08 07 2019

VOL. 16 ISSUE 20

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Real Stories

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Real People

Real Change

“We’re all we got.” Former and current Hope Village residents fear the future of re-entry in DC

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The Cover

The Street Sense Media Story, #MoreThanANewspaper

Hope Village is the only halfway house for men still operating in the District of Columbia. The company’s contract with the Bureau of Prisons expires in October.

Originally founded as a street newspaper in 2003, Street Sense Media has evolved into a multimedia center using a range of creative platforms to spotlight solutions to homelessness and empower people in need. The men and women who work with us do much more than sell this paper: They use film, photography, theatre, illustration, and more to share their stories with our community.

Our media channels elevate voices, our newspaper vendor and digital marketing programs provide economic independence. And our in-house casemanagement services move people forward along the path toward permanent supportive housing.

At Street Sense Media, we define ourselves through our work, talents, and character, not through our housing situation.

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OFFICE SALES VOLUNTEERS Miya Abdul, Bill Butz, Jane Cave, Emma Cronenwethe, Pete Clark, Orion Donovan-Smith, Maria Esposito, Roberta Haber, Ann Herzog, Bill Magrath, Alec Merkle, Nick Nowlan, Sarah O’Connell, Leonie Peterkin, Eugene Versluysen, Natalia Warburton

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EVENTS

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NEWS IN BRIEF OBITUARIES

Memorial service to be held for NoMa community member

He passed away in an encampmanet on K Street.

Michael Irby of Washington, D.C., passed away in the early morning of July 26. He was 65 years old.

He was preceded in death by his wife Joyce Irby, who passed away on August 5, 2018.

Michael is survived by his brother Shawn Irby and his sister Celeste Irby, as well as his daughter Mikka Irby of North Carolina.

A memorial service will be held for Michael at 7 p.m. on Friday, August 9, at All Nations Baptist Church on 2001 N Capitol St NE.

#DontMuteDC: “Go-Go 4 Justice Re-Entry Rally” Aug. 8 // 5:30 p.m. - 9 p.m.

Bladensburg Rd. NE & New York Ave. NE (Checkers) Announced via e-mail at 9:50 p.m. on Tuesady, Aug. 6: “Concerned citizens, go-go community and leaders unite to save quality re-entry in D.C. Bands supporting the fight for returning citizens’ human rights to postive re-entry and the second chance we all deserve. They will perform live between speakers and call to action.”

THURSDAY, AUG. 8

UPDATES ONLINE AT ICH.DC.GOV

AUG. 7 - AUG. 16

Attorney General’s Right Direction Awards

D.C. Interagency Council on Homelessness Meetings

Volunteer with Housing Up to Tutor Adults

6 p.m. - 8 p.m.

Old Council Chambers 441 4th Street NW, First Floor

Executive Committee Aug. 13, 1:30 pm // TBD * Likely 441 4th Street NW

12 p.m. - 2 p.m.

5101 16th St. NW

OAG will present awards to 26 District youth, ages 14 to 24, who were nominated by their teachers, local nonprofits, mentors and neighbors. These young people are leaders and role models and many have persevered in the face of challenges such as homelessness, violence, and teen parenting.

Housing Solutions Committee Aug. 19, 3 pm // TBD * Most likely 1800 MLK Jr. Ave. SE *Committee schedules only.

For issue-focused working groups, contact ich.info@dc.gov.

Housing Up is seeking patient, knowledgeable and flexible volunteers to tutor parents. The adult tutoring program is designed to support adults seeking the GED, technical certifications or other academic endeavors. CONTACT: Volunteer Program Manager Dillon Ficca, at dficca@housing.org or 202-291-5535 ext 412.

Submit your event for publication by emailing editor@streetsensemedia.org

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ELVEST THE DON KING @LevesterJoeGR2

Donald [Brooks] added to the beauty in this world. His manner and style expressed a love of life and a desire to share his experiences with the privilege to lift up his fellow man. Thanks Donald, for caring and sharing your time with all of us.

I mean besides my fellow #FiLMCOOP DIRECTORS I just wanna thank, give a shoutout, & show of support for all of the @streetsensedc vendors & artist, past & present, who also help hold the paper down with their real life stories of #LIFE & #Perspective...

12:58 AM - 2 AUG 2019

11:14 AM - 1 AUG 2019

Mr. Irby was a devoted church member and a talented musician. PHOTO COURTESY OF HIS CLOSE FRIEND, LEISA HOLLAND

DEVELOPMENT

After a $5 million pledge from Exelon, the 11th Street Bridge Park needs less than $28 million to reach its goals D.C. residents and visitors are one step closer to a pedestrian-friendly walk from Navy Yard and Capitol Hill to historic Anacostia and Fairlawn without cars whizzing alongside them — via Washington’s first elevated public space, a park that will span the Anacostia River. Exelon, Pepco’s parent company, announced a $5 million gift last week to the Ward 8 nonprofit Building Bridges Across the River (BBAR), which heads the 11th Street Bridge Park project.

—Co-published with TheDCLine.org

HEALTH

DC Council to review a bill that would increase wages for workers who assist people with disabilities The bill – the Direct Support Professional Payment Rate Act of 2019 – is currently under review. The legislation would increase wages for direct support professionals, a workforce that has seen high turnover due to pay in recent years.

Follow more headlines at StreetSenseMedia.org/news

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NEWS

One of the residential facilities that comprise the Hope Village re-entry program.

PHOTO BY BENJAMIN BURGESS WWW.KSTREETPHOTORAPHYDC.COM

DC’s only halfway house for men may lose its contract Because the District is not a state, federally incarcerated residents are spread nationwide. While residents want better conditions, they fear losing their only option for returning home.

Editor's Note: Street Sense Media spoke to 4 former residents, 1 current resident, and 1 former employee of the Hope Village halfway house. Nearly all would agree to an interview only under the condition of anonymity, citing concerns over retaliation or negative impacts on future job prospects. Due to the many government reports and court documents available that backed up their claims, we agreed to these terms. Anywhere only a first name is used in this story, it is a pseudonym to protect the source who shared their lived experience with us.

BY MEENA MORAR meena.morar@streetsensemedia.org

T

here are currently 4,095 male D.C. residents incarcerated by the Bureau of Prisons across the country, according to a D.C. Corrections Information Council employee. Upon returning to the District, around 50 percent typically spend time in a halfway house, according to a 2016 report by the Council for Court Excellence. But in two months, that may no longer be possible.

On Oct. 31, Hope Village’s contract with the BOP is set to expire. The 304-bed halfway house, which was established in 1977, has received $125 million dollars in federal contracts from the BOP since 2006, according to the Washington Post.

What it has also received, however, is a series of complaints from residents — many of whom said they would have preferred to stay in prison rather than live there.

And now, after a contract to construct a new halfway house fell apart in 2018, the 168 incarcerated D.C. residents scheduled to come home from October to

December face total uncertainty.

It is important to us to give organizations ample time to comment when we write about their work. In this case, Hope Village staff said they were prohibited from speaking to the media and referred all questions to the Bureau of Prisons. BOP did not respond to any of the questions we submitted in the first week of July or to subsequent followup communications over the next four weeks checking on the status of that inquiry. Several hours before the Street Sense Media newspaper went to press, BOP provided a brief statement that confirmed several of the facts outlined below.

A paper trail of complaints In 2013, in response to multiple complaints and concerns, the D.C. Corrections Information Council conducted an inspection of Hope Village over a six-month period.

Many community members, the CIC found, felt as though the staff was inaccessible, the facilities were dirty, and job and programming resources were lacking.

“The little bit of time and information that they give people — it’s not enough time to go and try to get a job,” said one former resident, Henry. “People don’t know how to do that; you have a lot of people who have been [incarcerated] for decades, who really don’t know how to use those computers.

They pretty much just throw you out there to the woods.”

The CIC recommended that Hope Village provide more programming via community partnerships, ensure the use of experts with education and specialized training, establish a forum for internal communication and grievances, and provide internet and job resources to all residents.

A perceived lack of empathy and patience is also an issue, former residents say.

“Whenever you have an issue, the staff is always so busy and unprofessional,” said Brian, a current resident of Hope

Village. “They have so many people in their caseload.

When you do request a meeting, it’s always, ‘Okay, what is it now? I’m busy.’ It’s always something. You can’t ever sit down and say, ‘Listen this is what’s going on in my life.’”

Most of the residents have lost faith and trust in the people employed to help them, according to Brian. They are not motivated or engaged when they are still being treated like prisoners.

“When you’re dealing with men who have been ostracized and separated from families from 10, 15, 20 years, you really have to deal with these guys on an intimate level, on a professional level, in a more direct level,” Brian said. “... You have to show these guys something different, and that’s not happening.”

While certain policies may seem restrictive or unnecessary, former resident Cornelious Porter explains he now understands why the safeguards are there.

“When you look at the overall picture, I understand,” Porter said. “I’m still a convicted felon, I’m still under Hope Village’s supervision. I had been gone 17 years and seven months. To come home and now have a little bit of freedom – if Hope Village just lets me immediately take off and look for a job, I’ll be all over the place.”

In September 2016, as residents and service providers continued to have concerns regarding Hope Village, the CIC sent a letter to the BOP highlighting alternative reentry strategies.

In December 2016, the Council for Court Excellence’s annual report on returning citizens included a request for BOP not to renew Hope Village’s contract. The report instead urged that funding go toward hiring a new provider that would be accountable for high-quality services such as workforce engagement, behavioral and physical health resources, housing, family support, and offense-specific issues.

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Without an alternative, former resident Antoine Jones said he was wary of the big-picture question of “How are guys going to come home?”

“If you close Hope Village, what do you have?” Jones said.

“I’m with Hope Village because it’s a halfway house that’s established now. There’s guys who have been [in prison] for a long time and are waiting to come home. I think any halfway house will have the good, bad and ugly — but in terms of what you’re coming to the halfway house for, it’s your halfway home.”

An (un)safe haven In addition to the living conditions and treatment, former Hope Village residents also reported feeling an overarching lack of safety.

The halfway house is located at 2844 Langston Pl. SE, within the Woodland neighborhood. In the last year, there have been 33 reported cases of violent crime and 60 instances of property crime within a 1500-foot radius of that address.

“I had to leave prison and go back to one of the most active neighborhoods there is, as far as criminal activity,” said former resident and D.C. native Marquis Hicks. “My first day back at the halfway house, up the street in the same neighborhood, a younger individual got killed for his shoes. That’s the norm.”

Hicks was sent to Hope Village twice, for two separate sentences. The second time, he was supposed to serve eight months there. He lasted three.

“The stress of Hope Village was overwhelming,” Hicks said.

“I chose prison at that point and left.”

A recent investigation by NBC’s local News4 I-Team found that 10 percent of all escapes from halfway houses nationwide occur from Hope Village. An escape, or “walkaway,” is defined by failing to return at a scheduled time.

Many people preemptively reject Hope Village as an option because of safety fears, according to Hicks.

“A lot of people actually deny the halfway house just because of where it’s located,” Hicks said. “When guys know they’re coming home, the halfway house is supposed to be transitioning. Say I’m an individual who wants to be on the straight and narrow — you’re going to put yourself in an environment where you’re going to see a lot.”

In a location full of such violence and external stressors, former residents say they have had to band together to support each other.

“We’re all we got,” Brian said of his fellow residents. “We have to be there for each other. I’m trying to show these brothers that there’s a better way, that you can make it, and I know that the situation is overwhelming right now but just pray and have faith.”

Overworked and overcrowded While many residents have expressed concern and discontent with support from Hope Village staff, an interview with a former employee shows the tensions placed on the staffers themselves.

Hope Village, with its 304 beds, is the largest residential reentry center under BOP’s control. The next largest halfway house is located in Texas and holds 171 beds. The BOP supports 166 halfway houses, or residential reentry centers, total.

The closest halfway house outside of D.C. is located in Baltimore and was already over capacity in 2016, according to an audit report. At the time, there were 65 staff members assigned to the 185 residents, with roughly one employee for every three residents.

Meanwhile, Hope Village employed 94 full-time staff members in 2013, according to the CIC report. Among them were social workers, vocational counselors, case managers and drug counselors. At the time the report was released, an average caseload for a vocational counselor was between 40 and 70 residents.

Typical responsibilities included leading a job readiness course, holding goal-setting meetings for residents, checking in

on residents in home confinement, and conducting on-site visits to any resident’s job, according to former vocational counselor Mary.

In the disorganized environment at Hope Village, Mary said she felt unable to commit adequate time to each resident.

“The job itself, I don’t think it’s a bad job if that’s something you want to do,” Mary said. “In order to do a job like that, you have to be in it. If there was more professionalism in Hope Village overall, I think that it would come together.”

Each resident must create a customized action plan with their vocational counselor if they remain unemployed for 45 days, according to the 2013 CIC report.

A lack of training was one downfall, Mary said. She recalled being placed into her position after one week of training, and expressed feeling a lack of confidence as a result when she began counseling.

“When I was placed in my building, apparently there wasn’t a counselor that was there for maybe a month or two prior to me getting my position,” Mary said. “They had me in a two-week training with my supervisor, but I did a one-week training and I was just put in my building and pretty much had to figure things out.”

The CIC was told by community services providers and residents that Hope Village staff members were reported to be unqualified and unhelpful in handling their position.

Mary claimed that social workers at Hope Village were not “actually licensed.” The minimum qualifications for a social worker position at Hope Village is a Bachelor of Arts degree, according to the CIC report. At other halfway houses, applicants must hold a Master’s degree; vocational counselors must hold a high school diploma, a Bachelor of Arts degree, and one-year experience are preferred; and case managers and drug counselors must be more specialized.

// 5

that BOP reopen discussions and competition for the contract.

Hope Village and the BOP requested a reconsideration from the GAO, but in May the office denied that second request. There have been no public announcements since that time regarding updated solicitations for the new contract.

In the face of such actions, Douglas Development pulled out of the project with Core D.C. in December 2018, according to the Washington Post. There has not been clarity since as to whether Douglas Development or Core D.C. intend to restart conversations.

Douglas Development did not respond to multiple requests for comment. Core D.C. declined to comment.

Amidst the uncertainty, community partners and residents are becoming more nervous about the prospect of D.C. losing its only halfway house for men.

On June 25, the D.C. Reentry Action Network sent a letter urging the BOP to build a new halfway house in the District, with Core D.C. as its provider. The looming void of halfway houses is not viable, according to Paula Thompson, executive director of the nonprofit Voices for a Second Chance.

“What we hope is that we’re not in a position where we won’t have a facility in the city,” Thompson said. “Should the decision be made that Core D.C. cannot operate that facility and the award is rescinded in some manner and we’re left with no option — that is not an option.”

The men set to come home from prison, noted former resident Jones, don’t have time to wait.

“Let’s think about the people,” he said. “What do they want?

They want to have a halfway house now.”

A push for a new option Although Hope Village has been the only halfway house for men in D.C. for many years, it’s not for lack of effort. BOP began soliciting proposals in 2016 to open a second halfway house in the District. The 5-year, $60 million contract was eventually awarded on Nov. 1, 2018 to Core Services Group, which has run a similar nonprofit facility in New York.

The proposed 300-bed center was slated for 3400 New York Ave. NE, in Ward 5. Soon after the contract was announced, however, there was major pushback from two fronts.

Two weeks after the new contract was awarded, Hope Village filed a complaint with the Government Accountability Office on Nov. 13, 2018, claiming that Core D.C.’s proposal did not “provide sufficient proof” of the company’s right to use the proposed building as a halfway house. BOP issued a stop-work order to Core D.C. after the November complaint was filed, according to their statement issued to Street Sense Media.

The next month, 12 residents who lived near the proposed site filed a lawsuit against Core D.C. for an injunction to stop the project. Residents, Ward 5 Councilmember Kenyan McDuffie and D.C. Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton all claimed there was a lack of community outreach and a disregard of zoning regulations.

Councilmember McDuffie did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

In February, the GAO recommended

A timeline of the legal challenges faced by the proposed new halfway house in Ward 5.

INFOGRAPHIC BY MEENA MORAR

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NEWS

Marijuana is legal, but returning citizens from the criminal justice system are still facing consequences for using it

BY BRIANNA BILTER brianna.bilter@streetsensemedia.org

M

arijuana isn’t merely growing more acceptable in the eyes of the American public; it’s entered the luxury market, with the department store Barney’s advertising a “cannabis lifestyle” in their recently-opened luxury shop The High End. With marijuana recreationally legalized in eleven states and D.C., the way the drug is used has changed.

“You can talk about smoking a joint just like you can talk about having a drink,” said Ashley McSwain, executive director of Community Family Life Services. “Drinking is legal. There is no stigma associated with having a drink every now and then.”

Yet despite this shift, marijauana use is more permissible for some members of the population than it is for others.

McSwain works with returning citizens from the criminal justice system to aid in the transition to permanent selfsufficiency. Despite the benefits of decriminalizing marijuana, this formalized culture of acceptance has created some confusion for McSwain’s clients.

Rhonda Deskins, an employment specialist at Community Family Life Services, finds herself explaining to clients all the time that marijuana will work against them in the hiring process. She has seen people fired after testing positive for marijuana as well. Legalization has created a new barrier for her already high-need clients, she said, because they don’t expect to face these repercussions. “[They may be] on probation. Some of them aren’t connected with their children,” Deskins said. “It creates problems even with reunification, trying to make sure you’re clean and sober and have a good home for your kids.”

Is change in the works?

Some private sector companies have changed their policies in states where recreational or medicinal use is now legal.

According to Eric Janson, a partner in the Labor and Employment Department at Seyfarth Shaw LLP, these changes sometimes arise out of necessity to attract candidates. Preemployment drug testing policy in particular has been affected, with some companies removing marijuana or THC from their drug testing panel completely, he said.

The state of Maine, for example, prohibits employers from taking adverse employment action based on a positive drug test for marijuana unless they can prove that the employee or applicant is under the influence while at work.

By definition, this means that pre-employment testing is prohibited, Janson said.

Nationwide, in the past three to five years “both the laws on the books as well as the case law and the courts interpreting those laws have seemingly been trending pro-employee,” Janson said. He expects this trend to continue.

What are the true consequences for returning citizens?

incident occurs in the construction industry, they drug test first. And a positive test for marijuana is immediate grounds for dismissal.

“It’s kind of ironic, too, because we do serve re-entry populations,” Deskins said. “And the construction industry has been notorious for being really open to hiring returning citizens.”

Deskins said her client’s contract had a “no-tolerance” drug policy. He was let go, with no means to contest his termination.

The construction industry is dealing with serious liability, and even medicinal marijuana use can be a concern due to the presence of heavy machinery that can cause serious injury.

“I think that employers that I have seen, particularly in the construction industry, are looking at those potential liabilities and making assessments whether it is reasonable to allow this as a form of accommodation given the nature of their job and the essential functions of their job,” Janson said.

Insurance factors in as well. Insurance companies will not dictate employers’ drug testing policies, according to Bob Thompson, vice president of the staffing insurance company World Wide Specialty Programs. However, in the case of a lawsuit, an insurance company could potentially decline coverage for a claim if an employee is impaired, and employees can still sue for workers’ compensation. As Thompson put it, “the circumstances turn out to be dictating.”

Despite the trend Janson illustrated, business practices around marijuana and legal policies are not aligned across the board.

And for the clients McSwain and Deskins work with, the consequences of being excluded from the job market due to What are people doing to reform the legal use of a drug can be much more severe. marijuana policy?

“There is a freedom issue,” McSwain said. “That’s not the case for other populations.”

Though a positive test for marijuana is not automatically Even in sectors that aren’t high-risk, employers still have a probation violation under D.C. law, the standard terms of discretion over whether or not to test for marijuana. Community probation do include a job requirement. So if marijuana is Family Life Services doesn’t have a legal team, though this preventing someone from obtaining employment, they can be discretion makes it unlikely that there would be a legal basis in violation of their probation. for recourse. When a client is threatened with repercussions Though the federal system continues to from a positive marijuana test, the most they operate differently due to the prohibition of can do is advocate for a retest at a later date. marijuana under the Controlled Substances “It’s heartbreaking to watch this policy Act, the idea that individuals on parole or impact,” McSwain said. “Our clients are probation should not face repercussions for looking for any kind of refuge that they can marijuana use is not new. A former probation find. And smoking a joint, just like people commissioner in New York City testified at who drink a drink now and again to take a hearing last year to encourage the state the edge off, is sort of what our clients to eliminate marijuana use as a violation of have access to.” parole or probation, even before legalization.

McSwain and Deskins would like to Ashley McSwain When people are going through re-entry, see sweeping legalization at the federal they are worried about childcare, food, Community Family Life Services level. U.S. Sen. Cory Booker, the New housing, and other facets of the transition Jersey Democrat who is also running for process, said Deskins. They might be facing a custody battle. president, sees ending the federal prohibition and reinvesting Beyond the potential legal necessity of maintaining employment, in those communities most affected by the war on drugs as holding a job is paramount for the particularly acute obstacles this the only way to achieve a just marijuana policy. population faces.

D.C. has yet to pass legislation protecting employees against “I think that’s really the only option, is to take it off the discrimination for marijuana use, but At-large Councilmember testing in places where recreational is permitted,” Deskins said.

Elissa Silverman announced a hearing on two bills being D.C. is unique for returning citizens due to the dichotomy considered by her Committee on Labor and Workforce of federal and city-level policies. The District doesn’t have Development. She invites the public to attend. it’s own federal prison system, so people convicted of “There has been growing interest among the public about this felonies are diverted to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons and sent issue and the committee will take a closer look at it during the to institutions around the country, making re-entry more summer recess,” said Ashley Fox, Silverman’s communications challenging. When searching for employment, the high and community outreach director. concentration of federal jobs means marijuana will be legal A positive marijuana test would never be grounds for in some settings and not in others.

Community Family Life Services to deny service to someone, but it does have a “sober house” in its transitional housing program. Smoking isn’t allowed in the building and they do What does a zero-tolerance policy mean random drug tests, but when it comes to marijuana, McSwain when you can test positive without being doesn’t see the point in “stressing out over a rule that has no ‘under the influence?’ implications for anything.”

“I was just having this conversation with a staff person about A client Deskins worked with got into an accident with a crane their client who keeps testing positive for marijuana,” McSwain while working at a construction site. Deskins said that he was not said. “And I’m saying, well, is she going to work? Is she paying under the influence at the time of the accident, but that when an her bills? ... I’m thinking, leave that lady alone.”

“There is a freedom issue. That’s not the case for other populations.”

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DC residents discuss the information gap caused by inconsistent and discriminatory marijuana policy

// 7

CELEBRATING SUCCESS

BY BRIANNA BILTER brianna.bilter@streetsensemedia.org

S

upport for marijuana legalization is climbing in the United States, and D.C. is trying to keep up with the times.

While Congress has barred the District from regulating sales and taxation of the substance, marijuana use on private property has been legal in D.C. since Initiative 71 went into effect in February 2015. But its use is still illegal under federal law and city residents living in federally assisted housing and public housing cannot legally use marijuana on their property.

The Coalition for Nonprofit Housing and Economic Development used its monthly meeting to discuss these nuances and the challenges they pose for communities of color. There was consensus among attendees that the District’s legislation targets low-income residents and can have unanticipated consequences for employment.

Michael Perloff, who specializes in police misconduct and marijuana criminalization, spoke at the meeting as a representative of the D.C. branch of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). According to Perloff, marijuana legislation is a particularly acute issue that exacerbates the racial injustice of mass incarceration.

As it is a relatively minor offense, officers have a lot of discretion in enforcement. It is also an offense that can be correlated with poverty due to the prohibition of use in public spaces, and there is a high correlation between race and poverty in the District. Though there is little racial difference in usage rates, 86 percent of people arrested on marijuana charges in D.C. last year were Black.

“This isn’t just the case of a large police presence in wards 7 and 8, resulting in a lot of arrests,” Perloff said. “This is a case of racial disparity [in enforcement] across the city.”

Perloff admonished MPD’s poor compliance in providing requested data. It took the ACLU one year to receive arrest data in response to a Freedom of Information Act request. To get data on the race of people stopped by MPD — which is required by law to be recorded — the ACLU would have to examine 31,000 body worn camera videos at an estimated cost of $3 million, according to Perloff.

Beyond issues with data transparency, there is also an information gap due to the inconsistency between federal and state policies, according to Tanya Duckett, the chief development officer for the cannabis consulting firm Caniventures.

“Whenever you’ve got to ask a question, there’s room for a lawyer to run all over you,” Duckett said.

Even when the law is clear, the consequences of using marijuana legally aren’t always understood.

The legalization of marijuana in D.C. has created a new obstacle for people who have been incarcerated, according to Ashley McSwain, the executive director of Community Family Life Services. McSwain works specifically with “women on the path to self-sufficiency.”

Unless specifically prohibited by a judicial officer, the use or possession marijuana is not a violation of probation in the District, but it remains at the employer’s discretion whether to screen for marijuana in the hiring process. Ninety percent of McSwain’s clients aren’t aware that the drug can still impact their employability, and marijuana can show up on a drug test

Moderator Kimberly Brown (left) from DC Central Kitchen, Ashley McSwain (middle) from Community Family Life Services, and Jeremiah Bush (right) from Interstate Hotels and Resorts spoke on the second of two panels at the CNHED discussion on marijuana and racial equity. PHOTO BY BRIANNA BILTER.

weeks after the last use.

“Many clients believe that, because it’s legal, they can smoke it and it shouldn’t be affecting their employment opportunities,” McSwain said. “But it does.”

According to McSwain, marijuana screening can be used as a way for employers to discriminate against her clients.

Some employers don’t honor medical marijuana cards. She isn’t sure where her organization should stand on the issue, but at a minimum, McSwain said Community Family Life Services should provide educational opportunities to make these consequences better understood.

“It’s like a setup. If you’re on probation, and you engage in something legal ... it can be a new barrier that you hadn’t anticipated,” McSwain said.

One employer, Jeremiah Bush a human resources director for Interstate Hotels & Resorts, said he does not screen for drugs when hiring but that his choice is not commonplace in the hospitality industry. He said his company prohibits drugs and alcohol in the workplace but disqualifying potential employees for marijuana use outside of work is not in the company’s best interest.

“If it’s not directly affecting someone’s ability to do their job, then what is the issue for us?” Bush said.

He also noted that post-accident drug testing is a problem, as it could deter employees from reporting workplace accidents and receiving compensation benefits. The U.S. Department of Labor warns that this can be considered a form of retaliation against workers, but it still happens. McSwain shared an anecdote about a woman who dropped a tray while working at a bakery and the accident was blamed on her marijuana use.

Though the meeting’s attendees showed broad support for decriminalization, legalization is a nuanced issue. Some participants were concerned about second-hand health consequences, damage to housing units and the rigidity of insurance policies.

Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton introduced the Marijuana in Federally Assisted Housing Parity Act of 2019 in April to reduce some of the inconsistency surrounding legalization. The bill would allow marijuana use in federally subsidized housing if it is otherwise legal in that state. However, this is the bill’s second introduction and the chances of it being enacted are slim.

PHOTO COURTESY OF JAMES DAVIS

Reginald Black, James Davis (above), Jennifer McLaughlin, Robert Warren, and Sasha Williams covered the National Alliance to End Homelessness conference for us.

See their work on the next page!

BIRTHDAYS James Davis Aug. 1 ARTIST/VENDOR

William Mack Aug. 17 ARTIST/VENDOR

Patricia Donaldson Aug. 20 ARTIST/VENDOR

Our stories, straight to your inbox Street Sense Media provides a vehicle through which all of us can learn about homelessness from those who have experienced it. Sign up for our newsletter to get our vendors' stories in your inbox.

www.StreetSenseMedia.org/newsletter

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NEWS

Housing authorities nationwide are creating innovative approaches to end homelessness

BY REGINALD BLACK // ARTIST/VENDOR

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ousing authorities all across the country are doing new and innovative things to help end homelessness. The recent conference held by the National Alliance to End Homelessness featured a discussion on how housing authorities can be more effective in ending homelessness.

The panel started with Kara Capobianco, who was on hand to describe efforts by Norwalk Housing Authority in Connecticut.

“Be diligent,” she said, suggesting that housing authorities should not be in the business of creating homelessness.

The panel also featured Tanya Torno who works with the Continuum of Care in Riverside County, California. She said that Riverside is the tenth largest county in the U.S. and the fourth most populous county in California. Torno said 56 percent of this population is living under the poverty level but that her housing authority’s mission is to “really promote healthy thriving communities that reignite hope.”

She highlighted a family reunification program as well as a program funding

housing authorities for persons living with HIV/AIDS. Riverside also has a moving on/ special program preference.

“We recognize that we’re not using this 15 percent that HUD set aside [for natural disasters],” Torno said. “We wanted to earmark these vouchers for individuals who would be waiting for at least the next 12 months. We have a dedicated homeless outreach team.”

That team also includes realtors as housing navigators. “We do whatever it takes for families to have housing case management.

In 2017 we were the first community to reach functional zero,” Torno said.

She also took some time to describe Riverside County Housing Authority’s response to migrant families, including the provision of transportation and triage service to undocumented persons. “We took it on because nobody else did it,“ Torno said. “Your local public housing authority has access to thousands of landlords.” She emphasized public-private partnerships and recommended service providers find out when their public housing authority begins drafting its administrative plan.

Human Rights Alliance to review the possibility of human rights in America

BY REGINALD BLACK ARTIST/VENDOR

A delegation of advocates from the National Alliance to End Homelessness Conference visited the office of D.C. Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton on July 23 to discuss effective policies for ending homelessness.

PHOTO BY JENNIFER MCLAUGHLIN, ARTIST/VENDOR

The panel also included Victoria Mallette from Miami Dade County. According to Mallette, the county has a dedicated food and drink tax that funds additional housing vouchers. “We were the 62nd county to end veteran homelessness,“ she said.

Mallette shared that Miami Dade County’s Continuum of Care renovates public housing units in need of service repairs and has produced at least 45 new units. “Miami Dade County also used family reunification programs. We are able to refer children who are documented and their parents might not be,“ she said. “Miami Dade prioritizes homeless singles, youth and families.”

Mallette recommends that people in other communities know their public housing authority, be proactive, not wait for their PHA

On July 23, the Human Rights Alliance held a workshop to review the possibility of making headway toward human rights in America. The group feels that housing and homelessness constitute the number one human rights issues across all fifty states.

Eric Tars from the National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty gave some context to this conversation. “Many people are coming to a human rights framework, but this framework is not new,” he said. Tars highlighted that, as of late, presidential candidates have been using the phrase “housing is a human right.”

“We have broken through to the mainstream political scene,” he said.

Tars proposed that the District of Columbia use a human rights report card. “It’s not something that is foreign — it’s as American as apple pie.”

The human rights report uses seven areas of study to grade each region: legal security of tenure, availability, habitability, affordability, accessibility, services and infrastructure, location, and cultural adequacy. Tars emphasized that a human right to housing doesn’t mean a white picket fence for every American, but the conditions must allow every person to enjoy the right.

to call them, and be responsive.

All of the panelists agreed housing authorities will have to be an essential part of ending homelessness. Their sole mission and creation was to combat housing instability across the nation.

The District of Columbia’s public housing stock needs $2.2 billion worth of repairs, according to a proposal released by the D.C. Housing Authority two months ago.

Activists who attended the meeting hope that some of the suggestions from the National Alliance to End Homelessness will be the catalyst for the District of Columbia to also reach “functional zero” and in the Bowser administration’s phrase, make homelessness “rare, brief, and non-recurring.

Sekethia, a person with lived experience of homelessness, focused on her journey through housing instability. “My focus has to be: ‘He didn’t bring me this far to leave me,’” she said. “You have to fight here to get into these programs … We’re criminalized.”

She emphasized the importance of inspiring and educating the next generations so as not to repeat the cycle of poverty.

Eboni Williams with her mother’s press badge outside of the “Ensuring Stability After Assistance Ends” breakout session.

PHOTO BY SASHA WILLIAMS

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Racial equity and homelessness

BY JAMES DAVIS AND REGINALD BLACK // ARTIST/VENDOR

On July 23, we attended a session on racial equity at the National Alliance to End Homelessness conference at the Marriott in Woodley Park. For the last few years, the Alliance has been putting together plenaries that are aimed at helping to combat racism and promote racial equity. This year, there was a panel aimed at helping organizations reposition themselves with a racial equity lens.

LaCheryl Porter, the chief operating officer at St. Joseph Center in Venice, California, described disparities she experienced as an employee. ”A lot of times I was the only colored person in the room,” she said.

Porter went on to describe racial disparities in the U.S. “How did we get here?” she asked. “We have to talk about racism.”

St. Joseph Center started operations in 1976 with a staff of around 30 and has grown to 300 staff members serving 10,000 people a year with outreach, advocacy, housing, and more.

Porter spoke about the racial disparity at the board and staffing levels in many nonprofits that help homeless people.

One way the Center is working to improve racial equity is by making sure its job descriptions don’t go beyond the jobs they are for. For example, an outreach worker or intake person doesn’t need to have a bachelor’s or master’s degree to apply for a job. The Center is also trying to recruit from areas they serve by having job fairs in those communities to get qualified applicants, preferably people of color who live in the communities.

“Really think about what’s important,“ Porter said. “Go to people and say: ‘We value you.’ Racial equity in an organization is a continuous process. The benefit is that our clients see someone who looks like me. Part of our mission is empowerment.”

“There are a lot of challenges,” said Brittney Washington, a senior caseworker at the D.C. nonprofit Miriam’s Kitchen.

“Organizations should proactively combat racism internally and externally.”

Washington suggested that organizations be collaborators with guests, members of the community, and other stakeholders. “We all have skin in the game when it comes to racial equity,” she said. Washington also suggested that organizations start “employing a strategy that solves immediate needs but also the systems that create homelessness, like racism.”

Chandra Crawford, a program and policy analyst for the National Alliance to End Homelessness, said the Alliance now aims to have racial equity integrated into every discussion on homelessness.

She said while the organization is specifically focused on addressing inequity in the homelessness system, it is still involved in larger movements of addressing historical racism and feeder systems, such as the criminal justice system.

Within the community, “racial equity” is now referred to frequently enough to be considered a buzzword in the poverty industry. But with organizations repositioning themselves, there is the potential to make great headway in the fight against

racism in America, especially given the incredibly high level of homelessness among people of color.

At a July 24 plenary, Jemine Bryan, deputy assistant secretary from the Office of Special Needs at HUD, spoke of HUD’s commitment to Housing First programs. The National Coalition for the Homeless has been advocating in support of Housing First programs to the House and Senate for years. (Disclosure: James Davis is a member of the National Coalition for the Homeless’s speakers’ bureau) Bryan also spoke of a systematic effort to ramp up affordable housing production and protection of equal access for all. She noted that LGBTQ communities are over-represented in homeless populations and said racial disparities must be addressed.

During the July 23 plenary, U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness Executive Director Matthew Doherty also outlined the increased risks the LGBTQ community faces. He also insisted on Housing First practices and emphasized the need to make people feel safe and welcome in support systems, regardless of their identities and the composition of their families.

Brianna Bilter contributed reporting. Slide photo by Reginald Black.

OPINION

We still need to speak to our Congresswoman

BY ROBERT WARREN // ARTIST/VENDOR

This year’s National Alliance Conference to End Homelessness was so rewarding in so many ways. Our FACE (Focus Attitude and Commitment to Excellence) group at Street Sense Media went to this year’s conference to focus on covering workshops in areas we have been advocating for in the homeless community for years.

D.C. government is in the planning stages to build three new low-barrier shelters: a new Harriet Tubman for women and a new 801 East for men in Southeast, and a new shelter to replace the New York Avenue men’s shelter in Northeast. We kept the new shelter plans in mind for our first day of full workshops, especially during conference sessions on lowbarrier and housing-focused shelters and what happens after shelters open.

The FACE group at Street Sense Media

has also been working on the issue of racial equity along with some of our advocacy to bring about a universal right to housing in the District.

On Tuesday, unlike other conference goers, D.C. residents went up on the Hill to meet with our elected representative. Congresswoman Norton, like last year, wasn’t feeling well enough to speak with us. That was a big let down for a lot of us. We were really looking forward to seeing and speaking with her about our concerns for how little our city and the federal government are dealing with the issue of homelessness and housing insecurity. We were also hoping to discuss improving the health and wellness of some of our most vulnerable communities. There were about 20 of us who met with a staff person from Norton’s office.

We had especially hoped to get the congresswoman’s support on a bill currently before Congress that we believe would help improve the lives of people in the community that we advocate and work for. We also encourage Ms. Norton and her allies to get more involved with local politics to help shore up the city’s “Homeward D.C.” strategic plan to end homelessness. There are shortfalls in funding on the federal side.

Lastly, we wanted to have a real conversation about the $2.2 billion dollars in disrepair that D.C. public housing is in. The entire public housing system in this country has experienced neglect from private and federal partners. We had also hoped to discuss what should be the local and federal responses to make sure that D.C.’s poorer residents will not continue to be displaced and gentrified out of a city and a community where many were born and raised.

We know that Congresswoman Norton doesn’t like to weigh in too much on local politics. But when it comes to housing and homelessness, we in the advocacy community feel like each side gets off with blaming the other for the state of public housing and poverty in low-income communities of color.

No one wants to be held accountable for this affordable housing crisis where many lowincome residents are being displaced from their homes and businesses.

That evening, some FACE members went to the University of the District of Columbia for a roundtable discussion with people who are part of the Human Rights Alliance and the National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty. We discussed the number one issue around human rights here in Washington D.C.: the right to housing.

On the last day of the conference, we focused on the dialogue around racial equity within the homeless services continuum of care. Part of this is giving people with learned experience a paid seat at the table for their work. There were many workshops around this great work. So many communities are doing better to address the needs of people suffering while homeless across America.

However, too much focus was on managing the experiences associated with homelessness and not enough focus was on how we can and should reshape local and federal public policies in order to truly end homelessness as we know it in America.

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ART

REVIEW: “Lady M” WORDS BY ANGIE WHITEHURST, Artist/Vendor IMAGES SHEILA WHITE, Artist/Vendor

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his play is a woman’s dream come true! Everything you want to holler and scream about that core natural organic occurrence sometimes called “the monthlies” is right there on stage.

“Lady M” interweaved women’s attitudes about menstruation with characters and themes from Shakespeare’s Macbeth.

It was outrageously real, humorous, well done, and interactive. Audience members were invited on stage to connect, participate and act out their own personal stories.

It was performed July 9-27 at Joe’s Movement Emporium in Mt. Rainier, Maryland, by an ensemble cast comprising members of the Welders Playwrights’ Collective. The play was created and performed by Rachel Hynes, Francesca Chilcote, Anastasia Wilson and Vanita Kalra. Chilcote also leads the Devising Hope intergenerational theater program provided by Street Sense Media and the Educational Theater Company.

A big shout out to Francesca! This play is sure to be an award winning success. You can bet on it!

Co-creator Francesca Chilcote, reviewer Angie Whitehurst and an actress.

Audience members interact with members of the cast during the production.

STREETSENSEMEDIA.ORG

Last of the Bluesmen?

PHOTO PHOTO AND AND DISPATCH DISPATCH BY BY FREDERIC FREDERIC JOHN JOHN Artist/Vendor Artist/Vendor

These gentlemen wailing at Farragut North well might be the last of the breed. Trios and larger groups like Spread Love are being driven away from the corner of Connecticut and K due to the loudspeakers that have been installed by the Gold Triangle B-I-D. The volume of this pre-recorded jazz and pop has been turned up, as if to dissuade the buskers from plying their trade, their art.

Come enjoy a FREE meal and conversation with our volunteers!

The first 40 guests will be served.

UPCOMING DINNERS: Wednesday, September 4th, 2019 Friday, September 13th, 2019

Doors open at 6:00pm. Dinner is served at 6:30pm.

1317 G Street - Church of the Epiphany Questions about our dinner dinners or interested in group volunteer opportunities? Call 202-347347 2525, or, check us out at ysop.org.

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ART

What do you tell your teens?

BY JACKIE TURNER Artist/Vendor

Around the age of 16, teens think of themselves as adults. The world doesn’t - but they do. That’s the age when what their friends say is more important and/or valued more to them then what you say (as a parent). You might not know it, but there are a lot of teens that become liberated from their parents and are then on their own. They must grow up fast, work, get educated and pay bills all while “growing up.” There are lots of things that you want to say to help them or that you think would help but in the end it’s up to them.

• • •

Number one – don't reproduce. It’s very hard to raise a child if you are still growing up, mentally and physically.

Number two – forget about everybody else and everything that will not help you now or possibly in the immediate future. Don’t settle for right now on something that is easy or feels good. This is when you must be strong for yourself, be all about you.

Number three – superficial things should not be a part of your life at this time. Hip clothing, for example, must be let go of, that one person who is high class is over-rated. The end is about loving yourself enough to make positive decisions that will put you in a more positive frame of mind. Have faith in yourself and God.

Most people don’t get too far into life without having a friend who can help you through life’s rough spots. Be a friend and you will attract friendship.

Halfway Houses

BY RON SMOOT Artist/Vendor

I was in the halfway houses about 6 times and every time I got to one of them, I tried to be as prepared with what I might need, rather than ask the staff for help. I used a service for returning citizens to get my ID and birth certificate voucher so I can seek employment and other things I needed.

People say that the halfway houses do not have enough resources. But I think it’s because they don’t want to put the basic work into getting things people might need.

However, when you do go into a shelter, don’t expect someone to hand you something you feel you need. Instead try to bring with you items you may need and then take advantage of what the shelter can do for you.

When I got to the halfway house, I was very motivated to do what I needed to do. And my job counselor got me a job out in Maryland as a food prep guy. So, if you used the halfway houses like you are supposed to you will get the help you need.

The halfway house is only supposed to house you and the only thing they have there is a kitchen. You can go out on a pass every day, to use all of D.C. resources. You must be a go-getter and not just lay around and think somebody is going to hand you something, that’s not what the halfway house is about.

Some monitors are OK. They will give you help if you ask and they have what you need.

They also have very valuable information on a bulletin board in the main office.

How long must I suffer for housing?

My Therapist, Pt 1: Mental Health

BY RON DUDLEY, A.K.A. “POOKANU” // Artist/Vendor

My therapist asked me, “Ron, how are you feeling?”

I said, “I feel like a villain, “I feel like shooting and killlin’.”

Just like I thought just like I said Now my own therapist wish I was dead.

My therapist asked me, “Ron, why are you mad?”

I told him, “I am not mad, “I just been feeling so sad.”

My new therapist asked me, “Ron, are you going crazy?”

Wouldn’t you go crazy if your wife just aborted your baby?

My therapist asked me, “Ron, who do you love?”

I said, “Everybody that I love, they end up dead or on drugs.”

My new therapist asked me, “Ron, are you suicidal?”

I took my hands off the front and took my gun out my Bible.

My therapist asked me, “Ron, do you need a pill?”

I told him, “I tired being broke, I need me a deal.”

My new therapist asked me, “Ron, what is your problem?”

I told her, “Eve keep comin’ around, she’s a snake in the garden.”

My therapist asked me, “Ron, why don t you get a real job?

And that’s when I snapped, smacked my therapist hard.

My new therapist asked me, “Ron, do you hold a grudge?”

I can’t believe my baby mama sat and lied to the judge.

Dear Mr. Therapist you supposed to be a man Well, let me slap the s*** out you to make you understand.

My new therapist asked me, “Ron, if you had a choice, would you choose therapy, or would you listen to that voice?”

Now, Mr. Therapist, I gotta question for you: My life or your life?

Which one would you choose?

I asked my new therapist this, “If a demon tried to kiss you, would give it a kiss?

BY IBN HIPPS // Artist/Vendor

I’ve been homeless since 1999. I’ve been in and out of shelters. I have a learning disability.

I suffer from paranoia and other mental health issues, which I think prevented me from obtaining my GED even though I spent two years studying for it.

I’ve been robbed, jumped on, and beaten nearly to death. Those attacks led me to fear for my life constantly. While doing that I committed a violent crime, for which I served two years in prison. I was freed in January, after which I had a job for three months. But I had to leave it because the company wanted me to work longer than eight hours a day and my physical ailments prevented me from doing that. Since then I’ve updated my resume and looked for other jobs to supplement my Street Sense income.

I still need employment help, although my experiences make it hard to trust people. And I desperately need housing help so I can stop asking “how long must I suffer for housing?”

Illustration by Charles Armstrong ARTIST/VENDOR

STREETSENSEMEDIA.ORG

// 13

The Lady of the States

BY ROBERT WARREN Artist/Vendor Said I really don't care, do you?

If you did you would shed a tear.

For why don't you cry, when you see a child lost, to where his or her mother might be?

The attorney general who used to be a -senator, someone quote the Bible for me— then there are the same people, that will tell you they're Christians you see, who believe in the lands of the Lord's America and all people are free to come and go as the wind blows across the Lord's plains.

My Tented Agenda

BY LATICIA BROCK // Artist/Vendor

My tented agenda is to give back to the streets.

I want to write my poetry, cook with my Mama and rap to the beats.

My tented agenda is not to be a drama queen.

My tented agenda is to help my government keep the streets clean.

Wazz up, Ms. Mayor?

We want the money to be rendered for our housing.

I’m sick and tired Of my tented agenda.

Man has wronged each other for years, a child cries and no one asks about the tear of another.

How many tears did you wipe away?

If they only knew, for my Lord counts all of his tears and Rachel Maddam to the one who flew over the cuckoo's nest, the tears of the believer are the best.

But why cry when you can fight for the widow and the child of God. Are all my tears pure in its sorrows and a blessing to come?

And when will I cry?

When this day comes.

Judgmental!

Treading the Waters, Pt. 19

If you have never been homeless, why judge a person going through it. It is very hard out here. Being homeless, when you are dealing with a mental health problem and addiction, only makes matters worse. When you see someone selling the paper Street Sense, you know they are working to better themselves. They are growing their communication skills and improving their life’s opportunities.

I had other homeless people watching me, trying to find out how I sell the paper. It’s been hard. Dealing with the heat and other people trying to tell me to get a job. And some people are racists. They try to start something with me, using words that hurt. It’s hard to communicate with people who come to you with words like “why don’t you do this...” or “why don’t you do that” or “why are you at a loss?” But you and I must try to stay strong and not let people cut into your skin.

Thank God for my place. I am trying to work on holding on to it. My case manager is strongly in my corner.

Remember to take steps forward for yourself. God will take the rest of them for you.

When we were last with Gerald in his hometown, New Orleans, he was heading back out onto the streets after a stint in juvenile detention. Meanwhile, his crew, including his best friend, Greg, had gotten busted hard and were going away to prison for a long time...

BY JOE JACKSON // Artist/Vendor

Superstar

BY ALICE CARTER // Artist/Vendor

A complete one-eighty I’ve turned my life around I have a place to live I have a bed to sleep in I have clothes to wear I have plenty of food I guess you have to go through the bad To get to the good

BY GERALD ANDERSON // Artist/Vendor

N

ow that they lock my man, Greg, down, I come back home, back on the street again. I meet up with my friend, Minew.

When I first met him, he say, “They call me Minew because I’m like a cat, I got nine lives.”

I say, “Oh yeah?”

He say, “Man, I’ve been shot like, five, six, seven times. You know how that go, brah.”

I’d heard of him a lot, but I never met him one-on-one. He heard of me too ‘cause I’m from my up-town and my name carry weight.

Minew stay back of town, while I stay front-a-own. I go back of town some of the time. Hang out a little bit, mess with the girls back there. Still uptown was my area.

But Minew is a cool dude. So we clinkclink together--mean we ran together.

Then we start going out to different little clubs together.

Guys start seeing us together, saying, “Damn. Third Ward running with Minew now? Sheee. Them boyz. Whoa, that’s a rough

team there. Too slimy.” Slimey mean that they too low down.

So, when I go to tell Minew, I say, “Man, you know, I be out here, man, I be stealing cars, you know, I be doing whatever it is to get a dollar.”

He say, “Man, why you think they call me Minew? I’m like a cat, I go for it all.”

So we start going out, meeting girls, dating sisters and stuff.

We got this thing called Dark and Lovely, it’s a perming kit. I always had good hair.

So we had sisters come and one of them, Susan, say, “I’m gonna put that in your head, I’ll make your head look like Babyface, your head look like a newborn baby, especially you being dark, so...”

I say, “When you gonna do that, Susan?”

She say, “Whenever you ready for me to do it.”

So one friday, day time, me and Minew go over everybody’s cousin’ house, and we chillin’ and stuff. She say, “I’m ready to do your hair now.”

So she wash my hair, laid it down. Next thing I know, my hair was looking like I was a Spanish dude, curly hair.

I say, “Damn. Man, I swear we going out tonight.”

She say, “Girls gonna think that’s your real hair!”

So Minew got his hair done. We bust out to the club.

We’re all playing out there and shit. We thought we was big shots. We kick the bull for a minute.

Then Minew was telling me about this little beef he had with some dudes out the project.

I say, “Right near Nevada?”

He say, “Yeah.”

I say, “I mostly know all them young niggas.”

He say, “Nah. Them niggas been playin’ at me for a while. I got something for ‘em.”

I say, “Man, they like family to me. Let me talk to them.”

Minew say, “Nah. Ain’t no talking.”

It’s like this with me--once I run with you, and I mess with you, I gotta go with the power, that mean I gotta go with you.

But first, let’s see what else we can do.

Because once you draw these guns out on people on the street, you gotta use ‘em.

If you don’t use ‘em, you hurt yourself.

If you pull a gun on me--POP!--shoot me, and you leave me to breath... you done.

Because the same way you pull it, the same way it coulda went off. That’s how I look at it.

To be continued. Gerald’s first book, “Treading the Waters” is available on Amazon.com

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Answers

FUN & GAMES

Sudoku #6

1

4

5

2 9 7

6 1

scratch area

SUDOKU: Fill in the blank squares so that each row, each column and each 3-by-3 block contain all of the digits 1-9.

LAST EDITION’S PUZZLE SOLUTION >>

4

7

2

9

1

Sudoku #3 2 4 8 3 3 6 1 5 7 9 5 2 8 7 4 1 6 1 9 4 5 3 2 8 4 5 3 7 1 2 6 9 9 8 7 6

5

9

Sudoku #5 2 1 5 4 9 8 6 3 4 3 7 1 6 2 3 9 8 5 9 7 1 7 4 6 5 6 2 8 3 4 8 5 7 9 1 2 Sudoku #7 1 5 7 3 8 2 4 6 6 3 9 8 4 6 1 9 9 8 5 7 2 7 3 1 3 4 2 5 7 1 8 2 5 9 6 4

7

6 9 1 4 7 9 8 1 3 9 5 2 3 2 7 7 6 4 2 8 6 5 4 8 1 3 5

5

5 7 2 8 6 4 3 6 8 5 9 1 1 9

8 2

7 4

3

2

© 2013 KrazyDad.com

9 8 7 7 2 1 6 5 9 8 4 5 2 1 4 5 3 2 4 9 3 1 7 6 3 6 8

9 7 4 8 2 5 1 6 3

Sudoku #2 8 2 9 1 1 7 5 8 6 3 4 5 5 9 1 3 2 6 3 4 4 8 7 2 3 5 6 9 9 1 8 7 7 4 2 6

1

2 8 5 1 1 5 3 7 4 6 6 4 8 9 9 3 7 2

6 5 8 7 3 9 1 2 4

3

4 2 1 6 8 7

9 5

4 6 3 9 7 2 2 5 1 3 9 8 6 7 5 4 8 1

Binary, adj.: Possessing the ability to have friends of both sexes.

8

8

Sudoku #1 3 9 4 8 5 1 2 6 7 6 2 7 9 3 4 1 8 5 5 8 1 6 2 7 9 3 4 Tough Sudoku by KrazyDad, Volume 1, Book 1 1 4 9 7 8 3 5 2 6 8 6 3 2 4 5 7 1 9 2 7 5 1 9 6 3 4 8 9 3 6 5 1 8 4 7 2 4 5 8 3 7 2 6 9 1 7 1 2 4 6 9 8 5 3

Tough Sudoku by KrazyDad, Volume 1, Book 1

Sudoku #4 2 6 7 3 5 9 8 7 3 1 4 6 9 4 5 8 1 8 2 9 6 7 3 5 7 5 6 2 8 3 1 4

BY BARRON4HALL 2 9 1

3 6 5 9 4 2 2 7 8 7 8 6 5 1 7 6 9 1 1 2 4 4 5 3 8 3 9

5 9 4 1 2 8 3 2 7 6 1 4 8 3 9 7 6 5

Time to Give Back Artist/Vendor

7 4 6 3 1 9 4 2 9 8 3 5 8 7 2 6 5 1

8 4 2 6 3 7 5 9 6 1 7 4 3 5 8 9 2 9 4 1 5 2 6 3 7 8 1

It’s time weSudoku gave back#6our hearts to the God and Savior who brought us so far. He 3 2 9 4 5 7 8 1 has everything we need here and in the 8 nation 9 never 6 1give 5 7 will 4 us2 hereafter. This what it promised, because 4 8if it3did,2it would 5 7 1 6 have to admit its guilt.

9 1 8 5 7 3 2 6 America, you will reap what you have 3 5we1might 4 be6 poor 7 or9 sown. People 2of color, homeless in this world, but God has many 7 4 6 2 9 8 1 3 mansions, one for each of us. God is real.

4 9 3 7 1 5 6 8 But our words are temporary.

My niece helped me become homeless

BY LEVESTER GREEN Artist/Vendor

Believe it or not, my niece helped me become homeless here at home when I was living in Maryland! She simply deflated my air mattress, and then tossed all of my belongings out in the front yard of our Palmer Park home after years of my monitoring my brother's children into adulthood! Guess my job was done and my gig was up! Previously before that, one of my high school buddies who had married into the family took the initial opportunity to toss me out when I went to visit him way back in 2006! The movie I Am Levester Joe Green II covers that time frame story and period. Still I persist!

6 3 9 4 8

5 2

6 8 1 3 2 4 9 5 7 5 7 2 6 8 9 3 4 1

Sudoku #8 6 2 3 7 4 5 7 1 1 9 8 4 5 3 1 8 2 8 9 6 7 6 4 3 9 1 5 2 3 4 6 5 8 7 2 9

5

2 3

4 7 9 8

1 6

8

4

9

8

6 2 2 6 5 3 1 5 4 7 7 9 3 1

9 1 6 3 5 7 7 9 1 4 2 8 3 6 8 2 4 5

Author Gene Weingarten is a college dropout and a nationally syndicated humor columnist for The Washington Post. Author Dan Weingarten is a former college dropout and a current college student majoring in information technology. Many thanks to Gene Weingarten and The Washington Post Writers Group for allowing Street Sense to run Barney & Clyde.

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D.C. Coalition for the Homeless 202-347-8870 // 1234 Massachusetts Ave., NW dccfh.org

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Samaritan Ministry 202-722-2280 // 1516 Hamilton St., NW // 202-889-7702 // 1345 U St., SE samaritanministry.org

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St. Luke’s Mission Center // 202-333-4949 3655 Calvert St., NW stlukesmissioncenter.org

Thrive DC // 202-737-9311 1525 Newton St., NW thrivedc.org

Unity Health Care // 202-745-4300 3020 14th St., NW unityhealthcare.org

Washington Legal Clinic for the Homeless 1200 U St., NW // 202-328-5500 legalclinic.org

The Welcome Table // 202-347-2635 1317 G St., NW epiphanydc.org/thewelcometable

My Sister’s Place // 202-529-5991 (24-hr hotline) mysistersplacedc.org

N Street Village // 202-939-2060 1333 N St., NW nstreetvillage.org

New York Avenue Shelter // 202-832-2359 1355-57 New York Ave., NE

// 15

Whitman-Walker Health 1701 14th St., NW // 202-745-7000 2301 MLK Jr. Ave., SE // 202-797-3567 whitman-walker.org

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You’ll support hard-working newspaper vendors by volunteering your time, four hours a week, distributing newspapers at the Street Sense Media office.

If interested, please contact Gladys Robert gladys@streetsensemedia.org 202-347-2006 (x10)

DONALD BROOKS IN MEMORIAM

T

BY TED HENSON // Co-Founder

he passing of Donald Brooks represents the loss of a long-time supporter, advocate, and friend to both Street Sense Media and to me. It is with a heavy heart that I write this In Memoriam.

Brooks, as I called him, had a huge personality.

By his own admission, he was loud, political, and quick to make a joke. He was proud and loyal. He supported his friends and built up those around him with incredible sincerity and fortitude. In some ways, he had lived several lifetimes – as a D.C. native, a son and a father, Army veteran, Street Sense vendor, homeless advocate and social services professional. Through it all, his core characteristics – the things that made him Brooks – remained the same.

We first met a long time ago – likely 2004 or 2005 – after Street Sense moved from its 14th and K location to the Church of the Epiphany offices on G Street. Brooks originally came to us to sell newspapers.

Brooks sold the paper with great ease. He would sell out a bundle (150 papers back then) in an afternoon at Metro Center.

He’d come up to the office and write his column, “Through My Eyes.” He dropped dimes of wisdom – or sometimes just his own hyperbole and bluster – and promote his column when he sold the paper.

Back then, the office got loud. We often had a dozen volunteers and vendors crammed into one little room. Vendors rested their feet, checked email, made calls, played chess, and had a range of deep conversations. It felt like the D.C./homeless version of the French salon and my eyes were opened during those years. Arguments would occur, usually about spots to sell the paper or selling techniques and styles. During one altercation that turned physical, Brooks intervened and neutralized the situation quickly. I remember him standing on the fenced-in stairs going up to the second floor, telling me that Laura – the other co-founder – and I need a “buffer.” By buffer, he meant someone who would help manage the volatility that often comes from working with a homeless population. He was willing to be the buffer in exchange for a bundle of papers.

We had a deal. Within a month or so of meeting him, Brooks was our first official vendor manager.

In those early days, Brooks taught me a lot about D.C., that is the real D.C., not the one inhabited by politicians that the rest of America sees. We discussed race and politics. He told me that he was surprised to meet someone from Kentucky – a white guy in his early twenties – who wasn’t racist. He had served in the Army and I believe he had done his Basic training in Kentucky, and his experience there wasn’t great. When my mom and sister visited D.C. and came to the Street Sense office, he even let them know that. But he also quickly commented on how our friendship had changed his opinion. Admissions like that helped put others at ease and allowed for greater dialogue, learning, and self-improvement.

Through the years, after Brooks and I both left Street Sense, we maintained our friendship. My wife Rebecca and I moved into a house in Langdon Park in northeast D.C. in 2007. Brooks seemed proud that I had moved to the real D.C., and he had also moved to a spot off South Dakota avenue. He came to a couple of parties at our house and one time he brought his son, who he had just met. He was proud of his son and doted on him, as he did his other children.

In 2013, my wife Rebecca and I attended the 10-year celebration for Street Sense. We brought our own son, Nathaniel, and introduced him to our friends, including Brooks. Brooks was dressed in a suit and fedora, as he often did. He held Nathaniel for a picture. Nathaniel, who was still an infant, had cake on his fingers, and some of that cake ended up on Brooks’s suit. It was at that moment that Brooks declared Nathaniel his godson, and that his godson could get cake on him whenever he wanted.

Last September, I had the honor of toasting Brooks at his 65th birthday party.

It was at the VFW Hall in Morningside, Maryland, on Suitland Road. It was a wonderfully orchestrated event put together by his fiancé – and later wife – Cynthia Prospers. There were pictures, cake, a buffet, and even centerpieces with flowers and goldfish. My wife Rebecca and I took a few goldfish home and still have two.

A few of us – including Brooks – said at the time that the speeches almost felt like eulogies and that the event almost felt like a funeral, but in a celebratory way. It was a rare opportunity to recognize a rare, and truly unique, individual.

One of the stories I shared was when I had been accepted to the Harvard School of Public Health. Rebecca and I weren’t sure that it made sense to move to Boston, MA. I called Brooks. His advice was this: “Don’t mess this up.

Go get your letters. Come back and make a difference for those who need it.” Hearing this advice from him mattered to me.

Rebecca and I moved to Boston, I got my Masters, and we have moved back so that I could work in the field of public health.

Whenever I have talked to him since moving back, he’d always ask me my title and my current role. While that doesn’t matter to me, it mattered to him. He’d always say, “I’m so proud of you Ted. I knew you back before you were all bigtime.” I definitely don’t feel “big-time,” but Brooks sure felt that way about those he believed in.

Brooks, I’m proud to have known you and called you a friend. Thank you for making the world a better place. You have left an indelible mark on those who knew you. Save a game of chess for me.

For Mr. Donald Brooks

BY PATTY SMITH // Vendor #4

I remember one night: I had just started working for Street Sense. Well, the entrepreneur school that I had graduated from needed to advertise a play called “Where Eagles Fly”

by Mrs. Carole Mumin. I asked Donald Brooks and another Street Sense worker to help us.

After Donald Brooks left Street Sense, he had for years come around the church and I guess he ran into his friends, because he saw me inside often and always told me that he worked for the Veterans Center and could help get me my VA benefits. I saw him for years after that and he was still well spoken. A real gentleman, especially the way he dressed. He always offered to help me.

He will be missed by me and many others.

From your vendor AUG. 7 - 20, 2019 | VOLUME 16 ISSUE 20

WWW.INSP.NGO

Mr. Brooks Brothers

BY JAMES DAVIS // Vendor #20

Donald Brooks was a good friend and ex-colleague of mine from Street Sense and the National Coalition for the homeless. I had a lot of serious and fun times with Donald over the 15 years I have known him. Donald was known for his passion about ending homelessness and speaking on

our Speakers Bureau Panel. At one time, he had to have his credentials pulled for going over our decided-upon time we had to speak.

I gave him the name Mr. Brooks Brothers because of his Gentlemen’s Quarterly (GQ) way of dressing. I even wrote a poem about it, in which he got to share the stage with me at one of our galas several years ago. I recited my poem while he strutted around and primped around the stage in his Brooks Brothers suit.

I can truly say he was my brother that day. I am going to miss you, until we meet again, Mr. Brooks Brothers.

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