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POOR Magazine columnist translates his
experience of seizing media access.

Who Gets Heard?!

By Kaponda

Images of the past six months rushed through my mind as the bus hissed by the trees in its' wake. Garbed in county-issued orange, my eyes penetrated the iron bars attached to the bus windows which permitted a narrow view of precious liberty. I gazed at the prospects that my new environment could offer, while I considered the resolutions I made during my grueling confinement at San Bruno County Jail.

My body trembled at the notion of freedom, and its responsibilities, as the bus barreled down the street toward the Hall of Justice. Like a rush-hour commuter, I would have to make a flawless transition to keep pace with the larger society of which I would soon become a part. That transition would require the support of grass-roots organizations, local government agencies and public shelters, since I had been alone in San Francisco when I was arrested for attempting to toss away a rock of crack cocaine in January of 1996.

The six-month old scent from my street clothes breezed past my nostrils as the titillating Autumn winds gently caressed every gland of my body. As I walked away from the Hall of Justice towards my new beginning, I bought a newspaper to learn the current topics and nuances being discussed in The City. Welfare Reform was the predominant topic of public debate during the latter days of 1996, as it had recently been enacted in August by the United States Congress.

Trying to understand the Department of Human Services' General Assistance program was as hard as the concrete floor on which I walked to get to the intake window. Having been single and without dependents, I qualified to receive General Assistance. As the intake phase of the General Assistance process transpired, I sensed that I was being drastically underrepresented. I had neither been asked about my career interests, nor had I been able to get support to find employment at anytime during the interview process.

Meanwhile, the 104th Congress was passing legislation that would address some of the frustrations experienced by clients of the Department of Human Services. It involved the devolution of federally administered entitlement programs such as child care, welfare, Medicaid and other programs into block grants to the states, counties and local governments. On August 22, 1996, President Clinton signed into law H.R. 3734, "The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996." The legislation provides tremendous short-term benefits -- from career counseling to financial support and employment training. There are risks, however. Some beneficiaries could be forced off of welfare before being adequately trained, although the two- to five-year time limit expires.

Born out of the Welfare Reform legislation, the Personal Assisted Employment Specialist (PAES) program of the Department of Human Services (DHS) in San Francisco was specifically designed by career counselors and the Director of DHS, Will Lightbourne, to plot and develop an employment plan for its clients. PAES provides its' participants with job search assistance or anything that helps get them ready to work, including educational courses, job training, mental health and substance abuse services.

Following a brief training program at City College of San Francisco, which I was referred to by PAES, which although intensive, left me lacking in the skills I needed to succeed in todays highly competitive job market and fell short of what I needed to realize my dreams to be in the media industry, I was referred to POOR Magazine by my PAES counselor, Lisa Brown. She explained that the New Journalism/Media Studies program at POOR Magazine was comparable to a four-

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year education in journalism at a prestigious university. In addition, she reassured me that the Department of Human Services would supply me with any resources necessary to ensure that I have every opportunity to succeed as a journalist.

I began to envision a career as a journalist dedicated to reporting on the issues which were important to me -- civil and human rights. POOR Magazine is a grassroots non-profit organization which provides media access and education to low and no income communities. POOR's New Journalism/Media Studies program is designed primarily to give voice to very low income communities by offering extensive training in the media and multi-media industries.

In addition to providing journalism and media training, POOR Magazine also champions the causes of other organizations and service providers that advocate for low-income and homeless people. One such cause that has gotten the support of POOR Magazine is the concept of a fair and open City budget.

The People's Budget Collaborative is the mechanism to facilitate a fair and open City budget. Formed in 1998, it provides a framework for equal access to the many services provided by The City, including child care, health care and living wage jobs. The People's Budget seeks to eliminate traditional pork out of the budget by slashing fiscal spending by a substantial amount. In December of 1999, City Controller Ed Harrington announced that, "The entire People's Budget of '1999 could be funded from an additional $20 million revenue, alone." As was pointed out in an editorial in the San Francisco Bayview, The People's Budget emphasizes prevention programs and other long-term investments which ultimately result in savings for the City."

A staunch advocate for the People's Budget, Riva Enteen of The National Lawyer's Guild, was quoted in the San Francisco Examiner as saying, "A lot of what we're talking about is prevention....which results in cost savings. In substance abuse programs, for every $1 we spend, we reap $7 three years down the road."

I reviewed the proposed Fiscal 2000 People's Budget and was amazed at how programs involving housing, health care, mental health, substance abuse, living wage, community journalism, social services and many, many more would only require $106,922,900 from the people of San Francisco, a fraction of traditional fiscal spending.

Community Journalism is one of the components of the People's Budget Collaborative about which I feel very strongly. It would immediately create 10 journalists positions for low-income and homeless welfare recipients . The training for prospective journalists would include an extensive program in the media and technology industries. Furthermore, it would create a "living wage job" with benefits, for each "Community Journalist." As a journalist, the participant would conduct extensive research and report on issues affecting their communities.

I have navigated through the jungle of the Department of Human Services to attain my current status of journalist. I believe my voice and the voices of my fellow community journalists should be authoring the stories that are written about poor people in San Francisco. I have taken up, for example, issues involving fires in Single Room Occupancy hotels, the proposed San Francisco homeless voucher plan, forced sterilization of Native American communities, aggressive police conduct toward mentally disabled and homeless people, "quality of life" violations , The "C.R.A.C.K". campaign's effect on poor mothers and The "living wage" coalition .

Its has been a long time since that bus ride from the San Bruno County Jail. I no longer only peruse the newspaper to learn about the issues affecting the Bay Area..... I am now one of those people who make the news.

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THERAPY COSTS TOO MUCH!!!!
Dee Gray, M.S.W., M.F.C.   Licensed Therapist specializing in advocacy and crisis counseling. Mother, daughter and family counseling. Adoption and juvenile dependency. Literary and creative art counseling. Individual and group therapy. Sliding scale fee. (415) 541-5629.