Real Hartford

More than Violent Acts

Hartford cares. Hundreds from Hartford and surrounding towns showed up to prove this. In the crowd, I spotted a former student of mine from a few years back, a former professor of mine from even more years back, and two colleagues–one from each place I’m employed at. There was an unofficial bloggers’ seating section, where innocent, objective reporters were being plied with strawberries by an unnamed city official. Under canopies, a dozen community groups set up to hand out literature, candy, magnets, and let people know what they offered. Knox Parks Foundation, Rebuilding Hartford, My Sister’s Place, CREC, Community Renewal Team, and Hartford Public Access were among these organizations.

A “Wall of Commitment” (giant posterboard) was set up for attendees to write on. Many used this as a place to publicly promise to make changes in their actions as related to Hartford; others used it to say what they are already doing (what organizations they are affiliated with) or what they think about the city.

The two-hour long program moved rapidly, lagging only during the extended candlelight vigil toward the end. The Hartford Symphony Orchestra performed several times during the night– a pleasant surprise for me, since I’m not the type to seek out orchestra music (or whatever kids these days call it).

Ted Carroll, President of Leadership Greater Hartford (organizers of the event) gave the greeting, which also moved along. I don’t want to be the person to point this out, but there is some irony in thanking the Hartford Courant and WTIC radio for being media sponsors of this event, since the Hartford Courant along with other local media are part of why the national media picked up on recent incidents, causing damage the Hartford’s reputation. Some on the Courant staff have written meaningful columns after this, but we should remain critical of any outlet that would post video without any context. We live in the age of the internet, when material is quickly picked up and dispersed. Few bother to investigate their sources, as Christine, Heather, and I were discussing. False information gets spread nearly instantly, and is difficult to rectify later. It’s fine to be diplomatic if a company is giving money, but let’s not forget their own role in why the event has to happen at all– even with such a great showing of people from Hartford who do care about our community, I have to wonder how much damage this will undo.

MIRA and Mind Evolution, both spoken word artists, earned robust applause from the audience. MIRA performed “I Wish We All Had Daughters,” and Mind Evolution, “When I Grow Up.” There was dance, drumming, a puppet of what I believe was a Phoenix (it was a bird of some kind, I think), and a series of “conversations” (interviews and speeches).

Rabbi Donna Berman announced that there would be a second Hartford Cares gathering held at the Charter Oak Cultural Center in July. That one will allow the community more of an opportunity to be active in the conversation.

From my chats with people, there was a lot of surprise about the number of people in attendance and the racial diversity. A few thought that the “cheese factor” would have been way higher than it was. Actually, until the grand finale of dozens of adults and children crammed on the bandshell stage, singing and swaying, it really was not corny. And for those who must know, there was absolutely no singing of Kumbaya.
Continue reading More than Violent Acts…

Growing Green Co-op Open House

I received the following in an email from Imani:

THE GROWING GREEN CO-OP INVITES YOU TO JOIN US FOR AN OPEN HOUSE!

Join us Saturday, June 28th from 10am-2pm for a peek of the progress on our newly renovated community space located at 197 New Britain Avenue (next to Alchemy). Come meet some of the farmers participating in our year round farmers market and register for our summer youth activist camp beginning in July.

Board Members will be available to answer questions about co-op member benefits, why you should join our community and how you can get involved. Children’s activities will be planned and plenty of parking is available at the Trinity College Hockey Rink right next door (the market is located directly between the co-op community center and the rink).

Come find out what’s up with our new “BICYCLE RECYCLE” project led by our very own bike enthusiast Rob Graves. We will mark the first official day of our year round farmers market featuring local honey, produce, maple syrup, sprouts, flowers, (sign up for a weekly flower share!) eco-friendly cleaners and body care products, organic linens, local artisans as well as featured Green Business members of the Co-op! Knox Parks will be our featured environmental organization offering information about their Rain Barrel Fundraising Project. Bring your CFLs, batteries, old cell phones & ink cartridges to be recycled. If you are an artisan, a farmer, an activist, an entertainer or a volunteer - who would like to be involved, just let us know!

Co-ops are formed in response to a local need. When government and the economic marketplace fail to provide quality goods and services to the public, people have historically cooperated to provide for themselves and their families. The Growing Green Co-op is a consumer driven co-op that has evolved out of a desire for availability of high quality, local, sustainable products as well as the desire to support local, sustainable businesses through our Green Business Referral Network. We are a vibrant community of extraordinary like-minded folk who are determined to grow our local economy- including the development of our own “CT Currency” while walking more lightly on the earth. The co-op serves as the vehicle to connect others sharing similar desires and needs. Welcome!

CT PRIDE

This year’s CT PRIDE Rally and Festival will be on Saturday June 7th from 11-5 on the Prospect Avenue side of Elizabeth Park. From the website, it sounds like this will actually be happening on the Hartford side of the park. There should be music, food, booths, and all that good stuff.

Also on Saturday, there will be a Transgender PRIDE up in Northampton.

How to Build Community (Against All Odds): Part One

The Syracuse Cultural Workers created a poster which I’m sure many readers have seen before, but which I feel compelled to discuss regardless. The items in bold are on their list of ways to build community, and my comments are in a regular font.

Think of no one as “them”: Creating categories based on difference allows individuals to more easily justify the unjustifiable, to excuse the inexcusable. The result? When some kind of crime or wrongdoing occurs in an certain area or to a person who belongs to a different group (race, class, sexuality, ability, gender, religion, political affiliation, you name it…), it is not thought of as something that might concern all in society. Thus, it’s remains to be addressed in a productive way. The “answer” goes something like this: “avoid Hartford,” “bulldoze it and start over,” “more prisons,” “send criminals/undesirables to Springfield.” Those sentiments are not productive by any stretch of the imagination.

Don’t confuse your comfort with your safety: In my walks to work, I have felt discomfort. In my old neighborhood, I would pass a homeless shelter and park where people who were basically up to no good, or had no other place to go, would congregate. Even with the verbal street harassment which made the trip sometimes irritating, I never felt unsafe. Continue reading How to Build Community (Against All Odds): Part One…

Accessibility Demands Met

Queers Without Borders reports that they were successful in demanding adjustments be made to the Hartford Public Library’s front door. Mayor Perez sent out an email last week insisting that immediate action be taken to come up with an estimate for the installation of the device that will make the front doors accessible to those who use wheelchairs, canes, walkers, and service dogs.

Equal Access to HPL

Queers Without Borders reports that

Seven months ago Claude Holcomb of ADAPT of Connecticut began this effort to get the main doors of the Hartford Public Library accessible for all. Seven months later we bring this unsolved problem to the steps of City Hall. The work hasn’t been started and for seven months we have been given the run-a-round by employee’s in Constituent Services, Public Works and by the Director of Hartford Public Libraries. We have been told by these same people to “go around to the back door.”

This Friday at noon, ADAPT, Queers Without Borders, and other activists will gather at City Hall to protest the lack of access power buttons at the main entrance of the Hartford Public Library. They are demanding that work on installing the buttons begin by July 1, 2008, and that they receive proof that progress toward that end is being made.

Protest of Bush in Hartford Today

Received from COW (Connecticut Opposes the War):

FRIDAY, APRIL 25
10 AM to 12 NOON
PRESIDENT BUSH @ NORTHWEST BOYS & GIRLS CLUB
1 NAHUM DRIVE (CORNER OF NAHUM DRIVE & GRANBY STREET)

GATHERING POINT: WE WILL GATHER AT THE INTERSECTION OF DURHAM STREET & GRANBY STREET
HARTFORD, CT 06112

Bush has already wasted 3 trillion dollars on a war without end; why not have the
taxpayers foot the bill for his travel to CT? Bush will deliver a seminal speech on
malaria awareness at the Northwest Boys and Girls Club in North Hartford.

I had no idea that malaria was a problem in Hartford. (cue throat-clearing and eye-rolling)