Volunteer Opportunity

Please join the New York Academy of Medicine, KaBoom, Odyssey House and NYC Strategic Alliance for Health Director Javier Lopez to build a playground for the children of Odyssey House located on 219 E. 121^st Street (http://www.odysseyhouseinc.org/index.php?page=progrs_family). The playground will provide a safe, clean, and modern play space for children between the ages of two and six.

Building playgrounds for children in Harlem is a great opportunity to be a part of establishing something that is permanent for the neighborhoods we serve. This is our chance to show that we can come together to create change. Javier is asking all friends and colleagues of the NYC Strategic Alliance for Health to join him in the building of this new playground for the youth of the Harlem Community.

The New York Academy of Medicine (NYAM) is leading the charge of securing volunteers for the follow days:

·Become a volunteer for the Prep work event-Thursday October 7, 2010 (8am-1pm)

·Become a volunteer for the Build day event-Saturday October 9, 2010 (8am – 5pm)*

• Please note that all persons participating in the Build Day Activity will be required to sign a waiver before participating! However, you should rest assured that safety is being closely monitored, and there is a fully staffed health center on site, just in case there are any mishaps.
• All persons wishing to be a part of the NYAM group of volunteers should provide their names and contact emails and tele/cell phone numbers to:

Leah Graniela

Temporary Community Assistant

NYC Strategic Alliance for Health

158 East 115th Street, 4th Floor

New York, NY 10029

p/ 646-672-2385

f/ 646-672-2415

Betray the Age...Week 6

Betraying the Age Dr. Sarah Sayeed...on Park51 a.k.a "the Mosque" (w/ special appeal)

Dear NY Faith & Justice Friends and Family, Meet Dr. Sarah Sayeed...on the Mosque and other things Interfaith... Dr. Sarah Sayeed is the president of Women in Islam, Inc, a woman's human rights and social justice organization. She is also a program director at the Interfaith Center of New York, an organization working to bring people of different religious traditions together to work on issues of shared concern in New York City. Sarah has been partnering with NY Faith & Justice since the establishment of the Faith Leaders for Environmental Justice in early 2008. Since then she and the Interfaith Center of New York have partnered with us on every major initiative, including Conversations for Change and Immigration Reform. Through her work with the Interfaith Center of New York, Dr. Sayeed educates religious leaders about the civic institutions around them. As president of Women in Islam, Inc, she educates interfaith and secular organizations on the issues pertinent to Islamic women today as well as the Muslim community on how to empower women within the Muslim faith tradition. Meet Dr. Sayeed... Lisa: With ten years of interfaith experience, what was your experience before NY Faith & Justice of partnering with Evangelical Christians? Sarah: None at all. I think partnering with NY Faith & Justice has been a great introduction into the Evangelical world. I do have to say that right before I met you, Lisa, I had read about a growing Evangelical movement for social justice. So, for me, that was an eye-opener because Evangelicals were portrayed in a certain way - hopefully that's changing now. So, it was a great introduction to work with NY Faith and Justice on so many issues. Lisa: Where do you see overlap in the values that you hold as a Muslim leader and an interfaith leader and those of the people in New York Faith & Justice? Sarah: I think it's really about looking around us, looking to see who our neighbors are. Who are the people we share the city with? I think all of our religious traditions call on us to be kind to our neighbors and to do the hard work together of what it will take to address the inequalities and injustices that we see on a daily basis. Lisa: The Park 51 Islamic Community Center has gotten a lot of heat since President Obama spoke out to support the right of the Muslim community to build it. Now it seems to fill every news cycle. What do you think of that? Are you connected with the people behind the Center? Sarah: Imam Feisal Abdul-Rauf is one of the people behind the Cultural Center project. He is also on the board of the Interfaith Center. Lisa: The details of the Community Center aren't very clear. Can you shed some light on that for us? Sarah: There has been a viable Muslim community in Lower Manhattan for decades now. There has been a mosque on Warren Street, four blocks from the World Trade Center site, for many many years. My dad used to go there for prayers when I was a little kid. A lot of the Muslim people who work at City Hall or in the financial district would go to that mosque. So, having a Muslim institution in that area is not a new thing. The Warren Street Mosque lost its lease and had to find a new location. Some people in that community came together and were able to purchase the building on Park Place and West Broadway, where the Islamic Community Center is now proposed; two blocks closer to Ground Zero. The people in the purchasing community partnered with Imam Feisal Adul-Rauf, who had another mosque in Tribecca--also close to Ground Zero. Their vision included a full-blown community center that serves the wider community, not just the Muslim community. It's conceived in the tradition of the YMCA, with a pool, a place for seniors to congregate, a place for the arts and a multi-faith chapel and prayer space. So, it's really a cultural center that is being built by a group of Muslims. They're also talking about having an interfaith advisory group to help shape the work in the building. So, I think there's been every effort to be inclusive. Knowing all that information, it's disappointing to hear all the rhetoric. Lisa: Did you hear about Governor Patterson's decision to go to the Center's developers and negotiate with them to move to another location? What do you think about that? Sarah: I think he's trying to be respectful of the families who are expressing their sense of grief over their loss. I can empathize with feelings of grief. I guess what I have trouble with is when you take grieving to the next step of fear of anything that's Muslim. And then to go to the next step and translate that fear into policy that impacts people doesn't resonate with the values of our country. Also, 9/11 families are grieving and I feel like, as a Muslim, I'm being told I have no right to grieve. Lisa: What can people of other faiths do to help? Sarah: What we can all do, as people who elected our leaders into office, is to remind them about what the real issues are that our country needs to address and remind them of the things that unite us as Americans. And we can also remind them of the values that we share as Americans; like having respect for difference and freedom of religion. It's also important to support the Community Center. Learn about what the center is trying to do. Try and think critically about what the media is telling us about the issue. For more info on the Park 51 Cultural Center go to http://www.park51.org/vision.htm. New York Faith and Justice is committed to ending poverty in New York. Approval of Park 51 is not an issue of poverty, but every once in a while an issue comes along that is so important that we all must take heed and engage. The issue of the placement of the Islamic Cultural Center in New York City will be a defining moment in the life of our nation as we decide how we shall interpret the First Amendment's "free exercise of religion" clause. Already, cities across the country are beginning to stop the construction of mosques on private and public property. These are our times. This is our responsibility. Join us. Read the Bill of Rights. It's actually a pretty cool read!Decide what you think about the "free exercise of religion clause." Read the Faith in Public Life statement in support of the Cultural Center. NY Faith & Justice signed on! Sign on to Faithful America's letter in support of the Cultural Center! Write a letter to the editor or an Op-ed for your local paper or a high-traffic blog. I submitted a piece to the Huffington Post which was posted on Friday! Read it here! Finally, there's one more important way you can help betray the lies of our age. Become a member, renew your membership, or a become a financial partner with NY Faith & Justice. NY Faith & Justice only has ONE WEEK LEFT to raise $25,000 in new and renewed members and financial partnerships to help make our work possible. So far, you have given about $500. THERE IS STILL TIME! If each person who opened this email just gave $25 we would reach our goal! And get this! Recently, we were presented with the opportunity to secure NYC office space in our own name, and all it would take is $6000 for the year! Plus, a web designer/filmmaker recently offered to upgrade and redesign our website and contract with us to manage and maintain all communications projects at the severely reduced fee of $12,200for the first year and about half of that for each year after that. That is unheard of! Your generous contribution will help provide a solid base from which a vibrant effective anti-poverty movement can grow. Please contribute now. Anyone who gives $50 or more in the course of a year is a member. If you haven't renewed your membership, now is the time. If you've been waiting to give, right now is the time! Betray the age and contribute just $25, $50, $100, $300, $500, $1000 or more to the work of NY Faith & Justice. ***All who give just $10/mth or more through automatic electronic payments will receive a complimentary NY Faith & Justice T-Shirt! Don't forget to use the "Designation" box on the online giving page to indicate your size and let us know if you want a male or female cut. NOTE: If you prefer not to give online you can send checks made payable to "FCNY/NY Faith & Justice" to: NY Faith & Justice c/o Partnership 475 Riverside Drive, Suite 500 New York, NY 10115 Thank you for your continued prayers and partnership and don't forget to follow us on , , the nyfj blog or the nyfj calendar for up to the minute action alerts, program changes, and details. Engage, Lisa Sharon Harper Co-founder and Executive Director New York Faith & Justice

Action Alert

Join UFCW Local 1500 in support of the Coalition of Immokalee Workers' at a Protest in Front of Trader Joe's

Farm workers picking tomatoes for Trader Joe's chain of supermarkets earn 40-50 cents for every 32-pound bucket of tomatoes they harvest—wages that have not risen since 1978. Grinding poverty leaves farm workers vulnerable to further exploitation from employers: since 1997, 1000 farm workers were held in modern day slavery-like conditions in the Florida fields where they work.

The Coalition of Immokalee Workers, a farm worker-led organization based in Immokalee, Florida has called for actions targeting Trader Joe's supermarkets. Workers demand that Trader Joe's sign onto an agreement (as many large corporations like Whole Foods and Subway already have) to support more humane standards in the fields, to pay a premium price for fairly produced tomatoes, and to buy only from growers who meet these higher standards.

WHO: Community Farm Worker Alliance

WHAT: Protest outside of Trader Joe’s store demanding that Trader Joe’s:

• Sign on to an agreement to support more humane standards in the field
• To pay a premium price for fairly produced tomatoes
• To buy only from growers who meet these higher standards

WHEN: Thursday August 19, 2010 at 6:00 PM

WHERE: Outside Trader Joe’s Store in Chelsea at W 21st Street and 6th Ave

**This post was submitted by the UFCW Local 1500

Betray the Age...Week 5

Betraying the Age Samantha...in her own words (w/ special appeal)

Dear NY Faith & Justice Friends and Family, Meet Samantha...In Her Own Words Samantha McLane Alejos is an immigrant from Mexico. She has been in the United States for three years. For the past year he has worked in the New York office of Bread for the World, an organization that advocates for hungry people. Bread is also organizational partner with NY Faith & Justice. I met Samantha at the July 2009 Bread for the World National Gathering in Washington DC. After I spoke on Hunger and Biblical Peace, Samantha came up to let me know she was moved and wanted to know how she could get involved with NYFJ back in NYC. Samantha started as a volunteer in our Food Justice work, but within months transitioned into the leader of our Immigration Reform initiatives. Meet Samantha... Lisa: After months of working with NYFJ on food justice, you approached me and asked to work on Immigration Reform. What motivated you to focus on Immigration, in particular? Samantha: I am an immigrant. So, I am directly affected by the issue. I am here legally, but I know people who are suffering under the current broken system. I came here with my husband to seek opportunity. There are others who do not have the same opportunity as me and it is not right. They are not fairly judged. They are not fairly treated. Immigration is just part of people's development. Some people decide to migrate. Some people decide not to. America exports its culture to Mexico through products and media, but then when we want to come, they say, "Oh, no." People don't choose the level of opportunities they have. Systems do that for them. In Mexico, we don't have the same options and I don't think that's fair. You need to provide for yourself and your family a job, a house, an education, food. If you can not do that in your own place, you are free and able to move to a different city, state, or to a different country. When you can not feed your children, there is no decision there. You just have to move. It is necessity. So, when people choose to migrate it is to seek better opportunities. But if an immigration system is not well constructed, you are cutting off the ability of people to use their skills, knowledge, and talents. When we move here, we contribute in many ways; by working, paying taxes, and developing the region. Everyone is affected by this. I know a couple who has been here for 8 years. They learned English and are working contributors to the U.S. economy, but they have not seen their family in Mexico for 8 years because they are afraid they will be deported or not allowed back in the country. This is complicated by the fact that they have two children now. Lisa: What do you say to people who would say, "Yeah, but they broke the law. Law-breakers should be afraid. They should be fearful of being deported at any minute because they are hereillegally." What do you say to that? Samantha: Sometimes laws do not correspond with reality or morality. It's not like they broke the law because they wanted to. It is because it is the only thing to do when you are running from poverty, when you are running from hunger. So, when the law denies an opportunity to eat, to have an education, to have a job, then it is an immoral law. If they say that, I would say, "What kind of laws are we making?" March 2010 was NY Faith & Justice Immigration Reform Month. Samantha's House Party Tool-kits were downloaded and used by communities across NYC and across the country. Recently, there has been a storm of activity in the Immigration Reform debate. We've updated the kits to address the situation as it is right now. Join us. There are lots of ways you can do one small act today: Download Immigration House Party Toolkit Today.Contact Samantha at smclane@nfyaithjustice.org to get the Jeopardy Game sent to you via email. Sojourners just unveiled it's Summer Movie Guide "REEL Images of Immigration Reform". One of the films they feature, The Visitor, was inspired by the detention center visitation ministry at The Riverside Church, an organizational partner of NY Faith & Justice! New Yorkers of faith, it's time to voice your opinion on the Cordoba House controversy. If you don't, Sarah Palin and Rush Limbaugh will gladly do it for you. World Magazine recently and asked for my opinion. Check it out! Tune in on the radio to hear me spread the word about the need for Comprehensive Immigration Reform TODAY (8/12/10) @ 11:30am on KWWJ-AM (Houston, TX) and Next Thursday (8/19/10) @ 5:20pm on KJSL-AM (St. Louis, MO). Finally, there's one more important way you can help betray the lies of our age. Become a member, renew your membership, or a become a financial partner with NY Faith & Justice. NY Faith & Justice only has two weeks left to raise $25,000 in new and renewed individual financial partnerships to helpmake our work possible. Recently, we were presented with the opportunity to secure NYC office space in our own name, and all it would take is $6000 for the year! Your generous contribution would help provide a base from which to grow the movement for years to come. Please contribute now. Plus, anyone who gives $50 or more in the course of a year is a member. If you haven't renewed your membership, now is the time. If you've been waiting to give, right now is the time! Betray the age and contribute just $50, $100, $300, $500, $1000 or more to the work of NY Faith & Justice. ***All who give just $10/mth or more through automatic electronic payments will receive a complimentary NY Faith & Justice T-Shirt! Don't forget to use the "Designation" box on the online giving page to indicate your size and let us know if you want a male or female cut. NOTE: If you prefer not to give online you can send checks made payable to "FCNY/NY Faith & Justice" to: NY Faith & Justice c/o Partnership 475 Riverside Drive, Suite 500 New York, NY 10115 Thank you for your continued prayers and partnership and don't forget to follow us on , , the nyfj blog or the nyfj calendar for up to the minute action alerts, program changes, and details. Engage, Lisa Sharon Harper Co-founder and Executive Director New York Faith & Justice

Betray the Age...Week 4

Betray the Age Meet Luna August 2010 (w/ special appeal)

Dear NY Faith & Justice Friends and Family, Meet Luna. On one of the hottest days in July 2010, Luna enjoyed a beautiful day photo by Sharon L. Harper with fresh air, open space, and the kind of discoveries reserved for three-year-olds. It was the first time she ever went to the beach and her only care in the world was whether the seagulls would steal her lunch. Luna lives on the edge of the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York, the predominately African-American home to Spike Lee's cinematic masterpiece, Do the Right Thing. According to the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Bed-Stuy is also home to particularly brutal economic and health disparities. Luna is 2.8 times more likely to experience a diabetes hospitalization and 2.3 times more likely to die from the disease than her cousins who live a few short miles away in the mostly white affluent community of Tribeca in Manhattan. Luna's father, who grew up in the deeply impoverished East New York community of Brooklyn has already contracted the disease. To boot, back home in Bed-Stuy, over 70% of Luna's African-American and Latino playground friends will be overweight or obese as adults. This puts them at greater risk of heart disease than children in more affluent areas. Plus, all children from 0-4 years of age in New York City are 1.6 times more likely to be hospitalized because of asthma than their peers across the United States. Yet, because Luna lives in a low-income neighborhood of New York City, she and her 0-4 year old friends are more than 4 times more likely to experience an asthma hospitalization than children their age who live in the high-income Upper West Side neighborhood of Manhattan. By the time Luna's generation reaches the age of 15 the gap will yawn. She and her friends will be 6.4 times more likely to experience an asthma hospitalization than their counterparts in affluent zip codes in New York City. Luna's father has asthma. Luna is my niece. My sister and brother-in-law agreed to share Luna's story with you because they know her forecast is not unique to their family or to residents of Bed-Stuy. Bed-Stuy is one of several neighborhoods in a major geographic area called Central Brooklyn. Central Brooklyn is one of four major geographic areas in New York City identified as official "food deserts" and areas of deep health disparity. These areas include Central Brooklyn, South Queens, Northern Manhattan, and the South Bronx. Heart disease, asthma, and diabetes are more prevalent in these under-resourced Latino and black communities than anywhere else in our city. That's why NY Faith & Justice and Faith Leaders for Environmental Justice are partnering with more than 20 other organizations, churches, and government representatives to convene the Food Faith and Health Disparities Summit, October 29-30, 2010, Location TBA. Save the date now! What does it look like to betray the age in NYC? Say, "No more!" to health disparities in our city. Then pitch in and help close the gap! Sign up to be a Food Faith and Health Disparities Summit small group facilitator! Sign up to help with faith community outreach for the Summit! Donate services like printing, catering, facility space. Donate $50, $100, $300, or $500 to help support the Food Faith and Health Disparities Summit and follow up working groups! Click on the links above or contact Stephen Tickner atstickner@nyfaithjustice.org or 212.870.1254 for more information on ways you can help close the health gap in NYC. Plus, right now NY Faith & Justice is working to raise $25,000 in new and renewed financial partnerships. Contributions from people like you make the Faith Leaders for Environmental Justice, Conversations for Change, and all of our work on Immigration Reform possible. If you haven't renewed your membership, now is the time. If you've been waiting to partner with us, please make the connection today. It's super easy to partner. You can contribute as little as $5/mth, $10/mth, $25/mth, $50/mth, $100/mth or more. Think about it. $5 in a month is just one random stop at Starbucks. $10 is less than a movie. $25 is just one random cab ride (in traffic). $50 per month is an iPad. $100 per month is a shoe fettish. Come on. Do you need it? Okay so it's hard to let go of the iPad. But, really, do you need an iPad as much as the children of Bed-Stuy need more fresh food supermarkets in their neighborhoods to combat crazy diabetes rates? ***All who give $10/mth or more will receive a complimentary NY Faith & Justice T-Shirt! Don't forget to use the "Designation" box on the online giving page to indicate your size and let us know if you want a male or female cut. NOTE: If you prefer not to give online you can send checks made payable to "FCNY/NY Faith & Justice" to: NY Faith & Justice c/o Partnership 475 Riverside Drive, Suite 500 New York, NY 10115 Here are a few more awesome ways you can betray the age right where you are! Check out this excellent report on the Diabetes gap in New York City Learn more about the Asthma gap, too! Save the Date: The Bronx Borough Police/Community Conversations for Change Summit. Thank you for your continued prayers and partnership and don't forget to follow us on , , the nyfj blog or the nyfj calendar for up to the minute action alerts, program changes, and details. Betraying the Age, Lisa Sharon Harper Co-founder and Executive Director New York Faith & Justice

October Save the Date

Faith Leaders for Environmental Justice invites you to Food, Faith, and Health Disparities Summit October 29-30, 2010 Location TBA What is it like to live in a "food desert"? What is the link between poverty, obesity and diabetes? Do things just have to be this way? Is it a lost cause or can we do something about it? Mark your calendars now and join faith and community leaders, health and environmental advocates, and government representatives from the Boroughs of the Bronx, Manhattan, and Brooklyn in October for the Food, Faith, and Health Disparities Summit. Join hundreds of New Yorkers who live in New York City's food deserts and those who don't. Listen and share your stories of food, faith and health. Work with a small group representing a diverse cross-section of New Yorkers to discern the spiritual, social and structural causes for our city's health disparities. Then work together to set action priorities for the next year. Be a part of the solution! Follow , , or the blog for updates! This summit is made possible through the generous partnership of the Bronx Health REACH Legacy Grant. Co-sponsored by: NY Faith and Justice, Everyday Democracy, Muslim Women's Institute, NYC Coalition Against Hunger, We Act for Environmental Justice, Our Planet Media, The Interfaith Center of New York, Center for the Study of Science and Religion, New York Divinity School, New York Lawyers for the Public Interest, Borean Baptist Church, It Is Well Living Church, Convent of the Sacred Heart, The Blak Project, New York Theological Seminary, UFCW-Local 1500, NYC Dept of Health-Strategic Alliance for Health, Metro Hope Church NYC, Mid-Bronx Senior Citizens Council, Lambs Church of the Nazarene, Office of the Borough President of Manhattan, Trinity Grace Church, Sustainable South Bronx, F.U.R.E.E., NYC Economic Development Corporation

November Save the Date

New York Faith & Justice in collaboration with the Bronx Borough President's Office invites you to Bronx Borough Conversations for Change Summit Saturday, November 13, 2010 9am - 9pm The city-wide murder-rate increased 22.8% in the first quarter of this year over the same period in 2009. In the Bronx, alone, several shootings involving police and community members have intensified already eroded trust. Our communities are less safe, in part, because there is a breakdown in trust between the police and the community-especially youth. How do we bridge the trust gap? Where do we begin? Conversations for Change is a chance to build a community where businesses thrive, children play without fear, and positive partnerships between the police and community are built. Join us on November 13, 2010 as we engage in one day of dialogue that will lead to one year of shared action toward change! follow , , or the blog for updates!

Stop the Senate from Cutting SNAP/Food Stamp Funding

NAP/Food Stamps Funding at Great Risk: Disturbing news coming out of the Senate includes proposals to cut billions from future SNAP/Food Stamp benefits to offset part of the cost for other legislative priorities. FRAC, along with other national groups, strongly opposes using SNAP funding to pay for other programs--regardless of the merits of those proposals. SNAP/Food Stamp cuts--reductions in benefits for the neediest people in the country--should never be used as a way to pay for legislation. Congressional leaders and the White House need to hear a strong message from groups across the country that Congress should not be making it even harder for struggling families to purchase healthy food.

Timing: The next few days are critical. Proposals could be considered on the Senate floor before August 6th or 7th, at which time Senators are expected to leave for the August recess. House Members already are on recess. Both the House and Senate are slated to return September 13th. Making sure no adoption of SNAP offsets occurs in the Senate this week is a vital first step to stopping the cuts overall.

Immediate Action Step One-Circulate and Sign Group Letter: Immediately sign your group on to a letter opposing SNAP/Food Stamps cuts and circulate it to allied groups and urge them to sign on. The interim deadline is August 5th. For details, go to http://org2.democracyinaction.org/o/5118/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=3830. (If any technical difficulties signing on, e-mail your sign-on information to emelcher@frac.org).

Immediate Action Step Two-Tell Senators and the White House to Stop Proposing SNAP Cuts: Contact Senators and the White House and tell them cutting future SNAP/Food Stamps benefits is unacceptable. For the Capitol Switchboard, call 202-225-3121; for the White House, call 202-456-1414. For toll-free calls, call 1-866-277-7617 and get connected first to the Capitol Switchboard and then routed to the White House. (Thanks to Voices for America's Children for use of its toll-free number).

Background-Legislative Vehicles: The proposal to pay for spending for other programs by rolling back the boost that the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act(ARRA) made to SNAP benefit levels is cropping up in a variety of contexts. The most recent two proposals are: reducing monthly SNAP benefits beginning August 2016 to generate $2.4 billion to pay for part of the Child Nutrition Reauthorzation Bill (S. 3307), and reducing SNAP benefits in April 2014 to generate $11.9 billion to pay for items added to the Federal Aviation Administration Bill (H.R. 1586) (such as aid to states and funding for teachers' salaries). These bills should be fixed-they should not be paid for with low-income peoples' food benefits.

Questions and Answers: A new brief from FRAC (pdf) provides greater background on the proposed SNAP benefit cuts. It explains the context and impact on needy low-income households. It addresses head-on the misstatements commonly made in connection with the benefit cut proposals. Feel free to use this brief as well as the group sign-on letter in your communications with Members of Congress, the White House and local media.

Longer Term Outlook: FRAC will be providing you with additional information in coming days on ways to build opposition to the SNAP benefit cuts during the August recess.

Feedback and Technical Assistance: Please share reports on your contacts and suggestions for additional actions to prevent the SNAP benefit cuts. For feedback and technical assistance, contact evollinger@frac.org and eteller@frac.org.

**This post was submitted by the Hunger Action Network NYC