ProgramsNYU Wagner Capstone: Advocacy and Political Action (Fall 24' to Spring 25')ProjectsGrowing Our Legislative Advocacy Muscles - One Issue at a Time

Project Title: Growing Our Legislative Advocacy Muscles - One Issue at a Time

Urban League of Greater Hartford

Details
Project Title Growing Our Legislative Advocacy Muscles - One Issue at a Time
Project Topics
Skills & Expertise
Project Synopsis: Challenge/Opportunity
A.  Urban League of Greater Hartford (ULGH) does not have strong capacity and competency in civic advocacy. The mission of the League is to promote racial justice through economic empowerment rooted in five pillars for economic mobility: (1) Education, (2) Employment, (3) Housing, (4) Health, and (5) Justice. The fifth pillar, Justice, encompasses civic advocacy, social action, diversity and inclusion, legislative process, and policy design. 

B.  The consulting support from NYU/Wagner would help ULGH formalize an organized justice strategy, identify legislation at the State level that aligns with priority areas, and develop a campaign to position it as an engaged player in social justice.

C.  Potential issue areas for our communities include:
      1.  Education
            a. Every Student Succeed
            b. [Over]policing in schools
            c.  College readiness v. trade skills development
      2.  Employment
            a.  Governor’s Workforce Council  
            b.  Innovative jobs
            c.  Entrepreneurship
      3.  Housing
            a.  Homelessness
            b.  Intersection of health and housing
            c.  Affordable housing stock
      4.  Health
            a.  Mental Health
            b.  Healthcare access & coverage
            c.  Behavioral Health
            d.  CBD (cannabidiol)
            e.  Environmental Health
            f.  People with Disabilities– a priority of Rep. Tammy Exum
      5.  Justice
           a.  National Urban League (NUL) “D3 Campaign”
                 1.  Defend Democracy
                 2.  Demand Diversity
                 3.  Destroy Poverty
           b.  Environmental Justice
                1.  Develop an ESG strategy or policy 
                2.  Leverage for Corporate Social Responsibility
                3.  Differentiate ULGH among community groups for partnership opportunities
           c.  Voting Rights
                1.  John Lewis Voting Rights Act
                2.  Expansive Voting Rights
           d.  Census
           e.  Advocacy
           f.   Alignment with BAPRC (Black and Puerto Rican Caucus)

D.  ULGH also needs to assist the representation of nonprofit services and their impact on underserved communities.
  1. Key quote from a non-profit legislative influencer:  “If we don’t do it, who will? Every year, our services are on the chopping block, whether it’s DMHAS Services, DDS Services, or DSS.  Every year, we’re on the chopping block. If we don’t get up there and stand up for our services and the people we take care of, those services (could) very easily go away.”
Project Synopsis: Activities/Actions Required
  1. Meet with the consultants to familiarize them with ULGH, the Hartford region and the State of CT legislature.
  2. Help them ID the local resources to do their research (e.g. The Alliance Voice of Community Non-profits). 
  3. Have the consultants research and identify legislation that aligns with our mission and proposed project.
  4. Identify 2-3 key issues to potentially craft into a proposed bill.
  5. Collaborate with ULGH and its community stakeholders to determine the highest priority issue to move forward on.
  6. Collaborate with ULGH to create a strategy for executing an advocacy campaign for that issue.
  7. Position ULGH to be a convener on an issue
Project Synopsis: Expected Results
  1. If ULGH can (with the consulting support of NYU/Wagner) identify, articulate and bring forward a bill that addresses a key need of its constituencies.
  2. If ULGH can collaborate with CT lawmakers and other community stakeholders to guide this proposed bill through the Fall 2024 General Assembly session.
  3. If ULGH can use this experience to increase its internal capacity to influence the State legislative process in support of its constituencies.
  4. If ULGH becomes among the first nonprofit agencies contacted by legislators when issues or opportunities arise.  
  5. Example of the kind of quote we want from our agency: “ After doing it once, each time after that got much easier. And what I learned from that is that it’s not such a scary thing to do. It’s actually kind of fun to get out there and be a part of the process, because ultimately we’re looking to make these healthier communities.”  

Project Timeline

Touchpoints & Assignments Date Type

Program Kickoff

 Sep 12 2024 Event

Teams

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