For Immediate Release: November 18, 2021
Contact: Mike Sandmel, New Economy Project, mike@neweconomynyc.
NYS Community Equity Agenda Releases 2022 Policy Platform for a Community-Led Recovery
Coalition of 40+ Community & Labor Groups Releases 5-Point Platform for a Community-Led Recovery, Racial and Economic Justice in NY.
NEW YORK, NY – This afternoon the NYS Community Equity Agenda, a coalition of more than 40 community, labor, and civil rights groups, cooperative organizations, and community development financial institutions from across New York, released its policy priorities for 2022.
The platform comes on the heels of coalition victories including legislation exempting federal stimulus funds from debt collection; first-ever funding for New York’s Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Fund; and the defeat of several proposals to legalize predatory payday lending and deregulate fringe financial companies.
For 2022, the coalition is pressing for bold concrete actions that New York policymakers can and must take this year to lay critical groundwork for a just recovery and economy rooted in racial and social justice, workers’ rights, cooperation, and ecological sustainability. Key priorities in the platform include:
- Passage of the NY Public Banking Act
- Government crackdown on persistent redlining and other racial wealth extraction
- Increased funding for New York’s CDFIs
- Support for worker-owned businesses
- Legislation to expand community land trusts and other forms of social housing
Details of the platform and a full list of coalition members can be viewed at EquityAgendaNY.org
Quotes:
“The Equity Agenda’s platform has the force of groups working in communities all around the state, presenting affirmative solutions that are rooted in economic democracy and cooperation and are necessary to achieve racial, social, and climate justice,” said Sarah Ludwig of New Economy Project in New York City, which coordinates the coalition.
“As an organization committed to removing systemic barriers to economic equity, WEDI is truly proud to stand behind the five bold proposals for the 2022 Equity Agenda platform,” said Carolynn Welch of the Westminster Economic Development Initiative in Buffalo. “We have seen first-hand how the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic disproportionately affected our communities of color, and we know how crucial it is that our recovery from this pandemic be one that is community-led.”
“We are excited to endorse this practical program that embodies an inclusive multi-racial vision of economic democracy and social justice,” said Dr. David Sprintzen of the Ethical Humanist Society of Long Island.
“City Roots Community Land Trust is proud to stand with our partners in supporting the NYS Community Equity Agenda’s 2022 platform,” said Joe DiFiore of the City Roots Community Land Trust in Rochester. “We know that quality, affordable housing is foundational to the well-being of each and every one of us. That’s why residents across the state are calling on our elected officials to take meaningful action to address the critical need for more affordable housing options by passing the Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act (TOPA) and the Fair Taxation for Community Land Trusts Act. Together we can put NY on the path to a just recovery for all.”
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