PATH Member Newsletter: Jan/Feb 2025
As national changes are impacting our local communities, we at PATH are in solidarity with federal employees, immigrants, and others who are being targeted. We continue to strategically act together at the state and county level to create change for a more just society.
Read more about our recent work:
PATH Organizational Updates
Annapolis Advocacy Days
Statewide Campaign Next Steps
Standing with Immigrants
1. PATH Organizational Updates
We are so pleased to announce a new member of PATH! Long-standing partner in the work, Kittamaqundi Community Church, has officially joined PATH. Hurray!
We are currently hiring for an Associate Organizer for PATH, whose work plan will focus on housing. We welcome applicants with and without organizing experience, but look for candidates who can build relationships across race, socioeconomic background, religion, age, and issue. People with drive and determination and a strong desire to make real change happen–a good mix of inspiration and pragmatism. This is a great place to grow and develop and build towards local and statewide campaigns and organizing. You can find out more here.
2. Annapolis Advocacy Days
On January 30 and February 17, a total of 207 of us from the Maryland Just Power Alliance (PATH, AIM, and ACT) came to Annapolis to participate in our democracy!
We met in small groups with 49 of our state legislators and staff to advocate for our policy priorities:
The Housing for Jobs Act,
Good Cause Eviction,
The ReNEW Act,
Pre-K expansion, and
Protections for immigrants.
Together, we did what we do best: sharing our personal stories with our legislators and building relationships. We bring unique power to the table because we are everyday people in our legislators' districts who can show up and speak about the issues we care about.
We met with every member (or staff) of the Howard County delegation, and had wonderful PATH group leaders. We also engaged more young adults, including an organization Amy Brooks co-founded of Oakland Mills High School students, bringing good energy and gaining attention from the legislators.
Great work, everyone!
3. Statewide Campaign Next Steps
The Maryland legislative session is moving at a rapid pace, and there are still many opportunities to advocate for the bills we're supporting, for a more just and livable Maryland:
Hearing Turnout:
For some of the bills we support, especially the Housing for Jobs Act, we are showing up at the hearings in Annapolis to demonstrate our support and gain recognition from the Governor and legislators. Sign up here to come to the Housing for Jobs hearing on Tuesday, March 4.
Action Alerts:
Another effective way to support our priorities is by emailing your Senators and Delegates. We are sending out email alerts 1 or 2 days before each bill hearing to everyone who lives in the district of a committee member to send them a message. Check your email for these action alerts.
Issue Action Team Meetings:
We are holding a series of meetings for each of the policies we’re supporting (housing supply, renters’ rights, climate, pre-K, and immigrant protections) to discuss political strategy. Stay tuned for email invitations to these meetings. To get on our email lists, email Katie Wenger: katiew@actioninmontgomery.org.
Stay Informed:
Keep up-to-date with upcoming events, fact sheets, and more on our statewide campaign page.
4. Standing with Immigrants
In these challenging times, we stand together in solidarity with immigrants in our community. Our sister organization, AIM, has put together a list of resources for protecting immigrants’ rights: Resources for Immigrants
We are also supporting 3 bills at the state level to protect immigrants’ rights: the Protecting Sensitive Locations Act, the Maryland Data Privacy Act, and the Maryland Values Act. You can read more about these bills, and all the bills we support, here.
Thank you for being part of PATH! Please consider making a donation to support our work.
Donate at: pathmaryland.org/donate
