The Tent City Project

Tent City and Lakewood still at odds

noreply@blogger.com (Hank Kalet) — Mon, 14 Oct 2013 16:07:00 +0000

The Asbury Park Press reported today that the Ocean County prosecutor's office has subpoenaed Jack Ballo's film, Destiny's Bridge, as evidence in its case against the founder of a tent encampment for the homeless in Lakewood.

The Rev. Steven Brigham is accused of criminal mischief and witness tampering in connection with the destruction of a tent and removal of one of the camp's residents earlier this year. The film covers the incident through interviews after the fact, but does not show the tents being dismantled.

The subpoena is a reminder that, despite an agreement reached earlier this year to close the camp and find housing for the homeless, animosity continues to run high.

Lakewood and Brigham are supposed to be working to find housing for Tent City residents, as part of an agreement between the township and the homeless that calls for the camp to be closed early in 2014. A number of camp residents have been placed in housing, but there remain dozens still in the camp, with new residents still coming in, which would seem to violate the terms of the consent agreement. At the same time, based on conversations that I've had with Brigham and some of the current residents, the township has not been particularly cooperative in working with residents.

The issues remain the same: There is not enough housing in the Ocean County area to accommodate its own economically destitute, let alone the growing population of poor and homeless New Jerseyans damaged by corporate capitalism's destructive capacity. The camp is a magnet, to some degree, because it offers a home -- however flawed a home it may be -- to those who have been forced into the cracks and ignored. Lakewood is a poor community itself, incapable of supporting the influx and Ocean County has turned a deaf ear while the state has left it to the counties to manage the problem.

Caught in the middle of all this, unfortunately, are the homeless now living in the woods of Cedarbridge.

Lakewood Times covers the premiere

noreply@blogger.com (Hank Kalet) — Sat, 10 Aug 2013 02:43:00 +0000

The Lakewood Times had a story and some photos from Wednesday's premiere of Jack Ballo's film Destiny's Bridge.

The Tent City Project is an artistic look at human rights issues facing residents of a homeless camp in Lakewood, NJ and its connection to the growing number of tent cities across the country. See our Facebook page for more information -- and don't forget to "Like" us.

See this film, when you can

noreply@blogger.com (Hank Kalet) — Thu, 08 Aug 2013 14:57:00 +0000

I review the film on my blog, Channel Surfing, today. Read it here.

The Tent City Project is an artistic look at human rights issues facing residents of a homeless camp in Lakewood, NJ and its connection to the growing number of tent cities across the country. See our Facebook page for more information -- and don't forget to "Like" us.

The latest on The Tent City Project: A podcast and the film sets to open

noreply@blogger.com (Hank Kalet) — Tue, 06 Aug 2013 14:54:00 +0000

Welcome back to the Tent City Project blog. We've allowed the blog to lay dormant for a while, but we have a lot of news to offer and we want people interested in the project -- a film, photos and a book-length poem -- to have a place to stay on top of what we have happening and on what is happening in the tent encampment.

Jack's film is set to open Aug. 7 at the Two River Theater in Red Bank.

Here's the latest coverage of the project:

NJ News Commons did a story on the project, focusing on my poem. You can read it here.
NJ News Commons also did a podcast last week in which Jack, Sherry and I discussed Tent City. Get it here.
NJ Discover previews the Destiny's Bridge film opening.
Red Bank-Shrewsbury Patch previews the film opening.
The Asbury Park Press previews the film opening.

Check back for more updates and a review of the film.

The Tent City Project is an artistic look at human rights issues facing residents of a homeless camp in Lakewood, NJ and its connection to the growing number of tent cities across the country. See our Facebook page for more information -- and don't forget to "Like" us.

Agreement reached to close Tent City

noreply@blogger.com (Hank Kalet) — Fri, 15 Mar 2013 21:07:00 +0000

Lawyers for Lakewood and Tent City have agreed to a plan to close the camp and find housing for its residents. Here's my piece for Patch on today's hearing.

A shortage of housing for the low-income

noreply@blogger.com (Hank Kalet) — Fri, 01 Mar 2013 03:46:00 +0000

Crossposted from Channel Surfing:

A graph from the NLIHC report issued today.

A shortage of low-cost rental housing means that more and more low-income Americans could be facing homelessness in the future. That is one of the findings of a report issued today by the National Low-Income Housing Coalition, a Washington-based advocacy group.

Photo by Sherry Rubel

According to the NLIHC, the four-year-old National Housing Trust Fund, which "was created to address the acute shortage of rental housing the lowest income people in the U.S. can afford" remains unfunded, leading to a growing disparity between the number of units available to the poor and the number needed. Since 2008,

the number of renters in the United States has increased by almost two million households, 44% of whom have incomes at or below 50% of the area median income (AMI). At the same time, the number of homes that are affordable to renter households in this income group decreased by more than 600,000. The number of homes affordable to renters with incomes above 50% of AMI grew by 2.2 million during the same period.

The failure to fund the trust means

that the shortage of homes for the lowest income Americans grows. This shortage places more poor families at risk of homelessness.

The report found that there were about 40 million renter households in the United States, with about one in four being considered extremely low-income (at or below 30 percent of the area median).

And while the supply of rental housing grew by about 700,000 unites between 2010 and 2011, the number of renters grew by about a million -- a deficit of 300,000 added to an already large housing deficit. Exacerbating the gap, the bulk of these new rentals -- about six in 10 -- "were only affordable to renter households with incomes above 80 percent of the (Area Median Income)." Ultimately, "the growth (in units for extremely low-income families) was not enough to keep pace with the growing numbers of ELI renters."

In 2011, there were 5.6 million rental units affordable for the 10.1 million ELI renters, producing an absolute shortage of 4.6 million affordable units. This is an increase of 300,000 homes from the 2010 shortage of 4.3 million units. In 2011, for every 100 ELI renters, there were only 55 units they could potentially live in without spending more than 30% of their income on housing and utility costs.

In New Jersey, the numbers look like this: 49 units affordable to ELI renters, 31 that are affordable and available. About 75 percent of ELI households suffer "severe housing cost burden" -- they spend more than 50 percent of income on housing costs.

This is unsustainable -- and completely the fault of big business and government. Municipalities have no incentive to build low-income housing, nor to make it easy for developers to do so. They prefer more expensive housing because it generates more taxes and does not come with the stigma that suburban communities attach to those with low incomes. Builders, for their part, are uninterested in low-income housing, unless it means that they can generate new revenues. So they have conspired to do nothing.

In New Jersey, despite a relatively effective affordable housing regime -- one that has been idled by the current governor's hostility to it -- getting affordable housing units built has been nearly impossible.

The level of homelessness has held steady in recent years, but that is only because the annual count generally does not include those who fall outside the technical definition but who also lack stable housing. And while some regions of the state -- in counties like Bergen, Essex, Hudson, Mercer, Middlesex, Passaic (i.e., the northern counties) -- have worked to keep homelessness in check as best they can, others -- such as Ocean -- have not and have attempted to deal with the indigent population by chasing them to other locations.

Tent City in Lakewood is not the disease that some on Lakewood see it as being; rather, it is a symptom of a broken economic system that views society's outcasts as the inevitable and disposable byproduct of economic growth. The homeless and poor are no different than the poisonous emissions pumped out of smokestacks and tailpipes, meaning they are not the responsibilities of those who benefit from the system but costs that must be socialized and paid for by all of us.

I digress, of course. The immediate issue is the lack of housing, which all of us should see as a mark of shame.

Send me an e-mail. The Tent City Project is an artistic look at human rights issues facing residents of a homeless camp in Lakewood, NJ and its connection to the growing number of tent cities across the country. See our Facebook page for more information -- and don't forget to "Like" us.

Protesting the crackdown in #tentcitynj

noreply@blogger.com (Hank Kalet) — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 22:59:00 +0000


Photo by Sherry Rubel

Check out the Tent City Project Facebook page for photos from today's protest at Lakewood Town Hall.

The Tent City Project is an artistic look at human rights issues facing residents of a homeless camp in Lakewood, NJ and its connection to the growing number of tent cities across the country. See our Facebook page for more information -- and don't forget to "Like" us.

noreply@blogger.com (Hank Kalet) — Sun, 10 Feb 2013 07:06:00 +0000

Yes, homelessness exists outside of New Jersey and, as in New Jersey, we rarely do better than pay lip service.

The Tent City Project is an artistic look at human rights issues facing residents of a homeless camp in Lakewood, NJ and its connection to the growing number of tent cities across the country. See our Facebook page for more information -- and don't forget to "Like" us.

Kevin's story

noreply@blogger.com (Hank Kalet) — Fri, 08 Feb 2013 04:43:00 +0000


Sherry Rubel Photo: Kevin and his puppy taking a walk in Tent City a few months ago.

Photographer Sherry Rubel tells the story of Kevin, who moved to New Jersey from Michigan to be with his girlfriend but ended up in Tent City. Something Kevin told Sherry struck me -- offering a bit of insight into why so many men and women forgo the shelter system and choose to stay out on the streets. Kevin has a dog and Tent City was one of the few places that would let him keep it.

Over the summer, Julia Orlando, who runs the amazing shelter and social sevices facility in Bergen County -- Bergen Housing, Health and Human Services -- said that those who find themselves homeless often are unwilling to give up even the most meaningless of possessions. Many are unwilling to admit that they have bottomed out and the possessions they've chosen to grasp onto are just weights tied to their ankles, keeping them from rising back to the service.

For many, this makes sense. For many, this aggressive unwillingness to let go of material things does hold them back.

But what about a pet -- like Kevin's dog. Dogs are not possessions in the traditional sense, no matter how the law treats them. They are much more. They are family members. They show us the best of our humanity, are loyal (as the cliche goes) and they are wholly dependent on their pack leaders.

We need to respect that.

The Tent City Project is an artistic look at human rights issues facing residents of a homeless camp in Lakewood, NJ and its connection to the growing number of tent cities across the country. See our Facebook page for more information -- and don't forget to "Like" us.

Lakewood Mayor on 101.5: Violations a formality

noreply@blogger.com (Hank Kalet) — Wed, 06 Feb 2013 19:47:00 +0000

Lakewood will not be closing down Tent City -- at least for now.

Mayor Al Akerman said the violations issued to the tent encampment's leadership were "just a formality," according to this report from 101.5, and that the goal is to get the judge presiding in the ongoing litigation between the township and the homeless to order a census. He said the township's goal is to see who is eligible for programs within the county.

Advocates for the homeless have pointed out that Ocean County has traditionally been slow to address homelessness within the county, a problem that has been exacerbated by the failure of neighboring counties to address their own homeless populations. Tent City -- along with Atlantic City and Camden -- have become dumping grounds for the rest of the state's homeless. If the mayor is serious about connecting the homeless with available services and not focused on shutting the tent encampment until other alternatives can be found, then good for him. But given the state of existing services in the southern half of the state, advocates and the homeless should be wary -- especially when the state's police and regulatory powers are being used.

The Tent City Project is an artistic look at human rights issues facing residents of a homeless camp in Lakewood, NJ and its connection to the growing number of tent cities across the country. See our Facebook page for more information -- and don't forget to "Like" us.

In Lakewood, aggression passes for compassion

noreply@blogger.com (Hank Kalet) — Fri, 01 Feb 2013 19:48:00 +0000

In a video released today by Lakewood Scoop, Lakewood Mayor Albert Ackerman promised a compassionate end to its battle with Tent City.

“People in Tent City are living in sub-human conditions, and we were shocked at what we found”, said Mayor Akerman in an exclusive video with TLS. So, “as compassionate people, we decided that we’re going to try and place as many people as we can as soon as possible. ”

The Mayor says he’s working diligently with private concerned citizens, the County and with local Pastors in order to try and find placement for the homeless.

“Our hearts go out to the people living in Tent City, and we hope we can find better placement for them”, the Mayor said, acknowledging that it may be a difficult task. “As human beings, we have to try.”

This sounds good, but the details are lacking -- as has been the actual compassion.

The township has aggressively attempted to remove the tent encampment without offering a legitimate alternative. It has said it will find housing, but Ocean County lacks the kind of shelter space or low-cost housing that the state's northern counties have made a priority. If the township and county had a real plan in mind, they'd have offered it by now -- not two-plus years after the lawsuit was filed or two weeks after it filed health and building code violations against the camp.

The conditions in the encampment have deteriorated. It has become a burden on nearby neighborhoods. But, as the courts have ruled, the township and county cannot close Tent City without ensuring a viable alternative.

To put this in perspective, one only has to consider how New Brunswick handled a homeless camp that had sprouted along the Raritan River just as the city was about to relaunch its waterfront. Initially, the city demanded the homeless men be moved, but thanks to the efforts of advocates for the poor and homeless, a committee was formed and 25 of the 60 or so men who had congregated by the river were given shelter and housing. The rest followed their own script -- something you have to allow for -- but the encampment dissolved. The city was happy. The homeless were happy and advocates were happy. And in the end, a new committee was created to address the issues of poverty and homelessness and efforts are ongoing.

This, of course, occurred in a county -- Middlesex -- with what is considered a pretty good record on these issues. Ocean, on the other hand, is viewed by advocates for the homeless as being hostile.

If Ackerman and the Lakewood Township Council, along with Ocean County, were truly interested in resolving this, they could not be talking of vague discussions with private parties and instead would be talking to the camp and advocates for the homeless. They would be drafting a detailed plan to address homelessness in the county that included construction of a temporary shelter and affordable housing, along with the provision of services to the mentally ill or addicted. That, in my view, would show real compassion.

Weather woes at Tent City

noreply@blogger.com (Hank Kalet) — Fri, 01 Feb 2013 16:30:00 +0000

The weather is taking its toll. Photo by Sherry Rubel.

A brief update on my latest visit to Tent City, at my tumblr page.

I will have more later, including an interview with Minister Steve.

The Tent City Project is an artistic look at human rights issues facing residents of a homeless camp in Lakewood, NJ and its connection to the growing number of tent cities across the country. See our Facebook page for more information -- and don't forget to "Like" us.

Fire at Tent City

noreply@blogger.com (Hank Kalet) — Sun, 06 Jan 2013 20:21:00 +0000

Sherry Rubel photo: The after math of the fire.

NJ.com is reporting that two people were hurt but not seriously during a fire at Tent City.

Lakewood police say the fire occurred around 12:15 a.m. today at Tent City, an encampment in the woods of the Ocean County community.

In the past, fires and other issues like them, have been used to condemn the camp, but that is unfair. The need for the camp, itself, should stand as a condemnation of our economic priorities.

The Tent City Project is an artistic look at human rights issues facing residents of a homeless camp in Lakewood, NJ and its connection to the growing number of tent cities across the country. See our Facebook page for more information -- and don't forget to "Like" us.

Homeless in the cold

noreply@blogger.com (Hank Kalet) — Fri, 04 Jan 2013 00:15:00 +0000

Authorities in Camden County have issued a "code blue" warning to its homeless population asking them to find shelter rather than risk the expected extreme temperatures.

We have entered a period of dangerous conditions for those forced to live on the streets -- or in tents, as they do in Lakewood. Government agencies need to step up to ensure that the most vulnerable have some sort of shelter, because they are the only ones with bureaucracy capable of such a large job,

A rough stretch at Tent City

noreply@blogger.com (Hank Kalet) — Sun, 30 Dec 2012 18:13:00 +0000

A week after a local resident died from hyperthermia, there was a stabbing at the tent encampment, as reported by NJ.com. The immediate reaction from some is going to be a sense of outrage -- at the homeless themselves. But the reality is that we have allowed conditions to fester that leave people to the elements like animals. We are the ones to blame for what happens here.

Tax reform that builds affordable housing

noreply@blogger.com (Hank Kalet) — Fri, 21 Dec 2012 22:52:00 +0000

Here is a press release from the National Low-Income Housing Coalition on a proposed change in the mortgage deduction that looks like it could both help middle-class homeowners and the homeless:

The National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC) today announced that it supports legislation to address the affordable housing needs of low and middle income American families through mortgage interest deduction reform and funding the National Housing Trust Fund

The Common Sense Housing Investment Act (H.R. 6677), introduced December 18 by Representative Keith Ellison (D-MN), would convert the mortgage interest deduction to a flat rate 20% tax credit and cap the maximum mortgage to receive a tax break at $500,000. H.R 6677 would direct the majority of the savings gained from these modifications to the National Housing Trust Fund. Mr. Ellison estimates that the savings would be about $27 billion a year.

“Gearing mortgage interest tax breaks more toward middle class and lower income homeowners will provide a tax benefit where it is needed most,” NLIHC President and CEO Sheila Crowley said. “Representative Ellison’s bill would allow all homeowners with mortgages to receive a tax break, not just those who have enough income to file itemized tax returns.”

Under this proposed change, the number of homeowners with mortgages who would benefit from the tax break would increase from 43 million to 60 million, with 92% of the increase being households with incomes less than $100,000 a year.

The National Housing Trust Fund was established by Congress in 2008, but has yet to be funded. Its purpose is to reduce the shortage of rental homes that are affordable for the lowest income families.
Nationwide, for every 100 households with incomes in the bottom 30% of income, there are only 30 rental homes that are affordable and available to them. Once funded, the National Housing Trust Fund will provide grants to states to build, preserve, rehabilitate, and operate rental housing that these households can afford.

“Funding the National Housing Trust Fund would create thousands of jobs in the construction trades. We can end homelessness in the United States if we put enough money in the National Housing Trust Fund,” said Crowley.

In addition to providing funding for the National Housing Trust Fund, H.R 6677 would expand the Low Income Housing Tax Program and increase funding for HUD’s Section 8 and public housing programs.

Over 600 national, state and local organizations have endorsed NLIHC’s proposal to reform the mortgage interest deduction and use the savings to fund the National Housing Trust Fund.

Individual taxpayers can calculate how these proposed changes to mortgage interest tax policy would affect their taxes by the housing tax reform calculator at http://nlihc.org/issues/mid/calculator.

Learn more about NLIHC’s proposal at www.housingtaxreform.org.

Housing money for storm victims underscores lack of commitment to low-income housing

noreply@blogger.com (Hank Kalet) — Fri, 21 Dec 2012 15:44:00 +0000

The state is providing 1,000 housing vouchers to low-income people displaced by Hurricane Sandy. According to a press release from the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs, the Christie administration "will set aside 1,000 vouchers from the state-administered Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) program to assist low-income households that were displaced by the storm in moving into permanent housing." The program, funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, "will provide vouchers that will be used as 'Special Admissions' for households that cannot return to their homes. The vouchers, which average approximately $9,840 per year per household, will total $9.84 million."

The vouchers are good news for those displaced by the massive storm that ravaged the area at the end of October, but they also point to the failure on the part of both the state and the federal government to make a meaningful monetary contribution to battling homelessness.

I've spent a lot of time over the last six months talking with advocates and people who run shelters and the major takeaway from those conversations is this: You need to build housing if you are going to battle homelessness. And that takes money.

New Jersey has a huge deficit of affordable units -- and not just of the Mount Laurel sort. We need an array of housing types that would be affordable to those living at and just below the sustainable wage level of $22 an hour, to be sure, but we also need housing for the large group of people who have not been able to hold down jobs.

Rather than leave the most vulnerable population to shelters -- or to places like Tent City in Lakewood -- we need to find the resolve to get people into real homes. We have a responsibility as a society to ensure that the people left behind, people who are the byproduct of our economic system, have someplace healthy and safe to live.

Raising a new generation of homeless

noreply@blogger.com (Hank Kalet) — Wed, 19 Dec 2012 03:51:00 +0000

From today's New York Times:

Across the country, tens of thousands of underemployed and jobless young people, many with college credits or work histories, are struggling to house themselves in the wake of the recession, which has left workers between the ages of 18 and 24 with the highest unemployment rate of all adults.

Those who can move back home with their parents — the so-called boomerang set — are the lucky ones. But that is not an option for those whose families have been hit hard by the economy, including Mr. Taylor, whose mother is barely scraping by while working in a laundromat. Without a stable home address, they are an elusive group that mostly couch surfs or sleeps hidden away in cars or other private places, hoping to avoid the lasting stigma of public homelessness during what they hope will be a temporary predicament.

These young adults are the new face of a national homeless population, one that poverty experts and case workers say is growing. Yet the problem is mostly invisible. Most cities and states, focusing on homeless families, have not made special efforts to identify young adults, who tend to shy away from ordinary shelters out of fear of being victimized by an older, chronically homeless population. The unemployment rate and the number of young adults who cannot afford college “point to the fact there is a dramatic increase in homelessness” in that age group, said Barbara Poppe, the executive director of the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness.

The Tent City Project is an artistic look at human rights issues facing residents of a homeless camp in Lakewood, NJ and its connection to the growing number of tent cities across the country. See our Facebook page for more information -- and don't forget to "Like" us.

Buddy, can you spare a jail cell?

noreply@blogger.com (Hank Kalet) — Mon, 17 Dec 2012 18:40:00 +0000

Brian Eastman wanted to spend the night in jail; instead, he faces a fine for drinking in public and still must find away to deal with the cold.

As reported by nj.com, police approached the 46-year-old Eastman as he was "drinking a 24-ounce can of Mike's Hard Iced Tea in front of Macho Nacho restaurant at 66 Morris St. at about 2:12 a.m. Wednesday, police said."

As O'Brien approached Eastman, the homeless man put down the can, police said.

"You got me. I'll take the ticket. I want to go to jail because it is getting cold out here," Eastman told O'Brien, according to the police report.

Instead of arresting Eastman, O'Brien gave him a ticket for drinking in public and threw out the alcoholic beverage without incident, police said.

The incident -- presented as a brief item in a police blotter -- offers a glimpse into our failed economy and the lack of seriousness with which we are approaching its natural byproduct.

The American economy has been rigged to generate massive wealth for a small subset of the population, who has managed to take the profits off the top while pushing the cost of the economic byproduct (as in a chemical equation) onto the public. Se we have homelessness and poverty and economic instability, pollution and health problems, shattered urban areas and devastated rural towns -- all created by the actions of corporate America, but ameliorated through the auspices of federal, state and local governments with the cost being shared by each and everyone of us.

Perhaps, this is logical. We get some of the benefits, so why shouldn't we share in the cost? The problem is that we are paying on both ends: We pay in higher prices and waning workplace power on the one side and then again through our taxes -- and rising crime, dirtier air and water, etc. -- on the other side. And people like Brian Eastman remain on the streets, and going so far as to commit a petty offense to get himself a warm space for the night.

Tent City needs your help

noreply@blogger.com (Hank Kalet) — Fri, 16 Nov 2012 23:04:00 +0000

Photos by Sherry Rubel

While the residents of Tent City survived Hurricane Sandy with minimal damage, they were not so lucky when an early November snow storm blanketed the region in white.Tents collapsed and residents have been forced to scramble for new shelter. The folks down there need help.

If you can, please reach out to the residents down there through the Tent City Project -- send us an email -- and we will put you in touch with the Rev. Steve Brigham. The folks there will appreciate it.

The Tent City Project is an artistic look at human rights issues facing residents of a homeless camp in Lakewood, NJ and its connection to the growing number of tent cities across the country. See our Facebook page for more information -- and don't forget to "Like" us.

Report: Tent City survives the storm

noreply@blogger.com (Hank Kalet) — Sat, 03 Nov 2012 19:32:00 +0000

A report in The Asbury Park Press offers good news for Tent City in Lakewood:

Approximately 40 residents of the community in the woods off Cedar Bridge Avenue stayed at the camp during the storm, the remaining members went to shelters or moved in with family members, said Steve Brigham, founder of the camp.

“The most important thing is that no one got hurt,’’ he said. “We did have one tree fall on a tent, but that couple had decided to leave.’’

Several structures where damaged during the storm, Brigham said. The camp has approximately 80 residents in total.

“There were a bunch of tents that were destroyed but we have ones to replace them,’’ Brigham said. “Overall, we are not doing that bad.’’

More to come when I talk with Brigham and can make my way to Lakewood.

Evacuated

noreply@blogger.com (Hank Kalet) — Tue, 30 Oct 2012 16:04:00 +0000

We're waiting for news from Tent City, but it appears that most residents of the homeless camp vacated to local churches. I'll update when I get more information.

Housing is a human right

noreply@blogger.com (Hank Kalet) — Mon, 01 Oct 2012 23:28:00 +0000

Former President Jimmy Carter reminds us today, in a post on The Huffington Post about World Habitat Day, of the importance of providing shelter.

Today, World Habitat Day, is a day to recognize the basic need for adequate shelter in a world where it is lacking for so many -- a day for grassroots action, starting in your community. As we reflect on the state of towns and cities everywhere and the right of everyone to decent housing, I challenge you to reflect on the actions that you can take. In your own community, in communities around the globe and in places such as Haiti that so desperately need our assistance. I believe, as does Habitat, in the idea of many homes, one community. The act of building, of renovating, of coming together cements a bond not easily undone. When we bring together available resources, take decisive action and advocate for lasting change, we build the kind of stability, that Haiti -- and we -- need.

Ithought it was something that goes for Lakewood, as well.

Update on Tent City litigation

noreply@blogger.com (Hank Kalet) — Fri, 24 Aug 2012 00:23:00 +0000

Photo by Sherry Rubel

The news may be good for Tent City residents regarding their lawsuit against Lakewood and Ocean County. Mediation appears to be moving the process forward and could result in an agreement to prevent the eviction.

I'll have more going forward on this and we'll have our own clips and photos up. In the meantime, read the Asbury Park Press story
The Tent City Project is an artistic look at human rights issues facing residents of a homeless camp in Lakewood, NJ and its connection to the growing number of tent cities across the country. See our Facebook page for more information -- and don't forget to "Like" us.

Tent City to Tent City: Lakewood visits Camden

noreply@blogger.com (Hank Kalet) — Thu, 23 Aug 2012 19:45:00 +0000

Photos by Sherry Rubel

Residents of Lakewood Tent City visited their counterparts in Camden last week to compare notes and make common cause.

The Tent City Project is an artistic look at human rights issues facing residents of a homeless camp in Lakewood, NJ and its connection to the growing number of tent cities across the country. See our Facebook page for more information -- and don't forget to "Like" us.