Help Us Help Them...

Student drawing...

Hungry kids in the state of Washington!
Help us help them-
If the recent statistics put forth by the U.S.Department of Agriculture are anywhere close to accurate we have a severe problem right here in the land of plenty.
Here are some highlights:
1) From 2008 through 2011the number of hungry families increased from 88,000 to 163,000. Only six states had higher growth rates.
2) In 2011, 15.4% of state residents said they struggled to attain enough food.
3) The Children’s Alliance estimated that 440,000 children (25%) live in households that do not have enough food for everyone in the household.
4) The Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction reported that the number of kids receiving free or reduced lunches has increased from c390, 000 kids in May of 2008 to c470,000 in May of 2012.
5) Northwest Harvest, a food distributor, has increased distribution by 9,000,000 pounds over the last four years. (17 million to 26 million pounds). Visits to their food banks have hit 700,000 visits a month.

According to a recent Seattle Times article there is hope.
A number of non-profits, schools, and groups of students are increasing their awareness and contributions towards helping those on the margins.

Help us help them. See our website and our profile on Universal Giving.

Sources: * Northwest Harvest, Seattle Times, Seattle Schools, Greater Seattle Cares, USDA, and Children’s Alliance.

Now is the time...

My pal Sage

A few of us sat around every night at our favorite hangout in Seattle watching as much, from both conventions, as was humanly possible.
We'd take notes, argue, justify, counter, agree and come to the same conclusion every time. 

That we are all in this together.
"This" being our country and our future.

When the last call was shouted last night we shared the following list of questions/observations we had come up with while watching this marathon of political activity-

"I have been driven to my knees many times by the overwhelming conviction that I had no place else to go."
This quote from Lincoln, shared by Barack Obama, tells us a lot about the man and the policies, and platform, of this party and candidate.
The last two two weeks have shown anyone paying attention that there is a profound difference between these two political parties.
One is inclusive, one is exclusive.
Why?
What did citizens do to be marginalized?
What did citizens do to be denigrated?
What did the elderly do to become the targets of a Medicare shake-up?

What did those living off survivors and disability benefits, under Social Security, a third of all disbursements, do to be threatened with cuts to their coverage?
What have the sick done to deserve the re-establishment of preconditions, life time limits, increases on the costs of medicine, children's coverage eliminated by the Republicans.
What did college students do to deserve college becoming unaffordable?
What did teachers, police, fire fighters do to attract attacks on their union memberships.
What did lower and middle school kids do to deserve the unraveling of an educational safety net?

What did the poor do to become the object of attacks?
What did women do to deserve all the rancor,ridiculous conclusions on how reproduction works, anger, and fear that seems to motivate so much energy towards them?
What did young children, of illegal immigrants, do to invite "self deportation?"
What did minority communities do to deserve being referred to as the "other?"
What did the victims of rape and incest do to deserve such a callous platform condemning them to relive their attack forever-

What did the auto industry do to deserve bankruptcy?
What did Republican followers do to be told by their candidate that he did not honor, or respect, them enough to share any financial information with them?
What did the super rich do to deserve more tax cuts?
What did women do to deserve the reversal of the Lilly Ledbetter act?
What did Planned Parenthood do to deserve the threat of closure under a Romney presidency?
What did minorities do to deserve attacks on their voting rights?
What did gay people do to deserve the opposition of same gender marriage and the right to serve in the military?
What did…?
The list grows longer every day.
This is all about us, and our ability to make our voices heard, if we want to continue the changes that are presently on the table.

"Yes, we can!"

Letting Kids Be Kids

Okay, I readily admit it! This picture chokes me up!
I’ve been noticing more and more how president Obama reaches out to kids every time he is given the opportunity.
Being in the business of working with “young” people, from grade school age to those using walkers, I always feel good when I see such precious moments being grasped, before they pass by-
That someone, anyone, takes the time to recognize in another, the intrinsic value they have, is one of those moments that convey so much about the person reaching out.
Do we need to ask a lot of questions about someone who so freely gives so much without being asked? Probably not-
Too often societal systems don’t “allow” the expression of true feelings.
I cannot recall seeing one of our presidents being so conscious of the needs of so many kids in our society.
Thank you president Obama for bringing these tears to my eyes.

A Helping Hand!

This photo makes me happy!
This photo makes me sad!
This photo makes me hopeful!
Hopeful because it conveys a need, trust, kindness, understanding, empathy that is always ours to give if we want-
The little dog has reached that moment of decision.
That moment when fear is put away, in exchange for trust in that extended hand, a hand that is offering some relief…
It looks like love.

What's My Name?

Photo by M Barrett Miller

Too often we see this visual on our streets!

A down and out person hoping today will be the day that his or her life changes for the better?
A poor soul holding up a crumbled piece of cardboard sharing a desperate plea for help to those that drive by on their way to whatever and wherever…
A quick look, a thanks that he or she isn’t you, a wonderment, an accusation, a rationalization, consideration of a donation, a decision, departure.
How many consider pulling over to ask the person who they are?
A polite enquiry asking them their name and what you can do to help, just a little bit, to bring a little hope into their lives. Perhaps questioning why they are on the streets in a land that swells with pride at its accidental riches.
Recognition of their value will bring light into their day.
Sure, you may be scared!
Imagine how scared you would be if the rolls were reversed and you were hugging a corner praying you weren’t-
Standing in the pouring rain tearing your mind to shreds over how you have failed your children, yourself, your family by ending up here on the streets begging for help.
You have defined failure even if your demons protect you from that reflection.
The reality may be that we have failed you-you didn’t fail us.
We have forgotten.
We have bought into questionable values.
We have accepted you as a failure to yourself.
We have forgotten.
Andrew has a name and a story as valid as any we pack around, as we dodge and weave away from joining him on a corner.
In our hopes of cocooning ourselves we look the other way so as not to be infected by those swimming along the bottom of the tank.
We have forgotten.
Floyyd has a name and a story as intricate, interesting, challenging as the driver of that luxury car that just flew by without a glance.
Laura has a name and a tale of survival, and success, that she shares with those forgetting to remember…
What’s my name?
Don’t forget me.

"So Wrong!"

Does anyone actually care?
I mean really care?
Care enough to do something about the situation?
Care enough to speak up and say what is, and has been going on, is wrong?
Care enough to make necessary changes?

For four years I have been pleading with a particular middle school administration, teachers, parents, Archdiocese to stop passing on kids who are failing.
Passing on is one giant trespass against a kid’s internal self-concept and sense of right and wrong!
Graduating them is abusive on every level.

What message are you giving a child when you pass them on and allow them to graduate?
They know it’s a lie.
They know you are lying about their achievements.
They know the graduation ceremony full of “hip hip hoorays” is a sham and a lie to their parents, and all the other kids, who know that a particular student didn’t deserve to pass, much less graduate.

They don’t like themselves because they are going along with the lie.
They don’t like their parents because they are going along with the lie.
They don’t like their teachers, administrators, district, priest, bishop or archbishop for lying about their achievements.
They don’t like anyone, as no one is standing up for what they really deserve.
They know they were ignored and underserved by all those who claimed to have their best interests at heart.
They didn’t get any tutoring, language classes, mentors, teacher one on one dedication, parents screaming for instructional credibility -
There was no librarian, ESL instructors, qualified tutors, counselors, or urgency to help them towards success.
Most of all they have learned to integrate the lie and pretend they are more than they are-
They know better, but don’t know how to extricate themselves from the lie.
They will now live the lie.
They will always look back at the lie and how those who claimed to care treated them as deserving no more than the lie.

A quick telephone conversation with eleven heads of school asking about how they “handle” a failing child highlights how the school I am writing about is getting away with child abuse.
There, I said it!  Child abuse!
Every single principal and headmaster/mistress said they closely monitored each child through weekly/bi-weekly class reviews with the teachers who comment on every single child on their roster. If a child is falling behind a conference is called with the parents, teachers and student to determine what can be done to help the child. If the child’s progress remains the same further conferences are held offering measurable outcomes, support, time lines and further evaluations.
The child and parents are made aware that the child will not progress to the next class level unless the child makes the discussed changes.
Each administrator said all his or her resources would be available to support the child.
If the child continues to fail he or she will be asked to leave the school.
Under no circumstances would a failing child be allowed to graduate.

A couple of Tuesdays ago a student I know graduated from the 8^th grade.
The student has successfully failed the majority of classes since the 6^th grade.
This student is not alone, as each year students have graduated from this school without attaining the basic requirements.
Kids who could not read, speak or write in English graduated.

 A ceremony was held in the parish church to underscore the level of achievement these kids had accomplished. They were subjected to all sorts of kudos, hugs, cheers, cake and cookies afterward in a gaily-decorated lunchroom.
They were honored for their successes.
They were lied to-

So, where is the Archbishop, bishop, parish priest, principal, teachers and parents who should be shouting from the rooftops for these kids?
They are silently lying to the kids at the most important time of their lives.

Shame on you!
The kids deserve better.

Pride in Our President

Thank you!!

Since President Barack Hussein Obama spoke out in support of same gender marriages I have noticed a measurable up tick in positive statements, from many I speak with, towards the future.
People are happy this Civil Right has been addressed by the president, even though it might cost him some support in his campaign for the presidency.
Some are saying they are so happy they could actually accept his defeat because he did the "right thing."
Doing the "right thing" seems to be what has been missing in our politicial discourse for a number of years.
The cynics want to denigrate his support as a total political move, as well as adding new attacks to ramp up any racial division they can mine at his expense.

The presidents political opponent  recently visited Liberty University. The schools founder claimed homosexuality to be at the core of why the horrendous attack on 9/11 took place. Within two days of the attack Jerry Falwell, University founder, claimed God  was so angered by the rampant homosexual behavior in America that he closed his eyes, allowing the attack.
That Willard Mitt Romney would make the decision to speak at the University when their support of ongoing discrimination is vocal, is a mystery.

Thank you Mr. President for doing the right thing for all the citizens of America.

A Letter from the Heart

This is an actual letter received a day after President Barack Hussein Obama spoke up for equal ciivil rights and marriage opportunities for all citizens.

"Dear Everyone,



With the recent idiocy in North Carolina, followed by the glorious support from our POTUS & Senator Harry Reid, a lot of old feelings are stirring in my gut; feelings I shelved away back in 2000 after being personally devastated by the Prop. 2 Campaign.
Back then, I HAD a dream. I dreamed that one day, I would wear a gorgeous white dress & walk down an aisle on the arm of a man proud to be walking with me, toward a woman who loves me & will vow to always love me, in front of all our friends & family, who want nothing more than to celebrate & honor that love. 


Since 2000, that dream has been shattered & pieced together again many times, as various state & federal governments teased me with the notion of human equality. And with each "PSYCH!", my heart broke a little. It's hard not to take that kind of blatant discrimination personally.
The Defense of Marriage Act has been cited against me~ ME, a girl who has always wanted to get married!
Protect Marriage, Protect Families, Save Our Children... from ME? ME???
I am a nanny, for goodness sake!
I LOVE my families and I eat, sleep and BREATHE children!


It finally got to a point where I had to emotionally withdraw from all of it. It hurt too much to fight and be systematically let down each time.
Civil Unions and Domestic Partnerships are the modern equivalent of separate drinking fountains for whites and blacks.
They are crap.
There is no such thing as Separate But Equal, just as there is no such thing as Don't Ask, Don't Tell.
Protect Marriage FROM DIVORCE!
Protect Families FROM PARENTAL NEGLECT!
Save Our Children FROM CHRISTIANS WHO MISINTERPRET THE WORDS OF CHRIST TO PROPAGATE HATE!


My emotions are stirring again... finally... as though there is actually a light at the end of this tunnel. At this point, however, should I even get excited? Cuz I've gotten excited before & had my joy dashed by ignorance. Is that daylight I see, or just reflections of strobe lights bouncing off a drag queen's sequined gown as we continue attempting to dance the pain away?


Sincerely,


The Price of Cheese is What?

 $ for cheese photo by M Barrett Miller

I must have dozed off when the price of cheese, per pound, became greater than the price of Copper River salmon.
There are competitions to see which Seattle store will have the salmon first!
High-end stores eagerly await the escorts flying in from Alaska to deliver the fish to jostling consumers lining up to throw down their dough for a slice of chilled ruby red salmon.

What’s going on?
Has anyone noticed prices lately?
Really, I must have hit my head and awakened into a land where just about everything in the store hovers near the $5.00 mark. 

Maybe I just haven’t been paying attention.
That’s entirely possible.

According to the Bureau of Labor and Statistics the average hourly earnings for those living in the USA is $23.38. That rounds out to around $48,880.00 a year or $4,073.33 a month. *
Most of us are concerned with that monthly figure in order to maintain.

A great many of the people I associate with, through Let Kids Be Kids, are making from $10.00 - $12.00 an hour. At 40 hours that brings in monthly income of $1,733.33 and $2080.00 respectively. (Most are not working forty hours)
Knock out the big one, rent or mortgage; add in medical, lights, sewer, water, gas for the guzzler, access to the internet, unless you are coughing up a $1.80 for coffee at Starbucks for free internet, bank fees, telephone, oh yeah, food etc. etc. etc
Some are servicing college debt.
At the end of the day you don’t have a lot of what they love to call disposable income. That money that you can make decisions with above and beyond the demands of just maintaining standing still.
That money that everybody wants and you don’t have to give.
You have no savings, no emergency money, and no additional money to give to your kid’s education, field trips, supplies, snacks in the lunch bag, if you have kids.
College for your kids – forget it!
No thoughts to ever having a vacation, a more reliable car or a moment when you are not fretting about money.

The store can offer you red kidney beans at $2.89 a tin, toilet paper at $5.20 a four-pack, day old chicken pieces for $6.00, fatty hamburger at xyz per pound, boxes of pasta at $5.29----on and on and on as you look to find eatable items with what money you have in your jeans.

You begin to look at everything as a percentage of that hourly wage you are so desperately trying to stretch.
Gas costs you a half an hour of labor per gallon.
Milk, creamer, sugar and mass produced coffee in a five-pound tin is an hour of labor.
Apples, bananas, grapefruit is an hour of income.
Boxes of pasta, discounted pasta sauce, tomatoes, garlic, onions, peppers, capers is an hour plus of your bankroll.

If you ever lose your grip and treat yourself to a film it will cost you close to two hours of pay. You might have no option but to pay for street parking, at roughly $4.00 per hour, but cheaper than a lot if you can get back to your car before that $48.00 overtime ticket. Add in your ticket and $5.25 for a small bag of popcorn and you’ve blown your wad.
Your extravagance brings you lots of guilt and little enjoyment.
You didn’t really deserve that popcorn!
You know you can never take anyone to the movies. Not your kids, a friend, or anyone.

The other day I took a man to a high school to talk with teenagers about what life is like for him as he fights the ravages of AIDS. He has $55.00 to spend each month. That’s it - $55.00 a month!! All his stay alive costs are covered by insurance, wiped out savings, gone 401k’s, AIDS programs, some debt, government programs and Social Security.

He apologized to me for me spending so much on his favorite Colonel Sander’s combination, accompanied by a gigantic Coke.
An hour and ten minutes of pay!

Something’s wrong out there in the land of the free and the home of the brave!

*[1] Each month the Current Employment Statistics (CES) program surveys about 141,000 businesses and government agencies, representing approximately 486,000 individual worksites, in order to provide detailed industry data on employment, hours, and earnings of workers on nonfarm payrolls.

"Hey Mister, can Ya Spare a Buck?"

                                I chatted with Andrew today.

       Andrew photo by M Barrett Miller

Andrew tends to hold down the corner of 50th and Roosevelt, just a tad west of the University of Washington. 

Andrew came to the states after things began to go badly in Poland after the heady Solidarity days.
He is 62, from a little village about 30 clicks south of Kraków, home of Karol Wojtyła, and other notables.

As you can see from Andrew's sign he has a few challenges.
He has spent years in the "food service industry" working in various positions here and in N.Y. (that industry has the two lowest wages, and fewest benefits, of all jobs in the USA).
His arthritis has crippled him to the point where he can't hold down a job that requires much body movement. 

In addition to that he has prostate cancer requiring fairly constant medical attention. He is being seen by doctors at Virginia - Mason though his insurance only covers roughly 30% of his costs. 

He's been on the streets for the last seven months scratching out enough to pay some of his med bills in addition to his one room apt, food etc.

Andrew and I talked about Poland, Elie Wiesel, Szweykowski, Grabski and Walesa's time at the Lenin Shipyards where he raised so much hell-we talked about Auschwitz and Buna and the people who survived it...
We talked about the insanity of it all.
We talked about standing on a street corner hoping the next driver will reach out a helping hand.

I offer this mini story, as "these people" are people who deserve our support in any way we can offer it.
They are us in other clothing-
They don’t deserve to be put through hoops any more than anyone who is not carrying such challenges.
For those that have not spent much time around people on the streets you may find you enjoy the reality of your conversations.
I will go back and visit with him again this weekend. I will probably shoot a bit of video to add to the "Am I the Face of Homelessness" series that I've been doing since forever.....

Its so nice to have so many opportunities to meet so many people just standing there waiting for us…

When is a School no Longer a School?

This may be hard to believe but there is a K-8 school in greater Seattle that remains open in spite of the following.


Imagine touring the school with the principal trying to understand why his school should be the school you send your kids to for one of the most important times of their lives.

At the end of the tour of the way too old building you summarize your visit by stating,

"Now, correct me if I misunderstood what you were saying, or what I've heard from others, about the school."

"Okay, I will." Replies the principal as he escorts you into his miniscule office.

You take a moment to look at your notes before beginning, "Lets see,
#1         You have no librarian! The school hasn’t had one for five years and you have no plans for one in the future.
#2         No ESL! Kids have graduated without the ability to read, write or speak English.
#3         No science lab!
#4         No language classes!
#5         You're advertising, on the web, for volunteer religion teachers!
#6         There is no formal computer training or curriculum!
#7         You have no school counselors!
#8         You've borrowed operating money from the faculty and staff by reducing some wages in excess of 20%!
#9         You have no certified tutors or an established tutoring program!
#10         The priest, for whatever reasons, stays away from the school.
#11         No full time Art or Music teachers.
#12         You will be covering in PE, as well as in science, though you have no credentials in science or PE.
Did I get it right?'

"Yes."

"Ah, why should my children attend this school?"

"Well, we, ah, have a loving faculty and staff!"
Looking around the office you spot a photo of two young boys. You ask, “Are those your kids?”
“Yes, that photo was taken a few years ago when they were in middle school.”
“Oh, how did they like it here?
“Ah, they went to __________________ up the street.”

Believe it or not there are still parents sending their kids to this school.

                                      Kids Deserve Better!!

                                  

N.B. There have been some exceptional kids that have graduated from this school. They are motivated kids supported by their parents, friends, and relatives all encouraging excellence in spite of what is/was available in the school. Part of the draw is this particular school offers a lower tuition than the competing religious schools in the neighborhood.

The Last Big Ride!

Seattle's Finest

The other day, a see him once in a while kinda friend, was carried out of his house for an emergency ride to the hospital.
I don’t think he is coming back-
He’s in his eighties, has a damaged heart, bad kidneys and liver that isn’t doing its job.
I’ve gotten to know him over the last year while I give him a rides to his doctor appointments whenever he needs to get checked, tested, probed, poked, whatever-
He has always been full of laughter, soft sarcasm, and insightful comments about the news as he shuffles towards the car for his ride.
Over the last six months he’s been moving much slower and needs a slight hand getting in and out of the car.
He makes fun of himself as he drops down into the softness of the passenger seat.

A couple of weeks ago I took him to see his heart doctor. When I picked him up he told me they kicked around the idea of surgery but that the doc thought he’d die on the operating table. He told me he didn’t want the surgery anyway and they should save their skills and help out younger folk who could use a few more years.

Before I could ask anything he told me he was ready to go. “I’ve been around death my entire life and it doesn’t scare me. I am okay with moving on. Go see what’s to be seen.”

Before retiring he spent seventy years in and around funeral homes. His dad was a mortician housing the family above the preparation rooms, viewing and remembrance rooms. He later became a mortician himself working for various cities before founding his own successful business.

He never married telling me that not too many young ladies found his career choice all that inviting. He had a couple of long term girlfriends that he spoke kindly of as he wondered what had ever happened to them.
I could feel a touch of sadness as he spoke about making this trip all on his own.

I hope he comes home.
Of course no one will tell me anything at the hospital since I’m not a relative.
Too bad just caring about someone isn’t enough in our over lawyered land…

If he’s gone I hope he gets more than he thought might be waiting up the road.

Graffiti,wall art and tagging

Photo by M Barrett Miller

There’s wall art, tagging and graffiti.
The difference between one and the other is profound!

The picture highlighted in this article is wall art displayed with the encouragement of the property owner. The artist took their time and produced a quality piece that covers up a bare ally wall.

Tagging is complicated shorthand that says, “Hey, I was here”, or offers the name of whatever affiliation the spray paint phantom belongs to in the neighborhood.  Usually hard to decipher unless you are a member of the in crowd-

Graffiti has a noble history going back to ancestors marking walls in their cave, cliff or well-worn rocks telling all who cast their eye on it that something of note has transpired. Some of it is elegant sharing with the viewer a myriad of emotions that share the intrinsic story there for all to contemplate.
Some of it is just pleasant to look at-

Hopefully, the artists out there will get permission for their expressions rather than doing what someone did to this library wall. According to “Goodbye Graffiti” the costs can vary greatly according to surface construction and choice of attack weapons.  

Whatever the costs it is too much!
Put away your cans of paint and read a book!!

Church Plays Politics - Hero in the Making-

Photo by M Barrett Miller on Seattle U campus

For years we have been trying to nudge various church members to step away from the definition of gay children, "intrinsically disordered" that causes so much injury to so many young people.

Their plan to further descriminate is contrary to the message of who they claim to follow!!

It is refreshing to see Father Whitney say no to the plan to survey, persuade and further color the reality of accepting all people as one-

He is living up to the following:
"In order to teach it is enough to know something. But in order to educate one must be something. True education consists in giving oneself as a living model, an authentic lesson."   
                                                            Alberto Hurtado S. J. 

Father John Whitney S.J., pastor of St. Josephs, in Seattle, posted the following in response to the church wanting to collect signatures. Lets hope more priests follow his lead-

"...Referendum 74, which aims at repealing the marriage equality bill passed by the State of Washington, is being supported by the Archdiocese of Seattle, who have asked the Knights of Columbus to collect signatures at parishes. I believe that this involvement around the issue of civil marriage is a mistake, and risks placing the Church on the side of injustice. Thus, I cannot in conscience allow such signature gathering at St. Joseph. I am not telling others how to vote, but I think that a Catholic, in good conscience, can oppose this referendum..."

Danny Westneat, Seattle Times wrote the following on 11 April 2012.

"...This weekend, many Catholics going to Mass will be greeted by something they haven't seen in their churches for decades: political petitions.

The Catholic Church here is set to start collecting signatures, in churches, to repeal gay marriage, Referendum 74.

Seattle Archbishop J. Peter Sartain announced last week he had approved the petitioning of the flock as part of church services in all local parishes.

That's quite a volatile stew. Start with two topics you're unwise to even broach at dinner — God and politics. Add in homosexuality. Marriage. A dash of separation of church and state.

We've got on our hands one big come-to-Jesus moment.

"We believe this issue is critically important," Sartain wrote, explaining why the church was turning itself into campaign central this spring.

"The whole thing is very disturbing, to many of us," counters Barbara Guzzo, 62, a Seattle Catholic who has formed a group to oppose her own church's signature-gathering effort. "There's a zealousness to it that just doesn't seem very Catholic."

Nobody is surprised that Catholic officialdom opposes gay marriage. It's how it's involving the whole operation, top to bottom, in a political campaign.

Churches can't do political campaigning, or they risk losing their tax-free status. This doesn't apply to initiative and referendum campaigns. Those are considered legislation, and churches are permitted to lobby on pending laws — even if that means passing political petitions around the pews.

But a lot of churches shy from it. Separation of church and state is partly to benefit the church.

A pastor in Tacoma recently said in a forum that while he planned to sign the anti-gay-marriage referendum, he wouldn't allow a signature-gathering "three-ring circus" at his church, Life Center. The electioneering would detract from the "church's message of transformation in Jesus."

Local Catholics last did such signature-gathering in church in the 1980s, said Dominican Sister Sharon Park, director of the Washington State Catholic Conference. One cause was the 1989 Children's Initiative to raise money for poor children.

"We don't do it often, but we will if it's a priority for us," Park said.

Guzzo expressed disbelief that gay marriage could be the drop-dead issue of the last 25 years.

"I don't think the church should be involved at this level in politics, but especially on an issue like this," she said.

Guzzo says she's pained her church now is in league with the entity that set up the group sponsoring Referendum 74, the National Organization for Marriage.

A confidential strategy memo showed that group had planned extreme tactics to try to defeat same-sex marriage. Such as trying to find disillusioned children of gay parents to talk on camera about their sorry upbringings.

This idea — to troll for broken families and exploit them, dubbed in the memo as "documenting the victims" — has got to be one of the most despicable campaign tactics I've ever heard of.

"The National Organization for Marriage is the antithesis of everything the Catholic Church is supposed to be about — like inclusivity and compassion for others," Guzzo said.

Park said the church has coordinated with the group. The archdiocese also plans to donate money to the referendum campaign, she said. But "the National Organization for Marriage isn't telling us what to say or do. We're sending out our own materials, with our own message."

To that end, in his letter about the heated campaign the church is embarking on, Archbishop Sartain struck a plaintive note. Please, he wrote. Give us room to explain our views on marriage.

"Catholic teaching cannot be reduced to a sound bite!" he said.

Probably not. But welcome to politics. It can be like dirt — it sticks to you when you roll around in it.

Danny Westneat's column appears Wednesday and Sunday. Reach him at 206-464-2086 or dwestneat@seattletimes.com

Bruce Lee & P.J.Malone

           P.J.Malone photo by M Barrett Miller

I was recently “killing” some time as I waited for a friend I had dropped off at the Group Health Hospital on Capital Hill in Seattle.
Rather than dropping more money in Starbucks I drove north on 15^th to the Lakeview Cemetery to see what the dead were up to-

As I cleared the gate into the cemetery I noticed a group of eight people going through various Karate, Kungfu, and contortionist high kicks just a bit west of the main gate.
I parked behind them and walked up the hill, from the west, to see what it was they were up to in the freezing fog that was hugging the ground. I watched them throwing kicks and punches at invisible foes until exhaustion took its toll.
After a few minutes of rest they moved off at a trot towards the street. 

I walked over to where they were going through their ritual to spot Bruce and Brandon Lee’s final resting place.
Now I understood. I think-

The unique stones were littered with flowers, notes and one bag of food. I wondered if the food was left by mistake or intended for activities after the gates swung closed and darkness was the last companion of the day.

What struck me the most, as I stood there looking at Lee’s grave, was the stone just to the left of his. About three feet away a marker calls out P.J.Malone, County Mayo, born 1837 (under British Rule), died free in 1879 (just before the British took Kabul.)
I stood there wondering what this Irishman would think of the hoopla surrounding his neighbors.
Pilgrims paying respect for a myriad of reasons!
How many wonder about P.J. Malone and the sights and sounds he experienced before taking his place on this little hill forever staring out at the Cascades.
How many wonder if P.J. was a man or a woman?
Did you flee Ireland during the great potato famine?
Were you homesick for the old sod up until the day you left us?
What is your story?

I don’t think Bruce would mind that I moved a bouquet of flowers from his stone over to P.J.’s

No Room at the Inn

  Fire House Shelter photo by M Barrett Miller

There’s no room at the Inn.

Last night Seattle Union Gospel Mission personnel hosted a barbeque as they said goodbye to the 45 residents who have been living in the refurbished firehouse in the Lake City neighborhood of Seattle. 

All winter shelters in Seattle close on 1 April.

People who have, for whatever reasons, been unable to find housing as an option to the streets have been able to stay in doors in a fairly comfortable building. The shelter offered cots, some privacy, clean restrooms and showers, a well-equipped kitchen and a room where residents could watch television.
Not what many people would choose but a galaxy away from cardboard and a storefront doorway-

As I wandered around asking the departing residents what their plans were for the 1st I received no precise replies.
Perhaps, the people I spoke to just didn’t feel like inviting me into their circle or didn’t have a ready retort to where they would find themselves on the 1st.
When I refined my questions I got shrugs.

Feeling a little too much like a trespasser I spoke with a number of men who had various identifications hanging off lanyards dangling from their necks. Some seemed to be in the know telling me that the Mayor had made the determination that disallowed any continuation of the Union Gospel Mission staying at the site any longer than April Fools day.
Another man told me that Union Gospel Mission was unable to continue the financing of the shelter. As he was confusing me with too many details he was interrupted by a young lady who said the Seattle City Council would not approve of any extensions for any of the “winter shelters.”

As I write this I have no idea where the truth lurks.

I was assured by one of the more official looking men that the Mission was trying it’s best to locate housing for all residents who asked them for help. 

The feeling I got from most of the people I spoke with was acceptance, mixed with a dash of anger, towards someone out there…

The bankable truth is that everybody needed to vacate by noon on the 1^st.

This closure reminds me of when I lived in Moscow, Russia.
The unknowns would turn on the boilers in the basements of apartment houses when they determined it was cold enough for residents to have heat.
They turned them off based on the same kind of logic in the “spring.”

Who they were or how they made their decisions remained a mystery to all who put up with it every year.

That it is 1 April and our streets are still “cluttered with homeless people”, should be the impetus to toss away the calendar and leave the doors wide open.

                                                                     ****

See the Let Kids Be Kids, Inc. website to see what we are doing to help the homeless.

A Day with Seattle University Students

Seattle U students discussing the book...

Today I had the honor to visit with students at Seattle University to discuss “View from the Tent.”
This particular book is being used, along with other books, in a World Poverty class taught by Dr. Ed Reed PhD.
The students were well versed on the challenges of homelessness, poverty and the reasons that cast people into the cauldron of poverty. Their questions were specific to the characters in the book and how I got on the road of dedicating my life to people on the margins.

We are planning two visits to a Tent City camp so the students can get a first hand look at life on the edge-
Great school, students and faculty-