News

Contra Costa Interfaith Supporting Community Organization (CCISCO), People Acting in Community Together (PACT San Jose), PICO National Network, May 26, 2010

People Acting in Community Together (PACT), an affiliate of the People Improving Communities through Organizing- (PICO) National Network, organized the event, and brought about a dozen people together who planned to divest from the Bank of America.

Immigration Reform
Religious Leaders Travel to Arizona to Stand with Immigrants

PICO National Network, San Diego Organizing Project (SDOP), San Francisco Organizing Project (SFOP), April 29, 2010

A delegation of religious leaders from PICO traveled to Arizona today to lift up testimonies from, and pray with, residents stricken with fear ever since Governor Jan Brewer signed legislation last week criminalizing being in the state without proper documentation.

Economic Security
Faith Groups to Protest Bank of America, Wells Fargo

Contra Costa Interfaith Supporting Community Organization (CCISCO), PICO National Network, April 27, 2010

“The business model of big banks seems to be to make money from squeezing their customers and Wall Street gambling without producing anything of value,” said the Rev. Dr. Mario Howell, clergy leader with Contra Costa Interfaith Supporting Community Organization and the PICO National Network. “It’s time banks become part of making the economy work, not just profiting off of our hard times.”

Economic Security
CCISCO join Rally to to hold Wells Fargo Accountable

Contra Costa Interfaith Supporting Community Organization (CCISCO), PICO National Network, April 22, 2010

Hundreds of CCISCO and PICO leaders will join SEIU, AFL-CIO, ACCE, California Reinvestment Coalition, Causa Justa :: Just Cause (CJJC), Tenants Together, to present a common set of demands to Wells Fargo.

Immigration Reform
SFOP Leaders prepare for Immigration Reform and continue Fight for Education

San Francisco Organizing Project (SFOP), April 22, 2010

In February 2010, PICO leaders from across the Bay Area met at St. Peter’s Catholic Church for a CIR training and strategy meeting to understand the policy and political worlds that surround the reform conversation, develop a short term and long-term strategy for winning reform, and build our organizing and communication skills for the campaign ahead.

Immigration Reform
Thousands March for Comprehensive Immigration Reform in San Francisco

Berkeley Organizing Congregations for Action (BOCA), Congregations Organizing for Renewal (COR), Contra Costa Interfaith Supporting Community Organization (CCISCO), Peninsula Interfaith Action (PIA), People Acting in Community Together (PACT San Jose), April 22, 2010

"I was proud to serve my country," said Iraq war veteran and CCISCO leader, "Rodrigo Peregrina, "I am here today as a veteran, a citizen and a voter. I am here to ask Senator Feinstein to stand with our veterans, our families and our community and support comprehensive immigration reform."

Immigration Reform
CCISCO Hosts Bridge-Building Workshop

Contra Costa Interfaith Supporting Community Organization (CCISCO), April 21, 2010

CCISCO, in conjunction with the Diocese of Oakland and the Justice for Immigrants Campaign, hosted a Bridge-Building workshop at Immaculate Heart of March Church in Brentwood, California.

Safe Neighborhoods
Hundreds gather in Oakland in support of violence intervention efforts

Oakland Community Organizations (OCO), March 23, 2010

On Thursday, March 18th, 400 community members, local religious leaders, law enforcement, and national violence prevention experts joined Oakland elected officials at St. Columba Catholic Church to call for a scale-up of proven violence intervention strategies.

Immigration Reform
50+ PICO Leaders Make Cross-Country Pilgrimage for Immigration Reform

PICO California, PICO National Network, March 21, 2010

PICO's cross-country bus tour for comprehensive immigration reform is approaching the final leg of its journey, en route to participate in the "March for America: Change Takes Courage and Faith." This historic event, which is taking place in Washington, D.C. on Sunday, is anticipated to draw tens of thousands of people from across the nation.

Housing Opportunities | Economic Security
Los Angeles Votes to "Invest in its Values"

L.A. Voice, PICO National Network, March 8, 2010

On March 5, Los Angeles City Council passed legislation that puts the city on the path to pulling its funds from irresponsible banks and setting new standards for investing public dollars in institutions that offer tangible benefits to the community.

Housing Opportunities
Faith Leaders Attend Bank of America Shareholders Meeting to Demand Halt to Foreclosures

Contra Costa Interfaith Supporting Community Organization (CCISCO), PICO National Network, February 24, 2010

Yesterday, a delegation of PICO clergy and faith leaders, together with allies from other faith-based and consumer advocacy organizations, met with Barbara Desoer, President of Home Loans, Mortgage and Insurance at Bank of America, to discuss concrete strategies that the bank can take to prevent more of its borrowers from needlessly losing their homes.

Housing Opportunities | Economic Security
Faith Groups Escalate Campaign to Hold Bank of America Accountable

Contra Costa Interfaith Supporting Community Organization (CCISCO), Oakland Community Organizations (OCO), People Acting in Community Together (PACT San Jose), PICO National Network, January 13, 2010

"Bank of America had nothing - no new ideas or proposals to offer to keep families in their homes and end the suffering in our communities," said Rev. Lucy Kolin, from Oakland Community Organizations and PICO National Network, who led the negotiation session. "We offered them a clear statement of the bottom line: Keep people in their homes. Do no harm. Put in place a moratorium so that Bank of America can get its act together and stop hurting our families and our communities. We went into this meeting willing to be hopeful, but we were disappointed. We will not let disappointment end our commitment."

Safe Neighborhoods | Immigration Reform
New L.A. police chief pledges trust between immigrants and police

L.A. Voice, December 20, 2009

On Friday, December 18, faith leaders from Dolores Mission Catholic Church, a member of PICO affiliate L.A. Voice in Los Angeles, packed the church plaza with over 200 Angelenos to welcome newly appointed police Chief Charlie Beck and his special Latino community liaison.

Economic Security | Safe Neighborhoods
Richmond community unites to address violence through jobs, training, mentoring

Contra Costa Interfaith Supporting Community Organization (CCISCO), November 20, 2009

More than 300 diverse community residents gathered at Bethlehem Missionary Baptist Church on November 19 and addressed the issue of violence in Richmond by focusing on the creation of jobs, training and mentoring programs. The action was organized by leaders from St. Mark's Catholic Church, Easter Hill United Methodist Church, and the Iron Triangle Neighborhood Council, all members of PICO affiliate Contra Costa Interfaith Supporting Community Organization (CCISCO).

Housing Opportunities | Economic Security
Contra Costa faith leaders take major step forward in "Bank Accountability" campaign

Contra Costa Interfaith Supporting Community Organization (CCISCO), October 24, 2009

On Tuesday, October 20, 2009, over 400 community residents packed the Dominican Hall at Holy Rosary Church in Antioch, CA to hold banks accountable for refusing to negotiate in good faith with homeowners. Joining them that night was the Reverend Jesse Jackson who offered words of inspiration and clarity on the effects of the banking system.

Housing Opportunities
Congregations work to prevent foreclosure scams in Bakersfield

Faith in Action Kern County, October 17, 2009

On Thursday, October 15, faith leaders from Faith in Action Kern County in Bakersfield, CA hosted over 230 community members for a town hall meeting on the growing number of foreclosure scams as well as how they can benefit from the federal Making Home Affordable Program.

Housing Opportunities
PICO affiliates step up pressure on Banks, Treasury to stop more foreclosures

Contra Costa Interfaith Supporting Community Organization (CCISCO), PICO National Network, October 13, 2009

Last week, PICO affiliates presented Treasury officials in Washington, DC with hundreds of stories of families trying to avoid foreclosure in a campaign to have the Administration put more pressure on banks to increase the pace of loan modifications under the Making Home Affordable Program.

Health Care Access
Major Consumer, Faith, Patient & Civil Rights Groups Hold Capitol Hill Rally on Affordability for Families

PICO National Network, San Diego Organizing Project (SDOP), September 16, 2009

Under the banner of Affordable Health Care is a Family Value, national consumer, faith and patient organizations representing tens of millions of families, held a lobby day and rally on Capitol Hill this afternoon pressing Congress to make sure that legislation includes clear affordability protections for families.

Health Care Access | Immigration Reform
Long Beach congregations hold health care & immigration reform forum

Greater Long Beach Interfaith Community Organization (ICO), September 2, 2009

On September 1, 200 Long Beach residents gathered at St. Anthony's Catholic Church Hall, a member of Greater Long Beach Interfaith Community Organization (ICO) to participate in a community forum on health care & immigration reform.

Immigration Reform
PICO leaders visit State Dept. to discuss Hmong humanitarian crisis

People and Congregations Together (PACT Stockton), PICO California, Sacramento Area Congregations Together (ACT), August 28, 2009

This week, three PICO Hmong leaders from Sacramento, CA traveled to Washington, D.C. to meet with representatives from the State Department's Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration (PRM) and the Thai and Lao desk officers to urge them to take greater action to resolve the Hmong humanitarian crisis in Southeast Asia.

Immigration Reform
East Bay youth urge passage of DREAM Act

Congregations Organizing for Renewal (COR), August 20, 2009

About 20 youth members of the PICO affiliate Congregations Organizing for Renewal (COR), together with other community members, gathered at Our Lady of the Rosary Church in Union City, CA to call on lawmakers to reform immigration laws, including passing the DREAM Act.

Safe Neighborhoods | Youth Development
Early results from San Diego youth collaborative shows big results

San Diego Organizing Project (SDOP), August 1, 2009

For the past two years, PICO affiliate San Diego Organizing Project (SDOP) has led a vision and effort to make San Diego the most youth-friendly city in the United States. SDOP's hard work has resulted in some extraordinary wins thus far.

Safe Neighborhoods | Youth Development
Faith Works Creates Opportunities for Youth in San Diego County

Faith Works North San Diego County, July 28, 2009

In July, PICO affiliate Faith Works of North San Diego County, CA won twin victories in its "Lift Every Voice for Youth" initiative.

In less than one week, faith leaders from PICO affiliate Contra Costa Interfaith Supporting Community Organization (CCISCO) organized three health care forums with County Supervisors and their staff to give the community an opportunity to voice their opinions on harmful cuts to the Basic Healthcare Program.

Immigration Reform
Sacramento Catholic Churches create Immigration Support Network

Sacramento Area Congregations Together (ACT), April 15, 2009

For the past year, PICO affiliate Sacramento Area Congregations Together (ACT) has been collaborating with the Catholic Diocese of Sacramento and Bishop Jamie Soto to realize a diocese-wide Immigration Support Network.

Safe Neighborhoods
San Jose parents & community members press school district on dropout crisis

People Acting in Community Together (PACT San Jose), April 13, 2009

On April 3, PICO affiliate PACT San Jose took another huge step forward in transforming education in San Jose so that all kids have access to a path to college.

Safe Neighborhoods | School Improvement
Congregations & schools unite to tackle Stockton's dropout crisis

People and Congregations Together (PACT Stockton), April 6, 2009

On Saturday, April 4, over 200 faith leaders from PICO affiliate People and Congregations Together (PACT) in Stockton, CA came together with schools officials to launch a "Steps to Success Campaign" aimed at reducing the dropout rate in Stockton Unified School District.

School Improvement
New Annenberg study finds OCO's grassroots organizing key to sustaining school reform in Oakland

Oakland Community Organizations (OCO), April 3, 2009

On April 2, the Annenberg Institute for School Reform at Brown University and Oakland Community Organizations (OCO) released a new report that credits OCO with being the catalyst for launching the city's successful small school reform effort and for creating the political will to sustain this reform for nearly a decade.

Housing Opportunities
Richmond residents hold banks accountable for helping rebuild city hard-hit by the foreclosure crisis

Contra Costa Interfaith Supporting Community Organization (CCISCO), March 17, 2009

On Thursday, March 12, over 500 residents from the hard-hit city of Richmond, CA packed St. Mark's Catholic Church to ask city, county, and bank leaders to take aggressive steps to deal with the approximately 2,000 abandoned, foreclosed bank-owned properties in this city of 100,000.

Immigration Reform
San Francisco leaders urge Speaker of the House to move forward with immigration reform this year

San Francisco Organizing Project (SFOP), March 16, 2009

In March, PICO affiliate San Francisco Organizing Project (SFOP) and ally organizations held a high-energy town hall meeting with Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and Congressman Luis Gutierrez, urging them to make fixing the broken immigration system a national priority.

School Improvement
Students organize for quality education in Contra Costa County schools

Contra Costa Interfaith Supporting Community Organization (CCISCO), February 27, 2009

With California’s struggling economy and rising unemployment; a high-quality education that prepares students for the workforce or college is paramount to the stability of local communities throughout the state. On February 24, nearly three hundred students, concerned parents and faith leaders from the Contra Costa Interfaith Supporting Community Organization (CCISCO) gathered city and state officials, including California State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O’Connell, to express their concerns, research, and personal testimonies about inadequate school preparation in their communities.

Housing Opportunities
Faith leaders fight foreclosures & blight in southern California

Faith in Action Kern County, February 20, 2009

Kern County residents win commitments from Wells Fargo to buy foreclosed properties at discounted rate; more assistance for struggling homeowners; money for neighborhood stabilization.

Economic Security | Immigration Reform
Immigrant families lead way on fair towing policy

Inland Congregations United for Change (ICUC), February 13, 2009

After hundreds of one-to-one conversations with community members from Cathedral City, CA revealed that many immigrant families were being stopped by police for minor traffic violations and then having their cars impounded, members of Inland Congregations United for Change (ICUC) went to work changing the police department's car confiscation policy.

Stay Informed

Housing Opportunities | Health Care Access | Economic Security 800 PICO leaders descend on Sacramento to make kids priority in state budget

Economic Security PACT urges U.S. Treasury to hold banks accountable

Housing Opportunities | Economic Security BofA bars its own customers from closing their accounts

Housing Opportunities | Economic Security Holding Banks Responsible By Community Organizing

Economic Security Faith Groups to Protest Bank of America, Wells Fargo

Economic Security CCISCO join Rally to to hold Wells Fargo Accountable

Safe Neighborhoods Hundreds gather in Oakland in support of violence intervention efforts

Housing Opportunities | Economic Security Los Angeles Votes to "Invest in its Values"

Housing Opportunities | Economic Security Faith Groups Escalate Campaign to Hold Bank of America Accountable

Safe Neighborhoods | Immigration Reform New L.A. police chief pledges trust between immigrants and police

Economic Security | Safe Neighborhoods Richmond community unites to address violence through jobs, training, mentoring

Housing Opportunities | Economic Security Contra Costa faith leaders take major step forward in "Bank Accountability" campaign

Health Care Access | Immigration Reform Long Beach congregations hold health care & immigration reform forum

Safe Neighborhoods | Youth Development Early results from San Diego youth collaborative shows big results

Safe Neighborhoods | Youth Development Faith Works Creates Opportunities for Youth in San Diego County

Health Care Access | Immigration Reform Call for Healthy, United Families Draws 400 supporters

Safe Neighborhoods San Jose parents & community members press school district on dropout crisis

Safe Neighborhoods | School Improvement Congregations & schools unite to tackle Stockton's dropout crisis

Economic Security | Immigration Reform Immigrant families lead way on fair towing policy

Learn about community organizing »

PICO California on the Web

Housing Opportunities | Health Care Access | Economic Security
800 PICO leaders descend on Sacramento to make kids priority in state budget

Economic Security
PACT urges U.S. Treasury to hold banks accountable

Housing Opportunities | Economic Security
BofA bars its own customers from closing their accounts

Housing Opportunities | Economic Security
Holding Banks Responsible By Community Organizing