Power Station

Head Start is known nationally, and internationally, for making early childhood development and education a reality for all families. Developed as part of the 1960’s War on Poverty, Head Start is an example of public policy enacted to increase opportunity and create a more equitable environment for underserved communities. The Head Start model was organized to provide resources and services around the school calendar, an approach that works for most but not all of our nation’s families. There was a gap in meeting the unique needs of migrant families, who travel from state to state to harvest our nation’s crops. The National Migrant and Seasonal Head Start Association was created specifically for farmworker families, the men and women whose expertise and labor are responsible for the produce in our stores and the bounty on our tables.

 Like all parents, farmworkers need and want their children to have access to earl childhood resources and their ability to earn a living depends on it. They are served by dedicated community-based Migrant and Seasonal Head Start providers, 27 programs in 40 states. Many providers come from farmworker families themselves and are highly committed to serving children and families that may move 3 times per year. That includes transporting young children to centers starting as early as 4:30am.

Cleofas Rodriguez Jr, executive director of The Migrant and Seasonal Head Start Association, talks to Power Station about the foresight of President Johnson in creating Head Start, the exceptional skills and tenacity of farmworkers, the critical relationship between agribusiness and these families, and the impacts of the President’s policies and rhetoric on farmworker children. This is a story we should all know.

Have you been to the 14th street corridor of Washington DC lately? It is a destination spot for upscale restaurants, furniture stores, galleries and newly constructed apartment buildings. If you venture to a leafy side street you will find a courtyard that leads to N Street Village, a local nonprofit whose programs and advocacy serve 2000 homeless and low-income women annually year. Many of these women grew up in the shadows of an earlier incarnation of 14th Street, devastated by rioting after the assassination of Martin Luther King and in the clutches of poverty and the crack epidemic for decades. As N Street Village CEO Schroeder Stribling, explains, when these women arrive, they are looking for what we all need: a supportive community, safe and affordable housing, and attention to mental and physical health challenges. It is Schroeder's mission to provide a "radically welcoming" environment. Schroeder and the N Street Village staff and volunteers manage an array of facilities and services in a fashion that Schroeder describes as emergency room triage. The bigger picture, she reminds us, is that housing solves homelessness. We just need to create the political will.

Have you been to the 14th street corridor of Washington DC lately? It is a destination spot for upscale restaurants, furniture stores, galleries and newly constructed apartment buildings. If you venture to a leafy side street you will find a courtyard that leads to N Street Village, a local nonprofit whose programs and advocacy serve 2000 homeless and low- income women in 5 locations each year. Many of these women grew up in the shadows of an earlier incarnation of 14th Street, devastated by rioting after the assassination of Martin Luther King and in the clutches of poverty and the crack epidemic for decades. As N Street Village CEO Schroeder Stribling, explains, when these women arrive, they are looking for what we all need: a supportive community, safe and affordable housing, and attention to mental and physical health challenges. It is Schroeder’s mission to provide a “radically welcoming” environment. 

The N Street Village model is to provide women in need with community-based housing and wrap-around services. This means ensuring that women have access to medical care, treatment for trauma and, ultimately, a safe place to call home. Schroeder and the N Street Village staff and volunteers manage an array of facilities and services in a fashion that Schroeder describes as emergency room triage. The bigger picture, she reminds us, is that housing solves homelessness. Reaching that goal requires collaboration and advocacy. N Street Village advocates for homeless people and for permanent housing through the DC Interagency Council on the Homelessness. Listen, learn about the Dalai Lama’s visit to N Street and find out how you can get involved.

In 1980, James Abourezk, US Senator from South Dakota and the first Arab-American elected to Congress, founded the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee. It is now the nation's largest grassroots nonprofit advocating for the civil and human rights of Arab Americans. With a small staff of lawyers, and community-based supporters in 50 states, ADC, under the leadership of Samer Khalef, represents Arab Americans in cases involving hate crimes, discrimination and deportation. And it educates the public and policy makers about who Arab Americans are, from their rich cultural backgrounds to their experience in America. Arab-Americans face specific challenges as immigrants, including the reality of being stateless and having no country to claim as their own. Those who are able to remain in the US exist in a sort of legal limbo. They are on essentially on parole, unable to work and ineligible for public resources. Samer is optimistic about the determination of Arab Americans to turn out for the 2020 elections but concerned about voter suppression. He will definitely make the voice of his community heard.

In 1980, James Abourezk, US Senator from South Dakota and the first Arab-American elected to Congress, founded the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee. It is now the nation’s largest grassroots nonprofit advocating for the civil and human rights of Arab Americans. As National President Samer Khalaf reminds us, ADC supports the rights of all people and opposes discrimination of any kind. With a small staff of lawyers, and community-based supporters in 50 states, ADC represents Arab Americans in cases involving hate crimes, discrimination and deportation and advocates for policy change through regulatory and legislative advocacy. And it educates the public and policy makers about who Arab Americans are, from their rich cultural backgrounds to their experience in America. Arab-Americans face specific challenges as immigrants, including the reality of being stateless and having no country to claim as their own. Those who are able to remain in the US exist in a sort of legal limbo. They are on parole, unable to work and ineligible for public resources. The answer to these challenges, according to Samer Khalaf, lies in changing stereotypes about who Arab Americans are, coalition-building with immigrant networks and voting. ADC is active in all of these fronts. And while Samer is optimistic about the determination of Arab Americans to turn out for the 2020 elections, he is concerned about interference with voting rights throughout communities of color. As he says, voter suppression starts by instilling fear so that voters simply do not show up. Samer and other leaders in the field are standing up to make sure that all voices are heard where it matters, in the census, the voting booth and on Capital Hill.

An innovative nonprofit is requiring us to rethink our assumptions about who works in the digital economy. Byte Back, a DC based training organization led by the dynamic Elizabeth Lindsey, is shaking up the workforce and technology sectors by bringing non-traditional workers into the sectors. In many cases, these students have never used a computer or even had broadband access. So it follows that Byte Back meets students where they are. While the process may take longer, classes are rigorous and require discipline to complete. Byte Back cultivates teachers who are committed to their students' success. And it works. Students are graduating with certificates that make them valuable employees for companies that pay living wages and benefits. The issues that Byte Back addresses cannot be fixed by training alone. Byte Back is increasingly active in public policy advocacy. You will want to stay tuned for the next chapter of their work.

When you think about the technology sector, what is your image of the workforce? An innovative nonprofit is requiring us to rethink our assumptions. Byte Back, a DC based organization led by the dynamic Elizabeth Lindsey, is shaking up the workforce and technology sectors by training those who have struggled with unemployment to become successful workers in the digital economy. In many cases, these students have never used a computer or even had broadband access. So it follows that Byte Back's training program meets students where they are, a model that makes it distinctive from other digitally focused trainers. While the process may take longer, classes are rigorous and require discipline to complete. Trainers are selected not only for their technical knowledge and teaching abilities. Byte Back cultivates teachers who are committed to their students’ success. And it works. Students are graduating with certificates that make them attractive employees by companies that pay living wages and benefits. Byte Back graduates are literally training and working their way out of poverty. The benefits that accrue to their families and communities are bringing new students into Byte Back’s classrooms.

It turns out that the average age of Byte Back's students is 42 and 98% are people of color. As Elizabeth explains, these students have a hunger to achieve. And because their exposure to job opportunities have been so limited, Byte Back provides more than technical training. It develops relationships with companies that employ their graduates and organizes mock interviews for students with corporate volunteers. The issues that Byte Back addresses, including the racial wealth and opportunities gap, cannot be fixed by training alone. Byte Back is increasingly active in public policy advocacy. You will want to stay tuned for the next chapter of their work.

When Ali Noorani visited Honduras, he met migrants desperate to escape poverty and violence for presumed safety and opportunity in the United States. As Ali sees it, this administration's hateful rhetoric and treatment of immigrants is robbing our entire nation of its dignity. The Forum was launched in 1982 to coalesce civil rights organizations in advocating for a just immigration system. After President Obama was elected there was growing optimism about the potential for a path to citizenship. When momentum for change came crashing down in 2010, Ali had a realization that defined the next generation of the National Immigration Forum's strategy. He noted that while political parties talked about immigration in political terms, the rest of the country viewed it in cultural terms. In 2012, Ali began engaging with cultural influencers: faith, law enforcement and veterans' leaders in traditionally conservative parts of the country. The resulting conversations about their fears, questions and concerns, have generated unprecedented trust. As a result, a collective willingness to stand for and with immigrant communities, has brought some of these leaders to advocate for pro-immigrant public policies on Capitol Hill.

When Ali Noorani visited Honduras, he met migrants desperate to escape poverty and violence for the presumed safety and opportunity of the United States. They started this journey with their dignity intact but were robbed of it through their experiences at the United States-Mexican border. As Ali sees it, this administration's hateful rhetoric and treatment of immigrants is robbing the entire nation of its dignity.

The Forum was launched in 1982 to coalesce civil rights organizations in advocating for a more just immigration and workforce system. Its strategic approach sharpened when Ali Noorani joined as executive director in 2008. After President Obama was elected there was growing optimism about the potential for a path to citizenship and other meaningful immigration reform. When momentum for change built and then came crashing down in 2010, Ali had a realization that defined the next generation of the National Immigration Forum’s vision and strategy. He noted that while political parties talked about immigration in political terms, the rest of the country viewed it in cultural terms. In 2012, Ali began engaging with cultural influencers: faith, law enforcement and veterans’ leaders in traditionally conservative parts of the country. The resulting conversations about their fears, questions and concerns, have generated unprecedented trust. And they have uncovered the strong relationships that exist, away from public view, between conservative employers and their immigrant workforce. As a result, a collective willingness to stand for and with immigrant communities, has brought some of these leaders to advocate for pro-immigrant public policies on Capitol Hill. It turns out, that in Idaho, Mississippi and Arizona, it is immigrants, working for local employers, and starting their own businesses, that are bolstering local economies and forging deep community bonds. Don’t miss this important and hopeful episode of Power Station.

Do you envision think tanks to be old-school institutions far-removed from real life community experiences? Solomon Greene, Senior Fellow at The Urban Institute, will make you reconsider those assumptions. The Urban Institute was founded in 1968 by President Johnson to generate evidence-based strategies for ending urban poverty. It has evolved into an organization that partners with diverse stakeholders to tackle our nation's most intractable problems, primarily those founded in policies of racial segregation. Solomon talks about the potential of popularizing zoning strategies to create more racially and economically inclusive communities. Minneapolis is leading in this movement and the story of how it banned single-family housing development is both unexpected and inspiring. He is excited about the emergence of affordable housing, land use and zoning proposals by our presidential candidates. We await the moment when moderators ask candidates questions about those positions at the next presidential debate..