Social worker
Angela Coleman

Angela Coleman MSW, LSW, a social worker in her office at the Babies' Milk Fund Pediatric Care facility in the West End. Photo by Glenn Hartong

        When Angela Coleman, 32, came to work at the Babies Milk Fund Pediatric Care clinic on Findlay Street in 1999, social work interns never asked how safe they’d be or whether they’d have to make home visits to clients.

        Since last April, intern applicants ask those questions all the time.

        ‘‘Some people’s views have changed about safety and security here,’’ says Ms. Coleman. Hers have not. She felt safe in Over-the-Rhine before the civil unrest, and she feels safe now.

        Although she and her son live in Bond Hill, she says: ‘‘I’m comfortable in the community. I lived in Over-the-Rhine some years ago. It’s never been an issue for me.

        Ms. Coleman helps her clients meet some of their most basic needs: food, clothing, shelter, furniture. She organizes a Christmas toy drive and supervises a support group for teen-age girls. Her office sports a new coat of lavender paint. It’s a nice change from the old institutional green, she says.

        Improving relations between police and Over-the-Rhine is a key issue in rebuilding the community, Ms. Coleman says.

        ‘‘Programs for youth and economic investment would all be good; but at the same time, I still think there needs to be training for the Police Department in how they treat the public when they’re out serving the community,’’ she says.

        Everyone needs to learn tolerance before the tensions in Over-the-Rhine can disappear for good, she says.

        ‘‘If people want this to be a peaceful community and Cincinnati to be a place you can be proud of, you have to act accordingly. That means teaching peace and tolerance and being accepting of difference. It’s difficult to deal with differences, but there’s much more to be gained from our differences than we’ve realized so far.’’

— Peggy O’Farrell

Faces of Over-the-Rhine
Restaurant owner Paul Sebring
Taft senior Darrel Shields
Social worker Angela Coleman
Sarah Center director Sister Jeanette Buehler
Jordanian grocer Taraq T.A. Adwani
Filmmaker Steve Gebhardt
Gallery owner Suzanna Terril
Beauty shop supplier Chong Kim
Teacher's aide Kemberley Alexander
Waitress Karla Davis
Teacher Sharon Brooks
Dock worker Leo Sneed
Police officer Michael Ammann
Soup kitchen manager Denise McPherson
Artist Joseph M. Winterhalter
Janitor Latrell Walker
Fund-raiser Torren "T.J." Partridge
School social worker Joe Wilmers
Rehabber Greg Badger
Medical student John Eckman
Treatment counselor Calvin W. Wooten
Photographer Jimmy Heath

The Police
Violence up, arrests down
Changes made since April 2001
Q&A with Police Chief Streicher
Q&A with former F.O.P. president Keith Fangman

Neighbor to Neighbor
Community meetings produce results
Going beyond polite silence
What your neighbors said
What do you think?
What's happening in 145 communities
A sampling of communities:
• Mount Healthy
• Pleasant Ridge
• Milford
What institutions are doing

Related Links
Neighbor to Neighbor home page
Matters of Race: Bridging the divide in Greater Cincinnati
On the Same Page Cincinnati
Live Without Hate
Common Ground
Cincinnati 2001: Year of unrest
Unrest in the city: Archive of riot coverage
Unrest photo timeline
Jim Borgman on race