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Dear John,
This Black History/Black Futures Month I’ve been thinking about who our government is meant to serve, and what our future could look like with people and community needs at the center.
I say that because we live in a system that is not designed for everyday people. We are shadowed by centuries of racial capitalism and colonialism, and struggling to survive in conditions shaped by corporations and the wealthy elite to extract as much as possible from our lives. We witness endless violence towards our communities—from outright murder by the police, to our healthcare getting stripped away, to our histories being erased in classrooms. If the government were truly for everyday people, then we would have control over the decisions that impact our lives and allow our communities to thrive.
I have hope that we will get there eventually, but we have to do more than fight for small tweaks to our existing systems. We have to be visionary. We deserve a future where people are at the center of everything we do—in how we access housing and healthcare, make decisions in our workplaces, and shape our communities.
As we near the end of the month, I’m reminded of something that writer and activist Linda Burnham once shared [[link removed]] : “There is a side of Black freedom that is not imaginable to those of us living today, because it’s hard to imagine a time you’re not carrying the weight of your ancestors.” It is hard to imagine what that future looks like, but I think we have no other option. We must continue to envision and build towards a future that is joyous and celebratory, and where our systems nourish and sustain all people.
Lauren Jacobs [[link removed]] With hope,
Lauren Jacobs
Executive Director
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Spotlight On: Growing a multiracial worker movement across Missouri! [[link removed]]
Earlier this month we welcomed our newest affiliate to the network: Missouri Workers Center [[link removed]] ! Founded two years ago, they have been bringing together low-wage, Black, white, urban, and rural workers from across the state to build power, fight racism, and win economic justice for all. Our Base-Building Manager, Rodney Brown , connected with Missouri Workers Center’s Executive Director, Jeremy Al-Haj , to talk about how they’re supporting workers, some of their recent wins, and what’s ahead for 2023 and beyond.
Jeremy: Workers' lives are much broader than whether or not they get a decent paycheck or if they are able to take a break on the job. For example, in 2021 we worked on a campaign alongside tenant rights organizations and legal service providers to win Right To Counsel in Kansas City. I've literally been sitting in workers' homes when they've been evicted. We’ll be sitting down talking about how to win better pay at their job, and suddenly the landlord will knock on the door.
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VICTORY: 100% Clean Energy signed into Minnesota law
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After weeks of organizing in person, sharing testimonies, and calling on elected officials, ISAIAH and community partners celebrated the 100% Clean Energy bill [[link removed]] being signed into law! Thanks to their efforts (and after a long campaign [[link removed]] ), the bill passed in about a month during this legislative session. Now signed into law, the 100% Clean Energy bill will create a carbon-free standard for 2040, raise the renewable standard to 55% by 2035, and strengthen protections for environmental justice communities, working people and all Minnesotans.
Empowering residents to shape community schools in Anaheim, CA
[[link removed]] Orange County Communities Organized for Responsible Development (OCCORD)’s community organizer, Mariana, has been hosting meetings with Anaheim residents to spread awareness about the city’s community school initiative and to give residents a voice in shaping its future. By providing a platform for input and giving residents a seat at the decision-making table, Mariana is working to ensure that the community school model will be developed in a way that truly serves the needs of Anaheim over the next 5 years.
VICTORY: Fair and adequate school funding for all Pennsylvania students
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Earlier this month, POWER Interfaith celebrated a historic court ruling stating that the Pennsylvania Legislature has a constitutional obligation to provide the resources for all students to access a “comprehensive, effective and contemporary” system of public education. For over a decade, POWER has played a crucial role in fighting for fair and adequate school funding across the state. They’ve rallied over 1,500 people at the Harrisburg State House; contributed crucial data analysis; secured resolutions in Lancaster, Allentown and Philadelphia’s City Councils; won monumental increases through the Fair Funding Formula; and mobilized thousands of students, parents, educators, and faith leaders in their home districts and throughout the Commonwealth. Now, they’re using this win to push even harder for changes to the state’s funding system and budget in order for all students to succeed.
VICTORY: Creating a new kind of housing in Seattle
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After weeks of getting the word out about Initiative 135 (I-135) [[link removed]] , Puget Sound Sage, the House Our Neighbors coalition, and community partners in Seattle celebrated the passage of a new social housing measure! I-135 will create the Seattle Social Housing Developer, a community-controlled entity that will develop, own, and maintain social housing in the city. Read how social housing will create opportunities for stability and solidarity in this op-ed by Sage’s Kaileah Baldwin [[link removed]] .
Protecting Colorado renters with powerful tools like rent stabilization
[link removed] [[link removed]] Renters in Colorado are being priced out of their homes—and it’s no accident! A new report [[link removed]] released by United for a New Economy (UNE) highlights how housing costs and homelessness have risen, while corporate landlords have been raking in profits. They jack up rental prices and block efforts to protect renters’ rights, but UNE and community members are fighting back. One tool that local governments can use to address housing affordability in Colorado is rent stabilization. UNE’s Executive Director Carmen Medrano affirms how these kinds of policy solutions benefit educators, essential workers [[link removed]] and all Coloradans who need a safe, affordable, dignified place to call home.
VICTORY: Putting the pressure on Amazon in the Inland Empire
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Warehouse Worker Resource Center has been supporting workers organizing at Amazon's KSBD facility, known as Inland Empire Amazon Workers United (IEAWU). Over the past few months, workers have been demanding wage increases, safe working conditions, and an end to retaliation at the facility. In that time, they’ve organized two highly successful walkouts and brought widespread attention to conditions at KSBD. They’ve also reported increased surveillance and intimidation from management and outside consultants, including the suspension of one of IEAWU’s prominent worker leaders, Sara Fee. IEAWU members rallied around Sara [[link removed]] , demanding answers from management, launching an intense 3-day campaign, and filing an unfair labor practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board. As a result, Sara was reinstated and IEAWU celebrated the return of one of their strongest leaders [[link removed]] !
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"Dot’s Home" is featured in the App Store! In this narrative-driven game created by Rise-Home Stories Project, players step into the shoes of Dorothea Hawkins, who travels through time to save her family’s future. Check out this Apple interview featuring Christina Rosales [[link removed]] , our Housing and Land Justice Director and one of the game’s co-producers, about how the game weaves together housing justice, time travel, and policy.
"Tyre Nichols’ death is a reminder that Philly police need more oversight." POWER Interfaith leaders discuss the need for community oversight of police departments in Philadelphia and across the country. Read more in The Philadelphia Inquirer [[link removed]] .
"How to create community out of a bunch of buildings." Puget Sound Sage’s Equitable Development Manager, Ab Juaner, joins a radio series on displacement and building community in the Seattle area. Listen or read more in KUOW’s four-part series The Ripple Effect [[link removed]] .
"Conversations with Erika Reyes." Erika Reyes, a leader with United for a New Economy (UNE), shares why she’s fighting for rent stabilization in Colorado. Read more in Voyage Denver. [[link removed]]
"OSHA Is (Finally) Investigating the Hell Out of Amazon." Warehouse Worker Resource Center’s Sheheryar Kaoosji is quoted in this important piece on the recent investigations, fines, and citations at Amazon warehouses across the country. Read the full piece in Mother Jones . [[link removed]]
"Revitalizing Civic Engagement through Collaborative Governance." Co-governance—when decision-making power is shifted back into the hands of everyday people—is happening in exciting ways across the country! Georgia STAND-UP and Puget Sound Sage are two such examples of how people are building civic power and community voices. Learn more in this series by New America. [[link removed]]
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