NO HEALING THIS BODY OF COLOR: ABOUT MICHELLE WILLIAMS

Thornton Kimes
Thursday, May 13, 2010;

NO HEALING THIS BODY OF COLOR: ABOUT MICHELLE WILLIAMS By Thornton Kimes

“My only assistance is my broken arm—which the doctor told me not to use,” Michelle Williams said, telling me about a situation that began in April 2010. Her left arm disrupted her ability to participate in POOR Magazine activities--and her life, which was already affected by her other arm’s disability and a chronic back problem making walking even a city block difficult.

Michelle, who lives in San Mateo County, called In Home Support Services, the program POOR Magazine’s Elder Scholar “Bad News” Bruce Allison has written about so often, to see if she could get any help. The IHSS people told her help would arrive in six weeks, about how long it takes for a broken arm to heal if you live the economic good life and everything goes your way. Michelle did what I’ve done after going to some agency for help and discovering they don’t have a clue what to do if you actually have immediate and urgent needs (like stable housing, food, rest…) —she hung up the phone.

The doctor told her not to put stress on that broken arm. “How is my arm supposed to heal?” Michelle asked. Her son, other family, friends, all are willing to run errands for her but their calendars are rather full of life’s demands too. How many near-homeless, semi-homeless (Single Room Occupancy—SRO—hotel dwellers like me) and actually homeless folks have I seen walking around San Francisco with a cast on a hand, an arm, a leg, (that “six weeks” becoming months)? An injury makes life even more of a challenge than it already is when you live below the level of the Middle Class that have gotten all the lip-service attention since the 2008 election became “It’s About The Economy Stupid!”

Bruce Allison, listening to Michelle, did what I often do, the Six Degrees of Separation zig-zag through the Internet. He was trying to find something for Michelle, and he found it. It is always frustrating trying to find anything in a city or county website, but Bruce discovered what the IHSS people didn’t know (or didn’t want to tell Michelle?)—The San Mateo County Commission On Aging has (a 1-800-675-8437 phone number) an emergency referral program.

Why does anyone have to wait for help? The “Big One” earthquake hasn’t happened, there hasn’t been a devastating fire, a horde of tornados, a tsunami, a hurricane, or a mega-mass casualty terrorism event. How many other Michelles are out there, their arm, leg, or some other body part temporarily or permanently disabled, waiting for someone to take them seriously and actually do something (efficiently, maybe even quickly) about the smaller, more personal disasters that happen every day?