Lobbyists for the lenders acted as if enforcement of existing laws would be something akin to mass extinction for their industry. Breathless predictions of doom bordered on the hysterical.

​This was a head-scratcher for members of Nevadans for the Common Good (NCG), a non-partisan, valley-wide federation of 47 faith-based, labor, and non-profit organizations. NCG threw its support behind the proposal sponsored by Sen. Yvanna Cancela and supported by the Legal Aid Center of Southern Nevada because the personal stories of those caught in the debt cycle — taking out one loan to pay off another — extend deep into its membership.  More.

Story credit W/SWIAF@swiaf.org

In the face of a growing humanitarian crisis at the border, Albuquerque Interfaith has been at the forefront of a local response, mobilizing institutions to address the immediate needs of recent arrivals and building a longer-term strategy and constituency for change.
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In March, when asylum seekers began to arrive in Albuquerque without advance notice, Albuquerque Interfaith leaders stepped up to the challenge. Within a month, in collaboration with Catholic Charities and the City of Albuquerque, leaders built a coalition of agencies to respond to increasing numbers of asylum seekers coming to the city.

Project QUEST Creates Largest, Sustained Earnings Rise in Nation: Study proves it: Nine Year Gains: Project QUEST's Continuing Impact, Economic Mobility Corporation (2019)
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The forces behind HB 76, however, are still at work at the Capitol, pushing HB 76 again and other similar bills designed to help industry circumvent their fair share of property taxes.

Chris Hedges gave this talk to 27 graduating students who were formerly incarcerated—several of whom he taught in prison—and their families at Rutgers University on Friday. The ceremony was held by the Mountainview Program at Rutgers, which helps students complete their degrees at Rutgers after they take college courses inside prisons through the New Jersey Scholarship and Transformative Education in Prisons Consortium (NJ-STEP) program. Read a transcript of his speech or watch a video of the address linked here.
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In a spirited community forum on Sunday, May 19, 2019, Virginians Organized for Interfaith Community Engagement (VOICE) obtained commitments from the Democratic Party contenders for Chairman of the Board of Supervisors on a range of important local issues, to include millions more dollars in County funding for affordable housing projects, and an expansion of the legal defense fund for local immigrants who are in the country illegally.

​“VOICE can be the difference in this election,” VOICE leaders told people at the packed-out Bethlehem Baptist Church of Gum Springs, which hosted the event.  “We can get more done together than we can apart, and we will apply pressure.”   Hunt Herald story by Lori Ostrow here.
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At his core, Alinsky was an educator who taught economically-disadvantaged Americans to confront systematic racism and classism and, most importantly, develop a set of public skills that allowed them to get what they deserved, namely, fair and decent housing, equitable pay, and basic city services. And, as I explain in this article, Alinsky did all this with a large dose of humor, irreverence, and ridicule toward authority figures.  The complete article here.
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Metro IAF
Metro IAF's V.O.I.C.E. Virginians Organized for Interfaith Community Engagement action on candidates to support vision:

Over 625 VOICE leaders challenged four candidates running for board of supervisor chair to respond to VOICE’s vision of "One Fairfax” at Bethlehem Baptist on Sunday.  VOICE leaders demanded action & lifted up specific solutions to do so, including:

Story in Townhall

EBC leader Tita Concepcion Confronts de Blasio
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Two women flew to Iowa, courtesy of the organization East Brooklyn Congregations, to confront him on deteriorating conditions in the New York City Housing Authority. They also pressed him on his stalled promise to build more housing for senior citizens on underused NYCHA lots.

“We have been in New York; we have been trying to speak with him,” said resident Tita Concepcion. “All we get are stories from him. He doesn’t listen. He dodges us whenever possible.”
Politico story.
Great background in CrainsNewYork.com here.

In the face of a growing humanitarian crisis at the border, Albuquerque Interfaith has been at the forefront of a local response, mobilizing institutions to address the immediate needs of recent arrivals and building a longer-term strategy and constituency for change.  This week, Albuquerque Interfaith and partners packed city council chambers in support of a $250,000 appropriation to the humanitarian crisis.  45 speakers spoke in support of the appropriation, including Catholic Archbishop John Wester and leaders from a broad swath of religious and nonprofit institutions.   More from SWIAF.

Want to learn more about how to organize the IAF way?  Buy one of these  great booklets by a master of the craft here.
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