One man tacked his complaints to the door of a Catholic church. Do people know your story?

Your stories will change our destiny.

BACKGROUND:

1. Millions of people are blogging their stories.
2. Policy activists are always looking for "personal stories" to support their goals.
3. You are more powerful than you think.

IMPACT:

1. One single story can make tanks roll to a stop.
2. The new march in Selma, Alabama, is flickering across our keyboards.
   

Photo by eskimoblood.

First, a little background: Every so often, our legislative bodies express an opinion – without making a law – on the issues of the day. They use a special type of resolution called a “Sense of the Senate” “House,” or “Congress” to send a message, whether that message is to the American people, to the President, to the rest of the world, or all of the above. These resolutions can address some pretty politically charged topics; for example, they were used during the public debates on the war in Iraq and on the Terry Schiavo controversy. (See here for more information about these types of resolutions.)

The American people never get consulted on these resolutions. Their words are not included, and thus, their opinions are muffled. They are only given an outlet during the next election, when the “sense of” resolution is long forgotten.

This project aims to change that. We’ll build a mashup where Americans can come together and write their own version of the resolution together – a “Sense of the Nation” resolution. This site will allow the American people to play a more active role in their country’s political discourse. It will give hundreds or thousands of citizens the chance to come together to debate online, build consensus on the issues that are facing the country, and tell their legislators what THEY think.

If enough people contribute to the process, who knows – maybe some forward-thinking legislator will introduce the citizen-authored version of the resolution in Congress directly!

This project, the catalyst for change:

Every year in the US, millions of federal and state dollars allocated to low-income people and our communities are left on the table. Earned Income Tax Credits, Food Stamps and Enterprise Zone hiring tax credits are but a few examples. There are a myriad of reasons why the accessibility of these benefits is challenging, but what remains clear is that improving the takeup of these resources would release real dollars flowing into the pockets of low-income famillies, businesses and communities.

To address this complex problem, we need to engage and compel stakeholders from Community Leaders to policy makers at a local and state-wide level, from District Supervisors and other local officials, to Community-Based Organizations, and the Philanthropic Community. The ability to demonstrate graphically and in real time the dollar amount, type of benefit, and the neighboorhoods most affected will allow a transparency and richness of information which we have not yet been able to create.

As the project continues, we also see scope to add to the map other elements of public concern which characterize low-income neighboorhoods, i.e. costly check-cashing sites and pay-day loans, and other examples of money seeping out for expensive services.

Who we are:

SF Works is a catalyst for workforce success. We develop big-picture, innovative and practical solutions that benefit workers and their employers, delivered through our business and community network. Our programs respond to both employees aspirations for self-sufficiency and advancement and employers' demands for return on investment. Our goal is to create a vibrant, motivated and self-sufficient workforce in San Francisco.