SURJ Boston

Housing Justice

SAT 9/15 Join New England United for Justice for their 5th Annual Expo

“It is that time of year folks....this year we are hosting out our 5th Annual Expo on Saturday Sept 15 from 12pm to 5pm. We are continuing to build on the theme of family, community, business and our youth!” See the Facebook event for more details.

SAT 9/22 Homes for All Assembly: Build a People's Plan!

Join Right to the City, Keep it 100, Reclaim Roxbury, Boston Tenant Coalition, Dorchester Not for Sale, City Life/Vida Urbana, and Fenway CDC for the Homes for All Assembly! “Tired of neighbors, friends and family getting displaced? Think the rent is too damn high? Tired of widespread luxury development? Then JOIN US for a Boston assembly to build a people's plan!” See the Facebook event for more details. Light lunch, child care, and interpretation provided.

Sign the petition for Dorchester rooming house renters

Please take a minute to sign this petition! “There are 20 single-occupancy rooms and one apartment in this building. The residents are people of color earning modest livings; in Boston's overheated housing market, other apartments in the area are unaffordable.” Support these brave renters who are defending themselves alongside CLVU in court!

Support women facing eviction at Our Lady’s Guild House

CALL realtor Marc Roos's office at (617) 236-8600 and ask him to stop the unjust evictions of these elders. Simply ask Roos to stop the pending no-fault evictions at Our Lady's Guild House. Fill out this form to let CLVU know you called. SHARE THE PETITION link on Facebook and Twitter (and sign the petition!) so that we can reach 1,500 signatures!: Use the hashtags #StopRuthlessRoos and #KickTheEvictionHabit in your social media Support women facing eviction at Our Lady’s Guild Houseposts.

RECLAIM ROXBURY: Sign the petitions - Stop Gentrification on Warren St!

Petition: The Tommy's Rock Neighborhood Association (TRNA) stands in opposition to a proposed development at 125 Warren Street. The overdevelopment of Roxbury is destroying the history and integrity of this diverse African-American community. TRNA seeks your support in stopping this destructive project. Please sign and leave a comment to go to the mayor and other decision makers!

Petition: Developers want to destroy Roxbury's history. They want to build a giant building next door to the Joseph Warren House, which has National Importance. They want to destroy that legacy in Roxbury and erect a building that will overshadow it and ruin its sanctity.

Immigration Justice

jericho walks in burlington, ma

Jericho Walks are a silent interfaith prayer and act of solidarity. The walks draw inspiration from the Battle of Jericho, in which the community marched around the city of Jericho seven times, causing the city walls to fall. The Jericho Walk of today is a silent, peaceful, and prayerful walk to bring down the walls of our unjust immigration system and is open to people of all or no faiths. These walks are planned by Burlington Area Clergy 4 Justice (A.K.A. BAC4 Justice... don't you love it!?) and take place at the ICE Field Office in Burlington, MA. They will be happening on the following Tuesday afternoons:
• September 25
• October 16
• November 20
• December 18

Contact Laura Wagner at lwagner@uumassaction.org for more information.

#justice4siham fundraiser

The #Justice4Siham campaign has been working tirelessly to reunite activist Siham Byah, who was deported to Morocco, with her son Naseem who is still here in the US and struggling with depression. He is in desperate need of counseling to cope with the trauma brought upon him by ICE. Please consider donating to and sharing the GoFundMe page, and checking out a video about the fundraising campaign.

no business with ice

ICE is terrorizing immigrants at the border and in our communities. We can fight back by refusing to be complicit with institutions that cooperate with ICE. Sign the pledge here.

Beyond Bond & Legal Defense Fund

More than 1,000 people are held by ICE every year in South Bay House of Correction in Boston. Some are from our local communities, others are sent to South Bay from the border and have no family or friends in Boston, but everyone in ICE jail is cut off from community support, legal recourse, and basic human rights. The new fund bonds our neighbors out of detention so they can be reunited with their families and have a chance to fight deportation. Please help us raise $100,000 over the next two months. Organized by the Boston Immigrant Justice Accompaniment Network (BIJAN, pronounced "Beyond"). Donate and get more information.

Centro Presente needs volunteers

Centro Presente needs volunteer ESL and Citizenship teachers. Email Meredith Gamble at mgamble@cpresente.org to get involved!

Boston Immigrant Justice Accompaniment Network

Support those caught up in the harm of our racist immigration system. Sign up. Please join us in taking action by ensuring members of our communities have the resources they need to fight their deportations and stay connected to their families. You can donate and share.

Prison Abolition

Emancipation Initiative fights draconian visitation regulations

Attend the hearing: Thursday, September 13th at 10 AM at 1 Ashburton Place, Boston

Email your testimony: Here is a link to a template letter. Send to kathleen.richard@state.ma.us opposing regulations that restrict visits by September 13th at 5 pm. Copy EmancipationInitiative@gmail.com so we can track numbers.

Please fill out our Google Form link so we know how many supporters to expect and how to follow up with you after the hearing. If you use Facebook, RSVP to come to the hearing and share with your friends!

On top of restrictive visitation policies adopted this spring, the DOC now wants to introduce drug sniffing dogs into the visiting rooms, even though this will make visiting more difficult logistically, physically, and emotionally for many people. In fact, visitors have already reported negative interactions with aggressive dogs from when the DOC first tried this tactic earlier this year. We know that visits are essential to successful reentry and reduced recidivism rates, and this is our opportunity to show the Department of Correction that we take rehabilitation seriously, and will not allow them to disappear our loved ones. Let us know you're coming here.

PRISON LABOR & ORGANIZING WEBINAR

Monday, September 17, 6-8 pm - register for political education here
$40/ticket
Community Change, Inc., SURJB, and #DeeperThanWater are teaming up with John Donner, a veteran prisoner organizer, "that takes a deeper look at laws governing the working class-- more specifically, convicts, prisoners, and ex-prisoners-- and how they've stopped the labor movement from becoming a vehicle for uniting all groups of workers as one strata."

BLACK & PINK VOLUNTEER DROP IN

Times are drop in/drop out, so come for as long or little as you'd like. You will need a laptop. Come read prisoners' letters, learn about their struggles, and help out the Black and Pink family!

• Saturdays in Lower Allston: from 12 noon - 3 PM at Swissbäkers. Contact Eli at eli@newgreyhair.com or Facebook page
• Wednesdays in JP: 7PM-9PM at First Baptist Church, 633 Centre Street Jamaica Plain, MA.  Contact Annie at Annieatwater@gmail.com
• Sundays in downtown Boston: from 3PM-6PM at encuentro 5, 9a Hamilton Place, Boston, MA.

Movement for Black Lives

BLM Boston Giving Campaign

PAYPAL for donations is m4blmboston@gmail.com. For longer range, recurring support join Campaign21 which moves us from emergency, crises driven giving to solidarity sustained giving.

Public Education

Petition to demand PILOT Payments

A petition calling for our mayor and city councilors to demand our institutional neighbors contribute to the future of ours schools and community. Institutions such as Harvard, Northeastern, BC, BU which together neglected to pay $36 million in PILOT payments and continue to underpay. Sign the petition!