Two Days After Obama's Election to the Presidency

Two days after Obama was elected president, I met a man named Rene at a bus stop in New Haven. Rene was originally from Canada, but served in the US military in the Navy during World War II.

Rene was concerned that the state was going to declare him incompetent by reason of insanity. So he was eager to have someone listen to his story. I had 45 minutes to kill til the next bus, so it worked out well.

As soon as I saw him, I wanted to photograph him. He had a peaceful yet powerful message to the world, and it was a message not far from how I’d been thinking about our country for a long while. For the past eight years, the country had gone to the dogs. Rene put it better than I could. His sign reads, “Good bye America. I didn’t leave. You did.”

When I asked if I could take his picture, Rene got very excited, almost beside himself with glee. He said he was going to shave his beard off that day, for the sake of the psych boards, and he’d really like to get a photo of himself with his beard. How convenient. He posed for several shots, then gave me ten dollars and an address and phone number to send them to. When I called the number the next day, it turned out to be the number for Amistad House, a home for homeless people in New Haven. The person at the other end said Rene had not lived there for over a month.

These are the three photos that best represent this semi-well-known stranger. A crusty old man, did time in the service, on his own and in his 80s. He said he never did drugs in his life. You be the judge. I ended up missing the next bus and waiting an additional hour.

©2009 ShiaPhotos/words

3/4 Photos for NPC Members' Photo Exhibition

These photos were taken the night I was arrested on 18th Street, handcuffed and locked up.


One of the two women arrested before me was roughed up needlessly when the handcuffs were put on.

"Roughing Alicia" 10/12/08 This is Officer Jevric assigned to Adams Morgan for over a year and (says he) doesn't remember anything from that night.



"Corrupt MPD Sergeant" 10/12/08
Corrupt is defined as making up a story that didn't happen and lying about it numerous times on the witness stand in front of a Superior Court Judge. That is what Officer Johnny Tubbs did on April 3rd this year in Judge Cushenberry's court.


Sergeant Johnny Tubbs tells me to get on the sidewalk here while he arrests two women. Two minutes later, I was in handcuffs too.


The sergeant said I opened a squad car door and photographed a juvenile inside in the middle of a crime scene. The prosecutor called this area "a crime scene" and with that fiction got 5 witnesses to agree. One witness was impeached on the stand when she claimed to be the arresting officer but had filled out PD forms to the contrary. The sergeant lied 178 times on the stand to back his original story. The judge said that story "made no sense."


"Alleged Crime Scene" 10/12/08

January 1st 2009 when the sun came up on Adams Morgan

6:00 AM
Looking down 18th Street from the window of Starbucks Coffee Shop at the corner of 18th and Columbia.







Adams Morgan was trashed that night, more than usual. Why? Because the Adams Morgan revelers had one more reason to trash and they knew they could get away with it.























In an old town house on 18th Street, Madame's Organ offered revelers space at a hefty rate. Perhaps those who paid so much expected to be picked up after, even where the space was public.


After the revelers left and the rats feasted, the birds move in.















Why is littering taken for granted here? Got any ideas?

It didn't make history, but it made us happy.

Mayor Fenty Cuts Red Ribbon; HD Cooke opens for a quick tour.

The school is not finished yet, but it will be finished before the students return at the end of August.

Jubilee Jumpstart/Ontario Courts Ribbon Cutting

April 23, 2009

They waited for the mayor to arrive. He was late. It was a ribbon cutting for a newly renovated low-income apartment building and 24/7 daycare center.











Well, symbolic ribbon cutting time. The ribbon was held by a Jubilee worker while the mayor smiled and cut it on the rent-a-stage.

On Police and Community Relations

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

After the ANC1c Public Services Committee, I was walking east on Columbia Road with Commissioner Mindy Moretti. We came upon an arrest in progress of a juvenile on Biltmore Street. The police were enmassed, 3 cars, several officers, including Officer Kurtz, our not-so-friendly until-you-get-to-know-him bicycle officer. After some time of scurrying around Biltmore, Officer Kurtz let us know that the young man was being held for a robbery. I am sure all that scurrying was important and related to the case at hand. However, isn't informing the community of the crime that occurred just as important? Mindy and I both knew they were busy and did not impede. We didn't even speak; just watched. Shouldn't the neighborhood officers know and communicate with ANC commissioners and vice versa? That kind of self-imposed separation from people who walk our streets seems counterproductive. It idoes not engender trust and understanding, two elements important to effective community policing. Gone are the days when Officer Friendly would know all the kids in the neighborhood because he met them in kindergarten. Maybe we can move forward to the days when community leaders can meet and know all PSA officers, and officers naturally inform the people about crime in the community. With greater trust and understanding the community would find it easier to share ongoing crime and public safety issues with police.

On Patriotic Hats, Private Property and Barking

The time was 3:15 pm in the 1700 block of Columbia Road Northwest. It was the day before the Fourth of July. Passing by the old Ontario Theater (now an unoccupied space) I noticed a man selling things outside the front door. Things they call chatchkis, a used football, two soccer balls and some dolls. I thought, “Hmm, private enterprise at its very basic best, long live capitalism.” I was on my way to pick up Daniela from the Horizons bus. On the day before the 4th, all the Horizons kids get red, white and blue hats. All those kids with patriotic hats, it's a great photo opportunity.

Walking from the bus stop with Daniela and me were a whole lot of the Bennett kids.














We stopped at the man’s corner of the empty building to look closely at what he was selling.

When I took my camera out, the man selling the stuff did not like it and began speaking unkindly. “You can’t stay here if I don’t want you to,” he said, “This is private property. I’m on private property. You can’t take pictures here if I don't want you to. This is private property.” The kids were all standing away from his stuff, just looking, not bothering him. I was photographing them with their cool hats on.

Turning to our annoyed ad hoc entrepreneur, I said, “Yes, it’s private property, but it’s not your private property.”

He accused me of disrespecting him. I told him I was not disrespecting him, and then asked the kids, “Was I disrespecting him?” They said no. I asked, “If anyone is being disrespectful to anyone here, who’s disrespecting whom?” Kia said, “He’s disrespecting us.”

When the man continued his rant, it sounded like barking. All of a sudden I heard real barking.


It was Juwan barking at the salesman as he was barking at us.










That gave us a rip-roaring laugh.











The poor fellow did not see the humor in Juwan’s barking. He started to talk (bark?) about Mississippi, and how he was treated there but he said he’s not going for it up here. He was standing up for his civil rights right there at the corner of Columbia and 17th.

The children were happy they got a good laugh without being disrespectful. As they were leaving the salesman complained one of them kicked his stuff. “Did you get a picture of that?” he asked. “Sorry,” I told him. “I wasn’t watching.”


“I know who you are,” he informed me. “I know who you are,” he repeated. “I’m your commissioner,” I told him. “I know who you are,” he repeated again, as we left.

“Happy Fourth of July”