PolicyLink

🏘️ Housing & Health Justice: A Public Health Imperative 🩺 During the pandemic, eviction protections safeguarded public health. Today, those protections have mostly expired, and eviction rates are rising again. Join us for an essential webinar exploring how public health policies can address housing instability, medical debt, food insecurity, and other critical social needs. 🔑 Experts will share actionable insights on advancing health justice and equity through stronger eviction prevention measures at federal, state, and local levels. 📅 Don’t miss this vital conversation—register now! 👉 https://lnkd.in/gJiQwfDw Co-Sponsored by: ABA Standing Committee on Pro Bono and Public Service, American Bar Association Commission on Law and Aging, American Bar Association Health Law Section, ABA Forum on Affordable Housing and Community Development Law. #HousingJustice #HealthEquity #EvictionPrevention #PublicHealth #Webinar

Our collective well-being is determined by the strength of the floor as well as the height of the ceiling. That’s how Karen Bass, the first woman and second Black person elected mayor of LA, takes her grassroots values into office. She is a mayor for all, including the most vulnerable in her city. Growing up, Mayor Karen Bass knew her generation would change the world; she just never dreamed she’d be in office—she thought she’d be on the picket line. I interviewed Mayor Bass about her life and leadership for the Reimagining Democracy for a Good Life Podcast, episode 5, Shift Happens. Hers is a fascinating story of growing up during the civil rights movement and raising up everyone around her – the floor and the ceiling. Back in 1968, at just 13, Karen signed her mother up to be a precinct captain and support Robert Kennedy’s campaign. One minor detail—Karen never told her mother and did the work herself! That year, Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated. And two short months later, Kennedy was assassinated in LA. I can only imagine the impact this had on Mayor Bass at such a young age. Bass became an ER nurse and saw firsthand how political failures and economic devastation fueled the crack epidemic impacting her fellow Angelenos, and the Black community especially. This motivated her to mobilize a community anti-drug coalition, using George Bush Sr.'s war on drugs money, and creating one of the first public health not criminalization approaches to drug use. Years later, on her first day as mayor, Bass declared a state of emergency on homelessness in the City of LA. Her administration marks the first time the City and County of LA have worked together on homelessness, which affects over 41,000 people in LA. Los Angeles represents such a huge part of the state that changes in LA have an impact on the whole state. And what happens in California impacts the whole nation. Tune in and share your takeaways on how community activists can enter positions of power while utilizing our grassroots backgrounds. https://lnkd.in/gzVumDir

That's our President 🙌 😊

As we approach the end of the year, we’re reminded of the importance of pausing, replenishing, and grounding ourselves in the work of building a just and flourishing society. At PolicyLink, we believe in creating space for reflection and renewal as part of the long arc toward designing a nation where all can thrive. As we prepare for our annual Winter Reset, starting December 25th, and as our CEO Dr. Michael McAfee steps away for a sabbatical, we’re inspired by the leadership he models: embracing rest as an essential part of sustaining this lifetime work. These moments of pause are not just acts of self-care but acts of commitment to the movement—a chance to fortify ourselves for the transformative challenges ahead. In the months ahead, we’ll be guided by the steady leadership of our President Ashleigh Gardere, whose vision will continue to anchor and inspire our collective journey. Together, we remain focused on the unfinished business of democracy, building a future worthy of all of us. As you reflect on your own certainties and aspirations, remember this: you are a founder of a nation yet to be birthed. Hold steady, embrace rest when needed, and return ready to move with clarity and conviction. Together, we will create a society where everyone can flourish. See you in 2025 and enjoy a few pictures from some of our happy moments throughout the year.

Introducing our annual, "2024 Attitudinal Survey Findings," conducted by Lake Research Partners. Here’s what we learned: - Nearly two-thirds of Americans believe that as a society we can and should care for everyone. - A shared near-unanimous value is that we should ensure equal opportunity is available to everyone. - The vast majority agree that "we the people" have a responsibility to create a better society for everyone. - Clear majorities believe that government can be a force for good to create positive change for everyone and that government has a responsibility to create a better society for all. At PolicyLink, we’ve long championed the belief that we have the power to design a flourishing multiracial democracy. These findings reaffirm that we, as a nation, are ready to align our policies and practices with our values. Let’s lean into this moment of shared commitment to design a nation where ALL can thrive. The work is clear, and the mandate is strong—together, we can deliver on the promise of a just and inclusive society for all. #MultiracialDemocracy #2024AttitudinalSurveyFindings #ThrivingCommunities #TheAll #WeAreTheFounders

Language is a building block for transformation. Through the co-creation a vision for a radically and mutually inclusive, thriving multiracial democracy in service of human flourishing—including the PolicyLink podcast series Reimagining Democracy for a Good Life—new language and new ways of using existing language emerged. Over the next few months, PolicyLink will be sharing a chronicle of these key ideas to help people dig deeper into our shared vision, and to help us all rethink what is meant by democracy and its essential elements. Reimagining Democracy: The Language of A Good Life is a digital content series that explores the meanings of key ideas through words we reimagined or uncovered in the podcast series. Each word or idea is a touchstone that connects to how a reimagined democracy can revitalize a nation and its people. Our first idea in the series is “A good life.” In the spirit of reimagining, we offer these words as suggestions to explore what is possible in our collective aspirations to live a good life. Try out the words and definitions with your community. Stress test them and let us know what you think! Check out the Reimagining Democracy for a Good Life asset portal where you can download sharable assets you can use on your social media! https://lnkd.in/g5qCpQDd

We’re grateful to Jessica Paz-Cedillos for amplifying our CEO Dr. Michael McAfee’s powerful speech at the The Kresge Foundation’s Centennial Year National Convening and reflecting on what she thinks it means to be a founder of a nation yet to be realized. In her piece, she highlights Michael’s challenge to all of us: We the People of today are the true Founders, with the power to create a nation where all can thrive, regardless of their race, socioeconomic status, or gender. She underscores the urgency of addressing systemic inequities, particularly in regions like Silicon Valley, where stark disparities persist despite immense wealth. As Michael reminds us, the founding of the United States of America was imperfect by design, but each of us can step forward as Founders to finally realize a nation for all. We thank Jessica for sharing Michael’s message and for challenging leaders across sectors to adopt PolicyLink’s bold leadership stance. Read the full article: https://lnkd.in/gq5sxVcJ #WeAreTheFounders #MultiracialDemocracy #ThrivingCommunities

We need to make huge investments in repairing and upgrading our nation's aging water infrastructure. On Monday, Reps. Tonko and Pallone introduced the AQUA Act on the 50th anniversary of the Safe Drinking Water Act. If passed, it would invest another $104b into our water infrastructure AND finally establish a permanent national water assistance program so that the 19.2 million households with unaffordable (see the recently released EPA study here: https://lnkd.in/gWH-NxwJ) water can keep their taps on. While there are many competing priorities for where federal funding could go, ensuring that everyone in the US has access to clean, affordable water now (and in the future) should be on everyone's short list. Deeply grateful to the advocates who continue to push for a permanent water assistance program and the electeds who work FOR/WITH their constitutents to develop good policy that benefits ALL.

On December 17, Representatives Blunt Rochester and Waters introduced the Know Who Owns Your Home Act. PolicyLink is excited to support this necessary legislation, which would direct the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to study the need for and feasibility of a national residential rental registry. PolicyLink thanks the Congressmembers for their leadership. Read the bill here: https://lnkd.in/gBeTp7T3

🚰 More than 19 million U.S. households face unaffordable water bills according to a new US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) report. We can solve the water crisis together! #SafeAffordableWater Read more from the #WECRCaucus: https://lnkd.in/ecgpHc2t