Stories and Poems from the May 2005 Street Spirit Publication

What is Street Spirit? - Click Here | To read all articles and poems from this issue of Street Spirit, please visit Street Spirit's Website at http://www.thestreetspirit.org/.

To read stories by BOSS participants, click here.

Articles, stories, poems, statements, and such sharing first-person accounts and opinions do not necessarily reflect BOSS's organizational views. We offer this site as a forum to share all views, particularly those not generally heard in mainstream outlets.

BOSS Community Organizing - An article from BOSS COT member Michael Diehl describing Important Hearings on AC Transit, Mental Health Consumer Forum, Berkeley to Propose Cuts to BOSS, and Opposing Bush Cuts to Section 8 and Disabled Housing.

Someone's Daughter, Sister, or Mother Berkeley photographer discovers the hidden humanity and beauty of homeless women - Each one of the women I recently photographed in Berkeley is someone's daughter, someone's sister, or someone's mother. In these photos, you won't see much of the spot called home; you will see someone's daughter, sister or mother living on the sidewalk, under a freeway, or in a park.

A Homeless Woman's Struggle for Survival - Jenifer Beckmann is 58 years old, and has been homeless for the last eight years. She gave a sarcastic little laugh when I asked her why she is forced to live on the streets of Berkeley. "I'm homeless because a whole lot of other people are homeless right now," she said.

HUD Proposes Devastating Changes to Section 8 - In mid-April, HUD Secretary Alphonso Jackson submitted a new HUD bill known as S. 771, a highly destructive attack on the Section 8 housing assistance program for the poor. This bill also would make life miserable for those in public housing that would fail to meet the new rules and requirements pertaining to their residency.

Activism in the East Bay for Economic Justice - Few will be surprised to hear that there has been an ongoing attempt by the Berkeley police and University of California police to rid the south campus area around Telegraph Avenue of "unsightly" homeless people. Their tools are a number of laws that can be selectively applied to those Berkeley stakeholders who are without housing. All too often, these laws are taken out of context or outright misrepresented.

Activism in the East Bay for Economic Justice - Public Housing figures from the Council of Large Public Housing Authorities.

Civil Rights Gets on the Bus - A Civil Rights law suit was filed Tuesday, April 19th against MTC, The Metropolitan Transportation Commission.

Diamond in the Rough, a Story of Mother Who is Homeless but Hopeful - In early 2000 I was living in a three bedroom subsidized house in Antioch. I was deep in my addiction then, cooking and selling crank.

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