@unk-p Nothing has happened in our area yet.... there were discussions at our "democratic group" about what we can do if it starts happening in our area. We had heard that the plans were for them to take young children out of schools then get the parents when they come to pick them up out of detainment. We have a large Hispanic population in our sector and many have voiced their fears to us. All? are worried... and have been carrying copies of their papers because they fear their original papers being taken from them and destroyed... leaving them vulnerable to being removed and yes.... they all fear being separated from their families. Our discussions have centered on how our schools and churches can act as a buffer and as well as making plans to shelter/feed those in need. One of our groups pastors is deeply involved in the church that is established for the Hispanic Community and we are discussing game plans for if/when authorities come to our area... we know they will be coming... just as the White Supremacists and NeoNazis did. It is best to be prepared as much as possible.
In my younger years... I often housed women and children in need of a safe place to stay while getting out of Domestic Violence situations... so this is a natural response to me for those in need. For all the hurt and help I went through... I always answer the call to pay it forward..and to stand ready.
@dannyboy Thank you Danny Boy.... and God Speed and grow your assistance to the homeless also! A big problem here as well. many groups already working on that .... lack of mental health care and addiction recovery has a huge role in it. Quite a meth problem in this area. The local gendarmes have regular "rousts" of the homeless when the commissioners want an area "cleaned up" and the homeless get driven.
@journeywithme2 We’re big enough that we have a big problem with the unhoused, but small enough that we don’t do what you just described. I think the heart of the issue is we haven’t tried to do much because it’s easier if we don’t (does that make sense? It’s a “they’re not causing major problems, so we’ll just let them do their things.”)
In my observation of the makeshift shelter and conversation with Pastor, I saw mental illness, substance abuse, and economic driven causes. Those are only three - I know there are myriad. This is why I’m planning to reach out to as many people from as many different walks of life as possible. We have services, how can we make them more widely available? And how can we fundraise and grant write for more? We have two universities within an hour of us - can we secure steady funding for services we don’t have through a combination of grant writing and partnerships that do research?
I have had a couple of friends try to tell me not to get my hopes up. One of them had me a little down yesterday. But then I remembered where she’s coming from - and instead of saying “you’re right!” I took notes on how she was unable to address the problem and added it to my running notes on how to do this.
Last fall, pre-election when I was feeling really good about a Harris win because I was ignoring the warning signs, I looked at the awards I’ve accumulated over the years I realized I have made an entire career out of saying I was going to do something and following through. There are some big achievements under my belt that required navigating and corralling local, state, and national individuals and organizations. I’ve run or helped get several state wide projects that have impacted all students to the finish line. None of them turned out the way I initially envisioned them but it all happened because I didn’t accept the finality of any failure.
This homeless coalition seems easier than half of those previous accomplishments because there’s already a pile of foundation stones and bricks at the job site. I just need to find the people to help build.
@dannyboy Yes I do understand that... we have always had homeless here... for many reasons..addictions,mental health issues, all the usual causes... and for many years... they were not major problems here... then ? we started experiencing major growth out of Atlanta and businesses moving out here and county commissioners wanting them expelled out of areas they were trying to "sell" to developers of industry... like the battery plant and more. Lots of housing going up too. Just another extension of rapid growth without development of infrastructure.
I applaud the fact that you have always been willing to step up to the plate and "put your money where your mouth "is... and I admire you as a person and you're taking actions. You follow in the footsteps of the great men in our world..the Jimmy Carters, the Martin Luther Kings, the John Lewises ... you are the teachers and kind of leaders we need in this country. I pray and and trust that Creator sees us... and ... sends the help we need..in just the way we need it.
Personally? I want to say thank you! for the hope you inspire and share bringing a balm to aching hearts and being a cheering squad and leader for us to be encouraged to act in our communities as well.
Many heartfelt hugs and thanks... I value you and your friendship.
Currently there is a huge concern in Arizona and neighboring states regarding the Navajo Nation. Members who live off the reservation in places like Phoenix are being rounded up and held in detention. Authorities are not accepting the tribal (and valid) form of identification, sometimes even with State issued drivers licenses.
I am infuriated for them. Who the heck carries around a birth certificate? Nobody should be forced to carry one on them. Additionally not all Navajo Nation members will even have a birth certificate, especially if born at home and not in an AZ hospital before 1970. Many births were not recorded at that time.
Am I upset that racial profiling is being used to target people who look a certain way? Absolutely. It is so unfair. People who are U.S. citizens of many different backgrounds are being targeted and it is extremely disturbing.
@lovendures It is heartbreaking that people of any color of skin are at high risk. Native Americans, African Americans,Hispanics, Asians... that have been in this country for generations as well as those that came seeking sanctuary and work . They are all proud peoples and hardworking and are just as much entitled to be here as anyone... and more in the case of our Native Ancestors. I have friends... who fear for their children of interracial unions. I fear for anyone who is not lily white skinned and male.
Well I am sure you all have read the news... raids have begun in my sector😢 Please pray and send Light .
Ironically today is International Holocaust Rememberance Day . Methinks that is no coincidence.
If you have a Facebook account, change your ad settings to make yourself less valuable to them.
https://www.johnoliverwantsyourraterotica.com/
I have been attending a Qi Gong class in the park on Saturday mornings. Near the end of today's session, the leader had us set our main intention for the day. I ran through a mental list of all the things I needed and wanted to do and trying to decide which was top priority when a line from the prayer of St. Francis popped into my head: "Lord, make me an instrument of your peace". I realized that yes, that should be top priority for everyone, everywhere, all the time. If done, everything else will fall into place.
Here is the full prayer (from Wikipedia)
"Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me bring love.
Where there is offence, let me bring pardon.
Where there is discord, let me bring union.
Where there is error, let me bring truth.
Where there is doubt, let me bring faith.
Where there is despair, let me bring hope.
Where there is darkness, let me bring your light.
Where there is sadness, let me bring joy.
O Lord, grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console,
to be understood as to understand,
to be loved as to love,
for it is in giving that one receives,
it is in self-forgetting that one finds,
it is in forgiving that one is forgiven,
it is in dying that one awakens to eternal life."