Homelessness Throughout the United States
Here are some things that I learned while in Washington.
Indiania passed a more restrictive ID law then Ohio's. I have no idea how it is not a Poll Tax like the one that was struck down in Georgia. They did start a Housing Trust Fund using the Real Estate Tax.
Puerto Rico has an involuntary commitment bill pending that would allow the police to pick up homeless people with a suspected mental illness and confine them in a mental institution against their will. There is a competing law that makes it hard to pass laws that criminality homelessness. A judge did determine that Puerto Rico could restrict the speech of panhandlers.
Philly has three competing plans to end homelessness in 10 years. Does that mean that it will end in 3.5 years? Philadelphia is ground zero for the research on long term homelessness, which is being shoved down all of our throats by HUD.
New York has $1 billion in TANF surplus just sitting around the halls of Albany. At the same time there were massive cuts to many programs including human services.
In D.C., many of the programs have not received money for nearly a year. This has caused major chaos in the nation's largest shelter: Mitch Snyder's old CCNV. They have had a series of directors and are having problems keeping staff. They have around 1,300 people there every night.
The great state of Minnesota seems to be one of the only states actually making significant progress. They have this cool X committee of homeless people who are making decisions about how to spend money and what programs would should be funded. One of the programs that they are working on is a storage facility for homeless people (which homeless people in Cleveland has said is a high priority, but few listen). The state is running a rental assistance program.
Colorado developed a 10 year plan that does a lot of work on Housing First, and some work on presumptive eligibility for those who are homeless. Colorado also used their Tobacco Tax to dramatically expand medical services to homeless people.
The Cities that were on the Meanest Cities List were not very happy. Sarasota (the first meanest city) held a big hearing on the matter. Puerto Rico also was very upset by the matter and invited a Bush official down to show what a great job they do. The Las Vegas Mayor said that he was going to beat up the Director of the National Coalition for the Homeless if he was ever in Washington D.C. Las Vegas was listed in the top five meanest cities. Lawrence Kansas, also in the top five, also very upset.
South Carolina has $45 million in unspent HOME dollars, which provides federal funds for housing. They had an issue with Clemson athletes using Section 8 vouchers to pay for their housing. There is a growing issue with some legislators trying to force non-profit developers to pay property taxes for their housing of formerly homeless people. This would bankrupt many of these developers.
Finally, Los Angeles has a new Bring LA Home plan with a goal of $150 million for permanent supportive housing and $100 million for a County Trust Fund. There is also a need for $300 million for Mental Health expansion services with a total cost of $11-$12 Billion to end homelessness in Los Angeles. There is a proposal for a $1 Billion County Housing Trust Fund. There was a big controversy about private hospitals dropping patients in Skid Row. The biggest offender was the Kaiser Hospital, which are trying to correct the problems. There is an effort to expand the homeless children and youth program in the schools. Finally, the City is trying to pass restrictive laws to expand sentencing requirements for certain areas of town like a 2 mile radius around Skid Row.
Things are bad, but at least there is an organization working on these issues with the National Coalition for the Homeless.
Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.
Monday, May 08, 2006
Sunday, May 07, 2006
Sorry for the Long Absence...
NEOCH was Busy, Pardon our Delay in Posting
I was in Washington lobbying Congress on a few items, which we will discuss later. All staff have worked on the Annual Meeting on Friday night, and so have been busy. The meeting was great and their is a good description of the event on the Homeless Grapevine blog. Massimo da Milano is a great venue for the meeting--close to downtown, parking, and convenient.
We had another record number of visits to the website in April--8,164 for the month or 272 average visitors every day.
Community Voice Mail Day was a success with nearly 100 people signed up and East Side Catholic Shelter and Volunteers of America winning the gift certificates for signing up the largest number of users. Also, Council woman Phyllis Cleveland sponsored a resolution proclaiming April 26 as Cleveland Community Voice Mail Day.
Speaking of Voice Mail, they are doing a complete redesign of their website. Look for it to go live this next week.
I was in the nation's capital last week for the National Coalition for the Homeless meeting and some lobbying activities. Washington DC is always very depressing with all those men in suits who could easily solve homelessness driving and walking past the thousands of homeless people every day who reside on the streets. We had a very good meeting and added a few new board members. The National Coalition is beginning to stabilize after a rough patch.
Since we had two weeks without posting, we will try to post everyday for the next few weeks.
Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.
I was in Washington lobbying Congress on a few items, which we will discuss later. All staff have worked on the Annual Meeting on Friday night, and so have been busy. The meeting was great and their is a good description of the event on the Homeless Grapevine blog. Massimo da Milano is a great venue for the meeting--close to downtown, parking, and convenient.
We had another record number of visits to the website in April--8,164 for the month or 272 average visitors every day.
Community Voice Mail Day was a success with nearly 100 people signed up and East Side Catholic Shelter and Volunteers of America winning the gift certificates for signing up the largest number of users. Also, Council woman Phyllis Cleveland sponsored a resolution proclaiming April 26 as Cleveland Community Voice Mail Day.
Speaking of Voice Mail, they are doing a complete redesign of their website. Look for it to go live this next week.
I was in the nation's capital last week for the National Coalition for the Homeless meeting and some lobbying activities. Washington DC is always very depressing with all those men in suits who could easily solve homelessness driving and walking past the thousands of homeless people every day who reside on the streets. We had a very good meeting and added a few new board members. The National Coalition is beginning to stabilize after a rough patch.
Since we had two weeks without posting, we will try to post everyday for the next few weeks.
Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.
Sunday, April 23, 2006
Mental Health System Broken in America
Supreme Court to Decide on Arizona's Ability to Exact Vengeance
The system in need of the most reform is certainly the treatment of mentally ill people in the United States. The Washington Post had a very good editorial about the problems facing mentally ill people. We do not provide parity with other health issues, so that if diagnosed with a mental illness there is a limit to the treatment that one can receive paid by a health care insurer. A broken leg is covered usually with a small deductible until the point at which it is healed, but a brain injury is covered with a deductible for a few months. Then those who cannot work because of a mental illness are forced to spend years trying to prove to the state that they are in fact not healthy enough to work. At the end of this long journey is poverty for life.
No where in the United States does disability assistance raise your standard of living above even the pathetically low federal poverty level. If you receive gifts--your allowance is lowered. If you keep too much money in your bank account--your allowance is lowered. If your parents die and leave you money--your allowance is lowered. In some communities, if you stay in shelters--your allowance is lowered. It is one thing to lower a wealthy individual's government assistance, but we are punishing poor people for having a small amount of money. This is criminal and obscene for a society of our wealth.
In most states, those who are poor receive no help for their mental illness unless they are a threat to themselves or others. This was the situation facing the family in Flagstaff. Their son, Eric Michael Clark, had not demonstrated any threat to himself or others, but he was seeing a city full of aliens. I happen to agree with the young Clark that the very conservative retirement communities in Arizona are in fact full of aliens from a planet without compassion, but I am not sure if violence is the answer. He then killed a police officer after his family begged the authorities to have him committed. The State of Arizona, who did not want to provide assistance to Mr. Clark, because he had never demonstrated that he was a threat to others now wants to kill him after he did show he was a threat to others.
This level of intolerance toward those with a legitimate health problems is disturbing and actually a frightening mirror on society. Are we so afraid that mental illness will afflict us that we condemn those among us to a life of poverty, force a struggle with a mammoth bureaucracy, constant running away from the stigmatization, and then we kill those with the most severe mental illness? My, how the pendulum has swung from the time we were fighting over equal rights to a time when we are fighting over killing the mentally ill, walling off our southern border, and should we torture people as a country?
Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.
The system in need of the most reform is certainly the treatment of mentally ill people in the United States. The Washington Post had a very good editorial about the problems facing mentally ill people. We do not provide parity with other health issues, so that if diagnosed with a mental illness there is a limit to the treatment that one can receive paid by a health care insurer. A broken leg is covered usually with a small deductible until the point at which it is healed, but a brain injury is covered with a deductible for a few months. Then those who cannot work because of a mental illness are forced to spend years trying to prove to the state that they are in fact not healthy enough to work. At the end of this long journey is poverty for life.
No where in the United States does disability assistance raise your standard of living above even the pathetically low federal poverty level. If you receive gifts--your allowance is lowered. If you keep too much money in your bank account--your allowance is lowered. If your parents die and leave you money--your allowance is lowered. In some communities, if you stay in shelters--your allowance is lowered. It is one thing to lower a wealthy individual's government assistance, but we are punishing poor people for having a small amount of money. This is criminal and obscene for a society of our wealth.
In most states, those who are poor receive no help for their mental illness unless they are a threat to themselves or others. This was the situation facing the family in Flagstaff. Their son, Eric Michael Clark, had not demonstrated any threat to himself or others, but he was seeing a city full of aliens. I happen to agree with the young Clark that the very conservative retirement communities in Arizona are in fact full of aliens from a planet without compassion, but I am not sure if violence is the answer. He then killed a police officer after his family begged the authorities to have him committed. The State of Arizona, who did not want to provide assistance to Mr. Clark, because he had never demonstrated that he was a threat to others now wants to kill him after he did show he was a threat to others.
This level of intolerance toward those with a legitimate health problems is disturbing and actually a frightening mirror on society. Are we so afraid that mental illness will afflict us that we condemn those among us to a life of poverty, force a struggle with a mammoth bureaucracy, constant running away from the stigmatization, and then we kill those with the most severe mental illness? My, how the pendulum has swung from the time we were fighting over equal rights to a time when we are fighting over killing the mentally ill, walling off our southern border, and should we torture people as a country?
Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.
Tuesday, April 18, 2006
Don't Be a Domestic Violence Victim in Cuyahoga County
Dramatic Reduction in Shelter Beds for Domestic Violence Victims in Cleveland Area
Just five years ago there were two organizations serving the needs of homeless women fleeing an abuser with the Center for the Prevention of Domestic Violence and Templum House in operation. Neither was overly healthy, but how many independent non-profits were during the beginning of this six year nightmare recession in Cuyahoga County? They merged and now we have gone from four separate shelters to one. We have changed the definition of domestic violence so that we serve only those immediately fleeing an abuser. While studies show between 70-80% of the women in the emergency shelters have some abuse in their past, Cuyahoga County has tightened the definition to reduce, on paper, the numbers. This is not to condemn the one agency left serving Domestic Violence victims. The Domestic Violence Center staff do amazing work on a shoestring budget. They put in long hours and do everything in their power to keep the women of Cuyahoga County safe. They have tried to redesign their program to serve the population, but there are plenty of women who have no where to turn for help.
Just five years ago there were two organizations serving the needs of homeless women fleeing an abuser with the Center for the Prevention of Domestic Violence and Templum House in operation. Neither was overly healthy, but how many independent non-profits were during the beginning of this six year nightmare recession in Cuyahoga County? They merged and now we have gone from four separate shelters to one. We have changed the definition of domestic violence so that we serve only those immediately fleeing an abuser. While studies show between 70-80% of the women in the emergency shelters have some abuse in their past, Cuyahoga County has tightened the definition to reduce, on paper, the numbers. This is not to condemn the one agency left serving Domestic Violence victims. The Domestic Violence Center staff do amazing work on a shoestring budget. They put in long hours and do everything in their power to keep the women of Cuyahoga County safe. They have tried to redesign their program to serve the population, but there are plenty of women who have no where to turn for help.
We made a mistake letting the two organizations merge into one. Supporters will argue that we have two other shelters (West Side Catholic and East Side Catholic) who have stepped up to serve this population. They both try to fill this void, but it is not the same. The DV shelters have all of their staff trained to provide support. They all understand the pressure that the women face to return to their abuser. They all understand the difficulty in standing firm against abuse when "The Dad is so good with the children." We have a network of DV shelters in the state for a reason. The women who show up on their doors have very specific needs and a very specific process for healing. The Coalition was never asked to comment on this merger, but we must take some of the blame that we did not speak up and realize how negative this could be for the women.
Just for comparison lets look at the Counties that touch Cuyahoga County. What follows is the Counties listed in order of number of shelter beds for Domestic Violence victims per resident (based on 2005 Census figures).
Geauga County 16 beds 95,218 people or 1 bed for every 5,951 people.
Summit County 90 beds 546,604 people or 1 bed for every 6,073 people.
Erie County 10 beds 78,665 people or 1 bed for every 7,867 people.
Lake County 27 beds 232,466 people or 1 bed for every 8,610 people.
Medina County 18 beds 167,010 people or 1 bed for every 9,278 people
Lorain County 22 beds 296,307 people or 1 bed for every 13,469 people.
Portage County 5 beds with 155,631 people or 1 bed for every 31,126 people.
Cuyahoga County 34 beds with 1,335,317 people or 1 bed for every 39,274 people.
(Who knew Portage County had so many people--I checked it twice.)
Where are all the corporations? The beer companies? The Women's Rights organizations? How did we let it get so bad that we only have 34 beds for women fleeing a domestic violence situation in Cuyahoga County? The state Attorney General's 2004 report has startling figures on the incidents of violence against a spouse/roommate/date in Ohio. The state reports shows that just in 2004, 1 in 100 women were abused and yet we have only 34 dedicated beds in Cuyahoga County. We have an Office of Homeless Services, but they did not sound the alarm that there were problems with sustaining these programs or raise awareness about problems within the system. There is a domestic violence funding organization that divides up the scarce resources, and yet we never heard from this group.
The Coalition is never a big fan of shelter because it is really just a band aid for a larger problems in society. But Domestic Violence is different. Women need a safe place that an abuser cannot easily find to get their bank accounts secure, their children relocated, and work with law enforcement to assure their safety. We all took our eye off the ball, and the power players in the community (City, United Way, County, Foundations, and Religious leaders) should hold a summit on violence to get us back on track.
My two cents on Domestic Violence is that each City within the County should have their own strategy to address violence within their community. Each of the cities would set their own goals for moving to zero incidents of violence. In the spirit of regionalism a few cities could join to set up DV emergency shelters to meet the need and share resources to fund these facilities. The Domestic Violence Center in Cleveland could oversee training and coordinate advocacy for all these facilities. For too long we have relied on a shrinking number of community leaders to worry about this problem and we have made little progress. National studies show that 1 in 4 women will experience violence in their lifetime, and with leadership we could make Cuyahoga County a lot safer for women.
Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.
Saturday, April 15, 2006
Los Angeles Cannot harass Skid Row Residents
Ninth Appeals Court Rules Against LA Effort to Criminalize Homelessness
The City of Los Angeles, one of the 20 meanest cities toward homeless people in the United States, was found to be violating the rights of its homeless community with a law that prevented sitting, sleeping or lying on the sidewalk. The court found the law an "unavoidable consequence of being human and homeless without shelter" violates the constitutional prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment. Police, as they do in many U.S. cities were permitted to go out and threaten arrest to anyone using the sidewalk for shelter. If the individual did not move, the police would arrest the individual. The court even acknowledged in a 2-1 decision that the LA ordinance "made it a crime to be homeless."
The notoriously bad LA police will no longer be able to engage in this activity. The City only in the last month issued a "Ten Year Plan to End Homelessness," but did not acknowledge their criminalization efforts. LA has reputedly the largest homeless population in the United States (80,000-90,000 people a year), which we certainly believe has something to do with the efforts to make it a crime to be homeless.
As a reminder, Cleveland is one of the few cities in the United States that has a signed agreement with the homeless population that police will not arrest or threaten arrest for purely innocent behavior of sitting, sleeping, standing, eating on the sidewalks in Cleveland. We have had this in place since 2000, and have found better ways to serve the population. Cuyahoga County has around 25,000 homeless in a year.
Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.
The City of Los Angeles, one of the 20 meanest cities toward homeless people in the United States, was found to be violating the rights of its homeless community with a law that prevented sitting, sleeping or lying on the sidewalk. The court found the law an "unavoidable consequence of being human and homeless without shelter" violates the constitutional prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment. Police, as they do in many U.S. cities were permitted to go out and threaten arrest to anyone using the sidewalk for shelter. If the individual did not move, the police would arrest the individual. The court even acknowledged in a 2-1 decision that the LA ordinance "made it a crime to be homeless."
The notoriously bad LA police will no longer be able to engage in this activity. The City only in the last month issued a "Ten Year Plan to End Homelessness," but did not acknowledge their criminalization efforts. LA has reputedly the largest homeless population in the United States (80,000-90,000 people a year), which we certainly believe has something to do with the efforts to make it a crime to be homeless.
As a reminder, Cleveland is one of the few cities in the United States that has a signed agreement with the homeless population that police will not arrest or threaten arrest for purely innocent behavior of sitting, sleeping, standing, eating on the sidewalks in Cleveland. We have had this in place since 2000, and have found better ways to serve the population. Cuyahoga County has around 25,000 homeless in a year.
Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.
Thursday, April 13, 2006
Safety Ambassadors Coming To Cleveland
Louisville Company To "Clean Up" Downtown
Downtown business owners are taxing themselves in order to deal with panhandlers and dirty streets. This must mean that the offensive panhandling law passed last year is not working out because how often do business people vote to tax themselves? So, Downtown business created an improvement district from the warehouse district to East 18th St. to Carnegie to the Lake in order to impose on tax on themselves. For this year they will raise $3 million, and have hired a group called Block by Block to oversee this project.
The group already does safety programming in Columbus, Dayton, Louisville, Toledo, Cincinnati, and many other cities in the Midwest. They will begin in Cleveland in May to clean the streets and employ "Street Ambassadors" to keep the streets safe. These happy uniformed (golf shirt and khaki pants) people without diplomatic immunity travel the streets spreading good thoughts and good directions. They give out directions to the lost, act as a neighborhood watch, and discourage pedestrians from giving to panhandlers.
I have seen these guys in action down in Columbus decked out in Red, White and Blue shirts. They put themselves in between the panhandler and the potential customer. These Street Ambassadors will call the police or security guard for an aggressive panhandler or a panhandler in the prohibited zone. The others asking for money are harassed by the ambassadors. It is so successful in Columbus that the City Council passed a stricter panhandling and littering law in 2005. In Cincinnati, the program has worked so well that they now force the panhandlers to register with the City before asking for money. How do they measure success? I say they should be measured on a reduction of 21% office vacancy rate downtown and more than 8 people on the sidewalk on a Tuesday night.
We are going to spend $2.25 million on cleaning the streets and harassing panhandlers. Evidently, parking and panhandling are still the two biggest complaints of the business owners. When will they listen? Panhandlers have existed in cities for over two centuries, and respond to only two things capitalism and better jobs. Give a panhandler a decent job that they do not have to stand outside in the rain or sun, but do not have to punch a clock, they will stop panhandling. If they face competition, they will move somewhere else. Harassment and laws do not work. For more information on panhandling go to our website under Statistics and Strategies.
Two interesting notes: one of the cities in the Northwest tried a similar program, but uniformed their crew with dark Brown shirts. This was quickly changed when some snobby academic recognized that Brown Shirts walking around harassing poor people might present a problem with a historical backlash. The other issue is that for some reason in Ohio Patriot Act, "safety ambassodors" must be licensed by the Department of Homeland Security. This prevents anyone with a felony background taking one of these jobs. Many of the people with the best relationship with panhandlers who know the city best are not eligible for these jobs. In Ohio, true patriotism means never giving anyone a second chance.
Brian
by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.
Downtown business owners are taxing themselves in order to deal with panhandlers and dirty streets. This must mean that the offensive panhandling law passed last year is not working out because how often do business people vote to tax themselves? So, Downtown business created an improvement district from the warehouse district to East 18th St. to Carnegie to the Lake in order to impose on tax on themselves. For this year they will raise $3 million, and have hired a group called Block by Block to oversee this project.
The group already does safety programming in Columbus, Dayton, Louisville, Toledo, Cincinnati, and many other cities in the Midwest. They will begin in Cleveland in May to clean the streets and employ "Street Ambassadors" to keep the streets safe. These happy uniformed (golf shirt and khaki pants) people without diplomatic immunity travel the streets spreading good thoughts and good directions. They give out directions to the lost, act as a neighborhood watch, and discourage pedestrians from giving to panhandlers.
I have seen these guys in action down in Columbus decked out in Red, White and Blue shirts. They put themselves in between the panhandler and the potential customer. These Street Ambassadors will call the police or security guard for an aggressive panhandler or a panhandler in the prohibited zone. The others asking for money are harassed by the ambassadors. It is so successful in Columbus that the City Council passed a stricter panhandling and littering law in 2005. In Cincinnati, the program has worked so well that they now force the panhandlers to register with the City before asking for money. How do they measure success? I say they should be measured on a reduction of 21% office vacancy rate downtown and more than 8 people on the sidewalk on a Tuesday night.
We are going to spend $2.25 million on cleaning the streets and harassing panhandlers. Evidently, parking and panhandling are still the two biggest complaints of the business owners. When will they listen? Panhandlers have existed in cities for over two centuries, and respond to only two things capitalism and better jobs. Give a panhandler a decent job that they do not have to stand outside in the rain or sun, but do not have to punch a clock, they will stop panhandling. If they face competition, they will move somewhere else. Harassment and laws do not work. For more information on panhandling go to our website under Statistics and Strategies.
Two interesting notes: one of the cities in the Northwest tried a similar program, but uniformed their crew with dark Brown shirts. This was quickly changed when some snobby academic recognized that Brown Shirts walking around harassing poor people might present a problem with a historical backlash. The other issue is that for some reason in Ohio Patriot Act, "safety ambassodors" must be licensed by the Department of Homeland Security. This prevents anyone with a felony background taking one of these jobs. Many of the people with the best relationship with panhandlers who know the city best are not eligible for these jobs. In Ohio, true patriotism means never giving anyone a second chance.
Brian
by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.
Friday, April 07, 2006
Shelter Storm Music Tour Updates
Shelter Storm Revue Continue to Roll
Tuesday night was yet another success for the SSRT (Shelter Storm Revue Tour). I opened the show with some homespun ballads promptly at 8:30 PM. Progeny was kind enough to set up early and allow the use of their equipment (thank you). The VOA Shelter proved to be an intimate and acoustically vibrant environment. The crowd welcomed me warmly before I passed the stage onto newcomers to the Revue Tour, Mark Liderbach and Brian Misch. The wonderfully talented Liderbach and Misch stunned the crowd with their electric blues rhythms. Their stay was short, but their presence was felt. Following their act was a poetess who needed no microphone in this sound wave friendly room, Shelter Storm regular Meagen Hueslenbeck. She lit a fire in the hearts of the audience as she interspersed her preachings with personal poems that ruminated on the ecclesiastic thoughts of a pizza delivery girl. Gary Nelson was next, and he narrated from his guitar like a journalist reports from his articles. His musings wandered from the greed of a ruthless boss named Diamond Joe to the longing of a wanderer weary of never finding a familiar face in his travels. The final performers were the fan favorites, Progeny. They lept to the stage like prophets on a mission. They swayed and sang and brought smiles to the faces of everyone who sat before them. As the echoes of the final note joined the shadows of the night, the residents thanked us many times over, shaking hands and smiling brightly.
I am still looking for performers for the Y-Haven show on May 12th at 10 AM. If there are any musicians, poets, or other performance artists looking to join in on this show, please give me a call at our NEOCH offices at 216-432-0540 ext. 404.
Josh
Monday, April 03, 2006
Coalition Updates
Homeless Coalition Updates
March 2006 was again a new record for web traffic to our website with an average of 249 people per day and 7,738 visits to the site. If we can add a few people a day, maybe we can dispel the myth that all homeless people are panhandlers.
The Bad News..Legal Assistance saw a record number of people in 2005.
Cleveland Homeless Legal Assistance saw a record 621 people in 2005. The program hosts clinics in shelters and drop in centers. In 2005, we did expand the program so that we have a weekly clinic on both the East and West side of town. The clinics are staffed by volunteer attorneys from the area. To see a copy of the schedule go to http://www.neoch.org/chlap_intake_sched06.htm. We will honor a few of those attorneys at the 2005 Annual meeting on May 5, 2006 at Massimo da Millano.
Speaking of the Annual Meeting....
You can reserve a space at the annual meeting right from our website. Here is the link to the overview of the event: http://www.neoch.org/annual_event_06.htm. May 5, 2006 a very nice dinner and camaraderie with other social justice advocates in the community. Tickets are very reasonable. Please join us at our Fifth Annual Dinner and Annual meeting.
Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.
March 2006 was again a new record for web traffic to our website with an average of 249 people per day and 7,738 visits to the site. If we can add a few people a day, maybe we can dispel the myth that all homeless people are panhandlers.
The Bad News..Legal Assistance saw a record number of people in 2005.
Cleveland Homeless Legal Assistance saw a record 621 people in 2005. The program hosts clinics in shelters and drop in centers. In 2005, we did expand the program so that we have a weekly clinic on both the East and West side of town. The clinics are staffed by volunteer attorneys from the area. To see a copy of the schedule go to http://www.neoch.org/chlap_intake_sched06.htm. We will honor a few of those attorneys at the 2005 Annual meeting on May 5, 2006 at Massimo da Millano.
Speaking of the Annual Meeting....
You can reserve a space at the annual meeting right from our website. Here is the link to the overview of the event: http://www.neoch.org/annual_event_06.htm. May 5, 2006 a very nice dinner and camaraderie with other social justice advocates in the community. Tickets are very reasonable. Please join us at our Fifth Annual Dinner and Annual meeting.
Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.
Friday, March 31, 2006
Some In City Council Can't Stop from Pandering
Sexually Based Offenders Debated in City Council
On Wednesday, Cleveland City Council held a hearing about the issue of sexual based offenders living in Cleveland. I think that the guy at the door unwittingly had it right when he asked, "Where are you going today?" I responded, "City Council," and he said, "So, are you for the predators or against them?" It seems that some of the Council members took this to heart and had to pander to the deepest fears in all of us. Ward 11 (Collinwood) Councilman Michael Polensek did his best impression of a Senate Supreme Court nomination hearing by giving a speech that just went on and on and on. What is the point of having a hearing with all these "experts" if you never ask any questions and keep throwing in tangents that have nothing to do with the issue?
Councilman Zach Reed and Pat Britt of Wards 3 (Mt. Pleasant) and Ward 6 (University Circle) area respectively did a good job of asking appropriate questions and listening to the testimony of the large number of panelists. Here are some of the things that we learned:
- The 1,000 feet rule implemented by the state (No sexually based offender can live within 1,000 feet of a school, daycare center or childcare facility) is not based on any science and is entirely arbitrary. After all, a rapist of women does not care that they cannot live within a 1,000 feet of a childcare facility. A pedophile of young male relatives does not care that they cannot live next to a girl's school.
- 80% of the sexually based offenders knew their victims (babysitter, relative, acquaintance, etc.) yet all the rules are based on stranger attacks.
- Treatment for sex offenders does lower recidivism.
- Stable housing is the greatest need for those returning from incarceration. Stable housing and proper supervision is the best prevention of recidivism.
- Homeless Shelters are not a very good place for sexually based offenders, but two of the three largest concentrations of sexually based offenders in Cleveland are shelters.
- There is a real lack of money from the state to serve this population and to protect the citizens. Polensek characterized this as an unfunded mandate.
- There are some 600 people living too close to a childcare facility in Cuyahoga County.
- They have changed the way that they measure the 1,000 feet. It is now property line to property line.
- There is no criminal penalty for violating the 1,000 feet. It is a civil procedure that a neighbor or law enforcement can take to force the individual to move.
There is a special place for Ward 21 (West Park) Councilman Michael Dolan who pandered to the cameras and voters. After coming in late and missing most of the testimony, he stepped up on his way to another meeting to say that he wished these guys could be shipped to the desert while under the watchful eye of the state. I could be wrong, but I believe that we tried this in "Escape from New York," and Snake Plissken was able to escape. Don't go out and rent it just believe me, he was very angry when he finally got off the island. Dolan also wanted the legal department to send letters to all 600 living too close to a childcare facility. Basically, giving the men's shelter warning to expect another 500 people. WHERE WILL THESE GUYS GO, MR. DOLAN???? Would you rather have them sleeping on the streets? The "Councilman" swept in, dropped a few soundbytes that were totally unreasonable, and left. A disgraceful show that did not forward the discussion at all.
Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.
Monday, March 27, 2006
Panhandling Debate Begins
Will the Panhandling Ordinance be Renewed?
In October, the City of Cleveland Panhandling Ordinance is set to sunset. We certainly hope that the new Mayor lets this issue quietly die as a failed experiment. If nothing else the law should be revised so that it does not restrict free speech. The current law makes it illegal to even ask for money within certain areas of Cleveland. No one who values free speech could ever claim that this law does not restrict speech. I saw a quote on another blog that boggled my mind...
"I give money all the time to passive panhandlers and Homeless Grapevine vendors (even if I already purchased a copy of Grapevine). I stand by this First Amendment right, which does not include the terribly profane and threatening behavior that I have witnessed."
What is passive panhandling? Is that asking for money in mime? The First Amendment is clear that government shall make no law that restricts speech. It does not say unless the speech is near a bus stop, a doorway, or near a valet station. The legislation was illegal and if tested in court would certainly be found unconstitutional.
The people who testified for the legislation were offensive in that they equated panhandling with homeless people. Then they said we don't care if this tramples the First Amendment as long as it takes care of the aggressive panhandlers. We are destroying so many rights in the last few years that the Bill of Rights is only a shadow of the document that held this country together for 220 years.
By the Way....
There is a great blog that started recently http://ocnwtruth.blogspot.com. It is a masterful work of spin. The subtitle is "Fact vs. Fiction." In the best Fox News/O'Reilly No Spin Zone language, it proports to give only the facts, but the site is almost entirely devoid of actual hard facts recognized by journalists. It is a long detailed opinion piece about how great Ohio City is, and how much the OCNW has done for poor people. It is a rare opportunity to look through the eyes of a group of people who are completely missing the forest fire around them while advertising the virtues of smoking. If nothing else very entertaining. Check it out.
Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.
Shelter Storm Revue Tour Review
Artists Tour of Shelter Successful
Last Friday was the premier performance of the Shelter Storm Revue Tour. The foundation of 2100 Lakeside shook in time to the rocking out that occurred between the hours of seven and ten in the evening. There is no human language in existence that can capture the jubilation, I witnessed that night.
The show began a few minutes early because the snowballing anticipation took control and sparked an electric explosion of sound from Progeny. Within seconds, the crowd was on their feet clapping and swaying and singing along with the 12-piece outfit.
I would like to take a moment to point out here that I had previously said in an interview about the show that ideally, it would be wonderful if people were jumping up and down and dancing on the tables. However, I didn't expect such a reaction and was going into it expecting a low-key intimate performance. In reality, no one was dancing on the tables. However, that was only because there was enough room on the floor for dancing.
Then came the harmonica player whose name I did not catch. He was a resident who asked if he could play with Progeny, and they allowed him time to show off his chops. If I ever hear a better harmonica player in my life, I will have died and gone to Chicago blues heaven. I cannot express my amazement at his talent without using a profanity, so I will just express it with symbols that can be translated as profane language: Holy #$@@*!
After Progeny came Lost Poet Black Hawk, a resident who kindly asked if he could take the stage to bear his soul before his fellow people. He strung sentences together with words and alliterative beauty not unlike how one weaves a tapestry with thread and needle. The single poem he read was the perfect bridge between Progeny and the following act, Gary Nelson.
Mr. Nelson is far and above one of my favorite local Cleveland musicians. He failed to disappoint with his Celtic flavored tunes that struck the crowd dumb as they tightened in close for a good listen. Gary brought many smiles and nods as he regaled the gathered troupe with ballads of greed and struggle. His sound was broken only once to allow Lost Poet Black Hawk one more knock-down poem.
Next was Meagen Huelsenbeck, preaching like Paul between poems that brought her Gospel fire to light. Her time before the 2100ers was short, but it drew forth many amens and grunts of agreement from the spectators ensorcelled by her evangelizing.
Closing the show for the night was myself. I like to think I was amazing, but I am hardly an unbiased observer. I was told I was on fire and those that heard me seemed to thoroughly enjoy it. Regardless, I call the show an outstanding success. The audience could not believe what they were hearing and I could not believe what I was seeing. If this an accurate representation of the norm, I cannot wait for our next show Tuesday, April 4th at the VOA shelter.
Josh
P.S. Artist who would like to participate in an upcoming show can call Josh Kanary at 216/432-0540 and leave a message at extention 404.
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.
Last Friday was the premier performance of the Shelter Storm Revue Tour. The foundation of 2100 Lakeside shook in time to the rocking out that occurred between the hours of seven and ten in the evening. There is no human language in existence that can capture the jubilation, I witnessed that night.
The show began a few minutes early because the snowballing anticipation took control and sparked an electric explosion of sound from Progeny. Within seconds, the crowd was on their feet clapping and swaying and singing along with the 12-piece outfit.
I would like to take a moment to point out here that I had previously said in an interview about the show that ideally, it would be wonderful if people were jumping up and down and dancing on the tables. However, I didn't expect such a reaction and was going into it expecting a low-key intimate performance. In reality, no one was dancing on the tables. However, that was only because there was enough room on the floor for dancing.
Then came the harmonica player whose name I did not catch. He was a resident who asked if he could play with Progeny, and they allowed him time to show off his chops. If I ever hear a better harmonica player in my life, I will have died and gone to Chicago blues heaven. I cannot express my amazement at his talent without using a profanity, so I will just express it with symbols that can be translated as profane language: Holy #$@@*!
After Progeny came Lost Poet Black Hawk, a resident who kindly asked if he could take the stage to bear his soul before his fellow people. He strung sentences together with words and alliterative beauty not unlike how one weaves a tapestry with thread and needle. The single poem he read was the perfect bridge between Progeny and the following act, Gary Nelson.
Mr. Nelson is far and above one of my favorite local Cleveland musicians. He failed to disappoint with his Celtic flavored tunes that struck the crowd dumb as they tightened in close for a good listen. Gary brought many smiles and nods as he regaled the gathered troupe with ballads of greed and struggle. His sound was broken only once to allow Lost Poet Black Hawk one more knock-down poem.
Next was Meagen Huelsenbeck, preaching like Paul between poems that brought her Gospel fire to light. Her time before the 2100ers was short, but it drew forth many amens and grunts of agreement from the spectators ensorcelled by her evangelizing.
Closing the show for the night was myself. I like to think I was amazing, but I am hardly an unbiased observer. I was told I was on fire and those that heard me seemed to thoroughly enjoy it. Regardless, I call the show an outstanding success. The audience could not believe what they were hearing and I could not believe what I was seeing. If this an accurate representation of the norm, I cannot wait for our next show Tuesday, April 4th at the VOA shelter.
Josh
P.S. Artist who would like to participate in an upcoming show can call Josh Kanary at 216/432-0540 and leave a message at extention 404.
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.
Thursday, March 23, 2006
Homelessness and Ohio City
What is Wrong in Ohio City?
In the last month, the Plain Dealer has reported a growing amount of anger on the near West Side of Cleveland with letters and stories. The Coalition for the Homeless has had over the last four years witnessed growing hostility toward poor people in Tremont and Ohio City. From the attempts to move the women's shelter to the West Side of Cleveland and to find a good compromise to the problems at the Jay Hotel, there is a rising level of tensions. The problem is that both Tremont and Ohio City residents feel they are overburdened with poor people despite the reality that 9% of the County jobs have disappeared over the last six years of RECESSION, and so poor people are everywhere.
The Coalition has been especially critical of the Ohio City Near West Development Corporation, because it is the opinion of many at the Coalition that they have done very little to heal the anger or bridge the gulf between poor people and the wealthier homeowners and merchants. Many in positions of leadership with OCNW keep forwarding the myth that they are unreasonably overburdened with social services to respond to the needs of poor people. They assisted with the closure of the Jay Hotel, and now are working on getting rid of all the "drug dealers and criminals" from Riverview. They dropped the line about a preference for affordable housing from their mission statement, and have made it difficult to locate a site for the replacement units at Riverview.
It just seems like many in Ohio City and OCNW are saying to the rest of us: "We don't care where those people with problems live as long it is not in 'our neighborhood.' " Many of those with drug and alcohol problems or a criminal past have now taken up residence on our city streets, under bridges and are now attempting to find a warm places including those in Ohio City.
OCNW has provided no leadership in finding solutions and seems to allow the loudest, angriest,
and those gripped with fear to rule the day. My concern is that they lost their social justice and community organizing roots. I have heard from many of the activists who live on the near West Side similar concerns about OCNW. Many in positions of leadership confuse charity with justice, but they are very different concepts. Helping out with a meal or hosting a Christmas party once a year does not change the culture or the community. Applying for tax credits for "lower" income people to live or rooting out "bad people" is certainly not justice. It does not end discrimination or provide a safe or decent environment to grow, and it certainly does not make a change in society to increase the opportunity for those less well off.
Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.
In the last month, the Plain Dealer has reported a growing amount of anger on the near West Side of Cleveland with letters and stories. The Coalition for the Homeless has had over the last four years witnessed growing hostility toward poor people in Tremont and Ohio City. From the attempts to move the women's shelter to the West Side of Cleveland and to find a good compromise to the problems at the Jay Hotel, there is a rising level of tensions. The problem is that both Tremont and Ohio City residents feel they are overburdened with poor people despite the reality that 9% of the County jobs have disappeared over the last six years of RECESSION, and so poor people are everywhere.
The Coalition has been especially critical of the Ohio City Near West Development Corporation, because it is the opinion of many at the Coalition that they have done very little to heal the anger or bridge the gulf between poor people and the wealthier homeowners and merchants. Many in positions of leadership with OCNW keep forwarding the myth that they are unreasonably overburdened with social services to respond to the needs of poor people. They assisted with the closure of the Jay Hotel, and now are working on getting rid of all the "drug dealers and criminals" from Riverview. They dropped the line about a preference for affordable housing from their mission statement, and have made it difficult to locate a site for the replacement units at Riverview.
It just seems like many in Ohio City and OCNW are saying to the rest of us: "We don't care where those people with problems live as long it is not in 'our neighborhood.' " Many of those with drug and alcohol problems or a criminal past have now taken up residence on our city streets, under bridges and are now attempting to find a warm places including those in Ohio City.
OCNW has provided no leadership in finding solutions and seems to allow the loudest, angriest,
and those gripped with fear to rule the day. My concern is that they lost their social justice and community organizing roots. I have heard from many of the activists who live on the near West Side similar concerns about OCNW. Many in positions of leadership confuse charity with justice, but they are very different concepts. Helping out with a meal or hosting a Christmas party once a year does not change the culture or the community. Applying for tax credits for "lower" income people to live or rooting out "bad people" is certainly not justice. It does not end discrimination or provide a safe or decent environment to grow, and it certainly does not make a change in society to increase the opportunity for those less well off.
Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.
Tuesday, March 21, 2006
HUD is Chronically Offensive
Please Don't Call Me Chronic Anything
The Department of Housing and Urban Development has a new strategy for "ending homelessness." It is based on flawed research by Dennis Culhane and is being pushed down the throat of all of us out in the field who are working on solutions. Anyway, they are giving extra points and championing programs that serve the "chronically homeless." I can't think of a more offensive and dehumanizing term to use for a population. The focus is on single adults to the exclusion on families with the thinking that if society can address the long term homeless then all these resources will be free to serve the rest of the population. This does not make any sense in Cleveland and some of the other communities especially in rural towns.
The word chronic means:
Would HUD staff appreciate being called "chronic bureaucrats?" Or how about House and Senate leaders being labeled "chronic politicians?" Chronic anything is offensive when referring to a person. Homelessness is not a habit to break or a disease. Homeless people don't even like being called homeless because of all the negative stereotypes associated with it, but then add the adjective chronic and they become nameless and faceless. It is easier to forget about a chronically homeless money drains on our society. It is easier to close shelters and services if we can point to the fact that the residents are chronically addicted to using the facilities. It serves our interest to assign blame as a society, and to lump all homeless people into a category of those who will forever be dependent on government. The 58 year old woman who spends half her fixed income on medication who is living in our shelters wants to be resting at her own apartment but had to make the decision to either pay rent or eat. She chose to eat and pay for her medicine, and she certainly does not want to be labeled "chronically homeless."
Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.
The Department of Housing and Urban Development has a new strategy for "ending homelessness." It is based on flawed research by Dennis Culhane and is being pushed down the throat of all of us out in the field who are working on solutions. Anyway, they are giving extra points and championing programs that serve the "chronically homeless." I can't think of a more offensive and dehumanizing term to use for a population. The focus is on single adults to the exclusion on families with the thinking that if society can address the long term homeless then all these resources will be free to serve the rest of the population. This does not make any sense in Cleveland and some of the other communities especially in rural towns.
The word chronic means:
- Of long duration; continuing: chronic money problems.
- Lasting for a long period of time or marked by frequent recurrence, as certain diseases: chronic colitis.
- Subject to a habit or pattern of behavior for a long time.
Would HUD staff appreciate being called "chronic bureaucrats?" Or how about House and Senate leaders being labeled "chronic politicians?" Chronic anything is offensive when referring to a person. Homelessness is not a habit to break or a disease. Homeless people don't even like being called homeless because of all the negative stereotypes associated with it, but then add the adjective chronic and they become nameless and faceless. It is easier to forget about a chronically homeless money drains on our society. It is easier to close shelters and services if we can point to the fact that the residents are chronically addicted to using the facilities. It serves our interest to assign blame as a society, and to lump all homeless people into a category of those who will forever be dependent on government. The 58 year old woman who spends half her fixed income on medication who is living in our shelters wants to be resting at her own apartment but had to make the decision to either pay rent or eat. She chose to eat and pay for her medicine, and she certainly does not want to be labeled "chronically homeless."
Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.
Saturday, March 18, 2006
National Debt and Homelessness
Where is All that Money Going?
I am having a real hard time understanding the increase in the National Debt this week. I think that this is similar to the credit card company increasing my credit limit from $10,000 to $122,000 overnight even though I have no way of paying this amount of money back. But it is not like this at all is it? There is no credit card company in the debt limit, but the Congress is spending and approving their own debt limit themselves. So, where is all this money going? The Washington Post has a commentary about spending frenzy the day the debt ceiling went up.
We were told that the conservatives are good stewards of our government, because they would reign in "out of control" spending. So the budget is out of control and yet we are not solving any problems. I do not feel any safer with the massive spending on "Homeland Security." We have taken over another country for who knows what reason. Energy pricing is more unstable than ever before. Our food supply is not safer. Medicine is still very expensive, and our schools are still struggling with budget shortfalls. We are not any more secure from the outbreak of disease or deadly flu. We are not making great discoveries or stopping the warming of our planet. So, where is all this money that my kids are going to have to payoff going? It is not solving homelessness or poverty. Can someone please tell me where is all this money going, and what happened to all the "fiscal conservatives?"
Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.
I am having a real hard time understanding the increase in the National Debt this week. I think that this is similar to the credit card company increasing my credit limit from $10,000 to $122,000 overnight even though I have no way of paying this amount of money back. But it is not like this at all is it? There is no credit card company in the debt limit, but the Congress is spending and approving their own debt limit themselves. So, where is all this money going? The Washington Post has a commentary about spending frenzy the day the debt ceiling went up.
We were told that the conservatives are good stewards of our government, because they would reign in "out of control" spending. So the budget is out of control and yet we are not solving any problems. I do not feel any safer with the massive spending on "Homeland Security." We have taken over another country for who knows what reason. Energy pricing is more unstable than ever before. Our food supply is not safer. Medicine is still very expensive, and our schools are still struggling with budget shortfalls. We are not any more secure from the outbreak of disease or deadly flu. We are not making great discoveries or stopping the warming of our planet. So, where is all this money that my kids are going to have to payoff going? It is not solving homelessness or poverty. Can someone please tell me where is all this money going, and what happened to all the "fiscal conservatives?"
Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.
Friday, March 10, 2006
Mayor Visits Shelter
Three Hour Tour of the Shelters by Mayor Jackson
In the last 12 years of my work at NEOCH, no mayor has taken time to do a walk through of the shelters. We had one county commissioner who claimed to have slept at the shelter and another who went to the shelter to criticize the residents, but no Mayors. Even though every shelter but one is in the City of Cleveland and most homeless people migrate to Cleveland in order to get services, the Mayors of Cleveland has largely focused on photo ops. This was done without a press release and without a lot of fanfare for the Mayor's tour of the shelters on Thursday March 9. Channel 3 found out as did the Plain Dealer by checking the Mayor's schedule for the day. There was a nice story by Tom Beres about the tour on Channel 3. Proving once again that Channel 3 might be the only real news television station left.
The tour started at 10 a.m. at 2100 Lakeside Shelter with a meeting of the men who are the elected leaders of the shelter. The Mayor talked about his vision and his agenda around housing and homelessness. He listened to the men and heard some of their concerns in a 45 minute meeting. The Mayor had Jason Woods, governmental affairs, Martin Flask, Public Safety Director, and Michael House, Press Secretary along to answer questions and listen to the concerns. The issues that the Mayor discussed at his meeting were:
After the meeting and tour of the men's shelter, which is the largest shelter in the state of Ohio we went over the Community Women's Shelter (100 women and a few children sleep there every night). It took a long time to get through the shelters, because the men and women wanted to talk to the Mayor. In addition, LMM and Mental Health Services had taken over the shelter in the last year and half and wanted to talk to the Mayor about some issues.
The Mental Health Services staff at the Women's Shelter did a good overview of the program and had a few of the residents lead the tour. Good idea for a Mayor/Councilperson who is big into empowerment to have the residents lead the tour. Then it was lunch with the Catholic Charities staff at the Bishop Cosgrove Center and a few individuals who use the facility. Very good chicken, rice, and vegetables with grape juice and a dessert on the side. We learned about the funding constraints of the Drop in Center, and the large number of people provided a meal and warm place every day. At this point, we were running behind and so we were not going to get to see the Volunteers of America Shelter. The Mayor loves talking to citizens. He doesn't just shake hands, but spends a little time listening to people ask about jobs, housing, re-entry or big plans for the city. Yes, even homeless people have big plans for the City. They are usually ignored because they bring little money to the table.
Finished up over at West Side Catholic. We got to see the renovated facility and the Ignatius high school students volunteering. The older Clevelanders who help to prepare the meal were in the kitchen, and we visited the fantastic clothing room in the back of West Side Catholic. We finished up in the Cadillac of shelters with the West Side Catholic family shelter. The cleanest of the shelters and newly renovated facility that feels like a real home not an institution. We finished up on time, and then did a short interview with Channel 3. The Mayor assured me that this is not the end of the story that we need to further develop some of the ideas that came up. He told me that staff would follow up with me and gave me names of people to contact. The men at 2100 Lakeside set a meeting for Monday to de-brief and make plans for activities they could work on in the community.
Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.
In the last 12 years of my work at NEOCH, no mayor has taken time to do a walk through of the shelters. We had one county commissioner who claimed to have slept at the shelter and another who went to the shelter to criticize the residents, but no Mayors. Even though every shelter but one is in the City of Cleveland and most homeless people migrate to Cleveland in order to get services, the Mayors of Cleveland has largely focused on photo ops. This was done without a press release and without a lot of fanfare for the Mayor's tour of the shelters on Thursday March 9. Channel 3 found out as did the Plain Dealer by checking the Mayor's schedule for the day. There was a nice story by Tom Beres about the tour on Channel 3. Proving once again that Channel 3 might be the only real news television station left.
The tour started at 10 a.m. at 2100 Lakeside Shelter with a meeting of the men who are the elected leaders of the shelter. The Mayor talked about his vision and his agenda around housing and homelessness. He listened to the men and heard some of their concerns in a 45 minute meeting. The Mayor had Jason Woods, governmental affairs, Martin Flask, Public Safety Director, and Michael House, Press Secretary along to answer questions and listen to the concerns. The issues that the Mayor discussed at his meeting were:
- The men at the shelter can make a difference in their own lives and the life of the City.
- The Mayor of the City of Cleveland is not the enemy, and will help whenever possible.
- We need to focus on: money and attack the misconceptions of the general public about homelessness in order to fix up some of the abandoned property.
- He wanted to assure that we do not re-concentrate poverty as had been done in the past with any fix up program.
- We need to assure that neighbors are involved in the development of any programs or any affordable housing.
- We need to work on partnerships between the City and County.
- We need to work on the $23 or $24 million that come to Cleveland every year and assure that we have better outcomes with that money.
- We need a plan for how we better serve the population and business leaders can be effective in assisting with implementation of a plan.
- We need to transform the shelter into a place that creates jobs. Jackson talked about making the shelters into economic engines that can help people find employment or can foster the development of microenterprise projects. Have the shelters go after contracts for goods and services in the community in order provide employment opportunities.
- He asked the shelter residents for input on how to transition out of homelessness. What steps need to be taken?
- Again, talked about better utilization of funds.
- Talked about the Summer Clean up program and the process for awarding that contract. (196 of the men had signed a letter asking the City to award the contract to the Community Hiring Hall.)
- In response to a question about people with a prison background getting into housing, he said that many are very judgmental in the community. The only way to change this negative stereotype is for the shelter residents to start doing high profile volunteer tasks in the community. Jackson suggested working with various departments (Aging and Safety). Jackson said that the City will help in this effort, but the men will have to work on this.
- The Mayor stressed the need for the homeless population to define themselves and not let panhandlers or the people who do wrong within the community to be the people that are most visible and are assumed to represent the homeless community.
- One man at the shelter asked about a negative incident with the police that the Safety Director agreed to follow up on it.
- One person asked about government regulations and the policy of felons getting into housing. Jackson said that he would work with the Coalition on changing any policy that had any local flexibility. Will work on the problems.
After the meeting and tour of the men's shelter, which is the largest shelter in the state of Ohio we went over the Community Women's Shelter (100 women and a few children sleep there every night). It took a long time to get through the shelters, because the men and women wanted to talk to the Mayor. In addition, LMM and Mental Health Services had taken over the shelter in the last year and half and wanted to talk to the Mayor about some issues.
The Mental Health Services staff at the Women's Shelter did a good overview of the program and had a few of the residents lead the tour. Good idea for a Mayor/Councilperson who is big into empowerment to have the residents lead the tour. Then it was lunch with the Catholic Charities staff at the Bishop Cosgrove Center and a few individuals who use the facility. Very good chicken, rice, and vegetables with grape juice and a dessert on the side. We learned about the funding constraints of the Drop in Center, and the large number of people provided a meal and warm place every day. At this point, we were running behind and so we were not going to get to see the Volunteers of America Shelter. The Mayor loves talking to citizens. He doesn't just shake hands, but spends a little time listening to people ask about jobs, housing, re-entry or big plans for the city. Yes, even homeless people have big plans for the City. They are usually ignored because they bring little money to the table.
Finished up over at West Side Catholic. We got to see the renovated facility and the Ignatius high school students volunteering. The older Clevelanders who help to prepare the meal were in the kitchen, and we visited the fantastic clothing room in the back of West Side Catholic. We finished up in the Cadillac of shelters with the West Side Catholic family shelter. The cleanest of the shelters and newly renovated facility that feels like a real home not an institution. We finished up on time, and then did a short interview with Channel 3. The Mayor assured me that this is not the end of the story that we need to further develop some of the ideas that came up. He told me that staff would follow up with me and gave me names of people to contact. The men at 2100 Lakeside set a meeting for Monday to de-brief and make plans for activities they could work on in the community.
Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.
Wednesday, March 08, 2006
Artists to Perform at the Shelters
2100 Lakeside Shelter will Host First Shelter Storm Revue Tour
The Shelter Storm Revue Tour is ready to set sail on its first Cleveland-bound voyage. On Friday, the 24th of March, at 7:30 PM, the anchor shall be dropped outside the windy shores of the 2100 Lakeside Men's Shelter. Among the hearty crew to first make landfall, one spies Meagen Hueslenbeck with her poet pen on fire, Gary Nelson with his solid gold fiddle dragging in the sands behind him, the voices of Progeny ringing the bells of angels, and one Josh Kanary - guitar and harmonica sleeping soundly in his faded carpetbag.
It is not too late to join the concert. Please contact Josh Kanary at 216.432.0540 if you wish to offer some talent to the 2100 Lakeside show, or to our upcoming April 4th show at the VOA shelter. We welcome all forms of performance art and invite you to share it with the people who need to hear what you have to say.
JoshPosts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.
Saturday, March 04, 2006
Other Areas of Interest
A Few Quick Notes>>>>>
January Website Notes
January was the biggest month for the NEOCH website in our history. Thanks to everyone that is visiting the NEOCH website. Please let us know what is missing, confusing, or needs improvement.
First She was Naked; Now Homeless; What Next?
The Homeless Grapevine Blog has a response to the Sharon Reed as a Homeless Person. It was the worst form of media abuse, but what do you expect from this despicable station?
Frank Jackson will Tour the Shelters this Week
Mayor Jackson of Cleveland will be visiting the shelter in the next week to see what is going on in the world of homelessness. We will report on this tour in the next week.
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.
January Website Notes
January was the biggest month for the NEOCH website in our history. Thanks to everyone that is visiting the NEOCH website. Please let us know what is missing, confusing, or needs improvement.
First She was Naked; Now Homeless; What Next?
The Homeless Grapevine Blog has a response to the Sharon Reed as a Homeless Person. It was the worst form of media abuse, but what do you expect from this despicable station?
Frank Jackson will Tour the Shelters this Week
Mayor Jackson of Cleveland will be visiting the shelter in the next week to see what is going on in the world of homelessness. We will report on this tour in the next week.
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.
A Few Interesting Notes
Roldo Transcript on Meet The Bloggers
Just to prove that Cleveland is in fact "Cool:" We have Roldo and New York Does Not.
The Roldo Transcript is now at Meet the Bloggers. Here is an interesting exchange:
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.
Just to prove that Cleveland is in fact "Cool:" We have Roldo and New York Does Not.
The Roldo Transcript is now at Meet the Bloggers. Here is an interesting exchange:
Roldo Bartimole: I think there is a change. I think that you didn't see the homelessness in the 60s that you see now. Part of that is having tossed people out of institutions where they are getting help for their mental problems. A lot of people in the street are afflicted with some kind of mental disease.We have a new list of Strategies to End Homelessness on our website, which talks about the need for Single Room Occupancy housing or flop houses that Roldo talks about. This is a huge priority for homeless people in Cleveland.McKala Everett: In the 60s?
Roldo Bartimole: In the 60s, they were institutionalized. I am not sure that that was the answer, if they weren'’t getting proper care and rehabilitation, but the answer wasn'’t throwing them out on the street. There is a lot more hunger, because I think there are a lot of things that, as somebody was saying before, they see people who have large televisions and other things. You almost have to have a car to have a job these days. That I think is somewhat different. A lot of the things that should happen have not happened. One of the other things that has happened as far as homelessness is concerned is a lot of places that were single-room occupancy were destroyed. When I first came to Cleveland, I was here alone (my family was still back in Connecticut), and I went into a single-room place near the Plain Dealer. There were hundreds of them between Euclid and Superior, and they were all knocked down by CSU, and there has never been real replacement for that. So the other part that someone else mentioned earlier was the single family. There are so many more single families than there were in the 60s. And I think the other part is the inability to deal with especially poverty in the African-American community. WeÂ’ve sort of decided as a community that we are not going to deal with that problem anymore. The end of welfare programs, where at least you had some support, some financial support from the government. I think thatÂ’s hurt too.
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.
Wednesday, March 01, 2006
February/March Must be Report Season
Hungry Americans...Who Cares?
One report that I forgot to mention was the Second Harvest report on hunger. Now, these Second Harvest do-gooders have a lot of nerve releasing this report. Our concern for Hunger in America went out of style with bell bottoms, disco balls, Richard Nixon, and anti-war rallies. We have big issues like the War on Terrorism to be worried about at this time. We don't need information like 36% of the people served by the Second Harvest Network are under 18 years old. We have to be worried if we are going to get blown up by a falling airliner or an exploding shipping container near our house. We certainly don't have the ability to keep the problem of hunger in our minds when we are facing so many other problems in America. The problem of hunger is too complicated to describe in a 2 minute story, while people getting blown up is an easy story to get the message across in 2 minutes.
We are facing a growing Civil War in Iraq, and the 24 to 27 million different people served by the Second Harvest network are not yet at the point of starting a civil war. So who cares? We have to be afraid of terrorist using telephones or libraries in our neighborhood, we certainly don't have time for worrying about being one of the individuals who will have to utilize the Second Harvest National Network of approximately 44,000 agencies, which are made up of approximately 29,600 food pantries, 5,600 soup kitchens and 4,100 emergency shelters. We shouldn't be concerned that only 12% of the people are in fact homeless using the food progrms or that 36% of the people using the Second Harvest Food Network are employed, when we will probably die because of the effect of global warming.
These Second Harvest radicals are whistling in the wind if they think this rise in requests for food matters to the rest of us when Bill O'Reilly is telling us to be afraid of the liberal media elite. Here in Cleveland, one of the previous poorest cities in America, we could care less that 68% of the people using the Second Harvest Network were living below the federal poverty level in the last month, when the Bird Flu is about to plop down on our heads. So it was a waste of paper to survey the 52,000 recipients to complete this survey unless they had asked a question like, "Are you aware of any secret underground terrorist cells in your neighborhood?" So go read it if you want, but it is boring since no one gets blown up and there is no real enemy for us to hate.
Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.
One report that I forgot to mention was the Second Harvest report on hunger. Now, these Second Harvest do-gooders have a lot of nerve releasing this report. Our concern for Hunger in America went out of style with bell bottoms, disco balls, Richard Nixon, and anti-war rallies. We have big issues like the War on Terrorism to be worried about at this time. We don't need information like 36% of the people served by the Second Harvest Network are under 18 years old. We have to be worried if we are going to get blown up by a falling airliner or an exploding shipping container near our house. We certainly don't have the ability to keep the problem of hunger in our minds when we are facing so many other problems in America. The problem of hunger is too complicated to describe in a 2 minute story, while people getting blown up is an easy story to get the message across in 2 minutes.
We are facing a growing Civil War in Iraq, and the 24 to 27 million different people served by the Second Harvest network are not yet at the point of starting a civil war. So who cares? We have to be afraid of terrorist using telephones or libraries in our neighborhood, we certainly don't have time for worrying about being one of the individuals who will have to utilize the Second Harvest National Network of approximately 44,000 agencies, which are made up of approximately 29,600 food pantries, 5,600 soup kitchens and 4,100 emergency shelters. We shouldn't be concerned that only 12% of the people are in fact homeless using the food progrms or that 36% of the people using the Second Harvest Food Network are employed, when we will probably die because of the effect of global warming.
These Second Harvest radicals are whistling in the wind if they think this rise in requests for food matters to the rest of us when Bill O'Reilly is telling us to be afraid of the liberal media elite. Here in Cleveland, one of the previous poorest cities in America, we could care less that 68% of the people using the Second Harvest Network were living below the federal poverty level in the last month, when the Bird Flu is about to plop down on our heads. So it was a waste of paper to survey the 52,000 recipients to complete this survey unless they had asked a question like, "Are you aware of any secret underground terrorist cells in your neighborhood?" So go read it if you want, but it is boring since no one gets blown up and there is no real enemy for us to hate.
Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.
If Ohio is a B, the Rest of the Country Must Suck...
NAMI Releases Report on State of the Country
It must be a slow news day, because a report got a lot of news coverage on public radio. This report from National Alliance on Mental Illness says that Ohio gets a "B" on the academic scale in its treatment of mentally ill people. The country gets a "D" overall. Things must really suck in the rest of the country if Ohio is getting a grade of "B." Let's look at the reality of what is going on locally for mentally ill people.
Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.
It must be a slow news day, because a report got a lot of news coverage on public radio. This report from National Alliance on Mental Illness says that Ohio gets a "B" on the academic scale in its treatment of mentally ill people. The country gets a "D" overall. Things must really suck in the rest of the country if Ohio is getting a grade of "B." Let's look at the reality of what is going on locally for mentally ill people.
- The report talks about the lack of mental health parity in health care coverage, which is a huge issue in this state.
- If you do not have money and have a mental illness good luck in getting help. Unless you are a threat to yourself or others there is very little available to you.
- Even if you are a threat to yourself, you may get 24 hours of help and then a long, long, long, long wait for the state to decide that you are disabled.
- There is no presumptive eligibility for assistance to prevent homelessness.
- No where in the United States, including Ohio, do severely disabled people on disability assistance receive enough money to pay the market rate for housing.
- There is no facility in Cuyahoga County that women with a mental illness who become homeless can go to receive help and overnight shelter with staff trained solely to work on mental health issues.
- There is so much bureaucracy to get such a small amount of help. The agencies are forced to spend so much time and energy on paperwork that people with a mental illness suffer.
- If you should also have an alcohol or drug problem, a blizzard of paperwork will rain down on you, and you will get very little help.
- The closing of the asylums continue when budgets get tight, and budgets always seem to be in flux. There seems to be a constant tension between services and housing in the mental health community.
Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.
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