provides supplemental income for those unable to secure other employment. Money earned helps meet basic housing, food and health care needs. The program is a hand up for people who are often in a place of getting only a hand out, or even no hand at all. All Distributors wear a badge and usually a vest and can be found selling the paper in Downtown Cincinnati, Clifton, Northside, Northern Kentucky and at area churches. ALFRED WOOLFOLK SINCE 10/2003 ASRES AYENAW SINCE 2012 BERTA LAMBERT SINCE 1997 BETTIE BAILEY SINCE 10/2017 BRANDON NELSON SINCE 4/2008 BRIAN ADAMS SINCE 7/2017 CHARLES WILLIAMS SINCE 7/2017 CHRISTOPHER KAIHATSU SINCE 7/2017 CLEO WOMBLES SINCE 10/2003 CRANDALL COBB SINCE 2004 DARREL ROZIER SINCE 7/2017 DAVID MCCANE SINCE 2017 ERIC VALDEZ SINCE 2/2017 GERALD FRANKLIN SINCE 7/2017 GRADY COOK SINCE 1997 HENRY BRELAND SINCE 7/2017 JAMES BROWN SINCE 3/2009 JAMES DAVIS SINCE 8/2000 JENNY BURTON SINCE 7/2017 JIMMIE GIPSON SINCE 2001 JON DARBY SINCE 2/2006 JOHN HORN JOSEPHINE BASKERVILLE SINCE 9/2008 J’TORI TYMAN SINCE 5/2014 KIM NGUYEN SINCE 7/2017 KENNY BUSSELL SINCE 10/2009 KAREN COLLETTE SINCE 7/2008 LARRY BROWN SINCE 10/2007 LEE MCCOY SINCE 7/2009 LEONARD JACKSON SINCE 2/2005 MARY MUELLER SINCE 5/2005 MARK SHEARS SINCE 4/2012 MAURICE GOLSBY MELISSA MOSBY SINCE 9/2014 MIKE CARANO SINCE 4/2016 RAESHAWN GIPSON SINCE 3/2009 RAYNARD JONES SINCE 10/2008 RICKY WOODS SINCE 4/2015 RICCARDO TAYLOR SINCE 1999 RONNIE PHILLIPS SINCE 10/2009 SAMUEL JACKSON SINCE 10/2006 STACIA HOLLANDER SINCE 2017 STEPHANIE EAKES SINCE 7/2017 SYLVESTER WALKER SINCE 7/2017 TALINA HILL SINCE 2/2011 VICTOR MUMPHRY WILLA JONES SINCE 1/2010 WINNIE RICE SINCE 7/2017 QUEENACELASTINE SINCE 7/2017 TIA CASS SINCE 11/2007 THE VOICE OF THE STREET...UNSILENCED TONY THOMAS SINCE 3/2005 KEITH EUTSEY SINCE 2/2011 VIOLET COLLINS SINCE 2017 � 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 2019 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource January 25-February 8, 2019 Subject The topic of the resource Homelessness Description An account of the resource Pg 1: Cover Page Pg 2: From the Director Pg 3: Microsoft Loans $500 Million to Address the County’s Housing Crisis Serving Up Food and Literature Pg 4: GCHC Pg 5: Eat Plants, Save the Planet Pg 6: With Clubs and Churches, Berlin Becomes Home for Migrants Pg 7: Morocco’s Migrant Workers Struggle to Send Money Home Pg 8: Keep an Eye On… Pg 9: Feature Pg 10: Rescuing People at Sea is a Sailor’s responsibility Pg 11: Commissioner Driehaus, Councilman Mann, and County Issues IN 2019 HIV Services in Cincinnati Pg 12: Street Voice Pg 13: Street Voice Pg 14: Puzzles Pg 15: Resources Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Streetvibes Archive Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Streetvibes Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource January 25-February 8, 2019 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Josh Spring Ashley Archibald Zachary Headings Tharanga Yakupitiyage Riham Alkousaa Danielle Engolo Dr. Mark Mussman Bill Woods Birgit Müller Maurice Golsby Willa Denise Jones Zy’auna Crawford Kimore Gover Homeless Coalition Freeimage.com Gabriela Godinez Street Sense Inter Press Service Hinz & Kunzt Reuters Amanda Meek Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Amanda Meek Ashley Archibald Berlin Bill Woods Birgit Müller Cincinnati city council Danielle Engolo David Mann Dr. Mark Mussman Freeimage.com Gabriela Godinez Hinz & Kunzt HIV Homeless Coalition Inter Press Service Josh Spring Kimore Gover Maurice Golsby Microsoft Migrants Morocco Reuters Riham Alkousaa Street Sense Tharanga Yakupitiyage Willa Denise Jones Zachary Headings Zy’auna Crawford