Posts by Mario Gonzalez
ACTION puts an end to predatory lending in Youngstown, Ohio!
On Wednesday, February 6, to the largest crowd gathered for a city council in recent memory, the Alliance for Congregational Transformation Influencing Our Neighborhoods (ACTION)—the Gamaliel affiliate in Youngstown, Ohio—won a major battle in their ongoing campaign to secure quality, affordable housing for residents in Youngstown. When the city council voted, 7-0, to end predatory…
Read MoreMass Supervision Is Not the Solution to Mass Incarceration
Chicago, IL – January 22, 2019 – Five decades ago, Martin Luther King, Jr., warned, “When machines and computers, profit motives and property rights are considered more important than people, the giant triplets of racism, extreme materialism and militarism are incapable on being conquered.” On Wednesday, January 23, 2019, Gamaliel affiliates across the country will be…
Read More2019: Time for Humane Immigration Policy
I am an immigrant. When I was a toddler, my parents made the decision to emigrate from the Dominican Republic to the United States. They wanted a life of opportunity and freedom for their children—not the overwhelming poverty and violent oppression of the Trujillo regime that had characterized most of their lives. In order to…
Read MoreVilma Cardona
A few weeks ago Pilsen Neighbors honored Vilma Cardona, 23, as its annual Senorita del Sol, recognizing her service to the community in Pilsen and accomplishments as a “Dreamer”—she was born in Guatemala and is the first in her family to go to college. Photo (of Cardona in traditional Guatemalan costume) by Oscar Espinoza courtesy of Oscar Photo.…
Read MoreMaria Van Core
This summer Maria G. Van Core, Action Greater Lansing board member and president of Greater Lansing Area chapter of Labor Council For Latin American Advancement, LCLAA, nominated ACTION organizer Aida Cuadrado for a labor-community partnership award. She is a local and national leader on immigration issues. What is your current involvement with Gamaliel/Action of Greater…
Read MoreOctavia Moore
Octavia Moore, 16, holding paper at center, says Oakland, CA affiliate Genesis helped her find her voice. Her work on the group’s campaign to win free public transit for students to go to and from school has led to work to end the school to prison pipeline in Oakland schools and a deeper approach to…
Read MoreJames Marble
What is your current involvement with Gamaliel? I’m working with the Safe Neighborhoods taskforce of ABLE (Atlantans Building Leadership for Empowerment). How did you get involved originally? I connected with ABLE through my church, First Afrikan Presbyterian, in 1998. My initial concern and interest was the poor physical maintenance of schools in DeKalb County. The executive director…
Read MoreFather Paul Bossi
Father Paul Bossi is the Pastor at Blessed Sacrament Roman Catholic Church in Buffalo, NY. He has been involved in organizing since the 1970s, and with VOICE-Buffalo since the mid 1990s. He has been a clergyman for 47 years. What is your current involvement with Gamaliel? I’m on the Executive Committee of VOICE-Buffalo and I…
Read MoreNational Day of Action
On January 17, the Metro Organization for Racial and Economic Equity (MORE2)—Gamaliel’s affiliate in the Kansas City metro area—held a press conference to announce that an ordinance to expand Kansas City, Missouri’s current “ban the box” policy was imminent. MORE2’s action was part of a series of actions taken by other Gamaliel affiliates across the…
Read MoreRights for Immigrants Campaign, on Executive Order to End the Separation of Immigrant Families
Statement from Rev. Dr. John Welch, Chair, Gamaliel Board of Directors, and Pablo Tapia, Chair, Gamaliel Civil Rights for Immigrants Campaign, on Executive Order to End the Separation of Immigrant Families For Immediate Release Contact: Rev. Cynthia Owen Jarrold, (913) 219-3198 Chicago, IL (June 20, 2018) – This afternoon President Donald J. Trump issued an…
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