I just came from the Bank of America action where the Rabbi gave a beautiful invocation which was amplified with the “People’s Mic.” Kolot was there with BCU and JFREJ; the action was organized by the New Bottom Line, a national coalition effort of which PICO is a member and today’s NYC component was coordinated by Kolot member Ilana Berger, NBL’s Co-Director. Lots of reasons for Kolot to take pride in the meaningful partnerships we are building and role our community is playing in working for economic justice! Other Kolotniks there were me, Betsy Biele and Rachel McCullough (JFREJ’s organizer on the Shalom Bayit/Justice for Domestic Workers campaign). Rabbi, you should be sure to send your remarks to Trisha so that she can post them on our website and FB. I am attaching here a few of the better photos I took. It was energizing and great to be there with everyone, Cindy Cynthia Greenberg
May 03, 2012
Two hundred parishioners from The Basilica Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Sunset Park, Brooklyn packed into a church hall for a spirited public meeting to acquire commitments from Congresswman Nydia Velazquez, Assemblyman Felix Ortiz, a representative of Councilwman Sara Gonzalez and the Police Athletic League this Sunday. One by one, the elected officials each agreed to the community’s public request to form a Task Force that would address the the need for improved safety in the neighborhood, with a particular focus on a few blocks that the church has identified as hot spots of drug sales and violence. The Task Force would listen to community needs and report back at another public meeting in three months' time. Additionally, the Director of Field Operations for the city-wide Police Athletic League gave his commitment to working with the church to explore the possibility of opening an evening teen center in the October. Gabina Rodriguez, a mother of three and the aunt of a young man who was brutally murdered five years ago near one of the identified “hotspot” blocks, spoke of the need for residents and elected officials to come together to maintain consistent pressure for change in the neighborhood. “I used to live on a street where I would be afraid to come out because there would be people smoking in the halls and staircase of my building,” explained Estrella Gonzalez, 18. She has also had her own struggles and made friends when living there that had a bad influence on her, she said. Gonzalez explained that it changed her life tremendously when she moved just two blocks away from a “hotspot” block. She emphasized the need for teens to keep their minds occupied with enriching activities. These simmering problems in the “hotspot” blocks are why “we need the help of elected officials for our community, NOW, before something really bad happens.” A committee of dedicated parishioners at the church organized this public meeting as a way of putting their faith into action. The one hour meeting was the first public action resulting from an intensive community organizing process recently started with Brooklyn Congregations United. The process consisted of one to one conversations after masses and research meetings with elected officials and local non-profits. A report of this research and organizing process was presented by Lucia Cerron and Eugenia Gonzalez, two Mexican women raising their families in Sunset Park. Congresswoman Nydia Velazquez spoke of the work her office does to bring funding to communities. She described the work of the Red Hook Community Justice Center which helps teens who are arrested for small crimes to be given the chance to return to school and get help in starting a career, instead of being sent to juvenile jail where they may learn more destructive habits. Assemblyman Felix Ortiz shared the opportunity for youth to get jobs through his office as part of the city's Summer Youth Employment Program and recognized Congresswoman Velazquez's critical role in the neighborhood. Citycouncilwman Sara Gonzalez’s representative, Michael Schweinsburg, discussed the work of their office in supporting youth and ensuring community safety. He stated that the Councilwoman was in communication with the 72nd precinct regarding the concerns of the Community Committee and would continue to follow up with them, in coordination with the church's community committee. The elected officials all welcomed and encouraged the civic engagement of the community and congratulated them on their work. In the concluding remarks, Amparo Cuevas noted that the police precinct did not accept the invitation to participate. She reaffirmed the commitment of the Community Committee to follow up through additional meetings with the officials and in one to one conversations with adults and youth in the parish and in the hotspot blocks. Richard Guevara from the Police Athletic League shared information about the summer playstreet they run on 61st street, one of the hotspot blocks, and described the other work of his organization. A representative from the Washington Heights branch of the Guardian Angels expressed his interest in starting a junior angels program with children from 6 – 15 years of age and asked adults interested in starting a community patrol group in Sunset Park to sign up with him. Brooklyn Congregations United (BCU) is a network of religious congregations of different faiths across Brooklyn. BCU works to develop low to moderate-income community leaders to build powerful organizing efforts capable of involving large numbers of people in the identification, research and resolution of issues defined by the community. Through this work BCU hopes to capture the imagination of our communities and transform them into healthy renewed communities where people come together to struggle for a common good. BCU has held dozens of public meetings attended by close to 10,000 congregational members and neighbors working for positive solutions to community problems.
Brooklyn Congregations United, a multifaith congregation based organization, of almost 15,000 members supports the Responsible Banking Act. Annette is 80 years old and her house is underwater, worth less than the loan she has on it. Yva lives with her mother and daughters in a house that everyday she worries will be foreclosed on. Pat lives in an apartment building where an overleveraged landlord had given up on doing repairs. Sarah lived next door to an abandoned property being used for drugs. These members of congregations involved in Brooklyn Congregations United all live in tenuous or threatened housing situations because of bad banking practices.
March 22, 2012
December 23, 2011
Brooklyn Congregations United, a multifaith congregation based organization, of almost 15,000 members supports the Responsible Banking Act.
Take a second to check out our Facebook page, where our members discuss, and introduce the work going on in the city, nation, and organization.
Clergy to Banking Industry: What’s wrong with a little sunshine? Pass the Responsible Banking Act By: Dr. Ahmad Jaber, Fr. Michael Perry & Reverend David Rommereim, Brooklyn Congregations United Brooklyn Congregations United, a multifaith congregation based organization, of almost 15,000 members supports the Responsible Banking Act.
PICO is working to create job opportunities for urban youth, especially in the growing green economy.
See how PICO changes lives, strengthens families and revitalizes communities across the country.
