Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.
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Executive Director of Homeless Empowerment Project, Inc. job listing
Executive Director Homeless Empowerment Project, Inc. (part-time position) The Homeless Empowerment Project (HEP) is a not-for-profit corporation with an annual budget of $150,000 and five paid staff positions (all part-time). For 23 years, every two weeks HEP has published Spare Change News, a street newspaper addressing issues of homelessness, poverty, and social justice in the…
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BIZARRE BOSTON: Nix’s Mate: Pirates, ghosts and erosion
Dozens of islands dot Boston Harbor and like the city itself they are full of strange legends and unusual histories. The smallest of the Harbor Islands is Nix’s Mate (sometimes also spelled Nixes Mate). It’s so small you might sail right by without noticing it. It consists mainly of a black and white beacon (about…
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VOICES FROM THE STREETS: Two dogs and a kitten (conclusion)
A man comes back from prison and finds chaos at his home. At breakfast he accidentally killed their kitten by pushing it off the table. He’s struggling to stay clean but the stress is getting to him. Click here for Parts One, Two, Three, Four. The children were crying. I was torn with sorrow as…
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VOICES FROM THE STREETS: A wake-up call
In an interview for the last issue of Spare Change News, I spoke a little about the last time I was homeless four years ago. It didn’t last very long, about three or four months, but it was just a tad traumatic for me. And yes, traumatic is a bit of a strong word. But…
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LAST WORD: Jerry Harrell
Jerry Harrell is one of Spare Change News’ “old guard.” Alongside Algia Benjamin and James Shearer, he was among the original lineup of vendors who sold the first issue of the newspaper in May 1992. The cover of that issue—a photograph of a man selling catnip for $2 a bag—embodies what the newspaper is all about:…
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CHRIS PRATT: Jurassic World star talks action, comedy, and dinosaurs
By Guy Davis, Courtesy of INSP News Service www.INSP.org / The Big Issue Australia Chris Pratt, who visited Harvard earlier this year to receive Hasty Pudding’s Man of the Year award, would prefer to avoid death by a thousand bites, thank you very much. “Oh, man, take me out with one big bite, please, not…
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HONORING BOB: Cambridge Community Foundation’s Bob Hurlbut earns HEP award
On May 12, 2015, the Homeless Empowerment Project, publisher of Spare Change News, held its 23rd Annual Fundraiser and Gala at the beautiful Microsoft NERD Center in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Supporters, friends, board members, staff and volunteers all came to the event to support HEP and its mission of empowering the economically disadvantaged in Greater Boston.…
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MOVING TARGET: Monica James on police targeting
The police are targeting vulnerable communities, says Monica James. They’re targeting black people. Hispanics. Muslims. Immigrants. Women. Youth. The transgender community, all “people of difference.” It’s not really news to the audience at Roxbury’s Madison Park High School. After all, the panel is called “Baltimore is Everywhere,” and the speakers include victims of police violence…
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BAD BLOOD: Taylor Swift discusses crossing over
By Holly Gleason, Courtesy of INSP News Service www.INSP.org / The Contributor “I don’t really think people were surprised I made a pop album,” Taylor Swift says without flinching. “I think they were surprised I was honest about it.” There, in a one simple compound sentence, the long-legged songstress defines the courage in her take…
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BIZARRE BOSTON: Ann Hibbins, Boston’s wealthy witch
While the Salem witch trials of 1692 are the most famous witch trials to have occurred in colonial New England, people were tried and executed for witchcraft in other cities and at other times as well. Several women were unfortunately executed right here in Boston. Usually people accused of witchcraft were poor and socially marginal,…
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