Activities and Opinions

If you spent anytime downtown at the Plaza, you saw Bob. He usually sat alone at the north east end on a bench, long hair hidden under a knit cap no matter the weather, writing in his small notebook. It took me over a year to learn how to approach Bob and get him to look me in the eye and speak to me. When he did speak, you could hear an educated intellect in his language. From time to time, I’d notice the huge swelling of his hands and feet then he’d be missing for a week or so. I would later learn he’d been hospitalized to drain the fluid from his body only to return to downtown in hospital slippers to reclaim his bench. Once, clean shaven from a recent hospital release, I was shocked to see how young he really was. Over the course of the last two years, Bob had been taken to the hospital several times and then he died this year. Yes, Bob was homeless and his death was stoically accepted by the rest of the homeless community.

Even if you didn’t know Bob or don’t care one way or another about homeless people, the expensive, systematic and ultimately useless emergency medical care he received should concern you. Our community absorbed the cost of caring for Bob but we never followed through, to our communal moral disgrace. Housing First, with wrap around services to follow up on care, has been proven in cities all across the nation to not only be the most effective, cost efficient solution to chronic homelessness, it is the essential, moral one. Let’s hope the "Home Again St Johns" commission gets it right this time.

--Mary Lawarence
originally appearing in the St. Augustine Record, 08/31/09

2008 started out with our high energy level slamming into the usual official indifference.

In January, PUSH met with the city of St Augustine to explain our organization and request a seat at the table in upcoming roundtables on homeless solutions. After a few scheduling mishaps, we met with John Regan and were promised such a seat at forthcoming roundtables and a full accounting of the $15,000.00 allocated to St Francis House in a three month pilot program to house 30 extra homeless people during the months of November and December 2007 and January of 2008. The paperwork provided was incomplete and did not fully account for the money. An attempt at outreach to the Marketplace, a network of community leaders and business people, went unheeded at their January 08 luncheon meeting at Carrabas.

In February PUSH was riveted by a presentation by Zollie Goodman from Iraq Veterans Against the War. Zollie noted the numbers of young homeless veterans, many with post traumatic stress disorder, who are not receiving needed services, and who are prone to suicide and addiction related problems. He advised of the upcoming Winter Soldier event in Washington in March where veterans from Afghanistan and Iraq will recount their experiences to the public. Many in the PUSH meeting were moved to tears by his account. PUSH also researched two very successful faith based programs and presented outreach materials to members willing to approach local churches. PUSH also attempted to attend a board of directors meeting of the Emergency Services Homeless Coalition but was told the meetings were private.

March saw 2 PUSH members attend the statewide Homeless Advocacy days in Tallahassee on their own dime. Meetings were held with the aides for Senators King and Hill and members were able to garner fifteen private minutes with State Representative Proctor.

April was a real month of renewal for PUSH. The new PUSH website: www.pushsjc.org was unveiled. It’s an incredible source of information and resources for our area, well designed and beautiful. Members aligned themselves with the Society of St Andrews gleaning project and went out for the rest of the year, gleaning and bringing back to St Augustine literally thousands of pounds of fresh fruits and vegetables to needy agencies and Food Not Bombs. Also in April, members were treated to presentations by Bob Balch of the Green Home Store who plans for smaller, affordable green housing units and Bill Lazar, from the St Johns Housing Partnership, who gave members an insightful overview of zoning and funding challenges. Secretive plans for the relocation of the new St Francis Shelter caused concern among all present.

In May, Ryan Day, who spent his semester break living as a homeless person and Amy Simpson, who did her senior thesis on perceptions of homelessness in St Augustine, presented the results of their research. Members were fascinated by both students’ indepth work and analysis of results. Both had post graduate plans for continuing their service work.

June saw PUSH presenting to the Democratic Womens Club, continuing gleaning work and supporting Food not Bombs and other county agencies with fresh vegetables. While PUSH suspended meetings over the summer, the steering committee continued to meet and plan for the fall. Members attended the Mayor’s open forum on Homelessness in July where the regional director for the US Interagency Council on Homelessness presented the outlines of a 10 year plan adopted by over 300 US cities. Mayors Boles and Obrien signed a proclamation to participate. The regional director, Michael German, was to return later in the year to continue the process. To PUSH’s knowledge, he has not. Members scheduled two meetings: one with Representative Proctor who promised to look into concerns and get back with us and despite numerous phone calls, never did and the other with County Commissioner Bryant, who provided PUSH with the history of the county’s attempt to address the homeless issue and the demise of the original planned shelter generously drawn up by architect Howard Davis.

In September, Memorial Presbyterian Church hosted 4 very well attended forums on homelessness with numerous presenters and attendance ranging to 100 people, including members of the homeless community. PUSH members attended all 4 and 2 members applied to be on the board of the new shelter, to no avail. Having been excluded from any discussions of the secret shelter, this was not a surprise. It is
also not a surprise that the shelter is now a non starter due to the huge cost. Also in September PUSH members presented two programs for homeless veterans to the veterans council. We received a cold reception for the two PUSH endorsed programs to help homeless veterans by the Veterans Council. The programs, Vets for Vets and Give an Hour, are low cost, hands on solutions. (Program descriptions on PUSH website). PUSH met with the sheriff separately and received a positive response from Sheriff Shoar who realizes a community can’t arrest homelessness. PUSH acquired a beautiful logo from Lindsey Buechler, Flagler graphic student and the design has been incorporated into ads, website and business cards. PUSH also participated in Memorial Presbyterian Church’s CROP walk for hunger. Also, plans were laid in October for PUSH to support the fifth consecutive year of St Augustine Food not Bombs. PUSH members contributed food and flyers and set up luminaries all around the downtown gazebo to celebrate the end of the first Annual March of the Impoverished. On November 10th, over 100 homeless, church members and citizens marched down St George Street from the Visitors Center to the plaza to share a huge Food not Bombs serving. The event was a huge success. Despite press releases, the Record chose not to cover the event and the Folio gave a short accounting ending with irrelevant statements by the Director of St Francis House, who had nothing to do with the event.

Also in November, PUSH learned of yet another secret meeting the Mayor was holding to formulate a steering committee to generate a 10 year plan to end homelessness. An unproductive plea to John Regan for PUSH to attend, as promised, any roundtable discussion on homelessness, necessitated 2 PUSH members crashing the breakfast meeting to take notes. PUSH, Food not Bombs and several homeless citizens also made their presence known at the entrance to the Mayor’s second annual fundraiser for the homeless shelter by holding signs with homeless statistics and thanking the guests for attending. Food not Bombs served a great spaghetti dinner right outside the door as guests entered. To round out a busy year, PUSH volunteers assembled gift bags for the 46 children living in transitional housing on Chapin Street in West Augustine. One member, dressed as a very credible Santa, called out the children's names and delivered their gifts on December 15th.

It’s been a great year. We’ve made a lot of connections and a lot of friends among the homeless in our area. We’ve learned a lot about alternatives to standard government approaches to homelessness and we learned what works and what doesn’t in our area. Some of our homeless citizens are coming out of the shadows and woods and finding their voices. We are determined to continue supporting them and advocating for workable solutions based on the incredible resources of our members and our community. We are stronger and more determined than ever going into our third year.

Thank you, each and every one of you, who made this year such a success.

--Mary Lawrence

The Setting

The Lightner Building, a decaying monument to the worst form of robber-baron capitalism in our history. Built, literally, on the backs and with the blood and sweat of wage slaves. A building donated to the city by the robber-baron, Otto Lightner, at the end of his life. Perhaps a last ditch effort to buy back his nonexistent soul. Or, more likely, an effort to immortalize himself since his long rotted corpse and its marble monument are a centerpiece of the building's courtyard. The irony is that he died after donating the building but before he could establish the trust fund to maintain it, leaving the city in financial bondage to the building.

The Man

Joe Boles, a small man striving for importance, kowtows to those who would own the city and says, in a public meeting, “the homeless are creepy and scary” and that he, as mayor, doesn't want the city to be “crippled by compassion.” In a desperate effort to buy back his nonexistent soul or, more likely, to regain a facade of being human so he can continue to serve the masters, he becomes an advocate for the homeless. To please those who would own us, he advocates to warehouse them, literally, outside the city limits. He then campaigns for his masters to get the federal government to pay for a fake 450th anniversary to steal working families' vacation dollars. The tourists will be sold the city's false history, and will never see the dark underbelly that is the working class reality of a tourist economy.

The Occasion

The Mayor's Nights of Lights Gala to Benefit the Homeless, version 2. This year a “privatized” version? We are told the mayor himself was not involved in the planning but had “friends” do it. The only public notice of the charity gala was a single newspaper ad which indicated the cutoff date to apply to attend was the day before the ad ran. At least a half dozen city employees working late into the night. In the Lightner courtyard a true mixture of the private sector and government employees. Benito Mussolini defined the political result of the merger of government and business. One of the more prominent features – a well stocked bar with the best liquors, champagne and wines.

The Prelude

Arriving downtown early to find a free, reasonably close parking space, I notice the downtown area rapidly filling with locals and tourists. Ironically, most of the tourists are unaware of the occasion. Many of the tourists stop to read the “plaques of glorification” on the statue of Pedro Menendez. Many never heard of him. I muster my most authoritative local expert voice and explain that Menendez is responsible for bringing the best of Christian European culture to this part of the world to include slavery, forced religious conversions, land theft, genocide and smallpox. I point out that St. Augustine is “the oldest city” because the pursuit of wealth and power demanded the total destruction of the existing cultures and villages.

The Homeless

Food Not Bombs has been feeding hungry people for five years in St. Augustine, usually in La Plaza de la Constitucion. However, historic celebrations require their removal from public view. Wouldn't want lose any shopping sales because of guilt felt by a potential customer. Those who normally spend time in the Plaza are gone from view. Prior to the event, an elderly black male wearing shorts, sits on a bench, removes his shoes, pulls a dirty pair of long pants from a shopping bag, puts them on over his shorts. His clothes are stained and wrinkled. He seems to be having an animated discussion with himself. Soon two police officers arrive and make him leave. He's not detained, not taken to a hospital, not arrested. Where does he go? He disappears into the crowds and the officers yell to a passing patrol car making ridiculing remarks about the man. As darkness approaches, we are joined by the homeless who appear, seemingly from nowhere, one by one. We gather in the covered foyer at the main entrance to the Lightner next to the sign boldly proclaiming “Private Event.” Not by plan but simply to escape the biting wind and dropping temperature.

The Gala Event

Almost missed it. As I helped Food Not Bombs bring baskets and pots of food, the thousands of cheap, free trade, sweatshop, Christmas lights came on. The mayor said let there be light. There was. It was good. The masses cheered. Our table and food were set up as we heard the bagpiper leading the condescending elite in our direction. As the parade arrived, we the working people, the disenfranchised, the homeless stood at the entrance. We held small signs bearing homeless statistics in our area. With a pasted-on smile I thanked the overdressed, who are allowed to drink from open containers in public, for their “generosity.” I knew we were doing our part when the mayor came by and gave us a “thumbs up”. As the privileged approached the entrance, on their right a large banner proclaiming “St. Augustine - Crippled by Compassion?” As they sat down to a $150.00 a plate dinner, we enjoyed a meal of vegetarian spaghetti, cornbread and home-made cookies and brownies. They were waited on by the servant class, we served ourselves and enjoyed the diversity of our own company. One of the homeless, by mistake or intentionally, attempted to enter the gala and was denied. He asked about it being a benefit for the homeless shelter. He was told in an angry and condescending manner that if he wanted a free meal he should go to shelter. Shortly, a police officer arrives to guard the entrance. They inside their “private event,” guarded by the police. We in the freedom of the open air sharing our food and our lives.

The Conclusion

An anger has boiled inside me for as long as I can remember. It is an anger at the injustice of the wage system. A lifetime of watching the poor, the disadvantaged, and the different being ridiculed, exploited and lied to. And then those who ridicule, exploit and lie twist reality into some type of legal mumbo-jumbo that justifies their behavior and existence. There are days when my striving for pacifism is nearly lost to the rage. Why must we entertain the wealthy for a lousy $150.00? If they are as compassionate and caring as they claim, just send a check and stay home. Let us have the world we built and maintain. It is easy to ridicule Joe Boles because he is physically and politically a caricature. That makes him all the more dangerous because he is also a slick and successful lawyer. He is not mayor because his masters find him amusing. He is mayor because he is effective. He is dangerous. He too is the enemy. He is an enemy of truth, of social justice, of our very humanity.

-- Terry Buckenmeyer
Originally appearing in the Collective Press

If I were to write this as a "day in the life" of a street person, as was suggested, I'm sure it would be irredeemably boring: much more so than I would like to admit. There is much of my day that is routine, but I try to cloak the repetition by being as unobtrusive and inconspicuous as possible. even when I muster the ambition to play music for tips (busking, I've since learned that it is called), I still try to not attract undue attention.

Incidentally, "busking" is the primary reason I'm in St. Augustine, which is undoubtedly true for a lot of the street musicians. Another reason a lot of the street people are here is the unstinting generosity of the Food Not Bombs organization, which rescues many of us from the risk and degradation of "dumpster diving."

Actually, as the day I write this is November 10th, which will be celebrated as the Fifth Anniversary of Food Not Bombs, perhaps the timing of this article is particularly appropriate. Besides a feast in the Plaza de la Constitution, there will be a parade through parts of downtown St. Augustine, and I can only hope that enough people will participate that Food Not Bombs will realize it's deserved appreciation.

Having already mentioned the repetition of my average day, let me emphasize that routine is infinitely preferable to the chaos and disaster that could unleash itself at any moment. Hiding each night to sleep, virtually holding my breath every morning as I leave, and each night as I return; knowing that, in addition to my vulnerability to the weather, I am also subject to the malevolence of nosy, unfriendly "normal people," as well as the unrelenting zeal of the police--one of my homeless colleagues believes that much of his poor health, particularly his high blood pressure, is the result of the constant scrutiny by the police.

Personally, except for being unnecessarily ID'd by the St. Augustine Police, I've never had a problem, despite having been here for over a year. Compared to the police of the Jacksonville beaches, I've always felt that the police here have "played fair" with me. Also, I've always had the impression that the police know which of the street people to target, which of us are threats and predators, who are the same street people I've always tried to avoid. It's pretty "creepy" to know that I'm being "sized-up" by somebody, knowing that they're wondering what I've got that they want, and how easy it would be to get it from me. Consequently, I'm learning to trust my intuition more: I'd rather inadvertently avoid the Dali Lama then hang-out with Jeffrey Dahmer.

As it appears to me that the economic fabric of our society is unraveling, I can only be dismayed at the impending increase in the ranks of the homeless--entire families sliding into the streets of our country. How can the indifferent and immune Wealthy-class even relate to the heart-break and tragedy that awaits these hapless and unwitting victims of a society that thrives on and rewards rampant greed?
..
The First Annual "March of the Impoverished" was a huge success. Dozens of musicians and marchers, many of whom had never partaken of Food Not Bombs meals, paraded from the Visitor's Information Center. The procession continued down St. George Street and terminated at the Plaza, to the bemused entertainment of numerous on-lookers. Our arrival at the Plaza was greeted joyously by the food preparers in the gazebo, as if we were a fleet of cargo ships having successfully returned home from having crossed the ocean.

The banquet was attended by probably a hundred or more people, all enjoying the bountiful amounts of exquisite, assorted vegetarian dishes, provided lovingly by Food Not Bombs, People United to Stop Homelessness (P.U.S.H.), and other generous supporters. Although some of the anticipated festivities were curtailed due to the simultaneous Veteran's Day celebration in the Slave Market, and their amplified P.A. system and orchestra, namely the impromptu speeches of some of the homeless, everyone seemed to revel in the good-natured benevolence of the Fifth Anniversary of Food Not Bombs.

Some participants are already anticipating next year's event to be even more successful--but it would help if a date further removed from Veteran's Day could be found!

-- Mason Runic