The Direct Action & Research Training (DART) Center

As our affiliates vote on what issue to take on in the coming year, we're reflecting on the many hard-fought policies we've won to bring justice to our communities. Check out some of the victories that CAJM (DART's affiliate in Charleston) celebrated this past spring:

Most of us don’t feel particularly powerful. Compared to the utilities, healthcare companies, banks, and other huge systems that govern our lives, it’s hard to feel like we can do anything to shape the direction of our communities’ futures. But, this feeling of powerlessness is a myth. As Alice Walker writes, “the most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any.” While we as individuals cannot get more affordable homes built, or demand better access to mental health care for our loved ones, we have enormous power when we come together. Through the hard work of organizing everyday people into a force for good, our affiliates have won over $450 million for affordable housing, secured reforms that have resulted in 50,000 fewer arrests of children, and gotten over $950 million invested in public transit. In contrast to the myth of powerlessness, we are building a counternarrative paved with action that proves everyday people, united and organized, are incredibly powerful. Want to learn more about the power of organized people? Check out www.thedartcenter.org. #justice #communityorganizing #peoplepower #hope

More than 10,000 people in Albemarle County are severely rent burdened, struggling with the costs of sky-high rent. IMPACT, DART's affiliate in Charlottesville, has won major commitments from county officials to get more affordable homes built. Read more below -

Gun violence has taken the lives of too many Richmonders. RISC (DART’s affiliate in Richmond) has been fighting for years to get the mayor to implement Gun Violence Intervention, a program proven to stop the shootings. At RISC’s recent Mayoral Candidates Forum, they secured a major victory in this fight. Before an audience of over 400 people, RISC got all five mayoral candidates to commit to implement Gun Violence Intervention if elected. With these commitments secured, RISC has moved closer to winning Gun Violence Intervention and making Richmond a city where everyone is safe. No one should feel fear in their neighborhood, and RISC continues to organize towards a Richmond where the preciousness of every person’s life is valued and protected. #peoplepower #LocalPolitics #communityorganizing #justice

In addition to their fight to stop gun violence, RISC (DART's affiliate in Richmond) has secured major victories to ensure everyone in Richmond has a safe, affordable place to call home. Below, check out the commitments RISC won for a mobile home repair and replacement program:

Last year, Topeka JUMP secured a major win for access to mental health crisis services. As JUMP leader Anton Ahrens explains, "we'll be one of the first counties in Kansas to have these critical mental health beds for people in crisis...we need them. Everyone in Topeka sees the results of people who have really severe mental health needs that aren't being met." Read more in the article below.

There is a lot to be angry about in our communities. Our neighbors have to make it through the winter without housing, the quality of our kids’ education is determined by their zip code, our criminal justice system is locking people up because they can’t pay their traffic tickets. Many people think that the anger these issues provoke is a bad thing. Is that true? In the DART network, we don’t think so. Rather, we believe that anger is a very important tool in organizing. Just as hunger alerts us that it is time to eat, our anger arises when we witness injustice against ourselves or others. Getting in touch with our anger about serious community problems is what motivates and sustains us towards taking real action on these issues. Anger doesn’t have to mean acting explosively or wrathfully. Our organizers work to help everyday people recognize their anger and channel it into strategic action. We use anger to build the kind of power necessary to win millions of dollars for affordable housing, or to secure policies that disrupt the school-to-prison pipeline. Want to be a part of transforming anger into people power? Check out our open positions at thedartcenter.org. #communityorganizing #peoplepower #localpolitics #justice

Justice in Action launched in 2022, but they're already building some serious people power in Lincoln, Nebraska. Check out coverage from Justice in Action's most recent Nehemiah Action to learn about how they're fighting to improve access to mental health, address the crisis of affordable housing, and more.

Columbus, Ohio is the fastest growing heat island in the country, has the 3rd highest rate of asthma-related hospitalizations, and is experiencing a dramatic increase in flooding. All of these issues can be mitigated by trees. Yet, Columbus lacks any protections for trees on private property, and the city’s tree canopy is considerably behind other cities. BREAD, DART’s affiliate in Columbus, refuses to accept this status quo. Through research, they identified that there were no protections in place for large trees on private land, despite the fact that these trees can reduce temperatures by 10-45 degrees, remove up to 60% of street level air pollution, and absorb thousands of gallons of stormwater. BREAD fought for years to push the city to act. This spring, they won a public tree protection ordinance, and are now building power to push for a private tree protection ordinance that will further protect Columbus’s most vulnerable residents from the issues caused by climate change. Inspired by BREAD’s fight for environmental justice? They’re hiring! Learn how you can become a professional organizer with BREAD at thedartcenter.org/careers. #environmentaljustice #communityorganizing #localpolitics #peoplepower

The fight for justice isn’t easy. Elected officials have many powerful, well-financed interests pulling at them, and pushing officials to serve the needs of their constituents often means running up against excuse after excuse. Yet, our affiliates stay strong in their resolve that the problems our communities face are solvable - and that the forces causing these problems are far from a mystery. As Reverend Wells, a leader with BRIGHT in Brevard County, reflects, “the system is not omnipotent with motives that are incomprehensible… it can be deciphered, dissolved, and eventually dismantled when confronted by organized people.” More often than not, we know what’s behind the injustices plaguing our communities. Whether it’s the companies making money off a jail expansion or the developers who don’t find affordable housing profitable enough, the root of these issues is rarely unknown. But, as Reverend Wells remarks, “the system will not change the rules… we are going to have to change the system.” When our affiliates bring together thousands of organized people, we have the power to push our elected officials towards making the changes that our communities need. Want to read about some of the victories that our affiliates have won? Take a look at www.thedartcenter.org. #justice #communityorganizing #localpolitics #peoplepower