The City Club of Cleveland Podcast

Quartez Harris is the author of the debut full-length poetry collection We Made It To School Alive, published by Twelve Arts Press. The collection eloquently centers the humanity of students of color while revealing how they establish self-worth and optimism in spite of a backdrop of structural barriers. A young poet from Twelve Literary Arts will read from We Made It To School Alive, followed by a conversation with the author.

As the nation continues its discussion of racism and policing, trans people are seven times more likely to experience physical violence when interacting with the police, and nearly half of all Black transgender people have been incarcerated. As we end Pride Month, how does this recent Supreme Court ruling intersect with the racial justice movement sweeping our nation and world? What impact will it have on the lives of the Black trans community?

The World Health Assembly has designated 2020 the International Year of the Nurse and the Midwife in celebration of the 200th birthday of Florence Nightingale. Dr. May Wykle is one of the nation's most distinguished nursing leaders, as well as an internationally recognized expert in geriatric and mental health nursing. She is also the first African American woman in nursing at major research university in the U.S.to have an endowed chair named after her. Join us at the City Club as she discusses the Year of the Nurse.

Erika D. Smith is a columnist for the Los Angeles Times writing about the diversity of people and places across California. Jamil Smith is a Senior Writer at Rolling Stone, where he covers national affairs and culture. In addition to being writers, the two have one other commonality - both were born and raised in Cleveland.\r\n\r\nAfter the killing of George Floyd at the hands of police, both journalists wrote about the racism and the race-based inequities embedded in America\'s systems and structures: American Plague and Cities are being destroyed. California clearly isn't as enlightened about race as we think.\r\n\r\nCurrently, Americans are experiencing a \"cascade of crises\" -- rising unemployment due to the coronavirus pandemic; increased risk of death, either from COVID-19 or policy brutality, both of which disproportionately affect the Black community; an increased militarized police presence in cities and towns where protests are prevalent, and a looming housing crisis.\r\n\r\nWhere do we go from here?

Black Americans have spent centuries working to convince others of their humanity and right to live. And yet, these last few weeks have taken a particularly devastating toll on the Black community. Deaths from COVID-19, a disease that has disproportionately killed people of color because of chronic inequalities in our healthcare and economic systems, surpassed 100,000. Breonna Taylor and George Floyd became the latest names added to an extensive list of Black individuals who died in the hands of police. And many of the protests following these murders were met with a militarized police presence and further police brutality.\r\n\r\nThe limited access to coping resources during this period of excessive stress is endangering Black lives even further. Black people are over seven times more likely to live in areas with limited access to mental health care. There is a dire shortage of Black mental health providers, and Black Americans are 20 percent more likely to report serious psychological distress.\r\n\r\nBlack mental health matters. In a community where discussion of mental health is already largely taboo and stigmatized, it is dire that we address mental health needs and provide resources and practices for surviving through this triggering time.

Launched in 2018, The Bail Project is on a mission to combat mass incarceration. By using a National Revolving Bail Fund, its community-based teams work with local partners to bring free bail assistance to thousands of people each year, reducing the human suffering caused by unaffordable cash bail, restoring the presumption of innocence, and building on the work of grassroots movements for decarceration. Join the City Club for a virtual forum this Friday with Robin Steinberg, Founder and CEO of the Bail Project.

Councilman Basheer Jones was elected to represent Ward 7 in November 2017, becoming the city's first Muslim council representative. He represents an area which includes the historic Hough district, as well as the St. Clair-Superior, Midtown, and AsiaTown neighborhoods. During his tenure, Councilman Jones led the charge for Cleveland to recognize Indigenous People's Day and called for reforms at the Cuyahoga County Jail. Most recently, he was one of the sponsors of a new resolution declaring racism a public health crisis in Cleveland.

Days of protest, the likes of which we haven\'t seen in decades, happened in cities, towns, and suburbs across the country. In Cleveland, a peaceful protest turned violent. Police, in an attempt to disperse demonstrators, sent flash grenades, canisters of tear gas, pepper balls, and wooden bullets into the crowd. The events of the last two weeks: the murder, the protests that followed, the violence that followed the protests, both in Cleveland and around the country, are all part of a historical pattern. And, they represent a culmination of all the consequences of the failures of government and the political and economic establishments to resolve those crises. What happens now? Are we, as a city, ready to finally confront racism? Can there be true change when it comes to dismantling our racist structures?

On Wednesday, June 3, Cleveland City Council passed a new piece of legislation to declare racism a public health crisis in the City of Cleveland. The legislation--sponsored by Councilmen Blaine Griffin, Basheer Jones, and Kerry McCormack--means that the city formally recognizes racism as a crisis that damages public health through discrimination. One year ago, Milwaukee, Wisconsin was believed to be the first city to declare racism a public health crisis.\r\n\r\nSimilar pieces of legislation are being presented in cities and states across the country. In Ohio, two identical resolutions will be introduced by the Ohio Legislative Black Caucus--one for the Ohio House and one for the Senate. According to the Centers for Disease Control, whenever a declaration of a public health crisis is made, systems need to be put in place to remediate the health crisis. What does that mean for Cleveland? How can we ensure that actual action is taken?\r\n\r\nCouncilman Blaine Griffin represents Ward 6, encompassing the East Side neighborhoods of Fairfax, Larchmere, Little Italy, Woodland Hills, and parts of Buckeye-Shaker, University Circle, North Broadway, Slavic Village, and Union-Miles. He is chairman of council\'s Health & Human Services Committee and sits on four other committees. Prior to serving on council, Councilman Griffin was Executive Director of the city\'s Community Relation\'s Board, which works to improve cross-culture relations throughout the city and oversees police/community relations and youth initiatives.\r\n\r\nJoins us for a conversation with Councilman Griffin about the resolution and a range of other issues.

After sheltering in place for nearly two months, Ohioans -- and Ohio\'s economy -- are beginning to emerge and prepare for a new reality. The public health and economic crisis brought on by the coronavirus has had dramatic and far-reaching implications. In response, Republicans and Democrats have proposed dozens of bills covering everything from paid family leave to the sales tax that people pay on personal protective equipment to increasing COVID-19 testing and tracing. But the pandemic has cost Ohio\'s government about $1 billion in lost revenue, resulting in Governor DeWine\'s announcement of $775 million in budget cuts over the next two months. As Ohio lawmakers return to work for the first time since March 25, what policy responses will be prioritized?