I attended the North Bay Organizing Project's 5th Annual Public meeting. The NBOP has been working on several community issues this year and the meeting was a time to share community progress and next steps.
Housing inequality and rent control, living wages, and fare-less transit were some of the agenda items for this meeting. In Sonoma County and across the North Bay, individuals and families are dealing with historically high levels of inequality.
There are far too many people having to choose between for paying rent or paying for food. Keynote speaker and Program Co-Director for Causa Justa, Dawn Phillips, talked about some of this inequality in housing. When Dawn asked the crowd if they or anyone they know struggles to pay rent, almost every person raised a hand. He also talked about who resources going into an area should be for, citing the instances in which new housing developments are made to bring in new residents and not to improve the lives of those who already live there.
One of my favorite parts (besides seeing my alma mater's drumline perform) was hearing the enthusiasm for voting in elections. Community members of all ages and education levels came up to the stage and said something about their commitment to voting. The experience with the process ranged from first-time voters to voting in every election for 79 years. Sonoma State University Chicano and Latino Studies professor and Roseland area resident Ron Lopez also came up to encourage his students and community to vote.
I share the same belief with Dawn Phillips: if development does not help those who have the least, then the development is not meaningful. It felt affirming to be with people who were having the same issues and were doing something to fix them. I have plans to somehow be involved with community organizing and social justice work. Attending this meeting was a great introduction to the types of things I would be working on and to the community I would work with on the side of equity and justice.
Go here to see more pictures of the event.