Tag: Spare Change News
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SCN Exclusive: Carl Bernstein on Trump, voters, and the media
In 1992, legendary journalist Carl Bernstein blasted the media for its obsession with celebrity, manufactured controversy, gossip, and sensationalism in his article “The Idiot Culture” for the New Republic. At the time, the front pages of newspapers across the country were more focused on Donald and Ivana Trump’s divorce than they were on Nelson Mandela’s…
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LONG LIVE FREE PRESS!
Navigating double parked delivery trucks, pedestrians walking in the street with faces glued to screens and deferring to bikers tends to make driving in Cambridge feel a bit like playing a video game. I couldn’t help but smile last week, however, when I had to stop my car in the middle of Mt Auburn street…
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Readers Respond
As the executive director of the Homeless Empowerment Project, which publishes Spare Change News, I had the privilege of getting to see all of the responses to Robert Sondak’s survey that ran last month. It was moving to see how many of you took the time to fill out the survey, which included 10 questions…
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Puuhonua O Waianae: Hawaii’s refuge for the homeless, by the homeless
When Twinkle Borge heard about the community meeting in 2010 to discuss what to do about the growing population at the homeless encampment near Waianae Boat Harbor on Oahu’s west coast, she figured the camp’s residents ought to have a voice. Borge had been living in the camp since 2006, a few years after she…
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Life on Skid Row
(Photo: Zengzheng Wang) 1890 was a good year for California oil baron Lyman Stewart. His company had merged with Sespe Oil and the Mission Transfer Company to form Union Oil, Paul Rood, adjunct professor of political science and history at Biola University, said. At the time it was the largest oil company in California, responsible…
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Why I Sell Spare Change News!
My name is Michael Thistle and I’ve been a Spare Change News vendor since 2007. I’m currently not homeless, but I use to be on and off for many years. I’m an alcoholic who’s been in recovery for 11 years now. Alcoholism took me to many places in my life that I honestly never thought…
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State expands addiction program for women at Taunton State Hospital
Governor Charlie Baker, Lieutenant Governor Karyn Polito, and state and local officials announced the addition of 30 new beds at Taunton State Hospital for woman struggling with substance use disorders July 21, the Governor’s office said in a press release. The new beds are part of the hospital’s Women’s Recovery from Addictions Program (WRAP) which…
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State makes it easier to fight opioid epidemic
For many years, AIDS Action Committee has been on the forefront of advocating for sound policies to protect those struggling with addiction. A decade ago we worked for passage of syringe decriminalization, pharmacy access to syringes without a prescription, and the Good Samaritan Law to empower those dealing with overdoses to seek help from law…
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HUD supports low-income job training in Massachusetts
HUD awarded $3.4 million to assist public housing agencies offering job training and employment to low-income residents Monday, the department said in a press release. The funding is part of $75 million in grants provided through the department’s Family Self-Sufficiency Program, HUD said. The grants will be used to assist public housing agencies participating in…
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Homeless Families
The more I work with the homeless, the more I can’t help but see the multitude of barriers to housing that can arise, including lack of affordable housing, family violence, employment and education barriers and mental health issues. However, one issue that I think is often overlooked in our attempts to alleviate homelessness in Boston…