Archives for December 2013

A grassroots gala and banquet benefiting the Mid-South Peace & Justice Center.

An evening of local music, local food, and local people building local movements.

Featuring former MSPJC Executive Director Hubert Van Tol & an engaging program featuring the best of local food, music, arts and movement.

Saturday :: January 18, 2014
First Congregational Church (map)
Reserve your tickets NOW

Pathstone Enterprise Center in Rochester, NY.

Tickets:

6:00pm – Seated Banquet :: $30/ticket
$225/table of eight
Banquet tickets include reception and full meal with Cash Bar.

7:00pm – General Admission :: $10/ticket
suggested donation with no one turned away

*all tickets include full program*

Free childcare available, must register when you purchase tickets or by calling 901.725.4990

Be sure to stay tuned to www.midsouthpeace.org as we continue to release details of the program and other entertainment for the big event!

You can also support the important work of the Mid-South Peace and Justice Center by becoming a member. We are a member-led, community-run organization. Please take a moment to help us build a movement for positive change in our community. Become a Member today!

Memphis United Conference on Police Misconduct
Tuesday, December 17th, 11:30 am – 4:00 pm

Community Forum and Know Your Rights Workshop
Time: Noon – 2:00 pm. Sign in and snacks at 11:30am
Location: St Patrick’s Church, 277 S. Fourth St, Memphis, TN 38126
Co-Moderators: Earle Fisher and Gee Joyner

March on Civic Center Plaza and Cypher
Time: 2:00 pm. – 4:00 pm.
Starting Point:  St Patrick’s Church, 277 S. Fourth St, Memphis, TN 38126

Memphis United Music Show and After-Party
Time: Doors open at 7:00 pm. Show starts at 7:30 pm.
Location: K’PreSha Boutique,  323 South Main St, Memphis, TN 38126
Line-up of artists performing:

• Lurrell Low
• Red Planet
• YR Generation
• Girls of the Gravitron
• Knowledge Nick

Join Memphis United this Tuesday, December 17th. Our goal is to begin a grassroots campaign to end systemic police harassment and misconduct, and to promote positive reforms to our local criminal justice system for all Memphians. The event begins at noon with a community forum at St Patrick’s Catholic Church.  (Sign-in and refreshments at 11:30am.) This forum, co-moderated by Earle Fisher and Gee Joyner, will allow the community to air their opinions and share their experiences in a space of safety and plan for future action. This forum will also include a “Know Your Rights” workshop put on by H.O.P.E. (Homeless Organizing For Power and Equality). and the Law Offices of the Shelby County Public Defender.

At 2:00 pm we will gather outside St Patrick’s Catholic Church to host a nonviolent march down Beale Street to South Main to Civic Center Plaza, right outside of City Hall where local hip hop artists will host a cypher, a hip hop freestyle circle. Hip-hop is not the enemy nor are people experiencing homelessness.

We want you to be there to join us in this event and in this campaign for justice on our streets. This is not simply about “bad cops” or a few “bad apples” but rather it is about a total lack of citizen-led accountability and a system that creates these behaviors and allows them to continue and that system must change. Changes like a real Civilian Law Enforcement Review Board with real power,changes like improved MPD cooperation on the filing of U-Visas for undocumented victims of domestic violence,changes like homelessness and disability sensitivity training for patrol officers,changes like proper accountability in the processing of Rape kits. These are all but a few of the issues that people are bringing to the table and we want to invite you to be a part of this discussion and building a movement to make this happen.

To be anti-harassment and pro-justice does not make one anti-cop. We hope to see you there.

Memphis United is a grassroots coalition made up of H.O.P.E. (Homeless Organizing For Power and Equality),The South Main Cypher Trolley Series, Manna House Memphis, K’PreSha Boutique,Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition-TIRRC, Memphis Center For Independent Living, Adapt TN, Memphis Bus Riders Union,The Bridge Street Newspaper, Pro-Memphis Project, Subliminal Thought and many concerned citizens.

Hey, y’all! It’s holiday time, and your favorite social justice organizations want to celebrate with you!

On Thursday, December 19th from 6:00 to 8:00 pm, Mid-South Peace and Justice Center, Grow Memphis, Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition, Memphis Bus Riders Union/Sindicato de Pasajeros, and H.O.P.E. (Homeless Organizing for Power and Equality) are all converging at our offices at 3573 Southern Ave. to bring out the December cheer!

Mark your calendars for this night, because there’s gonna be food, music, dancing, Jacob’s famous homemade “Triple Threat Axis of Evil” EGGNOG, and some eccentric holiday décor including MISTLETOE. woooooo.

Put on your red and green outfits (turtlenecks are cool!) and celebrate another year of great work with these organizations and the folks that make them possible—that’s you!  Feel free to bring partners, friends, family members, and children, because the more… the merrier!

H.O.P.E. is the name of a Mid-South Peace and Justice Center-sponsored organization whose members are exclusively people currently, or have formerly experienced homelessness. H.O.P.E. has been working hard to develop several project areas that address the issues that are a priority to the homeless community. For meeting times and dates, call 901-300-0006.

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Welcome Aboard, Toni Whitfield!

H.O.P.E. would like to proudly congratulate organizer/activist, Toni Whitfield, one of Mid-South Peace and Justice Center‘s newly elected board members of 2014! Toni is a committed soldier in the war on homelessness & poverty, an LGBTQ advocate, and a street preacher. Toni has been deeply involved in all of H.O.P.E.’s projects and campaigns, including but not limited to; the Street Watch Initiative, Women’s Caucus, Garden Crew, and the Street Wise INK t-shirt printing Co-Op. H.O.P.E. is thrilled to have Toni’s representation on the board at MSPJC.  We know that she will continue to bring to the table an invaluable perspective on issues of poverty and passion and unending enthusiasm for building a grassroots movement in our city!

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Brain Freeze!

Earlier this week H.O.P.E. received a message from our friend, Elise, informing us that the TCBY on Union Ave near Belvedere had posted a sign on the front of the door that read “NO SOLICITING–OR HOMELESS” This kind of labeling and shaming should not be tolerated in our community! It is classist, degrading, and mean spirited. We reposted the photograph (below) and askedYOU to help us by making phone calls to management to let them know this was absolutely unacceptable. We are happy to report that the phone calls and letters paid off and just days later, we received this response from TCBY:

Thanks to your collective support, this situation was dealt with quickly and effectively. H.O.P.E. salutes you-thanks for answering the call!

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Women’s Caucus

The H.O.P.E. Women’s Caucus is a safe space for H.O.P.E. members who identify as women to work together on the issues that disproportionately affect them, including reproductive health and violence.  Co-sponsored by the Center for Research on Women at the University of Memphis, the Women’s Caucus meets regularly for “Dinner and Discussion,” from which a core group of organizers has emerged to focus on the unique challenges faced by women experiencing homelessness.

Most recently, the Women’s Caucus completed a five week self-defense course at Cat’s Ballroom. These classes met twice a week, focusing on the fundamental skills needed to handle an attack, and get out of violent situations safely. Soon, the Women’s Caucus will begin the second phase of this process. Members will participate in “train the trainer” style classes to learn the techniques of teaching self-defense strategies to other women.  This two-phase model builds upon an evidence-based Lay Health Advisor model used around the country to implement community-based healthcare programs.

If you are interested in getting involved with theH.O.P.E. Women’s Caucus in any other way, or if you have questions or suggestions for the group, please contact Project Coordinator, Ace F. Madjlesi at acemadjlesi@gmail.com.

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Baby, It’s COLD Outside!

If you haven’t already noticed, it’s getting colder. Last night, temperatures dipped below freezing and this is just the beginning. Currently in Memphis, there are NO fully-free shelters that operate throughout the week. Memphis Union Mission, opens its doors to unsheltered men without cost only on nights when it is LITERALLY freezing. This means that many of our brothers and sisters will be doing the best they can to keep warm on these cold streets. Even on nights where the thermometer doesn’t hit 32 degrees, individuals without shelter are at serious risk of becoming ill, or worse.

We are asking YOU, our allies and supporters for donations of LARGE coats, blankets,mittens/gloves, clean socks, scarves, caps, long-johns, sleeping bags, tents, blankets, etc. basically, if you think someone could use it to stay warm and needs it, they probably do.

Donation Drop-Off Locations, Dates and Times
You can drop donations of COATS off at Manna House Memphis, 1268 Jefferson Ave. Mon, Tues, & Thurs Mornings, 8:30-11:30 am. Other donations can be dropped off at the Mid-South Peace and Justice Center (3573 Southern Ave, 725-4990) Mon-Fri 9 am-5 pm

It won’t end homelessness, but it could save someone’s life this winter.

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Feeding the Movement

H.O.P.E would like to once again thank Memphis Center for Independent Living for providing us with space for our meetings while we seek a permanent location.We would also like to thank Just for Lunch & Trolley Stop Market for providing some delicious food for our meetings. There are lots of ways to feed the movement, and we would like to thank all of our allies for their continued support. For more information about how you can support HOPE or our different project areas, Please contact Paul Garner (901) 725.4990, or paul@midsouthpeace.org. Like H.O.P.E. on Facebook!

Join us Thursday, December 12th at 7pm, at Rhodes College in Blount Auditorium for an informal and informative discussion on criminalization in the age of mass incarceration.

We will discuss the criminalization of immigration, unjust sentencing, criminal justice reform and much more.

We are excited that the following community activists and experts on the topic will be joining us for the discussion:

• Gabriela Marquez-Benitez- Latino Union of Chicago
• Nicole D. Porter- The Sentencing Project
• Silky Shah – Detention Watch Network
• Bob Libal & Kymberlie Quong Charles – Grassroots Leadership
• Laura Markle Downton – National Religious Campaign Against Torture

Event is free and open to the public.

Location on Rhodes College Campus is Blount Auditorium inside of Buckman Hall. Campus Map: http://www.rhodes.edu/images/content/About/Rhodes_Campus_Map_Layers.pdf

The projects that all of our members have been working on this past year have continued to challenge the status quo of our communities. H.O.P.E. has empowered its members to advocate for social and systemic re-imagining of the state of homelessness in our communities.  TheMemphis Bus Riders Union has won great hard victories over this past year and continues to work toward equitable transportation for all our city’s residents. The Community-Police Relations Projecthas held six forums with hundreds of people coming out to share their experience. Our trainings and workshops have continued to create the foundation for grassroots community organizing locally and nationally. The annual meeting reawakened our enthusiasm to take these projects further into 2014!

In addition to talking about our work over this past year and getting feedback on how to continue it, we elected new board members. (more below)

We invite all of our members to get involved with the various projects that we have going on. One great way to do that is to renew your membership for this coming year and take our short survey [HERE].

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Newly Elected MSPJC Board

We are very excited to extend congratulations to all of our dedicated newly-elected board!

Officers: Federico Gomez (Chairperson); Tiffany Futch (Treasurer); Dana Wilson (Secretary); General board members: Mia Madison, Anna Mullins, Brandon Gaiter, Ace Madjlesi, Jodi Mack, Toni Whitfield, Chris Martin, Dr. Coby Smith, Jesus (Chuey) Lopez.

Meet the ten new members of our board, each elected for a three-year term.  They will join existing members to make a total of 17.

• Mia Madison – Dedicated community activist. Currently employed by HCD as a Mapping Analyst. G.O.T. Power Graduate and participant in the Community-Police Relations project.
• Anna Mullins – Long time MSPJC member. Former Board Chair and founder of the Women’s Action Coalition v 1.0. Currently Executive Director of the Cotton Museum.
• Brandon Gaiter – Community activist and leader in the Memphis United effort around the KKK rally in Memphis this year.
• Ace Madjlesi – Community activist, project coordinator in the H.O.P.E. Women’s caucus, the Women’s Action Coalition and other community causes. Works at Center for Research on Women.
• Jodi Mack – Dedicated activist and MSPJC supporter. Graduate of G.O.T. POWER and active with the Community-Police Relations project. Advocate and supporter for homelessness services.
• Toni Whitfield – Dedicated leader in H.O.P.E. and participant in the Community-Police Relations . US Army Veteran and ordained minister. Represents H.O.P.E. on the Shelby County Homelessness Consortium.
• Chris Martin – Recent graduate of the U of M law school and currently a clerk at Shelby County Public Defender’s Office. On the Board of United Mountain Defense. Active in the Occupy Memphis and Mid-South Peace and Justice Center G.O.T. Power grad.
• Anthony Sledge – Advocate for those with disabilities and staff at Memphis Center for Independent Living. Alumni of G.O.T. Power and dedicated community activist for ex-offenders.
• Dr. Coby Smith – Founding member of the Black Organizing Project and the Invaders, organizer with Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) and first African-American to attend Rhodes College.. Continues to be a dedicated community activist, including action with Memphis Bus Riders Union.
• Jesus (Chuey) Lopez – Activist with Communidades Unidas en Una Voz. Graduate of Mid-South Peace and Justice Center’s G.O.T. Poder training program.. Artist and horticulturist.