In the midst of it: Examining child poverty, ‘Invisible Child’ highlights the fragile nature of stability

Jobs, Journalism, Justice

Opinion

I feel like a kid again: I got a nickel to buy a Dr. Pepper from the cooler — thanks, Social Security!

By Dr. Wes Browning | January 4, 2023

PBS NewsHour had a hopeful segment called “Brief But Spectacular,” which was all about takes. There’s a company out there called Glass Half Full that recycles glass into sand.

I recall learning 60-plus years ago that glass comes from sand 60. OK glass comes from OK sand, and great glass comes from great sand, but it all comes from sand. So we are digging up sand, making bottles out of it and not putting it back. ...

TO: My future self FROM: My 2022 self

By Mae Dinero | January 4, 2023

Dear Self,

Man, it’s been a hell of a year, for sure. We said we were going to try out things we haven’t tried before and had the opportunity to. We had the opportunity to start our healing process, to perform our art, to show our coordinating skills. There was so much growth happening that it was overwhelming at times. There were times where we got tested, like people really were trying to get us out of character so bad that, if it wasn’t for God, we would have definitely moved based off of our emotions. Man — that shows growth. ...

A successful Winter Fund Drive, thanks to you

By Samira Khadar | January 4, 2023

Happy new year from all of us at Real Change!

We are excited to start off 2023 strong, and your contributions to our Winter Fund Drive ensure that. Together we raised $176,523!

Thank you for donating and uplifting our work.

After nearly three years of uncertainty and unexpected challenges, there is so much to celebrate at Real Change. Despite record-breaking heat waves, meme-worthy snow and ongoing health concerns, our community of supporters made magic happen all year long.

Vendor Program offered new work opportunities and community. ...

Feature

Real Change community members share their hopes, dreams and new year’s resolutions for 2023

By Guy Oron | January 4, 2023

What a year! From Omicron to Mpox to climate change and the midterms, 2022 was certainly eventful. In Seattle, Mayor Bruce Harrell finished his first year in office, the Mariners made it to the postseason for the first time in more than 20 years and we somehow had a historically rainy and gray spring, scorching hot and dry summer that stretched into October, a smoke season longer than the tenure of a British prime minister and vast sheets of ice pour down from the sky — suspending hundreds of flights and bus routes for a day. ...

A path to peace: Author Benjamin Abelow on ending the war in Ukraine

By Tobias Coughlin-Bogue | January 4, 2023

Dr. Benjamin Abelow’s clear, concise account of the United States and NATO’s largely unreported role in escalating tensions between Russia and Ukraine is an outlier in our discourse about the current conflict. The war is, to put it lightly, an incredibly polarizing topic. Something of a third rail, even, depending on who you’re talking to. But Abelow’s book, “How the West Brought War to Ukraine,” transcends the intense ideological debates surrounding the topic. ...

Arts

Cheap seats this January

By W. Barnett Marcus | January 4, 2023

In my experience, January is this funky-fresh, liminal space for regional theater. Dickens Season wraps up, springtime musicals are just starting to wake up with the sun and every year I find myself catching my breath for the month. Maybe one January I’ll perform, but this year I am perfectly content just watching. ...

Seattle

Swamped | Off the shelves

By | January 4, 2023

Swamped

The Duwamish River topped its banks on Dec. 27, flooding several homes and businesses in the South Park neighborhood and displacing some households, according to Seattle Public Utilities (SPU). The city is offering emergency housing to impacted households. ...

University of Washington Library workers authorize strike amid protracted contract negotiations

By Guy Oron | January 4, 2023

University of Washington librarians are fed up with poor working conditions and are prepared to strike, if necessary.

Since joining the union SEIU Local 925, UW Libraries and UW Press staff have been engaged in acrimonious bargaining with the administration. The university has been playing hardball, dragging negotiations on for more than a year. However, workers are determined to fight back. ...

Book review

In the midst of it: Examining child poverty, ‘Invisible Child’ highlights the fragile nature of stability

By Dave Gamrath | January 4, 2023

BOOK REVIEW: ‘Invisible Child: Poverty, Survival and Hope in an American City’ By Andrea Elliott | 2021 | Paperback, $20 | Nonfiction, sociology | Available at the Seattle Public Library

The United States has the second-highest child poverty rate of any wealthy country, after Romania. In recent years, many American cities have seen dramatic growth in homelessness, including Seattle. Much has been written about why poverty and homelessness have remained so pervasive in America. In her Pulitzer-Prize–winning book “Invisible Child: Poverty, Survival and Hope in an American City,” New York Times journalist Andrea Elliott provides readers a compelling understanding of just how bad things are and how challenging it is to break the cycle of poverty. ...

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