Organize for Justice
We organize for justice to change social conditions
In other words—to prevent flooding in the first place
Power and Organizing at Sacred Heart
Sacred Heart Community Service works to transform the systemic conditions that produce the suffering of poverty and racism, and in the meantime we try to alleviate that suffering by offering direct services. Community organizing is how we work to transform poverty and racism at the root. The Power and Organizing program trains volunteer community leaders to channel their influence and work collectively.
What is community organizing? Organizing is everyday people coming together to change our local policies and government structures so that the institutions we depend on work for and benefit the people.
How do we do this? We build relationships with one another and develop each other’s leadership skills. At Sacred Heart we believe that the people closest to the pain know the best solutions to the problems in our county, so our job as organizers is to get those people together and shift the power in their direction.
You can learn more about each of our organizing committees below.
Sacred Heart
Organizing Institute
The Sacred Heart Organizing Institute takes the lessons we’ve learned over many years of providing essential services and running campaigns for justice and makes them easy to understand.
Personas Activas Sobresalientes Organizando Soluciones (PASOS)
Organizes around issues that impact immigrants/Se organiza alrededor a temas que impacta inmigrantes
Race, Equity and Community Safety (RECS)
RECS is a network of multi-racial community leaders working together to reimagine community safety for all. We organize our communities for equity in public decisions about budgeting, program and service delivery, and alternatives to current systems that harm communities of color.
Sacred Heart Housing Action Committee (SHHAC)
We are a diverse group of San José residents, workers, voters, and organizers representing the immediate need for renters rights and affordable housing for homeless, low and very low-income residents, and economic refugees.
Survivors of the Street (SOS)
This is an organizing committee whose members either are or have been unhoused. We believe that if unhoused people organize in large numbers they have a unique ability to change public perception, wield power over policy decisions, and shift cultural norms about members of our community.
Showing Up for Racial Justice (SURJ)
SURJ at Sacred Heart is a group organizing white people and other folks with privilege to take action in solidarity with Brown and Black communities around issues of decarceration/policing, housing, immigration and indigenous sovereignty, and working to end racism throughout Santa Clara County. It is the local chapter of the National SURJ network. Our general membership meeting is the first Tuesday of each month.
City Council
Report Cards
They offer our perspective of their performance on issues that matter to us, and the people we serve and organize. These are not campaign pieces and are not intended to advise the community to vote for or against any politician.