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| Articles about Homeless |
| Homeless man beaten to death in Boston | | 2008-07-06 10:32:31 | | Not much news about it yet-- just one death among 3 in Boston this weekend-- but apparently a homeless man was beaten to death this weekend surrounded by hundreds of shoppers at at Faneuil Hall Marketplace. When I hear more, I'll post about it.Atom
| | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | | Headlines: Homeless and Hedge Funds | | 2008-07-03 09:21:00 | | I know Anthony Hall, the homeless man who was arrested at Riverfront Park at 5:30 this morning by Springfield police and charged with rape, assault and battery, aggravated rape, assault with a dangerous weapon and assault and battery. Nice going, Springfield police!I met Anthony in 2005 when he was "dating" the 14 year old daughter of a family I knew. He always creeped me out.Later that year, he went on a bus trip with Arise to an anti-war rally in New York City, where hestole our video camera (the only one we've ever owned!) and probably sold it for crack. Of course he was banned from Arise after that. I was so furious that for several months, whenever I was driving around and saw him with a group of people, I'd yell, "Thief!" out the window at him. Didn't do much good, but it made me feel better.No, I personally and other members of Arise don't think every homeless person is automatically a victim or a saint..- - - - - - - - - -Yesterday, wanted fugitive and hedge funds manager S | | By: Michaelann Land | | |
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| Re-Plate to Feed the Homeless in San Francisco | | 2008-07-02 20:08:51 | | Replate.org is a great idea except that they should change the location of leftovers to the top of a newsstand instead of the trash can. (Even a homeless person does have standards, they rather would eat out of a newsstand than a trash can)
Apart from Replate.org, I have always seen owners of deli shops leave [...] | | By: SF Blogg | | |
| | Another homeless man dies in Springfield, MA | | 2008-07-02 07:03:49 | | Two days ago, a man was found dead near the riverfront-- almost surely a person without a home, I knew at once. This morning, I called the Springfield police and found out that his name was Wayne Martin. He was, I believe, in his late 40's or early 50's. The detective told me that his death was not being treated as a criminal matter; that he appeared to have died of natural causes.By describing Mr. Martin's death as not a criminal matter, of course the detective meant that no other person murdered him. In every other way, though, the fact that a man can die in a nearly public place because he has nowhere to go is criminal in every other sense of the word.I admit I barely remember Wayne Martin; others knew him better. I know he stayed at Sanctuary City for quite a while. He stayed at the Warming Place (when it was open) a few times at most, and probably never stayed at Worthington St. Shelter. Some people just can't hack shelters. Either they don't like rules, hate crowds, fe | | By: Michaelann Land | | |
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| Homeless Cleveland man beaten to death by teens | | 2008-06-27 18:05:48 | | Only 48 hours ago, down on his luck welder Anthony Waters still had hope-- that he could get out of the shelter, that, instead of working odd jobs at a beverage store, he might get a job in his trade.But Wednesday evening, three teenagers guessed to be between 14 and 17 beat Mr. Waters so severely that he died at the hospital.Portions of the attack were caught on surveillance tape and show cars slowing down to watch the attack; none of the drivers interfered. Mr. Waters managed to get himself into the parking lot of a towing company, where he was assisted by employees."It was just horrifying the way he looked," said Marlo Massey, Waters' sister, who saw her brother's body after the attack. "They beat him to death and I just can't stop thinking what was on his mind while it was happening." Associated Press. The attackers have not yet been caught.Meanwhile, in Tampa, Florida, two more members of the white racist organization Tampa Blood and Honour have been charged with the murders of | | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | Homeless win $2.3 million settlement | | 2008-06-24 21:14:49 | | The 13th Juror has been tracking the progress of a Fresno, CA lawsuit in which homeless people charged that their rights were violated when the city destroyed their belongings in a series of raisd on encampments. The archives tell the whole amazing story.Graphic: Memorial poster for Pam Kincaid, lead plaintiff in the lawsuit who died last August under suspicious circumstances. Central Valley Indymedia has an article about her life and death here.Atom
| | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | Picture the Homeless to put Mayor Bloomberg on trial | | 2008-06-12 17:55:07 | | Got an email today from Picture the Homeless, a New York organization by and for homeless people. They've been extremely frustrated with Mayor Bloomberg's tactics in implementing his Five Year Plan to End Homelessness.Four years of the mayor's five year plan have passed. The chart above is from the city's own records: black being the projected figures and red the actual figures.Picture the Homeless believes Mayor Bloomberg has not been accountable to the homeless community; therefore, they plan to put him on trial before a jury of his homeless peers. The trial will be held Tuesday, June 24, at St. Bartholomew's Church, Park Avenue at 51st St., in the Chapel from 1 to 3:30.At 3:30, a march to deliver the sentence will begin.If you're in or near New York, go and support Picture the Homeless.mmmAtom
| | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | Seattle homeless, advocates camp out in protest | | 2008-06-09 16:20:28 | | OK, it's bad enough that since April, when Mayor Nichols signed the order, homeless encampments can be broken up with 72 hours' notice. Homeless people are offered "help" and their belongings are stored for 60 days. BUT if you are kicked out of one camp and move to another, no 72 hour grace period for you, and this time your belongings go in the trash.That's just one of the reasons why 150 homeless people and their allies camped out at the City Hall Plaza last night. Seattle may have 1,000 beds for homeless single people, but another 100-300 homeless people are camped out in the city and its surroundings. The Mayor says he plans to provide another 20 beds-- better than nothing, but far from enough.Last night, Women in Black read the names of 283 homeless people who have died outside since 2000.This morning, fifteen people were arrested for pitching a tent in the middle of Cherry St., demanding an end to business as usual.You can go to Real Change, a community newspaper which also | | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | Project Homeless Connect | | 2008-06-07 10:44:00 | | In the cookie-cutter model of the ten year plans to end chronic homelessness across the county, yesterday Springfield held a Project Connect event for homeless and poor people.By all accounts, it was a very successful event. In one place, people were able to accomplish what it otherwise takes an incredible amount of energy to accomplish: getting birth certificates and Mass. I.D., health screenings, and social security applications. Nineteen people found housing.My sister did voter registration at the event yesterday. She said it was announced that the event cost $1,000,000.Not to take away from any accomplishments yesterday, but here's how a poor person might think about this;Say the average rent for an efficiency apartment is $500. $1,000,000 divided by $500 is 2,000 months of rent. 2,000 divided by 12 months is 167. In other words, 167 homeless people could have been provided housing for a year. That happens to be about the number of single homeless people in Springfield.So how | | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | LA's Homeless Blog has a new look | | 2008-06-06 17:16:16 | | Joel John Robert's LA Homeless Blog is always full of good information, but with its new look has seemed to come a loosening of provider mentality and a tightening of anger at the ridiculousness of homelessness in the world's wealthiest country. His recent stories include a post about multimillionaire Ed McMahon's brush with foreclosure compared to the hundreds of thousands already homeless, the destruction of one squatter community in Seattle and the growth of another squatter community in Reno, Nevada. Check it out.Atom
| | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | Homeless man wins right to land in london | | 2008-06-05 21:06:36 | | The 13th Juror tipped me off to a story about a squatter in London who won rights to a piece of land where he'd lived for more than 20 years.70 year old Harry Hallowes, originally from Ireland, was broke and "sleeping rough," as they say in the UK, when he settled on Hampstead Heath. The Land Registry awarded him the land after Mr. Hallowes proved he had lived in his 12' by 8' shack for more than 12 years. (How could they resist the alliteration?) The land is valued at two million pounds.Atom
| | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | homeless | | 2008-05-23 10:48:29 | | please pray for my family and i that we dont become homeless if we cant get 650.00 before june2 they will set our belongings outside I have threee wonderful children and do not want to be homeless.
- debra from south carolina
| | By: Prayers Online | | |
| | Court rules Fresno violated homeless rights | | 2008-05-16 07:56:41 | | Yesterday was the day that BlogCatalogue promoted as Bloggers United for Human Rights! I'm not sure yet how many bloggers participated, but I suspect a fair number of us did. Not me, though! A sick cat occupied my spare time in the early part of the week, and then a sick dog got the latter part of the week. If I'd just thought about it, I could have saved Saturday's post on International Tent City Day or Tuesday's post on the Topfree movement for Wednesday....but I didn't. Or I could have taken yesterday's post on excessive police force and made an explicit link to Bloggers Unite...seems, in fact, that about 80% of what I write is related to human rights in some way. I want to thank BlogCatalogue for recognizing and encouraging blogs' role in social change.This Monday, a federal court ruled that destroying the property of homeless people is a violation of the 4th and 14th Amendments to the U.S.l Constitution, and that the city of Fresno, CA had violated those rights in a series of | | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | | Seven homeless arrested at Portland OR protest | | 2008-05-11 09:08:44 | | "You may be giving up, buddy, but I'm not." that's what homeless leader Larry Reynolds told Portland Mayor Potter, after the mayor refused to lift the ban on camping and pointed instead to the city' ten year plan to end homelessness. If that's not good enough, the mayor had said, I'm giving up.Ten year plans don't mean much when you are homeless NOW.Reynolds and others had set up a tent city protest on the sidewalk near city hall. The protesters were arrested for resisting arrest. Check out the post by Amy Ruiz at Blogtown.pdx as well as the more mainstream story and background at Portland Mercury. Photo from Amy Ruiz' blog.Atom
| | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | Homeless, Tired of foreclosures, Reclaim Vacant Government Homes | | 2008-05-07 14:14:44 | | I have a link to these folks -- the Nashville Homeless Power Project-- on my blog, and when I got this email today, asking for help publicizing what they're up to, I was happy to oblige.Contact: Jeannie Alexander, 615-799--8108 Homeless, Tired of foreclosures, Reclaim Vacant Government Homes The Nashville Homeless Power Project led a march of poor and homeless families for housing, Wednesday which culminated with the takeover of vacant HUD homes. The march began at 1:00 p.m. in front of the Metro Court House then proceeded to Dickerson Road, an area that has been recently rezoned for luxury development. The homeless group is concerned that redevelopment will again not prioritize the needs of the poor and may push families out of the area. “In this time of foreclosures, many of us are facing homelessness. We need our city to prioritize poor and working families above luxury development. Despite repeated promises from local government the homeless are left the d | | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | Do the homeless drink our blood at night? | | 2008-05-04 03:51:50 | | There is a point when desperation stops being French and romantic and becomes something much more real and scary. Is it so surprising to think then that maybe the homeless, displaced, and down trodden of the streets just might drink our blood at night? And if they do, is that so bad? Can you really blame them?Sure, maybe they’re a little dated. It seems that the dark, horny, beauty of draculas in the 90s has been replaced by the swashbuckling flamboyance of pirates in the 00s. As Anne Rice made room for Roller Coaster rides the importance of blood and blood drinking was lost and now may be found in a less desirable place, on the dirty and dry lips of those retched wrecked souls called the walking homeless, those modern day street roaming nomads, those transient vagrants, the homeless. Gone is the once kind playfulness of the run down tramp, and replacing that once romantic life of freedom and carelessness a life overflowing with the horrors and sadness of vampirism, night walki | | By: Blast Shields Down | | |
| | May Round-Up of News from the Homeless Blogs | | 2008-05-03 17:10:21 | | When I started this blog, I did a fairly exhaustive hunt for blogs by and/or primarily about homeless people. I found a good number though not as many as I'd hoped, and put them on my blogroll. That was almost a year ago.Since then, five or six blogs have disappeared or become inactive. If a blog owner hasn't written in five months, I figure they're gone. Two blogs about New Orleans homeless haven't been updated since February, when the injunction prohibiting the destruction of public housing was denied and the tent city that had grown up across from City Hall was forced to dismantle. Clearly, these blogs are linked with the state of organizing. I'm hoping they and the organizing recover.Many bloggers seem to be taking a moment to think deeply about the bigger picture and root causes. Tim Harris at Apesma's Lament talks about how the huge growth in the prison population and the number of homeless people that began in the 80"s is linked to globalization. Oldtimer Speaks Out ha | | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | Winter shelters close, homeless encampments grow | | 2008-04-27 22:23:36 | | "The Amherst, MA Survival Center is starting to get more calls as emergency shelters are closing. People need tents," the email began. "Do you have one hanging around that a homeless person can use until they get on their feet? Please... we only have 2 left and the phone is ringing off the hook!!!"Thus begins the annual ritual of closing winter-only shelters, not only in Massachusetts but around the country. For the most part, homeless people won't be moving from the shelters to housing, although Springfield, MA's homeless coordinator says 7 of the 12 people in the overflow shelter do have housing waiting for them. Elsewhere in the state, Northampton's Cot Shelter will close on April 30. There are already 50 to 90 people sleeping out on the Cape, according to Cape Cod Today, in 40 or so small encampments.In Plano, TX, many of the homeless people that had to be turned away by the Samaritan in this winter have been sleeping in their cars in the parking lot of the local library-- at | | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | Brazil's homeless and landless unite | | 2008-04-26 10:50:01 | | Homeless is a word we know all too well here in the U.S. But landless? Do people have a right to land? Seems to fly in the face of our deep-seated belief in the right to private property.Brazil's Landless Workers Movement, or Movimento dos Trabalhadores Sem Terra, is the largest social movement in Latin America. The MST interprets the Brazilian Constitution as allowing for the occupation and expropriation of unproductive land. Sometimes the Brazilian court agrees with MST and sometimes it doesn't. MST members occupy the land and begin subsistence farming.Recently the MST has been working with the Movement of the Roofless -- Movimento dos Trabalhadores Sem Teto-- which has been organizing takeovers of abandoned buildings in cities like San Paulo. One building in the city, Prestes Maia, has been occupied since 2002. Conditions are poor but, say residents, better than living in a cardboard box on the street. BBC News.While the U.S. tends to pathologize its homeless, other count | | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | Tokyo homeless encampment | | 2008-04-22 20:25:13 | | "being homeless in Tokyo is different than being homeless in other countries of the world... " from Cliostaad, a site that talks about Toyko's homeless population and some of the shelters they built for themselves Site owners also show a polycarbonate house they designed for short-term visitors to Japan, where housing is extremely scarce. Atom
| | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | Land of 10,000 homeless | | 2008-04-20 15:09:39 | | Check out Voices of the Streets, a website of artistic activism, providing a space for the disadvantaged to share their stories, presents the stories of Minnesota's homeless...music, video, art and suggestions about what each of us can do to end homelessness.The site says, "Mainstream media seldom asks for the opinion of those adversely affected by homelessness, poverty, discrimination, racism, or other serious and persistent societal problems." This is so true. The providers want to solve problems for us, not with us.Atom
| | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | Bloomberg won't meet with Picture the Homeless | | 2008-04-16 17:49:54 | | Six months into an October commitment by NYC Mayor Bloomberg to meet with homeless-led Picture the Homeless, the mayor's still stonewalling, sending his deputy mayor to meet in his stead.Meanwhile, the organization of homeless people is moving ahead with plans to mark the fourth year of Bloomberg's failed Five Year Plan to End Homelessness on June 24th with a town hall hearing for homeless people. Stay tuned.Atom
| | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | 20 beds and 60 days-- Seattle's homeless policy goes too far and not far enough | | 2008-04-12 10:41:29 | | Last year, after much criticism of the vicious destruction of personal property at one of Seattle's homeless encampments, the city agreed to develop new rules for the sweeps of encampments. Yet even as of last month, the destruction continued. Seattle MetBlogs.Now the new rules have finally been issued. Sweeps will continue, but for any three or more encampments:Campers on public property will get 72 hours notice that a sweep will take place.Personal belongings will be stored for up to 60 daysOutreach workers will be sent to the camps before the sweep to help plug residents into services.The city will add 20 more shelter beds.Problem is, there are 6,000 to 8,000 people homeless in Seattle.Graphic from the August, 2007 Civil City Sleep-Out at the Anti-Poverty blog.Atom
| | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | More homeless elders on the street than ever before | | 2008-04-11 21:47:58 | | Homeless men and women aged 62 or older are the fastest-growing population among the homeless, a new study finds. On any given night, between 3,000 and 4,000 elders are on the streets of L.A. or in shelters.Shelter Partnership, Inc. has used these findings to underline its new strategic plan to develop permanent affordable housing. You can read more about it here.Atom
| | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | Homeless numbers rise in Vancouver | | 2008-04-09 09:21:00 | | The number of people living on the streets of Greater Vancouver is up 37 per cent since 2005, according to a tally of the homeless taken every three years.
In total, 2,592 people were counted as homeless in the 13 cities that make up the Greater Vancouver Area, according to preliminary figures released yesterday.
The count, which is divided into two categories - sheltered homeless and street | | By: News Alert | | |
| | Death comes more often for homeless people | | 2008-04-07 22:25:07 | | If you are homeless in the U.S. and Canada, depending on what city "live" in, you are 2 to 8 times more likely to die than your housed neighbors. Untreated illness, drugs and violence stalk you. Sometimes you fall asleep and just don't wake upThat's what happened to Ken Blackburn, 59, Springfield, Missouri, who was found dead Saturday in a small homeless encampment. The medical examiner ruled he died of "natural causes." Mary Ann Morgan, 61, was found dead in an alley in Palo Alto, California after a long struggle with alcoholism. The cause of her death was undetermined.In Richmond, California, Jimmy Carter and his buddies were standing outside a church on March 30 waiting for breakfast and Bible study when they were caught in cross-fire between two shooters and Jimmy was killed. A week earlier, a homeless man was shot and killed while riding a bicycle but police don't believe there's a connection between the deaths. In Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, two as yet unidentified men pres | | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | Support the homeless... | | 2008-04-07 05:27:00 | | Buy a t-shirt at doublebob.dk and support the homeless in Copenhagen. Some great designs there.According to the official webpage a total of 684 artists have applied to play at this year’s Vesterbro Festival. More than a 100 of those are expected to make it through the eye of the needle, and the complete list will be published May 1.Made myself a CD last night, so I could listen to the free to download The Wolves EP by New Zeeland’s Secret Knives, but my CD player at work refuses to cooperate. Bummer!+ The WolvesToday sees the official release of Wayne Coyne by The William Blakes.+ Violent GodCharlton Heston is the topic of this week’s song by One Weekly Gun.+ Charlton Heston | | By: Hits In The Car | | |
| | Sleep Boxes Stress Beds for the Homeless | | 2008-04-05 17:43:16 | | As far as trying to wake up the government is concerned, it took a couple of students from Goshen College to help get the attention of local officials and the news as well to drive the homelessness awareness in the area. To stress their points, they used in lieu of the standard beds, cardboard boxes [...] | | By: BEDzine - We are crazy about BEDs!!! | | |
| | Unique Concept to Help Homeless People | | 2008-03-30 18:05:38 | | I received a unique comment from Laura (one of our readers) today on Helping the Homeless by Donating Unused Hotel Toiletries.
This powerful statement led me to do some research on just how I could get the message across to you. Did you know it is estimated that 600,000 families with 1.35 million children experience homelessness [...] | | By: FreeSamplesDirect - Free Product Samples | | |
| | Late March round-up of news from the homeless blogs | | 2008-03-29 19:30:50 | | First from the straight news: The Muskogen Chronicle, Michigan, reported last week on the death of 48 year old Lonnie Gordon, a homeless man who died of hypothermia in a February stowstorm. Mr. Gordon was made to leave the Rescue Mission, where he'd been staying for several days, because he had been drinking on premises."We don't want to point fingers or make anyone take the blame (for Gordon's death). We just want to know why," said Judith Kell, who chairs the Continuum of Care Network. "What went wrong? How'd he fall through the cracks?"Wait a minute-- he didn't fall through the cracks, he was pushed!"We don't turn anyone away, and that is so important, especially in bad weather when so many (homeless people) have nowhere else to turn," Skoglund (director of Rescue Mission) said. "We exist to demonstrate and proclaim God's love to the less fortunate and homeless people of West Michigan, but there are certain rules people in the shelters have to follow for everyone's safety. We | | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | Homeless Moderates and Nomadic Independents | | 2008-03-16 00:30:00 | | Imagine you are a middle-of-the-road or unaffiliated voter.You think abortion should be legal, you have less sympathy for illegal immigrants even though you also realize most of them are otherwise law-abiding people, you want to resolve the Iraq situation quickly and without a rapid pullout, you would accept paying higher taxes if that's what it takes to balance the budget or fund social programs, you do not view the government as an enemy so long as it functions efficiently, you think religious groups have too much influence over the government even though you are religious yourself, you support entitlement reform, you support gay rights even though you aren't gay yourself, you support workers' rights and consumer protections, you strongly believe in personal accountability and condemn handouts, you don't care about identity politics, you think affirmative action should be based more on class rather than race and not be scrapped altogether, you respect the Second Amendment so long as | | By: The 7-10 | | |
| | Homeless leader dies | | 2008-03-09 12:35:05 | | From the Nashville Homeless Power Project: Monday March 3, 2008 It is with great sadness that we share that we have lost one of our leaders this last week. Cyndi, several months pregnant, died while sleeping out in the streets. While the exact cause of death is not known, she was a brittle diabetic who often came close to diabetic comas because of difficulty managing her blood sugar while surviving on the streets. Cyndi is best remembered for always celebrating life, being a positive person, who always acknowledged the bright side of every situation. She was a faithful member of the Power Project and one of the first vendors of new paper, the Contributor. More than that, she was a friend to so many of us on the streets. Below is a short autobiography that Cyndi wrote in the recent book- Homeless Power! Atom
| | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | Google Gives Homeless Free Voicemail | | 2008-03-03 19:49:00 | | Google has donated every single homeless person in the city of San Francisco, a Free Voicemail number. The number is a permanent number that sounds like any other voicemail which will help with job interviews and family contact.Google did this so the homeless people of San Francisco can get back on their feet. Mayor Gavin Newsom says Google wants to "empower the people". There's no catch, it's just a local number owned by the user says google."How do you communicate as a homeless individual? " Newsom asked. "How do you expect your life to turn around if you can't even get information or if someone can't even get in touch with you?" Source: www.msnbc.msn.com | | By: Stroke News - We can change your life | | |
| | News roundup from homeless and poverty blogs | | 2008-03-02 17:42:00 | | New Orleans: The 13th Juror reports that Phil Mangano, executive director of the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness, is not happy with Mayor Nagle's plan relocating homeless people from under a bridge into a large, barracks-like tent, and would prefer him to focus on long-term solutions...wonder why he was so quiet when the decision was made to tear down hundred of units of public housing. Tulane students are tracking new in New Orleans at their blog, Homeless of New Orleans. I got an email this week from the Poor People's Economic Human Rights Campaign. Their national coordinator Cheri Honkala (I should say "our" national coordinator, seeing as Arise is a part of PPEHRC) had charges of impersonating an officer dismissed in court this week; fellow PPEHRC organizer JR Fleming, Chicago Coalition to Protect Public Housing, still has charges pending.Nashvillian Kevin Barbieux' site The Homeless Guy is running a survey on whether liquor stores should sell alcohol to al | | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | The homeless: always from someplace else. | | 2008-03-02 15:57:00 | | If I could draw, I'd draw a cartoon of a homeless person standing at a crossroads where the sign in all four directions says, "Not in my backyard.""Vagrants" are wandering the streets of Port-of-Spain, capital of Trinidad and Tobago, according to a field officer at St. Vincent de Paul's Riverside Homeless Facility, because most homeless people are mentally ill and when they're let out of mental hospitals, their home communities won't deal with them.The bedbug problem at the shelter has been greatly exaggerated, he said-- it's NOT the reason homeless people have left the shelter in droves . Newsday. Atom
| | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | Google to provide voicemail and phone number for San Francisco's homeless | | 2008-03-02 15:17:00 | | One month before its acquisition by Google in August, 2007, GrandCentral Communications created Project CARE, a service to assist homeless people. Now Google has announced that it intends to provide free phone numbers and voice mail for every homeless person in San Francisco."Google launched a website where homeless shelters and agencies across the city could create new accounts. Project CARE staff also plan to visit shelters to educated staff and homeless residents about the system, according to Craig Walker, senior project manager at Google"While we're excited to bring this technology to our local Bay Area community, our ultimate goal is to provide these invaluable services to cities and shelters across the country," Walker wrote. ChannelWeb. Well. Can we just get rid of the federal government, acknowledge that our country is ruled by corporations, and just openly turn it over to the best one we can find? (You know I'm kidding, right? Not about already being ruled by corporatio | | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | Kim Kardashian helps the homeless | | 2008-02-29 21:03:34 | | Kim Kardashian gave a homeless man $20 outside the Gucci store yesterday. This would’ve been a nice humanitarian moment if, after the cameras were off, Kim didn’t smother the man to death with her monster rack and take back the $20. The dude didn’t mind though. He was going to drive his wheelchair onto the [...] | | By: Welcome to the Stocking site | | |
| | Whose regional homeless plan is it, anyway? | | 2008-02-23 08:24:00 | | Springfield, Holyoke and Northampton MA mayors will be presenting their "Pioneer Valley Plan to End Homelessness: All Roads Lead Home" on Friday, February 29 at the Holyoke Community College, 9:30 - 12:30 in the Peoples Bank room at the Kittridge Center. "Legislators, State and Local agencies, service and housing providers, community groups, business leaders and the faith community are encouraged to attend," according to an email I got.No mention of homeless people, of course, but that's par for the course.Our old friend Phil Mangano, Executive Director of the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness will be the keynote speaker-- the same guy who promotes Ten Year Plans without ever mentioning that the man he works for, George Bush, continues to decimate housing opportunities. Will he change his tune now that the Presidential election is approaching, and actually say we need more housing?I'm trying not to be cynical, here-- communities working together to end homelessness | | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | Danish cartoonist kicked out of hotel over jihadist fears, now homeless | | 2008-02-21 05:46:00 | | Hotair - Draw a picture offensive to Muslim extremists, and you might find yourself without a roof. Ask Kurt Westergaard, one of the twelve Danish cartoonists whose autumn 2005 Muhammad caricatures lead to violent protests throughout the Muslim world. He was booted from his police-protected hotel room on Feb. 15 for being “too much of a security risk.†And now the 73-year-old cartoonist and his wife are without a place to live. | | By: THE NEW BABYLON TIMES | | |
| | Shelter for homeless vets closing-- maybe guests could stay with Bill O'Reilly? | | 2008-02-20 18:20:00 | | Earlier this month I wrote about the ignorant comments Fox's Bill O'Reilly made about homeless vets-- they don't really exist! Last Thursday vets demonstrated outside Fox headquarters. Some vets said they'd forgive O'Reilly if he'd admit he was wrong-- but no apology so far.Meanwhile, another resource for homeless vets bites the dust with the forced closing of the U.S. Vets shelter which operates on the grounds of the Armed Forces Retirement Home-- fifty men with nowhere to go. Story and photo: Washington Post.Adding injury to insult to injury...Atom
| | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | Another homeless death-- while vouchers cut and the Governor plans shelter closings | | 2008-02-14 17:03:00 | | 40 year old Timothy Curtiss was found dead in Springfield, Massachusetts this morning by the banks of the Connecticut River-- a not uncommon place in this city for homeless people to die. Mr. Curtiss had most recently stayed at the Springfield Rescue Mission, but left the shelter last evening and didn't return, according to Gerry McCafferty, Deputy Director of Housing, in an email this afternoon. The police say his death appears to be from natural causes.Just how natural can the death of a homeless person be?It was lousy weather yesterday-- cold and it rained all day and the ground was saturated-- not the kind of night that a homeless person might choose to spend outside instead of in a shelter.Was Mr. Curtiss intoxicated? If so, he would have had to leave the Rescue Mission-- you have to be sober to stay there. Was he too tired and cold to walk up the hill to Worthington St. Shelter, or had he been banned? If so, he was out of luck and out of shelter options and his life dwindled | | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | I get homeless numbers wrong et cetera | | 2008-02-12 08:14:00 | | By adding the same number twice, I gave an over-optimistic picture of the success of Housing First in Springfield MA so far.I said 37 fewer people homeless this year than last, but it is actually 24 people-- TWO people less than in 2006!2006: 2372007: 2592008: 235Question for the city: how many homeless people have been placed into Housing First units since the program began?On another note, I should have made it clear in the post about banning plastic bags that I'm not talking about green garbage bags, but the flimsy, usually beige bags handed out at the supermarket, drugstore, etc. A couple of people commented that those bags are among the most re-used. Sorry, folks-- YOU may re-use them, but most people don't.Atom
| | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | Fewer homeless counted this year than last year in Springfield | | 2008-02-07 18:24:00 | | Mayor Sarno and Gerry McCafferty, deputy director of the Office for Housing, had some good news to announce to the press yesterday: there are 37 fewer single people homeless this year than last year.The Housing First model, which prioritizes housing and services for the city's most entrenched homeless people, seems to be paying off. The strategy is to house those 10% of the homeless who use the most resources, leaving more resources for the other 90%.There's a lot I think is missing from the Housing First model-- like new housing!-- but what is very different in Springfield now compared to three years ago is that the city has a plan. Homeless people and allies have moved the city from ignoring homelessness to managing it. Too bad homeless people can't be a part of that "management," but how often does that get to happen? Maybe only in tent cities....George Graham from the Republican called me yesterday for any thoughts I had about this news, but I didn't have a lot to say. My or | | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | Bill O'Reilly can't find homeless veterans | | 2008-02-04 06:44:00 | | Fox News "pundit" Bill O'Reilly needs a midnight visit from the late Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan, who could make him write "Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not his own facts." a thousand times...Responding to a John Edwards statement that there are homeless veterans sleeping under bridges, O'Reilly said, "Come on. The only thing sleeping under bridges is [Edwards'] brain ... We're still looking for all the vets under the bridges, so if you find one, let me know." according to the The NY Daily News.I know this is stating the obvious, but seeing as Fox News describes the O'Reilly Factor as news, shouldn't there be some fact checking, here?Atom
| | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | IRS to Target Homeless "Scofflaws" | | 2008-01-17 11:38:00 | | CWT - Washington, DC. A confidential Cats With Thumbs source inside the United States Internal Revenue Service reports a new IRS policy will focus on "generating additional tax revenue from citizens without a permanent address or domicile." The new initiative, detailed in an internal IRS white paper obtained by Cats With Thumbs, " will aggressively collect long overdue tax obligations from unreported panhandling, begging, and windshield washing incomes from those citizens who have thus far avoided payment by refusing to maintain a fixed address or location." The IRS source, who asked that his name be withheld, told CWT, " There's millions, maybe billions of undocumented dollars out there in those little bags and paper cups - we didn't go after it before because, frankly, the collection process would have been a little sticky. We think we now have a good operational plan to track the 'street revenue' and insure taxes due are paid"The new IRS initiative is the culmination of a 5 year Internal Revenue Study on the "migratory and spending patterns of undomiciled citizens in major metropolitan areas." " We've recognized this as an undeveloped revenue stream for some time," the IRS insider told CWT; " we just couldn't get a handle on where all the mobile tax dodgers were hiding. The organizations with the best numbers and information on undomiciled citizens refused to provide us with the help we needed - the Red Cross, the Salvation Army, Catholic Charities; none of them would budge, so we tracked them down ourselves." The IRS plan, operation B.U.M.S. (Bold Undocumented Money Solutions), calls for the recruitment and training of 500 special IRS "Bum Busters." CWT's IRS source revealed details of the plan on condition he remain anonymous: "Look, it's not like these tax evaders were hard to track down; we were just never allocated the resources to do it. Once we got the green light for the pre-implementation study there was nothing to it. The undomiciled are usually | | By: Cats With Thumbs | | |
| | In order of importance: strawberries, fish, utilities, homeless | | 2008-01-13 19:11:00 | | I was just reading an article in Tampa Bay Online about how the region was faring during its recent overnight freeze.Strawberries and other produce: first twenty paragraphs. Produce is fairing well except for the strawberries.Tropical fish: next five paragraphs. 95% are expected to surviveUtility demand: next three paragraphs. No problems expected.Homeless: final three paragraphs. Blankets, mattresses, coffee and hot chocolate were passed out to the 230 residents at a local tent city.I was doing research on tent cities when I found this article. A few weeks ago I set out to write a three part article on tent cities (now probably to be four parts)-- what they're like, why they're growing, and how they are a part of an international movement. I thought I'd have the second part last weekend but didn't, and spent much of this weekend doing more research. But soon.Looks like residents of this city won't be going much of anywhere tomorrow: six to twelve inches of snow starting after midnight, heaviest during morning traffic hours. Well, I have plenty of work I can do from home if we really are temporarily snowed in.During last week's thaw, I found myself forgetting that winter is not a third over yet-- seemed like spring was just around the corner.Winter is the longest season for homeless people.Atom
| | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | Number of homeless encampments is increasing: crisis and opportunity Part One | | 2007-12-29 17:22:00 | | Tent Cities: What they're like, why they're growing, and how they're a part of the burgeoning international movement for housing..I've been tracking the growth of homeless encampments and tent cities across the country ever since 2004, when homeless people and Arise for Social Justice organized our own "Sanctuary City" in Springfield, MA. Our tent city, which came about to meet the crisis of a shelter closing, lasted six months and sheltered 70-80 people a night-- some 400+ people over the course of the encampment's lifetime.On a disorder to order scale of one to ten, Sanctuary City ranked about 7.5. Run by homeless people themselves with training and material support from Arise and others, it was visible, political, and absolutely essential to people's wellbeing. Sanctuary City closed when the Warming Place shelter was able to reopen in November.The intent of my research, initially, was to look for existing models of organization that could be used to help Sanctuary City residents self-manage and survive. I couldn't find much but I did find Dignity Village in Portland, OR and ShareWheel in Seattle, WA. ShareWheel had put up a page at Anitraweb.org about tent cities that was particularly helpful.How things have changed in the last three years! Like other social issues, I know that increased reporting may account for some of my perception that tent cities are becoming more common. On the other hand, the forces that create homelessness certainly haven't diminished. In any case, there is never a day that I can't find a new mention of tent cities and encampments.=======================================Unless you live in a gated community, or an extremely affluent town surrounded by other affluent towns (and maybe not even then), you have people without homes sleeping rough all around you.Sometimes people throw up a tent or a tarp or two in public parks, riverbanks or behind abandoned stores. Survival there depends on remaining absolutely unnoticed, | | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | 38 names at today's Homeless Memorial | | 2007-12-21 19:54:00 | | Cold. Old faces, new faces. 38 candles were lit and 38 names were read.Rev. Dyson coordinated this year's memorial. It was tender and movingA half dozen of us from Arise came down. I got to meet an Iranian man who is a frequent poster on our listserve AriseAction and we talked about peace.I saw Kevin Noonan, the Director of the Open Pantry, and he told me that he'd found a place for the food pantry just today. It's up State St. in a building owned by Springfield Partners for Community Action, right across from Arise's old office. And our new office is only two blocks further down State St., opposite the community college.I'm 60 years old today. I've always liked my birthdate-- first day of winter, nearly the solstice, and yet the days grow longer from here. But on the darkest night of the year, in cities across the country, we stop to remember those who have died without a home.Atom
| | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | Boston homeless man dies of exposure | | 2007-12-19 06:53:00 | | According to the Boston Globe, a homeless man was found dead last night on conservation land near the Globe office in Dorchester.Boston started its annual homeless census last night.Last year, the census identified 6,636 homeless men, women, and children in the city, a 4 percent increase over the previous year. The number of families who were homeless increased by 13 percent from 2005 to 2006.All the beds at Pine St. Inn were full, and 65 people slept on the floor.Springfield usually does a homeless census, but I haven't heard anything about it this year.Atom
| | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | | Not easy being homeless in Springfield | | 2007-12-11 16:21:00 | | I was going to put up some links from MassLive and LocalBuzz to illustrate some of the publicity homeless efforts are getting in Springfield, but for some reason, all I could find was a LocalBuzz interview with a staffperson at the Worthington St. Shelter. The other stories seem to have disappeared.Meanwhile, over at MassLive, Springfield's "forum," homeless people continue to take a beating from those who hide behind their made-up names. Folks have really been on a roll recently, comparing homeless people to zombies, calling the folks who eat at the soup kitchen a bunch of slobs, calling them crazy, dangerous, etc...I try to remember that not every poster feels that way; the more reasonable people probably just don't bother to respond to the worst comments. Most people think that homeless people choose to be homeless, because they won't take the steps necessary to move ahead. Well, of course it's much easier to fall into a hole than it is to climb out.Some horrendous crimes have been happening in Springfield. The one this week that just leaves me shaking my head in sorrow is the murder of a 20 year old kid delivering pizzas by a 28 year old man.What the hell. There was a picture of the man being arraigned in today's paper: a slight figure, all hunched over, looking as if he was filled with shame. Maybe that's just my wish-- that he not be some genuine psychopath unable to feel remorse but someone who will have to live with what he has done-- taken the life of another young man who was only doing his job, trying to get ahead.I'm no sociologist and I admit I have an unabashed allegiance to the poor and working class. But I'm no romantic, either, and not one who thinks there's no role for personal responsibility in our fates.Many years ago, before I ever knew there'd be an Arise for Social Justice in Springfield, I used to be part of a program called Decisional Training that went into the county jails and taught decision-making skills to the prisoner | | By: Michaelann Land | | |
| | The house-owner loans: Provides in the home to the homeless person | | 2007-12-07 07:28:22 | | The house-owner loans: Provides in the home to the homeless personAn each person's middle hugest desire is to the oneself house he. He and his family can live can give him to protect the opposition cruel overseas the place and. He can have the spirit by the memory place. The time memory when he first time obtained his wife to his family, birth baby, their first walk memory. The entire family can have a story to say that, the event launches, happy share. Has the house idea to fill up as soon as fills greatly is warm.But, any is most feels bad is the fact living expense climbs that extremely the difficult present several days lives one day to overlook some person's budget situation. It possibly, therefore,easily was understood it was the proficient any huge duty has constructed or has purchased in the current time.Is here, the house-owner loans arrives some person's rescue and guaranteed suddenly never is the fund constructs or the purchase for the family. The discussion house-owner l | | By: all credit loan. All about credit and loan. Always | | |
| | Reuters Slideshow of Homeless People | | 2007-11-29 09:47:00 | | To me, these photographs really feel like a swift kick in the chest. I know they're a little dated, but doesn't it amaze you how strong, resilient and adaptive children are? I'm dying to know the stories behind these people's circumstances. There are a million ways to become poor. What was their path? If these photos don't choke you up or make your eyes misty, then check yourself for a pulse.. or have children- you probably don't have any. Or picture your young niece or nephew nuzzling the neck of their penniless mother or father. That's all kids need. Loving parents to cling to, caring parents to protect them. When my son Reis and I share a bed together, he falls asleep with his arm around my neck as if the world would end if I left his side. Here's the whole slideshow A homeless Indian woman holds her son inside her makeshift house under a bridge in New Delhi, India, July 30, 2005. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi A homeless Indian man sleeps beside his child ne | | By: Amerikan Turk | | |
| | Homeless Kids Need Beds Too | | 2007-11-18 07:58:13 | | We all see kids who have been abandoned and roaming the streets looking for a place to sleep on. Some are even lucky if they make it to foster homes that can accommodate them and provide them beds for proper rest. But you see, not all people are as fortunate as us where we have [...] | | By: BEDzine - We are crazy about BEDs!!! | | |
| | The Homeless side of Michael Jackson. | | 2007-11-07 18:49:46 | | Michael Jackson, just another of the homeless rabble...
It had been rumored in the early nineties that Michael Jackson would prominently burn Benjamin's (really burn with like a match) because he had so damn much of it. But now it is reported that he may lose the farm. If he neglects to pay up on a $23 million dollar loan on his Neverland Property just south of Santa Barbara, CA it may just | | By: I Heart Poly Phony. | | |
| | Mascotas homeless | | 2007-10-11 23:21:00 | | En los EE.UU. existen numerosos programas para ayudar a la gente que vive en la calle, pero ¿quién se ocupa de sus mascotas? ¿Cómo saber si éstas comen todos los días y si cuentan con refugios adecuados? Se estima que un 10% –unas 32.000 personas– de los sin techo tienen, por lo menos, un perro o un gato. En la mayoría de los centros de acogida no se permite el acceso de animales ni, mucho menos, se les alimenta ni se les proporciona cuidados sanitarios, lo que causa que muchos homeless sigan en la calle, pues no hay lugares a los que puedan llevar a su perro o gato y no quieren desprenderse de ellos.Feeding Pets of the Homless (Alimentar a las Mascotas de las Personas sin Hogar) es una asociación nacida en diciembre pasado con el objetivo de hacer que la sociedad tome conciencia del problema y se involucre y, sobre todo, veterinarios y fabricantes de comida para animales se comprometan con acciones directas (bancos de alimentos, atención médica, donaciones, etc.), a cambio de publicidad gratuita de sus empresas.Genevieve Frederick, presidenta de Feeding Pets of the Homless, se siente orgullosa de los resultados conseguidos en estos meses: “La respuesta de la sociedad en general ha sido fantástica; a partir de esta iniciativa, muchas personas miran de otra forma a los sin techo y quieren donar comida para animales a los menos favorecidos. Me contactan diariamente para preguntarme dónde pueden ir o por qué no hay una sucursal en su ciudad”. El lema de esta brillante publicista, directora de marketing, miembro activo del Rotary Club, autora de varios libros sobre mascotas y siempre deseosa de aprender algo nuevo es: “Mantén el corazón joven y disfruta de lo que te trae la vida todos los días”. | | By: los irracionales | | |
| | Homeless in Venice III | | 2007-09-26 08:30:00 | | The ConclusionIt is not hard to find a lot of them. When you get to an offramp, on the sidewalk, in the park, there's always someone with a piece of cardboard with a handwritten note on it begging for some change, some begging for food. With those ragged clothes that look like it hadn't been washed for a year, with weary faces who look like they had given up on everything, and that confused hungry look, you wouldn't fail to at least notice them.One time I saw a man who is obviously homeless. He sits on the curb just outside the Chinese restaurant where I was about to eat. I went back to my car to grab some few loose change then grab a couple of dollar bills. I was about to give it to him when he said no. I was surprised. He looked like he needed it but he refused. I just shrugged my shoulders and went my way. After I finished my quick dinner, I ordered another meal to go. I gave it to the same man I saw on my way in. This time he readily accepted and thanked me for it. You see they | | By: Literary Exex | | |
| | Homeless in Venice II | | 2007-09-26 07:08:00 | | (2nd part of a series) Being homeless at all is no feat. That's why I was surprised why anyone would choose to go homeless when he has a home he could go to. The streets are not safe and oftentimes mean. You could get mugged anytime, killed if you're unlucky. But Sarge, like some homeless veterans, has a more serious problem than being homeless. He is suffering from a post-war syndrome. I don't know exactly the technicalities and other issues about it, but a lot of them had that seemingly unreal perception on things.There's also this one man who I refer to as simply the Rainman. You could ask him about any mathematical problems and he'll give you an absolutely correct solution. He would provide you with calculations like an age-old university professor except that you would notice that his eyes are looking through you. He hears you but he doesn’t see you. You ask him about where he came from or anything, he's gone.And then there's this old couple from Hawaii who were wanderin | | By: Literary Exex | | |
| | Homeless in Venice | | 2007-09-23 07:33:00 | | Homeless In Venice(1st of a series)Venice Beach, Los Angeles. Almost always it is a very calm, quiet and peaceful place. Contrary to the eclectic impressions a tourist might have during the day, the nights have a small-town feel to it. On any given day you will find lots of characters along the speedway by the beach. Artists both new and old hand displaying their latest work and willing to do your portrait for a fee, street performers showing their talents for a chunk of change, well-tanned bodybuilders showing off their enormous muscles, surfer kids waiting for a swell, skater boys challenging each other for new moves, and some simply enjoying the shows and whatever the place has free to offer.In Venice, everyday is a day on the beach.But at night it is different. Gone is the festive atmosphere, gone are the merry men and women you could see loitering around when the sun is up. Aside from the occasional joggers and bikers, there was not much activity at all but the homeless scurrying | | By: Literary Exex | | |
| | Why Help and Support The Homeless? | | 2007-09-20 23:09:47 | | COMM-UNITY= Let us welcome and commune into Unity all of God’s children. I love you. I love you. I love you. FOR WE ARE ALL ONE. Why Help and Support The Homeless? By Now some of you precious individuals may know that I am proudly organizing an event which came [...] | | By: Online Business Alliance & Niches | | |
| | Homeless Man Set on Fire in Boston | | 2007-05-26 13:25:00 | | BOSTON — A homeless man sleeping in a park was attacked early Sunday by two men who kicked him in the stomach and then set him on fire,on March 5,2005 police said.No arrests were made and police gave no indication of what might have motivated the attack.The 30-year-old homeless man, whose name was not released, told police he was awakened by the men kicking him in Langone Park in the city's North End.He drifted back to sleep after the assault, but the men returned, drenched him with a flammable liquid and set his legs on fire, police said. | | By: Elder Abuse | | |
| | "Bones of the Homeless" Blogger of the Week | | 2007-05-25 14:20:00 | | Courtesy of Judy JonesWhen I moved to San Franscisco, seeing people eating out of garbage cans and dying on the cold concrete streets made me sit down and weep. I watched as people walked by pretending not to see their Mother, Father Sister and Brother in each soul crying for help. I prayed with my heart, soul, mind, body and spirit to die before ever accepting fellow human beings eating out of garbage cans and dying from our neglect. I asked to be guided to open hearts through sharing what I see. I am a painter and only bought a camera to take pictures of the homeless I see. One day as I was sitting in front of a store eating,and a homeless man across from me had tears in his eyes. It so overwhelmed me, that I left my camera on the bench and never bought another. Please support Judy's work for the homeless and visit her site Judy Jones >> | | By: Elder Abuse | | |
| | Hospitals Accused of Dumping Homeless | | 2007-05-24 14:03:00 | | The Los Angeles city attorney is investigating 10 area hospitals accused of wholesale dumping homeless patients on skid row, and plans to take legal action to stop them. The city attorney, the American Civil Liberties Union and pro-bono law office Public Counsel are jointly pursuing the cases. The groups are filing a civil action, but haven't ruled out criminal charges.Hospitals suspected of engaging in these practices include Kaiser Permanente's Bellflower Medical Center, Martin Luther King Jr./Drew Medical Center and Los Angeles Metropolitan Medical Center. Before considering legal action, officials had attempted to broker a binding agreement with the Hospital Association of Southern California, but the association balked at the proposed rules, which included monitoring by the ACLU.Abridged >> | | By: Elder Abuse | | |
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