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About Street roots. (Portland, OR) 1998-current | View Entire Issue (April 13, 2012)
street roots 2 April 13, 2012 DITORIAL A positive message always wins out Why housing matters in this election S here’s a lot of personality in the upcoming elections. This is Portland, after all. T And in these times, the gravity of this election is further weighted by the stagnant economy, the city’s pressing financial straits, and the many directions this city can go, possibly far afield from where it has been. Housing, however, seldom breaks the surface on Portlanders’ voting minds, when it should. Of course, housing has always been political. Not too long ago, housing policy meant dead-end tenement projects that concentrated poverty while tax deductions encouraged middle- to income homebuyers Our housing policies are sprawl into the suburbs. reflected on our Today, in Portland sidewalks, in our school certainly, the trend is halls and our emergency to return to the rooms. established urban cores, where tax breaks incentivize revitalization by major developers. Revitalization has given room to gentrification and displacement as the fallback phrases in this local election cycle, as low-income families are now getting pushed further and further to the edge of town, literally and figuratively. Meanwhile, families are losing their homes to a foreclosure pandemic manufactured by the financial industry. Some of them are joining the ranks of couch surfers and hotel residents, of car campers and tent dwellers — becoming homeless. The politics of housing is about the proliferation of urban renewal districts and the appropriation of those tax revenues to new development, including low-income housing. It’s about keeping our options open for creating future revenue sources as existing sources run dry. It’s about the definitions we apply to those in need - often creating square pegs for round holes. It’s abouka small group of homeless Israel Bayer is the executive director o f Street Roots. You can reach him a t israel@ streetroots.org LETTERS Portland's veterans housing assistance underutilized cam pers who survived the winter in peace and safety at the corner of Fourth Avenue and Burnside, under the watchful eye of city code enforcers. On housing pivots so many issues our current slate of candidates are eagerly talking about: transportation, job development, public safety and schools. Each and every one of us has a vested interest in how our government moves forward on housing concerns, no one more so than those who are living on or close to the streets. But the same goes for any family struggling to keep its home, or any individual who is relying on the small, single-room apartment that is keeping him clean and sober, and maybe finally, employed and engaged in our community. Our housing policies are reflected on our sidewalks, in our school halls and our emergency rooms. Unstable housing has been directly linked to lower grades in school and poorer health. And the Mobius loop of stable housing and gainful employment leaves one almost inseparable from the other. The city needs representatives in office who not only understand housing’s role in Portland’s social, economic and environmental fabric, but who will not lose sight of that relationship to special interests pulling them in one direction or another. This is not a call for a vote, but rather a call for leadership that shares the value of safe, stable and affordable housing as much as we all do. This is Portland, after all. |||g | I I ( I ' . n » Street Roots publishes every two weeks, launching on Fridays, and is available exclusively through our street vendors or by subscription. We are proud members of the North American Street Newspaper Association and the International Network of Street Papers. Street Roots 211 NW Davis St. Portland, OR 97209 503-228-5657 Fax: 503-227-3117 www.streetroots.org www.streetroots.wordpress.com at the Portland VA to immediately lease up he federally funded Veterans Affairs all available VASH vouchers. Homeless Supportive Housing (VASH) program is "veTerans deserve no less. designed to help homeless veferans-* BOBBY WEINSTOCK nationwide by offering supportive services Northwest Pilot Project and a Section 8 voucher to obtain a modest apartment. The Portland VA Medical Center started receiving VASH vouchers in May 2008 to serve homeless veterans in our Vendor's book impresses region. Until recently, the Portland VA had I finished reading the book by (Street never used more than 75 percent of their Roots vendor) Sam Al-Jondi and enjoyed it allocated vouchers. Thus far, more than very much. I was impressed by his $1 million in rent subsidies intended for philosophy and by the way he portrayed homeless veterans in our area has gone values of virtual importance to humanity in unutilized. his work, in a very simple style while As of April 1, 39 — 16 percent of the 245 VASH vouchers available to the Portland VA displaying a great deal of depth and — were still not leased up. There is certainly thought. no shortage of eligible homeless veterans Please convey my best wishes to Sam locally. Fully utilizing these VASH vouchers Al-Jondi, and that I was indeed impressed. will increase the chances our region will be SHAHIRA EL SAWY awarded the maximum number of additional Dean of Libraries and Learning Technologies The American University in Cairo vouchers. Let’s all encourage our colleagues T WHAT DO YOU THINK? Send letters to the editor to the Street Roots office, 211 NW Davis St., Portland, OR 97209, or e-mail to joanne@streetroots.org. Board of Directors Our mission Street Roots creates income opportunities for people experiencing homelessness and poverty ty producing a newspaper and other media that are catalysts for individual and soda! change. the day, everything we do is built around treet Roots is happy to announce we the idea of not only giving people outside of were honored at Northwest Pilot the system an income, but also hope. Projects’ (NWPP) annual event this year with a Community Service Award for The great Woody Guthrie once said something to the effect of not letting outstanding anyone or anything knock around your hope achievement and machine. I would like to believe that all of service to Portland’s the sweat and tears that the entire team at ¡7jj elderly, homeless and Street Roots puts in to presenting this poor. newspaper and the Rose City Resource is Since 1969, NWPP ultimately about hope. B y Israel Bayer ^as been offering Day in and day out we work with many housing and service h ih h h b h m m m m opportunities for a life individuals that have been to hell and back, and may be experiencing a high level of of dignity and hope to trauma due to the brutal realities of Portland’s elderly, homelessness. With a little bit of hope and disabled, and homeless. Each year, NWPP self-worth through the sales of the has successfully housed many Street Roots newspaper and the relationships we all vendors, and we are indebted to their build with vendors, we begin to believe we services. can do anything, be it personally or On another front, I’m humbled to receive collectively. the Hilltop award this month from Together, we refuse to accept that Multnomah County for my lifelong poverty is a hand we have been dealt, and community work with the people nothing can be done about it. Instead, we experiencing homelessness in the region work to create individual and social change and for my work with Street Roots. in a way that will make the world we live in I’ve dedicated my life to the street a better place. With each sale of the newspaper movement, for better or worse, newspaper, readers become part of that and couldn’t be more proud of all of the collective movement towards something vendors, volunteers, staff and board positive — both in the lives of the vendors members at Street Roots for helping the and in the city we live. Together, we fight newspaper continue to grow and be back with a positive message of love. recognized in the community. At the end of Executive Director Israel Bayer israel@streetroots.org Managing Editor Joanne Zuhl Operations Director Sarah Beecroft Program Assistant Cole Merkel, Jesuit Volunteer : AmeriCorps Member Grant Writer Sarah Cloud Accountant Heather Stadick Reporters Amanda Waidroupe, Jake Thomas, Devan Schwartz Photographers Leah Nash, Ken Hawkins, Kristina Wright Bruce Anderson (Chairman), Michael Anderson (Vice- chairman), Heather Stadick (Treasurer), Eddy Barbosa (Secretary), Rich Rodgers, Brad Taylor, Leo Rhodes, Ken Hawkins, Nora Coon, Darren Alexander ■ • . : ■ ........... ...■ each and sell them for $1, keeping the 75 cents in profit for themselves, in order to keep the cost low to our vendors, we receive additional support from « donations and in-kind contributions. Mary Pacios, Leo Rhodes, Jan Bayer, Eliese Baker, Sue Zalokar, Michael Moore, Robert Britt, Cynthia Kiehl, Hannah Schultz, Eli Richey, Kai Soderberg Street Roots Rose City Resource Street Roots publishes the Rose City Resource, a comprehensive booklet of services for people experiencing homelessness and poverty. To inquire about getting an order of the Rose City Resource for distribution, please write to pdxrosecityresource@gmail.com. Resources are also available online at www.rosecityresource.org. 75c goes directly to the vendor who sold you the paper 25c goes toward printing costs Vendor orientations are at 1 p.m. every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at the Street Roots office.
