Poverty Initiative travels to the U.S. Social Forum in Detroit, MI!

To see photos from the Poverty Initiative's trip to the USSF, visit our Flickr page. This week the Poverty Initiative will join thousands in Detroit for the “Another World Is Possible US Social Forum”

The Poverty Initiative will be joined by dozens of Poverty Scholars Program participating organizations, friends, and allies.  Poverty Scholars will also be meeting with community leaders in Toledo, OH and Detroit MI during their travels.

For more information on Poverty Initiative workshops and People’s Movement Assembly click 'Read More': 

Poverty Initiative USSF Workshop:
A New and Unsettling Force: Reigniting Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s Poor People’s Campaign
Event Date:  Thu, 06/24/2010 - 10:00am - 12:00pm
Event Location:  Woodward Academy: Computer Room (changed from room 1471)
Full Description:
Workshop will engage “Poverty Scholars,” people of faith, religious leaders, and antipoverty activists in a discussion of the history of MLK’s 1968 Poor People’s Campaign and questions of leadership development, the role of religion and the Bible, art and culture, movement strategy, and new models of organizing in today’s movement to end poverty. “Poverty Scholars”--participants in the Poverty Initiative’s leadership development and training program for low-income, religious and community leaders from organizations nationwide--will focus on the theme of PI's latest publication (same as workshop title). By lifting up King's vision of a Poor People's Campaign as a historic effort to unite the poor across racial, gender, ethnic, religious, and geographic lines, we’ll talk about the need for the development and unity of grassroots leaders (referred to as many “Martins”) in today’s movement to end poverty. We’ll feature organizations from frontlines of anti-poverty struggles, who fight for the same basic needs demanded decades ago. We’ll explore the need for a religious strategy that seeks to unite the poor across traditional barriers into what King called, "A New Freedom Church of the Poor".
First Sponsoring Organization Name:  Poverty Initiative
Collaborating Organizations:
National Social and Economic Rights Initiative (NESRI), May Day New Orleans, New Orleans, LA, Media Mobilizing Project (MMP), Philadelphia, PA, Direct Action Welfare Group (DAWG), West Virginia, Michigan Welfare Rights Organization (MWRO), Detroit, MI

People's Movement Assembly of the Faith Community from Internal Reflection to External Action - Thursday, June 24, 1 - 5:30 p.m. Cobo Hall: D2-08 
Event Date:  Thu, 06/24/2010 - 1:00pm - 5:30pm
Event Location:  Cobo Hall: D2-08
Full Description:
Because the conditions of economic injustice, violence, environmental degradation, social distress, and poverty exist in the global south and in our own communities; And because there are opportunities possible and needed within communities of faith to mitigate these actions through internal reflection and external actions; and because in our struggles for justice we often forget to express the deepest reasons for the struggle, which arise from empathy and love for all people and all life, which are values common to our spiritual traditions
We commit to uniting members of the faith community that would:
• Extend the strength of communities and congregations out to the community/greater world, nationally and internationally, to train and develop and support leadership amongst the poor and marginalized factions that will permit them to lift themselves out of poverty.
• Have faith communities and leaders work to?influence our legislature to enact laws that will follow the spiritual mandates taught by their leaders through legislative meetings, petitions, and educational assemblies.?• Within the US work with us to challenge the wealthy and powerful to act on spiritually-based values of empathy and caring by promoting ) a foreign policy based on generosity not domination?• Engage core religious and spiritual texts in ways that transit key lessons on peace and justice
• Find and live into the common wisdom across faith and spiritual traditions that illuminate our responsibility to global realities
And we call on others in the US to join in lifting up these visions.
First Sponsoring Organization Name:  Jubilee USA
Collaborating Organizations:
Tikkun, Poverty Initiative, Buddhist Peace Fellowship

Poverty Scholars Program Participating Organization's Workshops
A LOT of Poverty Scholar Program participant groups are also doing workshops during the Forum!