Reading the names of the fallen at City Hall on Tuesday the 13th
All,
I’ve been pondering a non-confrontational and non-accusational (or at least only indirectly so) means of re-introducing the plight of the unhoused into the political dialogue of this city, and of increasing public awareness of the human cost of current city policies. To this end, I have conceived of the following action, to take place during Oral Communications during the City Council meeting on January 13th (this coming Tuesday):
Reading the names of the unhoused who died during the past year (all 46 of them - the list prepared by the Homeless Persons Health Project and read at the memorial on the 22nd of December) - see attached.
The list would be proceeded by reading the Summary of Available Data On Homeless Deaths in the County for the period December 21, 2002 - December 20, 2003.
The names would be divided up among the persons participating, and each would hold up the name of the individual (for the television audience) as they read it (along with their age). No other comments at the microphone would be made by the participants of any sort - simply walk up to the microphone, read the names, and then walk away. Let the list speak for itself.
My ideal would be to have 46 separate individuals speak, each walk up to mike for 20 seconds, read the name, then walk away.
Again, this is deliberately designed to be respectful of the fallen, non-confrontational, and non-accusational — the list of names itself, in my view, is condemnation enough of the City’s current policies of marginalizing and criminalizing the unhoused.
If you are interested in participating, please contact me (408-591-3342, thomas@thomasleavitt.org). If there is interest, and the event comes off well, I would like to periodically return to Oral Communications throughout the year, and have people speak a little bit about the life of each person (2 or 3 sentences) on that list, as a way of continuing to keep this issue in the forefront of the public consciousness (and that of the Council), and of humanizing and memorializing folks who were formerly marginalized and dehumanized.
Note: I will also be seeking participation by attendees at the OneDance summit that will be going on from the 12th through the 14th. Who knows what could happen as a result?
Further note: this may extend into a more permanent memorial, such as a “Memory Wall”, with the names of the dead engraved upon it (and space reserved for those who will pass on in years to come). If such a project interests you, please contact me.
Regards,
Thomas Leavitt
