The Forest Cove Youth Leadership Program

Forest Cove is a 398-unit Section 8 apartment complex in southeast Atlanta. In early 2018, a group of tenants reached out to Housing Justice League for help organizing to achieve better living conditions. Since then, AFSC and HJL have worked with Forest Cove tenants to form a tenant association, and hold management accountable to its responsibility to provide safe and comfortable housing. The tenant association was active for almost a year, before frustration due to a lack of progress and the relocation of one of its most vocal leaders caused its activity to cease. 

Program interns and AFSC staff out on a tour of Old Fourth Ward

It was decided in the spring of 2019 to begin a program to engage young people who live in or are connected to Forest Cove. The Forest Cove Youth Leadership Program would be the first step in an effort to build a source of youth pressure and power that could revive and support the tenant association. Its curriculum was designed to educate participants about issues related to housing, land and community, help participants build leadership skills, and give participants a chance to bring a piece of what they learned back to the neighborhood. The program’s first cohort ran from June 25, 2019 to September 19, 2019. 

Four paid, part-time interns were hired to participate in the program. Seven individuals submitted paper applications, and after one round of in-person interviews, the final four cohort members were chosen: two young men and two young women, ages 17, 21, 23 and 24. The interns were chosen based on their passion for seeing the neighborhood change for the better – prior experience with organizing was not required. Our goal was to seek out and train new leaders with no or minimal background in activism. Three interns were unable to finish the program, and the cohort ended with one intern and one volunteer. 

During the third week of the program, the interns attended the AFSC South Region Youth Summit in Washington, D.C. The summit was an opportunity for the interns to meet other youth program participants from around the South Region, and participate in a training about how to create change in their communities while resisting racism, colonialism and imperialism. The summit also included a chance for the interns to speak with their elected representatives in Congress about an issue that was important to them. 

Interns presenting in the office of D.C. Representative Eleanor Holmes Norton

For their capitol visit, the Atlanta interns teamed up with a youth participant from D.C. and came up with a joint presentation that called attention to issues of policing and criminal justice within their communities. The group met with policy advisors for Georgia Senator David Perdue, and for D.C. Representative Eleanor Holmes Norton. 

The second half of the curriculum was dedicated to planning a culminating project – an event that would be led by the interns, and that would allow them to engage their neighbors around a theme or issue of their choice. The culminating project took place on Saturday, September 14, 2019. It was named “Igniting Hope,” and it was planned as an opportunity for Forest Cove tenants to create a shared vision for the neighborhood they want to live in. We were hopeful that this event could build momentum in favor of a revived tenant association, and so far, our efforts have been fruitful. A few of the adults who attended have expressed a willingness and eagerness to continue meeting and remain involved. 

The second cohort of the Forest Cove Youth Leadership Program will be launched in the spring of 2020. For the next cohort and those that follow, the program curriculum will be re-worked to further connect the interns to the housing justice campaigns that the Atlanta Economic Justice Program is involved with. Two youth participants who were involved this summer have chosen to continue working as volunteers to help continue the process of engaging and mobilizing Forest Cove tenants. During the fall of 2019, we will organize events to educate Forest Cove neighbors, provide fun activities for the neighborhood children, and continue to build momentum for the tenant association. 

The following reflection was written by Dimoniqua Smith, one of the program’s interns: 

“What can I do? Nothing. Before AFSC, the problems of my life, of this world, were just problems. They didn’t have solutions. I didn’t even think that they could have solutions. The one main thing I remember from the Youth Summit was to resist. Don’t ever just accept things as they are, and question everything. Don’t just accept the world as it is if it’s not the best. Remember that if you can’t use anything else, you could use your voice to get your community and the world to listen. 

         AFSC has taught me so many important things. It’s hard to pick and choose which ones are the most important. I believe the second most important one is to spread what you learned back into the world. Or at least plant the seed people’s minds. And to remember that change doesn’t happen overnight. It took Europeans centuries to push their beliefs onto the world. I don’t want to ramble so I’m going to end this. Fate brought AFSC to me and I learned so much from them. From Ms. Foluke, Mrs. Nia, and the rest of ASFC’s amazing organization.”  

-- Dimoniqua Smith, 17

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Bus Tour and Peoplestown Rally Against Displacement

Photo by Amy Mei Willis

On Saturday, March 19th people sprang into action to prevent displacement in Peoplestown. The day began with a bus tour of neighborhoods that will be affected by the Turner Field development deal and ended with the Peoplestown Rally and March Against Displacement. The Bus Tour was made possible by support from the Metro Atlanta Democratic Socialists of America and Peoplestown Revitalization Corporation. We are also grateful we had students and professors from Georgia State and Georgia Tech with us on the Tour. 

We started the day off with introductions to the work that is happening around Housing Justice in the Peoplestown, Mechanicsville and Pittsburgh neighborhoods. Columbus Ward (pictured to the left) discussed his work in Peoplestown with the Peoplestown Revitalization Corporation throughout the years. There were discussions around previous development deals in the neighborhoods and how that has affected the neighborhoods today. The presentations gave insight into what people would be seeing on the tour. After presentations, we embarked on the Bus Tour.

 

Photo by Bryan Vana

The first stop was Stanton Oaks, which was formerly Boynton Village, in Peoplestown. Sherise Brown (pictured to the right) spoke about her experience with Stanton Oaks/ Boynton Village. Mrs. Brown spoke about how tenants organized to make sure that Boynton Village remained affordable even after being bought by a different company. She discussed her experiences with renovations of the complex, ensuring that Stanton Oaks got a new 20 year HUD contract, and the tenant association at Stanton Oaks. Folks had the opportunity to ask questions about her experience and what it is like at Stanton Oaks.

The next stop on the Tour was City Views at Rosa Burney in Mechanicsville. Deborah Arnold shared her experience organizing tenants to ensure that City Views remained and remains affordable and that everyone living at City Views has a good, quality standard of living. 

Photo by Bryan Vana

 The Peace by Piece House in Pittsburgh was the third stop on the Bus Tour. Peace by Piece is an AFSC program thats mission is to support and mobilize Black youth and young adults through political education and organizing in order to realize sustainable, sovereign and equitable communities rooted in Black love.  Joel Dickerson, and Khadijah Austin, both from Atlanta, spoke about their experience with renovating a house and community garden in Pittsburgh. The house and the garden are going to act as Peace by Piece Atlanta's hub. Farajii Muhammad spoke about the Peace by Piece and his experience organizing in Baltimore, Maryland. Khadijah gave a tour of the house and showed recent renovations. Joel gave a tour of the garden next door. By the end of the day 17 people signed up to help volunteer with renovations at the house.

photo by Amy Mei Willis

The final stop on the Bus Tour was Tanya Washington's House 148 Atlanta Ave SE in Peoplestown. Once everyone got off the bus we joined Tanya Washington, Mr. and Mrs. Darden, and Miss Mattie Jackson on Tanya's yard. We stood in Tanya's yard and listened to spoken word and resident's stories. Mr. Darden Mrs. Mattie Jackson, Senator Fort, and Tanya Washington spoke about Peoplestown, gentrification, and this block fight. After Tanya spoke, we started the March around the block. 

Photo taken by Amy Mei Willis

As we marched around the block, we stopped and placed "rezoned for gentrification" signs in lots where houses used to stand. All of the houses between Tanya's House and the Darden's house have been bulldozed. Throughout the march we chanted and sang to let our voices be know to the neighborhood that "we shall not be moved."

The Rally left Miss Jackson, Tanya Washington, and Mr. and Mrs. Darden feeling energized, supported, and filled with a great positive energy. We encourage folks to sign and share their online petition. Big Thanks to all who participated! #peoplestownwillnotgodown

AFSC Atlanta is Hiring!

 Big changes are happening at AFSC! We are both sad and excited to see Jackie Rodriguez transitioning from her position working with Moral Monday to project coordinator for Occupy Our Homes Atlanta. While we are excited to see OOHA growing and changing, it leaves us in need of help to keep Moral Monday running smoothly! 

The AFSC Moral Monday intern to the Atlanta Economic Justice program position is now available for applicants. Ideal applicants for the position will have; a strong passion for coalition building and social justice, strong organizational skills and the ability to multi-task, as well as a flexible attitude to accommodate a fast paced schedule. In order to facilitate communication between; active participants, steering committee members, interested parties, and coalition organizations, strong communication skills are required.

After a whirlwind tour around the state and an amazing Moral March on the Capital, Moral Monday is on it's way to truly becoming a state wide coalition. The time has come to bring Moral Monday far and wide, into every neighborhood and community in Georgia, together we will move this state forward! The position of the AFSC intern to Moral Monday will play an integral role in making that a reality. 

For a full job description, and to apply, contact us here with "Intern" in the subject line!

Jacqueline Barber’s Stay Struck Down By The Court, Jacqueline Vows To Resist Eviction

Today US Bank and GMAC lawyers fought to lift the stay on Jacqueline Barber’s home. Although we packed the courtroom with supporters, they were successful, which brings them one step closer to being able to evict Jacqueline and her four young grandchildren.

The case failed because Jacqueline’s chapter 13 bankruptcy (which was grounds for the stay) was filed after the home was sold on the court house steps.

It is clear that US Bank and GMAC intent to begin the eviction process immediately.
Jacqueline has made it clear that she will fight no matter what stating that, "If they come to put me out, I hope Occupy Our Homes will be carried out with me because they're going to have to have to physically remove me from the property. I refuse to roll over and play dead."

AFSC Atlanta plans to assist Occupy our Homes ATL in an effort to dual track the bank the same way they dual tracked Jacqueline and millions of other Americans. Jacqueline was dual tracked when America's Servicing Company claimed they were working on her modification while simultaneously foreclosing on her. Occupy our Homes ATL will dual track US Bank and GMAC by helping Jacqueline pursue legal action in state court and taking aggressive direct action to keep Jacqueline and her family in their home.

Tomorrow morning at 11am we will be launching a full scale 24/7 occupation of Jacqueline’s home(160 Stearman Road Fayeteville, GA 30296 or 160 Woodland Road Fayeteville, GA 30296). We will be joined by many of Jacqueline's former co-workers at the APD and other supporters, many of whom have committed to refuse to leave when the marshals come to evict. We invite the press for interviews at 11am.

Although US Bank continues to pass the buck when it comes to Jacqueline’s home, it’s very clear that they own the trust that controls the 3,000 mortgage bundle that her house is tied up in (RASC 2006-EMX2) and GMAC is simply the enforcer….or servicer.

Jacqueline's demands remain the same, stop the eviction process, and sell back the home to Jacqueline or her family.

Be The Change Youth Convergence 2011

Be The Change 2011 is this upcoming weekend! July 29-31 at the Horizons School.
Please join us in helping to empower the next generation of community youth activists and leaders!

How can you get involved?
If you're 13-24 years old, register here and take part in the awesome skill-building and action packed weekend!

Click the image below to view a schedule for the weekend.

Any age and want to volunteer or contribute in any way?
Check out our volunteer needs page and sign up! Then, join us this Wednesday @ 9pm for our final planning meeting!

Help SCAP bridge the SAT gap!

Tonight, members of the Student Career Alternatives Program (SCAP) will lead the second session of our latest service for youth in Atlanta, free SAT tutoring.

A few months ago, looking to expand SCAP's reach and get some tutoring experience, SCAP member and GPJC intern Dell Maclean came up with the idea that SCAP should offer free SAT tutoring once a week. This tutoring would expand our range of services assisting Atlanta youth in finding viable non-military post-high school options. Since it was a first-time project, we did minimal outreach.

However, during those few months since the announcement went out and the brainstorming began, a lot happened. With the recent cuts to the HOPE scholarship, Georgia high schoolers suddenly find a new obstacle standing between them and the college funding many of them have been working toward for years: the SAT. The new legislation requires a 3.7 GPA and an SAT score of 1200 (on math and verbal) to get the full scholarship.

Many people have questioned the GA legislature not only for cutting education at all, but also for bringing in standardized testing as a criteria. The SAT has been criticized as an admission and funding tool for a range of reasons, including racial bias and lack of merit as an indicator of ability and future success. One of the main criticisms is that the SAT requires particular knowledge and strategies that can be gained through expensive books and tutoring not accessible to low-income students. In fact, many have called out the GA legislature for effectively re-segregating Georgia's public universities. Some legislators against the bill pointed out that 71 percent of Georgia students scoring above 1200 on the SAT are white, and only 7 percent are black. The inclusion of the SAT requirement drastically reduces the number of African American students eligible for the full scholarship.

With this debate as the backdrop, word about the free SAT tutoring spread quickly, and the response was tremendous. There are 10 students attending the tutoring. The waiting list is 40 students and growing. At this point, SCAP does not have enough tutors within its own core group to expand the tutoring. However, if other concerned citizens and college students volunteered to tutor, we could invite some of the students off the waiting list to come get some preparation before test day.

The tutoring takes place every Monday night, 6:30-8:30pm, at the AFSC office, 60 Walton Street downtown. The first session was held March 14th. Five volunteer tutors got started with the students, assessing their areas of strength and weakness and helping them learn how to improve their scores. While SCAP opposes the new legislation and would like it to change, we think it's important to fill in the gap and address an enormously unmet need in the meantime.

Please consider helping us on Monday nights. Tutors can work on a rotating basis and don't need to be formally trained in SAT prep. Contact Dell at delldot@gmail.com to sign up and help talented students bridge the SAT gap!

Erica Schoon
American Friends Service Committee

Letter to Attorney General Holder About Recent FBI Raids

In recent weeks, AFSC partners across the country have been the subjects of raids by the FBI, investigations by local police departments, and grand jury investigations. AFSC believes these raids are ominous portents of renewed stifling of domestic dissent, not effective law enforcement. They place a cloud over the public debate that is vital in a healthy democracy.

In an open letter to Attorney General Eric Holder, Shan Cretin, general secretary of AFSC, urges an end to these repressive measures and for him to heed the growing call for vigorous action to defend, rather than diminish, our fundamental liberties.

Here's a link to the letter:
http://afsc.org/document/letter-attorney-general-holder-october-2010

Here in Atlanta we are no strangers to government surveillance. Last year we were subject to a breach of security in our email system by Homeland Security.

Non-violence: weapon of the weak, or the strong?

AFSC Atlanta and Wonderroot Community Art Center have partnered on a project called, "Dinner & Discussion" for over a year now. The project basically invites a different Atlanta based non-profit/grassroots organization to facilitate a discussion on a topic of their choice. It's really been a wonderful way to learn about, and network with,all the amazing groups/orgs working for positive social change in Atlanta. In the past organizations like The Sierra Club, Food Not Bombs, The Hunger Coalition, CopWatch, Task Force for the Homeless, The Georgia Veterans Alliance, and Youngblood gallery have facilitated discussion.
Before topics are introduced for discussion everyone is encouraged to break bread together. I'm usually pretty impressed with all the delicious food folks contribute to the potluck style dinners. I think we all agree that these discussions are much more of a pleasure an a full stomach:)

Once a year AFSC actually facilitates the discussion, as we did this past Tuesday. The topic of the night was, "Non-violence: weapon of the weak, or the strong". Participants were each invited to talk about how violence had/has touched/influenced their lives. Each person was given a famous quote from various activists that had used non-violence as a weapon to achieve a political goal.
The discussion lively and ranged from folks sharing their personal obstacles that often stand in the way of becoming more active in social movements, to some in the room questioning how to define violence itself.

Dinner & Discussion takes place every 2nd Tuesday ay Wonderroot Community Art Center. Our next D & D will be April 13th at 7:30pm. Burnaway Magazine will facilitate the discussion on the topic, "How online discussions can lead to action in the community." All are invited!

Tim Franzen
American Friends Service Committee

Working for Peace In Cobb County Georgia??

Cobb County Georgia is one of the most militarized Counties in the state. It's also known as a strong hold for the neo conservative movement. It also may have one of the most dedicated community peace groups in the southeast. During the build-up to the Iraq invasion in 2003 several frustrated Cobb County residence, Including myself, got together and started a weekly demonstration against, what President Bush promised at the time, would be a quick, cheap , necessary war, with light casualties. That weekly gathering was the foundation for what became Citizens For Peace Cobb, County (www.cobbforpeace.org ). CFP is the first peace group in Cobb County history. They've organized marches, anual film series, and plugged into numerous local and national campaigns. The group has grown and shrunks several times but on thing hasn't changed, the weekly demonstration against war. Since Mid January of 2003 CFP hasn't missed one Friday in front of the Courthouse on the Marietta Square from 12-1pm. The group has dealt with harsh treatment, harsh weather, busy schedules, and has not been moved from taking that corner for an hour every Friday.
We at the AFSC wanted to help CFP mark the seventh anniversary this year. So we decided to promote it and take that Friday to join them on the Square. After the regular hour demonstration we all had lunch together and Dianne Matheowetz, representing the Georgia Peace and Justice Coalition, gave a talk on the state of the anti-war movement in Georgia.
Thanks Al Viola for taking all the Great pictures!!!



Tim Franzen
American Friends Service Committee