total time: 8.71 minutes
total words: 1342
[Anna Callahan]: Hello, everyone. Thank you so much for tuning in to Solidarity Live, where we take stories and questions from the community here in Somerville and Medford, and then we bring in experts to talk about those issues, and we also figure out how we can solve these problems together as a community. So today I'm actually quite excited. I'm going to be talking to a musician here in Somerville and the difficulties that you can imagine they have living under COVID, trying to live as a musician in the economic climate that we have. And we also will have on a musician from Canada. And so we will talk about the differences there. So I'm going to bring those folks in. We have with us James Lesuey. I hope I said that right. You'll be able to introduce yourself as well. And Kat McCleavey. So awesome. You are both live. And I'm going to go ahead and start with James. So if you want to just introduce yourself briefly and talk about what has happened in your life since the lockdown started. OK.
[SPEAKER_00]: Well, hello. My name is James Lesuey. I'm from California, but I came to the Boston area or Somerville area for my grad studies at Boston Conservatory. I was serving tables as a server. And since COVID became a thing, I am not in work because I can't serve. There's no one, everything's shut down. So it's pretty much affecting my financial situation directly. So yeah.
[Anna Callahan]: Yeah, and when we talked earlier, and by the way, I will just mention to you, it's a little bit awkward on the screen because all three of us are like, one, two, three. And so you're very narrow. So you're going to stay kind of in the center of the screen. But yeah, stay there. So James, when you and I had spoken earlier, you mentioned that you were doing a lot of music gigs and really kind of living the life of a musician. But that recently you had taken on the restaurant job because you wanted to be able to save money, right? You didn't want to just meet your expenses, but you wanted to save. Can you talk a little bit about that and about the timing of when you took this job as well?
[SPEAKER_00]: Oh, yeah. So yeah, I can definitely do that. I was working at Starbucks as a cafe barista manager, basically. I realized that it was really fulfilling in being a service to people on some level, not just being a musician and serving people that way and serving my soul, but also serving people and the human spirit. I realized that I couldn't support myself and save by being a musician and a barista, so I thought I should probably, I'm really good at the hospitality industry, so I should probably find another job somewhere within this service area. And so I quit Starbucks as a barista manager, and I got a job as a server, and it was awesome. I was just starting to make tips, just starting to make enough to save money, put that away for later, and also support myself. But right when that happened, legitly, right when that happened, not even a month later, COVID happened. And that's the thing that really messed everything up for me personally, but for a lot of other people, I'm sure, as well. that pretty much destroyed or took away all of my gigs that are coming up right now, recently, and also I can't serve tables, so I'm just not doing much at all.
[Anna Callahan]: Yeah, so both the music gigs and your restaurant job have really been shut down by the economic climate. Exactly. And you are an opera performance major, is that right?
[SPEAKER_00]: Yes, I studied opera.
[Anna Callahan]: Wonderful. Fantastic. So I am going to... Well, before we switch over to what's happening in Canada, I just want to ask, if it's okay, how are you doing financially? Can you talk to us about, like, were you able to pay this month's rent? And how did you do that? And then are you able to pay next month's rent? Like, what does it look like for you? What does the future look like for you?
[SPEAKER_00]: Okay, that's a big question. It's very loaded and a little bit triggering, but I'm down to say, I'm down to answer that because it's real life and it's happening not just to me, but to like everyone and it's definitely important. So initially the first month that it happened when we all shut down and I couldn't make, I had half of my rent like saved up from my server job, but then I had to reach out to resources like the, there's one in Somerville, Medford area, the Mamas page. And they really helped me a lot to get the rest of that, my rent and my utilities for the first month that we were shut down.
[Anna Callahan]: The second month- And that's a mutual aid, that's a mutual aid organization. So just reaching out to neighbors and people in the community.
[SPEAKER_00]: Yeah. I was very surprised by the people who did donate and also not just money, but also people actually gave groceries. And that was very helpful for me because I was able to eat, you know. That's great. And so it was great for the first month, but I had to figure out what am I going to do for the next month. And that's when we got the stimulus check, and I was able to do that for my next month. But this coming month is a little bit different. My papers for unemployment are being processed currently, so I'm waiting to hear back from them. But that should be coming in sometime soon, which I wasn't allowed to apply for unemployment because I wasn't officially laid off initially. my restaurant, my employer asked us to just wait, we should be opening up soon, so I did, and I didn't file for unemployment, but then they laid us all off, and so I had to file for unemployment, which is okay, but it's also not gonna be enough for the long run, you know? So it's definitely tricky. This coming month, I'm fine, but after that, It's a big question mark.
[Anna Callahan]: Who knows, right? So I mean your life is completely up in the air and it must be very stressful and you have no idea where you're gonna be able to pay your bills a couple months down the road.
[SPEAKER_00]: Exactly, yeah, definitely.
[Anna Callahan]: I am going to go ahead and switch over to Cat McLeavy. So you're both still on, but Cat, just introduce yourself and what's happening with you right now, especially since COVID.
[SPEAKER_02]: Sure. So Anna, you and I obviously know each other because I lived in Somerville. I sat at that table where you are right now and lived housemates. But yeah, I also went to music school at Berkeley. I graduated in August. And then after that, I moved back to Canada. And I was touring a little bit and ended up settling in Toronto. And that's where I am now. Yeah, so I guess around the beginning of March was when the lockdown started getting pretty serious and I was just coming back to Toronto. I actually only, I got back about a week before they started issuing or suggesting the 14 day quarantines after travel to the United States. So I just came back from the states, and then I think literally maybe a week later, they really started getting serious about the quarantining. And yeah, I still know a lot of folks in the states and have been able to keep in touch and kind of just feel good and really thankful for the situation I am in, which I guess I'll talk about in a second.
[Anna Callahan]: They had a little pause. You and James are both working musicians. You both were in the Boston area, both, you know, graduated from music school and working as musicians. So tell us what happened when the lockdown started and you're in Canada.
[SPEAKER_02]: So I think the most immediate thing was throughout the month of March and April, I was studying a lot as a private instructor, like private music teacher, which I had been doing since I moved in November. So I was getting maybe four or so days a week of teaching at these three separate music schools and taking on students and I was subbing for, I had a lot of days lined up for March and April. I was going to be touring again in June so it was kind of, I was, that was kind of my chance to save up a little bit for until I was gonna have another contract gig. But that all got canceled. And as those music schools were transitioning to an online platform for teaching, it wasn't the case anymore. The people that I was subbing for were not going on tour anymore. They weren't going to be out of town, so they didn't need a substitute. And also with that transition to online teaching, you're going to lose a lot of students. So I very quickly, within a couple of days, had no sub-days lined up anymore. And that was daunting, for sure, especially because at the time, the Canadian government had not stipulated the rules yet or the eligibility for any funding that they were going to be offering. So there was a small amount of time that was really up in the air. But yeah, soon things started coming together. So one of the music schools that I teach at offered me to take on my own students for the first time. So I wasn't subbing anymore, but I took on my own private students. I've been getting more every week. So I have 15 students now that I teach online. Wow. But I think more importantly is that I'm also eligible to be getting money from the government, from the federal government. So for four months, so you can backdate through March 15th. So the first period was March 15th to April 15th, and then it's for three months after that, you can get $2,000 a month from the government. And that's basically just taxable income. And there is no It's actually, I don't understand how it's such an easy process, but you go on the Canadian Revenue Agency website and you click three boxes, and then you get a direct deposit within three business days. I never had to submit anything. I never had to submit any proof of losing income. At first, they had a rule that you had to not make any income for 14 consecutive days, and I had subbed one day. So I was thinking for the first month that I was not going to be eligible because I had made 100 bucks. But they changed those rules. to say that if you make less than 1,000 in a month, then you can still get the 2,000. So I'm in a really fortunate position right now where I am teaching every year, I'm teaching three days a week, but I'm not quite making that 1,000 from that teaching, so I'm still eligible on top of my teaching money to get $2,000 from the government. So I'm more financially stable now than I was before. before the lockdown and before COVID.
[Anna Callahan]: And you have any medical issues that you have are covered because Canada essentially has a single-payer national Medicare for all style.
[SPEAKER_02]: Yes. And some of that information is, I think, a little bit misunderstood, at least from some folks' side. met from the states. And it's in that, yeah, you can go to the hospital and you can go to a doctor's appointment and there's no co-payments. But, like, I still have to pay for private insurance because I have a pre-existing condition and I also have medications that I have to take. So those are not covered under the Medicare for All style health care plan. But it is a huge, huge difference to not be paying any co-pays. And it might be a little bit of a longer wait time to get into, say, a specialist, but that's not going to depend on if you can pay the co-payment or not.
[Anna Callahan]: Yeah. So the other question that I want to bring up for you, James, is you had mentioned to me that you might look for work. Can you talk a little bit about that and about your concerns around that?
[SPEAKER_00]: Well, yeah. So my initial concern was if I don't get unemployment on time or if I don't get anything, really, I'll have to either... I would have to make an income to survive and to pay rent and pay for food and everything that I need. And so my biggest concern about going to work or finding work is, first of all, finding work, they probably, I have found some, just doing research, the jobs available are pretty much, there's not a lot, first of all. And second of all, the ones I find are, pretty much you're always on the front line of just being exposed to someone possibly. And that's something that I find very discouraging because it's in order to make a living and make money and to survive, I have to risk my health and my well-being in order to do that. So to me, I feel like I have a choice either to most likely get sick from this virus or stay home and not make money and then I don't know, just slowly disappear somewhere. I feel like there's no good option for me particularly right now, in the moment, right now. So it's very scary and not fun, but I feel like everyone is in a very similar situation.
[Anna Callahan]: We've had, what, 30 million people file for unemployment in America since the start of COVID, something like that. It might be a total of 30 million. And, you know, I, like, through talking to you and other people who really are facing this choice of, okay, I either get myself a job that is dangerous for my health or I have no idea how I'm going to pay my rent and put food on the table. I don't know. And I think neither of you have kids. I could be wrong. I don't know. I didn't ask that question. But for parents who have children they have to feed, it's yet another level of question there. And I do worry that these, you know, the way America is set up, that we let everybody fend for themselves, that this lockdown situation is creating an environment where we allow people with white collar jobs to remain safely ensconced in their apartments, and everyone else has to, you know, basically become an essential worker serving those people and putting themselves in danger or else.
[SPEAKER_00]: Exactly. Definitely.
[Anna Callahan]: And it doesn't have to be this way. So this is actually, this is the second, it's like a new segment on the show called It Doesn't Have To Be This Way. You know, I mean, same situation, two musicians, similar life stages, one in America, one in Canada. It does not have to be this way. It doesn't have to be this way. Kat, I assume you're not like running around, you know, thinking you're gonna have to get a job as an Amazon worker or a grocery store clerk in order to pay your bills.
[SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, we're very fortunate here. in that this guaranteed funding is going to go through to the fall. And I could be wrong, but I feel confident that if the lockdown was still happening in the fall, that there would still be funding available. And even for the first month, so through the end of March, when the funding eligibility criteria was not released yet, there was, you could, I can't remember what the word is, but we didn't, my house actually didn't pay rent at the beginning of April, because all of my housemates and I are musicians, and the funding wasn't available yet, so we were able to not pay rent and not worry about getting evicted or having any repercussions because of that.
[Anna Callahan]: And that was because of city policy or national policy?
[SPEAKER_02]: National policy, yeah. I guess rent protection, I can't remember what the term is, but yeah, I feel like I am not worried about having to sacrifice my health and safety in order to make rent. And I understand that privilege. And especially talking to you, James, it's really, and Anna as well, it's, you know, I It's funny, I almost didn't come back to Canada.
[Anna Callahan]: I remember. You know what, though? I'm guessing that as soon as the lockdown happened, you would have high-tailed it to Canada. You know, last week, our It Doesn't Have to Be This Way segment... Here, my quotes didn't show up. The It Doesn't Have to Be This Way segment was... It was actually a guy who was living here in Somerville until the lockdowns. And two weeks after the lockdowns happened, he got a flight to South Korea because that's where his parents were. He's like born in America, but his parents are from South Korea and they happened to be there. And they were like, you got to come here. And now he's in South Korea. And guess what? He, you know, he goes to work. People are going to school. people are going out to restaurants and things, they have testing and contact tracing, they have everything under control, and they are leading normal lives because of policy. Because their government has their head together. Oh, man. So I bet you would have gone.
[SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, I think I would have definitely.
[Anna Callahan]: Yeah. Yeah. Boy, I am going to give you guys both an opportunity to say any final words, but I first just want to thank you so, so much. James, it's not like we have millions of viewers, but it takes bravery to let your personal story be out there for people. And I really, really appreciate you doing this, because there are many people in your shoes. And personal stories motivate people to action. And I think it's really important that we get these stories out there so that people understand the gravity and the impact of policy and how much it affects people's lives. So I really, really appreciate you coming on. And Cat, of course, love you dearly. We were housemates. I don't know if people have really fully understood that, but we lived together for a whole year. She's wonderful, wonderful. And James, I know you're wonderful as well. We don't have quite the same history. And so thank you so much, Kat, as well, for being on. I'm going to let you each say some final words. Maybe, Kat, why don't you go first?
[SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, well, thanks. Thanks so much, Anna. I also believe it's, you know, I'm glad that I could come on to this call as the person in Canada. Oh Canada! Yeah, I'm glad that I can kind of just affirm that it doesn't have to be this way. And sending, you know, sending good thoughts, of course, to both you and James. Thank you so much, James, your final thoughts.
[SPEAKER_00]: I just wanted to thank you for having me on this show. I really appreciate it. I definitely agree with sharing personal stories to help people make positive change for the better for the world and for our community. So having me on here, I really appreciate you having me on here. So yeah, thank you so much.
[Anna Callahan]: Thank you, my pleasure. Wonderful to have you both. Stay well. And let's, you know, let's all get together and make some serious change because our country is in deep need of you. Wonderful. All right. Thanks, everyone, for listening. We will be signing off, and we will see you next week. Thanks so much.
[SPEAKER_00]: Bye, Anna.
[Anna Callahan]: Bye-bye.
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total time: 8.71 minutes total words: 1342 |
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