Speaking as a Recycler Myself

p Speaking as a span class="scayt-misspell" data-scayt_word="recycler" data-scaytid="3"recycler/span myself, I must say something about the span class="scayt-misspell" data-scayt_word="criminalization" data-scaytid="13"criminalization/span and incarceration thatnbsp; span class="scayt-misspell" data-scayt_word="“houseless”" data-scaytid="15"ldquo;houselessrdquo;/span or independent recyclers constantly face.nbsp;/p p Throughout San Francisco, the Bay area--and even most of the country--people look downnbsp;onnbsp;those in poverty as ifnbsp;they were something disgusting. I was watching anbsp;morning newscast,nbsp; trying to wake up, when I heard people being interviewed in Castro Valley. They were telling reporters that the span class="scayt-misspell" data-scayt_word="“houseless”" data-scaytid="17"ldquo;houselessrdquo;/span need to findnbsp;a job instead of ldquo;going through trash bins looking for junkrdquo;, as one neighbor put it. But to put it that way is, for lack of a better word, ignorant. First you must understand what I mean by the more dignified term ldquo;independent span class="scayt-misspell" data-scayt_word="recycler”" data-scaytid="19"recyclerrdquo;/span. To be an independent span class="scayt-misspell" data-scayt_word="recycler" data-scaytid="7"recycler/span, you must first label yourself as an independent span class="scayt-misspell" data-scayt_word="recycler" data-scaytid="9"recycler/span. To do that, you havenbsp;consciously resistednbsp;tonbsp;label yourself as ldquo;bumrdquo;, or ldquo;hobordquo;./p p class="MsoNormal" I would like to once again bring up a proposal that was brought up by my colleagues at POOR Magazine--a proposal that would, instead of criminalizing and persecuting a subject--would be hailed as a simple man/woman who chose to recycle as a job because it was available for capitalism. What I was taught in school is that to capitalize on a specific object, for example paper, it must be in demand. People write books, music scores, and many other things, so it is profitable by demand./p p class="MsoNormal" The officials at the top want to focus on jobs. nbsp;I say that they are blowing out their backsides. If they wanted more jobs there would be more. The only reason they donrsquo;t think about independent recyclers as subcontractors is because they believe that it does not bring in a significant amount of profit./p p class="MsoNormal" nbsp;/p p class="MsoNormal" span style="font-family: 'times new roman bold'"bPOOR Magazinersquo;s Independent Recycling Proposal :/b/span/p p class="MsoNormal" span style="font-family: 'times new roman italic'"ildquo;Independent Recyclers as Subcontractorsrdquo;/i/span/p p class="MsoNormal" span style="font-family: 'times new roman italic'"iAll independent recyclers should hold the same rights as all the major recycling companies. Independent recycling should be decriminalized, recognized and appreciated for the meticulous work it is. POOR#39;s proposal for independent contractors should include not only decriminalization but remuneration and benefits for the independent contractors. This could be accomplished in many different ways. One proposal is if the recyclers were able to obtain vendor cards that would allow them to acquire their recyclable products without being harassed. One option is vendor cards could be made available to them for no charge. These cards do not need to be too complex, just a simple card with their name, address and photo should be sufficient. Two cross streets could be used as a valid address if the span class="scayt-misspell" data-scayt_word="recycler" data-scaytid="11"recycler/span is span class="scayt-misspell" data-scayt_word="houseless" data-scaytid="20"houseless/span. The cards should also provide free medical care for the span class="scayt-misspell" data-scayt_word="holder.”" data-scaytid="1"holder.rdquo;/span/i/span/p p class="MsoNormal" So to all the people in Castro Valley, we can make this work if we can change our perception of what is acceptable in society and what needs more attention than others. We donrsquo;t need to criminalize these independent recyclers, we need to give them the jobs that they seek. You talk about how they need to get a job, well this is the job that they do. In no manner am I belittling the recycling unions that do a lot of hard work--I just want to let them know that we still appreciate all the hard work that they do./p p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in" nbsp;/p p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in" Sincerely, Phillip Standing Bearspannbsp; /span/p p class="MsoNormal" spannbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; /span/p p class="MsoNormal" nbsp;/p p class="MsoNormal" nbsp;/p p class="MsoNormal" nbsp;/p p class="MsoNormal" nbsp;/p p class="MsoNormal" nbsp;/p p class="MsoNormal" spannbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp; /span/p