Democratic struggles and voting are important to the Black and brown communities of New Haven, Connecticut because they allow community and labor groups to combine forces to transform the service economy and build a more democratic New Haven.

New Haven faces several economic, social, and health challenges, including a 25% poverty rate. The struggles for racial equality and economic opportunity are two common struggles we are faced with today. Democracy gives myself and my community a voice and an opinion in the fight against the many inequalities in various communities of New Haven.

We are also committed to ending the epidemic of senseless gun violence in our communities and reforming the broken criminal justice system that tears families apart, while fighting against environmental injustices that have allowed low-income children to be exposed to lead and African American children to suffer asthma at twice the rate of white children.

Building local movements and coalitions to mobilize around the attacks on democracy and voting rights is key. Here in New Haven we are currently asking communities to sign petitions for Congress to take federal action to better protect the voting rights of all Americans in the face of regressive state laws and voter suppression efforts. While contacting our federal, state, and local public officials and telling them why democracy, voting, and fair elections are important to our communities, while encouraging neighbors and communities to be active in civic organizations, registering voters, getting involved in local elections, or serving on local committees.

Our current success here in New Haven are the People’s World route in Newhallville, which allows us to build relationships with residents, making sure they are registered to vote, educated about elections, etc. Our coalition work with New Haven Rising has encouraged working-class voters across the city to elect alderman candidates who have been taking on the “Goliath” in New Haven—Yale University.

This movement has elected a super majority of working-class union allies to the Board of Alders and recently won a victory where Yale will be forced to pay the city of New Haven $59 million over the next six years, since Yale avoids all city property taxes. Union locals 34, 35, and 33 at Yale also won agreements in their contracts to force Yale to hire 500 people from low-income neighborhoods in the city into full-time, permanent, union positions with benefits.

By engaging voters in Newhallville and beyond, we have State Representative Robyn Porter and State Senator Gary Winfield, who successfully pushed through the police accountability bill in the State Legislature last year. Immigrant rights have also been protected through Senator Winfield’s leadership on the Trust Act, which prohibits local law enforcement from cooperating with ICE.

Youth marches in Black and brown neighborhoods led by the YCL, Ice the Beef, and other groups have shone a light on the youth violence issue and helped win the re-opening of the Dixwell Avenue Community Q House, where programs such as cooking classes, dance classes, job training, homework assistance, and much more will be free and available to all youth in the community.  Young people door knocked as well to get out the vote for elected officials who have been pushing for the reopening of the Q House.

Unite Here Local 217 has had some recent legislative victories as well in terms of winning the “right to return” legislation at the state level that allows laid-off workers to come back to work if they were terminated due to the pandemic.

These victories and actions would not be possible without hard work, organizing, and the community having a voice in the decision making that impacts their lives.

Images:  New Haven Rising rally, April 2020 (Facebook); Activists paint “Yale: Respect New Haven” on the street, New Haven CPUSA.

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