Major energy companies Eversource and National Grid, alongside pipeline operator Enbridge, announced on June 29 that they notified the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) that the three companies would suspend the permitting process for their natural gas pipeline project. The approximately $3.2 billion project, known as Access Northeast, allegedly needs more time to create a…
News
‘Map the Meal Gap’ highlights food insecurity in Eastern Massachusetts
Food insecurity rates among residents of Eastern Massachusetts remain unchanged as the national rate is on the decline, a recent report published by the Map the Meal Gap project found. The numbers show that nearly 500,000 people in Eastern Massachusetts are struggling to feed themselves, which equates to one out of 10 people, Greater Boston…
‘Food for Free’ will farm land to feed the homeless
For the past 26 years, Food For Free, the Cambridge-based food-rescue organization, in partnership with Lindentree Farms in Lincoln, has set aside a quarter of an acre of land to grow produce to feed homeless people. Over the past two years alone, the nonprofit grew between 4,800 to 6,000 pounds of produce to help feed…
How unaccompanied youths become exploited workers in the U.S.
Border between San Diego and Tijuana. – Wikimedia Commons The Trump administration has released a series of executive orders targeting immigration at the U.S. southern border. Central American families and children traveling alone represent nearly half of all unauthorized migrants apprehended by Customs and Border Protection. The criminalization of immigrants at the U.S. southern border…
Boston sees continued success housing the homeless, but still more work to do
Mayor Marty Walsh at the 2014 opening of Southampton Street Shelter. Photo: Zengzheng Wang. On Thursday, Boston officials announced that their push to end chronic individual homelessness has resulted in housing 301 individuals since the start of 2016. This is in addition to the 846 veterans they have housed since 2015. The new numbers reflect…
Boston sees continued success housing the homeless, but still more work to do
Mayor Marty Walsh at the 2014 opening of Southampton Street Shelter. Photo: Zengzheng Wang. On Thursday, Boston officials announced that their push to end chronic individual homelessness has resulted in housing 301 individuals since the start of 2016. This is in addition to the 846 veterans they have housed since 2015. The new numbers reflect…
Formerly homeless woman leads street backpack program in Nashville
Twelve years ago, Hurricane Ivan ripped through Jessica Thurmond’s neighborhood, destroying the house where she had been living. The 18-year-old in Florida was soon forced to live in her car while working multiple jobs. One of her jobs was at a gym, which meant she could use the facility’s shower and have a locker for…
Insane Clown President: Matt Taibbi on Social Justice in the Age of Donald Trump
Spare Change News was able to track down busy journalist and author Matt Taibbi to talk about President Trump’s potential impact on social justice, healthcare and homelessness. Taibbi also spoke about his new book, released in January, titled “Insane Clown President: Dispatches from the 2016 Circus”, which gathers his reporting for Rolling Stone during the…
Arts & Culture
Making HipStory: Local Hip-Hop Collective Launches First Tour, Bringing Their Brand of Personal and Political Music State to State
HipStory, a collective of local hip-hop artists, has been a beacon of creativity in the Boston hip-hop scene, and now the cup of creativity has runneth over, resulting in the HipStoric Summer tour, set to launch in Boston and visit other parts of the country such as New York City and New Orleans throughout July.…
The Delicate Dependency by Michael Talbot: A Book Review
First Valancourt Book Edition, 2014, Richmond, VA; Previously published in 1982 by Avon Books, a paperback edition in 1982. Hard Cover Edition first published by Centipede Press in 2017; 300 copies exclusive. The Delicate Dependency: A Novel of The Vampire Life was written in 1982 by Michael Talbot, an interesting man who lived most of…
Making HipStory: Local Hip-Hop Collective Launches First Tour, Bringing Their Brand of Personal and Political Music State to State
HipStory, a collective of local hip-hop artists, has been a beacon of creativity in the Boston hip-hop scene, and now the cup of creativity has runneth over, resulting in the HipStoric Summer tour, set to launch in Boston and visit other parts of the country such as New York City and New Orleans throughout July.…
With Armor of Solid Humor: Louie Anderson talks Comedy career, HERO, Supporting the homeless
Louie Anderson wears many hats. Actor, authorize andersonor, philanthropist, Zach Galifianakis’ mom on the FX hit series Baskets, and of course, one of the most well-known and well-respected names in stand-up comedy for the last 32 years. As with many in his line of work, getting to where he is now in his career was…
The Middle Man: Jim O’Heir Talks Emmy Win, Homelessness in Chicago and LA, Upcoming Film
Photo by Cullin Tobin It’s been over a month since his Emmy win, and Jim O’Heir still can’t believe it. The Chicago native scored his new hardware thanks to his heralded guest performance as Matt Cannistra on daytime soap opera legend “The Bold and the Beautiful.” Many praised his performance, but it wasn’t even a…
Columns
Safe injection sites could save lives
James Shearer co-founded Spare Change News nearly 25 years ago, and each week he offers up his unfiltered take on issues affecting some of the most vulnerable people in the community. Over the last few months, there have been calls by both medical professionals, activists, and, yes, even politicians for a safe injection site.…
Bizarre Boston: Raising Hell at Harvard
When I think about college students raising hell, I picture kegs of beer, red plastic Solo cups and loud music. Oh, and maybe a beer funnel or two. In my mind, the phrase “raising hell” is just a metaphor for having a wild time. However, maybe it’s not always just a metaphor. For some Harvard…
This too shall pass
Spare Change News is proud to present a new monthly feature, “In Their Own Words,” which highlights the work of writers who meet at Rosie’s Place. In late 2014, Rosie’s Place, a community center for Boston’s poor and homeless women, started a memoir workshop. The intention was to have the guests, as they call the…
LAST WORD: Christina Sukghian Houle
About a month ago, an artist called Christina Sukhgian Houle dropped into the Spare Change News’ headquarters to meet with some of the vendors. Christina has joined forces with the newspaper’s co-founder, James Shearer, with the goal of making a documentary on homelessness in the Boston area. Christina is a relatively recent transplant to Greater…
Safe injection sites could save lives
James Shearer co-founded Spare Change News nearly 25 years ago, and each week he offers up his unfiltered take on issues affecting some of the most vulnerable people in the community. Over the last few months, there have been calls by both medical professionals, activists, and, yes, even politicians for a safe injection site.…
The Doomsday Clock
The Doomsday Clock is calculated by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. It first appeared in 1947 when it evolved into a magazine from a newsletter. The Doomsday Clock symbolizes the urgency of nuclear and other dangers, as determined by the broader scientific community, which is trying to communicate the level of danger to the…
The Avoidable Crisis
Stanley Forman: 40 Years After the Soiling of Old Glory
The photo was chilling. Before a crowd of onlookers, a white man appears to be attempting to stab a black man with the tip of a flagpole. “It really showed racism,” said photographer Stanley Forman 40 years after he took the Pulitzer Prize-winning snapshot of an anti-busing protest that had turned violent. “It was whites…