Hey Governor, It Takes Money!

How do we or the 'state' value work supporting vulnerable people - people with disabilities, the elderly, infants and children? Most of these groups of vulnerable people are supported by either the state itself or by private, nonprofit organizations who are paid by the state to take on that responsibility.

The people who take on this mission are hard working people, mostly young, mostly women, many people of color. They go by different titles, Nurses Aides, Certified Nursing Assistants, Teacher Aides, Instructors, Direct Support Professionals, etc. They perform tasks that range from personal care like bathing, toileting and feeding to more complex support around behavioral issues, employment training, community inclusion and independent living. The work is hard both physically and mentally. Sometimes care and support is total and other times the work entails helping someone learning to do things on their own, or teaching new skills. Then there's the paperwork, every 15 minutes to an hour - documentation, documentation, documentation. The people paying the bills want to be sure of course that the money is being spent correctly and wisely. In addition, due to issues of the potential for abuse or neglect, there is monitoring and reporting that might result in lengthy investigations, loss of pay or even in the loss of employment.

So back to the original question, how do we value this work? We tend to talk a good game. We make sure these people are talked about as wonderful, committed and special people, doing God's work, etc., etc. None of it pays the bills however. In the nonprofit sector, these employees make anywhere from $9 to $12 an hour on average. Their benefits vary based on the organization they work for. The state of NY, like other states, also continues to have employees who perform some of these tasks. Salaries tend to be higher in the government sector, sometimes close to twice as much as the employees of the organizations that the state contracts with. What a way to show value!

So now we have Governor Andrew Cuomo identifying one sector, the food service industry, as needing a review relative to a minimum wage increase. He has painted the industry as piggish with CEO's income in some cases exceeding $20M. No one on his staff has seemed to remind him, that people who he is responsible for funding, through contracts and reimbursement rates to nonprofit entities, are making barely more than current fast food industry employees. As a matter of fact, these agencies have in some cases fallen behind the food industry. Right or wrong, that is the reality.

So again, how do we value these hard working people in NYS who are supporting vulnerable people? It seems not much or to put it more crassly, obviously not as much as the value of a burger or southwest salad. How would you feel if you were treated this way? How would you feel if your economic stress was ignored while expectations kept increasing? The answer seems pretty obvious wouldn't you say?

A number of years ago and as a result of news articles about excessive salaries of CEO's at a few nonprofit agencies, Governor Cuomo tried to blame low salaries of direct support professionals on the high salaries of executives and administrators. As a result, he and the legislature capped CEO salaries in the nonprofit sector. That card has been played. It can't be played again Governor. The real issue is and always has been money and the direct level of reimbursement to agencies that government hires to do it's work. Priorities need to reflect that. Representatives of human service organizations and those advocating for them need to begin speaking up quickly and firmly, letting the Governor and the legislature know that these workforce issues need to be dealt with head on and that we all need to truly value the work of supporting vulnerable people. This has become an issue of economic justice for a sector of the workforce that needs more then just a good word.

Seneca Lake Protests & Arrests Continue

If anyone thought things had quieted down at the Crestwood Midstream proposed LP and Methane gas storage site on Seneca Lake, north of the village of Watkins Glen, let it be known, they haven't. After a period of no protests and no arrests, within the past few weeks, the human blockades of the gates at Crestwood have started up again, along with new arrests. The District Attorney and the protesters have been arguing about who broke a supposed deal that would have put a halt to the civil disobedience and arrests at the site - at least that's according to the DA. The protesters on the other hand had read statements at their court appearances that indicated that they continued to be committed to civil disobedience if necessary.

The most significant activity though occurred on May 13th when a group of 21 more people were arrested for blocking the site. Among those arrested was Josh Fox, the Director of the 2010 movie Gasland. The movie was nominated for an Oscar and is a documentary about hydraulic drilling known commonly as fracking.

Prior to his arrest and protest, Fox produced a short video which is presented as a call to action on Seneca Lake. Sandra Steingraber, one of the organizers of the group 'We Are Seneca Lake', participates in the video with Fox and helps describe the issues related to the gas storage in abandoned salt caverns beneath Seneca Lake. I'd encourage people to view the video here,  Josh Fox Seneca Lake Call To Action Video.

One of the major criticisms by local authorities, and in some cases the media, relative to the ongoing protests at Seneca Lake, has been that the participants are not local residents. Local is the key word here. It seems this is a tactic to pit residents against the protesters. Historically this is an argument that tends to be used by people in power when protests occur anywhere. Suddenly geography becomes the main criteria for protest. Outsiders, troublemakers, etc. is a way of minimizing and devaluing the people who are questioning authority at the time. I was reminded recently how Martin Luther King, Jr. was identified as an outsider, a communist, etc. In addition, he was told to stay in his lane when he began to question the Vietnam war.

In this particular case, playing the geography card doesn't seem to make a lot of sense, since the issue is the protection of drinking water for over 100,000 people in an area that includes many municipalities and multiple counties surrounding Seneca Lake. In addition, the continued use, storage and transport of LP and Methane gas in huge quantities is frankly a national and international, yes global issue. No one should be surprised about people from all over being concerned about this issue and Fox's call to action is bound to increase awareness and participation by people legitimately concerned about the environment from many parts of the country and possibly the world.

I certainly don't understand the logic of New York State banning fracking but then allowing the storage of fracked gas and the creation of a storage hub under a magnificent lake and in one of the centers of upstate tourism. The dots are very hard to connect. Much more to come I'm sure, perhaps at a theatre near you.

Gov. Cuomo Makes A Joke of Wage Issue

Governor Andrew Cuomo loves to be the first out of the gate. He seems to think speed equals being correct on progressive issues. Being first seems to be more important then being correct or truly leading.

Today he tried to get out front on the issue of a living wage. This is a huge issue and one that has to be addressed by political leaders on every level. He stood in NYC in front of unions and union members wagging his finger and belittling and shaming the fast food and restaurant industry about the paltry wages they offer to their employees in comparison to company CEO's. And of course he's right. There are CEO's at some of those companies making up to $23million a year. And yes, the average fast food employee may make about $16K per year. One of the Governor's arguments and where he showed real anger was when he discussed the fact that many of these employees had to take advantage of state and federal programs like Medicaid, food subsidies, etc. He was outraged that the state, yes government, was subsidizing these businesses by providing these benefits. So far he sounds pretty progressive, right? Standing up for the little guy. Beating up on those corporate scoundrels who are always taking advantage.

Cuomo has tried to get the NYS Legislature to act on increasing the minimum wage to a meaningful level but they've resisted. So he's trying to find a new way to accomplish it or to create the atmosphere for negotiations with the other branch of government. He announced that he's creating a wage board to review the issue of a wage increase for employees in the food industry. It will report, recommend and potentially act on a new wage structure for those employees in three months.

First, let's be clear. Those employees that the Governor identified and was talking about today do deserve better - much better - from all of us. But so do a lot of other people and the last thing we need, especially from a supposed progressive, is to create classes of employees. Those who get a living wage and those don't, etc., etc. Who'll referee that scenario.

In addition, the Governor should think and get some facts before he wags his finger at other people. There's a whole other group of employees that are possibly in worse shape than employees in the food industry and they are in that situation because of policies and funding issues developed and supported by the Governor and his administrative and executive staff. These people also, sometimes have to depend on benefits provided by the government and taxpayers. There are many, but let me identify some specifically. They're called Direct Support Professionals. They support some of the state's most vulnerable and important citizens - some of the people they support are pretty independent but some need total support. They support people with many different types of disabilities, some physical, some developmental and some behavioral. These support staff are hired by nonprofit agencies who are paid by NYS (the Governor) to provide these services. In most cases the rates the agencies receive are inadequate to cover the costs of care and support. In most cases these agencies and the supports they provide have been routinely reduced, transformed and cut. These are good people, the employees and the agencies, who deserve better from their corporate leader.

To add insult to injury, the Governor created a well intentioned investigative unit called the Justice Center that can force an agency and one of their employees to be out of work, unpaid for days or months while they try to figure out how to investigate charges of abuse and neglect. The bureaucracy that was created does less to control abuse it seems, but certainly helps people decide about their career choice.

Good intentions are nice. They help us align values. But more is needed then good intentions. If Governor Cuomo wants CEO's of private companies to step up, if he wants the Legislature to step up, if he wants non profits to step up, he needs to look in the mirror and step up himself. He needs to put his money where his mouth is. He needs to recognize that the state of NY has to provide resources to pay people a decent and living wage especially when they are supporting people and doing work that the state has a responsibility to provide.

The Power of Protest & Memories

Last week marked an important time in history. On April 30, 1975, Vietnamese Communist forces captured the South Vietnamese capital of Saigon, signaling the end of decades of warfare that tore apart the country. In addition, the week also marked the anniversary of the shootings at Kent State University. The history of the war in Vietnam is an important one to recognize and recount accurately. The history of the anti war and peace movement is also important to review, recognize and account accurately. There are many lessons from the Vietnam era that should have served us well as people took us down the path to war in Iraq.

I was able to spend time in Washington, DC this past weekend, meeting with many other people who protested and acted against the war in Vietnam. Here's a link to an article that appeared in the NonProfit Quarterly that sums up the events pretty well - NonProfit Quarterly - Vietnam: Memory & Silence.

The article not only discusses what went on, but also talks about the importance of memories, history and learning. One of the things I did while I was there was to participate in a video project that is recording and archiving personal stories and histories from that time period. It's an important project because history does tend to get revised - by the government, historians, etc.

I also had the opportunity to meet up with and reconnect with some old friends from that time period. We were able to reminisce, share stories and laugh about some of our experiences. It was good. We marched from the New York Ave. Presbyterian Church to the Martin Luther King, Jr, Memorial. Old protesters with bad knees and bad feet, still letting people know that war can be a huge mistake and that people need to speak up and act. The lessons of Vietnam are very real and they should be taught and re-taught every time we think about justifying another war.

When all of the activities were over I was also able to spend a day with my sister, my brother in law, my niece and her husband.

We're home again, understanding a little bit more about how war, the environment, youth and the power of protest are all connected. Seneca Lake sits out my window looking solemn with grace and changing colors, waiting for the wind to whip her up again. Glad to see her and know she's strong.