Keeping an Optimistic, Yet Watchful Eye on the Ball
It looks like President Obama and his administration kept most of the great ideas explored with the Grow America Act, last year's transportation initiative. The total investment is increased to $478 billion and expanded to six years in the latest iteration of the budget released yesterday. A few of the best pieces for low-income communities […]
Homegrown Solutions To Inequity in Ferguson and Beyond
The debate about Ferguson continues: The grand jury decision is unfair to many; policing practices seem discriminatory and dangerous; and local court systems have been shown to prey upon low-income people. The sheer scope of the problems can be overwhelming. But let’s take a step back. Richard Rothstein’s “The Making of Ferguson“ links some modern […]
Jobs and More Jobs:Â Organizing’s Economic Impact
In the report, “Jobs and More Jobs: The Economic Impact of Community Organizing,” Gamaliel community organizers add up $13 billion worth of public and private programs that faith, community, and labor leaders worked to create or save through their advocacy efforts in 2012-13, employing nearly 460,000 people. Using commonly accepted economic formulas to measure the […]
Moving Toward Solutions in Ferguson
Over the past few weeks, many news accounts have laid bare questionable—and perhaps criminal—police behavior and the subsequent and continuing protests by concerned citizens in and around Ferguson, Mo. On a single day, September 10th, at least three protests happened—one at the state capitol, one outside St. Louis City Hall, and one near Ferguson (a thwarted highway sit-in […]
The Roots of #Ferguson
The situation in Ferguson, MO continues to be volatile, news cycle after news cycle. A second young person, a Howard University grad, was shot, members of the national press have […]
Answers from Red States for Our Broken Criminal Justice System
Left, right or center, few dispute that our criminal justice system is broken. But two new and thrilling victories this month are giving real hope to activists who want more effective […]
Jobs/Transit, Hope on the Horizon?
With all the gridlock in DC, it seems impossible that anything fruitful or significant can really happen. But a few dedicated public officials are starting to push two very promising […]
President Obama Could Be Doing More for Unemployment
In January, U.S. Rep. John Conyers and seven other Congress members created the Full Employment Caucus, with the goal of creating more than 24 million jobs in order to to […]
Sec. Foxx’s New Transportation Proposal Is Great
Looks like the Obama administration hasn't given up yet on tackling the big issues that plague our country. Secretary Anthony Foxx's new $302 billion dollar transportation proposal is creative and ambitious […]
Nonprofit Funding in San Diego Under Threat
San Diego’s sunny beaches and beautiful college campuses can be deceptive. The city's soaring housing costs force university students and low-income families to sleep on couches and to depend on […]
To Close the Gender Wage Gap, Start Here
It's exciting that President Obama wants to narrow the gender wage gap, as was widely reported. Here's a good first step: updating federal contracting regulations. It hasn't been done since […]
The Government Should Use Private Funds to Invest in Organizing
Many applauded when President Obama announced his new initiative, My Brother's Keeper, to support opportunities for young men of color. According to the White House: “By the time they hit […]