The pedagogy of access I read the piece on the LIHI controversy ["The Misrepresentation of Sharon Lee," RC, Oct. 26]. Thank you for some balanced and considered reporting. People who work for LIHI are accustomed to defining procedures and rules for something as basic as affordable housing. We can acknowledge they do good work, while still considering what it means when the "pedagogy of access" is unilaterally defined by the provider: Those who receive benefits have little voice. For once a disgruntled person has resources to amplify his frustration. And what does Ms. Lee do? Run and hide behind race baiting? Come on... This is not necessarily a smear, though it may look like one. Ms. Lee and her ilk receive salaries, are likely educated, living reasonably well-adjusted lives. People needing low-income housing are often fragile, alienated and otherwise compromised. In other words, give the guy his $99 deposit back. He's earned it. And if administrative types fear greater bargaining power on the part of disgruntled recipients, maybe consider if not for those in need, there would be no jobs and salaries for those at LIHI.
Sharon Alexander Seattle
Occupy Seattle spreads into neighborhoods The Occupy Seattle movement surpasses WTO's destructiveness while demonstrating Seattle's capacity for political activism. Organizers of OS have begun efforts to reach out to communities beginning with a presence at Ballard's farmer's market Oct. 23. Occupy Seattle's General Assembly voted to relocate its base to Seattle Central Community College. The shift will force OS to reanalyze its role and seek out new partners. In order for the Occupy movement to continue with legitimacy, it must orient itself with those most affected by the country's economic meltdown. In Seattle, indigenous American, African-American and Hispanic populations face the worst historic and systemic restrictions on economic opportunity. Zack Pattin, a member of the Tactical Working Group, agrees: "This is not a middle-class movement, but a working class one." As in the rest of the country, Seattle's Occupy movement rests on a balance between exponential growth and faltering decline. Regardless of the outcome, the city's political culture is undergoing a trial and, thereby, evolving. We are witnessing social change in the making.
Thayer Hastings Occupy Seattle