Downtown Women's Center eNewsletter

November 2006

Executive Director Lisa Watson and DWC participants will speak on a panel about women’s homelessness, to be broadcast from DWC on December 15th at 10 am. Listen to live coverage on AirTalk with Larry Mantle on KPCC 89.3 FM.

Many of you have read in the newspaper lately about the existing law in Los Angeles that prohibits sitting, lying, or sleeping on streets, sidewalks, and other public walkways. In April, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit ruled that this law constitutes cruel and unusual punishment if available shelter is not adequate. (In L.A. County, there are over 80,000 homeless people but fewer than 19,000 shelter beds.) As you may also know, the ACLU and the City have been trying to arrive at a compromise agreement on this issue. At the same time, the City and the LAPD initiated a plan called the “Safer City Initiative” to “clean up the streets” of Skid Row by stationing 50 extra officers in our neighborhood with the reported purpose of focusing on drug dealers, parole violators, and sexual offenders. They have also been enforcing this sidewalk-sleeping ban during the hours of 6am–9pm. This ban does not address the issue that people have nowhere to go and no place to call home during the day. DWC is one of the few agencies that has a Day Center – many of the missions on Skid Row are closed during daytime hours.

Over the past two months, DWC has witnessed many of our women being arrested – most of whom suffer from severe mental illness. They are being arrested as a result of sitting on sidewalks, lacking understanding of the new ruling and what is expected of them, and for outstanding warrants resulting from inability to pay tickets for jay-walking or other minor violations. People who are arrested for sleeping on the street are usually released back to the street within a few days. During this cycle, people often lose possessions like identification, clothes, or medicine.

DWC has recognized the need for immediate and direct solutions. We believe permanent supportive housing, such as what we offer in the Residence, is the most important and effective solution. Until enough housing can be built throughout the City to meet this need, WE NEED TO TAKE ACTION NOW! DWC is doing this by piloting an expansion of Day Center hours in order to offer more meals, conduct outreach, increase case management, and decrease the numbers of hours women are on the streets and likely to be arrested. Through at least the end of the year, the Center’s hours are now 6am-6pm on weekdays and 8am-4pm on weekends. DWC is a real part of the solution, yet we truly need your help! We have limited the cost of this increase in staffing, materials, and food costs to only $1600 per week, and we are in urgent need of the $12,800 that will allow us to maintain these expanded Day Center hours for at least the next 8 weeks. Please visit our website at dwcweb.org to donate now via the secure method of PayPal.

This urgent action of expanding Day Center hours offers vital immediate safety for our participants – yet our work does not end here. We have always believed that the only solution to end chronic homelessness is with more affordable housing. This week, we celebrate the passage of California Proposition 1C and will continue to advocate for affordable housing and human rights.

During the holidays we strive to offer gifts for DWC residents and Day Center participants. Please consider donating new and unwrapped gifts of: stereos/boom-boxes (CD and AM/FM radio), CDs (recommended music includes Holiday Music, Jazz, Blues, Motown, Adult Contemporary, and Movie Soundtracks), bath and hand towel sets, fabric Christmas stockings for decorating (undecorated and standard-sized, please), backpacks or tote bags, $5 gift cards (phone cards, grocery store cards, fast food restaurants, and movie theatres), portable CD players (disc-mans) with headphones, bottles of perfume, books of stamps, umbrellas, and wallets. Check out dwcweb.org/howtohelp/holidayhelp.htm for more information.

For the first time this year, DWC also has a wish list at Target! Many gifts can be easily ordered at target.com – just search for the Downtown Women’s Center Wish List (or visit a local store) to send us your warmest wishes this holiday season. We are also grateful for similar items purchased elsewhere if you prefer not to use the Target wish list. Donations may be shipped by Target or delivered in person to DWC.

Share your time and be a part of our holiday celebrations this year!

Thanksgiving - November 23. Are you a musician, poet, or performer? If so, please join us for our Volunteer open-mic after lunch, from 12:30-2pm! Our bellies will be full, but our minds will be ready for some fantastic talent. We also still need many of our Thanksgiving meal items. You can find an updated list on our website at dwcweb.org/howtohelp/thanksgiving.htm. Our other volunteer positions for this day were filled in record time, and we will be giving thanks for all of our friends who are thinking of us on this holiday!

Hanukah - Wednesday, December 13, 1:30-3pm. You are invited to our festival of lights! Come light the menorah, dance, and celebrate. We also need donations of jewelry gift items, chocolate gelt (gold coin candy), dreidls, 120 potato latkes, 2 large jars of apple sauce, 5 pints of sour cream, and 7 dozen doughnuts.

Gift Wrapping - Tuesday, December 19, 4-8:30pm. Make someone’s holiday bright by creating a beautiful wrapped parcel for her to enjoy Christmas morning! We also need donations of wrapping paper, ribbon, bows, and tape, as well as gifts – to be delivered by Monday, December 18. (See above for the holiday wish list.)

Christmas - December 24-25. DWC needs volunteers at our Christmas celebrations. Sign-ups for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day begin December 1.

Kwanzaa - December 26-January 1. DWC is planning a celebration centered on the concept of Kwanzaa, “the reaping of the harvest,” and shared community awareness with a special meal and daily recitations about the meaning of Kwanzaa. Have your group contact Brooke to be a part of coordinating a special day of family, community and culture!

Contact Brooke Lykins, Volunteer Coordinator, at brookel@dwcweb.org or (213) 680-0600 or check out dwcweb.org/howtohelp/holidayhelp.htm for more information on any of the above activities.

As you’ve read, there are many ways to support DWC this holiday season – you can make a donation or select a gift from our wish list; you can even shop online for your loved ones! In fact, shopping at an online charity mall enables you to buy the gifts you want from stores you already know and love, like Barnes & Noble, Best Buy, and Eddie Bauer, and a percentage of the sale price will be donated directly to the Downtown Women’s Center. So, before you brave the crowds at the malls this year, check out the deals at these charity mall portals, shop to your heart’s content, and support DWC: charitymalls.com, shopforcharityday.com, and musicforfundraising.com.Your gifts will bring cheer to all you touch this holiday season!

Thank you to all who made DWC’s 9th Annual Gala Growing Supportive Housing: Cultivating a Foundation for Housing and Lives a resounding success. Net proceeds exceeded $169,000 – over $50,000 more than last year! Photos – courtesy of Volunteers Sophy and Diep of Sweet Mango Photography – are available for viewing until the end of December 2006, at mysweetmango.com. Simply enter the Client Login for events held after August 2006, and enter the password “DWC.” You can order prints or simply enjoy the show!