Shout Magic is wrapping up our 20-track full length album and playing our last show this Friday in West Philly.

Check out this amazing cover art from Alina Josan!

Don’t ask, don’t tell?  Looks like it’s more than just abhorrent, hateful policy for our military.

John Leslie forwarded this piece from CNN:

‘My jaw dropped when the doctors told me that 41 percent of the female veterans seen there say they were victims of sexual assault while serving in the military,’ said Harman, who has long sought better
protection of women in the military.

‘Twenty-nine percent say they were raped during their military service. They spoke of their continued terror, feelings of helplessness and downward spirals many of their lives have taken since.

‘We have an epidemic here,’ she said. ‘Women serving in the U.S. military today are more likely to be raped by a fellow soldier than killed by enemy fire in Iraq.’

As of July 24, 100 women had died in Iraq, according to the Pentagon.

In 2007, Harman said, only 181 out of 2,212 reports of military sexual assaults, or 8 percent, were referred to courts martial. By comparison, she said, 40 percent of those arrested in the civilian world on such charges are prosecuted.

Sexual assault in military ‘jaw-dropping,’ lawmaker says

I can only imagine how difficult it must be for a soldier to report a rape.  The culture of the military (PDF) resents weakness, and to report oneself as a victim presents an enormous challenge.

Speaking of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”, the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network was in Philly this summer to help push the movement to end this policy.  Philly’s LGBQT community has been working for decades to help bring issues like this to light, which show us the inequities homosexuals face that are beyond marriage.

They still face an uphill battle.

Read more:

• The Rape of Latinas in the US Military - La Voz de Aztlan
• ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ Turns 15 - TIME
• Stop Military Rape
• The Private War of Women Soldiers - Democracy Now!

In the week leading up to our CD release, Make An Animal Noise, Grubstake has had some fun!

This past Sunday, we played a live set and had an interview with Jake Rabid and John Viteese from Y-Rock.  I’m working on getting an MP3 of the show up soon.  Grubstake also played live on Sunjay’s Brekky Shift Monday afternoon radio show on WKDU.

I put the lay out for the CD to bed around 4am this morning.  It is a pure pleasure, working for myself and setting my own schedule.

Pat also alerted me to a write-up for our CD Release show this Saturday in Philadelphia:

Grubstake

Sat., Aug. 2, 10pm. Free. With Dr. Tommy Thunder. Fergie’s, 1214 Sansom St. 215.928.8118. www.fergies.com Named for an arcane mining term, Grubstake have been hammering out mud-caked guitar-drum blues for about a decade now. Patrick McHugh led the band in Boston for much of that time before returning to his old stomping grounds in Philly and nabbing drummer/engineer Steve Bozzone to make a fifth album, Make an Animal Noise. It’s another gritty, ground-down outing, with McHugh hollering about TV dinners and other mundane miseries on “Delaware” and trafficking heavily in spite on “Sophisticated Whore.” Most garage-rock duos putter out when they cease to mix things up musically, but McHugh’s been around long enough to know when to throw a wrench into the works. (Doug Wallen) - Philadelphia Weekly

Grubstake has been a great experience, it’s been a good time working with Pat McHugh, playing random shows in Pittsburgh, Boston, Providence, NYC and Philly on weekends and putting together a CD.  Come catch my last show with the grubbers this Saturday at Fergies!

After for working in Camden, NJ for the past year, I’ve had the experience of visiting an impoverished, third-world country right across the Delaware river.  It is hard to describe it’s condition, but two recent local media pieces have tried:

From a recent Philadelphia City Paper article:

Most of Camden looks like the deadly Badlands of North Philadelphia during the crack epidemic of the 1980s and early ’90s — if not worse. While signs of rebirth sprout along the waterfront, whole swaths of North and South Camden are urban disasters reminiscent of Johannesburg, Rio de Janeiro and Kingston. Countless open-air drug markets occupy rubble-ravaged corners like bargain circuses, the blaze-eyed dealers momentarily turning their heads toward the sky and scratching their goatees whenever a police cruiser drives past. Newly organized gangs furiously murder off independent drug dealers in a battle for limited turf. And then there are the more mundane, but equally deadly, street operas, like the one involving Jason Santos, which play out almost nightly. - Who Will Pray for Camden?

And from local filmmakers, Camden advocates, and friends Sean Dougherty and Father Michael Doyle:

Poet of Poverty

I’ve been a big fan of graffiti and street art, since my time spent living in the Bronx.  What impressed me the most were street installations that spoke to the masses. Often, they were laced with commentary on current struggles in our world.  This is especially present in Europe, where political graffiti had remained notorious, even before the American style of throw-ups and production pieces became popular. These pieces ask us to consider our complicity in broken systems.

I met Swoon at the Allied Media Conference in Detroit and Bowling Green — she faciliated a workshop on stencilling and wheatpasting — it continues to be a personal reference on the realness of AMC. I didn’t find Swoon’s work to be explicitly political, until I had seen Portrait of Silvia Elena.

Swoon recently produced an installation regarding the ongoing mass rape and murder of women in Juarez, Mexico. It is located in a basement crawlspace, only accessible through a hole in the floor at Honeyspace, a radical arts space located in Chelsea, New York City.

The band At The Drive-In produced a music video based on the femicides in 2001.

I am a big proponent of using music and art for the process of healing, learning and justice. It is great when artists like Swoon and At The Drive-In have the ability to expose this injustice to the world. For emerging artists, art and music laden with political messages can be perceived as self-righteous, or a commercializaton of a ‘political rebel’ image.

In my own solo recordings, I try to explore themes I feel consciously while living in Philadelphia: murder, poverty, prisons and unending war. As an activist and artist, it is easy to become conflicted about where to put one’s energy. How does one focus in such a cluttered and broken world?

Murder in Philadelphia was my most serious concern for a time. The solutions are complex and involve attacking root causes of urban violence, which means we are a long way from relief. This is why folks in neighborhoods most affected by violent crime are looking for quick-fix solutions: police surveillance cameras and more arrests. These tools help one thing: catching criminals. This doesn’t change the mindset which causes someone to blow someone away over petty arguments. It is not preventative, it is not curative.

And it’s not drugs. Drugs do not beget violence as we’ve been programmed to believe. It is a symptom of the problem. Ihe drug economy is another resources for jobs, education, and mental relief when such resources are not provided otherwise. The ’straight path’ provided by our broken schools and a severe lack of jobs do not cut it. Are we supposed to be surprised?

It is complicated. It is the perfect energy for creative voices.

How can a song prevent a teenager from catching a bullet during a basketball game? If you believe in “Each-one-Teach-one”, then our collective understanding is developed by changing one mind at a time. Then the question of audience. If I’m only reaching folks who already feel safe in their neighborhoods, who don’t live in Philadelphia — does it really matter? It feels like parachute activism. We can write letters, send donation checks, have a conversation over breakfast — somehow it all feels too passive.

Perhaps we are best involved in local struggles, where we can listen to and actually touch each other. Issues we can identify with. This is troubling for middle-class activists, or those who are labeled as such, based on skin color or other orientation.

I learned this often when working street-level in North Philly. There is increased hostility and skepticism towards someone with white skin says they want to help — and this cynicism is justified. There are many complex and deeply embedded reasons for this which are for another day. What I have experienced in my work in Philly and Camden has been powerful. The more open, innovative and sustained an effort is, the more it establishes its credibility. To be clear, it is not simply a race thing, it is a perception issue based on class, intent and historical context.

As a friend recently said, you have to avoid leading the charge, and find your role in how to best support a community concern. I have found a role facilitating youth and adults in this creative process, and feel blessed. I consider this to be central to much of my work; to give a voice to the voiceless. Onward.

Hannah Sassaman forwarded this release:

June 13th, 2007. Philadelphia Police descended upon the home of homeowners who have been questioning police tactics in Mayor Nutters new “stop and frisk” program. 4 residents were arrested in their home at 17th street and Ridge Avenue, and the police are in the process of sealing the building. The homeowners are being held at the police station, no charges have yet been filed.

Homeowners had been circulating petitions calling upon Mayor Nutter and Police Commissioner Ramsey to attend community meetings on the use of excessive force, surveilance cameras, and the new “stop and frisk” policy. The mayor and police chief have declined to attend these community forums, but instead have seized the home and possessions of those who question “Stop and Frisk,” and are currently holding them in jail. While many civil liberties advocates and residents of affected neighborhoods have questioned the new police tactics, few imagined that
simple criticism of a city policy could result in the seizure of one’s home and subject residents to arrest.

And more from Philly IMC:

June 14th 8:10 AM Philadelphia. Homeowners were released from custody after being held without charges for up to 14 hours early this morning. The 4 were taken into custody yesterday after police arrived at their door without a warrant demanding entry to the premises. Upon being refused entry without the proper paperwork they arrested the homeowners and forced entry to the premises. After arresting the homeowners the police proceeded to call the Department of Licenses and Inspections which found the property in violation of various codes and permits and ordered the building cleaned and sealed. Homeowners were told they will have 1 hour at ten am to retrieve personal belongings before their home is sealed. Officials claim that the homeowners will no longer be able to access their property without violating a trespassing law. Police cruisers sat watch in front of the property all night long. Homeowners were released at 3:30 in the morning. Representatives of the homeowners will be present to make a statement while they retrieve some of their possessions. The police operation was led by 9th district Commanding Officer, Captain Wilson.

A couple things to note:

• The use of License & Inspections to penalize those who are ‘unpopular’ by well-connected persons is a hallmark of Philadelphia. Good people at the South Philly Atheneum were subject to this in 2005.
• The area around 17th & Ridge is at the edge of new development coming up from Center City, and there are many folks land-banking and holding onto delinquent houses in the area to cash-in during the next real estate boom. I used to bike up this way while working at the Teen Program. I’m not sure if this is the house, but it is representative of many of the houses along this strip:

The question is why now, and on what grounds did the Police and L&I have the right to perform this raid? There are hundreds of buildings in the area that have property violations.

It seems this was politically motivated, but remains unclear until further information is revealed.

Linn Washington Jr. writes:

Ramsey, in an unprecedented move for a Philadelphia Police Commissioner, quickly disciplined officers involved in that 5/5/08 beating, including firing four officers who Ramsey determined engaged in impermissible brutality.

However, internal Police Department documents about this beating incident expose problems far more pervasive than excessive use of force against unarmed persons – brutality that routinely occurs outside the glare of television news cameras.

Police documents in this beating case and several others show that police fail to follow supposedly standard operating procedures.

Equally egregious – documents detail how police fail at a core function for cops: being observant.

Police contend the three men shown in the beating video participated in a shooting prior to their frenzied arrest.

Continue Reading Philly’s Keystone Kop Follies: Police Brutality and Cover-Up

I missed this year’s ride while Shout Magic was recording our next CD in Sylvania, Pennsylvania. Last year’s ride was remarkably solemn and well-attended, despite the torrential downpour throughout the ride.

Bike deaths in Philadelphia can usually be counted on a person’s hands, yet each one is a tremendous blow to the bicycling community. There is a constant battle-for-your-life mentality when cycling on streets shared wit automobiles. Many, many drivers are calm, courteous and respectful, however there is still a predominant “Get off the road, asshole!” mentality that is pervasive in many drivers. Many of these struggles are shared by pedestrians as well, and this is within a bike-friendly, extremely walkable city.

It is frustrating when folks don’t understand that the road is to be shared equally. The same severity is faced by motorcyclists and pedestrians, all of which are considerably more economical than driving a car. I was always awed by the use of white, “Ghost Bikes” used in New York City to memorialize bicyclists killed while riding. I wonder why it has not been implemented in Philadelphia. Anyone have some junk bikes? I’ll bring the white paint.

On the narrow streets of Philadelphia 200 riders get noticed. On some streets bikes stretched for 3-4 full city blocks. Some pedestrians cheered us on, others may have mistaken the silent ride for Critical Mass.

The ride was held at 7PM in over 250 other cities around the world. www.rideofsilence.org

From The Philadelphia Biycle News Blog. Link to post.

John Boyle, from the Bicycle Coalition, reported the ride’s reception downtown beared some semblance to a Critical Mass ride, which I recently criticized for its poor representation of bicyclists.  It makes me wonder of the power, and practicality, of more organized rides such as the Ride of Silence.

The city (and the nation) rises up upon news of a murdered police officer in Port Richmond.

The city (and the nation) its head after watching video of three men brutalized by Philadelphia Police.

The city (and the nation) conducts business as usual the other countless times a Philadelphian is murdered.

The city (and the nation) is happy to look the other way for the countless violent encounters provoked by Philadelphia or Camden Police, when not documented by a video camera.

The picture is grim. Our collective emotion– well managed most of the time–soars upon news of a murdered police. There is a nationwide manhunt. A 24-7 vigil takes place at the scene as local media cover the story indefinitely. This is the apropriate response to a murder. Any murder.

In a week, many of this will settle down and we’ll go back to 1-inch write ups for the other 400 residents murdered while living in this city. It’s not even hot out yet and we’re already trying to remember if there were 7 or 9 murders last weekend. It feels like blowback. A blow from the continuous cycle of state-sponsored violence that pervades our world. I think about how the Greeks thought a natural disaster was the wrath of the Gods. Events in the world show legitimate reason to believe a greater force is at work.

It is a struggle to face the truth: the value of a person’s life is regulated by the media. If they don’t report it, we don’t care. If we don’t care, they won’t report it. Mainstream journalism is now based on what’s cool, what’s emotional — and not necessarily the stories that are the most shameful. You will never see an in-depth report on what is at the root of our citywide murders, broken school system, and our bloating prison system, while considering the war in Iraq costs ### (thank you Iraq War Cost) and oil companies are making 12-figure profits annually (apparently Exxon Mobil’s recent profit of $10.9 billion this quarter alone was disappointing).

Our cities will die if we don’t use our collective resources to create jobs, working educational systems and affordable housing. We are cows heading to slaughter, placated by $600 checks and gas tax holidays. We are not in control of our country. How will we rise up to dramatically change directions?

Clearly our non-profit sector is keeping the machine humming, not overhauling it. I ponder NGO’s involvement in the overall plan to keep the rich richer and the poor poorer. If we managed to properly treat and rebuild away from our current system of poverty, what would happen to the job sector providing 25% of jobs in Philadelphia? The career-based approach to movement building is not a sustainable one.

I hope to explore this topic further in future posts throughout the summer.

1. Cafe Veracruzana - South Philly
2. Pura Vida - Northern Liberties
3. La Lupe - South Philly

This post dedicated to Dave, who thinks ‘The Joint’ was actually a high-value, well-run establishment.