Poverty is Just One of the Many Forms of Violence

by Jack Bragen

Years ago, I was in a public place, and I was approached by a man wanting me to sign a petition to amend the U.S. Constitution. The amendment would have defined a corporation as not a person. Caught by surprise, I couldn’t think through the idea, so I declined. It is unfortunate. 

To an extent, I feel that I’ve been cheated by people in government and corporations,

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SF Vehicle Residents Brace for Citywide Ban

by Lukas Illa

“SFMTA don’t take my home,” read the signs of protestors at a September 17 rally put on by the End Poverty Tows Coalition. The rally opposed an upcoming RV ban, which the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) Board of Directors later approved on October 1.

This proposal, drafted by Mayor London Breed’s office and SFMTA, would authorize the agency’s director to designate city streets as off limits to “oversized vehicles” between 12 a.m.

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Mayor Candidate Websites Promise More Shelter Beds

by Christin Evans

From October 7 through November 5, polls in San Francisco will be open for voting.  When the ballots are tallied, Mayor London Breed might be out of a job. There are several candidates—including the incumbent and four major challengers—vying for the Mayor’s office and to run City Hall. Each lists plans to address homelessness on their website. Here are the “solutions” to homelessness they’ve promised to deliver—notably, there’s a lot of talk about shelter beds,

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Sometimes, Chaos Ensues in Awarding City Contracts to Housing Nonprofits

by Jordan Davis

Within the past year, there have been several scandals involving nonprofits who contract with the City. Kyra Worthy is facing federal charges for misusing over $700,000 in funds from the public safety nonprofit SF SAFE.  More recently, Sheryl Davis, the head of the Human Rights Commission and the Dream Keeper Initiative, had to resign her post over allegations of fiscal improprieties.

Why does this matter,

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Locked Up and Locked Out: How Society Segregates People with Mental Health Disabilities

by Jack Bragen

Most psychiatrists might agree that if you have a “psychiatric impairment” you could be locked out of the use of your own perceptual and mental faculties. Some would argue that those faculties are absent, while others could say we have potential of mind that is blocked by an impairment. 

Psychiatrists tend to medicate; they believe that’s what works. I can’t argue with that. When I was started on medication,

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