Black Lives & Cops Lives matter, Equally!

Here is a repost of a Facebook Post I read

FACEBOOK: The attempt to use the killing of the two police officers in NYC over the weekend (which is horrible) to discredit a social justice movement dedicated to eradicating police brutality in black and brown communities is deplorable. Further, to isolate the murder of the officers from a chain of unlawful events including Brinsley shooting his ex-girlfriend in Baltimore hours before the murders is dishonest. The posts about the violence he wanted to exact against police officers were posted by him on his ex-girlfriend's Instagram account. The murder of the police officers was not an isolated event -- it was one of many despicable acts by a mentally unstable 28-year-old. To use his awful actions as an indictment against those who justly fight against injustice in our country in fact shows how mentally ill we are as a society. While you pray for the police officers, remember to pray for his ex-girlfriend who is being written out of this dominant narrative in an effort to undermine the very real need to continue to fight against police brutality, despite yesterday's tragic events. #blackwomenslivesmattertoo FACEBOOK END.

What is Gentrification?

Here is the response I posted to Kai Ryssdal's Money Place Market December 5th, Report addressing Gentrification on NPR.Org.

 Gentrification specifically in America occurs when white investors and business people (dominant society) from outside of a oppressed and depressed minority community financially gain from the physical displacement of, and financial disenfranchisement of these oppressed and depressed minorities communities.

How does this occur? Gentrification does so by inflating the property values in these oppressed and depressed minority communities. Gentrification does so by investing in new predominately white owned or controlled businesses; while simultaneously financially forcing out and buying out the local minority businesses and property owners. Gentrification then forces out the remaining local minority renters & owners via increased rent and property taxs. All of which forces the minorities that once populated the gentrified community into sprawling out into other depressed and oppressed communities. Eventually dominant society begins to again look outwards and beyond the communitiy they've just gentrified. Then once again the process of gentrification begins anew, like bacteria spreading in a petri dish.  

This phenomenon of gentrification is only part of what has occurred in for instance Bed-Sty Brooklyn over the last decade. 

I address how these social justice, economic, and environmental issues intersect in the final notes of the latest edition of my book of poetry entitled JIKU. Here is a link to a free copy of the book.

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/e337mirjvlgilzn/AABCUqjhTr2uKgUCTz-GMo_Za?dl=0

November in Portland and its 62 degrees ?

Portland's Autumn

81 degrees, on October 8th, 2014 Seaside, Oregon

Graceful movements

roaring otiosity

winds & rapids painting sound

with moss breaths

Posted with Blogsy

Somewhere in B.C.

Somewhere in the Yukon or B.C.