Letters Written By
Richard Troxell
House The Homeless, Inc.
P.O. Box 2312
Austin, TX 78768-2312
512 796-4366
May 8, 2000
LETTER TO THE EDITOR:
The future is now. Two worlds have collided. The homeless have lost. With their labor they have built our new homes, the Convention Center, and the Extension on our State Capitol Building. They have been paid fifty cents on the dollar through our Labor Halls.
In Austin, it takes $9.09 per hour to access a one bedroom apartment while the federal minimum wage is just $5.15 per hour. As a result, they remain homeless although 74% are working at some point during the week.
Our response to their plight has been to pass a law that serves to punish them for their economic status. A U.S. District Court in Johnson v. Dallas found a similar law to be unconstitutional. Even Pottinger v. Miami was settled out of court in favor of their homeless citizens.
Jesus is quoted as saying, "That which you do to the least of my brothers you do unto me." Perhaps it is time for the New City Council to take a fresh look at our "No Camping/Homeless Ordinance" and seriously consider repealing this unconstitutional ordinance that is being selectively enforced against "the least of us."
Richard R. Troxell President-House the Homeless Board Member-National Coalition for the Homeless May 2000 Dear Editor: Another victory blow has been struck by those that would have us loose faith in our governmental process. One day before it occurred, I deciphered an oblique posting that really meant City Council would transfer power regarding who controls the local non-profit solicitation process from municipal control to the business community. They told us that the new system would be free and they told us that under the new system, participation would be voluntary and they told us that somehow under the new system there would no longer be any excessive administrative expenditure of community contributions. Although they offered no guidelines, procedures, or explanation of how this was to occur, they assured us it would happen. And they told us all of these things after the item had been agreed upon by Council and placed on the "consent" agenda. They told us that the Better Business Bureau would now be making decisions about which new non-profit businesses might be allowed to receive endorsement and granted the ability to do business in our city. To some, this could be construed as the quintessential conflict of interest. But there was only my one voice of decent that day so everything must be OK. Never mind that there was not even a single letter of explanation or overture or even the 1st word of discussion with any of the 600 non-profit organizations that this power shift would affect. Council Member Bill Spelman has asked for the president of the Better Business Bureau to outline plans for "our" future and to hear concerns from the non-profits after the vote. No doubt such an approach will encourage honest feedback after the fact (a "chilling effect," the attorneys call it.) Mr. Spelman was visibly impressed with the suggestion that the BBB was prepared to spend $40,000 on a web site to "advertise each of the approved non-profits." I am anxious to see their campaign heralding House the Homeless, Inc., with 70 some ragtag soldiers pitching our homeless paper on the street corners of downtown. Makes you proud- business and non-profits holding hands. Seriously, we just witnessed a major transfer of power from the municipal government to the business sector without the critical stake holders at the table or even having been called to dinner, and the deal was all cooked behind closed doors. Does anyone else smell something burning besides me? Richard Troxell President Greetings Neighbor: When I last wrote, I introduced myself as a 12 year advocate for the homeless citizens in our community. I explained how our efforts have produced recognition in several states including Texas, the City of Austin, and by the United Nations. I last spoke briefly about initiating our Heart and Sole Project which brings foot care and massage to the homeless community. Since that last correspondence, we have launched the 45th homeless street newspaper in America. It was recently awarded as the Best New Street Paper in North America. Our goal is to share with housed people the perspective of people living on our streets. We are struggling with minimum wages that are not enough to access housing and so low that they serve as another barrier in our struggle to enter main stream society while we continue to live under bridges and along our creeks. While we struggle with these work issues, the negative impact of our living near our waterways is not lost on us. In response, we are now working with City of Austin officials and renown local environmentalists to initiate our Adopt-A-Trail and Creeks project. This comprehensive approach will help us clean and beautify (through plantings) the 10.4 miles surrounding Town Lake. I am again asking for your help, and you can do this at no cost to you. I am simply asking you to designate House the Homeless, Inc. (a 501 (c)3 non-profit) as a recipient of the Randalls Good Neighbor Program so we can receive a matching 1% of your purchase amount when you buy groceries. Many of you have done this and we are so very grateful! Now there is an opportunity for many more of you to help by joining your neighbors. Please designate 8473 just one time when you shop at Randalls. This costs you nothing and helps us move a step closer in our effort to help homeless citizens help themselves. Thank You! In Unity There is Strength, Richard R. Troxell President National Coalition for the Homeless- Board Member 7-18-00 Letter To Editor The Council recently approved a subsidy of #15 million to Landmark/Hilton Corporation for the construction of a convention hotel. Hotel employees are often among the lowest paid workers in our community. When the City makes a substantial public investment in such a project, we think it only reasonable that the City ask the corporate recipient to be at least as responsible in its employment practices as is the City of Austin itself. This includes paying a living wage. If the City allows Landmark/Hilton to pay wages that people cannot live on, the City is in effect asking city taxpayers to pick up the tab for subsidized housing, public medical care and all the other support services required by impoverished workers. How much will this hidden subsidy cost Austins' citizens? If the Council is going to subsidize Landmark/Hilton to the tune of a cool $15 million, shouldn't they insist on including a living wage requirement which is indexed to the cost of housing? The City should be able to add this simple provision to protect Austin's workers. Better yet, shouldn't the City pass a Corporate Accountability Ordinance that would ensure that all businessess that receive such contracts and/or financial assistance from the City, pay their employees a living wage? Economic justice for all !!!! Richard R. Troxell Austin Living Wage Coalition
