STREETS CONSCIOUSNESS P.XX: AMERICAN ECONOMY

"Poverty is the worst form of violence.”


Mahatma Gandhi

"If you look at the year in economic statistics, you could tell two different stories of two different Americas. The Dow Jones Industrial Average reached a two-year high this week: retail sales, industrial production, factory orders, all are up. And the biggest corporations are posting healthy profits. And yet, hidden among all these trends is one that was released this past week by the U.S. Conference of Mayors.
In 2010, cities across America saw a 9 percent increase in the number of families seeking emergency shelter. One out of 200 people in America slept in a homeless shelter this past year. The homeless crisis now affects more families, people who just a year or two ago had jobs, apartments, relatively stable lives that affects more families in that any other time in recent history. '-

Food. Clothing. Shelter. One night listening to BBC radio in my home, they addressed a story that slowly grabbed my attention. The reality of a homeless family, a single father raising his nine year old daughter. He explained the trial of losing his home, sleeping many nights in a car and struggling to send his daughter to school everyday, to finally finding a home just before its foreclosure. Recently passing through the holiday season, i thought of the burden, the struggle and his age(only 28). And the relevance to how homelessness touches all walks of life.


"Im, on top of the world blue diamond or black pearl"-

DA GIF(Nyc based independent recording artist)

-Ive seen some of my peers witnessed the pains of economic struggle, from finding a place to rest their head to dealings with social services. Post 21st century the Obama administration progressively seeks to repair a damaged economy. Homelessness is relative to all brackets of class system; hunger pains as told and experienced by some leading figures:

"Born Lawrence Parker in Park Slope, Brooklyn in the fall of 1965, the MC left home at 14 to become an MC and Philosopher. He came to live in a homeless shelter in the South Bronx, where he was dubbed Krishna by residents because of his interest in the Hare Krishna

spirituality of some of the antipoverty workers."-

Wikipedia

The many examples of the struggle of american economy:

"I CONTEMPLATE BELIEVING IN KARMA, THOSE ON TOP CAN JUST BREAK, AND WONT BE EATIN' TOMMORROW"-Nas

"I have to be here with my daughter and grandson. I mean, not being able to have our own house and - because I know I'm better - well, not better than that, but I mean, I know I can do it. It's just - the work is just hard after hard. You know, you go to an (unintelligible), there's 15 people there. And (unintelligible) always is to having my own place and being able to provide for my family, which I can't right now. "-

Jamie stewart(temporary shelter resident)

-One of many realities. Closing 2010, the A.L.I.H.S.T series(blog) has bore as a reflection of our own societies, troubles to triumphs. This brief look at homelessness is one of many social issues. As we enter 2011 my hopes is that we continue to look at ourselves head on, and move progressively into the coming generations. Peace.

THEE URBANPRIESTHOOD GROUP LLC 2010