And The Winners Are : 2021 Food Truck and Drink Awards

And The Winners Are…: 2021 Food Truck and
Drink Awards

Monday evening, beer flowed, fries sizzled, waffles crisped and music drifted in the breeze at the 2021
Motif Food Truck and Drink Awards ceremony. Over 220 culinary fans made the trek from all corners of
RI to the R1 Entertainment Center parking lot to celebrate and raise a glass to some of the best mobile
food, and the tastiest drinks from around the Ocean State.

The biggest winners? Frisky Fries and Revival Brewing. But really, there were so many other
notables… Scan the winners list to find out where to next nosh and eat. (If your fave’s not there, next
year get out the vote!)

We want to thank the tremendous positive vibes from our musical entertainment, The Unlikely
Strummers, a ukulele band that wrote custom serenades for some of their own favorite trucks, and
Man & Wife, the Americana duo of Kris and Tara Hansen who recently won Favorite Americana Act in
the 2021 RI Music Awards.

We’d also like to thank our generous sponsors who make everything possible: R1 Indoor Karting,
Blackstone Valley Brewing, Jerry’s Artarama, Barnaby Castle, Miravella and the generous town
of Lincoln.

Our amazing volunteers included Rico Lanni, Gary Janczynski, Jade Sisti, Bradly VanDerStad,
Mark Binder, Paul Rochford, Katelyn Van Pelt, Ken Bowdish, Pieter Martens, Francie
Eannarino, Caitlin Howle, Shawn Tetrault, Deven Vussey, Amadeus Finlay and Michael Bilow.
Presenters who braved the pronunciation of RI food and brew names included the Unlikely
Strummers, Frank Mullin of PVD Oyster Fest, brew writer Gina Mastrostephano, Gary J, Mark B

and Rico L, Laura Afonso from Buns & Bites, John Kelly from rho.delicious and Patty J from
PattyJ.com. And of course, our MCs Eric Weiner and Jenny Currier.

Finally, thank you to the brewers who provided samples, including Narragansett, Foolproof,
Buttonwoods, Beer on Earth, Union Station Brewery, 12 Guns and Sowams Cider Co., to the
trucks who served, including Haven Brothers, Bonetown, Atomic Blonde Ice Cream, Poppy’s
Waffles and Juice Junkie, and to all the brewers and food truckers who came out to support the cause!

Here are your favorites – thank you for voting, if you were able to!

food truck awards
FAVORITE BURGERS

Bonetown BBQ & Burgers

FAVORITE HOT DOGS/SAUSAGES

Haven Brothers

FAVORITE BBQ

Bonetown BBQ & Burgers

FAVORITE FRENCH FRIES

Friskie Fries

FAVORITE GRILLED CHEESE

Championship Melt

FAVORITE CHICKEN WINGS/FRIED CHICKEN

Ming’s Asian Street Food

FAVORITE SANDWICH-LIKE OBJECTS

Twisted T’s

FAVORITE SEAFOOD

Blount Seafood

FAVORITE OTHER ETHNIC TRUCK

The Ish

FAVORITE TACOS

Paco’s Tacos

FAVORITE LATIN INFLUENCED TRUCK

La Guaguita Del Sabor

FAVORITE ASIAN INFLUENCED TRUCK

Ming’s Asian Street Food

FAVORITE ITALIAN INFLUENCED TRUCK

Bird’s Nest Italian Street Food

FAVORITE VEGAN/VEGETARIAN

Like No Udder

FAVORITE BREAKFAST & BRUNCH

Poppy’s Waffles

FAVORITE COFFEE

Presto Strange O Coffee

FAVORITE DESSERT

Black Dog Donuts

FAVORITE DESSERT: CUPCAKES

Jo Jo’s Cupcakes

FAVORITE DESSERT: FROZEN

Del’s Lemonade

FAVORITE FOOD TRUCK WITH STOREFRONT

Friskie Fries

FAVORITE GRAPHICS

Friskie Fries

FAVORITE NEW TRUCK

Black Dog Donuts

FAVORITE MENU ITEM NAME

Basil & Bunny: MMMBop Tarts

ALL WEATHER WARRIOR

Poppy’s Waffles

UNIQUE OFFERINGS

The Hot Potato

FAVORITE LOCATION/FESTIVAL

Food Truck Friday Carousel Village

FAVORITE POP-UP

A Guy and His Pie

FAVORITE PORTABLE NOT-QUITE-TRUCK

Tricycle Ice Cream

FAVORITE FORMER TRUCK

Rhody Roots

FAVORITE OUTDOOR TREAT (NOT A TRUCK)

Iggy’s Doughboys (Various)

FAVORITE LOCALLY PRODUCED FOOD

Venda Ravioli lobster ravioli

FAVORITE NEW RI FOOD PRODUCT

Butterbang croissants

FAVORITE BELOW THE RADAR CATERING

401 Gourmet

FAVORITE FARMER’S MARKET

Farm Fresh RI

OVERALL FAVORITE TRUCK

Friskie Fries

drink awards
FAVORITE BELGIAN

Night Swim’Ah by Revival

FAVORITE DIPA+

Captain’s Daughter by Grey Sail

FAVORITE IPA

Object Permanence by Buttonwoods Brewery

FAVORITE KOLSCH

Rhode Island Blueberry by Newport Storm

FAVORITE LAGER

The Lightest Beer We Have by Beer on Earth

FAVORITE PALE ALE

RISE by Whalers

FAVORITE PALE ALE: BLONDES & CREAMS

Debut Single by Moniker Brewery

FAVORITE PILSNER/PILSENER

Bohemian Pilsener by Buttonwoods Brewery

FAVORITE PORTER

Raincloud by Foolproof

FAVORITE REDS & BROWNS

Tommy’s Red by Trinity Brew Pub

FAVORITE SOUR

Be Fruitful Blueberry Sour by Smug

FAVORITE STOUT

Coffee Milk Stout by Ravenous

FAVORITE WEISS & WHEAT

I Am A Raspberry Donut Berliner Weisse by Beer on Earth

FAVORITE MISCELLANEOUS BEER

Blueberry Bloem by Long Live Beerworks

FAVORITE SELTZERS+

Del’s Rhode Island Hard Tea by Narragansett

FAVORITE LABEL ART

Heavy Metal Parking Lot by Beer on Earth

FAVORITE WHISKEY

Uprising by SOL

FAVORITE GIN

Ornamental Gin by ISCO

FAVORITE MISCELLANEOUS SPIRITS

Limoncello by RI Spirits

FAVORITE BEER FEST

RI Brew Fest (PVD, January)

FAVORITE DRINKING SPACE

Tilted Barn

FAVORITE POP UP

Trinity Beer Tent

Critics’ Choice: Liquor

White Dog, Cornucopia Whiskey

Critics’ Choice: Beer

12 Guns, The Meg Blonde Ale

Critics’ Choice: Wine

Newport Vineyards, In The Buff (unoaked chardonnay)

Overall Favorite Brewer

Revival Brewing

Artivism that Illuminates: The Womxn Project
Makes History Present

Did you know that CVS has donated more than $70,000 to politicians in Texas who support anti-abortion
and anti-justice legislation? The Womxn Project is calling them out with a grass roots activism
campaign that encourages making a protest sign, and posting a picture in front of a CVS.

The Womxn Project grew out of a response by a small group of women in South County who saw Roe vs.
Wade being challenged at the federal level. Knowing that 52% of white women voted for the Trump
administration, Jocelyn Foye, artist, activist, and Womxn Executive Director and the other founders felt
it was important to start educating and organizing to inform more women about the harmful impacts of
legislation on women’s health. The organization today is a multi-cultural, multi-racial group, which
seeks to lift up marginalized voices, and bring attention to pressing issues.

Their most recent artivism project is Illuminating The Legacy of Slavery in Rhode Island Projection and
Performative Reading series. Foye says it was inspired by former House Speaker, Nicholas Mattiello’s
ignorance around fundamental issues. When a referendum was put forth to remove “Providence
Plantations” from our state’s name, Mattiello declared that he wasn’t sure slavery really existed in
Rhode Island. When a bill was put forth by Senator Harold Metts to commemorate Juneteenth, Mattiello
said, “Juneteenth…I apologize…I don’t even know what you are talking about..”

With so little understanding of our past history, acknowledgment of our history of slavery here in our
state, and how that ties in with where we are today, the Womxn Project felt they needed to do
something immediately. The night of Mattiello’s remarks, the group utilized the activist art form of
projecting images and printed texts, onto Mattiello’s office building in Cranston with statements like,
“Privilege is Power. Use Yours To End Racism,” and a list of slave traders from Rhode Island, with the
DeWolf family of Bristol, at the top of the list.

The current Illumination series expands upon another guerilla-girl style pop-up projection event that
took place on July 4th, at the DeWolf Tavern and Linden Place in Bristol, which was a point of entry for
slaves arriving in the Bristol/Newport area during the North Atlantic slave trade.

The projection caused a stir in Bristol with some residents concerned this history wasn’t based on fact,
and uncomfortable by the uncovering of this untaught history that has been kept hidden for so many
years.

Inspired to dig deeper and uncover more truths about slavery and colonization, the Womxn Project went
looking at the municipal level. Among the scattered and messily kept records, they found information
about redlining (the practice of restricting mortgages in non-white neighborhoods) and even an
unmarked Native American burial ground in Cranston.

Scholars, artists, writers, creative writers and performers came together for the first “public art
intervention” on August 26th, at the site of University Hall on the grounds of Brown University. Built in
1770 using at least four enslaved African and Native American people’s labor, the piece acknowledges
how slave labor built Rhode Island’s infrastructure and economy. On this night, audience members
gathered in front of University Hall while performer, Catia, read a script on the local slave trade,
informed by scholar, Marco A. McWilliams, and written by poet, educator, Marlon Carey. All the while,
text projections by artist, Devon Blow, illuminated behind Catia, making pronouncements, such as,
Who Still Profits From This Labor?.

Daria-Lyric Montaquilla, a Board Member of The Womxn Project, an organizer, and actress, said that
working on the Illumination series, was “a passion project that will shed light on the erasure of local
history, particularly of the enslaved people who helped to build Rhode Island. Their legacy is in the
infrastructure at Brown University, in the ground we walk on in Cranston, and the mills we think bring
us our New England charm in South County.”

The second performance took place in front of the Neighbor Works building in Woonsocket on August
30th. That night focused on the overlooked story of Frederick Douglass’s anti-slavery convention in
Woonsocket Falls in 1841, where he and local abolitionist, Abbey Kelley, were attacked for delivering
their message. The final performance of the series will be held in Cranston on September 20, where
attendees will roam to three sites. These locations will be disclosed to registered participants on the day
of the event., since the nature of this public art intervention is to reclaim each site in this convergence
of art, and a truthful, inclusive history. The Womxn Project hopes the collective witnessing of the
Illuminations series, can move us to acknowledge, repair, and re-envision a just way forward.

As photographer, Anna Gallo, said, this series “beautifully ties together spoken word, visual art, and
community in a brief but powerful moment. So often we forget or excuse wrongs in history over the
passing of time, but these events remind and teach us to, ‘know your past to fight for your future.’”

To learn more about The Womxn Project, visit their site at www.thewomxnproject.org

The third Womxn Project Public Art Intervention will be held, Monday, September 20th at 8 pm in
Cranston. Register here:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSddDzTBuTo0yDh2CiPqcpVxoo14TS5YjZIr38WfrlO8Xjj73g/a
lreadyresponded

It will also be streamed Facebook Live, making the performance accessible for all.

To take action against CVS for its support of “anti-justice” lawmakers in Texas, visit

https://thewomxnproject.org/cvs-anti-abortion-anti-justice-agendas/

Wendy Grossman is a writer, poet, and blogger on cross-racial connection, racism, and whiteness at
www.wendyjanegrossman.com
Photo credits: Anna Gallo, www.annahopegallo.com

Toward Enshrining Roe v. Wade: Texas Law
Backfires

Last week hell froze over as RI Congressional Rep Jim Langevin came forward in an editorial supporting
a woman’s right to choose (Providence Journal, September 9, 2021). In case you missed it, the Texas
legislature has enacted legislation essentially putting bounties on women who opt to terminate a
pregnancy after the first six weeks.

As a result, Langevin, who has long opposed a woman’s right to choose, has become a co-sponsor of the
Women’s Health Protection Act, meant to protect women’s rights to safe and accessible abortions
throughout the United States.

“Faced with the reality that Roe might no longer be the law of the land in a few months,” Langevin
wrote, “I have come to the conclusion that I cannot support a reality where extremist state legislators
can dictate women’s medical decisions. At the end of the day, we have to put our trust in women.”

Bravo, Rep. Langevin!

Thank You, George Wein: What his legacy
means to the life of a local jazz musician

My first few years at the Newport Jazz and Folk Festivals were spent standing behind a cart, selling ice
cold drinks to festival attendees. I’d chase the shade with my umbrella, while listening to legends and
newcomers play, and daydream about what it must look like from up there on the historic stage. As I’d
count change and try to get through the long lines of people waiting to buy water or soda between sets,
occasionally I’d look up and see a golf cart moving slowly down the path with a little sign on the
windshield that read “The Lean Green Wein Machine.”.

George Wein, art by Charlie Hall

All day I would see George Wein in the passenger seat, riding back and forth trying to catch as much of
each performance as he could, going to meet with someone or doing the work that needed to be done to
keep the festivals operating. Every so often he’d stop near where I stood so he could sit with the folks
and take in the music. I’d watch him smile and bob his head in time, enjoying the fruits of his long, often
arduous journey to secure these festivals’ rightful distinctions as the first and most important in
American music history.

So much has been said about his life already. In his early days, he was a determined self-starter, a
visionary who changed what musical festivals could be. Later, he became a courageous ally, who sought
to use his platform to advance racial justice and equity in an industry with a poor record of inequality
and outright abuse. The tributes all talk of his casual but electric personality, how admired he was by
those who knew him, and how much love he had for the music he helped foster in the world.

I never got to meet Mr. Wein, which may have been good for both our sakes. I’m sure I would have
stumbled over my words as I delayed his golf cart, trying to tell him how important his festivals are to
me. Both the Jazz and Folk Festivals provided me with enough inspiration to keep the wheels on my
dream greased for another year. I am so glad that he decided to take a chance on starting these
festivals in a little seaside town down the road from where I grew up. Without his legacy I probably
wouldn’t be trying to chase mine.

I like to think that one day as he drove by my cart, he looked and saw me — a teenager standing in awe
at the majesty of the moment unfolding, a young musician his mouth agape in wonder at the music and
revelry surrounding him. George might’ve smiled to himself knowing that he was reshaping yet another
person’s life as he sputtered off in “The Lean Green Wein Machine”.

Ben Shaw is a local composer, performer, and writer. Find him at benjaminshawmusic.com and on
instagram at @benjaminshawmusic.

Open Door Decor

Open Door Health, an inclusive healthcare facility in PVD, in collaboration with The Avenue
Concept, recently unveiled a new mural. The mural, created by renowned queer artist Brian Kenny,
features his signature line drawing style. The interconnected line drawings incorporate LGBTQ+
iconography and plants native to Rhode Island, depicted in the colors that appear on the trans flag. See
more of Kenny’s work @briankenny and read our profile of Open Door Health at
motifri.com/opendoorhealth.

Patriot Games: An incomplete pass of the
baton

This column is for non-sports fans who would like some enlightenment and hopefully humor without
being sports fanatics.

“Who needs Tom Brady? We’ve got Cam Newton!”

Trust me, those are words you are never going to hear from a New England Patriots’ fan, no matter how
die-hard they are.

Now that it appears Newton will remain the Pats’ starting quarterback, we are waiting for the 500-
pound safe to fall on his head sometime before the halfway point of the season. While Bill Belichick may
be enraptured by Cam, when Newton’s name comes up, the vision of passes thrown into the dirt at a
wide open receiver’s feet is the first image that pops into a loyalist’s head. He made few friends (save
for Belichick and some of his teammates) with his performance as QB last year — the Pats staggering
along while Brady and the Buccaneers were winning the Super Bowl.

Both Belichick and owner Robert Kraft must have been mortified and embarrassed when Tampa Bay
earned Brady his seventh Soopah Bowl ring when they blew out the Kansas Chiefs in the Big Game,
31-9. While Brady was exceptional, people overlook the fact that the Bucs didn’t allow the Chiefs a
touchdown, despite having the second best QB in the NFL, Patrick Mahomes, who will likely inherit the
Master of the Universe title from Brady, if the latter ever decides to retire.

But it was more the loss of Brady, tight end Rob Gronkowski, the ex-retiree/refugee who caught two TD
passes from Brady in the Super Bowl and the retirement of the beloved (and a Super Bowl MVP for the
Pats) Julius Edelman that have Pats fans looking over their shoulder about what comes next. The loss of
the trio was like KO punches to New England faithful, with the Bucs’ astounding win under Brady a
Connor McGregor kick to the head once they were down.

To be fair, which normally doesn’t affect anything in On the Ball and Off the Wall, Newton had some
excuses. Few who could be relied on to regularly catch the ball (see Harry, N’Keal). A defense that was
kicked in the cojones by the season’s loss of star linebacker and leader Dont’a Hightower (COVID
avoidance), the very good safety Patrick Chung (ditto) and others who strayed elsewhere (take a bow,
LB Kyle Van Noy, back in the Pats’ fold this year after bailing out to Miami for one year).

But Newton’s lack of skill in passing, and having the Pats have to move from a sculpted Brady passing
game to accommodate Newton’s deficiencies and instead rely on his not inconsiderable running skills
had to be tough on everyone. This for an offense in which Brady’s idea of yardage on the ground was a
quarterback sneak, and the only times he ran was probably into wife Gisele Bündchen’s arms.

But, and a very big but, New England drafted Alabama quarterback Mac Jones in the first round this
year, right after he led the Crimson Tide to a national championship in 2020. This is the type of
pedigree local fans want to see in a QB, as etched in stone by Brady’s almost fictional rise to stardom.
Pats’ fans were rushing to hold the door open for Newton to exit and hoping Belichick would hand the
keys to the kingdom over to Jones. Nowhere was that more evident than in the first preseason game

against Washington when Jones was put on the field in the second quarter to rousing cheers from the
homies. The distrust of and distaste for Newton could not have been more apparent.

Despite the public display of affection for Jones, Belichick — he of the legendary brass neck and hard
head — is committed to Newton being his starting quarterback, rather than put faith in the rookie. This
will not sit well with the great unwashed in their Pats replica jerseys, and the only one giving Cam more
room than one bad game to have him replaced by Jones is Big Bill.

This may be the figurative Game of the Year for the Patriots, seeing how long they will tolerate enraging
mistakes and numbing lack of NFL football nous from Newton before simply having to throw Mac Jones
into the fire. If the Pats are looking to head for another humiliating (to the spoiled fans) 7-9 record,
Coach Belichick may want to worry about being not the G.O.A.T., but rather the goat.

If You Lived Here, You’d Be Home by Now:
Combating brain drain in the Ocean State

Rhode Island has yet to shake the common assumption that while the state is a great place to study (and
visit), it is a bad place to remain. Commonly referred to as the educational “brain drain” — the problem
of thousands of college graduates setting sail for greener pastures the moment they are handed their
diploma — this notion has remained a sticky cliche in conversations about the state’s future. As RI
struggles to recover from high unemployment and economic stagnation, the question arises: Is Rhode
Island losing its minds?

Rhode Island Commission on Postsecondary Education commissioner Shannon Gilkey said that many
people misunderstand the brain drain debate. Often, students came to the state to study with no plans
to stay. The trick is to convince them to take a closer look at what Rhode Island has to offer.

“It’s a destination state for higher education,” said Gilkey. “We must hang onto that talent by making
sure it is affordable for young people to live here. You have to make the state an attractive place to stay.
That, to me, is improving housing and training opportunities. We know that employers are looking for
talent right now. So, it’s a holistic approach.”

Gilkey added that the twin scourges of housing shortages and high student debt are often the catalyst
for graduates leaving the state. But there are initiatives underway, such as the R.I. Promise free
community college program, to help combat at least one of those problems.

Another program is the Wavemaker Fellowship, which awards graduates working in STEM and design
jobs in Rhode Island with a refundable tax credit that can cover student loan payments up to $6,000 per
year for up to four years, and the Ocean State Grad Grant pays up to $7,000 of a recent college
graduate’s home down payment.

In 2015, responding to a flood of negative media coverage depicting millennials as self-involved loafers,
Travis Escobar founded Millennial RI, an advocacy group that works to both combat the misguided

stereotype and foster networking opportunities for his generation. They are active in Smith Hill politics
and host meet-ups and workshops throughout Providence, to shore up progressive initiatives that
encourages young people to, as they put it, “Choose R.I.”

Escobar says he finds the belief that his home state is undesirable to young professionals too simplistic.
At the group’s end-of-summer event held on the rooftop of the Graduate hotel, he asked how many
attendees had chosen Rhode Island from afar. “The majority of individuals were from out of state,” he
said. “So that tells you something.”

Escobar senses a progressive push that could bring fresher voices into the political and economic fold,
so long as activists stay vigilant. Issues like housing must be dealt with. However, some of the demand
stems from more young people making the move to Providence and surrounding urban areas.

“More people are actively looking to stay in Rhode Island. The secret of how attractive this place is
certainly not a secret anymore,” he said.

After graduating from Rhode Island College in 2013, Escobar briefly considered moving. But his foray
into local activism cemented his shoes in li’l Rhody.

“I thought it might be cool to live in New York City for a year,” he said. “But I found an opportunity
here. There were so many great experiences. I found our community was a community of helpers. So
that was something that definitely anchored me.”

And people should remember that one does not need to relocate to larger metropolitan areas to reach
their goals.

“Like any place you live, it’s what you make of the location you are in,” he said. “Rhode Island is doing
better. State leaders and corporations are more aware of the issues. But we can never lose focus on
what we are doing to prepare future generations to have success in our state.”

These Hallowed Halls: SROs teach kids how to
be afraid in school

Students won’t be the only ones going back to school this fall. When the bell rings, dozens of police
officers also will enter school buildings as student resource officers (SROs). On paper, they’re
employees of the local police department, responsible for maintaining safety and teaching law-related
topics, but activists have long alleged their presence in schools criminalizes normal student behavior
and disproportionately punishes BIPOC populations. Critics of SROs want to see the money and
resources deployed elsewhere — toward counselors, not cops.

Earlier this summer, the Providence Alliance for Student Safety Coalition (PASS) released a 70-page
plan that details their vision of a school system without police officers. The plan uses academic
research, policy reports and data from within and outside Rhode Island to show that the presence of

police officers in schools does not protect students, and instead, results in criminalization of Black and
brown students (Black students in PVD schools make up 16% of the total student population, but 30% of
SRO arrests). PASS wants to see cops taken out of schools in favor of increased funding for and student
to staff ratios of mental health workers, school nurses, counselors and safety specialists. The coalition’s
plan also demands a committee of youth advocates and allies selected by youth, and calls for restorative
justice practices.

“Historically, we’ve seen heavy policing in Black and brown communities,” said youth organizer Samia
Nash in a statement. “And seeing that same type of enforcement within the schools in this community
seems to set a pattern and idea that Black and brown students are not to be trusted.“

PASS is made up of a number of local student activist groups, including Providence Student Union
(PSU), Providence Student Youth Movement, Alliance of Rhode Island Southeast Asians for Education.
In order to raise the profile on the issue, PSU organized a two-day walkout last June. The Providence
School Board passed a resolution earlier this year saying SROs should be removed; however, because
Providence schools are run by the state, changes have to come from the state level. PASS’s plan
specifically calls for Governor Dan McKee and RIDE Commissioner Angelica Infante-Green to remove
police in Providence and invest in student support. McKee has declined their requests, but
acknowledged that there is room for improvement with SROs in schools.

“Mental health resources are needed because we deserve it,” said PSU student leader Michellet Brand.
“We are not dangerous, we are simply students trying to go to school.”

SROs started being used in Rhode Island schools in the ’90s, but in Providence the relationship wasn’t
solidified until a memorandum of understanding was signed in 2014 between the district and the
Providence Police Department. Approximately 77 officers work as SROs in schools across the state; at
least six of them are in Providence.

A study from the Center for Youth and Community Leadership in Education at Roger Williams
University showed that in the 2016-2019 academic years, there were 230 student arrests in Providence
that resulted in 316 charges. The youngest arrestee was 11, and 19% of arrests were among 11 to 13
year olds. Survey and interview data indicates disciplinary structures are inconsistent from school to
school, as are the specific roles of SROs and how they respond to infractions. Seventy-two percent of
student survey respondents said they were not comfortable with SROs having guns in their school.

The presence of law enforcement in schools decreases academic performance and student mental
health. According to a study from the ACLU, there are 392 students for every one school counselor. For
social workers, the ratio is 1 to 686 students. In the same study, 44% of Rhode Island students reported
having an SRO in school, 18% reported having an SRO in school but no psychologists, nurse, social
worker and/or counselors. Black girls in Rhode Island are six times as likely to be arrested in school
than white girls.

Rhode Island has also been the site of three recent high profile cases with one police assault at Tolman
High School in Pawtucket, another incident in Feb 2018 in Narragansett, and an unlawful arrest of a 13
year old at Goff Middle School.

“These children are arrested in a place of education, where they expected safety and recreation,” said
Nash. “Seeing these sorts of events within schools makes one feel like they can’t be or feel safe
anywhere.

Black Fish in a Red Sea: Somethin’ fishy in
these here waters

Poet’s Prologue: I am the Invisible veteran. I recently read an article about the finding of a deep sea fish
that was always there but was never seen. before. Think of that a second…something always there…but
never seen. Like the GI Bill creating housing patterns that led to modern racial reckoning. Like a placid
ocean that hides and buries tons of pressure. Let’s see…what’s under the sea.

I had a pale inlaw who bought a house for $5 thousand dollars. Lived happily ever after. Sold it for $5
million dollars. My dusky father was an outlaw and bought a similar house for $5 thousand. Lived
happily ever after. Couldn’t sell it for $5 thousand. In the words of philosopher Marvin Gaye, “what’s
goin’ on? Someone tell me what’s goin’ on?” Yep, GI, this a metaphor about Bill and Redlining:

Fish be floatin’, moatin’, downright slow boatin’. A phantom miles under deep.

Dense immense darkness in a pitch black sea.

It is Something grazing swimmingly … in whatever water is.

Gulping … sculpting … bubbles … with an undulating phrenic peep.

Fish ain’t hardly crazy about the pressure way Above. Not that it knows where-ever …if ever …of
anything called Above. Nor able to think of nuthin’ really. Not life, not liberty nor love.

Fish just be floatin’. bloatin’ . motor boatin’ and downright showboatin’.
Darting past the deep sea tripod fish. Ugling with the bony-eared assfish.
Evading the larval lionfish.

Holy mackerel, pretty damn Dark creature. An Ultra-Black blink of a fish in
a bottomless Black sea. So invisible light soaks into its very scales. Why is
a creature this creepy anyways, So far under deep.

No clue … this filet … that sentients called scientists have tracked down their prey. Pixels in black n’
white in something called Time Magazine. Yep, Chronically Unaware it is… ‘Cause for Fish there …is
…no …Time.

Fish just be floatin, bloatin, motor boatin’ and just plain showboatin’

It is … as it and its kin have always been. Indigo, no where to go. Invisible, Mired in murky mud waters
not of their making.

Suddenly, a whoosh of steamy red… vents its unawares and froths him up…up…up… to another level.
Where comfortable cold is beveled by jets of searing heat. Whatever heat or red is.

Turbulent Times. Down is now Up. Black is volcanic Red. Denizen density now Light. God what a fright!
(whatever god is)

Fish paddles fitfully about until it encounters something mystically enroute.
Brightness ! Stirring feelings on its face and it can suddenly…
See !?! Whatever face and seeing is.

See here now … in the suddenly red lining. Critters are all about. Keep your head on a swivel. ‘Cause
Now it stands out. Whatever stands means. Fish is certainly Outed…

Just in time to barely avoid a school of loan sharks that chase it back down to the depths of the sound.
Never ever to venture up again.

Picking Sides: One reader wonders why people
are so territorial

The End Of The Game Tiger Predator Big Cat Tiger

Dear C and Dr. B;

This summer I was a camp counselor. Despite the effort the camp made to create a culture of
camaraderie among attendees, the counselors for older kids wouldn’t talk to or associate with the
counselors for the younger kids. We were all assigned our groups randomly, and it was purely by
chance that I ended up with one of the younger groups. But I’m being treated as lower ranking staff by
the snobs who were randomly assigned older kids.

I don’t get this at all! Why do they think they are better us? But everyone seems to just swallow this BS.
My friend told me that she feels this way all the time – she is often the only Black person in an
otherwise white group and when this happens, the other people often wont talk to her. Why are people
so messed up? It’s just plain mean. Is there anything I can do about it? – Fed Up

Dr. B says: There a great number of studies on this phenomena, and they all point to this: Humans are
territorial animals. One study randomly gave a large group of people either green or red shirts. That
alone was enough to make the two groups not talk to each other and be mean to each other. Another
study separated a group randomly into either jailor or prisoner roles. In this study, the meanness got to
the point where they had to stop the study.

What to do about it? First, you need to know, for yourself, that everything is arbitrary and random and
not true at all – then treat both sides as if they are equal. You will probably be challenged by the “higher
ranking“ group and they will be mean to you. But if you don’t take it personally, and stick with it, over

time, you will be accepted by both sides.

How YOU decide to accept a given reality affects and can change that reality. With humans, pretty
much everything is, in truth, really arbitrary.

C says: I’ve done my own study on this and it comes to different conclusion: the bigger the car, the
smaller the penis. Let me rephrase that: the bigger the brag, the smaller the brain.

 Although I agree that it is a natural instinct for humans to be territorial, in this case, there’s a flaw in
that reasoning – there is no territory here to defend. The councilors for the older kids don’t own the
damn camp. They didn’t earn their positions due to skill and competency. They’ll be home again at the
end of the summer and it is my guess that there’s no one back there who will put up with this crap. I
don’t see them as territorial. I just see them as being a bunch of tools.

Defending territory can be a noble thing; someone who is protecting their territory has a stake in that
plot of land. They see it as their own because it is their home, not because some camp director assigned
them to herd a bunch of other people’s kids around.

People who are genuinely sure of themselves don’t swagger around or blow their own horn constantly.
They don’t have to. They have no need to convince anyone else of their worth or value. They HAVE
worth and value. And they know it.

You are giving these douchebags more attention and weight than they deserve. Just ignore them if you
don’t have any business with them, and treat them with polite indifference if you do. If they suddenly
become super-friendly, don’t trust it. People who are basically insecure often try to set their
“opponents” up to be mocked and made fun of, but they seldom flip because they’ve had a sudden
epiphany and realize what assholes they’ve been.

Do your job, have fun, and don’t take this so seriously. It’s just a game. You don’t have to play.

You can visit Dr. B’s blog at drbrilliantcliche.wordpress.com