An interview with the founder of Whats Up Magazine

Interview with Aaron Goldstien founder of “WHATS UP MAGAZINE” ( October 2000)

On Dartmouth Street in the South End of Boston, there is an old nondescript Brownstone, that a pedestrian passing by would not look twice at. But they would be cheating themselves. For behind the building’s door is a hotbed of community activity, all housed under the nurturing umbrella of the human service organization, “Haley House.” The Haley House provides a number of services for the homeless in the area. There is a residence, a soup kitchen, and a bakery. Here, folks can learn skills to secure jobs in a competitive market place. They have a roof over their head, and hopefully a little piece of mind. Another component of this urban oasis, this cool drink of water in an often indifferent city, is the offices of WHATS UP MAGAZINE, and its founder Aaron Goldstein. I spoke to him amidst the comfortable scatter of his office, competing with the noise of a street festival he helped organize, just outside the window.

With skyrocketing rents, and a rampant prosperity swelling the pockets of a certain segment of society, it is good to know that there are still a few people who are concerned with the homeless, the impoverished, and the marginal populations that are still very much part of the urban landscape. Aaron Goldstien is one of the “concerned” people. As the editor-in-chief of this alternative arts and media group in the South End, he is dedicated to helping the homeless by involving them in community building events and the magazine WHATS UP. Funded by the nonprofit organization Haley House, homeless people work with area artists by taking part in sales, advertising, and the production of the paper.

Goldstien, 27, was inspired by the BIG ISSUE, a magazine he came across in London in 1996. This street zine sparked his imagination. It offered everything from coverage of the Rock scene to pressing social issues of the day. He was determined to create his own version “across the pond,” in his hometown of Boston. As a result, WHATS UP was born in April of 1997. WHATS UP has provided the opportunity for the homeless to be vendors, a writer, or simply a part of the greater community. Since its inception this magazine has covered the local art scene and explored issues that should touch us all.

Doug Holder: How did you become concerned about the “homeless” problem?

Aaron Goldstien: I was raised in Easton, Mass, a town near Brockton. I felt that I wanted to be involved in human services ever since I was very young. One of the things that sticks out in my memories is my first encounter with homelessness. In Easton, Mass. You don’t see many homeless people. We use to take trips to New York City to visit my Aunts and Uncles every year for Thanksgiving. This is where I first encountered homelessness. From going down there, and seeing people sleeping on grates, and questioning my parents about it; all this sparked my interest about this issue. I thought I might want to do something about homelessness someday.

Later I attended Boston College for my undergraduate degree. I decided to study communications and media. In one class we would listen to speeches from people like JFK, Martin Luther King, Mandela and others. We would examine how the media covered these speeches and the effect these speeches had as they were filtered through the media. It was all so powerfully moving and inspiring, that I decided I wanted to be involved in the media, in a way that would influence how it functions. I wanted a media dedicated to social issues . I wanted to be involved in a media that took strong stands on things. It should denounce injustice, and inspire people.

DH: How do you make your living?

AG: I work at St. Francis House. I am a part/time case-manager and housing advocate. For awhile I was working at a restaurant and doing WHATS UP on the side. I decided to take a job with the St. Francis House to get more experience with the homeless, while trying to develop WHATS UP. This was the best fit. So I worked there, and for awhile I had to move back home, so I could spend more hours at WHATS UP. But now I live back in Boston. I take a small stipend out of WHATS UP, which helps me pay for what my job at St. Francis doesn’t.

Doug Holder: How hard was it to get WHATS UP up and running smoothly?

AG: We had been around for a year and a half before we decided that we would have to get under another nonprofit. It was chaotic, we worked out of our apartments, we walked the streets looking for vendors; we had to change the way we did things. We put out our first issue in April, 1997. We didn’t realize how hard it would be to get office space, and to get support from other organizations. We were just a ‘few” kids who wanted to do something positive in the world.

We sent out proposals for organizations to “adopt” us and Haley House was the most receptive. I knew of it from a guy who worked in the soup kitchen, and I was favorably impressed. We found that Haley House was the perfect fit.

Doug Holder: Are you in the red or black now?

Aaron Goldstien: Since the second issue we covered our costs, mostly through advertising. We are raising money through vendor and advertising sales. We are in the black, but it is not a significant amount of money. We are not able to pay a staff; we are all volunteer now. Me and one other person gets a stipend. Everyone works full time jobs. It’s amazing what people can give after an eight hour day.

DH: Can you tell me a bit about the history of Haley House?

AG: Kathy McKenna, and other founders of Haley House, opened up their apartments to homeless folks. They were like us; real young, idealistic; they wanted to fight injustice that was going on around them. They founded this house in the 1960’s. They built up a soup kitchen, a live-in community bakery, job training program, and a storefront to sell baked goods.

After our first year we really started to fit in. Our first agreement was to stay a year, but it was extended. There is a real sense of community with the organization. This is mostly a volunteer organization.

DH: How do you create community?

AG: We do that on a few levels. Every Wednesday night people gather here. It is a diverse community of volunteers, young professionals, college students, our vendors, and they all give input. Because the group is small everyone feels they have input. The vendors actually have a say as to what’s in the next issue. A lot of young college kids meet the homeless for the first time.

DH: what are your goals?

AG: There is no reason we can’t be as well-known as some other papers in Boston, like the “Improper Bostonian” for instance. In other cities in this country and around the world street newspapers are very well-known.

DH: Do homeless people ever write any of the articles?

AG: They do. Artwork as well. We had some amazing illustrations in the centerfold of the paper. We had a homeless kid who did a wonderful sketch of the Frog Pond in the Public Gardens. It was a picture of a man with his head in his hands, amidst all the happy people and tourists who frequent the Gardens. The Gardens are full of the homeless, who watch the happy crowds go by. The majority of the writing is done by the volunteers, however.

DH: Can you talk about the structure of the magazine?

AG: We are interested in structuring the magazine more in the future. Now, we go with what we get. There are niches we would like to fill like: music, positive activities in the community, etc... A lot of people have been submitting poetry. A lot of the decisions are made by the editors. I’ve passed on a lot of responsibility to them. We have a “reflection” section, that includes: poetry, prose and other forms of creative expression.

DH : Can you talk about one of the more memorable articles?

AG: It was great when we transcribed the “Dali Lama’s’ speech from Central Park in Jan. 2000. The New Year’s cover had a motif of world peace--a calm to chaotic times.

DH: What do you see as the future of the magazine?

AG: National distribution is far away. It could happen if we had more national stories. We are part of the “North American Street Newspaper Association.” I want us to be a strong media source here in town. I feel in this way we can help marginal populations.