On my first day in Portland, I checked out Powell’s books. It’s as enormous and great as everyone says.
One thing that really impressed was the “local” staff picks section. They sold a zine called “A Guide to Living and Traveling in Portland”. Sure, it was exactly what I needed, but also. Wow! Powell’s sells Zines.
Legit.
I first was skeptical of PDX, but this fact is what started warming me up to it.
Right now I’m traveling the country, thinking about life, and doing a lot of blogging along the way.
You can find those posts at my tumblr: Persian Excursion — Sahar’s Adventure Log.
(If you’re visiting this from the future, this tag should cover the majority of the relevant posts: #PersianExcursion2014)
(Note from the future — it’s 2020 and I’ve imported everything back into this wordpress. You can find the tag here: )
I was walking “home” to my host’s house the other day. Just walking north 20 blocks with a backpack and a smile. Lately, I’ve been taking to putting on earbuds as I walk, and playing a mix of fun “theme song” music. Brightens the day. And, with the microphone attachment in new set, I can yell “Okay Google now! Call <person X>” at any time.
So I’m walking along to the beats of Broken Social Scene and happy with the brilliant blue sky tinging with pink as the sun sets. And then there are two people on the sidewalk ahead. One woman with a suitcase, and one man agitatedly next to her.
I take out my earbuds, just to make sure if everything’s alright. The man gestures over to me, has me sit down. We just hang out, I introduce myself, etc. The woman offers me her food – and after a little protest I end up sitting on the side of the road, eating delicious donated fried chicken, hearing about the lives of these two strangers. How the woman flew up to Portland to meet a man from online, only to be dumped in a bar in the middle of nowhere. How the man was addicted to drugs, and found Allah in a rehab program. A rehab program, by the way, where he met Ibrahim, the guy who would later found Portland’s amazing tent city, Right to Dream Too.
Eventually, they end up arguing and I take my leave.
I love meeting strangers.
I’ve wrapped up my commitments.
No more job. No more apartment. No more girlfriend.
And now? Adventure!
Here’s why:
Over that last few years, I’ve done some really cool things. I’ve gotten a graduate degree, founded a real startup, worked at the Wikimedia Foundation, and did national and international campaigning with SumOfUs. That’s all things I thought I wanted to do – but something was always missing.
At a base level, something has been missing – fulfillment. Contentment. A sense of joy and adventure that I enjoyed so much back in the day. Even things that used to bring me joy: left politics, Brandeis University, programming, startups, even learning – they don’t seem to fire me up as much even more. Some even bring disappointment and pain (I’m looking at you, Brandeis! Stop being so awful to your people).
You know the impostor syndrome? I probably have that. But there’s another way I feel like an impostor. I’ve forgotten who “Sahar” is. He’s been buried beneath all this doubt, affirmation-seeking, and nervousness.
So I’ve decided to Figure My Life Out and Find Myself.
Or, in less self-mocking language, it’s time to reset a lot of my habits of thought and habits of being. To be intentional and self-affirming.
How?
Travel! Just like everyone else!
I’m going to tour the country, reconnect with old friends, and meet new inspiring people. And since I titled this Tumblr as an “adventure log”, might as well use it as a diary of my adventures. I’ve already met a bunch of cool people and learned their stories. Turns out that people can be pretty cool!
Here we go!
(A letter I wrote on September 16, 2013)
And I mean everything.
I said goodbye to a dying man tonight, Anna.
His body – bony. Raspy. Mottled. Hunched.
His voice – surprisingly strong.
His eyes – oh his eyes.
His eyes were so scared, Anna. They were the eyes of a young man about to be forced to storm in a trench in Verdun. The eyes of a sick man in a hospital bed, with no machinery around to even check his pulse.
They looked up. Up because we loomed over his tiny frame on his low hospital bed. Up because that’s where your eyes go when you plead.
Anna this guy was dying and his wife wasn’t even there. Dad’s at her apartment/dorm right now trying to get her to stay with him until he dies.
And he’s going to die tonight. The doctors have stopped doing anything proactive, really.
We stood in this awkward half-circle around his bed and each said hello (but really goodbye). I went first. Then Shelly asked if she could hug him and cried. Then Talie gave him a hug. So I got on the hug train.
I was trying to smile. I think if I were going to die I’d like cheerful energy around me, instead of sadness everywhere. Right?
We went outside. Washed thoroughly. Those hospital sinks are nice. Warm-water luxuries. Then I said out loud “I wish I said I love you too”.
Dad said I could go back but he didn’t seem to enthusiastic about it. “Don’t worry. He knows” Shelly chimes in “it doesn’t matter. He won’t even remember.”
“I want to live a life without regrets”. I said. So I walked back in and told him. Shelly and Talie came in with me too. It was nice. Much less stilted. Then Dad had some alone time with him.
Dad finally fessed up to Joe that he is dying. Did he have any final wishes? No. Okay. Crying.
We left the hospital then and in my heard I just heard the phrase over and over again. That lyrics from the Mountain Goats’ Woke up New: “The world in its cold way started coming alive.”
What a cruel joke.
I used to run PeoplePoweredRochester.com. Since that website is defunct, I’m importing some older posts over here.
WXXI news is reporting that SUNY Geneseo just raised a record-breaking $23 million over the past 5 years.
And it’s a good thing, too, because the state has been slashing the SUNY system to the bone. I was at the SUNY Geneseo commencement this May. I was shocked to the extent that the University President spoke frankly about their finances. He talked about how the state is funding less and less of the school budget, and how it imperiled their mission of a quality education for all.
Public schools are essential to the health of our democracy. Education is a human right, and state and community colleges are the only way we can provide it at an affordable rate. Student loan and grant programs, if they only go to private colleges, will just drive up costs. We need public schools not only because they’re good themselves, but also to keep private schools honest (through market competition!)
In the midst of all this budget cutting, department closing, and tuition-increasing, Governor Andrew “1%” Cuomo is making a big deal of a grand poobah commission to cut taxes.
So after this happened:
The Governor is insisting that everything is peachy. So great that we can start cutting taxes. And thus the “emergency” “we have no choice” cuts to education become permanent.
Here’s what New York’s tax structure looks like (without the temporary top brackets about to expire):
Via tax-rates.org
The top bracket is $20,000! Maybe if we used the same brackets say, say, any other state, we’d be able to cut taxes for the majority of citizens and still be able to offer a quality education to all.
I used to run PeoplePoweredRochester.com. Since that website is defunct, I’m importing some older posts over here.
They have a ton of staff. They explicitly work for social justice and human rights. They go into the homes of farmworkers and tell them their rights, sometimes facing shotgun-wielding agriculturalist landlords in the process.
Yes. There’s a group in Rochester that goes into the fields and faces down farmer-aristocrats to give the workers legal protection. And they’re even government-funded.
The Workers Justice Center comes out of a merger of two different groups just a little while ago. Now, they have an office in Rochester, an office in Kingston, and a small satellite office in Albany. But don’t be fooled – they have contacts and power around the state.
The Rochester group (you might know them by their old name – Farmworker Legal Service of NY) operates out of a nondescript office on the eastern part of Culver road. Their staff includes lawyers, directors, and support. Their staff also includes many people who actually drive down to talk personally to farmworkers day after day. It’s inspiring.
So what does the Worker Justice Center (WJC) actually do? They have six areas of expertise:
Let’s drill down into a few of these, shall we?
WJC has set up 4 different roundtables (they call them task forces) in the state. Each taskforce has local nonprofits, legal aid groups, law enforcement, business groups, goverment agencies, etc. They all work together on human trafficking issues. And this is the real deal – just a few days ago, for example, staffer Renan Salgado just got back from a trip to Mexico on assignment
WJC shows up to the homes of farmworkers and educates them about the legal protections they do have. Often, workers live on the property of their employer. Those employers don’t like that WJC visits (sometimes to the points of calling police, waving shotguns, making threats, etc), but the law is on their side! Tenants anywhere have a right to invite guests over. Did you know that?
It goes beyond just education, however. WJC has a network of contacts and informants. When an employer abuses their employees – physical harassment, wage theft, abuse, whatever – they meet with the workers and take the case as far as it needs to go – often in court.
Farmworkers don’t have the same rights as the rest of us do. They don’t have the right to collective bargaining, overtime pay, a day of rest, or disability insurance. At least, not in New York. The WJC is part of a statewide coalition to lobby to fix it. Every year, the bill, “Farmworker Fair Labor Practices Act” just barely loses in the Senate. This year, WJC has joined the statewide committee of the coalition to pass it.
They aren’t a union, and aren’t trying to organize workers into one. Instead, they’re building a network of people who can call for help instantly when their rights are being violated. WJC then builds a case with the people under attack, and they jointly decide whether to accept a settlement, fight in court, etc.
“With farmworkers and agriculturalists, it’s David versus Goliath. We always side with David”
The WJC prides itself on always siding with the “Davids” that are farmworkers, and has been known to throw hasty rallies outside police stations to keep people from deportation. At the same time, they still have good relationships with law enforcement through their joint work on human trafficking.
It’s an impressive balancing act that they’re pulling off. So far it’s been working out well. They’re soon going to help setup a new anti-trafficking taskforce for the Southern Tier, and their contacts with workers are so extensive that they’re hiring extra staff to deal with the influx of cases.
I used to run PeoplePoweredRochester.com. Since that website is defunct, I’m importing some older posts over here.
Remember the Metro Justice-led No War in Syria event?
I’ve been to my share of rallies outside the federal building. This was one of the liveliest and most fun. Maybe the visible presence of TV crews helped.
Yes, TV crews! In the legacy media, the event was covered by WHEC, WRDC, the Democrat and Chronicle, and WXXI. Gary McLendon at the D&C has a particularly nice article.
In the grassroots media, AlBrundage wrote a report with our friends at Rochester Indymedia:
Forty or so local activists gathered in front of the US Federal Building on September 13 2013 to send a strong message to Senators and Representatives inside. “We do not want war with Syria.” The rally was organized on short notice by Metro Justice and co-sponsors were Rochester Against War and Band of Rebels.
…
Passing cars honked their horns in support of the protesters. One driver even stopped and offered cash to a demonstrator to support the cause. How often does something like that happen at an antiwar rally?
The signs was abundant and clear, and my friends at the rally agreed that they were pleased to see new faces there. Good work, everyone.
I used to run PeoplePoweredRochester.com. Since that website is defunct, I’m importing some older posts over here.
So says Aaron Wicks, the only person I know of who came close to calling the primary race correctly.
The bottom line is this: an active, full-throated Richards candidacy remains a longshot and would require Richards to do things with his campaign he wasn’t able to do when he could and did have the open support of prominent Democrats. Without their public support, Richards could rely only on behind-the-scenes efforts, and those could prove to be explosive for all involved. Richards will not actively contest this race on the Working Families and Independence lines. He will not renounce those lines either. He will suspend his campaign, and being the public servant that he is, will continue serving as mayor. Until the end of his term. Should duty call once again, should something unusual come up that explodes that status quo and makes Warren an untenable candidate, Richards will be available to serve again. But I wouldn’t wait for that something unusual.
Notice that he wrote this two days before Richards’ formal announcement.
Tucked into that piece, however, is this little nugget: “one could argue that Warren, as the more liberal candidate, would lose liberal votes to White, the Green Party candidate.”
Is Lovely Warren the more liberal candidate? Actual liberals and organizers I talk to disagree. Her education agenda is scary. And her mentor and patron, David Gantt, is no friend to the left. (For this paragraph , let’s treat liberal and left as synonymous)
I wonder what’s been going on in Alex White’s head through all this.
I used to run PeoplePoweredRochester.com. Since that website is defunct, I’m importing some older posts over here.
I took a stroll through Greentopia the other day. Here’s what I learned:
On a personal note, I also ran into one of my favorite cousins, made some art with little kids, tasted local apples from a CSA booth, drank a flight of beer at the Genesee Brewery, and we were all treated to a a “guerrilla musical performance” by a bunch of volunteers at Greentopia. Festivals are fun!
I used to run PeoplePoweredRochester.com. Since that website is defunct, I’m importing some older posts over here. (Here’s the wayback link to the original)
When: 5pm – 6:30 Thursday
Where: 100 State St
What: Petition dropoff to both Senators opposing war in Syria. Then a strategy meeting about what to do next afterwards.
(Link)
Metro Justice has spent the last couple of months or so setting up their swanky new website and organizing tool. Tomorrow, they’ll have their first test to try it out. First, they’ll drop off a petition they’ve gathered opposing attacking Syria. Then, they’ll convene a strategy meeting to figure out their next steps.
This move is unusual for Metro Justice.
The group, Rochester’s premier broad-left organization, has a history of anti-war activism in Rochester. While it was founded as an allied group to FIGHT, it’s more recently known for its anti-war work. Membership shot up during the run-up to the Iraq War, and for many years Iraq was *the* primary focus for Metro Justice. Over the past few years, however, they’ve taken a new tack.
The new Metro Justice is both more member-driven and domestically focused. In fact, the two are entwined: Back in 2011, they engaged in an intensive internal discussion about values and strategy which ultimately culminated in their 7-point platform: Fight For Economic Justice.
Since then, Metro Justice has mainly taken on campaigns around housing justice, dignified retirement, and health care for all. More recently, they’ve switched to a wholly new integrated database/website/online organizing system. They used that system to blast their membership yesterday, asking them to sign a petition against war in Syria, and then signers were asked to commit to attending a rally scheduled for tomorrow. These are Metro Justice’s new muscles, and they’re flexing them for the first time.
They aren’t just relying on fancy online tools, however. As I type this, members across the city are calling other members and asking them to commit to the rally. These old-school organizing techniques aren’t going to be dropped any time soon.
While the rally and petition dropoff are the headline event, some are more interested in the meeting that will follow. Colin O’Malley, their organizing director, told me in a statement:
The most empowering part of this is that we’re not simply rallying and then dispersing, but committing to building a more thoughtful and dynamic anti-war movement in Rochester. The strategy meeting after the rally is a first important step.
I used to run PeoplePoweredRochester.com. Since that website is defunct, I’m importing some older posts over here. (Here’s the wayback link to the original)
The D&C reported in today’s paper that the new Intermodal Train Station will use a project-labor agreement. That means, among other things, unionized construction. Or does it?
The long-awaited “intermodal” station is set to begin this winter, Cuomo’s office said, and the labor agreement will detail eligibility for unions and non-union shops to work on the job.
I’ve sent out a few emails to learn more about the non-union clauses in the PLA. Louise Slaughter, who is generally solid on labor, praised the agreement, so it must not be that bad. Or is it?
As far as I know, project labor agreements are one of the few bright spots for the Rochester-area labor movement. The county (under Republican Maggie Brooks) has historically used PLA’s over the last decade, whereas the city (under a succession of Democrats) only started them under the Richards administration.
I have no idea how common it is for state-funded construction to be under a PLA. Do you?
Yeah, when it comes to labor, Rochester politics don’t quite map the same way that they do nationally.
The fact that he’s actually using project-labor agreements, along with the reality that Lovely Warren wants to dismantle public education, is why I support Richards in the election today.
I used to run PeoplePoweredRochester.com. Since that website is defunct, I’m importing some older posts over here. Here’s the wayback link
Wow. Wow. Warren won the primary, 58% to 42% with all precincts reporting.
What does this mean?
I wonder if the big Warren boost came in part from the growing unrest over awful police practices? The large local rallies and news stories these days regard the police – Benny Warr, Emily Good, Brenda Hardaway, even the Trayvon Martin case led to a march against racist policing.
More thoughts:
This is a defeat both for the institutional left and institutional Democratic party. The Working Families Party and labor unions partnered with the Joe Morrelle / establishment wing of the Dems to take on Lovely Warren.
This is a win for David Gantt.
This is a win for the corporate education privatization lobby.
This is a showcase of the power of an organized African-American community.
Does Richards still run on the Working Families Party and Independence line?
Update 1:
Council Races and School Board: Seems like the incumbents all won.
City News has its take up. It’s a good one.
Brian Sharp (D&C reporter) on twitter says: “Richards spox says tonight likely not the night for Richards decision on staying in the race for Nov #voteroc”
Update 2:
Did I hear someone on WXXI say that Joe Morelle should resign? I can’t see that happening. Not that I saw Warren winning this race either.
Just heard Richard’s concession speech. Nothing about whether he would run again or not – but I wouldn’t be surprised if he doesn’t.
Will there be pressure on Alex White to bow out of the race now, so that Richards has a better shot at winning?
There was an upset in the Henrietta Republican supervisor primary. The winner was the one *not* endorsed by the Conservative or Independence lines. Good?
Update 3:
WXXI has the Lovely Warren victory speech:
Update 4:
The D&C has their quick reaction article up. It doesn’t seem to say anything we don’t already know.
Commenter Alicia O has a nuanced take: (slightly edited for clarity)
I’m feeling torn about this. I want to see changes and new leadership and it is exciting to see people come together to take a stance against the status quo.
There is a lot to say about it all, but I’m most concerned with education. I’m VERY opposed to many aspects of Warren’s stated position/plan to “improve” city schools. She says in the plan that she supports recruit corporate charters and wants to attract Teach for America to the area. Rochester has plenty of highly qualified teachers in the area. The failure of city schools to prepare students does not have to do with finding teachers, rather, it’s about systemic inequality and disenfranchisement. She is extremely misguided if she thinks more Charters and TFA are the solutions.
However, she also has mentioned great ideas like partnering with Historically Black Colleges and expanding a school’s community. I hope that more informed people can steer her in the right direction and make her realize that supporting privatization is actually at odds with her vision.
Then again…politicians say stuff to get elected, so maybe she was just trying to appeal to everyone in the document. (Vouchers and charters are what supposedly lures more affluent families into sticking around in the city…but what about the promise of public ed.?) Lots to think about.
Meanwhile commenter Zora has a more straightforward take:
Alex White should step out of the race for the general election so he doesn’t take votes away from Richards….
Update 5:
Seth Voorhees of YNN (but in a personal capacity) tweets: ”Richards says he’ll take a few days to consider next move, after losing Dem primary to Lovely Warren.”
Meaghan M. McDermott at the D&C has a nice roundup of the suburban races.
I think it’s time to pack it in. What an upset! Definitely a shakeup in the perceived and real power for different factions within the Democratic party of the city. I’m sure we’ll know more in the following few days. Night night everyone.
This post was written by friend of blog Mara Chinelli:
After touring the country for several weeks, Rochester Red & Black’s Colin O’Malley returned to Rochester to deliver his talk on what building a revolutionary anarchist organization could mean for social movements in the United States.
(If you’re interested in the audio and full notes, check this out).
If you missed him in any of the 17 cities he swung through, here are some points that I think are worth considering.
“Consensus wasn’t handed down in stone tablets from the gods of anarchy”
While spending time with the Red Libertaria, the Argentinian anarchist organization that led workplace takeovers in the early 2000s, Colin pitched a question that would seem reasonable to most American lefties: how do you come to a consensus with so many members and reconcile differences in perspective and objectives?
I used to run PeoplePoweredRochester.com. Since that website is defunct, I’m importing some older posts over here. (Here’s the wayback link to this post)
Today’s primary election day. What races are you watching closely?
I’ve collated a roundup of endorsements from generally left-of-center groups around town. You’ll see it below. If you find others, please send them my way.
Warning: thinly-sourced speculation ahead!
Looking at these endorsements, the two candidates that noticeably escape a consensus are Marlowe Washington and Liz Hallmark.
I don’t know why lefties are split on Washington. With Hallmark, however, I do have a theory.
Rumor has it that Liz Hallmark started her campaign late. So late that she wasn’t able to even apply for an endorsement from the Working Families Party in time. That probably holds true for other endorsement-making bodies as well.
While the Working Families Party has a broad slate of endorsements, it seems that their main push is for the mayor’s race. I’ve run into a few friends who tell me about a joint Democrat/Working Families Party paid canvass for Richards, and I haven’t heard anything about jobs canvassing for the other candidates endorsed on the WFP line.
Word on the street, too, is that Warren, while being happy to win the primary outright, is setting herself up to run again, and stronger, in 2017. Others think she might run on a new ballot line against Richards in the general. I’m skeptical of the latter claim – I doubt she’ll do so notably well in the primary that the addition of Alex White in the race would siphon enough votes from Richards to get her the crown.
I guess we’ll see soon enough!
End thinly-sourced speculation.
Here are the local endorsements:
Working Families Party:
Tom Richards, Mayor
Matt Haag, Rochester City Council
Jackie Ortiz, Rochester City Council
Marlowe Washington, Rochester City Council
Jose Cruz, School Board
Candice Lucas, School Board
Van White, School Board
Rochester Labor Council:
Tom Richards, Mayor
Marlowe Washington, Rochester City Council
Jackie Ortiz, Rochester City Council
Loretta Scott, Rochester City Council
Dana Miller, Rochester City Council
Matt Haag, Rochester City Council
Jose Cruz, School Board
Candice Lucas, School Board
City Paper:
Tom Richards, Mayor
Matt Haag, Rochester City Council
Jackie Ortiz, Rochester City Council
Dana Miller, Rochester City Council
Loretta Scott, Rochester City Council
Carolee Conklin, Rochester City Council
Jose Cruz, School Board
Candice Lucas, School Board
Van White, School Board
Coalition for Justice in Education:
Liz Hallmark, School Board
Liz Hallmark, School Board
