"The roar of a bulldozer will prompt a celebration in an Alief neighborhood whose residents have waged a four-year battle to get rid of an abandoned, burned-out condominium complex....The Metropolitan Organization of Houston, along with determined neighbors, thought the disintegrating structure was so dangerous that the city of Houston should spend money to bulldoze the darn thing, but legal and budgetary impediments precluded quick action..... The machinery, which will demolish the public nuisance known as the Winfield I, represents a triumph..."

Civic Activists Win Fight Over Eyesore Condos, Houston Chronicle

250 institutional leaders from 18 Tarrant County-area congregations celebrated and committed to rebuilding the Allied Communities of Tarrant (ACT).

Said the Rev. Lindsay Woods, pastor at Gethsemane Presbyterian Church, "ACT has allowed us a small church to seek justice. Congregations often do a lot of charity (give food to food bank) or education (explaining what we believe about justice), but our mission sometimes lack the ability to create justice. ACT allows us to be part of a network of different institutions seeking solutions to a common cause."

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"Ernesto Cortés Jr. has spent nearly 40 years teaching the disenfranchised how to communicate their stories in ways that assert their place in the world.

As co-director of the Industrial Areas Foundation...he has taught thousands of people how to harness and direct their anger by helping them to organize with others to change conditions around them.... For those efforts, the Phillips Brooks House Association (PBHA) presented its annual Robert Coles "Call of Service" Award to Cortés on Friday in the Memorial Church.

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As Andrea Swanson described how her teenage daughter was preyed upon by her boyfriend turned pimp, it became clear that neither Andrea nor her daughter's teachers or school counselors had spotted any of the warning signs. After NCG Leaders met with Las Vegas police and other authorities, they learned that child sex trafficking is a growing problem. But, NCG's organizing work is bringing about much needed change. The Clark County School District recently instituted mandatory trainings for their staff to spot the warning signs and NCG leaders are now working on statewide legislation that would give law enforcement the tools to protect children and prosecute pimps.

More here.

Northern & Central Louisiana Interfaith Sponsoring Committee leaders Reverend John Henson (left) and Father Rothell Price (right) led a celebration of the passage of their "'Minimal Living Standards Amendment,' which now requires landlords to provide a modicum of upkeep on the property they rent out."

Leaders also leveraged commitments from their council members to to visit their labor market intermediary, NOVA, in Monroe.

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"The number of Nevada children dragged into prostitution is on the rise — a scary reality that will take a community effort to reverse, a Metro Police lieutenant told the... Las Vegas Valley Interfaith Sponsoring Committee hosted a discussion at the Islamic Society of Nevada about child sex trafficking." Metro Vice Unit Lt. Karen Hughes addresses 150 leaders (photo right).

Las Vegas is 'Ground Zero' for Child Sex Trafficking, Metro Vice Officer Says, Las Vegas Sun

'Nevadans For the Common Good' leader Rabbi Sanford Akselrad and organizer Robert Hoo appear on 'Face to Face' with John Ralston to discuss the lessons of 9/11.

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"Travis Heights is looking to partner with Education Austin and Austin Interfaith to start an in-district charter model allowing the school to have more autonomy. The school would focus on curriculum with its dual-language program, service learning model and a piloted blended learning program that incorporates digital media, Carstarphen said. 'They're not asking for more money; they're asking for more flexibility....'"

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COPS / Metro Alliance "recently gathered folks — including parishioners at member parishes, the San Antonio police chief and a city councilman — for a "walk for the West Side." It was really something akin to a listening tour, hearing what residents in the neighborhoods and housing projects around St. Timothy's Catholic Church had to say about their circumstances.

I tagged along...."

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"Renewed hope was the sentiment of most people attending a Sept. 6 health care assembly, after state officials committed to create a system where public and private insurance providers offer education, affordable insurance and quality care…"

State Officials Urges to Make Healthcare More Affordable, The Tidings