Get Loud Issue 3, Sept - Oct 2014 by Leah

GET LOUD 4 Issue 3 Sept - Oct 2014

BY, FOR, AND ABOUT PEOPLE EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS

REST E C R U O S E R CENTER

1204

PG.

REST E A typical R E S O URC CENTER day for the Artful Dodger

pg. 8

Let their voices be heard PG. 16

Hope 14 pg.

Contents

Our Mission Get Loud, produced by Denver Homeless Out Loud, provides a platform through which those of us experiencing homelessness can give voice to our experiences, concerns, and recommendations. It also provides a means through which we can share information about resources, educate the broader community about homelessness, and explore ways to work together to create meaningful change. WWW.GETLOUDDHOLPRESS.WEEBLY.COM

Features RESOURCES This shit is real This Should Not Happen Here RTD complaint

Editorial policy

Friend or foe

hotel of hell

Get Loud reserves the right to decide what we include in each issue. Priority will be given to publishing the work of people who have directly experienced homelessness.

A port in the storm

Artful dodger

Get Loud seeks to represent a variety of opinions, with the hope of stimulating discussion and action. On occasion this may offend somebody. In accepting pieces which are critical of individuals or organizations, Get Loud reserves the right to obtain a response from that individual or group. Get Loud reserves the right to edit or to refuse to publish articles that promote oppressive stereotypes of human behavior. The opinions expressed in this paper are not necessarily the opinions of Get Loud.

Mayors complex 24hr Rest and Resource center tiny homes sonny lawson

aids & homelessness

hope No one is homeless

All rights return to author or artist upon publication. Material may be edited for spelling, grammar or clarity. No other changes will be made without the writer’s permission. If Get Loud is unable to contact the writer, this may result in the piece not being used.

let their voices be heard They followed thier hearts The Library is now closed

DENVER HOMELESS OUT LOUD (DHOL) works

vortex Art work

pg.

7 www.getlouddholpress.weebly.com

10 pg.

5 2

with and for people who experience homelessness, to solve the issues that arise from the experience of homelessness. DHOL works to protect and advocate for dignity, rights and choices for people experiencing homelessness. To these ends, DHOL commits its efforts toward goals afﬁrmed and raised by homeless people. DHOL strives to combine the strengths of all involved to create ways of living in which everyone has a place they can call home. DHOL welcomes everyone to join them in this work. Working groups include tiny homes, homeless bill of rights, urban rest stops and of course...Get Loud. Everyone is welcome to DHOL meetings! Wednesdays at 4:45-7pm at American Friends Service Committee ofﬁce, 901 W 14th Avenue (Court House Square apartment building) We eat when we meet! www.denverhomelessoutloud.org Phone: 720-940-5291

Get Loud TEAM :

MODEL ON PG. 7

Artful Dodger Debbie Brady Jim McClanahan John Claybaugh Lysander Romero Nancy Peters Walkerasaurus

Rebekah Thorne

Art Direction & Design by Lysander Romero

3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

Meals List

Local Resources

Organization Address

Meals Served

Days Served

Times

Lunch

Saturday

11:30am-12:15pm

Lunch

Saturday

8:30am-12:30pm

Cathedral of Immaculate Conception 1530 Logan St (In Alley)

Breakfast

MTWRF

8 am

Christ’s Body Ministries 850 Lincoln St

Breakfast Lunch

TWR/Friday M/TWR

10am / 8am 12:30 - 3pm / 1-3pm

Agape Church 2501 California St

Capitol Heights Presbyterian Church 1100 Fillmore St

Church in the City 1580 Gaylord St

Dinner Breakfast / Sack Lunch

Thursday TWR

5pm 9am

Denver Rescue Mission Lawrence Shelter 1130 Park Avenue West

Breakfast Lunch Dinner

SMTWRFS SMTWRFS SMTWRFS

6 am Noon 7 pm

Father Woody’s 1101 W. 7th Ave

Breakfast Lunch

MTWRF MTWRF

8am 11am

First Baptist Church 1373 Grant St

Lunch

Monday

11:45am - 12:15pm

Food Not Bombs Sunken Gardens Park 11th and Speer

Dinner

Saturday

4pm

The Gathering Place women, trangendered 1535 High St

Breakfast Lunch/Snack

MTWRF MTWRF

8:30am 11:30am / 3:15pm

Dinner

Thursday

6:15pm

Holy Ghost Catholic Church 1900 California St

Sack Lunch

MTWRFS

10am

Jesus Christ Our Church 16th and Marion St

Breakfast Dinner

Saturday Tuesday

9am 7pm

Mother of God Church 475 Logan St

Sack Lunch

MTWRF

11am

Open Door Ministries 1530 Marion St 4:45 Worship Service Required

Dinner

Sunday

4:45pm

People’s Presbyterian Church 2780 York St

Lunch

Monday

11am

St. Elizabeth’s (Auraria Campus) 1060 St Francis Way

Sack Lunch/ Soup

SMTWRFS

11am

His Love Fellowship 910 Kalamath St

St. Francis Center 2323 Curtis St

Dinner

W&F Except 3rd Wed

3pm

St. Paul’s Lutheran “Spaghetti Dinner” 1600 Grant St

Dinner

Monday

1-5pm

St. Paul’s United Methodist 1615 Ogden St

Breakfast

Sunday

7-9am

St. Peter and St. Mary 126 West 2nd Ave

Dinner

Tuesday

6pm

GET LOUD

Meals List

CONt'D

Hunger Free Hotline 855.855.4626

Organization Address

Meals Served

Days Served

Times

SAME Cafe 2023 E. Colfax

Lunch

MTWRF

11am - 2pm

Senior Support Services 846 E. 18th Ave (ages 55 and up)

Breakfast Lunch Dinner

MTWRF MTWRF MTWRF

7 - 9am 11:30am - 12:30pm 5:30 - 6:30pm

PAY WHAT YOU CAN OR VOLUNTEER

Trinity Methodist 1820 Broadway

Urban Peak Drop-In Center 2100 Stout Street (ages15-24)

Volunteers of America 2877 Lawrence St

Know Your Rights!

Lunch

WRF

11:45am - 12:30pm

Breakfast Dinner

MTWRF Tuesday’s

8am -10am 4-5pm

Breakfast Lunch Dinner Lunch

MTWR MTWR MTWR F/ Sunday

8:30am 11:30am 3pm & 5pm 1pm

Do you know how to protect your rights when you are detained by a police officer? At a recent Know Your Rights training in Curtis Park, Alex Landau encouraged everyone to be prepared to use the following key phrases: 1. “Have I done something wrong?” Never admit to anything. 2. If not, “Am I free to leave?” 3. “I do not consent to this search.” Say this loudly, clearly and repeatedly during any search of your person or belongings. This may not stop the search but will help protect your rights in court. It’s illegal for police officers to search you without probable cause unless you give your consent. 4. “I choose to remain silent.” 5. “I’d like to speak to an attorney.” Self preservation is critical, says Landau. Do your best to be cooperative, even while protecting your rights. In any encounter, get the officers’ names and badge numbers. They are required by law to give this information to you. Also get the names and contact information of any witnesses.

Health

Homeless Court

Health

Need to see the judge? Miss a court date?

by Artful Dodger

iving out in the streets in downtown Denver, or even in one of our overcrowded homeless shelters, can be-no scratch that--is downright stressful. Anyone that tells you this is all fun and games ain’t been here long enough. The problem is only made worse by being exposed to disease and creepy crawly things that just aren’t all that pleasant, plus extreme weather, malnutrition and violence. Things like high blood pressure, diabetes and even asthma only become worse because of the fact that there are no refrigerated, safe places to store your meds and/or syringes the way they are supposed to be stored. Meals from soup kitchens and food lines are usually high in salt, sugar and starch, making for cheap, ﬁlling meals but lacking any resemblance to a healthy diet. Then there are the behavioral issues. You know where I’m going with this, don’t you? Depression, alcoholism, drug addiction, and mental health issues can develop, or are often made even worse, by all the stress of dealing with being on the streets, especially when the Grand Poobahs upstairs don’t really have any solutions. Even the simple injuries that result from things like violence or accidents can instantly become serious shit. These simple injuries don’t heal properly because we don’t have the clean water, bandages or the proper place to take

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the time to rest from cuts and bruises. That luxury is just not a part Health of living on the streets or staying in an overcrowded shelter. Here on the streets, common colds become pneumonia and simple scratches become life threatening infections. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again:

Did you know about Homeless Court? Homeless court? Really? Well yes!! First Friday of every month at 1:30pm Room 3G Lindsey-Flanigan Court House, 520 W. Colfax Ave

Health

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

Health Health

Health Take care of yourself. Please. The Doctor is out. Peace.

Health 4

- Currently be homeless - Have an open case, active warrant, or case must be minor in nature and generally the result of being homeless - You need a referral from an advocate (e.g. a case manager for housing) - Available 3 times in a calendar year - Ability to complete public service For more information contact Denver’s Road Home (720) 944-2508

THIS SHOULD NOT

HAPPEN HERE

by Debbie Brady

photo by Lysander Romero

there can’t be more than one. I felt terrible! I thought, what can I do to help these ladies? The answer unfortunately, was nothing.

was sitting in front of the City and County Building. I was early for a City Council meeting that I had decided to attend. The Council was to decide on moving money from one account to another in order to pay a settlement to Jamal Hunter. He was an inmate in the Denver County jail whose abuse by Denver County Deputy Sheriffs had been caught on video. Shame on them! I was there to hear if the Council members, as they voted for or against this financial outlay, would demand that these abuses end. I was early. The Council meeting was scheduled for 5:30 and it was 4:45. I was sitting there reading a book when I looked up and saw someone I recognized. It was Yoko, a lady I knew through my association with Denver Homeless Out Loud. I said “Hey Yoko” and she turned to me and said “Hey Debbie.” She was with three other women. They were pushing or pulling all of their worldly belongings. My heart went out to these women. I asked, “What’s up Yoko, where are you headed?” She told me that there had been 19 women at the Women’s Emergency Shelter lottery at St Francis that day and that she and her friends had lost out for a place to sleep. (St Francis allots 15 places each Monday and Thursday.) “So what are you going to do?” I asked. She said they were going to the Sheriff’s Office to request shelter because it looked like rain and she did not want to sleep outside. I thought of my own comfortable apartment and I wished I could accommodate them. I am just a poor old transgendered woman living in a HUD VASH subsidized apartment on a very limited fixed income. I am forbidden to have guests for more than one night and

I hate that feeling!

I asked Yoko, “What can the sheriff do?” She said “I don’t know, but it’s his job to make sure I don’t have to sleep outside in the rain.” (I later learned that the City’s plan for homeless people requires the Sheriff’s Department to provide another shelter option, which may be a motel voucher, for women who didn’t get into the Women’s Emergency Shelter.) I told her not to forget that and wished her well. She had wanted to be at the City Council meeting herself, but could not attend because of her unhoused situation. I would love to have been a ﬂy on the wall, when Yoko and her friends stormed into the Denver County Sheriff’s ofﬁce and demanded their rights of shelter as human beings.

I wanted to cry,

I wanted to scream

I stood there and watched them make their way down the sidewalk. Part of me wanted to follow them and lend my support, but Yoko had told me it was more important for me to go and see what them damn politicians were up to. So I stayed. The political dog and pony show ran its course and I watched as the City Council voted to move the money around so they could talk about what it was really all about some other time. I will be there with my questions when that happens. I hope to help force a public comment period on the vote. We will see. The memory that stuck in my head that

sleepless night was not what went on in the Council meeting that evening. It was the picture in my mind of those four women pulling or pushing everything they owned down that street looking for a place to sleep, out of the rain. I wanted to cry, I wanted to scream, I wanted to kick some ass. This is not how it is supposed to be. What can we do to make the idea that shelter is a human right, a reality? I am working to ﬁnd the answer to that question and it has become my quest. I expect it to be my last goal. I’m an old lady now (65 in September) but I have found my calling. I was homeless myself for two years, after living a middle class life for over forty years. I know how easy it is to go from middle class to destitute in the blink of an eye. I am working with Denver Homeless Out Loud to pass a Homeless Bill of Rights, which among other things might recognize shelter as a human right in Colorado. Nobody should have to go through what these women have to go through every day. How can you even think of looking for a job, when you have to spend most of your time hauling all of your personal belongings all over town, looking for a place to sleep at night? Have you ever pushed a cart that contains all of your worldly goods to a job interview? I have and it doesn’t work. I am glad I am now living off my Social Security retirement account and no longer have to look for work. I have found that I can now live on a lot less money than I would have ever thought possible. I am going to end this rant with one message to all you young people out there. It was told to me by my grandmother many years ago. “Look out for your neighbors,” she said. “Whatever you give will come back to you in miracles.”

August 11, 2014 Manager of Security Regional Transportation District 1600 Blake Street Denver CO 80202

y name is Thomas Hayes. I am a 58 year old Native American. I am also homeless. On August 8th 2014, myself and another Native American male (who is crippled and on SSDI) were on our way to the Denver U.S.Mint to stand in line and wait for a ticket. Upon receiving the ﬁrst 100 tickets, each ticket holder would receive $500. This I knew to be true and the guards and police that work at the Mint knew it as well. My friend and myself would have received a total of $1000 had we made it on time, but unfortunately we were late and did not receive any payment or tickets because [Ofﬁcer 1] suspended me from the RTD and I had been escorting my disabled friend. We stopped at Union Station to use the bathroom and our intention was to then ride the free mall bus to the Civic Center Station and walk to the Mint.

www.getlouddholpress.weebly.com

by Thomas Hayes

Get Loud received a copy of the following letter written by Thomas Wakute Hayes to the Regional Transportation District’s Manager of Safety. Mr Hayes gave Get Loud permission to print the letter. We have chosen to redact the names of the RTD ofﬁcers involved in the incident.

photo by Lysander Romero

As my friend waited for me I used the toilet and as I always do after using the toilet, I washed my hands. As I was finishing washing my hands [Officer 1] entered the bathroom and started saying to me, “I told you - you can’t come in here!” and I said, “I had to use the bathroom and I have bus fare.” He said, “I told you - you can’t bathe in here.” I said “I’m not bathing! I am washing my hands because I used the restroom.” I heard other officers outside the bathroom so I walked out there and asked [Officer 2] if I looked wet. He first stated “No” then he looked at [Officer 1] and said, “I can’t say.” I asked the other officers if I looked wet as I had been completely dry and they said, “I can’t say.” I then informed them if they wanted to lie for [Officer 1] then they will probably be doing it in court. They had no reply. I asked my friend if I looked wet and he said, “No.” [Officer 1] then called in my ID and said I had been warned before about washing up. This is a lie. I remember [Officer 1] stopping me a week or so prior and he had harassed me at that time as well but did not give me a ticket. I remember him saying to me, “I’m sure it’s society’s fault you turned out bad,” among other things that sounded like he was haranguing me as he followed me up the escalator and outside. I have several friends, one of whom is noticeably Native American and his girlfriend who is pretty and looks white. She stated that whenever she and her boyfriend go into Union Station, [Officer 1] follows them right away and tells them they have to go. But she said that when she goes into Union Station by herself he never says anything, so she thinks he is discriminatory towards Native Americans. She stated she would testify to these occurrences. Because [Officer 1] wrote me a “Notice of Suspension” ticket my friend--who is crippled and cannot be out on the CONT’D ON PG. 8

by Debbie Brady THE COPS ARE NOT YOUR FRIENDS. I’ll say it again, THE COPS ARE NOT YOU FRIENDS, got that everybody. They have a job to do and that job is to arrest people. If they come up to you and pose as a friend, that is only because they are seeking information. That same friendly cop you talked to and thought was your friend would stand by or even assist another cop beat the shit out of you and then testify in court, under oath, that you were the aggressor. Don’t talk to cops. They are not your friends. Everything you say to them can be used against you and if you tell them one lie, they can bust you for lying to a Police Ofﬁcer. They on the other hand are not only permitted, but encouraged to lie to you and you have no recourse. You can’t tell the judge, “He lied to me.” The judge will just say, “So what, that’s his job.” Believe me, I speak from experience. I was not always a good girl and I have been arrested many times in the last 65 years. (I served 30 days on a prison farm in 1968.) There is a thing they call the “the thin blue line” and no cop who wants to keep his job and his standing with his fellow ofﬁcers will cross it. They will lie under oath, they will fake evidence, they will do anything to show that you are lying and they are telling the truth. Guess who the judge or jury is going to believe? It ain’t going to be you, my friend. So the lesson here is, don’t talk to cops, keep your mouth shut except to ask if you are being detained. Don’t tell them any more than you have to. They are your adversaries. Ask if you are free to go and if they say yes, beat feet, and thank your lucky stars. Being arrested in Denver can be lethal.

port

photo by Lysander Romero

by Dara Harvey

t’s the first of the month and every once in a while a friend will ask me if I want to stay in a hotel with them for a couple days. They get an SSI check on the first of the month and I get my AND on the 3rd, so if it works out those first couple days, I’ll spring for the next two. It’s nice to sleep in a warm soft bed for a couple days, soak in a tub and space out on T.V. every once in a while. Keep in mind there are no strings attached to anyone that I stay with.

A BOOM-BOOM CRASH I make that VERY clear from the beginning. So this time a friend of mine and I found ourselves pushing our buggies to the Ramada on Colfax. After check in, my friend told me I could hide my cart and all its contents behind the dumpster out back because he had stayed there before and that’s what he had done in the past with no issues or complaints from the hotel staff. I took my valuables up to the room and came downstairs to hide the rest of my belongings. Not a moment went by when the hotel butt-kisser on duty came outside and told me I had to move my cart somewhere else or they would throw it away. Naturally I was frustrated and wasn’t about to leave all my bedding outside the walls for someone to take, so I dragged everything else upstairs to our room. My friend and I had a relaxing couple of days and decided to check out because funds were running low and I needed to get to the shop and ﬁnish some work. I packed up all of my belongings on a hotel cart and found my empty buggy and proceeded to pack up my stuff and get the hell out of

there. I hid my packed buggy for about ﬁve minutes to return the hotel key and when I came back outside to leave I heard a loud crash and a boom-boom coming from the dumpster area. I looked to see if my cart was gone and low and behold it was!!! I thought to myself, OMFG, they just threw my stuff away. I ran out back and saw three men hopping into a truck. I ran over to the dumpster and found my friend’s cart and the rest of his belongings inside the dumpster but my cart was nowhere to be found. I was very angry by this time and approached the men and asked them what the hell they did with my stuff. They started laughing and getting all aggressive and defensive about it and then I said, “Hey man, I was a paying customer for two whole days in this overpriced piece of shit hotel and I was JUST checking out and about to leave!!! My buggy wasn’t abandoned and by belongings are NOT junk!! You didn’t have to throw my stuff away!” They told me they didn’t want to see me or my friend around there anymore and told me my cart was behind the dumpster. Geez guys, thanks for the courtesy screw. I grabbed my stuff and left and was thinking to myself the entire time...wow, how pissed off would those guys be if anyone of them were in my shoes and someone decided to be a jerk like that and toss all of their possessions and warmth into the garbage? Guess what Ramada Inn on Colfax, this is my YELP and you suck as a hotel. I give you a one star rating and recommend to other people to ﬁnd a better place to stay.

by Paula Duran

itting at The Gathering Place with other homeless women, I’m so scared all the time now. “Russ” threw me out on Thursday. Went to my son’s house, he put me in the truck, stayed one night, froze my butt off. Took shelter at 1340 Elati in Women’s Shelter. I’ve seen women much worse off than me. I can handle it. Second day at The Gathering Place. I’ve cried two times today. Met a woman that gave me a number for a place to live. Left a message and maybe. Hoping that I get a call back. Being homeless sucks. I don’t ever want that for me again. I’ve met so many interesting people in the last week. I always looked down on homeless people, but now have a new respect for them. It’s not their fault they are homeless, it’s the circumstances of this world. I just met two ladies that have taken me under their wings and are showing me the ropes. Writing this down helps to keep me in perspective. I don’t want to give in to despair. I am doing ok so far. I wanted adventure in my life just not this. Saturday Here I sit at St. Francis Shelter. The stench is horrible (so many unwashed bodies in here). One week homeless it feels like a year. I just want to go home and sleep next to Russ tonight. I’ll be good. I’ve learned a lot about street living from Pearl and her daughter Ronnie. They keep me sane and going on, day after day. Writing keeps me sane so I don’t completely lose it. Have class tomorrow at the Workforce Center till 1:00. 2-31-2014 Thank you ladies of the Montview Presbyterian Church. You made all the difference. 3-31-2014 Stayed all day at St. Francis.

Held a lottery to see if 20 women would go to a church to sleep tonight. I didn’t get in on the list, but was put on the wait list #4. When they called the names of the women, 5 didn’t show up. Guess what I made it on the van. So went to Montview Presbyterian Church. We were welcomed with hugs and hellos at the door. The ladies of the church were so kind, and welcoming. Dinner was served at tables with tablecloths and daffodils as centerpieces. After dinner we went to the cellar to play pool and sing. I lost at pool, but it was fun. I opened up and actually had fun. We do it again tomorrow, the lottery. Hoping and praying I get picked again. Oh well, that is for tomorrow. I feel real good tonight, my belly is full and I’m tired. 4-3-2014 Stayed at St. Barnabas. It was a good experience. Volunteers were very nice and caring to treat us with respect. All in all it was a nice night.

COMPLAINT CONT’D FROM PG. 6 Denver streets at night without someone to protect him-suffered undue hardship that night walking from Union Station to the Denver Mint,and we were late getting there and then we both had to walk back.This took me most of the night walking him back as he shuffles very slowly. Respectfully Submitted, Thomas Hayes (Editor’s note: Recently Mr. Hayes informed us that his letter appealing his suspension was successful--the Commander of the Transit Police, Bob Mickelson, notified him on August 19th that his suspension had been lifted. Congratulations Wakute--it pays to fight back!! Also, in an email to Get Loud Thomas Wakute Hayes wrote: Yes you can publish the letter...or use it in way that will help those Americans that have fallen through the cracks down into this hidden world. A world without news or media. One where those sleeping on the streets or in the parks hear of weird and violent occurrences at night.Yet these people (Americans) in the daylight barely mention anything for the most part but they fear at night. You’re right that the mangled are being mangled further for selfish reasons of false bravado, false superiority, and false pride as well. The possible wages one can earn after such a fall 99% of the time will not pay for rent and/or even deposit, even if one were to try to save money while sleeping on the streets where even your bag ends up lost or stolen way too often.

by Artful Dodger

am a

Oops

I forgot I’m homeless; we don’t get up that early. 10:00 am. That’s better. (At an undisclosed location.) I get up out of my sleeping bag and, as usual, I urinate on my shoes. I don’t care, I’m homeless. After that, I go over and wake up my invisible friend Rick. He’s got some pretty serious mental health issues but, hey, he’s still my friend. Morning! Did you sleep okay? Without saying a word Rick takes a long swig off the K.D. and just gets up and pees on his shoes. Where do you want to eat today Rick? I said!! Where do you want to eat today? Rick has that look, a look I’ve seen too many times before, like he has other plans. Rick hits a roach. “This place is a mess!” Rick says in a loud shrill voice, blowing out smoke at the same time. “What? What do you mean? I like our camp; it has all the comforts of home,” I say. “It’s all junk,” Rick replies, “nothing but junk.” “Fine,” I say reluctantly. “Let’s go get rid of it in the dumpster over there.” There’s that look again. “No, I got a better idea, let’s take it to the other side of the river, across the bridge, around the corner and four blocks down to the Ballpark neighborhood. Let’s piss ‘em off and drop it all in their neighborhood.” So I strapped the old mattress that has been at the camp for at least as long as

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Rick has, to my back. Tied the old dresser drawers on to the mattress, ﬁlled all the drawers full of the litter that is strewn around the camp (a lot of beer cans and whiskey bottles, you know, homeless people garbage) and put my trusty spray paint can up under my ball cap so as no one would see it. I’m sneaky like that. I got on my bike and off I went across the river, over the bridge, around the corner and four blocks down. Rick always beats me to wherever it is we’re going, and he don’t even own a bike. “What took you so long?” Rick asks. Damn dude, I got all this junk on my back and I thought the cops seen my spray paint, so I had to give ‘em the slip,” I lied and handed Rick the spray paint. I dumped the mattress in the most obvious dumpster that I could ﬁnd, unpacked the dresser of all the litter, and threw the dresser against the wall. CRASH!! Then I proceeded to strategically place all the litter in the streets and the alleys. After all this I decided to knock out a quick painting with Rick. When I got back to the alley where Rick was, there were three of the local drug dealers helping Rick paint all their social security numbers on the garage door, along with some very lifelike self-portraits. Very impressive, I said to my favorite drug dealer, but don’t forget the mole under your right eye. I pissed in the corner.

A parody of how the general public views us.

The news media claims homelessness in Denver is because of legalized marijuana, but that is not true homelessness is now widespread in America. I have seen soldiers down here and people with social blemishes and doctors and people from whom banks have stolen their savings. America needs to wake up the news media and say that: “Hey this is not our fault...this is your fault!” The opposite of abject poverty is not wealth, the opposite of poverty is Justice! For the record my only brother, five years older than myself, is on the Vietnam wall, 1971, October 16th. I have other coffin flags in my family as well. I thought we Americans paid to be treated better than this. Don’t get me wrong, the food lines are a great compassionate effort, but the other three fourths of wealthy Americans seem to have their consciences padded daily by avoiding the fact in their light-hearted lives that millions of Americans slept on the ground last night or in some over-crowed shelter where everyone has continuous cough-like symptoms called the Mission Condition. And finally, we received this poem from Mr Hayes: Blunt the sharpness; Untangle the knots; Soften the glare; Let your wheels move only along old ruts. Don’t seek and don’t expect. Be patient and wait until your mud settles and your water is clear. Be patient and wait. Your mud will settle. Your water will clear.

by Mr. Calvin Calloway photo by Lysander Romero

R. Calloway must ﬁrst say to the readers that the prolonged wait to hear my thoughts was because I did not ﬁnish what I meant to say last time. The topic is in reference to the governor of Colorado (formerly the mayor) who deceptively promoted that he would end homelessness in ten years. Now, the current Mayor Michael B Hancock (who was one of John Hickenlooper’s boys, as a city councilman) is following the same slanted, twisted and deceptive method as if he is going to complete the task of ending homelessness in Denver. Just like John Hickenlooper, Mr. Michael B Hancock is only saying the proper thing as a subterfuge in order to make the voters believe he has interest in the common man. Instead, Hancock has the interest of private and big business and their organizations

(i.e Downtown Denver Partnership) because the underdogs can’t bring him any revenue. As stated by me, Mr. Calvin Calloway (AKA Mr. Anti Bull Shit), this is a statement which isn’t capable of being refuted or denied by any source on earth-human, material or otherwise. It is true that Mayor Hancock is rendering funds to nonprofits like St Francis Center, Jesus Saves-Rescue Mission,and the Salvation Army to subsidize (which is to assist and support) them. The bottom line is that it is a subsidy provided by a branch of government intended to be used for the needy and the homeless. The task, to end homelessness, isn’t difficult or complex from the standpoint of the nonprofits. Hancock and his administration could remedy homelessness if their intent was to do the right thing. One way they could do it is by formulating Individual Development Accounts (IDAs). An IDA would consist of a small portion (for example, 2%) of the nonprofits’ donated funds that would be matched four times by a sponsor (such as the Untied

Way) who participates in the IDA system. These funds could then be used towards providing housing for homeless people. But Michael B Hancock’s professed intent is merely a platitude while his real intent--along with the intent of St Francis Center, Salvation Army, Rescue Mission and Father Woody’s, just to name a few of the nonprofits--is to keep the homeless in Denver homeless. I offer the following arguments in support of the ultimate truth of the latter statement. (1) The nonprofits boldly want to oppress the homeless by using the homeless to obtain the nonprofits’ services. Oppression is defined as making one person or group of persons the other person’s slave to obtain what the enslaved person or group is offering or providing. For instance the Salvation Army (which runs the Crossroads Shelter) expresses that the homeless men wishing to sleep there comply with the wishes of the nearby

and producers isn’t an act of doing the right thing. This conduct is more than an insult to the religion the United States submits to. Such conduct is nailing the underdogs and homeless to the crooked crosses of the City and County of Denver and the service providers. This is the rape of democracy and implies that anarchy exists in the City and County of Denver as well as the state of Colorado. All readers please take heed of the facts of this most fragile subject matter and get on the bandwagon for justice, that I Mr Calvin Calloway AKA Mr Anti Bull Shit AKA the Prince of Obfuscation AKA King of the Vituperators AKA the Governor of all Legislators is truly concerned about. Hopefully one day I Mr Calloway can obtain revenue to formulate the Church of Democracy and Socio-Politico Intelligence Agency. Socio-Politico will start paralegal careers for those who will become my agents for the cause of justice. It will equip

businesses, who don’t want to see the homeless outside waiting alongside of the shelter property before 4:30 pm. The boss and his subordinates comply and threaten to terminate access to the homeless permanently if they don’t comply with the businesses’ wishes. (2) If Michael B Hancock and the nonprofits have sincere concern for the homeless to emerge from their condition, then they should advocate for funds to be donated by complainers like the Downtown Denver Partnership* and the businesses near the Crossroads instead of allowing them to oppress these underdogs. The rights of underdogs are equal to those of the irrational and incoherent complainers. But the nonprofits comply with the complainers and conform to these business associations’ every wish. They exhibit the will and desire to remove the underdogs (homeless) through oppressive and coercive measures. Couple this with Mayor Michael B Hancock allowing the Denver Sheriff and Denver Police to assist in committing wrongs like assault, trespass, deceit, malicious prosecution of the underdogs and homeless, and couple it with promoting to the general public spectators that they are enforcing the law in an equitable manner--and what is the only conclusion to draw? The conduct of Hancock and the nonprofits clearly demonstrates that they are in alliance with and in favor of the controllers and producers in our society in their oppression of the homeless and underdogs. Advocating for the controllers

people to carry out the most needed duty and obligation of any society--to monitor the ethics of all city governments, state governments, the federal government and big business in order to prevent the rape of democracy and the nailing of all public to the crooked cross that exists in the City and County of Denver and the state that this city and county has as its representative. *Editor’s note: Downtown Denver Partnership members donate funds to Denver’s Road Home through the annual PJ Party event.

REST E C R U RESO R E T N E C

G N I M O C ? N O SO

by Nancy Peters

he idea of a 24 hour “rest and resource center” for people experiencing homelessness was brought to the public’s awareness over two years ago, by Mayor Hancock, City Councilman Albus Brooks and others, during hearings leading up to the passage of Denver’s unauthorized camping ordinance. “We know there is a shortage of resources,” said Hancock. “I believe what this ordinance will do is help us focus even more sharply on helping develop these resources.” And Brooks echoed this sentiment, insisting in a Denver Post Op-Ed piece that “The ordinance provides accountability and enables us to leverage our position with the business community to build upon existing assets and infrastructure.” I think both Hancock and Brooks want us to believe that an ordinance which punishes homeless people for sleeping-an act of survival--was somehow needed in order to get them and other city officials off their existing assets and do their jobs. Doing their jobs includes, at the least, making such absolute necessities as affordable permanent housing, decent temporary housing and related services a reality so that 11,000 homeless people in the Denver metro area can both be safe and get off the streets, and not-yet-homeless people can NOT become homeless. When people are kept in the dark about things, rumors will abound. So, what essential services is this all-important 24 Hour R&R Center, touted by Brooks as “the first of its kind in the city,” supposed to deliver to homeless people? And, after two and a half years, what is its status? Well, apart from a “final” report from the task force

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R E V DEN SITE E R UTU

OF THE

REST

which Brooks assembled to work on the project, outlining how the R&R Center might operate, it does not exist whatsoever. Milliner and task force members (mostly from the service provider community) explain that the hang-up is the place. Apparently no one whose opinion counts in this matter wants the center in their neighborhood. Those whose opinions count include housed people and the “business community” with whom city government is “leveraging our position” (read “buying them off our back”) by passing the camping ban. Those whose opinions do NOT seem to count include the unhoused people for whom the center is to be built. Although in so many ways they are the “experts” on what services they need, and how these services can most effectively be provided, there is a dearth of homeless people on the task force. (Randle Loeb, a strong advocate for homeless people’s rights and with a long history of homelessness himself, is on the task force.) City officials have leaked that a place has been found, and that it is “far outside downtown,” but they have not yet identified the location. One rumor puts it somewhere on south Federal Boulevard, miles from the downtown area where homeless folks find services such as shelters, free meals, employment assistance, and health care. This rumor has caused many to wonder how people would get back and forth, whether transportation will be provided, and whether the aim might be to “disappear” homeless people from the downtown area-perhaps forcibly, with the aid of squad cars. (When people are kept in the dark about projects that will affect their lives, rumors will abound.)

URC RESO TER CEN

What is this R&R thing that businesses and housed people don’t want in their neighborhood? As stated in the “Final Report for the Work Group” on the center, the initial concept included a 150-bed shelter (which would have made sense, since there is a serious lack of shelter beds even while the camping ban has outlawed sleeping outside), but “adding a shelter element does increase the difﬁculty in identifying a location within the siting and density requirements of the existing zoning code.” Translation: by placing severe restrictions on where needed overnight shelters and other homeless service centers can be located (and thereby preventing the sight of too many “unsavory characters” from supposedly keeping customers away and residents on edge), our city’s zoning code reinforces the desires and preferences of the housed and business communities, at the expense of the survival needs of the unhoused. This scheme was tried at the St Francis Center. IT WAS PRETTY AWFUL! In highlighting the increasing need for a 24-hour drop-in shelter, the report states that “While the need to secure the business climate and private residences is a concern, the need to provide alternative solutions for those affected by the new [urban camping ban] ordinance is of equal concern.” Presumably this statement implies that the camping ban was passed to “secure the business climate and private residences” against homeless people sleeping outside. But the camping ban CANNOT keep people from sleeping

outside, given that realistic alternatives don’t exist for many homeless people, who MUST and WILL sleep somewhere. So, if this 24 hour center will not provide shelter beds, or affordable housing, what “alternative solutions” for those affected by the camping ban WILL it provide? According to the “ﬁnal” report, it will be open 24 hours to allow a safe place out of the elements “for those who choose not to access regular shelters”--but they will not be allowed to lie down and sleep. So one can’t help wonder: Why, except in extreme weather, would unhoused people, who have already “chosen” not to go to an overnight shelter (i.e. they couldn’t get in or couldn’t stomach the idea--could you?) opt to go to a place where they can’t sleep, rather than just sleep outside--unless they were coerced? Has anyone on the task force done any “ﬁeld research” (i.e., asked homeless people) about this? And, given what is known about the importance of sleep to a person’s physical and mental health, how can anyone purporting to advocate for homeless people possibly support a plan for a center which lets people in at midnight or 2am, but does not allow them to sleep? (Let’s not forget that this scheme was tried at the St Francis Center some ten years ago, and it WAS PRETTY AWFUL.) A key feature of the proposal is its “two tier” service delivery system. The center is to offer “basic drop-in services” (to include such things as showers, telephones, laundry service, limited storage, and mail/internet access) to all guests. Beyond that, through a “coordinated entry and assessment system,” everyone would be screened to determine whether they are ready and willing to end their homelessness or not.

Those guests who are assessed to have “the ability and desire to move into a more stable and long-term living situation” would be welcomed into Tier 2, which allows them to work with a case manager “to participate fully in the rigors of the path to stability.” Case managed services would include assistance in obtaining benefits, legal support, mental and behavioral health “administration” and employment (“if able”). “Ultimately, the [Tier 2] guest will move from transitional to permanent housing, then on to full self-sufficiency.” Sounds great. But has anyone who signed off on this report actually considered the educational credentials, work background, and skills--not to mention the willingness and/or ability to conform to the social norms of mainstream society--that are needed to achieve “full self sufficiency” in today’s economy? And is no one who worked on this report aware of the appalling lack of affordable housing, which no amount of “ability and desire” to become housed can overcome? As Thomas Wakute said in a recent email to Get Loud, “Don’t even ask me to work anymore because there is nothing involving a residence on the end of that paycheck.” So the word “rigors” applied to the path to stability is certainly a gross understatement. Meanwhile, those NOT determined to have such “ability and desire” would be assigned to Tier 1, where they can be warm, use computers, get mail, drink coffee, hang out--but would not engage in more intensive services. The system sounds judgmental and dismissive toward those assessed to be Tier 1 material. But perhaps it isn’t meant to be. Without having an explanation from CONT’D ON PG.17

COULD TINY HOMES HELP IN HOUSING THE HOUSELESS ?

eard of those Tiny Homes? They’ve become a big trend recently, as more and more Americans begin to question our oversized lifestyles. The term generally refers to living quarters of less than 200 sq. feet that are typically well designed to maximize space. Many, but not all, are put on trailers and are made to be quite attractive. From rich folks who can drop $55,000 on a prebuilt micro-house, to homeless advocates who build them for $5,000 or less, they are challenging the American notion that in order to have a place to call home you need a mortgage and a full time job to pay your heating bill. In May of this year, Westword--our local arts, culture and politics rag--printed an article about Denver Homeless Out Loud’s (DHOL’s) Tiny Home Working Group--See “Could tiny houses solve a big problem in Denver?” on westword.com--It was about 90% correct –pretty darn good for the press! All in all, Kyle, the writer, did a respectful piece, but there were a few problems which I wish to address here. First off, the article focused way too much on me, and made me out to be a quasi-saint of sorts who saves the world and spent some time with his Grandma in Indiana. I thought the article would be on homeless people, and as anyone in DHOL can tell you, I’m no saint, just a big grumpy turd. And my grandma is from Illinois, thank you. Secondly, fellow DHOL friend, Frank, was characterized slanderously. I won’t get into the details of how – but just know that Frank’s a lot better than he is depicted in that article.

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by Buford Baby Boy Travis Thirdly, the article stated that I, a currently housed person, would be the first recipient of a DHOL Tiny Home. What that leads the reader to assume is that DHOL is paying for a house that I will eventually live in, instead of building homes for people who need it. The truth is, my fiancé and I decided to build a Tiny Home right around the time DHOL was getting interested in building them. So we invited whoever wanted to, to come over and drink our coffee and beer, eat our pizza, play with power tools if they wanted, and have conversations about how we can get more tiny homes built for folks who have no home. And, to be clear, we never asked for a dime. So why not build more? Because we have no land. At the time the article was written, our Tiny House barely fit on the property we were building on. We’re reaching out to neighbors, churches and community groups to try and acquire places to put them, but so far, no one has been able to commit to it. And the reason that no one has been able to commit, I think, is what the Westword article should have been about: housing policy and how it affects homelessness. Part 1: The Untold Story Here’s a little, far too simplified and condensed, overview of housing policy and its effects on homelessness in America: 1933 – Government estimates 1.5 million homeless individuals in America. 1934 – Government rolls out New Deal with well-funded housing programs. 1940 until 1980 – Housing program works (for the most part). Government says homeless population stayed at a consistent low of 100,000 people throughout these

four decades (even as total population grew). The Big Change - 1978 to 1983 – US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) gets its lowincome housing budget slashed from $83 Billion to $13 Billion. Cause and Effect - 1980 to 1989 – Homelessness triples in size – up to 300,000 people counted by HUD in ‘89. 1990’s – Homelessness doubles again, up to 600,000 people counted. HUD budget still diminished. Today – Over 3.5 Million Americans homeless for at least some time each year. Federal Low Income Housing Budget roughly half of what it was in 1978 - $45 Billion Zoning Codes and other regulations– After White Flight began in the 1950’s, and many afﬂuent people began building gigantic housing in the suburbs, building codes and HOA rules became stricter to regulate new construction. The ‘90’s and early 2000’s housing boom made regulations even stricter, forcing developers and home builders to build bigger and bigger. Denver now requires new construction to be at least 1000 sq. feet,

bedrooms have to be 100 sq. feet, and living rooms have to be at least 150 sq. feet. (Neither I, nor the dog I share a bedroom with in our 1890’s house ever complain about our meager 72 sq. feet.) New Urbanism and Urban Displacement - At some point, people ﬁgured out that living in a cul-de-sac in the suburbs, commuting an hour to work each way and shopping at Walmart was lame, boring, and not very “sustainable;” so began the new White Migration, called “New Urbanism,” where everybody wanted a “greener,” more walkable life in the city center. This form of “sustainability,” of course, didn’t include poor people. Because of this “new urbanism,” most of the old inner city neighborhoods that people moved to because they were quirky and interesting, became less and less so as poor people were pushed out of them by greenerminded “entrepreneurs.” These “new urbanites” also pushed for tighter regulations of their communities, and particularly public spaces, helping usher in the new age of criminalizing homelessness by making it illegal to do basic

acts of survival, like lying down. The result: Today, if you live in Denver, you probably can’t afford housing. Any rent burden that is greater than 30% of your income is considered unaffordable by HUD. In Denver, if you work full time at minimum wage, you make $1280 a month before taxes, but a one bedroom averages $1040/per month. So why not build your own house like people have done for millennia? Because it’s ridiculously expensive to build “up to code,” and it’s illegal to build reasonably sized structures. So what do you do? There aren’t enough shelter options or housing vouchers, so you might just wind up being one of the roughly 4,000 people stuck outside on any given night. But if you try to cover yourself to stay warm with anything other than your clothes, you run the risk of the cops running you off or arresting you for violating the camping ban. Part 2: A Tiny Solution Anyone who’s studied homelessness on a systemic CONT’D ON PG. 14

Sonny Lawson Park

Then Now

= The Same

photo by Lysander Romero

by Walkerasaurus

while back I wrote an article about what was happening in Sonny Lawson Park. At the time it was closed off for “remodeling.” The reason given for spending over $450,000 on the project was to beautify the park and to somehow make it more appealing to the local neighborhood. There was some concern that the park was heavily frequented by local homeless people and not being used by the other residents in the area as well. The spin was all about “integrating use” in a very diverse neighborhood. There was discussion that the park would reopen as a place that was more inviting with more community style events allowing better mixing to occur. The park reopened in early June. The additions to the park included some exercise equipment, the kind you would ﬁnd along a running trail with stations for sit ups, pull ups and some balancing and stretching kinds of exercises. Also added were Ping-Pong® tables, a very nice new playground for children and some additional tables for picnicking and games like chess or dominoes. At the same time another nearby park--Triangle Park--was also closed for remodeling. The infamous Triangle Park was notorious for drug trafﬁcking. Triangle

Park has not reopened. Now that Sonny Lawson has, guess who has entered into the mix that was not there before--the very element the frequent users of Sonny Lawson in the past were hoping to avoid. Folks who thought they were going to be able to push out the unsavory element that was not there to any signiﬁcant degree before wound up inviting them in. This new element, however, is only a small part of what is currently happening in Sonny Lawson Park. It has retained much of the character it had before it was closed for “remodeling.” A half a million dollars was spent to change very little. That being said, a local farmer’s market opens on Saturdays and is frequented by the community. There is some light use of the exercise equipment and some light use of the playground. But in the end nothing much has changed. So who beneﬁted from the project? Local leaders will tell you quickly just how much public money was spent on the project. As if that makes it a success. Well, maybe for the builders it is beautiful, but it was before. In the end half a million dollars of public money has been spent with very little impact. Where else could that money have been spent? There is still not an accessible public bathroom the park, which has always been a need. At least then there would be some public infrastructure as part of the improvements.

AIDS

Homelessness

by John Wayne Claybaugh he 27th Annual AIDS Walk Colorado was held in Cheesman Park on August 16. The Walk is the Rocky Mountain Region’s largest and most successful HIV and AIDS fundraiser. An estimated 8,000 people from throughout the state came together to raise money for the Colorado AIDS Project (CAP) and more than 20 other outstanding AIDS service organizations. The event served as a day to remember those we have lost to the disease, with prominent speakers, panels of the AIDS Memorial Quilt, a Celebration of Life Festival, live music, food, beverages, and the 6th annual AIDS Walk Colorado Volleyball Tournament, held in conjunction with the Colorado Gay Volleyball Association. What does that mean to advocates of people experiencing homelessness? According to Metro Denver Homeless Initiative’s 2013 Point In Time survey there were 120 people living with HIV or AIDS who were dealing with homelessness. Keep in mind, these counts always miss people, which is unfortunate. Living with HIV and AIDS means that people need to eat healthy, but how does a person do that when they don’t have the funds and the facilities to provide for themselves? Pasta and pastries are easy to get when one is living on the street, but a more healthy diet is difficult to maintain. Another issue that people have is the need to take medication. Storing it where there is daily access can be difficult. Most of these medications work better with food while others have to be taken with food. So people have to find food at the proper times of the day in order to take their meds. And if they lose meds it can be difficult or even impossible to replace them. There are some housing options. CAP supports two facilities that house people living with HIV and AIDS. Dave’s Place provides permanent housing for 16 people. This facility is an old mansion near 14th and Josephine. Juan Diego provides housing for 21 individuals and is located just south of the current CAP offices in northwest Denver. There are also funds that come directly from HUD that help to house people living with HIV and AIDS. These funds also help pay deposits and app fees when individuals are trying to get housing. Within the homeless community there are other issues people face daily. Many times people living with HIV or AIDS won’t tell a service provider he or she has AIDS unless they feel that doing so will bring a benefit. This is primarily due to confidentiality. Essentially, providers need to be aware of CAP so that if someone says they have HIV or AIDS they can be referred to CAP in order to get services. CAP has money to spend on hotel rooms and other things that other providers don’t necessarily have. People living with HIV or AIDS need to go to the doctor once every three to six weeks in order to maintain the best health possible. This can use up a lot of time and also requires a person to always be looking for funding for transportation. CAP is usually able to give their clients a book of bus tickets each month. Most of the providers in the homeless community are more limited in what they can give out. The fact that there are people living with HIV or AIDS who are dealing with issues of homelessness means that the community needs to be aware of the specific issues these individuals face. By helping to provide for them, we can insure that they don’t die on the streets waiting for housing.

Homeless Bill of Rights-Restoring

TINY HOMES CONT’D FROM PG. 12

by Punky

s the days go by, we are getting closer and closer to creating the Homeless Bill of Rights for Colorado! Currently, we are in the midst of inputting the data that we have collected from our surveys, while still continuing to survey the homeless community. We are preparing legislative training, so we can properly approach our legislators and lobby in the most efﬁcient way we can. Passing a bill is no walk in the park-although it may take some walking in a lot of parks! There are many components needed in order to succeed. From busting the stigma around homelessness to creating a bill from our compiled data, we must use our driving compassion to boost our efforts for success. If you are also passionate for this cause, PLEASE DO NOT HESITATE to volunteer with us. Each day we grow, and with your help we will grow faster! Many of us who have surveyed the homeless community have come across a loss of hope in the people we survey. Of course this is understandable, BUT PEOPLE- without hope we are a lost cause. The Homeless Bill of Rights has succeeded in other states across the country, and we are not the only state who is currently working on a Homeless Bill of Rights. Rhode Island, Illinois, Connecticut- all have a Homeless Bill of Rights, and they succeeded not only because they worked their butts off, or because they have a burning passion for this issue- but because they had hope. Maybe the loss of hope comes from the fear that the Bill will change nothing-

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level knows that creating more housing options for unhoused people is the most effective way to actually end homelessness. It’s also cheaper than keeping people in a desperate cycle of emergency shelter stays, emergency room visits and jail stints that are caused by a hard life subsisting on the streets. But the federal housing budget is diminished and local government won’t allocate enough funding for housing. So what if people took the housing crisis into their own hands? A few days before Christmas, 2000, a group of unhoused people in Portland, Oregon did just that. They first created a tent city underneath a bridge near the court house, and were going to stay there until the city gave them a better alternative. Immediately this caused a controversy with passionate supporters and critics alike raising their voices. A heated standoff ensued between the city and the “campground” that was protected under the First Amendment. Thankfully, many of the residents of the campground were also well-spoken advocates. Eventually, the city offered the group of unhoused people a piece of property just north of downtown where they were given the right to build their own housing. Fairly soon, people donated materials and labor, and residents began designing and constructing their own homes. Today, 60 units--each custom designed and built to the specific needs of the residents--make up Dignity Village. They share common facilities (including kitchen and bathrooms) and maintain a garden together. Residents make up the council that regulates the property, and each person offers 10 hours a week to make the place better. At Dignity Village, each dwelling has its own door and privacy, and populations that are generally underserved are welcome – including couples without children, transgendered folks, and people with pets. And to top it off, they are able to offer dignity to a lot of people while staying within a smaller budget than any other housing program in Portland. Many express a sense of ownership over the space, and there is a waiting list for each house, because people prefer this model over the overcrowded shelters in town which don’t cater to the specific populations of people that make up Portland’s homeless community. Dignity Village is such a beautiful model, and the houses are so attractive, it’s started a revolution around the country. From Austin, to Madison, Eugene, Fresno and Olympia, more and more cities are attempting different models of tiny home communities, each with the emphasis on creating a more dignified alternative to overcrowded shelter options and brutal weather on the streets. Why shouldn’t this happen in Denver too? DHOL would like to help make “Little Denver” (or “Dignified Denver”) a reality. We recently acquired a new building site for tiny home construction and we’re excited to get started on another house. Sure, there’s still the problem of not having any land to put them on when they’re built, and we’re expecting a few complications from the city, but where there’s a will, there has to be a way. Everyone deserves a home, period.

but that is not true. The Illinois Homeless Bill of Rights states that “No person’s rights, privileges, or access to public services may be denied or abridged solely because he or she is homeless.” By prohibiting such discrimination, individuals in Illinois now have a private right of action to sue both private individuals and state agencies tthat discriminate against them because they are homeless. That’s only one part of the bill-- and there has been noticeable positive change in Illinois. In fact, there is currently a law suit under way regarding people who were harassed and arrested while sleeping in public space. Homeless individuals are using the Illinois HBOR in their defense for their rights! Perhaps the loss of hope generates because of the fear that the “higher-ups” in charge will not agree to pass the bill. Although this may be true for some, there are those who, if presented with appropriate data and a sound bill, could potentially want to support us. You see, homelessness affects the economy in a bad way, and helping the homeless will lead to building a stronger economy for Colorado. But one of the hardest things to change, that causes a loss of hope is ignorance. Although ignorance is but a lack of understanding, it does create a major disconnection in the community. Because of this lack of understanding, some people “ﬁll in the blanks” with what information they do have, and sadly some of their information is based on a stereo-type-- which then causes even more of a misunderstanding. Busting the stigma around homelessness, along with educating communities that don’t know very much about homelessness, is our CONT’D ON PG 16

NO IS

ONE IS

HOMEL

ESS

NO ONE

HOMEL

by Martin T. Wirth

O OTNE

he term “homeless” is a misnomer and the cause would be helped if we would all stop using it. There are 18-million vacant homes in the USA. Everyone has a home. People struggling to survive without shelter are not “homeless.” They are refugees. When your job or career has been stolen or destroyed, and they send armed men to evict you from your home, you are being subjected to an act of war. This is a civil war and the classes of people being attacked have yet to respond because we have unconsciously continued to use the language of the forces that are attacking us. This language is designed to obfuscate the facts of the war and protect its aggressors. There are no homeless people. There are only refugees in the widening civil war being waged by wealthy ruling classes. Under international law, refugees are ofﬁcially deﬁned as people who have been displaced by armed force not only from their home but also from their country of origin. The USA is bounded by oceans

HOMEL

with Canada on the north and Mexico on the south. Unlike smaller countries, most US citizens displaced by the ongoing civil war against them haven’t the means to escape across the oceans or into Canada or Mexico. So, the ofﬁcial term for them is Internally Displaced Persons. Most Americans have no idea of the difference in these two types of refugees, so the persons you are presently calling “homeless” are most accurately described simply as refugees or internal refugees.

“There are no homeless people. There are only refugees.”

ESS

The United Nations has established a documented set of Guiding Principles of Internal Displacement. Principle 3 states: 3.1 National authorities have the primary duty and responsibility to provide protection and humanitarian assistance to internally displaced persons within their jurisdiction. 3.2 Internally displaced persons have the right to request and to receive protection and humanitarian assistance from these authorities. They shall not be persecuted or punished for making such a request.

Some of us are experienced with sheltering women and children. The government has consistently and egregiously defied Principle 4.2: 4.2 Certain internally displaced persons, such as children, especially unaccompanied minors, expectant mothers, mothers with young children, female heads of household, persons with disabilities and elderly persons, shall be entitled to protection and assistance required by their condition and to treatment which takes into account their special needs. The so-called urban camping ban in Denver is a direct violation of Principle 12.3: 12.3 Internally displaced persons shall be protected from discriminatory arrest and detention as a result of their displacement. Denver’s practice of harassment and stealing property from refugees proves a very embarrassing fact: Expecting market forces or big business clubs to provide for refugees is the height of ludicrous thinking. Once everything has been stolen from a person, they are no longer allowed to live. The flouting of principle 12.3 was codified into an ordinance at the behest of the Downtown Denver Partnership and its influential business executives.

Such organizations and governmental bodies inﬂuenced by them go far beyond being unethical. American business people have chosen to be perpetrators of war crimes against their impoverished fellow citizens. Compare their conduct to the idea embodied in Principle 18: 18.1 All internally displaced persons have the right to an adequate standard of living. 18.2 At the minimum, regardless of the circumstances, and without discrimination, competent authorities shall provide internally displaced persons with and ensure safe access to: (a) Essential food and potable water; (b) Basic shelter and housing; (c) Appropriate clothing; and (d) Essential medical services & sanitation. The ruling classes can’t even do these few simple things for their fellow citizens. How can any rational person deem them competent much less entitled to rule over us with the tools of state violence and aggression at their disposal?

UN R E

s e c i o V r i e h T t Le eard! H Be

lease write to local, small or alternative media, and to national news media, such as the New York Times, saying that you want to hear the voices of the poor and homeless. In this land of freedom of the press, where are their voices? The untold story: The media sidesteps its freedom of the press by failing to report that many part-time workers are paid less than $172 a week after taxes-while most US Senators are paid roughly twenty times that amount, or $3346 a week. It ignores its freedom to expose governmental and corporate wrongdoing while keeping the financially poor, the hungry, the homeless silent. The homeless are just regular folks who are usually at the bottom of the poverty ladder. In its government-approved misguided coverage of poverty, one story the news media hardly ever covers is just how difficult it is for the working poor and their families--about 150 million Americans-to obtain healthy food. Lacking cars or easily accessible public transportation, as well as being exhausted from their daily grind, they are often unable to get to the market, purchase and then lug home even this country’s poor excuses for food-like canned vegetables with most of the nutriment drained out of them, processed mashed potatoes, and Twinkies--let alone find, afford and bring home fresh meat, fruits and vegetables.

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HOPE CONT’D FROM PG. 14

by the still poor, few times homeless - Jan Lightfoot

This is one of many aspects of human suffering gladly overlooked by the print and broadcast media. Why would the vanguard of society, our media, disregard the pain of one third of our population? (For I contend that is the proportion of people in our country who are “lacking the resources to meet the basic needs for healthy living; having insufficient income to provide the food, shelter and clothing needed to preserve health,” which is how Wikipedia defines the absolute poverty line.) Simple-the media is owned by billionaires. Their advertisers want you to believe the lies and propaganda which for thousands of years have promoted a lifeless and colorless society, and which have failed to reveal the inhumanity which underlies the functioning of our economy. They do not want anyone to suggest or experiment with more humane and equitable economic models. They are afraid of the untried! The elite fear trying a “humane income for all,” even though it is hidden in the New Testament that a leader called Christ said the proper amount to give the poor is “the full need.” That would entail asking the poor how much more it would take to break even and feel human. The answer would be two to three times their minimum wage, or two to three times what the disabled are paid by the government. The owners of manufacturing companies would then have workers who could purchase the companies’ high end items. Their profits would increase with a humane income for all. But they fear the unknown. And even some of the pretend alternative news sources are afraid to

carry “the words of us poor.” After all, even the once underground news depends on ads to survive. The nitty gritty of everyday life is too grotesque for the public to be informed about. If such stories were covered, people would find out they are among the 260 million out of 320 million who cannot afford to pay all their monthly bills. They would realize that it isn’t really their fault that society allows pay rates that do not cover their needs. For example, many people go to school for three to four years and spend a lot of money to become a life saving nurse, only to discover they are lucky to get $16 an hour when it costs $24 to pay their bills. The media do not tell us this. They are given freedom of the press to be able to inform us. But fear of losing advertisers means their freedom of the press remains mute, unused. They cover the safe press releases issued by the elite alone. The poor being unable to speak out means poverty continues and grows. It produces the agony of being unheard, to the poor and to those poor or not--but lacking funds to purchase advertising. It weakens America as a world leader. It is time to write to your local mainstream and alternative news media, telling them you want to hear about the poor lugging home groceries. You want to hear not about a fire or an accident, but about how the lack of adequate income makes life more difficult. Check out - End All PovertyNow on Facebook, or write to peacefulwarrior1150@wordpress.com

best bet to help deplete the amount of ignorance towards this issue. To keep hope, remember, that ignorance is just a lack of understandinga lack of education on the matter. Nothing has stopped us, or downed our passions and efforts towards making this Homeless Bill of Rights. And we will continue to work our butts off, keep our passions burning, and maintain HOPE, to make a better community and a better place to live for all of us. Please, think about how much power your compassion has-join our cause to HELP US ALL. DHOL’s Homeless Bill of Rights working group meets every Wednesday at AFSC (901 W.14th Ave--in the Courthouse Square apts across from King Soopers). Email us at info@ denverhomelessoutloud.org or call the DHOL phone (720-940-5291) for more information on these meetings or how to get involved.

photo by Lysander Romero

24 R AND R CONT’D FROM PG. 11 the system’s designers, let’s assume the best--that what they meant to convey is that, while at any given time some would be actively engaged in services toward housing stability and others would not, the goal would be for everyone to be engaged at some point. Let’s assume that the R&R Center staff would continually be offering hope, encouragement and services to all guests in an effort to help them improve their lives--recognizing that each person’s “readiness for change” is constantly in ﬂux--that someone “not ready” today may be “ready” next week or next month.

How about ASKING the homeless?

photo by Lysander Romero

by John Wayne Claybaugh

o many times during my years in the homeless community and since, I have heard the negative comments about many of the providers in Denver. In reality, it’s not all bad. We are all human, though, so there will be some bad experiences. I’ve had several good experiences though. The one I’ll share now happened at the Denver Rescue Mission’s Lawrence Shelter in 2011. The Lawrence Shelter is commonly referred to as an emergency shelter. As such, the men who sleep there are required to strip their beds and turn their sheets in each morning. This is because the beds are occupied by different people each night. One morning, after texting my wife and doing a few other things with my cell phone, I got up and started preparing for the day. At some point I stripped the bed and put the sheets in a rolling laundry bin. It would later be rolled to the freight elevator and taken to the laundry room in the basement. I proceeded to gather my belongings, preparing to vacate the dorm. At some point I realized my cell phone was not in my pants pocket that I usually kept it in. I checked all the pockets of my coat and pants. I rummaged through every compartment of my backpack. The cell phone was not in my possession any longer. I began to think about when I last remembered having it, and what I had done since that moment. I realized I hadn’t touched my cell phone since I was texting in bed. And the bed was stripped! I found one of the program guys (who work there while completing a transitional rehab program) and told him what my phone looked like. I told him that whoever was doing laundry would ﬁnd it wrapped up in the sheets. He said he would notify the laundry personnel.

I wasn’t sure if I would ever see my phone again. Even if they found it, would they be honest and return it? And would it be found before or after it went through the wash? I didn’t expect to hear anything about my phone until later that day when I returned for the night. I left the dorm a few minutes later. I routinely had breakfast at the shelter back then, so I went to the main chapel area on the main ﬂoor to wait. It would be a half hour before breakfast would be served. The chapel areas are used as a waiting area during the day for meals. I had barely even sat down when the same person I’d talked to upstairs called out to me. I walked over to him and he handed me my phone. “Holy crap,” I said. “It’s been found already!” “Yep,” he said. Well, thanks,” I said. This is awesome.” I found out that evening from one of the staff members that the person I had talked to and two other program guys had decided to look through every laundry bin until they found my phone. They stopped what they were doing and did this as soon as they heard about my misplaced phone. I was told that they didn’t want to be recognized or rewarded in any way. “They did what they felt in their hearts was the right thing,” is what I was told. To me, that was pretty awesome.

We should assume only the best intentions from the 24 Hour R&R task force members, many of whom, in the words of city spokesperson Jamie Bradwell, “have daily contact with the homeless, advocate for the homeless every day or have personally struggled with episodes of homelessness. They are extremely knowledgeable about the issue and ﬁnding supportive ways to help the homeless ﬁnd permanent, supportive housing.” This is what Ms. Bradwell said when asked whether the input of people experiencing homelessness had been obtained and incorporated into the center proposal. But no matter how much service providers interact with the recipients of those services, their perspective is bound to be different from that of the people who are actually experiencing homelessness and KNOW WHAT THEY NEED. So I have a different proposal for the task force: How about actually ASKING those who are homeless what assistance they need most, and how that help can best be provided? If you do this in good faith, demonstrating that what homeless folks say really matters and will be taken seriously--I am convinced that what you hear will surprise you. And if you really listen, and design a service system around what you learn, I believe what you end up with will be truly unique in its ability to make a difference in the lives of people experiencing homelessness.

THE LIBRARY IS NOW

CLOSED

By Brando

thing they had to keep warm. hen the friendly And the party people blame the but dead voice drugs in a town they moved to to on the intercom do drugs. And the ones who give finishes its orders for a living say they wanna countdown to help, they serve up soup one night zero, says with a year after tearing down kitchens the firm sad guilt of breakups, layoffs or that served round the clock. denied bail: “the library is now closed”, They’re willing to do anything but and the hundreds of all day residents take your word, they think up all make their way out, no books in hand, kinds of answers except for ones and the guards search the premises to they aren’t part of. Talking about make sure no one’s getting the same politics like it’s a helping hand free shelter as the paperbacks, DVDs instead of a chokehold, a choir and magazines, when the automatic that needs your voice instead of doors become palace gates and the the bars across the bus benches, church bells ring in the hour in a city the compactors behind the grocery changed by night into something different... a monster. A forbidden zone. stores, the ugly noises playing on loop beneath the warmest grates An enemy, a maze of padlocks, a trail of dancefloors that won’t have you and in town so that if sleep comes, it comes chaperoned by nightmares... parties you’re not invited to. Making all the obstacles standing in the their way past the benches that have way between you and your needs, held more stories than the building you and you wants. In this city full they’re in front of, as if all written of fields and canned goods, city by the same author who never runs full of nails and two by fours and out of unreplaceable characters and empty buildings, city full of oil unbelievable situations, but can’t drums, cardboard, matches and write a happy ending, they scatter blankets, of knives and bullets, of across town looking for the best friends and the resourcefulness pickings of shadow and crevice, that only comes to those who need playing hide and seek from the cold, it most. This city full of ways to get the predators that TV cops hunt for, by that are none of the business and the real life cops that cruise the of those who only know the library city looking for signs of “in-need” to as a place to check out books, pounce on. The night is a gamble, and who’ve never sat in the one place the odds are good. But good odds in town where sitting for free isn’t don’t take you too far when you have some kind of theft, watching the to gamble every night. You can’t pick countdown to night and war, who a place too comfortable, too warm, don’t know shit about the threat of a too full of other people who recognize world that gets summoned with the solidarity as another way of saying words: “The library is now closed.” fucked in all the same ways. You can’t pick a place that makes too much sense, these days it’s all about the places that no one can see. It’s hiding behind powerboxes, it’s the lots where the grass grows tallest, it’s crawls through the parking garages till you find a spot the camera can’t see, it’s the plains behind firing ranges with gunshots for a wakeup call. And when the bars get out the drunks with addresses point to every brown paper bag to say “this is what the bums chose,” shivering on their way to sealed cars and heated homes, when a bottle’s never been the only

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, I HIDE BEHIND I HIDE BEHIND A BUSH Y I HIDE TO PEE, A TREE, YOU ASK WH E CAN’T SEE. I HIDE SO THE POLIC by Tim Edens Art by Bill Policy

Art/poem by Mary Aldridge Mary Aldridge

X E T R VO HOMELESSNESS OF

BELIEVE by Christine Schaefer

to the Bone Close to the bone Yet so far from home Wrought iron fences Spring wind dried sheets Angel food cake cools in the window Red earth pressed into the tread of my sneaks I settle here And travel there But never felt at home Anywhere

he blackness falls seeping slowly Figurative decay crumbles piece by piece. Growing pains no matter the age, The older you get the more they sting. Having faith could work but trying words Try to deceive your eyes, ears & heart, On the bottom trying to climb back up, It’s so easy to get stuck and get comfortable But it all gets stale like bad air. Don’t stop believing God has a plan (This poem has been The choices you make always composed into a jazz decide your fate. and dance version song.) Even though you’re in despair my mom taught manners In a hop-scotch city grid Didn’t yours? From Starbuck’s to Just because you’re given a title Starbuck’s I hold my self does that mean esteem like A paper cup You have to live up to the name? Crushed by my own Grip Yes you may not have a home but The confusion of where you are is just a mirage Home or not home...homeless? Home without but don’t forget to take care of yourself! Then again I know that’s why I have been put here because I am learning for the first time in 37 years How to take care of myself. All the smoke In the mirrors and facades this place Is like the Garden of Eden full of Forbidden fruit and snakes. Only people Who look at it through God’s eyes can survive and Get through the high wading waters. Please God don’t let me drown. I value you first and foremost Along with Jesus. Is it possible to find the truest kind of love with a man In this crazy world I have brought myself to? I believe Love is the answer I believe

Just missed the light rail

Artist and poet Caroline Pooler published a book of poetry, Close to the Bone in 2012. She shares her work with Get Loud, ﬁnding herself homeless after job loss in 2011. Caroline states she is beginning to see the light at the end of the “Poverty Vortex,” following her own individualistic path back to true selfsufﬁciency. Caroline is compelled to use her gifts as the means to end her homelessness. Both from the book of poetry Close to the Bone by C.S. Pooler, copyright 2012. Art work by Judy Cardwell

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GET LOUD To get involved, come to a meeting: Every Tuesday and Friday 11:30am -1:30pm at the Auraria Campus library [1100 Lawrence St] (next to green Discovery Wall on the first floor) Catch lunch first at 11am behind St Elizabeth’s Church, right across from our meeting. We can also be reached by email at getloud@denverhomelessoutloud.org or by calling (720) 940-5291. Submit your articles, stories, poems and more to Get Loud.

Bring them to a Get Loud meeting. Email: getloud@denverhomelessoutloud.org Call (720) 940-5291 to arrange a pick-up. Or drop them into a Get Loud submission box. These boxes are located at: *Blair Caldwell Library (2401 Welton St) *Christ’s Body Ministries (850 Lincoln St) *Denver Central Library (10 W 14th Ave) (in the Level 4 TV Room) *Father Woody’s (1101 7th Ave) *The Gathering Place (1535 High St) *The Spot (2100 Stout St) www.getlouddholpress.weebly.com

Art by Charles Turnstall