Poor People’s Campaign mounts 40 days of direct action
Against tall odds—a slurry rain and a disruptive man shouting epithets not least among them—a crowd of around 20 activists rallying with the Rhode Island Poor People’s Campaign gathered resolutely in front of the Rhode Island State House on Monday afternoon to give voice to the grievances of Rhode Island’s poor and disenfranchised. Representing a […]
Democracy without equality has led to ‘Ubermensch Escapism’
Our anxieties about democracy typically focus on the scum floating on the surface. Political polarizations might lead us to note different noxious currents, and the good hearted and most civic among us are likely, then, to say that the problem rests in our distant standpoints, our filter bubbles, our echo chambers. I think that the […]
No more charter school lotteries, pick students at random
A Providence Journal editorial on Thursday, September 14, “Some schools lead the way” praises charter schools for outstanding performances on the Partnership for Assessment of Readiness for College and Careers (PARCC) tests. They are described as “heroic schools…in the urban core,” and are held up as proof that “the old canard that poverty is an […]
Annual Kids Count Factbook on child poverty, in 19 tweets
The annual Kids Count Factbook on child well-being in Rhode Island, now in its 23rd year, is a local rite of spring – but it’s nothing like the first tulips or tufted titmouse. Instead it’s an annual reminder of just how segregated – economically and otherwise – the Ocean State is. The massive 194-page report […]
No free bus passes means going hungry for some in Pawtucket
It took about a month to start seeing the consequences of raising bus fare on Rhode Island’s most vulnerable commuters. According to a Valley Breeze report, “those people are frequently going hungry.”
To stop panhandling, address poverty
The issue of panhandling in Providence has been the subject of news articles, opinion columns and letters to the editor. The recent letter from Bishop Tobin and comments from Joseph Paolino, chairman of the Downtown Improvement District motivate me to present some alternative views. I applaud the efforts of the Downtown Improvement District’s (DID) willingness […]
Joe Paolino talks poverty, panhandling in Providence
Joe Paolino, who is spearheading an effort to address panhandling in Providence, told RI Future he is committed to addressing systemic poverty rather than moving poor people away from his real estate empire. “I think I and other business people should pony up some dollars to try to help toward that,” he said. “It’s not […]
Perceiving the power of projection widens our world
“My guiding principles in life are to be honest, genuine, thoughtful and caring.” Prince William When you look in a mirror, what do you see? No, you don’t see yourself. You inhabit a body—not a mirror. No, you see a projection of yourself. Similarly, we often project ourselves upon others. Are you diligent and honest? […]
ACLU launches first of a series of lawsuits against criminalizing poverty
On June 30 a Cranston police officer wrote Monteiro a court summons for soliciting money. The charge was ultimately dismissed, but the judge ordered Monteiro to stay away from the area or face arrest. This was Monteiro’s second run in with this law in Cranston, after having been arrested twice for the offense in Providence, where he lives.
Racial poverty and prejudice persists in many ways
“I don’t think there is a white privilege.” – House Speaker Nicholas Mattiello Rhode Island’s Democratic Speaker on race: “I don’t think anybody in society views any particular nationality as having any privilege over any other.” This denies the experiences of many minorities. They know whites have greater privileges in education, employment, housing, banking and […]
RI cost of living easily outpaces minimum wage
Rhode Island’s recent move to raise the minimum wage from $9 to $9.60 is not nearly sufficient says the Economic Progress Institute, since a “single adult without children needs to earn $24,640 a year or $11.85/hour to meet his or her basic needs.”
PVD City Council fails to deliver on minimum wage promise in new TSAs
Last year Providence City Councillor John Igliozzi proposed that future tax breaks for large corporations should include $15 minimum wage guarantees, but this year, as Chair of the Finance Committee, Igliozzi has failed to deliver on this proposal.
101 things I’ve done (and do) at 2.89 an hour…
11. Accepted Crumpled up money thrown over the bar onto the floor as a tip.
12.Customer says he’s a “producer”. Asks me to turn around and see my “rear” in not so polite terms before he orders. I neither do nor say anything.
13. Manager brags about running a “brothel / escort service” in college. I do nothing.
Blizzard not a day off for low-wage chain store employee
Her fifteen minute walk took about forty minutes. “It was miserable,” says Robin of her trudge through the blizzard, “and absolutely dangerous. There were plows everywhere and the sidewalks weren’t shoveled. I could have had my boyfriend drive me, but there was driving ban and I’m not on the exempt list.”
NBC 10 Wingmen: Why are so many RI kids in poverty?
With one and five Rhode Island children living in poverty, we discussed why this week on NBC 10 Wingmen. News, Weather and Classifieds for Southern New England
Speaker Mattiello seeks to eradicate the social safety net
…”the focus has to be on eradicating the safety net and not bolstering the safety net.”
Mattiello, Paiva Weed and Raimondo address poverty today
It’s becoming somewhat of a tradition that one of the first media events of the legislative session is a call to action on poverty – a march to the State House led by interfaith leaders followed by speeches from the House speaker, Senate president and governor. “The RI Interfaith Coalition, whose mission is to fight […]
Report calls RI third worst in US for Black people
It’s hardly a surprise that White people are doing better than Black people in the Ocean State and elsewhere. But a new analysis by 24/7WallSt ranks Rhode Island as the third worst state for Black Americans. Only Minnesota and Wisconsin ranked lower. Here’s the section on RI: 3. Rhode Island > Pct. residents black: 6.4% […]
Rhode Island: 2nd worst place in New England to be poor
We already knew Rhode Island has the highest poverty rate in New England. It turns out, according to a new analysis from the Economic Progress Institute, Rhode Island also has among the least generous public assistance benefits for those in poverty. EPI looked at six public assistance functions and the Ocean State finished near the […]
EPI defines poverty in Rhode Island, and who is living in it
A single parent with two young children in Rhode Island needs to earn about $28 an hour – or more than $59,000 a year – to afford basic family expenses. But 82 percent of such families in the Ocean State earn less than this, according to a new report from the Economic Progress Institute. READ […]
New Comments