14 10 291 https://streetvibesarchive.net/files/original/2e2870501e546706613f8b3d3b690c03.pdf 127cb631a9a55c867527eb46941db712 PDF Text Text Immigration Protests Mark Reds Game CS13 Re-examines and Reinvents art page 6 page 7 Oct. 1-14, 2010 • Issue 185 • One Dollar ADVOCATING JUSTICE • BUILDING COMMUNITY Cost of Justice: $42,000 an Hour ­ Too much prosecution? By Eli Braun Contributing Writer “ ‘S mall potatoes’ is no defense,” a judge tells a defendant in a recent New Yorker cartoon. And while “small potatoes” might be a poor defense, it might be reason enough to keep a case out of court. That’s the thrust of a new study on the cost of prosecuting criminal defendants in Hamilton County. The study, which I helped research for the Ohio Justice & Policy Center (OJPC), asks the question: How much does it cost taxpayers to put people on trial, from their initial detention to a con­ viction or acquittal? The OJPC study only counted adult cases and exclud­ ed juvenile cases. It also excluded the costs of civil cases, policing (except testimony in court by police) and cor­ rections. Generally, if a program did not deal directly with adult crimi­ nal defendants, it wasn’t counted. The result was astounding: For every hour the Hamilton County Courthouse was open for adult criminal cases in 2008, taxpayers put up $42,000. That’s just under $400,000 per weekday and $2 mil­ lion per week. The cause, in part, is a flood of small-potatoes cases. Hamilton County files twice as many misde­ meanor cases annually as Frank­ lin County – despite comparable population size and demograph­ ics. The misdemeanor filing rate is 1 per 23 people in Hamilton County and 1 per 45 in Franklin County. In fact, Hamilton Coun­ Warped justice: Unnecessary prosecution drives up costs. Eli Braun. ty’s misdemeanor filing rate far exceeds Franklin County’s even after excluding cases stemming from workforce and for the entire com­ study, as the report explains, because Cincinnati’s regressive marijuana or­ munity’s safety. The study highlights “policymakers and taxpayers should dinance (see “Cincinnati’s Marijuana three points. understand the economic impact of Law Fiasco,” issue of May 15-31). First, during this economic misdemeanor arrests and subsequent downturn, counties have come to court functions.” ‘Flooding the system’ understand that prosecuting petty Second, regarding social impacts infractions such as loitering, open beyond money, an excessive misde­ Such heavy misdemeanor casel­ containers of alcohol and curfew meanor caseload needlessly creates oads carry enormous costs – not just violations can often lead to expensive for taxpayers’ wallets but for the city’s prosecutions. OJPC undertook the See Justice, P. 5 Serving the Ministry of Irritation ­ A woman priest point? That’s what Jesus is about – not about be­ ing consumers, not about the constant search for security.” works for reform ‘Another system of evil’ By Gregory Flannery Editor P eople gather at an undisclosed location to celebrate Mass. They face persecution if they are caught – not from the state, as in the early days of the Christian church, when the Ro­ man Empire forced believers into catacombs or, as in the 20th century, when communism forced Catho­ lics in Eastern Europe underground. These Catholics fear repression by their own religious leaders, the hierarchy of the Roman Catho­ lic Church. Their priest is a woman, Janice SevreDuszynska, who says God called her to the ministry. In 2008 a female Catholic bishop ordained SevreDuszynska. The Vatican holds that both women thereby incurred automatic excommunication. Catholics who attend a liturgy presided over by Sevre-Duszynska risk the same punishment, and she spoke on condition that the location of their gathering not be reported. Sevre-Duszynska says she celebrates Mass where she’s invited. She moved to Cincinnati last year when her mother-in-law’s health declined. For 25 years SevreDuszynska was a teacher in Lexington, Ky. For the past two years she has served as a priest. She sees her vocation as something more than a ceremonial Janice Sevre-Duszynska celebrates Mass. Robert Pohowsky. role – it is inevitably and vigorously political. “Jesus was very political,” she says. “They’ve got him so watered down. They want to stay in their comfort zone, but that’s not what he was about. He was about empowering people. If the church isn’t standing up for the poor and oppressed, what is the Last summer Sevre-Duszynska was one of 37 peace activists arrested during a demonstration at the Y-12 nuclear-weapons plant in Oak Ridge, Tenn. (see “A Joyous Hammer Strikes Again,” issue of Aug. 1-14). During the protest – she prefers the term “witness” – she danced a polka and wore a stole, or liturgical scarf, bearing images of children around the world. “To me, this is a sacrament,” she says. “It was great to be with all these peace- and justice-makers from around the world. That’s where I’m happiest – on the streets.” In 2002 Sevre-Duszynska was sentenced to three months in a federal prison for her participation in a protest at the School of the Americas at Fort Ben­ ning, Ga. She sees her liturgical role completely in sync with her political work, opposing what she calls “the idol­ atry of the weapons.” Indeed she points to priests and nuns who have participated in non-violent civil disobedience as “models of priesthood” for her. “These are the Old Testament prophets, people who address the powers that be,” Sevre-Duszynska says. “They say, ‘Is this how you treat my people? Is this taking care of the basic needs of my people?’ See Priests, P. 5 �2 The Vibe ­ By The Numbers ­ 710 The amount, in dollars, that Choctaw Indians sent to poor people in Ireland in 1847(see page 11). 1420 The address on main Street for CS13’s new gallery (see page 7). 1903 The year W.E.B. Du Bois wrote The Souls of Black Folk (see page 16). 400,000 The death toll for bats so far from white nose syndrome (see page 7). 100 The cost, in millions of dollars, spent by Hamilton County on adult prosecutions in 2008 (see page 1). 2009 The year the Rev. Mark Schmieder died (see page 14). 1 The number of decades Riccardo Taylor spent as a Streetvibes vendor (see page 12). 10,000 The number of ex-prisoners asking the Safer Foundation for help finding jobs (see page 8). 15 The date in September when supporters of immigrants’ rights unveiled posters at a Reds game (see page 4). 5,265 The cost, in dollars, to shelter and re-house a family of four after they’ve been evicted (see page 4). StreetWise By GreGory Flannery Editor A Year of Writing Artfully When Saad Ghosn wrote his second biweekly column for Streetvibes, he asked that we change the tag line we had first used, identifying his day job. Ghosn is a physician and a medical professor. He didn’t want those facts distracting readers from the subject of his column. He also organizes SOS Art, an annual exhibition of art on social and political themes. He is a busy man, and he takes both medicine and art seriously. Our Sept. 1 edition was the one-year anniversary of Ghosn’s column, “Artists as Activists” (see page 16). In the past year he has showcased the work of artists in Greater Cincinnati whose work in a wide range of media – painting, poetry, sculpture, mixed media – give expression to the human condition and the irrepressible urge to improve, even ennoble, it. We look forward to another year of “Artists as Activists.” Ghosn is one of a corps of volunteers whose writing, photography, layout and proofreading make Streetvibes what it is. Do You Find This Titillating? Of course, what Streetvibes is doesn’t appeal to everyone. In the past few weeks some street papers in the United States, including Streetvibes, have found themselves in conflict with the Catholic Church. Street Roots in Portland, Ore., lost funding from the Archdiocese of Portland because the paper publishes a resource guide that includes Planned Parenthood. That organization offers contraceptive and abortion services, of which the Catholic Church disapproves. In the case of Streetvibes, copies of a recent edition were distributed to a group of Catholic ninth-grade students, which probably was not a good idea. The Sept. 1 edition contained an interview with rock star John Mellencamp, who used vulgar language in referring to members of Congress. Catholic organizations have previously criticized Streetvibes for quoting people using coarse language. For what it’s worth, I bet that every one of the kids who received that issue of our paper was already familiar with the word that Mellencamp used. But we’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again: Streetvibes isn’t written for children. Let them enjoy such innocence as they can on their path to adulthood. We don’t use vulgar language in order to titillate – and no, that’s not a naughty word. People in distress sometimes use vulgar language, especially faced with the kinds of issues that are often the subject of articles in Streetvibes: Poverty, homelessness, oppression. We believe in quoting people as they really speak, and sometimes that offends certain readers. At the same time, our society has an unhealthy habit of believing some words – which aren’t at all vulgar – shouldn’t be spoken in public. The result can make certain problems worse, which is the point of Margo Pierce’s column, “Eight Minutes using the V Word” (see page 3). Ohio Didn’t Kill This Time We are pleased to report that Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland commuted the death sentence of Kevin Keith, who was scheduled to be poisoned Sept. 15 by prison guards. The state prefers to use the phrase “lethal injection” – a bit of word play that should offend all our readers, given that its use is intended to mask the odious nature of what is done. Keith benefited from a nationwide petition campaign calling on Strickland to spare his life. Many believe Keith is innocent. His supporters included more than 30 former state and federal judges and prosecutors, the Ohio Innocence Project, the National Innocence Network, more than 100 religious leaders and organizations and 13 leading experts on eyewitness and memory. Strickland changed Keith’s sentence to life in prison without parole. La Botz Says, ‘ONO, You Don’t’ Dan La Botz, Ohio’s Socialist candidate for the U.S. Senate, has filed a complaint accusing the Ohio Newspaper Organization (ONO) and its corporate members with making illegal corporate contributions to Rob Portman’s and Lee Fisher’s Senate campaigns. ONO is a for-profit business enterprise created by the eight largest newspapers in Ohio. ONO organized three televised debates (using television stations owned by ONO’s members). No candidate other than the Republican and Democratic candidates are allowed to participate in these debates (see “Dems and GOP Say, ‘Stay Away,’ ” issue of Sept. 15­ 30). By arranging the debate in such a way, ONO has, in effect, made an illegal corporate campaign contribution to Fisher and Portman, according to La Botz’s complaint with the Federal Election Commission (FEC). “Clandestine deals between corporate America and its preferred candidates cannot be tolerated in free elections,” La Botz says. “If corporations, including news organizations, are to participate in American politics, they must – absolutely must – comply with the law. They must be neutral. They must be fair. They cannot simply shovel money, coverage, television exposure and political favors to the two major-party candidates. Nor can candidates legally bargain for these gratuities. “If they really believe in a democratic process and fair elections, the news organizations and candidates named in this complaint should take action immediately to include all other parties and candidates in the debates they are organizing. The FEC, as the guarantor of fair elections, should also act at once to ensure that I and other parties and candidates are included in these and other such debates. I think it important for these and for future elections to hold these candidates and their corporate sponsors accountable for their wrongdoing.” STREETVIBES October 1-14, 2010 Streetvibes is an activist newspaper, advocating justice and building community. Streetvibes reports on economic issues, civil rights, the environment, the peace movement, spirituality and the struggle against homelessness and poverty. Distributed by people who are or once were homeless, in exchange for a $1 donation, Streetvibes is published twice a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Address: 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 Phone: 513.421.7803 x 12 Fax: 513.421.7813 E-mail: streetvibes2@yahoo. com Web site: www. cincihomeless.org Blog: streetvibes.wordpress. com Streetvibes Staff Editor Gregory Flannery Art Director Joseph Szydlowski Vendor Coordinator Georgia Bohannon Contributing Writers Michelle Dillingham, Samantha Groark, Margo Pierce, Paul Kopp, Jeremy Flannery, Michael Henson, David Heitfield, Corey Gibson, Jeni Jenkins, Saad Ghosn, Lew Moores, Larry Gross, Eli Braun, Jesse Call, Michael Fanning, B. Clifton Burke Photography/Artwork Aimie Willhoite, Lynne Ausman, Anne Skove, Vinit Murthy, Jon Hughes, Brad Foster Proofreaders Jeremy Flannery The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that works to eradicate homelessness in Cincinnati through coordination of services, public education, grassroots advocacy and Streetvibes. We are proud members of: �8 3 Column STREETVIBES October 1-14, 2010 M I N U T E S Using the V-Word Chronic vaginal pain is common but rarely discussed By Margo Pierce Contributing Writer When the pain your experience is socially acceptable – a headache, lower back pain, a sprained ankle – it’s a perfectly reasonable topic of conversation and frequently leads to sharing, “This medicine works for me.” But if you’re a woman and the pain you experiences results from just putting on a pair of panties and walking across the room, well, you’d best keep that little problem to yourself. What more than six million aren’t talking about much is vulvodynia – vaginal pain disorders. According to the National Vulvodynia Association (http://www.nva.org), this statistic represents a variety of pain disorders ranging from a rash and occasional irritation to constant pain or sharp pains during sexual intercourse. There is no known cause for vulvodynia and the only treatment is alleviating the various symptoms that are diagnosed. The current definition, according to the association, is “chronic vulvar pain without an identifiable cause.” “We cannot educate and we cannot better understand our bodies until we get rid of the stigma that’s attached to the word ‘sex,’ ” says Patty Brisben, founder of non-profit Patty Brisben Foundation for Women’s Sexual Health (www.pattybrisbenfoundation.org). “I want people to be more open because it’s not only going to be about us – it’s going to be happening to our daughters and our daughter’s daughter. It’s so important to learn more about our bodies. We pay that forward to our children by being able to openly talk.” So how does a woman deal with an ailment that has no known cause and no known cure? The first step is to pay attention to what your body is telling you – something isn’t right. Then persist in getting a diagnosis, even when you’re being told there’s nothing wrong with you. “We have to educate, and we have to allow women to know that this truly does exist. This is not in their mind,” Brisben says. “When women go see their health-care providers, they generally have to see seven doctors, and I’ve heard high as 16. A lot of women have suffered and still are suffering in silence because they have been dismissed by their doctors: ‘Maybe you should see a marriage counselor. Drink a bottle of wine (before sex). Get a good lubricant; it’s going to be so much better.’ ” The board of directors of the Brisben Foundation includes physicians who are treating women with vulvodynia. Brisben says more research and collecting information about this disorder is a top priority for the foundation. “We’re currently starting a registry and the women who are now being treated for vulvodynia can go in and report what’s going on Patty Brisben asks why it’s OK to say “erectile dysfunction” but not “vagina.” Jon Hughes/ Photopresse. with their treatment,” she says. “This is going to better educate our physicians on how to treat this. There is no cure. There is none because there is so little research done. Doctors are seeing more and more patients with this … and trying to find answers.” The stated mission of the Patty Brisben Foundation is to “support research to identify information and develop tools that enable women to have appropriate discussions regarding sexual health among themselves, with their family members, relational partners and health-care providers.” That last one – health­ care providers – is a special concern for Brisben. In addition to developing two educational videos to help educate physicians and their patients about vaginal pain disorders, Brisben says she wants women to understand that finding a doctor who will listen to their concerns is critical. “If you cannot go in and you cannot sit with your health care provider and you’re not able to open up to him or her about what’s currently going on with your body, if they’re not giving you sound information, they’re not talking to you …you need to look for another health-care provider – someone you are comfortable with, someone who is going to provide answers,” she says. Brisben expects doctors to do their homework. She says resources about vulvodynia are not as extensive as they need to be, but the information is out there and the docs need to learn all they can in order to help women. “I don’t think it’s fair for any woman to go to her health-care provider and not be able to get answers,” she says. “I want doctors to know that women should not suffer in silence anymore. They should be able to provide more answers and more information. “I’ve been in this industry working with women and sexual health and providing a safe environment for them to be able to have a platform to ask questions and learn more about their bodies. I take great pride in that. I love that. I fell in love with this platform early on. I’ve always wanted to be for all women … to be the one to go out and find these answers for women.” While vulvodynia is a priority for the Brisben Foundation, the organization advocates for women’s health in a variety of ways. Menopause, cancer, breast health, vaginal health, female sexual dysfunction, intimacy after childbirth and libido are the other areas unique to women – rarely discussed but deserving attention. October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, but breast health is hardly dinner-table conversation in most households. It is only by openly discussing and sharing information about women’s sexual health that we will begin to develop a healthy relationship with these issues, according to Brisben. Does this seem far-fetched? Consider the last time you saw a TV ad for erectile dysfunction medication. In her ideal world, Brisben would like to have women sitting in the bleachers at Little League baseball games or sitting around the dinner table discussing vulvodynia and the research efforts underway to find much needed answers. “This is when the suffering in silence will stop, and this is when our doctors will really be able to know that it’s important to … talk to women about these things,” she says. Many people work hard to make a difference for the less privileged in the Queen City; “Eight Minutes” is an opportunity to learn who those people are and what motivates them to do be a positive influence. �4 Issues STREETVIBES October 1-14, 2010 Study Backs Federal Eviction Aid ­ A little help now prevents homelessness later By Michelle Dillingham Contributing Writer U nlike with corporate institutions, it is a rare luxury in the world of socialservice non-profits to find the time and resources to conduct program evaluation and research. Funding for such “extravagant” activities is hard to come by – and yet so important as we seek to identify best practices (otherwise known as “good ideas that work”). Under the watch of Kevin Lab, a fellow social worker and director of programs at the St. Vincent de Paul Society, that agency was able to conduct research on the effectiveness of the Emergency Food and Shelter Program (EFSP). EFSP dollars are federal monies for non-profits to provide emergency assistance for people who are homeless or at risk for homelessness. St. Vincent de Paul used EFSP funds for emergency rental assistance to those facing eviction. In 2007 they provided 128 households with rental assistance, then studied the follow-up data in 2008 to see how effective the assistance was. Their research revealed that a majority of households whom they assisted were able to avoid eviction for at least one year. They were a diverse demographic group, and a majority of those assisted were children. The data also pointed to indicators of increased or decreased likelihood of future eviction. Clients who didn’t face a court eviction hearing in the year prior to receiving EFSP assistance had a smaller chance of facing an eviction hearing after the assistance was provided. Less than one-third of clients who recently started a new job went on to face eviction. And only 9 percent of clients who were temporarily off work due to health reasons faced an eviction after receiving EFSP assistance. “EFSP rental assistance is a relatively low-cost, effective method of homeless prevention for households, especially those with children, facing a short-term financial crisis,” the study found. “EFSP funding should be increased to prevent a greater number of households from becoming homeless.” The study includes compelling cost comparisons showing how assisting a potentially homeless family in their apartment for at least one month with EFSP funds ($700) is significantly more cost-effective than the cost of sheltering and re-housing a homeless family of four ($5,265). Perhaps most important was the conclusion that, even though certain characteristics might be present in a household, no one characteristic can be seen as a determining factor of future housing stability. Lab emphasizes that the findings of the study “are not meant as tools to reject some requests for assistance but to alert us to the special help some people may need to carry forward and maintain their plan for housing stability.” For a copy of the study, contact Michelle Dillingham of Affordable Housing Advocates at 513-421-2701. Explore Your Fairy Tale Forest It’s more important than you realize By Sarah Robinson Contributing Writer I had the privilege this summer to intern at a nature sanctuary in the northern Appalachians of Ohio. The temperate broadleaf (deciduous) forest is southern Ohio’s backyard, but is sadly ignored or taken for granted by Ohioans. The forest here in southern Ohio is the same kind of forest that is in Europe and eastern China. It is also the most disturbed forest in the world. After all, people like to live in the same climates that all those trees, flowers, birds and animals like to live in, too. There are more species of oak, salamanders and mussels – to name just a few – here than in our partner forests around the world. But one legacy we do share lies more in the cultural than biological. Hundreds of years ago, before Europeans cut down most of their forest, people were living and writing in it, and carried those stories with them to the New World. Most of the fairy tales we tell in America are the ones that come from Europe, and they take place in the same kind of forest that is here in our backyard. I feel it every time I step out onto a trail here: “I am walking through a fairy tale.” I am from the West and an admitted nature snob, so I was not sure what I was getting myself into when I came here. I am happy to say that I was pleasantly surprised. The life teeming in these woods is different from what I am used to, but it is just as – if not more – important than the Redwoods of California or the Ponderosa Pine of the Rockies. Southern Ohio’s forest is known as a “biodiversity hotspot,” second only to the rainforest. It is home to the most impressive spring wildflower display in the country, and its fall color rivals New England. So get out there, explore. Look around you. Grab an identification book and start getting to know your neighbors by name. Some of them are disappearing quickly. But they are all important. Let’s not let our forest be known only by some out-of­ date children’s stories. �5 Local News ­ STREETVIBES October 1-14, 2010 Justice Continued from page 1 a large class of former offenders. The over-criminalization of “small potatoes” cases ends up scarring petty offenders as criminals, who then face barriers to jobs and education. Third, excessive caseloads prevent public-safety officials and prosecutors from identifying truly important cases. The study offers an analogy from Janet Moore, a former senior staff attorney at OJPC. Moore compares the county’s criminal justice system to a resource-intensive, resource-scarce hospital emergency room. “Flooding the system with lowerlevel misdemeanor cases is equivalent to swamping the ER with head colds and nosebleeds,” she says. It’s not easy to find the patient with a heart attack when the waiting room is full of minor cases – patients with little more than a sniffle, patients who should not be patients. The study continues, “In addition to obscuring the important cases, the flooded system makes it harder for judges, prosecutors, defenders and jail personnel to implement evidence-based best practices, such as risk/needs assessments and diversion programs that improve public safety.” The most concrete of these three considerations, of course, is the first: money, and it’s the principal subject of the OJPC study. The study aggregated expenditures spread across city and county departments in an unprecedented effort to calculate the full financial burden of court prosecution. In its own words, the study “provides hard numbers to substantiate the expense of pre-conviction operations and to provide an impetus to seek less costly alternatives like mediation.” In the end, the judicial budget made other county expenditures look like small change. The $100 million that the county spent on adult criminal prosecutions – at a rate of $42,000 per hour – was three-and-a-half times larger than what the county spent on public works. Public works includes stormwater management and road, bridge and highway maintenance. It was nearly 14 times larger than what the County spent on environmental functions, including solid waste, air quality and litter management. It was also 1.35 times larger than what many residents see as the county’s bloated recreational activities budget. In 2008, these courthouse expenses exceeded the city’s expenditures on Paul Brown Stadium, Great American Ballpark, Cincinnati Museum Center, the Zoo and even the riverfront development project – combined. Mediation steps up The problem is not that court budgets are bloated; it’s that the demand is too high. Simply cutting office budgets would therefore prove disastrous. In fact, the county’s public defender is already under-funded, according to a 2008 report by the National Legal Aid & Defender Association (see “The Best Justice You Can Afford,” issue of September 1, 2008). Their report, Taking Gideon’s Pulse, found that misdemeanor staff attorneys in Hamilton County handle nearly 2.5 times the caseload recommended by national standards – the equivalent of 30 attorneys handling the work of 74. On average, in 2008, a Hamilton County public defender spent just one hour and 42 minutes per misdemeanor case, including trials. A system can reduce costs by reducing the demand on courthouse functions, which could be as simple as reducing the number of cases filed in court. The county could revise its unusually draconian charging and prosecuting decisions to mirror those of Franklin County or other counties, or it could take steps to intercept small-potatoes cases before they reach the courtroom. One promising strategy has been mediation. Hamilton County approved mediation services in 1974 through a joint city-county effort. Thousands of misdemeanor cases were referred annually. Of these referrals, 80 to 90 percent were successfully diverted from court, with low recidivism rates. Diverted cases included assault, criminal damaging, trespassing, disorderly conduct and telecommunication harassment. In 2008 there were 14,399 cases in these categories – nearly 40 percent of the annual misdemeanor caseload – that were potentially eligible for mediation services. Despite these successes, pre-filing diversion to mediation in misdemeanor cases was effectively eliminated during the recent economic crisis. Yet mediation might be back on Hamilton County’s horizon. With a grant from the Ohio State Bar Foundation, a group of stakeholders will implement a mediation program over the next few years. The working group includes faith-based organizations, law enforcement, prosecutors, defense attorneys, the courts, OJPC, the YWCA and the Cincinnati Bar Association. The Cincinnati Mediation Project “uses trained volunteers overseen by professionals to bring low-cost/no­ cost dispute resolution services and education on mediation skills to highneed neighborhoods,” according to a recent program announcement. It works both “to address conflicts before they rise to the level of a police call” (conflict prevention) and to divert cases that do enter the criminal justice system (dispute resolution). “The criminal justice system is at capacity. You can’t consider new ideas when you’re struggling to complete what you’re mandated to do,” says Paul Komarek, the project’s director. The mediation program adds “play­ ers, resources, and techniques that are not currently available,” and most important, says Komarek, changes “who we think of as the consumer.” With $100 million at stake, disagreements might seem inevitable. But reforming an expensive court system need not pit one group against another. A system that diverts small-potatoes cases – or diffuses them before they become cases – benefits the entire community. Petty disputes would not need to assemble a judge, a bailiff, defense attorneys, prosecutors, sheriff’s deputies and other court personnel. With a smaller caseload, prosecutors could focus on tough cases and county leaders could invest in other priorities. Such a system could truly achieve, in the words etched above the courthouse pillars, “the first end and blessing of social union.” The study, “$42,000 for a Courthouse Hour: The Cost of Processing Adult Criminal Cases in Hamilton County, Ohio,” can be found at http:// www.ohiojpc.org/text/publications/ court cost.pdf Priests Continued from page 1 This militarization is another form of idolatry. These corporate, multi-national organizations get to do what they want without regard to the needs of the people. This is another system of evil.” The effects of war are not merely theoretical to Sevre-Duszynska. She first encountered them as a child. Her uncle was in Battle of the Bulge during World War II. When she was 10, her uncle told her, “Our parents and sisters and priests taught us not to kill.” The lingering pain of what he saw and did during the war made a mark on Sevre-Duszynska. One night before battle, her uncle was giving haircuts. “The next day he picked up body parts and had to put them in the bag,” she says. “His whole life was more or less traumatized with that single event. All I could see was the pain inside of him. It affected his whole being.” In Lexington, Sevre-Duszynska taught English as a second language. There, too, she saw the effects of war. “My children suffered from the ravages of war and economic disparities – children who lived through the war in Bosnia-Herzegovina, children from different parts of Latin America,” she says. “I made my classroom into a sanctuary. That was very healing and a great joy.” ‘Changed by the fire’ Healing and joy are not always characteristics that women associate with the Roman Catholic Church. Sevre-Duszynska is active in Roman Catholic Womenpriests and directs its “Ministry of Irritation.” The organization supports women who believe they have priestly vocations. It once posted a billboard that said, “You’re waiting for a sign from God? Here it is: Ordain women.” Prior to being ordained by Bishop Dana Reyn- olds, Sevre-Duszynska sought to become a priest in a more conventional way. When a man was going to be ordained in a Catholic cathedral, she stepped forward, too, saying God had called her to the priesthood. It didn’t work. The Catholic Church forbids women from priesthood. “The argument of the Church is that there were no women at the last Supper,” she says. Catholics who support women priests argue, however, that, in the New Testament, it was a woman – Mary Magdalene – who first announced the resurrection of Jesus. Nor was Jesus’ crucifixion unique, according to Sevre-Duszynska. “The Romans crucified women and children, too,” she says. “Jesus experienced humanity. It wasn’t a superman thing.” Earlier this year the Vatican issued a statement again stating that women are forbidden to become priests. The context of the reminder infuriated Roman Catholic Womenpriests. “The ordination of women appeared on the list of most serious crimes against Roman Catholic canon law, or ‘delicta graviora’ – putting it in the same category as sexual abuse of children by priests, according to Vatican Information Service. … We demand an end to misogyny in the Catholic Church,” said a statement by the group. The issue of women’s ordina­ tion isn’t Sevre-Duszynska’s only criticism of the contemporary Catholic Church. “It’s not just adding women and stirring,” she says. “We’re worker priests. We’re about reforming and transforming.” She believes the church has strayed from its founder’s mission, reflected in the absence of people whom, she says, Jesus would welcome. “Where are women?” she says. “Where are homosexuals? Where are street people? The god of Jesus is full of compassion, walking with us, a fierce defender of the poor and marginalized.” Sevre-Duszynska’s own life has had its share of pain. Her mother died when Sevre-Duszynska was 15. She lost her 18-year-old son to a traffic crash 20 years ago. “I think you come out on the other side of a very difficult loss and you are changed by the fire,” she says. “I was transformed by that.” Transformation is at the heart of Sevre-Duszyn­ ska’s ministry. She rejects the idea that suffering in this life is meant to be endured in hope of paradise after death. “I see my priesthood really as empowering, liber­ ating, being a voice for the voiceless,” she says. “In the Old Testament, God said, ‘Forget the smoke from the sacrifices. I want you to work for the needs of my people.’ I never bought into this ‘next life.’ This is the place. We are here on this earth. We’re all here to care for one another, including the animals. Spirituality is not compartmentalized. The personal is the politi­ cal is the social is the religious. That’s how I name Jesus. There’s not a separation. Our personal lives are entwined with the political.” �6 Local News ­ STREETVIBES October 1-14, 2010 Time to Build a ­ ‘Reverent Fear’ ­ Homeless march meant as show of strength By Jesse Call Contributing Writer P eople concerned about homlessness will march Oct. 16 through Over-the-Rhine and downtown. “We want to throw away the fatalism. ... We believe that we will win,” says Josh Spring, executive director of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. As part of Homelessness Awareness Week, the nonviolent march will visit several sites that have been important in the struggle against homelessness, both positively and negatively. Spring says the march has a triple goal: • Inspiring those battling homelessness to organize together to stand up for their rights, especially those who believe nothing will change or that they are already defeated; • Educating the citizens of Cincinnati about homelessness on their streets; and • Showing the large number of people willing to stand against the “gentrifiers and developers” who are pushing homeless people away. “3CDC and City Hall should have a reverent fear of us – of the people,” Spring says. The Cincinnati Center City Development Corporation (3CDC) has long been a target of the Homeless Coalition because of its development plans, which have pushed people out of affordable housing downtown and in Over-the-Rhine and restricted access to several areas frequented by those experiencing homelessness, including Washington Park and Fountain Square. The march will include stops at more than a dozen sites, highlighting 3CDC’s role in furthering homelessness in Cincinnati, according to Spring. These include the still-vacant apartments on the 1300 block of Race Street, where people were forced out of their homes for “economic development” purposes in 2006; the Metropole Apartments, which for 30 years offered subsidizedhousing, but which 3CDC purchased and plans to convert into a boutique hotel; and Washington Park, where many people experiencing homelessness often congregate, now undergoing major renovations that, the Homeless Coalition fears, will make it a private park. 3CDC describes its work in Washington Park as “an important and critical next step in the overall, on-going renaissance of Over-the-Rhine (to create) beautiful, safe, public, green space ... for all neighborhood residents as well as visitors to enjoy,” according to a press release. The Homeless Coalition calls it “gentrification.” The march will also visit spots where allegedly bias-motivated crime against those experiencing homelessness has occurred, including near the Metropole, where a man was severely beaten. Other sites include daylabor halls, which “pay slaves’ wages and keep people in poverty,” Spring says. However, the coalition also hopes to feature organizations that have a positive impact, such as Venice on Vine restaurant, a job-training program operated by Power Inspires Progress; Rohs Hardware, which has a long history of employing Over-the-Rhine residents; and Over­ the-Rhine Community Housing. Speakers will talk about the importance of each site in the battle against homelessness. In addition, the Homeless Coalition is planning three “theatrical events.” The hope is that people will not feel alone in their struggle and will realize that “there are more of us than there are of them,” Spring says. Some might believe that actions such as marching and sharing fliers are outdated, but many of those are actually afraid of people organizing against them, according to Spring The march is scheduled from 1 to 3 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 16, beginning at Buddy’s Place, 12th and Vine streets. For more information, call the Homeless Coalition at 513­ 421-7803. A sign opposing Arizona’s immigration law. Bradley R. Foster. Going to Bat for Immigrants ­ Protest at Reds game to ‘escalate the struggle’ By Eli Braun Contributing Writer O ne, two, three strikes you’re out at the old ball game, as the song goes. But it took just one strike for Dan Moore and Sarah Jaine Szekeresh to get booted from Great American Ballpark on Sept. 15, after unfurling a banner over the center field wall during a game against the Arizona Diamondbacks. The banner, which reached nearly to the grass, proclaimed, “Not in Arizona, Not in Ohio: Immigration Reform Now,” with the words SB1070 crossed out. SB1070 is the bill number of the new Arizona law that targets undocumented people through racial profiling. It has been condemned by both civilrights leaders and the federal government. Moore and Szekeresh were arrested for disorderly conduct and spent six hours at the Hamilton County Justice Center. Charged with a fourthdegree misdemeanor, they face up to a $250 fine and 30 days in jail if convicted. The pair pled not guilty and will have a bench trial Oct. 4. Later during the baseball game, two other activists, Ruairi Rhodes and Zach Fisher, unrolled a second banner with the message, “Shame on Arizona, Don’t Spread the Hate.” It also plugged MoveTheGame.org, a website petitioning Major League Baseball to change the venue of the 2011 All-Star game, currently set for Phoenix. Rhodes and Fisher were not arrested. The protesters were tossed out for violating the stadium’s ban on political signs and interrupting the game, but it remains unclear whether violating stadium rules actually constitutes a criminal offense. Regardless, talking about his arrest misses the point, according to Dan Moore. “Immigrant families get arrested every day for bogus reasons, and these criminal records cause significant damage to their lives,” he says. “All this talk about being arrested – when I can go home and continue my job and my life – just dramatizes the true catastrophe going on in immigrant communities around deportation. Families get ripped apart. It’s hard to pity myself.” Nevertheless, the risk of arrest is a real concern for undocumented people. “It highlights the role that allies can play in the struggle for immigration reform,” Moore says. “Immigrants have owned much of it, but when it comes to tactics that would expose undocumented people to unnecessary risks and even deportation, allies must also step up. We must work to responsibly escalate the struggle.” Moore, who organizes lowwage and immigrant workers with the Cincinnati Interfaith Workers Center, says the four protesters planned their action with the help of immigrant communities. Butler County Sheriff Richard Jones has pushed similar antiimmigrant legislation for Ohio. “It’s not acceptable there, it’s not acceptable here,” says Sarah Jaine Szekeresh, who was arrested with Moore. Protests have followed the Arizona Diamondbacks across the country. “We don’t have ambassadors between states,” Moore says. “Baseball games are as close as we get, and these actions communicate to people in Arizona that anti-immigrant hate will not be welcome here. It won’t be normalized.” The protesters’ message, disseminated on the Associated Press wire, reappeared in Arizona newspapers. Arizona’s SB1070 mandates that police apprehend people they suspect to be undocumented during the course of a police stop. No authority has clarified how police are supposed to discern someone’s nationality. In response, some activists have created T-shirts with the phrase, “Do I look illegal?” Several immigrant-rights and civil-liberty organizations have filed lawsuits against the law. These lawsuits claim that SB1070 violates two essential provisions of the 14th Amendment: the Equal Protection Clause, by subjecting people to police stops and detention based on their race or origin; and the Due Process Clause, by being impermissibly vague. The U.S. Department of Justice also sued in federal court, arguing that the Arizona law bypasses the federal immigration law and therefore violates the Constitution’s Supremacy Clause. In July, a federal district court agreed that SB1070 usurps federal authority over immigration and temporarily blocked some parts of the law. The state of Arizona appealed, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit is scheduled to hear arguments in November. Moore was present in Phoenix on the day SB1070 went into effect. “What I took back,” he says, “is that people are more prepared now than ever before to raise the stakes on immigration.” In particular, “there’s a lot that allies can do in this struggle that has not been done so far.” And it seems they can have fun doing it. Ruairi Rhodes says the protest combined two of his great loves: immigration reform and Reds baseball. Moore says that when they unrolled the banner over the outfield wall, the people behind them couldn’t see it. “What’s it say?” they asked. Moore answered, “Pete Rose for the Hall of Fame!” A shorter version of this article appeared at WagingNonviolence.org. �Local News ­ STREETVIBES October 1-14, 2010 7 CS13 Finds a New Way of Doing Art Collective, original and not for sale By Brian O’Donnell Contributing Writer C incinnati’s Over-the-Rhine neighborhood has a reputa­ tion for being both historic and dangerous. Within the past decade, however, the community has become the center of Cincinnati’s art revival, calling itself home to numerous galler­ ies and cafés that peddle eclectic wares ranging from vinyl records to canvass paintings, all in the name of art. One Over-the-Rhine gallery creates art with no commercial intention. Contemporary Space 13 (CS13) doesn’t act like other galleries. It doesn’t even look like them. The “gallery” is simply a performance space, according to Aaron Walker, one of about 15 core members of CS13. Nick Swartsell and Walker are two of the faces making up what they say is a collective project to facilitate conversa­ tion and engage the community in art projects. “The main objective is a dialogue with the community that surrounds the space,” Walker says. “The goal of CS13 has always been to be plural.” The members of CS13 have back­ grounds ranging from fine arts to jour­ nalism to library science. Walker gradu­ ated from the University of Cincinnati’s College of Design, Architecture, Art and Planning with a degree in fine arts. Swartsell studied political science and English at Miami University. Between them, they are only six years out of col­ lege. Youth is the norm for the group, with the oldest member age 30. Swartsell and Walker are reluctant to take credit for CS13. They’re hesitant to even have their names known; they consider the gallery to be a collective, with no leadership hierarchy. “We try to keep a low personal pro­ file,” Walker says. The less personal, the easier it is to be part CS13, he says. The gallery evolved from the demise of Murmur, a do-it-yourself music space in South Fairmount. When CS13 emerged from Murmur, Walker says, the focus shifted from strict music and art projects to exhibitions about social practice that would address the audi­ ence in that context. The friendships forged at that space led directly to CS13‘s formation in June 2009. “We’ve kind of shied away from any one person, like, being the face of the group,” Walker says. “It’s a collective endeavor.” As a collective, CS13 is always allow­ ing members to tackle different projects through varying media. Uniformity is no part of the collective. “I don’t think any of us understood what it would look like when it was finished,” Swartsell says. Even so, Walker and Swartsell sound like the de facto spokespersons for the gallery. When others are explaining CS13 and what it does, they look toward the duo for clear definitions. Walker de­ scribes the group as “structured enough that we’re stable but organic enough for surprises.” He says the vision for CS13’s future is “more of the same but better.” “Widening the conversation,” is Swartsell’s response. He and Walker share a desire to build on what CS13 learned and accom­ plished in the past year. If there is a need for increased efficiency, the gallery is clear about operating within its ideals. Walker says CS13 doesn’t sell art, and donations are solicited at musical events only to cover production costs. The space itself was always funded by its members. “I try to steer away from the idea of the artist as struggling,” Walker says. Many galleries act the part of art mavens but CS13 has taken a step back to make its art a collaborative learning process, Swartsell says. “One of the goals that’s emerged with CS13 is interaction,” he says. Aural Grid is a prime example. In this project, CS13 used contacts within the Over-the-Rhine to place musicians on the roofs of buildings in a two-block perimeter around Main Street, Orchard Street, Sycamore Street and 13th Street. Walker describes it as a rooftop soundscape that bordered on ambient. This kind of interaction generates buzz. Swartsell says CS13 receives a lot of support for exhibitions. The recent Out in the Open exhibition showcased one of the collectives’ goals – social dia­ logue. The exhibit, a collaboration with the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless included photographs and first-hand accounts about homeless­ ness and the neighborhood of Over­ the-Rhine. CS13 opens at a new location, 1420 Main St., with a celebration and Designed by Jesse Reed. fundraiser on Oct. 1 and 2. The event includes a potluck dinner the first night and 10 musical acts on the second. The goal is to get enough money to pay out­ standing bills and continued operating costs. “It’s just not done yet,” Walker says. Bat Fungus is a Problem for Humans ­ Extinction would mean more insects By Sarah Robinson Contributing Writer S omething is killing off the bats in this country, and scientists are stumped. Not too long ago, in the winter of 2006, bats were spotted lying dead outside some caves in New York. On their noses and wings was a white fungus (geomyces) that thrives in cold and humid condi­ tions such as caves. Scientists aren’t sure if the fungus is causing bat deaths or is a secondary symptom, but bats all over New England are waking up in the middle of their hibernation period, losing their fat stores and either starving or freezing to death. The fungus is highly contagious between bats. There are already places in New England where there are no more bats at all, and the fungus is rapidly spreading to the rest of the country. As of April 2009, 400,000 bats have died from this “white nose syndrome,” and the little brown bats could be completely extinct within two decades. White nose syndrome affects, in addition to the little brown bat, the tricolored bat, the northern long­ eared, the big brown, the smallfooted and the Indiana, which is already endangered. All these bats are insect eat­ ers, and their demise could mean disaster for agriculture, ecology and recreation. One bat can eat its own body weight in insects every night. Caves all over the United States might be closing in the next few years in an attempt to corral the spread of this devastating fungus. Bats are highly sensitive to dis­ turbances in their environment anyway, and as they begin prepara­ tions for their long winter hiberna­ tion, it is especially important to leave them be in their caves. “We don’t feel satisfied ending the con­ versation as we go into another year.” Pursuing these creative interests un­ der the context of community and navi­ gating the art world in a different way is how Walker perceives CS13’s goal. “That’s the payoff,” he says. �8 Beyond the Bootstraps ­ STREETVIBES October 1-14, 2010 Invisible Punishment Lasts a Lifetime ­ Former prisoners need a fair break By Margo Pierce Contributing Writer P rison isn’t just a punishment – it’s a place apart with its own culture and rules. The experience of prison changes not only the inmate, but the families, friends and the community from which the convicted individuals come. More than 80 percent of inmates leave prison, and yet almost no preparation is done by anyone in any of these groups to support successful reentry. The Safer Foundation in Chicago, Ill., helps inmates navigate the barriers to re-entry, according to B. Diane Williams, executive director. B. Diane Williams: It is our role to help people with criminal records help themselves. They are not com­ ing to us asking us to fix everything for them; they are asking for some tools and support for fixing those things that need to be fixed. All of our programs help people with criminal records, and our pri­ mary focus is employment. But we recognize that employment alone doesn’t work, so we form linkages with other programs, and we pro­ vide additional services ourselves so we can better prepare people to go to work. It’s really a much broader picture – what people call a reentry picture –than just an employment picture. If you think about this, people who have been in prison for any period of time … what they know about (their) community is exactly what they left when they went to prison. They don’t know any dif­ ferences, any shifts, any change. If there were not ATMs when they went to prison, they have no idea what an ATM is. So when they come home, they expect exactly what they left, be­ cause nobody has begun to prepare them for what they might experi­ ence; and that might be differences inside their households, on their blocks, in their communities at large. They’re looking for what was when they left. What was is what got A painting crew, part of the Safer Return initiative, paints viaducts along train lines in Chicago. Courtesy of Safer Foundation. them in trouble in the first place. If you’re in the institution for a very long time, you get to make very few choices. So if you aren’t prepar­ ing to make good choices when you go home…you find yourself falling into the same bad choices that you made before you went in. But according to Williams, it’s not enough to wait for a person to leave prison and see how s/he fares. The work has to start before the inmate gets out. B. Diane Williams: We go inside the prisons in a number of differ­ ent ways. One example is we go in what we call Welcome Panel format, which means we have people [with us] from the community to which that person’s returning; people will­ ing to help them make that transi­ tion home. Whether we do that face-to-face or through a video or teleconferenc­ ing format, we try to connect with them before they come home so that, when they come home, they have a support system. They know there’s someone there to help them with the transition. The word “rehabilitation” is seldom heard anymore. The fact is, people are more likely to leave prison with bigger problems than when they went in. That means they are not ready to successfully renter the community. B. Diane Williams: Some of the people who come to see us … need help before they can go to work. They need substance abuse treat­ ment or they need medical treat­ ment. When we are comfortable that somebody is ready to go to work, the first step for them will probably be one of the work crews that we run. We have bids on projects … and have responsibility for clean­ ing the street and snow removal and those kinds of things. We have a number of other opportunities where we are cleaning areas around train tracks … We’re moving into the area of urban landscaping and things like that so our people can get to work right away. By definition, these are low-pay­ ing opportunities. But the intent is to prepare them with both the soft skills and hard skills they can then use for permanent employment. Our goal there is to look for higher paying, better-benefit kinds of op­ portunities for people. Safer Foundation provides jobreadiness workshops and classes, but former inmates need more than just job preparation. They need to be able to navigate what Safer Foundation calls “invisible barriers.” B. Diane Williams: When we talk about invisible barriers, they’re everywhere. There are those people who don’t even know that they have a certain perspective on people with a criminal record; there are people who believe that everybody in our prisons have significant mental health issues, have killed lots of people, have raped lots of people, have commit­ ted very violent crimes. And what we know is that a great majority of people are not in prison for violent crimes. Employers assume that they are going to disrupt the workplace. Employers assume that they’re going to bring violent tendencies into the work place. They assume that they are not going to contrib­ ute. If you interview the employers who hire our clients, they will tell you the exact opposite. The em­ ployers will tell you that they are the people most appreciative of the opportunity. They are the ones em­ ployers find most flexible; they will do whatever is needed to be done in a given environment because they really appreciate having an oppor­ tunity to have that job. There are blanket scenarios that prohibit people from going to work, and the health care industry is a perfect example. If you have a retail theft, you can’t go to work in direct patient care in a health care facility. When that law first came about, we had many people coming to us asking for help. One particular nurse had been on her job for 20 years and they let her go. To help bridge the gap between the behavior that landed someone in prison and the reality of their behavior after conviction, some states are using “certificates of good conduct” issued by parole board or courts. These official documents tell a potential employer that the individual has “cleaned up” her/his act. With tens of thousands of people leaving prison every year, this makes re-entry into the workforce more likely… B. Diane Williams: We work with probably about 300 employers, but we have 10,000 people com­ ing to us who want jobs. The last three years we placed 2,500 to 3,100 people each year. Not everybody who comes to see us is ready to go to work, but we could certainly place more people if we have more opportunities. There is a word called “hope” that is often deemed as hokey. I will tell you that, if people don’t have hope, they don’t try. So one of the things we have to do is that we have to prove to people that opportunities do exist. I believe that the American people at large are people with good hearts who want to do the right thing, and this is the right thing. To hold somebody accountable for bad decisions for the rest of their lives is not the premise for this country. And yet it is the behavior of this country today. The people that we serve are their brothers, their sisters, their nieces, their nephews or their next-door neighbors. These are ordinary people who want to have ordinary lives but have made some bad deci­ sions or have been put into some bad situations. While they are not perfect, neither is anyone else on this planet perfect. But we can have a higher level of productivity in this country if we support these people in living their lives in the way they way they really want to live them. The American myth of individualism tells people who are struggling with addiction, abuse, mental illness or poverty to simply pull themselves up by their own bootstraps. In reality, specially designed services and other kinds of support are essential to the process of transformation. This column is the third in an occasional series that will explore what it takes to Forget the Bootstraps in order to live a better life. �STREETVIBES October 1-14, 2010 Office Window By Rick Stansberger Fallen leaves are just leaves when they don’t have toddlers to throw them around, watch them twist down, grab handfuls and flap them like wings. “Come away from there!” says the teacher to the little ones “That is a professor!” as if naming a caged bear or a piece of road machinery. “No, they’re beautiful!” I walk to the glass and say, at a loss to tell her how they’ve transformed the day. Re-Assessing Shirley By Rick Stansberger One day her life went from You’re so gifted! If only you’d apply yourself! to There was an error in the way your test was scored and so she went into the general student population the gifted program got rid of a statistical anomaly and whatever happened after that wasn’t the program’s fault. My Father’s House By Willa D. Jones In my father’s house there are many mansions Many mansions, with many rooms to rest and pray in In good times, in bad times, day, night, sleep or wake times All the time I spend in my father’s house cause his house is mines When I was homeless, a drunkard, a drug addict and all alone I found much comfort and peace just praising in song When I was hungry, hair nappy, dirty and smelling really bad I held onto my sanity, when my belief in pray was all I had As in any house with rules, my father has commandments of ten Even though I would make mistakes, I’d always repent of my sins And ask for forgiveness with the understanding to make a change A change for the best so there would be no more fear or pain Taking what each day brings in pray and always believe Having faith to know that my father’s will is best for me While searching for God’s love, wisdom and understand­ ing I come into the realization of just what my heart was demanding I began to go to church to learn more about my father’s house I found peace and my soul was saved I could finally an­ nounce I learn that there is a place in my father’s house for every­ one The young, the old, the lost and the sick at heart and mind I learned the mistakes I’d made were all of one kind I understand today that we must learn from the mistakes we’ve made And know only by the grace of God can our souls be saved So won’t you come visit in the house of my father Learn the bible and know that with my father there is no other Take your time and search you soul to truly find yourself An understand that in our fathers house is where we’ll be forever safe with plenty of help Art by Anthony Williams Poetry Art & Literature 9 �10 Art STREETVIBES October 1-14, 2010 Cartoon by Anne Skove ­ Love writing? Or is taking photos your thing? Volunteer at Streetvibes and you could see your stuff in print! Contact Greg Flannery at 513-4217803 x 12 or by e-mail at streetvibes2@yahoo. com �STREETVIBES October 1-14, 2010 11 International News Development Aid in Recession By Samantha Bailie Street News Service I n times of eco­ nomic downturn, development aid often becomes an issue low on the agenda. With the deadline for the Mil­ lennium Development Goals approaching in 2015, some countries fail to keep their promises. Back in the 1970s the United Nations (UN) passed a resolution rec­ ommending that wealthy countries donate annu­ ally 0.7 percent Gross Na­ tional Income (GNI) to developing countries in Official Development As­ sistance in order to help the fight against poverty. This is still the target today, and every year the club of wealthy nations, the Organization for Eco­ nomic Co-Operation and Development (OECD), produces figures show­ ing how much each rich country gives in Official Development Assistance and what percentage of its GNI that figure repre­ sents. Dochas (the Irish As­ sociation of Non-Gov­ ernmental Development Organizations) recently warned of a significant aid shortfall to reach Mil­ lennium Development Goals. Ireland is well off track to deliver on its own projected aid lev­ els for 2010, even if still within European Union targets. Ireland had set itself the goal of being leader on international development; instead, however, the island has been continually cutting its overseas aid budget and breaking its promise to reach the 0.7 percent target by 2012, essentially affecting millions of the poorest people in devel­ oping countries. The aid figures do show an increase in the five years since the Mil­ lennium Development Goals were established, but a big shortfall in what donors initially stated they would provide. Ire­ land had been on track to achieve its aid targets un­ til 2008, when it reached 0.59 percent of national income. Last year, how­ ever, it cut the aid bud­ get by 224 million euro and this year has seen a further cut. Therefore the island is well off its own target for this year, being back to approximately 0.52 percent. The gov­ ernment has effectively given up on the 2012 deadline and has now moved its commitment to the 0.7 percent target by 2015. A recent opinion poll by Ipsos MRBI, commis­ sioned by Dochas, sug­ gested that Irish people believe that the govern­ ment should deliver on its aid promises to main­ tain its international reputation. The survey found that 81 percent of respondents agreed it was important for Ire­ land’s reputation that the government delivered on its aid promises of spending 0.7 percent of national income on overseas aid by 2015 at the latest. In the survey, respondents were asked if Ireland should con­ tinue to support overseas Where did the green go? Irish foreign aid (in millions) Ireland ponders its commitment 1500 1200 900 600 300 0 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 Source: http://mdgs.un.org/unsd/mdg/Data.aspx aid even with its current economic difficulties. The results showed a massive support for over­ seas aid, with 84 percent of respondents agreeing that it should continue, even in economic down­ turns. Dochas Director Hans Zomer says, “Public support for investing in overseas aid – even in an economic downturn – continues to be strong. This shows that people in Ireland believe in a just and fair world, and that the economic crisis shouldn’t be a reason for us to turn our back on the world’s poorest peo­ ple. The figures remind the government that people in Ireland feel strongly about our tradi­ tion and our obligations towards those less fortu­ nate than ourselves.” Irish people might be of the opinion that the government needs to follow through on promises; however, when it comes to personally giving to charity, a dif­ ferent problem is uncov­ ered. Trevor Anderson, Oxfam Ireland’s Head of Retail and chair of the Irish Charity Shops Association, says, “Ox­ fam Ireland experienced continued like-for-like growth every year for the past 10 years since our conception, and so this is the first time we have not seen the development we achieved in previous years. … We are currently 5 percent down on bud­ get and 4 percent down on last year.” When it comes to physically giving to char­ ities people are keep­ ing their hands firmly in their pockets, many claiming that “charity begins at home.” Let us remember however, that in 1847, in the time of great poverty and famine in Ireland, the Choctaw Indians, a poor, margin­ alized community them­ selves, collected $710, a small fortune, and sent it to help the starving and needy. Despite their own poverty, they did their best, something that Ire­ land should do now. As Dochas states with regards to contributing during a recession: “Aid is now not less afford­ able than before. The aid target is set in percent­ age of national income, meaning the aid budget goes up and down in line with the economy. In other words, it is equally difficult in good times as in bad to adhere to the target; in both cases it’s not a case of affordability, but of courage of convic­ tion.” © www.streetnewsser­ vice.org Want more Streetvibes? Check out the StreetvibeS blog at: http://streetvibes.wordpress.com �12 Column STREETVIBES October 1-14, 2010 A New Life Means a New Challenge ‘Streetvibes’ vendor turns a new page By Riccardo Taylor Staff writer Not often do we have the opportunity to start life over – that is to say, have a new begin­ ning. I am more than pleased to say that I have had just such an oppor­ tunity. I guess every new story should start at the beginning, so shall we began there. For more than a decade I have been involved with the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. This in itself is a milestone, for I generally don’t have time to be involved with anything for more then a brief period. Yet I find myself, with more than a decade with this entity. “Streetvibes: Show a little support!” If you have ever seen me on the street, that’s my familiar cry. Just imagine. For over 10 years that has been a part of my world, selling a street paper. Of course, you have to figure that that is not the only thing I do in order to live. I often have to find ways to survive – hus­ tling to eat or finding a place Say to sleep. One can become very accustomed to that life style, and in fact find oneself without any other options but to hustle in order to survive. The reality is that it can be such away of life that one starts to believe that there is no other way to exist. We all understand success is not what you do but how well you do it. Therefore, the ques­ tion is: To whose expense do we chalk this move? Like a game of chess, the objective is to capture the position of the other players. It’s not as calculated as “dog eat dog,” but you surely have to be willing to go the distance. As Malcolm X has said, “By any means neces­ sary.” Now just imagine. The real­ ity hits you that it doesn’t have to be this way. I can be differ­ ent, the world can be different, and all I need to do is put forth a little effort. Shockingly good fortune has reared its lovely head, oppor­ tunity has knocked, alas some relief, but not without effort on my part. Too often we don’t give ourselves the chance to engage change. No, it’s “I got to do what I do.” In reality we made that up. Stuck in your head – that it cannot be differ­ ent – you just keep the same old actuality, nothing based on reality. So we put some effort into alleviating our hardship, and the next thing you know an opportunity opens. Not to pat myself on the back, but I can declare some credit for the recent changes in my status. If you haven’t noticed (for those who know me) I have not been on the corner with Streetvibes. The fact is that I have moved up a step, if you will, and I am presently holding a position with the coalition that just might be the key to my future. Well, I guess, nothing ventured, nothing gained. The question might be what to do with the opportunity when it comes. This is perhaps the greatest challenge: learning and then understanding what it is I need to do. Actually, if you take that as a question rather than a state­ ment, then you find the answer is more complex then you’d think. Yes a challenge, know­ ing just what I need to do and what needs to be done. So often the opportunity comes, and with our inexperi­ ence, we allow our confidence to slack because we haven’t the self-belief that we can com­ plete the task. “Oh, it’s much easier to just do nothing and accept it like it is.” Yet opportunity is rare in the life of the streets. There is no change until you make that challenge that calls for you to do something about your situation. Again, it is not often ! ? t a h W “It is clear that, if we look only to retributive justice, we could just as well close up shop. Forgiveness is not some nebulous thing. It is practical politics. Without forgiveness, there is no future.” ____________ - Bishop Desmond Tutu, quoted in The Sunflower Riccardo Taylor, longtime Streetvibes vendor, has a new job. Aimie Willhoite. that we have the opportunity to start life over. I have had that opportunity dawn on my day, and now I have to take on the challenge which I have created for my own life, as it were. A new beginning! Now, for those of you who know me, my voice will not have that old familiar cry, “Streetvibes: Show a little support.” My voice will have to turn to action, and I will have to meet all challenges as they come. To the future, thanks for your good will. Riccardo Taylor, a former Streetvibes vendor, is now civilrights outreach coordinator for the Homeless Coalition. �Poetry STREETVIBES October 1-14, 2010 13 Ode to Washington Park by the Common People MAYOR MALLORY AND 3CDC It happened on your watch Mayor Mallory during your election our vote counted Will our voice count now? My friends and neighbors have felt ignored In so-called “community meetings” As you work to make a “new” attraction in our city Please consider the sacrifice you are asking of this place The more you take away the more misery will happen There is a culture and spirit here That is the people, the trees, the history Reconsider the disenfranchisement of the homeless and forgotten Listen to the people of Washington Park Not the corporate backers I am disgusted by the city’s blatant disrespect For the voices of the people without financial power To build a park that serves only to support the aesthetic beauty Determined by those who are passing through or own property is an injustice How dare you steal this from the community? We will say a prayer for you WASHINGTON PARK This is where it is This park is a public square to be used by all the people Friends, loved ones, family It’s a place to come to rest This park is home for me I see a lot of cool people It holds many memories It’s not right to destroy our history We are losing our community park. It’s a gathering place I’ve met people here who have given up, And most who are getting up Walking through the park on my way to Kroger’s I stumble on the most entertaining events Gospel music, community events, resources and outreach Are you still capable of hearing the voices of the forgotten? We are united in our need for peace and refuge We have made our wishes known A deep-water pool Breeze blowing through the ancient trees Sweet singing lullaby of the wind When I had no friend in the world Who could keep my deepest secrets? The trees have been my friends I watch the birds and squirrels here It’s my pleasure spot The old Linden deserves to live Save the trees they give us shade We want a USABLE recreation spot Including a basketball court Replant the buddy tree We need jobs Can you open the pool up? It’s hot and kids want to go swimming Many folks down here don’t have air conditioning I miss playing sharks and minnows with a pool full of kids I turned my first back flip inside this park I won several ribbons and felt good about myself Please give my child that same opportunity If you can find funding for all of your renovations You can find money to keep a pool open Wha t wil l we tell t he c hildr en? Jon Hugh es/P hoto pres I want the park fun with swings se. and a cleaner slide And older kids stuff It’s unsafe to have unsupervised water system Stories of the past connect in this sacred space Mama Look! Washington Park can be fixed for less than By Elisa Hill 48M I think the total budget for Social Services is I thought you were looking. about 2 million I thought you were looking. Where are our priorities? I thought you were looking out the corner of your eyes. 3CDC’s plans are anti-green and anti- I thought you were looking at my pain in the night’s sky. sustainable I thought you were looking when he tore off my clothes. Tradition is the heartbeat of a City I thought you were looking when he put that rag Skyline, Graeters, Grippos and over my nose. WASHINGTON PARK I thought you were looking when he kept walking past The poor and the homeless are a part of this our house. town I thought you were looking when he came in and sat We must be protected down on our couch. I walk through the park to get my kids I thought you were looking when he said, “Hello! I like Let’s keep the park for the people of Over­ your little dress.” the-Rhine I thought you were looking when I kept on getting Make the park accessible to ALL the upset. residents I thought you were looking but, I guess you were not. House the people of the park I thought you were looking when I felt my heart stopped. It should not be about money but about I thought you. people I thought you were. People is what makes this city I thought you were looking. Take care of the people I – Mama, look! And the people will take care of the city Why does change have to be bad for To all of the children we’ve lost to undeserving violence: residents that still live here? “Babies, we are looking. We will make a change!” Listen to the residents please Where is the low income housing, the weekly rental rooms Most Favored Nation The blue-collar housing around the park? We all cannot buy condos Gentrification needs to stop now For Tom Romano How did the city planners forget To plan for the community needs By Rick Stansberger This is absurd to have to wash clothes in a bathtub Here comes Claude We need a Laundromat desperately clutching his quiz. This is too much with only a little to work He’ll fight you two hours with over half a point. What did the children do to deserve to have “His Dad’s an MD, their school, a PhD, Swimming pool and basketball court taken and an MBA,” away? laughs Justin. What do you suggest we tell the children? “The only way he can beat that Lines taken directly from letters written by is to get himself named residents of Over-the-Rhine and concerned Most Favored Nation.” citizens at a rally July 2h to raise issue with Yes. the renovation plans of Washington Park. And right now Compiled by Bonnie Neumeier. you’re in his way. �14 Q&As with VIPs STREETVIBES October 1-14, 2010 Interview with Champ Dog of the late Rev. Mark Schmieder By Vickie Cimprich Contributing Writer Interviewer: Some of Mark’s many friends will be surprised to know that you are a poet. What about that? Champ: I don’t make poems as a rule, but when Mark’s friends held the roast for him, they asked me to come up with a little something. Interviewer: How do you account for the special friendship that Mark and you enjoyed? Champ: Well, as all who knew him knew well, Mark would give anyone the shirt off his back. And from the get-go, we both sensed that I had no use for the shirt off his back. So that was never an issue for us. Also, there was the riverboat. Early on it was understood that if I became Mark’s dog, I would be mascot of the Marco Polo and get to navigate a good part of the Ohio with him and his brother Carl. Interviewer: Is there any truth to the rumor that you’ve been seen sniffing around bushes on any church or civil property in Greater Cincinnati or Northern Kentucky? Champ: Not me. Interviewer: What about the scuttlebutt that you’ve been offered positions as visiting professor at the Athenaeum, the Pontifical Institute of the Josephinum or the Franciscan University at Steubenville lecturing on Great Dogs of the Bible? Champ: Ditto. Interviewer: What are your plans? Champ: I have a great home, keep well fed and well groomed. It’d be good to see service on the Marco Polo again. Long days drifting down the green Ohio, napping while Carl read the charts. Sometimes I dream of being a wolf in Umbria, in Italy. St. Francis and I talk over how things are, how different people see things. When I put my paw in his hand, St. Francis’s face is Mark’s face. Other dreams, I taste somebody’s sores. They taste like salt, like sweat or tears. Mark tells me that the person who tastes like this is Lazarus. Interviewer: Do you miss Mark a lot? Champ: Now that you mention it, I haven’t seen him since the last time he went out the door. Does seem like an awful long time since. The late Rev. Mark Schmieder. Clarissa Peppers ‘Let’s Go Somewhere Primitive’ ­ Seth Ewing Huff wants to think about it By Ariana Shahandeh Contributing Writer Seth Ewing Huff, one-fourth of the band The Retros, started by lead singer Mia Carruthers, began his solo music project, Archer’s Paradox, while still in high school. “Diamonds in the City,” a song from that album, was re-recorded with The Retros for their EP, We Will Grow, among the most revered songs on the EP. Huff spoke with Streetvibes about his hope for the band’s upcoming album, originality in lyricism and fame. Q: Another band member expressed an interest in working with a different producer for each song in the next album. Is this something you also want to pursue? A: Yeah, I would like to do that also. Maybe not every song, but definitely have a few different ideas going on throughout the entire (album). Q: Are there any producers you’d like to work with specifically? A: Is this a fantasy world? Can I pick anyone? Q: Yes. A: Kanye West, Dangermouse, etc. But with this next CD, I’d like to work with someone who doesn’t really have a “sound” but figures out what sounds best for the group really well. Like a Rick Rubin kind of guy: you can never really tell, “Rick Rubin produced this because it has a certain swag to it,” but he always makes a quality record. Q: I think you guys should produce “Above All the Sound” (originally produced by Archer’s Paradox and now being reproduced in an upcoming Retros album) with John Mayer. A: I tell you what, I wish we could get that. That would add to my dream for the band. We just play musical chairs with the instruments. I’ll go to drums for a song, Mia (Carruthers) will go to bass and keyboard, Stefan (Wright) will go to keyboard. I want to get that Beatles thing back, where it’s cool for everyone in the band to be a front man. I want it to be OK again to do that. I think producing with a bunch of different people on this album would be a step in that direction. I make hip hop beats for fun. I rapped on a song. Right now it’s not a healthy thing for a musician to be doing because (an artist) needs to be very “what you are: I’m this.” I’d like to break that. Producing with a bunch of different people would be another thing that would help us in (that) sporadic kind of movement. Q: What’s your favorite lyric off the Vampire Weekend album? A: It’s probably in the song “Run.” The one lyric – “So lead my feet away, ’cause all they do is stay, and I don’t think your eyes have ever looked surprised.” It’s the perfect reason to run away and find something else. That whole song is good; it’s got such a simple meaning: you and I, let’s go somewhere else and leave all this behind – let’s go somewhere primitive. I would love to do a big stunt like that someday to write an album to just go out in the middle of nowhere – just disappear – and then just come back with this product. It’s a little cliché’ now. Q: What are some other cliché’s musically? A: I’m tired of everybody talking about taking their clothes off. It’s not an original thought. Ever since clothes have been around, you can take them off. Just quit. Vampire Weekend uses very specific words in the song “Campus” about waking up and putting on a sweater. That’s a cool way of being literal. That’s like using that imagery to paint a picture. The not-cool way of being literal is when Kesha says, “There’s a hole in the wall, it’s a dirty free-for-all.” We know exactly what (she) is talking about; (she’s) laying it on way too thick. Pop music right now has found a way of making it literal and up front and make it not cool at all. You don’t even have to think about it. I want to think about it. Q: What’s the most original way you’ve heard love portrayed in a song recently? A: In music, love is always there somewhere. It’s like a story. There’s always got to be some sort of hint of love there. I was just listening to a new Kanye (West) song called “Monster.” Jay Z is rapping. He is talking about all these horrible things he does because he is a monster: (“Murder murder in black convertibles, I kill a block I murder avenues, Rape and pillage a village, women and children, Everybody wanna know what my Achilles heel is, Love - I don’t get enough of it.”) You are talking about doing all these horrible things that have nothing to do with love, and the reason you do it is because you don’t get enough love. That’s such a classic sob story but it was a cool way of portraying it. Yeah, Jay Z, I get what you mean there. I know you don’t actually do those things, but you are just making a statement. It’s the reason for a lot of people doing horrible things. It was just a cool way of putting love into a song called “Monster.” It was a cool way of just oozing it in there. Q: How do you feel about the idea of fame, both the destructive and exciting part of it? A: I honestly love every aspect of it and completely want to be engulfed in it. It’s one of my dreams. I could sit here and (say) “I want to do it all for the music – and I do – but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want to be famous. I want as many people as possible to connect with some sort of art form that I produce, whether it’s music, or literature, or movies or some sort of visual (content). Q: You’re interested in other creative outlets? A: Oh yeah. Musicals, writing, movies. Entertainment in general just … baffles me with its awesomeness. I just love the way that stuff can make you feel. It’s hard to explain. I get so inspired when I see some sort of art form being accepted by a large group of people. Like when Avatar came out, everybody loved it. And I loved it so much more because everybody loved it. Q: You’re like the antithesis of a hipster. A: Ha! Exactly. It’s not because I’m trying to follow the pack or anything. I love it because it’s so cool that everybody likes this one thing; everybody came together to see this one thing. This reached out to many people. That’s awesome. That’s most inspiring to me. �15 Resources STREETVIBES October 1-14, 2010 Need Help or Want to Help? ­ Shelter: Women and Children Central Access Point Cincinnati Union Bethel St. Francis Soup Kitchen Churches Active in Northside 381-SAFE 768-6907 FreeStore/FoodBank 557-2873 Madisonville Ed & Assistance Center 300 Lytle Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Bethany House 4230 Hamilton Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45223 241-1064 112 E. Liberty Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 1841 Fairmount Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45214 Grace Place Catholic Worker House 681-2365 762-5660 271-5501 4600 Erie Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45227 Serves area codes: 45226, 45227, 45208, 45209 St. Vincent de Paul 6037 Cary Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45224 Salvation Army 535-2719 591-2246 562-8841 872-9259 381-2247 5 E. Liberty St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 Health Resource Center Homeless Mobile Health Van McMicken Dental Clinic 357-4602 352-2902 352-6363 40 E. McMicken Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mental Health Access Point Mercy Franciscan at St. John 558-8888 981-5800 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 NAMI of Hamilton County PATH Outreach 1125 Bank Street, Cinti, Ohio 45214 131 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter Crossroad Health Center 458-6670 977-4489 Treatment: Men Other Resources Shelter: Men Charlie’s 3/4 House 784-1853 2121 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 City Gospel Mission 241-5525 Prospect House 241-0490 381-4941 Starting Over 1419 Elm Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 682 Hawthorne Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45205 Justice Watch St. Fran/St. Joe Catholic Work. House 961-4663 Treatment: Both 761-1480 1821 Summit Road, Cinti, Ohio 45237 Drop Inn Center 721-0643 Interfaith Hospitality Network Lighthouse Youth Center (Youth) 471-1100 221-3350 3330 Jefferson, Cinti, Ohio 45220 Housing: CMHA Excel Development OTR Community Housing 721-4580 632-7149 381-1171 114 W. 14th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tender Mercies 721-8666 27 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tom Geiger House Dana Transitional Bridge Services Volunteers of America Anna Louise Inn 961-4555 751-0643 381-1954 421-5211 621-5300 961-1983 OTR: 1620 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Walnut Hills: 2631 Gilbert, Cinti, Ohio 45206 Our Daily Bread 621-6364 1730 Race Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 351-0422 381-6672 830 Ezzard Charles Dr. Cinti, Ohio 45214 Goodwill industries Healing Connections Mary Magdalen House 771-4800 751-0600 721-4811 241-2965 People Working Cooperatively 351-7921 The Caring Place 631-1114 United Way 211 Women Helping Women 977-5541 Off The Streets 421-5211 1522 Republic Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Hamilton County ADAS Board 946-4888 Recovery Health Access Center 281-7422 Sober Living 681-0324 Talbert House 641-4300 Advocacy Catholic Social Action Community Action Agency Contact Center 421-3131 569-1840 381-4242 1227 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Food/Clothing Lord’s Pantry OTR/Walnut Hills Kitchen & Pantry AA Hotline CCAT Joseph House (Veterans) 217 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 381-0111 1223 Main St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 2728 Glendora Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45209 Caracole (HIV/AIDS) 621-5514 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 2203 Fulton, Cinti, Ohio 45206 961-4080 Peaslee Neighborhood Center Franciscan Haircuts from the Heart First Step Home Anthony House (Youth) 241-2600 241-2563 214 E. 14th St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 661-4620 Shelter: Both Center Independent Living Options Emmanuel Community Center 1308 Race St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 961-2256 Treatment: Women 1437 Walnut Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mt. Airy Shelter 921-1613 St. Raephaels Salvation Army Serenity House Day Center Open Door Pantry 863-3184 863-1445 422-8555 868-3276 Northern Kentucky Brighton Center 859-491-8303 799 Ann St. Newport, KY Franciscan JPIC Gr. Cinti Coalition for the Homeless 721-4700 421-7803 117 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Intercommunity Justice & Peace Cr. Legal Aid Society Ohio Justice & Policy Center Faces Without Places Stop AIDS 579-8547 241-9400 421-1108 363-3300 421-2437 Health Center for Respite Care Hamilton/Middletown ECHO/Hosea House 859-261-5857 Fairhaven Resuce Mission 859-491-1027 Homeward Bound Youth 859-581-1111 Mathews House 859-261-8009 Homeless & Housing Coalition 859-727-0926 Parish Kitchen 859-581-7745 Pike St. Clinic 859-291-9321 Transitions, Inc 859-491-4435 Welcome House of NKY 859-431-8717 205 West Pike Street, Covington, KY 41011 621-1868 3550 Washington Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45229 Women’s Crisis Center VA Domiciliary VA Homeless 859-491-3335 859-559-5011 859-572-6226 www.facebook. com/streetvibes cincinnati twitter.com/ streetvibesnews streetvibes. wordpress.com �16 Artists as Activists STREETVIBES October 1-14, 2010 Exploring her ‘Two-ness’ Ellen Price finds unity in art A rtists ctivists af·ford·abil·i·ty By Saad GhoSn Contributing WritEr A s the light-skinned child of a bi-racial marriage – mother white and father AfricanAmerican – the subject of race always proved both non-existent and ever present in Ellen Price’s life. The first question she remembers being asked in kindergarten by other African-American children was whether she was black or white. “I do not know,” was her answer,” later supplemented, after having queried her mother, by “I am colored, but fair … and nice” Price, a local artist and professor of art at Miami University, Oxford, grew up in a residential neighborhood of Queens, New York, mostly inhabited by well-off, middle-class, AfricanAmerican families. Raised by progressive, politically left-leaning and non-churchgoer parents, she was from an early age sheltered from the habitual societal interactions and class integration. Her home was her sanctuary, and she had a happy childhood, spending time drawing and playing with her sister, often visiting New York City, its parks and its wonderful museums with her mother, a former art teacher. When graduating a semester early from high school, she joined open life classes at the Art Students League in New York City, where she was really taken by drawing – the challenge, concentration, professionalism and sense of achievement it imparted. She decided to become an artist and a few years later obtained a bachelor’s degree in arts from Brooklyn College, then a master of fine arts degree in printmaking at Indiana University, Bloomington. All along, questions of race, ethnicity and identity were embedded in her mind. In her teens, obsessed with fitting in, she smoked mentholated Newport cigarettes to emulate other African-American girls of her school and befriended those who had an afro hairdo. She also unconsciously adopted a more southern accent. In college, finding herself in a mostly white world, she was quite sensitive to racist remarks she would occasionally hear, attributing them to ignorance and fear. These questions, however, did not clearly permeate her art until many years later. In college, Price’s paintings and prints were mostly based on the figure and sketches of people in the subway, reflection of urban life. In graduate school, many of her etchings were of cows, a possible link to their maternal character. Her subsequent artwork dealt with lawn ornaments, landscapes and trees – ornaments and trees often depicted lonely and isolated, as if stating their uniqueness, their somewhat disconnected identity. In 1993, more than a decade after the death of both her parents, Price lost her paternal uncle, the last link to her father’s family. She inherited from his estate a collection of photographs of relatives, many of whom she had never met before; all represented, however, her connection to the black side of her family. Reflecting on these images, on what they meant to her and to her history, she decided to use them in her art and make a statement. Instead of working with the full image and the entire portrait, Price decided to crop the face and feature only parts of it in her prints, thus alluding to both the incompleteness of information, and the often hidden and unknown side of reality. She did a series of these prints titled, So Many Why’s. Representing only fragments of the faces of her relatives, such as isolated lips, eyes, hair, semiprofiles, they indirectly and subtly raised many questions she had been having throughout her life about herself, her origin and her family. “Issues of identity and fragmentation have followed me everywhere,” she says. “As an individual whose African-American descent is not obvious, the space between what is revealed and what is hidden had become a familiar psychic territory. I made this indistinct zone inhabit my prints, and by using cropped elements of speech and hearing implied my incomplete knowledge of the subjects bearing my surname – as if at once I desired to know, connect and understand and at the same time acknowledged what I could never know.” Her print, By Halves, from the same series represents the half face of one of her relatives. Smiling, it elegantly challenges the viewer to discover its other side, weighing at one edge of the image as if pulling the past to unveil itself into the present, the unknown to merge into the known. It was also Price’s dealing with the dual aspect of her own personality. “In his 1903 book, The Souls of Black Folk, W.E.B. Du Bois writes about the double consciousness, the ‘two-ness’ of African-Americans,” Price says. “My portrait series is my search to resolve my own ‘two­ ness’, to locate my identity in history.” Price keeps coming back to her portrait series, adding new prints as if in a permanent dialogue with her questioning of race and identity, with preconceptions of family and history. Her prints serve as a confrontation of prejudices regarding who is black. She would like people to connect to them and think about the issues they raise. She recognizes, however, that they are only the expression of her own experience that she wants to share – not impose. More recently, Price created prints based on war imagery: helmets, armors, military hardware. Her monotypes, Two of Each and Royale, juxtapose images of a crown with artifacts of European military history, thus highlighting the relationship between political power and war. Her etchings, Armor Study and Bassinet, examine humankind’s long history of organized warfare. Her latest monotypes depict explosions based on the recent Gulf of Mexico oil spill. When not doing her own art, Price teaches printmaking. In her teaching. She always tries to Top: Ellen Price in her studio. Tom Featherstone. Above: By Halves. Print and photo by Ellen Price shake students out of their complacency – provoke thinking and discussions about issues, encourage empathy, looking at the world differently. Price likes to quote Arthur Miller, who said: “That which is not made into art is lost.” Making art, showing it, communicating through it, is very important to her. “Art is what makes us human beings,” she says. “It brings the sublime, the spiritual; it transcends immobility. Art has been central to my life; it helped me claim my history and assert my identity. It keeps my questioning alive, and hopefully it triggers the same in the viewer.” Artists as Activists is a regular column highlighting Greater Cincinnati artists who use art as a vehicle for change. Saad Ghosn is the founder of SOS Art. Ghosn can be contacted at saad.ghosn@uc.edu. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 2010 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource October 1-14, 2010 Subject The topic of the resource Homelessness Description An account of the resource Pg 1: Cost of Justice: $42,000 and Hour- Serving the Ministry of Irritation Pg 2: Street Wise Pg 3: Eight Minutes Using the V-Word Pg 4: Study Backs Federal Eviction Aid Pg 5: Justice Continued Priests Continued Pg 6: Time to Build a ‘Reverent Fear’ Pg 7: CS13 Finds a New Way of Doing Art Pg 8: Invisible Punishment Lasts a Lifetime Pg 9: Arts & Poetry Pg 10: Arts & Poetry Continued Pg 11: Development Aid in Recession Pg 12: A New Life Means a New Challenge Pg 13: Arts & Poetry Continued Pg 14: Interview with Champ ‘Let’s Go Somewhere Primitive’ Pg 15: Resources Pg 16: Exploring her ‘Two-ness’ Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Streetvibes Archive Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Streetvibes Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource October 1-14, 2010 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Gregory Flannery Joseph Szydlowski Georgia Bohannon Michelle Dillingham Samantha Groark Margo Pierce Paul Kopp Jeremy Flannery Michael Henson David Heitfield Corey Gibson Jeni Jenkins Saad Ghosn Lew Moores Larry Gross Eli Braun Jesse Call Michael Fanning B. Clifton Burke Aimie Willhoite Lynne Ausman Anne Skove Vinit Murthy Jon Hughes Brad Foster Jeremy Flanner Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Aimie Willhoite Anne Skove Arts & Poetry B. Clifton Burke Brad Foster Corey Gibson CS13 David Heitfield Eli Braun Ellen Price eviction Georgia Bohannon Gregory Flannery Immigrants Ireland Jeni Jenkins Jeremy Flanner Jeremy Flannery Jesse Call Jon Hughes Joseph Szydlowski Larry Gross Lew Moores Lynne Ausman Margo Pierce Michael Fanning Michael Henson Michelle Dillingham Ohio Paul Kopp Prisoners Recession Rev. Mark Schmieder Saad Ghosn Samantha Groark Seth Ewing Huff Vinit Murthy https://streetvibesarchive.net/files/original/050cf922042f1ad2f2c9949fb66db705.pdf 7a76ac18c4ad150ed40c31a21ac706b0 PDF Text Text Artists as Activists Page 16 Page 11 Sept.15-30, 2010 • Issue 184 • One Dollar ADVOCATING JUSTICE • BUILDING COMMUNITY The Business of Changing Lives Addressing social issues with yogurt, fish, energy and education By Lynne Ausman Staff Writer I Grameen Bank borrowers attend a weekly centre meeting to make loan repayments. Lynne Ausman. Death Comes for Unit One Lessons from a police investigation By Gregory Flannery Editor O fficial reports on traffic accidents aren’t known for their sensitivity, but humanity has a way of revealing itself in unexpected places. Consider the Ohio State Highway Patrol’s investigation of the July 27 death of Joann Burton, fatally injured by a police car while she lay in the grass of Washington Park. The 87-page report, released Sept. 2, contains pathos amid the sterile jargon that usually characterizes such documents. The report also contains conflicting statements by witnesses, each of whom had a different perspective when Cincinnati Police Officer Marty E. Polk drove over her. Some said Burton was visible under her blankets, others said, as Polk did, that she was not. Overseen by Highway Patrol Sgt. Matthew Hamilton, the investigation formed the basis for Hamilton County Prosecutor Joe Deters’s conclusion that felony charges should not be pursued against Polk (see “3CDC is the Enemy of the poor,” page 11). Traffic-accident reports commonly refer to vehicles involved in collisions, and it’s easier to say this “unit” went this way and that “unit” went that way than to keep saying, for example, Mr. Smith’s car did this and Mrs. Jones’s car did that. Thus the bare-bones explanation of what happened July 27 is, in the words of the report, “Unit 1 was lying on the ground, concealed by blankets. Unit 2 attempted to drive around the blankets, but drove over the blankets and Unit 1.” Unit 1 is Joann Burton. She lived on Burton Avenue. Polk told investigators he drove on the grass through the park every day that he patrolled it. Some of Burton’s flesh was found on the exhaust pipe of Unit 2, which was the patrol car driven by Polk. Polk is also referred to as “Eagle Eye” in one witness’s statement – a perhaps unintentional irony, given that Polk says he didn’t see Burton, but only the blankets under which she lay. Another irony is the report’s description of the scene of the accident: “Daylight, area covered by large trees creating shade and shadows.” This will change soon enough, of course, now that 3CDC has begun the process of refurbishing Washington Park, with plans to fell 59 trees, against neighbors’ objections (see “Neighborhood Rejects Takeover,” issue of Aug. 1-14). And there is this disconcerting observation by Sgt. N. Holden, who questioned Polk after the accident: “I appreciate you giving me a statement and your cooperation, and I’m sure that, that hearing (is) going to come back to be in your favor to show that there’s nothing to hide.” Following are excerpts from the Highway patrol’s report. ‘I don’t recall’ Statement by Officer Marty E. Polk, from interview conducted by Sgt. See Death, P. 3 n Bangladesh in the 1970s, Mohammad Yunus founded Grameen Bank, an organization that seeks to end poverty by extending small loans to poor people who are often excluded from commercial banks. From Grameen Bank, Yunus developed a philosophy of social business, in which, instead of building profit, the bottom line is addressing some social problem. Social businesses are cause-driven. Similar to many businesses, investors contribute start-up money to get the business going. Once it is off the ground and turning a profit, the investors begin to regain their initial investments. Unlike conventional businesses, however, social businesses don’t pay dividends; all profits are reinvested back into the business to ensure sustainability and continued growth. Grameen Bank was the first social business. As it grew and became selfsustaining, Yunus used his philosophy to address social issues such as childhood malnutrition, inadequate medical care, lack of clean water, foot-borne diseases and access to energy. While I was in Bangladesh this summer, four social businesses and Grameen sister organizations had a particular impact on my experience. Grameen sister organizations are not social businesses per se, but work to address some social problem – often not seeking to make any revenue. The sister organizations operate more like nonprofit organizations in the United States. See Business, P. 8 �2 Editorial By The Numbers 14th The name of the street where people denounced 3CDC for displacing poor people (see page 11). 11 The percentage of U.S. drivers who wore seat belts before laws required it (see page X). 1909 The year the Anna Louise Inn opened (see page 4). 6 The number of years a mayfly lives in larval form (see page 16). 4 The average weekly pay, in U.S. dollars, earned by some child laborers in Bangladesh (see page 1). 30 The number of people injured by a bull in Spain earlier this summer (see page 7). 535,000 The number of people who stayed in emergency shelters last year (see page 6). 59 The number of trees 3CDC plans to destroy in Washington Park (see page 1). .04 The percentage of Ohio voters who cast ballots in the Socialist Party primary last spring (see page 5). 7 The number of corporations that control Cincinnati (see page 12) STREETVIBES September 15 - 30, 2010 Don’t Drink the Tea By Gregory Flannery Editor As I write this, about 10 people are waiting outside for a chance to see a doctor. The Homeless Med Van is in front of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless, where patients can be seen every Friday morning. Operated by the Cincinnati Health Network Inc., the Med Van provides free health care to people who have no place to live. As I write this, millions of children in Bangladesh are suffering from malnutrition, lack of clean water and crippling foot diseases. They might never see a doctor. Lynne Ausman, art director of Streetvibes, spent five weeks there this summer, and she tells some of what she observed in her story, “The Business of Changing Lives,” on page 1. As I write this, a close family member is in acute pain. He is 28 years old. He sometimes walks only with the assistance of a cane. Strangers often ask why such a young person needs a cane. He has rheumatoid arthritis, which made him unable to work several years ago, which means he has no funds to pay for medical care. He has applied for Medicaid, but each state’s eligibility requirements vary. In Ohio, a person who has no income can receive Medicaid only if he is younger than age 18, older than age 55 or certified as permanently disabled by the Social Security Administration. My family member isn’t permanently disabled – yet. If he doesn’t get treatment soon, he might become permanently disabled. He is, for now, on a waiting list for low-cost medical care. Streetvibes is an activist newspaper, advocating justice and building community. Streetvibes reports on economic issues, civil rights, the environment, the peace movement, spirituality and the struggle against homelessness and poverty. Distributed by people who are or once were homeless, in exchange for a $1 donation, Streetvibes is published twice a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Address: 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 Phone: 513.421.7803 x 12 Fax: 513.421.7813 Email: streetvibes2@yahoo. com Website: www. cincihomeless.org Blog: streetvibes.wordpress. com Streetvibes Staff Waiting doesn’t always mean help is finally gotten. My family member once waited weeks to see a doctor at a public-health clinic, then spent hours in the waiting room, only to be informed that he needs to see a specialist. He came away with no less pain, a great deal more discouragement and a $50 fee to pay. As I write this, Tea Party fanatics are railing against the health-care reform signed into law by President Barack Obama. You have heard their lies: “socialist medicine,” “governmentcontrolled health care” and “death panels” that will decide which people are unfit to be kept alive. Their most outrageous lie, of course, is that the United States cannot afford Obama’s limited health-care reform. We can afford to spend trillions to conquer and occupy unarmed nations – first Afghanistan, then Iraq – but we cannot afford to provide basic health care to all Americans. As I write this, I am aware of how fortunate I am. I recently had surgery. The surgery followed expensive medical tests – a CT scan, an MRI – and months of consultation with physicians. Nurses monitored my recovery from the operation. They gave me medicine for pain. The physician checked my progress while I was in the hospital and after I returned home. When complications followed, prescription medication helped me. The costs of this care go beyond the obvious. There is the physician’s bill, of course, and the cost of the diagnostic tests, performed by health-care professionals using expensive machinery; and the cost of hospital upkeep. But a great many people are required for surgery to take place. Someone must do the scheduling. Someone must fill out the paperwork at the admission desk. Someone must clean the operating room. Someone must prepare the patient’s food. Someone must manufacture the surgical instruments. Someone must tell visitors where to find patients. Someone must patrol the parking lot where visitors leave their cars. In case my good fortune were lost on me, my physician spelled it out. He said, “In Third World countries, many people die from this kind of tumor, because it goes undetected.” I told him, “I live in Monfort Heights.” He didn’t laugh. Access to medical care is no laughing matter. I am fortunate to work for an employer that provides health insurance, which will pay much of the cost of my care. In four years, tens of millions of Americans who have no health insurance will be able to receive health care, part of the new health-care reform. When you vote in November, remember that this small progress has been made, especially if you are one of the millions of people who are unemployed or one of the millions whose homes have been seized by bankers. If you are fortunate to have a home, to have a job, to have health insurance, to have good health, you might not understand why health-care reform is needed at all. Stop by our office some Friday morning. I will be glad to introduce you to people who have none of these things. They are in pain. They are ill. They are standing on the sidewalk, waiting to see a doctor in a van – well, some of them are standing. Some are sitting on the sidewalk, because standing too long is painful. Even so, they, too, are fortunate. They could be living in Bangladesh. They could be living in U.S.-occupied Iraq. They could be living in U.S.-occupied Afghanistan. They could suffer the ravages that the Tea party would inflict on this country. Prevention is the best treatment for that disorder. Vote. Editor Gregory Flannery Art Director Lynne Ausman Vendor Coordinator Georgia Bohannon Contributing Writers Michelle Dillingham, Samantha Groark, Margo Pierce, Paul Kopp, Jeremy Flannery, Michael Henson, David Heitfield, Corey Gibson, Jeni Jenkins, Saad Ghosn, Lew Moores, Larry Gross, Eli Braun, Jesse Call, Michael Fanning, B. Clifton Burke Photography/Artwork Aimie Willhoite, Lynne Ausman, Anne Skove, Vinit Murthy, Jon Hughes, Brad Foster Proofreaders Jeremy Flannery The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that works to eradicate homelessness in Cincinnati through coordination of services, public education, grassroots advocacy and Streetvibes. We are proud members of: �STREETVIBES September 15 - 30, 2010 3 Local News The Way Unit 1 Came to Her Death Continued from page 1 Matthew Hamilton … Q: What path did you take after you entered Washington Park? Polk: I don’t recall. Q: Was your view obstructed by anything? Polk: No. Q: Did you leave your patrol car running after the crash? Polk: I really don’t remember. Q: Did you activate your incar camera at any time prior or during the rash: Polk: I don’t recall. ‘You ran over my legs’ From synopsis by Sgt. Matthew Hamilton … “Officer Polk advised he was on routine patrol in Washington Park and was driving slowly through the grass as he and other officers normally do. He stated he noticed some blankets and went around them to the left and then felt a ‘thump, Visitors at a makeshift memorial for JoAnn Burton. Bradley R. Foster. thump.’ Officer Polk advised he jumped out of his car and observed a woman combative, I don’t know, with them, you know, but behind his patrol car. He asked her what happened she didn’t want to go to the hospital. That’s what, and she stated, ‘You ran over my legs.’ ” … you know.” … “Officer Polk stated he saw two blankets “I didn’t recognize her. I’ve seen her down there and thought that he moved to the left of the before but, you know, I never recognized her. I blankets before he felt the ‘thumps.’ Officer Polk don’t really know her name.” … denied observing any other items near the crash “But I did hold her arm, her hand for her, you scene; however, there were several other items know. That’s what she wanted, and, you know, I surrounding the area of the blankets, including the said, ‘We’ll get the fire company and we’ll get you pink and gray backpack, which was snagged and checked and make sure everything’s OK, get you dragged by Officer Polk’s patrol car.” to the hospital to get checked, because she really didn’t want to go, but I said, ‘Lady, you go to go to ‘I go around people’ the hospital.’ ” … “I was on that access road just From statement by Officer Officer Polk denied a little bit, then I went off just Marty E. Polk to Sgt. N. Holden looking around, because there’s observing any other “I noticed the blankets. I people on the access road this items near the crash went around to the left and I’m and that and, you know, I didn’t scene; however, there sure I missed the blankets but want to, you know, so I just go were several other items the next thing I know is, I was around people.” … surrounding the area of driving along about 5 mile, real Holden reviewed Polk’s the blankets, including slow, I heard ‘thump, thump.’ As medical history with him. Polk the pink and gray soon as I heard that, I jumped said he has sleep apnea. backpack, which was out the car. I did hear somebody Q: How were you feeling? snagged and dragged by holler – I don’t know who it Polk: “Oh, I was feeling great. Officer Polk’s patrol car. was – I jumped out the car. I I said ‘hi’ to everybody ’cause I looked over. This lady, she was know people down there, you laying, she was laying but she stood up. She sat know. They know me, and I said ‘hi’ to them.” … up, you know, and I’m looking at her legs. I said, “I saw the blanket, like I said. I don’t know if her ‘What happened, ma’am?’ She says, ‘You ran over legs were out, you know. I’m saying her legs could my legs.’ I said, ‘Oh,’ then I proceeded to say, I have been out, you know. She could have just put say, you know, she said, ‘I’m in pain,’ and I called them out. I don’t know, you know, but, uh, I know for a rescue unit right away and I called the fire when I heard the ‘thump, thump,’ that’s when I department to get there right away and then I jumped out of the car, sir.” called for my supervisor – ‘Get down here right At the end of the interview, Holden says, “I now’ – you know, the situation. As I looked up to, appreciate you giving me a statement and your you know, I said, ‘Stand by one second, ma’am,’ cooperation, and I’m sure that, that hearing going you know. I held her hand and everything and to come back to be in your favor to show that looked over and I said, ‘Did anybody witness this,’ there’s nothing to hide.” and I took – the people came forth and I said, ‘Please stay here because I need – we need your ‘He should not have’ statement, so stay here, with what happened, you know.’ So they stayed there, which was nice of From statement of witness Jacqueline Williams them. Finally the fire company came and then the … rescue unit came behind that. She was talking and, Q: How could you tell there was a body under the you know, no problem, but like all of a sudden, blanket when you first saw it? I guess when they put her on the –what do they Williams: ‘The person’s head was not covered call that thing? The, um, bucket or, you know … by the blanket. It was a black female, but I couldn’t yeah, the gurney thing – she, I guess, she just got tell that till after. All I could see was the person’s hair. It was an afro. Her face was covered.” Q: Lying in a straight line or were her knees bent? Williams: “Don’t know. I only saw the top part of her head.” Q: Would it have been difficult for the officer to have seen her? Williams: “I can’t answer. In my opinion, he should have been able to see her, and he should have been able to see there was a person in the blanket, because her head was not covered.” Q: What do you think caused the incident? Williams: ‘The police car driving on the grass, knowing that people sleep in the grass.” … “He should not have ran over the blanket without knowing if it was empty or not. … He didn’t have any lights on. He wasn’t chasing anyone. He just needed to be more diligent about running over blankets.” Eagle Eye From statement of witness Deborah A. Gross … Q: Have you seen the officer here before? Gross: “Yes, several times. We call him Officer Eagle Eye. Q: Had that officer driven through the grass before? Gross; “No, not that officer. He is one of the cooler officers.” Q: Do you think the officer saw the victim? Gross: “No, I don’t think he did. A lot of people leave things behind all the time.” Q: Did the officer provide medical assistance to the victim? Gross: “Yes, immediately. He really tried to help her.” ‘Looked like a blanket’ From statement of witness David Bevis … Q: Do you think the officer saw the lady? Bevis: “No, there was no way he could have known. It just looked like a blanket crumpled up. No part of her was visible. She was completely covered up by the blanket.” Q: Do a lot of people sleep in that park and on the ground? Bevis: “Yes, quite a few.” Call 513-421-7803 x11 to learn about Streetvibes subscriptions �4 STREETVIBES September 15 - 30, 2010 Local News Anna Louise Gets a Makeover At 101 years, she deserves it By Brian O’Donnell Contributing Writer E very homeowner knows renovations are a lot of work and often costly. But how do you renovate a home that houses more than 150 women and children? The answer is simple: $12.4 million and a staff dedicated to doing it right. For the Anna Louise Inn, a safe haven of transitional housing for women and children, the renovations are long overdue. The inn, in downtown Cincinnati near the Taft Museum, is operated by Cincinnati Union Bethel, the city’s oldest socialservice agency, which once assisted riverboat men and their families. Cincinnati Union Bethel began its service in 1830, providing worship opportunities to travelers along the Ohio River. As the group grew, a Sunday school was created that within 30 years became the largest Sunday school in the world, with 3,500 pupils. The agency’s greatest achievement, however, might be with the Anna Louise Inn and the services provided by the home. The land for the inn was donated by influential Charles Taft, brother of President William Howard Taft, and the inn was named for his daughter, Anna Louise. In 1909, on the corner of Third and Lytle streets, the inn opened with the goal of supporting women as they transitioned from their rural homes to the urban environment of downtown Cincinnati. ‘Much more robust’ The red-brick building emits the beauty of century-old architecture, but also the decay of the same century’s wear and tear without renovations. Inside the home, the walls are bordered with detailed molding and even marble fixtures holding up floor-to-ceiling mirrors. Through a series of narrow hallways, rooms reminiscent of college dorms house women as they transition. Some of these women stay for less than a year, while some, such as Mary Catherine Scheely, have been there for 30 years or more. Scheely, 79, was originally from Oldenburg, Ind., but came to live at Anna Louise out of necessity. “I came to the big city ’cause I had to get a job,” she says. “I was very scared. I knew nothing about Cincinnati.” The inn benefited her so much that she still lives in its family-like environment after 33 years. “I’ve learned a lot of things and appreciate living here ’cause I had no other place to live,” Scheely says. Giving women a safe and affordable housing option is only part of the inn’s purpose. Since its creation, Cincinnati Union Bethel has expanded Anna Louise to include social services such as a free dental clinic and a legal aid society. Mary Carol Melton, project manager for Cincinnati Union Bethel, says she is proudest of the Off the Streets program that provides housing and services for women recovering from prostitution. “Miracles happen every day in this program for women,” Melton says. Thirty people worked over the course of a year to devise and implement Off the Streets, culminating in partnerships with more than 25 agencies, including the Cincinnati Police Department. “It’s been a wonderful example of how a community can come together and have a meaningful impact,” Melton says. Now having served more than 400 clients since starting in 2006, Off the Streets is about to have its first participant graduate from the University of Cincinnati, with a degree in addiction studies. “Everyone deserves credit for making this happen,” Melton says. Successes like Off the Streets don’t come easy. When Steve MacConnell first arrived at Cincinnati Union Bethel nine years ago, he described it as suffering from a lull in leadership. With a background in law spanning 26 years, MacConnell says, “I thought I had some skills to find and bring a staff of builders to create a much more robust agency.” It was his goal to begin creation of a board of directors to ease day-today operations from the dedicated but small executive staff of six. Now the agency’s chief executive officer, MacConnell describes the current administration as a body of 21 people operating through an array of committees that bring new issues to the board. ‘Community of women’ Stephen MacConnell and Mary Carol Melton of Cincinnati Union Bethel. Jon Hughes/Photopresse. rooms heavily damaged by a range of issues such as drooping ceilings and peeling plaster, it was clear to MacConnell that renovations were a necessity. “I started thinking about it as soon as I got here,” he says. MacConnell shopped the idea around to real-estate companies until he learned of the $12.4 million price tag on the project. Hope for renovations “seemed to continue to run into brick walls,” he says. “Then the miracle happened.” Relying on successes like Off the Streets that garnered local and national attention, Cincinnati Union Bethel attracted about $10 million in tax credits from the Ohio Housing and Finance Agency. Once the financial issue was solved, renovations proved to be a logistical nightmare. The board had no experience in such a large undertaking. Recruiting the Overthe-Rhine Community Housing as a partner helped immensely, according to Melton. “We were really thrilled to have their expertise,” she says. The renovations, set for completion in the fall of 2011, will lower the total capacity of the inn but will increase the quality of life and service for residents, MacConnell and Melton say. “I think the emphasis is on the enhanced amenities and completing our mission,” Melton says. With central air-conditioning to Upon his arrival, MacConnell noticed the state of neglect the Anna Louise Inn had fallen into over its century of existence. With some of its rested in Advert Inte isin gi Affordable Rates etvibes? tre nS be added, rooms will be enlarged to include private kitchens and bathrooms, a move away from the communal amenities. As renovations take place, MacConnell says, funds and plans are in place to help residents through the construction period either by relocating them off the premises or to a part of the building that is not yet under construction. At 100-years-old, there is concern about preservation of the inn’s historical architecture. “It’s just an institution in Cincinnati,” MacConnell says. The outside of the building will remain unchanged while the inside will undergo some touchups in addition to renovations of rooms that will involve the removal of walls. “The inside beauty will match the outside,” Melton says. For Scheely and the other residents, the renovation, though perhaps inconvenient when it comes to daily living, is a godsend. “It’ll be good for all the ladies,” she says. “They’re not used to all that.” The luxuries added by the renovation will enhance Cincinnati Union Bethel’s ability to stay on its mission. “Women tell us all the time: The safe community of women is very comforting,” Melton says. Many sizes (full page, 1/2 page, 1/4 page, 1/8 page) Black & White and Color available Discounts for Nonprofits Contact Lynne at 513-421-7803 ext. 11 Become a Fan of Streetvibes on Facebook or lynneausman@cincihomeless.org http://www.facebook.com/streetvibescincinnati for more information. �STREETVIBES September 15 - 30, 2010 Local News 5 Dems and GOP Say, ‘Stay Away’ Third-party candidates want to join debate By Jesse Call Contributing Writer A s Ohio’s major-party candidates for the U.S. Senate prepare to field questions in a debate Oct. 8, candidates for smaller parties are working to be allowed in the debate at all. Although they come from very different political perspectives, Dan La Botz, the Socialist Party candidate, and Eric Deaton, the Constitution Party candidate, have teamed together to petition for inclusion in the upcoming debates. The online petition calls upon Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner to “ensure that all of the candidates in the Ohio Senate race as well as other national, state and local races have an equal opportunity to participate in debates before the public,” citing the fact that she is the official “responsible for overseeing elections” in Ohio. La Botz also has made a separate appeal Socialist Party candidate Dan La Botz wants to participate in a debate for a seat in the U.S. Senate. to the debate’s sponsor and host, the Ohio Jon Hughes/Photopresse. News Organization. Brunner, who lost the Democratic primary The Ohio News Organization, a consortium unlike the major-party candidates, he has for the same Senate seat that La Botz and to be present for his day job and is therefore of eight daily metro newspapers in Ohio, is Deaton seek, is organizing a debate for unable to attend meetings during work hours. hosting the debates. The organization said it secretary of state candidates in which many “I’m going to do everything possible to be feels it is more fair to the voters of Ohio if they third-party candidates are included. She included in the debate,” La Botz says. can have a more substantive debate among also has taken steps to make sure that Ohio La Botz says he is looking at other options, the two candidates most likely to be elected ballots include the party affiliations of thirdincluding legal action, and that he will “do his rather than asking the same questions of party candidates, instead of just calling them best to show up at the debate” and ask to be more candidates. “independent.” included. “The logic is sound: In a television debate Despite multiple requests for comment format, when time constraints limit the ‘A question of efficiency’ made to the campaigns of Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher, number of questions and answers to be the Democratic candidate, and Rob Portman, heard, it is of the utmost But, although Brunner the Republican candidate, as well as to the importance that voters hear said she believes all “The logic is sound: Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee from the two candidates candidates should be heard, and the National Republican Senatorial who are clearly the frontIn a television debate she is not sure whether or Commitee, all of them chose not to respond runners for the office,” format, when time not she will work to include to this story. Benjamin Marrison, editor constraints limit the the third-party candidates “I’m sure many in my party wouldn’t agree of The Columbus Dispatch number of questions in the senatorial debates. with me (on including all candidates in and lead organizer of the and answers to be “Frankly, my personal debates),” Brunner says. debates, said in a statement. heard, it is of the philosophy is that everyone Deaton says he “While we have and will utmost importance that should be included,” she knows the majorcontinue to write about voters hear from the says. “The presidential third-party candidates when party candidates two candidates who are are “afraid of Only .04 percent of model excluded warranted, including them clearly the front-runners (his) candidacy” the voters in the primary in debates limits Ohioans’ candidates who for the office.” and that he “feels election voted on the ability to hear answers from we knew had great -Ben Marrison strongly that he Socialist ballot statewide, the top candidates on issues potential,” he says. would win the race and only .17 percent voted critical to the state’s future.” “The presidential on the Constitution Party ballot, according to Marrison also noted that they are following if he is included model is a terrible Brunner. That is low compared to even other in the debates.” the format used in U.S. presidential debates, model. The real issue minority parties, including the Libertarian La Botz says he which also routinely exclude third party is giving all candidates Party, which had 0.3% statewide. was not surprised candidates. an opportunity to “Some would argue that the number of that the major That example is a poor one to follow, present their views, voter voting Socialist Party ballots was so parties did not according to La Botz. and that (time) excuse small that it would be a question of efficiency respond, noting is ridiculous. The on whether or not to include Dan (La Botz),” ‘A terrible model’ that he thinks they American people Brunner says. would prefer to understand our country Brunner says she will keep checking on “The presidential model excluded have no debates is in a crisis, and they the level of support for inclusion of the candidates who we knew had great potential,” at all because want to hear opinions candidates before making a decision on he says. “The presidential model is a terrible they are afraid to – all the positions that whether or not to lobby, as secretary of state, model. The real issue is giving all candidates commit to any are out there.” for their inclusion. an opportunity to present their views, and controversial -Dan La Botz “Now, whether I am going to go out and that (time) excuse is ridiculous. The American positions. He make this a major issue remains to be seen people understand our country is in a crisis, says he wants to because it falls into an area where I really and they want to hear opinions – all the challenge the major-party candidates on how don’t have enforcement, and I would simply positions that are out there.” their parties have bankrupted the country would be using persuasion to try to make La Botz says that approval for the socialist and ignored the will of the electorate to care sure all candidates are included,” Brunner perspective is increasing throughout the for the environment and end foreign wars. country, citing polls conducted by major says. La Botz encourages those who believe he research organizations including Gallup, Pew, and other third-party candidates should be She also admits she wants to be careful about the appearance of any influence on the and Rasmussen. included in the debates to sign the petition He also says that it is more fair to include race, given that she is a former candidate. and write letters to the editors of Ohio’s major candidates like him because, in many cases, “I wouldn’t want it to appear as though I metro newspapers. was doing this for personal reasons,” Brunner he is forced to decline invitations to town hall The petition is available online at http:// meetings throughout the state because of says. “So, you know, that is where I would www.change.org/petitions/view/petition_ the cost of having to travel and the fact that, hesitate.” for_inclusive_political_debates_in_ohio. �6 Issues STREETVIBES September 15 - 30, 2010 Homeless Families on the Rise Community services increase By Jeremy Flannery Contributing Writer T he number of homeless families continues to rise in the United States, according to the 2009 Annual Homelessness Assessment Report to Congress by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Over 170,000 American families used emergency shelters or transitional housing in 2009, compared to 131,000 families in 2007, about a 30 percent increase since 2007. The average lengths of stays of families in shelters also increased from 30 days in 2008 to 36 days in 2009. About 535,000 homeless people, as part of families, used emergency shelters or transitional housing in 2009. “Three-fifths of the people in homeless families are children, and more than half of the children are under age 6,” the report says. There might be more families at risk of becoming homeless, as the report found that families entering homeless shelters are increasingly coming from other housed situations, such as doubling up with friends or other family members. But the issue of homelessness is witnessing some improvements in the United States, according to HUD: A child picks up food from a pantry with his family. Aimie Willhoite. • The number of chronically homeless people decreased by 10 percent from 124,135 in the January 2008 point-in-time (PIT) homelessness and the success of sheltering homeless Americans, estimate to 110,917 in the January 2009 PIT estimate. About 53 percent according to the report. of the reports from local continuums of care showed a decrease in • Nearly 1.56 million people used an emergency shelter or transitional chronic homelessness. housing program from October 2008 through September 2009, • 112 more communities used the Homeless Management Information compared to 1.6 million in 2008. Two-thirds were homeless as System, the electronic system used to track services of homeless individuals and one-third were homeless as family members – at least shelters, for a total of 334 participating communities. one adult with one child under 18 years of age. • The number of beds in permanent supportive housing increased from Individuals experiencing homelessness tend to be adult males, members of 2008 to 2009 by about 23,000, for a total of over 219,000 beds. a minority group and middle aged, the report says. • Though the number of homeless people remained fairly stable, with “More than 10 percent are veterans, and more than 40 percent have a about 643, 067 homeless Americans on a single night, the number of disability,” the report states. Family members experiencing homelessness sheltered homeless is increasing, according to the report. This number tend to be children – about 60 percent – or adult women under age 31 might be due to the increased participation of communities tracking without male partners. Education is a Start, but Laws Work By Michelle Dillingham Contributing Writer T he Campaign for Affordable Housing is a non-profit organization whose mission is “to create a more receptive political climate for favorable government decisions on land-use matters and allocation of public resources.” The campaign argues we need more and better public information about affordable housing. By knowing public opinion, members hope to develop better public-education materials for advocates. Recently they did a meta-analysis of publicopinion research on attitudes about affordable housing that was collected from the late 1990s to 2003. Although the research was drawn from a wide array of sample groups, the findings yielded similar patterns of response. They found essentially two story lines. The first story line is one of positive attitudes toward affordable housing, that the basic American values of fairness and opportunity appear to be the underlying value in their responses. The second story line is how attitudes change when the issue is framed as a local issue or “right next door”; when it hits home, “darker issues of fear overtake fairness and opportunity for many Americans.” Here in Cincinnati we see how mainstream media often uses fear when referencing project-based properties or homeless shelters, and it dissuades public opinion against supporting affordable housing. Another example of attitudes being supportive on a general level, but not a local one, is that people report they are supportive of generalized “policies” to expand affordable housing such as alleviating tax burdens. However when it gets local or specific, such as changing one’s own neighborhood zoning or increasing the number of apartments in one’s building to be affordable but a neighboring property or business, it was units, it is not supported. not given equal volume – sort of like the “oops” That said, the researchers conclude that broadcolumns in newspapers hidden on the last page based campaigns should speak to the general that people rarely read. need for more affordable As I write this, I wonder: housing, calling on values Is this too transparent? Lesson? Public-education such as fairness and equal Are we showing our hand? opportunity. However, Certainly not. Planning campaigns are effective, but when advocating for local communications around strict enforcement trumps every housing efforts, use a what people are really time, which is why many housing more targeted messaging concerned about is not advocates prefer to focus on that address worries about underhanded or an attempt promoting required inclusionary increased crime and at being subliminal – it’s zoning and other enforceable poor maintenance. The keeping it real. policies to increase affordable researchers emphasize, Public education can be housing. Then again, elected “Advocates must be a powerful tool, but it is not officials are the ones who float ready to prove these fears the whole answer. Consider such legislation – and they are unfounded.” the seat belt. Despite elected by the people whose We must convince educational campaigns opinions can drive their agenda. Cincinnati’s prior to 1980, only 11 neighborhoods that percent of Americans used first, affordable housing will benefit not only the seat belts. By 1990, 37 states had seat-belt laws tenants, but the neighborhood as a whole; second, that were “secondary” – meaning an officer had to those who will directly benefit are children, the observe another traffic violation before issuing a elderly and working families; and third, we need seat-belt ticket. Subsequently, the national average to showcase many examples of “high quality, of seat-belt use rose to 50 percent. By 2007, in the attractive, affordable and safe housing to counter 25 states that had “primary” seat-belt laws on the the negative preconceptions about appearance books – meaning an officer can issue a citation and crime and their impacts on property values.” without observing any other offence – their usage The Campaign for Affordable Housing is a rose to 88 percent. great resource for affordable-housing advocates. Lesson? Public-education campaigns are It asserts that, if communications are crafted at a effective, but strict enforcement trumps every local level, they can “unlock the specific missing time, which is why many housing advocates prefer messages that will create national change one to focus on promoting required inclusionary community at a time”. zoning and other enforceable policies to increase Of course, their research findings are intuitive. affordable housing. Then again, elected officials I can recall many discussions at City Hall about are the ones who float such legislation – and they police and fire calls for service and other “quality are elected by the people whose opinions can of life” issues being raised in the context of drive their agenda. project-based housing. Later, when the data Chicken or the egg, chicken or the egg? revealed it was not the tenants drawing the calls �STREETVIBES September 15 - 30, 2010 7 Gallery Opening Somewhere in Northside By Steven Paul Lansky Contributing Writer Somewhere in Northside, at Chase and Hamilton, up a short flight of stairs a new art space, Chase Public, opened. Theme – the domestic – Public Conversation – Tim Parsley artwork – Red paper lantern over Robert Murphy – Mike Fleisch – cross discipline and artists and! Dan … introduces Murphy. – Non-lecturer – poet homebuilder – some beats – hip-hop outside – the border between mythic truth and the domestic dirty windows dusk – headlights green & red traffic signals a house boarded up is a myth of urban renewal; labor exploited or unremembered toil – toil pulled through without greed, within need. What are you doing in my clothes? Taoist saying! windows set back – sills and indent above – stripes above, wide stripes on vertical and horizontal surfaces – red, gray, white, brown. A skateboard heard below – crack-crack & crackcrack wheels on sidewalk. Sodium vapor lamps arch over strorefronts & traffic signals—amber glow. A child voice – a song rings a cell phone in the audience – is this interruption? Rumble Beat Bass – Murphy quotes Celan, Emerson, Lao-Tse, Gnostic gospel, marvel, not the commix, the kind child let in and let out of Murphy’s non-lecture – reading without the UHM, or like, or you know, no his economy of speech is never casual. “Laughter shall keep us unafraid.” “A pair of wings … quicksilver back of a mirror … the blue in a feather.” A bluish bus lit inside and out. beep-beep. “I had seen a heron just the other day.” motor sounds “should you be walking alone along the river.” “past the chicken coop.” “everything flown the coop that had once owned feathers.” “the red fox – having taken over the badger …” “a red blur … across the frozen pasture.” “Not even Aesop.” A loud muffler. A cackling laugh. A starter. “An eagle higher than a hawk flies. Waiting for the return of the bison …” A plastic coffee mug, a travel cup holds up the windowpane – but not much air. “dutchman’s breeches… marsh marigolds.” “for the telling of a good tale.” On Murphy’s shirt a bear with a swirling human like spirit within – a salmon just beyond paw and gaping maw. “a tin can orbiting three-hundred miles above the earth.” Tim is wearing Wallabees – shoes by … Clark(e). No, they’re slip-on – similar. Music wafts up – Goose’s foot and leg shaking. “numinosity” – Murphy – “The paintings look back at you.” A guy eating a slice of pizza as he stands on the sidewalk Then tapes a poster – the sound of tape pulling. “How light was filling the space” – Tim – “Work that’s realist like this runs the risk …” “All we’re left with are these empty …” “the figure has left the room entirely …” “theology … parallel history of painting …” Reflection of the paper red globe in windows, cut by window frames – some horizontal – some vertical. “We build these houses & people move into them.” Urban Renewal “Voyeurism – waiting for the best look we could get at this …” “… finding beauty …” – “sacrament –” “– mundane –” “something pretty profound starts to occur.” The Return of the Winged Prodigal Maybe the animals are overworked By Nicholas Hoesl Contributing Writer H e’s back! After eight days of being “free as a bird,” a hungry, hapless, Harris hawk named Tex is safely back at the Cincinnati Zoo. An alert Clifton resident called the zoo hotline with a sizzling tip in sighting the naughty bird hanging out in a nearby tree. The zoo’s head bird trainer, Gary Denzler, rushed to the scene, armed with heavy leather, a whistle in his mouth and carrying the hawk’s favorite snack – a mouse. Call it a capture enraptured. I wondered. Was it the whistle, the mouse or the love of Gary that convinced the flying star of the “Wings of Wonder Show” to surrender? Or was he just bored to death and longing for more of the limelight? Others pondered why he didn’t venture farther west to explore the greenery of Mount Airy Forest, Oxbow and Shawnee Lookout. Gatekeepers at Miami-Whitewater Forest told me he could have teamed up with two resident red-tailed The good news is that Tex has his job back, even hawks in the park. They are known for whistling though he’s forced to sit out a year. I ask you: Is this at each other. I don’t know how many zoo hawks a bad rap? I think the hawk escapade was meant to are waiting in the wings, but a “Whistling Hawk send the zoo a message: “Don’t take us for granted. Chorus” would be a crowd pleaser. Next time it will take more Recently Time magazine than a few mice and whistling featured an article, “Inside ‘Dixie’ to get us back. So your the Minds of Animals.” The Others pondered why he cheetah runs 100 meters in six current belief is that they are didn’t venture farther west seconds. We fly. Can they chat far smarter than we realized. to explore the greenery of with a chimp? Are they fluent in Parrots can match wits with Mount Airy Forest, Oxbow cheetonese? We are rock stars!” chimps. Liz Wilson, a parrotand Shawnee Lookout. behavior consultant from Here’s what the zoo should Gatekeepers at MiamiPhiladelphia, said she heard do. Let’s let bygones be bygones. Whitewater Forest told me several cases in which people Get the mayor to issue a he could have teamed up come home feeling blue proclamation: “The Prodigal Has with two resident red-tailed and their parrots asked, “Is Returned.” Then let the feast hawks in the park. begin. Forget about the fatted something wrong?” I don’t call calf. Give Tex and his entourage anyone a “bird brain” anymore. a banquet fit for this two-legged king. Serve up A colleague of Tex, named Tucson, also flew off pheasant, wild turkey, frog legs and squirrel. Top in the middle of a show two months ago, but he returned in five days. Do you sense a pattern here? it off with fermented berries. After that, it’s show Are these hawks victims of workplace stress similar time. Bring on those dancing cock-a-doodle cockatoos. to the stress that freaked out Steve Slater, the Jet Tex would be speechless. But I can hear him Blue flight attendant who became a folk hero of saying, even now, “I am no ungainly, ghastly, the skies? This news was closely followed by a bull in Tafallo, Spain, that charged over a fence into the gaunt and ominous bird of yore, and I will roam – crowd, injuring 30 people. nevermore!” �8 STREETVIBES September 15 - 30, 2010 Food “Feed Me, Seymour, Feed Me All Night Long…” Festive Tomato & Basil Bruscetta on Italian Toast Serving Size: 8-12 bellies Olive oil cooking spray 1 loaf Italian bread, cut in ½ inch slices 4-5 Roma tomatoes, diced 1 red onion, peeled and chopped 3 cloves fresh garlic, diced 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar 5 sprigs fresh basil chopped Salt and pepper (Optional for vegans) 1 cup shredded Italian cheese • • • Jeni Jenkins. By Jeni Jenkins Staff Writer • T his recipe for bruscetta came naturally, as I’ve always had a heart for Italian food and eating food with my hands. The great thing about bruscetta is that it’s practically effortless for the amount of enjoyment that follows. Plus, this hearty appetizer is great for potlucks, family gatherings and parties. Enjoy! • • • Heat oven to 350 degrees. Coat baking sheet with cooking spray. Lay sliced bread face-down on baking sheet. Heat in oven 5 minutes on each side. Combine onions, garlic, tomatoes, basil and vinegar in bowl. Mix well. Remove bread from oven and scoop heaping tablespoons of mixture on each slice of bread. Sprinkle lightly with Italian cheese. Bake in oven for 5-7 minutes or until cheese is bubbly. Voila, feed! The Business of Changing Lives Continued from page 1 Grameen Danone Grameen Danone is a partnership between Grameen and Dannon, the French yogurt manufacturer. The mission is to bring better nutrition to poor, rural children who often suffer from nutrient deficiencies, such as vitamin A, zinc, iron and calcium. Grameen Danone yogurt, packed with these nutrients, is served in sixand eight-ounce cups. The yogurt is made from fresh milk purchased from farmers in the area, some of whom are Grameen Bank borrowers, directly benefiting the borrowers and other local farmers. Women in the village sell the yogurt door-to-door for six or eight taka (about 11 U.S. cents) per cup, depending on the size and flavor. (Mango flavor costs more). By distributing the yogurt in this manner, one woman in the village is employed. The yogurt is also sold in Dhaka, the capital city. The cost is slightly higher in the city, with the price cheap enough that poor families can purchase it but high enough that the profit helps to cover the cost of production and distribution in the rural villages. Grameen Fisheries The Bangladeshi government loaned Grameen over 1,000 fishing ponds in the northwestern part of the country. The ponds have been for fisheries for centuries. Grameen devised a plan that would also help to alleviate poverty while turning the fisheries into a profitable business. The result was a 50/50 partnership between Grameen and the poor families living along the fishing ponds. The families provide the labor of maintaining and fishing the ponds, and Grameen provides training, expertise and breed the fish to stock the ponds. The profits from selling the fish is split equally: 50 percent going to the fishermen, women and families and 50 percent going to Grameen Fisheries to cover overhead and operating costs. Grameen Shakti Grameen Shakti is a sister organization dedicated to bringing green energy, health, income and jobs to rural Bangladesh. Grameen Shakti has four main programs: solar-energy systems, improved cooking stoves, biogas and organic fertilizer. Families purchase solar panels through a soft credit scheme, making them affordable. The panels are able to power lights and fans in a village home for several hours a day. Most Bangladeshis do not have access to natural-gas lines to operate cooking stoves. As a result, people have to burn debris, wood and crop residues as fuel to cook food. This leads to deforestation and soil erosion as well as health problems – smoke and pollution inhalation – for women, who are often responsible for cooking. Engineers work one-on-one with A Bangladeshi woman prepares food on an improved cooking stove. She would not have been able to afford the cooking stove without the help of Grameen Shakti. Lynne Ausman. See Business, P. 9 �STREETVIBES September 15 - 30, 2010 International Issues 9 The Business of Changing Lives Women and a child at Grameen Fisheries help to prepare caught fish for market. Lynne Ausman. Continued from page 8 need of the money the children can earn. It takes about one week to sew all of the beads and embellishments on a wedding sari. One child makes 900 taka a week (less than $13 U.S.); another, a girl, makes about 250 taka (less than $4). We asked the children what they want to be when they grew up. It seemed too easy to wonder why we would even ask this type of question – these children are “grown up.” They work eight hours a day and have school three hours a day. Their lives seem to parallel that of a working American graduate student. But even if I were discouraged by the barriers stacked against them, the students were full of hope: they want to be teachers, doctors, pilots, businessmen. They are determined to improve their lives and leave the slums, and Grameen Shikkha is determined to help them achieve their goals. One might wonder what three hours of classroom instruction would do, but the goal of Grameen Shikkha is to provide what little families to construct biogas plants on the villagers’ education they can to children who would property and train families on maintenance and otherwise work for 12 or more hours a day. biogas technology. Families use the waste from Fighting child labor in Bangladesh is difficult: So their livestock to generate the biogas. Similar many people are struggling to make it day-toto the solar panels, the materials are purchased day. Convincing families to give up some of that through a soft-credit program, making the plans potential income is difficult. But Grameen Shikkha affordable. The improved cooking stoves helps keeps going back to the families because they families use the biogas efficiently. know the parents want to provide a better life for their children. Grameen Shikkha The instruction in primary school could lead to scholarships to go on to high school and help the Grameen Shikkha is Grameen’s effort to address children improve their lives. Grameen Shikkha has illiteracy and lack of educational opportunities for launched a new scholarship program that will help poor children. The mission of Grameen Shikkha students’ families pay for high school and perhaps is to provide slum children with a basic education earn scholarships to university. to improve their work opportunities. Students A month learning about all of the receive instruction in English, Bangla, different ways that Grameen is working simple mathematics, social sciences to address poverty in Bangladesh and the environment. They also study wasn’t nearly enough to completely Bangladeshi customs and arts. understand all of the issues that The school, a single 10’x4’ room, contribute to the level of poverty in has no desks or chairs but 20 smiling Bangladesh, but it was enough time to students and a teacher sitting on the floor learn the impact that a social business with a stack of books in front of each can have on one family’s life. student. The chalkboard at the front of Cincinnati has several social the room had a welcome message for businesses that aim to help the us visitors from the United States. The community overcome poverty. room was dimly lit, with one light bulb Streetvibes provides entrepreneurial dangling from the ceiling. The students, opportunities and an income to ages 12 to 14, were in fifth grade. homeless people. Venice on Vine is a The students rise at 6 a.m. and begin pizza restaurant and catering service work, many of them sewing beads and that teaches job skills to low-income embellishments on saris to be worn by Cincinnatians. Building Value salvages brides. They work until 9 a.m., taking reusable materials for sale while a break until 2 p.m. School is from 2 providing people who have workforce to 5 p.m. Students then return to their disadvantages an opportunity to gain homes, where they work until 10 p.m. valuable experience and transition into This doesn’t leave much time to play or A Grameen Shikkha classroom where children receive three hours construction and retail careers. study, but their families are in desperate of basic education a day. Lynne Ausman. �10 Reader Survey STREETVIBES September 15 - 30, 2010 Please take a few minutes to complete this survey. Your responses will be used to help Streetvibes evaluate the newspaper and the vendor program. This survey, a vendor survey and overall evaluation is part of Streetvibes plan to achieve long-term sustainability and growth. Thank you for your time and input. Please return the survey to 117 E. 12th Street, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202. Thank you for your time and input. If you prefer, you may take the survey online at https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/streetvibes 1. How often do you purchase Streetvibes? Multiple copies of every issue Every issue Once a month Once every few months Once or twice a year Never 2. Where do you purchase Streetvibes? 3. Do you purchase from the same vendor when you buy? Yes No Sometimes 4. On a scale of 1 to 10, how familiar would you say you are with the vendor program? (1 being not familiar, 10 being very familiar) 5. Why do you purchase Streetvibes? To support the vendor To read the articles Other: 16. If Streetvibes developed relationships with local businesses that resulted in vendors selling the paper outside of the business, would you be: More likely to purchase the paper Less likely to purchase the paper About the same 17. Have you ever found a vendor to be threatening? Yes No 18. What would you say is the theme of Streetvibes? General local news Social Issues Local Events Other: 19. How much of the paper do you read? Cover to cover Maybe half Only if an article looks interesting I only buy to support the vendor, I don’t really read any of the paper None/I don’t buy Streetvibes Other: 20. If you do not purchase Streetvibes, is there a specific reason you choose not to purchase Streetvibes? 6. What do you like most about Streetvibes? 7. What do you like least about Streetvibes? 8. Are you aware that the vendors are homeless, formerly homeless or very low-income? Yes No 9. Do you look for the vendor badge when purchasing a Streetvibes? Yes No 10. What do you think the vendors do with the money they earn? Pay rent/utilities Buy food Purchase necessities (personal hygiene products, etc.) Other: 11. Do you or have you ever paid more than $1 when purchasing a Streetvibes? Yes No 12. How much are you willing to pay for a Streetvibes paper? $1 Between 1 and 2 dollars $2 More than two dollars Other: 13. Vendors purchase the paper from the publisher for 25 cents and sell the paper for one dollar, keeping the 75 cent profit as their income. If the vendor cost of purchasing the paper was increased to 35 cents, how much would you be willing to pay for a paper? $1 $1.25 Other: 21. Do you view Streetvibes as an alternative to panhandling? Yes No Sometimes Other: 22. Streetvibes provides a new perspective on social issues in Cincinnati. Strongly Agree Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly Disagree 23. What is your age? 24. Sex/Gender Male Female 25. What is your highest level of education? High School/GED Some College College Graduate Professional Degree 26. What is your ethnicity? African American Asian Hispanic/Latin Origin White, non-Hispanic Other: 27. What is your annual household income? $ 28. Is there anything else you would like to tell us about your experience reading and purchasing Streetvibes? 14. If vendors wore clothing or carried bags that identified them as Streetvibes vendors would you be: More likely to purchase the paper Less likely to purchase the paper About the same 29. Do you have any comments or suggestions for improving Streetvibes? 15. If Streetvibes developed relationships with local faith congregations that resulted in vendors being able to sell the paper after services, would you be: More likely to purchase the paper Less likely to purchase the paper About the same �STREETVIBES September 15 - 30, 2010 11 Local News 3CDC is the ‘Enemy of the Poor’ Prosecutor’s ruling fuels anger By Corey Gibson Contributing Writer A Sept. 3 protest against the Cincinnati Center City Development Corp. (3CDC) went on as planned but with an added agenda item: the decision not to pursue felony charges against a police officer who ran over a woman lying on the grass in Washington Park. Joann Burton’s death and the decision not to seek an indictment of Cincinnati Police Officer Marty Polk are part of an ongoing “attack on people who are financially poor and/ or homeless,” according to Josh Spring, executive director of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Spring and about 20 other people gathered at 14th and Race streets to demand support for the right to fair housing, to be able to keep that housing and for equal justice when someone’s life is taken. The protest came the day after Hamilton County Prosecutor Joe Deters announced he would not pursue felony charges against Polk. “This was originally planned as an antigentrification protest,” Spring said. “It seems what happened to Joann and what happened yesterday is kind of a symptom of the greater issue – that somehow a cop felt OK in an anonymous situation to drive over somebody’s blanket and clearly disregarding people around him, similar to when you push people out of their homes. The judicial process has done nothing about it.” Much of the protest focused on 3CDC and the city displacing poor people from their homes, from Washington Park and from Washington Park Elementary School, now closed to accommodate 3CDC’s plans for the park. One teenage protester yelled that, for “taking my school away, I hate 3CDC.” The protest also served as a memorial to Burton. “I don’t think a police officer would go into Ault Park or some park in Oakley and drive through the grass,” Spring said. “I don’t think they would be as quick to disregard the humans around them” Michael Burnham, a theater professor at the University of Cincinnati, offered a unique point-ofview of the police officer. “Here is this basically good policeman, who is caught trying to make a kind of safety, cosmetic safety,” Burnham said. “It is the police officer’s job to protect what 3CDC thinks is the park, opposed to what the people think the park is. And there is this skewed sense of what safety is. And people that live around the park say, ‘I’ve lived here all my life and it is safe.’ ” Yet police officers still drive through the park each night to inspect what people there are doing. The protest, which took place in a small abandoned lot, was adjacent to Washington Park. On the other corner is a vacant house with a small 3CDC sign hanging off the balcony. Someone once lived in those apartments, sat on that balcony, but 3CDC has bought the building and left it vacant. On another corner is the location that 3CDC has decided to build a home office. As the protest went on, workers went in and out to watch the protesters and grab tools, none seeming disturbed by people who were marching against the organization they were building for. Kelly Leon, spokeswoman for 3CDC, watched the protest from across the street. Between 15 and 20 people marched, holding signs that said, “Citizen Controlled Government,” “Stop Driving through Our Parks” and “When did we vote for 3CDC? Did we miss an election?” Chants included, “Our Kids Cannot Swim in a Dog Park” – a pointed reference to 3CDC’s plan to close the public pool in Washington Park and build a dog park. “Our voices as poor people are not heard,” said Vanessa Sparks, a resident of Over-The-Rhine. “We tried to negotiate, we tried to stick out at the table, in a trusting manner, and now we have to take our demonstration to the street. We are hopeful that the powers that be in the city will begin to listen, because we would not be out here if our voices would be heard.” Steve Sunderland, a resident of Over-theRhine and Streetvibes contributor, said 3CDC is “whitewashing the community.” “I’m for people being involved in their own neighborhoods, making decisions about their own neighborhoods, not being pushed away and not being killed because they’re poor,” he said. “That’s the outrage that is here.” Vera Zlatkin, a resident of Over-The-Rhine, carried a sign that said, “3CDC is the Enemy of the Poor.” “I think that because 3CDC is buying up a lot of property and taking the park away from the people that live here and taking homes from people who have lived here most of their lives,” she said. “It just isn’t right.” Protesters denounce 3CDC. Bradley R. Foster. Cartoon by Anne Skove �12 STREETVIBES September 15 - 30, 2010 Short Story House at the End of the Road By Spencer Ledyard Contributing Writer H e had never heard anything come from the back room until the rats had finally come into the old house, with their scurry feet and nibble teeth. There never had been any pests, no squirming silverfish or fat raisin roaches or those ever propagating fluff ball mice, as if the house was more solid and sanctified than any mortar-brick church, and he had always been proud of that. A testament to his craftsmanship. A man was nothing but things he built up, though many had made a lasting reputation tearing down. But that was all over now. There were rats in the back room and he had to trap them and bring to them death so he could live comfortably. When there had been a job for every man in the army, he had wanted to go but his job was a necessity to the war effort so he couldn’t leave. He had wanted to go but his heart hadn’t, only his brain and his sense of duty, but it didn’t matter much because he couldn’t. America with all the young men gone was a buffet, and he had many friends who could find many things: a jigger of gin here, good fabric for sewing there and maybe a movie or a grilled chicken. Little gifts to the women were the acts of a saint back then and on the Sunday afternoons, with their mothers off at church functions and their fathers putting in an extra day at the factory. … It did much good for the blood, and much harm to the soul. How did the golden sun on their long legs look so much like guilt when you were done, and planning never to see them again? Worse was the shallow bid it took to comfort the recent widow, like a lustful grim reaper and he left that scene only twice, both times tasting ashes and feeling cold, before he swore it off. The best place for rat traps was down at the hardware store, so he walked there and walked back, talking a time or two to himself, and to the faintly budding trees about how they were doing, were they feeling well, did they need anything. He had begun talking to plants when his wife died and he wanted to raise up a garden. He had first talked, though he didn’t know it, to his squash, which weren’t doing so well. He had asked what they wanted, bending and preening, turning and turning and turning over the compost, till he asked if they wanted some more fertilizer and it seemed that they did. When he gave some and they thanked him The rats wouldn't answer questions. REUTERS/Krishnendu Halder. by swelling, well … that became the thing to do. He never stopped talking any “thank you” came when it stopped wobbling on its longer when out in the garden, and he got to know own. He looked out the window. The tree outside them so well, and how to happy them. had feathered leaves, growing cool green, budding Then once, when he walked inside, he didn’t blue-white; thin, sallow bark and dense twigs like stop talking. He talked to the stoop and the door, piles of straw. He had planted it when he bought the kitchen floor and tiles, the sink, the fridge, his the lot, which he would build the house on with big and made bed. It seemed that, when things his wife. She would ramble on all day and fill the broke, they told him how to fix them and, when house up with her larking, harking, lady voice and mended, they quieted and showed their gratitude fill his ears till it drove him crazy, but he had never by working well. But these rats were another been much of a talker and there were things he business altogether and you couldn’t talk to them didn’t want to say and didn’t have to ’cause she because they ran away and didn’t listen and never gave him a chance. She didn’t know about wouldn’t help you help them. So death was the all the women and how he had felt like the grim only answer if you couldn’t ask a question, and it reaper and how he had tasted ash. She asked him was soon and never got less soon. to do things and he did them. Then she died and He set the traps and shut the door and walked he had the garden and the house and the rats back through the house, mumbling to the creaking and the quiet when he wanted it. He didn’t want floorboards and the loose door handle to the other it much anymore but he had it and he had it now bathroom and sat down at the kitchen table. He at the table, looking out the window. In the back wobbled the table a bit and smiled because the room he heard a snap. Cincinnati, Are You Crazy? The crimes we allow to happen downtown. Do we need another hotel? I don’t think so. 3CDC has bought so much property in Overthe-Rhine it should be a crime, especially the way they acquire the property. They told the former By Lee McCoy landlords, “I’ll buy this if you get rid of the tenants. Streetvibes Vendor Either evict or relocate them.” Like I said 3CDC has their fingers into everything in Over-the-Rhine incinnati, how crazy can you get? and downtown and they are so greedy. Fountain Violence is in epidemic proportions. The Square, where a street vendor is not allowed to sell proposal Sheriff Simon Leis wanted to Streetvibes for a dollar donation, but they will sell build a new jail was turned down you a bottle of beer for about $4 twice. I believe no big deal for him or better. – he just went out and bought him I would like to 3CDC has started the a brand new boat to fight crime on renovation of Washington Park to see 3CDC build the Ohio River. the tune of a whole lot of millions. something that lowBut let me tell you what: Our Now I know a lot of that came income people could sheriff knew there is more crime from a government grant but you afford, instead of on the streets of Cincinnati than on know and I know it will run over. condos and lofts. the river, unless you call squatters It will cost only the taxpayers. on the river a crime. But that’s just I always thought Washington the tip of things. Let’s look at people being set Park was a historical landmark. It’s the second free from the Hamilton County jail every month oldest park in Cincinnati. I always thought it was a because of overcrowding. The county is using sacrilege to disturb a body in a burial ground. If it fewer than half of the 565 ankle bracelets used to is, somebody forgot to tell 3CDC it’s a crime. put people on home arrest. I would like to see 3CDC build something that Not only are people being released without low-income people could afford, instead of condos oversight, but each ankle bracelet costs tax payers and lofts. whether they are used or not. Cincinnati, are you Cincinnati, you’re so crazy. You had nothing else crazy? It’s like telling someone I’m trying; and better to do so you pick on the panhandlers again. it isn’t a lie, but the problem is you’re trying but Now they have to be on their feet to get money. failing. Also our sheriff knew he was going to get That the craziest law I ever heard. a new jail. No jobs – what are people going to do The Drop Inn Center has been on 12th Street for but turn to crime now? He’ll get his new jail. Just a years. Its founder, Buddy Gray, was the man. He matter of time. was a champion fighter. I remember it to be a soup There’s a lot of stupidity going around in kitchen where you could come in get something Cincinnati these days. A lot. And if you see it, then to eat and get some help. Not anymore. You have you’re not the only Lone Ranger in Cincinnati. to be a resident to enter the building. Now they Now, let’s look at a real master criminal, 3CDC. have fired the executive director, Pat Clifford, for Forcing people out of their home – the tenants no given reason. Hell, you didn’t even give him a of Metropole – so they can add another hotel reason. Pat Clifford was no Buddy Gray but I have C to pat Pat Clifford on the back for all he has done over the years he has put in. Well done, Pat. Well done. I wish you well in whatever you do next. Cincinnati, here is another crime. You have tried everything to move the Drop Inn Center. I guess you came up with the perfect crime, putting the School for the Creative and Performing Arts (SCPA) next door. All the tricks and hoops the Drop Inn Center has had to jump through, and they still have to move. Where? Your guess is better than mine. Oh yeah, did I mention 3CDC has offered to relocate the Drop Inn Center? Mighty big of you, but I think you have a trick up your sleeve. “Trick no good.” Seems like the city of Cincinnati, with all the billions of dollars that you have invested in – just to name a few – renovations of Fountain Square, Washington Park, SCPA, Paul Brown Stadium, Great American Ballpark, you would think you would have put enough up to keep the pools open for our children. I remember when the people used to be able to say what should be what and shouldn’t be, but just like the seven hills of Cincinnati, you have the seven corporations. They are Procter & Gamble, Kroger Co., Federated Department Stores, Fifth-Third Bank Corp., Western & Southern Financial, American Financial Corp. and E.W. Scripps, and they support our city government with campaign contributions. We the people can’t match the money they pour in but we vote and we remember. You used to say, “Come on down and see what’s up downtown.” I can’t afford to come downtown anymore. Parking has gone from $1 an hour to – are you crazy? – $2 an hour. That’s another crime. Raise your voice, Cincinnati, and be heard. Let’s do away with these crimes. A voice is priceless. Maybe if you speak up, your voice might be heard, might count. Only if you don’t act, don’t speak, don’t show up – then it doesn’t count. �STREETVIBES September 15 - 30, 2010 Essay Contest 13 Common Sense and Civility By Keith E. Craun Contributing Writer T here are so many problems in the United States that it is difficult to decide where to begin. The wealthiest country in the world should not have this much poverty nor this much disparity between the rich and the poor. We have too many people addicted to too many things – not just drugs, but alcohol, porn, gambling, junk food; and the list goes on. For a nation that started with the cry of “No taxation without representation,” our tax structure is unbelievably complicated and designed to favor those who pay to have it written. Our prisons are overcrowded either because we are too cheap to build more prisons or because we send too many people there for crimes that should be handled with hospitalization or halfway houses or some other way. So which problem would I choose to handle first? None of these. I think that the biggest problems in this country are lack of civil discourse and lack of common sense. I used to tell people that common sense was the least common thing in America today, followed closely by common courtesy. We have to learn to speak to each other without all of the shouting and demonizing language. We have to recognize that most people are not on the extreme right (those God-fearing, pro-life, prodeath penalty, cut taxes for the rich, tough on crime, National Rifle Association life members). Nor are most people on the extreme left (those socialist/communist, pro-choice, soft on crime, pot smoking, let the government take care of us, nonpatriots). For instance, I know a person who is patriotic enough to have Can we all agree that, when our government spends more than served honorably in the U.S. Army (101st Airborne, thank you a penny to make a penny, then it is time to stop making pennies? very much). He believes that abortion should be legal but very No business in this or any other country would continue to sell rare, and he believes that we are smart enough to be able to make something for less than it costs to make. That’s just common laws and incentives to make that happen. He believes that we sense. should be tough on crime. But he also believes that, if tobacco This is where I think we should start. We should all contact our and alcohol can be legal and heavily taxed, then marijuana elected representatives and demand that the U.S. government should also be legal and heavily taxed. He and his wife are both stop making pennies. I’m not suggesting that we get rid of college-educated. Yet it takes them about 30 hours each year pennies and round everything up to a nickel. I’m suggesting to get their tax papers organized, to send them to the guy who that we stop making them but keep using them. If the American charges them a couple hundred people really want to use pennies dollars, to get them ready to send then we can take them out from to the IRS. So he believes that we under the sofa or out of the jar need the “Fair Tax,” which would by the front door or wherever basically abolish the income tax you keep yours. Heck, the and give us a national sales tax. government could even authorize He believes that the government the banks to buy pennies back ‘Streetvibes’ essay contest should be fiscally responsible, but from us one day a month for he has not seen it in his lifetime. $1.05 per 100 pennies and it Two readers recently suggested Streetvibes hold an So, I ask, which category does would still be cheaper than what essay contest on the theme, “How to Improve Our this guy fit into? And can we the government spends to make Country.” They donated money for three prizes; $100 discuss this guy without shouting them. for first place, $75 for second place and $50 for third down his positions? Pretty simple. And we can all place. So how do we solve the twin agree on this one small thing The rules called for writing about a single problem problems of lack of civil discourse without shouting at each other facing the United States and proposing a solution. and lack of common sense? We or bringing our other beliefs into The winner of the contest is Keith Craun of have to go to a level of common the discussion. Then, once we Alexandria, Ky., whose essay appears on this page. sense on which we can all agree do that, we might realize that Craun was the only person who participated in the and discuss it with civility. Then we have common ground on contest. This in no way diminishes the quality of his we can move up to harder and something else and we can solve essay. It does, however, touch on the very issue that harder problems. another small problem. Next motivated the contest in the first place: the decline Common sense is very hard to thing you know, we are caring of participation in civil society. Craun’s essay fittingly get to. Common sense, to me, says about the nation and not just our touches on that subject. that our tax structure should be own little plot. – Gregory Flannery, Editor understandable enough for our Well, we don’t all agree on even high school graduates to be able this small thing. If we ask our to fill out their own tax forms in 10 representatives to stop making hours or less. Other people want to keep all of the deductions we pennies – even for just a couple of years – the lobbyists for the presently have and all of the lobbyists we presently have, so we zinc and copper mines, who sell the metals to the mint, are going can’t start there. to try to stop this small idea. But I say we do it anyway. I simply Common sense, to me, says that, if marijuana use and sales can’t think of any smaller level that we can reach for common were legal and taxed, we would have better control of it, have less sense and civil discourse to take root in our government. crowding in our jails, increase our tax revenues and even create By the way, I am in my 50s and have never once smoked or jobs. But there are way too many people who cannot be swayed used marijuana in any way. And yet I know that, when some of on this subject, so we can’t start there. my friends read this essay, they will want to argue some of my I have an idea for the level of common sense where we can at points. least get started. I hope they are civil. How to Improve Our Country If you like what you read, but don’t live in the Cincinnati area, you can subscribe to Streetvibes. Call us at 513-421-7803 x 12 to learn more about subscribing to Streetvibes. �14 Poetry Page Hammock: Early September Sundress By Lea Drury some house somewhere once i lived so many figs hung-in branches low and heavy, ripe with fruit’s sweet jam and crawling long her wrist his long chin resting crushing blackberry-pulp purples, smeared, mirroring the shade of a sleepy sun. i was a murderess Between young trees. REUTERS/Ajay Verma. my pockets full as the night i’d run away to Madeline, she knowing how figs and berries reached. i’d pluck them STREETVIBES September 15 - 30, 2010 My Heart Can’t Take the Beating By Josh McConnell Streetvibes Vendor All my life I've searched, and yet I've not found. Searching for answers, longing for love. Scouring the earth to find what's not yet been found. I came close a time or two, I've had my heart broken once before and now it's broken again once more. Scared to give up, scared to continue my quest and discovering further disappointments. Scared to quit for I may die if I do. I've attended a mass and found the perfect match, maybe too perfect for me, it's too unclear to tell. I'm in a lot of pain, almost too unbearable to endure. By Anne Skove i’d drop four in my big stained pockets; yes i would tell her how, with all the fruit my hands could smash. Swaddled like a baby in a low sling, high grass tickles her back. Rockabye between young trees. The air smells of wood smoke. I've been betrayed I’ve been hurt by everyone I've ever loved. I wish to God I didn't have a conscience, because with conscience comes with feelings and I’ve had just about as much as I can take. I wish I was in Love, Branches creak, heavy with hard pears. Wasps lie in wait. I wish someone would Love me back. Laughter of Women By Elisa Hill Laughter of women is a universal language. One understood by all. It’s like that day when you shed no more tears. Or that moment you realize that the love you have for yourself is real. The laughter brings peace to the heart. It’s a motion that starts you to seeing stars. Laughter is that lover you hold in a dream. If for only one moment it is so real you believe. Laughter has side effects like euphoria, feeling like your floating or on a great natural high. Laughter gets colder when there is mal intent inside. Laughter of women is heaven sent. It says your OK and that you deserve this moment. I am grateful for laughter in those rare moments of calm. Laughter is that recipe to good health and happiness for all. So I implore you to laugh tonight in the still of the night. I want you to all laugh even though you may want to cry. God gave us that right to show we too are alive. Why does Love have to be so complicated, why does it have to hurt so much? I wish I was dead, I wish I was alive. I don't know anymore, but what I do know is that my heart can't take the beating anymore. The Men By David S. Pointer It wasn’t a box car supper social They weren’t exchanging job leads A badger-haired hooligan rammed The yard bull into a cattle horned Hat rack for ruining the fish soup The men trampled egg wire baskets And pumpkin goulash trying for a train Letter to the Editor Enjoy this Ride To the Editor: It will be a sad day if them damn Republicans can continue their lunacy that doesn't do anything to improve the state of our Nation domestically. And Republican leadership has offered nothing in the benefit of normal people. We are the ones who are suffering and unfortunately too many times so gullible to believe in the programs of those who are not. That trickle-down B.S. has never happened. They have jobs and lots of money – most times in the millions. They are lying. They don't care about you if you make less than $200,000 a year. Our President Barack Obama and this Democratic Congress will continue to do what is best for our nation by building again the middle class and small business. Open your eyes and stop looking for failure. Sit back and enjoy this ride. And once again don’t you dare let those idiots have this country back. We get to have eight years to enjoy the Age of Obama. That is my opinion. This nation must prove the media pundits and the Tea Party wrong. All Democrats and independents with any Republicans that have good sense will vote Democratic in 2010. Do so without worry. It is a secret ballot. Walter Madison Washington Jr. Over-the-Rhine Have something on your mind? Want to comment on an article? Let us know: 117 E. 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 streetvibes2@yahoo.com �15 Resources STREETVIBES September 15 - 30, 2010 Need Help or Want to Help? Shelter: Women and Children Central Access Point Cincinnati Union Bethel St. Francis Soup Kitchen Churches Active in Northside 381-SAFE 768-6907 FreeStore/FoodBank 557-2873 Madisonville Ed & Assistance Center 271-5501 300 Lytle Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Bethany House 4230 Hamilton Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45223 241-1064 112 E. Liberty Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 1841 Fairmount Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45214 Grace Place Catholic Worker House 681-2365 6037 Cary Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45224 Salvation Army 535-2719 591-2246 762-5660 4600 Erie Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45227 Serves area codes: 45226, 45227, 45208, 45209 St. Vincent de Paul 562-8841 872-9259 Treatment: Men Charlie’s 3/4 House Shelter: Men Prospect House Justice Watch 241-0490 St. Fran/St. Joe Catholic Work. House 381-4941 Starting Over 1419 Elm Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Interfaith Hospitality Network Lighthouse Youth Center (Youth) Treatment: Both 761-1480 AA Hotline CCAT Franciscan Haircuts from the Heart 961-4663 3330 Jefferson, Cinti, Ohio 45220 Housing: CMHA Excel Development OTR Community Housing 721-4580 632-7149 381-1171 114 W. 14th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tender Mercies 721-8666 27 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tom Geiger House Dana Transitional Bridge Services Volunteers of America Anna Louise Inn Food/Clothing Lord’s Pantry OTR/Walnut Hills Kitchen & Pantry 621-5300 961-1983 OTR: 1620 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Walnut Hills: 2631 Gilbert, Cinti, Ohio 45206 Our Daily Bread 1730 Race Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 351-0422 381-6672 621-6364 Goodwill industries Healing Connections Mary Magdalen House 771-4800 751-0600 721-4811 241-2965 People Working Cooperatively The Caring Place United Way Women Helping Women Off The Streets 351-7921 631-1114 211 977-5541 421-5211 1522 Republic Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Hamilton County ADAS Board Recovery Health Access Center Sober Living Talbert House 946-4888 281-7422 681-0324 641-4300 Hamilton/Middletown 421-3131 569-1840 381-4242 Northern Kentucky Advocacy Catholic Social Action Community Action Agency Contact Center 1227 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 961-4555 751-0643 381-1954 421-5211 381-0111 1223 Main St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 830 Ezzard Charles Dr. Cinti, Ohio 45214 Joseph House (Veterans) 471-1100 221-3350 621-5514 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 961-4080 721-0643 241-2600 241-2563 1308 Race St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 2203 Fulton, Cinti, Ohio 45206 217 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 458-6670 977-4489 Peaslee Neighborhood Center Treatment: Women 1821 Summit Road, Cinti, Ohio 45237 Drop Inn Center 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 961-2256 2728 Glendora Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45209 Caracole (HIV/AIDS) 558-8888 981-5800 214 E. 14th St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 First Step Home Anthony House (Youth) 40 E. McMicken Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mental Health Access Point Mercy Franciscan at St. John Center Independent Living Options Emmanuel Community Center 661-4620 Shelter: Both 357-4602 352-2902 352-6363 921-1613 682 Hawthorne Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45205 1437 Walnut Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mt. Airy Shelter Health Resource Center Homeless Mobile Health Van McMicken Dental Clinic Other Resources 784-1853 2121 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 241-5525 City Gospel Mission 381-2247 5 E. Liberty St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 NAMI of Hamilton County PATH Outreach 1125 Bank Street, Cinti, Ohio 45214 131 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter Crossroad Health Center 117 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 579-8547 241-9400 421-1108 363-3300 421-2437 Health Center for Respite Care 3550 Washington Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45229 Brighton Center 863-3184 863-1445 422-8555 868-3276 859-491-8303 799 Ann St. Newport, KY Franciscan JPIC 721-4700 Gr. Cinti Coalition for the Homeless 421-7803 Intercommunity Justice & Peace Cr. Legal Aid Society Ohio Justice & Policy Center Faces Without Places Stop AIDS St. Raephaels Salvation Army Serenity House Day Center Open Door Pantry ECHO/Hosea House Fairhaven Resuce Mission Homeward Bound Youth Mathews House Homeless & Housing Coalition Parish Kitchen Pike St. Clinic Transitions, Inc Welcome House of NKY 859-261-5857 859-491-1027 859-581-1111 859-261-8009 859-727-0926 859-581-7745 859-291-9321 859-491-4435 859-431-8717 205 West Pike Street, Covington, KY 41011 621-1868 Women’s Crisis Center VA Domiciliary VA Homeless 859-491-3335 859-559-5011 859-572-6226 �16 Artists as Activists STREETVIBES September 15 - 30, 2010 Instead of Pollution, Recycled Art Roscoe Wilson creates from what exists “For me, to be an artist is to be an activist. They are not separate. For the past 15 years I have made work that consistently raises concerns about over-consumption, waste, destruction of our environment, big coal and big oil. My work investigates broader issues to draw people in to take a closer look.” - Roscoe Wilson A Wisconsin residents and environmental pioneers John Muir and Aldo Leopold. From the start Wilson’s work addressed as nature, how it is being affected and destroyed by our consumerBy Saad Ghosn oriented, industrialized Contributing Writer society, but also how it can be protected and enriched, contributing oscoe Wilson, a local artist and associate to a better life. professor of art at Miami University“If we treat our world Hamilton, grew up in rural northern well, the world will treat Indiana and southern Michigan. He lived most of us well and we’ll end Roscoe Wilson. Saad Ghosn. his life in close contact with nature, surrounded up treating each other by water, trees, woods and animals. This shaped better,” he says. trees, magnificent expression of nature on earth, his environmental values as he learned to love From his first year of college and throughout but also vulnerable to human destruction and the earth, its beauty and poetry, the materials graduate school Wilson was encouraged, in victim of polluting waste. Having a Ball represents composing it, its inhabitants. addition to design, to think of content. He probed a dead tree, result of urban construction/ “Growing up in nature enabled me to develop inside himself, connecting to his childhood and destruction. Last Stand speaks to industrial insult, past experiences, and researched his themes and an awareness only a forest, lake, field, can offer,” nature bulldozed away, replaced by degraded grabbed at historical references. His art came he says. earth. Oil Field, another painting from the same from a personal place, but at the same time took a In college, even though destined to create series, shows a destitute landscape of black oil universal dimension, adding to his own symbols art, he spent significant time studying biology, drums, suffocating a decaying, barren, leafless imagery and concepts borrowed form books and discovering the secrets behind the function of the tree. On the trunk of the tree are remnants of a nature. He repeatedly referred, for instance, to the natural world. child’s tree-house, alluding to the innocence of mayfly, an insect that emerges every six years from childhood disappearing, pushed away from its Wilson started drawing at a very young age. a larval form under water to live for only 24 hours, Very early on and influenced by his father and natural source and habitat. The dead branches of thus alluding to the hidden world behind what one the tree are shown taking over the entire sky and grandfather, he also made and built things out of sees every day. wood and recycled material. These experiences horizon, replacing life with death, obstructing the Concerned by the big waste characteristic of served as his initial engagement into the arts. future. Wilson meant his image as an apocalyptic He later attended Wabash College, Indiana, our consuming culture, and having developed a landscape of the never-ending wasteful great appreciation for natural materials, his art earning a bachelor’s degree in art and biology, consumption. Started before the recent BP oil was often based on found objects, rusty nails, then Purdue University, earning a master of spill in the Gulf of Mexico, it proved prophetic in prints printed on discarded boxes, paintings on arts degree in painting/printmaking, and the its realism and message. Wilson is now preparing recovered wooden lathes. His sculptures and University of Wisconsin (UW), earning a master a tapestry installation of prints of oil drums, one large installations would also often use collected of fine arts degree focusing on printmaking, print for each day the BP spill lasted; they will be bottle caps and cardboard boxes, arranged and sculptural installation and painting. While at pinned up together in a large piece, ominously organized to initially draw the viewer by their UW, he studied the history of environmentalism invading the entire display space. vibrant colors, large scale and esoteric appeal, and drew inspiration for his artwork from former While teaching, Wilson also engages his then to trigger deeper questioning and students to think about the various issues that understanding. concern him and the world. He does it either by Instead of making new things, Wilson discussing works of established artists who have gave new life to things that had already raised consciousness through their art or by giving existed, thus not adding pollution to the students assignments based on specific topics. world and reaffirming his message of As a mentor to the students’ ecology club and in charge of their art club, he uses both venues to “reduce, reuse, minimally consume.” integrate art with environmental awareness. In addition to his “art recycling” and Wilson will continue to use his art as his voice distressed by the large amount of “trash” for the protection of the environment. He wants thrown away at parties he attended, to read more, learn more, connect with similarly Wilson started a widespread recycling concerned individuals, add to the debate and program at his college, involving other make a change. Coal, mountaintop removal in students, friends and later family. strip mining and, the origin and culture of food Waste and recycling aside, Wilson are topics he would like to explore more and became progressively interested address in his artworks. He feels that most social in broader themes, those of the and political issues relate to the environment, are environment, polluting energies, interconnected and stem from the same roots. climate changes. The deleterious effect “Art is an important expression of who I am,” he on the planet of burning coal, oil and says. “It is a continued synthesis of my experiences natural gas; the devastating result of and beliefs, and as such carries and communicates oil spills on the ecosystem; and the my messages. I love the earth and want to preserve green potential of alternative sources of it; I want my art to shake our apathy for the energy – solar, wind and geothermal – degrading environment. Our backyards, deserts, preoccupied him and found their way oceans, have become receptacles for waste to into his art. Oil Field, graphite and oil painting by Roscoe Wilson. dump, spill, and leak into our lives. It has to stop.” His Tree series consists of paintings Saad Ghosn. that address the beauty and majesty of rtists ctivists R Artists as Activists is a regular column highlighting Greater Cincinnati artists who use art as a vehicle for change. Saad Ghosn is the founder of SOS Art. Ghosn can be contacted at saad.ghosn@uc.edu. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 2010 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource September 15-31, 2010 Subject The topic of the resource Homelessness Description An account of the resource Pg 1: The Business of Changing Lives Death Comes for Unit One Pg 2: Don’t Drink the Tea Pg 3: The Way Unit 1 Came to Her Death Continued Pg 4: Anna Louise Gets a Makeover Pg 5: Dems and GOP Say, ‘Stay Away’ Pg 6: Homeless Families on the Rise Education is a Start, But Laws Work Pg 7: Somewhere in Northside Pg 8: “Feed Me, Seymour, Feed Me All Night Long…” Pg 9: The Business of Changing Lives Pg 10: Reader Survey Pg 11: 3CDC is the ‘Enemy of the Poor’ Pg 12: House at the End of the Road Cincinnati, Are You Crazy? Pg 13: Common Sense and Civility Pg 14: Arts & Poetry Pg 15: Resources Pg 16: Instead of Pollution, Recycled Art Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Streetvibes Archive Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Streetvibes Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource September 15-31, 2010 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Gregory Flannery Lynne Ausman Georgia Bohannon Michelle Dillingham Samantha Groark Margo Pierce Paul Kopp Jeremy Flannery Michael Henson David Heitfield Corey Gibson Jeni Jenkins Saad Ghosn Lew Moores Larry Gross Eli Braun Jesse Call Michael Fanning B. Clifton Burke Aimie Willhoite Anne Skove Vinit Murthy Jon Hughes Brad Foster Jeremy Flannery Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF 3CDC Aimie Willhoite Anna Louise Anne Skove Art Arts & Poetry B. Clifton Burke Brad Foster Cincinnati Corey Gibson David Heitfield Democrats education Eli Braun Georgia Bohannon GOP Gregory Flannery Jeni Jenkins Jeremy Flannery Jesse Call Jon Hughes Larry Gross Lew Moores Lynne Ausman Margo Pierce Michael Fanning Michael Henson Michelle Dillingham Northside Paul Kopp Pollution Recycling Roscoe Wilson Saad Ghosn Samantha Groark Vinit Murthy https://streetvibesarchive.net/files/original/0b2292b580a3bd86c7ac97dea9074512.pdf 6a107392eb7f58baf40e4fa187e35b43 PDF Text Text Allegories of Oligarchies Page 7 Artists as Activists Page 16 Sept. 1-14, 2010 • Issue 184 • One Dollar ADVOCATING JUSTICE • BUILDING COMMUNITY 3CDC Accused of Racial Conspiracy Metropole tenants sue to stop eviction By Corey Gibson Contributing Writer The Metropole Apartments are a racially integrated housing complex. Approximately 60 percent of the he Cincinnati Center City tenants are African Americans, a Development Corporation majority of whom are elderly or (3CDC) is using strongdisabled. The 230-unit building, arm tactics to force people from the whose tenants receive federal Section Metropole Apartments, according to 8 assistance with rent, has been a civil-rights lawsuit filed Aug. 18 in one of the only affordable housing federal court. projects in the downtown area since The complaint by the Metropole 1971. Tenants The Metropole Association offers the alleges 3CDC The lawsuit accuses 3CDC only racially used Cincinnati of deliberately eliminating integrated lowPolice officers income housing low-income housing from to harass and downtown, yet downtown Cincinnati to intimidate residents are make room for upscale, residents. The being forced out predominantly white complaint also to make way for residents, in direct violation alleges that a chic, up-scale of both the national and the sale of the hotel. state Fair Housing Acts, subsidized Downtown is both of which call for the low-income one of only three development of housing apartment communities in that will racially integrate building was Hamilton County communities. deceptively that has been conducted, racially integrated violates federal housing law and will for over 30 years, according to the promote racial segregation. lawsuit. Yet for the past 10 years Defendants in the suit include 3CDC, HUD and the city “have 3CDC, the city of Cincinnati, the actively and deliberately sought to U.S. Department of Housing and dismantle, displace or eliminate Urban Development (HUD) and the affordable housing from downtown new management of the Metropole Cincinnati,” the lawsuit says. Apartments. Attorneys for the plaintiffs are Terence Brennan and See Metropole, p. 4 Jennifer Kinsley. T Attorney Terence Brennan SAYS 3CDC is working to segregate downtown. Brad Foster. Canada’s Forgotten Children The traumatic legacy of Indian residential schools By Allan Sheppard Street News Service E Assembly of First Nations National Chief Phil Fontaine waits in the foyer of the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Canada. REUTERS/Chris Wattie. dmonton, Canada – The Canadian residential schools system was designed to assimilate Aboriginal children into westernized society. Many of them suffered psychological, physical and sexual abuse. Some 15 years since the last school was closed, victims are still in search of justice. The Edmonton Street Society is committed to help Canada’s forgotten children. Harold Robinson, an adjudicator of cases involving victims’ compensation, recently discussed the issue. “The area that I propose to talk about tonight is extremely sensitive. It is sourced in nothing but pain and anguish; it has had an absolutely devastating impact on whole generations of people. “I approach the work remembering the teachings of my granny and of my mother, who raised me: to be respectful, to be a good listener, to be helpful, and I try and apply those principles in the work that I do as an adjudicator. See Abuse, p. 6 �2 The Vibe By The Numbers Zip The cost, in dollars, for producing your own TV show, radio program or film at Media Bridges (see page 3). 250,000 The size of the exhibition space, in square feet, at the Newseum in Washington, D.C. (see page X). 2003 The year Keith Banner and Bill Ross founded Visionaries and Voices (see page 15). 42 The length, in number of days, that Gen. James Dozier was held captive by the Red Brigades (see page X). 100,000 The average amount of compensation, in dollars, paid to victims of abuse at Indian residential schools in Canada (see page 1). 21,000 The number of members of Secret Cincinnati’s Facebook group (see page 10). 2014 The year the new health-care reform finally takes full effect (see page 13). 230 The number of units of affordable housing lost to 3CDC’s takeover of the Metropole Apartments (see page 1). 700 The estimated number of hours that Michael Fanning has spent watching Star Wars (see page 9). 1967 The year Carl Yastrzemski achieved professional baseballs’ triple crown (see page 12). StreetWise STREETVIBES September 1 - 14, 2010 By Gregory Flannery Editor Some Losses Are Happy Occasions One of our most durable vendors, Riccardo Taylor, won’t be selling Streetvibes for the next year – and we’re glad. Taylor is now civil-rights outreach coordinator for the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless, a position funded by the federal Volunteers in Service to America program. The rules of the program forbid participants from simultaneously holding other jobs. We hope, however, that Taylor will continue “Street Life,” his occasional column for Streetvibes. Among Taylor’s new duties will be organizing a Homeless Congress in Cincinnati, a forum for homeless people to work together in their mutual interest. Taylor succeeds Rob Goeller, who spent his tenure organizing tenants at the Metropole Apartments (see “3CDC Accused of Racial Conspiracy,” page 1). As a Streetvibes vendor, Taylor developed a regular clientele by virtue of his hard work, pleasant manner and straight talk. In recent years he has helped to train new Streetvibes vendors. We’re going to miss his sales, but we’re glad to know he’ll be working to defend the civil rights of people who are homeless. Some Losses Are a Decade Late It seems Cincinnati Police Chief Thomas Streicher Jr. will retire next year. Let all the people say, “Amen.” Under Streicher’s leadership, the Cincinnati Police Department has far too often been characterized by brutality, racism, disdain for the public and poor morale, exacerbated by mayors and city councils either too insensitive to the harm he caused or too afraid to deal with it. The police department has undergone meaningful reform in recent years, in spite of Streicher – indeed, against his active resistance, and only at the cost of an uprising in Over-the-Rhine in 2001, followed by years of monitoring by federal court and judicially mandated changes in the police department’s use of force. At one point Streicher’s disrespect nearly landed the city in contempt of court before a federal judge. Employed by a city government too craven to deal with him, Streicher, a man lacking respect either for his office or for the people he is sworn to serve, stayed on the job a decade after he was no longer wanted. Along the way he helped make the city and the police department an object of national scorn. The only thing more shameful than the record of Police Chief Thomas Streicher Jr. is the city’s refusal to protect their constituents from the damage that he caused. Streetvibes is an activist newspaper, advocating justice and building community. Streetvibes reports on economic issues, civil rights, the environment, the peace movement, spirituality and the struggle against homelessness and poverty. Distributed by people who are or once were homeless, in exchange for a $1 donation, Streetvibes is published twice a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Address: 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 Phone: 513.421.7803 x 12 Fax: 513.421.7813 Email: streetvibes2@yahoo. com Website: www. cincihomeless.org Blog: streetvibes.wordpress. com Streetvibes Staff Editor Gregory Flannery Art Director Lynne Ausman Vendor Coordinator Georgia Bohannon A local TV news station recently reported the death of “four NATO members in Afghanistan.” The phrasing is curious for what it does not say: These weren’t people who belonged to a club. They were soldiers. Invaders. Contributing Writers Michelle Dillingham, Samantha Groark, Margo Pierce, Paul Kopp, Jeremy Flannery, Michael Henson, David Heitfield, Corey Gibson, Jeni Jenkins, Saad Ghosn, Lew Moores, Larry Gross, Eli Braun, Jesse Call, Michael Fanning, B. Clifton Burke By the time this edition is printed, a young friend of mine will have landed in Afghanistan, where he will build bombs for the U.S. Air Force. His poetry has appeared in Streetvibes and in SOS Art. He joined the Air Force in order to secure college tuition – if he survives the war. He does not support the war, he says. By that he means he does not agree with the idea of the war. But he builds bombs. Nothing could be more supportive. Photography/Artwork Aimie Willhoite, Lynne Ausman, Anne Skove, Vinit Murthy, Jon Hughes, Brad Foster A few years ago, the night before a jury deliberated whether some friends and I had committed the offense of trespassing during an anti-war protest, my family hosted a young man who was on the run. He had refused to go on a second tour of duty in the war on Iraq. He later turned himself in and was given a choice: Prison or combat. He chose combat and came back with one eye and other vital parts missing. Proofreaders Jeremy Flannery Some Losses Defy Categories Every generation has to learn again: War is always a bad idea. Some Losses Can Be Stopped Ohio is getting ready to poison another prisoner. Kevin Keith is scheduled to be killed Sept. 15. His last chance seems to be an order of clemency by Gov. Ted Strickland. A surprising line-up of opponents to the execution hope to sway him. They include more than 30 former state and federal judges and prosecutors, the Ohio Innocence Project, the National Innocence Network, more than 100 religious leaders and organizations and 13 leading experts on eyewitness and memory – some of whom support the use of the death penalty in principle, but say Keith should not be executed. Two petitions bearing more than 20,000 signatures also call on Strickland to stop the execution. Among those calling for clemency are former U.S. Appeals Judge Nathaniel R. Jones, former Ohio Attorney General Jim Petro and former Ohio Supreme Court Justice Herbert R. Brown. Keith, 46, was convicted of murdering two women and a 4-year-old girl in Bucyrus in 1994. Keith’s attorneys say new evidence shows Keith was wrongfully convicted based on faulty and improperly influenced eyewitness identification. The new evidence identifies an alternative suspect, who told a police informant that he was paid to carry out the crime. The main evidence used to wrongfully convict Keith was the eyewitness identification of a surviving adult victim, who identified Keith after telling at least four people he couldn’t see the shooter’s face because the shooter was wearing a mask. The Ohio Parole Board unanimously voted against recommending clemency Aug. 19. The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that works to eradicate homelessness in Cincinnati through coordination of services, public education, grassroots advocacy and Streetvibes. We are proud members of: �STREETVIBES September 1 - 14, 2010 8 3 Column M I N U T E S with a High Tech Megaphone Media Bridges puts media into the hands of the community By Margo Pierce Contributing Writer We have the right to free speech in this country, but unless you have the cash to pay for the expensive gadgets to broadcast your speech, your options for communicating are limited. Enter Media Bridges (www.mediabridges.org). “We exist to give you a voice,” says Christa Zielke, development coordinator for Media Bridges. “If you have something to say, a talent to share, an argument to make, if you have an event that you filmed that you think is important to air – we’re here to make that happen. “We’ll give you the tools. We’ll give you the education. We’ll give you the facilities, whether it’s on film, video, the Internet, radio, whatever form of media. (Media Bridges) is a community media center. These exist all over the country, and the purpose of community media centers is to provide the public with the ability to create and produce their own independent, community media productions.” Zielke says the organization is a “big, fierce advocate of the First Amendment.” The community center offers cost-free classes in Christa Zielke says Media Bridges helps people overcome the digital divide. videography, digital photography, Jon Hughes/Photopresse. editing, studio use and graphic died.’ ” design – anything that will enable diverse,” Zielke says. Located at 1100 Race St., Media individuals to create media. The influence of Bridges chose to move to Over-the“Then we also provide … free Rhine in 2001 after the uprising equipment – cameras, video grassroots media against police violence in that cameras, lighting, audio,” Zielke says. This is important because it means neighborhood. “The only caveat is that they provide local issues get attention and can “We wanted to be where we were us with a copy of their final product, influence the mainstream media. needed the most,” Zielke says. “You which we then air on the four cableLocal cable access channels provide hear a lot about the digital divide, access stations that we operate.” one vehicle for sharing ideas. On which is the gap between the haves In addition to managing the community access channels 4, 8, 15 and have-nots in terms of access to four local community-access cable and 24, the viewing public can see technology. Broadcast education channels, Media Bridges launched a locally produced television shows is expensive. You’re talking about a new radio station, WVQC, in July. All and stories. $40,000 degree to go get the skills to locally produced programming can “There’s a gentleman who did be able to create and edit your own be heard on 94.7 FM and www.wvqc. a program on the money lending production, your own show. Most org. Feedback on the new endeavor people in this community – at least a has been “great,” according to Zielke. practices of some of these checkcashing and financial loaning lot of them – do not have those kinds While she’s pleased about this, she’s institutions that are prevalent in low- of financial resources. “ not surprised. income communities,” Zielke says. Funded in large part by the Describing local programming “He did this story a year before it Community Access Preservation on most local radio stations as ever hit any of the mainstream. This (CAP) Act, which set up a fund “homogenized,” Zielke says the was happening in his neighborhood requiring cable companies to pay “corporate media conglomerates” … something that was important to for their use of public land to run that own more than 80 percent him. Sometimes what’s important cables and other private industry of local radio stations – with 50 to mainstream media isn’t always equipment, Media Bridges has percent of those owned by just two what is closest to the heart of a 15-year contract with the city companies – rely on opinion surveys neighborhoods. … of Cincinnati to operate four to guide their content, virtually “Look at a neighborhood like Over- community access cable stations. eliminating the possibility of homethe-Rhine. This neighborhood has However, private funding in the form grown programs. amazing breadth of arts agencies and of grants, individual donations and “We’ve got a variety of programs activist and activity and community other resources cover the cost of the on there, from a veteran benefits centers and schools. So much FM radio stations, education classes program to LGBT programming to happening … that’s not going to get and other programs. Goth and industrial music to local as much attention as, ‘There was a The Alliance for Community music to Hemp Rock – a marijuana shooting on 13th street. Two people Media (www.alliancecm.org) legalization advocacy – so it’s pretty provides a great deal of information, including updates to the CAP act and related congressional action and local media centers including Media Bridges. The First Amendment rules It’s difficult to list and describe all the classes and programs Media Bridges operates throughout the year, but one of the most popular is the kids’ camps. “The kids have an enthusiasm for film and media and music production that you don’t see with anybody else. We want to do this movie about aliens where Elvis comes in and then a space ship comes and then there’s monster in a mansion …it’s awesome,” Zielke says. “Because kids grew up with technology … these kids came out of the womb with a cell phone and a video cam and an iPod and a laptop. They have this innate understanding and capacity to pick up technology like you wouldn’t believe. When you give them a little bit of the theory and technique behind that, it’s amazing what they can do. “This summer we had Oscarnominated film director. His name is Steven Bognar … producer of a film that was nominated for an Oscar this past year called The Last Truck: Closing of a GM Plant. He led a two-week class called Independent Film Bootcamp. We had a bunch of teens from all over the city to create their own film. They then screened it over at Memorial Hall over on Elm Street, and it was a damn good film! It was a thriller/suspense/drama … It was really exciting to watch that process take place.” Media Bridges doesn’t edit or censor programs that are produced by the community. They advise the producers of their legal responsibilities and refer all complaints and compliments back to the individuals responsible for the programming. They serve as a vehicle for communication; they don’t play Big Brother. “We have a very strong commitment to the First Amendment, and that is reflected in how we operate our cable access stations; that is, you submit it, we’ll air it,” Zielke says. “We do ask that if it’s inappropriate for children, red-flag it for us and we’ll put it on between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m. Otherwise, anything that the community wants to put on there, we feel they have the right to put on there.” Many people work hard to make a difference for the less privileged in the Queen City. “Eight Minutes” is an opportunity to learn who those people are and what motivates them to be a positive influence. Margo Pierce can be contacted at www.writerdiva.com. �4 Local News STREETVIBES September 1 - 14, 2010 3CDC Accused of Racial Conspiracy Continued from page 1 ‘Racial steering’ the tenants would “receive at least a one-year notice in writing” if the The Metropole Apartments meet a sale were approved. The tenants were critical need for low-income housing lied to and kept in the dark about downtown, according to the lawsuit. the sale of their homes, according to That is one of several reasons the sale the lawsuit. The tenants received no of the building should be stopped, notice of the sale until after it had Brennan says. been finalized. “Federal law requires that they HUD approved the sale of the not allow conversion of housing building, the transfer of its housingthat is subsidized by a HUD-backed assistance contract and a relocation mortgage, which the Metropole was, plan for the residents without a when there is hearing to allow still a need for for tenants’ low income “The Metropole, which in itself input. HUD affordable also failed to is a racially integrated lowhousing in the conduct any income housing resource, area,” he says. type of analysis is going to be destroyed “The city and on whether in the context of this any number granting the desegregation of downtown of entities approval into an upscale, predominantly in this case would have an white community of upscale have actually adverse effect housing.And that, in documented on the racial America, where we don’t there is a need integration or allow segregation, where we for HUD’s on people with protect people’s civil rights permission. disabilities as a free society – we are very To allow these or hinder confident that the courts will developers to go fair-housing not allow this to stand.” forward the way opportunities - Attorney Terence Brennan they have is a in the city. violation of the By approving national housing law.” the sale of the Metropole and not Congress passed the National conducting any analysis on the Housing Act of 1937 “to remedy outcome of the sale, HUD is in direct … the acute shortage of decent, violation of the Fair Housing Act, safe, and sanitary dwellings for Brennan says. low-income families.” Yet 3CDC, The Fair Housing Act requires HUD and the city of Cincinnati HUD to prevent the sale of property are trying to get rid of the last if it promotes racial segregation. But affordable housing in the downtown HUD has allowed 3CDC to displace area, according to the complaint. the tenants of the Metropole for Congress has also stated that the the sole purpose of building a hotel national housing policy has “not that will allegedly promote racial directed sufficient attention and segregation. resources to preservation of existing “The relocation plan that has been housing and neighborhoods” and put in place is change tantamount to that, if the national housing goal of racial steering,” Brennan says. “The a decent home and suitable living residents by and large (have) been environment for every family is shown possible places for them to to be achieved, “a greater effort move that are in racially segregated must be made to encourage the neighborhoods, in housing that’s preservation of existing housing and racially segregated. All these are neighborhoods.” violation of the Fair Housing Act.” Congress has also stated that Police intimidation HUD, local governments that receive federal aid and private developers The lawsuit says 3CDC has must promote housing that furthers repeatedly acted stop the tenants racial integration – the opposite of from voicing their opinion. During a what will result from the loss of the meeting between tenants and 3CDC Metropole Apartments. on Nov. 4, 2009, one of the tenants On May 26, 2009, the owners of attempted to bring two advocates the Metropole, Showe Builders Inc., into the meeting. But Cincinnati sold the building to 3CDC for $6.25 Police officers stopped the advocates million. 3CDC plans to convert the at the entrance of the building (see apartments into a boutique hotel “Metropole Tenants Tell 3CDC: ‘Hell with a restaurant and modern art No, We won’t Go,’ ” issue of Nov. museum, a project that will cost an 15-30, 2009). 3CDC had requested estimated $48 million. Two months the presence of the police to “keep after the sale, tenants received a housing advocates out of the letter from Showe Builders saying meeting,” the lawsuit says. they should not worry about false At that meeting, 3CDC announced information claiming the owners plans to relocate the tenants. When were “negotiating for a possible sale tenants attempted to challenge of the building.” The letter also said Residents protested the sale of the Metropole Apartments in Nov. 2009. Clarissa Peppers the relocation, they were allegedly “berated” by 3CDC. The lawsuit says 3CDC violated tenants’ right to organize freely, to associate freely with one another and with legal counsel and to be assisted by housing advocates. The use of the police to intimidate tenants and suppress their efforts to have advocates attend the meeting are all violations of their rights, the lawsuit says. The complaint says 3CDC has routinely used police officers for intimidation when demanding access to tenants’ apartments without notice. One account, by Robert Wavre, head of the Metropole Tenants Association, says a police officer who frequently accompanied management verbally accosted him for displaying a sign protesting the displacement. “This same officer accosted plaintiff Robert Wavre while both were riding a bus, screaming repeatedly at him that she would ‘knock his block off,’ ” the complaint says. The tenants’ attorneys say 3CDC’s relocation plan is “unfair and deceptive.” 3CDC promised tenants that the “relocation program will insure that tenants’ monthly rent will not increase and all related moving expenses will be covered,” that each tenant would receive assistance and that 3CDC would “ensure that the relocation plan … (will) ultimately result in improved, higher-quality living conditions.” With little exception, none of these promises have been fulfilled, the attorneys say. Tenants have been shown apartments in segregated neighborhoods, often in high-crime areas with little transportation or job opportunities. 3CDC has also contradicted some of the previous statements, saying only some of the moving costs will be covered, the rent might increase and that one-on-one assistance from 3CDC might not be provided, according to the complaint One of the defendants, Model Follow Streetvibes www.facebook.com/streetvibescincinnati twitter.com/streetvibesnews streetvibes.wordpress.com Group/Brickstone Properties, managers of the Metropole Apartments, are providing the relocation services. The tenants’ lawsuit accuses the company of conspiring with 3CDC to steer tenants into housing that it owns or manages. The lawsuit says 3CDC and Model Group/Brickstone Properties have devised a scheme to make even more money out of the eviction of the tenants by making them move: As a result, 3CDC gets a new hotel, and Model Group/Brickstone Properties finds tenants to fill its apartments. The complaint quotes an unidentified but “prominent” businessman who lobbied the Louisville-based 21c Museum Hotel chain to invest in redeveloping the Metropole: “You can’t have those types of places across the street from the Aronoff Center. It’s like parking a Bentley on 14th and Main and expecting the Bentley to still be there.” The lawsuit accuses 3CDC of deliberately eliminating lowincome housing from downtown Cincinnati to make room for upscale, predominantly white residents, in direct violation of both the national and state Fair Housing Acts, both of which call for the development of housing that will racially integrate communities. “The Metropole, which in itself is a racially integrated low-income housing resource, is going to be destroyed in the context of this desegregation of downtown into an upscale, predominantly white community of upscale housing,” Brennan says. “And that, in America, where we don’t allow segregation, where we protect people’s civil rights as a free society – we are very confident that the courts will not allow this to stand.” Work on the new hotel is scheduled to start this fall. 3CDC has given the approximately 100 remaining tenants until Nov. 2 to move. At that time tenants’ lawyers intend to ask a federal judge to stop the redevelopment project until further notice. The tenants are also going to seek a restraining order to stop the relocation process. Kelly Leon, spokeswoman for 3CDC, declined to comment on the lawsuit. The local HUD office also declined to comment. �5 Issues STREETVIBES September 1 - 14, 2010 3CDC and Death in Over-the-Rhine By Gregory Flannery Editor T he fences have gone up. Soon the dead will be removed from their graves. Soon dozens of trees will fall. Welcome to Washington Park, now under the control of the Cincinnati Center City Development Corp. (3CDC). The July 27 death of Joann Burton – crushed by a police car while lay she in the park grass – said best what residents of Over-theRhine have been saying all along: 3CDC is killing their community. Last month the first fencing rose, segregating the north end of the park from residents, their swimming pool and basketball court to be destroyed. Construction of an underground parking garage requires the disinterment of residents long ago buried in what later became Washington Park. 3CDC plans to raze 59 trees, despite the protests of those who have long called the neighborhood park their own. Meanwhile on Aug. 6 relatives, friends and neighbors gathered for Burton’s funeral at New Prospect Baptist Church. The photos, poetry and reflections on this page are dedicated to her memory. After her death, 3CDC asked Burton’s family to move a small memorial erected near the place of the accident that killed her. Nothing will stop 3CDC’s plan to make the park more palatable for the wealthy: Not old trees, not neighbors’ protests, not the presence of human graves, not grief for a woman killed as she lay resting in a place where she and those like her are no longer welcome. Visiting a memorial to Joann Burton are Mark Shears (left); her husband, Thomas Oats (second from left); and her son, Kenneth Burton (right). Jon Hughes/Photopresse. Destroy and Displace Jerry Burton (left) helps carry his mother's casket. Jon Hughes/ Photopresse. By Aubrey Bowman Streetvibes Vendor Joann It will be sad. It will be shameful. The destruction of Washington Park will be a destruction of history in that part of Over-the-Rhine. First, I want to apologize for speaking out at this late stage, for I am a recent transplant to the city of Cincinnati (about eight or nine years). I’ve learned the story of getting the Banks together, how long it’s taking, all the political doubletalk; it’s funny to me. Same old politics all over the country. Alas, the powers left one thing out: The beginning of the end of the neighborhood near Cincinnati Music Hall and the surrounding streets: Elm Street, Race Street, 14th Street, etc. Sober minds would have picked the better choice for a parking garage on the west side of Music Hall – Central Parkway! Access to freeways, more room for all the (new) traffic. This makes more sense to all sober-thinking politicians. But these are the politicians of the 21st century. “The street car will be in the way of the parking garage,” is their thinking. The total destruction of history and the displacement of people is the thought of these 21st-century politicians. Hopefully the lawyers will make it another Banks controversy to slow down and/or stop this type of unsober thinking. By Marlena Cook We lost our sister. Only God knows how much we miss her. Her heart is blessed. She doesn’t have to take anymore of life’s mess. God has her in his right hand. Joann more than just a sister A great friend. Even though the sun has set We will not forget, this is a part of God’s plan. Joann not just a sister A great friend. She doesn’t see anything but better days. In spite of the crazy way she left Black is never a sin always in Killin us has become a trend I won’t break but I will bend. Rolled over by a cop car More than just a sister Now she’s a shooting star. Park Poem By Peter McGrover What does a park mean to most people when we say the word “park”? I think for most of us a park, especially Washington Park, means a place to gather, spend time with friends and acquaintances, have fun, share joy, enjoy peace and maybe even meditate or play a few games of chess or checkers. Washington Park for most of us means a central gathering place in the heart of downtown Cincinnati and Over-theRhine. For those who use it and enjoy it on a regular basis, it means for them a public domain and public square to be enjoyed by all, not just a select few. Washington Park serves the public good and benefits the public as a whole. It must be continued to be enjoyed by all the people of Cincinnati who live in the city, whether it be on a regular basis or just passing through for the day. This park, especially Washington Park, begins with all the people of this city and brings peace, joy and mutual respect to the city. Let the city continue to relish this park and keep it for all the people to enjoy, not just a select few. �6 STREETVIBES September 1 - 14, 2010 International News Canda’s Forgotten Children Continued from page 1 “The rewarding thing about doing adjudication is, for the most part, at the end of a hearing, what I hear from claimants is, ‘I feel better for having told my story to you.’ Now, they feel better for getting it out, but it doesn't make their life any better. “Claimants have sometimes waited 20, 30, 50, 60, 70 years to tell their stories. And so they’ve lived with hurt. They’ve lived with anger. They’ve lived with pain for that amount of time. It’s a pain that doesn't dissipate. It’s a pain that tends to build upon itself over time." The first travesty “Just being taken away from your home, that is the first travesty. Everything builds from there. Regardless of whether anything bad or constructive or good happened at a residential school, there is still that first sin, I’ll call it, of taking kids away from parents. “What we explore through the residential school process is: How has that experience, being taken away from their family – how has the abuse that people have suffered at residential schools – affected their lives? We go through this list: How are you at relating to other people? How has this affected your ability to tell your spouse you love him? How has this affected your ability to hold your children? How has this affected your ability to tell your children you love them? How do you cope with nightmares? What do you do when someone reminds you of a priest or a nun or an employee? Usually what we end up talking about is people who feel anger, rage. Often I hear, ‘I wish that so-and-so was here; I’d kill him.’ That's real. “I hear about how people drink, about how drugs have entered their lives. About how they would rather wake up in the morning and start drinking than have to think about or be reminded of the abuse or to think about how they can't relate to those closest to them, those who care about them most. “So we look at all these consequential harms. According to the model, you get X-number of points (for each harm). It’s a points system. And there’s this horrible reverse/inverse relationship where the more points you get – i.e., the more screwed up your life is, the more damage that has been done – the more money you get. And in the grand scheme of things, it is not a lot of money; we’re talking, on average, about 100, 150 thousand dollars, maybe. “That’s for a lifetime that has been damaged and wrecked, and that is for the lifetimes of others that have been exposed to or have been in the same house as survivors. So we do a damage that goes beyond individuals. It really reaches out to families. It reaches out to communities. It reaches out over generations, which isn’t surprising: The residential school has been around for over a hundred years." Three hard questions “What I've learned in six years is there are three great commonalties. It doesn’t matter what the story, the degree of abuse, how a claimant has managed to survive or persevere, they want to know three things: 1. “Why? The first question always is: Why? And it's not necessarily, ‘Why was I abused?’ It is, ‘Why was I taken away from my family?’ Who gave the government that right? And often what chokes claimants up the most is, they’ll recount how their parents were just powerless; the Indian agent or a supervisor gave them no choice. 2. “Are you listening? The second thing everybody wants to know is: Are you listening? Do you hear me? And that is pointed directly to the adjudicator in the room. Because unless the adjudicator in the room hears and respects your story, then you're nowhere. So being able to reframe and convey the story is absolutely critical." 3. “Are you sorry? The third thing that just about every claimant on some level needs is to hear the word ‘sorry.’ Now that’s not for me, as an adjudicator, to say, ‘Sorry.’ But we have sometimes representatives from the church and always a representative of Canada in the room. And very often, that representative – it might be a lawyer who’s been at it for 20 or 30 years, long in the tooth and perhaps just as jaded as everybody else in the room – will give a heartfelt apology. And that, maybe more than just hearing the story perhaps goes as far, if not farther, than anything that I as an adjudicator might do on the day. That’s the power of an apology, because, you know, to apologize effectively, you’ve got to look somebody in the eye. You’ve got to be empathetic. And you’ve got to mean it. And to mean it, you have to have heard the story. You have to embrace that individual and their harms to some degree. So, you know, the hearing experience is powerful, and the goal is to ensure that it’s helpful. Treatment: A cone of silence “Another part of the residential-school hearing process has to do with treatment, past treatment and future treatment. The hearing books are thick, and a good chunk of that has to do with doctors that they’ve seen, psychiatrists, or if they’ve been in corrections – sort of the daily log of their lives. You can have STREETVIBES Only purchase Vendor Streetvibes from BADGED vendors. Vendors wear their WHITE badges while they sell the Mary paper. a hearing book four inches thick and only have one or two pages where a doctor or a psychiatrist or somebody in corrections has had the foresight to ask, ‘Have you been in residential school? Have your parents been in residential school? Have you come in contact with somebody who'’ gone to residential school?’ “And when the question is asked, the floodgates open, the gates into that person and explanations as to why the individual is (perhaps) the way they are – mistrustful, addicted to alcohol, unable to communicate – because in residential school they were hit over the head with a clapper every time they tried to speak their own damn language. Or they were told, ‘If you tell anybody about this abuse, we’re gonna get you.’ Or just because the whole damn residential school experience, in general, was a pedophile’s dream come true. There’s a cone of silence there. People didn’t talk for 30, 40, 50, 60 years. Because that cone of silence doesn't stop at the gates of residential school. It stays with them. “The challenge is daunting. It’s going to take a concerted effort. Whether it’s a group of newspaper people, a group of psychiatrists, a group of police, a group of judges, doctors, how do we start (with them) or with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, to focus the minds, the talents, and the resources of others to start asking that first critical question: Have you been to residential school? Do you know somebody who has? Have you been contact with, have you been raised by? You’re not necessarily asking, ‘Have you been abused by?’ Because you’re not going to get an answer to that. But just knowing whether somebody, either directly or on the periphery, has exposure: It’s like radiation. It gives you a pretty good immediate sense of what the future actions should be or could be. “Unless the question is asked, the cork stays in the bottle, and we’re not getting the full story. It’s like mapping a genome: You need the entire sequence in order to understand it. If we can equate this thing to a hundred-year disease, you’ve got to know the full mapping of the thing, so that you can battle it, so you can deal with it, so you can get some cures out there for it. “I think that's why it’s important to talk about it, even though it makes a lot of people uncomfortable. “But we need to talk about it in the right way. This isn’t some drive-by accident where you can express morbid curiosity in the thing and move on. It's got to be based in those principles that our mushums and kookums (grandfathers and grandmothers), moms and dads, taught us about being respectful, about wanting to be helpful, and using our talents as best we can.” Originally published by Edmonton Street News © www.streetnewsservice.org. 1128 Walnut St Pizza by the Slice Tues and Thurs Buffet($7.00)-11AM-2PM Wed-Thur-Fri-Sat 9PM-3AM �STREETVIBES September 1 - 14, 2010 7 Issues Allegories of Oligarchies Individualism is to individuals as Christianity is to Christians By David Heitfield Contributing Writer The following is an open letter to Pfc. Bradley Manning, who was arrested in May in connection with leaking a 2007 video showing a U.S. helicopter attack in Iraq that killed several civilians, including two reporters. Manning is under investigation as the source of other classified documents obtained by Wikileaks; he currently is in solitary confinement under suicide watch in Quantico, Va. D ear Bradass78: I think I love you. I guess now that the New York Times dragged you out of the closet – poor Midwestern boy alienated by his sexuality, first in Oklahoma then in the Army – I should qualify that my love for you is rooted in respect for your ballsy action, your youthful idealism and the pathos of shared experiences: was a Korean linguist in the Navy about 30 years ago. So one of the things I’ve found most amusing about your story is the media-expressed horror that such a 22-year-old enlisted kid would have access to classified information. As we both know, you are the ideal candidate for this work: intelligent, young (the older you are, the more you’ve done that could be used as blackmail), single and lacking the social connections or economic status to find a more lucrative vocation. Who else would do this work – in a war zone, no less - or under $20k a year? While I don’t remember the details, I recall having many conversations with people I worked with along the “What would the public do if they actually knew what was really going on?” hypothesis. Back then, for instance, no one had any idea that the National Security Agency (NSA) dwarfed the CIA in budget and manpower or how many millions of dollars we spent on pointless war games – such as the annual war games that always cause the North Koreans to threaten retaliation. Or how we would deploy aircraft-carrier battle groups just to show the Russians we were badass. During the Cold War, when nation-states still mattered a little, the government feared other governments, not news organizations. We would watch government-produced films about cunning Russian spies offering us a lot of money or blackmailing us over some personal character weakness. We were lectured about how some of the local Korean prostitutes were known North Korean spies who were happy to get the smallest amount of information, such as where you might be going for deployment. I don’t recall anyone ever warning us about Walter Cronkite. It was all a little surreal. So I well understand access to that information has a heady impact on youthful idealism, regardless of your politics or patriotism. It literally changes your perception of the world forevermore. I recall the 1981 kidnapping of Gen. James Dozier by the Italian Red Brigades as a seminal moment of my youth (this information has long been in the public domain, so no secrets here). I don’t know how or why I had access to the intelligence – I worked on Far Eastern stuff, so I lacked a “need to know” any of it. And yet I did, and I was amazed at how our information was so at odds with what was being widely reported in the media – namely, that the deputy chief of staff of NATO's Southern European land forces was secluded in an unknown place by evil communist terrorists, and we were unable to do anything to secure his release. The media fed the “communists are evil and secretive and bad and you should be very, very scared” narrative so popular during the Cold War. The fact was the Red Brigades “plumbers” who kidnapped the general were bumbling idiots, and we knew where he was every moment of his 42 days in captivity. It was all about the sausage- WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange published classified documents allegedly provided by Pfc. Bradley Manning. REUTERS/Scanpix Sweden. making of politics, something government would rather not have its subjects think about too much. The Italian government did not want to do anything and would not allow the U.S. to do anything. Political stalemate. President Reagan then enlisted the help of his good buddy Ross Perot – yes, that Ross Perot – to use his “private forces” to rescue the general. Being the good patriot, Perot left Texas, and while flying to Italy, the Italians got wind of the effort and decided to do the rescue themselves to save face – and they got him without firing a single shot. Dozier was pronounced a hero, the Italian government was strengthened from increased pride and confidence of its people, the Red Brigades were all but destroyed and Reagan got a bunch of roads named after him. At your age, Brad, I was impressed by several things in that story: 1. Our intelligence-gathering is far more awesome than anyone was remotely aware; 2. Rich people are capable of amassing their own private armies at will; and, free of messy democratic accountability, apparently have more clout than Presidents; 3. The role of the “free press” is not to inform the public, but to reinforce the narrative of the ruling class. So, Brad, your venal sin, for which you must be sacrificed, is revealing how the sausage is made. We don’t want confirmation of what we already know: The war is an abject failure and a senseless waste of money and lives; drone aircraft don’t work all that well, despite 60 Minutes propaganda about how awesome it is; Pakistan sucks; Afghan police are drug-addled corrupt rapists; and civilians are being killed at an alarming rate, increasing the power and sympathies of the Taliban instead of suppressing it. Thanks to the 24-hour news cycle, your story was already downplayed and discredited by the media and the White House soon after Wikileaks published some of the documents. It’s only classified “Secret,” it doesn't tell us anything new and you’re just a confused young boy seeking attention because Mommy didn't love you enough. Unfortunately, you also fit into the most powerful narrative in America today: Everything is the fault of the bottom-feeders; those at the top of the food chain are always blameless. The unemployed are to blame for unemployment; the homeless are to blame for homelessness; welfare is to blame for poverty. Positive psychology is the law of the land today: The cure for all the evils of the world is simply to change how you think about them. Got cancer? Focus on the positive and see it as a spiritual opportunity to be a role model! Middle-aged and unemployed? Time for a spiritual renewal! Anger is a destructive emotion – get rid of it! If you’re depressed, we’ll give you some pills. All better now? Our Brave New World is rapidly taking shape – although it’s not so much a government conspiracy as a cooperative conflation of corporate, academic, religious and government interests all serving the same master. Repeat the mantra: The top of the food chain is blameless. You have the power to make yourself happy or miserable. Jesus loves the winners. Individualism today is all about your individual responsibility to conform to the will of the oligarchy. Know that you’re not alone. The Obama administration has shown its propensity toward blaming the whistleblowers or sacrificing personnel who might cause bad press on Fox News. At least two other leakers have been punished: In May, FBI linguist Shamai Leobowitz was sentenced to 20 months in prison after pleading guilty to passing classified information to a blogger. In April, former NSA senior executive Thomas Drake was indicted on charges that he passed classified information to a reporter who wrote a series of articles about the NSA in 2007. And that’s why this is a love letter, Brad. You saw something, it made you angry, you thought your fellow citizens should know about it. You thought about future consequences (not your own) instead of “living in the moment.” You were disturbed by what you knew, and you did something about it, instead of placating yourself with positive thinking. Consciously or not, you had some idea that sacrifice and redemption are actual concepts that matter (to people and their institutions), that Prosperity Jesus is a sham, that liberty has nothing to do with either Glenn Beck’s bastardization of Thomas Paine or Obama’s hopenchange illusion. Your epithet in modern America, in which the ideal of individualism is exalted while the value of the individual is rapidly becoming extinct, is probably best summed up by Marge Simpson, after her campaign against cartoon violence resulted in the town’s covering the genitals of Michelangelo’s David: “One person can make a difference … but probably shouldn’t.” Warm regards, Dave Former military analyst Current unemployed lawyer and positive-thinking meditator �8 STREETVIBES September 1 - 14, 2010 Food “Feed Me, Seymour, Feed Me All Night Long…” Creamy Baked Rice Serving Size: 3-4 bellies 2 tablespoons olive oil 2 tablespoons minced garlic 1 chopped white or yellow onion 2 stalks celery, sliced 2 cups vegetable broth 1 can cream of mushroom soup 1 cup sour cream 4 cups leftover long grain rice • Jeni Jenkins. By Jeni Jenkins Staff Writer T his simple dish was created while trying to decide what to do with a giant bowl of leftover steamed rice. I searched the cupboard and fridge for ingredients that would do, and thought, “Well, this could work.” To my surprise, this was delish. It was so good that my kids devoured two servings each – and believe me, they are a tough crowd. According to my kids, this will now be a regular meal in our dinner rotation. Serve as a side dish or main dish. Enjoy! • • • • • • In a skillet, sauté onion, celery and garlic in olive oil over medium heat for 3-4 minutes. Pre-heat oven at 325 degrees. Add broth and soup and bring to a boil. Simmer for a few minutes, then slowly stir in sour cream, adding a tablespoon at a time. Spread rice in shallow baking dish. Pour creamy sauce over rice, spreading equally, making sure to cover every grain. Bake at 325 for 20 minutes or until hot and bubbly. Voila, FEED! �STREETVIBES September 1 - 14, 2010 9 Films Reel Life: A Film Fanatic’s Journey But don’t get me started on George Lucas By Michael Fanning Contributing Writer I like movies. A lot. I know more about Ann Archer than I do my own sister. I'm the kind of guy who watches the threehour “making-of” bonus DVDs for films that don't warrant them, like Porky's II. I closely monitor Wikipedia to make sure they're getting the bits about my favorite obscure actors right. (Can you believe Graham Beckel's profile didn't mention Jennifer 8? Jesus!) Additions, alterations and deletions are made accordingly. Every year my heart breaks when the Oscars run the remembrance reel of whichever actors died the previous year. This is typically when I find out which of my obscure favorites has passed away (the newspapers rarely run it). Sometimes the Oscars themselves forget to mention them. I only recently found out that Brion James, one of the replicants in Blade Runner, died a decade ago! “Time to die,” I can hear him saying. I lit a candle. This is all George Lucas's fault, you understand. It all started May 25, 1977, the release date for Star Wars. No, I didn't need to look it up. I've seen Star Wars more times than I care to mention (300+). In my youth, it was my very religion. As far as worship goes, Jesus Christ was fifth on my list, behind Walrus Man. If I had spent as much time reading books as I did watching Star Wars as a kid, I could be directing condescending glances toward Steven Hawking. If I've seen Star Wars more than 300 times, that adds up to something like 700 hours. That's a month, my friends. And here's the kicker: Only in the past few years have I thought this might have been a waste of time. No time to bleed Movies affect my everyday existence in subtle ways. For example, I remember events, chronologically, by what movies came out the same year. It sounds oddly Native American if I say it out loud. My cousin, Mark, for instance, was born in the year of The Falcon and the Snowman. My niece, Sarah, was born in the year of The Ghost and the Darkness. I sound like I’m Cherokee. I carried a picture of Ridley Scott in my wallet when I was in my teens. I'm not kidding. He made films like Legend, Blade Runner and Alien, which are still unmatched in their ability to transport you to another place. This was something I often needed in my childhood. You never feel like you're looking at sets or props when you watch these films, but rather the real deal. Of course, these days Scott has switched to making films for mass appeal rather than artistic merit, (viz. Matchstick Men, Blackhawk Down and Kingdom of Heaven) which brings me to another point. Everyone knows that certain talents and abilities fade over time, but nowhere is this more egregiously conspicuous than in the medium of filmmaking. Francis Ford Coppola, auteur of The Godfather and Apocalypse Now is also the creator of Jack and Dracula. Spielberg's The Terminal and War of the Worlds left me vomiting for months. And George Lucas is king of them all. Not only did he inflict the Star Wars prequels upon us (Darth Vader was never a whining Canadian) but only after he went back to his earlier glorious efforts and fucked them up from the inside out. Nihilo sanctum estne? Movies helped me through my youth. No one got me through the death of my mother when I was 15 more so than Arnold Schwarzenegger. Predator was a much needed everyday (yes every day) escape. Arnold was my Austrian therapist who eased the fear and pain of my mother’s terminal illness, with his H-Bar, far more than any of the family counselors who only made my situation seem more stark and intense. As long as I had Predator in the machine, I was too busy on my alien-killing mission to watch my family disintegrate. Me and Jessie Ventura didn't have time to bleed. You can tell a lot about a person by the movies they like. They say the eyes are the windows of the soul, but so is anybody’s top-five movie list. If, for example, I were to have gone on a date with a woman who said, “I don’t care what movie we see, as long as there’s no subtitles,” one could safely assume said date doesn’t like to read anything at all and will probably in the near future break off your relationship for reasons involving your “chi.” Get out while you’re ahead. Way to go, movies! If you ever hear someone say Titanic is the best film he ever saw, you don’t really need to hear him say anything else, do you? It’s like having a discussion on politics and someone saying, “George W. Bush was the most accountable, open, civic-minded president we’ve had in decades.” You might as well stop there. You’re dead to me. Getting back to relationships, movies greatly helped me land my beautiful, blond, buxom wife, Alex. I’ve always had a freakish memory with an intracranial file cabinet of great film quotations to use on unsuspecting dates. I mean, I never said anything to her like, “Of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, you walked into mine.” Rather I used subtler stuff from lesserknown films, jokes mostly, to make up for my complete lack of handsomeness and creativity. She bought it all, hook line and sinker. “I thought you were original,” she now says in a glum, wed-locked voice. Not in the least! High-five, movies! Hey, Michelangelo Film as art is a strange subject for me. Nothing can create a cathartic experience for me quite like film. Yet, given the choice between being a famous novelist or filmmaker, I’d be a novelist, hands down. Why is this? I love films for their accessibility, but do I not take them as seriously as literature for the same reason? One thing is for certain: I’ve never wanted to be a film director. Every one of my favorite films – and I mean every one – has a horror story about how it was made. Star Wars was, right up to the final editing, a complete piece of shit. The special effects were initially not working properly, and the first edit was, apparently, horrendous. The filming became off-schedule and over-budget, giving Lucas terrible hypertension. Talented editors (including Lucas’s then-wife, Marcia) pulled it together in the final hour to make it what it is. Marcia then promptly dumped Lucas for a younger guy. Blade Runner, Apocalypse Now, The Abyss and a host of others are perfect examples of why not to get into filmmaking. Most movies, including many big budget ones, are filmed in four months. Saving Private Ryan was filmed in only 28 days. The Abyss, on the other hand, took nine months to film in a huge tank of cold water, with one actor or another nearly drowning on a daily basis. Apocalypse Now took an entire year to film, with Francis Coppola having constant emotional collapses. He was convinced he was making a terrible film for most of the shoot. Ridley Scott’s Legend burned down the entire James Bond sound stage in England. This building was so large you could have built a ballistic missile submarine in it. His previous film, Blade Runner, went over budget, over schedule, changed writers mid-stream, with Scott having to put up with two of the most priggish producers that ever walked. Jerry Perenchio and Bud Yorkin, to this very day, despite the masterpiece status of Blade Runner, give interviews stating that they can’t understand why Scott had to shoot so many takes of certain scenes. Imagine two guys with expensive suits and gleaming white teeth watching Michelangelo from the floor of the Sistine Chapel, saying stuff like, “Why’d you use that color? Will you fuckin’ hurry this along, please? I’m not payin’ for any more paint.” You get the picture. Producer Bud Yorkin, in a hilarious 2007 interview, states that “as a director myself,” Scott’s methods were infuriating him. Yorkin insinuates he is in the same company artistically as Ridley Scott. What is Bud Yorkin’s own masterpiece, you might ask? Arthur II. Tied down My 8-year-old daughter Juliet has the singular challenge of having a father who is a film fanatic. I explain to her, as she watches Stuart Little, that this film was written by M. Night Shyamalan and Bruce Joel Rubin. “You see, Julie, Shyamalan saw a meteoric rise to fame with the success of The Sixth Sense, but has since pulled a Joseph Heller with all subsequent efforts,” I say. “Bruce Joel Rubin wrote such films as Jacob’s Ladder and won the Oscar for writing Ghost, which was directed by Airplane’s Jerry Zucker, of all people! Most Bruce Joel Rubin films are about death in some shape or form, so you can enjoy the humorous contrast of his writing Stuart Little.” Her eyes glaze over after a while, and sometimes she cries. However, more recently, I think I’ve made a breakthrough. I was watching 2001: A Space Odyssey, and I had tied Juliet to a chair facing the screen. I was pointing out the magnificent photography of the late Jeffrey Unsworth and John Alcott as we watched several of the film’s opening scenes. “But,” I conceded to her finally, as the ape-men screamed at the monolith, “you might find all this a little boring, being 8 and all.” And then the most extraordinary thing happened. Though still bound to her chair, she looked curiously at the jumping ape-men, and said, “No Dad, I don’t.” �10 Issues STREETVIBES September 1 - 14, 2010 Real Change Comes in Aggregate Improving Cincinnati using loyalty and discontent is that the author was being part of the solution. And so was Sabu. Clay Shirky, author of Cognitive Surplus, writes about the social effects of the Internet on society and how it can have civic value. He creates a definition of two By Ariana Shahandeh types of Internet user: those Contributing Writer who make and share LOLcats – images of kittens with A response to comments captions added to make the over the CityBeat column, pictures even more adorable “Cincinnati is Just OK.” – and those who don’t. But the division boils down to n July 28 writer K. something deeper. Bunthoff broke up “The real gap,” he writes, with Cincinnati. “is between doing nothing In CityBeat’s weekly “Living and doing something, and Out Loud” column, in the someone making LOLcats format of a break up letter to has bridged that gap." Cincinnati, Bunthoff wrote, Shirky describes how our “I’ve been telling myself for media landscape has evolved years that you’re a diamond to allow us to become in the rough. But let me be more than just honest: consumers. We Your rough can be producers. exterior Shirky describes how our media landscape We can create really gets has evolved to allow us to become more than and share. in the way just consumers. We can be producers. We The Internet of, well, can create and share. The Internet is not like is not like the whatever the Television, an icon of the past one-sided Television, an might be media landscape. And what we do with the icon of the past obscured time we used to spend just being consumers, one-sided media beneath it.” the time we now spend creating and sharing. landscape. And In an often what we do with bitingly city’s downfalls, without an the time we used to spend honest manner, the letter initiative to change them. just being consumers, the went on to describe time we now spend creating “Instead of being part of the writer’s targeted and sharing, Shirky calls the solution, you are part disappointments with the “cognitive surplus.” of the problem,” wrote city. The unique interest of commenter Sabu. What Sabu “One thing that makes the column, however, was the current age remarkable,” might not realize, however, not so much in the content, O but in the reaction to the content. This contribution to “Living Out Loud” became one of the most commented on pieces of the series. Where an empty comment section often followed past columns, displayed here, at the conclusion of this article, were more than five pages of impassioned responses. “Cincinnati is not pretty?” one reader wrote. “Really? Not the skyline, the hills, or all the trees? How about the largest collection of Italianate architecture outside of Europe? What about Ault park, Fountain Square, Mt. Adams, Hyde Park, Clifton Gaslight?” Many readers were turned off by the idea of complaining about the he writes, “is that we can now treat free time as a general social asset that can be harnessed for large, communally created projects, rather than as a set of individual minutes to be whiled away one person at a time.” By commenting on Bunthoff’s article online, reader Sabu was contributing to our cognitive surplus. And by submitting the article, so was Bunthoff. Cincinnati, we need more of that. We need more contributions to our cognitive surplus. It doesn’t have to exclusively be a comment on a news site. An example of Cincinnati’s cognitive surplus is Secret Cincinnati, an online initiative to pool together tips from passionate Cincinnatians about the area’s best undiscovered places. It started out as a Facebook group where people could leave wall messages with their tips. Soon the group grew so large, over 21,000 members, that the tips had no shelf life. The group’s creators worked together over a weekend to build a Web site where the tips could be aggregated. It might seem from these examples that a contribution, however small or frequent, comes from a place of affection. And that is true for much of it. But I noticed something ironically inspiring about the comments that followed Bunthoff’s article. Scattered throughout the fiercely loyal comments were those of cautious agreement. “There was a time that I loved Cincinnati,” wrote one reader, who concluded, “Cincinnati is not trying, and I find it depressing and disappointing to realize, at least for me, this is as good as it gets.” Another reader wrote, “In my humble opinion, there is not enough good to outweigh the bad.” These comments did not come from a place of affection, but they were still something. Those comments were still a contribution. Isn't it interesting that something supposedly so passive and uninspiring as discontent should provoke action? What if we changed the way we used our new media opportunities to specifically contribute to our city’s cognitive surplus? What if we created a sort of hyperlocal cognitive surplus? Any time we use the Internet to participate, to produce, let’s seek out those pockets of online activity that are unique to our city and a make a contribution. And if we can’t find those pockets, we create them. For example, submitting content to be published on a local paper’s Web site is creating a pocket. Commenting on that content is contributing to that pocket. Making a group on Facebook that aggregates tips on where to go in Cincinnati to enjoy the city is creating a pocket. Submitting a tip: contributing to the pocket. Shirky writes in Cognitive Surplus, “Any shift, however minor, in the way we use a trillion hours of free time a year is likely to be a big deal." There are many ways to view the unexpected surge in comments over Bunthoff’s article in an age where newspapers are dead and you’re probably not even reading this. I saw it as an opportunity to collaborate our affection, and even our discontent, to make a positive difference for a city whose motto is “Juncta Juvant” – “Strength in Unity." �STREETVIBES September 1 - 14, 2010 11 Poetry Page A Gift of Sorrow By Willa D. Jones A Friend By Willa D. Jones There was love, peace and happiness on my side One man with me for twenty years, just my kind He had purposed to me three times all of which I said no Not knowing that time was running out for us as we go He became ill with high blood pressure and then had a stroke I had everything I needed but when he died he left me broke I went from the house, to the car and even the pool in the back To being homeless, eating trash and even smoking crack I tried living with people I knew back when times were good It would never last being a outcast and so misunderstood I tried homeless shelters with beds and eating solid food But shelters have curfews I was not for following the rule I found myself all alone hungry and sleeping in the street I lost everything, only the clothes on my back could I keep My grief for the lost of my man had turn to sorrow for myself I knew there was a lesson in this hand I had been dealt I started to pray and read the Bible all of the time Asking god to help me to soothe my aching mind I began to find strength with new feelings and new ideas I stopped smoking crack, drinking and got my head clear I went to a shelter for homeless addicts and prostitutes I found strength to bite my tongue and do what I had to do I went to A.A. and N.A. meetings and talked out loud To hear my story let me know the change was in the clouds I finally graduated and was able to rent my own room Got a job, got healthy and my spirit went up to the moon I started talking to the Lord in pray and song everyday And he turned my sorrow into a gift of life I’m proud to say So to have sorrow or feel pity on oneself all of the time Will take you nowhere but that wrong and narrow line You must look up and recognize where you need to be going And ask God to help you understand what it is you’re sowing Just remember a gift of sorrow can be a very powerful lesson And as long as you have faith and believe in god’s word can You then receive God’s blessings To be called a friend is sometimes very hard to be To be a friend is a honor with many responsibilities To have a friend someone you can always depend on To have a friend with you even when all hope is gone Being human beings we all fall short of God’s grace Being human plus a friend can be a difficult race Due to difficult circumstances in everyone’s life To put trust and faith in someone can be only strife So for me I keep the faith and never forget to pray As I sing that old hymn what a friend we have in Jesus each and everyday The Recruit By David S. Pointer told the senior drill not to skull fuck his future but, the senior brought the brim of his campaign cover down to break the boy’s nose & the recruit brought his boot up polishing the seniors balls infirmary blue What’s Up Economically By David S. Pointer Become a Fan of Streetvibes on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/streetvibescincinnati Like customers continuing to hold We never get any unsaturated answers To our important economic questions As each President is presented With a customized set of signature sentences To present a pacified public preoccupied With everything from Winnie the Pooh to internet Porn As the highly elevated Economically insane Continue to inhabit Love’s lifelikeness Knowing collegiality Is a difficult contagion to detect. And what average consumer Can positively identify The clear ever increasing Kettle-cooked contaminant of commerce Made by modern chemists, Or that which is packaged To be as appealing as The double scarlet Day lily of a dream? Are you interested in helping with Streetvibes? Are you a proofreader, writer, poet, artist or photographer? If so, contact Greg Flannery 513.421.7803 x 12 or email streetvibes2@yahoo.com �12 Sports STREETVIBES September 1 - 14, 2010 Learning a New Tune about the Reds Almost time for a victory march appeared to swing for the By B. Clifton Burke Contributing Writer S o maybe these Reds aren't so bad after all. Earlier in the summer I wrote that I was skeptical the Reds would end up contenders, but that if it became late August and they were still in a pennant race, I would change my tune. Well, consider it changed. In what has been a perfect storm of success this season, the Reds find themselves hunting a playoff spot for the first time since Al Leiter and the Mets blanked Cincinnati in a one-game playoff in 1999. There have been times this season that it appeared they were letting it slip away again, but this is a resilient group who specializes in come-from-behind wins and proving doubters wrong and have battled their way to the top of the NL Central standings. There were many variables to the season that had to unfold in just the right way for the Reds to make it this far. The starting pitching rotation has surpassed expectations, thanks to the development of young arms like Johnny Cueto and rookies Travis Wood and Mike Leake. Former ace Edinson Volquez continues to make his way back from Tommy John surgery; and while he has yet to consistently find his all-star stuff since returning, he still has stretches where he looks dominant. Bronson Arroyo, the staff's most veteran and consistent pitcher, has quietly put together one of his best seasons as a Red and has become something of an anchor to the rotation. Then there is Homer Bailey, who has also had arm troubles this year, but has pitched well and looked sharp since returning from his own rehab stint in the minors. Another pleasant surprise has been the play of Brandon Phillips hitting from the lead-off spot. In years past, Phillips hit clean up and fences on every swing. This season, he swings to simply make contact, and his batting average and on-base percentage have improved as a result. Thanks to Phillips making it safely to base so often, the phenomenal Joey Votto has enjoyed a windfall of success this year. Votto is perhaps the best pure hitter to come from the Reds' farm system since Eric Davis in the late ’80s, and his disciplined approach at the plate has him in the conversation not only for the league's MVP, but also for the hallowed triple crown, which hasn't been achieved by anyone since Carl Yastrzemski did it in 1967. The Reds line-up is pretty good on its own, but adding a gem like Votto makes it elite – and pitchers must always account for that devastating number-three hitter. The man who hits behind Votto, Scott Rolen, has also enjoyed the all-star seasons of both Phillips and Votto. At times Rolen has shown his old age as he's been hampered by a bad back, but his bat has produced more than what I thought the grizzled veteran was capable of when he's been in the line-up. He has provided the Reds with a nice option at the clean-up spot. Others, like outfielder Jay Bruce, catchers Ramon Hernandez and Ryan Hannigan and utility infielder Miguel Cairo, have batting averages higher than expected and have nicely filled in as the team's supporting cast. The bullpen has hit a few bumps in the road along the way this year but has collectively put together a nice season, giving manager Dusty Baker one less thing to worry about. All in all, the Reds have outdone themselves this season. For a team so ensconced in mediocrity for the past decade, fans can now look at each other in pleasant disbelief over the wins that continue to pile up. The division's only other threat, the St. Louis Cardinals, continue to push the Reds for a playoff spot, but the Cards appear more beatable than in past seasons, and are having a tough month of August as well. It all spells out Cincinnati baseball in October – once an annual event, but one that has become far less regular over the years. Whether the Reds can hang with the big dogs in a playoff tournament remains to be seen, but simply getting there is a major accomplishment. At this point, it would take a collapse of monumental proportions to miss out on such an accomplishment, but the Reds have given little reason for anyone to think such a letdown is imminent. There are still various concerns on the team – young outfielders striking out too much, starting pitching showing cracks and inconsistencies, veterans racking up injuries. But the fact remains that it's late August, and the Reds are in first place. Haven't said that in a while, and it feels good to admit. Hang tight; the finish line is near. What We See and What We Don’t Hurricanes, homelessness and other disasters By Michelle Dillingham Contributing Writer I had applied and was accepted into a graduate program for what I thought would be Jungian analysis – my first year I was stuck studying a bunch of post-Freudians. One thing I remember was the French psychoanalyst Jacque Lacan and his fascination with the “eye” and the “seer” and “being seen.” He would write stuff like, “The big Other designates radical alterity, an other-ness which transcends the illusory otherness of the imaginary because it cannot be assimilated through identification.” I recall feeling irritated by Lacan’s writings, namely because I thought of myself as quite intelligent, yet I could not figure out what he was saying. My fascination with the concept of observer versus the observed is not lost, though, as I listen to an interview of a reporter tell his story of how he aimed his camera at people reaching out screaming for help in the flood waters of Katrina. A new museum exhibit opens this week at the Newseum in Washington, D.C., between the White House and the Capitol Building. The Newseum is a 250,000-square-foot museum of news. The exhibit, Capturing Katrina, focuses on the reporters’ perspective of how they covered the tragic events of Hurricane Katrina five years ago. Two local newspapers – The Times-Picayune in New Orleans and the Sun Herald of Biloxi and Gulfport, Miss. – shared the 2006 Pulitzer Prize for public service for their Katrina coverage. A journalist from one of the papers talked about how they were not simply covering a story; they were experiencing the same loss as those they observed. Their offices were flooded and communications severed yet they continued to report on what was going on. From the Newseum’s press release about the exhibit: “Capturing Katrina will explore a cross-section of themes related to hurricane coverage: reporting made risky by angry mobs and armed looters; logistical challenges including power outages, disrupted phone service and impassable roads; ethical choices between reporting the story or rescuing victims; and the vital role of news websites in providing essential information to residents. The exhibit also examines the national news media’s role in shining a spotlight on the horrific conditions facing residents and the government’s slow response to the disaster.” As I listen to the journalist being interviewed on the radio about the exhibit, I thought of the power of the media that can reveal stories that so often go untold. Recently a woman told me she had heard about the number of homeless people in Cincinnati, but she just didn’t really see it, and she really did not grasp the scope of the problem. In about 10 minutes I rattled off a number of points about a decreasing and increasingly dilapidated affordable housing stock, the lack of housing for people who work in minimum-wage jobs such as security guards and food service workers, the fact that the wait list for the voucher program at Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority has not been opened up for four years and that the few family shelters in Cincinnati have wait lists as well. Street papers like Streetvibes offer a forum to express perspectives that are often not covered by mainstream media. Experiences such as being homeless, being young and aging out of the fostercare system and having to find housing and being an advocate against what seems like a sea-wave of talking heads can all be reflected here. Affordable Housing Advocates (AHA) recognizes the importance of imagery and perception as we advocate for our mission of ensuring good, safe, accessible, affordable housing for all people in the Cincinnati region. We are inundated with negative stereotypes that are perpetuated about people who are homeless, about people who live in subsidized housing, about working families who rely on housing subsidies to survive. The Katrina exhibit shows side by side two news articles, one a light-skinned group of men wading into a store – the headline says they have “found food,” while a similar photo of darkskinned individuals says they are “looting.” As advocates, we know imagery is powerful – both visual and in written word. AHA is currently working on securing funds to help develop public education materials. Please let us know of any resources to support our effort, and help us continue to “keep it real.” Contact AHA, 117 E. 14th Street, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202. �13 Issues STREETVIBES September 1 - 14, 2010 Health Reform: What’s in it for the Low/No-Income Uninsured? By Barbara DiPietro Contributing Writer cover single adults. The health-reform law expands Medicaid to everyone earning less than 133 percent of the federal poverty level – about $14,400 a year if you’re single. Unfortunately, the Medicaid expansion doesn’t go into effect until Jan. 1, 2014, so most low/noincome people without health insurance have to wait three and a half more years until they can qualify for health insurance. Individual states can choose to expand their Medicaid programs newly enrolled in Medicaid, depending on the strength of the outreach and enrollment efforts. While we are waiting to get people enrolled, states are busy trying to prepare their systems to handle the influx of enrolling so many new people. Not only does this mean doing some repairs and upgrades to the information technology (IT) systems, but it also means we need more doctors, nurses, dentists and other providers to be available to see all these new patients. There is a shortage of primary care primary-care providers in underserved communities. The law also addresses With all the screaming and the shortage of nurses by sign-waving and political developing incentives and a ugliness, it was hard for career path for nursing, loan anyone not to be turned off repayment and retention to the details of the healthgrants (which will increase reform debate. People were the capacity for education) sure the sky would fall if it and training programs. passed and that the country Throughout these initiatives, would turn into a socialist training programs are crafted police state. Alas, pass it that focus on primary care did; and last time I checked, models such as medical the sky was still there, and homes, team management there are still few signs of of chronic disease and socialism. programs that integrate So now that the dust is physical and mental health settling, what’s in it services. The hope that impacts low/ is that a small no-income folks and Projections are that between 16 million and 23 million people army of doctors, those health-care will be newly enrolled in Medicaid, depending on the strength of nurses and other providers who treat providers can be the outreach and enrollment efforts. While we are waiting to get them? The good developed in the people enrolled, states are busy trying to prepare their systems to news: a bunch of next few years to handle the influx of enrolling so many new people. Not only does stuff. The bad news: meet the health this mean doing some repairs and upgrades to the information You have to wait for needs of so many technology (IT) systems, but it also means we need more doctors, it. people who need nurses, dentists and other providers to be available to see all The biggest-ticket care. these new patients. There is a shortage of primary care doctors item is an expansion Likewise, and nurses of all kinds around the country, so there’s a lot of of Medicaid, the there’s also a work to be done, and the health-reform law recognizes that. health-insurance need to expand program that mostly community health serves low-income women, centers so that there’s a place early (Connecticut already doctors and nurses of all children, senior citizens in for about 20 million new has), but with the budgets kinds around the country, nursing homes and those patients to go and receive tight, it’s unlikely states so there’s a lot of work to be services. Community health who are disabled. Right now can afford that just yet. The done, and the health-reform centers are communitymost adults without small good news for state budget law recognizes that. based and patient-directed children don’t qualify for directors is that the federal To build this workforce, organizations that serve Medicaid, even if they’re sick. government will pay 100 the law invests $1.5 billion populations with limited There are a few exceptions in percent of the cost for the over five years in the access to health care. some areas like Washington, newly eligible for the first National Health Service These include low-income D.C., and Massachusetts, couple of years, reducing the Corps, which helps provide populations, the uninsured, which have local programs federal share to 90 percent by scholarships and loans to those with limited English that help pay for medical 2019. medical students willing to proficiency, migrant and care, but there’s never been Projections are that work extra years in highseasonal farm workers, one standard across the between 16 million and needs areas. The goal is to individuals and families country for Medicaid to 23 million people will be fund an estimated 15,000 experiencing homelessness and those living in public housing. To provide for the needs of these clinics, the health-reform law dedicates $11 billion for community health centers over the next both years for both operating and capital needs. The operating funding will expand services that include dental, addiction, mental health and primary care while the capital funding will help construct new sites where there is a need for them. Health Care for the Homeless projects will receive nearly 10 percent of the funding so these service sites will be expanding significantly to meet the specialized needs of this population. These three components –Medicaid expansion, workforce development and growth in community health centers – are major parts of the law that will impact people with low/no income. Today many who fall into this category are uninsured. Tomorrow that will likely still be the case in many areas. But on Jan. 1, 2014, major things start happening as millions can start enrolling in Medicaid. Until then, there’s a lot to be done to prepare. Barbara DiPietro is director of policy for the National Health Care for the Homeless Council. Interested in volunteering with Streetvibes? Contact Greg Flannery at 513-421-7803 x 12 or by e-mail at streetvibes2@yahoo.com Do you remember the magic of your First Book? Please consider giving the gift of reading to a low-income child in Cincinnati this year. Established in 2001, First Book - Greater Cincinnati has already granted more than 45,000 books and over $60,000 to local nonprofit literacy programs serving thousands of low-income children in Greater Cincinnati. Make checks payable to “First Book - Greater Cincinnati” I Want to Bring the Magic of Books to Children Who Need Them! $20 (10 books) Please return your contribution to: First Book Greater Cincinnati 572 Northland Blvd. Cincinnati, Ohio 45240 Name: Address: E-mail: $40 (20 books) $80 (40 books) $100 (50 books) Other $ _______ �14 STREETVIBES September 1 - 14, 2010 Vendor Voice What’s a Former Felon to Do? Hiring ex-cons is in everyone’s interest By George Herrell Streetvibes Vendor T o rehabilitate means to restore that which one has lost, to restore to a state of health and constructive activity. By title, the duty of the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections is to do just that. Yet the state of Ohio, as is true with many other states, still shows prejudice towards ex-offenders, refusing to hire them to fill employment positions for which they would otherwise be qualified, jobs such as poll workers. Once our sentences have been served, we as ex-offenders are allowed to vote, and we are expected to cooperate with census takers in our respective cities so that our votes and numbers can be counted and used to benefit society as a whole. However, we are viewed as unfit by many to work in those same areas. We can’t work at the polling places at which we cast our ballots or count our own numbers, which are used to generate financial revenues. Is this justice? Programs such as the Talbert House, River City Corrections and the Pogue Rehabilitation Center (operated by Volunteers of America) devote countless hours and tax dollars providing extensive case management geared toward teaching individuals with felony records the importance of “change” and giving them the skills necessary to implement that change. A recent Web search provided a glimmer of hope. I found that there are employers out there who are willing to look beyond applicants’ sometimes-jaded pasts in an attempt to offer an opportunity, a second chance, to those individuals who truly seek to better themselves. Employers such as Messer Construction, the University of Cincinnati, Frisch’s Restaurants and Sarah Lee Foods have all hired and continue to employ individuals who are ex-felony offenders – and with much success. Recidivism: That’s a term we’ve become very accustomed to hearing when it comes to ex-offenders. It refers to that fact that so many become repeat offenders, and it projects a sense of hopelessness. But when it’s virtually all but impossible for them to earn a living wage, is it any mystery that so many would revert back to what they know best? No one I know wants to have to constantly look over his shoulder all the time or wants to face the possibility of returning to jail, and yet it’s also a fact that no one I know wants to go hungry or be homeless or wants to see his children go without. There’s a certain pride that goes along with going into a store and purchasing what one wants or needs, a pride that goes along with providing for one’s self. I, for one, honestly believe that, given the opportunity, people would rather work and earn a decent living versus breaking the law and facing incarceration, especially if they’ve been there before. But take away that opportunity, and people will do what they must to get by. Please don’t misunderstand: That’s not to say that there aren’t individuals who commit crimes regardless. The fact that there are priests who molest and the rich who embezzle attests to that. However, on a basic level, people should be given the opportunity to change. In the Bible, it’s stated that Jesus said, “Let he who is without sin cast the first stone.” Now I’m not implying that everyone commits crimes, but we all make mistakes. What if no mistake was ever forgiven? Where would we be? To employers: Prisons are filled with skilled, talented individuals, most of whom want only the opportunity to change. And to the state of Ohio and other states like it: Either commit to extending the opportunity to show change where employing ex-offenders is concerned – or admit to the total failure of the Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections. It Don’t Hurt No More And Now I Can Help Others By James Brown Streetvibes Vendor B rother James DeMarlo Brown is a man who cares about his fellow citizens and community. Psalm 116:8 says, “For thou hast delivered my soul from death, mine eyes from tears and my feet from falling.” James has not had an easy life. He has had his many ups and downs, but his connection with God and his positive attitude have kept him going. He believes that he still has to deal with daily struggles and setbacks, but his face routinely sports an optimistic smile. He tries to help others who are still in the place he used to be in. The ways he does this range from holding cookouts to passing out Our Daily Bread pamphlets or just being there to listen. He understands what it is like to want to give up. He could have given up a long time ago but he knows no matter how bad things get, it can always get better. James wants to guide those who have lost their way to gain a positive mindset. Hope is a powerful thing that everyone deserves, and he tries to bring that to everyone he meets. James always has a smiling face and a kind word for anyone he sees. Sometimes his positive words are met with negativity. Many people have tried to bring him down, yet he perseveres. James’s birthday is Nov. 13, and in his next years of life he will continue to do what he does everyday. He will continue to lead a helping hand to anyone he can. James has no plan of leaving Over-the-Rhine, which is the community he knows and loves. On a daily basis he lives by some of the lines to his favorite prayer: “There is no obstacle I cannot overcome. … My hopes and dreams can manifest today.” James Brown, Streetvibes vendor. George Ellis. Streetvibes vendors keep 75% of sales. Consider helping Streetvibes with our publication costs by making a tax-deductible donation or by purchasing a subscription. Streetvibes is the activist newspaper, advocating justice, building community. Your gift is tax-deductible and will go to producing the paper every two weeks. Started in 1997, Streetvibes is distributed by homeless and formerly homeless vendors who purchase the paper for 25 cents and sell it for $1, keeping the 75 cent profit. Make checks payable to “Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless” I want to support Streetvibes and the vendors. $25 Please return your contribution to: GCCH 117 E. 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 Name: Address: E-mail: $50 $100 $150 Other $ _______ �15 Resources STREETVIBES September 1 - 14, 2010 Need Help or Want to Help? Shelter: Women and Children Central Access Point Cincinnati Union Bethel St. Francis Soup Kitchen Churches Active in Northside 381-SAFE 768-6907 FreeStore/FoodBank 557-2873 Madisonville Ed & Assistance Center 271-5501 300 Lytle Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Bethany House 4230 Hamilton Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45223 241-1064 112 E. Liberty Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 1841 Fairmount Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45214 Grace Place Catholic Worker House 681-2365 4600 Erie Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45227 Serves area codes: 45226, 45227, 45208, 45209 St. Vincent de Paul 6037 Cary Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45224 Salvation Army 535-2719 591-2246 762-5660 562-8841 872-9259 381-2247 5 E. Liberty St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 Health Resource Center Homeless Mobile Health Van McMicken Dental Clinic 357-4602 352-2902 352-6363 40 E. McMicken Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mental Health Access Point Mercy Franciscan at St. John 558-8888 981-5800 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 NAMI of Hamilton County PATH Outreach 1125 Bank Street, Cinti, Ohio 45214 131 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter Crossroad Health Center 458-6670 977-4489 Treatment: Men Other Resources Shelter: Men Charlie’s 3/4 House 784-1853 921-1613 Center Independent Living Options Emmanuel Community Center 961-2256 Peaslee Neighborhood Center 2121 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 City Gospel Mission 241-5525 Prospect House Justice Watch 241-0490 St. Fran/St. Joe Catholic Work. House 381-4941 Starting Over 1419 Elm Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 682 Hawthorne Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45205 Franciscan Haircuts from the Heart 961-4663 2203 Fulton, Cinti, Ohio 45206 Treatment: Both 761-1480 1821 Summit Road, Cinti, Ohio 45237 Drop Inn Center 721-0643 471-1100 221-3350 3330 Jefferson, Cinti, Ohio 45220 Housing: CMHA Excel Development OTR Community Housing 721-4580 632-7149 381-1171 114 W. 14th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tender Mercies 721-8666 27 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tom Geiger House Dana Transitional Bridge Services Volunteers of America Anna Louise Inn 961-4555 751-0643 381-1954 421-5211 621-5300 961-1983 OTR: 1620 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Walnut Hills: 2631 Gilbert, Cinti, Ohio 45206 Our Daily Bread 1730 Race Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 621-6364 771-4800 751-0600 721-4811 241-2965 People Working Cooperatively The Caring Place United Way Women Helping Women Off The Streets 351-7921 631-1114 211 977-5541 421-5211 1522 Republic Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Hamilton County ADAS Board Recovery Health Access Center Sober Living Talbert House 946-4888 281-7422 681-0324 641-4300 Hamilton/Middletown 421-3131 569-1840 381-4242 Northern Kentucky Advocacy Catholic Social Action Community Action Agency Contact Center 1227 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Food/Clothing Lord’s Pantry OTR/Walnut Hills Kitchen & Pantry 351-0422 381-6672 830 Ezzard Charles Dr. Cinti, Ohio 45214 Joseph House (Veterans) 217 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Interfaith Hospitality Network Lighthouse Youth Center (Youth) AA Hotline CCAT Goodwill industries Healing Connections Mary Magdalen House 1223 Main St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 2728 Glendora Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45209 Caracole (HIV/AIDS) 381-0111 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 First Step Home 961-4080 621-5514 214 E. 14th St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 661-4620 Shelter: Both Anthony House (Youth) 1308 Race St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 Treatment: Women 1437 Walnut Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mt. Airy Shelter 241-2600 241-2563 117 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 579-8547 241-9400 421-1108 363-3300 421-2437 Health Center for Respite Care 3550 Washington Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45229 Brighton Center 863-3184 863-1445 422-8555 868-3276 859-491-8303 799 Ann St. Newport, KY Franciscan JPIC 721-4700 Gr. Cinti Coalition for the Homeless 421-7803 Intercommunity Justice & Peace Cr. Legal Aid Society Ohio Justice & Policy Center Faces Without Places Stop AIDS St. Raephaels Salvation Army Serenity House Day Center Open Door Pantry ECHO/Hosea House Fairhaven Resuce Mission Homeward Bound Youth Mathews House Homeless & Housing Coalition Parish Kitchen Pike St. Clinic Transitions, Inc Welcome House of NKY 859-261-5857 859-491-1027 859-581-1111 859-261-8009 859-727-0926 859-581-7745 859-291-9321 859-491-4435 859-431-8717 205 West Pike Street, Covington, KY 41011 621-1868 Women’s Crisis Center VA Domiciliary VA Homeless 859-491-3335 859-559-5011 859-572-6226 �16 Artists as Activists STREETVIBES September 1 - 14, 2010 Freaks and Other Artists Bill Ross, Keith Banner celebrate possibility I nfluenced by Flannery O’Connor’s works, which always gave voice to those who were shunned, Keith Banner, a well-published Cincinnati writer, started in his mid-20s to write about freaks. They are, in his words, “forms of our essential displacement.” “Putting the reader in the point of view and body of someone who is denigrated and marginalized is always a deliberate political move,” Banner says. “It is my way to make the reader identify and connect with the other, accept and humanize the other despite the difference, realize we’re all equal and beautiful, that the world is bigger than we are, and that we need to be at peace with each other.” “Art saved and shaped my life,” says Bill Ross, a well-exhibited local artist. “It helped me find out who I was, also what was my mission. It let me explore social venues I would not have otherwise. It empowered me, and through collaborative work, allowed me to empower others.” Ross and Banner met in the early 1980s, studying art at the Herron School of Art and Design, at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis. Ross graduated with a degree in painting, Banner shifting later to English and graduating in legacy alive. Professionally, both Ross and Banner applied their art background to the field of social work. They worked in group homes, mostly with mentally handicapped individuals, providing them care and managing their needs. Artists at heart, they merged art with social work, combining and enhancing the powerful effects of both. “We are culture workers and not only social workers,” they say. “We use our artistic skills to help individuals grow Bill Ross and Keith Banner stand in front of text paintings by Dale and develop.” Jackson. Saad Ghosn. This is how Ross one day discovered Thunder-Sky and his wonderful creative world. At a meeting set designs; Mike Weber, for his abstracted images; up to discuss his health concerns, Thunder-Sky and Donald Henry, for his robot versions of himbrought along a tool box that he opened with a self and his friends. smile; it contained hundreds of his amazing drawAmazing Chaos is a collaborative piece Ross did ings, unseen until then. A disabled Native Ameriwith Becky Iker, who has Down syndrome. With can and gifted artist, Thunder-Sky would always minor editing, Ross shaped in color Iker’s pencil dress in a clown collar and construction hat and drawing, the final result reminiscent of a cave walk the streets of Cincinnati drawing demolition painting with its mystery and hidden subtleties. While Ross was painting, Banner kept writing. and construction sites. He published several short stories and a novel, Ross and Banner quickly organized a show all with strong social messages. He is working of his drawings in 2000. This opened the gate to as on a new novel relating the death of a 7-year-old many other disabled artists, starting with Antonio disabled girl killed by her stepbrother. Ignored, Adams, now a well known and well represented pushed away and debased while alive, her sudCincinnati artist. It also led to the progressive By Saad Ghosn den disappearance makes everyone realize her establishment of a venue for individuals with disContributing Writer inner beauty, her true innocence, how much she ability to explore and develop their artistic talent touched each of them. Meant as an empowerment at the same time using their creative expression of the weak and rejected, the work stresses the for their well-being. This venue, later known as creative writing. They have been together since, importance of every individual, even those initially Visionaries and Voices, gave artists ownership in partners in life and work. Together in 2003 they perceived as useless and insignificant. an inclusive environment where they felt valued, founded Visionaries and Voices, an art studio In The Wedding of Tom and Tom, from his book a chance to create and show their work, an opthat provides artistic and cultural opportunities The Smallest People Alive, Banner tells the story of portunity to collaborate and celebrate with other for artists with disabilities. In 2009 they founded two disabled gentlemen living in a group home, in community members. love with each other. Caregivers, braving the rules Thunder-Sky Inc., an art gallery that showcases Five years later, to avoid potential conflict of of the agency running the home, assist them to and supports unconventional artists from the interest with its source of funding, Banner and get married. The story reflects Banner’s rejection region, aiming at keeping Raymond Thunder-Sky’s Ross left the then well established Visionaries and of rules, codes and regulations that negate the huVoices and immersed their energy in man essence and mar its potentials, imprison the the creation of a new gallery, Thunderindividual, obstruct his good and poetic nature. It Sky Inc. The new gallery focuses on art, ends with a liberating act, the vision of hundreds exhibitions and literary publications; it of stigmatized individuals running over the officiais meant as a collaborative, non-segretor to get to their freedom place, a celebration of gated space where both disabled and universal spirit asserting itself and coming to life. non-disabled artists work side by side, Both Ross and Banner use their own art and with no real difference, triggering each various art involvements to equalize people and other’s vulnerability and letting go of link them together. their ego. “Society wants to frame us and categorize us,” All along and despite their otherwise they say. “One is retarded or not, intelligent or not. heavy engagements, Banner and Ross continued their own creative endeavors. … One’s free potential as human being is often ignored. We want to make it hard to categorize and Ross painted non-stop. His paintdifferentiate people; it is our political statement, ings – surrealistic, fantastic, personal at the beginning – changed their focus few and art helps us achieve it.” years ago; it became collaborative, with disabled artists creating composition and content and Ross adding pattern, colors and depth. "Pink light, like exploding roses. The red-light district. Ha ha. “Collaboration took No. A stampede … I am on the other side and I look up and me to places I was not all these shaved-headed people are running right at me in the able to go on my own,” red light. It's like they just got freed, you know? Like the he says. “It also helped concentration camp just opened its doors and they got out build confidence in the and they're running … They're coming right at me. And I want disabled artists showthat to happen … I want them to run me over," ing them someone else he says, looking right at Tom A. and Tom B. "And they do. takes them seriously.” They stomp all over me. They gotta get somewhere, don't they?" Ross has since collaborated with six (from The Smallest People Alive, by Keith Banner) disabled artists, among Amazing Chaos, collaborative pencil and acrylic painting them Kevin White, on wood panel by Becky Iker and Bill Ross. Bob Scheadler. known for his elegant A rtists ctivists The Officiator at The Wedding of Tom and Tom: Artists as Activists is a regular column highlighting Greater Cincinnati artists who use art as a vehicle for change. Saad Ghosn is the founder of SOS Art. Ghosn can be contacted at saad.ghosn@uc.edu. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 2010 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource September 1-14, 2010 Subject The topic of the resource Homelessness Description An account of the resource Pg 1: 3CDC Accused of Racial Conspiracy Canada’s Forgotten Children Pg 2: Street Wise Pg 3: Eight Minutes with a High Tech Megaphone Pg 4: 3CDC Accused of Racial Conspiracy Continued Pg 5: 3CDC and Death in Over-the-Rhine Pg 6: Canada’s Forgotten Children Continued Pg 7: Allegories of Oligarchies Pg 8: “Feed Me, Seymour, Feed Me All Night Long…” Pg 9: Reel Life: A film Fanatic’s Journey Pg 10: Real Change Comes in Aggregate Pg 11: Arts & Poetry Pg 12: Learning a New Tune About the Reds What We See and What We Don’t Pg 13: Health Reform: What’s in it for the Low/No-Income Uninsured? Pg 14: What’s a Former Felon to Do? Pg 15: Resources Pg 16: Freaks and Other Artists Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Streetvibes Archive Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Streetvibes Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource September 1-14, 2010 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Gregory Flannery Lynne Ausman Georgia Bohannon Michelle Dillingham Samantha Groark Margo Pierce Paul Kopp Jeremy Flannery Michael Henson David Heitfield Corey Gibson Jeni Jenkins Saad Ghosn Lew Moores Larry Gross Eli Braun Jesse Call Michael Fanning B. Clifton Burke Aimie Willhoite Anne Skove Vinit Murthy Jon Hughes Brad Foster Jeremy Flanner Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF 3CDC Aimie Willhoite Anne Skove Arts & Poetry B. Clifton Burke Bill Ross Brad Foster Canada Christianity Cincinnati Corey Gibson David Heitfield Eli Braun Ex-cons Georgia Bohannon Gregory Flannery Hate Crimes Health Reform Jeni Jenkins Jeremy Flanner Jeremy Flannery Jesse Call Jon Hughes Keith Banner Larry Gross Lew Moores Lynne Ausman Margo Pierce Metropole Michael Fanning Michael Henson Michelle Dillingham Natural Disasters Over-the-Rhine Paul Kopp Reds Saad Ghosn Samantha Groark Star Wars Vinit Murthy https://streetvibesarchive.net/files/original/4959cd661b1c08e30445d756a4ad7e9c.pdf a88ffe7d9511531bfdbe4696eb74d24e PDF Text Text Interview with Artists as John Mellencamp Activists Page 7 Page 16 Aug. 15-30, 2010 • Issue 183 • One Dollar ADVOCATING JUSTICE • BUILDING COMMUNITY No Fence Sitting in This Match The art of fencing and overcoming By Corey Gibson Contributing Writer C Edward Wright, an Olympic fencer, teaches children the sport. Vinit Murthy. A Quarter-Century Cause IJPC still working for peace and justice By Brian O’Donnell Contributing Writer A ug. 6 marked the 65th anniversary of the day the United States killed 140,000 people in Hiroshima, Japan, with an atomic bomb. In a quiet park along the Ohio River near downtown Cincinnati, the Intercommunity Justice and Peace Center remembered the event with a candlelit walk at dusk through paper sunflowers representing renewed hope and life. The mood was visibly somber as guests were invited to read the messages on the sunflowers, inscribed with quotations of peace and forgiveness from the likes of the late Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and poet Maya Angelou. (L to R) Eunice Timoney Ravenna, Sr. Alice Gerdeman, and Kristen Among those in attendance was Sister Janet Barker of Intercommunity Justice and Policy Center. IJPC. Schneider of the Sisters of Divine Providence. Born four years after the end of World War II, she remembers recognition of Hiroshima’s destruction. learning in school of the atomic bomb as necessary to end “Partly, we haven’t learned from it, but it’s more of a the War, that it was OK. Her understanding of the event now sorrow,” he said. “Especially since it’s likely it could happen sees it as “a horrible devastation that 140,000 people were again.” killed by a bomb the United States dropped.” Mark Burwinkel said his attendance at the park was in See Cause, p. ontending for an Olympic medal is itself an accomplishment. But some athletes, such as Edward Wright, had to contend with more than just the rigors of sport and competition to get there. Wright had to struggle as a child to even be allowed to get into the game. 1963 was a momentous time for the civil rights movement in the United States. President John F. Kennedy promised a civil rights bill. James Meredith became the first AfricanAmerican student to graduate from the University of Mississippi. The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. gave his “I Have a Dream” speech and issued his letters from Birmingham Jail after being arrested during protests against racial segregation – protests sometimes broken up by police with fire hoses and attack dogs. 1963 was also the year Edward Wright would join Brooklyn High School’s fencing team. Thirteen years later he would fence in the Olympics. On a Saturday in late July, Wright walks into the Corryville Recreation Center wearing a worn yellow T-shirt that says, “A Champion Maker” in bold, black lettering across the front. He is hardly what someone would picture when they think about an Olympic fencer who is just past his prime. He is stocky, about six feet tall, with long dreads that dip just past his shoulder. A few wiry gray hairs stick out in all different directions. He is wearing black sweats and Timberland boots. Little beads of sweat trickle down his forehead as he arrives at the gymnasium, as if he were warming up before the class had even started. Wright tells his See Fence, p. 3 �2 The Vibe By The Numbers 24 The deadline, in number of hours, for a city council committee to post its agenda prior to a meeting (see page 11). 50,000 The number of West End residents displaced by the construction of Interstate 75 (see page 12). 1492 The year American Indians began fighting terrorism (see page 16). 12 The number of years Pat Clifford served as executive director of the Drop Inn Center (see page 12). 1996 The year Edward Wright won a national fencing championship (see page 1). 11 The hour of the morning by which Rose was blissfully drunk (see page 6). 140,000 The death toll from the U.S. atomic bombing of Hiroshima (see page 1). 13,000 The amount, in dollars, needed to keep the executive director’s position at the North American Street Newspaper Association through the end of the year (see page 6). 5 Andrew Martin’s age when his mother left his family (see page 13). 48 Joann Burton’s age when she died in Washington Park (see page 9). StreetWise By Gregory Flannery Editor “A Result of the Work’ The Drop Inn Center is under pressure from the city of Cincinnati, from its satrap – the Cincinnati Center City Development Corp. (3CDC) – and from Downtown Cincinnati Inc. – so its decision to fire Pat Clifford, executive director, must be seen in that context. That’s why no one is talking: It’s too hot to handle. Clifford, who has worked at the Drop Inn Center for 20 years – the past 12 as executive director – learned Aug. 9 that he was no longer needed. The board fired him without giving a reason, Clifford says. “I was called to a meeting, where I was told,” he says. “Some board members were present, and they informed me. The staff members were informed the next day. It’s basically a decision to part ways. The board hires and fires the director. I work by their leave: ‘Your services are no longer required. A decision has been reached, and that’s that.’ That was basically the tone: ‘We wish you the best.’ ” Clifford says he didn’t see it coming. “Yeah, I was surprised,” he says. “It wasn’t like anything had happened to lead me to think this was going to happen, I don’t want to speculate as to why.” Clifford is a consummate professional, but the context for his dismissal is no mystery to outsiders. He cares about homeless people. He believes in the mission of the Drop Inn Center. These mark him as the enemy of the forces that forced him out. Cincinnati wants the Drop Inn Center’s property for other purposes. It’s in the way. He’s in the way. “It’s an internal restructuring, a result of the work that’s been done, without any political pressure,” says Elissa Pogue, president of the board of the Drop Inn Center. Sure. “The work that drives all of this is to do what’s best for homeless people,” Pogue says. The board of the Drop Inn center has named Arlene Miller, the center’s chief financial officer, its interim director. Clifford’s successor isn’t yet known. “Right now we don’t have anybody in mind,” Pogue says. Nor does Clifford know where he’ll go next. “I don’t know,” he says. “I want to be of service somewhere. That’s who I am. I’m concerned about basic human necessities, making sure people have those.” The poor kind fool. That is so not in sync with Cincinnati. It’s Just a Coincidence Similarly, the death of Joann Burton – run over by a police car as she lay in the grass in Washington Park – can be seen as a freak accident. Or it can be seen as an illustration of the forces that mark Cincinnati as a place hostile to homeless people. Washington Park, across the street from the Drop Inn Center, is about to be closed off from the neighborhood, with 59 of its trees destroyed, the dead who lie beneath it disinterred to make way for an underground parking garage, its swimming pool and basketball court destroyed, in order to make the park more appealing to the upper-income people whom 3CDC and city council want to inhabit Over-the-Rhine. These things are all coincidences. Don’t bother yourself with the deeper meaning. Naughty Language Streetvibes recently declined to participate in a ceremony honoring its work on behalf of people who have disabilities (see ‘Streetvibes’ Boycotts Own Award,” issue of Aug. 1-14). The Cincinnati Human Relations Commission wanted to present the award on Fountain Square, where a city ordinance and 3CDC’s regulations forbid our vendors to distribute the newspaper. The Cincinnati Enquirer reported our position, which prompted a conservative Catholic blog (richleonardi.blogspot.com) to weigh in. The blog called Streetvibes “the profanity-filled newspaper published by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless.” We think this refers to words such as “cocksucker,” used by rocker John Mellencamp in an interview in this edition. For the record, we believe that any organization, such as 3CDC, that forces poor people out of Over-the-Rhine or closes its park qualifies for the term “cocksucker.” Progress Comes to City Hall But let us not be glum. Progress happens – slowly, slowly. Thus Cincinnati City Council has grudgingly decided that the city will no loner automatically bar all persons everywhere who have ever been convicted of a felony of any kind anywhere under any circumstances from being hired for a city job. The city will no longer require job applicants to answer a question on its application form about criminal records. Rather, applicants can make their case in the interview process. Granted, this is a small change, but an important first step. The Ohio Justice and Policy Center labored long and hard to get this far, arguing that a person convicted of a crime and imprisoned for it has already paid her debt to society and now deserves a second chance. Otherwise, what’s a person who made a mistake to do? Sleep in Washington Park? That can get you killed. Work at a homeless shelter? That can get you fired without warning. It’s a cruel cocksucker of a city we live in. STREETVIBES August 15 - 31, 2010 Streetvibes is an activist newspaper, advocating justice and building community. Streetvibes reports on economic issues, civil rights, the environment, the peace movement, spirituality and the struggle against homelessness and poverty. Distributed by people who are or once were homeless, in exchange for a $1 donation, Streetvibes is published twice a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Address: 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 Phone: 513.421.7803 x 12 Fax: 513.421.7813 Email: streetvibes2@yahoo. com Website: www. cincihomeless.org Blog: streetvibes.wordpress. com Streetvibes Staff Editor Gregory Flannery Art Director Lynne Ausman Vendor Coordinator Jeni Jenkins Contributing Writers Michelle Dillingham, Samantha Groark, Margo Pierce, Paul Kopp, Jeremy Flannery, Michael Henson, David Heitfield, Corey Gibson, Jeni Jenkins, Saad Ghosn, Lew Moores, Larry Gross, Eli Braun, Jesse Call, Michael Fanning Photography/Artwork Aimie Willhoite, Lynne Ausman, Anne Skove, Vinit Murthy, Jon Hughes Proofreaders Lynn Baker Jeremy Flannery The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that works to eradicate homelessness in Cincinnati through coordination of services, public education, grassroots advocacy and Streetvibes. We are proud members of: �STREETVIBES August 15 - 31, 2010 3 Local News No Fence Sitting in This Match Edward Wright, left, teaches students the art of fencing. Vinit Murthy. “I even stopped going to church,” Wright says. “I wanted to make the team.” students to start preparing for the The practicing paid off and Wright hour-long class. His voice is grizzly made the team and worn, the in 1963. And he voice of someone has been at it who continually “Because he stresses ever since. Wright shouts. Yet Wright, form … and execution, placed fifth in a soft-spoken the movement is done the team-fencing individual, correctly. That translates event in the 1976 never yells at the into the kids not just Olympics, was students and tries stabbing or swinging a U.S. National to help them not or move backwards or Championship only understand forwards – they are having Fencing finalist fencing, but to have the discipline to do and most understand where the movements correctly.” recently, in 1996, fencing can take - David Jacobs won the U.S. them in their National Veteran futures. Championship. Reaching that level of competition ‘Not just stabbing’ was a struggle for Wright because of the color of his skin. Wright’s fencing career started in “Most of the clubs kept black the form of soccer. He played soccer for three years on his Brooklyn junior people from joining,” he says. The New York Fencing Club, at high-school team in the late 1950s, the time, had only one or two black before dreaming of making the highmembers when Wright tried to join in school football team. At the time, the late ’60s. Wright didn’t agree with Wright was a lot smaller than he is the stipulations the club set for him today and he couldn’t make the cut and decided not to join. for the high school football team. So “They were racist,” he says. he went back to playing soccer, even Luckily, the man revered as “the though the coach would never put father of American fencing” Georgio him in. Santelli, was seeking out Wright. At “I’d tell the coach to put me in,” first Wright was a bit timid to study Wright says. “I’d say, ‘Coach there’s under Santelli because of the intense five minutes left and we’re winning workouts; Wright says he could 10 to nothing.’ He never put me in. hardly last 10 minutes. But after a That’s how bad I was.” few years he began studying under Wright’s soccer coach suggested Santelli. he try out for the fencing team. “He made champions out of Although fencing was a foreign idea bunch of us,” Wright says. “And by a to Wright at the time, he found a bunch of us, I mean a bunch of black place that taught fencing, gave it a shot and practiced seven days a week people.” Wright wants to do the same thing for an entire summer, sometimes for his students. He wants them to practicing three to four hours a day. Continued from page 1 learn discipline, he wants them to become the best fencers they can possibly become and he wants to get scholarships for his students. Watching one of his classes, it is easy to tell that Wright pushes his students to perfect every aspect of their fencing. “Because he stresses form … and execution, the movement is done correctly,” says David Jacobs, Wright’s assistant fencing instructor. “That translates into the kids not just stabbing or swinging or move backwards or forwards – they are having to have the discipline to do the movements correctly.” The class is more of a workout than one might expect from a sport that has bouts as short as three minutes long. Although the air was humid and sweat droplets were forming on the forehead of Wright and most of his students, the grueling workout continues. The students, who range in ages from pre-teens to much older men and women, receive flurries of instructions from Wright. “En-guard” Wright yells, clapping his hands to a beat he wants the students to follow as they lunge forward, ending with a thrust of the sword at an imaginary opponent. The students keep attacking forward until they reach the other side of the room. Wright then makes the students practice their retreat back to the side of the gymnasium they were previously on. The attack and retreat exercise continues for a short while as Wright dodges in and out of the seven students, correcting the stances of each and every person until they are all in unison, lunging across the gymnasium. The right of way After a few more times back and forth across the gymnasium, Wright stops the students in place and tells them to hold out their swords, called “foils,” for upwards of 60 seconds. Although a foil only weighs slightly more than one pound, the students counted off the 60 seconds in less than 30 seconds, just to get the exercise over with quicker. Wright continues to make the students hold out their foils and count at lower increments, from 60 to 30 to 20 to 10 and finally 5, until the students are visibly tired. After another short break, the students, who all have their own bags of fencing equipment, put on their fencing masks and all-white fencing uniforms in preparation for the final phase of the class. Nearing the end of the class, Wright takes each student aside for some one-on-one teaching while the rest of the students have their own bouts, in which two students fence and the others act as the referees. Scoring a point in fencing seems difficult, but refereeing a bout might be even more so. To score a point in fencing, and ultimately get to the five touches needed to win a bout, the fencer has to have “the right of way.” That is, the fencer has to initiate the attack or execute a block of his opponent’s attack, called a “parry,” before he can score. The tip of the foil is the second fastest moving object in sports, after a marksman’s bullet, so refereeing a bout seems impossible. Each referee calls on the others to assist one another in making the correct calls during the impromptu See Fence, p. 4 �4 Local News STREETVIBES August 15 - 31, 2010 No Fence Sitting in This Match from the student he is fencing with. After a one-on-one session, bouts. Wright gives tips to the student and Even though the students’ bouts calls the next over, only to repeat the are impressive, the highlight of process again. the class is Wright’s one-on-one DeAndre Cruse, a newcomer, says interaction with them. As a student’s he enjoyed the class. He spent much and Wright’s foils clash together of his time with Jacobs, Wright’s in combat, assistant, who also called a taught Cruse The attack and retreat “conversation,” the proper way exercise continues for a short it is as if Wright to hold his foil, knows exactly the form he while as Wright dodges in and where the needed to use out of the seven students, student is when making correcting the stances of going to strike. lunges and other each and every person until He stops the requirements. they are all in unison, lunging bout and takes Cruse’s mother, across the gymnasium. the tip of the Jerri Williams, student’s foil, says she enjoys points it to his chest and thrusts it watching it. into his dark black uniform, telling “And I think he enjoyed doing it,” the student to hit him there. The Williams says. conversation between the swords She also says the workout and continues again as the student tries the discipline her son was going to to hit the spot – succeeding only receive were an added bonus. when Wright lets him. With his eyes Wright moved from New York to half closed, Wright retreats, fending Cincinnati nearly 15 years ago to off thrusts from the foil, and then teach fencing. He says he still enjoys lunges forward for a halfhearted it, even after teaching thousands of attack that catches the student off students in his 35-year career. guard. Wright casually looks around “I want to make champions,” the room and observes his other Wright says. “I just want to make students as they fence each other, champions.” all the while still defending strikes Continued from page 3 Edward Wright. Vinit Murthy. A Quarter-Century in the Cause have small successes along the way but there’s tries to limit the influence of military recruiters in always the next step.” public high schools and offers students alternative The vigil in Theodore Berry International Working alongside other groups locally and ways to serve the country. Her other programs Friendship Park was not only for remembrance of nationwide, IJPC continues to advocate a growing relate back to IJPC’s origins in education and the dead, but also a call to activism. list of causes, including the use of the death understanding. “One of the biggest reasons I came is it creates penalty in Ohio. “It’s about broadening your mind,” Barker says. energy, energy for a “We get very disappointed “We just want people to be informed.” difference,” Burwinkel every time there is an execution,” IJPC’s Day of Dialogue program brings said. “We will not be a part of any Gerdeman says. together people with opposing viewpoints to Sister Alice Ohio has executed a total of 382 discuss controversial topics and slow down the activity that has violence Gerdeman, IJPC’s prisoners in its history, according conversation. as one of its strategies. The coordinator, spoke to the Ohio Department of “This offers a chance for transformation and power of non-violence and of the upcoming Rehabilitation and Correction. learning,” Barker says. good is greater than any evil.” U.S. Senate vote on Despite holding political views In a continuation of its commitment to - Sister Alice Gerdeman ratification of the that can polarize people, Gerdeman education, IJPC offers “Peace Team/Nonviolence” new Strategic Arms says God provides and gives IJPC training. This offers people skills for successfully Reduction (START) Treaty, which calls for nuclear what it needs. intervening in potentially arms reductions by the United States and Russia “We’ve always managed to violent situations without “We need a new start,” she said. scrape by,” she says. In the 1980s, IJPC escalating them. Barker says Gerdeman has been with IJPC for 19 years. From donations by advocated for justice in there is no shortage of people She says IJPC acts as an advocate for issues individuals and grants, IJPC wanting to train, and she has Latin America, in particular ranging from immigrant rights to racism to the has managed to continue its a waiting list for upcoming for refugees who fled the environment. Now celebrating its 25th year, advocacy for 25 years, always training sessions. civil war from El Salvador. Gerdeman recalls how the organization has through non-violence. With its 25th anniversary This led IJPC to a courtroom changed since 1985. “We will not be a part of celebration on the way, IJPC victory against the U.S. The group was very educational in its infancy. any activity that has violence provides more than 20 services State Department, allowing It “built on education to advocate,” she says. as one of its strategies,” and activities in the name of the refugees to enter the In the 1980s, IJPC advocated for justice in Gerdeman says. “The power social justice. United States. More recently, Latin America, in particular for refugees who “In order to confront of non-violence and good is the focus on Latin American fled the civil war from El Salvador. This led IJPC violence and war, we need to greater than any evil.” rights has shifted to human to a courtroom victory against the U.S. State Kristen Barker heads up be the opposite of it in the way rights in general. Department, allowing the refugees to enter the IJPC’s peace and non-violence we speak and act,” Gerdeman United States. More recently, the focus on Latin program. Her program has says. American rights has shifted to human rights in two goals: uproot war and tear down unjust IJPC’s 25th anniversary celebration will be Sept. general. structures. She works toward these goals through 25 at Purcell Marion High School. Call 513-579“Justice work never stops,” Gerdeman says. “You various programs such as Before You Enlist, which 8547 for ticket information. Continued from page 1 Follow Streetvibes www.facebook.com/streetvibescincinnati twitter.com/streetvibesnews streetvibes.wordpress.com �STREETVIBES August 15 - 31, 2010 5 Issues Street Papers Revolt at Meeting Layoff of staff prompts uproar By Gregory Flannery Editor C hicago, Ill. – Members of the North American Street Newspaper Association (NASNA) reacted angrily to news that the board of the organization planned to lay off Executive Director Andy Freeze. The July 30 annual meeting of NASNA turned into a rump parliament, with delegates from street newspapers across the United States and Canada forcing the board to reconfigure the conference schedule in order to debate the layoff. The board said it’s out of money due to unexpected rent expenses at its office in Washington, D.C., and the loss of a grant that had paid for the executive director’s position. The layoff is necessary in order to avert bankruptcy, according to Serge Laureault, a NASNA board member and executive director of L’Itineraire in Montréal, Canada. Freeze, who is the former education coordinator for the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless, is NASNA’s first and only paid staff. Israel Bayer, president of the board, said NASNA had no paid staff for its first 12 years and will now continue as an all-volunteer organization. Bayer is executive director of Street Roots in Portland, Ore. Representatives of street papers criticized the board for not informing them of the fiscal crisis earlier. Bruce Gimbel, who recently started a street paper in Tampa, Fla., said he would have gladly raised money to help keep Freeze as executive director. Several new street papers said Freeze was instrumental in helping them. The heated debate led to several last-minute nominations for vacancies on the board (see “Differences as Strengths,” page 5). The NASNA annual meeting re-convened July 31. The board said it needed $13,000 to keep Freeze on the job through the end of 2010. Freeze then announced that, for the good of the organization, he would not continue in the executive director’s position. Freeze said his strength has been in member services, not in fundraising. Board members Rick Barnes, publisher of the Denver VOICE, and Ben Siew, a psychologist affiliated with Barnes’s for-profit and non-profit work, were absent from the session. The meeting at DePaul University was in a room containing a blackboard. The board listed as one of its future priorities “better communication with members.” Laureault, who has been a NASNA board member for six years, announced that he would not seek election to another two-year term. Andy Freeze, North American Street Newspaper Association executive director. Lynne Ausman. Laureault is president of the board of the International Network of Street Newspapers. With no executive director, NASNA reverts to an all- volunteer organization, with the board responsible for the tasks that Freeze had performed. Differences Build NASNA’s Strength NASNA builds a new board of volunteer leadership By Margo Pierce Contributing Writer board. They come from cities of varying sizes and geographic location and hicago, Ill. – Street bring essential skills to the papers have two things in tasks of fundraising and common: a commitment to developing journalistic serving economically disadvantaged excellence. The new board individuals and a passion for members are Gregory supporting those people. The list of Flannery, editor of differences is significantly longer Streetvibes; David Jefferson, and ranges from opposing views editor of Spare Change News on editorial content and political in Boston, Mass.; Kathleen activism to handling vendor training Porch, development and the importance of paid staff. manager for Real Change Bringing these varied perspectives in Seattle, Wash; and Eddie together is the reason for the annual Young, executive director of conference of the North American The Amplifier in Knoxville, Street Newspaper Association Tenn. (NASNA). In an organization Approximately 75 people from utilizing journalism to street papers all across the United make a positive impact, States and Canada gathered July 30 Flannery says he hopes -Aug. 1 to learn from each other and Streetvibes Editor Gregory Flannery pitches in. to use his experience to participate in the annual meeting. improve the credibility of This year’s conference included a the street-paper movement. dramatic change in the makeup of A biography on NASNA’s NASNA’s board Web site of directors. (nasna.org) says “I learned a long time ago that the board must do all this while After a heated “I learned a long time ago Flannery “made a small newspaper can make a big trying to maintain services in the debate about his mark by difference,” Flannery says. “If you face of a budget shortfall resulting in that a small newspaper can the loss of exposing illegal put a whole lot of small newspapers the layoff of Executive Director Andy make a big difference. If funding for the wiretapping by the together, they can make a huge Freeze, NASNA’s only paid staffer. you put a whole lot of small organization Cincinnati Police difference. That’s what NASNA is.” “The board has to do a better newspapers together, they (see “Street Department” With each paper representing a job of communicating with the can make a huge difference. Papers Revolt at and “later wrote different community, culture and membership,” Flannery says. “At That’s what NASNA is.” Meeting,” page articles that led local priorities, it’s going to be a the general meeting, we saw what -Gregory Flannery 5), members to the successful challenge to keep this volunteerhappens when the membership wanted prosecution of driven governing body focused learns there is a problem. The more from their board: more three Catholic priests who had on broader and commonly shared members set aside their differences communication, more input, more sexually abused children.” Also challenges – the criminalization of and became engaged and tried to accessibility. noted is the 2009 “Best Feature homelessness (see “Being Homeless help. If we can channel that energy To make that happen, four people Story” award he received from the is Against the Law,” issue of March and commitment on our shared offered their time to fill vacant International Network of Street 14), panhandling restrictions, objectives, the board can help move positions on the nine-member Papers. inadequate shelter space, etc. And the street-paper movement forward.” C �6 STREETVIBES August 15 - 31, 2010 Column Parsing Poverty and Community Rose celebrates her birthday, and mourns R ose’s birthday started early, and it started out happy. Rose is not but she seems glad to see them. her real name, but Rose is what we’ll call her. She hangs out nearly It’s not much of a life and it’s not that many dollars. every day on the steps of a building near the place where I work, and But she does have her friends. we have become friendly. She is a small, damaged woman with a random collection of teeth, a history of grief and a fondness for Steel Reserve malt * * * * * liquor. She’s damaged, I say, in all the ways that alcohol and living can cause, but you can see that she might have been a lovely woman at one time. She’s At various times in my life, I have worked as a community organizer. slim – probably too slim – and has a ready smile, and she manages to bring a For part of that time, I had a mentor in the field who told me that what we certain stylishness to her clothing, in spite of it all. were doing was not necessarily winning victories for a community. In doing For her birthday, she and her friends had gathered in the morning in front community organizing, we were organizing community, he said, and the of the apartment building right next to the office where I work and where creation of community was a victory all by itself. some of them lived. At 8:30, as I was scrambling to get in to work on time, she Think about what we build when we build community. We create bonds stopped me and asked, did I have a safety pin? among a group of people who share some common interest and common “It’s for my first dollar,” she explained. She reminded me it was her need and, in the process of addressing that interest and need come also to birthday. share an identity and a sense of fellow-feeling and an ethos of I didn’t have a safety pin, but somebody did, mutual support. This is worth having even if we don’t win the for when I saw her a couple hours later, she new playground or stop the power plant (though I won’t deny waved to me and pointed to a pair of dollar that winning is nice). bills pinned to her blouse. They fluttered there By Michael Henson all day. She must have collected many more * * * * * dollars; by 11, when I stepped out again, she was blissfully drunk and her eyes were glazed. Even the best of birthday drinking cannot always She had an open can of Steel Reserve in her hand and her friends, equally outmaneuver pain. By mid-afternoon, when I come back from an errand, drunk, were all around her, laughing loudly and singing snatches of song. Rose is in tears. She has moved from the steps to the shade of a tree and How could a birthday be better than that? she sits at the foot of the tree, sighing and cursing and lamenting in words too obscure and unprintable for me to repeat here. She has a lot to lament: * * * * * husband, children, false sisters, her health, her teeth – all gone. But – this is the miracle of poverty as a gift: Her friends are all around her, right on the One of the paradoxical effects of poverty is that it drives people apart, but ground with her. What they said was as obscure and unprintable as Rose’s it also brings them together. People in poverty are pushed to the fringes of curses and lamentations, but it seemed to be a comfort to her to have them society, but they are also pushed into the arms of one another. If we study lamenting and cursing right along with her. communities in poverty, we see a great deal of horizontal violence, in which Rose lamented, and her friends comforted. people who are pressed down attack each other instead of the oppressors. And so the day wound down. Her friends did what friends do – they stayed But we also see heroic acts of mutual support. Rose and her friends have at her side and they comforted her in her hour of need, just as they shared her no steady income, but they have an “abandominium” they have developed joy hours earlier. out of a nearby abandoned building where they share space, food and other resources, just like a commune, minus the bean sprouts and fortified by malt * * * * * liquor. This is an aspect of poverty rarely noted or commented on: the bonds of To break with poverty is to break with the mutually sustaining community mutual support, usually manifested in family, but also extending to others. of the poor. And such a beak can be painful and dramatic. There is a whole This is not something very often measured or praised. Any night we can turn literature dedicated to the pain of that break (as in Great Expectations by on the news and see reports of violence in poor communities. If we read the Dickens or Sons and Lovers by D.H. Lawrence). “Don’t get above your raisin’” reports, we can know how many reported acts of violence happen each year, warns an old country saying (and an even better bluegrass song). To break city by city, neighborhood by neighborhood, and we know these numbers are with this community is to mark oneself as proud, arrogant, self-centered, only a fragment of what actually occurs. But for the acts of kindness, sacrifice, puffed-up, better than others. And the person who leaves poverty might solidarity, we have no measure at all. We may not know of all the abuse that experience a great deal of alienation, isolation, guilt, prejudice, disorientation occurs, but we have statistics. But we have no statistics for the frequency of and loneliness. nurturance, care, or support. Crime? We can tell you. But what is the opposite And yet, for addicts in poverty, such a break with the community might be of crime? We don’t even have a word for what happens when a person has crucial to recovery. Old people, old places, old things is a formula for relapse. every reason to commit crime but doesn’t. The recovering person must find new community quickly, before the terrible sense of isolation, coupled with the cravings of addiction, bring the addict * * * * * right back to the corner. Hence, the urgency of the 12-step programs, which build a new community Who paid for Rose’s party? It had to be the people around her, her for the addict, as well as after-care planning and other systems of support. neighbors and friends. Pensioners gave up a little of what they had. The metal scrappers came back from Garden Street with a little of what they made * * * * * turning car fenders and abandoned refrigerators into cash. Somebody went downtown and flew a sign on Court Street for a few hours, so people were When I left for home, the sun had shifted again, and Rose’s party had able to eat and, more important, drink through the day. moved across the street. She had drunk herself nearly numb, and her eyes What does Rose have left to celebrate? Most of her teeth and most of her were distant and abstracted. She was weeping more quietly now, and only self-respect are gone, as are her husband to cancer and her children to foster two of the friends remained. They were drunk and subdued as well. Perhaps care. they were thinking of their own losses. Perhaps they had drunk enough Steel I think there is a certain purity to her celebration, like that of a saint or a Reserve that they did not need to think at all. Bodhisattva, for she has nothing left to celebrate but another day of living. The dollars still fluttered from Rose’s blouse. She waved again, and I You or I might not call it living, but it’s her life to decide what she’s living. crossed to wish her happy birthday one last time. If it’s too far a stretch to compare a sloppy drunk in Over-the-Rhine to a She wiped back the latest tears from her cheeks and she thanked me and saint or a Bodhisattva, then let’s leave her to celebrate the generous dollars she smiled. that have come her way. You can be sure they will be gone before morning, Her friends smiled with her. ammered H Michael Henson is author of Ransack, A Small Room with Trouble on My Mind, The Tao of Longing and Crow Call. www.facebook.com/ streetvibescincinnati twitter.com/ streetvibesnews streetvibes. wordpress.com �STREETVIBES August 15 - 31, 2010 7 Music Interview When the Walls Come Tumbling John Mellencamp on poverty and music T oledo, Ohio – Editor’s note: John Mellencamp met last month with Ken Leslie of the Toledo Streets. They discussed Mellencamp’s long career in music and his commitment to social justice. Reprinted with permission of the Toledo Streets. Ken Leslie: On behalf of 1Matters, Toledo Streets and the street paper movement and everyone who has lost domestic or financial autonomy in our country, thank you for your time today. We first met two years ago or so when you made an un-promoted stop at the annual Tent City, Project Homeless Connect, in Toledo. You just wanted them to know they matter. Bob Merlis (Mellencamp’s publicist) told me you were touched by the experience. How so? John Mellencamp: When you see what progress can produce, and also what progress can discard, it makes a feller wonder if some of the progress, let me put it this way, calling it progress does not make it right. In this country right now there is no middle class, no place for middle class. You are either really rich or you are really down and out. It’s hard times in this country right now. KL: You brought your wife, Elaine, and son, Speck, with you to Tent City. When you had your private talk with some of the unhoused, at first Speck stood back, but by the end of your conversation he was in the circle listening to every word. Compassion is a pretty cool thing for a father to pass on to a son. Did he share his thoughts on the experience before and after? JM: I don’t remember exactly, but I will tell you he is a very activist type of kid. I found that out when he was pretty young. He did some research at school on some chocolate company and he wrote them a letter and it said, “You cheapskates, why don’t you hire and why don’t you pay fair, ya so-and-so.” And he almost got me into trouble last year, too. KL: How so? JM: He had a petition on Facebook to try to get me to stop smoking. He had, I think, about a half a million people sign up and he had to get a million. The whole conversation was just at Thanksgiving last year. We had completed our Thanksgiving dinner and I lit up a cigarette at the table. He looked at me and he went like, “Really, Dad?” And I said, “What do you mean, ‘Really Dad’, I smoke all the time?” And he said, “Yeah, but it’s Thanksgiving, I’m not done eating.” I said, “OK, I’ll go somewhere else; it’s a big house.” So I went into another room. A couple hours later he walks up and said, “Hey Dad, if I get a million people to sign up on Facebook, would you stop smoking?” And I said, “Yeah, go ahead.” That was the end of the conversation. By the time the thing had started, ya know, a couple weeks into it, Larry King wanted him to come on, Good Morning America asked him, and of course I wouldn’t let him go on anywhere. First of all, I don’t want him talking about my bad habits; and second of all, ya know, I knew he’d reach his mark. KL: And then what? JM: And then I’d have to stop smoking. KL: Would ya? Have you tried? How many times have you tried? JM: Listen, I have no desire to stop, so there’s no reason to even have that conversation. If I would have wanted to stop smoking, I would have years go. KL: Took me like 32 times of quittin’ to finally do it. JM: Yeah, well, you wanted to stop. I’m confirmed. KL: And your other son, Hud? JM: He’s 16 years old and he fights tomorrow night. KL: Boxer or Extreme? JM: Boxer. He holds five state championships John Mellencamp says an early band mate was shunned for being black. Toledo Streets. right now. He just got back from Annapolis. They want him to be a boxer for them and he went up and trained for two weeks. KL: Was that nerve-wracking to see him box? JM: No, I know how much Hud trains. He’s ready to fight. His record is 20-2. He’s a bad-ass, I can tell ya that. KL: Did you ever box? JM: No, I could fight in the street, but this is a sport to him. He’s very good at it. I’m proud of them both. KL: When you were on stage at Tent City, you spontaneously decided to invite everybody there to your concert, all of the unhoused people. JM: Right. KL: Sixty to 70 people went, and I understand you talked to them from the stage about hope. As you know, one of the guests came back from the show and said “Ken, John talked to us from the stage – I guess I really do matter.” That was the founding moment of 1Matters and actually that’s why we’re here today. Your whole career, you’ve had the compassion for and worked for those with little or no voice. What is the root of that compassion in John Mellencamp? Where does it come from? Was there something in your childhood maybe that started this feeling of compassion? JM: Well, for me, it started with race. I was in a band when I was 13-14 years old and it was the mid-’60s and it was a racially mixed band. I was the lead singer, and this black kid was a singer. He was a couple years older than me, really good. We’d play every weekend at fraternities and in hotels and stuff like that. It was a soul band. And I saw the way people treated him. Ya know, it was like wow, really? Wait a minute, you loved him on stage, but now he’s gotta go wait outside? And so I think that made quite an impression on me as a young guy. KL: How’d you respond? JM: Well, there were times that there were fistfights. I remember in a little town in Indiana there was a fistfight in between one of our breaks because of his race. So, ya know. KL: And since then you’ve carried on standing up for farmers, for the people. I remember Jena. You stuck up for people there and actually put a lot of your work and effort into that. JM: Well I’m Sisyphus myself; I’m always the guy who’s rolling the rock up the hill. Ya know, and every time I get too close to the top, I either let it roll back down on purpose or it just rolls back, catches on fire and rolls down at someone. So I know what it’s like to have to work at something. My struggle is obviously different than some folks’ struggle, but nevertheless we all have our problems. KL: How would you define your struggle? JM: Um, well I’ll answer it like this: A man writes to what he strives to be, not what he is. KL: The crucible that caused me to get involved in this movement in 1990 was a result of performing in comedy clubs all across the country in the late ’80s and seeing more and more people on the streets. It was the statistic that 60 percent of them were families with children that forced me to act and do something. For you, with Farm Aid, tell me about that one moment that caused you to be a part 25 years ago and to maintain it even today. JM: I had written a song with a friend of mine called “Rain on the Scarecrow,” and I had just made an album about what I had seen – ya know, what prosperity had done to the small towns, how they had leveled them out and devastated small-town America. So we made this record called Scarecrow; and then when Willie (Nelson) called, there was like, it took me about a second to decide I wanted to be a part of Farm Aid. When Willie called up, he had like a vague notion of what Farm Aid was gonna be. It was no more than just a vague notion, and we really had no idea it was gonna last. We have our 25th anniversary coming up October 2. KL: What was Willie’s notion? JM: Ah, he didn’t really have much of a notion, it was a bunch of maybes and guesses and “I don’t knows,” ya know. KL: Did that start because of Bob Dylan’s comment at Live Aid? JM: Ah, that’s what he said, you know, that Bob had said something about, you know, that we should try to take care of our own people. I think that inspired Willie. KL: One of the things that I’ve always admired about you is your courage in social justice. You take a huge pile of truth, dump it in front of them and say, “Smell this.” Based on your lifetime of fighting for the truth, has your position changed in the sense See Wall, p. 10 �8 Food and Art STREETVIBES August 15 - 31, 2010 “Feed Me, Seymour, Feed Me All Night Long…” Grilled Cheese w/ Tomato on Sourdough Serving Size: 1 belly ½ tablespoon unsalted butter (or substitute for vegans) ¼ tablespoon fresh minced garlic 2 slices sourdough bread 4 slices fresh tomato 2-4 slices aged white cheddar cheese (or substitute for vegans) Tired of plain ol' grilled cheese sandwiches? Try this one on for size. Jeni Jenkins. Heat butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and sauté 30 seconds or until lightly browned. Place cheese and tomatoes on sourdough and saute each side for approximately 1 minute or until each side is toasty brown, making sure garlic coats each side. Voila, feed! Cartoon by Anne Skove ! ? t ha W y Sa ___________________ We’ve got to take back the ideal of justice. We’ve got to take back this principle of human dignity. We’ve got to take it back from vengeance, from hatred. We’ve got to say, “Look, we’re all in this together. We are human beings.” – David Kaczynski �9 Local News STREETVIBES August 15 - 31, 2010 Officer Runs Over Woman in Park Crushed to death while lying in grass By Gregory Flannery Editor J oann Burton’s death in Washington Park remains under investigation by the Ohio State Highway Patrol. She died July 27 of injuries sustained after being run over by a police cruiser as she lay on the grass. Burton, who was homeless, was 48. The Hamilton County Prosecutor’s Office will decide whether to file criminal charges against Cincinnati Police Officer Marty Polk, who was in the park on a routine patrol. Polk drove off a service road and into the grass, according to the police department. Officers at the park initially told Streetvibes that Burton had only sustained a foot injury. County Coroner O’dell Owens ruled the death accidental, caused by blunt-force injuries. Burton suffered a lacerated liver and pelvic and rib fractures, according to Owens. The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless organized a vigil in Burton’s memory in Washington Park the night of the fatal accident. Josh Spring, executive director of the Homeless Coalition, also called for a change in police procedures. “The Burton family and the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless anxiously await the results of the state investigation,” Spring says. “The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless demands a change in policy. Other than in extreme situations, such as a shooting, police must not be allowed to drive through the grassy, pedestrian areas in parks. This practice is simply too dangerous. Together we can prevent such a tragedy.” Cleo’s Joke Corner What do you call a detective who takes bubble baths? Sherlock Foam. Thomas J. “Cornbread” Oats (center) listens to a hymn sung by an unidentified woman (right) July 27, while friends and acquaintances of his wife, Joann Burton, construct a makeshift candle-lit memorial during a vigil. Burton, 48, a homeless woman, was killed late that morning when a Cincinnati Police cruiser ran her over while she was lying on the grass in the park. Jon Hughes/Photopresse. Poetry Corner Four Haiku Poem Cancer Treatment: B D S. P The Unknown Story y avid ointer *** Needle exchange site where night shift teens mainline towards love *** Blue reef surfers rumble and ride a dream *** Three strikes out of trouble at the bowling alley *** Elder’s rag box off rez homeless shelter now arson ash Woman By Elisa Hill God gave her that title that you just can’t tuck away. God gave her that throne that you just can’t dismiss today. God gave her that voice in which to call out his name. God gave that torch to light up the lands. God gave her that rib to show she has purpose. God gave her that husband to show she is worth it. God gave her that child through so much adversity and pain. God gave her that glory to survive all the rains. God gave her that peace in which her eternity is heaven sent. God gave her that receipt that she paid her dues well spent. See, God gave her his blessing to be whatever she chose to be. She chose to be a great woman, now all life chooses to envy. Thank God! Rock on to all great women! By David S. Pointe Need based assistance Was met with greed Based resistance as Dr. Royal Rife’s new Microscope and cure For cancers’ stemming From viruses and bacteria Were suppressed by an Earlier cunning congress Seated in service to the Medical and pharmaceutical Fortunes to be made then Multiplied when more Unsuspecting people Became patients seen By strategically silent Doctors providing a Certain brand of Quality Care like mortuary assistants Specializing in an untold Spectrum of dark The Men By David S. Pointer It wasn’t a box car supper social They weren’t exchanging job leads A badger-haired hooligan rammed The yard bull into a cattle horned Hat rack for ruining the fish soup The men trampled egg wire baskets And pumpkin goulash trying for a train �10 Music Interview STREETVIBES August 15 - 31, 2010 When the Walls Come Tumbling music, as opposed to building a record or constructing a record. KL: How did you choose the locations? that does authority always win? JM: By the way the tour was routed. I knew that I was gonna be close to JM: Oh, I’m a hypocrite, there’s no question about it. Don’t you know a Memphis, and I knew I was gonna start in Savannah and I have a house hypocrite when ya see one? You’re looking right at him. Ah yeah, I’m in the in right outside of Savannah on an island, so it gave me an opportunity to wind all the time because ya have to be in the wind all the time. If you’re stay there and work a couple days, and then we went to Memphis. Then we steadfast on your commitments … I have a new song. It’s called, “Save Some tried to go to Texas to the building where Johnson also recorded, but it was Time to Dream,” and I address that and it says, “Always keep your mind open condemned and they wouldn’t let us in. So we ended up having to go to San and always question your faith.” You can’t just say that this is my position and Antonio, which was kind of out of the way, but we were only there two days. this is my position for life because, ya know, you discover new information, KL: We absolutely love “Right Behind Me” – the sound, the feel. From the very you see, you grow up. You see things through different eyes. So, you know, I start with Miriam Sterm’s attacking strings. suppose that in the world’s eyes, I’m a hypocrite because I’ll say one thing JM: It’s that corner, that’s the same corner that Robert Johnson recorded and do another, but I said one thing 25 years ago and being judged for an “Hell Hound’s on My Trail” in San Antonio, Texas, Gunter Hotel. And like action that I did today. So, ya know, things change, man. T-Bone (Burnett) said, that’s the best-sounding corner I ever heard. KL: How so? I hear more respect for you and your work in fighting authority KL: Right, that is such a great song. And the hook, the hook is incredible – and I see you winning over time in the things you’re taking on. Is that an you know, “You know the devil, he thinks he got me, he ain’t got me.” illusion? Last question, I can tell you that from when I was unhoused and living in JM: I guess that’s an illusion, ’cause I don’t feel that way. my car, you nailed the feeling of hopelessness in “Graceful Fall.” KL: How do you feel? Since 2007, foreclosures and job losses increased the number of families in JM: I feel like you’re damned if ya do and damned if you don’t – so to hell shelters nearly 30%. Each night there are 640,000 unhoused Americans who with it. That’s what I feel about it. have lost domestic autonomy and are living on the streets and in shelters; 15 KL: Just go with your spirit then. percent are veterans. Some of those will be selling the very street papers which JM: Yeah. are carrying your words right now. As you did from the stage in Toledo, what KL: In the past few years there have been people talking about drafting you are your words of hope to all of our brothers and sisters who are living on the to become an authority, to get you involved with politics. I see you as too honest streets of our country? for that. JM: Wow, that’s a big question, that’s an awfully big question. I wish I had JM: Oh, I couldn’t do that at all. My “cocksuckers” and “motherfuckers” something that I could say that seemed to address that question, but I’m not would probably not fly very well in conversation in the Congress, ya know. sure I really do at this point in our country. So, I don’t know, you know. KL: I could see you on the floor: “Your honorable son of a bitch …” KL: You’ve always been a fighter, you’ve always had hope. JM: “Ya’ lying ccksucker.” Yeah, I don’t think it would go very good. JM: Well, I’ve always, ah, I’ve always had a bunch of dumb cliché things KL: Which is a real good that my family taught me segue to… that I always passed on to JM: Besides, why was my kids. My grandfather that job open? Cause passed them on to me and the guy that was doing it they’ve always provided couldn’t stand it anymore. some sort of hope in my He wanted to quit because life. the hypocrisy was too great They’re not very for him, so he said, “I can’t eloquent, but the greatest do this anymore.” Not me. advice I ever got in my life KL: You’ve always fought and, it’s not very eloquent, convention in your work, but “If you’re gonna hit your life and your music. a cocksucker, kill him.” And No Better Than This And what my grandfather is the perfect example meant when he said that of busting convention was, if you’re actually to shreds. It’s so not the going to do something, McMusic they play on the don’t talk about it, don’t McRadio today. This is a brag about it, just go do it tasty CD. What was your and do it to the best that inspiration for the whole you can possibly do. And premise? that’s what he was saying, JM: Well, I knew I was don’t be threatening, gonna go on tour. Bob don’t be talking, don’t be (Dylan) and I did a tour bragging. I think that, as un-eloquently as it was last summer, and I knew said, it was probably one of I was gonna come close the most important things to all these places. It was said to me in my life. kind of a leisurely tour, so KL: Which is a perfect I thought, well hell, at the thing to say to the people time, let’s make the most on the streets, because if out of this – we’re gonna be Mellencamp's music has long featured political themes. Toledo Streets. you’re gonna get off the in these places, and that streets, you can. was just how it started. JM: You can, you need to! See, the problem is most people give up too early And then I wrote the songs and I wrote all those songs in about in about 10-15 and I’m not talking about just the people on the street, I’m just talking about days, I don’t’ know. It was just I’d get up every morning and I’d write. I’d write two or three songs in a day and I let the songs write themselves, as opposed to people in general. They give up on relationships too early, they give up on themselves too early, they give up on life too early. I mean I’ve been writing sometimes when you write songs you try to steer them a way that you would that since I was a kid. In the song called, “Jack and Diane,” you know they like them to go. But these songs, I just, they kind of wrote themselves really, I were only 16 and already giving up. People just give up too early, they just just let them go wherever they wanted to go and that’s how they ended up. quit, you know: “This is too hard” or “I don’t wanna do this anymore.” KL: What about the idea of the recording process, recorded in mono? I think that’s a problem, and I think that’s a problem our country has. JM: Well, of course, it was a rebellious act of, ya know. There is a song on Over the decades it was allowed to happen by the work ethic and through the record called, “The West End,” and it says “It’s worse now, look what capitalism. A lot of things that affect this country that allow people to think progress did.” So I decided that, you know, to go just as far away from the that way, that the world owes them a living. And as soon as you start thinking popular culture of music as I possibly could and just go back to where it that somebody owes you something, forget it, man; you’re done. And as soon began. The whole record was recorded on one channel and, ya know, one as you start thinking you’re right and everybody else is wrong … It’s like the tape machine (a 1955 Ampex), and the whole band played it once and there guy who was married six or seven times, hell, I think it might be me – I think was one microphone. this could be me, I’m starting to think this is my problem. KL: It is such a pure sound. Ken Leslie has been throwing starfish back in the ocean since 1990 and can JM: There are no over-dubs, no echo, there’s no anything. It’s just what the be contacted at 1Matters.org. room sounded like and it was fun because it was musicians actually playing Continued from page 7 Want more Streetvibes? Check out the Streetvibes blog http://streetvibes.wordpress.com �STREETVIBES August 15 - 31, 2010 Vendor Voice 11 Four Subjects: A Scenario Things aren’t always as they seem L ife on the street can take many turns or, if you will, present many different scenarios. A day can have circumstances and situations that can be baffling, unwarranted or dangerous. In all conclusion, it’s just another day in the life – that familiar way of doing things, if you haven't heard, then sit a spell and hear the way it goes. Street life, disaster and triumph all rolled into one, each episode an integral part of the life – or, if you will, perhaps we'll call it “the game.” Changes and adjustments all included, we begin the games that constitute the life. Applying my minor skills with the language, we'll use four different subjects. “Be not naive, get it straight.” Every player actual exists. Let us start with the Profound Dude. True to the game, he lives his name. Profound! This dude comes up with everything he needs. A professional finder. A place to sleep, something to eat, a dollar or two for his pocket. A way to get to his next stop, these are his objectives in life. A life where sadness and joy are equal. Never to be one without, he has questions for all the answers; seek, and you will find. Always endured with an air of contentment, prowling the neighborhood for his next find, he lives life without concern. Never seeking change, his pleasure in life is to find that one big score, that find that will allow him to retire his cart. Meanwhile he will keep searching for his next find. Profound! Next on our list of characters is the Con Man. He is an investor. Oh, does he have something for you! A line that can't be true, full of promises that you’re sure to believe. A small investment will get you nothing, perhaps an attitude because he has hoodwinked you for a dollar or two. Down the block he strolls looking for his next mark. A seller of dreams and hopes that, for the sake of your common sense, you want to believe. Yet that is his game! Hey, want to buy a bridge (Brooklyn’s)? Or perhaps a wall (China’s)? Ah! The Trickster. Now this is a dude that you have to watch, because he is out for what he can get at your expense. His game is based on pure lies. Though you think you might have heard this before (the con man), there is a difference. Unlike his closest of kin, the Trickster is asking for small change – that is, until you go into your pocket to spare him the change so that he can get something to eat. The moment he sees your wad, he remembers he has to ride the Metro, so now it’s, “Can you spare more?” The dissimilarities don’t end there. The Trickster can be an illusionist. He might have a month-old hospital band on his arm to convince you that he just left the hospital for some terminal injury. So do you have a little more for a prescription he can’t afford? Listen to his spiel and you’re sure to be tricked. Now we come to the last but not the least of the players. Mr. Pitiful. Think you’ve heard every story that’s ever been told? Well, he has a new one for you. The day his wife left and his children ran away from home, and his poor dog died from starvation. Then there’s the one about how he’s new to the area, just got off the Greyhound. Can you direct him to the nearest shelter or perhaps tell him where to get a meal? Better yet, “I’m starved. Can you spare $5? Please, please, I need pity on me. Can’t you see that I can’t do anything on my own?” Of course, not all street players have some deception in mind when you encounter them. However, the reality is that those who are out to deceive you are on the prowl. It is my belief that, if you have at least some indication of who you encounter, then you will have a better judgment of the people who have that life of the street, thus allowing you to better judge the needs you perceive. Ah, such a familiar term: “Perception.” The golden rule: Things are not always what they seem. Nor can we react in that pre-determined way of our beliefs or ideas. We all tend to do what we know and know what we do. Suzy Cincinnatian Finds Her Voice How to advocate for affordable housing By Michelle Dillingham Contributing Writer H er name is Suzy Cincinnatian. She believes everyone should have the opportunity to live in housing whose appliances work, free of roaches, free of chipping leadpoisoned paint; that families should not have to decide between paying the rent, and paying for medications or food. Sometimes Suzy Cincinnatian hears about a developer getting a tax break from the city for a redevelopment project yet there is no plan to include affordable units, and the developer plans to move out the people of lower incomes who live there now. Sometimes she hears that some city politicians are delaying a much-needed transitional-living apartment project, or they want to displace a homeless shelter. She is angered: This isn’t right and wishes there was a way she could share her opinion. She wonders, “Isn’t anyone going to do anything about this?” The first thing Suzy needs to know is that much of what happens that impacts affordable housing, such as subsidies and projects, is centered in the legislative process at City Hall and the Hamilton County Board of Commissioners. This is why Affordable Housing Advocates AHA, as an advocacy organization, encourages monitoring and weighing in on decisions made by officials elected to those bodies. An effective way to engage with Cincinnati city leadership is to review council’s calendar and write an e-mail or call to let them know your opinion. Anyone can review the city’s committee agenda to see what is on deck for discussion and action. Sometimes the agenda does not come out on the city’s Web site until right before the deadline, which is 24 hours before the meeting. Something Suzy Cincinnatian might not know is that anyone can call the council member who is chair of the committee and simply ask her staff what, if anything, is on the calendar related to housing. They will refer to something on the agenda as an “item,” which can be in the form of a motion, an ordinance, a resolution or communication: Motion: A motion is a formal proposal by a member of council, in a meeting, that the council take certain action. Ordinance: An ordinance has the effect of local law in the City of Cincinnati. Ordinances are codified in the Municipal Code of the City of Cincinnati. Resolution: A resolution is an action by the Council that generally does not have the effect of law. A resolution generally expresses council's will, intent or policy on a particular matter. Also, the council generally appoints individuals to serve on authorities, boards and commissions by the adoption of a resolution. Communication: A communication can be a letter, an e-mail, or any written form of communication from anyone that a council member can add to the agenda so it can be a permanent part of the city’s record. An Internet search strategy to monitor housing issues in Cincinnati is to check “Council On-Line” linked to the city’s Web site. Here you can put in the word “housing” for a search and it will provide you with any and all items that have come through City Hall related to housing. Having a vocal, visible presence from those who advocate for affordable housing is important to help set a pattern of response and awareness of the affordable housing agenda by council and commissioners. Opponents to affordable housing testify, write and meet with city and county administration, employees and elected officials to dissuade them from supporting affordable housing. We must do the same to provide a balance as they contemplate decisions that have a great impact on all of us. There are a great number of issues that Suzy Cincinnatian can get involved in: the development of Over-the-Rhine, which includes significant changes to Washington Park and its surrounding housing stock; participating in “PLAN Cincinnati,” our city’s planning document for the future; and a plethora of state and federal legislation that affects affordable housing locally, to name a few. Of course, another way to get involved is to come to AHA’s monthly member meeting and get informed on all the most upto-date events and happenings related to affordable housing in Cincinnati. AHA members are effective advocates collectively and we can always use more voices: We attend meetings of the board of the Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority Board and city council and in the near future will be meeting with political candidates to educate them on the affordable housing community’s concerns. If you are like Suzy Cincinnatian, she now knows that AHA is here to help find her voice for affordable-housing advocacy. For more information on how to get involved with AHA, call Michelle Dillingham, AHA project coordinator, at 513-602-4260. �12 Guest Column STREETVIBES August 15 - 31, 2010 ‘Streetvibes’: An Appreciation And a hope for things to come By Martha Stephens Contributing Writer I ’m retired, and I spend the winters with my daughter in a progressive town in New Mexico. The first thing I look for at home are my back issues of Streetvibes – I want to see what’s really happening. Coming back this spring, I saw that Cincinnati life seemed to be going from bad to worse, that progressive people are not organized, that big money is in the saddle sitting taller than ever, moving to take over every foot of downtown space, for instance, for its own profiteering, buying its own Republican City Council, hoping to ride the rest of us into the abyss. We are to have the city they want us to have, like it or not. To me it feels like an occupied country here. Street papers are wonderful, though. I love them, and I was happy to read about street papers around the world in the June reports by Greg Flannery (see “Do You Want to Hold Me?,” issue of June 1-14). It’s wonderful that Greg was able to go to Australia and compare notes with other editors and tell us how they do things and how we compare in Cincinnati. And we do well! We have a heckuva good paper here and good numbers, selling 8,000 papers a month through the work of no less than 50 vendors and a great many talented writers, individuals willing to work hard just for conscience and no pay. Street papers, Greg tells us, all provide income for vendors; but for me, at least, their value goes way beyond that, for the best of these papers tell us not just about poverty and homelessness but the root causes of poverty and homelessness and help us map out the struggles we have to wage to provide every citizen a place to live and a job and health care and all the rest – in short, to change our whole rapacious economic system. ‘We need to know’ Business values are not human values, and money machines are quite ready to throw people out of their spaces if they can’t make money off them. Tom Dutton knows this better than anyone, I’m sure, and I was glad to see his comprehensive piece called “Over-the-Rhine: A context for the city’s attack on the Drop Inn Center” (See “District 9: Over-the-Rhine,” issue of June 1530). The brutal displacement of people who get in the way of commerce is an old story in Cincinnati, and I appreciated Dutton’s careful outline of the displacements of recent years – from the Milner to the Metropole; from the ordinance in 2001 to control low-income housing in “impacted” areas, to the attempt to zone out service agencies from Over-the-Rhine. What was in it for the refugees? Nothing but promises – never kept. For the hundred units lost at the Milner Hotel in 1994, where low-income individuals had found a home for many years, not one exists today, Dutton writes. I had wondered about that. If people don’t want homeless faces staring at them from the streets and doorways of downtown, gazing at the responsible citizens strolling down the sidewalks to Music Hall, shouldn’t we provide, as Dutton says, more decent-paying, lower-skilled jobs? Some affordable housing, some treatment for addiction, some health care, some child care, some education? Aren’t those the ways to reduce homelessness? Seems all too obvious, yet apparently it can’t be done. “The crisis of affordable housing” is the subject of Michele Dillingham’s report in the same June issue, and the data on Section 8 availability seems truly amazing – 24,000 subsidized units for the 121,000 families who need them. Dutton’s piece, and Dillingham’s, moved me to go back to a certain book I possess on the blood-smeared history of the West End, a book called Contested Ground by John Emmeus Davis (Cornell University Press, 1991). It tells quite a story. Over 50,000 residents, mostly black and some of them householders, became refugees from the West End during the so-called urban renewal cataclysms of the 1940s, ’50s an ’60s – throwing out citizens from their homes for the sake of industrial takeovers, for “improved” housing and for the clear cutting of hundreds of acres to build Interstate 75. In those years a whole vibrant way of life was lost. The black churches were lost, the black settlement houses, the black schools and libraries, the nightclubs, the rich musical New York-style entertainments. Author Davis came down from the east during the ’80s to research and write this story. He studied a lot of documents and interviewed a lot of citizens, some of whom still remembered all that had taken place. He interviewed Maurice McCracken. Beginning in the 1960s, West Enders had gotten organized and fought back. They won back some of their rights, and Davis was particularly interested in this fightback in Cincinnati against the power elite of the city/business coalition of the time, the same one we struggle against today. In Greg Flannery’s report, “Beggars Must Now Be Choosers,” we learn that this alliance is now trying to take away the long-standing right of the Coalition for the Homeless to set minimum standards for its members, which have allowed for the sheltering of people who also panhandle (see issue of July 1-14). One must watch to see what happens to the coalition’s lawsuit to block the city’s new panhandling rule. It is a suit that also tries to restore the coalition’s prerogatives, and the loss of the role traditionally played by the coalition seems like a very serious matter. We should all be contacting the city, perhaps, about this ugly denial of free speech for the poor and about the attack on the coalition. “Brother, can you spare a dime” is a plea not to be spoken in Cincinnati? The physical violence against the homeless around the country is well documented in the July report by Margo Pierce (see “Hate Wave,” issue of July 1-14). It makes painful reading. Anger against people who are in need or simply different is rising in these hard times, and we read in “Sheriff Wants to Follow Arizona” about a local sheriff who flies off to Arizona to study the anti-emigrant law he hopes to emulate in Butler County (see issue of June 1-14). What next for poor old Cincinnati? Haven’t we seen it all? On emigrants, I was glad to read Jeremy Flannery’s report on the International Socialist Organization’s (ISO) forum at the University of Cincinnati. I’d have looked in on this meeting, had I known about it. An ISO activist from Chicago came down to participate, and another speaker was Dan La Botz, who’s running for the U. S. Senate and knows a great deal about the lives of Latinos. He is the author of the book, Democracy in Mexico: Peasant Rebellion and Political Reform. We need to know the bad and the ugly in his town and all that the power elite is up to – but also that people of conscience are still among us. I liked hearing about the doctors and other workers at the McMicken Dental Clinic, about the defeat of a strange new sex-offender law, about the Avondale Youth Council, about the “New Marijuana Majority” (see issue of July 15-31). I enjoyed the reports by Saad Ghosn on engaged artists and Bonnie Neumeier’s poem “If Only” about her dreams for Overthe-Rhine. ‘We must organize’ It was good to read about the presence in Northside of four individuals speaking out around the country for nuclear abolition, in the report “Sad Anniversary for the A-Bomb” (see issue of June 15-30). I wondered if this group knew about Carol Rainey’s book, A Hundred Miles from Home, on the long-hidden nuclear waste in our own area. Their work report made me think about a favorite little verse of mine by John Hall Wheelock, called “Earth”: “A planet doesn’t explode of itself,” said drily The Martian astronomer, gazing off into the air -“That they were able to do it is proof that highly Intelligent brings must have been living there.” I appreciated the column by Michael Henson, “A Message to Social Workers” (see issue of July 1-14). Helping is wonderful, he writes, and many of our social workers are very good at it, but workers can help only “too late and too small,” and so should also work to change the system that is creating such massive need. “We are bound,” he writes, “to operate on good, evidence-based practices. But it is not enough. We have to be political.” I was glad to see this view expressed. During my long years at U.C, I ran into officials and faculty who felt that teachers should not express their own views about society in the classroom. I felt we had a perfect right to do just that, whenever it was relevant to what we were teaching, and as long as we gave students a chance to speak up, too. I tried to design courses that would lead to vivid exchanges and change students’ minds about society, and I hope we did change some minds. Also in July was the splendid frontpage picture of solidarity people marching through the Arizona desert to simulate the desperate journey of the migrants, whose bones are so often found in that scorched Sonoran earth (see “Trail of Tears, Trail of Death,” issue of July 15-31). Churches are in the forefront of struggle these days, and it was good to read about the work for jobs of the Amos Project, their support for Senator Brown’s Local Jobs for America Act and their delivery of 1,000 job applications to the offices of U.S. Rep. Steve Driehaus (D-Cincinnati) and U.S. Sen. George Voinovich (R-Ohio). Certainly workers are in a cruel position these days. Paul Kopp makes this clear in his July report, “Championing the Workers’ Rights” about the attack on union supporters at Champion Windows and Doors (see issue of July 15). Most people can hardly find out about struggles like this any more – they aren’t considered news by our morning newspaper or on TV, but maybe it’s just as well. I recall that, in the first issue of a magazine I once edited, The Cincinnati Review, a piece was sent us by a young journalist who was being placed on probation for union-organizing at Cincinnati Suburban Press (CSP). His name was Greg Flannery, and after wild and almost comical performances by CSP officials at a National Labor Relations Board hearing, he wrote up that story, too: “On the Union Battlements: More Dirty Tricks.” Here was the Streetvibes mode before there was a Streetvibes. I think street papers are the souls of cities. I wish we could print 10 times, 20 times, more papers than we do. All of us readers should perhaps get up from our desks and computers and figure out how to help circulate our street paper, help it reach out to all the citizens who could engage with it and who might become as disturbed as we are by the crimes against humanity we see around us every day. We must organize –somehow – against the ruination of life on our small, inconspicuous planet. Should we all go out and stand in the street and say, “We won’t move until …?” I don’t know, but we must do something – together. We like to remember that there’s more of Us and than there is of Them. If there’s power in numbers, we have the numbers. Why then are we so abjectly shy and silent so much of the time? ß Does anyone have the answer? Martha Stephens is the author of The Treatment: The Story of Those Who Died in the Cincinnati Radiation Tests. �STREETVIBES August 15 - 31, 2010 13 Book Review From the Streets to the Sanctuary I met God while I was homeless better life and a more normal American life. The American dream was all I wanted but I was in jail because nobody seemed to believe that I needed By Andrew Martin a good night’s sleep. The judge understood me and freed me without any Contributing Writer criminal record, and he even flew me back to Cincinnati. I missed most of all just having a bed to sleep in at night, a nice shower and a place to eat three ll the first 21 years of my life I traveled and lived with the homeless, meals a day. This judge was the first of many times that God began to help me whether it was in my father’s house or on a beach in Tampa, Fla. and show me that He cared for my life. When I was 5 years old, my mother left my father with seven In 1984, God answered my prayer by sending a youth pastor of an children. Life became difficult with her departure, and I learned to live international student ministry to call me. With this youth pastor, I began to without many of the bare essentials of life. My Dad housed many homeless seek God for his answers through the study of the book of Genesis. I came to people in our house as we were growing up, and I got to hear their stories realize that God created us all and he had a wonderful purpose for our lives. and understand the amazing Though I was now 21 years of age, never finished high school, was variety of lives that they lived a sorrowful single father and never held down a real job, I decided to until they fell on hard times. As the years went by, I saw my own life trust God to make a new start and go to college. It was his love that I grew up in Mount Auburn fall apart from the poor decisions I made. motivated me and gave me courage to face the “Red Sea” that was in with my Dad and my six other front of me. It was His love that changed this shy boy into a man with I was taken from my family and put into siblings. Since we were very great confidence and hope for a bright future. In the past, all I knew an orphanage. Later I became a teenaged poor, most of my friends were was hardship and failure. God’s love motivated me to reach out to single father and a high-school dropout. those whom my Dad invited to my brothers and sisters who lived on the streets and were homeless. I began to lose all hope in life, and began stay in our house. Amazingly, it I used to spend every day witnessing on the streets God’s love to to turn to alcohol and drugs. Many nights was these street people, many those who walked by. I discovered that God has a great purpose for I found myself sleeping on the streets homeless, who watched us as everyone and that even failures or being homeless does not mean when I was just in my late teens. Deep children while my Dad was at defeat or hopelessness. In fact, in God, they are places or stations in despair crept into my soul, and I really work and we got to know them your life where you can grow in faith and love. felt that there was no way out. like family. I began to write and speak out every chance I could get – even My father was a roofer and writing a few articles in the past in Streetvibes and other newspapers. painter who worked in Cincinnati. I learned early in life that every person After graduating from five colleges and becoming a registered nurse, in 2005, has a story. I learned that many homeless people were once very successful I wrote my first book, Crossing the Red Sea, named “inspirational book of the in the world's eyes. Due to poor choices, addictions or tragedies, they lost year” by Christianstoryteller.com. God helped me to write this book because everything. One homeless man I knew was once a millionaire who built I wanted to share my story with others, including those who lived on the customized homes but fell in the trap of alcoholism and lost everything. streets and the homeless. In many ways, living on the streets or becoming homeless can happen to I had an interview with Barbara Cain on 93.3 FM radio station, and stories any one of us. Yes, there are some who could get a job and better their lives have been written about the work of God in my life in some of the local but others are just victims of life’s challenges or choices that went bad. In newspapers. Those who live on the streets or who are homeless represent all my teen years I became homeless for a while and understand the everyday of us. They all have stories and it is great to have a newspaper like Streetvibes hardships just to find a shower or to get a meal without being looked down on that enables the homeless to have a voice so that they can be heard. by the rest of society. Homeless people are not looking so much for handouts Last year I wrote a second book, His Vision, His Beauty, and His Glory: Our but for support and help so that they can get back on their feet and work out life and purpose on planet earth. I recently finished my third book, To Be things that went bad in their lives. There are always going to be people who With God. My books are read all over the world, but at one time I lived on the are unemployed in our society. streets. A few years ago my supervisor at work went to Rome and gave Pope As the years went by, I saw my own life fall apart from the poor decisions I Benedict XVI a signed copy of Crossing the Red Sea. made. I was taken from my family and put into an orphanage. Later I became I find much of what I learned on the streets and from the homeless people a teenaged single father and a high-school dropout. I began to lose all hope who lived with us over the years is the wisdom of God. God’s truth is seen in life, and began to turn to alcohol and drugs. Many nights I found myself so clearly through their struggles of life. Jesus teaches us in the gospel to sleeping on the streets when I was just in my late teens. Deep despair crept embrace all people and that the good news must be preached to the poor into my soul, and I really felt that there was no way out. (Matthew 11:5). Everyone deserves the right to be heard and the dignity of life At the age of 16, I left home and found myself wandering on the streets in which has been given to all of us by our creator. We must lift up the fallen with Tampa. I was eventually arrested and put in jail. The day that I was arrested prayer and let them know that there is always hope in God. There is no shame I was sleeping in an abandoned truck in a gas station in Tampa. Though the in living on the streets or being homeless; even Jesus was homeless. Instead, truck had no tires, I was falsely accused of trying to steal the truck, but only may God’s good purpose be carried out in all of our brothers and sisters, no slept in the truck to get a good night’s sleep. In jail, I thought long and hard matter where you are in life. You are not alone; God is with you. about the meaninglessness of my life and I got on my knees and prayed Andrew Martin is pastor of University Bible Fellowship Church in Highland sincerely to God for the first time, “Dear Lord, Help me. Amen.” Heights, Ky. Like many who live on the streets or who are homeless, I just wanted a A There’s A Gleam in the Bengals And no holdouts as the season begins By B. Clifton Burke Contributing Writer I t was January 11, 1986, at Cleveland's old Municipal Stadium where Marty Schottenheimer gathered his troops on the sideline and told them that there existed a part of football beyond that of our physical senses. He called it “the gleam.” He didn't go into detail; he simply told them it existed and to go get it. I used to think he was the only one who ever knew anything about the gleam and that perhaps he was a mystic, but reading about the Bengals lately, I think I can sense the gleam, too. I'm an emotionally cautious person these days when it comes to the Bengals. I used to get all fired up when training camp would roll around and pronounce them serious contenders … every year. Then the 2008 season came along and crushed my spirit. Obviously, last year soothed some of that trauma, yet nonetheless, I've tried to remain guarded about my favorite team – it just isn't working. They have a gleam to them. Even when I try to think analytically about the whole thing, it still equates to the Bengals having a great season. I don't detect a clear weakness in this team, and they were damn good last year with what seems like half of this year's roster. They're deep at nearly every position, they have a platoon of healthy players returning and now they have real star power. The coaches can feel it, the players can feel and I can, too. Something is certainly shining in Georgetown, Ky. right now. I know what you're thinking: It's TO that's getting me so excited. Well, you're mostly right. What I am dying to find out is how the Bengals will attack the New England Patriots in Week 1. Even if Antonio Bryant still isn't healthy, suddenly Cincinnati has one of the deepest receiving corps in the league and can throw to a plethora of targets. Jason LaCanfora of the NFL Network said that what he hears from scouts is that Owens is best when teams put him in motion and move him around to seek out match-ups that favor the offense. Buffalo wasn't able to use TO like that last year, but our offense can put him all over the field and still not draw double teams. With Chad Ochocinco and Jermaine Gresham on the field, too, defenses will have to pick their poison against these guys. That's even if we pass all that much. Bob Bratkowski has been steady with his remarks that this remains a power-run team, and that, he says, won't change. Who can blame him? Now that Cedric Benson is officially off the hook with the commissioner's office, might as well use him up – considering he becomes a free agent after this season. The line is built for the run, especially if that fat ass Andre Smith can get it going, and the stable of running backs complements one another nicely. I don't think anyone has a problem with the Bengals racking up the rushing yards, but it's when they need to pass that needs improved, and after a vigorous campaign to improve just that, I think they will be. Not one player held out because they didn't like their current contract, despite the upcoming labor skirmish swirling around the new collective bargaining agreement and despite its being the cool thing to do. No one (of importance) hurt himself in the off-season. No one got suspended. Fans are flocking to Georgetown in record numbers to scream support to their team. National pundits now like the Bengals. Mike Brown just pulled off one of the most successful off-seasons in recent memory. Crazy things are happening. It's the gleam! Mojokong—bubbling over. �14 STREETVIBES August 15 - 31, 2010 Guest Column Likes and Dislikes in My Life Why is one so often connected with the other? By Larry Gross Contributing Writer Feel free to let me know if I’m full of it, but it seems in everyday life – at least in mine – there are things I like that are so often connected with things I don’t like, or vice versa. Sometimes you have to put up with some of life’s discomforts and nuisances to get to the pleasures. Sometimes it’s the other way around. I’ll give you some personal examples of what I’m getting at. I dislike the whole process of showering in the morning, getting the hot water right, using the soap and washing my hair while getting shampoo in my eyes; but afterward, I like the idea that I’m clean. Shaving is something I never look forward to, but I like applying after-shave to my face when the task is done. I’ve been using this Arctic Blue stuff for years and like the way it stings when it touches my shaved face. I’m sad and don’t like it when family and friends pass away, but cheer up when I remember how lucky I was to have had the chance to know them. I like talking to strangers while riding on the bus but I don’t like it when I start to suspect that the person I’m talking to is crazy. I hate having to record all those ATM receipts I have stuffed in my wallet but I love the fact I always know exactly how much money I have in my checking account. Having President Obama in office is something I like, but I dislike the fact that he’s turned out to be a conservative. Even an old fart of my age still enjoys having sex, but even old farts like me don’t necessarily enjoy a lot of small talk after the sex is over. We can talk later. Not that I sleep around that much, but when I do get a “date,” I like touching real breasts on feel when I’ve had too much of it. women. Those breasts can be of any size or color; I I believe in and like taking public transportation don’t care. What I hate discovering are fake breasts but dislike it when that public transportation of any size or color. I know doesn’t show up on time. immediately if they’re not I enjoy lending books to When I go grocery shopping at real. It’s a turnoff. friends that I think they might I dislike having arguments like but I become annoyed Kroger, I really dislike it when or disagreements with and dislike it when months I hold up the line and have friends, but like the fact that or even years go by and they to tell the cashier that I need I know them well enough to don’t bother to return the cigarettes and she or he has simply say what I think. book. to go to the service desk to When I go grocery Getting back to the old fart get the key to go and unlock shopping at Kroger, I really business, I like the fact that the cigarette case to get the dislike it when I hold up I still look at pretty young cigarettes; and I especially the line and have to tell the girls but dislike the fact that dislike it when he or she gets cashier that I need cigarettes sometimes I feel like a dirty the wrong brand and has to and she or he has to go to old man. repeat the whole process, but the service desk to get the I like listening and I like it when the ordeal is over key to go and unlock the watching thunderstorms for both of us. cigarette case to get the or heavy rain but dislike it cigarettes; and I especially when I’m caught out in those dislike it when he or she gets the wrong brand and thunderstorms or heavy rain. has to repeat the whole process, but I like it when I like snow but don’t like it when it starts to melt. the ordeal is over for both of us. While I don’t like the fact that I’m getting older – While on the subject of cigarettes, there’s I wish time would slow down – but it’s better than nothing I like better in the morning than a the alternative, which is being dead. I like the fact cigarette with a cup of coffee, but I dislike the fact that I’m smarter than I was 20 years ago. I wish I that probably both coffee and cigarettes are killing knew then what I know now. me. All right, I’m done. Those are my examples I like the alternative press like Streetvibes of likes associated with dislikes or vice versa. but dislike the fact that so many newspapers, Actually, writing this has given me a bit of a including those I don’t like, are struggling. headache. While I dislike taking aspirins to get rid Cooking fancy meals for guests or even for of headaches, I like the fact that the aspirins get rid myself is something I enjoy, but I dislike having to of the headache and in this case have enabled me do the dishes afterwards. to finish this column on a somewhat intelligent I like looking at Jessica Simpson but can’t stand note. to hear her sing. The same goes for Faith Hill. Or maybe not. Vodka is my drink of choice and I like it very much, but dislike how I Affordable Rates etvibes? tre nS rested in Advert Inte isin gi Many sizes (full page, 1/2 page, 1/4 page, 1/8 page) Black & White and Color available Discounts for Nonprofits Become a Fan of Streetvibes on Facebook Contact Lynne at 513-421-7803 ext. 11 http://www.facebook.com/streetvibescincinnati or lynneausman@cincihomeless.org for more information. Streetvibes vendors keep 75% of sales. Consider helping Streetvibes with our publication costs by making a tax-deductible donation or by purchasing a subscription. Streetvibes is the activist newspaper, advocating justice, building community. Your gift is tax-deductible and will go to producing the paper every two weeks. Started in 1997, Streetvibes is distributed by homeless and formerly homeless vendors who purchase the paper for 25 cents and sell it for $1, keeping the 75 cent profit. Make checks payable to “Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless” I want to support Streetvibes and the vendors. $25 Please return your contribution to: GCCH 117 E. 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 Name: Address: E-mail: $50 $100 $150 Other $ _______ �15 Resources STREETVIBES August 15 - 31, 2010 Need Help or Want to Help? Shelter: Women and Children Central Access Point Cincinnati Union Bethel St. Francis Soup Kitchen Churches Active in Northside 381-SAFE 768-6907 FreeStore/FoodBank 557-2873 Madisonville Ed & Assistance Center 271-5501 300 Lytle Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Bethany House 4230 Hamilton Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45223 241-1064 112 E. Liberty Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 1841 Fairmount Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45214 Grace Place Catholic Worker House 681-2365 4600 Erie Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45227 Serves area codes: 45226, 45227, 45208, 45209 St. Vincent de Paul 6037 Cary Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45224 Salvation Army 535-2719 591-2246 762-5660 562-8841 872-9259 381-2247 5 E. Liberty St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 Health Resource Center Homeless Mobile Health Van McMicken Dental Clinic 357-4602 352-2902 352-6363 40 E. McMicken Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mental Health Access Point Mercy Franciscan at St. John 558-8888 981-5800 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 NAMI of Hamilton County PATH Outreach 1125 Bank Street, Cinti, Ohio 45214 131 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter Crossroad Health Center 458-6670 977-4489 Treatment: Men Other Resources Shelter: Men Charlie’s 3/4 House 784-1853 921-1613 Center Independent Living Options Emmanuel Community Center 961-2256 Peaslee Neighborhood Center 2121 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 City Gospel Mission 241-5525 Prospect House Justice Watch 241-0490 St. Fran/St. Joe Catholic Work. House 381-4941 Starting Over 1419 Elm Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 682 Hawthorne Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45205 Franciscan Haircuts from the Heart 961-4663 2203 Fulton, Cinti, Ohio 45206 Treatment: Both 761-1480 1821 Summit Road, Cinti, Ohio 45237 Drop Inn Center 721-0643 471-1100 221-3350 3330 Jefferson, Cinti, Ohio 45220 Housing: CMHA Excel Development OTR Community Housing 721-4580 632-7149 381-1171 114 W. 14th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tender Mercies 721-8666 27 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tom Geiger House Dana Transitional Bridge Services Volunteers of America Anna Louise Inn 961-4555 751-0643 381-1954 421-5211 621-5300 961-1983 OTR: 1620 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Walnut Hills: 2631 Gilbert, Cinti, Ohio 45206 Our Daily Bread 1730 Race Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 621-6364 771-4800 751-0600 721-4811 241-2965 People Working Cooperatively The Caring Place United Way Women Helping Women Off The Streets 351-7921 631-1114 211 977-5541 421-5211 1522 Republic Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Hamilton County ADAS Board Recovery Health Access Center Sober Living Talbert House 946-4888 281-7422 681-0324 641-4300 Hamilton/Middletown 421-3131 569-1840 381-4242 Northern Kentucky Advocacy Catholic Social Action Community Action Agency Contact Center 1227 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Food/Clothing Lord’s Pantry OTR/Walnut Hills Kitchen & Pantry 351-0422 381-6672 830 Ezzard Charles Dr. Cinti, Ohio 45214 Joseph House (Veterans) 217 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Interfaith Hospitality Network Lighthouse Youth Center (Youth) AA Hotline CCAT Goodwill industries Healing Connections Mary Magdalen House 1223 Main St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 2728 Glendora Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45209 Caracole (HIV/AIDS) 381-0111 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 First Step Home 961-4080 621-5514 214 E. 14th St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 661-4620 Shelter: Both Anthony House (Youth) 1308 Race St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 Treatment: Women 1437 Walnut Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mt. Airy Shelter 241-2600 241-2563 117 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 579-8547 241-9400 421-1108 363-3300 421-2437 Health Center for Respite Care 3550 Washington Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45229 Brighton Center 863-3184 863-1445 422-8555 868-3276 859-491-8303 799 Ann St. Newport, KY Franciscan JPIC 721-4700 Gr. Cinti Coalition for the Homeless 421-7803 Intercommunity Justice & Peace Cr. Legal Aid Society Ohio Justice & Policy Center Faces Without Places Stop AIDS St. Raephaels Salvation Army Serenity House Day Center Open Door Pantry ECHO/Hosea House Fairhaven Resuce Mission Homeward Bound Youth Mathews House Homeless & Housing Coalition Parish Kitchen Pike St. Clinic Transitions, Inc Welcome House of NKY 859-261-5857 859-491-1027 859-581-1111 859-261-8009 859-727-0926 859-581-7745 859-291-9321 859-491-4435 859-431-8717 205 West Pike Street, Covington, KY 41011 621-1868 Women’s Crisis Center VA Domiciliary VA Homeless 859-491-3335 859-559-5011 859-572-6226 �16 Artists as Activists STREETVIBES August 15 - 31, 2010 Found Objects and a Found Voice Thomas Phelps speaks through his art “I am a tinkerer,” Thomas Phelps says. “All my life I have collected stuff – found and discarded objects I have used to make things out of my imagination. I give them a new life and a voice. They end up speaking for me.” Phelps, a mixed media/installation artist, was born in 1939 in Cincinnati, where he currently resides. He is of African-American origin, the son of parents who relocated from the South. Until the age of 21 he grew up in the West End neighborhood of Cincinnati, in the Lincoln Courts housing project for low-income families. In elementary school he was introduced to art, and his creative ability was recognized and encouraged by his art teachers all along. He won several art contests, including a citywide contest in ninth grade, sponsored by Shillito’s; it earned him a one-year scholarship to attend the Art Academy of Cincinnati. Phelps’s social awareness was practically lacking while growing up. The housing project where he lived and spent most of his time was his world; it kept him isolated and protected, disconnected from the rest of society. There and at school he mostly encountered fellow African Americans, with no direct reasons for racial questioning or confrontation. His parents, who had experienced the oppressive South, did not want him to deal with such issues. “My social awakening to racial and ethnic discrimination came only at the age of 17,” Phelps says. “It was, however, in relation to the Native Americans’ plight. I read by chance an article describing the slaughter by thousands of buffalos to starve the Indians who relied on their meat; also how at one point the Indians were given blankets infested with smallpox in order to decimate them. I was appalled and revolted, and these injustices stayed with me.” Phelps’s artwork, until as then with no specific statement, started addressing the American By Saad Ghosn Indian situation. Mr. and Contributing Writer Ms. Red is a painting that depicts an isolated and powerless Native American couple, separated from their community. They Slaughtered Me to Kill Us, a mixed-media piece, superimposed the image of an American Indian and that of a buffalo, a reflection on the history of the U.S. government as it pertains to Native Americans. Who Are the Founding Fathers?, a mixed-media hanging quilt incorporating found objects, shows a picture of four American Indian men positioned in front of the four U.S. presidents on Mount Rushmore. In the center of the piece is a T-shirt depicting American Indians on horseback and in war apparel; it says, “Fighting terrorism since 1492,” ironically questioning who are the terrorists when it comes to Native A rtists ctivists Thomas Phelps in his basement studio. Saad Ghosn. American history. In the 1960s, thanks to the civil rights movement, Phelps became more aware of the issue. His black identity, its culture and its ancestral roots became very important to him. Through the Cincinnati Art Museum and traveling traders, he discovered African art and artifacts; he was taken by the fetishes, their imagery, their meaning. He also came across yard art brought from the South that connected him to the spirit of African ancestors. “Society was trying to de-Africanize and demonize us,” he says. “They associated our culture with voodoos, devils, sorcery. For me, these artifacts spoke loud through their rawness and sense of mystery; they grew on me, impacted me strongly even when not fully understanding them.” Phelps’s work shifted then to mixed-media installations influenced by the African art he was experiencing; they became his identity statement, a cultural connection to his background and origin. “I did not use my art to make statements about the civil rights movement going on at the time,” he says. “I used it instead to assert who I was, to connect to the history of blacks in this country and elsewhere. Once I found the link to my roots, I kept speaking to it, and nobody could take it away from me.” In the 1980s, with Jimi Jones and Ken Leslie, two African-American artists from Cincinnati who felt like him, Phelps co-founded the Neo Ancestral artists’ collective movement. Their goal was to make artistic visual statements related to African-American identity, legacy, community and culture. On his own or as part of the group, Phelps continued creating his statement in mixed-media installations. He would exhibit them in public or private venues, outdoors or indoors, such as at Third World Gallery, which featured African-American art, and at the Arts Consortium, the Contemporary Arts Center, the Weston Art Gallery and the Cincinnati Art Museum. Imprisonment, created for the Weston show, consisted of fences, posts, bars, a hanging body, a target image and weapons. It alluded to institutional prisons, but also to the isolated and confined condition of many minorities, the vulnerability and violent victimization of the poor and weak in our society. Watermelon Mama and the Melon Chilluns Fetish, recently exhibited at the Cincinnati Art Museum, was part of a series of installations Phelps created based on postcards that debased and degraded the black race, associating it with watermelons, cotton and animals. It shows on one side a black baby in a cradle with a watermelon and a cross, the baby in his innocence and nakedness reminiscent of Jesus Christ, also a victim to this world; and the cross symbolizing the hypocrisy of hateful acts in the name of Christianity. The other side displays an African lady, two babies, watermelons, cotton and crosses. “I meant my piece in defense of all human beings, plants, animals, objects and subjects of unjust, vulgarized characterization, by civilized, God-avowed human beings in the USA,” he says. Phelps also used his art to make statements about wars, their casualties and the military-industrial complex. His installation, Weapon of War Fetish, created for an SOS Art show, reflects on how military efforts support and produce aggressive weapons, propaganda and monetary gain. “I will always be a pacific activist,” Phelps says. “My art advocates my ideas, my beliefs, my history. It is my outlet and my voice. It empowers me and possibly others who want to hear; I do not use it, however, to convince or impose my views.” Watermelon Mama and the Melon Chilluns Fetish, front and back, mixed media installation by Thomas Phelps. Thomas Phelps. Artists as Activists is a regular column highlighting Greater Cincinnati artists who use art as a vehicle for change. Saad Ghosn is the founder of SOS Art. Ghosn can be contacted at saad.ghosn@uc.edu. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 2010 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource August 15-30, 2010 Subject The topic of the resource Homelessness Description An account of the resource Pg 1: No Fence Sitting in This Match A Quarter-Century Cause Pg 2: Street Wise Pg 3: No Fence Sitting in This Match Continued Pg 4: No Fence Sitting in This March Continued A Quarter-Century in the Cause Continued Pg 5: Street Papers Revolt at Meeting Differences Build NASNA’s Strength Pg 6: Parsing Poverty and Community Pg 7: When the Walls Come Tumbling Pg 8: “Feed Me, Seymour, Feed Me All Night Long…” Pg 9: Officer Runs Over Woman in Park Pg 10: When the Walls Come Tumbling Continued Pg 11: Four Subjects: A Scenario Suzy Cincinnatian Finds Her Voice Pg 12: ‘Streetvibes’: An Appreciation Pg 13: From the Streets to the Sanctuary Pg 14: Likes and Dislikes in My Life Pg 15: Resources Pg 16: Found Objects and a Found Voice Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Streetvibes Archive Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Streetvibes Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource August 15-30, 2010 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Gregory Flannery Lynne Ausman Jeni Jenkins Michelle Dillingham Samantha Groark Margo Pierce Paul Kopp Jeremy Flannery Michael Henson David Heitfield Corey Gibson Saad Ghosn Lew Moores Larry Gross Eli Braun Jesse Call Michael Fanning Aimie Willhoite Anne Skove Vinit Murthy Jon Hughes Lynn Baker Jeremy Flannery Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Advocates Aimie Willhoite Anne Skove Bengals Cincinnati Corey Gibson David Heitfield Eli Braun Gregory Flannery IJPC Jeni Jenkins Jeremy Flannery Jesse Call John Mellencamp Jon Hughes Larry Gross Layoffs Lew Moores Lynn Baker Lynne Ausman Margo Pierce Michael Fanning Michael Henson Michelle Dillingham Music NASNA Paul Kopp police brutality Saad Ghosn Samantha Groark Thomas Phelps Vinit Murthy https://streetvibesarchive.net/files/original/2ad596bc0bc4c8839b4224a6e4adb28c.pdf 98cab100c716a187357b786daea4d626 PDF Text Text Barbara Gamboa’s Life-Canvas Page 16 CUE Page 6 ADVOCATING JUSTICE • BUILDING COMMUNITY Aug. 1-14, 2010 • Issue 182 • One Dollar A Joyous Hammer Strikes Again Clowns and courage against nukes By Janice Sevre-Duszynska Contributing Writer Oak Ridge, Tenn. – “For those of you on Serious clowning. General Mayhem (right) and a companion clown submit to arrest. Tom Bottolene/CircleVision.org. probation, turn off your ankle bracelets,” said folk singer/songwriter Steve Jacobs, a member of the St. Francis Catholic Worker in Columbia, Mo. About 250 activists began the July 3-5 gathering for Resistance for a Nuclear-Free Future at Maryville College. The purpose of the weekend was to increase awareness about nuclear issues and to promote direct action. Thirty-seven activists were arrested. “The timing – two months after the 2010 NonProliferation Treaty Review Conference and before the mid-term congressional elections – provided an opportunity to focus attention on nuclear disarmament and the need for nuclear-free and carbon-free energy,” the Nuclear Resister reported. Participants celebrated the 30th anniversary of Nukewatch, the Plowshares movement and The Nuclear Resister. The conference received a message from the Rev. Louis Vitale, written from the federal prison in Lompoc, Calif., where he was held until the end of July for trespassing during a protest at Ft. Benning, Ga. Participants also wrote messages of support for other anti-nuclear and anti-war prisoners. ‘Imperial darkness’ Ralph Hutchison, coordinator of the Oak Ridge Environmental Peace Alliance (OREPA), related the history of the protests at the Y-12 nuclearweapons complex in Oak Ridge. “On Aug. 6, 1988, the 43rd anniversary of the bombing of Hiroshima, the blue line at Oak Ridge was crossed, and the first nuclear resistance there began,” he said Ralph Hutchinson. “It has been maintained ever since. In 1998 six actions launched modern-day resistance. After 9/11, the Y-12 Nuclear Weapons Complex was renamed the Y-12 National Security Complex." Y-12 was the code name for the site that enriched the uranium for the atomic bomb that the United States used to destroy Hiroshima, Japan in 1945. The plant produces essential components for all U.S. thermonuclear warheads, according to See CLOWNS P. 4 ‘Streetvibes’ Boycotts Own Award Vendors aren’t allowed to work there Staff Report T he Cincinnati Human Relations Commission announced it would present an award to Streetvibes on July 26 for giving job opportunities to people who have disabilities. But Streetvibes declined to attend the award presentation because it was on Fountain Square, where vendors are prohibited from distributing the newspaper. “If our vendors aren't welcome on Fountain Square, the staff and volunteers don’t want to be there either,” said Gregory Flannery, editor of Streetvibes. The Human Relations Commission held a fourhour celebration July 26 to mark the 20th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The federal law forbids discrimination in hiring practices and requires public facilities to be accessible to people who have disabilities. Speakers included U.S. Rep. Steve Driehaus (D-Cincinnati) and City Manager Milton Dohoney. Streetvibes is an employment system for homeless and other low-income people. Vendors, some with physical or emotional disabilities, purchase copies of the paper for 25 cents each and offer them for a donation of $1. The Cincinnati Center City Development Corp. (3CDC) manages Fountain Square under a contract with the city. A city ordinance and 3CDC rules effectively forbid Streetvibes vendors from distributing the paper on Fountain Square, according to Kelly Leon, spokeswoman for 3CDC. Flannery says he questions the constitutionality of any ban on distributing a newspaper on public property. He also points to a 2002 ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court throwing out an ordinance that banned religious displays on Fountain Square. Justice Paul Stevens cited “the square's historic character as a public forum.” “I doubt that 3CDC’s rules trump a Supreme Court ruling or the First Amendment,” Flannery says. “Fountain Square is a public forum. How can the city of Cincinnati ban a newspaper from a public forum?” Flannery says efforts to get 3CDC and the city to allow Streetvibes vendors to work on the square have so far been fruitless. Leon directed him to call the city solicitor’s office, which didn’t answer phone calls or an e-mail, he said. Last week, on the paper’s behalf, attorney William Gallagher wrote to the city solicitor. "I write this to you hoping you will take steps to remove a practice that strikes me as unfair and many as unconstitutional. … 3CDC permits corporations to make money on the square on a regular basis by selling food, drinks and products,” Gallagher wrote. “It permits CityBeat to distribute daily its newspaper on the square. The Enquirer is immediately accessible to someone on the square. However, members of our community who are struggling to find shelter, food and stability are denied an opportunity to sell a newspaper on public property by a private corporation allegedly working in the city’s interests.” Flannery says he hopes the matter can be resolved without the need for further litigation against the city. Streetvibes is published by the Streetvibes can’t be distributed on Fountain Square. Anne Skove. Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless, which filed a First Amendment lawsuit against the city last month. At issue in that case is a city regulation that requires homeless shelters to take action against residents who panhandle. If the Human Relations Commission presents the award to Streetvibes anywhere besides Fountain Square, the paper will be glad to receive it, according to Flannery. “The 20th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act is an occasion worthy of celebration,” he says. “But to offer an award for our work with vendors at a location where they are unwelcome – prohibited by law – is insensitive at best and hypocritical at worst.” �2 The Business of Journalism By The Numbers 23,000 The profit, in taka, that a Bangladeshi woman made on the sale of a cow (see page 8). All The number of Streetvibes vendors prohibited by 3CDC from distributing the paper on Fountain Square (see page 1). 2001 The year Joy Friedman broke free from prostitution (see page 3). 25 The number of years Barbara Gamboa taught disabled and emotionally impaired children (see page 16). 80 The age, in years, of a linden tree that 3CDC will destroy in Washing ton Park (see page 4). 50 The amount, in dollars, for third place in the Streetvibes essay contest (see page 5). 30 The number, in millions, of copies of To Kill a Mockingbird that have been sold (see page 13). 3 The age of a child who cooked make-believe chicken at Interfaith Hospitality Network (see page 5). 1989 The year the fictional Arjuna became supervisor at the Pauline Warfield Lewis Center (see page 7). STREETVIBES August 1-14, 2010 Editorial By Gregory Flannery Editor Newspapers have a role, if they will fill it I n the mid-1990s I worked for a small daily newspaper that decided to put a feature story on the front page everyday on the theme, “Everybody Has a Story.” The theory was that people want “good news,” and we were going to give it to them. The statement is true so far is it goes. Every human being has a unique story about how she became who she is. But as a matter of journalistic principle, the statement is absurd. Not everyone has a story that merits attention in a newspaper, let alone on the front page. I protested the rule to no avail. Then, when it was my turn to write the front-page feature, I wrote about a dog that ate bees, wondering if – no, hoping – it would be too stupid to be published, thereby breaking the hold that this notion (“Everybody has a story”) had on the newspaper’s management. Sure enough, the editor put my story about the bee-eating dog on the front page. In fact, a clipping of the article was posted on the newsroom bulletin board, with a note saying, “An excellent use of the genre.” It seems that every dog has a story, too. I think about that editor when I see CNN anchors reading messages that viewers send on Twitter and when I see meaningless videos posted on local news shows: female cats nursing puppies. I think my former newspaper editor was onto something – and it’s not healthy for journalism or for civic dialogue. What we’re increasingly seeing on news broadcasts is the popularization of narcissism. Everybody has a story, everybody has an opinion and now, thanks to “social media,” everyone can publish it. If it’s outrageous enough or cute enough, it will get on the news. Equal access to the means to express oneself is certainly democratic. But journalism isn’t supposed to treat all views and all stories as equal. Central to the role of journalism is the act of discrimination: This story is more important than that one. This fact is essential; that one is not. This opinion has more merit because it’s informed, whereas that opinion is merely inflammatory. Have you ever read the comments about news stories posted online by readers of the Cincinnati Enquirer? Some are funny, many are vicious and most are irrelevant. The impulse to treat all opinions, all views, all perspectives as valuable has resulted in a lowering – rather than an elevation – of public discourse. All this comes at a time when the current wisdom holds, “Print journalism is dead.” Don’t believe it. We had been told that television was destroying newspapers. Now we’re told that the Internet is destroying newspapers. It’s no secret that newspapers in the United States are in trouble. Many have gone out of business in recent years, including the Cincinnati Post. Many more have dumbed down their content in a misguided bid to attract readers. This is true of daily newspapers as well as some that once considered themselves “alternative newsweeklies.” Analysis, investigation and enterprise reporting have lost ground to entertainment. As I write this, I’m preparing to attend the annual conference of the North American Street Newspaper Association. Streetvibes is part of a worldwide phenomenon: the growth and expansion of street newspapers. In the past year, new street newspapers have begun publishing in Toledo, Philadelphia, New York City, Seoul and other places. Many street papers, including Streetvibes, have seen their circulation grow. We received a letter last week from someone who said she has long bought Streetvibes in order to support the homeless people who distribute it but who, having read the content, now buys it in order to keep reading. If you look at street papers around the world, what you notice is a concentration on serious content – stories about human suffering, injustice, the victories of poor and oppressed people. Street papers have limited resources, an abundance of earnestness and a growing readership. There’s a story there: Write something worth reading, and they will come. I often meet with students from colleges and high schools and tell them that Streetvibes is the oddest newspaper in Cincinnati: written and photographed almost entirely by volunteers, our circulation is growing, while for-profit newspapers seem to be struggling. Throw in the fact that our paper is distributed by homeless and other low-income people trying to make a small living, and readers understand that we (and other street papers around the world) have a sense of mission that larger mainstream newspapers and broadcast news stations seem to lack. Print journalism isn’t dead. And everybody doesn’t have a story worth publishing on the front page of a newspaper. Readers want meaningful content. In the next edition, I’ll let you know what happens at the annual conference of the North American Street Newspaper Association. These things are important, just as it’s important to know that the city of Cincinnati bans the distribution of Streetvibes on Fountain Square (see “Streetvibes Boycotts its own Award,” page 1). 2 The number of clowns recently arrested at a nuclear-weapons plant (see page 1). www.facebook.com/ streetvibescincinnati twitter.com/ streetvibesnews streetvibes. wordpress.com Streetvibes is an activist newspaper, advocating justice and building community. Streetvibes reports on economic issues, civil rights, the environment, the peace movement, spirituality and the struggle against homelessness and poverty. Distributed by people who are or once were homeless, in exchange for a $1 donation, Streetvibes is published twice a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Address: 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 Phone: 513.421.7803 x 12 Fax: 513.421.7813 Email: streetvibes2@yahoo. com Website: www. cincihomeless.org Blog: streetvibes.wordpress. com Streetvibes Staff Editor Gregory Flannery Art Director Lynne Ausman Graphics/Layout Nick Swartsell Veronica Glass Vendor Coordinator Jeni Jenkins Contributing Writers Michelle Dillingham, Samantha Groark, Margo Pierce, Paul Kopp, Jeremy Flannery, Michael Henson, David Heitfield, Corey Gibson, Jeni Jenkins, Saad Ghosn, Lew Moores, Larry Gross, Eli Braun, Steven Paul Lansky, B. Clifton Burke, Michael Fanning Photography/Artwork Aimie Willhoite, Lynne Ausman, Anne Skove, Vinit Murthy, Jon Hughes Proofreaders Lynn Baker Jeremy Flannery The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that works to eradicate homelessness in Cincinnati through coordination of services, public education, grassroots advocacy and Streetvibes. We are proud members of: �STREETVIBES August 1-14, 2010 3 Beyond the Bootstraps Free at Last, Now Freeing Others Joy Friedman. Chris A.P. Bedell Breaking free means a safe place and people who care By Margo Pierce Contributing Writer I am a survivor from the life, of the life of prostitution. Everything that we represent here I am a survivor of—domestic violence, prostitution, drug addiction, criminal justice system, homelessness, rape, all of that. I came here as a client and was a participant in the program in the beginning in 2001. I came straight out of incarceration into treatment and treatment introduced me to Breaking Free. Joy Friedman, women's program manager at Breaking Free in St. Paul, MN, makes direct eye contact as she speaks. There is no edge in her tone of voice and no hesitation in her manner. She is an advocate in a house of advocates helping women leave prostitution. When the door is closed to her office, what was once a bedroom in a converted house at 770 University Avenue West, her presence fills the space between boxes, piles of papers on a cluttered desk and the two guest chairs that leave only a skinny floor space for navigation. We educate the girls on what they [get] caught up in, cuz a lot of times we, as victims, blame ourselves and society helps us with that, saying, “You should do something else. You should have never gotten in this. It’s your fault. You cause this to happen to you. You chose this.” In these groups we actually talk about what led up to it. Little girls don’t daydream about being involved in prostitution. I didn’t ask to get raped at 15 by a pimp and have three of his guys torture me and be held captive for 24 hours. Yeah, I survived it and got out of it, but the trauma that was done to me is with me the rest of my life. That’s a big piece people don’t really look at or seem to forget, is that in prostitution it’s not just the sex piece. It’s not just, “OK, stop having sex, get you a regular job.” If you’ve had sex with one guy or 1,000 guys that impact of how you had it—the fact that we’re bought, you compromised your morals, your values if you had them in the first place—and here a stranger is doing things to you that’s supposed to be done in an intimate, loving, caring, respectful, agreedupon relationship. That stuff sticks with you. You feel less, you feel dirty, you feel, “Oh my God, what have I done?” and that itself can be torture. And then you get that soiled feeling of, “Who’s going to want me after that? Am I ever going to be able to get the husband, the white picket fence, the dog, the family? Who’s gonna want a prostitute for a wife?” And there’s a lot of people who will help you with that as, “Once a ho, always a ho.” Tricks help you with that. Pimps help you with that to confirm, “Don’t go anywhere else because nobody’s going to accept you. Who in society is going to have a prostitute as their day care provider, or their receptionist? You’re never going to be anything. And once they find out about your life, they’re going to get rid of you. So stay with me, I love you for who you are and what you do. Don’t worry. It’s safe, we don’t judge you here.” Breaking Free is one of only a few dozen organizations in the United States that is available to assist an estimated 100,000 prostitutes leave “the life.” Breaking Free offers those currently caught in the life of prostitution as well as survivors of prostitution a lifetime of support through peer counseling, support groups, temporary and permanent housing, case management and access to essential services such as health care, mental health support, addiction programs and more all in one place. By providing a safe place, the house in the heart of an urban center becomes a haven. The first step is a 14-week program called Sisters of Survival. The dynamics of prostitution is what we talk about in there, such as boundaries, recruitment, self-esteem, do you want this job? We compare the job versus a career, or a real 9-to-5 versus prostitution, escort services or dancing. Is that a job? Then we look at the differences in jobs, like workman’s comp protection, 401k plans, taxes. You look at all that. That’s the thing about prostitution people don’t understand, you have low self-esteem and somebody in that lifestyle opens their arms to you, it’ll come down to “I need someone to appreciate who I am. I need someone to make me feel important.” So, a lot of girls get trapped through dancing. When you go into dancing, you’re actually the center of attention. Men come to see you. They give you money, they’ll buy you drinks. We know there’s an ulterior motive, but that feeds that missing piece. This is a process for every girl. It’s a process for me and I’ve been out 10 years. I still have problems of my own, where I have to deal with issues—like I don’t have a relationship. Why? Cuz I don’t know how to have one. Even though I’m up here working with women and I’m helping them understand where we’ve come from and where we can go, that piece of relationship—mmmm. Can’t do that yet. Sex, it has no meaning to me. If that’s what a relationship’s about I guess I won’t have one because I’ve had enough sex to last me a lifetime. If that’s what he wants and that’s what it’s all about then I’m ok with being by myself. A woman knocks and opens Friedman’s door. I’ve got a girl on the phone who’s in desperate, desperate measures. I don’t know exactly how to handle this. Friedman picks up a pencil at the same time she picks up the phone and begins to talk. Where ya at? It’s OK, honey. Are you OK at the moment? Are you safe? You remember me? Where did I see you? Good for you! You don’t want to do it anymore. You need to see your probation officer. Do you have an addiction? Keep it real with me. Last time you used? What’s your drug of choice? Have you ever been to treatment, honey? It’s OK You’re tryin’ to fix a problem by admitting to it. That’s not a bad thing. You can let ‘em know you been sober. It’s not like you’re tellin’ on yourself negative, you’re tellin’ them you need help. It’s not your fault—someone’s using your situation. Whatever we’re askin’ of you ain’t nothin’ compared to where you been. We want to get you someplace safe to stay. Have your probation officer call me. Getting Free The following organizations provide services to women and men either in the criminal justice system or trapped in the sex trade. The Empowerment Program Provides education, employment assistance, health, housing referrals and support services to women who are in disadvantaged positions due to incarceration, poverty, homelessness, HIV/AIDS infection or involvement in the criminal justice system 303.320.1989 1-800-659-2656 TTY http://www.empowermentprogram.org/ Sex Industry Survivors' Anonymous Mission: Support groups for women and men who are currently in the sex industry and are trying to get out or who have already gotten out but are trying to find recovery. Membership requirement is a desire to leave the sex industry. Services: Peer support meetings of survivors talking to one another. Meeting formats may be downloaded at no cost to all who want to set up local meetings. 888-702-7273 (toll-free) http://www.sexindustrysurvivors.com Polaris Project Polaris Project is a national organization working to end human trafficking and slavery. They conduct direct outreach and victim identification, provide social services and transitional housing to victims and operate the National Human Trafficking Resource Center (NHTRC) serving as the central national hotline on human trafficking. National Hotline: NHTRC@polarisproject.org 1-888-3737-888 http://www.polarisproject.org I can advocate on your behalf. You don’t have to be with those men. You don’t have to do this. You deserve better than that. You can do this. It’s going to be hard because it’s going to be change but you can do this. You got bigger and better things waiting on you out there. It’s OK where we are right now. Friedman hangs up the phone, makes some notes and then looks up. The girls are real willing and open to hearing me because I talk our language, so they know I’ve been there. There are certain things about that lifestyle that, if you’ve been in it, there’s just certain language and certain things you know that you can’t just read that and learn it. See FREE P. 10 �4 Local News STREETVIBES August 1-14, 2010 A Joyous Hammer Strikes Again CONTINUED FROM P.AGE 1 OREPA. Jay Coghlan of Nuclear Watch New Mexico talked about President Obama's Nuclear Posture Review, which includes the new Uranium Processing Facility at Y-12; the Chemistry and Metallurgy Research Replacement Project at Los Alamos, N.M,; and the first new nuclear weapons plant in 32 years, in Kansas City. A protest is planned there for Aug. 14-16. Recommendations at the conference included focusing on abolition – treating nuclear weapons as something as evil as slavery – and revitalizing public opposition to nuclear power. The issues are linked, according to Hattie Nestel, a member of the Shut It Down Affinity Group, active against the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant in Vermont. “No nuclear weapons and no nuclear power,” she said. Kathy Kelly of Voices for Creative Nonviolence recently returned from a month-long visit to Pakistan. She spoke about people trapped during night raids and U.S. drone attacks in connection with the so-called War on Terror. Kelly said she met an Afghani man who is one of 7,000 people who drive cars for the U.S. Army. A roadside bomb, an “improvised explosive device,” shattered his arm and leg. Soldiers took the man to an Italian hospital, and he never heard from them again. He whispered that he had seen U.S. forces kill people without any reason, Kelly said. Workshops covered a wide range of peace and justice issues, from “Nonviolent Blockading” to Protesters block the road at the Y-12 nuclear-weapons facility. Tom Bottolene/CircleVision.org. “The Second Part of the Action: Representing Yourself in Court.” Liz McAlister of Jonah House, widow of Plowshares Eight member Phil Berrigan, discussed a quilt draped in back of the stage, quoting the Hebrew Prophet Isaiah: “They shall beat their swords into plowshares. Nations shall learn war no more.” “Isaiah announced the impossible,” she said. “And we must, too, in times like now of imperial darkness, of duplicity and conniving in high places. They dust off their tomes to ‘just wars,' but the words of Isaiah must come to pass. These words surpass the human even while they demand conversion of hearts. We are not objects of fate. Despair is to our shame. Come forth. Come forth … They dent the weapon in seeking to transform the object, and the transformers are transformed themselves.” Hammer time The Rev. Carl Kabat, a Catholic priest for 51 years, has spent 18 years in prison. He sometimes dresses as a clown – “a fool for Christ”– during protests. He reminded activists not to be too serious. He also reminded Catholics that the hierarchy has condemned nuclear weapons. “Working for justice is a constitutive element of the Gospels,” Kabat said. “It can be legal or illegal. Then we celebrate.” Kabat quoted Rosa Parks, famous for refusing to yield to racial segregation on a bus in the southern United States in the 1950s: “You mothers know. You do it because it needs to be done. We have a part in heavenly decisions.” Kabat is one of the Plowshares Eight, who entered a General Electric weapons factory in King of Prussia, Penn., in 1980 and used household hammers to start destroying warhead cones on missiles. Molly Rush, another of the Plowshares Eight, talked recalled her skepticism about the late Phil Berrigan, a former Catholic priest who was a legend in the anti-war movement. Rush said she and Berrigan were brainstorming. “We talked about how we would get inside the GE plant,” she said. “When Phil Berrigan said, ‘Perhaps we could drive up in a floral truck, bringing flowers’ … I thought it was a crazy idea.” She quoted Berrigan: “Human beings made these (bombs), and human beings can unmake them.” The lesson of the first Plowshares action? “It takes vulnerability,” Rush said. “When I hammered down on the warhead, a piece of it chipped away and cut me under my chin. I was not invulnerable." Thirty-seven people were arrested in protests at the Y-12 plant – 23 for blocking the road with a banner and 14 on federal trespassing charges. (Disclosure: The writer was among those arrested. So was Jon Blickenstaff of Cincinnati.) Neighborhood Rejects Takeover Killing trees, pushing out the poor Bonnie Neumeier, director of the Peaslee Neighborhood Center, reinforced the point. “African-American children drown at a rate three times higher than others,” she said. By Gregory Flannery Neumeier also pointed to the larger issue, the Editor use of 3CDC to make Over-the-Rhine more attractive to people with high incomes, displacing nstead of welcoming plans to “improve” many of the poor people who have lived in the Washington Park, residents of Over-theneighborhood. The park takeover, for example, is Rhine gathered July 24 to mourn what intended to appeal to patrons of concerts at Music they’re about to lose. Hall and residents of condominiums that 3CDC The city of Cincinnati has is developing in formerly low-cost given control over yet another apartments. public space to the Cincinnati “Do not spend our money “(Vice mayor) Roxanne Qualls Center City Development Corp. herself literally suggested the on something we do not (3CDC), which plans to close people who live around this park want.” Washington Park for 18 months could be charged to maintain it,” -Vermel Perkins while it destroys the swimming Neumeier said. pool, basketball court and 59 She then listed some of those trees. An underground parking garage, dog park neighbors: the Drop Inn Center, shelter for homeand water-play area are part of the estimated $47 less people, which the city is trying to force out; million renovation. Over-the-Rhine Community Housing, which proVermel Perkins, a longtime resident of Overvides affordable housing for low-income people; the-Rhine told the gathering that the changes are and churches that have long served the neighborunwelcome and dangerous. hood. All this comes as city council pursues zoning “What I don’t want to see in this park is the sochanges that would restrict non-profit agencies in Over-the-Rhine. called sprinkler system,” she said. “I am in favor “We don’t want a manicured, fancy, expensive of saving lives and teaching children to swim. You cannot learn how to swim in a sprinkler. Do not spend our money on something we do not want.” See TAKEOVER P. 12 I Avtar Gill likes Washington Park. Vinit Murthy. �STREETVIBES August 1-14, 2010 5 Local News The Games Homeless Kids Play Real rice and imaginary snakes By Angela Pancella Contributing Writer “ Are you a volunteer?” a 4-year-old wants to know. Another small boy, 5 years old at most, is careening through the yard zapping imaginary spider silk from his imaginary web shooters. I help him up when he lands flat on his back at the bottom of the slide. “Thanks, Spidergirl,” he tells me. I’m at the Interfaith Hospitality Network’s Day Center. Yes, to answer the 4-year-old’s question, I am here to volunteer. The task of all us volunteers is simple/complex/humbling/utterly gratifying: We help children play. I’ve been at this twice a week for a couple weeks now; while the experience is still new, I’d like to share a bit about what I’ve learned so far. The Interfaith Hospitality Network (IHN) matches religious congregations with families experiencing homelessness. In the evenings, families stay at places provided by a variety of local churches and synagogues, eat dinner and spend time with volunteers from congregations. In the mornings, all the families go to the IHN Day Center in the old St. Michael Church complex in Price Hill to work on getting into a more stable housing situation. Several case managers are on staff. Most of the day, the children remain under their parents’ supervision. Four days a week there are morning classes in budgeting, parenting and life skills that the adults attend, and then in the afternoons the adults do chores around the center. It is during these times that volunteers and staff help most with the children. I went to IHN after taking classes in early childhood education through the College of Mount St. Joseph and after working at Our Daily Bread in Over-the-Rhine. Through my classes, I’d learned much about the resiliency of children even in times of great hardship. Through Our Daily Bread, I knew people experiencing homelessness might be going through hardships I can’t begin to understand. It made me wonder: What would the children at IHN be like? The first morning I volunteered, Will Leever, IHN’s child-care coordinator, brought out uncooked rice in a large tray along with measuring cups, spoons, funnels and plates. A small group, infants to 5-year-olds, clustered round to check At play at the Interfaith Hospitality Network Day Center. Courtesy of IHN. out these treasures. Older children were attending a summer camp, thanks to Cincinnati Public Schools’ Project Connect. Soon little chefs were presenting home-cooked pretend meals for us to taste. “What’s this?” I asked a girl who offered a plate of rice. “Scrambled eggs!” I acted like I was gobbling it all up. A 3-year-old boy gave me his plate of rice next. That was chicken. Another plate was cake. So what are the children at IHN like? They are children. They love pretending, they love attention, they love exploring. Love of pretending means play that mimics adult tasks such as cooking, because play is the means by which children rehearse their later lives. It also means that when I am turning a jump rope for a small boy, he suddenly decides the rope is a snake that must be run from, and then a snake that must be caught. In class, we talked about how make-believe provides a space where children can feel in control in a world where so much is out of their control. When my snake-hunting friend triumphantly grabs the rope, this no longer feels theoretical. “I won!” The children’s love for attention means that if I help push a child in a Little Tikes car around the play yard, I must be prepared to give a turn to every other child, too – and I must keep careful track of how many turns everyone has had. There is no finer-tuned sense of justice than that possessed by 2-, 3- and 4-year-olds. I give turns as best I can; there will be other opportunities for them to learn how life can be unfair. Love of exploring means all volunteer eyes have to be sharp. All parents know the lament, “I just turned my back for one second.” Our job is to make sure no one gets hurt, no matter where they run, climb or crawl. I love watching the determination of very small children climbing the ladder on the playhouse – just as long as there’s another volunteer to catch them going down the slide. I’ve loved my time at Interfaith Hospitality Network. I encourage anyone who has an interest in children’s development, who wants to provide support for families experiencing homelessness and who values play to call IHN at 513-471-1100 or write info@ihncincinnati.org. The more volunteers who are there regularly, the more individual attention each child can receive – and children thrive on this. How to Improve Our Country ‘Streetvibes’ essay contest L ots of people move to the United States, but a lot fewer ever decide to leave. For example, in 2002, 27,299 Canadians immigrated to the United States, but only 5,299 Americans permanently moved to Canada. Last year more than 1.1 million immigrants became legal, permanent residents of the United States. That speaks volumes about how great a place America is, but it doesn’t mean that we can’t make it even better. Whenever we have a federal election, millions of citizens go to the polls and vote for the candidates they believe will work hard to improve things, yet millions of others – at least 40 percent of eligible voters since 1970 – do not even bother to vote for a president. By not voting, they waste a very important freedom. If you think voter apathy is a problem, you’re on the right track. Now just tell us what you’d do to correct it. Or even if you’re one of the more than 2 million Americans in a state or federal prison, let us know if you think crime in America is a significant problem and tell us how to reduce it. It’s no secret that in 2008 more than one in every 100 adults in the United States was behind bars, the highest documented incarceration rate on earth. Of course, other countries have lots of people who do bad things, such as the drug barons who force us to try heroin and cocaine. Is that the way it is, or do Americans voluntarily hand them tens of billions of dollars every year for highly addictive chemicals that ruin our lives? What if only 10 percent of that money would be used instead to help homeless people or to train Americans for better paying jobs? Do you think we have any problems worth mentioning? Poverty? Racism? Homelessness? Domestic violence? If so, tell us what they are and what we should do to solve them. You could win up to $100 and help to make our nation an even better place to live. Explain what you know about one problem in the United States and describe in detail your plan to help solve it. The importance of the problem you mention will be considered, but more weight will be given to how insightful and practical your solution is and to the quality of the writing. The prizes will be $100 for first place, $75 for second place and $50 for third place. Send your essay of up to 1,000 words to streetvibes2@yahoo.com or Streetvibes Essay Contest, 117 E. 12th St., Cincinnati, Ohio 45202. Entries must be received by Sept. 1. Include your full name, age, mailing address, phone number or an email address where we can reach you. If you are a student, tell us where you go to school. Judging will be by the volunteers who contributed the prize money and by Streetvibes staff. Donors for the prize money include Robert Pohowsky. Are you interested in helping with Streetvibes? Are you a proofreader, writer, poet, artist or photographer? If so, contact Greg Flannery 513.421.7803 x 12 or email streetvibes2@yahoo.com �6 Local News STREETVIBES August 1-14, 2010 Homeless and Hopeless No More Gregory Flint and the power to change By Gregory Flannery Editor bitter at me for not being in his life. He’s scarred. The whole family has to heal.” Flint says his life changed this year. Jan. 7 was his last day of drinking, he says. On Jan. 11 he started a program at the Salvation Army intended to help end his addiction. He graduated July 4. G regory Flint is on his way. It’s been a long journey out of homelessness, addiction and prison. After growing up in Avondale, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy at age 18, serving from 1984 to 1992. “I became homeless after getting discharged out of the Navy,” he says. “That’s when my drug addiction and alcoholism started. I stayed with a couple of women, having children. Then I was sleeping in front of the courthouse, in abandoned buildings. I’ve been to the penitentiary twice on drug charges.” Flint’s familiarity with inebriation came very early in life and set his course for decades. “I started drinking at the age of 5,” he says. “My Dad would give me beer to help me sleep. I started liking the way it mad me feel. I didn’t really know myself because, growing up, I was always using. I was basically a loner. I had two brothers beneath me but I never felt like I fit in. I was the black sheep of the family.” That sense of isolation, fueled by addiction, affected the next generation as well. “Being homeless doesn’t just affect me,” Flint says. “It affects my family, too – the lack of sleep, the lack of rest for my mother worrying about me. I took from my Mom. I stole from her. My son is still Gregory Flint has been sober six months. Jeni Jenkins. “God delivered me,” Flint says. “I have a little over six months sober.” He wears a lapel pin marking him as a member of the Salvation Army’s “Redeemed team.” “You only get this when you graduate,” he says. “I wear it proudly.” The changes in Flint’s life have been dramatic. He attends Constellation Baptist Church in College Hill, where he is a member of the men’s chorus. He goes to daily Narcotics Anonymous meetings. Now living in the Salvation Army’s transitional housing, where he’ll stay two months, Flint plans to move onto long-term transitional housing. “It’s been suggested by my sponsor that I stay in structure for two years because I was a chronic user,” he says. A little more than a month ago Flint was hired as a prep cook and dishwasher at Via Vite. His employer knows about Flint’s background – and therein lies the moral of Flint’s story, he says. “My employer was very pleased with the way I’ve changed my life,” Flint says. “He knows my background. If a person just looks at the things you’ve done, they’re not looking at you. Society will try to label you. I have two felony convictions but I’m not a felon. Spiritually, a person can look at you and see if you’re a good person. Then they’ll see that you made some mistakes but that’s not who you are.” Flint says he knows his struggle isn’t over, but he is proud of the progress he has made this year. “I have to do a lot of self-talk: ‘You’re a good guy, Gregory. You’re doing a good job.’ Meditation is very important to me,” he says. “I journal: How did I feel when things didn’t go my way? Was I close to relapse?’ Being vigilant is very important.” As for the future, Flint knows exactly what he wants. “My goal is to further my education in culinary arts,” he says. “My dream is to be an executive chef and own my own restaurant.” Learning by Serving Poor People Cincinnati Urban Experience By Brian O’Donnell Contributing Writer F or many students, summer is a time for pool parties and beach vacations; but for a group of 36 high-school students from Green Bay, Wis., summer is the season of volunteering and extra-curricular education. Since 2007 the Cincinnati Urban Experience has coordinated with parishes, non-profit groups and universities nationwide to bring students of a variety of ages to Cincinnati’s historic Over-the-Rhine neighborhood. This is the same neighborhood that a year ago WLWT (Channel 5) reported was the most dangerous neighborhood in the United States. The program and the neighborhood offer an opportunity for students to gain awareness and become active within the community, according to Jeni Jenkins, education director for the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Most of the students who come for Cincinnati Urban Experience trips are completely unaware of the neighborhood’s condition and its perceived problems, she says. “It’s considered a dangerous neighborhood, but I don’t focus on the negative stuff,” she says. Kendra Burbach is a 17-year-old student from Green Bay who didn’t know much about the neighborhood except for its name and location. Burbach, along with her peers, expected a large city like Chicago, unlike Green Bay, which she described as small by comparison. But instead the students found themselves surrounded by Overthe-Rhine’s striking architecture. The students volunteered at local non-profit agencies such as Tender Mercies, which assists homeless individuals who suffer from mental or Jenkins says. Many of those who speak to the emotional disabilities. students during the education sessions are activ“I always wanted to do something like this,” ists or are formerly homeless. Jenkins also includes Burbach says. speakers of differing viewpoints, such as CincinVolunteering at the Peaslee Neighborhood Cennati Police officers. ter, distributing food at the FreeStore FoodBank The students glean much from the experience, and other agencies has an impact, the students and the non-profit agencies appreciate the help. say. “They appreciate “Everyone the fact we bring has been them steady volunthankful,” says teers,” Jenkins says. Carly Ripp, 15. One of the most Cincinnati important aspects Urban Experiof Cincinnati ence, however, Urban Experience is not simply is how the trip can volunteer change the particiwork. Without pants, Jenkins says. context, the Students are someessence of times surprised volunteerism by the notion that is lost, Jenkins homeless people says. The idea deserve dignity is to combine Students from Green Bay, Wis., volunteer in Over-the-Rhine. and respect, she service with Jeni Jenkins. says. Participants education, begin to think including time to reflect and talk about the work more critically about homelessness and have their being done. eyes opened to things they didn’t know about, “If I reach at least one of them who come on the Jenkins says. She hopes these ideas will stay in trip, I’ve made a difference,” Jenkins says. the students’ minds when they start their careers, She wants the students not only to interact with improving understanding of poverty and breaking the community, but to understand the issues that stereotypes. affect the area, such as gentrification and the idea “I learned to be thankful for everything we do of a living wage and how minimum wage often have,” Ripp says. “I wanted to help people. I look fails to meet that standard. at the world from a different viewpoint. … People “One of the things Jeni is informing us a lot with all the money and power are taking over with about is what the city is doing against poorer no regard.” people,” Burbach says. In the end, Jenkins encourages students to ask, Education on these issues is not without bias, “Where do we go from here?” �STREETVIBES August 1-14, 2010 7 Short Story Seeking the Wild Cleanliness Starting with mangled care By Steven Paul Lansky Contributing Writer 1989 A gray slop sink with four old frayed mops, knots hooked in clumps of filth, orange plastic handles lying at odd angles in a state of utilitarian neglect. The white tile halls of the Pauline Warfield Lewis Center looked neglected, too, barely cleaner than the maintenance closets, rags scattered, paper towels strewn, stacked with supplies. Begging, stuttering patients in ill-fitting clothes lurked with nicotine-deprived and psychotropic drug-induced tremors behind nearly every locked door. “Got a cigarette?” was their halting mantra. Green walls, wooden doors with small, square wired windows swung into areas between the wards keyed only by staff or supervisor. In the odoriferous custodial closets the new supervisor, Arjuna, driven to work by need for income, found brass and rubber squeegees without extension handles, empty and busted spray bottles, spent orange aerosol cans in need of disposal, food wrappers stuck to the yellow tile floor, orange and black vacuums clogged with dust, rubber belts broken, black cloth bags with damaged fasteners and no new replacement green liners. Stacked among boxes of toilet tissue and paper towels were half-empty five-gallon buckets of red, yellow and blue floor solutions, each with a specific use. At the hallways’ ends were brown steel doors without windows that, when keyed, swung into corners with external doors, also locked and windowless. This was a dark place to be walking with a cleaning crew of former patients pushing housekeeping carts of heavy brown plastic and bright yellow vinyl. Churchill was the best of all janitors Arjuna ever supervised. Church trained Arjuna to run a fourman cleaning crew at Lewis Center, a dirty, neglected state mental institution. Tile floors became endless corridors, a maze of doorways keyed by a fistful of master keys turning sometimes clockwise and other times counter clockwise. Scratched in the paint or plain wood above each knob was an arrow to indicate key direction to the uninitiated. Each supervisor carried keys; workers could only borrow them. The patients waited by the locked doors begging for a soda or a cigarette. Arjuna shared with the crew but not with the patients. One of the originals had been fired; and when Arjuna saw him at the central office and supply center, the worker stuttered that he wanted to be friends. “Could I have your number? Will you call me?” And Arjuna was cold and distant, had his own priorities. The worker knew trouble like the supervisor never could. Arjuna heard the man leapt to his death from a freeway overpass. The poet turned supervisor could not face his former employee’s funeral. Hoist a pint for him – someone (Arjuna had given up booze and weed). Now a college graduate, he’d had to beg for a job – no name please … one of the lost janitors of the ’80s. He never hurt anyone but by embarrassment of his pitiful nature. Ashamed to be pitied. Churchill was patient with Arjuna until Church was the last of the original four-man crew Arjuna had inherited. Church and Arjuna had had one night when they disagreed. Churchill had fight in him though mostly was gentle as a lamb. Arjuna had to call Captain Star, the neatly uniformed tough talker of the campus police. Everyone referred to them as “security” but Star fumed if it wasn’t “Officer Star” or “Captain Star.” A flash of eye and tooth and flaring tempers were quenched in a thirsty cool soda while Star stood by, his arrogant mustache bristled with calm. “A disagreement between two good men, two good workers.” Lisa, the other supervisor, had been a problem. Now that she’d been fired, Arjuna had responsibility for the whole crew, the whole building. Church had difficulty adjusting to the supervisory change, his job was no longer set; he had to face a team approach with Arjuna making more decisions. As many as 14 workers might turn up on a given night, or as few as five. Arjuna’s task was to settle things down and to clean the building. In training, Arjuna, Churchill and the freaky suicidal toilet man had cleaned half the building. Lisa and her crew cleaned the other half. Over a period of months the job had expanded and it became increasingly more difficult to finish in the allotted time. Arjuna had asked Nate, a thin white manager who moved with the frantic energy of a speed freak, to talk to Lisa about helping at the end of the night. At least, Arjuna asked, she could send some fellows over when they were through. Thin Chuckie was set in his ways, though, and Lisa didn’t want to disrupt his routine, she claimed. Once Arjuna was under the stars, smoking a glowing Camel, giving himself a break alone, when he saw Lisa driving around the parking lot in the company van. It wasn’t even that late. Arjuna had mentioned it to Nate. “If she has time to drive around … couldn’t she drive over to the far end with some crew members and help us knock out the kitchen and the kitchen hallway? It’s not fair, Nate. She’s finished and I’m still milking my cunt.” scared, but had a sense that he was on the other side now. No more joints with Riley, the welfare artist, Arjuna had hung with before he got the job. No more fighting Lisa. He told Nate he’d take the job. Nate agreed to bring him back to his car after he took the crew home. It was a clean sweep. Now he turned his back on Riley and the drugs; he headed for responsibility. Soon Arjuna would be a non-smoker. Trains pass at switches in the night— head beams cut gleaming paths like two janitors methodically backing mops— one out of a room, arms in locomotion, legs, patterns of moving oaks steady over damp rag heads, the room butts against a hall, where the other works easily, pausing to clear doorways. I stand in the twinight of my struggle, where they intersect – a rock, between them and a hard place. At Ronald’s Bar “Are you serious?” “Yup,” Ned answered. “Quit your job?” “Spent the day in the park drinking wine.” “No painting? No writing?” “No. It’s OK till next month and the bills come due.” A homeless man sweeps the floor at a shelter. REUTERS/Brian Snyder. Arjuna had heard the phrase from a Scottish folk singer. Nate had been stunned. He had talked to Lisa. Then she started sending her crew over to help for awhile. A week and a half passed that were better. Tommy, her floor man, was cheerful, a laconic talker. “Arjuna, we understand one another,” he said, as he noticed Arjuna growing out his hair, wearing a headband and a short ponytail. Tommy did this handshake thing, with the fists and the thumb. Arjuna had the sense they were dopers. “I caught Lisa smoking dope with Tommy and Thin Chuckie in the van while you were in the kitchen.” Nate was waiting for Arjuna in the lobby late. “Could you drive the van home and drop them off? You’ll have an extra five hours a week.” Arjuna had cracked his hardest habit. He was So I sidle over to the counter after thinking, “Good luck. Wouldn’t want to be unemployed without support in this slush.” Major slush raining from the sky. First time ever the plow driver lifted the blade so he wouldn’t coat me in icy spray. Coffee … The dishwasher, a toast of a chick, says she quit her day job today, too. “Finish the shift?” “Yep.” She had worked at the movie theater. Go figure. The bartender, Ned, he’ll land on his feet, 14 years on the job without incident. Ronald’s Bar & Grill changed owners. Regulars beware. Things will be changing. Yep … change is in the wind. The first time I heard the song, “Man in the Long See CLEANLINESS P. 10 �8 STREETVIBES August 1-14, 2010 Issues I’m So Far West that I’m East Life and lending in Bangladesh By Lynne Ausman Staff Writer L ynne Ausman, who is art director for Streetvibes and administrative coordinator for the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless, is in Bangladesh for a five-week internship. Ausman is studying the Grameen Bank, founded by Muhammad Yunus, co-recipient of the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize. Grameen bank pioneered the concept of microlending – making small loans, without requiring collateral, to help people in Third World countries to help them establish businesses. While in Bangladesh, Ausman has been blogging about her experiences. Following are some excerpts. To follow Ausman’s adventures, visit “So West I’m East” at sowestimeast.wordpress.com. The Drive July 8 Driving in Bangladesh is a life-changing experience. Even native Bangladeshis typically do not drive. If they have the means, they will purchase a car and then hire a driver by the day to drive the car. In short, travel by vehicle in Bangladesh is mostly a guessing game governed by horns, luck and close calls. At 70-plus kilometers per hour, vehicles come up on bicycle-powered rickshaws very quickly and changing into a lane that already has a massive bus or extravagantly decorated truck is tricky. It’s a lot of stop-and-start and speed-and-swerve. When we arrived at the village of Dhambhamari, we walked to the bank branch. The countryside is lush and green – beautiful scenery; and we weren’t even that far out of the city. It’s quiet in the village, with few horns blaring and smogfree air. After about a five-minute walk through we boarded a rickety water taxi to take us across the flooded plain. Followed by another five-minute walk, we arrived at a small tin hut with 40-plus women packed inside, all chatting and preparing to pay their loans to the center manager and discuss various business-related issues. After the meeting and speaking with some of the women, we were invited by several to go to their homes and see how they make their products. Muhammad Yunus and Lynne Ausman. Brandi List. One woman used the money from the loan to purchase a cow for 17,000 taka beautiful and well-maintained. However, it was and grain for 10,000 taka. She fattened the cow not the memorial that kept our attention. Upon and used the milk from the cow for six months. entering the grounds, we were immediately being She then sold the cow for 50,000 taka, making a followed by a large group of teenage boys. This 23,000 taka profit. (1 U.S. dollar equals 70 taka). In following and staring happens to white foreigners addition to paying off loans, women are also able all the time, but rarely is the group aggressive. This to put money into a savings account and into a group of boys were polite but insistent on havlife-insurance pension plan. ing their picture taken with me. So somewhere in We visited the National Martyrs Memorial, Bangladesh there is a group of boys with a picture dedicated to the men who lost their lives in the of me and them. A little later, we were posing for Bangladeshi fight for freedom from Pakistan in a group picture and there were Bang;adeshi men 1971. The memorial is large, and the grounds are See BANGLADESH P. 12 “Feed Me, Seymour, Feed Me All Night Long…” Re-Done Potato Broccoli Scramble Serving Size: 3-4 bellies 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil 2 tablespoons butter (or substitute for vegans) 1 cup chopped red onion 3 cloves fresh garlic 4 leftover baked potatoes, cubed 3 cups pre-cooked broccoli florets 1 tablespoon curry powder Salt and pepper Optional for vegans: 1 cup chopped or sliced American cheese 4 eggs, scrambled Re-Done Potato Broccoli Scramble. Jeni Jenkins. By Jeni Jenkins Staff Writer L ast week I hosted an amazing group of 35 students from Green Bay, Wis., for the Cincinnati Urban Experience (see “Learning by Serving Poor People,” page 6). Cincinnati Urban Experience is an alternative break program designed to provide participants with an experience of meaningful service and social-justice education that will motivate them to become active in the fight to end poverty and homelessness. On one of the students’ nights here, they kindly • Heat oil and butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. • Add onions and garlic and sauté 1 minute. • Turn heat slightly down to medium and add potatoes. Mix evenly with onions and garlic. • Add broccoli to the top of the potatoes, and continue cooking the potatoes for 1 minute, then mix broccoli and potatoes together and continue to cook an additional 3-4 minutes until potatoes are crisp and brown. • Sprinkle evenly with curry powder. Season with salt and pepper to taste. • For non-vegans, push veggie mixture aside in skillet and pour in eggs. Scramble until cooked to your liking and then mix eggs and veggies together. Turn off heat. • Sprinkle with American cheese and cover for 1 minute or until cheese is melted. • Serve with toast or English muffin and fruit. • Voila, feed! • invited me to partake in a baked-potato dinner. As an Idahoan with a fondness for the glorious root, I graciously accepted. We feasted on baked taters loaded with broccoli, red onions and cheese, and it was fabulous. A couple days later as they were packing for home, they informed me that they had bagged up these leftovers for me to take home. After they left, I took them home to a nearly empty fridge. I was famished, so I decided to quickly whip up this recipe using the leftovers. This was so tasty that I feasted on it every meal for two days. It works for breakfast, lunch or dinner. My suggestion is to reserve one night for baked potatoes, save the leftovers and then throw together this scramble for a lovely brunch the next day. Enjoy! Interested in volunteering with Streetvibes? Contact Greg Flannery at 513-421-7803 x 12 or by e-mail at streetvibes2@yahoo.com �9 Vendor Voice STREETVIBES August 1-14, 2010 Prisoners Help Save City Pools Meanwhile 3CDC plans to eliminate one By Lee McCoy Streetvibes Vendor T Lee McCoy distributing Streetvibes. Eamon Queeney. he men at London Correctional Institution (LCI), I want to give you a note of praise. I understand the hard work that you had taken upon yourself to raise $1,000 to help the kids in Cincinnati so they can get out of the heat. You had to sell a lot of veggie pies and other items. Being an ex-guest myself of LCI, my state pay was $18 a month. Your $1,000 could have brought a lot of commissary items. I want you to know I see a lot of kids splashing around having a good time. It was nice seeing them there instead of hanging on a corner, getting in trouble. My hat goes off to you guys. Good luck. God bless each and every one of you. Stan Chesley, the Cincinnati lawyer, led the fundraiser to keep the city pools began this spring knowing after the Cincinnati Recreation Department announced it would close four pools because of the budget. The fundraising effort gathered donations enough to keep the pools open in Mount Auburn, College Hill, Fairview Heights and the East End, and the donations are enough to keep some of the pools open two weeks after most are scheduled to close by. Just keep on swimming. But now let’s get to the nitty gritty. The World Choir Games will be here in 2012. It is our mayor’s pet project. If you don’t know where the festival will be, let me enlighten you: It will be in Washington Park (see “TAKEOVER, page 4). I mean a renovated Washington Park – minus a swimming pool. Was I supposed to say that? Oh, well. Sink or swim. About 200,000 spectators and 20,000 participants are expected from 70 countries. I can imagine the revenue the city will generate. No wonder the swimming pool was not open. Back in 1978 I was a Navy SEAL officer on a submarine called U.S. Enterprise. We were 4,000 fathoms under the sea and the sub exploded. Fighting my way to the surface, I grabbed an air bubble. It busted, so I did what comes natural – I passed gas and grabbed that. I fought all kinds of creatures. I even had sex with a mermaid. She got pregnant and had twins. Out came Charlie Tuna and Bumble Bee. If you believe this, maybe you believe next summer all pools will be open. Art by Anne Skove Art by Anothony Williams Say ! ? t a h W It may well be that our means are fairly limited and our possibilities restricted when it comes to applying pressure on our government. But is this a reason to do nothing? Despair is nor an answer. Neither is resignation. Resignation only leads to indifference, which is not merely a sin but a punishment. – Elie Wiesel �10 STREETVIBES August 1-14, 2010 Beyond the Bootstraps Free at Last, Now Freeing Others CONTINUED FROM P.AGE 3 Word has traveled so a lot of people know me or know of me. And they know me from the streets and they know me from this side. The women are real receptive to it because they want out. A lot of girls are falsely convinced that there is no way out and they’re terrorized or tortured into believing that if they try to get out this individual will find them, hurt them or hurt their families— that instilled fear is real to us. It may not be real to everybody else, but it’s real to us and that’s all that matters. “I believe he’s going to go hurt my kids or my mother or my family members because I’ve watched him do it to other girls.” So you’re scared to even try to attempt it, you feel trapped mentally, not to mention physically, so that you don’t go nowhere. You don’t try to escape because you’re scared of the consequences, ‘What if?’ Right now I have a lady that needs to move into transitional housing. I have two of them actually— one of them is coming from the criminal justice system, one is coming from treatment. Now both these young ladies both these girls have extensive criminal backgrounds and they want to get out. But once again, those barriers of, “If I get out, what kind of job am I going to be able to have?” I’m a role model for both of them right now because they’ve seen me come up out of the dirt, literally, out of jail with nothing and advance up the ladder as I have and get that respect and bring back things that I never thought I’d have and getting positions that we never would have thought women like us could be in. Vednita [Carter, Breaking Free founder] believes in hiring survivors, regardless of the backgrounds. We believe in second chance opportunities and empowering them. But with these women I show them that we can do this despite our records, despite everything in that. All they have to do is want it. If they want it, Breaking Free and myself are willing to walk, Vednita is willing to walk not in front of them but side by side with them, hold their hand the whole journey, not halfway through it. This program offers a lifetime of support. So it’s not like after 14 weeks you’re done with our program or the funding ran out so your stuff is over. This is ongoing so if you leave us today and go back to the life, we’re not going to feel any different about you. We’ll pray for you and try to hope that God protects you while you’re out there. And that you come back to us alive. We’ve got many women that haven’t made it back and that we ended up attending their funerals. So what I do is just let them know, “If you fall, it’s OK. Call me.” We have an emergency cell phone, they can call any time. I’m out in the streets doing outreach, so when I see them I treat them no differently from the first day that I met them, which means a lot to them. We want people to know that we’re human— don’t have that sympathy and pity for us—poor her, poor her. No, it’s just a situation happening. I need help and support to get out of it. We’re women like you. We are somebody’s child. How would you want your child to be treated if this happened to her? No one’s exempt from this. The women involved in this didn’t cause this. The facts here are a woman’s caught up in a very violent situation and as a community we need to come together and embrace her, otherwise why should she get out of it? The American myth of individualism tells people who are struggling with addiction, abuse, mental illness or poverty to simply pull themselves up by their own bootstraps. In reality, specially designed services and other kinds of support are essential to the process of transformation. This column is the second in an occasional series that will explore what it takes to Forget the Bootstraps in order to live a better life. Seeking the Wild Cleanliness CONTINUED FROM P.AGE 7 Black Coat,” I was coasting down Reading Road into Over-the-Rhine in my ’73 yellow Plymouth Valiant in the rain. As the song vibrated my frayed speakers, Kent Wright asked, “Who sings this?” Kent was 10 years older than me. He was a temporary worker and my assistant supervisor. We were on our way home from the Pauline Warfield Lewis Center at 11 at night. Rainwater splashed around my balding tires. I supervised a crew of 13 janitors, all mentally ill client-workers, part of a mangled recovery program. (We were in the habit of calling managed care “mangled care.”) Kent smelled of sweat and alcohol in the damp smoky car. I puffed on a strong filter-less cigarette, braking for the light at the corner of Liberty and Reading. “It sounds like Bob Dylan,” I said, “but I’ve never heard it before.” I had given up drinking nine months earlier, and the tangy alcohol smell on Kent was frustrating. He wasn’t considered one of the clients because he was a temp worker. His black skin glistened in the wet light of Cincinnati’s deep struggling night. “Where do you want me to drop you?” I asked. “It don’t matter,” he said. “Anywhere along here.” I wondered where he was going, what his home was like right now … but I had to take care of myself first. That meant getting home, up the three flights into the big high-ceilinged rooms where I must get to sleep to wake early to go tutor English at the university tomorrow. The cigarette smoke tickled my nose as Bob Dylan’s nasal voice rattled. Earlier Kent and I had played basketball oneon-one in the hospital gymnasium as the crew finished putting away the orange and black vacuums, yellow and orange buckets and long-handled mops. By now they knew the routine. The new workers followed the example of the old-timers. Kent kept me puzzled with this amazing scoop move under the hoop. He switched his dribble in the lane from left to right, then made a figure in the air as his right hand swept the ball away from my reach. Neither of us had an outside game. Kent was bigger, heavier, but quicker. I had the reach and height advantage, though. We both smoked and wheezed with fatigue as we approached 11 points one by one. I felt I had to establish some kind of dominance over this man so that he wouldn’t undermine my authority with the rest of the crew. Kent knew floor product, stripping and waxing and the scrubbing machine better than I did. And he knew he knew. It was best to let him work alone. But, then I might find him on a phone in an office, not working, or smoking in a non-designated area. If I could beat sted in Adv erti Intere sin gi Affordable Rates tvibes? tree nS Kent in one-on-one it would mean a lot. Bob came into the gym just as I scored, rising gracefully over Kent with a right-handed finger roll. Bob had been a welder. He had a pocked gray face from when an acetylene regulator blew up in his face. Two days earlier I had come up behind him in an office as he was eating fried chicken out of a wastebasket. “Bob,” I said, “You had lunch with the crew. You don’t need that.” “Oh, man, it’s habit.” He looked at the floor, kicking at the carpet. “I was homeless back in ’82 and I just got into the habit. Now when I see food, I just can’t help …” “It’s OK. There’s no shame in having been homeless. I’ve been there, too.” “Yeah. You won’t tell Nate.” “No,” I said. Kent stood and waited, his hands on his hips. His shirt was soaked through, rings of sweat around his eyes beaded. “Man, that was a move. Do it again.” I dribbled with my right hand, turned with my back to him, crossed the dribble, spun into a reverse pivot and swept past him to the basket. “That’s 11!” I said. “You can’t win,” he said. Many sizes (full page, 1/2 page, 1/4 page, 1/8 page) Black & White and Color available Contact Lynne at 513-421-7803 ext. 11 or lynneausman@cincihomeless.org Call 513-421-7803 x11 to learn about Streetvibes subscriptions �STREETVIBES August 1-14, 2010 11 Housing Issues Granny Flats & Backyard Cottages Accessory dwelling units could be the fix By Michelle Dillingham Contributing Writer I have always suspected that the problem of homelessness was in some way related to the lack of affordable housing. My suspicion was confirmed when I read what Nan Roman, president of the National Alliance to End Homelessness, has written: “The solution to homelessness is housing.” It’s interesting how so many people try to make it about something else. Seeking policy solutions to our local affordablehousing crisis, I again ventured in search of best practices and found Seattle’s Affordable Housing Report supporting the idea of “accessible dwelling units.” Whenever I research a best practice being used to help alleviate the lack of affordable housing, I inevitably find myself reading zoning codes, alas. This adventure was no different as I delved into the fascinating world of accessible dwelling units or “ADUs.” The ADU has been defined a few different ways, but the simplest definition I found is: “An accessory dwelling unit is a habitable living unit that provides the basic requirements of shelter, heating, cooking and sanitation.” Homes with detached garages, daylight basements, two-story homes, larger homes and alley access apparently lend themselves to ADUs. Simply put, an ADU is any dwelling that is secondary to the main dwelling but that can provide adequate facilities to be an independent living unit. In 2008 the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) released a report, “Accessory Dwelling Units: Case Study,” that explains how the rise in popularity of the ADU can be attributed to the need for smaller housing despite a large stock of large houses with surplus space and a growing elderly population that hopes to “age in place.” HUD’s report looks favorably upon this housing option and notes other positives: ADUs can assist homeowners to bring in additional revenue by having tenants pay rent. Companionship or services are other benefits. ADUs add affordable units to existing housing, which is as an efficient use of existing housing stock and infrastructure. ADUs offer units in single-family neighborhoods for people at various stages of their life cycle or for people with disabilities who want to live independently but still can be close to needed support. Opposition comes in its usual form: concern about increases in parking and traffic, decreases in property values, the threat to the “single-family character” of a neighborhood. However, these concerns have not been borne out in cities that have allowed ADUs with zoning regulations that provide controls. In a quick on-line search of the city of Cincinnati’s zoning code, I saw no reference of ADUs or cottages. Supporters like the fact that there would be a decreased need for government subsidies, presumably because there would be more affordable “market rate” ADU units available. Also, new housing units are created while the look of a single-dwelling development is maintained. ADUs provide a means for senior citizens, single parents or families with grown children to remain in their homes and neighborhoods and obtain extra income. Most compelling to me is that the ADU can provide a broader range of accessible and more affordable housing. I encourage affordable-housing advocates to explore these creative ways to identify more affordable housing – affordably. There are a seemingly endless number of resources online to help communities codify zoning to support ADUs. For example, Vermont has a great brochure online that provides a wonderful synopsis of ADUs, “Adding an Apartment to Your House: New Opportunities for Homeowners: Accessory Dwelling Units.” At a Bar Near You: Guns R Us Ohio prepares to let firearms in saloons By Nicholas Hoesl Contributing Writer I n the Gulf of Mexico, we know that oil and water don’t mix. What about guns and alcohol? Ohio permit holders cannot yet carry loaded handguns into bars, restaurants and sports stadiums, but Senate Bill 239 breezed to passage. Some say it was “ram-rodded.” It passed without any meetings to hash out compromises on both sides of the aisle. Who said bipartisanship is dead? Earlier this year the National Rifle Association (NRA) helped passengers to tote guns on Amtrak, hardly as an effort to boost ridership. Then an amendment allowing concealed weapons in national parks was snuck into the popular creditcard reform bill. Now you’re safe from people and bears. There’s more. Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives have agreed to a special exemption from new finance-disclosure laws for the NRA. They’re on a roll. What next? How about opening up the Cincinnati Zoo to those packing heat? Get a gun lobby to sponsor “Gun Day” – great practice before going to the big parks. Of course, endangered species would be off-limits. Now that we have casino-style gambling at church festivals, introducing a few loose cannons into the crowd would liven things up. If this sounds far-fetched, last year 200 people showed up for “Take Your Gun to Church Day” in Kentucky. I don’t know if “Praise the Lord and Pass the Ammunition” was the favorite hymn. Not to be outdone, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal recently signed yet another “Bring Your Gun to Church” bill. The city of Kennesaw, Ga., went beyond the right to bear arms. By law, every home in that city must have a gun. Do you remember the incident in Watford City, North Dakota, when a rancher gunned down three men at an American Legion club after he was served two glasses of what he called “unsatisfactory beer?” In my neighborhood, a bar went out of business after a murder took place there. On the door of my library is a sign, “No Concealed Weapons.” Just keep it all up front. If you’re in a long line, does a gun get you better service? Do saloonkeepers believe that guns in bars will boost sales or bring back the smokers, or do they long for the blazing saddles of the Wild West? Can time-honored gentlemen’s duels be far behind? I’m all for honoring a long tradition. Every American should be allowed one single-shot, muzzle-loading flintlock musket. Today’s guns should be at least as hard to get as a fishing or driver’s license. There are well-meaning folks who believe that, if we gave a gun to everyone who entered a plane, it would be a real deterrent to terrorists. I first heard that one from Archie Bunker. Our recent gun-slinging culture has evolved from the Saturday Night Special to the Sunday Street Sweeper. Buy a sweeper and you can skip target practice. It’s as easy as shooting fish in a barrel. Another tip: Pass over the licensed gun dealers and go to the gun shows, where few questions are asked and there’s no IQ test. Pick up a few hotpotato grenades. The NRA endorsed Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland after he said he would sign the bars-restaurant bill if it passes in the Ohio House of Representatives. It wasn’t long ago that U.S. Sen. George Voinovich commented on Ohio’s proposed concealed-weapons law: “If guns made us safer, we’d be the safest country on Earth.” Keep in mind that our governor hails from the south end of the state, where people still talk of the feuding Hatfields and McCoys. Never mind that the Fraternal Order of Police, county sheriffs, police chiefs and state associations representing county prosecutors all called this bill a dangerous idea. The politicians seem to be saying, “What do they know?” and “They don’t have the gun lobbies on their backs.” In the past election, Democrats got $1.2 million from the NRA. This could be more than a shotgun wedding. Nicholas Hoesl is a retired pharmacist and author from Westwood. Want more Streetvibes? Check out the Streetvibes blog http://streetvibes.wordpress.com �12 STREETVIBES August 1-14, 2010 Issues I’m So Far West that I’m East CONTINUED FROM P.AGE 8 surrounding our translator, who was taking the picture, to watch the photograph be taken. Rolling Blackouts July 11 Bangladesh is still considered a Third World country. However, the country’s economy and world presence is growing quickly, especially in the garment industry. As a result, there are rolling blackouts constantly. At first, all of us would stop and wait for the generators to kick on before continuing what we were doing. However, we all noticed that no one else seems to notice the blackouts. Last night solidified in all of our minds how much we have adapted to the blackouts in such a short time. There were six of us hanging out in my hotel room at the end of the day when the lights went out and the dull hum of electricity went out, and we all kept talking and carrying on like nothing had even happened. By far the safest and possibly easiest way to get around, other than walking, is by hiring a car and driver for the day. It’s pretty cheap – usually between 200 and 500 taka per person for the day. Yesterday 10 of us decided to go to Bashundhara City, the largest shopping mall in Southeast Asia. We had the hotel hire us a van. We all piled in and three blocks later we were sitting on the side of a road with an over-heated vehicle in 100-degree heat and 100 percent humidity. However, in order to get to a safe place to pull over, we had to do a U-turn into oncoming traffic – and I’m serious about the oncoming traffic, large buses, rickshaws and other cars coming straight for us as we go the wrong way on the wrong side of the road. The driver called another driver, and off we went to the mall. This gigantic mall has eight floors of shops of all kinds. I purchased a pair of Gucci sunglasses, priced at 2,000 taka. I paid 1,500 taka after some haggling – for a total of about $25. I also purchased some scarves and gifts. We had the opportunity to meet Muhammad Yunus yesterday. “Each of us have the capacity to change the world,” he said. Sirajgonj July 18 In the village we spent most of our time visiting Grameen loan recipients and learning about how Grameen has changed their lives. We spoke with a new borrower, an experienced borrower, a student loan recipient, a struggling member and Grameen Bank staff. We also spent a good amount of time just hanging out outside the bank, where villagers would stop by because they heard foreigners were in town. We stayed at the bank branch in two rooms – no air conditioning (mosquito nets a must), giant roaches, spiders, geckos and squat toilets. We were lucky. One of the other groups didn’t have showers and had to use a bucket on the roof. Oftentimes we would be hanging out in our room after dinner, playing a card game and several children would sneak upstairs and get us to come outside. When we went outside, 20 or more people would be in the yard waiting to see us and teach us some Bangla phrases. The children would A micro-loan helped this woman make a large profit on her purchase of a cow. Lynne Ausman. beg to have their pictures taken – mostly so that they could see themselves on the camera screen. We also visited a local primary school where the children sang songs and showed off their English skills. Neighborhood Rejects Takeover CONTINUED FROM P.AGE 4 park,” Neumeier said. “Who’s going to be living in Over-the-Rhine?” The planned destruction of the trees was especially galling to participants in the rally, held when the temperature was in the mid-90s. A linden tree estimated to be 80 years old is among those scheduled to be destroyed. Johnny Ridley first talked about swim meets he participated in at the Washington Park Pool when he was a child. Then he pleaded for the trees to be saved. “I don’t want to see the trees cut,” he said. “If it weren’t for the trees, we’d be burning up right now.” Theater director Michael Burnham talked about the way other cultures regard old trees, including England and Germany. He mentioned the German immigrants who settled in Over-the-Rhine in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, giving the neighborhood its name. “You are sitting in the living room of the city of Cincinnati, the one place where you can go when it’s hot and there is shade,” Burnham said. “Linden trees grow here. They also grow in Germany, where they are considered sacred. We had some German folks here. Ever wonder how that tree got here 80 years ago? If we lose that tree, what does it say about who we are?” Burnham led a ritual in which he twirled with a watering can, watering the condemned trees and inviting the crowd to join him in dedicating the trees to the people who run 3CDC, their ancestors and descendants. “We dedicate you in the name of those who would cut you down,” Burnham said. “In their name, we dedicate you to their ancestors, who may have known better. And we dedicate you in their name to their children’s children for as long as it takes to grow a tree, so that they may know better.” Become a fan of Streetvibes on Facebook! Streetvibes vendors keep 75% of sales. Consider helping Streetvibes with our publication costs by Streetvibes is the activist newspaper, advocating justice, building community. Your gift is tax-deductible and will go to producing the paper every two weeks. Started in 1997, Streetvibes is distributed by homeless and formerly homeless vendors who Make checks payable to “Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless” $25 Please return your contribution to: GCCH 117 E. 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 Name: Address: $50 $100 $150 Other $ _______ �STREETVIBES August 1-14, 2010 13 Poetry The Mockingbird that Never Died Celebrating a classic novel’s anniversary By Lew Moores Contributing Writer J ean Louise “Scout” Finch is a tomboy. She is 6 years old as the story begins, has taught herself to read even before the first grade, yet hates the idea of going to school, addresses her father by his first name and refuses to back away from – indeed, even initiates - a good physical fight with boys. She lives in fictional Maycomb, Alabama. The Great Depression began a couple of years earlier and FDR is president. Maycomb was an old town, but it was a tired old town when I first knew it. In rainy weather the streets turned to red slop; grass grew on the sidewalks, the courthouse sagged in the square. … There was no hurry, for there was nowhere to go, nothing to buy and no money to buy it with, nothing to see outside the boundaries of Maycomb County. But it was a time of vague optimism for some of the people: Maycomb County had recently been told that it had nothing to fear but fear itself. The story is told through Scout’s eyes. She lives with her brother, Jem, and father, Atticus Finch, a lawyer. At the outset, she and Jem befriend a boy named Dill, who is spending the summer with his aunt, who lives next door; and they spend much of their time early in this classic novel figuring out how to flush out a neighborhood recluse named Boo Radley. It was Dill, Scout points out, who “first gave us the idea of making Boo Radley come out.” But while this coming-of-age novel starts off as an evolving story of a child’s awe of the mysterious and a child-like excitement over a pending sense of adventure, it quickly becomes a more profound exploration and examination of race and class and poverty, of the evil and the noble, in the Deep South of Depression-era America. A quick summary: Atticus Finch is asked to defend an AfricanAmerican man accused of raping and beating a white woman at a time when rape was a capital offense and black men could be extra-legally lynched just for whistling at a white woman. Part of the canon This year marks the 50th anniversary of the 1960 publication of Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, a book that won the Pulitzer Prize for fiction in 1961, was made into an award-winning film in 1962, has sold, by media accounts, more than 30 million copies over the years, and is widely taught in high schools across the country. One media account noted that in 1988 the novel was being taught in 74 percent of the country’s public schools. The 50th anniversary is being marked across the country with readings, panel discussions, music and performances at libraries, bookstores and other public forums. The New York Times noted in late May that at least 50 events had been planned. The National Endowment for the Arts has issued a list of discussion questions for those studying the novel – “How does Atticus quietly protest Jim Crow laws even before Tom Robinson’s trial?” – as well as the historical context of civil rights in the United States. The New York Times also noted that recent sales of the book have been “robust,” especially in the South and in the Midwest in states like Ohio, Indiana and Illinois. HarperCollins, the novel’s publisher, notes on its Web site that most events took place last month, with another handful this month and more in September, from Mobile, Ala., to Boston to Des Moines, Iowa. In Cincinnati, the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center marked the anniversary by showing the film July 11. More than 30 school-age children from Dayton attended. Andrea Faulkner is the manager for English/ Language Arts curriculum for Cincinnati Public Schools. While the novel is not required reading at CPS, many teachers have taught the novel. “It’s being taught at different grade levels, mostly at the high-school level,” she says. “We supply a district-adopted textbook. Many teachers supplement that textbook with novels that are part of the English canon.” Faulkner taught the novel for eight school years while she was an English teacher in Brown County and at Northwest Local School District in Colerain Township. She chose to teach the novel. She says she always prepped her class for what they were about to read, the history of Jim Crow, of the Depression, about Harper Lee and how this would become her only work (she is now 84 years old), an introduction to some of the characters her students would meet in the novel and also the language. The phrase “nigger-lover” is quite common in the text, and the alleged crime is rape. How did she deal with the language in the book? “I pre-warned every group of students I had,” Faulkner says. “But I’m going to teach the book as written. I tell the students, ‘When it’s your turn to read, if you choose to leave that out, I respect that, but I don’t want you to replace it with anything.’ I asked my African American students, ‘Am I offending you by doing this?’ I asked my white students the same. It’s also part of our standards to teach how language changes, is affected by events and time. “As you teach it, you take the children and have them go back and look at how they would respond to this injustice. Now this is the 1930s and you’re white, so how do you respond? You’re African American, how do you respond? Female, how do you respond?” Faulkner asks her students to transport themselves back close to 80 years to and step into the shoes of a character from the 1930s, much as Atticus asks Scout to “climb into his skin and walk around in it,” referring to anyone whose motives are hard to fathom. Were Faulkner’s students able to appreciate the events that took place during the Depression, with a pre-civil rights-era America? “It depended on the group of kids and on how much detail I would need to go into,” she says. “Depression, they got – especially Brown County, where there is quite a bit of poverty. A lot of students could understand poverty. The Depression was not the big issue. It was trying to understand the racial issues.” Could they wrap themselves around the racial issues? “They can,” Faulkner says. “It just takes a little more exposure. They have very limited exposure.” ‘Moral Ritalin’? Mockingbird is more often taught at the highschool level, rather than college, according to Jennifer Glaser, assistant professor of English and comparative literature at the University of Cincinnati. “That’s primarily because of the age of the main characters and the fact that it has become a classic adolescent fiction,” Glaser writes in an e-mail. “Coming-of-age novels are often absent from American lit curricula. Sometimes, for better or worse, the popularity of a novel keeps it out of the college classroom as well. “However, I think there’s definitely room for (Mockingbird) in the college English department. The novel brings up a lot of important issues about the history of American attitudes toward race, the use of pejorative language for African Americans and the like. I think it would invigorate discussion for many college students and would let them compare how their own attitudes toward race have changed from the first time they’ve read the novel until now.” Glaser has never taught the novel at the college level. “Although I think it could be a great book to teach in a class that focused on American attitudes toward race, Southern literature,” Glaser writes. “What’s interesting about Lee’s novel is the way in which it provides a particular snapshot of the Jim Crow South of Harper Lee’s childhood. If I were teaching the novel, I would definitely talk about how important Lee’s exploration of racism in the South was, but I’d also allow my students the room to be critical of the work and some of its pieties. The writer Malcolm Gladwell recently published a great critique of the novel/film in the New Yorker that I’d have my students read alongside all the glowing criticism the novel has inspired.” The piece Glaser refers to appeared in an August issue of the New Yorker last year. The piece is provocative. Gladwell calls the fictional Atticus a “Jim Crow liberal” and compares him to some Southern politicians of the 1950s, such as Gov. Jim Folsom of Alabama, who believed that African Americans should be accommodated, treated well, with a sense of noblesse oblige. They should be treated with a sense of neighborliness. But that didn’t mean legally ending segregation or opening polling places. Atticus Finch was one of them. He didn’t rail against injustice, was in no way a political or civil-rights activist. He accepts with stoicism – we’ll appeal – Tom Robinson’s guilty verdict. “If Finch were a civil-rights hero, he would be brimming with rage at the unjust verdict,” Gladwell writes. “But he isn’t. He’s not Thurgood Marshall looking for racial salvation through the law. He’s Jim Folsom, looking for racial salvation through hearts and minds. “Here is where the criticism of Finch begins, because the hearts-and-minds approach is about accommodation, not reform.” Others have chipped away. Thomas Mallon, writing in the New Yorker in 2006, on the publication of a biography of Harper Lee, called Atticus a “plaster saint,” and said that if the novel were widely read in public schools, “it is less because the novel was likely to stimulate students toward protest than because it acted as a kind of moral Ritalin.” The syndicated columnist Kathleen Parker, writing last month on the 50th anniversary, took issue with Gladwell’s assessment. “Lee’s famous and only novel has earned scorn as critics opine about the way things should have been, not only in real life but also in the artistic treatment of the era,” Parker wrote. She is suggesting the setting is 1930s Alabama. What would you expect of Atticus Finch? William Kunstler? The late Allen Brown of Cincinnati? It would be close to another 30 years before we get to Martin Luther King Jr., Medgar Evers, civil rights and voting rights bills. ‘Stand up’ Miss Jean Louise, stand up. Your father’s passin’. It is a moving passage. Tom Robinson has just been convicted, but the African Americans in the balcony at the courthouse , from where Scout and her brother have watched the proceedings, pay homage to the man who tried to defend Robinson. One of them, the Rev. Sykes, asks Scout to stand. “The Depression era setting of the novel may seem foreign to 21st-century students, but I think Lee still makes the novel infinitely relatable by focusing on young characters who are being introduced to the pain of the adult world for the first time,” Glaser writes. “The work endures because it spoke to truths about race that still resonate in the present day. “ What did Faulkner want her students to take away from the work? “I think the major points they took away were injustice and to be intolerant of injustice,” she says. “The story appeals to today’s students. If the kids didn’t quite understand being treated poorly or persecuted because of the color of their skin, they did understand injustice. So when Tom is found guilty, the kids, just like Scout, are mad. “What excites me is just the desire of our young people to read.” �14 Have something on your mind? Want to comment on an article or vendor? STREETVIBES August 1-14, 2010 Let us know: 117 E. 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 streetvibes2@yahoo.com If you like what you read, but don’t live in the Cincinnati area, you can subscribe to Streetvibes. Call us at 513-421-7803 x 12 to learn more about subscribing to Streetvibes. �15 Resources STREETVIBES August 1-14, 2010 Need Help or Want to Help? Shelter: Women and Children 4230 Hamilton Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45223 FreeStore/FoodBank Central Access Point Bethany House 381-SAFE 557-2873 1841 Fairmount Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45214 Grace Place Catholic Worker House 681-2365 112 E. Liberty Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Madisonville Ed & Assistance Center 271-5501 4600 Erie Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45227 Serves area codes: 45226, 45227, 45208, 45209 St. Vincent de Paul 6037 Cary Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45224 Salvation Army 762-5660 241-1064 562-8841 872-9259 357-4602 352-2902 352-6363 40 E. McMicken Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mental Health Access Point Mercy Franciscan at St. John 558-8888 981-5800 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 NAMI of Hamilton County PATH Outreach 1125 Bank Street, Cinti, Ohio 45214 131 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter Health Resource Center Homeless Mobile Health Van McMicken Dental Clinic 458-6670 977-4489 Treatment: Men Other Resources Shelter: Men Charlie’s 3/4 House 784-1853 921-1613 Center Independent Living Options Emmanuel Community Center 961-2256 Peaslee Neighborhood Center 2121 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 City Gospel Mission 241-5525 Prospect House Justice Watch 241-0490 St. Fran/St. Joe Catholic Work. House 381-4941 Starting Over 1419 Elm Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 682 Hawthorne Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45205 Franciscan Haircuts from the Heart 961-4663 2203 Fulton, Cinti, Ohio 45206 Treatment: Both 761-1480 1821 Summit Road, Cinti, Ohio 45237 Drop Inn Center 721-0643 471-1100 221-3350 3330 Jefferson, Cinti, Ohio 45220 Housing: CMHA Excel Development OTR Community Housing 721-4580 632-7149 381-1171 114 W. 14th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tender Mercies 721-8666 27 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tom Geiger House Dana Transitional Bridge Services Volunteers of America Anna Louise Inn 621-5300 961-1983 OTR: 1620 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Walnut Hills: 2631 Gilbert, Cinti, Ohio 45206 Our Daily Bread 621-6364 1730 Race Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 St. Francis Soup Kitchen Churches Active in Northside 241-2965 Hamilton County ADAS Board Recovery Health Access Center Sober Living Talbert House 946-4888 281-7422 681-0324 641-4300 People Working Cooperatively The Caring Place United Way Women Helping Women Off The Streets 351-7921 631-1114 211 977-5541 768-6924 St. Raephaels Salvation Army Serenity House Day Center Open Door Pantry 863-3184 863-1445 422-8555 868-3276 Advocacy Northern Kentucky Catholic Social Action Community Action Agency Contact Center 421-3131 569-1840 381-4242 859-491-8303 799 Ann St. Newport, KY 579-8547 241-9400 421-1108 363-3300 421-2437 621-1868 Women’s Crisis Center VA Domiciliary VA Homeless 117 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Intercommunity Justice & Peace Cr. Legal Aid Society Ohio Justice & Policy Center Faces Without Places Stop AIDS Brighton Center ECHO/Hosea House Fairhaven Resuce Mission Homeward Bound Youth Mathews House Homeless & Housing Coalition Parish Kitchen Pike St. Clinic Transitions, Inc Welcome House of NKY Franciscan JPIC 721-4700 Gr. Cinti Coalition for the Homeless 421-7803 859-261-5857 859-491-1027 859-581-1111 859-261-8009 859-727-0926 859-581-7745 859-291-9321 859-491-4435 859-431-8717 205 West Pike Street, Covington, KY 41011 Health Center for Respite Care 3550 Washington Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45229 535-2719 591-2246 771-4800 751-0600 721-4811 Hamilton/Middletown 1522 Republic Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 1227 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 961-4555 751-0643 381-1954 421-5211 Food/Clothing Lord’s Pantry OTR/Walnut Hills Kitchen & Pantry 351-0422 381-6672 830 Ezzard Charles Dr. Cinti, Ohio 45214 Joseph House (Veterans) 217 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Interfaith Hospitality Network Lighthouse Youth Center (Youth) AA Hotline CCAT Goodwill industries Healing Connections Mary Magdalen House 1223 Main St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 2728 Glendora Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45209 Caracole (HIV/AIDS) 381-0111 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 First Step Home 961-4080 621-5514 214 E. 14th St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 661-4620 Shelter: Both Anthony House (Youth) 1308 Race St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 Treatment: Women 1437 Walnut Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mt. Airy Shelter 241-2600 241-2563 Crossroad Health Center 5 E. Liberty St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 381-2247 859-491-3335 859-559-5011 859-572-6226 �16 Artists as Activists STREETVIBES August 1-14, 2010 Barbara Gamboa’s Life-Canvas Barbara Gamboa in front of her painting, Guerlain, the Song of Haiti. Bill Howes. Freedom fighter wages art A s a teenager, Barbara Gamboa was known as “the freedom rider.” The youngest person in the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE), she would spend her free time designing signs and posters to be used in marches and demonstrations. This was in the mid-1960s, when segregation was prominent and the civil rights movement expanding. Gamboa, of African American origin, was born A rtists ctivists as By Saad Ghosn Contributing Writer in Selma, Ala., a city the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. put on the activists’ map. At age 4 she came to Cincinnati to join her parents, who had preceded her, leaving their fields in the deep South for a new and free life, working in the kitchen of downtown’s Mills Restaurant. In Cincinnati, she lived in many places, and as a child, art would always busy her hands. “Art came to me very early,” Gamboa says. “I would draw pictures in the sand, paint with nail polish and charcoal pieces, make dolls and clothes from paper bags, create designs from chewinggum foil …” High-school art teacher and well-known Cincinnati artist Jack Mueller recognized Gamboa’s talent and encouraged her to attend the Art Academy. Tuition was high, though, and not knowing what to do, Gamboa, 17, joined the army to become a surgical nurse. She worked mostly in the operating room, in an orthopedic treatment center in Fort Gordon, Ga., witnessing many limb amputations due to the Vietnam War. The violence she encountered then has stayed with her ever since. After three years in the army and an interlude living in California, Gamboa returned to Cincinnati, now married with children. She decided to pursue her education, earning a master’s degree in education, focusing on developmental disability, at the University of Cincinnati. For more than 25 years she taught disabled and emotionally or behaviorally impaired children in the Cincinnati Public Schools. Whether in high school, in the army, unemployed or teaching children, Gamboa always used art as a means for self-expression and as a tool to achieve her social and educational objectives. In high school, she used her art for justice and equality. In the army, her paintings addressed problems of poverty and malnutrition in Biafra and the colonialist wars in Africa at the time. While teaching, she used art to engage her students, introduce important concepts, address timely issues and illustrate history. To help her students learn to read, she drew images, connecting them to words. Teaching black history, she used collages from old newspapers creating artistically attractive bulletin boards to capture kids’ interest and attention. For each subject taught she would organize her art to coincide with the topic, art becoming itself part of the learning. During that period Gamboa received four teacher art grants from the “Keep Cincinnati Beautiful” program. The grants funded her use of photography to teach kids about the environment, recycling and community values. She and her students traveled the city, taking photographs about environmental issues. The grant also helped start school gardens, teaching children about foods, their origins, their role in a healthful diet and a green environment. Five years ago Gamboa retired from teaching. The violence she had experienced both in the army and dealing with kids’ problems resurfaced as post-traumatic stress disorder, causing her heart arrhythmia. Having more free time, she started making art daily; it helped her recovery. Gambo’s art addresses race, slavery and other issues. “All issues are whole, interconnected, generalized,” she says. “Their causes stem from the same well. It is not only black and white; it is most often good and evil, right and wrong.” Good Ship Fidelity, a mixed media sculpture, represents a small boat in which she positioned, naked, hair cut and chained, Barbie dolls she painted silver. It reconstituted, based on historic diagrams, the physical reality of a slave boat. “While making this piece, I was always in tears,” she says. “It made me relate directly and emotionally to the fate of thousands of my distant relatives; (it) also put me in touch with the bigotry and injustice still prevailing in our society.” Gamboa features dolls and baby figures in other installations. She uses them as innocent, vulnerable indicators and victims of neglect and violence. “When I was young, I thought more in terms of race,” she says. “Now I realize that, in our maledominated society gender … control and domination of women is often the real issue.” Her painting, Guerlain, the Song of Haiti, is about poor indigenous living conditions of Haiti, perceived as a tropical paradise by insensitive tourists. Upstream is about Katrina and the wiping away of family structure as a result of the physical ravage. In The Greeting, a woman in the background, a hummingbird and lush vegetation depict her longing for a welcoming garden. When not doing her own art, Gamboa curates shows, bringing together artists of various cultural and ethnic backgrounds, connecting them by ideas and themes. The shows concretize her views of a reconciled, tolerant, happy world. I See Africa: Perceptions, Reality and Imagining, a show she recently curated at the Kennedy Heights Arts Center, allowed a group of diverse artists to bring forward their concepts of Africa, contributing to a multifaceted reality not only of the continent but also of life in general. “I am an activist through my own art,” Gamboa says, “also through my use of art to empower others. There are things I won’t bear, and I respond to them. For me, life is what counts, and kindness and good human qualities are the essence. There is no separation between my life and my art. My canvas becomes my life; both blend together.” Composite image of Good Ship Fidelity, mixed-media sculpture by Barbara Gamboa. Bill Howes. Artists as Activists is a regular column highlighting Greater Cincinnati artists who use art as a vehicle for change. Saad Ghosn is the founder of SOS Art. Ghosn can be contacted at saad.ghosn@uc.edu. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 2010 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource August 1-14, 2010 Subject The topic of the resource Homelessness Description An account of the resource Pg 1: A Joyous Hammer Strikes Again ‘Streetvibes’ Boycotts Own Award Pg 2: The Business of Journalism Pg 3: Free at Last, Now Freeing Others Pg 4: A Joyous Hammer Strikes Again Continued Pg 5: The Games Homeless Kids Play Pg 6: Homeless and Hopeless No More Learning by Serving Poor People Pg 7: Seeking the Wild Cleanliness Pg 8: I’m So far West That I’m East Pg 9: Prisoners Help Save City Pools Pg 10: Free at Last, Now Freeing Others Continued Seeking the Wild Cleanliness Continued Pg 11: Granny Flats & Backyard Cottages At a Bar Near You: Guns R Us Pg 12: I’m So Far West That I’m East Continued Pg 13: The Mockingbird that Never Died Pg 14: Information is Power Pg 15: Resources Pg 16: Barbara Gamboa’s Life-Canvas Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Streetvibes Archive Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Streetvibes Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource August 1-14, 2010 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Gregory Flannery Lynne Ausman Veronica Glass Jeni Jenkins Michelle Dillingham Samantha Groark Margo Pierce Paul Kopp Jeremy Flannery Michael Henson David Heitfield Corey Gibson Saad Ghosn Lew Moores Larry Gross Eli Braun Steven Paul Lansky B. Clifton Burke Michael Fanning Aimie Willhoite Anne Skove Vinit Murthy Jon Hughes Lynn Baker Jeremy Flannery Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF 3CDC Aimie Willhoite Anne Skove B. Clifton Burke Bangladesh Barbara Gamboa Boycotts Cincinnati Corey Gibson David Heitfield Eli Braun Gregory Flannery Gregory Flint Jeni Jenkins Jeremy Flannery Jon Hughes Journalism Larry Gross Lew Moores Lynn Baker Lynne Ausman Margo Pierce Michael Fanning Michael Henson Michelle Dillingham Ohio Paul Kopp Prisoners Protests Saad Ghosn Samantha Groark Steven Paul Lansky Streetvibes To Kill a Mockingbird Veronica Glass Vinit Murthy https://streetvibesarchive.net/files/original/3ef2bd0f6885627309b2386691f10a2f.pdf 0553b2729b0a06d34ee5cb0fcacc2a28 PDF Text Text Northside Parade Page 3 Golden Wanton Page 7 July 15-31, 2010 • Issue 181 • One Dollar ADVOCATING JUSTICE • BUILDING COMMUNITY Championing the Workers’ Rights Workers hope to unionize window manufacturer By Paul Kopp O Workers picket Champion Windows, where a union vote will be held this month. Jon Hughes/Photopresse. ne moment during a recent rally outside Champion Windows and Doors in Sharonville could be seen as an example of the crisis haunting the capitalist system, as the rising tension between factory workers and management escalates. The factory’s shifts are changing and Charles Amos, a former Champion factory worker, is walking along the side of the road, talking to many of his former co-workers as they leave or arrive to work. Suddenly another car leaving the factory complex speeds up, heading straight for Amos – finally swerving at the last second to avoid hitting him and a few other former workers and union organizers close by. Amos and the others identify the driver as one of their supervisors at the factory. Amos is perhaps the most spirited protester in attendance. Holding a sign showing the salary of Champion owner and CEO Dennis Manes, square footage of his home and other personal information, Amos stands close to each passing car, repeating variations of the same sentiment to each driver: A change is going to come. See CHAMPION P. 4 The Trail of Tears, Trail of Death U.S. policies are killing migrant workers By Janice Sevre-Duszynska " The U.S./Mexican border es una herida abierta (an open wound) where the Third World grates against the First and bleeds. And, before the scab forms, it hemorrhages again, the life blood of the wounds merging to form a third country – a border culture.” – Gloria Anzaldua, Borderlands/La Frontier: The New Mestiza. Sonoran Desert folk say that before one dies in the desert – from extreme heat and dehydration – he becomes delusional. He strips off his clothes and covers himself in the sand, heating himself up even further. As his body gives way, scorpions, spiders, insects, snakes and other animals invade as the huge turkey vultures swoop down and begin their meal. Since 1994, with the implementation of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and U.S. border policies that channel migrants to the deadliest part of the Sonoran Desert, it is estimated that more than 5,000 migrants from Mexico and Central America have died on the U.S.-Mexico border in Arizona/Sonora. Many succumb to unbearable temperatures above 110 degrees. Others are never found as they dissolve into that which is part of the desert. Activist march in support of migrants. Janice Sevre-Duszynska On May 30, in an act of solidarity with migrants and to raise awareness of their plight, people from across the country and world participated in the sixth annual Migrant Trail Walk, a 75-mile, sevenday trek from Sasabe-Sonora to Tucson. “Today, as we celebrate the 520th weekly community vigil, 10 years of bearing witness to the human casualties of the deadly border policies of militarization and enforcement imposed on border communities, we cannot help but continue to ask when this madness will stop,” said Kat Rodriguez, coordinator of the Tucson-based Coalicion de Derechos Humanos (the Coalition of Human Rights), a non-governmental organization. The continued increase in the recovery of skeletal remains indicates that more individuals are being funneled into more isolated and desolate terrain of the Arizona-Sonora border, the organization reports. See TEARS P. 4 �2 The Vibe By The Numbers 33 million The amount, in dollars, of a levy voters approved in Seattle for affordable housing (see page 11). 1990 The year Jerry Judge took a writing workshop that changed his life (see page 16). 5,000 The number of migrants estimated to have died crossing the Sonoran Desert to Arizona (see page 1). 10.5 The Cincinnati unemployment rate, as a percentage of the labor pool (see page 6). 10-14 The number of unfair-labor charges against that a union might file against a window manufacturer (see page 1). 100 The number of days a 1,000-year-old egg is buried before being served (see page 7). 215 The number of the ballot proposition by which California voters legalized medicinal marijuana (see page 6). A few The number of months Stephanie Meinberg has been buying Streetvibes (see page 14). StreetWise By Gregory Flannery Editor 3CDC and the Stench of Death All non-profits are not created equal. In fact, some exist for the purpose of maximizing the profits of others. Take the Cincinnati Center City Development Corp. (3CDC) – please! Created by Cincinnati City Council and the corporations that rule the city, 3CDC is now embarked on taking over Washington Park and turning it into a playground for patrons of Music Hall and the new urbanists who move into condos developed after 3CDC kicks out the poor. The transition will be complete after 3CDC, with the help of Mayor Mark Mallory and Vice Mayor Roxanne Qualls (remember when she was considered a “liberal”?) succeed in kicking out the Drop Inn Center, many of whose residents like to sojourn in the park, along with those residents of Over-the-Rhine who haven’t yet been forced out. “Despite neighborhood outcry, 3CDC has removed the only Over-the-Rhine deep-water pool and the basketball park from the plan and added a dog park that was not asked for,” says Josh Spring, executive director of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. “Now 3CDC plans to remove dozens of historic trees, eliminate the street parking touching the park while creating their own parking garage below the north end of the park. To make matters far worse, 3CDC has presented no plan for where people will go while the park is shut down for up to 14 months. The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless has demanded that a portion of the park remain open at all times, that construction be staggered or that a temporary alternative site be named. The fact is that in a neighborhood made of concrete, if there is no place for people to ‘legally loiter’ conflict will increase. Neighborhoods need parks and nature. People need buffer zones between themselves and concrete and business and sometimes other people.” City council recently approved funding for the Great Park Takeaway. Now the dead themselves are objecting to the takeover. Seems 3CDC will have to come up with a plan for dealing with the remains of the people buried on the land that now houses Washington Park. Stay tuned. Yes, it’s come to this: In its pursuit of profit, 3CDC will dig up human remains. One Killed, One Spared The state of Ohio is now on track to execute more people in a single year than Texas, long the nation’s premier death-dealer. In May Ohio poisoned – the polite term is “lethal injection” – Michael Beuke, after having kept him in a cage for 27 years. But in June Gov. Ted Strickland granted clemency to Richard Nields, commuting his sentence to being caged for the rest of his life. The Ohio Chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union urges people to call Strickland’s office at 614-466-3555 or governor.info@governor.ohio.gov to thank him. While you’re at it, you might ask how it is that Strickland – a Democrat, an ordained minister and a former prison psychologist – can sleep at night after approving the poisoning of human beings. Judging the World Judge Mark Painter of Cincinnati, the only American on the United Nations Appeals Tribunal (UNAT), has returned to Cincinnati after the court’s second session, held for two weeks in New York City. Its first session was in March in Geneva. The court orally announced decisions on the cases July 1, in the General Assembly Hall. A synopsis of the decisions will be posted on the UN Web site later this month. The UNAT is the highest court of the new internal-justice system, which was instituted in 2009 to provide access to independent and professional courts for staff members and management. The judges were elected by the General Assembly. Cases included disputes over promotions, discipline, pensions, contract matters and many other issues. These cases continue the development of the UN internal law. Painter served as a judge in Hamilton County for 27 years, 13 on the Municipal Court followed by 14 on the Court of Appeals. STREETVIBES July 15-31, 2010 Streetvibes is an activist newspaper, advocating justice and building community. Streetvibes reports on economic issues, civil rights, the environment, the peace movement, spirituality and the struggle against homelessness and poverty. Distributed by people who are or once were homeless, in exchange for a $1 donation, Streetvibes is published twice a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Address: 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 Phone: 513.421.7803 x 12 Fax: 513.421.7813 Email: streetvibes2@yahoo. com Website: www. cincihomeless.org Blog: streetvibes.wordpress. com Streetvibes Staff Editor Gregory Flannery Art Director Lynne Ausman Graphics/Layout Nick Swartsell Veronica Glass John Peet Casey Salsinger Vendor Coordinator Jeni Jenkins Contributing Writers Michelle Dillingham, Samantha Groark, Margo Pierce, Paul Kopp, Jeremy Flannery, Michael Henson, David Heitfield, Corey Gibson, Jeni Jenkins, Saad Ghosn, Lew Moores, Larry Gross, Eli Braun, Jesse Call, B. Clifton Burke, Michael Fanning Photography/Artwork Aimie Willhoite, Lynne Ausman, Anne Skove, Vinit Murthy, Jon Hughes Proofreaders Lynn Baker Jeremy Flannery The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that works to eradicate homelessness in Cincinnati through coordination of services, public education, grassroots advocacy and Streetvibes. 27 The number of years the state of Ohio kept Michael Beuke in a cage before poisoning him (see page 2). 6 The number of days “Scabs” went without medication in the Hamilton County Justice Center4 (see page 13). We are proud members of: The United Nations Appeals Tribunal. Courtesy UN. �STREETVIBES July 15-31, 2010 Photo Essay Celebrating Independence in Style Northside has the most vibrant Independence Day celebration of any neighborhood in Greater Cincinnati, featuring progressive social and political causes. This year the neighborhood marched and held a rock 'n' roll carnival July 3, a festival of freedom, social justice and equality. Photos by Jon Hughes/Photopresse. Follow Streetvibes www.facebook.com/streetvibescincinnati twitter.com/streetvibesnews streetvibes.wordpress.com 3 �4 Local News STREETVIBES July 15-31, 2010 Championing the Workers’ Rights CONTINUED FROM P.AGE 1 “We are going to get back in,” he says. “I was fired, he was fired, she was fired (pointing at others standing around him). We’re going to get our jobs back, but I’m not coming back. I’m going to make it better for the people that will be coming back.” Unfair practices Champion has since called Amos and offered to rehire him, and he has accepted, even though he said he wouldn’t be returning. Despite the working conditions, he likes his job and is humbled by the lack of job options in this economy. He says he will continue his support for workers’ rights and the unionization of the factory workers. “The workers at Champion Windows and Doors are trying to self organize”, says John Bielak, a regional organizer for the International Ironworkers Union, who is assisting the Champion workers with their unionization process as well as with their workers’ rights issues. He says Amos was terminated on the spot for incorrectly cutting one piece of glass while another worker, who is friendly with the management, cut 35 window frames wrong and is still working at Champion. “There are a lot of things going on in there with the management with the workers’ rights and the way they are being treated – basically changes in policy against the workers, trying to hamper them and coerce them not to go union,” Bielak says. Bielak, who has been assisting the workers since March, says they have 10 to 14 complaints of unfair labor practices against Champion, which the Ironworkers Union is helping them file with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). Bielak and other union representatives have been meeting with the NLRB to set an election date for Champion workers to decide if a union will represent them. The election is scheduled for July 21. To someone driving past the factory entrance, the scene might have looked like a picket line, but in fact it was more of a protest. This is because most of the workers, even though they support the union campaign, are flying under the radar for fear of losing their jobs, according to Bielak. The few workers in attendance are mostly those who have recently been terminated. “I got hurt on the job,” says Robert Jones, who worked as a welder. “I came back and they fired me.” Jones broke his knuckle and missed three weeks of work. During the time he was gone, he signed a union card and began joining the protests outside the factory. When he returned, he says, he was told he was being let go because he missed too much work. “I had a doctor’s excuse and everything,” Jones says. Sarah Jones, his sister, was let go under similar circumstances. She missed two days of work due to an illness, which sent her to a hospital, and was let go shortly after returning. Sarah Jones says she called and left a message on the company’s voicemail saying she was sick. Her supervisors told her that they never received the message. Like her brother, Jones had also begun to openly show support for the union. ‘Pins and needles’ Bielak says that individuals who are no longer working for Champion will still be able to vote in the union representation election; but under NLRB rules, the company has the right to contest their votes. Those who feel they have been terminated due to their union activities can get their jobs back, but it is a long process. In the case of Champion, the workers will take their complaints to Bielak, who will file a complaint with the NLRB. If the board decides in favor of the workers, they will receive all the wages they missed plus interest, reinstatement of insurance benefits, as well as in anything else that was lost. It’s what they call “Make them whole,” Bielak says. Overall the problem workers seem to have with the company’s management seems to be with they way they treat their employees rather than a dispute over wages. “How can you have a supervisor who jumps on grown men and cusses them out on the floor, and then when someone says something back to him he fires them?” Robert Jones says. Jones and his sister say that, if the union wins the election, Champion will need to make a lot of changes before they would consider going back to work at the factory. Also present at the rally is Brandon Wilson, another former Champion employee, who shared an experience similar to Amos’s. Wilson says he was written up for leaving his station to use the bathroom after his work was finished, and written up and suspended yet again for using the bathroom a second time, even after he informed his supervisors it was an emergency. He was eventually let go for getting adhesive stuck to 15 pieces of glass. Wilson had also been an open supporter of the move to unionize. He was fired in early June and has since found employment elsewhere. Wilson says he has never worked for a company that is run like Champion. “It’s more like a sweatshop,” he says. “You are on pins and needles every day when you walk into that place.” Numerous attempts were made to contact representatives of Champion Windows and Doors. Inquiries were directed to CEO and owner Dennis Manes, as well as the company’s employee relations department, both of which have not returned messages. A message left on the company’s Web site was also not returned. The Trail of Tears, Trail of Death CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 “This ‘Funnel Effect,’ which has been documented by the Binational Migration Institute, has shown that the practice of sealing traditional crossing points ultimately pushes migration into the deadliest areas,” Rodriguez said. “The extent of this crisis is not known as the numbers of human remains recovered in neighboring states are not available.” 282 ribbons In 2006 I participated in the weeklong walk as a member of the Christian Peacemaker Team and BorderLinks, an interfaith educational community in Tucson. Our trek was nothing like the gauntlet of death that migrants face. The 130 of us who participated were accompanied by support vehicles and unlimited amounts of food, water and medical attention provided by interfaith communities. Still, it was challenging to walk many miles each day in the unrelenting sun. ”Where are you from?” asked a U.S. Border agent. After showing him our drivers’ license, we symbolically gave up our identifications -- as migrants do -- by placing them in a metal box. As we crossed the border into Sasabe-Sonora, Mexico, we gathered in a church to pray and be blessed on our pilgrimage by the local priest. As in the Southside Presbyterian Church in Tucson, the body on the cross in the Catholic church there was of Christ as an indigenous migrant refugee. Twelve people picked up three coffins, remembering the women, men and children who have died in the desert. Tohono O’odham Indians Maria and Jim, a married couple, blew a sage incense Migrant Trail Walk, 2006. Janice Sevre Duszynska. blessing through an eagle feather to each one of us. In their consecration, they evoked the Grandmother and Grandfather and displayed a string with 282 ribbons -- one for everyone who died in the borderland in 2005. Then we each took a wooden, white-painted cross. I chose one of a “desconocida,” an unknown woman who died in the desert heat that year. On the other side was the word “Presente.” What we held up in our hands represented the life and death of another human being. As we wandered farther into the desert, we felt haunted. All around us were signs of our migrant sisters and brothers, Christ the refugee: bandannas, discarded clothing, shoes and boots, baseballstyle caps, cowboy hats, ski caps to keep warm on cold nights, blankets, paper refuse from fastfood places and more, including an uncountable number of empty gallon jugs, many with ropes tied to them. To keep hydrated, we were to drink two to three gallons of water each day. A migrant would need around eight gallons of water to barely See TEARS P. 5 �STREETVIBES July 15-31, 2010 5 Local News The Trail of Tears, Trail of Death CONTINUED FROM P.AGE 4 survive the desert and cross over. It’s typical for migrants to cross the border at dusk, when the night vision surveillance doesn’t catch them and the buster lights haven’t been turned on. They often travel at night under the Milky Way while the whirligig sound of searching helicopters pierces the quiet desert sky. They journey until the early morning, when they’ll lie low in the unforgiving heat of the desert bush where rattlesnakes are common. The Border Patrol watches them on radar in their office through cameras called “cherry pickers,” which resemble the machines in the movie Return of the Jedi. Their heat sensors can detect movement thousands of times smaller than what we see. Migrants must face the desert’s many trails, where it’s easy to lose one’s way. There are quick floods called “washes” 2-10 feet deep in the canyons and fierce “dust devil” storms that swirl for 20 minutes at a time. If they are caught by the Border Patrol, migrants face the possibility of mistreatment. Beatings have been reported, and withholding of water and food at detention centers is not uncommon. During the week of our walk, the bodies of six migrants were found in the desert. Desert folk say that, for each body found in the desert, many others will never be found. On the Sunday morning after we trekked our last 6.7 miles into Tucson, some of us participated in a “die-in” in front of the Border Patrol office. We mourned the “dead” as if they were our migrant mothers, fathers, children. To leave is to suffer “The nearly 2,000-mile border between the United States and Mexico has long been a zone of conflict and change, a cultural crossroads where First and Third Worlds meet,” said the Rev. Delle McCormick, a minister of the United Church of Christ and director of BorderLinks. “Many patterns of international economics and politics that affect all of our communities can be seen in sharp focus in the borderlands.” The creation of a “free trade” zone along the border in 1965 began the flood of U.S. manufacturing plants to Mexican border towns. In 1994 the enactment of NAFTA exacerbated the difficulties. As a result, cities along the border have exploded as migrants, not able to find work elsewhere in Mexico, move north to find work along and across the border. Today serious health problems, massive poverty, disintegrating families and environmental degradation are the unintended and often unrecognized legacies of this “development.” In addition, serious immigration problems have escalated. “To leave one’s land is to suffer,” said a coffee farmer from Chiapas, Mexico, who now works for Just Coffee, a cooperative of coffee growers. He told us that, since the passage of NAFTA, hundreds of thousands of coffee farmers in Chiapas and other parts of Mexico have been forced to leave their lands because of the fall in coffee prices. After NAFTA, the price of 90 pounds of coffee fell from $150 to $35. Then there are the middlemen who take their cut. The farmers could no longer support their families and needed to seek fair work. The U.S. response to the increase in migrants crossing the border has been to increase the militarization of the border. Now migrants must cross in more remote and dangerous areas of the deserts; this has increased the number of migrant deaths.  Miguel Pickard, a Chiapan economist from the Center for the Economic and Political Investigation for Community Action who spoke to us and participated in the walk, said we should be asking why this is happening. What is causing Mexicans who do not want to leave their land to do so? Pickard said the main reason is NAFTA. NAFTA promotes a “savage, no-holds-barred capitalism” in which more jobs are being lost, he said. Since 1994, under NAFTA, Mexican farmers no longer receive subsidies for growing their crops. However, U.S. and Canadian farmers still do. Cheap, highly subsidized corn and other crops from the United States and Canada are allowed into the Mexican market. Mexican farmers cannot sell their crops and make a profit –- or compete with the open market. This is what drives Mexican peasants from their farms. Then a Mexican family must develop survival strategies, so they send a family member –- son, brother, husband or wife -– from the land into the cities. If a job is not available in the cities, they continue on to the United States. Before the border became tightened and militarized, Mexican migrant workers were able to work in the United States seasonally as needed and then return to their families in Mexico. Now the migratory pattern has ended. It is too expensive to return because of coyotes and the militarization of the border, Pickard explained. “Under neo-liberalism, the wealth is concentrated in the hands of those designing the free trades which are more than just agreements,” Pickard said. “NAFTA and the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) have not been designed or voted on by the people but by ‘business types.’ As a result of their passage, the rich have gotten richer, and the middle class and poor have gotten poorer.” Pickard explained that other countries such as China, South Korea and India operate with tariffs on imported goods that have allowed their economies to grow. Argentina got out of the World Bank so it could put tariffs on imports to protect its industries. NAFTA, however, is part of a paradigm shift that began in the 1980s, according to Pickard. It did away with tariffs that protected infant Mexican industries and agricultural products and kept out foreign competition. The result in a country like Mexico – which is not on the top of the development slope – Is that the local economies are destroyed. Before, this was not permitted. “NAFTA has frozen countries on the development path, and Mexico has gone down the last 20 years into a more relative and absolute poverty,” Pickard said. “The solution is to do what many academics are saying and what is already happening on a global scale: Open the borders now and eliminate barriers so that the movement not only of goods and capital is allowed but also of people for labor. Why does one person have to die responding to the natural supply and demand of labor?” In March, at a hearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committe, former President Bill Clinton apologized for forcing Haiti to drop tariffs on imported subsidized rice during his presidency. This destroyed Haitian rice farming and severely damaged its self-sufficiency. It appears he was regretting CAFTA and NAFTA. Time to Revive Good Manners Rude behavior is good for no one By Will Kirschner There is a lot on our plates lately: the oil spill, the Iraq War and the economy are all things the average American worries about. However, I have a solution that will help alleviate at least some of our worries: courtesy. Courtesy is not just holding the door open for women; it extends to all areas of your life. Not checking your e-mails during a presentation is not just the courteous thing to do, but could help you get business for your company. Courtesy pays dividends; however, it is surprisingly a dying concept. One example of how seldom people think with courtesy is the recent Miami University sorority event at the Underground Railroad Freedom Center downtown. If you have not heard, these “future leaders” arrived so inebriated that they did not all make it through the door before they got sent home in cabs. Some who got in then pro- ceeded to trash the bathrooms, tried to urinate on a historic slave house and snuck in large quantities of alcohol, according to a memo sent by event coordinator Rhonda Miller to the sorority. This was after one of the other Miami Ohio sororities got in trouble for trashing a lakeside event center. As a college student at the illustrious party school, Ohio University, I feel qualified to offer some insight into why some people no longer act with any decency. So many of the students feel they are entitled to do whatever they please with no consequence. Whoever gets in their way will just get trampled. Ask any full-time resident of a college town and they certainly will be able to tell you all about the problems they have with the students. They have to live with students who only think of themselves and how they can get as drunk as physically possible, no matter the consequences. Just diagnosing the problem is not enough; the cure is more complicated. It really does start with nurture and how parents treat their children. More and more parents are coddling their children and making them feel like the center of the universe. While it is important to make sure your kids know they are important, it is equally important that they do not think they are so important they do not have to be courteous to others. All too often you see parents bending to the will of their young children, and they begin to believe the world revolves around them. It can easily be seen how this translates straight into the behavior exemplified by the sorority, because no one ever told them they were not the most important people out there. The situation is more complicated by how the media feeds this self-attention frenzy, with the bevy of “reality” TV programs out there. One needs to only look at MTV’s newest hit, The Jersey Shore, to find examples of people being rewarded for their selfishness. Young people see them boozing heavily and creating havoc at bars, and they want to party like them. A culture is created in which, if you are not partying hard, then your not partying at all. Changing a culture that lacks common courtesy is going to begin with us. Courtesy is infectious: If we start putting others first, they will repay the favor. Courtesy might not catch the first time someone is exposed, or even the second; but sooner or later they will start wanting to share the good feelings with someone, and then it will start to spread. Interested in volunteering with Streetvibes? Contact Greg Flannery at 513-421-7803 x 12 or by e-mail at streetvibes2@yahoo.com �6 STREETVIBES July 15-31, 2010 Local News Church Group Lobbies for Jobs Calling for creativity and government help By Corey Gibson ing for job opportunities. “People think of striking out on their own,” lack of employment opportunities is a Stern said. “That way they can create their own, matter of concern for people of faith. and get ahead and have some of that dignity.” That’s why the AMOS Project, a faithTerry Jones, a convicted felon and father of two, based coalition striving to solve many social has been doing whatever he can to provide for problems in the Cincinnati area, held a panel his family. His solution for fixing the job crisis is discussion June 30 about ways keeping young people off the that jobs can be brought back to streets and educating them to Cincinnati. “There are no jobs in Hamilton earn money the right way. The panel consisted of people County or in the rest of Ohio. “We need to bring promise from all walks of life. Some were They just disappeared. And back to the city,” Jones said. mothers, others were fathers. Kristina Schnister, a single what we need is a national Some were convicted felons, jobs program called the Local unemployed mother of two, while others had master’s degave the most moving examJobs for America Act.” grees. Yet they all stood for the ple of how unemployment has same thing. They wanted to be affected many people in the employed and they wanted to help others who Cincinnati area. were not employed. “I have been turned away for being over-qualKen Stern, one of the panelists, is the commuified as many times as I have been for someone nity garden director for Findlay Market. He started with yet a higher education than myself,” she said. a program that would help people grow their own Schnister, crying, continued on with confession vegetables in urban gardens and take the vegetaabout her inability to buy presents for her children bles they did not want to keep for themselves and on their birthdays or being able to buy the food sell them at Findlay Market. she wants, because food stamps have regulations “People are working in the gardens and creating about the food that can be bought with them. a business opportunity for themselves,” Stern said. Although she was a case manager for the third “We are creating our own opportunities by taklargest social-service agency in Ohio, she still caning a different chance and creating our own hope. not find a job. We have four goals. One was to provide locally “It has been extremely difficult two summers grown, healthy and nutritious food in the central in a row to tell my kids we are not going to have a city. Second was to help people have access to this yearly outing, that we will not have a vacation, that nutritious food. Third was to help people become we may not even have money for their birthdays,” gardeners and help create a business opportunity, she said. and the fourth was to contribute to revitalizing With nearly a 10.5 percent unemployment rate Over-the-Rhine.” in Cincinnati, this story is one that can be heard all Yet Stern sees that many jobs have been lost. around the Tri-state area. Yet like all the people in The manufacturing jobs that might have been the room, Schnister is determined to find a job. available in earlier decades are not there anymore. “You wont see me melting in the couch from He believes people need to be creative when lookself-pity?” Schinister said. “I will be out there try- A ing to change things for people such as myself.” The final panelist, Pamela Franklin, treasurer of the AMOS Project, finished the discussion with an uplifting speech about banding together as a community and pulling through these tough times. “We all must band together as a whole to make things better,” she said. “Those who are eating cannot relate to those who are not eating.” Her message about thinking together and changing the way democracy has treated the middle class resounded strongly throughout the room. U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) sent a letter to AMOS and to the panel discussion. It extended his gratitude to the AMOS Project and declared his appreciation for getting out the word about the Local Jobs for America Act, introduced by Brown, which he said would create 1 million jobs nationwide and over 26,000 for Ohioans. Paul Graham, director of the AMOS Project, endorsed the bill. “There are no jobs in Hamilton County or in the rest of Ohio,” he said. “They just disappeared. And what we need is a national jobs program called the Local Jobs for America Act.” Yet the AMOS Project and all the people that came out to support the group did not stop there. They went to the streets of downtown Cincinnati and began a rally, chanting, “Tell me what democracy looks like. This is what democracy looks like” and “What do we want? Jobs. When we do we want them? Now!” The group marched to the offices of U.S. Rep. Steve Driehaus (D-Ohio) and U.S. Sen. George Voinovich (R-Ohio) to deliver over 1,000 job applications to each. Outside the offices were crowds of people wearing “I need a job” T-shirts and holding signs that protested the fact that there are very little job opportunities in Hamilton County. The Weedy, Wild Wild West California prepares to tax legal marijuana By Coulter Loeb “ Wanna buy some weed? Wa-wanna buy some weed?” a shaking, stumbling man wearing a leather jacket and a small cap holds out a small baggie containing less than an eighth of an ounce of the green herb in a small California Park. “It’s some of the good stuff,” he insists. Having been informed less than 30 minutes earlier by local street vendors that drug pushers had been using my current location, Berkeley’s People’s Park, to push meth-sprayed cannabis to unsuspecting citizens, I politely declined. I had heard of the methods dealers use to get customers hooked on drugs, but the feeling of culture shock remained as the man stumbled away toward another group of youth. In Berkeley, Calif., cannabis use has been all but legalized. Citizens smoking pot on the street is seen as just another one of the locale’s cultural curiosities. In addition to the shady man in the park, locals mention a local black-market dealer by the name of “Aquarius.” With access to one of California’s many legitimate and legal medicinal marijuana dispensaries, he hangs out with his two dogs on Telegraph Avenue, giving anyone who can pay “the good stuff.” He is spoken of as a friend among the community and provides a safe, affordable product to Berkeley residents. Sitting in a small metal chair on the sidewalk in front of a busy coffeehouse, “Sam” holds a lit marijuana cigarette as one might hold a Camel: publicly and nonchalantly. “It’s just become such a part of the culture and every day life here. Sure, you kind of have to look out for the cops if you don’t have a (medicinal marijuana identification) card, but people smoke on the street all the time,” she says. An orderly market As of June, California’s policy makers had hammered out many of the policies surrounding medicinal cannabis ever since it’s statewide legalization in 1996. But being the “leader in all things counter culture”, as High Times editor Dan Skye says, the state has continually explored how medicinal cannabis might be implemented into public policy. In some areas, such as Berkeley, the unregulated black market has reached the point that pot has become a part of the community. It can be seen being smoked on the sidewalk and is smelled everywhere. It also means that nearly anyone can tell you where to get some. In Berkeley, the lack of regulation and enforcement policies has led to a new weedy wild west, where the majority of the non-marijuana card carrying public is on their own to find good, untaxed sources of cannabis. But for the majority of California, a system of order and control is emerging from the chaos. In the 14 years since California’s legalization of medicinal cannabis, public opinion has slowly shaped the policies surrounding the state’s initially controversial medicinal marijuana dispensaries. Patients’ rights groups have lobbied for the availability of safe, reliable sources of medicinal cannabis and have won a number of measures easing restrictions on the legal cannabis market. California voters passed Proposition 215, the Compassionate Use Act of 1996, with a 56 Marijuana plant. Coulter Loeb. percent majority. The proposition stated chiefly that the state would ensure and protect the right of any California citizen deemed by a doctor to be able to benefit from the use of cannabis to acquire and medicate their ailments by using medicinal marijuana. In 2005 the Oakland city government decided to pass a measure regulating how the medicinal cannabis industry would function in the city. It made cannabis the Oakland Police force’s lowest priority See WEED P. 10 �STREETVIBES July 15-31, 2010 7 Dining Cakes, Jell-O and Ale in Fear It’s a buffet, but is it really Chinese food? By Michael Fanning Entering Buddha's House of the Golden Wanton is like entering the Forbidden City in Beijing, except there’s a roof over everything and they serve orange Jell-O. It’s a buffet restaurant that opened in the last year or so, and I was wondering how it stacked up against several hundred similar buffets in the Tri-state. The building itself was, painted white and yellow when it became the Wanton, was obviously a Pizza Hut about a year and a half ago. The refitted interior is a strange mixture of varnished fauxopulence and just plain incomplete. What look like chandeliers from an Arabian oil magnate’s house hang from the corrugated metal ceiling. You can still see the wiring. However, as long as you don't look up, you will not be disappointed. Plastic jade dragons adorn the partitions between the booth seating and the custom made wooden tchotchki racks in the windows holding faux treasures from the Ming Dynasty. Everything is gleaming and new. I’m dying to know how much it cost to gut and remodel the place in this manner. It must have equaled whatever they shelled out for the building in the first place. But why spend so much on an interior only to have no ceiling? Bizzaro. The Wanton is close to where I work, and I’ve brought my co-worker, Kelly, who is our resident sushi expert. I base her qualifications on the fact that she just got back from her first vacation to Japan, and she’s a big fan of My Neighbor Totoro. She will come in handy soon. Beijing pizza We are led to our booth, and in a moment are greeted by our waitress. When I say “greeted,” I mean this in the fashion of two boxers “greeting” each other before a long brawl. Our waitress orders us to the buffet. We move quickly. The staff are all young, and their English skills are certainly limited – not much beyond, “Is Pepsi OK?” They have the bodies of figure skaters, a remarkably attractive bunch. The food selections at Chinese buffets are pretty much the same: fried rice, sweet and sour chicken, pepper steak, egg rolls, as well as purely American fare like pizza, fried clams, stuffed mushrooms and the like. The standard desserts are present as well. Orange Jell-O, tapioca and bananas with a mysterious red sauce poured over them. I strongly suspect this is the same sauce on the sweet and sour chicken; and in the name of good journalism, I put some on my plate. Kelly and I make it back to our table, and I compare our selections. Everything I have is brown and fried. Everything Kelly has is green and organiclooking. I know full well that my eating will be my demise. When I’m dead, they will find an entire order of crab Rangoon lodged in my chest. On this first round I got pepper steak, fried rice, crab Rangoon, orange Jell-O, a slice of pizza and some white gelatinous stuff that I’m assuming is a coconut-flavored dessert. It looks just like a hunk of hard-boiled albumen. They had crab legs at the buffet as well but these crabs looked to have had muscular dystrophy in life, so I avoid them. Kelly got rice and what I think is a pile of bamboo. There is no mystery to me as to why women outlive men. The banana dish is not bad, really. The red sauce cannot be tasted and therefore is just like eating a banana. The orange Jell-O is actually pretty gross, and I’m not sure how they screwed that one up. The white albumen is next. I say to Kelly, “Here goes.” She gives me a team-spirited thumbs-up. I am completely mystified. It does taste kind of coconutish, but it isn’t pudding; it's too firm. I swallow and give Kelly a blank smile. I have no idea what I’ve just eaten. The real test is yet to come: the sushi bar. I Chinese Food or American? REUTERS/Natalie Behring haven't had much sushi, and Kelly is along to guide me through the ins and outs of it. As I eat my brown, fried selections, Kelly looks at my plate and says, “Mmmm, that looks good,” but I know she really means, “I bet you live to see 43 tops, maybe 45 if you would stop licking your plate.” On a side note, my dad just got vanity tags for his new Avalon that say, “4 BYPASS.” Killing the whale As we munch, I observe the other patrons of the Wanton seated near us. The crowd is mostly what you would expect in a buffet: It is a bovine horde. A man close to me that must weigh upward of 400 pounds. I’ve never felt pity for a piece of furniture, but his chair certainly has mine now. The chair reminds me of Joe Morton’s last line in Terminator 2, “I … don't … know … how … much … longer … I … can … hold … this.” Then he explodes. A heated argument between two employees suddenly erupts next to me and Kelly. While shooting menacing glances at the table she’s been waiting on, a server is unleashing a Chinese diatribe at a young woman who has been sweeping the floors. I certainly don’t understand what they are saying, but I can’t help but think she's inciting the sweeper to join her in an all-out assault: “If we take them now, when they are full and sleepy, we can roll their fat flesh off of the back dock. I can’t watch anymore.” A male server at a table close to us doesn't appear to be any happier than his cohorts. I observe him take a round of beverages to his table. He hands a bottled beer to a guy and then quickly runs around the partition wall to the left of our booth. The customer twists off the top of his beer, and it erupts everywhere with foam. It has obviously been shaken. The server behind the partition jumps up, laughing and pointing at the beersoaked man. “Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, you beer exprode!” he yells. As I finish my pizza, I wonder what the origin of the staff's general surliness could possibly be. I remember a restaurant when I was in France 10 years ago. Our waiter was not a happy chap. My wife and I were accompanied that night by a local Parisian, a former college roommate of my wife’s. I asked our friend if she could explain the young man’s grumpiness. She simply shrugged and said, “Can you blame him? It is a subservient job.” I guessed this made some sort of sense at the time and figured that, if the French think this way about busing tables, why not the Chinese? Then another thought dawned on me. I was surrounded at the Wanton by a bovine horde being served by grace- ful, beautiful, healthy, well shaped people. That in itself must be unappealing to them. Then another thought: the food that Chinese people eat seems to be some of the healthiest worldwide. What I now have on my plate, as we all know, is not authentic Chinese food, but rather American cuisine with soy sauce. From what I’ve observed, Chinese people tend to eat rice and vegetables and other healthful, colorful things – not the deep-fried mess before me. All plates in my sight (not including Kelly’s) are full of brown lumpy things, and lots of it. We are forcing the staff to defile their own healthy cuisine to pander to us, the bovine diabetic horde. Then we force them to watch us shovel it down our gullets in quantities that would kill a blue whale. This might rub me the wrong way, too, if I were Chinese. We are forcing them to become accomplices in our own unhealthy lifestyles. It must be disturbing to them. What the staff here must talk about after work! You would probably hear, “Wow, you see fat man, table 43? He have ass like Liberty Bell. His wife eat whole pizza, then eat table!” Ready to jump Only once have I had authentic Chinese food. It was many years ago when I had a girlfriend who worked at a small Chinese-owned and Chinesestaffed toy company. We were invited to a dinner hosted by her boss. My girlfriend and I were the only Westerners in the group. It was a wonderful experience, the food was incredible and didn’t in any way resemble the food I was eating now. The people were delightful and the experience would have been completely great were it not for one small item. You might have heard of the Chinese “delicacy” called the “1,000-year-old egg.” Well, they served these at the dinner party. I decided to be intrepid and try one. I will try to describe it. This is an egg that has been covered in a mixture of wood ash, quicklime and salt, then buried in the ground for a about 100 days. After this time has passed, it is not used to ward off evil spirits, but rather eaten. The shelled egg is slick and a terrifying translucent black. I set one on my plate and looked at it as someone about to base-jump for the first time looks downward from the top of a radio tower. I observed the Chinese guests around me at the table; all eyes were directed my way. I knew that, despite the fact that this was their “delicacy,” deep down they know it’s fucked up. It must have taken decades of cultural conditioning to get used to this See CAKES P. 12 �8 STREETVIBES July 15-31, 2010 Vendor Voice Go Vibrant Cleo’s Joke Corner Events to help you on the way to heathly living By Aubrey Bowman Streetvibes Vendor If you were on Fountain Square June 21, you got the chance to get healthy via a new initiative called Govibrant – Making Healthy Living Easier. Some of the many organizations involved include the United Way of Greater Cincinnati, the American Cancer Society, American Lung Association, Cincinnati Health Department, Artworks and other organizations dedicated to healthy living. This is a brand new event, designed to make Cincinnati a healthy city. Govibrant wants to serve as your one-stop spot to connect you to health and wellness events in Cincinnati. Their goal is the catch phrase, “10 Better in 10 Challenge: Try to Get Healthy with Healthy Activities in 10 Weeks.” Visit their Web site at govibrant.org for more information. Here are some upcoming events: Until 7/23/10, Cancer Society “Paint it Pink,” acscan.org/cincinnatipaintitpink. Aug. 7 Lady Distance Classic Run/Walk, fleetfeetcincy.com/calendar. Aug. 28-29, MS150, Kimberly.Neff@nmss.org. Aug. 30, Cancer Society Golf Classic, 888-22276446, ext. 4213. Sept. 5, Cheetah Run at Cincinnati Zoo, cincinnatizoo.org. Sept. 12, Sunflower Revolution, sunflowerrev. com. And remember: “Don’t Go Through Life with No Vibes.” What do you call on an octopus that’s down on its luck? Squid Row. Art by Anthony Williams Intoxication By Willa D. Jones Streetvibes Vendor Intoxication is being drunk if only just for a little while Intoxication can become a bad habit with a crooked smile Being high and intoxicated all alone can make no sense Being homeless, a panhandler plus drunk can be a bad defense Fear of not knowing what your next move will possibly be Can be intoxicating without a drink, please believe me The fear of failure constantly day in and day out Can be an eye-opening experience to make a change, no doubt Once you realize there is another way to live life every day To work, maintaining your money and then a place to stay Things start to fall in order eventually surely but slowly And you start to change your ways each day ever so boldly Intoxicating thoughts will not be able to hold you back Knowing that with the help of God you can get back on track So don’t stay intoxicated by the fears of the world today Ask God to help, read the Bible and never forget to pray. “Feed Me, Seymour, Feed Me All Night Long…” Whimsical Sun-dried Tomato Pesto with Penne Serving Size: 5-6 bellies 2 cups fresh basil leaves, chopped, with stems cut off 1 cup pine nuts 3 cloves fresh garlic ¾ cup extra virgin olive oil and 4 oz. sundried tomatoes – or 8.5-ounce jar sun-dried tomatoes packed in olive oil ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese (optional) 16 oz. penne pasta • Prepare the pasta according to package instructions, cooking al dente. • Combine basil, pine nuts, garlic, oil and sundried tomatoes in food processor until well blended. • Transfer the pesto to a large serving bowl and add the pasta, toss well to coat evenly. • For added zest, mix in the grated Parmesan. • Season with salt and pepper to taste. • Voila, feed! Sundried Tomato Pesto. Jeni Jenkins. By Jeni Jenkins Staff Writer I made this dish on a day when I had less than 30 minutes to throw something together for a community potluck. The date had completely slipped my mind and there wasn’t time to run to the grocery. After racking my brain on what to make, I stepped out on my porch, and my former neighbor handed me a bundle of fresh basil leaves from her garden. I told her my dilemma, and she suggested I make pesto, which I had never made before. She told me how she makes hers and, to my surprise, I had the ingredients on hand. I ran inside and tossed everything in my blender (I didn’t own a food processor). After taste testing, I whimsically threw in a jar of sun-dried tomatoes that I had purchased months. To my surprise, it was tasty. I mixed the pesto with some pasta and rushed over to the potluck that had already begun. A bit worried about its reception, I placed the dish on the table and got into line. By the time I got to my dish, the entire bowl had been devoured – which means I didn’t even get to enjoy the fruits of my own labor. Since then I’ve made this dish several times for other potlucks and it’s always a hit. This is a perfect summer dish, and I enjoy it with salad and bread. �STREETVIBES July 15-31, 2010 9 �10 STREETVIBES July 15-31, 2010 Issues The Weedy, Wild Wild West CONTINUED FROM P.AGE 6 Francisco, the Terra, had been reserved. Massive stuffed baked potatoes had been prepared. Vendors had lined up at a chance to get a booth at the First Annual 2010 High Times Medicinal Cannabis Cup. Dan Skye, editor of High Times, remarks on the significance of the event. “The industry has advanced to the point where new industries are cropping up all the time,” he says. “You see this all the time when something reaches its tipping point – all these industries come forward to serve both the consumer and the cultivator. It’s evolving”. It’s evolving, all right. On the entrance floor, new types of smoking devices, LED grow lamps and entire prefabricated hydroponic grow boxes sit with smiling vendors idly standing by for anyone who happens to make eye contact. The occasional cannabis plant stands defiantly tall and healthy among the tables and wares. Continuing down the stairs into the second part of the convention, anyone in attendance is greeted to a smell familiar to most of those there: Somebody's smoking some pot. If anyone were unlucky enough to arrive on this and stated that the city would work toward creating a tax structure and enforce regulation over medicinal cannabis. By 2007 medicinal marijuana had been legalized for 11 years. The courts had already defined parts of how California’s growing medicinal marijuana community interacted with the state, but the majority of marijuana’s legal issues remain in the grey. State laws still contradict federal laws. No one knew how the free-market cannabis industry would look. Then Richard Lee, a 33-year-old marijuana activist, decided to place an ad in San Francisco’s East Bay Express. Inspired by a visit to a cannabis college in Amsterdam, Lee had decided to test the lines around commercial medicinal marijuana. His ad, declaring, “Cannabis Industry Now Hiring”, promoted a trade school whose classes aimed to introduce standards to the fledgling industry on a commercial level. It taught students how to legally open a medicinal marijuana dispensary. After an initial public reaction of 200 phone calls in the first week, 20 students assembled in a small storefront on 15th Street in Oakland. Soon, the waiting list for classes grew to three months. As students began to apply what they had learned, “there were a couple rogue agents that just threw up a pot shop,” says Salwa Imrahim, executive assistant to Oaksterdam University’s founder, Richard Lee. Before the city had time to react to the rogues, “16 more popped up in the area, and the market supported it”. The city, facing the debt generated by several local renovation projects, decided that there might be a taxable market in the sudden crop of mediIt’s all but legal in Cailifornia. Coulter Loeb. cal cannabis dispensaries. “The city decided to permit (the dispensaries), second section any time between 3 and 4 p.m. the and that’s how they would control them, without first day, they would then enter the mass of people shutting them down entirely,” Lee says. jammed shoulder-to-shoulder, trying to get past Four dispensaries were established to sell the many displays of medicinal cannabis and a game show booth where free cannabis is given medicinal marijuana to patients with a doctor’s away every hour. The mass of people was there for recommendation. the third portion of the convention: the Prop 215 By 2009 Oaksterdam University had outarea. grown its storefront’s walls and had moved to its In front of the entrance to this special section, a 30,000-square-foot headquarters. Satellite camsign says: “Cash Only. Medical Marijuana Recompuses had popped up in Los Angeles, Ann Arbor mendations.” Anyone who had paid the $35 enand California’s North Bay. trance fee could pay for an on-site doctor’s consulThis growth continued across California, where tation. The doctor would provide either a one-year several municipalities decided to adopt structure recommendation or, if he believed a more detailed and taxation guidelines for medicinal cannabis. medical history was required, would give a 30-day There are currently 563 dispensaries across northtemporary recommendation for the price of $99 ern and southern California, according to dispento any U.S. citizen, regardless of the state on their saryguide.com. driver’s license. The inevitable convention Those who receive recommendation also receive a green wristband and are directed toward By last month, June 19-20, things had grown to a door leading to an adjacent, open-air parking the point that High Times had decided to throw a lot in the inner city. A doorman checks their wrist little industry convention, showcasing the state bands, and they are allowed to freely roam about of the medicinal cannabis industry in California. the Prop 215 section. Modeled after the High Times Cannabis Cup, Having grown up in Cincinnati, where mariheld annually in Amsterdam, this was to be the juana still remains in a state of prohibition, I first event of its kind anywhere inside the United immediately noticed that something was differStates. ent about the Prop 215 section. The pipes, bongs, A small space just next to the Bay Bridge in San bowls, balloons, vaporizers, joints and blunts were as varied as the people smoking them. Massive, 12-foot balloons grow from one end of the lot, full of THC-laden vapor from a line of cone-shaped machines constantly provide samples to anyone who asks. Innovative new smoking devices are passed among complete strangers. Even on a windy day, anyone in the parking lot has at least a contact high from simply being outside. A paper tube the size of a small telescope, a medicinal megablunt, begins to circulate around the crowd for over an hour, leaving a cloud of smoke in its wake. The San Francisco Fire Department stands by to deal with those who collapse in the afternoon sun and respond to five medical emergencies during the event. Sporadically, a stretcher can be seen working its way through the mass of people, an EMT with an oxygen mask close behind. Coughing is heard from every direction. Billions for the state And money is everywhere. Booths line up along either side of the lot and sell medicinal marijuana to any patient with a green wristband. $20 and $50 bills are constantly in exchange between vendors and visitors. Every patient is smoking, and every patient is smoking cannabis taxed by the state of California. “This is huge state income tax here” Skye says, “You have all kinds of taxes here. As far as I know, California is broke. New York is on the verge. Isn’t it time we start looking at something that will allow states to balance their budgets?” Many of the movement’s earliest members are present, speaking to the public about issues such as patients’ rights, responsible use and government responsibility. Legal experts also give advice to anyone with a question. It has come to the point that, in November, California will have near-complete legalization on the state ballot. If the measure passes, anyone in the state of California “will be allowed to carry up to an ounce of cannabis and be allowed to cultivate up to a 5x5 foot crop for personal use,” Imrahim says. The measure would also leave the decision of whether or not to permit dispensaries in a given area up to the local county or municipality. According to a recent statewide Field Poll, a majority of 56 percent of California’s citizenry support legalizing and taxing cannabis to generate public funds. In the past 14 years, cannabis laws in the states have transformed from total prohibition to allowing a fledgling industry to take root on the shores of San Francisco Bay. Thousands of medicinal marijuana patients in the state of California stand on the verge of complete freedom to medicate freely and grow their own medication. California’s tax regulator, the Board of Equalization, estimates that there is a $1.4 billion unregulated black market for cannabis in the state. Tourism and spin-off industries would be expected to generate $12-18 billion yearly for the state, according to the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, a California-based pro-legalization lobby. California stands capable of hosting the only potentially multi-billion dollar cannabis tourism industry in the United States, where anyone over the age of 21 can whip out a bowl in Golden Gate Park to smoke a bowl of Vortex or Cali Gold, this year’s winners in the sativa and indica categories. States suffering from budget deficits will take notice. Millions of bloodshot eyes stand fixed on the upcoming election. For an audio slideshow, visit coulterloeb1.sites. livebooks.com/data/web/publish_to_web/index. html. Call 513-421-7803 x11 to learn about Streetvibes subscriptions �STREETVIBES July 15-31, 2010 Housing Issues 11 Best-Laid Plans Sometimes Work Seattle’s plan can help affordable housing here By Michelle Dillingham Contributing Writer About six months ago Affordable Housing Advocates (AHA) established its Policy Agenda for 2010, which helped prioritize its advocacy goals for the year. AHA’s policy agenda includes the following goals: • 1) Provide targeted advocacy for affordable housing to local elected officials, • 2) Advocate with the Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority (CMHA) on such issues as encouraging full Housing Choice Voucher utilization and thoughtful selection of CMHA’s executive director, • 3) Educate community leaders and citizens on affordable housing, and • 4) increase the amount of affordable housing. Last month AHA completed one of its strategies under “public education” by distributing the report, “State of Affordable Housing in Hamilton County: The Crisis.” In the after-glow of this accomplishment AHA members turn their attention back to the policy agenda and find plenty to do. Arguably, one of the most difficult goals is number four, to actually increase the amount of affordable housing in Cincinnati. In an effort to seek out best practices in other cities, I stumbled across a compelling report out of Seattle, Wash. The City of Seattle Planning Commission published its “Affordable Housing Action Agenda” in February 2008. Although Cincinnati and Seattle are different in many ways – for example, Seattle has almost twice the population as Cincinnati – the lack of affordable housing, homeless numbers and other data such as affordability turns out to be quite similar to AHA’s report. The Seattle report lists some successful efforts that are underway to provide affordable housing, one of which was a voter-approved 2002 housing levy that diverted $33 million out of Seattle’s Office of Housing toward affordable housing. This levy was overwhelmingly supported by voters again in the 2009 election. (OK, maybe we are not so similar.) What is particularly interesting in Seattle’s report is that each of its strategies includes suggested language that would amend the city’s Comprehensive Plan. For example, Strategy number 3 is: “Encourage the use of Incentive Zoning Programs.” Proposed language for the city’s Comprehensive Plan: “Consider using an incentive zoning system that requires affordable units, regardless of whether a developer takes advantage of the bonus or not.” Another strategy I found particularly interesting is Strategy number 7: “Work to expand housing choices, including accessory dwelling units, backyard cottages, also known as detached accessory dwelling units, and cottage housing citywide.” Implementation strategy: Promote backyard cottage programs in areas well served by transit, particularly around light-rail stations.” Wow. Reading this strategy prompted me to research the “backyard cottage” concept, and I found it so interesting I plan to cover it in the next issue of Streetvibes. Stay tuned. Cincinnati is currently engaged in developing Plan Cincinnati, “a comprehensive document that will serve as a long-range plan to guide and manage growth, protect the environment and influence future development in our city.” I encourage you to take a look at proposed language changes to Seattle’s Comprehensive Plan as we consider our own plan and how we can ensure affordable housing is included in our future. You can see AHA’s report at ahacincy.org. You can find Seattle’s report at seattle.gov/planningcommission/docs/SPC_AffordableHousingRpt.pdf. Is Graffiti a Crime or an Art Form? By Brian O'Donnell Contributing Writer Self-described Robin Hoods are at the forefront of what they describe as the biggest counter-culture movement since punk. Exit Through the Gift Shop showcases graffiti and explores the meaning of idealistic self-expression and its relationship with commercialism. This documentary is the directorial debut of notorious street/graffiti artist, Banksy. Despite the film’s exposition of the dangerous work of pasting 10-foot murals multiple stories above busy streets, the film is less about the history of street art and more about what constitutes art. Regardless of whether or not Banksy can be trusted as an honest filmmaker, Exit Through the Gift Shop shows how any hirsute individual with enough passion and the right endorsements can make himself into a millionaire. Thierry Guetta , a Frenchman whose face is framed by unruly sideburns that wrap into a mustache, seems to annoy everyone he meets with his somewhat eccentric penchant of filming everyone and everything. Through filming his cousin, known only as Space Invader, Guetta finds himself wholly immersed in the world of street art – or what police organizations worldwide refer to as “graffiti.” Director Banksy doesn’t seem too concerned with the facts. The history of street art is glossed over, and those involved go by monikers and wear masks or have their faces blurred. Banksy himself is interviewed, though there is no way to tell who is actually talking, as his face is obscured by a hood and he speaks with a distorted voice. Exit Through the Giftshop chronicles Guetta’s rise from amateur filmmaker to documentary filmmaker to street artist to pop-super-artist as he meets and films the perpetrators of the street art movement, culminating with his meeting the elusive and infamous Banksy. However, don’t expect a film about Banksy and his somewhat anti-capitalist persona accompa- nied by his exploits in stenciling his art on a wall in the West Bank separating Israel from Palestine. It’s not even a movie about the modest beginnings of street art as it gains acceptance as legitimate art, though that story could have benefited the picture. Banksy, whom the movie purports to be about, takes a side seat to Guetta, who becomes a mainstream success using the expression of a counterculture movement. Guetta copies the street art style made famous by people like Shepard Fairey, who is famous for the iconic two-tone Obama campaign poster. Hiring a team of artists to create his ideas, Guetta manufactures an art exhibition at Banksy’s behest and sells millions of dollars worth of art under the name Mister Brainwash. It’s almost as if Banksy is playing a joke on the unwitting Guetta. Or maybe the audience is the unwitting participant. Neither documentary nor mockumentary, Exit Through the Gift Shop can easily be seen as a kind of joke mimicking the sardonic commentary of Banksy’s own graffiti. The movie becomes one about the art world and Guetta, who is instantly born feet first into it while other characters will never make money off spray painting private property. Or it could be a simple prank on us and Guetta. As Bansky puts it, “It’s not Gone with the Wind, but there’s probably a moral in there someplace.” Want more Streetvibes? Check out the Streetvibes blog http://streetvibes.wordpress.com �12 STREETVIBES July 15-31, 2010 Dining Cakes, Jell-O and Ale in Fear CONTINUED FROM P.AGE 7 thing. It’s like Westerners with our cheese, I guess. We eat it and enjoy it and don’t even think about it being a byproduct of a mucous membrane. I understand the whole idea of cheese makes the Japanese recoil from it like a cobra. Anyway, I tried the 1,000-year-old egg. It can only be compared to eating the eyeball of a long dead sheep. It was revolting. I scored many points with the Chinese crew that evening but ruined my chances of putting my mouth anywhere near my girlfriend that night. The food at the Wanton is not authentic Chinese food. Nor do I imagine most patrons want a foreign experience when they come. I remember going to a Japanese restaurant downtown a few years ago. That’s the place where a Japanese chef cooks the food in the middle of your table, which has been converted into a cooking surface. I am interested in foreign cultures of most types and looked forward to a “Japanese experience.” I also wanted the chance to work on my limited Japanese language skills. When the chef arrived at our table, I was crestfallen to find that Miguel, our chef, was from Mexico. Not only was I not going to practice my Japanese that evening, but I suspected the tempura might have a Tex-Mex spin to it. “What part of Japan are you from?” my motherin-law asked. “The south side,” he responded. The palace escape The time has come for Kelly and me to hit the Wanton’s sushi bar. We fill our plates with about six pieces each. All are a different type and I look forward to Kelly explaining them. We sit down and I begin the interview. Me: So, Kelly, you’re a sushi expert, right? Kelly: I never said that. Are you going to finish your orange Jell-O? Me: Tell me what you’ve got on your plate there. Is that sushi? Kelly: Of course it is. There’s a lot of different types. Most of it is American-style sushi. Me: How can you tell? Kelly: Because the outermost layer is rice and not nori. Nori, she explains, is the “compressed algae” wrapped like a rubber band around the sushi and holds it together. American sushi, she explains, is typically wrapped in an outer layer of compacted rice. Me: Now, sushi is Japanese, right? Kelly: Yes, and it is weird in a Chinese restaurant. They’ll probably serve pierogi next week. Me: Do Chinese people eat sushi? Kelly: Not really. Me: Where did the idea of sushi come from? Kelly: Well, according to Japanese lore, there was an empress who was driven from her palace when it was attacked. Before she fled, she grabbed some food to take with her, namely rice and fish. She climbed up a tree to hide from the invaders and ate the rice and fish compressed together. And thus was born the greatest appetizer since calamari. Though possessed of a dancer’s physique, Kelly puts away the sushi like a Japanese submariner on furlough. If I didn’t mention it before, I’m paying for lunch. Me: So, having just gotten back from Japan, how does the Wanton’s sushi measure up? Kelly: It's not bad, I guess, but the spider-roll is a travesty. A spider-roll, she explains, is sushi made with an entire deep- fried soft-shell crab. It is soft because it is caught while molting. The Wanton’s SpiderRoll is made with a fried shrimp sticking out of it. On my plate A Chinese boy stares at a statue in Beijing. REUTERS/Guang Nin. it looks like a shrimp-shaped Me: Mine says, “You are doomed.” boat sunk in a lagoon of white rice. The tail sticks Kelly: Hey, that would make a great title for this straight up. piece: “Cakes and ale in fear!” Kelly: There’s an alarming amount of avocado in I remind her that she is the sushi expert and to this sushi as well. There are no avocados in Japan. leave the writing to the pros. There’s also no carrots in sushi but that hasn’t Me: Well, thank you for your information, Kelly. It stopped the Wanton’s kitchen from adding them. was a fun and informative interview. We conclude that this is strictly American sushi Kelly: Whatever. Give me your Jell-O. and go with it. Kelly tells me that sushi restaurants We roll ourselves out of the restaurant and know are everywhere in Japan, common as McDonald’s, we'll accomplish little else at work that day, our and can be very inexpensive. bodies busily digesting. As we cross the parking Kelly: In Japan, a buffet restaurant is called a “Vilot, Kelly says, “I feel like I should be wearing a cow king.” bell.” Me: Why is that? I thank her again for her expert opinion on the Kelly: Because you eat like a Viking. sushi and think about what I have just observed at Or a Delhi resident, I think, looking around. Buddha’s House of the Golden Wanton. It was not Me: What’s that orange stuff on that sushi there? Kelly: That’s orange Jell-O. Chinese culture I witnessed. I feel the urgent need Me: Jesus, they put orange Jell-O in the sushi? to go back and explain ourselves to the young Kelly: Uh, no I think that was on my plate already. Chinese staff. I want to say, “We're not all like this. We are given our bill with two fortune cookies on a Americans have redeeming qualities! little black tray. Fortune cookies are, of course, an I try to think of redeeming American qualities, and American invention. Kelly reads hers to me. the first things that come to mind are – no joke – Kelly: “It is better to have beans and bacon in corn dogs and Arby’s curly fries. peace than cakes and ale in fear.” Streetvibes vendors keep 75% of sales. Consider helping Streetvibes with our publication costs by making a tax-deductible donation or by purchasing a subscription. Streetvibes is the activist newspaper, advocating justice, building community. Your gift is tax-deductible and will go to producing the paper every two weeks. Started in 1997, Streetvibes is distributed by homeless and formerly homeless vendors who purchase the paper for 25 cents and sell it for $1, keeping the 75 cent profit. Make checks payable to “Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless” I want to support Streetvibes and the vendors. $25 Please return your contribution to: GCCH 117 E. 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 Name: Address: E-mail: $50 $100 $150 Other $ _______ �13 Poetry STREETVIBES July 15-31, 2010 Jail Haiku - the Verse Things I Saw Sent back to stay in C-pod. She pays back with moon. Always something new Even though nothing happens. I’m given one pill. Jail chaplain visits. We talk. It’s so good to see Alice Gerdeman. Kelly sleeps here now. So fast Keisha had to move, Barely had time to say, “War? Stop!” She’s at Talbert House. She’ll get out in half the time. She’ll miss Friday’s show. Library visit Because Greg is with the press M. Logan brought in. Five minutes later Angry female CO says Why are you in here? Marilyn explains She was brought here by a guard. “Chaplains sit by pod!” When we reach the pod I’m told I have guests waiting Diane and Janet? A protest in support of Barbara Wolf. Andrew Anderson By Barbara Wolf Sticky Holding Cell Women talk about their kids Laughter hits cement Edinburgh Clouds, three spires Haggis? Bologna and cheese Loud muffled orders Speaker system out of whack I’m moved to first floor Awakened by a pink sky Keisha and I talk about life I walk with Sandy The TV is way too loud No caffeine… headache Keisha and I listen as Chaos turns into silence Michael talks through glass He leaves without looking back e-mails many friends They are turned away, each one Except Deborah Jordan. Deborah, glorious. Bright light on all night Headache for three entire days. No sleep, no sleep. Cough. Keisha talks of me Says I am an activist And nice to be with. Jacky says, “You’re an activist? Tell me how to organize.” New York is from New York. A D-pod porter.. she’s smart. Coretta Scott King. Midnight. Tall, dark, loud. Many find her difficult. She feels she’s a man. The eater gets moved to A. Did not clean. Kicks door loudly. They talk to Judy. All the people in her head. We play (jump) checkers. I’m an atheist. Jesus doesn’t help Midnight. She’s moved from our pod. We are served “Cat Food” I picture a cat sniffing. It turns, walks away. Roof top. Loud music. Judy moves from space to space. “Scabs” yells at column. When the visit ends I return to my cell tired. Buzz. Another guest. A priest has stopped by We talk about mental health He leaves two bibles. They sweep the floor, mop with bleach. Locked in, I watch sky float by. Sun is up so bright, Horizon has disappeared Window dirt tells tales. New cellmate, Kelly. Deep resonate, rhythmic breath. It puts me to sleep Locked behind orange door. Walk in circles on gray floor. What do beige walls say? Five guards come to move Scabs out, she gets them to let her move. If we need something, … not their job to wait on us, it’s to watch us wait. No meds for six days. “They might be in tomorrow.” Energy seeping. Noise is outrageous. Pod has become rude teen camp Yelling in the vents. Dred tells of H-pod chairs. I want to get that on tape. Friday has arrived The Contact Center visits Jacky is amazed.. Amala visits. We talk until the phone cuts… E-mail from Iraq. One toilet, two beds, Little sink, hanging orange peel. Ah, sweet smell of orange. ..needs to organize I’d given her their numbers She’s thrilled to see them. 6 o’clock. Dinner. A shout, “Ms. Barbara, they’re here!” air sucked out of pod. Wednesday 4, shakedown Salt packets tossed in pod We remake our beds. Woosh. Window Banging. Shouting. Fifty.. sixty people there. Midnight’s moved… Too loud. Only I liked her singing 4 to 6 a.m. Looking up.. Waving, waving down from peace filled holes amazing transfer. Pushy porter fired. �14 STREETVIBES July 15-31, 2010 Art and Letters Artwork by Anne Skove Letters to the Editor Poignant and Moving To the Editor: I work on Ninth and Main, and for the last few months have become somewhat loyal to the Streetvibes vendor at Court and Walnut. I find myself looking for him, only buying the paper from him, always trying to make the effort to say hello and be honest with him (when I don’t have cash, or when I’ll return with some). I like him. Last week he handed me the paper (which I’ll admit I don’t actually read all that often), and made quick mention to “check him out on page 11.” It’s only today that I’ve finally gotten around to it, and his article absolutely blew me away. Truly. As a writer and an editor, my life revolves around words. As a reader, they are my passion and my salvation. Riccardo’s words floored me, so beautifully and artfully were they written. His message and its delivery struck a very deep chord, and I’m shamed to admit I was more than a little surprised and how intelligent and eloquent he was. Yet another case of making simple assumptions, of people in certain situations, or of a certain gender, or race … and finding them utterly incorrect. So moved was I by his article that I shared it with a co-worker who also knows of Riccardo (and who wanted to know after reading if I’d sent my “comment” e-mail yet). In fact, it was all I could do not to jump up from my desk, in my air-conditioned building, at my very safe and stable job, and run out right that minute to talk to Riccardo about his article, call him by name (now that I know it), look him in the eye and tell him how good, really good his writing is. I look forward to doing just that the next time I see him (perhaps tomorrow?), but I also wanted to take a moment to say thanks, to you, Streetvibes staff and vendors, for doing something so good, so real and so positive. And for giving me an opportunity to get to know a fellow human being just a bit better. And for getting to read his poignant and moving words. And for making me think. Stephanie Meinberg Cincinnati Have something on your mind? Want to comment on an article or vendor? Let us know: 117 E. 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 streetvibes2@yahoo.com If you like what you read, but don’t live in the Cincinnati area, you can subscribe to Streetvibes. Call us at 513-421-7803 x 12 to learn more about subscribing to Streetvibes. �15 Resources STREETVIBES July 15-31, 2010 Need Help or Want to Help? Shelter: Women and Children 4230 Hamilton Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45223 FreeStore/FoodBank Central Access Point Bethany House 381-SAFE 557-2873 1841 Fairmount Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45214 Grace Place Catholic Worker House 681-2365 112 E. Liberty Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Madisonville Ed & Assistance Center 271-5501 4600 Erie Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45227 Serves area codes: 45226, 45227, 45208, 45209 St. Vincent de Paul 6037 Cary Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45224 Salvation Army 762-5660 241-1064 562-8841 872-9259 357-4602 352-2902 352-6363 40 E. McMicken Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mental Health Access Point Mercy Franciscan at St. John 558-8888 981-5800 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 NAMI of Hamilton County PATH Outreach 1125 Bank Street, Cinti, Ohio 45214 131 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter Health Resource Center Homeless Mobile Health Van McMicken Dental Clinic 458-6670 977-4489 Treatment: Men Other Resources Shelter: Men Charlie’s 3/4 House 784-1853 921-1613 Center Independent Living Options Emmanuel Community Center 961-2256 Peaslee Neighborhood Center 2121 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 City Gospel Mission 241-5525 Prospect House Justice Watch 241-0490 St. Fran/St. Joe Catholic Work. House 381-4941 Starting Over 1419 Elm Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 682 Hawthorne Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45205 Franciscan Haircuts from the Heart 961-4663 2203 Fulton, Cinti, Ohio 45206 Treatment: Both 761-1480 1821 Summit Road, Cinti, Ohio 45237 Drop Inn Center 721-0643 471-1100 221-3350 3330 Jefferson, Cinti, Ohio 45220 Housing: CMHA Excel Development OTR Community Housing 721-4580 632-7149 381-1171 114 W. 14th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tender Mercies 721-8666 27 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tom Geiger House Dana Transitional Bridge Services Volunteers of America Anna Louise Inn 621-5300 961-1983 OTR: 1620 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Walnut Hills: 2631 Gilbert, Cinti, Ohio 45206 Our Daily Bread 621-6364 1730 Race Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 St. Francis Soup Kitchen Churches Active in Northside 241-2965 Hamilton County ADAS Board Recovery Health Access Center Sober Living Talbert House 946-4888 281-7422 681-0324 641-4300 People Working Cooperatively The Caring Place United Way Women Helping Women Off The Streets 351-7921 631-1114 211 977-5541 768-6924 St. Raephaels Salvation Army Serenity House Day Center Open Door Pantry 863-3184 863-1445 422-8555 868-3276 Advocacy Northern Kentucky Catholic Social Action Community Action Agency Contact Center 421-3131 569-1840 381-4242 859-491-8303 799 Ann St. Newport, KY 579-8547 241-9400 421-1108 363-3300 421-2437 621-1868 Women’s Crisis Center VA Domiciliary VA Homeless 117 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Intercommunity Justice & Peace Cr. Legal Aid Society Ohio Justice & Policy Center Faces Without Places Stop AIDS Brighton Center ECHO/Hosea House Fairhaven Resuce Mission Homeward Bound Youth Mathews House Homeless & Housing Coalition Parish Kitchen Pike St. Clinic Transitions, Inc Welcome House of NKY Franciscan JPIC 721-4700 Gr. Cinti Coalition for the Homeless 421-7803 859-261-5857 859-491-1027 859-581-1111 859-261-8009 859-727-0926 859-581-7745 859-291-9321 859-491-4435 859-431-8717 205 West Pike Street, Covington, KY 41011 Health Center for Respite Care 3550 Washington Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45229 535-2719 591-2246 771-4800 751-0600 721-4811 Hamilton/Middletown 1522 Republic Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 1227 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 961-4555 751-0643 381-1954 421-5211 Food/Clothing Lord’s Pantry OTR/Walnut Hills Kitchen & Pantry 351-0422 381-6672 830 Ezzard Charles Dr. Cinti, Ohio 45214 Joseph House (Veterans) 217 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Interfaith Hospitality Network Lighthouse Youth Center (Youth) AA Hotline CCAT Goodwill industries Healing Connections Mary Magdalen House 1223 Main St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 2728 Glendora Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45209 Caracole (HIV/AIDS) 381-0111 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 First Step Home 961-4080 621-5514 214 E. 14th St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 661-4620 Shelter: Both Anthony House (Youth) 1308 Race St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 Treatment: Women 1437 Walnut Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mt. Airy Shelter 241-2600 241-2563 Crossroad Health Center 5 E. Liberty St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 381-2247 859-491-3335 859-559-5011 859-572-6226 �16 Artists as Activists STREETVIBES July 15-31, 2010 Poetry that Keeps the Door Open Jerry Judge’s unexpected outcome “ Poetry found me and gave me a different voice,” says Jerry Judge, a Cincinnati poet who started seriously writing only in his mid-forties. “I was having strong feelings about many issues and not a good way to express them adequately. Poetry worked for me; it gave me a powerful tool to get them out.” While growing up, Judge loved to read; he wrote a few short stories for his own pleasure, also on high school and college assignments; he even published a couple in his twenties. He also occasionally wrote poems in an attempt to impress girls. His academic career, however, took him into business administration and then social work, a field he has worked in ever since. Initially and for a long time he held a demanding and stressful job in public child welfare; it consumed most of his time. For the past nine years he has been a caseworker for Big Brothers/Big Sisters, a mentoring program that pairs kids with adults who serve as their role models. In 1990, deciding to slow down professionally, Judge took a writing workshop. This is when he discovered his strong affinity for poetry; he has been writing it since, publishing his poems in various magazines, in seven chapbooks to date, participating regularly in writing groups and in public readings. “With poetry everything came out – my thoughts, feelings, fantasies, joys, worries, questions,” he says. “Each poem would take me on a different discovery path, put me in touch with unexpressed or unexplored parts of myself, and the outcome often unexpected.” A rtists ctivists as By Saad Ghosn Contributing Writer As a result Judge wrote about fatherhood, family life, relationships, death, social issues, politics. His poems on justice, peace and wars, also abounded even though hard to come because of all the feelings and pain involved and all it took to dig them out. Judge did not shy away from them, however; he wrote many over the years, pertaining to the violence of wars, the futility of innocent deaths, the inflicted ravages of youthful demise, the hypocrisy of warmongers. He recently put them all in a chapbook he titled, Night Talk in the Barracks. “It was important to let them all out together in a book,” he says, “They were clearly stating my anti-war perspective, and I was loudly saying: ‘This is me.’ ” “Cleansing for Americans,” one of the poems in the book, satirically addresses the attraction Americans have for violence and their self-destructive use of might and weapons when facing the problems of the world. Through his words, Judge progressively overlapped bombs with flags, with church, and transformed an apparent ode to violence into a sarcastic American prayer: “We will wave our flags and bomb./We will attend church and bomb./Bombs will cleanse./Hallelujah!/ Forgive us our sins./Hallelujah!/Bombs. Bombs. Bombs.” In “Deep In The Heart,” he treats of money, greed and wealth, of their self gratifying role in Jerry Judge. Photo by Saad Ghosn. triggering and shaping wars: “How right to have a in anti-war activities, rallying with similar minded President/dedicated to the super rich./At straobjectors in Austin, Texas, writing regularly for the Fatigue Press, an alternative press for military tegic points across America,/certain men will men. Whenever he feels a peace and justice issue pause and contemplate/their wealth. The gleam needs to be heard, he is always prompt at writing from their smiles/will light the skies of Afghaniletters to the editor or to congress, participating in stan and Iraq.” His poem, “No Forwarding Admarches and demonstrations. dress,” goes back to the Gulf war. Its title evokes In Cincinnati, Judge has also been instrumental death, loss of contact, abandonment, reflective at strengthening the voice of other poets, encourof Judge’s feelings at the time, sorrow mixed with aging them in their writing and publishing. He anger and a sense of isolation. Images of violence is an active participant in the Cincinnati Writers coincide with the insensitivity to violence when Project and the Greater Cincinnati Writers League, it affects others and the callous detachment from groups that meet regularly to read, review and crireality when TV announcers play only the out-oftique poetry, develop writing skills, foster learntouch advertisers. It also reminds of Cincinnati ing, at the same time mentoring emerging poets City Council’s proposal to outlaw begging by the and forging relationships. homeless in order to not inconvenience downJudge will continue writing poetry, as it is his town merchants. Judge closes on all these feelings voice. with the image of empty eyes, a metaphor for the “I would like to write more about homelesslost soul of society, a statement he felt applicable ness, about progresto our country. sive issues I have Judge reads his podeep feelings for, the ems in public whenBy Jerry Judge environment, childever he can, sharing his hood, warfare, climate feelings and powerful warming,” he says. “Also I should have known at the stadium. images with varied about poverty, domestic audiences. Quarterback’s neck snapped. violence, child abuse; “I feel the need to Fifty thousand frenzied fans cheering dissident poetry that inshare my poetry, to tackler dancing flamenco over still body. volves me from within, have someone else that is universal. I learn hear it or read it,” he I should have known from television. a lot when I write. Poetsays. “I want it to make Clean-cut announcers foaming at mouth. ry keeps the door open an impact. When I feel American flags undulating as and lets me wander, like strongly about someIraq’s people are blown into scraps. an explorer, inside my thing, I have to voice it, own territory.” and my poetry comes to I should have known from City Hall. Judge also wants his my rescue. It becomes To protect downtown merchants poetry to trigger action my conversation, my an ordinance was passed in himself and in others. communication. I use forbidding begging. He wants it to clearly it to trigger awareness, and loudly state his thinking, to plant a I finally knew when I opened the curtains beliefs, to reflect who he seed.” on the other side of his eyes. is. He always carries in Judge has also been Void. Empty. his wallet “As a Man,” a an activist for peace No forwarding address. poem by David Ignatow, beyond his poetry. whose last lines say, "I When in his early am haunted by the poem/yet to be written/that twenties he enlisted to avoid being drafted to I may live as a poem/when I die as a man." This Vietnam, he soon became a conscientious objecwould also be his wish. tor, ready for imprisonment if not discharged. Awaiting court decision, he actively participated No Forwarding Address Artists as Activists is a regular column highlighting Greater Cincinnati artists who use art as a vehicle for change. Saad Ghosn is the founder of SOS Art. Ghosn can be contacted at saad.ghosn@uc.edu. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 2010 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource July 15-31, 2010 Subject The topic of the resource Homelessness Description An account of the resource Pg 1: Championing the Workers’ Rights The trail of Tears, Trail of Death Pg 2: Street Wise Pg 3: Photo Essay Pg 4: Championing the Worker’s Rights Continued The Trail of Tears, Trail of Death Continued Pg 5: The Trail of Tears, Trail of Death Continued Time to Revive Good Manners Pg 6: Church Group Lobbies for Jobs The Weedy, Wild Wild West Pg 7: Cakes, Jell-O and Ale in Fear Pg 8: Go Vibrant Pg 9: The Voice of the Street… Pg 10: The Weedy, Wild Wild West Continued Pg 11: Best-Laid Plans Sometimes Work Is Graffiti a Crime or an Art Form? Pg 12: Cakes, Jell-O and Ale in Fear Pg 13: Jail Haiku-the Verse Things I saw Pg 14: Arts & Poetry Pg 15: Resources Pg 16: Poetry that Keeps the Door Open Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Streetvibes Archive Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Streetvibes Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource July 15-31, 2010 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Gregory Flannery Lynne Ausman Nick Swartsell Veronica Glass John Peet Casey Salsinger Jeni Jenkins Michelle Dillingham Samantha Groark Margo Pierce Paul Kopp Jeremy Flannery Michael Henson David Heitfield Corey Gibson Jeni Jenkins Saad Ghosn Lew Moores Larry Gross Eli Braun Jesse Call B. Clifton Burke Michael Fanning Aimie Willhoite Anne Skove Vinit Murthy Jon Hughes Lynn Baker Jeremy Flannery Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF affordable housing Aimie Willhoite Anne Skove Arts & Poetry B. Clifton Burke California Casey Salsinger Corey Gibson David Heitfield Eli Braun Government Graffiti Gregory Flannery Jeni Jenkins Jeremy Flannery Jerry Judge Jesse Call John Peet Jon Hughes Larry Gross Lew Moores Lynn Baker Lynne Ausman Margo Pierce Marijuana Michael Fanning Michael Henson Michelle Dillingham Migrant Nick Swartsell Paul Kopp Photography Saad Ghosn Samantha Groark Seattle Veronica Glass Vinit Murthy Workers Rights https://streetvibesarchive.net/files/original/c0f949b7e30901e0331e39cb7ebabf19.pdf ea67913714d5f0d3fa890ddf35d8fcf2 PDF Text Text The Comedy of Zach Anner Page 6 World Cup Commentary Page 10 July 1-14, 2010 • Issue 180 • One Dollar ADVOCATING JUSTICE • BUILDING COMMUNITY Hate Wave: Attacks on Homeless Violence is epidemic, and some don’t even want to count By Margo Pierce Contributing Writer I f 27 people had been killed in the United States in one year for being African-American or for being Jewish or for being developmentally disabled, there would be a national uproar. In 2008, 27 people were killed in the United States for being homeless, according to the National Coalition for the Homeless. Where is the uproar? Homeless people all over North America are being set on fire, beaten, stabbed, shot, strangled, brutalized by police, harassed and raped. Many of these crimes go unreported, and the ones that do come to light might not necessarily be recorded as hate crimes. That means statistics for tracking the violence in order to find ways to address it are inadequate. Understanding this phenomenon begins with the source of the assaults and apathy surrounding them. “People are just being targeted because they are homeless. It’s a safe crime, it’s almost like vandalizing a street sign,” says John Joyce, co-executive director of the Rhode Island Homeless Advocacy Project (rihap.org/). “The victim doesn’t come and tell the police about it. They’re ashamed of where they’re at in their life right now. “I can’t understand why, but it’s accepted that it’s OK to assault homeless individuals. It’s just bigotry at its best. People are being targeted because they’re homeless. You’re carrying your life on your back, in your backpack; and people see that and for some odd reason people want to assault people who are more vulnerable.” During testimony before the Rhode Island Legislature on a bill to require tracking crimes against the homeless and police training on homelessness, Joyce played the Bum Hunter video to show how attacking homeless people has become a form of entertainment. The bill passed the state house and senate and is expected to be signed into law. “The victims don’t really want to come forward because the way the police departments think and the community thinks: ‘No one’s going to believe me anyway if I do get assaulted.’ If the homeless community here in Rhode Island knows that the police departments will listen to their complaints, they’ll come forward,” Joyce says. The complexities of social attitudes influence all facets of government in the execution of their role as protector of the common good. This is reflected in an opening statement in Homelessness, Victimization and Crime: Knowledge and Actionable Recommendations, presented in 2008 by the Institute for the Prevention of Crime at the University of Ottawa. “In 1998 the mayors of some of the largest cities in Canada declared homelessness a national disaster,” the report says. “Since then, studies conducted in a number of Canadian cities provide evidence that the number of homeless people on the streets is increasing and consequently that the demands on shelters and other services can be expected to rise. … Those without adequate shelter are more likely than A protester holds an anti-hate sign at a rally in Denver. REUTERS/Gary Caskey. the housed to be victims of violence and, for women, victims of sexual assault.” What the report can’t provide is uniform, consistent data on the number of crimes committed against homeless people across Canada. Nor can the U.S. government provide that same data. Beyond victims’ reluctance to report, another problem is the apparent indifference of law enforcement to collecting See ATTACK P. 4 Beggars Must Now Be Choosers City rules: free shelter or free speech By Gregory Flannery Editor C Josh Spring addresses a press conference at the federal courthouse after the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless filed suit against the city of Cincinnati over new panhandling restrictions. At far left is attorney Jennifer Kinsley. Gregory Flannery. incinnati City Council has found a way to cut the number of people staying in homeless shelters: Kick out the beggars. New rules require shelters that receive city funding to enforce “clear and consistent consequences” for clients “known to be panhandling.” Calling the rules a violation of homeless people’s First Amendment rights, the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless filed suit June 16 in federal court to block the city from enforcing the rules. The fight over the city’s latest attack on panhandling is part of a larger conflict that has been fought behind the scenes until now. The new rules not only prompted a constitutional challenge but also shed light on tensions between the two organizations most responsible for addressing homelessness in Cincinnati: the Homeless Coalition and the Cincinnati/ Hamilton County Continuum of Care for the Homeless. (Disclosure: Streetvibes is published by the Homeless Coalition.) ‘Forced to censor’ The city’s new rules are vague, which is part of the complaint filed by civil-rights attorney Jennifer Kinsley. The “clear and consistent consequences” are not yet defined. But the clear meaning is panhandlers will be evicted from city-funded shelters, according to Josh Spring, executive director of the Homeless Coalition. Because panhandling is protected by the U.S. Constitution’s guarantee of free speech, the rules must be struck down in court, Spring says. “This would kick people out from where they sleep at night for doing something that is constitutional,” he says. “We will not stand for this new war on the poor.” Kinsley wants a federal See BEGGARS P. 12 �2 The Vibe By The Numbers 16 The percentage of street papers around the world with national circulation (see page 7). 20 The number of years the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless oversaw minimum standards for emergency shelters (see page 1). 97,000 The difference between the number of families eligible for subsidized housing and the number of subsidized housing units available in Hamilton County (see page 11). 1965 The year photographer Gordon Baer began working for the Cincinnati Post (see page 16). 700 The cost, in dollars, of a 30day supply of medicine for a patient with bipolar disorder (see page 3). 27 The death toll for homeless people killed by hate crimes in the United States in 2008 (see page 1). 58 The percentage of conservatives in Ohio who support the medical use of marijuana (see page 13). 6 The average number of miles a soccer player runs in a World Cup match (see page 10). 8.5 The number of hours per day Antonio Carlino sells a street paper in Germany (see page 11). 10 The age at which Zach Anner ran away from home to meet Cindy Crawford (see page 6). StreetWise By Gregory Flannery Editor Does the New Masthead Make Our Butt Look Fat? Streetvibes introduces some stylistic changes with this edition. Please note our new masthead on page 1, our first-ever logo (next to the page numbers) and new poster on page 9. This month marks one year since we doubled our publication schedule, so we’re in a celebratory mood. For its first 12 years Streetvibes was a monthly publication. Going bi-weekly was a double risk: Would readers buy more papers? Would writers, photographers and artists contribute more content? The answers are yes and yes. The full-year tally isn’t yet available, of course. The actual anniversary isn’t until July 15. But we have averaged a monthly circulation of 6,544 for the first five months of 2010. By comparison, our circulation for the month of January 2009 was 3,415 copies. In other words, we’ve nearly doubled our readership. Content seems to be the key. We often receive phone calls or e-mails from people who say they bought their first copies of Streetvibes as an act of charity or solidarity with our homeless vendors – but they bought their next copy because they wanted to see what was inside. We Don’t Fix Cars A close relative expressed surprise when he heard I work for Streetvibes. He thought it was an automotive magazine, and he knows that I am to mechanical skills what BP is to environmental protection – that is, inept. Most people in Greater Cincinnati have never heard of Streetvibes but we hope that will change. Our new logo and poster are part of a marketing campaign designed by Linda White and Nick Donell, students at Antonelli College. They also designed a brochure, stationery and Web site, all of which we plan to use in the coming months to expand our little street paper’s reach – and, most important, our vendors’ opportunities for earning an income. Their fellow Antonelli student, Veronica Glass, has helped lay out each edition for the past few months. We even have a new multi-media presentation, courtesy of Eamon Queeney, a journalism student at UC. Queeney spent time with our vendors and staff and put together an amazing five-minute mini-documentary that captures the essence of Streetvibes. You can view it at http://www.eamonq.com/data/slideshow/2/publish_to_web/index.html. Students are a big part of Streetvibes. We encourage young writers and new writers to contribute to the paper. In the past year we’ve published articles and photography by students at Northern Kentucky University, the University of Cincinnati, Xavier University, Miami University and the College of Mount Saint Joseph. We’ve occasionally shared the work of high-school students with our readers. Students get the opportunity to improve their skills while being published and at the same time helping homeless people. But we’ve also had the privilege of publishing the work of professionals – writers, photographers and artists whose careers are long established but who contribute their work because they believe in our mission. They include Jon Hughes, chair of the journalism program at UC; Lew Moores, an acclaimed former reporter for the Cincinnati Post and Cincinnati Enquirer; Margo Pierce, a 2009 Peter Jennings Fellow; David Heitfield, former editor of the Aspen Daily News; Eli Braun, an advocate for prisoners at the Ohio Justice and Policy Center; Anne Skove, who formerly practiced law in the Commonwealth of Virginia; and others. Something Different About a Street Paper Streetvibes is an odd little paper. When I meet with school and community groups, I tell them that we’re unlike any other publication in Cincinnati. That’s true in several ways. In an age when mainstream newspapers are losing circulation and going out of business, Streetvibes has been gaining readers and increasing its print run. I believe this is happening because of – not in spite of – our unusual business model. First, we don’t exist to make a profit. Instead, we exist in order to give homeless and other low-income people a way to earn a living. Streetvibes is primarily a self-employment scheme. Vendors buy the paper for 25 cents a copy and distribute it for a donation of $1 or more, keeping the profit they earn. In 2009 vendors sold more 43,000 copies, earning more than $30,000 – and that doesn’t include the tips that readers often give them. Second, Streetvibes is produced almost entirely by volunteers. The editor is the only paid staffer. The art director, the writers, the photographers, the artists and proofreaders all contribute their work. But grassroots journalism doesn’t mean dirt-cheap journalism. In July 2009 Streetvibes won the “Best Feature Story” Award from the North American Street Newspaper Association, coming on the heels of a similar award from the International Network of Street Papers. We have many hurdles ahead. For now, our vendors are pretty much limited to downtown and Clifton, because Cincinnati’s limited public transportation makes it difficult for them to get to other neighborhoods. We constantly struggle to meet our bills, including postage for subscriptions. City ordinances make it illegal for our vendors to distribute the paper on Fountain Square – an outrage that we hope to challenge in the near future. Can you imagine? In this country that boasts about having freedom of the press, it’s illegal to distribute Streetvibes on Fountain Square. Yes, we face obstacles, but we’re determined to take them on, inspired by the determination of the homeless people who earn an income distributing Streetvibes and encouraged by the generous support of our readers. Thank you for a successful year. STREETVIBES July 1 - 14, 2010 Streetvibes is an activist newspaper, advocating justice and building community. Streetvibes reports on economic issues, civil rights, the environment, the peace movement, spirituality and the struggle against homelessness and poverty. Distributed by people who are or once were homeless, in exchange for a $1 donation, Streetvibes is published twice a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Address: 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 Phone: 513.421.7803 x 12 Fax: 513.421.7813 Email: streetvibes2@yahoo. com Website: www. cincihomeless.org Blog: streetvibes.wordpress. com Streetvibes Staff Editor Gregory Flannery Art Director Lynne Ausman Graphics/Layout Nick Swartsell Veronica Glass John Peet Casey Salsinger Vendor Coordinator Jeni Jenkins Contributing Writers Michelle Dillingham, Samantha Groark, Margo Pierce, Paul Kopp, Jeremy Flannery, Michael Henson, David Heitfield, Corey Gibson, Jeni Jenkins, Saad Ghosn, Lew Moores, Larry Gross, Eli Braun, Jesse Call, B. Clifton Burke, Michael Fanning Photography/Artwork Aimie Willhoite, Lynne Ausman, Anne Skove, Vinit Murthy, Jon Hughes Proofreaders Lynn Baker Jeremy Flannery The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that works to eradicate homelessness in Cincinnati through coordination of services, public education, grassroots advocacy and Streetvibes. We are proud members of: �STREETVIBES July 1 - 14, 2010 3 Column Time to Forget the Bootstraps More than “Suck it up” to deal with being bipolar By Margo Pierce Contributing Writer T he barista greets some customers by name and wishes everyone a good day. Under the “Pick up” sign stands an older woman wearing a jacket, skirt and tennis shoes, staring into space. A man with three children sits at a table sipping coffee while the kids run around; he’s the only customer in casual clothes in this coffee shop on the first floor of a many-storied office building in downtown Cleveland, Ohio. Two tables over sits a man in a traditional blue suit with a striped red tie. Which one has been diagnosed as bipolar? It could be any coffee shop in any town. The hiss of steaming milk, the slamming of a refrigerator door, the grinding of beans, “Mocha latte for Bob!” The man in the blue suit begins to talk. I was diagnosed with bipolar in about 2000 and through the next two or three years had a rough time trying to figure things out. It’s really a disorder that causes mood swings. It used to be called ‘manic/depressive disorder,’ in which manic—or mania—is the highs. The other side, depression, is traditional depression where you feel hopeless, sad, paralyzed. You really can’t do anything, which reIt’s a biological disease. ally hurts people in It can happen to anyone. their everyday lives trying to live and tryWhen you think about ing to make things the person sleeping happen. under the bench and It causes erratic then you see the behavior. It’s very person ready for opendebilitating on both heart surgery, they’re sides. You cycle back probably just as sick, and forth between but nobody’s going to make fun of the guy with the mania and the depression. It’s quite the heart problem. So I a big span somethink the biggest thing is awareness, and that’s times. Dan DiMarco something I feel like I looks away, breakcan help with. ing eye contact. Is he looking out the window, maybe at the man with the children? At the request of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI,) the organization for which he’s a volunteer board member, he is sharing his story. I used the term ‘I was missing something’ with my doctors. Looking back, in high school I did everything well, felt good. Into college I started feeling not as productive. Then I got out of school, and in my first few jobs … I wasn’t able to do as much as I had before and that frustrated me, and I wanted to figure out what was wrong. I couldn’t concentrate like I used to. I didn’t pick things up technically the way I used to. In the past I was always picking up things quickly. Socially I was still fine. In fact, that helped, allowed me to hold onto a lot of my jobs I had. Looking back at home, my wife noticed it, but not family and friends. I was always outgoing and fun. …There was a lot of periods of inactivity at home where I wasn’t doing anything. Anytime I was home I was laying on the couch. I couldn’t cut the grass, I couldn’t paint the walls, I couldn’t really do anything because of the depression. Anything I had to do felt like lifting my car over my head. Once I started this ‘I’m missing something’ came probably three to five years of ‘Maybe I ought to go talk to someone. Maybe I have fear of failure. Maybe I have fear of success.’ What to do, who to go see—I had no idea, so that went back and forth. Then I went to church with my family. My 1-year-old and I were walking around in the back of the church and I saw a flyer from a nun who’s a psychologist and I took that and I went to see her. She thought it was depression, which part of it definitely was, so she recommended me to a psychiatrist to get the full analysis. Joni Mitchell chimes in with “California.” Oh it gets so lonely / When you're walking / And the streets are full of strangers / All the news of home you read / More about the war / And the bloody changes / Oh will you take me as l am? / Will you take me as l am? / Will you? When I heard ‘bi-polar,’ it scared the hell out of me because it just sounded scary. Then, when I started on this medication stuff, it finally hit me that I’ve got to take this forever. At the time, late twenties, to think that I’ve got to have a pillbox out on the counter like grandma does for the rest of my life is scary. The medication management took a long time and it was exhausting. You can’t take a blood test, say, ‘OK take four of these and call me in the morning.’ It’s a total guessing game. We experimented with 15 different options over the course of the next two or three years. I was full-speed ahead so it was just like, ‘Let’s figure it out and do what we have to do.’ When I’d go pick up my 30-day supply and it’s $700, I’d just shake my head and start getting concerned, and then a week or two weeks later it changed anyway. I can appreciate it’s got be extremely difficult for people who are in bad situations. With the bi-polar we settled on two drugs that kind of made things OK. It was at that time I felt really good, started a new job, which helped, and then that’s when I joined NAMI. I thought, ‘I feel good, I’m going to try and help.’ So the two medications boxed things in. Then the doctor portrayed it as some of the depression wasn’t being treated and so we tried an additional drug to complement the two I was taking, and that didn’t work. He twists his wedding ring—a gold band— on his finger. Then he takes it off, fiddles with it and puts it back on, eyes down the entire time, before taking it off to roll it between his fingers again. If the doctors are guessing, essentially, educated guessing, figuring out how to fix things, then it’s nearly impossible—and I’ve tried with my wife and several other people— for people to understand what’s going on in my head. With this recent bout of depression that’s still kind of hanging around, I tell my wife that I’m sitting at my desk and I can’t make my phone calls. That’s what I have to do. I have a lot of calls—I can’t make my phone calls. She says, ‘What do you mean?’ I’m just sitting here and my hands are on my desk and it feels like they’re chained to the desk and I just can’t make the calls. Loving and right next to me and supporting me the whole way—and she says, ‘Well just suck it up, pick up the phone. Why can’t you just pick up the phone?’ Dan DiMarco. Denver Voice. Your brain does a lot of amazing things. It’s very powerful, so if turns around on you and tells you not to do something, ya ain’t gonna do it. In the momentary quiet another female singer croons in the background …”Only you guy trying to believe that you changed…” I was in a fundraising walk (for NAMI). … I basically sent the e-mail to 400 people throughout my network, basically saying, ‘This is me, this is what happened. I didn’t choose this, I can appreciate it’s got it’s who I am, so be extremely difficult for please donate.’ I inpeople who are in bad cluded in that the situations. With the bi-polar family members I we settled on two drugs hadn’t told. That that kind of made things was the way to let OK. It was at that time I felt them know. … You really good, started a new would think people job, which helped, and then would push away that’s when I joined NAMI. after something like I thought, ‘I feel good, I’m this, but I was amazgoing to try and help.’ ingly surprised at the level of support from friends and family with the walk… You see people who are super-successful. They lose their job, they get divorced, they lose another job, they become an alcoholic— I see, I’ve been flirting with all of that. You see people like that and think, ‘What a loser, he can’t get his life together.’ Well, he may think the same thing. Some people are too proud to throw their hands up in the air and say, ‘I need help. I don’t know what’s going on.’ I think that keeps a lot of people away. I’m 100 percent sure that if my dad felt the same way when he was 29, I don’t think he would have said anything. So, I think as generations move on there’s more advertising about it, more awareness. So I think you’ll get more and more people entering the system, if you will, and acknowledging that they have something. It’s a biological disease. It can happen to anyone. When you think about the person sleeping under the bench and then you see the person ready for open-heart surgery, they’re probably just as sick, but nobody’s going to make fun of the guy with the heart problem. So I think the biggest thing is awareness, and that’s something I feel like I can help with. People will say, ‘What can I do?’ and first of all, don’t yell at me when I can’t call someone. And secondly, the old good listener trick— that’s real helpful. Follow Streetvibes www.facebook.com/streetvibescincinnati twitter.com/streetvibesnews streetvibes.wordpress.com �4 STREETVIBES July 1 - 14, 2010 Issues Hate Wave: Attacks on Homeless CONTINUED FROM P.AGE 1 the information. The 2007 Hate Crimes Statistics, the most recent annual report compiled by the FBI Uniform Crime Reporting Program, illustrates this point. More than 13,000 law-enforcement agencies provided data about bias-motivated crime, with 2,025 agencies (15.3 percent) reporting 7,624 incidents. “The remaining 84.7 percent of the participating agencies reported that no hate crimes occurred in their jurisdictions,” the report says. Some states, such as Mississippi – with a deeprooted past in racial violence – reported zero incidents of hate crimes in the entire state. Delving into what makes a hate crime could begin to explain why jurisdictions don’t want to report these crimes. Attacked for who they are A hate crime is an illegal act motivated by hatred toward individuals or property because of an identification as or affiliation with a particular race, color, national origin, ethnicity, religious tradition, sexual orientation or physical or mental disability. (Canadian law also includes language as a prejudicial motivation). Crimes can be against people, including harassment, terroristic threats or assault; or against property, such as trespass, arson or vandalism to the building, the grounds surrounding a structure or personal property inside. The definition of a crime, or illegal activity, motivated by hate seems obvious. But the laws and prosecution of such crimes is the subject of much debate among political leaders, victims’ advocates and activists. The end result – the legal definitions – can be charges carrying stiff or light penalties, depending on where the crimes are committed and the discretion of prosecutors and judges. The Criminal Code of Canada: Hate Provisions (http://www.media-awareness.ca/english/resources/legislation/canadian_law/federal/criminal_code/criminal_code_hate.cfm) requires specific proof of the criminal act and the intention to commit the crime. In the United States, racially motivated hate crimes were defined as early as 1964 in the Civil Rights Act but it wasn’t until 2009 that disabilities and sexual orientation were added to this legislation, when President Obama signed the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act. The thing that differentiates a hate crime from others is that it is “based on a characteristic or condition of the victim” by a perpetrator who “seeks to not only commit the crime against the particular victims but to send a message about that victim to the larger community,” according to Sherrilyn Ifill, professor of law at the University of Maryland and a faculty member of the Peter Jennings Project for Journalists and the Constitution. Those defining elements are determined by history, she says. “We cannot ignore the reality that hate-crime legislation and our view about the particular condemnation that we have for hate crimes comes out of our very particular history. We didn’t just sit down one day and decide if there should be legislation that covers certain kinds of crimes against certain kinds of victims,” she says. “The genesis of the crimes comes out of a history of violence against particular members of our community, particularly racially based hate crimes. It comes out of a very particular time in the history of U.S. violence, in particular, against African Americans, whether it is individualized violence, whether it is mob violence in the form of lynching, whether it is Klan violence – that’s the history it comes out of. So that’s the genesis of it. “It doesn’t mean that our civil rights laws don’t also cover gender discrimination in the work place, for example. We come to expand those laws out of that history, to add other aspects, to add other pieces of it that strike us in the same way, that go to the core of who, at least, we aspire to be as a society and as a country.” How we protect, or fail to protect, vulnerable populations in our communities is a demarcation of our progress in achieving that image. “This is really, in many ways for me, a very critical issue of democracy and freedom – that is, your ability to walk on the street and not be physically attacked for who you are,” Ifill says. “When we want to talk about freedom and we want to talk about democracy, we tend to think about voting. I think many people take for granted the assumption that you can walk on the street unmolested so long as you’re not committing a crime. There can be no other more corrosive activity to a society that purports to be free and democratic than allowing citizens to be attacked on the street for who they are.” A push to include homelessness as a classification in U.S. hate-crime legislation is getting a nod from states passing their own hate-crimes legislation. Ranging from mandating reporting and police training (Rhode Island) to tougher sentencing for individuals convicted of hate crime (Washington state), these laws are codifying state concern about homeless people. The combination of the recent rise in homelessness as a result of the economic downturn and a rise in the reported cases of violent deaths of homeless people has resulted in greater awareness about the risks to people living outdoors, also known as “rough sleepers.” “The risk of victimization is higher among homeless persons who live on the street as opposed to in shelters … 78 percent of rough sleepers had been victims of crime during their most recent period of sleeping on the street; however, only 21 percent of these incidents were reported to police,” says the report by the University of Ottawa. Over the past decade there has been a dramatic increase in the number of violent acts committed against people experiencing homelessness, but coming up with hard data is difficult when there is no standard for reporting such crime and when there is no mandatory reporting, according to the National Coalition for the Homeless. The coalition compiles its own statistics based on FBI crime data, verifying police and media reports and information provided by advocates and support groups. Even though the data is incomplete, it reveals an upward trend that many say justifies the need for more data collection. Canadian law enforcement does not officially compile data on hate crimes against the homeless, either. National newspapers such as the New York Times and USA Today and wire services such as the Associated Press have recently reported on hate crimes against the homeless in Cincinnati, Ohio. ‘Just a bum’ John Johnson needed 18 stitches in his head and his girlfriend was in fear for her life after an April 10 attack at a camp in Cincinnati where they lived. Johnson, 52, says he was sleeping under a highway overpass at about 3 a.m. when four men attacked him. “I was awakened by four young men telling me to exit the property,” he says. “As I was complying with them, they started beating me with pipes and bats upside the head and up and down the left side of my body.” Three of the four attackers have been captured. Charged with felonious assault are Michael Hesson, 24; U.S. Army Private Riley Feller, 24, stationed at Fort Knox, Ky.; and Spec. Travis Condor, 25, stationed at Fort Bragg, N.C. A fourth suspect, also stationed at Fort Bragg, has not yet been caught. Johnson was attacked a few weeks after the city of Cincinnati trimmed trees obscuring a small homeless camp near Interstate 75. As a result, the handful of people living there were exposed to almost constant public view during daylight hours. What wasn’t well known was that people at the camp didn’t sleep in the shack that was visible to traffic; they slept under a nearby highway overpass. The attackers allegedly beat Johnson and chased him up a hill, calling him a “bum” and saying, “We don’t want you here” and “Get a job.” The assailants threatened a woman staying with Johnson but didn’t harm her. “This was not some guys out half-drunk, having a good time at my expense,” Johnson says. “These guys were cold and calculated. It was planned.” The fact that the four attackers knew where to find Johnson indicates that the assault was premeditated, according to Josh Spring, executive director of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH). This was the fourth violent attack on a homeless person in Cincinnati in less than a year that GCCH knew of, Spring says. • In summer 2009 two real-estate agents who were drunk assaulted a homeless man downtown. One knocked the homeless man’s insulin bottle out of his hand. When police arrived, one of the realestate agents said, “He’s just a bum.” Both men were convicted of misdemeanors. • In December 2009 a homeless man reported that a group of youths sprayed his coat with charcoal lighter fluid and threw a match, setting him on fire. • In January 2010 a new Streetvibes vendor was beaten to the point that he had to be placed in a medically induced coma. “In Cincinnati, hate crimes against homeless people definitely seem to be on the rise,” Spring says. “The National Coalition for the Homeless has 2003 Deaths Non-Lethal Total 9 61 70 2008 27 79 106 10 year total 244 636 880 Total Number of cities where crimes occurred over 10 years: 263 Age range of the accused/convicted: 10 to 75 years Age range of the victims: 4 months to 74 years Gender of victims: Male: 547 Female: 80 (Data provided by the National Coalition for the Homeless) been tracking hate crimes … because they saw a turning point where they were occurring more and people were being targeted as a popular thing to do.” Hate, Violence, and Death on Main Street USA: A Report on Hate Crimes and Violence Against People Experiencing Homelessness 2008 is the most recent report by the National Coalition for the Homeless, which describes “an overwhelming trend” in crimes against the homeless perpetrated by young men and boys. Over the past 10 years the majority of attacks against the homeless have been committed by teenage boys and youth as young as 10 years old. In 2008, 43 percent of attacks against homeless people were committed by teens aged 13-19, and 73 percent of the accused/convicted attackers were ages 25 and younger, the report says. “Some of the accused/convicted have been quoted as saying, ‘It was just a vagrant,’ ‘It was fun,” or they did it because they ‘could,’ ” the report says. ‘We really have a problem’ Neil Donovan, executive director of NCH, says “many smart people” have studied the issue of homelessness in the United States and have told him that it’s not possible to end homelessness to the point where we don’t have to worry about it anymore. The necessary public will and resources are lacking. However, he says that’s no excuse for ignoring a very real danger in our communities. “It really is a matter of life and death,” Donovan says. “There are examples of individuals, solely because of their status as un-housed, (who) are at risk of loss of life. When that happens, that rises to a special level of attention, and it’s really our responsibility to protect the health and well being of our un-housed brothers and sisters.” This is one of the reasons NCH is working with the Southern Poverty Law Center to lobby for national legislation to amend the Hate Crimes PreSee ATTACK P. 5 �STREETVIBES July 1 - 14, 2010 5 Issues Hate Wave: Attacks on Homeless legislation is coming from some unlikely places. Brian Davis, executive director of the Northeast vention Act to include homelessness as a classifi- Ohio Coalition for the Homeless, says the Anti-Defcation reported by law enforcement. A strong and amation League (ADL) opposed adding homelessvocal supporter of this effort is Brian Levin, director ness to the hate-crimes law in Texas, arguing that it of the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism would water down the law. at California State University and a former staffer at “In Texas, the legislation came before the Generthe Southern Poverty Law Center. al Assembly, and the Anti-Defamation League op“As a criminologist, there are certain types of posed it. That’s the only time I know of that they’ve data that we rely upon, and homicide data is one of publicly come out in opposition to a hate-crimes them; and what we’re seeing is that more homeless bill, and the bill died,” Davis says. “They don’t want people (are) murdered in apparent hate crimes than to cheapen existing hate-crimes statutes or open all of the other traditional hate-crime victims com- the door to frivolous claims.” bined in any given year. And what I mean is race, Davis says the ADL argued that homeless people religion, sexual orientation, disability, etc.,” Levin can “de-select” themselves from being homeless – says. “If that’s the case, then we that is, opt not to be homeless. really have a problem where the “Their concern is that homelaw should protect them. And we “Victimization on the street is less people can de-select themshould have a federal law reflect psychologically distressing selves from that group by getit, because in many areas the and can lead to depression ting housing,” he says. “Of all the homeless are not treated as vicand low self-esteem, which groups that have current protims – they’re treated as crimi- in turn contributes to apathy tected status that it would seem nals themselves. would not speak up would be the and feelings of futility, “The fact of the matter is, is group that you could de-select making it more difficult to that we have clear and very disyourself from – namely, religion. escape further abuse.” turbing issue of violence against “The other concern is that, as the homeless that is done by we all know from working with folks who are responding to prejudice.” the homeless, it’s not so easy to de-select yourself The criminalization of homelessness (See “Being from being homeless. In many cities, there are seriHomelessness is Against the Law,” edition of March ous barriers to getting housing.” 1) makes activity such as sleeping in a public place This notion that homelessness is a mutable conor even sitting too long in one location a crime, dition is a “red herring,” according to Levin. punishing people without a permanent address “In discrimination jurisprudence, which is the with fines and jail time. antecedent to hate-crimes legislation, mutability “There is a tendency to focus on crimes com- was never a prerequisite,” he says. “Certainly race is mitted by homeless people without also examining the genesis of these kinds of protections. It’s never their heightened vulnerability to victimization – been regarded, nor does the 14th Amendment … rates that are higher than for the housed,” the Uni- say the mutability was not the be-all requirement. versity of Ottawa report says. It’s really a red herring. The perverse reality of homelessness is that be“I think what we need to look at is, ‘Is there a ing victimized by hate crimes makes further victim- problem, a manifestation of prejudice and discrimization likely. Noting that homelessness “disrupts ination due to certain socially identifiable characimportant social bonds and impairs personal net- teristics?’ If that’s the case, then we should address working” for successful interpersonal interaction it.” and efforts to leave the streets, the report explains The 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution inthat this means many people are trapped in that cludes the language that “all persons” are included environment. in the clause, “No state shall make or enforce any “Victimization on the street is psychologically law which shall abridge the privileges or immunidistressing and can lead to depression and low ties of citizens of the United States; nor shall any self-esteem, which in turn contributes to apathy state deprive any person of life, liberty or property and feelings of futility, making it more difficult to without due process of law; nor deny any person escape further abuse,” the report says. within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the Resistance to adding the homeless to hate-crimes laws.” In 2009 a group of six juveniles attacked a 30-yearHate, Violence, and Death on Main Street old homeless man sleeping next to railroad tracks in Lynn, Mass. The boys, ages 11 to 14, threw bricks, Feb. 14, 2008; Frederick, Maryland: William Sigler, stones, bottles and sticks, inflicting life-threatening 49, was found guilty of a fatal attack on Samuel injuries. Police charged the juveniles with armed Webster Hood Jr., 57, a homeless man living in assault with intent to murder, aggravated assault Frederick. Police were called to respond to an unand battery with a deadly weapon, assault with inconscious Hood with his skull cracked open from tent to maim with a dangerous weapon and a civilthe attack. Authorities report evidence of stranrights violation. gulation and severe trauma to the head and neck Robyn Frost, executive director of the Massafrom repeated assault chusetts Coalition for the Homeless, compared the vulnerability of homeless people to that of groups March 23, 2008; Bartlett, Tenn.: Two homeless men protected by hate-crimes legislation, such as Afriwere the victims of an attack on Easter Sunday. can Americans and homosexuals.“At a time when Brenner Holloman, one of the victims, was unhurt increased numbers of individuals and families but witnessed everything. The attackers, adult without housing is at an all time high… I think that males ages 19-22, used Molotov cocktails, a home- it has escalated this issue right to the top, right next made concoction that consists of a bottle filled to any one of those particular populations that are with gasoline and set on fire. now designated.” The brutality of the attack in Lynn could be kind June 26, 2008; Kansas City, Mo.: Rolando Aaron of tipping point, leading Massachusetts to reconand Paul W. Simmons, both 19, were charged with sider adding homeless people to groups protected first-degree robbery for attacking a 54-year-old by hate-crimes laws – a move they had earlier rehomeless man with a brick and robbing him. The jected. victim, a Vietnam War veteran, told authorities “The biggest tipping point right now is you’ve that he woke up Thursday morning and found got such high populations in Massachusetts who someone searching through his pockets. ….The are extremely vulnerable because they don’t have victim stood and tried to fight them off. The sushousing, and I think this issue right now is affectpects hit him in the head and back with a brick. ing far greater numbers of people,” Frost says. “So I think the combinations of issues sadly like ocFrom Hate, Violence, and Death on Main Street curred in Lynn and the combinations of numbers USA: A Report on Hate Crimes and Violence Against are actually skyrocketing could be a good tipping People Experiencing Homelessness, a 2008 report by point to re-file it.” the National Coalition for the Homeless. CONTINUED FROM P.AGE 4 ‘Shallow motives’ That protection can be provided through legislation and education, according to Levin. “The same types of offenders are committing the same hate crimes against the homeless that we’ve seen with other victim groups, yet it appears, from the limited data that we have, that the homeless are among the most violently victimized of any victim group out there,” he says. “Therefore, we need not only education, but educational initiatives to protect the homeless … training for social services and law enforcement as well as for young people in schools. “The more we can educate young people at critical times in their lives about what prejudice is and that they might actually experience it, the more they’re able to address their feelings when they feel certain prejudices. Moreover, the more that we can say that this is not socially acceptable and institutionalize that, as well as institutionalizing the message that there might very well be punishment as well, I think serves a later good. The word’s already out there that the homeless are potential victims.” Levin says laws can serve as a deterrent because the effectiveness of a deterrent depends on the circumstances of the crime and the offender. “Since most hate crimes – the attacks against the homeless – are done mostly by people with shallow motives, the prospective of punishment actually very well can be a deterrent. … If someone’s out for a thrill and … if there’s a message that’s out there that says, ‘Guess what? You’ll be prosecuted,’ that will deter some of the offenders. It won’t deter all of them, but people with shallow motives for committing crimes and little benefit are among the most deterrable.” The Homelessness, Victimization and Crime report from the University of Ottawa concludes with a number of “actionable recommendations.” These suggestions fall in line with what many homeless advocacy groups across the continent have been recommending: • Housing and supports, which include “providing advocacy and advice for homeless people; invest more resources at all orders of government into strategic tools to measure and reduce homelessness in Canada.” • “Invest in programs to help at-risk youth to stay in school and acquire life skills; improve mental-health services for those with persistent mental illness; and educate the public about homelessness.” • “Provide training for police and other enforcement personnel on best practices for intervention with homeless people; implement comprehensive drug strategies … and repeal legislation that excludes youth with behavior problems from mainstream education.” “This synthesis of the research literature and the recommendations are aimed at policy makers in all orders of government to assist in reducing homelessness, victimization, criminal offending and public disorder,” the report concludes. Donovan of the NCH takes a similar position. “Homelessness shouldn’t be over-thought, overanalyzed and over-solved,” he says. “The reason that we have homelessness is because of a lack of accessible and affordable housing, jobs with a universal living wage and health care for all. The solution is the reverse of that. “Any further explanation, any further complicating factors, really are distractions and frankly avoidance of the problem. What we really need to do is … respect people by staying focused on the issue.” Helping people get off the streets makes for fewer targets, but it won’t address the essential issue, according to Ifill. “I think people want to believe that hate crimes are a thing of the past, and understandably so,” she says. “But the reality is that they’re not, and that only by our attention and only by very vigorous law enforcement response – prosecution by prosecutors of hate crimes, reporting not only by law enforcement official but by citizens who see and know when hate crimes occur – are we going to be able to get our hands around this.” �6 Column STREETVIBES July 1 - 14, 2010 A Message to Social Workers Social work is not enough streets and into permanent housing. And it is a positive thing; it’s wonderful for those n this country, we have a major problem of whom we successfully get into housing. poverty complicated by addiction, which is But when I think of the entire spectrum of homecomplicated by poverty. It’s a major, mutually lessness among the addicted population, I feel the reinforcing entanglement. effect of what we do is like And it’s not going away. There spitting in a galvanized buckis nothing in the current diet on a hot day. There’s still rection of addiction policy or a lot of room in that bucket; economics that says anything and after that bubble of spit By Michael Henson will change without major dries, we’ll barely be able to intervention. And there is know it was there. no political will in any direcWhat we do is wonderful tion for major intervention. When Jesus said, “The and life-changing for the individuals we work with, poor ye have always with you,” he could have been but it’s a drop in the bucket compared to the need. thinking of American social policy. A thousand programs operating on best practicThe sad and infuriating part of it is that, as educa- es across the country can’t change the fact that the tors, counselors and social workers, we do many of jobs and the homes are not there. the right things – and they do help. But we’re forced Good, evidence-based practice is essential, and if to do them too late and too small. we are educators, social workers, or counselors, we For example, it’s easy to see that investing heav- are ethically bound to operate on good, evidenceily in schools, including academic, enrichment and based practices. prevention programs, keeps kids out of trouble. We But it’s not enough. know what works; research shows what works. But We have to be political. we don’t invest heavily in schools, and so we have to invest later in prisons and treatment facilities, all * * * * * of which are also overloaded and underfunded. To take another example, I work in a program, I used to tell helping professionals that, if all they founded on best practices, which shows every sign did was good teaching or good counseling or good of success for those individuals we help. The con- case management, then they were parasites. I didn’t cept is called Housing First and operates on the no- mean it as harsh as it came out and everybody got tion that, if you provide housing for chronic home- defensive and I never got my point across and it less alcoholics, they have a better chance of getting was all ugly and I’ve stopped using that analogy. sober than if you try to get them sober, then try to But will you let me try one more time? I promise find housing. The people at the top who plan such not to abuse you. What I meant to say through that analogy was things are happy to point to our project as something positive to get homeless alcoholics off the that, if all we do as change agents is what is sanc- I ammered H tioned by our jobs, then we are in danger of using the poor for our own gain. The poor need us in the long run less than we need them. For if there were no more poverty, many of us would need to get real jobs. Or, as William Blake puts it, Pity would be no more If we did not make somebody poor. And mercy no more would be If all were as happy as we. If our livelihoods depend upon continuation of a social problem that could be solved, then we should, in all responsibility, work to solve it. Once it’s solved – and I do believe poverty could be solved if we had the will – we can turn our skills to other needs. I believe it’s important to do a good job on the job with the resources we have. And I know it takes a great deal of energy and commitment just to get through the workday. But good social work or counseling practice alone will not solve the problem. We don’t reach enough people, we don’t reach them soon enough and we don’t reach them often enough. I don’t have a lot of faith that, in a world of Glenn Becks and Rush Limbaughs (not to mention the spinelessness of their opponents) we can get much traction on a remaking of society in the way we need. Not even the liberals, who are supposed to care about such things as economic justice and social progress, seem to care about the addict in poverty. But we have to speak up. They’ll threaten our funding; they’ll call us poverty pimps; they’ll say we’ve crossed boundaries, but we will have spoken the truth, our truth. Social work is not enough. Michael Henson is author of Ransack, A Small Room with Trouble on My Mind, The Tao of Longing and Crow Call. The Sexiest Palsy A young filmmaker/comedian finds support By Ariana Shahandeh Contributing Writer Z ach Anner, a 26-year-old Texan, entered a contest to win a show on Oprah Winfrey’s new television channel. Anner opened his audition tape expressing his earnest desire to enter the contest, but said he “didn’t know where I’d fit. I have something called cerebral palsy, the sexiest of the palsies, and that sort of limits where my strengths are.” After a skit exploring hilariously failed attempts at cooking, fashion and yoga – “This isn’t yoga. I’m just putting on pants.” – Anner proposed the idea of a travel show for “people who never thought they could travel.” He described how most travel shows are a bit out of touch with how most people travel. His show would not be about how to plan the perfect vacation, but rather how to still have a good time even when things go wrong. Anner spoke with Streetvibes about his idea. What initially sparked the idea of a travel show for “every man”? I think it was going on trips with my dad. My dad took me to Europe twice. Just that experience, having to break down my electric wheelchair and get it on trains and hide money from (pickpockets) in my wheelchair and just having a good time no matter what happened. I used to go on trips with my mom, and we would go to just a random city and go to a hotel and play bingo, just making the best of whatever the situation was. So what do your parents think of all this? They’re very disappointed in me (laughing). No, they’re really, really proud, and we’re all just trying to figure out how to deal with it. It still kind of feels like a dream. Do you want friends from The Wingmen project (a comedic mockumentary about a group of romanti- cally challenged young men who try to set up a dating service, produced by award-winning filmmaker Marshall Rimmer) to be involved in the production of the travel show? Yes, absolutely. They are the guys that I really want to do (the show) with. They’re really, really helpful to me, and they’re good at filming. I can’t imagine doing it without them. They don’t care about the disability at all. And so nothing is sacred; they have no problem just driving off in my chair. It’s a non-issue. What was a moment you remember from your youth that you feel really stuck out to you and you think contributed most to who you are right now? There were a couple moments. I went to London with my dad and my brother for the first time, and things just weren’t going well in London; and one night my dad just said, “OK, well, why don’t we just go to Paris, instead?” So we got on a train and we went to Paris that day, and we just had the greatest time there. There’s an excitement you feel when you’re being spontaneous and you’re being open to an experience. And then when I was really young, about 10 years old, I ran away with my friends from third grade to meet Cindy Crawford. We ran away to New York City – well, we got about six blocks. But my brother packed us peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, and I stole 50 bucks from my mom and we were going to go to New York City and meet Cindy Crawford. What is something that’s surprised you most during all this success and support of your idea? My eyes were opened through this experience that there were a lot more people with disabilities that shared my sense of humor. That’s what I’ve always wanted, to find a community of people with disabilities that felt the same way that I did. Because a lot of people in this disability community didn’t necessarily get my humor or think that it was positive. To get the sense that there are people out Zach Anner. Zach Anner. there that just want to be funny and have a good time and let their personality shine beyond their disabilities has been overwhelming. I didn’t have an idea of the scope of that until this whole thing happened. How do you want to be remembered? Wow, I’m just trying not to be forgotten right now. I mean I don’t think it’s important if I’m remembered or not. I just hope that if I make any sort of imprint, it’s so that I can give anyone who would automatically be dismissed by most people a fair shot. I don’t think it’s necessarily about me being remembered; it’s about opening doors for others to go through. If someone has a disability or a disadvantage, that they have a chance to follow their dreams and not just be automatically dismissed by others. Does that make sense? I don’t really feel like I’m that important. I have no illusions about what’s going on here. It’s really nice, but I feel like, if I’m going to give back one thing it’s that anybody can do this. �STREETVIBES July 1 - 14, 2010 7 International News A Whole World of Street Papers Survey assesses growing movement S treetvibes is a member of the International Network of Street Papers (INSP), a professional organization devoted to fostering the development of this unique social enterprise around the world. Although the 108 papers that make up INSP greatly vary in editorial policy, size and distribution, their common goal is to provide self-employment to homeless and other low-income people, who purchase street papers and sell them at a profit. INSP recently surveyed its members. Ninety-five papers participated. Following are the results. Geographical area covered by paper: o o National – 16% Selected cities/regions: 83% Circulation frequency: o o o o o o o Weekly 7 papers, 7% Bi-weekly 15 papers, 15% Monthly 39 papers, 41% Every 2 months 21 papers, 22% Quarterly 7 papers, 7% Other 8 papers, 8% Overall average circulation: 1, 422, 600 Vendors On average, how many vendors do you work with per edition? o 1-20 24 papers, 25% o 21-50 26 papers, 27% o 51-100 18 papers, 19% o 101-200 18 papers, 19% o 201-500 14 papers, 15% o 500+ 8 papers, 8% Who are your main vendor group? o Homeless 73 papers, 76% o Street homeless 53 papers 55% o Ex-homeless 64 papers, 67% o Slum dwellers 26 papers, 27% o Refugees/Immigrants - 23 papers 24% o Unemployed 66 papers, 69% o Drug/Alcohol users 56 papers, 58% o o o o o Elderly (over 60) Youth (under 24) Women Mentally/physically disabled Other 38 papers, 40% 24 papers, 25% 44 papers, 46% 43 papers, 45% 11 papers, 11% Social and Economic Situation What do you consider to be the main social and economic problems that you face in the area (town, city, region, country) where you work? o Health: Drug/alcohol abuse, HIV, domestic violence, lack of health care o Immigration: Refugees, asylum seekers, racism, xenophobic tendencies o Homelessness: Shortage of homeless shelters, mentally ill people o Social: Gap between rich and poor; tidying up of public areas – people pushed to the edge of society; social exclusion; discrimination/intolerance; lack of basic services, water, electricity; spending cuts; lack of acknowledgement that poverty exists; no industry – not enough jobs for unskilled workers; political attitude; inadequate government services; a need to change society’s misconceptions about poverty and homelessness, gentrification o Police: Criminalization of begging/homelessness/vagrancy, fines, jail sentences; police violence towards homeless, harassment. o Poverty: Increasing debt; economic crisis, businesses closed, bankruptcy; high cost of living i.e. rent, food, bills; low minimum wages; low unemployment benefit; lack of affordable housing; cost of public transport too high; lack of funding for additional housing projects; veterans; eviction o Crime: Prostitution, crime rate. o Jobs: Lack of education; low -killed workers, no jobs, unemployment o Other: Agriculture failing, poor environmental conditions Impact of your work In what ways has your whole organization had an impact on the eradication of poverty in 2009? o Policy change 24 papers, 25% o o o o o o Readership engaged Vendors moved on Earned income Campaigns Press coverage Events 75 papers, 78% 68 papers, 71% 51 papers, 53% 38 papers, 40% 63 papers, 66% 46 papers, 48% Impact of your street paper project Please estimate the total number of vendors who have benefited from your street-paper project in 2009? o 1-50 34 papers, 35% o 51-100 10 papers, 10% o 101-200 18 papers, 19% o 201-300 9 papers, 9% o 301-500 15 papers, 16% o 500+ 12 papers, 13% How have these vendors benefited from your street paper project in 2009? (Please tick ALL that apply) Improved wellbeing 80 papers, 84% Earned an income 82 papers, 86% Training/education 49 papers, 51% Increased confidence 84 papers, 88% Moved on 68 papers, 71% Rehabilitation 37 papers, 38% Cultural/arts activities 52 papers, 54% Sports activities 31 papers, 32% Impact of any additional projects Does your organisation run any additional projects? o Housing support 23 papers, 24% o Drop in centre 27 papers, 28% o Health support 26 papers, 27% o Cultural/arts activities 40 papers, 42% o Drug/alcohol rehabilitation 20 papers, 21% o Sports 29 papers, 30% o Campaigning 29 papers, 30% o Social enterprises 34 papers, 35% o Social-work provision 29 papers, 30% Please estimate how many people benefited from your additional projects in 2009. 113,663 Participants at the International Network of Street Papers Conference in Melbourne, Australia. INSP. �8 STREETVIBES July 1 - 14, 2010 Recipe “Feed Me, Seymour, Feed Me All Night Long…” Easy-To-Please Veggie Fried Rice Serving Size: 4-5 bellies Veggie fried rice. Jeni Jenkins. By Jeni Jenkins Staff Writer W hen I was growing up, we rarely ate out; but when we did, we went for Chinese. I can remember my mother’s giddiness at the mention of “take-out” and even more her excitement when it was decided that we would upgrade to the Chinese buffet. What joy! Alas, her joy was not shared amongst us little ones during the wee years. For us, getting Chinese meant watching our parents devour strange exotic dishes out of white boxes or standing in line with our empty white porcelain, wrinkling our noses at the funny smelling vats of “Ewww” what is that? What snobs we were. Things have changed and now I can hardly restrain my giddiness at the mention of Chinese food. I’m American and Americans love Chinese food. Well, not really. We love our idealized version of Chinese food. Truth be told, most Americans, unless they have traveled to China (which I haven’t), probably aren’t familiar with traditional Chinese cuisine (which I am not,) as most Chinese-American restaurants have adapted to cater to Western taste buds (like mine). Of all the dishes I have tried over the years, fried rice is still one of my faves – I even liked it as a child – although it can be difficult to find a vegetarian or vegan version at a restaurant. Fried rice is arguably one of the most popular Chinese-American dishes, aside from the infamous “Sweet and Sour Chicken” and “General Tzo’s Chicken,” both American adaptations. This recipe is a simple, Americanized version that is full of veggie goodness and will easily please your snobbiest critic. even my kids love it, and they are total food snobs. 2 cups water 1 cup jasmine rice 2 tablespoons oil – preferably sesame, but olive or vegetable will suffice 1 sliced zucchini 1 or 2 bell peppers (I prefer red and green) 2 tablespoons minced garlic 1 chopped red onion 2 cups frozen peas ¼ cup chopped green onions 1/3 cup sesame seeds Crushed red pepper ¼ cup soy sauce Other spices to taste 4 uncooked eggs or egg substitute scrambled in a bowl (optional for vegans) • Combine water and rice in medium saucepan. Bring to boil, then cover and simmer on medium-low for 20 minutes. • While rice is cooking, heat oil in a wok or large skillet on medium-high. Toss zucchini, red onion, peppers and garlic in oil over medium-high for approximately 2 minutes. • Add the frozen peas and stir-fry an additional 2 minutes. • Add green onions, sesame seeds, crushed red pepper and soy sauce and stir-fry together for 1 minute. • Push veggies to the side of the pan, leaving enough room to pour in the uncooked eggs. If needed, heat 1 tsp oil first. For approximately 1 minute fry the eggs on medium heat until fluffy, using a spatula, constantly chopping and moving the egg around so as not to burn the egg. • Remove from heat, stir the cooked eggs with the fried veggies. • Carefully stir in the hot jasmine rice. • Voila, FEED! Artwork By Anthony Williams y a S ! ? t a h W “Be as generous as possible to beggars.” -- Pabongka Rinpoche Liberation in the Palm of Your Hand __________ �STREETVIBES July 1 - 14, 2010 9 �10 Sports STREETVIBES July 1 - 14, 2010 Drinking from the World Cup Fans of the USA soccer team celebrate ahead of a 2010 World Cup match against Slovenia in Johannesburg. REUTERS/Brian Snyder. Is it un-American to enjoy soccer? By B. Clifton Burke Contributing Writer A s the pinnacle of sports unfolds in another hemisphere, and the majority of human beings on Earth tune in to follow along, the United States has once more displayed its resistance to a game that we call soccer, but everyone else calls football. Yet for the first time I have noticed that, when I admit to someone else that I enjoy soccer and the World Cup, it feels like I am admitting to them that I am slightly less American as a result. Why must we feel challenged by the international interest of the sport? Why is watching soccer a hippie or liberal thing to do? The first question is this: Is soccer really ignored in the United States? The answer is a bit complicated because millions of people play it in school, but no one wants to watch it or read about it. One measure that I hold to be true is that ESPN, the very network that airs every match, shows very little World Cup footage in its nightly highlight show; and when they do, it’s buried behind baseball, golf, NASCAR, NBA (even though the season just ended) and more baseball. ESPN will only make decisions that make it more money; and if the interest for World Cup footage were greater, it would be moved up in the show. I can't adequately explain why the United States has turned its back on soccer. Perhaps it’s the lack of scoring that turns Americans off. We’re about succeeding at all costs, and points means success, so therefore, we wanna see more points. Or maybe it’s because soccer isn't an American sport. While baseball, basketball and recently football have seen their rosters become increasingly international, they are all very much considered inherently American. Soccer, then, is the opposite of that – and something opposite of inherently American offends our inner patriot. Perhaps it’s a bit of social conditioning that steers us clear of following futbol. Or maybe it’s just one too many sports to follow. The English Premier League – widely considered the top soccer league in the world – takes place during the NFL season and can be both expensive and hard to find on cable television in the States. Speaking of television again, it can’t help that the matches are aired live beginning at 7 a.m. and ending around 4 p.m.; most of us work then, or at least pretend to, so what can you do? Regardless of the reason, a stigma about soccer remains in the American psyche and it is robbing the good people of some terrific athletic competition. Not only are the games – or, that is, matches – highly entertaining; the culture of the game is excellent, too. The first thing to think about is that it takes place in South Africa, where it is currently winter. Because of the extreme time and temperature difference, to me, it feels like watching soccer being played on another planet. Then there is, of course, the vuvuzallas. For those of you unfamiliar, a vuvuzalla is a small plastic horn used by soccer fans in South Africa. They make a noise that is an imitation to what a Viking horn should sound like. When played with thousands of others, it sounds like a swarm of something big and winged. Many Americans can’t stand the sound – television manufacturers have posted to their Web sites ways to audibly tune out the sound on their sets – but I don’t feel it distracts one bit from viewing the game. Since it is a constant cacophony, one adjusts and tunes it out on his own. Plus, it’s part of another culture. Who are we to demand something as harmless as horns are banned from the stadiums? Another enjoyable side dish to the World Cup is the British commentators. I get such a kick out of hearing their slang and descriptions about the game. When New Zealand finished with a draw to Italy, the players were described as “going absolutely potty.” Typically, the play-by-play announcer has the smooth British accent, but the analyst often has more of a Scottish rogue, and it’s those guys who are at times hard to understand. Nonetheless, it simply would not be the same to hear a standard American accent list off all those exotic names. Which brings me to my last favorite cultural aspect of the game: the players. Not only do they have spectacular names like Tshabalala, Boudebouz, Zigic and Kaka, names fit for any Star Wars universe; they also have every range of skin color and hair style, yet all look singularly soccer-like no matter what their appearance (except the Australian team; they look like dentists). Still, don’t let the long hair fool you; these guys are tough. Not only do they run an average of six miles a match, they also get kicked, head butted and aggressively booty-bumped into the ground on a very regular basis. Plus, they are minimally protected by padding – shin guards and a cup is all you get; good luck. Yet when they’re on their feet and with the ball, poetry unfolds. Their ability to control a round object so completely with their feet is astounding. Doing it while evading defenders and a goal tender is truly remarkable. This is why goals come so infrequently and are such a premium: They are hard to do. When a player makes a goal, he often appears more relieved than pleased; when they miss, they look like their house just burned down. The pressure for the players – especially the favored ones – is immense. Their countries are counting on them and are often unforgiving to the smallest failures. For some places, their team has to win and do it in entertaining fashion in order to feel good about things. But on the same token, heroes are celebrated for life. There are very few events that bring the world together like the World Cup. In global popularity, it is an unmatched spectacle of sport. If the United States ever developed a similar passion toward the game, perhaps it’s team would be more of a force. But for now, they are lukewarm like their nation’s interest in the game. Call 513-421-7803 x11 to learn about Streetvibes subscriptions �Housing Issues STREETVIBES July 1 - 14, 2010 11 Safe, Affordable and Unavailable The crisis of affordable housing By Michelle Dillingham Contributing Writer A ffordable Housing Advocates (AHA) recently hosted its annual meeting, which included a presentation of the report, “State of Affordable Housing in Hamilton County: The Crisis,” followed by some very moving speakers from the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless Speakers Bureau, who spoke candidly to the 40 or so housing advocates about their experience of being homeless. A group of AHA members and volunteers convened earlier this year to conceptualize what a report on the state of affordable housing would look like. They used Louisville’s “State of Metropolitan Housing Report” as a model. Louisville annually publishes a report on affordable housing and does a nice job. Some of Louisville’s reporting in previous years has been on “Targeting of CDBG Funds” and “Production and Rehabilitation of Affordable Rental Housing.” AHA’s report was written by a group of people who had expertise in various areas of affordable housing. The data for the report was pulled from various sources, including the last U.S. Census. Soon the data from the 2010 Census will be available, and it will be interesting to compare any changes. AHA’s report has seven sections: Affordability, Foreclosures, Homelessness, Affordability and Transportation, Residential Segregation, Substandard Housing and Accessible Housing. AHA recognized the need for a baseline assessment of where our community is in terms of affordable housing. One of the frustrating things as an advocate is to read misinformation in the press or hear false statements by elected officials or other leaders related to affordable housing. For example, we often hear from city leaders, “We have more than enough affordable housing in Cincinnati.” Yet in reality the demand for affordable housing far outweighs the supply. In Hamilton County, there are approximately 24,000 units of housing with rental subsidies, yet there are approximately 121,000 families who qualify for the assistance because of their low income. The waiting list for Housing Choice Vouchers (Section 8) has been closed since 2007; and when it was last open for two days, over 14,000 families sought applications. The young woman from the speakers bureau told how she had gone to Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority a few days earlier and was told it would be six to eight months before a unit would be avail- able. One of the more intriguing pieces of information in the report is that between 1994 and 2009 Hamilton County has lost over 2,000 units of project-based subsidized housing. AHA’s report offers quantitative evidence that we do not have enough affordable housing. AHA sub-titled this report, “The Crisis,” to reflect the reality that the housing situation we face is unstable and has undergone abrupt changes given recent changes in our economy. The report demonstrates that the availability of safe, accessible, affordable housing in Hamilton County is not meeting the needs of our community. What is particularly exciting is that advocates now have a document against which to measure progress toward (or regression from) our goal to have more safe, accessible, affordable housing. AHA believes strongly in public education about the reality of affordable housing, and defining the problem is the first step. You can find a link to the report on AHA’s website at http://www.ahacincy.org/. Worldwide Vendor Spotlight Up From Below By Ilse Weiss Contributing Writer N uremberg, Germany – Antonio Carlino has laid cable and drilled deep – a tough, dirty but respectable job. Since last autumn he’s sold Strassenkreuzer, a clean job. Nevertheless, Carlino was shy at first because it’s hard to reveal himself as poor but very creditable. He’s now 54 years old, “too old,” he says, and smiles. Well, he wouldn’t consider himself too old for anything. He’s talking about the employment office, potential employers. They’ve considered him to be too old for ages. As a result, Carlino doesn’t get any more work, not even a temporary job. At least this way, Carlino doesn’t get broken, tired or worn out. His hands are hard and calloused, but as soon as he smiles, his brown eyes twinkle. If good-natured meant that someone would be of great courage, then Carlino is very good-natured. He was already, when he arrived from Sicily in Nuremberg with his now deceased parents in 1970. “I was always in the building trade,” he says, declaring at the same time that he always wanted to earn his own money. But he remained semi-skilled, and his command of German was poor, so he was among those easiest to replace when things weren’t going so well on the building site. For 30 years everything went quite well. Carlino knows Nuremberg, especially from below. Public works, laying cable – he felt comfortable doing that. Then he lost his job again. He looked for another job for one and a half years, and time was running out for him. He finally joined a scheme working as a kitchen porter in the warm shelter; that’s all there was. Through the warm shelter, Carlino came into contact with the Strassenkreuzer sales department and sellers. Last September he submitted his unemployment-benefit supporting documents to be able to register as a seller. Then he got the first issues for 70 cents each and stood on the street. “The first time you have to get over it,” Carlino says. “But the people there were so nice, and then it got easier.” Especially an old lady with a bicycle. He remembers the time she praised him for his courage. This builds up. “Why should I hide?” he asks. “When you get nothing, you have to go out in life.” He’s doing just that. In the middle of the city center, near the ship of fools, Mr. Carlino often sells starting at 8:30 a.m. until around 5 p.m., depending on how business goes. In the big Italian ice cream parlors he can use the toilet; one of the waiters will then watch out for his newspapers. It might be that the countrymen have a heart for Carlino. And the customers, too. Carlino sells so consistently that he would soon like to be an established seller. Then he wouldn’t have to depend entirely on state benefits, at least. “I want to go my own way in peace,” Antonio Carlino is a street-paper vendor in Germany. he says. Gerd Grimm. To turn an honest penny is to have an outlook. Originally published in Strassenkreuzer. © www. “Fifty-four isn’t old age – for employers, it is. But streetnewsservice.org not for me. What the heck.” �12 STREETVIBES July 1 - 14, 2010 Local News Beggars Must Now Be Choosers CONTINUED FROM P.AGE 1 judge to issue preliminary and permanent injunctions to block the new rules. She represents the Homeless Coalition, Grace Place Catholic Worker House and Paul Eggleston Sr., who sometimes stays at the Drop Inn Center and sometimes panhandles. “Mr. Eggleston suffers from numerous physical and mental disabilities and receives social security assistance each month,” the complaint says. “This income, however, is insufficient to meet his mounting medical bills and also to cover food, clothing and basic necessities. As a result, Mr. Eggleston on occasion engages in non-aggressive solicitation to supplement his subsistence earnings. Mr. Eggleston fears that if (the new rules) take effect, he will be forced to either forfeit his First Amendment right to solicit alms or to live on the streets. Mr. Eggleston intends to continue soliciting alms as necessary to support himself and will therefore be excluded from the Drop Inn Center Shelterhouse and other homeless shelters in Cincinnati as a result.” The rules “are unconstitutional on their face,” Kinsley’s complaint says. She cites alleged violations such as “impermissible content-based restriction on protected expression,” prior restraint on speech, vague and overbroad restrictions and “improperly burden(ing) the right of free association.” People such as Eggleston aren’t the only ones forced to make a choice under the new rules. So are organizations like Grace Place, which provides temporary housing to women and children who are in transition from homelessness. The new rules would force Grace Place to choose between respecting people’s rights and providing them shelter, according to Kinsley. “It will either be forced to censor, silence and punish the free-speech rights of its clients or to risk funding,” the complaint says. “Grace Place does not intend to comply with the anti-panhandling provision and therefore risks losing its certification as a result. In addition, if Grace Place elects not to enact an anti-panhandling policy in response to the city’s motions, it will be forever foreclosed from seeking government funding should it desire to do so in the future.” Going along It is telling that Grace Place is the only shelter in the Homeless Coalition that joined the lawsuit as an individual plaintiff. The explanation lies in the fact that Grace Place doesn’t accept city funding – or more, to the point, funding channeled through the Continuum of Care. City council didn’t pass an ordinance requiring the anti-panhandling policy at shelters. It passed a motion directing that the rule be made part of the city’s minimum standards for shelters. But first it took responsibility for monitoring the standards away from the Homeless Coalition – and gave it to the Continuum of Care. Kinsley’s lawsuit challenges that move, too. The Continuum of Care is in charge of managing – and disbursing – city and federal funding for programs serving homeless people. By joining the lawsuit, a shelter would be declaring it doesn’t want the Continuum of Care – the agency with the money – placed in charge of monitoring it. While some management at other agencies say off the record that they don’t want the changes in minimum standards, none are saying so publicly. Doing so could risk their relationships with the people who decide on funding. Relationships between the three players – the city, the Continuum of Care and the Homeless Coalition – are at the heart of the conflict. In a May 28 e-mail to various agencies serving homeless people, Kevin Finn, director of the Continuum of Care, said council’s decision to change the system arose from its relationship with the Homeless Coalition. “I have no insight into or knowledge of the relationship between the city and the Homeless Coalition,” Finn wrote. “I can only guess about the status of this relationship from what I read in the pages of Streetvibes, and I would never purport to speak to the status of that relationship. However, I believe the status of that relationship is a factor in this issue.” Spring had pleaded with the Continuum of Care to oppose changing the minimum standards – a process created and monitored by the Homeless Coalition for 20 years. In an e-mail to Finn, Spring appealed for his support. “Kevin, I am not asking you to stand up and yell, ‘Hell no, we won’t allow this change!’ I am simply asking you to stand up and tell the truth to council and our agencies,” Spring wrote. “I am just asking you to say the coalition has done this for 20 years. … There is no need to change this. The coalition should continue to monitor the minimum standards.” Instead Finn gave a tepid acknowledgment that there was no need for the change. But, he said, the Continuum of Care would go along with it. “I do not believe that this change must be made,” Finn wrote. “On the other hand, if passing minimum standards is a condition of receiving funding from or through the city, as the above named funds do, then it also makes sense to have the entity which oversees the funding oversee the minimum standards monitoring. Therefore, if the city does decide, after dialogue with the coalition, to end their current shelter monitoring relationship, and then designates the (Continuum of Care) to take over the monitoring of emergency shelter standards, we will.” “He told me’ The city never engaged in a “dialogue with the coalition,” Spring says. Moreover, the Continuum of Care was more than a passive observer in council’s actions, he says. Finn actually wrote the panhandling rules enacted by council, according to Spring. “I know Kevin wrote the panhandling rules,” Spring says. “He told me he wrote it.” Finn and a Streetvibes writer exchanged phone messages but didn’t connect in time for an interview. While the two agencies have sometimes disagreed in the past, they have collaborated until now on items such as minimum standards and the homeless counts required for federal funding. But their differences are now coming to the fore. Publicly distributed e-mails between Finn and Spring contain increasingly sharp remarks on a variety of topics. Spring cautioned against “the Continuum of Care or any other organization creating pressure based on misinformation.” Within an hour Finn replied, “For the record, I would encourage the Homeless Coalition, or any other entity, to seek clarification on such issues before trashing anyone publicly – not after.” Three days later Finn warned against escalation: “It is important for those of us who are fighting to assist homeless people not to get distracted and off target and begin wasting our energy fighting each other.” It might be too late. The Homeless Coalition is a membership organization. One of the chief benefits of membership is participating in the minimum-standards process. Taking that role away from the Homeless Coalition is an economic threat to the coalition’s existence, according to Kinsley’s complaint. “If (the council motions) take effect, the coalition will no longer be vested with the responsibility of providing the minimum-standards certification program, and as a result will likely lose members and funding,” the complaint says. Streetvibes vendors keep 75% of sales. Consider helping Streetvibes with our publication costs by making a tax-deductible donation or by purchasing a subscription. Streetvibes is the activist newspaper, advocating justice, building community. Your gift is tax-deductible and will go to producing the paper every two weeks. Started in 1997, Streetvibes is distributed by homeless and formerly homeless vendors who purchase the paper for 25 cents and sell it for $1, keeping the 75 cent profit. Make checks payable to “Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless” I want to support Streetvibes and the vendors. $25 Please return your contribution to: GCCH 117 E. 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 Name: Address: E-mail: $50 $100 $150 Other $ _______ �STREETVIBES July 1 - 14, 2010 Guest Column 13 The New Marijuana Majority Support for reform of prohibition is growing By Corey Gibson Contributing Writer S eventy-three percent of Ohioans support the use of medical marijuana, according to a poll conducted as part of a study by the University of Cincinnati Institute for Policy Research. A surprising 58 percent of conservatives and 64 percent of people over the age of 65 also support the use of medical marijuana. Yet some people are still struggling with Ohio’s marijuana laws. The study cites one man, Randy Brush, who was sentenced to three years in prison after four marijuana plants were found in his backyard. Brush had no prior criminal history. Another case cited in the study is that of Addie Cyrus. Cyrus, who has no criminal record and the full support of her doctors to smoke marijuana to help with medical problems, was arrested in 2009 after the Knox County Sheriff’s Office seized 813 grams from her home. The fact that she is smoking marijuana with her doctor’s knowledge is not going to be admissible in court. While California considers legalizing marijuana, Cincinnati has made it a jailable offense. This is where the National Organization REUTERS/Alexandria Sage. for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) steps in. NORML sup- na and marijuana reform, according to Ryan. driving under the influence if he has any mariports the right of adults He poses a question to anyone he meets who juana metabolites in his body. to use marijuana re- opposes his positive views of the use of mariWith such strict “The current law in Ohio (is), if you have marijuana laws in the sponsibily, whether for juana: “What is your ethical or moral justifica- some sort of marijuana offense, that you could medical, personal or in- tion for putting someone away, taking away lose your driving license,” Ryan says. “You city of Cincinnati, a dustrial purposes. It has their freedom, for consuming or possessing political candidate’s also provided a voice for something like marijuana?” Marijuana Math stating he or she Americans who oppose In a recent local political forum that Ryan supports the use of • Approximate amount spent annually in the the prohibition of mari- attended, Fox News commentator Phil Heimmedical marijuana U.S. on the war on drugs: $40 billion juana and want to end lich asked candidates if they would support is rather surprising. • Percent of Americans who favor full legalizathe legal struggles that the use of medical marijuana. Under a city tion of marijuana: 44 percent “Every single candidate said yes to medical ordinance, possession often accompany smok• Number of states that allow the medical use of of a small amount of ing marijuana. NORML marijuana, and one of them said yes to full lemarijuana: 14 advocates for respon- galization,” Ryan says. “I was stunned.” pot – less than 100 • Number of people arrested for a marijuana law With such strict marijuana laws in the city grams – can result in sible marijuana smokers violation in 2008: 847,864 an immediate arrest, who want the drug legal- of Cincinnati, a political candidate’s stating he • Number of people arrested for a marijuana law or she supports the use of medical marijuana leading to 30 days in ized in the near future. violation since 1965: over 20 million. The number one pri- is rather surprising. Under a city ordinance, jail and a $250 fine Source: Miami Valley Chapter, NORML ority of the Miami Valley possession of a small amount of pot – less chapter of NORML? than 100 grams – can result in an immediate “Get people aware and engaged in changing arrest, leading to 30 days in jail and a $250 politicians’ minds,” says Robert Ryan, state fine (see “Cincinnati’s Marijuana Law Fiasco,” chapter coordinator for Ohio NORML. issue of May 15). Another controversial pro- could be sitting at home, not even in your car, The hardest job for NORML is getting peo- posal, which might be enacted nationwide, get a marijuana charge and you could lose ple to feel comfortable talking about marijua- would mean a person could be arrested for your license. Does it make sense economically. Your license is taken away. How can you get to your job? You’re going to end up losing your job and going on unemployment and making the situation worse.” The Miami Valley chapter of NORML, which just formed this year, is working to change these laws and make politicians realize that marijuana prohibition is not control. “We have been in contact with several lawyers and seeing if the cities have the ability to lessen the (paraphernalia) offense,” Ryan says. Drug-paraphernalia charges are even more misguided than drug charges, Ryan says. Paraphernalia can be anything from a straw to a spoon to a pipe to nearly anything else drugs can be smoked out of; and those charges can carry larger offenses than the drug charges themselves. With most people uncomfortable talking about legalization, Ryan has a tough job ahead. In a one-minute advertisement entitled, “Legalization: Yes We Can,” seen on the NORML website and local TV channels, people of different professions, ages and cultures call for the repeal of prohibition. “These are normal people that say marijuana prohibition doesn’t work,” Ryan says. “Let’s legalize it, tax it and control it.” For more information about NORML, visit miamivalleynorml.org and OARO.org. �14 STREETVIBES July 1 - 14, 2010 Art and Poetry A Jump Into Blackish Water, Wavy with Moonlight By Spencer Ledyard I was in a tree, blank on the bank of the Mississippi, Looking out and falling asleep, no town for miles, No lights but moonlights, up and down in rapids, Little rising rolls of water over rocks in the riverbed. A raft come by, logs tied together with hemp line, Logs from a tree like the one I was in but heavy With river water. There was so much river in them, And a boy on the raft with so much river in him. He tied himself to the raft with extra hemp line. He stripped as bare as nature would allow him. There was no town for miles, nothing to hold him Back but any fear he might have made for himself. He jumped. The blackish water waved around. The only sound for miles was The sound he made himself. Ode for Ms. Johnny Mae By Willa D. Jones I heard that Ms. Johnny Mae had passed away Gone to glory to she took her leave just yesterday I never knew her well enough to sit and chat On a good day I would see her in the front where she sat I know as long as I remember her face and her smile Sitting on the front porch with grace and so much style I will remember the kindness she shared with everyone Her kindness can be rewarded now that her life is done As long as we keep her in our minds and in our hearts She will forever be in our memory never to part So may God bless and keep you close Ms. Johnny Mae Forever in eternity for your peace and for your soul We all pray By Anne Skove Become a Fan of Streetvibes on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/streetvibescincinnati Letters to the Editor Blindly Following To the Editor: Yes, Obama’s at fault for the slowness of the BP oil spill cleanup. What’d he do wrong? He listened to an oil company. He believed what they said and accepted their assurances. And here come the Republicans ready to set things right. The Republicans would never blindly follow the dictates of an oil company, would they? Or just swallow their assurances at face value? Of course not. So America can sleep better now, knowing that a political party that’s not afraid to take on Big Oil is waiting in the wings to save the day. Martin Stiller Cincinnati Have something on your mind? Want to comment on an article or vendor? Let us know: 117 E. 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 streetvibes2@yahoo.com If you like what you read, but don’t live in the Cincinnati area, you can subscribe to Streetvibes. Call us at 513-421-7803 x 12 to learn more about subscribing to Streetvibes. �15 Resources STREETVIBES July 1 - 14, 2010 Need Help or Want to Help? Shelter: Women and Children Central Access Point Cincinnati Union Bethel St. Francis Soup Kitchen Churches Active in Northside 381-SAFE 768-6907 FreeStore/FoodBank 557-2873 Madisonville Ed & Assistance Center 271-5501 300 Lytle Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Bethany House Grace Place Catholic Worker House 681-2365 241-1064 4600 Erie Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45227 Serves area codes: 45226, 45227, 45208, 45209 St. Vincent de Paul 6037 Cary Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45224 762-5660 131 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter 4230 Hamilton Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45223 112 E. Liberty Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 1841 Fairmount Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45214 Salvation Army 535-2719 591-2246 872-9259 Shelter: Men 562-8841 1125 Bank Street, Cinti, Ohio 45214 Treatment: Men Charlie’s 3/4 House 241-5525 Prospect House Justice Watch 241-0490 St. Fran/St. Joe Catholic Work. House 381-4941 Starting Over 1419 Elm Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 1821 Summit Road, Cinti, Ohio 45237 Drop Inn Center 721-0643 Interfaith Hospitality Network Lighthouse Youth Center (Youth) 471-1100 221-3350 3330 Jefferson, Cinti, Ohio 45220 Housing: CMHA Excel Development OTR Community Housing 721-4580 632-7149 381-1171 114 W. 14th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tender Mercies 721-8666 27 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tom Geiger House Dana Transitional Bridge Services Volunteers of America Anna Louise Inn 1308 Race St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 Food/Clothing Lord’s Pantry OTR/Walnut Hills Kitchen & Pantry 621-5300 961-1983 OTR: 1620 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Walnut Hills: 2631 Gilbert, Cinti, Ohio 45206 Our Daily Bread 1730 Race Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 621-6364 621-5514 Franciscan Haircuts from the Heart 961-4663 Treatment: Both 381-0111 AA Hotline CCAT 351-0422 381-6672 830 Ezzard Charles Dr. Cinti, Ohio 45214 241-2965 1522 Republic Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Hamilton County ADAS Board Recovery Health Access Center Sober Living Talbert House Hamilton/Middletown 421-3131 569-1840 381-4242 Northern Kentucky 117 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 579-8547 241-9400 421-1108 363-3300 421-2437 Health Center for Respite Care 3550 Washington Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45229 771-4800 751-0600 721-4811 St. Raephaels Salvation Army Serenity House Day Center Open Door Pantry Brighton Center 351-7921 631-1114 211 977-5541 421-5211 863-3184 863-1445 422-8555 868-3276 859-491-8303 799 Ann St. Newport, KY Franciscan JPIC 721-4700 Gr. Cinti Coalition for the Homeless 421-7803 Intercommunity Justice & Peace Cr. Legal Aid Society Ohio Justice & Policy Center Faces Without Places Stop AIDS People Working Cooperatively The Caring Place United Way Women Helping Women Off The Streets 946-4888 281-7422 681-0324 641-4300 Advocacy Catholic Social Action Community Action Agency Contact Center Goodwill industries Healing Connections Mary Magdalen House 1223 Main St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 1227 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 961-4555 751-0643 381-1954 421-5211 241-2600 241-2563 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 Joseph House (Veterans) 217 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 458-6670 977-4489 Peaslee Neighborhood Center 2203 Fulton, Cinti, Ohio 45206 761-1480 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 NAMI of Hamilton County PATH Outreach 961-2256 2728 Glendora Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45209 Caracole (HIV/AIDS) 558-8888 981-5800 Center Independent Living Options Emmanuel Community Center Treatment: Women 961-4080 40 E. McMicken Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mental Health Access Point Mercy Franciscan at St. John 214 E. 14th St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 First Step Home Anthony House (Youth) 357-4602 352-2902 352-6363 921-1613 661-4620 Shelter: Both Health Resource Center Homeless Mobile Health Van McMicken Dental Clinic Other Resources 682 Hawthorne Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45205 1437 Walnut Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mt. Airy Shelter 381-2247 5 E. Liberty St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 784-1853 2121 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 City Gospel Mission Crossroad Health Center ECHO/Hosea House Fairhaven Resuce Mission Homeward Bound Youth Mathews House Homeless & Housing Coalition Parish Kitchen Pike St. Clinic Transitions, Inc Welcome House of NKY 859-261-5857 859-491-1027 859-581-1111 859-261-8009 859-727-0926 859-581-7745 859-291-9321 859-491-4435 859-431-8717 205 West Pike Street, Covington, KY 41011 621-1868 Women’s Crisis Center VA Domiciliary VA Homeless 859-491-3335 859-559-5011 859-572-6226 �16 Artists as Activists STREETVIBES July 1 - 14, 2010 Photos in Service of Justice Gordon Baer’s enduring effect M ississippi 1, Mississippi 2, Mississippi 3: These are the words that introduced Gordon Baer to photography. Baer was 8 years old when on a Saturday morning, accompanying his father to a meeting at the high school where he served as football coach, he heard these words coming from a room in the basement. He found out they were being pronounced by Brother Josephus teaching a student camera club, using the words to time the exposure of his photographs. Brother Josephus would then take a piece of white paper, put it in a waterlike liquid, and an image will progressively appear. Baer was mesmerized. Baer, a photojournalist, was born in Louisville, Ky. As a child he had an old box camera he used for assignments at the YMCA activity club he belonged to and for the yearbook in his Junior high school. Very early on he was also developing and exhibiting his own photographs. Baer attended the University of Kentucky at Lexington, initially studying chemistry, then the University of Louisville, focusing on fine arts and photography. At both places he documented life on campus functioning as the student newspaper’s photographer. In the beginning, his desire through photography was to organize and control people, telling them what to do; he soon realized, A rtists ctivists as By Saad Ghosn Contributing Writer however, that the control he was seeking would be more powerfully achieved by controlling viewers’ emotions by the images he would create. His photos became full of feelings, focusing on social issues and ills, the human always at their center. While a student at the University of Louisville, Baer interned as a photojournalist at the Louisville Courier. He met Shirley Williams, a writer, who took him to visit her family in the Appalachian foothills of eastern Kentucky. There he witnessed the battering and destruction of the rugged landscape by careless companies that had acquired the rights to mine the coal-rich area. The landowners had been lured to sign deeds allowing the underground exploitation of their land, not informed that new extraction technologies would make it unstable, causing mountaintops to run down the valley. They were angry, rebelling at the rape of their land and the pollution of their streams, and wanted to make their plight to the governor. Baer’s photographs spoke for them. Not only were his 25 prints of the ravages he saw exhibited in the State Capi- Gordon Baer says individuals come first. Saad Ghosn. tol; they were also flown to Washington, D.C., shared with Congress and the National Governors’ Conference. The photos had not ended for many of them, that it had helped accelerate passage of legislation con- installed itself in their living rooms, dreams, relationships. Baer reflected with eloquence trolling strip mining. Baer also actively participated in the civil and moving images their situation and daily rights movement, attending marches, dem- turmoil. His photographs, exhibited in Washonstrations and protests, documenting them ington, D.C., part of the Vietnam Memorial and spreading their images. He had met Rev. Dedication Display, earned him the prestiMartin Luther King Jr., who regularly visited gious Nikon World Understanding Award, Louisville, where his brother led a parish. “given to the photographer whose work best Baer followed King to Washington, D.C., and serves the common purposes of man.” When visiting Louisiana, Mo., for a workcaptured in his photos the freedom march of 1963. shop, Baer focused his photography on a In 1965 Baer joined the Cincinnati Post as group of workers enrolled by corporations to a photojournalist. This took him to various farm Stark Apple Orchards. He documented assignments, some mundane, oth- their exploitation and poor treatment, worse ers more socially concerned. One than that of previous prisoners of what used assignment was to photograph a to be a German prisoner-of-war camp. family with an autistic child. Parents In 2000 he did a moving series of phowith such children were blaming tographs related to his dying aunt Beck, a themselves for their kids’ condition, reflection on the frailty of the aged human Bruno Bettelheim, the renowned being, on mortality, also on the potential nechild psychiatrist, having theorized glect of the elderly in impersonal and underthe disorder was linked to cold, un- staffed nursing homes. Two years ago Baer was the moving force caring parents. Aware of the oftenunjustified sense of guilt this theory behind Shattered Myths, a show involving was generating, Baer instead showed many local artists, including himself, dealin his photos the humane family en- ing with the Iraq war and its deleterious efvironments of the affected children, fects on human beings, military and civildepicting affectionate, loving, yet ians alike. In his works, Baer always advocates for powerless parents. During the Vietnam War, while the poor, the exploited, the abused – for the based in Korea with the U.S. Air human in general. He also speaks loudly Force, Baer used his photographs to his opposition to violence of any sort. As he call attention to American soldiers originally wanted, he was able to develop often misbehaving, insensitive to a strong photographic arm with which to and disrespectful of the local cul- touch the viewer, involve and implicate him ture. He documented the abusive into his images. Baer’s camera has always treatment and shattered lives of the served as his strong voice. “I was able to use the power of the phomany “comfort” women the war tographic print to successfully transmit my conditions had favored. In the late ’70s Baer captured the messages, make people feel things I feel myenduring effects of war on returning self,” he says. “I am at a crossroads right now, Vietnam veterans. He attended group not sure how to go. I want to start writing therapy sessions of vets suffering and put my wisdom in words. But whatever from post-traumatic stress disorder, I do, I know that I will always focus on the visited their homes, participating in individual’s rights, on peace in this world.” their family lives, experienced firsthand their persistent nightmares. He quickly found out that the war It Takes Time for Psychic Wounds to Heal. Gordon Baer. Artists as Activists is a regular column highlighting Greater Cincinnati artists who use art as a vehicle for change. Saad Ghosn is the founder of SOS Art. Ghosn can be contacted at saad.ghosn@uc.edu. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 2010 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource July 1-14, 2010 Subject The topic of the resource Homelessness Description An account of the resource Pg 1: Hate Wave: Attacks on Homeless Beggars Must Now Be Choosers Pg 2: Street Wise Pg 3: Time to Forget the Bootstraps Pg 4: Hate Wave: Attacks on Homeless Continued Pg 5: Hate Wave: Attacks on Homeless Continued Pg 6: A Message to Social Workers Pg 7: A Whole World of Street Papers Pg 8: “Feed Me, Seymour, Feed Me All Night Long…” Pg 9: The Voice of the Street Pg 10: Drinking from the World Cup Pg 11: Safe, Affordable and Unavailable Pg 12: Beggars Must Now Be Choosers Continued Pg 13: The New Marijuana Majority Pg 14: Arts & Poetry Pg 15: Resources Pg 16: Photos in Service of Justice Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Streetvibes Archive Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Streetvibes Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource July 1-14, 2010 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Gregory Flannery Lynne Ausman Nick Swartsell Veronica Glass John Peet Casey Salsinger Jeni Jenkins Michelle Dillingham Samantha Groark Margo Pierce Paul Kopp Jeremy Flannery Michael Henson David Heitfield Corey Gibson Jeni Jenkins Saad Ghosn Lew Moores Larry Gross Eli Braun Jesse Call B. Clifton Burke Michael Fanning Aimie Willhoite Anne Skove Vinit Murthy Jon Hughes Lynn Baker Jeremy Flannery Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF affordable housing Aimie Willhoite Anne Skove B. Clifton Burke Casey Salsinger Comedian Corey Gibson David Heitfield Eli Braun Filmmaker Gordon Baer Gregory Flannery Hate Crimes Jeni Jenkins Jeremy Flannery Jesse Call John Peet Jon Hughes Larry Gross Lew Moores Lynn Baker Lynne Ausman Margo Pierce Marijuana mental illness Michael Fanning Michael Henson Michelle Dillingham Nick Swartsell Paul Kopp reform Saad Ghosn Samantha Groark Social Work Veronica Glass Vinit Murthy Violence World Cup https://streetvibesarchive.net/files/original/477d0b239ea517bc9d13ca8080efb294.pdf eb709cf4bd8b734e99ac185c57ca10c5 PDF Text Text Forced Out for the World Cup Page 3 Album Review Page 6 SOS Art Review Page 8 STREETVIBES $1 June 15-30, 2010 • Advocating Justice, Building Community • Issue 179 Sad Anniversary for the A - Bomb Anti-nuclear activists want it to retire By Jeremy Flannery Contributing Writer T Rebecca Riley of Think Outside The Bomb informs and entertains a gathering at Off The Avenue. Jon Hughes/Photopresse. Marvels and Money Mongers The editor is seen as a security risk By Gregory Flannery Editor I managed to fly more than 16,000 miles over the Pacific Ocean (one trip to, one fro) and spent most of a week in a coastal city without once seeing saltwater. The pilots insisted on flying above the clouds, and the annual conference of the International Network of Street Papers in Melbourne, Australia, was so busy that there was no time for sightseeing. (See “Tell me: Do You Want to Hold Me?,” issue of June 1-14.) That’s not to say the trip was without marvels. This is autumn in Australia; and each night at about 7 p.m., when darkness had fallen, See Marvels, P. 4 The editor is a lousy photographer so he submitted this drawing instead. Gregory Flannery. his summer is the 65th anniversary of the first and only use of atomic bombs in wartime. In 1945 the United States used atomic bombs to destroy the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Think Outside the Bomb is an organization commemorating the anniversaries through a national tour advocating the abolition of nuclear energy. “The bomb is turning 65 – it’s time to retire,” the group’s national tour organizer, Rebecca Riley, said during a June 2 meeting in Northside. Riley is traveling across the United States with a fellow member of Think Outside the Bomb and two Australian members of Footprints for Peace to campaign for the end of nuclear energy. Speaking at Off the Avenue, the four activists discussed the dangers of uranium mining and nuclear energy production in the United States and Australia. A graduate of the University of California, Riley said her alma mater has a direct relationship with the U.S. Department of Defense and the National Nuclear Security Administration, a division of the Department of Energy that oversees the nuclear arsenal. The university receives funding from both government departments, conducting research for the production of nuclear energy, she said. “I learned I was a war profiteer, and I was enraged, so I decided to do something about it,” Riley said. President Obama signed a nuclear-reduction treaty with Russia on April 8, agreeing to cut both nations’ nuclear arsenals by about one-third. However, the Obama administration has allocated $180 billion over a 10-year period to expand nuclear-energy production. The funds will be used to expand nuclear-energy and weapons-production See A-Bomb, P. 4 �2 The Vibe By The Numbers 16,000 The number of families helped by the Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority (see page 11). 1.47 Jaime Garcia’s E.R.A in his first year as a starting pitcher in the major leagues (see page 7) 22 The number of years the Deftones have performed together (see page 6). 3/30 The date Cincinnati Mayor Mark Mallory told the Drop Inn Center to move (see page 13) 1 The number of police cars a visitor saw during a stay in Melbourne, Australia (see page 1). Half The maximum amount of a person’s income charged by homeless shelters in New York City (see page 12). 30 The number of disabled artists who participated in Black and White (see page 16) Twice The number of times the United States has dropped atomic bombs on foreign cities (see page 1). 26,000 The number of sex offenders re-classified by a law thrown out by the Ohio Supreme Court (see page 5) 2 The number of letters in which readers praise a Streetvibes vendor (see page 7). StreetWise By Gregory Flannery Editor Minimum Standards, Maximum Consequences People at street papers in other cities sometimes think I’m exaggerating when I tell them that Cincinnati City Council seems to hate homeless people. But the best proof is city council’s own behavior. Last week council took responsibility for minimum standards at homeless shelters away from the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless and transferred it to another organization. We’ll report on that issue in our next edition. Of immediate concern – immediate as in so important that the Homeless Coalition hopes to file a lawsuit and restraining order against the city as early as today – is a new rule for shelters that receive city funds. To wit: Shelters must have a policy to discourage panhandling, including “clear and consistent consequences to be enforced if a resident is known to be panhandling.” Curious language – all parental and orderly sounding. But what kind of “clear and consistent consequences” can shelters enact? Cutting meal rations? Taking away pillows? No, the implication is plain. “Kicking out homeless people is the only real consequence a shelter can enforce,” says Josh Spring, executive director of the Homeless Coalition. “This will cause more panhandling, because people who are kicked out won’t receive food and other services from homeless shelters.” STREETVIBES June 15 - 30, 2010 Streetvibes is an activist newspaper, advocating justice and building community. Streetvibes reports on economic issues, civil rights, the environment, the peace movement, spirituality and the struggle against homelessness and poverty. Distributed by people who are or once were homeless, in exchange for a $1 donation, Streetvibes is published twice a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Address: 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 Phone: 513.421.7803 x 12 Fax: 513.421.7813 Email: streetvibes2@yahoo. com Website: www. cincihomeless.org Blog: streetvibes.wordpress. com Streetvibes Staff Editor Gregory Flannery This new regulation is the latest brainchild of City Councilman Jeff Berding, whose past proposals have included trying to collect taxes from the nickels and dimes given to panhandlers and making them wear signs saying how much the city spends to help homeless people. Now Berding wants homeless shelters to play panhandling police. In return, the city will face clear and consistent consequences – a visit with a federal judge. Art Director Lynne Ausman “The coalition is preparing a lawsuit against the city,” Spring says. “It’s in the midst of being written and we plan to file the first part of (this) week. This will allege that the policy constrains the First Amendment, jeopardizes the well-being of people who panhandle and jeopardizes the shelters’ ability to have funding to serve people.” Vendor Coordinator Jeni Jenkins Resisting the Spread of NNIMBY People in other cities also make life harder for homeless people. Real Change, one of the nation’s largest street papers, is facing opposition in Seattle from the Pioneer Square Community Association. Real Change recently moved its office to the Pioneer Square area. The community association says the new location violates zoning rules because the paper’s computer lab and classes for vendors make it a vocational program, which isn’t allowed in the area. But Rick Cohen, national correspondent for Nonprofit Quarterly, thinks what’s at play is a phenomenon he calls “NNIMBY – no nonprofits in my back yard.” “This isn’t a problem of zoning, it is a problem of a program serving homeless people moving into a shopping area trying to give itself an upscale, chic kind of image,” Cohen wrote. “The mayor turned a deaf ear to the association’s complaint that there were too many nonprofit service providers in the area. We hope that the hearing examiner gives a similar reception to the association’s desperate sounding zoning challenge.” Sound familiar? Cincinnati City Council has likewise decided there are too many non-profit organizations in Over-the-Rhine and enacted zoning rules to restrict them. A New Blog and a New Book Contributing Writers Michelle Dillingham, Samantha Groark, Margo Pierce, Paul Kopp, Jeremy Flannery, Michael Henson, David Heitfield, Corey Gibson, Jeni Jenkins, Saad Ghosn, Lew Moores, Larry Gross, Eli Braun, Jesse Call, Brendon McCartney, Michael Fanning Photography/Artwork Aimie Willhoite, Lynne Ausman, Anne Skove, Vinit Murthy, Jon Hughes Proofreaders Lynn Baker Jeremy Flannery The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that works to eradicate homelessness in Cincinnati through coordination of services, public education, grassroots advocacy and Streetvibes. Not everything is so bleak, of course. The Drop Inn Center – which Cincinnati Mayor Mark Mallory wants to move elsewhere (see “District 9: Over-the-Rhine,” page 13) has a new blog. Visit dropinn.wordpress.com. Poet and teacher Michael Henson, a longtime columnist for Streetvibes, has a new book, The Dead Singing. “It is small, just 21 poems,” he says. “But I think it has some of my best work. … The title is from a line by the Japanese monk/ poet Ikkyu: ‘I listen to the dead singing underneath the grass.’ We are proud members of: To order a copy, visit finishinglinepress.com and click on “New Releases and forthcoming Titles.” “At 12 bucks, plus a buck for shipping, that comes to about 65 cents per poem,” Henson says. Graphics/Layout Intern Veronica Glass Garden at Drop Inn Center. Jon Hughes/Photopresse �STREETVIBES June 15 - 30, 2010 International News 3 Forced Out for the World Cup Games A poster for the World Cup in South Africa. By Amy Juschka Street News Service dreds of thousands of others displaced – could erupt after the World Cup. With its porous borders, its reputation as ohannesburg, South Africa – People Africa’s powerhouse and its close proximfeared it would happen in the run ity to the ailing Zimbabwe, South Africa is up to the Vancouver 2010 Olympic a melting pot for other African immigrants, Games, but it’s happening today in cities both legal and illegal. But across South Afwith such a large numrica. With the 2010 Related to the ber of South Africans liv“Their presence violates FIFA World Cup forced removal of ing in poor and destitute looming, reports conditions, intolerance the city bylaws, and we homeless people is have surfaced that and contempt toward the arrest them. This is a the corresponding homeless people country’s foreign nation- campaign, among the normal police exercise, are being rounded als, who are often consid- South African media but we have intensified up and forcibly reered to be a drain on the our efforts because of and government moved before the country’s resources, is enthe World Cup. We have officials, to vilify eyes of the world demic. had a tough job with the and dehumanize Xenophobia is prevalent prostitutes – everyday they turn to look upon the homeless, in South Africa. among all levels of South are warned or arrested.” particular foreign Though the inAfrican society, from taxi - Edna Mamonyane, nationals, in the run medrivers to police to social- up to the World Cup. Johannesburg Metro Police ternational dia has picked up justice workers, and is on the story with rooted in legacies of colosome vigour, from what I’ve observed worknialism and apartheid. The street sweeps are ing in Johannesburg’s inner city, these street just one way the country’s institutionalized sweeps seem to be nothing out of the ordixenophobia is playing out, and it could have nary. drastic consequences for homeless people – Last August, as part of a campaign to tackwhether actual or perceived foreign nationle homelessness, the city’s human developals – once World Cup fans return home. ment department took to the streets In the weeks leading up to the Vanon a mission to stop people from givcouver Olympics, I was touched by ing money, food, clothes or blankets Xenophobia is prevalent among all levels of the way community and social-justice to the 3,000 or so homeless people South African society, from taxi drivers to groups united to protest the provliving in Johannesburg’s inner city. ince’s Assistance to Shelter Act. As the police to social-justice workers, and is rooted “Their presence violates the city countdown to the World Cup comes to in legacies of colonialism and apartheid. The bylaws, and we arrest them,” Edna an end, I can only say that the lack of street sweeps are just one way the country’s Mamonyane, spokeswoman for the institutionalized xenophobia is playing out, and concern shown by local social-justice Johannesburg Metro Police, said at it could have drastic consequences for homeless groups and the general powerlessness of the homeless here in South Africa the time. “This is a normal police expeople – whether actual or perceived foreign have been genuinely troubling. ercise, but we have intensified our nationals – once World Cup fans return home. We can only wait to see what the efforts because of the World Cup. We World Cup and the weeks after will have had a tough job with the prostitutes – everyday they are warned or arrest- homeless population is made up of foreign bring. Amy Juschka is former managing editor of ed.” nationals from other African countries, and Reports claim that here in Johannesburg there have been mounting concerns among Canadian street paper Megaphone. Originalmore than 800 people have been removed the city’s non-governmental organizations ly published by Megaphone. © www. streetfrom the inner-city area surrounding Ellis that xenophobic violence – like that in May newsservice.org. Park, where seven games, including a quar- 2008, when 62 people were killed and hun- J ter-final, are to be held. The campaign to remove homeless people from the public eye is defended by officials as being in line with the city’s bylaws, which prohibit begging at intersections, as well as sleeping in streets, parks or any other public space. Related to the forced removal of homeless people is the corresponding campaign, among the South African media and government officials, to vilify and dehumanize the homeless, in particular foreign nationals, in the run up to the World Cup. Carte Blanche, a popular South African investigative television series, recently aired an exposé alleging that homeless women are renting babies for R20 per day (about $2.60 USD) in order to earn more money begging at intersections. On any given day, an estimated 300 mothers – many of them Zimbabwean – stand with their children at intersections across Johannesburg, begging from passing motorists. The exposé, like a number of other stories negatively portraying the homeless, serves to legitimize the street sweeps and placate any concerns ordinary South Africans might feel for the homeless. Significantly, much of Johannesburg’s If you like what you read, but don’t live in the Cincinnati area, you can subscribe to Streetvibes. Call us at 513-421-7803 x 12 to learn more about subscribing to Streetvibes. �4 STREETVIBES June 15 - 30, 2010 Local News Sad Anniversary for the A - Bomb Continued from page 1 Inuit tribes, joined Think Outside the Bomb when she visited New York City for a May 2 rally calling facilities in Kansas City, Mo.; Oak Ridge, Tenn.; for the abolition of nuclear weapons. She particiand Los Alamos, N.M., according to Riley. pated in a walk from the Y12 Nuclear Facility in The Obama administration is saying it will Oak Ridge to Times Square in New York City (see reduce nuclear weapons but pre“Walking to End the Nuclear Perparing to expand the capacity to il,” issue of Feb. 15-28). Along the way she witnessed mountaintopdevelop more, she said. The faciliThe Obama removal coal mining in Eastern ties should be recalibrated toward administration has cleaning existing nuclear waste allocated $180 billion Kentucky. The devastation to the and developing reusable sources over a 10-year period region’s environment is similar to the loss of Humphreys Peak, north of energy, she said. Because govto expand nuclearof Flagstaff, Ariz. Humphreys Peak ernments might not abide by the energy production. treaties to reduce nuclear weap- The funds will be used – part of a mountain range considered sacred by 13 indigenous ons, it is up to people opposed to to expand nuclearsuch weapons to demand they do energy and weapons- tribes – is now home to the Ariso, Riley said. production facilities in zona Snowbowl ski resort, Bahee “We’re continuing with our Kansas City, Mo.; Oak said. Kerrieann Garlick, a member of grassroots disarmament because Ridge, Tenn.; and Los Footprints for Peace from Perth, that’s the only thing that works,” Alamos, N.M. Australia, is traversing the United she said. States again after participating in Riley said insurance companies should be required to cover illnesses such as lung the walk from Oak Ridge to New York. Garlick cancer contracted by people working around ra- said water from the Great Artesian Basin in Cendioactive material at the three production facili- tral Australia is being depleted to keep residual radioactive dust from uranium mining wet in orties and at uranium mines. Rhianna Bahee, a member of the Navajo and der to keep it from blowing across the continent. Seven million gallons of water is being extracted from the basin per day to keep the radioactive dust in place, she said. “If we are going to stop the weapons, then we need to stop the mining of uranium altogether,” Garlick said. Marcus Atkinson, who is also a member of Footprints for Peace from Australia, said 200 tons of yellow-cake uranium is required to generate electricity from a nuclear power plant. Mining uranium in Australia requires destroying 135,000 tons of ore, he said. Radioactive dust that escaped dampening has stretched as far as New Zealand, according to Atkinson. Australia now allows the injection of sulfuric acid to burn away soil and suck out uranium ore – a method banned by most industrialized nations, he said. Australia contains 35 percent of the world’s uranium reserves. “So Australia is like the Saudi Arabia of uranium,” Atkinson said. The nuclear abolition tour ends July 30 at San Ildefonso Pueblo just outside Los Alamos, – the birthplace of the atomic bomb. Think Outside the Bomb and other groups are planning nonviolent civil disobedience there August 1-9, Riley said. Marvels and Money Mongers Continued from page 1 standing in front of the Atlantis Hotel, I could see a faint beam of light in the distance, reaching skyward between buildings near what I believed was the ocean. Slowly, first one and then two and then a flock of flying creatures soared into the light. I surmised that the light attracted insects, which attracted the flying creatures, whose twinkling attracted my attention. I thought they were bats. Another delegate thought swallows. Another thought seagulls. The one Australian I asked said, “I don’t know,” then walked away. I had the sense that this delegate hadn’t taken a liking to me. It might have been because I had told him I couldn’t face another 30 hours on airplanes to get home and was resolved to stow away aboard a cruise ship. He didn’t realize I was joking; and when I told him so, he seemed miffed. Free teeth I didn’t make jokes in the airport in Auckland, New Zealand. I don’t make jokes around airport personnel, especially in airports that I didn’t know I was going to visit. I might, however, have asked too many questions: “Why are we stopping here? How long will we be here? Am I allowed to leave the airport?” Asking too many questions would explain my being pulled aside for extra screening – the repeated passing of a metal wand about my person, the swabbing to test for explosives residue, being questioned about my itinerary. But get this. The Auckland Airport has a patio for smokers. This is only a small step down from the Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky International Airport, whose name is too long but which has an air-conditioned lounge for smokers, with comfy couches and free WiFi. By contrast, wireless Internet service at the Auckland Airport cost $20 NZ for an hour. Cigarettes there cost $12 NZ a pack. They came with a photo of a diseased human heart. Warning: These prices could cause a heart attack. The prices in Melbourne were even higher – more than $13 AUS a pack. I was warned of an “instant $400 fine” for throwing cigarette butts on the sidewalk, so I didn’t. In Melbourne, a city of almost 4 million people, I saw one police car. I met one panhandler. I bought one breakfast – two eggs, a muffin and coffee – for $16 AUS. Breakfast at the hotel featured scrambled eggs and baked beans. The Melbourne street paper, Big Issue Australia, hosted a dinner for delegates. There I met Peter, a vendor who described his sales pitch. “I don't tell people, ‘Help the homeless.’ I tell them, ‘Home the helpless,’ ” he said. He reminded me of a Streetvibes vendor who uses humor to sell papers. Once a dentist bought a paper from Peter and said, “I see you don’t have any teeth.” Peter said he replied, “I could have told you that.” The dentist then offered Peter a free set of dentures. That is the kind of marvel one sometimes hears from vendors who sell street papers. I exchanged currency in three countries and was impressed by the professionalism of the money mongers. Each one told me that my proposed transaction wasn't in my best interest. That didn't stop me, but I Before the rising of the fairies. Gregory Flannery. was glad to see that they took the profit only after informing me of my ignorance. The Illuminati are here In Auckland I agreed to take a seat in the aisle of an emergency exit, which I would be obligated to help open if necessary. I told the airline agent that I don’t hear well. He said, “Can you hear me all right?” I said yes. He gave me a ticket for a seat in the aisle of an emergency exit, which told me that safety is a matter of regulation, rather than reality, on airlines. En route from Auckland to Melbourne, I was stopped just short of the rest room by an attendant – seated, with his safety belt buckled – who said, “Sir, return to your seat immediately and fasten your seat belt.” I hadn’t heard the announcement about turbulence. Melbourne seems a city on the move. It has two streetcar lines, one free. Within a block of the hotel were Liquorland Express and Hardware Express, enabling visitors to get a quick drink and a quick screw. This sign was on several shops: “Parm, Chips and a Pot,” followed by a price. Chicken Parmigiana, French fries and a pot of beer. One evening I dined with delegates from Slovenia, South Korea, Japan, France, Burundi and the Philippines. One evening a woman told me, “There are too many Asians in Australia.” She also told me that an owl sculpture in front of a bank was a sign of the Illuminati, who control the world. “That’s their cheeky way of telling us they’re there,” she said. I marveled at her use of three homonyms in a single sentence. I didn’t ask if there are too many Asians in the Illuminati. I think it was mercy, not the Illuminati, that accounts for the “amnesty bin” just outside the landing gate in Auckland – a last chance to throw away evidence before encountering airport security. Mercy as policy. Imagine. �STREETVIBES June 15 - 30, 2010 Issues 5 Sex Offender Law Unconstitutional Ohio Supreme Court rejects retroactivity and fear By Eli Braun Contributing Writer T he Ohio Supreme has struck down an Ohio law that increased the reporting requirements for thousands of Ohioans convicted of sex offenses. The court’s June 3 decision spawned a wave of fear-mongering. “Court ruling means sex offenders could be checking in less often,” blared 10TV News in Columbus, beside an image of a darkened silhouette in front of a “DO NOT CROSS” police line. Christian Bodyke of Huron County, Ohio, is one of those sex offenders. In 1999, a judge assessed his social history and risk of recidivism and deemed Bodyke to be a low risk offender. He was required to register with the sheriff in his home county each year for 10 years. The sheriff was not required to notify Bodyke’s neighbors. Then on Jan. 1, 2008 the Ohio Adam Walsh Act took effect. It tossed out judges’ assessments of risk. Instead, requirements for registration by sex offenders were set based solely on the name of Ohio Supreme Court. the offense. Moreover, the Ohio Attorney General would determine registration requirements for all sex offenders, even those who had been previ- law for certain offenders who had been sentenced before Jan. 1, 2008.” ously assessed by judges. While the classifications and registration duties of 26,000 sex offendWhile the classifications ers will revert to what they were before that date, those who were con‘It’s common sense’ victed on or after that date were unaffected by the ruling. Their classifiand registration duties of cation will still be set according to the name of their offense, instead of 26,000 sex offenders will Bodyke had faithfully complied with his re- by a judge who considers their risk of re-offending. revert to what they were porting requirements and had only a couple before that date, when Victims back ruling the law took effect, those years to go when the attorney general reclassiwho were convicted on fied him from the lowest-risk classification to the highest-risk classification. “Justices Give 26,000 Ohio Sex Offenders a Break,” announced the or after that date were He would have to register every 90 days for Columbus Dispatch in reporting the decision. unaffected by the ruling. In fact, the ruling gives the whole community a break. The Ohio Their classification will the rest of his life, not just in his county of residence, but any county where he worked or vis- Adam Walsh Act authorized classifications without assessing an indistill be set according ited for longer than three days. His neighbors vidual’s risk of re-offense. The flood of “over-classified” individuals burto the name of their received postcards with his personal informa- dens county sheriffs, who are required to monitor these individuals. offense, instead of by tion, warning that a “sexual predator” lived The Cincinnati Enquirer, considered politically conservative, has a judge who considers advocated a more sensible approach. In a 2008 editorial, the Enquirer their risk of re-offending. nearby. Bodyke was one of thousands of low-risk of- called reclassifying low-risk offenders “absurdly unfair” and wrote that fenders re-classified as high-risk. the law was “bound to do far more harm than good and actually could To comply with federal rules, the law also changed the three primary be a step backward in protecting the public.” levels of risk from sexually oriented offender, habitual sexual offender Instead of concentrating on high-risk individuals, it argued, county and sexual predator to Tier 1, Tier 2 and Tier 3. sheriffs would have to expend limited resources keeping tabs on lowThe law also extended the amount of time someone must remain on risk offenders. the registry. An offender at the lowest risk would have to register for 15 “Re-classifying [offenders] upward also requires sheriffs to issue years instead of 10, and an offender at the intermediate risk would have more notifications about offenders' whereabouts, adding administrato register for 25 years instead of 20. Those deemed highest-risk were tive burdens with little payoff in public safety,” the editorial said. already registering for life. Thus even those who were not reclassified “That’s a huge amount of manpower for the sheriff,” Slagle says. faced longer terms on the registry. “Many sheriffs freely admitted that it’s a waste. They want to concen“Many of our clients were on the verge of suicide when they realized trate on people who are higher risk, but those tiers are now swamped that, as a result of the law, they would have to endure a lifetime of regis- with low-risk former offenders.” tration duties, which means a lifetime of being stigmatized,” says MarMany believe sex-offender registries are a public-safety tool, one gie Slagle, an attorney with the Ohio Justice & Policy Center (OJPC). that “provide[s] families with the information they need to keep their Slagle and OJPC, based in Cincinnati, collaborated with the Ohio children safe,” as Attorney General Cordray stated. But diluting sex-offender registries with the names of reclassified, Public Defender and the Ohio Chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union to build the case, write the briefs and prepare for oral arguments low-risk offenders thwarts that public-safety purpose. To that end, the in the case before the Supreme Court, State v. Bodyke, et al. National Alliance to End Sexual Violence and victims’ advocacy organi(Disclosure: This reporter works for OJPC.) zations in California, Iowa and Texas together submitted a brief urging Some 26,000 people – approximately 85 percent of the 30,750 con- the Ohio Supreme Court to find the law unconstitutional. “(T)hese changes put law enforcement agencies, already in budgetvicted sex offenders in Ohio – were reclassified as a result of the Ohio Adam Walsh Act. The question before the Supreme Court was whether ary crises, in the position of spending precious dollars on monitoring low risk individuals with a limited impact on public safety,” said the the law could apply retroactively. The court ruled 5 to 1 that it could not. The court determined that brief by victims’ advocates. “More onerous sex-offender registration the legislature’s action to reclassify sex offenders was unconstitutional and community-notification laws threaten to harm the very people because it overturned the final decisions of a trial court, thus violating they are intended to protect and to undermine goals of community safety and treatment of offenders.” the separation-of-powers doctrine. Ohio’s Adam Walsh Act, they concluded, is “not based on empirical “The reclassification scheme … interferes with the judicial power by requiring the reopening of final judgments,” wrote Justice Maureen evidence or proven research, but on fear and misinformation.” While basing its ruling on the separation-of-powers doctrine, the O’Connor in the majority opinion. “It is well settled that a legislature Court also seemed to recognize that it makes little sense to classify sex cannot enact laws that revisit a final judgment.” “It’s common sense,” Slagle says. “If someone hits your car and the offenders without performing an assessment first. Because of Ohio’s Adam Walsh Act, Justice O’Connor wrote, “The tritrial court awards you $5,000, you don’t want the legislature a year later al court is stripped of any power to engage in independent fact-finding altering that ruling.” Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray released a statement calling to determine an offender’s likelihood of recidivism. Expert testimony is no longer presented; the offender’s criminal and social history are no the decision “narrowly tailored.” “The broad provisions of Ohio's Adam Walsh Act remain in place,” he longer relevant.” One might add: Sex offender registries are no longer as meaningful. said. “(The decision) reinstated the classifications and community notification and registration orders imposed by judges under prior state �6 Music Review STREETVIBES June 15 - 30, 2010 ‘Infinite Arms’ and ‘Diamond Eyes’ Recommendations for your new summertime jams By Paul Kopp Contributing Writer A s summer approaches, music fans will inevitably be looking for the new soundtrack to the season. Whether it’s the accompaniment to a road trip or a lounge by the pool, music always holds a firm place when people in the Midwest have more of a chance to get out. Here is an extended look at two new releases that might become the backdrop to your warm-weather memories. Band of Horses – ‘Infinite Arms’ On their third album and major label debut for Columbia Records, Band of Horses seems confused about the direction it is steering. Known for their pseudo-atmospheric, spaced out, nice-guy riff rock, they also seem comfortable adding new and different layers to their unique sound on this album. After all, it’s only natural for a horse to wander. Songs like “Compliments” and “Laredo” utilize the big guitar hooks the band is known for, but with a markedly different tone. The band relocated from Seattle to South Carolina within the past few years, and that might explain why the electric guitar sound on Infinite Arms is sometimes laced more with a bit of country twang, rather than the spaced-out sound they were initially known for. Aside from those songs and the straightforward rocker, “NW Apartment”, the rest of the album is mostly filled with delicately arranged acoustic pieces that, while not new territory for Band of Horses, definitely sound more carefully constructed. From the semi choral harmonies of “Evening Kitchen” to the lilting singsong strumming of the title track, the dynamics of the album are mostly dialed down. Ben Bridwell, the band’s de facto leader, swoons semi-confessional lyrics that are vague enough to not come off as trite. His strength as a vocalist is to take plain and seemingly simple lines and sing them in such a way as to make them sound the exact opposite: complex and completely heartfelt. Example from “Laredo”: “Oh my love, don’t you even know? Oh, my love, are you really gone?” Bridwell has said that the album is the first with a completely solidified lineup. Keyboardist Ryan Monroe, bassist Bill Reynolds and guitarist Tyler Ramsey, all touring members of the band, have officially joined the group and contributed songs and arrangements to the record. This change, along with the extended period of time they spent recording it (almost two years), might be the reason Infinite Arms sounds more polished and less explosive than their previous records. On first listen, it might seem less energetic; but after taking some time with the songs, it appears the band is learning how to explore more subtle methods of creating solid songs rather than going immediately for the throat with the big delay and effects-laden guitar parts and reverb-drenched vocals of the past. These songs seep into you like the water in a warm bath, rather than a midnight jump into the lake. Deftones – ‘Diamond Eyes’ At this point in their career the Deftones are the elder statesmen of their genre. Luckily for them, their genre doesn’t exist. They created their own, which is constantly changing. On Diamond Eyes the band continues to do what they do best: progress while staying consistent to the sound they have developed over six albums and 22 years as a band. They have said they wrote the album together in a rehearsal space over the period of a few months. This is quite the contrast from the process of their last two records, which, though still quite good, were constructed piece by piece in different studios over the period of years with the band on the verge of breaking up. The Deftones have never lacked creative energy, but on this album you can hear that the songs were written in a more organic and natural setting. This is mostly evident in the instrumentation and interplay between the band. As always, the guitars are heavy and tuned low, but rather than sounding like a wall of individual layered parts, it feels like guitarist Stephen Carpenter is playing each track in a live setting, and the same goes for rest of the band. Though Abe Cunningham’s drums don’t sound as big and aren’t mixed as carefully as in the past, his machine gun pace propels the band. Keyboardist Frank Delgado adds a nice gloss of synth-based texture that, though it may be difficult to discern, adds to the overall body of the album. One notable change is the absence of bassist Chi Cheng, who has been in a coma for more than a year after a car crash. Bassist Sergio Vega, who has subbed for Cheng in the past, fills in. Frontman Chino Moreno continues to write the visceral lyrics he is known for. He has said that he doesn’t like to write lyrics about his personal life, but rather string together a series of images that don’t necessarily tell a story but instead evoke abstract imagery. This approach is one of the factors that have kept the Deftones relevant. The fact that their songs don’t get bogged down in any type of confessional minutiae gives them an element of mystery that is critically lacking in other bands of their stature. Though Moreno has contributed a number of less heavy, more melodic guitar parts to the band since 2001’s White Pony, it seems as if, aside from the dizzying sway/midnight beach meditation of “Sextape” and the sweeping delay pedal ring of “Beauty School,” he has taken a step back on this record. It is mostly dominated by Carpenter’s signature low end. Carpenter’s playing itself doesn’t necessarily lack melody; it embraces it. Coupled with the down-tuned, bludgeoning heaviness of his playing is his mastery of taking his massive guitar tones and putting them to use writing memorable songs like the towering stomp in the chorus of “976-Evil.” On “CMND/CTRL,” “Rocket Skates” and the title track, Carpenter keeps his shredder credibility intact, while on “You’ve Scene The Butcher” he subverts his monstrous tone through some kind of classic rock-style riffing. Because of the way Diamond Eyes was recorded, it might be seen as the band returning to its roots. This by no means indicates that they looked to recreate something they had done in past, however. Rather, they seem to have looked at the idea as a perfect way to start over again. As they always have. �STREETVIBES June 15 - 30, 2010 Loving the Reds, Not Believing St. Louis is the best bet By B. Clifton Burke Contributing Writer W hen the Reds are winning, Cincinnati summers feel more golden. Something about it supercharges the city, helping to balance the frustrations that come with heavy humidity. Whatever it is, I enjoy it, and I hope it's here to last, but I'm afraid that isn't the case. As of June 7 the Reds were tied for first place with the St. Louis Cardinals in the National League Central Division. The season is but a young adolescent, displaying early trends that older seasons have proven to outgrow. If closely examined, the Reds are full of such trends; and as the season moves on, I expect them to at least slow down, if not end this success altogether. One of those unfortunate trends are the Cardinals themselves. They just win. Their one-two punch of Chris Carpenter and Adam Wainwright make up arguably the best starting-pitching tandems in baseball. If those two stay healthy all year, that alone can win a team the division. If that weren't enough, they also have perhaps the best pitching coach in the majors in Dave Duncan. While aces like Carpenter and Wainwright don't need much coaching anymore, Duncan has helped average pitchers exceed their potential like no one else in the game. This year’s example of such a feat comes from 24-year old left-hander, Jaime Garcia, who is 5-2 with a 1.47 ERA in his first year as a starter in the major leagues. I suppose it’s also worth mentioning that the world’s greatest player, Albert Pujols, also resides in the Cardinals’ lineup and that he is practically guaranteed to end up with over 35 home runs this year (he has only missed that mark once in his 10-year career). St. Louis is a battletested group who has proven staying power in pennant races. The other trend that isn’t likely to last is the good starting pitching the Reds have enjoyed of late. The once club ace, Aaron Harang, has spent the past two and a half years wondering where his mojo went. In that time, he is 16-26 with an ERA above 4.50. The Harangutan is a modest 4-5 this year so far, but also has posted a 5.43 ERA in 12 starts. Johnny Cueto also joins the list of questionable starters in Cincinnati's rotation. Johnny is off to a hot start (5-1, 4.09 ERA) but has never demonstrated that he can pitch consistently effective throughout the course of a whole season. He had a tremendous month of May, only giving up six runs in five starts, but then hemorrhaged eight runs to St. Louis in his first start in June. Cueto will be key if the Reds are to make a push for October, but remaining consistent is the only way that can happen. Then there are the Reds hitters. One major bonus in the Reds lineup this season has been Scott Rolen. The veteran third-baseman, who was considered primarily a defensive upgrade, has produced well from the plate too this season, belting 14 home runs already. Last year a major knock on the Reds was their inability to produce runs, and Rolen hitting lots of home runs is by and large a pleasant surprise. Yet again, Rolen hasn’t hit more than 20 home runs in the past five years prior to this season, so it seems likely that his hitting production will inevitably decline. Rightfielder Jay Bruce is another wild card. When Bruce first came up two years ago, he scorched major-league pitching the first few weeks that he saw it, but then the National League started throwing him some junk and his numbers swiftly declined. Last year was immensely forgettable for the young phenom, hitting a measly .223 before breaking his arm. This year he is off to a better start at .266 but still struggles with strikeouts. There are other variables that are clicking now but might not be all season long. For any team, prolonged success is made up in large part due to players peaking at the same time, and the Reds have put themselves in a position to make that happen. Chances are, though – at the risk of sounding like Debbie Downer – things will fall apart for the Reds and the division will go St. Louis’ way. I love them; I just don’t believe in them. But we might still get the Wild Card. rested in Advert Inte isin gi Affordable Rates etvibes? tre nS 7 Local Sports Many sizes (full page, 1/2 page, 1/4 page, 1/8 page) Black & White and Color available Discounts for Nonprofits Contact Lynne at 513-421-7803 ext. 11 or lynneausman@cincihomeless.org for more information. Ask A Vendor My question is to a specific vendor. I don't know his name. He is an African-American male. Most mornings, he is selling Streetvibes in the median at Central Parkway and Vine, between the Gateway Garage and the Kroger Building. My question is simple: Can I help you? I am very impressed by you. You are out in that median almost every day. I admire your diligence. You are very friendly and polite. I would like to understand your circumstances and see if I could help you make them better. I have often thought that something that people who end up in difficult circumstances have in common is that they just lacked the support that everyone (I mean everyone) needs. I think I could be a good supporter. I could offer some financial support, but not a lot. But I think I could offer a lot of good advice. I'm middle-aged, have a professional career and think I'm pretty decent at figuring things out and finding solutions to problems. Name withheld at author’s request E-mail given to vendor ‘Cover to Cover’ To the Editor: I work in the Kroger Building downtown and I purchase your newspaper on a regular basis. I wanted to take a moment to tell you how much I like the gentleman that stands on Central Parkway in between the Gateway Garage and the Kroger Building. I have passed him every morning on my way into work and just recently within the past couple of months started purchasing the newspaper. He is professional, well dressed, friendly with “Hello” every morning and not pushy with the paper. I was always curious about the paper; and if it weren’t for his demeanor, I probably would have never purchased one. I read it from cover to cover and have learned what your purpose is and will encourage my colleagues to support your cause. I look for this gentleman and look forward to his “Good morning,” “Hello,” “Have a nice day,” “Have a good weekend.” The one time I asked him a question about the paper, he was quick to answer and very knowledgeable about it. Needless to say, I am very impressed with this young man. I know that times are tough, and it is refreshing to see someone who is or has been down in their luck getting up every morning and working. I will continue to support your newspaper as long as it is available. Thank you. Linda Mager Cincinnati Have something on your mind? Want to comment on an article or vendor? Let us know: 117 E. 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 streetvibes2@yahoo.com STREETVIBES Only purchase Vendor Streetvibes from BADGED vendors. Vendors wear their WHITE badges while they sell the Mary paper. �8 Art Review STREETVIBES June 15 - 30, 2010 The Power of SOS Art is Engagement But a bit more order would help By Kathy Stockman Contributing Writer I n its eighth year, SOS Art is an event that invites artists of all ages, including poets and musicians, and the city to engage in a discussion about peace and justice. As an art historian whose scholarship focus has rested mostly in Latino art and critical race theory, I am always surprised to find that this discussion is not more prevalent in contemporary art. Few contemporary artists, especially those in Cincinnati, take on this topic, yet as by the wide participation and patronage of SOS Art and other local events has illustrated, sociopolitical debates remain strong and impassioned. The visual component of SOS Art, which ran May 28-June 6, included a non-juried show of two- and three-dimensional art open to local artists. As a non-juried show, the discussion of peace and justice is an open forum for all artists who wish to express themselves and to honestly and effectively participate in this dialogue. The result is a presentation of objects that vary in medium, artistic style and ability, subject and perspective. At times such a breadth of presentation overwhelmed this viewer. Moving from gallery to gallery throughout the two floors of the Art Academy of Cincinnati, which housed the exhibit, did not always invite the thoughtful The Ungrateful Traveler by Jeff Casto. Vinit Murthy. Sheri Besso created Full Deck, a commentary on “campaign madness.” Vinit Murthy. and perhaps even philosophical introspection these sociopolitical themes require. In one gallery, the viewer was met with national and local politics; the next topics included racism, feminism, homophobia; then the next was environmentalism. And sometimes all themes found a place on the same wall! Of course, all of these are integral parts to the overall discussion. However, a nonjuried show, I think, requires special care that will successfully move the dialogue throughout the different spaces. Without careful presentation, the exhibition risks presenting itself as a catalogue of newspaper headlines. As it is, the show rested perhaps too heavily on the literary and performance components of SOS Art for the needed dialogue. This is not to suggest that the point of the show and the themes were lost. The power of the artistic expression is certainly present in this diversity. Inviting all artists and visitors to engage in a sociopolitical dialogue is an invitation that should remain open. I believe artists and their art have a moral obligation to the community, and SOS Art provides a venue for artists to meet it. Yet I maintain that providing some kind of control or set parameters of a discussion leads to greater success. This becomes most obvious with the collaborative projects presented in the show. Homeless Teens is made up of digital designs created by Mark Wiesner’s ninth-grade students at Summit Country Day School. This collabora- Saad Ghosn and his woocut print, We Float, We Sink. Vinit Murthy. tive student work, with its obvious and narrowly set thematic parameters, packs a wonderfully powerful punch. Just as successful is the collaboration between students at Chatfield College, Northern Kentucky University and the residency program at Miami University’s Center for Community Engagement. This partnership resulted At times such in the now well-known discussion about the Jim a breadth of Tarbell mural in Over-thepresentation Rhine (see “Gigantic Insult? overwhelmed this Towering Tribute?,” issue of viewer. Moving Nov. 1-14, 2009). The piece from gallery to enjoys a continued success gallery throughout that rests, I think, on the inthe two floors of vitation to the viewer to par- the Art Academy of ticipate in the conversation. Cincinnati, which In light of the recent reac- housed the exhibit, tion to a couple of Shepherd did not always Fairey’s murals, we can see invite the thoughtful here an example of art – muand perhaps even ral, mixed media, sculpture, philosophical etc. – that engages through introspection these an open invitation to all to sociopolitical participate in a discussion. themes require. It is education – through art’s discussion that invites all to the conversation – that makes both Homeless Teens and the continuing discussion of the Tarbell mural successful efforts toward community engagement of sociopolitical issues. It is this open invitation – extended to diverse voices and eyes working to sharpen our dialogue, break our isolation, and strengthen our community – that is the fundamental principle of SOS Art. L-R, Broken Fence and Pain Faces by Kris Allen Courtney. Vinit Murthy. �STREETVIBES June 15 - 30, 2010 Out in the Open 9 �10 Poetry Page STREETVIBES June 15 - 30, 2010 All Tattered and Torn By Lee Caldwell They say children are sent from heaven above to parents and homes to be nourished and loved. I desperately wonder, how can that be? A home filled with abuse is all that I see, Slapping and hitting, kicking, too, Arms pinched and bleeding, now turning blue. Father in Heaven, why couldn’t you see, why would this family want a child like me? I know you love me, my prayers answered true, and sometimes they’re not. A bath filled with water, but why so hot? Washington Park in winter. Aimee Willhoite. If Only By Bonnie Neumeier If only from this valley of Over-the-Rhine We might rise Knowing the toil of our hands Labored long and hard For what is here The powerful now want to dismiss and displace If only we trusted our sense of what is right And not resign or despair When we see it rearranged and torn apart With fangs foul with greed And a false sense of authority over our land If only we took back the streets Dancing with pride Opening them up declaring These are not dead end streets Our feet walk miles everyday To tender these streets with soft caring For our sisters and brothers If only we could save the ancient trees The catalpa, the linden, the oaks In Washington Park Shading us in hot summers Where we lay down to feel The ancestors buried deep rise up Through the tickling green grass If only we could strengthen our resolve To claim our right to low-income housing Make a mix that is equitable And praise the beauty of the common people That makes this place real, not plastic or phony With a modernity that reeks with “We know what’s best for you, our way or no way” If only we had time to push away Our woes, worries and pressures To be free enough to spend our days Planning our dreams Rather than lamenting our losses And had resources enough to make dreams happen. If only we could sing from our roof tops Rise and Shine Over-the-Rhine Our spirits will forever haunt this place We shall not be moved A home filled with laughter, a home filled with joy, often I dreamed as a wee small boy. I close my eyes and dream through the night a home full of love, it seems so right. To change their hearts and the anger within, please call me home and try it again. Send them a child, all perfect and right who makes no mistakes, from morning to night. Father in Heaven what must I do, so they will love me, the way I love you? Bless my parents both mom and dad, help me do better, and not be so bad. I offer this prayer while on bended knee, father dear father what’s this that I see? The bird on my window as white as a dove, the light shining thru and brighter above. Father in Heaven, can it be calling me home, are you calling me? Angels are singing, songs of your joy. I’m finally home, here’s your little lost boy. �STREETVIBES June 15 - 30, 2010 Vendor Voice 11 The Life’s Moments with Luggage The ever changing rhythm of the street is the foremost companion of the street person. While the agony and misery are slated in due proportions, it is the variable by which survival is measured. The course is set and the undertaking is up to its participants. For the outsider it appears to be in disarray; however, for those who live this lifestyle, it’s essential for their survival. Knowing and understanding the rules as such is the only way to make it through the day. Your every move depends on a little know-how and abundance of wit. Without plans or preparation, the day begins with the shuffling that measures success. Hurrying to get to that place for a meal; or if you will, a shower. Constantly thinking ahead, hoping that you can make the timing that is most important for your daily routine. Everywhere you need to be, there is a line waiting for you; it goes with the territory. Stand around until it’s your turn, ears open to hear what your next move might be. In the life of the street, one has to see with their ears and hear with their eyes; otherwise you might miss in which direction you need to go in order to get what you need. Every decision is predicated on an immediate need. Shelter for the night, a meal, or shower and clothing are pertinent for your well being, so you have to be constantly searching for where, when and how. Staying in beat with the street, you have to follow the flow of those who share this lifestyle. Always mindful that each day is different, you have to review the schedule that you keep in your head, of where and when. It might be called life in the fast lane, only it’s actually slow. Ah! It’s always slow for the poor. Yet things cannot be measured by others’ ideas. The little that one is able to accumulate is worth its weight in gold; its importance is without compare. The mindset is one of “do or die.” You cannot miss one simple thing, whether it’s being on time for the soup kitchen or waiting your turn in line at the shower house. The simplest of things are so very important for your daily success. The baggage for this type of life is much more than a shoulder bag or an old beat-up suitcase with all your world inside. Now you have to think, “Who – or where – Without plans or can I go to get whatever it is I need?” A perceived preparation, the need, as most cases play out, what I thought would get me over the hump is something I reday begins with ally didn’t need. With more luggage than I can the shuffling that carry, I find myself looking for a place to unmeasures success. load some of my cargo, only to replace it Hurrying to get to that with more of the same. The consistency of place for a meal; or if having the need for so many unnecessary you will, a shower. things is beyond your understanding, yet there is that compulsion. Staying in your head, the mind set on getting whatever you can. Up and down the sidewalk, watching the movement of the street, staying in tune with the beat that makes your world move. “Ah, this is the life.” I say, “You made that up!” Now, let’s move up the sidewalk, a block or two. If you see it, you know how it sounds: the same as it looks. A reality that only those who live this way understand. A place where hope and help are misspelled with disappointment. The disappointment of life itself. No yesterdays, no tomorrows, just the moment. Yet one believes that relief is just around the corner or just a block or two away. The only rule is survival at any cost. “Ah, this is the life.” Note: I would like all our readers to engage our vendors on the challenge of questions. There is an ad in your Streetvibes that invites dialogue: “Go ahead: Ask a Vendor.” Please submit your questions. Busy Time for Housing Advocates Resisting 3CDC and blogging about the hurdles By Michelle Dillingham Contributing Writer If you are an affordable-housing advocate in this town, you are busy. In fact, it can get so busy that some tasks (read: fundraising) can get delayed, but I digress. Luckily, Cincinnati has an organization to help coordinate housing advocacy, the Affordable Housing Advocates (AHA). At the beginning of the year AHA set some goals. These included monitoring the Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority, pro- viding education on affordable housing and increasing affordable housing. In the past six months AHA has taken a number of actions: √ Co-hosted the Promoting Inclusion in Neighborhood Redevelopment and Housing Forum at City Hall along with the Cincinnati Human Relations Commission. The event brought out 80 participants and aired on CitiCable about 10 times. √ Offered recommendations for action to the City/County Fair Housing Advisory Board. √ Hosted a table at the Neighborhood Summit, offering education materials on affordable housing. √ Joined the Home Think Tank collaborative to increase housing advocacy for people with disabilities. √ Opposed the actions of the city and the Cincinnati Center City Development Corp. (3CDC) related to the closing of the low-income Metropole Apartments and urged them to take action to ensure downtown remains an integrated, mixed income neighborhood. √ Made recommendations and testified on policies proposed in Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority’s annual plan. √ Launched social networking strategies to provide public education, including use of Facebook, Twitter and a blog. √ Created the Housing Preservation Committee, chaired by Kelan Craig of the Coalition on Homelessness and Housing in Ohio to discuss issues relative to the preservation of affordable housing, specific buildings of interest and strategies for preserving at-risk properties. √ Expressed deep concern on the proposal that the Drop Inn Center be moved from its current location, again resulting in a loss of diversity and the loss of a mixed-income neighborhood. √ Commented on the recent appointment of an interim executive director of the Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority (CMHA) who has no experience in housing and asked the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban development to exercise its authority and take over the public-housing authority in order to protect the public investment and the more than 16,000 families who rely on CMHA for housing. Behind each of these efforts are AHA members who worked to ensure AHA stayed true to its mission: to further the creation, retention and accessibility of affordable housing in our community. Yet there is still so much to fight for. AHA will host its annual meeting at 4 p.m. June 22 at the Urban League of Greater Cincinnati, presenting the report, “State of Affordable Housing in Hamilton County: The Crisis.” Want more Streetvibes? Check out the Streetvibes blog http://streetvibes.wordpress.com �12 STREETVIBES June 15 - 30, 2010 Guest Column Gimme Shelter, But Not in New York Charging rent for the working homeless By Larry Gross Contributing Writer It isn’t politically correct to discriminate against gays or minorities. There are laws that protect these good people from it. When it comes to the homeless, there are good people here, too, but discrimination runs high. It’s hard to find much help or support for those living on the street. But there is some. Here in the Cincinnati area, there are organizations that do want to lend a hand to those who are down and out and homeless. There are some here who get it. We have, of course, the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless, the non-profit organization that publishes this newspaper you’re reading. There’s also the Drop Inn Center on West 12th Street, which offers shelter to those in need. So does the Brighton Center on East 20th Street in Covington. These and other agencies in Cincinnati have their hearts in the right place. But in New York, that heart doesn’t exist. That heart has turned cold. Starting this spring, New York Mayor Bloomberg and his administration are charging rent to homeless families who live in pub- licly run shelters if they have jobs. Basically, if you’re homeless in New York and trying to pull yourself up by your bootstraps for your family, in the “Big Apple,” you’re going to be charged for it. New York’s new policy is based on an old 1997 state law that wasn’t being enforced until now. The policy is murky. It isn’t clear as to how much homeless families should pay for shelter. The amount varies based on how many family members there are and how much money the homeless people are making. Maybe those homeless families should take comfort that this new heartless policy won’t exceed 50 percent of what they’re making. Taking away 50 percent in a place like New York seems to me like a lot of money. While this policy is badly conceived, it’s also being badly executed. Families are being told to pay up or get out – and it’s not just families who are being evicted. According to a recent New York Times report, a survivor of domestic violence was actually locked out of her room for nonpayment of rent. The National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty states that every year more than 3 million people experience homelessness. One-third of this homeless population is made up of families with parents not being able to provide a roof to put over the heads of their children. Those children now total over 1 million, with that number increasing every year. Perhaps someone in New York needs to remind Mayor Bloomberg of this fact. Maybe it would make a difference to him – children living on the street. Maybe it wouldn’t. If the American Dream is still alive in this country – and I’m not at all sure that it is – this policy in New York against the homeless, especially homeless families, needs to be eliminated and done away with. It’s counterproductive and increasingly separates the haves and have-nots in our society. While some in the Cincinnati community continue to look down on the homeless, we’re not charging them rent to live in shelters. We’re not punishing them while they try to pull themselves up. We’re not like those calling the shots in New York. Maybe New York and Mayor Bloomberg need to take a look at us here in Cincinnati. We, at least, still seem to have the ability to put ourselves in someone else’s shoes. Some of us here can also remember a word New York apparently has forgotten. That word is “compassion” for fellow human beings. The Guinea Pig Nightmare Comic By Anne Skove �STREETVIBES June 15 - 30, 2010 Guest Column District 9: Over-the-Rhine 13 A context for the city’s attack on Drop Inn Center By Thomas A. Dutton Contributing Writer “T hey made us many promises, more than I can remember, but they never kept but one; they promised to take our land, and they took it.” (Oglala Chief Red Cloud). District 9, nominated for best picture at the Academy Awards in March, is now widely available at a movie gallery near you. Rent it, watch it and learn about Over-the-Rhine. More specifically, watch it in light of the most recent city-corporate effort to displace the Drop Inn Center from its home in that neighborhood. District 9 is not your normal alien movie. The typical question these movies pose is, what are they going to do to us? In District 9 the roles are reversed. The aliens in District 9 are metaphors – stand-ins for homeless people, people of color, immigrants, marginalized groups generally, what some have referred to as “surplus humanity” – and the question District 9 poses is, what are we going to do with them? Denigrated and vilified as “prawns,” the movie charts the brutal removal of the aliens from one part of Johannesburg to a new and “improved” facility out of sight of humanity, and thus its moral sensibilities. Evidently, the “prawns” in Over-theRhine have to move for the good of the whole; a revealing statement, actually – apparently homeless people are not considered part of the whole. On March 30, at a City Hall meeting called by Cincinnati Mayor Mark Mallory, three board members of the Drop Inn Center were given their marching orders to make plans to relocate the Drop Inn Center because it “has got to go.” Accompanying the mayor were Vice Mayor Roxanne Qualls, some city staff, members representing the Continuum of Care and CEO Steve Leeper, Adam Gelter and Joe Pichler representing the Cincinnati Center City Development Corp. (3CDC.) Though no agenda was provided, the intent of this meeting became all too clear. While cordial on the surface, just below it was anything but. Some accounts characterize the meeting as abrupt and disrespectful, both in tone and body language. It doesn’t take much to surmise why, because the question of why the DIC “must” move never was negotiated, nor was it going to be. The whole thrust was procedural, a matter of simply figuring out the logistical steps, with 3CDC offering its “help” in searching for new sites for a new facility. The Drop Inn Center needs to make no argument as to its home, at least not until the city-corporate types make theirs. And that should be something to behold. I wonder if they will be able to say what’s really on their minds. Many years ago I was approached by an unnamed city council member, whose 40-foot likeness now adorns a prominent entry point to Over-the-Rhine, urging me to convince the leaders of the Drop Inn Center to relocate. “Why does the Drop Inn Center have to move?” I asked. “Well, you know…” “Hmmm. No, I don’t. Can you explain?” “Well, it’s just not right.” “Not right? What do you mean?” I inquired. “Well, it’s just not a good fit.” “How is it not a good fit?” “Well, the Drop Inn Center just needs to move.” “Why?” I asked. I am still waiting for an answer. And it’s doubtful that an inquiring public will get one. The powers-that-be don’t want to have such a conversation, of course, and will do everything in their power to avoid one. This is precisely why the “conversation” that took place in City Hall was structured the way it was – as method and logistics. Some of this can be explained by recent trends in our national discourse. We Americans seem to deal with our most intractable problems by either turning a blind eye toward them or by shifting the terms of understanding so they magically disappear. “Global warming” downgrades to “climate change,” racism is solved through references to a supposed color-blindness or to a “post-racial” society, and massive inequality will be overcome by “free markets” and access to “equal opportunity.” Bogus. Let’s call this out for what it truly is. The discourse of the city-corporate alliance that is developing around the removal of the Drop Inn Center has a long, sordid history in the United States. It comes in many names: manifest destiny, social cleansing, ethnic cleansing, negro removal, gentrification, colonialism; and let’s add another, “econocide” (which I will explain shortly). Cincinnati is witnessing in Overthe-Rhine today a variant of colonialism in line with the history of this country as a settler state to marginalize, exterminate or remove the “undesirables” whose very presence hinders the (colonialist) project. In this sense gentrification (predicated on removing the Drop Inn Center) as a modern-day form of colonialism is nothing new, although characteristics might be different. It is certainly racist (“white middle class saviors”) in that it targets communities of color for removal or transfer or displacement. It is also classist in that ecoA resident enters the Drop Inn Center. Jon Hughes/Photopress. nomic policies are spun around spurring “homeownership” and market-rate development, all the while suggesting that the needs “Econocide is a worldwide tendency to arrange the of lower-income residents can be met by such eco- disappearance of the losers in the great drama of nomically exclusive approaches. And insofar as the globalization.” state appropriates gentrification and sanctions it as Imagine being the target of econocide, where the urban policy, racism and classism now become of- following is a daily experience in Over-the-Rhine: ficial state policy. • You are told that your very presence in your own This is the game plan for places like Over-thecommunity is disorderly, unwanted, unattractive, Rhine today. As the city favors a business climate displeasing, and that you are not a “good neighbased upon privatization and public/private partbor;” nerships, the flip side is that all benefits and awards • Your own history is retold in ways that edit you accrue to new gentrifiers by expelling all traces out; of the poor and homeless. This is not a situation • You are told that the use of force, backed by the where the byproduct of urban policy just happens police, prisons, surveillance and punitive social to negatively impact the poor. No, this is urban polpolicy and added to with a dash of free-market icy where the active defense of privilege and class fundamentalism, will solve all social problems; depends upon the denial and removal of the poor. • You’re told that deregulation for the mobility of This is urban policy with a vengeance. The tactics corporate capital, coupled with the regulation of are clear, whereby the city promotes an agenda to urban public space by punitive social policy and sanitize urban neighborhoods and links crime and police sweeps (what some refer to as the annihimilitaristic measures such as more jails, more polation of space by law), are precisely needed to lice and more punitive legislation into a seamless serve your interests; marriage. In this view, the root causes of crime are • You are told of the need for outside, corporate rarely addressed and where the prison of today is forces, with the city’s blessing and support, to just the latest incarnation of the same line of thinklead the charge in redeveloping your neighboring that produced the racial enclosures of slavery, hood because there is just too much fragmentaJim Crow, the ghetto and the Indian reservation. tion, and the successful organizations you have This is “econocide,” a term developed by theobuilt over the decades are deemed incapable. rist Arjun Appadurai in his poignant Fear of Small • And with regard to the specifics of the Drop Inn Numbers: An Essay on the Geography of Anger. ApCenter’s removal, again, imagine being on the repadurai’s concern is that violence is taking new ceiving end of a domestic neocolonialism steeped forms in the new era of “intense globalization,” of in econocide: which ethnic cleansing and culturally motivated • You are not approached in the spirit of mutual reviolence perpetrated on a large scale are two of the spect and reciprocity. There is no attempt to unmost pressing examples. For Appadurai, the extent derstand the complexities of the Drop Inn Center, and rapidity of globalization have produced fearful nor its successes. No, the approach is militaristic; conditions of anxiety and uncertainty, with one rethe city barks orders and 3CDC maps logistics for sponse being the mobilization of violence against how the Drop Inn Center is to move. How would minorities, immigrants, the poor, the homeless moving the Drop Inn Center serve the Drop Inn Center’s mission to end homelessness? Not only and the outcast as a kind of exorcism to produce does the Drop Inn Center own its land and have certainty and stability. Violence becomes a kind of a right to be there, moving it makes no sense in purification rite on the part of “majoritarian identities” to purge their fear of marginalized populations See District 9, P. 4 that are being written off and targeted for removal: �14 STREETVIBES June 15 - 30, 2010 Guest Column District 9: Over-the-Rhine The men’s step-up dorm at the Drop Inn Center was created as part of a shelter restructuring last year designed to improve services at the Drop Inn Center. Jon Hughes/Photopresse. Continued from page 13 solving the circumstances producing homelessness in Cincinnati. The Homeless to Homes report makes no mention of a move. What a waste of dollars to create a new facility when the money could be directed to permanent supportive affordable housing, for example, which is precisely what Homeless to Homes advocates. • You are presented with faux humanitarianism. I and others have already called this out to the public before in our “When Humanitarianism Goes Bad” (see either http://www.cincinnatibeacon.com/index.php?/contents/comments/ when_humanitarianism_goes_bad/ or http:// arts.muohio.edu/cce/papers/When%20Humanitarianism%20Goes%20Bad.pdf). And what concerned us then is raining down on us now – a new, high-bred rhetoric of concern and compassion for the homeless that masks true intentions, which is not to end homelessness, just move it elsewhere. I suspect the Drop Inn Center board is not fooled by this urban colonialism dressed up in a false generosity. • You are essentially lied to because the practices and the principles of 3CDC, or the city, are not in sync. Operating as individual entities or as a citycorporate alliance as is happening now, the track record in following through in safeguarding the interests of our most vulnerable citizens is inadequate. Actually, “safeguarding the interests of our most vulnerable citizens” is being way too nice. It feels more like a war. Through policy and willful action, the poor of the Queen city have been targeted time and again. Consider: • After a promise to replace all 100 or so units of housing units after the demolition of the Milner Hotel – torn down in 1994 to make room for upscale housing at a time the city was arguing for economically mixed communities – only 20 units were replaced at the time, and those no longer exist. • The city’s effort to kill ReSTOC’s Vine Street Community Project back in 2000. After officially backing the project, Mayor Charlie Luken pulled his support, encouraging city council to block the release of city-administered funds and requiring ReSTOC to sell one of its primary buildings in the development to a private developer. This was not the end of it, however, as the city forced ReSTOC to sell off more of its property and convert some rental units into owner-occupied units. • The Housing Impaction Ordinance of 2001, which forbids the “city of Cincinnati from spending, approving or in any way condoning more subsidized low-income development in those areas deemed impacted,” mistakes symptoms for causes by popularizing the misguided view that the concentration of low-income housing is the root problem in Over-the-Rhine. Not seen in this view are the larger, structural causes that include the disappearance of decent paying, lower-skilled jobs, suburbanization, declining wages, welfare reform and other rollbacks of state-sponsored services, poor education and lack of affordable health and child care, all of which disproportionately and severely impacted poorer populations. • The city’s decision to abolish its Planning Department in 2003, which signaled to all those many people and organizations who worked on the Over-the-Rhine Comprehensive Plan (2002) that the Plan itself was essentially shelf material, effectively walking away from responsibilities outlined in the Plan to safeguard economic mix. • The city didn’t just pass one anti-panhandling ordinance, but two. Now a person cannot lie or use profanity or ask for change more than once, even though governments shall make no law…abridging freedom of speech. • The emptying of 1316 Race St. of 33 tenants who were displaced by the owner as a condition of sale to 3CDC. These residents were pressured with 30 days’ notice to vacate the premises. As this happened in November 2006, many residents had to find refuge from the approaching winter cold. • The city’s attempt through the Zoning Text Amendments to restrict and remove social services from Over-the-Rhine in the name of deconcentrating social services. • 3CDC’s word to keep basketball courts in a redesigned Washington Park has no value as the courts have been dropped from the program. It appears this was a unilateral decision made by 3CDC, and the message this sends to AfricanAmerican teenagers is loud and clear: You are not wanted. • 3CDC’s statement about the importance of having “a deep-water pool south of Liberty in Overthe-Rhine” (because the existing one in Washington Park will be eliminated) seems to hold no water. It appears there are no plans to renovate Ziegler Park’s shallow pool into a deep-water one anytime soon. • 3CDC’s claim that, as a rule, they don’t displace people from their homes is contradicted by their action with the residents of the Metropole Apartments downtown. 3CDC can’t even relocate them in their own downtown neighborhood. The contradictions in these examples –and there are many more – are striking on their face. The professed sincerity for the homeless and our least empowered citizens is contradicted outright by citycorporate practices. The 37-year history of the Drop Inn Center deserves respect, gratitude and acknowledgement for the experience and wisdom its gained in operating with strong ties to community organizations, both in and outside homeless-care provision. The Drop Inn Center is much, much more than a “shelter.” It is a community-based organization woven into the fabric of Over-the-Rhine with strong ties with many neighborhood organizations. Its graduates have gone on to establish new neighborhood institutions and even national reputations (think of Jimmy Heath, Donald Whitehead, Jimmy Render, Joe Beene and Mike Rogers, for starters). Over its long history, it has not only raised awareness in the city about the circumstances and need for shelter, but it continues to argue for a different societal future where homelessness is eradicated and not just moved to a new District 9, out of sight and out of mind. I suspect this piece will not be well received by the likes of 3CDC and the city. And I fully expect that these entities will act in the retaliatory fashion typical of bullies, which is precisely how they are operating now. I would not be surprised if they try to restrict rightful monies from reaching the Drop Inn Center. I would like to be wrong here. No one appreciates arrogance and paternalism. Patronizing the Drop Inn Center, I fear, is the first step in ignoring it altogether. The challenge is to construct a society full of real humanitarianism, building upon what the Drop Inn Center enacts everyday. It is a place of compassion, of empathy, of healing. It is a place that can restore Cincinnati’s humanity. Apparently the city and its agents can learn something from the Drop Inn Center. Thomas A. Dutton is director of the Miami University Center for Community Engagement in Overthe-Rhine. �STREETVIBES June 15 - 30, 2010 15 Resources Need Help or Want to Help? Shelter: Women and Children Central Access Point Cincinnati Union Bethel St. Francis Soup Kitchen Churches Active in Northside 535-2719 591-2246 381-SAFE 768-6907 FreeStore/FoodBank 557-2873 Madisonville Ed & Assistance Center 271-5501 300 Lytle Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 4230 Hamilton Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45223 241-1064 112 E. Liberty Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Bethany House 1841 Fairmount Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45214 Grace Place Catholic Worker House 681-2365 4600 Erie Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45227 Serves area codes: 45226, 45227, 45208, 45209 St. Vincent de Paul 6037 Cary Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45224 Salvation Army 762-5660 562-8841 872-9259 381-2247 5 E. Liberty St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 Health Resource Center Homeless Mobile Health Van McMicken Dental Clinic 357-4602 352-2902 352-6363 40 E. McMicken Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mental Health Access Point Mercy Franciscan at St. John 558-8888 981-5800 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 NAMI of Hamilton County PATH Outreach 1125 Bank Street, Cinti, Ohio 45214 131 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter Crossroad Health Center 458-6670 977-4489 Treatment: Men Other Resources Shelter: Men Charlie’s 3/4 House 784-1853 921-1613 Center Independent Living Options Emmanuel Community Center 961-2256 Peaslee Neighborhood Center 2121 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 City Gospel Mission 241-5525 Prospect House Justice Watch 241-0490 St. Fran/St. Joe Catholic Work. House 381-4941 Starting Over 1419 Elm Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 682 Hawthorne Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45205 1308 Race St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 Franciscan Haircuts from the Heart 661-4620 961-4663 2203 Fulton, Cinti, Ohio 45206 Anthony House (Youth) 961-4080 Treatment: Both 761-1480 1821 Summit Road, Cinti, Ohio 45237 Drop Inn Center 721-0643 Interfaith Hospitality Network Lighthouse Youth Center (Youth) 471-1100 221-3350 3330 Jefferson, Cinti, Ohio 45220 Housing: CMHA Excel Development OTR Community Housing 721-4580 632-7149 381-1171 114 W. 14th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tender Mercies 721-8666 27 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 961-4555 751-0643 381-1954 421-5211 Food/Clothing Lord’s Pantry OTR/Walnut Hills Kitchen & Pantry 621-5300 961-1983 OTR: 1620 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Walnut Hills: 2631 Gilbert, Cinti, Ohio 45206 1730 Race Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 351-0422 381-6672 830 Ezzard Charles Dr. Cinti, Ohio 45214 621-6364 771-4800 751-0600 721-4811 241-2965 People Working Cooperatively The Caring Place United Way Women Helping Women Off The Streets 351-7921 631-1114 211 977-5541 421-5211 1522 Republic Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Hamilton County ADAS Board Recovery Health Access Center Sober Living Talbert House 946-4888 281-7422 681-0324 641-4300 Hamilton/Middletown 421-3131 569-1840 381-4242 Northern Kentucky Advocacy Catholic Social Action Community Action Agency Contact Center 1227 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tom Geiger House Dana Transitional Bridge Services Volunteers of America Anna Louise Inn Our Daily Bread AA Hotline CCAT Joseph House (Veterans) 217 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Goodwill industries Healing Connections Mary Magdalen House 1223 Main St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 2728 Glendora Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45209 Caracole (HIV/AIDS) 381-0111 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 First Step Home Shelter: Both 621-5514 214 E. 14th St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 Treatment: Women 1437 Walnut Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mt. Airy Shelter 241-2600 241-2563 St. Raephaels Salvation Army Serenity House Day Center Open Door Pantry Brighton Center 863-3184 863-1445 422-8555 868-3276 859-491-8303 799 Ann St. Newport, KY Franciscan JPIC 721-4700 Gr. Cinti Coalition for the Homeless 421-7803 117 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Intercommunity Justice & Peace Cr. Legal Aid Society Ohio Justice & Policy Center Faces Without Places Stop AIDS 579-8547 241-9400 421-1108 363-3300 421-2437 Health ECHO/Hosea House Fairhaven Resuce Mission Homeward Bound Youth Mathews House Homeless & Housing Coalition Parish Kitchen Pike St. Clinic Transitions, Inc Welcome House of NKY 859-261-5857 859-491-1027 859-581-1111 859-261-8009 859-727-0926 859-581-7745 859-291-9321 859-491-4435 859-431-8717 205 West Pike Street, Covington, KY 41011 Center for Respite Care 621-1868 3550 Washington Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45229 Women’s Crisis Center VA Domiciliary VA Homeless 859-491-3335 859-559-5011 859-572-6226 Go Ahead: Ask a Vendor Invitation to a dialogue with our readers Streetvibes vendors see a lot that you might not. For example, some can describe what goes on in an abandoned building at night when they sleep there. Have you ever wondered what it’s like to stand on a street corner selling newspapers? That’s hardly a common occupation anymore. How much money do Streetvibes vendors make – and what do they do with it? Do they have other jobs? Become a Fan of Streetvibes on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/streetvibescincinnati If you have questions, some of our vendors would like to answer them. “Go Ahead: Ask a Vendor” will be an occasional feature, with questions submitted by readers and answered by Streetvibes vendors. You may direct your question to a specific vendor or we’ll invite one to respond. Only include your name if you want to. Send questions to streetvibes2@yahoo.com Or to Streetvibes, 117 E. 12th St. Cincinnati, Ohio 45202. Go ahead. Ask. Missed an Issue? Check out the Streetvibes archive at www.cincihomeless.org/content/streetvibes �16 Artists as Activists STREETVIBES June 15 - 30, 2010 The Interplay of Fear, Love, Light Gena Grunenberg re-creates the world “E arly on I realized that art was the only thing I needed to maintain sense of myself – also to make sense of the world,” says Gena Grunenberg. Grunenberg is a Cincinnati artist who as a child constantly drew and painted. In fourth grade she won an award for best drawing in her school. Her talent was recognized and encouraged by her mother, also a painter, and by her art teachers. After high school Grunenberg studied graphic arts, switching later to fine arts. Graphic arts did not satisfy her, the emphasis placed principally on how to create a sellable product, successfully advertise and manipulate the masses. This was at a time when other planetary and personal concerns were preoccupying her and that she felt she needed to express. The world was a frightening place to be, the Cold War going on, nuclear threats imminent, global warming pointing, the AIDS epidemic emerging; and she was directly dealing with issues of violence, peace at home often disrupted by an alcoholic father, abuse frequently encountered in her workplace. Grunenberg decided to independently study drawing and painting and enrolled under art teacher and artist Hugo Valerio. At the same time she learned various techniques, including pottery, silkscreen, jewelry and stone setting. Her aim was to develop good skills and draftsmanship to use to address the many issues she was facing. “I was witnessing corporations mistreating their workers, battering of the environment, racism, war, ethnic and individual violence. I wanted to use my art as a message,” she says. For few years, however, Grunenberg did not paint or draw, afraid to confront the problems she was encountering, but which were simmering inside her. This changed when she was asked to paint a pig as for the Big Pig Gig event organized by Artworks. She was then living with By Saad Ghosn a man who was controlContributing Writer ling and physically abusive; he did not want her to partake in the project. Determined, she fought him back and completed a pig on the theme of pollution. This gave her the courage to assert herself and move forward. Soon after she left the abusive relationship and started a whole body of work addressing the issues that have affected her until then. Domestic violence and violence in general became prominent topics in her work. Every Woman, an acrylic painting she did at the time, is about all women. The painting depicts them as parents, as abused and oppressed, carrying their burden into their old age, but also healing thanks to their inner power. Ice Tree addresses the plight of global warming and the insult large oil companies inflict on nature; it contrasts an oil can with a tiny sprig of hope growing next to it. “There is a progression in the violence that starts at home, within the individual, within families, then permeates society and spreads like a web,” Grunenberg says. “It becomes like a spiritual disease manifested in hatred, bigotry, disregard to others, rampant abuses by our capitalistic system, wars, global environmental destruction. … I want to un- A rtists ctivists The Thinker, acrylic painting by Gena Grunenberg. Bill Howes. Gena Grunenberg stands in front of a collection of her puppets. Bill Howes. derstand its causes and address them in my work in order to create awareness, make a difference, render the world a better place.” A couple years ago Grunenberg started building puppets to tackle and personalize the same concerns. Her puppet Fear deals with the prevalent sense of anxiety and fearful living conditions one increasingly experiences in violent modern society. She wants it, however, balanced by a counterpart, Love, that she is currently creating and would like to see take over. Another area of interest is metaphysics and “I want to understand the science of light. Researching the field, Grunenberg discovered that what scientists its causes and address believed and postulated ended up for the most them in my work part being true. Extrapolating to the world of in order to create art, she concluded that, by molding a world acawareness, make a cording to what the artist thinks and believes, difference, render the and by expressing it, the artist renders it real world a better place.” and transmits it to others. The work of art thus - Gena Grunenberg becomes an empowering part of the creation and an important vehicle for change. She emphasizes, however, in In the Beginning, that to effect this change it was important to be honest and truthful. The painting illustrates the need to remove the mask that conceals one’s identity and obliterates one’s true potential. Grunenberg also did a series commentary on the ambivalent duality of individuals, holy through their spirit, full of deficits by their human nature. In The Thinker, they are represented like pawns, fixed and paralyzed, full of holes; they are lonely even when in couples. They are connected by a smoke ribbon emanating from a passing train and ending at a skeleton thinker, alone, isolated and immobile despite having legs and arms. Grunenberg meant the thinker as a reminder to every artist to go beyond the apparent limitations and be the connecter, the transformer, the infuser of life. That’s what she would like her art to do. Three years ago Grunenberg joined Visionaries and Voices, an art studio for people with disabilities; initially the studio coordinator, she is now the exhibit coordinator and curator. She helps the disabled artists grow, develop and assert themselves through their art. Listening to them discuss politics, religion and events that have affected their lives – such as prejudice, racism, abuse, rape – she challenged them to express their feelings through their work, make a statement and share it with others in an exhibition she titled Black and White. More than 30 participated side by side with invited artists; their voices found echo in each others’, resonated, became amplified and multiplied. The show was moving, a visual unfolding of the timeline of ills and violence in our society. “I want to be an activist with my own art,” says Grunenberg, “and also get other people involved. We need to fight isolation and fear and affirm ourselves. Art has a healing and spiritual power; it gives strength and courage. It helped me making tough decisions; I want to use it now to help and empower others – like for the scientists, it can help us create the world we dream of; it can make it real.” Artists as Activists is a regular column highlighting Greater Cincinnati artists who use art as a vehicle for change. Saad Ghosn is the founder of SOS Art. Ghosn can be contacted at saad.ghosn@uc.edu. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 2010 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource June 15-30, 2010 Subject The topic of the resource Homelessness Description An account of the resource Pg 1: Sad Anniversary for the A-Bomb Marvels and Money Mongers Pg 2: Street Wise Pg 3: Forced Out for the World Cup Gamers Pg 4: Sad Anniversary for the A-Bomb Continued Marvels and Money Mongers Continued Pg 5: Sex Offender Law Unconstitutional Pg 6: ‘Infinite Arms’ and ‘Diamond Eyes’ Pg 7: Loving the Reds, Not Believing Pg 8: The Power of SOS Art is Engagement Pg 9: Out on the Open Pg 10: Arts & Poetry Pg 11: The Life’s Moments with Luggage Busy Time for Housing Advocates Pg 12: Gimme Shelter, But Not in New York Pg 13: District 9: Over-the-Rhine Pg 14: District 9: Over-the-Rhine Continued Pg 15: Resources Pg 16: The Interplay of Fear, Love, Light 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 June 15-30, 2010 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Gregory Flannery Lynne Ausman Veronica Glass Jeni Jenkins Michelle Dillingham Samantha Groark Margo Pierce Paul Kopp Jeremy Flannery Michael Henson David Heitfield Corey Gibson Saad Ghosn Lew Moores Larry Gross Eli Braun Jesse Call Brendon McCartney Michael Fanning Aimie Willhoite Anne Skove Vinit Murthy Jon Hughes Lynn Baker Jeremy Flannery Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF 3CDC Activists Aimie Willhoite Anne Skove Arts & Poetry Brendon McCartney Corey Gibson David Heitfield District 9 Drop Inn Center Eli Braun Gena Grunenberg Gregory Flannery Jeni Jenkins Jeremy Flannery Jesse Call Jon Hughes Larry Gross Lew Moores Lynn Baker Lynne Ausman Margo Pierce Michael Fanning Michael Henson Michelle Dillingham New York Ohio Supreme Court Over-the-Rhine Paul Kopp Reds Saad Ghosn Samantha Groark Sex Offender Law St. Louis Veronica Glass Vinit Murthy World Cup https://streetvibesarchive.net/files/original/96600fdd4c998e350cddf1ee679495ad.pdf 3ada771f65c5aa06d29807b5944cfaf6 PDF Text Text Interview with Mia Carruthers Page 11 Hollywood and Poverty Page 8 Artists as Activists Page 16 STREETVIBES $1 June 1-14, 2010 • Advocating Justice, Building Community • Issue 178 Tell Me: Do You Want to Hold Me? Buy a street paper, help end homelessness By GreGory Flannery Editor egates from 42 street papers in 27 coun­ tries. Some of the papers are huge. Erlik Oslo, in Norway, for example, sells 24,000 elbourne, Australia – Clar­ copies a month. The population of met­ ity arrived on the final day of ropolitan Oslo is about 1.3 million. In the the 15th annual conference city of Cincinnati, whose populations of the International Network of Street is about 340,000, Streetvibes sells 8,000 Papers (INSP). copies a month. “We could very Some street papers well be the largest have paid staff. Many The general membership do not. (Streetvibes has social enterprise in the world,” said Lisa one.) Some European embraced the notion: McLean, executive di­ Street papers are a tangible street papers receive rector of INSP. government subsidies. solution for individuals. Street papers around Many street papers do Given the size of the the world employ not. (Streetvibes is pubstreet-paper movement, an estimated 50,000 lished by the Greater street papers are already homeless and former­ Cincinnati Coalition for one of the largest social ly homeless people as the Homeless, which enterprises in the world. vendors, according to refuses all government McLean. funding.) INSP members shared sales strategies, Social enterprise is the use of econom­ ic activity for social good. Selling street discussed local impediments – it is illegal papers is a form of self-employment for to sell on the streets in the Philippines, for example – and pondered new riddles: poor people. “Selling street papers is an instant shift When Big Issue Korea launches in Seoul from unemployment to employment,” this summer, how many copies would be said Steven Persson, CEO of Big Issue right for a city of 10 million people? Australia, host of the INSP conference. The one common element among “You can start a business for $1.” street papers is their purpose: to fight Streetvibes and many U.S. street news­ poverty by giving homeless people jobs. papers sell for $1 but street papers in Europe and Australia tend to be glossy ‘Other choices’ magazines, selling for up to $5. The price range and print quality are among the The final day of the INSP conference many variations in street papers around featured a presentation by the Global the world. Poverty Project, whose Australian gen­ The INSP conference included 70 del­ eral manager, Richard Fleming, provided M See INSP, p. 4 Frank Dries shows a bag that says, “Do you want to hold me?” INSP. Sheriff Wants to Follow Arizona Jones wants cops to be immigration agents By Jeremy Flannery Contributing WritEr B Butler County Sheriff Richard O. Jones posted this online photo of himself at the Mexican border with Arizona on May 25. utler County Sheriff Richard O. Jones is pushing a November ballot initiative to have Ohio voters adopt legislation similar to Arizona’s new immigration crackdown. Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland says he will veto any bill that mirrors Arizona’s new law, which requires local police to question anyone suspected of having entered the United States without legal documents. State Rep. Courtney Rick Combs (R-Hamilton) is working with Jones on the ballot initiative, according to the sheriff. The Arizona law states, “For any lawful contact made by a law enforcement official or agency of this state or a county, city, town or other political subdivision of this state where reasonable suspicion exists that the person is an alien who is unlawfully present in the United States, a reasonable attempt shall be made, when practicable, to determine the immigra­ tion status of the person.” The League of United Latin American Citi­ zens of Ohio (LULAC Ohio) sent an open let­ ter to Jones opposing his initiative. The letter details the positive economic impacts of im­ migrant workers and the negative impacts of anti-immigration laws. Jason Riveiro, state director of LULAC Ohio, wonders why Jones considers immigration law a priority for Butler County and Ohio. “I think fiscal conservatives should be questioning how this is going to affect the budgets with enforcement of such a law,” Riveiro says. “Is this really a priority in Ohio? Why is Rick Jones making this a top priority in Butler County? Ohio isn’t Arizona, so it’s like Arizona budgetary concerns requesting snow See Arizona, p. 4 �2 STREETVIBES June 1 - 14, 2010 Editorial By The Numbers 7 The amount of taxes, in billions of dollars, paid by undocumented workers (see page 1). 24,000 The number of copies a street paper in Oslo, Norway, sells each month (see page 1). 1 The dollar denomination of U.S. currency used to create Hey Buddy Can You Spare a Dime (see page 16). 2010 The year Sandra Bullock won the Oscar for best actress (see page 8). 90 Mojo’s weight, in pounds (see page 3). 34 The number of homeless patients served on a typical day at McMicken Dental Clinic (see page 5). 2.5 The length, in boring hours, of Robin Hood (see page 7). 90 The speed, in miles per hour, at which a suspected drunk driver was traveling (see page 12). Don’t Look Away By GreGory Flannery Editor L ynne Ausman could have looked away in disgust when she saw a man pull down his pants and defecate on East Twelfth Street one morning last month. But she didn’t. Instead, Ausman, administrative coordinator of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless, looked at the man with compassion, knowing he was troubled, know­ ing he would be arrested if she didn’t act quickly, knowing he needed help. She resolved to make sure he got it. Ausman phoned Josh Spring, executive director of the Homeless Coalition, who enlisted the aid of Rob Goeller, the coalition’s human-rights outreach coor­ dinator. Together the three of them tried to reach a social worker who specializes in helping homeless mentally ill people. A fourth employee helped Spring escort the man to the Homeless Coalition before police arrived. This is the kind of people I work with. It turned out the man – his name was Eddie – was out of medication for his seizure dis­ order. Initially suspicious, he thanked the people who helped him. He said he was 48 years old. He looked 20 years older. “Why are you people being so nice to me?” Eddie asked. “Because you’re important,” Spring said. The work isn’t always as unpleasant as the circumstances under which our staff wel­ comed Eddie. It can often be rewarding, as when vendors succeed in selling enough copies of Streetvibes that they are able to secure housing. It isn’t uncommon for our staff to invite extra work. Della Woolens is a receptionist for the Homeless Coalition. If that job title sounds mundane, there is nothing commonplace about the work she does. Our homeless guests are by definition people in distress, and they bring with them the anger, the frustration, the need and the fear that characterize life on the margins of society. They find in Woolens an unfailing patience, an unfaltering kindness. Want proof? Woolens is now embarked on starting the Safe Haven and Homeless Mentor Network. “Since I began working here I have taken a great interest in helping the homeless,” she says. “Particularly, I am concerned with protecting the homeless from violence and hate.” The facility she hopes to found will start out as a day shelter for homeless people, with the hope of expanding as funding allows. “Safe Haven will provide a nurturing and hospitable environment, while providing much needed connections to community resources as well as safe, reliable transportation to and from outside agencies, physicians, employment sites and housing opportunities,” Woolens says. “A second major component will be the creation of a homeless mentor network that would pair homeless individuals with caring and nurturing community volunteers willing to devote time to providing support, love and guidance.” Here’s where you come in – and it won’t cost you a penny. Pepsi Co. is holding a compe­ tition for a $50,000 grant to benefit a non-profit organization. Safe Haven and Homeless Mentor Network is among the groups contending for the grant. To help get the project start­ ed, go to Refresheverything.com/safehavenforthehomeless and vote for it to get the grant. Finally solving homelessness will take major government funding and changes in so­ cial policies, because the greatest single cause of homelessness is the lack of affordable housing, as Jeni Jenkins, education coordinator for the Homeless Coalition, tells anyone who will listen. But the work of helping individual homeless people is often grassroots in nature. Earlier this year a blogger criticized the Homeless Coalition for trying to organize low-income residents of the Metropole Apartments to resist their forced displacement. The Cincinnati Center City Development Corp. (3CDC) has decided that their homes would make a fine location for a boutique hotel. The Homeless Coalition’s effort was clearly just an effort to make money, according to the blogger. The assertion was false. The coalition didn’t make any money by helping the low-income residents. Nor did it try to. Nor is the coalition the kind of employment likely to fuel a lucra­ tive career. One example: This month we are at long last able to put paper towels in our rest room. When budgets are tight, as ours always is, we cut costs where we can. Fortunately, we are not in this fight alone. Thanks to the generosity of United Nations Appeals Judge Mark Painter, I was able to attend the annual conference of the International Network of Street Papers last month in Melbourne, Australia (see “Tell Me: Do You Want to Hold Me,” page 1.) The street-paper movement is growing. Until governments around the world meet their responsibility and end homelessness, it is up to organizations like the Homeless Coalition to do what they can. What we can do right now is enable homeless people to earn a small income by selling street papers. Streetvibes is part of an international social enterprise, helping homeless people support themselves. By buying this paper, you, too, are part of the solution. The first step is to not look away. If you see someone relieving himself on the sidewalk, he likely needs help. Call the Homeless Coalition at 513-421-7803, and we’ll make sure he gets it. If you would like to help the coalition, you can make a tax-deductible donation by send­ ing a check to GCCH (117 E. 12th Street, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202). If you see someone selling Streetvibes, don’t look away. Your $1 donation will mean 75 cents in the vendor’s pocket. You might also find yourself surprised by her commitment, determination and wisdom. Homeless people are your neighbors – people who are important. 50,000 The amount, in dollars, that Della Woolens hopes Pepsi Co. will give for the Safe Haven and Homeless Mentor Network (see page 2). www.facebook.com/ streetvibescincinnati twitter.com/ streetvibesnews streetvibes. wordpress.com Streetvibes is an activist newspaper, advocating justice and building community. Streetvibes reports on economic issues, civil rights, the environment, the peace movement, spirituality and the struggle against homelessness and poverty. Distributed by people who are or once were homeless, in exchange for a $1 donation, Streetvibes is published twice a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Address: 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 Phone: 513.421.7803 x 12 Fax: 513.421.7813 Email: streetvibes2@yahoo. com Website: www. cincihomeless.org Blog: streetvibes.wordpress. com Streetvibes Staff Editor Gregory Flannery Art Director Lynne Ausman Graphics/Layout Intern Veronica Glass Vendor Coordinator Jeni Jenkins Contributing Writers Michelle Dillingham, Samantha Groark, Margo Pierce, Paul Kopp, Jeremy Flannery, Michael Henson, David Heitfield, Corey Gibson, Jeni Jenkins, Saad Ghosn, Lew Moores, Larry Gross, Eli Braun, Jesse Call, Brendon McCartney, Michael Fanning Photography/Artwork Aimie Willhoite, Lynne Ausman, Anthony Williams, Vinit Murthy, Jon Hughes Proofreaders Lynn Baker Jeremy Flannery The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that works to eradicate homelessness in Cincinnati through coordination of services, public education, grassroots advocacy and Streetvibes. We are proud members of: �STREETVIBES June 1 - 14, 2010 3 Column One Thing Leads to Another A search for a missing dog leads to unexpected discovery By B. CliFton Burke Contributing WritEr T oday I am sore, I am tired, I have blisters on my feet, but I am immensely happy, and here is why. It’s now late Wednesday, but my tale begins on Monday night around 6:30 pm or so. It was a glorious evening, nice and cool for midMay but still sunny with the trees in full bloom. I lounged on the deck – there is no other way to live on the deck – and sipped on one of my father's beers – a Stella Artois, I believe – and contemplat­ ed dinner. The Reds would start soon and I hadn’t watched them in a while. They were playing well; my interest was piqued. I decided I’d meander up to Chicago Gyro and eat something greasy while I watched baseball and drank beer. My Dad was out­ side, and I explained my intentions to him. “Get me a gyro” is all he said about it while he tooled with something in the dirt. I reached down and petted Mojo on the head. “I'll be right back, buddy,” I told him. It's what I always tell him. Most times I tell where I’m going. If I’m off to work, I don’t say that I’ll be right back, I tell him I'm going to work and that I’ll be back that night. But he knows that without my telling him. Like all dogs, he is a master observer and picks up on the slightest cues from my behav­ ior. Still, I like to believe that he is more observant than most dogs and is what we would call “smart.” This time he didn’t know where I was going, and it bothered him. My Dad continued working on something, transfixed on his task. I wandered away from the house and my mind wandered away from the present. No one noticed Mojo follow me. On my walk to Chicago Gyro, it dawned on me how content with life I’d been of late. It had been a good run for a while. I enjoyed my job, loved my woman and found being happy the normal state of being; there was nothing worthwhile to complain about it. But like any good sports fan, I felt the jinx lurk­ ing just behind such pleasant sentiments. Super­ stition might be silly, but it hasn’t lasted this long by accident. I see it as a weird byproduct of human freewill. Prior to human intelligence there was no superstition on Earth. Things happened for sci­ entific reasons only, and there were no mysteries. Then somebody got the idea that too much of a good thing can only spell eventual disaster, which is invariably the case, and then allows some sage of paranoia to leap up out of his hut and yell, “Ah ha! I told ya!” once the shit hits the fan. Based on that guy, the world can’t shed the idea that maybe there is something to superstition after all, which leads to all kinds of nonsensical traditions, includ­ ing organized religion; but that rant is preserved for another day. The point is, thinking everything in my life was gravy immediately led me to regret thinking it in the first place for fear of swift personal tragedy brought on by the power of the announcer jinx – the announcer in this case being me. I laughed off the notion and once more began considering ways to properly end the novel I’d been tinkering with off and on for years. Thirty minutes later I returned to my house with a six-pack of Si­ erra Nevada's Glissade and two gyros. There is a large grassy field next to my house where many dog-owners, myself included, use as a play area for their dogs’ recreation. Mojo loves this particular field. He has spent most of his life coming here to play and no dog has ever played harder in this field than he. Chasing the tennis ball is as much his job as tackling people is for Ray Lewis. It’s no-nonsense and visceral. You would be impressed. Dog gone In the field on this day was a different, smaller dog (Mojo is a Rottweiler-German Shepherd mix and weighs in around 90 pounds). This other dog’s owner was a college-looking dude, fairly non-de­ script, and was throwing his own tennis ball to this clearly amateur dog. I expected to see Mojo gallop­ ing alongside this stranger, showing how the game is played, but he wasn’t. If he saw this game taking place, he would have stormed the scene and caused a moment of fear and apprehension from the other dog's owner. “Why is this giant dog running at us unattend­ ed?” he would have asked himself. “What should I do?” My Dad was still fiddling with something and uninterested in the tennis-ball chase taking place nearby. “Did Mojo try to play with those guys?” I asked. I assumed, as he wasn’t in sight, that Dad had put him in the basement. “Where is he?” Dad asked. That’s when I knew he was gone. His tennis balls lay there in the yard. I picked one up, called his name, and bounced the ball to get his attention. Nothing. Dad tried yelling, too. He has a booming voice that dwarfs mine, but still to no avail. The only place I walk my dog is to my girlfriend Melanie’s, so I set off in that direction. A middleaged man I often see in his yard was there. He hadn’t seen Mojo. I called Melanie and told her I was out­ side her apartment and Mojo was missing. We drove around for a couple hours looking for him. I was also able to enlist my buddy, Aaron, and his dog, Apollo. The two cars (Melanie's and Aaron’s, as well as Dad’s), cruised the neighborhood. He was nowhere. After a while, darkness set in and it began to rain. I relieved the drivers, borrowed Apollo and set off on foot. I canvassed huge swaths of Clifton yelling his name every now and then. Nothing. I Trees brighten an urban landscape - and sometimes conceal tragedy. REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann. walked for a few fruitless miles and even had the unpleasant experience of hearing one pit bull kill another pit bull, or at least significantly maim him, as I unintentionally got the dogs riled up by simply walking past their yard. I didn’t hear anyone come out to check on the carnage. Needless to say, that only sharpened my worry and anxiety for my bud­ dy, Mojo. I eventually became listless and very tired. I rea­ soned that, in order to search more tomorrow, I had to go home and sleep. I took the long way home, checking on all kinds of weird, dead-end roads and ended up at home near midnight, dogless and dis­ traught. Once the idea settled in that I was now giving up for the night, all the terror and fear for Mojo fully set in. There was only one way this saga would turn out OK, and that was getting my dog back un­ harmed. But there were countless ways it could go wrong, and they all consumed me that night. I’m not ashamed to admit that I sobbed – a total emo­ tional meltdown. The thing that wouldn’t leave my head is that old dogs weren’t supposed to run away. Yes, old dogs die, and that was a big enough challenge to wrap my head around, but an old dog wandering off just wasn’t the way the universe was supposed to work. It wasn’t right. I couldn’t swallow it. I tearfully prayed to anyone tuned in to that kind of frequency that night that I would really appreci­ ate Mojo’s safe return. I mentally projected at him to hang tight for the night and that I would find him the next day. It was a miserable night. I fell asleep close to 1 a.m. I woke up at 6:45 and was out of the house by 7:15. Anyone who knows anything at all about my regular schedule will unanimously agree that anything before 8 a.m. is completely unheard of, and yet that was the case. No breakfast but coffee, an umbrella, a rain coat and I was out again. The body in the woods The part of town I was convinced hadn’t been covered enough was the basin of McMicken and its offshoot streets. I plowed through those seedy nooutlet streets like I owned every abandoned apart­ ment building in the neighborhood, still to no avail. It stormed that morning. Mojo hates the thunder, and I caught myself telling him that it was OK, as I always do. I weaved through all the area’s major parks on my way home to change into some dry clothes. I thought about eating once I made it back to the house but still couldn’t do it. I drank some water in­ stead. My next mission would be into the woods; I was really beginning to feel desperate. I tooled around the woods near my house for See another, p. 6 �4 Local News STREETVIBES June 1 - 14, 2010 Tell Me: Do You Want to Hold Me? Continued from page 1 inspiration for the struggle. He described his work at a school in a village in Bangladesh, where he met a girl living in a brothel with her mother and sister. “She told us the only reason she worked in prostitution was there was nothing else she could do,” Fleming said. “She had no skills. She couldn’t read or write. … She doesn’t want to do it but it’s the only economic power she had. That’s why street papers exist – to give people economic opportunity to change the way they live, so they can go off and “She told us the only have other choices in their life.” reason she worked in The theme of the prostitution was there was INSP conference nothing else she could do. She had no skills. She was, “Global Col­ laboration: Real So­ couldn’t read or write.” lutions.” Fleming’s - Richard Fleming, presentation was Global Poverty Project the opening salvo in planning for the Global Speak Out, INSP’s initiative for address­ ing poverty in the year ahead. Inspiration isn’t enough in itself, of course. Facts matter. This was, after all, a conference of journalists. When Fleming closed with a bit of rhetoric – saying “extreme poverty" can be ended in this generation, even as Nelson Man­ dela succeeded in ending apartheid in South Africa and Great Britain succeeded in ending the slave trade in the 19th century – it did not go unremarked that the latter assertion was a stretch. Great Britain banned slave trading in the early 19th century, but hardly eliminated it. In fact, some 26 million people across the world are victims of human trafficking today, according to organizations working to end slavery. Fleming’s call to join the struggle to elimi­ nate extreme poverty led to practical thinking by delegates. In a workshop following his pre­ sentation, INSP members came to the conclu­ sion that, rather than start a new campaign to end poverty, they will do best to concentrate on the work they already do. The general membership embraced the no­ tion: Street papers are a tangible solution for individuals. Given the size of the street-pa­ per movement, street papers are already one of the largest social enterprises in the world. Trudy Vlok, general manager of Big Issue South Africa, summarized INSP’s newfound self-ap­ preciation. “We are rock stars,” she said. Vlok’s paper plans to publish a special edi­ tion for June, when the World Cup is played in South Africa. “They’re going to have this huge event,” she said. “We want to make sure poor people get something out of it.” That special edition will not be about the woes of poverty, but rather a guide for visitors in town to enjoy the soccer championship. Not doing favors Therein lies the existential tension of the street-paper movement – trying to build news­ paper sales in order to benefit vendors while giving readers substantial content. Street pa­ pers have to be about more than homeless­ ness, or they won’t sell. No one, after all, wants to be scolded by a constant refrain about the woes of being poor. “I think most street papers realize they don’t want to be called a ‘homeless paper’ anymore,” said Joanne Zuhl, managing editor of Street Roots in Portland, Ore. “If vendors can’t sell the paper, we’re not doing them any favors.” Enlov P. Mathiesen, editor of Erlik Oslo, agreed. “I think homelessness bores people,” he said. “If it’s about homelessness every issue, they’re not going to read it.” To that end, delegates at the conference dis­ cussed ways to improve editorial content in order to build sales and thereby benefit ven­ dors. Some street papers don’t limit themselves to journalism. Some are affiliated with larger social enterprises. For example, Der Jerusalemmer, in Germany, operates a café that A display of street papers from around the world. INSP. employs and serves homeless people. Big Issue Australia sponsors a touring street-soccer team. Frank Dries, editor of Straatnieuws in the Netherlands, described a project through which vendors offered for sale not only copies of the magazine but also recyclable shopping bags. A competition among local artists led to the final design, with the shopping bags em­ blazoned with the message, “Do you want to hold me?” Straatnieuws vendors sold about 2,000 shop­ ping bags, and local media coverage helped promote the street paper as an employment opportunity for homeless people. The slogan on the bags also points to another purpose for social enterprises such as Streetvibes – wearing down the social barriers that isolate homeless people. Thus our question for readers: “Do you want to hold me?” Sheriff Wants to Follow Arizona Continued from page 1 removal.” Ohio law enforcement and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) could face ex­ pensive round-ups and transfers to ICE from de­ tentions of suspected undocumented workers under such legislation, according to Riveiro. He suggested Jones becomes an ICE agent if he’s so concerned about the legal status of immigrants in Ohio. LULAC Ohio has asked Cincinnati Mayor Mark Mallory to endorse its boycott of travel to Arizona but hasn’t received any response yet, Riveiro says. Columbus Mayor Michael Cole­ man has announced a ban on city-paid travel to Arizona. The Cincinnati Branch of the International Socialist Organization hosted a May 21 forum with the Cincinnati Interfaith Workers Center and the Campus Anti-War Network at UC to dis­ cuss the proposed legislation. Speakers Dan La Botz and Shaun Harkin proposed their own im­ migration reform. La Botz, a Cincinnati teacher and journalist, is the Socialist candidate for an Ohio seat in the U.S. Senate. He wants decrimi­ nalization of the estimated 12 million undocu­ mented immigrants in the United States and a path for them to have the right to work and earn full U.S. citizenship without penalties. “If your starting point is it’s a crime, then it becomes about criminalization,” La Botz said. “I think people need to put it into context of why people come here. We have a system of forced migration. People don’t have the right to move freely, nor do they have the right to stay.” Corn exports from the United States have weakened the competition for Mexican farmers to sustain a living on their own farms, so they move here to seek employment, La Botz said. Be­ cause undocumented immigrants cannot find legal work in the United States, they should re­ ceive immediate rights to work without onerous costs or penalties, he said. La Botz also wants an increase in the number of visas issued to people seeking employment in the United States and an open-border policy for workers to move be­ tween employment and their homes across the borders, he said. “I think immigrants will have to be the lead­ ers for this social movement because they’re the ones that know best,” he said. “They’re the ex­ perts, and we need to be their allies. Voting for me won’t change society.” What’s required is a social movement among immigrants, students, unions and people seek­ ing social equality, La Botz said. Modesto Verde, an immigrant worker, talked about an employer who withheld his wages. Modesto Verde joined the Cincinnati Interfaith Workers’ Center to seek legal aid to sue the em­ ployer for back pay, he said. Verde and his fellow employees won in court, but the employer fled to Mexico without paying the wages owed, he said. Verde now advocates for workers’ rights, making sure they are aware of safety requirements and receive their full wages on time, he said. Unions and student groups should publicize the fact that immigrant workers pay sales and social security taxes and are a part of the fabric of U.S. society, according to Shaun Harkin, an activist from Chicago. “Undocumented workers pay about $7 billion in taxes annually, including social security taxes under false social security numbers, to which they will not have access,” he said. Sheriff Jones testified May 18 in Columbus on Senate Bill 238. The bill would require all injured workers seeking compensation through the Ohio Bureau of Workers Compensation (BWC) to prove their legal status to work in the United States. The bill’s sponsor, State Sen. Bill Seitz (RGreen Township), testified March 23, “Because BWC is mainly funded by charges to Ohio em­ ployers and because employers constantly com­ plain to us about the size of the payments, every dollar paid out by BWC to illegal alien workers is money that would otherwise go to reduce em­ ployer charges and make Ohio more competi­ tive.” If the bill becomes law, an illegal immigrant will have the right to sue for worker’s compensa­ tion against an employer for intentional harm. Jones visited the border fence between Mexico and Arizona on May 25. His office issued a press release saying Jones wanted to review border se­ curity and meet with Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer to discuss the new Arizona legislation. The Cincinnati Branch of the International So­ cialist Organization plans to hold a rally for im­ migration reform in Ohio at 1:30 p.m. Saturday, June 5, at the Hamilton County Courthouse. �STREETVIBES June 1 - 14, 2010 Agency Spotlight Bright Smiles for the Homeless 5 McMicken Dental Clinic helps uninsured By Jeremy Flannery Contributing WritEr A smile can brighten a person’s mood, espe­ cially if he feels confident about showing his teeth. A dental clinic in Over-the-Rhine is working to brighten the smiles of homeless peo­ ple. The McMicken Dental Clinic has been operating for nine years to improve the oral hygiene of home­ less people, according to clinic manager Sandra Bernard. “We have one full-time dentist and we have four volunteers with their own private practices,” Ber­ nard says. “We also have two-week rotations with Ohio State (University) students, and we have one Raymond Walters (College) hygienist. We offer the same services that you would receive at a private practice.” The clinic offers emergency dental care to home­ less people only, she says. Referrals come from homeless shelters and the Mobile Medical Clinic that traverses the city on a weekly schedule. The dental clinic operates from 7:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday, and Friday by ap­ pointment only. “We close from 12:30 pm to 1:30 pm for lunch but sometimes we’re late for the lunch break because we’ll still have patients we’re working on,” Bernard says. “Some days are crazier than others. It depends on how many people come in for emergency care. I’d say we serve somewhere between 17 and 34 peo­ ple per day.” The clinic is funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Cincinnati Health Network, Inc., the city of Cincinnati and pri­ vate donations. The funding allows the clinic to of­ fer free treatment to homeless patients. The only out-of-pocket cost for patients is for lab­ oratory work, such as denture repairs, bridge and crown work. Patients must pay for that work in advance. “We offer a payment plan for the lab work, even if it takes $5 at a time to make the pay­ ment,” Bernard says. The clinic is a part of Cincinnati Health Network Inc., a federally qualified health cen­ ter that is a partnership of organizations of­ fering homeless people medical services, ac­ cording to Executive Director Kate Bennett. The network helps about 7,000 patients per year, including about 1,200 dental patients, she says. “A person is homeless if they lack a fixed, permanent home,” Bennett says. “Someone living in an emergency shelter, transitional housing or living on the streets or if they lost their apartment or house and is doubling up with friends like a couch-surfing situation. We can continue to see a person up to one year after they’ve been housed.” The network has contracts with the Mobile Medical Clinic, the Center for Respite Care, the UC Department of Family Medicine and the Pike Street Clinic in Northern Kentucky to coordinate services for the homeless, Ben­ nett says. Volunteers paint the Nu-Blend Building, which now “Our physicians really care about the peo­ houses McMicken Dental Clinic and other health ple they see,” she says. “They call the patients organizations. Vinit Murthy. by their first names, they ask questions about what’s going on with their situations, and Last month volunteers from Crossroads Commu­ their general concern for the patients is really won­ nity Church in Oakley repainted the dental clinic derful for a population that is generally not looked and planted flowers as a part of their Go Cincinnati at and (is) ignored.” project – putting a smile on the building’s exterior. For more information on the McMicken Dental Clinic go to www.cincysmiles.org. Building Confidence in Leadership Avondale Youth Council uses push-ups and participation By Brendon mCCartney Contributing WritEr C ommunity councils are vehicles of em­ powerment for neighborhood residents but their influence can also extend beyond their localities. Judging by its April 29 meeting, that is the case with the Avondale Youth Council. The youth council operates under the wing of the Avondale Community Council, sharing a room at the Pride Center at 3520 Burnet Ave. Posters call for action from all ages, from Public Allies to the 2010 Census. But the space was clearly in the hands of the young that evening. Fulton O. Jefferson, Jr., membership chair of the community council and facilitator for the youth council, presided over the meeting. The guest speaker was Bill Madison. The subject of Madison’s speech was the role of emotional intelligence in leadership. In order to keep the attention of the restless youth (under­ standable given the nice weather), he employed a variety of tactics. Madison encouraged participa­ tion by asking questions and making those who answered stand and project their responses for all to hear. He also used anecdotes, including conflicts he observed between the kids before meetings, to support his points about the role of personal confi­ dence in managing one’s self. Yet the biggest lesson he gave was holding himself to the same standard by which the kids were held. Madison had missed his speaking appointment the week before because of a business trip. But as he had not informed the council, he was deemed un­ excused and subject to a penalty of 50 push-ups. The 71-year-old retired professor, looking all of 51, managed an impressive 26 push-ups before saying he would have to finish the rest later. But a member of the youth council volunteered to do the performance of The Wiz at Xavier University. the remaining 24 for him. After breezing through The youth council receives support from the the push-ups, he and Madison shared a strong Cincinnati Community Action Agency. Together, hug-and-shake. How many community councils they help kids find summer jobs through the Sum­ can boast of fomenting solidarity through public mer Youth Employment Program. Not only does speaking and punitive exercise – in the same meet­ this program help kids understand the responsi­ ing, no less? bilities of employment, but the youth council bars Throughout the meeting, the kids alternated students with failing grades from participating. between listening, responding to the speaker and The Avondale Youth Council is a sign of the com­ playfully jostling among themselves. At one point munity’s vitality in the face of local coverage that a clique had to be split up and a participant was tends to focus only on the latest homicide. By en­ forced to sit out. Still, the kids displayed a remark­ couraging youths to actively engage their neigh­ able level of care and participation, even though borhood through hard work and good deeds, the there was bound to be squirming after so many youth council is grooming those who will one day hours of sitting in school. take governing roles in the neighborhood. Even if After Madison concluded his speech, Jefferson they take root elsewhere, participants gain the so­ called the Avondale Youth Council’s board of trust­ cial skills to be confident leaders wherever they go. ees and committee chairs to the front. Kids who had been on the council for years were invested with limited power to help not only delegate but also understand the func­ tion of their positions. They talked among themselves as Jefferson then read out the schedule for upcoming meetings and events. The council has a full pro­ gram. Its calendar included activities for every weekday except Friday in the month of May. In addition to po­ etry readings and homework studies, Avondale Youth Council participates in a number of events such as the Flying Pig Marathon and The Avondale Youth Council is very active. Lauren Justice. �6 Column STREETVIBES June 1 - 14, 2010 One Thing Leads to Another Continued from page 3 about 20 minutes, skimming the wood-line parameter. The wooded hills are steep bluffs of a sizable hill that our house sits atop. We live on the ridge of the hill that descends in many directions, and my concern was that maybe Mojo had fallen or was stuck somewhere. I moved into one section of the woods that used to be a trail connecting the grassy field next to our house with the city park at the bot­ tom of the hill. There were never proper steps on this trail, but many people used it, espe­ cially the Hughes High School football team who would practice on the lower field. My sis­ ter and I and our friends used this trail all the time as kids. Now it’s overgrown and not much of a trail; you wouldn't know one was there if you hadn't seen it before. I took perhaps five steps into the wood line when I saw something odd on the old trail. It was a shirt that was sort of upright. The rea­ son it was upright was because something was wearing it. That something also was wearing jeans and New Balance sneakers. It had large, hulking shoulders and was slumped onto the trail. It appeared that it was close to sliding down the hill. It was facing away from me and seemed to be leaning a bit against a nearby tree. It wasn't moving. I looked over this thing and decided it looked an awful lot like a person. I noticed something near its head. At first I thought it was a long staff that was going through its head, but upon a few more seconds of observation, I deter­ mined that it was a necktie caught on a branch overhead. The other end was tied around his neck. This was what kept him from sliding down the hill along the old trail. The idea that I was looking at a dead person began to set in. When it did, for some reason I decided I should get a look at the person’s skin. For no reason was I going to get any closer. I was roughly 10 feet from it already but I could Shutter Speed see his hand. It was completely black. That didn’t make sense. Dead people don't turn black, do they? I decided it was still inconclu­ sive. I looked at his head. His scalp was gray, with wisps of black hair. At that point it seemed to me that this was either a corpse or a really elaborate hoax. I wanted to hold onto a pos­ sibility other than my actually finding a dead guy. I looked back at his shoes. One was curled in a very uncomfortable position. For what­ ever reason, that was what convinced me that this was a person who, by my inexpert eyes, appeared to have committed suicide in the nearby woods less than a hundred yards from our house. That’s when I realized it did indeed smell like something dead, and I got the hell out of there. I don’t know anything about who it was, how he died or how long he was there. I do know this: Both our neighbor, Bill, and I smelled something dead in that corner of the grassy field for the past week or so; I found the body mere feet away from that corner of the field. Many residents on that street have witnessed a small homeless contingent congregate in those woods, and I assume that this unfortu­ nate soul was part of that group. It was one of the strangest moments of my life. It was a quiet, private discovery. It was creepy but not traumatizing – I couldn't see his face. No matter how you spin it, though, it is sad. This man not only presumably killed himself, but no one came looking for him. He might have been homeless and was likely haunted by depression. If anything, I feel sorry for the poor guy. It took me, who was looking for something else entirely, to find him. Once I did, though, I continued searching for my dog. The way I figured it, Mojo could still be alive, and the guy in the woods wasn’t, so my priorities stayed true. I carried on through the rain and woods without finding anything else of any real interest. After a few more hours of nothing, I went home and called the cops to tell them what I found. The first cop there was a youngster. He didn’t like the idea of dead bodies. He also didn’t like the idea of my being too involved in a crime scene, so he was faced with the challenge of having me point out the body to him without my disturbing any evidence. We reached the tree line and he didn’t want to go in. I went in first, cleared away the branches for him and pointed the guy out. The young cop didn’t like it a bit but he soldiered over to the body. I said, “From what we’re looking at now, I determined that that’s a dead body.” He took two more steps, became visibly grossed out and said, “It is. You need to get out of here.” More police arrived. The male cops made the female cop stay with me to chat while they investigated the scene. We mostly talked about my missing dog, which I was eager to get back to finding, and she tried reassuring me with stories of a dog she found after missing it for two weeks. She took down my information and they “let me go home” even though we were all gathered on the driveway of my house. Lost and found The Poor People's Economic Human Rights Campaign marched across the Purple People Bridge May 20 en route from New Orleans to Detroit. The march is calling attention to the nation’s urgent need to end poverty and solve problems including homelessness and the lack of job opportunities, according to a spokesperson. Local sponsors include the Contact Center, Ohio Empowerment Coalition, Hip Hop Congress, Intercommunity Justice and Peace Center, New Prospect Baptist Church, St. Johns Unitarian Church, Masjid Ac Ashab OTR Islamic Center and the Over-the-Rhine Community Council. Jon Hughes/Photopresse. The next stop was the SPCA. This was a chaotic place of scared, loud mongrels essen­ tially screaming at you to take them home or back to their owners or anywhere else that’s not the dog pound. There were rows of cages of all sorts of dogs. I scanned the cages with a desperate anticipation, increasingly let down as the options dwindled to nothing. There was one dog there that looked a lot like Mojo. He was younger and smaller but had enough similarities to make me stop and make sure it weren’t him. It wasn’t. The guy working there was sympathetic and reassured me that they See another, p. 7 �STREETVIBES June 1 - 14, 2010 Film Review Barons Fight for Their Country 7 Robin Hood battles 12th century socialism By david HeitField Contributing WritEr “I think the core value of Robin Hood – the robbing from the rich to give to the poor – is the thing that’s gon­ na survive,” says Russell Crowe, producer and star of Robin Hood, in the History Channel's two-hour infomercial, The Real Robin Hood, released the same weekend as the movie. “We haven’t approached that core from a literal ‘money’ sense,” Crowe explains. “We’ve jumped off from there into a metaphor, and that’s why we’ve shifted the timeline and put it into the era of the Magna Carta. And our redress of the balance, our robbing from the rich, is their rights and privileges.” I can empathize with this approach. When I write a movie review, I try to steer away from a literal “review” sense, and instead jump off into a metaphor for how our popular culture has become so cynical and manipulative that the defining trait of our post-industrial state is self-delusion. We like meeting new friends, travel and keeping our heads firmly up our collective ass. Hence, we don't even have a homeless problem because, as the popular mayor of Colorado Springs has explained, many people simply prefer to live homeless – and if that speaks to their mental illness, well, they’re probably happier, too. And that’s my rationalization for writing this bullshit in Streetvibes. But I digress. As does Mr. Crowe in Robin Hood: “What Ridley (Scott, the director) and I sought to do was reca­ librate the whole story.” I woulda chosen the word “bas­ tardize,” but whatever. This “prequel” sets Robin Hood as returning from the Third Crusade (the time is a little off, but there are economic principles at stake here, dam­ mit), a world-weary warrior who doesn’t define “greed” as an individual moral failing, but as an act of the evil state, through taxation. See, because of the Crusades and other battles, when King John takes the throne after Richard the Lionheart’s death, he inherits a bankrupt empire, and so he wants to raise taxes. It turns out his best bud, Godfrey, is a traitor who is friends with the French (shoulda asked to see his birth certificate, John!). The French, of course, love higher taxes, and so Godfrey not only encourages John, but starts So when Crowe delivers what passes for a dramatic soliloquy nowadays, screaming for “liberty,” it doesn’t sound like a rallying cry, but one of those vague generalities used in horoscopes to sucker the credulous into believing they have a unique and defining trait. If you’re an Aquarius, you believe in freedom. If you’re a Libra, you believe in justice. looting English noblemen (with French sol­ diers) to collect more taxes and burn stuff down. The French figure the taxation scheme will de­ moralize the English and then the French can invade and easily defeat the taxed-out English. What’s truly amazing about the movie – with its large budget, big-name director and actors, historical background, battle scenes and myth­ ological underpinnings – is just how much of a bore all 2.5 hours of it is. There is no drama, no humor, no romance. Even the big battle scene (outside of the massive CGI crossbow launch, which is pretty cool) at the end feels kinda pointless. Spoiler alert! The tax-loving French retreat. Sure didn’t see that coming. Feudal fries for everyone! Much of Robin Hood just feels so false and manipulative, besides the premise: Crowe’s bare 21st-century chest; warriors with closely shaven Bruce Willis heads and fab facial hair; Maid Marian (Cate Blanchett) as a post-femi­ nist landlord who shows up to battle the French at the end (keep in mind that Clause 54 of the vaunted Magna Carta said no man could be convicted based on the testimony of a woman unless her husband was dead). Crowe plays Robin Longstride – Robin of the Hood, you see – a yeoman whose father was killed when he was 6. Turns out his father, a stonecutter, had worked on an early version of the Magna Carta, a sort of Tea Party manifesto that spelled out the inalienable rights of the landed gentry. And then somehow, probably because of his Superman/Batman/Freudian tragic father figure roots, he becomes spokesperson for the noblemen of the time, even though Robin, like many yeomen, owned no land himself. No irony is intended here; it’s just pure piss-poor storytelling. So when Crowe delivers what passes for a dramatic so­ liloquy nowadays, screaming for “liberty,” it doesn’t sound like a rallying cry, but one of those vague generalities used in horoscopes to sucker the credulous into believing they have a unique and defining trait. If you’re an Aquarius, you believe in freedom. If you’re a Libra, you believe in justice. If you're a Nobleman, you believe in liberty. You’re gen­ erous to a fault but hate taxes. You generally like people, but will kill them if necessary. You believe in the inherent individual dignity of the homeless and mentally ill to re­ main that way. One Thing Leads to Another Continued from page 6 get new dogs everyday and that it’s important to keep coming back. I felt my last real hope had gone and my sadness soaked all the way to my bones. I had officially let him down and now he was truly lost. Not seeing him again was a possibility hur­ tling toward the forefront. I started emotion­ I took perhaps five steps ally fragmenting and a deep regret began to into the wood line when build within my chest. When I returned, more cops were there to I saw something odd on the old trail. It was talk with me. They wanted to know if I knew a shirt that was sort of the dead man or recognized him or moved him. They even asked if I saw any identifica­ upright. The reason it was upright was because tion on him. It was a series of head shakes and something was wearing no’s. My friends, Elliott and Jen, came over to it. That something also was wearing jeans and help me look for Mojo. While I dealt with the New Balance sneakers. homicide detectives and the rest of the Police Circus, Elliott and Jen made “Lost Dog” post­ … It wasn't moving. ers. After answering just a few more questions from the detectives, I caught up with the post­ er-making duo and admired their work (it was Jen’s work, really). They made flyers to put on cars, posters to put on lampposts and cardboard signs for busy intersections. We posted maybe six posters around two intersections when I got the call. “Hi, I just saw the sign for your missing dog,” said a college-aged fe­ male voice. “Yes?” I said. “I found him. I have him. He's at my apartment.” At those words, a thousand lashes were removed from my back. I thanked the woman as clearly as my lips would allow and, for the first time in my life, had a happy cry. Later that day I leashed my healthy, happy dog once more and brought him back home. I gave the girl 20 bucks for her trouble and talked with Mojo the whole trip back. He’s an old boy, 10 and a half, and I got him when he was only six weeks old. To have lost him would have gone against all logic, belief and superstition that dictates the universe in my head. Once I knew he was beyond my help, long before I found any dead bodies, I put all my faith in human­ No dog has ever ity – and it worked. People saved my dog. Not me, nor played harder the institution of the SPCA, nor Mojo himself. It was a in this field than person who cared: a stranger. Mojo. Chasing the I have ever so slowly become a person who be­ tennis ball is as lieves that things happen for a reason, and while I much his job as trudged through muddy hillsides and pouring rain tackling people is with sizable blisters looking for my aged and arthritic for Ray Lewis. It’s lost dog, I questioned that belief to its fullest extent. no-nonsense and I never really believed that any superstition played a visceral. You would part in Mojo’s disappearance, as coincidental as all of be impressed. that may have been, and so it came down to finding a purpose to his disappearing to prevent me from giv­ ing up hope. It still didn't make sense until I got Mojo back: Mojo ran off to make me look for him but it made me find the dead guy instead. And look at the nice, neat happy ending we have all tied up into a bow. I have my dog, who spent his only night away - a stormy night – comfortably chill­ ing with some young woman and her puppy in a Clifton apartment, I found a deceased human being who might have gone a lot longer with­ out being found and now doesn’t have to haunt the nearby woods, and the girl got 20 bucks. Everybody wins. But in different ways. �8 STREETVIBES June 1 - 14, 2010 Film Review How Does Hollywood Do Poverty? Rewarding stereotypes and preserving myths By JonatHon e. Stone Contributing WritEr I n the past two years, films like Slumdog Millionaire and the Blind Side have attempted to tell stories featuring the poor, and both gar­ nered several major awards. In fact, both movies totaled 12 Academy Award nominations, winning 10. Both movies appealed to audiences as “feel good” stories, with Slumdog Millionaire centering on a young Indian man, orphaned due to a reli­ gious riot, who happens to make it on Who Wants to be a Millionaire. He experiences the improbable answers to each question asked on the game show. In The Blind Side, based on the real life story of Mi­ chael Oher, an African-American teenager who has been shuffled in and out of foster homes is finally adopted into a white, upper-middle-class family. Due to his size and athletic ability, he finds his way onto the football field and is drafted by the Balti­ more Ravens in 2009. On the outside, both movies seem harmless; but to those in developing and poor areas of the world. upon further examination, the depiction of the poor The movie further celebrates the lack of choices and the way Hollywood tends to manipulate stories these characters have, placing judgment on the like these should give the audience concern. fates of both Jamal and Salim. This picture belittles Slumdog Millionaire glosses the Indian people who, in their over the plight of not only the poverty, huddle around small three main characters – Jamal, On the outside, both television sets to see one of their Salim and Latika – but also the movies seem harmless; but ‘own’ win a million dollars, as if, fact much of India’s poverty de- upon further examination, because one of their own can get rives from its recent history of so lucky, these untold millions of the depiction of the poor British colonialism and a capital“slumdogs” are instantly empowand the way Hollywood ist economy pushed on it by west- tends to manipulate stories ered to do the same in some alterern nations. like these should give the native capitalist universe. These characters, along with In The Blind Side, Michael Oher audience concern. millions of other Indians, suffer is subjected to poverty and orfrom the western lifestyles pushed phaned at a young age as well, but onto them at the expense of centuries of cultural his history fits within the southern white paternalisand national development. Brothers Jamal and tic storyline that has been pushed since the days of Salim are orphaned early in life and forced into an enslavement. Before and after the Civil War, white exploitive orphanage, then escape into a lifestyle southern apologists attempted to depict slavery as of travelling on top of trains, selling goods, picking a benign practice that “civilized” black people, dispockets, working as dishwashers and pretending to avowing the cruelty of the institution and pitching be tour guides at the Taj Mahal. slavery as a service to society. The story seems to celebrate both Jamal’s and The Touhy family, led by Leigh Ann – a role that Salim’s precarious economic position, where Jamal won Sandra Bullock the 2010 Academy Award for serves tea in a call center (employment sent over- best actress – is the most guilty of remaking a beseas, where labor is cheaper) and Salim chooses a nevolent relationship between a white family “taklife of crime, one of the only labor choices available ing in” a poor black male. Oher’s character through- out the film continually takes a back seat to Bullock as she makes life choices for him. The Touhy family makes an extraordinary effort to keep Oher away from the black community, especially with a scene in which Oher fights off three members of his old neighborhood because they made “sexually sug­ gestive” comments about Leigh Ann. The Touhy family unethically pushes Oher toward the University of Mississippi, bringing upon them an NCAA inquiry as well as a tutor who lies to Oher about the University of Tennessee. The movie expects the audience to accept that Oher is an ignorant, adrift, good-hearted young man who is just in need of white people to tell him what to do in life because he doesn’t have the mental capac­ ity. This worn-out stereotype is sadly celebrated in The Blind Side, with few media critics pointing out its racist premise – or Bullock’s recent adoption of a black male in the wake of her ex-husband’s much publicized racist beliefs. Both of these movies share a disdain for the poor and orphaned that should appall audiences. As long as audiences blindly cheer and award these types of movies, labeling them “feel good” stories with little regard for the destructive forces of capi­ talism and racism, the media will continue to push ignorance. Waiting at Los Angeles International Airport By Anne Skove �STREETVIBES June 1 - 14, 2010 Out in the Open 9 �10 STREETVIBES June 1 - 14, 2010 Vendor Voice CanYou See Me Now? Over-the-Rhine mourns her losses By lee mCCoy StrEEtvibES vEndor I was once beautiful. Now I am fading away. I used to house low-income, middle-income – yes, I used to house the squatter who used my empty buildings. This is my home but not for long. Can you see me now? The Cincin­ nati Center City Development Corp. (3CDC) has bought all my property now. It’s all about condos and lofts. But what about all my children that I have hosted many, many years? I don’t think you have them in mind. Let’s take a stroll down Race Street between 14th and Liberty streets, Lee McCoy has been selling Streetvibes for almost a year. Lynne Ausman. where my pimp buddy Denhart Re­ alty used to reign king. Now there is only one build­ jor facelift it is getting. You can believe Cincinnati’s And what about my wonderful sister, Mary ing holding onto life. Oh, did I mention 3CDC has finest will step up even more to serve and protect. Magdalene House? Do you know her? Since March taken over the corner of Race and 15th? I remember when Washington Park used to host 25, 1988, she has served my children to give them a Can you see me now? Out of all the places in my many churches to feed my children. Now the city place to shower, get a clean set of clothes and wash Queen City, the School for the Creative and Per­ says no because it costs the city so much to clean their dirty clothes. Free – yes, I said “free.” Can you forming Arts has moved in, and they have made the up. Now my churches have to feed my children on imagine their water bill? But the developer on Main Drop Inn Center jump through so many hoops just the sidewalks of Washington Park. You can’t stop Street wants to close my sister down. Where will my so they can be a friendly neighbor. God’s work. children go to keep their tails clean? Can you see me now? I know Buddy Gray is turn­ Can you see me now? With the facelift around Mu­ Can you see me now? ing over in his grave. This is not what his dream was sic Hall, the School for the Creative and Performing I used to be Over-the-Rhine. I am quite sure they about. Arts, look out, for the new sheriff has moved into are already changing my name. Oh, well. I wonder how many tickets the police have writ­ your neighborhood. They might just fence in my Can you see me now? ten in Washington Park now, with the so-called ma- kids in Washington Park. (Home on the range.) Have something on your mind? Do you agree or disagree with an article? Let us know: 117 E. 12th Street 1 Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 1 streetvibes2@yahoo.com 1 �STREETVIBES June 1 - 14, 2010 11 Music The Fedora That Changed a Life Interview with Mia Carruthers of the The Retros By ariana SHaHandeH Contributing WritEr M ia Carruthers founded the Cincinnati band, The Retros, with brother Alex Carruthers and friends Seth Huff, Stevan Wright and Aaron Breadon, who recently left the band. She was also a leading character in season one of MTV’s Taking the Stage, set in the Cincinnati School for the Creative and Performing Arts. Mia Carruthers spoke with Streetvibes about lyricism, Lady Gaga and the story of how a fedora and stranger in an airport, changed her life. What’s the most vulnerable lyric you’ve ever written? It would have to be something from “Nothing to Believe In.” That entire song was just accepting something that I didn’t want to for a long time and was afraid to for a long time. What was the condition of your faith in humanity when you were writing that song? It’s less about faith in humanity, more about a lack of faith in … a God? Or … a higher power? Or something I’m sup­ posed to be afraid of that’s beyond me? For me, that’s what I was talking about. I was talking about religion. I was talking about how I’ve never felt like a true believer and that was hard for me because I want to try to be a good person. That was the confusion for me. It was, “Oh if I don’t believe in God then I’m not a good person.” To so many people out there, that makes me a bad person in their eyes. And I’m just trying to do what’s right. Not what's accepted. Just what’s right. So there was a period of time when what other people Mia Carruthers of The Retros. thought was affecting you a great deal. Oh, every moment. Every moment I lived in someone else's there’s something great, like passion, that is so pure and so wonderful, it’s sad head. It’s a horrible way to live. No one should live like that. that there has to be something equally as dark. What changed? So do you ever think that, if you want to pursue something, if you want to I was in the Dayton Airport, traveling for a gig with The Retros. We played a pursue a passion, you have to pursue it moderately and keep it checked? cancer benefit at UNC. But I had to do something in the city the day before we No. I think you say, “Fuck it” to that, and you go after it just as hard anyway. were supposed to leave so I had a flight coming a day later, meeting the band That’s what you have to do. When you’re in that position, when you’re that pas­ there. I was going through security, getting all my stuff. I had a fedora – put my sionate, there isn’t a choice. There’s no other choice; you’ve never had choices. fedora back on. There’s been that and nothing else. Tunnel vision. That’s how I am with music This guy comes up to me and he’s like, “That hat is the most comfortable ac­ – it’s (music) and nothing else. cessory I’ve ever seen.” And I immediately just say, “Thank you,” got a coffee, Even if I woke up every day knowing that there would be horrible things that walked to my gate, popped in my headphones. He comes up to me again. Only happened if I reached my goal, I would still go after it just as hard. Because I this time he has something behind his back. He pulls out a book. He’s like, “If have to. you have room in your life for this, then it’s yours to keep.” And he handed me You recently experienced that flip side, when you had to make a personal this book, and it’s by Eckhart Tolle, called The Power of Now, A Guide to Spiri- sacrifice and ask a member of the band, and close friend, to leave for profestual Enlightenment. sional reasons. In any other circumstance, if I had looked at that book, I would be like, “This It’s confusing sometimes. Before that I would think, “Music is so great. How is complete bullshit. I’m not even going to read this.” I might’ve read it, but I come there’s so much pain that comes about because of this goal or this dream wouldn’t have believed in it. But because this stranger sought me out randomly, I have?” I couldn’t believe anything would be bad surrounding it because it is handed me this book and said that the way he said it, I had to pay attention. so good and so pure to me. But that’s how it is. I read (during) the flight. I got to my connection in D.C. I had read like half There’s ups and downs with any profession. Why should music be any dif­ of it, and I was already starting to internalize it. I get off and I have 20 minutes. ferent? Just because it’s more glamorous to people, because it’s pushed to the I’m running to my next flight, and when I get to the gate the (attendant) is clos­ forefront of more people’s minds? Doesn’t make it any different. ing the door: “The flight’s full.” The old Mia, would’ve been livid. I would’ve Is music glamorous to you? just freaked out thinking, “I’m not going to get to the gig on time. Everything is (Laughing) No, music is anti-glamorous! Music is roll outta bed, practice going to go wrong.” with no makeup on, all gross in cut-off jean shorts and sweaty boys. Music to But I was just like, “OK.” And I called my dad, completely calm. I ended up me is – is no different to me than breathing. Or walking. Or running Or clap­ having to stay in the airport in D.C. for 10 hours. I read the entire book, crying ping. most of the time. Basically I was in a state of meditation for 10 hours. For the Music for me has always been the guarantee of being myself. Writing a song: first time I wasn’t living in anyone else's head. I was living in my head. I can’t lie in songs, I can’t have a bad hair day in songs, I can’t do my makeup a My dad was just crying. He looked at me and just cried. He’s like, “My little certain way. That’s who I am: at the core of me, when I’m alone and vulnerable. girl is back.” So if anyone would want to get to know the real me, all they have to do is listen What’s the most surprising lyric you’ve written? to a record. Well, the song is called “Moon” and it’s literally just about a war on the moon that we won. That’s how it starts out. So we’re basically drinking beers around a fire because we just won the war and saved the moon. And that’s what the first lyric is: “We saved the moon.” (Crosstalk about favorite artists) I absolutely adore Lady Gaga. Now, you seem like a very logical person. I would love to hear an articulate argument in support of her as serious artist. It feels like she wakes up every day trying to think of the most outrageous thing she can do. That’s really who she is. I know in your mind you wanna say, “That’s (not) aFFordaBle rateS genuine. That has to be contrived because it’s something I’ve never seen before. But honestly, Gaga is Gaga. I think that’s who she is. many SizeS (full page, 1/2 page, 1/4 page, 1/8 page) All that aside, what I love about her is the music that she writes. I’m not just talking about the hits. I’m talking about the rest of her album. There were a few BlaCk & WHite and Color availaBle songs that just moved me, (such as) “Speechless,” the song she performed with Elton John. diSCountS For nonproFitS What moved you about that song? A lot of references to the stereotypical bad boy: “With your Johnny Walker Contact Lynne at 513-421-7803 ext. 11 eyes” and “Your tight jeans with the long hair and your cigarette-stained lies.” or lynneausman@cincihomeless.org I love it. I love that she just dates these bad rocker guys, which she talks about in interviews and then obviously things go wrong. And then she writes these for more information. awesome songs. I like her lyrics; they’re really interesting. Why is there so much pain, so much devastation in dream-chasing? There’s so much collateral damage. Because everything has to be equal, equal parts of bad and good. So when etvibes? tre nS rested in Advert Inte isin gi �12 Short Story STREETVIBES June 1 - 14, 2010 We, the Jury My adventures in the Hamilton County justice system By miCHael FanninG Contributing WritEr Throughout the whole selection process the court stenographer is sitting at her machine, but reads a Janet Evanovitch novel instead of typing anything. Part II: Trial Proper The defendant stares at the courtroom ceiling as if admiring the plaster work. He looks totally at ease. ere’s how it goes down. We find ourselves in a courtroom that The jury is finally selected. There are eight of us, with two substitutes. looks like anything you’ve seen on Matlock or Perry Mason. The judge says that, due to the late hour, we will stop now and continue The judge sits behind a desk that looks like a decommis­ tomorrow. He asks if any of us have any special needs. Fat Man, whose sioned wooden battleship. He is a stern looking fellow with thin black presence I hadn’t noticed until now, raises her hand. I don’t see Little hair and glasses – not the Boy anywhere and can type I’d try to lie to. only assume Fat Man ate We file into the jurors’ her. box. Everyone else is al­ “I got a torn ACL,” she ready present: attorneys, croaks. “I’m gonna need defendant, witnesses, an aisle seat so’s I can even law students observ­ stick my leg out.” ing from the back rows. “I’m sure that won’t The judge informs us be a problem,” the judge that this is a DUI case, and reassures her. “We can the attorneys will present make sure you are on the evidence to attempt to end or –” prove or disprove that the “If it locks up on me,” defendant was impaired she continues, “I won’t be by alcohol while driving. able to walk. Last month He says we will now begin I saw Benjamin Button, the jury selection process. longest movie I ever saw The attorneys for the de­ in my life. Couldn’t walk fense and the prosecution outta the theater. They will ask us questions and, had to wheel me out based on our answers, we in the manager’s desk will be excused or kept chair.” on for the duration of the I massage the bridge trial. of my nose as she wraps I wasn’t aware there up her tale. could be a jury trial for a Like Princess Leia step­ DUI case. The defendant, Fat Man, the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima. ping off the Millennium a suave, 40-something, Falcon into the belly of grey-haired guy with nice the space worm, I have a clothes, has a slick, Aldous Huxley look about him. I guess he is a psy­ bad feeling about this. chiatrist and imagine him with an Austrian accent. We will never hear his voice. Enter the Candy Man How exactly does one contest a DUI? Don’t you have to blow into one of those things? I guess we will find out soon enough. One thing is for The trial begins the next morning with the testimony of the police of­ sure, I think to myself: A case like this can’t last too long, can it? ficer who pulled over the defendant. He is in full uniform, and I wonder “A case like this usually lasts from two to five days,” the judge says. how often they have to do this stuff. He seems to be in close conten­ I hear the sound of 20 jaws dropping. tion with the defendant as far as who is the most disinterested in the The lawyers begin to question us. proceedings. It is immediately apparent these questions are to gauge our preju­ “I could smell alcohol on the breath of Mr. ___ and asked if he’d been dices, if any, toward drinking and those who partake. drinking,” he says. I am asked by the prosecutor, a tall African-American woman, if I “Then what did you do?” the prosecutor says. drink alcohol. “I asked him to step out of the vehicle and approach the front of my “Yes.” squad car so that I could test him for alcohol impairment.” I am asked if I’ve experienced the intoxicating effect of alcohol. A TV is pushed in front of the jury box. We are told we will now watch “Yes,” I respond, with an energetic nodding of the head that probably the police-cruiser video of the sobriety test. The video that follows can isn’t necessary. only be compared to a Laurel and Hardy movie. It shows the policeman Similar questions are asked around the jury box until finally a hand­ testing the coordination of a man who is plastered, plain and simple. some middle-aged woman reveals that she lost her only daughter in On the screen, the defendant is instructed to walk in a straight line an automobile accident. The defense attorney is asking the questions. for 10 paces, turn and come back. As he attempts to do this, it looks as He is young, handsome and carries himself as if, deep down, he knows if there are invisible people pushing and pulling him from all sides. He everyone in the world is on his side in any endeavor he wishes to take nearly falls on his face twice. Next the police officer tells the defendant up, including this one. to raise his arms at his sides and look up. “I’m sorry Miss … Taylor. I can’t imagine what it’s like to suffer a loss “Touch your nose with your left hand,” the officer says. like that.” The defendant touches his nose with his right hand. “No, you can’t.” “The other hand,” the policeman says. “But I have to ask,” he continues, looking at his notes, “do you think “Oh! Ha, ha, ha, ha,” the defendant chuckles. that tragedy will unfairly influence your decision making in this trial?” As he touches his nose with the correct hand, his entire upper body “My daughter was killed by another 16-year-old driver. Alcohol was tilts and sways from side to side as if the shoulder of the highway were not involved. It was lack of experience.” a clipper ship caught in a squall. “I understand that alcohol was not involved,” he goes on, “but do “OK,” the cop says. you still think it could unfairly influence your decision-making in this As he handcuffs the driver, the man mutters something unintelli­ case?” gible. “No, I do not,” she says. “Yes, you’re under arrest,” the policeman says. “Jesus,” I think, “couldn’t this case have been about anything else? End of video. Rape, murder, livestock pornography, mail fraud?” I would have en­ The prosecutor asks the police officer if, in his opinion, the defen­ dured anything to spare this poor woman from discussing her dead dant had been driving under the influence of alcohol. daughter with a room full of strangers. “Yes,” he says. She is cool and collected through the questioning, and I admire her The defense attorney approaches the stand. strength. “Officer, did you administer a breathalyzer test at the time of the ar­ She is dismissed from the trial. rest?” A young man in hip-hop clothes is asked if he has ever drunk alco­ “No, he was given the breathalyzer at the station approximately 30 hol. He is slouched in his chair as if the whole jury box is his own ’78 minutes after the arrest.” Crown Vic. “What were the results of that test?” “No,” he says. “He tested within the legal limit,” the policeman says. No one believes him, and he is excused. The defense attorney then tells us that the results of this test, plus the H See Jury, P. 13 �STREETVIBES June 1 - 14, 2010 Short Story We, the Jury Continued from page 12 13 Back to trial. Several more questions are asked of the policeman, but nothing new is revealed. Soon the windows of the courtroom reveal the sun is beginning to set, and before long the judge ends the trial for the day. He reminds us, as we go, not to discuss the case with anyone. I can’t imagine who would want to hear about it. late hour of the arrest, (about 1 a.m.) as well as the fact that he might not be a very coordinated guy all came into play during the coordina­ tion test on the side of the road. I admit this could be true, and I hope we will be able to watch the video again. Little do I know that, by trial’s end, I will have seen the ar­ ‘Unsullied and clear’ rest video more times than I’ve seen Dances with Wolves. The judge announces that we’ll take a break. The second day starts with the testimony of a toxicologist who also “We’ll give you a chance to watch the video again,” he says. “Discuss happens to be an attorney. He has been hired by the defendant to tes­ it, and if we have time, we’ll continue with more testimony.” tify on his behalf. The toxicologist is a short, grey-haired man in his fif­ We stand as the judge disappears through a door behind his desk. As ties who wears thick glasses that make his eyeballs look huge. He seems we file out of the jury box, we hear, “Hey, Paul!” Someone hurls a candy never to blink and possesses a rodent-like staring quality. He instantly bar at a courtroom guard. The guard easily catches it from apparent gives me the creeps. years of experience. It is the bailiff who has lobbed the candy bar – a This toxicologist had apparently, at the outset of the trial, given tes­ heavyset, jolly guy we jurors will soon come to know as “The Candy timony regarding this case that we jurors were not privy to. The court Man.” was now going to share this information We enter a tiny space just off of the with us. courtroom. It is the kind of setting that The judge says that, due to the late hour, we will “Mr. _______,” the defense asks him, would send anyone with claustrophobia stop now and continue tomorrow. He asks if any “would the results of the blood-alcohol into a frenzy. It has an ugly drop ceiling of us have any special needs. Fat Man, whose test, administered at the police station, and is painted a pale yellow. We sit facing presence I hadn’t noticed until now, raises her lead you to believe that the defendant one another around a circular table. was incapable of operating an automo­ hand. I don’t see Little Boy anywhere and can “Don’t give us much room, do they?” bile on that evening?” only assume that Fat Man ate her. Fat Man says. “I wonder how long we’re “I believe,” says the toxicologist, “that it gonna go on. I can’t sit for any length of was unlikely he was impaired.” time.” This statement was evidently not congruent with his prior testimony “Well, I think we should all introduce ourselves,” says a neat, middle- and pisses the judge off something fierce. aged woman with short hair and pearl earrings. “Now wait a minute!” the judge blasts, “that is not what you said in We look at one another and silently agree this is a good idea. There your statement. You’re contradicting yourself!” are many walks of life represented. One man modifies Hummers for “No, I’m not!” the toxicologist says, throwing up his hands in a de­ the Army. There are salespeople, stay-at-home moms and a young girl fensive pose. with terrible acne who works on a horse farm. And then, of course, The judge seems so upset that I’m half expecting the gavel to go right there is Fat Man. Another woman in the room is wearing a jacket with a into the middle of the toxicologist’s forehead. I have the impression fur-lined collar that someone compliments. Fat Man, sitting next to the that the judge had dealt with this toxicologist several times before and woman with the jacket, says, “My sister once got bitten by a ferret and had developed a hell of a dislike for him. had to get shots in her stomach for six months.” The defendant stares at the ceiling and looks very sleepy. There is, of course, no response to this, and all eyes stare at the center “What I said in my statement was …” the toxicologist continues, try­ of the table. Fat Man’s only prerequisite for throwing out an anecdote is ing to talk his way out of his little deviation, but the judge is having that it have nothing to do with the subject at hand. none of it. “Later my younger sister Norma got piles real bad and couldn’t drink “No! What you said in your statement was …” her Sanka for a year.” The judge then reads from notes in front of him. I do not catch his The door to our tiny little room bursts open as if kicked, and the last several comments because something extraordinary has just hap­ bailiff appears. He dumps a bag of candy across our little round table. pened in the courtroom. From out of the far side of the judge’s desk, Tootsie Rolls and miniature Chick-o-Sticks slide everywhere and drop creeping from behind the cowering toxicologist’s witness box, steps a into our laps. We must have been distracted from our hunger, for we gigantic black German shepherd. As the judge continues his diatribe, descend on the candy like so many falcons to field mice. The bailiff ad­ and the toxicologist squirms in his seat, the dog slowly walks in front of mires his work and rests an elbow high up on the doorframe. the judge’s desk towards the jurors’ box, sits and stares at us. “Everybody havin’ fun?” he asks. “You are bordering on contempt!” the judge booms, as I stare into We all silently nod, chewing our Chick-o-Sticks. the eyes of the giant dog. I wonder if I’m having a stroke or if it’s really We chat with him for a while as he rolls in the TV so we can watch the there. Is security this tight now in official buildings that they need large police tape again. aggressive dogs in the room? I imagine the defense attorney yelling, “What’s the craziest thing you ever saw happen in the courtroom?” I “Objection....AAAAAAAARG!!” as the dog leaps for his throat. ask the bailiff. The toxicologist gets up and leaves the witness box, and I have no He thinks for moment. idea how it panned out. The dog is still sitting at the edge of the judge’s “There was a guy once who got a 30-day sentence for something – I desk, staring at us. can’t remember what – and then he threatened to kill the judge for lock­ The judge says that this is the last of the testimony and we, the jury, ing him up. He went from one month to 10 years in the blink of an eye. will now try to come to a verdict. Some people are just stupid,” he says. We file back into our little room and sit in silence for a moment. No “My sister once had a warrant on her,” Fat Man adds. “She went to one says anything about the dog, and my fear of a stroke becomes more jury duty for one day, and then quit goin’. Stupid bitch.” pronounced. “Yep,” the bailiff says, “we need you here.” “I think we should start by reading the Juror’s Creed,” says Neat The judge sticks his head in the room. Lady. “I’d like you to watch the police tape again,” he says, “and then write I turn and look at the wall behind me, and in a big cheap frame is down any questions you have for the arresting officer. I’ll read them, something that looks like the Declaration of Independence. Neat Lady and anything I think should be brought up in court I’ll ask him for a reads: clarification.” • I am a juror. We watch the tape a second time. Any doubt put into my head by • I am a seeker after the truth. the defense attorney is quickly brushed aside as I again watch the de­ • I must listen carefully and with concentration to all of the evi­ fendant stagger all over the shoulder of the highway. Short of vomiting dence. into the policeman’s hat, he couldn’t have acted more intoxicated. It is • I must heed and follow the instruction of the court. hilarious, simply hilarious. • I must respectfully and attentively follow the arguments of the I stifle any urge to snicker, remembering this man is in big trouble. He lawyers, dispassionately seeking to find and follow the silver could receive jail time, lose his license, not to mention a lot of money. thread of truth through their conflicting assertions. “HAAA, HA, HA, HA, HAAAA!,” Fat Man brays. “He’s sauced!” • I must lay aside all bias and prejudice. We write our questions for the policeman. I can’t really think of any­ • I must be led by my intelligence and not by my emotions. thing to ask, except “How long do these things usually go on?” and • In fine, I must apply the golden rule by putting myself impar­ “Would your Taser work on someone like Fat Man?” tially in the place of the plaintiff and of the defendant. “Does anyone want to take a preliminary vote?” asks the Hummer • My verdict must do justice, for what is just is “true and righ­ builder. teous and altogether.” And when my term of jury service is We all say OK. The vote is eight to two for guilty. ended, I must leave with my citizenship unsullied and my con­ The two “not guilty” votes come from a man named Jeff, who – it science clear. came out in the selection process – had a DUI not long ago. The other “Where’s the john?” Fat Man asks. “I wanna make sure my pants are is a man named Ron who is the living double of W.C. Fields. He has a unsullied and clear first.” bulbous red nose that looks like a miniature globe of the Martian land­ All eyes close, and a nearly imperceptible shudder passes through scape. They both say that the police cruiser tape is “inconclusive.” the room. See Jury, P. 14 �14 STREETVIBES June 1 - 14, 2010 Short Story We, the Jury Continued from page 13 Silver thread of truth my ass, I think. What about that German shep­ herd? We watch the police-cruiser tape again and again and again. Each time the man in the video swoons and staggers all over the place. No matter how many times I see it, I still wait for the man to fall face-first onto the highway and eat a mouthful of gravel. He never does fall, but it really doesn’t matter. Not to most of us anyway. Afterward, Hummer Builder asks if anyone would like to take anoth­ er vote. It is still eight to two – guilty. We all sit in an awkward silence for a few moments, not sure how to proceed. Finally, Hummer Builder addresses the two “not guiltys.” “Well, with the minority opinion, could you tell us why you think he’s not guilty?” Ron (the W.C. Fields lookalike) looks to Jeff (the recent DUI) to speak on their behalf. This is fine because Jeff, as it turns out, has all the an­ swers. “I simply can’t find the man guilty based on this tape,” Jeff responds, with more than a hint of spite. The rest of us wonder which video he is referring to, because he sure as hell can’t mean the one in the VCR. “You do remember,” Neat Lady says, with an admittedly condescend­ ing tone, “that we are judging whether or not we think he is impaired, and not on the breathalyzer test results alone.” “Yes, yes, I know that,” Jeff says. “When I watch this video, I can’t tell if he’s drunk or not.” “You can tell us,” I want to say in Leslie Nielsen’s voice. “We’re ju­ rors.” “We can’t know for certain if he is, I’ll grant you that,” Hummer Build­ er says, “but I think he’s showing obvious signs of being under the influ­ ence of alcohol.” “He could be tired,” Jeff says. “He could be clumsy. And when it fi­ nally comes down to it, I’m still just guessing. I do not know for certain if he is truly intoxicated.” This goes on for six more hours. “This is worse than Benjamin Button,” says Fat Man. “I’m sure we’ll find something to wheel you out on,” says Neat Lady. After so much time, and another 10 viewings of the arrest video, we are all at our breaking point. I’m chewing on my twelfth Chick-o-Stick of the day, courtesy again of the bailiff. “OK,” Neat Lady asks Jeff and Ron, “after viewing the police video so many times, am I to assume you are only more dead-set in your ver­ dict?” “Absolutely,” says Jeff. He takes a deep breath through his nose as he looks up at the ceiling. “I think we all need to take a big step back here, folks. It’s easy, especially at this late hour, to go with the crowd and make quick decisions on matters upon which we have no proof. All we know for a fact is that the defendant took a breathalyzer test and passed it. Other than that we are only speculating.” “The guy on that video is falling down drunk,” I say. “Falling down drunk,” Jeff says, scowling at the center of the table. “OK, he’s staggering and he’s stumbling drunk. How’s that?” The room snickers as the judge pokes his head into the room. “I appreciate the time you are taking making a careful decision,” he says. “I had some paperwork regarding the testing at the police station and the arrest that may clarify some issues for you. There is really no new information in it, however, that hasn’t already been brought up.” He takes his leave, having left a stack of papers, and thanks us again for making a careful verdict. Hummer Builder gives the paperwork a cursory look. I wonder what Jeff blew on his own breathalyzer a few months back and, if he passed it, how he was convicted. I have the question on the tip of my tongue when Hummer Builder speaks up. “Good lord,” he says, looking at the paperwork. We all stop chewing our candy for a second. “I don’t think we’re supposed to have some of this,” he says. “What do you mean?” I ask. “This paper here mentions a prior arrest for a DUI less than a year ago for the defendant. At the bottom of this other page it says that, when he was pulled over this time, he was going over 90 miles per hour.” We sit in stunned silence. What if, because they gave us the wrong papers, they declare a mistrial after all this time? “We’ll have to tell the judge right away,” Jeff says. Despite my dread of a mistrial I have to agree. It wouldn’t be fair to consider evidence that hasn’t been allowed, but how can I put the new information out of my mind? The defendant had another DUI less than a year ago. And before this recent arrest, despite his condition, was driving at an incredible rate of speed. “Jesus,” I think, “is he crazy?” “He ain’t got the sense of a goddam Dalmatian,” says Fat Man, speak­ ing for eight out of 10 of us. We inform the judge and, within a half hour, he types up a paper instructing us to ignore any information in the paperwork that was not already introduced as evidence in the trial. Of course, I couldn’t do this if I tried. I can’t help but feel vindicated for all of my guilty votes, not to mention going up against the “nots.” This might very well be unfair, having seen the new papers, but I don’t give a shit. This is how people are killed by drunk drivers. I would not have wanted to be anywhere near the defendant on the road that night, especially with my family in the car. Jeff himself has children, as he mentioned at some point. I saw this trial as an opportunity to act, to take one recidivistic drunk driver off the road. I don’t expect he and Ron to change their votes, despite the new information we have been instructed to ignore, and, of course, they don’t. It is still eight votes for guilty and two for not guilty. We are a hung jury. The judge thanks us in court for our hard work and time spent on the case. The defendant continues to admire the ceiling as the judge an­ nounces that the case will be tried again with a different jury at a later time. The German shepherd is nowhere to be seen. No ice cream After the trial, back in the deliberation room, the judge and both at­ torneys come to speak to us. “What direction were you leaning?” the defense attorney asks us. His face sinks when we tell him all but two of us voted guilty. “It was the video,” several people say, to soften the blow. “What about the two not guiltys?” he asks, looking around the room. “What made you vote that way?” “It was the video,” they respond. The German shepherd was being trained as a seeing eye dog at the jail across the street. Some of these animals have “sponsors” who take them for walks and provide other services. The judge was his sponsor. Serving on a jury was a strange and interesting experience. It was not unlike the feeling one has when leaving his first Carnival Cruise. The malaise and disorientation were the same, just no soft-serve ice cream. Also, as in the end of Twelve Angry Men, we jurors all went our separate ways without really saying a word to each other. The Neat Lady, Hum­ mer Builder, Jeff, Ron and Fat Man all went back to their lives as before. I wondered if they felt the lack of satisfaction that I felt, the same sense of having just wasted a lot of time. And did I really feel that way? One thing was for certain, I wouldn’t be having jury duty fantasies again for a long while – at least not until Judgment At Nuremberg aired again. Michael Fanning lives in Hartwell with his trophy wife, Alex. Streetvibes vendors keep 75% of sales. Consider helping Streetvibes with our publication costs by making a tax-deductible donation or by purchasing a subscription. Streetvibes is the activist newspaper, advocating justice, building community. Your gift is tax-deductible and will go to producing the paper every two weeks. Started in 1997, Streetvibes is distributed by homeless and formerly homeless vendors who purchase the paper for 25 cents and sell it for $1, keeping the 75 cent profit. Make checks payable to “Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless” I want to support Streetvibes and the vendors. $25 Please return your contribution to: GCCH 117 E. 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 Name: Address: E-mail: $50 $100 $150 Other $ _______ �STREETVIBES June 1 - 14, 2010 15 Resources Need Help or Want to Help? Shelter: Women and Children Central Access Point Cincinnati Union Bethel St. Francis Soup Kitchen Churches Active in Northside 381-SAFE 768-6907 FreeStore/FoodBank 557-2873 Madisonville Ed & Assistance Center 271-5501 4230 Hamilton Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45223 300 Lytle Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 241-1064 112 E. Liberty Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Bethany House 1841 Fairmount Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45214 Grace Place Catholic Worker House 4600 Erie Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45227 Serves area codes: 45226, 45227, 45208, 45209 681-2365 St. Vincent de Paul 6037 Cary Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45224 Salvation Army 535-2719 591-2246 762-5660 562-8841 872-9259 381-2247 5 E. Liberty St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 Health Resource Center Homeless Mobile Health Van McMicken Dental Clinic 357-4602 352-2902 352-6363 40 E. McMicken Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mental Health Access Point Mercy Franciscan at St. John 558-8888 981-5800 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 NAMI of Hamilton County PATH Outreach 1125 Bank Street, Cinti, Ohio 45214 131 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter Crossroad Health Center 458-6670 977-4489 Treatment: Men Other Resources Shelter: Men Charlie’s 3/4 House 784-1853 921-1613 Center Independent Living Options Emmanuel Community Center 961-2256 Peaslee Neighborhood Center 2121 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 City Gospel Mission 241-5525 Prospect House 1419 Elm Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 682 Hawthorne Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45205 Justice Watch 241-0490 St. Fran/St. Joe Catholic Work. House 381-4941 1308 Race St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 Starting Over Franciscan Haircuts from the Heart 661-4620 First Step Home 961-4663 2203 Fulton, Cinti, Ohio 45206 961-4080 Treatment: Both 761-1480 1821 Summit Road, Cinti, Ohio 45237 Drop Inn Center AA Hotline CCAT 721-0643 Interfaith Hospitality Network Lighthouse Youth Center (Youth) 471-1100 221-3350 3330 Jefferson, Cinti, Ohio 45220 Housing: CMHA Excel Development OTR Community Housing 721-4580 632-7149 381-1171 114 W. 14th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tender Mercies 830 Ezzard Charles Dr. Cinti, Ohio 45214 721-8666 Food/Clothing Lord’s Pantry OTR/Walnut Hills Kitchen & Pantry 621-5300 961-1983 OTR: 1620 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Walnut Hills: 2631 Gilbert, Cinti, Ohio 45206 Our Daily Bread 241-2965 Hamilton County ADAS Board Recovery Health Access Center Sober Living Talbert House 621-6364 People Working Cooperatively The Caring Place United Way Women Helping Women Off The Streets 946-4888 281-7422 681-0324 641-4300 Hamilton/Middletown 421-3131 569-1840 381-4242 Northern Kentucky Advocacy Catholic Social Action Community Action Agency Contact Center 1227 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 961-4555 751-0643 381-1954 421-5211 771-4800 751-0600 721-4811 351-7921 631-1114 211 977-5541 421-5211 1522 Republic Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 27 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tom Geiger House Dana Transitional Bridge Services Volunteers of America Anna Louise Inn 351-0422 381-6672 Joseph House (Veterans) 217 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Goodwill industries Healing Connections Mary Magdalen House 1223 Main St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 2728 Glendora Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45209 Caracole (HIV/AIDS) 381-0111 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 Shelter: Both Anthony House (Youth) 621-5514 214 E. 14th St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 Treatment: Women 1437 Walnut Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mt. Airy Shelter 241-2600 241-2563 721-4700 421-7803 117 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Intercommunity Justice & Peace Cr. Legal Aid Society Ohio Justice & Policy Center Faces Without Places Stop AIDS 579-8547 241-9400 421-1108 363-3300 421-2437 Health 621-1868 3550 Washington Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45229 SOS Art 2010, a showcase of sociopolitical expressions for peace and jus­ tice, is underway through Sunday, June 6, at the Art Academy of Cincin­ nati. Now in its eighth year, SOS Art includes work by more than 200 Cincin­ nati visual artists, literary artists, musicians, performers and school chil­ dren. The visual art can be seen from 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Tuesday through Thurs­ day, 9 a.m.-midnight Friday and Saturday and noon-6 p.m. Sunday. The program includes: • 7 p.m. Friday, “PeaceWorks: Teaching Art for Social Justice,” a docu­ mentary, Power Point presentation and discussion by Marie Lindsey, art teacher; • 8 p.m. Saturday, On the Fast Track, a film about the tribulations of a young man down on his luck, directed by Traven La Botz and Alexan­ dra Kuzik; • 7 p.m. Saturday, a poetry reading facilitated by Mary Pierce Brosmer, founder of “Women Writing for (a) Change”; • 9 p.m. Saturday, “Earth in Pain” a modern dance performance by Ta­ dashi Kato, Japanese dancer and choreographer ;and a didgeridoo per­ formance by Heather Hughes; • 3 p.m. Sunday, “America as a Piece of Art: The America I Love,” a panel discussion facilitated by Jerry Judge, poet and art activist; and • 4:30 p.m. Sunday, artists’ discussion and closing potluck reception. The entire program is free to the public. 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 205 West Pike Street, Covington, KY 41011 Center for Respite Care Call to Artists Brighton Center 863-3184 863-1445 422-8555 868-3276 799 Ann St. Newport, KY Franciscan JPIC Gr. Cinti Coalition for the Homeless 1730 Race Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 St. Raephaels Salvation Army Serenity House Day Center Open Door Pantry Women’s Crisis Center VA Domiciliary VA Homeless 859-491-3335 859-559-5011 859-572-6226 Go Ahead: Ask a Vendor Invitation to a dialogue with our readers Streetvibes vendors see a lot that you might not. For example, some can describe what goes on in an abandoned building at night when they sleep there. Have you ever wondered what it’s like to stand on a street corner sell­ ing newspapers? That’s hardly a common occupation anymore. How much money do Streetvibes vendors make – and what do they do with it? Do they have other jobs? If you have questions, some of our vendors would like to answer them. “Go Ahead: Ask a Vendor” will be an occasional feature, with questions submitted by readers and answered by Streetvibes vendors. You may direct your question to a specific vendor or we’ll invite one to respond. Only include your name if you want to. Send questions to streetvibes2@yahoo.com Or to Streetvibes, 117 E. 12th St. Cincinnati, Ohio 45202. Go ahead. Ask. Missed an Issue? Check out the Streetvibes archive at www.cincihomeless.org/content/streetvibes �16 Artists as Activists STREETVIBES June 1 - 14, 2010 Flags and Penises “I do not see myself as special or different from anyone else. I am just an artist who enjoys what he does. My art makes me happy; it is my being.” - Aaron Kent K ent’s art is also his voice as he uses it, instead of words, to express and affirm who he is, convey his views, question and confront political and social issues and challenge viewers to think critically about our government and the values of our society. A versatile artist born in Springfield, Ohio, Kent now lives in Cincinnati. Encouraged by his nurturing mother, he has been drawing or involved in art classes since early childhood. In high school he studied commercial art, later switching to fine arts. He graduated from the Art Academy of Cincinnati with a bachelor of fine arts degree in sculp­ ture and worked at Casting Arts and Technology for seven years, practicing mold making, bronze casting and metal fabrication. Kent also uses other media including print­ making, painting and performance art. From the beginning his work has been unconvention­ al, questioning the status quo, triggering thinking about controversial issues such as religion, sexuality, money, freedom of speech and some aspects of punk culture. It Aaron Kent sitting next to casted bones for his Bones series. Saad Ghosn. has also been provocative both in its imagery and the of­ ten taboo subjects it addresses. His graphic series, America the Beautiful, recreated the American flag in various ways, associating it with money, religion and trinity in our society. war, thus using it to ad­ Kent’s sculpture, God Told Me It Was OK, represents a cross covered dress different issues that with Bible pages on which he silk-screened images pertaining to sexu­ pertain to America, its ality. His intention was to throw religion and the underworld of sex to­ politics and its culture. gether, questioning what is right and who judges wrong and points to It served to artistically the fact that religion looks down on lifestyles not of its likeness instead reaffirm the freedom of of accepting people for whom they are, appreciating their goodness. as speech that Kent believed Other artworks address the hypocrisy of religious institutions, for in­ the U.S. Constitution pro­ stance their tacit approval of wars and violence contradictory to their vided, at the same time peace teaching, just because they benefit from them materially and By Saad GHoSn raising awareness and monetarily. Contributing WritEr dialogue with the viewer. Kent’s latest series, Bones, consists of sculptures reflecting on death Hey Buddy Can You Spare and its spiritual connection to the circle of life. Based on bones repeat­ a Dime, a piece from the edly casted in bronze and arranged into unique, somewhat abstract series, consisted of an American flag made of $1 bills. By incorporating sculptural patterns, the pieces represent a shift from death to the beau­ money into the flag, Kent alluded to the important role money plays in ty and power of the continuous creative process. They connect indi­ U.S. politics, American wealth in the face of its coexisting poverty and viduals in a serene and harmonious way to their questioning of life and the increasingly changing economic horizons locally and worldwide. death, their own death, their survival through giving back. His sculp­ In New American Anthem, he used music bars as lines for a flag that tures illustrate at the same time the fragility yet the strength of all living he shot several times with a gun; he then had music written based on beings, neutralizing indirectly the fears imposed by religions. the shots-caused pattern. He thus associated firearms violence to the Kent also makes a point of putting his art outside galleries, in pub­ American flag, creating a new anthem lic spaces, in order to impact passers­ with a new message, making an implic­ by and make his art and message part it statement about the direction of our of their daily lives. For instance, he country. pastes his enlarged prints on blank, Another series, In God We Trust, chal­ abandoned walls, installs his sculptures lenges the thinking on who and what anonymously in the streets, sets spon­ God is, religion, right vs. wrong and taneous performance installations. how people use God for money and “I am an activist,” he says. “My art make money their god. Raised Catho­ says something that I want to commu­ lic, Kent disassociated himself early on nicate. It reflects who I am, what I be­ from religion as it did not answer his lieve in. I want it to raise questions and questions and was often, in his eyes, trigger thinking, irrespective of the im­ misused to perpetuate control, repres­ mediate reaction.” sion and self-interests. To point to sexuality and its impor­ “I do not need God to have a good tant role in life and fight its unhealthy heart,” he says. “Without religion one obliteration by society, Kent displayed can still be a good person.” in many public places large plasterAlthough agnostic, Kent remains casted penises, connecting them to spiritual, connecting to people and each other as if leading the way. To call helping others whenever he can – the attention to the terror of wars we inflict poor, homeless, abandoned and less on other people, he performed unan­ fortunate. This is his religion, being nounced, dressed up in a hazmat suit, honest, kind and supportive – not the public acts in restaurants and coffee materialistic, empire-building values shops, leaving behind him, unattended, promoted by institutions, which de­ small black boxes and briefcases. Per­ tract from the essential. ceived as a threat, he would be asked His print, In God We Trust, consists to leave, but after having generated in of $1 bills forming a cross. It shows those present the same uneasiness and the front of the bills with “The United fear others live on a daily basis because States of America” prominently printof the wars we have created for them. ed on them and the image of George In God We Trust, silk-screen print by Aaron “If I do not do art, I do not feel comWashington in their center. It directly Kent. Saad Ghosn. plete,” Kent says. “Art is my voice and links money to politics to religion, an my communication. It is also my share omnipresent, omnipotent, overlapping for a better world.” A rtists ctivists Artists as Activists is a regular column highlighting Greater Cincinnati artists who use art as a vehicle for change. Saad Ghosn is the founder of SOS Art. Ghosn can be contacted at saad.ghosn@uc.edu. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 2010 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource June 1-14, 2010 Subject The topic of the resource Homelessness Description An account of the resource Pg 1: Tell Me: Do You Want to Hold Me? Sheriff Wants to Follow Arizona Pg 2: Don’t Look Away Pg 3: One Thing Leads to Another Pg 4: Tell Me: Do You Want to Hold Me? Continued Sheriff Wants to Follow Arizona Continued Pg 5: Bright Smiles for the Homeless Building Confidence in Leadership Pg 6: One Thing Leads to Another Continued Pg 7: Barons Fight for Their Country Pg 8: How Does Hollywood Do Poverty? Pg 9: Out in the Open Pg 10: Can You See Me Now? Pg 11: The Fedora That Changed a Life Pg 12: We, the Jury Pg 13: We, the Jury Continued Pg 14: We, the Jury Continued Pg 15: Resources Pg 16: Flags and Penises 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 June 1-14, 2010 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Gregory Flannery Lynne Ausman Veronica Glass Jeni Jenkins Michelle Dillingham Samantha Groark Margo Pierce Paul Kopp Jeremy Flannery Michael Henson David Heitfield Corey Gibson Saad Ghosn Lew Moores Larry Gross Eli Braun Jesse Call Brendon McCartney Michael Fanning Aimie Willhoite Anthony Williams Vinit Murthy Jon Hughes Lynn Baker Jeremy Flannery Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF Aaron Kent Activism Aimie Willhoite Anthony Williams Arizona Avondale Brendon McCartney Corey Gibson David Heitfield Eli Braun Gregory Flannery Hamilton County Hollywood Jeni Jenkins Jeremy Flannery Jesse Call Jon Hughes Justice System Larry Gross Lew Moores Lynn Baker Lynne Ausman Margo Pierce McMicken Dental Clinic Mia Carruthers Michael Fanning Michael Henson Michelle Dillingham Over-the-Rhine Paul Kopp Saad Ghosn Samantha Groark Stereotypes Street Paper The Retros Veronica Glass Vinit Murthy https://streetvibesarchive.net/files/original/a0d0dc29502f94981a64df04d9c09e46.pdf 9f4cc7e0d848c0163c50cea1cbc484f8 PDF Text Text Artists as Activists Page 16 Seeking Understanding Page 10 STREETVIBES $1 May 15-31, 2010 • Advocating Justice, Building Community • Issue 177 Cincinnati’s Marijuana Law Fiasco Whites use pot, blacks get arrested By Eli Braun Contributing Writer I n most of Hamilton County and Ohio, possessing a small amount of marijuana is a “mi­ nor misdemeanor,” the lowest level offense. If you are caught with a joint, the police simply give you a ticket and you pay a fine. In the city of Cincin­ nati, however, you take a ride to the Justice Center. On March 29, 2006, Cincinnati City Council voted 6 to 2 to increase the penalty for possessing small amounts of marijuana. Ordinance 910-23 el­ evated marijuana possession from a minor misdemeanor, a pay-out ticket that carries no more than a $100 fine, to a fourth-degree misdemeanor, or M4, which entails an arrest. With the M4, pot smokers now face up to a $250 fine and 30 days in jail. Those arrested a second time are charged with a first-degree misde­ meanor, which carries up to a $1,000 fine and six months in jail. More than 13,000 arrests have been made under the M4 marijuana ordi­ nance as of May 5 – a total of 13,263, according to the Cincinnati Police Department. Thus Cincinnati distinguishes itself from other municipalities in Hamil­ ton County. “Literally you could be standing on one side of the street,” says Hamilton County Municipal Judge Fanon Ruck­ er, “then walk across the street and be subjected to a different penalty.” See Pot, p. 4 While California considers legalizing marijuana, Cincinnati has made it a jailable offense. REUTERS/Alexandria Sage. World Class Judge Mark Painter moves to the United Nations By GrEGory FlannEry editor the law is, the law is, unless the General As­ sembly enacts new legislation,” Painter says. ark Painter used to be a judge for Hamilton County. Now he is a judge for the world. The longtime jurist recently returned from the first sitting of the United Nations Appeals Tribunal (UNAT), which met for three weeks in Geneva, Switzerland. President Barack Obama nominated Paint­ er, and the UN General Assembly elected him to one of seven seats on the new court’s bench. Painter, who retired from the Ohio First District Court of Appeals to accept the new post, is the only U.S. judge in UNAT. The other six judges are from Argentina, France, Ghana, India, Canada and Uruguay. In its inaugural session, the panel heard 33 cases and ruled unanimously on all of them. “It’s a culturally, legally, racially and ethni­ cally diverse court, but we agreed on every case,” Painter says. UNAT is the final legal step in deciding em­ ployment conflicts at the United Nations. The cases include complaints about hiring, firing, sexual harassment, pension rights and other job-related disputes. “We’re the highest court, so whatever we say Important to Obama M Judge Mark Painter now serves on the United Nations Appeals Tribunal. Photo by Aimie Willhoite. You be the judge.... Should the Drop Inn Center move? Page 3 As a judge in Hamilton County Common Pleas Court and the state appeals court, Paint­ er distinguished himself by his independence. His opinions on the appeals court were a study in legal acuity and sometimes color­ ful writing. Last year, for example, he blasted both the Cincinnati Civil Service Commission for barring former felons from city jobs and his fellow appeals judges for upholding the rule. He called his fellow judges’ ruling “balo­ ney.” As for the city’s policy, he wrote, “When people do turn their life around, we should applaud and help them help themselves – not ban them from employment by imposing ar­ bitrary rules.” His appointment as a United Nations judge defied political conventions. Painter is a Re­ publican. His nomination was by Obama, a Democrat. Susan Rice, then the new U.S. am­ bassador to the UN, chose Painter, the candi­ date recommended by her staff. “The staff told me they almost didn’t rec­ ommend me because they didn’t want to be See Painter, p. 6 DCI Panhandling Leaflet Harmful or Helpful? Page 7 �2 The Vibe By The Numbers 87 The age at which historian Howard Zinn died (see page 7). None The amount of money Downtown Cincinnati Inc. wants people to give panhandlers (see page 7). 85 The percentage of arrests, under Cincinnati’s marijuana law, in which the suspects are African Americans (see page 1). 400 The amount of relocation assistance, in dollars, paid to people forced from the Metropole Apartments (see page 10). 60,000 The number of people who work for the United Nations (see page 1). 35 The age at which basketball star Kobe Bryant grew horns (see page 14). 19 The daily pay, in dollars, for a juror in Hamilton County a few years ago (see page 12). First The grade level in which Andy Au drew dinosaurs on his spelling tests (see page 16). 2006 The year Barbara F. Duke lost her house and become homeless (see page 11). StreetWise By GrEGory FlannEry editor Getting Beat Up Makes Us Look Bad The brutal attack on a homeless camp on Mitchell Avenue last month made national news, including a report in The New York Times. It wasn’t that John Johnson’s injuries – requiring 18 stitches to close his head wounds – were so extraordinary; violent crime is unfortunately common in the United States. It wasn’t that the attack was a deliberate hate crime; such a thing happens with increasing frequency. The attack made national headlines because three of the four alleged perpetrators, wielding baseball bats and metal pipes, are active-duty soldiers in the U.S. Army (see “Soldiers Attack Homeless Camp,” issue of May 1-14). Some people in Spring Grove Village were most displeased by what happened. It wasn’t that one of their neighbors was nearly killed by thugs who targeted him because he was homeless. It wasn’t that some of their neighbors are forced to live outdoors for want of affordable housing. No, what upset some residents was the fact that all that publicity was bad for the neighborhood’s public image. One concerned citizen sent a link to a TV news report (“Homeless Man Beaten by Campsite Intruders”) to Cincinnati Police Chief Thomas Streicher, City Manager Milton Dohoney and members of city council. Something must be done, the man wrote. “That’s not the kind of headline news you would like your family and friends to read about your neighborhood!” the letter said. “Well, neither do we.” Spring Grove Village Community Council was ready to act. A posse – er, group of vol­ unteers – was formed, intent on tearing down – “cleaning up” – the unsightly homeless camp. But not so fast. It turns out that homeless people camping on public property still have rights, as Cincinnati Police officers pointed out during a contentious meeting. Thanks to the settlement of a lawsuit filed by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless, the city no longer bursts in and busts up homeless camps. Police officers now post a 72­ hour notice, giving homeless people time to move their belongings and social workers an opportunity to find them housing. With help from the commander and officers from Police District 5, Josh Spring, execu­ tive director of the Homeless Coalition, swayed the community council, appealing to what most motivated them. “If Spring Grove Village doesn’t want bad PR, they need to work with the people at the camp – not attack them,” Spring said. It took some doing, but a compromise was reached. The community council agreed to wait two weeks so that Spring and others could try to place the homeless campers in housing. It helped that Spring promised to have TV cameras and other news media on hand if the “volunteers” decided to take matters into their own hands. That letter bemoaning the bad publicity, by the way, wasn’t sent to Mayor Mark Mallory. That’s just as well. Mallory has been busy of late trying to force other homeless people out – namely the residents of the Drop Inn Center (see “An Open Letter to the City of Cincinnati,” page 3.) Does Uncle Sam Want Skinheads? Three of the four attackers have now been captured. Charged with felonious assault are Michael Hesson, 24, of Norwood; Private Riley Feller, 24, stationed at Fort Knox; and Spec. Travis Condor, 25, stationed at Fort Bragg. A fourth suspect, also stationed at Fort Bragg, has not yet been caught. STREETVIBES May 15 - 31, 2010 Streetvibes is an activist newspaper, advocating justice and building community. Streetvibes reports on economic issues, civil rights, the environment, the peace movement, spirituality and the struggle against homelessness and poverty. Distributed by people who are or once were homeless, in exchange for a $1 donation, Streetvibes is published twice a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Address: 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 Phone: 513.421.7803 x 12 Fax: 513.421.7813 Email: streetvibes2@yahoo. com Website: www. cincihomeless.org Blog: streetvibes.wordpress. com Streetvibes Staff Editor Gregory Flannery Art Director Lynne Ausman Graphics/Layout Intern Veronica Glass Vendor Coordinator Jeni Jenkins Contributing Writers Michelle Dillingham, Samantha Groark, Margo Pierce, Paul Kopp, Jeremy Flannery, Michael Henson, David Heitfield, Valerie Fessler, Corey Gibson, Jeni Jenkins, Saad Ghosn, Lew Moores, Larry Gross, Eli Braun, Jesse Call Photography/Artwork Aimie Willhoite, Lynne Ausman, Anthony Williams, Vinit Murthy, Jon Hughes Proofreaders Lynn Baker Jeremy Flannery “The message needs to get out there,” he said. “I’m just glad the media is staying on this so we can educate people.” The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that works to eradicate homelessness in Cincinnati through coordination of services, public education, grassroots advocacy and Streetvibes. Johnson said he has learned that hate crimes against homeless people are a nationwide phenomenon. He has recently visited high-school students, describing his ordeal. The fact that three of the suspects are U.S. soldiers points to the seriousness of the problem, according to Johnson. We are proud members of: At an April 30 press conference, Johnson, 52, said he was encouraged by the attention the attack has received. “After I found out that the majority of them are military, that stepped it up, as far as I’m concerned,” he said. “I can see a group of guys just being stupid, but as far as being military, these guys are trained to injure people. That’s what they do – and that’s what they did. How far were they willing to go? These guys didn’t care that I was a white guy or a black guy. Their one concern was that I was homeless.” Spring hopes the attack will lead to expansion of Ohio’s hate-crimes law to include pro­ tection for homeless people. He wants the U.S. Army to invite the Homeless Coalition to conduct training sessions on homelessness for soldiers. He also wants the army to quit accepting racist skinheads into its ranks. “Why are they in the military?” Spring said. “If people are known for hate, do we really want them representing our country? Do we trust them on the battlefield? This should start a national conversation on who is allowed into the U.S. military.” �STREETVIBES May 15 - 31, 2010 3 Column Keep Drop Inn Center Where it Is Make room for diversity and redevelopment By MichEllE DillinGhaM Contributing Writer nues and reduce property crime. In cities across America and across the world (indeed the word “gentrification” origi­ was born in Boston on Joy Street in Bea­ nated in England), affordable-housing advo­ con Hill in 1972. My parents met in an cates voice their disapproval over the loss of art gallery at a poetry reading. It was a affordable units in the name of urban renewal. neighborhood of artists, poets and writers. Developers and politicians support redevel­ Now it is habitated by what my father back in opment that attracts higher-income residents. the ’80s would disdainfully call “yuppies.” To­ For housing advocates, our main concerns are day I would not be able to access, availability and afford an apartment on Joy inclusion of affordable Street, yet I have a signifi­ Other cities are experimenting housing in re-develop­ cantly higher income than ment. with inclusionary zoning both my parents did back Other cities are exper­ ordinances that require a share then. imenting with inclusion­ of new construction to be I take a quick look at the affordable by people with low to ary zoning ordinances old neighborhood on-line, moderate incomes. It is hard to that require a share of and the first description I imagine seeing such legislation new construction to be find says, “Beacon Hill is affordable by people in Cincinnati given the fact home to some of the most with low to moderate in­ that we are still fending off expensive real estate in comes. It is hard to imag­ exclusionary zoning. America.” Wow, a lot can ine seeing such legisla­ change in 30 (plus) years. tion in Cincinnati given Here in Cincinnati there has been a rapid the fact that we are still fending off exclusiontransformation in our urban core, specifi­ ary zoning. cally in one of our most historic and storied Recently it has come to light that our city’s neighborhoods, Over-the-Rhine. A non-profit political and economic leadership strongly development corporation (Cincinnati Cen­ encouraged the Drop Inn Center to relocate ter City Development Corp., better known as from its current location. The implications are 3CDC) has strategically and by design invested that, as Washington Park is undergoing signifi­ and taken advantage of various tax incentives cant improvement and the new School for the in order to restore and upgrade deteriorating Creative and Performing Arts has been built, properties along our main streets – Vine, Race there really is no place for the Drop Inn Cen­ and Walnut. The influx of middle-class resi­ ter. I would bet my reaction is shared by more dents and business owners and the displace­ than a few: While I really appreciate 3CDC’s ment of lower-income people will inevitably role in the rehabilitation of our historic Over­ increase property values, increase tax reve­ the-Rhine housing stock and all that it brings, I to uproot one of Cincinnati’s few homeless shelters that is centrally located for its clients is just going too far. Elizabeth Brown, president of the board of Affordable Housing Advocates (AHA), has of­ fered commentary outlining AHA’s concerns over this issue (see below), and it delineates many good points. My personal aversion to moving the Drop Inn Center is first concern for its clients and their ability to reasonably access services. Second, I just believe an ur­ ban emergency homeless shelter should be located in a city’s core. This morning I drove down Liberty Street and looked at the vacant, boarded-up build­ ings that line the street between Walnut and Vine. I am genuinely grateful for the re-devel­ opment that will be making its way to these buildings as 3CDC forges northward. I imag­ ine those buildings with window flower boxes, small businesses on the street level, benches in the courtyard … and hope that a few blocks over the Drop Inn Center will still be there to serve some of the 25,000 citizens a year who experience homelessness in our city – our veterans, families in foreclosure, some with chronic illnesses, but most who are there sim­ ply due to a lack of affordable housing. Clearly there is a delicate balance between factors of safety, perceptions of safety, a ra­ cially and economically diverse urban core, needed tax revenues to support city services and our urban identity. My appeal to our city’s leadership echoes advocates against displace­ ment everywhere: The Drop Inn Center must stay. An Open Letter to the City of Cincinnati L ast week AHA (Affordable Hous­ ing Advocates) learned of a meet­ ing where the board of directors of the Drop Inn Center were summoned to the mayor’s office at City Hall with very little no­ tice. Members of the board expected they were meeting with the mayor; however, they were greeted instead by a number of indi­ viduals including Vice Mayor Qualls, 3CDC's Steve Leeper, and other members of the city administration. The mayor reportedly in­ formed everyone it was his intention that the Drop Inn Center relocate, although to where he did not identify. 3CDC then offered to assist with the relocation cost to expedite their move. Also reportedly, 3CDC in turn then asked the city for funding to help them move the Drop-Inn Center. While 3CDC has been responsible for some needed redevelopment, many citizens are increasingly wary of their tactics and re­ liance on the city's coffers and political in­ fluence to promote an agenda that seems to envision a totally gentrified downtown and Over-the-Rhine. They seem to believe it is necessary to drive out those Cincinnatians who rely on affordable housing and social services to make ends meet, in order to at­ tract higher-income young professionals and families. Earlier this year 3CDC forced out the Metropole Apartments to replace it with a boutique hotel, and now they are demanding not just a downsizing but the com­ plete removal of the Drop Inn Center. We are extremely con­ cerned about the loss of diver­ sity and the loss of a mixedincome neighborhood. Other non-profits, property owners and businesses are asking, who will be next? Regardless of the decision of the Drop Inn Center Board, the community is concerned. Where is the transparency? The respect? Not just to the board, staff and clients of the Drop Inn Center but to the broader community? Behind closed-doors meet­ ings, convened with little notice, demanding hasty decisions with an alternative site not even identified? A matter that has such a profound effect on our community should not be conducted in such a manner. Instead, the parties in­ volved need to identify clear, constructive goals rather than this useless posturing. Members of the affordable-housing advo­ cates community hope that our political leadership and corporate community give serious consideration to the broader context of removing the Drop Inn Center and other institutions that serve our lower-income neighbors, because if we are serious about being an attractive city for young profession­ als, a dynamic, vibrant city, we best not zone out, buy out or force out the very diversity that will engender that vision. We believe it is possible for a new school, a homeless shel­ ter, arts institutions, high-end housing and affordable housing all to share a healthy, vi­ brant urban neighborhood. Please don’t draw the battle lines with “Get out of town” ultimatums. Let’s build this community together. Elizabeth Brown, AHA Board Chair Elizabeth.Brown@uwgc.org Want more Streetvibes? Check out the StreetvibeS blog http://streetvibes.wordpress.com �4 Local News STREETVIBES May 15 - 31, 2010 Cincinnati’s Marijuana Law Fiasco Continued from page 1 time, Thomas said the police would not spend their time targeting medical users and Cincinnati differs from other cities as well. college students. Philadelphia has taken steps to decrimi­ “That’s not who they’ll be going after,” he nalize possession in an effort to relieve its said. “I’m not concerned about that because crowded court system. In November, Cali­ crime is occurring in our troubled neighbor­ fornia voters will take the hoods.” initiative one step further: It seemed that coun­ On March 29, 2006, deciding whether to legal­ cil specifically intended Cincinnati City ize marijuana, allowing it to subvert “equal justice to be sold and taxed like Council voted 6 to 2 to under law.” While people any other commodity. in “troubled” neighbor­ increase the penalty While some cities have hoods would endure more for possessing small moved toward easing the serious criminal charges amounts of marijuana. penalties, Cincinnati has and greater penalties for Ordinance 910-23 moved in the opposite marijuana possession, elevated marijuana direction. The result has marijuana users in more possession from a minor been disastrous for po­ affluent areas – even in misdemeanor, a paylice effectiveness, court areas of the city where the out ticket that carries and jail crowdedness and same ordinance osten­ no more than a $100 community welfare. As we sibly applied – could get fine, to a fourth-degree approach the law’s fifth high without police medmisdemeanor, or M4, anniversary next year, the dling. which entails an arrest. national trend toward de­ Four years later, that’s criminalization presents precisely what’s hap­ an opportunity to evaluate its impact. pened. Streetvibes identified three key findings in ‘Who they’ll be going after’ police data: • Few of those arrested under the or­ City Councilman Cecil Thomas, a retired dinance were convicted of anything other 27-year veteran of the police department, than marijuana, meaning that police search­ led the 2006 effort to stiffen the penalty. He es have not, by and large, turned up guns or was and remains the chair of city council’s additional drugs. Public Safety Committee. Earlier this month, • African Americans bear the brunt of he narrowly lost the Democratic primary to the law. Almost 9 out of 10 people arrested Jim Tarbell in the race for Hamilton County between March 29, 2006, and May 5, 2010, Commissioner. were black (85 percent) and male (89 per­ Tarbell was Thomas’s fellow councilmem­ cent). Cincinnati is 46.5 percent black and ber in 2006 and condemned the “regressive” 52 percent white, and whites actually use ordinance. marijuana at a higher rate. Some 44 percent “This is a class issue,” Tarbell said (pro­ of whites, compared to 39 percent of blacks, phetically, as it turns out). “The people have used marijuana, according to the 2005 caught and prosecuted will be low-income National Survey on Drug Use & Health. Elev­ African Americans.” en to 12 percent of both whites and blacks But the new law would aid police, accord­ used marijuana in the previous year. ing to Thomas. • Simply put, despite the same usage “The most important aspect of this (ordi­ rate, blacks are six times more likely than nance) is it gives officers an additional tool whites to be arrested for using marijuana in for search and seizure,” he said. Cincinnati. Police cannot search people cited for mi­ • Certain neighborhoods are over­ nor misdemeanors. Petty marijuana posses­ represented. Most of the arrests occurred sion is a minor misdemeanor according to in Police District 1 (Downtown, Over­ Ohio state law. the-Rhine) and District 4 (Walnut Hills to “Bumping it up to an M4 might seem like Hartwell, including Avondale). For example, a small change, but in fact, all these proce­ in 2009, District 1 posted 29 percent of the dures kick in,” says Rob Wall, an attorney at marijuana arrests with just 6 percent of the the Ohio Justice & Policy Center. “Officers city’s population while District 2 (centered can arrest you, search you and bring you around Hyde Park) posted near-opposite downtown. The law wasn’t about marijuana; numbers: 8 percent of the arrests, 26 percent it was about initiating a police search.” of the population. David Crowley joined Tarbell in voting Streetvibes reached out to Councilman “no.” The “yes” votes were Thomas, Chris Thomas repeatedly over a three-week peri­ Bortz, Laketa Cole, John Cranley, Leslie Ghiz od to comment for this article. Phone and e­ and Chris Monzel. Jeff Berding was absent mail messages, left with both his city council on the day of the vote, but he voted for the office and his political campaign, were not measure two weeks earlier as a member of returned. the Public Safety Committee. The bill passed The Cincinnati Police Department pro­ with a veto-proof majority. Mayor Mark Mal­ vided recent statistics but declined to com­ lory, who opposed the measure, withheld his ment on the law. signature as the bill became law. Some backers of the law argued that The evidence heightened penalties could point offenders toward drug treatment. In fact, both then The anti-marijuana ordinance included a and now, drug court only accepts felony “sunset” clause, meaning council had to re­ drug offenders, not those arrested for small new it the next year or it would expire. Coun­ amounts of marijuana, who likely do not cil again took up the debate in March 2007. need drug treatment anyway. Council began by reviewing the impact. In According to newspaper reports at the the first 11 months of the law, according to Demographics: Marijuana Arrests March 29, 2006 - May 5, 2010 Race Black White % of arrests % who used drugs in the past year % who used drugs in their lives 85 12 39 14 11 Source: Cincinnati Police Department (2010); National Survey on Drug Use and Health, Table 1.78B (2005) 44 the city manager’s report, 3,285 individuals were arrested under the ordinance. Cincin­ nati Police confiscated 62 guns, 2.81 kg of crack cocaine, 0.24 kg of cocaine and 0.10 kg of heroin – altogether, about two percent of the 141 kg drug haul in 2006. Unsurprisingly, a law targeting petty users turned up a rela­ tively small amount of drugs. Of the first 3,285 arrests, 61 percent (2,010) resulted in the M4 marijuana conviction, while 14 percent (469) were convicted of dif­ ferent offenses or did not result in a convic­ tion, indicating that the law generally did not turn up guns or heavier drugs. Another 14 percent (452) resulted in open warrants and 11 percent (347) had not set­ tled by the time of the report. Seven arrests were unaccounted for. The city spent an additional $41,200 in the first 11 months, primarily to pay for defense attorneys to represent the new defendants. By law, anyone facing the possibility of jail time has the right to an attorney. That cost did not include police officers’ expenses, the expense of the additional court time re­ quired to try those cases or the cost of bring­ ing officers to testify at trial. Advocates for repeal argued that an indi­ vidual with a dime bag (worth $10) should not face the same penalty as someone car­ rying 200 grams (worth about $2,500). Both are fourth-degree misdemeanors under the ordinance. The Cincinnati Police told Streetvibes that arrest data do not include infor­ mation on drug weight. During the 2007 debate over whether to renew the law, council members seized upon the 62 confiscated guns and additional grams of drugs as evidence that the law was working. Jim Tarbell contested that view and ap­ pealed to the larger picture. He argued that the law and its repercussions had “the po­ tential to cause great harm to this commu­ nity.” “We now have 2,000 people who were not in the system before,” Tarbell said in remarks to the full council regarding those now marked by a criminal record. “I am compelled by the confiscation of 62 guns,” he continued, “but in the context of what else is going on here, I’m not (com­ pelled). I think that our attention to other enforcement issues would probably result in the same kind of success without the pro­ spective downside.” If the goal is to get guns off the street, it would be more effective to target criminal activity other than marijuana, according to Jason Haap and Michael Earl Patton of the Cincinnati Beacon, who have lobbied against the ordinance since it was first proposed. In the first 11 months, the ratio of guns per ar­ rest broke down to one gun per 53 marijuana arrests. But for all arrests in 2006, the guns per arrest ratio was 1 in 33 (1,442 guns con­ fiscated during 41,525 arrests). Marijuana users simply harbored guns at a much lower rate than other people arrested. Meanwhile, in the year after the ordinance became law, violent crime in Cincinnati ac­ tually increased – murders by 16 percent, burglaries by 7 percent and robberies by 44 percent. A review of anti-marijuana laws in the Journal of Drug Issues (April 2007) found that get-tough policies often increase violent crime. The economist-researchers hypoth­ esized that police crackdowns on marijuana disrupted flow, which increased demand for the limited supply, which in turn raised pric­ es and led users to commit more burglaries and robberies in search of cash. Since writing a ticket for a minor misde­ meanor takes 15 minutes, while completing an arrest for an M4 takes much longer, Cin- See Pot, p. 5 �STREETVIBES May 15 - 31, 2010 5 Local News Cincinnati’s Marijuana Law Fiasco Continued from page 4 cinnati Police officers have devoted more time to policing marijuana possession. Ac­ cording to the online watchdog Prioritize Cincinnati, Cincinnati police dedicated 2,261 hours in 2006 to enforcing marijuana possession, compared to 1,464 in 2005, an increase of 54 percent. “The police were so busy taking people to jail for smoking pot – I had several offi­ cers admit this to me – that they could not respond,” testified Price Hill resident Scott Jetter in front of city council in 2007 about a burglary on his home. “Three and a half hours response time, minimum. The same officers did admit that if I walked out to the street and lit up a joint, they’d be there in less than five minutes to arrest me.” The additional hours spent tracking down potheads did not reduce other crime, according to Many support the studies and statistics legalizing marijuana, above, and may have actu­ ally contributed to it by disincluding 37 percent of Ohioans tracting law enforcement from surer methods. and 59 percent of Nevertheless, city council those aged 18 to renewed the ordinance by 29, according to a 7-2 vote. No one changed a 2009 University his or her vote. of Cincinnati Council tweaked the lan­ poll. Presumably, guage in the 2007 renewal. even more The original ordinance Ohioans support criminalized 100 grams of decriminalizing marijuana or less as an M4. marijuana – that The new version criminalis, not making it ized 200 grams or less. The explicitly legal, as change had no impact, the poll queried, however, because possessbut treating it as a payout offense, on ing 100 to 200 grams was par with a speeding already an M4 under Ohio law. or parking ticket. Beyond crime, the ordi­ nance sets up repercussions that are less quantifiable but no less injuri­ ous to the community. The ordinance exac­ erbates court expenses and jail overcrowd­ ing, while undermining community morale and an offender’s opportunity for a second chance. Minor crimes, massive waste An entire cast of characters must assemble every time the court comes to order: pros­ ecutors, defenders, defendants (sometimes taking days off work), the judge, the judge’s clerk, witnesses, court stenographers and bailiffs, not to mention regular courthouse security and administration. As a result, prosecuting misdemeanors is not cheap, according to the National As­ sociation of Criminal Defense Lawyers in its 2009 report, aptly titled, “Minor Crimes, Massive Waste.” A recent report of the Ohio Justice & Policy Center raised another concern: “Flooding the system with these misdemeanor cases is equivalent to swamping an emergency room with head colds and nosebleeds.” The flood prevents police and court personnel from identifying truly important cases. The ordinance’s impact on jail overcrowd­ ing – a perennial topic in Hamilton County politics – is less pronounced but still notice­ able. After being arrested, an individual is processed through the Justice Center, which takes several hours. Some may stay over­ night. Since 2006, police have chosen to take three out of four people arrested under ordi­ nance 910-23 to the Justice Center. Despite the possibility of jail time, offend­ ers typically pay fines instead. “While every case is judged on its own facts, the typical penalty might be a $100 fine, plus court costs,” Municipal Judge Fanon Rucker says. A sampling of cases from the Hamilton County Clerk of Courts found that fines var­ ied from $20-$200 but hovered around $100, with defendants responsible for paying an additional $104 in “court costs.” No one gets sent to jail simply for mari­ juana possession, Rucker says. “For marijuana, I do not treat defendants differently based on whether their offense occurred in Cincinnati or outside city lim­ its,” he says. He acknowledges that the legal conse­ quences differ. Some defendants walk away with minor misdemeanors while others leave with fourth-degree misdemeanors. He also notes that many defendants charged under the city ordinance “tend to be of more modest means financially, so even a $100 fine can cause great disruption in their lives.” Their employers also might be less forgiving when defendants must leave work to attend court. Those who do not pay the fine may be held in contempt of court. Jail time is a pos­ sible penalty. “You may get a ‘stay to pay’ if you can’t pay the fine,” says Danielle Anderson, an at­ torney with the Ohio Justice & Policy Center who has defended marijuana cases. “The judge will say, ‘Come back on this date,’ and the defendant will come back, still unable to pay, and the judge will set another court date. It just goes on and on and on.” It is not unusual to see cases stretching six months or even a year until finally resolved. The city can still reverse these burdens by reclassifying marijuana possession as a mi­ nor misdemeanor, which would bring Cin­ cinnati into accord with Ohio law and most Ohio cities. ‘Disastrous’ impact For many people, however, the damage is done. There is no reversal. “Say a person made a mistake at age 18 and committed theft,” says Rob Wall, the Ohio Justice & Policy Center attorney. “Then at age 19, they get caught with a joint. That’s not uncommon; it happens all the time. With two convictions, they’ll never get that record sealed. Those convictions will be with them 20, 30 years later and for the rest of their lives. “In Ohio, you cannot get a misdemeanor or felony expunged if you have more than one. If that person had been caught with marijuana outside of Cincinnati, say in Norwood, the charge would have been a minor misdemeanor. Half a mile can make a big difference in a person’s life.” It would have allowed that individual to qualify for an expungement. “Your opportunity to get a second chance in Cincinnati is lower than elsewhere in the state,” Wall says. It’s a question of fairness, he says. Why should members of poor or marginalized communities, who tend to live within city limits, face greater obstacles? “Making it harder for people with records to work or get a second chance probably wasn’t the city’s intention,” Wall says, “but that is exactly what it does. The impact has 2009 Arrests by Geographic Region Region District 1 District 2 District 3 District 4 District 5 Total % of population % of marijuana arrests 6 29 26 8 28 20 19 29 21 14 100 100 Source: Cincinnati Police Department (2010); U.S. Census (2000) been disastrous.” Also important is the impact on housing. Individuals and their families lose hous­ ing vouchers on the basis of M4 marijuana convictions, disadvantaging Cincinnati resi­ dents over others in Hamilton County. Some 97 million Americans, 4 in 10 peo­ ple over age 12, have tried marijuana at least once. That doesn’t indicate great respect for legal authority. That lack of respect, some advocates have argued, has a multiplier ef­ fect. When lawmakers criminalize an activ­ ity that you do not find improper, you lose respect for the law. Many support legalizing marijuana, in­ cluding 37 percent of Ohioans and 59 percent of those aged 18 to 29, according to a 2009 University of Cincinnati poll. Presumably, even more Ohioans support decriminalizing marijuana – that is, not making it explicitly legal, as the poll queried, but treating it as a payout offense, on par with a speeding or parking ticket. These findings, the national trend toward decriminalization and new faces on city council raise hopes of a repeal. In a Cincin­ nati Beacon interview, newly elected Coun­ cilman Charlie Winburn said, “It should be repealed because it is taking up police time and bogging down our court system and jail space.” In another Beacon interview, newly elected Councilwoman Laure Quinlivan said, “If the ordinance has not produced good results for citizens and in fact is a drain on resources, I’ll be in favor of repealing it.” With those criteria, it is hard to see how she could vote any other way. Councilman Thomas, in arguing for ex­ panding police searches, suggested that the new ordinance would reduce violent crime. The opposite might have happened. Ordi­ nance 910-23 has not fetched more guns than the average arrest. It has exacerbated racial disparities as police rack up easy arrests in targeted neighborhoods. It has flooded our courthouse and crowded our jail. It has need­ lessly criminalized thousands of Cincinnatians over the past four years. On 13,263 oc­ casions, Cincinnatians have passed through our courthouse to plead before judges who then sentenced them as if they had been convicted of a minor misdemeanor anyway. That’s thousands of people who returned to the courthouse time and again to pay, ironi­ cally enough, their court costs. Ordinance 910-23 was based on wish­ ful thinking. With mounting evidence of its harm, members of city council would be wise to focus on misdemeanors that are ac­ tually worthy of that name, instead of offer­ ing up their constituents as casualties of the war on drugs. If you like what you read, but don’t live in the Cincinnati area, you can subscribe to Streetvibes. Call us at 513-421-7803 x 12 to learn more about subscribing to Streetvibes. �6 Local News STREETVIBES May 15 - 31, 2010 Painter Joins UN Appeals Tribunal Continued from page 1 $600 per night. “We found a hotel that was $250 per overruled on this first recommenda­ night, which was the best we were able tion,” Painter says. “They believed my to do,” Painter says. “You could not fall being a Republican would be a major in the room without hitting the bed.” factor and would queer the deal.” The court only has one law clerk for But prominent Democrats, includ­ seven judges. ing Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland, State Sen. “We don’t even have office space Eric Kearney – whose wife attended in New York,” Painter says. “The UN law school with Obama – and Cincin­ Building is closed for three years for nati Mayor Mark Mallory, wrote letters renovations. Their offices are spread­ urging Painter’s selection. ing all over Manhattan.” “That neutralized the RepublicanThe United Nations Appeals Tribu­ Democrat thing,” Painter says. nal replaces a system of administra­ U.S. Sen. George Voinovich and for­ tive review for personnel complaints. mer U.S. Rep. Rob Portman, both Re­ “They called the last step a tribunal publicans, also urged Obama to nomi­ but it wasn’t a court because its deci­ nate Painter. sions were only recommendations to But that was just the first step. Paint­ your boss,” Painter says. “That’s not er was one of 200 judges from around necessarily a justice system.” the world who applied for the new In 2006 a blue-ribbon panel made court. Next came a two-hour exam at up of representatives of staff and man­ The Hague, in the Netherlands. Judge Mark Painter with United Mations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. agement came up with the new sys­ “They said you would have to study,” Photo courtesy of UNAT. tem, including a trial court and UNAT, Painter says. “I hadn’t taken an exam the appeals court. since the bar exam in ’73. They gave us a fact scenario, complex cases from the Although UNAT’s jurisdiction is limited to personnel issues, not criminal old system, staff rules that applied and said, ‘Write an opinion.’ The next day, matters, the first cases have already included the kind of drama that make law in the interview, they picked apart your opinion.” stimulating – and give a writer of Painter’s caliber ample fodder. Even when his The final hurdle was winning election to the court. That meant convincing writing is restrained, it is telling. Consider the opinion he wrote in the matter the UN General Assembly. of Mohammed Bustanji, who wanted to win back his job as a maintenance “I had never been at the United Nations Building until I went there to cam­ supervisor with the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the paign in March of last year,” Painter says. “How do you campaign – put yard Near East (UNRWA). signs in the building?” “Suffice it to say that Bustanji was accused of making grossly improper ad­ Not exactly. Instead, Rice organized diplomatic receptions for fellow ambas­ vances to the wife of another UN employee,” Painter wrote. sadors. In another case – a pension fight whose international drama began with a “The American ambassador lives at the top of the Waldorf, which is very marriage certificate in Cincinnati and a “questionable” divorce in Cameroon – nice,” Painter says. “I got to talk to almost every European delegate. Susan Rice Painter’s opinion asserts the new court’s independence. did a lot of talking. She said it was very important to President Obama that I “Though the U.S. Probate Court finding is certainly not binding on this be elected.” court,” he writes, “it is evidence that we find credible.” Rice is one of three U.S. representatives with ambassadorial status at the That sentence also captures something of Painter’s legal persona: He be­ UN. lieves in plain talk, common sense and following rules. “All three of them worked the phones,” Painter says. “They really wanted an The United Nations has about 60,000 employees, including peacekeepers, American on the court.” with access to the UN’s new judicial system. Painter says UNAT expects to hear about 120 cases a year. ‘Suffice it to say’ The new court has made clear that it will be expeditious. Scheduled to hear 27 cases in its first session, UNAT decided 33. Being a United Nations judge is among the most prestigious judicial posts “The staff was shocked, because some of them had been with the old sys­ in the world but it isn’t especially lucrative. The job is “piece work,” as Painter tem,” Painter says. “They hadn’t been used to working with professional judges. puts it: Judges are paid by the case. The old system sometimes took a decade or more to get cases through. We’ve Painter has a pension for his long years as a judge in Ohio. He also gives taken the position that the time deadlines in the new system are just that – seminars on legal writing to attorneys around the world. deadlines.” “I’ll make more money on that than I will at the UN,” he says. And so it was that Mohammed Bustanji, who had made “grossly improper Painter’s colleagues will actually fare better than he. advances,” lost his last appeal. He was late on the paperwork – twice. The new “The U.S. is one of the few countries that taxes UN pay, so my colleagues court will have nothing of it. won’t have to pay taxes,” he says. “Bustanji has filed a time-barred appeal of a time-barred appeal,” Painter’s Traveling to Geneva for work might sound glamorous, but prices there out- ruling says. “He has provided no explanation for either delay; he does not com­ pace the per diem paid by the UN for expenses. ment on UNRWA’s argument that the case must be dismissed. It must, and we “Geneva has absolutely outrageous prices,” Painter says. do.” Breakfast could cost almost $50, a pint of beer $9, he says. One hotel was �STREETVIBES May 15 - 31, 2010 7 Local News Picking on Poor People Downtown Cincinnati Inc. goes after panhandlers By GrEGory FlannEry editor N ote to Downtown Cincinnati Inc.: It is legal to put money in your bank ac­ count unless you have embezzled it. It is legal to drive a Mercedes Benz unless you are drunk. It is legal to have sex unless your partner says no. Downtown Cincinnati Inc. (DCI) is distribut­ ing cards discouraging people from giving money to panhandlers. Headlined “Know the Facts,” the cards open by saying, “In summary, it is legal to panhandle except …” There follows a litany of Cincinnati’s panhandling restrictions. Asking strangers for help is protected as free This is the language rejected by Downtown Cincinnati, Inc. speech under the U.S. Constitution, according to the Supreme Court. Moreover, giving to beggars is DCI rejected the Homeless Coalition’s language. But DCI had to considered virtuous in nearly every faith tradition. Prophet Muham­ back down on a “feel good” closing to its anti-panhandling pitch. Its mad commanded almsgiving. Jesus of Nazareth told his disciples to original language listed the names and phone numbers of homeless beg for their sustenance. The Buddha begged. Jews consider giving shelters and food pantries that people could support instead of giv­ to beggars a mitzvah or good deed. Even so, beggars have been per­ ing dimes to penniless beggars on the sidewalk. But those organiza­ secuted in every age and almost every place. Thus, DCI’s effort to dis­ tions wanted nothing to do with DCI’s attack on panhandlers, and courage kindness has lots of unholy precedent. DCI dropped them from the literature. When DCI was preparing its anti-panhandler cards, the Greater DCI also agreed to a demand by the Homeless Coalition to drop a Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless proposed alternative lan­ photo of an unkempt beggar. But the card’s intent is plain: “It’s legal guage. The alternative listed facts about homelessness: Sixty percent to panhandle except …” of people who experience homelessness work daily, and only 1 per­ DCI hasn’t said whether it will issue instructional postcards on cent regularly panhandle … The fastest growing demographic with­ other themes. The opportunities are endless: It is legal to vote unless in homelessness is families with children … The primary causes of you have already cast a ballot in the same election. It is legal to enter homelessness are lack of affordable housing and living-wage employ­ a home at 4 a.m. unless it belongs to someone else and you don’t have ment. permission … A Film for a Time of Rebellion Howard Zinn takes on American history By corEy GiBson Contributing Writer I n the film Good Will Hunting, Matt Da­ mon’s character, Will Hunting, says, “If you want to read a real history book, read Howard Zinn's People’s History of the United States. That book will knock you on your ass.” And he was right. The People Speak, a film inspired by Zinn’s book, A People’s History of the United In one of the best States, captures the history of America and the strug­ performances in the film, Christina gle people went through to Kirk reads Susan overcome unfair treatment and achieve equality. B. Anthony’s Zinn – a radical historian, refusal in court to pay a $100 fine activist and teacher who died in January at age 87 – for trying to cast a ballot before the and director Chris Moore use spoken word and song 19th Amendment to tell the story of America to the U.S. Constitution gave in The People Speak. But in­ stead of looking at history the women the as it is usually presented, right to vote. through the eyes of presi­ dents and military generals, Zinn looks at history through the eyes of the radicals, the poor, the slaves, the feminists, the anti-war protesters and many more. The film asks us to change the way we see America. It asks us to forget what our history books have told us and to see the real history of America. To tell the stories of these people, actors and songwriters read from court transcripts, sing songs written by slaves and read speeches that changed the course of American history. The cast is well stocked, with actors such as Morgan Freeman and Sean Penn and musicians such as Bruce Springsteen and Bob Dylan. Each reads a piece of written history with emotion and pas­ sion. Unlike the celebrities reading their words, the people who wrote much of what is read in the movie are people unknown to most Ameri­ cans. Benjamin Bratt reads a letter from J.W. Loguen, a former slave, who writes sarcastical­ ly to his master that he will never return to slav­ ery even if his former owner wants him to. Da­ vid Strathairn reads abolitionist John Brown’s remarks to the court after being sentenced to death for the raid on Harper’s Ferry, trying to launch an armed insurrection to end slavery. Other names and speeches are a bit more fa­ miliar, for example, Muhammad Ali’s speech to reporters stating he was not going to fight in the Vietnam War because the war is here in Ameri­ ca. Morgan Freeman reads an angry speech by Frederick Douglass about the hypocrisy of the Fourth of July. He was upset because the Unit­ ed States was celebrating its freedom and inde­ pendence, while more than four million people were being kept as slaves In one of the best performances in the film, Christina Kirk reads Susan B. Anthony’s refusal in court to pay a $100 fine for trying to cast a ballot before the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution gave the women the right to vote. The readings, coupled with video images and newsreels, show, “The rise of America came from the bottom, not the top,” Zinn, the film’s narrator, says. He also says America’s his­ tory is tyrannical and one of great wars, mass killings and expansion for money, yet a single rebellious group can bring about great change in a mighty nation. Rebellions brought about the New Deal, civil rights, women’s rights and many other aspects of our history; America was formed by its own people rebelling. The film, shown April 23 at the University of Cincinnati by the International Socialist Orga­ nization, was followed by a discussion that fo­ cused on the present state of the government and the ways we as people can step up, as the people in the film had, and make the changes we want. The film seemed to inspire everyone in the room. Discussion also turned to the edu­ cation system and new legislation in Arizona that is biased against people of Mexican de­ scent. The audience seemed energetic and positive. One person said, “We are capable of creating a society we enjoy and can be together in.” �8 STREETVIBES May 15 - 31, 2010 Recipe “Feed Me, Seymour, Feed Me All Night Long…” Scrumptious Idaho Potato Soup Serving Size: 4-5 bellies. 12 oz. veggie broth 6-7 large Idaho potatoes peeled and cubed (type depends on pref­ erence. Russet is the least expensive.) 2 tablespoons olive oil 2 tablespoons butter (optional) 1 yellow onion skinned and chopped in ½ slices 4 cloves garlic, minced 2-3 fresh celery, sliced 1-2 carrot, diced 16 oz heavy whipping cream (or a milk substitute for vegans) Salt and pepper to taste • Photo by Jeni Jenkins. • By JEni JEnkins Staff Writer • M y former supervisor, Pat Mac, passed this scrumptious soup rec­ ipe on to me. A food connoisseur like me, he frequently came to work boasting about the “best meal” he made the night before and more often than not proceeded to elicit my hunger by describing in detail how he prepared each dish. It was a morning ritual. This soup interested me as I had tried to concoct my own potato soup recipes with haphazard success. I remember I jotted each ingredient on a cocktail napkin, which I still have hid­ den away in my recipe book today. Now I make it frequently for my family, especially on cool days. It’s super easy and inexpensive. This recipe appears to be the only dish I make for which both my children ask for seconds or thirds and then proceed to lick their bowls clean. • • • • • • In large stockpot, bring veggie broth and potatoes to boil. Cover, turn to low heat and simmer 30 minutes stirring frequently to keep potatoes from sticking. Once potatoes have simmered 15 minutes, heat oil and butter in a large skillet over medium-low heat and sauté the onion and garlic 3-4 minutes until the onions turn translucent. Add celery and carrots to the onions and garlic and sauté an ad­ ditional 2 minutes. Add sautéed veggies to potatoes in stockpot and stir. Continue simmering about 10 minutes. Turn stockpot heat up slightly to medium-low and slowly mix in the cream. Cook 5 minutes, stirring constantly in a figure 8 pattern to keep from scorching the cream. Add salt and pepper and other preferred spices. Serve while hot. For an added yum factor, serve with rolls, bis­ cuits or Italian bread. Voila, FEED! Artwork By Anthony Williams ! ? t ha W y Sa ___________________ Women, who are a majority of the peoples of the earth, are indispensable to the accumulation of the kind of social capital that is conducive to development, peace, justice and civility. -- Mahnaz Afkhami �STREETVIBES May 15 - 31, 2010 9 Poetry Page Shutter Speed Eye of the Storm By alli cryDEr Dark light Not bright Confused by the site Am I here? Are we here? Is this where we’re supposed to be? Thoughts racin’ Time’s changin’ My mind’s a lacin’ The room quiet Filled with this unknown happy tension I sit, and ponder I walk, over yonder How long could they be in this storm? The invisible thunder crashing upon their innocence The colorless lightning striking their indestructible smile If only, if only they knew They are the future They are the light They are the way out I’m looking through the eyes of the voiceless Their sparkle gets me lost Am I here? Are we here? Is this where we’re supposed to be? They’re trapped Stuck in this life where they had no choice But their dreams have no barriers They are the carriers Of this forgotten light They are the eye of the storm What’s Going On By Willa D. JonEs Students at the University of Cincinnati made peanut butter and jelly sandwiches April 29 during WorldFest Week on campus. Intended to increase student awareness of homelessness and poverty in Cincinnati, the project was sponsored by Serve Beyond Cincinnati, which organizes service trips to help improve living conditions around the world, according to Mark Teschauer, the group’s vice president. Teschauer said the sandwiches went to the Drop Inn Center and other homeless shelters and soup kitchens in the city. Photo by Jon Hughes/ Photopresse. What’s going on asked 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 were born in sin you and me Forgetting each day to let live and let love Forgetting to give all praises due to God from above Everyone needs to take time out to pray And ask God to forgive our sins each and every day To replace hate with peace and love wherever 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 Silence Cleo’s Joke Corner What do you call on an octopus that’s down on its luck? Squid Row. By Willa D. JonEs Silence is something the elders and the people from the old school call golden. Silence is something that, when you are homeless and confused, That is when your silence is stolen. Silence is God’s gift to man to either be quiet and listen Or close one’s mind. You must make a choice. Silence is everybody’s conscience. It is everybody’s chance To simply shut up and listen to God’s voice. �10 STREETVIBES May 15 - 31, 2010 Guest Column Seeking Understanding in OTR Students study 3CDC and poverty By TiM kopEnhaFEr anD FrancEsco DEsalvaTorE Contributing WriterS W hen the first New Voices meeting took place at Princeton High School, David Rosenthal, the New Voices instructor and director of Prairie Gallery, asked us one question: “Why are you doing this?” Answers varied. Some of us had more experience and knowledge with Over-theRhine, while others were less informed. But overall everyone shared a passion to learn and help out the Over-theRhine community. We were told to bring two things – our cameras and ourselves. From there our mission was to use our cameras to document and present the situation at the Metropole Apartments and the efforts of the Cincinnati Center City Development Corp. (3CDC) in Over-the-Rhine. Our first week was met with shock and bewilderment as we walked past Washington Park. Many of us have had the privilege of growing up in picturesque suburbs and have never experienced poverty to such an extent. It was unsettling in a way, and we felt slightly uncomfortable with our expensive cameras. As we got used to this new reality, we began to gain confidence and understanding to capture the scenes laid out before us. We began to realize that we were not documenting Over-the-Rhine as a group of students but as individuals Photo by Tim Kopenhafer. with different perspectives and mindsets. Week one of our project began with a tour of the Drop Inn Center. We were shown all of their facilities and had a discussion with the staff about how one ends up in a place like the Drop Inn Cen­ ter. Whether it’s due to alco­ holism or the loss of a job, people at the Drop Inn Cen­ ter have experienced some of the harshest realities life has to offer. One of the most important things that we no- ticed at the Drop Inn Center was the lack of support that the city has shown. In the coming year, the new School for the Creative and Perform- ing Arts building will be com- pleted and some believe the Drop Inn Center will have to change locations, regardless of the fact that it has been at the same location for many years. In addition to the tour of the Drop Inn Center, Over­ the-Rhine resident Bonnie Neumeier also gave us a tour of the community. She reiterated some of the things that we had seen and heard at the Drop Inn Center. The city has continued to ignore the poverty problem in Overthe-Rhine and has instead stepped aside to let 3CDC continue constructing new buildings in the area. Week three of our project consisted of a tour of two buildings being renovated by 3CDC. We were able to see what kinds of apartments were being built and get the developer’s perspective. It was very clear from the beginning that the workers had no real connection to the area and had probably never spoken to a resident of Overthe-Rhine. They were very enthusiastic and praised the Photo by Francesco DeSalvatore. luxurious apartments that were being built, but not once did they mention how it would benefit the residents of Over-the-Rhine. There seemed to be a clear divide on Vine Street between 3CDC buildings and the rest of Over-the-Rhine. The difference between one end of the street and the other was quite surreal. Obviously, the people moving into these flats were not Over-the-Rhine residents but people from elsewhere. While it’s always a good sign to see business move into a neighborhood, it doesn’t solve all of the problems. Over-theRhine has an immense poverty issue and 3CDC is simply invading Over-the-Rhine, not moving in. After our time in Over-the- Rhine, our group went to the Metropole Apartments, where low-income housing is offered. 3CDC recently bought the building and is planning to open a hotel there. 3CDC has offered the residents $400 if they relocate. Immanuel, a long time resident of one of the low-income apartments, gave us a tour of the historic building. He explained to us that 3CDC was forcing Metropole residents to move and that the apartments they were offering residents were in communities that had high crime and poverty. Many of the residents have not only been fortunate enough to live in the center of Cincinnati, but are also able to live in low-income housing, something that is uncom- mon in the downtown area. This has made it very hard for the residents to move out because they have become so comfortable with the area. In addition to visiting the Metropole, we traveled to Louisville, Ky., to visit an apartment complex operated by 21C, the company that will operate the new hotel at the Metropole. 21C is a hotel developer known for its commitment to modern art and luxury. 21C likes to display local modern art and also work with the community to de­ velop art within the city. The vice president of 21C said the company is excited to build a hotel in Cincinnati and is confident it will be success­ ful. After seeing and hearing both sides, it is still unclear if the residents at the Metropole are being treated fairly. There have been many construction companies that have simply evicted their residents with­ out even offering another op­ tion, however 3CDC’s option is not one viewed with much favor. From the beginning of this project, our goal was to find our opinion about the situation in Over-the-Rhine and at the Metropole and then show it through our im­ ages. While there is still a lot to learn, it is very clear that Cincinnati has failed to deal with the poverty in Over-theRhine. Until the city does so, it will be very difficult to dis­ cuss the possibility of chang­ ing Over-the-Rhine for the better. Tim Kopenhafer and Francesco DeSalvatore are seniors at Princeton High School. The work from New Voices will be presented at The Coffee Emporium May 28 and remain on display through June. �STREETVIBES May 15 - 31, 2010 11 Issues Facebooking the Facts Two college students take on the network media By ariana shahanDEh Contributing Writer A few months ago I sent an invitation on Facebook to about a quarter of the people on my friends’ list. I thought they’d appreciate an effort to recognize a political leader's posi­ tive contributions. The invitation was to join a group called “Accom­ plishments of President Barack Obama.” The next day my inbox was full of mixed responses. One message that stood out was, “You know Obama, like, deleted habeas corpus, right?” What followed was an extensive online conversation during which I had to minimize my browser window several times to verify claims my friend had made and hastily recheck claims I intended to make. Ultimately, we both walked away in civility, thinking about quota­ tions, policies and legislation we hadn’t originally known about. However, with such a charged subject, I can’t imagine what kind of interchange it would have become had we not had other resources in front of us. Or maybe I can. It might have been similar to the interactions between guests and hosts on Sunday morning news shows such as Meet the Press with host David Gregory. An online fact-checking group, Meet the Facts, recently started raising awareness about the amount of misinformation that goes unchecked. “This whole issue is kind of like a sore – a sore on the media,” says Paul Breer, co-founder of Meet the Facts. “When people go on Meet the Press, it’s anything goes. They can say whatever they want. Sure, every once in a while Gregory will call them out on it, but the guests know what they can get away with when they appear.” NYU Journalism Professor Jay Rosen laid out a simple plan on his blog to rectify the “anything goes” attitude on most Sunday morning shows: a post-show fact-checking session on Sunday, publishing the results online Wednesday. “The beauty of this idea is that it turns the biggest weakness of po­ litical television into a kind of strength,” Rosen writes. “The format beckons (guests) to evade, deny, elide, demagogue and confuse. … But then they pay for it later if they give into temptation and make that choice.” There were two major responses to Rosen’s post from the Sunday shows. Jake Tapper, temporary host of This Week on ABC, embraced the idea and is now collaborating with the Pulitzer Prize-winning fact-check source, Politifact.com. Gregory, however, brushed off the idea, telling Washington Post columnist Howard Kurtz, "People can fact-check Meet the Press every week on their own terms." Breer, a political-science student from Colorado, was inspired by Rosen’s suggestion and started a Facebook group, Meet the Facts, as a grassroots effort to urge Gregory and Meet the Press to embrace the pro­ posal. Shortly thereafter, Chas Danner, a journalism student from Brooklyn, approached Breer on Facebook about de­ veloping a site for the project. Far before the Meet the Facts Facebook group reached 600 members, Breer and Danner’s grassroots effort rapidly received media commentary and coverage, even a nine-minute segment on The Colbert Report. When asked why he thinks press coverage has become a popular issue, Breer said, “It’s such a cool subject (to the media), you know, because it’s about them. (And) to see that two young college kids, that aren’t 50­ plus, are interested in this, has really grabbed their attention.” After nearly a week of being ignored by Gregory and Meet the Press, Breer and Danner gave in to many supporters’ requests that Meet the Facts facilitate the fact checking for Meet the Press. Meet the Facts posted its first fact check on April 28, “to see how difficult it would be for a team of three people, amateurs really, to try to do the job of professional journalists – the job Meet The Press is so far unwilling to do,” Danner wrote. Since then, Meet the Facts has incorporated crowd-sourcing factcheck efforts from Twitter followers, Facebook supporters and any­ one else interested in being a part of the project. Although it is not likely most of the Sunday morning viewers will look online through­ out the week for results, the goal is to at least create some conse­ quences if guests deliberately make false claims on the air. “The fact check might, over time, exert some influence on the speakers on Sunday,” Rosen’s original proposal said. “At the very least, it would guide the producers in their decisions about whom to invite back.” But I disagree. At the very least, we might, over time, be able to ex­ pect the hosts of Sunday morning shows to guarantee their profes­ sional platform is more sophisticated than a Facebook interchange between two amateurs. Letter to the Editor kept getting bills and sent proof of my insurance to them and called them three Employed and Homeless or four times. My sister and brother-in-law thought I should be ashamed of having to To the Editor: This is for Margo Pierce. I read her cover story in the Contributor, “Being Homeless is Illegal” (see the March 1 edition of Streetvibes). I have wanted to tell my story for a long time. I contacted the local news and so did some of my newfound friends back then, but no one was interested in my story. My home was foreclosed on in April 2006. From April to October 2006, I tried the weekly-rate places. I finally found some who would rent to me and let me pay part and part. It was a duplex/townhouse type place. Bad move. The owners did not keep the property up; and during the winter of 2006, with my heat on 80 degrees, I had two to three inches of ice on the inside of the windows and a light bill I could not pay. On April 1 or 2, 2007, I went to the women's mission. There is more but it would take too long. I know from personal experience there are homeless women who actually have jobs, but due to their income they cannot get enough together to get back into a place to call home. Like me, I did not make enough to get back in a place, but yet I made too much to qualify for assistance. It works the same way today. I make like $20 too much to get help with utilities, but in the winter I don't make enough to pay them current. I am usually two to three months behind. It is hard to pay it all and still have food. But I will be back into a place to call home two years come July. The way I got back into a place was because of my yearly longevity, income tax refund and new friends. And thank God because of the economy some utility companies have been more understanding, if you talk to the right person to make arrange­ ments. And one thing I learned during my homelessness: Your old friends who were for you when things were good are not there when things are bad. I recall one incident while staying at the Women's Mission in May of 2007, over the Memorial Day weekend. I went to bed with a headache, thought it would go away once I got some sleep. Woke up about 3 a.m. it was just a pound­ ing. I asked the mission staff to call 911. When the medics arrived, by it being the mission, they assumed I was homeless, with no job or insurance. When they found out, a female medic's reply was, “I thought only drug addicts, etc. stayed here.” I let her know there were several women there who had jobs. She apologized. It took me months to get Metro Ambulance to file my insurance. I spend time at the mission and losing my home. And that is another interesting story as well. No contact with me for 10 years by her choice – then out of the blue, my brother-in-law calls. Even to this day, since I work downtown, if I come across a lady I knew from the mission, I will speak and take the time to ask how are they. I also know what it is like to have pets and be homeless as well. I know how those from Tent City feel. Barbara F. Duke Nashville, Tenn. Have something on your mind? Do you agree or disagree with an article? Let us know: 117 E. 12th Street 1 Cincinnati, Ohio 45202 1 streetvibes2@yahoo.com �12 STREETVIBES May 15 - 31, 2010 Short Story We the Jury Adventures in the Hamilton County justice system By MichaEl FanninG Contributing Writer dressed older woman who seems the typical sidekick to a person of this sort, meek and comparatively quiet. I dub these women Fat Man and Little Boy respectively, despite the sex discrepancy. Part I: Waiting I flip through the “Juror’s Handbook.” It is only a few pages, outlining how we are chosen for juries and what to expect. It informs us we will ’ve always wanted to send somebody to the Chair. My fantasies be paid $19 per diem and warns, “Don’t try to discover evidence on your usually feature myself in the small, tension-filled deliberating own.” Fat Man cackles as I leaf through it. room, being the lone “not guilty” in a room full of vindictive snapBy 9 o’clock 40 or 50 people are in the waiting room. There’s quite a va­ decision makers. My fellow jurors then give me the look of death because riety of characters. They range from Fat Man and Little Boy to a few men lunch will now have to be ordered in. who look like retired four star generals or CEOs. The latter group clearly “It was the right thing to do,” I’d tell my grandchildren, they gazing looks disappointed to be here as they watch the drooling and unkempt at me with admiration, having heard my story a thousand times before leaf through their handbooks while simultaneously keeping an eye out from other admirers. Would they, too possess, my strength of character if for Sam Waterston. the need presented itself? A beautiful young blond woman enters the waiting room. She is stun­ Needless to say, these fantasies never involved petty crimes, like a ning, the kind of woman who makes you want to slay a dragon. From lady kicking a cop in the shins or some lunatic exposing himself to the all directions of the room, disheveled men descend on her. She wears a public library’s children’s department. Oh, no. I’m at skimpy black top with spaghetti straps and her arrival Nuremberg. I’m at the Scopes Monkey Trial sweltering is the most interesting turn of events thus far. That in tweed, watching the veins in William Jennings Bryan’s The thought that this man interest abates somewhat when her cell phone rings temples swell. out to the tune of “Jump Around” by House of Pain. Fat could be deciding the fate I have shaped history with my verdict – or at least of another human being in Man cackles. watched the accused writhe in nervous agony as we, the I have brought a book with me in case there is noth­ a court of law makes me jury, file back into the box. blanch. However, he might ing to read. My fears were in vain. There is an extraor­ Guilty, not guilty, life, death, 20, 40, 60 years, to be have been making a public dinary selection of magazines available on all conceiv­ served concurrently, consecutively, whatever. But I had display of his cognitive im- able topics. The selection includes Health, Cooking never done it for real. potence in an attempt to be Light, Fitness, Symphony, In Style, Country, Travel and When I received my first summons to appear for jury Leisure, Vanity Fair, Entertainment Weekly, People, Betexcused from duty. duty, it was an oversized postcard with a perforated ter Homes and Gardens, Field and Stream, National questionnaire to be taken to the jury commissioner’s of­ Geographic, Golf, Fortune, Redbook, Sports Illustrated, fice. The questionnaire asked how many people were in my household, Parenting, Fashion Rocks Inc. Popular Science, Time, This Old House, Town my income bracket and whether my employer would compensate me and Country, Woman’s Day, Money, Business, 2.0, Southern Living, Southwhile I was serving. ern Living Home Companion, Family Circle, In Touch, Gourmet, Real Sim“Just tell ’em no,” my immediate supervisor told me. “That’ll get ya ple, GQ, Vogue, Good Housekeeping, Gardens Illustrated, Small Gardens, off.” Smithsonian, Cincinnati Magazine, Backyard Living, Great Backyards, Us Though I would be compensated, I realized this could be an effective and Martha Stewart Living. There is also Highlights (for those soon to be way to get out of serving. But I was too excited at the prospect of being excused from duty). part of a jury, getting to see a real case unfold before me. Not to men­ There are Reader’s Digest condensed books as well. I have never picked tion the fact that I wanted a short vacation from my job, which I loathed, up a condensed book, but I imagine Treasure Island with the character along with my immediate supervisor. of Jim omitted or Tom Clancy novels cut to an appropriate length. I also imagine adding water to a condensed book and having all the edited text Where’s Waterston? suddenly reappear. I We start at 8 a.m. on a Tuesday. There are so many signs inside the courthouse telling prospective jurors where to go that it would be im­ possible, save for blindness or illiteracy, to become lost. The jury com­ missioner’s office is nothing more than a large waiting room with a few small offices for secretaries and the commissioner himself. The waiting room resembles a small movie theater with six rows of interconnected black plastic seats. These seats face a bare white wall, and the U.S. and Ohio flags adorn either corner. There are no windows, for reasons which will seem obvious before long. I choose the seat with the least amount of dandruff. People trickle in and seats begin to fill. For some time the room is vir­ tually silent until two women enter and seat themselves in the front row. They are having a loud conversation, but it becomes clear after a minute that only one of them is doing the talking. She is morbidly obese, walks with a cane and looks and is dressed like an aged Janis Joplin. She must be about 50. Her voice reverberates in the quiet room, and after every sentence she cackles madly. The sound is obnoxious and shrill, a sort of “YAAAAA, HA, HA, HA, HAAAAA, HA,HA!” With her is a petite, neatly Empty jury box. REUTERS/Fred Prouser. Courtroom fashion Nineteen dollars per day. My immediate supervisor, who had served on a jury the previous year, told me that, at that amount, after the cost of food and parking, I’d be in the hole by the end of the week. I had to re­ mind him that, while working for him, after the cost of food and parking, I am well acquainted with said hole. I have no idea if any of the other people are being compensated by their employers for this civic duty or have to rely on the 19 bucks. The retired CEOs would survive, but I imagine some others could be hard hit. When handing in our questionnaires, I caught a Glimpse of Fat Man’s paper; she had checked “Disabled” and “Less than $10,000 per year income.” I would be sympathetic but her incessant cackling, which has been going on for more than an hour, only makes me want to disable her further. At last the jury commissioner comes to address us. He tells us to scoot forward and fill the remaining seats, as more will be joining us shortly. Looking around the room at our motley crew, I think we resemble an enormous bus stop. The commissioner is a profoundly congenial man, 50ish, with a thick head of silver hair. I must admit that – no doubt to the thrill of more than a few in the room – he looks just like Sam Waterston. He thanks us profusely for serving and not coming up with lame ex­ cuses for not showing up. He explains that we will sit in this room until our names are called over the intercom to begin jury selection for a case. If for some reason we cannot sit in on a case – if we know the cops involved or went to high school with the defendant and hated his guts, etc. – we will return to this room until called again. Jury duty can last as long as two weeks, depend­ ing on the cases. The issue parking is addressed, and we are told which lots offer discounted rates to jurors. These lots are all a good 10-minute walk or more from the court­ house. The commissioner then pushes a TV to the front of the room and begins a tape that, he says, will last, “Sixteen minutes and 10 seconds.” The tape reit­ erates everything he’s just explained to us. A Q&A session follows the video. The first question is from a heavyset man in the back row who gruffly asks, “Why aren’t the names of the discount parking lots just printed on the summons card we all received See Jury, p. 13 �STREETVIBES May 15 - 31, 2010 Short Story We the Jury Continued from page 12 13 being read. The man on the phone goes on and on, yelling something about pressure readings or release valves. I am left to assume that the in the mail?” This is an excellent question; but, as the commissioner po­ party on the other end is either in a boiler room or perhaps in the boiler. litely points out, the addresses are printed on the summons card. In fact, A few minutes pass and I begin to feel bad about my attitude toward the addresses – and directions to the garages from all the major high­ my companion on the phone. He’s given up his time – profitable work ways, as well as the rates – comprise 95 percent of the text on the card. time – to be here to serve, darn it. Doesn’t he deserve my respect? People The thought that this man from the back row could be deciding the fate might need to talk to their employers and employees while waiting, and of another human being in a court of law makes me blanch. However, it I shouldn’t get so irritable. Here, in this moment, I feel a sudden bond later occurs to me that he might have been making a public display of his with my fellow citizens that I hadn’t felt up to this point. I am proud to be cognitive impotence in an attempt to be excused from duty. If this were here. Proud to serve with each and every one of them. the case, kudos! Though they be decrepit, bizarre or without a nerve in The commissioner pulls no punches about jury duty. The pay is “not their body, we are all on the same team now. Anything The waiting room great,” there is a lot of tedious waiting; but, he assures us in the same they want to do is fine with me, and I will leave my is church-quiet warm manner with which he has informed us of everything else, our ser­ snobbish attitude at the door. now. Fat Man vice is greatly appreciated, and we are the very heart of the American Jus­ Then the TV is pushed to the front of the room. Is and Little Boy tice System. He means it, and you can tell. this some sort of a plot? Can’t they handle quiet? An- are sleeping – or We are also informed that our pay can be donated to various organiza­ other day without TV is apparently too much to ask of someone has tions, charities, and even to the Justice Center itself. The commissioner this crew. A man with no fingers on his right hand has blackjacked them, expounds on the impact these programs have had citywide since their positioned the TV, turned it on and flopped into the I guess. inception. The United Way has benefitted greatly as has the courthouse, seat in front of it. Divorce Court is on, followed by Texwhich uses the money for, among other things, better accommodations as Justice. I watch for a few minutes with a look that re­ for the jurors. Programs have also been started by the Hamilton County flects my disappointment. I look around the room hoping to find similar Justice Center to help local youths set goals for themselves, and otherwise looks of distaste and intrusion. But what do I find? They are enraptured turn them away from the path to prison, upon which they have already by the programs. There are giggles and cathartic grins when the judge begun to tread. I donate nothing. comes up with a witty slam. The dress code, the commissioner explains, can be anything that I close my book and go to the restroom to purge something. The fat guy would be appropriate to wear in a courtroom. He directs a glance at the at the end of the row stands as I pass. spaghetti strapped blond, which seems to mean, “We won’t be wearing Two hours go by. that again, will we?” The TV is still on, and everyone is watching except the spaghettistrapped hottie (today wearing a brown long sleeved sweater) who ap­ Lost in space pears to be watching nothing at all. No wonder there’s not a window in this place, for I would surely be crawling out of it and leaping onto Syca­ At 10:30 a.m. the commissioner takes his leave. more Street. My fall, no doubt, would be cushioned by hundreds of dis­ I read for over an hour. Becoming a little drowsy, I decide to close my carded jurors’ handbooks. book and observe those around me. The waiting room is church-quiet Not a single call yet for a jury selection. Yesterday they had called two now. Fat Man and Little Boy are sleeping – or someone has blackjacked by now. them, I guess. I have to admit I love the idea of this jury thing so far. I’ll I excuse myself from the aisle again, this time to sample the hot choco­ catch up on some books, sit in on a case or two, all the while getting paid late in the next room. There is also coffee, but I know that as soon as I by my boss. What more could anyone ask? finish a cup I’ll be called for a lengthy trial. It is easy for A few minutes later, 20 names are called over the in­ me to picture myself sitting in the jurors’ box, needing tercom. I am not among them. These people get up and She is stunning, the kind desperately to urinate and urging the judge to declare file out of the room. of woman who makes you a mistrial, which I’m pretty sure the handbook says is Most people are reading at this point. Some have want to slay a dragon. From not allowed. In the last few years this need to urinate brought their own books, some read from the stagger­ all directions of the room, after coffee is no ordinary urge, but a compulsion, ing selection of magazines. No one reads the condensed disheveled men descend sudden and violent. This is one of the many treats of books. Most of the books from home are James Pat­ getting older I have recently experienced, along with upon her. terson’s now co-written travesties or Nicholas Sparks profuse hair loss and marriage. books like The Notebook. Women read these; men read The hot chocolate is pretty good. Seating myself the magazines. Some of the men sleep in their chairs, and some sit and again, I notice that Texas Justice has been served and the TV is off. People do nothing. The man next to me seems perfectly content to stare at the are beginning to look restless, and I don’t blame them. Blond Hottie looks walls. He is well dressed, looks educated and yet apparently has the ca­ frazzled. Her head darts from side to side like a cornered animal. pacity to shift his brain into such a low gear that he can pass the time in The overhead speaker pops to life with an announcement that it is this manner. He’s been at it for over an hour. I am reminded of 2001 A time for our lunch hour. It is most welcome news, although the thought Space Odyssey: The crew are kept in a sort of suspended animation during of returning afterward will be tough to stomach. We are instructed to re­ the interminable voyage to Jupiter, because there simply isn’t anything to port back in a timely manner. do. It’s like that. I pass my hand in front of his eyes – nothing. Soon another large group of people are called for cases. Again I am not Don’t touch that dial picked. Why am I reminded of the fifth grade? The worst part about the layout of the waiting room is made clear when After a $5 meatball hoagie from Subway, which feels like a sleeping rac­ having to get up for something. In this case, the waiting room is exactly coon in my stomach, I reluctantly climb the marble stairs to report back like a movie theater. Legs have to be retracted, magazines go flat against to purgatory. The fingerless man has turned on the TV again and for the the chest. The heavyset man at the end of my row has to stand as I pass next hour will be watching a show about safety in the workplace and the to use the restroom. environmental responsibility of major corporations. It is stultifying. The Upon arriving back at my seat, there is an announcement that no other whole thing has the production value of one of those instructional vid­ juries will be selected today, and we are to return in the morning. eos you watch when you get a low-paying job (like jury duty). Monotone voices give lifeless testimonies of what life in their small town before such The urge to jump and such company came along, put up a factory and killed off the perch population. The next day only 23 of us are in the waiting room. I had debated After a time I observe the fingerless man. He is seated in front of the TV whether to bring my book for the second day, figuring I could just kill again but is clearly not watching it. His head is resting on his shoulder. He the half hour or so before my group is assigned to a case by perusing the is obviously asleep. The program is maddening and impossible to ignore boggling array of trade-specific magazines. I’m glad I brought my book. as the volume is way up. I consider being bold enough to turn it off, but I Little did I know that, before actually getting a case, I would have time to get a look from the fat guy at the end of my aisle that means, “Don’t even start crocheting an afghan. think about it.” How can there possibly be nothing else to watch? Where’s More than an hour passes and I take a break from reading. Aside from Judge Judy, for God’s sake? Fat Man’s periodic outbursts (she wasn’t picked yesterday) the waiting The fingerless man gets up and leaves the room. No one turns off the room is quiet. This place is, of course, not a library, but a certain pro­ TV. tocol has been established, built on mutual respect, to keep the atmo­ A few minutes later I hear the most delightful words I have ever heard sphere tranquil. Silence, we have voted without ballots, is the best mode in my life. Not the “I love you” of a beautiful girl or “We’ve decided to hire for this. you anyway, despite your woeful lack of qualifications.” This is something But, as in all libraries, there are troublemakers. There is a vibrating more meaningful, resonant. It stirs a feeling deep within that, noise to my right, and suddenly the man seated there became engaged in I imagine, was shared by the prisoners of war liberated in the Philip­ the loudest phone conversation I have ever witnessed. Navy flight-deck pines. These words are, “Will the remaining jurors please report to the crews do not shout this loudly. I look around, expecting turning heads hall?” and surly expressions but, to my surprise, no one seems to notice. This After the morning’s viewing pleasure, courtesy of the fingerless man, man’s voice is the only sound in the room – period. However, people take I’m in a salty humor and ready to send somebody to prison. magazines from the bountiful magazine rack as if nothing is amiss. Titles Part II will appear in the June 1 edition. such as Ombudsman Digest and, Roller Coaster Mechanic’s Journal are Michael Fanning lives in Hartwell with his trophy wife, Alex. �14 STREETVIBES May 15 - 31, 2010 Sports The Horns of Kobe Bryant A player fades and an antichrist rises By B. cliFTon BurkE Contributing Writer T he bumps on Kobe's head grew a little more every off-season. Some figured he had developed brain tumors, oth­ ers thought he wore his hats too tight, but no one knew for sure. Kobe himself said he was fine and that he had it checked out regularly by doctors, though their names were never divulged. He admitted that it was a strange condition, but that it was not harming his game or his life and that it didn't hurt. Then, at 35, when he returned to play his 16th season, the horns started to show. At first the bumps opened into small sores and Kobe refused to talk with reporters, covering the openings with bandages and wearing his tight hats more than usual. But the season soon began, and the media pressure became too great. The original reason Kobe gave for the bandages was that he had a skin disorder that had become inflamed. Wild speculation began to circulate that he had contracted a bizarre STD and would soon be dead. Kobe brought out a doctor who said it was a skin disorder that had become inflamed and that he was not expected to die anytime soon. Meanwhile, his play reached new levels. Not only did he average 38.3 points a game after his first 20 games, but to a man, each player Kobe defended said that they had never faced defense that intense. More than one player said Kobe was playing like a man possessed and most wondered how an aged veteran could raise his game so dramatically. Soon the bandages couldn't cover what was happening underneath. The horns were nearly half an inch long and quickly became the worst kept secret in the NBA. The first to talk was teammate Lamar Odom, who grew tired of answering questions about it. “They're horns, all right? Kobe has horns. I don't get it either,” Odom said. The league said Odom was out of hand to make such a farfetched accusation about an­ other player and fined him fifty grand. Kobe's publicist announced via Twitter that Kobe did not have horns and didn't think Odom's statement was funny. Kobe himself had no comment. Then came the clincher. On a Christmas Day game against the Knicks in New York, Kobe, guarded by Jon Wall, took one dribble to the left, made a quick crossover to his right and aggressive­ ly drove the lane. He cocked back his arm and prepared to boom a thunderous dunk when Wall wantonly crashed into him, send­ ing Kobe into the throng of photographers perched just behind the basket. His right bandage fell off when he hit the floor – and his horn was exposed. The players on the court reacted right away. Knicks forward David Lee saw it and sprinted into the locker room. Kobe's teammate Pau Gasol, saw it and refused to play. Eventually, the whole arena saw it on the big screen and freaked out. The refs were flummoxed. They made Kobe leave the game for what was later explained as “concern for his health.” Once Kobe was removed from the game, play re­ sumed but the outcome no longer mattered. It became arguably the most famous NBA game of all time, yet very few remember who won. Afterward, Kobe's publicist once again de­ nied his client had horns. Kobe wouldn't talk to anyone. But it was too late. The cameras had caught it, all those close-up had seen it, and it simply couldn't be mistaken for any­ thing else. They were still just nubs, but they curled upward to a point, almost like an el­ ephant's tusk. There were two of them, and they bulged from his forehead. Kobe had to admit it; he could hide it no longer. He gave a press conference where he wore no bandages on his head for the first time in months. There he displayed both of his horns, which had grown to a full inch. He explained that he didn't know why he had horns, that he was sorry for lying about it and that they still didn't hurt. The world had a hard time dealing with Kobe Bryant growing horns. Many, many people assumed he was the antichrist and some cities experienced riots anticipating Armageddon. Others threatened to kill Kobe if he surfaced, claiming to do so would be to conquer the devil himself. It was determined that it was unsafe for him to play and he was effectively banned in the name of his person­ al welfare. Kobe was furious; he only wanted to play basketball; and even though he was clearly the world's best player, he was not allowed to do so because of his physical abnormality. He sued the NBA under the Americans with Dis­ abilities Act but the court ruled that having horns was not a disability, and he missed the rest of the season. The Lakers barely made the playoffs without him and were swept in the first round. The league itself raised questions, asking if Kobe should even be considered human. The NBA decided that every win Kobe had partic­ ipated in would be upheld but denoted with asterisks, and he would be allowed to play the following season. That seemed to settle the issue. The public furor against him lessened. The news sensation of Kobe and his horns slipped off the front page. He returned for his 17th season brandish­ ing two-inch horns on each side of his fore­ head, but he was not the same player on the court either. He appeared physically smaller and less muscular and lacked his normal ath­ leticism; the Lakers fell out of playoff conten­ tion early on in the season. Once Cleveland finally captured its first championship and LeBron announced he was a homosexual, the world completely forgot about Kobe and his physical oddity. As did the NBA. Once the Lakers cut the former MVP, there weren't any other takers for a 37-year-old veteran with nothing left in his tank and horns on his head. So, with nothing else to do, Kobe went about his busi­ ness of bringing about Armageddon and ful­ filling his actual role of the antichrist. The religious zealots were right after all. Once the end of the world was complete and Kobe could rest comfortably again, someone asked him about what happened that last year of his playing career. “I could have used special powers to play basketball but I never did,” he said. “I always just used my human capabilities. But once everyone found out what I really was, they would never accept me again. Sure, I was al­ lowed to come back. But what did it matter? Any success would have been looked down upon. To fade away like that wasn't what I wanted to do, but it was the human thing to do.” Call to Artists Go Ahead: Ask a Vendor SOS Art 2010 accepting entries Invitation to a dialogue with our readers SOS Art 2010, a group art show and event of sociopolitical expressions for peace and justice, will take place May 28-June 6 at the Art Academy of Cin­ cinnati. Streetvibes vendors see a lot that you might not. For example, some can describe what goes on in an abandoned building at night when they sleep there. Organized by Streetvibes columnist Saad Ghosn, the annual show is in its eighth year. Ghosn writes the bi-weekly column, “Artists as Activists.” (See page 16.) Have you ever wondered what it’s like to stand on a street corner sell­ ing newspapers? That’s hardly a common occupation anymore. Greater Cincinnati artists of all expressions – visual, verbal, musical, cin­ ematographic, etc. – are welcome to participate in SOS Art 2010. All sub­ missions will be considered and all works will be included, provided they adhere to the theme of the show, are inclusive and space permits, Ghosn says. A submission form is required for the visual-art component of the event. Artists of other expressions may submit proposals by e-mail return. Write Saad Ghosn at 216 Erkenbrecher Ave., Cincinnati, Ohio, 45229 or at saad. ghosn@uc.edu. How much money do Streetvibes vendors make – and what do they do with it? Do they have other jobs? If you have questions, some of our vendors would like to answer them. “Go Ahead: Ask a Vendor” will be an occasional feature, with questions submitted by readers and answered by Streetvibes vendors. You may direct your question to a specific vendor or we’ll invite one to respond. Only include your name if you want to. Send questions to streetvibes2@yahoo.com Or to Streetvibes, 117 E. 12th St. Cincinnati, Ohio 45202. The deadline is May 10. Go ahead. Ask. Missed an Issue? Check out the Streetvibes archive at www.cincihomeless.org/content/streetvibes �STREETVIBES May 15 - 31, 2010 15 Resources Need Help or Want to Help? Shelter: Women and Children Central Access Point Cincinnati Union Bethel St. Francis Soup Kitchen Churches Active in Northside 381-SAFE 768-6907 FreeStore/FoodBank 557-2873 Madisonville Ed & Assistance Center 271-5501 300 Lytle Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Bethany House 681-2365 241-1064 4600 Erie Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45227 Serves area codes: 45226, 45227, 45208, 45209 St. Vincent de Paul 6037 Cary Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45224 Salvation Army 4230 Hamilton Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45223 112 E. Liberty Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 1841 Fairmount Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45214 Grace Place Catholic Worker House 535-2719 591-2246 762-5660 562-8841 872-9259 381-2247 5 E. Liberty St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 Health Resource Center Homeless Mobile Health Van McMicken Dental Clinic 357-4602 352-2902 352-6363 40 E. McMicken Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mental Health Access Point Mercy Franciscan at St. John 558-8888 981-5800 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 NAMI of Hamilton County PATH Outreach 1125 Bank Street, Cinti, Ohio 45214 131 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter Crossroad Health Center 458-6670 977-4489 Treatment: Men Other Resources Shelter: Men Charlie’s 3/4 House 784-1853 921-1613 Center Independent Living Options Emmanuel Community Center 961-2256 Peaslee Neighborhood Center 2121 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 City Gospel Mission 241-5525 1419 Elm Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 682 Hawthorne Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45205 Justice Watch 241-0490 St. Fran/St. Joe Catholic Work. House 381-4941 Starting Over Franciscan Haircuts from the Heart 961-4663 2203 Fulton, Cinti, Ohio 45206 961-4080 Treatment: Both 761-1480 1821 Summit Road, Cinti, Ohio 45237 Drop Inn Center 721-0643 471-1100 221-3350 3330 Jefferson, Cinti, Ohio 45220 Housing: CMHA Excel Development OTR Community Housing 721-4580 632-7149 381-1171 114 W. 14th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tender Mercies 721-8666 27 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Tom Geiger House Dana Transitional Bridge Services Volunteers of America Anna Louise Inn 961-4555 751-0643 381-1954 421-5211 621-5300 961-1983 OTR: 1620 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Walnut Hills: 2631 Gilbert, Cinti, Ohio 45206 Our Daily Bread 1730 Race Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 621-6364 771-4800 751-0600 721-4811 241-2965 People Working Cooperatively The Caring Place United Way Women Helping Women Off The Streets 351-7921 631-1114 211 977-5541 421-5211 1522 Republic Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Hamilton County ADAS Board Recovery Health Access Center Sober Living Talbert House 946-4888 281-7422 681-0324 641-4300 Hamilton/Middletown 421-3131 569-1840 381-4242 Northern Kentucky Advocacy Catholic Social Action Community Action Agency Contact Center 1227 Vine Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Food/Clothing Lord’s Pantry OTR/Walnut Hills Kitchen & Pantry 351-0422 381-6672 830 Ezzard Charles Dr. Cinti, Ohio 45214 Joseph House (Veterans) 217 W. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Interfaith Hospitality Network Lighthouse Youth Center (Youth) AA Hotline CCAT Goodwill industries Healing Connections Mary Magdalen House 1223 Main St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 2728 Glendora Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45209 Caracole (HIV/AIDS) 381-0111 1800 Logan St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 First Step Home Anthony House (Youth) 621-5514 214 E. 14th St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 661-4620 Shelter: Both 241-2600 241-2563 1308 Race St. Cinti, Ohio 45202 Treatment: Women 1437 Walnut Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Mt. Airy Shelter Prospect House Franciscan JPIC Gr. Cinti Coalition for the Homeless 721-4700 421-7803 579-8547 241-9400 421-1108 363-3300 421-2437 Health Center for Respite Care 3550 Washington Ave, Cinti, Ohio 45229 Brighton Center 863-3184 863-1445 422-8555 868-3276 859-491-8303 799 Ann St. Newport, KY 117 E. 12th Street, Cinti, Ohio 45202 Intercommunity Justice & Peace Cr. Legal Aid Society Ohio Justice & Policy Center Faces Without Places Stop AIDS St. Raephaels Salvation Army Serenity House Day Center Open Door Pantry ECHO/Hosea House Fairhaven Resuce Mission Homeward Bound Youth Mathews House Homeless & Housing Coalition Parish Kitchen Pike St. Clinic Transitions, Inc Welcome House of NKY 859-261-5857 859-491-1027 859-581-1111 859-261-8009 859-727-0926 859-581-7745 859-291-9321 859-491-4435 859-431-8717 205 West Pike Street, Covington, KY 41011 621-1868 Women’s Crisis Center VA Domiciliary VA Homeless 859-491-3335 859-559-5011 859-572-6226 �16 Artists as Activists STREETVIBES May 15 - 31, 2010 The Opposite of Counterfeit Andy Au’s new money shows true values “As a child, if you’re sensitive with a crazy imagination, the world scares you and bad things impact you,” says Andy Au. “You need to let them out.” This is why since, as early as he can remember. Au has been draw­ ing – and mostly monsters, creatures with many arms, legs, eyes. At age 5, after watching the movie Star Wars, he spent hours trying to draw from memory what he had seen. In first grade, during spelling tests, he drew dinosaurs eating the words; as a “reprimand,” he had to do a “star wars” display on the blackboard. His parents and high school art teach­ er encouraged his artistic inclinations; they provided him with paper to draw, praised his ability, and exposed him early on to the world of art. Au, an artist printmaker born in Chicago and raised in rural West Virginia, has also lived in Washington, D.C., and New Orleans. He re­ cently settled in Cincinnati. He received his bachelor of fine arts degree at Asbury College in Kentucky and his master of fine arts degree at the University of Cincinnati, majoring in printmaking. As an undergraduate, his work had no unifying theme; it was mostly intuitive, focusing on skills and techniques. In grad school, however, it dealt with content, looking at the big picture, connecting dots between the whys and whats. A recurrent subject in Au’s earlier prints was “uto­ pia,” what life should be as opposed to what it is; and the truncated illusion of the ideal world American society wanted to project. Utopia appeared as unrealized hope, ironically represented by twist­ ed interconnected figures, fighting for space, for fulfillment, aiming at something different, hopefully better. Au wanted it to be a reflection on both the world’s situation – with its overwhelming growing popula­ tion and conflicts – and the individual, his personal and spiritual space invaded and obstructed. Another topic he explored was the takeover by civilization of tribal life. Au pointed out that, thanks to its efficient organization, specialization, successful means of survival, control and domination, “civiliza­ tion” was imposing itself and its “uncivilized” val­ as ues, effacing worldwide the more humane com­ munal ways of living. By saaD Ghosn At the beginning Au felt Contributing Writer ill at ease showing and sharing his critical work. Someone had told him he was only depicting the bad and not contributing any solution. “My work addresses problems rather than providing fixes,” he ac­ knowledges. “I often do not have the answer. I think, however, that by pointing to the wrong, I’m also pointing to the right … by showing A rtists ctivists Bank Note #1: Project for the New American Century by Andy Au. Photo by Andy Au. Andy Au. Photo by. what is, my art hopefully implies what should be. One cannot provide solutions unless knowing the cause of the problem.” After graduating and living with his wife in Italy, then Washington, D.C., Au’s work became more political. His experience abroad exposed him to diverse political issues and opinions reflected by varying, more factual and critical news in the European media. Washington immersed him in a daily political bath and multifaceted reality that sharpened his awareness. This is also when he became acutely conscious of excess in the midst of poverty in the world. He has since created numerous politically themed print portfolios, all connected, each addressing particular concerns of societal life. The Five Evils, inspired by the book, God’s Last Offer by Ed Ayres, con­ sisted of 10 etchings addressing the four primary alarming increases on earth identified by Ayres as threats to humanity: overpopulation, carbon dioxide emission, consumption of resources and extinction of species. Au added a fifth enactor, war. The Mechanical Animals represented sociopolitical creatures acting mechanically, without much thinking, regardless of their knowledge of the problem. They each contribute individually to the creation and persistence of a dire situation, unaware of its consequences. The im­ ages referenced the clockwork mechanisms of oppression, conquest, power and war. Mechanical Animal #2, for instance, titled Civilizer and Pyramidicus Societus, depicts civilization’s pyramidal system of orga­ nization with a ruler at the top controlling and subjugating the masses of individuals underneath, using them to perpetuate domination and self-benefit. Au’s History of Thugs was an extension of his research on histori­ cal perspectives, influenced by Howard Zinn’s A People’s History of the United States. Following the premise that history needed several per­ spectives – not only of those in power – to yield a complete view, Au re­ searched and pictorially depicted 70 American history figures heralded as brave vanguard elements of a Democratic nation. Examined from the side of the oppressed, marginalized and minorities, the actions of these “heroes,” however, proved base and corrupt. Au drew them as grotesque monsters. Realizing that what is displayed on money states what is valued by the system, Au wanted to create alternate money illustrating the nega­ tives society has created. The Banque d’Epoch Eclipse was his new cur­ rency. Bank Note #1: Project for the New American Century, a print from the series, represents a bill displaying a rhinoceros, with a lighthouse for a horn, standing on top of a government building. The rhino, an extremely nearsighted, powerful animal will charge at things not know­ ing what they are. Au used it as a metaphor for the actions of our mightdriven government, which stands defiantly above the offices it holds, acts as a beacon for the world, yet follows a shortsighted, self-confident approach. A moth in the background alludes to those who do not see the truth, just follow the light and burn themselves. Au’s latest print series, Memebiotics and Binarians address “memes,” broad-based sociopolitical views, possibly false, that one is taught from a young age, passed on by parents, rarely questioned. They be­ come transmitted like genes, spread like viruses, strengthening each other’s effects. Many have binary functions of polarity within a culture, “either/or” truth claims that divide and separate individuals. One ex­ ample is literal interpretation of the Bible versus scientific reality. Au uses his art to reflect on the world, express his knowledge and thinking, state his beliefs and affirm himself as a human being. His im­ ages are meant to push buttons in the viewer, aggravate a response, trigger thinking, raise consciousness. “My art is my communication,” he says. “It is my means to express and share who I am, my values, convey ideas difficult to put in words and state them poetically.” Artists as Activists is a regular column highlighting Greater Cincinnati artists who use art as a vehicle for change. Saad Ghosn is the founder of SOS Art. Ghosn can be contacted at saad.ghosn@uc.edu. � Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource 2010 Text A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text. Original Format The type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Newspaper Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource May 15-31, 2010 Subject The topic of the resource Homelessness Description An account of the resource Pg 1: Cincinnati’s Marijuana Law Fiasco World Class Judge Pg 2: Street Wise Pg 3: Keep Drop Inn Center Where it is An Open Letter to the City of Cincinnati Pg 4: Cincinnati’s Marijuana Law Fiasco Continued Pg 5: Cincinnati’s Marijuana Law Fiasco Continued Pg 6: Painter Joins UN Appeals Tribunal Pg 7: Picking on Poor People A Film for a Time of Rebellion Pg 8: “Feed Me, Seymour, Feed Me All Night Long…” Pg 9: Arts & Poetry Pg 10: Seeking Understanding in OTR Pg 11: Facebooking the Facts Pg 12: We the Jury Pg 13: We the Jury Continued Pg 14: The Horns of Kobe Bryant Pg 15: Resources Pg 16: The Opposite of Counterfeit Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Streetvibes Archive Project Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Streetvibes Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource May 15-31, 2010 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Gregory Flannery Lynne Ausman Veronica Glass Jeni Jenkins Michelle Dillingham Samantha Groark Margo Pierce Paul Kopp Jeremy Flannery Michael Henson David Heitfield Valerie Fessler Corey Gibson Jeni Jenkins Saad Ghosn Lew Moores Larry Gross Eli Braun Jesse Call Aimie Willhoite Anthony Williams Vinit Murthy Jon Hughes Lynn Baker Jeremy Flannery Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource PDF 3CDC Aimie Willhoite Andy Au Anthony Williams Arts & Poetry Cincinnati College Corey Gibson David Heitfield Drop Inn Center Eli Braun Facebook Gregory Flannery Hamilton County Howard Zinn Jeni Jenkins Jeremy Flannery Jesse Call Jon Hughes Kobe Bryant Larry Gross Lew Moores Lynn Baker Lynne Ausman Margo Pierce Marijuana Mark Painter Michael Henson Michelle Dillingham Over-the-Rhine Panhandler Paul Kopp poverty Rebellion Saad Ghosn Samantha Groark Students United Nations Valerie Fessler Veronica Glass Vinit Murthy