Partnership for Safety & Justice Helps Decriminalize Drugs in Oregon
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Recently, the Partnership for Safety & Justice, a Veatch grantee advancing progressive criminal justice reform in Oregon, celebrated a major milestone. This past February, Oregon became the first state in the country to remove criminal penalties for possession of all drugs — and expands access to treatment, peer support, housing and harm reduction services. The victory is thanks to organizing efforts of the Drug Policy Alliance, a national network that includes the Partnership among its members.
According to a report by the Oregon Criminal Justice Commission released by the Oregon Secretary of State’s office, the new law will result in a 95% decrease in racial disparities in drug arrests. The actual impact on disparities could be even more dramatic, the report notes, stating “other disparities can exist at different stages of the criminal justice process, including inequities in police stops, jail bookings, bail, pretrial detention, prosecutorial decisions, and others.”
The victory represents a major win for advocates of criminal justice reform and more humane treatments towards people who use drugs. Read more about the victory here.
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Veatch and Texas Grantees Respond to Weather Crisis
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As the recent weather crisis unfolded in Texas last month, Veatch reached out to several of our grantees to see how the groups, and their members, were doing — and to identify ways to help with the response.
According to Michelle Tremillo, Director of Veatch grantee Texas Organizing Project (TOP), the recent extreme weather in Texas was a nightmare for millions of people in the state — the winter storm and record cold temperatures directly impacted their members and staff and it was, she maintains, “entirely preventable – if we had better state leadership.” However, as soon as the roads were safe to drive, the Texas Organizing Project pivoted to providing direct relief, distributing over $10,000 in cash assistance, groceries, and water to its community members. TOP acknowledged that this was a drop in the bucket from what people will need to fully recover from lost wages, outrageous electric bills, and home repairs due to pipes bursting. People are in dire need for emergency support.
For this reason, TOP joined fellow Veatch grantee Workers Defense Project (WDP), as well as the Texas Freedom Network, Planned Parenthood, Texas Votes, and Texas Civil Rights Project to launch the PowerUpTX.org fund to:
- Provide direct cash assistance to families across the state;
- Re-grant to other mutual aid groups on the ground doing critical work who may not have the same access to funders or capacity to fundraise that TOP, WDP, and their partners do; and
- Do what they do best: long-term organizing, making sure communities understand that what happened to them wasn't about the weather. It was about ideology and decisions made by political leaders putting corporate profits above investments in critical infrastructure that the state desperately needs.
The PowerUpTX fund is housed at Workers Defense Project, which successfully managed an Undocuworker Fund that already distributed $3.5 million in COVID relief. Veatch has pledged a contribution to the PowerUpTX fund, demonstrating the congregation’s support. However, if you are looking for a way to help directly in Texas, you can go to PoweUpTX.org and make a personal donation, and invite others to do the same.
Long term support from the Veatch Program has helped make it possible for these organizations to have the infrastructure and trust in the community to respond and get relief to those who need it most. We stand with them as they work to alleviate suffering and to make sure something like this never happens again.
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Veatch Grantee NWBCCC Helps Secure Major New Community Land Trust in NY
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Veatch grantee Northwest Bronx Community & Clergy Coalition has recently secured a major victory in New York, along with other members of the NYC Community Land Trust Initiative. For the first time in decades, the City has agreed to hand ownership of a property in Harlem on 110th street to a community land trust — a model in which community-based groups, and not private landlords, become stewards of the land. The initiative includes the launch of a $13.2 million property rehab in Harlem.
This success is thanks to decades of organizing by groups involved in the NYC Community Land Trust Initiative — who last year secured a commitment from Mayor Bill De Blasio in his State of the City address to include land trusts as part of the City's overall affordable housing efforts.
Read more about Community Land Trusts here.
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United We Dream Advances Bold Immigration Initiative
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After decades of organizing, Veatch grantee United We Dream — the largest immigrant and youth-led group in the country — has helped advance a comprehensive immigration plan, endorsed by the Biden administration, that the group called, “one of the boldest and most progressive immigration bills in our history.”
The legislation includes an 8-year pathway to citizenship for all 11 million undocumented immigrants in the country, an expedited 3-year pathway for undocumented youth, allow workers with Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and farmworkers to immediately apply for green cards, and a guarantee not to increase the country’s deportation and detention systems, like the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection.
Greisa Martinez, the executive director of United We Dream, told the New York Times that the group applauds this bold action, but also cautioned the administration not to water down the legislation. “The time is done for compromises,” she said. “The time is now for bold change. Our movement and our power are undeniable. Our demands are undeniable. We are ready.”
Read more here.
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Illinois Ends Cash Bail — A Key Priority of Many Veatch Grantees
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A top campaign goal of Veatch grantees across the country is to end the system of cash bail in our criminal justice system. Cash bail essentially allows those who can afford to do so to buy their freedom, while those without such resources — who are often low-income, people of color, and women — languish in holding cells.
Veatch grantees including groups like Ella Baker Center, Southerners on New Ground, Faith in Action, among many others have successfully led campaigns to limit the use of cash bail, and draw attention to its discriminatory roots. This past week, advocates in Illinois have built on those efforts by successfully lobbying for a bill, signed by Governor J.B. Pritzker, that makes the state the first in the nation to completely eliminate the practice.
Read more about this important victory here.
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Hazard Pay Passes in San Jose
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On February 10th, the San Jose City Council voted 7-3 in favor of hazard pay. Under this ordinance, people working at large grocery stores, with more than 300 employees nationally, will be paid $3/hour on top of regular wages.
This victory has long been pursued by Silicone Valley Rising, a project of Veatch grantee Working Partnerships USA — a group of labor, community, and faith leaders. "This is a big step towards an equitable COVID-19 recovery and will be critical for people working at grocery stores who have put their lives on the line throughout this pandemic in order to keep our communities fed," wrote Maria Noel Fernandez, Campaign Director, in an email update. The ordinance was formalized on February 23, and will go into effect 30 days after. Once active, the pay bump will last for 120 days.
Read more about the victory here.
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Veatch Grantee VOCAL-NY Raises Funds for Permanent Home
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During Veatch Sunday in January, the collection plate for our service was for VOCAL-NY, a Veatch grantee based in New York City. They work throughout the state as well, including in Long Island, building the power of low-income people directly impacted by HIV and AIDS, mass incarceration, and homelessness. VOCAL was founded in 1999 by AIDS activists who were quite literally fighting for their lives. VOCAL-NY’s first campaigns were about winning affordable housing for people living with HIV. Their members knew then, and they know now, that a real home can transform a person’s life. A home brings stability, improved health, and a sense of community. VOCAL-NY has never stopped fighting for housing for the most vulnerable among us, but today they need our support to build an organizational home of their own.
As Brooklyn has rapidly gentrified, VOCAL-NY’s long-time office space on 4th Avenue has been sold to developers and will be replaced with luxury condos. After close to 20 years, VOCAL-NY is being forced out. But they are seizing this moment to secure new, permanent space only blocks away from where they are currently located. Their goal is to own what they so beautifully call a Home for Justice, Compassion and Love — a home base for organizing and member support.
Helping secure this permanent home for the organization will ensure they continue their life-saving work for decades to come. You can donate to the effort here and learn more about their work in the video below.
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