This year we are approaching these issues from a number of angles, ranging from legislative advocacy to direct services.  This approach has demonstrated to me the value of a multi-pronged plan of attack when it comes to fighting for what you believe in.  There has to be the scholarly approach.  There has to be the legal approach.   And there has to be the direct, on the ground, grassroots approach.  I have seen each of these approaches work beautifully in different situations:

In college, I had the opportunity to take a class called Black Feminisms.  One of our guest lecturers was a brilliant woman named Gina Dent.  Among other causes, she felt particularly excited about abolishing the prison system.  She despised it, found no redeeming qualities in it, and quickly convinced me to feel the same.  Her approach was the scholarly approach — she wrote, lectured, and philosophised about prison in America and sought to mould the thought processes of the young students who would be crucial in the fight against it.  This is the right idea.

Last summer I interned at the Southern Center for Human Rights — a law firm that specializes in death penalty and prison reform cases.  I worked on the civil side of the office and did a lot of investigation for some of the class-action cases the Center is preparing.  This was the legal approach — sometimes changing a system requires speaking the language.  The walls of a prison will only be fortified if you try to bust them down.  Learn the rules and how to change them, and those same walls begin to melt away.  This is the right idea.

The group of law students on the Social Justice Committee who are focusing on education this year have decided to teach a creative writing class at a juvenile detention center in Boston.  This is the direct services/grassroots approach.  We had a meeting with the Director last week, who explained to us the extremely perilous position that the young women in the center are in.  In addition to the criminal charges which landed them there in the first place, they are battling each other, impending abuse on the outside, and the internal battles that are overwhelming for any teenage girl and quite literally destructive for those in their particular situation.  Many of us in the meeting were struck by one thing that the Director said as she described the young women who never received anything when there was a mail call:  All some of them need to feel like someone in this world cares about them is to receive something in the mail — anything at all, like a pair of pink underwear.  This might seem strange that I was struck by the pink underwear, but I believe that the point was beautifully illustrated by the mention of this mundane item:  even a small gesture, one that may seem trivial or that it won’t make that much of a difference, can literally change someone’s outlook on life.  This is the right idea.

I guess I’m making two points here:

1. Any fight — social justice or otherwise — requires a multi-pronged approach that takes advantage of people’s talents, passions, availability, and creativity.  No prong is more or less important than any other and all are critical to make a vision a reality.

2. We can all do something.  It can be big and broad, it can be small and personal.  BUT, we can all do something.

A few thoughts from the meeting:

Not having housing is a real problem that real people face. From the news, we know that millions of Americans are without health care, and that increasingly, Americans are without jobs. But just seeing the 40 or so people in that City Life meeting seeking out information and help that could potentially keep them in their homes really struck a chord with me. We all need shelter, and these people were about to lose it. I can’t think of anything more more fundamental to life than having a stable place to live.

Indeed, housing is fundamental to the American Dream. I’d be willing to bet that most people, at least in my generation, take for granted the fact that they have a roof over their heads. The people in that City Life meeting were being threatened by forces much more powerful than them (like banks) to get out of their homes or apartments. Luckily, the law is a powerful thing. But when people consistently don’t have the information and tools necessary to legally fight for their rights to stay in their homes, America is doing them a huge disservice. Probably an injustice.

City Life is fighting against that injustice.

• Although from 1976 to 2005, intimate-partner homicides among African Americans declined 69.2%, in 2005 African Americans disproportionately accounted for nearly a third of the intimate-partner homicides that occurred in 2005.
• The rate of domestic violence in the African-American community can be at least partly attributed to economic factors. Intimate-partner violence occurs more often among low-income couples, particularly those in which the male partner is unemployed/underemployed, as well as couples living in poor neighborhoods.
• Alcoholism is related to domestic violence among the African-American couples more so than among White or Hispanic couples.
• Domestic violence re-occurs. Over 1/3 of the women who reported domestic violence admitted to being the victim of severe domestic violence earlier in the year.

Sources:  “Survey of Recent Statistics,” ABA Commission on Domestic Violence,  http://www.abanet.org/domviol/statistics.html; and “Fact Sheet,” Institute on Domestic Violence in the African American Community, University of Minnesota School of Social Work, http://www.dvinstitute.org/media/publications/FactSheet.IDVAAC_AAPCFV-Community%20Insights.pdf.

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AMONG BLACK WOMEN

• Overall, African Americans were victimized by intimate partners a significantly higher rates than persons of any other race between 1993 and 1998. Black females experienced intimate partner violence at a rate 35% higher than that of white females, and about 22 times the rate of women of other races. Callie Marie Rennison. and Sarah Welchans, U.S. Dep’t of Just., NCJ 178247, Intimate Partner Violence (2000), available at http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/pub/ascii/ipv.txt
• African-American women experience significantly more domestic violence than White women in the age group of 20-24. Generally, Black women experience similar levels of intimate partner victimization in all other age categories as compared to White women, but experience slightly more domestic violence. (Estimates are provided from the National Crime Victimization Survey, which defines an intimate partner as a current or former spouse, girlfriend, or boyfriend. Violent acts include murder, rape, sexual assault, robbery, aggravated assault, and simple assault.) Callie Marie Rennison, U.S. Dep’t of Just., NCJ 187635, Intimate Partner Violence and Age of Victim, 1993-1999, at 4, (2001), available at http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/abstract/ipva99.htm
• The number one killer of African-American women ages 15 to 34 is homicide at the hands of a current or former intimate partner. Africana Voices Against Violence, Tufts University, Statistics, 2002, www.ase.tufts.edu/womenscenter/peace/africana/newsite/statistics.htm
• In a study of African-American sexual assault survivors, only 17% reported the assault to police. Africana Voices Against Violence, Tufts University, Statistics, 2002 www.ase.tufts.edu/womenscenter/peace/africana/newsite/statistics.htm
• In a nationally representative survey conducted in 1996, 29% of African American women and 12% of African American men reported at least one instance of violence from an intimate partner.
• Black women comprise 8% of the U.S. population but in 2005 accounted for 22% of the intimate partner homicide victims and 29% of all female victims of intimate partner homicide.2
• Intimate partner deaths have decreased most dramatically among black men. From 1976-1985, black men were more likely than black women to be a victim of domestic homicide; by 2005, black women were 2.4 times more likely than a black male to murdered by their partners. Over this period, intimate partner homicides declined by 83% for black men vs. 55% for black women.2
• As with women of other races, among African American women killed by their partner, the lethal violence was more likely to occur if there had been incidents in which the partner had used or threatened to use a weapon on her and/or the partner has tried to choke or strangle her.5
• Among African American women killed by their partner, almost half were killed while in the process of leaving the relationship, highlighting the need to take extra precautions at that time.5
• Among African American women who killed their partner, almost 80% had a history of abuse.
• Black women who are battered have more physical ailments,8 mental health issues,4 are less likely to practice safe sex,9 and are more likely to abuse substances during pregnancy10 than black women without a history of abuse.
• Battered women are at greater risk for attempting suicide11 particularly if they were physically abused as a child, for being depressed12 and to suffer from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). 13 Women attempt to leave abusive relationships. Seventy to eighty percent of abused black women left or attempted to leave the relationship.5
• Women in abusive relationships need the support of friends and family. Battered black women who reported that they could rely on others for emotional and practical support were less likely to be re-abused,14 showed less psychological distress,15 and were less likely to attempt suicide.11

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AMONG BLACK MEN

• Black males experienced intimate partner violence at a rate about 62% higher than that of white males and about 22 times the rate of men of other races. Callie Marie Rennison. and Sarah Welchans, U.S. Dep’t of Just., NCJ 178247, Intimate Partner Violence (2000), available at http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/pub/ascii/ipv.txt
• In a nationally representative survey conducted in 1996, 29% of African American women and 12% of African American men reported at least one instance of violence from an intimate partner.1
• Intimate partner deaths have decreased most dramatically among black men. From 1976-1985, black men were more likely than black women to be a victim of domestic homicide; by 2005, black women were 2.4 times more likely than a black male to murdered by their partners. Over this period, intimate partner homicides declined by 83% for black men vs. 55% for black women.2
• As with other abusive men, African American men who batter are higher in jealousy and the need for power and control in the relationship.5

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AMONG TEENS

• Approximately 40% of Black women report coercive contact of a sexual nature by age 18. Africana Voices Against Violence, Tufts University, Statistics, 2002, www.ase.tufts.edu/womenscenter/peace/africana/newsite/statistics.htm
• The number one killer of African-American women ages 15 to 34 is homicide at the hands of a current or former intimate partner. Africana Voices Against Violence, Tufts University, Statistics, 2002, www.ase.tufts.edu/womenscenter/peace/africana/newsite/statistics.htm
• In a study of African-American sexual assault survivors, only 17% reported the assault to police. Africana Voices Against Violence, Tufts University, Statistics, 2002 www.ase.tufts.edu/womenscenter/peace/africana/newsite/statistics.htm
• Black youth are over represented as victims of teen dating violence. In a 2003 national study of high school students, almost 14% of African American youth (vs. 7% of white youth) reported that a boyfriend or girlfriend had “hit, slapped, or physically hurt them on purpose” in the last year. Boys (13.7%) and girls (14%) were almost equally likely to report being a victim of dating violence.16

Taken from “Domestic Violence Homicide Narratives,” p. 3, Jane Doe, Inc. http://www.janedoe.org/know/DV_Homicide_Narratives_Oct2008-Sept2009.pdf.

The other bruises could be covered with clothing. The ones on the arms she’d brought up, uselessly, to try and push him away. She’d thought, in her anger and fear, that’d she would have been stronger. That she could have done damage.

God knows, she’d tried. The words that came out of her mouth, swear and others, had been said in anger, some chosen to provoke him. Fed up, she’d gotten in his face. Had been inches from his face, screaming. How tired she was, how he was never home and couldn’t be working all the time–since there was never any money. Every cent seemed to be going to the essentials. Food. Rent. Cars. Gas. Credit Card. Heat. Light. Cable. Clothes. Loans they’d had to take out for the food, rent, cars, gas, credit card, heat, light, cable and clothes. Marcus, their son, who’d slept through the noise or stayed in his room, was two and went through clothes almost as fast as he went through diapers.

Fed up, frustrated, tired, and lonely, she’d yelled at him. Gotten in his face, called him names, accused him of things she didn’t really believe were true. (Yes, he worked late, at one temporary job after another since he’d been “downsized,” but had never given her reason to suspect he’d been unfaithful.) She wanted him to understand where she was coming from–feel the hurt, get angry, maybe, and somehow do better. Instead, his hands had wrapped themselves around her throat.

She blended the make up carefully over her bruises. She didn’t want questions. Her sisters, mother, cousins, friends, co-workers, offering advice she didn’t want to take. Saying that they would have killed him, or at least called the cops. All the while they’d be looking at her in pity and amazement, asking “how could she have chosen/stayed with/had a child by a man like that?” Thinking that the woman they knew was stronger and smarter than that, that she, and her family, had seemed to have it together.

She was strong. Strong and practical enough to see the foolishness of their suggestions. The cops? When had they ever helped anyone who looked like her? And what–restraining order? Kick him out of the house she couldn’t afford by herself? Kick Marcus’ father out of his life, and chance that he’d pay child support? Marcus needed to keep his father, and she needed to keep him too. He was a good man. He worked hard and hadn’t cheated on her. He loved her, and he loved his son. She didn’t want him out of their lives–much less in jail, another black man. A good black man.

He was a good man, and she was strong. She would talk to him about it, gently, and he would apologize. He would promise not to hurt her again, and probably wouldn’t. She, in turn, would be more supportive. She’d be nicer to him and keep her own anger in check.

Finished. Even from the short distance between herself and the mirror you couldn’t really see the bruises.  To see them, you’d have to get close.

Fact  As with women of other races, among African American women killed by their partner, the lethal violence was more likely to occur if there had been incidents in which the partner had used or threatened to use a weapon on her and/or the partner has tried to choke or strangle her.–American Bar Association, Commission on Domestic Violence; http://www.abanet.org/domviol/statistics.html

DNH

In 2005, African Americans accounted for nearly a third of the intimate-partner homicides. For years, the (few) studies that have addressed the issue of domestic violence in the black community have told the same story. A study published in 2000 reported that Black females experienced intimate partner violence at a rate 35% higher than that of white females, and about 22 times the rate of women of other races. In 2005, black women accounted for 22% of the intimate partner homicide victims and 29% of all female victims of intimate partner homicide.

Black men are also affected. The same 2000 study found that Black males experienced intimate partner violence at a rate about 62% higher than that of white males and about 22 times the rate of men of other races. Black men are also more likely than white men to be killed by their partners, though at a lower rate than black women. In 2005, black women were 2.4 times more likely than a black male to murdered by their partners. In 2002, the number one killer of African-American women ages 15 to 34 was homicide at the hands of a current or former intimate partner.

Why the higher rates? In part, the same old reasons: poverty (intimate partner violence is more frequent among those with lower incomes); un-and-underemployment (it’s more frequent when the male partner is unemployed/underemployed); and housing disparities (its more common in couples living in poor neighborhoods).  Massachusetts saw dramatic increases in rates of domestic violence between 2005-2007–probably another fun by-product of the recession. Drug and alcohol use are also linked to domestic violence.

So, in these trying times, what to do? Though it seems cliche, take care of each other.  Battered black women who reported that they could rely on others for emotional and practical support were less likely to be re-abused, showed less psychological distress, and were less likely to attempt suicide. The same is true of women generally. If you are in an abusive relationship, seek support. Talk to a family member or friend and contact a local shelter or service. If you are not in an abusive relationship, be supportive–support your friends and family members and organizations that help victims of domestic violence.

In the meantime, we can and should keep working on the problems that exacerbate this one: poverty, un-and-under employment, housing disparities, etc. However, it is important to shine a light on this rarely-discussed issue.  It is a matter of life and death.

Domestic Violence Shelters and Services:

https://www.cityofboston.gov/police/divisions/dv_shelter.asp

Sources: Survey of Recent Statistics,” ABA Commission on Domestic Violence,  http://www.abanet.org/domviol/statistics.html; and “Fact Sheet,” Institute on Domestic Violence in the African American Community, University of Minnesota School of Social Work, http://www.dvinstitute.org/media/publications/FactSheet.IDVAAC_AAPCFV-Community%20Insights.pdf; Callie Marie Rennison. and Sarah Welchans, U.S. Dep’t of Just., NCJ 178247, Intimate Partner Violence (2000), available at http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/pub/ascii/ipv.txt ; Africana Voices Against Violence, Tufts University, Statistics, 2002, www.ase.tufts.edu/womenscenter/peace/africana/newsite/statistics.htm ; http://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pdf/IPV-FactSheet.pdf; http://www.mass.gov/?; pageID=eohhs2pressrelease&L=1&L0=Home&sid=Eeohhs2&b=pressrelease&f=080605_domestic_violence&csid=Eeohhs2

DNH

Mayor Menino visits tenants affected by foreclosure.

At the beginning of this decade, Eric Schlosser provided us all with an alarming wake-up call in his book Fast Food Nation—I think, by now, we all know what is (hopefully now a “was”) in the meat. As we approach the end of this decade, our eyes have been opened to yet another alarming reality about what seems to be a great American predilection for fecal matter: it isn’t just in our hamburgers, it is in everything, and I mean EVERYTHING, from those convenient little (probably now worthless and/or maxed-out) plastic cards we keep in our wallets, to our stock “portfolios,” to our mortgage agreements. It’s probably in that bottle of cheap, domestically manufactured perfume you bought your girlfriend for Valentine’s Day (it’s ok, we understand that you watched your cell cube mate get “downsized” last week and didn’t want to risk spending the money on the fancy French stuff, just in case the same fate awaits you.) Are those really chocolate-chips in that bag of generic, unbranded cookies you bought to keep you company while you eat away your sorrows on the couch? Ok, that’s just gross and I take it back, but chances are if you are reading this, you have a couch to sit on and a roof over your head… for now.

You are not alone in your fear and uncertainly. Since the start of this recession, over three and a half million Americans have lost their jobs, and counting. In the words of our President, “[a] lost home often begins with a lost job.” It’s no surprise then that nearly six million are in or at risk of foreclosure. Some groups blame the repeal of the Depression-Era Glass-Steagall Act (New Deal regulation which created a wall between commercial and investment banks, and essentially prevented banking institutions from having the power to make loans and then underwrite, securitize and sell mortgage backed instruments under one roof.) Others point the finger at “Fannie Mac,” “Freddie Mae,” HUD, and the CRA… few can keep the names or acronyms straight anymore, but many will agree that this foreclosure crisis is the sad result of one of the greatest American $#!T fests of all time—sub-prime and predatory lending, and the securitization of loans that fueled the housing and McMansion boom of the past decade. (They clearly didn’t coin the term McMansion for no reason. I think, by now, the shocking similarity between “what’s in the meat” and what is in everything else is becoming abundantly clear.)

While the new administration is working hard to resolve this fecal foreclosure crisis at a national level, the real solution begins with taking action right here at home, especially if you are still fortunate to have one to protect. In 2007, the City of Boston reported that “foreclosures in Boston could reach 1,200 in 2008, compared with 703 in 2007 and 60 in 2005.” While the city has yet to release the official statistics for 2008, I think it is safe to assume that we’ve likely exceeded “expectations.” In examining the impact on our own community, analysts also point to lending patterns—particularly the lending of high APR loans to sub-prime borrowers—as a link to the current foreclosure crisis. However, there is a social-economic and racial/ethnic dimension as well. Black and Latino borrowers were much more likely to get these high APR loans than were Whites. For home-purchase loans in Greater Boston, for example, the high APR loan shares were 49% for Blacks and 48% for Latinos, but only 11% for Whites. “The four Boston neighborhoods with the highest percentages of minority residents—Mattapan, Roxbury, Dorchester, and Hyde Park—also had the four highest high APR loan shares for home-purchase lending, all greater than 40%; meanwhile, in the four neighborhoods with fewer than 25% minority residents—Back Bay/Beacon Hill, South Boston, West Roxbury, and Charlestown—the high APR loan shares were between 3.2% and 11.2%. The Boston neighborhoods with large minority populations—Dorchester, Roxbury, Mattapan and Hyde Park—accounted for 75.3 % of all foreclosure deeds in 2007. Regardless of the percentage of total home ownership these neighborhoods represent, they remain alarming nonetheless. The bottom-line is that, based on geography, the majority of foreclosures in Boston in 2007 were comprised of neighborhoods with the largest minority and low-income populations. It is important to also take note of the secondary impact of foreclosed rental properties and the effect on tenants in the aforementioned neighborhoods and beyond.

The time for pointing fingers has passed. These harrowing statistics provide not merely a reason to sulk, but a call to action. A robust effort is currently underway to address the foreclosure crisis plaguing both our country, nationally, and Massachusetts, regionally. The Harvard BLSA Social Justice Committee seeks to provide a forum for candid, engaged conversation on the current situation and ways to effect change, both legislatively and judicially. As we kick-off Social Justice Week, the committee is looking forward to presentations by representatives from the Massachusetts Alliance Against Predatory Lending (MAAPL) on legislation currently pending in the Massachusetts legislature. MAAPL is a coalition of over 30 community organizations, housing counseling agencies, legal services groups, and others who have come together to work on the sub-prime foreclosure crisis in Massachusetts. We believe that this current legislation has the potential to greatly impact the Commonwealth’s housing policy.

The legislation package includes several bills: (1) a temporary (six month) moratorium on foreclosures involving sub-prime and other “creative” mortgage instruments that are presumptively unfair, while comprehensive solutions are negotiated at the state and federal level, (2) tenant protection from eviction in foreclosed properties, enabling tenants to pay rent and stay in their homes when a property is re-appropriated by a lender via foreclosure, and (3) the imposition of a judicial foreclosure requirement which would require court-approval in foreclosure proceeding, ensuring that those facing foreclosure receive due process. For more information on MAAPL and details on the proposed legislation, please visit http://www.maapl.info/legislation.html.

Please join Harvard BLSA for Social Justice Week and learn more about what is being done to combat inequality in our community and what you can do to get involved! For more information, contact us at  hblsasj at gmail.com.

Paper bags ready? Inhale slowly, now exhale, and repeat.

As frightening as the continuing layoffs and escalating unemployment rates are, we are WAY over due for a collective anxiety attack about joblessness. I am just a little disturbed… no, I lie… I’m really disgusted by the fact that Black male unemployment, which has long been nearly eight times as high in Boston as the unemployment rate nationally, didn’t get anyone off their butt and still hasn’t. Even though half of all Black male Bostonians actively searching for jobs were not able to secure employment during stable economic times, no eyebrows were raised and no fingers were lifted. Shouldn’t this have warranted a similar stress attack? Maybe not. Stress is, after all, incredibly unhealthy. It causes wrinkles (which are not cute), hair loss (even more uncute), and holes in your stomach lining (eeew). Maybe group stress relief is what is motivating many MA legislators, like Eugene O’Flaherty, Chair of the Judiciary Committee, to condone one of the most punitive Criminal Offender Record Information laws in the country.

Before diving into MA’s clever stress relief law and how it ought to be fixed, let’s back up a little. Without getting into the whole story of deindustrialization in Boston and how the unions helped ensure that whites populated the few remaining jobs, it is important to understand that a tension exists. While there has been a desire to allocate scarce jobs to whites, resulting in the disproportionate Black unemployment Boston has seen, there simultaneously exists a fear of too many unemployed Black men. This has resulted in an urge to contain all those scary jobless and crime-prone Black men. And what better place to contain them than in prison? Moreover, being incarcerated in MA has the added “bonus” of ensuring these Black men, once released, won’t be hired due to their criminal records. It really isn’t as if Black men needed more of a disadvantage in the job market either. In the book Marked, Devah Pager publishes the results of a study that shows that white men with criminal records are more likely than Black men without criminal records to get a job. It appears the rules of the game are still color-coded. It shouldn’t be surprising then, that approaches to white joblessness and Black joblessness are vastly different. To illustrate:

No Jobs for Blacks (“Who cares?”) → Crime Increase (“Yikes, put ‘em in jail”) → Incarceration → Criminal Record (CORI) → Got a CORI? Want a job? Fat chance! → Crime Increase → Incarceration → CORI…

vs.

No Jobs for Whites → Collective freak out → Economic stimulus → Jobs

Criminal Offender Record Information (CORI) reports are issued to anyone who has ever been charged with a crime punishable by incarceration. Astonishingly, CORIs are not eligible for sealing until 10 – 15 years has passed. Regardless of whether the charge results in a dismissal, acquittal or a guilt verdict, a CORI report is generated. Additionally, a person could have a CORI, never have been charged with a crime and not even know he has one. To illustrate, if you’ve never had an interaction with the police, but your name happens to be Omar Johnson, and you share a birthday with another Omar Johnson who has a rap sheet, you’re outta luck (and probably out of a job).  This is because the records verify identities only according to name and date of birth and are not backed up by fingerprints, photos or social security numbers. Like a scarlet letter, the CORI stigmatizes its subject, does not wash off with redemption and, especially in the case of dismissals and acquittals, is undeserved. On the plus side, it does amazing things for that pesky unemployment rate related stress. Black unemployment rates getting you down? Feeling stressed? Go ahead and drink that Massachusetts Kool-Aid: Black men don’t have jobs because they are criminals, plain and simple. Humph. I don’t know about you, but I’m keeping my paper bag handy. Inhale slowly, now exhale, and repeat.

The Harvard Black Law Students Association’s Social Justice Committee (HBLSA SJC) has recently partnered with the Boston Worker’s Alliance, the Union for Minority Neighborhoods and the Charles Hamilton Houston Center for Race and Justice as part of a robust CORI reform campaign. There is currently a proposed bill in the MA legislature and an anticipated reform bill by Deval Patrick. If you would like to help the Harvard BLSA Social Justice Committee organize around this issue and get a reform bill passed, email  hblsasj at gmail.com.