Latest news with #Mendes
Boston Globe
2 days ago
- General
- Boston Globe
In the oppressive heat, fear, food, and hope collide on Broadway in Chelsea
People are patient but not happy, because it's hot as hell. The numbers on their wrists to hold their place in line start to smear. The heart of Chelsea's main street is torn up by construction. In some respects, their lives have been torn apart by the one-two punch of hunger and fear of federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. Inside the storefront church, a fan whirs as a dozen volunteers scurry about packing up food. The church chairs have all been removed and boxes filled with food cover much of the floor. Volunteer Marilea Mendonca helps prepare 400 boxes of groceries for those in line. Stan Grossfeld/Globe Staff Advertisement The need is great, the mood intense, despite the sign on the wall. 'Worry about nothing. Pray about everything.' Philippians 4:6 Elian Mora, 1, naps in line with her mom, who came from El Salvador. Stan Grossfeld/Globe Staff 'This is a social pandemic,' says Pastor Elaine Mendes, director of Revival Chelsea. She waits until the last moment to add refrigerated items like milk and eggs to the 30-pound boxes. 'It's poor people. It's needy people.' Most are people of color. The diversity is evident in the line, which is now so long, the end is not visible. There's a Moroccan woman with a child, an Asian woman wearing a mask, a senior citizen holding extra plastic bags, and a Hispanic woman stoically standing. Advertisement 'This is a social pandemic,' says Pastor Elaine Mendes, director of Revival Chelsea, who adds milk to the boxes of food ready to be distributed. Stan Grossfeld/Globe Staff Many hide their faces or turn around when a camera is pointed at them. One man flicked his hand like he was shooing a fly. They are in no mood to talk. 'They think you are ICE,' says Mendes, who has been operating the food pantry for 10 years. Mendes worries that proposed federal budget cuts will make the situation worse. 'Everything that I can see since January, it's for the wealthy people, for the rich people.' A United Nations of diversity is found on Broadway in Chelsea as people line up for the weekly food pantry distribution. Stan Grossfeld/Globe Staff She refuses to mention the president's name. 'It's the administration,' she says. 'I don't think this administration is looking out for the low-income people right now.' The food is donated mainly from 'Food For Free,' a nonprofit in Somerville. It's the good stuff from Trader Joe's, Amazon Fresh, and Whole Foods. Not the canned beef and vegetable government surplus variety, or the cheap ramen, or starchy mac and cheese. Revival Chelsea sometimes supplements the groceries by buying milk when it can afford the expense. There are three major food banks in Chelsea. 'It is not enough,' Mendes says. Residents jam the streets for the weekly food pantry at the Revival International Center, a community church that distributes food boxes to those in need in the Chelsea area. Stan Grossfeld/Globe Staff According to a new report by Mass General Brigham and t 'Very low food insecurity — the most severe form, occurring when an individual must skip meals or not eat for the entire day because they don't have enough money for food — has nearly quadrupled to 24 percent in 2024 from 6 percent in 2019, pointing to widening socioeconomic gaps,' the report says. Mendes's worst nightmare is that ICE will just pull up and start grabbing people. Advertisement She says that ICE collaborators have intimidated those waiting in line here on two different occasions. (They also tried to attend an English as a second language class held here, Mendes says.) Hundreds of people line up in the hopes of receiving one of the 400 food boxes distributed by the Revival International Center. Stan Grossfeld 'They didn't come to talk. They didn't say nothing. They came to scare the population and make people afraid. It worked. We had a lot of food left over because people were afraid.' Here, Mendes offers anonymity. 'We don't take their name. We don't take nothing.' The center also hosts numerous social and educational activities, like community gatherings for men and for the homeless, and yoga classes. There's even a climate change seminar. Once people have received their groceries, some mix and match, sharing what they've received with each other on Broadway in Chelsea. Stan Grossfeld 'Food pantry is my main program but then through the week, I can offer all the programs to make them feel comfortable and feel happy,' says Mendes. 'I think the presence of ICE on the street breaks this peaceful way that we have. ... I mean, they are messing up our job.' At 3 p.m., volunteers push the boxes on a roller conveyor and open the door. They distribute the boxes one by one. They keep pastries up at the front to reward kids who have waited patiently in line. Volunteers unload two truckloads and a van full of food to feed the poor in Chelsea. Stan Grossfeld/Globe Staff On this Monday, 465 people (not counting children) show up and make sure they don't block the other merchants' doorways. Once they get their groceries, some linger on the sidewalk and make trades. A vegetarian will trade hamburger meat for fruit and vegetables. Others leave disappointed, because the food runs out. 'It's horrible that we couldn't feed everybody,' Mendes says. Mendes scrambles inside to the multiple refrigerators and finds a dozen eggs for each of the last 65 people. Advertisement She scoffs at the racial trope that unfairly portrays immigrants as dangerous. A woman leaves Revival Chelsea with a boxful of fresh food after waiting three hours in the summer heat. Stan Grossfeld/Globe Staff 'We have mothers, we have children. We don't have any criminals in the line. I don't think a criminal would wait three hours in the heat or in the snow.' 'No, it's poor people,' she continues. 'I'm going to help these people. And I think everyone should do the same thing. We should help each other. We should protect each other because one day we're all going to need each other.' @font-face { font-family: BentonSansCond-Regular; src: url(" format('woff2'), url(" format('woff'); } @font-face { font-family: BentonSansCond-Bold; src: url(" format('woff2'), url(" format('woff'); } .dipupnext_hed { font-family: "MillerHeadline-Bold", "Times New Roman", Times, Georgia, serif; letter-spacing: .75px; text-align: center; font-size: 1.25em; line-height: 1; margin-top: 3px; color: #000; width: 100%; font-weight: 600; } .dipupnext_cap_cred { font-family: "BentonSansCond-Regular", "Times New Roman", Times, Georgia, serif; font-size: 16px; letter-spacing: .5px; text-align: left; margin: 3px 0px 5px 0px; font-weight: 200; color: #000; text-decoration: none; text-align: center; } .dipupnext_photo { max-width: 100%; height: auto; padding-top: 15px; opacity: 1; } .dipupnext__form:hover { opacity: .5; text-decoration: underline .5px; } .dipupnext__form{ opacity: 1; } .picupnext__container { width: 100%; position: relative; margin: 0 auto; } .dipupnext__content { width: 100%; display: grid; grid-template-columns: 3fr; } .cdipupnextcontainer { display: block; width:100%; height: auto; margin:0 auto; -moz-box-sizing: border-box; overflow: hidden; } .upnext { font-family: "BentonSansCond-Bold", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; text-align: center; font-size: 1em; line-height: 1.15; margin-top: .5rem; letter-spacing: 0px; color: #000; padding: 8px 8px 4px 8px; margin-top: 5px; letter-spacing: .5px; } .upnext:before, .upnext:after { background-color: #000; content: ""; display: inline-block; height: 1px; position: relative; vertical-align: 4px; width: 32%; } .upnext:before { right: 0.3em; margin-left: -50%; } .upnext:after { left: 0.3em; margin-right: -50%; } .theme-dark .upnext:before { background-color: #fff; } .theme-dark .upnext:after { background-color: #fff; } .theme-dark .upnext { color: #fff; } .theme-dark .dipupnext_cap_cred { color: #fff; } .theme-dark .dipupnext_hed { color: #fff; } @media screen and (min-width: 800px){ .dipupnext__content { grid-template-columns: 1fr 1fr 1fr; grid-column-gap: 40px; } } UP NEXT Stan Grossfeld can be reached at
France 24
6 days ago
- Business
- France 24
Renters struggle to survive in Portugal housing crisis
The former kitchen assistant, 80, has never found a stable home since foreign investors bought his apartment and has placed his hopes on a charitable institution to find a solution. "How can you pay a rent of 400 or 500 euros for a room?", asked Lemos, whose monthly pension barely amounts to 500 euros ($580). "Age is catching up, and I'm scared." Successive governments of all political stripes have tried and failed to solve the problem, according to Luis Mendes, a researcher at the University of Lisbon's Institute for Geography and Territorial Organisation. "Year after year, real estate breaks new records," Mendes told AFP. The market spike began during the eurozone financial crisis in 2011, when the country attempted to resuscitate its stricken economy by attracting foreign capital through so-called "golden visas". The scheme offered visas to foreigners who invested in real estate and tax advantages to retirees or globe-trotting digital nomads but is viewed as having contributed to the problem. Housing prices in Portugal have jumped 124 percent since 2015, well above the EU average of 53 percent, according to Eurostat. The current centre-right government has made tackling the crisis a priority, but in the first three months of 2025 prices spiked by more than 16 percent, according to the Portuguese national statistics institute. Falling interest rates and public guarantees for young people's mortgages, a measure introduced by the government last year, has driven the latest increase. A group campaigning for the right to housing has called for protests this weekend in a dozen cities. 'Unacceptable' Similar to neighbouring Spain, public housing only represents two percent of households and many properties are converted into short-term holiday lets in the popular tourist destination. Renters like Carlos are bearing the brunt. The municipal gardener, who declined to give his surname, has been living for five years in a freight container surrounded by building sites in the Portuguese capital. A basic mattress, a handful of personal belongings and some birds in a cage to keep him company make up the interior of his humble abode. The 55-year-old used to live with his mother, but after her death the lease was cancelled and he found himself homeless overnight. "I have found nothing at less than 800 euros. To have a salary and not be able to pay rent is unacceptable!" Carlos, whose income reaches around 1,000 euros, told AFP. In a country where more than 70 percent of the population own their home, the new centre-right government that emerged victorious from May's snap election intends to build almost 60,000 new social homes. It also plans to simplify public aid for renters, convert vacant public buildings and offer fiscal advantages in a bid to accelerate renovation and construction. But for Mendes, "it is not with more homes that this crisis will be solved" because it risks "overheating the market". The Lisbon renters' association has criticised "the illusion of supply as the only solution" and singled out a "lack of regulation and political courage". The European Commission has suggested Portugal regulate rents to protect the most affected groups of people or introduce more controls for short-term tourist lets.
Time of India
19-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Time of India
Eva Mendes recalls her "bonding experience" with Ryan Gosling when they started dating
Actress Eva Mendes recalled how she and Ryan Gosling bonded when they first started dating, reported People. "I always thought it was a Cuban thing that we love to clean, and we love a clean kitchen," said Mendes, adding, "Some of my best memories from when I was little are of my mom cleaning the house over the weekend. She'd be playing a record super loudly, and it would wake me up. There was the smell of Pine-Sol and the sounds of her singing to El Puma." Mendes started dating Gosling, 44, in 2011 while they starred together in 'The Place Beyond the Pines', she discovered the actor had a similar passion for cleanliness. "He would come over. He just loved it. When my family was around, we would literally take over the kitchen. It had to be clean." Mendes added, "It was a bonding experience." The Training Day star also spoke about the recent expansion of the Skura Style x Eva Mendes Collection, the lifestyle brand she co-owns. "I have my own packaging, which I'm just nuts for. It was so fun designing that," reported People. On talking abut her plans with daughters Esmeralda Amada, 10, and Amada Lee, 9, whom she shares with Gosling, Mendes indicated she's just happy to be by their side. "Summer is their time to be kids, and I'm really taking it in... I just want to be with them. Whatever I'm doing, as long as I'm with them and Ryan, of course, that's where I'm happiest," reported People. Mendes has focused on parenting since welcoming her first daughter, stepping away from acting since 2014's Gosling-directed Lost River, aside from voicing a character on the children's series Bluey.
Evening Standard
19-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Evening Standard
Everything we know about The Beatles biopics so far
When the cast of the forthcoming Sam Mendes-directed quartet of Beatles biopics was announced on 1 April, the image of the four actors clad in black immediately broke the internet to a level where it would have been easy to cry 'April fool'. But far from a prank, Mendes has, indeed, managed to cast the holy quaternity of modern-day Hollywood heartthrobs to portray The Fab Four. Harris Dickinson will play John Lennon; Paul Mescal will trade his surname for McCartney; Joseph Quinn will take on the role of George Harrison, while Barry Keoghan will round out the quartet as Ringo Starr.
Mint
19-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Mint
Eva Mendes recalls her 'bonding experience' with Ryan Gosling when they started dating
Washington DC [US], June 19 (ANI): Actress Eva Mendes recalled how she and Ryan Gosling bonded when they first started dating, reported People. "I always thought it was a Cuban thing that we love to clean, and we love a clean kitchen," said Mendes, adding, "Some of my best memories from when I was little are of my mom cleaning the house over the weekend. She'd be playing a record super loudly, and it would wake me up. There was the smell of Pine-Sol and the sounds of her singing to El Puma." Mendes started dating Gosling, 44, in 2011 while they starred together in 'The Place Beyond the Pines', she discovered the actor had a similar passion for cleanliness. "He would come over. He just loved it. When my family was around, we would literally take over the kitchen. It had to be clean." Mendes added, "It was a bonding experience." The Training Day star also spoke about the recent expansion of the Skura Style x Eva Mendes Collection, the lifestyle brand she co-owns. "I have my own packaging, which I'm just nuts for. It was so fun designing that," reported People. On talking abut her plans with daughters Esmeralda Amada, 10, and Amada Lee, 9, whom she shares with Gosling, Mendes indicated she's just happy to be by their side. "Summer is their time to be kids, and I'm really taking it in... I just want to be with them. Whatever I'm doing, as long as I'm with them and Ryan, of course, that's where I'm happiest," reported People. Mendes has focused on parenting since welcoming her first daughter, stepping away from acting since 2014's Gosling-directed Lost River, aside from voicing a character on the children's series Bluey. (ANI)
