Streetdate: March 30, 2020 Vol. 28 No. 13
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Supporting your vendor and StreetWise as we navigate the COVID-19 outbreak - A letter from StreetWise's CEO Our team at StreetWise and our vendors are monitoring the news of closures, supply shortages and the rise of telecommuting as it impacts our services and their livelihood. With fewer people leaving their homes to purchase magazines, vendors in housing will struggle to make rent and face eviction, while those on the streets will be unable to meet their basic needs. We need your help to continue to support our hardworking StreetWise vendors who rely on the sale of StreetWise Magazine. We intend to keep our doors open as long as possible at a time when many places are closing so we can: • Continue to provide meals, food-to-go and hygiene supplies • Provide access to restrooms with plenty of soap, clean water and toilet paper It is imperative that we continue on as a resource for our vendors at this time. And we need your support to make this happen. • Purchase the magazine with cash or VENMO (@streetwise) when you see a StreetWise vendor. • Purchase a digital issue of the magazine from your vendor or purchase a subscription online at www.streetwise.org/support-us/buy-the-magazine • Contribute to the Vendor in Reach fund to keep our doors open for vendors to have a safe space and access basic needs such as food, hygiene supplies, and access to restrooms (with soap, water, and toilet paper) and a place to charge their phones at www. streetwise.org/donate, or mail the form below. • Purchase a T-shirt at www.giveashirt.net with 100% of the profits benefiting StreetWise. • Visit www.streetwise.org/support-us/immediate-needs/ to purchase items that our vendors need while they sell the magazine and in their personal lives. • Contribute to our Brown Bag Program that provides food-to-go so vendors can avoid communal food programs and still attend to their basic needs at www.streetwise.org/ donate or mail the form below. • Follow us on social media (Facebook: StreetWiseChicago / Twitter & Instagram: @ StreetWise_Chi) and share our updates to encourage others to support us during this unprecedented time of need. We appreciate your continued support during the coming days and weeks. Stay healthy and safe, Julie Youngquist CEO
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SportsWise
Discussing the effect of the coronavirus outbreak on sports.
Arts & (Home) Entertainment
As all Chicago events and gatherings are cancelled until further notice, we are replacing our usual calendar with options to keep yourself entertained at home!
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This week: From Hollywood to hospital, Antonio Banderas has been on quite the journey. He has tapped these tumultuous times to make "Pain and Glory," along with an old friend. Plus, online classes and seminars from the Spertus Institute and Merit School of Music.
Cover Story: the 2020 US Census
April 1 is Census Day and the State of Illinois acknowledges an undercount could mean the loss of up to two representatives in Congress and federal money for schools, school lunches, roads, parks, Pell Grants, public transportation and more. To combat this loss of money, the state has allocated $29 million -- more per capita than any other state in the nation -- to a "hub and spoke" system of education and outreach through agencies that are "trusted messengers" to hard-to-count populations.
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Inside StreetWise
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The Playground
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We speak with street paper staff around the world about the effect Covid-19 is having on their organizations and vendors, with particular attention to how staff are assisting vendors to stay safe and healthy.
Dave Hamilton, Creative Director/Publisher
dhamilton@streetwise.org
Suzanne Hanney, Editor-In-Chief
suzannestreetwise@yahoo.com
Amanda Jones, Director of programs
ajones@streetwise.org
Julie Youngquist, CEO
jyoungquist@streetwise.org
Ph: 773-334-6600 Office: 4554 N. Broadway, Suite 350, Chicago, IL, 60640
StreetWiseChicago @StreetWise_CHI LEARN MORE AT streetwise.org
Vendors Russ Adams, John Hagan and Donald Morris chat about the world of sports with Executive Assistant Patrick Edwards.
The
devastating effect of the coronavirus
John: Today, we have a very special and touchy subject. We're talking about the coronavirus and how it has affected the sports world. Donald? Donald: It’s bringing out the compassion in corporations. Sports teams are helping stadium workers. "Yeah, we're not playing the game, but let's go non and help these workers who're cleaning up the stadiums, because they're gonna keep it clean until we get back to playing." When the NBA made the shocking decision to suspend the season amidst the coronavirus outbreak, it set off a monumental chain-reaction throughout the sports world. Now, that's not all it has affected, but it started with the NBA. They've since touched the workers with support and assurances that they won't be left behind. Pretty much, "just keep doing it until we're back...according to the rules and regs."
Patrick: It didn't quite hit me until I heard the NBA suspended its season. At that time, two weeks seemed like it--didn't sound that bad-but now we know it's going to be much longer, along with some other sports. The announcement's impact will, however, help convince folks who may not have been completely serious about the coronavirus. In regard to sports, though, I’m disappointed that we won't get any season conclusions. And it's not because of any team or teams I may follow; just that they've battled this season and are near the half. But, obviously, there are more important things in this whole thing, and primary on that list: Human lives.
John: I find it fascinating that although the risk of contracting it is lower than any other flu or virus, the reaction appears over the top. Now, we are in unchartered territory as far as who can get it, how to attack it, and why there is no vaccine yet. Then, we have stories such as the two NBA players, prior to testing positive, going up to play the Toronto Raptors; fortunately, the Raptors team tested negative. Basically, I’m getting mixed messages: On one hand, the low odds of contracting the virus, as well as a high recovery rate, take precedence; on the other, the world appears to be panicking. It’s fascinating…and confusing. I do, however, understand the “pause” because we don’t want this to worsen. Final thoughts?
it could be something such as a hit by an enemy organization, releasing this virus. Let’s look at the real deal, Holyfield: Someone meant to do this.
Donald: Everything began with Kobe’s death, and then this situation arose and I believe
John: Be vigilant...but in control. Panic can often make things worse. We got this,
Russ: I’m glad teams are preparing to continue to pay the workers. We’ll be okay; we just have to look out for one another. Patrick: For many, this is their main income. However, I’m with John with the confusion of the stats. I’ve read that 99% of the people who fall ill with this recover—some in two/ three weeks, the more extreme, six to eight weeks. If death's the fear, then perhaps we need to get better with dealing with that. Although an incredibly unfortunate situation, this could be a wakeup call for healing within.
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SPORTSWISE
Russ: I'm very disappointed with the sports situation. But I understand you gotta do what you gotta do. I'm taking this very seriously, this coronavirus madness. Last week, NBA's Rudy Gobert tested positive. Before knowing, he rubbed all the mics and hugged his teammates, while making his point that things weren't that serious. It's no joking matter, man. It's serious, man. People are dying, man. I'm glad they decided to cancel all the sports,
even though nothing's left to watch on TV anymore. Let's just pray it passes us by... soon...so we can get back with our sports.
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ANTONIO BANDERAS: 'HOLLYWOOD IS A FACTORY' by Annabel Brady-Brown / Big Issue Australia / courtesy of www.INSP.ngo
He said, ‘You’ve got a very romantic face, you should do cinema,’” recalls Antonio Banderas with a smile. With those 10 words tossed over a bar in Madrid, the celebrated filmmaker Pedro Almodóvar lured Banderas – then a 19-year-old stage actor who “had no idea what movies were about” – into a new world. Nearly four decades later, their journey comes full circle. "Pain and Glory" – a quiet miracle of a film about mortality, forgiveness and gratitude – sees Banderas give a revelatory performance as the aging, ailing Salvador Mallo, an alter ego for Almodóvar himself. Their first collaboration was "Labyrinth of Passion" (1982), in which Banderas played a head-in-the-clouds, queer Islamic extremist, sniffing out an elusive lover. The director and his muse made four more youthful, exuberant films together, before Hollywood beckoned, and high-octane blockbusters like "Desperado" (1995) and "The Mask of Zorro" (1998) transformed Banderas into a dashing A-list heart-throb. “I experienced a kind of industry we didn’t have in Spain,” he reflects, when we speak at the Cannes Film Festival. “I made movies there that would’ve been impossible to make in Spain. "Zorro" would be impossible; "Evita!" Massive movies where you have 2000 people working on set. It was an adventure.” When Banderas mentions his Hollywood years, a self-deprecating tone sneaks in: “I was like, ‘Oh my God! Look at the trailer, I never had a trailer!’” But some of the glitter has definitely faded. “Hollywood is a factory,” he sighs, likening big studio movies to a glass of Coca-Cola: “It’s good, it’s fresh and it tickles you. But in Europe, the people who make movies make good ones. It’s just different.”
His role as Puss in Boots in the Shrek franchise parodied the image of Banderas as the Hispanic vigilante – but his nuanced portrayal in "Pain and Glory" marks a radical break. “I had to kill a part of myself to make this movie,” he says. This process began many years earlier, he explains, during the fraught shoot of Almodóvar’s plastic surgery horror "The Skin I Live In" (2011). “I came back, and with 22 years of experience, but Pedro couldn’t use that at all. [He told me]: ‘It may make you feel safe in front of the camera, but that thing you do is not what I am looking for. I need actors that are fresh and new, no matter if they have 40 years in this profession.’ At the time, instead of actually listening to those wise words, I confronted him.” After watching the final cut of the film, it “opened up a reflection about, basically, humility,” says Banderas. “I started trying to work in a different way. When [Pedro] called me for this movie, I thought, This is my opportunity to go to that place where I think he wants me. I got rid of all the tools I was using – the tricks, if you want – anything that conformed to what people thought of me as an actor. The result is a character I don’t think anybody was expecting from me. It’s another me – which makes sense, too, because I’m a year from being 60.” Banderas plays Salvador as a hesitant, melancholy soul. Unable to work because of a coterie of ailments, the filmmaker has fallen into a depressive spell, ensconced in his gallery-like apartment. The film opens with Salvador submerged in a swimming pool, and the camera lingers on a scar that runs down his spine, the result of surgery that still causes him great pain. Banderas – who suffered a shocking heart attack in 2017 – could lean into his own experience for the character. “There’s a scar there – but it’s not a physical scar. During rehearsals Pedro said to me, ‘There is something in you different since your heart
attack, and I want you to show it. The tendency, I know, is to hide these things from an audience because you want to be very healthy and active.’ You know, Zorro!” Banderas laughs. “But Pedro said, ‘I don’t want you to hide that.’” He says that he knew exactly what the director was talking about. “The night I had a heart attack I was sleeping at the hospital, and this older nurse was taking care of me. She said, ‘Antonio, why do you think people say I love you with all of my heart and not, I love you with all of my brain or I love you with my liver? They say that because the heart is a warehouse for feelings. And my friend, you are going to be very sad for the next three or four months.’ I said, ‘Depression?’ ‘No, depression is a medical condition,’ she said. ‘Sad.’ “And it’s true. I am not a crier – my whole entire life I’ve been a ‘tough guy,’ you know? And then I was crying over everything, from reading a poem or watching a movie. I thought, ‘Oh my God, why am I so emotional?’ And Pedro saw it. Because he’s smart, and because he knows me very well after so many years. He said, ‘I want that in your character.’”
Antonio Banderas in Pain and Glory
Almodóvar’s cinema has long teased at autobiography, but "Pain and Glory" is his most openly self-reflective work. Fantastically blurring fiction and real memories, and pitching back and forth in time, the film plumbs relationships with old lovers, his late mother (played by Almodóvar favorites Penélope Cruz and Julieta Serrano) and his actors. When one of Salvador’s early films is restored, he reconnects with its estranged lead, Alberto (Asier Etxeandia) – a composite of many figures from Almodóvar’s life. “I know there are lines in that character that are mine!” says Banderas. “In a way, the movie is about reconciliation, about looking back and coming to terms. Some of these events, I knew, yes. Is everything you see real? No. But it is more real than not real, in a way. It is Almodóvar probably saying the things he wanted to say but never said, the things he wanted to do but never did. “That’s why the movie goes from the personal to the universal, and touches people’s hearts,” he continues. “Because we all travel through life with a backpack filled with pain and glory, with miseries and greatness. That is so human.” Mischievous, sexy, lyrical and deeply affecting, "Pain and Glory" feels like a homecoming for both director and star. Fittingly, these days Banderas is spending more time in Spain, and returning to his first love, the stage. “I was born in the theatre, the theatre was my art. It still is now,” he says. “I just did something really stupid. I just found the most romantic way to ruin myself: I bought a theatre in Malaga,” he laughs. “I am spending so much money that I’m going to have to do some stupid movies.” "Pain and Glory" is now streaming for purchase or rental on Amazon Prime Video, VUDU, YouTube, and more starting at $3.99.
ONLINE CLASSES & SEMINARS Virtual Early Childhood Music Classes While Merit School of Music’s building is temporarily closed to keep the community healthy and safe during the COVID-19 pandemic, music and playtime can continue at home with Merit’s virtual Early Childhood music classes. These online classes will feature the same engaging, pedagogically-rich programming Merit offers, all available from the comfort of one's own home. All that's needed to join the fun is a computer or mobile device and access to the internet. Classes start at $150 For more info and registration, visit www.meritmusic.org/earlychildhood Rallying in Challenging Times The current pandemic has challenged everyone individually, organizationally, communally, societally and globally. This program addresses how individuals can lead more effectively, more relationally, more compassionately during these and other difficult conditions – and stresses how times of crisis can also be times of renewal and transformation. The sessions bring together faculty from Spertus Institute’s Center for Jewish Leadership—including those who teach in Spertus Institute's Certificate in Jewish Leadership (presented in partnership with Northwestern University)—to share their experiences and insights as others face unique and complex challenges in their own lives and organizations. In this workshop series, Spertus Dean and Chief Academic Officer Dr. Keren E. Fraiman converses with members of the Spertus faculty on some of the most relevant leadership issues of today. Events are FREE and open to the public, Reservations appreciated at spertus.edu Session 1 Learning from Vulnerability and Resilience in Times of Crisis Wednesday, April 1, 12 - 1 pm Dr. Dean P. Bell, Spertus president and CEO and Dr. Mike Hogue, professor at the Meadville Lombard Theological School, share insights from their work on vulnerability, resilience, and religion. Crises can reveal things that are ordinarily invisible or overlooked; they can bring out the best and worst in people. This workshop addresses how to leverage crisis. Session 2 Mobilizing Leadership in Times of Crisis Monday, April 6, 12 - 1 pm Spertus Chancellor Dr. Hal M. Lewis, a renowned Jewish leadership expert and executive coach, will share strategies and best practices for effective leadership during times of crisis. Questions addressed during this workshop include: W hat are the essential elements of effective crisis leadership? How does leading in crisis differ from leadership during “normal” times? W hat must a leader do to take care of herself during a crisis? W hat happens when the crisis subsides? .
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YOU COUNT! what census res by Suzanne Hanney
April 1 is coming and the State of Illinois is no fool about census day. Illinois is predicted to lose one seat in the House of Representatives due to population loss -- and officials don't want to lose a second congressperson because they can't count everyone who lives here.
“Trust has probably always been an issue and is perhaps more so now with police interaction and so many immigrants,” Wilkerson said. “People are scared that if there are more people living there than on the lease, we will turn it over to the landlord or send it to the courts.”
In addition, billions of dollars in federal funds over the next decade are pegged to the population count. In FY2016 alone, Illinois received $34.33 billion through 55 federal programs guided by census data: for schools, school lunches, roads, parks, Pell Grants, public transportation, hospitals, social programs and more, according to "Based on Counting for Dollars 2020" from George Washington Univesity. Failure to count everyone means the state will have less money to take care of them.
However, the Census Bureau is legally prohibited from sharing personal information with the CIA, the FBI, Homeland Security or Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). “The last time one of them asked, it went all the way to the Supreme Court, which said no,” she said.
“The governor and the legislature know it’s important,” Wilkerson said. “It’s expected Illinois will lose one seat and we don’t want to lose two. We think we are the most proactive state: California, here, maybe Ohio. California started three years ago. We have a new governor and got started when he got here.” Working with Northern Illinois University’s Center for Governmental Studies, the state census office used variables commonly associated with low response (including age, housing, income and lack of internet access) to create an Illinois HardTo-Count Index (IL HTC Index). Wilkerson itemized some of these hard to count people: • Racial and ethnic minorities such as African Americans and Latinx • Children, from newborns to age 5 • Foreign-born individuals • People with limited English skills • Undocumented immigrants • People living at or below poverty • Adults over age 85 • Young and mobile college students • People who lack high speed internet access, since the 2020 census will be the first to be done online
“We know it takes several touches to go from education to activity,” Wilkerson said. “We hope people will see a flyer, a billboard, social media, go to an event, or their pastor will talk in church and they will get engaged.” Gearing up toward the April 1 “snapshot” of the U.S. population, invitations were mailed March 12 to 20 that urged people to complete the census online, followed by reminder postcards between March 16 and April 3, Wilkerson said. Reminder letters will go out April 8 to 16, then a paper questionnaire, and a final reminder April 20-27. In May, U.S. Census Bureau workers will make another attempt. If unsuccessful, they will attempt to get information from a proxy, such as a neighbor. “The point is to increase the self-response rate because it is most accurate,” Wilkerson said. “Your neighbor doesn’t know if your niece moved in March 28 or your boyfriend moved out. The best responder is the head of the household.”
Examples of social media posts from Cook County's Census advertising campaign.
In an effort to avoid that situation, Gov. J.B. Pritzker obtained $29 million from the Illinois General Assembly through the bipartisan FY20 budget for a statewide census outreach and education effort housed in the Illinois Department of Human Services. Although California has spent more overall, the $29 million census appropriation is the highest per capita in the nation, said Marishonta Wilkerson, statewide census director.
The $29 million education and outreach campaign will operate in a hub-and-spoke fashion. “Regional Intermediaries” (RIs) have subcontracted with smaller agencies -- “trusted messengers” as the state calls them -- that reach out to their communities and get them to self-report on the census or help them to complete it online between March 12 and April 30. (see page 10)
sults will mean for illinois Children under age 5, meanwhile, are the most undercounted group in the nation, so there is an awareness campaign around them. The rationale among responders is possibly, “they don’t use that much money, so they don’t count” or the toddlers may be shuttling between mom and grandmother, Wilkerson said. Wherever they are on April 1 is where they should be counted. Because people are more likely to open the door to people who look like them, the Illinois Department of Human Services is also spreading the message that people who take U.S. Census Bureau jobs from April to June will not lose Medicaid, TANF, SNAP (food stamps), child care and AADD benefits, Wilkerson said. The census bureau needed to hire 80,000 people for Illinois alone in order to have enough boots on the ground to follow up with nonresponding households in May, said Alyssa Johnson, deputy director of the U.S. Census, Chicago region. The jobs pay up to $29.50 an hour and the public can access the assessment for them at 2020census.gov People can also apply in March and work in June. “We will continue to hire through the entire process- February through July,” Johnson said. Applicants can already have a part-time or full-time job. “The hours are flexible. It is great for college students, seniors, those
individuals looking for something short-term,” Johnson said. The eight-state Chicago census region (Illinois, Wisconsin, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Missouri, Arkansas, Minnesota), with 53 million individuals and 24 million households, is among the nation’s most challenging, she said. Besides Chicago, it contains St. Louis, with a homeless population above the national average; Detroit, with the largest Middle Eastern population; Milwaukee, with the largest Hmong population; Minnesota and Arkansas with the largest number of Somali and Marshal Islanders, respectively. Renters, African American and Hispanic males tend to be undercounted while white males and homeowners tend to be overcounted, she said. But gated communities can also pose challenges for census workers. “There is always a level of distrust, so we rely on our partners to overcome that,” Johnson said of agencies like the Illinois Coalition of Immigrant and Refugee Rights (ICIRR) and Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF). Her staff speaks 21 different languages and has been on the ground for 16 months. The nonresponse follow-up period ends July 27 and then moves into a quality check process until the end of September. Census numbers (but NOT addresses, as the state’s Wilkerson stresses) have to be delivered to the President of the United States on December 31. The information will be available for public research and for congressional redistricting on March 30, 2021. “There is so much to lose with an undercount,” Johnson said. “So many programs are impacted. It’s a once-in-10-year opportunity for people to be counted. That count will stay with us until 2030. When you process that, that’s pretty significant.”
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Make them count you! how are reaching illinois' har
by Suzanne Hanney
The State of Illinois is spending $29 million on U.S. census outreach and education - more per capita than any state in the U.S. - because getting more people to answer the government’s questions is worth billions of dollars in federal money and up to two representatives in Congress. “One of the tag lines we’ve been using is ‘Make them count you.’ Completing the census is an act of resistance to not being heard,” said Regan Sonnabend, vice president of marketing and communications and census director at the YWCA of Metropolitan Chicago. The YWCA is a “Regional Intermediary” (RI) in the state’s hub-and-spoke plan to blanket Illinois with “trusted messengers,” or community groups that will help their populations understand and complete the census, which is online for the first time. The YWCA received $1 million of the $8.9 million state money allocated to the Chicago region and has subcontracted with All Chicago Making Homelessness History, Howard Brown Health Center, AIDS Foundation of Chicago, Center on Halsted, Equality Illinois, Women’s Justice Institute, LaCasa Norte, SGA Youth & Family Services, the LGBT Chamber, Affinity Community Services, Chicago Black Gay Men’s Caucus and the South Asian American Policy & Research Institute (SAAPRI), to reach the homeless and LGBTQ communities. These efforts began months ago, so the shutdowns due to the COVID-19 outbreak have caused “a small speed bump we’re confident we’re able to overcome,” Sonnabend said March 16 after an Illinois Department of Human Services webinar with Regional Intermediaries. Although April 1 is still census day, people have until the end of June to self-respond, so the hope is that subcontractors can reschedule face-to-face assistance days in a few weeks to complete the 2020 census – the first to be done online. “We’re kind of replacing in-person efforts for the next few weeks with digital and direct mail,” she added. “This does not need to be that much of a roadblock to the census since people can complete it over the phone and the internet.” Direct mail is not to be underestimated, she said. Most of the YWCA’s subcontractors have significant mailing lists and people will be at home, where they can get this information by snail mail, phones (which often have internet access) and social media. Because schools are shifting to e-learning, Comcast is offering its Internet Essentials program free to new low-income users for the next two months amid the outbreak instead of the regular $9.95 monthly fee. The program is offered free to families of students who receive free or reduced lunches (www.internetessentials.com) and census efforts are an unintended beneficiary, Sonnabend said.
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“One thing we’ve really embraced is that completing the census is not just a civic duty, it’s a civil right,” Sonnabend said. “You have the right to be counted and to be included for congressional representation.” Besides federal money for schools, school lunches, roads, Pell grants and more, census data also influences how private dollars are spent. Perhaps a food store wants to open on the South Side but is deterred because of low population numbers – the result of an undercount, she said. “That data will stay there for the next 10 years” - until the 2030 census. Poverty and lack of English language proficiency are two factors that typically make people “hard to count,” and many more people simply don’t understand the importance of the census, Sonnabend said. Moreover, across the board, community groups are working to overcome mistrust in government.
w regional intermediaries rd-to-count populations Although a proposed citizenship question was eliminated from the census, for example, people remain concerned that their answers are indeed confidential. (They are – see opening story.) “If your family was afraid of ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) coming to the door, would you take this chance?” Sonnabend asked rhetorically. Many of the other census deterrents come down to cultural nuances, many of them overlapping. La Casa Norte, for example, serves youth and families experiencing homelessness. But many of its youth are homeless because they are LGBT -- and have been kicked out, Sonnabend said.
Mayor Lori Lightfoot has done a public service announcement for the YWCA in its role as a census RI. Social media, emails, e-newsletters and advertising through outlets geared to their community are still other methods the subcontractors are sharing the work of getting the word out. A message that really resonated in brainstorming sessions with officials of the various groups, Sonnabend said, was “Come out, be counted.” LGBT people are hard to count because they are more than just their sexual orientation and gender identity, “so we see higher rates of poverty, mental health concerns, substance abuse, a lot of really big concerns,” said Greg Storms, manager of foundation and government relations at the Center on Halsted. “There is also a general mistrust of government similar to people of color or with disabilities who have been oppressed by government systems because LGBT have as well, especially with the current administration, which is quite antagonistic to the LGBT community.” Some of the hardest people to reach, Storms said, are LGBT people with additional identities: minority or HIV-positive status, youth, seniors. The youth would have been rejected by their families when they came out, which often led to becoming homeless. LBGT youth account for 40 percent of the homeless youth population; they are eight times more likely to be homeless than straight youth. Seniors may be just as isolated, going all the way back to rejection by their families upon coming out, he said. Contrary to the affluent gay stereotype, many seniors may have faced workplace discrimination and struggled all their lives to have good paying jobs, so they may not have accumulated savings. They may also not have a partner or children – the support systems that many straight people have.
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“The challenge is that most nursing homes and other spaces for older adults are not set up to be supportive of LGBT people, so we see a significant number who need to go back into the closet if they are living in that space. They can’t truly be themselves,” Storms said. With one or two congressional seats at risk in Illinois, Storm says, “Political representation in a state that does tend to be blue goes so far in supporting our community’s needs and concerns at a federal level.” Two questions about sexual orientation and gender identity were removed from the census, which many people see as an attack on the LGBT community. “That is information about our community that is essential for every facet of life, research or public programs, work that Center on Halsted does, funding for HIV services statewide,” Storm said. “When that is removed, we become erased.” Center on Halsted distributed literature prior to the census and will block out all 20 computers in its cyber center to help both youth and seniors complete the census. The message Storm seeks to convey to the LGBT community about the census is not just about personal representation, “as important as that is. It’s important that our community represent and that we maintain and hopefully grow the programs and services that our community needs.” Yet another trusted messenger is All Chicago Making Homelessness History, which also is the collaborative applicant for the Chicago Continuum of Care, the 100 organizations and individuals that apply for annual federal funding against homelessness. In 2018, that meant $68 million from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for 167 programs. All Chicago maintains Chicago’s Dashboard to End Homelessness on its website, which as of March 6 showed 8,857 people in a mix of permanent and supportive housing, shelters, and the streets. According to its website, there were nearly 5,500 people on the streets or in shelters on an average night in 2018. Working with seven partner agencies (Featherfist, Heartland Alliance Health, Franciscan Outreach, Thresholds, The Night Ministry, A Safe Haven and Salvation Army) All Chicago coordinated an email campaign starting in mid-March to encourage those in permanent housing to complete the census. It also coordinated efforts with partner agencies to unsheltered people through the end of the month.
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During the actual census count days March 30-31 and April 1, All Chicago plans to assist the U.S. Census Bureau, whose workers will be doing a 24-hour count of those living outside. “People who are experiencing homelessness are typically living on the streets or are in temporary living situations, which puts them at a disadvantage for being counted through the U.S. Census Bureau’s usual means,” said Nicole Bahena, All Chicago vice president of community partnerships, in an email. “Without a permanent place to live, they will not receive an invitation or any census materials by mail, or have someone knock on their door, which are the Census Bureau’s primary ways of getting a complete count.
completing is not just a it’s a civ -Regan Sonnabend, YWCA
“Additionally, people living on the streets often can’t be located because they hide away from public places to avoid being bothered by strangers or police,” Bahena continued. “People not trained or experienced in working with people living on the streets – like U.S. Census Bureau staff – won't know where to look. As a result, we are providing information on typical 'hot spots,' where people who are experiencing homelessness congregate in hopes Census Enumerators will be able to provide a more accurate and complete count. We are also helping build awareness among this population that being counted matters, and could bring additional resources such as housing and food assistance. People who otherwise wouldn’t know about the Census can then choose to be counted by calling the Census hotline, or completing a form online. This will ensure the most complete count for Chicago.” South Asians are hard to count, said Shobhana Johri Verma, executive director of SAAPRI, because their numbers are growing so quickly. People from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan numbered 242,000 after the 2010 census, a 55 percent increase from the decade before. Although South Asians are stereotyped as engineers and doctors, the truth is they also have varied levels of income and barriers associated with gender and sexual orientation, English language proficiency, and comfort levels around civ-
ic engagement. There are many undocumented people and an overall lack of trust in government. “If I do share my information, will the census bureau share it?” Verma said she often hears. SAAPRI is taking a two-pronged approach. They are meeting senior citizens where they are, such as the Hamdard Health Center, 1542 W. Devon Ave., holding workshops about the census and how it will benefit the community, helping seniors to fill out the census online and letting them know they can also do it over the phone. SAAPRI volunteers have knocked on doors with the Indo American Center and worked with Metropolitan Asian Family Services.
the census a civic duty, vil right A of Metropolitan Chicago
At least two of its team of six volunteers rotates attendance at faith-based events and everything related to the South Asian community, Verma said. Prior to the COVID-19 outbreak, the March 23 Holi festival of colors at Navy Pier was one of these events. However, Navy Pier is now closed until April 2 at least.
SAAPRI has also reached out to two groups who would otherwise not have known they should fill out the census: South Asian professionals here on visas, working in banking or IT jobs; and college students. The professionals had wrongly thought they have to be citizens to complete the census when SAAPRI has hosted workshops arranged through their employers. Young people, meanwhile, are hard to count because of their mobility and their attachment to their phones rather than to a place. College students may think that their parents will fill out the census for them, but the truth is that they are supposed to do it themselves, wherever they are April 1. Before the COVID-19 shutdown, SAAPRI had hosted workshops for students at the University of Illinois Chicago, the University of Chicago and Northwestern University. However, as the pandemic unfolded and campuses sent students home to study online, workshops with DePaul Uni-
versity and Illinois Institute of Technology were unable to be scheduled. Northeastern Illinois University and Loyola were also stalled in-process, Verma said. “Direct engagement has the best impact, but we can’t discount the value of digital outreach, which is what we are now strategizing,” she said. SAAPRI will use an online newsletter and platforms like Whats App favored by South Asian seniors: Facebook, Linked In and Instagram for college students. SGA Youth & Family Services works in Roseland, a hard-tocount African American neighborhood that has lost services as a result; and in Latino neighborhoods such as Back of the Yards, Brighton Park, Little Village and Pilsen, where language and trust are barriers, said Diana Perez, census coordinator. Again, while the citizenship question didn’t wind up on the census, it has made people afraid of giving their information to the government, regardless of their immigration status. SGA has been going into schools, working particularly with those in 8th grade and above, since they will likely be the ones to help their parents fill out the online census. It has worked with up to seven nonprofits such as Pilsen Wellness and Pilsen Neighborhood Council to do presentations on the importance of the census. SGA provides early Head Start, job placement for young people not in school, as well as mental health and substance abuse treatment. Head Start and early Head Start funding are based on population, so SGA’s message is that “without their participation, programs their children are already participating in will lose funding,” Perez said. SGA was planning to have an all-day event April 1 at Pilsen Parent University, 2001 S. Throop St. Computers and assistance in completing the census were going to be available. However, with the coronavirus, SGA staff were working at home until possibly the end of March, so efforts were redirected toward emails and social media, Perez said. “We emphasize the census information is confidential and people should be able to participate,” Perez said. “In the end we have to fight for our neighborhoods and what belongs to us, especially resources that could benefit everyone in the community.”
www.streetwise.org
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As coronavirus outbreak worsens, street papers and their staff respond by Tony Inglis / courtesy of www.INSP.ngo
As of mid-March, 124,000 cases of coronavirus (Covid-19) had been confirmed globally and the panic and health considerations around the outbreak had already begun to threaten the well-being and livelihood of street paper vendors, as well as people experiencing homelessness and poverty. To combat the spread, and in response to unease over a sharp rise in deaths, the Italian government decided to place the entire country into lockdown, effectively quarantining all of its citizens. This worsens an already precarious situation for Milan-based street paper Scarp de’ tenis, which distributes in several cities across the country. The magazine’s editor Stefano Lampertico, who is working from home along with all other Scarp de’ tenis staff, explained that vendors are no longer able to sell the magazine. There have been no sales in March, and they have decided not to print their April issue. “The impact of the virus is terrible,” he said. “All services are closed. The number of sick people is increasing day by day. We are all living in the red zone. We can’t move. We can’t travel. We are all staying at home.” Scarp de’ tenis was able to raise 5,000 Euros from online sales, and has been distributing that money to vendors. Staff continue to work on other projects that will benefit those who work as street paper vendors in the meantime. Though the Italian government says the restrictions will only last until April 3, there is no real sense of how long the current situation will continue.
INSIDE STREETWISE
Now that Covid-19 is being taken seriously in western countries, attention has turned to how people experiencing street homelessness may be disproportionately affected by the safeguards. People living on the street are not able to easily access bathrooms or hygiene products, and others have no choice but to live in homeless encampments and shelters, making self-isolation – the ideal method of preventing spread and contamination of the virus – extremely difficult. Carrying out the seemingly simple task of thorough hand-washing, as has been advised, is not a given for many living in this situation.
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a day] was cancelled to prevent any possible transmission, so folks are needing extra support.” Paula Lomazzi, director of Sacramento street paper Homeward Street Journal, explained how the transactional nature of their services and selling street papers is making everyone second guess their behavior. “As the virus spreads more widely, breaking the quarantine measures, I have concerns about it entering the homeless population and spreading throughout areas such as community meals and shelters,” she said. “Of concern to our office will be contact with money that is exchanged between staff and vendors [and vendors and customers]. You can't fist bump money.” At the most recent weekly staff meeting at Portland, OR’s Street Roots, the topic was how vendors can stay healthy while interacting with customers during the panic. Other vendors are being proactive. “We talked about bringing hand sanitizer with them, and using it each time after handling money,” said Kaia Sand, executive director of Street Roots. “But also, using the hand sanitizer ostentatiously to visually assure customers.” Sand said there had been no marked difference in sales, but they have been telling vendors that a change in circumstances in the area could mean a dip. They are also working with local partners to ensure the health of vendors. “We are creating health packets for vendors to have and share with other people on the streets. We have been coordinating with a local group of volunteer physicians called ‘Portland Street Medicine’ too. Our effort is to get people accurate information and other supplies (particularly hand sanitizer and soap). Washington state currently bears the highest number of U.S. confirmed cases and deaths. Streets and buildings are halfempty, and public health officials recommend that the elderly and those with underlying medical conditions stay inside and that people work from home if possible.
In the US, street papers and their staffs have begun to take measures to help the most vulnerable people in society, especially as the official response to the outbreak has been criticized.
“Different vendors are so far having different experiences,” said Seattle street paper Real Change’s founding director Tim Harris. “Some are fortunately unaffected, while others, like those selling in a now empty downtown area are having a tough time.”
“Here, we have been asked to close, and homeless encampment sweeps are continuing unabated,” said Quiver Watts, editor of San Francisco street paper Street Sheet. “Our big service fair [an event, run by Project Homeless Connect, which centralizes services for unhoused people to easily access for
Street papers are attempting to come up with creative ways to continue facilitating vendors to earn an income, including selling online versions of their usually printed magazine. The effect of the outbreak for street papers is two-fold: on an organizational and sales level and in terms of protecting vendors.
Streetwise 3/2/20 Crossword To solve the Sudoku puzzle, each row, column and box must contain the numbers 1 to 9.
Sudoku
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7 Celtic 42 First name in instruments horror 8 Cantina cookers 43 Like some 9 Epithet payments 10 Relaxes 44 More likely 11 Handbills 45 Public works 12 Horatian work project 18 Biscotto 47 It’s just over a flavoring foot 20 Autumn drink 48 Furniture 23 Airport abbr. protectors 24 Formerly 49 Sea eagle known as 50 McCarthy quarry 26 Russian orbiter 53 Goal-oriented 28 Big heart? wn activity 29 Marshaled 56 Nickel, e.g. 31 Out of this Ave. 57 Beach world intersectors 60 Use a beeper Rap sheet 33 Phobias 62 Brainchild letters 35 Certifiable 63 Hasten Desired 37 Check for 64 Pointer’s Pipsqueak Copyrightaccuracy direction ©2020 PuzzleJunction.com 39 Ring merchants 66 Brief time out? Old laborers Scorched 41 Strive 67 Victorian, e.g. Long-jawed fish James Whitcomb Riley’s “___ I Went Mad” Listening device Compass pt. Noisy trains New Deal org. Bathroom installation
©PuzzleJunction.com
Copyright ©2020 PuzzleJunction.com
Solution LastSudoku Week’s Puzzle Answers
Solution
Solution
Find your nearest StreetWise Vendor at www.streetwise.org
Crossword Across 1 Kilmer of “Batman Forever” 4 Petty quarrel 8 Plant part 12 Storage site 13 Folk’s Guthrie 14 Like skin 16 He had designs on Jackie 17 Stubborn beast 18 Pertaining to bees 19 Gastric woe 21 Cozy retreat 23 “___ Karenina” 24 ___ de deux 25 Dentist’s request 27 Wood-dressing tool 29 Bad day for Caesar 30 Expire 31 Lingerie item 60 Representative 34 Sodbuster 62 Computer woe 37 Presidents’ Day 64 Well-ventilated event 66 Comfort 38 Feel awful 67 Japanese cartoon 39 Ballet move art 40 Irritation 68 Spoon-playing 41 River to the site Colorado 69 Keatsian works 42 “Exodus” hero 70 Rubberneck 43 Slender 71 Self-images 45 Scandanavian 72 Aussie outlaw mythical Kelly monsters 47 Pea jacket? Down 48 Youngster 1 Fancy home 49 Expressed 2 Guinness and 50 It has a shell Baldwin 51 Looking down 3 Theater section from 4 “Gunsmoke” 52 Football player bartender 55 Kind of 5 Dried plums thermometer 6 Kind of wrench 58 Encourage 7 Stocking stuffers
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8 Masseur’s workplace, maybe 9 November birthstone 10 Name for an Irish lass 11 Bell curve figure 12 Progresso product 15 Some trial evidence 20 Teased mercilessly 22 Peacock’s pride 26 Via 28 Irish Sea feeder 29 Babysitter’s handful 30 Smidgen 31 Get-out-of-jail money 32 Lunar trench 33 Wistful word
34 35 36 37 40 41 43 44 45 46 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 59 61 63 65
Uvula, for one Dynamic start Police action Bottom line Purge Word on all U.S. coins Hit the slopes In ___ of Chinese truth Opportune Sound system Chubby Winery process Duck Beat (out) Henna and others Egg cells Jewelry item Coloratura’s piece Croupier’s tool Sign gas Behold Survey choice
How StreetWise Works
Our Mission
Orientation Participants complete a monthlong orientation, focusing on customer service skills, financial literacy and time management to become a badged vendor.
Finacial Literacy Vendors buy StreetWise for $0.90, and sell it for $2. The profit of $1.10 goes directly to the licensed vendor for them to earn a living.
Supportive Services StreetWise provides referrals, advocacy and other support to assist participants in meeting their basic needs and getting out of crisis.
S.T.E.P. Program StreetWise’s S.T.E.P. Program provides job readiness training and ongoing direct service support to ensure participants’ success in entering the traditional workforce.
THE PLAYGROUND
To empower the entrepreneurial spirit through the dignity of self-employment by providing Chicagoans facing homelessness with a combination of supportive social services, workforce development resources and immediate access to gainful employment.
Puzzle
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PREV
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I E WS APR with c 2 - APR 12 ode ST
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WISE
THE CHICAGO PREMIERE
THE MOST SPECTACULARLY LAMENTABLE TRIAL OF
MIZ MARTHA WASHINGTON James Ijames Directed by Whitney White By
The recently widowed “Mother of America”—attended to by the very enslaved people who will be free the moment she dies—takes us deep into the ugly and thorny ramifications of America’s original sin.
RADICALLY VULNERABLE, OUTRAGEOUSLY HILARIOUS
APRIL 2 – MAY 17 | steppenwolf.org | 312-335-1650 MAJOR PRODUCTION SPONSOR
2019/20 GRAND BENEFACTORS
2019/20 BENEFACTORS
