The old-school organizers who got it done on Zoom

In Lebanon, services for refugees are often misguided and ineffective. To address this issue, the country created a cash-debit card allowance for refugees, providing a more appropriate resource than the typical aid program.

Community-led mapping and risk assessments by Pamoja Trust enabled informal settlement residents in Nairobi to document accurate data showing more accurate counts of people at flood risk (nearly 12 times more than official estimates identified). This gave communities evidence to advocate for inclusion in government recovery programs and influence official regeneration planning.

The Undocumented Filmmakers Collective provides a safe, inclusive, and non-competitive space for people to discuss issues they face in their careers. The nearly 40 members are spread out across the U.S. and use Zoom to form deep connections, share resources, and support one another. Navigating employment and funding issues within the filmmaking industry is a main priority, and members have collaborated on projects to bring attention to issues facing people without documentation in the film industry. Acting collective provides a louder and more powerful voice to help expand career opportunities for members.

New York City’s Mayor’s Office for Immigrant Affairs relied on help from 34 community groups to distribute a $20 million relief fund from the Open Society Foundation. The groups verified who needed the funds, and no personal information was required of the more than 24,000 people receiving aid. Membership in the organizations was not required, but limited resources made members more likely to receive aid. The limited transparency and private nature of the OSF fund served as a work around for a Trump-era executive order making it harder for immigrants receiving public assistance to get visas or green cards.

Several organizations — including the Kentucky Black Farmer Fund, Community Farm Alliance, and Black Soil: Our Better Nature — are working together to provide disaster relief funds during the COVID-19 pandemic to Black farmers. They’ve been able to award 43 small farms with a one-time payment of up to $750, which was used to purchase equipment or personal protective equipment. That amount can only help them so much, but it’s a step in helping Black farmers receive federal aid, which they historically have been left out of.

Three generations of activists marched, protested, lobbied, and campaigned for more than seven decades to win the right to vote for American women. In 1920, national and local activists worked to convince Tennessee legislators to support the 19th amendment and become the 36th and final state needed to ratify it. Local suffragists were the most visible forces, lobbying their representatives to support the amendment, while national activists built alliances, identified legislators known to take bribes, and exerted political pressure at all levels of government, including among presidential candidates.

The New Sanctuary Movement of Philadelphia (NSM) adjusted its promotora model of organizing, which relies on neighbor-to-neighbor interaction to assess community needs, due to Covid-19. The immigrant justice nonprofit now runs zoom meetings and phone banks to talk with hard hit immigrant communities. NSM, fundraising with a coalition of 40 other groups, also provides financial support to immigrant families who cannot access federal aid. They gave money to 150 families, with 100 more on the waitlist. They hired a few laid off community members and try to give promotores some money, but funding is limited.

Oakland’s Ceasefire initiative takes a collaborative, comprehensive approach to reducing gun violence. City officials, community advocates, residents, and law enforcement work together by prioritizing data analysis, multi-stakeholder gatherings, personalized social services, specialized police training, and weekly reviews of shootings and meeting with victims. While this approach has shown success, it was hard to get started and required the community to organize around demands to stop gun violence. As Philly grapples with similar issues, it looks to Oakland as a model for grassroots change.

Since 2016, the Second Chance Pell program has been providing financial aid for those experiencing incarceration to pursue a college education. Started under the Obama administration, it has gained bipartisan support and traction in the Trump administration as well. Considering 90% of incarcerated individuals will be released, the Second Chance Pell program serves as a demonstrated commitment to reduce recidivism and mass incarceration.

Immigrant Families Together is a coalition of volunteers trying reunify parents and children that were separated due to the Donald Trump administration’s “Zero Tolerance” policy. They are paying for bonds, releasing immigrants, and driving them across state lines to be reunited with their children. Already, they’ve helped reunite a dozen families.