PNN’s mission is to engage, educate and empower. Here’s what’s coming up in each of these areas:
Engage: Sign Up for Buddy Canvassing; What a Public Bank Can Do for Philly
Educate: Take a Course in Organizing; Black Health Matters Conference; Flier for Earth
Empower: Comcast Tax Protest; Poor People's Campaign Rally
Read on to find out the when, where, and how.
Comcast #PayWhatYouOwe Tax Day Action
Monday, April 18th, 12:30PM, 17th & JFK
The only things sure in life are death and taxes - except if you're a billionaire, like Comcast CEO Brian Roberts. That's why we'll be paying him a visit on Monday to demand #PayWhatYouOwe in front of their monstrous building that was paid for by your monthly cable fees and tax abatement giveaways. We’re going to ask all Philly’s super-rich to pay up through a new wealth tax introduced by Councilmember Brooks, and endorsed by Senator Elizabeth Warren.
To join us for this action, please click the link below.
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Sign Up for Buddy Canvassing
Canvasses Every Weekend, Starting on April 23rd
The time has arrived for us to get to work to make sure our endorsed candidates win their Primary elections. And you won't have to do it alone. We will "buddy up" our canvassers to knock doors together, share the conversation, get better at it by debriefing each conversation between doors, and making a new friend in the process.
Below you'll see the link to sign up (plus other ways you can get involved with our work). We'll get in touch with you about when and where you will be needed. Thanks!
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Poor People's Campaign March
Monday, April 25th, 4:30PM, North Apron City Hall
Join poor people and moral witnesses in the City of Brotherly Love and Sisterly Affection as we rally at City Hall, then march thru Center City with Rev. William Barber. The fact that there are 140 million poor and low-wealth people in a country this rich is morally indefensible, constitutionally inconsistent, and economically insane.
Want to help? PPC is looking for volunteers to act as march captains, ushers, greeters, set-up and clean-up and tablers for voter registration. Click Here to Volunteer.
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Black Health Matters Conference
April 18th-24th, Virtual
Clinicians, physicians, elected officials and government and community leaders will present at this year's Black Health Matters Conference, a week-long event of virtual live and recorded performances centered around improving health outcomes for the black and brown communities in the Keystone State. Click below to attend or learn more.
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Flier for Mother Earth
April is Earth Month. Tired of arguing with right-winged politicians on the error of their ways when it comes to global warming, or breathable air or potable water, in the hope that they'll change their minds? Well, there is a better way to get something done.
For the next few weeks, we are going to be distributing flyers in Ambler and Upper Dublin - where Representative Todd Stephens enjoys a lifetime environmental score of 41 out of a perfect 100. His opponent is environmental advocate Melissa Cerrato. Melissa is supported by Mary Jo Daly, Ben Sanchez, and Liz Hanbidge, incumbents in neighboring districts who all have environmental scores of 100.
This is a terrific opportunity for both environmental advocates and political activists to work on a common project. For more information, contact Coleman Poses.
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Watch: What A Public Bank Will Do for Philly
Wednesday, April 20th, 1PM, Virtual
Councilmember Derek Green joins Next City’s Senior Economics Correspondent Oscar Perry Abello for the webinar series, "Bottom Line Conversations" on Wednesday, April 20th at 1PM. The conversation will revolve around what a public bank can accomplish for our city. Click the link below and click the tab to register for free.
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Want a Degree in Organizing?
West Chester University is now offering a B.A. in community organizing, called Urban Community Change. You can take classes in the program without being an enrolled student, even if you already have a college degree, or if you never completed one. It costs a little over $1000 to take a course at WCU as a guest, and some scholarships may be available.
The course, PAX 377: Community Organizing: Strategies and Practice, takes place this Fall 2022: Wednesdays 6:30PM-9:15PM on the WCU Main Campus. You can enroll in this course as a visiting student, even if you are not a regular WCU student! Contact Dr. Hannah Ashley (hashley@wcupa.edu) at RUCCAS if you have questions or need financial support to take this course. If you take the course, you can ask to be assigned as an intern with Philly Neighborhood Networks.
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We're Looking for Organizers. We are currently accepting resumes for Organizing Staff (full/part) on Contingency Funding for c3/c4 electoral and community work. Send your interest to tim@phillynn.org
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This Week in History
April 15, 1947 – Jackie Breaks Color Barrier. Jack Roosevelt Robinson became the first African American player in Major League Baseball when he stepped onto Ebbets Field in Brooklyn to compete for the Brooklyn Dodgers.
April 19, 1775 – Shot Heard Round the World. The American Revolution begins in Lexington, MA when an anonymous colonial minuteman fires upon British troops who were sent to capture Sam Adams and John Hancock.
April 20, 1971 – Bussing Declared Constitutional. In Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education, SCOTUS settled the constitutional question and allowed the widespread implementation of busing, which remained controversial over the next decade.
Thanks for your activism!
Tim Brown, Organizing Director