Streetvibes February 2005 Edition

February, 2005

STREETVIBES Martin Luther King Jr. Remembered and Honored in Cincinnati story and photos by Jimmy Heath

Temperatures were well below freezing, but several hundred people who attended the 30th annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day commemorative event downtown Monday, January 17th, were unfazed by the cold weather.

The tri-state’s observance of the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday included many events - a public gathering at Fountain Square, speeches and a march to Music Hall for music and remembrance. The Music Hall portion of the event was emceed by local television personality and former candidate for mayor, Courtis Fuller. The Martin Luther King, Jr. Chorale, led by Catherine Roma performed traditional spirituals and gospel music.

Around the country events were held to celebrate and remember the legacy of Martin Luther King.

San Francisco’s Bill Graham Civic Auditorium was packed with adults and children honoring the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. On the 19th anniversary of the remembrance hundreds made their way to the auditorium at the Civic Center to hear from American Idol finalist Latoya London, the Glide Ensemble, and U.S. Rep. Barbara Lee. Martin Luther King Jr. was honored for the 10th year by community leaders in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Guest speakers included Mayor Heartwell, Police Chief Harry Dolan, and Rev. David May, who spoke about unity and the racial divide in our community. Rev. May says Grand Rapids has made progress, but still has a long way to go before the dream is realized. “All of the statistical information squarely puts us as one of the most segregated divided communities in the country and so that speaks volumes in terms of where we need to go. But it also doesn’t mean that nothing has been done, there are gains that have been made in our city, but we just have leaps and bounds of progress that we need to make.”

President Bush spent part of the Martin Luther King holiday praising the secretary of state. Colin Powell and his wife Alma were given the John Thompson Legacy of a Dream Award during a “Let Freedom Ring” celebration at Georgetown University in Washington, DC. Bush called the Powells “among the most

admired people in our country.” As secretary of State, Bush said Colin Powell “became one of the most effective and admired diplomats in America’s history.’’ The president noted that besides rising to the top in the military, Powell has been an official in the administration of six presidents. Bush also praised Martin Luther King Junior. He said King made this country a different and better place when he could have had an easy life in a respected pulpit.

Many people know first hand that the work that eventually took King’s life still goes on today. But the challenges that human rights workers face now are bigger than ever.

March from Fountain Square to Music Hall

MLK

Cont. on page 8

Hundreds gather in the cold on Fountain Square to honor MLK

Marching on 12th Street to Music Hall in Over-the-Rhine

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.

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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 Rachel Lawson - Civil Rights VISTA Kate McManus - Civil Rights VISTA Janice Faulkner - Receptionist Mary Gaffney - Receptionist Streetvibes Jimmy Heath, Editor Photographers Jimmy Heath, Berta Lambert Cover

by Jimmy Heath Memorial to Martin Luther King, Jr. Streetvibes accepts letters, poems, stories, essays, original graphics, and photos. We will give preference to those who are homeless or vendors.

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Page 2

Politics Drive Taser Policy

at juvenile suspects 52 times last year, only three of the juveniles had

by Jimmy Heath suggested that some officers were too weapons. Most of the children described in these episodes were In December of 2003, a quick to resort to the weapons. divided City Council voted in favor of In Illinois, a pregnant woman involved in relatively minor incidents for which other measures could have equipping every police officer with a lost her baby after being Tased. In been taken to de-escalate the Taster despite the feelings of many Portland, an out-of-court settlement situation. residents had that the stun-gun would for excessive force was reached in The vote has been be misused. Mayor Charlie Luken favor of a blind and hard-of-hearing deadlocked (4 against the proposal, pushed for the spending of $1 million woman after she was injured in a 4 in favor) because of the slow to equip each Cincinnati police officer Taser incident. In an Arizona with a Taser stun gun. incident, an unarmed suspect in a tree appointment of Chris Monzel to City Council, a seat vacated by Pat More than 5,000 US law was Tased. The fall resulted in a DeWine, who has gone on to serve enforcement agencies are currently head injury and a lawsuit against the as a county commissioner. Chris using Tasers; dart-firing electro-shock city of Tucson. weapons designed to cause instant A court-appointed monitor of Monzel is reportedly against the proposal so he, in theory, supports incapacitation by delivering a 50,000 the Cincinnati police department has the police use of Tasers against volt shock. Tasers are hand-held told a federal judge that the police aggressive 7 year-old children. electronic stun guns which fire two don’t always follow proper What is in the minds of barbed darts up to a distance of 20 procedures when using Tasers. feet, which remain attached to the gun Included in the improper uses people who would allow police to Tase second-graders? It may be an by wires. The fish-hook like darts are shocking suspects more than issue of political greed. The support are designed to once or trying to shoot of the police union is important in this penetrate up to two suspects with more than city if you want to get anywhere in inches of the target’s one stun gun. clothing or skin and During their first year Cincinnati politics.

Restricting or criticizing the deliver a high-voltage, in use in Cincinnati in police in Cincinnati suggests that you low amperage 2004, Tasers were are anti-cop, and that is political electro-shock along deployed 629 times by suicide. The police culture is insulated copper Cincinnati police. The Jimmy Heath determined to keep their power on wires. weapons immobilized the streets. And rest assured, the In some suspects in 527 of those police union has a long memory come police departments, Tasers have incidents. Tasers have led to a 37 election time. become the most prevalent force percent drop in injuries to suspects, I don’t see why it has to be a tool. They have been used against and an 88 percent drop in injuries to battle in the first place. The police unruly schoolchildren, unarmed officers. But, use of force incidents are preoccupied with “subduing mentally disturbed or intoxicated by police has reportedly increased. suspects” and they hold on to this individuals, suspects fleeing minor Critics say the police are using the power dearly. Being a cop in any city crime scenes and people who argue Tasers in situations where no force with police or fail to comply was required in the first place, simply is a dangerous and scary business, but City Council has a responsibility immediately with a command. to overcome resistance to arrest.

Several police agencies Now Cincinnati City Council to its citizens, especially kids.

Police like Taser guns across the country have announced is in the midst of a debate on the that they will restrict their use of police use of Tasers against children. because they are easy to carry, usable at a distance and capable of Tasers following reviews which The proposal, introduced by immobilizing a target without, Councilmember Christopher allegedly, causing permanent injury.

Smitherman, would ban the use of The statistics show that police police stun guns against suspects shooting of unarmed subjects has younger than 11. The current limit is fallen. But using Tasers against age 7. So far, the youngest child unarmed children is repugnant.

Tased by Cincinnati police was 12 God forbid, a 7 year-old is years old.

Tased and faces irreparable brain The first and second City Council votes on the issue resulted in damage or dies as a result of being zapped with 50,000 volts. If this a stalemate last month between the happens City Council members will eight sitting council members.

Cincinnati Police Officers are have more to worry about than the New data reveals that armed with a Taser, similar to although Cincinnati police fired Tasers police union come election time. this one

Violence can only be concealed by a lie, and the lie can only be maintained by violence. Any man who has once proclaimed violence as his method is inevitably forced to take the lie as his principle.

Alexander Solzhenitsyn Writing saved me from the sin and inconvenience of violence.

Alice Walker Democracy don’t rule the world, you better get that in your head; this world is ruled by violence, but I guess that’s better left unsaid.

Bob Dylan

Streetvibes

Homeless News Digest

Those who won’t go to a shelter are given a warm drink, extra blankets or sleeping bags.

In Paterson, N.J authorities say frigid temperatures were likely to blame for the death of a homeless man whose body was found behind a school building last month.

The 42-year-old man was discovered by a man who lived with him behind the school district’s Office of Special Programs building.

Police Lt. Anthony Traina said temperatures were well below freezing during the period in which the man died.

The homeless man’s name was not released because his family hadn’t been notified, Traina said. The man had a daughter who lives in Poland, where he was born, but investigators could not immediately determine if he had any local relatives.

An autopsy was to be conducted, but Traina said the cold was likely responsible. There were no signs of violence or trauma to the man’s body.

ee tvib es

Streetvibes

Last month a homeless man was flown to Delray Medical Center after he was found lying in a Burger King parking lot in suburban West Palm Beach, Florida with serious stab wounds.

Burger King employees called the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office about 5 a.m. after finding him lying in the back of the lot at 1800 S. Military Trail.

When authorities arrived, the man, identified as William Jarrett, denied he had been in a fight and appeared unaware he had been stabbed, sheriff’s spokesman Paul Miller said. Jarrett, described as being in his 40s, appeared intoxicated at the time.

His injuries are not considered life threatening, Miller said.

Str

The Washington D.C. government is getting set to close another homeless shelter.

The Washington Post Compiled by Jimmy Heath services, the plan will be heavy on reported that the Franklin School in providing permanent housing and Northwest will soon be sold to a The political pendulum services, rather than simply giving swung in favor of the homeless developer and the homeless people emergency shelter. living in the building will be moved. last month after the San Diego The philosophy today moves City Council gave a local A spokesman for the mayor nonprofit the go-ahead to propose away from the model of the past that acknowledged that closing the shelter just put people in homeless shelters, a second shelter in town. will be a “contentious issue.” Chris Bender said there will be sufficient The move ended a 50-minute Siedhoff said. “It was merely warehousing people without providing debate for which 31 people showed beds in other shelters to make up for any services that might enable people the closing. up in support of North County Solutions for Change, an agency that to escape the cycle of homelessness,” The city has taken a lot of heat from homeless advocates for opened a facility for homeless families Siedhoff said.

“It enabled people to in November and wanted to add a selling the building that housed the maintain a certain lifestyle of Randall Shelter to the Corcoran location in December. homelessness that was not beneficial Councilman Steve Gronke Gallery of Art late last year. to those individuals or the Bender said the city should said he was proud of Vista’s community,” Siedhoff said. “We’re involvement in helping the homeless, decide within the next few weeks optimistic that our plan will be able to how the Franklin School will be but that the city had done enough. accomplish what it sets out to do, He cited a staff report showing Vista redeveloped. He calls it an with some exceptions.” “extraordinary” piece of real estate had allocated $760,000 to various outreach programs since 2002 and that is doing nothing more than In the Los Angeles area, a “collecting dust.” helped fund the central Vista facility of homeless man was killed when the Solutions for Change. hillside where his tent was pitched In Homewood Illinois, no Gronke also accused Solutions for Change president Chris gave way. The landslide came as the headstone rises over Reta West endured the fifth straight day of Reingruber’s freshly covered Megison of building an “empire” of rain and snow, part of a storm homeless shelters that would attract grave at the Homewood expected to continue through Memorial Gardens cemetery in the wrong homeless crowds.

Wednesday and just the latest in a “This is just one of the many suburban Chicago. series that has buffeted the region Reingruber is among the things that will happen as you since before New Year’s Day. continue to build your empire,” seven-thousand homeless and indigent buried in common graves at Gronke said.

In Lansing, Michigan the Megison said the needs of the the cemetery. The graves are set homeless still exist, and that adding a recent chilly weather is creating a back from the adorned family plots facility is part of the agency’s strategic deadly situation for those with no with their finely polished headstones home to go to. One homeless man that read “Our Beloved” and “Rest in plan. He also accused Gronke of has already died from hypothermia in Peace.” never visiting one of the agency’s Detroit. In the winter, many homeless The 45-year-old woman died shelters, which Gronke flatly denied. men in Lansing turn to the Lansing in August and was kept in Cook County’s morgue for five months The Los Angeles Board of City Rescue mission for shelter.

Supervisors approved spending Though the 24 beds at the before she was buried along with 22 shelter are full all year long, mission other people whose bodies no $1.5 million last month to help as many as 2,000 homeless families Executive Director Mark Criss says relatives ever claimed. They are the latest reminders of what cemetery on welfare find temporary shelter. in the winter the beds alone are not The money will be used to enough, but instead of turning people owner Tom Flynn calls the “forgotten away, they put mats down on the people.” provide hotel vouchers that families can collect from the Los Angeles floor.

Homeless advocates say “We’re never too full, we more could be done to connect these Homeless Services Authority through June, 2005. have room, find room anywhere to forgotten dead with relatives or lay people so they’re not sleeping friends so they don’t have to lie In addition, the board allocated $60,000 to identify other outside.” unclaimed for months and be given While the beds and mats are anonymous mass burials at the homeless families and children who do not get the aid they qualify for. normally enough to accommodate the cemetery. number of people through most of the If you can imagine winter, Criss says when the Australian police believe a temperatures drop below zero even homeless man was beaten to Downtown St Louis without any homeless, you can imagine more come in. death in an inner-city Brisbane park as 40 other homeless people success for a regional plan to end drank and played touch football chronic homelessness within 10 In Ottawa, Canada, the Salvation Army outreach van is nearby. years.

Officers are seeking to The soon-to-be released plan making the rounds helping the city’s homeless during the frigid interview every member of the group will detail steps to be taken to see after the 54-year-old was found that there will be few hardcore weather People living on the streets unconscious in a dimly lit area of a homeless people in the city and county by the year 2015. are considered more vulnerable, often park at Kuripla Point, West End. suffering from frostbite or Ambulance crews tried to revive the According to William Siedhoff, city director of human hypothermia during these winter days. man but he died at the scene.

A large group of homeless people had been playing touch football and drinking in the park at the time, regional crime coordinator acting Detective Inspector Geoff Sheldon today said.

“There were a large number of people present at the time and we’re trying to locate as many witnesses as we can to find out exactly what did occur last night,” Inspector Sheldon said.

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Hope that you might have baked it or bought or even kneaded it yourself. For that look on his face, for your meeting his eyes across a piece of bread, you might be willing to lose a lot, or suffer a lot, or die a little, even. - Daniel Berrigan, SJ

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Train Hopping Squeegee Punks

by Rodney Graham I t was raining that day, so they had taken shelter under a bridge.

The beer was flowing freely and there was carnival atmosphere there. It was like a family reunion, as young men and women who had not met in months or years shared adventure stories. They seemed to have a special family type bond. Woody Guthrie could be heard wailing away from someone’s ghetto blaster. Later on, as everyone got more sauced, a few of the boys began singing King of the Road. None of them knew all the words to it though. Not much opportunity to interview there, but it was entertaining nonetheless.

The squeegee punks were different than the ones of the early ’90s. By the way, it is not meant derogatorily to call them ‘punks’ because the ‘punk movement’ is seen as a noble thing. The young men and women I met were mostly from Ontario and mostly from Toronto and environs. These young men and women, compared to the ones of 1990 were crusty, rough, and cynical.

seasoned beggars and had hawk eyes. In fact Mackie and Dustin had They were also older. Growing up themselves a quite a good dinner — on the street as virtually all of these while at the same time generously people interviewed did, they were offering me all kinds of info about wizened and hardened around the their very interesting lives. edges, but they still had the everI showed them the pictures I charming air of the squeegee punks of had taken of the big group under the the early ’90s, and the hoboes of the bridge the previous rainy night. They ’20s: mischievous, daring, and fun enjoyed them and looked at them as loving. cherished relatives would be looked One might ask — what do at in pictures. they offer society? Well, they offer us “Can I keep this one?” Dustin a lot actually: the hobo tradition is a asked. I told him to keep them all wealthy one, they are a national since I made two sets of them. treasure just as the fun lovable and “Wow, the rest of them will wandering hobo was. They are get a kick out of them when we meet survivors and don’t burden us much up again some day,” he said. They really, they survive by panhandling, showed me some pictures they had squeegeeing, and begging in different taken on trains. There was a picture ways. of an old man in one of them.

As I sat on Osborne St. in “Who is this old man?” I Winnipeg talking to Dustin and asked. I thought he might be a Mackie the next day, they would relative. every so often jump up and deftly “He is a man who saw us sidle up to passersby and ask them sitting on the sidewalk in Melfort politely if they could have their Saskatchewan earlier this summer. It leftovers. People were coming out of was on our way from Vancouver to everywhere with little bags.

Halifax,” Mackie answered. It was Personally, I never would have funny; he said, ‘What are you two, noticed the bags but these two were some kind of new age hoboes?’ He

was so interested because he had known hoboes 60 years ago and thought they were cool,” she added, “He invited us home and he had insisted we eat all the hot dogs we could because he had a hot dog concession in town.” She looked sad for just a moment.

“He’s dying of cancer,” she whispered. Her eyes fixed on his picture. “He won’t live much longer.”

“Yeah,” Dustin said, “we have to stop off and see him on our way through.”

“Yeah, we really should, Dustin,” Mackie replied. ‘…One evening as the sun went down and the jungle fires were burning, Down the track came a hobo hiking, and he said “Boys, I’m not turning.”

“I’m heading for a land that’s far away beside the crystal fountains;” “So come with me, we’ll go and see …the Big Rock Candy Mountains..’

Reprinted from Street Sheet, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Summer 2004.

Life Learning: Speak of the Devil

by Cindy Carlson Life is odd! Why do things happen how they do and when they do? I am sure it is a question that many people have asked themselves.

I had cause to stop and ask it again, just yesterday.

I was sitting in a one of my Graduate Studies classes discussing a big adventure; it was a homework assignment about processing life learning. I chose to talk about the time I went into the air force. I mentioned that it was after a really abusive marriage. That all happened in 1977 a very long time ago, long before domestic violence programs and battered woman’s shelters even existed. I thought that it was all in the past and would stay in the past. I have

processed it throughout my life: counseling, a thousand self-help books, journals and the personal transformations of life. Life moved on, another marriage (and a divorce) and now two grown children later, my life is pretty cool.

I had left class early so that I could travel to Concord where there is currently no outreach worker available to the city. I had arranged for Joe, who has been with the Under The Bridge project about four years to meet me at school to go to Concord. I know Joe well, even knew him before he was homeless.

The night before, I went down to Joe’s place, a sofa under a bridge and invited him up to my sofa. Joe

Michael Moore’s Pre-Election UC Speech Challenged The University of Cincinnati says there was nothing improper about paying filmmaker Michael Moore his fee of nearly $8,000 for his Bush-bashing speech on campus just before the November election.

The Federal Elections Commission had inquired about it.

The school said it told the FEC that no election laws were broken because Moore was not officially connected to the Kerry campaign.

University spokesman Greg Hand says a coalition of seven campus groups ranging from the student NAACP chapter to the Arts and Culture Club paid Moore from activity fees collected when students register.

Hand stated that no tax money was used.

The speaking engagement at UC was very popular and well attended. Moore answered questions from the audience and inreacted with the students, encouraging them to use thier power to vote.

Moore’s film “Fahrenheit 911” harshly criticizes the Bush administration’s handling of the war in Iraq.

And Moore was active against Bush, visiting 66 cities last year in a Slacker Uprising Tour where he attempted to muster voters against the president.

doesn’t go to shelters or into unfamiliar closed in surroundings.

On the way to Concord, we talked about my class and another homework assignment. The idea of who would get a degree from HKU or the University of Hard Knocks?

What would be the criteria for such a degree? And how would one go about figuring this all out. It was an interesting and stimulating conversation.

We arrived at the Concord’s Friendly Kitchen and Joe went off to get something to eat. I saw two guys, one named Jeff, that I knew lived in places not fit for human habitation.

One was staying in an unheated cellar and the other in a tent.

I went to talk to the guys. I told them about the directive from Lance DePlant who is the chief at the office of Homeless and Housing for the State. Lance said there were additional funds added to ensure that no one freezes to death and we were to house everyone in a heated environment. I asked the guys if I could help house them for the next couple of days. There was a bit of conversation, “Nah, I am all set,” one said.

“Don’t you want to go inside and warm up, maybe get a hot shower?” I asked.

“I ain’t going to no shelter!”

LIFE cont. on page 8

Know Your Rights Brochure Available!

The Know Your Rights Brochure is now available at the Coalition’s office. The brochure is a legal guide for Cincinnati’s homeless and covers a person’s basic rights when interacting with the police, as well as some local laws that might be of interest to the homeless population. If you are a homeless person or if you work with homeless people and would like to obtain free copies of the brochure for yourself or your agency, please call 4217803, or stop by the Coalition office and pick one up.

Streetvibes

Page 5

Another New Year

Is There A Difference?

by Sean Anthony Cononie It happens from time to time.

Disaster after disaster. And when you see it on TV, some respond in the most saddened way and some just make a comment like, “This is so bad, how can that happen, this is a shame,” while others do not even say a word.

Do we not even say a word because we don’t care or do we not say a word because we want to block it out? Years ago, I would have said people just don’t care but today I find myself saying and thinking that people just want to block it out.

I do consider myself a compassionate person but I fall short in other areas of my life. When a disaster strikes I try to be the level headed person always thinking ahead and trying not to worry about the death but think about how many we can save.

Years ago when 911 struck

by Rachel Lawson invest financially in this community? us all, my assistant Mary Lingo, who While working at the Greater Why is it so known that drug dealers died just a few years ago, sat on the Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless, profit on Vine Street and it appears couch of her office/bedroom and had so far I have met a variety of as if no measures are done to stop tears in her eyes. All she kept on wonderful people, but I enjoyed the this? most my visits to the Drop Inn Center So I found myself in the same saying was, “those poor people.” I think I fell in love with her mind, soul (DIC) and the opportunity to talk to situation as the very homeless and spirit when I saw how upset she Tom-Lee and Bobby, two of the individuals who I attempt to offer was. This was a woman with more most passionate soldiers I have met in hope too. Until I visited Tom-Lee the war for equality and Bobby. Both of these compassion than any person I have known. To see her sit there and and justice. Tom-Lee men have worked at the and Bobby work at Drop Inn Center for more weep for total strangers proved she had so much love in her heart. the front of the Drop than 20 years and as a But for me, that day I Inn Center, doing result have seen remained strong and was planning in everything from everything. Two strong my head what I would do if working the office, souls that have a lot to something like this ever came our security, and basically Rachel Lawson offer the Drop Inn, way. I thought what happens if we in making sure things run personality wise they smoothly. One might assume I enjoy couldn’t be more opposite. There is Broward got attacked are we at the shelter prepared to assist the listening to the wisdom that they have Tom-Lee, who marches around the community and our own clients. Are to offer, but it’s not just their words Drop Inn Center as the sergeant, we the shelter ready for a local that move me but rather the passion gentle yet stern; he works to “arm” disaster? behind them. I recently found myself the clients of the Drop Inn Center I did not want to panic the feeling detached from “reality” with the understanding that they are staff so I started, without anybody in because of the repetitive hopeless capable of anything. Then there is the office really wondering what I attitude that is vocalized from most of Bobby, a quiet and reserved was doing, checking to see if we the homeless individuals that I come individual, who makes you feel that were really prepared. I called my in contact with. Unfortunately, they when he speaks you should listen or mom and dad and told them to have every right to feel hopeless. The chances are you might not have the remain inside for a few days and feeling that nothing can be done to opportunity again. After having a change the lack of jobs and short conversation with Tom-Lee and watch the TV for better instructions.

As some of you may economical housing simply does not Bobby, I learned that you can’t be in and cannot put a smile on anyone’s a battle for a short while and quit, you remember from reading my past th stories in The Homeless Voice, the face. I even begin to think of 12 have to stand strong until the war is 911 incident did not hit me until I was Street as “Doom Street” because of over. As well, you can’t loose hope there just a few days after the attacks all the doomed futures I see when I when people literally expect you to with our disaster crew. Our crew walk past them. Never in my life inspire and encourage you to do the was made up of our Homeless have I encountered individuals so best that you can. In turn I thank people who wanted to help. These comfortable with offering drugs to them for being soldiers in a war that are the same Homeless people who any and everyone who walks down has gone on from the beginning of helped the west coast of Florida this the street. However, the drug dealers time, when everything and everyone year when we got three hurricanes. are not what keep the community at some point has struggled to be These same former clients also are down, in my opinion. It is the treated and viewed as equal. The starting EMT school to volunteer with struggle to remain hopeless. I two individuals who sit at the front our sister agency, Helping People in entered a corner store to inquire desk of the Drop Inn Center, Tomabout the ATM machine and Lee and Bobby, who have fought the America Disaster Agency. The ground zero did not bother me as everyone laughed at the possibility battle and continue to do so with much as the people putting up the that anyone would put an ATM spirit, honor, and most important of th pictures of their lost ones… Have machine on 12 and Vine. Why is it all hope. you seen this person? Have you seen funny that anyone would be willing to would not be able to make it. You

by Miss Mary Gaffney really have to be around them to To my fellow readers and understand the situation they are in. purchasers of Streetvibes; as we Without the help life would be bleak. enter into the second month of the new year of 2005, the vendors and I One day, any one of us could find ourselves in the same situation. wish to thank you for your support I was once asked why I over the past years. Without you, the spoke so much of my vendors would not be homeless friends. able to go on. Your Even in their situation purchase is an they always speak to important part of their me with concern. lives.

They worry about me Also, hats off during the bad to the Free Store, the weather. They greet soup kitchens, the me every day when I churches, shelters and come to work. If Over-the-Rhine and Miss Mary Gaffney I’m absent they will other neighborhoods; call me.

Avondale, Walnut hills and many As I always say, God loves other areas. Without your concern and support for the less fortunate, the us all; we are his children here in the garden of life. Until next time. homeless and low-income families

The Morning Battle

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Streetvibes

my dad? Have you seen my son?

Pictures everywhere! And moms falling asleep on the ground holding a picture of their lost child hoping for signs of survivors!

This was the worst time I have ever had when dealing with disasters. Years of working as a volunteer for the American Red Cross Disaster Action Team going to many disasters, I really never felt such an impact until I saw the pictures everywhere in New York. To see so many people waiting to find out if their loved ones were alive or dead is so heart wrenching it can make a big, burley, husky, some say fat guy cry.

(This is me) I never thought I would see those pictures again, but I did like many other people who saw the news of the Tsunami.

This disaster in Asia was not even at my finger tips for two days. I knew something happened but truthfully I was a little selfish because my body told me I was getting meningitis again and I was going from one hospital to another because not that many doctors really know a lot about meningitis. As you may remember I was in critical care for days in a coma from Meningitis last Christmas.

I was paying attention to myself. Then a day or two later I saw the death toll it was in the 20,000’s. I sat in front of the TV and just stood there and I did not want to face it because I knew we would not be able to help this time and I did not want to see the disaster at all.

It is just me. I knew we could not send anybody over there because of me being out sick. I figured if we went and my meningitis was exposed to so many infections and got sick there, I would simply die within 24 hours because there were no advanced medical services there that are required when dealing with such an illness.

The next day numbers kept on going up and I was even sicker. I tried to avoid the TV as much as possible because I felt guilty we were not going to help, but soon got lured back to it. They were calling for agencies that had experience and resources dealing with disasters of this magnitude. We then called a meeting to see if we would send volunteers. Considering most of our staff are disaster prepared, and have worked many disasters and all are First Responders , I thought we could do something but soon was reminded by the smart ones in the office, ‘The Gals,’ “Sean, you’re out sick and not working, now let it alone.”

So we thought of other ways of helping. Sending money was an option. So we did, we donated

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money to Map International to buy medicine. We knew they were a good agency because they supplied the meds when our international agency The People’s United Nations provided medical services to the children of Haiti. Praying was already done and was happening by some of us for a few seconds throughout the day. As the days grew and numbers increased I started to put myself back into the planner of stopping the damage, stopping the death and I got lost in a world of my own thinking of what I could do if we were there or if I was in charge.

Some call it day dreaming, some call it the “hoping to do more” syndrome, and even some of my friends call it “you are nuts, Sean” syndrome. Well in this disaster the “what can you do” is probably the most accurate, for we all wanted to do something but how many of us really could.

Sometimes we all must block it out because we know we should be doing something but don’t know how or do not know where to begin..

After all, where do you exactly start?

They have lost everything; it will take years and I mean years for the after effects to be gone.

There will be counseling, dysfunctional families, orphans, drug addictions and many more social problems. Reports already are suggesting with so many orphans children may be sold into “ sex slavery.” The elderly won’t have their kids to take care of them and the kids won’t have their parents and those parents will never see how well their grandchildren grew up.

These statements alone are enough to make you cry. Their economy will be bad and they will be stricken with all kinds of diseases and new medical problems that have not

existed for years. I don’t want to sound negative but look at the damage, what can we really do?

They lost EVERYTHING AND MORE THAN THAT. As I write this letter the death toll is at 120,000 and they say that 1/ 3 of that figure are small children.

Yes, that is the most horrific thing in the world. After all, no parent ever recovers from the loss of one of their little ones. No matter how old their child was when they died they will never fully recover.

They may look like they are functioning but I am sure as the years go by they still ask God why, why did you take my child? I guess Mother Mary could ask the same thing about her Son, Jesus. I always ask how God lets this happen. I end up closing with God knows no matter how much suffering we do at the time of our death, if we are a believer in Him, it is all perfect from death on.

Jesus knew how much He would suffer but He knew it would end and He would be perfect once again.

We were in the office today, I was having my temperature taken, and CNN also talked about how many children have died and we all just sat there in a state of shock. Let me give you some facts. But before the facts let us remind ourselves how great the world is reacting by giving so much aid. People from all over are lending a helping hand while others may be so upset knowing they cannot do anything and are becoming depressed over the entire incident.

Even our Homeless who have nothing wanted to help in some way, and that is why I sometimes refer to them as “ Heroes” They are the ones who raised the money we are sending, Some people who have a lot of money are sending money to charities and some people who have

a little money are trying to get it to the charity they think will do the best.

Either way the giving is what counts… We all want to do something to help.

Why is that? Is it because it is unexpected and it happens so fast or it is just the death itself ? I tend to think it is the unexpected disaster that hits our hearts. We see the damage and we see the death.

But let me tell you this… it has been five days now since this disaster and they have lost about 120,000 people. But we are forgetting about the 30,000 kids who die daily of starvation and the lack of simple medicine they need, medicine that we take for granted. Since this disaster happened and this being the fifth day at the time I wrote this letter, 150,000 children have died in Third World countries and what has the world done? What I have done?

What have the presidents and leaders of great nations done? It just seems so simple that we have the ability to stop the death of 30,000 children who die nightly when we go to bed. Which disaster is worse... this one or the starving one?

It seems to me the starving one would be a lot worse but why do we really do nothing to change it?

Why do we let it happen? Are we just so used to it and we just think it will happen and there is nothing we can do?

Hear me out. And hear me loud! And Sean, you listen too, because I know personally I must do more. I have always written about, “There is no excuse.” I have lobbied the Pope and I have lobbied many governmental leaders and I still get no response.

Every preacher in the world talks about helping those who are poor but what do we all really do? I

am not talking about our homeless, I am talking about the children and the adults who die daily because of starvation. I am asking what does anybody, including myself, really do to help the starving children? It’s not just a lack of food, it is ongoing malnutrition that can be solved so easily.

We should stop what we are doing right now and make a plan and do it like Nike says, “Just Do It.” Tonight go to Target or Wal-Mart and buy a bag of balloons QTY 100, blow them each up and lay them in your living room. When you get to 100, picture that being 100 babies who just died. By the way, by the time it takes you to blow up one balloon and tie it up, 9 babies have just died because of lack of food and medicine.

This happens every day. You know to me it makes no sense whatsoever to allow this to happen.

We worry about so many hard things to fix when the impact is not that great, but simple things like feeding the starving people of the world which is so easy compared to figuring out ways to stop another problem that has less impact like bringing democracy to a foreign country.

Why can’t we all figure out how to stop this from happening? I repeat these words, “There is no excuse.” What I mean is no longer can world leaders and people like me allow this to happen anymore. No longer can the United Nations allow this to happen. I know that some people say we should only help our own. However, if we only help our own , our hearts will become hardened. When we harden our hearts it allows us to use the same hardened heart attitude when dealing with our own. Soon we will create a forth and fifth class of people in America and we will ignore our own as we ignore the poor of the world now. Please pray for this problem to be solved.

Please come up with ways to help them. We are all God’s people and yes, we should pour our hearts out to these people of Asia; we should give them the shirt off our back, but then we should give the kids who have been starving for decades our next meal.

Yes, Yes, Yes we should help those poor disaster victims of Asia and don’t stop helping but let’s not forget that many more die daily because they can’t get to eat...what we throw in the trash...to save their lives. We can’t change the past, but we sure can do something to help the future of these starving children. I am not asking you for a donation, what I am asking you to do are: that you form groups in your own communities and lobby our leaders that all world hunger is to stop now.

Homeless in Austria

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MLK Cont. from page 1 Segregation and racism still have a stronghold on African American communities.

Signed into law on May 2, 1975, Senate Bill 18 declared the third Monday in January as Martin Luther King Jr. Day in the state of Ohio. The first proposal for a statewide holiday honoring Dr. King came from the Cincinnati Human Relations Commission, and numerous area legislators were instrumental in the bill’s passage. The non-profit Martin Luther King Jr. Coalition was founded in 1978 to ‘strengthen the diverse human community through the promotion and practice of nonviolence and understanding.’

This year’s celebration took on added significance as participants celebrated the 40th anniversary of two acts of federal legislation considered hallmarks of King’s efforts: the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which banned segregation in public places based on race, color, religion or national origin; and the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which made it illegal to deny a person’s right to vote because of race or color.

Martin Luther King continues to challenge us to question these philosophical dilemmas in our everyday lives, no matter what our

LIFE cont. from page 5 “It doesn’t have to be a shelter. There are funds for a hotel room. Let me call the hotline and see what I can arrange for you,” I said.

At the shelter I went to get a cup of coffee. Then it happened. My past smacked me in the face; just like the old saying - speak of the devil.

There was a man standing in front of the coffee table and he said “Hi Cindy.” I said hi back and was looking at his face and trying to figure of why it was faintly familiar. I was processing in my head, what camp did he live in? What agency did he work for? He reminded me of a guy in Manchester that I avoid because of his abusive nature; a man who burns cigarettes into the arms of homeless women that he gets drunk. Though I knew it wasn’t him, I couldn’t help but feel something yucky and familiar about the guy.

He said, “You don’t remember me?” He pulled me into a hug and I pushed him off. It was an unprivileged assault. I don’t hug people on the street, especially people that I don’t know. Not that I haven’t ever hugged anyone, just that there is an appropriate time and this was not one of those times.

The instant he touched me I felt ill, he said in my ear, “It’s Lee.” I thought I would vomit right there. As I came loose from his grip, I backed away. Panic ran through my body. I walked quickly away and into the

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life circumstance. More than 30 years after his death Martin Luther King Jr. is seen as the voice for all poor people – people left behind in the wake of other people’s economic affluence; stuck in low paying jobs and homelessness and poverty.

After 30 years, his voice still rings true. The Martin Luther King Jr. Day Memorial March was held in downtown Cincinnati to rekindle the spirit of his work and to provide a voice to the unheard, to provide inspiration to those who have been cast aside by society’s indignities.

Courtis Fuller MC’s MLK event at Music Hall safety of some street men that were gathered at a round table in the corner of the room.

I leaned over and whispered to Joe, “my very abusive ex-husband is over by the coffee table.”

I heard a voice behind me “Does this mean you don’t want to talk to me?”

I never even turned around but said, “No, I don’t want to talk to you.”

One of the guys said, “go away and leave her alone.”

Panicked thoughts ran around in my head, could he recognize which vehicle parked out front would be mine? Was I safe? I had recently read his name on the Manchester police department’s web page, while scanning the “wanted” list. He was wanted for a violation of a restraining order indicating that while I had worked really hard to change my life over the past twenty-seven years, he had not.

On the phone it was the Homeless Hotline calling me back.

He had a hotel room for the guys I was trying to hook up, and was faxing the hotel a voucher.

When we were all ready I drove the guys to the hotel. On the way the conversation was about Lee and not to worry because if he began hanging around the kitchen, there would be some street justice. I thanked the guys for their loyalty but I would handle it with the Concord Police Department.

After dropping off the men at the hotel, Joe and I headed back to Manchester. I filled his ears with memories of that marriage: I was a naive 15 year old when I my mother signed guardianship over to this man.

He was just a regular run of the mill drug pushing pimp who convinces girls that he will protect them and love them; then gets them addicted to crank and turns them out to the street.

I am proud that I made it through it. Many don’t. In the end, it was an experience I am glad I went through. It taught me many things about myself as well as other people.

Because of it, I learned of another side of life you simply cannot understand unless you have gone through it.

In my case, Lee decided to marry me at sixteen and my abusive mother signed the documents for permission. She wanted me out of the house away from my also very abusive stepfather. She wasn’t doing it to protect me; she was doing it because she was in denial. She had chased all of my older sisters out of the house by the age of sixteen, because we were causing her husband to act in certain ways toward us.

I told Joe about being dragged around by the hair in my old apartment building’s hallways and no one calling the police. About being handcuffed to a bed for three weeks and things that went along with that. I just kept vomiting out all the horror and at the

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same time trying to get control of myself.

We parked and got out to walk. I yelled over a wall, “Hey Dino, are you guys down there?” He grunted. I said come out and talk to me. He skipped up the snow-covered hill and I gave hime the directions t a heated shelter. He and a buddy were still in the camp. I told them to get in the van and we would go use the phone at my apartment, since I don’t have a cell phone.

Upstairs in the apartment, I make the calls to the Hotline. Again arrangements are made for the guys.

One man is banned from the shelter.

The other has lived outside for the past 6 years that I have known him.

They both get a hotel voucher. I ask Joe if he wants to go to the hotel too.

He says no, mumbles about unfamiliar places, and I understand but simply wanted to make the offer.

I call the Hotline again to check on arrangements for tomorrow.

There was one guy MIA at the Friendly Kitchen, the guys said they saw him earlier and he was intoxicated. I hope he makes it through the night okay.

Then I start a dialogue with my daughter. If success is the best revenge, what would it be like for all of my ex’s to be standing in the room as I graduate with my Master’s degree?

I just spoke to my landlord and he said rent is going up again in June.

Protests, Boycotts Loom Over Inaugaration Thousands of people in dozens of cities across the nation walked out of work and school, held mock coronations, intoned the names of the Iraq war dead and held candlelight vigils to show their disapproval of President Bush as he was sworn in for his second term.

From Bridgewater, Mass., to San Francisco, the protesters carried a similar message that Thursday, deploring the war in Iraq, angry about the Patriot Act and concerned about the next four years.

“The administration thinks it’s got a mandate to continue its policies,” said David Williams, a 49year-old construction company owner from Oakland, Calif., who wore a T-shirt to the San Francisco march with Bush’s picture and the description, “International Terrorist.”

In Detroit, David Livingstone says the idea behind the economic boycott he organized was simple: If people don’t show up at work or buy things, companies lose money. As he sees it, that’s money the Bush administration can’t tax, and can’t use to run the war in Iraq, protect polluters or chip away at the Constitution.

So the Detroit Democrat and a handful of other anti-Bush groups across the country urged others of like mind to withhold their cash and labor on Inauguration Day - from all businesses. They didn’t think they’d inflict a huge economic pain, but they did want to make a point.

“I viewed the inauguration of Bush as a black Thursday for this country,” Livingstone says. “We’ve tried marching in the streets to stop the war, we tried writing letters, we tried initiatives on the Web, but Bush doesn’t listen. It seems to us the only thing Bush and the Republicans will listen to is money.”

Livingstone, a 41-year-old writer, hoped to be in Washington for the Jan. 20 festivities, which for him means protests, black armbands and backs turned to the parade route.

Don’t be Squirrelly!

And he vowed not to buy gas, food or use his credit card that day: He wants the GOP, big oil, big banking, big box stores and any other “bigs” to know they can’t push him around or ignore him - at least not on January 20.

The White House took all the boycott talk in stride. Bush “is proud that we live in a society where people are free to peacefully express their opinions,” spokesman Jim Morrell says.

Other groups nationwide, many loosely connected through the Internet, put out calls similar to Livingstone’s. Jesse Gordon, 44, of Cambridge, Mass., spreads the word through his Web site, Not One Damn Dime!

Gordon doesn’t expect to shake the economy, but does want to see the president recognize dissent.

“I think Bush should acknowledge the boycott. If we’re effective, he’ll know about it, and he should acknowledge it,” Gordon says.

In New Orleans, Buddy Spell says his January 20th Committee eagerly endorsed the idea of an economic boycott. He was primarily concerned with organizing a jazz funeral procession through the downtown to mourn a second Bush term and what he calls the death of democracy. But he says a boycott was worth pursuing, in part because it can help unite disparate anti-Bush forces.

The groups hoped to see several million people eating brownbag lunches and dinners on Inauguration Day. If people didn’t want to boycott all business, the groups suggest buying from just those that support Democrats. The protesters say they’ll measure success not in economic terms, but by whether people know about the boycott and if it sparks future activism.

“I can’t imagine it would have any impact whatsoever,’’ says David J. Vogel, professor of business ethics at the University of California at Berkeley. “Even if everyone didn’t buy on that day, they’d make up for it the next day.”

Historian Lawrence Glickman says boycotts rarely accomplish any substantial economic goal, and if they do, it’s usually because they are tailored to a specific product.

Boycotts tend to have more success applying political pressure, but even that is limited.

Still, he said, their record of failure never seems to stop Americans from launching them.

“It’s a way of feeling like we’re participating in something bigger than ourselves.”

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The Peace Village

by this outpouring? Both waves of action have taken my breath away and made me wonder about the roots of compassion in people and governments. Can anything predictable be said about what is now going on? The US appears to be working UNDER the supervision of the UN. US warships are delivering life saving missions of water and food to areas of Indonesia that have been scraped clean of basic

by Steve Sunderland The amazing and quick response of the world community to the disaster in Asia is heartening, fulfilling a gap that just days before suggested that the world’s hungry, sick, and thirsty would continue to receive little help from the most affluent nations. Now, the world situation for Asia is totally changed as the impact of the wave and earthquake has moved not only billions of gallons of water and dirt but the stubborn hearts of governments.

All of a sudden villages in Indonesia have become household names as stories of fantastic heroism pop Dr. Steve Sunderland out of the muck and become connected to our structures. Rebel groups, with years consciousness. The world of Sri of murderous experiences, have Lanka, now damaged by massive declared peace agreements and death and devastation of land, has opened up areas that have been become synonymous with sealed and protected by brutal unbelievable pictures and news guerilla and government wars. Relief reports of elders sacrificing organizations are asking for the themselves to have their children cessation of monies for their saved. And, the dead of southern organizations and the redirecting of India, Thailand, Malaysia, and Mal funds to equally fatal problems of Dives all have charged into our people such as malaria, hunger, minds, making it clear that waves of typhoid and AIDS. destruction can travel faster and All of this has happened in further than our wildest imagination. the wake of the search for people Yet, the sudden and violent who may have survived the day after hours of destruction have matched Christmas. Perhaps 200,000 or more and beaten by the even quicker Indonesians did not. Over 30,000 Sri compassionate wave of relief pouring Lankans have died, along with over from the hearts of so many countries. 10,000 Indians and thousands more Have you been as shocked as I have around the great circle of nations

embracing the Indian Ocean. These countries, perhaps with the exception of India, have been placed squarely in the center of our concerns for the first time. It has been like learning a new set of vocabulary words with each word connected to ghastly pictures of destruction and amazing beautiful pictures of relief work. The combination has been a tsunami of words, emotions, gratitude, and horror.

What does this all mean?

And, of course, I am asking, what does this mean for the development of sustained compassion toward “the stranger?” Has the world totally underestimated the human heart, again? Have those of us engaged in anti-war efforts and partisan politics, both defeated in the past election, missed the finer qualities of our world as well as our national heart of caring? Of course, the war, continues, hunger and disease will kill millions unnecessarily, and our geo-political games will start back up and take this story out of our front lobes. But, and this is a “but” I am betting on, but we have seen and learned something so powerful in the past 20 days of the ways in which the world can create the logistics of

compassion that something more important than the shift in geological plates has occurred. Can we, those of us working in the service of peace, continue our efforts to help, take leadership from our Asian brothers and sisters, and become the loving co-parents to the entire Asian land so deeply orphaned, so upset by the waves upon waves of grief? There is no model I know of that explains or informs the next steps. Gandhi said: “The future of what we do is the present.” I see a level of action that is heartening. We, in the Peace Village, bow in gratitude.

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-for-Peace which engages people in expressing their visions of Peace, in their own words, through the creation of posters.

A lighter side of the inauguration....

Jon Stewart: “Finally, the moment we’ve all been waiting for – the official halfway point of the Bush presidency.”

President Bush: “I George Walker Bush do solemnly swear...”

Stewart: “At which point 49 percent of the country also solemnly swore.”

“President Bush is being criticized because his inaugural celebration cost $40 million. When asked about it, the president said, ‘Sorry, but my daughters insisted on an open bar.’” – Conan O’Brien “Some people are criticizing President Bush for spending $40 million on his inauguration, but hey, give the guy a break, he’s excited. After all, this is the first time he’s really been elected.” – Jay Leno “You folks see the inauguration ceremony last night? George W. Bush sworn in as president? I’ll tell you it is starting to look really bad for John Kerry. But it was nice to see a president put a hand on the Bible instead of an intern.” David Letterman “CNN is reporting that a longtime friend of President Bush says that Bush is telling everyone, in the next four years he intends to be ‘really aggressive’. ‘Really aggressive’? In the past four years we launched what, two wars? What’s ‘really aggressive’ going to look like? What, are we gonna’ bomb Canada now?” - Jay Leno “President Bush is getting ready for his inauguration next week. He’s working on his speech. It’s a pretty good speech.

So far all he has is ‘ask not what your corporation can do for you but what you can do for your corporation.’” - Jay Leno

“Don “Don’’t Leave Home W ithout IIt...” t...”

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“Security is a big issue this year. So the Secret Service announced that people attending President Bush’s inaugural ceremony will not be allowed to bring coolers or alcoholic beverages. In other words, the Bush twins will not be going.”

- Conan O’Brien

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Closing the Gaps To Make Families Safe and Stable

by Judi Clark, Ohio Empowerment Coalition East Ohio Organizer There are gaps in Ohio’s welfare system that create barriers to families trying to escape domestic violence. Families cannot become Safe and Stable with our current system. We need to close those gaps so families all across Ohio are safe.

Unlike other states, Ohio allows each of its 88 counties to develop their own welfare policy.

While the counties may think this is working, it is causing confusion and placing lives of families in danger because there is no consistency in policies across Ohio. Each of the 88 counties is deciding whether or not to help families become Safe and Stable. They decide which victims of violence, if any, receive services to escape domestic violence while trying to become economically independent.

We know that almost 60% of women on public assistance have been victims of domestic violence.

We know that domestic violence is the single greatest barrier to a family’s self-sufficiency. So why is Ohio one of only 6 states without clear guidelines to provide a safety net to low-income families trying to escape domestic violence?

What happens when families have to flee their homes, maybe giving up jobs or the financial support of an abusive partner, and go to another county for safety? There’s no guarantee that the county where they end up will offer them that safety.

There are so many gaps in the system.

For example, a family may flee Hamilton or Stark Counties, where the welfare department works with community agencies to provide counseling and support services as an

alternative to traditional work requirements, allowing a family to become safe before going to a job.

They might go to Greene County to escape and will find that Greene County has no official hardship exemption for victims of violence. Or maybe they go to Defiance or Gallia County where they can only receive support if they live in a shelter.

Wood and Crawford Counties have good support systems in place, yet they both have a mandate which can put a woman’s life in danger if she is hiding from her abuser.

Gaps in the system led to a lawsuit in Cuyahoga County where lack of caseworker training and improper screening resulted in caseworkers taking children out of the home when low-income mothers reported that they were victims of domestic violence. Cuyahoga

County now has a pilot screening program, only being used some of the time, but based on the agency’s past performance, recipients can’t trust Cuyahoga County Department of Job and Family Service to do it right this time. Victims there have been victimized by the system that was supposed to help them.

We need to make sure that we close the gaps to ensure that families are Safe and Stable all over Ohio. The Ohio Empowerment Coalition’s “Safe Families are Stable Families” would close those gaps if adopted into state legislative policy.

We urge the Ohio Assembly to adopt this policy so that families don’t have to wait any longer to be Safe and Stable. For more information on the “Safe Families are Stable Families” Campaign, please call 513/381-4242 or toll-free 1-877-862-5179.

The Biggest Challenge Facing Cincinnati is Overcoming Fear

by Brian Garry Cincinnati needs to face its collective fears and be rid of them.

One fear our city needs to face is that of conflict. We should address our conflicts head on. We should work, however long it takes, to find common solutions and compromises.

Progress comes by a series of compromises. Both sides give a little.

Everyone is not always going to get everything that they want, although we should always constantly strive for that ideal. Cincinnati seems to have adopted the ostrich concept of problem solving: “If I don’t see, then it doesn’t exist.” Thus Cincinnati has placed blinders on and settled into a warm, comfortable lullaby hoping that conflict will resolve.

We employed this ostrich concept with race relations until faced with an emergency of utter chaos.

Suddenly, we were forced to face and be-rid of the things blocking us.

We started down the path to face our fear of conflict, but now that we have regained control, chaos has subsided, and we are being lulled off to sleep once again with our heads in the ground on the race issue. And they will stay there until there is another eruption/disturbance of our sleep.

Similar to the way we treat the race issue we use the “sweep it under the rug” technique regarding the class issue. Again, if we don’t see it, then it doesn’t matter.

Unfortunately, one of these

elephants is right in downtown’s living room, Over the Rhine. We, however, don’t see the poverty. We look right past the human suffering and we gaze at the splendid, Italianate Architecture and we daydream about what we can get out of it instead of seeing what we can give to the community of Over-theRhine.

Fear of the unknown, fear of change, fear of losing what we have, fear of discomfort, fear of the pain of facing ourselves, our mistakes, our transgressions, our greed. The second way to face our fear of conflict is to take inventory. We need to collectively “take inventory “and perhaps share this inventory with another city. Let’s see what our strengths and weaknesses really are and set about the work of true change. We can then begin the restructuring our society, of making our little piece of the world a more equitable one. We can make a city where we eliminate extreme poverty and eliminate extreme wealth. A city where people feel valued because they are valued and that no one is locked-down, burdened with the fetters of collective racism and classism.

I wish to create a Cincinnati wherein we can truly share and exchange the best of what each of us, our cultures, have to offer. Part of this change is addressing what needs change in each of our cultures. We

need true justice and mercy in our court system, business world and policing. When we stop economic injustice, we will see huge drops in crimes, of theft, drug dealing, robbery and murder. We also need to educate and eradicate the glorification of killing, the objectification of women and drug dealing in our culture, media and music. These behaviors just don’t work and just don’t help anybody. We need massive cross-cultural experience and education. Another need is a United Neighborhood Organization. The creation of this Community of Communities is one way our City can come together on real community issues, supporting each other, helping one another.

The Third way to face our fear of conflict is to make a start, not the be-all-and-end-all, but a start, to engage in a massive East meets West effort, rich meets poor, black meets white. To do a cultural exchange, in which for example, half of Taft High School goes to Elder for a while and vice versa. Where churches and businesses and government follow suit. Our System is awful and needs to be changed, however, we really do have some tangible aversion to each other - rich, poor, black, white etc.

For the greatest fear is fear of the unknown. If people really get to experience each other’s cultures in a safe and friendly environment, it will help begin addressing our ultimate

goal of a just, equitable, open, accepting, peaceful city.

Our real work is to change the culture in Cincinnati. To make our little heaven right here, in Cincinnati. Christopher Smitherman has taken some first steps and we must continue this journey, walking down this path hand in hand. We must try to make our lives microcosms of this great vision. The Serenity Prayer says, “Change the things We can…” We must live our lives this way. Enjoying the company of rich, poor, black, white, gay, straight, abled and disabled, Christian and non-Christian. We must allow room in our lives for all kinds of people, ex-offenders, homeless people, mentally ill, business executives, and all kinds of people.

In this way we will begin the equalization of our city. A little Utopia. We will work first by equalizing the extreme poles of extreme wealth and extreme poverty.

Rev. McCrackin was my mentor. To be around Rev. McCrackin was to enjoy a little bit of heaven, first because of his spiritual connection, but equally important because of his deep connection to all people. Rev. McCrackin said, “We are only people in relation to other people.” If Cincinnati lives by his example of courage, service and love we would truly face and be rid of our biggest challenge, that of overcoming our fear by exercising our faith.

Tsunami Relief Raises Earmarking Issues for Charities The enormous outpouring of giving for victims of the tsunami disaster in Southeast Asia is bringing the role of nonprofits in international disaster relief into the public eye once again. Many donors are earmarking their contributions for tsunami relief, raising some concern that disaster

relief needs in other areas of the world may suffer.

By the middle of January the Red Cross had collected $92 million, which will be used for immediate relief as well as long term needs.

After the terrorist attacks of 9/11 the group was criticized when donors

learned some of the funds for collected would be used for other purposes. This time all gifts are going to its International Response Fund.

New York attorney Jack Siegel has set up a website for donors to get information on how to ensure their intent is honored.

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More contributions are likely to be made now that Congress has passed a bill (H.R. 241) that allows donors to deduct contributions made through the end of January 2005 from their 2004 taxes.

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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.

Streetvibes

We have grasped the mystery of the atom and rejected the Sermon on the Mount. Ours is a world of nuclear giants and ethical infants. We know more about war than we know about peace, more about killing that we know about living. General Omar Bradley The pens which write against disarmament are made with the same steel from which guns are made. - Aristide Briand, French statesman, Nobel Peace Prize, 1926 The pacifist's task today is to find a method of helping and healing which provides a revolutionary constructive substitute for war. - Vera Brittain, 1964

School of The Americas by the Purple Turtle For more than 10 years, the Catholic left has organized protests in Columbus, Georgia to push for the closing of the School of the Americas (SOA) at Fort Benning. SOA military graduates have been involved in many tortures and deaths through out Central and South America. The government denies that it trains in these techniques but the record is large and infamous. In a public relations effort the SOA name has been changed to Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation, acronym WHINSEC, but is still called SOA throughout the world.

Fifteen thousand secularists, atheists, agnostics Buddhist, Catholics and others joined together the week end of November 19 – 21, 2004 to close down the SOA. Friday, my friend Gordon Maham and his neighbor Jacob

picked me up at my apartment in Over-the-Rhine. We gathered with 45 students at the Dorothy Day House at Xavier University for a bus ride south. The trip displayed a group of students both outgoing and friendly.

Saturday, 3AM – arrive at Hotel in Columbus, Georgia. 7AM – rise and shine and eat in the lobby, then off to the SOA tour at Fort Benning. Cameras were allowed on a short bus trip on the base. The tour was straight from a movie satire of stereotypes, with uniformed military personnel and their excited civilian Protest marchers at Fort Benning, Georgia cohorts. An hour and a half was A procession was held that About noon we were off to allowed for open questions with no lasted several hours. The names of the main entrance of Fort Benning. follow up questions and a notable Speeches, music and talking, talking, the deceased victims of the SOA failure to mention, (1) 80% of their were read with the crowd responding talking...100 plus. Gordon and I current students are from Columbia “presente!” A very dramatic and looked for our friend, three time and (2) President Hugo Chavez has personal event.

Noble Prize Nominee Kathy Kelley. military participation, a result of SOA This event is characterized by Watch lobbying, which organizes this Later in the day I discovered both he thousands of people holding white and I found her, and a search team demonstration. crosses, political signs, (mine read looking for both of us found her – IRAQ-NAM and BUSH HAS what are the odds?

IRAQTILE DYSFUNCTION. The 5PM – to the bus, hotel and latter was commented on a lot and eating.

7PM – at a separate site at a photographed), art works, and large puppets. large white tent the students went to 5:30PM – the protest ends Mass. I went 3 blocks away to the with joyful dancing in the streets.

Convention Center. SOA Watch 6PM – Xavier group eats held a benefit concert.

Sunday, 12:25AM – 3AM – nearby. (By the way, one student estimated 70 plus Cincinnati citizens I walked 7 miles to our hotel. were in Columbus, Georgia.)

7AM – Morning came early 3AM – Where have I seen 9AM – At protest site. that time before? Back at Xavier.

Mid-afternoon – an oral 3:30AM – Back in Over-theprotest.

Rhine.

Berta Lambert, Kathy Kelley and Gordon Maham

New York’s Homeless World Cup Called Off

by Bernhard Wolf Despite the best efforts of the organizers, the International Network of Street Papers (INSP) Homeless World Cup, scheduled for New York 2005 has been called off due to the uncertainty of obtaining visas for the teams of homeless players from around the world. The tournament which was scheduled for August next year in Bryant Park, Manhattan, will now be moved to a European location to be announced this week.

The Homeless World Cup is an innovative sportsintegration initiative for homeless people associated with the street paper movement. It has been successfully held in Graz, Austria

in 2003 and Gothenburg, Sweden in 2004. Despite repeated efforts to reach an agreement on the issue of Visas, the organisers of the event, ProPoor Sports Ltd., have been advised that it is very unlikely that all the teams anticipated to participate would get to the event in New York.

Mel Young, President of the International Network of Street Papers (INSP), says, “This poses an ethical problem for us and it runs against the spirit of this tournament.

Regretfully we will have to move the 2005 Homeless World Cup to an alternative location in Europe.”

Young referred to the enormous effort of the Homeless World Cup Committee in New York

led by the city’s BIGnews street paper who won the bid to host the event against other candidates of the INSP, and to the strong support from the New York City Council and some major NYC sports marketing and media companies.

“We want to express our respect for their commitment and their hard work”, says Young.

“What’s happened is really sad but we had to make a decision and the fact is that the current legal situation around visa availability into the US means that we cannot guarantee our people would be admitted for the week and so regretfully we have to pull out. I personally wanted this event to take place in New York, but

we are responsible to the participating teams and so the 2005 event will take place somewhere in Europe.”

Jeff Grunberg, editor in chief of the New York street paper, BIGnews says: “Because as many as 1/3 of the players might not have been accepted into the country upon arrival and a higher level of organization on the part of street papers would be necessary to facilitate the visa application process, more time will be spent in the next years to reach a better level of certainty so that the tournament could take place in New York the way we would have liked.”

Illinois State Police Issue Gag Order A new Illinois State Police policy could silence whistleblowers that expose corruption, impropriety or wrongdoing within the police department by prohibiting employees from talking to news reporters.

The gag order came soon after a November 2004 Chicago television news station story exposed improper conduct on the part of state

police guarding the governor. The report questioned the size of the governor’s security force on out-ofstate trips and detailed how bodyguards allowed unauthorized people to drive or ride in state vehicles, among other things.

Illinois Lieutenant Governor Pat Quinn spoke sharply against the policy stating, “State government

should do everything possible to protect those with the fortitude to speak out about wrongdoing. The officer who informs the media about possible officer misconduct may be subject to greater discipline than someone committing the misconduct!”

Whistleblowers should be ensured the opportunity to report

Streetvibes

illegal activities without fear of reprisal from their employer, but despite legal protections afforded under the national Whistleblower Protection Act of 1989, whistleblowers remain at risk of reprisal. This gag order appears to be a method for the state police to avoid public scrutiny and accountability.

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Today

A Day At Ursuline Academy

by Robert Manassa

by Ron O’Neal and Rachel Lawson Last month, Streetvibes readers were able to learn a little about Ronald “Ron” O’Neal and his recovery from addiction. He recently was invited by Lynda Hoffman-Jeep and Todd Forman to visit Ursuline Academy in Blue Ash. Ron spoke to the students about a variety of things such as his addiction and how he expressed himself in a positive way in order to get some perspective in his life. Ron was amazed to learn that some of the students had close friends and relatives who had experienced addiction.

While he was there he engaged the students in an impromptu writing session based on how they felt about homelessness, addiction, and poverty.

Ron would like to share with you the writings by some of the students. He deeply enjoyed his visit to Ursuline and meeting the students, most of all he felt that he had a positive impact on some of the students.

I’m sitting here wondering what I am going to do today.

Shall I go out on a shopping spree?

There are so many things to do and see I’m not worried about yesterday or tomorrow I’m truly worried about today.

Yesterday is dead and gone And tomorrow is out of sight Today is here. I’ll fight a good fight I’ll face whatever comes my way I’ll accept my plight I live each day one day at a time Realizing that none of the days I live are mine It is through God’s grace That I’m here right now I’m living for today.

Addiction

by Emily Becker I always thought of an addiction as something that you could control and get rid of. However, after listening to Ron I realize that an addiction is a disease and it will always stay with you. If you have help from God and others you can learn to deal with an addiction. I think that in order to control any addiction you may have, you have to really, truly want to end/stop the addiction. Without strong determination and self-drive, I don’t see it possible to overcome a serious addiction. The question I have is are you born with an addiction or does it develop over time? I’m thinking it develops over time because I don’t think a baby would be born a cocaine addict or an alcoholic. Addictions are a difficult thing to overcome and deal with, but with the help from each other we can one by one help those with addictions.

Untitled

by Tess Henderson

Homelessness

by Jackie Kern Notice the word is “homelessness,” not “houselessness.” The homeless have nowhere to go, no one to go to. The homeless feel abandoned and alone.

They don’t just need a house, they need a home. A home is a support system.

A home can fill a void within a person. That’s why the Drop Inn Center is so great. It’s not just a shelter (house). It’s a recovery program (home).

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by Elaine Whitaker

Addiction

by Anonymous Many lives are touched by addiction. Most of the time this is nothing good. A person’s addiction hurts them, their family, and their friends. Nothing is more important than your relationship with other sand an addiction damages those dramatically.

I personally know what it’s like to experience addiction. An extremely close relative of mine has hurt me so much because of his addiction. The alcohol (and who know if there’s more) is used day after day. No matter what the consequences are, he has to drink.

When I was little he would come home late and start yelling. The alcohol was supposed to make things better for him, but made things worse for those bearing the weight of his hate. He was kicked out and even that didn’t stop his drinking. What I wish is that somehow he comes to the light and realizes there are other joys in his life other than feeling that high!

No food. No home. No life.

“It’s his own fault he’s poor.”

Those who do not know Speak that which they Don’t understand.

To live, to maintain Exist from day to day, Is the greatest challenge.

Hungry eyes, hungry bellies, Hungry hearts: All yearning for things So simple we take them for granted.

Eating in shelters, Sleeping in cars.

Broken dreams and Shattered hearts.

Hardest of times and endless strife.

No food. No home. No life.

Hope, my friend, Is a four-letter word, It keeps you flying, It’s the wing of a bird.

Hope is the grace That keeps me goin’ I’m a bird in the sky Hope keeps me soarin’ Hope is my friends, Hope is my family, Hope is my life Hope is life.

Poverty

by Jessica Brock

by Sarah Hattersley Poverty is such a powerful word with a powerful meaning behind it.

Most of us here are so sheltered to poverty and don’t usually think that there are actually many poverty-stricken people on our streets of Cincinnati. Usually when we hear poverty we think of the third-world countries such as Mexico and Cuba who are so poverty-stricken. What we do need to realize is that while we will never be able to completely eliminate poverty, there are ways we can help.

For example, gathering old clothes for St. Vincent de Paul or Goodwill to come pick up or donating extra money. Even just a couple dollars or cents. Every penny counts. One of the most powerful ways to help is to volunteer for the poor. Just helping them out may put a smile on their face for the day and I’m sure it will put one on yours, too. This is a powerful way to do God’s will.

By the breath of life Stands a silent cry For the hopeless and homeless

Page 14

Streetvibes

The weak that survive Is the Strong that stays alive The streets are fierce with Violence and gun play But all we can do is pray.

Thw worlds is a vicious place But in our hearts and mionds Will be fine.

The drugs are from corner To corner, block to block But we wonder will it ever stop.

Homelessness

Untitled

by Emily Haglage

by Katie Madges

I think about this often, about the people on the streets.

I think about what they do and where they could possibly sleep.

I think about their lives and what led them to this state.

But I know that in every one of them beats a heart that is so great.

I try to give God thanks for my family, friends, and home; But I also want Him to show me how to help people who are so alone.

So I thank God for people like Ron who help show me the way.

It all starts to become clearer each and every day.

So maybe one day, in time We can all “commit the crime” Of better understanding homelessness and helping those people in need.

is a turtle without his shell naked or homeless? is a man without a cause lost or homeless? homelessness is not necessarily whether or not you have a roof over your head it’s not if you have your very own bed but rather it speaks of if you belong somewhere…or not maybe a home is just an imaginary place that the same group of people misses but the man or woman with a home knows it whether or not a home is a tangible thing and everyone should have a home

Homelessness

by Abby Haglage As I leave my home to go downtown my face is tired and in the shape of a frown I’m going to see the Bengals play, But for some reason my thoughts are in the way, I am not as excited as others seem, Small things in my life make me feel mean.

Untitled

by Kristen Ruthmeyer The money makes you poor, but the spirit makes you impoverished.

A man without a home is not a man without a wealth of wisdom.

Wisdom can’t put food on the table, but it can bring you peace.

“Where are you going, little girl?”

“Home.” A firm reply.

“Home to a nice little house tonight made of cardboard. Tomorrow…who knows?”

As we park the car and begin to walk, I complain about my itchy socks, When looking in front of me I see, An old man looking down and depressed as can be.

With a can in his hand and a hat on his head, I know compared to me, He has much more to dread.

As I worry and complain about tiny matters, I realized that this man’s life is in tatters.

He is the one that needs my prayers, He is the one for whom no one cares, I give him a smile and hoped he know, That a seed in my heart, he has sown.

“Simple”

Shutter Speed

by Jimmy Heath

by John Buechel The woods—where most people go once a year to kill.

I go once a year to live.

Kentucky is where I grew up.

I go back to McCreary County to find the purity I’ve lost.

I go back to the same spot past a fallen tree, Near my old house that now belongs to someone else.

I use this spot of familiar earth and brush to time travel.

Back to a time when dad wasn’t sick, And mom wasn’t crippled.

I was six.

I go there and stand in the shade, I expect to see my childhood friend, Angel.

She was my best friend even thought girls were Icky.

She would bring Fig Newtons.

But I won’t see her.

She has moved.

I sit where I once stood when I was six, I am taller now.

I look back past the brush to my old house, Wondering, do they have a little boy?

And before I leave I take in a breath.

It tastes like Fig Newtons.

Snowfall in Parvis Alley, OTR Streetvibes

Page 15

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?

If you need help or would like to help please call one of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless members listed below.

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

357-4602

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 SHELTER: Both Anthony House (Youth) 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

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 381-4242 241-2563 Contact Center Emanuel Center

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 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

$1 Donation

February 2005

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Remembering Martin Luther King Cover Story

Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless