There is not enough hope for older people with disabilities who are looking for work
By Jack Bragen on There are many causes of unemployability. Being disabled and older, and not having a college degree are near the top of the list.
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The power of speaking up: how to use your voice in situations of injustice as a homeless youth
By Marisa Gonzalez on When a person in power makes you feel like you’re making everything up, it can feel easier to just walk away. But our voices are powerful, and we are our own strongest advocates.
Familiar strangers: One of the many funny things about city life
By Ace Backwords on Recently, my friend, the artist John H. Seabury, was talking on his Facebook page about this guy he’s seen for
The onset of schizophrenia: an inside perspective
By Jack Bragen on The following is a narrative of the onset of schizophrenia, told from the perspective of the individual who is in the process of becoming ill.
Reflections from a recovering meth addict
By Bobby Nobel on I think it’s safe to say meth ruined my life. At least for the time being. It changed my outlook on life and it changed people’s outlook on me.
For people with mental illness, jail should never be normalized
By Jack Bragen on People who violate our overly complex and needlessly punitive web of laws, when they do so due to being disconnected from reality due to a psychiatric illness, are suffering from an illness and they are not criminals.
The ‘secret homeless’
By Ace Backwords on Generally I like to think of myself as the “secret homeless"—you would walk right by me and never guess I was homeless.
My first holiday free, alone, and away from my prison family
By Jonathan Chiu on This year, I’m spending my first Christmas in 16 years as a free man, but because of the pandemic, I am again separated from my family. I feel the same loneliness I felt inside, but it’s by choice.
The final days of Jerkle, the wild turkey of the Berkeley hills
By Ace Backwords on I had a poignant moment at my campsite this morning. Involving those goddamn wild turkeys, believe it or not. My hated enemies. But as much of a nemesis and a pain in the ass they can be, I realized there was a bond there.
Late night on the Berkeley campus in the time of COVID-19
By Ace Backwords on When the Berkeley campus first went into lockdown, it was great for me. Because I had the whole campus to myself. But gradually, more and more people realized there was this big expanse of unoccupied green space right in the middle of the city. So more and more people are hanging out here every day.
A strange young woman appears on the Arcata street scene
By Ace Backwords on The street scene is like watching a movie. Except you only get the middle act of the movie. You don’t get the first act or the third act. You don’t know their life story—what led up to them being the people that they are. And you almost never find out how their lives turned out.
We were locked in our rooms due to COVID-19
By Gary Child on We were locked in our rooms due to COVID-19 but allowed to use the restroom with, at times, 10 to 15 inmates. We line up for meds four times a day at least 10 to 20 deep. If you ask the correctional officer (CO) to wear gloves, they’ll refuse your meds.