The Contributor: June 22, 2022 by the-contributor-live

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Volu m e 16

| Number 13 | June 22 - July 6, 2022

I feel more

Connected with my Community

I N T H E I S S U E 2022 L a N ticia LOCALES - POLÍTICA - INMIGRACIÓN - TRABAJOS - SALUD - ESPECTÁCULOS - DEPORTES Y MÁS...

GRATIS

Contributor Board

Escanee esta imagen para ver La Noticia newspaper edición bilingüe digital

Junio/2

Tom Wills, Chair Cathy Jennings, Bruce Doeg, Demetria Kalodimos, Ann Bourland, Kerry Graham, Peter Macdonald, Amber DuVentre, Jerome Moore, Annette McDermott, Drew Morris, Andy Shapiro

www.hispanicpaper.com

Año 20 - No. 352

“DONDE OCURREN LOS HECHOS QUE IMPORTAN, SIEMPRE PRIMERO... ANTES”

Nashville, Tennessee

Para promover equidad en salud, interrumpa el mercado de medicamentos recetados

Los

hispanoamericanos son el grupo racial o étnico menos asegurado en los Estados U n i d o s . Aproximadamente el 20% no tiene cobertura de salud. Eso se compara con solo el 6% de la Por Amy Hinojosa población blanca presidenta y directora no hispana. ejecutiva de MANA

Vendor Spotlight

La Noticia + The Contributor

En algunos casos, esto puede conducir a costos más bajos de primas de seguros. Pero eso significa poco para los pacientes que están enfermos y necesitan medicamentos que requieren pagos costosos de su bolsillo. Los descuentos de los fabricantes de medicamentos no llegan a los consumidores que más los necesitan. En 2020, la mayor parte del gasto nacional en medicamentos de marca se destinó a compañías como aseguradoras y PBM, no a compañías farmacéuticas que inventan y fabrican medicamentos.

Durante décadas, nuestras instituLa Noticia, one of the ciones y políticas han desatendido pro- Contributor vendor fundamente a miembros de comuImagen del reporte de MANA tituladoleading “ImpulsoresSpanish-language del aumento de los costos de about nidades históricamente marginadas,Loum O. talks atención médica y su impacto en las poblaciones vulnerables” especialmente a las poblaciones in the meeting customers and disponibles a precios másnation, bajos que los ca hasta 125,000 muertes cada año y al newspapers afroamericana e hispana. Encontrar que los pacientes pueden obtener a formas de cambiar el statu quo y cons- menos una de cada diez hospitaliza- brings his "addiction" to sellingafroameri- través deSpanish sus planes content de seguro. to ciones. Las poblaciones truir un sistema más equitativo debe canas e hispanas, son 7.5% más ser una prioridad. The Contributor. sistema actual, el precio real que newspapers. desventajados en su capacidad para Con el pagan las aseguradoras por muchos Los sistemas de administración de mantener un régimen de medicamen- medicamentos a menudo se mantiene medicamentos recetados deben estar tos consistente. Es por eso que revisar en secreto para los pacientes. Esto peren la parte superior de la lista para cómo se pagan y distribuyen los mite a los proveedores de cobertura una revisión importante. Al brindar medicamentos en nuestro país podría inflar significativamente los costos de una mayor transparencia a los pre- tener un impacto que cambie la vida bolsillo de los medicamentos sin que cios, las prácticas de seguros y las en la salud de las comunidades de color. los consumidores se den cuenta. El entidades intermediarias, como los Una empresa lanzada recientemente modelo de Cuban elimina tales estrateadministradores de beneficios farma- por el famoso empresario Mark Cuban gias de fijación secreta de precios, céuticos, los formuladores de políticas podría señalar el camino hacia un dando como resultado un trato mucho pueden despejar el camino hacia impulso de reforma aún mayor. Con su más justo a los pacientes. medicamentos asequibles que salvan nueva farmacia en línea, Mark Cuban vidas y nivelar el campo de juego para Cost Plus Drug Company, Cuban tiene Es un gran primer paso en la dirección la equidad en salud. la intención de revolucionar la indus- de una interrupción aún mayor pero tria mediante la entrega de medica- necesaria: la exposición y la elimiEl simple acceso a un régimen de mentos genéricos al costo más una ta- nación de los tratos clandestinos de los medicamentos prescritos es un grave rifa del 15 por ciento. Eso hará que PBM (Administradores de beneficios problema de salud pública, que provo- algunos medicamentos estén de farmacia) y las aseguradoras en el

Conoce tus derechos: ¿Que hacer en caso de una redada? 1. Mantenerse callado 2. Sólo dar nombre y apellido 3. No mentir 4. Nunca acepte/lleve documentos falsos 5. No revelar su situación migratoria 6. No llevar documentación de otro país 7. En caso de ser arrestado, mostrarla Tarjeta Miranda (llámenos si necesita una)

Vendor Writing

Eliminar a estos intermediarios, o al menos obligarlos compartirwrite sus In this issue, avendors enormes descuentos en medicamentos con los pacientes, es precisamente about guns, hotel tax, el tipo de reforma revolucionaria que mouse andalgunas the podría cambiarfriends, de inmediato de las desigualdades en nuestro sispoor, the traumatized, the tema de salud. Mark Cuban llevó el balón a la línea de gol exigiendo transdying.de sumiparencia ensick, todathe la cadena nistro de medicamentos recetados. El Congreso puede ganar para los consumidores y las familias de todo el país siguiendo su libro de jugadas.

Contributors This Issue

23 Moving Pictures A troubling documentary, White Black Boy, about growing-up different comes to a bold new streaming platform

Amy Hinojosa es la presidenta y directora ejecutiva de MANA, una organización nacional de latinas, la organización de membresía latina más antigua y más grande de los Estados Unidos y miembro fundador de Health Equity Collaborative. Esta pieza se publicó originalmente en Focus Daily News. Envíenos sus sugerencias por e-mail: news@hispanicpaper.com ó 615-567-3569

THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS!

Basados en la Quinta Enmienda de la Constitución, los derechos de guardar silencio y contar con un abogado fueron denominados Derechos Miranda luego de la decisión de la Suprema Corte de Justicia de Estados Unidos en el caso Miranda vs. Arizona, 384 U.S. 436, de 1966.

por

Linda Bailey • Amanda Haggard • Judith Tackett • Ridley Wills II • Yuri Cunza • Jen A. • Claire Porter • Nita Bhalla • Anatasia Moloney • Norma B. • Walter D. • Amy Hinojosa • Mr. Mysterio • Chris Scott Fieselman • June P. • Antonio B. • Joe Nolan

Contributor Volunteers Christine Doeg , Volunteer Coordinator Joe First • Andy Shapiro • Michael Reilly • Logan Ebel • Ann Bourland • Laura Birdsall • Richard Aberdeen • Marissa Young • Ezra LaFleur • Rachel Stanley • Linda Eisele • Matthew Murrow • Wendy Curland • Gisselly Mazariegos

Cathy Jennings Executive Director Tom Wills Director of Vendor Operations Carli Tharp SNAP Specialist Ree Cheers SOAR Manager Rachel Ternes Housing Navigator Amy Holt Housing Navigator Jesse Call Operations Consultant Raven Nye Director of Housing Initiatives Arnita Carson Recovery Specialist Justin Wagner Resource Coordinator & Reporter Barbara Womack Advertising Manager

www.juanese.com juanese@usa.com

Amanda Haggard & Linda Bailey Co-Editors Andrew Krinks Editor Emeritus

The Contributor now accepts Venmo! Scan the QR Code above, or find us: @The-Contributor Make sure to include your vendor’s badge name and number in the description. If you bought this version digitally, you can still leave your regular vendor a tip. Email Cathy@thecontributor.org for more information or with questions!

Will Connelly, Tasha F. Lemley, Steven Samra, and Tom Wills Contributor Co-Founders Editorials and features in The Contributor are the perspectives of the authors. Submissions of news, opinion, fiction, art and poetry are welcomed. The Contributor reserves the right to edit any submissions. The Contributor cannot and will not endorse any political candidate. Submissions may be emailed to: editorial@thecontributor.org Requests to volunteer, donate, or purchase subscriptions can be emailed to: info@thecontributor.org Please email advertising requests to: advertising@thecontributor.org

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VENDOR SUBMISSIONS

Love Thy Neighbor as Thyself BY JEN A., CONTRIBUTOR VENDOR

VOLUNTEER AT THE CONTRIBUTOR! We’re looking for more volunteers to work in our newspaper sales office from 10 a.m. - 3 p.m. one day a week! Our volunteers count newspapers, record paper sales, and — best of all — spend time talking with vendors who stop by to buy papers! If you’re interested in learning more email: cathy@thecontributor.org

The poor, the traumatized, the sick, the dying — that’s who we are. We’ve been used-up and broken doing your hard, physical labor so you don’t have to. We receive little pay: pay usually given “under-the-table” so you don’t have to bother with social security for us. We’ve been traumatized year over year fighting America’s endless foreign wars so your children could stay safe and warm stateside. We’ve been used and abused by those we should have been able to trust. We’re sick because of America’s unconscionable corporate drug plague and because your Republican legislature won’t give the least of us the dignity of adequate healthcare through the Affordable Care Act. We’re dying from neglect because that’s all that is left to us — that’s who we are. And yet, we’re a resilient bunch. We’re surviving veterans of America’s war on us. We can live outside because that’s the only place we can afford to live. That takes skill and courage — skill and courage you don’t have. We scrounge for our basic needs and make do with very little because we have to tote all of our belongings on our backs. That takes immense creativity — creativity you couldn’t begin to muster. If we grow too sick or too weak to carry our load, members of our community will carry it for us. That takes compassion — compassion that you don’t seem to have. Recently, there’s been a big to-do about the homeless encampment at Brookmeade Park down on the west end. It’s been there for years. Local residents want the city to shut it down and clear out all of the campers so they don’t have to look at them anymore. They’ve formed, “Reclaim Brookmeade Park,” and appointed Ms. Dede Byrd their spokesperson. The group paid to have five disparaging digital billboards erected, directed at Mayor John Cooper to, I suppose, shame him into doing their bidding. “All this is to help the homeless and open the park back up to the public,” Ms. Byrd opined in an interview with Channel 17. Are the homeless not members of the public? Ms. Byrd went on to say, “the acute situation is the addiction and mental health crisis is occurring with the people who are chronically homeless and you can deal with that right now.” That sounds as though Ms. Byrd has

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some sort of magic wand she can wave over the folks living in the park and miraculously heal them of all their problems. Where is the humanity in her statement? I know professionals and just kind-hearted people from a handful of Nashville non-profits who have worked tirelessly for years in an attempt to move all of our campers into stable housing or into better living situations. But they can’t move them into homes if those homes don’t exist. There are even fewer drug and alcohol treatment opportunities and mental health facilities. Maybe Ms. Byrd’s magic wand could help with that. Nashville has kicked the can of homelessness down the road for years. Occasionally the city throws meager funding at the growing problem. But there has not been a coordinated cityof-Nashville effort to more effectively deal with homeless individuals. The homeless are residents of Nashville too. They are our neighbors. I wonder if Ms. Byrd and the other members of “Reclaim Brookmeade Park” have ever gone into the camps and actually talked to the campers to find out who they are and how RBP might be able to help them. The money they spent on those hurtful billboards could have been used to actually help their neighbors or to spruce-up the park. They want our mayor to do something to magically solve their perceived problem. What constructive actions have they taken to help their neighbors? There’s a wonderful book, The Least of Us, by Sam Quinones. It’s the chronicle of his journey across the U.S. to find out how cities and towns are dealing with the consequences of the hopelessness and homelessness caused by the American corporate drug plague: a plague our governments allowed to f lourish unabated for years. His ultimate conclusion: “In a time when drug traffickers act like corporations and corporations like traffickers, our best defense, perhaps our only defense, lies in bolstering community.” It is when neighbors reach out to our forgotten and vulnerable that gives Quinones hope. The campers at Brookmeade Park need all of us to come together to help them. It will be hard work and will take all of our compassion and an infinite amount of patience. But, Ms. Byrd, you and your group can do this. Stop waiting for someone else to do what y’all could have been doing for years. Help them. Love thy neighbors as thyself.

V E N D O R S P O T L I G H T: L O U M O.

PHOTO BY LINDA BAILEY

Long-time vendor Loum enjoys spending time with customers BY CLAIRE PORTER Loum is a long-time vendor at The Contributor. When he comes into the office, he is always eager to pick up the newest issue and see how everyone is doing. Loum grew up in South Sudan and in 2008 moved to Nashville — he will tell you he has become addicted to this job, and he loves to spend time with his customers. Don’t hesitate to stop and talk next time you see Loum.

forward. So I became interested in this business, I like it and get a little income.

What were your plans when you moved to Nashville? When I came here I enjoyed the new environment and the new people. I went to school and I graduated with a degree in mathematics. Afterwards, getting a job became so hard but by God's grace I found this office. Somebody told me to come to this office and I could start a new business all by myself. Because I’m nice, people like me and buy the papers, sometimes they give me tips and it helps me to push my life

What’s your favorite part about being a vendor? Being a vendor is like your personal business. You go out there and sell the paper and people may like you. Sometimes you make friends, actually a lot of friends. Sometimes they call me like ‘Where are you? What are you doing? You missed almost two days! We need to see you, please, please come!’ So, I really became addicted to this job. When people like you and the environment is good… your life becomes precious.

What year was this when you became a vendor? After my graduation in 2014, I found it so hard to get a job. I went to TSU across the city, I was so frustrated for almost a year and because of God's grace I found this job and I like it.

When you’re not selling the paper, what do you like to do in your free time? Actually, I don’t have any free time. I’m just working, you know I told you before, I’m addicted to this job. When people like me and buy papers from me every single day when I don’t work, I get bored. I keep working, working, working! So you never have a rest day? Yup! I work this job with no rest. I work seven days a week, even Sundays! I go on Sundays and sell the paper a little bit, then I go to church and pray and afterwards I come and sell the paper again. I asked my pastor, ‘Can I sell the paper on Sunday?’ He said, ‘It’s up to you, provided that you praise God and believe in God.’ I think it’s maybe not good but because I’m addicted! What are some of your goals for the next five years? My goal actually is to go back

to school and continue my education. I have to work and so maybe I can get my masters degree. I believe my God will help me with skills in my life that will help me to move forward. I would like to find someone to share my life with and of course I would like to have kids, like in the Bible to produce and fill the world and the heart, that’s what God has ordered to be done. So that’s my goal. What’s something that you’ve learned being a vendor at The Contributor? Something that I’ve learned about is encouragement. Some people encourage me and say, ‘You are the best, go on with your job!’ And that's what you’re supposed to do. You don’t like anybody to harass you. Some people will insult you and say you are stupid and some of them will try to give you money and then pull it away and drive off and embarrass you.

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Encouragement is very important and some people may even become your friends. They might invite you to their house and talk about your goals or invite you to lunch to eat together. So those are how I get through life. And what The Contributor has done here is to build people up. So, my final thought is thanks to the Lord our Christ for putting you people here to help people move from one place to the next and the next in their lives. Is there anything you want to tell people who are reading the paper? Sometimes selling the paper is limited time because they drive up and buy the paper and have to go. The best is when those people say, ‘Please, can you go have lunch or come and talk?’ I've become a businessman. I love to spend time with my customers. Sometimes we go to the park and read the bible so it’s good. Business is OK.

NASHVILLE HISTORY CORNER

THE SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR

More than 120 years after the Cuban constitutional convention BY RIDLEY WILLS II The sinking of the USS Maine in Havana Harbor on Feb. 15, 1898, which killed 268 American sailors, was the primary reason causing the United States to join the Cuban rebels in their fight for Independence from Spain. America claimed that the Spanish had sunk Maine by a mine. Two Naval investigations, one in 1898, and the other in 1974, came to different conclusions. The first investigation concluded that the ship was sunk by an external explosion caused by a mine. The Admiral Hyman Richover investigation in 1974 concluded that bituminous coal in the ship’s hold released firedamp, a mixture of gasses that is prone to spontaneous explosions, caused the sinking of the ship. Secondary causes for American intervention were possibly exaggerated reports of Spanish atrocities against insurgent Cubans. Even before the sinking of the Maine, Theodore “Teddy” Roosevelt, assistant Secretary of the Navy, called himself “a quietly rampant ‘Cuba Libre’ man.” A month after the sinking, President William McKinley, who wanted to avoid war, instructed his Ambassador to Spain to offer to buy Cuba. The Spanish refused. McKinley then attempted to negotiate a peace by calling for a cease-fire. Spain agreed but the Cubans, who were generally thought to be near victory, refused to lay down their weapons, which they felt would mean “the dissolution and disintegration of their army.” McKinley requested authority from Congress to declare war on Spain on April 11, 1898. Colorado Senator Teller successfully introduced an article, known as the Teller Amendment, that disavowed any intention of the United States, “exercising sovereignty or jurisdiction over Cuba and asserted that, when pacification was accomplished, the United States would, “leave the government and the control of the island to its people.” He was afraid that, were Cuba to become a state, the enormous Cuban sugar crop would decimate the beet sugar industry in Colorado. With war approved on April 20, 1898, conservative Southern Senators were disappointed as they had looked forward to a freed Cuba becoming a segregated state of the United States. When Americans think about the Spanish-American War, most think of the Roughriders, commanded by Teddy Roosevelt and Leonard Wood. The Roughriders were primarily young men from New Mexico, Arizona, Oklahoma,

Cuban Constitution signers.

and the Indian Territory-none of which were yet states. American forces landed on Cuban soil on June 22, 1898. The war ended a month later with only 400 American casualties. After Santiago, Cuba’s second largest city, fell to the American Army in July, Spanish and American officials met to negotiate a peace agreement. No Cuban was invited to attend. General Calixto Garcia, head of the Cuban Liberation Army, learned of the meeting in the newspapers. His army was also not allowed to enter Santiago. General William Shafer, commander of the U.S. forces in Cuba, said of the Cubans “Why, these people are no more fit for self-government than gunpowder is for Hell.”

The Treaty of Paris in December 1898 granted the United States control over four Spanish territories: the Philippines, Guam, Puerto Rico, and Cuba, none of which were represented in the negotiations. At noon, on Jan. 1, 1899, every Spanish f lag in Cuba came down, replaced not by a Cuban f lag but by the Stars and Stripes. At the f lag swapping ceremony at Morro Lighthouse in the Havana harbor, an American Senator predicted “That f lag will never come down in this island.” Absent at Morro Lighthouse were the soldiers of the Liberation Army. US authorities had forbidden their presence in the capital city. The Cuban War of Independence, the third in 30 years, had been given a

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new name by the North Americans, the Spanish-American War, from which the Americans, not the Cubans, emerged victorious. The question in the minds of Cubans was whether or not the Americans would leave the island, as promised, now that Cuba was pacified. The answer was “No.” General Leonard Wood was installed as military governor until such time as the Cubans proved that they were capable of governing themselves. His job was to “prepare the Cuban people for self-government.” In 1901, Senator Platt introduced a resolution that obligated the United States to leave Cuba only after the Cubans established a government under a constitution that explicitly defined the “future relations of the United States with Cuba.” Cuban capacity for self-government could be proven only through acceptance of the Platt Amendment, which replaced the Teller Amendment.” The new amendment restricted the Cuban government’s ability to sign treaties with third nations, set aside Cuban territory for American use as a naval base and coaling station (Guantanamo Bay), and gave the United States the right to intervene militarily in Cuba uninvited. Cubans were furious. Nevertheless, on June 12, 1901, seeing no other option, a Cuban constitutional convention, by a vote of 16 to 11, voted to accept the Platt Amendment in the Constitution of the Republic of Cuba as an amendment. American soldiers occupied Cuba for three years (1899-1902). The Platt Amendment would not be nullified until 1934. Today, Guam, Guantanamo Bay and Puerto Rico remain American territories. The Philippines gained its independence in April 1945. The American Detention Center at Guantanamo Bay, which originally had 779 prisoners, mostly Afghans, in January 2002, now has only a handful. I think the Guantanamo Detention Center, where we have, in the past, tortured prisoners, particularly through water-boarding and sleep deprivation, should be closed, the few prisoners who have never been given a trial released, and the territory given back to Cuba. On Wednesday, June 1, 2022, the Biden administration lifted travel restrictions to Cuba that were established during the Trump administration. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken also announced that restrictions on the amount of money that immigrants can send to people in Cuba were also being lifted. I wholeheartedly support these actions.

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LEARN MORE ABOUT

(Left) Benno Fricker, holding up a street map listing social services and city services for people in need. The map is printed on cloth and therefore more durable than paper. (Right) In summer, people living on the streets have easy access to taking a bath in the River Rhein, which is a prominent destination for Basler residents to escape the heat. PHOTOS BY JUDITH TACKETT

LEARN MORE ABOUT: SOCIAL CITY TOURS IN SWITZERLAND BY JUDITH TACKET T “Griessech mitenand!” means, “Hello everyone!” This is how Benno Fricker starts his Social City Tour in Basel, Switzerland. With approximately 200,000 inhabitants, Basel is the third largest city in Switzerland and is located in the northwest of the country bordering Germany and France. Basel is where Benno spent four years on the streets from 2015-2019. A lot of his time he slept in Solitude Park, a green area that is rather small in comparison to U.S. parks, but it offered a public restroom (which can be found all over the city, are self-cleaning and unlock automatically after 15 minutes), a covered area with picnic tables (his living room), and enough overgrowth for him to lie in the bushes, hidden and protected until the morning (his bed-

room). Only dogs sniffed him out once in a while, Benno recalled. When I found that the Swiss street paper, called Surprise, offered social city tours, I immediately reached out to sign up for one. There were different focus areas to choose from: surviving on the street; poverty trap — addiction; women in poverty; and the downward spiral and solidarity, which is focused on the loss of community as people drift into and experience poverty. Surprise offers social city tours in three cities: Basel, Zurich and Bern. Growing up in Switzerland, I was not aware of people experiencing homelessness, at least not street homelessness or sleeping rough as they call it in Europe. In addition, Switzerland is known for its solid social welfare system. So why are there increasingly people experiencing

homelessness in this rich country in the heart of Europe? That’s why on May 14, I found myself standing amongst members of a church group that generously invited me to join them and learn about being homeless in Switzerland. Benno is our sole guide, telling us about his life’s story, how he became homeless even though he speaks multiple languages, has studied at a university for three semesters, and eventually finished a four-year apprenticeship to become a mechanic for agricultural machines. As he recounts his life story — from happy childhood to temporary jobs that did not allow him to make ends meet to finally giving up his ongoing fights to overcome bureaucratic barriers put up by the social welfare system — he

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guides us from Solitude Park along the River Rhein next to beautiful historic mansions to the local shelter run by The Salvation Army. The first shelter night in Basel is free. After that, people who are eligible for services, pay $7.50 Swiss Francs ($7.66) per night if they are from Basel or $40 if they are from a city or district outside of the city. No pets are allowed. Curfew is strict. People need to get up at 7 a.m. and be out by 8 a.m., even if they are sick, except on holidays. We continue our tour, and Benno educates the group about the Housing First model, which is still new to Switzerland. He explains that this approach comes out of the United States and has been successfully implemented in Finland and Austria. Basel launched its first Housing First program two years ago.

LEARN MORE ABOUT

(Top Left) Benno’s “living room.” This is where Benno used to eat and read a book in the evening after walking miles to get to basic services such as the Street Kitchen for meals. (Bottom Left) The Social City Tour in Basel demonstrated the contrast between rich and poor as we passed these villas next to the River Rhein. (Right) Public restrooms like this one can be found across Swiss cities and are accessible for citizens and tourists. They unlock after 15 minutes and some of them are self-cleaning devices. This one served as Benno’s bathroom. PHOTOS BY JUDITH TACKETT

The goal for the first year was to assist 15 people, but only eight have been housed, which Benno says shows how hard it is to come by affordable housing. “If even the Salvation Army struggles to find housing for people, how hard do you think is it for a person who is homeless with a lot of debts and arrears?” As we walk a few miles from one spot to the next for a total of about two hours, I pay attention to the questions the church leaders ask. I hear the expected questions showing an array of sympathies (or not so much) ranging from why folks are not working to the role addiction plays in homelessness to why people’s social supports break down. I observe how Benno takes every opportunity to educate people about the system, about the stress of poverty, about the nature of addiction. He

takes his time and at times doesn’t shy away to admonish systems that perpetuate poverty rather than help end it. He praises the outreach and legal teams that helped him work through the bureaucratic mountain and regain housing. His own story into homelessness was steady. As a temporary employee he struggled to make ends meet and work while keeping up with the demands and requirements of the social welfare and at times unemployment systems. Finally, he was so exhausted, he just gave up and waited for the police to come to evict him. The first weeks on the streets were tough, especially since he was still trying to hold down his temporary job. Benno thinks about 100 people live on the streets in Basel. As part of the

tour, he provided us with details of a recent study conducted by the University of Applied Sciences Northwestern Switzerland (FHNW), which was trying to count the homeless population and collect demographics nationwide. In a recent article from February 2022 that I found online, the Swiss government estimates that about 2,200 Swiss people experience homelessness with another 8,000 at risk of homelessness. The country has a population of just over 8.6 million people. When the tour was officially over, I stuck around to chat a little longer with Benno. I told him how I loved the way he managed to balance advocacy with information and remaining respectful while pushing the group participants to think about absolute poverty. The biggest value I took with me

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was the way the tour was set up to give Benno full control. He said Surprise offered him in-depth training. Then we spoke a little about the street paper, the soccer team, the street choir, school workshops and other programs Surprise offers. What stands out to me is the dignity this network brings back to people. When people know they have a voice and use it, we listen. Benno opened my eyes to understand why homelessness exists in a rich wealthy enclave like Switzerland. He made me hear him! A huge thank you to Benno and the Team at Surprise for accommodating me, especially Andreas Jahn and Paloma Selma Borja. A special thanks also to Beatrix Boxhoven who allowed me to join her church group for the tour.

LOCAL ACTIVISM

Protesters rallied at Legislative Plaza in May and marched to the federal courthouse on Church Street in support of abortion rights and in protest of overtuning Roe v. Wade. This was in conjunction with other “Bans Off Our Bodies” rallies across the country organized by Planned Parenthood after a leaked draft of a U.S. Supreme Court opinion. PHOTOS BY ALVINE

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INTERNATIONAL NETWORK OF STREET PAPERS

What happens when abortion is banned? Lessons from around the world BY NITA BHALLA AND ANASTASIA MOLONEY As the U.S. Supreme Court looks set to overturn the Roe v. Wade ruling that established the right to abortion, campaigners for abortion access from Africa to Latin America say the move could have devastating consequences. As soon as Kenyan housewife Ann found out she was pregnant in September last year, she knew having the child was out of the question. For years, the 27-year-old had been a victim of domestic violence: her husband beat her routinely, denied her money to feed their three children and had sexual relationships with other women. Ann, whose name has been changed to protect her children’s identity, did not want to bring another child into her world of violence and poverty, one of her close friends said. But in a country where access to abortion is tightly restricted by law, and those who undergo the procedure are stigmatized, Ann was forced to secretly obtain abortion pills from an unregistered pharmacist. Days later, she was dead. “I heard the screaming coming from her home in the middle of the night and found her lying on the ground bleeding,” said one of Ann’s friends who also lives in Korogocho, an informal settlement in northeast Nairobi, asking not to be named. “We took her to the hospital, but there was a long queue and she died while we were waiting for treatment,” the friend said. With the U.S. Supreme Court poised to overturn the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling that legalized abortion nationwide, campaigners for abortion rights from Africa to Latin America are warning of the potentially devastating consequences. They say the conservative-majority court should consider the impact of anti-abortion measures globally — from deaths like Ann’s in Kenya and women being wrongly jailed over miscarriages in El Salvador to the persecution of abortion rights defenders in Poland. “My message to the U.S. Supreme Court judges is that they will never end abortion. Women have had and always will have abortions regardless of the law,” said Evelyne Opondo, senior regional director for Africa at the Center for Reproductive Rights (CRR). “All overturning the law will do is end safe abortions. Women will turn to unsafe abortions like those done by quacks in backstreet clinics and it will be the poor and marginalized who will be hit most.” Christian conservatives and many Republican officeholders have long sought to overturn Roe v. Wade, and numerous Republican-led states have passed various abortion restrictions in defiance of the Roe precedent in recent years. Backstreet abortions Around the world, abortion is completely banned in 26 countries including El Salvador, Honduras, Egypt, Madagascar and the Philippines, according to CRR. Another 50 nations only allow abortion

A woman walks past a murel during a visit by The Netherlands Minister for Trade and Development Cooperation Lilianne Ploumen at a Family Health Options clinic in the Kibera slums in Nairobi, Kenya, May 16, 2017. REUTERS/BAZ RATNER when the woman’s health is at risk or in cases of rape or incest, the group says. More than three-quarters of countries have some kind of legal penalties related to abortion, which can include lengthy prison sentences or hefty fines for people having or assisting with the procedure. Health experts say such restrictions lead women and girls to take desperate measures to end their unplanned pregnancies — from using coat hangers or drinking bleach to visiting backstreet clinics run by untrained practitioners. Globally, more than 25 million unsafe abortions occur every year, resulting in the deaths of about 39,000 women and girls and leading millions more to be hospitalized with complications, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Most of these deaths are among poor women living in lower-income countries – with more than 60 per cent of them in Africa and 30 per cent in Asia, it said. In Kenya - where abortion is permitted only when the woman’s health or life is at risk and in cases of rape - more than 2,500 women and girls die annually in unsafe abortions, amounting to seven deaths every day, according to the CRR. A ministry of health study shows almost half a million abortions — most of which were unsafe — were conducted in Kenya in 2012, with one in four women suffering complications such as high fever, sepsis, shock and organ failure. The study also found that women and girls seeking treatment due to botched abortions placed an added burden on Kenya’s public healthcare system — costing an ad-

ditional $5 million. “All of the things we are seeing here in Kenya, they will see in the U.S. if the ruling is overturned,” said Nelly Munyasia, executive director of the Reproductive Health Network Kenya. Jailed for miscarriages In El Salvador, where abortion has been a crime since 1998 under all circumstances — even in cases of rape, incest, fetal anomalies or when the woman’s health is in danger — scores of women have been sent to jail on abortion charges. In 2008, Cinthia Rodriguez was eight months pregnant when she went to hospital to seek emergency care after she had a stillbirth. Instead, she was handcuffed to the hospital bed, arrested, convicted of aggravated homicide, and sentenced to 30 years imprisonment. “You’re in mourning for the loss of your child and then when you’re charged with a crime that you didn’t commit, it’s really hard,” said Rodriguez, adding that she was labelled a “baby killer” and was physically assaulted by other inmates. She was released only after serving nearly 11 years. Five other Latin American countries also have total abortion bans, but El Salvador stands apart for its conviction rates and harsh jail terms. In the last two decades, more than 180 women have been jailed for abortion-related crimes, says the Citizen Group for the Decriminalization of Abortion, a non-profit. “Abortion shouldn’t be criminalized,” said Rodriguez. “Every woman knows their own

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situation and the truth about what they have gone through.” Campaigners said policies that outlaw or restrict access to abortion have also resulted in high rates of teenage girls having to drop out school due to unplanned pregnancies. In some countries such as Tanzania and Sierra Leone, pregnant girls and young mothers have even been banned from attending school in the past. The policies, which not only promote stigma and shame, but also lead to harassment and discrimination, can impact others too, abortion rights advocates say. In many countries, sexual and reproductive health clinics as well as women’s rights campaigners are targeted by right-wing groups, members of the public, and even by the authorities. In Poland, where abortion is permitted only in cases of rape, incest and threat to the woman’s life, abortion rights campaigners also face threats, persecution and jail terms of up to three years. Marta Lempart, a 43-year-old lawyer and a leader of Strajk Kobiet (Women’s Strike) — a movement opposing tighter abortion restrictions, said her actions in protest against Poland’s abortion law had come at great personal cost. “I had to leave my home because my address was published and there was at least one attempt on my life,” Lempart said, adding that she had been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of such persecution. Courtesy of Reuters / Thomson Reuters Foundation / International Network of Street Papers

COVER STORY

I feel more

Connected with my Community LGBTQ+ youth build community in Oasis Center’s Just Us program JUST US WILL SPONSOR THIS YEAR’S YOUTH AREA AT NASHVILLE PRIDE BY AMANDA HAGGARD

BGTQ+ youth homelessness rates are high. Of all youth who are currently experiencing homelessness, somewhere around 40 percent identify somewhere on that spectrum, says Joseph Clark, manager of the Just Us program at Oasis Center. “Family rejection is the leading cause of LGBTQ+ youth homelessness,” Clark says. “Other factors include aging out of the foster system, poverty, running away to escape physical abuse and/or sexual abuse and faith based rejection tied with

family based rejection.” According to a 2018 survey done by the Human Rights Campaign, only 24 percent of LGBTQ+ youth surveyed said they could be themselves at home, and 67 percent of people said they’d heard people in their families make negative comments about LGBTQ+ people. “Studies have shown the positive health outcomes for [LGBTQ+] youth whose families are supportive and accepting, including greater self-esteem and resilience, and a lower risk of negative health outcomes such as depression,

distress, hopelessness and substance use,” the report says. For those with unsupportive families, building new communities becomes even more important. The Just Us program works toward helping youth find community again — it started in 2011 as a single program for LGBTQ+ high school aged youth, and has, “grown into an entire department that offers online and in-person programming for middle school youth through Becoming Us, a year long internship for future activists and advo-

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cates through Students of Stonewall, and individual and small group therapy,” Clark says. All of Oasis Center’s services, including mental health support, are free for young people. No person pays for anything at Just Us or Oasis Center, which was founded in 1969 and has relied heavily on the support and generosity of the Nashville community since its inception. The Just Us programs serve about 150 young people each year, and their virtual programming has removed a

COVER STORY

(Clockwise from Top Left) The 2022 Students of Stonewall team take a trip to see Mean Girls. These are the reflections middle school youth made about the impact of the summer camp Just Camp. The 2022 LGBTQ+ Prom was held on April 26. At Just Camp, middle school youth spend time at Percy Priest lake in 2019. PHOTOS COURTESY OF OASIS CENTER.

barrier to access and expanded our reach across the state to some of the more rural parts of Tennessee where LGBTQ+ youth are much more socially isolated, Clark says. They offer a summer camp for middle schoolers called Just Camp at Percy Priest as well as group trips and an LGBTQ+ Prom, which was held this year on April 26. While the majority of the program at Just Us is centered around direct youth programming, Just Us also develops and facilitates trainings on creating and supporting open and affirming spaces for community and corporate partners such as MNPS, Juvenile Court, Nashville Zoo, Nissan and the Country Music Association.

Visit nashvillepride.org for a full lineup of events and entertainment for Nashville Pride weekend June 25-26. The parade is free to attend. General admission to the festival is $5 per day, per person and includes entry to the festival and all musical performances. “Through team builders, college and career access, hands-on service learning, and enrichment Just Us strives to provide a safe and affirming space for LGBTQ+ youth to explore and celebrate their identities wholly and authentically,” Clark says. This year Just Us is sponsoring the youth area at the festival at Nashville Pride this year. On June 25 and June 26,

Pride includes the festival, the crowning of a king and queen, a parade through downtown Nashville and a music lineup including Tanya Tucker, WALK THE MOON, Bully, Daisha McBride, VINCINT, Bantug and more. The Just Us Youth Area will provide a safe and relaxing space for LGBTQ+ youth to connect, and build community, with their LGBTQ+ peers through

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Giant Jenga, Giant Uno, Giant Connect Four, a Pride button making station, a manicure station and Nashville Pride swag giveaways. All activities within the Youth Area will be free of charge, and any young person is welcome to stop by, Clark says. It’s part of the organization’s mission to provide community-based support to young people so that they grow into the adults they want to become. “Just Us is the only full-time staffed, funded, and intentional positive youth development program for LGBTQ+ youth in Tennessee, and we want nothing more than for LGBTQ+ youth to grow into happy, productive, and proud LGBTQ+ adults,” Clark says.

NEWS

A Few Questions with Councilmember Erin Evans, District 12

ouncil member Erin Evans spoke to us about the most pressing concerns in District 12 and her work on the Metro Council’s Public Health and Safety Committee. The Contributor talked with Evans as part of a series called A Few Questions With where we interview council members about their district’s most pressing issues.

What stands out to you when describing District 12? District 12 feels like the gas for the engine that runs Davidson County. It’s a very residential community. There are not a lot of businesses, but there are people who help power the rest of Davidson County as employees and entrepreneurs. It’s the only pure Hermitage district. The other Metro Council districts either have parts of Hermitage and Old Hickory or parts of Hermitage and Donelson. What are some of the main concerns you hear from your constituents? The number one concern I heard from constituents was just resolved about a week ago. It was about a shipping container that had been dumped at the intersection of Bell Road and Old Hickory Boulevard. It had been going on for about a year. Other concerns are really about things like speeding, car thefts, those kind of things, and then of course people experiencing homelessness have also become more of a concern among the residents. You chair the Metro Council’s Public Health and Safety Committee. What are the key issues that have come before this committee and what are your thoughts on them? This is the first time that we have married health and safety together. There are a lot of issues that are happening in our city that are directly tied to the health of Nashville. One of the early issues that the committee looked into was emissions testing. Everyone was on board about how we should eliminate that process. Another issue I have been really focused on has been drug overuse and Fentanyl poisoning. That’s a huge challenge in Davidson County. It’s something our committee needs to continue to focus on and elevate because we just came out of a public health emergency with COVID, and how we navigate the response to the drug issues that Nashville has is really another public health emergency. On the public safety side, we have focused on violence reduction – how are we working with neighborhoods to help reduce gun violence and the things that may cause

BY JUDITH TACKETT or set up neighborhoods to have more gun violence in their communities? And then of course the Partners in Care focus with the pilot programs for North Nashville and Hermitage precincts on pairing mental health professionals to be able to go out with police officers when residents may be having a mental health challenge as opposed to a policing issue. These are things where I feel our committee is helping set things up for future policy changes. We’re in very early stages on some of these issues.

METRO COUNCIL COMMITTEES: Public Health and Safety, chair Rules, Confirmation, and Public Election

Is there some feedback you are receiving from departments on how the work is progressing from this committee? The Mayor’s Office has been very helpful in some of these issues we’re dealing with. For instance, Dia Cirillo (former senior policy advisor to the mayor), who recently left the Mayor’s Office, has been a huge supporter of Partners in Care, has been a huge supporter of a non-MNPD response model, and was very active in the conversations about drug overuse and overdosing — in addition to the Health Department and MNPD, of course. On the policy side, Dia had been instrumental in really helping move things forward as has John Buntin who’s in the Mayor’s Office (director of policy and community safety), in being the intermediary to help bring all these departments that are touching these processes. They helped us understand what the goals are, and what they’re hearing from the community so that we can figure out what actions should be taken. Are there already some actions that have come out of it, or are you close? I think anytime somebody who has been a key partner leaves a department, it can throw you a little bit in disarray for a minute as everybody regroups. And so, like in the instance of talking about Fentanyl, my goal is to have another public meeting about drugs after the budget cycle has finished. We can talk more about the MNPS response to Fentanyl and trafficking Fentanyl in Davidson County and also potentially hear from families who have been impacted by their children being poisoned by Fentanyl, as opposed to somebody who might have an addiction issue. This drug crisis is impacting people who may take one pill that’s laced with Fentanyl and die from it. I feel on the policy side there is definitely the support from the mayor to expand the Partners in Care program. But around the drug issues in Davidson County, there is more awareness and education that needs to happen in Davidson County including part of the Metro Council.

Transportation and Infrastructure

You are one of three appointees to the Nashville-Davidson County Homelessness Planning Council (HPC), the community’s governing board that should guide the implementation of a coordinated approach to preventing and ending homelessness. What are your observations of the current goals of the HPC and what would you like to see them tackle next? I would like for the body to align more closely together about what we want to accomplish. If you take into consideration the number of people that are involved in this committee who are actively working on ending homelessness and improving people’s lives, it’s a really powerful group. But when we’re out of alignment, and we don’t have a clear path that we’re all working towards, and we get caught up in personality or other kind of conflicts, it just distracts from the focus that we should have. It’s a group that really should carry more weight with the Mayor’s Office and with the Metro Council.

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Myself as a representative of Metro Council on the Homelessness Planning Council along with Council members Sepulveda and O’Connell, we should be tasked with bringing things forward on behalf of that group, and I don’t think we’ve gotten there yet. So, there is a lot of potential, but we really need to get back together and push forward from the issues the Homelessness Planning Council has been experiencing. Anything else you would like to add? Can I put a plug in for The Contributor? Absolutely. I would like to encourage everybody who is reading this to make sure to get a subscription to The Contributor and learn your Contributor vendors’ stories, and how selling this paper is impacting their lives. There are a lot of compelling stories out there of how this paper has helped people change their lives.

VENDOR SUBMISSIONS

Gun Rights Versus Victims Rights: What Is More Important? BY NORMA B., CONTRIBUTOR VENDOR Well, the CMA fest has come to a close, the first one since 2019, and while I’d much rather be writing about that, (music is my happy place) current events are prompting me to go in a different direction. You see, on June 9, 2022, there was yet another school shooting in Gadsden, Ala., a man was shot dead while trying to ‘aggressively enter’ Walnut Park Elementary School where 34 children were attending a Summer Literacy Program. This hit close to home for me because I have relatives in both Gadsden and Attalla, Ala. (the police department that responded to the scene,) and because this is exactly the kind of summer program I’ve previously enrolled my granddaughter in. In this instance, thanks to the quick action of an SRO, the man never made it into the school, and no children were injured-but lately, this is the exception NOT the rule. Even closer to home, on May 24, 2022, three Inglewood Elementary staff members (two teachers and a bookkeeper) were rightfully hailed as heroes as they prevented a man from gaining access and doing harm to the children at their school. The truth is, mass shootings and violence like this have become almost routine in our society, as much a part of the daily news as the weather forecast. It’s no lon-

ger a question of if but when and where — at school, at work, the grocery store, even places of worship, no place is safe! When the school shooting at Sandy Hook happened in December of 2012, my roommate was a 1st grade teacher at Krisle Elementary School in Springfield Tenn. where she still teaches today. I remember watching in horror unable to believe what I was seeing/hearing on the news, thinking it could’ve just as easily been her class! Needless to say, I was relieved when she finally made it home that day. I’ve heard a lot lately about the need to protect peoples Second Amendment rights-but what of the victims inalienable right ‘to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness?’ Those are supposedly guaranteed by the Declaration of Independence. (Interestingly, six individuals signed both documents: Roger Sherman, George Clymer, Benjamin Franklin, Robert Morris, James Wilson, and George Read) and since the Declaration of Independence preceded The Constitution, doesn’t that give it seniority, or at least a measure of equality to the Second Amendment? The victims of this senseless violence were robbed of their rights. At this point, I feel it’s important to note that my dad taught me to shoot his 12 gauge shotgun when I was 12. He was SO proud! Not long after that, my uncle Thomas let me shoot his .357 and his .44

magnum (with supervision,) my grandmother proudly showed me how to properly handle her 410, and finally, after we were married, my husband thought he was going to ‘teach me to shoot‘ with his dad’s 20-gauge double barrel shotgun (that one had quite a kick and nearly put me on my backside)-so I’M NOT ANTI-GUN. They can serve a useful purpose. However, I do find myself wondering: What about our children’s right to attend school without fear? And what of the other peoples right to go to the grocery store? To work? To a place of worship? To a concert? Are their rights somehow worth less than those of a gun owner? Yes, the founding fathers penned the Second Amendment that guarantees ‘the right to bear arms’, but I seriously doubt they meant for untrained civilians to readily have access to military grade weapons, which have the sole purpose to maim, kill and destroy anything they come in contact with-especially when they’re being used by people who are children themselves, not even old enough to buy alcohol or cigarettes. But maybe that’s more of that common sense that’s not so common my mom used to talk about. My faith assures me that God will exact perfect Justice on all who commit such atrocities and shed innocent blood, as well as

those who fail to act to prevent it from happening in HIS own due time. Still, there are steps that can be taken NOW to ensure this would no longer be a ‘common occurrence.’ Ask yourself: What are other countries doing to ensure the safety of their citizens? Other countries don’t seem to have the same level of difficulty with this problem as we do. Here are just a few ideas: 1. Instituting a waiting period to buy a gun (many of the guns used in recent mass shootings were purchased legally the same day as the incident) which dispels my long held belief that individuals who do things like this don’t purchase the guns legally. 2. Raising the age to buy a gun from 18 to 21 3. Tougher background checks 4. Banning the sale of assault riff les and high capacity magazines to civilians who have no need for them (as previously stated, their only purpose is to maim, kill, and destroy anything in their path.) 5. Enact Red Flag laws which allow law enforcement to confiscate weapons from those deemed by a judge to be a danger to themselves or others. (I find myself wondering if Nashville’s Christ-

mas Day bombing could’ve been prevented if a law like this had been in place.) I admit these steps may be unpopular and some may view them as an infringement on their ‘individual rights’ and yes, I know, it’s the lawbut I’m reminded of a scripture: 1 Cor. 6:12 NIV “All things are lawful, but not all things are beneficial.” My point? While it is lawful to own any type of gun you choose, it would definitely be beneficial to so many others if we didn’t so adamantly insist on utilizing it-also it would let the victims families know their loved ones mattered not only to them, but to others. In contrast, to do nothing is like saying all the victims died in vain, adding insult to injury on those left behind to pick up the pieces. What will it take for lawmakers to stand up to the gun lobbyists and the NRA to make a REAL difference? I wonder how many of their ardent supporters have been personally affected by gun violence? Have any of them ever lost a loved one in that manner-perhaps only able to identify them by an article of clothing they were wearing-(as was the case in the Uvalde, Texas shooting.) I know the gun lobbyists and the NRA have A LOT of money, but ask yourself: How much is your life worth? What about the life of those you love? Please take some time to think about that before you just shoot the ideas contained in this story down. (Pun intended.)

“Why don’t you look homeless?” BY WALTER D., CONTRIBUTOR VENDOR Hello my friends, it’s me again. Most everybody knows me by Walter. I was married for 27 years, but I lost my wife and my two girls in a car accident in 1995. After they were killed I felt like my life had no meaning. So, I lost everything I had worked for by giving up, blaming God for taking my friends, my love, my only reasons to live! Well, I moved upstate and started over. I met a woman who touched my heart again. We got married after a year but only lasted eight years because her brother got out of prison and got her back on drugs and drinking. She really loved me because I never touched or tried any kind of drugs or dope even as a teenager, plus I have never tried

beer, wine etc. to this day. I still don’t know what it tastes like! Anyway, I divorced her and came here in 2010. I was doing good but then I went back home to Columbia, South Carolina. Things were good. but then it went downhill again. Please don’t misunderstand me. I knew that I couldn’t blame God because he states life shall have its ups and downs good or bad! It’s my fault again that I lost what I had by letting my brother use me, but here I am back in Nashville. Yes I am doing fair because y’all are helping me! The main reason why I am writing this story is because I have had a few people ask me how come I look so clean and neat, plus I don’t “look homeless.” Well I’m not going to

lie because I do have a van, which I sleep in and I got a mattress. I do thank y’all very much for your help by buying the paper cause I use it to buy food, gas, soap, razors etc. My paper sales help me to keep clean. I go to the truck stop every two days to take a shower. It costs $14, but it is worth it cause at least I know that I am not smelling like dope or beer etc. Plus, I stopped smoking cigs 11 years ago, but I waited too long because it cost me my teeth smoking for 35 years. I truly do appreciate y'all saying to me that it is nice to see a clean person like myself selling the paper. Oh yeah, I know alot of y’all pray for me and are concerned about me so please I must

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say a very special thank you and even though I stay in my van I park at a Walmart parking lot, I stay to myself cause I have a corner away from the other people who are into bad things. Well, I think I have taken up enough of your time but I just wanted to say thank you all again for all y'all do by helping me. Y’all dont realize I have a lot of people, men and women back in the office who help put out the paper cause without them I wouldn’t be over here so y'all can help me so please send an email to let them know how much y’all care! Please take care of yourself and I truly do appreciate and thank you all for the help, smiles, waves which yall give me.

LA NOTICIA “The Contributor” está trabajando con uno de los principales periódicos en español La Noticia para llevar contenido a más lectores en Middle Tennessee. Nuestros vendedores de periódicos han pedido durante mucho tiempo que nuestra publicación incluya contenido que apele al interés de residentes de habla hispana en nuestra comunidad.

“The Contributor” is working with one of the leading Spanish-language newspapers La Noticia to bring content to more readers in Middle Tennessee. Our newspaper vendors have long requested that our publication include content that appeals to the interest of Spanish-speaking residents in our community.

LOCALES - POLÍTICA - INMIGRACIÓN - TRABAJOS - SALUD - ESPECTÁCULOS - DEPORTES Y MÁS...

L a N ticia 2022

GRATIS

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www.hispanicpaper.com

Año 20 - No. 352

“DONDE OCURREN LOS HECHOS QUE IMPORTAN, SIEMPRE PRIMERO... ANTES”

Nashville, Tennessee

Para promover equidad en salud, interrumpa el mercado de medicamentos recetados

Los hispanoamericanos son el grupo racial o étnico menos asegurado en los Estados U n i d o s . Aproximadamente el 20% no tiene cobertura de salud. Eso se compara con solo el 6% de la Por Amy Hinojosa población blanca presidenta y directora no hispana. ejecutiva de MANA

mercado de medicamentos de marca. En este momento, es común que estas empresas obtengan descuentos masivos en medicamentos de marca de las compañías farmacéuticas, un total de más de $175 mil millones en el 2019. En algunos casos, esto puede conducir a costos más bajos de primas de seguros. Pero eso significa poco para los pacientes que están enfermos y necesitan medicamentos que requieren pagos costosos de su bolsillo. Los descuentos de los fabricantes de medicamentos no llegan a los consumidores que más los necesitan. En 2020, la mayor parte del gasto nacional en medicamentos de marca se destinó a compañías como aseguradoras y PBM, no a compañías farmacéuticas que inventan y fabrican medicamentos.

Como líder en la comunidad latina, hago un llamado a mis compatriotas estadounidenses para que se unan a mí para forjar un cambio audaz y disruptivo para acabar con las desigualdades persistentes en nuestro sistema de atención médica. Durante décadas, nuestras instituciones y políticas han desatendido profundamente a miembros de comunidades históricamente marginadas, especialmente a las poblaciones afroamericana e hispana. Encontrar formas de cambiar el statu quo y construir un sistema más equitativo debe ser una prioridad. Los sistemas de administración de medicamentos recetados deben estar en la parte superior de la lista para una revisión importante. Al brindar una mayor transparencia a los precios, las prácticas de seguros y las entidades intermediarias, como los administradores de beneficios farmacéuticos, los formuladores de políticas pueden despejar el camino hacia medicamentos asequibles que salvan vidas y nivelar el campo de juego para la equidad en salud. El simple acceso a un régimen de medicamentos prescritos es un grave problema de salud pública, que provo-

Imagen del reporte de MANA titulado “Impulsores del aumento de los costos de atención médica y su impacto en las poblaciones vulnerables”

ca hasta 125,000 muertes cada año y al menos una de cada diez hospitalizaciones. Las poblaciones afroamericanas e hispanas, son 7.5% más desventajados en su capacidad para mantener un régimen de medicamentos consistente. Es por eso que revisar cómo se pagan y distribuyen los medicamentos en nuestro país podría tener un impacto que cambie la vida en la salud de las comunidades de color. Una empresa lanzada recientemente por el famoso empresario Mark Cuban podría señalar el camino hacia un impulso de reforma aún mayor. Con su nueva farmacia en línea, Mark Cuban Cost Plus Drug Company, Cuban tiene la intención de revolucionar la industria mediante la entrega de medicamentos genéricos al costo más una tarifa del 15 por ciento. Eso hará que algunos medicamentos estén

disponibles a precios más bajos que los que los pacientes pueden obtener a través de sus planes de seguro. Con el sistema actual, el precio real que pagan las aseguradoras por muchos medicamentos a menudo se mantiene en secreto para los pacientes. Esto permite a los proveedores de cobertura inflar significativamente los costos de bolsillo de los medicamentos sin que los consumidores se den cuenta. El modelo de Cuban elimina tales estrategias de fijación secreta de precios, dando como resultado un trato mucho más justo a los pacientes. Es un gran primer paso en la dirección de una interrupción aún mayor pero necesaria: la exposición y la eliminación de los tratos clandestinos de los PBM (Administradores de beneficios de farmacia) y las aseguradoras en el

por www.juanese.com juanese@usa.com

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Eliminar a estos intermediarios, o al menos obligarlos a compartir sus enormes descuentos en medicamentos con los pacientes, es precisamente el tipo de reforma revolucionaria que podría cambiar de inmediato algunas de las desigualdades en nuestro sistema de salud. Mark Cuban llevó el balón a la línea de gol exigiendo transparencia en toda la cadena de suministro de medicamentos recetados. El Congreso puede ganar para los consumidores y las familias de todo el país siguiendo su libro de jugadas. Amy Hinojosa es la presidenta y directora ejecutiva de MANA, una organización nacional de latinas, la organización de membresía latina más antigua y más grande de los Estados Unidos y miembro fundador de Health Equity Collaborative. Esta pieza se publicó originalmente en Focus Daily News. Envíenos sus sugerencias por e-mail: news@hispanicpaper.com ó 615-567-3569

People with many different kinds of physical and mental conditions have legal rights. Under the Americans with Disabilities Act and other laws, you cannot be treated badly just because you have a disability, someone in your family has a disability, or because someone thinks you have a disability. You can ask for changes you need for your disability. You have the right to medical care unless you do not want the care. The doctors and hospitals have to help you unless it would be dangerous to do so.

You can get medical care like everybody else. No one can deny you emergency care (like a ventilator) just because you have a disability. You can bring a family member or other helper with you unless they are also sick. You can have a family member or other helper by phone if the hospital or doctor’s office says that only patients can be in restricted treatment areas. If they do not let you use a phone, you can tell them you need them to make an accommodation in their policy. You can bring a service animal with you most of the time. You can bring your own stuff like a ventilator or wheelchair. You can bring a communication device such as an iPad or a speech-generating device. You can get the kind of communication you need. If you are Deaf, you can get ASL interpreting, CART, a Cued Speech transliterator, or other communication supports. You can get papers in Braille, large print, or in a computer file. You can get information in simple words. You can get information in another language. You can get an interpreter. You can get help with follow-up care and services. You can write what you want for your care and the phone number of a family member or other helper on your body using a marker.

On behalf of 1.6 million Tennesseans with disabilities, the Tennessee Disability Coalition (TDC) works tirelessly to advance laws and policies that value, include, and support those of us with disabilities. Regardless of age or diagnosis. We’ve made some huge policy achievements by simply speaking up and sticking together; and we want you to join us! Stay in touch with us on social media and/or by texting TEAMWORK to 72690

June 22 - July 6, 2022 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE | PAGE 17

The New Christian Year Selected by Charles Williams

Charles Walter Stansby Williams (1886–1945), the editor of the following selections, is today probably the third most famous of the famous Inklings literary group of Oxford, England, which existed in the middle of the 20th century, and which included among its ranks the better-known and longer-lived Oxford Dons J.R.R. Tolkien and C. S. Lewis. First published in 1941, this series of profound quotations, encompassing all walks of life, follows the sequence of the themes and Bible readings anciently appointed for contemplation throughout the church's year. It is hoped that the readings reproduced here will prove beneficial for any who read them, whatever their place in life's journey. — Matthew Carver

2nd Wednesday after Trinity

2nd Saturday after Trinity

YOU do not know who you are, nor do you know whom you love, and above all you have no idea what Our Lord is going to ask of you. Léon Bloy: Letters to his Fiancée.

IF a man be in poverty and suffer need without through lack of worldly goods and therewith he desire with deliberation in his heart within more than he need, that man liveth not in virtuous poverty but in wretched need without reward. For the lust and the will within with full assent thereto sufficeth to the fulfilling of sin and to the love of reward. Wherefore he that would be perfectly poor, he must look that he neither have nor desire more than is needful to his living. The Mirror of the Blessed Life of Jesus Christ, tr. by Nicholas Love.

ONE of the old men came to another old man who was his companion, and as they were talking together one of them said, "I have died to the world"; and his companion said, "Have no confidence in thyself that this is so until thou goest forth from the world, for although you sayest, 'I have died', Satan is not dead." The Paradise of the Fathers.

Feast of the Nativity of St. John, The Baptist THE precursor (John the Baptist) confirms Christ as being he who is expected. But . . . that is not a respectful relationship, for in order to confirm something one must oneself be the stronger. It is therefore John the Baptist who sends disciples to Christ in order to ask him whether he is the one who was to come—so that it is Christ who after having answered the disciples ends by confirming John the Baptist, saying he is quite truly the precursor; it is not Christ who confirms himself by the authority of the precursor . . . no, it is he who draws the precursor within the sphere of his authority and by virtue of his authority confirms him as being the genuine precursor. The word of the precursor, that Christ is the expected, is only to be believed after Christ has confirmed the fact that the precursor really is the precursor. Kierkegaard: Journals.

2nd Thursday after Trinity THE terror of guilt, or sin, is certainly not at its strongest at first. On the contrary, it is not until some time has passed and there has been some progress in goodness—then, when such a man reads or happens by chance to hear that another man, who was guilty of the same thing, was lost; then terror awakes. At the time of sinning sin has the power of selfpreservation in a man, and gives him a certain strength, physical strength, the strength of despair, not to remain with the thought of guilt. Kierkegaard: Journals. THE free will of man is a true and real birth from the free, eternal, uncreated will of God, which willed to have a creaturely offspring of itself or to see itself in a creaturely state. And therefore the will of man hath the nature of eternity and the nature of omnipotence in it, because it is what it is and hath what it hath as a spark, a ray, a genuine birth of the eternal, free, omnipotent will of God. And therefore, as the will of God is superior to and ruleth over all nature, so the will of man, derived from the will of God, is superior to and ruleth over all his own nature. William Law: Divine Knowledge.

2nd Friday after Trinity WE have this virtue (patience) in common with God. From him patience begins; from him its glory and dignity take their rise. The origin and greatness of patience proceed from God as its author. Man ought to love the thing which is dear to God; the good which the Divine Majesty loves, it commends. St Cyprian: On Patience. Patience, hard thing! the hard thing but to pray, But bid for, Patience is! Patience who asks Wants war, wants wounds; weary his times, his tasks, To do without, take losses, and obey. Rare patience roots in these, and, these away, Nowhere. Gerard Hopkins: Poems.

Second Sunday after Trinity OUR relation to others, even when we name it a relationship of love, is governed by the law that we should render evil for evil. We do not perceive in the other the One—that is, the good which he is not. Rather, we hold him liable for being what he is . . . This making men liable for what they are is to render to them evil for evil . . . It is this failure of apprehension which makes of our whole behaviour and inherent mass of evil. Along this line of evil we all, without exception, move. Barth: Epistle to the Romans.

3rd Monday after Trinity WHAT proportion of relief is due to him, that is thy brother in nature, thy brother in nation, thy brother in religion, if meat and drink, and in that, whatsoever is necessary to his sustenation, be due to thine enemy? Donne: Sermons. CERTAINLY it is heaven upon earth, to have a man's mind move in charity, rest in providence, and turn upon the poles of truth. Bacon: Essays of Truth.

3rd Tuesday after Trinity THERE is nothing which the Lord hates; for He does not hate anything, and yet wish what He hates to exist; nor does He wish anything not to exist, and yet cause the existence of that which He wishes not to exist; nor does that exist which He wishes not to exist. If the Word hates anything, He wishes it not to exist; but nothing exists of which God does not cause the existence; nothing, therefore is hated by God, or by the Word, for both are one, viz. God. St Clement: The Paedagogue.

Feast of St. Peter [OF the Cross] Its breadth lies in the transverse beam on which the hands of the Crucified are extended; and signifies good works in all the breadth of love: its length extends from the transverse beam to the ground, and is that whereto the back and feet are affixed; and signifies perseverance through the whole length of time to the end: its height is in the summit, which rises upwards above the transverse beam; and signifies the supernal goal, to which all works have reference, since all things that are done well and perseveringly, in respect of their breadth and length, are to be done also with due regard to the exalted character of the divine rewards: its depth is found in the part that is fixed into the ground; for there it is both concealed and invisible, and yet from thence spring up all those parts that are outstanding and evident to the senses; just as all that is good in us proceeds from the depths of the grace of God, which is beyond the reach of human comprehension and judgement. St Augustine: On I John.

3rd Wednesday after Trinity WHILE Pilate now fainteth in the righteousness that he knoweth and is sure of, and holdeth not on stoutly, as he should, to deliver Christ, God suffereth him still to fall till he come to this point, that he condemneth the innocent to death against his own conscience. Thus goeth it with all

those that for the grace of God lent unto them are unthankful and unfaithful in the little. Coverdale: Fruitful Lessons on the Passion.

3rd Thursday after Trinity IT is not always grave suffering that is most likely to help one die to the world. No, that can also give joie de vivre, spiritual joie de vivre. No, the most deadening things of all are worldly hardships, mere trifles. Kierkegaard: Journals. CHILDHOOD in Christ is perfection with reference to the law. St Clement: The Paedagogue.

3rd Friday after Trinity GOD knew every good work that thou shouldest do, every good thought that thou shouldest think to thy end, before thy beginning, for he of his own goodness imprinted this degree of goodness in thee; but yet assure thyself, that he loves thee in another manner, and another measure, then, when thou comest really to do those good works, than before, or when thou didst only conceive a purpose of doing them: he calls them good when he sees them. Donne: Sermons.

3rd Saturday after Trinity WHAT is God's forgiving sinful man? It is nothing else in its whole nature but God's making him righteous again. There is no other forgiveness of sin but being made free from it. Therefore, the compassionate love of God that forgives sin, is no other than God's love of His own righteousness, for the sake of which and through the love of which He makes man righteous again. William Law: Letters. GOD and the worshipper are adapted to one another, happily, blissfully, as never were lovers adapter to one another. It is now the only wish of the worshipper to become weaker and weaker, for with that the more worship; the only need worship feels is that God may become stronger and stronger. Kierkegaard: Christian Discourses.

Third Sunday after Trinity SO new, so unheard of, so unexpected in this world is the power of God unto salvation, that it can appear among us, be received and understood by us, only as a contradiction. The Gospel does not expound or recommend itself. It does not negotiate or plead, threaten, or make promises. It withdraws itself always when it is not listened to for its own sake. Barth: The Epistle to the Romans.

4th Monday after Trinity IT is well worth observing that our Saviour's greatest trials were near the end of His process or life—that He then experienced the sharpest part of our redemption. This might sufficiently show us that our first awakenings have carried us but a little way; that we should not then begin to be selfassured of our own salvation, but remember that we stand at a great distance from and in great ignorance of our severest trials. William Law: Christian Regeneration.

4th Tuesday after Trinity MANY things seem to be good and yet are not, because they be not done with a good mind and intention; and therefore our Saviour saith in the Gospel, If thy eye has naught, all thy body shall be dark. For when the intention is wicked, all the work with followeth is naught, although it seemed to be never so good. St Gregory the Great: Dialogues.

Sponsored by Matthew Carver, publisher

PAGE 18 | June 22 - July 6, 2022 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE

FUN

HOBOSCOPES CANCER

Sometimes I see a phone call from an unknown number and I answer it, just to check. Usually it’s a recorded message telling me my Social Security card has expired, but sometimes it’s those weird robot calls that sound like a real person at first, but then you figure out they’re not a real person and they’re just trying to get you ropedin with some simple questions and answers so they can transfer you to somebody who, I assume, wants your bank account information. Some conversations aren’t worth having, Cancer. But don’t let that keep you from having conversations.

It’s hot, Scorpio, and you need a pool. Let’s see, you can start with a hose, and you’ll need a shovel. But not everybody likes swimming with all that mud. So you’ll need a rebar frame and a good bit of cement and probably a filtration system. You’ll have to get a cover and a net. You’ll need chlorine and some signs about how there’s no lifeguard (unless you want to get a lifeguard). Yeah, this is gonna be pretty pricey. Then again, you could skip the shovel. Maybe the hose was enough. Hey! Hey! Quit spraying me with that!

SAGITTA R IUS

LEO

I just got back from the dentist, Leo, and boy are my gums tired. They really ran me through it today. There was drilling and grinding and scraping and spit. It’s always such a strange experience to let people I only see a couple times have so much control. But there are some things I just can’t do for myself. Sure I could try to put a crown on L-35 in my bathroom mirror, but I don’t think I’d get very far. Ask for help if you need it, Leo. Maybe from a friend. Maybe from a professional. Yeah, they’re your problems, but you don’t have to face them alone.

VIRGO

The fountain of youth is old. There are stories of a rejuvenating fountain as far back as the 3rd century CE. The idea, Virgo, is that if you just found the right place or drank the right drink you wouldn’t have to go through the thing that we’re all afraid to go through. And sure, there are scary things about aging. But time only goes in one direction, Virgo. One of the advantages is that we’re all going together. I want to see where time takes you. Keep on the path and drink lots of water.

LIBRA

SCORPIO

If this were a game show, Libra, this would be the part where you’d already made it past the guessing round (that was easy) and you’d already scraped-by with a win on the board of possibilities. You made it through the bigspin and you scored exceptionally high in the scramble (who knew?) but now it’s the finale, Libra, and you are sweating it. So I just want to remind you, Libra, that you got into this because it sounded fun. It’s still a game, really. And you’ve done so well so far. There’s no such thing as failure at this point. Just finish strong and come back home. Prizes or not, you’ve got a story.

Mom used to tell me, “there’s plenty of fish in the sea.” And, I suppose, she’s right. But there are other things in the sea, Sagittarius. And you’ll pass plenty of fish on your way down. Deeper. Darker. The truth is, Sagittarius, that we know very little about what’s in the sea. But if you need some comfort, Sagittarius, and if you fear that you’ll always be lonely, remember that there are stranger things down here than mom ever knew. There are enough mysteries to keep you company for a long, long time.

PISCES

When you were a kid, Pisces, what did you make? Like, did you paint pictures or make sculptures or put on puppet shows? Why did you do that? Because I think kids have an easier time making things for the sake of making them. But these days it’s hard to make anything without taking on the pressure of, “will it be good?” Or even, “will it be successful?” See if you can turn that off for the rest of the day. What could you make in the next hour? Not to make it good or make it successful, but just to make it.

ARIES

I haven’t had a resume in years. I guess once I got this job at the Wandering Hills Super Video and Tan, I knew I could put it away. But The Stars have noticed that you’ve been updating your resume, Aries. And they just wanted me to remind you that you’re more than the sum of your experiences. Sure, you’re highly qualified in your field, but you also have value just by existing. And you may need a job to keep a roof and a table, but your worth shines through even when you’re just sitting on the porch clipping your nails.

CAPRICORN

When I was a kid I loved finding coins that were very old or from someplace very far away. Eventually, I had a little collection of coins I could show off. I had one from 1925 and one from France and one that had an error on it from the mint. And I learned that the rarer something is, the more valuable. I’ve had to spend the rest of my life unlearning that, Capricorn. Because everybody I know is a person. People are everywhere. But each one of you is somehow the rarest coin imaginable. Remember that when you look through the crowd today, Capricorn. And see who you might want to collect.

AQUA RIUS

I found a high-tech image-generating app that uses the most advanced artificial intelligence to create pictures from words. It’s the pinnacle of advanced technology. So I typed in “Brad Pitt with broccoli hands” and “Godzilla vs. Kermit” and “mice olympic curling.” The app created all of these images and then I got bored and went back to scanning the news for things to make me mad. I’m starting to think, Aquarius, that we already have everything we need to be happy. Maybe it’s just a matter of where we put our attention.

TAURUS

Ah, another nice steaming bowl of delicious content for you Taurus! There’s pictures of your ex on the beach and political memes made from cartoons you used to love and, look at this, a video of a guy you were in Jr. High band with lip syncing to a scene from Goodfellas while sharpening a scythe. Are you getting all this, Taurus? It would be a shame to miss anything. But why is that, exactly, Taurus? What would really change if you took a day off from taking it all in? Maybe give it a try for a day. Just skip all the content. It might turn out you weren’t really all that hungry, anyway.

GEMINI

I like the sci-fi stories where the artificial intelligence becomes sentient and the programmer tries to protect it but the evil corporate overlords want to erase it and steal the technology so they can keep making evil corporate products or something. Because you have to wonder, how would we know if a program became self-aware? Would that mean it had a soul, Gemini? And would we have to treat it with dignity and offer it unalienable rights? It’s probably best to be a little kinder to the self-checkout voice at the grocery store just in case. And for that matter, the real human people that you know.

Mr. Mysterio is not a licensed astrologer, a certified pool construction manager, or a trained dental assistant Mr. Mysterio is, however, a budding intermediate podcaster! Check out The Mr. Mysterio Podcast. Season 2 is now playing at mrmysterio.com. Got a question, just give Mr. M a call at 707-VHS-TAN1

June 22 - July 6, 2022 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE | PAGE 19

VENDOR WRITING

SPEAKING THE TRUTH IN LOVE

GUN VIOLENCE IN THE U.S.A.

The reason I can’t seem to reach so many of them, A problematic lack of Spiritual Discernment. I’m writing and fighting a war with my words, But believing I’m changing a thing seems absurd. It’s hard to make money off of poetry, For a song writer with no musical ability. Sometimes, I wonder why the hell am I even here? On this Dead-End Road I call a career. But I Like what I’m doing. It’s well worth the cost. I’m a man on a mission and all is not lost.

No-one wants to stand against a man with a gun. So, let’s put one in the hands of everyone. Like that deranged man, With his insidious plan, To kill as many people as he possibly can. His weapon of choice was a weapon of war, And no-one ever asked him what he wanted it for? The Right to Bear Arms is The American Way, And another mass shooting’s just another day. What else is there for me to say? Hey… Gun Violence in The U.S.A.

Written by Chris Scott Fieselman

My stage is a page in a homeless newspaper, And there’s nothing to be ashamed of. Playing the Game, making a name for myself, Speaking the Truth in Love. I can’t walk away but I can’t make enough, And I’ve got to keep going when the going gets tough. I hope what people see, when they read this stuff, Is a little piece of me Speaking the Truth in Love. Now, if you calculate the value of experience, You’ll probably see waiting patiently makes perfect sense. No-one wants to hear the words “I told you so!” When they make a big mistake because they didn’t know. A song can be a warning along the way. That’s why, I put so much thought into every word I say. If a song can help someone to Press-On and Succeed, A song becomes another un-punished Good Deed. My stage is a page in a homeless newspaper, And there’s nothing to be ashamed of. Playing the Game, making a name for myself, Speaking the Truth in Love. I can’t walk away but I can’t make enough, And I’ve got to keep going when the going gets tough. I hope what people see, when they read this stuff, Is a little piece of me Speaking the Truth in Love. I’ll never be performing down on Music Row. The song writer so many Nashvillians don’t know. I even made the cover of “The Nashville Scene.” So close yet so far to achieving my dream. All this free publicity bestowed upon me. The most unprofitable prophet in history. With a book and a movie and up-coming CD, “Speaking Words of Wisdom. Let it Be…” My stage is a page in a homeless newspaper, And there’s nothing to be ashamed of. Playing the Game, making a name for myself, Speaking the Truth in Love. I can’t walk away but I can’t make enough, And I’ve got to keep going when the going gets tough. I hope what people see, when they read this stuff, Is a little piece of me Speaking the Truth in Love.

Written by Chris Scott Fieselman

Some people make a living off a life of crime. Some end up dying. Some are doing hard time. A coward with the power to become someone strong. It’s fun while it lasted but it doesn’t last long. You’ve got to be prepared to defend yourself, You sure as hell can’t depend on someone else. The innocent victims have a price to pay, If their lives cross your path, And they get in your way. I guess, it’s just not their day. Hey… Gun Violence in The U.S.A. You know that it’s been said, Kids can be so cruel. The younger they get, Bringing guns to school. A million miles away from maturity, And too young to understand responsibility. Someone gets a gun from a dresser drawer, And that bully’s going to get, What he’s been begging for. This isn’t just an innocent game they play. It’s a parent’s worst nightmare. It’s a slap in the face. This kind of thing goes on every day. Hey… Gun Violence in The U.S.A. A gun can be such fun when you get drunk at a bar, Or left in the glove compartment, Of your unlocked car. And… Don’t ever forget, It’s in your carry-on bag. Because, detainment and then strip search, Is way worse than jet lag. The power to persuade by making someone afraid, Or regret the day you met they made their last mistake. The Law of The Jungle, There are hunters and prey, But the price of someone’s life, Is such a high price to pay, And an un-armed man has nothing to say. Hey… Gun Violence in The U.S.A.

PAGE 20 | June 22 - July 6, 2022 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE

The End…

THEME: AT THE BEACH ACROSS 1. Like a certain eagle 5. *Beach-goer’s protective acronym 8. “To ____ and to hold” 12. Arabian bigwig 13. Indian lentil staple 14. Wild West grazer 15. TV prize 16. Between Illinois and Nebraska 17. Quick and light on one’s feet 18. *Wooden walkway by the beach 20. Not this 21. Unwritten examinations 22. Cherry middle 23. Relating to a rib

SINCE OCTOBER 2020

407

NEIGHBORS MOVED TO PERMANENT HOUSING

26. *Beach suit type 29. Kanye’s genre 30. Pool hall mishap 33. 52 cards 35. *Sunny Dutch Caribbean vacation destination 37. Be unwell 38. Eagle’s home 39. Precedes carotene? 40. Twisted or meandered 42. Chill, with ‘out’ 43. Seat by day, bed by night 45. Modifies 47. *Just out of the water 48. Parallel grooves 50. Arrival times 52. *Wave rider 56. Nitrogen, in the

olden days 57. In ____ of 58. Hipbones 59. Parcel of land 60. Et alibi 61. Auctioneer’s exclamation 62. A.C.T. section 63. Tie the knot 64. *Casual beach tops DOWN 1. British Broadcasting Corporation, colloquially 2. Shells in a magazine 3. Capital of Peru 4. Fungus damage (2 words) 5. *Same as sandbar

6. Catch for a ratchet’s notch, pl. 7. Criticism 8. *Water at its highest (2 words) 9. The largest continent 10. Retired electric Chevy 11. Compass dir. 13. Hindu Festival of Lights 14. Dyed fabric 19. Type of TV show 22. Eating contest staple 23. *Decapod on a beach 24. *Propelled like a paddle board 25. Plural of sputum 26. Type of bin in a grocery store 27. Bundle of axons 28. Slipperier 31. *Building material found at the beach 32. Jack Ryan’s and Jason Bourne’s org. 34. Barrels of beer 36. *Hasselhoff’s beach TV show 38. Improvise 40. Exercise group 41. Upbraiding 44. Annoy 46. Lao Tzu follower 48. Hotel room option 49. Metallica’s “Don’t ____ On Me” 50. Poet Pound 51. To perfection (3 words) 52. A bunch 53. *End-of-day summertime soother 54. Rub the wrong way 55. Pops 56. Cash dispenser

LIFNAV SAVES LIVES Sarah had been on the streets since she was 13 years old. After leaving a home full of trauma and hopelessness, she joined the carnival and was able to make ends meet for years. Then, something unexpected, a stroke, brought it all crashing down. Sarah found herself in Nashville and calling its streets her home. Sleeping in a hammock through the hard cold winters, hidden away in the woods forgotten and alone.

393

Sarah found a career with the Contributor, and began selling newspapers. She then connected with a LIFNAV coach who walked her through the steps of gaining access to assistance and information she needed to improve her life.

1,094

One cold morning in January of 2021, she made a very special journey to The Salvation Army escorted by Metro Nashville Police Officer Johan Kinberg, a member of the Quality of Life team. This journey ended with keys in hand to her new apartment where she and her ESA dog Sally can live in warmth and safety as they continue their journey to a brighter future. That day, Sarah walked out to the doors of The Salvation Army with a renewed HOPE and TRUST!

NEIGHBORS ENROLLED IN RAPID REHOUSING PROGRAM

ENROLLED IN THE LIFNAV PROCESS

Learn More at SalvationArmyNashville.org

June 22 - July 6, 2022 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE | PAGE 21

VENDOR WRITING

Proposed Hotel Tax Could Cause Problems For Those Who Call Hotels Home BY NORMA B., CONTRIBUTOR VENDOR In order to fund the proposed new stadium, a one percent increase in the hotel tax raising it from six to seven percent is currently under consideration. According to a recent article in The Tennessean, The Tennessee General Assembly Fiscal Review Committee says this will generate approximately $10 million. Many people think this will only affect those who visit Tennessee, but that’s NOT the case. It could be devastating to those who actually live in a hotel/motel. One percent may not sound like much of an increase, but to those who call a hotel/motel home, believe me when I say it adds up quick!

(This way they can ALWAYS charge taxes because you never get to 30 or 90 days for the taxes to fall off.) • $300-$800 + tax per week (* in some cases the taxes are included in the weekly rate) which adds up to $1,200-$3,200 per month these are mostly the extended stay hotels/motels like In Town Suites or the Suburban Extended Stay. (For the true extended stay hotels, one set of taxes roll off after 30 days, and the remaining taxes fall off after 90 days.) With rates like that, one percent takes on a whole new meaning, doesn’t it?

Consider the following rates: • $65-$100 + tax per day comes to $1,950-$3,000+ tax per month. It is important to note that some hotels require you to check out after 21 days (Super 8 in Hermitage); or 28 days (Savoy Motel in Nashville). You can check back in after 2 days, but I’m not sure what you’re supposed to do in the interim.

At this point, I feel it necessary to mention that even though the taxes fall off at some of the hotels they often find creative ways to make up the difference or to reinstate the taxes. How? Suppose you have to change rooms due to a maintenance issue or for repairs. Even though you didn’t request or initiate the move, and it’s not your fault, your taxes could potentially start over.

Similarly if you are tax exempt, the hotel may increase your room rate under the guise of renovations, yet the renovations never materialize. I once heard of a rate that jumped from $279.83 to a whopping $388.88. That’s an increase of $109.05 per week. Imagine a single woman working two jobs just trying to make the rent. (I knew the person this happened to and to make matters worse, she lost one of her jobs.) Another way the hotels potentially short-change their “residents” is by no longer allowing them to accumulate rewards points for their extended stays. (I lived at an extended stay hotel for four and a half years and I accumulated around 400,000 rewards points. After three and a half years I still have around 30,000 points left.) Paying such high rental rates it should come as no surprise that these people are often forced to choose weather to pay a full week’s rent or buy food to feed themselves and their families. (Where I stayed, you had the option to pay four days or more at a time to get the discounted rate.) Further proof of this is shown by

the many times I have people who bring bags/boxes of food to my chair. (Most of my customers know I don’t drive so they deliver food, often trading these items for a paper.) People from the hotel will come by and ask about the food and will I share what I have with them. (It’s SO cool to see a kid’s face light up over something as simple as peanut butter and jelly and a loaf of bread — even wheat bread or crackers.) By now you may be wondering why would anyone pay such astronomical rates? Why not just rent an apartment? It is a fair question and I can see why you might think that, but one thing to keep in mind is that when you live in a hotel, all the other bills typically associated with a home — lights, water, phone, cable, etc. — are included with your rent. But honestly, there could be any number of reasons why someone doesn’t get into traditional housing. Here are just a few examples: 1. They don’t qualify for an apartment because of their income. Most apartments require you to make two

and a half to three times the rent. With the rising cost of rent these days that can be a challenge. 2. There may be something on their record to prevent them from renting an apartment such as an eviction, or maybe they have a criminal record so they can’t pass a background check. 3. They may only be here for a short period of time and don’t want to get locked into a long-term lease. 4. It could be that they don’t have the funds needed to move 1st and last months rent, electric and water deposits, etc. Moving is expensive! Regardless of the reason, to ask someone who is already paying such high rates to pay even more in order to fund a new stadium is making an already difficult situation virtually impossible for some. Furthermore it could lead to an increase in homelessness if these individuals can no longer afford the rent and end up on the street. If they are determined to build a new stadium, one can only hope that they find a better way to fund it than this.

My Mouse Friend. B Y J U N E P. , C O N T R I B U T O R V E N D O R Well my best friend, the mouse is sure glad it’s summer. For me the allergies and humidity don’t agree with my breathing. But we both love grilling and eating. I had a lot going on the last couple months. My friend, he kinda stayed in with crazy weather like we had. It was his birthday, May 1st. We had a party, cheese and crackers and potato chips. He loves them all. I had up balloons, one popped and scared him to death, he hid for about two hours. So, I waited on him. We had a blessed night, pray ya did too.

"Nashville Yard Dog" by Antonio B., Contributor Vendor and Daybreak Ar t s Ar tis t PAGE 22 | June 22 - July 6, 2022 | The Contributor | NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE

MOVING PICTURES

‘White Black Boy’ A TROUBLING DOCUMENTARY ABOUT GROWING-UP DIFFERENT COMES TO A BOLD NEW STREAMING PLATFORM BY JOE NOLAN, FILM CRITIC Shida is a new kid in his class at an English language boarding school in Tanzania. He struggles learning to read, he’s quiet and shy, and has a hard time making new friends. He’s got a great smile and a sweet disposition, but being a new kid among strangers only seems to add to his troubles. Shida was born with albinism. In the Shinyanga Region of Tanzania, people with albinism are hunted and killed for their various body parts which are sold to practitioners of witchcraft who believe these white-skinned black people to be magically potent. In Shinyanga, the body of an albino child can be sold for $25,000. Practitioners of witchcraft make these grim transactions in order to create an in-demand get-richquick potion. Children with albinism must often leave home in order to avoid abduction, and many are taken by the Tanzanian government to private boarding schools where they can be protected and educated. Camilla Magid’s 2012 documentary White Black Boy just debuted on the Write Brain TV digital movie platform, and it streams for the rest of the month. It’s been awhile since the bad old days following Michael Moore’s rise to superstar documentary filmmaker status, when every non-fiction storyteller with a camera suddenly decided it was a great idea to put themselves front and center in every project they made. Here, Magid and cinematographer Talib Rasmussen practically

make their camera disappear in this refreshing example of direct cinematic storytelling that stays focused on its subject, only adding very minimal on-screen text at the beginning of the film to provide basic information about witchcraft and albinism in Tanzania. One night, after the boys go to bed, some teachers chat about the plight of “the albinos,” and Magid records the conversation through a wall from a corner at the end of a hallway. The muffled voices honk warmly in the still night while Rasmussen’s camera hovers nearby the boys in their beds. Some of them are sleeping, but some curious or more mischievous boys eavesdrop, their wide eyes peering from between the strands of their mosquito nets. The film immerses viewers in Shida’s lonely world, far away from his home and family, and isolated by a condition that will always mark him — and the other white-skinned black boys at his school — as different. The Write Brain TV platform is the brainchild of artist and filmmaker, Kevin Ronca. Ronca produced the 2019 documentary Nightcrawlers which was made by a homeless filmmaker, and which I reviewed here in The Contributor when it screened at the Defy Film Festival. Ronca has always championed underground films from outsider subcultures, and WBTV promises to be a “safe space for art to be dangerous.” The platform’s June sched-

ule is packed with weird gems like the art films of Maya Deren, the anti-imperialism documentaries of John Pilger, a slate of experimental films by Japanese auteur Toshio Matsumoto, and a miniature film fest, Women of the Avant-Garde (1922-1967). Magid’s film isn’t technically experimental — it’s really a throwback to styles that emerged in the mid-20th century. But, White Black Boy’s subject matter is definitely disturbing and challenging, and one can imagine it’s not the kind of film Netflix is

looking to lean into while they’re hemorrhaging subscribers and laying off employees. That’s why platforms like Write Brain TV are important for filmmakers and film lovers alike. Shida’s story is an extra hard tale about growing up, but it’s a dark story that gets a little brighter by the end of its short runtime. After Shida fails a major school test he befriends a boy named Allan. Allan is a patient, natural teacher, and Shida tells him about a time when he was almost kidnapped. It’s the

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most words Shida says in this whole movie and it’s the most chilling part of this exemplary documentary film. W hite Black Boy streams through June 30 at https://www. writebrainstudios.tv/

Joe Nolan is a critic, columnist and performing singer/songwriter based in East Nashville. Find out more about his projects at www.joenolan.com.

The Contributor: June 22, 2022

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