[GPSCC-chat] REDEFINING WHAT IT MEANS TO BE A VALUE CREATOR

[perrysandy at aol.com]

Hi Everyone,

This is the article I mentioned last night defending Section 8 recipients and redefining what it means to be a "value creator".

Right on target! One of the very best articles I have ever read!



Sandy



http://www.mercurynews.com/opinion/ci_24133175/poor-and-disabled-silicon-valley-section-8-recipient

 

Poor anddisabled in Silicon Valley: A Section 8 recipient has a message for thosearound her

By Liz Bowen

Special to the Mercury News

Posted:   09/20/2013 02:00:00 PM PDT


I am poor, no different from anyone else in the Section 8 program. We have noproblem calling ourselves poor because that's what we are. The government,however, refers to us as "low income" -- perhaps to keep this problemat a distance. But how can distancing yourself from a problem create asolution?

San Jose, please don't distance yourself. Instead, come closerand let me tell you a story. 

I am also a woman with a disability. But I don't see myselfas a victim, nor do I make any apologies for it. I accept my disability andplay the cards I was dealt. 

Some of these cards include not having a job and having toask the government for help. I shudder to think what my life would be likewithout that help. 

I am one of the majority of the participants in the Section8 housing program -- the elderly and disabled. The minority are hardworkingpeople who have low-paying jobs. But we stand together as one. We are allintimate with real pain and suffering. And with the budget cuts to the Section8 program, that is even more so. 

Do you know what it's like to have food insecurities,skipping meals and rationing food? And heat, lovely, lovely heat! I haven'tturned my heat on in three years, and this was before the budget cuts.

The Santa Clara County Housing Authority recently held ameeting for its participants. We are a diverse group, but there was one thingwe had in common: We all had that same look of desperation in our eyes. It wasthe eyes that told the story. It was the eyes that asked, "What's going tohappen to us?" 

Mark Emmons of the Mercury News wrote a beautiful piece onwhat the budget cuts are doing to the poor in the valley. I read it online.Unfortunately I also read some of the snarky comments people wrote. 

One of them was, "These people should all move to WestVirginia and leave Silicon Valley to the 'value creators.'" I read a fewmore of the snarky comments and I got a little scared. I thought, "OMG,San Jose hates us!" I wanted to hide under the bed. Then I got a grip onmyself and thought this thing through. 

It's easy to make snarky online comments when you'reanonymous. It's what some people call "keyboard courage." It's justan unpleasant thing we have to deal with, like hemorrhoids.

If I could meet Mr. Value Creator face to face, this is whatI'd say. "I am a value creator, but not in your narrow definition of theword. I don't have a job, but I am a contributing member of society. I am avolunteer with the United Way. Our group teaches kindergarteners in East SanJose how to read. If you knew the statistics about what the future holds forsomeone who can't read, you would know the value in my work."

We all know how lucky we are to live in America. America isa feast. "When you give a feast, invite the poor, the maimed, the lame,the blind and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you." (Luke14: 13-14.) This is not just a Christian sentiment. The world's wisdomtraditions teach this lesson. 

So when someone asks, "Why should our society pay forthe misfortunes of others?" my answer to them is because that's whathumans do -- take care of one another. We are called to lift as we climb. It'sour life code. 

LizBowen is a San Jose resident. She wrote this for this newspaper.







 

 

 

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.cagreens.org/pipermail/sosfbay-discuss_lists.cagreens.org/attachments/20130927/2f76c6c4/attachment.html>