Indianapolis, IN

Indianapolis union local steps up to aid the homeless

Published

2 years ago

October 7, 2022

Indianapolis union local steps up to aid the homeless

Union members in Indianapolis distribute support to the homeless | Jake Watkins/PW

INDIANAPOLIS, In. – On “Group Day,” Sept. 25 on the Bakery, Confectionary, Tobacco Staff, and Grain Millers Worldwide Union (BCTGM), Native 372A workplaces, clothes, and sneakers got away, donations accepted to buy hygiene merchandise, and meals was cooked and distributed to those that wanted it. “I consider that everybody will, in some unspecified time in the future of their life, require assist. As we speak was about offering some,” stated Richie Griffin, President of Native 372A and founding father of Gods Riches Treasures (GRT), co-sponsors of the occasion. GRT, a mutual-aid group, helps Indianapolis’ unhoused communities.

Griffin informed Individuals’s World that one of many objectives was to strengthen the union and group relationship. “We hope the group sees that unions are right here and unions and our members will help all of the folks locally. We will make a constructive distinction.”

Staff at Native 372A have seen a struggling unhoused group dealing with further challenges because the starting of the pandemic. “Most of the unhoused have been left in a state of uncertainty,” Griffin famous. “The unhoused that may get the change from the folks coming off the highways, for instance, can now not accomplish that as a result of there was little to no site visitors.”

Homelessness in Indianapolis is on the rise. Regardless of a metropolis objective to finish homelessness by 2023, in 2021 there have been 1,928 people counted within the Marion County Level-in time(PIT) depend, the very best quantity previously 10 years. The PIT depend experiences the variety of folks experiencing homelessness on a single evening, and it was carried out on a chilly evening in January.

In 2022, the variety of folks experiencing homelessness went down. The annual PIT depend confirmed a 9% lower in homelessness, nevertheless it means 1,761 folks stay unhoused in Indianapolis on any given evening.

“We’re pleased to see that it’s trending again down after one of many highest cut-off date counts we’ve had in current historical past in 2021 throughout COVID,” Haring-Cozzi informed WRTV Indianapolis. Haring-Cozzi is the manager director of the Coalition for Homelessness Intervention and Prevention (CHIP). Whereas a lower in PIT depend was reported, concurrently there was a 27% enhance in homelessness for households with younger youngsters. As well as, practically 200 extra folks, or 9% extra, are nonetheless unhoused than in 2020, earlier than the beginning of the pandemic.

“Homelessness amongst households is rising and can proceed to rise if left unmitigated,” Jason Jones, a social employee whose shoppers embrace the previously incarcerated, informed Individuals’s World. Jones blamed the worsening of household homelessness on the mixed impact of rising housing prices, stagnant wages, and the lack of the expanded Baby Tax Credit score that many relied on after the passing of the American Rescue Plans Act.”

Though homelessness amongst youth and households is on the rise, the Indianapolis Metropolis-County Council is transferring within the route of criminalizing quite than battling homelessness. It has responded with Proposal 256, aiming to criminalize the distribution of support in lots of areas.

The Metropolis-County Council claims this laws is about security, however Griffin believes it aligns with enterprise needs quite than with offering secure areas for distribution. “So whereas I do perceive that companies don’t want the unhoused to be camped out in entrance of their enterprise due to their clientele, no youngster desires of dwelling on the road.” Fairly than investing in policing mutual-aid distribution, Richie asks, “why can’t we construct one thing for these people to assist them to get off the streets?”

Based on The Nationwide Alliance to Finish Homelessness, the main causes of homelessness are lack of inexpensive housing, lack of sufficient revenue, impression of racial disparities, and well being issues. “Well being issues could cause an individual’s homelessness. Moreover, well being issues, equivalent to habit, can compound by growing the numbers of the unhoused,” stated Griffin who added that there ought to be funding in clinics and remedy.

Eric Brooks, Chair of Communist Occasion of Indiana, CPUSA, stated, “Options to homelessness lie in strengthening democracy throughout Indiana… Individuals should not be criminalized for not having cash. Collectively, we will battle to construct communities that put folks earlier than income, together with assembly the housing, schooling, meals, water, well being, and security wants of unhoused folks.”

Brooks added that the well being wants of girls, “together with being pregnant and abortion providers,” and of the LGBTQ group, together with trans folks, have to be met.”

Griffin agreed, including that the strategies used to combat for employee’s rights are what we should always use to combat for the unhoused. “Labor unions have been constructed upon serving to the working-class to have equal rights, and equal pay…. If organized labor, mutual-aids, church buildings, and different members of our group will unite of their name, then folks will probably be pressured to pay attention.”

These all in favour of becoming a member of the battle towards Prop 256, and within the combat for the rights of the unhoused, can contact: data@indianacpusa.org.

CONTRIBUTOR

Source link

Related Topics:Featured Homelessness labor poverty u.s.unions

Click to comment

Indianapolis, IN

‘Supernatural’ convention bringing stars Jensen Ackles, Jared Padalecki and more to Indy

Published

44 mins ago

July 30, 2024

Press Room

‘Supernatural’ convention bringing stars Jensen Ackles, Jared Padalecki and more to Indy

An SPN Family reunion is coming to Indianapolis.

Creation Entertainment’s “The Road So Far… The Road Ahead” tour is bringing stars of the CW’s “Supernatural” to downtown Indy next month, including Jensen Ackles, Jared Padalecki, Misha Collins, Jeffrey Dean Morgan and more. The weekend-long event includes panels, meet-and-greet opportunities as well as a special event hosted by Collins.

Here’s what you need to know about the event, scheduled for Aug. 23-25.

‘The Deliverance’: New Lee Daniels film inspired by an infamous Indiana haunting hits Netflix next month

Where is the ‘Supernatural’ convention in Indianapolis?

The Marriott Indianapolis Downtown, 350 W. Maryland St. Aug. 23-25.

Lineup includes Jensen Ackles, Jared Padalecki, Misha Collins and more

According to the event’s website, the following stars and special guests are expected to attend the event:

Jensen Ackles (Dean Winchester)
Jared Padalecki (Sam Winchester)
Misha Collins (Castiel)
Jeffrey Dean Morgan (John Winchester)
Samantha Smith (Mary Winchester)
Ruth Connell (Rowena MacLeod)
Rob Benedict (Chuck Shurley)
Richard Speight Jr. (Archangel Gabriel)
Matt Cohen (young John Winchester, Archangel Michael)
Briana Buckmaster (Donna Hanscum)
Julian Richings (Death)
Kim Rhodes (Sheriff Jody Mills)
DJ Qualls (Garth Fitzgerald IV)
Osric Chau (Kevin Tran)
Adam Rose (TikToker)
Jason Manns (musician)

Creation cautions that all guests and scheduling are subject to change.

How much do Supernatural convention tickets cost?

Single-day general admission tickets start at $70 for Friday, $80 for Saturday and $100 for Sunday. A general admission weekend pass is $249.

A variety of weekend packages, with benefits like exclusive panels and autograph opportunities, range in price from $379 to $1,775. For tickets and more information, visit bit.ly/4d8xc16.

‘Supernatural’ meet-and-greets, autographs

Photo opportunities and autographs will be available for purchase with many of the scheduled guests. Here are the prices for photos and autographs with the headlining stars:

Jensen Ackles: Photos $199 / Autographs available for gold and silver weekend patrons only
Jared Padalecki: Photos $199 / Autographs $169 (will not be signing for gold and silver patrons)
Misha Collins: Photos $149 (Saturday only) and $169 (in costume, Sunday only) / Autographs $119
Jeffrey Dean Morgan: Photos $199 / Autographs $169

Interactive opportunities with the featured guests don’t stop there. DJ Qualls will also host a masquerade-themed karaoke night with ticketed pre- and post-events.

For a full list of experiences and prices, visit bit.ly/4d8xc16.

What’s the schedule for the ‘Supernatural’ convention in Indy?

The full schedule has not yet been released as of late July. According to Creation’s website, the final schedule will be released closer to the event.

Misha Collins’ special event at Creation Indianapolis

Collins will host a special, 18+ event on Saturday evening called “It Seemed Like A Good Idea At The Time.” In a June Instagram post, he described it as a one-person show that’s “part memoir, part therapy and part indecent exposure.”

Do I need convention passes for Misha Collins’ show in Indy?

No; this is a separately ticketed event that does not overlap with the convention’s scheduled Saturday night concert. Tickets are priced at $79 for general admission and $139 to $189 for reserved seats. For more information, visit bit.ly/3WfAlFQ.

Things to do in Indianapolis: Our newsletter has the best concerts, art, shows and more — and the stories behind them

Contact IndyStar pop culture reporter Holly Hays at holly.hays@indystar.com. Follow her on X/Twitter: @hollyvhays.

Source link

Indianapolis, IN

IU approves policy that will shutter pro-Palestinian camp at Indy campus

Published

8 hours ago

July 29, 2024

Press Room

IU approves policy that will shutter pro-Palestinian camp at Indy campus

by Claire Rafford

The Indiana University board of trustees approved a new policy Monday that will effectively shut down a three-month pro-Palestinian encampment at IU Indianapolis.

In a news release, board of trustees Chair W. Quinn Buckner said arrests and chaos at an IU Bloomington pro-Palestinian protest in April led the board to update and standardize policies across all campuses.

“We can’t let one person or group’s expression infringe on the rights of others, disrupt learning experiences for our students or interrupt regular university business,” Buckner said in the release.

Members of the Indianapolis encampment say the policy is targeted at the pro-Palestinian student movement and will limit their freedom of speech.

Layth Abdulbari, a leader in the encampment and student at IUPUI, said though he is sad that the policy passed, he and the other members of the camp are looking into other ways to protest and build community. They are eventually planning to take legal action against the university.

“We’re really going to respond with action,” the 21-year-old said. “That’s going to be our primary response.”

Students have been camping out under the Kelley School of Business on IU Indianapolis’ campus since April 26 to protest Israel’s invasion of Gaza following the Hamas missile strike on Oct. 7. The students also are demanding that IU divest from Israel and the Crane naval base.

Abdulbari said that though the students plan to pack up the encampment in the next few days, they feel their presence did make a difference.

“The policy being made is an example and a testament to us being heard, because they refuse to listen, but they hear us,” he said. “There’s something to say about that.”

Organized by the Palestinian Solidarity Committee at IUPUI, the encampment is one of the few remaining in the country after pro-Palestinian protests swept college campuses across the country this spring.

What’s in the new policy?

The new policy will ban all camping, no matter the time of day, unless it is part of a university-approved event. It also prohibits protest activity from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. A draft of the policy released in June only banned overnight camping.

The policy also bars demonstrations within 25 feet of building entrances, requires that temporary structures such as tents be approved 10 days in advance, mandates pre-approval for hanging signs and symbols on university-owned property, including lampposts, and prohibits amplified noise that “materially and substantially” disrupts university life.

The newly-approved protocol also includes limits on where and how students can write messages. Students can still draw with washable chalk on sidewalks, but cannot display messages on other university buildings, lampposts or walls; or write with permanent or semipermanent substances on any university property.

The new policy will take effect Aug. 1.

Source link

Indianapolis, IN

Reports: Colts defensive end out for season with Achilles tear

Published

15 hours ago

July 29, 2024

Press Room

Reports: Colts defensive end out for season with Achilles tear

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — The Indianapolis Colts had their first big injury blow of Training Camp.

According to NFL Network, starting defensive end Samson Ebukam is expected to miss the entire season after tearing his Achilles tendon during team drills Sunday afternoon.

Ebukam was poised to have another big year as one of the Colts’ most dangerous edge rushers. Last season, the seven-year veteran helped the Colts defense set a new franchise sack record with his own career-high of 9.5 takedowns. Ebukam added 57 tackles and three forced fumbles during his first year with the Colts.

Before moving to Indianapolis, Ebukam was an impact player for the Los Angeles Rams and San Francisco 49ers.

Ebukam’s loss will have a significant impact on the defensive line depth chart. His absence could open up more opportunities for rookie Laiatu Latu, who the Colts drafted 15th overall in this year’s draft. Latu was the first defensive player chosen, as well.

Fourteen different Colts players had at least one sack for the Colts’ record 51 last season. Defensive coordinator Gus Bradley returns for his third year in Indy with most of his veteran playmakers — like Zaire Franklin, Kenny Moore II, DeForest Buckner, and Grover Stewart — back in the locker room, as well.

Saturday, Bradley was feeling confident with his leadership up front.

“I mean that’s where it starts, right, is with your defensive line, especially with who we have upfront,” Bradley said after practice Saturday. “We like our veteran presence, the leadership there. So we’re counting on them to kind of set the tone for the whole defense because we have a saying, it starts upfront. And really with us, that’s true.”

The Colts return to Training Camp Tuesday for the first practice in pads. Head coach Shane Steichen knows he and the coaching staff will learn a lot about their team with they go live.

“It’s the first time we’ve put on pads since the end of the year,” Steichen said Sunday. “(We’re looking for) toughness really. You know what I mean? Pads are going to come on, it’s going to be more physical obviously out there and looking forward to that.”

News 8 will have continued live coverage from Grand Park in Westfield all Colts Training Camp.

Source link