10 04 2017

VOLUME 14 ISSUE 24

$2

SUGGERSTED DONATION GOES DIRECTLY TO YOUR VENDOR

NO CASH? NO PROBLEM. SEE PAGE 6

NOW YOU CAN PAY WITH THE STREET SENSE MEDIA APP

Real Stories

Real People

Thriving, not just surviving

what it takes to heal after domestic trauma STREETSENSEMEDIA.ORG

@ STREETSENSEDC

A PUBLICATION OF

Real Change

2 // S T R E E T S E N S E M E D I A // O C T. 4 -1 7 , 2 0 17

BUSINESS MODEL

© STREET SENSE MEDIA 2017 1317 G Street NW, Washington, DC 20005 (202) 347–2006 streetsensemedia.org info@streetsense.org

How It Works

Street Sense Media publishes the newspaper

Each vendor functions as an independent contractor for Street Sense Media, managing their own business to earn an income and increase stability in their life.

$2.00

YOUR SUGGESTED

$.50 Vendors pay

DONATION

per newspaper copy

supports your vendor, helping them to overcome homelessness and poverty

NO CASH? NO PROBLEM.

PAY VENDORS WITH THE STREET SENSE MEDIA APP

AVA I L A B L E

VENDOR CODE OF CONDUCT

As self-employed contractors, our vendors follow a code of conduct.

1. Street Sense will be distributed for a voluntary donation of $2.00, I agree not to ask for more than $2.00 or solicit donations for Street Sense by any other means.

2. I will only purchase the paper from Street Sense staff and volunteers and will not sell papers to other vendors.

3. I agree to treat all others, including customers, staff, volunteers, and other vendors, respectfully at all times. I will refrain from threatening others, pressuring customers into making a donation, or in engaging in behavior that condones racism, sexism, classism, or other prejudices.

4. I agree not to distribute copies of Street Sense on metro trains and buses or on private property.

5. I agree to abide by the Street Sense vendor territorial policy at all times and will resolve any related disputes I have with other vendors in a professional manner.

6. I understand that I am not an employee of Street Sense, Inc. but an independent contractor.

7. I agree to sell no additional goods or products when distributing Street Sense.

8. I will not distribute Street Sense under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

9. I understand that my badge and (if applicable) vest are property of Street Sense, Inc. and will not deface them. I will present my badge when purchasing Street Sense. I will always display my badge when distributing Street Sense.

10. I agree to support Street Sense’s mission statement.

In doing so I will work to support the Street Sense community and uphold its values of honesty, respect, support, and opportunity.

INTERESTED IN BEING A VENDOR? New vendor training: every Tuesday and Thursday // 2 p.m. // 1317 G St., NW

The Cover Cassandra Morgan, a comedian and domestic violence survivor, will be performing at several upcoming events.

PHOTO COURTESY OF

CASSANDRA MORGAN

The Street Sense Story, #MoreThanANewspaper Originally founded as a street newspaper in 2003, Street Sense Media has evolved into a multimedia center using a range of creative platforms to spotlight solutions to homelessness and empower people in need. The men and women who work with us do much more than sell this paper—they use film, photography, theatre, illustration and more to share their stories with the our community.

Our media channels elevate voices, our newspaper vendor and digital marketing programs provide economic independence and our in-house case management services moves people forward along the path toward permanent supportive housing.

At Street Sense Media, we define ourselves through our work, talents and character, not through our housing situation.

VENDORS Shuhratjon Ahamadjonov, Wanda Alexander, Melissa Allen, Ollie Alston, Gerald Anderson, Charles Armstrong, Katrina Arninge, Lawrence Autry, Aida Basnight, Ken Belkosky, Lester Benjamin, Tonya Bibbs, Phillip Black, Reginald Black, Maryann Blackmon, Emily Bowe, Clarence Branch, Debora Brantley, Deborah Brantley, Andre Brinson, Kanon Brown, Donald Brown, Lawrence Brown, Elizabeth Bryant, Luther Bullock, Brianna Butler, Dwayne Butler, Lashawn Butler, Melody Byrd, Antoinette Callaway, Conrad Cheek, Aaron Colbert, Michael Craig, Anthony Crawford, Kwayera Dakari, Louise Davenport, James Davis, Clifton Davis, Charles Davis, David Denny, Reginald C. Denny, Ricardo Dickerson, Dennis Diggs, Alvin Dixon-El, Ronald Dudley, Brandon Eades, Betty Everett, Jemel Fleming, Johnnie Ford, Duane Foster, Samuel Fullwood, Anthony Gist-El, Chon Gotti, Latishia Graham, Marcus Green, Levester Green, Barron Hall, Tyrone Hall, Mildred M Hall, Veana Hanes, Dwight Harris, Lorrie Hayes, Kunle Henderson, Patricia Henry, Derian Hickman, Ray Hicks, Vennie Hill, James Hughes, Leonard Hyater, Joseph Jackson, Chad Jackson, Mark Jones, Morgan Jones, Linda Jones, Darlesha Joyner, Larry Kelley, Juliene Kengnie, Jewell Lean, Keith Lewis, John Littlejohn, Scott Lovell, Michael Lyons, William Mack, Ken Martin, Kina Mathis, Geneva McDaniel, Jermale McKnight, Jennifer McLaughlin, Jeffery McNeil, Ricardo Meriedy, Cynthia Mewborn, Kenneth Middleton, Amy Modica, Veronica Morris, L. Morrow, Collins Mukasa, Evelyn Nnam, Moyo Onibuje, Earl Parker, Marcellus Phillips, Barbara A Pollard, Jacquelyn Porter, Angela Pounds, Jeanette Richardson, Angela Richardson, Henrieese Roberts, Doris Robinson, Rita Sauls, Chris Shaw, Gwynette Smith, Patty Smith, Damon Smith, David Snyder, Franklin Sterling, Warren Stevens, James Stewart, Beverly Sutton, Sybil Taylor, Archie Thomas, Shernell Thomas, Eric Thompson-Bey, Carl Turner, Jacqueline Turner, Ronald Turner, Adam van Deusen, Joseph Walker, Michael Warner, Robert Warren, Glenn Washington, Sheila White, Angie Whitehurst, Sasha Williams, Clarence Williams, Wendell Williams, Ivory Wilson, Christine Wong, Charles Woods, Timothy Yates BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Jeremy Bratt, Margaret Jenny, Jennifer Park, Reed Sandridge, Dan Schwartz, Jeremy Scott, John Senn, Kate Sheppard, Aaron Stetter, Annika Toenniessen, Martin Totaro, Daniel Webber, Shari Wilson

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Brian Carome

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Eric Falquero

COMMUNICATIONS & SALES MANAGER

Jeff Gray

VENDOR MANAGER

Mysa Elsarag

EVENTS & ADMINISTRATION MANAGER

Dani Gilmour

CASE MANAGER

Colleen Cosgriff

WRITERS GROUP ARTIST IN RESIDENCE

Willie Schatz

OPINION EDITORS (VOLUNTEER)

Rachel Brody, Arthur Delaney, Britt Peterson

EDITORIAL INTERNS

Lilah Burke, James Marshall, Emma Rizk, Nick Shedd, Bethany Tuel

EDITORIAL VOLUNTEERS

Jason Lee Bakke, Grace Doherty, Miriam Urquhart, Roberta Haber, Hunter Lionetti, Laura Osuri, Mark Rose, Andrew Siddons, Sarah Tascone, Jackie Thompson, Marian Wiseman

OFFICE SALES VOLUNTEERS

Miya Abdul, Bill Butz, Jane Cave, Emma Cronenwethe, Pete Clark, Orion Donovan-Smith, Maria Esposito, Roberta Haber, Ann Herzog, Bill Magrath, Alec Merkle, Nick Nowlan, Sarah O’Connell, Leonie Peterkin, Eugene Versluysen, Natalia Warburton

STREETSENSEMEDIA.ORG

EVENTS

// 3

NEWS IN BRIEF HOUSING

Court-appointed receiver to manage Congress Heights property

D.C. attorney general brings relief to long-suffering Sanford Capital tenants

A Congress Heights apartment complex, which has been mismanaged to the point of multiple housing code violations, has been appointed a receiver to manage it, according to a press release from the Office of Attorney General Karl Racine. The attorney general obtained a court order to appoint the receiver, giving relief to the tenants who for years have been living in unsafe and unsanitary

SATURDAY, OCT. 14

Sisters’ Keeper peer support class and prayer session Oct. 14, 12 pm - 2 pm Greater Mount Calvary Holy Church // 610 Rhode Island Ave NE // 4th Floor Classroom Ministers, advocates and survivors Tenickia Polk, Mignon Brown-Anderson and Bridget Robinson will hold an informative session. Learn about the signs of domestic violence, be empowered, and take action. Resources on domestic violence will also be provided. The event will conclude with intercessory prayer.

Domestic Violence Awareness “Gaslight” Screening @ AFI Silver Oct 8, 12:30 pm // Silver Spring, MD Advocacy Day: Domestic Violence and Culturally Specific Services Oct 11, 9am // The Wilson Building The “Clothesline Project” openair exhibition of t-shirts created by survivors and their kids Oct 13, 5 pm // 1436 U Street NW “Finding Jenn’s Voice” Screening @ Union Market Oct 17, 6 pm // 550 Penn St NE

D.C. Interagency Council on Homelessness meetings

D.C. Council @ The Wilson Building

Housing Solutions Committee Oct 4, 1:30 pm // 1800 MLK Jr. Ave SE Veterans NOW! Work Group (WG) Oct 5, 10 am // 1500 Franklin St NE Executive Meeting Oct 10, 1:30 pm // 64 NY Ave NE Outreach Policy & Protocol WG Oct 11, 2:30 pm // 64 NY Ave NE Shelter Conditions WG Oct 12, 10:30 am // 64 NY Ave NE Landlord Outreach WG Oct 12, 11am // 801 Penn. Ave SE

Advocacy Day: Domestic Violence and Housing Needs How survivor housing needs differ from those of other homeless people Oct 4, 9 am // ddalton@dccadv.org Housing and Neighborhood Revitalization Committee Public Hearing: “Managing Outdoor Work for Seniors Amendment Act of 2017” and “Elder Abuse Public Information Campaign Act of 2017” Oct 5, 10 am // Room 412

For more important dates, visit StreetSenseMedia.org/Calendar

@Politidope

PHOTO BY RODNEY CHOICE // CHOICEPHOTOGRAPHY.COM

conditions. Judge John M. Mott appointed David Gilmore to manage the property and ensure that the housing code violations are fixed. Gilmore has previously served as a court-appointed receiver in the District and New Orleans. The receivership is the result of a lawsuit that the Office of the Attorney General brought against Sanford—the property management company—and other related businesses. —bethany.tuel@streetsensemedia.org HOUSING

D.C. mayor breaks ground on Ward 6 affordable housing Mayor Bowser broke ground on affordable housing units in Ward 6 on Monday, Oct. 2. The new housing development will be built on the former site of the R.L. Christian Library. The mixed-use space will contain 33 housing units and 5,905 square feet of ground-level retail spaces, according to a press release from the executive office of the mayor. The event kicked off a marketing campaign to showcase the Bowser administration’s efforts to create and preserve affordable housing.

—bethany.tuel@streetsensemedia.org FAMILIES

THE EXCHANGE Matt Rogers

The Congress Heights Metro station.

D.C. launches MyChildCareDC.org Kushaan Shah @kushaanshah

Loving the rebrand! Been a supporter, but you’re looking sharp as an organization!

Absolutely loving the new branding by @streetsensedc to engage the community with all media. Kudos to the team! #MoreThanaNewspaper

12:10 PM - 20 Sept 2017

11:43 AM - 20 Sept 2017

The Bowser administration developed the site to aid families in finding and comparing the more than 400 childcare options using District-based providers.

The site also offers information on how to receive a license to operate a D.C. childcare facility.

—bethany.tuel@streetsensemedia.org For ongoing news reports, visit StreetSenseMedia.org/news

4 // S T R E E T S E N S E M E D I A // O C T. 4 -1 7 , 2 0 1 7

NEWS

Remembering Fred Anderson, a big personality

By Emma Rizk emma.rizk@streetsensemedia.org

F

red Anderson, Street Sense’s first vendor coordinator, died in August in Peterson, Virginia.

Anderson used his position in the community to promote the paper and recruit vendors. Laura Osuri, one of the co-founders of the paper, remembers.

“Fred was with us from the very beginning,” Osuri said. “He was a security guard at Miriam’s Kitchen and his endorsement of the paper really helped us get our first batch of vendors.”

Ted Henson, Street Sense’s other co-founder, remembers meeting Anderson at Miriam’s Kitchen when the Street Sense staff was trying to get people excited about writing for the paper.

“Fred quickly became, in my mind, a very integral part of the whole project because he was a big personality, kind of like a big teddy bear. He was always cracking jokes, funny, smiling, cut loose a lot,” Henson said. “He was our first high volume vendor at Street Sense, him and his buddy Alan.”

Anderson would buy a bundle of 100 papers in the morning and sell the whole stack in a day, usually near Eastern Market and Capitol Hill. Although Anderson would sometimes face rejection while selling papers, that never stopped him from being friendly and developing relationships with clients, according to Henson.

Aside from the logistics of the operation, Anderson was dedicated to building community at Street Sense. He helped make the office a place where people who were homeless could come rest, put their stuff down and talk about their day, according to Henson. “We recruited a lot of people that way. We would have vendor meetings and Fred would help lead them.”

When the organization was just getting off the ground and getting press coverage, Fred was one of the vendors that reporters would follow around and write about, according to Henson.

Anderson also wrote an advice column for the paper titled “Ask Fred,” in which he would offer his insight into issues affecting people experiencing homelessness. He deconstructed misconceptions facing people experiencing homelessness and gave advice on how people could best support and aid the homeless people they encountered.

He also used the column as a platform to discuss root causes of homelessness. In his opinion the leading factors at the time were a lack of affordable housing, mental health, and economics.

“We live in the wealthiest nation on earth that rebuilds foreign nations after war,” Anderson wrote in “Ask Fred.” “In order to reach the goal of ending homelessness, a good start would be with affordable housing. To sustain this goal, the proper support network should be in place in regards to health care, child care, services to address mental health issues, substance abuse FILE and employment.”

PHOTO Working at Washington City Church of the Brethren, Miriam’s Kitchen and Street Sense, Anderson was dedicated to helping his community. He earned an income selling the paper but also felt a strong connection to its mission because he knew many people struggling with homelessness, himself included.

“What I enjoy about homeless outreach is the fact that I am able to reach out to people in need and establish relationships that are lifelong lasting,” Anderson said in his 2003 vendor profile. “I find it meaningful that I am able to shed a little bit of hope on some people’s situations.”

The people who wrote for and sold the paper are the reason the project succeeded, according to Henson. He and Osuri helped guide it but it was the vendors who got the public’s attention by wearing the vest and standing on street corners.

“I don’t think it’s an understatement to say that Street Sense might not have survived the first year without Fred,” Henson said.

Need Burial Assistance?

When a loved one passes away, you may feel hopeless.

When the person you loved has died with an HIV+ or AIDS-related illness, grieving can be even more difficult.

We can help.

If you have lost a loved one who…

• was HIV+ or diagnosed with HIV/AIDS; and • was a D.C. resident; and • had less than $800 in liquid assets

…then call Samaritan Ministry of Greater Washington.

To see if your family qualifies for assistance, contact:

Samaritan Ministry’s Burial Assistance Coordinator at (202) 889-7702, x 302

Once approved, assistance is paid directly to the funeral home.

www.samaritanministry.org

Samaritan Ministry’s Next Step Program helps people who are homeless, unemployed, have HIV/ AIDS, and others in need make changes for a better life.

Program participants meet with staff members to set goals in employment, housing, health care and other areas. Goals are reached one step at a time with staff providing resources and offering encouragement and support. There are no religious requirements for participation.

STREETSENSEMEDIA.ORG

// 5

Replacing Barry Farm with smaller apartments discriminates against families, lawsuit claims

BY LILAH BURKE // lilah.burke@streetsense.org

R

esidents of the Barry Farm public housing community have filed a class action lawsuit against the D.C. Housing Authority claiming discriminatory practices. The suit alleges that the housing authority’s plans to redevelop Barry Farm will create a shortage of larger, multi-bedroom apartments, forcing families with children to look elsewhere for housing. The Washington Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights assisted the residents.

The redevelopment is part of the housing authority’s New Communities Initiative, a D.C. government program designed to “revitalize severely distressed subsidized housing and redevelop neighborhoods into vibrant mixed-income communities,” according to their website. Barry Farm has been slated for redevelopment since 2006 and awaited funding for the project until 2016.

The program was created as a response to federal budget cuts to housing revitalization projects. Planners hope that by making the community mixed income, they might be able to disperse the concentration of poverty in Barry Farm, ending some of the crime and bringing more opportunities to the area.

The New Communities Initiative has made a committment to build in place — constructing new developments without moving current residents.

However, all Barry Farm residents will be moved off the property before construction can begin.

Although the housing authority has pledged that all residents will have the right and ability to return to Barry Farm, the suit alleges that the replacement units will not be suitable for all current families. The number of DETRICE BELT total public housing units is set to remain the same, but the new development will have fewer multi-bedroom apartments, forcing large families with children out. The development is set to have 163 fewer multi-bedroom apartments.

The plaintiffs believe that the loss of multi-bedroom apartments constitutes a discriminatory housing practice and violates the Fair Housing Act and the D.C. Human Rights Act. “Any time either a private or a public actor has a policy that has a disproportionate negative impact on a protected category of people, that policy or practice would violate the Fair Housing Act,” said Brook Hill, a law fellow with the Washington Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights, who is working on the case. “Families with children are a protected category under the Fair Housing Act just like race, or religion, or color, or national origin. And the policy that the housing authority has, of eliminating units that have two, three, four bedrooms, will have a disproportionate negative impact on families with children.”

Detrice Belt, head of the Barry Farm Tenants and Allies Association, lives with her daughter and needs a two-bedroom unit. She says she worries about her neighbors who have even more kids.

“It’s kind of like they’re forcing me not to have any more kids,” she said.

The Barry Farm Tenants and Allies Association is another plaintiff in the case, along with Empower D.C., which helped form the association and lent manpower to the organizing.

“Am I going to have to leave the city altogether?”

A row of public housing units at Barry Farm. PHOTO BY LILAH BURKE

Hill believes there is a citywide trend towards smaller units, pushing families out of the city. “The homeless population [in D.C.] for individuals has sort of remained about steady over the past many years. But for families with children, or mothers with children, but families generally, it’s increased by 50 percent,” Hill said. “Even if you have money in D.C., even if you’re somebody that’s of means, it’s hard to find housing if you need more than two or three bedrooms. Yet, at the same time, there is a trend, not only with the D.C. Housing Authority, but also with the private development community, to be building smaller units.”

The suit also alleges that the housing authority has discriminated against Barry Farm residents by not responding to their maintenance requests in a timely manner because their buildings are set to be torn down, constituting discrimination.

Federal regulations set standards for public housing conditions, committing officials to keeping the spaces sanitary, safe, and habitable. But Barry Farm may not be meeting these requirements. The suit alleges that broken heating systems have sometimes remained unfixed through the winter and one family on the property went without heat for two years. One tenant had the tiles on her floor lifted, and had to walk on gravel in her home instead of flooring. In another case, severe flood damage caused a hole into which a resident’s child fell.

Belt said that the maintenance was always inefficient, requiring residents to stay home from work and wait all day. The lawsuit suggests that in 2016 it took DCHA eight more days to respond to maintenance requests at Barry Farm than at similar properties.

DCHA does not comment on pending litigation.

About half of the residents have already been relocated to other public housing complexes, giving the neighborhood an abandoned feel. Empty units have been boarded PHOTO BY LILAH BURKE up with red-painted wood.

Residents have said that the housing authority has not been fixing broken locks, allowing strangers to store guns and drugs in abandoned units. “It’s very depressing to see boarded up units,” Belt said. “We don’t have as much fun seeing our neighbors and kids play.”

At noon on a Friday in September in the neighborhood there are fathers pushing baby strollers and young kids in uniforms at the new recreation center. But there are also men on the streets, drinking from bottles of wine or smoking “dippers,” cigarettes dipped in PCP. A young man named Tez said he has lived there for 20 years, his whole life. He supports the lawsuit, but doesn’t think the redevelopment will be successful either way. “It’s not going to work, them trying to move white people in here,” he said.

“They’re going to move here, but after a while they’re gonna leave. . . There’s too many shootings around here. People get killed too much.”

At the corner bodega, all the merchandise is behind plexiglass. Dollar bills and chips move only through a swiveling compartment, the kind banks have for large deposits.

Lincoln Heights, the public housing complex that many Barry Farm residents are being moved to, is also slated for redevelopment. “How many times am I going to have to move?”

Belt asked. “Am I going to have to leave the city altogether?”

6 // S T R E E T S E N S E M E D I A / / O C T. 4 -1 7 , 2 0 1 7

Introducing the Street Sense Media App No cash? No problem.

BY BRIAN CAROME // Executive Director

Street Sense Media is excited to announce the launch of a new smart phone app that will, for the first time, allow customers to purchase our newspaper using their smart phones. The app can be downloaded free of charge from the Apple App Store and Google Play. Simply search “Street Sense Media.”

I recently wrote you with news that we had rebranded, changing our name to Street Sense Media. The new name is a reflection of our having expanded into media platforms beyond the newspaper – theater, film, photography, illustration and audio. In announcing that change, I stressed that we remain as committed as ever to our flagship newspaper. The new app

is a reflection of that commitment. We want to make sure our newspaper is available to everyone—even those of you who no longer carry cash. This new app reflects our commitment to strategies that expand the paper’s circulation. It also reflects our commitment to strategies that expand the earning potential of our dedicated vendors.

The app lists every one of our active vendors by name and badge number and includes a photograph of the vendor.

Customers type in their credit or debit card information and then search and select the vendor they want to purchase from.

If they wish, they can add a tip in any amount. Vendors then collect their earnings from our office on a daily basis. A small transaction fee is paid by the customer, so our vendors still keep 100 percent of the payment made. Street Sense Media does not

Officials reach out to private landlords for help to end homelessness

BY REGINALD BLACK // Artist/Vendor

Homeless service providers and private landlords came together for a recent networking session to build relationships to combat the District’s housing crisis.

The D.C. Interagency Council on Homelessness Landlord Outreach Work Group holds monthly meetings and organizes events like this meet and greet to ultimately create a central network of housing units to expedite placement of people who receive housing assistance.

“It's a partnership,” said Adam Maier of Pathways to Housing D.C. “We’ve got to work together.” Maier and his team have created more than 100 partnerships with area landlords that now rent to Pathways clients, according to the organization’s website.

Melissa Robinson, who co-chairs the ICH Landlord Outreach Work Group, described the event as an opportunity to build and sustain connections.

Robinson hopes conversational interactions like this can break down stigmas around what it means to be homeless and what programs are in place to end homelessness in the city.

We would like landlords to be a part of our mission and goal of bringing affordable housing to low-income individuals and families,” Robinson said. “It helps to have a shared vision and shared goal.”

One example of program stigma is rapid re-housing, which places people in market-rate apartments with a lease and subsidizes their rent for the first two years. This model has a bad name in the landlord community, according to Robinson. She acknowledged that the program does not always succeed but said the District government wants to build on the instances where it has both helped the client and was a good fit for the landlord.

However, it takes more than identifying a landlord interested in working with the government to place someone into housing with financial assistance.

Contractor Wallace Medeiros said he has worked on several affordable properties in Southeast D.C. but his estimates to help bring them up to code before clients can move in are usually viewed as too high. “We have the solutions and the products and the manpower We want to provide for landlords,” Medeiros said.

Income requirements are the biggest challenge, according to Britney McLean, a case manager with Capitol Hill Group Ministries. She said landlords can easily confuse the different types of assistance programs a client might have and the changing requirements that go along with them. A big part of her job has become explaining the specifics and being available as a resource to her clients as well as their landlords. “They won't get rid of me,” McLean said. “We work with them for the amount of time a client is with the program.”

Allen Page, a landlord said that the meet and greet enabled him to reach a different population than his usual marketing efforts would. He is interested in helping where he can and willing to work with tenants. Unfortunately, Page said he was unable to rent one of the apartments he had available because the unit was too large to be covered by benefits available to a single homeless veteran and too small to match the needs of a homeless family.

The Landlord Outreach Work Group is working to plan more events to connect landlords and officials.

There will be a at the Wilson Building on Friday, Oct. 6.

Video coverage on StreetSenseMedia.org!

add or receive any portion of the transaction fee. We also do not collect any customer data during the transaction. If you need any help using the app, just ask your vendor and they will be glad to assist. Of course, you can continue to pay your vendor with cash. The app is designed as a convenience for prospective customers who prefer a cashless method of payment.

Street Sense Media raises the voices of men and women who have experienced homelessness. We take great pride in the media we produce, including our newspaper. This new cashless payment app seeks to ensure that our newspaper reaches as many people as possible and that our vendors are maximizing their earning potential. We hope you will give the app a try and, as always, we welcome your feedback.

ANC commissioners drum up interest in comprehensive plan

BY MARK ROSE // Editorial Volunteer

The best way for residents to fight to preserve their housing and neighborhood in the face of increasingly aggressive developers is to come out to their neighborhood’s monthly Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) meeting, according to commissioners from several of the District’s ANCs. That’s what the commissioners told people at a Sept. 9 community meeting on the city’s comprehensive plan.

The meeting was organized by the nonprofit Empower DC, which has scheduled similar meetings to be held every month throughout the city until the Comprehensive Plan update is approved by D.C. Council. Empower DC confirmed that 75 people came to the Sept. 9 meeting.

The commissioners who addressed the crowd said developers have gotten increasingly aggressive and are willing to bend or break the city’s zoning rules to build high-cost and dense developments.

That forces lower-income D.C. residents to move to far-flung, poorer parts of the city that have fewer community resources.

Many residents in less affluent communities distrust both the developers and the D.C. government agencies that approve new developments. There is a widely held view within less affluent sectors of the District that the city zoning commission, office of planning and department of transportation are aligned with each other against the interests of the little guy, who just wants to stay in his home, where he has often lived for a long time, and which he can afford.

“D.C. has become a cash cow,” Sherice Muhammad, one of Ward 7’s ANC Commissioners, told the riveted crowd gathered in a large basement room at the Anacostia Library on Good Hope Road.

“We can look at the developers who have a consistent footprint in this city.”

Muhammad went on, “When you see the same developers, you know who’s calling the shots. When you look at the money trail it tells the picture. Why are developers here in D.C.? Because this is the floodgate, the land of milk and honey for them.”

Muhammad and the other commissioners emphasized that as long as the city administration allows developers to build with impunity, they will.

She said that developers often take the position that “I don’t care what the law says, I paid my campaign contribution, and I want my share of the pie.”

Residents were told that they can become influential in the zoning approval process by learning the zoning rules and running for office in one of their ward’s ANCs. Commissioner Nancy MacWood of Ward 3, a lawyer, has been in that leadership role since 2001.

She emphasized there are ways to challenge the zoning approval process. Often, a developer will seek a waiver or “special exception” on a zoning provision. MacWood said that city zoning rules include a concept called “great weight,” which means that the Board of Zoning Adjustment must take the ANC’s concerns seriously. If citizens in a particular ANC develop a detailed list of common points of contention with a proposed development, the developer’s explanation for why their proposed plan is best for the community must be justified in writing. MacWood told the assembled group that they can go to the D.C. Board of Zoning Adjustment to get a written statement, which she said is a requirement.

MacWood also commented positively about the Bowser administration’s recent program of placing family homeless shelters in every ward, which is a new experience for most neighborhoods.

“Nobody has experience with ward shelters,” she told the crowd. “But it should’ve happened a long time ago, and we welcome them in the community” All these new gentrified developments are quickly turning D.C. into a high-density city, according to MacWood. The older housing was mostly singlefamily homes. She asked if any studies had been done to show the impact of higher-density building on the city. “I’m waiting for all these buildings to fall like dominoes,” MacWood said.

Long-time public housing advocate and ANC Commissioner Karen Settles, resident of Ward 7, stated, “We’re experiencing government decisions (now) that are made without the people. We’re hindered because information flow is slow.” Settles said she would like to see the city do some job training in parts of the city where there is significant public housing.

Information, she continued, has to flow out of ANC meetings so the public can get it. It will lead to greater community participation. “If people know [a proposed development] affects them, they will come out,” Settles said.

STREETSENSEMEDIA.ORG

Coalition of employers seeks to hire hundreds of D.C. youth

// 3

CELEBRATING SUCCESS!

BY NICK SHEDD // Editorial Intern

S

PHOTO COURTESY OF LINDA DAHLSTROM/STARBUCKS NEWSROOM

tepping out of the Mount Vernon Square Metro station on Sept. 20, crowds of young people were greeted by a large sign: “This way to your future.”

Volunteers in bright blue lined the hallways of the Walter E. Washington Convention Center, their shirts emblazoned with the phrase, “How can I help?”

Beneath a huge welcome banner draped from the sealing, block letters spelled out “#startsomewhere” - the brand associated with the 100,000 Opportunities Initiative.

On the walls were projected various inspirational quotes from Maya Angelou and others.

Throughout the morning and early afternoon, the 100,000 Opportunities Initiative hosted its flagship Opportunity Fair & Forum to the District. Approximately 6,800 D.C. “Opportunity Youths” registered to attend the Fair.

The Initiative’s website defines Opportunity Youth as those young people aged 16-24 neither in school nor employed. The Fair sought to connect them with employers in need of labor.

The coalition partners provided the crowd of youth in attendance with access to over 30 employers, on-the-spot interviews, and numerous resources for help along the way.

The event of Sept. 20 was merely the latest iteration of the Opportunity Fair model. Previously, per the 100,000 Opportunities Initiative website, the organization has hosted fairs in cities across the country as far flung as Seattle, New Orleans, and Chicago.

Asked to comment on the experience of helping so many young people find work, Camille Hymes, a regional Starbucks Vice President, said of the fair, “It is the most inspirational day that I’ll never forget.”

Through hiring Opportunity Youth, Starbucks sought to use its national scope for good, Hymes said. But on its own, even Starbucks could only hire a limited number. That’s why, Hymes explained, the 100,000 Opportunities Initiative is run by a coalition, not just one company.

The coalition’s executive committee, which takes a more active role in learning from youth and community partners to continually improve the Fairs, includes Starbucks, the Schultz Family Foundation, the Rockefeller Foundation, HMSHost, and FedEx. To help young people experiencing homelessness or other obstacles along the path to employment, the “Creating My Successful Future” section of the fair housed a valuable collection of outside resources. Among others, Martha’s Table offered connections for food assistance, Metro provided options for transportation support, and Sasha Bruce Youthworks advertised its services to homeless or at-risk youth.

Those services include free STI tests, toiletries, and counseling for youth seeking help. Sasha Bruce also offers a drop-in professional closet for its clients.

For homeless youth to find employment, “what they need most is clothes,” said Diamond Miles, staffing the Sasha Bruce table at the fair. Professional clothes and grooming are hard to maintain because shelters are often so dirty that many people experiencing homelessness prefer the streets, according to Miles.

Fortunately, Opportunity Fair partners Nordstrom and Macy’s, as well as Goodwill, provided loaner clothes and professional styling tips right next to the “Networking Café.”

There and elsewhere around the Fair, Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz and former Attorney General Eric Holder were just two of the many famous faces mingling with fair attendees and offering encouragement.

D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser and Department of Employment Services Director Odie Donald were also there to offer support, per official press documents posted by Starbucks.

Organizers attempted to make the event a positive experience to inspire confidence in attendees. Comparing the fair to others, Joshua Beavers, a youth in attendance, said it was “more interactive, more jobs.” A DJ played upbeat, popular music throughout, while MCs, projected on a big screen, congratulated winners of giveaways and attendees who were recently hired. Of the atmosphere, Miles from Sasha Bruce said, “It’s fun, not scary, not making people uncomfortable.”

Volunteers floating around the floor cheered on the young people in attendance and offered support and advice. In the case of homeless youth, that simple effort of reaching out is a huge part of the battle. “I work with youth who just want to feel important, like they’re somebody – they want people to know they’re there,” Miles explained.

Multiple fair attendees interviewed pointed to the on-site job interviews as a highlight of the day. Often, job fairs send participants home with applications to complete and possible interviews to struggle through some time after the fair. The Opportunity Fair, by contrast, offered support ranging from a professional photo booth to resume writing help to mock interviews.

The efforts of the organizers and the confidence of attendees were reflected in the numbers. The 6,800 registered participants made up 10% of the target Opportunity Youth population in D.C., per Starbucks press materials. Those attendees received over 2,500 interviews, 1,000 job offers, and “thousands” of connections to community resources and educational organizations.

Asked if they could think of any changes that could improve their experience at the fair, job seekers Raven Mathis and Natasha, an attending minor, had a simple answer: “No.”

NBC 4’s Leon Harris and Street Sense Media Vendor Ron Dudley PHOTO CREDIT: RON DUDLEY, A.K.A. “POOKANU”

Leon Harris of NBC 4 emceed our Sept. 28 celebration and introduced the many talents of poets, singers, actresses and other artists like Ron.

BIRTHDAYS Ken Martin OCT. 5 Author/Vendor

Martin Walker OCT. 19 Artist/Vendor

Youth and staff members talk at the job fair.

PHOTO COURTESY OF LINDA DAHLSTROM/STARBUCKS NEWSROOM

8 // S T R E E T S E N S E M E D I A // O C T. 4 - 1 7 , 2 0 17

Finding comedy in tragedy Cassandra Morgan began performing stand-up after escaping an abusive relationship and facing homelessness.

Now she is part of a community of survivors that draw strength from each other, share their stories and help others avoid similar situations.

PHOTO CREDIT: CASSANDRA MORGAN

By Emma Rizk emma.rizk@streetsensemedia.org

STREETSENSEMEDIA.ORG

O

n one of the first pages of Cassandra Archer Morgan’s upcoming book, she asks her readers if they know how many layers of makeup it takes to cover a black eye. After surviving almost 10 years of domestic violence, she certainly does.

The verbal abuse started when Morgan was 21 and then escalated over the years to slaps, kicks, punches, choking and sexual assault. Due to her partner’s jealous and controlling nature, she lost several jobs and had to file for multiple restraining orders.

When she called the police, she was told that they could help her and her sons leave the apartment. Removing her abusive partner was never presented as a legal option, even though Morgan paid the majority of the rent and wanted to maintain her children’s routine.

“They said ‘If you were in a bad situation and you wanted to be safe, you would leave.’ Yeah, I would, but I had to think about stability,” Morgan said.

When Morgan finally made the choice to leave, she learned she could not use the shelter system without being separated from her children. “It’s very hard to flee when you have three kids, first of all,” Morgan said. “Because I had three boys, they couldn’t go to the shelter with me.”

The family was forced to stay with various relatives, moving from house to house for a week, before returning to the apartment and the relationship. The cycle of abuse continued until finally, in 1999, Morgan said her abuser broke into their apartment, raped her, and held a gun to her head.

That night he was arrested, and they spent the next year in court.

Over the years leading up to the break-in, Morgan had called crisis centers, the police department and churches for help. She had been hospitalized with injuries as a result of her abuse. But all that evidence was found inadmissible for her case. Her abuser was not charged with attempted murder because when Morgan was under attack, she had grabbed a wooden spoon to defend herself and the jury found her to be just as much of a threat to him. Her abuser was found guilty of second-degree assault and kidnapping. Morgan was outraged. “What about the abuse part?” she said. “Does he get arrested? Does he get a fine? Does he get anything? Unfortunately all of that just got swept to the side.”

This challenging process motivated Morgan to tell her story and educate other women on how to leave their own abusers.

“They have to realize that when a person is in a situation like this, first there is fear. You’re afraid to go. You’re afraid to stay,” Morgan said. “And when you are in that box and when you have children, I had to make sure my children were safe, I had to keep a smile on [my abuser’s] face while I’m trying to figure out the best way out of this.”

Morgan is one of many domestic violence survivors who have frustrating experiences in the judicial system. Another woman, who asked to remain anonymous because she is currently engaged in a custody battle, spoke about the re-traumatizing nature of her time in court.

“The court is a place that you run for justice. [My abuser] obviously has issues. You don’t need to be a psychiatrist or a medical doctor to understand that. But I expected from the court to show a little dignity because they are abusing me and my children openly, ” she said.

This woman said she is locked in an international custody battle with her abuser, who is trying to take her children overseas to live with him, even though he has failed to pay child support for years. He has used his wealth and the legal system to exert dominance over her and keep her unemployed, the woman said.

“The court is empowering him to abuse us and the court is abusing our rights. Violation of major legal primary constitutional rights,” she said. “This is someone who is very controlling and whenever he wants something, that’s what he has to have, and if not, you will be punished.”

After her husband manipulated her children’s attorney, the woman in the custody battle was forced to remain in the United States instead of accepted a job offer in Germany. Without his financial support, she and the children lost their home and car and for several months they were homeless.

This is not rare. One of the major causes of homelessness for children in the U.S. is domestic violence and other experiences of trauma, according to the National Center on

Family Homelessness at American Institutes for Research.

Morgan and other women interviewed for this story spoke about the importance of forgiveness in their healing process. Morgan passed that lesson on to her children by encouraging a relationship between her abuser and her sons through counseling. She has also offered emotional support to several women who he was in abusive relationships with after her, encouraging them to leave and take their children.

“I don’t have to be a friend to the [other] wife.

I don’t have to be cordial. But it gives me such a high for him to see me happy. He cannot destroy me,” Morgan said. “It gives me such pleasure to see myself moving on, to see him connecting with my kids, and still have him in their lives.”

Through stand-up comedy, Morgan has found a way to transform the pain from her abuse into power and laughter. She has a passion for making people laugh that began when she would imitate characters on “Saturday Night Live” as a child. And while Morgan was in the abusive relationship, she invented comical stories to cover up the real reasons for her injuries.

“I would have them in stitches laughing about my abuse, and they didn’t really know what was happening to me. My black eye: I was walking in the dark, and I tripped up on the kids’ matchbox toys, and I fell and hit my eye on the wall,” Morgan said. “I couldn’t tell them that I was in an abusive relationship. I had to do that as a distraction.”

She didn’t take the plunge into performing until she spontaneously started cracking jokes at an open mic with some friends in downtown D.C. A woman after the show recommended she join a comedy workshop in Maryland and from there Morgan learned how to write a standup routine that she took on tour. She takes her audience on a “ride of her life,” including raising her children and surprisingly, her experiences with domestic violence.

“It’s very hard to do but I found a way to do it, and I’m able to reach people through my comedy and tell my story,” Morgan said. “God gave me this platform because I needed a way to reach these women.”

Her comedy routine is one of many ways that Morgan supports other survivors and gives back to her community. Four years ago, she launched her own domestic violence ministry called HATS, which stands for “Hurt and Troubled Sisters.”

“When you’re in a domestic violence relationship you wear a lot of hats. I was a doctor, a teacher, a lawyer, a mother,” Morgan said. “Whether I was the dog, the slut, the whore, the bitch, whatever he wanted to call me, those were hats I wore for him also. ” Morgan later started a youth outreach program called CAPS, or “Choose Abstinence or Protective Sex,” with the goal of encouraging young women not to have children in unstable relationships.

Her ministry focuses on speaking engagements, but she hopes to expand to a conference, a program for women, and a safe house.

Morgan has been happily married for almost two years, and she and her husband have coordinated the Hope, Toys, and Laughter toy drive for the past nine years. When they founded the initiative, they collected 300 toys and books for hospitalized, orphaned, and abused children.

Last year they collected approximately 8,000 toys and books.

Homelessness & domestic violence by the numbers

16 seconds

FREQUENCY SOMEONE IN THE D.C. AREA CALLS 911 FOR A DOMESTIC VIOLENCE INCIDENT

6-9

AVERAGE NUIMBER OF TIMES SURVIVORS RETURN TO ABUSERS BEFORE SEPARATING COMPLETELY

764

D.C. SINGLE HOMELESS ADULTS WITH A HISTORY OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE TRAUMA COUNTED ON A SINGLE NIGHT IN JANUARY

624

D.C. HOMELESS ADULTS IN FAMILIES WITH A HISTORY OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE TRAUMA COUNTED ON A SINGLE NIGHT IN JANUARY

DATA COURTESY OF DASH DC AND THE 2017 ANNUAL HOMELESS POINT-IN-TIME COUNT (Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments)

Through her network, Morgan met Tenickia Polk, another domestic violence survivor and entrepreneur. Polk works to share her own experience and to build media platforms and support networks for other survivors through her business, Marketplace4Change. She has helped survivors publish books, recorded videos to inspire others and maintains an ongoing speakers bureau.

Street Sense first covered Polk’s efforts in 2015. She has since provided financial support out of her own pocket to other women escaping violence. Having distributed $1100 and still finding more people in need, Polk is formalizing her support program with a simple online application form and her first fundraising event. Morgan is donating her comedic talents as entertainment and Polk’s parish, Bethel Church in Bowie, Maryland is donating venue space. Money raised from tickets to the Oct. 21 “night of comedy” will be given away that evening as the first “Thrive Award” to assist abused women and families who are unemployed and facing legal crises.

The anonymous survivor engaged in a custody battle will receive this award at Polk’s fundraiser, and the money will pay what insurance does not cover for her son’s surgery. His father has not contributed to the cost, according to the woman.

Polk said the ongoing financial awards will be named Thrive because she has found that in order to heal from abuse, survivors must find a way to become proactive instead of reactive to their situation.

“I want to do more than just survive,” Polk said. “That’s what the whole Thrive award is about. We got out, we made the decision, we know our worth. But now we have to rebuild and thrive and learn how to live in peace without fear and enjoy life.

Take those vacations again, have some healthy relationships, have families so that your whole life doesn’t revolve around this situation.”

More information about the community Polk has built: www.marketplace4change.com/charity

TOOLBOX DC VOLUNTEER LAWYERS PROJECT (202) 885-5542 www.DCVLP.org DISTRICT ALLIANCE FOR SAFE HOUSING (202) 462-3274 www.DASHDC.org HOUSE OF RUTH 202-667-7001 www.HOUSEOFRUTH.org MY SISTER’S PLACE 202-529-5991 www.MYSISTERSPLACEDC.org DC COALITION AGAINST DOMESTIC VIOLENCE (202) 299-1181 www.DCCADV.org Cassandra Morgan and her husband (Santa) have coordinated the Hope, Toys and Laughter book and toy drive every December for almost a decade.

PHOTO COURTESY OF CASSANDRA MORGAN

// 9

MPD DOMESTIC VIOLENCE COORDINATOR (202) 727-7137 EMERGENCY BNB www.EMERGENCYBNB.com

10 // S T R E E T S E N S E M E D I A / / O C T. 4 -1 7 , 2 0 17

OPINION

Poor communication should never lead to a war

BY CYNTHIA MEWBORN

I am making an appeal to both President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un to consider and ponder where in your interactions your communication has failed, and how you both can rebuild and start over again to create a healthy communication environment. We must ensure that no unnecessary war erupts due to poor communication skills.

This isn’t a show of strength, for strength isn’t force through weapons and destruction.

Strength is a willingness to look at oneself and ask a very basic question: Where have I gone wrong in this particular situation? Then make the necessary corrections to mature and evolve.

This may be an argument between opposite parties, but it is also an invitation to journey beyond one’s self and evolve and mature into the leaders you both aspire to be. Effective communication skills require introspection and personal development. According to Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, personal growth can only be obtained when one need has been

obtained and completed. So start there and continue to change throughout life. When conflicts emerge, poor communication skills are often to blame, either by both parties and or by one individual not having the necessary ability to convey a meaning, intent or idea.

It is the responsibilities of our leaders to exhibit the highest level of personal development in order to establish harmony in the world, and to demonstrate their maturity through their actions in governing a country and or nation.

It won’t be easy, but it will be worth it. Both leaders will have to try many times before they get it right, but it’s not impossible. Do good for yourself and for all of humanity, gentlemen. Weapons aren’t toys, and human bodies aren’t expendable.

Cynthia Mewborn is a vendor/artist with Street Sense.

Solving homelessness

BY MICHAEL CRAIG

Solving homelessness seems as infinitely complex as preventing wars. Redistributing wealth is a fearful and uncomfortable suggestion to policymakers and the more financially comfortable.

But as witnesses, pretending to have unseeing eyes and unfeeling hearts may work – until homelessness happens to you or your loved ones.

For example, whether they come rich, or poor or in the middle, veterans, innocent children or the mentally ill can become homeless from lack of assistance. And that is only touching the surface. I mean the millionaires, the billionaires who have lost their fortunes due to embezzlement and fraud try to find their reality only to perhaps discover it was never their own any more than that of innocent people who have committed crimes to feed their hungry families. Once in jail or on the street the realization is a punch in the face.

We need to be aware of the fact, before it is too late, that we are more similar and sensitive than we thought. Look at what is happening to our ecosystem: hurricanes on and on and the subsequent extra millions of people who would never have imagined they would be homeless.

That is a very humbling and harsh reality. So we cannot be unseeing and indifferent until a homeless person has to save your life without a dollar being involved.

Turning professional athletes into snowflakes

BY JEFFREY MCNEIL

The hypocrisy of the establishment knows no limits. When millionaire athletes mock and desecrate the American flag, this is free speech.

But if conservatives want to exercise their free speech it must be shut down, because it may offend the sensitivities of whiny, emotional snowflakes. According to the logic of the left, it’s OK for athletes to disrespect millions of fans, but if Donald Trump says the owners should do their jobs and show them the door, he’s called a white supremacist.

Men fought and died for this country so the players can mock and

desecrate everything America stands for. I canceled my subscription to NFL Network and won’t watch the Super Bowl this year. It gets under my skin, milliondollar athletes playing the victim. No one gave me a damn thing in this world.

I hold a job and obey the law -- where’s my free stuff? Sometimes I think maybe I should sell dope or rob a bank because there’s more services for convicted felons and illegal immigrants than law-abiding citizens.

Do Democrats think making the NFL more sensitive will win back any disaffected Trump supporters? What they’re doing is making us more fired up for Trump’s reelection in 2020.

People support Trump not because of the things he does — they love him

Michael Craig is a vendor/artist with Street Sense.

because he appalls polite society. The media can keep labeling us as bigots and deplorable, but it’s losing its sting.

That said, while Trump’s funny and entertaining, I’m a little nervous he has the keys to the nuclear code.

I’m sobered by the fact that he has the fate of civilization in his hands.

But I’d rather be in a nuclear war than have a Democrat as president. I enjoy seeing snowflakes whine and wail because they can’t get their way.

Although what Trump said about the football players was wrong, my contempt for the snowflake outweighs Trump’s crude, boorish behavior. I’m sometimes embarrassed by him, but I have no choice but to vigorously defend him. He isn’t my ideal president: I prefer John Kasich or Marco Rubio.

However, this is the hand we were dealt.

My advice to Democrats: your smug, condescending attitudes are alienating the people you need for 2020. Keep playing the race card and identity politics. While you whine about the popular vote, Trump’s on pace to win again in an electoral rout.

Jeffery McNeil is a vendor/artist with Street Sense.

DIGITAL ILLUSTRATION BY BETHANY TUEL

STREETSENSEMEDIA.ORG

OPINION:

Keeping Puerto Rico in poverty

BY AIDA BASNIGHT

Puerto Rico is a territory of the United States. That makes Puerto Ricans American citizens, too. But it is not surprising that Trump has shown very little empathy for Puerto Ricans after Hurricanes Harvey and Irma bypassed the island and Maria hit, cutting out power and clean water for residents there.

Even while American citizens are going through the horrific devastation of Maria, Trump has made some disparaging statements about Puerto Rico not paying their debts. Now, I challenge Trump and his administration to either shut up or put up a needed ratified bill to bring down the Jones Act, which has been choking Puerto Rico’s economy for years but is now also delaying crucial relief supplies from reaching the battered island in a timely fashion.

The act was passed in 1920 and requires that everything shipped between U.S. ports be transported on ships registered under the U.S. flag, built in the United States, owned

by U.S. citizens and crewed by permanent residents of the United States. Removing this outdated legislation would help our fellow Americans pay off their debts and bring down prices on the island. For now, Trump waited eight days to waive the Jones Act restrictions so that Puerto Rico could receive any and all assistance available to transport relief supplies to the island.

The Republicans already botched up New Orleans in their efforts to rebuild after Hurricane Katrina. Mardi Gras hasn’t been enough to bring one citizen back from other states to rebuild in the city.

People are not staying away because of the catastrophic or horrifying experience of the hurricane – they are staying away because of the lack of care shown to them as people during relief and cleanup efforts after the fact.

Remember when Kanye West said that President George W. Bush “hated black people?” Now, we have Trump accusing Puerto Rico of not paying its bills. This is what USA does when people miss one or two payments on credit; they get slapped with a higher interest rate to keep you in poverty, despair, hopelessness and eventual homelessness.

Why do we have politicians when they don’t listen to us, the people, and instead listen to the rich, giving them tax cuts and bailouts whenever they need them? What about us that want to get ahead, too?

Aida Basnight is a vendor/artist with Street Sense.

Advice to those hurt by the hurricanes

BY LATISHIA GRAHAM

They are looking for shelters, in need of food and clothing and especially housing.

It is terrible how so many lost their homes, and some of them can't get back home at all. Some went back to their homes and lost everything. If some people made it back home, and if they do have some money, they are starting all over.

I'm starting over myself with housing and becoming independent. My advice to the people hurt by the hurricane is to stay strong and know God is always with you. I know some people out there are struggling, and the people who are struggling have to start all over. I hope they seek shelter and get some financial help.

// 11

ART Help the vigil

BY JENNIFER MCLAUGHLIN // Artist/Vendor

For the past five years, the People for Fairness Coalition has held vigils to remember the people who have passed away in the streets and in the shelters. We have also organized demonstrations to call for more investment in housing solutions. We march during rush hour traffic and host different expert speakers to discuss the need for affordable housing. We host an overnight challenge in Freedom Plaza where we sleep outside with the community. And in the morning, we have breakfast with Catholic Charities and visit D.C. Council. This year's vigil is on Thursday and Friday, Dec. 21-22. And we need more financial and volunteer help than ever before. If you want to help us make this another success, please contact info@pffcdc.org.

Nature Boy Brown

Labels

BY FREDERICK JOHN // Artist/Vendor

BY MELISSA ALLEN // Artist/Vendor

My first stint of destitution pierces my U.S. Department of Treasury Nowadays I have been thinking a lot more About what others say about me I'm real "husky" What else am I other than that?

"A felon" "Definitely still not a Melanie" I hate you I love you is playing at La Colombe off of 14th

Nature Boy Brown had it down, Was really no clown Hungry he grew up He was a loving pup Big Boy Golden to no one beholden He bullied them all Though ripe himself for a fall Then came the time The aspects were prime Nature Boy Brown soldiered on in silence But he knew how to walk the miles But he would not—in the name of justice— back down Loaded up with hubris Big Boy Golden took the dive Sending him plummeting Circling down, [down, down] Into the deep Abyss

And I'm sprinting lower case after this straw is "not" stolen.

Rocket Boys

BY PHILLIP BLACK // Artist/Vendor

Donald Trump called Kim Jong Un “Rocket Man” to the United Nations. And he’s right.

Rocket Man is on course to try and destroy the world. He’s been killing his own people for years. Plus, most world leaders are afraid of him. But one thing I can say is that Donald Trump is not.

If Rocket Man keeps it up with the firing of missiles and doing what he wants to, Trump will keep his promise and destroy him.

A perfect family moment

BY ELIZABETH BRYANT // Artist/Vendor

You have not heard from me for a while but my daughter and I got together and took her grandson to a movie. He is 6-years-old now, and we really had a good time. We enjoyed the movie and brought some food to eat afterward. We ate popcorn, and talked a lot! But we still need to work out some things.

Wyrm Futures

What schall worthy wurm on stemn?

We’d bide forever, in each apophthegm.

Alowe a pose owr wretched noms be-gem.

Latishia Graham is a vendor/artist with Street Sense.

Franklin Sterling // Artist/Vendor

1 2 // S T R E E T S E N S E M E D I A // O C T. 4 -1 7 , 2 0 17

ART

You’ve got to be determined to succeed

BY SHEILA WHITE // Artist/Vendor

Applying for a job after working in the work force for many years was incredibly nervewracking. Starting again after all these years? Scary!

When I completed my first application — I won't say where — I submitted my resume and all the other necessary paperwork.

Then the First Wait began. I finally received a call for my interview.

Prepping the night before was extremely intense. I thought about all kinds of things. What will the interviewer ask me?

What should I wear? Should I sit or stand? If I sit, how should I do that? What will I do with my hair? What should I ask the interviewer?

Weeks passed. The Second Wait was well under way. Then the phone call, the one I had been

waiting for.

"Your interview was great.

I loved your resume. Sorry, though; we picked someone else. However, you can re-apply in three months."

I had mixed reactions. I was hurt that I didn't get the job but relieved I didn't have to wait any longer for a reply. I was also happy because I realized I can work again. And now I’ve kicked things into high gear by enrolling at UDC in August.

So, I will keep trying.

I will continue seeking opportunities. And yes, I will reapply for that job.

The aging job search

My barriers to employment

BY MILDRED HALL // Artist/Vendor

Many companies require computer skills and tailor their job descriptions and profiles to reflect the need for that skill.

Those aspects can prevent people from finding a living wage job if they don’t have those skills.

Seniority and education play significant roles. Someone with age, experience and a college degree is often considered before someone with equal age and experience but less schooling With technology and education opportunities constantly changing, it can be difficult for older generations to keep up in the job market.

BY MARCUS GREEN // Artist/Vendor

1. Age 2. Opportunities 3. Criminal background 4. Lack of training

ILLUSTRATION BY DWIGHT HARRIS

Be prepared to look for work

BY AMIN MASSEY // Artist/Vendor

Looking for new ways to earn income is important. Always staying prepared — whether with a freshly pressed suit or an updated resume — is the best way to get noticed and find opportunity.

Your hard work will pay off.

Recently, I missed out on a moving gig because while my alarm was set, my phone was turned off. Chalk that one up to beginner’s luck.

You must set realistic expectations when looking for something in a new or familiar field. There are tons of resources out there for those in need of employment. These range from training to placement programs, job coaching, online resume and job boards, transitional employment opportunities and more.

Research is imperative when finding out what one is getting into on the job front. You never want to apply for jobs in which you have

none of the required qualifications or even worse, when being interviewed for that job, you respond with “I don’t know.” One time, I was ready to pay for a certification course and after a quick Google search, found that the training that would cost me around $2,000 online was now being offered for free at UDC. It helps to have some sample interview questions and go over them prior to a real interview.

This way you can learn what the job you are being interviewed for entails and gain confidence talking about it. Then, after the real interview, follow-up with questions to the interviewer that sends a good message and shows them you are interested.

Keeping your resume current can ease a lot of the stress of searching for a position when the need arises.

I experienced problems getting a job or career because first of all, I wasn’t sober. Once I got a grip on that and started my prayers — salat five times a day plus dua for the morning and evening — I was destined for stardom.

I completed Project Empowerment, sponsored by the D.C. Department of Employment Services. I worked like a slave on the Public Works trash truck. But it seems to me that they only give permanent positions there to friends, family, etc.

The biggest problem I saw at the time wis a bunch of lazy and complacent government employees who should retire or be held accountable for not being productive. A person should get hired for his or her work performance. I’m currently still searching and always have a copy of my resume on hand.

God Bless.

ILLUSTRATION BY LEVESTER GREEN

Job training

BY RICARDO MERIEDY // Artist/Vendor

Before I became a Street Sense vendor, I was seeking employment. I went online and filled out applications for construction, dishwashing, maintenance — you name it. But I did not receive an answer from anybody.

Then I found the Project Empowerment program, which helped me gain computer skills, learn job readiness, learn how to conduct a better interview. After a week of training, they will send you to interview for a job. Most likely you will get the job.

The job will last for six months and if you perform well, it will be up to the company to hire you permanently. Only one out of every 10 people are blessed enough to be hired after this six month period, but I can see that, if nothing else, Project Empowerment provides great job training.

ILLUSTRATION BY DWIGHT HARRIS

STREETSENSEMEDIA.ORG

Thank you, all of you

Nice and kind-hearted

BY CHARLES DAVIS // Artist/Vendor

BY WENDELL WILLIAMS // Artist/Vendor

It is a very special gift that God has given to us, this ability to express love and kindness. Being nice and kindhearted is difficult at times, because some people do not take it seriously. However, I do act nice because it is a special effort for others that my parents taught me to value.

When I was growing up, I would always try to express that special gift from God. But, at times, I found myself thinking “What if someone tries to take advantage of this kindness, this niceness?” That is something I do not like to consider. Then I realize that God always said to be nice and kind, forgive and love thy neighbor. I have learned to honor that thought.

Giving of myself and helping others is a beautiful gesture and I count my ability to do that as one of God’s blessings. Every day, if I accomplish nothing else, I at least try to be nice and kind-hearted to everyone that I can; because Jesus loves you, very much.

I hope that I will always keep that love in my heart for the rest of my life.

May the power of God the Father be with us forever, Amen.

What defines you?

BY SHEILA WHITE // Artist/Vendor

My manners define me. When I walk through a door, I hold it for the next person. I say “thank you” when someone holds the door for me.

All of us have manners, but many people don’t always apply them properly. Many forget to say, “how are you?” or “excuse me,” or “thank you,” or “may I help you?”

When you grew up in my era — the late ‘50s and early ‘60s — we were taught manners as children. Our parents taught us how to be polite. We were taught that and more in Sunday School. People back then taught you how to act at the dinner table, out on the streets, and at friends’ houses.

Now people fight more and hurt each other frequently. Society is meaner, nastier, and less civil because fewer people worry about their manners. We need the old days back, where the neighbors helped raise you and people cared more about each other.

I’d like to thank so many people for their various acts of kindness and support towards me on my journey toward self-sufficiency. They helped me through crucial times. While their efforts may have appeared not to have born fruit in the moment — together they all kept me alive to get where I am today.

That includes a lot more strangers than you’d expect, people who seemed to show up out of nowhere to assist me in moments of desperation, such as a chance meeting with William Teel that saved my life in the harsh winter of ‘05.

It also includes lifelong friends who never sold their stock in me and many rehab counselors and therapists who tried to help. I’m ever grateful for my daughter Jessica’s blind faith in me in spite of me being less than a great father for a good part of her life. She is always patient with me as we work through our issues.

In Ohio and Michigan, many families were there for me, including the Mulligans, the Loftons, the Dailys, the Wares and the Cromwells. Some of those families also connected me with wonderful students at Xavier University and the “poppers” at Sycamore High School. This time in my life is also when I met my super case worker, Cheryl W and the staff of the Greater Cincinnati Coalition for the Homeless. That’s where the Streetvibes program, led by Donald Whitehead and Jimmy Heath, got me introduced to the life-changing power of the street newspaper movement.

Full circle or return of the prodigal?

Today I have a place to call home, a place to start, ironically in Adams Morgan.

Even more ironic, or perhaps moronic, after three years I find myself back at "Start," as if I were playing Chutes and Ladders with my youngsters. I’m working to develop a new Street Sense vending spot near my new home. Definitely humbling.

I debuted my return officially at Philz Coffee during this year’s Adams Morgan Day festivities.

Humble me...

But there's no need to slaughter the fatted calf! Just stop to say hello.

It is always my hope that passersby will enjoy my music and movement return my greetings, stop and chat, learn my intentions and maybe even buy a paper!

You can read more about Ken’s business at Brims4You.com and see more of his contributions the paper on StreetSenseMedia.org

Back in the D.C. area, I am forever grateful to places like SOME, Miriam’s Kitchen, the Lamb Center, the Alexandria Community Service Board, my many friends at St Mary’s Catholic Church in Old Town and the people of the The Word of Life Church International Church in Springfield, VA — including Pastor Josiah and my guardian angel, Julius. Their homeless breakfast program picks people up in school buses from, 2nd and D Street shelter and Franklin Park.

Street Sense co-founder Ted Henson never gave up on me either. He supported me and my follow early Street Sense vendors just as we supported one another at the beginning.

Just as my community at the Del Ray Farmers’ Market supports me now. I value their prayers, mentorship and constant encouragement and I’m honored to call them friends. The many wonderful “Friends of Bill” I have met along this amazing journey have also enriched my life.

And I don’t want to forget the lady I met on a lonely Metro ride home that day years ago who planted the seeds in my head that led me to a fulfilling career where I am able to use my successes and failures to help others who are suffering as I was. That woman was Jerri Davis.

I try each day to live in a way that honors the long-term commitment that all of you have made to me. If it takes a village to raise a child, my story proves it also takes a village to reclaim a life. Thank you all.

Photo by Rodney Choice

What an experience

BY LAWRENCE BROWN // Artist/Vendor

BY KEN MARTIN // Artist/Vendor

It all started three years ago in Adams Morgan at Life Asset, the microenterprise program located on 18th Street NW that persuaded me to reboot my news sales career after nearly half a century. (I was a paperboy with the Washington Evening Star at age 13.)

I needed to be humbled before actively pursuing "Brims," my entrepreneurial quest to sell quality headwear with quality care.

So off to Street Sense I went!

That was three years ago, give or take a fortnight. Since then, I have accomplished a few things.

I've made a host of friends, developed a supportive network of great folks that helped keep me alive - folks I've come to love as much as family. I've even discovered a nemesis (or five). I've survived life on the streets "with a little (BIG TIME) help from my friends." I’ve made news, local and abroad — all very humbling, right?!

// 1 3

Artisans, restaurateurs, politicos and residents turned out for the 2017 Adams Morgan Day street fair. PHOTOS BY KEN MARTIN

I will never forget the first day I sold papers I made $20 cash and sold all my papers most who bought were 9 to 5 people at-home moms, but no students I worked different areas, like corners or the middle of the street or block selling newspapers changed me because it helped me to communicate better with people and learn how to run a small business and be a professional.

Faith, hope & charity

BY ANGELA POUNEDS // Artist/Vendor

We all need help one way or another. I need help getting food stamps and medical insurance. I can't pay for my prescriptions, but the money my customers give when they buy my papers helps me a lot.

I think before I choose to do anything. And you should too. I'm letting God into my life and love into my heart. Loving myself and others matters a lot to me. So does believing in and practicing faith, hope, and charity.

1 4 // S T R E E T S E N S E M E D I A // O C T. 4 - 1 7 , 2017

FUN & GAMES CROSSWORD: Each clue ends with the number of words in the term. This week’s puzzle contains terms and phrases related to an article on page six.

SUDOKU: Fill in the blank squares so that each row, each column and each 3-by-3 block contain all of the digits 1-9.

LAST WEEK’S PUZZLE SOLUTION >>

1. A c o n t r a c t b e t w e e n a developer and the city that involves the sale of government owned land (3) 2. Development that groups varied and compatible land use, such as housing and commercial centers (3) 3. An independent quasi-judicial body empowered to grant relief from the strict application of zoning regulations and approve certain uses of land (4) 4. Allows a property owner to use their property in a way that deviates from local zoning standards (1) 5. A conditioned, permitted use in a particular zone district (2) 6. Development where multiple buildings are constructed, but each unit does not have its own footprint on the land (2) 7. Development where multiple buildings are constructed and each unit has its own footprint on the land (2) 8. Sparse development, often featuring detached builings on large plots of land (2) 9. N u m e r i c a s s e s s m e n t o f income in a region, used for pricing and limiting access to affordable housing.

Includes 20 nearby cities and counties (3) 10. A s i g n e d c o n t r a c t b y community groups and a real estate developer that requires the developer to provide specific amenities (3)

Authors Gene Weingarten is a college dropout and the nationally syndicated humor columnist for The Washington Post. Author Dan Weingarten is a former college dropout and a current college student majoring in information technology. Many thanks to Gene Weingarten and The Washington Post Writers Group for allowing Street Sense to run Barney & Clyde.

STREETSENSEMEDIA.ORG

COMMUNITY SERVICES

SHELTER HOTLINE Línea directa de alojamiento

(202) 399-7093

YOUTH HOTLINE Línea de juventud

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE HOTLINE Línea directa de violencia doméstica

(202) 547-7777

(202) 749-8000

Housing/Shelter Vivienda/alojamiento

Education Educación

Health Care Seguro

Clothing Ropa

Legal Assistance Assistencia Legal

Case Management Coordinación de Servicios

Food Comida

Employment Assistance Assitencia con Empleo

Transportation Transportación

Showers Duchas

All services listed are referral-free Academy of Hope Public Charter School 202-269-6623 // 601 Edgewood St., NE aohdc.org

Bread for the City 202-265-2400 (NW) // 561-8587 (SE) 1525 7th St., NW // 1640 Good Hope Rd., SE breadforthecity.org

Calvary Women’s Services // 202-678-2341 1217 Good Hope Rd., SE calvaryservices.org

Catholic Charities // 202-772-4300 catholiccharitiesdc.org/gethelp

Central Union Mission // 202-745-7118 65 Massachusetts Ave., NW missiondc.org

Charlie’s Place // 202-232-3066 1830 Connecticut Ave., NW charliesplacedc.org

Christ House // 202-328-1100 1717 Columbia Rd., NW christhouse.org

Church of the Pilgrims // 202-387-6612 2201 P St., NW food (1-1:30 on Sundays only) churchofthepilgrims.org/outreach

Community Family Life Services 202-347-0511 // 305 E St., NW cflsdc.org

Community of Hope // 202-232-7356 communityofhopedc.org

Covenant House Washington 202-610-9600 // 2001 Mississippi Ave., SE covenanthousedc.org

D.C. Coalition for the Homeless 202-347-8870 // 1234 Massachusetts Ave., NW dccfh.org

Father McKenna Center // 202-842-1112 19 Eye St., NW fathermckennacenter.org

Food and Friends // 202-269-2277 219 Riggs Rd., NE foodandfriends.org (home delivery for those suffering from HIV, cancer, etc)

Foundry Methodist Church // 202-332-4010 1500 16th St., NW ID (Friday 9am–12pm only) foundryumc.org/ministry-opportunities

Friendship Place // 202-364-1419 4713 Wisconsin Ave., NW friendshipplace.org

Georgetown Ministry Center // 202-338-8301 1041 Wisconsin Ave., NW georgetownministrycenter.org

Jobs Have Priority // 202-544-9128 425 Snd St., NW jobshavepriority.org

Loaves & Fishes // 202-232-0900 1525 Newton St., NW loavesandfishesdc.org

Martha’s Table // 202-328-6608 2114 14th St., NW marthastable.org

Samaritan Inns // 202-667-8831 2523 14th St., NW samaritaninns.org

Samaritan Ministry 202-722-2280 // 1516 Hamilton St., NW // 202-889-7702 // 1345 U St., SE samaritanministry.org

Sasha Bruce Youthwork // 202-675-9340 741 8th St., SE sashabruce.org

So Others Might Eat (SOME) // 202-797-8806 71 O St., NW some.org

St. Luke’s Mission Center // 202-333-4949 3655 Calvert St., NW stlukesmissioncenter.org

Thrive DC // 202-737-9311 1525 Newton St., NW thrivedc.org

Unity Health Care // 202-745-4300 3020 14th St., NW unityhealthcare.org

Washington Legal Clinic for the Homeless 1200 U St., NW // 202-328-5500 legalclinic.org

Miriam’s Kitchen // 202-452-8926 2401 Virginia Ave., NW miriamskitchen.org

My Sister’s Place // 202-529-5991 (24-hr hotline) mysistersplacedc.org

N Street Village // 202-939-2060 1333 N St., NW nstreetvillage.org

New York Avenue Shelter // 202-832-2359 1355-57 New York Ave., NE

BEHAVIORAL HEALTH HOTLINE Línea de salud del comportamiento

1-888-793-4357

Laundry Lavandería

Patricia Handy Place for Women 202-733-5378 // 810 5th St., NW

The Welcome Table // 202-347-2635 1317 G St., NW epiphanydc.org/thewelcometable

Whitman-Walker Health 1701 14th St., NW // 202-745-7000 2301 MLK Jr. Ave., SE // 202-797-3567 whitman-walker.org

For information and further listings, visit our online service guide at StreetSenseMedia.org/Service-Guide

// 1 5

JOB BOARD DC General Family Emergency Shelter Utility Worker 920 Rhode Island Ave NE Full-time/part-time, hourly position Clean, mix cleaning solutions, move furniture manually or using hand trucks/flatbeds, maintain log entries, communicate with supervisors REQUIRED: High School diploma or equivalent, ability to transport up to 50 lbs occasionally and 35 lbs regularly. Email a cover letter and resume to DCGHR@community-partnership.org with Utility Worker in the subject line Maintenance Assistant 1234 Massachusetts Ave NW Full-time Painting, drywall repairs, tile work, light carpentry, and plumbing. Located at one site but will be called to complete assignments at other sites REQUIRED: High school diploma or equivalent, two to three years of building maintenance experience. Apply online at http://www.dccfh.org/ career-opportunities/maintenance-assistant or print out application and mail in Food Service Monitor 920 Rhode Island Avenue, NE Times: Full-time/part-time, hourly position Prep, serve and store all meals and snacks provided by the contracted food service vendors.

Maintain compliance with district and federal requirements for nutrition, sanitation, and safety REQUIRED: High School Diploma or equivalent, experience and/or training in food service, ability to transport up to 50 lbs occasionally and 35 lbs regularly, current food handlers certification is a plus. Email a cover letter and resume to DCGHR@community-partnership.org with Food Service Worker in the subject line Receptionist Washington, D.C. Shiftwork position Greet guests, check guests in and out through booking software, and serve beverages Previous salon/spa experience preferred. Apply online at http://tinyurl.com/http-tinyurlreceptionist Relief Resident Monitor Community of Hope De-ice the walkway, shovel snow, write shift and incident reports, communicate with staff and residents, reports, monitor security cameras, walk through building hourly, and manage front desk activities.

REQUIRED: High school diploma or equivalent; able to use computer software such as Microsoft Windows, Word, Excel; and Google Mail.

Experience working with the homeless population and/or in a residential environment preferred.

Apply online at https://www.communityofhopedc. org/relief-resident-monitor-0

OCT. 4 - 17, 2017 VOLUME 14 ISSUE 24

INTERESTED IN A SUBSCRIPTION? VISIT

Street Sense Media 1317 G Street, NW Washington, DC 20005

STREETSENSE.ORG/SUBSCRIBE

Nonprofit Org

WWW.INSP.NGO

US Postage Paid Washington, DC Permit #568

MAIL TO:

5.6 Million Thank you for reading Street Sense!

From your vendor

READERS

11,000 VENDORS

112

STREET PAPERS

35

COUNTRIES

24

LANGUAGES