When I was in school, a teacher taught me that the world divides into the haves and the have nots, and that economic self-sufficiency is security for those who have managed to climb into and remain within the circle of haves.
One uplifting and positive energy aspect of living in the Bay area is the attention and political will often focused on the have nots, of which there are many: those who have no home, who have no job, who have no legal right to remain in the USA, who face mortgage foreclosures and who suffer from slum landlords.
Just Causes is a group that works in East Oakland, West Oakland and the Mission District of San Francisco to put the spotlight on the plights of these have nots. A merger in 2010 of St Peter's Housing Committee and Just Cause Oakland brought about this multi-racial grassroots organization which describes its purpose as "building community leadership to achieve justice for low-income San Francisco and Oakland residents."
Take a look at their website and look for their bilingual occasional newspaper, "Just Cause|Causa Justa." If nothing else, its headlines tell armchair liberal haves that someone out there is fighting for justice - spelling out how the Dream Act can help children of illegal immigrants to qualify for Deferred Action to achieve lawful immigration status, or how to fight the national housing crisis that claims homes from hard-working families facing foreclosure.
Just Causes is full of the plights of have nots, and it shines a light on issues that can respond to good will and positive energy that are trademarks of the Bay Area.
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