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chat4change · 3 years ago

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“Another Day in Paradise” By Phil Collins

Phil Collins wrote “Another Day in Paradise” in 1989. This song is not necessarily about social change but does bring up a social issue that makes you question your actions. I want to stick with the theme I have been working on this term which is the homeless crisis. This song tells a story about a homeless woman asking a passerby for help. The passerby pretends he cannot hear her and crosses the street while whistling. The whistling indicates that this man is living in his own world and ignoring what is right in front of him. One of the lines from the chorus states “Oh, think twice, 'cause it's another day for you and me in paradise” I think this line is really trying to persuade people to actually think twice about how they respond to people in need. It may be another day in paradise for this passerby but it is not another day in paradise for this homeless woman. The says “you and me” but I do not think this is referring to the woman at all. The context in which paradise is expressed in this song is so subjective. This song has simple lyrics but they are very powerful. “Oh Lord, is there nothing more anybody can do? Oh Lord, there must be something you can say”. Phil Collins is asking is begging for an answer. I have always liked Phil Collins but I have actually never heard this song until I was doing some research for this project. Music, art, and pop culture do have the power to start movements, make bold statements, and pose questions to their views in hopes that they will listen. Personally, I have also crossed the street when someone is asking me for change and then simply going about my day. I feel guilty sometimes and even embarrassed. Most people have taken this action to avoid uncomfortable situations and this song is calling us out. Even in 1989 this was an issue and is only getting worse. There must be something we can say or do but I don’t think we have found that answer yet. I do know that we need to at the very least acknowledge other people's existence.

https://youtu.be/Qt2mbGP6vFI

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chat4change · 3 years ago

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Stakeholder interview

Liz Starke from Rose Haven

(Couldn't fully quote due to recording issues)

How long have you been working at Rose Haven?

Liz has been working at Rose Haven for 8 years now. Rose Haven is a Community Day Shelter for women, children, and transfolk. Liz got into this line because she has always been a big advocate for women’s rights and felt passionate about creating more access for those in need. Could you explain to me what your position as a development direction does? Liz’s position at Rose Haven as a Directory Advising is to organize community events, handle press interviews, raise money for the organization and try to break the stigma that society has put on people without homes.

How much has Rose Haven changed since you started? For example, how there has been noticeable growth or noticeable setbacks?

Rose Haven has changed a lot since Liz started working there 8 years ago. In 2014 there were 2,000 members that frequented the facility. They recently in the past few years moved from a church basement to a new building in the same neighborhood. The new building actually won an architect award for being so beautiful. It is painted in specific colors to promote healing and retain calmness. This new building allows the staff, volunteers and the community to help up to 4,000 people now. Rose Haven is not funded by the government at all and fully operates on fundraisers and donations. Liz suggests even a $5 or $10 donation actually does make a difference. Before it cost 350,000 to run a year when it was operating out of the church basement but since 2019 it now costs roughly 1.6 million dollars to keep the lights on. Covid was really hard for Rose Haven and they were not allowed to operate out of an enclosed building so for 2 years they served food from the streets. This meant there were no bathrooms, no showers or places for people to dispose of their trash. Now Covid has slowed and they are allowed to operate out of their new building again. The only con of this new growth for Rose Haven is the NIMBY, “Not In My Back Yard” supporters. Many people in the neighborhood that have homes are upset that this operation is more visual and consider it an eye sore. They would prefer these people to be in a basement and out of their line of sight. These neighbors are not looking to support these people and have made their opinions heard. These comments however are not stopping Rose Haven from fully operating as they have planned.

What kind of challenges do you face while working in this environment?

Liz stated that there are many challenges that this community faces in this environment. The rapid growth of generation, the lack of healthcare and non accessible affordable housing. All of these combined lead to more and more people becoming homeless by the day. Addiction is a topic that is brought up a lot when talking about the homeless community. Liz states,

“ Addiction is usually a result of being homeless and not necessarily the cause of it.”

Health care is very important and the lack of it is not benefiting anyone and only making things worse, especially to those who have lost their stable living conditions.

What kind of risks do you, the staff, and the community have to look out for and/overcome?

Working with people who are mentally unstable can make this a very high risk work environment. Liz informed me that all the staff are trained in de-escalation strategies to promote a safe and welcoming space. It is a high risk for not only the staff but also the members as well. As unfortunate as it may be, members do sometimes inflict violence upon one another which has led to injuries and sometimes death.

How can one measure success in this line of work?

Success in this line of work can be as simple as bringing a smile to someone's face, giving them a warm meal or warm blanket. Despite all the ugliness revolving around this social issue Liz wanted to assure me that Rose Haven is overall a happy place where art is created, connections are made and lives are changed for the better. More noticeable success with show when rent prices drop and health care is accessible for all.

#chat4change rosehaven nimby community connect

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chat4change · 3 years ago

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Blog #2

Blog Post #2 link above

SadieLee Crume Leadership and Social Change UNST-242A-001 Fall 10/23/2022

Blog Post #2

The root of the homeless problem is the housing crisis. Of course, along with the lack of affordable housing, there is unemployment, mental disorders, physical disabilities, substance abuse, crime, and violence. A lot of these things can be tied together but to be houseless is not to have a house because it is getting too expensive.

With rent prices keep going up it is forcing all kinds of people out of their homes. As of 2022 the average price for a single bedroom in Portland, Oregon is $1,500. People who receive disability checks can get up to $500 but that does not cover even half of the rent. 20 years ago that check would have paid for being able to cover the cost but not now. Families have to worry about feeding their kids, buying clothes, transportation, cost of gas and this alone is all very expensive even for people who do have jobs and are living a middle-class life. Something as simple as a medical bill or auto repairs could put but a whole family out onto the streets. Once you are houseless it is very hard to regain that stability again.

Washington state has a homeless crisis response system that they are putting into place. This system will recognize when a person becomes homeless and the immediate system response quickly moves that person back into housing as soon as possible. There is a lot that goes into this system to help it function properly. The executive summary of Washington's strategy overview states: This update to Washington State’s Homeless Housing Strategic Plan describes the specific actions the state will take over the next five years to work toward the vision of no person left living outside. Through continuing performance improvement efforts and state and local investments, the successful implementation of this plan is estimated to reduce unsheltered homelessness by 12% in 2024.

This plan has already been in progress for 2 years now and has 2 more years to reach its goal of increasing homelessness by %12. Oregon also has its own plans in motion. Many state officials of Oregon say the cost to fix and tackle the homeless problem will cost around 400 million dollars. They don’t want to just do sweeps and clean up but actually build shelters, affordable housing, and build community.

The organization Neighbors Helping Neighbors here in Portland was founded by a man named Terrance Moses. Terrance went to the houseless people in his neighborhood and directly asked them what they needed. Collectively they really needed places to dispose of their trash. Terrance and many volunteers now drop off bags and pick them up when they are full. The name of this organization stands true, they really are just neighbors helping neighbors. Just because you are houseless does not mean you want to live in garbage, something as simple as a place to put your trash helps.

Another organization that I actually decided to sign up and volunteer at is a call P:ear. This nonprofit was created to help youth get off the streets, and give them opportunities to learn about art and cooking. They teach work training for trade jobs and even have a coffee shop for these kids to learn the art of making coffee and making money for themselves. This place holds many workshops and offers mentoring. I just found out about P:ear last night while doing some research and decided to sign up for their next training orientation in November. Their website and their story were inspiring and if I am going to be rambling on about how we can help our neighbors I figured I should take action, instead of just writing a blog about the problem.

There is so much data that has been taken and so many laws, bills, and money that needs to be passed and put into action. I do not have control over anything when it comes to how or when the money will be spent. I do however have control over how I spend my time and I want to spend it listening and connecting with my neighbors. I vow to make this more than just a blog I am writing for class, I vow to learn but I also vow to help. My goal by this time next year is to get involved with an organization that builds homes for those in need. As stated previously the root of this problem is the housing crisis.

Sources:

Oregon Community Foundation. “Homelessness in Oregon » Oregon Community Foundation.” Accessed October 23, 2022. https://oregoncf.org/community-impact/research/homelessness-in-oregon/.

National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, Health and Medicine Division, Board on Population Health and Public Health Practice, Policy and Global Affairs, Science and Technology for Sustainability Program, and Committee on an Evaluation of Permanent Supportive Housing Programs for Homeless Individuals. The History of Homelessness in the United States. Permanent Supportive Housing: Evaluating the Evidence for Improving Health Outcomes Among People Experiencing Chronic Homelessness. National Academies Press (US), 2018. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK519584/.

opb. “Oregon Democrats Propose $400M to Tackle Homelessness and Housing Statewide.” Accessed October 24, 2022. https://www.opb.org/article/2022/02/24/oregon-democrats-propose-400-million-to-tackle-homelessness-and-housing-statewide/.

opb. “Oregon Mayors Demand More State Help on Homelessness.” Accessed October 23, 2022. https://www.opb.org/article/2022/10/16/oregon-mayors-demand-more-state-help-on-homelessness/.

Portland Monthly. “These 4 Nonprofits Are Fighting Homelessness One Meal, Bed, or Trash Bag at a Time.” Accessed October 24, 2022. https://www.pdxmonthly.com/news-and-city-life/2019/06/these-4-nonprofits-are-fighting-homelessness-one-meal-bed-or-trash-bag-at-a-time.

p:ear mentor. “Volunteer | p:Ear.” Accessed October 23, 2022. https://www.pearmentor.org/volunteer/.

“What It Means to Be a Low-Barrier Homeless Shelter - Springs Rescue Mission.” Accessed October 23, 2022. https://www.springsrescuemission.org/what-it-means-to-be-a-low-barrier-homeless-shelter/.

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chat4change · 3 years ago

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Blog Post #1

SadieLee Crume Leadership and Social Change UNST-242A-001 Fall 10/23/2022

Blog Post #1

Every night in America over 300,000 men, women, and children sleep in homeless shelters. This does not include the over 200,000 people sleeping out in the streets. It makes you wonder how we as a nation let this unfortunate situation get so overwhelming. 500,000 people are lacking stable, safe, and adequate housing every day. This issue is important to me because I believe as a human race we are failing one another. Many people have stopped caring and just want the less fortunate off “their” streets because it is an eye sore. These “eye sores” are just people that need some extra help. We have all received help from others in our pasts and now it is our turn to show kindness. 7 out of 10 people in America are one paycheck away from being houseless. With enough series of unfortunate events, this could happen to you or someone you know. The only thing that is separating “us” from “them” is money. Our nation is systemically built for people to fail. We need others to fall so others can succeed. Apparently, we think that there has to be this unbalance for our country to function correctly. The main reason for the drastic increase in the cost of living, rent prices raising, and inflation as a whole.

Historically it is believed that the origin of this problem tracks back as early as the 1640s when vagrants were defined as outcasts of society. With time homelessness emerged as a national issue in the 1870s. When the Great Depression came about the unemployment stats raised due to the economic crash our nation was facing. These were the building blocks for where we are today with this unfortunate issue. Portland Oregon has been in a state of emergency regarding homelessness for three years now. This is not going to be an easy problem to solve. If it were easy we wouldn't still be seeing starving people on almost every corner. We have lost sight of the definition of community and need to be putting it into action. There has been some action taken with state officials but I believe we need the working-class citizens to pick up the slack where the government is falling short. We can all make a difference if we listen and care instead of getting annoyed and turning a blind eye.

I am from a small town that did not have much homelessness and I am witnessing it up close for the first time in my life I am trying to understand how they got here. When I first moved to Portland in 2021 I was living in South East where it was extremely gentrified. I am now living in North East and have seen the effects of this rapid growth of gentrification. There are homeless camps in my neighborhood on almost every corner. I may be passionate about this topic because it is new to me but also because it affects the place I live and want to help the people who live here as well, even if they don’t currently have a permanent place to call home.

What comes to your mind when you think of the word homeless? What do you see? How do you feel? If your first reaction isn’t sympathy then you may be a part of the problem. If we don’t start caring more and working on these issues then the problem will get so large that it may be unsolvable. The problem is already large but we can’t let it keep growing because it impacts the availability of healthcare resources, crime, safety, jobs, and the use of money. Homelessness impacts the present and future. Breaking the cycle of homelessness, one person, one family at a time will be beneficial to all. Furthermore, we can take hold of our humanity again and be proud.

Sources:

“59% of Americans Are Just One Paycheck Away from Homelessness - Invisible People,” June 14, 2021. https://invisiblepeople.tv/59-of-americans-are-just-one-paycheck-away-from-homelessness/.

Texas Homeless Network. “A History of Homelessness in the United States,” August 13, 2021. https://www.thn.org/2021/08/13/history-of-homelessness/.

CaringWorks, Inc. “Community Impact | The Community Impact On Homelessness.” Accessed October 23, 2022. https://www.caringworksinc.org/our-impact/community-impact/.

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