Category: Voices from the Streets
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Just a Kid
On a rainy Sunday afternoon a few weeks ago, I was making my way to Shaw’s supermarket to pick up a couple of items in time for a sporting event I planned on watching that evening. On the way out, I noticed a kid who couldn’t have been more than 14, maybe 15. He was…
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The New Prohibition
I’ve been reading articles in the Boston Globe about the massive increase in overdoses almost every day. Then I found myself reading an article about the giant influx of fentanyl, with machines to convert it into pills identical to pharmaceuticals from China. Everybody used to blame Mexico; everybody blames prescription pills that are diverted; everyone blames…
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“Rachel Rising”: A Book Review
“Rachel Rising” by Terry Moore. Published by Abstract Studio. Imagine, if you can, digging yourself out of a grave in the ground and not having any memory of how you wound up there or who you really are. “Rachel Rising” is an amazing tale, but I really did not realize it at first. Let me…
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Another Year
This month, Spare Change News turns 24 years old. It’s hard to believe. I’m not going to get into how we got started. That’s a story for another day. But I will say that I’m surprised we’re still here, and even more surprised at where I am now compared to where I was then. Before…
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The Challenges of Panhandling as a Young Homeless Female
I’ve been homeless on and off for 15 years, and to make money, I panhandle, also known as spanging or stemming. As a young female, this brings with it some unique challenges. The most disturbing of these challenges is dealing with older men who proposition me for sex. It’s happened so many times, I’ve had…
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More Work to Do
Last Tuesday the body of a young homeless woman was found in a tent in Lynn Woods. A few days before that, I’d bragged about how my adopted hometown was ahead of the curve when it comes to homelessness. That may be true, but death still claims those living on the streets. This means there’s…
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Vending from Coast to Coast: An Interview with Marlon Crump
My name is Mike, and I’ve been a Spare Change News vendor at Whole Foods Market on Prospect Street in Central Square, Cambridge for over six years. This past October, I visited a friend in Portland, Oregon. One day, while in downtown Portland, I came out of a 7 Eleven Store and saw a blue-suited…
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The Frustration of Homelessness
On March 21, a group of homeless advocates and homeless and formerly homeless people visited Boston City Hall for a hearing with members of the Boston City Council to secure the mayor’s support for funding the Housing Voucher Program. The goal was to develop a program that would use city funds to house individuals and…
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We’ll be missing you, Nancy
When I was a kid, I loved watching old black-and-white movies with my mom and dad in the winter and doing a 1,000-piece puzzle. We’d sit in front of the fireplace just having fun until around 11, 12 or 1 o’clock in the morning. One person I liked to watch was Ronald Reagan. The one thing I…
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Fare Increase… Again?
It’s been a while since I’ve spoken ill of the MBTA. In fact I haven’t spoke about them at all, mainly because there’s been little to talk about, at least with me. After all, given the heat they took last winter, what could I possibly add to that? But, as we all know, it’s only…