Welcome to Urban Habitat
Urban Habitat builds power in low-income communities and communities of color by combining education, advocacy, research and coalition building to advance environmental, economic and social justice in the Bay Area.
We envision a society where all people live in economically and environmentally healthy neighborhoods. Clean air, land and water are recognized as fundamental human rights. Meaningful employment honors a worker’s right to dignity and a living wage with benefits. Effective public transportation and land-use planning connect people to the resources, opportunities and services to thrive. Affordable housing provides a healthy and safe home for all. And quality education prepares visionary leaders to strengthen our democracy with new ideas, energy and commitment. [MORE]
Program Updates
Petition: Support Free Public Transportation for Youth
Help us Win Free Transit for Youth in San Francisco Now: Click here and Sign the Petition!
Thanks,
Bob & Lindsay
Petition: Support Free Public Transportation for Youth
Young people are having a harder and harder time getting around San Francisco—getting to school, after school programs, jobs, volunteer activities, museums and parks. Major cuts to the yellow school bus program have forced school-age children to find their own way of getting to school—and a youth Fast Pass costs more than twice what it did two years ago. Young people who cannot afford the rising cost of transportation risk getting a $100 fine if they ride the bus without paying the fare.
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Urban Habitat 3.0
Urban
Habitat staff, board members, allies, and over 2000 equity advocates
from across the country gathered recently at the Equity Summit 2011
convened by PolicyLink in Detroit. There, we saw firsthand the
consequences of decades of displacement and disinvestment on such a
proud city. We heard from an array of advocates and analysts about the
challenges facing Detroit and numerous other regions across the country.
We delved into the current economic crisis and saw how people of
color—the fastest growing segment of U.S. population—are taking the
hardest hits.
We came away better informed and energized to take
on the daunting task of moving our nation toward a more fair
distribution of resources and decision-making power, and into a more
equitable growth agenda. (See RP&E 18-2) We are looking forward to
sharing those discussions and advancing that agenda at the Social Equity
Caucus' annual State of the Region Conference in the Bay Area in April
2012.
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Introduction: Autumn Awakening
From Civil Rights to Economic Justice
The Autumn Awakening underway across the United States is an inspiring moment of hope after decades of overt social, political, and economic reaction. The arrival of the Occupy movement was heralded by the student-worker-citizen occupation of the Wisconsin state capitol last winter. But just a few months ago, a sign bearing the words, “If Egypt can do it so can we” signaled a plaintive cry more than a compelling mandate. The formulation, “We are the 99%” articulates a new, broad-based democratic politics focused on economic justice. While the slogan is by its nature inclusive, the emerging movement is still coming to terms with the fact that the majority of the 99% are women and people of color. (See On Occupy) In this issue, we take a look at how the changing demographic complexion of the United States is shifting the political calculus in many arenas—electoral, economic, and in the new movement called Occupy.
Driven by displacement and gentrification (Bullard) and in search of jobs, housing, and education, African Americans, once confined to the South and the urban core, are on the move (Sullivan, Kromm). Some see the departure of African Americans from the cities as a threat to the community’s political power, while others see new opportunities for people of color to build a historic new coalition.
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REDI Partners Celebrate, Mobilize
Saturday, Jan. 7, 2012, was a day to celebrate. REDI community partners gathered at Grace Lutheran Church in Richmond to celebrate the group’s accomplishments of the more than five-year General Plan campaign. Representatives from REDI partners included, Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment (ACCE), Asian Pacific Environmental Network (APEN), Communities for a Better Environment (CBE), Contra Costa Interfaith Supporting Community Organization (CCISCO), Faith Works, and Urban Habitat.
Community members from each group shared stories around their personal and group’s participation toward a vision for a better and more equitable Richmond. The partners were excited to reiterate their success in getting the Planning Commission to incorporate a majority REDI’s recommendations regarding jobs, transit, housing, safety, and community health in the final draft of the General Plan. This event was also a call to action to mobilize members to attend upcoming city council meetings and the impending general plan vote expected within the next few weeks.
After the General Plan is passed, REDI members will remain vigilant heading into the Housing Element analysis and implementation phases of the General Plan.
Alameda County TJ groups fight to shape 30-year transportation spending plan
Dateline:
12/05/2011Source:
Urban Habitat
Before the end of 2011, Alameda County will commit to a spending plan that will shape its transportation system for generations to come—and transportation justice advocates are working feverishly to ensure that the plan is fair, fiscally sound and environmentally friendly.The half-cent sales tax enacted when county voters passed Measure B in 2000 supplies the county’s largest source of transportation funding. With that tax set to expire in 2022, the Alameda County Transportation Commission (ACTC) is preparing to put a new measure before the voters in November 2012. The new proposition, if approved by a 2/3 vote, would double the tax to a full cent and make it permanent. ACTC expects to raise $7.7 billion with the expanded tax; this will represent more than half of the county’s total transportation funds. The 30-year plan for spending that money will be part of the measure on the ballot. If it is approved, county residents will not have another chance to shape transportation spending until 2042, when ACTC will submit another budget to the voters.
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