"Mayor-President Kip Holden and the group Together Baton Rouge said Thursday that they have teamed up to try to find a solution to the problem of "food deserts" in East Baton Rouge Parish, which are areas defined by poverty and poor access to supermarkets and large grocery stores...."

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New Mexico Representative Mimi Stewart and Sen. Linda Lopez joined the Rev. Trey Hammond of Albuquerque Interfaith at a news conference Tuesday to announce the introduction of House Bill 460, which would bar private firms from running public schools.

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The Delta Regional Authority awarded workforce development project NOVA $208 thousand to expand training opportunities further into the Delta region. But before doing so, the proposal had to win the approval of Republican Congressman Rodney Alexander and Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal. Northern Louisiana Interfaith successful urged both officials to sign off, which will allow NOVA to pull more people out of working poverty.

DRA Funding Benefits NOVA, The News Star

"Pimps were put on notice Monday that lawmakers want more severe punishment for those who exploit prostitutes and more ways to free women from their control...."

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After Austin Interfaith leaders took issue with a proposal that "would have allowed registered lobbyists to serve on the citizen committee that will guide the rewriting of the city's land-development code..." the proposal was pulled.

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After leaders of OTOC's Immigration Action Team challenged Omaha Police Chief Todd Schmaderer to ensure that immigrants stopped by OPD officers receive fair treatment, OPD issued an official bulletin to all officers informing them that the matricula consular could be accepted as valid identification. (The matricula consular is an identification card issued by consulates verifying the place of residence for foreign nationals.) Photo shows leaders in early encounter with Chief Schmaderer.

OTOC leaders also met with the head of Douglas County Corrections and the regional director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) about ways to reduce the number of immigrants with small children being detained in Douglas County jails while they await deportation hearings. ICE has now implemented a new release program which allows up to 100 persons who would otherwise be detained to return home to their families while they await their hearings.

At the invitation of the Church Divinity School of the Pacific, the Episcopal seminary at Berkeley's Graduate Theological Union, the Bay Area Organizing Committee (BAOC) led a week-long January intercession class in 'Organizing for Congregational Renewal.' Thirty-one seminarians, local clergy and lay leaders from Christian and Jewish congregations participated, experiencing an intensive training in broad-based organizing.

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"A Mid-Iowa Organizing Strategy (AMOS) has successfully gotten a Court Watcher program off the ground in Polk County....Like similar programs around the country, the goal is to witness the criminal justice system in action. The presence of an outsider in a courtroom signals to judges, prosecutors and others that the community cares about how its government is treating citizens when they find themselves in trouble with the law."

30 AMOS leaders "attended the first court watcher training ...in Des Moines earlier this month. Another 30 are scheduled to go through training soon. The Rev. Denny Coon, pastor of Walnut Hills United Methodist Church in Urbandale, said his first experience as an observer was enlightening but somewhat troubling...."

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Institutional leaders of Working Together Jackson began evaluating non-profit land trust models to help transform the Mid-City neighborhood of Jackson, Mississippi. Based on conversations with neighbors and residents, Ms. Brent, President of the Mid-City Neighborhood Association, and Rev. Tucker Sr., pastor of True Vine, identified a number of things they would like to address: abandoned housing, overgrown lots, crime, mentoring for its youth and services for its elderly. But people involved in the effort know that, as Rev. Tucker puts it, "the real work of rebuilding the neighborhood isn't cutting lawns or boarding up houses. The real work is building relationships between its residents."

While the non-profit land trust would take control of abandoned properties for rehabilitation and renovation, leaders of Working Together Jackson plan to continue the work of building relationships between neighbors.

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When COPA leaders discovered a lapsed initiative to provide healthcare to low-income adults in Monterey and Santa Cruz Counties, leaders organized an assembly with seven out of the ten county supervisors and leveraged commitments to bust through the political blockage to resurrect ViaCare. Congregational and labor leaders of COPA rejoiced when the Monterey Board of Supervisors voted to implement the Low Income Health Care Plan (LIHP) and to extend healthcare coverage to as many as 1,500 additional adults. Said St. Mary of the Nativity Catholic Church and SEIU United Long Term Care Worker leader Mario Torres: "Now sooner, rather than later, I will have a doctor's appointment and that feels great."

Monterey County Board of Supervisors Approve...Pilot Program, SEIU-ULTCW