NEWSMAKERS JUL-DEC 2016
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Fat Cat In Chief?
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Rev. David Brawley, Co-Chairman, EBC, Metro IAF
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NY Daily News: Bringing Hope To Give NYC A Brighter FutureThe event was one of a dizzying array of community-building efforts led by Brawley, co-chairman of East Brooklyn Congregations/Metro Industrial Areas Foundation. Known as Metro IAF, the group is a coalition of local organizations committed to empowering communities to bring about the changes in their neighborhoods.
It’s a broad sweep that has led Brawley and other leaders to push for more affordable housing, improve conditions in NYCHA apartments, tackle gun violence and advocate for a sharper crackdown on slumlords. Full story here. |
To the civic powerhouses New York sadly lost in 2016, who had dedicated their lives to bettering the world around them.
Among them: Carmelia Goffe, a transit worker who amid the rubble of 1980s Brownsville, Brooklyn, made possible the rebirth brought by the Nehemiah homes, by organizing and inspiring others to get behind her.
Among them: Carmelia Goffe, a transit worker who amid the rubble of 1980s Brownsville, Brooklyn, made possible the rebirth brought by the Nehemiah homes, by organizing and inspiring others to get behind her.
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Is Trump's Deportation Plan "Impossible"?
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Extraordinary Recognition By Baltimore Sun:
BUILD Leaders Drive Baltimore Improvement
The leaders of Baltimoreans United in Leadership Development — Clergy Co-chairs Rev. Andrew Foster Connors of Brown Memorial Park Avenue and Presbyterian Church Episcopal priest Rev. Genna Huber, and Co-chair Emeritus Bishop Douglas Miles of Koinonia Baptist Church — didn't just decry the deal; they demanded a better one. After tensions boiled over between Sagamore officials and activists at a public meeting, the BUILD leaders sat down with the developers for an extraordinary 10-day negotiation that led to the most expansive community benefits agreement Baltimore has ever seen. More here.
Rev Allison Harrison, Pastor, Southside Presbyterian Church, Tucson, Arizona
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Trump Era Sanctuaries: Religious Leaders Step Up
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Catherine Cortez Masto, Senator Elect, Nevada
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Embattled Democrats, Labor Allies See Nevada as a Beacon
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A Deep Dive Into Affordable Housing Campaign By The Sydney Alliance
IAF Organization In Australia Makes Waves; Affordable Housing Campaign Study Here
Sydney Alliance confronts housing crisis; Australian IAF makes significant progress with more to come; innovative campaign drives expansion of affordable housing; power of multi-racial, multi-generational organizing affirmed
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Union wins contract
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Take Down
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Working Together Jackson/IAF
Attacks Derelict Homes in Jackson, Mississippi
Coverage Page.1.pdf Coverage Page.2
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Just east of Jackson State University lies a whole block of derelict properties (bordered by Poindexter St., Canal St., and Olin St.). Members of St. Mark’s Episcopal Church were joined by other members of Working Together Jackson to call for the immediate clearing of these dangerous, burned out structures so neighborhood improvement can begin.
Is Donald Trump's Election An "Extinction Level" Event For Organized Labor?
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GBIO Convenes Massive Interfaith Gathering;
Crowd of 2,600 Targets Bigotry
The Rev. Burns Stanfield, senior minister of the Fourth Presbyterian Church and president of the interfaith organization, said local religious leaders have seen in their congregations a desire “to remind us that our country is greater than the sum of its parts, and to remind us of our motto: Out of many, one.”
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Mayor Walsh endorsed a statement of shared values read by members of the Greater Boston Interfaith Organization, the event’s organizer, and pledged to stand against bigotry and abuse.
“With you, I’m committed to working across our differences, to heal not just the wounds of this election, but the wounds of our history, and the wounds in our heart that cause this fear and despair,” he said. Full report in Boston Globe here.
“With you, I’m committed to working across our differences, to heal not just the wounds of this election, but the wounds of our history, and the wounds in our heart that cause this fear and despair,” he said. Full report in Boston Globe here.
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Common Ground Fall Newsletter Just Out!
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COPS/Metro Deep Dives Into Housing Bond Accountability
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Nevadans For The Common Good Presses Fair School Funding; Fights For Formula Change |
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COPS/Metro organizers are asking the City to “craft a better and larger proposal” that includes more methods such as grants and repayable loans to repair homes, clear guidelines for developers, an explicit definition of affordable rental rates for each neighborhood, and more communication with neighborhood associations and community groups throughout the entire process. Ensuring that affordable housing will be priced in a way that citizens who truly need it can make ends meet is essential, they said. Details in Rivard Report. Another here in NowCastSA.
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NCG advocating for a weighted funding formula- additional funding for students in special education, poverty, English language learners, and gifted and talented.
“The Legislature just found $750 million to spend on a football stadium,” said Robert Hoo, lead organizer for Nevadans for the Common Good. “We have full confidence that they’re going to do the right thing and find a similar amount of money for our kids.” http://www.reviewjournal.com/…/education-topics-will-tug-ha… NCG Battles for equity in school closure battle: Story here. |
One LA
One LA Reaches Milestone Healthcare Enrollment of 146,000 & Celebrates Expansion of Enrollment to 54,000 More!
http://www.swiaf.org/…/one-la-reaches-milestone-healthcare…/Before a packed audience of 200 health care leaders and Dr. Mitch Katz, Director of the LA County Department of Health, One LA celebrated the milestone enrollment of 146,000 Los Angeles residents into My Health LA, 8,000 of whom were enrolled by One LA leaders themselves at their institutions. |
Spokane Alliance
Benefits of paid sick and safe leave applauded on all fronts; Major positive impacts across the board. IAF power organization makes it real. Individuals and families, especially with children the beneficiaries. A Spokane Alliance success story. Full report on TV here.
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Denver/Front Range IAF
100 + leaders from 19 diverse institutions gathered at Cleaves Memorial CME Church; pledge time, money and talent to IAF drive in Colorado. Leaders from synagogues, labor unions, neighborhood organizations, mainline congregations put up $60,00 more for the venture.
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“They saved East Brooklyn and helped save New York City as surely as any mayor or governor or banker did,” said Michael Gecan, a co-director of the Industrial Areas Foundation, a network of faith and community organizations.
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"At a time when hardly anyone seemed to have ideas that worked, the Nehemiah homes became a roaring success in Brooklyn and the Bronx. It is hard to imagine the city’s renaissance without the vibrant foundation of Nehemiah. (A video on East Brooklyn Congregations’ website, shows the transformation.)" Story in NY Times.
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Trump Trashes Union Leader Who Called Him Out For Lying About Number Of Jobs Saved At Carrier
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Today we Veterans were thanked with sincere Blessings and Thanks for our coming to Stand with Standing Rock. Fantastic Drumming and Prayers for all Peoples to build relations in the vital protection of Mother Earth.
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The Latest From Oracle Resident Darrell Klesch On Location:
Rescued to casino!!! Safe and warm, and looks like I will live to fight another day. Yay yay YES.!!! Will NEVER think Oracle is cold again!
Situation was extreme; tents crashed,propane almost gone and wood supply dangerously close to being 0! Please send WARM THOUGHTS TO VETERANS AND WARRIOR SUPPORTERS.
And they offer cerveza here!🍺🍺👏
Catch you all in couple days
Vets Stand Tall At Standing Rock
Gird For Future Actions
President-elect Donald J. Trump’s support for finishing the pipeline means the saga is far from over. His administration could undo the Sunday decision and order the pipeline through, though the tribe and environmental activists would almost surely sue to stop him. Reflecting the continued uncertainty, the veterans were out singing and marching on Monday in gale-force winds and driving snow. NY Times story by Jack Healy
This from Darrell Klesch of Oracle, on site: What a day....prayers./ marches, blizzard conditions and below camping conditions. Sacred camp and sacred fire.
I spoke at sacred fire and was able, through tears, apologize for the 500 years of wrath that our government has brought to all Indigenous North American natives.
Now to hunker down...peace to all
This from Darrell Klesch of Oracle, on site: What a day....prayers./ marches, blizzard conditions and below camping conditions. Sacred camp and sacred fire.
I spoke at sacred fire and was able, through tears, apologize for the 500 years of wrath that our government has brought to all Indigenous North American natives.
Now to hunker down...peace to all
Pipeline Owner Bought Access To Trump During Campaign
"Kelcy Warren, the chief executive of the pipeline company Energy Transfer Partners, has been a major contributor to the Republican Party and Trump’s campaign.
Trump, who once owned a stake worth between $500,000 and $1 million in Energy Transfer Partners, has sold the shares, his spokeswoman Hope Hicks said. At the time of his most recent disclosure statement in May, Trump owned $100,000 to $250,000 of stock in Phillips 66, which has a 25 percent stake in the Dakota Access project." WaPo story here.
Trump, who once owned a stake worth between $500,000 and $1 million in Energy Transfer Partners, has sold the shares, his spokeswoman Hope Hicks said. At the time of his most recent disclosure statement in May, Trump owned $100,000 to $250,000 of stock in Phillips 66, which has a 25 percent stake in the Dakota Access project." WaPo story here.
No Country For The Timid
Feds Deny Pipeline Permit In Face Of Historic Native American/American War Vets Alliance; Trump Allies Plot Reversal; Danger Lurks; Koch Bros Pet Congressman Reacts
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Federal officials have denied the final permits required for the Dakota Access Pipeline project in North Dakota. The Army Corps of Engineers on Sunday announced it would instead conduct an environmental impact review of the 1,170-mile pipeline project and determine if there are other ways to route it to avoid a crossing on the Missouri River. Story in Politico.
"President-elect Donald J. Trump, however, has taken a different view of the project and said as recently as last week that he supported finishing the 1,170-mile pipeline, which crosses four states and is almost complete. Mr. Trump owns stock in the company building the pipeline, Energy Transfer Partners, but has said that his support has nothing to do with his investment." NY Times take.
"President-elect Donald J. Trump, however, has taken a different view of the project and said as recently as last week that he supported finishing the 1,170-mile pipeline, which crosses four states and is almost complete. Mr. Trump owns stock in the company building the pipeline, Energy Transfer Partners, but has said that his support has nothing to do with his investment." NY Times take.
Thousands of veterans converge on North Dakota to aid pipeline protest
“As a veteran we take an oath to defend the American people against enemies foreign and domestic,” said Elizabeth Torrence, 30, an Army veteran who served in Iraq in 2007, as she prepared to board the bus in Union Station. “And the way they’re treating American people, unarmed people, is unacceptable.”
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Oracle Community Leader Joins Vets At Standing Rock; Vietnam Vet Klesch Heads For North Dakota; To Build Barracks For Pipeline Protesters |
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Fake Cowboys And Real Indians by Timothy Egan"For the Indians, the Dakota Access Pipeline, which will run from oil fields in North Dakota to a terminal in Illinois, is an existential threat. “Water is life” is the protest name. As planned, the pipeline would pump an artery of oil under the Missouri River — the source of the tribe’s water. The Indians want the pipeline rerouted." Egan's NY Times piece here.
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Trump’s Carrier Shakedown
1300 Jobs Exits Indiana As President Elect Trump Takes Victory Lap
"The deal would cover 800 Carrier workers from the Indianapolis furnace plant and an additional 300 research and headquarters positions that weren’t slated to go to Mexico, according to another person briefed on the deal.
The company still plans to move 600 jobs from the Carrier plant to Mexico. It also will proceed with plans to close a second plant in Huntington, Ind., that makes electronic controls, moving 700 other jobs to Mexico." WALL STREET JOURNAL STORY
BOTTOM LINE: 800 STAYING FOR NOW; 300 WEREN'T GOING ANYWAY; 1300 LEAVING. COST TO INDIANA: 7 MILLION IN TAX DOLLARS
The company still plans to move 600 jobs from the Carrier plant to Mexico. It also will proceed with plans to close a second plant in Huntington, Ind., that makes electronic controls, moving 700 other jobs to Mexico." WALL STREET JOURNAL STORY
BOTTOM LINE: 800 STAYING FOR NOW; 300 WEREN'T GOING ANYWAY; 1300 LEAVING. COST TO INDIANA: 7 MILLION IN TAX DOLLARS
A Roman Catholic Bishop Steps Up; Sanctuary Parishes To Follow?
"For us, as the Catholic community of the United States, it is unthinkable that we will stand by while more than ten percent of our flock is ripped from our midst and deported. It is equally unthinkable that we as Church will witness the destruction of our historic national outreach to refugees at a time when the need to offer safe haven to refugees is growing throughout the world."
From remarks delivered by Most Reverend Robert W. McElroy, Roman Catholic Bishop of San Diego, Nov 28, 2016
From remarks delivered by Most Reverend Robert W. McElroy, Roman Catholic Bishop of San Diego, Nov 28, 2016
Italians yesterday, Muslims today: Chilling echoes of a dark moment in American history
Crunch Time:
What Will The Catholic Bishops Do?
A Wakeup Call For Catholic Bishops
By John Gehring In Commonweal
"Our children and grandchildren will ask what Catholic leaders did in the days when the president-elect named as his chief strategist a white nationalist who profited from kicking open the door to America’s dark cellar. The demons that escaped—racism, sexism, and nativism—have long haunted us, but now seem more comfortable in the light of day. Trump didn’t create these evils, but like demagogues down through the ages he exploited fear and division and resentment to consolidate power." Read the article here.
Will Bishops embrace views of Breitbart bred Steve Bannon when ensconced in Trump White House?
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The USCCB convenes. Decisive or dithering?
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Sanctuary Campuses?
As Trump/Sessions Grind Down On Immigrant Students, What Will Colleges And Universities Do?
And when the campaign finally showed up in the African-American, Latino, and white working-class areas they got lots of “so you only come by once every four years?”
The Clinton campaign’s assumption seems to have been that actual people living on the ground in actual places knew less about the population around them than did the data-savvy professionals at campaign headquarters in Brooklyn. Christian Parenti story here.
The Clinton campaign’s assumption seems to have been that actual people living on the ground in actual places knew less about the population around them than did the data-savvy professionals at campaign headquarters in Brooklyn. Christian Parenti story here.
The Coming War On The Poor
“I’ve been working on these issues since 1972,” Robert Greenstein, the founder and president of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities and Washington’s leading advocate for poor and low-income Americans, says. “This is by far the gravest threat to the safety net, and to low-income people, that I’ve seen in my close to half a century of working on these issues. I think there’s a potential in the first seven months, by the August recess, for Congress to pass policies that do more to increase poverty and hardship and widen inequality than we’ve seen in half a century.”
Commentary In The Monterey Herald:
Ken Smith On COPA/IAF Led Response To Looming Threats To Immigrant Families
VOICE Stands For The Whole
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Power Analysis of Trump Operation: Top Drawer Journalism by Kenneth P. Vogel
Serious Food for Thought: We Are All Deplorables by Chris Hedges
Action With Dallas Police Chief Produces Dramatic Results
400 residents packed the Christian Chapel Temple of Faith, CME, in North Dallas. Interim Police Chief David Pughes committed yes to all questions (attached). 1. He will develop a video in Eng and Spanish to educate both police and residents about what to do in a traffic stop, especially where individual is licensed to open carry.
license. 2. He learned that officers do not take reported wage theft seriously. He agreed to develop reporting protocols and to organize community sessions. |
3. There are an 8,000 estimated loose dogs in S. Dallas Deputy Chief Sherwin agreed to patrol and apprehend an estimated 8,000 loose dogs near DAI member institutions and meet regularly with a progress report.
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TV News: Action With 500 Portends Major Changes
Greater Cleveland Congregations/IAF Pressures Prosecutor-elect Before 1,500
Prosecutor Elect Mike O'Malley Makes Groundbreaking Pledges for Criminal Justice Reform
Cuyahoga County Prosecutor-elect Mike O'Malley addressed a crowd of more than 1,500 people at Olivet Institutional Baptist Church Thursday night, pledging to enact several significant criminal justice reforms.
His announcements can be attributed in large part to the advocacy and pressure of the Greater Cleveland Congregations (GCC), self-described as the "largest non-partisan electoral bloc" in the region. They were a major factor in O'Malley's toppling of the incumbent Timothy McGinty this March.
Leaders call for criminal justice reform: Cleveland.com TV here.
DuPage United/IAF
Tabassum Haleem of the Islamic Center of Naperville and Ale Jones of Jericho Road Church in Wheaton listen to the Rev. Jim Honig of Faith Lutheran Church in Glen Ellyn address a DuPage United assembly at the mosque Thursday.
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DuPage County religious leaders held an assembly at a Naperville mosque Thursday night to draw attention to their efforts to build ties with Muslims and to counter the divisive rhetoric of the presidential campaign. The standing-room-only crowd packed a gym at the Islamic Center of Naperville for a 90-minute, wide-ranging reflection on the work of DuPage United.
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Luigi Zingales
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The Right Way To Resist Donald TrumpNow that Mr. Trump has been elected president, the Berlusconi parallel could offer an important lesson in how to avoid transforming a razor-thin victory into a two-decade affair. If you think presidential term limits and Mr. Trump’s age could save the country from that fate, think again. His tenure could easily turn into a Trump dynasty.
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Together Baton Rouge Grills Candidates In Front Of Massive Crowd
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Detailed story in the Advocate: Law enforcement, tax exemptions, flood relief and addressing 'food deserts' on the agenda.
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The Fall of the Unions Paved the Way for Donald Trump
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Albuquerque Interfaith/IAF Gathers Power For The Fight Ahead
Leaders Convene To Defend Families Targeted By Trump And His Minions
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Nearly 300 people gathered Sunday in solidarity with communities that have been singled out by President-elect Donald Trump throughout his campaign. Organized by Albuquerque Interfaith and attended by leaders from numerous religious congregations, public schools and nonprofits, the event at St. Andrew Presbyterian Church focused on working “together democratically to defend members of the community who may face discrimination and attack.”
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“You have an individual, Mr. Bannon, who’s basically creating the ideological aspects of where we’re going,” Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke told CNN. “I must admit that I was a wee bit surprised that Mr. Trump finally chose Mr. Bannon,” said Rocky Suhayda, chairman of the American Nazi Party, expressing delight.
That such vile, odious characters are happy about the new administration is a call to action. Each of us must decide what we will do to shun the trivial, focus on what’s important and protect our country from a crisis that no amount of tears can fix. |
A moment for forceful action: As Trump takes power, stay focused on what's important, not what's interesting
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Hillary, The Hamptons, And Intimations Of Defeat
By Frank C. Pierson, Jr.
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NY Daily News Backs Metro IAF Push For Special Education Services
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Bannon/Breitbart Clickbait
"Breitbart is a masterwork in hateful, but remarkably, frighteningly successful, propaganda." Trump's Senior Strategist promoted: 'fear of a brown hoard of “other” poised on our southern border.'
JFleck At Inkstain: "This Cannot Be Normalized"
Arizona: The Canary In The Coal Mine
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Thomas Frank Hits The Democratic Party Hard:
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Karen Yourish Has Developed A Good Summary Of What Donald Trump Says He Wants To Get Rid Of |
Michael Gecan, Co-Director, Industrial Areas Foundation
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Michael Gecan: Democrats Need Recommit To Average People Not Financial Wizards And Stars
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Arnie Graf, IAF (retired)
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Arnie Graf: Politicians should trust in the people they hope to represent
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30,643 Voter Registrations In North Carolina; IAF Linked Congress Of Latino Organizations Drives Massive GOTV Effort; 1,000 + Latinos Push For Recognition Of Action Agenda
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More than one thousand Latino immigrants met with democratic candidates for governor and senate in North Carolina. Leaders of the NC Congress of Latino Organizations won statewide support for comprehensive immigration reform and the hiring of interpreters for clinics and schools in the one hundred counties of North Carolina.
http://www.newsobserver.com/news/politics-government/election/article111523942.html
http://mundohispanico.com/noticias/candidatos-democratas-se-comprometen-a-trabajar-por-la-comunidad-latina-de-carolina-del-norte-video
http://www.heraldsun.com/news/latino-group-holds-meet-the-candidates-forum-cooper-and-ross/article_24c55c18-9efc-11e6-8a48-433f4231a285.html
http://www.newsobserver.com/news/politics-government/election/article111523942.html
http://mundohispanico.com/noticias/candidatos-democratas-se-comprometen-a-trabajar-por-la-comunidad-latina-de-carolina-del-norte-video
http://www.heraldsun.com/news/latino-group-holds-meet-the-candidates-forum-cooper-and-ross/article_24c55c18-9efc-11e6-8a48-433f4231a285.html
Milwaukee Police Chief Ed Flynn
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What's Needed: Better Policing Not Just More MoneyIt is time to recognize that more policing — without a commitment to meaningful relationships, community improvements, and proper training — is not just crippling our budget and starving other fundamental needs in our city. It is reinforcing the belief in African American communities that the larger community values ‘peace’ at any price. The price is more and more dollars for more and more police with more and more weapons. The price is also dead African Americans who are gunned down with regularity. Story in Urban Milwaukee.
Common Ground’s Black Caucus is made up of Keisha Krumm, Lead Organizer Common Ground, Rev Will Davis, Rev Ciara Davis of Invisible Reality Ministries, John Eshun MKE Rising Organizer at Common Ground and Frank Finch III member of Mt Calvary Lutheran |
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A Message From Michael Gecan, IAF Co-Director, Metro IAF
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Greater Cleveland Congregations!
Cast Early Ballots And Protest Voter Suppression
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Several hundred voters marched to the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections on Sunday to cast ballots and protest the limited number of in-house early voting locations in Ohio.
The marchers departed at 2:30 p.m. from the Trinity Episcopal Cathedral and traveled a half-mile to the Board of Elections headquarters on Euclid Avenue.
Greater Cleveland Congregations and the Amalgamated Transit Union organized the event to encourage Cuyahoga County residents to vote early before the general election on Nov. 8. The story here.
The marchers departed at 2:30 p.m. from the Trinity Episcopal Cathedral and traveled a half-mile to the Board of Elections headquarters on Euclid Avenue.
Greater Cleveland Congregations and the Amalgamated Transit Union organized the event to encourage Cuyahoga County residents to vote early before the general election on Nov. 8. The story here.
Alinsky Bashers In Overdrive: Obsession With Saul David Alinsky Mutates By Frank C. Pierson, Jr.
How The New Patronage Cripples US Politics And Disenfranchises Local Achievements By Frank C. Pierson, Jr.
Big COPA/IAF Healthcare Victory
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After successfully implementing a pilot project for undocumented healthcare in Monterey County, COPA leaders were able to secure a unanimous vote of the Board of Supervisors to create an action team, with COPA, that will study comprehensive solutions and present a proposal back to the board this spring. This was a major step in moving Monterey County closer to ensuring that all residents have access to quality, affordable healthcare regardless of immigration status.
Media coverage: |
VOICE/IAF In Mega Action Drives Multi-Issue Agenda
Do Not Stand Idly By Gun Safety Campaign Grows
VA Attorney General Signs On, Pledges To Recruit Others
Full Report Here!
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Last night VA Attorney General Herring signed onto VOICE/Metro IAF's Do Not Stand Idly By campaign AND committed to get other area AG's to join too. VOICE/Metro IAF's Do Not Stand Idly By Campaign is a market-based approach that demands gun manufacturers create guns with safety measures such as smart guns. The Do Not Stand Idly By Campaign now has 106+ Governors, Attorney Generals, Police Chief and other government officials backing it.
by Robert Wiener
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Rabbi Elliott Tepperman
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Citizens UK/IAF Goes To Court To Protect Vulnerable Refugee Children
A Compelling Address By IAF Organizer Jonathan Lange To The 2016 Convention Of The Amalgamated Transit UnionAn entire generation of union leadership has been forced to play defense. But now, standing before the 2016 Convention of the Amalgamated Transit Union, I am here to tell you that this is the time to start playing offense. Yours is the union to show the rest of us how to do it. Your leadership is the leadership best equipped to throw the ball far down the field and score. Read the address in its entirety here.
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Jonathan Lange, IAF Organizer
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PCIC/IAF Bashes Candidates Who Duck Public Events; Ponders Fate Of DemocracyWhat happens to a democracy if no one shows up?
This is not a rhetorical question. Many of our local candidates are skipping candidate forums, debates and accountability sessions. Doesn’t being a candidate for public service require presenting yourself to the public? What about independent expenditure committees and dark money? Some of it is used for attack ads on candidates and some of it is simply used to discourage people from voting. At our recent candidate accountability session at Amphitheater High School, attended by more than 500 local residents, Rev. Jim Wiltbank said that the antidote to voter apathy and dark money is “us.” When we opt out and don’t participate – candidates and voters alike – we destroy the proper functioning of a democracy and renege on our civic responsibility. Probing opinion piece in Arizona Star here. |
GBIO/IAF Leads Push For Community Preservation Act"These days, grass-roots organizations such as the Greater Boston Interfaith Organization are undertaking a disciplined outreach effort to educate Boston residents on the measure’s potential impact, according to organizers.
Almost 30 church groups from across the region are holding themselves to a strict pledge. At a rally in September, each participating congregation promised to secure roughly 3,000 “yes” votes from Boston residents." The Community Preservation Act — which adds a nominal surcharge to property taxes to create revenue for housing, environmental protections, and historical preservation -- was handily defeated. “We can’t just diagnose the problems with housing over and over again,” said Jeanette Callahan, a doctor who lives in Dudley Square and is organizing through her church to pass the November measure. “We keep thinking we’ve done something and we’ve done nothing. It’s time to look at a treatment plan.” |
DAI/IAF Leads Fight Against Brutal Landlords
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Nevadans For The Common Good Blasts Proposed Las Vegas Stadium; All The Media Below Including Adelson Veto Of Much Local Coverage In His Own Newspaper
Naming “seven hidden risks” that public funding of a new Adelson-backed Raiders’ stadium would bring to taxpayers, leaders of Nevadans for the Common Good publicly voiced their opposition to the plan with a well-attended press conference. Read below for full coverage:Opponents of Adelson-Backed Stadium Get Little Attention in Adelson-Owned Newspaper, Las Vegas TribunePoliticians Place a Bet on a Stadium, and Vegas Pays For It, New York TimesGroup Against Stadium Proposal Because It ‘Contains Unacceptable Level of Risk for Residents,’ Las Vegas SunSeven Hidden Risks in the Stadium Plan, Nevadans for the Common Good
Group Has Concerns About Funding for New NFL Stadium, CBS Channel 8
Critics Outline Raiders’ Stadium Objection, Las Vegas Review Journal
Two Nevada Groups Announce Opposition to Proposed Raiders Stadium in Las Vegas, Las Vegas Review Journal
Pair of County Commissioners, Uneasy About Stadium Plan, Las Vegas Sun
Group Has Concerns About Funding for New NFL Stadium, CBS Channel 8
Critics Outline Raiders’ Stadium Objection, Las Vegas Review Journal
Two Nevada Groups Announce Opposition to Proposed Raiders Stadium in Las Vegas, Las Vegas Review Journal
Pair of County Commissioners, Uneasy About Stadium Plan, Las Vegas Sun
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Real Deal Poverty Fighters:
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With Louisiana as the state with the third highest number of poor people, many of them working full-time, Northern & Central Louisiana Interfaith leaders are devising new ways to tackle poverty. Says Pastor Clayton Moore, “If you work, how is it that you’re poor?”
NCLI leaders have launched Another Chance to Succeed (ACTS), modeling itself on Project QUEST in San Antonio and NOVA in Monroe, Louisiana. The goal is to train adults into higher wage jobs of at least $15 / hour. ACTS is targeting January 2017 as its start-up date.
Interfaith Fights Poverty with Workforce Training, KTBS
NCLI leaders have launched Another Chance to Succeed (ACTS), modeling itself on Project QUEST in San Antonio and NOVA in Monroe, Louisiana. The goal is to train adults into higher wage jobs of at least $15 / hour. ACTS is targeting January 2017 as its start-up date.
Interfaith Fights Poverty with Workforce Training, KTBS
Big PCIC/IAF Action Helps Reshape Southern Arizona Politics; Crowd Of 500 Backs Issue Agenda And Pledge Voter Turnout Work; State And Local Candidates A "Yes!"
500 + attended a bilingual “Education and Economic Success for All” Accountability Session at Amphitheater High School in Tucson, AZ on Sunday evening, Oct. 2nd. Over 50 congregations, schools and community groups participated. Candidates for state legislature and Pima County Board of Supervisors responded to a series of specific yes-no questions then explained their responses.
The action focused on education, hunger/food security, SPICE (synthetic marijuana), JobPath workforce funding, and affordable housing. The session also included a discussion of the pros and cons of the $48 million Amphi Bond Proposition 447. Promise of advancing substantive public business helped cement a unique alliance that included PCICEO, Southern Arizona Interfaith, the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona, the Amphitheater School District, Literacy Connects and the UA College of Education. |
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Dallas Area Interfaith/IAF Drives Big Housing Code Change In Dallas, Texas
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In a little over a year of public action, DAI church leaders confronted landlords, secured the support of allies, negotiated with adversaries, and ultimately changed the housing code of Dallas in a fundamental way. The whole story here. |
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Dateline Oracle, AZ - The Attempted Child Migrant Bus Blockade: Truth And Consequences By Frank C Pierson, JrWhat happened in Oracle shouldn’t stay in Oracle. What happened in Oracle on July 15, 2014 in our small town should figure prominently in the battle that pits the principal instigator of the attempted Oracle bus blockade - Republican Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu - against his Democratic opponent, Tom O’Halleran, in Arizona Congressional District 1.
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Michael Gecan's NY Daily News Piece On Clinton v Trump Makes Big Mention In The Washington Examiner: Better Read It
Dallas Area Interfaith: Cleaning Up Rental Apartments; Getting Tough On Landlords; Setting Precedents For A Better Future
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Hamden police, officials, clergy call for end to violence outside pizza shop, non-renewal of bar’s liquor permit; CONECT IAF Drives Change |
HAMDEN >> A consortium of local leaders and an organization of religious leaders called on the state Liquor Commission not to renew the liquor permit of a local pizza restaurant because of the violence that takes place outside its doors.
Over the past several years there have been “numerous” shootings in the area of Slyce Pizza Bar on Arch Street, including one slaying, according to Police Chief Thomas Wydra. He and Mayor Curt Balzano Leng joined members of CONECT — Congregations Organized for a New Connecticut — in calling on the restaurant to stop serving alcohol. WTNH Ch 8; NBC Connecticut; New Haven Register front page coverage.
Over the past several years there have been “numerous” shootings in the area of Slyce Pizza Bar on Arch Street, including one slaying, according to Police Chief Thomas Wydra. He and Mayor Curt Balzano Leng joined members of CONECT — Congregations Organized for a New Connecticut — in calling on the restaurant to stop serving alcohol. WTNH Ch 8; NBC Connecticut; New Haven Register front page coverage.
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Michael Gecan On The Presidential Campaign: How Donald Trump controls the conversation: A lesson from Saul Alinsky that Hillary Clinton must learn |
DAI Engineers Housing Code Breakthrough In Dallas, Texas
Got It! The House Voted This Evening To Pass The Continuing Resolution That Includes $500 million for Louisiana Flood Victims.
This Cements First Installment On Louisiana Flood Relief
Together Louisiana Backed By IAF Organizations Around The USA Make It Happen
The Advocate report: The U.S. Senate has agreed to a short-term spending plan that will provide up to $500 million for Louisiana flood recovery efforts. After several days of negotiations, Senators quickly moved Wednesday to pass the stop-gap measure that will fund the federal government through Dec. 9 and prevent a government shutdown at midnight Friday.
Tucked inside that measure is $500 million for states that have had natural disasters this year, the bulk of which is expected to go toward Louisiana's recovery from catastrophic floods that left 13 dead and thousands of homes damaged or destroyed. Story.
Tucked inside that measure is $500 million for states that have had natural disasters this year, the bulk of which is expected to go toward Louisiana's recovery from catastrophic floods that left 13 dead and thousands of homes damaged or destroyed. Story.
The latest Las Vegas Review story here: https://shar.es/1xA40w
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Nevadans For The Common Good Fights Proposed Raiders Stadium In Las VegasNevadans for the Common Good is among the first organizations to take a public stance against the stadium plan developed by the family of Las Vegas Sands Corp. Chairman and CEO Sheldon Adelson, Majestic Realty and the Oakland Raiders. The NFL franchise’s executives have promised to seek relocation to Las Vegas if the stadium is built.
Review Journal story here. |
Updated Letter To Congressional Delegations From Together Louisiana/IAF
Press For Federal Recovery Dollars In Final Hours
The latest! The Emergency CDBG Funding for LA is still caught in the wrangling over the Continuing Resolution. The vote could happen at anytime but it looks like it will be drawn out till next week. There is some talk that the LA funding request may be put off to the lame duck session after the election. If this happens there will be a foreclosure crisis in LA. Many residents simply will not be able to cover the cost of repairing their homes and paying their mortgages. Schools that could not be reopened need emergency repairs or we will begin to see many neighborhoods abandoned. Local government will continue to see a precipitous drop in revenue due to residential relocation and small business closures. The time to act is now LA families and communities depend on it!
Continue to get this message to your members. Ask them to deliver this urgent message to the leadership.
Continue to get this message to your members. Ask them to deliver this urgent message to the leadership.
Evidence Of Impact
Common Ground Revives A Milwaukee Neighborhood
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"The thing I'm most impressed with is the work (Common Ground has) done to rehabilitate foreclosed houses," said Hardy, a retired Milwaukee Public Schools social worker and deacon at Community Baptist Church. Journal Sentinel story here.
Connected!
IAF Is An International Network...Grounded In Powerful Local Organizations
Big IAF Doings In Chapel Hill, NC
Orange County Justice United/IAF Tackles Affordable Housing And More
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Nearly 500 members of 21 different churches and non-profit organizations gathered at St. Thomas More Catholic Church for the Orange County Justice United public assembly Thursday evening.
Justice United is an organization that fights for social justice within Orange County, Chapel Hill and the Chatham County areas. On Thursday evening, the groups met to address affordable housing and unlicensed drivers in the area. Story.
Justice United is an organization that fights for social justice within Orange County, Chapel Hill and the Chatham County areas. On Thursday evening, the groups met to address affordable housing and unlicensed drivers in the area. Story.
Kathy Ruiz Goldenkranz
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Important COPA/IAF Leader Kathy Goldenkranz Has Passed Away; She Will Be Long Remembered For Her Social Justice Work With COPA, Temple Beth El And The Jewish Community CenterFrom a 2012 column she wrote in the Santa Cruz Sentinel: "Passionate movements like Occupy, capture our attention. Their message to hold Wall Street and/or Washington accountable is commendable. However, their movement begs questions like, how do we hold those with power accountable? One answer is, working together and taking action on an achievable local agenda.
In the Monterey Bay, the work of Communities Organized for Relational Power in Action, or COPA, a broad-based organization comprised of dues-paying faith, nonprofit, education and labor institutions, can claim many civic accomplishments since its founding June 2004 in areas of affordable housing, immigration reform, education, health care, economic development and public safety." |
Red Hot Patriot
The Kick-ass Wit Of Molly Ivins
Coming To Denver
October 9, 2016
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Proceeds To Benefit Colorado Industrial Areas Foundation Sponsoring Committee (Promo Flyer Here)
Together Louisiana/IAF Spearheads Drive For $2.6 Billion Federal Dollars To Aid Recovery From Catastrophic Flooding; Write Your Congressional Delegation To Take Action Now; Prototype Letter And Details Here.
COPS/Metro Drives Wages Up
QUEST Training Initiative Built In To San Antonio Budget
Living Wages Are A Right, Not a Privilege; COPS/Metro Leads The Charge In Texas
Excellent W/SW IAF Update Including Tons Of Media Here
"If there is enough money in the budget to compensate the highest paid employees in the city, there should be enough to compensate the lowest ones as well. As a “city on the rise” we should aspire to set a new standard among American cities to value the contributions of all public servants, instead of merely trying to be competitive. We urge our mayor and City council to do the right thing: to recognize the dignity of all workers by affording them a living wage of $15 an hour by 2018." Rivard Report here.
Incredible! Historic Deal Moves Forward ~We learned that no one could buy BUILD because you didn't ask for anything yourself~
· A 30% local hiring mandate on all infrastructure construction jobs with a 30% goal of all on-site jobs
· $10 million investment in minority & women owned business firms
· A $24 minimum wage across the site for infrastructure
· $25 million workforce development center that will also create a pipeline for local hiring for all permanent jobs
· 1,060 affordable housing units
· Profit sharing that treats the city as the investor that it is.
· $10 million investment in minority & women owned business firms
· A $24 minimum wage across the site for infrastructure
· $25 million workforce development center that will also create a pipeline for local hiring for all permanent jobs
· 1,060 affordable housing units
· Profit sharing that treats the city as the investor that it is.
Last night, as the votes were tallied on the City Council, BUILD celebrated a historic win on so many levels. Baltimore Sun: Council Advances Port Covington Deal
CNN Covers Together Baton Rouge Recovery Efforts
The lack of an automatic federal response aimed at gutting a city's worth of houses became clear within days to Broderick Bagert, lead organizer with Together Baton Rouge.
"You keep looking around for the cavalry," Bagert said. "Then you're like, s***, there is no cavalry." So Bagert and his colleagues set about building one.
Support TBR's efforts here: https://togetherbr.nationbuilder.com/donate
http://www.cnn.com/…/louisiana-baton-rouge-flooding-recove…/
"You keep looking around for the cavalry," Bagert said. "Then you're like, s***, there is no cavalry." So Bagert and his colleagues set about building one.
Support TBR's efforts here: https://togetherbr.nationbuilder.com/donate
http://www.cnn.com/…/louisiana-baton-rouge-flooding-recove…/
Officials, BUILD/IAF, Port Covington developers announce $100 million citywide benefits deal
$100 million citywide benefits agreement secured by BUILD
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The developers of the massive Port Covington project on Thursday announced a $100 million citywide benefits agreement after weeks of negotiations with the Rawlings-Blake administration, key City Council members and the influential community group BUILD — which had opposed the project for weeks. The deal — the largest of its kind in city history — is seen as a key step toward the developers winning City Council approval of $660 million in bonds to build infrastructure for the project. At a news conference in South Baltimore, supporters hailed the community deal as an unprecedented step for a developer who is seeking a subsidy from the city. "It's a new day in Baltimore," said Bishop Douglas I. Miles, of Baltimoreans United in Leadership Development. "To any developers out there, when you come to the table now, come with your checkbook ready." |
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From BUILD/IAF In Baltimore
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Together Louisiana/IAF Bashes Tax Exemption That Costs Schools, Local Governments Millions; Digging Into The Entrails Of Corrupt System Provokes Change
Lady Carlson, coordinator of Northern and Central Louisiana Interfaith, believes ITEP has been abused. Northern and Central Louisiana Interfaith is a part of Together Louisiana and uses local voices to address ITEP and workforce development concerns. "People have gotten the exemption and haven't created new jobs," she said. "The Board of Commerce and Industry has become a rubber stamp that grants anybody or any corporation that asks for an exemption.""We're not saying do away with it. We are worried that the school district has a deficit and our roads and bridges are horrendous. That money could come back to local taxing institutions."
Story here in the Shreveport Times
Story here in the Shreveport Times
Indefatigable, Unconquerable COPS/Metro
Labor Day Celebration Rocks San Antonio
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BUILD PRESS STATEMENTPRESS CONTACTS: Rev. Glenna Huber, BUILD Co-Chair, 443-475-0818; Rob English, BUILD Lead Organizer, 443-756-7833; Rev. Andrew Foster Connors, BUILD Co-Chair, 410-599-9895
_______________________________________________________________________________________
BUILD and Sagamore Development Continue to
Negotiate in Good Faith
Good faith, constructive negotiations have been held over a period of two weeks
with Sagamore Development, BUILD and its allies. The City Council
President’s staff has been present throughout negotiations. Significant movement
has been made on both sides. Some groups chose to end negotiations late last week.
BUILD remains engaged and is working hard to negotiate an extraordinary deal that
will help BUILD One Baltimore. To be certain, Sagamore Development continues to
be engaged and negotiate in good faith with BUILD, working towards an historic and
unprecedented city-wide benefits agreement.
Baltimoreans United In Leadership Development – is a broad-based, non-partisan, interfaith, multiracial community power organization rooted in Baltimore’s neighborhoods and congregations. BUILD is dedicated to making Baltimore a better place for all Baltimoreans to live and thrive. For nearly 40 years, BUILD has worked to improve housing, increase job opportunities, and rebuild schools and neighborhoods, among other issues.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
BUILD and Sagamore Development Continue to
Negotiate in Good Faith
Good faith, constructive negotiations have been held over a period of two weeks
with Sagamore Development, BUILD and its allies. The City Council
President’s staff has been present throughout negotiations. Significant movement
has been made on both sides. Some groups chose to end negotiations late last week.
BUILD remains engaged and is working hard to negotiate an extraordinary deal that
will help BUILD One Baltimore. To be certain, Sagamore Development continues to
be engaged and negotiate in good faith with BUILD, working towards an historic and
unprecedented city-wide benefits agreement.
Baltimoreans United In Leadership Development – is a broad-based, non-partisan, interfaith, multiracial community power organization rooted in Baltimore’s neighborhoods and congregations. BUILD is dedicated to making Baltimore a better place for all Baltimoreans to live and thrive. For nearly 40 years, BUILD has worked to improve housing, increase job opportunities, and rebuild schools and neighborhoods, among other issues.
Worth A Thousand Words
Together Baton Rouge On The Ground In Louisiana
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Fox Business News: Oklahoma religious leaders call for payday lending changes; VOICE/IAF Grows Campaign"Predatory lending is pushing Oklahomans deeper and deeper into poverty," said Lori Walke, minister at Mayflower Congregational United Church of Christ in northwestern Oklahoma City and a member of VOICE. "Payday lenders target economically depressed Oklahomans, zeroing in on areas with high populations of the elderly, young adults, immigrants and lower-income households." Story
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Innovation!
In The Face Of A Natural Disaster
Together Baton Rouge/IAF Links Recovery To Local Living Wage Jobs
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100 new jobs paying $15 per hour, exclusively for residents of flood-affected parishes
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Elise Robillard shares story of payday loan leading to bankruptcy
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VOICE/IAF Presses Payday Lending Reform; State, Feds Challenged To ActOKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- A group of leaders from Oklahoma churches, nonprofits and Native American tribes called Tuesday for changes to the state's payday loan industry, which they say preys on poor people and often keeps them trapped in a cycle of debt.
The group Voices Organized for Civic Engagement, or VOICE, also urged Oklahomans to support proposed changes to federal rules that would impose new restrictions on the industry. Story here. |
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Trump v Clinton: Democracy in a Ditch
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This is a Labor Day story about Mexican-American farmworkers who made civil rights history when they refused to let go of the “radical” idea that their wages should afford them a living.
Ernesto Cortes, the brilliant moving force behind the Industrial Areas Foundation, launched his community advocacy after putting his academic life on hold to work with the farmworkers. Commemorating the 50th anniversary of the 1966 melon strike, the San Antonio Express-News referenced Ernesto Cortes for helping lay the groundwork for a generation of Mexican-American political activity in Texas. San Antonio Express News story here.
Together Baton Rouge has created a "master" online sign-up option for flooded residents who need help mucking out, gutting or mold-remediating their homes
The website is www.gutcheckLA.com.
Sign-ups received there will be sent to Crisis Cleanup and to most of the major organizations doing house clean-up work, including Habitat for Humanity, Rebuilding Together Baton Rouge, LEAN, the Baptist Association of SELA, United Methodists, LDS groups, Samaritan's Purse and others.
The site can be used not only in the greater Baton Rouge area, but across any flood-affected area in Louisiana.
Residents, public officials, non-profit organizations and members of the media are encouraged to share this resource broadly so that residents needing gutting services may access.
You can donate to support Together BR's efforts here
Sign-ups received there will be sent to Crisis Cleanup and to most of the major organizations doing house clean-up work, including Habitat for Humanity, Rebuilding Together Baton Rouge, LEAN, the Baptist Association of SELA, United Methodists, LDS groups, Samaritan's Purse and others.
The site can be used not only in the greater Baton Rouge area, but across any flood-affected area in Louisiana.
Residents, public officials, non-profit organizations and members of the media are encouraged to share this resource broadly so that residents needing gutting services may access.
You can donate to support Together BR's efforts here
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The Relational Heart Of Organizing:
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A group of residents is looking back on the disasters and racial unrest that enveloped Baton Rouge this summer and is brainstorming policies local government could implement to move the parish forward.
On Thursday evening, the faith-based community group Together Baton Rouge brought together around 50 people who live in both north and south Baton Rouge districts to reflect on the events of the summer. The aim: to outline platforms they want candidates running for Metro Council to recognize and, once elected, to implement.
Meeting at the Bluebonnet Branch Library, the group covered vast ground, deciding they want political leaders to address: drainage and runoff water regulation; police reform; economic development in under-served communities; improving access to healthcare; traffic and transportation problems; and increasing access to fresh food.
On Thursday evening, the faith-based community group Together Baton Rouge brought together around 50 people who live in both north and south Baton Rouge districts to reflect on the events of the summer. The aim: to outline platforms they want candidates running for Metro Council to recognize and, once elected, to implement.
Meeting at the Bluebonnet Branch Library, the group covered vast ground, deciding they want political leaders to address: drainage and runoff water regulation; police reform; economic development in under-served communities; improving access to healthcare; traffic and transportation problems; and increasing access to fresh food.
Dallas Area Interfaith Breaks Through On Housing Code Fight; Saves Effort To Protect Vulnerable Renters |
No Surprise Here: Another IAF In The Middle Of It
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“The city really should not be in the business of subsidizing affluent enclaves, especially one year after the unrest,” said the Rev. Andrew Foster Connor, clergy co-chair of the group BUILD.
“Sagamore can do better,” Foster Connor said, of the affordable housing component of the TIF proposal — at present, a 10% goal. “Some of the weakest language” in the deal, he said. Story here. |
Kudos also should go the Dallas Area Interfaith, which pressed concerns about the conditions of rental units to the council. The group's involvement throughout the review process kept these issues on the council's radar and set the stage for many of the most important tweaks in the code. Story here
Together Baton Rouge volunteers help those impacted by the storm clean up
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Aug. 20:
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"If they don't get this wet stuff out of their homes in the next few days, the entire home will be contaminated,” retired Lt. Gen. Russel Honore told the volunteers.
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Organized by Together Baton Rouge, the “Gut Check Saturday” event paired volunteers with flood victims.
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TBR's FLOOD DAMAGE SURVEY for residents with flood damage. Answers help assess the community's needs and inform policy responses from federal, state and local government. AFTER YOU COMPLETE THE SURVEY: Please text LAfloodsurvey.com to everyone you know who has suffered damage. To make a donation to support the recovery, please click here. They’ve also created an online list of RECOVERY RESOURCES, and a Volunteer House-Clearing Guide See TBR's recovery fund accountability message HERE. |
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PCIC Takes On Deadly Drug Plague In Southern Arizona...
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Together Baton Rouge/IAF Appeals For Immediate Flood Aide; Launches Damage Survey; Massive Response Portends Better Days Ahead For Rain Soaked Region; Advocate Story On Survey Here
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The survey here: togetherbr.nationbuilder.com
Donation appeal here: togetherbr.nationbuilder.com/donate |
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Comments: I am 73 years old and this has taken a mental and physical effect . I have 1 kidney...blind in 1 eye...heart issues...I am literally HOMELESS....PLEASE HELP ME...I ALSO LOST MY JOB...AND JOB BUILDING WAS DESTROYED.
Immediate needs: Clothes size ...Women 14, Shoes. Size 5.5, Diabetes machine, Diabetic strips, Diabetic needles, Diabetic pin, All furniture and appliances (lost everything in home)
Comments: Please Help me with assistance... God Bless Us All. FEEL SO ALONE THROUGH THIS DISASTER, I KNOW I HAVE GOD BUT ITS SO HARD ALONE... NO FAMILY TO HELP ME AND REALLY DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO, CAN'T STOP CRYING AND STAY PRAYING.
Immediate needs: Need assistance with food, dogfood, money for bills &; household items...
Immediate needs: Clothes size ...Women 14, Shoes. Size 5.5, Diabetes machine, Diabetic strips, Diabetic needles, Diabetic pin, All furniture and appliances (lost everything in home)
Comments: Please Help me with assistance... God Bless Us All. FEEL SO ALONE THROUGH THIS DISASTER, I KNOW I HAVE GOD BUT ITS SO HARD ALONE... NO FAMILY TO HELP ME AND REALLY DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO, CAN'T STOP CRYING AND STAY PRAYING.
Immediate needs: Need assistance with food, dogfood, money for bills &; household items...
100% Of Funds Will Go To Immediate Flood Recovery In Baton Rouge and South Louisiana; Urgent Needs, Local Knowledge Drive Response Effort; Citizen Capacities Fully Engaged; Donate Here.
Dallas Area Interfaith/IAF Raises Standards For Rental Housing, Press For "Decent And Dignified" Apartments Gets Results
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The ultimate goal of any code inspection is that the owner complies voluntarily. And if he doesn’t, the city takes enforcement action and writes tickets. Inspectors have to educate the owners, McAvoy said. “It’s like disciplining your child,” he said. “If you don’t explain, it’s like, ‘You’re picking on me.’ ”
The city will hire 15 new code officers next year to handle single-family houses. The city’s 50,000 rental homes and condos, which will have to be registered as rental properties, will be inspected in response to complaints and once every five years under the proposed rules.
Dallas Area Interfaith initially brought the concerns to council members after Bachman Lake area residents complained about bed bugs, mold, air conditioning problems, and issues with landlords. The powerful citizen organization has kept the pressure on. Dallas Morning News story here.
The city will hire 15 new code officers next year to handle single-family houses. The city’s 50,000 rental homes and condos, which will have to be registered as rental properties, will be inspected in response to complaints and once every five years under the proposed rules.
Dallas Area Interfaith initially brought the concerns to council members after Bachman Lake area residents complained about bed bugs, mold, air conditioning problems, and issues with landlords. The powerful citizen organization has kept the pressure on. Dallas Morning News story here.
Common Ground/IAF
... working to bring real hope to Milwaukee and Sherman Park. Common Ground was in Sherman Park before the unrest and we will be there long after - pushing mayor and common council to make a real investment not just give lip service. Story here.
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CONECT/IAF Battles Big Health Insurance Players; Fights Tooth And Nail To Keep Rates Down; NY Times Takes Note |
Doug Wade, a small business owner in Bridgeport and leader in the Council of Churches of Greater Bridgeport, and IAF Organizer Matt McDermott are quoted in this NY Times piece about health insurance rate increases. See link to the article below.
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/15/us/politics/health-insurers-use-process-intended-to-curb-rate-increases-to-justify-them.html?smprod=nytcore-iphone&smid=nytcore-iphone-share
Bitter conflicts have erupted between insurers and consumers at hearings around the country as companies request double-digit premium increases.
This coverage was based on CONECT testimony at rate hearings last week, that the citizen organization first fought to put in place back in 2011. At that time CONECT objected to Anthem, ConnectiCare and Aetna's huge increase requests for 2017. ConnectiCare had the gall to increase their rate increase request the day before the hearing to 42.7%!
CONECT fought to create these rate hearings as a way to have a voice in a typically very cosy relationship in Hartford between insurance companies and insurance regulators. After hearings in the summer of 2014, CONECT won a $66 million savings for Anthem customers. Again last summer, rate hearings resulted in reductions in 3 companies requests, again saving tens of millions.
Though the NY Times makes it sounds as if insurance companies are turning the hearings to their favor, CONECT fought for and won a deal for hearings before the ACA took effect and have used them to good effect. The requests this year are onerous, no doubt. CONECT is hopeful that the hearings continue to put pressure on the Department of Insurance to hold the line.
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/15/us/politics/health-insurers-use-process-intended-to-curb-rate-increases-to-justify-them.html?smprod=nytcore-iphone&smid=nytcore-iphone-share
Bitter conflicts have erupted between insurers and consumers at hearings around the country as companies request double-digit premium increases.
This coverage was based on CONECT testimony at rate hearings last week, that the citizen organization first fought to put in place back in 2011. At that time CONECT objected to Anthem, ConnectiCare and Aetna's huge increase requests for 2017. ConnectiCare had the gall to increase their rate increase request the day before the hearing to 42.7%!
CONECT fought to create these rate hearings as a way to have a voice in a typically very cosy relationship in Hartford between insurance companies and insurance regulators. After hearings in the summer of 2014, CONECT won a $66 million savings for Anthem customers. Again last summer, rate hearings resulted in reductions in 3 companies requests, again saving tens of millions.
Though the NY Times makes it sounds as if insurance companies are turning the hearings to their favor, CONECT fought for and won a deal for hearings before the ACA took effect and have used them to good effect. The requests this year are onerous, no doubt. CONECT is hopeful that the hearings continue to put pressure on the Department of Insurance to hold the line.
PCIC's JobPath Excels. Continues To Gather Steam Lifting Wages Through Long Term Training; Partnership With Local Government, A Citizens Organization And Employers Produces Big Gains For Large Numbers
PCIC: The Power Behind The Program
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There was one problem. She didn’t know how she was going to pay for it. Then she learned about Arizona Jobpath, which helps people earning minimum wage get an education and become skilled workers in various fields.
That was 17 years ago. Today Popp is director of clinical operations for Radiology Limited in Tucson.
“The big part of the success I had was because I had Jobpath,” she said.
The Pima County Interfaith Council launched Jobpath in 1998. The program offers job training, matches students with scholarships to community college and places students in apprenticeships in the fields they hope to enter.
Popp graduated from Jobpath in 2001. She said one of the most important things she learned was how to be a productive employee. For her, that’s a key strength of the program — it teaches technical skills along with “soft skills” that help graduates succeed out in the workforce.
“The college teaches you the technical part of it,” she said, “Jobpath teaches you the human part of it.” Read the whole story in the Arizona Daily Star here.
That was 17 years ago. Today Popp is director of clinical operations for Radiology Limited in Tucson.
“The big part of the success I had was because I had Jobpath,” she said.
The Pima County Interfaith Council launched Jobpath in 1998. The program offers job training, matches students with scholarships to community college and places students in apprenticeships in the fields they hope to enter.
Popp graduated from Jobpath in 2001. She said one of the most important things she learned was how to be a productive employee. For her, that’s a key strength of the program — it teaches technical skills along with “soft skills” that help graduates succeed out in the workforce.
“The college teaches you the technical part of it,” she said, “Jobpath teaches you the human part of it.” Read the whole story in the Arizona Daily Star here.
DAI Brought It; July 29, 2016
Mary Leah, Maguire Fellow in Dallas
The philosopher Cornel West once defined democratic faith as “a Pascalian wager (hence undermined by the evidence) on the abilities and capacities of ordinary people to participate in the decision-making procedures of institutions that fundamentally regulate their lives.” I love this description because it captures how difficult it can be to believe in our democratic system or in the power of ordinary citizens to make a difference within that system.
Though we desperately want to believe in these things, it feels as if they are constantly “undermined by the evidence,” to borrow West’s words. Especially now, as we find ourselves witnessing a particularly contentious presidential election, it is all too easy to become cynical. This summer, I am interning with Dallas Area Interfaith (DAI), an organization that embodies democratic faith in a way I have never before experienced. The rest here.
Though we desperately want to believe in these things, it feels as if they are constantly “undermined by the evidence,” to borrow West’s words. Especially now, as we find ourselves witnessing a particularly contentious presidential election, it is all too easy to become cynical. This summer, I am interning with Dallas Area Interfaith (DAI), an organization that embodies democratic faith in a way I have never before experienced. The rest here.
An International IAF Calling Card
Leadership Training
Here As Practiced By The Sydney Alliance In Australia
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Durham CAN Demands:
Turn Eyesore Into Affordable Housing
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Fayette Place is the Durham’s largest undeveloped downtown transit-oriented site that has languished as an eyesore on the historic Hayti community.
On July 27, 2016 more than 200 CAN and Hayti community leaders held a press conference with elected officials including the Durham Mayor, City Council members, State Representatives to bring attention to this forgotten area and demand the Durham Housing Authority (DHA) and City of Durham work together to reacquire site control immediately, before covenants for affordable housing development expire on August 7, 2017.
Durham CAN Clergy and Pastors from surrounding churches raised their voices to say Enough is Enough. "Neglect and abandonment is what Campus Apartments -current owner of Fayette Place- has done for [12] years", Rev. William Lucas, Pastor of First Chronicles, said.
Hayti pastors challenged elected officials to create a space that all Durham can be proud of and reflect the beauty and history of the historic Hayti community. “Nothing will be built in this area without the consent of CAN and Hayti leaders,” declared Bishop Clarence Laney, Pastor, Monument of Faith Church located a block from the Fayette Place and Durham CAN Clergy leader. Durham CAN Clergy announced they will meet with Anthony Scott, CEO of the Durham Housing Authority, on July 29 to demand immediate action and give Campus Apartments notice of default.
http://www.durhamcan.org/the-herald-sun-steps-to-nowhere-calls-for-action-change-ring-out-at-fayette-place/
http://wunc.org/post/durham-can-pushes-affordable-housing#stream/0
http://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/community/durham-news/article92278507.html
http://wncn.com/2016/07/27/durham-leaders-ask-city-to-invest-millions-to-develop-blighted-land/
http://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/community/durham-news/article91915932.html
http://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/community/durham-news/article91483517.html
http://www.heraldsun.com/news/durham-can-calls-for-action-on-fayette-place/article_5ecdebf6-52b6-11e6-8d70-bbd87d5ad874.html
On July 27, 2016 more than 200 CAN and Hayti community leaders held a press conference with elected officials including the Durham Mayor, City Council members, State Representatives to bring attention to this forgotten area and demand the Durham Housing Authority (DHA) and City of Durham work together to reacquire site control immediately, before covenants for affordable housing development expire on August 7, 2017.
Durham CAN Clergy and Pastors from surrounding churches raised their voices to say Enough is Enough. "Neglect and abandonment is what Campus Apartments -current owner of Fayette Place- has done for [12] years", Rev. William Lucas, Pastor of First Chronicles, said.
Hayti pastors challenged elected officials to create a space that all Durham can be proud of and reflect the beauty and history of the historic Hayti community. “Nothing will be built in this area without the consent of CAN and Hayti leaders,” declared Bishop Clarence Laney, Pastor, Monument of Faith Church located a block from the Fayette Place and Durham CAN Clergy leader. Durham CAN Clergy announced they will meet with Anthony Scott, CEO of the Durham Housing Authority, on July 29 to demand immediate action and give Campus Apartments notice of default.
http://www.durhamcan.org/the-herald-sun-steps-to-nowhere-calls-for-action-change-ring-out-at-fayette-place/
http://wunc.org/post/durham-can-pushes-affordable-housing#stream/0
http://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/community/durham-news/article92278507.html
http://wncn.com/2016/07/27/durham-leaders-ask-city-to-invest-millions-to-develop-blighted-land/
http://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/community/durham-news/article91915932.html
http://www.newsobserver.com/news/local/community/durham-news/article91483517.html
http://www.heraldsun.com/news/durham-can-calls-for-action-on-fayette-place/article_5ecdebf6-52b6-11e6-8d70-bbd87d5ad874.html
IAF Organizations Into The Breach;
Race, Violence, Police Reform Challenge Community Institutions To Step Up; IAF's Together Baton Rouge Front And Center; Media Run Down Below Includes Wall Street Journal and New York Times; Faith-based and community organizations are planning to play a vital role in helping Baton Rouge healThe Rev. Patti Synder, pastor of University Presbyterian Church, says addressing those divisions will begin by starting a frank—and likely uncomfortable—dialogue that brings all communities in the city to the table. Though that may sound like an easy thing to do, it won’t be. “It is going to take courage to speak the truth to one another,” she says. "The truth is not easy to hear, and the truth is not easy to speak. So we as a city will need to practice listening and speaking to one another.” https://www.businessreport.com/…/faith-based-community-orga…
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In Baton Rouge, a Divided City Faces Two Different Tragedies, New York Times
Multi-Racial Organization Aims to Bring Baton Rouge Together, NPR
La Desigualdad Endemica de Baton Rouge, El Pais
Together Baton Rouge Preaches 'All Lives Matter' in Path to Move City Forward, FOX 8
John Bel Edwards Asks Baton Rouge Group to Start Community Dialogue About Policing, Times-Picayune
After the Baton Rouge Shootings, a City Joins Together to Honor Officers, Christian Science Monitor
Local Group Vows Changes in Baton Rouge, and Healing, The Advocate
A Tale of Two Baton Rouges, Wall Street Journal
Baton Rouge Tries to Bridge Divide, WWLTV
Baton Rouge Unity Group: The City Needs Change, KATC 3-ABC
Together Baton Rouge Adopts Request to Lead Community Policing Initiative, Greater Baton Rouge Business Report
Together Baton Rouge Preaches 'All Lives Matter' in Plan to Move City Forward, WAFB
Together BR to Distribute Popular Pins, The Advertiser
Faith Based Group Calls for Change in Baton Rouge, WDSU
Together Baton Rouge Shares Message of Unity, ArkLaTex
Multi-Racial Organization Aims to Bring Baton Rouge Together, NPR
La Desigualdad Endemica de Baton Rouge, El Pais
Together Baton Rouge Preaches 'All Lives Matter' in Path to Move City Forward, FOX 8
John Bel Edwards Asks Baton Rouge Group to Start Community Dialogue About Policing, Times-Picayune
After the Baton Rouge Shootings, a City Joins Together to Honor Officers, Christian Science Monitor
Local Group Vows Changes in Baton Rouge, and Healing, The Advocate
A Tale of Two Baton Rouges, Wall Street Journal
Baton Rouge Tries to Bridge Divide, WWLTV
Baton Rouge Unity Group: The City Needs Change, KATC 3-ABC
Together Baton Rouge Adopts Request to Lead Community Policing Initiative, Greater Baton Rouge Business Report
Together Baton Rouge Preaches 'All Lives Matter' in Plan to Move City Forward, WAFB
Together BR to Distribute Popular Pins, The Advertiser
Faith Based Group Calls for Change in Baton Rouge, WDSU
Together Baton Rouge Shares Message of Unity, ArkLaTex
No Easy Answers: Dallas Area Interfaith/IAF Presses Forward With Relationship Building Anchored By A Twenty Year History Of Working With Law Enforcement
"Building trust is how we are going to get better policing," -- Josephine Lopez Paul
Read powerful DAI statement here.
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Pictures from a vigil/meeting last night at Southern Hills Church of Christ in Dallas organized by Dallas Area Interfaith (DAI). Six different law enforcement agencies from around the metro area joined 600 who attended the event. As the national attention inevitably fades, the slow, patient work of house meetings with police to build trust and to work towards solutions to local issues will be DAI's focus in the weeks and months to come. DAI builds on a twenty year history of working with law enforcement. Next steps for the organization include a follow up meeting in next week to address public safety concerns in neighborhoods across the city.
- Some Blacks and Latinos Say Conversation on Race and Policing is Being Forgotten, Dallas Morning News
- Area Activists Try to Restart Community Conversation on Race and Policing in Dallas, Dallas Morning News
Together Baton Rouge/IAF Reacts To Baton Rouge Shooting
Demands Comprehensive Federal Investigation
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Baton Rouge faith leaders called for clarity on and a larger role for the Department of Justice in the investigation of the shooting of Alton Sterling. They called public trust in the investigation "paramount" in a statement issued during a Thursday (July 7) press conference.
Sterling was killed after officials say an altercation occurred with two Baton Rouge police officers early Tuesday morning. The investigation was handed over to the FBI and the DOJ's Civil Rights Division by Wednesday morning. Baton Rouge Police Department spokesman Lt. Jonny Dunnam also said that while the DOJ will investigate potential civil rights violations, Louisiana State Police will work to determine if criminal actions took place.
"This is a time of grieving in our community. It is a time of anger. And it is time of raising, and answering, a fundamental question -- whether the killing of a member of our community, Alton Sterling, by a member of our police force was justified or unjustified," reads the statement from the Rev. Lee T. Wesley provided by Together Baton Rouge. "One thing is of paramount importance at a time such as this -- public trust in the integrity of the process of criminal justice." NOLA story here. Together Baton Rouge statement here.
Mega Media Roundup
http://theadvocate.com/news/16335220-70/together-baton-rouge-pleads-with-feds-to-play-larger-role-in-alton-sterling-investigation
http://abcnews.go.com/US/alton-sterling-shooting-baton-rouge-community-leaders-call/story?id=40399820
http://www.wbrz.com/news/together-br-urges-transparency-thoroughness-in-sterling-investigation/
http://www.cnn.com/2016/07/07/us/baton-rouge-alton-sterling-shooting/
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/ct-louisiana-officers-use-of-force-complaints-20160707-story.html
http://m.apnews.com/ap/db_268748/contentdetail.htm?contentguid=xqbojvCe
http://delmarvapublicradio.net/post/faith-leaders-baton-rouge-call-peace-patience-and-serious-investigation#stream/0
http://wtop.com/government/2016/07/louisiana-police-shooting-caught-on-video-strains-community/
Sterling was killed after officials say an altercation occurred with two Baton Rouge police officers early Tuesday morning. The investigation was handed over to the FBI and the DOJ's Civil Rights Division by Wednesday morning. Baton Rouge Police Department spokesman Lt. Jonny Dunnam also said that while the DOJ will investigate potential civil rights violations, Louisiana State Police will work to determine if criminal actions took place.
"This is a time of grieving in our community. It is a time of anger. And it is time of raising, and answering, a fundamental question -- whether the killing of a member of our community, Alton Sterling, by a member of our police force was justified or unjustified," reads the statement from the Rev. Lee T. Wesley provided by Together Baton Rouge. "One thing is of paramount importance at a time such as this -- public trust in the integrity of the process of criminal justice." NOLA story here. Together Baton Rouge statement here.
Mega Media Roundup
http://theadvocate.com/news/16335220-70/together-baton-rouge-pleads-with-feds-to-play-larger-role-in-alton-sterling-investigation
http://abcnews.go.com/US/alton-sterling-shooting-baton-rouge-community-leaders-call/story?id=40399820
http://www.wbrz.com/news/together-br-urges-transparency-thoroughness-in-sterling-investigation/
http://www.cnn.com/2016/07/07/us/baton-rouge-alton-sterling-shooting/
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/ct-louisiana-officers-use-of-force-complaints-20160707-story.html
http://m.apnews.com/ap/db_268748/contentdetail.htm?contentguid=xqbojvCe
http://delmarvapublicradio.net/post/faith-leaders-baton-rouge-call-peace-patience-and-serious-investigation#stream/0
http://wtop.com/government/2016/07/louisiana-police-shooting-caught-on-video-strains-community/
