Streetvibes June 2005 Edition

JUNE 2005

STREETVIBES Streetvibes Investigates: Legitimate News Story or Hoax?

by Andy Erickson, Greater around town, outing them as conCincinnati Coalition for the artists who “prey on your kind heart.”

Homeless, Education Coordinator Paolello first talked to a man named Larry (we don’t learn his last The issue of panhandling has name), who says he just made $24 in long been a controversial one in 90 minutes and once made $50 in 15 Cincinnati. Fueled by simplistic minutes. She asks what he does with assumptions and stereotypes about the money, and he tells her that he the poor, many Cincinnatians dismiss gives it to a diabetic friend in need. panhandlers as con-artists. At best, “But a few minutes earlier,” Paolello panhandlers are seen as reports, “we watched annoyances by the him walk across the wealthier, housed street where…he had a population that visits bottle of booze stashed downtown. The truth is in a bush.” The footage that every panhandler’s shows Larry drinking story is as complex as from a bottle of beer. anyone’s, and each “The same thing panhandler has a happens all across the Andy Erickson different reason for city,” Paolello reports. begging on the street.

“Minutes after donating Unfortunately, local Cincinnati money, the recipient will take it to television station WLWT, or Channel fulfill their habit at the local liquor 5, fueled stereotypes about store.” panhandlers when they aired a This is where the report simplistic and sensationalistic news leaves Larry. Paolello’s point is story in early May called “Homeless somewhat vague, so we’re forced to or Hoax?” In this segment, reporter assume what she’s getting at. I Sheree Paolello followed panhandlers assume she meant to convey that: (1)

Larry spends all of his money on booze, (2) Larry does not have a diabetic friend that he gives his money to, (3) most, if not all, panhandlers spend most, if not all, of their money on booze, and (4) by drinking from a bottle of beer, Larry is a bad person.

Paolello’s attempt to dismiss Larry’s claim that he gives his money to a diabetic friend is based on the fact that he was filmed drinking from a bottle of beer. This, of course, is illogical. Larry can drink beer while panhandling and still give some of his money to his diabetic friend.

Paolello makes a strong point of connecting panhandlers with liquor, but doesn’t explain why this connection is important. I think she’s possibly trying to suggest that they are misusing the donations – that they should be purchasing something more wholesome with their money.

Some of the people she filmed might have an alcohol addiction, and therefore might actually physically need liquor. Sure, treatment would be better for them, but some people aren’t ready for

treatment, can’t get into treatment right now, don’t know how to get into treatment, or don’t know they have a problem. I don’t think that alcoholics are necessarily bad people because they are alcoholics. I also don’t assume that panhandlers will use every cent I give them to purchase whole-grain bread and mittens. If people are surprised that some panhandlers use part of their earnings to purchase liquor, then they are naïve – as are people who believe that panhandlers only spend their money on liquor.

Paolello also encounters Caroldeen Cobb, a woman who lives in an apartment, but who is seen panhandling with a sign that suggests she is homeless. Later, Paolello shows up at Cobb’s apartment, where she thrusts her finger at Cobb’s chest and accuses her of operating something that “seems kind of like a scam.”

Hoax... cont. on page 2

International Street Newspaper Conference Held in Buenos Aires conference was an effort to address the growth and future of street papers around the world so the movement can stabilize and continue to grow.

There needs to be a real and truthful picture of the world we all live in and through this, promote international understanding and a voice and hope for the worlds displaced and poor. The media plays an important role in these conditions.

Street newspapers provide a distinctive and independent voice for issues that are usually ignored or distasteful for mainstream, corporate media outlets.

One of the major accomplishments of the INSP was the recent unveiling of the Street News Service – a web-based news wire with stories and news specifically for international street papers. Members can go to the INSP website (www.streetpapers.org) and download photos and stories specific to the street paper movement and the voice of the poor. The website receives, on average, 14,000 hits a month.

Conference...

Cont. on Page 8

Rooftop view of Buenos Aires Report and photos by Jimmy Heath I’ve recently returned from a conference and a bit of a vacation in the South American country of Argentina in the capitol of Buenos Aires.

The conference was the annual gathering of the International Network of Street Papers (INSP), a 10 year-old organization that has grown to include 85 international street newspapers, from 27 countries, including Cincinnati, Ohio’s own Streetvibes.

Representatives from these papers met, networked and shared meals together in the El Centro neighborhood, right in the heart of downtown Buenos Aires. The conference was hosted by Hechos En Buenos, the Buenos Aires street newspaper.

The conference was an attempt to unify the world wide street paper movement and to create a pool of resources for this unique media.

Most streetpapers are struggling, not only financially but also politically, mostly because of the outspoken nature of the movement. The Busy Buenos Aires street scene

Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless

Streetvibes

Hoax... cont. from page 1

Streetvibes, the TriState’s alternative news source, is a newspaper written by, for, and about the homeless and contains relevant discussions of social justice, and poverty issues. It is published once a month by the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless.

Becoming a Streetvibes Vendor is a great way for homeless and other low-income people to get back on (or stay on) their feet. Streetvibes Vendors are given an orientation and sign a code of conduct before being given a Streetvibes Vendor badge. Vendors are private contractors who DO NOT work for, or represent, the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homleess. All profits go directly to the vendor.

The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a group of shelters, agencies and individuals committed to ending homelessness in Cincinnati through coordinating services, educating the public and grassroots organizing.

GCCH Staff Georgine Getty - Executive Director Allison Leeuw - Administrative Coordinator Andy Erickson - Education Coordinator Rachel Lawson - Civil Rights VISTA Kate McManus - Civil Rights VISTA Mary Gaffney - Receptionist Streetvibes Jimmy Heath, Editor Photographer Jimmy Heath Cover Streetpapers from around the world iunite in Bueanos Aires conference Streetvibes accepts letters, poems, stories, essays, original graphics, and photos. We will give preference to those who are homeless or vendors.

Subscriptions to Streetvibes, delivered to your home each month, can be purchased for $25 per year.

Address mail to: Streetvibes Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless (GCCH) 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, OH 45202 (513) 421-7803 e-mail: streetvibes@juno.com web: http://cincihomeless.org

Page 2

I know Caroldeen Cobb.

We call her Carol at the office. My coworker Rachel Lawson wrote a story about her for the May 2005 issue of Streetvibes. Yes, Carol was panhandling with a sign that suggested she was homeless, and yes, she does live in an apartment. She does not drink alcohol or use drugs. She collects a small monthly income from Social Security ($564) and food stamps ($15). She supplements her income by panhandling. She has heart problems that prevent her from working at a typical job.

“I have to take 14 pills just to get out of bed on a good day – and there are some days I can’t get out of bed at all,” Carol explains. She stopped by our office to talk about Paolello’s report after it aired. I told Carol I was offended by the news story and asked her what she thought.

“I’m not humiliated,” she said, “I just thank God it was me and not someone with a weaker mind. If the reporter had done that to Channel 5 speaks someone who wasn’t all there, they could have committed suicide. It’s dangerous telling lies and hounding people who have mental illnesses. A lot of them wouldn’t be able to deal with that kind of humiliation.”

I told Carol that I wanted to write an article on Paolello’s story and asked her to clarify why she panhandles. “It takes money to be poor,” she said. “I have to find a way to pay my phone – that’s $25 a month, and my car insurance – that’s $57 a month, and gas – that’s $30 a month...” she went on and on, listing things as specific as the cost of the soap she buys. “I don’t always have enough money at the end of the month to go buy meat at Kroger. So I work for it. I don’t go to Kroger and shoplift the meat. I work for it.”

When I asked Carol about a typical day’s earnings, she said, “I made a flippant comment to the reporter that my goal is $100 a day and that’s what she reported.” Carol told me there are days when generous people give her good money, but that it doesn’t happen every day. “The other day I sat out there for hours and made $1.50.”

Carol is known throughout the homeless community as someone who generously and regularly helps people in need. In the past, she’s opened her apartment to people needing shelter or a shower, she’s shown many people how to access local services, and, despite her modest income, she also occasionally purchases items like clothing and food for those who live on the streets.

Paolello doesn’t really address Carol’s circumstances or generosity. She does mention that Carol has heart problems and that she uses some of her earnings to help homeless people, but it’s only a mention. Then she immediately returns to the con-artist angle, stating “Caroldeen admitted that it’s easier to sit on a corner than to get a job.”

Paolello doesn’t mention that Carol’s disability makes her unable to hold a typical job.

The last interview Paolello conducts is with Georgine Getty, Executive Director of the Coalition for the Homeless.

Getty was treated to the same style of reporting that Larry and Carol experienced.

“Sheree asked me if I would suggest to Caroldeen Cobb that people give to organizations rather than panhandlers.

I refused to say that. I said that people should do what their heart tells them is right.”

Despite this, Paolello states over footage of Getty that “Getty recommends donating to a shelter or food kitchen, instead of giving on the street where citizens can’t be sure where their money is going.”

“That’s what she wanted me to say,” said Getty. “She kept trying to get me to say it, and when I refused to say it, she said it for me.

“People should give to organizations,” Getty added, “but I’m not going to say that people shouldn’t give to people on the street.”

Getty also recalls asking Paolello when the story would air.

According to Getty, Paolello responded that WLWT wanted to air the story the following week because it was “sweeps week.”

Sweeps week is a time when broadcasters measure viewership numbers in order to set advertising rates for local advertisers. It’s important for stations to record a high viewership during sweeps week so

that they can charge higher rates for local advertising. In order to record a high viewership, television stations sometimes broadcast gimmick programming in order to get viewers to tune in.

I can’t pretend to know exactly why WLWT decided to spin this story the way they did, but Paolello’s comment about wanting to air it during sweeps week suggests a possible motive. A sensationalistic piece about deceptively wealthy, alcoholic con-artists posing as homeless people is probably (and sadly) going to draw more viewers than an in-depth piece illustrating the lives and circumstances of Cincinnatians living in poverty. By broadcasting stories like the former during sweeps week, television stations attempt to manipulate viewership and inflate advertising fees.

The truth is that many panhandlers are simply making the best occupational choice from the options that are available to them.

Yes, there will be times when a panhandler might hold a sign that says he wants food while he drinks a beer.

Yes, there will be times when a panhandler will advertise herself as homeless when she lives in an apartment. The ones that become good at panhandling are the ones who, like crafty television stations, figure out the best way to market themselves to the public. That doesn’t mean they don’t really need your dollar. Are there panhandlers who are con-artists? Yes. But, of course, you can find con-artists in any line of work.

By painting Larry as a liar without checking the facts, by downplaying Carol’s disability and economic circumstances, by failing to illustrate the many ways that Carol helps homeless people in Cincinnati, and by speaking for Georgine Getty rather than quoting her, Paolello creates a news piece that is irresponsible and inaccurate.

I would like to say that I am personally impressed with the things that Carol does to help homeless people, and I don’t feel that she’s doing anything wrong. She does wonderful things with the small income she receives from panhandling. Perhaps she was marketing herself in a way that was less than truthful, but I feel it was with good intentions.

I don’t feel I could say the same thing about the people who helped craft WLWT’s “Homeless or Hoax?” story in early May. My hope is that in the future, WLWT will cover issues like homelessness and poverty in a more responsible way.

Streetvibes exists as a forum for the expression of the views and opinions of our readers and supporters. The opinions expressed herein are not necessarily those of the Streetvibes staff or the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless

Streetvibes

Homeless News Digest

Compiled by Jimmy Heath In Philadelphia, the military gave Sharon Boyd all the things that life in Pottstown, Pa., couldn’t: economic stability, career advancement, and the chance to travel.

But after 18 years in the service, Boyd was sleeping in her Oldsmobile Royale, battling posttraumatic stress disorder and a cocaine addiction.

Boyd is one of an estimated 6,000 homeless female veterans nationwide, a group whose numbers are expected to rise as the number of women in the military increases.

But as homeless female veterans become more visible, the reasons for their homelessness remain largely unclear.

“People go into the military, on one hand, to flee from unstable social circumstances and because they think it’ll give them better opportunity,” said psychiatrist Robert Rosenheck, coauthor of a study of homeless female veterans and the director of Veterans Affairs’ Northeast Program Evaluation Center.

Boyd, 47, now lives at Mary E. Walker House, a 30-bed transitional housing program for women at the Coatesville VA Medical Center in Coatesville, Pa. Walker House, which opened in January, is the military’s latest tactic to support this new group of veterans in need, and is the largest facility of its kind in the country.

Nationally, more than 315,000 veterans are homeless on any night, according to the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans.

Women make up a small percentage.

Female veterans may also be dealing with the aftermath of sexual trauma, which can itself trigger posttraumatic stress disorder, experts say.

“We have enough homeless women veterans to have a womenveterans transitional program,” said Marsha Four, a Vietnam veteran and the program director of homeless services at the Philadelphia Veterans Multi-Service and Education Center, which runs Walker House. “They have specific needs different from male veterans.’”

6-year trooper with a wife and three children, is charged with seconddegree murder in connection with the April 14 shooting death of 40-yearold Eric Williams, who was unarmed.

The charge is punishable upon conviction by up to life in prison.

The case marks the first time a Michigan State Police trooper has been charged with murder in an onduty shooting, officials said.

Morningstar shot Williams, nicknamed Magoo, once in the chest at 12:30 a.m. in front of a bar after responding to a disturbance call.

Detroit police also responded to the scene and recorded the shooting on an in-car video camera.

The two departments have given conflicting details.

A court file says Williams, whose family said he had mental problems, was harassing customers inside the bar and broke two windows while being escorted from the bar.

Detroit police said in a report that Williams had his pants down around his knees and walked toward Morningstar before the trooper shot him.

But Sgt. Mike Herendeen, president of the Michigan State Police Troopers Association, said Williams was not partially naked. He said Williams’ baggy pants were sliding down as he approached Morningstar, and his hands were in his waist area.

Morningstar said: “Stop.

Show me your hands,” at least twice, according to Herendeen.

“This is not something he wanted to get involved in that night,” Herendeen said. “Certainly this is devastating. He’s charged with a serious crime for essentially doing his job and doing it the way he was trained to do it.”

Changes to welfare payments announced in the Federal Budget will have dire ramifications for western area residents, a leading crisis accommodation provider has warned.

Orana Far West Region Burnside Doorways manager Reg Humphreys has predicted an upsurge in homelessness and poverty as a Calling him a danger to the result of the Budget’s changes.

Under the reforms single community, a Detroit magistrate set a $200,000 bond Tuesday for a mothers, the disabled and the unemployed will have to look for Michigan State Police trooper work or lose their benefits. charged with gunning down a From July next year parents, homeless man. both single and partnered, who A preliminary examination is scheduled for May 23.Morningstar, a receive the parenting payment will

have to look for part-time work once their youngest child turns six.

If they are already on the parenting payment they will continue to receive it until their children turn 16.

But from 2006, newcomers to the payment will be moved to the lower Newstart allowance ($44 a fortnight less) once their child turns six, and they will be required to start looking for work.

“The problem with the Government’s strategy is it is aimed at high-density areas on the coast, with little thought given to people in rural, regional and remote areas,” Mr. Humphreys said.

“The Government’s plan is to cut the incomes in already impoverished households and force people to look for jobs that don’t exist.

“It might work on the coast where there are more jobs but it’s only going to make life harder in the bush.”

Mr. Humphreys is expecting an increase in applications for crisis accommodation as a result of the changes.

Last year Dubbo Burnside Doorways provided emergency accommodation and assistance to more than 550 applicants aged 16 to 25 years.

“You start doing the sums and it won’t be long before more people are forced onto the streets,” he said.

“Public housing rents are going up, tenants are being charged for water and now they are taking $44 a fortnight off single parents.

“All this Budget has done (in the western region) is effectively widen the gap between the haves and have nots.”

Deputy prime minister John Anderson defended the Budget strategies yesterday and said the changes were not aimed at people in genuine need.

“Rather than being a set of punitive measures, we are really trying to help people get back into the paid workforce,” he said.

A caseworker at a homeless services center who was fatally last month by an exemployee of the center has been identified as 49-year-old Bruce Franks of San Mateo, Ca. The suspect in the shooting, 54-year-old Gregory Gray, was terminated from his position at Conard Community Service Center in September, San Francisco police Sgt. Neville Gittens said.

A homicide inspector with the department said it’s likely Gray opened fire inside the center at 154 Ninth St. because he was disgruntled about being fired.

Gray, a San Francisco resident, was armed with a shotgun,

Streetvibes

handgun and an ax when he entered the center around 9 a.m. Monday.

He reportedly shot Franks in the chest and the back with a handgun, then dropped it because it wasn’t working properly, a police officer said.

As Gray allegedly reached for a shotgun, another employee entered the center, saw what was happening and tried to wrestle him to the ground, police reported. A struggle ensued outside and the employee yelled for two homeless men to help.

One of the homeless men helped the employee pin Gray down while the second walked away with the shotgun to make sure Gray did not get a hold of it again.

About that time, an officer arrived on scene and Gray was taken into custody. He was booked into county jail on a homicide charge, police said.

Officer Ian Furminger, who arrived at the scene as the Gray was being pinned down, said if the employee and homeless men hadn’t tackled Gray to the ground, it’s likely many more people would have been shot.

Police have arrested a man in Seabrook, N. H. on a charge that he sexually assaulted a homeless man he reportedly met in church.

Stephen Woodman, 67, is to appear on May 23 in Hampton District Court.

If convicted, Woodman could face up to 15 years in prison.

Police say the 36-year-old homeless man was staying at Woodman’s home when the assault allegedly took place earlier this month.

They say the two had met the previous weekend at a church service in another community.

Some claim San Joaquin County, Ca. homeless veterans are being shortchanged when it comes to programs San Joaquin County veterans say their homeless brethren are not being reached when it comes to Department of Veterans Affairs outreach programs.

Although the VA does offer funds for homeless centers and transitional housing, county veterans say that its just not the case in San Joaquin County.

County Supervisor Steve Gutierrez said he wasn’t aware of any aid the county receives from the department. “But if there is, I’d sure like to have some,” he said.

Last year, some 174 veterans used the Stockton Homeless Shelter, said John Reynolds, director of the Stocktonbased center.

Page 3

Streetvibes Letters

Show your support! Get your STREETVIBES T-Shirt Today!

My wife and I live near enough to the intersection of 13th and Reading Road that we were inconvenienced by the barricade. As residents of the Pendleton neighborhood of O-T-R, we’ve been following closely, since the beginning, the drama of the barricade going up and then coming back down.

Much of what Jimmy Heath said in the article was insightful, (Controversial Anti-Drug Battier Removed, Streetvibes, May 2005), interesting and true, however he neglected the most important truth: The War on Drugs will never be won.

It’s only a matter of time before a truce will be declared in this insane war—similar to Prohibition being repealed. Or the 13th Street barricade coming down.

Mr. Heath said that among the best strategies for fighting crime in residential neighborhoods is that residents should believe the police are committed to a crime-free environment. That’s hard for residents—much less street people— to believe, because the War on Drugs is bread and butter to the police.

David E. Gallaher, Ruthless Gentrifying Rhinarchist Marine Compleat Drug Legalizer, 1315 Spring St, Pendleton Community, already the Indian Hill of Over-the-Rhine-istan, Sinincincinnati (clothing optional), OH 45202

The Zen of Streetvibes

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Shirt not actual size)

Only $15 We will send your Streetvibes T-shirt to your door All proceeds benefit the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless and the Streetvibes newspaper. Call 513.421.7803 x 16, or come in to our office at 117 E 12th Street in Over-the-Rhine Page 4

Streetvibes

by Jimmy Gipson, Streetvibes Vendor There is a message of hopelessness among the homeless, of broken dreams, that torment us and plague our existence.

We all started with a desire to be successful and to succeed.

Somewhere along the way something went wrong. The regrouping of our lives should start with the spiritual guidance from God, where all blessings come from. We can no longer do it for ourselves. He cares for us and we must put him first. God can solve the needs that haunt us, cause us to stay in homelessness.

We must love our self and want it bad enough. We must desire it. It comes from believing in oneself with God leading us. He knows what we need to have a real life. No matter what, He will supply your needs, for God is good. I pray this message helps to heal. Amen. God bless.

A Day in the Life concerned as long as there is

by Mark Cardiff

9am I’ve been vending on and off for about a year. I woke up this morning, got everything together and came in [to The Big Issue office].

I’m staying at a hostel at the moment. It’s the next step from living on the streets but you are still officially no fixed abode, still officially homeless.

I come in and see what pitches (open territories) are available on the board; I’m not too

something half decent. I have three favorite spots – Morgan’s, Church Street and Orange but it could be any of those three.

9:30am onwards I find that on those pitches I’m on a direct line of people coming through and it is the same people that buy it. They will often only buy from one person and they are used to me being on certain pitches.

I’m a very chatty person and ask how they are, it’s not just to sell the magazine, I’m interested in what sort of person they are.

Tales from the Curb

by James Shearer Recently Bread and Jams, an organization that, among other things, runs a drop-in center, was told that they would no longer be able to serve meals in a church that they have been serving meals to the homeless for 20 years. This is just one more chapter in what has become an increasingly pathetic attitude toward homeless and poor people.

When a church shows you the door, there is a problem. For one reason or another, folks just don’t seem or want to care.

Whatever happened to “I am my brother’s keeper”? (Hey, that was in the Bible.) You see the attitude everywhere (Spare Change News doesn’t sell the way it used to).

So what’s the problem, you ask? Well, politics, for one thing.

No one is fighting the good fight anymore in Washington. HUD’s budget has been torn to bits.

Whatever happened to Phil Mangano? You folks remember Phil, don’t you? He was once executive director of the Massachusetts Housing and Shelter Alliance and was chosen by the Bush White House to head up the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness.

Phil fought for the homeless for a long time and showed great promise now that he was in Washington. But Phil has

disappeared. Poor people are at the bottom of the food chain in the Bush White House, and here in Massachusetts it’s no better. Mitt Romney could care less about the poor and homeless; he’s telling everyone within earshot that our state is in great shape. (I’m sorry, but does he live in the same state as me?) Then again, it’s all about politics. Mitt’s gearing up for his run for pres... um, re-election. Yes, that’s right.

Another reason for this attitude is that no one’s fighting back. Back when Spare Change began, we belonged to a group known as HOST (Homeless Organizers Support Team). It was a group that consisted of ourselves, Solutions at Work, Bread & Jams and various other groups. We didn’t always see eye to eye, but we had a common goal: ending homelessness. We kept the subject of homelessness and poor people in the public eye Did we make a difference? I like to think so.

What happened? Well, organizations change, goals become different and people drift apart. So what do we do? Well, movements start with people. The former host organizations (including Spare Change) need to get back on the same page. Forget about the past, and get back to the business of solving the problem of homelessness.

They’ve got me in their head for some reason and it seems a respect thing to make an effort if they come back a few times. It’s good when you are having a bad day too and you see them and know they will buy from you.

A few of them know my name and I know theirs. One gentleman came up to me the other day and said that if I needed a care of address for any post then I could use his and that his cleaner that comes in would be leaving soon if I was interested in taking over. He said not to take it as an insult but as someone who was trying to help out someone else. I was blown

away.

We need to re-educate people about homelessness – its causes and how we can stop it.

We need to organize people to vote for people who just won’t give this topic lip service but will actually try to work with us to address the problem. And if they don’t come, Election Day shows them the door.

We must bring together the haves and have-nots to the same table and encourage them to work together. I know sounds like a pipedream, a useless fight, but a fight nonetheless that Spare Change is willing to fight. One of our board members talks about Spare Change becoming “a voice for the poor.” In order for us to become that voice, we must join together with the other “voices” and become one with them it is only together that we can solve this problem.

Then people – all people – in this country will become the priority. We will stop presidents from sending troops on missions

that are false. Politicians from other states will not be allowed to run for office in Massachusetts just to further their own agendas.

Then hopefully, finally, attitudes will indeed change. People will see that we are all the same, regardless of our lot in life, and should be treated with dignity, respect and fairness – equally.

In the end, isn’t that what we all want? Everyone deserves a home and the right to go to bed with a full belly. People shouldn’t have to choose between food and paying the rent; they should be able to do both. No one deserves to live in the street. Let’s get together, folks. Organize!

James Shearer, a Spare Change News columnist, is a former editor and current vendor of the newspaper.

Reprinted from Spare Change News, Boston, MA ©Street News Service: www.street-papers.org

There’s no exact finishing time for selling the Issue, just whenever you’ve made enough money and sold enough magazines to get the best badge you can, a blue badge [which gives you salesrelated bonuses, such as free tea and coffee]. Sometimes you don’t get near it and sometimes you do, it depends on the public really.

Sometimes you have an hour or so off in the middle and the latest I’ve worked is between about seven and eight o’clock on a really slow day.

Reprinted from The Big Issue Cymru/Southwest, May 2005

All political parties die at last of swallowing their own lies.

Fisher Ames Man is by nature a civic animal.

Aristotle Politics are usually the executive expression of human immaturity.

Vera Brittain The Duty of an Opposition is to oppose.

Sir Randolph Henry Spencer Churchill There are no true friends in politics.

Cicero (Marcus Tullius Cicero) Party honesty is party expediency.

Steven Grover Cleveland Finality is not the language of politics.

Jean Baptiste Colbert In politics nothing is contemptible.

Jean Baptiste Colbert University politics are vicious precisely because the stakes are so small.

Henry Kissinger

Streetvibes

Page 5

Spirit Team

by Mary Gaffney Hello my fellow readers and homeless friends. June is nice because it gives us the opportunity to plan our vacations. For the young children and the young parents of these children there is a new Head Start program that offers hope and safety for our kids. In the midst of violence and abuse to our children there is a silver lining in this program for everyone, including the Spirit Team for younger kids. (Please see

20 YEARS SERVING THE NEIGHBORHOOD

Empowering our neighborhood children through peace, art and education Peaslee Neighborhood Center 215 East 14th Street Over-the-Rhine Cincinnati, Ohio 45202

(513) 621-5514 Page 6

below.) Under the leadership of Terry McFarland, Parent Involvement. Specialist, these programs are available at Union Bethel Head Start.

Miss Mary Gaffney

A Vendors Story Kato has been a vendor of Hecho en Buenos Aires in Argentina for about six months.

I’ve been living on the streets for seven years now, after losing my automobile spare parts business, which went under when the system began to punish the pockets of ordinary workers. First people couldn’t afford cars for going to work and ended up using bikes and then the same worker was in turn replaced by a machine and ended up unemployed or on the streets. No one sells anything to anyone any more.

This year there will probably be 15-20% more people on the streets as this present political system is awful. The socio-economic system destroys you as you have nothing basic- no flat, no job, no partner. Last year, I had a partner but the booze- cheap litre boxes of wine-always led to arguments. Drink and drugs do

Traveling for Inspiration

by Rachel Lawson Cincinnati politicians, police In the beginning of May, I officers, and the business district had the essential opportunity to are continuous expressing concern attend the National Low Income over how Cincinnati comes across Housing Coalitions’ conference, to both its citizens and other states. which was held in Washington, DC. Obviously we are on the radar and There were two key reasons that I others know about us, but what are was deeply motivated and inspired being recognized for. According to by the conference: the message the National Coalition for the delivered by our keynote speaker, Homeless, we ranked as the third Donna Brazile and the reality that “meanest” city in the United States. someone who has received Our own mayor wanted to cut attention in Washington, DC for her human services completely. School ground breaking districts all over actions and attitude is Cincinnati are having very much aware of problems passing their Hamilton County and individual levy’s who our elected because the tax payers officials are. do not want to pay any Donna Brazile more money, even it was such an effects the education of Rachel Lawson inspiration, that she has children. The very basically become my “shera” (she + Senators that we elected are hero). As the first African suggesting a bill that would make it American woman to head a major harder to vote. Recently there was presidential campaign, Donna a Town Hall Forum held to raise Brazile has accomplished what few public awareness about the can even aspire to attempt. proposed state cuts, and only one Currently the Chair of the senator arrived.

Democratic Voting Rights Institute, Unfortunately, there were her message is basically a long lines during the presidential declaration of preserving and election. Another major ensuring the basic rights of all to disappointment was that a lot of vote. Not only does an individual votes were thrown out over minor have the right to vote, but also they issues. It honestly does feel as if have to use that liberty to ensure the votes are not counting. that their other rights (medical, However, as Donna Brazile pointed housing, education, etc) are being out, it’s up to the people to make a protected. difference. The Greater Cincinnati Since November, there have Coalition for the Homeless been a mixture of attitudes about dedicated its time to working at the the political structure of our polls, and every area that we country, state, and city; focused on showed a tremendous unfortunately the bottom line is that increase in the amount of voters. many have given up. Gas prices Ex-felons were finally given correct steadily increase, unemployment information and allowed to vote. rises, affordable housing (based on Homeless individuals were a realistic scale) is diminishing, and registered and steps were taken to moral issues are tearing everyone guarantee that they were not apart. Donna Brazile pointed out hassled. It is our responsibility to that this is not the time to give up, make sure our actions matter. It is regardless of what political party our duty to ensure our votes are you want to have control, continue counted. to fight for what you believe in. your head in and of course you become violent. The magazine has helped pull me away from booze, which I’ve been drinking since I was very young and left my family.

The police used to be dangerous but now they’re better.

In the old days they would take you from the plaza and stick you away for 24 hours, to hide you from the public. Now the dangers on the street vary. In Buenos Aires there are lots of races and attitudes and it’s a place with little prejudice, but there are still problems of marginalisation and aggression.

People let themselves be sucked in to being excluded as they have no culture that tells them otherwise.

The only culture they get is through media but the mass media are

Streetvibes

leading readers and viewers towards a kind of cult of ignorance and irresponsibility. What I see is that where there is culture, there is space for people to be accepted.

But where it is missing, whether the person in question is a lawyer, doctor or street cleaner, people ignore you completely.

Selling the mag is like when I had my own business as it lets me affirm something about myself. You can get a bag of food once a month- rice, pasta, beans, lentils, oil and nothing else. But to be honest food isn’t the main problem in Buenos Aires. The fast food places throw loads of food away and we collect it. Selling the magazine gives me more than just food and that is important.

people I know who have overcome drug and alcohol addiction not at a fancy Spa, but in a program at the doubt any of them has gotten to

by Susan Smith Drop Inn Center. I have gotten to As a young working woman, know a homeless person. This lack know people that suffer from of knowledge does not stop them probably around the early 40’s, my depression and other mental health mother and some of her friends went from judging homeless people, issues as well as many with major generally as lazy people that just to the Smokey Mountains on health problems. I have met people vacation. This was her first trip to the don’t want to work. They resent desperately trying to get a job, at government money (taxes) that goes South and she was shocked at the Linda Corey times it seemed close to tears. I have to social programs to provide signs that indicated place or drinking seen homeless people share shelters, health care, food and fountain were for “White’s Only.” clothing. Some may see them as drug information with others regarding She didn’t realize that Coney Island where they can get clothing, a haircut, and alcohol addicted individuals that in Cincinnati where she lived did not a shower, or some of the basics that either panhandle or break the law allow “colored people” either; they most of us give little thought to. I requiring police presence (more tax just did not have a sign. Black money) to control them and make the have not seen race as a problem. people knew they were not allowed I would not recognize most of streets of downtown Cincinnati safe entrance, or if they went they soon my homeless friends as homeless if I for those with money to come found out, yet, just like my mother did not know it were true. Most are downtown. These are often kind most whites probably did not realize

by Linda Corey clean and appropriately dressed, this. In her 1949 book, Killers of the people who donate to charities that We have to learn to live sober, speak correct English and serve the poor (tax deductible) or Dream, Lillian Smith talks about hoe life on life’s terms. It is a daily engage in conversations on a variety work with their church group to “Folks up North might be routine. We have to practice of subjects. The only way they differ provide a good meal at a facility that embarrassed by the signs. But if patience, tolerance humility. We serves the poor. Students in schools from my non-homeless friends is they you’re smart you can segregate have to leave people where they collect canned goods and sometimes have no money and do not have a without signs…” The North used are and spiritual principles have permanent place to live. These even do community service. to be put in front of personality. It restrictive covenants to segregate When homeless people were friends have enriched my life, given is not easy. If we take it one day without signs. The races live separate seeking shelter under bridges and one me a greater understanding, and I but parallel lives in Cincinnati. at a time all good things come to hope made me a kinder person. local columnist referred to these Racial relations and those who wait. I have 15 Most of us take for granted people as “eye sores” it move me to months clean and I look and fell a opportunities have improved for many basic aspects of life. We African-Americans although we have learn more. I have been coming to lot better. always have access to bathroom Over-the-Rhine for over a year to I’m no longer living under not achieved the dream of Martin facilities, can go to the kitchen and learn the truth about these people.

Luther King. We have parallel a bridge and holding a sign and get a snack at two in the morning if Although I know this area of town is societies that exist in Cincinnati and sleeping on concrete. I am not we wake up hungry, don’t worry throughout the country and the world often very unsafe, I have never felt living an unmanageable life. I about a safe place to sleep for the afraid and have at times walked today. One of these has to do with have an apartment now and I’m night, and transportation to the too large a segment of our society around alone or with a homeless doing my meetings and talking appointments or work is fairly easy. friend. I have never met a homeless that is homeless or on the verge of with my sponsor. I pray and I person that I was afraid of although I Even having access to a simple homelessness. Many of you reading talk with my pastor. aspirin for a headache can be difficult have been saddened by the this probably live in a comfortable I have a sense of humor conditions we want them to live in. I to come by. The homeless do not section of town as I do. My friends and I try to make people laugh. have eaten at the Drop Inn Center. I need more bologna sandwiches and and neighbors give little thought to Laughter to me is the best donated bread products, they need have met some of the most courage what it is like to be homeless and I medicine. living wage jobs.

My view on the Homeless

Recovering from a mood, mind altering drug.

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Performances by local artists, praise dancers, and various church choirs including: True Praise St. Mark Christian Fellowship Samaria AGAPE Mighty Men (male chorus) ..... and more Call 421-7803 x 16 for more information

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Conference...

Cont. from Page 1 INSP now has two full time staff based in Glasgow, Scotland; an executive director and a secretariat.

Other important news is the support of the Scottish government for the INSP office and staff with partial funding for the next three years, but there are still tough years ahead.

The North American Street Newspaper Association, based here in the US, (NASNA) is working with the INSP to create a collaborative relationship, hopefully, to bring strength to both groups through unity and sharing of resources.

Next year’s conference will be held in Montreal in order to create easier access for north American street papers and to continue these collaborative discussions.

Buenos Aires Argentina is not without its problems - recent years have been steeped in political and economic strife - but the vibrancy of the city and its people seems to thrust these issues well into the background.

I climbed the fire exit to the roof of the Hotel BAUEN in Buenos Aires, where I and most of the conference attendees stayed, to get a view and some photos. The city of 9 million inhabitants seems to go on forever - sprawling and vast, as far as the eye can see, even from my bird’s eye view from the roof of the hotel.

The city and this country has - although I haven’t been everywhere - become one of my favorite places.

It’s the beginning of autumn there, (May) and the weather, as the Argentines say, is fantastico. The street during the day is filled with people shopping and working, crowding each other on the sidewalks. The city is easily accessible by walking or by the inexpensive and efficient subway, or by cheap taxis that crowd the streets day and night.

Buenos Aires’ physical structure is a mosaic as varied and diverse as its culture. There are the many inner-city neighborhoods, each serving the resident tenants but also providing a distinctive village, such as the music district – where you can buy a guitar or violin at half the USA price. There are high rise buildings, but not on the intimidating, and light blocking scale of New York City.

There is the Monolith, the Plaza de Mayo and the Ricolto Cemetery, the burying grounds for the Duarte family and Evita Peron.

Buenos Aires is composed of many small places, intimate details, fantastic restaurants and tiny events and interactions, each with a slightly different shade, shape, and character.

Cafes are everywhere, most with tables on the street. The city’s neighborhoods are small and highly individualized each with its own

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characteristic colors and forms, restaurants and coffee shops. The coffee comes from espresso machines, and the beef comes from the rich Pampas grasslands – the best beef and steaks in the world come from Argentina. The cattle are grown on the vast western plains of Argentina, and they free range on the rich grasses of the prairie, not on corn or hormones as in the US. The port city of Buenos Aires, which stretches south-to-north along the Rio de la Plata, has been the gateway to Argentina for centuries. Portenos, as the multinational people of Buenos Aires are known, possess an elaborate and rich cultural identity. They value their European heritage - Italian and German names outnumber Spanish, and the lifestyle and architecture are markedly more European than any other in South America.

The arts are an important part of Buenos Aires life. At the depth of the recession, the government still made grants to performing artists and arts programs.

The Hotel BAUEN The Hotel BAUEN has an interesting history and was appropriate as a host for our conference.

It went bankrupt in the middle of 2001 during the Argentine economic crisis. The hotel closed and salaries were unpaid for hotel workers for 14 months. The employees decided to join forces and they founded a cooperative with the goal of reopening the hotel.

On March 21, 2003 Hotel BAUEN workers gathered at night at the intersection of Corrientes and Callao Streets in downtown Buenos Aires, a block away from the hotel.

They walked the short distance to the hotel and entered the building and switched on the lights. The former hotel workers hugged each other and succeeded in the first step of their recuperation process: occupation.

Yet the hotel was far from being in working condition. A lot of the materials and equipment had been sold by the previous owners or stolen. Today the Hotel BAUEN is an integral part of the center of downtown Buenos Aires - a symbol of the struggle of the worker and the poor of all the countries that the street newspaper movement represents.

The workers cooperative Hotel BAUEN is considered a must for civil rights workers and human rights representatives from around the world as the place to host conferences.

Hopefully, next year’s INSP conference in Montreal will again provide a reminder to all of us working in the street newspaper movement that although we speak different languages and our world cultures are different, the people and vendors we serve as advocates share the same struggles across the globe.

Buenos Aires at sunrise

Nobel Prize winner Aldolfo Esquivel addresses conference

INSP conference attendees listen to guest speakers

Homeless in Buenos Aires

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Newsweek, the Quran and the “Green Mushroom” Following the real rules of modern journalism

Newsweek was right to retract the Quran story—mainly because the magazine claimed to Newsweek ran a have “sources” for the information, sensational claim based on an when Newsweek’s subsequent anonymous source who turned out to be completely wrong. While one descriptions of how it acquired the can’t blame the subsequent violence story mention only a single source.

But it’s far from clear that entirely on this report, it’s fair to say that credulous reporting like this Newsweek’s source was inaccurate in saying that U.S. investigators had contributed to a climate in which uncovered abuse of a Quran in the many innocent Muslims died. course of a recent investigation; The inaccurate Newsweek similar allegations have repeatedly report appeared in the magazine’s been made by former Guantanamo March 17, 2003 issue, on the eve prisoners (Washington Post, 3/26/ of the invasion of Iraq. It read in part: “Saddam could decide to take 03; London Guardian, 12/3/03; Daily Mirror, 3/12/04; Center for Baghdad with him. One Arab Constitutional Rights, 8/4/04; La intelligence officer interviewed by Gazette du Maroc, 4/12/05; New Newsweek spoke of ‘the green York Times, 5/1/05; BBC, 5/2/05; mushroom’ over Baghdad—the cites compiled by Antiwar.com, 5/ modern-day caliph bidding a grotesque bio-chem farewell to the 16/05).

Denials by the U.S. military land of the living alongside thousands of his subjects as well as that such incidents have occurred mean little; when any government his enemies. Saddam wants to be remembered. He has the means and holds prisoners in violation of the demonic imagination. It is up to international law, and denies them access to independent counsel or U.S. armed forces to stop him before he can achieve notoriety for human rights groups, assertions by that government about how the all time.” prisoners are being treated can be Unlike a more recent Newsweek item (5/9/05), involving given little weight. Eric Saar, a former U.S. Army sergeant who accusations that Guantanamo served as a translator at interrogators flushed a copy of the Guantanamo, has accused the Quran down a toilet, Newsweek Pentagon of engaging in organized has yet to retract the bogus report about the “green mushroom” threat. efforts there to deceive outsiders: Citing a new book by Saar, the The magazine’s Quran charge has been linked to rioting in Afghanistan Washington Post reported (4/29/ 05) that “the U.S. military staged and elsewhere that has left at least the interrogations of terrorism 16 dead; alarmist coverage like suspects for members of Congress Newsweek’s about Saddam and other officials visiting the Hussein’s nonexistent weapons of mass destruction paved the way for military prison in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, to make it appear the an invasion that has caused, government was obtaining valuable according to the best intelligence.” epidemiological research available It’s certainly not the case (Lancet, 11/20/04), an estimated that the Pentagon has been so 100,000 deaths.

attentive to Muslim sensitivities that such treatment of a Quran would be unthinkable. The Pentagon’s deputy undersecretary for intelligence is Lt. Gen. William Boykin, who is notorious for suggesting that Allah was “an idol.” and saying that the United States’ enemies were led by “Satan,” and would “only be defeated if we come against them in the name of Jesus.” It was Boykin who reportedly ordered the coercive interrogation methods.used at Guantanamo to be used at Iraq’s Abu Ghraib as well (London Guardian, 5/20/04).

It has been repeatedly said—including by Newsweek itself, in its initial apology (5/23/ 05)—that the magazine’s source erred in saying that the Quran incident was contained in a report for the Pentagon’s Southern Command. In fact, the original report said that the incident was

“expected” to be in the report—an expectation that could have easily been altered by the fact that the explosive allegation became public.

Newsweek’s retraction of the Quran story, contrasted with the lack of any correction of its “green mushroom” claim and other similarly erroneous WMD coverage, is quite illustrative of the actual rules—quite different from the ostensible rules that are taught in journalism school—that govern contemporary journalism: * Anonymous sources are fine, as long as they are promoting rather than challenging official government policy. * It’s all right for your reporting to be completely wrong, as long as your errors are in the service of power. * The human cost of bad reporting need only be counted when people who matter are doing the counting.

Got The Vibe?

World Press Freedom Day Opens Conference World Press Freedom Day on May 3 2005, marked the opening of the 10th international conference of the INSP in Argentina.

The event which brought together street paper members from all over the world including new prospective start up papers in South America.

The conference which was opened by INSP president Mel Young focused on how street papers can develop a unified voice for the socially marginalised and how they can effectively bring the crucial development issues facing

the world to public attention.

The 4 day conference, hosted by Argentinean street paper Hecho en Buenos Aries, also saw the official launch of the Street News Service, which will now enter its second phase of operation which will include forming relationships with the ‘mainstream’ media.

Vice President of the International Organisation of Journalists (IOJ), Mr Osvaldo Urriolabetia was one of the key note speakers along with Nobel Peace Prize winner, Adofo Perez Esquivel, journalists and Andrew Graham Yooll among others.

The liberty of the press is a blessing when we are inclined to write against others, and a calamity when we find ourselves overborne by the multitude of our assailants.

Samuel Johnson

This beautiful, original artwork depicts the vibrant role that Streetvibes plays in downtown Cincinnati and neighboring communities. Created by local artist and activist Mary Ann Lederer in collage form, this colorful 18" X 10" reproduction can be yours to own for only $10. Commemorating Streetvibes 100th issue, proceeds from this limited time offer will go to support the Streetvibes Program and Vendors.

To order, call the Homeless Coalition at 421-7803

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Nuking Democracy At the height of the nuclear arms race, those who marched against it used to say that in the ashes of a nuclear war, no one could tell a capitalist from a communist. “Not necessarily,” others would joke, “Richard Perle could tell.” For Perle, even total annihilation would have its victors and losers, and he knew which side he wanted to be on.

Perle has continued to preach the virtues of usable nuclear weapons while helping orchestrate our invasion of Iraq. Now he’s a key allied strategist of an administration willing to obliterate democracy itself if they don’t get their way on judicial nominees and everything else. I’m thinking of the ease with which Trent Lott, Bill Frist, and other Republicans have talked of a “nuclear option” to intimidate the Democrats into capitulating on every right wing judge that Bush sends to Congress.

Although Republicans have backed off from using the phrase since it began polling negative, it may reveal more than they intended about their Party.

They don’t just seek to enact particular programs, but have done their best to turn politics into total war, seeking to annihilate the opposition completely.

Their talk of political nuclear strikes in fact goes further than the actual Cold War arms race. The logic of Mutually Assured Destruction was at least partly defensive, even if its brinksmanship almost destroyed the planet. The Soviets wouldn’t attack us for risk of being annihilated. We’d do the same.

A precarious balance would hold. Of course the US didn’t just use nuclear weapons for nuclear deterrence: We brandished them against the Chinese in Korea and offered them to the French in Vietnam. Nixon, through Kissinger, threatened their use on North Vietnam if they didn’t surrender, then backed off in response to massive US anti-war demonstrations. But with the exception of people like Perle and Herman Kahn, our leaders mostly justified ultimate risks in the name of preventing an ultimate cataclysm.

So what is the threat that merits blowing up 200 years of the Senate’s right to require more than a bare majority to confirm lifetime judicial nominees?

That they might only get 95% of their nominees through? That Republican presidents would end up with just an overwhelming majority of judges already appointed, and not every single one?

That someone somewhere might not bend to their will? The only threat they’re facing is resistance to their absolute power, but that now seems to be threat enough.

Honorable conservatives used to warn against the raw power of the state. It was Lord Acton who wrote, “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.”

But now that the political right controls more and more of our key institutions, the love of power has become their religion, and the slightest notion of checks or balances heretical treason.

In relations with the world, this administration has pulled out of every international rule and treaty from global warming, to bio terrorism, to land mines—substituting

Voices of Africa to be Heard by World Leaders

a rule of raw force that insists we can do whatever we choose because God is on our side. John Bolton as UN nominee just flaunts this approach. Now this administration is trying the same thing on the domestic front.

Surrender or be obliterated.

The filibuster hasn’t always been used for good. It was a prime tool of Southern segregationists blocking civil right bills promoted in part by moderate Republicans. But to annihilate 200 years of tradition simply because you happen to hold the reins of power is to worship this power as a God. They may not be destroying the world to save it, but they’d be perfectly content with the ashes of democracy.

Paul Loeb is the author of The Impossible Will Take a Little While: A Citizen’s Guide to Hope in a Time of Fear (Basic Books), named the #3 political book of 2004 by the History Channel and American Book Association, and of Soul of a Citizen See www.theimpossible.org

Although millions of Africans world’s leaders. It is vital that the G8 will be affected by the decisions

by Izzy Kaminski, Cathryn Scott coalition of human rights groups – made at the summit, not a single listens to the people of Africa, and The views and experiences of which also includes Oxfam and representative of the continent will be that they recognize their rights, spirit millions of people living in poverty in Amnesty International – pressuring present. Get On Board is aiming to and potential and agree a way to Africa will be heard by the leaders of governments to put an end to this. examine how issues of trade, aid and make poverty history. the world’s richest countries as part The coalition wants to see debt are affecting African people and “[The project] will take a of a new project by campaign group international leaders change unjust to provide a voice for them.

ActionAid. trade rules that keep people locked in close look at how the daily lives of Brendan O’Donnell is youth men, women and children are Staff from ActionAid recently poverty; fully cancel the debts owed commenced a 12,000km, threeby the poorest countries; and to affected by the big issues of trade, aid campaigns manager for ActionAid UK and is also one of the crew of the month journey that will see a specially deliver more and better aid to people and debt and how they are bus. He said: “Get On Board is responding to the challenges of HIV adapted bus travel from South Africa in developing countries. going to be an amazing adventure. As and AIDS, conflict and education. to Scotland in time for the annual G8 The 16-seater bus has been we travel through Africa collecting Once in the UK the bus will summit in Gleneagles in July. On its decorated with a Make Poverty messages for the G8 leaders we pass through several cities including way, it will collect thousands of History white band and the Get On expect to meet incredible people with London and Glastonbury, finally messages, photographs and stories Board logo and is staffed by a crew unbelievable stories – of tragedy as from people in six African counties – of ActionAid representatives. The arriving at Gleneagles in Scotland in time for the G8 summit on July 6 to 8. well as passion and real hope.”

South Africa, Mozambique, Malawi, bus will meet Africans in both urban The Big Issue Cymru/South West The world’s eight richest countries – Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda – and rural areas, visiting development will be following the progress of the United States, Japan, Germany, which it will present to the annual projects, musical events and the bus with regular updates.

France, Britain, Italy, Canada and meeting of the leaders in Scotland. demonstrations, in order to get a www.actionaid.org/getonboard Dubbed Get On Board, the fuller picture of the public and private Russia – will be joined by Reprinted from The Big Issue project is part of ActionAid’s ongoing realities of the lives of African people. representatives from the EU and will Cymru/South West ©Street News commitment to the Make Poverty Ramesh Singh, ActionAid discuss a range of international economic, political, and social issues, Service: www.street-papers.org History campaign. Around 50,000 International’s chief executive said: including how to address world people die each day as a direct result “ActionAid is exposing the injustice The wish to spread those poverty. of poverty and ActionAid is among a of poverty in Africa direct to the opinions that we hold conducive to our own welfare is so deeply The International Network of just three months. The concept material being made available to other rooted in our character that few of us can escape its influence.

Street Papers (INSP), the behind the SNS is to share media organisations, including the Samuel Butler representative organisation for photographs and articles between mainstream press who INSP believe We want men to rule the nation publications which provide income to members of the networks, thereby would benefit enormously from news who care more for and love homeless and marginalised people creating even more readership while and features directly from the coal better the nation’s welfare than helping to save on costs. face. around the world, has begun to trial gold and silver, fame or The SNS is currently available to all For more information on the SNS or its much talked about news service popularity. if you are interested in receiving this called the Street News Service paid-up members of INSP and Brigham Young NASNA and is being offered at wire service when it becomes more (SNS) in conjunction with the North It is a general popular error to American Street Newspapers 100% discount during the six month widely available, please contact Lisa suppose the loudest complainers trial thereafter a sliding scale will be Maclean.

Association (NASNA). for the public to be the most introduced based on the individual Contact: Lisa Maclean, SNS CoThe SNS which was anxious for its welfare. ordinator at launched with just 3 active papers has organisation’s ability to pay.

EdmondBurke l.maclean@street-papers.org already mushroomed to 10 papers in Phase 2 of the trial will see the

INSP joins forces with NASNA to trial SNS

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Double Stigma for Gay Community

by Carrie Briffett People with a learning disability who are also lesbian, gay or bisexual are almost certain to be bullied or harassed as a direct result of their sexuality, according to a new study. And researchers at Bristol University also found that a lack of specialist support was having a direct result on the mental, emotional and sexual health of those questioned, with many reporting depression and loneliness.

Academics at the university’s Norah Fry Research Centre, working in partnership with Terrence Higgins Trust and REGARD – a national organisation for disabled gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people – found that significant barriers were put in the way of people with learning difficulties in consenting same sex relationships.

Although many respondents said they wanted to fall in love and have more gay and lesbian friends, they felt the gay scene was unwelcoming to them and that staff working for many of the services that support people with learning difficulties were reluctant to see this work as part of their jobs.

David Abbott, research fellow at the Norah Fry Research Centre, said: “Despite the very many messages telling men and women with learning difficulties that it is a problem for them to be sexual at all – never mind gay, lesbian, or bisexual – people were forging their lives and identities and striving to lead full sexual and emotional lives.

“However, much work needs to be done to ensure that the human rights of people with learning difficulties who are gay, lesbian or bisexual are upheld and supported.”

Sue Peters, regional manager at Terrence Higgins Trust West, said: “This research has uncovered much of what was previously hidden in the lives and experiences of people with learning difficulties.

“I am sure there are more challenges ahead before this issue can be said to be properly tackled.”

Reprinted from The Big Issue Cymru/Southwest, ©Street News Service: www.street-papers.org

The plight and blight of homeless Kansas City - Some time ago I offered the opinion that the homeless really aren’t all that big a problem downtown.

It’s a problem for them, of course, but not for most of us who live or work downtown.

Well, the very next day I was sitting here in my cubicle at the newspaper. Out my window, I watched a homeless fellow stop and rummage through a garbage can in the park across the street.

He was looking for aluminum cans and came up empty. But he did retrieve a takeout box of food from the trash can. And I watched as he walked on, taking bites from the box as he went.

After just a few steps and a few bites, he closed the box and nonchalantly tossed it on the grass in the park. Then he continued on his way.

I hate litter anyway. But this little scene also felt like a personal rebuke to my previous day’s column – right out my own window!

Whatever it was, something made me jump up and hurry down two flights of stairs to catch the guy. I wanted to understand him.

I caught up with him as he fished cans from the trash outside Union Station. I introduced myself, and he readily agreed to step inside for a visit.

Eugene Payne and I shared a bench in the train station lobby. His clothes were shabby but neat and odor-free. I was immediately struck by how well spoken he was. Imagine Morgan Freeman playing a homeless guy.

I told him right off that I was irked to see him throw trash on the ground. Almost before I got the words out, he was explaining.

“That’s unusual for me. It sure was,” he said. “Usually I would look for the next trash can.”

So why didn’t he?

“I guess it was a little anger and resentment in me – about the situation in general that I’m going through,” he said.

Oh, great – homeless Dr. Phil.

He’s processing his emotions over trash-can potato salad.

Eugene said he’s 43 and grew up in California, where he was a pretty good high school athlete. He has been in Dallas since 1991 and has been homeless most all that time.

He said he likes collecting cans because it keeps him in shape and avoids the humiliation of panhandling. Sometimes he makes decent money delivering handbills to homes. In fact, he said he had such a job waiting in Fort Worth.

I asked for his solution to the homeless problem. “That’s a tough one to answer,” he said. “A lot of these people are substance abusers, and it would really take some of their own initiative to make a change.”

Gently, I asked if that included him. “Yes, that includes me,” he replied without hesitation.

Though he uses drugs at times, he said, alcohol has been his downfall. “It’s a problem, but I feel like it’s something I can get on top of,” he said. Suddenly something clicked in my mind. He had mentioned Fort

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Worth and playing sports and being open to recovery. I remembered my visit earlier this year with former pro football player John Corker, who was overcoming addiction and encouraging others at the Salvation Army shelter in Fort Worth.

I said: “Would you like me to take you to Fort Worth? I know a place you could stay and someone you would really like to meet.”

Eugene looked a little shocked. “Right now?” he said.

“Sure,” I said. “I’ll drive you over.”

“Well, uh. ...” He smiled nervously. “That’s a little sudden.”

He was really fidgeting now.

“Well, that might be good one day,” he said. “But not today, I don’t believe.”

I could see he wasn’t going to budge – and I was reminded again that there are no easy answers to homelessness.

We shook hands in parting, and I wished him well. He went on with his search for cans. And I stopped back by the park and picked up his trash.

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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 Vendors must not tell customers earned. 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 go to the individual vendor.

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 selfsufficiency 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

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

Let it be impressed upon your minds, let it be instilled into your children, that the liberty of the press is the palladium of all the civil, political, and religious rights.

Junius The free press is the mother of all our liberties and of our progress under liberty.

Adlai E. Stevenson Our liberty depends on the freedom of the press, and that cannot be limited without being lost.

Thomas Jefferson The press is not only free, it is powerful. That power is ours. It is the proudest that man can enjoy.

Benjamin Disraeli

Bush Administration Shifts Funding from Anti-Poverty Programs to Religion-Based Groups Bush administration policies have shifted funding from traditional federal anti-poverty programs to faith-based groups. As a result, many small church- and community-based social service programs are obtaining increased funding while the President’s 2006 budget proposal includes deep cuts to public housing subsidies, food stamps, energy assistance, community development,

social services and community block grants. It proposes increasing funding for religion-based programs by $385 million. More than $2 billion in grants to such programs was awarded in 2004, nearly double the amount spent in 2003. “This is going to increase the competition for available funds,” said Douglas Rice, director of housing and community development policy for Catholic Charities USA.

Class Mobility Greater in Continental Europe, Canada As Gap Between Rich and Poor Widens in U.S. The gap between the rich and the poor has widened in the U.S. since 1970 while economic mobility has remained stagnant.

According to recent research, a typical child born in poverty in continental Europe or Canada in recent decades is more likely to achieve economic prosperity than his U.S. counterpart.

In fact, while more than 80 percent of the sons of unskilled men moved to higher-paying, higher-status occupations in the late 19th century in the U.S., only 14 percent of the men

born to fathers on the bottom 10 percent of the wage ladder made it to the top 30 percent in the late 20th century.

A growing body of research is finding that 45 to 60 percent of a parent’s advantage in income is passed along to children. Race is also a factor in U.S. economic mobility: 17 percent of whites born to the bottom 10 percent of families ranked by income remained there as adults, while 42 percent of AfricanAmericans did.

Report: More Than One-Third of Prime-Age Minmum Wage Workers Get Trapped in Low-Paying Jobs A recent report finds that 36.6 percent of prime-age workers (ages 25-54) in minimum wage jobs get stuck in low-wage jobs for at least three years. This is especially true during periods of higher unemployment and stagnant wage growth. Most minimum wage workers are prime-age workers. In

the eight years since the last increase to the minimum wage, its $5.15 value has decreased by one-sixth, in inflation-adjusted terms.

A person working full-time for minimum wage earns just $10,300, substantially lower than the $13,020 federal poverty threshold for a one-parent, one-child family.

HOW TO STAY YOUNG 1. Throw out nonessential numbers. This includes age, weight and height. Let the doctor worry about them.. That is why you pay him/ her.

2. Keep only cheerful friends. The grouches pull you down.

3. Keep learning. Learn more about the computer, crafts, gardening, whatever. Never let the brain idle. “An idle mind is the devil’s workshop,” And the devil’s name is Alzheimer’s.

4. Enjoy the simple things.

5. Laugh often, long and loud. Laugh until you gasp for breath.

6. The tears happen. Endure, grieve, and move on. The only person who is with us our entire life, is God. Be ALIVE while you are alive.

7. Surround yourself with what you love, whether it’s family, pets, keepsakes, music, plants, hobbies, whatever. Your home is your refuge.

8. Cherish your health: If it is good, preserve it.

If it is unstable, improve it. If it is beyond what you can improve, get help.

9. Don’t take guilt trips. Take a trip to the mall, to the next county, to a foreign country, but NOT to where the guilt is.

10. Tell the people you love that you love them, at every opportunity.

AND ALWAYS REMEMBER: Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.

INSP - A UNITED VOICE AGAINST POVERTY

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

The network has been built on the back of the incredible success of street papers throughout the world.

Most operate mainly as small non-profit making businesses, which give homeless vendors the opportunity to earn a living through their own efforts.

Street papers have a philosophy of “a hand up, not a handout.”

Homeless people buy the magazine and keep between 50% and 70% of the cover price.

The core philosophy of INSP is that all post-investment profits generated by the papers should be used to provide social support for homeless people.

Streetvibes

INSP is a unique global organisation which links developed and developing countries that strongly believe in exchanging know-how. Partnerships and links are formed across the board, both regionally and internationally. Many members link through consultancy, training and experience exchange, which encourages better-developed social businesses. The key to all these projects is self-help and empowerment.

All street papers are supported locally by businesses, local government and institutions and, most importantly, by local people.

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Thank you, too

By Jesse James No words could even say, or feel The love I see In your every smile The comfort The shining feeling I get When I think, hear, or see you Please, Lord, have mercy and help me To be a better friend, To all who need me.

Thank you!!!

I do Love you 4 ever yours I hope and pray

A Personal Darkness byJH The rising voice speaks of a dreadful past, an anger that hides.

Lurking invisible, revealed by the press of a challenge.

The grown man, unborn, reeling from a personal darkness.

What is this presenting creature, who brings a hidden madness?

Ignored? Abused? Dominated?

The grown man, unborn, reeling from a personal darkness.

The tattered garments, the eyes, the anger.

A broken human, wanting to be heard, nothing more.

The grown man, unborn, reeling from a personal darkness.

The scars of a history in the hands, the broken nails.

The broken voice that swells but does not speak.

The grown man, unborn, reeling from a personal darkness.

Bluez 4 Jesse

By Jesse James To the past All those I do love Don’t be mad I’ve chose To rise above All the sad memories and dreams That I Want to forget So it may seem that why will be 4 regret That I may deem To even speak of, again So don’t cry When I sin But I, Will enjoy All my Days like a baby boy Who has received The greatest gift That could be believed Or maybe a myth?

Friends, Until the end What more, Could a lonely man Hope and pray for Now, may I understand

Death by Detachment

by JH What is this other world on the Corner?

Of violent and menacing gestures, and growling peril.

And bloated pockets, filled with danger.

The bulky shells, and anger gone wild, fill the street with deadly void, inside and outside the soul, with and without spirit.

Clashing on the gray, the staggering limbs askew, twirling, menacing, frightened, of the blue and white shadow.

Tomorrow is a hazard, out of reach, on a dusty shelf.

Beyond the dream of home, and mom, and warming family.

To get there is a nonsense dream, in TV land and liars, peddling another place, a vision beyond reach.

The Blues 4 Josey

By Jesse James Once upon a dream Freedom was meant to be But Society’s cruel reality took it away from me So, like a wounded dove I walk alone Unaware of true love Tied to the stone.

These blue eyes Have see to much pain I don’t know why I like the rain.

I guess the feeling Is better than nothing.

Where is my dream?

Page 14

On the Run

By Jesse James Well, it has become evident to me, that I have come full circle Not all my thoughts were fantasies There was a feeling, I had A few smiles, I had seen that made me believe that maybe I might be onto something Way beyond, my wildest dreams So, I am humbled too.

I don’t feel all alone. Anywhere I really don’t know anymore than before But I have met some beautiful people I always say, I don’t believe in luck “Luck is for losers” Well I feel very lucky

Streetvibes

Shutter Speed

by Jimmy Heath

I’m Ready

by Robert Manassa I often wonder if there is such a place as Heaven.

If I’ll reach it at a Seven Eleven?

If I’m lucky, homeward bound I will be My mother and father I hope to see.

I’m ready No one knows the day or the hour that God will come Question is asked; will it be the morn or setting of the sun?

Get ready al people here on earth Are you ready for a rebirth I’m ready He’s not only coming for the rich, but the poor too When all is said and done all will get their just due Don’t forget to pray both day and night When we do we’ll receive all that’s just and right I’m ready

by Jessica Brock By the breath of life Stands a silent cry For the hopeless and homeless 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.

Woman on street, Buenos Aires, Argentina Untitled

By Jesse James Dear diary, Guess who?

Would you believe?

That friends, Could be so true!!!

What more can I say.

Except, that maybe Some of dreams, may Become reality.

So, thank you All my friends I’ll try and stay true, Just like you, To the end.

Untitled

by Elaine Whitaker 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.

CHILD OF THE UNIVERSE I firmly believe that mother universe will provide all that I am in need of to sustain this life of mine.

Each of us can harness the talents and energies to accomplish everything we set for ourselves as a goal.

We are each in the space and place we belong in.

Where we are and where we are headed is already pre-destined.

It has been determined by the seeds we have sewn in this life and by those of the past. Its success depends on how well we attend to the crop we have planted within us.

When in doubt we must speak truthfully.......in all matters love every one with a open hand......even when it is painful to do so ......look into tomorrow and do what is for the good of all.......including you.

Writers!

Submit your Poetry to STREETVIBES email your writing to

Great care should be taken of what you manifest.

Do not speak or act anything negative into existence...Knowingly refrain from these activities.

Streetvibes@juno.com

Streetvibes

Page 15

357-4602

Formed in 1984, The Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless is a membership organization. Our member groups serve the homeless through emergency shelter, transitional living facilities, permanent housing, medical services, social services, soup kitchens, and mental health/addiction services.

The Coalition also consists of individual citizens who want to take an active role in ensuring that Cincinnati is an inclusive community, meeting the needs of all of its citizens. Join the fight to end homelessness; contact the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless at (513) 421-7803, 117 East 12th Street Cincinnati, Ohio 45202

SHELTER: Both Anthony House (Youth)

SHELTER: Men City Gospel Mission 241-5525 Garden St. House 241-0490 Joseph House (Veterans) 241-2965 St. Francis/St.Joseph House 381-4941 Mt. Airy Center 661-4620 Volunteers of Amer. 381-1954

SHELTERS: Women and Children YWCA Battered Women’s Shelter 872-9259 (Toll Free) 1-888-872-9259 Bethany House 557-2873 Salvation Army 762-5660 Welcome Hse. 859-431-8717 Women’s Crisis Center 859-491-3335

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

OTHER SERVICES: AIDS Volunteers of Cincinnati 421-2437 Appalachian Identity Center 621-5991 Beech Acres 231-6630 Center for Independent Living Options 241-2600 Churches Active in Northside 591-2246 Cincinnati Health Network 961-0600 Community Action Agency 569-1840 Contact Center 381-4242 Emanuel Center 241-2563

TREATMENT: Both N.A. Hopeline 820-2947 A.A. Hotline 351-0422 C.C.A.T. 381-6672 Talbert House 684-7956 Transitions, Inc 859-491-4435 VA Domiciliary 859-559-5011 DIC Live-In Program 721-0643

TREATMENT: Men Charlie’s 3/4 House 784-1853 Prospect House 921-1613 Starting Over 961-2256

TREATMENT: Women First Step Home 961-4663 Full Circle Program 721-0643

HOUSING: CMHA 721-4580 Excel Development 632-7149 Miami Purchase 241-0504 OTR Housing Net. 369-0004 ReSTOC 381-1171 Tender Mercies 721-8666 Tom Geiger House 961-4555 Dana Transitional Bridge Services, Inc 751-9797

Caracole (AIDS) 761-1480 Friars Club 381-5432 Drop Inn Center 721-0643 Haven House 863-8866 Interfaith Hospitality 471-1100 Lighthouse Youth Center (Teens) 961-4080 St. John’s Housing 651-6446

Need Help or Want to Help?

MIDDLETOWN/HAMILTON (Butler County) St. Raphaels (Food Bank/Soup Kitchen) 863-3184 Salvation Army 863-1445 Serenity House Day Center 422-8555 Open Door Pantry 868-3276 New Life Baptist Mission (Soup Kitchen) 896-9800 Hope House (Homeless Families/Singles) 423-4673

Freestore/ Foodbank 241-1064 Fransiscan Haircuts 651-6468 Goodwill Industries 771-4800 Coalition for the Homeless 421-7803 Hamilton Co. Mental Health Board 946-8600 Mental Health Access Point 558-8888 Hamilton Co. TB Control 632-7186 Health Rsrc. Center 357-4602 Homeless Mobile Health Van 352-2902 House of Refuge Mission 221-5491 Legal Aid Society 241-9400 Madisonville Ed. & Assis.

Center 271-5501 Mary Magdalen House 721-4811 McMicken Dental Clinic 352-6363 Our Daily Bread 621-6364 Peaslee Neighborhood Center 621-5514 Project Connect Homeless Kids 357-5720 St. Vincent De Paul 562-8841 The Emergency Food Center 471-4357 Travelers Aid 721-7660 United Way 721-7900 VA Homeless 859-572-6226 Women Helping Women 872-9259

JUNE 2005

Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless

*Streetvibes Investigates: Legitimate News Story or Hoax? *International Street Newspaper Conference

This month

BUY FROM BADGED VENDORS ONLY

STREETVIBES

$1 Donation