The Eugene Weekly recently published a tragic story about a young lady who was very musically talented, but who passed away too soon at the age of 23.
Robyn Leslie Hatcher (2000-2023) could play many different musical instruments. She traveled around the country. She learned it from her parents, who went to Rainbow Gatherings and who regularly did drum circles. She could play the clarinet, ukelele, fiddle, banjo, guitar, and the violin, among other instruments.
But when corporate America decides that all lives are equal, but some lives are more equal than others, that is when lives begin to be destroyed. Hatcher was a victim of bullying at school and turned to drugs at the age of 12.
Hatcher made valiant efforts to make a life for herself, and there were times when she nearly turned the corner. But when you are addicted to drugs, it is very difficult to get help in a climate when right-wing hysteria is rampant, and the emphasis is on incarceration and not treatment. Got to keep the gravy train to the private prison industrial complex rolling.
But the bullying took the form of students who were taught to hate, and administrators who did nothing:
Hatcher attended Adams Elementary School and Jefferson Middle School, Hill says, before she left after three unjustified out-of-school suspensions. She says Hatcher was being bullied by a group of students who made false reports about her to the principal. Hill sent her daughter to be homeschooled by her aunt.
Hatcher then ran away, and was eventually institutionalized in Corvallis. This is my problem with the juvenile justice system — there are certain kids who need to be disciplined, and there are certain kids who don’t fit well in a school setting. I may be in the minority here, but I support the right of kids to homeschool, with appropriate supervision and oversight. But the problem is that frequently, kids are given indefinite detentions, with the parents having no idea when, if ever, their kid will ever come home again. At least that’s the case here in Missouri. As for Hatcher, it didn’t help:
Hatcher returned home for a few weeks at age 13 before she left again, this time making it out of the state. She traveled by hitchhiking and train hopping, Hill says. She didn’t see her mother from the ages of 14 to 19, when she almost died of hypothermia in Chicago.
And then, after her family got her back, Hatcher ran away to California. When she finally came back to Eugene in July 2023, she couldn’t stay in the same house with her mother, because the mother lived in public housing, the rules required her to get approval for her to move in, and it was nearly impossible because Hatcher had lost her Social Security card. She had to sleep in her car. And then she passed.
This is what happens when corporate America decides that certain peoples’ lives are expendable. The mother said:
“My daughter had one miserable, really messed up life. I think it’s no wonder that she took so many drugs to stay numb,” Hill says. “And all the time I was doing everything I could, all by myself, to try to help her.”
That’s the whole point, which is why I highlighted it. People are expected to go it alone, do things all by themselves, and stick their noses to the grindstone. When it doesn’t work out in one of the bluest counties in Oregon (60% Biden), corporate American deems that it is somehow your fault. And then we wonder why plenty of well-meaning people on the left, whose hearts are in the right place, nonetheless refuse to vote for Joe Biden. If this is the best that one of the bluest counties can do, then we are not going to break the cycle of 50-50 elections that has led to so much polarization and Donald Trump and his swamp creatures having so much power. I’m not saying they’re right, I’m just presenting this as a fact of life. I get that Donald Trump is a threat to democracy and that Joe Biden isn’t. But if Robyn Hatcher’s life doesn’t matter, and the lives of many like her, then we are not going to meet our goal of eradicating Trumpism once and for all.
And if we don’t step up to ensure that people like Robyn’s life matters, then other people will do it for us. White supremacists like this one, who are organizing black metal concerts to recruit young people to become fascists and nazis. It’s not for lack of trying on the right’s part that Oregon is reliably blue.
So what can we do, and what can we support?
First and foremost, elections matter. Elect school board members who will insist that school administration take a stand against bullying, no matter who is doing it and no matter who the victim is. Elect mayors and city council members who will work to treat drug abuse as a public health problem, not a crime to be punished. There is good money to be made by cities who want to militarize our police, but we need elected officials who will say no. The Eugene Weekly, if it survives, will have a whole list of endorsements to help. A good local paper will cover such races and help you decide who to vote for.
Secondly, I did a diary nine years ago about basic income and how to pay for it. I stand by most of it; there is no reason why we can’t pay every person 18 and over a $30,000 a year basic income. None of this is written in stone, and it can be more or less. But people should not have to beg corporations for money to live. It should be the other way around. Corporations should have to beg us to help them.
Thirdly of all, the Drug Policy Alliance supports an end to the failed War on Drugs. They support a new approach centered on treating it as a public health issue.
Here are some of the stats they give. Out of the 2 million people incarcerated in the US, even more than in Putin's Russia, 1 in 5 is currently locked up for a drug offense. If you go to state prison, fatal overdoses increase by over 600%. Treatment is rarely available. People are 50 times as likely to overdose in the first weeks after release. Again, you are expected to put your nose to the grindstone, and if you fail, it's somehow your fault. By way of comparison, Putin’s Russia has 433,006 in prison as of January 2023, a number which has been declining.
Here are some more stats they give. Nearly a quarter of the US workforce is subject to employer mandated drug testing. And then the 1% wonders why nobody wants to work anymore. I live in a public housing unit. You cannot get federal housing if you have been convicted of a felony, even if it was many years ago. And I know of someone who was kicked out of another housing unit after she got one too many DWI's.
Fourthly of all, support anti-bullying groups. The organization Kidpower has numerous tips on what you can do to stop bullying. Many adults see it, but don’t know what to do. Here are what you can do if you are an adult:
Children and teens need consistent, repeated messages from their parents, teachers, principals, coaches, recreation leaders, and other caring adults that,
“I want you to be and feel safe. Being safe means freedom from harm to your body and your feelings. Your job is to speak up if someone is saying or doing something that is hurtful to you – and to get help from the adults in charge if that doesn’t work.
I also want you to act safely and respectfully towards others. Your job is to stay in charge of what you say and do so that you are not being harmful or scary, even if you feel really annoyed, scared, or upset. You can be powerful in protecting yourself and respectful at the same time. If you have trouble at school or anywhere else, I want you to tell me.”
What you do is even more important than what you say. Model being powerful and respectful while setting boundaries to advocate for and protect the well being of yourself and others – and while noticing and honoring the boundaries of others. Show how some boundaries need to be negotiated. Ask kids to tell you what bullying is – and whether they have ever seen anyone being bullied. Discuss when characters in books or movies are bullying or being victimized by bullying.
Pay attention and intervene when you see kids acting in hurtful or disrespectful ways towards each other with the same intention that you would stop young people from throwing rocks through a window. If we don’t respond when kids are being unkind or unsafe, we are not walking our talk.
Interrupting and redirecting harmful behavior can be as simple as saying, “Excuse me! That sounds hurtful/doesn’t look safe! What’s going on?” You can then have kids practice how to communicate in ways that meet your values.
Discuss the Kidpower Protection Promise with every child and teen in your care so that they know that they can come to you for help. From time to time, ask the young people in your life, “Is there anything you’ve been wondering or worrying about that you haven’t told me?”
There are two local organizations in Eugene who genuinely tried to help Robyn Hatcher. The first is White Bird Clinic. They provide healthcare, including mental health services, to people regardless of their ability to pay and regardless of their condition or situation.
We provide a mobile crisis intervention van in Eugene that responds to non-criminal situations including substance abuse, mental/emotional crisis, disorientation, welfare checks, and dispute facilitation - providing assessment, intervention, and transport to services as needed.
We offer services for substance abuse and mental health care through individual and group counseling, drug education, DUII, and acupuncture treatment. We accept OHP, private insurance, and have sliding-scale fees.
We provide on-going, client-centered counseling for low-income individuals and families via phone and video. We accept Oregon Health Plan and offer grant-funded mental health services for the homeless, with limited indigent slots.
The HIV Alliance seeks to help people with HIV, especially LGBTQIA+ people, BIPOC, unhoused people, people impacted by behavioral health issues, people in rural areas, and others:
HIV Alliance is comprised of diverse individuals committed to reducing health disparities in our state, including higher rates of HIV and increased HIV-related health disparities that impact LGBTQIA+, BIPOC, unhoused communities, people impacted by behavioral health issues, people living in rural areas, and others who might find it difficult to access services from more traditional providers. This goal is core to our commitment to antiracism and to creating a more just and equitable Oregon. Our organization continues to listen to and learn from the voices of the people we serve, and we are honored to have built strong relationships with clients and community partners who are representative of Oregon’s strong diversity.
To achieve our mission, we work closely with a range of community organizations and providers that specialize in providing culturally responsive services. We value highly the input of our staff, board, and the people we serve in guiding our programs and believe strongly that ongoing inclusion is essential to appropriately and effectively addressing the needs of our clients.
And last, but not least, support the Eugene Weekly and other papers like it. Recently, they had to suspend publication because a former employee had embezzled tens of thousands of dollars from the company, meaning numerous creditors went unpaid and employees had nothing in their retirement accounts. Without papers like the Eugene Weekly, the voices of people like Robyn Hatcher would be silenced. And the only people who would benefit would be Donald Trump and some of his “very fine people.”
