What Dignity of Work means to me when OBAMA said it many times- or is there an underground railroad in skid row

Where were you when Barack Obama accepted the nomination for the Democratic Party's candidate for president of the United States? Wasn't it a historical event? Tears welled up in the eyes of many Americans whom I assume know that this will be a drawn out battle, with both sides battling for the white house not throwing punches that would normally be thrown into the fracas of public opinion.

As I stood in the loft of DANIEL BANALES, a small business owner in Downtown Los Angeles ,listening to Barack Obama Speak, Obama spoke the words of how the DIGNITY OF WORK is important. What did I hear when Barack Obama spoke those words? I heard the word freedom.There is a movement in skid row in Downtown Los Angeles to fight the dependency that these social service providers have us here clinging to . Many providers are changing their ways, but some refuse to get with the program. The biggest problem is that they always need money to implement any program, specifically for the purpose of creating an opulent salaried position. We, living in skid row, know that as we continue to speak up and say that just because we have disabilities or are poor we also want to work towards some semblance of self-reliance or outright work that provides dignity knowing that the providers have to listen.

First of all, those of us living here understand the principles that are used by these housing providers to keep from doing that which will provide us dignity.


1. They create a privileged class that is dependent on the providers and feed from their tables. Thus this privileged class will always keep the field class in step and under control.

2. That is the bottom line. The providers use the stronger to oppress the weaker. The way this works is to keep the weaker quiet about how the executives are actually running things in skid row. The stronger privileged class will then claim how good their masters are.

a. They provide this by providing them with free housing, air conditioners, hiring their family members. Backing up the employees retaliation against tenants . Buying employees into speaking against tenants and employee may not like or who has the ability to sue them and win.. The list goes on and on.


IS there an underground railroad that is leading many of us to freedom? Many of these social service providers will not allow the people in skid row to participate in their skill building opportunities unless they are a part of their discipleship programs or are living in the Missions,the housing providers do none of that. Some of that is about to change , primarily because the residents are speaking out that we want other opportunities and asking them if they will help us, if not, then we will do it on our own. We aren't just throwing stones, we are also working with these groups to create better opportunities that will lead to dignified work.

The recent addition of the Central City East DASH bus will add to people who are not disabled or do not qualify for the reduced fare on the MTA to connect with other DASH service to go to school. This Central City East DASH bus is very important, it will improve the lives of those who find themselves isolated in skid row because of the high price of bus fare allowing them to get to places such as voc rehab, worksource,and schools like Los Angeles Trade Technical College. It will allow people who find themselves in skid rows sro's able to find avenues and access those avenues to become self-reliant instead of the cycle of in and out of every program here.

General Jeff wrote an editorial in the Garment and Citizen on this topic:

Thanks for thinking enough about Skid Row to address the situation and spark a dialogue that’s necessary if real answers are ever to be found.

You mentioned jobs and the rehabilitation and training that would be necessary for the potential employees from Skid Row. My question to you is this: Isn’t that what the missions and other so-called social service providers are already supposed to be doing?

It is time that we start to hold the missions and the so-called social service providers accountable for their actions, or lack thereof. A lack of accountability is the very reason that Corporate America doesn’t want to get caught up in the tangled web of Skid Row. Corporations would have to spend much of their profits on additional services for employees who would carry the “high-risk” label even before they were hired.

These days, with a slow economy, companies won’t be easily swayed into helping the underprivileged without some type of additional offsets, tax breaks or other incentives.

At this point, I don’t hear anybody—not the politicians, the developers, the social- service providers, the media, or anybody else—even attempting to address these challenges and come up with legitimate and viable solutions to the negative conditions in Skid Row as we know them to exist today.

General Jeff

Resident Director-Central City East

Downtown Los Angeles Neighborhood Council

The underground railroad to the dignity of work, freedom, will continue. It is as if in the past every step the people took in this community when speaking that they wanted to learn things other than sweeping the streets and get on their feet because of those skills to be able to have that dignity these providers fought us. IF we were to do these things on our own, then they are not needed and they lose funding. People working in the social service providers lose their jobs and their pensions if we do the things we need to do on our own.

Many of us want that dignity, but our housing providers refuse to help us find that avenue. I forsee the rescue missions coming to our rescue in the near future.

Barack Obama spoke well about the dignity of work. But to me it wasn't the sound to action it was my longing for freedom that I felt when he spoke those words. This has been my goal for some time now ; to gain the advantage of being self-reliant and having that dignity . I will not go out like a punk!!!

I am also a part of the underground railroad to freedom!!!