July, 2004
STREETVIBES photo by Jimmy Heath
Developers Fast Track Their Plan for Over-the-Rhine
The Drop Inn Center at Elm and 12th Street, Over-the-Rhine, is a target for removal from the community by developers
Streetvibes Investigation Last month, the private development group 3CDC (Cincinnati Center City Development Corporation) undertook a lightning-fast public relations campaign to get approval for their development plans around Washington Park. 3CDC Executive Director, Steven Leeper, and assistant Kathy Schwab attended meetings of the Over-the-Rhine Chamber of Commerce, Cincinnati Public School Board committees and other business and stakeholder groups presenting a Powerpoint presentation of a redesigned Over-the-Rhine. After the Cincinnati Planning Department was eliminated in December of
2002, the decision was made by city leaders to privatize city planning. For that reason, Cincinnati Center City Development Corporation (3CDC) created in July of 2003. Much about the organization is available on their website, www.3cdc.org. Joe Pichler, former Chairman of Kroger, was placed in charge of the Over-the-Rhine Working Group, tasked with revitalizing the area, especially around Washington Park. They spent some time looking for a full time director. On January 30th of this year, Steven Leeper was hired. Leeper has the
Drop Inn Center.... Cont. on page 10
McCrackin celebration builds on his legacy, calls citizens to action by John Zeh photo by Berta Lambert Some seven years after he died, the Rev. Maurice McCrackin’s fervor for social justice was commemorated as activists marched from Washington Park in Over-theRhine to a Unity Day festival at the west end’s Laurel Park June 12. The day’s theme was “No to war in Iraq — No to the war on the poor in Cincinnati,” naming greed and concentrated wealth as enemies of the poor, said organizer and former Cincinnati City Council candidate Brian Garry. “Mac Day was a wonderful event. The organizations, food and entertainment were diverse like McCracken’s struggles,” Garry told Streetvibes. “The march was one of the best I’ve been to. Residents and activists and church people came together to stand up for the rights of lowincome people, it was truly a beautiful sight. We need to join the white and black activist communities to present a comprehensive vision of Cincinnati that is not just a response to city council,” he said. “We need to take the lead.” Collaboration among various groups is important, according to Vera Zlatkin,
several housing projects and the White House, McCrackin another McCrackin Day one planner’s proposed closure threatened to starve to death if organizer. “There are many the city tore down the Milner of the Drop-Inn Center as groups who are working to do evidence that the city is waging Hotel downtown. Garry notes something, but they don’t have a war against the less-affluent. that city officials went to the power because they’re so Despite organizational and McCrackin’s bedside and small,” she said. “If we can institutional hurdles, Zlatkin is bring them together, we all will promised to find homes for the optimistic about preserving the homeless and mentally ill have a louder voice.” historic Park, but concedes that The cheerful atmosphere displaced by the demolition. activists may be fighting a The activist started eating was an appropriate losing battle against increased again, but the city reneged on commemoration for a minister gentrification. who became the “conscience of its pledge, Garry charged. “We have to be able to “Hopefully, the Rev. Mr. the city,” Garry told reporters. reverse it,” she said. In 1979, McCrackin was McCrackin can be a inspiration for activists today to be willing “Sometimes I feel like all us imprisoned 111 days for to put themselves on the line little groups are standing with refusing to testify against two hammers and a chisels for what they believe in,” said escaped felons who had hammering away against a huge Sister Helen Cullen, another kidnapped him. He had been wall. And there are bulldozers McCrackin Day organizer. arrested numerous times for Growing gentrification in coming at us. We are trying to anti-war protests and actions Over-the-Rhine is driving out fight a battle with hammers and against poverty and racism. In chisels and they are coming the homeless and poor, Zlatkin 1990, at the age of 85, he said, noting the closing of after us with bulldozers!” scaled the White House fence protesting the first U.S. war against Iraq. Every time police encountered McCrackin, the minister went limp. As an ardent pacifist, he fought the system any way he could. McCrackin founded Camp Joy, a camp for poor innercity youth, and helped desegregate Coney Island. A few years after the protest at People’s March on Central Parkway, Downtown Cincinnati
Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless
Streetvibes Streetvibes, the TriState’s alternative news source, is a newspaper written by, for, and about the homeless and contains relevant discussions of social justice, and poverty issues. It is published once a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. Becoming a Streetvibes Vendor is a great way for homeless and other low-income people to get back on (or stay on) their feet. Streetvibes Vendors are given an orientation and sign a code of conduct before being given a Streetvibes Vendor badge. All profits go directly to the vendor. The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a group of shelters, agencies and individuals committed to ending homelessness in Cincinnati through coordinating services, educating the public and grassroots organizing. GCCH Staff Georgine Getty - Executive Director Allison Leeuw - Administrative Coordinator Andy Erickson - Education Coordinator Elizabeth Linville - Civil Rights Coordinator Janice Faulkner - Receptionist Mary Gaffney - Receptionist
Streetvibes Jimmy Heath, Editor, Layout and Design Photographers Jimmy Heath, Berta Lambert Cover Veterans Section at Spring Grove Cemetery
Streetvibes accepts letters, poems, stories, essays, original graphics, and photos. We will give preference to those who are homeless or vendors. Subscriptions to Streetvibes, delivered to your home each month, can be purchased for $25 per year. Address mail to: Streetvibes Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH) 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 (513) 421-7803 e-mail: streetvibes@juno.com web: http://homeless.cinci.com
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Greed Transcends Compassion politics of poverty keeps the by Jimmy Heath middle-class fixated on each It’s been said that a society can be judged by how it other while burying the silent treats its less fortunate citizens. majority behind a curtain of Market forces and development shame, bureaucracy, and suspicion. The politics of drive our avaricious city poverty squashes dissent with government, and anyone who injustice and denial and lack of gets in the way of this access. Those who vocalize “progress” is pushed aside. their discontent, especially The truth again reveals itself in the continuing battle to people of color, are dismissed and disrespected and always get rid of the Drop Inn Center homeless shelter in downtown’s ignored. Parading low-income Over-the-Rhine neighborhood. citizens in front of the public Developers and City leaders who care little about the clients and claiming them as participants in the process using the Drop Inn Center are merely pinpoints and focused on their “vision” marginalizes those of how the neighborhood people. Community should look. These participation in plans perpetuate the discussions is used to stereotypes, and belittle legitimize the process those who are struggling that ultimately destroys to get back on their feet. Jimmy Heath them while lending Meanwhile, little effort credibility to a flawed is made by the City to address the root causes of homelessness. and one-sided process. The persistent growth of All they know is they don’t like our urban poor suggest that how it looks. poverty is neither an economic When you think of the aberration nor a reflection of people who use these services in Cincinnati - those who are on the morals of 34 million poor adults and children in this the bottom of the economic country - or the millions who ladder - you can’t help but wonder what is wrong with this border on poverty. When you read between city. Cincinnati’s homeless are the lines you will find that it’s least able to defend themselves; really all about getting rid of least likely to be able to the Drop Inn Center and places exercise even basic political power. It’s maddening, horribly like it; a strategy hidden under a plan for revitalization and cruel and sad at the same time. development of the Over-theThe exclusion of poor Rhine neighborhood. people from official policy Plans are being made for discussions continues to be an important factor in the failure of the land occupied by the Drop Inn Center by people who don’t the City to alleviate poverty. even own the property. The The politics of poverty in this power of capitalism reigns City has followed a fairly straight trajectory - provide and above everything else, sometimes even above decency concentrate power into the and compassion. hands of the privileged few. It’s not just about the The politics of poverty value of the land that the Drop uses covert, subtle means to Inn Center has occupied for project a façade of almost three decades. It’s about accountability while making deals behind closed doors. The the ugliness of homelessness.
It’s about fear and racism. It’s about being greedy. It’s about perception and ignorance and power. Personally, I can’t think of a better use of land than for helping people get back their lives. The Drop Inn Center revitalizes human beings. Right in the heart of what we proudly refer to as the richest nation on earth, poverty and powerlessness are flourishing. The signs are unmistakable: the United States of America is in a state of decay hidden beneath layers of fresh paint and drywall and upscale urban development. During the 1960’s there was a great deal of optimism about the prospect of eliminating poverty forever. In the last three decades much money has been spent on social programs, but the poor have not disappeared. We attempt to clamp the lid down on seething inner-city discontent by keeping fragments of hope alive, while requiring the ruling elite to cede none of its power. The public has begun to believe that there is no solution to poverty; that places like the Drop Inn Center breed poverty. It’s all a big lie, of course. We’ve been brainwashed into thinking there are no answers because the real long-term solution to poverty lies in empowerment of the poor, which threatens the power monopoly of the privileged class. If you get in the way, watch out! The Drop Inn Center is again faced with one of its greatest battles. This drains resources, time and energy from people whose work would be better spent helping folks get their lives back. Meanwhile, City leaders look for ways to make the problem invisible, by trying to push it out of sight.
GCCH Welcomes New Staff Member I’m from Indianapolis Dear Streetvibes Community, which isn’t too far away, I have been and I recently finished here in Cincinnati for school studying Nonabout a month now, profit Management. I do and I guess its time I have work experience at introduce myself. My various social service name is Allison Leeuw, nonprofit organizations, and I will be the new ranging from large Administrative Allison Leeuw organizations such as the Coordinator at the Zoo, to smaller domestic Greater Cincinnati violence shelters and agencies Coalition for the Homeless. I am educating “at-risk” youth. I hope not from around here… but I am these fundraising and social service getting settled here in Cincinnati, experiences will help me to and at the Coalition. I am thankful accomplish my work here. for the friendly welcome I have I suppose I will be spending thus far received from my coworkers, and community members a lot of time here at the Coalition office behind the computer, or on of Over-the-Rhine.
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the phone trying to raise money for our cause. I will be writing grants, increasing awareness, and I hope to attract new donors to the Coalition. The problems that cause homelessness in our community run deep, and we need a deep coalition of support to eradicate this poverty. I am sure I will come across challenges from a variety of sources during my time here. Yet I have already seen dedication and passion for social justice here in this community; and I am inspired. I do hope to be out and about as well and I welcome any visits or suggestions from the Streetvibes Community. Stop by the Coalition, or drop me a line at allisonleeuw@yahoo.com.
36% of Cincinnati’s homeless once served our nation
Who are the Homeless? Why are so many of our honored veterans on the streets? What can YOU do to help? I WILL DONATE: $20
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There are 25,000 people in Cincinnati that experience homelessness each year. Who are these individuals? 36% of the homeless on the streets of our community are veterans, yet only 13% of Ohio’s population are veterans. Why are so many of our past veterans living with no home? Here at the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless we are working to end homelessness for ALL individuals through education, advocacy and coordination of services. We are looking to find systemic solutions and real change that goes farther than the generous services our kitchens and shelters provide. This summer we are honoring past heroes, celebrating our freedom, and hoping for an end to the struggle over seas; let us not forget those who struggle here in our community this very day. Please consider a tax deductible contribution today and help create positive change in your city. Send your donations to Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202
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One year ago homeless stopped city from sweeping camps by Andy Erickson Education Coordinator
arrived, displaying a temporary restraining order against the police, and a lawsuit against the city filed on Henry’s behalf. The reporters swarmed her. She and Don Henry spoke in a circle of cameras. The lawsuit filed against the city charged that the city had a pattern and practice of violating homeless people’s civil rights. Reporters scribbled in their notebooks. The people living in the camp cheered.
Nearly a year ago, a group of homeless men and women stood up to the city’s threats and prevailed. Led by Don Henry, homeless folks living at the foot of the Clay Wade Bailey Bridge in Cincinnati protested the city’s orders to Don leave or be Henry’s camp arrested for wasn’t the only trespassing. The one that had been city gave a 72given an eviction hour deadline – notice. Four 1:00 on Friday, other camps were July 18, 2003. also told they had They gave no to move out by Andy Erickson indication of that Friday. where Henry and These camps were his bridgemates should go. clustered together on the other The residents of the side of downtown. The earliest camp chose to protest the city’s eviction would take place at actions. They started their 9:00. protest at 1:00 on Thursday, 24 That morning, before I hours before they were told to went to Don Henry’s protest, I get out. They marched along drove to these other camps to the intersection of Third Street see if anything was happening. and the Clay Wade Bailey The first person I saw was a Bridge. They carried protest cameraman. He wasn’t with the signs that read, “Don’t hide the press. I asked him who he was, homeless. Help them.” but I don’t remember his A lot of press came out response – a film student, I for the event. It was a good think, from one of the local story. Microphones were universities. He was filming interviewing and cameras were Robert, the one person who had filming all day. What would not yet moved from his camp. happen when the deadline The cameraman left soon after I arrived? Would the police spoke with him. really come? How many people I knew Robert. I had would they arrest for met him before, and he trespassing? News outlets remembered me. He was polled audiences: should people worried and said he needed my be allowed to live under help. He had to be out by downtown bridges? Audiences 10:00. He knew the deadline were split. Lots of people were was looming and he feared watching. being arrested. He had found a As the deadline grew new camp on the riverbank, but closer, the atmosphere grew couldn’t move all of his things increasingly more intense and by himself before the deadline. more exciting. The numbers of He showed me where he homeless people picketing stayed – under a small bridge grew. Social workers arrived, with barely even enough room helping many people get into to sit upright. I’ve never really services they needed. People gotten used to seeing the camps who had heard about the that some homeless people live protest on the news drove to in. To see one is to see the the camp to donate food, home of someone who’s all but drinks, and support. There given up. They’ve taken the must have been 100 people few things they have left from there, all waiting for the life and moved them underneath deadline and wondering what a bridge. It makes you wonder would happen when it struck. what had to happen to lead After a long, 24-hour them here, and why there’s so protest, the deadline came – many of them. Everyday people and went. No one came to drive over these streets arrest the so-called trespassers complaining about the cost of on Friday, July 18. Instead, gasoline while their fellow attorney Jennifer Kinsley citizens try to make homes
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photo by Jimmy Heath
Help GCCH find footage of protest
The camp and protest sign under the Clay Wade Bailey Bridge beneath their exhaust fumes… Robert was convinced that if we stuffed my car full of his things, we could do it in one load. He was almost right. We had fill up his shopping cart, too. Robert tried to give me directions to his new camp. I didn’t understand. Finally he just told me to follow him. He grabbed his shopping cart and started pushing. I drove slowly behind him. He pushed past the US Bank Arena, past the Great American Ballpark, past construction sites and parking lots. One person told him to get the #$@* out of the road. Most people just stared. I helped Robert move his stuff into his new camp along the river. An officer drove by. I thought he might stop, but he just kept on going. Robert thanked me and I drove to Don Henry’s camp. When I got to Don’s camp, I noticed that some of the people who had been evicted from the camps near Robert’s were marching now with Don Henry. That cameraman was there, too – the one who I’d seen with Robert earlier that morning. He filmed Don’s protest the entire day after leaving Robert’s – from the early-morning pickets to Jennifer Kinsley’s arrival and the announcement of the lawsuit. I sometimes wonder who that cameraman was – and if he ever did anything with the footage from that day. If anyone knows him, please tell
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him I’d like to see it. I bet it would make a pretty good film. After Jennifer made her announcements and Don signed some legal documents; after the press vans were packed and driving back to their stations; after the social workers left feeling good about a victory; a few of us stayed behind and helped Don clean up his camp. He’d fought a good fight that day and won. Now he could rest in his own bed, in his own camp, and no one – not the police or the politicians – was going to make him move. We shook hands, congratulated Don and the other campers, and prepared to leave. We were heading to our cars when we noticed two men in the parking lot across from the camp. One had a camera in hand. Georgine Getty, the director of the Coalition for the Homeless, walked over to them and asked them who they were. They were from the Black United Front. They explained that they were just there to keep an eye out for Don. They were concerned about his safety; worried something might happen to him now that all the press cameras were gone. “We just want to make sure no one tries to bother Mr. Henry tonight,” they told Georgine. She cites that as one of the more touching experiences she’s had working here. They were there as neighbors, watching out for the people in their community.
Protest.... cont. next page
Hate Crimes still a major issue for the homeless by Elizabeth Linville dangerous state in the country On June 15th, the for people experiencing National Coalition for the homelessness. Although there Homeless released its annual was no ranking this year, Ohio hate crimes report still figures Hate, Violence and prominently in this Death on Main report. In 2003, Street USA: A there were 7 Report on Hate separate incidents Crimes and in the state Violence Against resulting in 7 nonPeople lethal acts. Experiencing Nationally, there Homelessness. The were 9 deaths by Elizabeth Linville report is a hate crimes and 61 compilation of data collected non- lethal acts. from news reports and homeless The report also focuses shelters on the number of on hate speech against homeless homeless victimizations that individuals. In Cincinnati, this have occurred in the past five was seen with the “Derelict years (1999-2003). Round-Up” done by 700 WLW In 2002, the report DJ Bill “Willy” Cunningham. ranked Ohio the 4th most His radio show broadcasted
Protest.... Don eventually got his own apartment. Social workers were able to work with him because they knew where he was living and they had gotten to know him personally. It takes time to get someone into housing after they’ve been living on the streets. Trust has to be built, services need to be available, and the individual needs to be ready. When cities perform sweeps, camps get moved out of sight, campers learn to hide, and social workers have more difficulty finding people who need help. In order to end homelessness, we need to work on its causes. In order to help individuals, we need to meet them where they’re at. Moving a homeless man from a bridge to the riverbank won’t solve his problems. I like the way Don put it: “Don’t hide the homeless. Help them.” A year ago this month, a lot of people heard that message – and I think a lot of people understood.
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from a bus that was used to take homeless people from the downtown area to be dropped off in the suburbs. When the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless called to protest, Cunninghan’s response was to scream “go to hell” and hang up the phone. Nationally, a new genre of “Bum Videos” has gained popularity. In the past four years, five different videos have been produced; each shows homeless people who have been coerced to perform dangerous stunts for money, alcohol, or food. These videos exploit the individuals used in the taping and encourage viewers to behave in an outrageous manner towards homeless individuals. In Cleveland, for
example, four teenagers attacked five sleeping homeless men with a stun gun. They also kicked them and urinated on them, all while videotaping the attack. In this case, the offenders were arrested and charged with assault. In many other hate crimes cases, the attacker is never found or the crime is never reported. In a hope to obtain more information on this disturbing trend of violence against individuals who are homeless, the National Coalition has requested a General Accounting Office Investigation of the issue. Hopefully, a study such as this and the recently released report will bring more awareness to the problem and help determine ways to stop the violence.
The Cicadas and the Homeless was good. With this she then by Mary G. Gaffney turned her attention to a When June arrived we question about the homeless. were greeted with the famous Sometimes she comes to the and exciting visitors who come Homeless Coalition with me to our section of the United States every 17 years. The visit and she has met some of the homeless who brings hysteria to come to the the young and old. office. It is all the talk She during the few watches weeks they are television and here, and then they hears the will be forgotten news about until 2021. Cincinnati It makes building and you wonder how remodeling they fly, this blind everywhere. friend, with pretty Her questions wings of black and Miss Mary Gaffney are, “What gold, some with about the homeless, where are different colored eyes. they going to live?” Some of I watched as they the plans they have for these crawled out of their shell, after struggling and making their way projects include removing the out of the ground, with the help homeless. “You tell me, grandma, of the rain. and they tell me in Sunday This whole affair makes school and church that we me stop and think how these should love one another and creatures will return to the care for our fellow man. God ground as fertilizer when they loves us.” die! First of all, my When my greatgranddaughter is 11 years-old. granddaughter asks a question; when she looks me in the eye, I We can never say that our little ones aren’t paying attention to never know what might be us, or television. You’d be coming. Sometimes she asks surprised at what they see and me about the bible. Her recent hear, especially when they are questions were about the talking about news on the Cicadas. television. For example, the When Noah was told by God to build an Ark and gather Washington Park issue, and how the area might be developed. up two of every animal, male She has also seen the and female of each species, with Drop Inn Center and she knows the impending destruction of that this is where some of our the world by flood, her questions was, “Did this include homeless friends stay. With development plans being talked the Cicadas?” about for that area, she worries I could not specifically answer that question but I know about where the people are going to stay. The foxes have that everything that God made
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holes, the birds have nests. But some men have no place to lay their head. Some of the people have jobs, but they also may be dealing with physical or mental problems. When you sit down at your dinner table, or when you go into your living room to watch television or you go to your bedroom for a nice, peaceful rest think of our friends who are not that fortunate. Until next month, remember God loves us all, regardless of who we are, our background, or our circumstance.
20 YEARS SERVING THE NEIGHBORHOOD
Empowering our neighborhood children through peace, art and education Peaslee Neighborhood Center 215 East 14th Street Over-the-Rhine Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
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Homeless News Digest
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get bogged down.” Cullen says the financial requirement is a violation of the Charter of Rights. He hopes to raise the money, but is also considering a legal challenge to have the election law declared unconstitutional. Polling stations will be set up in Calgary, Canada to allow the city’s homeless to cast their votes. “For most of our people, walking half a mile or a mile to get to a polling station becomes an impossibility,” Debbie Newman tells the CBC. The director of program services says they need to take services to their clients. Four years ago, Elections Canada changed its rules, allowing the homeless to use shelters as their permanent address. But while homeless voters could register during the last election, they still had to find the polling station in their area. Shelter resident Peter Savage says he’ll vote. “There area people who are here for a short time, like myself,” he says. “And they care. We care.” About 850 people stay at the drop-in center every night. An Arizona woman is working to make sure Father’s Day is not so hard on some area homeless men. Laura Borgeson is director and events coordinator of the Shoebox Ministry in Scottsdale. She’s heading a drive to fill 600 lunch box tins for homeless men for Father’s Day. With the help of a network of donors, she collected close to 2,000 items to fill purses for homeless women on Mother’s Day. But, she tells the Arizona Republic, men are harder to please. She’s come up with a list that includes baseball caps, aftershave, small tools, cologne, deodorant, work gloves, watches, and sunglasses. Borgeson’s mother started the ministry in 1988, and while she says there is food, shelter, and medical assistance, there are no personal products. The group started out delivering 30 shoebox toiletry kits; now they are up to 7,500 to 61 agencies. e Str
An annual count of homeless people in and around Denver, Colorado finds there are fewer people homeless but 43 percent of them are children. According to the survey children represent a growing percentage of homeless people living in motels, emergency shelters or other temporary housing in metro Denver. The count also found 60 percent of all homeless people lived just outside of Denver. While the number of homeless in the county is down this year, the survey revealed 8,668 people are homeless, 43 percent of whom are under the age of 21. “Some of the homeless children live in cars at night. Some are in shelters. Some of them are in schools, but don’t know if they’re going to be at the same school the next day,” Metropolitan Denver Homeless Initiative president Tom Luehrs tells the Denver Post. The survey also counted 2,442 people in transitional housing, where they may remain for six months to two years. Luehrs says housing costs and unemployment remain the leading cause of homelessness. Homeless advocates say while the overall count of homeless people may be lower, their requests for help from homeless women and families are not. A recent community march in Raleigh, North Carolina focused on ending homelessness. The rally came a day after city leaders announced their own 10-year plan to end homelessness. Supporters of the plan tell WRAL-TV of Raleigh-DurhamFayetteville that the city’s 10year plan is a progressive commitment, but critics say 10 years is way too long. The plan consists of two points: focusing on sources of hardship like domestic violence and drug abuse, and allocating more money to shelters. “The situation is much harder today because a lot of jobs are going overseas, and mass immigration has taken a lot of entry-level jobs,” homeless Vietnam veteran Ritchie Hammond tells
WRAL. Raleigh Mayor Charles Meeker remains optimistic the city can actually end homelessness. “It’s an attempt to try and solve the problems of the homeless person,” Meeker said of the plan. Aboriginal housing advocates from across Canada met in Winnipeg recently to search for solutions to homelessness. Native leaders say the number of aboriginal people in Winnipeg has increased over the past decade and it hasn’t helped that 10 years ago the government stopped investing in programs that built low-rent homes for urban aboriginals. “Because of the lack of housing in Canada, the lack of social housing, the lack of affordable housing, it’s very frustrating for them,” says Larry Wercherer, who runs an emergency shelter. He tells CBC that waiting lists for existing properties have long caused an increase in the number of native people living in motels, shelters and on the streets. A random sample of around 350 homeless people found that over 75 percent of those in shelters, requiring intervention or on the streets were aboriginal people. Meanwhile, elsewhere in Canada, the city of Ottawa will receive $17 million toward ending homelessness as part of the National Homelessness Initiative started in 1999. The money will be granted over two years. “Canadians coast to coast have identified homelessness as a major concern,” Defense Minister David Pratt told the CBC. Funding to continue the program was allocated in last month’s federal budget, but it requires a locally designed plan. The city of Ottawa did approve a plan that includes $11 million for capital development projects, $4 million for services
preventing homelessness and aiding the homeless, and $2 million for research and working with other local service providers. Residents in Louisville, Kentucky are mourning the death of a homeless man who was savagely attacked in April. WAVE 3-News reports Clifton Agnew died from his injuries last week. Police say two men beat, stabbed, and sodomized Agnew as he lay sleeping in an alley. The suspects are in custody. The attack left Agnew in a coma for several weeks. When local homeless advocate Kaye Thomas learned what happened to the man, she visited him in the hospital and encouraged others to send him get-well cards. Thousands came in and Thomas spent hours reading them to him. One read, “The word homeless is not your identity, that may be how you live but that’s not who you are.” Services were held at the church where Agnew ate lunch almost everyday. From the pulpit at his funeral, Thomas spoke one more time to the man who touched so many lives. “The Kentucky School for the blind sent you a card, written so sweetly in Braille,” she read. The 53-year-old man was buried at Resthaven Cemetery. A homeless man who says he is the voice of the poor is running into an election roadblock in Canada. Daniel Cullen of Kelowna, British Columbia, wants to run as an independent candidate but doesn’t have the $1,000 dollars required by Elections Canada. The homeless man is broke and is panhandling to raise the money. “The people I do know don’t have the money. The people who have the money don’t know me,” Cullen tells the CBC. “There has to be a barrier,” says Liberal Party candidate Vern Nielsen. He says Cullen has a valid point, but adds that the deposit is not unreasonable. “We could potentially have 100 people all running as independents, and then the whole process would
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A King Without a Throne Interview With Washington Park Tent Man, King DaviyD
Former Washington Park resident, DaviyD
Interview by Georgine Getty Where have you been staying the last month? Washington Park. I’ve been there since the 6th of May. I was in jail for two weeks for a ticket from 2003 (driving without a license) and I got out on the 6th of May. I didn’t go to Washington Park with the plan of building a hut. I’m a man of God, and when I was locked up for 14 days, I didn’t get any visits and God took care of me the whole time. So you built a hut? Right. When I got out, I was walking and meditating on the Most High throughout the city and God showed me pieces. I just started picking up pieces and taking them back to my spot in Washington Park. When I got them all together I realized ‘oh my God!’ I can build a roof over my head. I moved here in 1994 and I know I’ve helped many people in this city. I’m not from this city or state. I have no relatives here. Do you still have your hut? No. By the grace of God that hut stood for 25 days in Washington Park. On the first of June, the police came and took my house away. It wasn’t a hut to me, it was my house. I slept in my house while it stormed and the wind blew. I was dry and my house never blew down. I’m an individual who built his own house. There are people who sleep here in this park, well, I’m going to build a roof over my head. Where are you staying now? I’ve been sleeping on benches (in Washington Park) ever since they took my house away. What are your plans? Well. I’ve had some time to think since they’ve taken my house away and I have some questions. What was their intent of taking my house away? If you are people who fight for justice, righteousness, you are strength for the meek . . . what were you thinking when you took my house away? Because
photo by Jimmy Heath
now I sleep completely outside since you took my house away. I’m still sleeping there. Many people are sleeping there on blankets. What do you think about Washington Park being redeveloped? Why are you developing it? Are you doing it to help these people who obviously need help? If this is our city and this is supposed to be one of the top 10 places to raise a family, then why are we not as a family of Cincinnati helping the less fortunate of the city? No matter where we are, we are a family. If there is a part of the family that is not getting along with another, then we have a problem. If there is a part of the family that is trying to hide another part that maybe doesn’t look so shiny, and they’re just trying to hide and cover it up, then that’s a problem. What would you like the readers of Streetvibes to know about you? I need the readers of SV to spread the word about what’s going on to the rest of Cincinnati. I am a pure man of God. I am not here to stereotype the truth. I am not here to categorize the truth with religion. I live upon every letter, every dotted “i” and crossed “t” of the word of God.
For my life, it is His will, and not mine. What does the Word of God mean to you? Liberty, wherever I go. It allows me to not have to prove myself to no one. I can be me. I can be the image and likeness of God without being influenced by the ways of the world. I started my life as an orphan. I lived in many foster homes. I didn’t grow up in church, but church was in me. I got adopted when I was 7 years old. I’ve been from coast to coast, north, south, east and west. I’ve lived in Europe and Korea. I’ve adjusted. I got in the flow instead of forcing something. Did you go to Europe and Korea in the army? Yes. How long were you in the army? Approximately 6 years. I had secret clearance. I was an avionics electronic aircraft repair man. I left with an honorable discharge. From there I trained in marketing and managed many restaurants. I’ve been a teacher everywhere I’ve been. I had a year of college. I’m very “above average” when it comes to society’s vision. I know I can go get a smashing job somewhere. I have come to choose God, so I don’t live on my own accord. God says “a righteous man’s footsteps are ordered by the Lord.” And the footsteps that I have taken in the past few years have not been through my own consciousness but because God ordered them and I chose to do His way. Can you tell me what you saw in prison? When I was locked up, I saw my future. I saw myself perishing when I saw all them young boys
around me. For whatever reason, they’re choosing to do what they’re choosing. No one if offering them any type of positive future. We lock the youth up and that’s it. Some of those young boys in there are not criminals. Maybe they did a crime or were around the wrong people because they wanted to be a part of something but so. many of them I talked to you could tell the criminal thing was not in them, it wasn’t in their hearts. They’re just doing what’s all around them. We need to find out who’s redeemable and who can be saved. Programs need to be implemented to re-direct lives. Bond should be contingent on it. Help them see positive options and directions. That would be a wonderful program. This is not just for the younger crowd, but the elders also. I ran into some older people and kids too who couldn’t read. Nobody’s taking care of them. When you’re 5, 6 or 7, you want to learn. When you’re 9, 10, 11 and no one’s told you anything yet, you’re going to move with whatever seems to be moving. They don’t have no choice. Thank you for sharing your thoughts with us. Any final comments? I beseech the people not only in this city but around the world that if you have any righteousness in you concerning God, the only way wickedness can triumph is for righteousness to absolutely do nothing and I’m begging those of the righteous status to please stand up and become one and let’s begin to change what God sent us to change. What was in the beginning so shall it be in the end.
Hello, my name is... For over three weeks DaviyD was living in a home of his own construction in Washington Park in the neighborhood of Over-the-Rhine. Following the police protocol established after the bridge sweeps of summer, 2003, DaviyD’s home was removed. DaviyD is an established sight at Findlay Market, where he plays the Jymbay, an African Drum, for his many fans. He is a veteran who was released from service after six years with an honorable discharge. He is also the father of two, a daughter, age 8 and a son, age 6. DaviyD started his career as a supervisor in marketing. After his release from the justice center on May 6, he found himself with no place to go and built a make-shift home in Washington Park. Recently the victim of violence (in late March, he was shot on 14th and Vine and he was assaulted one month ago on Elm Street) and medical problems (he suffered three strokes in 2001). DaviyD is currently working with a local outreach worker to achieve housing and self sufficiency.
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The Peace Village
annual summer session course on, “Social Work and Peace.” The course looks at how issues of peace can be emphasized in the practice of social work professionals. The Peace Village Project: “Ending Hunger in the Peace Village,” is being organized with 11 area high school teachers and students plus support from the UC Peace Village student organization. The Wright State University Peace Village, Dayton, Ohio is being formed with students and faculty from the school of social work and other areas of the university. One organizing meeting has been held and there are plans to see ways of moving to projects.
by Dr. Steve Sunderland For the past months, a group of undergraduate and graduate students, led by graduate student, Guneet Aulakh, from India, have been meeting about improving peace at the University of Cincinnati. An official university student group has been formed, officers elected and several projects launched. “A Tunnel of Oppression,” an exhibit with other students about areas of oppression in the world was featured for a week during the University’s WorldFest programs. Out of these efforts, and weekly planning sessions at the Wesleyan Student Foundation, thanks to the generosity and leadership of Wesleyan staffer, Jeanne Smith, a set of activities for the coming year are in stages of planning including: a student to student support program that will link Dr. Steve Sunderland an international I have been encouraged student with another university by Dr. Carl Brun, chair, student; a monthly or bidepartment of social work, monthly international music evening to share different forms WSU, and his wonderful class to take the step into creating a of music; a monthly or bipeace group. The students monthly international peace movie showing, accompanied by know that Carl has opened a door of opportunity to them and discussion groups; and, they enter, wary and delighted, participation in a universitya chance to join a serious peace wide hunger program to raise movement. food and money for our The Peace Village Cincinnati food store for the Newsletter continues to be sent poor and homeless, the Free out each week plus a monthly Store. column in Streetvibes, the Raymond Walters newspaper of the Cincinnati College, University of Homeless Coalition continues Cincinnati, has a group of to be published. Content of the faculty and students that have participated in a second annual, both publications involves activities in the Peace Village “Peace Conference.” Faculty from the vantage point of many have also opened their classes authors. to poster sessions on peace in I continue to marvel at the academic areas of English, the editor of Streetvibes, Jimmy sociology, history, and Heath, and his quiet dedication communications. and commitment to his readers The leaders of this gang and to all homeless people. His of faculty, Helen Kegler and last issue had his article on Grace Auyang, have now been honoring a deceased homeless joined by another group of person. Jimmy reminds us of faculty eager for the next step. the radical changes needed to One faculty member, Maria Damos, and I are plotting to use welcome our “strangers” into our homes and hearts. poetry for peace; Grace is There is nothing more already into peace work with expansive of hope than working her sociology students, and with teachers and their students others are pioneering curricula of peace. Gently, simply, and innovations, too. with a grace, the posters begin University of to color in a different world, a Cincinnati’s school of social work will be offering the second powerful world shaped by
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respect and compassion, and these very young people, in a very short time, find their voices. You must meet these “teachers,” these gems of civility and humor, and see them “shining’ in their classrooms. One teacher, Craig Rush, keeps asking his students to keep making the UN laws relevant to the students’ world. Another, Steve Elliot, muses with his students about the reduction of all problems to “simple black and white, the good guys and the bad guys.” Indonesian Peace Project is continuing with follow-up program plans based on two meetings with peace makers from Indonesia who have visited the Peace Village in Cincinnati. The visits were under the supervision of Ohio University’s South East Asian Program. Religious tensions between Christians and Muslims may be one focus as well as other concerns about promoting peace. Northside’s Second Annual Peace Makers Dinner is being planned for the fall. Last year over 100 neighborhood peace makers were honored with a dinner and music. This year our community has been faced with another set of challenges to our peace and the community has ably responded, albeit with the causalities of horror that continue to plague communities serious about living in peace. Plans are being made for the third annual vigil and Interfaith Walk on September 10th and September 11, 2004 in memory of those who died and those who worked for peace in the rescue effort. Last year’s event taught us a great deal about what we needed to hear and say about justice and peace and the old team, led by Mira Rodwin, is reuniting to make another expression of respect. Peaslee Community Center Freedom Murals have developed in 8 inner city agencies in Cincinnati in cooperation with the Peace Village and tile artist, Suzanne Fisher. Working initially with posters depicting the relationship of the concept of freedom and their agency, staff and clients create puzzle pieces out of posters until there is agreement about what the major theme is and how it can be converted to a large tile mural to adorn the outside of the building. The final murals are “signs” of “safe houses,” places in Over-the-Rhine that community residents can receive care and a new perspective on community
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development. These are many of the projects underway. I have not included the wonderful work of Hans Klee, Munich and Harare, founder of Global Friends, to make the links with the Peace Village strong and creative. Amos Hopkins joins Binny Singh in India in a great chance to build a foundation in three of Binny’s schools. I hope to hear more from them and others in Israel, Argentina, and Nigeria about what is happening in their Peace Village efforts. I have also omitted from this letter the beginning planning for interfaith discussions with Jewish and Christian youth, thanks to the help of Barbara Dragul, Ed Irvin, Steve Elliot, Daniel Septimus, and Sam Joseph. In sum, the work of peace, in peace, for peace is obviously the work of many hands and hearts, some new and some old. We touch each other, heal with one another, find a laugh and a tear along our paths, and stand in awe of how beautiful our friendships have become as the way of peace. We are not blind to what is happening in our little world as new stories of bloodshed and worse appear. Yet, my old friend and Vet for Peace, Paul Davis repeatedly reminds me that we are a force for and with peace, carrying a message to young and old, here and there, that is no more than our own steps, our own heartbeats, and our own connections to each other and the world. The larks parked for the moment in the nest outside our door are long gone, flying now on their own power. Tuesday Henson is walking the walk of a one year old who feels at peace, trusts the ground she totters on, smiling all the time. The Peace Village is as much her and her future as anything and it is our combined work that will make it a future of some peace. I thank everyone mentioned, hinted at, unmentioned, and tottering toward our golden image of peace.
Dr. Steve Sunderland, professor of Social Work at the University of Cincinnati, is the Director of The Peace Village, a group of individuals from the national and international community committed to examining all issues of Peace in the world. Dr. Sunderland also heads up Posters-forPeace which engages people in expressing their visions of Peace, in their own words, through the creation of posters.
The Fourth Annual Public Forum on Homelessness
THE IMPOSSIBLE WILL TAKE A LITTLE WHILE: Living and Acting with HOPE in Difficult Times Wednesday, October 13, 2003 8:30am to 5pm
Franklin County Veteran’s Memorial Wayne Brehm Room300 West Broad Street, Columbus, Ohio Presented by The Columbus Coalition for the Homeless In Partnership with The Greater Cincinnati Coalition or the Homeless, Otterbein College, The Columbus Metropolitan Area Church Council & The Interprofessional Commission of Ohio
Featuring PAUL LOEB as keynote speaker This forum will focus on advocacy, through the work of volunteers and professionals, for the needs of marginalized people - particularly those who are very poor and often homeless. The attendees will hear presentations by one of the country’s leading proponents of citizens living, acting and working for a more justice and equitable society for all people. “Paul Loeb brings hope for a better world in a time when we so urgently need it.” Millard Fuller, founder of Habitat for Humanity
Goodbye, Cicadas!
For more information about Paul, see www.paulloeb.org
“I object to violence because when it appears to do good, the good is only temporary; the evil it does is permanent.” — Mohandas K. Gandhi “Mankind must put an end to war, or war will put an end to mankind...War will exist until that distant day when the conscientious objector enjoys the same reputation and prestige that the warrior does today.” — John F. Kennedy “More than an end to war, we want an end to the beginning of all wars — yes, an end to this brutal, inhuman and thoroughly impractical method of settling the differences between governments.” — Franklin D. Roosevelt “There must be, not a balance of power, but a community of power; not organized rivalries, but an organized peace. — Woodrow Wilson
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photos by Jimmy Heath
Drop Inn Center.... Cont. from page 1 reputation for being a power broker and deal maker. His previous job was in Pittsburgh where he worked to develop stadiums and housing. There are mixed evaluations of his success, according to editorials from Pittsburgh. Leeper started his work in Cincinnati on April 1. One of the first things he did was to commission a study of Overthe-Rhine by Manhattan based designers Beyer, Blinder and Belle. Their study looked at the Washington Park Area, including placement of schools in the area. Unfortunately, not many people knew of their efforts and the firm only received input from a small group of area developers and business leaders. Nevertheless, the plan was completed and, on May 26, a high level meeting including School Superintendent Alton Fraily, top area CEO’s, representatives of the new Arts School and 3CDC meet to officially unveil the new proposal. It included changing the placement of two area schools, an expansion of the park and a new housing development. A 90-day time frame is given for approval by School and City bodies. After approval by this body, on June 2, the plan was released to the media, coordinated by 3CDC. Within a two week period from June 7 to June 18, presentations are given to many decision making bodies including the Cincinnati School Board, Cincinnati City Council, Washington Park School Parents and the Cincinnati Planning Commission. The public was given no notice of 3CDC’s attendance to any of these meetings. As a result, public comment was very limited. In the midst of this process, some participants in the 3CDC process expressed willingness to talk about concerns of homeless agencies. It is said that board members have expressed willingness to have discussions about the issues of safety and homelessness. However, others, including Leeper in his comments to City Council, were unsure why community groups were so concerned. One of the parties who has concerns is the Drop Inn Center, especially it’s
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The Nannie Hinkston House and Drop Inn Center Transitional Housing; corner of 12th and Elm Streets, Over-the-Rhine
Transitional Housing Program. The 18 units that house sober graduates of their treatment program are shown as being taken for a new school in 3CDC’s plan. Members of the Transitional Housing group attended a school committee meeting on June 10 th, but the plan was not up for discussion at the time. Transitional Housing residents in attendance were concerned about their buildings being taken without adequate replacement. They also regretted not having any input into the planning process. Drop Inn Center representatives passed out information about their project including the fact
that it is a sober residents with drug testing and a counselor on site and that it is a historic mixed-use building, with community serving businesses on the first floor. They hope to be included as the plan moves forward. On one hand, leaders like Cincinnati Councilmember Jim Tarbell expressed hope that the developments proposed by 3CDC will stimulate a major change in Over-the-Rhine and boost homeownership and property values. However, the Homeless Coalition, community residents and others continue to be very concerned about the impact
these developments may have on shelters and housing, as well as the future of neighborhood schools. Pat Clifford, Director of the Drop Inn Center, said “Our vision is to have a successful, truly mixed income, multi cultural area in Over-the-Rhine where people are accepted and encouraged to grow. The first thing we need to do is develop trust. I fear that this quick timetable for approval with limited public input and sketchy details will only serve to erode people’s trust and put the neighborhood in further jeopardy.”
From left; Elizabeth Linville, Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homelsss; Debra Brundidge, DIC Counseling Coordinator & Pat Clifford, General Coordinator of the Drop Inn Center at Cincinnati Public School Board meeting.
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Planning For A Place Where We Belong by Mary Burke I feel so used and discarded after reading the “Washington Park plan unveiled” in the June 1 edition of the Enquirer. And then to read on June 10th that the 3CDC plan for the schools had been approved by the Board of Education. I just feel sick. I along with over one hundred people participated in a threeyear long process to develop a plan for OTR. The city provided consultants, staff overtime and other resources to this plan that admittedly was hurried to an uncertain finish. We had hope that the implementation phase would allow us to work out the difficult issues that were missing from the plan. Important issues like how public dollars will be invested to support the plan and how we can invest simultaneously in our dying affordable housing stock
and the thriving market housing. We knew that the market housing demand for subsidy would drown out the affordable housing need for sustainability. Our sense that the “market” would consume huge amounts of public dollars was proven out by the $2 million dollar public subsidy to the private condo development at the Kroger Garage and the $6 million dollar subsidy to the parking garage itself. In addition, along with about 50 other people I engaged with the Cincinnati Public School process where consultants and architects were hired to facilitate a planning process for neighborhood schools. We spent our time and energy and more importantly invested hope for something better in OTR. We earnestly engaged in a process. We believed we could help shape the future.
Then 3CDC arrives on the scene and with the click of a mouse a PowerPoint slide eliminates our work and their new plan is unveiled. Not only were our plans disappeared, so were our local institutions and housing. My hope in our system of governance and civic life was further diminished. I feel like dropping out. I find cynical people funny but I don’t want to be cynical. I don’t want to sit on the sidelines and complain. I want to participate in the civic life. Maybe that’s what makes me feel sick. Groups like 3CDC stomp on people’s fire. We do burn with the hope of inclusion and real democracy and there is truly a visceral response when we are negated. Hopelessness moves in quickly. Then there are the shootings and the killing. We feel we have no power to effect
systemic change that could address the reason young men kill each other. We feel excluded. We are excluded. Fortunately there are people like Bonnie Neumeier, Damon Lynch, and Eileen Cooper Reed, and writers like Alice Walker. They pick-up people like me and re-ignite our fires. With them we can come to believe that there can be another way and together we can create it. So I hope to stay tuned for the rest of the story. Ultimately the anger and despair will be transformed to hope and action. We will find a way to include all people in our future. We will find a way to peace. We will find a way to transform our government and civic life so that people rule and corporate interests do not. And, we shall not be moved. Or to be more precise, The Drop Inn Center shall not be moved.
Shelter Programs Critical to Support of Homeless Veterans Who are homeless veterans? The U. S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) says homeless veterans are mostly males (2 % are females). The vast majority are single, most come from poor, disadvantaged communities, 45% suffer from mental illness, and half have substance abuse problems. America’s homeless veterans have served in World War II, Korean War, Cold War, Vietnam, Grenada, Panama, Lebanon, or the military’s antidrug cultivation efforts in South America. Forty-seven percent of homeless veterans served during the Vietnam Era. More than 67% served our country for at least three years and 33% were stationed in a war zone. How many homeless veterans are there? Although accurate numbers are impossible to come by... the VA estimates that more than 299,321 veterans are homeless on any given night. And, more than half a million experience homelessness over the course of a year. Conservatively, one out of every four homeless males who is sleeping in a doorway, alley, or box in our cities and rural communities has put on a uniform and served our country ... now they need America to remember them. Why are veterans homeless? In addition to the complex set of factors affecting all homelessness … extreme shortage of affordable housing, livable income, and access to
health care … a large number of displaced and at-risk veterans live with lingering effects of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and substance abuse, compounded by a lack of family and social support networks. A top priority is secure, safe, clean housing that offers a supportive environment. Doesn’t the Department of Veterans Affairs take care of homeless veterans? To a certain degree, yes. According to the VA’s 1997 report, in the years since it “began responding to the special needs of homeless veterans, its homeless treatment and assistance network has developed into the nation’s largest provider of homeless services. Serving more than 100,000 veterans annually.” With an estimated 500,000 veterans homeless at some time during the year, the VA reaches less than 20% of those in need. What services do veterans need? Veterans need a coordinated effort that provides secure housing and nutritional meals; essential physical health care, substance abuse aftercare and mental health counseling; and personal development and empowerment. Veterans also need job assessment, training and placement assistance. What seems to work best? The most effective programs for homeless and at-risk veterans are community-based, nonprofit, “veterans helping
veterans” groups. Programs that seem to work best feature transitional housing with the camaraderie of living in structured, substance-free environments with fellow veterans who are succeeding at bettering themselves. Because government money for homeless veterans is currently limited and serves only one in 10 of those in need, it is critical that community groups reach out to help provide the support, resources and opportunities most Americans take for granted: housing, employment and health care. There are
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about 200 community-based veteran organizations across the country that have demonstrated impressive success reaching homeless veterans. These groups are most successful when they work in collaboration with Federal, State, and local government agencies, other homeless providers, and veteran service organizations. Veterans who participate in these programs have a higher chance of becoming tax-paying, productive citizens again. For More Information log on to http://www.nchv.org
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Streetvibes Vendor Code of Conduct About the Greater Cincinnati All Vendors Sign and Agree to a Code of Conduct Coalition for the Homeless and Report Any Violations to GCCH - 421-7803 Streetvibes.... 1. Streetvibes will be distributed go to the individual vendor. This program has helped for a $1 voluntary donation. If a customer donates more than $1 for a paper, vendors are allowed to keep that donation. However, vendors must never ask for more than $1 when selling Streetvibes. 2. Each paper purchased from the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH) costs 30 cents. Papers will not be given out on credit. Old papers can not be traded in for new papers. 3. Streetvibes may only be purchased from GCCH. Never buy papers from, or sell papers to other vendors. 4. Vendors must not panhandle or sell other items at the same time they are selling Streetvibes. 5. Vendors must treat all other vendors, customers, and GCCH personnel with respect. 6. Vendors must not sell Streetvibes while under the influence. 7. Vendors must not give a “hard sell” or intimidate anyone into purchasing Streetvibes. This includes following customers or continuing to solicit sales after customers have said no. Vendors must also never sell Streetvibes door-to-door. 8. Vendors must not deceive customers while selling Streetvibes. Vendors must be honest in stating that all profits
Vendors must not tell customers that the money they receive will go to GCCH or any other organization or charity. Also, vendors must not say that they are collecting for “the homeless” in general. 9. Vendors must not sell papers without their badge. Vendors must present their badge when purchasing papers from GCCH. Lost badges cost $2.00 to replace. Broken or worn badges will be replaced for free, but only if the old badge is returned to GCCH. 10. Streetvibes vendor meetings are held on the first weekday of the month at 1pm. The month’s paper will be released at this meeting. If a vendor cannot attend the meeting, he or she should let us know in advance. If a vendor does not call in advance and does not show up, that vendor will not be allowed to purchase papers on the day of the meeting or the following day. Five free papers will be given to those who do attend. 11. Failure to comply with the Code of Conduct may result in termination from the Streetvibes vendor program. GCCH reserves the right to terminate any vendor at any time as deemed appropriate. Badges and Streetvibes papers are property of GCCH, and must be surrendered upon demand.
The mission of the North American Street Newspaper Association (NASNA) is to support a street newspaper movement that creates and upholds journalistic and ethical standards while promoting self-help and empowerment among people living in poverty. NASNA papers support homeless and very low-income people in more than 35 cities across the United States and Canada.
Streetvibes Vendor: 70 cents
Printing and Production: 30 cents
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The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH) was formed in May of 1984 for one purpose: the eradication of homelessness in Cincinnati. What started out as a coalition of 15 volunteers meeting weekly in an unheated church basement has since grown into a Coalition of over 45 agencies and hundreds of volunteers dedicated to improving services for homeless individuals, educating the public about homelessness and empowering homeless individuals to advocate for their civil rights and housing needs. Streetvibes is a tool of GCCH used to help us achieve our goal of ending homelessness. On the one hand it is a self-sufficiency program geared towards the homeless and marginally housed individuals who are our vendors. Streetvibes vendors buy the paper for 30 cents per copy and sell it for a suggested one-dollar donation, keeping the profit that they have earned.
hundreds of people find and maintain housing. The vendors also sign a code of conduct stating that they will behave responsibly and professionally and they proudly display their official Streetvibes badge while selling the paper. Our vendors put a face on “the homeless” of Cincinnati and form lasting friendships with their customers. On the other hand, Streetvibes is an award-winning alternative newspaper and part of the international street newspaper movement. Focusing on homelessness and social justice issues, Streetvibes reports the often-invisible story of poverty in our community. Streetvibes is also proud to include creative writing, poetry, articles, photography and interviews written by homeless and formerly homeless individuals. Streetvibes enjoys a loyal reader base that respects the honest portrayal of the joys, sorrows, and challenges facing the people of Cincinnati.
Streetvibes is a member of the:
The International Network of Street Papers (INSP) unites street papers sold by homeless and people living in poverty from all over the world. INSP is an umbrella organisation, which provides a consultancy service for its partner papers and advises on the setting up of new street papers and support initiatives for marginalised people.
Where Your Dollar Goes... The Streetvibes program maintains a minimal overhead cost so that our vendors can keep as much of the proceeds as possible. Please call our office at 421-7803 for more information about the program. Many thanks for your support.
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Half of the American people have never read a newspaper. Half never voted for President. One hopes it is the same half. Gore Vidal Editor: a person employed by a newspaper, whose business it is to separate the wheat from the chaff, and to see that the chaff is printed. - Elbert Hubbard Trying to determine what is going on in the world by reading newspapers is like trying to tell the time by watching the second hand of a clock. - Ben Hecht People everywhere confuse what they read in newspapers with news. - A. J. Liebling
Why are NA Meetings Important To Me? by Antonio Reed Why are N.A. meetings important to me? I struggled for the longest time with drug addiction. It took so many things from me over the years: my family’s trust, I lost many friends and women who were involved with me. It took me a long time to see the destruction that drugs caused in my life and in the life of others: 3 of my children - Antwan LaMarr Robinson, Elijah Ishmeal Reed, Dontonio Devontae Reed are permanently committed to Children Services and my only daughter, Antoinieshia Trynce Reed, I’m fighting to get custody now so I can be a part of her life. My oldest son, Antonio LaMote Reed, Jr. stays with his mom. I can see him, but drugs took me from being a father to my children.
N.A. Meeting is just like Chemo treatment is to a person who suffers with cancer. It don’t cure the disease that I suffer from, but it does arrest it. Knowing from my past, if I don’t stick with N.A. Meetings, I run the risk of returning to active drug use again. N.A. meetings are like insulin is to a diabetic. If they don’t take their shot, they run the risk of going into a shock. N.A. meetings is like a kidney to the person who needs it to continue living. N.A. meetings are like a breath machine to someone who can’t take a breath of life without it. N.A. meetings are like the umbilical cord attached to the fetus whose life depends on it for its nourishment while in the mother’s womb. When I came to the place I’m at I had nothing at all left in
me, not even the will to go on living. I lost my self-respect, self-worth, morals, a woman who I really loved - but it turned out I loved drugs more, to the point where I no longer knew how to treat her and she left. I had self-hatred, guilt and shame running wild inside of me. I felt abandoned, not loved by myself or others. But N.A. Meetings changed me a lot. Where else could I go and be dealing with something inside my head and question God about it? Inside my heart I felt hopeless about the situation and the answer came to me from God through someone at the meeting who had been through what I’m now dealing with. And by doing the right thing for the right reasons, things got better for them. By me hearing that, it gives me hope that the
same thing can happen to me. There is a spirit in N.A. meetings that I personally can say is God. It doesn’t matter about age, race, sexual identity creed religion or lack of religion. There is only one requirement for membership that is having the desire to stop using. That’s it. I listen. I learn from others who are just like me. While I have not regained a lot of things I have gotten myself back - and the belief that things will be OK for me. The three most important things in life right now are: first, God, second, staying clean no matter what happens third, the program of N.A., because without it, I would return to using and I wouldn’t be accountable for nothing. N.A. saved my life.
“Urban Plunge” Students Experience Life on the Streets by Lindsay Dalmolin St. Edward’s University sophomore Kacy McCoig had what every college student dreams of for spring break; a free plane ticket to Cancun, paid in full by her own mother. McCoig declined. She and four other St. Edward’s students had already made their own Spring Break plans. They wanted to be homeless for five days on the streets in Austin. McCoig joined Shyda Hogue, Robby Haddad, Paul Hagey, and Stephanie Daniel on the streets through Urban Plunge, a program St. Edward’s Campus Ministry offers students as an alternative spring break. Anna Aldave, the programs founder and director, also accompanied the students for their five days on the streets. From 5am till late evening, they learned how to cope as a homeless man or woman would. The group ate at soup kitchens and churches, tried panhandling, attended “church under the bridge” (a worship service beneath I-35), built friendships with others living on the streets, and slept at Central Presbyterian Church downtown at night.
“Slowly you start to realize the rhythm of the homeless life,” Hagey said. “The food, being out all day and not having a place to really sit down and relax, it wears you out. You get caught in the rhythm, and it’s hard to get out because you’re tired and you’re hungry.” The experience was made more trying by citizens of Austin and some of the homeless themselves. On the streets, they received dirty looks and rude comments from people in passing. When panhandling, they felt worthless and ignored. Some of the homeless felt that the urban plungers were usurping resources devoted to them. But not all of homeless felt that way about the two year-old program. Most of the men and women living on the streets they met were extremely friendly and helpful and understood why the group was out on the streets. McCoig was overwhelmed by the advice from the homeless. “They would tell us which churches and soup kitchens offered the best meals.”
The non-housed even shared personal stories from their lives. When walking downtown back to the Presbyterian Church, a fiftysomething year old homeless man named Mark ran up to the group. He’d seen them on the news earlier that morning and wanted to share his story with them. He was homeless because his medical bills had escalated out of control. As a veteran, he was unable to pay for housing on top of his treatments for cancer, as he had just recently been diagnosed. He was college-educated, a Christian, and trying to get off the streets. “These guys (the homeless) are the best spiritual teachers I have ever seen,” commented Aldave. “I feel so very loved and accepted by these people. That’s the thing that my mind cannot even comprehend, and that’s the thing that will have me doing this as a spiritual discipline probably for the rest of my life.” Aldave started the Urban Plunge program a year ago at St. Edward’s. The idea stemmed from a 1-day street
retreat she attended that was hosted by a group called the Faithful Fools from San Francisco. Aldave, a campus minister, was so blown away by the experience that she brought a similar program to the Austin area. The goal of the program is to build a bridge between the housed and non-housed and to show compassion for those without homes. Recruiting students to apply for the Urban Plunge program is not easy. Most of the students who apply are the ones who really have a desire to do it. McCoig wanted to do it to get away from the mundane day-to-day life, and she knew that Urban Plunge was her opportunity. She might not have had the sunny white beach and beautiful ocean, but her time on the streets have given her more perspective than a pretty little island ever could. “I thought it would be a life-changing experience, and that’s what it has been,” said McCoig. Reprinted from Austin Homeless Advocate, April 2004
News From The OHIO EMPOWERMENT COALITION The Family Violence Option Campaign (renamed the “Safe and Stable Families” Campaign) has persuaded Rep. Jean Schmidt of Loveland, Ohio to introduce the FVO policy as a bill: H.B. 481 HB 481 has been assigned to the Ohio House Health Committee. Since the Ohio Assembly adjourned for
the summer on May 27 , we don’t expect any action on it until September when the Ohio Assembly returns to Columbus. However, over the summer, the Safe and Stable Families Campaign will definitely be active! Summer will be a golden opportunity to meet with state representatives to educate them th
on the bill and its importance. The plan will be to get the bill heard in September with public hearings, but we must work hard over the summer to make sure the committee chair & committee members believe this is a very important bill that must be prioritized. Many other issues are clamoring for their attention.
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The Safe and Stable Families Campaign also needs financial support to get HB 481 passed by the Ohio Assembly. Campaign contributions can be sent to Contact Center, 1227 Vine St., Cincinnati, OH 45202. For more information or to endorse the Campaign, call the Contact Center at 513/3814242.
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No-name Poem
A Servants Prayer
by Steve Kors III
by Robert Manassa
Coke is white and grass is green. But I liked to drink Because it made me mean.
Heavenly Father up above Please protect the ones I love. Guide them and keep them and let them know that I’ll always love them so.
I drank from the left And drank from the right. I drank all day. And drank all night, I drank in the sun, I drank in the rain. I would get burned Or soaked with no pain. I have a shot of Beam In that stinky bar. Feels like a wet dream, Then I have to find my car.
I’m sending up this prayer, down on my knees Father God – all of my sins, forgive them please I’m not to proud to beg I’m standing on my last leg. Precious Lord – please continue to hold my hand I need your help and grace to help me stand I need you not only for a day If these words are wrong in any way Then Father God – teach me how to pray
When I was drinking I got real numb! The Dayton police Knew I was dumb. I was real dirty. I had lost my pride... Sometimes I would wake up, And wish I’d died. I was like a fish. I thought I drank well. But it all turns out I was a cracked bell. The devil had owned me To where I was beat. I lost all my family. And lived on the street. I have a new family who helps me stay dry And when I’m with them I sometimes cry. Now that I’m sober And all is well I found Jesus Christ who keeps me from Hell.
Across the Park by Michael Henson
Confusion, fear and lies; What good can come when people die? Red Blood spilt On barren land To complete an alchemical plan, Red Blood to Black Gold, Deviously poisoning, polluting, choking our Heart. Men tortured, defiled, dishonored by their Brethren, Captured on film, a permanent bruise Not to be overlooked. Truth and honor wither away; They know they do not belong. Boundaries grow hazy Accompanied by roles: Who the victim? Who the villain? Both? Neither? For what purpose and to what end? Why fight a war Paid with lives Only to gain confusion, fear and lies? Zach Chotzen-Freund of Santa Barbara, CA, examined in this excerpt the esprit that leads 17-year-olds to sign up for war. Fittingly, he’s 17.
Across the park I see a woman and she is dancing down the sidewalk. There is too much of her and everything movable is moving but she is graceful and her step is slow and smooth. A set of headphones nestles in her braids and I do not know what she hears among the evening traffic of West Eighth Street. She steps and stops rocks forward at the neck pecks at the air with her hand She steps and stops rocks forward at the neck pecks at the air with her hand steps stops rocks pecks to the music that is wrapped around her head until she sees that I am staring and she stops. I am in awe of her but she does not know that so she stops her dance and slowly walks her sidewalk until she thinks I may not hear. And then she sings.
Off now, children! Off to war! Kill in your country’s name! For murder on behalf of kin is what allows our boys to win And rest someday in cherished lore. So off now, off to war! Off now, children! Off to war! Make your fathers swell with pride! For though you’re young, they love to hear that you’re a splendid bombardier And dodge death like a matador. So off now, off to war! Off now, children! Off to war! Bring smiles to your mothers’ eyes! They hate to lose you, sure that’s true, but if flags of red, white and blue Are at your funeral, souls will soar. So off now, off to war!
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Streetvibes
Writers! Submit your Poetry to STREETVIBES Streetvibes@juno.com
Unwritten Beatitudes The Cold Within by James Patrick Henry Six humans trapped by happenstance In black and bitter cold Each one possessed a stick of wood Or so the story’s told. Their dying fire in need of logs The first woman held her back. For of the faces around the fire She noticed one was black. The next man looking cross the way Saw one not of his church, And couldn’t bring himself to give The fire his stick of birch. The third one sat in tattered clothes He gave his coat a hitch. Why should his log be put to use To warm the idle rich. The rich man just sat back and thought Of the wealth he had in store. And how to keep what he had earned From the lazy shiftless poor. The black man’s face bespoke revenge As the fire passes from his sight. For all he saw in his stick of wood Was a chance to spite the white. And the last man of this forlorn group Did naught except for gain, Giving only to those who gave Was how he played the game. Their logs held tight in death’s still hands Was proof of human sin. They didn’t die from the cold without, They died from the cold within.
1. Blessed are the ignorant for they shall be taught. 2. Blessed are the humble for they shall be made proud 3. Blessed are the blind for they shall see 4. Blessed are the falsely accused for they shall exonerate 5. Blessed are the losers for they shall be triumphant 6. Blessed are those in tribulation for they shall experience bliss 7. Blessed are those in debt for they shall be forgiven 8. Blessed are those in prison for their minds shall be set free 9. Blessed are the addicted for they shall be made whole 10. Blessed are the impaired for they shall renewed 11. Blessed are the pacifists for they shall honored 12. Blessed are the powerless for they shall overcome 13. Blessed are the scared for they shall no longer doubt 14. Blessed are those who serve for they shall be served 15. Blessed are the undesirables for they shall find acceptance By Club Quaker, Youth Group of Eastern Hills Friends Meeting: Jeremy Coppock, Nathan Coppock, Daniel Coppock, Daniel Montgomery, Grace Montgomery, Matt Whispe, and Jamie Pogue.
Knock the dust off your boots, my boy, It’s time to ride again. The frontier has gone restless now And we must crush this rebellion. . . . These people understand only violence, So let’s give it to ‘em now. We’ll ride ‘em down like Cherokee; We’ll trample ‘em like Pueblo. These savages are ruthless; They understand no law. So we’ll pick up our Peacemakers, And shoot ‘em like Choctaw. . . . Rally round the flag, my boy, And grab your rifle, too. The Red Man’s turned Brown, my boy, And there’s a lot of peacemaking to do. Megan Foley, a 16-year-old from Long Island, focused like many on the ambiguities of a war that was supposed to enhance moral clarity.
Reprinted from Street News
Shutter Speed
by Jimmy Heath
Street Musician, Main Street, Over-the-Rhine
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An Icon, and Then He’s Gone by John M. Glionna, Los Angeles Times Beijing - For many foreigners, he is Tiananmen Square’s most recognizable figure, outshining even Chairman Mao Tse-tung - whose body still lies in state at a far end of the vast public space. Just after noon on June 5, 1989, the day after Chinese troops stormed the square to brutally crush a student political uprising here, a solitary protester engaged in a modernday David versus Goliath showdown: Clutching nothing but two shopping bags, he stood his ground before a column of oncoming tanks on the adjacent Avenue of Eternal Peace. Captured by newspaper photographs and cable news footage, the tense standoff lasted several minutes, a seeming eternity to onlookers waiting for the tanks to overrun the man, before he was hustled from the scene by onlookers. On the 15th anniversary of the government crackdown in which hundreds, perhaps thousands, were killed, this lone dissenter’s story remains the most enduring mystery of the violent confrontation. No one knows whether he’s dead or alive. Chinese activists and government officials say they aren’t even sure of his name. “For me, he represents the unknown soldier of the Chinese democratic revolution,” said John Kamm, executive director of the Dui Hua Foundation, a San Franciscobased human rights group. “What’s so strange is that his act of bravery was conducted in plain view of the world. But other than seeing his act, we know so very little about him.” The British tabloid Sunday Express shortly after the incident identified the man as a 19-year-old named Wang Weilin, the son of Beijing factory workers. But activists question the accuracy of a reporter they say did not visit China and relied on telephone calls to supposed friends of the man. In 1999, on the 10th anniversary of the Tiananmen crackdown, Chinese leader Jiang Zemin was asked what had happened to the mystery man. He responded in English, “I think never killed.” Jiang said government officials conducted their own search for the protester, checking morgues, prisons and computer registers, but could not find him. But they could get no
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China has never acknowledged that civilians died in the bloodshed. help from Chinese citizens As for the lone protester, themselves: No one in the activists hope he has survived, country has ever seen the but fear the worst. images. In fact, no ordinary “Either he’s been killed Chinese beyond the protesters already or he’s still in some and soldiers involved even black hole in a Chinese prison,” knows of the standoff. Even said Sharon Hom, executive today, Chinese can’t see the famous photograph, even on the director of the U.S.-based group Internet. Attempts to download Human Rights in China. “If he is alive and free, a man willing the picture are blocked by the to stand in front of a tank would government. have come forward by now and On the eve of the not stay silent. This is not anniversary this week, Tiananmen Square was crowded someone who is just going to disappear.” with thousands of tourists and Human rights activist locals milling under floodlights Xiao Qiang calls his inability to - presumably watched by locate the protester one of his plainclothes policemen. most frustrating Brigades of failures. Xiao bicyclists was studying passed on Just after noon on June 5, abroad at the the crowded 1989, the day after Chinese University of boulevards troops stormed the square to Notre Dame that when the surround the brutally crush a student Tiananmen square, and political uprising here, a crackdown a group of solitary protester engaged in occurred. old women a modern-day David versus He watched drew a curious Goliath showdown: Clutching coverage of the chaos on crowd as nothing but two shopping television, they including the exercised to bags, he stood his ground footage of the the beat of a before a column of oncoming drum. tanks on the adjacent Avenue protester’s standoff. Two Yet of Eternal Peace. days later, he several returned to people China and spent three months nearby said they had never there to be with his countrymen heard of the tank man or his at a difficult time. moment of fame. “This incident changed “I’ve never seen him,” my life,” said Xiao, who later one man said. “Was he worked as executive director of Chinese?” For the rest of the world, Human Rights in China. During 12 years in that job, he twice the image remains an icon of thought he had found the freedom. The protester has Tiananmen protester. shown up in a Wim Wenders Once, in 1993, an movie, and his image has been Australian lawyer called to say reproduced on posters and Tshirts. In 1998, Time magazine that a man claiming to be Wang proclaimed him one of the 20th Weilin was seeking political century’s top 20 revolutionaries, asylum there. Xiao telephoned the man and determined that he whose “moment of selfwas an impostor. transcendence [was seen] by Four years later, a group more people than ever laid eyes in Texas called to say that it had on Winston Churchill, Albert found the protester, who was Einstein and James Joyce seeking asylum in the United combined.” States. Again, Xiao talked to Some believe the man the immigrant, who became endured months, or years, of elusive about details of that day. political reeducation. Others Then he disappeared. say he was hunted down and The man-tank showdown executed. came after months of Human rights activists demonstrations in Tiananmen say that 50 to 100 people were Square by students decrying executed in the wake of the such issues as government Tiananmen Square crackdown corruption, lack of free speech some for crimes as simple as and high unemployment. burning a police motorcycle or, As tens of thousands of in one case, taking a photograph troops from the People’s of the tanks in the square. In Liberation Army converged on addition, 15,000 to 20,000 the square and surrounding people were detained. areas for cleanup after the first The activists say 99 still day of attacks, a slender man remain in prison for their seemed to appear out of actions during the protest.
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nowhere. As cameras rolled, he positioned himself in front of a column of 18 tanks. Not far from the spot where in 1949 Mao proclaimed China “a people’s republic,” the man gamely stood his ground. The lead vehicle stopped, spewing exhaust, then moved to the right and left to avoid the defenseless demonstrator. Each time, he stepped up to remain in its path. At some point, he shifted both shopping bags to one hand. Then he jumped onto the tank and appeared to say something to its driver. “I remember him screaming down the tank hatch at the driver,” said Jeff Widener, at the time an Associated Press photographer, who shot several images of the standoff from a sixth-floor balcony of the nearby Beijing Hotel. “I think the guy was majorly angry and wasn’t thinking straight. I was just waiting for him to get blown away.” Mickey Spiegel, China specialist at Human Rights Watch, who still hangs a poster of the face-off in her New York office, said, “Nobody even knows that much.” But Human Rights in China’s Hom believes that another symbol of defiance has been overlooked: the tank driver. “Both the man in front of the tank and the soldier inside are worthy of our attention,” she said. “Inside, you had a soldier who was obviously not following orders for not running the man down, someone who was probably later harshly disciplined. He obviously saw it as wrong to run over an unarmed man. Although the man who defied China’s military might be missing, his legacy remains. “The whole [Tiananmen Square] incident was a public relations disaster for Beijing, the effects of which continue to this day,” said Richard Baum, director of the Center for Chinese Studies at UCLA. “It has cost the Chinese government enormously, not just in terms of sanctions and abuse accusations abroad, along with U.S. congressional votes against renewing China’s mostfavored-nation status, but in the government’s reputation as being the Butchers of Beijing.” Activists say the world can thank a man on whose identity it can only speculate. “He was just an average guy who decided that he’s had enough,” said Widener, now a photographer for the Honolulu Advertiser.
Cold Turkey by Kurt Vonnegut Many years ago, I was so innocent I still considered it possible that we could become the humane and reasonable America so many members of my generation used to dream of. We dreamed of such an America during the Great Depression, when there were no jobs. And then we fought and often died for that dream during the Second World War, when there was no peace. But I know now that there is not a chance in hell of America’s becoming humane and reasonable. Because power corrupts us, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Human beings are chimpanzees who get crazy drunk on power. By saying that our leaders are power-drunk chimpanzees, am I in danger of wrecking the morale of our soldiers fighting and dying in the Middle East? Their morale, like so many bodies, is already shot to pieces. They are being treated, as I never was, like toys a rich kid got for Christmas. When you get to my age, if you get to my age, which is 81, and if you have reproduced, you will find yourself asking your own children, who are themselves middle-aged, what life is all about. I have seven kids, four of them adopted. Many of you reading this are probably the same age as my grandchildren. They, like you, are being royally shafted and lied to by our Baby Boomer corporations and government. I put my big question about life to my biological son Mark. Mark is a pediatrician, and author of a memoir, The Eden Express. It is about his crackup, straightjacket and padded cell stuff, from which he recovered sufficiently to graduate from Harvard Medical School. Dr. Vonnegut said this to his doddering old dad: “Father, we are here to help each other get through this thing, whatever it is.” So I pass that on to you. Write it down, and put it in your computer, so you can forget it. I have to say that’s a pretty good sound bite, almost as good as, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” A lot of people think Jesus said that, because it is so much the sort of thing Jesus liked to say. But it was actually said by Confucius, a Chinese philosopher, 500 years before there was that greatest and most humane of human beings, named Jesus Christ.
The Chinese also gave “Blessed are the peacemakers” us, via Marco Polo, pasta and in the Pentagon? Give me a the formula for gunpowder. break! The Chinese were so dumb they There is a tragic flaw in only used gunpowder for our precious Constitution, and I fireworks. And everybody was don’t know what can be done to so dumb back then that nobody fix it. This is it: Only nut cases in either hemisphere even knew want to be president. that there was another one. But, when you stop to But back to people, like think about it, only a nut case Confucius and Jesus and my son would want to be a human the doctor, Mark, who’ve said being, if he or she had a choice. how we could behave more Such treacherous, humanely, and maybe make the untrustworthy, lying and greedy world a less painful place. One animals we are! of my favorites is Eugene Debs, I was born a human from Terre being in 1922 Haute in my A.D. What Human beings are native state of does “A.D.” Indiana. Get a chimpanzees who get crazy signify? That load of this: commemorates drunk on power. By Eugene an inmate of Debs, who died saying that our leaders are this lunatic back in 1926, asylum we call power-drunk chimpanzees, Earth who was when I was only 4, ran 5 nailed to a am I in danger of wrecking times as the wooden cross Socialist Party by a bunch of the morale of our soldiers candidate for other inmates. fighting and dying in the president, With him still winning conscious, they Middle East? Their 900,000 votes, hammered morale, like so many 6 percent of spikes through the popular his wrists and bodies, is already shot to vote, in 1912, insteps, and pieces. They are being if you can into the wood. imagine such a treated, as I never was, Then they set ballot. He had the cross like toys a rich kid got for this to say upright, so he while dangled up Christmas. campaigning: there where As long even the as there is a lower class, I am in shortest person in the crowd it. As long as there is a could see him writhing this way criminal element, I am of it. As and that. long as there is a soul in prison, Can you imagine people I am not free.” doing such a thing to a person? Doesn’t anything No problem. That’s socialistic make you want to entertainment. Ask the devout throw up? Like great public Roman Catholic Mel Gibson, schools or health insurance for who, as an act of piety, has just all? made a fortune with a movie How about Jesus’ about how Jesus was tortured. Sermon on the Mount, the Never mind what Jesus said. Beatitudes? Blessed are the During the reign of King meek, for they shall inherit the Henry the Eighth, founder of Earth. Blessed are the merciful, the Church of England, he had a for they shall obtain mercy. counterfeiter boiled alive in Blessed are the peacemakers, public. Show biz again. for they shall be called the Mel Gibson’s next movie children of God. And so on. should be The Counterfeiter. Not exactly planks in a Box office records will again be broken. Republican platform. Not One of the few good exactly Donald Rumsfeld or things about modern times: If Dick Cheney stuff. you die horribly on television, For some reason, the most vocal Christians among us you will not have died in vain. You will have entertained us. never mention the Beatitudes. And what did the great But, often with tears in their British historian Edward eyes, they demand that the Ten Gibbon, 1737-1794 A.D., have Commandments be posted in public buildings. And of course to say about the human record so far? He said, “History is that’s Moses, not Jesus. I indeed little more than the haven’t heard one of them register of the crimes, follies demand that the Sermon on the and misfortunes of mankind.” Mount, the Beatitudes, be The same can be said posted anywhere. about this morning’s edition of “Blessed are the the New York Times. merciful” in a courtroom?
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The French-Algerian writer Albert Camus, who won a Nobel Prize for Literature in 1957, wrote, “There is but one truly serious philosophical problem, and that is suicide.” So there’s another barrel of laughs from literature. Camus died in an automobile accident. His dates? 19131960 A.D. Listen. All great literature is about what a bummer it is to be a human being: Moby Dick, Huckleberry Finn, The Red Badge of Courage, the Iliad and the Odyssey, Crime and Punishment, the Bible and The Charge of the Light Brigade. But I have to say this in defense of humankind: No matter in what era in history, including the Garden of Eden, everybody just got there. And, except for the Garden of Eden, there were already all these crazy games going on, which could make you act crazy, even if you weren’t crazy to begin with. Some of the games that were already going on when you got here were love and hate, liberalism and conservatism, automobiles and credit cards, golf and girls’ basketball. Even crazier than golf, though, is modern American politics, where, thanks to TV and for the convenience of TV, you can only be one of two kinds of human beings, either a liberal or a conservative. Actually, this same sort of thing happened to the people of England generations ago, and Sir William Gilbert, of the radical team of Gilbert and Sullivan, wrote these words for a song about it back then: I often think it’s comical how nature always does contrive that every boy and every gal that’s born into the world alive is either a little liberal or else a little Conservative. Which one are you in this country? It’s practically a law of life that you have to be one or the other? If you aren’t one or the other, you might as well be a doughnut. If some of you still haven’t decided, I’ll make it easy for you. If you want to take my guns away from me, and you’re all for murdering fetuses, and love it when homosexuals marry each other, and want to give them kitchen appliances at their showers, and you’re for the poor, you’re a liberal. If you are against those perversions and for the rich, you’re a conservative. What could be simpler?
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FRAC News
director of Army Emergency Relief, says families qualify for Blueprint to End Hunger benefits as soon as they enter service. Spiegel says states Unveiled on National Hunger Awareness Day (National Anti- nationwide have been asking Hunger Organizations, June, 3, the Department of Defense to explain how military families 2004) Thirteen organizations that comprise the National Anti- can access such programs as Hunger Organizations (NAHO) food stamps and the Women, Infants and Children nutrition unveiled a new “Blueprint to End Hunger in America.” The programs. “I think the stories of NAHO Blueprint recommends families being in need are pretty striking,” said Ellen Vollinger programmatic investments and improvements in the national of FRAC. “Now more than nutrition safety net to halve ever, we must make sure as a community that the families of hunger and food insecurity in the US by 2010 and to end both these troops are taken care of by 2015. It outlines strategies here on the home front,” said Mayor of San Jose, Ron to improve benefit adequacy and access in the Food Stamp, Gonzales. child nutrition, WIC and One in Four Workers Live at emergency feeding programs. “Our nation has the tools and Federal Poverty Level resources to end hunger. Our (“Working...and Poor,” Business Week Online, May 31, Blueprint offers a realistic plan for achieving that goal,” said 2004) Twenty-eight million NAHO Chairperson H. Eric working Americans, or one in four workers between the ages Schockman. of 18 to 64, make less than Hungry Children More Likely $9.04 an hour, putting them below the federal poverty level to be Sick and Hospitalized (“Kids who go hungry likely to for a family of four. The loss of land in poor health,” Boston white-collar jobs offshore has produced headlines; less Herald, June 1, 2004) Infants and toddlers who do not get publicized are the problems of enough to eat are more likely to the working poor, such as unpaid sick days and jobs with get sick and be hospitalized, according to a recent study no benefits. For those on the published in this month’s edge of poverty, one event such Journal of Nutrition. Children as a stalled car, can lead to up to age 3 with limited or being fired or financial ruin. A uncertain access to nutritious 2003 study by the Federal food are 90 percent more likely Reserve Bank of Boston found to be in only fair or poor health that in the 1990s, the chance a and 30 percent more likely to poor person would remain poor be hospitalized. John Cook, increased compared to the lead author of the study, said 1970s. “If current trends poor nutrition harms children persist, a greater and greater by weakening their immune share of wealth will keep going systems and ability to learn. into the hands of the few,” said Co-investigator for the study James Sinegal, CEO of Costco Carol Berkowitz said that the Wholesale Corp., who worries nation’s health care costs may that lack of mobility will be higher because so many destroy initiative among the eligible children do not actually working class. Families who go receive food stamps and then just beyond a poverty-level are more likely to become sick wage by earning $7 to $10 an enough to require hour, can become ineligible for hospitalization. vital assistance such as food http://news.bostonherald.com/ stamps, child care assistance, national/ and the earned-income tax view.bg?articleid=30098... credit. Says Ron Haskins of the Study available at: http:// Brookings Institution, “For www.nutrition.org/cgi/content/ them, Horatio Alger does not abstract/134/6/1432 apply.” Food Stamp Demand Surges Among Military Families (“Hungry U.S. families can’t be defended,” Oregonian, June 2, 2004) Demand for food stamps among the families of national guardsmen and reservists skyrocketed several hundred percent from 2002 to 2003. Col. Dennis Spiegel, deputy
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Revised Food Pyramid Will Recommend More Fish, Fiber, & Exercise (“Rebuilding the pyramid,” Cape Cod Times, May 28, 2004) The food pyramid, the federal government’s guide to healthy eating, is undergoing revision. Federal advisors will recommend Americans eat more
fish, fiber, and fewer refined grains such as white bread. The U.S. Department of Agriculture asked its Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee to change the pyramid’s focus from maintaining a healthy diet to losing weight. In addition to dietary changes, the committee recommended 30 to 60 minutes of vigorous exercise for adults most days. California: Bill Approves $7.75 Minimum Wage, Governor Likely to Veto (“$1 increase in state minimum wage gets Assembly OK Governor, against more regulatory burdens on California businesses, likely to veto bill,” San Francisco Chronicle, May 28, 2004) A bill in California’s Legislature would raise the state’s minimum wage by $1, from $6.75 to $7.75 in 2006. However, Governor Schwarzenegger would likely veto the bill if it came before him. California’s minimum wage is currently the lowest on the West Coast. In order to match the purchasing power of the state’s minimum wage in 1968, it would have to be $8.92 an hour today, according to labor officials. “In my [district] nobody can live on anything less than $15 an hour. That’s why many wage earners have two jobs,” said Assemblyman Manny Diaz (DSan Jose). New York: Food Stamp Use on the Rise (“Food stamp use on the rise,” The Journal News.com, May 27, 2004) In April, 17,322 residents of Rockland County received food stamps, an increase of 18.6 percent since December 1999. A county official said the last time demand was so high was in 1992. Recipients such as Yajaira Rodriguez calls the benefit “a blessing.” Carmen Loras, of the Community Action Partnership in Haverstraw, notes that two years ago three people a week visited CAP for food stamp information. Now 15 people a week come in. A majority are Spanish-speaking. Food stamps, however, only provide poor families with some support. They also rely on food pantries and soup kitchens, particularly at the end of the month, when food stamp benefits have been exhausted. Arizona: Number of Hungry Arizonans Growing (“Number of hungry Arizonans growing,” Arizona Republic, May 30,
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2004) Doris Campbell is among an estimated 630,000 Arizonans struggling to put food on their tables — “food insecure” under federal definitions. Campbell has been relying on the senior lunch program for 10 years to get a consistent, nutritious meal. Arizona’s rate of food insecurity in 2000 was 12.5 percent, compared to 10.8 percent nationally. Food insecure households include working poor families, senior adults, people with physical and mental disabilities, the unemployed, the homeless, and immigrants. Ginny Hildebrand, executive director of the Association of Arizona Food Banks, encounters people who have part-time jobs, seasonal work, or service-related work, all paying salaries too low to meet a family’s basic needs. New York: Rewards of a 90Hour Week: Poverty and Dirty Laundry (“Rewards of a 90-Hour Week: Poverty and Dirty Laundry,” New York Times, May 31, 2004) Laundromats in New York City employ thousands of “wash and fold” workers to do customers’ laundry. The majority of these workers are paid less, often much less, than the minimum wage of $5.15 an hour and speak of abusive, sweltering work conditions. Inriqueta G. works 70 hours a week and earns $350 in cash, $400 less a month than what she would earn if she were paid the minimum wage plus overtime. Many of the workers are immigrants. “Life is a lot more difficult here than I thought,” says Piedad G. “Sometimes I think I was crazy to come here. This is a country with a lot of opportunities, but in order to take advantage of those opportunities you have to suffer a lot.” To subscribe to the weekly FRAC News Digest go to: http://capwiz.com/frac/ mlm/ For questions, comments, and news tips, please contact: Helen Yuen Food Research and Action Center 1875 Connecticut Avenue, NW Suite 540 Washington, DC 20009 (202) 986-2200 x3019 Email: hyuen@frac.org
Bush Campaign Seeks Help From Thousands of Congregations by David D. Kirkpatrick, The New York Times The Bush campaign is seeking to enlist thousands of religious congregations around the country in distributing campaign information and registering voters, according to an e-mail message sent to many members of the clergy and others in Pennsylvania. Liberal groups charged that the effort invited violations of the separation of church and state and jeopardized the taxexempt status of churches that cooperated. Some socially conservative church leaders also said they would advise pastors against participating in such a partisan effort. But Steve Schmidt, a spokesman for the Bush administration, said “people of faith have as much right to participate in the political process as any other community” and that the e-mail message was about “building the most sophisticated grassroots presidential campaign in the country’s history.” In the message, Luke Bernstein, coalitions coordinator for the Bush campaign in Pennsylvania, wrote: “The Bush-Cheney ’04 national headquarters in Virginia has asked us to identify 1,600 `Friendly Congregations’ in Pennsylvania where voters friendly to President Bush might gather on a regular basis.” In each targeted “place of worship,” Mr. Bernstein continued, without mentioning a specific religion or denomination, “we’d like to identify a volunteer who can help distribute general information to other supporters.” He explained: “We plan to undertake activities such as distributing general information/updates or voter registration materials in a place accessible to the congregation.” The e-mail message was provided to The New York Times by a group critical of President Bush. The campaign’s effort is the latest indication of its heavy bet on churchgoers in its bid for re-election. Mr. Bush’s top political adviser, Karl Rove, and officials of Mr. Bush’s campaign have often said that people who attended church regularly voted for him disproportionately in the last election, and the campaign has made turning out that group a top priority this year. But
congregation is disseminating advisers to Mr. Bush also the information, however, the acknowledge privately that issue is more complicated. If appearing to court socially the congregation had a table conservative Christian voters where anyone could make too aggressively risks turning available any information off more moderate voters. whatsoever without any What was striking about institutional responsibility or the Pennsylvania e-mail oversight, then a member might message was its directness. be able to distribute campaign Both political parties rely on literature without violating tax church leaders - Africanlaws. But very few churches American pastors for the have such open forums, Mr. Democrats, for example, and Potter said. “The I.R.S. would white evangelical Protestants ask, did the church encourage for the Republicans - to urge this? Did the congregants church permit to go the polls. And in The campaign’s effort is this but not other the 1990’s, the latest indication of literature? the Christian Did the Coalition its heavy bet on church in any developed a way support reputation as churchgoers in its bid this?” a political for re-election. Mr. Mr. powerhouse Bernstein, the by Bush’s top political e-mail distributing message’s voters guides adviser, Karl Rove, and author, in churches officials of Mr. Bush’s declined to that alerted comment. conservative campaign have often Mr. Schmidt, believers to said that people who the campaign candidates’ spokesman, position on attended church said the esocial issues mail message like abortion regularly voted for him only sought and school disproportionately in the individual prayer. But volunteers the Christian last election, and the from among Coalition was the “friendly organized as campaign has made congregations,” a nonpartisan, turning out that group a not the endorsements issuetop priority this year of the any oriented religious lobbying and organizations or groups. voter-education organization, “The e-mail is targeted and in 1999 it ran afoul of to individuals, asking federal tax laws for too much individuals to become involved Republican partisanship. in the campaign and to share The Bush campaign, in information about the campaign contrast, appeared to be with other people in their faith reaching out directly to community,” Mr. Schmidt said. churches and church members, “Yesterday, a liberal judge from seeking to distribute campaign San Francisco overturned a information as well as ostensibly nonpartisan material, partial-birth abortion ban which banned that abhorrent like issue guides and procedure. That is an example registration forms. of an issue that people of faith Trevor Potter, a from across the United States Washington lawyer and former care about.” chairman of the Federal He said that the Election Commission, said the Pennsylvania e-mail message campaign’s solicitation raised was part of a larger national delicate legal issues for effort. The number of congregations. “If the church is doing it, congregations mentioned 1,600 in just one state it is a legal problem the suggests an operation on a vast church,” Mr. Potter said. “In scale. the past, the I.R.S. has sought But even some officials to revoke and has succeeded in of some conservative religious revoking the tax-exempt status groups said they were troubled of churches for political by the notion that a parishioner activity.” might distribute campaign If a member of the
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information within a church or at a church service. “If I were a pastor, I would not be comfortable doing that,” said Richard Land, president of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention. “I would say to my church members, we are going to talk about the issues and we are going to take information from the platforms of the two parties about where they stand on the issues. I would tell them to vote and to vote their conscience, and the Lord alone is the Lord of the conscience.” The Rev. Barry Lynn, executive director of the liberal Americans United for Separation of Church and State, argued that any form of distributing campaign literature through a church would compromise its tax-exempt status. He called the effort “an absolutely breathtakingly large undertaking,” saying, “I never thought anyone could so attempt to meld a political party with a network of religious organizations.” In a statement, Rev. Dr. C. Welton Gaddy, president of the Interfaith Alliance, a liberal group, called the effort “an astonishing abuse of religion” and “the rawest form of manipulation of religion for partisan gain.” He urged the president to repudiate the effort. In a statement, Mara Vanderslice, director of religious outreach for the Kerry campaign, said the effort “shows nothing but disrespect for the religious community.” Ms. Vanderslice continued: “Although the Kerry campaign actively welcomes the participation of religious voices in our campaign, we will never court religious voters in a way that would jeopardize the sanctity of their very houses of worship.” How many congregations or worshippers will choose to cooperate remains to be seen. In an interview, the Rev. Ronald Fowlkes, pastor of the Victoria Baptist Church in Springfield, Pa., said he had not seen the email message but did not think much of the idea. “We encourage people to get out and vote,” Mr. Fowlkes said, but as far as distributing information through church, “If it were focused on one party or person, that would be too
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357-4602
Formed in 1984, The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a membership organization. Our member groups serve the homeless through emergency shelter, transitional living facilities, permanent housing, medical services, social services, soup kitchens, and mental health/addiction services. The Coalition also consists of individual citizens who want to take an active role in ensuring that Cincinnati is an inclusive community, meeting the needs of all of its citizens. Join the fight to end homelessness; contact the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless at (513) 421-7803, 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202
SHELTER: Both Anthony House (Youth)
SHELTER: Men City Gospel Mission 241-5525 Garden St. House 241-0490 Joseph House (Veterans) 241-2965 St. Francis/St.Joseph House 381-4941 Mt. Airy Center 661-4620 Volunteers of Amer. 381-1954
SHELTERS: Women and Children YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter 872-9259 (Toll Free) 1-888-872-9259 Bethany House 557-2873 Salvation Army 762-5660 Welcome Hse. 859-431-8717 Women’s Crisis Center 859-491-3335
If you need help or would like to help please call one of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless members listed below.
OTHER SERVICES: AIDS Volunteers of Cincinnati 421-2437 Appalachian Identity Center 621-5991 Beech Acres 231-6630 Center for Independent Living Options 241-2600 Churches Active in Northside 591-2246 Cincinnati Health Network 961-0600 Community Action Agency 569-1840 Contact Center 381-4242 Emanuel Center 241-2563
TREATMENT: Both N.A. Hopeline 820-2947 A.A. Hotline 351-0422 C.C.A.T. 381-6672 Talbert House 684-7956 Transitions, Inc 859-491-4435 VA Domiciliary 859-559-5011 DIC Live-In Program 721-0643
TREATMENT: Men Charlie’s 3/4 House 784-1853 Prospect House 921-1613 Starting Over 961-2256
TREATMENT: Women First Step Home 961-4663 Full Circle Program 721-0643
HOUSING: CMHA 721-4580 Excel Development 632-7149 Miami Purchase 241-0504 OTR Housing Net. 369-0004 ReSTOC 381-1171 Tender Mercies 721-8666 Tom Geiger House 961-4555 Dana Transitional Bridge Services, Inc 751-9797
Caracole (AIDS) 761-1480 Friars Club 381-5432 Drop Inn Center 721-0643 Haven House 863-8866 Interfaith Hospitality 471-1100 Lighthouse Youth Center (Teens) 961-4080 St. John’s Housing 651-6446
Need Help or Want to Help?
MIDDLETOWN/HAMILTON (Butler County) St. Raphaels (Food Bank/Soup Kitchen) 863-3184 Salvation Army 863-1445 Serenity House Day Center 422-8555 Open Door Pantry 868-3276 New Life Baptist Mission (Soup Kitchen) 896-9800 Hope House (Homeless Families/Singles) 423-4673
Freestore/ Foodbank 241-1064 Fransiscan Haircuts 651-6468 Goodwill Industries 771-4800 Coalition for the Homeless 421-7803 Hamilton Co. Mental Health Board 946-8600 Mental Health Access Point 558-8888 Hamilton Co. TB Control 632-7186 Health Rsrc. Center 357-4602 Homeless Mobile Health Van 352-2902 House of Refuge Mission 221-5491 Legal Aid Society 241-9400 Madisonville Ed. & Assis. Center 271-5501 Mary Magdalen House 721-4811 McMicken Dental Clinic 352-6363 Our Daily Bread 621-6364 Peaslee Neighborhood Center 621-5514 Project Connect Homeless Kids 357-5720 St. Vincent De Paul 562-8841 The Emergency Food Center 471-4357 Travelers Aid 721-7660 United Way 721-7900 VA Homeless 859-572-6226 Women Helping Women 872-9259
July, 2004
Drop Inn Center Fights for its Home
Cover Story
Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless
Homess Vets Continue to Pay - Page 11
The Price of Freedom
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