Before taking this course I honestly had not heard of the Half in Ten campaign at all.  I now understand that its objective is to cut poverty in half in 10 years.  With the mission being to build political and public will to cut poverty in half in ten years, I knew that this was something I am going to be a part of.  Heise outlines the three points that sum up the goals and pursuit of Half in Ten, and states that the goal is not simply to move families one dollar above the poverty line, but to create a movement in which individuals come together to affect and enact policies that 1, create good jobs.  2, strengthen families, and 3, promote economic security as to grow the middle class.  I would like to highlight how possible and attainable this is, as proved by statistics and historical references of when America has cut poverty and rates of hunger in half.

As we have learned over the course of this semester, it is imperative that we raise minimum wage to a level that accounts for inflation, and is livable.  This is stated as “increasing the minimum wage to its historic level of half the average wage”.  This will allow people to have enough money to live, being able to pay rent, buy nutritious food, pay for utilities, and get to work. Next, making tax code actually work for working families and expanding income tax credit and child tax credit.  This needs to happen in order for families to have fair tax credit given, so that the people who are just getting by do not pay the same amount of taxes to those who have luxury and opulent life styles that can afford to contribute much more.  This is a way for people with lower incomes to function soundly within our system.  The next is making childcare fully available as a work support for low-income families.  I have learned that without childcare being affordable or even an option, many families are bound to other (or no) alternatives, and forced into a life that leaves no room for a job, the ability to provide for family, or survive in today’s world.  Utilizing technology and the internet is key for the success of something like Half in Ten.  Through the use of webinars, fact sheets, sample letters to Congress, and social media actions, people were able to take action and effect the change and create improvements in tax legislation.   Because of the long reaching arms of the internet we have the ability to connect so many people and unite them on such issues, allowing for social change, affecting current policies and politics.

One thing I have learned recently is when you give a person the story, picture, account, and life experience of another who is/has experienced terrible injustices and pain, they are able and more likely to empathize with this person.  It doesn’t allow them to trivialize or minimize the issue or importance.  Having a personal account of this person who is directly affected by these issues gives life and personalizes the issue.  The individual can then recognize that their contribution and participation in creating change is worth while, important, and greatly appreciated.  This humanization process seems to be key in transcending boundaries and walls that serve to separate and divide us as humans, getting us in a situation and society such as we have now.   It can be the difference between knowing about an issue or huge problem but not caring enough to take action, or taking action and helping  our fellow human beings, allowing for health, happiness, and meaning in life.

Once again in class Vincent Lyon-Callos book:” Inequality,
Poverty, And Neoliberal Governance: Activist Ethnography in the Homeless
Sheltering Industry” has struck me. Like most of the books read in
this course I have encountered different perspectives, ideas, and beliefs of
those that have become homeless.  Some of the main topics Lyon-Callo mentions is the separation of those deserving and undeserving homeless. In most cases and seen in my participation in shelters, undeserving and deserving homeless are truly recognizable. The difference in recognizable in the sense that they have already been placed into this groups and get treated in different ways from both the staff and volunteers.  There are so many structural problems but as mentioned in class how do we tackle these reoccurring problems? Up to bottom or from bottom up? There were also things such as abuse and use. Where is it that we draw the line? Something that was brought up in our class discussion was, what if we were the staff? What would we do to change the system? It is a very difficult question because as much as we want to change there are things such
as findings that will be affected if there is a change in the way this
shelters/programs run. Lyon-Callo talks about that on page 166, the way in
which these volunteers and staffs are afraid of the change. As well as in page
115 where he mentions how volunteer feel worthless. It’s the concept that you
are there ‘helping’ the homeless by putting food in boxes, separating clothes,
talking to them and yet you cannot provide a home or a stable life for them.
How do we as a society tackle the structural issues?

This weekend I started reading the book called, “Finding My Way” by Toni Flynn.  I found the author’s life experiences to be stunning and sympathetic.  The author goes through a lot of emotions and feelings she encounter with homeless people while working at the shelters.  After reading a few chapters I became aware that many people raised in dysfunctional families do not necessarily grow up to have miserable lives, yet these people strive to become better persons  by understanding closely the circumstances others chose to live in.

Every chapter gives a heartbreaking sensation of the hidden issue of homelessness, and the ignorance of the people owning life luxuries.  Along with the discovery of her true identity and exploring events that advocate social change.  This book is presented differently than the rest of the books we have read throughout the course.  The book is based on a personal story inside the world of assisting the homeless, and the distressing feelings of the failures of society.  Reading this book, I can relate similar situations to my personal experiences working at the local homeless shelter.  Sometimes the feelings of distress and frustration can overwhelmed our self- consciousness regarding issues of hunger and homelessness that are challenging to prevent.  I recommend reading this book.

Several of the books that we have read thus far discuss in great detail what life on the streets is truly like for the homeless. One of the issues with living on the streets that is most frequently discussed is that of harassment and brutality from the police. A recent incident regarding this topic that has received international attention is the horrific murder of James Boyd, a homeless camper in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The notion of a homeless person being harmed by the police is a not a new one, but this particular case has caused so much controversy because the entire thing was caught on tape.

James Boyd had been illegally camping in the city’s mountains and had received numerous warnings to vacate the area. The interactions between the Albuquerque Police Force and Boyd show that he was expressing his dissatisfaction with having to be forcibly removed from what had become the only home he knew. He had a small knife on him, but the footage proves that he never used it to the threaten the police or presented them with any indication that he was going to harm them. After refusing to get on the ground, the police fired six shots, instantly killing James Boyd. This cruel and unnecessary bloodshed is an indication of how homeless people can be regarded as second class citizens by law enforcement members. If he was living in a home with a family, would they have hesitated to shoot him or was it an easier decision to make because he was not a “productive member of society?”

This tragedy has been met with outrage from people all over the world. An infamous activist group of Internet hackers, “Annoymous” threatened to hack the Albuquerque Police Department website to publicly express their anger about the unfair death of James Boyd. Last Saturday, the group was successful in causing the APD website to crash. What they did was illegal, but I cannot criticize the hacker group for standing up for what they believe is right and lending a voice to a member of society that was completely ignored until he was brutally murdered by the very people we look to to keep us safe. Was this part of the APD’s job description ignored because James Boyd was homeless?

This is all particularly troubling to me, because after watching the video footage, it was clear to me that Boyd was posing no legitimate threat to the policemen and therefore, his death was completely uncalled for. Just because someone is lacking a home it does not mean that their rights as a citizen are forfeited. Boyd did not deserve to die just for camping in the foothills of a New Mexico city. I am comforted, however, that so much action has been taken to hold the APD accountability for committing a crime and taking an innocent life.

http://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2014/03/29/Feds-looking-into-deadly-shooting-of-homeless-camper-by-Albuquerque-police/3771396125996/?spt=mps&or=5
*Warning: This video is incredibly graphic as it is the actual footage of Boyd’s death

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2014/03/30/anonymous-takes-down-albuquerque-police-website-to-protest-shooting-of-homeless-man/

Over the course of this semester we have analyzed different causes for homelessness and the variety of ways people become homeless. Moving into the last part of our class, however, we are beginning to look at some strategies for reducing or eradicating homelessness within our society. One story I came across this week was focused on how creating low income housing for homeless and poor people within cities actually leads to a decrease in tax-payer money spent, and eliminated many different problems related to homelessness. The story was focused in North Carolina and this quote provides an overview of the type of person who would benefit from the low income housing:  “Moore Place accommodates men and women who represent the millions of Americans affected by stubborn housing and employment problems that took hold during the Great Recession in 2007. They are folks who were living paycheck to paycheck, got laid off, couldn’t find another position, and so lost their home. There are also residents who struggle with mental illness or drug and alcohol addictions.” One quote from the article says that “providing housing at an 85-unit facility called Moore Place resulted in 447 fewer visits to emergency rooms and 372 fewer days spent in hospitals, The Charlotte Observer reported. That alone saved the city $1.8 million” (http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Making-a-difference/Change-Agent/2014/0331/If-homeless-people-had-a-safe-place-to-live-taxpayers-could-save-millions). This quote provides evidence that building housing for those who are living in shelters or on the streets is actually beneficial for cities and people living there. I know that many of my blog posts seem to be about building more low income housing, but once the funds are allocated and given to those looking to build these structures, there seem to be no downsides. Having places for homeless people to live provides a long list of benefits for those living in those homes, and for those in the communities where they are built.

In the last chapter of his book The Book of the Poor Kenan Heise discusses the UN’s efforts to help end world poverty and other important issues affecting people around the world. The UN uses institutions and globalized cooperation between developed states and developing states  in order to tackle these problems. These issues are effected by fluctuating global conflicts such as the Syrian crisis, which created thousands of refugees. This project is led by the Department of Economic and Social Affairs in the UN Secretariat. These “millennium development goals,” as they are called, include the following: to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger, to achieve universal primary education, to promote gender equality and empower women, to reduce child mortality, to improve maternal health, to combat HIV/Aids, malaria, and other diseases, to ensure environmental sustainability, and to facilitate global partnership for the purpose of globalized development. Each year the UN publishes reports on the progress of these goals as the 2015 “deadline” approaches.

From the 2013 report, the biggest successes/improvements were decreasing the proportion of people living in extreme poverty, increasing access to clean drinking water, decreasing the mortality rate from disease, a decrease in those living in slum areas with poor sanitation, an increase in trade with developing countries, and a decline in hunger for these areas. Improvement has been slow in regards to environmental problems, child mortality and maternal deaths, sanitation, the amount of aid money going to poor countries, gender-based inequalities, access to education, and knowledge about HIV/AIDS transmission.

For those who want to look at the full text, here’s the link:

mdg-report-2013-english

In Kenan Heis’ The Book of the Poor he discusses organizations that are taking steps in order to reduce or end poverty. He brings up several specific organizations in which he focuses on who are attempting to end homelessness. One organization in particular that stands out to me is The Annie E. Casey Foundation. This organization has been active in building better futures for disadvantaged families in the United States since 1948.

Jim Casey, a previous executive officer of UPS, established this foundation. Casey states, “What is needed is a renewed determination to think creatively, to learn from what has succeeded and what has failed, and, perhaps most important, to foster a sense of common commitment among all those concerned with the welfare of children” (Casey 176). One part of their mission at The Annie E. Casey Foundation’s is attempting to live up to this quote.  

Heis worked for this foundation for over eighteen years and in his book he discusses several of the programs that the foundation provides. Some of the programs include distributing grants to non-profit organizations, research on the status of children in the United States, and a diverse support group. As I researched this foundations current state of progress, they have grown tremendously and look as if they will continue to do so. They have multiplied in their services offered and they have spread all over the United States.

It is promising to hear about an organization like this because it gives hope to the children and families that are trying to get out of poverty. The Annie E. Casey Foundation is an example a successful organization doing its job to end poverty.

Link to The Annie E. Casey Foundation’s website:

http://www.aecf.org/

The article that I read was entitled “Talking Sidewalks displays art, writing from homeless”, which discussed the magazine Talking Sidewalks, which has been featuring writing and artwork by the homeless and impoverished population since 2008. I felt that this was one of the most interesting article topics that I have read up on throughout the semester because although giving homeless the opportunity of self-expression and providing them an outlet to share their stories does not directly help them escape their situation, it does give society the opportunity to relate and can be the catalyst for movements and steps towards progress.

According to this editorial, the ultimate goal of the Talking Sidewalks magazine publication has been to increase awareness and  eliminate stigma of homelessness. The article went into detail about how many people in society are disconnected from the homeless because they are unaware of how many similarities they share. One of the media directors involved in the creation of this magazine was quoted in the article, saying “It’s only through conversation that we are able to break down these barriers and have some level of really good understanding of what a lot of the men at the shelter are going through”.

In comparison with providing income opportunities, housing, and nutritional meals to the homeless, allowing them a platform to express their creativity seems trivial, it is actually really important. As we have leanred from other readings from this course, it is vitally important to get the community as a whole to work together to combat homelessness and this provides a way for doing so. As I have learned from texts such as Voices From the Street (Morrell 2007), the homeless cannot be categorized into just one group. Instead, they come from all walks of life and have had more experiences than can be summed up into one. They also have their own ideas about how to battle homelessness, as no one could truly understand the real life struggles of this as well as they do. These are all reasons why the opportunity to view the stories, poems, and artwork of the homeless is vital if we expect to provide them with the right kind of care and support.

http://www.dailytarheel.com/article/2014/03/talking-sidewalks-displays-art-writing-from-homeless

(From the New York Times, March 30th, 2014)

“In the classroom, Mary-Faith Cerasoli, 53, an adjunct professor of Romance languages, usually tries to get her message across in lyrical Italian or Spanish.

But on Wednesday, during spring break, she was using stencils and ink and abbreviated English to write her current message — “Homeless Prof.” — on a white ski vest she planned to wear on a solo trip to Albany two days later to protest working conditions for adjunct college professors.

Ms. Cerasoli, a former New York City schoolteacher, currently teaches two Italian classes at Mercy College, splitting time between its Westchester and Midtown Manhattan campuses. For her, the professorial lifestyle has meant spending some nights sleeping in her car, showering at college athletic centers and applying for food stamps and other government benefits.”

Click here to read the full article