California IAF Says Undocumented Immigrants Deserve More Relief
[Excerpts]
Gov. Gavin Newsom announced plans on April 15 to make $75 million available to help undocumented workers left out of unemployement relief programs like the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act known as CARES. It could mean $500 each in the hands of 150,000 adults after applications start being accepted next month....
“Governor Newsom’s plan to help undocumented immigrants is woefully inadequate...What is owed in justice should never be given to charity. While we commend Governor Newsom for having good intentions, far more is needed to provide effective and equitable relief for undocumented workers and their families.”
-- Janet Hirsch, leader with One LA-IAF.
[COPA-IAF, One LA-IAF, and Inland Communities Organizing Network (ICON), Common Ground and Bay Area IAF] called for several initiatives to help undocumented workers including: expanding the eligibility of State Disability Insurance to workers unemployed because of Covid-19 but ineligible for unemployment insurance; sending $1,200 to any Californian who qualified for the California Earned Income Tax Credit last year or this year; expanding no-cost to low-cost hotel options to agricultural workers; making more money available to food banks and school districts feeding students.
[Photo by Nic Coury, Monterey County Weekly]
Newsom Announces Covid-19 Relief For Undocumented Workers; Advocates Say It's Inadequate, Monterey County Weekly
Letter to Governor Newsom, California IAF
One LA Urges Mayor to Fund a Renters' 'Right to Counsel'
At a news conference outside City Hall, One LA and a coalition of tenant advocates pressed the city to move forward with a 'right to counsel' ordinance, calling on Mayor Eric Garcetti to allocate $10 million to assist tenants in his upcoming budget.
"We have a humanitarian crisis in our city in regards to homelessness and housing," said Fr. David Matz of St. Agnes Catholic Church. "In the last ten years we have lost one thousand families from our parish due to these issues. Many of our elderly are forced out of their apartments and left homeless."
Every year, close to 30,000 people in Los Angeles face evictions. The money from the city would go not only to legal aid, but also to education and prevention, outreach and emergency payments to help keep struggling renters in their homes. The price tag of $10 million would fund the first year of a multi-year timeline to phase it in.
"One LA has worked alongside Mayor Garcetti on the passing of proposition HHH and the linkage fee," continued Fr. Matz. "Now the LA Right to Counsel Coalition is presenting this strategy to address one of the biggest root problems of homelessness-- evictions. We know that Mayor Garcetti is working diligently so we ask him for his support for the "Right to Counsel" and to fully fund it."
Tenant activists want L.A. Mayor Garcetti to put $10 million into ‘right to counsel’, Los Angeles Times
Inquilinos Solicitan Ley Que Los Proteja del Desalojo, Estrella News (Video en Español)
One LA Takes on LA Traffic & WINS $120 Billion Bond Election

Passing this bond measure required meeting a challenging two-thirds voter threshold for approval. This extraordinary victory took a county-wide education and mobilization of non-traditional allies crossing significant geographic, racial, religious and socioeconomic lines.
Read moreOne LA Gets Out The Vote for Los Angeles Public Transit Bond

One LA Leaders 'Breaking Barriers' Strategy

In South LA, eight institutions gathered at St. Brigid Catholic Church to launch their 'Breaking Barriers' to employment strategy. Proposition 47, which permits individuals to clear their records of non-serious offenses, has the potential to make individuals more marketable as employees if proper paperwork is submitted. To prepare for the day, 30 leaders learned how to guide applicants through the process, while another group of leaders created a resume workshop and panel discussions on restorative justice in the schools and interview best practices.
Read moreOne LA Begins to Tackle Transit, LA County Metropolitan Transportation Authority

One LA Leverages Support for Expanded Healthcare Coverage from LA County Supervisor District 3 Candidates

• Increase funding for My Health LA if the current funding stream falls short of covering all those eligible;
Read moreOne LA-IAF Urges Supervisors to Cover Uninsured

Hundreds upon hundreds of "women and men from across the county rose — cheering, clapping, shouting and raising their hands high in the air. The grass-roots commotion went on for almost a minute."
Read moreOneLA Finds $11M in County Budget, Demands More Healthcare

They demanded that the $11M be used to help cover the remaining uninsured in LA County. After the press conference, Rabbi Dara Frimmer asserted that she was "proud to stand with OneLA leaders outside the county supervisors meeting because as of today, 1 million residents of LA remain uninsured...Time to ensure that the image of God, imprinted on the face of every human being, is lifted up."
Read more