Cleveland Homeless to Harvard

Margaret Bernstein is correct in her commentary about homeless students this weekend, but she really never gave us anyway to make sure that no student has to sleep on the bleachers again. This should be obvious and in a society that can build casinos, shining cathedrals, and beautiful courthouses, we should never have a child sleeping outside.  Unfortunately, there were very few solutions in Ms. Bernstein's commentary that would have prevented Boone from sleeping outside.
For the complete post go here...

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Voting Hearing Part 2

The second panel that spoke were comprised of both supporters of the Ohio voting changes as well as those opposed to the legislation. Rick Nagin has a nice summary of the hearing here.
Daniel Tokaji--OSU Professor of Law and expert on voting
Professor Tokaji testified in opposition to the HB 194 in Ohio, which he identified as the "wrong direction."  He was especially critical of limiting early voting  and eliminating the ability to vote on Sunday at the Board of Elections offices, because African American and Hispanic voters turn out on Sundays.

For more information go here...
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In Memorium: Roosevelt Darby

I had the privilege of serving on the National Coalition for the Homeless Board of Directors with Roosevelt Darby Jr. who represented the City of Philadelphia and the state of Pennsylvania.  He had previous experience with homelessness, but that was not what defined him or how he identified himself.  He was an amazing advocate for homeless people, and because of his history he knew what would make things better for those living on the streets.  There was actually a wonderfully written story in the Philadelphia Daily News here.

For the complete post go here...
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Notes on Voting Hearing

Congressional Hearing on Voting

We posted our testimony submitted to the US Senate regarding voting changes in Ohio here.  We also have an entire section of voting on our website in order to educate our constituents about the new challenges to trying to participate in democracy for homeless people.  The bottom line message on all of this is that homeless people need to vote by mail or vote at the Board of Elections early, and the best time is the five day "Golden week" in Ohio.  Enclosed are some observations from the voting hearing held in Cleveland on May 7, 2012 to view those notes go here.

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Cuyahoga County Makes Improvements

Hunger Funds Overseen by United Way

In April 2012, the County decided to outsource the distribution of hunger dollars to the United Way and the Emergency Food and Hunger Committee that meets to distribute FEMA funds to shelters and hunger centers.  This is a great idea and an example of County Government functioning in a fair and efficient manner.  NEOCH has a board position on the Emergency Food and Hunger Committee, and have often wondered why it did not serve a more prominent role in the community.  They have every expert on food and shelter around the table and are overseen by the United Way.

For more information go here....
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My Thoughts on Jim Schlecht

I had the privilege of planning and speaking at the Jim Schlecht celebration.  No he is not retiring or dying.  Randy Cunningham of CTO decided that it was time to celebrate Jim's amazing body of work on behalf of the hungry and homeless.  Here is what I tried to say if I was a better speaker.  If you want to see pictures from the event go here.

For more information go here....
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Government vs. Homeless People

For the first time in Cleveland, the State of Ohio turned down tax credits to move a Permanent Supportive Housing Project forward.  There was some controversy with regard to this project, and the Plain Dealer gave coverage to the groups opposed to this property.  In an amazing stance, the liberal Green Party candidate for Cuyahoga County Executive came out against housing homeless people in his neighborhood. 

We also have information about Philadelphia regulating food.
We also have information about government inaction in San Francisco over torture methods to disperse homeless people.
For more information go here.

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Testimony on Voter Suppression Activities

Federal Congressional Hearing on Voting in Cleveland

The Northeast Ohio Coalition for the Homeless attended and submitted testimony to Senator Durbin as part of the US Congressional Hearing on voting that took place on Monday May 7, 2012 at the Stokes Court Room in Cleveland.  We have posted the testimony we submitted on our website here. 

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Updates from Around Ohio

The Ohio Coalition for Homeless Advocates met the week of May 1 and we have given a few updates from around the state. 

Cincinnati: The Anna Louise Inn Shelter has been fighting to expand and was delivered a set back on Friday in their dispute with Western and Southern Financial Services. Anna Louise Inn is a battered women's shelter and home for recovering prostitutes, and has a desperate need to expand after a century of service.  After being in the same location for over 100 years, the place needs renovation and expansion.  The Union Bethel parent non-profit had raised the $12.4 million for the renovation and the City of Cincinnati had approved the expansion. 

For more information go here...
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Food Insecurity Stats Added

The  NEOCH website added statistics and graphs on the food insecurity in Ohio.  You can go to the Information blog to check them out.  We have information about food stamp usage in Ohio and the increase in usage since the recession started in Ohio.

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Jim Schlecht Biography

This is the summary that appeared in the program that Ms. Valentine put together for the celebration last week. The biography was written by Randy Cunningham, a long time environmental and housing advocate in Cleveland especially the NEAR WEST SIDE of Cleveland. We have to thank Cleveland City Councilman Joe Cimperman for his certificate of recognition and for Congressman Dennis Kucinich who honored Jim with a recognition on the floor of the US House of Representatives.  Check out our photo display from the award's ceremony.

Click here to see the full post on Jim Schlecht
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Jim Schlecht Celebration

We the members of Cleveland’s progressive community recognize Jim Schlecht for his thirty years of exemplary service to the least among us and his ability to demonstrate compassion on the streets of Cleveland.  We recognize his struggle for mercy and peace in a society that does not always embrace the Beatitudes. Cleveland is a better place to raise a family because of Jim Schlecht’s work everyday to reduce hunger and homelessness and find justice for the persecuted. Presented this 24^th Day of April 2012.
For More information with a photo display go here.
We have also added a page on the NEOCH/Homeless Congress Advocacy Agenda here.
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Voting Field Hearing Announced

US Congress Announces Voting Hearing in Cleveland

Field Hearing Details:  The Subcommittee on the Constitution Civil Rights and Human Rights will hold a field hearing examining the impact of the new state voting laws that have recently swept the country, including HB 194 in Ohio.  Among other things, HB 194 restricts early voting, limits the distribution of absentee ballots, and no longer requires poll workers to direct voters to their proper precincts.  The hearing will be held the morning of Monday, May 7, 2012 in Cleveland, Ohio. at 9:30 a.m. at the Carl Stokes US Federal Courthouse at the corner of Superior and Huron Rd near the Detroit Superior Bridge.
For more information go here...
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Meeting With HUD Secretary

As part of the National Coalition for the Homeless Board meeting, we had the privilege of meeting Department of Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan.  He attended the meeting on Sunday afternoon before flying out of Washington.  Attending with the HUD Secretary was long time staff member Mark Johnston who is the director of special populations. 
For more information go here...
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New Street Chronicle on the Streets

Issue 19.1 Available for Sale

The new issue of the Cleveland Street Chronicle is now on the streets.  We have been selling it for a couple of weeks.  This issue is unique in that nearly every vendor contributed a poem or story.  This issue is heavy on the commentary and light on the news, but still a good 15 pages.  It is well worth the $1.25 and the support for the vendor.  There is an interview with Hilary King, the director of the fair housing group, Housing Research and Advocacy Center.
For More Information go here...
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Homeless People Do Vote

Cuyahoga County officials convened a meeting of all the shelters to talk about a plan to get homeless people to register and vote in the upcoming election.  Cuyahoga County is one of few communities in the United States that requires each publicly funded shelter submit a plan to get their residents to vote.  We applaud county Office of Homeless Services for supporting the 1990s Voter Motor law and seeing the importance of homeless people voting. We have built a special section of the NEOCH website around voting issues.

For More information go here
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New Stats on our Website

Updates on the Poverty 

 The NEOCH website now has the 2010 Census data on poverty and homelessness in Ohio.  It lists the cities in Northeast Ohio as well as the largest cities in Ohio.  The estimates on homelessness are all based on a percentage of the people who live below poverty losing their housing during the year.  This does not mean that they show up at the shelters, but most likely means that they will stay on couch or with family or friends.  It is good overview of the extent of the problem we are confronting.   Click here for the chart. 

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Denver: Illegal to Be Homeless

Denver Council Passing Anti-Camping Ordinance

It all sounds so nice and innocent until you actually begin to think of the implications.  The City of Denver is going down the path of making it illegal to be homeless downtown.  The Denver Post is supporting the plan while the Colorado Coalition for the Homeless is opposing the ordinance.  They had battling editorials/commentaries this past week.  These are awful laws that do nothing for the city, and have failed nearly everywhere.

To read more go here.
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One Million Searches

Housing Cleveland.org Goes Over One Million Searches

NEOCH is co-administrator of the website, Housingcleveland.org along with 211/First Call for Help.  This affordable housing website contains around 2,000 available units.  Last week we reached a milestone with over 1 million searches having been conducted over the last year.  There were over 140,000 unique users who conducted these searches.

For more information go here.
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Amazing Donations

Someone Really Cares About Homeless People.

We received a donation of mats made out of plastic bags from the grocery store.  Click over to the story to see pictures of these amazing mats.  Speaking of donations, we did not make our goal of 5,000 blankets this year.  I think that the mild winter made it harder to get people into the frame of mind for donating.  Plus we actually did not need as many blankets.  There was not as many nights of overflow needed this last winter.

Click here to see the mats and read more about donations.
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