Over the past month, One LA has adapted and doubled down on efforts to reach those most impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic and "Safer at Home" policy. Here's a round-up of what we've been doing:
One LA Connect
Social distancing does not mean social isolation. A team of One LA leaders has been hard at work to overcome the digital divide, scheduling ongoing trainings on how to use Zoom in English and Spanish. One LA is also working with our member institutions to establish Care Teams to reach the most vulnerable members of our communities, uncovering pressures related to food, housing, health and income. If you would like to get connected, please let us know here.
Civic Academies
Many workers have lost hours, been furloughed or even laid off during the last few weeks, while many small businesses are struggling to maintain payroll. Tenants and homeowners are worried about making the rent or mortgage payments.
So, One LA leaders have been using Zoom and conference calls to conduct civic academies on Protecting Tenants in English and Spanish, Navigating Unemployment Insurance and the Payroll Protection Plan, as well as working to develop resource guides for immigrants who have been left out of federal aid packages. We are also organizing calls and research actions with decision-makers in LA County to get resources to our communities quickly.
If you would like to learn more about these topics and begin to share the information with others in your institutions, please click here.
Census 2020
One LA is participating in the We Count LA campaign to get out the count in 2020. A crisis like this is a good reminder of why we need government--many of our hospitals and emergency response systems come from federal funding. If jobs and infrastructure projects are passed in the coming months to help people find work, funds are allocated based upon our census counts.
As of today, only 40% of LA County residents have responded to the census.
If you haven't yet filled out the census, you can do it online here.
If you would like to learn more about the census and get training on how to get out the count during these challenging times, please tell us here. We'll be organizing more virtual ways to connect in the weeks ahead.
IAF ORGANIZATIONS WORKING TOGETHER
On Saturday, April 4th, One LA leaders participated in a Zoom conference with over 250 other leaders from our sister Industrial Areas Foundation organizations across the country. The conference was organized to understand more about the present and future economic impact of the virus, especially on low wage workers, senior citizens and immigrants. The call was joined by prominent economists Teresa Ghilarducci and Richard McGahey from the New School of Social Research. More seminars are being organized to help local organizations work to strengthen our social safety net and create opportunities for workforce training and employment in the months ahead and can be accessed here.
Want to know what other IAF organizations have accomplished in the last few weeks? Get the news here!