Voting Issues and Disconnect Notices

Voting Town Hall Last Night Raises Issue

The Greater Cleveland Voting Coalition hosted a town hall last night at the AFL-CIO/Laborers Building with two representatives of Cuyahoga County and some activists. Candace Hoke of the Cleveland State Election Integrity Project also presented. The new nanny of the Board of Elections, Tom Hayes was also in attendance. I got to ask the first question and the answer certainly did not inspire confidence in the upcoming election.

I asked if an individual shows up at the correct precinct and is already registered, but his identification does not have that address will the individual be able to vote with a regular ballot? The Board of Election official, Francis Lally, said that the individual would have to vote a provisional ballot. Greater Cleveland Voter Coalition volunteer and Case professor, Norman Robbins, said that the law was explicit that the individual would be entitled to a regular ballot. The guy from the People for the American Way said that the Secretary of State has already said that the person should get a regular ballot. I have read the law and I am sure that the intent of the law was for the ID to establish the person is the actual registered voter they say they are not to verify the address. So, I believe that the new law directs the poll worker to let the person vote a regular ballot, but I fear that there will be 88 different decisions in the State of Ohio.

Later, another member of the audience asked to clarify this identification question and there was a continued dispute. Ms. Hoke said that the SoState has only given guidance not a directive. She predicted that this would most likely be settled in the courts. Some Counties have sided with Blackwell's guidance. Why would Cuyahoga County fall on the side of making it harder for citizens to vote?

The two key outcomes of the town hall for me were: Vote absentee to avoid all the problems that will happen at the polls this year. Cuyahoga County announced that they were, finally, going to pay for the mailing of the ballots into the election. Second, the precinct voting system sucks and should be scrapped. If you want to vote for a County wide ballot anywhere in the County you should have that option. Many do not care who the local dog catcher or councilperson is, and just want to vote for state, national and county elections.

Other thing I learned from the meeting:

• You should be able to check that you are correctly registered to vote in mid September at the Board of Elections website.
• There is supposed to be two technology people at each polling place to help on the Electronic voting machines.
• There is supposed to be a greeter at the door of the polling place to make sure that people are at the correct polling place.
• Provisional ballots are worthless, and you should try as hard as you can not to use a provisional ballot.
  
• League of Women voters is very unhappy with the new disenfranchisement law (HB3).
• Every voter will get a mailing explaining the process in early September including an application for absentee ballot.
  

It is going to be a rough election especially for homeless people--vote absentee.

Amazing Statistic of the Week

Tim Walters of May Dugan Center has been doing some great work on utility monitoring. Cleveland Public Power no longer has the cheap electricity of years ago (see Callahan), and now they are disconnecting people at a rapid clip. Since January 2006, 14,000 families have been disconnected by CPP or around 100 people a day. Yes, 85% are reconnected, but that is amazing how many people are living on the edge with their housing.

Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.

Homeless Video Games

Oversimplification of Homelessness

Terry Lavender, a student of interactive arts and technology at Simon Fraser University, has created a video game as part of his master's thesis called Homeless: It's No Game. I have only been working with the Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless for a few months now, and often when I publish blogs to this here forum I worry that I am speaking outside my element. I make sure everything I say is solid, but being so new, I often worry I overlooked something small that will make me look quite the fool when the spotlight is turned upon it.

Today is different. Today, thanks to Terry Lavender, the ball is in Josh's court. That ball is homelessness and that court is video games. You see, my fair audience, when I was growing up, my best friends were a pair of Italian plumbers and a green-clad elf with a thing for triangles. Songs whose only melody is "blip bleep blip" make me cry. I have never been more confident in any blog I've ever written than the one I'm about to write for you now for I know the secret of manna.

First, it is important to note what Terry says about the game: "The game is a gross oversimplification of homelessness and the people who are forced into that situation. I have tried not to be condescending or judgmental and if the game comes across that way, I apologize" (from his website). His thesis is to find out if it is possible to entertain someone and encourage social change at the same time. He says, "A lot of organizations are jumping on the so-called serious computer games bandwagon to get their message out. Often their games are poorly made and are just not fun to play.

Given that, I don't want to detract from the importance of what Lavender points out and what he is trying to do. However, I can say straight up full of confidence that this game sucks. It just plain is not fun. It was a chore just to finish it. There seem to be a few bugs in it: I won after amassing only 18 esteem points when you're not supposed to win until you reach 50. The graphics are atrocious. I know it's petty, but the fact that the main character just spun slowly in circles the whole time really bothered me. Also, even though I know Lavender already said the game is a gross oversimplification of homelessness, it bears repeating because it is a really gross oversimplification of homelessness.

Despite all that, what Terry Lavender has said and attempted to do is important and needs to be expanded upon. A work of graphic art can communicate a vital social message, as can a song, movie, play, work of animation, poem, or story. When all of that is put together in a video game, so, too, can the video game communicate a message. Some other than Terry Lavender have tried. The Lord Jesus knows I sat through the hour long rambling about the dangers of nuclear weapons at the end of Metal Gear Solid because he sat next to me the whole time rolling his eyes. Thus far, social messages in video games have failed in their communication because they're either too direct or too forced.

Lavender's game is an example of too forced. It's the video game equivalent of the God-awful short films I was forced to watch in grade school that attempted to make learning fun. It's not really fun because it's not really a game. All you try to do in the game is rack up points. The points are acquired by going to different places. When you go to a place, it is randomly determined whether the outcome is good or bad. If it's bad, you lose points, and if it's good, you get points. It's totally random. There's no real sense of control over anything, and although that may be part of the message Lavender is trying to communicate, having no control isn't fun and appeals to no one. The message is lost because no one will play the game.

But, I believe Lavender's thesis is possible even though his experiment failed. I believe it is possible to entertain someone and encourage social change at the same time, especially in the realm of video games. It hasn't happened yet because no one's done it successfully and therefore it isn't guaranteed to be profitable. There's so many different angles one could take on this idea. A SimCity-esque game could be created in which the player is in charge of conducting the new city's 10-year plan to end homelessness, getting people to begin thinking not only about how to solve homelessness but also about the credibility of a city's 10-year plan to end homelessness. A game could be created in which one plays a cop trying to reduce the sudden rash of hate crimes against homeless people.

These are just a few suggestions and I am by no means the final word on this. I just wanted to get the conversation going and get the minds thinking.

Josh
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.

Voting and Homeless People

Disenfranchised from Democracy

There was a good letter to the editor in yesterday's Columbus Dogpatch from Bill Faith regarding the potential problems faced by homeless people in the upcoming election. Bill Faith is the director of the Coalition on Homelessness and Housing in Ohio and they just started a new project on voting for Ohio. Remember that Bill is coming to Cleveland to speak about state issues on September 11 (see previous post). The new ID law is going to be a disaster for poor people and especially homeless people. It is already a problem to get a migratory population to the right polling place to take part in democracy. Now, we have the complication of mandatory identification or a whole series of other forms of identification tied to housing before a person is entitled to cast a ballot.

The big issue is that each County seems to have their own interpretation of the ID law. Some say that if the ID does match the registration then the person must vote with a provisional ballot. Some say that the ID is just to verify that the person is who they say that they are. Poll workers have different ideas and Boards of Elections are also not consistent. I do not know how Cuyahoga County is going to come down on the issue, but based on the May primary I think that we are in trouble locally.

My Mom who just received an award for working every single election for more than 30 years has decided to sit this election out. She decided that based on the primary where it took hours to close down the new electronic machines and the lack of direction by the State over the new rules, she could not be a part of this pending train wreck. She lives in a suburb of Columbus where today's editorial cartoon suggested that they bring in Jimmy Carter to Ohio to supervise the elections.

The Coalition is going to try to get clarity over the law with the local board of elections over the next month. We will also have observers at some of the polling places that we anticipate problems. If you would like to volunteer, please call Brian at 216/432-0540. Our democracy and this election are both too important to leave an entire population out of the process.

Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.

Upcoming Events from the Coalition

Homeless Coalition Plans for the Next Quarter

1. For those members of NEOCH we are sending out the Annual Report and the Quarterly newsletter over the next three weeks so look for that in your mailbox. To become a member go to our website here.

Street Voices Training
2. NEOCH is having a training for possible speakers on Street Voices on September 13, 2006 at 9 a.m. This would be for people who have experienced homelessness and are interested in talking to local religious groups, youth groups or schools about their experiences. The training is from 9 to Noon with lunch provided. Please RSVP to Sara at 216/432-0540.

The State of Affordable Housing in Ohio
3. The September Cuyahoga Affordable Housing Alliance meeting is the annual forum on Housing Issues for this group that meets monthly. We will have Coalition on Homelessness and
Housing in Ohio Executive Director in to speak about the state of affordable housing in Ohio. He will talk about predatory lending and state funding of affordable housing. The event is September 11, 2006 at 1:30 p.m. at 1350 Euclid Ave. in the lower level of the US Bank Building. All are welcome to attend.

Veterans Teach In Set
4. The September Teach In is set for September 20 at 6 p.m. and will focus on the issues of veterans. This Teach In will be a little different in that we will meet at the Volunteers of America Veterans Resource Center at 775 East 152nd St. We will have veterans who will talk about their experiences and groups who provide shelter, housing, and job training to veterans
present to talk about their programs. Please call NEOCH at 432-0540 to RSVP or reserve your space on line at www.neoch.org under programs/Teach In.

Homeless Voting
5. There are two upcoming events for those concerned about the upcoming elections. Thursday August 24, 2006 Town Hall Meeting sponsored by the Greater Cleveland Voting Coalition entitled "Will My Vote Be Counted in November?" at the Laborer's Local 310 Hall at 3250 Euclid Ave. at 5:30 p.m. Ohio Votes staff, Board of Elections staff, Ohio League of Women Voters, CSU Center for Election Integrity and Cleveland Voting Coalition will be on hand to present on the topic of "Restoring Public Confidence in the Election Process." There will also be exhibits on absentee ballots, poll worker recruitment, electronic voting, and joining the voting Coalition.

b. The second event is actually a series of demonstrations of the new electronic voting machines for providers and homeless people. The Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless along with the Bishop Cosgrove Center and West Side Catholic are hosting a series of demonstrations of the new Electronic Voting Machines. Staff of the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections will be on hand to demonstrate the new voting machines and answer questions about the new identification requirements. Please plan to send homeless individuals or homeless provider staff over to these locations to practice with the new electronic voting machines.
Wed. August 30, 2006 from 11-1:30 p.m.
@ Bishop Cosgrove Center (1736 Superior Ave.)

Thurs. August 31, 2006 from 11-1:30 p.m.
@ Bishop Cosgrove Center

Friday Sept. 15, 2006 from 10-2 p.m. (Lunch break from 12-1 p.m.)
@ West Side Catholic (3135 Lorain Ave.)

Friday Sept. 22, 2006 from 10-2 p.m. (Lunch break from 12-1 p.m.)
@ West Side Catholic Drop In Center

Future Dates to Mark Down the Date
6. Mark your calendars for two upcoming dates. Friday October 20, 2006 will be the special Stand Down focusing on Housing. The event is at the Bishop Cosgrove Center and is being called "From Homelessness to Housing." There will be a special Training class on housing resources available in the community. The other event is the Annual Homeless Memorial Day on December 21, 2006 to remember those who have passed away. This year the event is at
Franklin Circle Church in the evening.

Brian Davis
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.

No More Homeless at Airport

Homeless Evicted from Airport after September 1, 2006

Responding to the yellow journalists at Channel 19 fake news channel, the City is relocating the individuals who sleep at the airport. In a meeting on August 2 with homeless service providers, the city said that homeless people need to leave the airport. The individuals were making a mess and were a security threat and so they must leave. From the perspective of homeless who stay at the airport, this was a clean, safe and secure place to sleep. There was no threat of being beat up or having your stuff stolen at the airport. The federal government is concerned that terrorists could pretend to be homeless and scope out the airport in detail or slip into secure places.

We certainly understand that the airport is not an appropriate place to live, and we hope that this turns into a opportunity and not a black eye for the community. There are many women who stay at the airport because it is a safe place that no one will mess with them. We heard from the police that they want to make sure that there are no arrests. This is a much different police force from the 1990s who supported Mayor White's attempts to make homelessness illegal. The police seem to be more compassionate and learned a lot from these negative encounters in the 1990s. They want a relocation similar to the one at the Convention Center. They are committed to allowing the social service providers take the lead and not law enforcement. Staff at the Coalition certainly hope that all the providers can work together to find alternatives to the people who have found safe haven at the airport. Homeless providers (NEOCH included) have not always been very good partners in solving problems, and we will be measured on how we solve this problem without arrests.

Already we heard Mental Health Services offering housing to some of those who are regularly at the airport. We heard 2100 Lakeside keeping beds available at all hours to make sure that people can be relocated into a bed and will try to break some of the negative impressions of the shelter. The Women's shelter is re-evaluating policies and previous punishments to try to welcome some of the women at the airport back. The Veterans Administration is going to talk to those at the airport to see if any have served in the military. We shall see if this airport move is as smooth as the Convention Center. No matter what happens most of the people at the airport will not go to shelter or housing so they will end up somewhere, and someone else will be complaining about homeless people destroying the peace. Sometime in the near future we will have to deal with the overall problem and not just move people from one side of town to the other.

One other ray of hope is the possibility of a 24 hour drop in center opening. Back in the 1980s Ralph Delaney was taking bread and water to homeless people downtown with a goal of opening a storefront that could be a warm place for those forgotten by society could stay inside, get a cup of coffee, and start the process of rebuilding stability. West Side Catholic Board of Trustees approved the use of their facility on the near West Side of Cleveland to operate 24 hours a day. We need to find $250,000 to $300,000 in order to operate the facility. The heavy lifting is always finding the money. We all have ideas, but finding the money is always a problem.

Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.

Upcoming Coalition Events

Listen, Attend, and Learn

A few brief updates on Events coming up for the Homeless Coalition. Yes, we will update our website this week.

Monday July 31, 2006 on WCPN 90.3 FM
David C. Barnett is doing a feature on the Street Voices Project of the Coalition. This will feature interviews with Sabrina Otis one of our formerly homeless Moms in the program. You will also hear from Teri' Horne who created the program in its current form and Charlene Higginbotham who currently administers Street Voices. This is an example of the amazing work of the AmeriCorps*VISTA program. Tune in at 6:20 a.m. and 7:50 a.m. at 90.3 FM for the report or as always you can catch it by podcast from their website.

Wednesday September 20, 2006 at the VOA Veterans Resource Center
The Coalition in collaboration with the Veterans Administration will host a Teach In to explain the services offered to homeless individuals who served in the armed services. We will meet at the Volunteers of America Veterans Resource Center at 775 East 152nd St. at 6 p.m.on 9/20/06. There will be a tour of this new shelter and an overview of the other projects in the community. We will also have a panel of current or formerly homeless veterans talk about the services. There will be more information on our website in the next few weeks, and the opportunity to RSVP on our website.

Friday October 20, 2006 at the Bishop Cosgrove Center
The Coalition along with a large number of social service providers will have a one day social service fair focusing on housing. The event is entitled "From Homeless to Housed," and will include tables and information from the social service providers in the community. The event will also feature a two hour class explaining all the subsidized programs in the community as well as an explanation of how to use the Housing Cleveland website and the First Call for Help website. The event is 10 to 3 pm and details will be on our website soon.

Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.

Oscar Goodman Laws Revisited

We Hold These Truths to be Self Evident: Las Vegas Sucks

A new law has been passed in Las Vegas. This law makes it illegal to provide food or meals to the indigent for free or for a nominal fee in parks. What's an indignant, you ask? The law defines it as "a 'person whom a reasonable ordinary person would believe to be entitled to apply for or receive assistance' from the government under state law." The mayor, Mayor Oscar GOODMAN, offers a better definition: "Certain truths are self-evident. You know who's homeless."

Is he alluding to a famous Thomas Jefferson quote in order to bash homeless people? Never in my life have I more wanted the skeletal remains of the Author of the Declaration of Independence to claw his way out of his grave and exact revenge on those who have invoked his name. How Mayor Goodman will shudder when the gaunt hand still crawling with maggots pins him down and he realizes that it is the Father of the University of Virginia that shall feast on his brains tonight.

Since that lazy fog-breather Jefferson isn't returning to a semblance of unlife anytime soon, I offer this in exchange: Your law doesn't say that people receiving assistance from the government aren't allowed to eat in your parks, it says that people who look like people receiving assistance from the government aren't allowed to eat in your parks. Oh, Mayor Goodman, you don't really have anything against people who are homeless. You just hate when people look homeless.

Don't you get it, Osky? What you have is a self-image problem. You're projecting your own inadequacies onto the people you govern. When you say, "You're not allowed to accept food because you look homeless," what you really mean is, "I'm not allowed to eat because I look homeless." It's okay, Osky-pooh. You don't really need stricter local regulation laws on the city's impoverished. You just need to hear someone tell you that you are beautiful.

Mayor Oscar Goodman, you are beautiful. You are as unique as a snowflake and as much an integral part of Spaceship Earth as the smallest budding seed. No one else can be a better Oscar Goodman than you, Oscar Goodman. If I lived in Las Vegas, I'd buy you an ice cream cone and we'd both sit in your park and be beautiful together.

If any of you beautiful people out there (because you all are beautiful, each and every single one of you) are concerned about Oscar Goodman and the people of Las Vegas, please, just write the mayor and tell him he's beautiful. He also has a phone number (702-229-6241), and I know he would love to hear an honest voice telling him he doesn't need to be afraid to look in the mirror. His fax machine can also be used at the fax number 702-385-7960. If nothing else, please visit him, City Hall, Tenth Floor; 400 Stewart Avenue; Las Vegas, NV 89101. Business hours are Monday-Friday 8 AM to 5 PM.

Josh
Posts by NEOCH Board and Staff

Oscar Goodman Laws

Las Vegas Tops Jackson Mississippi in Stupid Laws

From 1876 to 1964, the United States struggled against Jim Crow laws of the South that segregated African Americans to different schools, rail cars, drinking fountains, etc. Today, we are met with "Oscar Goodman" laws targeting homeless people. Las Vegas has remained in the top 5 of the "Meanest Cities in the United States" according to the National Coalition for the Homeless for the last three years. They have strict panhandling laws, anti-camping laws, and pretty much every other kind of law targeting those without homes. Now Vegas is trying to out shine Jackson Mississippi and their crazy curfew law.

Mayor Oscar Goodman has enacted an anti-feeding program which defines an indigent person as someone who a reasonable person would believe that the individual was entitled to government assistance or in other words anyone that looka like they just flew across the country arriving late at night or all those people who work 18 hours a day in order to make the rent. A totally unenforceable law enacted by a bully. Goodman, after making the mean city list in 2005 said that next time he was in Washington DC he was going to kick the NCH directors butt. I am proposing referring to all these laws directed at homeless people around the country as Oscar Goodman laws. His name would go down in history representing all that is wrong with American cities.

Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.

Update on NEOCH Board Secretary

Bufford Finally Released from Hospital

We posted a message in the middle of May 2006 about our Vice President, Marcia Bufford. A brief update for our friends. Marcia was in rehabilitation at MetroHealth for the past 2 months to regain the ability to walk and talk. She was released from the hospital on Tuesday, and is resting at home. Things looked bleak in May, but she has made amazing progress after being shot. She is walking and talking now, and working on putting her affairs back in order.

Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.

More on City of Jackson

Doublespeak Alive and Well in Mississippi

I just want to report on whatÂ’s going on in Jackson Mississippi. A lot of the articles I read tend to spin it as a great idea. Just for fun, let's try a different spin:

Mayor Frank Melton of Jackson, Mississippi, has set a curfew specifically for homeless people. If you are homeless, it is illegal for you to be on the streets after 10 PM. If you are found on the street after 10 PM, you are taken to a "facility" where you are clothed and fed. It's not a jail, though, because these people aren't under arrest. It's just a building the local police forcibly escort you to and which you are not allowed to leave until they say so.

Think what you want about the above spin, I would like to point out a small passage that turns this whole topic from debatable to creepy:

"Melton closed the shelter in the gym Sunday afternoon because it is used during the week for summer youth programs. The remaining homeless people were taken to the Billy Brumfield Shelter, with the exception of Jonathan Graham, a 17-year-old from Texas who now is living with the mayor."

Frank, I'm not here to judge you. I'm just here to say that rounding up all the homeless people in your city and from them picking a minor to take home like a five-year-old picking a puppy out of a store window is, well, it's weird, Frank. I know you must think I'm just ants at a picnic. All I can say to that is: I am not a colony of ants, and what you are doing is no picnic.

Joshua
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.

The Worst Law Against Homeless People in the US

Jackson Mississippi Mayor Violates Rights with "Homeless Curfew"

The City of Jackson and its Mayor, Frank Melton, have developed a strategy to sweep homeless people off the streets--a "homeless curfew." The plan went into effect on Friday July 13, and would force homeless people into a gymnasium at 10 p.m. or face arrest. To justify the City extending the "hospitality" to homeless people, they will be required to mow the lawn, clean and do other menial tasks in exchange for their stay.

This is the worst idea ever by a major American city to address homelessness. Melton is African American and his city has passed a 10 year plan to end homelessness. This effort to make it illegal to be homeless kills the concept of ending homelessness. I can only characterize this as an internment camp for homeless people.

Many people choose not to use shelter because of the large number of rules or others feel that it strips them of their dignity. There are many who do not want to accept charity or do not want to have to admit that they have a problem. Some individuals have a paranoia about living in a group setting. Others do not trust the government or have health complications that make it difficult to live in a group setting. Forcing people into a shelter is a violation of the rights of the disabled and the freedom of movement of an adult population.

Shelter is only an answer for a small number of individuals. Forcing people into shelter is not the answer for anyone. The solution is a diverse path off the streets to serve the diverse needs of those who end up homeless. A community needs direct housing, comprehensive supportive services, treatment on demand, preventative health care, income support, and mixed income housing. Forcing people into a shelter and then forcing them to work for their stay can only be characterized as slavery.

With 25% of the homeless population veterans, imagine the indignity of the man having served in Iraq coming back to the safe streets of Jackson where he graduated from high school, worked, and paid taxes then being forced into a gymnasium after becoming homeless. This veteran had honorably served to protect democracy on foreign soil then returned to America and was unable to find democracy in his home city of Jackson. Many veterans develop addictions or mental illnesses because of the trauma they witness, and then cannot find the help they need in the States. It is the ultimate betrayal to force veterans and in fact any homeless person into a gymnasium and then forcing them to work for their stay.

I agree that homeless people should not live on the streets and there is one way to solve this problem: affordable, safe, decent housing for all. Judging homeless people as a threat is wrong headed and must be challenged in court. In a Southern city that did not see African Americans actually free to vote for 100 years after the Civil War, this law is a throwback to the 1950s.

Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.

One Year of Panhandling Law in Cleveland

Panhandling Law Results

The Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless filed an open records request to look at the first year of the Cleveland panhandling ordinance. Here are the results. We will have a more detailed look in the next Grapevine.

From July 2005 when the ordinance was passed until December 31, 2005, the City Police issued 9 tickets. In the second six months (January 2006-June 2006), they issued 62 tickets for aggressive solicitation or asking for money in the wrong place. 65 different people got tickets of the 71 total tickets issued, so only a few were repeat offenders. The most aggressive panhandler in the City of Cleveland over the last year was Kenneth Tate with three tickets. He actually was responsible for 22% of the tickets in 2005 with two, then another one in 2006.

It seems that if your name is Brooks or Jones you tend to be aggressive when you ask for money with 3 different people named Brooks and three different Joneses receiving tickets.

The worst two day period to be a panhandler was May 11 and 12, Thursday and Friday, when 5 tickets were issued to five different people.

The worst month to be a panhandler was April 2006 when 27% of all the tickets were issued with April 22-26 Friday to Wednesday the worst week of the year.

The most bizarre and most likely made up name for an aggressive panhandler was Calvin Myhand Jr. who received two tickets. Also, a patriot who has his own beer, Sam Adams, was given a ticket for his aggressive behavior--TWICE.

We are still waiting from the Courts to see what the disposition of all these tickets have been. Were these guys jailed? Did they pay their fines? We will see, and report on this when we get that information.

Do you feel safer in the Downtown? Are the panhandlers that you meet nicer since the ordinance went into effect? When this ordinance was debated in City Council, Ward 21 (Lakewood Lite) Councilman Mike Dolan said that his wife was afraid to come Downtown because of the panhandlers. We need to ask our good friend Mike if his wife has visited the center of her City in the last year.

The most surprising part of all of this information is that the Wolstein Group did not receive one aggressive panhandling ticket over the last year. They have gone to extremes to take the East Bank of the Flats, and have not received one aggressive solicitation ticket. No justice.

Brian
The Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.

Congratulations to the New Social Justice Media Person

Feagler Wins Community Shares Award

So, I sent this to the Plain Dealer and gave them a week to publish. No dice. So here you go.

Dear Editor:

Congratulations to Dick Feagler for winning the Social Justice Media Person of the Year from Community Shares. Thank you so much for publishing that wonderful commentary the day after winning the Social Justice Award identifying the source of all of our problems in Northeast Ohio: "beggars."” It is refreshing to see Mr. Feagler use his new found recognition as a champion of social justice to beat up on the rich and powerful panhandlers.

I was pleased the Feagler was attacking men who have the nerve to stand out in the hot sun and admit that they are poor for eight hours. Those panhandlers are living large, and I too wish that there was some way to get these guys to stop asking for odd amounts of money like $6.35. I appreciate Feagler turning his back on the amendment that also allows him to publish by supporting Akron'’s pre-registration before speaking law. I like the courage of a social justice media personality railing against "bums," and boldly declaring that he was proud of using that word. Social Justice Feagler reminds us of the joy of the colorful language of olden days when we labeled individuals with racist language.

By the way, since when did the police start saying, "Be off with you"” to panhandlers? These beggars are destroying Public Square, and the police need to use harsh language with these guys. Congratulations on your award, and keep sticking it to straw men like panhandlers.

Brian Davis

Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.

Some Rough Thoughts

A Few Other Things

Using the Stumble button, I found this extremely bizarre website from 1999, which combines PBS as the host and market research by a bunch of artists to improve panhandlers in New York City. The crack Needcom staff have advice for improving the business of panhandling and a focus group with the panhandlers. They talk about ethics, paying taxes, and giving to non profits vs. giving directly to those in need. There is a ton of stuff on the website that is certainly bookmarked in Feagler's favorites. This is an amazing resource prompted by the harsh tactics of the Giuliani administration in New York. They answer questions about carrying signs to ask for money and exchanging a service like washing windows and the amount of money that a good panhandler can make. My experience is these need to be accepted with a grain of salt in much the same way as fish stories. It is more information than you will ever want to know, and I do not understand why it is still an active site.

Freedom Day & ACLU Closed?
Today is Independence Day and the ACLU, one of the most valuable organizations in the United States at this time, claims to be protecting the Bill of Rights but is closed today. This is the day we celebrate the signing of one of the most important documents in our history. The one that spelled out the creation of an independent democracy, and we need these guys working to preserve our right to vote, to have privacy, and to speak.

On second thought, nothing much is happening today since government is closed, so take the day off, rest, and relax. In fact take the week, because you guys have a big job ahead to close Guantanamo prison, get rid of the Ohio voting poll tax, the death penalty, protecting our freedom to publish, and to peacefully gather to petition our government. Rest today because there is a hurricane brewing to destroy the Bill of Rights and you will need your strength.

NEOCH now listed on Goodsearch.com
Instead of clicking on Yahoo or Google how about doing your search through Goodsearch.com?
This is a simple way to donate a penny to NEOCH every time you do a search on the web. Just go to www.goodsearch.com and type in your search then put in our agency name--"NEOCH"-- that you would like to donate to and click search. Two steps instead of one, but the money goes to NEOCH. Pretty simple. It is a Yahoo search and it works.

Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.

Happy Independence (For Some) Day

Reflecting on the Fourth of July And Poverty

I have been wearing my flag shirt all week as a shield to protect against someone throwing a burning flag at me. I hear that flag burning is out of control in this country and we all need some way to stop this desecration of our nation's symbol. Then I thought about the ethics of driving over the speed limit (breaking the law) with a flag shirt on. Is that desecration of the flag? Then I thought of the flag that is flying over the government sanctioned Guantanamo Bay prison Cuba, which nearly every other country in the world considers an abomination against the rule of law. Is that a desecration of the flag? Then I thought about those soldiers in Iraq who were torturing people at Abu Ghraib prison, disguising murders, raping women, and overseeing other atrocities while wearing the flag on their arms. Is that a desecration of the flag? I thought about the flag waving outside of the Texas death house or the one outside of our embassy in Khartoum, Sudan as we watch a genocide unfold, and I wonder. I decided that maybe it was more important to start protecting the founding principles, values, personal liberties, and checks on power that is the basis of America instead of just the symbol of those ideas.

In nearly every city in the United States there are between 15 and 40% of the population that do not feel free today. These are the individuals living with poverty every day. Those living in a homeless shelter today do not feel free to stay out and watch the fireworks. Those living without health care do not feel free to be sick. Those who do not have textbooks in their classes do not feel free to read about freedom riders, the struggle for independence, or the fight to get women the vote. Those who do not have a decent income do not feel free to travel to Philadelphia to see Independence Hall or the Liberty Bell. How do we have the nerve to debate a flag burning amendment when we never even passed the Equal Rights Amendment for women? Anyway, freedom is in the eye of the beholder, and in this country that prides itself on being the best at everything (except soccer and playing nice with others) there are many who feel shackled and therefore do not feel we have the best democracy on the planet.

It is all too confusing so I just stopped thinking and sat and listened to Ray Charles sing America the Beautiful, Woody Guthrie, and Johnny Cash American Series on repeat all day.

Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.

Upcoming Events at the Coalition

Homelessness Does Not End in the Summer

A few things that the Coalition is working on for the summer...

• We are welcoming two new VISTAs who will dedicate a year of their life to solving homelessness in Cleveland and Ohio. One of the finest programs ever created by the Federal government, which has survived despite both Bush I, Clinton, and Bush II trying to detroy the programs by putting their own stamp on these efforts.
  
• We are planning a series of events around how homeless people will have access to the election with the new rules demanding identification before participating in our democracy. We are also going to have a few demonstrations in the shelters to show people how to use the electronic voting.
  
• We are setting our local, state, and national agenda for the fall and early 2007. We are hosting an exciting event in July in which we have invited two representatives from each shelter in Cuyahoga County. This is our first attempt at a representative Congress of homeless people in which each person represents a sub population of homeless people or families. We will have disabled homeless people, single women, mom and dad families, and men all invited. It should be interesting, and we will set our agenda based on the meeting.
  
• The NEOCH Board is working on finances. The summer is always a slow time for support for homelessness. We would certainly appreciate your support this summer to allow us to keep working on solutions to homelessness.
  

A few things that we are planning for the fall...

• We have a Housing Service Fair set for October 20, 2006. This would be similar to the Homeless Stand Down, but restricted to distribution of information about housing. The event will be at the Bishop Cosgrove Center, and will feature programs that could provide housing to homeless people. Look for more details to come.
• The Quarterly Teach In will be September 20, and will focus on veterans issues. We have a large number of veterans who are homeless, but we do have a very nice safety net in place. We will highlight both the needs and services available in Greater Cleveland.

Details of all of these items will appear on our website in the next month. There is a very good discussion about Public Square and homelessness at realneo.us blog. Norm Roulet talks about the battle for public space in both Cleveland and San Francisco. I have printed out the post, and have been thinking about it all week. I encourage everyone to check it out.

Brian

September Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.

Akron Assault on Free Speech Continued

Feagler Just Needs to Retire

I was surprised to be quoted in the Crusty Old Man's Column today in the PD (No link, if you want to read it go find it. I am not going to make it easy for you.) since I have never talked to this guy in my life. I would have liked to discuss the Bill of Rights with this guy. I know it is a waste of time to talk to him about panhandling because he would never listen, but free speech is his business. I do not understand how any journalist can defend pre-registration in order to speak. Just say No, Dick!! You have the freedom to say no to these panhandlers. You have the freedom to make fun of them in your column. Why can't they ask people for money? No one will think less of you to just say no to panhandlers. In your old age have you become so afraid of human contact that you are willing to amend the Bill of Rights to keep beggars quiet? Remember that these Itinerant Private Charitable Advisors fall under the same Amendment that allows you to publish.

If you are concerned that the panhandlers are asking too much money, walk away. If you believe that they are too aggressive then why haven't you filed a police report for their violation of the ordinance that passed last year? Why, because it is a waste of time ordinance that does nothing, but make beggars into criminals. What I would explain to the Crusty Old Man is that once we throw the panhandlers under the bus, it is not a stretch to think we should register political protestors who are far more annoying and disruptive, and then it is not a great step to register people who might give comfort to our enemies in their writings which are available on the internet especially Crusty Old Men who criticize the war.

The Crusty Old Man just needs to retire and stop embarrassing himself. He used the word "bum" throughout the commentary because that is what they used to call guys who asked for money on the street when he was a kid. I seem to remember this same kind of stupid logic was used by the racists that I met in college with their subtle distinction of hard working black people and the lazy shiftless individuals who had another offensive label. There are a lot of words that we used when the Crusty Old Man was a kid that we do not use anymore. Why the anger at a group of people with a problem who are annoying but harmless?

P.S. Rumor has it that the Crusty Old Man is going to receive a social justice award from Community Shares. There goes the neighborhood...

Brian

Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.

Akron Assault on Panhandlers Continued

Strict Law Not Strict Enough for Akron Council

First, one correction about the Akron Panhandling Law from the previous post. The new panhandling registration law proposed in Akron will not prevent an individual who has a previous criminal conviction from getting a license just those who violated the aggressive panhandling law. You will have to be photographed and have to wear that license around your neck.

What a strange town...
So, a lot happened Monday, June 19, regarding the massive epidemic of panhandling in Akron on Monday. It seems that the source of all problems that continues to keep pedestrians from visiting Akron is squarely on the shoulders of beggars. According to the Downtown beat cop who testified there are 5 or 6 panhandling spreading fear, plague, disease, bad feelings, and diverting downtown diners from local eateries by their overbearing requests for money during the day. The City held a hearing on their proposed panhandling ordinance and the Deputy Mayor, David Lieberth and I appeared on WCPN 90.3 to debate the issue (link to mp3 of the show).

From the callers to the show those in the outer ring suburbs do not like panhandlers and even former homeless people do not like panhandlers. From WCPN listeners e-mails, my assertion that pan handling is a form of petitioning the government is asinine. For most of the panhandlers this is a job, and so Akron is trying to professionalize these Unaffiliated Private Benevolence Officers or Itinerant Private Charitable Advisors. Deputy Mayor Lieberth kept interrupting and avoided the free speech and scarlet letter issues.

I then went to the hearing on the issue at the Akron City Council, which was bizarre. I felt like I had gone backwards from the land of OZ in color to the black and white land of Mayberry USA. I did get to meet Lieberth who was on the phone earlier who introduced the legislation and defended it. I am not sure how politically astute it was having a guy who looks like one of the oil barons of the industrial revolution or that banker in the wheelchair from Its a Wonderful Life be the guy who explains this offensive piece of legislation. No offense to Mr. Lieberth who seems nice enough, but I kept thinking that he was going to say, "Nothin' but a miserable little $500 equity in a life insurance policy. [These panhandlers] are worth more dead than alive."

The Akron City Council members who were present actually wanted more severe legislation. They wondered if churches and schools could be included in the protected areas, because panhandlers prey (punny?) on spiritual people coming out of church with money. They also wondered why Akron had to give out licenses to people who have ignored tickets in the past. I bagged my prepared statement (which will be on our website soon) for fear they would try to make the legislation even more severe (strip searches, branding panhandlers, etc.) I was one of only two who testified in opposition to this ordinance. (Thank you to the member of Food Not Bombs Akron--Dana Williams who testified against the ordinance). The Council did not ask either one of us any questions, but on the positive side did not force us out of town on the nearest rail.

So, after a parade of business owners, police, the head of the Akron Art Museum, and the Evangelical Shelter testified in support of this disgraceful piece of legislation, I decided it was better to keep my comments brief and to the point. I pointed out that nearly every person that testified had mentioned problems with panhandlers that were covered by the existing law. Either the panhandler was aggressive, deceptive or on private property, which are all illegal under current Akron law. I pointed out that if existing law did not work what makes them think a new law will work that has not worked in any city in the United States and has not worked in any city for centuries. I said that it is hard to stand with a panhandler, but I hope that one of them has the courage to stand up against all the suits in the room and declare that this law is unconstitutional and vote against it. I get the feeling that Council will rubber stamp this proposal and will not act with courage, but we will see.

One of the funniest parts of the hearing was the story told by the female police captain, which she cited as justification for the new law. A woman was enjoying her lunch break and was approached by a panhandler or Unaffiliated Private Benevolence Officer in a local Downtown Akron park. When she went to her purse, the panhandler turned out to be a thief and grabbed her purse and ran. The police captain said that her boyfriend apprehended the guy because his prosthetic leg fell off when he was fleeing. I could not get this image out of my head of the one legged guy running away with the purse. The one-armed man in Bay Village inspired a television series and movie, and now it turns out the one legged thief in Akron inspired panhandling registration. I was surprised the Akron City Council did not grab onto this story and send the legal director back to see if was constitutional to remove the other leg of purse snatcher to slow them down even more.

It is not their fault, it seemed that most of the Akron City Council members are business men themselves. I will bet one is the barber and another owns the general store just like in Mayberry. I will bet that Andy, Barney and the guys stood around Howard's Barber Shop and came up with this registration plan. They are thinking of their own self interest and not the preservation of individual liberty or protection of free speech. But the Director of the Haven of Rest shelter in Akron and the Salvation Army are both especially shameful. To sell out their own clients is disgraceful. They wouldn't even have jobs if there were not all these holes in the safety net of healthcare and housing. If this great disparity did not exist in the pay for workers compared to CEOs they would be collecting tolls on I-80. The Director of Haven of Rest could not do outreach to the handful of panhandlers in Akron and provide help to keep them off drugs or get them treatment for their mental illness? He proclaimed, from his high horse, that the giving of alms to the poor is just enabling them. I hate when providers hide behind "enabling." It really means, "We are so rigid in our rules that we refuse to bend to individual needs, and we will blame the individual for their 'unreasonable' demands to be treated as a person not a number."

I am glad to be back in the world of color, and I have no doubt that Mayberry will pass this offensive law. I hope that since it does not seem that any council member will have courage the Itinerant Private Charitable Advisors will have courage to sue the City. I volunteer to help.

Brian

Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.

Paranoia, Insanity, and Cruelty Rule the Day

Make Laws Specific to Homeless People

I have three articles for you to read:

Paranoid in Orlando

Cruel in Indiana

Insane in Baton Rouge

For those of you here to read a blog and not news, allow me to sum up:

Paranoid in Orlando, FL-- is seeking to pass a law that makes it illegal to serve food to the homeless on city property more than twice a year. The reasoning is that if you feed the homeless in the city parks daily, they will begin to congregate there. While they wait for food, the homeless people will inevitably get bored. Orlando seems to think that when bored, homeless people will commit crimes. For you bleeding hearts who deny this, Orlando claims to have solid proof: there is crime in Orlando, and there are also homeless people in Orlando; therefore homeless commit crimes! Try arguing with that!

Cruel in Indiana-- Porter County Libraries in Indiana are not only limiting the number of items a homeless person can check out, they are making it a policy to not issue library cards to homeless children. Let me reiterate: homeless children are being denied the free service of receiving reading and learning materials from the county government. Who sat in on that committee meeting? Gargamel and Azrael? Cobra Commander? Voldemort? Did they follow up the meeting by stealing all the Christmas presents from Whoville? Is the road to the Porter County Libraries paved with human skulls?

Insane in Baton Rouge--It seems that Baton Rouge Louisiana has decided that the best way to deal with their homeless problem is to place their policemen on horses. From the article above: "Mounted police on horseback will soon be dealing with the growing problem of panhandling by the homeless near downtown Baton Rouge." I just want to say that this proposal is awesome. Baton Rouge is literally crazy. You know you are out of ideas when your response to the problem of homelessness is, "Have we tried dealing with them while astride a handsome equine?" God bless Baton Rouge and their creativity. I really honestly hope it works out for them, because if the solution to homelessness is horses, my job is going to be real goddamn easy.

Josh

Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.

Father's Day in the Shelters

Homeless Dads

Today is Father's Day, and it is very hard to find the Hallmark card for the Dad in the shelter. Why? Because society does not often think about the lives behind the stereotypes. We do not consider the depression guys face while staying in the shelters during most holidays, but especially Father's Day. Many of the men at 2100 Lakeside are in fact Dads and some are Grandfathers. They get to watch the NBA Finals, but otherwise it is not much different than any other Sunday. No breakfast in bed, no mail delivery so no homemade cards from the kids, and no possibility of lying in the hammock watching the grass grow with a beer. Father's Day in the shelters.

Yes, Dad made some mistakes and wound up in the shelter. This could be because of health issues like alcohol, drugs or some brain issues or it could be pride or stupid decisions, but most of the guys are still a Dad. These men in the shelter really get the shaft when it comes to being a Dad. Society has made it difficult to be a Dad and to be poor. There is no doubt men have not set very good examples and for years tried to skate on responsibility, but our public policy assumes the worst for every guy. There is no forgiveness in the system, but instead years of heartache, debt, and resentment. I mean the whole child support system often makes it better to not work than to even try. It takes so long to try to get an adjustment in the payments that the Dad is so far in the hole they will never get out and they give up.

For many of the Dads that I have met, they want to have a relationship with their kids. They want to give advise and to teach the importance of the finger roll in a three point shot, but have a hard time. They want to give money to support their kids, but want some equality in the relationship. They want someone to listen to their side and not assume that they are looking for ways to be a deadbeat. It is very difficult to be a Dad without a lot of money.

Brian
Posts by Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless staff and Board.