Los Angeles Needs an Agenda for Economic Justice: Introducing Inclusive Action’s Economic Justice Platform
Over the last two weeks, Los Angeles has been reeling from scandal, racism, and more. Many of us have felt betrayed by some of our region’s most powerful elected officials, and we’ve also been inspired by other leaders who showcased a new brand of leadership and solidarity.
In the midst of this, our team remains focused on who matters the most - our community members, the micro-entrepreneurs we serve, and the families here in our City who are worried about keeping their housing, maintaining their jobs and staying healthy.
To this end, Inclusive Action is unveiling a new platform that describes our policy priorities. We are a nonprofit, certified Community Development Financial Institution, but we are also an advocate. Inclusive Action is an economic justice organization.
We see our clients and community members as “whole people.” When we lend, we look beyond their financial statements. Yes, they are business owners, but they are also renters, immigrants, elders, women, people of color, non-English speakers, and so much more. In order for these businesses and their owners to have what they need to thrive, we need to think more broadly about the systems that require fundamental changes to support the important contributions these micro entrepreneurs make to community well-being and our local economies.
Policy advocacy has always been a cornerstone of Inclusive Action, but it could not be what it is without knowing what our clients are experiencing. Like for many organizations, since the onset of the pandemic in March 2020, we’ve been increasingly learning about what our clients need to thrive, and how we can better advocate for them at all levels of government. We’ve acted as translators in city council meetings, held listening sessions around LA County, sat in countless meetings with elected officials, their staffers and coalition partners. We’ve held town halls - both virtual and in person - attended and staffed rallies. And across all of these incredibly illuminating experiences, one thing has always been certain - all of the agendas that are set by policy makers are centered around who is valued and who is not.
Our clients, their families, and their peers are not valued.
Introducing Inclusive Action’s Economic Justice Platform.
To shift power and center the communities we serve, Inclusive Action will pursue policy change by:
Removing barriers and red tape to existing systems so that people like our clients can access the things they need;
Creating justice-oriented investments around monetary, social, and physical capital that deprioritizes monetary return on investment and instead thinks through what it means to center social return on investment; and,
Advocating for equitable government budgets, and the associated transparency that is imperative to ensure that the people who are most impacted are both valued and prioritized.
We believe that this platform is a path forward for both our city as it begins to heal and move forward, as well as the advocacy field fighting for economic justice. We are thinking about a world where small businesses and families thrive without fear of predatory lending and being locked in debt traps, public resources directly influenced by those most impacted, and local economies enabling community preservation and curbing displacement - but that is just the beginning. Our current systems were made for some, yet proven to fail many. We invite you to dream with us. Let’s make sure our government is transparent and our resources are supporting our neighbors. Join us in building something better.
Interested in reading our full platform? You can find it here!