Guest Bloggers
Let's Active
Published June 04, 2009 @ 01:33PM PT
"Taking action" on the issues we talk about can seem daunting. In the abstract, the problems of poverty and issues surrounding it can seem (and really are) very big, national concerns that require the action of government and other organizations.
But that kind of feeling of helplessness can stall us from doing the things that are actually possible. Volunteering locally, working in our communities, helping out those around us... these are actions that don't need a decision to fix the world, just a decision to act.
Believing in change, working for change, is a combination of the caring we have and the passion for the issues we care about... and following through with doing. Today, I'd like to offer some thoughts on how to get started with taking action... because I think, sometimes, we leap past the part about where to begin. And in order to get somewhere... we have to start, some time. So here are some suggestions:
- Make the time. If you live by a set schedule, or try to keep track of your time extewnsively... budget some time for volunteer work, community work, something beyond where you normally put your time. If you don't like the ridgity of set schedules... well, I hear ya, free spirit, but you may want to ask yourself if there are ways to balance the things you do now with the things you'd like to do.
- Show up. Once you find the time, make the effort. If you know a soup kitchen or food bank in your area that could use volunteers... go there. Even if they can't use you (and lots of times, they can), someone will probably be able to take your information, gauge your interest, and try to point you in the right direction. When I decided to get involved in a political campaign, I called my local Congresswoman and found out where her campaign was... and I went there. By election day, I was helping to plan literature drops, and I had a plan to work all day at a polling place (where I met the former Mayor, David Dinkins, among others).
- Talk to People. You don't have to commit to any particular activity - if you want to see what out's there, talk to some people who volunteer at things that interest you. While I was in grad school, I thought I should look at what it took to get involved with Planned Parenthood. So I went and talked to people who volunteered there. And ultimately, I did some volunteer work... but what made a difference in my life, was the connections I made and conversations I started as a result of going there. Our internet and web-connected culture has broken down, to no small degree, our ability to make real connections with people in person. Getting out there, helping to reestablish those bonds, is a great way to get something started. You never know where it might lead.
- Start something. You don't have to... but if you see a need and you have the passion for it, start small and find others who share your concern. Realize you may have to figure out how to make a difference with a lot of good will and not a lot of money (especially in these times), at least in the beginning. If you keep your goals attainable, and your expectations in line... you can start to see a difference early on, and build from there.
As I mentioned, one of the most rewarding projects for community involvement I found came from working on a political campaign; in some states - like New Jersey and Virginia - campaigns are already under way for elections this fall. In many places, the early organizing for races in 2010 is already underway. Most campaigns are thrilled to have volunteers... but some don't need them, so if you can't find a way to volunteer for one, keep looking. The web has made campaign organizing easy to search and easy to find. Take advantage of the tools.
Finally, don't forget about Jobs For Change, the new clearinghouse of employment opportunities here at Change.org. They have even more advice, and ideas, and real opportunities to get involved. And of course, I'd love to hear any ideas you have in the comments.
(Photo of Volunteers on a Sierra Club project in Texas by The Sierra Club, used under a Creative Commons license from Flickr)
Attitudes About Poverty Need to Change
Published June 04, 2009 @ 06:00AM PT
For the vast majority of my life, I have lived in communities dominated by caucasian, upper-middle class and white-collar individuals. Growing up in a small New England town, the only poverty I ever experienced personally was seeing the homeless on the streets of Hartford and New Haven, Connecticut.
It really wasn't until I was 17-years-old and took a two-week trip to Anniston, Alabama with Habitat for Humanity that I truly began to understand and appreciate the plight of the less fortunate.
I think that the problem of perception is a significant barrier to addressing the tragedy of wide-spread poverty in the U.S. For many people like myself who have been fortunate enough to never experience poverty directly, opinions about the poor are often based on assumptions, stereotypes and media portrayal.
In some communities around the country, social service workers are noticing a sort of ambivalence toward the poor. Sociologists contend that these attitudes are based on life experiences and lessons learned through parents and friends growing up, and often times reflect ingrained viewpoints that don't represent the reality of those living in poverty.
Big, Not So Easy
Published June 03, 2009 @ 06:38AM PT
Of all the assignments, this week, I've worried most about this one: Leigh asked me to fill in for her usual 
Wednesday post about developments along the Gulf Coast related to Katrina and other natural disasters.
This is especially challenging because... well, I usually get my information from her.
One of the reason I admire my friend most is because she's done the work: Leigh has helped with relief and rebuilding efforts in New Orleans for years, shaping her perspective on issues of inequality and activism, and she is a passionate advocate... oh the arguments...er, discussions... we've had where, usually, she will triumph through her thorough command of the facts and her faith in having used the facts to reach the right conclusion. I'm a big fan... I just had to throw that in; and she has taught me a lot.
In any case, here we are. My own focus on the Gulf Coast is on disaster relief and preparedness; I am fascinated by storm chasers (perhaps later we can discuss my crush on the Weather Channel's field staff), and by hurricanes generally, and I was horrified by the failures to respond to Katrina thanks to the poor oversight of the Bush Administration. Leigh has been a passionate advocate for better efforts at rebuilding, and how to find good answers in the aftermath.
Below the fold, a few stories that caught my eye, covering a range of Gulf Coast preparedness and recovery issues. I'm hoping some regular readers, who deal more closely with these issues, will weigh in with their observations and insights.
Make The Connections...
Published June 02, 2009 @ 12:09PM PT
Part of the challenge of a blog like this - and of working for change - is that the problems we face can seem so immense. There's so many things to do, so much that needs... well, change... that one can get very caught up in looking at problems, and not thinking about solutions, or, indeed, doing anything at all.
Yet, we still need the "big picture" - realizing that problems are interconnected, and complex, helps to understand, fully, why solving things that seem simple may not be, ultimately. Knowing the big pictures, the connected problems should give us pause... it just shouldn't stop us completely.
So before talking, in future posts, about taking action, I thought it might be worthwhile to look at some of the big picture - issues we face where poverty issues play a part, but not the whole, of problems we have (here in America, which is my focus, and elsewhere). As always, I hope you'll join in with comments about issues you see, and how you deal with the complexities of the problems we face. And yes, these are issues I care about deeply; I know there's so much more out there.
Getting Started (Energy, Enthusiasm, Passion, Purpose)
Published June 01, 2009 @ 06:15AM PT
Hello, I am weboy.
The last time I did a guest blog for my pal Red, it was Christmastime and she went on a trip, and left me her car. This time, no car, but more prominence, and a few bucks. I can't say, really, which was the better offer.
(The pic, BTW, is a followup to the one I posted with my last intro. As you can see, I've aged, but nicely.)
I felt the need for an introduction, if only because we've never been properly introduced. I've known Leigh a long time, and guest blogging for her was kind of a natural fit, but it just happened, and here I was... and well, I've never entirely explained myself... or why I care about the issue at hand.
Which brings me to the point of this post... and a question below the fold.
Blogging Announcement
Published May 31, 2009 @ 03:00PM PT
To all my fabulous readers and members,
Tonight I'm flying over to London for a week for a conference and vacation. Yippee!
In my absence, my fabulous guest bloggers, NycWeboy, Greg Plotkin, and Diane Nilan will be holding down the fort. You know Greg and Diane from their weekly posts on hunger and homelessness, respectively, and NyCWeboy's guest work has included discussions of Medicaid reform and the current economic crisis.
I hope you'll all give them some love and treat one another with care while I'm gone.
Looking forward to catching up when I'm back!
Feeding the Hungry Healthy Food is Not "Snobbery"
Published May 28, 2009 @ 09:02AM PT
Despite the mushroom risotto sometimes served to guests at the Washington, DC-based homeless center Miriam's Kitchen, the organization's leaders are certainly not food snobs.
This is a fact apparently missed by National Review's Julie Gunlock who writes in her playfully-titled piece "Let Them Eat Arugala" that Miriam's Kitchen and other non-profit organizations serving the homeless throughout the nation should be ashamed for refusing to serve perfectly "good" food to their guests simply because it lacks any nutritional value.
She laments that the refusal of Miriam's Kitchen to serve high-calorie, high-fat donuts to its guests is driving the organization to stray from its goal of feeding the city's hungry population. The article goes on to state that the:
dismissal of donuts betrays an expanding food snobbery that once was confined to food magazines and ladies who lunch, but now is showing up in the unlikeliest of places, like food banks and homeless shelters.
What Ms. Gunlock does not understand is that feeding the hungry is about so much more than simply filling stomachs with empty calories.
