Multi-faith Action Coalition

Did you miss our Faith-Rooted Housing Justice event on Sep 18? We’ve got you covered. Click through for a recording and detailed recap.

In this election season, faith voices are needed in the work for housing justice in our county. So we organized a convening and invited our faith leaders to hear about specific housing issues and the advocacy tools our communities can use to respond to God’s call to help the needy.

Our Faith-Rooted Housing Justice Event We invited faith community leaders to hear about specific housing issues and advocacy tools we can use to respond to God’s call to help the needy.

Food security is a critical part of reducing the impacts of poverty.

Impact100 East Bay, a women-led organization empowering transformative philanthropy, has awarded the new Food Security Collaborative a $100k Impact Grant. The funds will be used to develop a comprehensive Food Security Equity Map.

This aligns with the work of our Food Security Task Force. Props to the new collaborative for coming together to tackle an important need among our neighbors!

Impact100 East Bay awards $100,000 grant to county collaborative In a major step toward helping families have enough food to eat in Contra Costa County, the newly formed Food Security Collaborative of Contra Costa County has been awarded the

We recommend voting “yes” on Prop 33 (2024). It empowers local governments to determine which rent policies are best for their communities. Escalating rents are a significant driver of poverty in California. Rent policies can be important methods for protecting the vulnerable and avoiding the tragic human costs of displacements, destabilizing families and communities.

We discount the importance of “pure economic theory” because the reality of rental housing in California bears little relationship to academic theory. In contrast, escalating rents are a verifiable source of distress for many families.

We note that virtually all rent policies enacted in California guarantee landlords the right to a fair return. Yet, they do not guarantee tenants the right to stay out of poverty. Prop 33 does not create new rent policies; it simply eliminates state-imposed restrictions on what local governments can do.

For further information and a downloadable resource, click through.
Our Housing and Shelter Task Force recommends support for this ballot item.

We support Prop 33 (2024) - Local government should decide on rent policies We support Prop 33 (2024) - Local government should decide rent policies

We recommend voting “no” on Prop 36 (2024). Returning to harsh sentences is poor public policy. Shifting money from treatment and rehabilitation to prisons would undermine programs that reduce recidivism and support reintegration into society. This not only detracts from effective and humane criminal justice policies, but increased incarceration rates will lead to higher costs for taxpayers without improving public safety.

Many of our faith traditions believe in the possibility of redemption and transformation for every individual. This leads to supporting rehabilitation programs that help individuals change their lives and become contributing members of society. We advocate for criminal justice reform and seek to create a system more aligned with the values of mercy, compassion, redemption, and equitable justice for all.

For further information and a downloadable resource, click through.

Opposing Prop 36 is the recommendation of our Racial Justice Task Force.

We oppose Prop 36 (2024) - It’s just poor public policy We oppose Prop 36 because harsh sentences are poor public policy. We prefer programs that reduce recidivism and support reintegration into society.

We recommend voting “yes” on Prop 32 (2024). We feel that low-income workers deserve fairness and the means to live lives of basic human dignity. Many of our faith traditions call for fairness in wages and working to support the poorest and most vulnerable. The working poor should not be trapped in their condition.

We recognize that $18 per hour is not a living wage in California, but better wages are essential in reducing poverty. Thus, we support any movement in that direction, even if the change does not establish a living wage. Raising wages has important implications for the common good, families, and communities.

For further information and a downloadable resource, click through.

Our Racial Justice Task Force recommends support for this ballot item.

We support Prop 32 (2024) - Better wages are essential to reducing poverty We support Prop 32 (2024) because the working poor deserve fairness and the means to live lives of basic human dignity.

On September 26, 2024, Governor Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 3089. This marked a significant milestone in California’s acknowledgment of its historical involvement in slavery. AB 3089 mandated a formal apology from the state for perpetuating and benefiting from slavery and its lasting consequences.

On the very same day, Governor Newsom signed the written apology. The Multi-Faith ACTION Coalition actively supported the passage of AB 3089.

California Takes Historic Step with Formal Apology for Slavery Governor signs apology for California's historical involvement in slavery; further background on the Reparations Task Force

We support Prop 6 - It’s time to end penal slavery in California.

Prop 6 is on the ballot due to the passage of Assembly Constitutional Amendment 8. When approved in the legislature, the voters must affirm such amendments.

We recommend voting “yes” on Prop 6 (2024). It restores essential moral and practical considerations to criminal justice in California. Not only does penal servitude - slavery - disproportionately impact people of color, but it does not contribute to rehabilitation, lowering recidivism, or improving public safety.

For further information and a downloadable resource, click through.

Our Racial Justice Task Force recommends support for this ballot item.

We support Prop 6 (2024) - It’s time to end penal slavery in California We support Prop 6 (2024) because slavery should not exist, in any form, in California in our time.

We support Prop 5 - A majority should be able to decide

We recommend voting “yes” on Prop 5 (2024). A majority in any community should be able to decide whether bonds should be issued – and taxes imposed to repay them – to build critical things like affordable housing and infrastructure. Prop 5 would implement the same terms of approval that already exist for public debt for education.

We note that Prop 5 (2024) requires clear accountability in debt approved by vote, including oversight measures. Prop 5 (2024) will enable the funding of critically essential projects, such as affordable housing, that will serve the well-being of many.

For further information and a downloadable resource, click through.

Our Housing and Shelter Task Force recommends support for this ballot item.

We support Prop 5 (2024) - A majority should be able to decide We support Prop 5 (2024) - a majority in any community should decide to issue bonds to build critical things like affordable housing

Our ballot recommendations

At the Multi-Faith ACTION Coalition, we are driven by our stakeholders’ shared faith values to advocate for those in need within our community. Our work addresses poverty's root causes through public policy change.

Here’s a list of our recommendations on ballot items for this election:
https://www.multifaithactioncoalition.org/ballot-items/2024/10/ballot-recommendations-2024/

The Multi-Faith ACTION Coalition actively supports or opposes ballot items based on the recommendations of our Task Forces, who follow specific issues in their particular areas of interest.

Items we support - and oppose - on the November 2024 ballot We address poverty's root causes through public policy change. Part of our work is providing faith-informed recommendations on ballot initiatives.

We are a coalition of Contra Costa County residents representing some 50 faith communities. Members work together to address the root causes of poverty through advocacy and public policy change.

Therefore, it is essential to understand how the national candidates will approach poverty in America this election season.

We encourage you to read articles like the one attached here to help you become better informed. (This may be behind a paywall, but you may be able to listen to it if you access it on your phone but don’t have a subscription.)

Our vote is a kind prayer for the world we want!

Trump and Harris Embody a Stark Partisan Divide on Fighting Poverty The two presidential candidates can both point to records of pushing poverty rates down, but their approaches could hardly be more different.