by Staff Writer

Who is Poor?

Living in a hotel

Latinos,

men,

little child,

sadness in their face.

I am

I am Peruvian

I am happy being who I am

I am not poor, nor rich.

I am strong

when I see some injustices going on

I do something about it.

by Leroy Moore

The night was crisp and the red sun was about to set as the radiant moon covered the star filled sky. The crowd hovered inward, to share body heat and shelter each other. A warm, respectful and supportive family-like crowd of twenty to thirty friends, family members and supporters of Idriss Stelley and his mother gathered outside the Sony Metreon Theater on September 13th to pay respects and to remember the colorful life of Idriss. More than fifty people shed their own light on the Metreon, where Idriss was shot more than twenty times by police officers of SFPD on June 13, 2001.

The warmth and light that beamed around the circle came by many creative outlets. Some fifty candles were lit as artists, activists, family and friends called on Idriss’ spirit through Congo drumming, with spoken word from The Po'Poets of POOR Magazazine, stories and personal comments and songs. Food Not Bombs nurtured our stomachs with French bread and soup. The beautiful words gave strength to our souls. Mesha’s candle was lit as she spoke about her son and what it meant for her and other poor people to be standing at the mouth of a symbol of capitalist corporate culture. Candle after candle illuminated the altar, handmade from pictures of Idriss and people’s healing and gorgeous words and artwork.

A rainbow of supporters, youth and elders, all shared the mike to reflect on the life and the endless fight for justice of Idriss and other people with mental illness. The candlelight ceremony closed with a traditional salute to our ancestral spirits as we faced North, South, East and West. The last words came from Sam, Idriss’s soulmate, who encouraged, “Don’t give up the fight.” He also announced a hearing at the Board of Supervisors on the shootings of people with mental illness, such as Idriss Stelley.

When the crowd dispersed, I stared at the Sony Metreon Theater. A man pushed his shopping cart, heading away from the theater. The warmth left.

by JJ Colagrande/PoorNewsNetwork

It is Feb. 16 2002 and a heavy silence lingers in the air of the auditorium of the SF public library. It is a huge room filled with hundreds of seats and the weight of the silence is heavy because the room is almost empty; however, the silence is not tense, just hollow, as it waits for a life and a voice that would soon consume it.

I sit alone in the scarcly filled meeting room waiting for the conference on race and disability to begin and I start to dream. I dream about being a track and field star. Back in the day I used to run track. In my dream I’m jetting down a track, it is the track that surrounded the football field of my old junior high school in New York, the same track where I used to always lose every race I competed in. I was one of the only white boys in a class dominated by African-Americans and it was hard for me to catch up with some of the track stars at my school cause they were fast. In my dream I’m in a race and I’m running as fast as I can. In my dream I’m fueled with desire, loaded with determination, and I’m challenging every obstacle in my course. I’m leaping every hurdle, jumping as high and far as I can, and I’m about to cross the finish line victorious but I wake up before I win.

The silence of the auditorium is starting to make me uncomfortable. The conference was suppossed to start fifteen minutes ago. I look around and notice Samuel Irving sitting alone in the front row. He is a dark chocalate warrior poet, humble, calm, strong like a bomb. He has multiple scilrosis and is legally blind. He sits alone just as I do.

As an able white man I actually feel self-conscious in a room filled with disabled people of color. I feel different and I don’t like the feeling at all. I know I’m not different but I can’t help feeling that I am. I wonder how I can overcome my self-consciousness as I meditate on the uncomfortable silence in the room.

The conference at the library begins when Leroy Moore, the last minute substitute host of the event, strolls up to the microphone and gives the hollowed ghost of silence a soul. He fills the quiet air with a voice. He announces, "I have stories to tell and I won’t shut up."

Samuel Irving is soon introduced to the microphone and he steps up to recite a couple of poems. From his poem entitled Headway he said something that caused my self consciousness to evaporate like dew when the sun breaks through from the clouds. He recited "my structure is what you don’t see when you look at me."

Word.

Word up, Samuel.

The conference continues and Leroy introduces a wide variety of poets, disabled activists, and advocates of disability rights. I begin to hear these diverse voices, african- american, latino, asian, all within this community, all educated and eloquent, and I wonder why they are not being heard.

I think back to when I was a kid and how frustrated I was when adults would not take me seriously. It was like my teachers or parents did not listen to me. Like they didn’t talk to me. Sure they talked about me or through me or around me but never TO me. I had a voice, just like all those voices that filled the library hall with life, so why exactly wouldn’t anybody listen?

The conference at the public library was designed to help get a serious voice heard. Organized by the Disability Advocates of Minorties Organization, the conference presented the Breaking the Silence and Organize Campaign. The BSOC is a platform for disabled people of color. The main goal of BSOC is to build friendships and leaders through networking. The BSOC also strives to display the culture, artistic talents, and history of disabled people of color while advocating legal rights, services, and bringing to light issues that touch the disabled people community in San Francisco.

The BSOC was born because there is no platform where disabled people of color can come together to express themselves, feel empowered. It is a question of empowerment so that the disabled community can use their own abilities to facilitate change. The BSOC wants to increase public awareness about issues that face them. One such issue is unemployment. Disabled minorities have the highest unemployment rate every year.

I sit comfortably in my chair in the last row of the scarcley filled auditorium, even though I know things are crazy, hard, and just ill sometimes I’m at ease, and I listen.

If you whisper you may not be heard.

If you speak you still may not be heard.

If you yell you will be heard.

But will people listen?

At the end of an ispirational conference, Leroy Moore, when commenting on his desire to get the BSOC’s voice heard, says, "next year we want this auditorium full."

I have no trouble believing him.

by PNN Staff

The Hip-Hop Generation Can Call For Peace
by Jeff Chang

This past weekend, as we mourned the countless victims of 9/11 and built
with each other in passionate conversations on what to do next, President
George W. Bush finally and unequivocally declared war.

He ordered a call-up of 50,000 reservists—the first step towards
reinstituting the draft—while preparing Americans for a long, ground war
that could leave many innocent Afghanis dead or displaced. Reversing the
Powell doctrine to seize upon a desire for vengeance, he warned that there
may be no forseeable end to this war, and declared no specific enemy.

This does not bode well for the hip-hop generation. As STORM, the Bay Area
hip-hop activist organization says, "Increasingly, safety at home will
require justice abroad." Bush’s open-ended war could leave us increasingly
insecure, subject to more terror not less, with less justice for all in the
world.

Because of its history, the global hip-hop generation can play a crucial
moral role in the call for peace—peace on the streets where we live, and a
global peace free from terror.

At one time, others dissed our generation by saying that we were privileged,
that we had never been tested by war. [This was before Bush’s father opened
the Persian Gulf War.] The fact is that hip-hop was born under the
conditions of war. It grew and spread as a global alternative to war.

Before hip-hop, during the early 1970s, Jamaica’s bloody tribal wars
fostered a music and culture of defiance in roots, dancehall and dub reggae.
This music and culture—a safe space from the bloody gang runnings on the
street—immigrated to the Bronx—a space so devastated by deindustrialization
and governmental neglect that when Ronald Reagan visited in 1980, he
declared that it looked like London after World War II. In the Bronx, the
Universal Zulu Nation, hip-hop’s first institution and organization,
literally emerged from a peace forged between racially divided, warring
gangs.

As Reagan took office, immigration was rapidly browning the face of America.
The "culture war" was declared—a way to contain the nation’s growing
diversity. Culture warriors went after youth in their schools; they fought
multiculturalism, ethnic studies, and affirmative action. In Congress, they
sought limits on movie and music content.

Hip-hop turned out to be everything they detested—it was real,
truth-telling, unapologetic, and, worst of all, their kids loved it. Imagine
how they felt when Chuck D enlistened millions into the opposition by
rhyming, "They’ll never care for the brothers and sisters cause the country
has us up for a war."

In one sense, hip-hop won the culture war. By the end of the 80s, Public
Enemy and Spike Lee, John Singleton and N.W.A., and other brothers and
sisters had crashed the lily-white pop culture mainstream. Hip-hop became
the single most potent global youth force in a generation.

But the culture war had serious political consequences, too. Right-wingers
manufactured the conditions—moving drugs and guns into the ghetto via the
wars in Central America—for a resurgence of gang warfare. And they succeeded
in stigmatizing inner-city gangs—whose ranks, of course, were swoll with
young, poor people of color—as mindlessly, irredeemably violent and evil.

Hip-hop reveled in the young generation’s diversity. The culture warriors
taught other generations to be afraid of it. When the 90s came, they warned
of a coming wave of juvenile crime, one that would crest with the darkening
demographic surge.

Their apocalyptic predications began a dramatic shift in juvenile justice,
away from rehabilitation towards incarceration. 48 states made their
juvenile crime statutes more punitive. Dozens of cities instituted curfews,
anti-cruising laws, and sweep ordinances (which were ruled unconstitutional
by the Supreme Court but have reappeared in many cities).

Especially after the 1992 Los Angeles riots, as urgent gang truce work
forged peaces across the country, the new laws were implemented at a
feverish clip and enforced with a heavy hand. Juvenile arrests and detention
populations skyrocketed, even as juvenile violent crime rates plummeted.

Local police, the FBI, and private companies began compiling gang databases.
Every young boy or girl of color who fit the profile—sagging, baggy jeans,
athletic shoes, hip-hop swagger—became fodder for the gang databases. In
Cook County, IL, the gang database was two-thirds black. In Orange County,
CA, 92 percent of those listed in the gang database were of color. Angry
Black, Chicano and Latino parents in Denver, CO, learned that eight of every
ten young people of color in the entire city were listed.

Postmodern racial profiling was invented for the hip-hop Generation, the
most catalogued and surveillanced in history. Along with the "war on
drugs"—the only result of which has been racist sentencing and the largest
prison population in world history—what hip-hop activists called the "war on
youth" left a generation staring into a tense present and an insecure
future.

These are the reasons why thousands of hip-hop activists came out to protest
at the Republican and Democratic Conventions last year. They took courageous
stands against the massive profiling and imprisoning of a generation;
against the death penalty; for better education; and for stopping gang
violence. They linked these issues to global struggles for economic and
racial justice.

Now that President Bush has declared an open war with no clear enemy, the
global, multiracial, polycultural hip-hop generation can elevate beyond the
chant of "No justice, no peace"—a cry that, in truth, sounds much different
when uttered by Bush.

If we can understand the history of wars from Israel to Afghanistan the way
that we understand our own generation’s history, we can link what is
happening on our streets with what is happening in our world.

We can call for peace on our streets—to be free from profiling and
imprisoning, to be free from the cycle of violence that causes us to kill
each other needlessly.

And we can call for peace in our world—to be free from the kind of terror
that strikes our bodies and our hearts, to be free from the cycles of
violence driven by geopolitical posturing and economic greed that cause us
to kill each other needlessly.

Everyone deserves a better, safer future. Hip-hop has already survived many
wars. Time and again, we have learned how to react to crisis by forging a
principled peace. As we stand on the brink of the biggest war we have ever
faced, let us come together to find the most powerful, lasting peace yet.

[Reply to: cantstopwontstop@mindspring.com]

9-11 ATTACKS: STORM’S FOUR MAIN POINTS IN RESPONSE
TO THE BOMBINGS OF THE WORLD TRADE CENTER
& THE U.S. PENTAGON
by STORM (Standing Together to Organize a Revolutionary
Movement), Bay Area activist group with deep hip-hop roots

1. Oppose terrorism, and build people’s power: We mourn the loss of life
and the great pain endured by those who have suffered as a result of these
attacks. Those of us who desire a world free from exploitation and
oppression must rely on the consciousness, capacity and confidence of
working class and oppressed people to carry out our own liberation. There
are no shortcuts in this process. Acts of terrorism against civilian
targets do not advance this process, but retard it. We oppose the use of
terror tactics - especially such tactics against civilian populations – as
destructive to the fundamental aims of the liberation movement. We must
organize our people to liberate themselves with the clarity of their own
minds, the courage of their own hearts and the work of their own hands.

2. Oppose the narrowing or elimination of the people’s democratic rights:
The U.S. government must stop using the suffering of the victims of these
attacks as an excuse to narrow and eliminate the people’s democratic rights.
We oppose any and all efforts to increase the funding and authority of U.S.
police and intelligence agencies as a "solution" to this crisis. We are
disgusted by the present attempts by the U.S. security and surveillance
establishment to use this tragedy to orchestrate a cynical power grab and to
cash in on the pain of the victims. We oppose any efforts to wipe out the
people’s fragile and precious privacy rights; we oppose any efforts to
curtail the people’s basic First Amendment rights to assemble, speak,
publish, protest and organize free from government harassment and
surveillance. We must now be extraordinarily vigilant against threats
directed against the people - not from underground cells, but from the
highest levels of government.

3. Rely on global justice to deter future attacks: The system, in the
United States and worldwide, has continually denied peaceful, "legitimate"
attempts by those seeking justice and freedom. Through its own reckless,
violent and oppressive actions against poor people and people of color, the
United States government has fueled frustration, grief and outrage here and
across the globe. Just as we mourn the pain and the loss of life stemming
>from these recent attacks on U.S. soil, we continue to mourn the pain and
the loss of life that U.S. military and economic domination inflicts on
people worldwide. Suffering under this oppression, people throughout the
world are becoming more and more desperate. Neither police repression at
home nor U.S. bombs abroad will ease this fundamental despair; to the
contrary, such actions will only continue this vicious cycle of frustration
and violence. Ordinary people in the United States can best deter future
attacks by insisting that the U.S. government abandon its oppressive role of
keeping down workers and dominating poor nations around the world.
Increasingly, safety at home will require justice abroad. Intensified
police crackdowns at home and military savagery abroad are not the answer;
the answer is justice. We must not allow the United States to respond with
bombs for Third World people and continued support for repressive
dictatorships and rapacious corporations. Instead, we demand that the US
respond to this crisis with efforts to meet the legitimate demands of the
majority of the human family.

4. Oppose racist, anti-Arab bigotry: The media is already feeding the
frenzy of anti-Arab hysteria. We cannot allow U.S. racism to blind our
minds or cloud our hearts. Stereotypes and scapegoating will not lead us
out of this crisis. Solidarity and compassion will. All people – and
especially African-Americans, Asian/Pacific-Americans, Latinas/os and Native
Americans – must stand in solidarity with our Arab and Muslim sisters and
brothers.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CALL STORM/Standing Together to Organize a
Revolutionary Movement, 510.496.6094

*WHERE IS HIP HOP? RIGHT HERE!*

by Davey D

Over the past week, I've had a number of discussions and read a number
of emails with people pointing fingers demanding to know what the Hip
Hop community is going to do and where does the Hip Hop community
stand on the WTC Attacks? The questions have been asked in such a way
as to imply that many of us have removed ourselves from tragedy and we
have not been effected. It implies that even at this sad moment cats
are running around drinking crystal and trying to keep it 'gangsta'.
I wanted to take some time out to give props and perhaps set the
record straight.

First, many Hip Hoppers were upset, traumatized, worried and now
grieving like everyone else...When the attacks first occurred many
people were concerned about family and friends. 'We're they safe?'
'Did they witness the horror?' 'Was anyone they know missing?' This
drama was complicated by the fact that many in the Hip Hop community
were still grieving over the loss of Aaliyah who had perished less
than two weeks prior to the WTC attacks. Y'all recall seeing cats
like DMX break down? Others like Q-Tip and Damon Dash were
devastated. Candlelight vigils were being held all over the country.
Grief was in the air from coast to coast. Here in the Bay Area people
were not only dealing with that loss but also the sudden fatal car
accident that resulted in the deaths of two popular Bay Area artists.
This happened a week after Aaliyah died. The funeral for Cougnut was
scheduled the day of the attack. Cats all over the Bay had heavy
hearts. All this was being processed when the attacks occurred.

Shortly after the attacks, I saw an email circulating from my man Yoda
of the pioneering group The Crash Crew letting folks know his cousin
was missing. I'm not sure of the end results. Hopefully tragedy
didn't strike his family. Another email circulated indicating that
rap star Dana Dane who worked at the World Trade in the computer field
was also MIA. For several days people were concerned. Fortunately,
there was a happy ending. Dana Dane was found alive and well. He
wasn't at work that fateful morning. Many other artists and Hip
Hoppers found themselves on the road stranded from their home base.
If you lived in NY and was outside of NY it was damn near impossible
to get phone calls through. I know for myself I was on pins and
needles for several days as I waited anxiously to hear back from
family, friends and loved ones that were on my list who I couldn't
reach from 3000 miles away. It was mad hectic and continues to be for
many within Hip Hop.

With that being said I have to be honest when I say we have to give
major props to many in the Hip Hop community who have stepped up big
time in the aftermath of last week's terrorist attacks. First we have
Dr Dre who has dug deep into his pockets and donated 1 million dollars
to help relief efforts and rescue workers. His fat donation was done
in conjunction with a larger relief effort being put forth by Los
Angeles' Power 106 radio station. Other artists like Snoop Dogg,
Warren G, Shaq and Jay-Z who was stuck in LA for the past week have
also chipped in... Big Boy [another Hip Hopper] who hosts Power 106's
popular morning show set a goal of raising 1.6 million dollars. It's
an achievable figure if each of Power's listeners donate 1 dollar
each...

Wyclef Jean who recently lost his father a week or so ago, in a freak
accident will be participating in tonight's [Friday] TV Network
telethon 'America A Tribute to Heroes". Others like Busta Rhymes and
Run DMC are participating with the 'We Are Family' benefit project
which is being put together by producer Nile Rogers who is bringing a
number of other artists together to re-record the Sister Sledge
classic of the same name. The Wu-Tang Clan has donated 10 thousand
dollars to Hot 97s Hip Hop has a Heart Foundation. DMX and his Ruff
Ryders crew will be doing a special concert to raise money for relief
efforts.. There are dozens of others who are have been contributing
money.

P-Diddy stepped up and chipped in with his parent company Arista
Records to donate 2 million dollars to relief efforts. Other groups
like the Da Beatminerz have put on charity events like the one they
did last night [Thursday Sept 20th]. The Arsonists have pledged to
donate 50% of their album sales. FUBU clothing has donated 25
thousand bucks. Last week Michael Franti and Spearhead did not one,
but two free concerts to show support and solidarity with Arab
Americans who have suddenly become the victims of vicious hate crimes.

The day after the bombing, Bay Area Hip Hop organizations like Lets
Get Free, Youth Force Coalition, STORM, and Underground Railroad
teamed up with community based organizations and held the first of
several Anti-Arab solidarity rallies drawing more than 500 people.
They felt it was important that communities of color in Oakland come
together and make a statement. Everyone from local artists to poet
June Jordan came through and represented.

Dwayne Wiggins gathered up dozens of local poets and artists and had a
huge event at his Java House Coffeeshop where folks spoke out about
the recent attacks.. BET actually had a crew on hand to cover it.. I
have no idea when it will be shown. So many people came through that
folks wound up having to stand outside to listen.. Local artists
Company of Prophets, Underground Railroad and Loco Bloco are helping
organize a solidarity March and Rally Against Racism and this
Saturday, September 22 at Delores Park at 11 am..

Many Hip Hop writers and journalists have been stepping up and writing
compelling pieces dealing with this event from various angles. For
example, Hip Hop writer Jeff Chang has penned an incredible article
called "The Hip-Hop Generation Can Call For Peace". Author Ferai
Chideya of Popandpolitics.com has a number of articles on her website
dealing with before, during and after the event. Yvonne Bynoe of
Urban Think Tank which is a hip hop think tank and publishes Doula
Magazine, has a reflective essay about how she became 'more American'
after the attacks. Hip Hop photographer Ernie Paniccioli has also
penned some deep words in an essay which is being widely distributed.
Cedric Muhammed of Blackelectorate.com continues to drop all sorts of
knowledge on the ins and outs of Middle East politics and culture. He
clearly explains all the challenges that we as a country will be
facing.

Producer/ artist Kwame Anku and his Urban Campfire project which does
a lot of work with Chuck D has been traveling the country from
Connecticut to San Diego holding townhall meetings and providing young
people with an important forum to express their views. In a recent
radio interview he pointed out that a lot of people are being brought
to the table to speak on all these issues. What has been missing our
the voices of young people and the Hip Hop community. He noted that
whatever solutions are laid out, this audience should have some sort
of perspective out there being considered. He has been doing what he
can to ensure that happening. The Urban Campfire project will be
doing a big townhall next week during The Congressional Black Caucus.

All this is just the tip of the iceberg. Many are doing what they can
under what are some extremely stressful and mind boggling conditions.
I've witnessed Hip Hop and mixshow DJs taking time out to educate
themselves so they speak intelligently on the air about this
situation. Others have been launching projects ranging from blood
drives to on air fundraising efforts..

I thought I'd share some of this information because lots of people
who stay glued to CNN and MSNBC have arrogantly stated that they have
not heard from the Hip Hop community.... Mmmm Did they expect artists
to be sitting up there on CNN next to Chris Mathews? Did they expect
artists to be offering expert opinions alongside Katie Couric on the
Today show? There are many within Hip Hop who certainly could speak
on the issue. Many have traveled around the world. Many have
political perspectives. The question is 'did they get the call to be
invited on these shows?

I saw rappers speaking out at some of the solidarity rallies. I saw
cameras there. I saw newspapers there. I even saw some of them being
interviewed. However, when it came time to showing the final cut on
the evening news the artists were missing. It was like they weren't
even there even though they played a major part in both the organizing
and participating. Hence because of the narrow casting in news
coverage, the average person has no idea what Mos Def, Common, Talib
Kweli or KRS-One is thinking.

There are many Hip Hoppers with national name recognition who are of
Middle Eastern descent who stay abreast of international politics.
Why not get a guy like King Tech of the Wake Up Show or famed producer
Fredwreck to offer their unique perspectives on all this? There are
many artists within Hip Hop who are Muslim. Let's get their
perspective. Are they being attacked? Harassed? Accused of being
unpatriotic? Last week we had a number of local Muslims Hip Hoppers
on our airwaves talking about their take on things. It was a powerful
show in which they spoke about the true meaning of Islam. They broke
down how there were people from all races who practice Islam and they
also loaned critical insight to some of the political happenings in the
regions where were are about attack. I know our audience got a lot
out of it. Too bad we couldn't hear these same Hip Hoppers on some of
other news outlets.

We continuously make the mistake of thinking if they ain't on the
local TV show in the local paper or heard on the local radio station
then they don't exist. I always suggest to people, instead of asking
what have the rappers been doing. Ask local reporters have they
gotten a perspective and insight from the Hip Hop community. If I
can sit up here and watch TV shows go out and get opinions of actors
like Arnold Shwartznegger, George Clooney and Julia Roberts, then
certainly they can go out and seek the opinions of Chuck D, KRS-One or
even Ice Cube.

Also I'd like to add this for us to think about. Hip Hop is a lot
larger than the artists we see in videos and hear on radio. Hence
there are a number of people and organizations that people can get
insightful well understood perspectives. I'd love to turn on CNN or
even my local news show and see or hear sitting at the table a Kevin
Powell, Michael Franti, April Silver, Ferai Chideya, Jeff Chang,
Cedric Muhammed, Yvonne Bynoe, Harry Allen, Boots, Van Jones, Kwame
Anku, Cheo Choker, Raquel Lavina, Dominique Diprima, Adissa Banjoko,
Bas-1, Hodari Davis, Akiba Solomon, Will Power, Najee Ali, Kuttin'
Kandi, Christie Z Pabon, Bambaataa, Fabel, Crazy Legs etc. The list
goes on. There are lots of folks within Hip Hop who are out and about
organizing, speaking out and making things happen. Lets not act like
cats aren't around doing things. The Hip Hop community has responded
big time. From Dr Dre to P-Diddy to Company of Profits to Michael
Franti. Hip Hoppers have rose to the occasion. Lets make no
mistake. And the Hip Hop community does not need to be subjected to
some sort 'patriotic' litmus test.

Lastly let me say this.. There are dozens of Hip Hop radio shows and
publications all over the country. I would certainly hope our
'leaders' take advantage and use those mediums to reach out to that
large audience. I know for myself, my very popular Hip Hop shows have
been blessed with lots of insightful, heartfelt discussions.
Congresswoman Barbara Lee blessed our airwaves this past weekend as
did Boots of The Coup. Calls are out to Reverend Al Sharpton,
Reverend Jesse Jackson and Cornel West to name a few. The doors are
open and the opportunity is there for them to speak. Whether or not
they do so is on them at this time. I would encourage such leaders to
speak directly to our audience and provide the insight and expertise
they have worked so hard to achieve. To not do so is to widen the
communication gap and leave all of us scratching our heads asking
'Whats up"?

So where is Hip Hop and What has Hip Hop been doing? Hip Hop is
right here alongside you doing their part and trying to deal with what
was once seen as unimaginable. Now Hip Hoppers have to deal with not
only their grief, but also the the prospect of war that will change
their world forever and certainly involve them. It's a lot to
shoulder, but I'm certain we will do the right thing.

THE WTC ATTACKS

by Ernie Paniccioli

First, before anything keep in mind the loss of life pain and
suffering of the victims and the survivors. The impact of this day
will be felt for generations. No religion, political party, belief
structure, cause or grudge can justify or condone this beast like act.
Our lives will not be the same in America or any other place in the
world. The financial loss alone will be felt even in the poorest
shantytown in the Third World. Anywhere else in this world especially
Japan, the Presidents, and CEO s of the hijacked airlines would have
been on TV apologizing and offering to resign for allowing not one,
but possibly five planes to be hijacked. To my knowledge, this has
not yet happened.

A sad coincidence or irony is the airlines involved were American and
United and now every minute we hear the call for a United America.
Were the hijackers trying to tell us something like using 9-11 (911)
as the day to commit this crime? Many folks slept on prophecy and
when what they though was the millennium had passed they snickered at
scripture and prophecy. If the millennium is the celebration of the
2000th birthday of Christ, then it must be celebrated in 2001. Does
Revelation 18 refer to the World Trade Center; I for one suggest it
does and further it talks of New York City as well. We must now go
from the spiritual to the political and ask what does the future hold
for our youth and the so-called Hip-Hop generation. Try these on for
size to see who benefited from this crime against humanity.

(1) Forced induction into the military.

(2) A vast erosion of civil rights and civil liberties.

(3) Possible Martial Law.

(4) Widespread layoffs and financial hardships including a stand still
of the airline, hotel and tourism industries.

(5) Massive deportation of thousands of undocumented aliens who have
committed no crime being poor, hungry and having the desire to work
and feed their families.

(6) Racial and ethnic profiling, both by the government and misguided
"patriotic Americans".

Experience has taught me nothing happens in a vacuum, the week before
the horror America, Zionism and Israel were being skewered at the
Conference On Racism, America was being asked to pay reparations which
would amount to billions of dollars. All signs and the stock market
indicated America was headed into a recession and the tensions in the
Middle East were at the boiling point Americans were divided over
whether or not we had witnessed a Coup d etat and a stolen
presidential election. There are voices even now that suggest this
horror might be the second phase of that Coup d etat or another phase
of the activities of the establishment of The New world Order.

We must never feed into the Zealot mind set. Never believe as so many
do that we alone are the chosen people, that our religion our God is
the only valid form of worship. That our way is the only way or that
God has put you on this Earth to shame or civilize the heathens.
Fundamentalism, zealotry and racial bigotry will create wars and
hatred for generations to come. The worst enemies of peace on this
planet are the zealots and fundamentalists, they can be found in every
religion. They all worship some musty book and not the creator it is
supposed to represent. They all feel they are the chosen of God, that
they are somehow wiser, more enlightened more sacred, more holy, than
other people who share the Earth. They all have scapegoats, the
filthy Jews, the dirty Arabs, the dumb niggers, those honkies, those
stinking dot-heads, those porch monkies, etc., etc., etc. Remember
the words of Haile Selassie as sung by Bob Marley "Until the
philosophy which holds one race superior and another inferior is
discredited and abandoned, everywhere is war ."

Lets analyze this Osama bin Laden scenario carefully, he is an avowed
enemy and hater of America, and if he were to admit or boast about
having committed this horror he would become the terrorist "super
hero" and poster boy. If he did it, one of the most heinous act of
modern history why would he not take credit for it? A great rule of
thumb is that whenever anything important happens turn on the VCR and
record every news flash. I taped about 24 hours of events that
happened too fast to be filtered or censored. One amazing item I
"caught on tape" was "someone called the Secret Service on Air Force
One, had their phone numbers and secret codes and said we re coming
for you now" while Bush was in the air fleeing Washington. Either
these assassins had "inside" help every step of the way or else all
the money we have poured into defense and security has been wasted,
stolen or misused. If "angry, red blooded Americans" are seeking
justice by killing and beating up Arabs, Muslims and other "Middle
Eastern" types did they do the same when the Oklahoma City bomber was
revealed to be a blonde haired, blue eyed good ol boy ?

On a more personal note I visited the fantastic restaurant Windows On
The World at the top of the World Trade Center for my daughters
birthday just a couple of weeks before the explosions and felt sick
with dread, told my family we ve got to split and saw dead people
dancing in the club. I have been in those building hundreds of times
and never before experienced anything like that premonition. My
daughter saw the plane crash into the second tower and the buildings
crumble from her window at work.

Lastly I suggest those of you who read to please check out "Rule By
Secrecy" by Jim Marrs and to check out www.rense.com. These may help
you explore other insights into what happened and where we may be
heading in the next few weeks and months. My heart aches and I
suggest this is a powerful time for unity as human beings on this
Earth. We need reason, calm, hope and prayer to get through this
together. This is a good time to be kind and gentle to folks, you
don t know if the person next to you lost a love one, a friend or
their job or is just in shock or denial.

Peace Ernie Paniccioli

Send comments, questions and concerns to

mailto:misterdaveyd@aol.com

mailto:mrdaveyd@aol.com

The FNV Newsletter

written by Davey D

http://www.daveyd.com

http://www.rapstation.com

c 2001 All Rights Reserved

by Joe B.

I’m in Sudafed-non-aspirin haze as a gray, light to heavy drizzle began falling.

How would I know in a drug induced haze? I’m just getting over the flu.

I took those medicines at 6am with water while washing down said legally bought drugs.

Its Thursday, March, 7, 2002 my brain has gone blank... Oh yeah, The “2002 San Francisco Homeless Summit will begin at 8:15 a.m. in the Herbst Theater

Veterans Building 401 Van Ness Avenue.

Mrs. A. Fay, Lisa, and I meet up at POOR’s 2nd. Floor.

While waiting falling in and out of sleep the drizzle became louder and the sky from POOR’s squared-off picture window are grayer, darker, nearly night.

Unfortunately We, that is Fay, Junebug, Lisa and I arrived in this pandemonium in the Herbst Theater ruining my I-can-go-home ‘n’ sleep, visit girlfriend in Berkeley-staying undercover all-day because-of-rain daydream; it tingles and stimulates and is the only reason I like heavy rain or thunder showers.

Tiny’s gray car is hard to see in this monochrome gray environment.

At 8:27 I’m ‘thinkin we’re late so “The ‘PO Poets may not have time to do their stuff which means no Joe “Slam Bio” wrong.

Everyone’s slightly late it this important event Supervisor Chris Daly gently rushed us into “The Green Room” [The faded green carpet seems to be why its named though green isn’t the exclusive color] for our on stage presentation.

Leroy Moore, of (DAMO) [Disability Advocates Of Minority Organization].
With A. Fay, myself, Junebug, Poet/Low Income Housing Advocate, Tiny, half of the Co-Editor’s of POOR Magazine, Mari, on Youth Commissioner beginning around 1996 or 7 by Mayor Willie Brown as a way of having young people’s ideas and coordinate problems and solutions that young people face in society today.

I dislike being on stage, in public but once out there you don’t want to let others down and you do your best while being absolutely terrified.

I spotted Mr. James Tracy of “Right To A Roof” Its everyone is confused as their rushed this way or that, but confusion as my normal condition is like a drunk walking straight during an earthquake.

A woman with a stroller and child is having trouble entering the building because of the security guard which is a bad sign for a summit for poor folks and they are supposedly invited.

It might be a minor mishap or an indication that maybe poor folks are not gonna be help and this is another political publicity stunt.

Now safely seated at a POOR table to smooze, inform, and sell our wares we’ve created see George Smith, Amos Brown, Tom Ammiano, and Gavin Newsom some other familiar faces flitted by but their names escape me.

At 10:46 am. The drugs are beginning to ware off as the stuffy, congested throat fogged head and lowered reaction time turns crowds and individuals into movie-like slow mo freeze framed images and my bladder began asking why I drank some tea and water earlier in the morning.

Later Isabel arrived her face clouded and fuzzed at the edges her navel's what I my eyes see telescoped there “An outtie” nice navel I thought absently before looking at her face or may have said it aloud still in a half sleep/awake stupor.

Answering questions, collecting moneys, looking for change, explaining POOR’s mission, nodding off slightly missing time doesn’t feel good plus the one person-table works for short periods but not when.

Lunch is on the second floor in yet another green room. Time expands so does my bladder.

I had to go bad yet stay to watch over money jar and salable items.

Luckily a flu slows everything down, after placing most magazines, handbooks, flyers, and taking money jar with me I go the restroom, empty sun yellow liquid which means I need I’m dehydrated and must drink more water.

I impulsively decide to grab a lunch of my own on the second floor.

Supervisor, Chris Daly is outside and a suited man tells me where the room is.

Inside lots or camera’s, reporters, and people sitting chairs or pews and next to me a table full of white plastic bags.

“Is that a donation for us?” a photographer jokes.
“Just our own”

I say grabbing a white bag, exiting quickly to the elevator.

Walking back to the table slowly until I’m once again sitting still feeling the slow motion effects the flu.

Waiting for my nosebleed to signal an end to my illness.

I continue selling what items I can as the Homeless Summit continues.

While eating lunch I legally re-drugged myself with Sudafed and non aspirin; I’ve forgotten if you take those medications separate or together - thinking “oh-well I take them together as I eat a tuna fish sandwich and wash it down with a strawberry-kiwi soda.

It’s only then I thought “You’re not suppose to mix medcations together oh-well.

I began nodding off, missing gaps in time, going the bathroom, and suddenly talking to Lisa, Mari, Junebug, and Isabell unless the latter is a waking dream.

Time slowed, quickened, there is a heated discussion of John John Whane Bobbit, Lorraina Bobbit, partial castration, and a porn career, also Vagina Monologues, and being hit a lot for saying the wrong things at the wrong time to the wrong person.

Soon it was nearly time and I gathered what it needed before leaving the building.

The whole day seemed like a floating gossamer wing with nothing attached.

I hope poor folks, their advocates, reporters and politico’s get the message that improved, better, higher 'tech skills, education, and alternative work situations are possible and feasible.

Low-income housing, is not Affordable Housing and the Minimum Wage should always be continually Cost-Of-Living Adjusted so alternative ways of work is no longer locked into one mindset.

As soon as I get this stuff safely at POOR’s office I’m going home that is if I don’t end up sleeping in Local 6’s Union Hall tonight which is looking better and better to me.

Joseph Bolden/Poor Magazine
Staff Writer

by Staff Writer

September 14, 2001

Dear " ",

I decided to take you up on your suggestion that I put some of the
opinions I expressed at last night's meeting on paper. I am by no
means an authority on military or foreign affairs and these are just
my personal opinions, but for what they're worth, here are some notes.

I believe the Sept. 11 attacks are ushering in a major rightwing
offensive, both global and national. It is likely to be sustained for
some time and become a historical watershed. The rightwing of the
ruling class and its ultra-right allies could not have asked for a
better opportunity to aggressively move to reshape the world in their
image. In the absence of a major countervailing force, they have
serious grounds to feel that they will be successful. Appealing to
the American psyche, which sees its relatively peaceful surroundings
as a birthright (when it is really a national privilege), the
rightwing seeks to capture the moral high ground, whipping up
patriotism and "anti-terrorist" fervor. Wielding its superior
military and financial strength, Washington will seek to rally its
First World allies into a world "anti-terrorism campaign," bring its
erstwhile and vacillating allies into line, and destroy or mortally
cripple its enemies, especially in the Middle East and South Asia.

In some ways, this is reminiscent of the late 1940s and early 1950s.
But this time there is no socialist camp, no equivalent revolutionary
national liberation movements, and little domestic left opposition.
This means the ruling class has much greater maneuverability. They
can exert powerful military force abroad when necessary; and sugar
coat the undermining of democratic rights at home under the notion of
national consensus and the defense of democracy and freedom.

Although progressives have been thrown deeply on the defensive, there
are also openings to be part of the public discussion, if we are bold
as well as very careful. We must be bold in building extremely broad
coalitions, bold in attempting to enter the biggest media and
political platforms. If we craft our messages correctly, we have many
allies, and we should aggressively pursue working with them. We
should not self-isolate. Peace, international solidarity, religious,
anti-globalization, student, and civil rights groups should be
approached. We should also use this opportunity to get labor,
women's, anti-racist, and community organizations that tend to eschew
international issues to get involved. This new situation will affect
everyone to the core. We should actively build broad coalitions, not
be content to hang on the left, hold "small but militant
demonstrations" and expect others to come to us. We should try to get
to the forefront of the fight for peace and basic democratic rights,
spearhead largescale education campaigns, and get government bodies
on record for peace and against unwarranted racist attacks on Arabs
and South Asians.

But we must be extremely careful about our public messages (and our
internal rhetoric), lest we isolate ourselves and even make ourselves
vulnerable to physical attack. We need to demonstratively express
deep grieving over the death, destruction, and loss of security felt
by most Americans. Most of us genuinely feel this, but sometimes we
do not express it properly. Almost everyone in the country knows
someone that was somehow directly affected by the attacks, and all of
us know in our hearts that life will never be as safe as it once
seemed. Symbolism and emotions tend to run higher than rationality at
times like this, and if we do not understand this, it will be
difficult to get a hearing on other issues.

We need to avoid leftwing rhetoric and revolutionary posturing, be
concrete and address actual issues on the public agenda and not make
premature anticipations or apocalyptic predictions. Internally we
need to try to see as far ahead as possible and try to go deep
analytically in order to be as prepared as possible, but externally
we need to speak to facts on the ground, avoid concepts or images
that are adamantly rejected by even peace loving people, and avoid
prematurely polarizing with potential allies. All this while still
drawing firm lines against the right.

I believe, at this time, we have two main entryways into the broad
public discussion. By far the most important is by addressing the
issue of why this attack happened and how to respond. Even the
mainstream media is increasingly addressing this question, in its own
ways. I believe our main message should be that U.S. life will become
increasingly insecure and dangerous unless this country improves its
international behavior. In the era of globalization, peace at home is
linked to peace abroad. And increased insecurity would likely result
in lost civil liberties. We need to oppose a precipitous response by
the government to the September 11 attacks and urge restraint. We can
no longer allow our government to make war on others withou expecting retaliation, whether one thinks that retaliation is fair or
not. Peace and freedom are increasingly globalized, or not. We need
to oppose U.S. isolationism and aggression. Our loss of life should
lead not to an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, but to join
others who have experienced war in the aspiration for peace.

In taking on these issues, we should studiously avoid leftwing
shorthands like "chickens come home to roost" (which will be read as
a justification for the mass deaths of innocent people) and "no
justice, no peace" (which will be read as a justification for further
attacks). Peace, No Violence, etc. are much more directly to the
point. What we are talking about is a new kind of peace movement.

The second main entry way is through opposing attacks on Arabs and
South Asians in the U.S. Such attacks are already underway, and are
even being widely addressed by political leaders, civil rights
groups, and the mainstream media. Again, building broad coalitions
and using popular language is key. We should appeal for peace,
fairness, and oppose violent racial stereotyping. I actually think
that the more farsighted sections of the ruling class will want to
stem these attacks so that their broader offensive does not lose the
moral high ground. Minimally, they must make a nod in this direction.
We should take full advantage of this opening.

While responding immediately to these huge events, we also need to
embark on deep thinking about the implications for the future.
Apparently, war, like capital and labor, has now been globalized. We
are into war without borders. New and readily available technology
means that very small groups, even individuals, can wreak mass
destruction. The U.S. may be relatively invulnerable to direct
assault, but it is eminently vulnerable to attack by small groups.
And it has aggressively alienated millions of people, at home and
abroad, some of whom will surely take advantage of the new means at
their disposal. Israel is making the assassination of opposing
political leaders a central part of its war strategy-others are
likely to respond in kind.

This is not an altogether new situation. Most of us have known this
for some time and expected some kind of significant attacks within
the U.S. But now the genie is out of the bottle-and in a most
spectacular fashion. It is no longer theoretical. What are the
implications of this new situation for our attitude and strategies
towards war and peace, how do we distinguish between the government's
overbroad definition of terrorism and actual terrorism? How will the
ruling class and public react and what platform can we stand on? What
about the copy cat lunatic fringe and ultra-right fanatics who until
now has confined themselves to comparatively small-scale shootings
(except for Oklahoma City)? How do we break the fragmentation,
disorganization and isolation of the left under these harsh
conditions?

Finally, we should all be prepared for events to move fast. In
particular, when the U.S. mounts its counterattacks (which I believe
is likely to eventually include the murder of Saddam Hussein), a wave
of jingoism (and racism) is likely to sweep the country. We need to
work hard ahead of this wave, prepare to weather it without getting
too terribly isolated, and smartly fight our way through it. We're in
for hard times, and our allies abroad even more so. We will all be
struggling to find our bearings. We will make mistakes. Let's be
tolerant of each other, keep our eyes on the real enemies, and seek
clarity and unity. Let's think big and get organized. Maybe we can
build something for the long run.

I hope this is helpful to you in some way. Feel free to share it with
others if you deem it useful.

In peace and solidarity,
Bob Wing
Editor of Colorlines

by Joe B.

To all Editor’s, Publisher’s, Literary Agents, and hard working industry people.

I, Joseph Bolden as a POOR Magazine’s columnist appreciate pos or neg comments on my work on PM’s-website.

If time permits to read and respond by email or snail me.
Please Do At.

askjoe@poormagazine.org or snail

P.O. Box #645 1230 Market St.

San Francisco, CA. 94102-4801
I’ve no phone but working on it.

Whatever help you can to a struggling scribbler is priceless.

Thank You for reading my works.

Life Extension APPROPRIATE AGED IMMORTALITYor Age Appropriate Immortality is the more correct wording.

What does that mean?

Unlike Kate Wilhelm’s "Welcome Chaos" or John
Wyndham’s
"The Trouble With Lichen" or other stories about humanity gaining immortality before they're able to deal with its ramifications is a scary concept yet its logical that our society will someday face this fictionalized scenario.

In ancient Rome and 18 or 24 or more was the limit any older like 34 or 40 and people were deemed ancient.

No wonder Alexander The Great did so much before he turned 35, his life span was so short and he had to pack so much in a short life.

To be 10, 15, or younger forever or 90 years old permanently is equally just as bad.

But if humans learned expertly to fine-tune brain, hormonal, metabolism, and biological from pre-birth adapting the pre-embryo to where minute changes so at various ages at each stage of life they become stronger, healthier, resistant to most illnesses, regenerate quicker from cuts scrapes, even broken bones that heal without scars.

For older adults their aging could be made to be slowed until their bodies are slowly replaced with newer improved flesh and metal parts.

Possibly the Electro-chemical memory residing in the brain was transferred to an exact though new and improved twin or clone of the original body upgraded from the molecular level.

What I am saying is if we became more precise in improving our bodies and brains we could have age stops from 22 to 90 or older but biologically slowed aging will make chronological aging meaningless.

With Age Appropriate Immortality from birth to grave, reversed, slowed, or stopped age becomes irreverent in that and 50 or 90 year old looking and feeling decades younger would be like looking at someone 25 or 35.

For example: a 170 year stunner of a woman could be throbbing the cradle with some 50 year old youth, to her a mere child.

Their ages would mean nothing, a quaint, old fashioned chronological tradition.

Age Appropriate Immortality should be life extensions new frontier before full-blown immortality arrives with all its dread and worries about what death means when people choose to live long as they choose.

Its just a few ideas to kick around on life, death, living, dying, and the possible avoiding of the long gray scythe of Grim reapers blade.

What do you budding Immoralists, Cryonicists, Eternals, and Neptune Society, and Death With Dignity folks think about it?

Talk among yourselves, form new political parties based on Life Extended to Immortal and Right To Die.

I can only be a conduit, a wilderness voice hoping other people are thinking similar or more advanced than I; be safe, live long, folks… Bye.

by Joe. B.

Thursday, Sept. 28, 2001 10:54 am.

Personally dazed and confused wondering how this could happen I could not write "Mess on Market Street" series for a while until I let sink in what happened on Tuesday, September, 11th 2001.

Went to bed, have a restless sleep.

Tuesday, Oct. 2, 2001 7:30 am seven people including myself walking on Market Street. Gray skies meet me with a whiff of a cool wind.

Usually a taperecorder, an aide to voice and memory, is in my hand.

A week or two ago it is lent to someone who need was greater than mine hopefully today or in days to come it will safe in its owner's possession soon.

Please send donations to Poor Magazine
C/0 Ask Joe at 255 9th St. Street,
San Francisco, CA. 94103 USA

For Joe only my snail mail:
PO Box 1230 #645
Market St. San Francisco, CA 94102
Email: askjoe@poormagazine.org

by Isabel Estrada/PoorNewsNetwork Youth in the MEdia intern

They didn't even Pretend to have Court then.

The Lynch Mob, Poured out Justice in the Dead of the Night, leaving me,

Hanging from a Limb on a Tree. Swinging gently in the Midnight breezes…

I now get 25 years to Life?

On a Bunk in a 4 Man Cell!

From the Chain Gang to the Rape Gang!

Your Honor! Give me a Rope and I’ll Hang Myself

"I’ve been Working in the Chaingang. All the Live Long Day…"

"I’ve been Working on the Chaingang. Just to Pass the Time Away"

Mommy don’t you cry.

Mommy don’t you cry.

Mommy don’t you cry No More!

-excerpt from The Unjust JUDICIAL SYSTEM,
by A Faye Hicks/Po’ Poets Project

"Hey Lady, I told you to get moving, you can't stop there," the policeman's hostile voice paralyzed me momentarily. My mom had stopped on Mission St. so that I could get out to buy some Valentines Day cards for my third grade class when a police officer began shouting at us to move the car. She ignored him for a moment so that I could get out, but because I was scared of the man in uniform who was screaming at us I refused to move. After being stopped for about a minute with my mom encouraging me to run out quickly and buy the cards, she gave up and we went to go look for a parking space together. That was when we heard a siren behind us. My mom kept driving so that she could get off of Mission and pull over on Bartlett but the cops thought we were trying to get away. When we did pull over the officer rushed up aggressively to the car for no reason. When he tried to immediately give my mom a ticket, even though she had been stopped for less than a minute, they started screaming at each other.

The screaming escalated until the officer pulled my mom out of the car, grabbed her by the arms, pushed her up against the car violently and clamped on the handcuffs. She was then forced into the cop car. My mom was being arrested for refusing to sign the ticket for double parking on a busy street. I had been crying for a while by now. My mom had tried asking if any of the people passing by would be her witness, but they just ignored her, trying to get away from the cops as soon as possible. Two of the officers were trying in broken Spanish to persuade an elderly Mexican woman to be their witness. I was standing on the corner thinking that they were going to leave me there and take my mother until another officer told me to get into the car. I was just glad to be with my mom. When we arrived at the station I remember the officer asking my mother for our address and then turning to me and asking if what she had said was correct. I responded in a whispered voice, "My mommy doesn't lie." The officer snapped back that he wasn't implying that she had. My mom ended up staying in jail overnight and I was picked up by my after school teacher to spend the night at her house. Ever since that time I have had an unreasonable fear of the police.

"The two men were in a run of the mill fistfight," said James Thull, a witness to a crime, a crime between a police officer and a citizen that ended in a murder of the citizen. Last Wednesday, I attended a press conference at 850 Bryant St to hear of what seems like a fist fight that one cop took too personally witnessed by James Thull. Throughout the conference, it’s obvious that James is uncomfortable having a microphone up to his mouth. He is tall and lanky, his arms reach deep down into his pockets while his shoulders hunch forward. I notice with some amusement how he’s wearing a kind of scruffy sweater and skater shoes. Behind Thull there are two signs that read, "SFPD Not Above The Law" and "SFPD Does Not Equal Get Out Of Jail Free Card." I’m amazed that the soft-spoken Thull is willing to challenge the entire Police Department. He sees it as "some sort of justice situation."

On Saturday February 2nd at around 3:40 pm, Thull was on his way to work when he saw that across the street (about two small car lanes away) there were two men in a fist fight. One was a larger African-American man who he would later find out was Jerome Hooper and the other was a smaller Asian man named Steve Lee. He said in his statement to the Office of Citizen’s Complaint, "it didn’t seem as if one man was attacked by another but as if the two had chosen to engage in a fist fight." Apparently Lee was knocked down twice and then kicked in the chest before Hooper "stepped back away from the Asian man about two full steps." It was then that Lee, while on the ground, pulled out a gun and shot four times in rapid succession into Jerome Hooper’s chest. Thull later found out from his coworkers that the Asian man, Steve Lee, was an off duty police officer. But Thull stated that, "He was not in uniform and as far as I heard and saw, he ever identified himself as a police officer or appeared to be acting as a police officer."

On the outside of the Hall there is an engravement in gold lettering "To the faithful and impartial enforcement of the laws with equal justice to all…" And yet, according to Samantha Liapes, director of Bay Area PoliceWatch, "Officer involved shootings are almost never criminally prosecuted and the officers involved rarely even face disciplinary action." In this case it’s been a month and no action has been taken. "Losing a fist fight is not an excuse for killing someone – not for a civilian, not for an officer…It will be a travesty if Mr. Lee is exonerated based solely on the uniform he wasn’t even wearing when he killed Jerome Hooper," stated Liapes.

After the press conference in front of the Hall of Justice, my editor Tiny told Thull that he was a hero. His response was to look away, completely embarassed. But cases of police brutality and abuse of authority occur constantly and the main reason that they go unnoticed is because there aren’t enough people like Thull who are willing to contradict the Police Department and its skewed "half-truths." In the case of my mother, the officer was reprimanded after she took him to court but it was not because of any witness but because we had a good lawyer. But regardless of that reprimand I still had to experience the incredible fear and vulnerability of seeing some man pushing my mother around violently, cursing at her, and then I had to see her in a jail cell, all simply because she had lost her temper with him and hadn’t been willing to sign a ridiculous ticket.

by Ida McCray and Kiilu Nyasha

Warren William Wells was born in San Francisco's Alice Griffith projects (Double Rock) on Nov. 13, 1947. His first struggle in a predominately Black community was to overcome the stigma attached to his green eyes and light skin. Nicknamed "Dub," Warren got his first taste of prison in 1963 when, at the tender age of 16, he was sentenced as an adult to Soledad State Prison. It was there that he met brothers like George Jackson, Eldridge Cleaver, Alprentice Bunchy Carter, Hugo Yogi Pinell, Fleeta Drumgo, James McClain, and others.

Like so many of our young Black men (and more recently our young sisters), Warren got caught up in the revolving-door prison syndrome. As Soledad Brother George L. Jackson noted, "Black men born in the U.S. and fortunate enough to live past the age of 18 are conditioned to accept the inevitability of prison. For most of us, it simply looms as the next phase in a sequence of humiliations. Being born a slave in a captive society and never experiencing any objective basis for expectation had the effect of preparing me for the progressively traumatic misfortunes that lead so many black men to the prison gate. I was prepared for prison."

While out of prison in 1967, Eldridge brought Warren into the Black Panther Party, whereupon he became the Sergeant at Arms, or Captain Wells. He was also dubbed "The San Francisco Kid." Dedicated and fearless, Warren was a powerful functionary of the Party on both sides of the Bay. In 1968, he was shot and wounded, along with Eldridge, during the fire fight between the Panthers and police that martyred Lil Bobby Hutton, murdered in cold blood by Oakland police.

Warren loved his people, his fellow prisoners. But he hated injustice, racism and this rotten system, and knew exactly where to direct his rage. Needless to say, this level of rebellious consciousness made him a threat and a target.

Back in prison at San Quentin at the age of 22, Warren planted the seeds of struggle, sharing all he had learned from the Party with his fellow prisoners, raising political awareness and organizing prisoner solidarity. One of his best friends was James McClain, who was martyred in the Marin Courthouse Slave Rebellion of Aug. 7, 1970. It was McClain, William Christmas, Jonathan Jackson and Warren who planned that guerrilla move to free the Soledad Brothers -- George Jackson, Fleeta Drumgo, and John Clutchette. Their original plan was to use the hostages taken and make it to a radio station to expose the murderous and brutal prison conditions behind the walls of California prisons at that time.

Kumasi, one of the soldiers who spent time with Warren behind the walls, made the following statement on learning of Warren's death:

"Warren Wells was a complicated and often misunderstood comrade whose history of defiance toward authority and revolutionary activity reaches back to the early '60s. He was a key member of the prison movement, a Captain in the BPP, and was at the center of the storm that raged through the California prison system in the 1970s. There may have been cracks in his personality -- we all have them -- but he will not be counted among the broken men. And I'll miss him."

Warren and Kumasi were leaders in the development of a document known as The Folsom Manifesto, which listed prisoner grievances and demands for major changes in prison conditions, sentencing laws and labor rights as well as an end to the death penalty (which actually happened in 1972, although it was later rescinded). They smuggled it out of Folsom lockup to the general population, resulting in the longest prison strike in California history. On Aug. 24-25, 1970, Warren and Kumasi confronted the San Quentin administration after organizing some 400 Black, Chicano and White prisoners who stood together in solidarity behind the Manifesto.

In 1971, Warren was accused of planning bank robberies and other guerrilla actions from his cell. When his lifetime comrade sister Ida McCray Robinson hijacked a plane to Cuba, it was discovered that she had just visited Warren the day before she was accused of air piracy.

Said Ida, "I learned from Warren how important the Black Panther Party was, how love of people could be translated into a political context, how real men treat women, and how to fearlessly soar like an eagle, i.e., take it to the max.

"After 40 years, Warren knew what was important -- that our responsibility was first to our families, to take care of them and to take care of our people, especially our youth. I loved Warren; I loved his spirit. He never became complacent although he had been locked up most of his life."

On June 29, Warren died in the custody of the California Department of Corrections after "minor" surgery at UCSF Hospital and 17 years, this last bid. He is survived by his only son, Warren Wells Jr., his mother, Marguerite Wells, two sisters, Patricia Ann Well-Caracter and Donetta Wells-Ingram, a host of nieces and nephews and friends and comrades he has known a lifetime.

“The indeterminate sentencing of so many lifers has to be done away with,” says Ida today. “I really feel in my heart that if there was some hope of their release, it would have made a difference in his days. We must work to make the parole board and governor Davis give lifers a date in their forseeable lives when they can come home and be a part of the family, and not a hindrance, ‘cuz they are simply, very old."

by Juan Antonio Pacheco

How can I start this? From the now I guess.

Well, here I am starting my fifty-fifth year, doing close to what I damn well please, and, oh yeah, spending most nights in my van. Yes, I can say I paid my dues. Work, kids, and a failed marriage are all part of my past and present. I can also say I attend Cal State Long Beach, where I am preparing myself to teach and develop a career as a documentary photographer. This all sounds great right, well, some problems have arisen!

"You need roots," my daughter, and others have told me. Roots, I thought I had roots. My children and grandchildren are my roots.

You need, "to get on your feet," someone just remarked. Hell, I have been saying this to others, and myself, all of my life. Planning ahead is one of the major factors in a successful life. I say this all the time. Do I really know what I am talking about? How many of us actually live just for today? Very few, and not without good reason . See, there I go again!. Therefore, I have embarked upon this path. I would like to share some photos with you, and hopefully gain some wisdom along the way.

I would like to call my present lifestyle choice, for the lack of a better term, "a study" in simplification. The anti establishment, anti materialistic, and anti-authority mentality is often expressed by a choice to live within the “creases” of society. Being homeless is one of those creases. Homelessness, from my conversations with some who are, has three root causes. One is economic, the other mental health, and for some, an expression of a “freedom of choice”. A freedom from the constraints of “establishment” dictates and mores. These circumstances, as in many circumstances we may find ourselves in, has its roots and consequences. I would like to experience, address, and report on those consequences through my images and text.

I am not attempting to produce neither "works of art" within the guidelines of postmodern aesthetics, nor art criticism. My main interest is dealing with the importance of one's most basic daily needs—food, shelter from the elements, security, and surprisingly, basic human contact, or a sharing of communal space with others whom we feel care about us. These needs are often denied the truly homeless. I feel I must be particularly sensitive to the issues discussed and the images produced, hence: a self-analysis was the best solution. Empathy through self-immersion is the best way I can describe the approach to my subject matter. I am not in any way trying to pass myself off as an “expert”. Thanks for the opportunity to serve, and for providing an audience for my work.

by Joe B.

To all Editor’s, Publisher’s, Literary Agents, and hard working industry people. I, Joseph Bolden, a POOR Magazine’s columnist appreciate comments on on PM’s-website. If time permits read and respond by email or snail me.
Please Do At.

askjoe@poormagazine.org or snail

P.O. Box #645 1230 Market St.

San Francisco, CA. 94102-4801
I’ve no phone but working on it.

Whatever help you can to a struggling scribbler is priceless.

Thank You for reading past and present works.

On an early Thursday, March, 20, 2002. After a thorough wash, teeth brushing, clothed and half ready for the day.

A free oatmeal breakfast before work.

I heard about a KRON 4 telvisised event based on that homeless special report except the very people talked about were not informed so they can have their input stated too since they live “the problem“ everyday.

Its currious that the big hubbub buzz about Newsome and friends are getting yet its not about them but homeless and working poor.

Three servings later I’m walking towards my worksite.

The food is filling, nutritious, and as its liquidy contents slides through me I pick up the pace to be at work where a bathroom is waiting to empty the excess of oatmeal, raisin, and honey cereal.

Inside my workspace,upstairs so if I sensed the internal movement release an hour later before working on my column.

While sitting on the white oval porcelain bowl feeling waste empty out of me the face of Sup. Gavin Newsome pops into my mind and the Arthurian legend.

I haven’t read much about it except Arthur, hidden son of dead king Uthr as a child pulls the Excaliber Sword from a stone becoming a young boy-king, there’s Merlin, the magician and Arthur’s teacher/friend, Morgan Le Fay, Evil half sister and witch or wizardress, Knights of the round table, a sacret quest for the Holy Grail and more lessons before a last fatefull battle and a promice of King Arthur’s return.

Heady stuff, why it happened while taking a dump is a mystery to me.

I also think of the late John F. Kennedy, scion of a powerful Catholic family giving their blood, resources, before, during and after World War II.

Groomed for a future in politics, Joe Kennedy and his crew died while airborne delivering an unstable explosive compound.

Younger brother John Kennedy by proxy is next in line, His PT Boat Patrol Torpedo Boat 109 when his boat was rammed and sunk by a Japanese destroyer, Kennedy, despite grave injuries, led the survivors through perilous waters to safety. Further information can be found on www.pt-309.org
Ok, discount wars, most people statistically don’t go.

I think of Excaliber as Mr. Gavin’s 23 or 30 odd New York's Model homeless plan, Newsome’s Kennedyesque/Arthur role to help the hapless, poor, downtrodden folk. Mayor Former Sup. Amos Brown and W. Brown as Co-wizards in the cast of Merlin as wise teachers of lofty politics.

A new character introduced is Paublo Stuart a paid Psychiatrist as spellbinder Warlock Morgan Le Fay, using his arcane knowlege of human psychology, using hynotic tell-u-vision to lull both live and unseen audiance into believing Arthur and his followers are the hope of working poor and homeless folks using incarceration, spy camera’s, and centralized systems from a differnt city as an ultimate self help plan.

Paul Boden, a Knight of shining truth hopefully with his own paid Psychiatrist or volunteered on what working poor, homeless folk both need and what’s not.
I thought a bit after wiping my butt a few times. “Nah, He dosen’t think he’s has the mantle of Kennedy.

But like Authur he could go amongst the people disguised as a homeless person or working poor, over hear conversations, talk to folks for a week or 3 months and learn what really going on. His plan might change because of realities he see’s first hand not from some house on a mythical hill.
Camelot is no more though many people await its rebirth.

Time for me to work not imagine human alchemy for a changed heart with knowledge newly found. A dream maybe, but who knows...

Reincarnation could be possible, Arthur, the fallen Kennedy’s, and other hero, heroin’s may return in different guises but for now we frail mortals must do the job with souls, saints, and Gods watching from above... Bye.

by Leroy F. Moore, Jr.

I didn’t know it was OK for a person to endure a physically and emotionally painful episode of harassment due to someone’s fear of one’s name! As a Black disabled man I was afraid when David Duke ran for president but I was forced to see and hear him on T.V., radio and in the newspapers. There are many names that bring uneasy feelings to me i.e. Jerry Fallwell, LAPD, Jesse Helms and the man that stole the White House, Mr. George Bush, Jr. But I am forced to swallow my fear, deal with it and go on. Now in this time of war people can be harassed and certain people’s liberties and civil rights can be stepped on because of fear!

On Friday October 5th, 2001 Black Disabled Yahoo listserve had an email entitled “Disabled Muslim Man Faces Airline’s Harassment at San Francisco International Airport.” This man, named Samir, demanded to know why he was taken off two planes and his wheelchair searched by FBI bomb-searching dogs, causing him to miss his flight and have to wait until the following day to catch a plane home to Portland, Oregon. An Alaska Airlines employer said that “the flight attendant didn’t want him there, on the plane. She was basically afraid of his name.” The Alaska Airline’s customer service department called him to apologize and offered him a free ticket. Samir refused to take it and instead asked for a written apology, payment for phone bills he incurred while staying at a hotel as well as the equivalent of one day’s salary (he missed a day of work because of this conflict).

The airline tried to put the reason for the conflict onto the way his wheelchair was packed, not his name. Samir didn’t accept this reason because it happened twice on two different planes, and to have the FBI and everyone check and repack his wheelchair was unacceptable. And when he got home he confirmed that an Alaska Airline employee told him that his name was the reason he could not travel. This statement erases the airline’s excuse — his wheelchair — that caused him to wait eleven hours, putting him in physical distress, just to have the samething happen on a second plane.

Are we Americans going to continue to react to the incident of September 11th without thinking about how our reactions are affecting people of color, people with disabilities of color and the general public? The tragic events of September 11th caused many deaths and much destruction, and now our reactions to September 11th are causing verbal and physical harassment and abuse to our own brothers and sisters of color in our own country. Where is the healing process??

For more information on this case go to read the article written by Samana Siddiqui at

www.onelist.com/community/Blackdisabled

by Joe B.

Wednesday, April, 3, 2002.Between the early morn and night lots of activities happened from Food Bank cruising for donated delicacies to riding a bus on Valencia and listening to Junebug spitting truth, sacred word gems.

Its yet another day of this Wednesday off which I should have slept through then go to a movie but Nooooo, helping out a little for an upcoming “Resistance Award” dinner.

After deciding to forgo movies I leave late after taking a shower, teeth brushed, my recording machine has no batteries in them I’ll be dusting of an old notepad.

There’s a slight worry of being on the wrong bus at night, light panic looking for ”Modern Times Book Store for Junebug’s return from the “Cuba Sustainability Tour Report & Slide Show. It was a joint Ecology Center/Media Alliance and others recently returned delegation from Cuba.

The team visited mostly Havana about Cuba’s Organic Farming, Green medicine, Farmer’s Market, and Agricultual Collectives, and other alternatives to pesticides use in more developed countries like North America.

The Modern Times Book Store next to the Ethiopian Restaurant on 26th and Valencia Street which ment I had taken the right bus at 6:33 pm.!

Ms. June (Verse) is not here.

Tiny is there giving or selling the “Survival Handbook” on the counter, quickly said hi and bye.

Settle down in the rear of the room where a film projector, video machine, and portable movie screen.

I go out, by a mango juice, return-find a seat waiting for whatever will happen.

The slide show, movie, discussion afterwards is lively and energetic but no Junebug although there was a picture on screen showing her self and a cute cuddly puppie.

By 9pm people who are late are able to see the first film full of lively Cuban music and language.

Fighting sleep as I know Junebug did working earlier the same day must have sapped her near limitless energies that’s what I take naps like a demented vampire.

It was a great function to be at even though Junebug has not shown up.

Oh well, life’s-a twitch then your reborn doing all over again without remembering - you did this before. Bye.

by Clive Whistle, PoorNewsNetwork

Clive is a staff writer for POOR Magazine and a member of POOR’s writer facilitation project, which aims to give voice to very low and no income adults and youth desiring to be heard within the media about issues of race and class oppression.

“WAKE-UP..WAKE-UP!!!” Their voices were knives with serrated edges – pummeling through my battered skull.

“Hey Buddy- ya gotta move”- all I saw was four boots, for several seconds I thought I had been attacked by four talking boots- but then I looked further out of my cardboard cave towards the voices and discovered the boots origin – two police officers – writing in their small brown bendable notebooks –about me! - chronicling my hard life in two or three words of short hand- “ African-American….late 40’s…. Homeless…obstructing sidewalk-substance – alcohol-possible 647j and f violation…and so on….

It had taken almost six hours out of my day yesterday to find what I thought was a safe place – safe, of course is relative when you are homeless – it means maybe the cops won’t see you – maybe – you will get a few hours of uninterrupted sleep- maybe you will get an hour or two alone – maybe….

I resigned to move – feeling a little nauseous – but unwilling to appear “uncooperative” I dragged my body forward and began to collect my stu………oh shit.!!…. “Where’s my stuff?” – I looked around – all of my things- my just-cleaned blankets (which I had spent $14.00 of quarters on at the laundromat the day before)….my little radio and my new batteries – but most terrifying of all – my BACKPACK –with my meds, were gone!!! “Officer- where’s my stuff?

“Well. (Department of Public Works).DPW was here before us – - I guess you’ll have to check with them”

Before screaming, crying, hauling off and slugging the officer- landing me in county jail for longer than I care to think about – I blinked back desperate tears and stumbled down the street with my last remaining belonging – a torn and soiled sweatshirt….

I knew this drill - it would take approximately three hours and change I didn’t have to take the bus to the DPW yard which is located across town – at which point DPW people would act like they had no inkling of what I was talking about when I would describe my… out of the way – under the bridge… location where they had “seized” my stuff while I slept …and the description of my worn-out army-issued backpack.

But worse than anything else, was the loss of my meds- it had take me seven weeks of constant calling back and forth to my health provider while they waited for approval of my prescription under medi-cal- another three days after they got approval to reach me who had gone on a “self-medicated” alcohol binge and couldn’t be found and another five hour wait in my health providers office to actually get the meds- I could not go through this again- I could not….

The Civil Rights workgroup of the Coalition on Homelessness has worked for five years with the Board of Supervisors- (the current administration and the past) – Department of Public Works, Rec and Park – the Police department and so on to get a new policy implemented- that gives homeless folks like me a 24 hour notice on our belongings before they take all of our stuff – a hearing was finally held Tuesday July 3rd 2001 – five years, several hundred broke-down souls, and thousands of pounds of precious belongings later – this measure was debated with Supervisors Gonzalez, Ammiano, and Hall in the Rules committee- before it is taken to the full board.

“My office has worked extensively with advocates on the drafting of this legislation and we are very happy to have it before us today as a proposal” Board Supervisor Tom Ammiano introduced the legislation before the committee

“This legislation is extremely important to protect the civil and human rights of homeless folks in San Francisco, Mara Radar from the Coalition on Homelessness began the heated testimony

“1-5% of the people who have their belongings picked up by us come to reclaim it at our yard” Edwin Lee from the Department of Public Works responded to a question by Supervisor Hall on how many people actually retrieved their belongings from DPW.
“We are willing to work with the city in regards to improving the current situation” Mr. Lee concluded

“I am opposed to this legislation because it will lead to the increase the theft of shopping carts” Lieutenant Bruce from the San Francisco Police Department voiced his one sentence opposition and then leaned back in his chair- keeping his eyes fixed on the three supervisors.

“I hear you officer, because I am opposed to the theft of shopping carts but I don’t think this legislation even speaks about that – this legislation only speaks to the issue of personal property – and I believe that people’s right to their own personal property should be protected” Supervisor Hall responded nervously to the Lieutenent’s recalcitrant statement.

“ I understand that the legislation in fact mentions the belongings in a shopping cart or something like that, so I believe after reading the legislation that it would in fact promote the theft of shopping carts..” Luitenent Bruce’s’ statements elicited several logical arguments by Matt Gonzalez, Ammiano and Ms Radar on why that was not the case – Supervisor Hall became increasingly nervous and more unsure until the Lieutenant excused himself from the proceedings saying, “Excuse me, I have to go, I have another engagement”

After his departure there was supportive testimony by Sup. Ammiano and Sup. Gonzalez as well as members of the community who advocate for the civil and human rights of homeless folks, as well as several homeless and formerly homeless folks who have lost their stuff over and over again…

“Please try to understand the position of someone who is suffering from mental illness, physical pain and homelessness and has spent several weeks trying to get there meds and then loses it because it is disposed of. Please try to understand how horrible that is for a human being” Mary Kate Connor from Caduceus spoke as one of the advocates with words that described how I feel now and if this legislation does not pass will feel again and again and….

The Personal Property and Storage Container Removal and Storage Ordinance was recommended by the Rules Committee with a 2 to 1 vote and sent on to the full board for approval.

by Michael Manning

To read more about Micheal's case; check out the article Fighting to Stay Alive on Illin-N-Chillin.

Dear Mr. Moore,

I don’t know how to begin to thank you for all your support and aid in my case. I just want to say may God bless you, and thank you so very, very much. Words could never express how very grateful and thankful I am to you. Your gifts could never repay you. You are appreciated my brother. I read the article, Fighting to Stay Alive and it touched my heart and I cried. I felt your concern and genuine care about this ongoing and growing injustice upon disabled people.

As you know I’m serving time on an unjust sentence for defending myself against an unprovoked attack by two armed men. You asked me in your letter to describe my feelings. To be quite honest I don’t even know where to begin. I have so many feelings. One is of devastation at being the victim of a violent attack, only to turn around and be tried as the perpetrator of a crime I did not commit. At times I’m angry because my life, dreams, family and freedom were taken away from me for trying to defend myself by fighting to stay alive. Other times I am perplexed at how all the evidence in my case points to my innocence, by showing self-defense. For example, the county’s own forensic scientist, Dr. Isadore Mahalikis, confirmed that the wounds I sustained in the attack were defensive wounds and that I was the victim. Furthermore the deceased had no defensive wounds on him. My clothing was ripped and torn from the struggle, proving that I was the victim, not the aggressor.

This forensic pathologist testifies 95 percent of the time on the county’s behalf, so he was not a freelance pathologist, nor was he hired by my defense attorney. The district attorney acquired him. When he rendered his opinion and facts in my favor he was dismissed as not being credible by the prosecution. At that time the county’s own coroner described the point of entry and direction in which the knife punctured the aggressor and it totally bolstered my version of how the stabbing occurred. My attorney demonstrated how the version I testified to was consistent with the coroner’s description, also pointed out that the prosecution’s theory was inconsistent. Then there is the testimony of a retired detective who testified that the second aggressor was two feet behind me with a baseball bat.

There are so many inconsistencies in the prosecution’s theory and it just amazes me that I was convicted. But, as I looked up to the jurors that sentenced me I notice that none were my peers; no one there was of my race or age group. An alternate juror was overheard making a remark stating, “Mr. Manning is lucky I’m not on the panel. I would have gave him 1st Degree murder just cause he is a ‘Nigger.’”

It’s a living nightmare how racism still plagues us. I had to sit on trial and defend not only my life, but my disability, as I was humiliated by the district attorney as he accused me of lying about my disability and being lazy, not a contribution to society. I was asked by my attorney to demonstrate how I walk without the aid of my cane. After I had done so, the district attorney remarked, and I quote, “I can pretend not to walk also,” persuading the jury to believe I was not disabled and able to walk.

The judge made a comment saying, and I quote again, “I think I know how this works. My wife is a physical therapist, if someone says you're in a pain you’re gonna believe it.” I was facing two prosecutors, one just wore a robe.

The prosecution’s witness testified that I was not the aggressor and that in fact Harry Bureley was, which by Pennsylvania law justifies my situation as self- defense. Plus the fact my fingerprints were not on the weapon, but the prints that were on it were never identified.

I’m just horrified at the gross injustice I’m suffering as well as the injustices others just like me are suffering. There is no justice in this system if you’re Black, poor or disabled. I can’t believe the numbers of disabled citizens in these prisons. I have heard so many horrific stories of injustice. It all comes down to economics; the state gets paid double for a disabled inmate versus a normal healthy functioning inmate. The rising number of disabled inmates is alarming. Something has to be done, people have to be informed of this inhuman treatment. This is why I’m so glad you published this informative, shocking and eye-opening article. We need more people on the outside to be informed and outraged at what’s happening to their follow citizens.

With respect to the recent tragic events in New York and Washington where my family and friends were killed, I pray this spirit of unity will open the public’s eyes to the injustice America inflicts on its own citizens. When America is attacked, it’s called justice when they seek retaliation or revenge on those suspected of attacking us. However, when I’m hacked or another citizen is, and we seek to protect ourselves in the best of battle and not by a revengeful retaliation some time later, I’m labeled a murderer and convicted of a crime I did not commit. It’s very painful to see how this country and system fail us where we are supposed to be protected.

It is really hard to stay focused when you’re wrongfully incarcerated. People can never imagine the pain, torment, frustration and stress you have, especially when your loved ones, family and friends have to come and see you in this type of environment. And then for them to have to leave without you really tears my heart apart. This particular institution I’m in seems to try to break your family bonds with all their restrictions on visits and phone use, not to mention the outrageous charges from the phone company. I’m blessed and praise God that I’m really close to home so my calls are not very expensive and visiting is not as much of a hardship as many of my friends face.

The more I’m here the more I see that this place is not about correction or rehabilitation, it’s purely economics and punishment. The programs here are pathetic and taught by people with no experience or solid education in any areas.

Most of the people here are very racist, not against one color or race, but in favor of their own religions and disability. I have had several peremptory remarks inflicted on me due to my disability. For example, I have been called a “handicap a–hole” and a “three-legged cripple” because I walk with a cane. There is an investigation on this particular institution for its racist practice of not paroling Blacks and Muslims. It’s truly a living nightmare. People who are wheelchair users as well as us who use canes and walkers are forced to walk about 3/4 of a mile for our meals. In the winter we’ve to battle snow and ice, hard rains and frigid tempatures just to be feed the slop they offer us.

I dream about the day I’m released and back with my family and friends. When I get out I want to join organizations such as Disability Advocates of Minorities Organization to help fight for disabled men. There are too many disabled men in these prisons wrongly and unjustly. There are not many Black disabled men here due to the location but there are a lot in the system who need to supported and heard from, so I would like to help as best I can.

My advice to anyone who is disabled and caught up in this system is to put faith in Christ and fight. Try to keep focused, though it’s very hard. You’ve got to keep praying and never cease and think positively and know you will come out of this. Most of all do not get caught up in the negativity these types of environments breed. Stay true to yourself and keep God first and everything else will fall into place. It’s a test of faith and a very hard one at that. When you can’t go on anymore and want to give up just let go and give it to God.

by PNN staff

On may 1, 2002, international workers day in front of Diane Feinstein's office Low wage workers, immigrants and working-class families gather to demand..

*Dignity and equal rights for immigrant workers!

* Not one more cent for the repression and violence of the I.N.S. amnesty & national sanctuary: stop INS raids.

*No to collaboration between the police and the INS.

*No to the national ID law that will discriminate against immigrants
dignity for our working class families and communities!

*Stop discrimination against homeless people.

*Support the national affordable housing bond.

*No to the cutbacks in social services.

*More funding for living wage jobs.

*Freedom for the people of the third world!

*Not one more cent for Israeli terrorism against the Palestinian people.

*No to military intervention in Colombia.

*No to military intervention in the Philippines.

The organizers included INS watch, POWER (People Organized to Win Employment Rights), St. Peter's Housing Committee, Latinos Contra la Guerra, Housing not Borders - Coalition on Homelessness, Chinatown Community Development Center, SF Day Labor Program, Homeless Prenatal Program, La Raza Centro Legal.

by Joe B.

America Loves Consummers,
let's consume shares of

Multi National Corporations.

We worker's can Share Wealth locally and globally.

Blue, pink, white, or no collars, skilled, unskilled, low wage-working poor
families, homeless people, single mother's, father's [who's work is not counted.]

hollywood talent, to hi-tech folks; we all have one thing in
common we're all WORKERS.

Some are paid better salaries, weekly, hourly wages but We Are All WORKERS.

My plan:Worker's Inc. It includes Pooling our collective experiences and/or expertise in economics, and
spread the wealth locally.

That's step 1)
step 2) is pooling monies of many workers in investment clubs, economic enclaves with retired
stock brokers or pentioners as instructors teaching insider skills
to working poor, homeless people or anyone willing to learn
the true realities of local and international economic systems.

Step 3) Spreading the wealth to people who really need it like elderly with with cronic
illnessess, war veterans, sick and dying children, or fast tracking renewable alternative energy research and development.

Step 4) Global Spread of the monies made by Worker's.

International Money Market fund investing keeps
diversifying, dividing as workers help others as they've been helped keeping Worker's Corp. or Inc.
vibrant and strong.

Owning large chunks of American real estate either swampland, desert, or land deemed worthless
could be a first way of getting off-world to be independent of all governments.

Using Capitalism against Capitalism may sound like an oxymoron
in this case it just might work.

Because we workers know the money talks and BS walks.
Let's form many W.I./W.B.A. [Worker's Inc, Worker
Buy America concloms of our own.

I know working poor and homeless America and abroad can do much better than Multi Nationals.
Isn't it about time to really BUY AMERICA?".

Remember:If art work, begging netted us 30, 50, to 100,000 dollars quickly magically we're no longer working poor or homeless folk but entrepreneurial geniuses instead.

P.S. Any suggestions to get this rolling or improving on this concept?

Write me C/O Poor Magazine.

Ask Joe at 255 9th St.

San Francisco, Ca.94103

email askjoe@poormagazine.org

For Joe only snail mail:

PO Box 1230 #645

Market St.San Francisco,

CA. 94102

by Joe B.

Tuesday, Oct.16, 2001, 8:45 am.

Whisper of winter not chilly enough for an overcoat.

Seeing Select President G.W.Bush Jr. actually say no to the Taliban regime when they suggested a neutral country to discuss terms of handing over Osama Bin Laben.

Only when he's satisfied! Does this guy know he's President of all the people not just hawks but doves, conscientious objectors, and anti-war activist's also?

It is chilling to see him determined to "stay the course of" war and not even contemplate alternate ways to settle this quickly, safely, using diplomatic means.

We do not have a King but G.W. is acting like one. Let’s not compound the problem in 2004. Bye

Please send donations to Poor Magazine C/0 Ask Joe at 255 9th St. Street, San Francisco, CA. 94103 USA

For Joe only my snail mail:
PO Box 1230 #645
Market St. San Francisco, CA 94102
Email: askjoe@poormagazine.org