By A. Mann

The proven grounds given of decidedly preserving the communally beneficent landmark, addressed as The Anna Louise Inn.

In re-approaching the Anna Louise Inn at 300 Lytle Place, a few steps from the Taft Museum of Art, there is renewed consideration of the omission of a state historic notice that stands by the gifted house where from it was deeded. For if the main house which fronted the expansion is of a rightful honor in preserving as a monument that continues to serve the Greater Cincinnati area, is it not a misdeed of marked degree that the dedicated outbuilding remains equitably unsigned-and thus fairly unguarded- by appointed authority? Resounding insistently upon this oversight – upon this pertinent point- there is cause to appeal that any member of local city council is authorized to begin a designation study to initiate the protection of a historic site.

Accordingly-from past sources-there is a pending review by a state historic preservation officer toward determining a verdict to the Anna Louise Inn upon the National Register of Historic Places, whereof this process is judged of four factors hereby related as tenable evidence. Even as only one such requirement is cause for this rewarded license, the leading agency considered indisputably fulfills all.

Criterion A, states a major event placing such-in this case- an agency into a pattern of American History. Through the development of Cincinnati Union Bethel – or CUB as it is fondly referred- of a early formation in 1830 to official record from 1839 into the turn of the century, by 1901 director Reverend James O. White oversaw the first free kindergarten in the expansion along Front Street. Of the formative year the continuing influx of young women promised or seeking employment in the city were faced with limited options as to affordable housing, often forced to live in unsafe conditions or overextending a feasible income to improve their accommodations. Recognizing this growing need, White applied to several financial contributors, mainly calling upon the couple who aided other civic endeavors: Anna Stinton and Charles P. Taft. Through these principal backers is supplied the sustaining conditions stated as Criterion B; wherein the building is connected with significant persons

From this endowment beget the cornerstone corroborating the groundwork of the Anna Louise Inn for Girls set at Third and Lytle Street as a extension of the Taft family’s designated property in 1901- named in honor of their daughter Anna Louise Semple- arising of a five-story building to accommodate 120 women in individual rooms. The completed housing contracted of the architecture firm of Garber & Woodward opened on May 31^st, 1909 with full occupancy. The increasing need compiled a waiting list of 100 women, prompting added donation of Mr. and Mrs. Taft of their personal grounds along Pike Street towards an attached wing completed in 1920. Thereafter the Anna Louise Inn continued to aid the workingwomen, providing affordable housing and family services, standing on a stated mission “To help people help themselves”.

By this chosen framework is the substantiation set of Criterion C; built of a prominent architecture or leading organization. As the aforesaid firm was nationally recognized with their local constructions, some relatable notables as completing the Taft home conversion to the Taft Museum, the nearby Phelps Building, with a comparably central conductive structure being the Dixie Terminal on 4^th Street.

Of Criterion D, relating information important to history or pre-history, Cincinnati Union Bethel was a foremost social service agency west of the Alleghenies, arising in 1839 from the Western Seamen’s Friends Society providing religious services and education to the families arriving in Cincinnati. Initial services were at an established location on Front Street, wherein sailor’s families were offered a Sunday school that by 1870 was of the largest in the nation. In 1853 there was an outfitted barge conducting religious services on the Ohio River called “The Boatmen’s- or Floating- Bethel”. In furthering children’s education the Bethel Ladies Society-formed in 1860-combined with CUB in their outreach along Front Street of a second building constructed in 1871, providing a men’s dormitory with dining hall, temporary shelter, and separate sleeping quarters for women.

Anna Stinton- daughter of David Stinton- resided in the Belmont House, a boarding house for women prior to Nicholas Longworth’s purchase in 1830 of the mansion for his personal residence. Anna- who no doubt recalled the history of her childhood domicile- became centrally involved with CUB; evident in her philanthropic pursuit with husband Charles to place a similar offering of neighboring accommodations for women as a vital home nearby the renamed Taft House that Anna inherited in 1873, after her father’s passing. Both Anna and her husband maintained a close residence to the Anna Louise Inn from 1909 to the expansion in 1920, unto their physical parting; willing their house and private art collection to the people of Cincinnati in 1927.

The main housing has been historically enshrined as the Taft Museum, yet what of the proven shelter conveyed as a caring offspring given to applicable women in need? Why does it suffer to be so unshielded to capital divests over humane interests? Who is to answer for this allowed contravention upon this needful home named in memorial honor to extend partial exclusion to all those fairly applying to the empowering wings of the Anna Louise Inn?

Placed into your hands are the counter forms, along with other access to the Cincinnati Union Bethel website regarding the Anna Louise Inn at

http://www.cinunionbethel.org/index.php/how-we-help/anna-louise-innhousing/friends-of-the-anna-louise-inn or contact by phone at (513) 421- 5211.

In terms of reaching Cincinnati City Council members the broader email is CityCouncil@cincinnati-oh.gov with connection by phone given at (513) 352-1576.

In determining a state representative to address, the number for the Ohio House of Representatives is 1-800-282-0253 or indexed at http://www.house.state.oh.us/index.php?option=com_displaymembers&Itemid=73.

Photo: Jim Luken

 By Jim Luken

No Meetup this week, but your intrepid boy-reporter has special story from the City by the Lake.

Last fall, as the Occupy Wall Street movement was about to hit its stride, I found myself visiting relatives in Chicago.  On line, I located Occupy Chicago, then rode a friend’s old bike some 13 miles to the Windy City’s version of Zuccotti  Park, dozens gathered  on a crowded street corner outside the Federal Reserve Bank in the downtown financial district.  Everyone there seemed on fire to be part of this incredible (sudden), anti-capitalist revolution.

As a 67 year-old, lifelong, anti-war activist, I immediately caught the Occupy Chicago fever.  Online, I also learned that Cincinnati had its own fired-up Occupy group, and I couldn’t wait to get back and join with my townsfolk in putting it to “the Man.”

But before I left Chicago, I learned of a major event which would be happening in Chicago in May. A huge NATO meeting, paired with a G8 financial summit had been planned  for the same  week in  May of 2012. I said to myself, “I can’t miss that.”

So I booked my Megabus tickets as early as possible, and here I am, ten bucks to Chicago, ten to get back home.  When the Obama administration realized that this dovetailing of events was creating quite a stir within the Occupy communities, as well as among other activist groups, it quietly pulled the G8 out of Chicago and planted it in the obscure confines of the Presidential retreat house at Camp David in Maryland.

So we demonstrators will have only half the fun that we might have had. But, being here in Chicago in the midst of NATO hoopla, I knew it would still be a ton of fun, plus a modicum of risk, vis-à-vis Chicago’s finest. Because, unlike the famous demonstrations at the Democratic convention in 1968, the cops and the Homeland Security brown shirts are prepared, we are told. No matter. In 1968, the chant was “The whole world is watching. “ On May 20, 2012, thanks to social networking and instant communications, that will be the literal truth.

On Wednesday, May 16, Occupy Chicago had organized an anti- foreclosure event called, “Housing is a Right.” When I arrived at the Chicago Fed at 10 am, there seemed to be more reporters and TV people than there were demonstrators. That changed quickly. By 10:15 there were sixty of us preparing to march. I walked along the curb and around the corner in order to count the cops. There were 32 of them, almost all on bicycles.  And there were others. A black helicopter droned directly above the intersection. The buildings are so tall at this intersection that the chopper looked like a big hornet buzzing at the end of a tunnel. It remained stationary in that one little pocket of daylight.

By the time the march began there were more than a hundred of us. We walked to the outside of a Citibank office where a man was sitting in a large overstuffed chair, on an oriental carpet right in the middle of the sidewalk. He shouted, “This bank forced me out of my home, so now I am moving into the bank.”

Then we marched to Daly Plaza, Chicago’s equivalent of Fountain Square. There is a pool of dancing waters and-n lieu of a statue the huge rusted-iron sculpture of an Afghan Hound, the famous Picasso work that had irritated many Chicagoans when it was installed, but now it is as much a part of the downtown scene, beloved by natives and visitors alike.

Above Daley Plaza and two hundred protestors, two black helicopters hover, the noise more deafening because here they can fly so much closer to the crowd.  Several of the media focus on a counter-demonstrator, a middle class guy who claims that one of the women protestors punched him in the jaw. I talked to another woman who had watched the alleged “attack.”  The guy, she said, had been screaming at the protestors, and the woman had flashed the guy the bird. “She may have touched his nose, “ the onlooker said, “but he wasn’t struck by anyone. I was right there.”

A stage had been set up there in the plaza, with 200 chairs in front of it. Several actors did a short street-theater skit about evictions, but the helicopters drowned out most of what was being said. Finally the crowd was sang a rousing version of “These homes are your homes. These homes are our homes,” to the familiar Pete Seeger tune.

On Thursday, the 17^th, we were urged to bring our bikes to the “Mass for environmentally sustainable Transportation. I rode my cousins 30 year-old 5 speed thirteen miles through the middle of Chicago from my base in Evanston.  There were about sixty of us on bikes, led by a three-wheeled bike pulling a 7’ long trailer sporting a powerful speaker system.  A musician sat in the trailer near the speakers and played a series of rousing protest songs as our bikes drifted through the downtown streets. I have never felt more peacefully in tune with a demonstration and its purpose.

Our destination was the Canadian Embassy in Chicago. As we pulled into the downtown cull-de-sac, we were delighted to see a 100-foot-long “pipeline” snaking up the street.  The pipeline was formed by a series of large black trash bags, taped together and supported internally by about 20 hula-hoops.  Written on the pipeline were the words we began chanting: “No Pipeline. No Tar Sands. One planet. One Fight. “

Then about twenty of the non-biking protestors, stripped down to shorts and bikinis, participated in a die-in. The manner of their death was horrible. Plastic freezer bags filled with yucky brown oil was poured on all the participants. It really looked horrible. Some of the “oil” splashed on us bystanders. Then I noticed a young woman licking the oil from her face. They had made the oil out of chocolate and butterscotch syrup. 10 dead syrupy protestors lay sprawled on the pavement outside the Canadian Embassy, Canada being the home of the infamous Tar Sands Petroleum Extraction Process.

On Friday, I went to an event sponsored by a large nursing organization. The nurses were advocating for  “a Robin Hood tax” on all Wall Street trading transactions.  Such a tax would bring in billions over time, which obviously would “steal from the rich” traders and investors for a change. All the nurses were dressed in red Robin Hood outfits, with pointy green caps. Cute . . . as well as effective. Then there was a march through downtown, 1000 angry protestors moving from one street to the next railing at the hundreds of police who shadowed us (on bicycles mostly) every step of the way. “Show me what a police state looks like, the leaders yelled. “This is what a police state looks like,” we demonstrators responded.

The NATO meetings began formally on Sunday.  And the big protest event was scheduled for most of the day. In the morning heat, musicians and activist speakers were featured at the Petrillo  band shell in Grant Park. Then at noon the various groups and thousands of individuals massed for a long walk south on Michigan Avenue.

The Veterans Against the War(s) march was led by 50 veterans from all branches of the services, including the National Guard. We walked about four miles South toward McCormick Place, the convention area on the Lakeshore where the NATO delegates were holding  their meetings, applauding themselves—no doubt—on how their drone-based killing regimens were working out, (and had worked out) in Libya, Iraq and Afghanistan.

By my guestimation, there were 25-50,000 people on the march, and what seem like twice as many cops. The police had been instructed, and the march leaders had been informed, that the event would be stopped a half-dozen blocks away from the NATO Summit. At a major intersection, the Veteran demonstrators climbed onto a stage and each one briefly explained who he/she was, and why he/she was throwing his/her various service medals in the direction of the NATO Summit. It was a tearful time; I was moved to tears.   After each speech—many of which were confessional or apologetic, the veteran turned around and through his/her medal (or medals) down the street toward the lake.

When the veterans were finished, taps was played. The folks around me were visibly affected by this passionate display of a different kind of patriotism, this dedication to personal ethics and to the veterans having chosen to take responsibility for terrible things that had happened to them and to the people whom they were” liberating” in the name of serving what they had all come to realize was the “Empire.”

After taps, the veteran—emcee encouraged the many thousands to disperse and head west, in the direction away from the Convention Center (and the NATO summit) that had brought so many of us to the “city of big shoulders.”

But the day wasn’t finished. Members of the anarchist group, Black Bloc, were ready to do their thing, which is always to confront the police. About 75 of them moved eastward. Cops in riot gear, including twenty mounted police blocked their paths.  There were skirmishes and arrests. Some heads were bloodied. And for those of us who didn’t disperse, and who faced the riot police, a great deal of anger. (Later news reports mentioned 46 arrests).

Black, blue, and brown-helmeted riot police and firefighters moved in from all directions. Hundreds and hundreds of them. We were pushed toward the sidewalks and told to leave or face arrest. The police loudspeaker informed us that we could be “injured” during the arrest process. Finally, discretion got the better of whatever valor I had exhibited by staying so long.

Somewhat sadly, I walked away from the largest and most energetic protest I had participated in since the anti-war protests (Iraq) in New York City, 2003. I walked past a dozen city busses, waiting nearby, ready in the case of massive arrests. The signs on the front of the busses were digitally flashing the words, “ Chicago is…my kind of town.”

I’m old, but the irony was not lost on me. As I walked toward my subway station I passed hundreds more cops. So much over-kill for a virtually peaceful demonstration. Each time I approached one or several police, I sang loudly the words I remembered from that famous Chicago song.  “…You see people who, smile at you…,” etc.  Some smiled. Many scowled. But I was singing out the truth: Chicago is indeed “ my kind of town.”

FLORENCE – Employees from Meritor’s Florence facility participated in the Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition Speaker’s Bureau on Wednesday, April 25^th as part of the company’s Global Service Day.  Meritor, Inc., is a global supplier of drivetrain, mobility, braking and aftermarket solutions for commercial vehicle and industrial markets.  Jeni Jenkins, Director of Education and Outreach for the GCCH, and Tommy Thompson spoke to Meritor employees during two “Lunch & Learn” sessions. Jenkins explained the mission of the GCHC and their efforts to help those who are currently homeless or on the verge of homelessness, while Thompson shared his first-hand experience.

Debbie McIntire, a Customer Service Representative for Meritor, said it gave her an entirely new perspective on homelessness:

“Prior to hearing Tommy speak, I had an entirely different outlook on the homeless population.  If they would just get a job everything would be fine and their homeless situation would not be an issue.  Well, boy was I wrong.  Since meeting Tommy and having the opportunity to listen to his life story, I’ve realized that life is not always what you planned. There are hurdles along the way that many of us don’t have any control over.  Economics is a large factor in many of these situations. Tommy made me open my eyes and realize that hard work, perseverance and not being afraid to ask for help is what it takes to get back on your feet.”

Other events throughout the day included a donation drive to benefit the Welcome House and a Shantytown on the front lawn. Meritor employees collected more than 3,000 items and constructed nearly 20 shanties covered with homeless facts and statics. As the first local company to host a Shantytown event, it is Meritor’s hope that a precedent has been set for other companies in the community to spread awareness about the serious issue of homelessness.

Worldwide, Meritor employees supported many local charities through the Global Service Day. Among the events was hand-making soap to donate to the needy in Shanghai, China and providing financial support for families of children with cancer in Osasco, Brazil.

Photo: Deadly Sirius.

In Colorado Springs, Colorado, two teenagers allegedly shined a flashlight on a man sleeping in a culvert and then shot him twice before fleeing, KRDO reports. Two of the several shots fired hit Gerald Shinkle in the leg and backside. Shinkle, wounded, said he chased after the teens before he collapsed from pain. A friend found him nine hours later and he was taken to a hospital. Now released, Shinkle said he cannot afford the medication needed to help his wounds heal and stay clean. He fears he will have to return to the hospital but is reluctant to do so because he does not “want to put a bill on somebody else when I know I can’t pay.” The perpetrators remain at large.

Albert Curtis Sanchez, 21, has been sentenced to serve the remainder of his life in prison for the 2009 murder of 48-year-old Timothy Lee Acorn in Redding, California. Sanchez was convicted of beating Alcorn to death in a plan “to kick a bum’s ass“ and rob him because he was an easy target and police would be unlikely to investigate, according to The Record-Searchlight  In a police interrogation video shown to the court, Sanchez admits it “felt good” to beat Alcorn. Two others, Jared Cory Voss and John Hadley Thompson were also convicted in the beating deaths.

Service providers and advocates of youth in New York City that are forced into homelessness when turned away from their families because they are gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgendered are protesting the proposed budget of the city’s mayor, Michael Bloomberg, which calls for a funding cut that would eliminate 160 of the 250 shelter beds for these youth. In a column on HuffingtonPost.com, Carl Siciliano of the Ali Forney Center, writes: “I wonder if the mayor understands what it means to put a kid on the street. Does he know that many will be forced to resort to prostituting themselves in order to survive? Does he know that 20 percent of the LGBT kids will become infected with HIV on the streets? Does he know that 60 percent will consider or attempt suicide?” If the budget passes, Siciliano says he will lead a campout protest near Bloomberg’s home so he will see the “human wreckage of his budget.”

A veteran who once walked the streets of downtown Augusta, Georgia, without a home is now patrolling those same streets as a deputy sheriff less than one year later. The Augusta Chronicle outlines the story of Deputy Ryan Jones, his wife and two kids as they entered and then overcame homelessness through creativity and hard work. Like many families, their period of  homelessness, brought on when mold was discovered in their home and they lacked funds to make repairs, forced them to stay in separate locations until they got back on their feet. Now Jones said he is excited to have a patrol car of his own. “Walking?” he told the Chronicle,. “I think I’ve done enough of that.”

A woman who experienced homelessness in southern California has now created a 112-page resource guide for people battling homelessness and has also formed her own non-profit organization, according to the Daily News Los Angeles.  Angel Hanz For the Homeless, Inc., seeks to fill what she saw as a gap in services for homeless people with pets. Karen Hamza formed the organization which helps by providing extra food, directing people to shelters that welcome pets, and hooking people up with volunteers to foster and care for animals while people secure housing. “Their pets are everything to them,” she said, remembering the long days and nights of homelessness with her dog Tippy. “Sometimes, it’s the only thing they have.”

Supporters of the Anna Louise Inn call shame on Judge Nadel. Photo: Jason Dean

Since August I have been following and writing on the case of Western & Southern (W&S) versus Cincinnati Union Bethel (CUB) and the Anna Louise Inn (ALI), but the case started long before that. Each time I’ve been to court to record the arguments from W&S and the defense from CUB it has pretty much been the same story each time; very little was added or subtracted each time Judge Nadel presided over the case, and despite Nadel saying in August that he would reach a quick decision he took nine months to deliver a decision that favored W&S.

Back in August CUB cautiously made it clear that they suspected W&S of having judge shopped for Nadel and that W&S were using stalling tactics in order to jeopardize the time sensitive grant money that CUB had raised for the renovation of ALI; W&S seem to have got everything that they wished for . . . everything that money could buy.

Judge Nadel has a reputation for being a business friendly judge, which could be why W&S skipped the zoning board review processes in order to secure him as the judge for their case against CUB; the case was later brought before the Zoning Board of Appeals and they ruled in favor of CUB. In his verdict that took him nine months to decide, Judge Nadel has declared that not only are CUB in the wrong, but the City of Cincinnati and the entire Zoning Board process have not followed the letter of law; “thankfully” we have W&S brave enough to step up and make sure that everyone has correct zoning permits . . . even though the Zoning Board twice approved CUB application to renovate their building.

CUB provided ample evidence that the law, the City, the Zoning Board, and a large room full of supporters were on their side, but unfortunately they did not have Judge Nadel on their side; his verdict took the side of W&S.

Wednesday, May 9^th, at noon, church leaders and close to a hundred supporters of ALI gathered outside the courthouse to protest Nadel’s choice and then deliver a letter to W&S CEO John Barrett calling for him to talk directly to CUB. Nadel’s decision may be a set back, but CUB has not given up on its legal property rights.

Our work as a Movement to end and prevent homelessness is always an uphill struggle.  It is not easy.  Those that wish to ignore homelessness or work outright to criminalize People experiencing homelessness or even those that work to sustain homelessness, seem hell-bent on accomplishing their goal.  Sometimes you hear Folks say that We will never end or prevent homelessness; that it is too large a problem or those on the other side are too powerful.  Here at the Homeless Coalition, We disagree.

We believe that We, the People are extremely powerful and not only that we are right.  We are right morally, we are right economically, we are right socially, politically, spiritually, psychologically, etc.  This certainly does not mean that everything we do is right, we have plenty of ways we need to improve.  But we are right about the issue.  We are on the side of justice and love.

I am confident that in the end We will triumph over the system that creates and maintains homelessness.  It won’t happen tomorrow, or next week or next year, but it will happen.  We are powerful and we have no desire to back down.  We will make missteps, but we will come together, recalculate and continue to press forward.

We know the truth.  We have seen the pain that homelessness causes.  We have seen how hard it is for so many to avoid homelessness or to exit homelessness.  We have seen how the system seems more setup to maintain homelessness than end it.  We know what organizations work to pro-long homelessness or criminalize People experiencing homelessness.

We know the Truth and the Truth is very powerful.  For some the Truth is a mirror that says change.  For others the Truth builds the energy needed to over-run homelessness.  We must continue to stand by the Truth and we must continue to stand by each other.  We must support one another with the gifts that we have to do so.

We all have a very important role in this uphill struggle.  We cannot allow time to pass without pursuing and acting upon our roles.  We are built to Triumph.

Melton has been at the forefront of the struggle with Western & Southern. Photo: Jim Luken.

Meet Mary Carol Melton.  65. Mom. Passionate and outgoing. Executive Vice President Cincinnati Union Bethel (Anna Louise Inn).

Mary Carol Melton admits to being surprised by the negative decision regarding the Anna Louise Inn (ALI) by Judge Norbert Nadel that came down on Friday, May 4. “I’m sort of an extreme optimist. I saw so clearly that the women should be allowed to live here.”

As most Cincinnatians know, low income women have been living at the beautiful facility in Lytle Park for 103 years. Melton explains those centenary roots:

“I stand on the porch of the Anna Louise Inn and think about the history of the Taft family who responded to a request from Cincinnati Union Bethel. They not only provided the land and the money. They put it in their (the Taft family home’s) own front yard.”

In the lawsuit brought by Western & Southern Financial (W&S), the judge essentially ruled against the Anna Louise Inn and the City of Cincinnati, on the grounds that the City had improperly issued zoning permits for a 12 million dollar renovation that is in the works for the facility, a renovation that was scheduled to begin last summer. Now both parties must go back to the drawing board to resolve zoning issues that everyone believed had been settled a year ago.

Mary Carol Melton, and the women she works with at the Inn, have been devastated by the criticism and the (sometimes nasty) complaints that have come in the wake of the lawsuit. “We just did not expect that any neighbor who has co-existed with us for 100 years would object to us wanting to increase the amenities for the women we serve.” The renovations will in fact decrease the number of available rooms.

The objections of Western & Southern, whose corporate headquarters are located in the Lytle Park quadrant, seem to go deeper than its problems with the renovation. In fact, W&S says it wants to purchase the Inn, which means the agency and its residents would be forced to find a home elsewhere.

This is the reality that bothers Mary Carol Melton most. “I can’t get it out of my mind,” she says. “This is really not about zoning, it is about a large corporation all of a sudden deciding that they no longer want lower income women living in what they perceive to be their neighborhood, that somehow the women aren’t good enough, and higher income people are better. To put this in perspective, until Western-Southern wanted to purchase the building, there was never even one complaint about our women…or the Anna Louise Inn. They claim to be in support of the women and our mission, and yet they would prefer that that be done somewhere else. Why? This really is about the rights of lower income women to continue to live in this area. They enjoy Lytle Park as much as anyone.”

Melton’s passion for her job and for the women who live at the ALI has deep and interesting roots. She was born into a large, well-to-do family in Hyde Park. She spent both grade school and high school at the Summit, an expensive, then all-girl, Catholic school on Grandin Road.

Her dad, Tom Conlan, was a prosperous attorney. Ironically, over the years, one of his major clients was Western & Southern. Mary Carol says that she knows where her father would stand in the current dispute. “If my dad were alive today, he would be leading the group of supporters in speaking out for the rights of the women.”

She knows this because, long ago, her dad came to the aid of another institution under siege regarding zoning issues and violations. In the early days of the Drop Inn Center, Tom Conlan heard about buddy gray and his struggles to get that facility on track. Conlan brought his legal expertise to bear. And, according to Mary Carol, buddy never forgot it.

At Conlan’s funeral, 28 years ago, buddy read something he wrote to honor his friend and defender. It was called “The Fable of the Kindly Man of Justice.” At the end of “the fable” the kindly man—crowded among the poor who are themselves on trial—says, “I sit among these people today, and I will stand with these people in their long days of trial, because with them is justice.”

There are so many improbable ironies in the current struggle for justice swirling around the women of the ALI. One of these has to do with the fact that the daughter of Tom Conlan finds herself in a situation so similar to that of her lawyer dad.

As Mary Carol Melton reflects on all this, she says, “I feel that the message we got from our family (she was the fifth of seven children) is that, when you have been given opportunities in your life, you have a responsibility to contribute to those around you in a positive way. To work for the common good. To use your faculties and your talents wisely, and respect everyone you come in contact with.”

She accesses some of this philosophy in the current confrontation with her corporate neighbor. “The one thing I will say is that I am respectful of the things that Western & Southern has brought to our community. But in this case I respectfully disagree with the notion that the Lytle Park Community would be diminished by the women who live here or who have lived here.” And, she concludes, “I really believe this is one of the finest examples of diversity in an urban neighborhood.”

Mary Carol has been active in non-profit work all her life. But, she qualifies, the thing she is most proud of is being a mom. She and her husband John have two grown children and three grandchildren. 21 years ago, she was a kidney donor for her only son, now 44. The donation process, she says, was “incredible.” And Phil, her son, is still doing fine.

While both Phil and his sister Casey are living out of town, Melton seems to take an almost motherly interest in the women she serves at the ALI. One of the programs at the facility is called,  Off the Streets ^SM Melton says that more than 30 agencies are involved in trying to help women who have found themselves ensnared in prostitution. “Anna Louise Inn provides a safe place for these women who want to reclaim their lives.”

One of the women, according to Melton, told her recently that the proudest moment of her life was when she got a job and had to pay taxes. “These are women with courageous stories, survivors. To me, they are role models as regards to having the strength and tenacity to bring themselves up (from prostitution).”

The hardest part of her job lately, for Mary Carol Melton, has been to help the women of Anna Louise Inn deal with “some of the awful things” that are being said about them in the local press.

Most all of the women’s neighbors in the Lytle Park are supportive of the women who live at the Inn, according to Melton. When some of the well-to-do neighbors were about to put in an herb garden in a corner of the park, they came and invited the ALI residents to help with the garden.

Judge Nadel’s decision regarding the Western & Southern lawsuit was a huge disappointment for Mary Carol Melton. But in case you might be wondering, she, Cincinnati Union Bethel, and the women it serves are not giving up or caving in. “I don’t think anyone should have to sell their home because somebody else wants to buy it. The building is not for sale,” she says emphatically. “The women do not want to move.

“Our absolute intention is to complete the renovation, and to continue our 103 year tradition of providing safe and affordable housing (for women). We will take the steps necessary to make sure that all the permits are in place for us to do that.”

As the young folks like to say, “You go, Girl.”

Starfire Member Nikki Booker (center) with Tina Manchise (Left) and Tara Lindsey Gordon of The Requiem Project: The Emery, after a reading of Waddie Welcome and the Beloved Community. Photo: Starfire.

Jeni Jenkins, Streetvibes Staff Writer

“And if I can take part in it by transforming my own consciousness, then someone else’s, I’m happy to do it.”  The late comedian and social critic Bill Hicks spoke these moving words during one of his comedy routines.  We will never know whether he recognized that this idea was truly transformative in and of itself—the notion of “it” as something bigger then oneself and ones’ immediate surroundings and by being part of the “it” you are transformed through the process, and through that experience you transform others.  There are often various shades of grey when it comes to judging truly transformative ideas, however, sometimes they stand out.

One local organization is not only transforming lives; they are transforming whole communities through an innovative new model that is both unassuming and provocative. Thanks to innovative efforts by its members, staff and Board, Starfire Council of Greater Cincinnati is on the cutting edge of creating ways to enable individuals with disabilities towards becoming active members of their communities.

After years of working with individuals with disabilities through traditional models of getting people with disabilities together and taking them on outings and doing “fun stuff”, the Starfire team started talking. Through talking they discovered that over and over people with disabilities are segregated and lumped together with other people with disabilities and they become associated merely by circumstance as opposed to by choice. According to Executive Director Tim Vogt, as a result, “people with disabilities have an imbalanced life when it comes to their relationships.” In an effort to decrease the segregation, while being careful not to discredit the genuine relationships that develop by bringing people with disabilities together, Starfire mapped out a working 4 year model designed to support Starfire members as they move towards genuine integration into their communities while simultaneously discovering their passions, dreams, and talents.

At the center of this model is StarfireU, a four-year program for young adults ages 21-30. Each year is a stepping-stone towards the next, building on the previous years experiences. In year one, members explore their communities and explore things that they haven’t been exposed to prior. Year two, involves creating a path towards their future with the central question “What is the legacy you want to leave? “ Year three is about building networks and connecting people based on their interests and passions. And the final fourth year involves capstone projects- where members take their broad interests, narrow them down and brainstorm to work on a community project together with community friends and partners.

Now in its fourth year, the eighteen graduating seniors have worked diligently to take their passions and transform them into community-oriented projects.  A play, a fashion show, a dog walk, a musical performance and a car show are among the many projects that are taking place throughout Greater Cincinnati in the coming months. Each project is unique and breaks down the barriers between those who have disabilities and those who don’t. According to Vogt, “The label of ‘disability’ is one imposed upon, instead of chosen by people. And it often creates a lot of unnecessary barriers to the things that make up a good life: friends, dignity, and ways people can give to others. These young people are painting a new picture of what can happen when we include and value all citizens. They’re helping build a more vibrant Cincinnati for all of us.”

The production of “Welcome Home: The Waddie Welcome Story” a play based on the book “Waddie Welcome and the Beloved Community” by Tom Kohler and Susan Earl, is the passion of Nikki Booker who first read the story three years ago. “At first glance I thought that it was just an ordinary book. The more I read it, the more it became a part of me; so much so that I wanted to make a play out of it. I think this story is going to inspire, change people’s mindsets, and teach people that you can take ordinary people and do extraordinary things.” The production that will take place May 12^th at the Emery Theatre, involved numerous community partners, including playwright Catie O’Keefe, Aaron Kent of DIY Printing and Tina Manchise and Tara Lindsey Gordon of The Requiem Project: The Emery.

Jamie Hoskins, fourth year senior, chose her project out of her love for clothes. Her goal is to produce the Urban Glam Fashion show on June 16at the Tower Place Mall- New American Art Gallery.  Her community connections include a committee composed of Hollywood and Ty from Dynamite Attractions- presents that’s Hollywood as well as Kai Wiley from Sheek and Black Styling- who will help dress and style and get different vendors involved.  This project involves casting 12 models and dressing them in fashions from Cincinnati shops. For Hoskins, this capstone is helping her with her career. She would like to continue producing fashion shows in future.

Starfire Member Kathleen Sheil stands in front of the 20th Century Theatre for Starfire’s Annual Meeting, an event that she planned as her Senior Capstone Project. Photo: Starfire.

Kathleen Sheil’s capstone was planning Starfire’s Annual Meeting. Her process started because she didn’t know how to put on an event. She says she became passionate “after seeing a close friend who was an event planner.” She learned how to write a budget, find an event location, select food, and pick awards. She also had committee at her disposal to help her plan. This event took place on Monday April 16^th at the 20^thCentury theatre. Now she is in the process of planning her first baby shower for a friend.

These projects involve the commitment of the dedicated Starfire staff. For Leah Addison, one of the four Capstone Assistants, the goal is  “to connect members with people of their community who have similar interests, and get them more involved with people who enjoy the same things.”  Addison, who has worked at Starfire since 2010 views the project as  “interesting and new…we are setting the bar for years to come.“

Capstone Assistant and Community Coordinator Sarah Buffie, believes in the power of the process, “we work towards a common goal, we are brought together based on interests and passions and a commitment to a shared purpose. That shared purpose brings us together and starts to build a more cohesive community– the capstones are about relationship building. There is space before and after for deeper connections- and for casual conversations where we learn from and about one another.

Brandon Black, Capstone Assistant to four members, views the capstone projects as “smoke and mirrors.” He say’s it is “the magician’s job is to wow the crowd and manipulate the senses to entertain the audience. When I think of each member as this magician with tricks up their sleeve- it’s just them. The capstone is the smoke and mirror and the illusions that distract people from the things that they don’t have in common so the real magic can be experienced and felt.  At the end of the day we are all people and it’s them connecting with individuals members on some level producing a hint of laughter or astonishment. Capstones allow people to shine through the smoke and mirrors.”

Aaron Kent of DIY Printing, one of the many community partners, has assisted in a mural project by Krista Brinkmeyer and printed the posters for Welcome Home. Kent has loved the opportunity to work with and meet new people. He is “both humbled and honored to be part of something so great“ and sees these new-formed bonds as “part of the experience he tries to bring to DIY.” “Nikki and Krista were part of the studio experience and they had an awesome time printing.” Kent says he’s “flying high.”

Starfire Member Krista Brinkmeyer with Aaron Kent of DIY Printing. Photo: Starfire.

“I think there are inventions yet to be discovered. I am pretty old now but I would like to be one of those discoveries to the technology of image making.” Artist Statement by Clem Robinson

“Clem Robins has been lettering comics since 1977, for every major, and quite a few minor, publishers. His work has been twice nominated for the Harvey, and once for the Eisner and Wizard awards. His current projects include Hellboy, B.P.R.D., Unknown Soldier, Greek Street, First Wave and How to Understand Israel in 60 Days or Less. His book The Art of Figure Drawing was published in 2002 by North Light Books. It has since been translated into French, Spanish, German and Chinese, and still makes the ideal gift for any occasion.

Robert Beverly Hale taught Clem Robins that an artist learns the structure of things, and then only consults nature incidentally. Robins is no longer sure that he buys this notion, particularly as concerning his current obsession, landscape. Nature serves up an amazing concoction of effects, and never repeats itself. At least for the moment, Robins is approaching nature as a willing student, not as a master. He hopes you’ll take as much pleasure in his renditions of dazzling sunshine and atmosphere as he had in attempting to record their poetry on canvas.

Robins studied drawing and painting at the Art Students League of New York, where his teachers included Hale, David Leffel, Robert Philipp, Joseph Hirsch and Ted Seth Jacobs.

His drawings and paintings are in collections all over the country, and in the permanent collection of the Cincinnati Art Museum.

While modeling on and off over the last year or two. I had the privilege and the honor of befriending Clem Robins. I have had firsthand experience of seeing his sumi ink figure sketches in process or his figure in landscape paintings in process.

Clem Robins, in my humble opinion, has led a very interesting life and has many fascinating stories about his experiences. As a child growing up, Clem said, “I was a pain in the ass.” Then he went on to describe his father Symour Robins with great love and admiration in his voice. His father was a great influence over Clem as an artist. Clem said his father was the greatest artist he had ever known in his life.  One of Clem’s memories about his Father was when he introduced him to his Anatomy class at the Art Academy. He told his student during his introduction. “My father is the greatest artist I have ever known in my life.”

As he continued to share more about his family, Clem said that his father was born in Canada and was raised in Brooklyn.  He told me his mother was his father’s secretary and that his sister is a very successful writer who is about to publish her fourteenth book; his brother in law is a sound designer works for George Lucas.

Clem shared some of his experiences from when he attended the Art League in New York. One of his instructors was Robert Beverly Hale who was a legend and a brilliant lecturer. Clem learned Anatomy from Robert, but he did not know how to draw which, in Clem’s opinion of himself, held him back in drawing, it was not until later when he met Carl Samson who taught him that the purpose of learning anatomy is so you can learn to draw the figure without the model. Clem learned to take what he saw and to communicate as truthfully as possible.

Clem worked in comics since 1977; he was 21 when he first started getting work. He started with Gold Key, DC and Marvel. He has worked on comic books like Batman and Superman. At the age of 26 Clem was also a courtroom illustrator for television. After having such a tough time mastering Anatomy, he later can to teach it at the Art Academy.

Clem wants to be remembered as someone who thrilled people when he taught the bible to them. He wants his pictures to stand on their own merits. Clem said, “No one has heard of Willard Metcalf but I have on my wall. I wouldn’t mind at all if pictures I make, gave people the idea of how I saw the world for better or worse. I would like them to physically last. I would like to be remembered that I have integrity, not cutting corners. I would like my pictures to reflect that.”

Clem has artwork hanging in the permanent collection of the Green Acres Artist’s guild in Indian Hill in the old Fleishmin Mansion. He will also have art hanging in the Rotting Haus gallery, date and time TBA.

Faithful Streetvibes readers know that the Meetup page offers up a bi-weekly account of an individual’s life story. As you can see, this time, there are two stories, and the focus is on a serious conflict, not so much between the two individuals featured here, but between two sides of an issue that, in a sense, affects the ongoing life of downtown Cincinnati.

Now that the city has granted Occupy Cincinnati (OC) members (as well as  anyone else) permission to  express their first amendment rights at a small area of Piatt (Garfield Park) 24/7, a number of individuals from the movement have chosen to do just that, to re-Occupy the park.

For the past three weeks (as of April 7), individuals from the movement have been at Piatt Park all day long, leafleting, and all night, holding vigil. They are proud to re-Occupy the park again. Others in the local Occupy group feel that what these folks are doing is a waste of time and energy.

Streetvibes Readers: read the two stories and decide for yourselves. Send Streetvibes letters stating your point of view. Should the demonstrators remain there at the statue of Garfield… or not?

Reginald Hill

Meet Reginald Hill. 46. Navy veteran. Native of OTR. 4^th of seven children. Father of one, grandfather of three. Long-time independent taxi driver. Grass-roots activist.

“In the middle of the night (at Piatt Park), it is usually pretty calm and dark, of course,” he says. “I often feel lonely and despairing, not knowing if the group as a whole (OC) understands the significance of having a 24 hour space for free speech.”

The protestors are not permitted to lie down, although they often do, catching sleep in snatches as best they can. Hill says that some nights have been very chilly. In the middle of one night, a cold rain fell. The protestors went across the street to stand under the overhang of the library. According to Hill, the police drive by often during the nights. Usually they don’t bother those gathered at the statue, he says. But that night they demanded that the activists return to the park, where they sat for hours in the rain.

Reginald—his friends call him Reggie—has very personal reasons for spending so much time there in the park. “I think it’s important to show that this space is needed, because of all the arrests that happened at this location.” Hill states proudly that he was arrested at both Piatt Park and—two days later—at a middle-of-the night demonstration at Fountain Square [All charges were recently dropped against all the arrestees].

Hill believes that the return of the 24/7 occupation is having a positive effect. He points out that he and his friends have already handed out over 1700 flyers. “It gives us the opportunity to engage by standers, to find out what they think of the Occupation. And it also gives us the ability to have youth become active in the movement.”

Hill expresses no overt anger at the other members of Occupy, who prefer to do committee work and to develop direct actions. But he often feels abandoned by the larger part of the group. He points out that some of those who stand there at the statue leafleting are themselves homeless. They might be described as “ragtag.” Whereas the others, who do their activist work at the OC warehouse facility, or from their computers at home tend to be more middle-class.

“The informational and the technological work to keep our movement alive must be done,” Hill affirms, “But supporting those of us (i.e., those on the street) who support your ideas is also important.”

“All of us,” Reggie avows, “need to be aware of all the people and to be inclusive, and not to exclude anyone because of status or class.” At several OC General Assembly meetings he has begged other members to come to the park late at night, “just to get a feel of what it is like and what we are doing down there.”

Hill has been active in both Occupy Cincinnati and Occupy the Hood, which focuses more on issues relating to foreclosures and the urban poor. Politics and political action is in his blood now. At some point, maybe for the 2014 elections, he hopes to run for city council. In the meantime, he is emphatic. “Occupy has become a family to me, and I would do anything for my family. I’m occupied with the thoughts of Occupy all the time, always ready to create more pressure in order to affect change. Nothing counts,” he concludes, “but more pressure.”

Ben Stockwell

Meet Ben Stockwell. 22. Socialist. Computer programmer for the University of Cincinnati. Second of three boys from a Kings Mills family.

Young Ben Stockwell has been a committed activist for some time now. Already his activist work has had a significant effect on a shadowy, ultra-conservative organization that is only now coming into public view.  A year ago, he and a small group of local friends “outed” this secretive lobbying group known as ALEC, the American Legislative Exchange Council. ALEC was holding its national meeting here in Cincinnati. “We felt we had to do something,” Ben said. That “something” brought Ben’s group national recognition, and brought ALEC under media scrutiny at last.

On the day of this interview, Ben and I celebrated the announcement that Coca Cola and Pepsi—under activist pressure—had just then abandoned their connections to ALEC.

Stockwell has been a hard-core member of Occupy Cincinnati from early on. But he is not in favor of the re-occupation of Piatt Park. “I don’t hold any grudge against them or anything,” He says, “But I would like to have conversation about why they think it is so important.”

As Stockwell sees it, the encampments that characterized Occupy Wall Street and its imitators all over the country (and world) were a striking visual symbol of the emerging fight against the ruling class. “Early on I think it was great. It got people excited about what we were doing,” he argues, “but I’m not sure a reoccupation can have the same effect. Before (last fall), people were flocking down to see and support the occupation. Now people are only coming across the occupyers accidentally.”

Ben seems fully appreciative of the value of confrontational, in-your-face, tactics when it comes to activism and movement building. “One of the nice things about the (physical) Occupation is that it did kind-of prefigure the collective spirit, and it drew a core of committed activists.”

Stockwell understands that he was one of those drawn into the Occupy movement by the power of those multi-colored tents and the energy that surrounded them in so many places. He became one of the committed core. He still follows the goings-on of Occupyers in various places.

“Greensboro, North Carolina,” he explains, “voluntarily left their physical occupation, and now they work on issues, like foreclosures and the environment. I don’t think we should be occupying for occupying’s sake.”

There are things Ben Stockwell does believe we should be doing. ‘I’d like to see us turn toward more traditional organizing, like canvassing, holding community meetings, essentially going to the people, instead of requiring the people to come to us.”

Stockwell is readying himself for the long struggle to bring true democracy and a level playing field to our common life. In the fall, he will be matriculating at UC, and seeking a second bachelor’s degree (his first was in computer science), this time in sociology.

In terms of his disagreement with Occupyers like Reginald Hill, he concludes, “We don’t have to resolve this thing tomorrow. I hope everyone who is involved realizes they have to put as much energy as they can into a variety of tactics. Some of these tactics, we haven’t even thought of yet.”