——CHANGING THE WORLD: STARTING LOCAL——

For several months, Occupy Tacoma (OT) activists and various homeless advocates have been gathering data, seeking out resources, identifying [...]]]>

Thanks to Vince Hart for writing the original draft that you’re now reading, and thanks to Patricia for proofreading the leaflet based on Vince’s draft.—editor

——CHANGING THE WORLD: STARTING LOCAL——

For several months, Occupy Tacoma (OT) activists and various homeless advocates have been gathering data, seeking out resources, identifying potential allies, and assembling relevant legal documents—all for the sake of launching a vital project to meet the needs of many local homeless people.

Now, a FIRST PUBLIC INFORMATION MEETING has been scheduled for Monday evening, June 10, at the First United Methodist Church (clickable link), 621 Tacoma Avenue South, to kick off the Tent City Tacoma project.

• Please Come: Church leaders, civil organizations, public health and law enforcement representatives, staff from city departments, and ALL OTHER INTERESTED PERSONS are invited to attend.
• Meeting Program:
  • Refreshments: The meeting will begin at 6:30 p.m. with refreshments.
  • Presentation: An OT member, formerly a homeless person himself, will share a PowerPoint presentation describing how he and other homeless advocates and activists have participated in the organization and running of successful Tent Cities.

ORGANIZING & LEARNING: OT representatives have been meeting monthly with the other members of the Tacoma-Pierce County Coalition to End Homelessness. (TPCCEH). They made extensive efforts to learn how other Tent City programs have developed and managed to work out in places like Seattle and King County. They brought forward valuable information about practical, actual on-the-ground functioning of “Tent City” refuges in other metropolitan areas such as ours.

ACTIVIST RESIDENTS: A beginning core of local prospective residents has already been identified. Moreover, tent city residents from surrounding areas such as King County and elsewhere have expressed a desire possibly to relocate here and contribute to the effort.  They bring a wealth of organizational experience with such needs as internal management, security, sanitation, food, and community outreach.

LOCATION: Our next critical step is in finding a suitable location for “putting stakes in the ground.” As in the Seattle area, church-owned sites are the preferred locations for a tent city, since religious organizations have the legal right to use their own property for such service to the community. This is key to getting a tent city established.

NEEDED RESOURCES: In addition to a place to set up the facility, there is need for funds to provide some of the essential services, to meet sanitation requirements, provide a place to cook, and so forth. Therefore, in order for Tent City Tacoma to exist and thrive, many supportive persons and organizations must be enlisted. For that reason, the project is ready to GO PUBLIC after a lengthy period of preparation.

WHAT YOU CAN DO:

1. Come to the meeting and bring others with you. Click here to download a leaflet that you can print out for distributing at work, your place of worship, and around the neighborhood.
2. Talk up TCT. Explain to family and friends why you support it and why they should too.
3. Go to the Tent City Tacoma Facebook page and support it.
4. Let your elected representatives, your clergy people, and your city representatives know you support facilitating getting a TCT
5. Talk to your faith community if you have one, about sponsoring a TCT tent city on their property.
6. Be ready to volunteer, contribute food, money, or help with other resources.
7. Get on the mailing list and keep current with Tacoma Tent City.

PLEASE COME AND BRING FRIENDS WHO SHARE YOUR INTEREST.

TENT CITY TACOMA:

On Tuesday, December 18, the Tacoma City Council did the right thing. They passed a resolution supporting an amendment to the United States Constitution that would overturn the infamous Citizen’s United decision. [...]]]>

This article is an editorial opinion of the author. This is not an official statement of the Occupy Tacoma General Assembly.

On Tuesday, December 18, the Tacoma City Council did the right thing. They passed a resolution supporting an amendment to the United States Constitution that would overturn the infamous Citizen’s United decision. You can read that resolution by clicking here. If you don’t know what the Citizens United decision is, please click here.

This author expected the Tacoma City Council to pass a resolution opposing Citizens United. But what this author did not expect was how strong the City Council resolution would be. The resolution states that corporations are not people, and as such do not have the same free-speech rights as natural breathing persons. Currently, corporations can spend megabucks on political campaigns and even hide their sponsorship! To remedy this, the Tacoma City Council resolution also provides that government has the power to regulate corporate financial political expenditures.

At the same time, this resolution avoids the divisive issue of public financing of campaigns. Many in the movement favor public campaign financing. Others in the movement oppose public campaign financing because they fear public financing would tend to enshrine Republican/Democratic party monopoly over the electoral process. This author is one who opposes public campaign financing for that reason.

All of us on both sides of the public campaign financing controversy need to unite around the issues we have in common to win this fight, city by city, state by state, and eventually in the process of constitutional amendment.

So the passage of the Tacoma City Council resolution calling for a constitutional amendment to overturn the Citizens United decision is an important victory, not only to those who worked so hard to convince the City Council. It is a victory for all the citizens of Tacoma, the citizens of the United States, and even the citizens of the world! It is an important step in the right direction.

We all owe our thanks and heartfelt congratulations to those who worked so hard to make this Tacoma City Council resolution a reality. Kudos to all who brought us this victory, including the Washington Public Campaign, the Move to Amend Tacoma, the Occupy Tacoma, as well as many other groups and individuals such as long-time Tacoma veteran activist Susan Eidenschink.

Regards,
Alan OldStudent

And if you click on one of those sub tabs, you will be taken to that area and see issues posts.

US ECONOMY This item will have [...]]]>

US ECONOMY
This item will have discussion on the US economy, although articles on the world economy might logically also be placed here. Right now, we have several articles submitted by TruthMerchant. One, titled Too Little, Too Late, had 2,071 views since it was posted on Sept 20, 2012 and has engendered a lot of commentary. The other was just posted a few days ago and is titled About Money.

Readers are encouraged to contribute comments or even consider submitting articles. If interested in submitting articles, please contact us here, and we will facilitate that.

PLEASE SUPPORT CLEMENCY FOR [...]]]>

This is a request from Marilyn Kimmerling asking you to participate in a concentrated phone/email zap to petition President Obama to grant clemency for Leonard Peltier, internationally recognized as a political prisoner. You can see Marilyn’s previous article by clicking here.

PLEASE SUPPORT CLEMENCY FOR LEONARD PELTIER
NORTHWEST WHITE HOUSE PHONE AND E-MAIL ZAP, DECEMBER 9 TO 15, 2012

White House Comments Line – 202-456-1111; 202-456-1112
E-mail: http://www.whitehouse.gov/contact/

It is important to keep phone calls, e-mails, and letters going to the White House during the clemency campaign. We want to make sure it is very clear that the NorthWest supports clemency for Leonard Peltier., So we have called for a phone and e-mail Zap the week of December 9th-15th (a phone Zap is when a lot of people call around the same time).

Please Northwest Folks, show your support for Leonard Peltier and flood the White House with requests for executive clemency.

Thank you!

From the Tacoma Chapter of the Leonard Peltier Defense Committee and the Office of the Northwest Regional Organizer of the Leonard Peltier Defense Offense Committee

• Join Tacoma Chapter LPDOC on facebook at: http://facebook.com/tacoma.lpdoc
• Subscribe to Northwest Peltier Support by clicking https://lists.riseup.net/www/ and then search for Peltier
• For more information about this case: www.whoisleonardpeltier.info

TACOMA CHAPTER, Leonard Peltier Defense Offense Committee,
P.O. BOX 5464, TACOMA, WA 98415-0464.
bayou@blarg.net

Here’s a way you can help right a terrible wrong.

Here’s a way to fight the on-going discrimination against Native peoples in the US today.

Leonard Peltier has been in US Federal Prisons since 1977 due to a conviction relating to the murders of two FBI agents on the Pine [...]]]>

Here’s a way you can help right a terrible wrong.

Here’s a way to fight the on-going discrimination against Native peoples in the US today.

Leonard Peltier has been in US Federal Prisons since 1977 due to a conviction relating to the murders of two FBI agents on the Pine Ridge Reservation in 1975. It was never proven that he was the murderer, but the jury nonetheless found him guilty. Amnesty International states his trial was “unfair,” citing concerns with the proceedings, based on allegations and inconsistencies regarding the FBI and prosecution’s handling of this case. (For details click here).

Peltier’s conviction sparked great controversy and has drawn criticism from around the world. Numerous appeals have been filed on his behalf. He has received support from individuals and groups including

• Nelson Mandela,
• Amnesty International,
• the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights,
• the Zapatista Army of National Liberation,
• Tenzin Gyatso (the 14th Dalai Lama),
• the European Parliament,
• the Belgian Parliament,
• the Italian Parliament,
• the Kennedy Memorial Center for Human Rights,
• Archbishop Desmond Tutu,
• and Rev. Jesse Jackson.

The Leonard Peltier Defense/Offense Committee has been advised that now, between the election and Obama’s second inauguration, is the best time to push for clemency. Some say that it’s now or never, so the push is on. We ask all Leonard Peltier supporters to please join us at this event. Please make phone calls and/or send e-mails to the White House in support of clemency: White House Comments Line – 202-456-1111, E-mail, AND if you have time and are so inclined, hand-written letters are the best: The White House, 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, Washington DC 20500.

On a variety of social justice issues, Obama keeps saying, “make me do it.” Join us on December 8th to learn more so that all of us, together, can put pressure on the President, get Leonard out of prison, and finally bring this unjust, horrible situation to an end.

Speakers will include:

• Deeahop Conway, Puyallup Tribal member, Tacoma Chapter of Leonard Peltier Defense/Offense Committee (LPDOC)
• MC David Duenas, Puyallup Tribal Member: Opening and Coastal Hand Drum
• Ramona Bennett: Puyallup Tribal Elder, Life long friend of Leonard Peltier
• Matilaja, Yu’Pik Eskimo from Mountain Village Alaska. Member of N.W. AIM since 1973, Friend of Leonard Peltier for 38 odd years and member of Tacoma Chapter LPDOC
• Arthur J. Miller, Northwest Regional Organizer LPDOC, Tacoma Chapter LPDOC
• Steve Hapy, Long-time Leonard Peltier and Native struggles activist, Co-Coordinator of the Tacoma Chapter LPDOC

Online Videos of Interest:

1. Why is Peltier Still in Prison?
2. The 1992 documentary narrated by Robert Redford, Incident at Oglala: The Leonard Peltier Story, can be watched in full online here

.

This is the second in a series of articles on a tent city for Tacoma. The first can be found by clicking here. Based on my past experiences in tent cities, a Tacoma Tent City could well be organized and governed as follows:

Camp Organization

Have you ever pondered on the homeless and how they fit in the society we have now? The plain answer is that they do not fit in. Homeless people are forced to live [...]]]>

This is Part 1 of a 2-part series. Click here to see Part 2
Editor

Have you ever pondered on the homeless and how they fit in the society we have now? The plain answer is that they do not fit in. Homeless people are forced to live on the fringes of society, forced to live under oppressive systems without any say in how they are run. Their critics scream at them to get a job, yet homeless agencies forbid them the tools to do so.

Established social service agencies expect no protest or complaint when they tell their clients they cannot take their personal belongings with them into the shelters. The shelters expect them to adhere to a meal schedule that forbids the possibility of a job search. The shelters expect them to come at specific times, or they don’t get a bed. This makes taking night jobs impossible. In short, the homeless are denied the rights that Occupys all over the country have been fighting for.

The solution to this is really very simple. What’s needed is to establish tent cities in all urban areas. This was done in the great depression of the 1930s. Today, this is also being done around the world in many of the poorer countries as a way of consolidating resources. Presently, many major urban areas in the United States have tent cities. In Portland, Seattle, as well as in many other urban settings across the country, there are tent cities, both recognized and unrecognized.

Even the recognized tent cities run into problems. For example, various city authorities may often require “permits” for the camp to be there. Or they may put ridiculous “health and safety” requirements on the tent cities, thus preventing them from being established.

Despite the desperate need for tent cities and the associated support structures that could help get people off of the streets, into jobs, and into society, few seem willing to listen. Neither are many willing to lift a finger to help. The other great obstacle before us is even if we obtain “permits” and satisfy “health and safety” requirements, what then? This is where the “homeless service providers” come in.

These so-called “homeless service providers” have been handing out soup, blankets, and clothes for years. Well, now it is time for them to team up with other “providers” to help get these people proper help, the kind of help that will get them off of the streets and keep them off the streets.

The tent city can help do this. They can provide these services infinitely more efficiently than now. Tent cities can gather the homeless in one place instead of having them scattered everywhere. Scattering the homeless is what the city’s anti-camping ordinances have done. Tent cities can organize the homeless into a cohesive system that empowers them to take responsibility for their own lives and needs. They can now legitimately help the homeless to become independent in a more permanent fashion than the programs that isolate different aspects of independence.

In part 2 of these articles, I would like to share with you some of my experiences while participating in a tent city. I hope to help you to understand the structure of how a tent city works.

My Experience in a Tent City
When I first went to a tent city, it was located at a church in Seattle, Washington, called “Church by the Side of the Road.” The camp personnel were exceptionally kind to me. When I arrived, they took my information. Their security got me some coffee and something to eat. By the time I was done with my intake, which included an explanation of the rules and requirements, I had already signed up and chosen a few security shifts, and I already had a bed. Within a week I had my own tent, and the entire time I was at tent city I was free to come and go as I pleased, as long as I met my requirements. These were to serve a prescribed number of security shifts and to earn one community credit a week.

After four months of being there, residents elected me to be on the executive committee, which is kind of like a city council. I served on this committee for a combined 6 months and managed to do quite a lot of good for the tent city. The local community gave us some incredible support and more and more help. Several people were able to get jobs and permanent homes. These things led me to an understanding that tent cities are so much more than just another shelter. Tent cities are hope, and that is what our homeless need.

Hopefully you will find a better understanding of how tent cities do this when you read this outline of their structure in the second article of this series.