Press

Millions in funding for a housing pilot program that would go toward restoring communities affected by the 2008 foreclosure crisis in Prince William County will be promised by two major financial institutions and a Virginia housing agency Monday, according to Virginians Organized for Interfaith Community Engagement.

Prince William suffered more than 20,000 foreclosures during the housing market collapse and was the hardest hit locality in Virginia, according to the coalition of interfaith groups, which has organized around housing issues in the county. The $30 million pilot program would buy and rehabilitate about 100 vacant, blighted townhouses and provide for 1,500 affordable rentals in some of the Prince William communities most affected by the collapse — around Dale City, Georgetown South in Manassas and Williamstown in Dumfries.

Congregations Organized for a New Connecticut has played advocate for social and economic justice since the nonpartisan interfaith group's founding in November 2011.

Most recently, CONECT successfully pushed for legislation to enable undocumented immigrants to acquire driver's licenses. The group argued the move would not only allow undocumented immigrants to feel secure driving their kids to and from school and themselves to and from work, but would benefit all motorists because immigrants would have to be tested on their driving skills and would be able to register their cars and buy insurance.

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Judge David Matia estimates that area residents could save millions in local taxes if the offenders he sees in drug court had health insurance.
And if Ohio were to expand Medicaid, as being debated by state legislators, many of the defendants in his court would qualify for the state and federal health insurance program for the poor.... As the clock ticks on a decision, local lobbying for expansion has stepped up: On Monday, community activists held a rally at the Neighborhood Family Practice Center, a federally qualified community health center on Cleveland's West Side. In addition, Greater Cleveland Congregations announced that dozens of volunteers from area religious organizations and neighborhood groups will go door to door in the legislative swing districts of Rocky River, Berea and Solon this week to urge people to contact their legislators. 

Connecticut Democrats are rallying around a plan that would allow people who are in the U.S. illegally to get driver's licenses, making the state one of several to consider the idea this year.... The plan's advocates say it would ensure these immigrants are given proper driving tests and allow them to get car insurance. The proposal could also provide additional state revenue from registration fees and car taxes. "This is a population that has been here for many years and must drive to conduct their lives, and bringing them into the system will benefit the general public," said the Rev. James Manship, co-chairman of Congregations Organized for a New Connecticut, a coalition of religious groups.

New York City’s unprecedented crime reduction has been remarkable for its scale and persistence. But our city has the bad habit of either taking its successes for granted or losing sight of why and how progress was made. Both supporters and critics of recent police practices — stop-and-frisk in particular — have repeated these mistakes. Supporters incorrectly hold the tactic responsible for building a safer city; critics would have us sacrifice the effective response of the NYPD at the altar of reform.

Omaha Together One Community wants both candidates to commit $1 million a year to the problem.  The city has 748 houses on its demolition list. On average, it costs the city about $12,000 to knock down a house -- but neighbors say it’s worth every penny.

West / Southwest IAF

Calling for humane immigration reform grounded in civil and human rights, some 40 Houston-area clergy came to the bimah at Congregation Beth Israel on April 23 to urge support for a bipartisan Senate immigration bill. In a press conference organized by The Metropolitan Organization, the religious leaders applauded the Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act of 2013 (S. 744)...

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Members of Common Ground, a community organization of churches, small businesses, nonprofits and neighborhood groups, on Sunday soundly backed a new initiative to upgrade school athletic facilities in Milwaukee County. The initiative is called the Fair Play Campaign. In a statement backed by more than 450 delegates, the group said it would propose designating a minimum of $150 million from any public financing plan for a new multipurpose arena to replace the BMO Harris Bradley Center. The funds would be used to upgrade Milwaukee County public school athletic facilities and recreational spaces. "Today we are changing the conversation about how our monies are spent and what our priorities are," said Jennifer O'Hear, a parent of three children, two of whom are enrolled in the Milwaukee Public Schools.

COLUMBUS, Ohio --Ohio's Medicaid expansion is down, but not out.  House Republicans kept alive the possibility that Ohio may expand its Medicaid program to cover the working poor, approving an amendment to its budget that could open the door to changes later this year.... The amendment drew praise from Greater Cleveland Congregations, one of several groups that organized a rally outside the Statehouse last week urging lawmakers to support extending Medicaid. "The fact that this amendment passed with in a near-unanimous bipartisan vote shows that the legislature listened to the overwhelming outpouring of public support from Ohioans over the past 10 days, and wants to keep the conversation moving forward," Ari Lipman, lead organizer for the coalition, said in a statement. "Our diverse coalition will continue to work with House leadership, the Senate, and Governor Kasich through the budget process to achieve the best outcome for Ohio."

A terrific profile of VOICE's anti-foreclosure work in Northern Virginia on CNN.

“Cy was a choir director, community leader and maker of fine clocks. When I knew him, he was 80 years old and lay leader of the church I served.  One snowy morning, he came to my office and simply said, ‘We have to go to Albert Lea.’  I said, ‘That is in Minnesota, and they have lots of snow.’

Then he told me a boy in the parish, one that we had recently confirmed, was in trouble with the law in Albert Lea. So Cy, the boy’s father and I drove through the snowy Midwest to bring the boy home…”

Anderson and her 66-year-old mother, Martha Anderson [photo right], were among about 60 Tarrant County residents who gathered at the St. Andrews United Methodist Church in Fort Worth … for the 200-mile bus trip to Austin. The trip was organized by the Allied Communities of Tarrant (ACT) [in coordination with the Network of Texas Organizations].

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