News

The Memphis Bus Riders Union (MBRU) are closing in on our 3rd year of fighting for better public transportation in the Mid-South!

With your help, bus riders are putting our issues in the spotlight.
Please join us for our 3rd Anniversary BBQ on Saturday March 7th, 12PM – 3PM, at the Memphis Center For Independent Living, 1633 Madison Ave. (bus # 2)

2014 was a positive year for the Memphis Bus Riders Union and public transit in Memphis! Here are some of our accomplishments from last year:

Memphis Bus Riders Union (MBRU) joined the Mid-South Peace & Justice Center, which has provided the resources and fund raising ability that has sustained our work.

MBRU leaders met with TN state representatives in Nashville for Lobby Day and joined labor unions and social justice organizations for a rally on the State Capitol.

MBRU began strategic outreach efforts at Southwest Community College working to build a partnership between student and employee riders, MATA, and Southwest administration to ease the financial burden on students by reducing fares and creating routes that better serve their needs. MBRU is now in the process of chartering campus rider’s organizations at Southwest, Lemoyne-Owen and University of Memphis.

MBRU co-organized a public forum with Livable Memphis and the MATA Board of Commissioners for the public to provide input on what qualities they would like in a new president of MATA, as the administration conducted it’s national search for candidates.

MBRU successfully lobbied our elected city officials to increase MATA’s operations budget by 2.4 million, which stopped cuts to transit service.

MBRU successfully pushed for rider representation in the MATA Board of Commissioners. As a result, our co-chair was appointed by Mayor Wharton and is currently the only transit dependent board member.

After leading MATA board members on a tour of the dilapidated North End Terminal, MBRU won several improvements to the terminal including new and ADA accessible soap and paper towel dispensers for the bathrooms, a cell phone charging station, a large system map displayed for public use and new crosswalks for safety and we continue to push for more improvements.

MBRU has begun synthesising data and personal stories from riders that will inform our People’s Transit Plan, a guide to the current state of public transit and a plan for more equitable service that prioritizes the needs of bus riders.

Join us for in 2015 as we continue to build a movement for better public transit!

In Unity,

Executive Committee
Memphis Bus Riders Union
3573 Southern Ave.
phone: 901-205-9737
email: MemphisBRU@gmail.com
web: www.mbru.org

Freedom Tour: Standing Together for Higher Wages and Justice for All is coming to Memphis!

WHEN: THURSDAY FEBRUARY 26, 2015 at 6:00pm
WHERE: UNIVERSITY OF MEMPHIS, University Center Ballroom

As you are aware, Americans across the country who are building the Black Lives Matter movement are starting a new chapter in our country’s long struggle for civil rights. Simultaneously, underpaid workers who work in fast food stores and other service sector jobs are building the Fight for $15 movement to stand for better pay and a voice for a better life for Americans who cook, clean, care, and serve for a living.

Our movements have many connections. Together, we are fighting for a society, economy and justice system that works for all of us, not just the wealthy and the privileged. Show Me 15, along with members of the Freedom Fighters, a group at the heart of the Black Lives Matter movement, have organized a tour of college campuses and will be hosting panel discussions. THE UNIVERSITY OF MEMPHIS IS ONE OF THEIR STOPS! Please join us in creating history and fighting for justice for all.

G.O.T. Power, MSPJC’s training program, welcomes Max Farley as our intern. Max is a freshman at Rhodes College and will be working on the logistics of our public workshops.  Max will also write workshop reviews so that folks who are unable to attend or are curious can learn about a participant’s perspective on each workshop.  Read Max’s first review below!

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On a windy Thursday night this past January, I had the opportunity to attend a Privilege and Oppression Awareness Workshop, put on by the Mid-South Peace and Justice Center.  As I approached the entrance to the workshop, which took place downtown at the National Civil Rights Museum, I passed by a memorial wreath, placed below the balcony of the Lorraine motel in commemoration of the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.  I was reminded, in this moment of a quote from Dr. King that concerns education.  “The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically.” Dr. King said, adding that “Intelligence plus character- that is the goal of true education.”

G.O.T. Power education programs, of which this workshop was a part, are events focused around the ideals of direct education, a method that seeks to bring groups together through honest and vulnerable discussion of potentially divisive topics.  During the course of the two hour workshop, I watched as ten people, who arrived as individuals, broke down barriers and forged a collective, open space for a dialogue about their experiences and struggles involving the issues of oppression and privilege.  I believe that the format and purpose of this workshop, along with the powerful force that is a open discussion, allowed those who attended to “think intensively and to think critically” about the comprehensive issues of privilege and oppression, and I was blessed with the opportunity to watch this happen, as well as massively impressed with the experience, and would encourage anyone, whether they believe they have a role to play with divisive issues such as privilege and oppression or not, to participate in one of these nights of enriching community and dialogue.

For more than a year, Memphis United has been working to to strengthen our Civilian Law Enforcement Review Board, a body of community leaders tasked with reviewing complaints filed against MPD officers, when the complainant is not satisfied with MPD’s own internal Affairs investigation. In other Cities, boards with the strength of Subpoena power and the ability to compel officers to participate with the investigative process, have resulted in improved public perceptions of law enforcement and increased confidence in the process of filing a complaint.

Last May, the Memphis City Council passed a resolution empowering the Memphis United Coalitions to collect public input on ways to improve the effectiveness of CLERB and return recommendations to the Council. OnTuesday, February 17th, Memphis United will present these recommendations before the full Council during the public comment portion of the meeting (around 5PM), and urge them to support an amended ordinance to strengthen Memphis’ Review Board.

We will meet on the previous Monday (Feb 16th), 6-8PM at the Mid-South Peace & Justice Center to discuss our strategy moving forward in our campaign to ensure that Memphis has a truly transparent process that residents of residents have confidence in when their complaints against officers are not handled in a satisfactory manner by Internal Affairs.

How Can You Help?
Organizations can help support these efforts by signing on as a Coalition Partner of Memphis United. Please contact Organizing Coordinator, Paul Garner, paul@midsouthpeace.org for more details, and to RSVP if a member of your organization can attend one of our upcoming Organizing Meetings.

Individuals can make a big difference by calling their City Councilpersons and urging them to support Memphis United’s recommendations for a stronger, more just Civilian Law Enforcement Review Board. Make the call today, and then get your friends and family to do the same! (contacts below)

 

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Locate your Precinct HERE!

Bill Morrison, District 1
(901) 636-6786
Bill.Morrison@memphistn.gov

William C. Boyd, District 2
(901) 636-6786
bill.boyd@memphistn.gov

Harold B. Collins, District 3
(901) 636-6786
– or –
P.O. Box 301132
Memphis, TN 38130
(901) 545-5987 office
(901) 332-3691
Harold.Collins@memphistn.gov

Wanda Halbert, District 4
(901) 636-6786
Wanda.Halbert@memphistn.gov

Chairman Jim Strickland, District 5
(901) 636-6786
Jim.Strickland@memphistn.gov

Edmund Ford, Jr., Ed.D, District 6
(901) 636-6786
Edmund.Fordjr@memphistn.gov

Lee Harris, District 7
(901) 636-7010
Lee.Harris@memphistn.gov

Joe Brown, Super District 8, Position 1
1384 Jackson
Memphis TN 38107
(901) 274-4724
Joe.Brown@memphistn.gov

Janis Fullilove, District 8, Position 2
(901) 636-6786
Janis.Fullilove@memphistn.gov

Vice Chairman, Myron Lowery, District 8, Position 3
(901) 636-7016
Myron.Lowery@memphistn.gov

Kemp Conrad, Super District 9, Position 1
(901) 636-6786
Fax (901) 636-6796
Kemp.Conrad@memphistn.gov

Shea Flinn, Super District 9, Position 1
(901) 636-6786
Fax (901) 636-6796
Shea.Flinn@memphistn.gov

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Memphis United is a coalition of grassroots organizations, community groups, and Memphis residents formed to confront structural and institutional racism. Currently we are focused on how these forms of oppression are woven into the fabric of our criminal justice system.

Current Coalition Partners include:

The Memphis Center for Independent Living, Homeless Organizing for Power and Equality, Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition, LOUD, Subliminal Thought, The South Main Cypher Series, KPreShA Boutique, Memphis Bus Riders Union, Pro-Memphis Project, Manna House Memphis, ADAPT of Tennessee, The Bridge Newspaper and the Mid-South Peace and Justice Center.

MATA is working overtime to overhaul its obsolete trolley system. In October 2014, the Memphis Flyer reported that “[MATA General Manager Ron] Garrison says he’s working hard to get the trolleys back on track.” He’s not lying.

On January 20, 2015, Garrison appeared at the City Council Public Works, Transportation & General Services Committee to request additional funding from the 2015 Capital Improvement Program Budget for trolley restoration and improvements. On February 3, the resolution easily passed on its first vote.

Although there is one more vote in the public works committee before the resolution goes to the Council floor, MATA will likely get what they’re asking for. Elected to the position by a unanimous MATA Board of Commissioners in August 2014, Garrison’s plea for the trolleys may be the first time a MATA GM has aggressively lobbied for City capital funds.

Sadly, trolleys are motivating this heightened advocacy, and only trolleys will benefit from the results. Memphis is not the only city working diligently on trolley upgrades or new streetcar development. These “trolley follies” have recently become a national trend; it was only 23 years ago when we paid millions to construct the trolley system in Memphis. The Madison Avenue Line is only ten years old and cost $56 million.

Interest in the unsustainable trolley or streetcar, light rail or monorail, etc. enjoys a nationwide resurgence every few years thanks to the powerful, but shortsighted, sway of downtown developers. However cute they look, these antiquated–or sometimes futuristic–amusement park rides often operate at a loss and deplete funding that could be applied to less expensive, more beneficial improvements to mass transit systems. As Lawrence Hanley, President of the Amalgamated Transit Union, said in a recent letter to a Milwaukee council member:

[I]t may seem odd for our union to oppose a streetcar which will undoubtedly create many jobs for our members. However, based on our recent experience with streetcar projects throughout the U.S., we believe that your resources would be more wisely spent on the expansion of your bus network. In fact, we are very concerned that the streetcar will negatively impact existing bus routes and hurt the working families who rely on them.

In Memphis, growing pressure from the media and downtown interests may prevent MATA from looking at more cost-effective improvements to its service. Well-intentioned though they may be, MATA’s leadership has little time left in the day, let alone the funds, to improve bus facilities. Instead, they are stuck playing favorites in a dual system that leaves the bus-dependent commuter in the dust. In addition to the familiar tendency of downtown development bankrupting public services, trolley service has no proven economic return to the bank from which it takes. In contrast, the expansion of accessible, reliable, and frequent bus service throughout the city would attract more residents, more tourists, and more revenue.

At the January MATA Board of Commissioners meeting, Garrison spent the majority of his report to the Board chronicling his work to “restore our trolleys.” MATA Board members stressed the urgency of returning the service, one even asking, “What do we have to do to get the trolleys back? Do we need to do a sit-in?” Another complained that the first thing people ask when you say you are a MATA Board member is, “When are the trolleys coming back?”

Garrison responded that MATA is doing as much as possible, including meeting with state legislators and representatives from state and federal transportation agencies. And, of course, requesting additional local funding from our City’s beleaguered Capital Improvements Program (CIP) Budget. He also cited City pressure to have the trolleys operational by May for Memphis In May events as well as the grand opening of Bass Pro, the new tenant of the 24-year-old Memphis Pyramid.

Too often, a lack of dedicated revenue for mass transit in Memphis and across Tennessee pits “choice riders” and tourists against those who rely on bus service every day. This sudden flurry of lobbying for funding from the Tennessee Department of Transportation and from the City’s CIP Budget is a clear example of the enduring priority crisis throughout City government, which routinely excludes low-income neighborhoods in North and South Memphis from new transit improvements.

In 2013, massive cuts in bus service devastated the economies of several historic, working class Memphis neighborhoods. But you won’t see bus riders on the news talking about the loss of bus service in Northaven and New Chicago or Riverside; you won’t hear about the economic damage done to their entire communities. Instead, the narrative is dominated by Trolley Night regulars and Main Street businesses.

So here are a few of the things the Bus Riders Union would like to see capital funding go towards before it’s blown on another shiny object:

• Relocation of MATA headquarters

The relocation of MATA’s headquarters on Levee Road is urgent. A 2012 study commissioned by MATA calculated that a relocation of MATA headquarters would cost $60 million, with ten percent of the cost, $6 million, contributed from the City’s CIP Budget. The facility, which was built on a landfill at the edge of the Wolf River, is sinking, and will continue to do so forever. Year after year, millions of dollars are spent on repairing damage caused by the steady sinking. The entire transit system is at constant risk of utility fires, floods, and sinkholes, presenting a danger to the employees. MATA staff at the headquarters’ garage won’t even drink the water, citing contamination due to the presence of the landfill. It is too expensive for City Council to keep putting this off.

• Repairs and maintenance of the Hudson Transit Center (formerly the North End Terminal)

Numerous expensive projects are being planned for the Pinch District this spring, while the Hudson Transit Center at the northern tip of the Pinch will continue to lack basic repairs and renovations. This appears to be an oversight; City leadership should be motivated to clean up and improve the terminal because of the surge in tourists, pedestrian traffic, and new businesses they eagerly anticipate arriving with the opening of Bass Pro. But more importantly, remodeling the bathrooms, installing free wi-fi, and adding greenery and art will improve conditions for the dedicated daily rider and MATA employees.

• Repairs and replacements for damaged bus shelters and adding additional shelters

CIP funding is also needed to overhaul bus shelters that are currently in a dangerous state of disrepair. Additional shelters should be built along the routes now overcrowded due to the 2013 service cuts, particularly in the North and South Memphis neighborhoods where bus service still exists. New signs on the shelters should include maps, something completely missing from Memphis bus stops. This lack of maps makes it almost impossible for a new rider to navigate the system or for a seasoned rider to track down a new route when her daily route to work has been cut.

Together, these projects would cost the City of Memphis less than an overhaul of our trolley system. At the January MATA Board meeting, Garrison reported that trolleys will cost about $750,000 – 1 million each to repair and at least $2.3 million each to replace. This does not include the costs of replacing or repairing the tracks and infrastructure. Those expenses will be covered by the $600,000 the public works committee is currently considering to put before the Council at the request of Garrison and the MATA Board.

The Bus Riders Union will be demanding funding for its priorities throughout this year’s budget deliberations. We hope that this spring the MATA leadership, the Council, and the Wharton Administration will seek to actively include bus riders when making the budget decisions that directly affect our lives.

Together with Memphis Immigration Advocates, TN Immigrant & Refugee Rights Coalition, and Comunidades Unidas en Una Voz, Memphis United’s Immigrant Rights Project will work to expose and seek justice against criminal “notarios” who defraud the immigrant community by masquerading as immigration lawyers providing legal assistance. Because undocumented immigrants are often the target of notarios, desperate families are often bled dry and end up in deportation proceedings. The Immigrant Rights Projects is starting the year with a series of presentations and workshops across the city.Thanks to our sponsors Give 365 Memphis and Community Foundation of Greater Memphis.

If you’d like to have a presentation in your community, or for more info/volunteer opportunities, e-mail iris@midsouthpeace.org.

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Juntos, con MIA (Advocadores de Inmigración de Memphis), TIRRC ( Coalición por los derechos de los Inmigrantes y Refugiados de TN) y CUUV (Communities United in One Voice); El Proyecto Derechos de los Inmigrantes de Memphis United, trabajará en sacar a la luz y buscar justicia con los casos de notarios corruptos, que abusan de la comunidad inmigrante, haciéndose pasar por abogados de inmigración y proveyendo consejo legal. Esto debido a que inmigrantes indocumentados son el blanco de las malas prácticas  de estos notarios. Mayormente, familias desesperadas son estafadas económicamente y terminan con casos de procesos de deportación.

El Proyecto de Derechos de los Inmigrantes, esta empezando el año con una serie de presentaciones y talleres en toda la ciudad. Gracias a nuestros patrocinadores Give 365 Memphis y CFGM.
Si le gustaría tener una presentación en su comunidad, obtener más información, u oportunidades de voluntariado comuníquese con Iris Mercado, e-mail iris@midsouthpeace.org.

 

Iris [pronounced EE-rees] Mercado was born in Buenos Aires, grew up in Miami, and raised to be a community organizer. She grew up surrounded by social justice activists and from an early age was sent out to explore NGOs.

In 2008, Iris probably hand-addressed your letters from the Workers Interfaith Network. Maybe she was your child’s BRIDGES PeaceJam or Bridge Builders facilitator. But Iris has definitely been involved in something you care about in Memphis. Iris first joined MSPJC through the Alternatives to the Military Project in 2009 and soon after graduated the G.O.T. Power Training.

Over the past ten years, Iris has been involved with local and national organizations to advance immigrant rights. After graduating from White Station HS, Iris had no choice but to stay in Memphis in order to continue organizing around tuition equity for undocumented youth. In 2013, she became the West TN Organizer for the Tennessee Immigrant & Refugee Rights Coalition. This year, she’ll be graduating from Rhodes College with a Bachelor’s in Urban Studies and minor in Anthropology/Sociology. Iris will also be joining the MSPJC staff as an organizer for the Immigrant Rights Project with Memphis United and promises to use her hulk smashing powers to take down dirtynotarios. You can contact her at iris@midsouthpeace.org.

Make a Difference in the lives of the unsheltered- Sign up for the 2015 Point in Time Count!

The Point In Time Count is a count that is done annually of people who are unsheltered and experiencing homelessness. This survey is important because it accesses the unsheltered and gives accurate numbers of those who are unsheltered. This year, there are three days where volunteers are needed to go out and complete on-site surveys with individuals experiencing homelessness who are willing to participate. Volunteers will be paired into groups with a leader who drives them to the different areas that are covered. The locations that are visited are usually campsites, soup kitchens, shelters, parks were the unsheltered are in the morning time. All participants will be required to attend a brief outreach training.

The count will take place on the following dates:

Wednesday, January 28 5:00 am – 8:00 am
Thursday, January 29 5:00 am – 8:00 am
Friday, January 30 5:00 am – 8:00 am

Volunteer Trainings will be on the following dates:

Sunday, January 25 3:00 pm – 4:30 pm (at SOS,2505 Poplar Avenue)
Tuesday, January 27 5:30 pm 7:00 pm (at SOS)

Now is the time to register– See you there!
Registration link: http://www.cafth.org/portal/open-volunteer-opportunities?VO=5

Questions? Email Katie Raines at katier@cafth.org 

Over the last few months our core group has had discussions over the word Reconciliation.  It is agreed the best fit for the vision our community is to build toward Police Community Relations, with a focus on: *Safety   *Security   *Solutions

In Memphis and Shelby County all residents have basic needs and wants. A few of the needs are to feel Safe and Secure, in Memphis and Shelby County Solutions are needed:

In many communities the relationship between community members and law enforcement has deteriorated to the point of breakdown. We are working with communities across Memphis and Shelby County so that they can lead a process that will move towards improved relations between their communities and law enforcement.

Policing has changed a great deal since the first policemen walked their beats in the early 1800’s. Today, most officers live miles away from their precincts and patrol large areas by car rather than by foot. As a result, police have less contact and conversation with the neighborhood residents they watch over, and this lack of communication can cause fear, mistrust and frustration on both sides, changing police-community relations for the worse.

Such confrontational relationships can exist between the police force and an entire neighborhood or just a segment of the population, such as African Americans, youth, or immigrants. In any of these situations, a positive partnership can only be developed by discarding negative stereotypes, initiating a frank dialogue based on mutual respect, and becoming open to collaborative community policing. In other words, both sides need to go through a transition. We are working to improve community police relations by….

• Creating a safe space for dialogue about the real issues between the community and police that is led by the communities suffering most from negative interactions with the police.

• Building security for our community that is based in tactics that are self determined by our communities. How do we handle crime in our community? Will we handle it with brute force? Or will we focus on community based solutions? These are the questions that we need to answer and it is those answers that should dictate policy and implementation.

• Putting forth the solutions that will remove the barriers to positive relations. This is not a project solely about dialogue and healing. It is about healing so that our community can re-engage in setting the agenda for how we deal with the problems that we face. We are here to make a change!

So, what change will we make? How will we improve? That is something we all have to decide and it is a conversation that is starting now. Join us! Contact:

Melissa Miller-Monie, Organizing Coordinator, melissa@midsouthpeace.org or 901.725.4990.

Coordinated through the Mid-South Peace and Justice Center

1000 S. Cooper St. • Memphis, TN 38104

Click here to get your tickets today!