2007

by Rania Ahmed/Race, Poverty and Media Justice Intern/PNN

"Discrimination and racism towards this Indian reservation has gone on since the white settlers came in the 1850s," said Susan Botts, a resident on the Yurok Indian Reservation. The Yurok Tribe was an affluent society for several generations until the white settlers and gold miners abruptly arrived hundreds of years ago. Since its near-destruction the tribe has been confined to a one-mile radius along either side of the Klamath River and up it 44 miles.

"Poverty rates here are right around 80 percent," said Botts, "and between 70 and 80 percent of the residents don't have phone service or electricity." There has also been a steady increase in prejudice against Native Americans and a blatant disregard of their rights. Botts explained that racism towards Native Americans in Crescent City and other towns surrounding the reservation is open and pervasive.

This made me remember my history classes as a young student, in which we were taught about the great rise of the United States of America. It was all very confusing and frustrating for me; I could not make any sense of it. How could these people from Europe come on their ships and take all of this land? This land belonged to the Native Americans who lived here for thousands of years before these colonizers set foot on it.

The colonizers were always portrayed as revolutionaries and people fighting to liberate themselves from the British. It was not until I was in college that I learned about the California massacre of the Native Americans and the genocide of a powerful people. I was disgusted by this harsh reality that broke down the pretty picture of the revolution that my previous history teachers had painted. Today, the descendents of these original inhabitants of America are living under incredibly unjust circumstances and are subject to extreme racism on their own soil.

Indian scalps were still purchased into the early 1900's. KKK marches occurred in Klamath within the past thirty years and people from Klamath are commonly referred to in derogatory names.

"I think it would be safe to say that whether you're looking at law enforcement, the courts or the county government, there is pervasive anti-Native American sentiment in all aspects of the local government of Crescent City," said Botts.

She can attest to the discrepancies Native Americans face today. On June 3rd of 2005, Botts' life was drastically changed and she would have to experience the inequality of the justice system.

Botts, her husband, and their three sons and daughter set out for a picnic at Jedediah National State Park. Her daughter's boyfriend, who is from Crescent City, also came along. Troubled by the young man's questionable record (he happened to be on probation at the time for assaulting a boy), Botts and her husband were hesitant to take him on the trip until their daughter threatened to stay with the young man in Crescent City if he did not accompany them.

Once they arrived at the beach, the young man went behind the bushes and smoked cannabis; a direct violation of his probation, remembers Botts. Shortly after, he and Botts' fourteen-year-old son entered the river and they rode the rapids twice. The young man emerged from the river and Botts' son remained in the river stuck in an eddy fence (where the water flowing upstream meets the water flowing downstream) about forty to fifty feet from shore. Botts and her husband noticed their son struggling to get out of the river.

"He called out, 'Help me! You've got to help me!,' recalls Botts. Instinctively, they jumped into the river to rescue their son. Botts' husband reached him first and pushed him off of the eddy fence toward Botts. Botts' husband became trapped on the eddy fence himself. Botts pushed and shoved her son toward shore. Botts and her husband are both emergency medical technicians and river guides. Botts and her son finally reached shallow water and were about ten feet away from shore in thigh-deep water where there were no rapids. Suddenly, the young man walked into the river. Botts was relieved for a moment as she saw the young approach her son.

"It was my presumption that he would walk our son to shore," said Botts. But rather than take the boy toward the shore, the young man pulled and towed her son further into the river. The young man dragged her son about 30 feet further into the river. Botts recounts seeing the young man grab her son by the armpits as he tightly held on to her wrist.

"He left huge bruises on my wrist where he was trying to hold on," said Botts. After bringing him further into the river, the young man pushed Botts' son towards her husband and paddled back out of the river. Botts and her husband came back to shore and asked a couple arriving at the beach to go for help. The family located their son below the rapid, on the bottom of the river. Botts' husband and daughter tried to swim out to get him, but could not reach him.

While Botts' husband stayed with their son, Botts and her children went to seek help. The young man went also. They begged the young man to try to reach their son, and he refused. He just sat on a rock watching them. Botts drove to look for help and came across a Park Ranger who eventually helped her husband pull their son's body from out of the river. Botts and her husband accused their daughter's boyfriend of deliberately drowning their son.

"We kept waiting for the Sheriff's department to contact us and they didn't and they didn't and they didn't," said Botts. Despite her and her husband's
statements to the police (and the Park Ranger) after the death of their son, the police regarded his death as an accident. Botts was never contacted by the
authorities after the death of her son. She also found out that her husband's statements to the Park Ranger were never recorded nor was there an attempt to gather witness reports.

Botts contacted the California Department of Justice to file a complaint. At this point, Botts was able to present witness statements she gathered on her own. The people at the CDOJ told her that she had to ask the Del Norte County Sheriff's department to investigate. Botts and her husband went to the Sheriff's department to give their statements in order for the investigation to begin. Unknown to both Botts and her husband, they found that the county
drug task force head was assigned to take the case.

"We went in and we gave him our statements. He didn't appear to write anything down. When we went back in, he had, I guess, forgot what we told him and had gone back to what was in the report, never mind what we were telling him," said Botts. The detective directly questioned Botts and her husband's accusations. He clearly did not believe that the young man being accused was at fault.

"It was shocking that we were somehow supposed to explain this young man's conduct when there was no explanation for it," said Botts. Two weeks after the death of her son, the young man accused left the state of California. Botts informed the detective that the young man left the state and he responded by suggesting that maybe his mother was trying to protect him.

"To me that seems negligent, it seems irresponsible it seems to be an obstruction of justice," said Botts. When Botts received the investigative report, the specific details of the incident were omitted. The final report said that her son's death was caused by accidental drowning and that the young man was only trying to help.

Botts went back to the CDOJ where they suggested she go to the district attorney. She filed complaints at the DA's office but never received a letter, a call
nor did she receive any sort of acknowledgements of her complaints. Botts also filed complaints with the County Grand Jury, as instructed by the DOJ, and
received no acknowledgement or response. Finally she sent a third complaint certified mail which was returned after 14 days because it was refused at
delivery. Botts later found out that the accused young man's mother works at the DA's office.

Botts and her husband continue in this legal limbo. Achieving absolutely no progress in her son's case, Botts filed several complaints to the Sheriff's Department. The only response she was given was in a letter from the Sheriff saying that everything pertaining to the case was conducted properly and within standards and that the young man was not a contributing factor to her son's death. The Sheriff ruled out the young man's involvement despite the fact
that Botts and her husband repeatedly accused him of purposely drowning their son in the statements they gave the Sheriff. Botts contacted the Federal Bureau
of Investigation. The FBI told her that the Sheriff could not possibly have lied about her case and asked Botts' husband if they were in the habit of complaining about law enforcement.

Botts has sent letters explaining her case to elected officials who have done nothing but offer letters of condolence. Because Sheriffs have full jurisdictional
discretion, the elected representatives cannot do anything to help Botts' case.

"What we have is a singular Sheriff who is obstructing justice and doing so willfully. Whether he's doing it out of racial bias or whether he is doing so to
protect the son of a local government official, I will never know," said Botts. "We're very frustrated, we're very outraged and we do think it has to do with
prejudice," said Botts. Botts has not been able to find any attorney willing to take a civil rights or wrongful death case. When they look at the biased police reports they conclude that the young man was only doing what he could to help.

"If you are from the reservation, whatever you say means nothing," said Botts. "You're instantly regarded as incredible and you don't deserve justice."

Learn more about this tragic incident at
http://www.realcrimes.com/Botts/dagbotts.htm

To sign a petition demanding more police action on this unjust incident, go to
http://www.gopetition.com/petitions/investigate-the-death-of-dag-botts.html

by Leroy F. Moore Jr.

It has been almost 74 years since Franklin D. Roosevelt hid his disability to the world as President of the United States. In this year’s election people with disabilities are running for political office in record numbers from Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Senate, House of Representatives and State Assembly local Supervisors.

There are candidates with disabilities not only on the two major political party tickets, Republican and Democrat, but also on third party tickets as well, such as the Green Party and the newly formed Green-Rainbow Party in Massachusetts. In Massachusetts 30-year-old Martina Robinson, an African American with cerebral palsy, is running on the Green Rainbow party ticket, against three White non-disabled men- Republican Reed Hillman, Democrat Tim Murray and Independent John J Sullivan for Lieutenant Governor.

by Jewnbug

Poverty scholar, welfare QUEEN, mother, arts educator and co-founder of the F.A.M.I.L.Y. Project, Jewnbug has authored a collection of metaphorical texts as well as drawn, painted and graphically designed images to raise a new level of consciousness in her readers.

Selected Wordz uses speech in a new, inventive way to address spiritual and emotional issues. A self-proclaimed wordsmith, Jewnbug says she is sharing these writings to heal and to encourage consciousness on an extremely deep level. She does not fail in her task to challenge her readers and provide a new, unique perspective on life, language and spirituality. This book has the power to change its readers way of thinking and living.

by Staff Writer

PROJECT PLAN

Populations served annually :

EQUITY "CAPITAL" CAMPAIGN BUDGET: 2.5 MILLION

I. The Site Proposal;

Permanent housing units for houseless and formerly houseless families following a model of co-housing which includes the following;

A site for F.A.M.I.L.Y.(Family Access to Multi-cultural Intergenerational Learning with our Youth) which is a revolutionary on-site child care and education project for houseless children and families which incorporates a social justice and arts , multi-cultural and multi-lingual curriculum for families and children 2-102

A site for POOR Magazine, The Race, Poverty, and Media Justice Institute, Community Newsroom and all of POOR’s indigenous community arts programming

A site for Uncle Al & Mama Dee’s Cafe; a multi-generational community arts and social justice eating and performance space

II. The Building

A Mixed Use/C3 Zoned, multiple units or Loft space that has space for all of the above

III. Funding;

Equity "Capital" Campaign budget: 2.5 million

Fundraising will occur through an Equity campaign launched by POOR Magazine.
As an act of resistance to the hierarchal and unjust distribution of wealth and resources locally and globally, POOR Magazine is formerly calling the fundraising effort for HOMEFULNESS, an Equity Campaign, instead of a Capital Campaign, as through equity sharing, not tied to financial resources, we will be creating permanent and lasting solutions to houselessness for families in poverty who have been displaced, evicted, gentrified and destabilized out of their indigenous lands and communities.

For more information on how to become involved with this project please call 415.863.6306.

To donate to the Homefulness Project, please send checks to POOR Magazine 1095 Market St. #307 San Francisco, CA 94103

by Joanna Letz, POOR Magazine Media Justice Intern

The lowering sun hits the top of my head and the wind licks my shoulders. We could be the ones making the wind, I think, as I look back and feel the people behind me, in front of me, and to my side.

On the loud speaker the names of those whose lives have been stolen by the San Francisco Police Department (SFPD) reverberate across the streets.

"Justice for Big O

Justice for Idriss Stelley

Justice for Julio Ayala

Justice for Asa Sullivan

Justice for Gus Rugley

No More Stolen Lives, No Mas Vidas Robadas."

The march on Sunday, October 22nd in San Francisco was part of the 11th National Day of Protest to Stop Police Brutality, Repression, and the Criminalization of a Generation. Those who took to the streets included family members of those murdered by the police, people who have dealt with police brutality, and many individuals and organizations. Among the organizations represented were: The Answer Coalition, SF Coalition on Homelessness, Mothers with Murdered Children, Berkeley Cop Watch, Poor Magazine, The World Can't Wait, and The United Playaz. The march in San Francisco was organized by the October 22nd Coalition with the strong leadership of Mesha Monge-Irizarry founder of the Idriss Stelley Foundation, and Karen Martin.

It was not a huge march, but with it carried the signs, voices, and songs of people who have lost loved ones by the hands of the police. The march was filled with hope and a heaviness that comes from people who have dealt first hand with violence and police repression.

As I marched alongside people who had lost family members to bullets shot out of police guns I could not help but think of my family's experience in Europe during the Holocaust. My grandpa and grandma, Isaac and Adele Silber, survived the Hitler regime by hiding in a Christian family's basement. They both witnessed their family being murdered. My grandpa, who just passed away 4 months ago, was always reading the news and was always the first one to point to the many Holocaust's happening around the world. The speakers whose voices surged forth on Sunday also spoke of another Holocaust. This Holocaust is happening on our streets in San Francisco. The Holocaust, the executions, the murders of people of color in our houses, streets, empty movie theaters, and hotel rooms; this is happening in our city.

Chanting together on Sunday we took claim to the streets as we walked and made our way from Stanyan and Hate to Jefferson Square Park. Many protest chants echoed along the march.

From the loudspeakers to our responses in unison, our voices traveled,

"Whose streets?

Our streets!

Whose streets?

Our streets!"

From Golden Gate Park, at Stanyan and Hate, we walked, through the Hate, through the Fillmore, and onto Jefferson Square Park. Sunday afternoon shoppers stopped, starred, and took pictures. Mesha yelled on the loud speaker, "Come and join us in our fight against police brutality." I did not notice any of the bystanders join the march.

As I heard the wind approaching again I looked back and saw and felt a group of people taking back the streets.

The police walked along side the march all the way from Stanyan and Hate to the Park. I stood at the front and saw all along the spine of the march police officers in uniform carrying guns. Nowhere in the crowd were police represented as supporting the fight against police brutality. But the police were there in their uniforms and with their guns. There we were on the streets shouting, proclaiming and attesting to police brutality and walking alongside us were the police in uniform, silently, steadfastly moving, guns in holsters.

When we reached Jefferson Square Park the police officers mysteriously disappeared. Across the street loomed a big police station. Orange cones guarded the front and a police officer on a motorbike sat waiting. The police officers did not stay to hear the voices of those affected by police brutality.

At the park a memorial stood to those whose lives have been stolen by the police. The memorial, the wall includes names, and photographs of people whose lives have been stolen by police hands. The wall is a symbol of resistance, and of the harsh realities of police murder.

The wall was built by The Stolen Lives Project. The Stolen Lives Project also published a book in 1999, "Stolen Lives: Killed by Law Enforcement," which is available on Amazon.com and contains over 2000 cases of people killed nationwide in the decade of the 1990's. The Stolen Lives Project Update Booklet includes information collected since the 1999 book and can be viewed at their website, stolenlives.org.

As I write I think of my grandpa. He advocated for being aware of violence going on everywhere and not just listening to the stories of our own family, but knowing and listening to the harsh realities of violence and repression going on in many peoples lives.

Big Mike, the brother of Oliver Lefti "Big O" spoke on Sunday. "Big O" was killed on June 24th of this year. Big Mike said, "We pay…. And this is what we get. You pay for, I pay for the bullets that come out of that gun….In New Zealand police don't have guns…." As Big Mike so vividly pointed out, we are the ones paying for the bullets; the bullets that kill and steal the lives of loved ones.

With the heaviness of loss and struggle, comes a deep need to be heard, and a deep sense of where things are at in this country, and just how bad the institution known as the police department is.

Elvira Pollard, mother of Gus Rugley, who was killed by SFPD on June 29th 2004, said,

"June 29th 2004, loosing my son was a terrible way to get inducted into how bad the police really do people. Four different police units sat outside my house. They watched my son from 8:00 am to 6:30 pm. They don't come to ask questions. They come with heavy artillery. At the autopsy thirty-five bullets were pulled out of my son. There was no gunpowder on his hands. They said my son shot two clips…But there was no gunpowder found on his hands. Who told the story that day? The press and the police. They put me in handcuffs. All I said was he's my son. They have someone in jail, a 187 suspect for the crime. But now they don't talk about it…I wasn't wrapped so tight before, but they took something so valuable. I got to fight for my son now. An execution was perpetrated on my son. Get Gavin Newsom out of office…and Heather's too scared of her own troops. OCC (Office of Citizen Complaints) got broken into…We got to pull together and beat this shit at City Hall."

Mirna Ayala also spoke about losing her son, Julio Ayala who was killed by police on October 2nd 2005. She said, "He was in a hotel. There was a noise complaint. He was quiet. They came two by two. Thirty police. My son died. His neck broken. My son will never come back. The police stole his life."

The march and the rally was a call to listen… listen…

To listen to the stories of the mothers who have lost their sons, sons who have been murdered. To listen to community leaders calling for community boards, and community support. To listen to family members resisting and fighting for their lost loved ones. To listen to the stories of those affected by police brutality and to listen to the resistance and to the visions of change.

Minister Christopher Muhammad said, "The police are armed for military occupation. Youth of color are treated as if they are enemy combatants. Federal and local police become occupiers and relate to communities of color as if occupying." Minister Muhammad went on to say, "We must insist on enforcing a community model. They never want community control or community review boards. The Department protects themselves and serves their own interests."

In Berkeley on October 26th, Berkeley Copwatch held a march and rally to fight for the Berkeley Police Review Commission (PRC). The PRC was started as a civilian review organization to hold cops accountable. A recent California Supreme Court decision (Copley V. San Diego) cuts civilian oversight and closes police records to the public.

Khalil Sullivan, brother of Asa Sullivan who was killed by SFPD on June 26 2006, also asks for accountability. He said, "Why are police set free after they murder? Where's the accountability? God Forbid that they loose their families. We need to go to police commission meetings. And if someone can't go, send someone else. We need to create a network of people that speak... We are in control, they work for us." At the end, Khalil asked, "Are they peace officers?"

What are these uniforms that separate people? Why were there no police officers supporting the Stop Police Brutality March and Rally? But the police officers were there in their uniforms and with their guns.

In New Jersey police officer Delacy Davis has been fighting against police brutality for many years. In 1991 he founded the community-based organization called, Black Cops Against Police Brutality (B-CAP). He recently released a book titled "A Crisis Call to Action." B-CAP recommends the following courses of action:

-

civilian control and oversight of the police
-

Residency requirements
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Community Based training for all police officers
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Cash rewards for the exposure, arrest and conviction of corrupt cops
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Congressional Public Hearings
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Mandatory drug testing for all police officers
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"Zero tolerance" for substance abuse by police officers
-

Integrity tests
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Annual psychological evaluations

Delacy Davis says in his book, "Police brutality reminds me of the darkness in history when the master whipped the slaves just because he could. There can be no more blatant racism than that misuse of power by the police who have been entrusted to protect us."

Jewnbug, from POOR Magazine commented on the institution known as the Police Department. She said, "Why was the police system built? It was built on hate and racism…. I hear people talk about good cops and bad cops. There is a uniform and a human being. We need to change the structure. Police escalate abuse and violence. Violence doesn't stop. You displace it, put it in prison and make money off of it….To defeat an oppressive system you have to create a support system. It's more than fighting. In order to rebuild you must destroy."

As Jewnbug so articulately pointed out it is not about good and bad cops, but about a system of violence that puts people of color in danger, and leads to murder and stolen lives.

Jewnbug also related a story told to her by a friend from South Africa, "In 2002 a South African comrade said to me, in domestic violence cases, someone comes to talk with the people involved to talk and deal with the anger and where it comes from." Jewnbug and others say we need community support to deal with the root of the problems.

We are all implicated in this system of abuse and police violence, some people benefiting from the system and many people being abused and murdered.

As we chanted at the rally, we refuse to close our eyes to the system of violence and murder. To the many stolen lives, we say their names, and say, presente, in honor and remembrance.

by Byron Gafford

Another poverty scholar and child abuse survivor, Byron Gafford has taken his own painful experiences and shared them through poetry to educate the public about the numerous problems surrounding the system of foster care and the child protective services.

In his third book of poetry, Why Can't We Play in Our Own Backyard? Gafford uniquely addresses the problem of child abuse through simple, eloquent poems told through not just the eyes of a child, but also the voice of an adult survivor. These 34 poems are powerful and open the readers eyes extremely wide to the painful reality of child abuse that is occurring in our own communities everyday.

by Tony Pugh

A McClatchy Newspapers analysis of 2005 census figures, the latest available, found that nearly 16 million Americans are living in deep or severe poverty. A family of four with two children and an annual income of less than $9,903 - half the federal poverty line - was considered severely poor in 2005. So were individuals who made less than $5,080 a year.

The McClatchy analysis found that the number of severely poor Americans grew by 26 percent from 2000 to 2005. That's 56 percent faster than the overall poverty population grew in the same period. McClatchy's review also found statistically significant increases in the percentage of the population in severe poverty in 65 of 215 large U.S. counties, and similar increases in 28 states. The review also suggested that the rise in severely poor residents isn't confined to large urban counties but extends to suburban and rural areas.

The plight of the severely poor is a distressing sidebar to an unusual economic expansion. Worker productivity has increased dramatically since the brief recession of 2001, but wages and job growth have lagged behind. At the same time, the share of national income going to corporate profits has dwarfed the amount going to wages and salaries. That helps explain why the median household income of working-age families, adjusted for inflation, has fallen for five straight years.

These and other factors have helped push 43 percent of the nation's 37 million poor people into deep poverty - the highest rate since at least 1975.

The share of poor Americans in deep poverty has climbed slowly but steadily over the last three decades. But since 2000, the number of severely poor has grown "more than any other segment of the population," according to a recent study in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine.

"That was the exact opposite of what we anticipated when we began," said Dr. Steven Woolf of Virginia Commonwealth University, who co-authored the study. "We're not seeing as much moderate poverty as a proportion of the population. What we're seeing is a dramatic growth of severe poverty."

The growth spurt, which leveled off in 2005, in part reflects how hard it is for low-skilled workers to earn their way out of poverty in an unstable job market that favors skilled and educated workers. It also suggests that social programs aren't as effective as they once were at catching those who fall into economic despair.

About one in three severely poor people are under age 17, and nearly two out of three are female. Female-headed families with children account for a large share of the severely poor.

Nearly two out of three people (10.3 million) in severe poverty are white, but blacks (4.3 million) and Hispanics of any race (3.7 million) make up disproportionate shares. Blacks are nearly three times as likely as non-Hispanic whites to be in deep poverty, while Hispanics are roughly twice as likely.

Washington, D.C., the nation's capital, has a higher concentration of severely poor people - 10.8 percent in 2005 - than any of the 50 states, topping even hurricane-ravaged Mississippi and Louisiana, with 9.3 percent and 8.3 percent, respectively. Nearly six of 10 poor District residents are in extreme poverty.

'I DON'T ASK FOR NOTHING'

A few miles from the Capitol Building, 60-year-old John Treece pondered his life in deep poverty as he left a local food pantry with two bags of free groceries.

Plagued by arthritis, back problems and myriad ailments from years of manual labor, Treece has been unable to work full time for 15 years. He's tried unsuccessfully to get benefits from the Social Security Administration, which he said disputes his injuries and work history.

In 2006, an extremely poor individual earned less than $5,244 a year, according to federal poverty guidelines. Treece said he earned about that much in 2006 doing odd jobs.

Wearing shoes with holes, a tattered plaid jacket and a battered baseball cap, Treece lives hand-to-mouth in a $450-a-month room in a nondescript boarding house in a high-crime neighborhood. Thanks to food stamps, the food pantry and help from relatives, Treece said he never goes hungry. But toothpaste, soap, toilet paper and other items that require cash are tougher to come by.

"Sometimes it makes you want to do the wrong thing, you know," Treece said, referring to crime. "But I ain't a kid no more. I can't do no time. At this point, I ain't got a lotta years left."

Treece remains positive and humble despite his circumstances.

"I don't ask for nothing," he said. "I just thank the Lord for this day and ask that tomorrow be just as blessed."

Like Treece, many who did physical labor during their peak earning years have watched their job prospects dim as their bodies gave out.

David Jones, the president of the Community Service Society of New York City, an advocacy group for the poor, testified before the House Ways and Means Committee last month that he was shocked to discover how pervasive the problem was.

"You have this whole cohort of, particularly African-Americans of limited skills, men, who can't participate in the workforce because they don't have skills to do anything but heavy labor," he said.

'A PERMANENT UNDERCLASS'

Severe poverty is worst near the Mexican border and in some areas of the South, where 6.5 million severely poor residents are struggling to find work as manufacturing jobs in the textile, apparel and furniture-making industries disappear. The Midwestern Rust Belt and areas of the Northeast also have been hard hit as economic restructuring and foreign competition have forced numerous plant closings.

At the same time, low-skilled immigrants with impoverished family members are increasingly drawn to the South and Midwest to work in the meatpacking, food processing and agricultural industries.

These and other factors such as increased fluctuations in family incomes and illegal immigration have helped push 43 percent of the nation's 37 million poor people into deep poverty - the highest rate in at least 32 years.

"What appears to be taking place is that, over the long term, you have a significant permanent underclass that is not being impacted by anti-poverty policies," said Michael Tanner, the director of Health and Welfare Studies at the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank.

Arloc Sherman, a senior researcher at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a liberal think tank, disagreed. "It doesn't look like a growing permanent underclass," said Sherman, whose organization has chronicled the growth of deep poverty. "What you see in the data are more and more single moms with children who lose their jobs and who aren't being caught by a safety net anymore."

About 1.1 million such families account for roughly 2.1 million deeply poor children, Sherman said.

After fleeing an abusive marriage in 2002, 42-year-old Marjorie Sant moved with her three children from Arkansas to a seedy boarding house in Raleigh, N.C., where the four shared one bedroom. For most of 2005, they lived off food stamps and the $300 a month in Social Security Disability Income for her son with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Teachers offered clothes to Sant's children. Saturdays meant lunch at the Salvation Army.

"To depend on other people to feed and clothe your kids is horrible," Sant said. "I found myself in a hole and didn't know how to get out."

In the summer of 2005, social workers warned that she'd lose her children if her home situation didn't change. Sant then brought her two youngest children to a temporary housing program at the Raleigh Rescue Mission while her oldest son moved to California to live with an adult daughter from a previous marriage.

So for 10 months, Sant learned basic office skills. She now lives in a rented house, works two jobs and earns about $20,400 a year

Sant is proud of where she is, but she knows that "if something went wrong, I could well be back to where I was."

'I'M GETTING NOWHERE FAST'

As more poor Americans sink into severe poverty, more individuals and families living within $8,000 above or below the poverty line also have seen their incomes decline. Steven Woolf of Virginia Commonwealth University attributes this to what he calls a "sinkhole effect" on income.

"Just as a sinkhole causes everything above it to collapse downward, families and individuals in the middle and upper classes appear to be migrating to lower-income tiers that bring them closer to the poverty threshold," Woolf wrote in the study.

Before Hurricane Katrina, Rene Winn of Biloxi, Miss., earned $28,000 a year as an administrator for the Boys and Girls Club. But for 11 months in 2006, she couldn't find steady work and wouldn't take a fast-food job. As her opportunities dwindled, Winn's frustration grew.

"Some days I feel like the world is mine and I can create my own destiny," she said. "Other days I feel a desperate feeling. Like I gotta' hurry up. Like my career is at a stop. Like I'm getting nowhere fast. And that's not me because I've always been a positive person."

After relocating to New Jersey for 10 months after the storm, Winn returned to Biloxi in September because of medical and emotional problems with her son. She and her two youngest children moved into her sister's home along with her mother, who has Alzheimer's. With her sister, brother-in-law and their two children, eight people now share a three-bedroom home.

Winn said she recently took a job as a technician at the state health department. The hourly job pays $16,120 a year. That's enough to bring her out of severe poverty and just $122 shy of the $16,242 needed for a single mother with two children to escape poverty altogether under current federal guidelines.

Winn eventually wants to transfer to a higher-paying job, but she's thankful for her current position.

"I'm very independent and used to taking care of my own, so I don't like the fact that I have to depend on the state. I want to be able to do it myself."

The Census Bureau's Survey of Income and Program Participation shows that, in a given month, only 10 percent of severely poor Americans received Temporary Assistance for Needy Families in 2003 - the latest year available - and that only 36 percent received food stamps.

Many could have exhausted their eligibility for welfare or decided that the new program requirements were too onerous. But the low participation rates are troubling because the worst byproducts of poverty, such as higher crime and violence rates and poor health, nutrition and educational outcomes, are worse for those in deep poverty.

Over the last two decades, America has had the highest or near-highest poverty rates for children, individual adults and families among 31 developed countries, according to the Luxembourg Income Study, a 23-year project that compares poverty and income data from 31 industrial nations.

"It's shameful," said Timothy Smeeding, the former director of the study and the current head of the Center for Policy Research at Syracuse University. "We've been the worst performer every year since we've been doing this study."

With the exception of Mexico and Russia, the U.S. devotes the smallest portion of its gross domestic product to federal anti-poverty programs, and those programs are among the least effective at reducing poverty, the study found. Again, only Russia and Mexico do worse jobs.

One in three Americans will experience a full year of extreme poverty at some point in his or her adult life, according to long-term research by Mark Rank, a professor of social welfare at the University of Wisconsin, Madison.

An estimated 58 percent of Americans between the ages of 20 and 75 will spend at least a year in poverty, Rank said. Two of three will use a public assistance program between ages 20 and 65, and 40 percent will do so for five years or more.

These estimates apply only to non-immigrants. If illegal immigrants were factored in, the numbers would be worse, Rank said.

"It would appear that for most Americans the question is no longer if, but rather when, they will experience poverty. In short, poverty has become a routine and unfortunate part of the American life course," Rank wrote in a recent study. "Whether these patterns will continue throughout the first decade of 2000 and beyond is difficult to say ... but there is little reason to think that this trend will reverse itself any time soon."

'SOMETHING REAL AND TROUBLING'

Most researchers and economists say federal poverty estimates are a poor tool to gauge the complexity of poverty. The numbers don't factor in assistance from government anti-poverty programs, such as food stamps, housing subsidies and the Earned Income Tax Credit, all of which increase incomes and help pull people out of poverty.

But federal poverty measures also exclude work-related expenses and necessities such as day care, transportation, housing and health care costs, which eat up large portions of disposable income, particularly for low-income families.

Alternative poverty measures that account for these shortcomings typically inflate or deflate official poverty statistics. But many of those alternative measures show the same kind of long-term trends as the official poverty data.

Robert Rector, a senior researcher with the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank, questioned the growth of severe poverty, saying that census data become less accurate farther down the income ladder. He said many poor people, particularly single mothers with boyfriends, underreport their income by not including cash gifts and loans. Rector said he's seen no data that suggest increasing deprivation among the very poor.

Arloc Sherman of the liberal Center on Budget and Policy Priorities argues that the growing number of severely poor is an indisputable fact.

"When we check against more complete government survey data and administrative records from the benefit programs themselves, they confirm that this trend is real," Sherman said. He added that even among the poor, severely poor people have a much tougher time paying their bills. "That's another sign to me that we're seeing something real and troubling," Sherman said.

McClatchy correspondent Barbara Barrett contributed to this report.

BY THE NUMBERS

States with the most people in severe poverty:

California - 1.9 million

Texas - 1.6 million

New York - 1.2 million

Florida - 943,670

Illinois - 681,786

Ohio - 657,415

Pennsylvania - 618,229

Michigan - 576,428

Georgia - 562,014

North Carolina - 523,511

Source: U.S. Census Bureau

© 2007 McClatchy Washington Bureau and wire service sources

by Rania Ahmed/Race Poverty and Media Justice Intern at POOR Magazine

I rushed up the escalator in the Oakland Convention
Center to make my way up to the Calvin Simmons
Ballroom. The click-clack of my kitten heel shoes
seemed to echo throughout the lobby. I hopped off the escalator only to be blinded by studio lights. Network
news cameras were set up on tripods with reporters
standing by ready to pounce on anyone who walks out of
the ballroom where the Federal Communications
Commission (FCC) hearing was being held. As I started
walking towards the doors to the ballroom I caught a
glimpse of the peacock microphone and there was
Michael Copps doing an interview for NBC.

I tried to discretely walk in without being noticed. I
entered the room only to be astounded by the amount of
people who showed up to voice their concerns regarding
media consolidation. I did not do an actual head count
but there looked to be over three-hundred people in
the room and more kept walking in. Media consolidation
is a big concern to residents of the community. When
corporations buy media outlets in vast proportions
they have complete control over what will air. This
blocks media diversity, encourages stereotyping, and
limits information. I was there as one of four media justice interns to re-port and Sup-port for POOR Magazine/PoorNewsnetwork

Sponsored by the National Association for the
Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), Media Alliance,
Youth Media Council, and Free Press, the Oakland FCC hearing featured FCC commissioners Michael Copps and
Jonathan Adlestein as well as prominent members of the
community including Allen Hammond a law professor from
Santa Clara University School of Law and Karen Slade a
Vice President of a Black owned and operated radio
station (KJLH). This was an opportunity for members of
the community to address the commissioners with the
intent that Copps and Adlestein will go back to
Washington with these concerns and inform their
colleagues. Being the only Democrats on the five
person panel makes it more difficult for them to
attend to the community's interests successfully.
Commissioner Adlestein was quite frank in saying, "In
recent years, I am sad to say, the FCC has failed to
protect your interests."

The FCC has indeed failed to recognize and protect the
public's interest. In 2003, the FCC voted to make it
easier for companies to own multiple forms of media in
a single region. In 2004 a federal court ordered the
FCC to reconsider the policy. There will be several
hearings like the one in Oakland held across the
nation to review current FCC ownership policies. Big
Media is the result of the FCC's lax rules concerning
corporations that purchase media outlets in bulk.

"We forgot about the importance of music and news,"
said Adlestein. With the concentration of media
outlets, local artists do not get a decent amount of
airplay making it tougher on them to get their music
heard. With media consolidation, news stations do not
cover issues of importance to communities of color.

People of color own less than 3 percent of media
outlets. Michael Copps declared, "Now is the time to
assert our ownership rights." He also proposed,
"Airwaves of by and for the American people." Both
Copps and Adlestein, the only commissioners to vote
against the recent renovation of the FCC ownership
policies, made the crowd of concerned community
members feel like their opinions mattered. But how
much do they matter if only two out of the five
commissioners were present at this hearing?

"Tonight in and of itself is not going to change one
damn thing," said Jeff Perstein executive director of
Media Alliance. "It's crucial that we raise our
voices, it's crucial that we organize beyond this.and
figuring out what the next steps are is really the
crucial piece."

Many community members voiced their concern over
racist and stereotypical portrayals of people of color
in the media. Dr. Julianne Malveaux an economist and
President and CEO of Last Word Productions addressed
the issue of the negative portrayal of African
American women in the media. She brought up the
infamous Janet Jackson Super Bowl wardrobe malfunction
to prove that there are rampant double standards
present in FCC policies. "When Rush Limbaugh and Neal
Boortz have described African American women in most
graphic of terms.there were no fines incurred.When MTV
has black women with leashes there are no fines
incurred.I need to understand why it's okay for
Limbaugh, Boortz and these other hate mongers to put
their hate speech out but when someone's nipple.is
inadvertently shown you have all of this craziness,"
said Dr. Malveaux.

Jen Soriano, program director for Youth Media Council
moved to the Bay Area after the 1996
Telecommunications Act. The 1996 Telecommunications
act led most independent media to be bought up by
corporations. The act was intended to enable
competition but instead created major media
consolidation. Soriano was shocked by the Bay Area
media. "I found a mass media system that was more a
reflection of anywhere, any town USA, instead of the
Bay Area and the reality of the strong immigrant
communities, the strong African American communities
that have been here for generations and the majority
minority culture," said Soriano.

Peter B. Collins, a radio talk show host and officer
of the American Federation of Television and Radio
Artists, appealed to the commissioners to cut off
media consolidation. "It only serves the interests of
a few big corporations.their power to limit coverage
of descending voices to dumb down our culture in
political conversations to deliver the very highest
quality mindless dribble on every available channel.
This power is quite evident today far greater than it
was ten years ago," said Collins. Collins also
stressed that reduced competition on the airwaves has
truncated localism and diversity of voices. Local
media is not being preserved by the current FCC
policies.

Clifford Goler an actor/model and producer from
Oakland talked about the stereotyping of people of
color in the media. When he was modeling he would
always be booked for alcohol ads and when he inquired
why, he was usually told, "That's how it is." Goler is
concerned for the children and how they are effected
by the media. "As a kid I could watch Larry Bird or
Dr. J and go home and want to be like them...That got
me in college because I wanted to be like them. Now
these kids have nothing to dream about."

Leslie Ruiz, with the Youth Media Council told the
commissioners that everyone is despondent with the
violent attacks by the media on the community. "It's
obvious what the people want and if you guys aren't
meeting our interests than what are you doing? Isn't
that your job?" asked Ruiz.

Glancing over at the commissioners displayed on the
platform in front of the full room, I noticed they
looked a bit distressed. Were they overwhelmed by the
amount of discrepancies between their commission and
the local communities? It had only been a couple of
hours since the start of the hearing and there was no
end in sight.

Commissioner Copps said that concerned citizens can
make a difference. The turnout for the Oakland hearing
showed that there are plenty of concerned citizens. It
is up to the commissioners to relay the community's
voices back to Washington. One thing was certainly
accomplished at the hearing and that was that
community members attempted to make a change. Dr.
Malveaux said, "No one's speaking up.if we do not
speak up for ourselves, we're saying it's okay. And
you know what...it's not okay."

After a few hours, the room began to vacant and the
lines of people at the two microphones on either side
of the ballroom began to shorten. Exhausted from
sitting for four hours I decided it was time for me to
go. I walked out of the ballroom and found the
television cameras gone. A group of young adults were
huddled in the corner occupying the remaining chairs
in the lobby.

On my way down the escalator I spotted
one of the young men who spoke earlier about the
negative portrayal of people of color on the media.
"You know," he said to another young man standing
beside him, "that meeting had me riled up. To see
people coming together, uniting to show them that we
won't stand around and do nothing about it made me
feel like we took a stand today."

by Marvin Crutchfield

In his second book of poetry, Paradise Ventures II , Marvin Crutchfield shares his strong belief in God, knowledge and newfound peace with the reader. In this collection of 28 poems, Crutchfield boldly and directly states his beliefs and views about the role of Jesus in life.

Although direct, his poems don't simply preach about his passionate beliefs, but also tell the story of his own life experiences since finding God in his struggle to come up and out of poverty. Simple and eloquent all at the same time, these poems address the importance of finding peace in the struggle for survival.

by Josph Bolden

G.A. Blues.

The above words to many in my predicament is what we’ve go or have gone through while on General Assistance better known as G.A.

From the jobs or careers that fall,or women,men that kicked up out of shared living spaces,and all sorts of unforeseen errors in judgement many of us end up there.

The rules are more fluid now but there are people who will always view us as lazy, booze, drug, or sex addicted wrecks who are a waste of skin.

These same folks are "Falling Down"
it is only then they notice like everything else it’s a mixed bag of people on the dole more and more of them are sober, non drug users as I struggling to get back into regular work.

Recently, a few weeks past persons who are Workfare/Alternative Workfare participant’s work in non profit organizations, food pantries, places other than automatic street cleaning or D.P.W.[Dept. Of Public Works].

Just remembered, signed a contract not revealing hours of sick leave. Oh, well someone who hasn’t signed said contract can say what I cannot but what I can do is this.
Reveal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). So look below folks.

Just remembered, signed a contract not revealing hours of sick leave. Oh, well someone who hasn’t signed said contract can say what I cannot but what I can do is this.
Reveal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA). So look below folks.

I want to thank the folks

www.dol.gov/dol/topic/workhours/sickleave.htm

Work Hours

Sick Leave

Currently, there are no federal legal requirements for paid sick leave. For companies subject to the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), the Act does require unpaid sick leave.

FMLA provides provides for up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave for certain medical situations for either the employee or a member of the employee's immediate family. In many instances paid leave may be substituted for unpaid FMLA leave.

Employees are eligible to take FMLA leave if they have worked for their employer for at least 12 months, and have worked for at least 1,250 hours over the previous 12 months, and work at a location where at least 50 employees are employed by the employer within 75 miles.

Well, that helps. Now, I’ve been thinking of T shirts all colors, sizes, and shapes. I don’t know about it as a business but have done some silk screening.

The one thing I do know there is a lot more to do with this business than has been done. So I’ll keep it under my hat.

That’s for me, everyone take care and as Last Week’s Asian Week
what can I say, the thought came before the deed and its like an X Files show’s

"Apology as Policy" which means do the error, mistake, or misspeak, misspoke, apologize for quick gloss over and make like it never happens until… it happens yet again.

That’s all I’m sayin’ no wasting time on it I want life extension and I want it NOW! This war drains the best of our people in mind, body, and spirit. Instead of spending on death – life should be our highest priority.

Again, it doesn’t matter what I think, don’t ever give me a chance to make a few billion, it would go to an ultimate question:

Can we alive now no matter our age in relatively good health;
Systematically improve our lives by changing microorganisms in our gut to mostly symbiotic and less parasitic from their bacteria, virus’s, to other living organisms theoretically improving ourselves from interior to exterior?

That what I would do if I had billions to work with but its selfish altruism: Help yourself and others along the way.

Example: you find what helps or makes the human body/brain more
efficient and when little or now side effects only then is F.D.A.
Federal Drug Administrationin formed and if they take longer than six months to a year other quasi avenues are explored to get vital medical info into public forum for access along with science and technologists ethic panels.

In the long run it will be up to us individually to decide our own fates.

But that’s just me, I have yet to earn a few hundred thousand let along cool million dollars.

by Youth Envision Project, Literacy for Environmental Justice

There are many different issues affecting urban communities such as pollution, violence, and drugs. An issue that is often overlooked and lessened is tobacco. Youth advocates at Literacy for Environmental Justice (LEJ), and Youth Leadership Institute (YLI) have been working to address this issue. Both organizations have been researching their communities to identify how the Tobacco Industry targets communities of color, specifically the Bay View Hunters Point and the Mission.

LEJ home to Tobacco Free Project (TFP) is an empowerment and environmental health and justice organization based in the community of Bayview Hunters Point San Francisco. TFP is a youth group whose goal is to create change by finding alternatives to the tobacco industry’s influence in their neighborhood. The Youth Leadership Institute is an organization that works with youth and adult allies to create positive social change. YLI designs and implements community based programs that provide youth leadership skills in alcohol, tobacco and other drug prevention, philanthropy, and civic engagement. YLI is home to Youth Organized Against Tobacco in San Francisco (YOAT SF), a Mission based youth group working to bring economic and social justice to the Mission district through tobacco advocacy.

Both groups worked most of last year collecting neighborhood residents, youth and merchants to understand the Tobacco Industry tactics used to push their products into communities like their own. In the Bayview, TFP found that 84.5 percent of merchants said that they receive incentives from tobacco companies. This included 72.1 percent of merchant who received incentives in the form of buys downs and discounts. And of all merchants surveyed in the Bayview, an overwhelming 92.3 percent said that they have contracts with tobacco companies. These survey results go to show that tobacco companies have their hands very much in the mix in the retail environment in the Bayview Hunters Point.

While in the Mission, YOAT SF found that there are a total of 120 tobacco retailers in the mission district, a geographic area of one square mile! Additionally, YOAT SF found that the average amount of money that Mission families spend on cigarettes is $10 per week or $520 per year, a high figure for a neighborhood where 39% of the Latino population in Mission is at or below 40% of the area median income AMI.

Research has proven that higher concentration of tobacco retailer outlets has been linked with higher rates of smoking. All this in the Mission and Bayview, plus the fact that tobacco companies have increased their advertising promotion in and around the retail environment since billboards were banned, is enough to show the damage being done in low-income communities throughout the state with similar socio-economic profiles.

That’s why YLI and LEJ have decided to fight against Big Tobacco and start the Tobacco Manufacturers Mitigation Fee Campaign.

The Mitigation Fee is a fee that is going to be placed on every pack of cigarettes sold in the city of San Francisco. It will be used to alleviate the consequences that the Tobacco Industry has caused our communities with the sales of their harmful products. With a per pack fee and over 36 million packs sold a year, there will be an average of almost $10 million dollars mitigated from Big Tobacco, if our policy passes. The money from the Mitigation Fee will go to fund youth prevention and cessation programs, non-profit organizations and youth groups like LEJ and YOATSF to continue the ongoing fight against Big Tobacco.

We feel that it is time for our communities to stand up for themselves and have an impact on our neighborhoods’ futures. We will not sit by and tolerate any more attacks from the Tobacco Industry through their forceful advertisements, mass promotions and sales!

Currently, we are gathering as much support as we can from our communities and neighboring communities, but until then, look out for us collecting signatures throughout the city of San Francisco or presenting at your local youth organization!

by Janie Dickens

A new POOR Press author, Janie Dickens is not only a poverty scholar and digital resistor but also a poet and artist. Her first publication, Dream Owls proves her engaging artistic talent and insightful writing skills.

A colorful and playful book, Dream Owls , is a collection of poetry and art about why people are poor. Dream Owls has an enjoyable touch of playfulness while still engaging the reader in challenging subjects such as the environment, homelessness, childhood, and love. Dickens' poetry is full of life and reads to a nice rhythm that flows easily from one poem to the next.

by Published on Yahoo News

Native American Cherokees voted to expel descendants of black slaves from their tribe nation in a special election that has prompted charges of racism, according to returns made public early Sunday.
But a vote of 77 percent to 23 percent, the Cherokee Nation in Oklahoma adopted Saturday an amendment to their constitution
that strips membership from so-called "Freedmen," those descended from slaves once owned by Cherokees, blacks who were
married to Cherokees and children of mixed-race families.

"The Cherokee people exercised the most basic democratic right, the right to vote," Chad Smith, Principal Chief of the
Cherokee Nation, said in a statement. "Their voice is clear as to who should be citizens of the Cherokee Nation. No one else
has the right to make that determination."
However, opponents of the amendment say it was a racist project designed to deny the distribution of US government funds
and tribal revenue to those with African-American heritage, US media reported.

"This is a sad chapter in Cherokee history," Taylor Keen, a Cherokee tribal council member who opposes the amendment, told
the New York Times.
"But this is not my Cherokee Nation. My Cherokee Nation is one that honors all parts of her past."
Advocates of changing the 141-year-old treaty rules defining who is a Cherokee say the tribal nation has a sovereign right to
decide citizenship and that other tribes base membership on blood lines.

The Cherokee Nation, which ranks as the second-largest tribe behind the Navajo, has some 250,000 to 270,000 members and
is growing rapidly. Members are entitled to benefits from the US federal government and tribal services, including medical and
housing aid and scholarships.
Cherokees, along with several other tribes, held black slaves and allied themselves with the Confederacy during the US civil
war. After the war, the federal government in an 1866 treaty ordered the slaves freed.

In 1983, the Cherokee Nation expelled many descendants of slaves as members but a Cherokee tribunal ruled last year that
the Freedmen were fully-fledged citizens with voting rights. That court decision prompted Saturday's special vote.
Native American tribes recognized by the United States government have the right to self-determination and authority similar to
US states.

Election results will remain unofficial until certified by the Cherokee Nation Election Commission, but officials said percentages
were not expected to change significantly.

by Lindsay Robinson/POOR Magazine Poverty and Media Justice Intern

The open forum was offered to provide a media and community dialogue for the District 10 candidates and their constituents. The forum was lead by POOR Magazine poverty scholars who live, work, struggle and resist in District 10. The framework for this dialogue was centered around questions from the poverty scholars regarding issues of redevelopment, youth empowerment, police brutality and the daily struggles of life in District 10; Potrero Hill, Bayview-Hunters Point, Visitacion Valley, Portola/Silver Terrace, Dogpatch, and Little Hollywood and Portola neighborhoods. As a nonprofit organization POOR cannot endorse a specific candidate for office but can provide the space for and encourage an open conversation so community voices can be heard.

All of the candidates were invited - and all of them came, except two, Sophie Maxwell and Rodney Hampton Jr. The candidates present were Charlie Walker, an African American businessman from Bayview-Hunters Point. Espanola Jackson, a community activist since 1966 who has been fighting for Welfare Rights, affordable housing and education in District 10. Dwayne Jusino, a working class family man and a 23 year resident of District 10, who is committed to safe neighborhoods, quality schools, community revitalization and local businesses. Marie Harrison, a long time community advocate who is working against Eminent Domain and towards bringing peace and prosperity back to the community and Sala-Haquekyah Chandelier, a parent and advocate for youth empowerment. The community forum was conducted as a series of questions posed to the candidates and a chance for all of them to respond.

The Community Newsroom at POOR was tightly packed this past Tuesday night as the forum began. Everyone present had been asked to create a few questions to pose to the candidates so the forum could move along quickly. Byron Gafford a poet and Poverty scholar at POOR Magazine was the first to ask the question that was on so many people's minds, "What will the candidates do to stop redevelopment in the Bayview?" As each candidate responded, the room listened intently. There was a general consent among them that redevelopment needed to be stopped.

Charlie Walker and Sala-Haquekyah Chandelier both referred to the petition for a referendum to stop redevelopment that was signed by 33,000 people but was thrown out due to a lack of an additional document. Mr. Walker spoke of the situation as "pure racism at its highest form."

Espanola Jackson responded by remembering how this was not the first time redevelopment has come to the Bayview, she stressed how it must go to the courts to be decided.

Mr. Jusino began by saying that it needed to be brought back to the people. "Where is Sophie Maxwell?" he asked. Then, paused and answered his own question, "She�s in bed with the developers.�

The next question was posed by Vonder Alston, a community member, "What will be your number one priority if elected?"

Charlie walker responded with a commanding voice. He stressed the need to stop redevelopment and clean up the mess that is already there from companies like Sunset Scavengers and stated how the Southeast side of San Francisco is the most neglected in the city.

Marie Harrison agreed and added that "redevelopment is like a bull in a china shop.� She stated that she is not afraid to confront redevelopers.

Simiarly, Ms. Jackson said there is a need to stop the three combustible turbine engines that are spewing more toxins into the area than PG&E did. She wants the old shipyard, which is a superfund site, to be cleaned using the $2 billion that would be spent if the Olympics came to town.

Sala-Haquekyah Chandelier responded by stressing the need for unity and youth empowerment.

"There is a crisis of leadership and a strong need for a community advocate for the people" stated Dwayne Jusino.

Marlon Crump a Poverty scholar at POOR and a SRO resident in the Mission brought another extremely important question to the floor, one that was very real for many of the folks present last Tuesday. "What do the candidates intend to do about police brutality?"

Mr. Walker responded by addressing the lack of leadership in the SFPD. He blamed the police for increasing the violence in his neighborhood. He wants to see a more effectual police dept.

Marie Harrison made the connection between untrained officers and an already tense situation, creating, as she called it, a recipe for an explosion.

Espanola Jackson urged for drug testing of the police and states that there are serious drug problems on the force.

Ms. Chandelier stated, "The community should be involved in the interview process with perspective police and play an interactive role in who gets hired."

Mr. Jusino sees a fractured political community and feels that more police accountability will help repair that rift.

Leroy Moore, a Poverty scholar and writer at POOR, discussed the large population of Bayview-Hunters Point residents that have disabilities and how the community lacks adequate mental health services and transportation. He asked what the candidates plan to do about this issue if elected.

Marie Harrison was the first to respond as if the subject had already been on her mind. She said she has been working on a proposal that is awaiting funding, which would provide transportation from public housing to clinics or other health facilities and back home again.

Dwayne Jusino said he feels this is a basic concern for the community and "action needs to be taken to provide resources for our most vulnerable and dependent residents". The community has a responsibility to its entire people, he said.

Espanola Jackson emphasized the need for money to be allocated for the care of Bayview residents who have the highest rates of asthma and cancer in the region.

Ms. Chandelier said she sees a need for a stronger relationship with the seniors in our community and that the youths need to be engaged.

As Charlie Walker began to speak, a hush fell over the room. He pointed out an obvious trend in the candidates� responses.

"All of our answers are the same; these issues are all deeply rooted in racism. No white community would tolerate their people being treated this way," he boldly stated. He said He believes that very little has been done for the District 10 community in the last 40 years.

The group listened intently as the candidates shared their views. Ingrid DeLeon, a Poverty scholar at POOR and PoorNewsNetwork immigrant reporter, was the next to share her question with the help of her translator. "Que Ustedes hacer acerca salud de pobre gente (what are you going to do about health care for poor people?")

Marie Harrison said she believes the issue lies with educating the community about the current health risks in their neighborhood, she refers to the power plant and the many health issues associated with it and pointed out that she has served on the Restoration Advisory Board for the shipyard for 14 years.

Mr. Jusino began by reflecting on his own heritage as coming from Puerto Rican dissent. He wants fully funded health care and wants to see politics taken out of the way of adequate health care for everyone.

Charlie Walker said he is prepared to make the request that the Center for Disease Control be dispatched to District 10 to do research on the high rates of asthma and cancer.

Espanola Jackson has been working for Welfare rights for many years and said this was an important issue for her.

"Why should we trust you," asked Marvin Crutchfield, Poverty scholar, Bayview resident and POOR Press Author asked.

Dwayne Jusino stated clearly, "You shouldn't". The air in the room shifted as many folks could relate to the difficulty of trusting our politicians. Mr. Jusino continued on by stressing the need for the community to come together in forums like this one to size up and judge the candidates ourselves. "Let everyone's record show and let the community decide," he said.

Marie Harrison agreed whole hearted with Mr. Jusino, "The community needs to push us to do what we say we are going to do and create accountability."

Ms. Chandelier began by saying that she has been a community activist for 22 years, is a former welfare recipient and understands the struggles of her community. "I am unbossed an unbought and will never sell out," she exclaimed.

Charlie Walker cited his record as an activist who has fought and been jailed many times for fighting for Black rights.

Jewnbug, a Poverty scholar at POOR, Welfare Queen and co-founder of the Family Project at POOR began her question by stressing the need for more opportunities for our youth. "How are you going to create and support new opportunities for our children, and not just the type of dead-end trainings that never lead to a real job?

Sala-Haquekyah Chandelier shook her head in agreement. "Creativity has the ability to fill our children's lives with possibilities." The room reacted to her strong words.

Ms. Harrison agreed that dead-end trainings are not the answer. The youth need to be engaged and paid well when they work, she said. In addition, she stressed the importance of putting San Franciscans first as the key to bringing jobs to the area.

Espanola Jackson also believes in putting San Franciscans first and proposes that the CEO's of large companies come and work with the youth, engaging them in part-time summer jobs.

Mr. Jusino sees the situation as extremely bad for the people of his community. "The education system has a real disconnect to the real world" he pointed out. "We need to link it to the business world and our community," he said.

Mr. Walker stated that it is real hard to deal with youth unemployment when so many children�s parents are also out of work. There is no real difference between the youth and elders, he said. "When the major contractors come in and take money out of our community how can we benefit?" he asked.

Dharma, a Po' Poet and Poverty scholar at POOR was the next to ask a question. "What will you do to stop the Redlining of Black Business in District 10?"

Mr. Walker was eager to respond. He said he believes there is a crisis in the African American community. He cited Bank of America, Wells Fargo and Citibank for openly not lending money to African Americans.

Marie Harrison sees a need for more reinvestment in our community. "These are our dollars" she stated.

"Redevelopers claimed that 80% of our taxes would be reinvested in our community, but they lied" said Espanola Jackson.

"They are taking this money away from us like thieves in the night and Sophie Maxwell's prints are all over it" Mr. Jusino boldly added when the mic came his way.

Sala-Haquekyah stressed the need for community members to stand up and take back their power.

Leroy Moore was ready with the final question of the forum. "We have seen the activist board of supervisors turn their back on their community during the dot.com boom. There are many organizations that have the answers and understand the problems, why won't the supervisors listen?"

"There is a lack of leadership and the supervisor doesn't listen. The people need to force the supervisor to listen and be accountable," stated Marie Harrison.

"The city is making money from people being homeless and there are so many boarded up houses in the Bayview, it makes no sense," said Espanola Jackson. Community members nodded in agreement.

Charlie Walker stressed the fact that all of these problems are rooted in slavery and said that he sees a real disconnect in the way our disabled brothers and sisters are cared for.

Sala-Haquekyah Chandelier turned to face Leroy and assured him by saying, "You are being heard."

Dwayne Jusino finished by saying that he agreed with Ms. Jackson and said that "it is nothing but a dog and pony show, nothing gets done, it's time for action."

As the question and answer period concluded, the candidates lingered to connect one on one with community members. The space for this type of forum is rare in our community and helped provide those present with a chance to get answers from the people who wish to represent them in District 10.

by Jasmine Hain

Twelve-year old Jasmine Hain and her mother Vivian Hain are co-authors of My Life X 4 , which chronicles the four years their family spent living in a store front window during the dot-com boom.

The book includes stories, poems, artwork, quotes and reflections of Jasmine, which highlight her remarkable social consciousness and incredible talent. Vivian and Jasmine's collaboration on the book emphasize the unique and sacred bond the mother and daughter share. My Life X 4 provides a new perspective on poverty, one that is not heard in traditional media today and should be read by all.

by Olivia Colt/POOR Race, Poverty and Media Justice Intern

'Kaiser killed me,' said William Fortson, a guest speaker at POOR magazines monthly Community Newsroom meeting.'Kaiser killed me.' Say what?? Is this the same Kaiser that has spent millions of dollars in a marketing campaign telling us how well they take care of us; the same Kaiser insurance my job supplies me with?

William Fortson was diagnosed with terminal cancer of the liver in October of 2006 and was told stoically by his doctors that he had 'six months to live and that he [the specialist] thought it was better for me to enjoy the quality of my life' not the quantity. It is now March of 2007 and William is miraculously standing before us relaying his incredible tale, with his wife Mary, about the injustices of the HMO health care system for which he spent 34 years paying for as part of his employee benefit package. William has an eight cm tumor on his liver, a tumor too big to cut out or to transplant organs, too much trouble to do radiation or kemo, too much trouble for his healthcare provider to care for the well fare of him and his family.

This saga does not begin in late 2006, but rather 6 years earlier when William was diagnosed with Hepatitis C. Like any good patient Bill Fortson went to all his appointments, followed doctors' orders and regiments, and monitored his health to the best of his ability. He played the game and followed all the rules, yet as his pain began to increase in his abdomen, his doctor at Kaiser disappeared into thin air; this resulted in his misplaced medical record and improper diagnoses for his pain for a little over a year.

Americans pay on average $5, 267 annually for health care insurance, this is roughly 42% more than any other industrialized western nation pays in medical insurance. Americans spend more per capita in health insurance then any other nation in the world. The United States is one of the most developed countries on earth yet 32 million Americans receive inadequate coverage, doctors are not equipped with the most up to date technologies, and as a result must perform more expensive and invasive surgeries. Americans are paying a third of every dollar they earn for health insurance; but what are we really getting for all these co-pays, like in William Forston's case, an HMO that refuses to pay for treatment that is covered in his employee benefit package.

William Fortson has a family of three; a beautiful wife Mary and a daughter Sakara whom will be graduating from college this May. And yet, despite all of his nest eggs, William and his family are facing the most challenging experiences of their life. Kaiser refused to provide William with the proper treatment or diagnose that would help extend his life. Furthermore, upon changing HMOs to Pacific Care, William is being withheld from receiving treatment from M.D. Andersen cancer treatment facility in Houston, Texas the number two treatment facility in the nation. Pacific Care, the Fortsons current HMO, covers treatment at this facility yet they refuse to shell out the money to help pay for William's treatment.

A Harvard study recently showed that half of all Americans go bankrupt from medical bills. The Fortsons do not care about the cost of treatment as long as it means that William will continue to live and not be resigned to a death sentence. 'They may feel that my father's life is not worth their trouble but we are not asking for any free-hand outs,' said Sakara. The irony is astounding, we pay so much for the 'best' money can buy and still can callously throw someone's life away because they [the insurance companies] need to 'penny-pinch', to put it bluntly, because they are cheap. 'If I have too, I will stand on a BART platform with flyers denouncing Kaiser and telling my husband's story,' Mary told us as she relayed her side of the story in dealing with the harassment and brush off of the Kaiser Permante and Pacific Care personnel and medical staff.

A few days ago a 12 year old homeless boy Deamonte Driver died from an infection from an abscessed tooth in Maryland. In response Congress has decided that they will allocate a reported 40 million more dollars to health care centers and departments throughout the country to prevent this from happening again. Instead of creating policies to affect change Congress is continuing to feed a broken and corrupt system. Coupled with a proposed bill by Vice President Dick Cheney, whom walked in and out of a hospital in one day recently for a blood clot, to place a malpractice cap for class-action lawsuits at $250k; this ensures that the insurance companies remain well protected from having to pay for the majority damages they incur on their patients. This bill will allegedly 'free' the HMOs from the litigation that is preventing them from offering and providing their constituents with the best possible health care they can afford; the same health care that put William Fortson on death row.

William Fortson to this day is being given the run around by physicians and HMOs while his hour glass of time is quickly running out. The Fortsons have reached out to their community, thinking that support would be overwhelming, but none would listen, no one cares. Finally, after being offered pro-bono services from Felicia Curran, the Fortsons attorney, William has an emergency appoint with the UCSF Medical Center in San Francisco. William is not a guinea pig, he is not some careless object, he is a human being, with a wife and a family. He was living the American dream, or so he thought. William's daughter put it best in a letter she addressed to Anderson Copper 360, 'My father qualifies but no one cares. If a person has health care and can not get help, where else can we turn?'

*KAISER KILLS*!!! Please join the Fortsons and other families and
individuals who have been denied care and/or been subjected to
HELLTHCARE at Kaiser at a rally and press conference on Tuesday April
10th @ 9:00 am in front of Kaiser Permanente Medical offices at 2238
Geary street ( near Divisadero) in San Francisco. Rally sponsored by
POOR Magazine/PoorNewsNEtwork.For more information or to sign on as a
co-sponsor or speaker please call POOR at (415) 863-6306

by Leroy Moore Jr. of the National Minorities with Disabilities Coalition

The National Minorities with Disabilities Coalition, NMDC, views the recent election as a serious turning point in the disabled movement and a wake up call for this country’s political arena. As we witnessed, this election year brought out record number of candidates with disabilities and candidates with disabilities of color to some high political positions from Governor to House of Representatives to the Senate. These results, however, could have been better and hopefully are just a starting point. NMDC would like to share with you what this election means for not only minorities with disabilities, who ran for office and for the whole disabled community but for the political arena.

Out of ten known races involving candidates with disabilities in New York, California , Maine, Illinois, Massachusetts and Maryland, only two disabled candidates won their races: David Paterson, now Lieutenant Governor of NY and reelected member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisor, Michela Alioto Pier. What does this mean for the future of candidates with disabilities in all political parties? Although many of the disabled candidates that NMDC covered in this year’s election were newcomers to the political arena, the two who won their race are well known in their parties and came into the race with a treasure of supporters, contributions, a well- oiled political machine and a family name.

Both Paterson and Alioto are not only people with disabilities but both have a family legacy in politics in their cities. David Paterson’s father, Basil Paterson, is a longtime political leader in New York and Harlem and was the first African American to be nominee of a major party for statewide office in New York. His father’s political work spans from the 1950’s and 60s to the 80’s. The same is true for Michela Alioto-Pier. Alioto-Pier is the granddaughter of former San Francisco Mayor Joseph Alioto, and the niece of Angela Alioto, former President of the SF Board of Supervisors. Joseph Alioto served on the San Francisco Board of Education from 1948 to 1954, and in the 1960s, served as the chair of the city's Redevelopment Agency. He entered the mayoral race in 1967.

Some of theses races involving candidates with disabilities were close and made historical inroads in the political arena. For example, Brooke Ellison, a person with quadriplegia who was running for the Senate in New York, lost her race to a well known Republican, John Flanagan, but the race was close for a newcomer. Flanagan got 59 percent of the vote to Ellison's 40 percent. Ellison is no Arnold Schwarzenegger even though her name and face were in Hollywood. She starred in the last movie Christopher Reeves directed about her life, but her star power is not as bright as all other movie stars that have walked onto the political stage.

In another interesting study about press coverage, the NMDC tracked the amount of media around disabled candidates in the past election. Although the candidates did get some media attention around their campaigns for being persons with disabilities running for office, compared to well-known candidates the coverage was sparse. The well-known candidates were asked about a vareity of subjects by the media, while candidates with disabilities received very little media attention and it was only related to only one issue, their disabilities.

Many of the third party disabled candidates were excluded from debates. Martina Robinson was quoted in an article as saying that she was excluded from the Governor’s debate in Massachusetts. She believed it was based on her disability because it takes time for her aide to interpret to the audience what she says due to the cerebral palsy that affects her speech.

Now, in the post election media coverage, a diverse group of experts are analyzing what the election meant for their communities and the result of the Democrats taking over the Senate and the House. These experts and their comments represent people of color, women, immigrants, gays and lesbians and even youth but once again, eventhough this election had a record number of candidates with disablities, the voice of the disabled community is missing.

Disabled or not, in this election voters played it safe and went with the more well-known names from the two major political parties. The question is if you are not born into a political family dynasty how do you get the name, support and the backing of the political machine? Our answer at NMDC is to keep on running.

Martina Robinson, who was running for Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts on the new Green-Rainbow Party ticket, took the words out of my mouth when she was interviewed for the Boston Globe article. Robinson said that, she knows ‘the odds are steeply stacked against her.” She wants to win and thinks she has a chance, but winning is not her sole objective. She also said she hopes to set an encouraging example for other disabled people.

In the race for Governor in Massachusetts 54 percent of voters picked Democrats Deval Patrick and Timothy Murray, followed by 23 percent for the Green Rainbow Party's Grace Ross and Martina Robinson. Bringing up the rear with 11 percent of the votes each were Republicans Kerry Healey and Reed Hillman and Independents Christy Mihos and John Sullivan. Although the Grace Ross & Robinson ticket got only 23 percent of the vote, they did come in second place. This is huge for a newly formed party and it is first time that African American woman with a physical disability ran for a high political office in that state. It is also interesting to point out that the newly elected Governor Deval Patrick is the first Black Governor of Massachusetts, but it is not known if his administration will look toward Robinson for advice on disability issues in the state.

Although many of the disabled war veterans who ran for office lost, like Tammy Duckworth of Illinois, Phil Avillo in Pennsylvania and Phillip Morris Napier, the question now is will the new Democratically controlled House & Senate listen to these disabled war veterans or more proactively will they take on their campaign promises and platforms?

Another interesting detail of the above candidates are they were all Democrats or Independents. Were there any Republican disabled war veterans in this year’s election? In the Duckworth and Roskam race in Illinois for the House of Representatives, Duckworth, a Filipino war veteran who is an amputee received 49% of the vote and the newly elected Representative, Roskam received 51% of the vote. This was a very close race for a first-time disabled Filipino candidate.

So the National Minorities with Disabilities Coalition (NMDC) believes that the major question for the above disabled candidates now is, “what will be their future in the political arena?” How can we, in the disabled community learn from their candidacy and what will be the affect of the disabled vote and upcoming disabled candidates on the current political parties? NMDC will keep an eye on the political arena and disabled candidates.

by Ecsta Scene

In the first edition of her zine called System Bitch , poverty scholar, welfare QUEEN and mother, Ecsta Scene has published a collection of what she calls witness statements. Authored by a variety of different people, these witness statements are first hand accounts of peoples interactions with systems in todays modern world.

System Bitch is unlimited in the scope of systems its authors confront, including but not limited to jail, child abuse, work, love, religion and politics. Ecsta Scene has put together a truly insightful collection of work, which begs for further evaluation.

by Josph Bolden

After Bush/Obama Times PT. 1

Between listening to a guy on 106.5 FM,reading the Emortality series[Look up Conquest of Death by Author Alvin Silvertein. No aging or disease though death by accident,dying is still possible.

The Author Brian Stableford creator of the Emortaity series
acknowledged his debt to Silverstien for coining the phrase and it meaning.

Basically,Emortality differs from Immortality not only in its spelling but also that the latter is a state or process of being unable to die. Emortality is a state or process of life extension yet still being able to die.
Damn!There's always a catch.

Oh well better get use to emortality as emergency an stopgap before true immortality gets here.

What has any of the above to do with Bush and Obama? Not much except that Born-Again-Bush,Vice Prez’ Dick,Tom Delay,and all his

crony friends have caused death,destruction, slowed the pace not only alternate energy sciences but also medical advancement!

Think back folks, between dead prez Ronald Reagon’s decade long ban on Biotechnology and Bush’s Born Again-War Prez-Fear- Stem Cell-Stolen Cash administration is over you know we will celebrate that great day!

Unless Marshal Law is enacted to keep Bush in legally for illegal means.

Most if not all the technologies will spring forth. Maybe veterans, and their families who’ve sacrificed time,risked, limb,lives,some lost forever will be the first besides a few citizens to partake of

stem cell and or tissue repair technology for nerve repair,synaptic cloning giving back what was lost of motor or higher brain function though some memories are forever lost.

This is what I wait for: The long way back from this gray tinged tunnel where we’ve been told the applied science to help people in need and save lives isn't possible on religous,ethical themes.

Crapola on all that static folks,our lives,our collective or individual choices!

I do believe the best way to win this socalled war is withdraw our troops

Like that movie where a supercomputer on Nuclear War says:"Currious game,best way to win is not to play."

After all this started because one man’s thirst to be a WAR PRESIDENT AND SCARE US WITH 911 OVER AND OVER WHILE TAKING AWAY OUR CIVIL RIGHTS – LEFT AND RIGHT TO COIN A PHAISE.

by By Tiny aka Lisa Gray-Garcia and Vivien Hain/PoorNewsNetwork poverty scholars and welfareQUEENS

At 3:30 p.m., under a brisk and windy blue sky in West Oakland last
Thursday, just a couple of days after the elections, stood a crowd of
people, mostly West Oakland residents, along with members of the
Oakland-based tenant's rights organization 'Just Cause' to unveil a
billboard that read: "West Oakland For The People - Stop
Gentrification", adorned with large, warm colored graphics, including an image of a male silhouette with a dollar sign on his chest and a
close up of the face of a youth.

Many people, most who live in the
community, sang protest songs and chanted slogans that they will never
be stopped, despite of the need for greed from billionaire real estate
developers, which has been gradually pushing many low-income families
of color out of West Oakland as part of ex-Oakland Mayor Jerry Brown's
gentrification agenda.

As the people spoke, I gazed off into the distance a few blocks away near
the corner of 26th and peralta, where a slightly beat-up, cream-colored
apartment complex used to live. It was an apartment my mother and I had
lived in, barely affording the rent, before we were evicted to make way
for a large terra cotta condo development that stood there now, resting
its bright steel and shiny metal legs calmly on the graves of a
thousand apartments for poor folks.

Then I gazed a few blocks to the left to a "storefront" where my mama
and i squatted right after we were evicted because that eviction
destabilized our tenuous hold on homefulness to such an extent that we
couldn't really recover.

So how do you wipe out a whole community of color - by redlining,
re-zoning, ghetto-izing, turning it into a "cool" artists ghetto.and
then eventually displacing the community that was originally there.
Gentrification for Dummies; the template of capitalism; renew, redo,
displace and re-locate

But there is one more key way to accomplish this goal that must be
mentioned, through the "buy-in" of the community members themselves.

I scanned the Corporate media (a.k.a. The Chronicle-Lies) on Sunday
only to find a picture of several supposedly conscious residents of
West Oakland standing next to the lead developer, Rick Holliday, of the
multi-million dollar Train station project, they were all talking about
how important it was to bring "market-rate housing" to west Oakland as
that would be the way to "improve" West Oakland.

Who does market rate housing improve West Oakland for? And where do all
the poor folks go when we are displaced? Like Po� Poet Laureate of POOR Magazine A. Faye
hicks so beautifully articulated in her poem The Poor Nation, "we don't
move, cause we don't have the resources to move, we just start living
in the sidewalk hotel."

"We must not be moved", a very angry Gregory Hodge, Oakland Unified
School District Director called out to the crowd flanked by Hip Hop
artists ArtinAction

As people of color we must resist this gentrification,"said Yvonne Smith, long-time West Oakland resident of 63 years.

After several community elders spoke, scholarship was spit by several local Oakland youth hip hop artists who came out to represent and perform, speaking out about the social genocide that is currently taking place in their communities, which is forcing many long-time West Oakland residents to leave and be 'set out to pasture', with many being relocated to other cities as far away as Stockton, because affordable housing in West Oakland continues to rapidly shrink to near extinction.

As part of the anti-gentrification billboard campaign in West

Oakland, Just Cause has also been working for several years on an

'inclusionary housing campaign', with an Inclusionary Zoning (IZ)

proposal that would require all new housing developments to include units for low-income families.

Every single month, hundreds of condos are being fast-tracked through the City of Oakland's approvals process, and the vast majority of them are market-rate, luxury condos for San Francisco professionals. Meanwhile, the displacement and exodus of communities of color in West Oakland continues.

Inclusionary Zoning is a policy that requires all housing developments to include a percentage of "affordable units". Just Cause has been at the forefront of calling for this policy over the past few years and last year, several other organizations joined in the campaign, like Oaklanders for Affordable Housing, in an effort to build a coalition of organizations pushing for Inclusionary Zoning.

The effort is in high gear as Just Cause's (IZ) campaign pushes Oakland's City Council to implement a minimum requirement of 20% low-income housing in all developments immediately, so that the trend of housing displacement for many Oakland communities of low and no income people of color will stop.

As the press conference came to a close I gazed up the street again, my eyes searching for another corner, this one where me and my poor mama dee used to park our car when we didn't even have a place left to live in. I couldn't find that corner cause my gaze was obstructed by yet another condo, this one even bigger than the last.

If you would like to get involved in the campaign work that Just Cause is currently working on, contact them at 510.763.5877 Email: victory@justcauseoakland.org

Tiny is a welfareQUEEN and revolutionary journalist, co-founder of POOR
Magazine and author of the upcoming memoir; Criminal of Poverty;
Growing Up homeless in America, published by city Lights. Vivien Hain,
is a welfareQUEEN, media producer and co-author of My Life x 4 - a
story of her and her daughter's homelessness in Oakland published by
POOR Press.